#finally safe to look through social media and news headlines
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felassan · 16 days ago
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This post is a collection assorted DA:TV info/news snippets. it's under a cut due to there being some spoilers in places.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard is reportedly currently $20 off on Xbox or PlayStation on disc, at QVC through November 30th (on purchases of over $40). [source and details]
This article also describes another way to use a discount for the game [source and details]
Metacritic gave a statement to Eurogamer about DA:TV review-bombing -
"In a statement to Eurogamer acknowledging the backlash to Dragon Age: The Veilguard on its site, a spokesperson for Metacritic parent company Fandom said its site was a "place of belonging for all fans". "We take online trust and safety very seriously across all our sites including Metacritic," the spokesperson said. "Metacritic has a moderation system in place to track violations of our terms of use. Our team reviews each and every report of abuse (including but not limited to racist, sexist, homophobic, insults to other users, etc) and if violations occur, the reviews are removed."" [source]
DA:TV contains a reference to Elden Ring [source and details]
Apparently players have discovered in DA:TV an infinite money exploit [source and details]
The BioWare Gear store looks to have restocked the BGS-exclusive variant of the DA:TV art book [link]
Solas & Varric's inaudible conversation from the prologue was decoded by ThedasWolves [source, via] -
Varric: "So how is this time gonna work out for the better? Can you tell me that?" Solas: "I understand your hesitance, but what I do now must be done. Despite it being past your comprehension." Varric: "I'm not saying you're evil, but if you truly believed what you were doing you'd be able to give me a straight answer." Solas: "You would rather cast aspersions than admit that this is mine to solve!" Varric: "C'mon Chuckles, who are you trying to convince here? Me, or yourself?"
DA:TV is reportedly EA's most successful singleplayer game on Steam, overtaking Star Wars Jedi Survivor and Mass Effect Legendary Edition in terms of all-time peak of concurrent players and at one point knocking Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 off the top as current top seller on the platform [source].
Larian's Swen Vincke downloaded DA:TV [source]
Coverage notes that DA:TV is a smooth-performing release in terms of the technical side of things [source]
DA:TV contains a heartfelt memorial tribute in honor of late BioWare developer Bruno Hayne: [link]
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mononijikayu · 2 months ago
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chapter (2) — the feels
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GENRE: alternate universe - actors/celeb au!
WARNING/S: not safe for work (nsfw), r-18 and above, actors/singers au!, romance, fluff, minor angst, slow burn, humour, slice of life, will they won't they, light-hearted, flirting, playful, possessiveness, teasing, explicit content, possible, kissing, sexual content, innuendos, drama, feels, hurt/comfort, falling in love, love, happy ending, actor/singer! sukuna, actress/celeb! reader;
WORD COUNT: 4.4k words.
NOTE: everytime i look at the drafts for this, i get butterflies. this story is really fun for me to write no matter what. i genuinely enjoy exploring the dynamics. i hope you enjoy it as much as i do!!! anyway, sukuna is definitely a simp for reader. like genuinely, he's down bad. but tbh so is reader. they're matching each other in everything!!! but well.....are they dating? who knows?
TAGLIST: @kunasthiast, @midnight-138, @v3nd3ttal3on;
masterlist
hey lover! series
HE DIDN’T EXPECT TO COME ACROSS IT. But it was that one afternoon on his day off, while Ryomen Sukuna was out running errands, he found himself finding a piece of you. It was just a regular day for him, one where he indulges himself as he strolls through the supermarket, casually picking up snacks and drinks he wanted. 
He doesn;t get to do it often because of how busy he is. But when he has the time, he indulges it and enjoys it a lot. He thinks if you were with him, it would have been more enjoyable, though. You liked going and doing mundane things like this, as much as he does. He noticed that a lot since you both were always going out and eating together after shoots in Tokyo.
It’s been a few weeks since Jujutsu Kaisen Season 1 did the final reshoots. And he thinks he missed you. You both texted a lot last night, sure. But it’s a different thing when you both are together.
But right now you are enjoying the holiday you’re taking. And judging from the photos you sent him so far, you were happily enjoying it. From what you told him last night, you said you were waiting for your flight so you could visit family back home. You won't be back in New York until maybe next week.
Ryomen Sukuna could only sigh at himself. He has become so fond of your company that he can’t help but crave even more of it. He supposes that it’s just how good you were with him, how good for him. He hadn’t really had anyone be that good to him, he supposed. You’ve just brightened up his day to day, even if it was just to think of you. 
As he turns the corner into the magazine aisle, something catches his scarlet eye and he stops— it was one of those glossy magazines, one that were for high fashion brands. In the front of its bright poppy cover featuring the ever beautiful shining you with a stunning smile, the headline reading, “Y/N L/N: Rising Star of Jujutsu Kaisen!”
His first thought is a mix of pride and mischief. He couldn’t help it. You were everywhere. And he just can’t help but feel warm about it. “Well, well, what do we have here?” he mutters to himself. Grinning, he picks up the magazine, flipping through it.
I should probably promote this. Doll worked hard on this, hm? he thinks, already plotting a plan. He pulls out his phone and goes live on social media, knowing his fans would be eager to join him for this impromptu session.
“Hey, everyone! So, I’m at the supermarket, and guess what I just found?” he announces, holding up the magazine for the camera, your face shining brightly on the cover. “Really pretty picture the editor chose really. I really love this one. I think everyone can agree!”
The chat explodes with comments.
“OMG, Y/N!”
“IS THAT A MAGAZINE?!”
“CAN WE GET A CLOSE-UP?!”
"MY WIFEEEEE SHE LOOKS SO GOOD!"
"CAN YOU FIGHT SUKUNA???"
"OH MY GOD, ONE CHANCE PLEASE PLEASEEE Y/N"
Sukuna chuckles, basking in the chaos as he starts to read some of the article aloud, his voice teasing. “Let’s see what the article has to say about my favorite rising star. Let’s read it together.” he begins, pretending to be a serious news anchor.
“‘Y/N has taken the entertainment world by storm with her captivating performances and undeniable charm, both on screen and on stage.’ Wow, they really nailed it, huh?” He glances at the camera, a playful smirk on his face. “They must’ve been taking notes from me. I mean, she is spending time with the best.”
The comments continue to flood in, fans egging him on.
“THIS IS SO CUTE! SUKUNA, KEEP PRAISING YOUR WOMAN OMG!”
“Please stop, I’m dying! He’s this love struck?”
“Is he flirting with her through a magazine?”
"He's never beating the 'im obssessed with y/n' allegations omg???"
"If my partner isn't like this, i genuinely don't want him, you guys???"
"How is Sukuna real? Like, how is he the only man to ever exist?"
Sukuna can’t help but lean into the banter. “Oh, it gets better. ‘Her recent work in Jujutsu Kaisen has captured the hearts of many, including veteran actor and co-star Ryomen Sukuna.’” He pauses dramatically, pretending to think deeply. “How does that feel? Being able to capture me, Y/N?”
The comments explode again.
“OH NO HE DIDN’T! RYOMEN SUKUNA, YOU’RE INSANE FOR THIS?????”
“IS HE FLIRTING?! GUYS GUYS CHAT IS THIS REAL????”
“THEY ARE SO CUTE TOGETHER! EVEN WHEN THEY’RE APART OMG”
"GOD PLEASE GIVE ME SOMETHING LIKE THIS PLEASE!!!"
"HIS EYES ARE JUST SO FULL OF LOVE WHILE STARING AT HER PICTURE OH MY GOD IM GONNA THROW UP???"
"HE'S DEFINITELY BUYING THE MAGAZINE AND STARE AT IT FOR A WHILE CAUSE???"
He continues reading, “Known for her ability to bring depth to her characters, Y/N is also a self-proclaimed cat mom.” He raises an eyebrow, grinning at the camera. “Noodle better watch out; he’s not the only one who’s going to be in the spotlight!”
Sukuna reads a little more, then leans back, looking directly into the camera. “Honestly, if you’re not following her yet, what are you doing? My doll’s the star of the century! She’s talented, funny, and—” he pretends to whisper with a grin. “—way cuter than I am.”
The comments go wild, with fans practically screaming in excitement.
“HE SAID IT! HE CALLED HER MY DOLL???”
“HE’S SO SUPPORTIVE OF HER OMGGGGGG!!!!”
“CAN YOU GUYS JUST DATE ALREADY?!”
"THEY'RE DEFINITELY DATING GOD IM JUST???"
"GIVE US THE CONFIRMATION FOR THE WEDDING ALREADY???"
"I SHIP I AM THE CAPTAIN OF THIS SHIPPPPPP!!!!"
As he wraps up the live session, Sukuna flashes a charming smile. “So, go pick up this magazine, check out Y/N, and maybe throw in a little love for me too while you’re at it. And don’t forget to tune into the next episode of Jujutsu Kaisen! See you later, everyone!”
With that, he ends the live stream, still chuckling to himself as he walks through the store, clutching the magazine. Little did he know, this playful moment would send fans into a frenzy, cementing your duo’s chemistry even further in the eyes of the public—and leaving you with a smile when you catch wind of his little stunt.
Later that evening, you’re lounging at home, scrolling through your social media feed, when you notice your notifications blowing up. Curious, you tap on your profile to find a flood of comments and tags about Sukuna’s recent live stream.
“Did you see Sukuna’s live? He was reading that magazine about you!”
“I’m crying! He’s so supportive! #Y/NandSukunaForever”
“He basically said he’s in love with you. Can you two just get married already?”
"Y/N, please. give him a shot already. That man is too in love with you."
"This man is doing promos for you like he's trying to save the planet. He's a good man, Savanah!"
"He's literally crazy about you, like??? Stopping in a supermarket to do a live to promote your magazine??? He's in love with you???"
You can’t help but grin, your heart racing at the thought of Ryomen Sukuna casually promoting you to all his fans. You scroll through the clips of his live, laughing at his playful banter and over-the-top expressions. You couldn’t help but just feel happiness beyond comprehension, knowing someone takes care of you even from afar.
Suddenly, a direct message pops up from him. Did you catch the live, doll?
You quickly type back, I did! You’re ridiculous! I can’t believe you read that whole thing.
His reply is immediate. Had to promote my favorite, cutest rising star! Can’t let Noodle take all the love in this three soul family, don’t you think?
You chuckle, imagining Sukuna strutting through the supermarket, holding your magazine like it’s the Holy Grail. What’s next? Are you going to host my fan club?
A few moments later, he replies, Absolutely! First meeting will be at our next sushi date. Wear something nice, doll.
Your cheeks flush at the thought. Then you better look sharp too, bub.
You just know he was smirking when he sent you the reply. When you opened it, your face turned even redder. Oh, of course, doll. I like making sure I look pretty enough to get your praises and kisses. You’re my doll, after all.
You could feel butterflies for a moment, and for a good while, you were just trying to keep yourself together. You couldn’t look like this while you were having dinner with your parents.
As the conversation continues, you can’t help but feel a warm flutter of excitement. Not only is he supporting you, but he’s also finding creative ways to keep the teasing and flirting alive in front of everyone.
The next day, you decide to take advantage of the buzz. You ended up in a book store where they had your magazines. You post a cute selfie of yourself holding the magazine, your expression playful and bright.
Thanks to my bubs @RyomenSukuna for the promotion! If you haven’t checked out this issue yet, what are you waiting for?
Almost instantly, your comments explode.
“YOU LOOK AMAZING! WE STANNNNNN”
“GET IT, GIRL! WE LOVE TO SEE IT!!!!”
“HE’S NOT WRONG, Y/N IS A QUEEN!”
"Y/N DOMINATION FR FR!!!"
"SUKUNA CAN YOU FIGHT CAN YOU FIGHT SUKUNA???"
"NAH CAUSE IF Y/N AND YOU AREN'T TOGETHER, IM SHOOTING MY SHOT!!!"
A few hours later, you see another tweet trending: “Sukuna’s magazine live should win an award for Best Promotion. Guys, if you’re not doing this for your girls, we don’t want you!”
You can’t help but laugh, picturing him reading through those thirsty tweets like a comedic genius.
Later that evening, as you prepare for bed, your phone buzzes again. It’s a video from Sukuna, looking slightly mischievous.
“Hey, everyone! Just wanted to follow up on my earlier live stream. The magazine is flying off the shelves, and I’m not saying it’s all because of my charming face, but… Okay, it’s mostly because of Y/N. You know how it is. Now, don’t just stop there—go buy that issue! And let’s be real, you’re doing it for me, but mostly for her! So, keep giving my doll all your love, okay? Thanks everyone! I’ll see you in the next live tweet for Jujutsu Kaisen!”
He winks at the camera, and you can’t help but smile. He’s just so endearing when he gets into these promotional modes. The next few weeks, it’s all the media could talk about.
They just catch wind of the buzz surrounding your magazine feature and Sukuna’s live stream. They keep getting more and more curious about you and Sukuna. After all, both of you were a mystery to them. 
You’re both invited to a morning talk show to discuss the recent developments, and you can already sense the excitement and chaos that awaits.As you both sit on the couch, the host teases you both about the “flirting” and “couple energy” that everyone seems to be picking up  on.
“You two are definitely giving off some serious vibes!” the host says, leaning in. “Sukuna, what do you have to say about the ongoing speculation?”
Sukuna grins, leaning back. “I mean, can you blame them? Who wouldn’t want to be with someone as talented and cute as Y/N? Can you blame everyone for being as dazzled about her as me?”
The audience erupts into cheers, and you can’t help but blush.
“Okay, but I’m just grateful for him.” you chime in, trying to regain composure. You grinned at him. “Sukuna’s just really is such a great supportive soul for me.… And such a darling to me. You always are, aren’t you, bub? Dramatic too, but well. Love you all the same!”
“Dramatic? Me? Never.” he replies, feigning innocence while smirking. “I’m just here to make sure everyone knows who the real star is. And well, who the real star of my day to day is, don’t you think?”
The banter continues, and by the end of the show, your dynamic has captured the hearts of viewers everywhere. Social media is ablaze with clips of your interview, further fueling the speculation and excitement.
As you leave the studio, you can’t help but think about how much fun this whole experience has been. The teasing, the playful banter, and Sukuna’s unabashed support have created a whirlwind of excitement that you never expected.
Later, you check your phone one last time before bed. A new tweet catches your eye: “Sukuna and Y/N have officially made it onto my ‘favorite couples’ list. The world needs more of this!”
With a smile on your face, you finally drift off to sleep, dreaming of what other adventures await you and Sukuna in this unexpected and thrilling journey together. 
➽──────────❥
YOU WERE STILL SLEEPY. But well, what could you do? Life goes on, with how your schedule is today. The day of the big fashion show had finally arrived, and excitement buzzed in the air as you and Sukuna prepared to strut down the runway.
The energy backstage was palpable—models hurrying to and from makeup stations, designers giving last-minute instructions, and the rhythmic clack of high heels against the glossy floor echoing in the room.
Sukuna, leaning casually against the wall, shot you a knowing glance. He had that smirk on his face, the one that hinted at his unshakable confidence. He was effortlessly cool, and you couldn't help but feed off that energy.
The theme of the show was glamorous rebellion—a fusion of elegance and edge, where bold designs and striking details were the focus. You were dressed in a breathtaking ensemble that turned heads even before the show began.
A sleek, figure-hugging dress with shimmering embellishments, its dramatic cut-outs giving you just the right mix of sophistication and daring. The heels you wore? Absolutely lethal—sky-high stilettos that elongated your figure, giving you the sensation that you could conquer not just the runway, but the world.
Meanwhile, Sukuna, in a custom-tailored suit that hugged his broad shoulders and accentuated his muscular build, was the perfect counterpart. The deep crimson of his suit jacket contrasted sharply against his black shirt, and the subtle metallic details gleamed under the runway lights. He exuded power and charisma, each step deliberate and commanding.
As you both stepped onto the runway, the atmosphere changed. The lights flashed in rhythm with the music, casting you and Sukuna in a dazzling, almost surreal glow. The crowd erupted into cheers, their excitement infectious.
The music pulsed through your veins, and with Sukuna by your side, you felt invincible. His smirk widened as he caught a few admiring gazes from the audience, and with each stride, the energy between you both grew, palpable and electrifying.
Each step was flawless. The click of your heels against the runway, perfectly timed with Sukuna's strides, created a symphony of dominance.
You could feel eyes on you, admiration and awe blending with envy, but none of that mattered. In that moment, it was just you and Sukuna—a force to be reckoned with. He glanced at you from the corner of his eye, a mischievous glint playing in his gaze, as if daring you to outshine him.
But this wasn’t a competition. It was an effortless partnership, the two of you ruling the runway together. Every turn, every pose, was perfectly synchronized, as though you had rehearsed this a hundred times over.
The lights continued to flicker, cameras flashing from every direction, immortalizing this moment. And as you reached the end of the runway, Sukuna extended his hand to you in a gentlemanly yet teasing manner. You took it, lifting your chin slightly, knowing that together, you had owned the night.
But halfway down the runway, disaster struck. One of your heels snapped, sending you wobbling dangerously to one side. You gasped, struggling to maintain your balance as you tried to recover. Just as you thought you might tumble, Sukuna swiftly reached out, his grip firm around your waist.
“Got you, doll!” he exclaimed, pulling you closer to him as he steadied you. The crowd gasped, and in that split second, you realized you were more grateful than embarrassed.
With a quick wink and a playful flourish, Sukuna helped you regain your composure, but the damage was done—your heel was officially broken. You could feel the adrenaline rush as you both finished the walk, the crowd cheering wildly, clearly enamored by the unexpected moment.
After the show, backstage was a flurry of activity. You hopped on one foot, trying to assess the damage to your broken heel when Sukuna, still riding the high of the show, turned to you. “You know, you could always go for a more comfortable look, doll.” he joked, gesturing toward his own stylish shoes.
You rolled your eyes, laughing. “And give up my fashion moment? Never!”
But as you tried to walk towards the exit, it became clear that you weren’t going to make it far without some help. Sensing your struggle, Sukuna stepped in, effortlessly scooping you up into his arms.
“Let’s get you to the car, fashionista.” he said with a playful grin, carrying you like a princess, drawing surprised looks from the crew and other models.
As you both exited the venue, a photographer snapped a picture of the moment. You could hear the clicking of cameras as people captured the scene—Sukuna, the effortlessly cool actor, carrying you, the fabulous rising star.
That single picture ended up circulating online like wildfire. The caption read: “Is this the most romantic moment of the fashion show? Sukuna carrying Y/N after her heel broke!”
The fan reactions were immediate and overwhelming.
“OMG, I can’t handle this cuteness! He genuinely loves her so much!”
“HE CARRIED HER! SOMEONE CALL THE AMBULANCE, I CAN’T BREATHE!”
“Y/N is literally living my dream. Sukuna is such a gentleman!”
You couldn’t help but smile as you read through the tweets, watching the fan base collectively lose their minds over the moment. You glanced up at Sukuna, who was now scrolling through his phone, clearly amused by the frenzy.
“Look at them go, doll.” he chuckled, a mix of pride and mischief in his eyes. “They’re all acting like we just starred in a rom-com.”
“Maybe we should consider it, bub.” you teased back, leaning your head against his shoulder as he carried you toward the car. “I mean, we both get the same rom-com lead offers. We might as well try.”
“Hm, I’ll think about it.”
“You better!”
As you reached the vehicle, Sukuna gently set you down, but not before the paparazzi snapped more pictures, capturing the laughter and playful banter between you both. You felt like the luckiest person in the world, surrounded by glitz and glamor, but even more, you cherished these moments with him.
Later that night, as you sat together scrolling through the flood of posts about the fashion show, Sukuna turned to you, a smirk dancing on his lips. “So, you think I should carry you everywhere now?”
You laughed, nudging him playfully. “Only if you promise to be this charming every time.”
“Deal, doll.” he replied with a sly smirk on his face. “But only if I get a kiss each and every time.”
You returned his sly smile. “You drive a heavy bargain, you know?”
“Well, I like good compensation, doll.”
“Hm. I’ll think about it, darling.”
And just like that, another adventure in this whirlwind of a journey began, one where fans eagerly awaited every twist and turn of your ever-evolving story. 
The following days were a whirlwind of activity, with the aftermath of the fashion show still buzzing across social media. Every time you opened your phone, there were new memes, edits, and posts highlighting Sukuna’s chivalrous act of carrying you out. 
One particularly popular meme featured a split image: on one side, a picture of you in your stunning outfit with the broken heel, and on the other, a screenshot of Sukuna’s smirk as he effortlessly carried you away. The caption read, “When you break a heel, but your knight in shining armor has your back.”
You couldn’t help but laugh as you scrolled through the threads filled with comments like, “Where do I sign up for a carry from Sukuna?” and “No, but I need someone to love me like this. I need someone to lovingly help me in my fashion emergencies!”
“Looks like you’ve become a trendsetter, doll.” Sukuna teased, plopping down next to you on the couch. “Maybe we should make this a regular thing—fashion shows and heel emergencies.”
“Only if you promise to always be there to catch me, darling.” you shot back, smirking.
As you both continued to scroll through the chaos, an idea struck you. “We should do a follow-up interview about the fashion show! Imagine how much the fans would love to hear us talk about it, especially the heel incident.”
Sukuna raised an eyebrow, intrigued. “You think they’d want to hear about our dramatic moment on the runway? You falling apart and me swooping in to save the day?”
“Absolutely!” You nodded, enthusiasm bubbling up. “I mean, it’s practically a rom-com waiting to happen. Plus, we can spend time together and promote our upcoming work together!”
“Alright, I’m in. But only if you let me wear those ridiculous heels next time….so you know, you can catch me too, doll.” he grinned, nudging you. 
You laughed out loud. “Alright, darling. Let’s find you a pair when we go shopping today.”
“Oh, that’s going to be a challenge then.”
“Hm, why not? It’s fun when we’re together in challenges!”
The next day, you both headed to the studio for the interview. As you settled into your seats, the host couldn’t help but chuckle when he saw you both. “So, the world has been going crazy over your little ‘heel disaster’ at the recent fashion show. Sukuna, what was going through your mind when you scooped Y/N up?”
Sukuna leaned back with a playful grin. “Honestly? I just thought it was a great opportunity to show off my impressive muscles and save the day. Plus, someone needed to make sure she didn’t fall on her face in front of everyone. I’d do anything for my doll, right here, you know?”
You laughed, nudging him with your elbow. “He’s so humble, isn’t he?Like, darling — come and get your credit too! It was more like a dramatic rescue scene, complete with the swoon-worthy soundtrack.”
The interview continued, with the two of you sharing laughs and stories about your experiences. Fans in the comments couldn’t get enough of the chemistry, throwing out heart emojis and excited remarks.
“Do you think you two will collaborate on a fashion line next?” one viewer asked, prompting a wave of excitement among the audience.
“Maybe we’ll do a ‘Y/N & Sukuna’ collection, won’t we, darling?” you said, leaning in. “You know, something chic but also… practical for when you break your heels!”
Sukuna feigned offense, placing a hand over his heart. “Practical? I’m all about the drama! But I could see us doing something fun. Maybe some ‘Sukuna-approved’ footwear that won’t break under pressure? I think you’d love that, doll.”
As the interview was winding down, the host leaned in with a mischievous smile and asked the question that everyone had been waiting for: “So, any truth to the rumors that you two are dating?”
You barely had time to process it before you and Sukuna exchanged a look. Without missing a beat, both of you burst into uncontrollable laughter, the kind where you had to clutch your stomach and wipe away tears. Sukuna’s laugh? A deep, rumbling sound that somehow made the entire situation even funnier.
“I mean, who knows?” you said, still giggling as you tried to regain composure. “We care a lot for each other, though. But, you know, that’s our business!” You flashed a playful wink at the camera, trying to keep things light, but it was clear you were having too much fun with the moment. "Though, who wouldn’t want a guy who carries you when your heel breaks? My darling here is great with helping me out.”
Sukuna, not one to let you steal the spotlight, leaned in closer to the camera with a sly grin, his voice dropping an octave as he added, “I mean, who wouldn’t want to go and carry you and take care of you, doll?” He tilted his head in mock seriousness. “I love caring for you.”
The comment section immediately went into overdrive. The fans couldn’t handle it.
“THE FLIRTING?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!”
“STOPPP THIS IS TOO MUCH MY HEART CAN’T TAKE IT.”
“If they’re not dating, then what's the real point of my life in this world, you guys?”
“Someone pls send help I’ve forgotten how to breathe.”
“Sukuna saying ‘I love caring for you’ like it’s casual?!? They’re married and I know it.”
“Can they just admit it already? WE KNOW.”
After the interview wrapped up, you both waved to the camera, still giggling, as the host thanked you. As soon as the cameras cut, your phones exploded with notifications. It seemed like every social media platform was on fire, fans spiraling into a frenzy over the playful banter.
There were memes of Sukuna carrying you like a princess, edits of the two of you in wedding attire, and screenshots of the moment Sukuna leaned into the camera like he was making a declaration of eternal love.
“I told you this would happen, bub.” you said, showing Sukuna the screen full of memes.
He glanced over and chuckled. “What, people can’t handle a little chemistry?” He shrugged nonchalantly, but you could see the hint of amusement in his eyes. He was enjoying this just as much as you were.
“Well, I guess we’re just going to have to keep them guessing.” you replied, throwing him a teasing grin.
Sukuna leaned back, stretching his arms behind his head. “Or maybe we just keep giving them something to talk about.”
“Well, I love talking about you anyway.” You look at him with a smile. “Don’t you like doing the same?”
He pauses for a second, but grins. “But don’t you already know that?”
“Yeah, I do. I just like hearing it.”
“Cheeky one, aren’t you, doll?”
You grin even wider at him. “Well, my favorite act of love are words of affirmation.”
As you walked out of the studio together, Sukuna looked at you with a smirk. “But you know, I think I could get used to this whole ‘carrying you’ thing. It really keeps the fans on their toes.”
“Oh, for sure.” you replied, nudging him playfully. “Just wait until they start shipping us harder.”
“Let them do their thing.” he said, shrugging nonchalantly. “I’ll just keep carrying you around. I’m like a knight in shining armor, after all.”
You both laughed, knowing that the playful teasing and affectionate banter were only part of the adventure you were embarking on together. As the days went by, the trend only grew, with fans eagerly anticipating every new development in your story.
With each passing moment, the excitement around your dynamic seemed to intertwine your lives more and more, and you couldn’t shake the feeling that this was just the beginning of something truly special.
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misunhye · 7 months ago
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DREAM( )SCAPE
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HIGHLIGHTS
when she first heard the demo, she didn’t think it’d be her favorite song ever 😭 but she ended up really liking it!
misun wrote a little bit of box and unknown !!
and so her ranking goes unknown > breathing > box > smoothie > icantfeelanything > carat cake 🤭
her hair was blonde this era!! she had a moment where she had pink hair ?? but then it was back to blonde so like??
she did multiple tiktoks with other idols !! txt’s taehyun, kiss of life’s julie, illit’s yunah and minju. even idols that weren’t promoting like aespa’s karina
she was on the k-star next door with jaemin, jeno, chenle and jisung 🎉 she loves jonathan it was so fun
she met zb1’s hanbin who she knew already bc she was the one who got chenle to watch LOL she was also a sung hanbin stan ^_^
misun was on eunchae’s star diary LOL it was fun misun had to do most of the talking and she insisted eunchae called her unnie. and like of course eunchae had to say misun and chaewon looked like twins…
eunchae: misun unnie, you and my chaewon unnie look alike
misun: … i have no clue what youre talking about *literally clueless*
eunchae: ??? … okay anyways
okay and when they had their fansign (240407 withmuu fansign), misun had like ?? sports gear on. don’t ask me what sport but you can see it below !! ↓
misun did dream vs dream with jisung!! FINALLY. jeno and her will be next, trust. (insert link here when i post it…)
she also went on inssadong sulzzi with lee chaeyeon!! she had sm fun and she loves interacting with other idols
she wanted to go on jaefriends but figured sm would’ve told her no
she also kinda hinted to a nct xs comeback?? she posted multiple pics of the girls in the practice room and studio on her instagram story but no comeback news yet
she’s super excited for tds3!!! she enjoyed spoiling the setlist with chenle
smoothie era was rather eventful for her? she tried her best not to go on social media and mostly just interacted with fans through weverse. it was her safe space
as soon as smoothie promos were over, though, she went silent lol per usual
surprisingly no headline worthy dating rumors this era!!
icantfeelanything teasers
SMOOTHIE OUTFITS
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PHOTOCARDS
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LEFT TO RIGHT: icantfeelanything, smoothie
POPULAR FANSITE SHOTS
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LINES
icantfeelanything
Erased from my mind [ 0:50 — 0:52 ]
두려움을 딛어
자신을 믿어 [ 0:59 — 1:02 ]
Erased from my mind [ 1:40 — 1:41 ]
Smoothie
가차 없이 비틀어 �� 다음
삼켜 sip, watch how I blend it up [ 0:15 — 0:19 ]
Smoothie, smoothie, smoothie
Smoothie, smoothie, smoothie
가볍게 씹어 삼켜
Smoothie, smoothie
Smoothie, smoothie [ 0:53 — 1:01 ]
Shower that in all this ice
결국엔 녹아 fade out [ 1:15 — 1:20 ]
거칠게 mess up, yeah [ 1:50 — 1:53 ]
달콤함만 기대한 적 없어 난 [ 2:26 — 2:30 ]
(가볍게 씹어 삼켜 smoothie) [ 2:53 — 2:56 ]
BOX
Nobody lockin' me up [ 0:37 — 0:39 ]
더 자유롭게
멈추지 않을래, ooh [ 2:06 — 2:12 ]
Carat Cake
넌 못 감춰 saying "Wow!"
외쳐 asking how [ 0:22 — 0:25 ]
That's a carat cake [ 1:01 — 1:02 ]
Oh, 손에 잡힌 그 순간 [ 1:35 — 1:36 ]
투명한 그 빛 hit the heart likе clink [ 1:58 — 2:00 ]
UNKNOWN
Why'd you ever doubt it?
No never be scared of trying [ 0:27 — 0:30 ]
Dive in, dive in, into the unknown [ 1:01 — 1:04 ]
다시 널 찾아가 into the unknown [ 1:10 — 1:12 ]
Don't change, let go
Be brave, be strong
But take it easy, no rush
I know you got it [ 1:58 — 2:05 ]
But take it easy, no rush
I know you got it [ 2:48 — 2:51 ]
(I know you try) [ 3:20 — 3:23 ]
Breathing
아주 당연했던 감각, oh
잊어버린 것만 같아, oh [ 0:36 — 0:41 ]
I've been searching for another meaning
나아갈 수 있을까 [ 0:55 — 1:01 ]
I know I'm no good without you
Baby, can you stay all night? [ 2:50 — 2:53 ]
따스해
마주 잡은 손 느낄 때
And my heart starts beating [ 3:55 — 4:04 ]
149 notes · View notes
noahsmuse · 5 months ago
Text
close to you ♡
✮ PAIRING: noah sebastian x popstar!reader
✮ SUMMARY: headcannons showcasing the relationship between two opposing ends of the music industry with a popstar!reader and noah sebastian!
✮ A/N: again, thank you all for the support on my last few posts!!! if you have any requests for something you’d like to see me write, don’t hesitate to send it in ᵔᴗᵔ
moodboard inspired by headcannons located -> here!!!!!!! 🪩🎤✨
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୨୧ it all started when you mentioned how Bad Omens was one of your favorite bands in a magazine interview and people went CRAZY. bad omens fans eventually found it and started sharing it around, so happy that they share a common interest with an artist they’re very familiar with.
୨୧ this takes noah a few days until he sees what you said as he isn’t on social media as much anymore, i feel like one of the guys would ask if he’s seen it and then they’d show it to him which is how he’d probably find out
-> he had known about you before just from listening one of your songs that has recently blown up and thought it was really good but didn’t think too much about it
୨୧ because you both share the same record label, at some type of party they were throwing is where you both met!!!!! i feel like noah would spot you out first and try to make some type of conversation with you since he remembered about how positively you talked about the band
-> the night ended with you walking out with noah’s number and ever since that night, there wasn’t a single day that went by without either of you having a conversation whether it was via text, call, or facetime. you both also ended up finding out that you had A LOT in common, by the ways you make music, the media you both consume and are really into
୨୧ as your relationship progresses over the phone, the opportunity finally shows itself since you both are on a break from touring, he decides that it’s a perfect time to ask you on a date!!!!
-> he picks you up with some of your favorite flowers in his hand that he had just bought earlier while thinking back to a random conversation you two had on the phone about flowers, opens the car and door for you, and ends up paying for both of the sweet treats & drinks you both order. he’s just such a gentleman and wants to impress you :(
୨୧ and while the date seems to be going well when the two of you end up leaving, your bombarded with flashing lights and cameras all in the both of your faces. noah tries his best to cover you both up the most he can while taking the lead back to his car
-> when he drops you off and walks you back to your house door is also when he officially asks you to be his girlfriend and obviously you accept?!?!
୨୧ i definitely think that your relationship would be more of a “private but not secret” situation since you’re both in the spotlight with fans and paparazzi everywhere waiting to make a new headline about how perfect you both look for each other :)
-> also along with the “private but not secret” idea, people notice how you wear a lot of his hoodies and shirts in your off time along with some bad omens merch that you’ve either stole from him or that he’s gave you (people also see him wearing your merch & putting some of your songs into his spotify playlists as support for you)
୨୧ he’s VERY protective of you considering how much of a following you and him have combined so he always loves to hold your hand or waist just to make sure you’re safe at all times :)
୨୧ you’ve both definitely helped each other through the negatives about being in the music industry with things like writers blocks, burnouts, insecurities, and doubts throughout your careers
-> (since he’s so talented & amazing) he’d definitely help record, write, and engineer songs for your next album or maybe just for fun because he just loves spending time with you while doing something you both enjoy!
୨୧ he LOVES to come and support you during your performances wither it’s at a festival or during your own headliners!!!! fans usually notice him either sitting side stage or in the grassy areas around the pit where he’ll be watching you, sometimes they see him singing along to your songs and even taking photos & videos of you up on stage, he just loves watching you doing what you enjoy :)
-> and same thing for when you go to their concerts & festivals that bad omens is performing for ♡
୨୧ whenever the both of you start going down a flight of stairs or a hill, he’ll always run in front of you so he can hold your hand to “prevent you from falling” (when really this is just a way for him to hold your hand) because of how you’re usually always wearing shoes with a heel that could potentially harm you
୨୧ he’s always talking about you no matter it’s whether about making music with you or the cute little date you both went on the other day, he’s just so obsessed and amazed that he’s your boyfriend
-> and yes, the boys do make fun of how he doesn’t shut up about you but they also usually ask about how you’re doing or how the date that he mentioned he was going on with you went :)
୨୧ you two are like the people’s prince & princess!!! everyone loves you guys & the little “opposites attract” dynamic since you’re usually in brighter colors with sparkles while he’s wearing all black. interviewers are always asking about y’all’s relationship, the fans love you both and everything you guys do is iconic!!!!!!!
🪩 ☆⌒。˚✧✨
104 notes · View notes
kingkatsuki · 2 years ago
Note
To the world Dynamight was a fallen hero, but not because he died in battle. Although he may as well have the way that people vilified him now. News heeadlines spoke about how Bakugou betrayed his fellow heroes and friends to follow the dark side, to go against everything he once stood for as a hero. Hate flooded in on social media, even the once die hard fans were turning their back on him.
The world had turned its back on the once great hero, even his old school friends acted as though he was just a distant memory. Whether they believed the story or not, powerful NDAs set up by the commission prevented anyone from speaking out.
And of course Bakugou is the perfect scape goat. Photographs and videos of his behaviour during the UA Sports Festival began to resurface, the shaky phone videos of him blowing up at civilians or destroying public property were now at the centre of this big story. With everyone saying the same thing— we knew he wasn’t a hero.
And maybe you were guilty of believing the rumours too, the stories that people were now posting to their accounts about how they’d interacted with him in the past and knew there was something bad. The documentaries and shows that captured the “true Dynamight” who was never a hero, just a fraud.
But as a new and upcoming journalist, trying to get that one story that would have you make a name for yourself, you can’t seem to find a hit. Your emails to Deku, Red Riot and other Pro’s falling on deaf ears— the stories you continued to report on would never get you the attention you needed. Stories about thwarted robberies and saving cats from trees by B-rate heroes would never compare to the hits you’d receive from just one question to a top ten hero.
But looking through these interviews you stumble across a final “unseen” video of Dynamight. The headline stating it was one of his final interviews before he was stripped of his title. You couldn’t help but sit there and replay it as you watched the handsome man on the screen, talking about the successful mission he’d just completed and how the hero was now safely locked up for questioning. Cutting it short as he excused himself to report back in to the commission.
You replayed the final fifteen seconds of the video to make sure you’d heard him correctly, the static noise mingled with the loud roar of the media in the background which made it difficult to hear exactly what he’d said but you were certain he’d said it.
“The hero is now safe in custody.”
The hero.
You began scouring the internet to try and find any contact details or traces for ex-hero Dynamight, finding nothing but a ghost as you tried to think of what you could do to get in touch with him.
To find the truth.
This with villain!bakugou
Like us being super interested in all thinks pro-hero dynamight and his sudden disappearance and rumors of him becoming a villain
An because of a dare, us going to his house (we found out the address after tons of researching) and simply asking if all those allegations are true
And him being so surprised that a pretty young thing has found him and had the nerve to ask him if he’d truly gone to the dark side
But what if we end up finding out that the commission and the media made him into a villain to try and cover up some seedy shit and we end up helping him to uncover years of corruption and clear his name?👀
80 notes · View notes
suchalonelysunflower · 4 years ago
Text
Babylon (l.h)
End Up Here -Part 5
Pairing: Luke Hemmings x 5sos! Fem! Reader
Summary: A lot has happened and too many things were left unsaid. Even after a month they still find ways to be in each others mind.
Warnings: Angst and smut. Mentions of vioence, physical abuse, mental abuse, sexual abuse, harassment, cheating, fighting, sexism, frustrations, alcohol. Language and some grammatical errors (English is not my first language, I’m sorry)
Word count : 10.1 k
Author’s Note: I cried a lot writing this, so I’m sorry. Final Part coming up March 16th! Remember that Reblogs, Feedback, Comments and Likes are very important! You have no idea how much they help me ❤️ Hope you like it and Happy Reading 🦋🌻✨
My Materialist // wanna be part of my tag list?
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Series Materialist || part 1 || part 2 || part 3 || part 4
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Liked by banksmadden, 5soslover55 and 1,750,316 others
yn5sos how did I end up here?
View all 55,432 comments
ashtonirwin who’s there with you?
hater7 pathetic
ynfan2 LEAVE HER ALONE PLEASE
5sosfan9 this is so irresponsible. I thought you were better.
↪️ yn5sos me too
*
“OUT OF CONTROL: Singer Y/N L/N seeing partying once again after the concert. L/N was last seen with a crowd of people, none of which were her bandmates” 
“Sensitive, are we? On their last concert, Y/N L/N from the band 5 Seconds of Summer was caught running away from the stage mid-show, leaving her poor bandmates Calum Hood and Michael Clifford to finish the song for her. L/N came back minutes later to finish the show. Videos show the singer crying along to the love songs” 
“5SOS BREAKING UP? SINGER Y/N L/N GOING M.I.A ON BAND’S SOCIAL MEDIA LEAVES FANS CONFUSED AND WORRIED” 
*
“Y/N?!” Ashton kept banging at the door. His patience ran thin as the girl refused to answer “Y/N! C’mon!” 
“She’s still not answering?” A voice called behind him. 
Calum and Michael were already dressed up, ready for another day of interviews in a foreign language. Ashton assumed that the girls were already downstairs waiting for them. 
The older man shook his head, frustration clear on his face as he kept banging on the door like it was his drums. 
“Y/N, I will break down the door if you don’t open it!” 
It wasn’t an empty promise. They could pay the hotel after but he’d be damned if something happens to Y/N. 
She hasn’t been herself since Luke left. When they came back from doing promo that day they were met with the news of him leaving. Y/N didn’t leave her room that whole day. 
They were mad, furious even, with Luke. All the things they warned him about were thrown down the drain. They told them not to believe the media and to talk to Y/N but he did none of those things, he only made it worse for all of them, especially the girl who was now spending half the tour absent-minded over heartbreak. 
She told them several times that she was fine “I asked him to leave” She would say. But they know better than to believe her right away when she says those stuff, not after that night when she told them the truth about Madden. They swore never to make that mistake again, but history was repeating itself! Only this time it was ten times worse. 
Y/N would go out every night after the show, no matter in which part of the world they found themselves in. She was determined to drown herself in alcohol rather than self-pity. They tried to spot her several times but she wouldn’t listen, so they agreed that at least one of them would accompany her whenever she went out just to make sure that she is safe and that she doesn’t go too far. 
Last night, however, it was Michael’s turn but Beth felt sick so he couldn't go. He texted Calum, but he was already asleep so he didn’t see the message. Ashton was out with Dani for a date night and when he came back he found Michael in the lobby asking for some medicine for Beth’s stomach and when Calum answered their call with a sleepy voice they realized that Y/N was alone. 
And now she wouldn’t answer the door. 
“Y/N, I swear to God!”
“Why do you gotta bring the lord into this?” 
The three men turned around and found Y/N standing next to them. Her hair was messy and her makeup was smudged, but his eyes remained empty as she looked at them quizzically. 
“Were you already downstairs this whole time?!” Ashton asked, raising his voice. Y/N cringed as she shushed him.
“Ugh, could you talk any louder? My head is killing me”
Calum looked at his friend up and down, realizing what was happening “You just came back, didn’t you?”
All three of them turned their heads to her, unable to believe what was in front of them. This wasn’t the Y/N they knew. She was never like this, ever. 
Y/N rolled her eyes at the sad, angry, and pitiful looks of her friends. She didn’t need to answer what was obvious. 
“Where were you all this time?” Michael asked “We were worried sick” 
“Wow, thanks dad,” She said with sarcasm, walking towards her door as she tried to find her key somewhere along with her pockets “I was at the bar. Did you know they open 24 hs? There’s no such thing as the last call here! I love this country” 
She let out a little squeal of joy when she finally found her key, pushing Ashton out of the way with the side of her body as she inserted it on the lock. 
“We have an interview in 30 minutes!” He reminded her.
“Yeah, your girl told me that downstairs” She answered before she started to close the door “Have fun with that” 
But before she could close it completely, Ashton’s foot got in the way.
“You can’t keep doing this, Y/N,” He said with a serious tone, ignoring the pain of the door hitting his foot, still trying to close on him. 
Y/N pushed a little harder “I want to sleep, Ashton. Good night” 
“No! Goddammit, Y/N. This has gone too far!” 
She opened the door, making Ashton trip, and almost fell to the floor in front of her. She was beyond pissed as she began to talk.
“No! Everything has already gone too far, I’m just catching up!” She spat loudly, making the boys look at her in surprise “Madden went too far, the media went too far, the industry went too far and Luke went too far. And I let them crash into me like I’m just a bystander, waiting to pick up the pieces they left of me! So excuse me for finally doing whatever they thought I did. Forgive me for catching up to this fucked up world and finally live up to their false expectations! But I’m not allowed to break down, not right now and probably not ever! So I will keep running. Maybe that way, if I catch up, they’ll leave me the fuck alone” Her eyes filled with tears as she spoke, but she will not cry in front of them. Not anymore “So, good fucking night” 
Ashton closed his eyes when he felt the wind of the door slamming inches away from his face. He raised his hand to knock again, but soon he let it fall with a sigh. 
He turned around to face the guys and they all had the same hurt expression, not because she hurt them, but because she was hurting herself. They all thought she was doing it unconsciously, but now it was rather obvious that she knew exactly what she was doing. 
Y/N is destroying herself because there’s almost nothing left of her. So she’s speeding up the process. 
“We can’t leave her like that” Michael said in a whisper, none of them were looking at the door right now, all their eyes were set on the floor as they contemplated their options.
“Well, she doesn’t want to see us. That’s for fucking sure” Calum murmured. 
The three men stood in silence in the hallway. Breathing heavily from time to time as their minds tried to find a way to reach out to Y/N before it was too late. 
“We have to do something” Michael broke the silence again, fidgeting with his fingers as he met the worried eyes of his two best friends “The fans are already saying that she’s going to leave the band and-“
“No,” Ashton interrupted him, clenching his jaw as the headlines of the articles ran through his mind “We are not letting that happen” 
“But what if she wants to?”
“Then that’s not our Y/N/N,” He said “And I refuse to lose her this way or in any way, for that matter”
After a few minutes, it was clear that Y/N was not coming out of her room any time soon. So the boys had to get downstairs to get to the interviews, already thinking about excuses to justify her absence once again. 
They wanted to stay with her, but management was already being too hard on them as it is, and they didn’t want Y/N to pay the consequences if they didn’t show up to at least one promo interview. So they had no choice but to leave her alone in her room. 
Once the elevator doors opened, the three of them were met with the worried eyes of their girlfriends who quickly met up with them halfway. 
“How is she doing? She didn’t speak to us when she came through the doors” Bethany explained as she stood next to Michael, grabbing his hand in comfort.
Ashton just shook his head.
“We talked,” Kat said with a sigh “We decided that we are staying here with her” 
“What?”
“You’ll be fine in the interviews without us, but she needs someone. Even if we just wait for her in the lobby all day. Someone needs to check up on her” Kat continued. 
“She’s lonely,” Danielle followed, “Even if she doesn’t want to admit it. She’s hurting too much for words to even describe” 
The boys knew they were right. Even if Y/N doesn’t want to, they will still be there for her every step of the way. They were not going to leave her to drown. 
“Thank you,” Ashton said, truthfully “But there’s gotta be something else we could do for her… just standing by and keeping an eye on her while she wastes away is just…” 
He couldn’t finish the sentence, he didn’t need to. They all knew what he was referring to; that damn feeling of helplessness and hopelessness. 
“We’ll figure something out,” Calum said confidently “We are not going to give up on her”
*
There was nothing much to do back in L.A. as Luke found out when he stepped out of the plane almost a month ago. His life has completely changed since he met her and now… Now she was gone and he was left with nothing.
It was his own fault, that’s what he reminded himself every single day since the morning Y/N asked him to leave. He acted on emotions rather than with reason, angry with the world that allowed him to get close to her just to rip her out of his hands the moment he realized his mistakes. He should’ve listened, should’ve fought, should’ve stayed. He should’ve done a lot of things and now he doesn’t even have the chance to fix it. 
He hasn’t checked anything about Y/N since he came back. No articles, no tweets, no posts… nothing. He feels as if he didn’t have the right anymore. He never had the right to do it from the beginning, not without letting them fill his brains with lies that eventually left him in pieces.
How could he? How could he let all those things get to him? Everyone told him to ignore them, not to believe the lies that were written for the clicks and the gossip. He knew the truth, he lived with it, and yet, he had turned on her the second it had become too much. 
Y/N was a private person and Luke could never understand why. Why if she was so private with her life did every news article write about her? They were all lies. And if he had at least an ounce of decency he would’ve realized that sooner and stand by her side instead of siding with the media. Yet, those thoughts were sticking with him at the back of his head, haunting him even in his sleep. 
How easy it was for him to turn away from her. How easy it was for him to leave her. But how hard it was to ignore the love he feels for her, knowing that she won’t take him back and with good reason. Y/N deserves better, in every way, shape, or form. She was such a bright light in such a dark world, and he just hopes she will be strong enough to see it someday, even if he’s not by her side anymore.
God, he was just a fucking idiot. 
And now, as he walked past the coffee shop where they first met while he fought the urge to cry again, he was willing to beat himself up for it. For losing the only person he cared about just because he wasn’t brave enough to fight for her as he should’ve. There wasn’t anything that didn’t remind him of Y/N, nothing he could do to shake the self-inflicted pain he caused, so he thought better than to let it consume him. 
Luke sat on an empty bench near the campus, his classes didn’t start until a month from today but he longed for some kind of distraction. Once he settled, he took out his notebook and started writing. He doesn’t write about love anymore, rather he wrote about the loss of it while still mourning it fresh on the flesh. Finally understanding what Ashton meant when he said that heartbreak breaks you, and, for a moment, he thought about how she might feel at this moment; if she, at least once, thought of him with something wasn’t hate.
He spent hours sitting outdoors, writing as if his time were to end at any moment. He wrote letters of forgiveness, poems of grief, and free thoughts of the guilt he was feeling. He didn’t mention her, but they were all about and for her. For his Y/N who was now a world away and who he will not call his ever again. 
It must’ve been late when his phone started to ring; the streetlights were starting to lit up the pavement as the sun started to set, leaving soft shades of pink and purple to cover up the sky. He didn’t know the number, so he let it ring thinking it might be just one company trying to sell him something he didn’t need. 
But the unknown caller was relentless; calling and calling until Luke decided to answer after the fourth time. 
“Hello?” He said, annoyed by the interruption. He didn’t want to talk to anyone; not like he had anyone to talk to, after all. 
“You fucker” The voice at the other end said. Luke froze when he recognized it. 
“A-Ashton?” 
“Were you expecting the fucking queen?” He sounded angry and even through the phone he left Luke completely intimidated as he sunk into his seat. 
“How - Whose number is this?” Luke asked, knowing he had all their numbers saved in his phone. 
“Would you have answered if you saw my name on the screen?” He wouldn’t, they both know it. But at the same time…
“Why are you calling me?” He finally muttered, his head wrapped around the only reason Ashton, out of all people, would be calling him. He knew it was not to catch up “Is Y/N okay?! Did something happen to her?!” 
Something must be terribly wrong if Ashton was calling him. That man was very protective over his best friend and Luke was sure he would’ve killed him if he found him the day where he yelled at her, knowing that Y/N must’ve told him everything. He knew Y/N was not going to forgive him and neither will the boys for that matter. That day he lost more than just his girl. 
Ashton laughed without any kind of humor “No, she’s not. Of course, she’s not! You happened to her, mate. I don’t know what the fuck you did but she hasn’t been the same since you left.” 
Luke’s eyes widened “She didn’t tell you?” 
If he thought about it, it really wasn’t that surprising. Y/N never talked about her problems with him, but the boys always knew everything, them being the only people she knew she could trust with her whole heart. Luke had always been jealous of that, but once he found out the truth of why she kept some things for herself he understood why she could only trust her bandmates with it. He immediately thought that she would tell them everything, every word he said and the hateful words he wrote, but she didn’t and that could not mean anything good. 
“She told us enough. That you believed the lies of her and Madden and didn’t let her explain before you lashed out and she asked you to leave. Not a single detail about it, only that you were gone and were not coming back. I guess she didn’t want us to kick your ass, but Luke, you better be certain that-”
“I know!” Luke said with a sigh “I deserve it” 
“Dude, what the fuck did you do to her?” 
How could he tell him? How could he mutter the courage to tell one of his best friends how he absolutely fucked up? Ashton would hate him, with every reason in the world he should hate him. Luke just hoped that he didn’t. 
He, Calum, and Michael were the only friends he knew since he met Y/N. They took him in, welcomed him into the group with gritted teeth with the only condition to never hurt their friend. And after a year of being friends, he broke not only Y/N’s trust but theirs as well. And the fact that Y/N didn’t tell them what he’d done seemed cruel because now he had to. Breaking more hearts than their own. 
“I fucked up, Ash” Luke muttered, rubbing his eyes with his fingertips as he crouched forward on the bench and placing his elbows on the top of his thighs, getting ready to face the consequences of his actions “I fucked up badly. I was just- You saw those articles, you saw those tweets and those photos. She never talked about him so I thought… What was I supposed to think? She had a reputation, and with the way, she acted the night before it all made sense to me. So I snapped”
“Luke, I swear to GOD if you touched her-”
“NO! God no, I would never!” Luke quickly stated, horrified at the thought of ever hitting her. He was not like that. He would never be like that “But the things I said to her… fuck, Ash. I threw everything in her face, called her a whore and a cheater without giving her a chance to explain herself. I was so fucking angry and she didn’t say a word. She took all of it in silence and I kept going, even when she begged me to stop I kept going... I didn’t know. You must know that I didn’t know what happened to her or her past with Madden. If I knew then I would’ve never-” 
“But you did” 
Ashton's words were simple, but they cut deeper than a knife through Luke’s heart. He never heard him sound so disappointed and angry. It reminded him of her and the last words she said to him.
“Luke, this girl has been through so much and you still went and dragged her through the mud just to hurt her”
“I didn’t want to-”
“Don’t fucking interrupt me” Ashton barked into the phone “You did. She gave you everything she could give and you threw it on her face like it was nothing without a chance to explain herself. And it’s not like she could run off, turn off her comments and go back to a normal life! I have never seen Y/N so broken since-” He stopped “What did she tell you?” 
Luke knew he was referring to Madden. He remembers her face covered in tears, lips trembling and body shaking as she told him what happened in that relationship. He finally saw the hurt and scars that covered her soul. 
“She told me what she could” 
Ashton sighed “Then you must know that she would never go back to him,” He said, Luke could tell by his voice that he was hurting, too “He met her at a concert in our second world tour as a solo act. He is the son of a very famous producer and they hit it off right away. We didn’t know exactly when things turned for the worse, but we knew something was happening. She would cover herself more, never hanging out with us unless he was present, she wouldn’t eat in front of him or talk to any of us directly unless it was something about work and that still pissed him off. We all heard the rumors of him cheating on her, but she always dismissed them saying that he loved her and he would never do that. I still wonder what other things we didn’t know that she’s still processing.
It wasn’t until the night he almost killed her that we understood the severity of it. She came by my house while I and the others were hanging out. She was bleeding all over herself, her face was covered in blood just as her shirt and pants. It was terrifying; I don’t remember ever driving that far to the hospital, paying the nurses to keep quiet because she kept asking to keep it a secret. That bastard broke her nose and one of her ribs. She had bruises on her arms, stomach, eye, inner thighs, and legs and a cut over her eyebrow. She lost a lot of blood on her way to my house so Calum had to donate some of his because she needed a transfusion. She stayed in the hospital overnight; the next morning we filed a restraining order against Madden and she moved in with me that same day, promising herself and to us that she would never let someone do that again to her. We promise we would never let anything happen to her from that moment on” 
Luke was shedding silent tears at Ashton’s story, all the things he imagined happened to her didn’t compare to the reality she suffered. And he only made it worse. 
“She was never the same after that” Ashton continued “Until you came into the picture” 
Ashton could hear Luke crying over the phone, his sniffs had given him away. But he knew he needed to hear this; he needed to know. 
“We didn’t want you to get close to her, afraid you might hurt her the same way Madden did, but she insisted that you were different, that you were a good guy. And against our better judgment, we believed her. We never expected that little by little, we would get our Y/N/N back. She was smiling again, laughing and singing songs about the love we never thought she’d be able to sing again. It was so obvious that she loved you that we couldn't do anything about it but be happy for her, you brought her back to us. 
I guess Madden saw that and didn’t like it, that’s why he came to see her that night. We don’t know much about what happened there or what he said to her, but she was shaking when she came back. All she said was that he cornered her, threatened her and called the paparazzi that worked for his father to take pictures of them, and since we were not in America, there was nothing the restraining order to do to help her”
“He did what?!” Luke shouted at the phone, fuming over the fact that that fucker decided to get close to her when she was vulnerable. He promised that if he ever saw him he’d kill him. 
“Now you care about what happened?” Ashton asked in return, frustration lacing his voice at Luke’s sudden feeling of protection “Luke, she called you over ten times that day as she was breaking down in the green room. She asked us all if we could get ahold of you because the driver came back without you. She was so fucking scared and you weren’t there when she needed you by her side. So don’t you fucking dare get offended right now. It already happened and you weren’t there” 
Ashton was right. Luke had no right to be furious at the moment, given that he was the one who abandoned her deliberately when he saw the pictures of her and her abuser. He had the excuse of ignorance, but that wasn’t enough. It never has, not it ever will be, because his girlfriend needed him at the time and he left her alone. 
He cried into the phone, not caring if Ashton could listen or not. He was so fucking angry at himself, at Madden, at the world… He was supposed to protect her, he said he would and then he gave the final punch. He failed her because of his insecurities. 
“I’m sorry” He cried, but Ashton was having none of that. 
“I’m not the one you should be apologizing for”
“She doesn’t want to-”
“Listen to me you shit” Ashton hissed into the phone “I don’t care what you think she wants. She is destroying herself over the fact that the last person she thought would hurt her left her because he chose to believe the lies of the media over his own girlfriend”
Luke’s heart broke all over again “She’s what?” 
“Oh my god, how dense are you, dude? Now you decide to ignore the gossip?! She’s been going out all night, drinking herself to death and refusing help from any of us. She is slowly killing herself by killing her soul” He sounded worried, scared even, as he muttered the last words “We are losing her” 
“Wh-what can I do?” Luke asked helplessly. Not being able to bear the thought of Y/N being gone. 
“We booked you a flight. Figure it out and don’t make us regret it” 
*
“Forgetting the lyrics again? Y/N L/N surely knows how to displease an audience”
“Y/N L/N MISSES YET ANOTHER INTERVIEW AFTER PAPARAZZI CAUGHT HER AT A PARTY THE NIGHT BEFORE”
“What is going on with YN?” 
*
He arrived late to the hotel, having his flight delayed for a few hours, and the boys were already waiting for him in the lobby. Luke took a deep breath as he spotted them from afar, they were talking among them, concerned looks covering their expressions as they looked through their phone. 
Luke walked up to them, mustering enough courage to say “Hi,” 
The three men turned towards the blonde, Calum quickly walking up to him and punching him in the face, caught Luke by surprise as he backed up holding his nose and looking at Calum with widened, surprised eyes. 
“That’s for hurting my best friend, you asshole!” He said, making the other guests look in their direction. 
Luke hissed as he made sure he wasn’t bleeding “Thank you. I deserved that” He said, blinking twice “But to be honest I was expecting Ashton to deliver the blow” 
“Calum won at rock, paper, scissors” Ashton shrugged “But that doesn’t mean you’re off the hook. We still need to have a serious talk and I might punch you there” 
Luke nodded, understanding that he did not only fail Y/N, but he also failed them. He promised them that he would take care of their best friend and they believed him. They even helped them get together and served as trust advisers for Luke about what it means to date a celebrity and yet he ignored every single one of them. 
He might never get their trust back, but now they needed to focus on other things more important than that.
“Where is she?” He asked. 
“Out,” Michael answered “The girls went with her. We don’t want her to be alone when she’s drunk” 
They started walking towards the door, getting into the car that would take them to Y/N and the rest of the girls. “Do you know what you will say to her when you see her?” Calum asked. 
“No,” Luke answered honestly “I guess I’ll know then”
“And you better not fuck it up again, Hemmings, or I swear it’s going to be the last thing you do” 
*
The dance floor was crowded. People were dancing one against the other as the beats of the songs reverberated all over their bodies and started the flame of having just one night of fun. Among them it was Y/N, dancing in the corner with her friends and ignoring their concerned eyes as she moved freely thanks to the alcohol that was cursing through her veins. She knew she had to wake up soon, but she just wanted to keep living this dream every night instead of facing the nightmares that would come in the morning.
She missed how easy everything was before that night when the nightmare started. When she couldn’t find Luke in the crowd of their concert nor their bedroom late at night. Now she doesn’t even want to go to sleep, knowing that she won’t find him there ever again, all because she asked him to leave. 
But he wanted to leave, even before she asked him he was already getting his stuff to leave her “cheating ass”, writing words that describe their relationship as toxic. Is that what it was? Were they toxic or just scared? She couldn’t tell the difference anymore, not after spending night after night trying to erase those words out of her mind, but they were already scared forever in her skin. She promised herself she would carry them as a battle wound, as proof that no matter what you do, you could never win when the whole world seems against you even when you have done nothing wrong… Unlike now. 
She knew what she was doing, she knew she was disappointing a lot of people. She was disappointed in herself, too, but she couldn’t stop. The world was finally telling truths about her and it felt nice to at least have that. They denied her the truths for so long, feeding everyone lies that they would believe without hesitation or her explanation, just like Luke did, and now she was finally acting like people supposed she had. Now, at least she had control over that. 
She wondered if Luke ever thinks about her. If he’s forgiven her for whatever he thinks she’s done or if he continues to read the articles and rejoice in the fact that he was right, even when he wasn’t, he was right. Maybe he’d be proud? 
“Darling, are you alright?” She heard Bethany shout over the music. All the girls were looking at her. She didn’t realize she stopped dancing. 
However, she just nodded “I’m going to get more drinks!” She said, faking a smile even though the girls could tell that she was crying. But she was so far out she couldn’t even feel the tears that rolled down her cheek.
Y/N gripped the marble countertop of the bar, trying to hold herself steady. She was thinking again, she didn’t want to think anymore. She ordered two shots of tequila and drowned them down before asking for two more. But before she could drown the fourth one, someone snatches the drink out of her hand.
“Heeey” She slurred “Don’t get between me and my- oh, hello!” She smiled happily at the stranger who took her drink from her “You look a lot like my ex-boyfriend” 
Luke’s eyes widened at the word. She has never called him her boyfriend in front of people before. He glanced behind her and saw Michael, Ashton, and Calum already standing next to their girls, nodding encouragingly at him. 
“Ex-boyfriend?” He asked, eyes meeting hers and noticing the glimmer of tears in them. But she kept on smiling and nodding before she started to pout.
“But shhhhh,” She said, laying her head on the counter, almost like she wanted to take a nap “It’s a secret. No one knows we’re together… or were together. They will never leave him alone if they find out”
“Who?” 
Y/N looked to the sides, almost as if making sure no one was listening before she leaned into him and whispered “The media,” Then she started to giggle “If they found out I have a boyfriend then they will want to know everything about him! And poor Luke wouldn’t be able to handle that, he shouldn’t go through that” 
Luke’s heart broke at the sight of the drunk girl sighing in the bar, holding her empty shot glass and sniffing every other word to stop the tears from falling.
“He doesn’t deserve that, the hate. He’s a good guy, a little shy and awkward, but he’s nice. But the media is cruel and a liar, and I don’t want him to feel baaaaad. How stupid it is that because I love someone they should get hated on, right? Hahaha, I just wanted to protect hiiiim, cause I love him sooo so much. I even protected him from my friends! You know?! I never told them what he did to me in case they wanted to keep their friendship going, Luke is a very shy guy and he loved them very muchhh, I couldn't take that from him"
“Even if he hurt you?” Luke’s words were careful and filled with pain. When the boys told him that she was getting drunk each night he never imagined her this far gone. He never imagined her this sad. 
Y/N shook his head “I deserved to get, hic, hurt” She said between hiccups “He said I was a cheating whore monster liar, b-b-but I don’t blame himmmm. I’m sad but at least he doesn’t have to deal with me anymore and this BULLSHIT” She yelled, throwing her hands up to the sky. But then she started crying, sobbing as she tumbled backward before Luke caught her.
Luke was trying to contain his own tears as she sobbed into his embrace “I just want to tell him that I’m sorry I couldn’t protect him from myself” She cried “I wanted to be happy with him but we are both sad and toxic for each other. That’s what he said in his poem. I-I-I just w-want him to be ha-happy” 
Luke cried as he held her, burying his face into her hair as both of their bodies trembled. Even when she had every right to hate him, she still wants to protect him. Something he should’ve done. 
“I’m so sorry, my love” He cried, making Y/N look at him with worried, tearful eyes.
“Oh, don’t cry, stranger,” She said as she cupped his face and wiped his tears “I’m sad but you should be happy!” 
“Why?” 
“C-cause you’re not me” 
Luke stared into her eyes, she was smiling while the tears kept falling. Even at her lowest, she tried to be strong for everyone around her, even the stranger she thought he was. He pressed his lips on a thin line and nodded, hugging her tighter as if he was trying to hold on to the last piece of her that didn’t show coldness to him before she remembers everything in the morning. At least he would hold her one more time. 
Y/N didn’t understand much of what was happening but she returned the hug with the same energy, letting the stranger cry into her shoulder as she rubbed his back with her fingertips, wondering what Luke was doing right now. She decided that she didn’t want to know. 
“I want to sleep,” She said after a minute of holding the man. 
Luke pulled away from her, wiping his tears as he nodded “Then let’s get you to bed, my love” 
She shook his head, pulling on his hand as he tried to walk them out of the club “But Luke won’t be there when I wake up” 
All the wind was knocked out of his lungs, did she want him there? “I’ll be there,” He said. 
“What?” 
“He’ll be there. I promise”
Luke gave one last look at the group. They were all staring at him with worried and hopeful eyes, actually surprised that this didn’t end badly just yet. Luke nodded at them and pulled Y/N with him, the rest of the guys followed him into the car as they made their way back to the hotel. 
Y/N slept all the way back, her head was placed in Luke’s shoulder as the blond kept staring at her, silent tears still dying on his cheek. The guilt was eating him alive; it was painful to see her this way, but at the same time he knew that she was at peace as she slept, letting the world fade for at least a few minutes before reality came crashing down.
When they reached the hotel, Luke carried her back into her room. He sat her down on the bed and started to take off her shoes as she lazily rubbed the tiredness from her eyes, suddenly waking up for a moment.
“Luke?” She asked. Luke raised his head and was met with her eyes already locked with his, a glaze of new tears adorned her pupils as she whispered “Am I dreaming right now?” 
“No,” He answered, voice as soft as hers as he got up and placed a kiss on the top of her head “No, you’re not, darling”
“Good. I always hate to wake up without you there” She said, looking over her shoulder to the empty side where Luke used to sleep. 
They both stayed quiet for the rest of the night. Luke took off her silk shirt and leather pants and helped her put on one of the big shirts she’s used to sleeping in. He wiped the makeup off her face and followed her nighttime routine without missing a step. When she was done, she curled up to her side and quickly fell into a deep slumber. 
Luke stared at the girl, his heart aching for her as he saw how fragile she looked while she slept. He thought about all the things she said that night, how he never considered her side of the story before. How he just assumed that she was hiding him because she didn’t want people to find out she was taken when in reality she didn’t want people to hurt him the way they hurt her. The way he hurt her.
Tears started to pick up in his eyes again. He hated to cry but there was nothing else he could do at the moment. Everything became too much too fast and he didn’t know if he could fix it. So all he could do was cry for the girl he loves and the girl he lost, not knowing if she would ever come back to him. 
“I’m sorry” He whispered in a quiet sob, getting into bed with her and holding her close “I’m sorry, Y/N. I’m sorry, my love” He kept murmuring into her hair until sleep claimed him as well. 
*
The next morning Y/N wakes up in her hotel bed but she doesn’t know how she got there. She looks to her side but the bed is empty, yet she finds an aspirin and a bottle of water in her nightstand. She wonders who was the poor soul that had to go with her last night to make sure she doesn't end up drunk in a ditch, at least they succeeded. 
Then she hears water running up in the bathroom and her heart sinks. Did she bring someone here last night? No, she wouldn’t do that. But she was very drunk… Oh my god, what did she do? 
Luke could hear her shuffling in the bed as he brushed his teeth. “It is now or never,” He thought, but he didn’t know what he would find behind the door. She didn’t know him yesterday, but today was another story and Luke’s heart shrank at the thought of Y/N hating him for coming back, even if it was to apologize to her. He was terrified, but he was tired of running away. 
As soon as he opened the door he was met with Y/N’s surprised gaze. The girl was quick to cover herself up, cheeks tinted red at the sight of her ex-boyfriend in her hotel room. She didn’t miss the flash of hurt that ran through his face when she did that. 
“Luke…” She said in one breath, suddenly feeling self-conscious by his presence “What are you- Did we-?” 
“No,” He answered quickly, stepping closer to the bed “No, we didn’t. You were drunk and I- You know I would never do that to you” 
“I thought we didn’t know each other…” 
Her words lingered in the air between them, creating a tension that could be cut with a knife. How fast did they become strangers when they used to know every single cardinal point of their bodies, every breath they took and what they meant, every sigh, every look… Now they were just two people in a room with so much to say but with no words coming out of either of their mouths.
Luke noticed how her eyes changed. While they were no longer filled with tears, they now laid emotionless in front of him, dull and empty as she stared at him. 
“I did this to her,” He thought “I took the light of her eyes. It’s my fault” 
She cleared her throat, breaking the silence as she spoke “Well, thank you for bringing me here last night. You can go now” She said, tearing her eyes away from him as she sat on her edge of the bed. 
Luke stood still “No,” 
“I’m asking you to leave” Y/N clarified, her voice growing stronger but still a bit sore. 
“And I’m telling you I’m not going” He responded, taking tentative steps towards her “Something I should’ve done all those weeks ago” 
He was standing in front of her in a matter of seconds; he crouched to meet her eyes but she quickly turned her face away “Y/N, please” He begged, his hand coming to rest on her cheek as his knuckles caressed her skin while the other one was placed on top of her hands, both intertwined with each other on top of her thighs “You could look at me yesterday, please don’t deny me at least that. Let me see you, my love” 
But Y/N didn’t move, her face stayed turned to the side with her hair covering most of it. She couldn’t look at him, she just couldn’t. It was too hard, too painful. Luke sighed.
“Okay, it’s okay. You don’t have to, but at least listen to me, yeah? I just- I need you to listen, Y/N, please” He pleaded, placing both hands on top of hers “Y/N, I love you” 
The knot in his throat became tighter as he noticed how the veins of her neck tensed and she started to grip her hands tighter. But she needed to hear this, and even though it hurt to see her like that, he continued. 
“I love you. I love you. I love you” He said, voice breaking at the end, impossible to fight that choking feeling in his throat “I loved you since the moment I saw you. You were all dressed up in Calum‘s clothes and you had a pen in your hair, and I thought you were the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen, but you were so nervous about trying to clean the coffee you spilled that you didn’t even notice I fell for you without knowing your name” He let out a tearful chuckle “I started to fall that day and I haven’t stopped, not even for a second. Y/N you are- You are the best thing that has ever happened to me and I was an idiot for not seeing that. I don’t know what I have to do for you to forgive me, but I’ll do anything, my love. Anything to make it better. Cause I followed you blindly from the start, and I’m so sorry I let you down. I’m so, so fucking sorry that I let my insecurities come in our way. I love you, even then I never stopped loving you”
He could see how her chin started to tremble, she was trying to hold off the tears as much as him “I - I wish I could go back in time. I would’ve never said the things I said, I would’ve never doubted you or left without listening to what you had to say. I should’ve fought harder for you, but I was a coward. I still am, if I’m being honest, but I will not run away, Y/N. Not anymore. I know I will never deserve you, but I’ll do my best and try. Because you, my love, are the love of my life, the greatest love I have and - and I can’t -“ 
It became too much for him. He couldn’t say anything else without breaking down. But he wanted her to know how much she meant for him, how much he is willing to fight for her if she lets him. She needed to know how sorry he was and how much he still loves her. But the words got stuck in his throat. The poet was left speechless.
“Y/N you are so strong,” He finally said “So strong, my love. And I’m so fucking proud of everything you do, I always have and always will be” He brought her hands to his lips and started pressing kisses all over it while wetting them with his tears “I wish I could take back everything I said. All those words were said out of anger and jealousy, that is not how I see you at all. You are so beautiful, Y/N, inside and out. So kind, so smart, so giving… You are perfect. And I love you, I love you, I love yo-”
Suddenly his words were interrupted by her lips as she started kissing him. Y/N didn’t want to keep listening anymore so she did the only thing he could, the thing she wanted to do the most since she saw him come out of the bathroom. 
Their hands flew to cup each other’s cheeks, keeping their faces as close as they could, feeling how their tears became one as they started to deepen the kiss. They rocked back and forward with the intensity of their energies colliding once again, it was everything they needed and more. Suddenly, Luke got up from the floor and brought Y/N along with her, pressing her against the wall as their lips never left each other.
“I love you” He breathed into her lips before kissing her again and again and again, already getting lost in the feeling of euphoria she brought to him “I love you”
She kept crying as their lips met, savoring every word, every praise that came from his mouth, trying hard to hold on to them as she felt her breath become short “I missed you” She cried into the kiss, pulling away to see his face. 
Luke’s eyes were blown wide as he stared at her, their lips were pink as they tried to catch their breaths. He knocked his forehead against hers before kissing it lightly “Please, forgive me” He begged, holding her tight against his chest. 
“Luke,” She whispered as she tugged on his shirt, making him look back at her “Kiss me” 
He looked at her softly, his baby blue eyes saying more than he ever could as he caressed her cheek one more time before leaning down and trapping her lips with his. He had no rush because there was no other place he’d rather be, no other person he’d rather spend time with. Only her. Only his Y/N. 
Her hands traveled tentatively under his shirt, softly caressing the skin of his back and his stomach as she parted her lips to grant him more access and control. Luke’s hand that was not cupping her cheek rounded around her waist, bringing her body closer to him with the need of feeling her, all of her. 
“Y/N…” He groaned, tilting his head back when he felt her kiss along his jaw and neck.
“Please…” She murmured against his skin, sucking and kissing on the spot that she knew would make him shiver. 
Luke pressed her against the wall with his body completely covering hers. He grabbed the back of her thighs and lifted her feet from the ground as she locked her legs around his waist. “Please,” She begged again, closing her lips around the shell of his ear and slightly biting into it. She could feel him getting hard as her hips moved forward, her core pressing against his hardening cock. She moaned softly into his ear  “Please, Luke. Please” 
The movement of her hips was all Luke needed to lose himself to her, thrusting right back at her and moaning at the friction of her soaked panties against his clothed erection. Her sound became more breathy and he knew she was getting close just by the friction alone, having spent too much time without this feeling. 
“Y/N…” Luke groaned into her after a particularly hard trust “I-”
“I know” She breathed “I need it too,” 
Without a second thought, Luke turned both of them around, still holding Y/N by the back of her thighs as he placed them back into the bed. Now it was his turn to kiss along her face, her lips, her neck… everywhere she would give him access to and would leave her breathing his name. His hands fidgeted with the hem of her shirt, taking it off completely in one swift move and occupying his hands by touching her breasts, massaging them softly as his lips closed against one of her nipples, tongue circling around the hard pebble until they were nice, erect and wet from his kiss only to do it again with the other one. 
Y/N was a whimpering mess under him, her fingers tangling in his hair as he sucked on her sweet spot, kissing down her body until his lips found her wet panties. He kissed over her clothes bundle of nerves, making her moan and begged for more as he swiftly hooked his long fingers at either side of her hips and pulled them down, kissing along her thighs up and down and up again only to finish tongue deep into her hole, lapping at her arousal and moaning against her at the taste of her. He always found her exquisite. 
Stars were playing behind her eyelids as she felt one finger inside her while Luke’s lips closed against her clit, sucking it lightly as he inserted another finger per her request, thrusting then inside and out as she chanted his name like a prayer when her walls clenched against them. 
Luke licked her clean as her fingers played with his hair, relishing this intimate moment as a precious memory for the future. When he pushed himself up he noticed that there were a new set of tears rolling down her cheeks “Are you okay, love?” He asked, “Did I hurt you?” 
She shook his head, looking up at him with teary eyes “I love you” 
His eyes soften at her words, hands caressing the side of her face as he leaned in without thinking, kissing her tears away with such care, never wanting to see them again.
“Luke…” She whispered, kissing his chin “Luke, make love to me” 
Blue eyes met Y/E/C, sharing all the love he had in them before leaning down again to trap her lips with his; tongues dancing together like it was the first time all over again where no other words were needed. 
Y/N helped him out of his shirt and shorts, pumping his cock in her hands as he moaned in her ear how good it felt before lining it up with her entrance, quiet gasps leaving each other’s mouths as they felt the familiar stretch when he bottomed out. 
Soft words and kisses were shared as Luke’s thrusts were slow and steady. It was silent, needy, passionate; it was everything they needed and more. Their hands explored the familiarity of their bodies, leaving faint marks as they enjoyed their shared pleasure.
“Please,” She begged against his lips, moaning as Luke started hitting her spot “Please, please, please, plea-” 
Her orgasm came over her like a wave and Luke was entranced with her face as it contorted in extasis, helping him reach his climax as he cum inside her, painting her walls as his thrusts became sloppy. 
They stayed like that for a while, kissing on top of each other as their bodies stayed connected in the most intimate way. But soon Luke had to get up, getting a wet cloth from the bathroom and cleaning her up, whispering sweet nothings to her as he did so. 
He climbed into the bed next to her, pulling her closer against his chest as his back rested against the headboard, drawing circles in the soft spot of her back and resting his chin on the top of her head. 
They must’ve fallen asleep after a while because when he opened his eyes again he felt Y/N crying into his chest.
“My love?” He asked, worry lacing his voice as he accommodated himself better so he could see her face. Y/N eyes were puffy and filled with tears as she struggled to contain a sob “What’s wrong?” 
Y/N sniffed, voice breaking as she asked “You love me?” 
Luke furrowed his eyebrows in confusion “What a stupid question,” He said as he started playing with your hair “Of course I love you” 
“But what else?” 
Her question confused him, even more, when he saw pure heartbreak spread along her face. 
“What else what?” 
“You love me and what else?” She repeated her question. 
“What else is there?” 
Luke’s answer made her lips tremble as a new set of tears filled her eyes. His heart fell to his stomach with her reaction, not knowing what he did to make her this upset “Baby, what’s wrong? Is love not enough?” 
Y/N shook her head as she took a deep breath, trying to find enough voice and courage to say what she needed. 
“I’m not perfect, Luke” 
“I know,” He said, bringing his fingers to caress your cheek but you shook your head.
“No, you don’t know” She stated, tears rolling down her cheek “You still see me as something out of your reach, as something you don’t deserve because you hold me to such standards that is impossible for me to live up to your expectations. I will let you down, even without wanting to, I will. And- a-and I don’t think I’ll be able to stand that look in your eyes once I do. I can’t go through that again” 
She cried softly for a while, trying to find the right words to say.
“Luke, I need you to listen to me very carefully and really think about what I’m asking for here, okay, love?” She said after collecting herself just enough. He nodded as he gave her his undivided attention “Luke, I love you. More than anyone in the world, I love you. I thought I would never say those words again but I can’t deny my feelings for you nor do I want to. I love you. But I also love my life” 
Luke’s eyes were fixed on her as she spoke, nodding along to what she was saying. She took another deep breath before continuing. 
“A life that is filled with concerts, traveling and recordings and parties and interviews… A life that I chose to follow my dreams and make them come true. A life I am not going to give up because it’s mine and I truly love it. But in this life, there are some bumps in the road. There will always be people trying to bring me down, sending hate to me and the ones I love, spreading rumors all around where sometimes you won’t be able to distinguish fiction from reality. With people trying to get to me, by flirting or abusing their power with threats. But I keep going, I deal with all of that because that’s just the way it is. I will go to an interview that might get twisted, I might go and get flirted on by a random stranger that works for publicity. I might have rumors of me dating people I haven’t even met! All of that without my consent or knowledge. But I agreed to this when I agreed to follow my dreams and I can’t help it when it happens and most of the time I can’t say anything about it even if it hurts. 
And when that happens I need to know that you will trust me. Because I cannot possibly ask you to leave your dreams to follow mine, meaning that we won’t be together all the time like we’re used to. And I need to know that you will trust me when I’m away from you”
Luke stayed quiet, his mind running a thousand miles per hour at her words. Could he trust her? When they were together on tour, and even at home in L.A, the rumors about Y/N were strong, so much so that he didn’t know if they were true or not. And even though he knew her, he still wasn’t sure. He doubted her, more times than not he did which ended up in him losing her until last night. He trusted her now, but…
“I don’t know,” He answered honestly, feeling like the weight of his shoulders was being lifted as he spoke “I don’t trust my mind, not when it’s about you. Not really. I trust you here, right now but I can’t promise that my insecurities won’t get in the way, changing that for the future. But I can try, I’ll do my best-”
“What if your best is not enough, Luke?” She asked, sucking the air out of both of them. 
“What?” He asked in return, voice small and soft. 
She sighed, blinking through the tears “What if- What if it’s not enough? You love me, but you don’t trust me. I love you, but I’m scared you’re going to run away every time you hear something about me that could tint the image of me you have in your mind. I’m scared of that Y/N because I’m not her and I might never be able to compete with her. I wish I could tell you that everything will change for the better, that love will be enough. But if we can’t see a future now…”
“There might not be a future at all” Luke finished for her. 
The truth hurt more than they could ever have imagined, but it was still the truth. Without trust, there is no love that could endure the passings of times, but they could try, couldn’t they? 
“What now?” He asked after a moment of silence. 
“Hold me?” 
Luke opened his arms and Y/N nested into them, setting her head upon his chest and letting his heartbeat be the melody of her heartbreak. “I love you” She whispered into his skin.
“I love you, too” 
“I might never stop loving you” 
“You don’t have to” 
She sighed “I know, that’s what scares me”
Luke nodded, even though she couldn't see him. He let his fingertips trace up and down her arms and back, serving as the only comfort he could give right now.
“Stay with me tonight?” She asked, tilting her head so she could look him in the eyes “Just one night the two of us where we can leave the world behind. Just us and for tonight that’s enough”
He smiled sadly “Morning will come eventually” 
“And what will happen to us in the morning?” 
Luke let out a sad sigh “I don’t know” 
.
.
Tags: @iknowyouthinkimbulletproof @mystic-232 @talksoprettyjjx @theshyspy @hoodhoran @flaneurcth @notinthesameguey @bubblegum18 @irwin-fletcher-ash @just-here-to-escape-from-reality @1980holland @wiiildflowerrr @myloverboyash @nicebasscalum @calumspupils @secretsicanthideanymore @the-ghost-of-ash​ @alltimesos @kingxnichole @givebuckyhisplumsnow @hufflehemm @wildflower98 @girl-toxxic
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mooncademia · 4 years ago
Text
Boys vs. Boys — PART 1.
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PAIRING ~ prohero au! friends to lovers, Bakugou x reader ( x Yo Shindo) 
GENRE ~ fluff, a little bit of angst!, jealously 
WARNINGS ~ language! a tiny ~spicy~ joke inserted 
WORD COUNT ~ 8.1k 
SUMMARY ~ After more than a month being away in the States, you have finally returned to Tokyo...with a party more than one. And when Bakugou realizes who the extra person was, tension grows between him and ‘pretty boy dunce-face’ a.k.a, the one and only: Yo Shindo. 
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[Bakugou] 10:35 a.m :
Text me when you arrive at Narita Airport, okay?
[Y/N] 10:41 a.m:
Of course :)
Bakugou leaned back on his chair in his apartment and read the text that you have sent to him yesterday, over and over again. In less than 30 minutes, you will finally arrive back to Tokyo after spending a month and a half in New York and LA for pro-hero work in the States.
Bakugou was never the type to be constantly checking his social media. He doesn’t even turn on his notifications because his simple rule was: if you had something to tell him, text him through Messages. Or just straight up call him. He doesn’t want to be spending time scrolling through Instagram, liking people’s outfit or food posts, nor did he want to retweet some silly tweet that Kaminari posted, complaining about how his neighbor’s cat hated him on a personal level. Bakugou had his own pro-hero work to do.
But today was different! And he had to be honest to himself, he was a little embarrassed to admit it. But ever since you texted him yesterday, he immediately turned on all his social media apps and now, he has spent way too long scrolling through your friend’s posts--hoping to know if there were any news of your arrival.
Bakugou grunted as he ruffled his blonde hair messily, feeling impatient that he hasn’t received any news about your arrival yet. He leaned over to his desk to grab his water bottle, but right before he unscrewed the cap, his phone vibrates loudly on his desk and he immediately dropped the water bottle and unlock his phone.
Finally! After so many weeks of you being away…you were finally here.
Closer to him.
Bakugou impatiently swiped right to unlock his phone and saw your message.
[Y/N] 7:56 p.m
At Narita, finally 🥴
His lips twitched a smile when he saw the emoji. Yeah, a 14 hour flight isn’t really the most comfortable, huh? He quickly replied back with his thumbs running with speed.
[Bakugou] 7:56 p.m:
How was the flight?
A few minutes past, no response. Bakugou shrugged, a smile still on his face knowing that you were safely here at Tokyo now, and in a few hours, he will be able to see you at the welcome-home party that Yaoyoruzu is preparing at the very moment in her godly-rich mansion.
But, before he rests his phone back on his desk, hundreds of notifications blew up on his phone and he checks his insta story to see what Mina, Uraraka, and Tsuyu posted. After all, they were currently at the airport picking you up.
Bakugou clicked on Mina’s latest insta story, his heart throbbed in excitement to finally see you until—
His face fell.
“I KNEW IT! I FUCKING KNEW YOU TWO WERE DATING!,” Mina squealed in the short clip captioned: “I WAS RIGHT! @yaomomo u owe me $20 bucks 😘😘!” Her phone went flying everywhere which made the video awfully blurry. But Bakugou already caught it and oh, did he feel sour in the mouth.
You looked as beautiful as ever, with your simple yet stylish slightly cropped cream-T and gray sweatpants. Even though your eyes looked a bit dazed as if you had just woken up, you looked so cute to his eyes.
But what made Bakugou’s emotion shift so fast was not of you. Of course not!! How could he ever?!
No. 
It was who you were walking with.
He clicked next on Mina’s insta story, hoping in that split millisecond it was not who he think it is. Not the person in his mind that kept bugging him after seeing so many headlines on the news of the two of you working together in New York and LA. It can’t be him, right?
Right?!!!
But Bakugou’s guts knew way fucking better. And his eyes grew angry when he saw the pro-hero, Yo Shindo, standing next to you. Wrapping you closely in his arms with a smirk plastered on his face. And you looked just as pleased too as Mina caught you laughing with Shindo so lovingly before running towards Mina with your arms wide open.
“Wow,” Bakugou heard Tsuyu gleefully whisper next to Mina. “He’s even more hot in real life! Why the hell can’t I find men like that?!”
“It’s a rarity.” 
Bakugou heard Tsuyu scoffed playfully. “Tell me about it.” 
Mina continued to wobble the phone, which makes Bakugou want to shout at the device on his hand to stop! moving! But alas, the next clip that was just posted 16 seconds ago, he saw you with your arms wide open, giving all your girlfriends a hug.
“Aw, I miss you guys so much!!” You squealed. Bakugou could no longer see “pretty boy dunce-face ” anymore but he knew he was with you and his stomach drop.
Ah, Yo Shindo. The pro-hero who study abroad in New York after high school for an internship at a country-famous agency, second best from Captain Celebrity (who was #1 hero in the U.S!), becoming a famous pro-hero in America.
And surely enough, when you flew to NY and LA to collaborate with Yo Shindo, news broke out nation wide in America about the two of you working together that even Japan starred the news on television one day. And those past weeks while you were gone, Bakugou had to suffer from all the pictures that the paparazzi took in New York and Los Angeles. And he admits it. He spent way too many nights awake, changing his VPN to U.S.A on his computer (thank you Kaminari for the tip!) to read and watch CNN, New York Times, and any other newsline that starred or mentioned you and Yo Shindo, hoping to grasp any updates about you.
But now you were finally here in Tokyo…with a party more than one. And as Bakugou closed Instagram, he closed his eyes to calm himself down aka, reassuring yourself that you and Yo Shindo were definitely no more than just friends…
Who spent more than a month together in the States…
And flew back to Tokyo together in the same flight…
Yeah…not helping.
Bakugou lifted himself off his chair and threw a towel over his shoulder, heading towards the shower to wash up before the party at Yao-momo’s tonight. But Bakugou’s phone buzzed once more and when he leaned in to check it, his heart did a little flip when he read your text.
[Y/N] 8:14 p.m
Not the very best 😔 a flight attendant and I had this argument because there was a seating error!
Bakugou relaxed a bit. He knew it was a little self-indulgent and selfish to feel this, and maybe it was jealously that was pouring over him, but he felt his nerves relaxed a bit knowing that perhaps you didn’t at all fell for that Yo Shindo boy.
Bakugou began to type back. Not an overly-top-gushy-pick-me-up text that he know that idiot Deku would type, but a nice and cool but sweet text to cheer you up from your bad flight. But before he clicked the sent button, he received another message.
[Y/N] 8:15 p.m
Thankfully Yo Shindo was there to help me out, he’s here in Tokyo too by the way! 
Bakugou felt his stomach drop again. He backspaced his previous text and rewrote a new one.
[Bakugou] 8:16 p.m
Oh, that’s great!
He knew it was far from the truth as jealously crept up behind his back again, but he had to play it cool. He can’t be jumping into conclusions before he knows anything about the two of you!
[Y/N] 8:16 p.m
I’ll see you at Momo’s, right?
Bakugou smiled at the screen. Despite the news of pretty-boy dunce face in town, he still can’t wait to finally see you after so many weeks. Of course you have been keeping him updated through your texts every week, but to see you actually in person after so long…his heart couldn’t stop beating when he typed back.
[Bakugou] 8:17 p.m
Yeah, I’ll be there.
And with that, Bakugou finally rested his phone back on his desk and headed towards the shower, hoping to wash away all silly thoughts flowing in his mind.  Hoping that…when he sees you tonight, he is able to have an opportunity in the near future to tell you about the emotions he has been feeling ever since you left Tokyo last month. 
With no distractions in the way—especially not that  pretty boy idiot!
—————
Okay so his previous plan came to a halt.
“Yo, Yao-Momo!!” Kaminari shouted as he hopped back onto the couch. He pointed behind him excitingly. “I didn’t know you had black custom-made toilets!!”
“Black toilets?” Kirishima asked, setting up the living room table with cups and beverages.
“Yeah! And there’s even a TV mounted on the wall above the bath tub. And OH! There’s “jacuzzi” mode in the tub! And there are speakers so you can listen to music and the mirror above the sink opens up to a—“
“So did you go pee, or did you just take a full-ass bath in my bathroom?” Yaoyorozu asked with her hands on her hips and sneered eyes.
Kaminari widened his eyes like a puppy. “I CAN TAKE A BATH IN YOUR COOL BATHROOM?!”
Yaoyorozu sighed as she placed two finger on her nose bridge, but Kaminari could tell that she was trying not to laugh.
“Food’s here!!” Yaoyorozu’s boyfriend, Yosetsu Awase, announced as he plopped down six pizza boxes on the table.
“Thanks babe for picking it up,” Yaoyorozu said before giving Awase a kiss on the cheek. She smiled happily at her boyfriend and when Bakugou glanced up, the two of them looked so good together that he couldn’t help but feel a sour in his stomach as he reflected back at the news he saw on Mina’s Instagram story.
Bakugou cleared his throat as he helped Kirishima set up all the props. “So…when’s Y/N getting here?”
Kirishima looked at him and when he saw his best friend look so curious and innocent, Kirishima’s eyes immediately lit up and he nudged Bakugou on the ribs even though he knew he may be dead meat from teasing him.
“You still like her, huh!” Kirishima said in a low whisper with a smirk, which almost caused Bakugou to light up his hands and slam Kirishima face down on Momo’s fancy wooden floors. But before he could even act, he heard the entrance door whoosh open with Mina’s voice echoing from the door to the main room.
“YOU OWE ME $20 BUCKS MOMOOOOOOOO!!!!” Mina shouted as she dragged you to the living room. When Bakugou saw you standing a couple feet away from him, he sucked in a breath.
You were still wearing your airport outfit that he saw you last on Mina’s post. But when he thought that you couldn’t look any more beautiful from the small screen on his phone, he was so wrong. As you stood there with a sheepish grin on your face—to Bakugou’s eyes— you were 10 times more prettier in real life. Hell, make that a hundred.
When you locked eyes with Bakugou after giving Kirishima a hug, you blushed before stepping towards him, about to do the same, until—
“Y/N!! YOU’RE FINALLY FUCKING HERE!!! I MISS YOU SO GODDAMN MUCH!!!” Yaoyorozu squealed as she ran over, cutting Bakugou from his hug. Bakugou had to back up before Yaoyorozu jumped over him and he was not happy about that. But when you let out an “oof!” and rested your shoulder on Momo’s shoulder, your eyes were still on Bakugou’s and you gave him a weary smile that said: “sorry!”
Bakugou couldn’t stay furious too long when he saw your apologetic smile as you hugged Momo back. He gave an appreciative nod at you that made you know that he was glad to finally see you back.
When Momo parted away, she blinked her eyes at Mina, who was standing right next to you with her arms crossed and a sly smirk plastered on her face.
Momo perked up. “Wait, I owe you $20 bucks?”
Mina widened her eyes and grabbed your arm, shaking it so excitingly that Bakugou swore she probably loosened all your bones now. “Bitch! You owe me $20 bucks when we bet on Y/N and Yo Shindo being together!”
You shot your head at Mina with eyes widened. “You guys bet WHAT?!” You asked so sternly that it made Mina and Momo tuck their hands sheepishly behind their backs.
“Well…” Mina teased, eyes staring at the ground as she drew circles on the floor with her shoe. “We kinda bet on whether you will get together with Yo Shindo when you were away…”
“We? As in just the two of you, right?”
Momo clamped the back of her neck embarrassingly. “Uh…plus Asui and Ochaco..?”
You gasped, shaking your head in disbelief. “You guys! I cannot believe—“
“That you love us too much for you to get mad at us?” Mina interrupted with such a cute smile that you parted your mouth for a few seconds and darted your eyes from Mina to Momo before dropping your hands and releasing a sigh.
“Fine…” you said, rolling your eyes but your lips lifted up to a smile. You extended your arms to your friends. “Come here you guys…Ya’ll are so lucky I haven’t seen you two for more than a month. Or else you’ll be dead meat!”
Your girlfriends ran in to hug you one more time, continuing their warm comments on how much they have missed you.
Yaoyorozu parted away when a thought came across her mind. “WAIT, Y/N, FOR REAL THO. Are you guys dating? .… Oh my god,” Yaoyorozu cupped her cheeks with her hands and blushed warmly. “Don’t tell me he’s actually here, is he?!”
Bakugou silently pleaded to himself that pretty boy dunce face is not here. Oh god, please let him have mercy!
“He’s here!” Mina squealed turning her head back to Yaoyorozu. “And he’s so cute in real life!”
Yaoyorozu clamped her hand over her mouth. “Oh my god. Yo Shindo. In my house.” She scanned the whole living room, making sure that everything looked fine.
“Uh. Your boyfriend. Also. In your house.”  Awase cleared his throat as he and Kaminari came back with paper plates.
Yaoyorozu walked towards her boyfriend and planted a sweet kiss on his cheek. “Of course you know I love you, babe. But Yo Shindo is here. That’s like…that's like having Brian the Sun come over to perform a song, y’know. We are all just fangirling!”
“We?” Bakugou sputtered out. Kirishima flashed him a smirk which made him roll his eyes and mutter out a “whatever”.
But no one heard him, because right after Bakugou’s comment, Tsuyu and Uraraka entered in with the man that Bakugou never thought he’d ever have to see since his pre-license exam during his first year in U.A.
Yo Shindo came in holding two pack of beers and bowed slightly with a celebrity-level smile that would have all girls swooning after him. He was wearing a Gucci shirt under a blue flannel, paired with ripped vintage denim jeans and a black beanie that made the bangs on his head scoot down just a tiny bit. His face mask was resting right below his lips and his whole aura screamed: “FASHION” in all the right places. But it wasn’t just his looks that demanded attention, it was also his aura of easy confidence that he held. And if he wasn’t a pro-hero, he’s the type of guy that would be easily mistaken as a supermodel.
His yellow Gentle Monster sunglasses were tucked in his shirt and Tsuyu and Uraraka giggled as they sat down the rest of the beers on the table and directed Shindo to do the same.
“Hey,” Shindo greeted everyone as he moved next to where you were standing which made Bakugou’s eyes squint just a bit. You nodded at him with a smile that made Bakugou want to twist his guts. “It’s so nice to meet everyone! Y/N talks a lot about you guys.”
“SO YOU REMEMBER US FROM THE LICENSE EXAM?!” Kaminari asked excitingly, almost jumping out of his seat.
Yo Shindo chuckled as he wrapped his arms around your waist, making you widen your eyes just a bit from his touch, but the look on your face didn’t really show any uncomfortableness—as if you were already used to it.
But oh, if only Bakugou shot lasers out of his eyes!! He would zap away his hand from your waist in a blink of an eye.
“Yeah,” Shindo nodded his head cooly. “You, Kirishima, and Bakugou are awesome!” He said looking at the each of them. Kaminari and Kirishima grinned appreciatively back. But weirdly, when Shindo’s eyes landed on Bakugou his gaze stayed a tiny bit longer than usual.
What? Bakugou mentally questioned to himself when he saw the way Shindo stared at him seriously. It was like he was challenging him, and there was a string of tension that only the two boys could feel and Bakugou already knew from the start that he and him were not going to get along.
Shindo blinked his eyes back to reality and flashed a friendly smile to you—a complete change of face for what he was expressing to Bakugou, but no one else seemed to notice. Shindo pulled you closer. “Well, let’s get this party started shall we?”
You nodded happily back and everyone began handing out plates and popping bottles of beer. Bakugou joined in too, with a grin on his face.
But although he smiled as he listened to you talk about your crazy adventures of that one creepy stalker you encountered in LA or how everyone must order the pastrami egg n’ cheese bagel at Frankel’s Deli in Brooklyn, Bakugou couldn’t help but feel a discomfort itch in the back of his mind as he saw you sitting on the couch with Shindo so closely next to you.
And whenever Shindo glanced at Bakugou, there was always this silent edge that he could feel from the look of his eyes. Unfortunately, in such a social environment, he couldn’t excuse himself with his best friend Kirishima to talk about this. Bakugou knew that people will question him. What’s there to be uncomfortable about in Y/N’s Welcome Home party?
So as Bakugou took another sip of his beer while you talked about your crazy adventures, he mentally crossed his fingers that you and Yo Shindo are merely just friends.
Even if a part of him told him otherwise.
————
“Wait, you two went on a date?!” Momo asked looking at Shindo as her back sat comfortably on the sofa with her boyfriend’s arm around her. “In New York?!”
Shindo smiled at you and laughed. You mirrored his expression and shook your head at Momo. “Well, it wasn’t really a date actually, it was just a tour around New York.” You said.
“Oh, please tell us!!” Uraraka said to Shindo with excited eyes. Shindo laughed and nodded happily, making all the girls put their full attention on what he had to say.
“Well, I first met Y/N in New York City. And after seeing her and her awesome abilities—“
“Oh please,” you said, waving your hand dismissively from that with an embarrassing smile.
Yo Shindo pouted adorably at you. “It’s true!”
Bakugou saw Uraraka and Tsuyu quietly exchanging each other glances that didn’t need much for him to know what they were thinking. And as much as it hurts his guts and heart to think about this, he couldn’t help it.
You and Shindo looked so good together. It was like those couples on k-drama or whatever the hell people were watching, where the audience knows that they are perfect for each other. And even though you hadn’t mentioned anything about him being your boyfriend and all…well, it was just obvious. Even your girlfriends could see it. And from the look of Kirishima giving him a lopsided smile as if saying “Ouch. Sorry bro.”  Bakugou could basically confirm his hypothesis correct.
But instead of wanting to just punch pretty boy in the face to release his anger (which, he wanted to do so bad) he kept his cool and restrained his emotions as he listened to Shindo explain this “date” that the two of you went on.
“Well, I offered to take Y/N around New York City, since she was new to the place on my motorbike and—“
“ON YOUR MOTORBIKE?!” All the girls (plus Kaminari) squealed. Awase tilted his head back to laugh at everyone’s reaction and Kirishima muttered a phrase that included: “dude, that’s so manly!” causing Bakugou to turn his head at him and shoot him a death dagger.
Kaminari—who by the way— is obsessed with motorcycles and dreams to own a Harley Davidson one so he could be as cool as Keanu Reeves, pumped his hand in the air and excitingly asked, “Yo, Shindo, what type of motorbike do you have?”
“The one I took with Y/N?” Shindo said, which meant that he had more than one. But the way Shindo said it wasn’t in an egotistic kind of way, nor was it annoying (which bugged Bakugou) but rather, he said it in a humble and polite tone.
Shindo glanced at you with a charming smirk on his face, as if remembering that precious time with you in New York. “It was a Harley Davidson Sportster Iron 883! In black.”
“WHAT!” Kaminari slammed his beer down on the table. “C-can I have a ride?”
Ugh, an idiot I swear! Bakugou said to himself as jealously crept up to him once again as he saw everyone—even Kirishima—so engaged on Yo Shindo.
Shindo laughed again and nodded. “Sure! I actually shipped that one to Tokyo since I’ll be staying here for a while.”
Mina lifted her eyebrows at Shindo. “You’re staying in Tokyo?”
Shindo shook his head. “I’m just staying here for a couple of weeks for some pro-hero work. I’ve been away so long and I wanted to come back since I realized I missed Japan so much. And a friend of mine offered me to collab with his agency for now!”
Bakugou let out a puff of air as Uraraka gleefully smiled and said, “Wow, that’s so great to hear!”
And so the conversation continued. After Shindo took you around on his motorbike, he took you to this fancy, romantic restaurant down in Manhattan, and then took you around Central Park when evening came. And during this whole conversation, everyone pitched in their squeals and glees here and there, but Bakugou remained silent the whole time. You laughed at Shindo’s jokes and descriptions and added a story on how clumsy he actually is, despite his cool exterior.  And Bakugou grew slightly more furious—but it wasn’t a challenging kind of anger. It was just that it frustrated him that he couldn’t point out, or find, any particular ”flawed” that Yo Shindo had.
As the conversation moved along from one to the other, Yo Shindo offered to help Awase and Kaminari to clean up the empty pizza boxes. Kirishima and Bakugou offered to help as well, recycling empty bottles away and folding paper plates to the waste bin.
And as Bakugou walked across the living room, picking up the last few empty bottles of beer on the side table of the couch, he heard you and your girlfriends lowly whispering.
“Well?! “ Yaoyorozu questioned curiously, patting your knee. “Did you…you know!?”
“What?” You asked curiously.
“You know…Yo Shindo…vibration quirkkkkk,” Tsuyu moaned as Uraraka and Mina nodded in agreement, eyes clearly swooned away by Shindo.
Tsuyu grabbed your arm and stared at you dead deep into your eyes before glancing to where Shindo and the other boys were at in the kitchen. “Please tell me what happened! You two obviously hit it up, right?!”
Bakugou wanted to throw up right then and there. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to hear what you were about to say next. And as much as his conscious tells him to “WALK AWAY KATSUKI”!!! Curiosity killed the cat as he watched you in the corner of his eyes while he cleaned up the table slowly to the side.
You covered your face with your hands as embarrassment crept up on you and squeezed your eyes shut.
“I KNEW IT!” Uraraka said in a low whispered as she snapped her fingers.
Bakugou’s stomach dropped and his jaw tightened in grit.
“Guys, no,” You whispered sternly back, but your cheeks still glowed with heat. “Nothing happened between me and Shindo.”
Bakugou eyes widened as he darted his attention back on the table. Wait a minute… there is hope! A wash of relief swept through him when he heard your reply, but his happy thoughts immediately crumpled when he heard Mina’s suspicious tone.
“Sureeeeeeeee,” Mina exhaled a puff of air sharply—not convinced that you were telling the truth. “I can see it in your face that that’s a LIE!”
Bakugou knew it would be wrong for him to continue hearing this (wrong in a sense that if you were just hiding the true secret, he may blow the roof off of Momo’s house, and that wouldn’t be appropriate). Plus, who the hell takes 5 goddamn minutes to clear up some trash?!
So, with all his might, Bakugou bravely walked around the couch, passing you and the girls as he headed towards the kitchen. And when you saw Bakugou walk pass in front of you, you silently let out a gasp with a parted mouth shaped as an ‘o’ on your face.
————
After the party was over and it was getting pretty late, all the girls decided to finally head home. They offered you to join them but you passed appreciatively by saying how you had to thank and Awase and Momo for everything and Awase was still in the back, cleaning a few things up, while Momo had some errands to run.
“How do you not drink Momo-Yaoo!!” Mina said as she threw one arm around Momo’s shoulder.  
Momo sighed but a smile graced her lips. “Cuz I know I’ll have to take you guys home!” She said sternly but sarcastically.
Mina gave Momo a “thank you” hug and you and the girls laughed
“Since you’re finally here, we all have to go to that tendon place in Shinjuku!” Tsuyu announced happily, giving you one last hug before heading out.
“Tendon Tuesdays are definitely back ya’ll!” You laughed happily and all the girls hovered above the two of you, joining in for one last group hug as they shared “I love yous” and goodbyes.
“You guys are acting like I will be leaving again,” you laughed when you all pulled away and saw your friends getting teary.
Mina smiled softly. “We’re just happy you’re finally back.”
And after Mina said her sweet comment, Uraraka wailed a “You GUYSssssssss!” in a sarcastic tone and everyone bunched up together again for another group hug as they wailed their hearts out.
Bakugou walked in and saw all the girls form into one ball and he couldn’t help but grin at the sight. Yeah, he was so happy that you are actually in Tokyo.
After more “text me!” and goodbyes, the four girls exited out the door and you stood in the living room by yourself, cleaning up the last few trash on the table for Momo.
This is the time. Bakugou said to himself as he began to walk towards you. Nervousness crept on his neck which was unusual for him since you were one of his closest friends. Kirishima and Kaminari headed back to their places and before Kirishima exited, he gave one last talk to Bakugou.
“Dude, you don’t even know if she’s with him yet,” Kirishima said outside the front gate. “Maybe they’re just friends!”
“Just friends?” Bakugou repeated slightly icily—almost like a scoff. He tucked his hands in his pockets and shook his head. “I don’t know, man. You see it too though.”
Kirishima stares at his friend and bit his lip, knowing that from the way Shindo has been treating you and all the stories you two of shared together, it looked like you two were together. Sure! Maybe you two were just friends, but Bakugou felt like it was highly unlikely. Plus, you were exchanging whispers with your friends and from the look on their faces, it was like something exciting was stirring up.
“Yeah,” Kirishima finally said. “But still…we don’t really know. And now that everyone is almost gone, now’s your chance to finally talk to her in peace!”
And with that in mind, Bakugou walked towards you in the main room.
“Hey.”
You looked up from the table and widened your eyes. “Bakugou! I thought you already left with the other boys. You’re still here?” You asked. But you immediately blushed and waved your hands quickly when you realized how wrong that sounded out your mouth. “Not that it’s bad that you’re here! I didn’t mean that. I’m happy you’re still here!”
Bakugou laughed, his shoulders relaxing as he looked at you with a smile. You laughed too at your own dumb act and the awkward tension was slowly replaced with a comforting one.
“You really don’t wanna see me, huh?” Bakugou teased with a smirk.  
You rolled your eyes. “You know it’s not like that.”
Bakugou grabbed the back of his neck and locked his eyes with you. You hummed curiously, knowing that he wanted to say something.
“Y/N, I just wanted to say that I’m really glad that—“
“Y/N!!” Shindo’s voice echoed from the back kitchen. He waved his arm excitingly with a bright smile but then paused when he saw you and Bakugou standing in front of each other, alone.
Ugh! Bakugou thought to himself as he saw Shindo’s face grow slightly tensed when he looked at him.
Shindo walked towards you respectfully with a smile. “Hey, I know it’s pretty late. Do you want me to take you home?”
Bakugou parted his mouth opened for just a bit. His anger and jealously was rising high now and he wasn’t sure why.
“Oh!” You said, turning your head to Shindo. “No, it’s fine, really!”
“You sure?”
You smiled at him. “Yeah, thank you though.”
“Well then,” Shindo turned to Bakugou and then back to you. His gaze turned serious. “Can- Can I talk to you in private for a moment?”
You opened your mouth and directed your hand towards Bakugou. “Oh! Bakugou was actually talking—“
“It’s fine, Y/N” Bakugou said in almost a strict tone that your face fell a bit. He nodded his head at Shindo and then smiled at you, telling you that it really was okay. “It’s not important, really. Actually…I think I’m going to head out.”
“Bakugou, wait—“ you said, your eyes staring directly at his.
“Y/N,” Bakugou tried to laugh. But you knew him too well that the laugh was forced. “Seriously, we can chat again later some time. Plus, since you’re back, we can finally hang out like we used too.”
Shindo glared at Bakugou sternly after he said that, but at this point Bakugou couldn’t care anymore.
You paused and stared at him before mumbling out an “okay” as Shindo turned and pulled you away from him.
And after letting Awase know that he was finally heading home, Bakugou exited the door and walked towards the front gate. He tucked his hands in his pockets and felt his heart grow heavier and heavier until—
“Katsuki! Wait!”
Bakugou twirled around to see you extend your arm up high out the front door. You ran towards him and put your hands on your knees to gasp for air.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to call you so directly.” You said apologetically.
Bakugou shook his head, but his heart skipped a few beats when he heard you call his first name. “It’s fine. You can call me that.”
You widened your eyes and hugged yourself closely. “Oh?” You smiled. “Okay then.”
“Uhm…did you need to tell me something…or..?” Bakugou asked curiously, internally wondering why you suddenly exited out of the house.
“Oh! Right!” You tapped your head dumbly. “Right….I- I actually wanted to say goodbye to you and-”
“Weren’t you just talking to Shindo?” Bakugou pointed out so cold that your face immediately fell when you heard his sudden shift of tone.  
“Um-”
“Sorry.”
“No! I- I actually need to apologize for that. I should have spoken up more. We haven’t…really chatted during the party.”
Bakugou scoffed and smiled as he tilted his head up towards the night sky in silence. He was so furious just a few seconds ago that any one who dared stopped him will be blasted off to space. But when he heard you call his actual name, he felt more at peace. But sadness lingered in his heart as he darted his gaze behind you at the door, knowing that Shindo was in there. 
From the door entrance to the front gate was a large garden in between, and when you realized how quiet it was, you cleared your throat and looked up at him.
“We’re not together,” you finally said.  “I mean, Shindo and I.”
Bakugou’s eyebrows shot up immediately but quickly replaced his shock look with a calm one.
Wait…what?
“Oh…?”
He blinked his eyes and parted his mouth slowly, carefully thinking about the words before saying them out loud. “But Mina and them—“
“Kept teasing about the two of us being together? Momo kept throwing us questions about our quests? All the girls teasing and the “date”?” You said in air quotes with a smirk. “Shindo is really nice and he’s like that to almost everyone, really. Plus…”
You stopped, glancing up at Bakugo and then turning your head away. Heat crept up to the apples of your cheeks as you continued. “Plus, there’s someone else…”
Bakugou’s mind buzzed with clouds as he felt like a a horde of demons was ready to swallow him up.
There’s someone else.
It can’t be him, right? Bakugou’s shoulders fell and frowned a bit. How could he be so stupid thinking that you actually liked him in the first place? Could it be…Kirishima? Kaminari? Oh fuck, maybe it’s Deku. His mind continued to swarm with possibilities of the “someone else,” casting more and more doubt onto himself until he heard your laughter.
You clenched your arms around your stomach and laughed. A beautiful melody that never ceases to amaze Bakugou. It was like a warm breeze in the summer swooping him away. But Bakugou lowered his gaze with confusion as he stared at you. “What’s so funny?”
You looked up, wiping a small tear on the corner of your eye with a bright but soft smile on your face.
“It’s you, dumbass.”
Under normal circumstances, anyone who called him that will immediately turn into dust, but with you… He couldn’t even get riled up an inch. Because when he heard those words left your mouth, it was like fog clearing up on a raining day, a heavy weight now off his shoulders.
Wait…is this really happening?
A cunning smirk graced his lips as he stepped closer to you.
The cool evening air no longer felt cold and you grabbed his hand pulling him closer. It was dark but he could still see the perfect outlines of your face.
“Really?” Bakugou whispered huskily above you, not sure if he was dreaming or not. Excitement buzzed throughout his body, his focus entirely on you.
You laughed with a happy smile on your face. “Really.”
Bakugou smirked cockily. “Well, then dumbass…I’m glad… because I like you too.” He said slowly in such a cute way that it made you giggled.
“I’m glad then.” You said quietly.
“Do you… want to go grab lunch someday…?” Bakugou asked, the words rolling off his tongue seemed so foreign to him. Everything happened so fast but it felt so nice at the same time.
You nodded your head still smiling. “Yeah…that sounds nice. Though I want your homemade curry, I’ve been craving Japanese food for so long and New York and LA doesn’t even beat the meals that you make!”
Bakugou laughed, his heart feeling so overwhelmingly content. “Well then, I’ll bring you some food tomorrow. You’ll be jet lag and all.”
You groaned cutely. “Oh god, yeah. I’ll probably be sleeping all morning tomorrow. But at least I’ll have something to look forward to when I wake up.” You smiled.
Bakugou nodded, and you pulled him into a hug that surprised him at first but he wrapped his arms around you ever so gently and warmly. The two of you just wrapped in each other’s arms for a few seconds, enjoying the quiet night that Bakugou wished could last forever.
“I’m glad you’re back, Y/N.” He whispered softly in your ear that made you shivered with happiness. “I…I’ve missed you.” He added ever so quietly in a way that it sounded like he was talking to himself. But you still heard those words and it made you hug him a bit tighter.
You tucked your head into his shoulder and whispered out a soft “me too.”  
When the two of you parted away, you both exchanged goodbyes once more, but this time, there was a layer of love and excitement in the air. Bakugou glanced at the door behind you, and the sudden reminder of Shindo who was still in there came to mind. Bakugou has never felt so happy in his whole entire life, knowing that you had the same feelings he had for you. But seeing the shadows on the windows, the sudden flash of Shindo’s disapproving face re-resurfaced. He had a feeling that you didn’t know that Shindo actually liked you. And sure! He only met the guy today but his gut instincts knew better that the faces he gave to Bakugou plus his expression whenever he looked at you, it was something more than just a friendship. But before Bakugou could even dive deeper into this thought as he turned towards the gate, you stopped him.
“Katsuki—! Wait.” You called, causing him to turn his head once more at you. But before he could even ask what’s wrong, you slipped a hand through his and stepped on your tippy toes as you planted a warm kiss on his cheek, holding it there for a few seconds. Bakugou widened his eyes for a quick second, and just like magic, that kiss washed his doubts about you and Shindo down the drain. It was like a message that you were his—as dominating as that sound. But it nevertheless made him less tensed. 
You swallowed a lump on your throat as you parted away. A little embarrassed at your sudden move but when you saw Bakugou’s face glowed, you smiled and nodded. Words didn’t need to be said for the two of you to understand each other.
“Have a goodnight, okay? Drive safe.” You waved before turning your back to return to the house.
“Yeah,” Bakugou smiled as he tucked his hands into his pocket, turning to the front gate once more. “I will.”
And with that, the two of you parted your ways, with bright smiles and warm hearts that continued to simultaneously flow in the air.
—————
“Cuz I know I’ll have to take you guys home!” Shindo heard Momo from the living room said as he carried the trash bags into the kitchen.
“Uhm.., where should I place these?” Shindo asked Awase who was washing a few cups in the sink.
Awase pointed at the corner besides him where all the other bags were laid. “You can leave them here Thanks, man.”
Before Shindo nodded respectfully at him, he heard you and the girls burst out into a loud laughter, making him turn to the direction of the sound coming from the main room. His eyes softened, as if reminiscing precious memories from a time. And in all honestly, his attention was just focused on your laughter. The melody that he can always listen to and never get tired of.
Shindo had never believed “love at first sight.” But when he first saw you in New York, his heart bloomed in a way that he has never felt before and he was so interested in you ever since. Of course, he kept cool about it, but since he was such an open and honest guy, he always slipped in a move here and there, hoping to grab your attention or sneak in hints, to show that what you meant to him was in a way that was more than a friend.
After cleaning up, Awase takes a sip of his beer, glancing at Shindo’s still turned-head for a moment before saying, “You like her, don’t you?”
Shindo looked stunned as he immediately shot his head back at Awase. His heart pounded in his chest when he heard the question. “H-how did you know?”
Awase smirked. “I know that feeling, dude. That’s how I felt when I met Momo,” He said, tilting his head towards the living room where his girlfriend was.
“I don’t want anyone to find out,” Shindo said quietly as he rested his elbows on the kitchen island across Awase.
“Of course. This is just between me and you.” Awase replied respectfully, knowing what Shindo is going thorough, having a similar experience himself.
Shindo smiled at him appreciatively. He cleared his throat. “And uhm, I know that we just met and all…but do…do you you know if Y/N is involved with anyone—like, romantically?”
Awase pondered on that comment seriously for a moment. “I don’t really know, man. I think Kirishima and the others will know since they were all in the same class as her since U.A. But…from what I’ve heard from my girlfriend, I don’t think so.”
“Not even, uhm, Bakugou?” Shindo slid in the question curiously.  
“Y/N and Bakugou!?” Awase laughed. “I’ve never heard of that before! Who gave you the idea?”
Shindo just shrugged, not wanting to say why he asked. Ever since the day he accidentally saw your phone lock screen of you and Bakugou in your days in U.A when your phone dinged on his table, his suspicion arose. Of course it wasn’t much, but the way you talked about him was different compared to the others…
“Hey,” Awase said, interrupting his thoughts. “From what I’ve learned… you can wait to get the answers, or just be honest with her.”
“Be honest with her?”
Awase shrugged. “Yeah. In fact you can even tell her how you feel now, most of her friends are returning home now.”
Shindo nodded appreciatively at him and smiled. “Thanks man, really.”
“You got it, and don’t worry,” Awase reassured when he saw Shindo’s mouth open again. “I’ll keep things low-key.”
Shindo smiled again and walked back towards the main room to find you. Awase was right. After all that you two of been through for the past couple weeks there was a new foundation built upon your friendship—trust. And he trusted you that you can at least understand his feelings. Shindo knew he told everyone that he came back to Tokyo for a change of environment and for hero work…but that wasn’t necessarily the entire truth. Because in all transparency, he came back for you too…and maybe its because he has loved working with you, or maybe it was the way you described Tokyo to him in New York made him really miss home…
Or maybe it’s because he was falling in love with you.
Shindo made his way to the living room and called out your name, but his high emotions toppled over when he saw you standing with Bakugou in the now empty living room, alone.
He doesn’t really hate Bakugou, but ever since he had his suspicion, he couldn’t look at him the same way. And sure, it may be unfair of him to act like that but when he saw the way Bakugou locked eyes with him, he knew something was up that confirmed his suscpisoun. He could feel this unprecedented tension in the air between him and Bakugou—almost like an undeclared challenge.
Shindo mustered up the courage as he walked towards you with a smile. “Hey, I know it’s pretty late. Do you want me to take you home?”
“Oh!” You replied when you noticed Shindo. “No, it’s fine, really!”
“You sure?”
You smiled at him which made Shindo’s stomach flutter with butterflies. “Yeah, thank you though.”
“Well then,” Shindo turned to Bakugou and then back to you, hesitating just a bit about his next act act. His gaze turned serious and he lowered his voice so almost only you could hear him.  “Can… Can I talk to you in private for a moment?”
Shindo saw you opened your mouth slowly. “Oh! Bakugou was actually talking—“
“It’s fine, Y/N” Bakugou cut in, looking at Shindo and then back to you. “It’s not important, really. Actually…I think I’m going to head out.”
“Bakugou, wait—“
“Y/N,” Bakugou continued. “Seriously, we can chat again later some time. Plus, since you’re back, we can finally hang out like we used too.”
Shindo glared at Bakugou. He felt his heart ache when he heard that, knowing that the two of you are pretty close. But finally when you agreed, you and Shindo stepped aside for more space.
You turned your head at Shindo and noticed his serious expression. “Is there something wrong?”
Shindo blinked his eyes and cleared his throat. “N-no! I mean, not anything super important. Actually, Y/N… I just wanted to—“
Click!
Before Shindo could continue, your head shot to where the door was just closed and you saw Bakugou’s shadow exit out of the house. Shindo saw you turned your head back towards him as you bit your lip.
“Shindo, I’m so sorry. Can you give me a few minutes really quick?” You said with the kindest smile you had.
Shindo looked at you with a tinge of solemn in his eyes as he smiled. His gut feeling knew what you were about to do, but he didn’t want to force you to listen to him and so he smiled and nodded, earning you a brighter smile on your face that Shindo loved.
“Thank you.” You said as you grabbed his hand and giving it a squeeze.
Shindo saw you run towards the door, not hesitating a bit to open it immediately.
And when you exited, Shindo gave out a sigh. This was a lot harder than he expected. He headed towards the table near the door to pack up some of his things that he laid near, but his mistake was when he glanced up at the window.  His eyes widened and sucked in a breath when he saw you standing near the front gate with Bakugou.
It looked like it was all happening in slow motion.
The way you slipped your hand through his. The cute way you leaned in closer a few inches with the tip of your toes and kissed him on the cheek.
It wasn’t an actual real kiss, but still...Shindo felt a surge of jealously come crashing down on him. He swallowed a lump in his throat as a mixture of anger and sadness stirred in him. And as he saw you wave goodbye to Bakugou, Shindou looked away in sadness as his stomach dropped and his once cool smile now turned into a deep frown.
He felt like he lost you — even though he never really had you in the beginning.
But maybe there’s still a chance for him to confess how he feels.
Because even if you don’t share the same feelings as him...he’ll still find release… that at least the person he loves …. knows.  
Yeah… Shindo thought to himself quietly as he pulled out his sunglasses, getting ready to leave. He knew he couldn’t say it now…not after what he just witnessed. So with a sharp glide of his hand like a professional, he slipped on his sunglasses and beanie ever so smoothly and picked up his bags.
I’ll come back to you Y/N…you’ll see.
-------
A/N ~ oh gosh, yo shindo vs. bakugou. this love triangle just suddenly appeared and i’ll need to figure out how to unravel this mess. But thank you to everyone who read this fic! I know it is longer than my usual works so words cannot express how much it means to me. Thank you 💗 Please do not hesitate to send me a message through my inbox on about this fic (WHOSE TEAM R U ON?!) or about anything! Let’s just say...next chapter will def. be more about the charming Yo Shindo ;) 
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rainii-reads · 3 years ago
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Chateau
DESCRIPTION: After a fateful encounter, you and Yoongi have finally decided to go public with your relationship.
This was inspired by the song Chateau by Tokio Hotel. Bolded dialogue are direct lyrics.
WORD COUNT: 1, 903 PAIRING: Idol!Yoongi x Reader GENRE: Fluff and comfort
Warnings: Implied slut shamming; analogies referencing cuts (there is no self-harming, only references to words hurting.)
Author’s note: This is my first fanfiction for BTS, and my first story in a long, long time. Hope it’s not too bad! You can also read it on AO3.
🌸
Taking up Arms: ARMY Feuds Over SUGA and Y/N
As news of BTS’s SUGA sweeps the kPop world, fans are divided. Many ARMYs citing Y/N as a clout seeker - stealing their Min SUGA. ARMY’s on the offense challenge the perceived ownership of the Bangtan rapper. This brings to question, however, do these fans approve of the relationship or are they simply defending SUGA?
The Next Yoko Ono: Will Y/N be the end of Bangtan Sonyeondan
Silence rings clearer than the stroke of the keyboard. Three weeks have passed since word broke of the famous rapper’s new relationship. The onslaught of hatred continues to poor out in droves, yet silence remains from the musician’s fellow members. Is it possible the six comrades also dislike Y/N?
Anti-Y/N Accounts Take Twitter by Storm
In the last week Twitter has taken action and began removing dozens of accounts dedicated to canceling Y/N. While Twitter works to delete the insults and threats of harm, where is Big Hit? Will they take action to protect BTS’s SUGA and his new sweetheart?
“Sweetheart?” You snapped. “And what’s with the italics – we all know you’re being sarcastic. No need to lay it on thicker.” You fumed for a moment longer, at the snippy report, before you found your laptop being pulled from your grasp. You dared not look up at the sleepy gaze of the man in debate.
“Sweetheart, why are you reading the headlines again?”
It was the truth. Your streak of laziness was something Yoongi often appreciated about you. It resulted any many home dates and working side-by-side in the Genius Lab at all hours of the day. Shared moments you loved. However, you couldn’t handle any more inquires from that man, he had been unyielding for days, and you were slowly breaking.
“Excuse me, are their free refills on black coffee?”You had asked, trying to spare him from the one-sided conversation (if it could even be called that). Yoongi used the moment to escape and take a seat at the table nearest you, waiting for his iconic iced-americano. You remember the sweet smile he gave you as he mouthed ‘thank you’ – the start to your simple chitchat about the shop’s décor and more.
You often giggle as you remember the notes you passed on the plane ride home. The ones kept safe in your nightstand. Had you not looked up, the moment he walked down the cramped isle, Yoongi wouldn’t have shared a smile with you, before taking his seat in first-class.
Within an hour of the flight, a young, excited stewardess had come to your seat handing you a folded sheet of paper. Noticing she was waiting for you to read the note, you unfolded it and struggled to stifle the laugh that emerged. “So, who is your bias?” Yoongi wrote in memory of when your phone rang at the coffee shop, announcing your ARMY status as Converse High played. It was the rare time you had left your sound on.
From time to time, you wondered about the excited flight attendant. You wish you could see her again just so you could tell her thank you for putting up with Yoongi’s archaic flirting. Had she not been so kind and willing, your relationship may not have formed.
These and many more memories were what put you to ease when you sat in a conference room at HYBE Entertainment. It was there where plans were made for the announcement your relationship with the one and only Min Yoongi of BTS. Photos of your not-so-secret dates had progressively found their way onto Tumblr and Twitter, gaining the attention of gossip sites. However, it was more appropriate to call it an interrogation than a planning session.
“Y/N,” you remember the head of PR starting, “Are you sure there are no past scandals that will cause Min Yoongi any problems?” The intention behind ‘scandals’ had not been lost on.
Your usual demeanor was gone as you snipped back. “I’m pretty sure I was too lazy to have any scandals.”
Yoongi snorted as he held back his laugh.
It was the truth. Your streak of laziness was something Yoongi often appreciated about you. It resulted any many home dates and working side-by-side in the Genuis Lab at all hours of the day. Shared moments you loved. However, you couldn’t handle any more inquires from that man, he had been unyielding for days, and you were slowly breaking.
Your sarcasm hadn’t gone unnoticed. “Do you not understand what kind of position you are putting our artist and company in? We need to be prepared for whatever we will need to clean up after you. You need to take this seriously.” Intentions ringing clearly, again.
In your heart, you knew he trying to do right by Yoongi and the company, but the judgement that wove into his words cut. You also took offense to how he made you sound like a disease that clung to Yoongi, bringing him harm.
As you looked back, it was the first of many wounds that told you, you were unworthy of Min Yoongi.
“Y/N is very aware of what implications a public relationship will have.” The man in question spoke, his tone shifting as he said, “She is more than clear of any scandals. Worst we’ll see are malicious lies and rumors – no truth within them – and that is where this discussion will end.” As Yoongi spoke, his few words carried immense weight. For each previously inflicted cut, his words bandaged themselves around to ease the pain.
Heeding the warning, the interrogation ended, and the meeting regained its original focus: preparation for the announcement and aftermath.
Two weeks after the tense convening, the news was released through an official statement form HYBE, confirming the relationship of Min Yoongi and his new girlfriend. The media and social-media platforms were instantly in a frenzy and, as planned, everyone remained silent. It had been decided that everyone would keep silent for a month, to see what would earn a response.
That singular month had been the sharpest cut to your fragile skin.
_______________________
Breaking through your thoughts, Yoongi spoke again, “Y/N.”
You looked up at him, finally, and sighed. “I’m sick, okay? I can’t help but want to see what is being said about me, about us. Did you see they’re calling me Yoko Ono? Will the media ever cease with the constant Beetles comparisons? Don’t they see you guys are tired of responding to the accolades?”
He spared you a look, leaving you to end your rambles. The rambles he knew you were using to deflect from your current, unhealthy obsession.
“I really can’t help it Yoongi,” You sighed. “In less than a week we can finally speak out and I need to know what I’m defending myself against.”
In an almost languid fashion, he placed the laptop down and sat next to you. Pulling you closer as he organized his thoughts. “That’s not really for you to worry about. The company and I will handle that.”
“No, I need to do something. I can’t just hide behind you. People are talking about us and they’re going to watch and critique every little thing we do. I know that isn’t what we discussed, but this anxiety is unlike anything else.”
He reached out and gently ran the tips of his fingers down the sides of your face, smoothing out any traces of stress. The very hand that famously held a tight grasp on a black microphone, was now the source of your ease. The very hand that was adored by many, was saved for you.
“Here’s the thing,” he spoke slowly, “People are gonna talk. So, let them talk; let them talk about us. People are gonna watch. So, let 'em touch, let 'em see, let 'em feel what love is.”
They were simple words, yet, as the always did, they healed the damages from the last three weeks.
Tears overwhelmed your eyes, gliding down to touch the tips of his fingers. “Let it all go, since it finally happened.” He had worried about the brave face you had been parading. “I know they’re going to talk. I know they’re going to watch. Baby, I don’t mind as long as it’s you and I. We’ll just let them see what real love is.”
As you processed the abundance of emotions that had accumulated, Yoongi held you close. Occasionally whispering the right sentiments to soften the anxiety more. While you laid with him, you wondered: Exactly how much had to go right for you to be with him? The gossip columns may say that the two of you were different, too different in fact, but your time together showed you how alike you were. How right you were for each other.
Many more challenges awaited you, but with him you knew it would be fine. You were not coming down from your cloud.
_______________________
Later that evening, as the tears dried and the anxiety eased to rest, you proposed a trip. “Hey, the next time were in California we should stay at the Chateau Marmot.”
“Isn’t that place haunted?” His abundance of quirky knowledge never ceased to amaze you.
After a quick search to confirm, you scratched the plan. “I’ll find another chateau. One free of the paranormal.”
A short moment of silence passed before you asked your next thought, “What did you mean earlier when you said, “let them touch”?
Yoongi looked up from his phone and paused for affect. “Don’t know. It just sounded right in my head – I didn’t mean anything weird by it.” He laughed, exposing his renowned smile.
“Pervert.” You teased, tossing a pillow his way.
In an unexpected fashion, Yoongi lunged forward seeking retaliation. Having not anticipated it, you stumbled off the bed, in an attempt to run away, but he pulled you back before you could escape. In the most cliché of moments, he tickled your sides until the fits of laughter led to you sharing a loving gaze and slow kiss.
“You’re right,” you said as your lips separated, “Let ‘em talk – we’ll show them what real love it.”
_______________________
The Power Couple that is Y/SN
A year has since passed since news of Y/SN occupied our every thought. In celebration of our favorite power couple, we’ve broken down the Top 10 Reasons why we love Y/SN!
Goals: How do we land a relationship like SUGA and Y/N’s?
Recently, photos and videos of a not-so-secret date between SUGA and Y/N made their way onto the internet. As the young couple is seen leaving Chateau de Sureau, they’re hand-in-hand showing signs of laughter. The love between the two is so clear not even an anti-Y/SN could deny it. So, the question remains, how do we get our own fairytale romance?
We’ve been asking, but has SUGA?
The question all fans of Y/SN have been wanting to know: When will SUGA ask the big question? Our sources suggest it may be sooner than you might think. As BTS wraps up their latest world tour, preparing to go back to the studio, rumors of the young rapper ring shopping have bubbled up. Whether this is true or not remains to be seen, but we look forward to the exciting news for our favorite couple.
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sweet-symphony0 · 4 years ago
Text
Despair
  Hey hey, guess who’s back and finally had time to write! Happy Twin Tuesday! This one is...current, I’ll say. That’s all I’m going to say.
Summary: 01/06/2021. Rami and Sami can’t believe their eyes. They cope the only way they know how.
 Tags: @the-real-ramimalekpeen @xmxisxforxmaybe @killerqueengigi @txmel @laminy @ramimedley @rathernotmyname @ramilicious @sherlollydramoine @edteche2 @hah0106
---
Sami’s phone was ringing, he could hear it vibrating in his bag from he stood next to his desk, surveying his thirty students, their attention quickly diminishing. He ignored it, even as it rang a second time. 
“Alright guys-hey, don’t pack up yet, this is important-reading for tonight is chapter 12, your essays on Slaughterhouse Five are due Friday, so don’t forget.” There were groans heard from around the room, and Sami continued, “and no, I won’t be accepting any late papers; I gave you a month and a half for this. That’s more than generous, get it done.”
There were more groans and Sami smirked inwardly to himself as the bell rang and students began shuffling out the door, with a few calls of “see ya, Mr. Malek!” and Sami smiled. “Yeah, have a good day guys. Nice work today.”
When the last student was out the door, Sami took a moment to himself, glad he now had a free period before his next class. He cleared his throat, and began erasing the notes from the smartboard in preparation for the next round, when his phone vibrated and he remembered someone was trying to reach him, idly wondering what was so important that someone would call him at work.
Skimming his notifications, he frowned. Three texts from Rami, a missed call from him, and two texts from friends which he ignored for the time being, instead reading Rami’s messages:
“I know you’re at work, but you need to see this.” and underneath, in a separate message, a link to a CNN article that read “Rioters break windows and breach US Capitol.”
Sami stared, bewildered, and then read the third message Rami had sent.
“Turn on the news.”
Sami reread the headline, clicking the link Rami had sent, and he skimmed the article, his mind reeling.
“What the fuck...?”
Rami’s response was instant:
“You need to turn on the fucking news. Now.”
Sami wasted no time in rushing to the staff room, thanking his stars he had a break for the next forty minutes. It didn’t surprise him that nearly a quarter of the staff were already there, and he slipped inside, spotting a few of his colleagues from the English department. Even though the second bell had rung, no one in the room bothered to move, their eyes transfixed on the news coverage blaring from the TV. And as Sami turned his gaze to watch too, he felt his stomach sink in dread.
There were a cacophony of murmurs around the room, Sami catching tidbits here and there.
“What are we going to do?”
“There’s nothing we can do right now-”
“No, we can’t just-someone has to explain to the kids-”
“No, they’ll find out soon enough, we keep teaching like normal-”
“This is a high school,” one of Sami’s friends in the history department finally sighed tiredly. “You really think those kids don’t know by now? They have social media and cell phones. They know. And we can go about like usual, but this is something we’re all going to be talking about tomorrow.”
Sami’s eyes drifted back to the television, watching intently as he drowned everyone else out. They were inside the building now, hoards of them, a never ending sight. Sami watched with wide, disbelieving eyes, horrified as people scaled the building walls, smashed through windows, and he couldn’t help but think frantically: why wasn’t anyone doing anything?
He snorted to himself. Right. You know why.
He didn’t think he’d be able to go back to work after this. Slowly, one by one, his colleagues filtered out as most of them had classes to attend to that period and couldn’t push being late anymore. Once he was alone, Sami sank into one of the chairs, eyes glued to the newscast, feeling frozen from what he seeing.
He felt sick.
He texted Rami back and forth, a steady stream of furious conversation, not even realizing when the bell rang. Scrambling out of his seat, he rushed back to his room, just in time for when kids started filing in.
“Hi guys,” he pasted a smile on his face. “Settle down, and we’ll get started.”
He taught on autopilot, the forty minutes going by without him realizing, and before he knew it, kids were standing up and he was calling out the same thing from before: “read chapter twelve tonight, your essays are due Friday...”
Whatever previous intentions Sami had about sticking around the rest of the school day to get his work done, he threw right out the window. Racing home, he dug through his fridge for a beer, and then after better judgement, grabbed another, before he turned his TV on and called Rami.
Sami didn’t even let him say hi. “Are you safe?”
“Yeah,” Rami nodded. He was moving through his apartment, Sami could see, presumably to get to a quieter spot, and his gaze was off to the side, watching something. “I’m fine. Nothing here has happened yet, thankfully.”
“Listen,” Sami said urgently. ���Stay inside okay? Don’t go out today if you don’t have to. You don’t-no one knows what will happen. Please.”
“I’m not moving,” Rami said. “I can’t-fucking after this, I can’t concentrate. I’m supposed to be rehearsing lines for tomorrow but fuck that. This is insane.”
Sami watched as the mob of people made their way inside the Rotunda, and he sank onto the couch. Then a few minutes later, they were inside the Senate chamber, pushing things around, and when he changed the channel to find another possible view, there was a photo up of a man carrying a confederate flag.
“Oh my fucking god.”
Rami’s voice was low. “I know. It gets worse.”
“Oh no, don’t say that.”
“They-they took down the American flag,” Rami said with barely restrained rage. “And replaced it. With a fucking Trump flag.”
Sami choked. “You’re not serious.”
“I wish I weren’t. And our president,” Rami scoffed. “is encouraging it. Fucking-” he stopped short, thinking for a moment on whether or not to complete what he wanted to say, before he shook his head in exasperation. “It’s all so exhausting.”
“That’s unconstitutional,” Sami murmured, flipping channels again, and he dropped his beer when he saw the constructed noose on the other side of the Capitol, staining the carpet, but he didn’t care. “Who is that for?! What the fuck!”
“What? What am I missing?”
Sami didn’t answer, still rooted on the spot, watching as officers finally brought out tear gas. “Fuck...is there any update on the Senators?”
“Not that I can tell. Though they are saying a few Republican ones are agreeing with this bullshit.”
Suddenly everything clicked, and Sami realized why today, of all days, this was happening. As he watched the coverage of Trump’s tweet, the rally earlier that morning, he idly wondered how much damage had already been caused, and whatever else he’d missed.
“I’m not drunk enough for this,” he sighed, and Rami chuckled flatly.
“I’ve had a bottle of wine open for the last hour. Wish you were here to join me.”
“Well,” Sami stood up, grimacing at the mess he’d made from the spilled beer. “I can join you from afar. What are you drinking?” Rami gave him the name of a Cabernet they were both fond of, and Sami grinned triumphantly when he found a spare bottle in the back of his wine cooler. Propping his phone up on the counter against the block of chopping knives, he made quick work in opening and pouring himself a generous glass. “Cheers, man.”
“Cheers. What are we cheers-ing to?”
Sami hummed, licking the bit of wine that had dripped down his finger. “To the compete and utter fuckery that has been...the six days of this new year.”
“That works,” Rami was silent for a moment, both of them lost in their thoughts, watching the news again. “You know, I...obviously after the last four years there’s been a lot of unrest and contempt. But to this extent, for thousands of people to..to believe-”
“Say an election is rigged and then stop the process in almost every way they can?” Sami took a generous sip of his wine. “To destroy the Capitol? Yeah. I know.”
“Unbelievable,” Rami said succinctly, and after a moment: “I should’ve stayed in London.”
“They’re not much better,” Sami snickered, glancing at his twin. “Besides, London doesn’t have me.”
Rami laughed. “You think I plan my life around you?”
“What, you mean you don’t? I’m shocked. That hurts.”
“Definitely not,” Rami smirked and Sami laughed.
“Alright hot shot, don’t let that hair gel go to your brain too. There’s enough on your head already.”
“Oh, fuck you,” Rami was grinning, and Sami grinned back.
“Just trying to keep you humble, you know. I don’t give a shit if you have a shiny gold toy now.”
“Wow,” Rami muttered. “You wish your hair looked as good.”
“A greasy mess? Yeah, no thanks.”
Rami laughed again, and Sami grinned, pleased at the fact, sipping his wine again as they turned back to the news. “Fuck, it really is a shit show isn’t it?”
“I’ve always said he would leave the White House, but he’ll burn it down with him as he goes.”
“Yeah,” Sami sighed, his anger boiling all over again. “Looks like it. I wish you were wrong.”
“Me too.”
Glancing at the clock, he saw it had been a hour since he’d gotten home, which meant it was around 4pm on the east coast. Tuning back to the coverage, the mob outside the Capitol had grown, more people were scaling the wall to get inside, and Sami couldn’t help but think how all too easy it was for them.
“So uh...where’s the tear gas? The rubber bullets? The arrests?”
Rami snorted. “You’re fucking kidding, right? C’mon. Like that applies to them.”
Sami snorted too, and then laughed weakly, which turned into a laughing fit, and he could hear Rami calling his name. “Sorry...it’s just...fuck all of them.”
Rami raised his glass in a toast before he downed it in one go, pouring another serving. “Amen.”
“God, how am I supposed to explain this to my kids? You’re telling me I have to go to work tomorrow after this?”
“Same here,” Rami said. He was moving again, and Sami could see he was back in the kitchen too, digging through his refrigerator. He produced a bunch of grapes, a platter of salami, and a block of cheddar cheese, and Sami watched as he began to assemble an antipasti platter for one. “I don’t want to head to work. Seems pointless, after this.”
Sami bit his lip thoughtfully. “It’s not...useless. Use it. You’re angry-”
“Angry? No, I’m well passed pissed off at this point.”
“There you go. Use it, use that rage towards your scenes and whatever your character is. It’s...” Sami shrugged meekly at Rami, who was watching him intently. “It’s the only thing we can do at times like this, right?”
“I suppose,” Rami muttered, a tired expression on his face, and popped a grape into his mouth. He turned around, opening the fridge again and came back holding some hummus and olives in his hand. “I imagine it’ll be the only thing anyone will talking about for the next week. Rightfully so.” He opened the olives, laying a few of them out next to the salami, and stuck the jar back into the fridge. 
Sami was bemused. “How much are you eating?”
“As much as it takes to get through this shit show. I’m supposed to be on a diet right now, but I don’t give a shit. If I’m going to wine and dine watching this, I might as well do it properly.”
“Now I really wish I were there.”
“Yeah, me too. It would make it more bearable. But...this will do for now.”
Sami went silent, watching the TV again, which was now reporting about gunshots and a woman wounded. “Jesus Christ.”
Rami was muttering under his breath. “Shit, shit, shit, shit-”
They didn’t speak after that, both of them too lost in watching the news coverage, and Sami gripped his glass tightly as took a breath in to ease his anxiety.
Swallowing, he poured another glass, knowing he wouldn’t be finishing the bottle, and instead capped it and placed it in the fridge for tomorrow. It was an odd feeling, one that “scared” wouldn’t be able to cover. It was a looming, threatening feeling; something like this was so deeply entrenched in the fabric of the country. It wasn’t something that would go away on January 20th, as much as he wished for that. He wasn’t surprised that people had so much hatred for anyone other than themselves were coming out of the woodwork, blindly following what their commander in chief told them. The repercussions of this day would be something that would take a long time to repair.
“I’m tired,” he said suddenly. Rami’s voice was quiet, and though Sami didn’t elaborate, Rami seemed to understand what he meant perfectly.
“I know. So am I.”
---
When the crowds eventually thinned out, and Sami went back to work the next morning, he read the highlights of things he’d missed, flipping through the photos of the wreckage before the first period bell rang. When students trickled in, he was met with a sea of somber faces, and he knew he wouldn’t be teaching his regular lesson plans for the day. He felt enraged all over again.
Instead, he hopped up onto his desk, sitting cross legged and observing his students. “Alright. I would be...a very poor educator if I didn’t bring up what happened yesterday to all of you. And I know you’ll hear about it later in the day, I’m sure, but what we do here as teachers affects you guys for the rest of your lives. Now I don’t really care if you can’t tell me the imagery themes in The Great Gatsby, but I do care if you can’t think for yourselves. You’ll be reading and hearing a lot different things in the next coming weeks from people who think they’re right. And you’re all old enough, in my opinion, to have your own opinions on this. That being said, we all know what the banned book list is, correct?”
There were students nodding, and Sami nodded too, and he hopped off the desk to pull said list up. “Good. Pick a book from here, read it. There’s a reason all these books are banned from certain school curriculum, and I want you guys to pick one, and tell me why. It’s January. For every book you manage to get through from now till June, if you give me a one page analysis on your thoughts, I’ll give you extra credit that counts towards your final.” His students perked up at that, and he smiled inwardly. “Five points for every book, sound good?” There were murmurs of approval, and Sami continued, “it’s not mandatory, so don’t feel pressured to this. But I would...appreciate it if you did.”
“What if we read them all?” Someone asked.
There was always one.
Sami’s lips quirked up in amusement. “Good luck. You’ll notice there’s plenty of books on there we’ve read already.”
His students started chattering excitedly, and Sami cleared his throat, glancing at his copy of The Color of Water, which is what they were studying now. They would be finishing that tomorrow, the test for it was Monday, something which Sami had to make over the weekend. He hadn’t decided what to teach next, his gaze drifting to the copies of To Kill A Mockingbird in the back of the classroom, which was what he was planning to start Monday, after the kids took their test.
He debated on it, and then Rami’s words came back to him from the night before.
“He’ll leave the White House, but he’ll burn it down with him as he goes.”
He cleared his throat. “Guys, we’re just going to finish reading for the rest of the period, and we’ll go over the whole book for tomorrow before your test. So if you’ve got your books, take ‘em out.”
Later, once his classes were over for the day, he headed to the library, intent on finding Maria and asking for his next lesson plans.
“Hey Sami,” she greeted. “Back again? How’d they fare with Color of Water?”
“Not bad,” Sami said. “We’re finishing it up, test is Monday.”
“So, you’re here for Mockingbird?”
“No I’ve got Mockingbird,” he murmured, scanning the bookshelves. “That was what I was going to go with originally, but I’ve had a change of heart. Do you know if any of the faculty is teaching Orwell at the moment?”
“The freshmen, some of them are doing Animal Farm. But none of the AP classes right now. Which one?”
Sami spotted what he was looking for, and based on the piles of books they had, no one else had taught it yet, or he was late to the game.
“1984.”
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storiesforallfandoms · 5 years ago
Text
just us ~ kendall schmidt
word count: 1568
request?: yes
@chennyetomlinson​ “Can you do an imagine for the song like nobody’s around by big time rush and can it be either Kendall or Carlos”
description: when being the girlfriend of a boyband member starts to get a little overwhelming, your boyfriend shows you a way to forget everything else
pairing: kendall schmidt x female!reader
warnings: none really
based off of this song
if you’d like to check out my song prompt list thing that i’m doing click here!
masterlist
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Nothing could ever prepare you for dating a famous person, let alone a famous boyband member.
Surprisingly, there were actually quite a few online articles and chatrooms that talked about being a normal person dating a celebrity. At first, you thought they’d be enough to help. You wondered if dating Kendall would really be that bad. He hadn’t really been too big since the Big Time Rush show ended. Sure, there would be fans asking him for pictures and autographs when you two were out together, but it couldn’t possibly be that bad.
You couldn’t be more wrong.
The reaction from the fans was very mixed, as expected. Some fans were very supportive, some were...less than supportive. It got to a point where you had to privatize your social media accounts so that fans would stop coming to your pictures and sending you harassing comments, and Kendall would have to turn off the comments on his Instagram whenever he posted pictures of the two of you.
As for paparazzi, it was almost as if they waited for Kendall to get a girlfriend to start following him and taking pictures. He even admitted that he had never had so many paparazzi pictures taken of him before you two had announced publicly that you were together, even when he was in the band. It made going out together much harder to do, and it made you not want to go out ever.
However, Kendall managed to convince you on different occasions. One of these occasions was a carnival that was in town, one of the only real sort of dates than you two had.
“Relax,” Kendall told you, taking your hand when he noticed how tense you were. “It’s okay, there’s a crowd of people here. No one is going to get any pictures of us, unless it’s fans.”
“It’s hard to relax when I’ve been here before,” you told him, looking over your shoulder for the familiar sight of someone crouched in the distance with a camera up, ready to snap a picture of you two. “We just can’t have a normal date out in public without some form of interruption.”
“Hey.” Kendall stopped, grabbing your shoulders and forcing you to look at him. “Look at me. Don’t worry about it, okay baby? You can’t let this fear rule your life, or our relationship. It happened to me when the guys and I were still together as a band and it absolutely ruined my life. I won’t let that happen to you.”
You sighed. “Yeah, I know you’re right. I’m just new to all of this, and I’ve been thrust into it so suddenly.”
“I know, and I’m so sorry that you have been.”
You shook your head. “No, it’s not your fault, babe. And honestly, I’d never exchange what I have with you for anything. It’s just...a lot to get used to.”
Kendall gave you a sad smile and wrapped his arms around you. You breathed in the familiar smell of his cologne, feeling safe and secure in his arms. You knew he was right, you couldn't let this fear control your life. Of course it was going to take some time to get over looking over your shoulder and the fear of going out in public, but you were going to try.
The rest of the day went by without a hitch. It was such a beautiful day, you were glad you took Kendall up on the idea of going out. If you had missed such a nice day, you would’ve been kicking yourself for a long time.
Kendall insisted on playing almost every carnival game in order to win you something. It took him nearly an hour and way more money than you would've liked, but he won you a big stuffed teddy bear and a smaller unicorn. He treated you to some carnival food, which resulted in you refusing to go on any of the rides because you were terrified that you’d throw up what you had eaten.
As the day was starting to come to an end, you and Kendall were stood together at the end of the boardwalk near the carnival, just watching the sun beginning to set. The carnival speakers were playing some upbeat, popular song, and you decided to start swaying to the beat, eventually melting into a goofy dance while Kendall watched and laughed. He wrapped his arms around you again and pulled you for a kiss, and you honestly could not feel happier.
You arrived back to his place past dark, still living in the happiness you had been feeling all day.
“I have no idea what I’m going to do with this,” you told him, gesturing to the giant teddy bear you had been carrying all day.
“You can cuddle it when I’m not home and pretend it’s me. I’ll coat it in my cologne before I have to leave so it’ll smell like me till I get back.”
You scrunched up your nose. “Okay, maybe don’t coat it. You smell good, but if you ruin my bear with too much cologne I’ll be very upset.”
Kendall laughed at your comment and continued to his kitchen to grab you both a snack. You placed your two stuffed toys at the end of the couch and collapsed onto the love seat. You decided to check Twitter to see if there was anything interesting happening in the world.
Big mistake.
Upon logging into your Twitter account, the first thing you saw was your mentions blowing up. This wasn’t too unusual, as even though your account was private it was still possible for people to tag you in their tweets. You weren’t going to pay any mind to it until you went into your mentions (mainly to get rid of the notifications from your phone) and found that they were all linked to an article from some media site, an article that was about you.
You knew it would be wrong to read the article. It was probably just some usual tabloid BS. But you couldn’t stop yourself as you clicked on the article, and you especially couldn’t stop yourself after reading the headline: “KENDALL SCHMIDT’S GIRLFRIEND LETS LOOSE AFTER A DAY AT THE CARNIVAL”.
Attached to the article was a video of you doing your goofy dance with Kendall at the end of your day, something that had happened not even an hour beforehand. The article talked about how you and Kendall had been spotted out together at the carnival, how Kendall had played the games to win you your stuffed toys, and how a fan had noticed you two together watching the sunset and had captured the video of you dancing. Your horror was furthered when you noticed what people were saying about the video.
“she honestly looks so stupid dancing like that, how is kendall into her?” “omf i’d never have the courage to look this stupid in public” “when @(yourtwittername) sees this she’s gonna go into hiding, I know I would”
You didn’t realize you were crying until Kendall came back into the room and was immediately at your side, asking you, “Baby, what’s wrong?”
You didn’t have to respond, Kendall noticed your phone and all the tweets and took it from you. His eyes widened when he saw the article and he immediately locked your phone and put it as far away from you as possible.
“Baby, do not listen to any of those people,” he told you. “You were having a good time, don’t let those people bring you down.”
You shook your head. “That’s it, Kendall, I’m done. I’m never going out anymore. I can’t do this anymore. I can’t be looking over my shoulder and always worrying that my every move is being watched. I can’t just be a stick in public because I’m afraid that every little move I’ll make will be captured and I’ll be made fun of. I just...can’t.”
You were full on sobbing when you looked away from Kendall, covering your face as you cried. You felt his hands on yours, lowering them from your face. He cupped your face in his hands, wiping your tears with his thumbs.
“Listen to me, okay (Y/N)?” he said. “I’m going to give you the advice I wish I had known much earlier on in my career: just be yourself. Don’t care what anyone else thinks, in fact act like nobody’s around. If you give in and you hide away then they win. You are the most amazing person I’ve ever met, and I’d hate to watch your light dim because of these awful vultures.”
Again, you knew Kendall was right. You couldn’t let the paparazzi and the mean fans win. You couldn’t live your whole life in fear. You intended to spend the rest of your life with Kendall, you couldn’t spend that time hidden away because you were afraid of the reaction of fans at the little things you loved to do.
Finally, you nodded and hugged Kendall tightly. He gave you a reassuring squeeze and you whispered, “Thank you so much.”
Kendall shook his head. “Don’t thank me, baby. Thank you for sticking around during all this.”
You pulled away to kiss Kendall. “I’ll always be here. Through everything, all the rude fans, all the paparazzi, all the rumors, everything. I’ll be here. I promise.”
629 notes · View notes
crystal-snowing · 4 years ago
Text
fake dating | yang jeongin
synopsis: before all of this started, yang jeongin was just your best friend, now, you weren’t sure where the two of you stand. 
genre: best friends to lovers!au, idol!au, fluff, slight angst
word count: 3.6k+
warnings: n/a 
other members: | chan | jisung | changbin | seungmin | hyunjin | minho | felix |
a/n: i wanted to thank you guys for all the love that i’ve been receiving on this series, i’m glad everyone is enjoying this as much as i enjoy writing for it ! 
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for as long as you could remember, yang jeongin has always been by your side.
he has been your best friend since both of you were in diapers, your mothers being best friends before the two of you were even born.
that being said, you were both attached to the hip growing up, it was almost as if you were both the same person, which is why when he told you that he wanted to be an idol, you were soon to follow. 
since you were both accepted to different agencies, him to jyp entertainment and you to a smaller company, it would be logical that something like this would put a damper on your friendship, but the both of you seemed to only come out stronger. 
he was your number one supporter when you debuted with your group, and even secretly attended your debut showcase with some of his members, and you did the same when he debuted a few months after you.
after that, meeting each other just to distress from the pressures of idol life was becoming more and more difficult, the paparazzi and fansites eager to catch their idols anywhere and everywhere. 
but, like most things in your relationship with yang jeongin, you both managed to make it work, whether it be you sneaking into his dorm room late at night for a movie marathon or him sneaking over to your dorm to play animal crossing together at your dorm. 
while, it wasn’t the most ideal circumstances, the two of you managed to make it work, despite the growing changes in both of your lives. 
but one night you were greedy, you were craving something outside the confines of your cramped dorms, wanting to experience the beautiful nightlife in seoul with your best friend.
and because of this greed, you were bound to get caught.
you were craving tofu stew, but there was one problem, you only wanted it from this one specific restaurant in seoul that of course, doesn’t do takeout. 
just this once, you were both willing to break the rules, for a moment blinded by the temptations of disobeying and longing for adventure, that you weren’t thinking rationally. 
dressed in casual clothing, hats adorning your head and masks covering half your face, your plan should have gone without a hitch—and as you made it to the restaurant you certainly thought that you would have this in the bag. 
nobody seemed to take notice of the two of you, as you happily enjoyed your stew as the ambiance in the atmosphere, finally free from the confines of your dorm room as you blew off steam with your best friend.
it was only as you were walking arm-in-arm did you have the unsettling feeling as if someone was watching you. 
there were numerous times where you glanced behind you making sure that the two of you were the only ones walking back to the dorms, but every time you looked, there was nobody there. 
instead, you simply chalked it up as paranoia, the constant attention and spotlight must have seriously gone to your head. 
after jeongin walked you safely back to your dorm, you didn’t think much about it, instead opting to slip soundlessly into bed and instead prepare for the day ahead. 
what you didn’t expect was to wake up to the flurry of text messages, and the concerned looks of your fellow group mates looming over you. 
grabbing your phone off your nightstand, you could only manage to skim through some of the notifications before your eyes feel on one in particular, the headline in big bold letters: DISPATCH REPORTS YANG JEONGIN AND [G/N]’S [Y/N] ARE DATING. 
well, fuck. 
there was a joint meeting that day between his company and yours, both of your managers present and the tension unbelievably thick. 
you both sat on opposite sides of the table, your managers by your side as you were probed with questions, both of you firmly denying that you were dating—insisting that it was all a misunderstanding and that you were both just really good friends. 
there was no denying the slight pang in your heart as the words left your mouth, it wasn’t a foreign feeling and it was actually something that you experienced a couple of times in all your years of knowing him. 
there was a popular saying, that men and women can never be “just friends” and for the longest time you thought that this saying was absolutely preposterous, after all, you’ve been with yang jeongin through everything (even his most awkward stages of puberty) and you were sure there was no way you could catch feelings after that. 
but as puberty both hit the two of you like a truck, there were a few moments where you were questioning whether or not the two of you had crossed the very thin line between friendship and lovers. 
for the most part, you were very unsure of your feelings and whether or not you even had genuine feelings for him, after all this was territory that you needed to tread lightly on or risk the possibility of ruining your friendship with him forever. 
most of the time, it managed to take of itself, the feelings soon fizzling out into nothing more than feelings of friendship, but the small percentage of the time it managed to fester into something more. 
but this was an opportunity to nip this in the bud, to put these feelings in their place once and for all, to end this foolish fantasy that has been swimming around in your head for years. 
well, that is until both of your companies came to the agreement that you would both “continue” dating in order to keep media attention on the both of you and promote your groups even more.
you thought the companies’ plans were fairly obvious, after all, it was all a ploy in order to gain media attention and to obviously change the stigma surrounding idols dating in the industry. 
you were both being used as pawns in the industry’s game for world domination, a publicity stunt in order to get in on the public’s good graces, but if it meant hanging out with your best friend with no restrictions, you were all for it. 
within a few days, a joint statement was released by both companies confirming the relationship between both of you, earning mixed reactions from fans. 
most were positive, congratulating the two of you and even making the hashtag “love for [y/n] and jeongin” trend worldwide on twitter, and while there were some negative comments that bashed the two of you for being selfish and dating, you couldn’t deny the butterflies in your stomach as you scrolled through the endless amount of compliments on social media. 
for the most part, nothing really changed between the two of you. 
the company had given you both time off in order to adjust to the new situation, and while you were free to continue on with your daily lives, there were only one rule that you now needed to follow—the media always needed to have access to pictures of the two of you together. 
at first, the transition of hanging out during the mornings and afternoons was a bit hard to get used to as well as the constant swarm of paparazzi when the two of you did go out was quite the learning curve. 
however, by far the hardest thing that you needed to adjust to was the constant presence of affection from jeongin, and while he was normally an affectionate person, this type of affection was different. 
there was no denying the eruption of butterflies whenever his hand would make his way around your own, or the way your entire face would burst into flames whenever he would pull you in by the waist and press you flush against his body. 
of course, the press was eating this up, and there wasn’t a second that went by where you both weren’t bombarded by flashes of cameras or the shouts from reporters.
and while this was already a massive inconvenience, there were more pressing matters to deal with such as these bubbling feelings that are threatening to rise to the surface. 
it was happening again, those feelings that keep reappearing and disappearing were coming back in waves—making you feel like all these emotions that you had suppressed last time this incident occurred. 
and your companies certainly weren’t making it easy on you, every waking second was spent with him, and while you adored his presence, it really didn’t help with your heart currently in turmoil. 
it was one of those rare days where the company actually scheduled something for the two of you to do out in public, and to say that you were nervous was a complete understatement. 
while this wasn’t officially a date, it was technically one, which made the whole situation even worse.
the company decided that a picnic was the most romantic outing for the two of you and the perfect opportunity to get photos that encaptured the fantasy life of dating an idol. 
while, you knew that his feelings weren’t disingenuous when the two of you were hanging out like this was cruel to say the least, moments like these show you everything that you could never have with him, the romantic and heart-fluttering illusion disappearing in a puff of smoke as soon as the cameras were out of your faces—as you were left with cold, hard truth, the two of you will always be just friends. 
it was kind of hard to ignore the cameras that surrounded you, of course they respectfully kept their distance and did their best to remain hidden in the bushes or behind buildings to make it appear as if you couldn’t see them, but their presence was still felt. 
as if sensing your discomfort, jeongin was quick to grab your hand and rub soothing circles on the top of your hand with his thumb, flashing you a reassuring smile, and making your heart skip a couple of beats. 
uh oh. 
the picnic proceeded on as originally planned, the two of you enjoying the absolutely delicious food prepared by the company chefs and talking about aimless things. 
“okay, but it wasn’t as funny as the time felix convinced jisung to try this foreign candy and he made the best face, look i caught it on video!” 
as he leaned in and placed his phone between the two of you, the sound of felix’s laughter reverberating out of the speakers and the sound of jisung’s protests filled the air, you could suddenly feel how hot the atmosphere has gotten around you. 
your attention was on anything but the video in front of you, instead you were too focused on how close he actually was to your body, the warmth of his breath fanning your cheeks and that gummy and blinding smile that illuminated his entire face.  
that image would be forever etched into your brain, the brightness of his face, the pure joy and delight that was perfectly chiseled onto his features made your heartbeat a thousand times per minute or the way your body seemed to fizzle underneath his touch. 
in all honesty for the rest of the date, your head was fuzzy and you were intoxicated by him, completely drowning in the idea of him, and you could barely remember what happened on the rest of the date—your mind was too high on the thought of him. 
it wasn’t until the end of the date did you realize it, the reality coming in and crashing down on you hard, my god, you were in love with your best friend. 
unlike all the other times that these feelings came and gone, you knew that this time it was real, that this time there was no way that you could possibly go back, after having a taste of what could be, you were hooked and absolutely addicted to this feeling. 
no, these feelings were here to stay and you couldn’t believe that all this time you didn’t notice it sooner, that you were too blind to notice that you have always felt this way about him, and now they have finally come to the surface. 
cue the awkwardness. 
this wasn’t a matter that you could take lightly, after all if the two of you happened to have a falling out if anything between the two of you happened to go south, it would absolutely devastate your mothers who have been lifelong friends before the two of you even came along. 
instead, this issue was bigger than you—bigger than the both of you and if you ruined this, my god you could never forgive yourself. 
perhaps, you were being a little too harsh on yourself and placing too much pressure on the relationship, but you weren’t going to ruin something so fragile and like most fragile things, this situation definitely needed to be handled with care. 
your definition of care probably wasn’t typical, and instead of going about your daily life and just thinking a bit more before speaking and doing certain actions, you decided that a bit of distance was in order so that you could properly deal with these overwhelming feelings. 
to him, you had played it off as simply refocusing yourself on your career, and as you explained to jeongin in a couple of text messages, you were simply struck with inspiration and were writing songs with the rest of your members for a couple of days. 
you had kind of forgotten how long yang jeongin has been your best friend, and while that excuse may have held up for a couple of days, as soon as it was pushing a week, he smelled bullshit. 
FROM MY FOX: let’s hangout at the dorms tonight, i already bought your favorite brand of fried chicken and ramen :)
oh he was good, and as your eyes scanned over the text, your stomach involuntarily growled at the mention of food—damn, he knew that the way to anyone’s heart was through food.  
against your better judgement, you decided to meet up with him, and while you were telling yourself that it was only for the fact that he was bribing you with your favorite food, you would be lying if you didn’t admit that you missed him even just a little bit. 
and that fact became a little more apparent when you arrived at the dorms, and greeted you with that blinding smile that made his eyes turn into little crescents, oh god, you were whipped for this boy. 
the two of you settled into normalcy, a randomly chosen movie from netflix was put on the television and you were both settled on the floor watching the screen in front of you and enjoying the food that sat next to you. 
however, there were subtle instances that reminded you that the atmosphere between the two of you was far from normal, as you began overthinking everything that you normally did in front of him. 
perhaps touching his hand accidentally while reaching for a napkin was too much, did he think that was as weird as you did?
and my god, sharing a drink from the same cup because you were both too lazy to wash dishes, was that going too far into his personal space and more importantly, does that mean that the two of you have been indirectly kissing this whole time? 
in these moments you knew that you should have said no, you should have left his text on read and saved yourself from the overwhelming embarrassment that you were currently feeling, but goddamnit, he was irresistible. 
you were practically a ball of anxiety at this point, unable to focus on the movie that was playing before you and instead finding solace in your phone, scrolling through social media and more specifically, ignoring the boy next to you.
unbeknownst to you, jeongin has been highly observant of your behavior tonight, and judging by your frankly abnormal behavior tonight, it only confirmed his suspicions that something was definitely wrong. 
you didn’t notice the movie suddenly being paused, only becoming aware of that as soon jeongin lightly punched you on the shoulder, offering you one of his lop-sided grins. 
concern was written across his features, which softened them, making his face appear more rounder—this was different from the face that he puts on when performing, instead this was the face that you were lucky enough to see whenever relaxed with you. 
“are you okay?” the softness in his voice kind of surprised you, after all this side was kind of rare from him, the two of you spending most of your time together goofing off instead or being serious.
in all honesty, you didn’t really know how to answer his question, if you told any kind of lie he would be able to see through you and call you out on it, but if you told the truth you were practically in the same predicament—damned if you do and damned if you don’t.
the nervousness was etched all of his features and there seemed to be an internal battle going on inside his brain, the conflict between what looked like two undesirable choices finally came to a conclusion as he opened his mouth again. 
“we’ve been best friends for a while now, and whatever has happened these past few weeks has created this distance between us and honestly, it feels like we’re strangers,” he let out a shaky breath, wringing his hands together as he avoided eye contact.
it felt like you were both tethering on the edge of something bigger than the both of you, but you both weren’t there yet, and you needed something to drive everything off the cliff, and have it all out in the open. 
“i just need to know if anything has changed between us,” his voice tapered off at the end, as if he was unsure of himself and his statement. 
you wanted to scream at the top of your lungs that everything has changed between the two of you, that you could no longer stand to be his best friend anymore because best friends don’t have these feelings of wanting to kiss or especially wanting him to belong to nobody but you. 
while you would never be caught saying something like that out loud, the burning desire to express yourself overtook your rational mind and before you could stop yourself, you had leaned forward and closed the gap between the two of you. 
his lips were soft against your own, and they faintly tasted like the cola that he was just drinking, and as your hands entangled themselves in his hair, his hands rested firmly on your hips as he pulled you closer to his body. 
everything was tingling, from the top of your head to the tips of your fingers as you lost yourself in the moment, your senses were heightened as you could feel the hammering of both of your hearts against your chest as well as the slight movement of his lips as they moved against your own. 
it was only when the need for oxygen became too great, did you both pull away with flushed cheeks and the only sound that could be heard was both of your breaths coming out in short puffs.
for a couple seconds after neither of you said a word, too absorbed with the actions that just took place moments before. 
“so, we’re still best friends, right?” jeongin’s cheeky grin caused your face to light up as hit him lightly on the arm. 
“i mean, if that’s what you want, i’ll see if jisung appreciates my kisses more than you do!” you smirked, cocking one eyebrow as you watched his face light up in panic. 
“wait, don’t—”
pressing a quick kiss to his cheek, you silenced his objections, shaking your head and mumbling something along the lines of how jisung could never appreciate your affection the way he does. 
there was no talk about the future, about how sooner or later the company was going to rip the two of you away from each other and tarnish both of your images in front of the public, both of you forced to move on your lives as if nothing ever happened in the first place. 
and your weekly hangouts would be nothing but a distant memory, the companies probably mutually deciding that it would be a terrible idea to allow the both of you to continue on like that, and it would be a public relations nightmare if either of you were ever caught.
it was unfair to think about it like that, after everything that two of you went through only for it to be destroyed by the same companies that used you as pawns in the eyes of the public. 
a deep sigh escaped past your lips, jeongin moving his arm to wrap themselves around your shoulders as you leaned into his touch, the silence enveloping the both of you like a blanket, comforting you in the stillness of the night. 
whatever happened in the future, you knew that two of you would always be at each other's side supporting each other through thick and thin. 
after all, the two of you will always be best friends for life.
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tlbodine · 4 years ago
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The History & Evolution of Home Invasion Horror
Here’s my prediction: In the next couple of years, we’re going to be seeing a sudden surge of home invasion movies hit the market. For many of us, 2020 has been a year of extreme stress compounded by social isolation; venturing outside means being exposed to a deadly plague, after all. 
And while many people have already predicted that we’ll see an influx of pandemic and virus horrors (see my post on those: https://ko-fi.com/post/Pandemic-and-Pandemonium-Sickness-in-Horror-T6T21I201), I actually think a lot of us are going to be processing a different type of fear -- anxiety about what happens when your home, which is supposed to be a literal safe space, gets invaded. Because if you’re not safe in your own house...you’re not safe anywhere. 
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Home invasion movies have been around a long time -- arguably as long as film, with 1909′s The Lonely Villa setting down the formula -- and they share many of the same roots as slasher films in the 1970s. But somewhere along the way, they separated off and became their own distinct subgenre with specific tropes, and it’s that separation and the stories that followed it that I want to focus on. 
The Origins of the Home Invasion Movie 
In order to really qualify as a home invasion movie, a film has to meet a few requirements:
The action must be contained entirely (or almost entirely) to a single location, usually a private residence (ie, the home) 
The perpetrator(s) must be humans, not supernatural entities (no ghosts, zombies, or vampires -- that’s a different set of tropes!) 
In most cases, the horror builds during a long siege between the invader and the home-dweller, including scenes of torture, capture, escape, traps, and so forth. 
To an extent, home invasion movies are truth in television. Although home invasions are relatively rare, and most break-ins occur when a family is away (the usual goal being to steal things, not torture and kill people), criminals do sometimes break into people’s homes, and homeowners are sometimes killed by them. 
In the 1960s and 70s, this certainly would have been at the forefront of people’s minds. Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood detailed one such crime in lavish detail, and the account was soon turned into a film. Serial killers like the Boston Strangler, BTK Killer and the “Vampire of Sacramento” Richard Chase also made headlines for their murders, which often occurred inside the victim’s home. (Chase, famously, considered unlocked doors to be an invitation, which is one great reason to lock your doors). 
By the 1960s and 70s, too, people were more and more often beginning to live in cities and larger neighborhoods where they did not know their neighbors. Anxieties about being surrounded by strangers (and, let’s face it, racial anxieties rooted in newly-mixed, de-segregated neighborhoods) undoubtedly fueled fears about home invasion. 
Early Roots of the Home Invasion Genre
Home invasion plays a part in several crime thrillers and horror films in the 1950s and 60s, including Alfred Hitchcock’s Dial M for Murder in 1954, but it’s more of a plot point than a genre. In these films, home invasion is a means to an end rather than a goal unto itself. 
We see some early hints of the home invasion formula show up in Wes Craven’s Last House on the Left in 1972. The film depicts a group of murderous thugs who, after torturing and killing two girls, seek refuge in the victim’s home and plot the deaths of the rest of the family. In 1974, the formula is refined with Bob Clark’s Black Christmas, which shows the one-by-one murder of members of a sorority house and chilling phone calls that come from inside the home. 
Even closer still is I Spit on Your Grave, directed by Meir Zarchi in 1978. Although it’s generally (and rightly) classified as a rape-revenge film, the first half of the movie -- where an author goes to a remote cabin and is targeted and brutally assaulted by a group of men -- hits all the same story beats as the modern home invasion story: isolation, mundane evil, acts of random violence, and protracted torture. 
Slumber Party Massacre, directed by Amy Holden Jones in 1982, also hits on both home invasion and slasher tropes. Although it is primarily a straightforward slasher featuring an escaped killer systematically killing teenagers (with a decidedly phallic weapon), the film also shows its victims teaming up and fighting back -- weaponizing their home against the killer. This becomes an important part of the genre in later years! 
In 1997, Funny Games, directed by Michael Haneke, provides a brutal but self-aware look at the genre. Created primarily as a condemnation of violent media, the film nevertheless succeeds as an unironic addition to the home invasion canon -- from its vulnerable, suffering family to the excruciating tension of its plot to the nihilistic, motive-free criminality of its villains, it may actually be the purest example of the home invasion movie. 
Home Invasions Gone Wrong 
Where things start to get interesting for the home invasion genre is 1991′s The People Under the Stairs, another Wes Craven film. Here the script is flipped: The hero is the would-be robber, breaking and entering into the home of some greedy rich landlords. But this plan swiftly goes sideways when the homeowners turn out to be even worse people than they’d first let on. 
This is, as far as I can tell, the origin of the home-invasion-gone-wrong subgenre, which has gained immense popularity recently -- due, perhaps, to a growing awareness of systemic issues, a differing view of poverty, and a viewership sympathetic to the plight of down-on-their-luck criminals discovering that rich homeowners are, indeed, very bad people. 
Home Invasion Film Explosion of the 2000s 
The home invasion genre really hit the ground running in the 2000s, due perhaps to post-911 anxieties about being attacked on our home turf (and increasing economic uneasiness in a recession-afflicted economy and a growing awareness of the Occupy movement and wealth inequality). We see a whole slew of these films crop up, each bringing a slightly different twist to the formula.
*  It’s also worth noting that the 2000s saw remakes of many well-known films in the genre, including Funny Games and Last House on the Left.  
In 2008, Bryan Bertino directed The Strangers, a straightforward home invasion involving one traumatized couple and three masked villains. By this point, we’re wholly removed from the early crime movie roots; these are not people breaking in for financial gain. Like the killers in Funny Games, the masked strangers lack motive and even identity; they are simply a force of evil, chaotic and senseless. 
The themes of “violence as a senseless, awful thing” are driven further home by Martyrs, another 2008 release, this one from French director Pascal Laugier. A revenge story turned into a home-invasion-gone-wrong, the film is noteworthy for its brutality and blunt nihilism. 
2009′s The Collector, directed by Marcus Dunstan, is another home-invasion-gone-wrong movie. Like Martyrs, it dovetails with the torture porn genre (another popular staple of the 2000s), but it has a lot more fun with it. The film follows a down-on-his-luck thief who breaks into a house only to encounter another home invader set on murdering the family that lives there. The cat-and-mouse games between the two -- which involve numerous traps and convoluted schemes -- are fun to watch (if you like blood and guts). 
In a similar vein, we see You’re Next in 2013, which starts off as a standard home invasion movie but takes a sharp twist when it’s revealed that one of the victims isn’t nearly as helpless as she appears. Director Adam Wingard helps to redefine the concept of “final girl” in this move in a way that has carried forward right into the next decade with no sign of stopping. 
2013 of course also introduced us to The Purge, a horror franchise created by James DeMonaco. If there was ever any doubt as to the economic anxieties at the root of the genre, they should be alleviated now -- The Purge is such a well-known franchise at this point that the term has entered our pop culture lexicon as a shorthand for revolution. 
Don’t Breathe, directed be Fede Alvarez in 2016, is one of the creepiest modern entries into the “failed home invasion” category, and one that (ha ha) breathed some new life into the genre. Much like The People Under the Stairs, it tells the story of some down-on-their-luck criminals getting in over their heads when they target the wrong man. However, there is not the same overt criticism of wealth inequality in this film; it’s a movie more interested in examining and inverting genre tropes than treading new thematic ground. The same is true of Hush that same year. Directed by Mike Flanagan, the film is most noteworthy for its deaf protagonist. 
But lest you start to think the home invasion genre had lost its thematic relevance, 2019 arrived with two hard-hitting, thoughtful films that dip their toes in these tropes: Jordan Peele’s Us and Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite, which both tackle themes of privilege in light of home invasion (albeit a nontraditional structure in Parasite -- its inclusion here is admittedly a bit of a stretch, but I think it falls so closely in the tradition of The People Under the Stairs that it deserves a spot on this list). 
What Does the Future Hold? 
I’m no oracle, so I can’t say for certain where the future of the home invasion genre might lead. But I do think we’re going to start seeing more of them in the next few years as a bunch of creative folks start working through our collective trauma. 
Income inequality, racial inequality, political unrest and systemic issues are all at the forefront of our minds (not to mention a deadly virus), and those themes are ripe for the picking in horror. 
I know that Paul Tremblay’s novel The Cabin at the End of the World has been optioned for film, so we might be seeing that soon -- and if so, it might just usher in a fresh wave of apocalypse-flavored home invasion stories. 
Like my content? You can support more of it by dropping me some money in my tip jar: https://www.ko-fi.com/post/Home-Invasion-Stories-A-History-R6R72RV7Y
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everythinggeeky · 5 years ago
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Paper Rings | Bucky Barnes
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Bucky Barnes x reader
Warnings: modest/innocent stalking lol, fluff, references to sex (sfw)
Word Count: 1.5k
Summary: In a series of vignettes, you discover your recent relationship development with supersoldier Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier. From friends to more, in the most unexpected way.
masterlist
A/N: tag lists are open! This is part of my 5 Days of Oneshots! Based off Paper Rings by Taylor Swift! This is my first song fic, am I doing this right?
The moon is high like your friends were on the night that we first met
You were cleaning up the bar when you caught eyes with him across the room. He was handsome and put together neatly. His beard longer, but well-maintained; long hair swept back in a low bun at the nape of his neck. He wore a deep emerald green suit that complimented him nicely. 
He raised his hand to take a sip of his drink when you caught sight of his metal arm. Was this the Winter Soldier? Seated beside Captain America, there was no doubt this was the man that occupied media coverage so many days throughout the year.
The Avengers were crowded in the VIP section of the downtown club that you spent so many hours working in. Sure, you were used to a variety of celebrity clients because of the upscale nature of the club, but the Avengers was a group that you didn’t expect to see on just any day.
Tony Stark had presumably dragged the team out for a celebration following the grueling mission that headlines the news for the last week. Their business was straining; surely everyone needed a drink every now and then. 
But he looked stiff, uncomfortable, as though he was in a situation he felt he didn’t belong in. From what you knew about him, it could be expected that he would be a private individual. As America’s longest-serving prisoner of war, brain-washed by Nazis for nearly 70 years, the man had every right to abstain from social interaction.
When he happened to glance over towards you at the bar and caught eyes with you, you could only describe the connection as instant. When he realized that you met his gaze, he turned away, instead, shifting his focus to the rest of the group.
Went home and tried to stalk you on the internet
After getting off work that night, you sat curled up on your couch for the next few hours, reading and watching videos of the man known as the Winter Soldier. He matched the man you saw in the bar; metal arm and fiercely handsome good looks. The man was actually a ghost; one undercover social media account, but other than that, no trails of him whats so ever. 
The wine is cold, like the shoulder I gave you in the street
Every once in a while, you passed the Winter Soldier, who you now know as Bucky Barnes on your early evening walks to work. New York was only so large, it was bound to happen at some point. You met his eyes once again, but you turned away quickly this time, walking into the bar for work.
Cat and mouse for a month or two or three
It had been a few months since you first saw Bucky at the bar, and he seemed to pop up everywhere. At the coffee shop that you regularly frequented before your shifts, grocery shopping, and every once in a while on the street.
One day, you confronted him about his incidental appearances.
“Hey- have you been following me?”
“Have we met before?” he asked, oblivious to the entire affair.
“No. But you were at the bar- 13 degrees- that night, with the Avengers. You saw me.”
“I’m afraid I don’t remember, doll. My apologies. Have a nice day,” he parted ways before continuing on his way. 
Four days later, you walked into the coffee shop to grab your favorite vanilla latte on your Saturday off. The Winter Soldier was here, of course he was, sitting in the corner, sipping on a coffee of his own. After picking up your coffee from the barista, you walked over to him and took a seat across from him.
“My name’s Y/N,” you said bluntly, asserting dominance in the situation.
“Oh, from the grocery store,” he said, a tinge of confusion still hidden in his voice.
“And this coffee shop for the last three months. And on the street outside the bar.”
“I’m afraid I dont-”
You cut him off, “I know you’ve been following me and I know who you are.”
“I guess the game is up, huh?”
“Game?”
“Doll, I think you’re beautiful. I’ll admit, I’ve been trying to run into you for the last three months, just to get you to talk to me.”
“Is that even legal?”
“I promise I haven’t been watching you through your windows or anything like that.”
“Good.”
“I promise.”
You sat in the awkward silence for a few moments, unable to look back up at him. 
“Would you like to come back with me, darling?” he extended to you, polite.
“I think I would, Mr. Barnes,” you teased.
Grinning, he picked up your hand in his gloved hand. Which he used to presumably cover his metal arm. He leads you back to the Tower, when you get there, a dizzying flurry of kisses with you pressed up against the wall and roaming hands quickly lands you in the supersoldier’s bed for the rest of the night.
Now I wake up in the night and watch you breathe
You rolled over to look at the clock, 4:35. You rolled back over to look at Bucky, sound asleep, bare chest expanding, and compressing with each breath. He looked peaceful here; it was hard to believe that this was the man that was so feared online. 
Kiss me once ‘cause you know I had a long night
Your meetings and hookups became more frequent, Bucky coming to your apartment, and him inviting you over again. After long shifts at the bar, Bucky would be the one to keep you company. One night, following a seven-hour shift, he stopped by with dinner and a lovely bouquet of flowers. 
He knew just how to cheer you up in the right way. 
Kiss me twice ‘cause it’s gonna be alright
You and Bucky made it official after 6 months since meeting for the first time at the bar. He quickly became your best friend; knowing just how to make you laugh and keep you company. 
Missions were rough; you were always stressed if he was going to make it back home safely to you. You made it a point to stop by the tower to kiss him goodbye before he left. 
Today, he boarded the quinjet with Steve and Sam, stopping at the foot of the ramp to say goodbye. You held his chin in your hands and leaned in to peck his lips one last time. 
“Come back home, soldier.”
“Every time, darling,” he grinned, before kissing you again, confirming that he was going to come back home to you again.
Three times ‘cause I’ve waited my whole life
When he finally landed on U.S. soil after two weeks of fighting, you were there on arrival. You stood in the landing pad, waiting to see your soldier walk off the very ramp he walked up just a few weeks ago. 
He came down with a slight limp and a heavy bruise across his cheek. A slice across his cheekbone was repaired with a few bandages. You gasped upon seeing him, this your first run-in with the grave dangers of international crime.
He stumbled his way to you, and you embraced him in a tight hug. He grunted softly, and you backed away.
“I’m sorry, are you hurt?”
“Just a bit sore, darlin’. Nothing I can’t handle, c’ mere,” he said, pulling you back in.
You hugged him again, not as tight as before, tucking your head into the crook of his neck.
I like shiny things, but I’d marry you with paper rings
Admittedly, you had been self-indulgent your whole adult life. You attributed it to your growing up, with not much more than what your parents could afford to feed you and your brothers and sisters. Now that you’ve grown with your own job and career, you can afford to clothe yourself with finer clothes, accented by the occasional piece of jewelry. 
Bucky took notice of this and spoiled you rotten. On your one-year anniversary, Bucky surprised you with a Tiffany necklace, a small heart pendant with a matching key.
“For you, because you have my heart in lock and key,” he said with a shy smile as he laced the thin chain around your neck, closing it shut.
“Thank you, babe, it’s beautiful. I love it, but you know you don’t have to give me these things.”
Darling, you’re the one I want
“I know, but I love you.”
“I love you too.”
I hate accidents except when we went from friends to this
Surprisingly, this had been the first time you muttered those words aloud to one another, but it couldn’t be more of the truth. Bucky had been a surprising introduction into your life, but you couldn’t see it any other way.
From some sort of innocent stalker that just happened to end up in the same places that you were for three months, to your lover. You were glad that Bucky Barnes was in your life. A protector, a friend, and so much more. He had filled the perfect space in your heart. And he was the key.
You’re the one I want
tagged: @kenobee​ @hxldmxdxwn​ @ilovesupersoldiers​ @jbarnesss​ @stephieraptorr​
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reality-imagined · 5 years ago
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Getaway Car - Peter Parker
Young Adult!Peter Parker x Agent!Reader
Based on Getaway Car by Taylor Swift, I suggest listening to it before to get in to the ~tone~ of what’s going on. Also, Endgame never happened, goodbye.
Word Count:  8.5k 
Rating: T+ 
Warnings: Violence, Use of guns, Hints of murder?, Maybe slowburn?, romance 
Synopsis: Peter (who is 23 now) is struggling to find his footing in the team now that he’s older and he’s tired of being the kid damn it. Peter decides his next mission is going to change how his team views him, but things never work out just how he plans, does it? 
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I’ve been sitting on this since I first heard the song, and I’ve been itching to post it! xx 
Disclaimer: I do not own any rights to the Marvel characters, themes, or plots mentioned nor do I claim any of their work as my own. All rights reserved to Marvel and Disney.
It had taken some time for the other members of the team to start taking Peter seriously, and even though they regarded him with a little more respect, they couldn’t help but still see the youth around his eyes. A facial feature they often used to fuel their jokes. Peter understood that it came from a good place, a place of caring and inclusion, but it didn’t reduce the sting any less. They praised him like a child when he achieved even the smallest task, making him feel (childlike). But even worse, any mistake he made was highlighted and turned into a lengthy lecture by each member - scolding him to be diligent and be more “mature.” They often blamed his age and lack of experience, completely missing the fact that these lectures did not assist Peter in his training at all. Only infuriated him, particularly when another member made a similar mistake, but was only brushed off by the others as “bad luck.”
Nonetheless, he worked overtime, harder, and more diligently to try to get the team to see him as more than just the youngest Avenger. He took on all the missions he could, small or large, to add more experience to his resume. Maybe, just maybe, if he could catch up with the team on experience they would finally remove the “rookie” title from his name. He couldn’t remember the last time he actually took a weekend to enjoy things other 23 year olds enjoyed. At this point, Ned and MJ quit offering invites out, knowing Peter would relay that he had a “classified” mission to go on and wouldn’t be able to make - but next time, definitely.  The best way to keep up with their friend, they found, was to check the headlines and new stations - Spider-Man saves the day once again! Peter wished the team would revere him as the media did. 
So, when a file came across his spot at the team table for a solo mission, Peter didn’t even have to open the file before he agreed. A solo mission. If he could knock this out of the park, in record time, then this would be the moment they finally regarded him as a full-on member of team. This would be his ticket to the big leagues and meetings that only involved Steve, Natasha, Tony, Thor and Banner. He would finally be an Avenger not only to the world, but to the other Avengers as well. 
He stayed up the entire night, memorizing the file and the target. It wasn’t a simple mission to say the least, but it wasn’t impossible. Despite his lack of recon experience, he figured a quick conversation with Nat would help him in this area and he’d set course to Vienna by the end of the week. 
Ned’s birthday dinner would just have to be rescheduled. 
_
Y/n couldn’t exactly remember what invited her into her line of work, whether it was the influence of her family or a set of specific skills she had somehow stumbled upon. Either way, her job was her life and there was rarely a mission she declined. She worked for many people, a lone ranger who swayed elegantly back and forth across the line of good and bad. Sure, the number of tasks on the ‘bad’ side outnumbered the opposite tremendously, but she did experience being the good guy every now and then. She found that those jobs, where she saved the day, tended be more difficult anyway. Y/n by no means regarded herself as a hero or vigilante, just a girl trying to make a living and hopefully cash out on a beach somewhere with a mojito in hand by the age of thirty-five. 
She ignored the hype of the superhero’s that everyone seemed to talk about nowadays - the Avengers? Really, were they going to release a Christmas album this year? She scoffed at the idea of being a part of a team like that, and she was surprised when she first heard of Black Widow’s involvement. Y/n had once looked up to the lethal red-head, but now having seen her join the band of ironically-clad heroes, decided that she was quite opposite of Natasha Romanoff and should probably rely only on herself for motivation. She would never be good like them, even if she wanted to. 
It didn’t take long for the news of a new-age, extra deadly nuclear weapon on the market to reach her ears. And not long after that, power ridden billionaires and dirty country leaders alike requesting her services. The highest bidder bought her out of course, and she pictured that sunny beach being closer in her future than she had originally planned. Even though she was only 23 and still had a bit of baby fat in her cheeks, she knew exactly how to infiltrate this particular wealth-monger and had a new persona and ID ready for her flight to Vienna in only a couple of hours. 
She didn’t think this mission would take her all that long and she could practically taste the mint mojito on her tongue. 
_
Establishing his identity as a possible buyer to the evil guy holding the future of the world in his expensive briefcase took a lot longer than Peter had expected. He wasn’t used to being so exposed on the field, even if his mask was his only missing accessory. The thought that someone would recognize him, even with the possibility of that being in the negative percentage range, still had him on edge any time he met with another individual who got him closer and closer to his target. 
Peter was thankful that the extra missions and time spent training with Steve and Bucky, shaved off the extra teenage weight he had. It didn’t take long for his face to thin, his jawline to sharpen, and his body to become more lean. He had finally lost that awkward, teenage lank to his features and he blended in easily with the people around him. Peter managed to get his last contact to trust him enough to snag an invitation to an event held by his target. It was a lavish event in a ballroom nearly the size of the compound back home. People were dressed elegantly and Peter straightened out the lapel of his suit jacket once again, an expensive number that he happily charged to the team’s mission expenses. 
Peter surveyed the area as discreetly as possible, missing the functions that his mask, which was tucked safely away into his jacket, gave him when it came to surveillance. He wondered briefly if Tony could mock up some glasses for him next time. By the look of the crowd, chatting idly to each other, he figured that the target had yet to arrive. He wished he was more skilled in the social aspect of recon, his socially awkward tendencies once again coming up to bit him on the ass. Making way to the bar, he politely- and clumsily- excused himself as he nudged people from his path. Suddenly becoming anxious at the thought that his falling demeanor would give away his intentions. 
-
Y/n stirred the drink in front of her gently, a small, polite smile on her face as she looked over the crowd. She already knew her target wasn’t here just yet. She had spent the evening in his lavish penthouse the day before and new of his schedule for the day. She had played dumb and innocent when he said he had meetings to go to before he would meet her at the party. The bug she placed on the lapel of his jacket as she passionately kissed him goodbye let her know that the last meeting with a buyer fell through and that the device she was after would be in attendance with him tonight. So, she donned a sparkly, gold number that was eye catching but allowed her to blend in with the people around her and sat herself at the bar as soon as she arrived. Smilingly gratefully the people that he had previously showed her off to, only to keep up the appearance. Inwardly grimacing and keeping the best smile she could. If she had to spend one more moment with the man and this twisted entourage, she would blow her cover and his head. 
She was about to stand, the sleek watch on her wrist letting her know that her target was approaching the ballroom. The sight of a man, likely around her own age, stumbling up the bar, halted her movements. He dropped down on the stool with tense shoulders and a bead of sweat on his temple. His eyes scanned his surroundings before shooting his head to the bar tender who asked what he would like. The man visibly faltered and Y/n could instantly tell that he was new to the game that she herself, was currently playing as well. 
“He’ll have an old fashion.” her voice spoke without her mind’s permission. The bartender replied a quiet ‘yes ma’am’ and began preparing a drink that matched the one she still stirred with a little red straw. The man before her stared at her with wide, startled eyes, body tense and almost ready to spring from his seat and run. “Camille.” She smiled, her fake name falling from her lips as elegantly as if it were her own, a gentle hand rising for him to shake. He stared down at her hand, before he seemed to snap out of reverie and quickly grasp her hand in an awkward shake. 
_
He didn’t know what to do. He hadn’t expected someone to talk to him while he was here. She was beautiful, gorgeous even, and he only wished the confidence that exuded from her was contagious. By the look in her eye, he could tell she was picking up on his nervousness. It was at this point, mid-thought, he realized her hand was still in front of him, so he quickly grasped it. Flinching at his own awkward movements and released her hand from his jerky grasp as quickly as he held it. 
She raised a manicured eyebrow at him, and he quickly realized he never gave her his own name. “Pe, I mean, Paul.” He tried not to show the mistake on his face and only inwardly grimace at his own stutter. He had picked out a cool undercover name before setting out on this mission, but found that he stuttered just has he had moments ago during his first task. Meaning that he was stuck with Paul. 
“Paul.” She replied slowly, nodding with a small smile playing at his lips. He only hoped that she wasn’t all that perceptive and this was just her confident personality. Otherwise, his cover was blown and he’d have to hightail it back to the compound with his tail between his legs. “What brings you here Paul?” She smiled down at her drink before looking up at him. Social awkwardness once again kicking in as her beauty was getting the best of him. His imaginative James Bond ego quivering and failing him as he sat staring at her. He hadn’t even noticed the bartender place his drink in front of him. An old fashion? What a suave drink to order, he’d never had one and would’ve never thought of it. He felt that the drink was her own version of a vodka martini, shaken not stirred. 
-
She hadn’t intended to play with him like she was, a cat toying at the mouse. She couldn’t help it. His cover was increasingly crumbling and he had a handsome face behind the worried eyebrows and sheen of sweat on his forehead. His fake name wasn’t all that bad, but by the grimace and his stutter she knew that it wasn’t the one he had planned. She briefly considered calling him out and asking him with his other name was supposed to be. But that would end her little game and that wouldn’t be fun. Besides, her target had already walked in and was in a deep conversation across the room. She could toy with the handsome man in front of her for a few moments longer. 
It took him an alarmingly long time to reply to her questions and she couldn’t help but wonder how in the world he had gotten this far with his lack of experience. “I uhm, work.” he managed before taking a deep gulp of the drink she had ordered him. She let out a giggled as she witnessed him trying not to cough of the tart taste. She nodded, taking a sip of her own drink and sparing a glance at her target. 
He noticed and followed her gaze, his eyes comically widening as he landed on the man she was surveying. Ah ha, so they were after the same person. Her competitiveness tried to rear its ugly head, but she kept calm. A smile spreading on her lips as he looked back at her, eyes not as wide but still holding alarm. She wished she could tell him that he was being so transparent. He was lucky to have stumbled upon her, had any other informant witnessed what she was - they’d have ended him before he could have even sat down. Competition in this line of work always ended with the opponent last’s breath and had the curve of his jaw not enticed her, then this scenario would’ve played out differently. It wasn’t her place to advise him, however. He wasn’t a friend, colleague, or even a blimp on her professional radar. There was no telling who he worked for or the nature of his visit and the last thing she needed was to get caught up in the mess of an undercover whatever he was. Agent, would not have been a word she used to describe him. 
-
His mind whirred with the realization that she was gazing at his target, with calculated eyes. She gave off vibes that were similar to other agents he had been around, but she couldn’t possibly be undercover? A girl who looked like that? She couldn’t have been any older than him, but her face was hardened with the life of operations, he realized. Not like Natasha’s or any of his other members, though. There was an innocence, but also edge, that held her posture. Maybe she was undercover and she was that good. He didn’t know what to do or say, the alcohol from his drink pooling in his stomach. Instantly regretting never taking Thor up on his offer of Asgaurdian liquor to build up his tolerance. Her glass was empty and by the way the bartender quickly retrieved the glass and replaced it with another indicated that it wasn’t her first drink of the night. 
He had no idea how to proceed, her eyes were watching him and he felt that his every move was being scrutinized. He felt vulnerable, despite the technologically advanced suit that clung to his skin beneath the expensive tuxedo. He thought briefly about pulling out his phone and dialing for backup. After weeks of working towards this event, everything he had achieved began crumbling down before this beautiful girl with an agenda of her own. 
No, he wasn’t going to let a pretty face ruin his chances of earning the respect of his team. He wasn’t about to call the team to come rescue his ass because he knew he’d never hear the end of it. He was going to see this through, even it meant having to take out the girl who was still smiling at him. That thought made the alcohol in his stomach churn harder. 
-
She was running out of time. She wanted him to make the first move, curiosity getting the best of her and momentarily causing her to lose focus of her task. But he was taking too long and her target was talking to a buyer that she knew would seal the deal and she needed to start planning her tactic on how to get her target and the briefcase alone. His eyebrows furrowed and she could tell he was gathering he thoughts to speak, but a window of opportunity opened, just as her target walked into view just beyond ‘Paul’s’ head. 
Y/n tried not to sound to rushed, but she knew her, “If you’ll excuse me” was too harsh and she could feel his eyes on her retreating figure. She put emphasizes on her hips, whether it was for the man at the bar or the man she was approaching - she wasn’t quite sure, but secretly hoped that it had grabbed both of their attention. 
“Have you had a nice evening?” She spoke in a smooth voice that sounded nothing like her natural one. Placing a gentle hand on the upper arm of the man she had been seducing for the past few weeks. He smirked down at her, attempting to sultry in nature, but she found nothing about this man attractive. Not like the man who she had spoken to at the bar. She inwardly chided herself for getting distracted so easily. 
She only gave him enough attention to leave him wanting more, suggesting about wanting to see him ‘in private’ for a moment, voice full of seduction as her hand sliding down his arm to his own. This would be her moment to grab the briefcase and make a fast getaway. She briefly hoped that ‘Paul’ wouldn’t get in to too much trouble for not accomplishing his mission. The man agreed, pulling her towards a nearby door. She looked over her shoulder, curious to see If he was still there. And he was, now standing, watching with wide eyes. she couldn’t help it, as she pulled the door closed - she sent him a wink and cheeky smile. 
‘Camille’ - 1 
‘Paul’ - 0
-
No, no no no no. NO. Oh God, no. I really fucked up. No! SHIT.
Peter quit attempting to mask his anxiousness as the girl and the briefcase disappeared behind a door guarded by two men nearly twice his size. How could he just let himself get distracted? Let the mission get away from him like that? What was he thinking? His inner voice sounded eerily like Steve’s as he chided himself for being so naive. He tried mapping out a scenario to get into the room. Maybe there was a window? He was about to sprint to a bathroom to don his mask. Maybe Karen could scope out the scene and give him some advice. But before he could even move an inch, chaos broke out. 
The door his eyes somehow were still trained on busts open, guns being pulled out from random places and random people. Shots ringing out in different directions. Party goers who were just bystanders ducking and screaming. He watched as she elegantly avoided attacks, brief case clutched in her hand as she used it to defend herself and seek an exit. He tried not to focus too much on the blood that stained her gold dress. He could tell that she was struggling to get out of the sea of chaos, her eyes jotting around the room wildly as she fought gracefully and skillfully that wound have Natasha praising her movements. 
Peter found himself jumping across the bar to a near window - busting it out with elbow and easily jumping to ground beneath him. He tried to think too much about his plans suddenly altered to aiding the beautiful girl in the gold dress.
-
Just make it to the door, just make it to the door. Y/n’s voce sang in her head and she weaved and battled her way through the chaos. She wished she had packed more than the small hand gun clasped in her other hand. It had been useful for injuring her target enough to retrieve the briefcase but now, she wished she had more heavy artillery. It took longer than she had wished for her to reach the door, hoping that backup had not yet been called her path to the car would be easy and quick. 
She found the opposite as she kicked open the doors. The lavish driveway before her was nearly filled with more agents, all after the silver briefcase in her hand. She surveyed the scenarios, trying to find the quickest way out but fell short as more attackers came trudging her way, bullets starting to fire out in her direction. She was so focused on her next move she hadn’t yet noticed the sleek black Audi revving up towards her. Not until it was stopped in front of her.
Y/n’s hand rose the gun up to aim at the driver, deciding that taking the car was her best option at the point but she faltered as she realized who was staring down the barrel. His hand was raised in surrender as he opened the door across from him, other hand steadily on the wheel, bot flinching at the sound of bullets ricocheting off the exterior of his car. Everything in her past and all the training she had received told her this was a bad idea, that she could not possibly trust this man she had only meet moments ago at the bar. But as agents started to descend upon them at a faster rate, her options were limited and all it took was his sincere, “I’ve got you.” to get her to drop into the car. 
Her door was barely shut before he revved the engine and speed off, dust and debris flying up being the wheels, a rapid sound of bullets dinging as they drove away. It was then she noticed that the car was somehow bulletproof and her stomach fell at the idea that maybe Paul was more high level than she had thought. She clutched the briefcase to the side opposite of him just in case, hand on the door, ready to open it and roll out. A sudden outburst of laughter cause her to stop, looking over at him with concern. 
His face was lit up with a smile and his eyes crinkled as he let out his chuckle, “Well that’s not how I planned this day to go. What about you?” He looked over at her, smile still on his face. She didn’t know how to react; she had never see someone look so… so beautiful and naturally happy. His laugh was contagious and she found herself breaking out into a smile of its own volition. 
“Not exactly.” She replied in a small voice. She knew she needed to ask about his next play, next move, what he thought was about to happen. But she didn’t want to. Not yet, at least. For the first time in her life she was enjoying a wholesome moment, where, despite the circumstance, she felt connected to another human being for once in her very short life. 
-
Peter knew he needed to tell her that he was going to have to take that briefcase, that the world depended on it. But he couldn’t say anything just yet. He liked the way she smiled at him, how her eyes seemed to light up when they met his own. Despite his many infield successes, for the first time he felt that he had done something right. He had made his own decision for once, not based on what he thought the team would praise him for, but what he wanted to do. Peter didn’t regret his decision one bit, at least not in this moment. 
Camille’s silence gave him hope that she was trying to hold onto to this moment as well. He wasn’t sure of the destination, or what would happen next. All he knew was that he was going to continuing driving as far as he could, as long as she stayed right there in his passenger seat. 
“We need to get rid of this car.” She spoke quietly, looking out her passenger window. We, he thought looking between her and the road quickly. “They’ll try to track us down. I wasn’t able to… extinguish the target. He’s going to come after us.” She added, looking over at him. Hesitancy filled her eyes but he didn’t hesitate to agree. Even though Peter knew that this was going to end in one way, he decided that the right decision could wait just a little bit longer. 
“I know a buyer that will cash out enough for both of us to profit.” Peter spoke, not sure where this idea had come from but just fleeting enough to decide that it was his best option. She didn’t reply instantly; he had broken the veil that she had put over situation. Forgetting about what brought her into the car and the cold metal of the briefcase seeping through her dress on to her skin. 
“We can talk logistics later. Let’s… figure out how to lose our tail.” 
He nodded in agreement and while they sat in silence, their minds are screaming.
-
A night, turned into two days, and two days morphed into a week. 
She had never had a partner before, romantically or professionally. Yet, she adjusted to Paul’s presence rapidly and tried not to let that scare her too much. In the past, very little scared her. But the way her heart thumped when he smiled at her, frightened Y/n. It was all unrealistic, meeting him at a bar where they were both undercover - after the same prize. But she somehow found comfort in knowing that maybe his past was just as murky as her own. She began to trust him; feelings began to bloom in the most unlikely of circumstances. She felt free, untethered to her past. It was liberating, beautiful, and terrifying. 
They were at a gas station, filling up the car that Paul had hotwired only hours before - their 3rd car in their trek to no-where. She was grabbing snacks, finding out that he had a rather childish palette and also discovering that maybe she had grown to be too uptight for her age. Somehow, the scared look on the cashier’s face didn’t alert her. Y/n never noticed them reaching for the telephone, a picture of her face plastered on the television behind the counter. WANTED in big red letters. She didn’t notice until it was too late - until he was busting in the door, yelling for her. 
Instincts kicked in, she reached across the counter - grabbing the collar of the poor workingman and bashed his head in to the hard surface between them. Anger getting the best of her before she gathered as much of the junk food in her arms, dashing out behind Paul who looked shocked at her actions. She tried not to think about that too much. Sirens were getting closer and she could see the lights getting brighter. It felt as if it was taking him twice as long to get the engine started. Sparks flying for the stripped wires underneath the steering wheel as he desperately tried to get the car moving. She heard the bell of the station’s door ring - the telltale sound of a shotgun being loaded. 
“go go GO.” she screamed, in time with the sound of the engine bursting to life. His foot immediately in the gas, dust flying up behind them as he maneuvered the car unto the road again. Siren closer than ever - blue and red lighting up the darkened interior of the car. The shotgun rang, but missed. 
-
He was running from the police now. He was an Avenger, and he was running from the police. His moral compass was begging for him to stop this, but something in his heart told him to keep going. See how this played out, it would be worth it. He tried to remind himself of that. He managed to lose the police, and with directions from Camille, they found a new car and decided it would be best to turn in for the night. The sound of the shower was the only thing that filled the room as he sat at the edge of the bed. Phone in one hand, heart in the other, starting at his hazy reflection in the severely outdated boxed TV. 
He could call his team right now, and they would fix everything. It would be simple and quick, painless even. He had almost convinced himself to do it. The pros outweighed the cons and this would be the right thing to do. But the sound of the shower brought him back to the moment, his thoughts flooding with the idea of her. Her. The girl who had consumed his conscious for the past 9 days. The girl who he knew nothing about, but felt everything for. He could see the life and the world in her eyes. The girl who had him rethinking his choices, who he was as a person. He had gone against every single one of his morals, but had never felt more free.
He acted as if he wasn’t lying to himself. 
-
Her phone rang out a gentle tune just as she was about to get in the dingy motel shower. Hopes that the warm water would give her clarity on her next move. She couldn’t think straight in his presence. Never once had she formulated a plan that wouldn’t only benefit herself, but she found all her ideas ensured his safety - even if it meant risking her own. 
She didn’t say hello, only answers the blocked number and placed the phone to her ear. Eyes locked on her reflection in the mirror. The voice on the other end caused her pulse to ring in her ears. 
“I will find you.” The voice of her vengeful target hissed, “You’ve forgotten the power I have. The length of my reach. You will never be safe. I will get my property.”
She couldn’t think of a reply, the idea of letting Paul know was her first thought - but she immediately pushed that idea away as quickly as it came.
“Then make a deal.” She replied quietly, hoping the shower masked the sound of her voice. She knew she was in no place to bargain, but it wasn’t in her nature to turn over easily. 
A harsh laugh echoed through the receiver, “You will give me my property and I will consider letting you live.”
“You forget that you have no idea who I really am. The reach that I have. I could end you, no matter who you’ve poisoned with your money. Did you think I was like those other girls you like to parade on your arm? Oh, baby, I am the best and worst thing you’ll ever have. I could end you in seconds.” She hissed, letting all the pent-up emotions she had kept to herself unleash. “I’ve kept this going because I like this little jet-set Bonnie and Clyde thing that’s going on right now. It’s entertaining… but I get bored real easy. And the last thing you want me to do is get bored.”
He didn’t reply instantly. Sat there in silence, mind probably going wild trying to worm his way out of this one while she stood there confidently. Reflection smirking back at her as she waited for him to catch her bait. She couldn’t live up to any of those threats, but what he doesn’t know will make her rich. After a few more beats, a quiet and defeated, “What do you want?” came through. 
She smiled wickedly at her own success. “I want 1.2 million wired to an account in the Caribbean’s and 250k in cash at the drop off. You and I both know that I’m cutting you a deal.”  
And she was, really. The highest bidder, and the reason she was even in this mess, had offered 2.3 billion for the retrieval of the item. The small device had that much power and a small part of her, the part that she referred to as still being human, felt that maybe she should to turn over to the good guys. She imaged that those Avengers guys would know what to do with it.
But 1.4 million was more than enough for her to sit her ass on beach for a couple of years. She had a fleeting thought of asking him to join her. 
There was silence, as he thought over her demands. Neither of them wanted to budge, but he was the desperate one now. 
“I will send you a location and you will be there within 24 hours.” came the hoarse words from the other side of the line. She had ruined this man with only a few minutes of her time. It made her feel powerful.
“One last thing.” she tried to keep her voice from wavering, “My partner walks free.” 
-
“I didn’t call you to get a lecture. I called you get help.” Peter spoke quietly, standing outside the motel door. Eyes zeroed in on the slight crack he’d left open in the door to see when she came out of the shower. His heart was pounding and was regretting his choices in the past 4 minutes. 
“This is really bad kid.”
“Yeah, Steve. I know. But I- I don’t have an excuse, okay? I did what I did and now I need you to help me.” Peter was all but pleading, irritation growing in his veins. Why wouldn’t he just agree to help already? It wasn’t like Captain America was one to leave a friend in need. I mean look at what he did for Bucky all those years ago. He could easily help Peter out with this, why was Steve hesitating? 
“Who is she? Who does she work for?”
“None of that matters. Just know we’re leaving in the morning and I’ll tell you where- “
“You know I’m going to have to bring her in Peter. She’s a felon and-”
“And so am I as of 9 days ago.” Peter hissed back, defenses coming up to protect a girl he barely knew. He should’ve called Tony, he chided, listening closer into the room to make sure he hadn’t heard the shower turn off. He thought his enhanced ears could hear her talking, but it had only taken one night for him to realize she liked to softly hum in the shower. He couldn’t control his wide smile when he came across that little quirk. 
“You’re a kid and you make mist- “
“You’re lecturing again.” Peter deadpanned. 
Steve sighed, thumb and pointer finger pinching the bridge of his nose tight as he tried to sort this out in his mind. Thankfully no one knew exactly who Peter was, so if he made this quick and low-radar, then there would be little to no knowledge of Peter’s position as an accomplice. When Peter explained that he was with the girl who Steve had seen on the news, Steve suddenly felt his age kick in as his heart began beating out of his chest. What was the kid thinking? Of course, media and information systems didn’t know much about her, and even with recruiting Nat to get intel, still very little came up. But, there was just enough out there to know that she dealt the same services that Romanoff had once dealt herself. 
“Send me your location tomorrow. Nat and I will be on standby.” 
Peter felt the weight of the world on his shoulder fall off, his shoulder visibly slumping with relief. The shower turned off only seconds later. 
“Steve - one last thing.”
“Yeah, kid?”
“You’ve gotta let her go.” 
-
The gradual light coming through the cheap curtains woke her up first. The dusty room congesting her nose and making eyes itch. She turned over, noting that Peter was facing her - but still fast asleep. She had grown used to sharing a bed with him, she almost found… comfort in the heat that his body created under blankets. Keeping her usually cold feet warm for once. She peered at him, the sunlight behind him making his brown hair glow lighter. She wondered how crystal his eyes would look in sunlight. Not that she didn’t find his happy eyes already one of his best features. His face was relaxed and there was a small snore that resounded as his chest expanded with his breath. 
She used to find that annoying with the other men she had been with, but with him, she found it endearing and grounding as she tried to fall asleep herself. She was wrecked. Her world turned upside in a way she had never anticipated. She had no family, or friends. She didn’t have personal connections that kept her in one place. But his presence made her want to be still for once. To enjoy moments like the sunset or a good movie on TV, commercials and all. She was finding contentment in the simple things, things that often bored or disinterested her, and it scared her. 
His phone buzzed crossed the room and his eyes opened immediately with sound. She noticed that he had an ability to react before her, see things she couldn’t quite, and even pick out some noises she had never noticed. He heard sirens several moments before her hears could even try to pick up a sound. She figured that’s why whoever worked for chose him, despite his lack of experience, for the job. Y/n didn’t try to play off that she wasn’t looking at him, opting to give him a small smile and continue to study his face. She couldn’t read his emotions, but she could tell he was in deep thought, despite having only woken moments before. A small crease between his eyebrows. 
It wasn’t until she noticed him subtly shifting closer to her that she pinned where exactly his thought might be. For the first time, she felt nervous about someone kissing her. Heart thumping as he neared, his eyes darting across her face to try and detect any hesitation. There was none on her features and she wasn’t opposed to the idea, but all these feelings she had felt, and tried to push away. She wasn’t sure what a kiss would mean to them. Y/n made no effort to stop him, even moving closer as well, hoping that he would take the move. Because for the first time in her life, she let someone else make the decision. 
His nose nudged against hers gently, her eyes falling shut at the soft caress. She felt his thumb at her chin, tilting her head up slightly before placing his lips against her own. It was soft, and sweet, and gentle. A kiss she had never experienced before, one that made her chest feel hallow and full at all at once. That made her hands tremble and body calm. He continued to kiss her like she was fragile, and even thought she was the farthest thing from it, Y/n enjoyed being treated that way, cared for that way. Her hands came up to his neck, pulling her body closer to his, legs intertwining. Neither of them had the intention of going further, this felt more intimate than any other experience either of them had ever had. 
-
Camille pulled away from him with a gasp, his eyes opened to find hers still closed, taking in the moment. Something about the way she looked that morning, peaceful, controlled, had all those emotions he had been pushing away come back into reality. He was nervous she would reject him, which he had experience more than enough of in his lifetime. But she didn’t falter as he moved closer and it gave him all the confidence in the world. Neither of them spoke, even after she opened her eyes to look back them. Voices trapped somewhere between their heart and mouth, unsure what to say, but wanting to say everything all at once.
His phone went off again, jolting him back to reality. Back to the realization that more existed outside of this dingy motel room and this moment with her. The weight of it on his shoulders once again, he only hoped she didn’t noticed the change in him. He gently rubbed his thumb across her bottom lip, before forcing himself to move away. She didn’t say anything, only moved to get up as well. The air in the room felt still, calm but at the same time a tinge of something that could build up to tension. Peter felt content in himself and with her, but everything beyond that door, that is what made him anxious and unsure. 
Little is spoken between them as they gather their things, Peter saying that they need to get a move on. She follows along, neither agreeing or protesting. He wondered vaguely about her lack of communication. The past few days she had spoken up about his decisions, particularly those she disagreed on, but always let him know her thoughts. The radio silence worried him slightly, but he tried to push that way. There were much bigger things for him to worry about.
Y/n received the drop-off location about the same time that Peter got up to answer his own phone. It was a nicer hotel that had amenities like a bar and indoor pool. She rolled her eyes, of course the target would choose a location with a high rate of witnesses. She had wanted as little fallout as she could get, this was going to be a little more difficult that she had anticipated. Peter’s voice saying that they should probably get going brought her back into the room. Her thoughts still clouded her brain, strategies, exit points, things she often had a few days to prepare for, swimming around her head. She complied, not saying anything. Only stuffing her few things into duffel bag, they stole from a gas station a few days back and followed him out of the door. 
The had been on the road for 5 hours now, when she decided to speak up. “I think I found a good hotel for us to stop at?” She flashed him her phone briefly, just enough for him to glance at before looking back at the road. One hand firmly on the wheel, the other on the gear shift. She briefly thought back to first time their stolen ride wasn’t an automatic and Peter became flustered behind the wheel, hands shifting sporadically everywhere, eyes darting about because it had been 10 minutes since they broke in and they still hadn’t drove away. She had been able to control her laughter just enough to direct him in out to get the car moving without flooding the engine, and proceeded to give him tips as he tore out of the parking lot. Peter was still red faced for 3 hours after. He looked almost proficient driving now, shifting gears smoothly and precise. Her eyes trailed over him, shamelessly checking him out before turning back to her phone.
Peter pretended not to notice, but a small smirk graced his lips despite it. She pretended not to notice.
“That looks a bit expensive.” He muttered. 
She tried to stay nonchalant, if she showed a desperation to stay there - it might tip him off. “I think we deserve a nice bed and a bath in a hotel that’s actually clean for a night, don’t you?” She turned on her charm, as guilty as it made her feel. Never once had she manipulated him in the time they spent together since the Gala. It made her heart break to see him react like she wanted him to as she trailed her nails lightly up the forearm resting on the console between them. 
He audibly gulped, “Y-yeah. I guess you’re right.” 
She had to look out her window to hid the frown that fell on her lips. For once she felt guilty in doing her job, for once she felt dirty. He deserved more than coy smiles and deceit. He was making her soft, and she couldn’t tell if she hated it or loved it.
-
They made it to the drop site with 2 hours to spare, it was earlier than Y/n had expected but she became grateful at seeing just how busy this hotel was. She needed to strategize and it didn’t help that the lady at the front desk told them they’d have to wait another hour before their room was ready.
“Please enjoy our bar. One complimentary drink on us for your wait.” 
Y/n could practically feel the anxiety radiating off Peter as they sat themselves at the bar. The irony of it didn’t go unnoticed to her. Even more so when Peter passed the drink voucher to the bartender and ordered an old fashioned. She smiled at him and laughed lightly, looking at her with an emotion that made her stomach flutter. She went to say something, but her phone vibrated in her jacket pocket. She excused herself to the bathroom, pausing for a moment to take him in. The way his curly hair framed his face, particularly that one curl that always stayed in his face. The way his brows scrunched as he concentrated on the TV across from them. The way his mouth looked as he took a drink of the old fashion. She wanted to remember him like this, not the face of disappointment and betrayal that he would have by the end of this. 
She was hoping, praying, everything and above, that this would be last time she would see him. Before she could stop herself, she gently grabbed his chin after he set the drink down, turning his face to hers. She had caught off-guard, his eyebrows furrowing with concern as he noticed the inevitable look on her face. She tried to hide it, but she knew she was failing. She gave him a small smile in attempt to soothe his thoughts. She pulled him close, placing a gentle kiss on his lips, then his cheek before pulling away. 
“Don’t wait for me.” She whispered, before getting up to leave. 
He laughed lightly, slightly confused but called after her that he’ll find her when the room is ready. She didn’t reply, but kept walking. Tears in her eyes and throat and chest constricted as she kept a sob locked down. 
-
Peter watches her walk away, noting that he steps look heavier than usual. Concern enters his mind but doesn’t have time to linger as his phone goes off on the bar infant of him. It’s Steve, saying their arrival is less than 5 minutes. He’s grateful that she’s not here, meaning he sneak out with the briefcase that holds the device. He hoped he would be able to see her one more time before he had to leave, but he doubted that would happen. He was lost in his thoughts of her when gun fire deafened his heightened hearing. He reached for his ears before jumping into action. People in the lobby were scattering. 
Gun fire was going off from two ends of the hotel. Peter recognized the uniforms of some, others looked like civilians carrying military grade weapons. It was a set up. Peter panicked, calling out for Camille and attempting to go in her direction. A firm hand stopped him,
“Where’s the device?” Steve’s voice was firm, but there was a relief sound to it. The kid had made it out unscathed and even though shit was hitting the fan, Peter wasn’t in the crosshairs. Peter spun to wear the briefcase had been tucked at his feet at the bar, but faltered when he realized it was gone. He paled, trying to retrace everything. His eyes fell on Steve when he realized… “Where’d she go?” The relief in Steve’s was gone, his face was hard and he was now in mission mode. Peter fumbled but couldn’t make words. How could she? Why would she? Is the reason that-? Steve didn’t wait for an answer, pushing Peter of the way so he could set off on tearing the place apart to find her. Peter knew he wouldn’t though. 
Chaos was erupting around him, but all he could do was sit back down at the bar. Defeated, hopeless, lost. He reached for the old fashion and downed in one go. 
Another hand on placed itself on his shoulder and Peter spun around to get ready to argue with Steve, but stopped in place.
“You’ve got a lot of explaining to do, Paul.” the mask of the Iron Man suit lifting away to reveal a tired and irritated Tony. 
“How’d you- Did Steve?”
Tony started fiddling with a blueprint of the hotel, heat signature popping up and showing a crowded room on the 8th floor. “Your girlfriend called.” Was all he said before jetting off in the direction of 803, what was to be his and Camille’s bedroom. 
-
It happened all too fast. Before Y/n knew it, guns were going off and she was fighting 10 men on her own. She took down the target in one movement, leaving him bleeding on the floor and his men scattering for revenge. What she wasn’t aware of was the onslaught of S.H.I.E.L.D. tactical teams barging in on the place. She had called Stark Industries, at their last gas station stop. Leaving a voicemail with a very concerned lady that detailed what was about to down, telling them that no matter what - her accomplice had nothing to do with anything and he knew nothing. 
Y/n knew not to trust the target, and knew that she couldn’t return this device to him. She kind of liked this stupid planet she lived on, and didn’t want to see it’s destruction in her time. She only hoped that the Avengers would go easy on Paul. She had to leave him there to get away herself. And that left knots in her stomach but traitors like them never win. She managed to grab the money bag and, just as an explosion happened at the hotel door, shoot out the window of the room. Escaping just as Tony and Steve, equally surprised to see the other’s presence, enter the room to see the men she had taken out. 
-
It took Peter a moment for his brain to catch up with his body as he darted after Tony. His stealth suit coming in handy underneath his clothes. It didn’t take him long to catch up, but he was frozen in place as soon as he arrived. The room was trashed, bodies lying across the floor. Tony and Steve stood beside the bed, the briefcase Peter recognized that was supposed to have the device between them, opened. They looked at him, waiting for his move. 
Peter stepped up to the bed to find the device still safely tucked away, a note taped to it. 
“I’m sorry” scrawled in quick but neat letters. 
Tony nor Steve spoke as Steve gathered the suitcase, closing it, and then putting it their own protection case. They left, Tony gently patting Peter as he stood there, staring at the note in his hand. 
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druddigoon · 5 years ago
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so i’m supposed to be working on scholarship applications but instead of writing 500 words on why i should receive money (bc i’m poor) i typed out 1.4k words of bederia smh
anyways cheeky au where bede feels feelings
--------------------------
> Nervousness, worry; something heavy building up in the heart, weighed down like a lagging tail; the bearer of bad news. Guilt. 
Bede lifts his arm up the second Gloria makes a move to get up from the couch. 
“Leaving?” he says. 
“Yeah.” It’s little more than an act nowadays, less for his benefit than Gloria’s. “It’s going to take at least a week to travel to and back from the dynamax sightings they want me to investigate, and I’d rather arrive back in time to catch the tail end of that fair you’re helping set up.” 
She’s wading her way around the coffee table when he grabs her hand. 
> Guilt, stronger now. Concern, rolling off in waves; can’t take deep breaths when the water line’s over your head. Resolve, don’t look back. No fear. 
No fear? Fear and concern usually go hand in hand. If she’s worried about running into a dangerous situation, why isn’t she scared about it? 
It takes him a while to realize she’s worried over him. 
“I’m not mad at you,” he blurts out, “This is your job, you’re the only one qualified enough to handle dens over five stars, and you’re doing it so Galar can be safe. I’d be an idiot to get mad at that.” 
“I know, I just wish it doesn’t have to be--” Gloria cuts herself off in the middle of her sentence. 
Doesn’t have to be like this. There were a lot of things that didn't have to be: Bede’s disqualification, the Eternatus incident, Gloria’s stepping down a year into her championship. Wistful ideations did not rewrite the stars. Both knew it very well. 
> Melancholy. Guilt loses its edge, dips down into resignation. 
She’s staring at the cluster of mushrooms starting to grow from the ceiling, glowing gentle hues of pink, blue, and green. For the umpteenth time, Bede wishes he could read thoughts instead of emotions. Doesn’t have to be like this. 
He sighs, lets go of her hand. “Come on. I’ll come to see you off at Hammerlocke.” 
--------------------------
Rule Number One: Never talk about your ability. 
Rule Number Two: Avoid touching anyone unless absolutely necessary.
Those were the two fundamental laws Bede set for himself during his time in the orphanage. Stories too grotesque to be put into words, stark terror and raw emotion. They blurred together to the point where he stopped caring--stopped reaching out, beat or intimidated anyone who tried to him. He withdrew. 
Compassion fatigue, he’d heard the social workers discuss, after his main caretaker quit. Emotional exhaustion leading to a decreased ability to feel empathy for others. The cost of care. He often wondered if he had that too, how others’ emotions were often so strong it had washed away his own, the dull ringing in his ears after he lost contact. Or maybe he’d always been like this. 
The first rule was broken when he accused his foster father of cheating, when he gave him a slap on the back after coming home from “work”. A day later he was picked up by Oleana, and told he’d shake hands with Macro Cosmos’s pawns during meetings. 
The second rule spiralled downwards when he accidentally bumped into a challenger, back in Galar Mine No 1. 
It’s such a hassle. So much easier to hate someone when he doesn’t know them. Rose is a man brimming with hope for the future, too bright to hold in a handshake for long. Oleana, once her obsessiveness and exhaustion and contempt for Bede has been whittled away from the manicured fingernails digging into his shoulder, is a woman who adores her saviour ever since the day he took her off the streets. He remembers the pity officers doled against his skin when they had to restrain him to be brought back to the orphanage, the desperation of a slipping boy when Hop’s knuckles bit into his lip. 
So much easier to hate when they weren’t all so human. 
--------------------------
In Ballonlea, where the sun fails to filter through the thick canopy of trees, time loses its grip. There is no such thing as a day and night cycle when all light comes from bioluminescent mushrooms, shining here before you were born and after you leave. 
Hammerlocke, in contrast, seems to be bathed in the light of the sun. Dying rays outline castle walls against a wash of red and gold, and shadows stretch over corners, gothic. The air is warm; he’d read somewhere that the obsidian masonry was designed to absorb heat during the day and release it at night, which saves them from temperature fluctuations as a mainland city near the wild area. Save for a few stragglers, the streets are empty. 
Bede is the first to arrive at the pokemon centre, teleported by his hatterene. 
Gloria wouldn’t arrive in a few minutes--she always liked taking the corvitaxi, watching the region pass by beneath her. Bede would accompany her if he didn’t have motion sickness. The last time they rode together had been...messy. 
He’s flipping through a curry catalogue in the lobby when she bursts in, windblown hair and old leather bag and all. 
“Sorry, I had to take a detour to get my stuff. Completely forgot about that, or I’d have brought them to your house.”  Golisopod lumbers in after, bags comically hanging on its upturned scutes. “Hope you didn’t wait long?” 
Bede checks his rotom-phone. Half an hour, but she doesn’t need to know that. “Yes, a whole fucking two minutes. I thought you were fine spending a month in the woods wearing the same clothes, eating berries and roots like a neanderthal.” 
“Oh, I hope Sylveon pukes on your pillow tonight.” The jab didn’t have much force to it, and he doesn’t need to touch her to see her stress; they’ve been around each other long enough for him to notice the incessant tic of her right foot, how she keeps running one hand over another as a soothing gesture, in the absence of his. 
(It’s endearing. He usually looks down at people who fail to disguise their fears, sees them as weak of will, but this is Gloria. She’s the girl who’d faced and captured gods, the girl known to take on the most unstable regions of the wild area and come out alive; she’s also the girl who released them after making sure they wouldn’t cause harm, the girl fretting not because she might be risking her life, but because Bede will miss her. It’s cute.) 
He sees her off at the Hammerlocke gates. Gloria has her back to him, checking maps, while her golisopod is already making its way down the stairs. The gap between them seems to be growing wider, and he wants nothing more than to reach for her shoulder. 
That would be crossing a boundary. They’d talked extensively about his ability, and she’d said yes, it’s okay to touch her, she had nothing to hide from him. But just because he has her consent doesn’t mean he’s privy to her feelings at the moment. 
Gloria closes her map, taking one step down the stairs.
Another step. Stops. 
She looks back. 
Whatever she sees on Bede’s face makes her turn around and run towards him. He doesn’t get a single word in before she throws her arms around him, almost barreling him over. 
> Courage, the strength to keep walking even though each step is a battle; confidence, the rain that washes away all doubt; hope, the fiercest of them all, a steady mantra of We’ll be okay.
He grips her tight, wishes for once he could speak his emotions like she’s speaking hers. Settles for balling all his conviction into a whisper. “You’re going to do phenomenal, you’re going to pummel whatever that dynamax pokemon is without breaking a sweat, and I’ll wake up a week from now with a million messages of how you kicked their ass. Don’t worry about me.” 
He can feel her smile from the shift of her cheek. “And I’m going to come back to Ballonlea’s first town fair sensationalised on the headlines of every media site, and finally get to ride on a ferris wheel that isn’t always ‘out of order’ like Wyndon’s is, because you did a great job bossing people and pokemon around. Don’t worry about me.” 
They let go. 
Gloria heads down the stairs to her golisopod. His skin burns warm as he watches them meet up, as they round the corner, until they are gone. 
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xsteriism · 5 years ago
Text
The Aftermath
73 Questions Continued
by celestial-irondad
2, 681 words 
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tagging: @officialtonystarkprotectionsquad @hollandrecs @snowflakeparker​ @peterparkerspidgeons​ @illegalchandler​ @jaijaiwriter​
——
Breaking News: Tony Stark has a kid? Click here to read—
Mystery Stark child seen in recent vogue interview—
Former Playboy, Tony Stark— with child?
——
Peter was bunched up in his thickest hoodie and most comfortable sweatpants he owned. Sunglasses on and hood up, Peter walked down the hallways of Midtown High School. He looked like a fashion disaster, and it doesn’t help him hide from the stares of his fellow schoolmates. 
“Dude, you look a mess.” It’s the first thing Ned said as soon as he sees Peter, bunched up like it’s in the middle of winter. 
Peter hummed his wordless response, taking his sunglasses off, tucking it safely into his bag. “Did you see the news?”
His best friend rolled his eyes. “Like you have to ask. Mr. Stark’s son? What?”
The vigilante winced, making panicked motions to lower Ned’s voice. He looked around the hallway, and hopes it’s his imagination that the other students are looking— staring at him. 
“I don’t know, man,” Peter all but whimpered, running his fingers through his messy brown hair. “I just found out this morning.”
Ned rolled his eyes yet again. “It’s the interview you crashed, bro. How did you even do that? How did you not notice a huge camera following you everywhere?”
Peter wanted to bury his head in soil. “I don’t know, man. I was sleep-deprived and tired and hungry and everything in between. It didn’t even click in my head that Mr. Stark was being interviewed until Pepper walked in, and even then my thoughts were still muddled.”
His best friend nodded along sympathetically like he understood, biting his lip to keep his laughter in. “You’re the smartest idiot I know.”
The teen groaned, burying his head in his hands. If he couldn’t bury his head in soil, his hands were the next best thing. Ned doesn’t help his crisis as he shows Peter all the articles claiming that Peter was Mr. Stark’s son. There was no possible way that the other kids at school hasn’t seen at least one of these and it’s making the vigilante anxious. 
As the turned into their classroom, Peter’s spidey-sense tingles before he’s pulled back by the hood and slammed into a nearby wall. Peter hopes he didn’t dent or break the weak material of the wall. The teen looked up to the sight of Flash’s face, red with anger. 
“Tony Stark’s son? Who do you think you are?” Flash sneered, “Are you that desperate for attention that you’ll lie on the internet? We all know your parents are dead.”
Peter flinched, the attack so uncalled for he has no time to prepare an appropriate response. Bringing up his parents was a low blow, and everyone knew that. 
“Uh— realistically, I don’t have the resources or money to bribe or buy all those news articles,” Peter schooled his expression to not reveal any more than he already has. He knows Flash is insecure, rash and reckless, but he has no right talking about his parents the way he does. 
Flash shouts his frustration, shoving Peter further back into the wall. The bell rings, the crowd thins and Peter stumbles into his class with Ned asking if he’s okay. 
——
Lunch is not any better, with all the intrusive stares on Peter’s back. MJ and Ned doesn't seem to notice, both doing whatever it is that they do. The teen tries to refocus his attention back to his food, tries to block his anxiety from getting the best of him. 
Then, a girl with blonde hair walks up to their table, smile big and teeth bright as she smiles. “Hi, Pete! You were really cool in that interview, even if you crashed it.” Her laugh, fake and obnoxious, makes MJ cringe, while Peter has to take some time to reboot his brain to form a proper response. “Uh, thanks? I didn’t even know I crashed it until I saw the video for myself.”
Stupid Peter, why did he tell her that? He tries to not notice that the stares are getting more intense. 
“I’m—”
“Nobody cares,” MJ interrupted, waving her hand flippantly like she was physically trying to remove the girl from her sight. Peter had no idea if he should be grateful for MJ or sorry for the girl. 
This was no doubt humiliating for the girl, but Peter’s happy he doesn’t have to deal with her anymore. She stomped away, huffing her contempt as she rejoined her own group of friends. Peter shoots a grateful glance to MJ, who doesn’t even acknowledge it. 
——
Tony winced as he read the headlines F.R.I.D.A.Y showed. He’s definitely sure that Peter has seen these articles, because they were all over the internet. The engineer hasn’t entered his social media accounts yet, but he’s sure there’s some hashtag trending. 
“F.R.I.D.A.Y honey,” Tony sighed, swiping the holograms away. “Has Pepper called yet?”
“Ms. Potts is currently getting the PR team to deal with this, she will be calling shortly.”
He pulled up his twitter and his prediction is correct, #TonyIsSuchADad is trending along with some others. He scrolled through some, smiling at all the GIFs of Peter and himself being domestic. Then he shakes his head to rid himself of the thought; he’s supposed to curb these rumours, not smile like a fool at them. 
True to F.R.I.D.A.Y’s prediction, Pepper calls Tony just as he’s entering Instagram. “Tony, I need you to—”
“Yeah, I see it. I see them. What do you need me to do?” He jumped straight to the point, hoping Peter isn’t having too much trouble in school. “I can release a statement, go on TV, whatever you want.”
Pepper laughed and Tony can already imagine the crinkles by her eyes. “Normally, I have to kill before you even consider going on TV, and now since the kid’s involved, you’re offering to go on TV?” 
The genius rolled his eyes, starting to pace a little in his lab. “The kid doesn’t want the attention on him, Pep, I have to fix this.”
“Okay, I’m arranging a press conference as we speak. They’ll arrive tomorrow and you can clear this up,” Pepper sighed and Tony can hear the click click of her heels as she walked. 
Tony can feel his body relaxing, smiling as he thanked Pepper before hanging up. Just as he was going back to work, F.R.I.D.A.Y alerts him of a phone call from Ned. The billionaire frowned, because why on earth would Peter’s friend call during school?
“Mr. Stark, oh my god you picked up, wow I wasn’t expecting that,” Ned rambled as soon as Tony accepts the call. Tony’s anxiety is rising as the teen rambles, not getting to the point of his call soon enough. 
“Ted,” he interrupted, “what’s going on?”
There’s silence on the other line, then murmuring, before Ned chuckled nervously. “Uh— ha, you see, Peter’s kind of having sensory overload and—”
“I’m on my way, get him somewhere quiet.”
——
Peter genuinely thought he would be able to get through the day without any incidents, but he should’ve known that it was wishful thinking, because now he’s having a killer headache. It started with a nudge here, a casual touch there, and suddenly Peter’s the most popular kid around. It was no wonder he was feeling a little too much a little too fast. 
He’s surrounded by a small crowd of people pretending to be concerned, asking annoying questions like are you okay?
Yes, he’s on the ground, crying in pain and he’s okay.
The overwhelmed teen is willing to dive into mud if he can escape his oncoming sensory overload. He’s vaguely aware of Ned calling Mr. Stark despite his protests, and being guided to the nurse’s office. 
After a few achingly long moments of writhing on the bed because of the blinding fluorescent lights, with the nurse shuffling in the background that sounded like the amplified sound of nails on chalkboard to Peter, the creaky door was finally nudged open.
Mr. Stark walked in almost soundlessly, right past the star-struck nurse, straight to Peter, and slipped his Stark-made noise-cancelling earphones over his ears. A-grade sunglasses came next, and Peter relaxed significantly when both sound and brightness became bearable. The young vigilante couldn’t help but feel embarrassed when his mentor helped slip on gloves over his shaking hands, feeling his cheeks warm as the delicate hands wiped away the tears on his face. 
Peter felt himself being lifted into strong arms, relieved that he doesn’t have to use his trembling legs. And even in his half-hazy mind, Peter is lucid enough to notice the many eyes on him and can hear the muffled whispers about him. 
His mentor shifts him so that Peter has his legs wrapped around the billionaire’s waist and his arms hung comfortably over his shoulders. The typical way a parent would carry a child. 
The teen buries his face into his mentor’s neck, uncaring of the way his sunglasses digs into the bridge of his nose. He smells the familiar mild but masculine scent of his mentor’s favourite fragrance and can’t help but to relax even more. 
“Don’t worry, Pete,” his mentor’s whisper could be heard through his noise-cancelling headphones. “I’ll get you home.”
——
Peter awoke to muffled voices. The room was pitch black, but Peter could still make out every single shape. He tugged his earphones off, relieved to note that his senses had calmed. 
“What were you thinking?” A faint voice from the hallway caught his attention. Was that Ms. Potts?
A cough and the reply came. “So I know, maybe carrying the kid out of school like that wasn’t my best idea, but he was hurting and—”
“You made it worse, Tony!” Ms. Potts sounded like she was going to strangle Mr. Stark. “The tabloids are having a field day with the pictures the students posted online.”
Silence. 
A soft sigh, “Tony, it’s alright. You know I fix things like these. I’m sorry I yelled, go take care of your kid.”
“He’s not my kid, Pep,” a grumbled reply came, but after a few seconds the door to Peter’s room slid open, and Mr. Stark walked in with gentle footsteps. 
The king-sized bed dipped, causing Peter’s too light body to slide along and they could feel each other’s body heat. “Hey kid, you feeling okay?”
The teen offered his mentor a small smile, even though his body felt too heavy. He managed a small nod and the engineer’s eyes softened, hand reaching out to push Peter’s hair away so that it wasn’t covering his eyes. 
“I’ll fix things,” Mr. Stark said, clenching his hand into a fist as he brought it back to his side. “Don’t worry you brilliant mind, okay? Just rest. I’ll clear this up in no time.”
Peter feels tears prick at his eyes at his mentor’s care and blames it on the aftereffects of the sensory overload. He’s grateful for the dark room, the only source of light from the slightly adjacent door. He grabbed Mr. Stark’s hand in a moment of impulse, squeezing it lightly in case he overestimated his strength. 
“Thank you.”
Mr. Stark is many things, but seeing his innocent child lie in a bed, looking so fragile while thanking him makes him want to throw away all his titles and hide away with Peter. “Between you and me, Pete, there’s no need for the phrases ‘thank you’ and ‘sorry,’ okay? I’m here to protect you.”
The kid smiles a bright one this time and the genius has to really hold back from saying, ‘screw you’ to the world and hide the child in a castle far, far away from humanity. He leaves after Peter falls back to sleep, readying himself to solve their little problem. 
——
Peter wakes up to nobody. He’s alone in Mr. Stark’s penthouse floor, and May hasn’t ended work yet, so he decides to stay for a while. He trudged to the living room, nearly becoming one with the couch as soon as he reaches it and switched the flatscreen on. 
The first thing he sees is Mr. Stark’s face. The billionaire is sporting his infamous sunglasses again, even though he’s indoors and there’s no sunlight. He’s adorning an immaculate three-piece suit, tie perfectly tied and is for once sitting appropriately. 
“Rumours has it that you have a son now, Mr. Stark,” the interviewer starts, pulling out a framed picture from under his desk. A camera zooms in onto a picture of Mr. Stark carrying Peter like a toddler.
It’s the first time that Peter’s seeing the picture, so he takes a closer look. Mr. Stark is cradling his head as if protecting him from the surrounding students who are gaping openly at them. Peter also looks ridiculous with his hoodie, noise-cancelling headphones, sunglasses and gloves on. 
“What do you have to say, Mr. Stark?”
Said man pushed his sunglasses further up his nose, as if that could shield him from the spotlight. “He’s not my kid.”
Peter knows that Pepper probably had a script that Tony has to follow, to ensure he doesn’t mess up in front of live television, as well as to stop rumours. Realistically, Peter knows that those words are said to also deter people from targeting him in case they want revenge on Mr. Stark, but the cold words hurt nonetheless. 
Mr. Stark had been calling him his ‘kid’ from the moment they met, with a few other nicknames here and there, so really, his hurt was understandable. 
“Ah, he’s my personal intern,” Mr. Stark clarified, when the audience started clamouring. “He’s the only one allowed in my lab to get a hands-on learning experience.”
A small smile played at Mr. Stark’s lip, and before the interviewer can say anything, he speaks up again. “He’s very talented, a quick learner, very efficient in the lab, innovative too. If the rest of his generation is like him, we have nothing to worry about.”
Stunned, the interviewer and the audience went silent for a few moments. 
“I’m sure he is, Mr. Stark, you are Stark Industries’ inventor after all, your lab should be efficient,” the interviewer said to dissipate the awkward tension. “The real question now is, does this intern have social media? We would all love to know more about him.”
The audience cheers, the sound so deafening that Peter could see Mr. Stark’s perfect features contort for a split second. He cleared his throat, calming the audience. “If he’s willing, I’m sure we can create the accounts for him.”
Once again, the audience explodes and Peter smiles, switching the channel to something significantly calmer, namely, Cartoon Network.
——
parker intern 
@internparker 
S.I. intern baby
2681 followers, 20 following 
*** followed by @tstark, @nataliaromanova, @capamerica, and four others 
——
parker intern @internparker 
ello world! mr. stark says to not do anything stupid
you know who ✔️ @tstark 
Are you sure you want that to be your first tweet?
|
parker intern @internparker 
i’m not doing anything stupid!!!
——
<3000 @threethousand
THE GODS HAVE ANSWERED WE HAVE QUALITY IRONDAD CONTENT NOW NO MORE RUMOURS GUYS 
|
cheeseburger @ironmanslays
i would like to thank our god and saviour jesus christ, as well as mY god ironman for making this happen
——
Peter went home to May with a bright smile on his face. After Mr. Stark came back, they talked about the social media and created the account together. Peter knows the ‘do’s and ‘don’t’s on what he’s allowed to post, but he’s still happy because Mr. Stark looks happy. 
He’s still amazed at Pepper’s god-like work, how she managed to get an interviewer willing to interview Mr. Stark with such short notice was baffling, but he’s happy she did it, because the rumours had been stopped. Sure, everybody now knows that he’s an intern at Stark Industries, but he could live with that. 
Besides, having the twitter account was a blast. 
——
I hope you enjoyed!!!
btw should i make a taglist? If you're interested comment a ‘💙’?
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