#everyone should be able to watch it then yay

[zepskies]

@lamentationsofalonelypotato Ooh yay!! I'm still loving this story, and after the last chapter, I've been very eager to see what happens next!

The aftermath of her trying to piece together her memories of her parents' death and her brother's betrayal is so heartbreaking. 😥 Like she's realizing that the narrative of her life was a lie, in a way. Hopefully she'll be able to reclaim the part of her past that was good and true with her parents, vs. the love and care she still has in her life through the people around her.

For some reason that particular image seemed to cling on to you and refused to fade. You'd never seen him look that way, almost… helpless and a little fearful. In all the time you'd known him, Ben had never looked at you that way. Sure you'd seen him proud, angry, cocky, lustful, mischievous, but never fearful. And you were sure that it wasn't an emotion that he was used to feeling, but that begged the question… why? Why was he looking at me like that? Why wouldn't he let me go? And what was he afraid of?

Lol GIRL. You KNOW WHY. You're just refusing to see it! But I could really see this moment in my head like a movie -- that look on Ben's face, watching her walk away. 💔

That little creature she created is interesting though. You really get a sense that she tapped into something in her powers that was before yet unexplored -- like she broke through a barrier without realizing and unlocked new depths within herself.

You wanted to feel his awkward shoulder pat and his awkward version of hand holding and you wanted to hear him try to tell you to "buck up" or whatever he thought that a comforting word should be. He's really not the best at that.

Loll he's really not. But the thing about Ben is, when he does make those gestures, you know it's coming from a place of sincerity because he doesn't soften himself easily.

"Shh. It's alright honey." She whispers, rubbing her hand over your back, her embrace steady and surprisingly strong. "Let's go home."

Aww I love her grandmother so much! At least someone in her family is in her corner. 😭

There was something or rather someone that should be here, but you didn't know what or who. And your mind supplied Annie, but you weren't sure that's who you meant.

I think we ALL know who you meant. 😂

I also love how you describe the "creative chaos" of her grandmother's house. The imagery in those paragraphs are so descriptive and lovely to imagine. I love especially: "boxes upon boxes of cookies in different stages of being packaged all over the counter." It's so grandmotherly and yet feels unique at the same time.

"Too late of course, but I'm a little rusty. I was able to warn Ben that Darren was coming back. That's how he got there so quickly or rather-" She shrugs sheepishly. "He got there in time to make sure that Darren didn't get you to forgive him. Which you shouldn't have at all, but I know he's always had a talent for manipulating you."

OOOOOH, MY GOD!! GRANDMA'S A SUPE TOO!! 😱😱 And it explains why Ben got there in the nick of time! And she already knew Darren was scum!!

Discovering more about her past as Soothsayer, as well as her friendship with Ben was so very interesting! I didn't see it coming and that's the best thing of all, but now it's a way her grandmother can relate to her even more -- as well as be in an even better position to give her advice when it comes to that man.

Tears crest and fall down your cheeks as you sit there, throat thickening. "I don't want to hurt Ben."

Heart...breaking... 😢 She's such a sweetheart. How can she not realize how much she cares about him (loves him)?

"He doesn't love me and Ben isn't afraid of anything." "He is. It might not look the same way on him as it does on everyone else, but if you pay close enough attention you can catch it." She hesitates. "And I think if you pay attention to you, you'll see what it is that you're afraid of too."

GRANDMA YESSSS, TELL HER!!! GET IT THROUGH HER HEAD! lolll

Ben isn't incapable of fear (or love), no matter how much he'd like to pretend. The way it comes out of him might "look different," through snappish anger and denial and rigidity, but it's still fear.

But the feet keep moving past the apartment and Ben sinks into the couch cushions. Even Bean seems to be disappointed. "It's alright buddy." Ben mutters. "She'll come back." But he wasn't sure.

Awww Benjamin, you're breaking my heart! 😭 But the fact that he went back to save Jake honestly speaks volumes! (Even if I did cackle my ass off at "What a fucking pussy.")

Ben didn't understand why he hated watching you cry.

Come on now, Ben. You're over 100 years old! Surely you get what's happening to you by now! 🤣🤣 You're simping for a girl you care about!

He wasn't sure if you'd noticed it yet, but you looked different too. There weren't as many lines on your face and your hair was more springy, the few silver hairs that Ben had noticed in passing were no longer there.

Oooh the plants are keeping her young, huh? 😏 Maybe enough to sync up her lifespan with Ben's???

"Di?" "Yes it's me. Who did you think it was? Santa Clause?" Your grandmother snarks. "Why are you calling me and why the fuck are you so mad? What did I do?" Ben answers slightly annoyed.

LMFAOO. Again, I love her. Kick his ass, Di! Get him in gear! "Try harder" -- INDEED.

"How is it that it's been forty fucking years and you're still able to dance on the grave of my last nerve?"

I'm deeeeeadd! I loved this line so much. 🤣🤣🤣 Benjamin is testing my patience too, good Lord. I can see why he's scared. He's on the verge of admitting he loves her -- and finally doing something about it. After his experience with Countess, that'll put anyone off of trying again to delve into a proper relationship (not to say their relationship was a proper example of a loving one, because it wasn't, obviously). Especially for someone like Ben, who struggles with real intimacy and dealing with his feelings, it makes sense that he'd digging his heels in now -- no matter how frustrating it is. 🙃🙃

But omg the cliffhanger though! Who just called him? My gut feeling is Stan Edgar, but I could be wrong lol. Can't wait to see how you close out this series! 💕

Chapter 14: Don't Be A Bundt Cake

Pairing: Soldier Boy x f!reader, Reader POV, Soldier Boy POV

Summary:  When you decided to work with Butcher and his merry band of supe hunters to take down Homelander, you never expected to be saddled with a sullen, grumpy, jerk like Soldier Boy when the job was done. The more you're around him the more you hate him, but you can't help but wonder, is he really as big a jerk as you think? Reader is a supe with plant powers. This takes place in an AU about a month after the end of The Boys Season 3, in which Butcher has let Soldier Boy continue to work with him on his team.  (I'm real bad at summaries, please forgive me!)

Tropes: Enemies to Lovers (Not in this chapter), Slow Burn, Age Difference (Reader is in her 20s), Soft Ben/ Soldier Boy, Protective Ben/Soldier Boy, Miscommunication Trope

Word Count: 13.1K

Warnings: I'm going to label this 18+ because Soldier Boy (he's a warning and everyone knows it), Swearing, Mentions of Sex, Sexual Innuendo, Talks of Death, DENIAL, Idiots in Love, Pining by the Reader (and SB, but he won't admit it) Depressing Thoughts, Mentions of sexual assault/rape (not detailed at all, really just in passing) Talks about weed, Sexist comments, Ben makes derogatory comments, Threatening Ben/Soldier Boy might be a little bit OOC.

Note: This is told from Reader's perspective. Any references to the reader is made using you or your. There is minimal use of y/n. I tried my best to proofread, but nobody's perfect. If you don’t like, don’t read, but if you do like, you’re my favorite!

Internal monologue is in italics and is in first person.

Series Masterlist

Main Masterlist

A/N: I am so sorry this one took me a bit longer. The writers block was fighting me the whole way, but we are very closely nearing the end of this series and the moment the reader and Ben stop being so stinkin' stubborn.

Reader POV

You lean your forehead against the cool window, watching the world flash by in a flurry of color. The wooded forests had vanished hours ago and all that was left were the yellowed sprawling fields of corn and grain and family farms that were laid sporadically along the interstate. Each one a little world that caught the flecks of golden sunlight as the sun began to peak above the horizon.

The bus rolled smooth and steady over the weathered pavement towards it's destination and was filled with an odd assortment of people young and old. There was man with a brightly colored parrot that had been singing "It's A Small World After All" since you left NYC, a woman with a little boy playing with an iPad and who refused to turn down the volume no matter how many times his mother asked him to, a group of teenagers a few seats up that continued to pass around a flask, and due to how far back you were sitting on the bus an uncomfortable smell emanated from the bathroom each time the door was opened.

But you didn't notice any of it.

The only thing on your mind were the events that happened almost twenty hours ago. They continued to circle your mind, playing over and over again like a perverted cassette tape making you sink further into the worn cloth covered seat at the back of the bus. The images were haunting, some new and some old, but all the more still horrible to re-live.

The song "Nights In White Satin" floating into the backseat of your family's car, the flash of unnatural light you knew was never lightning, the caskets at your parent's funeral covered in flowers that were much to pretty to lay on something so morbid, Elijah's body succumbing to the poppies that ripped him apart, the proud sneer on your brother's face when he admitted to killing your parents, Darren's broken and bloodied body strewn in pieces over the street with the creature standing over him with a dripping red maw, the ruined building that housed "Please Don't Die" reduced to nothing more than rubble, and the look on Ben's face when you turned your back on him and fled the scene.

For some reason that particular image seemed to cling on to you and refused to fade. You'd never seen him look that way, almost… helpless and a little fearful. In all the time you'd known him, Ben had never looked at you that way. Sure you'd seen him proud, angry, cocky, lustful, mischievous, but never fearful. And you were sure that it wasn't an emotion that he was used to feeling, but that begged the question… why?

Why was he looking at me like that? Why wouldn't he let me go? And what was he afraid of?

The creature curled in your lap snorts something in it's sleep, turning it’s head further into the cradle of your elbow to shut out the brilliant early morning sunlight. It was now the size of a toaster and had warranted several odd looks whenever you got off to change buses, but you didn't care.

You weren't sure about anything anymore. Everything your brother confessed to you made you feel like you were living a lie and the revelation of exactly what your powers could do- take life from plants to heal yourself, create whatever the hell it was on your lap, and speak to plants… it scared you.

You thought for so long that you knew everything about your powers, that you were in control, but now you weren't sure.

You felt different, as if something had unlocked deep down that you couldn't shut up again.

You'd felt different after you killed Elijah, but this was more alive, weaving and twisting in the pit of your stomach. You felt more connected to the earth, to the world outside the bus even though you were divided by glass and metal. You could feel the energy that thrummed through the body of the creature on your lap, bending to your will, the life force of the plants it was formed from molding with you, becoming a part of you.

You felt so different than the person you had been before Darren entered the shop, so uncertain, and there was only one place you wanted to be when you felt like this… home. You couldn't wait to run up the worn front steps of your grandmother's house and into her arms. She always knew what to say in times like this.

And you desperately needed the comfort of her embrace.

The phone in your pocket buzzes again and you flip the screen to see the ridiculous selfie Annie and you had taken on Halloween last year. The one that you'd both spent dressed up as the two brothers from your favorite paranormal tv show. It wasn't the first time she'd called. Annie had called and texted you more times than you could count over the past twenty hours but you didn't answer her. You didn’t want to.

It was the first time that you didn't want to talk to her, but talking to her meant that you'd have to re-live all of it again and you were clawing at the last shred of sanity you had left to keep it together.

The overwhelming waves of emotion kept pummeling you, dragging you deeper beneath the white surf. Each one brought the memories of what happened surging over you and were followed by everything that Darren said to you. Years of taking care of Darren and doing whatever he wished were tearing at your soul, years of giving up little things in your life to make him happy, and years of taking care of a man who you thought cared about you, but hated you enough to kill your parents and try to kill you too.

It made your skin crawl. Each time your brother told you that he loved you was an even bigger lie and now that you knew the truth and saw him for what he was, it felt like you were drowning. The darkness that ebbed just on the edge was begging you to leap into the abyss, but you were resisting the best you could.

The tears had stopped falling miles ago, but you couldn't stop the memories or the emotion that formed a cold ball in the pit of your stomach.

A sigh works it's way up and you pull your legs on the seat underneath you, jostling the creature on your lap that raises it's head for a moment to blink it's black eyes at you sleepily.

It was surprisingly docile right now, especially considering that twenty hours ago it had ripped your brother to shreds. In fact it seemed to understand how upset you were and had spent the better part of the last twenty hours rubbing it's head against your arm as if trying to bring you some comfort. It was settled on your lap, the weight of it a comfort, almost like a weighted plushy that gave you something to focus on.

"It's alright buddy." You whisper, scratching him under his chin. "We're almost home."

The phone in your jacket pocket buzzes again, but when you pull it out to turn it off, you catch a glimpse of the screen, and you hesitate. Because this time it's not Annie who's calling, it’s Ben.

The picture that flashes on the screen under the contact name "Gramps" is the picture of Mr. Fredrickson from Up. It always made you smile whenever he called you and you saw the picture because Ben did often remind you of him. He was certainly just as grumpy as Mr. Fredrickson and just as out of touch, but you thought it was cute.

Your thumb hovers over the answer button and you think about talking to him.

But what would I say?

You weren't sure what to say to him, or why you wanted to speak to him so badly, why you wanted him to be sitting here on the bus with you as you went home, and why you wanted him to hold you against his chest while you allowed yourself to break, but you did. You wanted to feel his awkward shoulder pat and his awkward version of hand holding and you wanted to hear him try to tell you to "buck up" or whatever he thought that a comforting word should be.

He's really not the best at that.

You smile to yourself at the memory of how he tried to comfort you back at the hospital, but the longer you sit there and look down at the picture on the screen the worse you feel.

Maybe that scared you more than your newfound powers, how much you were realizing that you needed him, how much you depended on him when things got too much for you to bear. The memory of him appearing as soon as you needed him back at the shop, another of him grabbing Darren and throwing him into the street as soon as Darren insulted you comes in a flash, and finally followed by the memory of Ben carrying you out of Elijah's office while you curled into his chest. You couldn't remember too much from that moment, in fact you'd thought that Ben had kissed you on top of your head, but you ascribed that to the haze of pain you'd been in from your broken arm.

What you did remember was how wonderfully warm he was after you'd been trapped in that damn freezer and how nice it felt to be in his arms. Another memory of Ben sleeping on the couch at the hospital bubbles up and you feel something in your chest begin to crack open. And you try your best to tell yourself the same thing that you always do when you feel like Ben might care more about you that he was letting on.

Ben doesn't want that. He's made it perfectly clear. He doesn't want a relationship. He's only wants one night, that's why he goes out with all those women-

You hesitate, thumb still hovering over the answer button as you do, the memory of the week you'd spent at the apartment with him flickering in the back of your mind. The week where he refused to leave you alone in the apartment, where he refused to do any jobs for Butcher, where he took care of you the best way he could, when he sat with you on the couch and made you laugh with his ridiculous movies, and the week where he hadn't had one date.

Your finger itched to answer the phone, but you couldn't, because you didn't want to feel this way about Ben, not when he'd told you countless times that you kept romanticizing him, not when he told you that he didn't want a relationship, and not when you could feel yourself beginning to fall for someone you thought was the wrong man.

For just a moment you tried to pretend that it was different, that he was different, but you didn't want to. It only made it hurt more.

The phone stops ringing, but the pit in your stomach still gapes open at you and for the first time in twenty hours you feel tears begin to fall. You didn't know why you were crying about this, why the thought of not picking up Ben's phone call seemed to hurt more than everything that had happened, but something made it hurt.

The bus driver announces over the overhead that you're reaching your final destination as he takes the exit for your hometown. The familiar buildings that line the streets are sheathed in a honeyed glow from the sun, the long shadow of the bus darkening them momentarily as it rumbles down the small streets to the bus station.

When it rumbles to a stop at the bus station you wait for everyone else to get off, trying to summon the strength to stand, and swipe the back of your hand across your face to rid yourself of the remaining tears.

The bus station was about a thirty minute walk from your grandmother's house, and you still hadn't called her. You didn't know what to say, didn't know how to tell her that Darren was dead and that he was the reason why your parents were dead.

The creature crawls up your body to drape it's warm body over the back of your neck as you stand. It wasn't bothering to hide, besides the people in your hometown already thought that you were odd because you were a supe and you'd always welcomed it. You give him a scratch on top of his head and his warm tongue flicks on the bottom of your earlobe as if thanking you before it curls further into the side of your neck, seeking warmth.

The first few steps on solid ground are shaky, but you find the strength while taking in a deep cleansing breath of the outside world, letting the gentle warmth of the sun and the tickle of the autumn breeze pull at your coat. You hadn't stopped at your apartment before coming here, instead you had stumbled your way to the bus station covered in dust, flecked in blood, and demanded the first ticket back to Illinois. It was lucky that the next bus was leaving immediately, because you didn’t want to spend another second in NYC, not when all you wanted was to be home.

Plus you were worried that someone had recorded what exactly happened outside the plant shop and you didn't want to get arrested.

It was self defense anyway. Maybe Jake would represent me in court.

The thought of Jake makes you twinge. You hadn't checked to see if he was alright before you ran from the scene. Not to mention you'd destroyed the shop he'd put all his life savings into after he stopped being a lawyer.

Oh fuck, what if he sues me? He can't exactly sue Darren…

You hear someone call your name and you open your eyes.

Your grandmother is standing in front of the same baby blue pickup truck that she'd had longer than you've been alive, wearing a long multicolored skirt and a pressed white blouse tucked elegantly into it. Her silver hair is loose and long, curling over her shoulders in gentle waves. She looks the same way she looked one week ago when she left, and you've never seen anything so beautiful in your life.

You're running before you can stop yourself, crumbling into her warm embrace, with more tears streaking down your face, but she doesn't mind.

"Shh. It's alright honey." She whispers, rubbing her hand over your back, her embrace steady and surprisingly strong. "Let's go home."

Her home is the same as it's always been. A two story Victorian house painted in a happy yellow shade, with a white wrap around porch and two white rocking chairs sitting empty on the front porch. You'd spent more nights than you could count rocking silently beside her with a crochet project in your lap listening to the rain fall and soak the world outside, while the plants sang praises with every gentle bend beneath the heavy droplets.

You could barely remember the home you spent in your early years with your parents, not when you'd spent most of your childhood spending the night here and after your parents died living here permanently. There was still a large oak tree were a wooden swing swung in the slight breeze on the left side of the yard, a gardenia bush that stretched as high as the second story on the right side of the house and brushed it's soft leaves against the sunshine colored outer walls, a garden filled with both flowering plants and herbs that perked up on both sides of the front yard as you walked up the path, and a cobblestone path that Annie and you had spent hours of your shared childhood covering in chalk art.

Neither of you were good, but when the rain would fall and smudge the clean lines, you'd jump in the puddles that pooled along the walkway singing the lyrics to ABBA's "Cassandra" not quite understanding what it meant.

Standing here outside your house made you miss Annie and feel worse about not calling or texting her back, but you didn't feel like talking about what happened and you were sure that Butcher filled her in. The only thing that you wanted was to collapse in your bedroom upstairs and curl under the comforters.

Despite everything the house was a welcome sight, but at the same time it was different. You could feel the plants calling out to you, asking for you, bending towards you just to touch your shoes as you walked by. You'd never felt so connected with them before, not even when you were in your apartment or working at the shop.  It was overwhelming.

And although a part of you was frightened by it, another part of you rejoiced in it. You didn't feel alone, didn't feel weak, and you knew that you never would ever again.

The creature nuzzled into the side of your neck with a sigh, soaking up the sun's healing rays as you walked up the front steps with your grandmother following behind you silently. She hadn't spoken since she picked you up at the bus station and you hadn't supplied anything in the ten minute car ride back to her house.

You didn't know where to start and you were still trying to process everything yourself.

The inside of her house was just as cozy and warm as it was the day you moved out. There were photos of your parents and you covering the walls (Darren's had been placed in the closet long ago), half-finished knitting projects sorted in different baskets on both the dining room table and the living room coffee table, spools of yarn were strewn over the couch sorted by color, and the fresh smell of gardenia wafted through the open windows on the breeze.

It was home. This was what you'd been missing the moment everything began to crash over you, but as you stood there in the familiar living room it felt like something was missing. Something tugged at the back of your mind, but you couldn't put your finger on it.

There was something or rather someone that should be here, but you didn't know what or who. And your mind supplied Annie, but you weren't sure that's who you meant.

"Let's have some tea." Your grandmother says from behind you and you feel her soft hands come down on your shoulders to steer you through the familiar creative chaos and into the large kitchen at the back of the house.

The kitchen isn't spared from the madness, it rarely was. There are boxes upon boxes of cookies in different stages of being packaged all over the counter, dirty bowls and a measuring cup stacked in the sink, and a large opened bag of chocolate chips spilling over the flour covered kitchen island.

It wasn't unusual to find the kitchen or the house in a state of chaos, your grandmother always said that a house should look lived in and that the mess was part of the fun of any major project as long as you were responsible enough to clean it up.

"Bake sale?" You ask as you sit down in the breakfast nook, uttering the first words that you'd said to another human being in twenty hours.

The next breath that you inhale was supposed to be cleansing, but you can still feel a weight pressing down on your chest, the same one that settled in the moment everything happened with Darren.

You contemplate again how you're going to tell her that Darren is dead and was the reason why your parents died.

Damn it Darren.

"Mhmm." She hums, filling the well used red kettle. "Annie's mother practically cornered me in the supermarket yesterday and begged me to make cookies. I love Annie, but her mother needs someone to pull that stick out of her ass. It's been up there for so long that I'm sure it's rotten."

The creature crawls down from your shoulders and down your arm to sniff at one of the chocolate chip cookies nearest you. It hadn't eaten since…

Darren.

You wince slightly at the thought and hope that you hadn't created something that needed and craved human flesh. The last thing you wanted to unleash on the world was Audry two especially in the wake of Homelander.

Truthfully you were waiting for the guilt at killing your brother to come, but it never had and you wondered if it ever would.

Probably not. He deserved that, he killed our parents, he tried to kill me, he tried to kill Ben.

The thought of Ben again makes a lump form in the back of your throat. You didn't know what was happening to you only that you felt guilty for leaving him like that, for yelling at him to let you go, and just vanishing on him when he probably thought that you were going back to the apartment.

He doesn't know where I am. Maybe that's why he tried to call, because he got back to the apartment and couldn't find me there and he was worried. You press your lips together. Yeah. Worried. Right.

"Honey?" Your grandmother says in a soothing voice

You look up from the box of chocolate chip cookies that you didn't remember picking up. Even the creature is looking at you with an expression that you can only explain as worry.

"Yeah?" Your voice shakes slightly.

She's leaning back against the counter, arms crossed over her chest, head tilted slightly to the side, her beautiful grayed hair pulled up in an elegant bun, but in her eyes you can see genuine concern. "Fuck." She sighs after a minute.

You blink in surprise. It was the first time that you'd ever heard her say that word in your entire life.

"I shouldn't have left." She breathes. "I told Ben to look out for you. I told him, that little bastard was bound to show up again and what did he do? He left you at that plant shop alone with no protection!"

You'd only seen her really angry a handful of times in your lifetime. Like you, your grandmother often had a gentle disposition and didn't get angry unless the situation called for it.

I mean, Darren admitted to killing our parents and then got fucking ripped apart. But how does she know about any of that? I haven't told her…

"How did you know that he left me there? Did Ben call you?" You ask putting down the box of cookies.

An odd expression crosses her face, as if she's contemplating something. "No." She hesitates again. "I saw it."

"No." Your grandmother hesitates. "I saw it."

"You saw it?" You repeat, confused.

What's going on?

"Too late of course, but I'm a little rusty. I was able to warn Ben that Darren was coming back. That's how he got there so quickly or rather-" She shrugs sheepishly. "He got there in time to make sure that Darren didn't get you to forgive him. Which you shouldn't have at all, but I know he's always had a talent for manipulating you."

"What?"

Is she saying what I think she's saying?

Instead of explaining further your grandmother walks out of the kitchen, leaving the kettle behind on the stove and you in a state of utter confusion.

Is she saying that she can see the future? Because that would mean that she's a supe and there's only one supe in history that I know of that can do that. A supe that no one has seen in over forty years.

You can hear her open the door to the closet under the stairs and the sound of her sifting through all the junk that the two of you had shoved in there over the years instead of finding the right place to put it.

When she comes back into the kitchen, she's holding a giant cardboard file box that you'd never paid attention to each time you opened the closet to find something. Your eyes shift from the box to her still not comprehending exactly what she was saying.

"I probably should have told you this a while ago, but…" She trails off and nods her head at the box before turning back to the kettle on the stove that has begun to scream. "I kept putting it off."

The box is old, worn at the edges, and theres a musty black fabric beneath a collection of yellowed photographs. You pull out the one on top to examine it.

Ben is standing there in his full Soldier Boy regalia outside of Vought tower and the woman standing next to him is Soothsayer. The outfit she wore was familiar, a black-skin tight suit with a blind fold tied over her eyes.

Soothsayer was a supe who could see the future and who was apart of Payback, a supe that had vanished a year before the mission in Nicaragua and no one knew where she went. There were rumors that she'd died and that she'd been a Russian spy, but you'd never believed them. You'd heard Butcher talk about how he tried to find her when he was trying to figure out what happened to Soldier Boy, but he never had. Said that the trail went cold.

But now you knew where she went, because she was standing directly in front of you.

She's Soothsayer? Holy fuck that's why Ben kept accusing her of cheating in the poker game because he knew that she could see the future.

"You were Soothsayer?" You gasp. "But why didn't you say anything? Why didn't you tell me?"

She continues to measure the tea leaves. "I didn't tell anyone."

"Grandpa didn't know? But he was alive when you were a supe?"

Your grandfather had never spoken about a history with supes that you remember.

"No." She turns to look at you, a hurt expression crossing over her face for a minute. "Well, I know that I said I was going to have tea, but if we're going to talk about this I'm going to need something a little bit stronger."

Your grandmother opens a cabinet under the stove an pulls out an enormous bottle of scotch. Truth be told you'd never seen her drink more than just a glass of wine, to see her like this was about as shocking as seeing a polar bear sunning itself on a Florida beach.

"Do you still want the blueberry tea or do you need something a little stronger?" She looks back over her shoulder at you as she pulls down a glass for herself.

"I think I need something stronger." You answer honestly.

Learning about everything Darren had done was one thing, but finding out that your grandmother used to be a famous supe and that she never told you about it was another thing. It was like looking at another person. You'd always loved your grandmother's gentle way, her care for her community and her family soft, but now you weren't sure you really knew who she was.

She sits down across from you and hands you a glass of the amber colored liquid. There's a heavy silence that hangs between the two of you as she tries to find a way to start. The photo of her and Ben is laying on top of what you realize is her uniform inside the box and she smiles down at the photo, just a little twitch at the corner of her lips.

"I met Ben when I was twenty three years old." She begins taking a sip from the glass. "Legend 'discovered' me. I had the injection of Compound V maybe two years before that, not when I was born, but I hadn't gotten popular. Other powers were much more flashy and by then there were so many heroes coming out of the woodwork that someone with the ability to see the future didn't seem as marketable."

There's something reflected in her blue eyes, the same eyes your father had, that you can't place. "I had just moved to New York, I had no money, and the way I was getting it was by pretending to be a fortune teller and betting on some sports events on the side. It wasn't hard to prove that I could see the future, the past was more difficult, but Legend somehow stumbled into my shop and figured out that I was a supe. And he didn't think I was too bad looking so he helped me get big."

"You pretended to be a fortune teller?"

She snorts into her glass. "Mhmm. People really will believe anything if they're desperate enough and back then there was so much turmoil going on with Russia that people were scared and wanted to feel comforted. My job provided some of that."

"But why did you walk away from it if you were such a big hero." You ask. "Everyone knew your name, you were-"

Your grandmother raises an eyebrow at you and you fall silent so she can continue. "When I got onto Payback that's when everything exploded for me, the films, the commercials, the ridiculous ads." She sighs. "That's also when I met Ben."

You take a sip from the glass in front of you, sputtering slightly. It was stronger than you were expecting. "And you two were-"

Please don't say dating, please don't say dating, please don't say…

"Friends. Just friends." Diana sits back against the back of the breakfast nook, sinking into the navy blue pillows. "But he is almost as charming now as he was then."

You cringe at the thought of Ben coming on to a younger version of your grandmother.

She taps her glass with her index finger deep in thought. "But I think that I was the only person that Ben actually talked to, the only person that he was comfortable being around."

"What do you mean?" You ask confused. "Didn't he talk to Countess and to Legend?"

Her expression hardens at the mention of Countess's name. "He didn't talk to her the way he talked to me. Ben is difficult, he always has been and I think that most of the people he meet him write him off as this asshole with a chauvinistic look on the world, but he's not. At least, not all the time. There are so many people that he's met that are never willing to take a chance on him. To trust that there is really something beneath all of that bravado."

It was what you had been thinking for the past week, that there was more to Ben than he was willing to let people see, but you were slowly realizing that Ben was letting you see those parts. In the quiet moments at your shared apartment when he sat with you while you read or made you laugh or walked you to and from work you saw another side of Ben that you never saw when he was around anyone else. The guilt rises again when you think of how you ran from him, how you turned your back and left him standing there to clean up your mess.

I shouldn’t have done that, but it was all just so overwhelming and I didn't want to talk to anyone.

"I think that Ben is the most loyal friend I ever had. No one ever seems to believe me when I say that. That we were just friends, but nothing happened between us."

"You didn't date? Or sleep together?" You ask cautiously. It was difficult to imagine Ben being friends with a woman and not having a sexual relationship with her.

Well. We're friends, but that's different.

The last thing you wanted to think about was Ben and your grandmother having sex.

I would need so much therapy after that. You sigh. Yeah, because after all the shit I've been through and found out about my life in the last twenty hours, the knowledge that Ben fucked my grandmother is what's going to push me over the edge.

"No." She shakes her head with a small smile. "About a week after I met Ben, I was running late to a movie shoot and I stepped off the crosswalk without looking. There was a car coming and I didn't see it. Ironic isn't it?" She laughs at herself. "I can see the future and I didn't see a car coming, but your grandfather did and he grabbed the back of my jacket and yanked me onto the sidewalk, saved my life. And the second my eyes locked with his I saw our future. I saw our wedding, our first house, I saw our son take his first steps and I saw how much I would love him and how much he would love me." She clears her throat for a minute, her fingers tighten on the glass, and her gaze drops to the wedding ring on her left hand. “The future is never set in stone, it’s fluid. It morphs and shapes with your decisions, but in the future I saw, I was so happy. And I didn’t want to lose that.”

Your grandfather had passed a few years ago, but you knew it weighed on her everyday. She had spent the week after he died in her room not saying anything to anyone. And sometimes she'd look out the window into the backyard with an odd expression, but you knew that meant she was thinking of him.

Growing up you'd seen how in love the two of them were, more so than your parents. Seen the flowers your grandfather always brought home just because he was thinking of her, watched him do little things around the house without being asked, saw how they never walked away angry from one another, and seen the soppy expression he'd get when he watched your grandmother move around the kitchen baking with a grace that you'd never possessed.

You reach across the table to touch her hand and she takes it gratefully.

"I didn't want to tell him that I was a supe, and at the beginning I thought I could balance it all, but then Ben started dating Countess." She takes another sip from her glass. "She hated me."

"What? Why?" You ask. The creature crawls across the table to sniff at the glass in front of you, before it snorts and falls into your lap, curling into a ball.

"Countess was a bitch." Your grandmother says mirthlessly, her expression hardening. "She wanted to possess Ben completely. Only loved how famous he was, how popular it made her, and he threw himself at her feet, in his own way, not understanding that love didn’t look that way. He’s never had a good example of it in his life. And she never understood that Ben and I were just friends. By then I had been dating your grandfather for a few months and things were getting serious. It was about a year before everything that happened in Nicaragua."

She presses her lips together as if remembering what happened to Ben there. "She was jealous, possessive, and she came to me one night. Ben was out of town for a film so she knew we wouldn’t be interrupted. She threatened to tell your grandfather who I really was and threatened to kill him.” Her jaw sets. “My powers were never really as offensive as hers were. And she said that Ben wouldn’t ever protect me over her because he loved her and would do anything to make her happy. So I left and I never looked back.”

And here I thought I couldn't hate Countess any more than I did for what she did to Ben.

“You didn’t talk to him ever again?” You wonder out loud.

She left without telling him goodbye?

“There was the occasional phone call. Sometimes Ben would ask me to see who was going to win a ball game or something so he could make a few bucks. He stopped by to say hi a few times because he was in the neighborhood. One time he brought your father a baseball glove that was way too big for a one year old.” She snorts, the memory flashing in her eyes. “I always thought Ben would be a good dad some day. But I think seeing your father was when Ben realized how much he wanted to have kids. And I think seeing the way your grandfather treated me made him start to feel conflicted about Countess. But he respected that I walked away, he saw that I was happy.”

“But what about Nicaragua?"

A dark look crosses her face followed by something that looks suspiciously like guilt. “I saw what they were going to do to him.”

“What? But why didn't you tell him what they were planning? Why didn't you-"

"I tried." She snaps, shoulders tense, but then they drop. "I called Ben, but Stan answered. By then your father was turning two, your grandfather had opened up his practice, and Stan threatened me, he knew where we were and knew everything about us. So I kept my mouth shut and I’ll regret it for the rest of my life.”

You could feel your heart breaking for her.

Ben was her best friend and she had to sit by and watch them do that to him. She saw what they were going to do and they were going to kill her for it, kill my family for it.

The anger that surges in your chest makes the creature in your lap stir and grow a few inches, but you tamp it down before it gets bigger than a small dog.

“Does Ben know?” You ask her to distract yourself.

You didn't want Ben to hate your grandmother for this, didn't want him to hate her for something that wasn't her fault.

She nods. “Yes. I told him everything.”

“When?”

“The moment I saw him in your hospital room. I couldn’t keep it in any longer. I wasn't expecting him to be there, but it all poured out of me. I was so surprised to see him there. I hadn't seen a future where he came back."

“Was he mad?”

I mean… he didn't seem mad when I woke up, not to mention he was upset when she left to come back to Illinois.

“Not at me.” She shakes her head. “He knew how much I wanted a normal life and how much I loved your grandfather. He doesn’t blame me for any of it.”

“Good. I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.”

The glass in front of you is still more than half-full but you don't want to risk another sip of what you're sure is gasoline packaged to look like Scotch. Your grandmother reaches to pour herself another glass.

“I didn’t want to until you were ready.”

“And when would that be?”

Your grandmother shrugs. “Maybe on my deathbed.”

You weren't angry for her not telling you, more surprised, but now that you knew everything about her it was hard to see her the same way you had.

 You snort. “And no one knew?”

“Your dad figured it out.”

“How? When?”

“The moment you made that strawberry plant grow from your high chair.” She shakes her head with a smile. “It skipped a generation. Don’t know why, but you got it all somehow.”

“I was never injected?”

“No. That was a lie your father created. He knew that your grandfather didn't know and he knew that I didn't want your grandfather to know."

“Darren thought I was.”

“I know.”

At the mention of your brother's name, you watch her expression harden and she takes another swig from the glass in front of her, not flinching as the liquid goes down her throat.

“Did you see everything that happened?” You ask in a small voice.

You still weren't 100% sure how it was her powers worked, but you figured that she was able to see some of what Darren did and what he said.

“Yes.”

“You heard everything Darren said?"

“Yes.”

You chew the inside of your cheek for a minute hoping that she didn't take it as hard as you did. “Did you know that he killed them?”

“No.” She breathes, rolling the glass between her hands for a moment. “The night they died, I got a vision a few minutes before the car ran off the road. I was the one who called the police and who told them where to look, but I never saw that it was Darren or that it was anyone causing the accident. All I saw was the three of you in the car. I should have known.” Her voice breaks.

“It’s not your fault.” You squeeze her hand.

“And it’s not yours either.” She squeezes your hand back.

The memories are beginning to float up from the recesses of your mind and your teeth clench together as you try to keep them at bay.

“I know.” You breathe. The memory of the ruined shop flashes through your head. “I didn’t know that I could do something like that.” You gently touch your healed right arm and glance at the creature that is nibbling on the edge of the cardboard box with its sharp splinter-like teeth. “I feel so different and I don’t know how to go back to the way I was.”

“I don’t think you ever will.”

"Really?"

The thought was unwelcome. You were hoping that all of this was going to blow over, but you knew it wouldn't. Your powers had changed. There was an energy that thrummed in your veins now, stretching out of the house to the plants that grew in the garden. You could feel them all if you concentrated.

She frowns. “When you told me that you were working for Butcher I was worried about you getting involved in the supe world. I didn’t want that life for you, didn’t want you to suffer the way I did-“

“Was it really that bad?"

“Not all the time, just at the end. But I think that’s why I loved your grandfather so much. Because he was different than all the supes. He was down to earth, not just normal but-“ She shrugs. “I think Compound V does something to our minds, makes them more susceptible and when you’re surrounded by people using their powers and thinking that they’re gods it’s easy to lose who you are. I was glad I left when I did."

“Great." You huff, thinking about how your powers had grown exponentially since you killed your brother. It was scaring you to think that you would reach a point where you acted like Homelander, where you saw yourself as a god and killed anyone who stood in your way.

As tired as the stereotype of you only being able to make the flowers grow, you liked doing that. You liked healing plants, tending to them, and helping them grow. For you it had never been about using your powers the way that you had to kill Elijah and your brother and had always been about spreading a little more joy and love like your grandmother did with her kindness in her community.

Your mind flashes back to the first night that Ben stayed with you in your apartment and he'd asked you why you worked for Butcher and told you that he thought you "didn't fit."

Before you hadn't. You knew that. You weren't intimidating to look at or fueled by revenge or had a bone to pick with supes. You'd joined because you thought it was the right thing to do and because you wanted to be closer with Annie. She had been so involved in the supe world and you'd felt like you were losing your best friend. When in reality being at "Please Don't Die" was the only thing that felt natural for you.

You could feel yourself changing and you weren't sure that you wanted to and you weren't sure if you were changing for the better. Deep down you still felt like you, despite everything Darren had revealed, but your powers were greater than you'd thought they could be.

“No.” She squeezes your hand pulling you out of your head. “I don’t see you losing yourself in this.”

“You’ve seen-“ Your eyes widen.

“The future yeah.” Her lips twitch up at the ends in a smile. “It is what I do.”

“That’s so weird.”

You hadn't meant to say it, but you really didn't want to know too much about your future.

Well, not all that much. Maybe just a little.

“You of all people have no right to judge what’s weird. Not with Godzilla sitting in your lap.”

"Godzilla" yawns, flashing a mouthful of his pointy teeth, before settling back down on your thighs.

You smile for the first time in twenty hours, but then it drops. “I don’t like losing control. I thought I knew who I was but now I don’t-“ The emotions were bubbling up again, chest tightening, and lungs beginning to gasp for air. “I don’t know who I am anymore or what I am or what I can do and-“

“There’s nothing wrong with not being in control.”

“But what if I hurt someone? What if I kill-“ You body shakes as you think about all the important people in your life, Annie, Hughie, Butcher, Kimiko, MM, Frenchie- and then your mind stutters on Ben.

“Your powers are growing and there’s nothing to be afraid of or ashamed of. If you’re afraid of them it won’t get easier for you. You have to embrace the fear to see the lights that line the path through it.”

"I killed Darren, I killed Elijah-"

"Not because you lost control. You did it because you were protecting yourself and protecting your friends."

"But-"

"Who is it that you're scared of hurting? Annie?" Her expression turns sympathetic. "Annie is a supe and understands what it's like to lose control. None of us are in control all the time and it's ridiculous to believe that you won't lose control at least once."

Your throat clenches tightly, because when she asked the question you didn't see Annie's face, you saw Ben's. You knew that it was probably ridiculous to worry about hurting a guy with a nuclear reactor stuffed in his chest or a guy who'd been through every torture known to man, but you were. And you weren't entirely sure if you meant hurting him with just your powers.

Tears crest and fall down your cheeks as you sit there, throat thickening. "I don't want to hurt Ben."

"He's a little more indestructible than us sweetie." She cracks a smile, but you can't smile back and you don't answer because you're unsure how to.

She sits back against the breakfast nook and sighs, examining your face and slowly realizes what you mean. "Ben is complicated. He always has been. I like to think that most of it, is his father's fault. Has he told you anything about him?"

You shake your head.

"He was a dick. Made Ben think that he was a disappointment his whole life. I don't think that Ben has had someone love him unconditionally since his mother died. And loving Countess only made it worse for him. Her love was jealous, possessive, and I don't think that he's really come to terms with what real love should look like." She lets out a breath, tapping her index finger against the glass. "I never saw him as more than a friend, but I do love him. It's not a crime to love him."

"I don't love him." You say it immediately.

"Why not?"

"What?" You sputter. "I don't know what you're-"

"Tell me why you don't love him." Your grandma says methodically, as if she's trying to talk you through it.

"Because I-" The pressure was back in the back of your throat and you couldn't quite meet her eye. "Because-" You scramble for the answer, trying your darndest to keep your heart from clenching in your chest. "I want what you and grandpa had, what Annie and Hughie have, and what my parents had. A strong relationship with someone who sees all my flaws, the little parts, and the darkness and still choses to fall in love with me anyway. I don't want just one night I want every night. I want something real and Ben has said countless times that he-"

"So you've talked about it with Ben?" She raises an eyebrow.

"Only because he kept trying to sleep with me and I told him that I didn't want to have sex with him." You reply exasperated.

"You don't?"

"Gran!"

"What? He's attractive."

"It doesn't matter. None of it does. Because Ben has said that he doesn't have relationships, that he doesn't care about feelings, or emotions." Saying the words that Ben had told you countless times made something inside begin to shrivel up and die. "And I do. And I don't want to manipulate him into being something he's not or force him into a relationship that's doomed from the beginning. Ben is Ben. He's not changing or-"

"He has." She interrupts.

"What?"

"The Ben I saw in your hospital room is not the one I knew." She says it so matter of fact that makes it hard to breathe. "And neither was the one that I saw in your apartment when I stayed with you. I mean he is in essence Ben, but-"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"He is changing. Not completely, but he's acting differently than when he was with Countess. I mean, I saw all the things he did for her. The way he was around her."

"Why does that matter?"

"Because he loved her."

The words make your heart seize in your chest. "Ben doesn't love me. He's my roommate and my friend-" It was the same thing that you kept telling yourself on repeat to beat back the other feelings that you hadn't quite identified yet. "And he's told me that he doesn't want a relationship and that I should try to meet other people."

That last part was a lie, but you honestly didn't know where she was going with this conversation or why it was getting so hard to breathe.

"Have you thought that maybe Ben doesn't want to love you because he's scared?"

"He doesn't love me and Ben isn't afraid of anything."

"He is. It might not look the same way on him as it does on everyone else, but if you pay close enough attention you can catch it." She hesitates. "And I think if you pay attention to you, you'll see what it is that you're afraid of too."

What does she mean? What the hell am I afraid of? Ben isn't afraid of anything, he's practically shouted that from the mountaintops like Julie Andrews.

"I already told you what I'm afraid of."

"I'm not talking about you hurting someone honey. There's something else that you refuse to admit to yourself because you're scared." She smiles sadly at you. "You should though, because when you embrace it, what comes after is really beautiful." There's a far off look in her eyes and you realize that she'd seen something further ahead that she wasn't letting on.

"And it's all I want for you. To be happy." Your grandmother stands from the other side of the booth "I think you need some rest. You drove all night long and I doubt you got any sleep. And I have to package all of these before Annie's mother calls down the four horsemen of the Apocalypse on me."

"Wait-"

"Please sweetie." She lays her hand down on your arm. "I think you'll feel a little better about all of this when you've had some rest." Her fingers raise to push back some of the hair that's fallen forward into your eyes. "Hmm?"

You didn't want to rest, you wanted to talk about this, but you knew better than to argue with her. Not to mention she was right, you hadn't slept.

"And when you wake up I'll make your favorite for dinner, alright?" She smiles, but there's something behind it that you can't place.

"Okay."

And this time you don't argue with her. You go up the worn staircase that you have your entire life and collapse onto your bed, wondering exactly what it was she saw your future hold, and what it is that you won't admit to yourself.

Soldier Boy POV

There was no light in the apartment save from the burning red tip of Ben's blunt and the bluish glow emanating from the tv that caught the dips and sharp edges of his face. But it was nothing more than background noise.

His hand absentmindedly stroked along Bean's back, his eyes focused on the ceiling above the couch. He hadn't moved in hours. It had been over twenty four hours since everything that happened at the plant shop, since you'd summoned a creature from the depths of the store, since Darren had thrown Ben through the plate glass windows of the bakery, and since Ben had last seen you.

He didn't understand why you hadn't let him take you back to the apartment and why it was that you had to leave. Ben hadn't liked the feeling that stabbed him in the chest when you turned your back on him and ran away. He'd felt the urge to comfort you the way he'd watched Hughie do for Annie in the car a week ago, but you hadn't let him.

Instead all he'd done is stood there and watched you run, still covered in dust, rubble, and blood. Worse was you hadn't let him check you for injuries and Ben hated the thought that you were hurt somewhere and he didn't know where you were.

You were so much more fragile than he was. He was realizing that more every day, was acutely aware of it after everything that happened with Elijah. Honestly, sitting there in the hospital with you laying there asleep with nothing that he could do, but wait for you to wake up had been agony. Not to mention that looking at the bruises around your throat, over your eye, and the bright green cast only made him feel worse. He'd never felt so helpless in his entire life and he hated it. Because Ben wasn't some helpless damsel in distress, he was a man and a man shouldn't wait on anyone or feel out of control, or at least, that's what he told himself.

Ben hears someone walk down the hallway outside the apartment and he perks up to listen, hoping that it's you finally coming home. Ben's mind stutters on the word "home." He'd lived many places in his life, apartments that felt more like way-stations, and the drafty cold mansion back in Philadelphia where he grew up, but neither felt like home. And although he hated how small your apartment was, it was the first place that Ben liked living in. He was starting to understand the word home.

But the feet keep moving past the apartment and Ben sinks into the couch cushions. Even Bean seems to be disappointed. "It's alright buddy." Ben mutters. "She'll come back."

But he wasn't sure.

Ben also wasn't used to feeling this way. It was close to the way that he felt when he went to Boston and was sitting in that damn hotel room waiting for something to happen and he still didn't understand what it meant. He didn't understand why he couldn't stand it that you weren't back yet. It made him feel like a woman waiting for her husband to get home from work when he told her that he was "running late." He'd tried to distract himself by looking at some possible prospects on Tinder, but just like the week after you'd come home from the hospital and just like the date he had in Boston, no one held any appeal.

His mind was awake and roaming around, pacing back and forth. The blunt was supposed to help, but it hadn't.

His phone chirps and Ben picks it up to look at the screen, but it's not you, it's Jake.

Jake: I know that I'm not your favorite person, but thank you for what you did.

Ben huffs and turns his phone face down on the couch once more. "What a fucking pussy."

When you left Ben had realized that Jake was still inside the building and as much as he wanted race after you, he understood that you'd be even more upset if you'd killed Jake. So Ben had tromped back through the building and found him trapped beneath some rubble. Jake was okay, just unconscious, but Ben had carried him out and put him on the sidewalk before he high tailed it out of there. The last thing that he wanted was to be caught with a shredded body outside a ruined building.

I didn't do it for him. I did it for her. Ben thinks to himself, looking down at the text message.

As much as he hated the thought of saving your future boyfriend, he didn't want to see what it did to you if you found out that you killed Jake, so he'd done it to avoid watching you cry again.

Ben didn't understand why he hated watching you cry.

Women cry. They're damn emotional all the time. He tries to reason with himself taking a puff from the blunt pinched between his thumb and forefinger. And she fucking cries way too much.

The image of you crying outside of the shop in the wake of everything that happened pricks something under his ribcage. Fuck.

Ben didn't feel remorse for what happened, well, the only thing he regretted was not getting there sooner and getting to fuck Darren up himself. When Diana had called him to tell him that Darren was coming, Ben had practically ripped the apartment door off in his haste to get back to you. He hadn’t wanted to leave you at the plant shop, but Butcher had told Ben, that he had a possible location for Darren, but it came up empty and Ben had been at Butcher's apartment chewing him out for sending him on a fucking wild goose chase.

It only made Ben more angry to allow Darren to speak to you, but he was trying to let you handle it even though he wanted to handle him. But it had brought him an unholy amount of joy to throw Darren in front of that minivan and to watch that creature tear him apart while the final whitish blue pulses of electricity jumped and crackled down the street making the streetlights shower sparks everywhere.

But Ben was more upset that Darren had been able to land a few hits on you before you killed him.

Ben remembered the giant lizard that crawled out of what was left of "Please Don't Die" and felt his lips quirk up into a smile. As much as he hated the entire situation, Ben couldn't help but feel a little surge of pride at what you'd done to your brother. He'd never seen you look so powerful standing there in the street, your eyes glowing a brilliant green, arms outstretched, and the ground trembling around you as the world begged to be unleashed.

Of course he'd been just as surprised as you were at the fact that you'd healed your broken arm. He wasn't sure if you'd noticed it yet, but you looked different too. There weren't as many lines on your face and your hair was more springy, the few silver hairs that Ben had noticed in passing were no longer there.

He wasn't sure what that meant, but there was something that felt suspiciously like hope tingling in his stomach, hope that you weren't as fragile anymore and hope that it meant you wouldn't die.

When Diana had told Ben that her husband had died, he saw the pain in her eyes when she said it, saw her relieving the memory, and for some reason as soon as she said that he was dead, the first thing Ben thought about was you. Ben hadn't considered his inability to age as much in the past, hadn't cared about outliving anyone before. Seeing Countess as an older woman had made him more aware of it. Looking at the woman who he once thought he loved, had showed him what that was like. Not that he had a problem with daring older women, Ben always thought that women really did get better with age, but it was what came next that Ben wasn't fond of.

And for some reason thinking that one day he'd wake up and see the marks of age on your face or one day he'd wake up and he wouldn't be able to annoy you or hear you yell at him made his chest tight.

Ben takes another hit of his blunt. The longer he sat there the more then unnatural feeling stirred in the pit of his stomach, thrumming through his veins, the feeling that he was trying to avoid. He thought that the joint would calm him down, but he found himself jumping at every creak and footstep in the apartment building, perking up each time and hoping that it was you coming home.

He didn't know where you were. You hadn't answered any of his texts or calls and Ben was ashamed at how many times that he had tried to call you.

Get a fucking grip. He'd thought to himself when he typed out another text message to send you, stopping himself from sending it.

But he'd been so desperate to hear from you that he'd actually gone to talk to Annie who seemed upset that she couldn't get ahold of you either. When Hughie and Annie had seen how upset Ben had been, Hughie had laid his hand on Ben's arm and told him not to worry. Ben had yelled at him that he "wasn't fucking worried and to mind his own business" and had shaken off Hughie's comforting hand before stomping out of the shared apartment.

No one else seemed to be as concerned about finding you. Butcher, MM, and Frenchie were all deeply involved in trying to figure out the cover-up for what happened outside the plant shop. By some miracle no one had caught a picture of your face, but there was little they could do about Darren's body that had been strewn across the street. Annie was having to deal with the repercussions at work, trying to handle what the news was calling a "super villain threat."

Personally, Ben thought that since they froze Homelander, the Seven looked weak and Ben believed that the superhero team that represented America shouldn't look weak. Of course before Ben had also thought that they looked like a bunch of pussies and again felt himself sink deeper into the couch when he thought about what his supposed son had become.

He shakes off the feelings he has about it and his thoughts turn back inevitably to you.

Ben wasn't used to thinking about someone as much as he thought of you, but each time he settled back into the apartment and you weren't there he was hyperaware of how quiet it was.

Maybe I should call Diana. She might know where she is.

As soon as Ben thinks that, his phone begins to ring, but Ben doesn't bother to look at who it is before he answers it. 

"Hello?" Ben huffs out a breath of smoke that hangs in the air in front of his face, catching in the bluish light coming from the television.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" The voice on the other side of the line yells at him.

"Di?"

"Yes it's me. Who did you think it was? Santa Clause?" Your grandmother snarks.

"Why are you calling me and why the fuck are you so mad? What did I do?" Ben answers slightly annoyed.

As much as you got under his skin, your grandmother had been the same way. He actually thought that it was amusing that even before he figured out that she was your grandmother that he had often compared you to her in his mind. You had the same mannerisms, the same defiant and stubborn attitude that drove Ben up the wall, and you were just as beautiful as she was.

Ben was okay with admitting that he was attracted to you. To him that felt normal, it was the other feelings that he was conflicted about, the ones that he'd never felt before stirring in his chest that made him feel "too emotional" and "woman-like."

Truthfully, Ben was sure that if your grandmother had given him a shot that maybe he would have felt that way about her too. She was the only person that Ben actually trusted in the 80's, the only person that was brave enough to call him out on all his shit. You did that now. But he liked her husband also, so Ben was content with letting her go. He liked how happy that Henry, your grandfather, had made her. He knew that she wasn't happy as a supe and seeing her so happy and in love made Ben feel something that was close to happiness.

And it was seeing the way the two of them were together made Ben wonder if what he had with Countess was the same thing. Because he did have feelings about her that were different, but each time he went to visit Diana and saw your father playing on her lap he felt that there was something missing in his life.

It was the same way that he thought something was missing when you weren't in the apartment, but Ben hadn't realized that yet.

"Because I don't understand what the hell you're doing!" Diana replies and Ben honestly doesn't know why she's angry with him.

"About what?"

"My granddaughter."

Ben sits up the blunt in his fingertips forgotten. "Is she there with you?"

"Yes." Her voice softens for a moment.

Ben relaxes and leans back onto the couch, sighing in relief. "Good.  That's good." Relief swelled in his chest when he thought about you staying with her, safe.

That's what she meant when she said that she wanted to go home. Home is with her grandmother. Ben stopped the next thought before he could go there.

The thought that home wasn't with him.

Ben was trying not to think about that or think about you hating him. He didn't think you did, well, didn't think you did anymore. At first it really was touch and go, but now he was almost eighty percent sure after you'd told him more than once that you weren't afraid of him and didn’t hate him that you sometimes wanted him around.

"No, not good."

"What do you mean? Is she okay?" Ben's grip on the phone tightens so hard that he's sure that he hears the screen cracking.

"No."

"What happened?" Ben's voice is a growl, the feelings of relief evaporating as soon as they had begun to bloom in his chest. He mentally calculated how long it would take him to get to you.

"Her entire life fucking fell apart and where are you? Not here!"

Oh. Ben relaxed a little bit.

"I don't need to be there." He says on an exhale of smoke.

"Yes you do!" Diana presses.

"No, I don't. She a big girl she doesn't need me there, she's-" Ben takes a puff from the joint.

“If you were any denser you’d be a Bundt cake Benjamin!” She says exasperated.

"What the fuck are you talking about doll? I am not-"

“Let me guess." She interrupts and Ben can imagine her tapping her foot. He hated when she did that. "You’re moping around smoking a blunt on the couch probably with a glass of something that you're hoping to numb whatever the hell it is you're feeling."

Ben's eyes shift to the bottle of whiskey on the coffee table that he hadn't touched in a few minutes.

“I’m not fucking moping and stop spying on me!” He snaps back at Diana.

He hated how well she knew him. She was his best friend in the 80's through all the shit, she had seen him at his worst and at his best too many times to count.

“I don’t have to use my powers to know what you’re doing. I know you Ben.”

"Sorry to disappoint you sweetheart.” Ben grits his teeth, temper flaring hot. “But if you know me as well as you fucking say you do then you then you know that this is-“

“You avoiding your feelings by acting aloof and brooding like a fucked up version of Mr. Darcy.” She interrupts.

She certainly hasn't changed.

“I am not avoiding-“

“She needs you here Ben.” Diana stamps her foot, the same way you do when Ben pisses you off, and Ben can hear it.

“She doesn’t need me! She said that she wanted to go home, that she didn’t want to be here with me! I tried to-“ Ben shouts back standing up. It was the exact thing that he'd been thinking for the past twenty four hours, that you didn’t need him and that you didn't want to be any where near him.

That last thought made an uncomfortable sensation prickle in his gut when he thought it, because all it did was remind him of how you acted when the two of you first met, when you didn't want him to live with you and tried your darndest to make him go away.

He didn’t want to and he wasn't sure why that was.

“Try harder.” Diana interrupts him again and frankly it was pissing him off.

Ben clenches his jaw. “I think that you’ve confused me with someone else baby.”

“Don’t you 'baby' me Benjamin! We both know that you’re doing what you always do when things get hard for you.”

“And what’s that?”

“You pretend not to care and shut out everyone who tries to care for you. Not to mention you drown yourself in drugs, booze, and women.”

“She doesn’t care about me!” He spits.

“She does!” Diana snaps back. “And believe it or not she needs you here and she wants you here.”

"But-"

"Ben please." It was the first time that he'd heard Diana sound softer and almost pleading since the conversation started. "Don't do this to her. She's worth more than Countess and all those other women you've fallen into bed with."

"Do you really think I don't know that?" He roars. The answer surprises himself. "Do you think I don't know that she's different?"

Wait what?

"If you know that, then why aren't you here?"

He hesitates.

Everything you said to him the night of the party comes roaring back. You looking beautiful in a dress that made his throat tight, and you telling him that you just wanted to be friends and that you understood that he wasn't the type of guy to have relationships. He didn't understand why it stung a bit when you said that, but it had.

Ben thinks about the week that the two of you spent together after Diana went home, when he tried his best to take care of you, distract you from everything that happened with his movies, and would sit with you and try to make you laugh. He'd never wanted to take care of someone before.

Not to mention he kind of liked the way you laughed. He wouldn’t admit that to anyone, but each time you did, it made him want to laugh too. That had never happened to him before. But he wanted to make you laugh to forget everything that happened with Elijah. His fist clenches when he thinks of exactly what Elijah tried to do to you and it makes him feel so mad that he feels close to spontaneously combusting. Ben might not be the best role model when it came to women, but he couldn’t imagine the type of man who would force himself on someone else.

It had made him angry when he thought that you were suggesting that he would try something when he first moved in, because he wasn't that type of man.

Ben was trying to be better for you. He wasn't admitting that, but he really was trying to be better. He didn't understand why. You'd told him countless times that you didn’t want to be with him, that you wanted to be with someone else like Jake.

Ben frowns when he thinks about the man he'd pulled from the rubble of the shop. And again thinks to himself that you should be with someone different, someone who was a supe and could understand you. Ben had seen how difficult it was for Diana when she was keeping her supe life a secret from your grandfather and he didn't want you to have to do that with someone.

"Because I'm not-" Ben begins to say, but he holds his tongue. It was too honest, too raw, too unlike him to admit this to anyone.

Because I'm not this guy. Because I'm not the one she wants. Because I'm not some knight on a white horse. Because she's everything right with the world and I'm just a fucking asshole who sleeps on her couch.

"Ben." Diana breathes and he can practically hear her pinching the bridge of her nose. "In all the years I've known you, you've never done what you did for her with anyone else. You carried her out of that warehouse, you stayed with her in the hospital even after she woke up, you took care of her when she came home, you protected her from Darren. You can't ignore all those things."

"I'm not ignoring them. She's my friend." The word sours in his mouth as he says it. "And she would have done the same thing for me." He knew it was true.

She's a good person and she wouldn't let me chase her away if any of that shit happened to me and I told her to leave me alone.

"Yes she would. Because she cares about you." Diana sighs.

"She doesn't."

"Why don't you believe me?"

"Because she's told me what she wants!" Ben shouts so loudly he can feel the room shaking. "She wants to be friends-“

"Because she doesn't think that you want a relationship you nitwit!"

"I don't." Ben spits the words before he can stop them, but as he does something tightens at the base of his throat.

"How is it that it's been forty fucking years and you're still able to dance on the grave of my last nerve?"

Ben chuckles. "I missed you too sweetheart."

She sighs into the phone again making it crackle in Ben's ear. "She needs you.” Diana repeats. “And I think you need her too.”

His temper was flaring again, the thoughts that his father pressed into him surging up before he can stop the words. “I don’t need anyone. I’m Sol-“

“If you say that you’re Soldier Boy, I’m going to reach through this phone and slap you silly.” She snaps. “And you do need her, but you’re still just too stubborn to admit it.”

“I-“

“Ben I know that everything that happened with Countess was fucked up, but my granddaughter she-“ Diana pauses before she changes the thought.  “You say that you know she’s different, but right now you’re treating her the same way you treat all those other women.”

“I’m not-“

“My granddaughter has decided you’re important to her and once that’s happened it’s hard to make her let go. You saw the way she was with Darren and that guy was a manipulative asshole. Imagine what she thinks of you.”

“I-“

“Stop making excuses!”

“You didn’t even hear what I was going to say!” Ben shouts.

“And I don’t need to! Think what you want Ben but if you’d stop acting so stubborn and so ridiculously blind to what’s right in front of you. I promise that what comes next is worth the risk.”

“Don’t go all fucking mystical on me doll.”

“And don’t go all macho- no feelings asshole on me! So stop being so damn stubborn, get on a plane and get your ass here.” She retorts. “Don’t fuck this up Benjamin because if you do I’ll fuck you up.”

The line goes dead.

Ben sat there for a minute in the silence still holding the phone up to his ear, listening to what your grandmother said to him ring around in his head for a second.

No one ever spoke to him that way. In fact, Ben had never allowed anyone to speak to him the way that she did, well, not until you came along. You reminded him so much of her that it was astounding and he wasn't going to admit that maybe it's why he liked being around you so much.

Ben frowns at what Diana said, thinking about the unusual feelings that were swirling in the pit of his stomach. He felt wrong and the feelings were odd for him. He hadn't felt anything remotely like this ever in his life, not even for Countess.

And although Ben refused to be afraid of anything, the feelings he was having scared him. He didn’t understand and he wasn't sure that he wanted to. He wasn't sure that he wanted to see where this ended up. He felt like he was in too deep.

As much as he wanted to go to you like Diana ordered him to, he wasn't sure that he should. Something was holding him back, digging it's heels in and refusing to budge.

But why do I feel like-

His phone rings and he doesn't look at the caller ID when he picks up, expecting it to be Diana again, yelling at him.

"Di I-"

But it's not Diana.

"Hello Ben. It's nice to hear your voice again." The familiar voice says, sounding calm and collected.

"What the fuck do you want?" Ben snarls.

 "I thought it was time the two of us had a chat.”

A/N: At this point Diana is really just trying to give both Ben and the reader the kick in the pants they need. And yes I know another cliffhanger, but you know you love it. 🤭😉 We are quickly reaching the end of this series, but that means the confession scene is coming and I am so excited about it!!

As always thank you so much for reading! Reblogs, likes, and comments are not required, but are always appreciated. I love hearing what y'all think! If you'd like to be added to the taglist for this series let me know. 😊

Taglist:

@roseblue373 @mrsjenniferwinchester @corruptedcruiser @winchesterwild78 @the-super-who-locked-wizard

@criminalyetminimal @52ndstreeet @bitchykittenconnoisseur @anna6307

@faephoria @possiblyafangirl @jqtaro @quietlybitchy @tinydancer40

@roger-that-cap @megara0224 @miskwaadesiwag @rainyeggvoidpurse

@soldiergrimes @tiffsbagels @podiumackles

@ifyouwerethemoon @ririshkin @peachhiz @fitxgrld @sukunassfinger

@xx-spooky-little-vampire-xx @ej13928 @deans-spinster-witch @kr804573 @modiddys-blog

@acciosherlockholmes @minas-fantasies @fireskyy

@n-o-p-e-never @nesnejwritings @am0rem @tpwkcalli @momggn

@fitxgrld @whimsicalcherry @ladysparkles78

@spxideyver @zepskies @impala67stellawinchester

@reidtomewinchester @samanthadegaro @glossy01 @nikimisery

@tunnelvisionlove @incandxscents @winchester-stark @samahanta

@melonmochi

@kamisobsessed @whichwitchwanda @karolina-12110905 @jcollins03-blog

@pixviee @filmologetica @yvonneeeee @c1nnamong1rl29 @kmc1989

@livya99 @cherrygirl444

[ellsieee]

Meet You At The Blossom premieres on July 11th on Wednesdays and Thursdays on WeTV, iQIYI, Viki, YouTube, and GagaOOLala.

FINALLY. Bring on that guzhuang bl beauty and angst!

They released a trailer too! 🥳

[saerotonins]

in a world full of boys, he's a gentleman

ft. nanami kento x fem!reader

— in which kento unintentionally proves how much of a husband material he is.

content warnings: fluff, smut, light angst, suggestive, making out, nanami kento being a certified hubby, fiancée!kento, weddings, mentions/implied slut-shaming, reader has horrible relatives, reader is described to be non-traditional, riding, p in v sex, creampie, breeding kink, daddy kink, choking, hair pulling, curses still exist but nobody dies (yay!) and geto is mentally fine and a teacher at jujutsu tech <33, im so in love with him, some can be considered bare minimum and subtle but idc if he does it he's the standard, kento loves it when you're checking him out, just kento being a gentleman, kento is so in love with you, you you and you in his mind, reader is just as the same btw, corny ass vow (idk how to write one srry)

wc: 5591 (holy shit lol)

note: im!! so!! head!! over!! heels!!! with!! this!! man!! (it's really not that obvious, right?) he's so dreamy he deserves a lot of kissy kisses and a ticket to malaysia <33 also!! just realized this is my first piece for 2024 tehehe happy new year, everyone! 🎀🎆

best enjoyed with: slut! - taylor swift

that time when you both went out for a picnic

the sunset paints the sky with the most vibrant colors as you and kento bask in each other's presence and sit on a picnic blanket, surrounded by the quiet sways of the green grass, accompanied by some people who decided to hang out around the vicinity.

it's one of those days that kento is blessed by once in a blue moon break from being a jujutsu sorcerer. kendo's always grateful to have this kind of day because it would mean that his hands would spend their time stealing soft touches against your skin instead of fighting curses.

a faint clink can be heard when you and kento toast your glasses together, half filled with your favorite champagne. it's a tad bit sweet to kento's liking as he is not good with sweets, but he opted to bring it to your picnic instead of his favorite whiskey because he knows you love it. 

kento watches you put your lips on the champagne flute and drink your sweet alcohol with glee. he takes a small sip from his as he stares at you with admiration. 

satisfied with your drink, you set it aside on your coaster as you lean your head on kento's shoulders. "such a lovely day, isn't it?" you say while you close your eyes, soaking in the remaining rays of the sunshine before it sleeps, allowing the night to take over the sky.

kento hums in approval as he puts his free hand on your head, giving it gentle and loving pats as he rests his head against yours, but not before giving you a quick peck. "we should do this more often," 

"i agree; you should ditch gojo more and spend more time with me," you joked, and you heard your fiancée chuckle, "that wouldn't be so professional of me, darling," it's your turn to let out a chuckle.

"it's gojo; being professional is already out of the window." 

"you're right, maybe i should," kento jested back.

the two of you just sat in comfortable silence until a slightly strong gust of wind blew in your direction. caught by the shock of it all, you close your eyes and hold your sundress down to avoid flashing the strangers. but before you could even do it, a strong pair of arms wrapped around you.

kento had covered you, so any speck of dust blown by the wind wouldn't be able to get into your eyes. your sundress is also held down by his knees between your legs. when you opened your eyes, you were greeted by your fiancée's face close to yours, assessing you. you suddenly feel your stomach tumble and fill with butterflies.

"are you okay? didn't get anything in your eyes?" he says gently, eyes observing you with worry. you give him a slight nod, "mhm, i'm fine kento, how about you?" kento answered with a hum as he tried to fix your dress and some parts of the picnic blanket that was slightly blown away by the wind.

"i think that's the cue for us to pack up, or do you want to stay for a while?" kento asks you while he starts to pack up some of your stuff into the picnic bag. "we should stay until the sun completely sets, it's a shame to leave while the sky looks pretty." 

kento nods and finishes packing before he sits beside you, looking at the view. he then makes your head lean on his shoulders once again, his hands caressing the top of your head. "yeah, i agree, the sky looks pretty." he states.

he feels you nod and continues, "but you're prettier to look at," he says as he looks down at you and to his surprise, he meets your eyes on him. "i could say the same to you, kento," you say before capturing his lips against yours.

kento smiles on your lips before reciprocating your gesture, slightly tasting the remnants of your sweet champagne earlier. 

and at that moment, he thought, it doesn't matter if his tongue tasted something so sweet, as long as it's from your lips.

that time when you went christmas shopping

the mall filled with bustling crowds is not a perfect way to spend time with your fiancée. but when this is the only time your schedules align to go for a last-minute shopping to buy gifts for your loved ones, you don't really have a choice.

kento especially noticed how much you were on edge today despite being excited to buy gifts for everyone especially his mentees. you weren't the type to enjoy a busy crowd, so he knows how to elevate your stress.

store after store, he gave you every opinion he had (that you asked for) ever so gently and thoroughly but not too much to overwhelm you since you're technically a ticking time bomb now. kento was attentive at every store you went to and immediately picked out gifts you thought were best to give. he stood up in the busy and long line as he let you sit on the lounge chair present in the store. 

by the time you're done shopping, he carries all the bags and refuses to give you any (even the small ones). and when you insist, he gives you an offended look, telling you he can manage. 

while you're walking to leave the mall, your stares don't go unnoticed by your fiancée as he sees you mindlessly gawking at his arms that flex every time he has to fix the bags while walking. 

and that makes carrying your shopping bags even more worth it to him.

that time when you got drunk at a new year's party

gojo has set a new year's party that includes everyone in jujutsu tech in one of his vacation homes in japan. it was supposed to be a reasonably small party but this is gojo satoru we're talking about; he's going to be extra about anything and everything.

the party is semi-formal and requires everyone to dress up nicely. kento does not enjoy parties, but seeing you dress up in a pretty dress that enhances your assets makes him think that attending this event has benefits too.

the party wasn't uneventful per se, but despite the semi-formal wear that everyone was rocking, the event itself was casual. the house was filled with laughter and noise, mainly from the students and everyone else sharing stories and conversing. an hour or two into the party, you and kento decided to part ways as you go on your way to interact with gojo, geto, and shoko.

kento trusted you enough to be alone with them so he opted to talk with some of his colleagues whose presence calms him (obviously not gojo). he spent his time talking with higuruma, sharing ideals and mundane stuff they both enjoyed doing. it was a calming conversation for both men, who wanted peace and tranquility.

"there's this store that sells rare vintage vinyl; i think you'll love to shop there," higuruma suggests as they talk about collecting vinyl, a hobby they share. kento was about to reply, but even before he opened his mouth, he heard a very loud— 

"nanamin!" which made both men turn their heads in the direction where the sound came from.

the voice no doubt belonged to itadori, his face painted with concern as he rushed to kento's area. "what is it itadori?" he asked the young man the moment he arrived while panting.

"your wife! she's—" before itadori can even finish his sentence, kento's already sprinting to where you are, itadori following suit.

kento doesn't need to know what he needs to say; the worry on itadori's face, accompanied by your name, is enough for him to look for you.

turns out you're drunk of your mind. 

when kento arrives in gojo's kitchen, it's just you and him having a very drunk and heated argument about whether cereal or milk comes first.

"no! that's so stupid, cereal should come first, think about it you stupid idiot, if you pour milk first, you'll miss the chance to fill the bowl with so much cereal!" your fiancée sees you standing on gojo's kitchen island alongside him, slurring your words as you sway the glass of wine in the air, threateningly spilling as you keep on moving.

gojo scoffs at your argument, "maybe t'was the point! it's all about ratio, how else can you enjoy cereal when there's too much cereal and little room for milk!" he barks back, holding a—

is that a massive cup of sunrise tequila? no wonder he got so drunk, kento thought as he sighed.

"there's no such thing as ratio for you, gojo! you're the same person who adds too much pineapple on pizza that it becomes disgusting!" you shouted at gojo's face as you continuously pointed at his chest with your index finger.

across the kitchen island stood geto and shoko with unamused faces, looking like they were just waiting for everything to die down on its own. kento sighs and asks them, "did they have an alcohol-drinking battle again?" and all they reply is a solid nod.

"gojo got too competitive and drank that sweet poison, which led to this... argument," shoko adds, looking at both you and gojo incredulously. "they immediately started gulping down the alcoholic drinks right after midnight," geto said, a chuckle threatening to leave his lips.

"please help me break them up," your fiancée kindly pleads to geto and shoko. they immediately showed empathy to their former junior and decided to hold gojo back together while kento held onto you.

it took almost half an hour to break you and gojo apart, not to mention the commotion and your silly drunk discussions that blew out of proportion because the both of you are just so passionate and no one would back down without a fight. after successfully separating the two of you, kento immediately guided you away from the party and to your car, not without leaving shy goodbyes to the people he would face along the way.

the drive back home was thankfully not chaotic, but it was definitely filled with your drunken chatter as you slur words kento can barely make out.

getting you to your shared home was relatively easy; you were patient enough to let kento walk you off to the front door and remove your heels before gently placing you on the couch. 

he was about to let go and grab some water until you wrapped your arms around his neck and pulled him closer to your face; kento felt his heart race. "hey there," you whispered against his lips, distance threateningly close.

kento could smell the alcohol on your breath, probably a mixture of beer, wine, and then some. still, he couldn't bring himself to care when he knew your lips would probably taste slightly sweet. "have you ever been this handsome, kento?" you ask, your voice dripping honey despite being out of your mind, trapped in your own drunken bubble.

"maybe that's just the alcohol's doing, darling," he jokes.

"no no, i think i already saw this face years ago."

"really?"

"really. you look even more handsome now, you should give me a kiss," you say as you pucker your lips, slowly leaning towards his.

kento couldn't even say no even if he didn't want to (not that he will ever not want to kiss you). he decides to give you a swift peck just to entertain your shenanigans, but when he is about to let go, you deepen your kiss, tightening your wrap on his neck, forcing him to lean forward and straddle you with one of his thighs digging on the couch.

he can taste the red wine you had recently drunk, and he's confident he can get drunk with your lips alone. kento's mind went hazy as he moved against your lips languidly, letting himself drown in your kiss. he wanted this to last longer, even take it further, but alas, kento has always been a man of self-control, so he lets go of you, not before giving you one last kiss on the forehead before heading to the kitchen.

the whole night, kento tends to your every need that you couldn't do. he had prepared you a warm bath, removed your makeup, and did your skincare for you that he knows at the back of his hand. he had lathered you up with your favorite lotion, dried your hair (not without a fight since your drunk self found the hair dryer too loud), and kissed you good night before tucking you to bed, leaving a pack of aspirin and a water bottle on your nightstand before sleeping.

the morning after, you woke up to the smell of your favorite soup and your fiancée insisting on feeding you even though you told him you could manage.

you make sure to pay him back really well that same day.

that time when you attended a family reunion 

it's always this dreaded day you always wanted to avoid but couldn't. 

you would rather stay home with kento rather than attend a gathering that will just piss you off, but your mom had pleaded with you to come— "so that they won't gossip about you," she said.

you know that's a lie; whether or not you attend, they'll always find a way to talk about you anyway; there's no winning. but since you wouldn't want to let your mother down, you suck it up and prepare for it regardless.

what makes you nervous is that this is the first time Kento has come along— or more like you let him come along. 

you had heard complaints from your relatives about not meeting kento when he was still your boyfriend, and now that you're engaged, you should've at least let them meet him. you begrudgingly agreed, but it doesn't mean you're not nervous.

your relatives have been annoying throughout your life, always meddling with things they shouldn't even care about. 

it always started with asking about your weight change, school activities, grades, chosen course, and relationships, not to mention the ever-so "you should do better" undertone in all aspects of your life. and for some reason, always making you feel small is included in their mandatory list to piss you off. 

you know that once you let them meet your now fiancée, they would bombard him with questions and annoy you and him for the rest of the day. you only keep up with the tradition because your mother is too kind to tell them off, laughing awkwardly when they berate you and always giving you a silent apology through her eyes.

it wasn't her fault; you just wish she'd shut them off.

kento had noticed your change of behavior ever since this morning while preparing in your home. you had been silent and spacing out, only replying when he had finally snapped you out of your daze. he doesn't know what the deal was with your relatives, but all he knows is that your mood drastically changes whenever they're involved in the conversation, and that's enough for him to tell you that they're not really good news.

"are you sure you want to go, honey? we can always drive back home," kento said with worry, cutting through the thick tension in the car. "it's fine; I can handle it; we're almost there anyway. it would be a waste if we turn around," you tell him with a smile that doesn't quite reach your eyes.

Kento replied with a small smile, taking your hand to his face and kissing your knuckles, "just know that i'll always be there, alright?"

you nod, feeling slightly relieved, before looking out the window to drink in the scenery as you pass by. 

it turns out you can't handle it.

you thought your relatives would be a little tamer because you have someone over, but you were totally wrong.

ever since you both arrived, your aunties had surrounded kento and bombarded him with questions. from his age, degree, university he graduated from, where you met, wedding date, monthly income (which is incredibly embarrassing), to how many children he plans to have.

most of it wasn't a problem, but your blood boiled the moment they asked about what he saw from you.

this would've been such a sentimental moment if it weren't for your auntie's sarcastic tone, as if the question was meant to belittle you, to make you feel like you're not worthy of him.

when kento was about to open his mouth just to pour out how much he loves you and how he's lucky to have you, one of your aunties butt in with their loud mouth.

"well, she isn't really a traditional partner isn't she?" she said, a smug smile forming on her ugly and wrinkly face. "yeah, i mean, i assume with a fine man like you wouldn't be attracted to someone like her," another one added.

kento clenches his fists as he felt fury fire inside of him. how dare they think about you like this and talk about you like this, like you weren't just in front of him, seething in pain and anger.

he was about to give a proper and calm response when your uncle had spoken, "besides, she dresses like a... you know," then an ugly cackle. "a what?" your auntie had joined, taunting him to say the word.

"oh, you know, like a sl-"

that was the final nail in the coffin. his words are cut off when kento angrily smashes both palms on the table, seemingly angry, forming an angry red aura you have never seen. "i've had enough," he started, while all eyes are on him, including yours.

"i will not allow any single one of you to disrespect my wife any longer. i will not tolerate your old and immature ways of talking about her. i've been patient enough, but this bullshit is something I will not allow," kento's vulgar choice of words has made everyone's eyes at the table grow wide, shocked.

"i would say this respectfully, but you guys weren't to my wife either, so please, i'll say this once," he inhales, trying to calm himself down. 

"fuck off," kento declares before taking your hand and exiting the venue.

during the walk to the car, he had been slowly calming himself down. once you reach it, kento holds your face gently, "i'm sorry for the outburst there; i just couldn't stand them disrespecting you any longer, so I had to." he says before putting a gentle yet quite long kiss on your forehead.

once he lets go, he sees your face. your eyes had been filled with tears, and it broke his heart. "that's fine, i've been wanting to tell them to fuck off for years anyway. if anything, i should thank you," a smile spread through kento's face before opening the car door to let you in.

once the both of you are finally settled in your seat, you ask, "by the way, I just noticed you called me your wife; what was that all about?" you ask him out of curiosity. he knows you're happy about that based on how happy your voice sounded when you asked him.

"i'm just so sure you'll end up with that title anyway, unless you're having cold feet?"

"oh god, no! i'm just touched, 's all," you shrugged as you settled in your seat, a smile stretched across your face. 

kento chuckles and leans forward to kiss your cheek before starting the engine and driving off.

your mom visited you and kento later that week, saying she was happy she was finally not invited to the next reunion. she then made you your favorite dishes as an apology for that day.

you don't mind what gossip they would come up with next, not when you have the kind of man kento is. 

their little toxic gossip train had nothing compared to the love that kento gives you every single day anyway.

that time when you asked him to be rough

the night is still young and cold but kento does know how to make it hot.

his hands fumble the plush ass as you keep on taking his cock, sloppily riding him as you let your hips and thighs do the work. your cunt meticulously takes all of him, molding your walls just like it was made for him. "hah, faster darling, please," kento pleads, voice broken and desperate for release.

his calloused hands caress your body gently like you are someone sacred, a figure that shouldn't be harshly touched or you'll be condemned, the same hands that used to exorcise and kill curses without a single thought. and yet with you, he carefully carries them lightly, holding onto your waist, not too tight enough to leave you in pain. 

you feel your stomach tie into a knot, slowly feeling yourself come to a climax, "shit, kento, you're so big, mngh, make me feel so full," you say through gritted teeth, further speeding up your pace. the sound of your thighs slamming against his echoes through your bedroom, accompanied by your ragged breaths and kento's broken moans of pleasure.

your fiancée's hands then find their place back on your ass, squeezing it tight, but not too much, guiding you to bounce on his cock more as he feels himself closer. "s'good for me, yeah? taking me like a good girl?" kento looks at your eyes lovingly, his brown orbs touching your soul. you nod, not finding the words to say, mind too hazy to answer as you keep on taking his dick, taking him in like you always do.

"yes, oh god, yes, kento— please, inside— me," were the only words you managed to let out as your movements kept on getting sloppier and sloppier each moment passed by. he knew what it meant, and who he to deny such a polite request?

kento let himself release inside of you with a groan, making sure every drop of his cum is given to you. 

your pants envelope the room as you both try and catch your breaths— then a beat of silence.

you take kento's face in the palm of your hands and caress his cheek, "you know, i sometimes wish you could be rough," you say as you observe his sexed stupor, "i occasionally get rough on you, don't i?" he asks, eyebrows raised with confusion.

"no, like i mean, rough rough," you emphasize, "you're always so gentle. you don't think i can handle you?" faux sadness evident in your voice, one that your fiancée can never say no to, not when you're asking this nicely. "oh darling, i'm sorry, i will do it next time," he coos, fixing the loose strands on your hair by tucking them behind your ear.

"we can do it now?" you suggest, making the corner of kento's lips perk up, "oh? you sure you can handle it?"

"i know i can handle it," you say as your voice rang with confidence.

you knew kento had it in him to be rough, but good god, you never expected him to be this good. 

he had given you a more than good fucking, which leads you drooling on your sheets, with your back arched, ass up, and your hands held behind by kento as he drills his cock into your sopping cunt. his hands left prints on your ass and thighs, which left a delicious burn on your skin. "want to take my babies, don't you?" kento says as his hips meet your asscheeks.

"mnghh, yes, daddy! full— 'f your babies!" that was enough for him to unload himself inside of you, burying himself deeper to make sure you'll take all of it before he pulls out.

you were about to sit up, panting, when you felt kento's large hands wrap around your neck from behind, squeezing it while the other was pulling your hair.

"who said i was done with you, pretty?" the deep timbre of his voice went straight to your pussy.

this side of your fiancée is undoubtedly a pleasant surprise.

the following day, though, you were treated again like a queen, a bath ready for you by the time you woke up, surrounded with fresh flower petals that he had taken the time to buy from your nearest flower shop, and your favorite candle burning alongside your bath products. kento also insisted on giving you a full body massage to ease any tension and muscle ache.

you asked for it anyway, but you also don't mind this kind of treatment from him every now and then.

that time when you had a cold

you woke up feeling like absolute shit.

you don't know when or why it happened; it just did.

your head was throbbing the moment you opened your eyes, squinting at the sun rays that peeked through your windows. your body felt heavier than usual, and your shoulders felt sore. kento had taken notice of this as soon as he woke up, tending to your every need.

it pains your fiancée to see you in such a state, voice hoarse, your sniffles meet with a crumpled-up tissue near your nightstand, a mucus-filled cough every now and then, and an occasional "my throat hurts" whenever you speak. you had begged him to bring you some slightly cold water along with your food because lukewarm water doesn't hit just the same. but being the ever-responsible adult that kento is, he says no, leaving you sulking as you begrudgingly eat your food with a frown.

taking your medicine, though, is a different kind of task.

you stall every single time, finding it hard (or hating) to swallow the pills. even more so if he gave you water with a dissolved effervescent tablet, claiming it's too gross to drink, even if it doesn't really have any flavor. whenever you're sick, this is always the obstacle he has to face.

"please give me some juice or candy kento; it'll help when i drink the medicine," you begged, adding a touch of cooing pleases to make him say yes.

"i think the sweets you ate are what led you this way, darling," he says, which practically means no. 

a pattern he noticed is that whenever you eat too much salt or sweets without drinking the right amount of water, it always leads to you getting this sick. "it'll just be a little sip, please? baby?" you had finally hit a new low, busting out the occasional nickname when you need something from him.

"you're a big girl, honey; you can drink this. here, i'll cover your nose for you," at this point, you just let him do it; there's no way you'll be able to convince him. you reluctantly nod and decide to drink the medicine instead.

kento pinched the sides of your nose together, effectively covering the smell, or lack thereof (he doesn't even know why he covers your nose, he just knows you'll take it if you don't smell anything). your face scrunched as your tastebuds are met with an unfamiliar and unwelcome taste, but you drink it anyway, your throat desperately chugging it so you can be done with it right away.

once you felt that you had finally consumed all of the medicine, you immediately let go of kento's hold on your nose, quickly reaching out to the glass of lukewarm water on your nightstand. after you drink enough to allow the aftertaste of the medicine to go, you place it back and let yourself lie in bed.

"i'll prepare you dinner, and i'll be back, alright?" kento takes away your glasses and places them on the tray he had brought them with. he was about to leave the room when he felt you tugging on his shirt "hm? do you need something?"

you shake your head, "no, just... thank you," 

a small smile spread on his face, your fiancée takes his free hand on your head and gently ruffles your hair, "this is nothing to thank about darling, i'm just doing my job," he bends down and gingerly places a long kiss on your forehead, "i love you, get some rest." 

you nod, but not before giving him a small smile back.

that night after you had eaten your dinner and drank your medicine (albeit hesitantly), you spent the night with kento caging you in his firm, warm arms. 

you feel yourself get better by then.

that time when you got married

when you walked down the aisle, kento looked at you like you had hung the stars for him. his eyes sparkle as he sees you wearing the gown you've been working on for months; even kento himself can't believe he's seeing an angel.

is this what heaven is? is this a dream? are you even real? how lucky is he to be with someone like you?

kento always believed you're out of his league, someone out of reach, and like the stars from the sky, the only way to capture your beauty is through his eyes. but he couldn't believe that the universe was on his side, fate working its way to make him yours, and he happily obliged. 

cupid had shot him through the heart, and you stole it, and he can't even be mad at it. he'd happily give you all of him at the snap of your fingers. let himself be bare to you; let himself mesh with you. your soul, senses, beliefs, and love clouded onto him. 

he consumes every single aspect of you within him, lovers stitched together by fate that no one can even cut. 

kento sees himself becoming one with you, so he will never regret the time he got on his knees to present you with the prettiest ring he could ever find, but nothing can compare to the beauty you carry, not even this ring. 

when you accept him with a delighted "yes," kento swears he's the luckiest man alive ever, blessed by your whole being.

so when you finally reach his side, everyone becomes a blur, his eyes focused on you the whole time, soaking in your beauty; he can't believe this is the face he's going to see every morning for the rest of his life. 

"hey handsome, you look great," you say, holding kento's hand. "i could say the same to you, pretty," he replies, and he had to stop himself from kissing you right there and then.

and comes with the exchange of vows; kento feels slightly nervous but proud because he gets to declare his love for you in front of the people you both cherish most.

he clears his throat before opening up the letter in his hands and looks at you with such love and contentment.

"to the person who helped me see love in your form,

you've always painted colors on my blank canvas, and i cannot thank you enough. you shed light when i'm in my darkest days, have been with me through my stormy nights, and share my gloomy days.

you have been the compass to my lost soul, guiding me to the destination i know as love. you give harmony to my life as your laughter always brings music to my ears; your voice reminds me that you're here with me. you had composed the greatest symphony that sang its way to my heart, making me bare my soul, something that i will never regret," kento pauses, his voice croaked, words stuck in his throat as he tries to stop his tears from spilling. he fails to hear the audience coo in awe, focusing on you.

he continues, "loving you became my eternal pursuit, my garden whose roots are planted deeper than the sea where my endearment continues to blossom. 

every step with you feels like a dance, one that i will not get tired of swaying my heart with. your hands had made a map of my body and soul, imprinted the images of love one couldn't see, and only i could feel.

and the only time i get to call something home, i stare into the deep abyss of your eyes and see myself tangled with you.

with you, i am willing to get even our souls intertwined, dancing through life as we face the uncertainty together, with love ink deep within my veins.

to my anchor, my only solace, the only anthem my heart will forever sing,

i hope the warmth of your arms will forever embrace me, even after death." the attempt to keep his tears falling fails, so does the audience, and so did you.

your eyes filled with tears, but one that's full of love. your heart feels so full that it's threatening to spill out of you. you love kento so much that it hurts; it aches to the core that someone could ever love you this much.

and you're forever thankful.

that day, your promises to each other are officially sealed with a kiss so intense and wedding bands that even evil couldn't break, that no trespassers shall get into and rip your bond away.

when kento's lips met yours, it was soft, it was warm, it was sweet, it was comforting. 

finally, your husband thinks.

that day sealed the chapter to your newfound forever.

another note: i'm not so proud of the vows i made but i hope it captured kento enough lol srry 😭

[likeumeanit9497]

loyalty test | c.s. |

chris sturniolo x fem! reader

summary: y/n's boyfriend, luke, notices how she stares at his roommate, chris. when they have an argument about it, y/n tells him that he's just reading into things. but when she finds herself completely alone with chris, will she be able to prove her loyalty?

warnings: smut; cheating (don't do this pls); unprotected p in v (don't do this either); oral (m/f receiving); hair pulling; dirty talk; toxic relationships; 18+

notes: IM BACK YAY!!!! y'all have no idea how happy i am to be writing again i was literally dying for the past couple of months. i got back about a week ago but i've been genuinely so jet lagged that i couldn't finish this one shot. but im finally starting to feel better so here i am at 2am finally posting. i hope y'all enjoy this one (ps it should go without saying that i do NOT condone cheating on ur partners EVER!!! this is fiction okay). love uuuuuu

pps im half asleep posting this so even though i made an attempt at proof reading, im sure this is not my best work so pls try to ignore any grammar errors u may come across ill fix them all eventually <3

ᵕᵕᵕᵕ୨♡︎୧ᵕᵕᵕᵕ

“How many shots am I pouring here?” Asked my boyfriend Luke as I watched him begin to place rows of shot glasses on his kitchen counter with a bottle of tequila in his hand before his teammates all began flooding in his direction happily awaiting their drinks. From my place on the couch, I was content watching them all celebrate their big win while I nursed one or two seltzers. The night was originally supposed to be just me and Luke having dinner and watching a movie, but the adrenaline from the win along with pleas from various teammates had suddenly turned the night into one where Luke’s apartment was flooded with sweaty men and various bottles of liquor.

Even though I had been looking forward to a quiet evening with my boyfriend of six months, I was happy to see him so happy and of course wanted him to be able to celebrate with everyone. So I watched with a smile as they all lifted their shot glasses in the air, chanted in a borderline cultish way, and took their shots. “Shit, it’s getting late. We should call the Ubers soon if we want to get into the club.” Luke announced after glancing at his watch, to which the other guys all mumbled in agreement.

I watched as Luke walked over to my place on the couch, putting his hands on my shoulders and leaning towards me. “Club?” I asked, raising a quizzical eyebrow as this was the first time I was hearing about these plans for the night. Luke smirked before responding. “You don’t mind if we go out for a little bit right? The other guys were really wanting to check that new place out that I’ve been going to lately, and as team captain I kinda have to go.” I stayed silent, trying to figure out a way to answer that wouldn’t make me sound like a needy girlfriend, when my attention was suddenly grabbed by the door behind Luke opening. From that room came Luke’s roommate, Chris, and I watched over Luke’s shoulder as he ruffled his hair, heading in the direction of the bustling kitchen.

My eyes followed his movements as he walked, stopping every few seconds to greet a handful of Luke’s teammates on his way. He was wearing pyjamas, and truly looked like he had just woken up from hibernation, but he gave the room warm smiles as his eyes travelled across it before finally landing on me. He stared at mine and Luke’s place for a brief moment, his eyes shifting between me on the couch and Luke’s large frame above me, and seemed curious, but after a moment went back to doing whatever he needed to do in the kitchen.

I continued to watch as he grabbed a drink from the fridge, and listened as some of the guys tried to convince him to go out with them. He kept shaking his head, a strong smile plastered across his face, and I felt my cheeks grow hot when he lifted his shirt slightly to scratch his stomach; exposing a few inches of skin and the low band of his boxers.

Just then, I was shaken — quite literally — out of my trance by Luke’s hand on my shoulder. “Y/n! Hello!” My eyes immediately shot to his, and I felt red hot shame cover my face as anger consumed his. “The fuck was that?” He kept his voice low, but his tone was so menacing that I felt the hair raise on the back of my neck. I stuttered, trying to come up with some excuse, before he lifted me off of the couch and practically dragged me into his bedroom. As soon as the door was shut behind us, he repeated himself. “What the fuck was that Y/n.” I stood tentatively in the middle of his room, trying desperately to find the words. “I-I just hadn’t realized that Chris was home, I was just shocked I guess?” I knew my excuse was weak — and my execution was even weaker — and that knowledge was confirmed by Luke rolling his eyes.

“Sure,” He scoffed. “I’m not stupid, Y/n. I notice it literally every single time you and him are in the same room. You stare at him, you laugh at everything he says, and you always find some excuse to be close to him.” His words embarrassed me, and I stared down at my feet in shame because I knew they were true. “It’s not like that Luke I just-” He cut off my excuse. “It doesn’t take a fucking rocket scientist to know that he’s a good looking guy, but you are mine. It’s fuckin embarrassing catching you looking at him all the time.” He stopped pacing around the room and stormed up to me, causing me to flinch slightly.

“You have anything you wanna say?” His breath was hot against my ashamed face, and I couldn’t bear to look up at him. “I-I’m sorry Luke.” My voice was barely above a whisper and I felt tears well up in my eyes. We stood there in silence for a short while, the only sound his heaving breaths and the muffled conversations from the guys in the kitchen. “I’m going. Not sure when I’ll be back, but do your best to behave when I’m gone.” His words were clipped, and he quickly exited his bedroom without so much as hugging me.

As soon as I heard his door shut behind him, I dissolved into tears of guilt. I couldn’t be upset at him for being so angry with me, because everything that he had accused me of was true. I knew that my attraction to Chris was beyond the simple acknowledgement that he was a good looking person, and that wasn’t fair to Luke. But I never meant for it to become something so noticeable, and I felt more ashamed than I had ever been before. I perched onto the edge of Luke’s bed as I attempted to regain my composure, listening to the excited chatter of the guys on the other side of the door as they prepared to head out to the club.

I hated that Luke was going out while being angry at me, and I hated even more that I had the audacity to be worried about his behaviour with other girls while he was out. Luke was a pretty decent guy, but when he was angry he had a tendency to do or say things that were really hurtful. The thought of this made me sob even harder. “God, I need a drink.” I said aloud to the empty room, and I fought with my emotions as I tried to straighten myself up.

After a few moments, the entire apartment grew silent as the guys must have all left for the club. In my solitude, I was able to catch my breath and stop the tears from flowing before getting back on my feet. Glancing at my reflection in the mirror, I wiped the dried tears from my face and fixed my running mascara before heading towards the bedroom door. As I walked towards the kitchen, I was stopped in my tracks by the sight of Chris sitting at the kitchen island.

Even after the horrible conversation I had just had with Luke, I felt my stomach flip at the sight of his loose t-shirt clad back and his messy curls. Frustrated with myself, I rolled my eyes and took a deep breath before continuing in his direction to grab a drink. “Hey Y/n.” He said once he saw me, a warm smile covering his face. “Hey Chris.” I replied, forcing myself to avoid looking at him by searching aimlessly for another seltzer.

“Everything okay?” He asked, and I felt myself tense at his question as I finally used common sense and opened the fridge to find a cold drink. “Yeah all good. Luke and I just had a little bit of an argument is all.” I replied, trying to keep my voice light hearted and hoping he hadn’t noticed my puffy eyes or runny nose. “Ah, I see.” He replied as I bent over to reach into the back of the fridge where I saw the last seltzer. “Would that argument have anything to do with him asking me to make a move on you to see if you would stay loyal?” His question shocked me so severely that I dropped the seltzer on the ground, causing it to explode its carbonated contents all over the kitchen floor.

“Shit!” I exclaimed, picking up the cracked can and throwing it into the sink. Turning back around to face the mess, I found Chris with a roll of paper towel wiping up the liquid. “I got it, thank you.” I said, getting down onto my knees to begin cleaning up. Chris handed me the paper towel before standing up and leaning his frame against the counter. The room was silent as I compulsively wiped away at the floor, using the task as a distraction from the question Chris had just asked me. I felt his gaze on me from above, and all it did was add fuel to the fire that was burning hazardously strong inside of me.

After some time, I realized that the floor couldn’t get much cleaner so I had to put an end to my procrastination and face the conversation. “So, uh,” I hesitantly looked up at Chris through my lashes, feeling more ashamed than ever before. “What did Luke say to you exactly?” I watched as he shrugged. “He really didn’t say much. He just pulled me to the side right before they all headed out and asked me to ‘test you’.” He added air quotes to the end of his sentence, and I felt a small sizzle of anger in my core at Luke’s audacity.

I stood up and grabbed the half finished bottle of tequila from the counter, pouring it into a cup and adding a bit of pineapple juice before drinking the whole thing in one sip. At this, Chris raised an eyebrow. “You wanna tell me what’s going on?” He asked, and I felt nerves flood my body. “Give me a second.” I replied, grabbing the tequila again but this time taking one, two, three sips directly from the bottle. I winced at the burn that traveled from my throat down to my stomach, and Chris waited in silence as I squeezed my eyes shut; taking deep breaths in preparation.

“Long story short,” I began, turning my body so that I was now facing Chris, “Luke confronted me tonight because he caught me staring at you.” I watched as Chris’ eyes widened slightly before going back to normal. “I told him that I just hadn’t known that you were home so I was just surprised to see you, but he didn’t believe me, and it sort of caused this big fight between us.” I explained, feeling my nerves flutter around my stomach; shocked that I was able to tell him what had happened. Chris stayed silent, his eyes searching my face but staying completely unreadable and I felt like my chest might explode from nerves.

“I mean, obviously he’s just being insecure but-” My rambling was cut off then by Chris. “Is he?” His question caught me off guard, and my eyes snapped to his as I felt my face fall. A small smirk toyed with the corner of his mouth as I stared at him blankly, unsure of what I could even say. After a moment, I blinked quickly and scoffed. “Ah I see, this is the test.” I chuckled and reached once again for the tequila before taking a few more sips; this interaction being far too much for me.

“No, it was a real question, I swear.” Chris repositioned his body so that he was now facing me head on, and took a step closer to me. “You think I haven’t noticed you looking at me? And I’m not just talking about tonight. I notice, Y/n.” Once again, all of my words failed me and I could only stare blankly at his questioning figure. “And don’t think I forgot about that one night.” I gasped and instinctively squeezed my eyes shut, already knowing where he was going with this.

“Just out there, when we were sharing that cigarette,” He nudged his head in the direction of the sliding glass doors in the living room that led to their large balcony, “We were drunk, but I remember you blowing the smoke into my mouth.” I felt him take another step closer to me; the heat radiating from his body causing my own to shudder. “Your lips touched mine, Y/n. I can still remember how soft they were.” His voice seemed to drop an octave, and he was whispering now as he spoke of that night five months ago, when I met him for the first time.

Luke had wanted me to meet his friends, so a big group of us had all gone to a bar together. Although I don’t usually make it a habit, I got extremely drunk that night thanks to the nerves that came from meeting a large group of new people, and ended up wanting to go home early. Luke was still having a good time and didn’t want to leave the bar with me, so Chris had offered to take me back to their apartment where Luke could meet us later. Once the two of us had made it back to the apartment, I asked Chris to sit with me while I smoked out on the balcony.

We talked for a while, learning about each others’ lives, while we shared a few cigarettes. What he was now talking about had happened, and I truly don’t know what came over me when I had done it, but I had spent the past five months trying to pretend that it was just a dream. But now, standing alone in the kitchen, we were talking about it for the first time since it happened, and I couldn’t ignore the flutter in my stomach that his hushed tone caused.

As if reading my mind, he continued. “I know we haven’t spoken about it, and maybe we should have sooner. But we haven’t been alone together once since then.” I stared blankly as he took yet another step towards me; closing the space between us almost entirely. My heart was beating so hard that I was sure that he could hear it, but once he placed a gentle hand on my hip I was pulled back to reality; immediately taking a few steps away from him while shaking my head.

“This is crazy,” I made a weak attempt at laughter as I backed away from him, “I don’t know how you expect me to fail this ‘test’ that Luke put you up to after literally telling me all about it.” I suddenly grew slightly hot with anger after reminding myself of Luke’s request to him, and the alcohol that was beginning to flood my veins wasn’t making it any easier to get over. I turned away from Chris, busying myself by starting to throw away the empty beer bottles, when he continued.

“I never told you that I agreed to do it.”

I froze, his words causing my fuzzy brain to turn onto high alert. Slowly, I turned to face him, more confused than ever before. He was leaning casually against the countertop still, with a small smirk across his lips. Noticing the confusion laced through my features, he shrugged before expanding. “I told him I don’t do that kind of shit, that if there was an issue between you two you’d have to work it out between yourselves.” None of his explanation was making things make sense, if anything I was just becoming more and more confused.

“Then what was all that just a minute ago?” I asked weakly, nervous to hear his explanation. Again, there was that dangerous smirk that I would have almost missed if my eyes weren’t glued to him in desperation for things to make sense. “That was real.” He replied simply, and my jaw almost dropped in utter shock. “Chris, he’s your roommate. You guys are friends, aren’t you?” My stomach was in knots, and my cheeks felt hot. He shook his head solemnly, “He’s not a good guy, Y/n.” As if I could read his mind, I knew what he meant without him even having to say anything else. But still, he continued.

“Why do you think he never ever asks you to go out with him to clubs anymore?” Chris asked, his voice taking on a gentle tone as if that would minimize the hurt of what I knew was coming. Weakly, I shrugged, too afraid to ask him to continue but hoping beyond anything else that he would. He sighed. “Apparently there’s this bottle girl that works at that new club that they’ve been going to lately.” My stomach dropped, but somehow I wasn’t surprised. Painfully, Chris continued. “I overheard him talking about her to one of the guys a few weeks ago. Something about going to her place after she finished her shift that night.”

At that, a single tear fell down my cheek. Not out of shock, or even sadness, but anger. “I’m sorry, Y/n.” Chris said at nearly a whisper, and I simply nodded my head; jaw clenched to keep myself from losing my cool. “W-why didn’t you say anything to me before?” I finally managed to ask, crossing my arms over my chest to hide my shaking hands. That same look of shame he had before confessing to me clouded his face once again. “I didn’t want to be the one to hurt you.” One more lonely tear fell down my cheek, and I angrily swiped it away.

“I see how much you do for him around here, and it’s obvious that you love him.” He took a step towards me, tentatively, before continuing. “But I also see the way he treats you, and you don’t deserve that.” He paused for a moment, seemingly trying to find his next words. “I honestly never really liked the guy. Sure we’re roommates, but only out of convenience. Once I overheard that conversation a few weeks ago, I started genuinely hating the guy. So, when he asked me to test you tonight, it actually gave me a good idea.”

He paused for a moment, and once again I felt my heart racing in anticipation. His usually confident expression had shifted into one of hesitation, and it did nothing to help calm my nerves. “Chris…” I started, trying to get him to continue. I watched as he took a deep breath before speaking once again. “Okay. I’m going to suggest something to you, but it’s only a suggestion. If you don’t want to do it, we can 100% pretend that this conversation never happened, and you can decide how you’re going to handle all of this in your own way.” I stayed silent, trying to wait as patiently as possible for him to get to his point.

“I think you should get back at him.” He said, finally. Still confused, I raised an eyebrow. “Get back at him? How?” I asked, to which he stayed silent. In his silence, I found my answer. “You think I should…with you?” Even to my own ears, my voice sounded weak. He stayed silent, not granting me a response with words but the small glint in his blue eyes told me enough. “Do you really think that’s the most ethical option?” I asked, trying to use what little logic I had available in my brain fizzling not just from the alcohol now but from the very situation I was finding myself in.

He shrugged again. “I know guys like him. There’s no point in confronting him about it, because you know he’s just gonna lie to your face. And if you break up with him — which I hope you do, by the way — he’s really not going to care as much as he should.” Trying to ignore the twinge of hurt that his last point caused, I nodded slowly; beginning to understand. “But if you do him the way he’s been doing you, that’s gonna fuck him up. And the best part is he doesn’t even have any right to be pissed off, because all you’re doing is exactly what he’s been doing to you.” As he spoke, I nodded my head; absorbing everything he said and recognizing it as truth.

“I mean I get it but…don’t you think us doing it would be a bad idea?” I used my hand to gesture between us. “Considering him and I literally just fought about this very situation less than an hour ago?” His smirk returned at this. “That’s my point. No other scenario has the potential to hurt him the way that ours does. You want to get back at him? I’m your guy.” A laugh that sounded almost painful fell from my lips at this, but as his face suddenly grew serious, so did mine.

“Plus,” He began, closing the space between us so that our bodies were nearly touching. I stared at him, fallen completely mute, as he brought his thumb to my lower lip — brushing it ever so lightly against my pouted mouth — before he continued, “I haven’t stopped thinking about this mouth since you left me on the balcony that night.” His voice was nearly at a whisper, and it didn’t take anymore than that for my walls to crash down.

Without hesitation, I pressed my lips to his. The kiss was soft, tentative, and gentle; our unsure mouths slowly moving against one another a physical representation of the wavering confidence in my decision. But the taste of his skin was addictive, and the feeling of his firm grasp on my waist caused my body to grow warm. So with each second, my cautious movements turned more and more desperate, and when his tongue brushed against my lower lip I opened my mouth to grant it entrance. I melted into his strong hands like putty, so when he lifted me by my ass with ease and placed me on the counter, my legs wrapped around his waist like they belonged there.

Each part of me he touched lit on fire in his trail, and as his mouth dropped lazily to my neck where he began nibbling and biting the thin skin below my ear, the very existence of Luke seemed to disappear from my thoughts — with only one word repeatedly crossing my mind: Chris, Chris, Chris.

With my spinning head, I almost didn’t notice myself being gently pushed back so that I was lying against the cold surface of the counter. Chris’ mouth was still sucking indulgently against my neck, but I felt his strong hands run up and down my bare legs; stopping just below the hemline of my shorts. I felt his hands begin to toy with my front button, and I removed my hands from the base of his curls to help him pull them down; desperate to feel his hands on my skin again.

Once the material of my shorts were dropped to the floor, I felt Chris tauntingly play with the lace of my underwear as his mouth slowly moved down my neck towards my chest. Wearing only a big t-shirt, I used my idle hands to pull the material up over my chest; exposing my breasts to Chris who immediately took one into his mouth. I moaned at the sensation of his warm tongue swirling around my nipple, and felt a dangerous shudder go down my spine once he groaned against my skin.

His hands were still flirting with my underwear, and the almost-but-not-quite contact with my core was making me go almost delirious, so in my impatience I grabbed his hand and pressed his long fingers against the place I needed him the most. The contact caused a moan to fall from my lips just as a pleased grunt fell from his. “So wet for me already, hmm?” His voice had dropped nearly a whole octave through his arousal, and his words caused even more heat to flood to my core.

In one quick motion, he slipped my thong down my legs and let it fall to the floor as his hand began exploring my slippery folds. A shocked moan burst through my lips from the relief of his touch finally against my bare heat, and as he began to rub circles into my clit, I began losing myself to the ripples of pleasure radiating from my centre down to my limbs.

His travelling mouth continued its journey from my tits down my stomach, leaving small kisses along the way. I watched in awe as his head descended along my body, feeling an unknown sensation of excitement from my view as he got closer and closer to where his fingers continued to work me. Once he reached the crest of my pelvis, he grabbed each of my legs and positioned them on his shoulders before leaning down and admiring my dripping core.

“W-what are you doing?” I asked, my voice shaking partially from nerves but mostly from the sheer adrenaline that was coursing through my veins. He dragged his eyes from my cunt up to meet my face and gave me a soft smile. “Gonna make you feel good. Is that okay with you?” His voice was still hoarse from arousal, but there was a playful tone in it that calmed my heaving chest. “Luke never…” I trailed off my sentence and his eyebrows flew up in surprise. “Never?” He asked, seeming to be completely shocked, and I shook my head. “He said he thinks it’s gross.” I confessed, suddenly feeling more exposed by my words than I had felt by my nakedness. At this, Chris’ eyes somehow darkened and softened simultaneously. “He doesn’t know what the fuck he’s talking about.” He replied, bending down further so that he could place a soft kiss against my clit, “There’s nothing gross about this; about you.”

His words were said with such sincerity, such certainty, that I felt a small flutter in my chest. However, this feeling was abruptly interrupted by a much stronger feeling — a feeling of indescribable pleasure — once Chris attached his mouth to my clit. As he feverishly sucked and twirled his tongue expertly around my bundle of nerves, my vision became blurry and all I could see was a flash of bright light. When my vision returned, the sight before me caused the pleasure I was feeling to intensify so severely that, had my hips not been held firmly in place, I would have slipped to the floor as aimlessly as my underwear had just moments before.

There, right in the centre of my legs, was Chris. His generally messy curls even more disheveled than normal framing his face in the perfect way that it does; his already sharp cheekbones accentuated by his sucking; his bright pink lips wrapped tightly around me making me feel things I had never felt before; and his piercing blue eyes staring right up at me — seeming to take in every facial expression, every gasp, every moan that I made.

Overwhelmed, my hands flew to his hair where I held on for dear life; wanting to pull his mouth away but absolutely needing it to keep going. The build up of pressure in the pit of my stomach was almost too much to handle, and as I trembled around his face he maintained every ounce of pressure; every movement of his performed with expert precision. “C-Chris. Oh god!” I couldn’t stop myself from crying out, as the pleasure was causing my mind to scramble. “Just like that, please.” I heard myself continue, shocked even in the moment as I had never once said those words and truly meant it.

Chris released a soft moan against my core at my words, and the vibration from it was enough to get me to the point of no return. “Gonna c-cum, p-please don’t stop.” I begged desperately, and he didn’t. Like a machine, his movements never wavered — he never changed his rhythm, nor did he try any new tricks. The consistency of his swirling tongue threw me into a shocking tidal wave of pleasure, and with shaking legs and an arched back I practically screamed out his name over and over; riding out my high with no thoughts in my mind but him.

Only when my moans subsided and my grip on his hair loosened did Chris detach his mouth from my nerves before climbing back up my body. Once he reached my face, he placed a gentle kiss on my lips; the slightly sweet taste of my orgasm still coating his lips. “See,” He began, looking deep into my eyes, “Nothing gross about that. As a matter of fact, I could do that all day.” I felt my stomach do a flip and my core once again flood with a new wave of arousal from his words, and I allowed him to kiss me once more; this one much deeper than the last.

As we kissed, Chris helped me sit up, and then finally stand up on shaky legs. Once I was stable, he pulled my t-shirt over my head and let it fall to the floor with the rest of my clothing before doing the same with his own. With his top half now fully exposed, I allowed myself to take a moment to admire his body — his creamy smooth skin; slight muscle; sprinkle of hair below his belly button — as he started untying the drawstring on his pants.

He removed his pyjamas and boxers in one swift motion, and my eyes immediately fell to his hard member. Its size was otherworldly, and the veins that were wrapped around it caused my mouth to water. Mindlessly, I dropped to my knees in front of him and took his cock in my hand, pumping it a few times and relishing in the weight of it against my palm. I took a moment to glance up at him, and I found him staring down at me as his chest rose and fell rapidly; his eyes almost glazed over in arousal.

Turning my attention back to his member, I leaned forward and ran my tongue up his slit to collect the bead of pre-cum that had been gleaning in the light. As my tongue connected to his skin, I felt, more than heard, him intake a sharp breath. Eager to make him feel even a fraction as good as he made me feel, I attached my mouth to his tip and began bobbing my head up and down; swirling my tongue around the base of his tip as I did. Immediately, Chris’ hands found my hair and he began collecting it into a ponytail to pull it away from my face. Small moans left his mouth occasionally, and each time it did I felt my core grow wetter and wetter.

I brought my right hand up to the base of his shaft, where I began pumping it up and down in rhythm with my mouth. “Oh fuck.” He groaned out, gripping onto the countertop behind me with his free hand. With each bob of my head and pump of my hand, Chris released small grunts; and I relished in the fact that he was feeling so good because of me. I continued at the same pace, trying to stay focused on what I was doing, but his pleasure was adding to my pleasure, and I selfishly pulled away from him — his cock springing out of my mouth with a pop — and looked up at him through my eyelashes.

“Need more of you Chris.” I admitted, my arousal overtaking any urge I had to be coy in that moment. At my confession, Chris’ blue eyes darkened, and he didn’t hesitate before lifting me from the ground and pressing my back against the counter. His lips found mine once again, and the taste of both of our arousals melted into one as our tongues danced together; creating an addicting combination that made me ache.

A gasp fell from my lips as I was suddenly turned around, my bare chest now pressing against the cold stone counter. Chris had one hand pressed to the small of my back, where he rubbed small comforting circles as I felt his other hand guide the tip of his cock towards my opening. “You know,” Chris leaned forward towards my ear, “I always had a feeling that you wanted me too,” He let just the very tip of his member rest in my opening, “But if I knew you needed me the way I’ve been needing you, I would have fucked you much sooner.”

At that, Chris slid his cock into me, its girth stretching out my walls unforgivingly. Both of us released groans as he bottomed out, and he paused for a moment to allow me to adjust to his size as I fought against my trembling legs. After a brief moment, I felt Chris grab both of my hips before he began to thrust into me. His movements were slow and careful, as if he knew I was struggling to take his size. “You’re so tight baby.” He breathed, and I released a soft moan from his words.

He continued to move at a slow but deep pace, and with each thrust I felt my walls envelope his member with grateful acceptance. I started to feel my body relax more and more, and began to feel the earliest signs of pressure in my lower stomach once again. With each of his movements, I adjusted to him more, and I suddenly needed more. “Harder, please C-Chris.” I cried out softly, and without a moment’s hesitation he began to pick up the pace. Still driving his cock deep into me, his hips began to slam against mine at a much faster rate; causing my body to flood with even more arousal.

“You like that baby?” He asked through his grunts, and I was only able to moan in response; too fucked out to respond with words as I was constantly slammed against the countertop. The kitchen was flooded with the slick sounds of my arousal, and it was the perfect harmony to the verbal sounds of pleasure that fell from our tongues. I felt one of Chris’ hands snake up my back to the base of my neck before he grabbed a fistful of my hair; using his grip on it to pull me up off of the counter. With my back now pressed tightly against his front, he turned my head to the side so that — through blurry vision — I was able to see him and he was able to see me.

His glossed over eyes were focused on my o-shaped mouth, and he just stared at me for what felt like centuries as he continued to drive himself into me. The intensity of the moment was so startling that, if I wasn’t approaching my second orgasm of the night, I would have been brought back down to earth. But at that moment, a strong wave of pleasure shot through my body and my eyes rolled to the back of my head. “You look so pretty, taking my cock so good Y/n. You feeling good?” I was barely able to nod my head in response as the pressure in my core began to feel overwhelming. “G-gonna cum again.” I managed to squeak out through high pitched moans that I hardly recognized as my own.

“Me too baby. Just hold on for me, wanna cum together.” His words were coming out strained just as mine were, and I felt his rhythm begin to grow choppier as his orgasm approached. Screwing my eyes shut, I fought against the raging urge to release all over him right then and there; wanting so badly to do what he said to do and wait for him. Luckily, it wasn’t long before I was interrupted from my focused state by a loud grunt behind me. “Fuck, gonna cum. Where do you want me Y/n?”

His words unraveled the last string of self-control I had, and I felt my legs begin to shake beneath me as I struggled to answer. “In m-me. Oh god, please.” I cried out just as my second orgasm tore through me; this one even stronger than the first. As the waves rolled through me and I released a plethora of guttural moans, I felt Chris’ hand on my jaw; grabbing my attention. As I opened my eyes to meet with his, I felt his movements stop almost entirely. His eyes had a far-away look and his jaw was clenched, but still he stared deep into my half-lidded eyes as I felt his member pulse deep in my core — painting my walls white with his cum.

Once all of our movements stopped and our breathing returned close to normal, I winced as he slowly pulled his length out of me. He turned me around gently, and I was met with a lazy smile and a soft kiss on my forehead. Still recovering, I was at a loss for words; and so we stayed silent as he first helped me get dressed and then dressed himself.

“Well,” He finally started, “Do you feel better?” I stared at him for a moment, confused by what he meant, before I at last remembered the events that had unfolded not long before. I released a soft chuckle as I reached for a nearby red solo cup to fill with water. “Would you think I’m a bad person if I told you that I actually forgot about the whole point of this until just now?” He laughed as I chugged the water before refilling the glass and handing it to him. “No, I wouldn’t. As a matter of fact I’d think that made this whole thing even better.” He replied before bringing the glass to his lips.

I laughed as I reached for my phone, turning it on and checking my notifications. “Oh shit.” My face fell and my stomach tied itself in a knot. “Luke texted me ten minutes ago saying that the club was a bust and he’s on his way back.” Even in my immediate panic, I scoffed. “That probably means she wasn’t working tonight, huh?” I felt Chris walk up behind me and peer over my shoulder at the text message. “You okay?” He placed a gentle hand on the small of my back, and I cursed myself once I felt my heart flutter at his comforting gesture. I nodded. “More than okay, honestly.” I turned around to face him, and before I could stop myself I reached up and kissed him softly. “But he’s gonna be back any minute, and we can’t be standing in the middle of the kitchen looking freshly fucked. Let’s move.”

𓆩♡𓆪

As promised, a few minutes later I heard the keys rattle at the front door — announcing Luke’s arrival. I was standing in the kitchen still — busying myself with washing the dirty glasses and wiping the sticky residue from the liquor, and possibly our cum, off of the counter — while Chris sat on the couch in the living room; pretending to be in the middle of a movie.

Once he walked through the door, Luke paused there a moment to take in the scene in front of him. He looked first at me, then at Chris; then me, then Chris. His expression was unreadable, like it usually was when he was drunk, and it did nothing to ease my racing heart. My mouth dried out, completely fearful that he knew exactly what had taken place just moments before right where I was standing. Did I have a hickey? Did the apartment smell like sex? Did my guilty face give it all away?

Finally, Luke moved from his place at the front door and walked right by me; heading directly for Chris on the couch. Still pretending to be busy drying and polishing the glassware, I secretly watched as they spoke to each other. With the tv still playing and their decision to speak in hushed tones, I was unable to hear what they were saying. But, I watched Chris as he shook his head no before Luke threw his hands up in exacerbation. They continued to speak to each other for a few more moments, Luke seeming to grow more and more upset and Chris maintaining his superb level of calm, before Luke finally mumbled “You fucking suck” and stormed away towards his room.

Once his door was shut with him safely behind it, my eyes immediately fell back to Chris, who was already staring at me with that cheeky smirk back on his face. Wanting desperately to know exactly what he said but too afraid to go over and speak to him about it, I stared desperately at Chris; hoping that he would give me some sort of inclination that all was good. Then, like he was reading my mind, he sent me a sharp wink. Immediately, my whole body relaxed and I released a deep breath that I hadn’t even known I was holding.

Test passed.

ᵕᵕᵕᵕ୨♡︎୧ᵕᵕᵕᵕ

[skipper19]

Imagine this...

When a movie about the number two hero was announced, you immediately called your husband. After all, how could he not have told you there was a movie about him coming out!? This must have been an unofficial trailer. Surely, this wasn't true.

Lo' and behold, your husband didn't even know about it. But one thing was for sure, he was very angry. Keigo called his assistant, asking him why, in the hell, he did not know about this movie? His assistant didn't really have a good answer, something about low budget and "Keigo being too busy to worry about such matters." You, on the other hand, were so excited about this.

Sure, your husband didn't even get to play himself in his own movie, but you thought it was still so amazing that there was a movie about him at all! You begged and pleaded for Keigo to come watch it with you. It was in theaters right now. Everyone is talking about how awesome it is, and you have to watch it.

Keigos' pettiness was holding him back. For a while, he denied you. Absolutely not. He wasn't even in it. His own ego was bruised, and he just refused to go and watch that trash. Eventually, he did cave in. Keigo was never able to deny his pretty wife for a long time anyway.

Keigo wasn't mad, so to speak, he was very hurt. He worked so hard every day to save lives. He earned the respect and fans he's gained in his hero career. In his humble opinion, he did deserve a movie. He's been through some shit anyway, that's ought to get some views. Not that the movie could possibly be accurate to his life, no one but him, his wife, and the hero committee knew of his past.

But Keigo wished he would have at least been offered a cameo in the movie. And why in the world did the director not reach out and ask permission to make a movie about him? Keigo felt salty, for sure, but he sucked it up for you.

Keigo granted himself a day off and finally took you to see this movie. He hadn't even seen any of the trailers. He had no idea what this could possibly be about. But that didn't seem to stop you from bouncing in your seat as the lights dimmed. A large bowl of popcorn sat between you and Keigo as you also shared a drink.

Despite the lingering pout on his lips, a spark of excitement buzzed deep within Keigos chest. They made a whole movie..about him. Even his insanely good poker face broke from that pout as a smirk itched itself into his lips.

That excitement quickly faded away. No more smirks or happy giggles. No more playful banter. You and Keigo were in shock as you sat through this nightmare.

You should have watched the trailers.

Keigo was now very happy that he didn't star in his own movie because that was horrible.

You were both speechless as you exited the theater. Silence followed you both as you settled into the car. Neither of you could really say much. In summary, the movie was about Keigo, hurray, but if Keigo was a man whore douchebag that only became a hero for fame. Want a spoiler for the end of the film? He meets you (big yay) and becomes a better man after learning how to keep his cock in his pants.

At least you were in it...right?

Wrong. The actors who played your and Keigos' characters looked nor acted nothing like you. The acting/graphics were ass, and they somehow got your quirk wrong. Obviously, they couldn't mess up Keigos' quirk, but Keigo was still quite upset with how they portrait you as a helpless damsel in distress. The woman's boob's didn't even look like yours..though Keigo supposed he was glad no one else knows what exactly your boob's look like.

But as you both sat in the car, silent and awkward, a mumbled laugh broke the silence. Keigo glanced over and saw you, hiding your smile behind your hand, as you kept your face towards the car window. "What the hell are you laughing at?" He mumbled, a smile tugging on his lips. You could only shake your head and cover your face with both hands.

"Stop laughing!" Keigos voice turned to a whine. This made you burst out laughing, leaning over in your seat to clutch your stomach. Keigo crossed his arms and pouted. "I'm sorry honey, I really am. But that was the dumbest movie I've ever seen!" You cackled, tears forming in your eyes. Keigo couldn't stop himself from laughing as well. "It's not funny when it's about us -" He tried to sound stern. "- no, I know, I know! But the look on your face throughout the entire movie was priceless." You looked back up at him with a smirk. "My face? You should have seen your face when that woman started to strip -" Your smile fell, and you poked Keigos chest. "Hey, that's not fair! She didn't even look like me!" Keigo busted out laughing as you went on and on about the inaccuracy of the characters.

It wasn't long before Keigo started the car up and began to drive you both home. Sure, there would probably be comments and concerns about this movie in the future, but Keigo could feel the worry and pettiness wash away as he listened to your rant about the movie. Good and bad reviews.

Although, in the end, you settled on the bad reviews.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

thought you might enjoy this one, raven ;) how about headcanons of rollo and malleus who are crushing hard on g/n reader but the twist is that reader is dating/in love with their mortal enemy...THE OTHER GUY. what will rollo and malleus do? try to steal reader away to spite the other person? I eagerly await to see what you'll do with this prompt!!!

*rubs hand together* They're both emotionally repressed and silly little guys that I will happily torment 😈 This prompt reminds me of fjsbsjxvksnwkw this video…

I can now use Dorm Uniform artworks for the banners, yay--

Curiouser and Curiouser…

Emo Boi era? Emo Boi era.

Malleus is used to being alone. He’s used to it and yet… it has never felt this frigid, with needles of ice that prod his skin and scales with each step, the loneliness seeping into his blood and bones. The chill always comes when he sees you with Flamme—smiling, laughing—or when you turn down his invites to walk alongside him. “I already have plans with my boyfriend,” you’d say, and he’s encased in ice. “Sorry, maybe another time?”

It’s not just him that experiences the consequences of his gloomy mood. His classmates and the immediate surrounding environment also suffer. When Malleus passes, he brings with him angry thunder or hail the size of golf balls, floods the hall or brings a blanket of snow up to your knees. Everyone walks on eggshells, scared to do or say something to set him off.

He retreats from those rejected outings and spends the evenings alone, walking around campus to hit up all the gargoyle spots. Malleus laments to the gargoyles (and to Gao-Gao Dragon-kun), sharing about his romantic troubles. On the days when his mood is so sour he cannot even take his usual strolls, Malleus holes up in his bedroom with a blanket and a tub of ice-cream. He'll pout and indulge in the sweet frozen treat to chase off his sorrows, all while watching historical dramas and soap operas to temper his envy.

He savors the little victories, times when he’s able to have you for a moment of solidarity. Nothing is quite as enchanting to him as seeing how the sun blooms in your eyes when he performs what he considers such minor tricks—sparks of light that dance in the palm of his hand, a flower pulled from midair. (He considers flexing his magic small acts of revenge against Flamme too.)

... How is it, then, that you smile brighter still with him, when he abstains from the miracle of magic? The frustration is enough to make the light flicker out, and the flower crumble into ash. It’s not fair, Malleus thinks, that Flamme should come in to steal away the one I’ve had my eye on long before he has. Dragons can be territorial and possessive creatures—and you’re the treasure he’s guarded for so long.

His retainers awkwardly try to comfort him. Silver isn’t quite sure what to say, Lilia gently reminds Malleus that there will be others that take his breath away (“If you love them, then you must also learn to let them go,” Lilia had sagely advised)… and Sebek is Malleus’s personal hype man. He goes on for hours and hours about how “the human has poor taste in men!!”, shit talking Rollo, and extolling his young master. At one point, Sebek even advises that Malleus reveal Rollo’s misdeeds to you just to prove “the difference in nobility” between the two.

Malleus would be lying if he said he hadn’t considered any and all options. All it would take is the wave of his hand to decimate any rival, mage or no. Perhaps he could spin a curse to drive the others off, or simply whisk you away under the cover of night. But the longer he lingers on the ideas, the more they make his heart ache. No, he cannot bring any of them into fruition—he can't bear to see your happy expression shift to that of fright, the same way everyone else seems to regard him. Caving to his basest desires—it would be proof of the monster they see in him. It would make Rollo right.

It would be discourteous of me to intervene in another's personal affairs. It's his final decision, the mantra he recites to himself over and over and over again. Let go, and move on. Let go, and move on. Yet in his heart of hearts, he has not accepted it, cannot cut away the last of the threads that bind his feelings to you. Malleus is plagued by fitful nights, dreams that manifest as if just to mock him. In them, you're always shrouded in white, at some faraway altar. No matter how fast he runs or flies, he can never reach you. Other times, he's been forgotten entirely, not invited to the ceremony at all. Cast off into the darkness or a bog or an enchanted wood to stew and brood all alone.

He'll wake in a cold sweat and with an agonizing roar that shakes the entire castle. When Lilia and the others rush to his chambers to check on him, they find it in disarray. Items are thrown everywhere, the comforter cast off and the bed a mess from tossing and turning, ugly claw marks running across his curtains... The chandelier has fallen, the green-tipped candles of it catching the fabric on fire—and there he is, kneeling amid the flames, clutching at his head, his heart.

"Leave me be," Malleus snarls at his retainers. He knows the flames will not harm him, and they know it too. The least he can do is spare them from witnessing him in such a pathetic, distraught state. It’s over, isn’t it? He, the fearsome dragon, has lost to some self-righteous “hero”. His fairy tale’s happily ever after is impossible.

He’s coping… coping and seething—

At first, Rollo thinks you must be mad, or playing the part in some cruel prank. How can anyone genuinely be attracted to such a repulsive, despicable villain like Malleus Draconia? He cannot fathom it—yet the longer be observes, the more frightening the truth becomes: those feelings of yours are genuine. Rollo then concludes something even more wild: that Malleus as bewitched you, cast some sort of dark magic that clouds your common sense. After all, how can you not see that Malleus is so very, VERY wrong for you?

Whenever possible, Rollo tries to preach, to warn you about dealing with the devil (yes, he outright calls Malleus that) and giving into temptation. He furiously implores you to reconsider, to think of your soul and to salvage it. Alas!! His words only fall on deaf ears. He curses, thinking Malleus’s enchantment far too powerful for him to overcome through typical means. Still, Rollo shall not relent.

His digs and sleights directed at Malleus seem to only become more hateful. When they cross paths in the hallway, Rollo makes it a point to purposefully bump into him on the shoulder--and you can bet this man doesn't hold bad when it comes to the insults. (Sebek tends to yell back in Malleus's defense, while all Malleus does in response is tut and tighten the arm he has wrapped around you.)

Rollo remains cordial to you (though you're not free from his lectures about how you should "renounce Malleus Draconia's hand"). He's still very much resistant to any sort of affection you try to demonstrate for him, be it verbal, physical, or otherwise, often shooing it away or deeming it "salacious". However, he's quick to change his tune if Malleus happens to be nearby, enduring your compliments and brief touches as he fights a blush from creeping onto his face. The blush is something he hastily conceals with his handkerchief and insists is "just the weather" or "a fever", nothing more than that.

There are instances when Rollo wonders why he's dedicating so much time and effort into saving one puny, pathetic person. His cause is so much greater than that, and yet he cannot tear himself away. Perhaps, he reasons, you are just that pitiful, and he feels sorry for you to fall victim to Malleus's machinations again and again. In his mind, Malleus is the monster that has kidnapped some innocent royal, and he, Rollo, is the saint sent to liberate them. Why is it, then, that he also sees your face everywhere even when he doesn't mean to? It's maddening to gaze into his fireplace and jolt back, thinking he has seen a ghostly face in the flames.

Much to Rollo's chagrin, his aide and vice president (and even the entire gaggle of enchanted NBC gargoyles) offer their unsolicited romantic advice. They demonstrate their unwavering support in other ways as well, often sneaking about to check on their beloved prez and making an effort to speak highly of him specifically in your presence. The gargoyles also (annoyingly) try to set a "romantic ambience" up by singing and tossing glitter down on you and him when you happen to speak. They're the wingmen Rollo didn't ask for--

It's ridiculous that they would think I have even a passing interest in seeking intimate companionship, Rollo quietly seethes. He doesn't understand where anyone would get that impression of him from. But everyone around him, even the folks of the City of Flowers, can see it for themselves. Rollo seems haunted by something, always looking over his shoulder with a longing in his eyes. The line between disgust and desire are gradually blurring, in spite of the man himself not recognizing it for what it is.

Rollo becomes increasingly frustrated that you refuse to listen to him, that you continue to hang all over Malleus like some brainwashed thrall. He doesn't even know what he's mad at anymore. At Malleus, for taking you for himself? At you, for being so stupid? At himself, for not being strong enough to bring you back to your senses? Maybe it's all three. It's become an obsession now, never too far from his mind and always gnawing away at his every thought. This fire under his skin, the urge to sin, sin, sin… He feels like he's going crazy--

When the anger has finally swallowed his sanity, Rollo, numb, comes to a singular dark conclusion: it's not him, it's you. It was always you, because all this time, you were in on this ruse. Of course. It was so obvious. How could he have not realized it before? You must be a mage too, one that had cast a horrible curse upon him, made him go mad with desire. Dangerous—you were dangerous, and he had to be rid of you just like he had to be rid of Malleus Draconia. For the world's sake. For his own sake, before fanning flames converged into another inferno.

And so he calmly takes out a plain white letter and matching envelope, penning an invitation to you. He asks you to come visit him in the City of Flowers, that he will be waiting for you at the top of the bell tower. You appear here as requested, and you’re greeted with an offer most ominous: choose him or Malleus; be his or burn like the wicked being that you are. There’s no humor to Rollo’s eyes, only a fervent fire blazing in the darkness. He awaits your answer, ready to cast his judgment soon after.

[yooglefics]

The casual type: 01 . The blind date

Pairing: Min Yoongi x fem!reader  Wordcount: 2,888 words Genre ( for the whole series ): AU. College!verse. Strangers to friends with benefits to ?????. Eventual smut. Hurt / comfort at times. And fuff for cute friends. Summary: Hobi and his girlfriend set you up with a friend of hers to help with whatever happened months back. However no one really expected things to end the way they did.

Warnings ( for this chapter ): Setting things up for plot purposes. Gridding? Mentions of a boner. Making out.  Author's note: So, I wanted to write some friends with benefits thing, plus a bunch of art kids… and this came out ┐( • ֊ • )┌ . I should note here I took the creative liberty to play around with their ages so everyone is in college at the same time, and if you haven't, you can check the presentation post and learn a little bit more about them. Now let's start, hope you like it! If you do you can reblog, like, comment, send an ask, follow and what not. Thank you for reading <3

The place is quieter than the last time you were here, you realize, is earlier in the day and the semester just started after all, meaning students are still moving in from their home cities. And although you want to be mad at him, you can't really blame Hoseok's choice of place for a date, instead, you're already thinking of ways to be able to escape the awkwardness of it all.

Of course, he and Mai don't have to worry about that. Is not their first date and considering they're both dance students it actually makes sense for them to be in a club on a friday night. Is their element, unlike yours, who hasn't left their room for the last couple of weeks if it's not to go art-supply shopping and will spend even weekends far away from a place like this.

But you couldn't say no. Not to Hobi. Not after he held you tight that night and didn't pray for an explanation.

He had come up with his own conclusions, though, and that's how you ended here. On a double date with Mai and her friend who you don't even know, so... Yay! Blind date added to the mix of reasons why you already want the night to end.

"You made it!" Mai greats when the both of you get closer to the bar, standing up to hug you first and then her boyfriend. "We ordered something while waiting."

Your friend nods at the explanation, "What do you want?" He asks in your direction and you settle for a fruity cocktail to not look too out of place with everyone else drinking. Mai insists on going with Hobi and he insists you stay, so, a bit awkwardly, you take the stool besides your date.

"Yoongi, by the way." The guy simply introduces himself before taking a sip of his drink.

"Y/n" short, overthinking if bowing is too formal until you decide is too long of a pause and it would only make it more awkward. In the end, a soft smile is your decision.

"They look cute together," you say looking at your friends, trying to break the silence that has fallen between.

"Listen," Yoongi begins, and your head turns to him, "I'm only here because she asked, so if you're expecting something like that, let's just leave."

"Like that?" Brows slightly closer, "a cute relationship?"

"A relationship in general. I don't do those."

"Oh..."

And before you can say anything else, Hobi is placing a glass in front of you, smiling reassuringly. "You'd be okay if I go dance now?"

A pause and then a nod is the answer. Not having any intentions of spoiling their night.

"Don't worry. Yoongi," Mai turns to him, a serious expression on her soft features, "you better take care of her, alright?"

He salutes, earning a smile from the couple and they walk to the dance floor hand in hand. You watch them make some silly moves at first and giggle, but it doesn't take long before they start to follow the beat and match it with their movements.

"I don't want a relationship either," you clarify, tone assertive, still looking at the couple with a smile.

He laughs, "I'm sorry, but that's hard to believe."

"Why?"

"Look at me and tell me you didn't just imagine yourself with someone on that dance floor."

You turn to him, brown eyes inspecting yours, "Well, yes. But that doesn't mean I want it to happen with someone I'm in a relationship with."

Again, he laughs. Clearly not believing you.

"What? People do casual things all the time," you defend, straightening your back and looking away.

"You do 'casual things'?" His eyebrows raise, "all the time?"

"Shut up, you don't know me."

"That's a no," no need to look at him to know there's a smirk playing on his lips.

"Who are you? Some kind of hook up police or something?" You want to take it back as soon as it leaves your mouth, cringing.

"Are you gonna show me your license?" but he is faster.

"Okay, that was more lame than what I said," you laugh. Maybe he is not as grumpy as he seems. And maybe, just maybe, you would be able to enjoy the night after all. 

If he doesn't want a relationship either, then you don't have to deal with rejecting him or being forced to accept a second date just because you're too kind to say no. That's good.

"Yoongi, hey!" A guy calls out and for a split second your date's expression changes to a surprise one before a polite smile takes place on his face. "Oh, hi. Sorry for interrupting, haven't seen him in months."

"Is alright," you play along even when not understanding.

"I guess he has been busy with yo—"

"Jay," Yoongi's tone is serious, like the one he used to say he doesn't do relationships. However, before he can continue or you are able to clarify that you two just meet, Jay is calling someone over.

"Look who I found, love. Yoongi!"

A redhead girl repeats Yoongi's early expression and you wonder two things about Jay. One: if he always has that effect on people. And two: if he is even more clueless than you in this whole situation, since his smile never falls.

"Hi," the redhead says and Yoongi greets back just as plain.

Are you really imagining the awkwardness? Perhaps you were wrong and in the end you should put one of your plans to avoid it into place?

A few seconds of thinking go by, no one says anything and you could swear the tension is filling the air around your new  group.

"Oh, that's the song!" Fake excitement in your voice tricks everyone into looking at you. "I promise, remember? If it comes on, we'll dance."

Yoongi looks confused for a second, but it doesn't take him long to finally understand, "right, the song. Sorry guys, been waiting all night."

Jay dismisses him smiling with a pat on the back, saying something about not breaking promises and Yoongi takes your hand.

Looking around, you try to find your friends, hoping to copy Mai's moves and keep up with the plan even when you're a self proclaimed not dancer. But they aren't in sight and even if you can't really prove it since your back is facing them, you feel like Jay's and the girl's eyes are on you.

Ugh. Why did you use this plan?

Why was this something you even thought about?

When Yoongi stops and positions himself in front of you, you get closer, sliding an arm on top of his shoulders pretending you're positioning yourself to dance, copying the random couple beside you.

"I don't know what I'm doing," you confess in a whisper.

"What do you mean?” He looks for your eyes, hair strain coming out of place when his head lowers a little, "you want to go back and sit down?"

"No, then they would know I lied," you're still trying to figure out why in the first place and don't need the embarrassment too, "but I don't know how to dance."

He chuckles, "here, I'll help." And holds your hips softly, moving them to the beat of the song, matching your movements with his own. "Relax. Don't think too much about it."

"If I don't, how do I know how to move?" It doesn't make sense and is a bit frustrating, honestly.

"Is not a dance competition, or the grant ball, princess. Just do what feels right."

He catches you looking at your feet and brings you closer, eliminating the gap between your bodies completely. "Don't do that," one of his hands travels to the small of your back, keeping you in place.

"Sorry," you say against his neck. Not intentionally, but because of your height difference, there's no other option. In an effort to not be so dependent on him, both your arms move around his neck and you try to move your hips in a way that in the end doesn't match his movements completely, causing you to bum into his front. He makes a sound that you assume is a complaint at your skills and another apology rolls through your lips.

"Turn around," Yoongi commands, applying pressure to one side of your hip.

You comply, confused even when you feel his hands on your waist. "Well, I'm going to assume you been fucked before, miss casual all the time," with his chest against your back, you can feel his laugh. "Open your legs a little," one of his feets kicks gently between yours, fixing your stand. "You want to lead or should I?"

"...You." Is the safest, you decide. Your turn to assume he surpasses your experience at that too.

“Some describe dancing like a good fuck," he explains, hands softly making their way a bit lower to your hips, "because you have to learn your partner. Find a rhythm together." His movements start slow, moving your body with his from side to side, with small circles of the hips.

Your hands fall on top of his, not knowing what else to do with them. They're soft, which for some reason is unexpected.

"I have dancer friends and they never described it like that..."

"Not to you, probably," he laughs and when you stop the movements to throw an angry look his way — because you're pretty sure that's some kind of insult,— he chuckles, before continuing the swaying of your hips. "Calm down, princess. I meant, they probably just weren't teaching you this kind of dance."

And that makes sense. You can't imagine dancing with your friends like this. You can barely believe you're doing it with a stranger.

Your shyness must have shown, because his next question is why did you even choose this song.

"I was trying to help and get you away from whatever that was," you lift your head, eyes away from your feet and the color lights projecting on the floor, and sure enough, behind red bangs, the girl is looking in your direction.

Your hips halt.

Yoongi catches up a bit too late, bumping his pelvis into you.

"What ar—"

"She is looking." Cutting him off, you want to hide as if you were the one caught doing something she wasn't supposed to. So, you try to turn around on his arms but his hold is firm.

A new song starts, the rhythm not much different.

"Help me with another song?"

You try again, this time using your hands on top of his to soften the grip. He gives in. And after a look at his face, you nod.

You can decide if it's sadness or anger that you see, not knowing him well enough to tell — or at all, to be honest — but either way, there's a part of you that can relate. One for each emotion.

Throwing your hair back, letting all black strands fall over your back, your arms go back over his shoulders, this time your chest flush against him a little more than last.

Yoongi says thanks and you kiss his cheek as his hands hold you again. His movements are more determined and even his fingers form dents over the fabric of your dress.

Assuming his demeanor changed only for the specific viewer doesn't sound too crazy, and you want to confirm the theory by looking at his face, see if he is looking behind you at her. Your eyes travel against the direction the few sweat drops over his skin go, and when they reach Yoongi's, he is looking back at you.

Your body stops.

"Fuck" he whispers when the front of his pelvis bumps yours. "You really need to stop doing that."

"Sorry. Told you I can't dance."

He chuckles.

Your bottom lip forms a small pout. "Don't be mean. I'm trying to help you, remember?" And you initiate the movements again, starting to get the hang of it. Kind of.

"You're not much help right now if you keep making me dry hump into you," this time he is the one stopping, making it so you bump into his front and you can feel the outline of his growing erection.

"Yoo—"

"Exactly," he says so matter of fact, "you're the mean one."

Lowering your head, you try to not think too much about it. It doesn't make you want to run away or kick him, but you also don't want to make him feel like kicking you away. You keep repeating to yourself that is normal with this type of dance, that there's probably more than one hard on at the club right now and how you're probably not the only one who is getting we—

Damn it. Just stop thinking about it.

Yoongi stops your body from moving, and when you realize he has been calling your name, you're even more embarrassed by your thoughts.

"I'm sorry. That was too much, I shouldn't have. We can go sit now." His eyes are looking straight at you, letting you know he's being sincere.

"I need some air."

Without even bothering to wait for a confirmation that he is following or not, you make your way to the side door of the club. The autumn breeze hits your skin as soon as you step into the alley, instantly calming your hormones down.

Hands cover your face in shame after reclining on the wall. Can you stop acting like it was the first time you felt a penies? Because even if it hasn't happened in a while, it doesn't mean the score goes back to zero.

"Should I bring Hoseok?" Yoongi asks a few steps in front of you and you jump a little, shaking your head after.

"I'm good. You can go back in."

"I'm not leaving you alone here. Do you want him or Mai to kill me?"

A small chuckle leaves your throat and one from him follows it.

"And you think he wouldn't kill you for—" stop. You can't think about it.

"For dancing like that with you? Probably. But he also set this date up, so..." Out of the corner of your eye you can see him shrug, "can't complain unless you hate me now."

"I don't hate you."

"Is okay if you do."

"It… it just surprised me."

"In a bad or good way?"

"A good one." You answer directly in a strain of honesty.

"So you're not really the casual type, uh?" He teases after a couple seconds of silence.

"Maybe I just don't like doing casual in the middle of the club," you defend.

"I don't know, you were the one that kept humping into me."

Your mouth opens and closes, finally looking at him and his stupid lips pull up in a smirk. You want to erase it so bad.

"Shut up."

"Make me."

And you do.

Skipping forward, right hand flying to the back of his neck to pull him in and you're able to touch his lips with yours.

He is quick to react. Kissing you back, his hands on either side of your waist pulling your body into his. But you're trying to prove a point, to defend yourself. So, you pull away slightly, making sure your lips are just about to touch.

He pulls in.

Allowing just a peck, you move.

You kind of regret not using your cherry lip gloss, because you know for sure that knowing you're so close for him to smell it but not taste it, would be the biggest tease.

You let him lean in again, not moving this time and he sighs. You smile against his lips just before his tongue asks for permission to enter your mouth. Again, you regret your simple choice of a simple red lip tint, but remind yourself that this date wasn't supposed to go like this. That Yoongi doesn't seem like the guy he was supposed to be, not what he was advertised by your friends.

Fighting back control, your left arm joins the other around his neck, moving your lips expertly and feeling his chest rise and fall quickly against yours. Is pretty much the position you were in on the dance floor minus the grinding.

Casual in the middle of the club is not your thing. Casual in general is actually not something you have experience with. But kissing? You've mastered it thanks to your past relationships and the avoidance of jumping into someone's bed right from the start.

A moan vibrates through your lips against Yoongi's, and even if it's part of the routine, you must admit is pretty real. A soft groan is his answer and the cue for your heels to touch the floor again. His hold tightens in reaction, making your dress rise up and covering a couple inches less of your thighs. Suddenly you're aware of the wind again as a breeze runs up your legs, towards the center of your panties.

Your breath caughts on your throat and Yoongi swallows any sounds before pulling away.

"Fuck," he breaths heavily, "we've to stop."

"Why? Are you not really the casual type?" You tease, stealing his line.

The left corner of his mouth lifts, before falling again in a millisecond. "Not with you."

Should I’ve added “cliffhanger” to the warnings? haha i swear is gonna be okayyyy ♡ Tag list: @n33mesis , @mggv97 , @wobblewobble822 , @bbou-doir , @m00njinnie , @nariee02 , @sexytholland . hope you guys like this one <3

➪ The squad. | ➪ 02 | ➪ Updates for this verse ➪ Ko-fi | ➪ ♡ Tag list info ➪ Main masterlist. | ➪ Updates in general | ➪ Request & chats

[biniminisblog]

under the mistletoe | hwang hyunjin one shot

pairing: hwang hyunjin x fem!reader

synopsis: the three times hyunjin wanted to confess, and the one time you did.

genre: friends to lovers, slight angst, fluff

word count: 3.2k

a/n: MERRY CHRISTMAS ‼️🎄🎄 as promised i managed to finish this just in time yay!! hope you guys like it and consider reblogging/sharing your thoughts. have a great day everyone!

one.

this is it. hyunjin was going to confess. after days of rehearsing with jeongin— who played you surprisingly well, it was almost weird— he was finally going to tell you how he feels.

despite the practice, hyunjin could feel his palms starting to sweat, he was becoming fidgety all of a sudden. it was the third of december, just a few weeks before christmas, and he had asked you to meet up at his place so you both could continue your tradition of watching cheesy romance movies. he had everything set up, from blankets and pillows to your favourite food and drinks. it was all perfect and romantic, so he can’t back out now!

regardless of his anxiety-inducing thoughts, he waits for you, and as his watch reaches seven pm, he hears his doorbell ring. what greets him was a bright grin plastered on your face. you were wearing your favourite sweater— which was technically his but you stole it from him— with your hair tied into a half ponytail. he didn’t think you could get even more beautiful. however, time and time again you seem to prove him wrong.

hyunjin didn’t realise he was staring intently until you were waving a hand at his face to somehow snap him from his thoughts. he blinks twice before clearing his throat, reluctantly looking away from you and towards the food instead.

“you okay there, hyun?” that damn nickname will be the death of him, seriously. he only nodded his head, giving you a smile which seems to reassure you enough. once the both of you are seated on the couch, you immediately grab one of the cookies on top of the coffee table, taking a bite of it and humming in satisfaction.

“this is so good, hyun! did you make it?” you turn to look at him, your voice muffled by the food in your mouth and he finds you adorable with your cheeks puffed out.

“yeah, felix helped me— oh, and i made sure it wasn’t too sweet since i know you can’t handle too much.”

“you remembered?” your eyes seem to sparkle at his thoughtful action, and if all it takes for you to look at him like that was a simple gesture, then he’ll basically do anything for you. god, he’s so whipped he can't even deny it anymore.

“of course i remember, you’re my friend.” or maybe something more. hopefully, if he doesn’t chicken out.

“that’s so sweet of you! you’re like— the perfect man. i could literally kiss you right now.” you gush, but then widen your eyes when you realise what you just said. you glance at hyunjin, only to see his face turn pink, suddenly becoming shy at your claim. although he was happy you thought of him like that, he senses that you were slightly uncomfortable, so he decides to change the tone.

“just for that? you should raise your standards yn, or else you’ll end up with a sleazy man.” hyunjin teases, earning a cute pout from you. he feels relief wash over him when he sees you no longer felt uneasy, as well as a flutter in his heart at your expression.

“oh hush. don’t insult my standards, you’re basically insulting minho.”

oh. hyunjin’s smile drops. he tries to regain his composure, scratching his neck to distract himself, and grabbing one of the sandwiches he made for you. still, it was hard to grasp the information he just discovered, which was basically a slap to his face.

“so you like… minho hyung?” you shrug, not being able to look him in the eye as you finish your cookie. you can’t even look at him directly, do you like him that much?

“i mean he’s definitely a great guy, so i guess i do like him a little.” you admit, tracing circles on the pillow beside you, and hyunjin can feel his heart clench in pain.

the atmosphere changed after your confession. you and hyunjin still exchanged conversation normally, but it was like there was a wall between you now, contrasting to the fact that you were only inches apart from each other. oh well, so much for confessing.

two.

“why is he staring at me like that?” minho raises an eyebrow, eyeing hyunjin who has been glaring daggers at him for the past two minutes.

jeongin shrugs and shakes his head at his hyung’s childishness. “hyunjin hyung’s just being an idiot again.”

he doesn’t argue with that because he was being an idiot, getting jealous over something as mundane as your ideal type. it’s not like you guys are dating or anything, so it shouldn’t be a problem. that still doesn’t stop the green monster from coming out as he watches minho look effortlessly attractive under the horrid lighting of their shared apartment.

“well can’t he be an idiot somewhere else? i’m trying to decorate here.” hyunjin finally stops glaring at him, and instead opts to go back to his sketchpad, looking over at all the portraits he sketched of you.

sighing internally, he wonders if he’ll ever be able to confess to you, even if he was given the chance. hyunjin sulks in his seat, prompting jeongin to sigh in frustration. he decides to be a good friend today and nudges his shoulder, causing hyunjin to look up, revealing his pout and furrowed eyebrows.

“what do you want.” he deadpans. jeongin closes hyunjin’s sketchpad and gives him a look of annoyance. “listen, if you really liked yn then minho hyung being her ideal type shouldn’t stop you from telling her.”

minho takes a glance at hyunjin and points a finger to his chest. “i’m her ideal type? no wonder why you’re sulking.” he snorts out before going back to placing lights on their christmas tree.

although minho doesn’t comment much on it, hyunjin knows that information is going to spread in the groupchat later on, and he grimaces as he imagines all the teasing from them.

jeongin seems to realise this as well because he’s quick to cheer him up. “don’t listen to him, hyung! i mean just because minho hyung is her ideal type doesn’t mean you aren’t, right?”

now that he thinks about it, jeongin might be right. suddenly, a smile starts to grow on hyunjin’s face.

“then there’s still a chance she might like me back?”

“definitely! don’t lose hope hyung.” ever the supportive younger brother, jeongin gives hyunjin a pat on the shoulder while minho only scrunches his nose in response.

“you should ask her out to the party chan’s going to hold on the 25th.” he suggests and hyunjin lights up at that idea. feeling a rush of adrenaline, he abruptly stands up, causing jeongin to let out a squeak and minho to flinch in shock.

“i need to find yn.”

“wha— you’re going to ask her out now!? hyunjin, wait—!” and he’s gone. jeongin hears the door click shut and he goes over to minho, not even bothering to catch up with the lovesick boy anymore.

“didn’t he mention that yn’s on a family trip right now so she can’t contact him?” jeongin nods in confirmation as he helps place christmas balls on the tree, which causes minho to facepalm at their friend’s stupidity.

“i guess love really makes you dumber.”

three.

so the second time didn’t work out, but that was totally hyunjin’s fault. he forgot you would be away for a few days, being too excited to finally confess the feelings he’d been harbouring for you for a long time now.

however, it’s already the 20th of december, and you’re finally back. he’s sure not not to mess this up. he decided not to plan anything, opting to just say it.

as he arrived at your place, there was no denying the rush of nerves flowing within him. he had thought about just bolting out of there, and he almost did, but he knew that if it wasn’t now, then it was never.

hyunjin lets out a huff and rings your doorbell, trying to relax by focusing on the peephole of your door. this proves to be ineffective because the moment the door opened, he immediately made eye cantact with your beaming face.

“hyun! i didn’t know you were coming, is there something you need?” you step aside to let him in and he cautiously walks past you to sit on your sofa. trying to calm down his heart, he sees you moving over to sit next to him.

should he just say it now?

“nothing, really. i just wanted to see you.” he settles on saying that instead. you’re probably surprised to see him since he should be busy during this time of the year, so he’s playing it safe for now. however, once he takes a peek to see your reaction, it gives him a boost of confidence when he notices the pretty shade of pink adorning your cheeks.

“i was only gone for a few days.” you mumble out, but you don’t hide the smile that forms on your lips.

“few says too many.” hyunjin jokes. he’s feeling a little more bold now, so he slowly scoots a little closer to you until it feels as if you are almost only a hair away.

you don’t seem to mind the proximity, in fact, it’s like you moved even closer. or maybe hyunjin was being delusional, either way it still makes him giddy.

“well since you’re here i have something to tell you.”

“really? what is it?” this is probably the perfect time to mention that he has something to say too. “oh actually i just remembered i have to tell you something too.”

“then do you want to go first?” you tilt your head cutely while waiting for his answer and hyunjin only shakes his head no, gesturing for you to go ahead.

“do you remember how i said minho was my ideal type?” hyunjin nods slowly, not liking the way this was going.

“well i actually asked him out just yesterday.” you gauge his expression, watching as hyunjin starts to process your words. his eyes widen, mouth hanging agape, and you can’t tell if it’s from shock or disappointment.

“th-that’s—uhm,” hyunjin can’t even finish what he was trying to say, and he can feel his heart literally being ripped from his chest. is this god’s way of telling him that you would never be his?

“so yeah…” you can feel the awkward tension rise so you decide to shift the conversation. “what was it that you wanted to tell me?”

hyunjin suddenly remembers why he’s here, and he looks up to find you gazing at him expectantly with a warm smile on your face. if it was before all this, he would have melted at the sight, but now all he feels is the tight clench around his chest. it’s almost suffocating, he can’t even find it in himself to speak. the only thing he can do is leave, and so he does.

“hyunjin— wait, where are you going?”

“i’m sorry i have to go.” he manages to utter that out before he’s outside, closing the door shut and not looking back, afraid he might breakdown if he even glances at your face.

that’s it. he’ll never try to confess again.

four.

“hyung come on~” jeongin whines as he tries to drag hyunjin out of his bed by pulling his forearm.

“no! i don’t want to see the love of my life and the person who betrayed me being all lovey dovey.” he wiggles out of jeongin’s grasp and proceeds to pull his duvet cover over his head.

“ugh you’re so dramatic— you’ve been cooped up in your room for five days now! are you really going to let some girl ruin christmas for you?”

this gets hyunjin to push the covers off of him and sit up straight, shooting daggers at the younger boy.

“yn is not just some girl, she’s my best friend who i’ve been secretly in love with for the better part of my life. she’s someone i cherish and care for the most, and i’m not going to let you reduce her as just some girl.” hyunjin lets out a huff, making the long strands of blond hair covering his face move.

jeongin raises his hands up in surrender. a silent air filled the room before it was broken by minho’s slow, sarcastic clap.

“why don’t you say that again but to yn this time?” minho steps aside to let you enter the room and hyunjin lets out an audible gasp. he suddenly feels self conscious as you move closer to his bed.

“wh-what are you guys doing here? shouldn’t you be at chan’s party?” he focuses his attention on minho only to avoid facing you, his heart beating a mile a minute.

“we would’ve been if you weren’t a sulking idiot.” minho walks over to grab jeongin and heads towards the door.

“i made yn come over since i know you’d basically rot in your room until new year. now make out!” he shuts the door behind but not before you hear jeongin follow up with a ‘you mean make up?’, leaving only you and hyunjin inside.

minho’s obvious teasing left both of you feeling flustered, but decided not to comment on it.

“hyunjin.” you start, and for the first time since you arrived, he meets your eyes, which almost seemed red. were you crying? did he make you cry? or was it minho? either way he has to know why.

“were you crying? did someone make you cry? tell me who so i can beat them—”

a loud ‘umph’ escapes hyunjin’s mouth as you unexpectedly lunge towards him with a hug. he was so surprised he couldn’t even process what was happening in the moment. he felt himself go limp in your grasp, inhaling your perfume which had always intoxicated him.

is this what heaven feels like? hyunjin’s pretty sure it is.

when you pulled away—in that moment hyunjin suddenly felt a cold shiver run down his spine— he came face to face with your glossy eyes.

“you supid idiot, you’re the one who made me cry— and i’m in love with you too!” you confess.

and just like that, hyunjin’s whole world was turned upside down.

“wha—but i thought you and minho…?” you shake your head in response.

“i thought you didn’t like me back, but minho told me you did. i didn’t believe him though so he told me to tell you i asked him out to see your reaction. i didn’t think you’d walk out on me so i thought you hated me…” you mumble out the last words, looking down at your hands as you fiddle with them. now that you’ve reflected back on your actions, it was totally a stupid idea and you should’ve just told him how you felt then.

hyunjin was shocked at this revelation. so this was all minho’s idea!? he’s honestly not sure if he should thank him or cuss him out, although he feels it's safe to do the former if he doesn’t want tissues in his mouth again.

“i could never hate you, yn. not even if you told me you murdered someone.” this manages to make you giggle, to which it makes hyunjin feel the butterflies roaming around his stomach, just like before.

“i actually tried confessing, three times to be more specific.” he admits, causing you to shift your attention to him as a dramatic gasp leaves your lips.

“so we’re both idiots.” although it was meant to be an insult, hyunjin finds it endearing to see you look so distraught about it.

he reaches out to tuck a stray hair behind your ear amd swiftly kiss you on the cheek. you were stunned for a second, almost in a trance, but luckily you snap out of it and retaliate with a kiss of your own. you both end up giggling, feeling drunk on each other’s kisses as you take turns planting soft pecks on the other’s face.

hyunjin can’t believe he’s deprived humself of this pure bliss for years now, he’s definitely never letting you go—

“hey, are you guys going to come out there or what? we’re still going to chan’s party, you know.”

like glass shattering, minho breaks the moment hyunjin has been waiting for his whole life as he hears his older friend’s annoying voice from outside the room. you to pull away from each other, albeit reluctantly.

you still have lovesick grins plastered on, maintaining eye contact as you stand up from the bed and interlock your fingers with hyunjin.

“i don’t think i’ve ever been this happy since that one time we spontaneously went on a trip to japan.” you say while playing with hyunjin’s fingers.

“i don’t think i’ve ever been this happy ever.”

“oh stop, you’re lying.” you whine but end up covering your face with hyunjin’s shirt and he takes this opportunity to slide his arms around you, slowly swaying back and forth.

“believe what you want to believe, love.” the nickname slips out naturally and you look up, a pink tint adorning your cheeks. you stand on your tippy toes to plant another kiss on hyunjin’s nose this time.

“let’s go? i feel like minho’s going to slam the door open and kick us out himself any moment now.” you agree with his statement and go back to locking fingers before heading out towards hyunjin’s bedroom door.

however as you open it, you don’t expect to see evergreen leaves hanging atop both of your heads.

jeongin dangles the plant mischievously. “you guys going to kiss or what?”

you face hyunjin, only to find that he has already been looking at you this whole time, plump pink lips puckered playfully with his eyes closed. you laugh, caressing his cheek before leaning in to leave a soft, long kiss on his lips.

“ok i think that’s enough.” minho manages to pull you away from each other, making hyunjin narrow his eyes at him.

“no i don’t think so, i’ve waited too long for this!” hyunjin whines, proceeding to latch himself to your side. you only shake your head, smile tugging your lips at your boyfriend’s silliness. god, you could get used to this.

“and you have all the time in the world now that you’re together, now let’s go!”

“jeongin’s got a point. so how about you let me have yn tonight? i am her type after all, isn’t that right, yn?”

minho’s loud cackle resonates the room when hyunjin hurriedly tries to cover your eyes to prevent you from looking at minho.

jeongin, who’s had enough if his older hyung’s shenanigans, leaves the apartment.

it took about thirty minutes before you actually head to the party, but not without another shared secret kiss between hyunjin and you, his girlfriend, this time without a mistletoe.

“merry christmas, hyunjin.” you whisper between your kisses.

“merry christmas, yn.” despite the cold weather, everything felt so warm. you were warm, and he never wants to let you go.

“i love you.”

after three failed attempts, he can now say for sure that the confession was a success.

[upat4amwiththemoon]

You should make one where Wanda and nat get taken by the snap and it leaves there 14 year old daughter for her to grow up alone, later when they return there surprised to see her grow up. You can add some angst of her not being able to trust them and so on.

The blip

Summary: Broken families take time to heal.

Pairing: WandaNat x daughter!reader

Warnings: some angst

Word count: 1771

a/n: finally some fics yay

Tags: @thought-of-you-and-me @rafecameronswhore @emsmultiverse @natashamaximoff69

masterlists | guidelines

All parts: part 1, part 2, part 3

Y/N was given to Maria Hill, a close friend of Natasha Romanoff, to care for while her mothers fought Thanos with the rest of the Avengers. It’s already been hours without any kind of notice on what’s going on, which made her incredibly nervous. But this was her mothers’ job, she was used to it.

“They’ll be alright, they always are.” Maria states as she notices Y/N tearing away the skin around her nails, blood already gathering to the wounds. “Not even Thanos can beat them.” She gives her a comforting smile, sitting next to her.

Y/N hums with a nod. “I know, Aunt Maria.” She mumbles. Her mothers have always come back home, just like they promise when they leave through the door. This time wouldn’t be any different. They wouldn’t dare to break such a big promise.

“You should eat something. I could order us a pizza and we could watch a movie to take your mind off of it all?”

“Sure.” Y/N appreciates the way Maria tries to comfort her. She doesn’t usually watch over her, as most of the time she’s working with the Avengers, but this time Natasha personally asked her to stay with Y/N. Maria was only one she trusted to do anything in her power to protect their daughter.

Looking through movies, Y/N decides on Frozen. A childhood favorite of hers, a movie her moms had to sit through just a few too many times, though they never complained. She leans against the couch, waiting for Maria to come back so they could start the movie while waiting for food.

Something drops to the floor.

Y/N turns to look towards the kitchen where Maria was just standing in, but is now completely empty. “Maria?” She calls out. Frowning, she stands up and walks over. “Where’d you go?” Her foot accidentally kicks something under the fridge. She groans and kneels down, moving her hand around to find whatever slid there. Finally grabbing the object, she pulls it out and stands up. It’s Maria’s phone.

The phone call is still on going. Quiet hellos coming through from the other side, until the pizzeria hangs up. Gripping the phone in her hand, she starts going through the rooms of the apartment, looking for aunt Maria. She doesn’t understand where she could’ve went so quickly, especially without her phone.

Her breathing picks up and heart starts beating faster when she realizes Maria isn’t there anymore. Before she can fully comprehend the situation, loud crashing comes from outside.

Running to the window, Y/N opens the blinds and sees pure chaos. Cars crashing into each other, a helicopter falling down, people screaming and running and..disappearing into dust. A deep pit grows inside Y/N as she stares at the scene unfolding in front of her. Her moms, she can feel this’ll be the first time they break their promise.

The hallway is loud as multiple students laugh and talk over each other. Everyone is walking towards their next class, through not all of them are in a hurry to do so. Some of them sneak off to the toilets or hidden parts of the stair well together, while others just walk out of the university building, simply not bothered to be there. Y/N is one of those people.

Her hands are in the pocket of her jacket and the hood of her hoodie is pulled over her head. She’s trying to be as small and invisible as possible. And she has been, invisible, for the past five years. She doesn’t have friends, only some people she can barely call acquaintances, nor does she have any family left.

No one really knows where the blipped people are. People got tired of trying to figure it out after three years. Y/N lost hope of getting her moms back two years before that. She knew she had to get used to being alone, and that she did.

She finished high school and got into college, barely, but her education was always important to her moms, and she couldn’t bear the feeling of disappointing them, even if they weren’t with her.

With a grunt, Y/N pushes her door open with force, cursing at the poor condition of it. Her apartment is in bad shape, but it’s cheap, so she has to live with it. Slamming the door shut, she throws her keys to a bowl and slumps down to the couch. Closing her eyes, she leans her head against the back of it after putting the television on to fill the never ending thoughts running through her head.

The television is playing old reruns of How I Met Your Mother, which makes Y/N laugh bitterly. She used to watch it with Wanda, who desperately wanted her to share the love of sitcoms with her. She just never found them that funny. Now she wishes she did. She wishes she could laugh at them like her mother did.

She blindly switches the channel. There’s no use in pretending to like sitcoms now.

The apartment gets filled with sounds from an action movie. Her body relaxes as she takes a deep breath. However, loud knocking from the other side of the door jolts her body back up. Her face turns into a frown as she stands up to go to the door, nobody comes to see her.

Y/N opens the door, her eyes widening the moment she recognizes who is standing in front of her.

“Y/N?” Wanda whispers, eyes full of tears and hands covering her mouth. Her little girl is all grown up. They missed so much. She takes a step forward, but Y/N instantly takes a step back. The hurt is evident on her face.

“You’re back.” She mumbles.

“We’re back.” Natasha smiles. Tears are already streaming down her face. “Can we come in?”

Y/N opens the door wider, letting Wanda and Natasha in before closing the door. They all stand there, no one really knowing what to say or do. “I’m so glad you’re okay.” Wanda’s eyes trail over her, looking for any physical wounds. “The only thing in my mind while we fought Thanos was you.”

“Thanos is gone?”

“Yes,” Natasha answers, “for good.”

Looking away from her moms, Y/N tries to process everything. Her eyes are stinging from the unshed tears and her hands are shaking do much she has to hold them behind her back so they wouldn’t see. She scrunches her brows together. It’s been five years.

“Little one?” Wanda sets her hand on Y/N’s shoulder. The urge to hug her daughter is overpowering, but the way she stepped back from her swims through her mind. She doesn’t want to overstep.

“Don’t call me that.” She mumbles, swatting away her hand. Her voice is harsher now. “I’m not okay. I was left alone for five years. I had to grow up at 14.” Y/N stares at her mothers. In the logical part of her brain, she knows her parents aren’t to blame for it, but the anger she has felt all these years is taking over.

“It’s horrible that you were alone for so long, we feel awful for not being there for you. You’re all grown up, and you had to do it without us.” Natasha takes a slow step forward, as if not to trigger Y/N. “It’s unfair. So unfair to you. You shouldn’t have gone through that.” Her voice cracks. She can see the pain in Y/N’s eyes. She was never able to hide anything from her.

“But we’re back now.” Wanda leans down slightly, coming to the same level as Y/N.

“No. You don’t know me anymore.”

“You’re still our girl.”

“No.” She shakes her head. Her breathing is getting more rapid as her face turns into anguish. It feels like all the feelings she has pushed down are coming out all at once. The lump in her throat is growing and her sight is getting fuzzy. “I’m not her anymore. I haven’t been her for a long time. I’m an adult now and I don’t need you!”

“Nothing could take our little girl away, you hear me?” Natasha is now close enough to set her hands on Y/N’s shoulders. She’s holding tightly enough so she won’t run away, but still gently so she won’t hurt her. “We know who you are deep down no matter what, because we are your parents,” she moves her hands to cradle crying Y/N’s face between them, “we are here, whether you need us or not. But we need you. We need our girl to be here.”

The minute Y/N’s cries turn into inconsolable sobbing, both Natasha and Wanda wrap their arms around her, carefully lowering to the ground. They whisper sweet nothings into her ears, while crying themselves. Knowing their daughter was alone for five years makes their heart ache for her in a way they have never ached before. Their daughter is the most important thing to them, and they weren’t there to protect her from the dangers of this world.

“We’re so sorry, little one, so sorry.” Wanda whispers, her face buried into Y/N’s hair. She holds her eyes closed as she takes in the now unfamiliar scent of her conditioner. It’s not the kid’s strawberry one she has loved for years anymore, she doesn’t recognize it. The feeling of everything about her being changed in what felt like five seconds to them feels so difficult to understand. It is partly true that they don’t know their daughter anymore, but Wanda eager to find out everything.

“I missed you.” Y/N says once her sobbing has stopped and her breathing has calmed down. “I missed you so much it hurts.”

Natasha kisses her cheek. “We’re never leaving you alone again.”

Pulling away slightly, Y/N sniffles. “You can’t promise that anymore. I was without you for a long time, you can’t expect things to go to the way they were five years ago.”

Wanda’s thumb rubs Y/N as she nods. It’s difficult to hear those kind of words, considering the gap has been significantly shorter for them. “We understand,” she moves Y/N’s eyes to meet hers, “but we have to try, okay? Because I refuse to lose you.”

Y/N nods, leaning her head against Wanda’s chest, completely exhausted from the day. She closes her eyes as Natasha plays with her hair and Wanda hums a Sokovian lullaby, just like they did when she was a kid.

[hunieday]

Chameleon Chill - Shuffle unit Event Story Translation

Please note that I am not a professional translator and I'm only doing this to share the side materials to those who cannot access them, if you notice any mistakes please let me know nicely. Enjoy!

Natsume Minami: Everyone watching the video, good evening.

Nikaido Yamato: Hello.

Osaka Sougo: Hello.

Yuki: Hello.

Natsume Minami: ...are you ready? One, two.

Nikaido Yamato: Cha...

Osaka Sougo: Chameleon...

Yuki: Fufu... Can we get the signal one more time?

Natsume Minami: Here I go. One, two...

Chameleon Chill: "Chameleon Chill"...

Natsume Minami: It's "Chameleon Chill."

Nikaido Yamato: Hello.

Osaka Sougo: Nice to meet you.

Yuki: Uhh... "8th Anniversary! 4 Four Thanks Project."

Nikaido Yamato: Celebrating the formation of our limited time unit! The "Ask this and that!?" edition!

Osaka Sougo: Let's get "Chameleon Chill"’s version started.

Chameleon Chill: ...

Osaka Sougo: Y...

Nikaido Yamato: Ya...?

Yuki: Huh?

Natsume Minami: Yay.

Chameleon Chill: Ya…

Osaka Sougo: ...The timing… is difficult to get… isn't it?

Yuki: Probably because of our dynamic.

Nikaido Yamato: We don’t really have hypemen who can cheer everyone up and lift the mood. The ones who shout and pull you along.

Yuki: Momo, or Mitsuki-kun are good at that.

Natsume Minami: I apologize. Maybe that should be a job for us juniors.

Nikaido Yamato: Natsume-chan, can you do it?

Natsume Minami: If you’ll allow me.

Yuki: That's right. ŹOOḼ goes all out in their lyrics, so there's no way you won’t go all out now.

Natsume Minami: You’re the last person I want to hear that from.

Yuki: ...

Yuki: ...Huh? Are you picking a fight?

Nikaido Yamato: Oh god, that’s terrifying. I’m scared.

Osaka Sougo: Maybe I should do it too. I always leave it up to Mitsuki-san and Tamaki-kun...

Natsume Minami: An MC with Osaka-san's voice would sound like a wedding ceremony.

Osaka Sougo: Without further ado, here comes the bride and groom.

Nikaido Yamato: Nice one, Sou. You caught on well. Perfect timing.

Osaka Sougo: You think so?

Nikaido Yamato: Yup, good job. It’s hard to believe that you, who’s usually so serious, was able to do that… 

Osaka Sougo: Ehehe... I'm glad to be praised by you, Yamato-san.

Yuki: Yamato-kun, you're spoiling him so much. Praise my jokes too.

Natsume Minami: Nikaido-san. If you're giving words of praise, I'd like as many as I could get.

Nikaido Yamato: You guys are so greedy.

Yuki: Can I eat these snacks here?

Natsume Minami: It’s fine, what’s stopping you?

Yuki: Okay then, I'm taking some. I'm hungry.

Natsume Minami: Me too. These look delicious.

Nikaido Yamato: Sou, wanna eat some?

Osaka Sougo: Th... Thank you very much.

Yuki: This atmosphere here is loose and relaxed.

Nikaido Yamato: I think I figured out why this unit's vibe is so relaxed. Wanna hear it?

Yuki: What?

Nikaido Yamato: Because TRIGGER is not here.

Osaka Sougo & Natsume Minami: Right...

Nikaido Yamato: This is the only unit that doesn't have them. Well Ichi noticed this, not me.

Nikaido Yamato: And so, he said that whether or not this unit becomes a complete mess depends on me.

Yuki: You're pumped up today.

Nikaido Yamato: Well, I thought I should do my best.

Osaka Sougo: Please wait a moment.

Natsume Minami: What's wrong, Osaka-san?

Osaka Sougo: Iori-kun told me the same thing.

Nikaido Yamato: Huh? That this unit depends on you as well?

Osaka Sougo: Yes.

Nikaido Yamato: Wow, what the hell is up with that guy.

Natsume Minami: Hang in there, Izumi-san

Yuki: Sounds like Iori-kun.

Osaka Sougo: I was happy to feel like Iori-kun was relying on me.

Nikaido Yamato: Alright then, a word to Ichi then.

Osaka Sougo: Iori-kun. Thank you for your encouragement.

Nikaido Yamato: Expressing gratitude, huh.

Natsume Minami: Well then, let's add some TRIGGER elements to this unit since they’re not here.

Nikaido Yamato: Whoa, he pulled something out of his bag.

Osaka Sougo: Ah... It's the TRIGGER table pop stand from TRIGGER's live DVD special bonus.

Yuki: Do you just carry that in your bag? Well then, guess I’ll put Momo’s uchiwa fan here as well.

Osaka Sougo: Then,  I'll leave King Pudding's...

Nikaido Yamato: I really don’t understand what’s happening here.

Osaka Sougo: Oh.

Nikaido Yamato: Hm?

Yuki: What's wrong?

Natsume Minami: Osaka-san?

Osaka Sougo: Without further ado, here are some questions we received from the staff!

Nikaido Yamato: Oh, okay.

Yuki: He started out of nowhere.

Osaka Sougo: Sorry. I remembered what I said earlier about doing my best to MC, so…

Natsume Minami: Your articulation was great. I can feel the enthusiasm in your voice.

Osaka Sougo: Thank you very much. Now, onto the staff's question...

Osaka Sougo: The question is, "are you getting along well?" what do you think?

Yuki: Yes, we get along.

Natsume Minami: That’s right, well...

Nikaido Yamato: Here, look. We even shot a movie together.

Osaka Sougo: That's right, it’s "MISSION."

Natsume Minami: Osaka-san, did you watch "MISSION"?

Osaka Sougo: Of course. It was very interesting.

Yuki: I’m glad.

Nikaido Yamato: Yes it was.

Osaka Sougo: But, the scene where Natsume-kun's character's fiancée is murdered was really scary...

Nikaido Yamato: Yeah, it’s quite shocking.

Natsume Minami: Nikaido-san you’re the one who killed her.

Osaka Sougo: Tamaki-kun couldn't forget that scene and was freaked out for a long time, so I cheered him up by singing "PoiGang"

Natsume Minami: Huh...? Why did you sing a ŹOOḼ song...?

Osaka Sougo: I thought I could replace the memory of “shocking images of death” with an “impression of a strong life” by looping an aggressive and energetic song…

Natsume Minami: Doesn’t that sound like a light form of brainwashing.

Osaka Sougo: Does it... But since Tamaki-kun is straightforward, the more I kept repeating it, the more he started thinking that way.

Natsume Minami: You're so interesting, Osaka-san. I also had fun when we worked on the song together.

Osaka Sougo: I'm flattered.

Nikaido Yamato: Oh, right. The three of you gathered in Yuki-san’s studio except for me to work on composing the song.

Yuki: Gaku-kun was there as well, though. Well, there are various connections.

Nikaido Yamato: How do you manage to compose together? Wouldn’t many cooks spoil the broth? 

Yuki: No, surprisingly, we're all the type to compromise.

Nikaido Yamato: Ah, is that so?

Yuki: That’s right, Gaku-kun prioritized our opinions as well.

Natsume Minami: Normally I wouldn't yield when it comes to composing my own songs for ŹOOḼ. But for collaborative projects, I got to enjoy it…

Osaka Sougo: It was a learning experience for me.

Yuki: If we start asserting ourselves, we'll definitely clash.

Natsume Minami: But well, you two did have some moments where you clashed.

Yuki: Well look, Sougo-kun doesn't yield much.

Osaka Sougo: Natsume-kun never yielded once, right?

Nikaido Yamato: You guys didn't compromise at all. That scene sounds scary. Did you not drive Yaotome away?

Yuki: That’s not true. Next time, come and hang out with us, Yamato-kun.

Osaka Sougo: Ah... I'd love to have you visit.

Natsume Minami: You're welcome to join. Please come and judge.

Nikaido Yamato: Absolutely not... It’s like being a middleman to the poetry match between controversial poets. (1)

Natsume Minami: Oh, you know about the poetry match controversy.

Osaka Sougo: Yamato-san, you’re very educated.

Yuki: Shizuo-san trained you properly.

Nikaido Yamato: Wai...!

Yuki: Ah, oops.

Nikaido Yamato: Damn you… we can’t use that anymore, even though I was being praised.

Yuki: My bad.

Osaka Sougo: How about adding a beep sound?

Natsume Minami: It might make one’s imagination go wild.

Yuki: Sorry, sorry. Let's naturally bring up Yamato-kun's intellectual side.

Nikaido Yamato: No, it's fine. It'll definitely seem staged...

Yuki: It's okay. You're genius young actors after all.

Osaka Sougo: Wow... I'm looking forward to seeing your performance live and up close.

Nikaido Yamato: Seriously!?

Natsume Minami: I'll follow up. Let's do our best.

—PLEASE WAIT A MOMENT—

Nikaido Yamato: Huh? Hell no... It’s like being a middleman to the poetry match between controversial poets.

Natsume Minami: Oh, you know about the poetry match controversy.

Osaka Sougo: Yamato-san, you're very educated.

Nikaido Yamato: Naaaah, it ain’t like that...

Yuki: Why are you being so casual out of nowhere?

—PLEASE WAIT A MOMENT—

Natsume Minami: Just like that, we get along very well!

Nikaido Yamato & Osaka Sougo & Yuki: Yaay.

Natsume Minami: Now that we've answered the staff's question. Let’s start asking each other questions.

Natsume Minami: Who would like to start?

Nikaido Yamato: So, we can ask whatever we want to get to know each other better, right?

Natsume Minami: Yes, that's correct.

Nikaido Yamato: Hmm, what should I ask… Sou, do you have anything?

Osaka Sougo: Well...

Osaka Sougo: When you fight within the group, how do you all resolve it?

Natsume Minami: A fight within the group...

Yuki: Oh, nice. That’s an interesting question.

Nikaido Yamato: What about me? Can I talk about IDOLiSH7? Sou would know about it.

Osaka Sougo: Of course. As long as Yamato-san answers from his perspective, it's fine.

Nikaido Yamato: Got it. Ah... but to be honest I'm curious about other groups.

Nikaido Yamato: You see, we have seven members, so we are an odd number. We resolve disputes by taking a majority vote.

Yuki: Would that really resolve things?

Natsume Minami: IDOLiSH7-san, you’re not that democratic.

Nikaido Yamato: Don't diss other groups. But you know, Re:vale and ŹOOĻ both have an even number of members, right?

Nikaido Yamato: Since a majority vote won't settle things, I wonder how you deal with disputes like that.

Natsume Minami: Just for reference, how about MEZZO"?

Osaka Sougo: Well let’s see... I face Tamaki-kun with a genuine, peaceful and attentive attitude, but...

Nikaido Yamato: MEZZO" always seems chaotic despite your attentive attitude.

Osaka Sougo: Yeah... Maybe because we're a duo... What about Re:vale-san?

Yuki: Momo usually lets me have my way.

Nikaido Yamato: I’m sure he does.

Yuki: But when I really want him to yield, he aaaaaaaabsolutely refuses to let go.

Natsume Minami: Ahh...

Yuki: When that happens, well... Since we're not animals nor delinquents, we end up getting in a verbal argument, right?

Osaka Sougo: That's true.

Yuki: How many people in the entertainment industry do you think can win in a verbal argument against Momo?

Nikaido Yamato: Ahaha! Now that you say it!

Natsume Minami: Because Momo-san is quick-witted, right?

Yuki: That's why you have to express your opinion firmly at first so as not to be swayed by Momo.

Yuki: I have to really steel myself so I won’t let him win over me.

Yuki: Then I gradually start.. um... losing my composure in my tone...

Nikaido Yamato: Oh, you lose your composure...

Yuki: Before I know it, I end up going too far, and when Momo looks sad I end up feeling really sad too.

Natsume Minami: I’m sorry to hear that... How do you resolve it at the end of the day?

Yuki: ...

Yuki: I wonder how we resolve it?

Osaka Sougo: I don't know...

Nikaido Yamato: But being close with each other means that you compromise after you say what’s on your mind, right?

Yuki: Yeah, I guess so.

Natsume Minami: I think it’s a good thing to convey your true feelings even if you fight.

Yuki: Thank you. But we rarely fight to that degree. Momo is always kind to me.

Yuki: What about ŹOOḼ? I mean we don’t really know much about you.

Natsume Minami: Yeah, I don't really understand us either.

Nikaido Yamato: Don't say that yourself.

Yuki: Although you seem very assertive, you’re always concerned with the reactions of people around you, aren’t you?

Natsume Minami: (Whispering) Oh wow... This guy probably never cared about other people’s reactions...

Nikaido Yamato: (Whispering) It can't be helped. He has good qualities in his own way...

Yuki: What are you mumbling about over there. You're talking about something normal, right?

Natsume Minami: Please continue.

Yuki: Do you end up fighting? Or does it end up basked in a gloomy atmosphere?

Natsume Minami: ...

Natsume Minami: A gloomy atmosphere, I guess. That’s why it doesn't flare up easily. It simmers with dissatisfaction.

Nikaido Yamato: Oh, that's not good.

Natsume Minami: When everyone's dissatisfaction gauge fills to the brim, it feels like a "fight!!" moment.

Osaka Sougo: Like a battle royale?

Natsume Minami: Well, not exactly… Everyone has become more considerate of each other lately.

Natsume Minami: Inumaru-san is a straightforward person, but the other members are rather complex, and they tend to demand a lot from each other, you know...

Osaka Sougo: What do you mean by “having a lot of demands”?

Natsume Minami: It's like they expect others to understand without saying anything, or assuming that others know what you want...

Yuki: You mean like Yamato-kun?

Nikaido Yamato: Hey, don't point fingers.

Osaka Sougo: That’s troublesome... I'm not very perceptive, so I’d probably end up offending everyone.

Natsume Minami: Is that so?

Osaka Sougo: I don't want to cause trouble, so I'd like everyone to write down what they want on paper and tell me to do it.

Natsume Minami: No, that’s no good. I want them to be troubled after all.

Osaka Sougo: Is that so !?

Natsume Minami: Yes.

Natsume Minami: I want them to be troubled, or rather, I want them to do some internal thinking. And then, I want them to understand.

Yuki: Wouldn’t it be faster if you wrote it down on paper...

Natsume Minami: I'm not ordering dinner at a restaurant.

Osaka Sougo: No matter how much I think about things, there is still stuff I don’t understand, so I hope they can be lenient in their scoring...

Nikaido Yamato: I understand both sides. The feeling of wanting to demand something and the feeling of thinking it's too much of a hassle.

Osaka Sougo: I don't think it's bothersome.

Yuki: Neither do I.

Nikaido Yamato: You people with partners should stop correcting others while having a specific audience in mind… 

Natsume Minami: Inumaru-san is that type, right? He doesn't think it's troublesome, but he doesn’t live up to your expectations.

Natsume Minami: And yet, he really, earnestly tries to face us. Mm, how do I explain it…

Natsume Minami: It's like playing "bird-in-the-cage”...

Yuki: ŹOOḼ’s conflicts are too scary...

Nikaido Yamato: So Inumaru ends up in the middle of that "bird-in-the-cage” circle, right...?

Osaka Sougo: Please go easy on him…

Natsume Minami: How about IDOLiSH7’s conflicts? Nikaido-san.

Nikaido Yamato: We had a lot of trouble at the dorm... 

Nikaido Yamato: But being together for this long, we've learned that even if we fight for a bit, we can understand each other by talking it out.

Osaka Sougo: Ahh... That’s true, isn’t it?

Nikaido Yamato: So, first of all, we talk about it. We know we're not enemies.

Yuki: Huh. How ideal.

Natsume Minami: Does such a peaceful world truly exist?

Nikaido Yamato: I know what you mean. I wouldn't have believed that things could be resolved through discussion a long time ago, either. 

Nikaido Yamato: Someone must put up with it, while the other does what they want.

Nikaido Yamato: But after spending so much time together, you start to understand each other gradually.

Nikaido Yamato: I don't want to hurt them. I want to make things work in this group. They’re all such important friends…

Nikaido Yamato: When you think about it that way, you’ll find that the root of the problem lies elsewhere, or that there are misunderstandings happening between you.

Nikaido Yamato: So you unravel them carefully. That’s all there is to it. 

Nikaido Yamato: In other words, even if we become something similar to a family, it’s still necessary to do that.

Nikaido Yamato: It's impossible to get along with someone you barely know without being careless in some way.

Natsume Minami: That's true...

Nikaido Yamato: But you still seek them out, right? Especially when I was a child, I felt loved as if I were the center of the world.

Nikaido Yamato: People around me naturally took care of me. When you live and get used to that comfort, the gap between that and reality can be tough.

Yuki: That's deep.

Nikaido Yamato: What were we talking about again? Oh right, resolving conflicts. Anyways, in our case it's through discussion.

Osaka Sougo: I would have liked to hear about TRIGGER's experiences too.

Yuki: TRIGGER are very blunt, so I might end up crying.

Nikaido Yamato: I might cry too.

Osaka Sougo: It's because they trust each other that they can start boxing with each other, right?

Natsume Minami: Who said anything about boxing...?

Nikaido Yamato: Alright, next. Who wants to go for it?

Yuki: Can I go?

Nikaido Yamato: Go ahead.

Natsume Minami: No problem.

Yuki: What kind of asparagus dishes do you like?

Nikaido Yamato: ...Huh...?

Osaka Sougo: ...Asparagus...?

Natsume Minami: ...Like the vegetables...?

Yuki: Yes.

Nikaido Yamato: Hey you, do you even wanna do this?

Yuki: I do, I do. Complaint letters will roll your way again if you keep talking to me in that tone.

Natsume Minami: What are you talking about?

Nikaido Yamato: I received complaint letters from Yuki-san's fans...

Yuki: Since we’re here anyways, I’d like to take this opportunity to explain the situation properly.

Nikaido Yamato: What do you mean by opportunity? Are you stupid? You’re gonna cause trouble for the innocent Jyuurokugumi, you know?

Natsume Minami: Wahh... the way Nikaido-san is talking to his senpai from Re:vale is a bit scary…

Nikaido Yamato: Wow. Natsume-chan, you're a good actor.

Osaka Sougo: Yamato-san is a serious person when he needs to be.

Nikaido Yamato: Sou, thanks for the sharp comment.

Yuki: Let me explain why Yamato-kun is so rude to me in very brief words.

Nikaido Yamato: There’s no way you can explain it briefly.

Yuki: Yes I can.

Yuki: Yamato-kun was the son of the manager at my part-time job.

—PLEASE WAIT A MOMENT—

Natsume Minami: Is asparagus a vegetable?

Yuki: Yup. I received a whole box of them.

Yuki: Momo likes meat, so I'm eating them pretty much by myself.

Yuki: I was wondering if you had any recipes you could recommend.

Osaka Sougo: That must be quite difficult. If it's okay with us, we'd like to help.

Yuki: Thank you. You're kind juniors.

Yuki: May I ask Yamato-kun as well?

Nikaido Yamato: Oh... no problem. I just received a rabbichat from Mitsu.

Yuki: What kind of rabbichat?

Nikaido Yamato: An asparagus recipe. It's a coincidence. Just happened.

Osaka Sougo: Maybe his sixth sense kicked in.

Natsume Minami: Please tell us about Izumi Mitsuki-san's asparagus recipe.

Nikaido Yamato: Asparagus rice. Cook rice with asparagus and salt. You can also add sesame seeds or corn.

Yuki: Oh... Rice, huh. Sounds good. Momo might eat it too.

Nikaido Yamato: I've had it before and it's seriously delicious. Right, Sou?

Osaka Sougo: It's delicious. It's like bean rice.

Yuki: Huh... Then I’ll try making it. Thank you, Mitsuki-kun.

Osaka Sougo: Next is my turn... I recommend asparagus kimchi.

Yuki: Kimchi? Did you make it yourself?

Osaka Sougo: No, I got it as a gift.

Natsume Minami: Surprisingly you really like spicy food, right Osaka-san?

Osaka Sougo: I like it. I like it right up to the limit.

Natsume Minami: What do you mean by the limit...?

Osaka Sougo: Asparagus kimchi is mild, not quite at the limit, but I recommend it as a side dish.

Yuki: Alright, I'll buy some kimchi stock and try making asparagus kimchi. If it turns out well, I'll share it with you.

Osaka Sougo: Thank you very much.

Yuki: How about you, Minami-kun?

Natsume Minami: Grill it in charcoal and sprinkle it with salt. That's it.

Nikaido Yamato: Oh, what do you know, that tastes like the most delicious thing ever.

Natsume Minami: That's right.

Yuki: I understand. Topped with mayo would be good too.

Natsume Minami: Momo-san grills the meat, and Yuki-san grills the asparagus. Why not just turn it into yakiniku?

Yuki: That's a good idea.

Yuki: Thank you, it was helpful.

Nikaido Yamato: I can't believe you really went with this question...

Osaka Sougo: Who goes next? Natsume-kun or Yamato-san...

Nikaido Yamato: Alright, I’ll go.

Nikaido Yamato: When it comes to chameleons, they’re all about mimicry, right? So, among the 16 idols in this project...

Nikaido Yamato: If you could impersonate any of them for a day, who would you want to be?

Yuki: MEZZO".

Nikaido Yamato: I said one person.

Yuki: Then, I'd like to be Sougo-kun. Please let me try.

Osaka Sougo: If you’re okay with me…

Yuki: I want to be Osaka Sougo of MEZZO" and do whatever I want.

Natsume Minami: Oh wow…as if Re:vale’s Yuki doesn’t already do that…

Nikaido Yamato: Natsume-chan, shut up…

Yuki: What about the other two? Who would you like to be?

Natsume Minami: ...

Natsume Minami: Not much these days... I know it doesn't make much sense...

Nikaido Yamato: Mhm.

Osaka Sougo: So who do you want to be?

Natsume Minami: ...

Natsume Minami: ...It's fine. It’s nothing.

Nikaido Yamato: No, just say it. Feel free to answer casually.

Natsume Minami: Casually...

Natsume Minami: The answer might be a bit extreme and difficult to answer, is that okay?

Nikaido Yamato: Huh...?

Yuki: Is it that serious?

Osaka Sougo: But since we're here, it might be better to reveal it and leave it behind...

Natsume Minami: ...

Natsume Minami: Rokuya Nagi-san...

Nikaido Yamato & Osaka Sougo: Ah...

Yuki: Huh. Why? What's the reason?

Nikaido Yamato: You’re the only one here who’s never been to Northmeir, so you don’t get how cold the temperature is there… 

Yuki: What do you mean by temperature? You mean because he's a prince from a cold country?

Yuki: Minami-kun, do you like the cold?

Natsume Minami: ...

Yuki: Y-You dislike it?

Natsume Minami: ...Like or dislike... If I had to say I dislike something, then I hate Rokuya-san.

Yuki: What. Nagi-kun?

Natsume Minami: Fufu... Even though we hadn't met back then, it's strange.

Natsume Minami: ...

Natsume Minami: I'm sorry. Forget it.

—PLEASE WAIT A MOMENT—

Nikaido Yamato: Uhhh…

Nikaido Yamato: Well then, how about you, Sou? If you could mimic any of us 16 for a day, who would it be?

Osaka Sougo: You mean I would impersonate them right?

Nikaido Yamato: That’s right.

Osaka Sougo: ...I’m not too keen on the idea. Because no matter whose appearance I take, it’s gonna be a serious responsibility… 

Nikaido Yamato: Just relax and have fun. Think of it as a one-day experience.

Osaka Sougo: That’s right…

Osaka Sougo: Well, in that case... maybe Tamaki-kun. I'd like to experience the world through Tamaki-kun's eyes and see what it's like.

Osaka Sougo: What looks wonderful and what feels painful... I want to know and use it in the future.

Nikaido Yamato: That's more of a study for yourself rather than for your own enjoyment.

Yuki: Even though I said I wanted to become Sougo-kun and do whatever I want...

Osaka Sougo: Oh... If that's the case, I'd like to become Yuki-san for a day and play the guitar well.

Nikaido Yamato: Well, exchanging experiences isn't a bad idea. What about you, Natsume-chan? Who would you like to imitate?

Natsume Minami: Well, let me think. Maybe Isumi-san?

Natsume Minami: I don't have any regrets, but if I had a chance, I'd like to go back to my high school days and start over.

Natsume Minami: Just for one day.

Nikaido Yamato: I see. Thank you.

Natsume Minami: You're welcome.

Yuki: Alright, last question. Minami-kun, do you have a question for us?

Natsume Minami: As you can see in the lyrics… talking about one’s true self.

Natsume Minami: When did you all start to realize your true selves?

Natsume Minami: When you’re a child you still have a vague sense of self, right?

Natsume Minami: So in relation to your true self... When did you all start sensing your individuality?

Natsume Minami: Was there any specific trigger?

Osaka Sougo: My individuality, huh..

Nikaido Yamato: The true self, huh?

Yuki: May I go first?

Natsume Minami: Go ahead.

Yuki: I've always only understood myself.

Yuki: In a way, I've always been my true self.

Natsume Minami: That's quite amazing...

Yuki: Well, I'm just a regular bastard. Being my true self is truly nothing special.

Nikaido Yamato: Don’t say that... You're rather kind, honestly. You've been really kind to me.

Yuki: Haha, thanks.

Yuki: But I met a really good person, and a really good man, so I wanted to be good too. (2)

Yuki: And that's who I am now.

Yuki: It might not be my true self, but it's not a lie or pretense. I consider it growth.

Yuki: In that sense, I've always been nothing but my true self since I can remember.

Natsume Minami: I see...

Natsume Minami: What about you, Osaka-san?

Osaka Sougo: The true self... that's a difficult question.

Osaka Sougo: Looking back now, I think it was back when I deepened my bond with my uncle that I started to understand my true self.

Natsume Minami: Your uncle... I think I've heard about him somewhere.

Osaka Sougo: He passed away already, but I had an uncle who loved music, and he influenced me in a lot of ways.

Osaka Sougo: It was through him that my interest in music blossomed.

Osaka Sougo: However, if someone were to ask if I was my true self there, I’d still think I couldn't fully crystallize it...

Osaka Sougo: It was after joining IDOLiSH7 and spending time with my trusted friends that I gradually came to know my true self.

Osaka Sougo: At least, that's how I feel.

Yuki: I see. It seems quite late then.

Osaka Sougo: Yes... When I was a child, I was the kind of person who followed what adults around me said as best as I could.

Osaka Sougo: I was a version of myself who tried their hardest not to be disliked by others rather than my true authentic self.

Natsume Minami: I understand... It’s easier that way at first, isn’t it?

Natsume Minami: Follow someone's orders, get praised for doing well on your task, and feel a sense of relief.

Natsume Minami: But as you continue to listen to others' orders, you forget what you wanted for yourself.

Osaka Sougo: That's right... Maybe I was like that too.

Osaka Sougo: Since joining IDOLiSH7, even now at this moment, I feel like I'm walking the path I chose, making decisions I chose for myself.

Osaka Sougo: Being true to myself. That's how I feel.

Yuki: What a good story. What about you, Yamato-kun?

Nikaido Yamato: I guess I feel somewhat the same as Sou...

Natsume Minami: Did you get to meet your true self late down the line?

Nikaido Yamato: Hmm... No, I don't know. I feel like my true self has always been there since the beginning.

Nikaido Yamato: Not like you, Yuki-san, but in my case, I was a little shit… A spoiled brat who doesn’t know anything.

Nikaido Yamato: But well, a lot of things happened to me... I realized that the self who thought, "Whatever, it's fine, isn't it?" was an idiot.

Nikaido Yamato: I pretended to be someone who had no desires, someone who was easy to live with, someone who was hard to hurt.

Nikaido Yamato: Being indifferent is easy, right? It’s easy to convince yourself that you don’t care. That it's not painful, not sad…

Nikaido Yamato: If you think something doesn’t matter, you don’t get attached to it and let go comfortably.

Nikaido Yamato:...But after joining IDOLiSH7, the things I couldn’t let go of increased unexpectedly…

Nikaido Yamato: When I couldn’t pretend to not care anymore, the little shit of a kid in me manifested himself again…

Nikaido Yamato: Ugh! Embarrassing! Stay inside, don't come out! Or so I thought.

Nikaido Yamato: But everyone was so kind to that bratty child in me.

Nikaido Yamato: So, I kinda thought... Ah, this is fine. Maybe I can be my true self now.

Yuki: What a heartwarming story.

Nikaido Yamato: No…Well, thank you for taking care of me.

Osaka Sougo: Yamato-san, that’s the thing about you... Somehow, I might have felt a similar part within myself.

Osaka Sougo: At that time, Yamato-san understanding my feelings was a tremendous emotional support for me.

Nikaido Yamato: I'm glad to hear you say that...It feels like the atmosphere has become quite serious.

Yuki: No, I’m glad. I want to hear Minami-kun's story about his true self as well.

Natsume Minami: Okay, then during the after-party.

Yuki: Sounds good.

Nikaido Yamato: Oops. Now that the questions have gone full circle, Sou, go ahead.

Osaka Sougo: Alright. The “8th Anniversary! Four Thanks Project”!

Osaka Sougo: Celebrating the formation of the temporary unit! This was “Ask this and that!?”, “Chameleon Chill” edition!

Chameleon Chill: Please drink! 'Chameleon Chill'!

Audience: Kyaaaaa!

Osaka Sougo: Hello, everyone!

Osaka Sougo: I'm Osaka Sougo from “Chameleon Chill”!

Audience: Kyaaaaa!

Nikaido Yamato: Hello! I'm the big brother of ‘Chameleon Chill”. Nikaido Yamato!

Audience: Kyaaaaa!

Yuki: But I’m the big brother in this unit, aren’t I?

Nikaido Yamato: I'm sorry. Force of habit, so if I don't say it I’ll feel weird...

Audience: Kyaaaaa!

Natsume Minami: I'm Natsume Minami from “Chameleon Chill.”

Audience: Kyaaaaa!

Natsume Minami: Louder!

Audience: Kyaaaaa!!

Natsume Minami: That's good. Tonight we’re gonna show you all your true selves.

Audience: Kyaaaaa!

Yuki: Good evening. I'm Yuki from Re-

Yuki: Yuki from “Chameleon Chill.”

Audience: Kyaaaaa!

Nikaido Yamato: What did you just say? You were going to say Re:vale, right?

Yuki: Sorry, sorry.

Osaka Sougo: Thank you for participating in the “8th Anniversary! Four Thanks Project” campaign.

Nikaido Yamato: To the 1000 winners selected by lottery!

Natsume Minami: And to the special ones here with us!

Yuki: Let’s start the “Miracle Limited-Time 4 Unit Thanks Live”.

Audience: Kyaaaaa!

Osaka Sougo: Now, please listen to our unit song, which is also the CM song for 'Chameleon Chill'!

Osaka Sougo: Here we go. One, two..

Chameleon Chill: 'Chameleon'!

The end.

They make a reference to “独鈷鎌首” in the original text, which apparently is a story about a poet known for his love for debate in “the poetry match in 600 rounds”, the women of the household nicknamed it the controversy between “Tokke (an implement pointed at both ends) and Kamakubi (gooseneck)”, this is used to describe a poet with a penchant to engage in debates. I couldn’t find much info about this, and I’ve never heard about this before, so any correction if I’m wrong would be greatly appreciated ;_;

In the OG text, Yuki says a good “man” (in reference to Banri, since he’s older than Yuki) and a good “kid” (in reference to Momo, since he’s younger than Yuki). Since the public doesn’t know about Banri, I chose to keep the gender vague for him and use “man” on Momo.

[morose-melodies]

how to defeat a giant | yandere! fatui harbingers x reader

content warning: none

summary: due to dottore's carelessness, he broke a glass jar while experimenting with toxic gasses and now the gasses a spreading throughout the castle.

note: I finally wrote part 3, yay. I've had half of it written for months but didn't know how to continue it, so I gave up. but I finally finished it, yay. I'm not sure if it's going to be all that good though and so sorry for the lazy ending, I did not know how to finish it. but anyway, I hope you all enjoy :)

taglist: @kaveh-is-pretty @nomorefstogive @frankypasta @salacun @teal-aurora

part 1 part 2 part 3

the sky was falling.

you were sure of it and afraid. the dark, star-less sky was falling, growing closer and closer to the ground, and soon, the sky would meet the earth.

you pressed your palms against the cold window and looked up, frozen and afraid, what can anyone do in a situation like this?

perhaps you could stop this from happening if only you had your power, but alas, that was in the past, you've changed and no longer wield the power that made you special.

"no..." a stray tear left your eye as you moved away from the window and towards the door to your room, you knocked, gently at first but as time passed it became more frantic and rough.

you began to feel faint, and your knocking became harder and you began to cry, "please, open this door! please someone- anyone! open the door!"

no answer.

you cried harder, the side of your hand becoming sore from banging on the door, you knocked and cried for quite some time but never gained an answer which led you to back away from the door and sit beside the window again.

you felt terrible. you rested your cheek against the window and cried, watching as the sky fell.

...

"what have you done, dottore?" PIERRO questioned dottore as DOTTORE passed out gas masks to all of the present harbingers, "there was a small incident." dottore replied.

COLUMBINA giggled as dottore tried to water down the situation before them.

"small? soldiers are fainting from that gas- some are in critical condition, what do you mean small?" SANDRONE snapped at dottore, as she slid the mask onto her face.

"this is a first. nothing like this has happened to me before-"

"mistakes from you will not be tolerated. some soldiers are barely breathing and delirious due to your mistake, nothing like this will happen again, understood?" pierro narrowed his eyes as he watched dottore humbled himself and nodded, before saying "of course, lord harbinger."

columbina messed with the straps on her gas mask as she asked, "do you think the gasses have reached out mag-"

"has something happened, where are all of the soldiers?" asked PANTALONE as he entered the castle, pierro quickly pulled pantalone in and shut the door behind pantalone, "we cannot let the gasses reach the town if that happens, we will never hear the end of it."

columbina tuts, after being cut off but didn't attempt to speak again.

"gasses-?" before pantalone could ask, dottore handed him a gas mask and with no questioning, he slid it over his face, "what gas? what has happened?" pantalone asked, and before dottore could explain, sandrone said, "dottore made a mistake, broke a jar full of toxic gasses, its harming harbingers and yet he doesn't seem to... care that much."

pantalone nodded slowly, his eyes roaming across the room slowly, but his majesty was nowhere to be seen, "where is our majesty?"

everyone paused, silence overtaking them before dottore said, with a scoff, "don't worry, our majesty is in the safest room of the castle, the gasses wouldn't be able to reach our majesty so soon."

"we don't want the gasses to reach our majesty at all!" sandrone was on the verge of ripping her hair out from the frustration she felt.

"we should check on our majesty..." columbina butted in, as she tugged at the straps of the gas mask, harder.

"do you know the side effect of the gasses, dottore?" pantalone asked, and dottore shook his head, "I know nothing about the gas, I was merely messing around when the jars broke."

"so... you were just playing with toxic gasses-"

"yes."

sandrone released a sigh, as she turned away from dottore, her frustration apparent as she clenched her fist. columbina grinned at the chaos, "how long have the gasses been flowing around?" she asked.

"for more than two hours now," dottore replied before sighing, hard... he believed everyone was completely overreacting.

"we must check on our majesty... just in the case that anything has happened, " pantalone said before he turned on his heel and began to walk up the staircase which led to your room.

the front door opened once again, "hey-!"

pierro pulled CHILDE into the castle and shut the door behind him, before handing him a gas mask, "what's this for?" childe asked as he slid it onto his face.

"dottore... released toxic gasses into the air," sandrone briefly explain and childe laughed, "really? I would have never expected that from him."

"me neither," columbina grinned and childe quickly looked over to the corner where columbina was resting and cringed slightly as he nodded.

...

"your majesty...? if you don't mind, we're coming in," pantalone warned but gained no response. pantalone opened the door and looked in, you weren't by the door or on your bed.

you were by the window, on the ground. pantalone fully entered the room and dottore followed after him. "you said our majesty was safe-"

"perhaps our majesty is resting," dottore said, trying not to worry pantalone as he turned you onto your back.

the gas had definitely reached you.

he could tell, from the way you were twitching and choking on your drool, the way your eyes rolled back into your head, and the way you were barely breathing.

dottore turned to pantalone, and tried his best to remain calm as he asked, "go back down and get a gas mask for our majesty, do not take your time."

pantalone was quick to leave the room and go down the stairs, to see that CAPITANO and ARLECCHINO had arrived, "I need a gas mask for our majesty."

pierro handed a gas mask to pantalone, then he went back up, just as he was walking up the stairs, capitano asked, "is our majesty not doing well?"

"I'm sure our majesty will be fine," pantalone replied but his voice was laced with uncertainty, which caused capitano to follow after pantalone.

pantalone reentered the room and capitano followed after him, "here," he handed the mask to dottore and dottore put the mask onto you.

dottore connected his and your mask (let us all pretend that something like that exists), so that his oxygen would become your own so that you could regain consciousness soon.

you choked before a small cry left your lips, pantalone kneeled to your side and ran his fingers across your arm, "are you feeling well, your majesty?"

"...sky... the sky, " you choke out as you attempted to sit up but dottore stopped you, mumbling for you to relax because you didn't feel well.

"what about the sky, your majesty-"

"pantalone, our majesty is already confused and you are making our majesty even more confused." dottore grumbled before lifting you into his and handing you over to capitano, after unconnecting your masks.

capitano took you down the stairs, "the sky... sky," you continue to repeat and in response, capitano hushed you, saying, "your majesty, calm down... you're confusing yourself."

"lay our majesty onto that table," dottore said to capitano, knowing he couldn't take you into his laboratory, so he settled for the dining room table, "and get a blanket for our majesty," dottore said to childe who idly sat on the table.

capitano placed you once the table and you tried to sit up once again, "the sky... it-" capitano gently placed a hand onto your shoulder and with a gentle push you lay motionless on the table.

"the sky..." you mumbled idly, weakly reaching out to sandrone, who looked over to you anxiously, she quickly made her way to your side and took your hand into hers, "what's wrong, your majesty?"

but you didn't reply but continued to mindlessly mumble on about the sky. what was happening? why do you feel so bad? why are all the harbingers leaning over you with worried expressions?

"our majesty will be alright, with time, surly the side effects will fade off, our majesty's immune system is far stronger than the average human's immune system" dottore tried to calm the others, though his words didn't seem to calm them at all.

"i can't believe this!" sandrone grumbled, her fists tight as she narrowed her eyes at dottore, "this wouldn't have happened if you were a little more... more careful!"

seeing you so weak... disheartened sandrone.

"hey, you heard dottore, our majesty will be fine. just give our majesty some time to come around," childe stood at the edge of the table, a small smile on his face, as his hand rested upon your ankle, as he tried to comfort sandrone though his words didn't seem to reach her.

"what...? what's happening, where-" you pushed yourself up slowly, eyes squinted, vision blurred and hands shaking.

"your majesty-!"

"sandrone, quiet." pierro held a hand up, to silence her or anyone else who would attempt to speak.

you were silent, staring off past the harbingers and at the wall. your lips parted and breath uneven. "pierro- tell me what's happening," you commanded as you ran your fingers across the gas mask on your face, "wh-what is this?"

"dottore released toxic gasses into the air as a result of him carelessly messing around with the gasses in his laboratory." pierro replied, his tone sharp as he glanced back at dottore.

"forgive me, your majesty." dottore apologized, his eyes closely watching you as you looked around at all the harbingers.

columbina sat down beside you, her cold fingertips running across your skin, as she felt for your pulse and smiled.

"now, your majesty, you were saying something about the sky... do you remember what you were talking about?" pantalone asked.

"yes..." you started, as you tried to get off of the dining table but capitano grabbed your arm and pulled you back to where you were once sitting, "the sky... was falling. i saw it," you told the harbingers.

"falling? is that even possible?" arlecchino asked, and dottore shook his head, "completely impossible. perhaps the gasses reached her sooner than i initially thought it had," dottore mumbled to himself but sandrone, being so shaken up by what had happened, said, "this is terrible! You're just terrible. you've caused our majesty unnecessary suffering... thanks to your carelessness."

"have I not apologized countless times?" dottore asked, his eyes narrowed at sandrone, "if you hadn't been so carele-"

"stop it- the both of you. do you not realize you're making this about yourselves other than our majesty? both of you, come with me" pierro grabbed dottore and sandrone by their arms and with a less than polite grin, excused the three of them.

columbina grinned as dottore and sandrone got pulled away.

the remaining harbingers sat in silence.

childe sat at the edge of the table, his hand rubbing your ankle. to childe, it was an honor to touch your skin... your perfect skin... heck, it was an honor to even be able to serve you.

arlecchino was admittedly quite angry though she made no comments. how could dottore be so careless... our majesty could have died because of him... how dare he. she stood at your side, her hands pocketed in an attempt to look composed but by the way she was biting her lip, it was obvious that she wasn't at all happy with what happened.

capitano was at the side of arlecchino, he silently stared down at you, he was just grateful that you were okay. things could be worse. but they aren't and he's grateful for that. he wanted to hold you again but he knew if he did, he'd end up never letting you go.

columbina was sitting at your side, her cold fingertips grazing your skin, as she hummed to you. she was happy, to say the least, she didn't want to be away from you for so long ever again. she smiled softly as she held your hand.

pierro came back minutes later, "your majesty is going to recover just fine. some of the soldiers are already making recoveries themself."

the tension amongst the harbingers seemed to fade and everything seemed okay again.

[dira333]

Wild Dreams - Sero Hanta x Soulmate Reader

For my Follower Celebration - requested by @fuzztacular

and before anyone asks: Denki's soulmate is blind as a bat without her glasses and mistook him for a friend

“Hey, sexy lady.” 

You look up from the breakfast you’ve been preparing. 

Hanta’s standing in the doorway, exhaustion pulling on the bags under his eyes. He’s still in his Hero Costume, looking almost as dashing as when he left yesterday evening.

You, on the other hand, are wearing one of his shirts that you pretended to throw out months ago and threadbare pajama shirts, your hair hasn’t seen a brush and you’re pretty sure you forgot to take off your make up last night.

But that’s Hanta for you. Flirting with you even when he’s falling asleep standing up.

“Hey yourself.” You wave your spatula at him. “Do you want to have breakfast with me?”

“I want to sleep with you. In our bed. Just… eight hours of uninterrupted sleep. Could we do that?”

You laugh. “You can, but I will be off to work in an hour.”

He takes two steps and drapes himself over your shoulders. “Please?” He whines. “The bed isn’t the same without you.”

“Five minutes.” You agree easily. “Go wash up.”

“YAY!” He presses a sloppy kiss to your cheek and dances out of the kitchen while you finish your breakfast.

You’re not surprised to find him fast asleep by the time you step into your bedroom. 

He’s curled into himself, leaving just enough space for you to slip in between his arms. 

You close your eyes, trusting your phone alarm to wake you up - and allow yourself to slip dream…

-

Years before

“This sucks.” Hanta mutters and pops another handful of popcorn into his mouth.

“What sucks?” Denki’s been fiddlling with his phone, his Nachos precarily balanced on his drink.

“Soulmates.”

“Oh, that again?”

“Yes, that again! I can’t believe I’m the only one in our class who doesn’t have a soulmate.”

“You don’t know that.” Denki repeats his mantra for the hundredth time. “You just don’t have any visible clues.”

“Even Mineta has a Soulmate! He might not have found it yet, but how cool is that? Only being able to see colours when you meet them? That way you know for sure who it is.”

“You could have the same type as Todoroki. Your soulmate is just ultracareful that’s why you haven’t felt any pain yet.”

“Nah.” Hanta shakes his head. “I told you, I don’t have a soulmate. Just accept it and feel lucky about your own.”

Denki levels him with a glare. Right at the collar of his shirt sits his soulmark, four words written out in scraggly handwriting, spelling “What’s up, Dumbass?”

“You shouldn’t give up that easily,” a voice behind him says and Hanta turns, surprised to see the prettiest girl he’s probably ever met.

“I…” He starts, mouth dry, words dying on his tongue.

“Couldn’t help but overhear.” You stick out your tongue as you smile. “But you could be a dreamsharer? Everyone in my family is one.”

“That can’t be.” Hanta shakes his head. “My dreams haven’t changed at all ever since I remember.”

“What a shame.” You put one hand on his arm as you speak and his mouth runs dry again.

“What are your dreams like, then?”

Hanta looks over at Denki who’s eyes are as big as saucers now, urging him to keep talking. 

“I, uh… they’re pretty active? Like there’s this new anime that I started watching lately and I keep dreaming that I’m in it.”

You laugh. “Don’t tell me it’s Haikyuu. I keep thinking that I’d make such a great Libero but I keep dreaming of myself as the Ace.”

“You watch that too? That’s funny, it’s the other way around for me! I think the Ace’s are the coolest, especially Asahi or Iwaizumi, but I always dream of myself as the Libero.”

Your smile grows. 

“What a coincidence.” You draw the words out and flick your eyes to the front where the doors to the cinema hall open. 

“I think you should give me your number.” You say, words coming out so smooth Hanta thinks he’s misheard you. “Just in case we dream of each other tonight. You never know.”

-

When your alarm goes off, Hanta is dreaming of swinging from building to building, the night sky clear and full of stars above him.

You don’t feel bad to leave him to his own dreams when they’re as nice as today, even less when you know that this has been the last night shift for a while.

My Kofi if you want to tip me

[sugar-plum-writer]

A Heian Era Affair

Parings: GojoSatrou!ModernEra x FemReader!HeianEra! Tags: Fem!Reader; Gojo!imagines; slight!mention of violence; Chaos; 18+ as more chapters come; slow burn [I want to have a good build up~ just like my Sukuna series fic~]; An ancient Japan romance through time with reader A/n: Sorry for not putting out any updates or fics for almost a month! T~T I was busy with college and sem exams! but they are finally over so yay!!!!

[If you all like it, please heart and reblog the post! to know you want to read more~ and follow for chapter updates! or leave a comment to tag you when I put out new chapters~ I will do my best to roll out UPDATES ASAP!]

@elernity @derpykirb here is the update! ^-^

CHAPTER - 3

The sunlight basked in the small wooden house, the morning dew shimmered as the birds chirped in a lovely tune, a better alarm clock than what Gojo was used to

"Don't wash clothes like that! if you use too much strength it will rip apart!"

"I am trying god damn it!"

Wiping the sweat from his forehead he scrubbed the clothes, you guided him as you sat beside him, your hair tied up in a bun sweating yourself.

"How did humans survive this!?" he groaned

As he and you continued washing the clothes you heard a scream from him

"Ah shit!-", he bit his lip

"Oh lord what happened!?", hurriedly you took his hand and your eyes widened as blood dripped from his wrist

"This is bad wait let me get medicine!"

"Wait-"

Before he could say anything you had already left

"I can use RCT…" he whispered words barely audible as he watched you running

After some seconds he saw you holding a wooden box

"You truly are useless and cannot even wash clothes properly! How can you even call yourself the strongest!?" you nagged him as you cleaned up his wounds and bandaged him up

"Oh sorry I am not used to washing clothes using ancient methods near rivers am I?!", he argued back as the yelling continued

Unknown to you the moment you bandaged him up he had used RCT to heal it within seconds

"Phew that should do it…let's just hope you don't get an infection if you do even I cannot save your life"

Hearing your words he has never been happier to be able to use RCT

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"Y/n!" a lady rushed screaming your name, causing both you and Gojo to finally stop nagging each other

"Who is she?" he whispered

"Just my neighbor, an aunty my mother knew"

"I see... I guess aunts are the same every era..."

"Oh my god, you did not tell me you got married!?" she yelped as she saw Gojo beside you

"I am not married okay!?" freaking out you tried your best to refuse her words

"What do you mean not married!? oh~ he is your boyfriend~" She nudged you and smirked as she walked towards Gojo who was screaming internally looking at you desperately for help

"He is n-!"

"Greetings! My name is Sumi Tachibana, I am Y/n's neighbor!"

Cutting you off she looked at Gojo smiling brightly

"My name is Gojo Satoru it's nice to meet you too", he smiled putting his hand out to shake her hands

"Oh~ how bold to flirt with me in front of your future wife! I am married so sorry~" she chuckled bashfully

"Huh…?", he looked at her then at you confused

"Aunty! What brought you here?" you stood between her and Gojo shielding him

"Oh right! I came to tell you the village has decided to host a festival next week so be sure to come!" she smiled warmly and left after chatting a little longer

"Flirting…what crazy conclusion is that!?" Gojo looked at you dumbstruck

"See I don't know what you knew previously but to put your hand forward to a lady after just meeting her gives the wrong signals alright" You looked at him and sighed

"Ancient times sure are crazy…"

"Oh god…" groaning you lowered your head

"What's the matter?" he looked at you

"She is now gonna tell everyone in the village that we are in a relationship"

He looked at you even more stunned than before, things were progressing too fast his brain felt fried. He realized just how big of a deal it was for him and you to be together in ancient times

"I guess…we gotta pretend to be in one"

"Do you know the significance of what you are saying!?" you looked at him shocked

"What? it's just a relationship~ I have been in many! my experience is over the charts dear" he smirked playfully as he looked at you

Link to Masterlist!

[towriteloveontheirarms]

Our love is god (modern!Heathers JD type!Aemond Targaryen x Reader)

synopsis: High school is hell. Truly. However, the one person you think will finally make it better, only makes it so much more worse.

warnings: angst, making out, death, murder, faked suicide, sexual abuse, physical violence, gun violence, afab reader

word count: 6.4k

taglist: @hopelesswritergall, @urmomsgirlfriend1

(If you want to be tagged for a specific character/fandom/series or in general let me know in my asks, comments or DMs)

King´s Landing high school. Your own personal hell as you liked to call it in your journal. You really thought joining forces with the devils that ran it would help you get through it, but all it did was make things harder. You left your real friends and unpopularity behind for a seat at the same table as the Baratheon sisters, only to help them bully the rest of the school and focus on your looks and parties more than anything else. You dreaded seeing them every day. Floris wasn´t as bad you had to admit, she was nice. A cheerleader, but in the end she still participated in her sisters doings. Cassandra was a more devout follower. The year book committee and the boob job that mommy paid for made her think she was more than she actually was, but even she couldn´t reach the tyranny of their sister Maris. She truly was a mythic bitch. Drowning in your thoughts, one makes its reoccurring return. College will be paradise if you´re not dead by graduation.

From the side you could feel an elbow get rammed into your ribs painfully.

“Ow. What´s your damage, Maris?” You spit out the words while rubbing the sore spot on your side.

“Stop whining. You are going to go to the big frat party with me this weekend. You should be thankful.” Just hearing her tone made you want to punch her in the boob or something. Gods, you couldn´t even think straight.

“Yay, great.” You can barely hide the sarcasm in your faked excitement.

However Maris doesn´t get the chance to say anything about it as right in that moment a commotion breaks out in the back of the cafeteria. With your old friends you would have been able to just ignore it, but with the Baratheons? No chance. The four of you turn around to see Cregan Stark and Qyle Martell harassing a student you think you have never seen before, which is highly unlikely as literally everyone here had been to kindergarten, elementary school and middle school together. Despite not recognizing him, you feel an immediate yet inexplainable attraction towards him. The whole ethereal beauty that he had going on was really working for him. So much so, that when the bickering stops and a gasp rolls through the cafeteria as the stranger pulls out a gun, you aren´t even that deterred. In fact you think it´s kinda funny how the two jocks pee their pants at being shot with blanks. They deserve some push back to their constant bullying.

But even that little moment can´t lift your mood long enough to get you over the party. When Maris picks you up in her dad´s way too expensive car you already feel like sending her away again. On the other hand you might as well end your own social life then. No.

“And don´t forget the corn nuts!” Maris yells after you as you walk towards the convenience store on your way to that stupid frat party.

“Plain or bbq?” You yell back.

“Bbq!” You get your answer in the middle of the door.

Rolling your eyes so she doesn´t see it you make your way through the store grabbing the snacks and looking around until you almost run into someone.

“Oh, sorry I didn´t look where I was going.” You take a step back feeling your cheeks heat in embarrassment as you recognize the stranger from school.

“It´s okay… You know, I´m not the biggest fan of your friend either.” He says as he grabs some snacks himself.

“What?” His statement catches you off guard quite a bit.

“I watched you… Today during lunch and how you rolled your eyes at her.” He explains as if it is nothing.

“You´ve been watching me?” You ask surprised, but with a smile on your face. “Should I be flattered or scared?”

"A little bit of both maybe?" He leans against one of the shelves. Putting on a half smile himself. A very handsome one at that. For the first time you really study him. The way his silver hair flows past his shoulders. The intense look of his right eye and the scar above his left one. The sharpness of his cheekbones, nose and chin. Until your eyes stick to his lips. Those perfect, pink lips with the sharp cupids bow.

"I can do that..." You whisper more to yourself than the lean person in front of you.

That's when the penetrating sound of a car horn and Maris screaming your name pulls the two of you back to reality.

"Better run quick. Your friend is waiting." He teases as you make your way to the Cash register. Your name rolling of his tongue in the most promising manner. Promising what? That is what you wanted to find out.

“I should.” You sigh. “But before I go… Since you know my name, it´s kind of only fair to tell me yours, don´t you think?”

“Aemond. Aemond Targaryen.” He finally introduces himself and upon hearing his last name you remember him distantly. You had talked to his sister Helaena once or twice a few years ago.

“Well, it was nice meeting you Aemond Targaryen, but I have to go appease the will of a high school tyrant now…” You shoot him a wink and get back to the car as quickly as possible.

The party, much like you thought, is a total bust. The music is complete shit, the alcohol is cheap and Maris leaves you alone to do god knows what with some frat bro almost immediately. Leaving you alone to be harassed by his friend. It all together gives you a major headache and so you leave at the first chance. Walking home still is a better option than having to bear this any longer.

You arrive there late, but the fresh air helps the headache. To your further luck, your parents are already asleep so you can go to your room directly. Writing out all your frustrations in your journal.

While you do so there is a tap on the window. Jolting out of your seat, you see Aemond standing there.

“Greetings and salutations.” He says as you open up for him to come inside. An invitation he takes instantly. “So how was the party?”

“About as good as one would think…” You scoff, closing your journal as you turn towards him.

“Ah… I bet your presence was missed greatly.” He says, the words dripping with sarcasm and making you laugh. I was nice to really laugh for the first time in a while. The two of you talk some more and somehow end the night cuddled up naked under the blankets. Remnants of both of your juices sticking to your thighs as you talk about gods know what. You honestly can´t pay much attention. Yet even post nut clarity couldn´t give you the realization that he just found out where you lived and came in through your gods damn window. Probably because his kisses kept your mind far away enough from reality.

“Maris Baratheon is one bitch that deserves to die.” He sighs.

“Killing her won´t solve anything. I say we just grow up be adults and then die.” You reply in a quiet tone. Your faces so close to each other that there is barely even an inch between you. Perfect to pull him in once more. Locking your lips in a deep, passionate kiss.

The two of you fall asleep soon after. A tangle of limbs and your head tucked under his chin, on his chest. However when you open your eyes again you are alone. The only sign of Aemonds company the previous night being your own nakedness and a few marks he had left on you that would be easily covered up.

The real shock comes when you get back to school on monday. Meeting up with the Baratheon sisters as every morning, you are surprised to see only Cassandra and Floris. Who look tired. Well, Floris looks tired and quite sad. Cas looks as unbothered as ever, if not a bit happy.

“Where did you leave Maris?” You ask coming to a stop in front of them.

“Didn´t you hear? She killed herself two days ago…” Floris reveals with a quiet voice. Your heart sets out for a beat at the news.

“Yeah, where have you been all weekend?” Cas adds.

“I- I don´t know… I´m sorry for what happened with your sister. You put your sunglasses back on and leave them to find Aemond.

“Hey.” You great him with a small peck.

“What is going on? You look like someone just died.” He remarks, pulling you close to him and placing another peck to your cheek.

“My best friend just killed herself.” You murmur.

“Don´t you mean your worst enemy?” He replies with a small grin.

“Same difference.” Still bewildered by the happenings of this morning, you shake your head and then go to class with Aemond.

Only to learn then that you would all get a half day off. A half day seemed to be fairly less for a student just committing suicide in your opinion, especially one as influential as Maris, but then again she also enjoyed more fame than during her life. So at least she couldn´t complain. You felt a bit bad for entertaining that thought. Then again with how many lifes she had ruined...

Going to school after that was even worse for weeks. Everyone was romanticizing Maris´ reign of terror, Cassandra silently took over what her sister had started, or at least tried to and you? Well, you only ever got away from it all when you spent time away from it with Aemond, who seemed surprisingly chill, if not smug about the bully being out of the way. The two of you get closer quick during that time. He is the most understanding boyfriend you could have ever wished for. Even his few quirks are cute. Yet he keeps his darker sides safely tucked away from you. At least for now, he vows himself. Who would have known it could get even worse.

When you enter the school building the next day, everyone is staring at you, talking to their friends in hushed whispers. At first you assume it was the usual whispers, but when Cas comes up to you, you quickly get taught better.

“You little bitch. I never knew you were that kind of person.” She says with a wide complacent grin firm on her face.

“What are you even talking about, Cas? What the hell is going on here? What is everyone talking about?” You hiss. Gripping Aemond´s hand slightly, who seemed just as confused as you were. Though he was more successful in concealing his feelings.

“Shouldn´t you know what you did? “ your supposed friend feigns innocence. It really makes you want to slap the holier than thou look off her face.

“Just. Tell. Me.” You make sure to put emphasis on every single word.

“Qyle and Cregan are going around telling everyone you blew them.” She holds her hand in front of her mouth to hide her giggle.

Without another word, you stomp past her. Running around the next corner, where Aemond stops you.

“Hey. Hey! Angel, where are you going?” He questions. Holding you by the shoulders.

“To those stupid… fucking…” You let out an undefinable sound of frustration. “They may get away with harassing the all the girls of this entire school, but not me.”

 “You have to take a breath and calm down.” He says in a low voice as to not attract any more attention.

“Don’t tell me to calm down.” You seethe, but at least you stop marching through the mass of other students.

“Calm down.” He reiterates. “I already have a plan.”

Right in that moment however the bell rings signaling the start of first period. And it is pure horror. The whispers all around you echo in your head even when it is entirely silent. Teachers drone on and on about topics that you couldn´t get less of a shit about. Cassandra and Floris arent´t any help with any of it either of course. With how nice Floris tended to be it was easy to forget who they were sometimes. Time stretches endlessly until you reach home. Sitting down on your bed, you wait for the telltale sign of Aemond coming over. By now the knocking on the window doesn´t even startle you anymore. The opposite is the case. Whenever you hear it, your heart instinctively skips a beat. Just like it does now.  You open the window and watch Aemond hop inside. Greeting him with one, two, three little pecks to the lips you pull him to the bed with you by the lapels of his leather jacket. Barely separating from him as you do so, you grin against his lips at the way his large hands grab your hips to pull your body close to his.

“I missed you so much.” He hums against your mouth between kisses.

“We haven´t seen each other for two hours.” You giggle. Running a gentle hand over his chest as the fingernails of the other massage his neck.

“I know and it felt like an eternity.” Aemond all but growls against your neck. Biting it lightly, before sucking a mark into the supple flesh.

You let out a trembling whine at the tingling feeling his lips chase down your spine. The needy sound followed by an amused chuckle from him.

“So, your still out for revenge?” He growls against your neck.

“Yes.” You answer just a bit more breathless than before.

“Good.” Aemond pulls away from you and throws two guns beside you on the bed. Startled by them, you jump back. Looking at the blond, who returns it with a smug expression.

“Aem, I want to pay them back not murder them!” You shriek, settling down a good bit away from the weapons. He on the other hand is eerily calm.

“Do you take german?” He asks as he sits down and takes your hands.

“French.” You answer still on edge.

“These are `Ich lüge´ bullets. My grandpa stole a shitload of them in WW2, they´re like tranquilizers. Only they break the surface of the skin enough to cause a little blood.” Aemond explains as he dumps a handful of bullets between the guns.

“So… It looks like the person has been shot, but really they are just unconscious and bleeding?” You ask just to be sure. The sight of the weapons made you feel all kinds of bad.

He nods. “We shoot Cregan and Kyle, it looks like they shot each other and by the time they regain consciousness, they´ll be the laughing stock of the whole school.”

“And what is that for?” You point to the folded paper that lies between the bullets.

“That is the cherry on top. A fake suicide note. Painting the whole thing as them killing themselves, because they knew they would never be accepted for being a gay couple.” Aemond snickers and you have to admit that the plan in all it´s simplicity sounds pretty good.

Taking your phone you send a text to Cregan. Luring him and Qyle into the woods behind the school under the guise of wanting to have a threesome with the two of them. Knowing full well it would get them where you wanted. Throwing your phone to the bed with a nervous giggle, you feel Aemond crawl on top of you. The weight of his taller frame pushing you into the mattress as his lips find yours again.

When you enter the woods and Aemond kisses you one last time, before you hide your gun and he goes to hide in the trees, your whole body trembles with uncertainty.

“Hey, Dollface.” Cregan greets you.

The two guys come to a stand about five feet away from you. “So, how are we gonna start this?” Qyle adds to his friend. Wasting no time as always.

“I thought you two could start by undressing for me.” You flutter your lashes at them, voice like honey in their ears.

“Okay.” The two of them say in unison. Nodding before they all but tearing the clothes of their body, stripping down to their boxers. The three of you count to three and right as they want to rip off the last piece of fabric down too your plan sets in action. Aemond jumps out from behind a nearby tree, the pair of you whip out the guns and aim for the half naked and afraid boys. Aemond hits Qyle right in the chest and he drops to the ground right where he stood. You are less lucky, missing Cregan by only an inch. He turns to see his friend lie on the ground, in a growing puddle of his own blood and makes a run for it. Your heart starts pounding in your chest even harder than before, if that even is possible. Threatening to break out of your ribcage as you watch Aemond´s face contorts into a grimace of anger.

“Shit! You stay here, I´m getting him.” He barks, chasing after a screaming Cregan.

It´s silent where you remain alone. Making you wonder what is going on. In the same breath your eyes fall down to Qyle´s body. The blood still pools underneath his body, prompting your thoughts run off the rails with crazy theories.

It isn´t until Aemond chases Cregan back to you, where he finally shoots him as well. The burly body flopping to the ground like a sack of potatoes. With horror you see your worst theory come true. They are both dead. Aemond killed them. And you helped him. A scream leaves your lips and you throw the weapon in your hand away on instinct. Clasping your hands over your mouth as the shock seeps in.

“No. No, no, no, no.” You mumble more to yourself than anyone else really. You are frozen to the spot you are standing in and if it were up to you, you would fall to your knees then and there. But Aemond takes your hand and pulls you away from the crime scene.

You don´t come to until you are in his car, in front of your house. You feel empty, detached from reality. Your body functions on autopilot. Putting a cigarette into your mouth to even somehow try to cope with the stress of what you had just become witness to. However when you lift up the lighter, the flame licks at the skin of your palm instead. You let out an agonizing scream and tears immediately shoot into your eyes at the white, hot pain.

The funeral a week later is a rough one. Even rougher than Maris´. The way the Septon plays up the gay martyr part is unbelievable. Aemond´s presence by your side doesn´t give you any comfort any more either. You can barely look at him anymore. Over the course of the past days your mind had started to come back from what lead you there, but it also distanced itself from him. Only able to see that side of him that he had hidden so well. All you want to do is hide under your blanket for the rest of your life, instead you have to sit in that gods forsaken sept, feeling sorry for Floris and Sarah, Cregan´s half-sister and your ex best friend, who seem to be taking this the hardest. You knew that Floris and Cregan, despite him being a total goon, had been kind of on and off for a while. The two of them didn´t deserve this. Fuck, the bad conscience was eating away at you, making you nauseaus. Of course, Aemond is entirely calm. Not letting a single soul see behind the carefully strung up curtain. Even though you imagine to see the same small smug smirk in his face again that he had expressed while explaining his plan to you all those days back.

Repressing the urge to run out of the sept, you pick at the skin around your fingernails until they bleed.

Once the service is over, you get onto Aemond´s motorcycle and let him drive you home. No matter how hard it is to keep holding on to him and not dissociate the whole ride. Your mind makes up then and there, that this has to end. You have to end this.

That night when he comes over, you sit him down.

“We um… We need to talk.” You mumble. Still not meeting his eye. He had already noticed your inability to do so since that day, but until now he thought you would catch yourself again after an initial shock. A mistake he noted mentally to never do again.

“What do you want to talk about?” He feigns ignorance, though he full well has a perfect idea of what you want to talk about.

“I… We… I can´t do this anymore, Aemond.” You stammer out, your leg trembling under his hand that rests on your thigh.

“Cannot do what anymore, Angel?” His one seeing eye rests on you as intensely as ever.

“This. Us. I thought I could cope with what we have done, but I can´t. I can´t look at you like before anymore. The sight of their… bodies… still haunts me in my dreams.” You try to find the right words to express your feelings and still it feels like the severity of them doesn´t come out right.

“You can´t be serious about that.” He faltered. Despite having a feeling about what you were gonna say, he still feels floored by it. His heart hurting at your words.

“I am. I never wanted this. “ Your voice hardens as you get more confident about your decision.

“You wanted this too. You said you wanted revenge.” Aemond insists.

“Yes, I wanted revenge. I did not ask for this. Two people are dead!” You try to get through to him. To no avail.

“You didn´t seem to mind much when Maris died.” He blurts out. It´s entirely in the heat of the moment. And he regrets revealing it to you like that, but it is out nonetheless.

“What?” You shriek in response. “I thought Maris killed herse…”

The thought of the fakes suicide note for Cregan and Qyle enters your mind and you hide your face in your hands, fighting back the tears that sting in your eyes.

“Please just leave…” Your voice comes muffled from behind your hands. Opting to leave your face buried in them as you speak the defeated words.

“Angel, I am not just going to leave you. We can talk about this.” He takes your wrists in his hands and pulls them down to your lap.

“What is there to talk about? You killed three people!” You pulled your arms away from him, but his grip was too strong.

“Yes, but I did it for you.” He argues.

“How was any of that for me?” Your voice drips with disbelieve.

Aemond comes closer to you until he whispers against your lips. “They hurt you. I will never let anyone hurt you.”

Then he presses his lips to yours roughly. His tongue pushes into your mouth forcefully, stunning you into an overpowering inability to act, as he pushes you against the headboard. The way his lips move against yours is aggressive, making you cry out in search for help or to get him to stop. Just something, anything to make him stop. It takes several more moments for your brain to return to the situation, but once it does you start struggling with all your might. Biting his lip and kicking him away from you, finally sets you free from his assault.

“I want you to go. Now.” You say quietly but with as much certainty as you can put into your voice. He turns around and leaves. Surprisingly without another word. Yet your body stays on edge until long after he is gone.

Your arms wrapped tightly around your middle, you shiver from your nerves processing everything that had been revealed and happened. Unable to really cope with it yet. Despite not having really liked them your friends where dead and only the gods knew what Aemond would do next.

That night you get haunted by him in your dreams.

You find yourself in the Baratheon´s dark kitchen. Aemond in front of you, looking for a knife. For some reason you know Cassandra is going to be his next victim. Yet, no matter how hard you try to speak and keep him from going through with his fucked up plan, you can´t. Not a single sound comes from your lungs. With panic you watch as he grabs a dirty knife from the dishwasher and goes into Cas´ room. In the complete dark you can´t see exactly what he does, you can only see the world go dark around you seconds later, feeling like you are falling into a bottomless pit, you wake up with a gasp. Sweat soaking your pillow and your chest heaving with short heavy bursts of breath while your heart threatens to break out if it. You know you have to stop him, before what the dream is foreboding becomes reality. He is incalculable, dangerous and whatever he does end up doing next, can´t happen under any circumstances. You spend the whole day trying to make out a plan, not paying attention to any of your teachers or Floris and Cassandra. Not a single idea your brain comes up with is good enough to work. Luckily it also makes you ignore the weird looks your friends are giving you over your unresponsiveness.

Saying goodbye to them when they drop you of in the afternoon, you plan to head to your room immediately. A plan that is thwarted by your parents, who await you in the living room, worried expressions on both of their faces.

“Darling! We need to talk to you for a moment.” Your mother speaks up first. Seemingly relieved to see you alive and well.

“Sure, what´s going on?” Your mind is still half busy with Aemond when you put down your bag in front of you.

“Aemond just dropped by. Saying all these things about how we should look out for you, that he was worried for you…” Your mom´s voice is shaky as she recalls on the memories of what had happened so shortly before you arrived.

“Did he say something else?” You say passively. Inside you are boiling already. Who does he think he is?

“He said you confessed some rather alarming urges to him. That you shouldn´t be left alone with sharp objects or… or that kind of stuff.” Your father holds your mother a little tighter to calm her down again. You truly feel sorry for them. How could they know that what they have been told was as wrong as it possibly could have been.

“I´m sorry… But I´m not… That´s not true. You know I´d talk to you if there was anything going on.” You assure them.

You try to spend more time with them, but once your parents start to believe you, you make your way back to your room. Your mind is finally made up on what to do. If talking to him wouldn´t help to get him to stop killing, maybe you could shock him into it. Hopefully. He did used say, that the extreme always makes an impression. Taking your bedsheets you tie them around your body in a way that allows you to make it look like you had hung yourself. For once it would come in handy that he had never stopped texting you. Hurrying to get done before you hear that accursed knock. Tipping over the chair you use in your preparations mere seconds before he lets himself in. No matter how much you want to move or even at least open your eyes, you force yourself to stay calm. No matter how unfamiliar the air under your forcefully relaxed feet feels and your lungs hurt from the flat breaths you can allow yourself at most to take. Blissfully unaware to the gun hidden in the back of his pants, with which he planned gods know what. While he doesn´t move or breath or speak for a short moment. Frozen in a shock not deep enough to hold him for long.

It seems you have underestimated his crazy. Mentally you curse yourself out aggressively so that you almost miss him beginning to speak to you.

I can´t believe you did it.” He says in a breathy tone and you can hear his hands slap against his thighs as if he had raised them in defeat beforehand. “I loved you. Sure I was coming in here ready to kill you, but… I at least would´ve wanted to tell you about this petition the whole school signed first. Of course they don´t know what they really signed up for, but that won´t be any of their concern anymore soon. Oh Angel, it´s a shame you don´t get to see this play out anymore. I have the perfect plan. During pep rally on Friday the whole school is gonna come down and everyone in there with it. Listen to this. We, the students of King´s Landing high, will die. Our bodies will be the ultimate protest against you. A society that churns out slaves and blanks. Fuck you all.”

He was even further gone than you would´ve thought or hoped. “It´s not very subtle, but a school blowing up, that´s big. The kind of big that infects a generation. The only place Baratheons and Snows can get along is in heaven. We could´ve united them together, you and I… you left me no choice. So I will do it alone if I must.”

By now he is breathless from the passion that is no doubt not only in his voice but also his heart. The clicking of a lighter registers over the ringing of sheer panic in your ears, followed by the faint footsteps and mumbling of your mother. Aemond is quick to sneak back out the window and you are just about to open your eyes back up and take a deep breath, when the door opens behind you and your poor mothers scream can be heard throughout the entire house.

Hurrying, you untie the bedsheets with shaky hands, hurting your knees in the process of falling to the ground, but you don´t care. All you care about is getting to your mom. Hugging her weak, sobbing form to your body as tightly as you can. Soothing her as best as possible, but the damage has been done you guess and you really can´t blame her. If you would have been in her place you wouldn´t have reacted or felt any other way.

“It´s okay, mom. I´m okay, I´m still here. It wasn´t real.” It´s safe to say, that after all of that you don´t sleep well. Or at all really. How could you after Aemond has told you what would happen next. You want to stop him, feel like you have to stop him, even more so now that your plan has failed so miserably. If anything you´re under the impression of having worsened the state his soul is in.

For two whole days you have to watch school go by without anything out of the ordinary happening. Which just makes the bad feelings in your gut swirl even more intensely. Yet, at the same time, there is a strange calm inside your mind. There certainly, realistically, is very little you can do to keep Aemond from doing what he wants to do. But at least if, or rather when, you go down on Friday, you don´t go down by being by Aemond´s side, watching the smoke pour out the doors. Making s´mores over the burning remains of your dead school mates. This was sick. A whole parade of red flags. A perverted power fantasy, that you can´t believe you didn´t notice before. In those days you have more people than you are willing to count come after you, questioning how you are still alive. How did the stupid rumors always spread the fastest and furthest?

The poor guidance counselor is who almost suffers from you losing your nerves over it, on the day of. You are quick to apologize as well though.

“I am so sorry, I´d be glad to talk about this another day, now I really have something more important to do.” You let the man behind, that still opens and closes his mouth like a fish on land.

Marching through the masses of students on their way to the gym. Scared shitless, but still determined to put an end to this if you can. It was high time you pulled your shit together anyway. Finding Aemond in the boiler room, he is already busy setting up multiple explosives.

“Hey!” You pull his attention away from the dynamite.

“Greetings and salutations. Come to change your mind?” He inquired.

“No. Never! Gods, how delusional are you to think that anyone would join you in this madness! You are no better than your mother.” You take another step closer to him. The venom in your tone gets him to stay silent for once. However he still doesn´t stop fiddling with the bombs.

“Put that down, slowly and then put your hands behind your head.” You put your hand in the pocket of your cardigan to grab your fathers hunting knife in case you´d need it. Pulling it out you earn a genuinely amused chuckle, then everything goes too fast for you to react properly. Aemond kicks the weapon out of your hand, letting it slide out of your reach, and knocks you out with a few , for him very simple, movements. Sinking to the ground you barely stay conscious long enough to see him walk further into the basement of the building. Fuck. The already quiet sounds of the pep rally become even more quiet over the dull thudding in your head and then darkness claims you.

You don´t know how long you have been out once your eyes open again. Thankful for the low light of the rooms you are in, you tumble towards the direction you saw Aemond leave in. Holding on tightly to the wall or anything you can find to keep the dizziness from knocking you off your feet again. Too busy to hear your scuffling steps, you can grab the gun he had brought and laid down beside himself.

“I said put it down… and hands behind your head…” The sentence is broken up by your heavy breathing.

One of his hands shoots to the side to check for the missing gun. Raising them over his head almost immediately and turning around to you slowly.

“Angel, come on. You know you can´t shoot me so why don´t you just put down the gun and join me? I´m giving you one last chance.” His tone is still smug, but you can hear a hint of fear shine through the overconfidence.

Scoffing, you shake your head at his inability to even now be real with his feelings. “Just turn off the bombs.”

Behind his eye you can see his brain mulling over every possible outcome to this situation. Surprising you, by complying to with you have just said. Putting his hands behind his head, the feeling of the imminent danger of the situation subsides from your system and you finally hear the voices from upstairs again. Having had enough of talking you wave for him to go outside with the gun, which you hold safely in both hands. Due to everyone being still in the gym and none the wiser as to what was going on not too far away from them. In front of you Aemond pushes the big front doors open for both of you to step outside.

Standing still, he turns to you again. Eye half closed and so close to you that if either of you were to move, your lips would most definitely touch.

“You know what you need to do now.” He murmurs. The way his breath fans over your face so warm and for a moment you feel set back to the beginning of your relationship. When everything was still okay or at least as okay as it could be.

“I don´t want to have to do it.” You whisper back.

“There is no other way to end this anymore now. I am far too damaged, but you are not beyond repair. Please… Stand back now. You know it had to end this way. No matter how much you wished it didn´t.” Aemond takes a step back himself and stretches his arms out to the side.

You take a deep breath and as you take a step away from him remind yourself of everything he had done and wanted to do. Looking up at him you ask him in a voice void of emotion.

“Any last words?”

“I worship you. So much. I´ll trade my life for yours.”

With a heart heavier than it should be, you point the gun back at the man who you had thought was the only one to ever truly understand you. Then, before your brain can have the chance to think twice about it your actions, you pull the trigger.

The shot rings in your ears long after it is over. The sight of Aemond falling to the ground like a sack of potatoes, filling you with a great void of nothingness. Still you stay there for a few more minutes. Lighting yourself a cigarette and waiting for that atrocious ringing to stop. A part of you still hopes to wake up and have all of this be a nightmare, but you never wake up and the cigarette is entirely done. So you throw the damned thing away, drop the gun on Aemond´s lifeless body and get back inside where everyone is flooding the hallways.

Ignoring Cassandra´s comments and protest, you march past her, taking Floris by the hand and walk over to Sarah who is sitting alone on the stairs.

“Ladies, there is a new sheriff in town. And the way I see it, all three of us are still free tonight. So, I propose we buy snacks and watch movies at my place all night.” You say with a conciliatory smile.

The two girls look happy about the suggestion. About as happy as they can look under the given circumstances and together the three of you decide to cut the school day a bit shorter and go now.

[ilovetheriddler]

Hey 😄,

I saw your little Halloween request post and saw that you have Nick Valentine on the table.

If it's not chosen, yet, Nick with the decoration prompt? His agency could need some decorations.

Yay! A Nick request! I hope that you enjoy it!

Halloween Fic Event.

Decorating Disaster.

(Nick Valentine x F!Reader.)

Contents: Decorating, Fluff, Kisses.

"Nick, come on... just let me hang a few of these up! It would brighten up your agency so much!"

He glanced up from his case files and chuckled at your insistence. He always found how stubborn you could be to be very endearing.

"I'm honestly kind of curious about how you even found anything like that in the wasteland. You'd think it would have decomposed by now.."

"I know, right? They're such a neat find!"

You stood up on his desk, earning a slight huff of minor frustration from your beloved synth detective. You carefully hung up the few strands of ghost covered garlands that you managed to find, and once you were done, you felt like it looked quite nice!

"I'll admit Doll. It does add a festive touch."

"See? I told you it would look great!"

He looks around for a moment before getting an idea, standing up and searching through some old boxes in the corner, finding several old candles.

"Think these would work as well?"

"Oh, Nick! Those are perfect!"

You lightly kissed his metallic lips before eagerly taking the candles from him, placing them about the agency to add a bit more to the overall decor. He watched you as you decorated to your hearts content with whatever you could find. It was sweet how much you wanted to brighten up the place and even sweeter how much you clearly cared about him. He sometimes couldn't understand why you wanted to be with an old synth like him out of everyone in Diamond city.... but he was glad that you were.

Once you were done, you walked over and sat down on his lap, throwing your arms around him and snuggling up against his tattered trench coat. You were always extremely affectionate towards him, and he loved it. He loved feeling wanted and appreciated so much.

You playfully kissed his lips again, lingering for just a bit longer, however when you tried to pull away he placed his hand on the back of your head and gently pushed you back in to reconnect with his lips, holding you there and doing this several times before he felt satisfied. He let out an amused chuckle as he watched you catch your breath, your face incredibly flustered. He ran the back of his hand against your cheek lightly.

"You know... i don't know what I'd do without you, Doll... you really do mean a lot to me, you know that, right?"

"Hehe... of course I do, you tell me every day!"

"... Well, i don't think that's enough to make sure you never forget, I should do it more often."

"Nick! Gosh... you're being too sweet and sappy tonight!"

He pulled you in close once again, but this time, to simply rest against his chest so that he could enjoy the feeling of having you close as he finished looking over these files he had. He was content with the life he currently had. He was able to help people, and he had you... there wasn't anything else he could really ask for.

[emo-toaster]

Ah, I'm back with another chapter! Yay! in this one I feel as if I got a bit bold? So here's a small list of thing that will appear! As you can see right below, this chapter contains songs. I will only write about songs happening when the songs happened not necessarily because Beauty and the Beast is a Disney MUSICAL— you know what I mean. (ᵕ—ᴗ—)

This chapter contains!!: Song lyrics from Disney's Beauty and the Beast soundtrack (If you don't like songs in fics, you can skip those parts!) , some violence at the end!

Warning!: English is my second language. If you find any errors in my writing, please understand. I used autocorrect to help me with my grammar and spelling, so I'm deeply sorry if any mistakes were made. Dyslexia + writing in a second language = challenging task (ᵕ—ᴗ—)

✦————————————————————————✦

✦————————————————————————✦

Beauty and the Beast

Miko's attempt at writing something good.

✦————————————————————————✦

Chapter 4: Tension

✦————————————————————————✦

How could they? Kaigaku couldn't believe it. He got rejected, clearly rejected, but he couldn't fully accept that. He sat down in the noodle shop where he usually spent his time, thinking things over and today, today he was sulking. In the background he could hear Zenitsu's voice as he talked with his two friends. Honestly, Kaigaku didn't like them one bit, but he couldn't do much about Zenitsu spending time with them, Gramps would be mad. Kaigaku started noticing that most of the people in this damn town irritated him. Gramps, because he kept Kaigaku from doing, in his opinion, good stuff, Zenitsu, for being a damn good-for-nothing coward, and he didn't like his friends either. That kid with a rock-hard forehead just seemed irritating to him, and that other guy, a literal wild child who currently slurped his noodles like a damn pig. It was infuriating, really.

Zenitsu though, couldn't help but notice how Kaigaku was doing. He was actually thinking if he should do something or just reveal in the moment with his friends, but a quick look at Gramps' face made him want to do something. It felt awful; watching his teacher worry about his students, not being able to do much himself. The yellow-haired boy looked around, trying to think of something. A train of thoughts rushed through his brain, making up the perfect plan. Kaigaku was admired by a lot of people in the town, so maybe a little validation from everyone would help? Zenitsu knew what to do. Slowly, the young man made his way across the restaurant, scooting over to Kaigaku, seeing him scowling at him almost immediately. Oh well, Zenitsu couldn't back off now…

“G-gosh, it disturbs me to see you, Kaigaku, Looking so down in the dumps. Every guy here'd love to be you, Kaigaku! Even when taking your lumps.” Zenitsu shuttered, putting out a sheepish smile as he saw Kaigaku grumbling to himself angrily. The yellow-haired boy wanted to get along with Kaigaku for so long now, so Gramps would be happy, and now it was the best moment to gain Kaigaku's appreciation. Perhaps this would lead to friendship?

“There's no man in town as admired as you, you're everyone's favorite guy! Everyone's awed and inspired by you, and it's not very hard to see why…” Zenitsu added, seeing one of Kaigaku's eyebrows lifting up; a sign that Zenitsu should continue with the praises. ”No one's slick as Kaigaku, no one's quick as Kaigaku! No one's swordsmanship is as incredibly impressive as Kaigaku's! For there's no man in town half as manly! Trust me, you can ask anyone you want, and they'll tell you whose team they prefer to be on…”

Zenitsu continued, earning a scoff from Inosuke who'd definitely prefer the praises to be directed at him. Friendship with Inosuke surprisingly teached Zenitsu a thing or two, and this was; that comforting stubborn people is usually based on giving them validation and praise, which makes them stop fuming with anger. He slowly began noticing that this actually worked as a confident smirk showed up on Kaigaku's face. Slowly, more people started picking up on what was happening and cheering on. At some point it helped both Kaigaku and Zenitsu with their self-esteem. Finally, Zenitsu did something right and got the approval that made him feel giddy inside.

Kaigaku on the other hand couldn't help but feel as triumphant as ever. People cheering his name, throwing praises left and right, loving him, supporting him…oh, that felt good!

“I need encouragement, You're useful for once it seems” He muttered with a confident smirk on his face as he took in the admiration that surrounded him.

“Yeah— no worries.” Zenitsu chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. That felt good, Kaigaku was pleased with him and Gramps was happy that they finally got along. Usually, Zenitsu felt a lot of self-hatered, seeing himself as a failure, but today…today he was a winner who was making things better! He heard the crowd cheering, having fun as the place became a bit more lively. Zenitsu's hands then reached out for his shamisen, music brought good vibes, right? That's what he needed right now so he started playing, smiling happily. This wasn't just Kaigaku's triumph today, it was also Zenitsu's. He didn't mind that he was just the background for Kaigaku showing off his greatness, because a good background always made a difference, he made a difference.

“Who has brains like Kaigaku? Entertains like Kaigaku!?” Zenitsu cheered, looking at Kaigaku. The dark haired boy looked at him, smiling proudly, full of confidence.

“Keep it up, what else do you think, hm?!” He smiled, relishing in people's approval and admirations, which made his ego grow like crazy.

“Say it again! Who's a man among men? Who's a super success? There's just one guy in town

Who's got all of it down~” Zenitsu cheered, getting pulled in by Kaigaku and held by his side as he waited for the yellow-haired boy to say more praises.

“And his name’s 'K-A-I...I believe there's another I? It just occurred to me that I haven't really checked the kanjis for your name...and I've never actually had to spell it out loud before…” Zenitsu gulped, looking up at Kaigaku, seeing the other looking daggers at him.

“♪ Kaigaku! ♫” Zenitsu quickly chimed again, getting Kaigaku's attention back to the praises, which luckily eased the tension. Ah, that was close! Everything seemed to be perfect, until—

The door quickly opened as an old man rushed in, breathing heavily, clearly distressed and terrified. Kaigaku forowned, wondering what was happening and recognizing the man shortly after. Y/N's father. He was away for quite a while, but it looks like he's back now, but what happened? He wasn't this shaken up everyday, oh no.

“You have to help me, they were taken p-prisoner, h-he trapped them in a castle, in the forest, we have to go there!” The old man mumbled, stuttering and panting, clearly anxious. Zenitsu immediately got spooked, meanwhile Kaigaku's interest grew.

“What happened? Just say it clearly!” Kaigaku answered, stepping closer to the man with a skeptical yet interested look on his face.

“A monster! A damn monster took Y/N as his prisoner. He's keeping them in a cold, cramped dungeon or worse! It held me there first, but then it took my child instead!” The man shouted, scaring some people and making some chuckle at the absurd news. Kaigaku just chuckled, patting the old man's shoulder.

“Now, now, I'm sure you wandered around in the cold for too long, it's getting quite chilly outside after all. I visited your house today, Y/N was safe and sound! I'm sure they're waiting for you with hot dinner like always, and I think you really should go, because you might be getting sick…” He hummed, looking at the old man's panicked face.

“No, no, you don't understand! I saw that monster, it's tall…it has horns and razor-sharp teeth!” The man continued before he was led outside by others, still mumbling about a monster in a castle that's hidden in the forest. Kaigaku just scoffed, sitting down at one of the tables and ordering himself some noodles.

“You think he was telling the truth? You know, about the monster and all…” Zenitsu said, sitting down as well. His question earned a hearty chuckle from Inosuke and soon enough also Kaigaku.

“What? Don't be silly, monsters, demons, yōkai…all that spooky stuff doesn't exist. Don't fall for this crap, or are you just a coward, hm? Zenitsu?” Kaigaku answered, frowning his eyebrows.

“The old man is just delusional. He's probably just sick and he's talking all this nonsense because he's feeling bad.” Kaigaku answered, slurping his noodles as soon as they were served to him.

Zenitsu just nodded, looking away, getting lost in his thoughts. Right, all that spooky stuff doesn't exist, it's silly. Monster's don't exist…right?

.

.

.

It felt lonely. You say in your room, curled up against your bed, scared, confused and hungry. But what could you do? This was all so new to you, it was hard to grasp it all and come to terms with your new reality, so when you heard something behind the door you were on high alert. Fortunately, your worries were eased when a woman's voice softly called from the other side.

“Hello? May I come in? Don't worry, it's just Kotoha with tea!” The woman said softly through the door.

“Yes…uh, please, come in.” You answered as the shoji door opened and a small, green teapot came in with a happy smile on her face as she pulled a tray with cups after herself.

“Oh…look at you, you're so adorable!” She chimed, immediately coming closer and pouring some tea into one of the cups. “Why don't you drink some tea? I'm sure it'll cheer you up…we all already know what happened.” You looked at her with your eyebrows moving up. News really got around fast in this place, Huh?

“Uh— yes…” you mumbled, lifting the cup up to your lips and taking a sip of the hot drink.

“Don't worry, please, I know this is a lot to take in, but it'll get better overtime. You'll see, everything will be fine.” She said softly, trying to comfort you as best as she could.

“I miss my father.” You whispered, tensing up a bit, which got Kotoha immediately worried.

“I understand how that is…I myself miss my son. I haven't seen him in a very long time, he grew up without me, I'm sure of it. I just want him to know that I love him a lot, even if he's far away. Your father loves you a lot, even if you're far away too…” She smiled, trying to make you feel better. You wanted to ask questions about her son and what happened, but you figured out it was better not to, sometimes asking straight away wasn't the right thing to do, and it seemed to be a very sensitive topic for her.

“Well, you must be hungry, why don't we go down to the dining room for a meal?” Kotoha smiled softly, looking at you with those soft, green eyes.

“Mhm…But he said—” You started before getting shushed by the teapot.

“Just because the Master said something, it doesn't mean we have to necessarily listen. Especially when it's against you getting a proper meal.” Kotoha smiled, moving towards the door. You smiled back at her, following the teapot towards the dining room. Maybe this place wasn't so bad? Everyone seemed pretty nice, well, almost everyone, but it was still a pleasant surprise.

The dining room looked pretty cozy actually. Warm light was illuminating the spacious room before it got a bit darker. As you stepped in further, on the table you could see a spotlight with Douma standing in it proudly.

“It's dinner time, everyone. Unfortunately, our master won't be joining us today, so to make up for that unexpected twist…we'll make the dinner extra special tonight!” Douma chimed, bowing lowly towards you with a charming smile on his face. As you took your seat, you could feel the zabuton sliding closer to the table.

“Truly, it is with deepest pride and greatest pleasure that we welcome you here tonight. And now…we invite you to relax~ let us pull up the zabuton as the dining room proudly presents—!” Douma announced, building up the anticipation as some white paper confetti shot up into the air. “Your dinner…”

You smiled, already entertained with what was happening, soon enough observing as plates, bowls and trays slid closer to you with various foods on them.

“Beef and pork, miso soup, great rice pudding is here too! We'll prepare and serve with flair a culinary cabaret~. You're alone and you're scared, but the banquet's all prepared! No one's gloomy or complaining while the flatware's entertaining! We tell jokes, I do tricks with my fellow candlesticks!” He mused, presenting all the dishes that appeared on the table while turning the dinner into a fully fledged musical. There really was a lot to choose from “And it's all in perfect taste that you can bet!” He added with a smile.

“Come on and lift your glass~ You've won your own free pass to be our guest! if you're stressed, it's fine dining we suggest! Be our guest, be our guest, be our guest!” Douma cheered as the light followed him across the table, as if he was the greatest primadonna in a popular opera House.

“Life is so unnerving for a servant who's not serving…He's not whole without a soul to wait upon.” He continued with his voice growing a bit more quiet and serious to the point where you started to worry about what he'll say or rather sing next.

“Ah, those good old days when we were useful, right, Akaza-dono? Suddenly those good old days are gone…~ ♫” he dramatically vocalized, throwing himself onto the table dramatically and wiping his eyes with a napkin, throwing it away to land on Akaza, who just looked at him with an unamused look on his face, not really happy that he got pulled into this damn performance.

“Too long we've been rusting, needing so much more than dusting! Needing exercise, a chance to use our skills! Most days we just lay around the castle….” Douma sighed before smiling again and lifting himself up almost immediately. “Flabby, fat and lazy, you walked in and oops-a-daisy!”

The room suddenly got loud and happy once more, with colorful lights shining around and the flatware moving around in a beautiful choreography.

“It's a guest, it's a guest! Sake's alive, well I'll be blessed. Sake's been poured and thank the gods I've had the napkins freshly pressed. With dessert, they'll want tea, and my dear that's fine with me! While the cups do their soft-shoein' I'll be bubbling, I'll be brewing…”

Kotoha chimed in, clearly enjoying the show and wanting to be a part of it. They all seemed so happy that even you started feeling at ease, for a moment forgetting about all the horrors of today.

“I'll get warm, piping hot! Heaven's sakes, is that a spot? Clean it up, we want the company impressed…” The teapot hummed, looking at everything and bringing it down to perfection.

“We've got a lot to do,Is it one lump or two?

For you, our guest!” She smiled, appearing with a cup of tea that you immediately took, enjoying the show where ‘people’ sang, danced and did they work perfectly.

“Our command is your request…It's been years since we've had anybody here, and we're obsessed! With your meal, with your ease…Yes, indeed, we aim to please. While the candlelight's still glowing…Let us help you, we'll keep going!”

Douma cheered with everyone else, sending more food your way to the point it was hard to keep up with trying every single dish. You couldn't hide the fact that you were having fun, and to be honest, it wasn't only you, at some point they either bribed Akaza in or were charismatic enough to convince him, because the clock joined the performance as well.

“Course by course, one by one…'Til you shout, "enough, I'm done"! Then we'll sing you off to sleep as you digest~ Tonight you'll prop your feet up, but for now, let's eat up. Be our guest…~!” The crowd repeated the last sentence a few times more before the music ended and everyone finally got a break, breathing heavily after the amount of singing and dancing they've done.

“Please, be our guest…and how about a dessert?” Douma hummed, presenting to you one single mochi with a wide grin on his face. After a moment, your laughter filled up the room alongside a loud applause.

“That was amazing.” you answered, gently taking the mochi and smiling at everyone. It was a big mystery; how could they be so sweet and happy while working in a place like this? Well, perhaps the answer will appear on its own sooner or later.

.

.

.

After the great show and delicious dinner you were sent back to your room. It was pretty late and those guys seemed to really care, because Kotoha made sure that your bedtime would guarantee you a good night's sleep. She acted like a concerned mother, that's for sure. You knew about her being away from her son, so that explained a lot in this situation. You could at least glad that you made her feel better.

Honestly, you couldn't help but feel curious about this place, so just tonight instead of going straight to your room you decided to explore. You knew nothing about the castle, just that it was fully available to you, not including a few places, that's the most information you fished out of Douma at least. You were supposed to wander around the main rooms and in the area of your own quarters, so when you were walking up the stairs, you took a different path instead. The path was clear so far, it was a good sign. You were just gonna get a quick peak on what was in the other parts of this castle, just in case, there's no harm in that, right? When you tried asking questions you didn't get much answers, like what's in the parts of the castle that you shouldn't go to, unlike every other information, Douma kept an answer to this question a secret, so it had to be important. Every other answer would be fished out of him pretty easily, so this just made you more curious.

Before you knew it, you found yourself walking down a long corridor, with some of the doors damaged, paintings ripped and furniture removed. At the end of it, you saw another door, but those were leading into an important place for sure, they were bigger, crafted with more precision and not that damaged. With a deep breath you slowly slid them open and peeked inside. The room was dark, lit only by the moonlight from the outside. As you stepped in, you noticed a lot of furniture being damaged or straight up destroyed, there was no comfy bed like in your room, no, in the corner of the room you could see a futon, slightly ripped and damaged at the ends. The futon was surrounded with a few things like clawed cushions, ripped paintings and pieces of fabric, or rather rags at this point. This had to be the monster's lair then. You looked around, taking in the appearance of this whole place. The room seemed empty, which eased you up a bit, and with that you began exploring the area more freely. Your eyes quickly found the only painting that was still landing on the wall, all though in some places it was ripped and clawed, it was still in good shape. As you approached, you began slowly making out what was on it. There were three figures, but only one of them didn't have their face clawed or ripped out, and this person on a painting was a girl. A beautiful girl with white hair and blue eyes, dressed in a fine kimono with a red hairpin in her snow-white locks. The other two figures seemed to both be men, with one being dressed in western clothes, and the other one in traditional clothing. You looked at the painting for a moment before something else caught your eye. There, on a low table next to a big window there was a bell jar with a rose inside. As you slowly approached, you could notice that the flower emitted a faint glow that was reflected by the forested glass protecting it. In an act of curiosity you slowly reached out, wanting to touch the bell jar…

In that moment, a sickle came flying towards you, followed by a low, angry growl. In the matter of seconds you backed away, managing to avoid the sharp object that was supposed to hit you. The sickle made a soft noise as it stuck the wall, staying there. Meanwhile, you slowly turned your head around, facing Gyutaro. Your blood ran cold as your eyes locked. He shot you a cold, unpleasant glare before rising to his full height, not hunching anymore. You had to admit that he was pretty tall, and the horns on his head didn't help to make this less intimidating.

“What are you doing here, eh? Came to steal, just like your father? I knew that The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, man, I just knew it…” he rasped as an ugly scowl graced his hideous face. Your heart sped up immediately, making you back away from him, but to no avail, because the demon just followed you, slowly getting closer.

“What's wrong, eh…? Cat got your tongue? Why are you so scared, you were so brave the last time we met…where did all that bravado go?” He cackled, showing off his razor-sharp teeth, taking in all the panic he caused with great pleasure. You were intimidated? Good, he hated thieves. You didn't even get a chance to explain yourself before the monster growled again with anger, clawing at his skin violently. This was bad, definitely bad, but not half as bad as the moment when he realized that you gnawed at the painting in his room, this brought his blood to a boil as rage rose within his body. But besides anger, something else was rising in him, and it was panic. Panic that he didn't know how to deal with.

“Who even gave you permission to go in here? Gaway…go away, go away! I don't want to see your face in this place ever again. GO! Get out! GET OUT! I swear to gods, I'll rip you to SHREDS!” He roared out, quickly picking the sickle from the wall with great strength before throwing it in your direction again. Your heart began speeding up while tears welled up in your eyes from pure fear. The moment after, you heard a loud smash as Gyutaro's fist hit the wall, causing it to seriously crack. He was enraged to the point where you feared for your life.

With a choked up breath you quickly turned around, running as fast as possible. You could only hear loud smashes and the sounds of a sickle being thrown behind you as you ran away. This was a pure nightmare, you never thought you'd say this, but you missed the times when it was only Kaigaku bothering you.

Running down the stairs, your silhouette was noticed by both Douma and Akaza, who tried to stop you but to no avail. Right before their eyes you opened the main door and slid through them, going outside and running towards the main gate in panic.

.

.

.

Your warm breath turned into mist against the cold air outside. Snow fell down from the sky like crazy, making your escape even harder. You passed by trees, bushes and ran as fast as possible, just to get away as far as possible from that castle. It was cold, so cold…you still didn't have any winter clothes, so the cold began stinging your body, causing your hands to tremble as the tips of your fingers grew red. You didn't think it could get even worse, that was until you heard loud howling. It seemed as if fate was playing a cruel prank on you, especially if wolves were supposed to be extinct in Japan! Well, with everything you saw today, you were able to believe everything. Compared to a monster, living furniture and items and a magic castle, wolves were the most ordinary thing that has found you today. But you quickly realized that with wolves came trouble.

You ran as fast as possible, trying to navigate through the labyrinth of trees and all the snow that blocked your sight. You were slowly getting out of breath as the howling got louder. At some point you realized that you probably wouldn't make it, that this was the end. It all became even worse when you tripped and fell down, face-straight into the snow, shuddering at the cold surrounding your now whole body. Now, you just waited, hoping that your death would be quick and hopefully not that painful. As you closed your eyes, bracing yourself for what's about to happen…you heard a loud thump above you and a "dog's" whine coming from nearby. When you felt warmth above you, your eyes opened, slowly looking up just to see…Gyutaro? What was happening? You lifted your head, wanting to understand what was going on, why was he here…

As more of the wolves approached, growling and snarling at the two of you, Gyutaro bared his sharp teeth at the beasts as well, gripping his trusty sickle in his hand. From your angle, you could see the calluses on his hands, so he's been probably using this sickle for a while now, or rather sickles, before shortly after he pulled out another one. With twin sickles in his hands, the cursed prince rushed towards the beasts. The wolves did the same, quickly surrounding him and attacking. A quiet yelp left Gyutaro's lips as one of the wolves jumped onto his back, biting him until fresh, warm blood stained the fabric of his worn down yukata. With a swift movement, Gyutaro threw the animal off his body, cutting it with his sickle as a warning. You could only watch in horror as the wolves pounded at him in a group attack, causing the demon to defend himself on his own.

With a soft gulp, you grabbed a fallen branch that was buried in the snow nearby, hitting some of the wolves with it, trying to help Gyutaro out , until the animals got their attention back on you. Well, not until Gyutaro attacked them again, sending a few of them flying. Some of the wolves hit the trees nearby, whining pathetically and backing away, giving up.

You felt relieved, the danger ran away and you were safe! You were safe…thanks to him. As you turned your head towards Gyutaro, your eyes widened, seeing the monster falling down onto the ground, staining some of the snow with his blood. For a moment you thought about running when he wasn't able to chase you down, but after a moment you abandoned that idea, instead coming up closer to him. You could see that he was in pain, no matter how calm he tried to stay, he was hurting. Carefully, you came closer to him, bringing his body towards yours, wanting to support and lead him back to the castle. As you began walking, you felt him clinging to you like a scared child, you didn't blame him for it tho. This was a hard day for the both of you, all that was left to do is getting back to the castle, which seemed to be a difficult task, but it had to be done. You couldn't just leave him to die here, and you couldn't let yourself die either, so you stepped forward, slowly making your way back to the castle that you so badly wanted to escape earlier.

✦————————————————————————✦

Aaaand— we're done here! Thank you for reading! I have some good news, because the next chapters will contain fluff and some romance! Finally!!!

But for now, I wish you all good day/night!