#effective outage management

[smsgatewayindia]

Crisis Communication: Using SMS and Voice Effectively During Outages

Learn how to use SMS and voice calls for effective crisis communication during outages. Discover actionable strategies to ensure timely updates, build trust, and maintain seamless operations.

[tacticalhimbo]

HURRICANE HELENE RELIEF

Since I'm incredibly anxious and very much annoyed, I'm compiling this post as a sort of master list of relief organizations and individual fundraisers for those in the path of Hurricane Helene.

Many of the links I post on this won't be individuals, but I encourage those within the path to add their links to this post in reblogs! Likewise, if you have any organizations / volunteer / grassroots efforts y'all would like to share, please do so!

LAST EDITED: 9/29/2024 - MAKE SURE TO CHECK REBLOGS FOR UPDATES!

My list is particularly focused on widely accessible resources, as well as Florida specific resources since... I'm from Florida.

(INTER)NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

American Red Cross - The American Red Cross is on the ground helping people as Hurricane Helene approaches land as a very dangerous storm. Helene may produce winds over 150 mph, a massive 20-foot-high storm surge and as much as a foot of rain. Prolonged power outages and tornadoes may occur. The effects will be felt hundreds of miles inland including in Georgia and the Carolinas.

FEMA Disaster Assistance Improvement Program - The Disaster Assistance Improvement Program’s (DAIP) mission is to provide disaster survivors with information, support, services, and a means to access and apply for disaster assistance through joint data-sharing efforts between federal, tribal, state, local, and private sector partners.

Roll Mobility - An application that equips wheelchair users with reliable information about the accessibility of restaurants, public spaces, businesses, trails, and parking areas. Good information to have on hand, especially for those evacuating from their home areas.

Warmline Directory - Providing extensive yet accessible resources that empower individuals to find the mental health and wellness resources they need through a directory containing accurate and in-depth information. For those unfamiliar: Unlike a crisis line, a warm line operator is unlikely to call the police or have someone locked up if they talk about suicidal or self-harming thoughts or behaviors. A good resource for individuals in mental distress due to natural disaster circumstances.

Food Not Bombs - Recovers food that would have been discarded and share it as a way of protesting war and poverty. They also reduce food waste and meet the direct need of communities by collecting discarded food, preparing vegan meals that they share with the hungry while providing literature about the need to change our society. Food Not Bombs also provides food to protesters and striking workers and organizes food relief after natural and political crisis.

Partnership for Inclusive Disaster Strategies - The Partnership for Inclusive Disaster Strategies (The Partnership) is the only U.S. disability-led, 501(c)(3) organization that prioritizes equity, access, disability rights, disability justice, and full inclusion of people with disabilities, older adults, and people with access and functional needs before, during and after disasters and emergencies.

FLORIDA

Volunteer Florida Disaster Fund - The Florida Disaster Fund is the State of Florida’s official private fund established to assist Florida’s communities as they respond to and recover during times of emergency or disaster. In partnership with the public sector, private sector and other non-governmental organizations, the Florida Disaster Fund supports response and recovery activities.

State and Local Level Referrals - When a disaster occurs, local governments often work together with community leaders and organizations to provide on-the-ground emergency management. Curated by FEMA. (Has 52 Organizations Listed)

GEORGIA

State and Local Level Referrals - When a disaster occurs, local governments often work together with community leaders and organizations to provide on-the-ground emergency management. Curated by FEMA. (Has 60 Organizations Listed)

TENNESSEE

State and Local Level Referrals - When a disaster occurs, local governments often work together with community leaders and organizations to provide on-the-ground emergency management. Curated by FEMA. (Has 49 Organizations Listed)

NORTH CAROLINA

State and Local Level Referrals - When a disaster occurs, local governments often work together with community leaders and organizations to provide on-the-ground emergency management. Curated by FEMA. (Has 45 Organizations Listed)

Beloved Asheville - A community-led coalition dedicated to providing home, healthy, equity, and opportunity for all.

Triangle NC - This links to another post I've made, but Triangle Mutual Aid is organizing supply drop offs as well as financial support.

SOUTH CAROLINA

State and Local Level Referrals - When a disaster occurs, local governments often work together with community leaders and organizations to provide on-the-ground emergency management. Curated by FEMA. (Has 44 Organizations Listed)

INDIVIDUAL FUNDRAISERS

Support a Resilient Family Seeking a New Home - LINK ; Tumblr @junpei-iori-ace-defective (Close Friend of the Affected) | Fundraiser Text Below:

My name is Adam. I'm not the best at this; I never thought I'd have to do this, but my family and I lost our home on September 26th due to the hurricane Helene here in Florida. No one in our area thought it would get bad, but we didn't have any rain. All of a sudden, the water rose, and by midnight, our home was flooded with three feet of water. I had to carry our pets to the neighbors and my disabled wife through five feet of water. Then, my elderly disabled mother and grandmother through the water. We lost all of our clothes and many of our belongings, and our landlord will be having us move out. We have nowhere to go, so today I'm asking for help from the kindness of the world. Anything can help. If I can get enough to get us into a new home, it would be a blessing. Thank you all, and God bless.

Help Rebuild Lives After Devastating Flash Flood - LINK ; Tumblr @undeadnecromancer (Close Friend of the Affected) | Fundraiser Text Below:

On September 27, after being trapped in a flash flood for 5 hours, my father, Jeffrey Fuller, and sister, Kayla Fuller, left with their lives ❤️ but lost everything else. My father had set his life up to be simple and enjoyable. He didn't have a lot extra, but he had everything he needed, and now all of that is gone. Unfortunately, he did not have flood insurance, and the older you get, the harder it is to bounce back from something like this. For a man who has always shown up for everyone he loves, he needs us to show up now. Please help my father rebuild.

If you have seen the video circulating around from Jeffrey Fuller where it looks like a river is going through his house and he ends it with a “Love you all,” you have seen what has brought on this devastation.

Hurricane Helene Aftermath Help - LINK ; Tumblr @moonenjoyer (Affected Individual) | Fundraiser Text Below:

Man I hate to do this but I'm in Valdosta, one of the cities hit the worse by Hurricane Helene. It's BAD here. In particular, there's no estimate of when we'll get power back. Word on the street is it could be a week or longer.

I work from home and going without power that long, I won't be making any money. Meanwhile my groceries are all spoiled in a fridge with no power and my car is on E. All the gas stations are down atm and when they're back up I KNOW gas prices are going to be crazy high because of all of this. In fact, EVERYTHING is going to be more expensive for a while because of this.

If you have anything to spare to help me with gas and groceries and just surviving this, I'd really appreciate it. If not, a reblog/share would mean a lot. Thank you ❤️

Save Nate and Amanda's First Home - Urgent Hurricane Needs - LINK ; Tumblr @luckyfirerabbit (Affected Individual) | Fundraiser Text Below:

Hi. I'm Porter Henderson. This isn't about me, though. You’re going to see a lot of fundraisers with Hurricane Helene. This might be a little different.

You see, I’m writing this on behalf of my landlords and friends, Nate and Amanda. The home we share with an additional disabled man in Lithonia, Georgia had some repairs that they couldn't afford, made much worse by the hurricane. They'd been limping along like everyone dealing with inflation and underemployment, but the situation has become urgent, and they need and deserve help.

Nate and Amanda have been my friends for over a decade, and when they heard I was no longer able to work and in a bad situation, they offered me a place in their first home. I told them I wasn’t sure what or when I would be able to pay. They told me that if I ever won my disability case I could start paying rent then.

You see, I'm trying so hard to save this home because they’ve tried so hard to save me.

I was so grateful to move in, and they treated me like family. When I lost the ability to drive, they made sure I got to my doctor’s appointments, and still do. When I can’t afford food, they take me to food banks, and what I can’t find there they’ll help me get at the store. They meet all the needs they could reasonably meet, and then a couple more.

I’ve lived here for three years now, and they’ve never stopped assuring me that I am wanted, even if I can’t contribute to the household on a daily basis. They have never let me go without if there was any other way. They have helped friends and strangers every time they have seen a need. They are unfailingly honest, incredibly trustworthy, and extremely hardworking people.

They've never had much, but they've shared everything they have.

Now, though, the hurricane turned a seem in our roof into a gushing waterfall, and finally into a large hole in Nate and Amanda's bedroom ceiling.

We tarped the leaking roof from the inside to channel out as much water as we could, but with a literal hurricane outside, there’s only so much that you can do.

The three of us who couldn’t get into the attic pushed our chronically ill bodies past their limits, dragging furniture away from walls, hauling totes as fast as we could with our canes, shoving empty containers into the corner as we kicked the debris out, and researching strategies for how to deal with the nightmare. Later we would wade through flooding water to dump out rain and tie down loose trash cans, shine lights and relay directions from the attic to outside, as we all attempted to get the water venting outside the house.

To make matters worse, the HVAC needs to be replaced. It’s a seventeen year old system, with a huge crack in the (inaccessible) drain pan and a bad motherboard. Some friends pooled money with Nate and Amanda to get a couple of window air conditioners for the summer. With medications that make three of us sensitive to heat, it’s been a rough summer, but we got through.

Unfortunately, winter is a few weeks away, and it’s going to be a little less than seventeen thousand for a new system to be installed.

What makes it an emergency however, is that without the drying and air movement of the AC, trying to dehumidify everything is going to be even harder, giving us a greater chance of mold. If mold takes hold, I'm not sure if we can save the house.

This fundraiser is for the $2,500 hurricane deductible that we're almost certainly going to be charged by the homeowner's policy and the $17,000 for the HVAC, plus estimated fees for the platform.

Not included in the total are any cleaning supplies, or a tiny storage unit and rental truck if we need one to store all of their bedroom furniture while the roof is redone. (We won't know about any of that until we get the estimate from insurance/roofing.) The claim has already been filed.

The air conditioning is a pre-existing problem, and I've found no way for it to be covered by any charity, government program, or private programs in the state. The ones that my social worker knew about didn't apply (I applied anyway) and I let her know about two more that I found. The religious groups I've reached out to in my area don't work in anything but clothing, children's furniture, and durable medical goods.

If additional costs emerge, or anything ends up being less expensive, I will update and adjust the goal accordingly as soon as I find out.

Please help these genuinely good people. The smallest donation helps. So does sharing.

Thank you in advance.

[fullsunalicia]

gif made by @dojaejung ! all credits to @dojaejung !

roses (m.) | jeong jaehyun

“it’s killing me to know there’s someone else out there buying you / roses, roses” OR where jung jaehyun is pathetic enough to be yearning after his beautiful ex-girlfriend, whom he reconnects with after awkwardly crashing her date with a new potential lover.

jeong jaehyun x ex-girlfriend! reader

warnings: some allusions to stalking and online harassment, some make-outage, oral (fem. receiving), some exhibitionism ig?????, some cussing, jaehyun is EXTREMELY down bad (he who yearns is he who earns amirite yall), svt as side characters for my caratzen agenda, also i’m still an awkward writer (in my opinion) so that warrants its own warning

This is why Jaehyun despises leaving his apartment.

For the first time in weeks, Doyoung and Taeyong, in their combined nerdy best friends power, have managed to make him go outside again. Although it’s the middle of the winter, each day inching closer to Christmas day, the bustling city is filled with people enjoying themselves despite the sub-zero temperatures. It makes him sick, really. Not people in general, for sure, but the sight of couples swarming about, their happy faces making sure every single person’s envious gaze is following them until they disappear around the corner.

Winter is sickening. Winter makes people too cozy, too cuddly, too loving. When spring comes, that love melts away, fleeting as it was. It dims out like the warm fire you stoke in the evening as you gather with your loved ones, in the morning long gone and forgotten with the loss of the guests. Jaehyun hates it. His friends knows he hates it.

So did you.

As Doyoung and Taeyong keep him in their middle, holding on to his arm on each sides as if they were old aunts bickering away, he reminisces about your shared hatred of the cold. You had hated snow, most of all, he remembers as he watches the thick, cold flakes swirl around in the air. It leaves a mist on the people passing by him, painting them in the lovely shades of the cold. Rosy cheeks, white smiling teeth, blue fingertips. If he closes his eyes, he can almost imagine it’s you clinging to him again, complaining loudly about the weather, scared of falling to the ground. You had always been incredibly clumsy, and unashamedly loud. Every passerby could not help but smile at your antics, but none smiled wider than the man you had wrapped around your littlest finger; Jaehyun, who had always stared at you instead of ahead. Jaehyun, who in the end always made you guys fall because he wasn’t concentrating on walking, he was concentrating on you.

You, the single star in his solar system he was orbitting around. He had felt himself collapsing, folding around you, as if he could ingrain himself in your existence in the very same manner you had immortalized yourself in his soul. How pathetic you had left him.

“Hey, earth to Jae! You’re not seriously upset we made you leave the house, right?” Taeyong’s hand forces itself into Jaehyun’s periphery as he waves it infront of Jaehyun’s face, trying to gain the man’s attention. Every finger was perfectly manicured, the tell-tale rings that signified Taeyong snapping Jaehyun out of his daydreams. Mentioned friend looks worried, but not regretful. “We were beginning to think you had fallen asleep in there, like some bear. You shouldn’t hibernate.”

“But bears got it so right. It’s so much better to sleep the winter away.” Jaehyun sounds exhausted, almost childish. He knew he was a grown man, not a teenager mooning over his first love. But it certainly felt like he had become the former. That was your effect.

“Dude.” Doyoung grasps his shoulder then, boring his gaze into Jaehyun’s face. He had been dreading that, actually; it’s hard to act like a complaining child when Doyoung makes you face yourself just like that. Almost unconsciously, Jaehyun straightens up. It’s almost like facing your mother, and he’s trying to avoid Doyoung’s fussing. “It’s been almost a year. I hate to be the one to be saying this, but you have to let it go at some point, man.”

You have to let it go at some point. Doyoung’s right, of course, but Jaehyun hasn’t yet reached that point of being reasonable. It’s not like the five stages of grief. Jaehyun is in the awkward process of trying to understand what has actually happened to him; why your relationship came to an end, why you were so kind to him despite it all, how you had finally cut him off. No one really knows why you did it, least of all Jaehyun. As you had broke it off with him after dropping him off at the airport before he flew to the first stop of his current world tour, there wasn’t exactly time to ask questions.

You had given him a letter and apologized (seriously, so not cool to explain in a letter just so you didn’t need to face him), and just as soon as the flight touched down at his destination and his phone had regained connection to his cellular data, you had changed your number, deleted your socials and disappeared from his life.

(Not like he immediately found you again when you re-debuted on social media. Johnny, as a true best friend, has forced him to limit looking at your instagram account to once a week, but how will Johnny know if he does it more? No one needs to know. Jaehyun would lose face if even anyone knew how much he misses you.)

Jaehyun lowers his eyes then, unable to keep looking at Doyoung. “Let go. Yeah.”

Doyoung and Taeyong exchange a worried gaze at that, before nudging him to a new direction. Their footsteps leave soft white traces, disappearing as quickly as they are made as fresh snow falls. “I got just the thing to cheer you up,” Taeyong quips then, and when he smiles at Jaehyun in an attempt to comfort him, Jaehyun finds the strength to smile back. Those are his friends, after all. If he weren’t so detached from his emotions, he’d find himself moved by their sincerity; his silly friends that loved and cared for him despite his habits and his weird coping methods. They didn’t judge when he sent them new song lyrics he had written in the middle of the night because the memory of you is still haunting him, scaring him off sleep because the comfort he gains from dreaming of you is as addicting as chasing liquor. They had let him ruminate in his apartment for as long as possible. It was time to face the world properly now. “Hot cocoa and waffles?”

Jaehyun snorted. “Like children?”

“Like children,” Taeyoung announces, his voice too earnest for the statement. Doyoung laughs, and then it’s difficult to not join in. Taeyong grins, happy to have drawn that reaction out of them. For the moment, Jaehyun feels normal again, and he offers to buy the waffles as Doyoung and Taeyong line up to buy the hot cocoa.

That’s the same moment where Jaehyun immediately regrets having left the house.

The sight of you physically knocks the breath of his lungs. For just a second, just seeing your face erases the feeling of all the pain that had been wrenching at his heartstrings, your beauty so all-encompassing it stuns him into silence. The cold season has kissed your face in the most pretty way - as you throw your head back in laughter, your (incredibly tempting) lips curve into his favorite smile of yours, the smile that has to be stolen out of you, so surprised by something that you laugh involuntarily. Honest. And earnest.

And beautiful.

It’s almost beautiful enough to make him not acknowledge the other man that you are gifting it to.

Jaehyun forces himself not to look, the effort incredible. He does not want to see who you have replaced him with, he really doesn’t, truly not, but then the dizzy envy makes him look so that he can bombard the man with death threats in his mind. Not that it matters. He could have been anyone, anyone at all. What did it matter if that was someone he knew or someone unknown, when the most damning thing about the situation was that it wasn’t him?

When he looks back at you to keep analyzing whether you like this man a lot, Jaehyun has come to the startled realization that you have noticed him, aswell. Your face has dropped, the shock painted over your face like an ill-fitting mask. “Jaehyun?” you say, the sweet voice carried over to him in the wind, and his knees almost buckle. (Jesus Christ, he’s a grown man.) Your partner notices, looking up to see whom you’re addressing, and Jaehyun’s nonchalant reaction to the irrelevance of the man’s identity disappears instantaneously.

Fuck you, he thinks hard at the dude, as if the sheer mental strength of his thoughts could reach him, for actually looking gorgeous. Fucking hell.

“Jeong Jaehyun?” You call again, robbing him off the opportunity to maybe pretend he hadn’t heard you. He forces himself to move forward.

“You know each other?” the guy asks then, and Jaehyun thinks to himself, No, idiot, I am the stalker that’s been breaking into her apartment and leaving her letters. But then he remembers how Johnny has admonished him for doing the social media equivalent and how often he visits your socials just for a glance at you, and the thought almost immediately sobers him up. “Jeong Jaehyun,” he introduces himself then, reaching out his hand to shake the other man’s, even though he’d rather bite it off. “We were…”

“Acquaintances,” you interrupt him almost immediately. The smile you sport now is nervous, to the untrained eye flawless. But Jaehyun knows every inch of your soul, and the look in your eyes pleads him not to acknowledge it. “Jaehyun used to be really close to my brother. You’ve met my brother, right?”

“Oh, Seokmin, right?” The stranger’s eye glint in recognition. “That means you must be cool, man. Anyone who’s in Seokmin’s good cards is good in mine. My name’s Junseo.”

“Nice to meet you, Junseo,” he makes himself speak, although the words taste like coal in his mouth, turning ashy as he pronounces them. He’s never been a good liar, always careful about choosing his words, but then, he’s never been in the situation where had to meet the lover that was going to replace him in your heart. He turns to you, your lovely face ripping into him. You stare back as if you are aware of the effort it takes him to remain friendly. You don’t look like you enjoy inflicting this havoc upon him, but ever since that day, he doesn’t truly know what you are capable of. “It was nice to see you,” he tells you, turning away as soon as the words leave his lips.

He never hears your “Jae”, the sound ripped out of you like an old instinct.

jaehyun

could you maybe at least warn me that your sister is back in town

dk 😁

yo

i didnt even know she was

can you let her know to bring milk to mom’s house we ran out this morning

jaehyun

. . .

no dk i cannot i almost collapsed when i saw her

can you say hello to your mom tho

Jaehyun drops the phone on the couch, the interaction having soured his mood just as much as the meeting with you. Seokmin was cool, and a really good friend, although a bit clueless. He had been firm in his support for Jaehyun, not picking sides, but not abandoning their friendship either, and had been one of the friends who had dragged him out for dinner once a week ever since the break-up to make sure Jaehyun was actually eating. Jaehyun doesn’t even think this happened to your dismay. You were way too nice, and even your fucking break-up letter had been kind, even though it hadn’t been enough to wipe the blank look in his eyes as he had read it.

“Okay, so that may have went worse than we thought,” Taeyong proclaims, the hot cocoa still steaming in his hand. Even though they had technically paid for the cup as a loan, taking it back home felt like stealing. Jaehyun couldn’t find it in himself to care. He was staring at the ceiling, looking at no one. “But hey, at least we found out who the mystery guy on her instagram was!”

Johnny, who had let himself into the apartment while they were gone, perked up at that. Very aware of your instagram due to Jaehyun’s influence, he knew that there had been an odd silhouette in your instagram story the past few weeks, almost a soft-launch and almost not. There had been theories whether the mystery guy had been a new lover. Jaehyun had almost thrown up when Mark had suggested the idea. “You did? She was with a man?”

“Yeah, Junseo what’s-his-name. Didn’t give a last name, though.” Doyoung sounds concentrated, probably too focussed on not breaking Jaehyun’s new coffee machine. “Jaehyun, coffee?”

“No,” Jaehyun deadpans. “I want death.”

The entire room groans at that. “Fresh out of death, dude,” Johnny tells him, bowing over the couch to throw a blanket over where Jaehyun was laying and Mark had fallen asleep. Johnny was his best friend in the entire world, and very used to Jaehyun’s antics. Throughout it all(the acclimatization to the celebrity life, the growing into a fully formed and actualized person in the public eye, the stabbing ache of heartbreak), Johnny had become a brother to him. It was Johnny’s hand pulling him along through life, his ears that were entrusted with every joy and worry in Jaehyun’s mind, his kindness that kept Jaehyun standing sometimes. “It’s coffee or nothing,” he continues after ensuring both men on the couch were covered with the blanket. And then, as he turns back to Doyoung: “Make him some coffee. He hasn’t touched his cocoa.”

The quiet bickering of his friends fade away then, forcing him to come to terms with what has happened. Seeing your face again felt like being struck down by God, to put it in blasphemous terms. You had always been the most beautiful person to him, including both his preference that came from loving you and his attraction to people in general. Jaehyun hadn’t been the kind of man to have an exact type before meeting you, but now he looks for you in every smile, every fluttering lash, in every face he meets. Looking for the traces of where your ancestors had painted their magic, the overarching connection between several generations, the hand reaching across time. Whoever crafted you had taken his time to ensure every single detail, and the love that had flowed into the shaping of you glinted across every feature. Having been starved of seeing you, this interaction had thrown him into cold water face first. Even the memory stung.

You hadn’t looked bothered to see him. If anything, you had been as sweet as always, even though you hadn’t expected to see him. He had thought being gone from your side had hurt, but seeing that Junseo was making him sick to the stomach. It was his job to make you laugh like that. It was his duty to ensure your happiness. To think of that fool doing it in his stead made him spark up with a fury that he had long forgotten, the feeling so unfamiliar it made him reach inside those spaces inside himself that he had abandoned for so long. During the separation every emotion had come to him so dull and muted - happiness, sadness, surprise, anger. But as if they had never left him, Jaehyun recognized that he was jealous.

Awfully jealous.

So that was the next step of Jaehyun’s alternative five stages of grief process. Instead of coming to terms with the ephemeral nature of his relationship with you, he’s pining over the one woman he cannot have. He raises his hands to cover his face, his fingers shaking - it’s crazy, how you unravel him. It’s been eight months and Jaehyun is still willing to go on his knees to beg just to make sure you stop seeing anyone else.

(At that point, he was very unaware of how near in the future that was going to happen.)

“Hey, dude.” Jaehyun is snapped out of his thoughts by the raspy voice of one Mark Lee. He lowers his hands to see Mark peaking his head out of the blanket, hair completely ruined from tossing and turning in his sleep, looking just like the lion that his friends affectionately nickname him as. Their friends are still bickering in the kitchen, arguing about how to handle the coffee machine properly, with Doyoung’s voice cutting through the others. “You alright over there?”

Jaehyun clears his voice. He suddenly feels glad that Mark doesn’t know yet that he’s seen you, as he doesn’t want to burden Mark with his worries. He’s only a little younger, but he’s the closest thing to a younger sibling Jaehyun has, and he treasures him to the point where he often wants to shield him from the shit that Jaehyun has going on. “Yeah, all good. Why did you wake up? Not sleepy anymore?”

“Your phone has been going off like crazy.” Mark points at the aforementioned phone before yawning. As Jaehyun reaches for the device, he sits up and looks into the kitchen from the vantage point he has of the kitchen. The screen lights up after a few quick taps, and Mark asks: “Something important? Sounds like someone’s spamming you.”

dk 😁

not to be the bearer of bad news but mom wants to have you over for dinner on saturday

😭 maybe i shouldnt have delivered your greetings bro

i think my sister has a date on that evening tho so maybe nothing will happen?????

i mean you can say no but you know damn well my mom loves you (because you kiss up to her) so

yeah

i get if you dont want to

Jaehyun blinks. Several times. Then, he drops his face into his hands again, sighing so loudly that even Mark seems astonished.

It seems like you’re not gonna leave his mind anytime soon.

The first time Jaehyun had met you, you had still been a junior in college.

He’s always known you existed, of course - the pretty-faced little sister that was off-limits to anyone, who had the most embarrassing haircut when she was still in middle school, who liked to receive flowers for her birthday instead of gifts. Seokmin doesn’t talk about you often, but when he does, there��s a gentle smile etched on his face that seems like the most jarring contrast to the way he bickers and fights with you in person. Jaehyun couldn’t conjure an image of you, but when he thought of your name, it filled Jaehyun’s mind with a sweet dream. He had been missing you in his heart before he had even met you, the soft tug of a red string around his littlest finger.

The request had been hastily asked and innocent in nature. Pick up my sister, please? An unusual request, as Seokmin never introduced his sister to anyone for your own privacy, but it didn’t bother Jaehyun to do it, especially since DK was a very good friend. You had been incredibly drunk, and uncomfortable at a party, and called for the person you trust most in the world. DK on the other hand, drunk out of his own mind at an entirely different party in his own dorm shared with his bandmates, had called a friend he knew he could entrust with the safety of his littlest sister.

Completely hammered and wobbling on your entirely too high heels, you had gladly clung to Jaehyun’s arm after realizing he had been the savior your brother had sent you. Your introduction came out loud and clear, and you had enunciated every syllable to make sure he heard it. When he correctly repeated the name back to you to ensure he remembered it, a dazzling smile had split across your lips in the cutest way possible. It had made his heart jump in a deliciously agonizing way.

“Can you walk?” he had asked you then, pointing down at your monstrous heels. He had truth be told been incredibly impressed with the way you had managed to leave the front porch of the party house, even though every step enunciated that you were incredibly intoxicated. You had waved off his worry and beamed at him with the innocent happiness only a drunk person could exude, completely free from all wordly burdens. “Don’t worry!” you told him, your voice as melodious as it was pleasing. “I’ve walked in worse heels! And I’m not even that drunk!”

Jaehyun had no intention of questioning you, but the exclamation did make him laugh. He had been awkward about the interaction the entire time he had driven here. Would you be able to even feel comfortable with him? What if you guys didn’t speak about anything? But your behavior had loosened up the tension inside his chest, and he found himself relaxing under your hold, gently guiding you back to his car. Your grip was tight, but not painful, and you had hooked your arm around his to keep close to him in a way that wasn’t entirely unwelcome to him. He had not expected to warm up to you so quickly. “So you’re able to hold your liquor? You must not actually be related to DK then. The guy can’t hold his liquor for shit.”

The joke tugged a surprised laugh out of you. It was a nice sound, the genuineness of it making a smile form around Jaehyun’s lips. So open, so friendly, so extroverted - so incredibly different from him, and yet a simple laugh from you made Jaehyun entranced with the existence of you. He wanted to relish the sound, making him wrap his fingers around the keys in his pockets to ensure they wouldn’t rattle when he pulled them out. “I’m sure he’s got that from mom,” you had explained to him while snickering, momentarily letting go from him as he opened the door for you. After clambering in and pulling the door shut, he had walked around the car to climb in himself. The door clicked shut. “I’m my father’s daughter through and through. We used to place bets at New Year’s parties with the family how much time it would take for mom to crash out after a single bottle of champagne.”

“And?” he asks. The engine of the car sprung to life with a simple press of a button, idling quietly while Jaehyun had put on his seatbelt. “Did you win the bet?”

Your expression in the rearview mirror was smug when Jaehyun checked his surroundings in it, pulling out of the parking space he had found near the house the party was in. “I was fifty bucks richer about half an hour later.”

Jaehyun couldn’t help but laugh - at your behavior, your teasing little remarks, the way you hiccuped before laughing because you were a little liar that couldn’t hold their liquor. By the time he had reached DK’s apartment building, where you had requested to be dropped off because you wanted to sleep over at your brother’s, your drunkenness had made you drowsy. Without even thinking about it, you had climbed over the console to envelop Jaehyun in a hug, shocking him to the core. Your floral perfume had been dizzying, but the near proximity of you had almost made him drunk himself. Jaehyun was an idol under the strict gaze of both his employer and his supporters. His resulting touch-starvation had made him grasp your soft waist with both hands, and he closed his eyes to soak in the warmth of your touch. It was startingly intimate. “Thank you for bringing me home,” you had murmured against his shoulder, momentarily resting your head on it, as if it belonged there - as if you had been made to be held by him. You lined up perfectly, like puzzle pieces, and for a moment, Jaehyun had felt complete in a way that made him question himself was my heart always hollow of you?

When you pulled back with your bright smile and your hazy eyes, a pink blush had dusted across Jaehyun’s cheeks that he prayed you hadn’t noticed. “You’re super duper nice,” you proclaimed then, not fully retracting from where you were leaning on his body. Not pushing his hands away, either. “And it’s way more fun to ride in your car than in Jeonghan’s. You drive like a responsible adult.”

“Are you saying Jeonghan doesn’t drive like a responsible adult?”

“I’m not sure he knows what that is.” Giggling, you untangled yourself from him, startling Jaehyun with the immediate ache for you. Get a grip, he thought to himself. Acting like a teenage virgin. “And I should know!” you enunciated. “The idiot tried teaching me how to drive. If DK hadn’t put an end to that, I would have never gotten my driver’s license.”

Jaehyun, still reeling from the affection you had graced him with, smiled shyly at that. “Well, I’m glad to have brought you home safe, like the responsible adult I am. Can you make it up on your own?”

You “mhm”ed loudly, noisily maneuvring yourself out of the car. Jaehyun winced quietly when the heels of your shoes clacked against the pavement harshly, almost sure one had broken. But you had straightened up with a grin, waving stupidly, shouting loud “thank-you”s and “get home safe!”s as he watched you walk into the apartment complex, running into your drunk brother and almost-brothers (as his bandmates liked to title themselves as, loving you like you were one of their own).

He had sat and waited for a long time for his erratic heart to slow down again. You were a miracle he hadn’t been waiting for, like a sudden blessing after a fervent prayer. He went to sleep thinking of your name, finally being able to connect it with a face, the yearning following him into his dreams.

It was that same yearning that woke him up in the middle of the night now, reaching for the empty bedside, remembering where you were.

Remembering that you weren’t reaching for him anymore, no matter how much you had loved him.

Jaehyun cleans up nicely, when he wants to. When he checks his reflection in the camera app one last time before ringing the door, he almost doesn’t recognize himself. Johnny’s girlfriend had helped him put on a little bit of make-up to cover the black shadows under his eyes and wished him luck, although he wasn’t sure what he needed the luck for. To see you? Not to see you? The question had been eating away at him on the way here, making his hands sweat to the point that the driver’s wheel had looked kind of disgusting afterwards. He can’t shake the cold fear that accompanies the thought of you these days. The desire to be in your presence was a knife turning in his guts, so sharp that even the pain seemed more welcome than another day without you. As he closes his eyes, he imagines you opening the door, welcoming him home, kissing all the exhaustion away. But when the door opens up after knocking at it, the sweet face of your mother receives him.

Not that the sight isn’t welcome. Jaehyun sees his mother often enough to not have to miss her, but the need for a motherly presence never truly leaves you, no matter how old you are. There is a part of him that will always be a child, reaching for his parents’ hands, knowing he will be safe there. Your mother fills that space often when his own cannot. “Jaehyunnie! I’m glad you made it, sweetling,” your mother gushes, hurrying to clasp his hands. The sight of her red, marred hands makes his heart hurt - has she been overworking herself? - but the pain is soon replaced with a gentle warmth spreading inside his chest at her motherly clucking. “Hurry inside, we made your favorite! You still like spicy pork, right?”

“Yes, ma’am.” He removes his shoes before stepping inside, feeling nostalgic. The first time he had met your parents, the house had been newly bought and hardly acquired, with your parents having haggled for an appropriate price for months. Over the years, the building had been renovated, filled with furniture, and changed as more and more memories had been made in this place. To see it now standing proudly and lived in made him happy, but also sad, as he wasn’t fully part of that experience anymore.

“Don’t be silly, boy! You know you call me mom here!”

“Yes, mom.”

“Mom,” rings out the complaining voice of Seokmin then. He’s standing at the foot of the stairs. His voice had been petulant, but there’s a very big grin on his face as Jaehyun approaches him in greeting, and they hug each other without hesitation. DK had seen him go through enough shit to not have to shy back from physical affection. “Don’t nag with Jaehyun before he’s properly inside. How’s it going, J? I heard your new album, it was awesome!”

Your mother nods enthusiastically. “You are hard-working as always, Jaehyunnie! The songs sound beautiful!”

Jaehyun laughs, bashful. He feels awkward and happy at once, to be complimented upon for his talents while simultaneously knowing that most of those songs had been written with you in mind. “Thank you for saying that,” he answers.

“It’s only right,” your mother tuts then. As she turns to walk back in the kitchen, she opens her mouth to say something again, but there’s another knock at the door, startling them all. The three exchange glances, both Seokmin and your mother seeming surprised by the noise. “Are you expecting someone, Seokminnie?” When DK shakes his head no in answer, she walks back to the door, humming to herself in confusion. “Maybe your father? But he’s not supposed to get off work until 8.”

Before your mother even opens the door, the dread of who could possibly be standing in front of that door tells Jaehyun what to expect. And as he turns over that assumption in that mind, the door opens to reveal you, clad in a red dress that hugs your curves and exposes your mid-thigh. “Oh, sweetie!” your mother exclaims. “But what are you doing here? Aren’t you going to dinner with that Junseo-ssi?”

You don’t answer, your eyes locked onto him. He recognizes the sight of slight panic and confusion in your eyes - apparently, DK hadn’t told you that you were visiting in the hopes that you wouldn’t see each other anyways. Although barely a second passes, it feels like eternity as you take each other in.

Fuck, you’re as beautiful as the day he lost you. He doesn’t even register that your mother is still chattering away as he drinks in the sight of you, the sinful silhouette and the angel eyes that have been accentuated by a skilled hand and your favorite eyeliner pen. The blood rushes in his veins, filling his ears with the sound of waves crashing, his desire lapping higher and higher until it makes his chest hurt. “Mom,” you manage to say. “He was called into work at the last minute. It’s pretty awkward to be the only one all dolled up here, so may I go up and change please? And not have to make awkward small talk in the salon?”

“Of course, sweetling, just go up! Seokmin will help me with the last preparations for dinner.” Your mother leaves at that, and the three adults remaining are crushed by the awkward tension in the room. Even more awkward for the third wheel in the room is that neither of both you and Jaehyun have looked away from each other ever since you walked in, and DK takes the chance to quietly slip out of the room to join his mother in the kitchen, leaving Jaehyun to his doom.

(Traitor.)

Jaehyun breathes out, struggling to fill his lungs with the air he needs. “You look stunning,” he says, his voice straining to pronounce the words. It’s pathetic how much he wants to press you against that wall and devour you. Even though his inner adult yells at him that he isn’t yours anymore, the thoughts do not stop coming. Truthfully, there can’t be any scientific explanation for how fast his heart races because of you, but it keeps on beating, jumping out of his chest. Falling to your feet.

You finally step out of the doorframe, into the house itself. The door quietly falls into the lock. You reach down to unclasp your high heels, the movement mechanic. You seem as dazed as he is. He entertains the possibility whether he has the same effect on you as you do on him, but he casts the thought aside immediately. You had left him, after all. “Thank you,” you answer, your voice meek. As if you were to strangers. “Are you … doing well?”

I hope that despite the way I’m ending things, you will be well. I pray that you are healthy, that you are eating enough, that you flourish in your career as you deserve to be. You are outstanding, Jeong Jaehyun, a flaming star lighting up the sky. I pray that you find it in yourself to forgive me.

“Well?” he echoes, as if that word was a joke. And then, almost in disbelief, he asks back, “Are you?”

You lower your gaze then. “I finish my master’s degree this year, so I’m a little stressed. But aside from that, I am fine, thank you for asking.” You straighten up, intending to walk past him. But Jaehyun, as if possessed, grabs your wrist; the touch makes both of you shudder, and you look up to see the absolute yearning in his eyes staring back at you. He doesn’t really know what made him do it, and he seems as shocked as you are; he had been thinking more quickly than he had been moving, and his muscles spasmed from the lack of communication between his nerves and his brain.

It’s written across his face, it must be. The intense wish to bow his head and lean against you, cage you against the railing of the stairs. To make you reach inside his soul and connect the broken pieces there that were the remaining shards of his heart. Jaehyun doesn’t want anyone else in the world to see inside him like that. He wants you, he wants to be your boyfriend. Despite it all. The good and the bad, the beautiful and the ugly. Are you well? Jaehyun’s hand slips lower, interlocking your fingers, the physical connection there setting fire to the skin. I pray that you are. “Take care of yourself,” he tells you instead of all the words that have been left unsaid ever since you abandoned him, all the tears that he has shed. He wants to tell you how his pride for your success makes him fly higher than any of his own achievements ever would, how soft his heart feels at the fact that you are so close to reaching your goals. How much he wishes to be a part of supporting you towards that. But he doesn’t.

You don’t break free of his hold, but it seems clear that you do not reciprocate the hurricane of emotions he is feeling right now. “You shouldn’t say that,” you tell him, tone polite, but your voice sounds hesitant. He wants to kiss the hesitation out of you, eat your laughter as he tugs at your lower lip. The proximity is driving him crazy. “I mean, I don’t wanna be rude. But I am seeing Junseo. You don’t have to worry about me, Jae. Jaehyun.” You cough awkwardly, as if that can erase the affectionate nickname, as if there isn’t something inside you still calling for him. You step backwards. If hitting the railing is embarrassing to you, you don’t let it show.

He lets go of you and steps back, then silently watches you go up the stairs. Your soft shuffling as you walk back to your room. The decisive shutting of a door.

Silently dreaming of what would happen if you graced him with your attention again.

The dinner itself is uneventful. You make polite conversation, thankfully sitting diagonally away from him, wedged in between your mother and your brother, whom Jaehyun sits across. But he sees the blush never truly leaving your face, and the way you throw glances at him when you think he isn’t paying attention. It makes him delusional enough to imagine that maybe, he wasn’t the only one still thinking about their ex.

Jaehyun glances down at his cleared plate, a half smile curling at his lips. Not truly a real smile. But not truly a lie, either.

@leey/n has started following you on Instagram!

@leey/n has liked a post!

The third time your paths cross, you truly think you are about to go crazy.

This is an art gallery, for crying out loud. You don’t think you’ve ever seen Jaehyun in a museum. Not that he’s uneducated or disinterested, mind you, but Jaehyun was the kind of guy to take you to places where you could etch your own memories across the place. The arcade in Busan where you won your first ever plushie and promptly gifted it to him, for one; the trip to Jeju where you had almost fainted and scared the shit out of Jaehyun; the high-end restaurant in Gangnam where you both can never let your face be seen again after having been thrown out for laughing too loud. You had spoken about the particular art gallery here once, debating about attending an event that was held in that month, but ultimately had the decision taken out of your hands after you unexpectedly had to go the hospital due to your appendix bursting. But here he was, looking like the most ravishing man alive in that stupid suit.

It should be forbidden to look that good. Genuinely. You think your heart stops momentarily when you see him, and then again when your gaze involuntarily drops to the exposed skin of his chest, displaying the vulnerable area due to the v-cut of his suit jacket. Hell. If you didn’t know any better, you’d think he was doing this on purpose.

You gather up the train of your dress and hurry over before anyone can recognize either him or you. He looks startled, and then that weird flash of desperation flits across his eyes before he hastily makes himself appear composed. You don’t for the life of you know why exactly his reaction to you is like that, but you suppose the time for complaining was over, since, you know, you broke up with him. You knew it had been a bitch move to write a letter, but you couldn’t exactly tell him the true reason to his face. Hey, I know this sounds stupid, but I’m afraid of ruining your career because netizens keep shit talking our relationship and tainting your reputation, have a nice day though!

No, he’d never understand. This was for the best. He’d been so close to completing his album, so proud of what he had achieved, and the grief of almost taking that away from him made you want to throw up. So you had decided to sacrifice yourself, in an as cowardly manner as possible.

No one would ever know that Jeong Jaehyun made your soul sing in the most exquisite way possible, and that your heart had been filled with so much joy that it almost burst. No one needed to know.

“What are you doing here?” You hiss at him. You turn your head to ensure that no one is actually looking, before tugging him to the side. Almost unconsciously, you take his hand and guide him to a different spot, a quiet corner where only strangers were staring at the art being displayed. Even the music was muted.

“Is this not a public event?” he hisses back, confused by your behavior. But he lets you do as you please, even lowering his head to yours to make sure no one hears. His fingers gently tangle with yours, swiping across your knuckles as he always does - did. It’s like your love runs deeper than human behavior, deeply embedded in your body’s instincts. You see it in the way the caution you display reflects back in his eyes, as if your secrets are still holier to him than his own. Even though he has no idea why you’re being so ominous. It’s one of the qualities you love most about Jaehyun; he never once tries to tell you what to do, always acquiescing your needs, letting you take the lead when necessary. It makes a traitorous happiness bloom inside your chest that he is still the kind of person who would always have your back. “Why exactly wouldn’t I be here? If it’s because you didn’t want to see my face, don’t tell me that. I don’t think I could handle it.”

“Jeong Jaehyun,” you groan, exasperated as you are. You hastily scan the area, always dreading that Junseo is about to turn the corner to catch you both. It had already been a surprise that evening had been made possible, since Junseo was a workaholic. Your friends joked around that he loves his residency at Seoul General Hospital first, and you second. You did not want to squander this opportunity of growing closer to him, a whim based on the fact that he was a pretty face and you desperately needed to move on. You weren’t serious, and you could count the amount of dates you had been on on one hand, but it worked its magic enough. Jaehyun only needed to believe that you were moving on. And Junseo only needed to believe Jaehyun was unimportant. Not like it’s forbidden to speak with an “acquaintance”, even if he did see you both here - but Jeong Jaehyun wasn’t an acquaintance, he was your ex-boyfriend for crying out loud, and if it weren’t for the necessary masquerade to appear as if you were moving on, you wouldn’t even be entertaining Junseo’s presence, no matter how charming he was. It was a stupid plan, concocted by an even more stupid Jeonghan. “Who would’t want to see your face? That’s not what I mean.”

The compliment slips out before you can hold it back. It’s so easy, so habitual to make it, to admire Jeong Jaehyun’s existence. You had never even met a man like him. He was sin made flesh, with his well-formed, strong body, the gorgeous face, the sun-kissed hair that switched colors from comeback to comeback. Jaehyun looks surprised to hear it. The dimples in his cheeks signal the smile that stretches across his lips, sweet and genuine and startled. It makes you sad, that he doesn’t expect those compliments; he is the kindest, sincerest, most attentive man you know.

(And if you were still in a relationship, you would have torn the clothes off of him and jumped him for looking that good in a suit. Not want to see his face my ass - you could stare at Jeong Jaehyun all day.)

“I thought we weren’t supposed to say stuff like that,” he says back, his voice low. It sounds deliciously rough, the way it sometimes sounded when you woke him from his sleep to kiss him, the sleepy yawns turning into soft moans when you rode him, his hands mapping out the space of your skin. You shake your head, as if you can shake off the memory. Your adoration for him went bone-deep. “Whatever,” you say hastily, as if that can erase the obvious pining you are displaying. “I mean, I don’t want Junseo to see us. I know you don’t like to lie, and I’m sorry for introducing you as an acquaintance, but I’d like it to remain that way. For him to believe there was nothing between us, I mean.”

“And is there?” Jaehyun’s voice sounds steady. It kills you to see the hope in his eyes, even now, even after you’ve hurt him after flaunting a new relationship. You remember his beautiful face on that day at the Christmas market, where the agony in his eyes had almost made you weep. You never ever wanted to be responsible for Jaehyun’s grief, not even now. “Nothing between us?”

You falter then, forgetting what you want to say. You can’t tell him the truth, you cannot - the truth being that when you look into Jaehyun’s eyes, your knees go weak and your hands yearn to claw at him and your kisses want to devour him whole, bones and all. You want to crawl inside him and live there forever, like the insane lover you are. You want to kiss him until you forget your own name, until the mornings become routine where you wake up next to him, where the sight of his beautiful face becomes the first thing you see after waking up for the rest of your life. The wish is so fervent it catches you off-guard, and it weakens your resolve. “There’s nothing, Jaehyun,” you say. Even you can hear the uncertainty. The atmosphere is so tense that you didn’t even notice the room has cleared out; the area is curtained off, a special exhibition inside the actual exhibition, for a yet-to-be-discovered artist who gained the space to present their art through chance. The few people who had mingled here had quietly left, identifying the situation as a lover’s spat. Anyone could walk in. Anyone. The realization makes your heart skip a beat. “You understand that, don’t you?”

Your words make sense, yet your actions don’t. You unconsciously inch closer to him. You shouldn’t, you shouldn’t, you shouldn’t. “You’re confusing me,” Jaehyun responds, sounding frustrated, but when his hands find your waist, his touch is careful. Gentle. Like a collector in awe of the precious rare item he has found. “I thought you hated my guts. You know, that’s the kind of interpretation a break-up letter entails.”

“Jaehyun,” you whisper. You want to rip his hands off, leave him here to come to terms with the realization that this relationship is over. It had been such a difficult situation, and so painful; to rip the band-aid off in the manner that you did. You hadn’t even told Jeonghan about the reason you broke it off, so afraid of the consequences, yet more afraid of the repercussions of your relationship to Jaehyun’s career. You needed to tell him off now, before you do something you would regret. You do none of these things, however. You let Jeong Jaehyun cradle your face in the middle of the gallery as if nothing has changed and the two of you are eternal and you have never been apart. Something inside of you reaches for his soul, across the gaping abyss that forced mythological Orpheus and Eurydice apart. You let him bring your face close enough that he can press his cheek against yours, mimicking Gustav Klimt’s The Kiss hanging in the hall outside. A sweet irony. It had always been your favorite painting, and you know there was a copy of it hanging in Jaehyun’s living room, bought by you for an anniversary long past. His lips trace the lines of your cheekbones, feeding the selfish ache inside you that is always desperate for Jaehyun. “It doesn’t matter. I’m with a different man.”

The answer makes Jaehyun draw in a sharp breath, but his ministrations continue on; as if his love for you was an instinct he was chasing after unconsciously. His lips trail a burning path across your face, his fingers curling at your nape. Lulling you in. Entrancing you. “At the risk of sounding like an asshole - I don’t care,” he murmurs against your skin, the words reverberating in your blood. “I would give anything for being able to touch you like this. Even if this is the last time.”

You screw your eyes shut. Even if this is the last time. Almost mechanically, you raise your arms to draw him against you, your bodies lining up perfectly; you had always secretly enjoyed how well you guys fit together. A perfect match. When you had dropped him off at that airport, you had been robbed of truly saying goodbye to him. Coming home late, almost oversleeping and missing his flight, riding in separate cars because the staff had piled into the seats of which at least one should have been reserved for you. You couldn’t even kiss him goodbye - you had let go of Jaehyun with a heavy heart, a mind full of anxieties turning over all the threats you had received not only digitally, but now even physically, and with a mouth full of lies. This is the last time. You look up at the same time as Jaehyun decides to throw all caution against the wind, bowing his head to inch closer. “Let me kiss you, please,” he whispers, the desperation in his voice so heady it makes you feel drunk. “May I kiss you?”

You draw in a sharp, shuddering breath, and murmur your assent. As if this had been a decision and not a stabbing, sharp need below your chest. “Yes. Yes, Jaehyun.”

Your lips meet his halfway, although meet is the wrong words. It’s a crash and burn, two stars folding around one another and exploding in a supernova; there is nothing human about the way Jaehyun hungrily devours the surprised gasp you let out. His kiss is all fire and blood and teeth, the messy clacking of two people who had been made to love each other once and then cut apart by fate. Your hastily sucked in breaths keep getting interrupted every time Jaehyun kisses you again, and again, and again. It’s a sweet torture, and a productive one. By the time he has dragged you against a wall you are lightheaded and out of it, your skin prickling with the feeling of Jaehyun mapping out his way. “Oh sweetheart,” he sighs out against your collarbone, his teeth painting markings across your chest. You barely even register him falling to his knees. “I could die tomorrow and be a happy man.”

“What are you doing?” You ask him, dazed. Your hands find his shoulders (has he become even broader? You seriously need to have a talk with Johnny and the gym routine he forces Jaehyun through). Despite your confusion, your body remembers Jaehyun. You barely even think about following his guidance, complying almost immediately when he taps against your waist so that you raise your leg and angle it over his shoulder. The belated realization makes you blush heavily; your addled mind cannot keep up with your body’s compliance. “Jeong Jaehyun! Are you insane?”

You intended to sound fierce and reprimanding, but when you finally look down to meet his gaze, your knees almost buckle. Jaehyun looks like a man starved, his eyes heavy-lidded with desire, the irises blown wide to ensure every detail of you is burned into his recollection. He looks like a worshipper, and his hands move across the supple flesh of your thighs as if in prayer. Blasphemous and heavenly. And incredibly dangerous. You can still hear the loud chatter of the other guests behind the curtain, just across the room. The nervousness makes your veins thrum. “Baby,” he says, sounding genuinely disbelieving. “Do you honestly think I won’t use this chance to taste you one last time? I don’t know what made you tolerate me suddenly, but I am not going to be the idiot that ruins the opportunity. You’ll let me go down on you, won’t you, sweetheart?”

The term of endearment makes you all fuzzy-minded and giddy. “I … yes … But anyone could walk in…” you nervously start, and yet you angle your hips forward so that Jaehyun can tug down your black lace panties, barely noticing that he tucks them inside his suit pockets. “And we’re not supposed to … I mean, I shouldn’t …. Jesus, Jae!”

In the middle of your feeble attempt of climbing back to the moral highground, Jaehyun had positioned himself right at your core; your hands fumble to hold on to his shoulders before he kisses your vulva way too innocently for a man who’s currently going down on you in the middle of a public art gallery. You barely remember to lean back against the wall for support before Jaehyun dives in like you are the last meal he is ever permitted to have on this earth, and he is determined to make it last.

You bite back a cry when Jaehyun finally laps at you, the torturous kitten lick lighting your entire body aflame with want. Although Jaehyun immediately follows it up by generously sucking at the sensitive bundle of nerves, you cast aside all pretense of decorum due to your greed and dig your fingers in his hair to direct him closer, much closer, and Jaehyun moans. The sound is so delicious it makes your veins burn with desire, the physical pain of craving him running almost hotter than your need to be pleasured. Keyword almost. You wanted to come all over his mouth just for that delicious fucking noise, but your stomach was tensing up, the quick arousal accomplished by the serious lack of sex and masturbation that the past few months had been for you. Jaehyun’s hands claw at your knees, climbing to your thighs, forcing your legs wide open to welcome his fingers where he drags them across your all-too-welcoming entrance. “So wet,” he groans against your core, and you whimper at the vibration, bucking against his lips. Even though he loves to run his mouth during sex, he gets it to work anyways. Jaehyun laps up your sweetness as it drips down, his thumb flicking at your sensitive spots until he has you keening and tearing at his hair. “God, sweetheart, look at what a mess you’re making. You’re fucking gorgeous.”

“Jaehyun,” you gasp when he finally dives his tongue into you, the muscle pumping in mock-fashion of what he would love to do to you. The compliments are doing insane things to you and your heart, your poor heart that is going to cling to this moment forever. While Jaehyun’s fingers work their magic, your own begin to spasm, pulling and tearing at him. Submitting to you and your feral hunger he finally adds a finger, his right hand busy with fingering you while his left hands continues to trace circles over your clitoris. The sudden penetration has you remembering that his own digits are way longer than yours, the memory accompanying the sensation of him reaching further and further until he finds the right spot that has you bowing over him with a loud moan. This is what you missed, what you were imagining when you were daydreaming about sex, daydreaming about the godly way Jaehyun pounded you into the mattress. He knows he’s got you now, speeding up his ministrations at every noise you make. You screw your eyes shut with a bone-deep shudder, the sweet tension inside your abdomen pulling tighter and tighter in a familiar tell-tale sign. “Jaehyun, slow down, fuck!”

He’s curling his fingers, eager for your approval, hungry for more noises - through your blurry eyes, you realize he’s watching you through it all, the gaze of a predator. Not once does he look away, continuing his sweet song of praise. “So beautiful,” he coos against your pussy, pressing close so he can speak the words into your skin, your soul. In your state, it almost sounds like Jaehyun is the only thing in your world, and hasn’t it always been? The miracle in your life that you surrendered all your worship to? You lurch forward when he sucks your clit into his mouth, seeing white for a second, the stimulation becoming too much. “Keep looking at me, please. Wanna watch you when you come.”

“I…. can’t!” you manage to babble, realizing you are edging closer to your climax. You’ve never once been this quick, not with anyone but with Jaehyun; the only man in your life that knew every inch of you, the very shape of your soul. Your body is as familiar to him as the back of your hand; more familiar to him than his own self. Jaehyun is too impatient to deal with your arguments, though. “You can,” he hisses against you, dragging his fingers more fervently. Your warm walls tighten around them, hungrily trying to keep them in, to keep going. The sudden clenching around his fingers makes it difficult. “Look at me and cum or you won’t get to cum at all, I swear it.”

That’s all it takes for you to finally let go, almost weeping with the overwhelming pleasure. Your orgasm washes over you almost too violently, forced on by Jaehyun’s overstimulation as he keeps going and going and going, and by the time you push him off your sensitive pussy there are tears falling from your eyes. But you drag him close and kiss him, kiss him so hard you think he’s going to bruise, and Jaehyun lets you; it is much sweeter and patient than the beginning of the altercation, so sweet on your tongue it has you melting against Jaehyun. This is it, that adrenaline you kept chasing; true, painful, but worth it love. You feel too sensitive and too aware and too alight, but you wrap your arms around him all the same, as if you can keep him forever. Your kisses reach inside of him, desperate for connection, heavy with the longing that had accompanied you everywhere ever since you left him. You think you were born to love Jeong Jaehyun, and you kiss him as if you are Eve reaching for the forbidden apple - knowing it’s wrong, wanting it anyway. You want and you want and you want. Your hands are on his soft cheeks, dragging against his shoulders, careless, loving. You love Jeong Jaehyun, love him so much that your very existence is exploding from the inherent triumph that accompanied witnessing him.

You think you would gladly go to hell for tasting divinity on Jaehyun’s lips. You’d rather be a sinner than apart from him for being a saint.

When you finally tear away from him, Jaehyun’s lips are swollen(your heart almost fails at the sheer pleasure that sight gives you). He lets you drag your thumb across the kiss-stained lip, wiping away the lipstick, tracing his jawline. “Such a beautiful face,” you tell him, watching as he preens from the affection. Your heart to yearns to give him more, but you finally force yourself to step away before you die from the overdosis that is Jaehyun. He watches you, completely out of it. “This is the last time,” you remind him. The lie comes so easily now, even though you are trying to memorize his gorgeous face, tattooing it across your mind palace. You will never forget this, no matter what illness or loss comes for you. Not Jeong Jaehyun. “The last time, okay, Jae?”

You place your hand over his heart, and he places his own above it. For a moment, the situation feels eternal. You were in love and you were both idiots, but it was okay because you were handling it together. Because you would face all the challenges together. Because you would work towards a future together. But the spell is broken soon, and you make the first step back, biting your lip at the sadness resurfacing in his eyes. Jaehyun, you think. The only man you’ve ever entrusted your heart with like this.

“Okay,” he finally answers, helpless. He holds on to your hand, though, making the last few steps to follow you before he is forced to let you go. You turn back at the last second before you enter the main hall, just to see if he is looking away, but there he stands, watching you.

His face is forlorn, softened by his quiet sadness, and your heart breaks again. You leave him there before you can do something else you regret.

When Jaehyun had fallen in love you, he knew he was in for some deep shit.

Picking you up had become a natural habit now. You had long since stopped calling your brother and instead resorted to texting Jaehyun first. It felt like an honor, to be entrusted with your care. That you’ve started to know him in a way that makes you rely on him. Picking you up had led to late-night-drives to sober you up, late-night-drives had turned into a shared breakfast the next morning when Jaehyun was worried about you having hangovers, and fussing over you had turn into regular meet-ups because Jaehyun could no longer deny that what he craved was not reassurance of your well-being, but you in person.

He remembered one morning where he had slept over after a particularly nasty crash-out. You had been laughing and weeping incoherently, your friend Karina aiding him with the information that you had failed your exam and drowned yourself in booze. He had texted DK a “FYI, your sister’s puking her guts out in my apartment” after deciding his home was closer than yours and you wouldn’t last long enough to throw up in your own toilet, before he had sat there with you and braided your hair back while you emptied out your entire stomach. The next morning, when he had woken up to you cuddled up to him still on the bathroom floor, he had carried you to his bed, tucked you in and walked into the kitchen to cook hangover soup, something he had mastered by this point due to the amount of times Mark had familiarized himself with that toilet just like you did last night. Having checked his phone, he read your brother’s only response: “LOL. didn’t even realize she left party”

You had wandered in shortly after, sleepy and pale like a ghost. The sound of your footsteps had startled Jaehyun, but his surprise had turned into a sudden happiness at the sight of your eyes lighting up when you saw him. The realization that his presence made you as happy as yours made him was invaluable. He loved the kind of person he was when you guys were together; existing felt like floating, a light cloud of pure contentment.

Even though there hadn’t been a lot of talking, you had both been deeply comfortable. That was the very first time he had kissed you; when you couldn’t stop singing his praises after claiming his soup was too tasty, he had simply leant over and shut you up himself. It was almost funny at how quickly you had dropped that spoon, tugging at his pyjama shirt to pull him closer, damn right pulling him over the counter. Not that he was complaining. He loved the way you made him feel, the way your touch made it feel like there were stars blooming below his skin. It made him feel like the brightest sun in the sky. “Why did you do that?” you had immediately asked when he finally pulled back. Jaehyun had cradled your face, realizing he was holding his entire world in the palm of his hand. “I just suddenly understood that I want to hold your hair back for you for the rest of my life,” he had admitted then, earning himself a slap to the shoulder. But you had laughed, that pure boisterous laugh that sparked with joy, and his heart had pounded in his chest: unable to handle the luck he was experiencing.

The mornings had blurred into days, the days into weeks, finally bleeding into the most happiest months of Jaehyun’s life. He’d never been cautious, but you had certainly made him braver. Sudden shenanigans in public, joking around entirely too loud during important events, having fun everywhere you guys were together. You had made him believe there were no honeymoon phases. Jaehyun woke and rose in the morning, and went to sleep in the dawn obsessed with you. There were rough patches, stressful and grieving periods when your private lives had been rocked particularly hard with a certain event, but he never once stopped adoring you. You were in every waking breath, every racing heartbeat.

Even now, as he wakes the day after your goodbye in the art gallery, he wakes up with the taste of hope in his mouth, of the shape of your heart on the tip of his tongue. He wakes still dreaming, always dreaming of you.

“So what you’re saying,” states Johnny, twirling a biscuit around in his coffee, “is that you had sex with your ex-girlfriend in a public museum, fully knowing she’s dating someone else.”

“Johnny,” comes the muffled response from where Jaehyun hides his face in his hands. It’s too beautiful of a day. It should be raining, to reflect Jaehyun’s mood, to encompass this entirely too awkward feeling of knowing Jaehyun was still in love with his ex. He had spent the entire morning racking his brain for ideas to get rid of the other man, feeling like Lana del Rey in her worst situationships. Jaehyun has reached a very new low, the kind of pathetic that makes him not care that he’s embarrassing himself by still being at your beck-and-call. “It wasn’t sex.”

Johnny waves the retort away. “Oral sex, then. Still sex.” The comment is too loud and earns Johnny some weirded-out looks, but the man looks completely unbothered. He had once watched Johnny talk about different sex positions completely seriously while standing in line for gelato in Little Italy, back when they had visited New York together. Johnny Suh did not know what shame was. “I never even knew you were freaky like that. Little exhibitionist freak. Maybe I underestimated you.”

“Johnny,” Jaehyun deadpanned. “Is this the time to be making jokes? Can we get to the point?”

“What point, dude? You basically went on your knees and asked her to take you back, and she didn’t. I didn’t realize you wanted me to throw salt into the wound.”

Jaehyun lowers his head to the tabletop, resting his too warm face against the metal surface. He doesn’t dare close his eyes, because the image of you is burned into his eyelids. He feels like an addict itching for a quick fix. It had been like this the entire week now. It was one thing to be ghosted by you and forced to move on by the lack of interaction, and another to be making out with you and getting his hopes up despite the fact you told him this was the last time. All it did was make him delusional enough to think he could convince you for it not to be. “She didn’t say no,” he tells Johnny, sounding pitiable even to him. “She just told me this had to be the last time.”

A few seconds pass before Jaehyun finally raises his head due to the lack of answer from his best friend. The look Johnny gives him tells him is answer enough, and Jaehyun pulls a grimace. He hadn’t expected of Johnny to be feeding into his delusions, but there had been some hope. Hope for you to call. Hope for you to come back. Hope for you to still want him.

You hadn’t unfollowed him yet; you hadn’t posted in days; and your brother has kindly snitched to him that you’ve even been blowing off Junseo. He knows you have finals coming up soon, but thinking rationally was something Jaehyun severely lacked at the moment. He had been entertaining the idea that the … meeting, for a lack of better words, in the museum had shaken you up as much as it did him. He kept replaying the memory in his head, the way your plush thighs had trapped him there on his knees, your pretty lips jutted in a pout, the tears falling from your eyes from the way he was making you feel so good … he almost felt himself get hard again, but quickly killed the boner by thinking of something else. “I just wish she’d be more clear,” he sighs out. At the sight of Johnny raising his eyebrows, he clarifies: “I mean that she’s playing hot and cold with me. I’m not stupid enough to not realize she does want to put an end to this. And yet she’s the one that followed me on Instagram, and kissed me, and made me fall all over again for her. I wasn’t doing well before I saw her again, but I was going somewhere.”

“Somewhere,” Johnny repeats, his tone mocking, but then he sets down the biscuit that had come with his coffee. This is what Jaehyun liked about him the most. He considered everything and thought about everything carefully before giving his honest opinion, and even though he sure as hell wasn’t unbiased, he still tried his best to be. “I guess,” Johnny concurs then. “I guess that’s true. I just think there must be a reason to this. I haven’t known her half as long as you do, but we were friends once, and she never once acted as irrationally as she did this past year.”

Jaehyun perked up at that. It was true, at least. In the weeks leading up to your break-up, as well as the months afterwards, you had been acting incredibly off, to the point that even your close ones had been questioning your case. He hadn’t realized how keen Johnny’s observations could be. “So you think she’s going through something that she couldn’t tell me?” he asks, his voice tentative.

Johnny shrugs. “That sounds like the most logical explanation to me. So you either hook up with her again and question her while you’re at it, or you start looking up ways to get rid of Junseo, I guess.” The suggestion makes Johnny’s face light up with excitement. “Dude, I actually always wanted to hire an assassin on the dark web. Do you think we can do that?”

“No, you idiot,” Jaehyun hisses back. But the gears in his head are already turning, chipping away at the past year, at your secret glances and your guilty letter and the sadness in your eyes when you had let him go. He had always thought that even though you had been decisive, you had at least been sad for not being able to love him in the way he deserved to be loved anymore. now he wonders how selfish he has been, and whether he should have been texting his ex all along instead of grieving what was.

Well. Jaehyun thought it couldn’t hurt to try.

Jeonghan sees him before you do.

It’s the way your best friend immediately starts cackling and turns back around to walk back into the library. You halt in your movements, looking at him imploringly. “Your ex, dude,” he tells you, visibly enjoying the way you immediately enter full-panic-mode. “You’re on your own.”

Your panicked “Hannie!” is drowned out by his snickers, and Jeonghan leaves you to your distress to pretend going to the bathroom. You met Jeonghan years ago, and even though he was older than you, you had become such fast friends that DK threatened to beat you guys up for laughing too loud whenever you were over at their dorms. He was your stupid older unnecessary brother that loved you more than anything, but he is also the most brutally honest one out of all of your friends. You do not go to Jeonghan for advice if you aren’t able to handle the truth. He cuts to the chase real quick and will call you out on your bullshit.

It’s also why he immediately told you that your plan wasn’t going to work out. “Let’s not pretend this is the most lovey-dovey you’ve ever been in your life,” Jeonghan had told you with a straight face. You wince at the memory; Jeonghan’s words are able to tear down buildings. “You love-love that man. You’re in deep, deep shit. Whatever it is you don’t want to tell me about, the thing that made you think up this idiotic plan in the first place, it won’t be able to amount to the feelings you have for him.”

Yes, you love-love him; you know just as much, and your heart sings with that knowledge. It pinches and tingles beneath your ribs, calling out a certain name. It rejoices at the sight of Jaehyun out there, in the rain, wearing not even a jacket but instead jeans and a hoodie that looks large even on him, and a bouquet in his hands. But you love him enough not to want to be selfish enough to endanger him.

The messages had blown up your instant message box for weeks then, each threat becoming more explicit. At first, you had resorted to deleting them. They were all the same at their core, anyways, the same hatred being spewed with different names. But then one persistent account had started attaching pictures to their messages, waking you up from the rose-tinted dream that was being in love with Jaehyun. Pictures of him at private events, including the other band members as well, even the youngest ones who were innocent. You hadn’t responded, but the fear had you making hasty plans; setting up everything carefully, writing the letter, while you prepared to leave Jaehyun in the most respectful way you could imagine because that is what you owed him. But then pictures of his own rented studio inside SM building had started popping up, a room you knew no one but Jaehyun and his aides should have access to, one single message with one ominous threat: Leave him or I’ll ruin the both of you. His life’s work being killed will be your fault.

Your lack of answer surely had made them furious.

You didn’t know whether to approach the managers, or even the police. Stalkers weren’t unheard of in the industry, one being caught and sued almost weekly by now, and Jaehyun had cycled through his fair share of them. No one had ever went for you in that way, though. You were certain that this wasn’t a singular threat, certain that this was someone who would pull out all stops to get rid of you. SM Entertainment was more tightly under lock and key than a literal jail. This person knew what they were doing. And so you did what you thought was right, at the cost of your own wellbeing. How much you had sacrificed and cried after distancing yourself from the man you considered your heart.

And yet here he was.

You shake the umbrella open before stepping out of the library, into the rain. In three quick strides, you’ve reached him. You try to convince yourself you’re just eager to be rid of him, but the corners of your lips quirk up way too happily for your brain to believe that. “Is this your equivalent of a boombox outside my window?” you question.

Jaehyun smiles, and it untangles the heavy knot of dread inside of you. The weather is awful, but you feel warm, spreading inside your chest like the soothing effects of medicine. “It kind of is,” he answers. He sounds like he is carefully weighing his words, but his voice is gentle. “I didn’t know which one your window was. And entering the building to go visit you in your apartment seemed creepy to even me.”

You tentatively reach out, brushing your fingers over the roses. They’re a deep red, plush and freshly bloomed. Expensive. Junseo has never even got you a three-dollar-bundle of flowers from the grocery store. “You know, I already have someone who’s giving me flowers,” you tell him, but the threat is empty. Every inch of you is bursting with happiness. Jaehyun is here, even though it’s the middle of the night and the weather is completely awful, just to give you roses.

(You never even make the connection someone must have told him you’re here. (DK was shitting himself for days in fear of you finding out he was the tattletale.)

Jaehyun hands you the bouquet, his hands covering your own as you grasp it. You watch him as he takes the opportunity to step closer to you, never once reprimanding him. His face is open and trusting, and the force of his loving gaze hits you right in the chest. “I know,” he retorts. “And the thought is killing me. It should be me. And so I will. I will keep buying you roses until you ask me to stop, sweetheart, because I don’t mind if you forget about me, but I was made to adore you. I can’t ignore my instincts.”

The confession does funny things to your heart, in a way that makes you beam at him for the first time in months. You haven’t smiled like this in so long, and your cheeks hurt from the lack of practise. Jaehyun, the damn fool; Jaehyun, the hopeless romantic; Jaehyun, the love of your life. “Killing you,” you muse, entertaining him. You are playing with fire, you realize, but you are coming to the understanding that even though you had made a decision for him in a completely unfair manner, because you felt threatened to do so, Jaehyun still chooses you. And he continues to choose you. He has respected your wishes, has kept his distance despite the grief you have caused him, and has only re-entered your life because you allowed him to do so. It was your own self-doubt about being the one for him that had forced your hand and made you not ask him for help about the threats; and despite the fact Jaehyun never understood why, he had still reassured you.

“Do you honestly mean that?” you ask him, even though you know what his answer will be. Even though your heart has always chosen him, this sweet boy who knew just what to say to cheer you up. Who listened when you talked. Who bought you gifts just because you mentioned liking some trinket in passing. Who remembers to kiss you every morning before you leave the house, even if it means dragging himself out of bed at 5am in the morning just to see you off because he knows he won’t see you the entire day. Who leaves little notes around the house for you to find when he is too busy to be with you. Jaehyun, your Jaehyun.

“I will always, always mean it,” he answers in the most earnest way possible. “I’ve been thinking about you all this time. I know how pathetic this sounds, but all this time, I kept envisioning you, and the thought of you kept me going even though I knew you weren’t a part of my life anymore. I like the person you made me become, sweetheart, and the way you have helped me shape my life into something I can be proud of. I just wish I had realized sooner that there was something bothering you - because there is, right?” His fingers gently squeeze yours in encouragement, and your little nod makes him press on. “I’m sorry,” he says, and surprises you. “I’m sorry for being so in love with your good and pure heart and failing to realize that it burdened you, despite how good and pure it was. You were going through something that you couldn’t handle, and I couldn’t see it, and I’m sorry.”

You tug at Jaehyun’s hands. His instantaneous, responding smile makes your heart skip a beat, and he lets you pull him down until you can press your lips to his soft, dimpled cheek. “You’re such a sore loser, Jeong Jaehyun,” you whisper then, but you loosen a hand from the bouquet and place it against his cheek to keep him there. To treasure him. “And such a sweet little idiot. You don’t have to apologize about a single thing to me.” He smells like home, like the only home you’ve ever known. Jaehyun hums, and nods in assent to the insults, and the agreement makes you laugh. You kiss his cheek again, and again, and again, until Jaehyun’s impatience makes him turn his head and kiss you so urgently that your head feels like it’s spinning. “Jaehyun,” you sigh into the kiss, feeling his teeth nip at your lower lip, feeling his hands close around your heart.

You have never felt so safe.

Jaehyun rests his forehead against yours, the pouring rain cascading around you both. “Does that mean I can kill your little boy toy now?” he asks, but you only smack him and smile shyly, your face radiant with adoration for him. “I am going to resolve some things first,” you tell him. “Until then, no murder.”

“And after that?”

“After that,” you say, “I am going to prove that my heart has always belonged to you, Jeong Jaehyun. Even when I made you doubt that.”

(For your information, Jeonghan has recorded that entire interaction and forwarded it to Johnny without context. Johnny had texted him back almost seconds later, asking, Who’s this and how’d you get my number? Hannie’s response, as you discover after he had confessed his betrayal, was I have my ways.)

Jaehyun,

I realize me writing another letter is cruel and ironic, but hear me out, please.

When I wrote my first letter, it was with the selfish intention of at least something of mine remaining with you. By the time you read this, I’ll hopefully have gathered enough evidence to explain my case to you and maybe have the guts to ask you to accompany me to the police, but what I first want to reiterate is: I love you. I love you the point of self-sacrifice. I love you enough that I turned my back on being selfless anyways and selfishly chose you, because you are the most important person in my heart. You will always come first.

When I wrote that letter to break up with you, I imagined a piece of myself embedding itself in the ink so that at least something could remain forever. In my mind, you were never ephemeral: no matter how many times I changed my paths and adjusted my future, it has always included you. I never once imagined building a life for myself that didn’t have you as its brilliant, shining center piece, the light of my life, my Jaehyun. I’ve always been afraid of falling in love head-first, always afraid of loving more than the other, but you have proven me wrong. And I love being proven wrong by you. I love the fact that you fiercely, sincerely, and lovingly pull me back to reality every time. Reality with you is more perfect than anything I could have ever dreamed of.

Since my first letter was supposed to be a goodbye, I want this letter to be proof that I choose to greet the future with you. I want this letter to be proof that I will never need a letter again. I want to spend the rest of my life loving you and telling you about it, and I will reassure you of that always, in the same manner as you have always me reassured me. You told me that my heart was good and pure, but I genuinely believe that I am constantly reflecting back what you give me: your kindness, Jae, your sincerity, your unbelievable humanity.

You are the only man I ever want roses in my life from, and that will never change. :) So if you finish reading this, stop creeping on my Instagram waiting for me to drop the other man and come bring me another bouquet so I can prove to you there has never been another. You are the only one in my heart.

With love,

your sweetheart

[alexrosa13]

To Belong

Luke x female!reader x Kieran//twins x reader ★ platonic!Sylus x reader ★ platonic!mc x reader ★ Sylus x mc

Genre: fluff/angsty

Warnings: 19k words, reader and mc are two different people!, 3rd person perspective!, spoilers to twins lore! (reading World Underneath: Mischief is highly recommended before reading this fic), small hints/spoilers to Sylus myth, mention of human experiments, mention of character trauma, mention of sa, protective dad Sylus, twins crushing on reader hard

Note: timeline of this fic happens between 2042 (reader&twins 12★Sylus 22) and 2048 (current timeline of the game★reader&twins 18★Sylus 28) and I hope it will be clear enough while reading.

for masterlist and request info head to the navigation →

half-edited by @asiakim03, rest proofread by me; special dedication for @pozuki for making me post it after it's been sitting in my drafts for 2 months

~★~

Sometimes teen love is floating, sometimes you may find your soulmate; but what if you got two?

2044, Middle of Winter.

The chances of a power outage in the middle of the night in one of the main areas of the EVER building are slim, but not impossible. Amid the chaos, with everyone panicking and scrambling to find the cause of the issue, no one notices that one of the computers has been accessed. Test records from years ago have been opened, and crucial information is being systematically deleted. In a matter of seconds, there will be no valuable data left.

????? Control EVOL Test Record

Subject ID

668

Subject Name

- - - - -

Age

??

Experimental Side Effect(s) Log

no information available

Evaluation Results

no information available

Several electronic devices had shut off on their own but a few minutes later, the power in the building was suddenly restored. Night-shift workers gradually returned to the office responsible for managing the experiment database. Everyone have taken themselves onto their assigned seats and began checking for any missing files.

The hours have passed and everything seemed fine yet, no one had ought to check the old files that had been forgotten over time. Everything have appeared intact and by the next day, the incident dismissed as an accident and have been quickly forgotten.

After all, why would someone make the commotion happen just to leave everything in it's place? It seems that no person working there will ever know the truth about the erased data. To be fair: who would have though that someone hacked the building data just to erase some not important piece of old experiment notes, perhaps containing information regarding someone who's presumably dead? And who would even think that the person behind it would be some big shot from N108 Zone? Exactly, no one.

And to be honest, it's better for them to not know.

~★~★~★~

2042, Late Autumn.

N109 Zone was in chaos that day. Buildings on fire, people bleeding and dying, while the ones who were still in good enough shape was able to fortunately run away from the mess. There were sounds of shooting and fighting everywhere you go. Yet, no one even remembers what started this blood-lust show.

A person was seen calmly standing with their hands in the pockets of their elegant pants. A man looking so out of place in the middle of such chaos, but at the same time fitting there perfectly like the most important detail on a masterpiece.

There's at least a dozen dead bodies laying before him as the look he throws at them a look of disgust. Suddenly, his eyes turned to look at the half-collapsed wall, noticing a kid hiding there who's looking at the man with eyes full of curiosity yet not even a hint of fear. Probably a stray with no family.

They continue to look at each other, the man then cocks an eyebrow and his face show the slightest tinge of shock. Why can't he see that kid's desire? Why does his evol not work on them? For a moment, he sees their eyes glowing up a bit, it's an evolver too. But no person with or without an evol would be able to hide their desires before him.

He let out a an amused chuckle, his curiosity rising. What kind of power do they posses? Either way, it wasn't a question he needed an answer for. That kid probably won't even survive long in this area. Without a word, he turned around and walked away from the mess he had left in his enemies' base, not giving a single thought about the unusual child he met.

However, something clinged onto him after he took a couple of steps and that made him stop in his tracks. He looked down again meeting the eyes of that kid.

"What do you want?" his voice, rough and cold was just like his stares but he didn't get an answer. The seemingly clueless child staring at him in silence. Their expression emotionless, no fear, no sadness, no anger.

What was wrong with them? No child should be able to hide their emotions this well. Of course, they weren't 5 years old or so but still, they couldn't be older than 13. Two questions appeared in the back if his mind: what happened to this runt and what was he supposed to do with it?

He had no answer to any of them.

"What? Am I supposed to just take you with me now?" he asked in a sarcastic voice yet still didn't get an answer. He tried to move away from their little hug— for their hands were not even able to wrap themselves fully around his waist— and succeeded. Giving them one last glance over his shoulder before proceeding to walk away, leaving dead bodies behind him to rot or get caught in flames, he couldn't care less.

Who would have thought that today would be the day a new shadow started following him?

~★~★~★~

2046, Middle of Winter.

"Boss, that Sherman guy is suspicious. We'll keep an eye on him for you!" says Luke, kneeling with his twin before Sylus.

"We know his address, his usual spots, and his contacts. We can report to you every two weeks," Kieran added after his brother.

The 'Boss' seems to think about it for a minute, his expression unreadable. Finally he spoke to.. who exactly?

"What do you think, little one? Should I agree?" He tilted his head toward something behind him, and both boys glanced in that direction, noticing a silhouette a few meters away, leaning against a tree with a hood pulled low over their head.

The twins looked at each other, dumbfounded— both thinking: 'Who is that?' before looking back at the mysterious person, meeting their eyes. The rest of their face hidden behind a medical black mask. For whatever reason, they couldn't look away as if hypnotized.

After a couple of seconds, that person finally looked away. Their gaze turning to Sylus, nodding once in his direction before straightening their posture and walking away with no rush.

"I'll see you in two weeks," these words constitute the only command they receive.

"Understood, boss." when they finally stood up, they realize Sylus has already vanished.

They looked at each other sharing a grin at the fact that their 'plan' succeeded. Their happiness however was cut short by someone's soft chuckling coming from behind them. They turned around fast and noticed a girl around their age, sitting at a nearby tree.

"Congratulations on your new job, boys," she smiled at them, her hands grabbing a branch above her head, her body leaning forward towards their direction.

"And, you are?" Luke took a step forward, looking at her with a sly smirk on his face.

"It’s you," Luke turned to his brother, confused. But a moment later, he heard his twin’s voice in his head: ‘Look at her eyes.’ He did—and then he understood.

The mysterious girl started giggling to herself quietly but eventually, she couldn't help it and began laughing so hard that the branch she was sitting on started to shake.

"You should have seen your faces!" she said after calming herself down a little, smile still visible on her lips.

'Pretty...' The twins voiced in their minds, both looked at each other in shock. How did they think about THAT at the same time.

"I hope you'll do a good job so I'll be able to see you two again, " she jumped off the tree, landing gracefully on the grass and taking a couple of steps towards the twins. "It would be such a shame for such cute faces to end up dead on the ground, don't you think?" She smiled at them, a little more genuine and soft this time.

Luke and Kieran still couldn't comprehend the situation they found themselves in right now, but before any more words could leave their mouth, the girl already started moving forward. She walked straight through the gap between their bodies, her shoulders touching theirs for a split second and just like this, she left them behind.

The twins looked at each other, not being able to gather their thoughts at the moment. Both of them had a million questions flowing through their minds; 'Who is she?', 'Does she work for Sylus?', 'Why couldn't they look away from her eyes earlier?' suddenly, their eyes widen over something else that just registered in their heads.

"DID SHE JUST CALL US CUTE?"

~★~★~★~

2047, Early Spring.

The twins had been working as Sylus' spies for some time now, reporting back to him every two weeks as agreed. In the meantime, they also began spending more time at his base, occasionally even staying overnight in the many available guest rooms.

However, the mysterious girl they had met when they first asked Sylus to let them work for him hadn’t appeared anywhere near their line of sight since that day. They tried to ask Sylus about her but he brushed them off every single time.

Today was another failed attempt to pry.

"No," was the only thing leaving Sylus' mouth at the mention of 'the person they saw that day' and this time, they didn't even manage to finish their sentence before his refusal.

"Oh c'mon Boss, we need to know!"

"Why can't you just tell us? Is her existence top Onychinus type of secret or something?"

"If that's the case, then we have the right to know since we're official Onychinus members now!" All sorts of reasoning started flowing out of the twins' mouths, they stopped only after noticing the glare Sylus threw their way.

"If she wanted you two to know who she is, she would have already told you herself," after that, their Boss-man went to his office, making it clear that he is not in the mood to listen to teenagers rambling for even a minute longer. Luke and Kieran shared a look and even through their masks, they could still read the other's disappointed expression.

They sat on the couch, defeated, their limbs sprawled across the cushions and their heads resting against the backrest. Both stared at the ceiling, trying to come up with a new plan to meet the girl again. They weren't ones to give up easily, but after trying for so long, they were running out of ideas.

After a couple minutes of brainstorming, they both let out sounds of defeat. They had tried everything, yet still, nothing worked. Was she enjoying their suffering from the shadows?

"I'm so tired of his, man. We did everything! How are we supposed to meet someone who literally doesn't show any signs of existence other than that one time?!" Luke shoot up from his seat, accidentally spilling a glass of water which for whatever reason found itself at the edge of the table. "Oh, c'mon!" He picked up the glass, which was thankfully still intact and had put it back a little further away this time.

"Eh, I'll go get some napkins," Kieran stood up, stretching his limbs a bit and turned towards the kitchen area. Before he could take a step forward, his twin's hand abruptly grabbed his clothing and made him sit back down "What?"

"Look here!" He did as instructed, shifting his gaze to the spot on the table where water had spilled. Lying next to it was a sheet of paper with writing on it, the ink growing blurrier as the water spread.

They leaned over to read the note before it ends up completely unreadable.

Did you know that the best dreams happen in the room with the clear view at the night sky?

→ right wing of the mansion, second floor, right corridor, last door

see you in a dream ☆

They looked at the item lying next to the paper: a necklace with a small orb as its pendant. It resembled the night sky, with a moon and stars shining inside, the entire scene shifting slowly and unhurriedly, revealing different angles of the image. Luke reached out to touch it, but as his hand neared, the inside of the orb began to change.

He moved his hand away, startled. The brothers shared a look of curiosity before once again looking at the necklace. Its image now showing warm sunrise with clouds floating around it.

"Did you somehow influence it?" Kieran leaned a little closer for a better look.

~★~

"Was it the left or right corridor?" Kieran's hushed voice could be heard on top of the staircase leading to the second floor in the right wing of Sylus' mansion.

"Right one. To be honest how is he not getting lost in all of those corridors? I swear that this place is a maze made to trap victims inside." twins started walking through another never-ending corridor, but luckily this time there were no random small passages on the way.

Finally they reached the end of their very tiring journey (they were sneaking around the mansion for half an hour now, trying to avoid their Boss... He probably saw them anyways). They looked at each other, a little unsure now if they got to the right door.

Well now or never. Both of them reached for the handle, moving it together.

Doors opened quietly and before their eyes appeared a huge room with a window taking the whole wall on the opposite side to the door. The furniture all in black. The ceiling in this room seemed higher that ones in the other rooms they had seen. Behind the window was a view of the night, red sky of the N109 zone it's moon right in the middle, making the room seem almost magical and mysterious in a way.

They closed the door taking in their surroundings. Shelves fit perfectly with the walls, inside them books and random items in various colors going from crystals, to skulls, to candles (some burning, some not), jewelry and a lot more. In the middle of the room, literally in the floor, it's place found a huge mattress adored with various pillows and blankets.

In the end their eyes reached the table placed in the space between the window and a mattress. They cautiously moved towards it, still taking in the details of the room. They approached it from two sides and their eyes found themself looking at the thing right in the middle of it. It looked like a little tower made out of glass with a round spot engraved right on top of it as if something should be put there.

"What is that?"

"I have no idea."

They started thinking about what to do in this situation, and finally Kieran thought about something. He reached towards his neck and pulled the necklace from underneath his clothes taking it off through his head, being careful while getting it over his mask.

"Do you think we're supposed to put it here?" he hanged the necklace on his hand, the orb levitating right above the glass thingy.

"I mean she left it for us for some reason yeah? Might as well try it, what can go wrong?" both boys shrugged, not caring about the possibilities of the bad outcome much (as always).

Kieran slowly lowered the necklace, the orb fitting inside the glass structure like a glove. Suddenly the candles started burning brighter than when they first walked in, flames dancing in every direction and even some of the not lit ones came to life.

Twins looked around themself for some time, trying to understand what was going on, until something looking like a white string started coming from the little orb, making a perfect circle around the two and the table. Little dots started showing themselves on the thin line, some bigger, some smaller, some light, some dark, it wasn't long before the whole string was full of it and then another one started creating itself.

They locked eyes, thinking about the sight before then, not moving. Suddenly they heard a voice coming from above them and looking up they saw their mysterious girl sitting on the swing connected to the ceiling, swaying slowly a couple of meters above the huge mattress. They could swear it wasn't there when they walked in!

"It's my Dream Seal." she looked at them with a soft smile, the swing started slowly lowering itself.

"Your dream what?" the twins asked at the same time, looking mesmerized at the girl dressed in the prettiest flowing dress they ever saw.

Finally the swing lowered itself enough for her to put her legs on the mattress, standing up on it she made her way towards the table, which took her maybe five steps. The string made by the orb broke for her to get through and patched itself up right after, adding her into the circle.

"My Dream Seal. I put and lock my dreams inside of it. You could say that it's like a diary." she explained to them, slight smile still noticeable on her face, her eyes focusing on the orb glowing in the middle of the table. She reached out her hand, making a slow and graceful movement as if petting the orb without actually touching it.

Instantly it reacted to her presence, glowing a bit brighter especially in the places right below her hand.

She moved the same hand to create a circle in the air with her palm, making another string appear in the place of her previous movement. Another dot, a little bigger from the rest floated around them, showed itself right before her and started to go move around like the rest.

She put her hand under the line and when the little orb came right above it the room began changing it's appearance.

Twins started looking around curious about what exactly is happening. Finally their eyes saw what looked to be a grassland full of various flowers all around them, not seeing anything else in the distance but clear sky and flowers. They looked at each other, their eyes widening at the realization that their masks are off.

Their clothes changed from their usual black and red uniforms to simple white shirts, pants and shoes. They looked around trying to notice the girl that was next to them seconds ago, but there were no other silhouette in sight... Until their turned their heads once more....

Their faces were betraying the shock they felt at the scene playing right before them. Two of them, smiling and laughing, Luke sitting on the grass, pulled up on his hands and Kieran lying down on his back. What shocked them was the fact that their mysterious girl was lying there with them. Her head resting on Luke's thigh and her legs thrown around Kieran's belly.

One of Luke's hands playing with her hair while Kieran caressed her legs softly. The girl herself was just lying there, her eyes closed but a light smile still visible, looking perfectly content with the closeness of the twins.

None of them dared to move or look away, their minds silent, trying to save the moment into their memory. They looked at the images of themselves seeing their true smiles, feeling the real happiness, without the pain of their past following them and breaking the innocent moment.

Slowly but surely, the light from the dream started fading, their calm silhouettes leaving together with it. They never craved the sunlight more than at this very moment. The darkness of the room and the slight light coming from the red moon of the N109 Zone brings them back into reality. Their masks back on, the moment of vulnerability left behind together with the strings, of what they imagine are dreams, coming back to the orb they came from.

Their minds still couldn't wrap themself completely around what they just saw. They looked at each other, communicating without words and then turned their heads towards the mattress a couple steps away from them, the girl sitting on it crosslegged, with her back towards them and a book in her hands. Both brothers stood there, stuck in one place, their heartbeats matching in their fast rhythm.

Both with only one question in mind: what was that?

"You know, even with your masks I can still tell who is who." her voice finally broke the silence, she sounded unfazed by what just took place, unlike the twins.

"Oh really? Do you even know our names missy?" Luke being the first to come back to his usual demeanor, crossing his arms and tilting his head to the side (which must have looked adorable with his mask btw) sending the girl a 'challenging' look, she glanced at him over her shoulder and giggled a bit.

"Really Luke. How dare you doubt me?" she put her hand on her chest, exactly where her heart is, and sent him a 'hurt' look, obviously for show.

"Well would you look at that! You do know our names!" the older of the twins proclaimed, clasping his hands together and taking a step forward "Maybe it's about the time when we learn yours Miss..?" he sent her a pleading look, even though she couldn't see it, she could imagine it all the same.

"What do you think, Kieran? Is knowing my name actually so important for you?" she looked at the second brother who was unusually silent.

"It's- Well we both are dying to get to know it since our very first meeting, so if you would be kind enough to share it, we would be very, and by very I mean VERY, entirely grateful to you." finally it seemed that he came back to his normal self. Taking two steps forward he stood right next to his brother, both looking expectantly at the girl like little kids waiting for their promised treat.

"Hah so I've never left your minds since that night? It's been months babes. Did I turn your whole worlds over without even trying? Damn am I that hot?" the nickname she gave them and her loud laugh made their hearts stop and start beating all over again. She turned to face them, her legs still crossed and her upper-half supported by her outstretched arms. The book that she was previously occupied with ended up lying forgotten next to her. "It's Y/n."

They whispered her name at the same time, finally reaching the goal they were going after all this time. There was a moment of awkward silence with them not knowing what to say or ask and with her just staring at them, as if enjoying their stress. How dare she! But after some time she was still the first one to break the silence and stop their suffering.

"Do you have any other questions or is that it for today? You know... Boss will probably look for you soon, since it's his time of the day." she whispered the last part like a secret, sending them a wink.

Twins looked at each other finally knowing exactly what question they wanted to ask.

"What was that thing..."

"That we saw after you did something to that... Floating thing?" their voices betrayed their curiosity and nerves. They needed to know.

"It was a dream." she sounded so casual about it. How could this not move her at all?!

"A..."

"Dream..." twins still not completely understanding what was going on. They started a quick conversation in their heads.

'But if that was a dream...'

'And dreams are supposed to belong to someone, right?'

'Did you dream about that?!'

'Dude no! Not me!'

'But it wasn't me either!'

'Well if it wasn't mine nor your dream, then...'

They turned their heads at the lightning speed to look at each other, shock on their faces hidden behind the masks.

'IT WAS HERS?!'

"Did you come to the right conclusion yet? Because judging from your reactions, you did." they turned to look at the girl once more, still dumbfounded.

"You dreamed of us?" Kieran was the one of the duo speaking first this time.

"Not only us, but us in THAT situation?" Luke added, his voice a little raised and hurried to let the words out. Both of them stared at the girl before them, who still held her composure very well despite the situation she was in. How was she this calm when they were literally freaking out?!

"I do not have control over my dreams." she finally stood up from the mattress, taking some steps until her feet were on a steady ground right before them. Then she did something unexpected, she took one of Kieran's hands into hers, doing the same with Luke and held their palms closer to herself, closing her eyes, and breathing out heavily. Their linked hands started glowing slightly, both boys stared at them, not knowing what to do, but also somehow... Enjoying her closeness. Not opening her eyes she started talking to them, while still holding their hands in hers.

"Dreams are a fascinating phenomena. We forget most of them right after waking up, with some staying in our memory forever. We can dream about anything: from the past to present, to future, to things reminding us of our demons but also the memories of the things we hold dear to our hearts." finally opening her eyes her gaze jumping between both of them until finally finding it's place on their linked hands "I... Don't know myself why I dreamed of you in that situation, so I am afraid that I do not have the answers you seek right now. Something in my head never lets me forget you, ever since that meeting." she let go of their hands, lowering her own ones down, linking them together. Luke and Kieran just stood there, letting their own hands come back to their place next to their hips.

None of them dared to move, afraid to break the moment. They could still feel the lingering warm on their palms from her hands holding them.

Her eyes finally looked up at them, glowing. They both watched her closely, not knowing what she was doing with her 'magic' right before the moment, but none of them cared about it, something in them saying to trust her.

"You know... I never met anyone like you. I was watching you over the last couple of months on your little missions. You're like one person. The very same appearance. The masks and the faces before the incident matching perfectly. But somehow I see you as two different personas. The very same but different." the glow in her eyes slowly fading, but her warm smile coming back to make up for it "I can't wait to play more of 'guess the difference'."

She poked their masks with a small laugh. Waking them up from their trance.

"I believe that you have to go, today Sylus has an important meeting, you know." she walked past them to the table, taking the orb still resting on it, putting it over her head.

"Oh c'mon, sitting here with you is so much more interesting than some boring meeting." Luke proclaimed with a sigh of annoyance in his voice. Did they have to go?

"I believe that there will be a rather... Explosive moment, so you won't get too bored there." she let out a laugh, turning towards them and leaning on the table behind her "Besides I have something to do in the meantime, so even tho I would love to stay here and entertain you two cuties, I can't." she send them apologizing look.

"But you won't disappear like before, right?" Kieran's voice followed her statement. He was thankful for Luke's idea with the masks now more than ever, it saved him from reviling the blush on his cheeks at the nicknames the girl was giving them.

"Not this time, promise. At least not for this long." she shrugged.

"You better keep this promise or we'll find you ourselves" Luke pointed finger in her direction trying to look the most threatening he could, but it only made the girl laugh more.

"Oh I'm so scared~" she let out in a mocking tone, raising her hands as it to show 'im innocent officer'.

"Yeah, you better be!" the older of the twins continued his 'intimidating' act. Making Kieran scoff a bit at his behavior.

"Okay, okay, I promise you'll see me soon. But now I really have to go and I advise you to do the same." she stood up straight, her dress instantly fixing itself to look perfect "See you~" her voice sang right when she was passing by them, heading to the door.

Both boys let out their goodbyes and soon they heard the click of the door closing and their 'not-so-mysterious-anymore' girl walking out, leaving them alone with a thousand thoughts.

They stared at the door in silence for a moment longer before they spoke at the same time again.

"I think I'm in love."

"You too?!"

They instantly looked at each other shocked, but at the same time not really. They were so similar in so many aspects, but honestly they never thought of girls and crushes ever before, focusing on surviving and having their fun, but she seemed like she could bring even more fun to the group.

"Sooo... What do we do?" Luke asked, more relaxed now than before with the girl in the room, as he tried his best not to screw up anything in front of her. Obviously they will never argue because of the girl, but they had to sort it out somehow.

"I mean... She seemed pretty positive about both of us, right?" Kieran shrugged, based on the girl's dream they saw earlier the solution to this little 'problem' of theirs was rather obvious, no?

"So... What you are suggesting is... That we could both date her?" Luke looked deep in thought and for a moment Kieran even looked at him like at the biggest dumbass in the world.

"Yes. That is exactly what I suggest we do." he blinked his eyes, stating the obvious.

"But how will that work?" Luke continued to question.

"I have no idea, but hey, we'll manage, we always do. Also honestly I never thought about it but having one girlfriend with our... Situation is actually rather obvious choice, no?" at this sentence his older brother just nodded his head, silently agreeing. but then something else caught his eye.

"Wait. Where is that swing?!"

~★~★~★~

2047, Middle of Spring.

Weeks passed by with twins getting to know their mysterious girl. Even after getting to know her a little better she still seems to live 24/7 in their heads, somehow they are even more curious about her now than before knowing her.

They became friends fast after their second meeting, with her becoming their partner in crime when it came to pranks, but even though they became really close and spent hours to no end together, they still didn't know much about her. They were dying to know why and since when was she working for Sylus, but she always laughs at their questions saying that it's not important for them to know.

A couple of days ago they came out with a plan to spy on the two to try and gain information to satisfy their curiosity. However it was easier said than done. To be honest they saw those two together in the same room maybe two to three times? Just what kind of relationship did they have?! They needed to know.

They waited for days to finally put their plan into the reality, they waited for a perfect moment, observing those two like professional stalkers. The fact that both of their targets noticed their weird behavior was not really helpful, but none of them really paid them any mind, so who cares?

Eventually they got the perfect opportunity to 'strike'. They were going down the stairs, planning to go and chill in the mansion's main area while also waiting for their (ekhem ekhem crush) favorite girl to come see them, like she usually does. When they were on their way they suddenly heard voices, coming from the corridor leading to Sylus's office.

Looking at each other they instantly became quiet, moving a little closer to the wall. The voices were a little far away, since the corridor was pretty long, but luckily they weren't being exactly quiet.

"... what do you want to do about it? That guy is a scumbag and we both know it. I don't care about your business, if you won't take care of him: I will." they heard the voice of Y/n sounding harsh and annoyed, not leaving the ground to argue, something they never heard from her before.

"Sweetie I won't let you get yourself straight into their trap. You are not going there and that's the end of it." Sylus answered in his usual tone, clearly not impressed by the girl's intimidating speech.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?" twins literally jumped up a bit at the scream, they never heard her raise her voice before "That motherfucker uses girls my age for his fucking business! I can tolerate many things Sylus. Fuck that! I literally killed people myself before, but he destroys them more and more everyday! If you will just sit on your ass and wait for him to finish his business with you, I'll deal with that bastard myself and never come back here again." twins looked at each other, clearly fearing that Sylus will just let her go and never come back.

"Y/n I promise you that bastard will get what he deserves, and I'll make him go through worse hell than you can even imagine. All I ask of you is to just give me a little more time." how was he still so calm?!

"... How much time do you need?" now sounding more calm than before, but still clearly mad, judging from the way her tone sounded cold and resentful.

"3 days."

"Alright, and not a second longer." her voice was quiet enough for the boys to have a problem with hearing it.

"Have I ever given you a reason to doubt me, sweetie?" Boss's voice still intact like always, not even a hint of anger at the girl's outburst from a moment ago. Who was she to him?! How could she talk to him like that and not face any consequences?!

"No. And I never will doubt you. But you know why it's so important to me." her voice gets more quiet with each word.

After that they didn't hear any more words from the two people behind the wall.

'What is happening?'

'I don't know! Maybe we should peek?'

They were considering the idea for some seconds, before finally giving in to their curiosity once more. The sight before their eyes got them dumbfounded.

They saw Sylus holding the girl in his arms and looking at her concerned. She seemed to be in a bad shape, holding onto him weakly while visibly going limp in his hug. Both of the twins stared at the scene, not even caring anymore about getting to the truth about the relationship between the two, they were afraid for the girl they grew affectionate towards, she never looked this weak and vulnerable when spending time with them, what happened to her?

"... Dad..." they heard her pained whisper and saw her going completely limp in Sylus arms. Their Boss's face immediately changed into an even deeper concern.

Suddenly they saw Sylus's eyes glance towards them. They stood there numb, not even having the strength to try and hide or pretend like they were just passing by after the events that just took, and were still taking, place.

Their Boss didn't even pay them any mind, much more worried about the girl than those two seeing anything. He snooped her into his arms, princess carrying her into his office, and closing the door behind him with his evol.

Twins still stood in one place, worried sick and clueless as to what was currently happening to their favorite girl.

"Boss looked worried as much as we are, do you think it's something serious?" Luke's voice first to break the silence.

"I don't know, I wish we could just go into that office, but he'll probably have our heads for this." Kieran sat down on the floor, his back leaning onto the wall.

Luke followed his brother, sliding down the wall, looking deafened.

No more words exchanged between the two. Both their minds occupied by the person currently impossible to reach. Going into that office would be a suicidal, but staying outside of it was killing them too.

Were they actually that attached to her already..?

~★~

Hours passed, twins stayed close to their Boss's office, waiting for either the man or the girl to walk out, so that they could ask if she's okay. Eventually they settled on the couch in one of the living rooms, one which was the closest to the office, leaving the door open to make sure that they won't miss any sound coming from the corridor.

Eventually they waited for about 10 hours already, not planning to move until they will hear the news about their soulmate's (as they started calling her not that long ago, after pulling a success prank on Sylus together) well-being. Eventually they fell asleep on the couch out of exhaustion and stress.

Meanwhile inside of the Sylus's office someone finally woke up.

"Finally back to the world of living, sweetie?" Sylus looked up from the papers sprayed on his desk to look at the girl moving on his couch.

"How long was I out?" sitting up, her hands went towards her head, her eyes closed.

"Couple of hours, there's water on the table before you." his eyes came back to the papers.

The girl slowly reached her hand towards the glass with water, luckily Sylus didn't fill it up to the top or else she would spill it because of her hand shaking. She put the glass to her mouth, drinking without any rush.

"I told you many times not to use your evol like this." standing up from behind his desk he made his way towards the teenager "You know that glitching in between the worlds can be extremely dangerous for you, yet you still took the risk for no valid reason."

"I can't just sit back and watch him hurt them, I had to do something, you're taking too long." her eyes shoot up towards the man, sending him sharp glare.

"I have my reasons for stalling. Why can't you just trust me with this?"

"Because I see myself in those girls!" her raised voice shocked even him this time "Every time I see his nasty dreams I'm reminded about those assholes who made me watch myself in that situation. He will hurt them Sylus, every day of you waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike is another little girl's childhood taken away!" her voice breaking, shacking of her body and tears in her eyes made Sylus feel too many things that he would have wish not to acknowledge.

He never wanted to get attached to that girl, he was fine on his own, but every day with her following him around like a shadow made him so used to her presence that he couldn't imagine something or someone taking her away from him right now. He hated himself for having a weak spot.

"Sweetie I promise you that no harm will come to those girls, I have Mephisto watching them all the time, they are scared yes, but no one touches them I promise. They will be safe in 3 days, give me that much time, please." he crouched down next to her, holding one of her hands in his and making her look at him, the eye contact being able to keep her grounded. He knew that she could lose her grip on the reality if he didn't act the right way.

The memories started flowing back to him at once. The trauma this girl had to go through making him want to kill anyone who dared to even think about harming her. Taking a child to become an experiment is a cruelty that even he, being the 'worst' person in the N109 Zone, wouldn't dare to commit.

He remembered that one night from two years ago. He was walking towards the room in his mansion that he was sure had the book he needed for his research. It was the room hidden deep inside of the right wing, when he finally got to it and opened the door he saw that young girl sitting on the floor with her legs under her, the room was cold and she didn't wear enough clothes to feel warm, but she didn't seem effected by the cold, she was just sitting there and looking at the moon behind the window.

"What are you doing here?" she didn't even react to his voice, didn't look at him, didn't let out any sound like she did most of the time, signaling to him that she listened.

He slowly walked towards her, crouched down beside her, looking at her and then at the sky of the N109 Zone.

They spent a couple of minutes in complete silence, staring as the clouds move slowly with time.

"Why do people need to know and understand everything?" her quiet voice brought his attention to her again, his head turning towards her direction, her eyes already focused on him.

"Because they are afraid of the unknown." his tone was soft, he warmed up to the girl over the time he spent with her, even if he didn't want to admit it.

The girl just recently turned 14. He got some informations about her from the database of EVER studies and the rest he knew just by simply asking her, she was surprisingly truthful all the time, not hiding anything from him.

"Can I show you something?" her eyes still locked on his, their eye contact making him feel like he talked to his equal and not just some teenage girl that he randomly stumbled across.

"Of course." was his only response. Her hands made their way towards his face, slowly covering his eyes. He didn't protest, she didn't have any reason to hurt him, and it's not like she would succeed in it anyways.

The darkness he saw with his eyes covered suddenly started changing into shapes and colors. He saw a little girl together with her at least three people, much bigger than her, adults, in white coats. One was holding her down, making her sit down on the chair, while the other two stood before her with their notepads, talking to her, but their voices came out like a combination of random syllables.

Their faces were all blurry, he couldn't recognize any face other than the one of the little girl. Her eyes were full of fear, shining from the tears she was clearly holding back. No words left her, she didn't try to scream or fight the person holding her, she just silently sat there.

Suddenly he saw one of the people with notepads taking something out of their pocket, a syringe, and walking with it towards the little girl. Her eyes locked on the white wall before her, her gaze looking absent, like mentally she wasn't there.

Right after they injected whatever it was into her arm her head fell down, strength leaving her body, her eyes clenching shut and one single tear falling down her cheek before the image got completely blurred and the room changed. What he saw next made his blood boil.

The same little girl standing there, before a man with literally no face and another version of herself, she was watching as the man spoke to her other version and started touching her arms.

Not wanting to know what happened next Sylus took the hands of the girl away from his eyes and took a moment to let his gaze come back to reality. His eyes turned to the teenager, a silent question in his gaze.

"They made me watch someone's dreams. I don't know how, but whatever they injected into me activated my evol, fighting it was painful." he swallowed his split in a try to control his anger, his jaw clenching "I tried to stop him, but when I touched him I felt pain like nothing I've ever felt. I shut my eyes close while laying on the floor but had to hear all the things he spoke to my other version. After it was all done and I woke up I heard someone speak about the 'emotional reactions influencing the power of the evol' but then I blacked out again. It was the day that I knew I had to run away, before they would get to test that in a reality." her eyes were glossy and a single tear ran down just like in the memory he saw a moment ago.

His thumb went up to her face to wipe it off, she let him without as much as a flinch. No more words were exchanged between them. He moved to sit down fully on the floor and her head instantly fell to his shoulder. They sat there for a while, being the comfort the other needed in this cruel world. He heard her breathing slowing down, probably falling asleep, he let her.

"I promise that no one else will hurt you."

"Promise me." her quiet voice brought him back to reality. Looking at her now he didn't see the fearless and mischievous teenager she became. He saw that little girl from the past, crying herself to sleep in a lonely room, holding herself to feel any kind of warm.

She didn't need to say anything else, he already understood.

"I promise." that no one will touch them.

A lonely tear fell from her eye with a blink, making it's way down her face like a raindrop falling on the window during a storm. His memory came back for a second before leaving again. He reached out, his palm gently taking a hold of her face, his thumb catching the single proof of her sadness. For a moment her eyes closed, enjoying the warmth of another human being after knowing only coldness her entire life.

Suddenly the sound of a pained cry left her and before Sylus could react she threw her arms around him and her mouth let out a song of cries and pain she was hiding inside for too long.

He gently reciprocated her hug, one of his hands taking it's place on her head, slowly stroking it in a calming motion, letting her drown her sorrows into his shoulder, hiding her from the brutality of the world.

He wished that he found her sooner and gave her the life she deserved to have from the start, without anyone taking away her innocence. She became his guiding star, always being there to remind him that life is not just an endless cycle of pain and evil. He didn't know why she followed him that day, but he was thankful for it nonetheless.

The next couple of minutes were spent with him shielding her from reality. They didn't know exactly how much time had passed, maybe ten minutes, maybe half an hour, maybe more. It didn't matter.

In his fatherly-like embrace she finally found the safety she was looking for her entire life. She was forced to fight for herself for so long, stealing and sleeping in abandoned buildings was her every day life ever since she run away from the place of her torture. That was, until she met him, her visions encouraging her to take the risk and trust him, and she did. She didn't regret it even for once ever since.

"I'm sorry..." her voice, quiet and weak, reached his ears. Her cries calmed down a while ago, but they still didn't let go of each other.

"You have no reason to apologize for feeling." his tone calm, with foreign gentleness to it. She was his little girl, the very one that he swore to protect. She was his remainder that he wasn't an emotionless monster, she made him feel human.

After a couple more minutes they finally pulled themselves away, her face red from crying, his expression still showing concern. The reason behind her outburst of emotions forgotten behind, her trust in his words enough to calm her down.

Sylus finally stood up from the floor and sat down next to her on the couch. Her head falling onto his shoulder, her head trying to organize her thoughts and leave the depressive episodes behind. His voice interrupts her tornado of thoughts.

"You've grown close to them." she let out a sound of curiosity, her head turning to look at him, but his eyes were focused on something before him "The twins." there was a moment of silence after that statement, her head coming back to rest on his shoulder once again and her eyes focusing on the painting on the wall before her.

"I did." left her mouth, he didn't react in any way, but she knew he heard her. There was no point in avoiding the truth, he already knew about it, he just wanted to hear her say it.

"It's foolish." she let out a quiet humorless laugh, she knew.

"So was following you like a stray cat on the street looking for a shelter, but look at us now." she smiled, her gaze returning to his side-profile. A sound like a second long laugh left his mouth, she had a point.

"I hope that you know what you're doing." they smiled at each other and laughed "But still if they will hurt you in any way, I will make them pay." the sudden serious expression on him took her aback.

"Oh you are really like my father!" she laughed again and hit him playfully in the shoulder, he simply smiled at her once again, his eyes hiding the warm inside reserved only for the person before him. He would let the world burn for this girl.

~★~

Half an hour later from the depths of Sylus' office finally walked out the center of twins worries. However Luke and Kieran didn't even flinch at the sound of someone's footsteps, deep in their dreams.

The girl appeared in the doorway, with a playful smile on her lips when she saw them. For a moment she thought about pulling up a prank on them, but decided against it. They were probably waiting for her, she knew that they saw her fainting earlier, they were probably worried as hell, so today they earned their free pass for a peaceful sleep.

A spark showed itself in her eyes. They were dreaming, she could feel it. People who were close to her got them more often than a regular person, side effect of her evol.

She got lost in her head for a minute. Was it safe for her to use her evol when a couple of hours ago it had a malfunction? Well if she'll do it correctly then probably it will be fine.

Slowly, making sure to stay as quiet as a cat, she made her way towards the couch occupied by the duo. Standing one step before them she took a good look at them.

Luke slept on his stomach with one of his hands dangling from the couch almost touching the carpet, while the other one found it's place under his head, they still had their masks on, but they got a little misplaced, showing more skin that they are supposed to, his feet placed up on the armrest of the couch.

Then there was Kieran, who fell asleep asleep on his back with his legs thrown over the armrest from the other side of the couch. One of his hands sneaked it's way to the backrest (was it even comfortable?) while the second was lying on his tummy. The hood slipped from his head, showing off his dark raven hair.

Their heads were lying close to each other, leaving some space in between them.

She let out a quiet giggle, they were adorable. Slowly, as to not disturb them, she sat down in the free space and gently touched both of their foreheads, her eyes lighting up, full on glowing this time, when her evol started to work.

Before her eyes flooded the picture of their dream. One dream for both of them? Were they connected to each other that much?

The picture becomes much more clear with every second until she is finally able to see and hear them perfectly well.

They sat on the rooftop, instead of their usual uniforms they wore all black clothes. Their dark middle length hair perfectly visible even in the darkness of the night.

"Do you think we'll make it?" she heard Kieran's voice. It didn't carry the mischievous hint to it which made her concerned about the specifics of that dream.

"Who cares? What matters is that we are finally free and playing by our rules." Luke's voice, even tho playful, still sounded more serious than normal "If we go down, then at least we'll do it together."

"I guess you're right." the younger of the twins let out a breath and looked up to the sky.

In the meantime, the person spying on their dream started to fall asleep herself. She didn't even notice how the dream started to feel more real with every second, it all came to her so naturally, as if she was meant to be there.

She started to feel the cold wind on her face, it started to play with her hair and the fabric of her clothes. She looked at the twins, who stayed clueless to her presence in their dream. Did they even know it was a dream? She couldn't tell.

However in the real world the twins sleeping forms feeling the closeness of her body started to slowly move towards her. Kieran's head found it's place on the girl's tights treating it like the softest of all pillows, while his brother's hand that wasn't busy under his head hugged the girl's legs.

The girl herself, now joining them in their nap, rested her hands on Kieran's chest and Luke's head, the closeness coming to them naturally.

Her silhouette in the dream started getting closer to the boys, who were still sitting on the edge of the rooftop with their backs facing her.

"You will make it." her soft voice breaking through the sounds of the wind in their ears, both sets of eye glancing towards her, shocked but somehow not at all surprised that she's there "I'll help you." she crouched down to be on their eye level and looked at both of their faces taking in the details.

Kieran lacked his scars, his face being a perfect mirror to Luke's, but she could still tell who was who. Older of the twins had this mischievous sparkle in his eyes all the time, while his twin's eyes looked softer and less playful, but still could match his brother's mischievousness most of the time.

They looked at her as if they were bewitched. It seemed that the memories from the precious events in the awakened world flooded back to their minds.

"You're okay!" both of them screamed, their eyes wide open in shock, they moved fast, not even registering the moment when they pulled her into a bone-crushing hug.

The girl just laughed at their antics and threw her hands around them, accepting the affection.

"Someone was worried about me?" she whispered right under their ears. Her head resting on Luke's shoulder, but turned Kieran's way, her nose touching his neck.

None of them answered, they just hugged her tighter. Her legs resting on Kieran's now, her body leaning on Luke's.

They finally found their peace. Their embraces stayed unbroken for the rest of the dream.

Meanwhile...

Sylus finally left his office, in between the incident earlier and his work he didn't have time to eat anything, and now, finally deciding to make his way to the kitchen, he noticed an open door.

Well that was unusual, all the doors always stay closed. It was a sort of unspoken rule in his mansion at this point.

He peeked inside with the intention of closing it, but the sight inside of the room made him stop in his tracks.

His precious little girl was sleeping on the couch with the twins cuddled up to her.

His breathing stopped for a second, anger in his eyes perfectly visible.

Yes, he knew that they were close. Yes, he noticed how they tried to get physically close to her at any chance given. And yes - he knew that she had grown rather... Fond of them.

But still he couldn't say that he was pleased at the fact that they seem even closer now than the last time he saw them together.

To be honest he didn't even consider the idea of her growing up and... Getting a... Boyfriend? Especially somehow getting two?!

He needed a glass of whiskey. Preferably a whole bottle.

His hand found it's way to his forehead, his eyes clenching shut, he shouldn't care as much as he did. Shaking his head he finally got a hold of the door handle, glancing at them for the last time before finally closing the door.

~★~★~★~

2047, Middle of Summer.

Over those last months not much has happened, N109 Zone still rotten with crime, however the mysterious leader of Onychinus didn't show himself for some time now, rumors were spreading like diseases, but which one was right? No one knew. People used his absence to their advantages in various ways, almost forgetting about his existence.

Still, some people lucky (or not) to be working close to him were having the laugh of their lifes watching those rats try to reach the top. They let them have their moments of power, knowing that when the time comes, they will take it all back

In the quietness of Sylus's mansion three teenagers found themselves hidden from the rest of the world and having taken a break from their work, decided to have some movie night.

The coffee table in one of the living rooms with the biggest TV screen was full of snacks including popcorn, cookies, gummy bears, various drinks and some other things (basically anything they could find in the kitchen). Blankets and pillows were waiting for them to get comfy, some splashed around the floor too. While the twins were getting the last of the snacks (coming back with some chips and sodas while also carrying bags of sweets in their mouths) their favorite girl was picking up a cartoon to watch.

Twins didn't wear their uniforms, masks lying forgotten in what was now known as their official room. After those couple of months working for Sylus about two weeks ago he finally decided that it's easier to just have them there all the time (totally not because **someone** was pleading him to let them live there), together with the new place to live they also got some money to go and buy themselves stuff like new clothes.

Let's also add that the girl herself took them shopping, not trusting their fashion skills... But at least they got some fun-bonding time outside of the N109 Zone.

All three of them were wearing sweatpants and some random t-shirts, putting the last of the snacks into the free bowls, the twins sat down on the couch on each side of the girl. Taking blankets and pillows to put them where they seem fit. Kieran finally looked at the screen noticing the title of the movie Y/n choose.

"How To Train Your Dragon?" he read out loud, getting the attention of his brother.

"Never watched it."

Girl's eyes widen. She looked at the twins in pure shock.

"HOW?!" both boys looked at her and just stared at her not knowing what was so shocking "That movie is a classic!" she added, her expression still looking as if they have just told her that they are of royal blood or something.

"To be honest we never really had a TV growing up, the first time we watched something was like two months ago." Kieran explained, reaching for a bowl of popcorn to put it on his lap. The girl stayed quiet for a minute before her expression changed into one of understanding.

Not saying anything else she reached out to grab her favorite snack and finally started the movie.

All three sets of eyes focused on the screen, sometimes their attention leaving the TV to grab a snack or drink. The first movie went smoothly, with some random conversations here and there of course.

"That guy is a loser." Luke said with a mouth full of popcorn.

"Shut up!" Y/n thrown some popcorn at him which he didn't have time to dodge, but he managed to catch one in his mouth and shot up from his seat to high-five Kieran "Kids." the girl rolled her eyes, her eyes going to focus on the screen again.

Luke slowly slid from the couch onto the carpet below them, continuing to watch from there.

"I like those twins." Kieran said, his eyes not moving from the screen, the rest of the party just let out sounds of agreement.

"I swear that I can feel the awkwardness between him and the dragon from the screen."

"Real." Y/n and Kieran looked at each other, it was the first time they said something at the same time.

Unbothered Luke reached out for his glass to refill it with some soda.

"Wait, I'll get some ice." standing up, Y/n took two glasses and head to the shelves, boys eyes followed her instantly not saying a word.

She opened a cabinet and inside of it... Was a little freezer? What was it doing there?!

Twins stared in awe, the girl as if sensing their stares laughed a bit and without turning her head back to look at them answered their silent question:

"I like to have ice-cream nearby when watching sad movies, okay?" Luke and Kieran looked at each other and smiled for no reason, no words left them and their attention came back to the movie.

Soon enough she came back to them, giving one glass to Luke and keeping the other to herself.

"You forgot about someone?" Luke said grinning.

"I noticed that Kieran never gets ice for himself. Am I wrong?" she started pouring her drink unbothered, twins looked at each other as if communicating with their eyes, they were shocked.

Eventually they just silently returned to watching the movie

"Aww he's in love." Kieran's tone carried some kind of sarcasm to it.

"Imagine hitting on a girl with a dragon." his brother added with a laugh.

In a split of second both of them let out a sound of pain, she hit their heads.

"What was that for?" Luke asked, his head turning to send a glare at the girl.

The girl just rolled her eyes and shrugged.

"WHY CAN'T THEY LISTEN TO HIM?!" boys threw their hands up in anger, screaming at the movie.

"Cause some people are really dumb and close-minded." she said, with no emotion to her voice, Kieran joined his brother on the carpet, his back resting on the girl's legs, he reached for something on the table, his hair falling onto his eyes.

Before he had the chance to get them off he felt hands from behind gently gathering his hair and putting them in a small ponytail on the base of his neck. After it was done he felt a soft pat on his head. He peeked over his shoulder, the girl sent him a smile which he returned.

"Oh okay. Am I disturbing you two maybe? Should I leave you to your moment?" Luke's annoyed voice made them break their eye contact and look at him. His expression not hiding his irritation.

"What? You jealous?" left Kieran's mouth, which earned him a punch on the chest from his brother, making him fall completely on the floor, Luke followed him down starting a fight, which was obviously for fun.

The girl laughed at their antics. It's been going on for about a minute now, her laughter got louder while the boys continued their play-fight for her entertainment.

Suddenly when Kieran tried to overthrow Luke from himself his action pulled a blanket from the couch, making the girl fall with a panicked squeak.

Both boys instantly tried to catch her, which let them all to fall on the floor, her body landing on top of theirs, twins froze for a moment, everything went silent. They were ready to start apologizing when suddenly they heard her laughter and felt her shake.

A moment later Luke joined her with a giggle of his own, and soon enough Kieran couldn't help himself and did the same thing. All three of them were lying on the floor unable to control their breathing because of the laughter.

It took them solid five minutes to calm down, but instead of going back to sit on the couch they stayed on the carpet.

"Come here." she instructed Luke who wordlessly, but with a happy grin, followed her command, seating himself before her and taking some snacks from the table.

Her hands went to his hair, scooping them up in her hand and tying them up in the matching ponytail to Kieran's, using her extra hair tie. Right after she was done she moved towards the younger of brothers, gesturing him to turn around which he did, letting her fix his hairstyle who got messy after the play fight with his brother.

The next hour went peacefully, they started the second movie from the series. Twins kept asking questions and commenting on the plot and characters, not keeping their opinions to themselves and making Y/n laugh at their behavior.

During the watching all three of them snuggled up together, sitting shoulder to shoulder under a huge fluffy blanket.

When the third movie started playing the atmosphere in the room changed a bit. The boys seemed somehow more relaxed, Kieran's head fell to Y/n shoulder while Luke started to play with her hand, moving her fingers for his own fun.

"OMG HE'S IN LOVE!" Luke screamed, squeezing the girl's hand in both of his.

"Oh she's got the attitude." Kieran added after seeing the white dragon shoot flames at them.

"Don't they all..." the girl looked at the older of the twins with a silent dare in her eyes "I'll shut up!" breaking the intense eye contact to focus back on the movie he couldn't catch the playful hint in the girl's eyes that showed itself right after his words.

She sent a knowing look to Kieran, who simply smirked at her. Her free hand reached for his and a smile graced her lips, her forehead meeting his for a moment with a short giggle leaving her.

"Never thought I would be jealous of my own twin brother." they heard a huff from behind them but instead of turning their heads they just laughed and the girl threw her hands around Kieran to mess with his brother even more "Okay, now you're doing it on purpose!" was the only thing they heard before a set of hands caught her waist and pulled her towards the other boy.

Her back resting against him, still shaking with laughter, she couldn't see the 'intimidating' stare Luke sent to his brother, which only affected in Kieran's louder laughter.

Soon enough they calmed down, going back to watching the movie. Luke held her in his arms and didn't let go so she just got comfy against him, not caring one bit, Kieran also didn't look like it bothered him.

"That guy is such a loser, will he actually pull her?" escaped Luke's mouth after seeing Toothless little dance to impress his crush. He felt popcorn getting forced into his mouth to shut him up, which he accepted without a fuss.

"He's doing his best, if a guy would try so hard to impress me I would be delighted." was the answer he got in response.

"So you want a loser for a boyfriend? Your 'dad' would eat him alive." Kieran grinned and turned to look at her.

"Oh please my 'dad' wouldn't dare to hurt someone just because they like me." she said, but after a second added a quiet "I think..." and her gaze turned out to be a little uncertain.

"Well, one thing I know for sure: getting onto the Boss' black list to date you is worth it." she heard Luke whisper into her ear, hugging her a little tighter. She let out a quiet laugh but nothing else escaped her mouth.

About twenty minutes later the girl left the embrace to stretch her back and take something to drink from the table.

Silence followed, the most heartbreaking moment of the movie started playing soon after, the twins watched in anticipation, but right when they saw dragons leaving for their Hidden World they suddenly heard a quiet sob.

Both of them turned towards the girl, who tried to keep tears from falling.

"What?! It's sad okay..." she said with a snark, wiping her eyes with her palms. Boys smiled slightly at her cuteness.

"Aww it's okay, you can cry as much as you want here." Kieran said, putting his hand on her shoulder, tugging her towards his body. Instantly she melted into him, hiding her face in his neck.

"You saw countless people die on the job. But some... Movie for little kids is the cause of your tears? Luke snarked a comment, not meaning to be rude in the slightness, but still earned himself a middle finger from the girl who had yet to pull herself away from his brother. With a quiet laugh his gaze turned back to the TV.

Second layer the girl peeked at Kieran's face, not leaving his embrace yet. His eyes turned to look at her, their eye contact felt weird. Not the bad kind but, for some reason, they seemed unable to pull away from each other. For a moment he thought that she activated her evol, but the shining in her eyes was simply from the tears hiding in them just a moment ago.

She examined his face, the scars left by Sylus perfectly visible. She touched his cheek, her thumb softly caressing his face, his scar. None of them thought about what they were doing, they didn't even seem to notice the fact that their faces were brought closer to each other.

That was, until their lips touched. No moving, no breathing, their hearts beating so fast that they could feel it in their heads. Their eyes closed, the gentle kiss lasted for a while, with no rush, eventually they pulled their lips away from each other, but their foreheads touched instead. Her palm didn't leave his face, staying there while both of them tried to calm their breathing and hearts down.

Suddenly she felt a gentle touch on the back of her head, her eyes opened and turned towards Luke, who looked at her with a playful spark hidden in his gaze.

"Is it mine turn now?" his whisper touched her ear like the most precious secret, his movement didn't hesitate, he turned her head gently towards him and made their lips touch. Her palm still lingered on Kieran's face who now looked at them, studying their actions.

Luke's kiss was more intense than the one of his twin, his lips moving slowly but eager against her, making her lose her breath again. The burning feelings inside of him finally coming to life. He broke the kiss after some time, pulling away while still keeping his hand on her head.

She felt Kieran's head come to rest against the side of her own. Her eyes gazed at Luke, who looked like he just won his life.

She felt safe, seen and heard.

A thought lingered in her mind:

Is this what love feels like?

She sent the older of the twins a slight smile of her own, nuzzling against Kieran once again, while also pulling Luke towards herself. He obeyed without a protest, his head falling onto her shoulder.

Meanwhile in the background the movie was coming to an end, a wedding and the reunion of two new families was not enough to keep them away from their own moment.

Everything seemed to fall into it's rightful place.

~★~★~★~

2048, Early Autumn.

A year went by... To say that Sylus was not really happy about the blossoming relationship between his little girl and his employees would be an understanding.

For a couple of first months he gave the twins more time-consuming tasks just because he saw them getting too close to her. He wasn't blind, he knew that they cared for each other and his precious daughter-like person was happy with them.

But in his eyes: no one would ever be enough for her.

When he saw them kissing her cheeks while making food in the kitchen he made them leave the base for two weeks under the pretext that they needed to keep a close eye on one of his business partners.

And to be honest they learned nothing from this 'lesson', still acting clingy whenever she was near, competing for her attention all the time.

Sylus was so over it, but he couldn't do anything, since his little girl wouldn't forgive him if something bad would happen to them by his own doing.

So he just suffered in silence, sending death stares to them any time they dared to stand too close to her for his liking.

Today they finally got the intel about the Aether Protocore, mission was set, the woman in possession of it will soon show herself, he was sure of it.

Meanwhile twins already left the mansion, they needed to get to the area faster and wait for a signal to act.

While him and Y/n still waited in the mansion, currently sitting in the dining room, a red orb found it's place in Sylus's palm, his hands playing with it like with a coin.

Inside of it bloomed red flower, stained with blood, yellow sky around it sent warm light in it's direction, but instead of basking in it, the flower looked sad, depressed and caged.

The glass orb around it appeared broken, as if someone stabbed something sharp into it. Countless small cracks showing themselves around the pierced place. It's a surprise that the glass didn't shattered completely.

"Get ready, we are leaving soon." hiding the object in his pocket, he stood up, not waiting for the girl to follow him, he knew that she would be exactly where he needed her anyways.

~★~

Watching someone get killed by Sylus' power was interesting every time. They always looked so pathetic and weak in the claws of his evol.

But this time instead of focusing on the poor guy hanging in the air she studied the woman kneeling on the ground. She kept a safe distance, not even able to hear what the twins were saying, but she could imagine their comments already.

Sylus arrived, Mephisto who until now was seated on the teenage girl shoulder cawed and flew to his owner.

Twins kneeled before Sylus who appeared before them now, keeping up their acts.

"Take out the vermin that're still running amok." the girl slowly walked out from her hiding spot, getting a little closer to the spectacle. The woman who found herself in their presence looked up at her confused, but didn't comment about anything.

She stopped a couple meters behind the twins.

"Yes, sir!" she heard them say and watched them stand up to head in her direction.

Without any hesitation she turned around and started walking away, her boys following behind, leaving Sylus with his new prey behind.

"Finally some fun for us!" Luke spoke with excitement, catching up to her and throwing his arm around her shoulder.

"Let's hope that the rats will at least try to fight back or run. I missed that thrill." Kieran said with a hint of mockery in his voice. The girl just smiled at their attics, she couldn't wait to see them in action once more.

~★~

"She won't be sleeping forever, right? She's been unconscious for one day. We need to wake her up." was the first thing the woman heard after waking up.

"Easy, just open up the back of her head. Drill a hole in her neck and..." her eyes darted open, her vision fozy.

"You two-" she sat up.

"You're seeing things. I'm the only one here. There is no 'two'".

"Then who's that?"

"My soul can leave... my body..." the man before her clearly tried to scare her.

"Stop it. She went through a lot, leave your jokes for later." her eyes turned to the other side of the room, a silhouette of a girl playing with a knife perfectly visible "Sorry for those kids." women caught eye contact.

The eyes of that girl were mesmerizing. Something deep hidden inside of them, for whatever reason, the woman at the mercy of the strangers felt safe now, she didn't know why, but there was a feeling inside of her screaming to trust her.

"Are you stunned? Shocked? Boooring." the voice of the man standing in the shadow of the room got her attention, her head snapping to look at him.

"Ahem... Hi, MC. Before you left Boss's parlor..." so they knew her name... "Well, we already met. Four days ago to be exact." four days... She was unconscious for that long?

"We didn't just save you from that ungrateful traitor. We also brought you back to Onychinus's base." the guy further away added.

"...So you want me to thank you." she looked clearly giving up that she was thinking about something. The memories of previous days coming back to her.

"We will give you some more time to come back to your... Right state of mind. Come find us when you'll feel ready to." the girl said, putting the knife to it's destinated place on her thigh and leaving, the boys following short behind, waving at the woman.

However she wasn't sure if she'll even feel ready to face the reality, but she didn't have much choice.

~★~

"We know what you're thinking." she looked at Luke (who's name she got to know some time ago, together with the name of his brother, but she still didn't know who was the girl that she met, she didn't see her since their last encounter) "But after being hunted down in The Nest, do you know how many people are out there looking for you?" he sounded so sure of the fact that they've done her a favour.

"And if you escape, you'll only get lost in the chaos of this no-man's land." added Kieran.

"Wanderers will eat you up. They also won't leave behind any crumps. So..." she could tell who was the more dramatic twin.

"Stay here with our boss!" they said together, looking at her with expectations clearly visible without their masks on.

"Throw away all morality and compassion, and this place will be a paradise!" she kept quiet at the Kieran's comment, knowing very well that N109 Zone is not a place for her.

"By the way, who's older? You two are basically identical twins." she decided to change the topic of their conversation.

"Take a guess." Luke said, clearly curious about something.

"Could you come closer so I can get a better look?" she tried to act genue. He fell for the bait, coming closer, she pulled a laser pointer and held it against his neck.

"Hey..! What are you doing?" his eyes widening in shock.

"Have you heard of the XT-7, the Hunters Association's latest weapon?" confused but happy about the fact that they didn't search her body, she decided to use it to her advantage "It's high-powered laser that can penetrate your skin and vaporise your blood. The good news is that it's quick and painless. The bad news is that you'll be losing a lot of blood from your neck. Are you squeamish?" Luke remained unmoving at her explanation.

Kieran fell silent for a moment, before pressing the door handle and moving aside. To her surprise, the door opened just like that.

"Why are you staring at me? Did I say you weren't allowed to leave?" he said with an obvious sarcasm to his voice.

She didn't answer. Standing up she kept the 'weapon' to Luke's neck, gesturing with her head to go with her out of this room.

When passing the door she looked at Kieran who didn't really seem bothered. He followed behind them to the corridor.

"Okay, just go straight down the hall and you'll see the exit." she let go of Luke, he rubbed his neck and headed over to his brother's side.

"Do you want it? Here." the woman said, noticing his curious eyes following the object. He reached out for it, surprised.

"Really? That's very nice of you to just give away a hunter's secret weapon." he said with excitement.

"It's a laser pointer." she stated casually, her eyes giving up the fun she had from this situation.

"You..." she smiled playfully at him noticing his slight anger at the fact he got played with.

"Did I ever say that it was the XT-7?" she turned around, leaving the boys behind with every taken step.

She heard them whisper behind her, but ignored them completely, she kept going forward.

She took in her surroundings, the dark corridor she was in not saying much about where she was. But she noticed that this place seemed rather abandoned.

She saw a black bird before her, sitting on a marble pillar. A crow? It's eyes looking like made out of rubies.

The bird turned his neck into the woman's direction. It was alive?! Suddenly he flew towards her, missing her head he landed on something... Or rather someone behind her.

Turning around she saw the mysterious girl she saw only two times here.

"It's you." MC's voice quiet. She looked as the girl lovingly stroked the crow's sharp feathers, it's head trying to snuggle up to her palm.

"Sorry for startling you. It was not my intention, I was merely passing by." her eyes left the crow to look at the woman before her "Are you leaving?"

"I... Kinda..." she tried to take the details of the girl before her, also trying to catch where she hid her weapons.

"Kinda?" her giggle broke her from the thoughts "So you don't know yourself what to do? I thought that you would have it all planned out by now." it was clear that she was relaxed, as if knowing that the woman won't try to harm her in any way.

"I'm still figuring out everything..." she hated the fact that her voice gave away her uncertainty.

"Take your time, there's no rush." the girl said calmly, her eyes coming back to the pet on her shoulder who now snuggled up to her neck "Oh also... Thanks for what you did with Luke, I heard the commotion from the other room and overhead a little of it, sometimes it's good to put them into their place." she laughed, the woman couldn't help but crack a smile.

"My pleasure." MC said, for whatever reason more relaxed now. She didn't know that girl at all, she made up her mind about the twins and their Boss, but her? It was a completely different story for some unknown, even to her, reason "Do you... work with them?"

"Work with them? Hm... I guess you could say that." their eyes meet for the last time, before the girl gestured for the crow to fly away, it disappeared behind a narrow gap in the opened door next to them. The girl turned around, going in the direction where MC left the twins.

"Hey! Wait up!" she screamed after her, but got no response, she planned to run after her but the melodious classical music from behind the door caught her attention, and before her eyes came back to the place where she saw the girl going, there was no one left in the corridor but herself.

~★~

Whispers and quiet laughter that the twins shared when entering the kitchen brought the attention of the girl drawing something in her sketchbook while sitting on the countertop from the other side of the room, boys not noticing her started their hunt for snacks, taking off their masks and still laughing about something.

"What are you two up to this time?" both of them jumped at the voice of their girlfriend. The shock in their eyes stayed there for a couple of seconds before they get themself together.

"Us?" Luke leaned against the countertop on his elbow.

"Up to something?" Kieran looked at her from behind his brother with a slight smirk.

"Nooo."

"Never."

"Baby you hurt us." the older of the twins theatrically put a hand over his heart and took a 'pained' expression.

"With those accusations." Kieran put his hand on his brother's shoulder as if to comfort him after such harsh words were thrown their way.

The girl looked at them, lifting her eyebrows and sending them the 'really?' disappointed glare.

"Are you gonna tell me? Or should I go and find out myself." her sketch long forgotten now as she left it on the counter while standing up from her previous sitting place and walking a couple steps towards her lover boys.

"Well if you really want to know..." Kieran went around his brother, closer to the girl while leaning down a little bit to stand on her eye level.

"We decided to make a good deed today." Luke said, the eyes of the girl sneaked a peek at him and came back to gaze into the eyes of the man standing right before her.

"And help Miss Hunter to fulfill her mission." the mischievous spark in Kieran's eyes wasn't missed by the attention of the girl looking at him like she could read his mind and feelings.

Her lips turned into a playful smile and a second later the sound of her laugh reached the ears of the men in the room with her, making both of them smile at her attics.

"You two are evil. Playing tricks on the poor girl." she said with no real disappointment behind her words. She knew that nothing would happen to that woman, Sylus wouldn't hurt her in any way. "Now, who wants some cookies." her arms went around Kieran's neck, giving him a kiss on the cheek, her eyes turning to his brother right behind him.

"Us!" both of them screamed with excitement. Luke ran up to them, stealing the girl from his twin's arms and holding her up started spinning with her in his arms.

The dark furniture of the kitchen didn't exactly match the child-like joy and laughter inside of the room, but it didn't make the moment any less cheerful and happy.

Wherever this trio found themselves in always felt cozy and full of joy. The demons of the past getting forgotten and instead the new found memories getting their place inside of their hearts, making their lives a little more bearable with each and every new one.

~★~

Staring at the brooch in her palms she froze for a minute. Finally, after so many fails that hurt her ego she was able to get it, it didn't matter that the only reason why it worked out was for the fact that Sylus decided to play her little game.

She was already sitting in the red dress, her hair wasn't put up yet, and some parts of her outfit like jewelry and gloves had yet to find themself on her. With a short exhale she put the brooch down onto the table before her.

Her eyes shut closed and her palms started massaging her scalp. Million thoughts were running through her mind. What if something were to go wrong? Is Sylus a danger to her? Will he leave her on her own if something goes not according to plan? Is there even a plan? Will he-

"You know, your thoughts are so loud for someone who came here with a strict goal in mind. Having second thoughts?" a female voice broke her out of her mind, in the mirror before her she met the eyes of the young girl whose name she still didn't know "You know - it's never too late to back out." the slight smirk adoring her face didn't miss the hunter's gaze.

"I won't back out. This all is just... A lot." her eyes fell from the girl back to her own reflection, picking up a brush she started taking care of her hair. However with the nerves from a couple of last days finally getting to her after staying closed inside of her for too long, even the simplest task seems too hard to focus on right now.

While trying and failing to catch her hair together once more she suddenly felt gentle hands caressing them and bringing them together. Looking up she saw the girl now standing right behind her. Did she fail to hear the footsteps coming closer to her?

"The auction will start soon, you won't get ready in time with your shaky hands." pulling MC' hair up, forming a ponytail she reached out her hand "A brush please." without any complaints MC put the item into her open palm, and a second later the girl came back to her task.

"Can I ask for your name?" the teenager made a sound, as if enjoying the knowledge that the information about her still wasn't known to the woman.

"Twins didn't expose it to you yet? Hah, so they can keep information to themselves if they want to." their eyes meet for a split second in the mirror before breaking the eye contact again.

"No, when I asked about you all that I got in response was them calling you their 'dreamy girl'." at this sentence the girl behind her laughed.

"It does sound like them, yeah." her expression turned into something soft, as if thinking about something that made her happy "My name is Y/n." once again she raised her gaze to look into the eyes of the woman. She put her hands onto her shoulder, the hairstyle she was working on was finally done.

MC tested her name on her mouth in a quiet whisper.

"What are we thinking." the younger girl took a hand mirror from the table, making it reflect the hairstyle from behind so that the woman could see it in the mirror. It was a simple but elegant bun with a couple strands of her hair lying free around the area of her face, making a makeshift bangs.

"It looks great, thank you." she sent a soft smile towards the girl which she reciprocated. She saw her reaching for something on the table again.

"Let me help you put it on." holding a necklace in her hands she got ready to clasp it around MC's neck.

The next couple of minutes were spent with shared laughter in between them and some small talk. The girl made sure not to share many things about herself, Sylus or the twins but somehow still found topics to talk about, like sharing some little facts about the people who will attend the same auction as her.

For the first time in the last couple of days, the hunter finally found herself relaxing, and her mind wasn't full of second thoughts and doubts.

~★~

Sylus calmly guides MC across the dance floor, swaying to the song's rhythm.

Blocking the prying shadows around them he tried to make the woman focus on him, but for a quick moment her eyes caught a glimpse of someone who brought her attention to themselves.

Continuing their dance she tried to look at the mysterious stranger behind Sylus's shoulder.

It was a woman, in a black perfectly fitting dress, corset tied tight on her body, with a lot of chains adoring her, from her neck down to her corset and gloves, working as her jewellery.

What made MC, and probably every person here, wonder, was the black veil which hid her hair and face from the curious eyes of the outlookers.

Her stance was elegant, not moving an inch from her spot she resembled a statue, meant to be adored from afar.

Suddenly Sylus spun her around, making her lose sight of her target, she looked at him with annoyance, not expecting any explanation, but a short chuckle left the man, before words started flowing from his mouth.

"So, kitten finally noticed another crow in the room with us? Took you long enough." her eyes widened at the realization, but Sylus didn't leave her any room for questions, and continued their dance, making her focus not to stumble on her feet.

~★~

The explosion left people panicking, the whole hall reduced to a rubble.

Wanderers appeared from left and right, but before MC had a chance to shoot, someone else already took care of them.

Looking around she noticed the figure in the black dress, which fabric now appeared shorter and more comfortable to move around in.

Young girl calmly moved towards them, her steps more graceful than her usual movements. The clicking of her high shoes echoes from the ground, following her steps, MC took a note in her mind to ask her for a walking session later on, it may come useful.

"Leave, you did your part, go to your lover boys sweetie." Sylus' commanding voice spoke, the hint of displeasure obvious at the words 'lover boys'.

The moment of realization struck MC like lightning - that's who they were! She dated the twins! It all made sense now, how could she not notice before?

The girl only let out a quiet laugh, and reached out her hand towards MC.

Opening up her palm she showed her the gun she was holding, uncertain but without much choice the woman picked it up.

"Good luck." with those words Y/n walked around them, heading towards the exit of the hall.

"She looks stunning." a whisper full of fascination left MC, followed by a sound of approval from Sylus' mouth.

Without more comments about the girl, their thoughts came back to the present time and the mission at their hands.

~★~

In the meantime...

"That explosion was mid at best." Luke's voice gave away his disappointment.

"Could be better, but Boss was probably worried about Miss Hunter getting scared or hurt." Kieran kicked the stone under his legs, bored, they were waiting for their girlfriend to come to them for an hour now.

"Where is sheee, I didn't see her all day!" Luke lay down on the stairs leading to the entrance of the abandoned building which localisation was about five to ten minutes away from the auction place.

Putting a hand on top of his heart he tried his best to appear as if dying.

"Hey, I didn't see her either, you're not the only one in emotional pain right now." Kieran scoffed at his brother's attics, crossing his arms.

Suddenly he felt a cold rush of air hitting his back. Before he had a chance to turn around someone's arms came to embrace him around the torso.

"Okay, not fair! I'm dying from longing here, and you decide to give attention to my brother first? The double betrayal!" not giving a single damn about his brother's screams in the background Kieran turned around and hugged the girl back, conscious about his mask.

He picked her up, making her feet linger a little above the ground, which succeeded in making her giggle.

"Okay but damn girl, that outfit? How could you not show it to us before going out!" hearing his brother point out her clothing choice, Kieran put her back down and his gaze explored her whole body before he straightened up.

"Damn how did we pull you?" his head dipped to the side, making him look like a bird observing it's prey.

"We somehow got the daughter of the most dangerous multimillionaire in the N109 Zone to ourselves, if not for the fact that our identities are supposed to stay secret, I would go to the rooftop of the highest building around here and scream it for everyone to hear." Luke finally stood up and walked closer to them.

"Getting onto the Boss's black list because of dating you was so worth it." Kieran high fived his brother, making the girl shake her head in disbelief.

"Can we go now? I want to have a photo session in the forest with that fit." she made a little spin to show off her dress.

"Oh so today we're playing photographers?" Kieran pointed out, trying not to let his excitement show.

"Got it Missy."

"You'll get the best photos you could dream of, princess." twins bowed their upper body jokingly, making the girl raise her chin high and take the most graceful pose she could think of.

"We wouldn't dare to disappoint you, your majesty." the girl finally broke the character of a serious rich woman and let out a laugh, at which both of the brothers grinned to themselves.

"Let's go, I want to make it home before the morning arrives." twins straighten up from their previous position and watch her walk away in the other direction they came from.

"Do you think that she will wear something similar at our wedding?" Luke heard his brother's voice in his head.

"Ple-ase; her wedding dress is gonna be so much more eye catching and gorgeous than this one." at this statement Kieran nodded his head in agreement.

"Our little fashion Queen." they looked at her bewitched, not even noticing the distance growing with every step she took.

"Are you coming or not? Someone needs to carry me once we get to the grass part. There's no way I'll ruin those sweet shoes." she broke them from their thoughts, and without turning back continued on her way.

Both of them gasped and exchanged glances, before breaking out into a run and trying to over scream the other one.

"It's gonna be me!"

~★~★~★~

2048, Late Autumn.

MC spends most of her time in Linkon but more often than not she finds herself in the luxurious mansion in the N109 Zone.

And more often than not; she isn't even going there to meet the white haired man who lives rent free in her mind (for various reasons) but to meet the three teenagers that she grow fond of.

Today she found herself in that mansion again, her and the troublemaker trio decided to make cookies, play kitty cards, and play Just Dance until midnight. Sylus was nowhere in sight, when asked about him, the 'kids' said that he won't be back until the next day, away for some business, not specifying anything more.

In the middle of the night they finally decided to end their activities and leave for their rooms, MC headed to one of the guest rooms that she stayed before, with a pajama borrowed from the younger girl.

Everything seemed peaceful, she was able to fall asleep fast, but the sleep itself wasn't as calm as her surroundings.

That vision again. Her staring at her own bloody palms, not being able to focus on anything else. Her hands felt as if not belonging to her, foreign and unfamiliar, the ringing in her ears made everything twice as dizzy and scary, her own heart beating so loud as if trying to break free, yearning for something outside of her own soul and body.

The tears leaving their eyes, meeting the red essence below her. Every breath she took felt like pain. She tried to raise her head, tried to see what was happening, what she had done, but the picture before her was blurry, something red and black blinked before her and then it was over.

Waking up with a heavy breath and all sweaty she shot up from her laying position, raised her hands and stared at them, they were shaking, her whole body was shaking, like in daze she continued to stare at them, trying to see any traces from the mortifying sight she saw in that dream.

It took her about ten minutes to pull herself together and stop shaking 'it was only a nightmare...' she thought, with her hands placed on her head she closed her eyes, gripping her hair tightly to make sure that this reality wasn't her mind's imagination.

Her eyes shoot open, taking in her surroundings, the dark room lit only by the red moon peeking through the window's curtains. Her throat felt more dried than ever, she let out a series of coughs but it only worsened it's condition.

For a moment her eyes fixed on the moon outside, and then with a sight she placed her feet on the cold floor, picking herself up from the bed, and making her way out of the suffocating room.

With slow and quiet steps she walked down the hallway, trying not to bump into things along the way, but when it happened she didn't even acknowledge the moment of pain.

Not even noticing when, she found herself in the kitchen, stopping in her tracks she harshly put her hands on the counter, trying to steady her breathing and not faint from the overwhelming she felt.

Her ears didn't pick up a sound, but her eyes gazed at the glass of water quietly placed before her. Slowly she moved her head to the side, through the darkness she was able to make out a silhouette of a woman.

Seemingly unbother by the state she just saw the hunter, young girl continued moving the pencil in her hand unrushed and steady. MC tried to look at the paper before her, but wasn't able to see any details of the sketch. Understanding that the girl wasn't going to speak or question anything the woman gaze returned to the glass before her.

Unsure, she picked it up, her grip weak even with two hands in use. Trying her best not to drop the glass she put it to her lips, the drinking proved to be a hard task at first, but slowly instead of the uncomfortable tightness in her throat she felt relief.

She didn't know whether the time was moving at the slow peace or rushing, both of them, her standing and the girl sitting at the high stool, stayed there in silence, the presence of the younger girl proving to be a much needed comfort right now.

"You know, dreams are a strange concept. Some are weird, some are scary, some are memories, some are sights sent to us by our own mind." hearing the soft voice of the teenager MC turned her head towards her, noticing her still focused on the drawing, but the strokes of the pencil now seemed more forceful and not gentle at all, as if trying to mess up her previous work "And then - there are the ones that leave us in a state when we don't know what's going on. It's... a weird feeling. Like you are lost there, with no way out, and then - when you wake up, you feel like this dream is *the reality*."

The girl's eyes finally left the sketch, meeting the curious eyes of the hunter. She saw a silent question there, silent pleading for explanation and answers. Ones that she couldn't get from her.

"But in the end, it's all in your head. You make your own truth there, you are the queen who rules there." her voice grew quieter with every word leaving her mouth. Her eyes shining like a fainting star in the sky. So beautiful and so fragile.

"It's hunting me. Why can't it go away." a whisper left the woman, her eyes closing, the cold empty glass brought to her forehead, as if trying to command herself to get a grip on herself.

"Maybe you still didn't understand what you're supposed to, from that vision. Maybe the answers you seek are hidden there." a hand touched MC's arm gently, calming her down together with the soothing voice "Go to sleep in the Sylus' room, he won't be mad, I promise that no more bad dreams will come to you tonight." after that she heard the chair moving and heard footsteps slowly heading towards the door.

"You don't just work for him, right?" the sound of movement stopped, for a moment she thought that the girl left, but finally she heard the voice from far behind her.

"No." a short answer. Not telling much about the situation between the two.

"Why?" the question leaving her mouth was so quiet that she didn't expect the girl to hear it. Yet, again after a moment of silence her voice broke through.

"He took me in. When I had nothing." the sadness in her voice was obvious, even without turning around the hunter could imagine the pained expression on her face "Without asking for anything in return he saved me, gracing me with everything I could only dream of having. You might see him as a cruel, ruthless man." her voice close to breaking "But he's not heartless. No matter how much of a monster he claims to be - he will never be one in my eyes. And I hope that with time, you'll acknowledge that too." with that she left, leaving more questions behind, but also comfort and hope.

She didn't want to acknowledge the fact that the Boss of Onychinus could be anything but cruel and horrible man, led only by his desire to rule and use people like pawns, making his way to the top through the corpses and blood. With a groan she opened her eyes, planning to go back to sleep.

Turning around something caught her attention. On the countertop lying was the sketchbook of the teenager, opened on the drawing she was working on a moment ago. Not able to resist her curiosity she took a peak inside.

What she saw made her pause with confusion.

A human heart with a gem stuck in it, around it - lines, looking like veins scattered everywhere. She noticed a note above it in the language she couldn't understand.

𝕾𝖎𝖆 𝕲𝖗𝖆'𝕶𝖚𝖑

For unknown reason her heartbeat speed increased, but not because of panic. She felt like something in her was missing, some piece of her gone. Her gaze fell to the bottom of the page.

𝕾𝖎𝖆 𝕯𝖗𝖆𝖚𝖘𝖍𝖚𝖒

Her eyes scanned every detail of the sketch, her heart throbbed inside of her, louder and louder.

She slammed the sketchbook closed. Her heart slowly calmed itself down. Leaving the cursed thing on the counter she left in a hurry, not wanting any more questions to linger in her mind.

That night she let herself find comfort under the sheets of the red eyed man's bed. Sleep came easy and no nightmare bothered her for the rest of her slumber.

She couldn't notice the glow of the orb sitting on the shelf, the red and gold strings running around inside of it, linking and breaking their bond every couple of seconds. Nor could she hear the pained voices whispering from inside of it.

𝓜𝔂 𝓗𝓮𝓪𝓻𝓽

𝓜𝔂 𝓓𝓻𝓪𝓰𝓸𝓷

~★~

If anyone would say that the dangerous leader of Onychinus and a Linkon City hunter would act like an old married couple running after their children in the huge mansion belonging to the man, people would probably laugh at the audacity of that person to spread lies.

But it was currently happening...

"Luke leave Mephisto!" Sylus's commanding voice didn't scare his subordinate like most of the time, currently having too much fun to think about the consequences.

"Kieran catch!" he threw the mechanical bird towards his brother, Mephi stretched his wings to lend in his hands, playing with them.

"This bird probably costs more than all of our lives combinated! Give it back!" MC screamed while running towards the younger of the twins.

"Sorry Miss Hunter! We need him more now." Kieran shot up in the direction of the stairs, but half way there he was stopped by the mist wrapping around his body "Oh c'mon, not fair man!" now he was flying in the air, the crow still in his palm letting out a loud caw.

"Give the bird back." Sylus came into the Kieran's line of vision, but the twins weren't ready to give up just yet.

"Dreamy! Our hopes are in you!" with one hand he threw the bird to his side, towards the girl who had a lot of fun watching the little game of tag.

"Why me?!" she screamed, but caught the crow anyways, bringing him close to her chest, as if in a hug. All eyes in the room watched her, not moving, the room growing so quiet that the ticking of the clock on the wall could be heard.

A couple of the next seconds were spent staring at each other, awaiting the next move.

Suddenly the girl rushed to her left, in the direction of the corridor door.

"No!" MC shouted, running after her, while Sylus left Kieran to drop on the floor and calmly walked in the direction where the two women disappeared.

Luke rushed to his brother, helping him up with a laugh.

"Do you think she'll get it?"

"Of course. She runs fast, and Boss would never hurt his 'little girl'. It's all between her and Miss Hunter now." Kieran answered his brother with a groan, massaging his back that got hurt when he fell down.

Luke pulled his brother by his elbow, going in the direction of the corridor, which succeeded in more sounds of pain and complaints from his brother's mouth.

They walked for what seemed like eternity, until finally hearing the voices coming from one of the rooms. Both of them rushed there, as a result getting stuck in the door frame together for a second.

"I won!" the laugh that they both grew to love caught their attention, after which they heard a disappointed sound coming from the other woman in the room, and Sylus's short chuckle.

"You did it babe!" Luke ran to the girl, catching her in his arms, the crow still in her hold let out a caw, clearly annoyed at the boy's behavior, just like his owner who watched the show from the distance.

"We knew you'll get it!" from behind her came Kieran, both of them picking her up in a victory celebration, putting her onto their shoulder. The crow flew up to her shoulder, sitting there calmly.

Their joy was however short lived, because soon after their affection display a red mist caught the girl, gently bringing her back on the floor, while also pushing the twins away from her.

Mephi flew towards his owner now, whose expression didn't show the annoyance he felt inside. The teenage girl looked at him, raising her eyebrows at which he only shrugged acting like he didn't do anything.

"Okay you won, what is your wish then." MC's voice caught the attention of everyone, remembering what this game was about all along.

"I want... A self-care evening with face masks, various of not very healthy snacks, watching movies about sad love stories with a happy ending and online shopping with Sylus's card." the girl jumped up a bit and clapped her hands.

"... Okay I have no objections." the woman raised her hands in surrender and slowly walked up to the girl catching her hands and starting to jump with her in excitement.

"I call dibs on the dino mask!" Luke raised his hand high up, getting himself up from the floor he previously landed on, and ran out of the room, probably to get the stuff ready.

"Hey, no fair! You had that one last time asshole!" Kieran ran after him.

Sylus let out a sigh, his palm on his forehead in disbelief.

"Shopping!" the girls called in sync, before rushing in the direction of the door to catch up to the twins.

"What did I get myself into..." Mephisto cawed as if to mock the man "I know, I know, you don't have to remind me." white haired man turned his head towards the bird sending him a glare, and made his way towards the direction where he knew the chaos started to grow.

The evening went by fast, talks about any and everything, giggles, face masks and other beauty care products (even Mephisto wasn't spared, and sat there stuck with a small sheet mask made by twins), a lot of funny selfies, crying at the sad moments in the movies, at which twins hugged each other, girls each other, and Sylus and Mephisto only sent each other looks asking for help.

Eventually after a couple hours they finally began to feel exhausted. Slowly falling asleep one by one, leaving only Sylus awake.

He didn't really pay attention to them, focusing on the cheap movie on the screen, waiting for it to be over, when suddenly he felt a light weight on his arm, looking down on the place beside him he noticed MC asleep with her head dropping on his shoulder, her body so familiar and so strange beside him. The warm-cozy feeling inside of his chest was accompanied by the loud beating of his heart, his gaze softened and a soft smile graced his lips, an unusual sight.

Then he raised his eyes and looked at the other end of the huge couch, occupied by the three troublemakers. For a moment a grimace showed itself on his face, not really pleased with the sight, but the more he looked the more it disappeared.

His precious little girl was lying between the two boys, curled up with her legs close to her body. Her arms were thrown over Luke's shoulders and neck, her body leaning his way, with his head resting on top of hers, while Kieran hugged her body from behind, his arms around her waist, and his head snuggled to her shoulder.

Okay maybe... They weren't that bad. They took care of her, made her laugh, and protected her. Okay, yeah, no. No one was good enough for her. But at least they tried, and actually acted like they... Loved her.

He let out a quiet sigh, not wanting to overthink that. For as long as she's happy...

With that thought he let himself close his eyes, waiting for the sleep to take him. Unknown to any of them, Mephisto's eyes lighten up, taking a photo. The five of them in the most vulnerable state known to exist. Like a family enjoying their time together. Mephi flew up to rest on the couch backrest joining them in the moment.

Somehow all of the hearts in this room found the person they were looking for, and they weren't planning to let go of them, not now, not ever.

[idrawfunkythings]

DCAtober Day 14: Knock

Words 1,700+ Summary: You hang out with some friends, and try your best to make Moon's circuits fry, apparently

Somehow, you’d managed to drag your ass out of bed after a fruitless attempt at sleeping. It was 12:00 am, the moon was out, and you were exhausted. The constant switch between night and day shifts was starting to get to you. Since the layoffs, management had assigned you way more night hours, and you didn’t want to give them an excuse to get rid of you too.

The drive to work had you so zoned out it was a miracle you hadn’t hit anyone. Your walk inside is a daze, and you only register what you’re doing when you’ve been twisting the handle to the security office for so long you realise you haven’t unlocked it.

You grumble as you dump your stuff, pulling the staff lanyard from the hook on the back of the door over your neck and checking the alarm system. Thankfully, your list of tasks was blissfully short for tonight. Clean out Chica’s room, repaint Roxy’s nails (her PAs were all out with some unspecified illness, apparently) and check up on the Staffbots in the lobby and atrium. Since the outage a few weeks ago, there’d been an increase in reports of glitches, and Fazbear wanted to minimise the bad press.

You nod to Vanessa as you leave the office, having seen her enter at the front doors. She smiles back at you, waving enthusiastically. If your memory served you right, she’d been hired about a month ago, and only worked security shifts. She seemed nice enough, but you never had the chance to exchange more than a few words with her.

“Are you on the atrium today?” you call.

“No, I’m in the tunnels tonight. Something about a glitch in the cameras? I don’t know.” She shrugs, fiddling with her badge as she tries to pin it on her shirt. “Moon’s doing the rest.”

“Have fun in the tunnels, then,” you say, and she makes a face. “I’ll be by the main stage if you need me.”

“Thanks,” she says warmly, swearing when she stabs herself. She waves you off when you offer to help, and you oblige, taking the side doors to start the night off with Chica.

When you open the doors to Rockstar Row, you know he’s already waiting. You don’t bother looking up. “Hey, Moon Man. Did you miss me?”

Moon drops down inches away from your face, hanging from the roof upside down like spiderman. The bell on the end of his hat jingles. You jump, even though you expected his arrival.

“Not at all,” he chuckles, taking delight in your momentary terror. You playfully bat at his head, crossing your arms.

“Quit it,” you say in what you hope is a stern voice, but is definitely not. His faceplate does the usual spin, smile remaining in place. “You like scaring me too much. It’s like you feed on terror.”

Moon flips in the air until he’s right side up. He brings his hands up and wiggles his fingers, making his red optics shine brighter for added effect. His voice becomes gravelly, like nails on a chalkboard. “Of course I do, my dear. I’m the boogeyma-”

“Hi!”

Moon freezes, clearly having been caught unaware despite his usual constant surveillance of his surroundings. He turns to the side slowly, looking very much like he wants to leave right now. You’d laugh if you didn’t feel bad.

Chica is standing with Roxy, the chicken waving energetically just in case you’d missed her greeting while the wolf rolls her eyes, inspecting her nails with annoyance. Clearly she wasn’t coping very well with the sudden lack of PAs.

“I thought you two would be hanging out! Roxy’s been waiting for ages and she’s getting desperate.” Chica looks to Roxy expectantly, and the latter shoves her hand in front of your face for you to inspect.

“They’re chipped from the keytar,” she huffs. “I need them repainted.”

“We got the paint and stuff all ready!” Chica chirps. “It’s in my room. I’ll clean while you do her nails.” she grabs your hand excitedly. “It’ll be like a slumber party.”

Moon is hanging awkwardly in the air, playing with the ribbons around his wrists. In some aspects, he really was like Sun. Chica gasps and looks at him.

“Oh, and you can come too, Moon! I wouldn’t want to separate you two.” She gives you a sly grin as she says this, and you shoot her a glare back. Moon is too anxious to be aware of what she’s saying, and Roxy just doesn’t care, but still.

“I…”

You give him an understanding look. “It’s okay, I’m sure you’ve got a lot to do.”

Chica looks much too upset for her offer to not be steeped in an ulterior motive. “No! We haven’t hung out in ages! Come on.”

“I have patrols to do,” Moon says, clearly grateful for your out. Roxy rolls her eyes.

“If the cheese head doesn’t want to see us, let him miss out.” Moon’s eye flickers black for a moment, and his grin strains. You knew him and Roxy were on… rocky terms, after watching him dump a bucket of water from Gator Golf on her head when she went searching for her bracelets one night, and when she’d flipped the light switch after trapping him in Kids Cove (it had taken you about an hour to get Sun to calm down). “Can we just get on with fixing my nails?”

You give Moon a smile. “I gotta check on the Staffbots after. See you then?”

He nods, before shooting up into the rafters and out of sight. Chica seems very disappointed, but she drags you back to her room to get started with your tasks anyway.

You pull a stool over to the vanity and begin, doing your very best not to get the paint anywhere but where it was supposed to be. It was hard, considering Roxy liked to talk with her hands when she got mad, and Chica had brought up Monty hiding her hairbrush, but you were nothing if not patient. Also, you were terrified of her, so that helped you stay steady.

Chica continues her gossip as she cleans the room, gathering trash into garbage bags and leaving them by the door. Thankfully, the trash was inedible, so she wouldn’t be sticking her beak into it tonight. “Ooh, did you guys hear that Adam got caught cheating on his wife?” Adam was a supervisor for the Staffbot production. Roxy gasps dutifully. You scrunch your eyebrows together as you maneuver the paintbrush over to a particularly tricky spot. “Yeah. She came here to meet him last night! But his wife was visiting with the kids.”

“Oh, that’s vile,” Roxy laughs.

“I know! Anyway, that’s why they closed off the car park. There’s stuff everywhere. She went off, somehow she got to the paint buckets!”

Speaking of paint, you were finally done with the last coat on Roxy’s nails. You slide her hand under the dryer and stretch. “Adam’s a bastard anyway, it’s not like this was the first time.”

“Ooh, do tell,” Chica squawks, pausing from tying up another bag (this one filled with broken crayons and old autographs they can’t legally give out anymore) to look up in excitement.

Unfortunately for her, a knock at the door cuts you off. Then another, and another increasingly annoyed one over the fact the door is not sliding open, and then a thud.

It opens automatically, as it does when there’s security cleared movement on the other side, and the three of you are greeted with Moon’s upside down face. Ah, no wonder the door didn’t register him. It scanned the floor for any movement. “You’re late,” he says shortly.

You check your Fazwatch. He was right - it was 1:30, and your shift ended at 4. You get up apologetically. “Sorry girls, I gotta run. Duty calls.”

“Yeah, whatever. Thanks for my nails,” Roxy says boredly, inspecting her new coats. Chica sighs dramatically, leaning on her trash bag.

“You’ll have to tell us everything another time,” she says seriously. You nod. Of course you would. She eyes Moon and her eyes glint cheekily. “Have you come to take them away?”

“Come to get them to work,” Moon responds curtly. “No overtime allowed.”

You walk outside, waving to the girls. “Thanks for the help, Chicken.”

“Have fun with your prince!” Chica calls, and you move out of the way of the sensor so the door slams shut on her. You turn to Moon.

“We can start-”

He cuts you off. “You look terrible.”

Wow. “Okay, rude.”

“You haven’t slept in days.” His eyes are pixelated, meaning he’s currently scanning your condition. You do your best to act like a person who gets a healthy amount of sleep, but it’s hard, because now that he’s mentioned it, your eyes are drooping. “Tell me that my sensors are wrong, and you have slept more than five hours in the past two days.”

“You’re wrong?” you try, but he’s gripping your shoulders and marching you over to the lobby doors, still suspended in the air. “Hey, I have a job to do.”

“I’ll handle it,” he says through metaphorically gritted teeth.

“Moon-”

“You are going to take a nap.”

Okay, well, you couldn’t exactly argue with that. Mainly because if you did, he’d probably tear your arms off. And a nap really did sound nice about now.

Moon guides you to the red daycare doors, then stands in front of you sternly, hunched over so that you can’t escape his gaze. “You are going to go inside. You are going to get the blankets and pillows from the cupboard. When I return, you will be asleep.”

“No overtime,” you remind him halfheartedly.

“I will clock you out. Go.” He points to the doors.

“You’re bossy,” you try, but now you’re really pushing it because you think if you say anything more he’s actually going to kill you. “Okay, okay. I’m going to bed.”

Your phone dangles in front of your face. That son of a bitch. You reach for it, but it’s tucked away into his chest cavity before you can blink. “You will get this back when you have slept.”

There’s no use arguing. You give a mocking salute. Moon opens the doors, and you walk through, not looking back until they clang shut behind you.

You yawn instantly. He was right - you needed some sleep.

[redsrooftopprincess]

Pumpkin Sugar (Part 1)

Raphael x GN!Reader - Established Relationship

Part 1 . Part 2 . Part 3 . Part 4 . Epilogue (🌶️ Fem!Reader)

Based on this ask by @gornackeaterofworlds

More of a question to expand on than a detailed request, but would raph help a teacher reader grade papers?? Would he get invested in gossip on the kids??

I was zoning out and somehow thought about elementary school teacher readers, coming back to the lair with papers to grade, Donnie getting angry over the lesson plans you have to use, etc. And then, like always, raph thoughts(I am unbelievably gushy to raph x lil sweet cheery readers) Being oh so sleepy tired but still having work to do. Grading papers, getting activities printed and cut, weekly plans. I'd like to imagine he helps to get you to sleep faster, all the while listening to the venty yapping about which kids are troublemakers

Hi gornack! I hope you are feeling well. ♥️

Sorry this took so long. I want you to know that this started out as a simple fluffy fic, but Red disagreed. He wanted to make you smile.

I'm going to be splitting this into 4 parts (+ an epilogue) to make it easier to read because I accidentally went over the character limit in my notes app *twice*. I wasn't aware you could accidentally write a whole ass fic, but here we are. 😅

Special thanks to @the-cauldron-witch . The best brainstorming buddy I could honestly ask for. Could not have written this without you. 😁

"Come on, babe, please?"

You sigh, whining, "Raph..."

"I gotta head out early, you'll be asleep by the time I get back," he pleaded. He was only working a half night, but he had to leave right at sunset and head across town, so he wouldn't be home until well after 1:00 am, and you had school in the morning.

It had been a long day, and it still wasn't over yet.

You really did like your job. The kids were great, even when they misbehaved it wasn't their fault. There were just too many of them and not enough of you. You couldn't watch everybody all the time, but you still had to try. Third grade was a lot. Especially when you were managing 27 kids (you're grateful, you have colleagues managing 40+, and it's a fucking zoo).

Still, you tried to make things fun for them. Halloween is tomorrow, and you don't want to do the traditional boring "spooky" theme. So, you've decided to teach an entire class of 8-9 year olds a little bit about applied chemistry.

You were actually really excited! You'd picked up a bunch of foam pumpkins at the dollar store, which were currently being dragged in a cart behind you. You were planning on carving them into jack o'lanterns and teaching the kids how to make elephant toothpaste to ooze out of the holes. It's was going to be the most beautiful chaos, and with any luck, a memorable experience.

There was only one problem, you'd been dealing with meetings and trainings all week and unable to actually carve the damn pumpkins. Today there was an outage in part of the building, so you had to wait two hours to use the one copier available, and by the time you walked out you had zero gas left in the tank. You wanted to go home and finish your work so you could go to bed.

You reach the top of the stairs, exiting the subway at street level. The lair is literally in the opposite direction. You look south, towards your apartment.

"Please?" He asks again, his voice softening. You haven't seen him in days and you can hear in his voice that it's taking as much of a toll on him as it is you. "I'll help you with your school shit, whatever, I just... I gotta see you. Please?"

You sigh and turn around, heading north. You miss him, too.

...

He meets you at the door to the elevator, and despite your exhaustion, you can't help but smile. He had that effect. Comfort, safety, peace, love... Raphael is Home. And the moment you step inside his arms all of your tension melts away. Almost.

He picks you up in his arms and squeezes you tightly, swinging you gently back and forth as he buries his nose in your hair. He breathes you in and grins, chuckling quietly as you squeeze him back and press your face against his neck.

"What're you laughing at?" you ask, suspicious. He was way more... something... than normal... you're not entirely sure what. You raise your head with your eyes narrowed.

"Nothin'," he says, kissing you sweetly, "just happy to see you." Your eyes narrow further, but this seems to satisfy you. You kick your legs and whine and he sets you down.

Picking up the crate and carrying it casually under one arm (though, to be fair, the pumpkins are made of foam), he gestures you first into the elevator and follows behind. He takes your hand pretty much immediately, "So what're we working on?"

"Pumpkins," you sigh.

He waits a beat. Then another. "Okay... You gonna give me more than that, or..." He smirks down at you, laughing. He can't help it.

"Yeah, sorry," you laugh, "rough week." You shake your head, before looking up at him, "carving, specifically."

"Shit, why didn't you say so? I could've done the whole thing for you!" He laughs as you exit the elevator into the lower garage.

Donnie's working on the truck and you wave at him as you pass by. He gives you a bright smile and your suspicion grows. He's a bit too cheery for being elbow deep in his latest mechanical mess.

You make it to the living room and start unpacking everything. Foam pumpkins, sharpies, exacto knives, "that should be everything," you say, grabbing a gourd and sitting down on the couch. You tuck your legs up under you as Raph walks by behind, leaning down to kiss you on his way to the other side.

He only has about an hour before he needs to leave, but he spends it cuddled up next to you quietly carving pumpkins, an activity which he actually enjoys. All too soon, he's called away to his duties.

With a lingering kiss that leaves you missing him already, he's gone, and you're left with... so much work.

...

The pumpkins are taking longer than expected, and by midnight you're still not done. Mostly because, for a teacher, you really suck at learning your lesson, and you waited until the last minute. Again. And you didn't ask your boyfriend for help once you realized it was too much. Again.

Honestly, one word and he could have had this solved for you. You look over at your annual Family Pumpkin Carving Competition entries. Raph was no longer allowed to enter the contest because it wasn't fair. But he still did one because he enjoyed it. This year, it seems, he was feeling romantic.

It was a MASSIVE pumpkin almost to your shoulder. You have no idea how he even got it down here. Inside was a small table with several electric candles, illuminating the ballroom scene from Beauty and the Beast.

You set down the half-carved jack o' lantern, and sigh heavily, rubbing your eyes. You lean back on the couch, tucking your feet under you. You're just going to shut your eyes for a few seconds. You know that people always say that and they end up just falling asleep, but you really actually mean it, you'll close your eyes for a few minutes and then get back to work.

....

Tag list

@thelaundrybitch @the-cauldron-witch @fyreball66 @ninnosaurus @tmntngl @thegirlwiththeninjaturtletattoos @zagreustomb @ramielll @silverwatergalaxy @gornackeaterofworlds @footninja @daedric-sorceress @sophiacloud28 @iridescentflamingo

...

Part 1 . Part 2 . Part 3 . Part 4 . Epilogue (🌶️ Fem!Reader)

[passionartx]

Mini Health/life update!:

Just wanted to drop a lil update cause I’ve been mega mia! At the end of September/start of October I ended up being hospitalised for about a week due to getting a pretty bad case of pneumonia. Was a really scary time but I luckily got through it but am still undergoing tests to montier recovery and am dealing with knock on effects from my other chronic health issues.

Against all odds I luckily still managed to play Dorothy in the production of Wizard Of Oz I was in and since then and have been trying to catch up with university and get through other irl home and mental/physical health issues. (And a power outage and rat infestation… I’m starting to get how tails feels when we all put him through horrific events for angst).

I can’t express how much people’s support and patience has meant to me and while I’m not 100% back I really hope I can get back on tumblr a bit more soon cause I love and miss the bros and everyone on here so much! 💛💛💛

I really hope you’ve all been well and will try and get back to everyone soon! 🫂

It’s my birthday this coming Wednesday and if one more crazy life event happens to me before then I think I’m actually gonna go insane lol.

[b0red-b1rds]

Well, the power is out, and my phone is dying. I hate snow, even though it's so pretty. I've got a battery-powered candle on, so that means... fanfic time.

What do the Genshin characters do in a power outage?

Zhongli is prepared. He's got the oil lamps, the blankets, the good books. He's gonna be lying on the couch, reading by candlelight, until the power comes back on. He's not worried. Why should he be? He's an eons old dragon. He's fine. (Until it gets too cold, then he'll complain. But only a little bit.)

Neuvillette is much the same. In a place so reliant on modern technology, the hydro sovereign has seen plenty of power outages in his time. While his lamps are battery-powered rather than oil fueled, the effect is similar. He'll just use this time to review some court documents. (Again, he'll only complain when he gets cold. Wintertime with no heating is the worst.)

Thoma is ready. He doesn't need a lighter for the lamps. He *is* the lighter! Ayaka and Ayato are grateful to Thoma because he manages to keep things running even despite the harsh weather. While there are definitely plenty of coats and blankets to go around in the estate, Thoma would never fault someone for sticking close to him. A pyro vision makes him a walking heater, after all!

Tighnari grumbles to himself. Of course, the power was out. As if the bad weather wasn't bad enough. Thankfully, being a forest ranger means being prepared. Blankets, lamps, everything turned off to prevent any burst bulbs later on. He absolutely will complain about the cold. There's no stopping that.

Itto... yeah. He's clueless. It's up to Shinobu to keep everyone from panicking and/or freezing. She does a pretty good job of it, even if she has to pull Itto away from a candle he didn't notice. The oni had burned his hair once before and wouldn't stop complaining... Shinobu didn't want to deal with that again.

Furina is hunkered down with Neuvillette. Poor thing isn't prepared at all, and went to him for help. Well, at least she brought some snacks and bottled water. (Neuvillette doesn't approve of bottled water but appreciates the effort.)

Alhaitham and Kaveh are just fine. Between all of the blankets that Alhaitham hoardes (it annoys Kaveh) to Kaveh's collection of pretty lamps (Alhaitham doesn't see a need for a *lamp* to be *pretty*), they've got it handled. Now, if only they could stop bickering about lamp placement...

Ei doesn't notice. Yae Miko makes sure the puppet doesn't freeze.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Oliver Milman and Anna Betts at The Guardian:

A federal judge has temporarily blocked a Trump administration freeze of all grants and loans disbursed by the federal government, a decision that upended programs relied upon by millions of Americans.

US district judge Loren AliKhan ordered an administrative stay on the funding pause on Tuesday afternoon, moments before it was set to take effect. The stay, issued in response to a lawsuit brought by a group of non-profits and small businesses, pauses the administration’s action until Monday. In a two-page internal memo on Monday, Matthew Vaeth, Trump’s acting head of the office of management and budget (OMB), instructed all federal agencies to “temporarily pause all activities related to obligations or disbursement of all federal financial assistance”. Vaeth said that the pause did not include social security or Medicare , and that the assistance put on hold “does not include assistance provided directly to individuals”. If allowed to take effect, the order could have far-reaching consequences that touch nearly every corner of American society, including universities, the non-profit sector, cancer research, food assistance, suicide hotlines, hospitals, community health centers, non-profits that help disabled veterans and many more.

Democratic attorneys general said on Tuesday they also planned to sue to prevent the memo from taking effect. Letitia James, the New York attorney general, said her office would take “imminent legal action against this administration’s unconstitutional pause on federal funding. We won’t sit idly by while this administration harms our families.” The administrative stay came in response to a lawsuit filed by four groups representing non-profits, public health professionals and small businesses in which they said the directive was illegal and would have a ��devastating impact on hundreds of thousands of grant recipients who depend on the inflow of grant money”. The groups said the directive would disrupt education, healthcare, housing and disaster relief and would devastate “hundreds of thousands of grant recipients who depend on the inflow of grant money”. At a news conference on Tuesday morning, Chuck Schumer, the Democratic Senate leader from New York, described the order as “a dagger at the heart of the average American families, in red states and blue states, in cities and suburbs and rural areas”.

Joined at the news conference by the Democratic senators Amy Klobuchar, Patty Murray, Jeff Merkley and Andy Kim, Schumer noted that among the programs potentially affected was Meals on Wheels, which provides hot meals to at-risk seniors and is partly funded by the federal government. The proposed halt in spending comes days after the US also immediately cut off all foreign aid, and was designed to ensure that financial assistance is in line with Trump’s policies, Vaeth wrote.

[...] Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s press secretary, said that the White House was aware of the “website portal outage” and that they had confirmed that no payments had been affected and that payments “are still being processed and sent”. “We expect the portal will be back online shortly,” she added. In a press conference on Tuesday, Leavitt pushed back against suggestions the memo caused chaos and uncertainty and said it would not affect direct assistance to individuals, including social security, Medicare, welfare and food stamps. She did not clarify, however, whether aid that goes through organizations to individuals, like Meals on Wheels, would be affected. “[The] only uncertainty in this room is amongst the media,” said Leavitt, blaming the press for anxieties spurred by the measure.

In a dose of good news, just before the disastrous freeze would have taken effect at 5PM ET/4PM CT yesterday, Judge Loren AliKhan put a temporary halt to Tyrant 47’s egregiously dictatorial order to freeze all federal grants and loans.

[densi-mber]

Frozen

Callen kicked open the door, carting an armload of firewood with him. “I think there’s enough to get us through the night and morning tomorrow,” he said, shaking snow off of his buzzed hair. “Did you get in touch with the power company?”

“Yeah, the area is experiencing widespread outages and they’re getting to the problem as quickly as possible,” Deeks answered. He sat to the side of a blazing fire, mixing the content of a small pot hung from an improvised hook Sam had rigged up.

“We’ll just have to wait it out,” Sam decided.

For the last four days, they’d been chasing a pair of hackers who had fled LA while out on bond. The team had tracked them across multiple states before ultimately landing in small town in Indiana yesterday.

The sole hotel in town didn’t have vacancies due to several pipes bursting from cold weather, so they’d found a house for rent and managed to convince the owner to let them rent it for a few days. It left a lot to be desired, but at least it offered protection from the dropping temperatures and growing snowfall.

At least until the power went out unexpectedly, plunging the house into complete darkness. As they scrambled to get out flashlights, the temperature had fallen with alarming speed. Fortunately, the place had a functioning fireplace, but it only generated enough heat to keep the main room above freezing, and the wood supply was quickly dwindling.

Deeks handed out bowls of disappointing canned chicken soup and they ate in silence.

“Of course the one time we come to Indiana, there has to be a blizzard,” Kensi complained a few minutes later. She blew on her hands and then rubbed them in front of the fire. Like the rest of them, she wore a parka, stocking cap, and scarf. Callen and Sam stood on the opposite side, trying to remain stoic, yet clearly feeling the effect of the cold if their fidgeting was any indicator.

“To be fair, it is January and I’m pretty sure this is normal for most of the Midwest,” Deeks pointed out.

“Thanks, babe.” Glaring at him, she raised her shoulders to her ears, visibly shuddering.

“I’m sorry. You want to snuggle?”

Wedging herself next to him on the ledge in front of the fireplace, Kensi leaned into his side.

“This would be a lot more fun if we were at Mammoth,” she muttered.

“You even think of doing anything you two get up to there, I’ll kick your butts outside,” Sam threatened. He’d started pacing the length of the room after they ate, his irritation growing with every pass.

“Fortunately for you, it’s a bit chilly for that kind of activity to be enjoyable,” Deeks said. “Thought it might warm us up.” So would a cup of boiling hot coffee or an extra pair of socks.

“Warmth sounds nice.” Kensi pressed her cold nose into his neck and Deeks winced.

“You gotta keep moving. Keep the blood flowing.”

“Is this an inappropriate moment for a “that’s what she said” joke?” Deeks wondered.

“You know, we’re gonna need to sleep at some point,” Callen pointed out. Of all of them he seemed the least affected by the cold. “We’ll probably need to huddle up to stay warm.”

“Ooh, sounds cozy. And slightly scandalous.”

“Deeks, I am not snuggling with you,” Sam growled between chattering teeth.

“Aw, that’s hurtful,” Deeks gasped, his breath fogging out in an icy blast. “And here—here I was gonna let you be the big spoon.”

“More like serving spoon,” Callen added under his breath.

“Deeks is really good at snuggling,” Kensi chimed in.

“If I could, I would leave you all right here.” Sam’s usual glare lacked some of his usual weight and Deeks grinned back at him, enjoying the distraction from his cold and stiff fingers.

“A hollow threat given it’s below ten degrees outside. Without the windchill.”

“We’ll be fine,” Sam insisted.

***

An Hour Later

“See, this isn’t so bad,” Deeks said, cradling Kensi against his chest. Callen lay next to her, and at the very end, by his choice, lay Sam. They’d pulled out as many blankets and quilts as they could find and piled them on the floor in front of the fire.

Now under a thick layer of blankets and curled around Kensi, he felt a little warmer.

“Mm, you make a very nice space heater,” she said, already sounding a little sleepy.

“Speak for yourself,” Sam grumbled.

“Oh come on Sam, from now on this will be known as the great OSP Slumber Party.”

“We’re never speaking of this to anyone. Ever,” Sam disagreed.

“Of course.” Kensi nodded. “Except for Eric and Nell.”

“And Granger,” Callen added.

“I’m starting to think I’d be better off outside.”

[kawaiijohn]

Woo yay yippieeee even :(

From James spann Twitter (above imbed):

WEDNESDAY MORNING UPDATE: Milton remains a catastrophic category five hurricane early this morning with winds of 160 mph. The hurricane is about 300 miles southwest of Tampa, and is moving to the northeast at 14 mph. A Storm Surge Warning is in effect for... * Florida west coast from Flamingo northward to Yankeetown, including Charlotte Harbor and Tampa Bay * Sebastian Inlet Florida to Altamaha Sound Georgia, including the St. Johns River A Hurricane Warning is in effect for... * Florida west coast from Bonita Beach northward to Suwannee River, including Tampa Bay * Florida east coast from the St. Lucie/Martin County Line northward to Ponte Vedra Beach From NHC Milton is moving northeastward at 12 kt in the flow between a mid-to upper-level trough over the northern Gulf and a ridge located over the Greater Antilles. This motion should generally continue until Milton makes landfall in Florida, which is likely to occur late tonight or early tomorrow morning. After the hurricane reaches the coast, a turn to the east-northeast is expected as another trough approaches the system from the west. Milton should exit Florida and move over the Atlantic waters tomorrow afternoon and accelerate eastward after that. The NHC track forecast is nudged a little to the north of the previous one to be in better agreement with the latest models. It should be noted that this forecast is based on the model fields, not the interpolated models which appear to be too far south. Users are urged not to focus on the exact landfall point as the average error at 24 hours is about 40 miles. The global models agree that vertical wind shear is expected begin to increase over Milton later today, and that should cause some weakening. However, there is high confidence that Milton will remain a very dangerous hurricane when it reaches Florida, and maintain hurricane status as it moves across the state. The cyclone is expected to become extratropical over the Atlantic on Friday and gradually weaken. The NHC intensity forecast is similar to the previous one and near the high end of the model guidance. Milton's wind field is expected to grow considerably in size while it moves across Florida. Additionally, a large region of tropical storm and hurricane-force winds could occur on the northwest/back side of the storm since Milton will be interacting with a frontal boundary and beginning extratropical transition. Damaging winds, life-threatening storm surge, and heavy rainfall will extend well outside the forecast cone. This is a very serious situation and residents in Florida should closely follow orders from their local emergency management officials. Evacuations and other preparations should be rushed to completion. Milton has the potential to be one of the most destructive hurricanes on record for west-central Florida. Key messages *A large area of destructive storm surge, with highest inundations of 10 ft or greater, is expected along a portion of the west-central coast of the Florida Peninsula. If you are in the Storm Surge Warning area, this is an extremely life-threatening situation, and you should evacuate as soon as possible if ordered by local officials. *Devastating hurricane-force winds are expected along portions of the west coast of Florida, where a Hurricane Warning is in effect. Milton is forecast to remain a hurricane while it crosses the Florida Peninsula and life-threatening hurricane-force winds, especially in gusts, are expected to spread inland across the peninsula. Preparations to protect life and property, including being ready for long-duration power outages, should be rushed to completion. *Heavy rainfall across the Florida Peninsula through tomorrow brings the risk of catastrophic and life-threatening flash and urban flooding along with moderate to major river flooding, especially in areas where coastal and inland flooding combine to increase the overall flood threat.

Stay safe y'all.

[cattyanon]

Blacephalon + Xurkitree Sonic fusion

He didn't come out exactly how I would've liked but this gets the general idea for the design across!

Quick design note: The color hue discrepancy between his head and body is due to the fact that Xurkitree has a dark main body but both Xurlitree and Blacephalon have white object heads.

The story I've come up with so far:

During one of Eggman's schemes a rift in space-time opens pretty much directly on top of Sonic, causing a fusion between him and two Ultra Beasts: Blacephalon and Xurlitree. Sonic is a bit unsteady at first but the instincts of all three beings take over and put an end to Eggman's scheme. While his mind is quite fuzzy due to the clashing memories between the three he knows enough to trust Tails and not Eggman. It doesn't take long afterwards for Tails to realize that Sonic can't talk- although he can somehow make noises despite his lack of mouth. And unfortunately sign language was a no-go due to him only having three fingers now. They even tried writing but his brother's handwriting was completely illegible so now he has to rely on body language to understand Sonic which has been quite a pain. Though thankfully he seems to be able to understand him! (What Tails doesn't know is that Sonic isn't able to fully understand him and it's more that he's able to understand the general concepts of what Tails says due to what words he uses)

They head back to the workshop so Tails can try to find a solution to Sonic's fusion problem but it VERY quicky becomes apparent that Sonic can't stay at the workshop due to no shortage of power outages caused by him. And while Tails knows Sonic can't help it (he's already got bad impulse control so other-wordly instincts definitely don't help) he obviously can't stay with Tails if he's going to get anything done. So now what? He considers finding and giving Sonic a Chaos Emerald to suck the infinite energy out of, assuming that's how that works, but with no limitations on the amount of Chaos energy he can suck out and bad impulse control, Tails can't help but worry what kind of side effects that could have. It doesn't take long for him to realize a possible solution to the limitation problem buuuut there was one problem: convincing Shadow to do it.

He does manage to convince him in the end, promising that he'll find a Chaos emerald and make a limitation device for it ASAP but in the meantime he NEEDS Sonic out of his workshop. So Shadow begrudgingly complies to become a battery for Sonic to munch on thanks to his great control over his Chaos Energy- though he does end up having to take off one inhibitor ring to account for the vast amount of energy Sonic tries to consume. At first he'd tried to tell him not to drain so much but it'd only work for a few minutes and he'd rather not have to repeat himself every few minutes.

Once Tails finishes his work he encounters a slight problem: Sonic doesn't want to leave Shadow's side. He's been having a great time hanging out with him and likes it when they go for runs together. Unfortunately for Shadow there's not much they can do about it cause, as Tails discovered himself, whenever Sonic gets upset the dots adorning him will start to spark and eventually explode- something that begun to happen until the two quickly relented for the sake of Shadow's house.

Other notes:

-Sonic has high resistance when it comes to general explosions and full immunity when it comes to his own.

-He can also explode and regenerate his giant eyeball.

-Said giant eyeball can also detach and float around like Blacephalon's head.

-Very flexible and acrobatic.

-Loves to show off.

-Can be quite the mischievous prankster.

-If you already thought Sonic was high energy before wait til you meet this fusion.

[1141520851813892291920]

The one day I actually attempt to make progress on Jon's actual work...

There's a global IT outage. According to the IT manager, we shouldn't be too effected by the outage. However:

I beg to differ. This has been going on all morning. And of course it is the day when I actually have a deadline to deliver on a reference request from my boss's boss.

I am so tired. I hate technology. My phone has been acting up too, more of those static-filled false calls have been popping up (they had ceased after leaving Nebraska, so I assumed it was a service issue, but apparently not). It was unnecessarily difficult to get these photos uploaded, as well.

My headache is back.

I'm going to take a break. Maybe I'll go bother Martin...I think he said he had the day off...

[shreeja-k]

"Powering the Future: The Explosive Growth of the Residential Solar Energy Storage Market ⚡🌍"

The Future of Residential Solar Energy Storage: A $33.32 Billion Market by 2030 🌞🔋

The transition to renewable energy is happening right before our eyes, and one of the most exciting sectors in this transformation is the residential solar energy storage market. As homeowners increasingly turn to solar panels to generate clean energy, storage systems are making it possible for them to use that energy whenever they need it – day or night. With the market already valued at $9.3 billion in 2023, it's expected to skyrocket to a staggering $33.32 billion by 2030. This rapid growth is driven by a combination of technological advancements, increasing demand for energy independence, and government incentives.

Let’s explore why this market is growing so fast and what the future holds.

Why Solar Energy Storage Is Gaining Popularity:

1. Powering the Future with Independence and Resilience

Extreme weather events like power outages have made homeowners more conscious of their reliance on the grid. Solar storage systems provide the perfect solution. They allow homeowners to store the excess energy produced by their solar panels during the day, which they can use at night or during power outages. This helps ensure a reliable and uninterrupted power supply, especially in times of crisis.

With the growing frequency of weather-related disruptions, the desire for energy independence is stronger than ever. Homeowners want to take control of their own energy production, and solar energy storage allows them to do just that – without relying on the traditional power grid.

2. Government Incentives and Support

One of the driving forces behind the rise of solar energy storage systems is the financial incentives offered by governments worldwide. In many countries, homeowners can take advantage of tax credits, rebates, and grants that reduce the upfront cost of installing solar storage systems. These incentives make solar energy storage more affordable, which is why more and more people are investing in it.

3. Technological Advancements in Battery Technology

The most significant improvement in solar energy storage systems has been in battery technology. The most common battery used today is lithium-ion due to its high efficiency, reliability, and decreasing cost. As battery prices continue to drop, solar storage systems are becoming more accessible to homeowners, even those on a budget.

In addition to lithium-ion, new battery technologies such as flow batteries, sodium-ion batteries, and solid-state batteries are emerging. These innovations are expected to offer even better performance and longer life cycles, making solar storage even more cost-effective and sustainable.

4. Smart Home Integration: The Next Step

With the rise of smart home technology, solar storage systems are becoming more intelligent. AI-powered systems are now able to optimize energy consumption, helping homeowners store and use energy in the most efficient way possible. For instance, solar storage systems can be integrated with home automation, adjusting energy use based on the time of day, weather conditions, or energy demand.

Additionally, Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) are changing the game. By linking multiple home solar storage systems, VPPs allow homeowners to sell excess energy back to the grid, creating a new source of income and helping utilities manage demand. This provides a powerful incentive for homeowners to adopt solar storage.

Challenges on the Horizon:

While the residential solar energy storage market is growing rapidly, there are still challenges that need to be addressed:

1. Initial Investment Costs

Despite decreasing prices, the upfront cost of solar energy storage systems can still be a significant hurdle for some homeowners. Even with government incentives, the initial investment may not be affordable for everyone. This is especially true for people who are unfamiliar with the long-term cost savings or environmental benefits of solar energy storage.

2. Awareness and Education

While many people are familiar with solar panels, fewer understand the benefits of solar storage. Education is key to helping homeowners understand how these systems work and how they can save money and help the environment. As awareness grows, so too will the demand for these systems.

3. Grid Integration and Policy Inconsistencies

Not all regions have the same grid integration policies for solar storage. While some countries have clear rules and incentives for homeowners to connect their solar storage systems to the grid, others have limited or inconsistent regulations. This lack of uniformity can create confusion for homeowners who are considering solar storage.

4. Environmental Concerns

The environmental impact of lithium-ion batteries – especially in terms of production and disposal – is a concern. Although these batteries are efficient, their production process can be harmful to the environment. As a result, there is a push toward more eco-friendly alternatives, which will likely shape the future of solar storage.

Opportunities: The Bright Future of Solar Energy Storage

Despite these challenges, the future of residential solar energy storage is full of exciting opportunities:

1. New Ownership Models

One of the most interesting developments is the rise of third-party ownership and utility-owned storage models. These models allow homeowners to avoid the upfront costs by renting or subscribing to solar storage systems. This makes solar energy storage accessible to a wider range of people, including those who may not be able to afford the full cost of installation.

2. Diversification Beyond Backup Power

Solar storage systems are no longer just about providing backup power. They are now being used for electric vehicle charging, powering appliances during outages, and even contributing to microgrid systems that can power entire communities. As more applications are developed, solar storage will play an increasingly integral role in our energy systems.

3. Expanding Markets in Emerging Regions

While North America and Europe lead the charge, Asia-Pacific is becoming a key market for solar storage. Countries like China, India, and Japan are seeing rapid growth in the adoption of solar panels, and residential solar storage is following suit. As governments in these regions promote clean energy, the demand for solar storage systems will continue to rise.

4. Innovations in Battery Technologies

The next wave of battery technologies promises to improve solar storage even further. New technologies, such as sodium-ion and solid-state batteries, could provide higher energy densities, longer lifespans, and lower environmental impacts. These innovations will make solar storage more affordable and sustainable.

Conclusion: A Bright, Clean Future Ahead

The residential solar energy storage market is on track to see unprecedented growth, with a projected market size of $33.32 billion by 2030. As technological advancements, government incentives, and growing consumer demand fuel this transformation, solar storage is becoming an essential component of the clean energy future.

From increased energy independence and resilience during power outages to smart home integration and eco-friendly innovations, solar energy storage offers an exciting path forward for homeowners. If you’re considering solar energy storage or want to learn more about this rapidly evolving market, now is the time to get involved.

The future of clean, reliable, and independent energy is here, and solar storage is leading the way! 🌱⚡

[inkblot-app]

InkBlot News: We Need Your Help!

Hiya everyone! Angel here. I'm here to bring you a message from Jay!

Hello Everyone , with the recent fumble on Patreon's End we have lost a significant amount of Patrons. This being out of our control and the model of InkBlot being community funded means that we are not able to cover operation expenses. If able to, any donation would help so that we can pick back up and keep InkBlot moving forward. If you are a patron that was effected by Patreon's outage we would be most grateful if you can consider signing up through our Kofi or Pro membership system or sending a one-time donation instead. Thank you for all the support the community has shown us. InkBlot wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you -Jay (he/they) InkBlot Founder

Not sure what Jay's talking about? You can read up on what happened with Patreon here: https://twitter.com/verge/status/1687118649713451008?s=20 Again, InkBlot wouldn't be here if it weren't for all of you! We are forever grateful that we have such an amazing and supportive community but unfortunately, roadblocks do pop up. Want to help InkBlot? Here's our Ko-Fi and Go Pro! https://ko-fi.com/inkblotapp https://inkblot.art/gopro -Angel (she/they) InkBlot Community Assistant Manager

[the27percent]

[flashback]

It's a few centuries ago, and they have been running through the galaxies under a bit of stress. They had been trying to tend to their usual responsibilities, but the side effect of being ill-advised conferences was really trying working their nerves.

Perhaps they might have gotten ... pretty abrupt, physical even with people that they had been struggling with. Damn these conferences .. even when they were trying to be a bit patient.

Perhaps they had to work on their 'negotiation' tactics.

In any case, this roaming entity had been recently jailed for a few days, making a point to stay there, letting the restraints ground them into the form that they were taking for a moment. They had to break out, determined to break down - and during a moment where the facilities was on edge due to a power outage, they finally managed to slip out in the dark.

They had been taken in under a false name. They had been in the habit of changing names, leaving them behind as quickly as they picked them up. To the point, if someone asked them their name - they would rotate through a number of options, unwilling to settle on one without thought.

It was that kind of time, where the constant movement, the speed, the willingness to break out, and break those who got in the way was much more immediate than anything else.

Once free, they had to get back to one of the hidden clusters. It's best to make their next moves within some legitimate privacy, knowing where they can't be captured.