#he may get a canon gf during SoS too

[cvbullshit]

Meet my version of Man-Spider for my Spiderverse AU SoS thingy!

I love him, he's so gender

I debated on giving him hands or not, I probably won't.

Bit of Man-Spider backstory:

He was a normal spider in a lab but, as labs do, they do experiments. They experimented on the poor lil Parker the spider until he reached huge size and gained much intelligence, though he was more self taught by the people and things around him.

After breaking out of his containment, he murdered and/or ate all the employees of the lab, leaving it abandoned to be his home. He killed all of the other experiments but kept untouched spiders alive. He does experiments of his own on humans in his freetime along with catching animals and humans to eat.

He actually isn't the Spiderman of his universe though.

It's only when a group of kids dare each other to explore the abandoned lab does the universe gain a Spiderman. He killed all of the kids but one who survived with only a bitemark from him.

The bite caused the girl who survived to gain spider powers and become the one and only Spider-Kid.

Man-Spider then goes onto try to catch, experiment on, then kill Spider-Kid due to her getting away, getting in HIS way, and gaining powers from his bite.

And yes, he will join the SoS in the Spiderverse AU while Spider-Kid teams up with the SS.

[silverselfshippingchaos]

could cozy up to me- ahem

[waywardmaslow]

The Epic Codependency of Sam and Dean Winchester

• Dean went and got Sam from Stanford not because he needed Sam’s help finding John but simply because he wanted Sam with him 1.01

• Dean threw himself off a bridge just because that’s what Sam appeared to be doing 1.01

• Sam knew immediately when Dean was really a shifter 1.06

• “We accept homeowners of any race, religion, color… or sexuality.” -Larry and Lynda @ Sam & Dean 1.08

• Sam felt no guilt over someone having to die in order for Dean’s life to be saved 1.12

• “A king or two queens?” -Michael “Two queens.” -Dean “Yeah, I’ll bet.” -Michael 1.18

• Dean no longer wanted to hunt down the thing that killed Mary if it meant Sam dying 1.21

• Dean wasted one of the 3 remaining bullets for the colt on a low-level demon who was attacking Sam 1.22

• Sam blindly trusts Dean when he says John is possessed 1.22

• Sam and Dean coming up with identical cover stories and coming to the same conclusion re: “Dana Schulps” clue while separated during a hunt 2.07

• Dean gave Baby to a stranger and locked himself in with a Croatoan-infected Sam, ready to kill Sam then himself once Sam went rabid(or let rabid!Sam infect him too so they’d be monsters together) 2.09

• “So, uh, ..king-sized bed?” -Susan “No no, we’re uh.. 2 singles. We’re just brothers.” -Sam 2.11

• “Bonny to your Clyde” -Hendrickson @ Dean about Sam 2.12

• Dean was willing to cover up a murder Sam may have committed 2.14

• “You two are bickering like an old married couple.” -Bobby @ Sam & Dean 2.15

• Dean’s current relationship with Sam was more important to him than the normal life he could’ve had if Mary never died 2.20

• Dean cared more about Sam going to law school and marrying Jess than he did about any of what he had purely for himself(his job and gf) in his Djinn fantasy 2.20

• When Lily opened up to Sam about accidentally killing her girlfriend, Sam empathized with her by bringing up how Dean might be dead(for all he knew) instead of bringing up Jessica’s death(which he canonically blamed himself for) 2.21

• “Something big’s going down, Dean. End-of-the-world big.” -Bobby “Well then, let it end!” -Dean after Sam died 2.22

• Dean sold his soul to bring Sam back from the dead (which lead to him breaking the first seal kicking off the apocalypse) 2.22

• Ruby used Sam’s fear of losing Dean then grief after his death to manipulate him 3.02/3.16/4.09

• Sam was willing to bleed an innocent human dry in order to summon the trickster to bring Dean back 3.11

• Sam was willing to become an organ-harvesting immortal to keep Dean from dying and going to hell 3.15

• “Whatever the magic pill is, I’ll take it too!” -Sam “What is this, Sid and Nancy?” -Dean 3.15

• “Sammy, all I’m saying is you’re my weak spot. You are. And I’m yours.” -Dean 3.16

• Sam tried to open the gate to hell (risking letting more demons into the world) to save Dean 4.01

• Sam tried to sell his soul multiple times to get Dean back from hell 4.01/4.09

• “Are you two like…together?” -Ruby 4.01

• “You don’t need me. You and Ruby go hunt demons.” -Dean being more jealous of Ruby than suspicious 4.04

• Dean willingly handed Anna over to the angels who wanted to kill her because they threatened to send Sam to hell if he didn’t 4.10

• Dean’s siren was an idealized version of Sam 4.14

• Sam consumed more demon blood than normal to kill Alistair and save Dean (it’s likely that this was the turning point when Sam became addicted) 4.16

• Dean knows Sam’s habits so well that he’s able to track him down even when Sam’s trying to do the opposite of what he thinks Dean would expect him to do 4.21

• Sam hunted down Lilith to avenge Dean (which lead to breaking the final seal releasing Lucifer) 4.09/4.22

• “Whatever we have between us, love, family, whatever it is..” -Dean to Sam 5.04

• future!Dean was willing to sacrifice all his friends (including Cass) to avenge Sam 5.04

• Dean prevented the endverse future simply by reconnecting with Sam 5.04

• “We’re all we’ve got. More than that, we keep each other human.” -Dean to Sam 5.04

• “The relationship that you have with your brother seems dangerously codependent.” -Dr. Fuller to Dean 5.11

• Sam and Dean are soulmates with a shared heaven 5.16

• “Sam and Dean are psychotically, irrationally, erotically codependent on each other” -Zachariah 5.18

• Dean decided against saying yes to Michael because he didn’t want to let Sam down 5.18

• Dean prioritized helping Sam over Adam in the beautiful room and it led to Michael taking Adam as his vessel 5.18

• Dean was ready to die with Sam/let Lucifer beat him to death if Sam couldn’t regain control of his body 5.22

• Sam’s love for Dean gave him the strength to overcome Lucifer 5.22

• “Dean didn't want Cas to save him. Every part of him, every fiber he's got, wants to die, or find a way to bring Sam back.” -Chuck voiceover 5.22

• Having a normal apple-pie life means nothing to Dean if Sam isn’t alive to be part of it. -> “I wanted my brother! Alive!” -Dean / “Had I shown up, Dean, you would have just run off(away from Lisa and Ben).” -Sam 6.01

• “That woman and that kid; I only went to them because you asked me too!” & “I showed up on their doorstep half out of my head with grief. God knows why they even let me in. I drank too much. I had nightmares. I looked everywhere. I collected hundreds of books, trying to find anything to bust you out.” -Dean to Sam 6.01

• Dean chose hunting full-time with Sam over staying with Lisa and Ben 6.02

• “The minute Sam walked through that door, I knew. It was over. You two have the most unhealthy, tangled-up, crazy thing I’ve ever seen.” -Lisa about Dean and Sam 6.06

• “Mallory to your Micky” -Veritas to Sam about Dean 6.06

• Dean died to make a deal with Death to save Sam’s soul from the cage and in doing so chose Sam over Adam 6.11

• Sam took on his cage memories so Dean wouldn’t be left alone 6.22

• Dean became Sam’s stone number 1 when he was having trouble telling what was real 7.02

• Sam and Dean each quickly recognized each others leviathan doppelgängers 7.06

• Sam’s grief over losing Dean is paralleled to Amelia’s grief over losing her husband, both believe their loved one is dead, both get their loved one back. s8 Flashbacks

• “Is it just me or are you getting a workplace-romance vibe from those two?” -Michael & “Dude, they just sat and talked about how they have been apart for a year. You were probably right about that whole office-romance thing.” -Brian about Sam and Dean 8.04

• Sam chooses Dean over Amelia 8.10

• Dean chooses to take on the 3 trials mainly because he doesn’t want Sam to do it and risk his life, he wants Sam to reap the benefits of a demon free world 8.14

• Dean’s perfect ending is simply for Sam to get out of hunting and lead a normal apple-pie life till he’s old and grey 8.14

• “Cass, you got your ears on? Listen, you know I am not one for praying, 'cause in my book it's... it's the same as begging. But this is about Sam, so I need you to hear me.” -Dean 8.16

• Dean killed Benny so Sam could be saved from Purgatory 8.19

• “You two fight like an old married couple.” Charlie to Sam & Dean 8.20

• Dean chose a world with demons over a demon-free world without Sam 8.23

• “You know what I confessed in there? What my greatest sin was? It’s how many times I’ve let you down. I can’t do that again.” -Sam to Dean 8.23

• ���Don’t you dare think that there’s anything past or present that I would put in front of you.” -Dean to Sam 8.23

• Dean violated Sam’s trust and autonomy via tricking him into an Angel possession to save his life 9.01

• “There ain’t no me if there ain’t no you!” -Dean to Sam 9.01

• Dean kicked human!Cass -who was being hunted by angels- out of the bunker rendering him homeless so his mere presence wouldn’t drive away the Angel keeping Sam alive 9.03

• Young!Dean gave up a chance at a normal life so he could continue being there for Sam 9.07

• Dean gave Crowley permission to use one of the brothers’ code words to warn Sam about Gadreel 9.10

• Dean didn’t regret letting an Angel into Sam, even though it had resulted in Kevin being killed 9.13

• Sam could break through the MOC hold on Dean like Collette was able to do for Cain 9.16/9.21/10.23

• “You’re lying to Sam like he’s your wife.” - Crowley 9.17

• Sam tricked a man into selling his soul so he could torture the demon for info on where demon!Dean was 10.02/10.03

• “Right now I’m doing all I can not to come over there and rip your throat out…with my teeth.” -Demon!Dean to Sam 10.02

• “What did Sam say? He wanna divorce?” -Dean 10.03

• “I tried to kill him, Cass.” -Dean “It would take a lot more than trying to kill your brother with a hammer to make Sam want to walk away.” -Cass 10.03

• “Homosexual murderers!” -Bev “Like Leopold and Loeb!” -Hetty 10.06

• “Then would come the murder you'd never survive, the one that would finally turn you into as much of a savage as it did me. Your brother, Sam.” -Cain to Dean 10.14

• Sam was willing to bleed himself to death to unlock the Werther Box to get the codex so a cure for Dean could be found in the Book of the Damned 10.19

• Death wanted Sam to be killed because he knew Sam would never stop looking for a way to free Dean from the MOC regardless of the consequences 10.23

• Sam was willing to let Dean kill him so Death would send Dean somewhere he wouldn’t be a danger to anyone due to the MOC 10.23

• Dean killed Death because he couldn’t go through with killing Sam and Death had threatened to do it if he couldn’t 10.23

• Sam’s efforts to get the MOC off Dean result in the Darkness being released 10.23

• “I unleashed a force on this world that could destroy it to save you. And I’d do it again, in a second I’d do it again.” -Sam to Dean 11.01

• Dean: “Where’s Sam?” Crowley: “Don’t worry about Sam.” Dean: “I’m sorry; have you met me?” 11.10

• Dean chose comforting/looking after Sam over helping Cass fight Lucifer in the cage 11.10

• Dean saw a manifestation of dead!Sam(part of his soul in distress) in the soul-eater’s nest 11.16

• Dean killed himself so he could bargain with a reaper to bring Sam back from the dead 11.17

• Because Dean thought Sam was dead, he was ready to let himself (and the couple they were trying to save) be killed by the werewolf pack they’d been hunting 11.17

• Michelle: “I just watched the man I love die; there’s no normal after that.” Dean: *thinking about how he’s just experienced the same thing with Sam except with a different outcome* 11.17

• “You fight like brothers; you’re almost as bad as [me and Sam].” -Dean “Actually, it’s more like an old married couple.” -Caesar 11.19

• Sam got infected by the Darkness fog and Dean abandoned the people they were trying to protect and instead tried to infect himself so he could die with Sam 11.20

• Dean used his relationship with Sam to relate to Amara and get her to reconcile with Chuck 11.23

• Amara in 11.09: *kisses Dean* -> Dean in 11.23 to Amara: “You simply need your brother. I mean, hell, maybe that’s why you wanted me. But deep down, you didn’t really want me…cuz I’m not him.”

• Sam and Mary: *trapped in Asa’s house by a demon* -> Dean: *stuck outside* “Sam! Sammy! Hey!” *after breaking in* “Where’s my brother?” 12.06

• “We’re like the American Oasis.” -Dean comparing himself & Sam to Liam & Noel Gallagher 12.07

• Sam and Dean were each willing to die so the other could escape the federal prison and live on 12.09

• “You know, sometimes me and Sam have got so much going on that…we forget about everyone else.” -Dean to Cass 12.23

• Dean began to warm up to Jack because he saved Sam’s life 13.04

• Sam and Dean were unfazed by being stuck in the Bad Place because they had each other 13.10

• “I don’t care what happens to me. I never really have. But I do care about what happens to my brother.” -Dean 13.20

• “And if we die? We’ll do that together too.” -Sam to Dean 13.20

• Dean went mute after Sam was killed and later set off on a suicide mission to retrieve Sam’s body or die trying 13.21

• Dean said yes to AU!Michael to save Sam from Lucifer 13.23

• Dean knows Bert and Ernie are gay 5.03 and suggests he and Sam dress as them for Halloween 14.04

• Though Dean was unable to take back control or cast Michael out, his resistance due to his attachment to Sam made him enough of a nuisance to Michael that he willingly let Dean go(temporarily) 14.09

• Sam was able to figure out where Michael had Dean trapped in his mind via knowing how Dean could be best subdued/distracted 14.10

• Sam broke through Michael’s hold on Dean with just one word: “Poughkeepsie” 14.10

• Sam was the only one who could talk Dean out of locking himself in the Ma’lak box with Michael for all eternity at the bottom of the ocean 14.12

• The thought of letting Dean down broke Sam free of Chip Harrington’s mind control 14.15

• “We have lost way, way too much. And it’s hard not to feel like just… cashing out. I felt like that. After Chuck, back at the crypt. But you know what brought me back? You did. By sayin’ that what we do still matters.” -Dean to Sam 15.04

• Dean was willing to abandon Cass in Purgatory, so he could get back home before the portal closed and save Sam from Chuck (that’s the only reason he sent up that prayer to Cass) 15.09

• Dean was willing to sacrifice Jack so he and Sam could have a life free of Chuck’s influence/control 15.17

• Dean was willing to trade everyone(who’d be collateral damage if Billie became the new god) except Sam for a shot at getting rid of Chuck 15.17

• Sam broke through Dean’s desperation to be rid of Chuck no matter what the cost, thwarting not just Billie’s plan but also Chuck’s brother-kills-brother endgame 15.17

• Dean stood outside Sam’s Stanford dorm for hours because he was so afraid of Sam possibly rejecting him, he didn’t know what he’d do if he didn’t have Sam 15.20

• “It’s always been you… and me.” “I love you so much..my baby brother.” -Dean to Sam 15.20

• Dean wouldn’t let go till Sam told him it was ok, he wanted to be sure Sam would be ok without him 15.20

• Sam spent the rest of his life mourning Dean and honoring his memory, named his son after him 15.20

• Dean’s heaven was not perfect till Sam got there 15.20

[gladiatorcunt]

Modern coryo whos trying to sorta maybe manipulate his gf by being obsessed and then not reading her texts for 3 days but the gf is literally the same so it’ll be like

r: “heyyy” and then a day later he replies “heyaaa” and then it goes on like that for a week until he cracks and sends her 15 messages in the span of 4 minutes

cw: feminization/fem label “gf” but the reader is still only intended to be afab, the ask has she/her pronouns but i don’t use them in the writing, manipulation and toxic behavior, typical coryo/modern!coryo warnings, love bombing, not canon to the main au, black cat reader ish, reader has a shower in their dorm bc i say so 🤫, male masturbation

Now Coryo wouldn’t do this during your relationship, despite his best attempts to play it cool, you make him panic and he’s immediately resorting to rich boy love bombing (trips, those ridiculously expensive boxed roses, 999999999 rounds of oral on his yacht, a summer house, etc.) followed by baby trapping. He’s not stupid enough to try something like that deeper into your relationship, for him it’s about making sure the foundation is as solid as possible and not shaking it up.

This would really only happen before you even start dating, after he’s bumped into you in the dorms enough times to wear you down into giving him your number. He’s still in his “i have to the most mysterious person alive” mindset and he hasn’t quite shed the fuckboy persona yet. He doesn’t seek anybody out or anything, it was love at first sight with you unfortunately, he’ll just imply that that you’re another contact in a long list. (You’re the only one in his favorites 💀)

You’re smart enough to be wary, too involved in academics and proving yourself to go sniffing around Coriolanus Snow. You don’t really talk to a lot of people, and you’re not interested in a swarm of meaningless interactions. You’re just grateful that he stopped calling you so much, learning that you very much prefer texting. He’s the king of the “hey u up?” text, and you have the flattest look on your face as you reply “Yes.” and turn your phone face down. Exchanges like happen over and over.

Does your heart flutter when he insists on walking you to class and pecking your cheek at the door? Yes but you’ll roll your eyes and make a big deal out of wiping it off. Are you intrigued by how much he hauls ass to get you your coffee order whenever he senses that you need it (because he can, he’s like spiderman but lame)? Well, yes, but he must be playing some kind of game with you. Has a cliche bet with his fraternity brothers over your assumed virginity maybe. The more you’re determined to not fall for it, the more you find yourself slipping as the days go by.

Just when you turn your head when he pecks your cheek outside the lecture hall, expecting the gesture more than dreading it, he gives you a blank stare and turns on his heel. You take a second to blink and then shrug, it’s no skin off you back if Coriolanus decides to be normal for once. You definitely do not have a bit of a scowl throughout the entire session. (he nearly lost it when you didn’t react at the lack of a kiss, he kicked the wall and almost broke his foot)

He’s back to the “heyy” texts at random hours, responding to your “Hey.” that came a day later two days after that. He’s screaming into his pillow and pacing his grandma’am’s gardens, glaring at the staff pruning the shrubs. Coryo would rather die than admit defeat though, so he hardens his resolve. You’ll break eventually. You on the other hand are living normally, slurping ramen and working on essays. You’ve learned not get your hopes up over a pipe dream, the idea that someone like him would genuinely care about you being so laughable that you get over it rather quickly. You may be from different economic classes, but a man’s attention is never a necessity. That an he’s far from the only trust fund kid in the world.

A week later, your phone goes off in the middle of the night. You step out of the shower and dry yourself off, walking over to your bed and picking it up. To your surprise, the notification from Coriolanus isn’t another dry message, it’s several videos. They all look dark and fuzzy, ranging from 30 seconds to 10 minutes. In some of the thumbnails you can see flashes of bare skin. You click on the first one and are immediately faces with Coriolanus Snow’s sweaty abs.

You’re frozen as he eventually splatters jizz all over them, the camera work is shaky and the flash exposes too much for your liking. You can see his abdominal muscles twitch in the aftermath of his orgasm. He drags his fingers through his own cum and smears it over the camera, giving you a pov of what it’d be like to have your face covered in it.

Your phone chimes again.

Stalker: turn the sound on for the rest ;) see u at the car wash next friday, babe ❤️

You block him (after you save the videos and check the charge on your vibrator).

[acksolotel618]

HEY!! YOU!! YES YOU!! 🫵🫵

I heard there was a...Gravity Falls and Ninjago crossover AU that I havent heard of before and I too...am a nerd for both of these shows..................

SO WHATS THIS S11 AND GRAVITY FALLS CROSSOVER I HAVENT HEARD ENOUGH ABOUT?? 👀👀

This is important btw I'm going to go FERAL like PLS WDYM OUR TRAUMATIZED ICEY EMP GUY GETS HALF POSSESSED??

EEEEHEHEH OKAYYY SO (keep in mind I have NOT read the book of bill yet due to not being able to easily get it in my country, I'll be getting it around december possibly?? So Bill 2nd dimension lore may be a bit off, not sure tho!!)

Also this will probably be a bit of a long rant, and possibly a bit messy and I have no idea if it'll make sense to anyone other than me..

Also Bill would have a nickname for Zane but I'm still brainstorming one so I guess he's just..Zane for now(/ref)

The basic idea is that Bill replaces Vex. We're gonna think about Bill's ability to see the 3rd dimension and how he's 'outcasted' like Vex's formlessness. Instead of him destroying his dimension, he travels away from everyone in a corner of the 2nd dimension and develops a personality quite similar to how he is in GF canon. (with a bit of Vex dropped in there but they're incredibly similar anyways).

Zane gets blasted by Aspheera but instead of ending up in the Never Realm, he ends up in the 2nd dimension, quite close to where Bill was at the time. Much like Zane and Vex, Bill saw Zane, Zane didn't see Bill. (I'll probably draw a visual on what Zane and Bill would look like in the 2 dimension compared to 2nd dimensional beings some time in the future).

Bill discovers another 3rd dimensional being! Yay!! (Bill pressures Zane into a deal by saying he can help him find home. (Play on words - Zane's new home is a mix between the Emperor's Castle and the Fearamid). Bill possesses Zane, navigates his robo brain, sees a whole thing in Zane's mind about his fear of memory erasure, ignores it, finds a way to erase his memories, and pulls a Vex.)

Bill possesses Zane in a way that Zane is still consciously inside of his body, but kind of shares it with Bill?? If this makes sense. So it's like a split personality sort of cliché thing between person and demon. Zane is still there so he can still power the scroll of forbidden spinjitzu, but Bill can project his own 3 dimensional 'powers' on it too.

Bill uses the scroll to turn the 2nd dimension 3 dimensional more intricately, unlike in GF canon where it just destroyed the entire thing.

And, due to time moving differently in Bill's perspective.. uhh Zane is there for a bit longer than 60 years 😁😁😁😁🤣🤣!!! (millennia)

Since the dimension is now 3D, 2D beings, (eg. Bill's family, diff shapes,) they have to try their best to navigate a 3D plane as 2D shapes. Basically moving across walls and some of the weird shit Bill and Zane make during this like, slightly ice oriented weirdmageddon.

Over these millennia, there would be times where Bill would go and explore other dimensions and bring back the henchmaniacs and all that, leaving Zane to just go insane and with all the weirdness around him, not knowing who he really is other than what Bill tells him. He tries his very damn well best to make sense of everything but just can't even though it's all he remembers.

Zane and Bill also form a close relationship that's kinda like a mix of Zane and Vex's relationship (power imbalance, and in the sense of how Vex manipulated Zane and would probably scold him for not doing stuff) and Bill and Ford's (In how they interact. Acting as if an idea was their own, praise, false sense of equality in their relationship).

(Also when I say 'relationship' I'm not necessarily saying I ship any of these characters romantically.)

There's probably so much more I could say, ESPECIALLY to do with the angst aspects, and I probably will rant more about this some time, but that's basically the big idea. But things may also change because I'm still building the AU up because it is actually quite a big thing to me :33

[shi-bxnii]

i will get hate for this likely but TWST HC's/Character Writings that annoy me and/or i feel are OOC

(check below cut) (all dorms/staff) (note: these are my personal opinions, do what you want, these arent for "Hey dont do this >:(" , im literally just saying what i personally feel, GO CRAZY AAA GO STUPID)

❤️Heartslaybul🃏

👑 Riddle HC: He's uptight and doesn't know fun

My take: He can be uptight and arguebly doesn't have fun in the same way others do but its been shown a few times riddle is a bit feral in his own way

♣️ Trey HC: Sweet mama friend whos done no wrong and needs a break

My take: He is a sweet mama friend but he has been shown quite a few times to do some (harmless) underhanded things for his own gain (Starsending Event: Getting a new blender/juicer/whatever it was)

♦️Cater HC: Bubbly guy whos secretly depressed with an internet addiction and THATS IT

My take: though not inherently wrong a lot of ppl dumb down his character to be very vague and two dimensional, Cater is also very alturistic in some cases and has shown to have a variety of skills (maybe not Trey/Ruggie lvl but its still skills)

♥️Ace HC: Mean as hell even in pranks(? this isnt one thats blatantly stated but written on a lot)

My take: Ace CAN be an ass but a lot of the time he will backout or realize his fuck up and make up for it, hes not jus sum ass that ppl talk too, hes a bully in the most loving way possible (lookin at deuce about that one LOL)

♠️Deuce HC: Oblivious dumbass

My take: Now in the context of School or sayings/confusing wording THIS IS VERY TRUE, but ppl make Deuce an all around idiot ive noticed and it annoys me, Deuce is very streets smart both in literal and just like,, hes a dude that knows things, and it annoys me so bad when they jus make Deuce a dumbass

🦁Savanaclaw🌞

🦁Leona HC: Hes heavily self interested

My take: also another that isnt inherently wrong but also is taken way outta context, Leona can and will be self serving but hes also shown to be kind and considerate and willing to help (even if he tries to deflect by saying it wasn't on his mind/not that it was truly within his heart), hes just a more intense Tsundere than Jack

🍩Ruggie HC: Same as leona with heavy self interest

My take: now this is more true then leonas but theres been a few times where ruggies done things for no/little gain, especially when it involves some level of danger, he may still joke about it but hes always pulled through

🐺Jack HC: this is also not a stated HC but ppl seem to forget how territorial/aggressive Jack gets so in writings hes usually just sum laid back guy

My take: Dude has been shown countless times to be headstrong and be aggressive and territorial, maybe not in the Adeuce, Tweel way but he in his own right has been shown to be aggressive (even if playful or more tamed then the formentioned)

🌊Octavinelle🫧

🐙Azul HC: Dark skin (visual HC)

My take: I AGREE AND DISAGREE, ive seen ppl give some characters vitiligo but NEVER to azul, if anything it WOULD be Azul, not only that Vitiligo is an autoimmune disease with factors such as stress, and who stresses more than anyone? AZUL, i usually consider most Visual canon to be just that with very little HC's but if Azul is to be interpreted with dark skin, mf has vitiligo

😈Floyd HC: Older of the twins and a variety of romantic HC's/writings i cant all list

My take: Its been shown in either a viginette or an event (i think an event) that despite being born within the same timing, Jade was actually first before Floyd (Jade makes a joke about keeping him around so im guessing the mf murked all his other siblings eggs djebdjsb ???) // As for romantic HC's writings what annoys me most is that he will usually be interpreted as very loving + his mood swings, i know damn well if Floyd had a gf/bf hes sTILL abiding to himself, now there are some factors that wouldnt keep this true to a default but floyd is floyd

👿Jade HC: He's just as seen in game//no real depth

My take: Its shown during the camp vargas event that Jade is actually extremely excitable and even (according to those around him (i think Cater says it)) that he even shouts in excitement about the natural Oven he was gunna make to cook the fish, Jade is very mannerly and a bit hard to read and its been stated as true, but Jade is also just a fucking nerd as well when you peel back the layers he isnt just that same guy as before

🏜️Scarabia🎆

🎉Kalim HC: Both in HC's and writings a LOT of people drive on the fact of kalims "obliviousness"

My take: NOW THIS ONE MAKES ME THE MOST ANNOYED, Kalim may be happy go lucky and sunshine like, but that motherfucker is AWARE, now you may try and ref Jamil in B4 but- BUT- Jamil is his literal lifelong friend and even if he was blatantly backstabbing at some points Kalim gave him the benefit of doubt, because hes known him all of his life and ik you mfs LYIN if you said you wouldnt for a life long friend... // Also Kalim despite his delivery being happy/sunshine like, Kalim has been shown to have a more feral (similer to Ace) side and even a more snarky side, though rare and playful at most hes not just some 🌞 fr

🐍Jamil HC: Transfem

My take: NOW BEFORE YALL GET MAD, its not the inherit fact that ppl will HC this, do what you want have fun, but i hate that a lot of the reason ppl will HC this, is simply long hair more fem aligned appearance.,,, suddenly men can't have shit,,,, again if you want to i dont really care it just a random irk of mine at most

👑Pomefiore🧪

👑Vil HC: similar to Jamil's and self interest once again

My take: Similar to Jamil, a lot of ppl will HC Vil transf/m due to the fact that within the JP ver, Vil uses a pronoun/self identifier commonly used for/in feminine use, but also for masc use,,, this one is also jus a random irk and i truly do not mind at all but i hate when ppl base of very little things (ik i sound stupid these r jus my opinions LOL)...// Self interest again but Vil's literally in B5 shown to not only not tell anyone but do it on his own whim to post Epel's family product so they can buy out to the point Epel had to give back the crates of Juice his family got him, Vil did that himself, he may be cunt(y) but hes also very considerate

🏹Rook HC: N/A

My take: Surprisingly i see very little HC's of Rook and when i do they make sense to me (Ex: Dark skin and coily/wavy hair, mf was born n raised in Afterglow savanna so even if he has whiter genetics, mf DEFINITELY having darker skin, hes a hunter hes oUTSIDE)

🍏Epel: Transmasc (but for the wrong reasons)

My take: Now of all characters to HC as trans DOES make sense, but also at the same time Epel normally doesnt mind who he is, its only when its used negatively/to mock him or something that he knows ppl will think "less of him" for it,,, this one irks me way less but a lot of ppl will HC/Write epel way more sensitively about himself then he is whether with a trans HC or not, overall though this HC does make the most sense to me

🖥️Ignihyde🎮

💠Idia HC: N/A

My take: Same as Rook, i dont see a lot i dont disagree with or aren't too far from Canon, i will say my fav Idia HC is that hes a complete weeb and has a body pillow of some sort, man wants to be a non normie so bad but fell for the normie weeb traps (body pillow and prolly owns a figurine of the waifu) LOL

🌐Ortho HC: N/A

My take: i dont see a lot of Visual or normal HC's in general for ortho which makes me sad, give my son more swag,,,, i will say i did see a HC that orthos normal body (robo) his shoulders are white boards and people will write stuff on them and that ppl will normally decorate him with stickers :3

❇️Diasomnia⚜️

🐲Malleus: HOO boy theres a lot

My take: way too many to write on this post but i will say that for rom! HC's and writings... MF THIS BITCH GOT NO RIZZ NO SWAGGER, everyone writes or HC's him to be the most romantic mystery dragon prince... brotha this man dont know how to use a phone you think he knows what talkin to a romantic interest + being good at flirting is like?? nuh uh you know damn well that mf askin lillia in near tears what the hell to do

🦇Lillia: Also a lot :(

My take: Doing rom! HC's/Writings again.,,, i feel like in general Lillia would actually avoid personal romances, he wouldn't be like EW ICKY, but considering his past and current responsibilities (Looking after his two sons Mal and Silver and then their cousin Sebek), i think it would be much harder for him to actually be involved in romance

🐊Sebek HC: Also a LOT GAHHH

My take: Now for this one i feel like ppl make Sebek similar to deuce and make him an oblivious dunce, Sebek is smart as hell but he jus doesn't understand customs outside of Fae, hes from Briar valley where most people are fae, and also dont have internet, you cant blame him for being bad at lingo and oblivious to what we would normally know by like age 8../// Also funnily enough i feel like Sebek and Mal get rev for rom HC's (Mal being filled with Swagger while Lillia helps sebek),,, i feel like despite not knowing normal customs,, if Sebek ever pursued someone romantically he would actually not be bad at it, sure a bit lost here n there but i feel like hes got swagger

⚔️Silver HC: That he takes things passively

My take: Silver has been shown to act against others wishes even those with authority (Even more so in B7 but i wont spoil),, Silver often acts as a voice of reason to Sebek as well in those moments but due to Sebeks tunnel vision up until B7, mf wont hear it, and since Silver basically has known Sebek all his life, to see him not press on the matter more in certain aspects is normal, ppl with headstrong siblings know this especially, sometimes you jus gotta be like "okay fine"

🎭Staff👥

In general i feel like a lot of people forget THIS IS AN ENTIRE SCHOOL the game is set in, teachers can take on different classes,,, but theres more teachers than just Vargas, Crewel and Trein, YOU SEE THAT BIG ASS SCHOOL? Theres a least 20 more teachers runnin around that bitch other than the ghosts, but since its a game and not like a series, Obviously they cant jus throw a random teacher every scene

✨Crowley HC: N/A

My take: A lot of HC's are usually just addition to canon or within character so i have no complaints

🐱Trein HC: Also N/A

My take: a lot of HC's for trein r very in character so i honestly dont have any annoyances

🐩Crewel HC: STRICT

My take: as a teacher? yes duh, but as a person? Crewel is definitely cheetah print joint smokin leggings and hello kitty tattoo aunt and classical and fancy wine aunt fusion, soon as mf off the clock hes MESSY in the auntie way

🥇Vargas HC: N/A

My take: now this isnt a HC/Writing but the way EVERYONE CLOWNS VARGAS ATTIRE..... the costumes for crewel n vargas in camp vargas were not bad at all imo, they werent spos to look like runway models or the latest trend that was GOOD costume design for something that was only spos to be VAGUELY seen cuz its DARK

🔮Sam HC: N/A

My take: I rarely see HC's of Sam :(

[ryuichirou]

HELLOOO I LOVE YOUR ART AND YOUR HCS CAN I ASK ONE?

If the twst characters ever had an ex or a girlfriend/boyfriend before and what they did with them when they were still together or what you want to add! THANK YOU SO MUCH

Hi, Anon!! Thank you so much for loving my art!! <3 Sorry for the late reply!

This question is tough; characters having exes is also something I never really think about unless a specific scenario requires it… but I’ll share some of my thoughts! Spoiler alert: I thought about all of the boys, but only a handful gave me the vibe of someone who has an ex or any kind of prior romantic/sexual experience… all of them are such virgins 😔

I also know some people like to imagine some of the canon boys being each other’s exes, but I don’t really see them that way, once again, unless we have a very specific scenario on our hands. 🤔

I have to mention Ace, even though I don’t have much to add because the boy said it himself in canon lol Ace used to have a gf for a brief period, but he realised that he was bored around her and started to avoid her, leading to them breaking up… which is pretty typical for someone this young, I think lol the guy didn’t really understand how relationships work. Anyways, I think Ace and that girl kissed once and held hands a couple of times. Ace probably thought about the possibility of them having sex, but didn’t really want to do it so he never even hinted at it – plus he figured that a girl he’d been dating for like a couple of days wouldn’t want to do it anyway. Despite being a hormonal teen, somehow it wasn’t a huge loss to him.

Deuce doesn’t have an ex, but he used to have some tension with one of his senpai from his delinquent days. Deuce didn’t fully understand that it was romantic back then, he probably doesn’t fully get it to this day, but he does think about that one senpai every now and then. Sometimes he remembers how he ruffled his hair and stuff…

Trey also doesn’t really have an ex, but he may or may not be someone who used to have “no strings attached” kind of sex during his freshman year…. we can neither confirm nor deny 👀 Even though he is romantic enough to want to do it with someone he really loves, hopefully his childhood sweetheart. But oh well, what Trey does and what Trey wants are two different things.

Cater has a bunch of exes, but his longest relationship lasted like a couple of months. Because he kept changing schools and stuff he either had to say goodbye, or didn’t want to get attached in the first place. And sometimes he just got dumped! He actually got dumped a lot, I think lol All of it is pretty sad, but hey, he got to experience stuff with a bunch of very different people! He had a lot of partners, and had sex with the majority of them…

Leona wouldn’t call that person an ex himself, but I can imagine him being with an older man at some point… not hinting at twst-fied Zazu btw, just some random man lol Maybe Leona would say “ah yes I used that fool to lose virginity” as if he wasn’t crushing on him or something. What is this Leona-centric fanfic?

Lilia had a lot of affairs, and some of them lasted pretty long time (not as long as his first ever affair though), but Lilia never considered anyone to be his partner. Being in a relationship “officially” has never really been his thing, even though he probably longed for it on some level when he was younger… I think Lilia left a lot of people because they would start taking their thing too seriously, which he isn’t really proud of, but hey, that’s life!

[fancyfade]

Could I trouble you for an extended take on Kory and Dick's NTT relationship?👉👈 Curious after seeing one of your posts.

hmm so I was debating whether to re-read any comics and initially i was gonna say I wasn't, then I did anyway so :P re-read 2 scenes for panels and the whole NTT 28-34/NTT annual 2 b/c I had the scenes where they start dating less in my memory, and have screencaps for it.

Short version: Dick and Kory clearly love each other, but Dick is prioritized by the narrative as the only one Marv is interested in exploring the internal strife of, and often by the fandom as well. Kory is viewed as Dick's gf before she is viewed as a person. In terms of their actual relationship, they are not super great for each other, and have incompatible needs -- Kory is pretty needy, Dick is BAD at dealing with this I see people be like 'oh she taught him to be emotionally free' or w/e but a) she didn't, not really, all she did was take his repression and jerkyness when he was dishing it out and b) not your job to fix your BF. Especially since in canon like I said she doesn't really 'fix' or change him, she just... deals with him being condescending to her and locking her out when he gets mad or angsty, she deals with him telling her she's too much and too bloodthirsty, then she lashes out sometimes as he does.

Long version:

anyway. So. Narratively, Dick is treated as the focal character in the DickKory ship. Marv is obviously way more into Dick's internal strife than Kory's. An especially egregrious example is when after Kory has been kidnapped and tortured for 5 days by the people who enslaved her as a child, the main focus of Dick and Kory's dialogue after that is... Dick saying he's not emotionally open because of Batman, and where their relationship is going. And for disclaimers: this is not a criticism of Dick's character, because it's clearly intended to be read as something Kory's fine with here... it's a criticism of the way Marv frames the two (though there will be some criticisms of Dick in this post :P This one is not)

The New Teen Titans #26

Anyway so :P there's a reason I did this scene different when I wrote it in my fic (link) and I was like huh I like these two dorks so much better together now.

Anyway, so let's fast forward a minute. There are 2 issues Dick and Kory are dating for during which not much happens, then like.. literally. the next issue, first scene:

The new Teen Titans #28

anyway, so dick's isolating himself more, wearing himself down, we see an angsty scene in which he is working out DETERMINEDLY to try to get as good as batman (if you believe donna) and she is trying to get him to talk but he doesn't. which again - this (not wanting to talk about his feelings) isn't really a flaw on dick's part; I think part of the frustration of Dick and Kory's relationship is that I relate a lot to Dick and see lots of what i do in him XD like he wants to be alone, kory thinks this means she did something wrong.

like I am sorry kory i love you but HOW did you get "you'd rather I awsn't here" out of "I like to be alone sometimes"

Anyway, Donna is worried about Kory because Kory is very hung up on Dick pushing himself and not being as available now. Like. Right after the characters start dating, there is a lot of focus on Kory being miserable because of Dick* and I'm like. why is there such a focus on that if the writers want us to actually like seeing these characters together? and like. the writer marv clearly does care a lot more about kory being dick's GF than about her outside of that. There's some good analysis on her character and their relationship here (link)

NTT Annual 2

anyway so dick is acting emotionally distant and kory is taking it personally, he also gets possessive when Roy hits on her**

New Teen Titans #29

Like yes, Kory is insecure and thinks Dick is mad at her because of her issues... but he also does sometimes act mad at her!

Dick also may love kory, but he does not really trust her

NTT #30

NTT 31

he's also generally pretty dismissive of her. like... how is kory asking aout raven any different from you doing so dick? get over yourself. and why does he leap to assuming she'll do something stupid in the crowd situation? like he in general later in the comics is consistently un-easy with her 'lust for blood' or w/e even though she never kills anyone

anyway, he kind of apologizes but not really - which characterize dicks apologies here. first we had 'i've been acting like an ass but you don't understand what it was like being raised by batman' now it's 'i've been treating you wrong but you don't get this earth custom'. like the apology is always followed by an excuse.

NTT 31

like yeah i prefer to be left alone when things are going bad too dick! That doesn't make it OK to condescend your girlfriend and get possessive of her!

(also his apology does not result in changed behavior. right after this he ignores kory again)

anyway. so that is the very first full plotline where Dick and Kory are dating, and the issues do go on the back burner but they resurface eventually. the closer we get to terror of trigon the more dick seems wary of kory's 'bloodlust' and she feels as if he is asking her to change who she is. She feels constrained in their relationship.

We get more issues pop up later on after this. Dick is EXTREMELY condescending and bitter and xenophobic to Kory during the Tamaran wedding plotline, where Kory is being pressured into a political marriage to save her planet from civil war. He takes it as a personal affront. And later, it's revealed that Dick was acting bitchy because Brother Blood Brainwashing*** but like... he doesn't really act all that different with kory after he's unbrainwashed? I guess maybe he's less overtly aggressive, but he still has clear resentments towards the situation she was forced into, no perspective.

New Teen Titans (1984) #34

Dick and Kory are broken up at this time, which is honestly pretty good for them. Dick clearly has a ton of resentments for Kory, and she is giving him no space and thinks if she can just love him enough she can restart the relationship. But like. Kory. He doesn't want to be in a relationship with you at the moment take a hint.

However, since Marv wants the two to get back together, we have this scene (still in the second NTT series #34)

Anyway, Then Dick goes out thinking about how he still loves Kory and sees a man committing domestic violence

This is how Dick perceives the domestic violence

a "Dispute"????? Really dick?

Anyway, the guy is blabbering about how his GF made him hurt her because she cheated on him, Dick is like "You know that's bullshit", but then this is the resolution:

So just as a recap: Dick saw a man who was going to kill his girlfriend for cheating on him, and thought "Well he loves his GF and seems to regret it, so I'll leave him here with her after I take his gun, surely this will end happily".

(Also he clearly relates to the man and projects his and Kory's problems on them -- where do you even start with this. Do you want to kill Kory, Dick? Do you perceive her being pressured into an arranged marriage to stop her planet from civil war as cheating on you?)

Anyway. I'm not saying people have to perceive this as IC for Dick. I think it's stupid, and if Marv wasn't clearly assuming this situation was conveying a "love conquers all" thing, then Dick probably would've arrested the guy.

So recap:

I perceive their relationship as being a not-super-healthy one in which Kory gives more than Dick, though Dick doesn't ask her to give as much as she does. It makes Kory feel bad, like she's being restrained and useless and she did something wrong. It's that way straight from the get-go, and when Dick is brainwashed and when he is not brainwashed. Dick acts selfishly, and does not understand Kory's situation with her planet (the complex political situation, doesn't like her having tamaranean morals even though she doesn't kill people on earth, her just saying she would be OK with it is something he hates) and generally focuses on himself when he apologizes rather than on her, and it does not result in changed behavior. He is not initially willing to break up with her when a dealbreaker situation arises (her marrying Karras politically), he just acts angrier and angrier at first then I guess eventually they break up. Kory doesn't accept the breakup, she wants to get back together even though he doesn't want to, because she wants love to solve everything and she still loves him and he still loves her. I see people blame bad writing and the wedding being aborted by demon raven crashing it for the dickkory breakup, but like... they were broken up before Dick proposed. They only got back together when Dick proposed. Their relationship was petering out since kory married Karras, they had a brief renaissance spurred on by Dick realizing he still loved Kory via seeing a man want to commit domestic violence on his gf.

I'm not sure if this gave you the recap of their relationship you were thinking about but ... yeah those are my thoughts as far as I can condense-ify them. I think they have the potential to be a cute couple, and they clearly are very important to each other, but that Kory gets the short end of the stick writing wise and from Dick and she does better without him.

*notice I said because of Dick, not that it's his fault - I think some of this is due to Kory's own issues. Some of it is due to his actions, as we'll see later tho.

**which I don't think is OOC to previous stuff, because when she was in another relationship and he was not jealous, they weren't dating and hadn't been dating so... that doesn't really prove that he wouldn't be possessive/jealous

***1 of the most frustrating parts of NTT is Dick's ambiguous brainwashing, which is retconned to be like. 'he was brainwashed since issue 20 something and nothing bad he ever did is his fault'. it's terrible terrible writing.

[griffincastle]

Hello, I hope you’re having a great day.

I haven’t played any zombies maps later than bo4 (I’m sorry). Can you explain what happens afterwards with Samantha and “the Director” and also possibly recommend some maps? Thank you 😊😊😊

One of the many improvements cw brought to zombies was that they made the storyline WAYYY more accessible. Meaning, now you could collect intel and radios in-game, then check them out in your game menu anytime you wanted. So the summary below has a radio/intel/cutscene you can find online! If you wanted to catch up on the story as a whole, all you need is some headphones and free time.

So, Sam and Eddie go into the light at the end of [REDACTED] in bo4…

Sam doesn’t remember her childhood starting the new story, and only remembers the orphanage in West Berlin. There's another gap in her past again, until she goes to Heidelberg (the same college Primis Ed went to!!) and graduates in math/language. She's then recruited to the western intelligence agency to keep an eye on what the communists are up to.

Eddie has zero personal history revealed. We only have small bits like: he was a fighter pilot (a callback to the "red baron" Manfred Von Richtofen haha. His plane was literally called the “blue baron”), he experimented on college students once by purposefully drugging them, and he has/*had a woman and child in his life. Also, he has an American accent like child-at-the-house Ed.

*whether they are alive is not confirmed, but the current evidence suggests they are not. Though, that has more to do with Weaver than Samantha. I could address this in a post not about Sam and Eddie's relationship.

He joins the CIA under the office of extra-regular activities, but when Sam learns of the soviets opening the dark aether portal, the CIA finds out as well. Ed proposes to create requiem to contain the threat, which is approved. 

So, now we may assume that we're at the beginning of Cold War.

Sam and Eddie officially first cross paths after Samantha was hospitalized. A different character, Dr. Peck, pushed her into the portal to the dark aether… BUT Eddie told Dr. Peck, explicitly, to banish sam. It's also important to note that dark aether time progresses differently, where 10 earth years = 100 dark aether years. So, sam was physically and psychologically damaged after 2 earth days/several dark aether months spent surviving. 

One can suspect that, unlike sam, Eddie can remember the aether storyline. He wanted her to be exposed to the dark aether, and for her to weild her former powers. We find that other people trapped in the dark aether never ended up developing powers. Instead, they go insane, die, or mutate.

(and I say Eddie can remember, because only Sam was able to control zombies at any point of the aether story. After moon, Ult Richtofen's zombie control powers were immediately severed when maxis exploded the earth. In the comics, his control of zombies was because /he/ was also a zombie. Or rather, using a zombie body. So he knows it had to be /sam/ that goes through the portal because she'd get powers.)

Now back to the hospital. As she recovers, she reveals visions and dreams she doesn't understand- as the player, we know she is recalling the aether story. For example, she mentions the great war and familiar faces…

When Sam starts showing signs that she can do special things, Ed forces her to go to a facility to "train" her newfound powers. However, he uses supreme abuse and manipulation to force the powers to surface. (I.e. forcing sam to teleport her dog away from gunfire, straight up exploding a random guy so Eddie won't get her girlfriend assassinated on camera…) 

Eddie is deliberately using torture to surface and control her powers, too. During the hospital stay, Sam was able to levitate a book after getting really excited over seeing her gf (gf is canonical by the way). Eddie could use any strong emotion, but is probably his cruelest iteration here. 

Eddie eventually manipulates Sam that she needs to give herself up so the forsaken (the antagonist of cw) doesn't destroy the world. She does so by entering the forsaken, which is in-turn able to be captured by the husk of robo-sophia.

As of now in the story, Sam is MIA, and Eddie closed down Requiem to pursue "project Janus," which has not been revealed . We know likely has to do with sam's sacrafice and the capture of the forsaken.

So that’s Eddie and Sam’s relationship! Very tense, but they also share many similarities with each other as characters.

AS FOR MAP RECOMMENDATIONS.. Firebase Z is king. It’s literally so fun and I never get bored with it. It has elements similar to origins, mob of the dead, DE, and the story is fullest here. Outbreak is a great map to get acquainted with the new play-style and is completely unique and exciting. If you’re looking for tighter gameplay and some comedy, Maur Der Toten. There’s a robot character named Klaus that’s just Primis Ed without a filter.

[demetriandelibinaryboyfriends]

More angsty S1 YasMoon because they're so!!! THEY'RE SO!!! They're so important to me, you don't understand. I've made them both such rich inner worlds that only exist in my mind but by GOD if I'm not Unwell about the complex, nuanced, and BRUTALLY flawed versions of them that live in my head rent-free ;_____;

Like I am gripped by how many things it re-contextualizes if Yas and Moon were hooking up in Season 1. Like that's why Moon so doggedly remained Yasmine's faithful, right-hand Evil Bitch, despite being a very good-natured person normally. That's why these girls were almost grinding in that one concert video Sam showed Amanda. And that's why their beach party confrontation had enough tension to fill an olympic-sized swimming pool. It was a damn breakup akajndslfkjl

Anyways, I'm hoping I can write some full-length one-shots that delve into this more, but I'm just imagining that during S1 and before, Moon was just...an absolutely hopeless pining mess. Like she did everything for Yasmine and went along with whatever she said in hopes that Yas would eventually love her the same...or at least love her openly. She knew Yas could be sweet and giving in private, but she wanted more than anything to be shown off and flaunted like something to be proud of (part of why she eventually ditched Yas for Hawk! Although he went way too far in the other direction to the point of like. Treating her more like a coolness prize than a person ^^;). Yasmine only ever treated her softly and gently when no one else was looking, and it killed Moon. She hated always feeling like a side piece and an afterthought, and still only ever getting dismissively called "a friend." Or sometimes just a lackey, even if Yasmine wouldn't say it directly. I think finally standing up to Yasmine was just as much about wanting better for herself as well as all the people Yasmine bullied.

Like the way she seems guilty about cutting Sam off and horrified to see Kyler mocking her in front of the entire cafeteria implies she's not really comfortable with all the awful stuff Yas does. And like sure, she could stick with Yasmine out of platonic loyalty or to have a popularity safety net, BUT. Being a Yasmine simp would explain just how much she's willing to tolerate before she kicks Yas to the curb XD And hey, she's canonically got a thing for mean, aggressive people, does she not???

Anyways tl;dr poor Season 1 Moon </3 Girl was in love with Yasmine and I WILL die on that hill. Would explain why she was super high and out of it for a lot of S1, too. Girl was coping (er...not healthily) with her gf a) not admitting she was her gf and b) not cherishing her like she secretly wanted </3 Yasmine fr pushes her lesbianism so far down it may as well collide with the earth's core at this point.

In my heart she accepts it and owns it at some point in the distant future, bless iashluybkh

Big, big fan of that locket on the bottom right, btw. Headcanon Yas gifted it to Moon during S1, but was like "if you ever wear this, you CANNOT tell people I gave it to you lest they think we're... g a y" ;______; Like that's not even the first conclusion people would probably come to anyways, but poor Yas is so paranoid about people suspecting she isn't straight that she feels like she has to shut down anything that could possibly point to that D: Also dying on my hill that she has a more difficult relationship with her parents than she lets on and they're either subtly or openly homophobic, which is why she represses her sexuality so adamantly

As always, pic credits available upon request!

[flydotnet]

Warm Like Birthday Candles

WHUMPTOBER 2023 DAY 2: “I’ll call out your name, but you won’t call back.” Thermometer | Delirium | “They don't care about you.”

A light piece, both in tone and word count, considering it's Whumptober and all. My original plan was actually a fic codenamed """Ultramarine Blue""" that was going to be an ansgty sickfic and a sort of romantic version of a story I wrote in 2021 for my (current, jfc) BTHB card, "Feverish Reflections". I do somewhat ccry the loss of how I'd have been able to use "They don't care about you"… but also, I knew this story was always going to also serve as my 2023 birthday fic for the original blorbo, Tachimukai. And you know what? This time, the angsty-ass sickfic didn't work for me. I wanted to be gentle, for once.

I kind of skipped over Whumptober 2022 and a 2022 edition of the yearly Tachi fic, so this year, he gets to have a bit of a cold, but also to have a badass GF; and I think it's good enough. I may just write Ultramarine Blue later down the line; but for this October 2nd, it's happy birthday and nothing else.

So, happy birthday, Tachimukai. I may not be waxing the hell out of my author's notes like I did four years ago, but be assured, you're still the one fictional character I'll defend to the very end. (Which not even Matsuyama gets to have, may I add, because I sadly have to acknowledge his canon - and it's clearly not as generous as Inazuma's).

---------

Warm Like Birthday Candles

Summary: Haruna's boyfriend is a lot of things: he's caring, he's clever, he's the sweetest man you could dream of… and he's also stupidly stubborn, not unlike her. Well, it takes a stubborn idiot to tame another, she supposes.

Fandom: Inazuma Eleven (post-canon)

Word Count: 1K words

AO3 version available here!

---------

“I’m fine Haruna, I swear!”

“Nu-huh, you’ve been feeling weird for days, it’s time you lie down a little and let yourself rest!”

Yuuki sighs, his lips perked up but his eyebrows creased.

“I still have class to do today,” he replies with a cough barely smothered inside his throat. “I don’t wanna let them down.”

She crosses her arms and puffs up her chest. Man, he can be so infuriating sometimes…

“Your students can wait until you’re not sick anymore. You’ve been dragging this cold on for long enough!”

He looks so conflicted, from up there, even through the red splotches of his cheeks and the slight haze of a low-grade fever.

“But… I mean…”

“If you drag this on for much longer, you’ll just make it worse. Plus, look on the bright side, it means staying home on your special day!”

He looks, as always whenever this is the case, utterly unconvinced. In fact, his expression is closer to that of a betrayed man than of a man to whom she’d have just told “see, it’s your birthday, and you don’t even have to work during it! Isn’t that cool?”. This man is going to be the end of her, someday, she’s sure of it.

(Yet even if he turns out to be so, she’ll still be happy that he is her epilogue. They put up with each other so much, he’s worth the hassle of being an unstoppable force pit against an unmoveable object).

((Well, there’s a very good reason why he used to be a goalkeeper – and why he was the best one ever too)).

“It’s not really an excuse, isn’t it?” He coughs into his fist. “The birthday, I mean.”

“That implies your cold is a good enough excuse, doesn’t it?”

He sighs, congestion stifling the noise.

“You’re never going to let me go to work, will you?” He asks back, suddenly resigned.

“If I can have a word about it, absolutely not! Now, let’s just chill on the couch for a bit and I can order us lunch.”

“I don’t even feel this sick, Haruna, this just sounds like overkill.”

She squints her eyes and clicks her tongue.

“Hmph. Let’s see if that holds true, then!” She points to the nearest armchair. “Take a seat.”

“I’m gonna be late to work, Haruna.”

“And I’ll make it quick, so take a seat and stop resisting your fate!”

In spite of his conflicted expression, he chuckles.

“Fine, fine.”

Once she’s made sure he’s actually going to stay seated, she rushes to their bathroom. One glance at the inside of the cabinet and she finds it: the sole thermometer in the whole apartment, ready to be used. With a swift rinse of its end, it’s ready to use, and just as fast as she left the living room, she comes back to it.

With a confident stride, she walks up to him, proudly displaying her tool. He’s focused on the screen of his phone up until he finally notices she’s back. Took him long enough.

“Open up,” she orders.

Yuuki opens his mouth, but not as instructed. She still uses it as an opportunity.

“Sorry,” she continues, “it’s a bit under-handed, I know.”

They both stare at the thing until it beeps, at which point he can finally talk again.

“Please don’t do that again,” is the first thing that exits his mouth.

“38.3,” she quickly snaps back. “I’m pretty sure that’s more than yesterday, and also, a bad enough temperature to take a day off to rest. Knowing you, you’ve overcompensated the previous days.”

As if on cue, he coughs.

“You really aren’t going to let me go to work,” he sighs again, this time wth a smile.

“Nope! So take it easy and unwind, I’m taking care of everything today.”

He glances left and right, before giving a knowing look.

“Or else?”

“Or else I’m calling Tsunami.”

That’s enough to send a shiver down his spine.

“You’re ready for anything, as always.”

“I just know you!”

She puts the thermometer away on the nearby coffee table, then lowers herself just to face him. He looks utterly dejected, which doesn’t come unexpected to her: you can’t just ask a workaholic to let go of his duty and expect him to take it well. She isn’t too different, in that regard, after all.

Despite his painfully obvious displeasure with the turn of events, he takes back his phone, scrolls a bit and starts a call. A couple minutes later, he’s promised to see a doctor so he has a certificate to give and he’s officially gotten the day off.

“I should actually do that. I mean, see a doctor,” he immediately states right afterwards.

She climbs up on him, cupping his cheeks with her hands.

“That I agree with. It’s time you take care of yourself!”

He smiles at this, eyes squinting just enough to be ridiculously endearing.

“You shouldn’t be so close to my face; you’ll end up catching it too.”

“If I’ve not caught it by now, then I just won’t!” She leans back to let him cough into his elbow. “But that visit to the doctor is a good idea. It’ll make you feel a bit better once you’ve got the right medicine in.” She sighs, this time to herself. “Talk about your special day, huh. Having to go to the doctor and stuff.”

“To be fair, you’re the one who’s always made it special. I didn’t really pay muchc attention to my birthday before we started dating.”

“You can’t say that to me and pretend like Tsunami didn’t do the heavy lifting!”

“Okay, okay, you’re right: Tsunami and you made it special.”

“That’s better. What do you want to do, now?”

“Well, let’s knock the doctor visit down, and then we can… We can just relax, I guess.”

The words may be foreign to his tongue, but they make her happy to hear.

“That’s a good plan, yes! A quick go, a drop by the pharmacy, and we can make this day as good as can be, okay?”

“Okay.”

[magicshopaholic]

Lmao okay you know when I told you I was going to respond to every single bullet because each one made me choke on my coffee just a little? Well here goes

Mkay the way it starts with her having a backstage pass to a bts concert?? I’m jealous - This was the most self-indulgent part of any story I have ever written in my whole life 🥲

Not tae being a sappy baby gosh, if only he’d stayed that way - Aafsdfhsdkfh you're gonna regret saying that when the sap returns

Love the way they didn’t get it easy just bc it was love at first sight. Long distance relationship that consists of mostly texts and calls ARE hard and you portrayed that well!! But Dilara definitely could have answered tae’s good luck text with more than just an emoji lmao - Awkwardness of a transatlantic one-night stand 🤷‍♀️

Rip alex turner lmao (also all I could think of was age gap when I read this first haha) - Oh yeah this would've been a big one

Honestly, “your concept is too overwhelming for me” is an incredibly powerful way to break up with someone HAHA - Hey you never know how artists think, this totally felt like something the guy who wrote She looks as if she’s blowing a kiss at me / and suddenly the sky is a scissor / sitting on the floor with a tambourine / crushing up a bundle of love would say

Taehyung during that concert was a vision and damn I think I might be in love - RIGHT??? This exact concert was my inspiration for this whole fic

Not the lockscreen’s picture I’ll cry - Sappiest sap of all time

The fact that he doesn’t know they got her backstage passes I’m dead - Obviously they thought he couldn't be trusted to process such information

Not tae having a fake account to follow her career - With a pfp and fake feed and everything, commenting single hearts on all her posts

Oop, fucking in a dark staircase mmmmh - lmao no comment

NO WHY IS SHE LEAVING SO SOON - They are the most dramatic couple that's why

Am I the only one that feels like her hiding Alex Turner form tae is a red flag? - obviously secrets are not a first for them 🚩

Lmao not tae being afraid of being caught vaping while jk literally had his vape out for everyone to see in that live HAHA - Haha I imagine Tae would stop giving a shit eventually too (although he's trying to quit now!)

I didn’t know green apple cigarette was a thing - It is in my country at least because I used to smoke it

Exhibitionism kink for the win - Whenever, wherever

Tae is a dirty lil hoe and I’m all here for it - This may be the entire fandom's one common headcanon

NOT HER SINGING MAKE IT RIGHT BEFORE SUCKING HIS DICK LMAO - I HAVE TO HAVE BEEN HIGH WHEN I WROTE THIS BC WTF

Why are Jimin and Jungkook interrupting bruh - BTS interruption line

“Jungkook tagging along for reasons best known to himself” MMMMMMMMMMMH you are contributing to the agenda of Jungkook having a crush on Dilara a lot ma’am - nO COMMENT

Jungkook having separation anxiety from tae is canon - Damn this was such a thing back when I wrote this

“Daniel Ricciardo, a handsome fellow driver” HAHAHA DAMN RIGHT - where is the lie

Why wouldn’t she want to be his gf BRUH - D to the R to the AMA

People getting jealous bc of jimin is peak jimin behaviour and I will not explain why - And this can work in any combination and any direction, the man gives off slut energy without even trying

WHY IS HE FREEZING BC SHE SAID I LOVE YOU - tbh I think he would have assumed she didn't feel that way anymore

Oh no he knows about alex turner - :(((

“I wondered why you’d stopped responding” don’t touch me while I cry (also foreshadow much???????) - Unintentional but man does it work

Ofc he’s loved her every day :’’’’’’’’’) - Every damn day 😭

KEEP THE BANDANA GIRLIE - She returned it to him when she sent him his stuff but she would've stolen it back 100%

Gosh that last line/text - :')))

Why did he have to fuck everything up - why indeed

I’m - yes

Gosh - this

I missed these idiots - me toooooooo

This review made me realise how long ago I wrote this :') Whatta hoot this review was <3

Los Angeles (Taehyung x OC)

Summary: Eight months after a magical weekend with Kim Taehyung, after which you never thought you'd see him again, you find yourself reunited with him for one more night.

Pairing: Taehyung x OC

Genre: Fluff, smut, angst

Word count: 14.2 K

Rating: 18+

Warnings: mentions of anxiety, separation, implications of heartbreak, jealousy, heavy making out, nipple play, fingering, oral sex, blowjobs, unprotected sex (wrap it before you tap it), slightly dominant behaviour during sex

Listen to: "goodnight bad morning" by the kills

taehyung masterlist | main masterlist

“Can I check your bag, please?”

You handed it over and took it back with a smile, slipping your arms through the straps and letting it rest on your back as you made your way into the arena, immediately scanning the crowd for Lily. It was last minute, inviting Lily along; but it was the one advantage of being in California - and, of course, having an extra ticket since the band sent you their own.

Your heart skipped a familiar beat at the thought, the backstage pass in your bag feeling like the magic key that would allow you to see him again, in the flesh. If he wanted to see you, that is.

A few months ago, it wouldn’t have even been a doubt in your mind. When you’d left Japan in October, it had been in a state of heartbreak and regret, and the following few days hadn’t been much better. You’d stayed in the black hoodie he’d asked you to keep the whole time, his ring hanging around your neck, listening to The Shins and Norah Jones on a loop, feeling your heart sink at random moments when you’d remember all of a sudden that you’d never see Taehyung again.

You had no way of knowing for sure, but you were reasonably certain that he was going through a tough time, too. Jimin had done a Vlive a couple days after Japan and Taehyung had appeared on camera for a few minutes, looking morose and not talking too much, eventually walking off without saying goodbye - which was when you noticed that he was in a familiar grey hoodie that only two people in the world owned as drivers for Red Bull Racing Honda - one of them being you. He’d also posted a picture on Weverse with the caption “goodbye, i’ll miss you”; to anyone else, it might have just looked like a nice scenery somewhere in the Japanese countryside, but you recognised it immediately as the dog farm he’d taken you to on what you privately counted as your first - and only - date.

You two weren’t stupid, though. Very aware that you lived in a world which had the magic of the internet and phones, you’d started off keeping in touch, texting and occasionally calling whenever you got a chance. But it hadn’t worked out too well, for many reasons. Firstly, BTS was on tour. Even as you followed them online and saw clips and interviews from the fan accounts you followed, it was clear that they had neither the time nor the energy to focus on a single thing more. Secondly, you yourself were nearing the end of the Formula One season and Red Bull, true to form, hadn’t yet made a decision regarding the renewal of your contract for the next year. You had made it onto the podium (second place) in the Japanese Grand Prix, the last time you’d seen Taehyung, which had definitely gotten you a lot closer to a contract, but the focus you’d had to put in in the following races - Russia, Mexico, Brazil, USA - had been insane until you’d finally been resigned just before the last race in Abu Dhabi.

But the real issue, at least as far as you could tell, was that you two just hadn’t got enough time together in Japan to define what you were at all. You’d both said some pretty heavy shit to each other - and while you’d meant it all, it was hard to reconcile that storybook weekend with just texts back and forth, especially when they started becoming more and more infrequent over time.

You had called him on his birthday, not knowing it was the last phone call you’d have. After multiple failed attempts at video calls and normal voice calls, you’d finally settled for just texting him a happy birthday, telling him you missed him and that you hoped he’d have an amazing year ahead. Taehyung hadn’t responded until the next day with a “thanks” and a heart emoji. You’d tried not to feel hurt by it; he probably had a concert or an actual birthday party he was at and after all, it was only a matter of time before their real lives took over your fantasy weekend romance.

January had gone by in a haze of missing each other’s calls and texts while he was in the US and you were in the factory, helping your team develop the car for the new season, and by February, your focus was geared towards testing the car. In March, the new season started. The day of the opening race in Australia, you’d received a text from Taehyung, wishing you good luck for the first race. Your heart had skipped a beat; he’d wished you religiously for every remaining race last year and it felt nice that he remembered that you were still racing. You hadn’t seen it until after the race had ended and you’d landed back in London, though; by then, it was too late to respond with anything more than a singular emoji, making it the last communication you’d shared.

You didn’t know if your feelings for him had really gone anywhere, but they certainly took a backseat after a while, if for no other reason than the fact that it hurt too much to keep missing him. You’d finally confided in Lexie, your closest friend and trainer, sometime in January, when the realisation that you would eventually become strangers started to overwhelm you. She hadn’t been too surprised, but by the time the season started, Lexie had started dropping hints about how you should start moving on, either by making racing your sole focus or by something you hadn’t really considered till then: dating.

In April, you met Alex Turner. He and the rest of the Arctic Monkeys had been at the Monaco Grand Prix, the oldest and most famous race of the year, home to every celebrity under the sun, to perform at the Amber Lounge Fashion Show the day before, and you’d first made eye contact when you’d walked down the runway and he’d crooned Take it easy for a little while right to you, a moment that had gone viral in the F1 community for about ten minutes. You’d partied on Sunday night after the race and, hopped up on a reasonable number of drinks and naturally attracted to how mysterious and sexy he was, you’d hooked up in an empty cabin on the boat.

You’d dated very briefly after that, mostly because you were both single and based out of London. Alex called you his muse, photographing you while you lay around on his couch and penning random lyrics about how a fast car had swept him away and whatnot. You, on the other hand, with your apparent weakness for dark and brooding musicians, knew instantly what you were trying to do and whom you were trying to replace - and how miserably you were failing. You hadn’t realised you were failing until a few weeks in, when you’d woken up in his bed one morning and, expecting to see Taehyung’s face, had felt your heart sink when you’d seen Alex’s instead.

You’d broken up with him before breakfast, a conversation that had turned unexpectedly mutual when Alex had claimed that your “concept” had been too “overwhelming” for him, while you chose to stick to more straightforward reasons and told him flat out that your career was too demanding for a relationship. You’d stood in the kitchen in silence, the mutual relief in the air obvious to any sentient individual, before he’d pulled yu in and kissed you goodbye. You’d suspected he wanted it to be a passionate farewell that he could probably write a song about, but in the haze of the previous night’s liquor and this morning’s freedom, you’d ended up fucking on his dining table before you left his apartment for the last time.

Your decision to come to this concert had been a tough one. On the one hand, it was a BTS concert - enough said. On the other, you didn’t know where you and Taheyung stood and while you could very well go to the concert and leave without anyone being the wiser, this could be your one chance to get closure - whichever way it went. Not knowing meant you were unable to move on, though, so despite how big of a risk this was, you knew you had to take it.

The next question was how to actually meet him. Calling and informing anyone in the band was out of the question; the only thing you wanted less than finding out you were over was making Taehyung feel obligated to invite you backstage. It could make you seem like a girl who couldn’t get over an ancient fling or a fan looking for clout, and you frankly couldn’t pick which was worse.

Finally, after ages of overthinking, you decided to post an Instagram story with Lily, taken in front of The Radisson where you were staying, captioning it “Los Angeles represent with this hot local” with a song from one of their older albums as the soundtrack. It was as subtle as you could make it; if any of the band members still remembered you, they’d see it on your Instagram. You knew for a fact that at least Namjoon, Hoseok and Jungkook had private accounts - if even one of them saw, you’d get your answer.

When you’d returned to your hotel after lunch the day before the concert and the receptionist had handed you an official-looking envelope, your stomach had squirmed in anticipation and excitement. As hoped, it consisted of two tickets and a backstage pass to the concert, along with a note saying “Hope to see you there! - BTS”. While it hadn’t escaped your notice that it was signed by the entire band, you were glad that the envelope had arrived at all.

Lily was your obvious choice for the concert; ever since she’d started dating Alex Albon, a fellow F1 driver, you’d both hit it off and made sure to hang out every time she came to support him at a race. Had Lexie been here, it would unquestionably have been her, but you were somewhat glad it wasn’t, especially since there was only one backstage pass which would be a lot harder to explain away to Lexie, as well as the fact that Lexie was sure to ask a ton of insightful questions, none of which you felt you had the answers to.

You’d spent all of last night in a haze of anxiety and excitement, even going so far as to reconsider going at all. There was no way, of course; at the very least, you knew Lily wouldn’t allow you to miss the concert. Now, you searched for her, constantly checking your phone for any update on her location.

When you finally found Lily, it was less than five minutes before the band came on stage. The show passed in a blur of energy and colour. Halfway through, you realised that no matter what happened between you and Taehyung tonight, attending the concert was more than worth it. When you saw him walk onto the stage for the first time, your heart stopped. It was proof, whole and conclusive proof, that he did indeed exist, that he wasn’t a dream. It was also a vaguely sinking feeling when you saw him gaze at the crowd and perform his heart out, that it wasn’t at all unreasonable to presume that you were well and truly in the past for him.

You tried to enjoy seeing him in the flesh as much as you could, though. He was in black joggers, a black t-shirt and a black unzipped hoodie, a black and white bandana around his forehead. His hair was slightly shorter and straighter than the long and voluminous perm that it was in Japan, but he looked so incredibly sexy that it didn’t even matter. When he sang his verse of Mikrokosmos and appeared on the screen, eyes full of emotion as he looked out at the crowd, you realised with an unexpected sadness that even if it ended today, this was the best last memory you could have of Taehyung.

At some point, he looked to his left and smiled at Jimin with his glorious, boxy smile, hair falling effortlessly on his bandana and onto his forehead. You’d run your hands through that hair, you remembered. Pulled at it, brushed it out of his eyes. You’d kissed those lips, hugged those shoulders, held those hands the last time you’d seen him, when he’d told you he loved you. I know it doesn’t make sense but I really do, he’d said, lips at your hair, arms around your waist. You felt a pang in your chest at the thought that it might not mean as much to him anymore.

When the concert ended, you said goodbye to Lily and hung back for a bit before heading to the building behind the stage, flashing your backstage pass at the bouncer. He looked at your pass, glanced at your face, and led you to the side, into a dark corner that looked more like a storage space than anything. You were just starting to get creeped out when you finally saw a familiar face.

“Hey, you came!” Namjoon, tall and winded, appeared from one of the corridors and immediately hugged you. You were glad it was just him; during the short weekend in Japan, the only other members of the band you interacted with at length were him and Jungkook. “It’s so good to see you. Taehyung’s going to lose it when he sees you,” he added, chortling, as he motioned for you to follow him.

Taehyung. You sighed and stopped in your tracks, knowing you had to ask. You were both in a corridor now, about to climb a small flight of stairs to a door that you could only presume eventually led to their green room. Namjoon stopped as well, frowning. “Everything alright?”

“Is this -” You bit your lip, your heart beating faster now. “Is this a bad idea? Tell me honestly. I mean, it’s been - what - eight months since I last saw him? Does he, you know… does he even remember me?” Does he even care?

For all his intelligence, Kim Namjoon looked highly confused, as though he was still processing the question. “Who? Taehyung?” When you nodded, slowly and incredulously, he froze - but not as though he was in shock. More like something in his brain stopped working. “Well, I mean… I’m not in his mind, but I think... I think he could get electroshock therapy and still not forget you,” he said kindly before straightening his face. “Seriously, he hasn’t been the same since Japan. Do you really think he - I mean, as far as I know, you’re still his phone’s lockscreen.”

You were sure the last part was an exaggeration, but your heart leapt all the same. “Are you sure?” you pressed, mostly because you thought you knew what Namjoon looked like when he was confident, and this wasn’t it. “Did he send me the backstage pass or was it all of you?”

“Um…” He rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “Okay, so technically, he doesn’t know you’re here. Jungkook saw your post on Instagram and I got the passes sent to your hotel. But we just wanted to surprise him, that’s all,” he added quickly, obviously seeing your eyes widen in shock.

“He doesn’t know? Oh, my God! What if - what if -” You couldn’t even speak, the number of worst case scenarios in your head suddenly skyrocketing. “Okay, this is a really bad idea. You know what, I can just leave right now and he never has to know, okay? Great concert, by the way,” you added hastily, already turning around to sprint the hell out of this place when Namjoon grabbed hold of your arm.

“Okay, come on,” he said calmly, like he was speaking to a child about to enter pre school for the first time. “Look, at least meet him. It would break his heart if he knew you were here and you still didn’t at least see him.”

“Why will he ever find out?”

“Well, I mean, he knows you’re here.”

Your eyes widened. “You just said he doesn’t know!”

“No, no, he doesn’t know you’re here backstage,” he corrected himself, waving his hands impatiently. “But he knows you’re in Los Angeles because he -” Namjoon broke off abruptly and sighed. “Okay, do not tell him I told you this, but… he created a fake Instagram account so he could follow your career. Like, literally, in the car on the way to the airport in Japan. He thinks we don’t know but we do.”

You were speechless for a few seconds. “But… if he knows I’m here then why didn’t he say anything?” you asked in a small voice.

“Well, because if I have to guess, he probably thought you forgot about him,” guessed Namjoon, clearly losing patience now.

You swallowed, staring at him. “What’s his username?” you asked finally.

“Taeovercoffee,” he said, without skipping a beat.

You could feel yourself wanting to smile, finally rolling your eyes. “Well, he’s wrong obviously,” you muttered, your heart fluttering and mind going back to Japan. But you were still anxious. Looking up at Namjoon, you tried to ask him, silently, if he really thought this was a good idea.

He sighed, chuckling in what you took to be mild disbelief. “Do you know that ever since Japan, he’s increased the number of English classes he’s taking to thrice a week? It’s the first time he’s ever done that. He’s taking as many classes as Jungkook now.”

You swallowed, pretending not to know what he was getting at. “Haven’t they all been learning since debut?”

“Exactly.”

Heart thumping hard, you finally nodded. “Not sure what that has to do with me, but… okay.”

Namjoon rolled his eyes with an unimpressed look at her, knowing he’d won. “Yeah, I’m sure you don’t. Can we go now?” When you exhaled and nodded again, he resumed walking. You followed him to the green room, where it was just Seokjin, Yoongi and Hoseok present, all still in their concert outfits, looking exhausted but exhilarated. They stood up when they saw you, though, greeting you like they knew you already, Hoseok even coming up to hug you.

You were still there a few minutes later, preferring to listen to them talk while you fretted about finally, finally meeting Taehyung. You worried about everything; your clothes (skirt overalls over a crop top and sneakers), your hair (shorter than Japan), what you would say. It was nerve wracking; you wanted him to hurry up but simultaneously take his time.

Finally, right when Namjoon and Jin were in the middle of discussing some hilarious mistake that no one in the audience seemed to have caught in Korean, Jin’s gaze shifted to something behind you, looking over the top of your head. You turned involuntarily, before you could fully guess what he was looking at, and it was like you’d gone back in time.

It was like a scene out of West Side Story; everything else blurred into the background and it was just Taehyung, tall and sweaty and sexy, looking at you with wide eyes as if you were a hallucination. He was still in his stage clothes, down to the black and white bandana, his black hair falling onto his forehead with graceful ease. You could just about make out Jimin and Jungkook on either side of him, but neither of them could steal your focus from him.

Your heart was racing and you realised you were holding your breath. You exhaled shakily and attempted a small smile. “Hi,” you managed, swallowing. When he didn’t reply, you panicked. “I’m sorry, I should’ve called but I didn’t want to -”

You barely registered his smile beginning to appear before he’d covered the distance to you in two strides and grabbed you into a gigantic hug, pulling you close and tight. You automatically wrapped your arms around his neck, momentarily forgetting you weren’t alone and burying your face in his shoulder as you heard him murmur into your hair, partly in English and partly in Korean.

“Oh, my God,” he whispered, arms so tight around you that you felt like your ribcage might break. “You’re here, you’re really here…” He switched to Korean, clearly unaware, but you didn’t care because you got it. You got it, and you were so relieved that you got it and he got it.

He set you down but didn’t let you go, pulling away just a bit. “How - how are you -” He broke off, sounding like he’d just run a marathon but Namjoon interrupted before you could respond.

“Um, I don’t mean to -” He grimaced, looking awkward as hell, “but the staff will get here soon.” He locked eyes with Taehyung, who nodded in understanding and grabbed your hand.

“Come on,” he said breathlessly, tugging on your hand, and you both hurried out of the room. You had no idea where you were going; you simply followed Taehyung. You finally reached a dimly lit stairwell where you halted to a stop and, almost like you could read each other’s minds, launched yourselves onto each other. Taehyung pushed you against the wall, hands firmly gripping your waist, and kissed you passionately, almost frantically. You kissed him back, hands running through his hair before they snaked down to the waistband of his joggers.

It was all very quick and heated and desperate. You palmed him through his joggers as his lips roamed your neck, leaving open-mouthed kisses down to your collarbone; you nipped at his lower lip while he pulled your underwear down and hitched you up, lining himself up at your soaking entrance and sliding in when you whispered your desires against his ear. You forgot everything else: where you were, why you were here, what you would do if you got caught. It was just you and Taehyung consummating everything you’d felt over the last eight months.

It was not what you’d imagined when you’d thought about this night but somehow this hot, frantic sex, all lips and tongue and teeth and incoherent moans, against a wall with Kim Taehyung, so long since you’d last seen him, seemed like exactly the kind of thing you ought to have expected.

When you were back on your feet and done cleaning up with tissues that your friend Chris insisted you carry everywhere, he walked back up to you. You were still leaning back against the wall, knees weak and panting slightly as you came back down from your orgasm, heart speeding up as he reached closer and closer to you. When he was finally standing before you, your chests touching, he brought his hands up to your face hesitantly, so unlike how he’d held you just a few minutes ago.

“You’re really here,” he murmured, his eyes wide with hope and wonder, almost as if he was afraid you were going to disappear. His hands slid down to your shoulders, your arms, your waist, and back up to your face. “It’s really you, you’re really here…”

You bit your lip and chuckled, knowing exactly how he felt. Your weekend in Japan had seemed like something out of a fantasy and you were somewhat glad to know that you weren’t the only one that felt overwhelmed by the reality of it all. You reached up and held onto his wrists, stroking the back of his hands with your thumbs, drinking in the sight of him. “I’m really here,” you confirmed softly.

Taehyung laughed weakly before lowering his head and kissing you, a full, deep, passionate kiss. You opened your mouth and let him in immediately, finally remembering what this felt like, what you’d tried to find with Alex but could never possibly compare to this. He was exactly like you remembered; how close he pulled you to him, how his tongue roamed your mouth, how his hair was so soft and so easy to grab, even if it was damp and sweaty after his concert.

You broke apart after a little while but didn’t pull away; Taehyung rested his forehead against yours, eyes closed. You wanted to close your eyes, too, and stay here forever but you knew you couldn’t, that you had to at least let him know what the situation was. “Tae,” you whispered.

He smiled, eyes still closed. “Dilara.”

Even as you smiled, you felt a small prickle in your eyes when you heard your name come out of his mouth with that Korean lilt, still sounding like the most melodious song he’d ever heard. You tilted your head up slightly and kissed him again before pulling away this time, leaning back against the wall. “Tae.”

He stood straight now and you finally registered how tall he was, your forehead just making it past his shoulder. His hands fell from your waist but he reached up to twirl a strand of your hair on your shoulder, looking down at you with a fond hint of a smile, as though nothing you could say could ruin this for him. When you took a deep breath, he raised his eyebrows in that playful, smirky way of his, asking you to continue.

“I, um…” You bit your lip and tugged on the bottom of his t-shirt, just to give your hands something to do. “I have a flight in the morning.”

Taehyung’s face fell just a bit. As you’d suspected, the end of your dalliance was not something he’d thought of yet. “Oh,” he said finally, eyes falling to the ground as his shoulders dropped. But then he raised his eyes to meet yours again. “Then we have tonight.”

True to form, just like the first night you met, Taehyung took you to the terrace of the building. He told you on the way that they’d recorded, practiced, rehearsed and performed, all in this very building. Apparently it’s where they spent the majority of their time whenever they were in Los Angeles. You preferred it, especially when you reached the top and the cool night breeze hit your face. Next to you, Taehyung sighed and closed his eyes, running a hand through his hair.

“Shit, you must be tired,” you said, suddenly feeling guilty. “Are you sure you don’t want to -”

“No, no, I’m fine,” he interrupted you, shaking his head and coming up behind you to wrap his arms around your waist. “I’ve been waiting for this for too long now,” he told you, kissing your cheek. “Plus, we’re alone…”

You giggled, turning around and happily obliging, kissing him as though you did it every day (wishing). He snickered, responding with feel and, you guessed, adrenaline from after the show, picking you up so you could wrap your legs around his waist. It was so familiar; it still felt like young love, full of excitement and affection and heat. Finally, lips still on his, you reached behind him and tugged at his bandana, untying it, pulling away and hopping down.

Taehyung threw his head back and shook out his thick hair, joining you near where you sat down with your back against a low wall, in the perfect position to take in the view overlooking the entire city. “So,” he began, taking a seat in front of you against a low parapet, bending his knees and casually taking one of your hands in his, interlinking your fingers. “How are you?”

You tried to tell him everything; how the F1 season ended, the fact that you got re-signed for another two years, that your mum and Rudy celebrated fifteen years together. You skirted around the topic of Alex; you didn’t think you had anything to feel guilty about but at the same time, especially given how passionate your reunion with Taehyung had been, you felt yourself wanting to hide it for as long as possible. You both hadn’t even been \very big; except for a few F1 fan accounts on Instagram who themselves could only speculate, no one knew for certain, especially since you and Alex definitely never went public.

There was so much to catch up on that the conversation eventually moved to Taehyung, his tour, how disappointed he was to not be home for his birthday again but that the boys did their best to give him a great time anyway, how he was exploring dreams as a theme for writing music. Sometime during the conversation, you shifted where you were sitting on the floor and your foot hit your bag, knocking it over so its contents spilled out. Thankfully, it wasn’t much - except for one thing.

Taehyung paused before gingerly picking up the cigarette pack, face smooth and completely unreadable. You sighed, just like you did the first time Lexie, Chris and Fred each found out. “Okay, don’t judge me. I don’t smoke all that often; just when I’m stressed or…” Your gaze flickered up to him. “... anxious.”

“I vape,” he stated, looking up at you with that same impassive expression.

You raised your eyebrows, not expecting that. “You do?”

He nodded. “I don’t do it so often, though,” he echoed, the corner of his mouth lifting. “But… yeah. Not just you.”

“Guess we learned something new about each other tonight,” you said softly. “But, you know. I have to hide it,” you added, gesturing to the smokes and the lighter. “The F1 community will not take well to a driver smoking, especially in this day and age.”

Taehyung nodded. “I get it. If I ever get photographed with a vape…” He didn’t even finish his sentence, but he may as well have. K-pop idols were held to such a standard of perfection that if it ever came out that V of BTS was vaping, he would be crucified.

“I can keep a secret,” you told him, holding out your pinky. He looped his own around it and tugged, pulling you onto his lap so you straddled him. There was a shift in the air; there was something so hot and intimate about sharing a sordid secret like this with him, a vice you both had, a weakness that couldn’t get out to the world - except to each other.

Almost to test him, you pulled out a thin, long cigarette and lit it, taking a long drag and only breaking eye contact when you tilted your head up towards the sky and let out a breath of silvery smoke. When you looked back down at him, there was darkness in his eyes, his cheekbones looking sharper than ever, his tongue slowly licking his lips. Wordlessly, you pointed the mouth of the cigarette towards him, watching as he leaned forward and took a long drag, blowing the smoke forward but to your side.

He frowned slightly. “Is that... green apple?”

You smiled in confirmation. “My favourite.” You took another drag and this time when you turned your head to blow out the smoke, he stopped you. His hand came up to your face to keep it steady and he tilted his chin up slightly, keeping it level with your face. Still not looking away from him, you slowly blew the smoke out, right into his mouth, just as he pulled your face closer and kissed you.

It was different from all the other times you’d kissed tonight. He opened his mouth and your tongues met immediately. It was slow, sensual, with deep breathing and sighs into each other's mouths. The cigarette fell forgotten as your hands went up his chest, gripping his t-shirt and feeling his hard, lean chest under your hands before they went up to his head and you ran your fingers through his soft, thick hair.

You moaned softly without meaning to; you’d missed this, him, so much. You felt his joggers twitch at the sound and rolled your hips forward, grabbing at a clump of his hair. Taehyung moved his lips down to your jaw and to your neck, leaving slow, open-mouthed kisses to your skin. His hands moved up your bare waist and up your crop top; hesitating for a moment, he ran his left thumb across your nipple through your bra.

“Shit,” you whispered, feeling your core throb. His other hand moved lower down your body and lingered on the inside of your thigh, pausing there. Eyes still closed and still biting your lip in an effort to not moan out loud, you frowned. You relaxed a bit when you felt his hand move slightly higher up but when it was less than an inch away from your core, he stopped again. Frustrated, you pulled at his hair, trying to get him to go further.

He grunted momentarily and then, to your horror, you heard him snicker against your skin, low and deep. He moved his mouth up your neck and bit at your earlobe, teasing you. You jerked away and pushed him back by his shoulders, glaring down at him. Taehyung looked up at you with that same knowing smirk, raising his eyebrows slightly and even though he wasn’t saying anything, you could practically hear him saying Beg for it - especially since it wouldn’t quite be the first time he was saying it, not in so many words.

The hand that was up your top snaked down and grabbed your arse, pulling you towards him. “Something wrong?” he asked, his fingers now touching your underwear. His smile widened slightly and you knew he’d felt how wet you were.

You sighed, your eyes fluttering shut momentarily. “Tae, come on,” you whined softly, gripping the shoulder of his hoodie in your fist. “Make me feel good, baby,” you murmured, lowering your head slightly and kissing him, your lips lingering on his. “Or not,” you said after a moment, backing up a bit. “We are in public after all.”

The smirk dimmed slightly but his jaw hardened. It felt like a switch somewhere had been turned on, making his eyes darken. “I know,” he said at last.

So Kim Taehyung had an exhibitionist kink. Or some bit of it, at least, as much as his career would allow. You felt a smirk forming on your own face when your mind suddenly ran through all the scenarios you could use this information in. For now, it made you so hot that it was a wonder you hadn’t come already.

You reached behind you and wrapped your fingers around his wrist, slowly bringing it up the side of your torso and back under your top. He pinched your nipple softly, covered with nothing but lace (a good decision, you reflected mildly), smirking and biting his lip when he felt it erect in the cool wind. He pressed his thumb over your clothed clit and you stifled a whimper, so ridiculously wet for him.

You could tell Taehyung was enjoying this, the silence, the risk, the build-up, the control. He was looking up at you with half-lidded eyes underneath dark eyebrows, lips slightly parted and curling back over his teeth. Not breaking eye contact, you raised your hands and pulled down the straps of your overalls, shrugging out of them and leaving you in just a mint green crop top that stopped just below your breasts.

“Stop teasing me, baby,” he murmured, lifting your top carefully with his left hand and pulling the lace cup down, exposing your breast to the cool wind. You shivered and he chuckled quietly, and you knew that while you were egging him on, if anyone was really getting teased here, it was you. He brushed his thumb over your hard nipple again before reaching forward and taking it into his mouth.

You couldn’t pretend any longer. “Fuck, Tae,” you whispered, your back arching and hand going up to grab his hair and keep his head in place. You reached for the hand that was up your skirt, tantalizingly close to your core but frustratingly out of reach, and pressed his palm to your wetness. He squeezed it once before letting it go, making you stifle another whine of annoyance, swirling his tongue around your nipple and sucking at it until you found yourself begging for more.

Taehyung finally pushed your underwear aside and dipped two fingers in you, his thumb going straight for your clit when you heard a sound behind you somewhere in the building and pulled at his hair slightly. “Baby,” you managed breathlessly, already feeling close, “we’re going to get caught.”

His response was to silently speed up his fingers, softly groaning at the sight of how turned on you were. Despite how close you were to coming undone, you knew you’d said the right thing - mostly because you’d said it on purpose. You reached down to feel the pulsating bulge in his joggers and you knew you were right, palming him without warning. He grunted and immediately grabbed your wrist, pushing it away.

“Uh-uh,” he muttered, shaking his head slightly. “This is about you. So whoever’s going to catch us can see you come all over my hand, baby, come on,” he purred, the Korean lilt making your toes curl, kissing your jaw and moving down your neck as his fingers moved faster, his other hand dropping your wrist and grabbing your arse to keep you steady.

“Tae, I’m gonna - oh, God, I’m coming - “ With a stifled cry against his shoulder, you felt the familiar explosion of heat come in waves, panting as his fingers slowed down and let you ride out your high, finally pulling out of you when you were done. When you opened your eyes and looked down at him, he was looking back at you with a mixture of arousal and fondness, his hands resting on the tops of your thighs.

“I’ve missed you,” he said, voice deep and loving, the sharp and sexy tone disappearing instantly. He ran his hands up your bare torso and linked his fingers around your waist and tugged you closer to him. You felt your face heat up with the way he was looking at you so you leaned forward and rested against his chest, your cheek against his shoulder and your forehead brushing his neck.

Taehyung hummed in approval of this new position and his arms tightened around you as he sat back against the wall. You sat in comfortable, intimate silence for a bit; you ran your finger along his chest in random shapes and he tapped his slender fingers softly on your back in random rhythms, making goosebumps erupt on your skin, occasionally fingering the ends of your hair. You tilted your head up slightly and inhaled as subtly as you could; he smelled of lotion, something vaguely flowery, and cologne and sweat, and you never wanted to forget it.

“Did you say something in Korean?” you asked after a couple of minutes, pulling away slightly and looking up, ignoring his low whine at the loss of contact. “When we were…”

He raised his eyebrows for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, I think so. Got a bit, uh… carried away, I think,” he added, a bit sheepishly.

“No, I - I liked it,” you admitted, shrugging self-consciously. “You sounded… sexy.”

He grinned. “Yeah? I’ll keep that in mind for the future.”

It felt like you hadn’t seen this smile in ages, which you hadn’t. Not in person, anyway. You grabbed the front of his t-shirt in a loose fist and tugged. “I missed you, too,” you said after a moment, before kissing him. He responded, taking it slow and deep, opening his mouth to let your tongue in. You snaked your hand down his torso again and reached for his erection, slowly massaging it as you kissed him. This time, he let out a soft groan into your mouth but didn’t push you away; instead he nipped at your lower lip and his hips buckled just a little bit into your hand when you heard the sound again, like a door swinging shut.

You pulled away immediately and whipped around. “What was that?”

“Probably someone who can catch us,” replied Taehyung nonchalantly, reaching up to press a kiss to your exposed neck but you pushed him back.

“Tae, seriously.” You clambered off his lap, ignoring his protests, and craned your neck towards the door that led them to the terrace before turning back to him. “Can you go check? Please? You have more of a right to be here than I do.”

“But -” The relaxed arousal on his face was replaced with mild annoyance, a frown on his forehead until he rolled his eyes and got to his feet, walking away and disappearing for a couple of seconds. “Nothing,” came his deep voice, a note of irritation audible.

You stifled a chuckle, still on the ground when he walked back and gave you a look. “Fine, you were right,” you told him, grabbing his hand and making him pause where he was presumably about to sit down in his old spot. “I can make it better,” you added, adjusting yourself so you were on both your knees before him and looking up.

He raised his eyebrows. “With one of our songs? And not even a sexy one?”

“It’s been stuck in my head since the concert.” You shrugged sheepishly, reaching up to palm his slightly softer erection again. “I can make it sexy, too. You know… I can make it better...” you repeated, massaging him now, “... I can hold you tighter…” You pulled his joggers down so he was just in his boxers, his full erection now coming free, making him sigh, “... I can make it right,” you finished, your voice dropping to a murmur as you stroked your hand up his boxers and gripped his length.

Taehyung swore softly, leaning his head back and closing his eyes. When you started pulling his boxers down, though, his eyes snapped open. “Baby, you don’t have to - “

“I want to,” you said immediately. When he didn’t respond, you gave him a look. “Tae. Come on, it’s not like it’s the first time.”

A smile started spreading across his face, presumably at the memory. “No… no, it’s not,” he agreed. “I just… I get a bit carried away,” he admitted after a moment. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

For some reason, that made your stomach do a backflip. “You won’t.” You slowly ran your hands across his length again, watching as he shivered. “I want to make you feel good, too,” you implored, looking innocently up at him and licking your lips.

You could tell by how his breath was getting shakier that you were wearing him down. “You’ll tell me? If it’s too much?” he asked. When you nodded obediently, he observed you for a moment, face going back to the smooth, impassive one you’d seen for the first time in the flesh, all the back in Suzuka. “Go on, then.” When you ran a single fingertip down his length, he sucked in a breath and closed his eyes. “Suck me…”

You reached forward and took his tip in your mouth in answer. He swore throatily again, and despite your very recent orgasm, you could feel yourself getting aroused again at how deep his voice was. It was a different feeling, being the one to make him look so helpless, so aroused, so close to coming undone. It felt right, somehow. You should be the only one to make him feel like this, you thought, as his tip hit the back of your throat and he groaned your name out loud. Dilara… You moved your hand lower to his balls and he groaned again, higher pitched and his knees buckling slightly.

One of his hands was flat on the wall, supporting him, while the other came up to your hair and he grabbed it, hard. You whimpered involuntarily, gagging for a moment, and you knew he could feel it because he clutched it even harder as his hips buckled forward. You squeezed his thigh, letting him know he could let go, and started bobbing your head faster, your tongue swirling around the head of his cock.

“Oh, fuck, baby, I’m -” Taehyung’s voice was ragged and choked, and you could feel your jaw starting to hurt. “I’m gonna come, Dilara, I -” He broke off and groaned, and you felt his warm seed spurt on your tongue. You slowed down, pumping his length slowly until he was done before pulling away and swallowing without fuss, sitting back on your feet. You tossed your hair back and tried to make it lie flat while he pulled his boxers up, eyes still closed, looking completely fucked out.

You stood up and fixed your overalls before reaching up on the tips of your toes and kissing his cheek. Eyes still closed, he smiled breathlessly, his arms coming around you to hold you in place as he turned slightly and captured your lips in his. You wrapped your arms around his neck, reaching into his hair and running your nails along his scalp, hating that you couldn’t do this every day.

You were still very much in your own world, snogging lazily in the cool breeze of the terrace when you heard a sound followed by a different kind of groan. You jerked apart and you turned around to see Jimin and Jungkook, both holding paper bags, while Jimin had his face screwed up in exaggerated annoyance, turning away and muttering to Jungkook in Korean.

Jungkook slapped him on the shoulder, his own face red as he grinned apologetically, while Taehyung just rolled his eyes and seemingly admonished him before switching to English. “What’s that?” he asked, pointing at the bags.

“Are you hungry?” asked Jungkook, looking at both of them and pulling out boxes of fast food anyway, making your stomach rumble.

You could argue that in Japan, apart from Taehyung, you’d spent the most time with Jungkook and Namjoon - but even that hadn’t been a lot. You and Taehyung had been stranded in the Japanese countryside after the dog farm when the hotel car Taehyung had driven you in had broken down, and he’d predictably called Namjoon for help. Apparently a recent license-holder, the leader had driven over to rescue the two of you, Jungkook tagging along for reasons best known only to himself.

Apart from them, you had only run into Jimin once in the elevator when he’d winked knowingly at you before leaving you alone with Taehyung. Besides them, you hadn’t met any of the other members before the weekend had come to an end, so it was pleasantly surprising that the other two maknaes volunteered to bring you food on the terrace, especially when Jungkook walked over and hugged you just like Namjoon had, albeit a little less confidently.

As the night went on, however, it became less surprising. It was clear that they were both here out of sheer curiosity, and while the older members might have had the sense to give you both your privacy, these two had no such boundaries thus far at least. You found you didn’t mind too much, though; you weren’t the best at meeting tons of new people at once, so it was better that it happened one by one.

It was somewhat sweet how Jimin kept pushing more and more food in Taehyung’s direction as he spoke to you, the Korean accent slightly less pronounced in his words, while Jungkook seemed to have actively missed him for the last hour, talking to him in rapid Korean as though updating him on everything he’d missed the last couple of hours. They kept switching between English and Korean, and it was nice to see Taehyung so comfortable and happy that you couldn’t even find it in yourself to be annoyed that they’d interrupted your precious few hours with him.

Sometime later, when you were just reaching over to dip a french fry in ketchup, he nudged you gently. “I’m, uh… I’m sorry about this,” he said softly, sounding a bit nervous. You frowned and looked over at Jimin and Jungkook who were laughing and talking with each other.

“Oh, don’t be,” you said immediately, meaning it. “I like hanging out with them. Jimin’s my favourite, you know?” you added, winking.

“Oh, ha ha,” he said dryly. “But, no. I meant, I’m sorry for tonight.” You didn’t get it and he seemed to understand that, for he rubbed the back of his neck a bit self-consciously and shrugged. “I just… I always pictured the next time we met that I’d take you out on a real date. Not… stuck up here on a terrace hiding from fans and eating fast food.”

There was something happening in your chest and it was a few seconds before you realised it was your heart racing. You popped the fry in your mouth just to keep yourself from smiling too widely and shook your head. “That’s okay. And if it makes you feel any better, I would think we’re hiding from the paparazzi more than the fans - which I don’t mind at all. But, just out of curiosity,” you added, leaning back against the wall and looking up at him, “where would you have taken me?”

Taehyung pretended to think, leaning back against the wall as well, before listing down a bunch of ideas that included a go-kart track, a dark room in Seoul, a B&B in Connecticut, an art gallery in Sevilla, and a museum of penises in Belgium. It took you a moment to process all of it, but you had fun discussing how you thought those dates would go before you reminded him that he did take you on a date, the day after you first met.

“Oh, yeah, the dogs,” he remembered, smiling. “That was a really good day.”

“It was,” you agreed, nodding. “You even took some great pictures that day - there’s this one I put up on my Instagram a couple months ago… hold on, I’ll show you -”

“This one?”

You looked up to see him holding up his phone, a picture of you lying down on the grass, black hair wavy and spread out, laughing up at him while you cuddled a labrador. “Yeah,” you said slowly, surprised at how quickly he found it. You remembered what Namjoon said about a picture of you being his lockscreen and you wondered momentarily if it was this one.

“Yeah, I saw it. I liked the soundtrack to it, too,” he added cheekily, and you knew he was referring to Winter Bear being the song you chose.

You felt your cheeks heat up, thankful that your skin didn’t quite let you blush. “You saw it?” you asked warmly. You remembered putting it up; it had been just before his birthday and you’d been missing him a fair bit, but your dynamic by then had started dwindling down to the point where you couldn’t simply text him out of the blue. You’d been flipping through the handful of pictures you’d taken during your brief dalliance in Suzuka and when this one had come up, you’d felt an overwhelming sense of affection and sorrow, enough to publicly lament what could have been had things been different, if he wasn’t a world famous musician who was scrutinised by the public and you weren’t a world famous athlete who travelled to twenty countries for nine months out of the year.

“M-hm. I, uh…” He bit his lip, his cheeks darkening slightly, “I created a fake Instagram account. So that I could… follow you.” His eyes locked with yours and you wondered what he wanted to say before he settled on follow.

You bit your lip too, and chose not to reveal that Namjoon had already told you this. “Really? What’s it called? I’ll follow you back,” you told him, taking out your phone and clicking on the Instagram icon.

“From your public account? Sure that’s a good idea?”

“I have a Finsta, too, Tae.” You ended up following him from both accounts, especially since you used your Finsta fairly rarely, shared only with your closest friends. You both went through his account after that and he showed you the posts he’d put up, mostly artsy shots of rain and streets and his studio. You stopped when you spotted one familiar looking picture, though.

“Is that…” You zoomed in and frowned, leaning across his lap a bit. “Is that me?” The picture in question was of a shadowy figure on a bed, long wavy hair spilling over the pillow and sheets, turned away from the camera and facing the large wall-length window, back bare before it was cut off by a white blanket. The person - who you presumed was you - was right at the bottom of the picture, a dark shadow and taking up barely a quarter of the frame. The focus of the picture seemed to be the rising sun outside the window, glowing red and making the sky ripple. In fact, for a person scrolling through, they may not have even noticed there was a person in the picture at all.

Taehyung nodded, unabashed. “Yeah. Remember the morning I took off before you - before you woke up?”

You nodded, recalling how uneasy you’d felt when you’d thought he was done with you once you’d had sex the previous night. He’d disappeared when you’d awoken and made zero contact with you for the rest of the day, even when, as part of Honda’s sponsorship deal, BTS were in the Red Bull garage a good portion of the time. It had taken your car crashing into a wall for him to acknowledge you at all, and a moment of rehearsed closeness with Daniel Ricciardo, a handsome fellow driver, for him to truly reclaim your attention.

“Oh… yeah.”

“Yeah, well. This is what I saw when I woke up,” he said, pointing at the picture. “And it looked…” He trailed off, a slightly faraway look on his face, frowning as he tried to think of the word. “... like something someone would write a song about,” he said finally, looking back down at you.

Your response was on the tip of your tongue, but you were afraid it might ruin the mood… even though you wanted to know. “Then why did you leave?” you asked softly, failing to keep the hurt out of your voice anyway.

He chuckled quietly. “Because not everything is powerful enough to make me want to write about it,” he answered, dropping his gaze back to the picture. “But you were. And that worried me.”

You didn’t have to ask why. It had worried you, too, feeling the way you did, how strongly you did for a man yo barely knew. “So you sneaked out,” you stated in what you hoped was an understanding tone, “because it scared you.”

“It confused me,” he corrected. He raised his eyes to look back up at you, his gaze more intense than ever. “Until it didn’t.”

Once again, you didn’t have to ask what he was talking about, because you remembered. You remembered what had happened later that evening, what he’d confessed, what you’d confessed, how it had been the last time you’d both seen each other until tonight. It was also the last time you’d both ever said it to each other, and now you wondered, looking at Taehyung, if he still felt that way.

His ring felt cool against your ribs, tucked inside your top. It wasn’t something you’d thought about tonight at all, choosing instead to live in the moment. But you’d be lying if you said you hadn’t been holding a candle for him this whole time, unable to forget him, unable to move on. You thought about the fake account he’d created, how he’d been keeping up with your career and your life. It suddenly occurred to you that he might know about Alex. But before you could say anything, Taehyung leaned down and pressed his lips to yours, only for a moment before Jimin cried out in annoyance again, exclaiming in Korean.

You pulled apart again, this time a bit embarrassed; in all honesty, you’d forgotten you weren’t alone. Taehyung chucked a fry at Jimin, who looked positively cherubic as he whined. “It’s not our fault you came up here,” said Taehyung shortly, in English.

“We came because we haven’t met Dilara in a long time,” said Jungkook reasonably, making your heart skip a beat at the sound of your name, “not so you could make out with your girlfriend where anyone could see you.”

Normally, you presumed you and Taehyung would both share a moment at the allusion to the new kink you’d discovered about each other, but there was something else that Jungkook said that made you freeze, suddenly unable to meet Taehyung’s gaze. You felt him stiffen next to you and you knew he’d caught it, too.

It was easy to forget sometimes that you and Taehyung barely knew each other - because it felt like you’d known each other forever. The intensity of your feelings was so strong since the first time you’d laid eyes on each other, getting only more so the next couple of days until you left Japan, that you both focused on nothing else until you were separated and finally forced to realise how undefined you were.

You knew you weren’t his girlfriend. You weren’t even sure you wanted to be; you simply didn’t know enough about each other to make that assessment. But all of a sudden, the thought of anyone else being called his girlfriend made you want to throw up.

You still couldn't meet Taehyung’s gaze and you could tell by the way he’d gone suspiciously quiet that he was just as awkward about this as you were. Fortunately, it seemed as though Jimin could read his mind, for he immediately scrambled up and dusted himself off. “There’s a pool table here,” he announced, fooling no one. “Anyone want to play?”

You didn't remember answering, but you found yourself getting pulled up by the hand anyway. Or maybe you stood up yourself; it was too hard to tell in the face of Jimin’s sparkling smile and angelic voice. Taehyung presumably stood up behind you and you all shuffled out of the terrace and into an adjoining room you hadn’t noticed before, where you and Jimin played against Taehyung and Jungkook.

You were glad for Jimin being here because the awkward tension disappeared instantly. You and Jimin were decent at pool, while Taehyung was terrible and Jungkook being Jungkook was amazing without ever having played before apparently, making the teams evenly divided. You were barely paying attention to the game, though; you were pleasantly surprised at how Jimin and Jungkook were deliberately making an effort to make you feel comfortable.

Jungkook sang dramatically every time it was his turn to shoot, while Taehyung, adorably frustrated at how bad he was, started sneakily knocking balls around and distracting everyone else. Jimin, bored after a few good shots, resumed the conversation you’d both been having outside about your friends and the work they did (choreographers). It was surprisingly easy to talk to him, enough that it was a while before you realised that you were both neglecting the game in favour of talking to each other, leaning against your cues and laughing every time you were pulled out of your conversation by either Taehyung or Jungkook who prodded you to play your turn.

It wasn’t until you caught sight of Taehyung’s face halfway through and spotted him turning away in what you could only identify as annoyance, that you wondered if he was annoyed at how you were monopolising his friend. In all honesty, you hadn’t even realised you were, but you supposed if how he was walking by both of you but deliberately ignoring you was any indication, he was definitely annoyed.

But it wasn’t even until he walked by both of you again, this time blatantly knocking the cue ball into another one so they both tumbled into the corner pocket, that you realised where you’d seen this particular expression of his. A million years ago, back in Suzuka, the day he’d been frustratingly keeping his distance from you, you’d brought out the big guns to test if he was truly over you. You’d roped in Daniel Ricciardo, a sexy, fun-loving, Australian beach boy who drove like a shark, making sure to pay him your full attention and laugh at all his jokes, until Daniel had finally called you princess, and Taehyung had snapped.

Danny hadn’t even meant anything by it; it was a media nickname given to you that most of the drivers used as a joke, but something in the way he’d said it at the evening buffet, with Taehyung standing less than five feet away from you, had hit a nerve. Taehyung had slammed his coffee cup on its saucer before stalking out of the lounge, the sound not dissimilar to that of the cue balls he’d just knocked over.

Jealousy becomes you, baby, you’d whispered into his ear not long after that incident, once he’d cornered you in your dressing room. You doubted he’d even heard you; he’d fingered you while making sure you kept eye contact with him the whole time, satisfied only when he watched you come undone because of him.

He’d told you he loved you less than an hour after.

Now, you turned around to see Taehyung sighing loudly before something suddenly seemed to fall in place for Jungkook, who immediately started to leave.

“No, no, we should go,” he said hurriedly to Jimin, who looked thoroughly confused at this abrupt plan. He looked over at you for support but you could only shrug, biting your lip and trying to suppress a smile, pretending not to notice how you felt Taehyung come up to stand behind you, towering over your smaller frame. As Jimin continued to protest, Taehyung walked over and held the door open, watching Jungkook pull him away as they disappeared, before shutting it and slowly turning around to face her.

There was about ten feet of emptiness between you where he was at the door and you were standing with your back against the table, suddenly realising just how tall he was. He stood there, unmoving, hands in his pockets, narrowed eyes boring into you. You returned his gaze with defiance, softly biting your lip in both anticipation and teasing.

“That was fun,” he said finally, his face conveying the exact opposite.

“Was it?” You shrugged. “I mean… sure, he’s cute,” you allowed, carefully observing him for any movement. “But not my type.”

God, he was so hot. The corners of his mouth widened, but it wasn’t a smile. He took his hands out of his pockets, flexing one of them as he did, and placed them on his hips. “What’s your type?” he asked, as though inquiring about the weather.

“Um…” You noticed all of a sudden that he was closer to you now than he was a few moments ago. “Tall,” you said vaguely, waiting for Taehyung to nod shortly in approval. “Smart. Well-built,” you added, enjoying how he twisted his neck slightly, “... artistic. Kind of moody,” you added further, tilting your head up slightly so you could look him in the eye. He was standing right in front of you now, your chests barely an inch apart.

He didn’t touch you, though. Up close, the black hair, black eyebrows, black clothing played havoc with your heart as he gazed down at you, smooth face betraying nothing. Against your skirt, you felt something move. “Anything else?”

You nodded, ready to play your last card. “I like my men kind of jealous, too, sometimes,” you told him, biting your lip and silently begging him to prove you right. Truth be told, you weren’t big on jealousy. But you had a feeling he knew that, too. Still holding your gaze, he tugged lightly at your skirt before running a hand up the inside of your thigh, stopping just before your soaked underwear. You’ll probably have to throw this pair away, you thought, as his lips curled back slightly over his lips.

Then, all of a sudden, his hand dropped back to his side. You frowned, your breath still caught in your chest, when he tilted his chin up slightly. “Take it off,” he commanded, voice calm and deep.

A shiver went down your spine and you resisted the urge to say yes, sir; somehow, you didn’t feel like it was the right way to address him. His eyes were darker than ever as he gazed down at you, waiting for you to obey. So, you did. Trying to keep your fingers steady, you reached up your skirt and shimmied out of the black bikini-cut you’d put on this morning, hoping for the best.

Taehyung’s eyes followed it as it fell around your feet before looking back up at you. He took a step forward and placed both hands on either side of you on the table, effectively trapping you. “Hop on.”

Everything he was saying sounded like the exact opposite of what it implied. His voice, already world famous for being deep and sexy, was irresistible when he was using it to tell you what to do… especially when you knew you’d do it. You nodded silently and hitched yourself up, legs dangling a foot above the ground. Taehyung ran his hands slowly up your thighs, disappearing under your skirt, holding your gaze the entire time. He didn’t stop until he reached your hips and squeezed them slightly.

Then, without breaking eye contact, he slowly got down on one knee, and then both, and your toes curled inside your shoes at the thought of what was coming. He smirked slightly, clearly knowing where your mind was at, before pushing your skirt up and raising an eyebrow. You shut your eyes involuntarily, knowing for certain that you were about to make a whole mess on the pool table.

“You’re so wet, baby,” he observed in that same calm, deep voice, sounding almost surprised. “Did Jimin get you this wet?”

Ah. You’d almost forgotten what started this whole charade. At the end of the day, your strong, dominant Kim Taehyung was still jealous. You didn’t know how much to push this, but you reasoned that there was no time like the present to find out. You shook your hair back and looked down at him. “Maybe a bit?”

Taehyung’s reaction was exactly what you’d hoped for. His jaw visibly clenched and he pulled you forward with a jerk so it was just the edge of your hips keeping you on the table. You gasped at the sudden movement and he nodded in approval and, wordlessly, leaned forward and swiped his tongue up your folds.

“Oh, fuck!” You didn’t see it coming and you had to grip the edge of the table to keep yourself steady. Apparently, once Taehyung was unleashed, he was a monster, for his hands didn’t loosen their grip on your thighs even for a moment, remaining almost painfully tight, enough that you were sure you’d have bruises in the morning; the thought aroused you even more. His mouth was relentless; he was eating you out, sucking on your clit and running his tongue across your slit like it was butter.

Your hand found its way to his hair and you clutched at it and pulled, making him grunt. You could feel the vibration in your core and you whimpered - and you felt him smile. Or it was a smirk, but you were so close that you couldn’t tell. “Tae,” you gasped, “Tae, I’m close…”

He shook his head. “Yeah? Jimin’s making you come?” He spread your legs wider with a jerk and you whined, pulling at his hair again.

“No, no…” You gave up now - you just wanted to come. “It’s just you - only you…”

“Sure about that?”

You nodded vigorously, barely able to find the words. You felt his tongue lick your clit again and you sighed when, all of a sudden, he pulled away and stood up, running a hand through his hair and wiping his mouth. “Not so easy,” he growled softly, coming to stand between your legs and crashing his lips onto yours. You could taste yourself on his tongue; you responded with urgency, pulling at his t-shirt to bring him closer while he ran his hands up your sides and squeezed your breasts, making you moan into his mouth.

His lips at your neck, he slipped one hand around your waist and smoothly brought you down. “Turn around,” he rasped into your ear.

“Uh-huh.” You obeyed just as you saw him reaching into his pocket and finding them empty; you were leaning on your hands, your legs trembling from the orgasm you were so close to when you realised what you were looking for.

“My bag,” you said breathlessly, pointing to the small backpack peeking out from behind the table. “I have a… there’s a condom.” You both hadn’t gotten to it during the frantic stairwell sex but since you were on the pill, you didn’t quite mind in hindsight.

If Taehyung found it presumptuous, he said nothing about it. You felt him move away and reappear a few moments later. “Good girl,” he murmured, voice like velvet as you heard the condom wrapper tear. A few seconds later, you felt his wrapped tip touch your entrance and you groaned, your hands curling into fists, but you didn’t say a word, not wanting him to deny you another chance to finish.

Taehyung placed his hands on your waist and bit your earlobe before whispering, his hot breath on your ear. “Do you want me to stop, baby?”

You almost came right there, but you made yourself respond in the negative because you knew what he was really asking, in true Taehyung fashion, just like he had in Japan. “Please… please fuck me already, Tae,” you added in a whine, backing into him slightly.

The next thing you knew, you felt his hands on your hips and he entered you slowly, both of you groaning in unison. You couldn’t believe it; you’d almost forgotten to savour what he felt like, how he stretched you out, how his hands made your skin feel like it was on fire at the slightest touch. He established a rhythm quickly; you knew you couldn’t hold out much longer.

Taehyung was pounding into you, each thrust getting you closer and closer to the edge. “Fuck, you feel so good, baby,” he muttered, hands clutching your hips tightly. “You’re so - fucking - wet…”

“Tae, I’m gonna come,” you gasped once more, your arms buckling. “I’m gonna…”

“Come for me, baby,” he murmured, “just for me… come on…”

At his approval, you felt yourself ride your third orgasm of the night. He was still going as waves of pleasure hit you one by one, until you finally came down from it, your neck feeling cool and damp while his rhythm got even faster. He was murmuring in Korean again, before switching back to English.

“Dilara, I’m going to -” He grunted with one last thrust, leaning over you and letting go of your hips, placing his hands next to yours on the table. Panting, he pressed a kiss to your shoulder before resting his forehead on it, slowly coming down from his high.

You felt spent - in a good way. Taehyung pulled out slowly and you winced slightly at the sensation. A few seconds later, you felt his arms go around your waist and gently pull you into his chest as he kissed you on the cheek. “Are you okay?” he asked in Korean, voice a soft, deep murmur against your skin. Your Korean was less than basic, but this you understood. You were too exhausted to say anything, though, so you simply nodded, turning your head slightly to capture his lips in yours.

You turned around in his arms, reaching up on the tips of your toes, and kissed him with renewed passion. You pulled away when you realised you weren’t wearing any underwear.

“Um, can you -” You pointed to where the black scrap of cloth had been kicked a few feet away. Taehyung immediately brought it back, a slightly sheepish yet proud look on his face as he handed it to you and you slipped it back on. “So,” you began, once you’d hopped onto the table, pulling him closer by the hand to stand in between your legs, “the famous V of BTS gets jealous?”

He didn’t look embarrassed; instead, he tossed his hair out of his eyes and rested his hands casually on your hips. “Not really,” was all he said, silently daring you to disagree. You raised an eyebrow but when you couldn’t help but smile at what a liar he was, he smiled too and dropped his gaze. “I’m sorry if I went a bit…” He scrunched up his face and you realised he was searching for the word. “... overboard,” he said finally before pausing. “Actually, no, I’m not.”

You laughed, shoving him by the shoulder. “It was amazing,” you told him honestly before kissing him. He kissed you back, wrapping his arms around your waist and stepping closer to you. His lips felt so warm, so familiar, so perfectly made for yours that the words came out without meaning to. “I love you,” you whispered against his lips, feeling him freeze the moment you said it.

Fuck. You pulled away slowly, dropping your hand from his face onto your lap, unable to believe what you’d just uttered. It was crazy to think he’d still feel the same way… except you had a feeling he did, but you couldn’t be sure. The longer he stayed silent, the more you were convinced you were wrong and the humiliation only got worse. You cupped the back of your neck with both your hands, still not meeting his eyes, and you were just about to hop off the table when his hand came up to your chest.

You stiffened automatically before you saw what he was reaching for. Somewhere during the glorious fucking over the table, the chain around your neck had slipped out of your top. Eight months ago, after a perfect forty-eight hours when you’d both finally arrived at the topic you’d been avoiding, you and Taehyung had more or less made your peace with never meeting again - until you’d been checking out of the hotel after your race and the concierge had slipped you a small brown envelope with a plain silver band inside it, the same one Taehyung had been wearing on his index finger the entire time. Now, he looped the same finger around the ring and tugged gently. “You’re still wearing this?”

You didn’t answer and you knew he wasn’t expecting one either. You felt your heart sink slowly, mentally kicking yourself for your inadvertent declaration of love and wearing a token of it, while he hadn’t even responded yet. At the time, you were sure that the ring meant he didn’t want that weekend to be the end. Now, for the first time since, you wondered if you were wrong. Taehyung brushed his thumb against your jaw and you finally dared to look up at him, trying hard not to look too hurt or hopeful.

“Can I ask you something?” he asked after a few moments, sounding hesitant. Not trusting yourself to speak, you simply nodded. He continued looking at you contemplatively before finally dropping his gaze to rest somewhere between your chin and your neck. “What happened with you and Alex Turner?”

Your heart stopped. It wasn’t that you were afraid of answering; it was just so far off from what you’d expected him to respond with that it took you a moment to gather your thoughts. Taehyung’s eyes snapped up to meet your eyes again and you could see your doubts suddenly reflecting in his, starting to assume the worst, worry clouding his dark eyes even as his face remained smooth and impassive as ever.

Finally, you exhaled deeply, knowing this had to come up eventually. “We dated,” you said simply. “For a few weeks. Nothing more.”

“When you say ‘dated’...”

You bit your lip, not sure what kind of detail he wanted you to go into. “Um… we met in Monaco during the race weekend... and then again in London. Since he lives there, too,” you added, hoping that answered his question. Your heart lurched at the look on his face, the silent hurt along with the forced resignation. “I broke up with him, though,” you whispered after a moment.

He nodded, not meeting your eyes. “I wondered why you’d stopped responding,” he said quietly. “Guess I know now.”

Ouch. Your shoulders dropped. “Tae…”

He swallowed as he continued to finger the ring. Finally, he closed his fist around the ring and sighed. “Did you love him?”

“No.” The answer was easy and immediate. You didn’t love Alex Turner; you didn’t think you ever could have, not so long as Taehyung still hovered within the boundaries of your life, a door unclosed. “The last guy I loved is standing right in front of me,” you admitted, feeling a bit bolder, just wanting him to look at you.

The corner of his mouth tilted up slightly but he still didn’t say anything. “I never forgot about you,” he murmured after a moment, slowly looking up at you, eyes bigger and more earnest than you’d ever seen them.

“Me neither.” You reached up to cover his hand with yours. “Not for a second.”

After what looked like a moment of decision, Taehyung lowered his head and kissed you again, a little tentatively. When you opened your mouth to let him in, leaning in and holding his face to yours, telling him everything you were too afraid to, he sighed.

“Is it bad that I want to kill him?” he murmured against your lips.

You giggled, partly in endearment and partly in relief, and shook your head, going back to kissing him. “Not at all.”

“I’ve loved you every day since Japan, Dilara,” he confessed, moving his lips to your jaw and up to your ear. You felt your face heat up again and didn’t respond, suddenly euphoric. You had sex again, equally passionate but far more gentle, with you lying back on the pool table and Taehyung’s comfortable weight on you, his movements soft and loving. He whispered after a few minutes that neither of you had another condom. You bit your lip, telling him you got tested after Alex, before he confessed that he hadn’t been with anyone after you. Your love for him filled your whole heart and you kissed him and, despite your better judgement, asked him to finish inside you.

You went back outside after that. It was nearing four a.m.; when you settled down against the low wall, with you situated between his legs and resting back against his chest, you finally started to feel tired. Taehyung’s arms were around you, loose but secure, his embrace warm and comforting. You leaned your head back against his shoulder, keeping the comfortable silence going, and turned slightly to breathe in his scent again.

It was barely a few minutes later when you realised he’d fallen asleep. You suddenly remembered that he’d finished a concert tonight, but you couldn’t find it in herself to feel guilty. Careful not to wake him up, you pulled his arms tighter around yourself and leaned back, trying to imprint this moment in your brain as deeply as you could, not knowing if or when you would ever get this again.

You awoke at dawn, the first rays of sun appearing over the horizon. Your phone buzzed just then: a reminder for your flight. You swore, realising you had about ten minutes to leave for your hotel or you would miss your flight. Los Angeles traffic this early shouldn’t be much, but you couldn’t risk it. You started shrugging Taehyung’s arms off and getting to your feet when you felt him stir and tighten his arms around you, groaning into your neck.

“Baby, stop,” he whined in Korean, shifting slightly and crossing his legs around you. Despite the fact that you knew you had to leave, you couldn’t help but beam, your heart soaring at a sleepy, irate Taehyung cuddling you at the break of dawn. You allowed yourself, for one self-indulgent moment, to imagine this moment if you were a couple; a normal couple, dating like normal people, waking up lying on a bed instead of sitting upright on a terrace, half-naked in pajamas instead of concert clothing and make-up, cuddling and snogging until you had to get up instead of cruelly being forced apart yet again with no knowledge of the next time.

It made you smile, but it also made your heart hurt. You sank into his chest for a moment, taking in as much of Taehyung as you could, before turning your head and kissing his cheek. “Tae,” you murmured, nudging him. “Wake up, babe.”

Eyes still closed, he shook his head and buried his face deeper into your neck, twisting your bodies until you both stumbled and fell sideways onto the ground. Taehyung groaned and sat up, squinting in the light as he attempted to flatten his hair, while you got to your feet, dusting yourself off and offering him a hand. Frowning up at you, he said something in Korean.

Biting your lip, you eventually gave up. “My Korean isn’t nearly good enough to understand that,” you reminded him, helping him up. “But I’m learning.”

“You are?”

“Well, I mean, kind of. I don’t know,” you said vaguely, now checking your bag for all your belongings and looking around in case you’d dropped anything. “You know my friend Chris, right? He got sick of me asking him for translations so he’s determined to make sure I learn the language now.” You looked up to see him looking more confused than ever.

“Who’s Chris?”

You gave him a look. “You met him. In Suzuka.”

Taehyung’s frown deepened. “He didn’t work for Red Bull, right?” When you shook your head, his eyes widened. “He’s Korean?”

“Yes. His name is Chris Park. Actually,” you added, “his name is Park Chanyeol.”

“Why didn’t he speak to us in Korean?”

You frowned. “I don’t think he spoke to you at all. You were ignoring me that day, remember?”

Taehyung gave you an unimpressed look, marred by the smile creeping onto his face. “I’m sorry about that,” he said softly, sounding sincere as he came closer to you. When you lightly knocked him on the chest, looking up at him with as much fondness as you could, he swallowed, the smile on his face fading into resignation. “Dilara…”

Your stomach did a backflip at the sound of your name, once again sounding like a song he didn’t want to stop singing. He swallowed again and opened his mouth, but closed it before shaking his head and opening his arms.

You walked into them without hesitation, reaching up and wrapping your arms around his shoulders, feeling him hold you to him tightly. You stayed there for a few moments and, right on cue, you could feel your eyes start to sting with tears. It was so unfair; you wanted to stomp your foot and punch something. You could feel Taehyung press his lips to your shoulder, your neck, the side of your head in quick succession, the situation clearly hitting him now as well.

“I love you,” he mumbled into your hair, deep voice trembling. “Let’s not wait another eight months to do this again, please?”

You nodded, chuckling. “I agree.” You pulled away to wrap your arms around his torso, hiding your face in his shoulder. “I’ll miss you, Kim Taehyung.” He kissed the top of your head before you finally separated. You knew you were crying now, tears actively escaping your eyes as you wiped them. You could tell that Taehyung was just about holding it together, trying to be strong for both of you but he was crying, too. You stepped back and put on your bag, when something fell out of it.

You picked it up before he could, straightening the long black and white bandana in your hands. “I’m keeping this,” you informed him.

He gave you a small smile and nodded indulgently. “It’s yours.”

It was too hard after that - plus, you were getting late. You reached up and kissed him, a quick kiss, lasting less than ten seconds before you turned and bolted, knowing there wasn’t much else to say. You reached your hotel, crying the whole way to the airport, and knocked yourself out with an aspirin on the flight, hoping to catch up on sleep the entire way to London. Just before you took off, you saw a message on your phone.

Next time, I’m taking you out on a real date. I love you. Fly safe.

~

Thank you for reading. Don't forget to drop a review :)

[genshinlover101]

May I request head canons for how Xiao, Childe, and Niuggang take care of their gf who has really bad breathing problems in cold weather? She has been known to pass out from being unable to breathe and easily gets bronchitis and pneumonia from it. Tyyy 🥺

Them with a S/O w/ Low Tolerance for Cold Weather

Characters: Xiao, Childe, Ningguang

Warnings: None

A/n: I’m sorry but sometimes I have no idea what to title these and when I wrote it I giggled a little , I love the concept tho 😉

• Xiao identified immediately your body’s warning signs of pneumonia. Although you weren’t verbally open about it, he recognized your smaller strides and shallow breathing. 

• you began seeing sparkles in your vision signaling you losing consciousness at any moment. Xiao has spent his fair share in the cold understood exactly how you were feeling.

• He would encourage you to eat to regain your strength to keep moving, some way to increase body mass somehow to create more insulation. when in a warmer environment he would watch over you no matter where you were to confirm a stable condition.

You began hyperventilating, your breathing becoming rapid and uncontrollable, Xiao who was holding your hand and leading you through the path turned around wide-eyed. He had experienced almost every physical ailment himself, so when he recognized you going through the same cycle as him, he began to worry immensely.

Even though the problem was minor at the moment, he would feel incredibly guilty if he let it get any worse than it already was, “home?… Do you think you can make it all the way?”

He was a man of little words, but when it came to your safety his communication exceeded. “Mhm,” you nodded your head, avoiding using what little breath you had to make a sound. He didn’t believe you though, he knew you didn’t want to burden him any more than you have with your poor health.

Although he could princess carry you the rest of the way home, this boy was far too shy to initiate it. Instead, he knelt in front of you and signaled to give you a piggyback ride.

You shyly got straddled his back, his warmth immediately acting as a cure. Your shaky breathing against his ear was embarrassing for you. Xiao didn’t mind though, he knew you were hurting, who was he to make fun of you during a time where his girlfriend was hurting.

• Childe noted how warm Liyue’s weather felt compared to Snezhnaya in the Winter. So at first, he thought you were playing a poor prank on him when you couldn’t breathe.

• You began to get wobbly, the strength in your legs draining each step you took. Childe took note of this and realized you really weren’t joking. He felt so guilty, someone as important as his girlfriend trembling right in front of him, and he thought you were kidding?

• He would snuggle up to you with his own body to keep you warm till you reached a warmer environment. Afterward he would make you some hot chocolate with ingredients traditional to Snezhnaya.

You clutched onto your chest hard, wanting to hide the cough attack emerging from your throat. Embarrassingly enough it came out like a hairball, you began coughing uncontrollably. Childe who was walking beside you gave you a side-eye.

“Is this some type of prank to get me to carry you home again? If it is I won’t fall for it ya know? fool me once shame on you- fool me twice shame on me.” He grinned in triumph. He had an ongoing joke of chivalry that he wouldn’t dare fight you physically but verbally was an exception.

His grin turned upside down the moment you only responded with a barrage of coughing. You fell to the ground, clutching hard on the frosted layered grass. “I taste blood,” you managed to spit out before you coughed again.

His gleeful attitude turned to gloom, Childe was a confident man- so when you clearly couldn’t walk home yourself he picked you up princess style. You clung around his neck as he sprinted home, his body’s warmth already transferring to you.

“Oh comrade, your hands are terribly cold. I’m so sorry, I’ll get you home in a jiffy and have just the solution for you.” You were embarrassed at the show you put on today, but you knew Childe was even more embarrassed for thinking it was fake.

• Ningguang wasn’t able to pick up on the signs immediately but once things got out of proportion she was able to see you were clearly struggling from some type of ailment.

• For how luxurious and rich Ningguang was, she was always prepared for whatever weather came her way. So when she saw you trembling and gasping for air, she was curious as to if this was some type of act because you were dressed warmer than her. 

• When she realized your situation, she would correct her mistake immediately. Forget brand names and her outward appearance, any jacket or extra article of clothing would be transferred to you. When you got home she would snuggle you next to the fire, covering your body with her own to share the warmth.

Your steps grew shorter and slower, every time you took a breath was like an acute pain in your lungs. You clung onto your scarf, gripping it hard to deal with the pain. Ningguang saw the sheer panic in your eyes.

“What’s the matter? Are you okay?” She placed her hand over your forehead gently. You were burning up. “What’s this? You were fine when we left…” You began coughing gently, each cough was more like a whistling wheeze.

“Oh dear,” She said. She took her scarf and wrapped it around your neck for double warmth. Her light weighted jacket was removed and placed over your large puffer one. And her gloves placed over your ice-cold fingertips. “Listen we’ll get you home immediately and you’ll be fine. I promise.”

You looked at her with concern, unable to talk from the pain. She was practically naked in this weather, just as susceptible as you. “Ningguang but-,” She only grasped your hand and walked shoulder to shoulder with you glued to the hip. The warmth of both of you offered temporary sanity as you both sped walked home.

“I’m not strong enough to carry you home, forgive me. But I can keep you warm with whatever I have to offer. Think of it as a gesture from lover to lover.” Her smile comforted you despite the scratching pain in your throat and your migraine.

[angry-geese]

Hey l turned 18 today so can l request a gojo x reader were reader is his gf and they celebrate the readers bday together

Of course!! happy kinda late birthday btw!!

Domain

Gojo Satoru x reader

Warnings: a bit suggestive, but overall sfw. tooth-rotting fluff. established relationship- its implied that gojo and the reader live together. slight nsfw (nudity, mention of quickies), bathing/washing- sharing a shower, petnames (gojo calls the reader mochi). megumi, tsumiki (they're like,,, 8 and 12 idk tsumikis canon age tbh) and nanami are briefly mentioned. can be interpreted as sorcerer/non sorcerer au. fem reader.

A/n: it came out that gojo was 6'7'' while i was in the middle of writing this and i went feral hes so tall why is he so tall ajhhsdjhjsdh

Word count: a little over 2.8k

jjk masterlist

What wakes you up isn't your phone, or your alarm, but the sound of pots and pans banging around in the kitchen. Enough light streams in through the curtains to signal that it's well into the day. The other side of the bed is cold. Gojo must have gotten up already.

Much to your surprise, the kitchen is empty. Typically, at this hour, the kids would be getting ready for school. Though, with as late as it is, they might have already left for the train station. Classes go until three, but the two of them have clubs for another few hours afterwards. Most days they won't get home until 7. The weekends are about the same. Tsumiki has cram school on Saturdays; Megs’ is still a bit young for that. So Sundays are really their only day off together.

There's a pretty impressive spread of food across the counter. Eggs and bacon; pancakes too, right next to a pitcher of orange juice, and a pot of coffee. Two mugs are set out in front of it. Yours, and the one Tsumiki made for Gojo during an art class. It's a little lopsided, and the bottom is chipped from where it was once accidentally knocked off a counter. She's improved a lot since then, but he holds onto it still, despite her insistence that she’ll make him a much better one.

You find yourself wondering what special occasion has prompted this. But that doesn't stop you from pouring yourself a cup of coffee, and nibbling on a piece of bacon. You take small sips of the thin, bitter liquid. It's much improved with sugar and milk. The warmth of it spreads from the pit of your stomach, out into your fingertips. You could never stomach the stuff plain.

Gojo’s arms find your waist, and tug you close, pulling your body flush to his. His chin rests in the crook of your neck, breath tickling your exposed skin. His lips find the junction where your shoulder and neck meet, placing a kiss there. His much warmer hands find yours, your fingers lacing together. This draws a sharp gasp from you, partly out of surprise. You didn't hear him enter. To be fair, you rarely do. Even when he’s not trying to, he has a habit of sneaking around. Over time you’ve developed a sense for it—for him—and you can guess where he’ll pop up.

"Happy birthday, Mochi," he says, mumbling into your neck.

So that's what prompted this. You let out a small giggle, and squeeze his hand.

“You let me sleep in,” you say.

He pulls away, and you crane your neck to look at him.

“Well, I was going to bring you breakfast,” he says, “but it seems you’re already up,

“I called in a favor with Nanami- he's babysitting Megs and Tsumiki today,

"I thought we'd take a walk downtown in a bit," he says, "check out some shops. Have lunch. How does that sound?"

You nod. His lips find your shoulder again.

“I've gotta shower first,” you say. “Wanna join me?”

And it's as if a switch has been flipped. He's nodding into the crook of your neck, following along as you guide him to the bathroom. Off comes your—his—shirt; a white button-up, that still has the faint scent of his cologne to it. He may not have the biggest frame, but he’s tall enough that his shirts hang well down to your knees, almost like a dress on you.

His glasses have been shoved up into his hair, then are quickly tossed aside as you coax his shirt over his head.

Typically you fight over the temperature of the water. Gojo always insists on keeping it so hot, it makes you wonder how he doesn't boil his skin off. That's gotta be bad for his skin. He complains that you have the shower on too cold, although you seem it a completely normal and sane temperature. The shower in his apartment is big enough to fit both of you, but one of you (usually him, let's face it, you're not going to stand in the cold) ends up outside of the spray of water, shivering.

Long fingers work shampoo into your scalp. His nails are getting long, and feel nice against your head. Then on goes conditioner, which has to sit for a bit. In the meantime you scrub yourself down, making Gojo get your back, and shoulders.

He takes his time working the washcloth over your skin, kneading the muscles of your shoulder under his hands. You let out a few rather undignified sounding groans at this. But, in your defense, it feels nice. If you're giving him any credit, he's always been good with his hands. Those same hands have always had a habit of wandering.

Satoru is possessive by nature; at least when it comes to you. In public he always has to be touching you; a hand on your thigh, arm around your waist, or pressing his body against yours from behind. Everyone just has to know that you’re his.

He pulls you in for a kiss that's just a little too needy. One with a little too much passion behind it. He's the one to lean in- you're always complaining that you have to stand on the tips of your toes to kiss him. His hands wander, groping your plush thighs, and the perfect curves of your hips.

Satoru Gojo has always been pretty hard to read. It was the same when you first met. Everything he does, is seemingly done at random. He has no schedule, and tends to do the opposite of what everyone expects, or even wants him to. Yet things somehow end up in his favor. It's almost like some higher power is looking out for him- if you even believed in that sort of thing.

Dating him really hasn't made him more predictable. If anything, you’re more confused about why he does the things he does. Every action of his has an ulterior motive; not one move of his is unplanned. You just don't know the bigger picture yet.

“We should kill some time…" he says. “A lot of those shops don't open for a bit. You’re not too hungry, are you?”

He could keep you in here all day if you went along with it. Sometimes it's nice. But you can hardly count how many events, or—god forbid—days of work you've been late to because of him.

"No way," you say, "I'm not letting you convince me that you're capable of a quickie."

So you've learned from experience.

He seems to hesitate before looking up at you, flashing a grin. You only shake your head at this.

"I can-"

"No." You say. "I'm not falling for that again. We'll never leave here in time."

You’re already halfway out the shower door as you say this, pulling a towel around yourself. He dries off while you work some product through your still-wet hair.

"There's a dress in there for you," he says, gesturing to your shared room, "get dressed, and I'll dish you up."

Padding across the hall to your shared room, trying not to track too much water along the way, you press open the door. The bed is still unmade, though, you probably won't bother sparing the time to fix it.

Slung over the back of a chair is a dress you haven't seen before. It's not one of yours—it's rare you wear such a thing—a birthday gift. One of them. It's black, and made of a thick enough that you can wear it in the winter with no problem. It hugs your curves quite nicely, without being too revealing. Alongside it is a pair of shoes; cute, but comfortable enough that walking around a lot shouldn't be a problem. Comfort, and functionality kind of come first when you're buying clothes.

Sometimes you find it hard to justify dropping a lot of money on clothes like this. But it's a gift, one you find yourself hard pressed to turn down. Dressing up like this isn't something you find yourself doing every day. But every so often it's nice.

He's always had an eye for nice things like this. Where you’re more practical on this side of things, he doesn't mind some impracticality. Part of it is pride- and deep down he likes seeing you wear things he’s picked out.

It's looking like it'll be cold today, albeit clear, and sunny- at least that's what the weather man said. It's not necessarily snowing outside, but it definitely isn't warm. You’ll take a coat just in case.

Despite the pretty impressive breakfast spread, you don't spend much time eating. It's a matter of waiting for your hair to dry, and then styling it.

Much of your morning—well, early afternoon—is spent walking from shop to shop. Stores that you’ve been meaning to visit for a while, but have never got around to it. Gojo is your designated bag carrier. All along his arms are various, colorful bags, of which he looks tiny standing in the middle of.

Lunch is at a food stand, run by an older couple, tucked away on the corner of your street. They sell quite a few different meals, but you’re here for one thing; their gyoza. Specifically their pork ones, filled with various vegetables, and both fried and steamed. They’re quite literally the size of your fist, and you could eat so many you could make yourself sick. Along with those, you both order a bowl of mushroom udon, and some mochi- Gojo’s pick. Your soup is served alongside lots of tea, in small porcelain cups with ducks painted on them.

The two of you sit at a nearby table, various bags gathered around your feet. Gojo takes plenty of photos, half of which are either blurry, or have you covering your face with your hands. Embarrassing. But he goes on about how he wants to capture the moment, so you can only let him.

By late afternoon, your shoes are starting to hurt your feet, and you’ve hit just about every shop you wanted to. Rip Gojo’s credit card, but, in your defense, he agreed to this. If he really had any complaints, he’d say them. He's never been one to stay quiet in that regard. It's a blessing, and a curse. But Gojo being the way he is, usually can get away with it.

The train ride home is a short, and silent one. With lots of glares from old ladies as your bags take up nearly two seats.

The sun is setting low on the horizon by the time you get home, though it can't be any later than 6. Your apartment is dark, save for a single light on over the kitchen sink, and a soft blue glow from the nightlight in Megumi’s room. The kitchen counter is soon covered in a sea of bags. All different colors and sizes. Gojo helps put things away, trying to minimize the mess before the kids get home.

Satoru flops down on the couch with a grunt, arm stretching across the back of the sofa. A set of strong arms pull you to rest in his lap, tightening around your waist. It's always surprised you how his body can almost completely envelop yours. How his body almost acts as a shield as he curls around you.

His lips ghost across your neck- not in a kiss, but it makes you shudder like it was one. He’s trying to rest his head on your shoulder. “Have I mentioned how pretty you look in this dress…”

“All day, ‘Toru,” you say.

He lets out a soft ‘hm’, fingers lacing together. He’ll tell you it now, and every chance he gets. He thinks you’d look much better in nothing at all, but he keeps that to himself for now.

You kick off your shoes, tucking your knees in close. Your head finds his chest and falls against it. His fingers trace the curve of your spine; a touch that makes goosebumps rise along your skin.

The tv is on, but muted. Not much is on at this hour that isn't the weather, or shows that typically only old people watch.

“There's cake in the fridge,” he says, “if you want some.”

Nanami brought it by this morning when he picked up the kids- asked him to pick it up from the bakery. Another favor. Gojo was certain the noise would have woken you up.

Your head falls into the crook of his neck, and his strong arms tug you closer. The smell of his cologne only makes you bury your nose into his chest.

“Thank you,” you say, “for today. I appreciate it, really.”

This draws a low laugh from him, one that rumbles deep in his chest.

"It's not over yet,” he says, “we could go out for drinks, check out a few different bars tonight…” cause some trouble.

“I think I’ll have to pass on this one,” you say, “but thank you.”

Going out drinking with him rarely ends well. For everyone around him, at least. The last time Nanami tagged along, he blacked out and woke up two districts over missing one of his shoes.

His lips press against yours, then the tip of your nose, then your forehead.

“How about some cake then?” He asks.

And as much as you don't want him to move, you relent. Slowly you pry yourself off of him, moving to sprawl out across the couch. He disappears into the kitchen, returning a moment later with two plates.

Strawberry; vanilla cake, with strawberry filling, and topped with sliced strawberries. You settle back into his lap. Gojo steals bites of fruit off your plate when you aren't paying attention.

Not a moment later, the door opens, and in spills Nanami and the kids. Megumi is the first to stumble over, crawling up onto the couch beside you. He’s eyeing the cake; you make a mental note to bring him a slice when you get up.

“Did you have a fun time at Nanami’s?” You ask, and Megumi nods into your chest.

Tsumiki rambles on about her day. More specifically, about the ducks in the park, and a birdwatching book she bought with her allowance. Megumi is half asleep by the time she’s done. She cuts herself a slice of cake, and gets settled on the couch beside you, soon deeply engrossed in her book.

Nanami waves as he hurries out the door, not wanting to be stuck in conversation with Gojo. You give a wave, and mouth a “thank you” to him.

Gojo’s hand moves to ruffle through Megumi’s hair. His small hands move to rub his eyes. He looks tired. Being at Nanami’s must have really worn him out.

“You wanna help me put him to bed?” You ask. And Gojo nods, mouth still full of cake.

He scoops Megumi into his arms, trying his best not to disturb him. He's always been a pretty heavy sleeper. Megumi has slept through countless things that would have woken any normal person up.

The nightlight in his room provides enough light that turning the overhead on is unnecessary. Off come his shoes, and his schoolbag is set in a chair. He’s tucked in, and you make sure his precious teddy isn't far away. Oh how he’d throw a fit whenever you try to wash it. He's mellowed out the older he’s gotten, but that same stubborn nature still remains.

Satoru can't help but admire the sight in front of him: you hunched over Megumi, carding a hand through his hair. Sleepily his arms find his teddy, and pull it close. You tuck the covers up around his shoulders. The collar of your dress has slipped off of one of your shoulders. The sight is enough to make his chest swell with affection.

Out of everything, he can't get enough of soft, domestic moments like this. Ones that would be boring to anyone looking in from the outside. But he can watch them like a movie. From you brushing your teeth in the morning, to you packing the kid’s lunches. He can act tough all he wants, but the man is completely whipped.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” You ask, upon noticing him staring.

“No reason,” he says, but you know it's a lie.

When you kiss him, he tastes like strawberries. With your thumb, you wipe a smudge of pink frosting off of the corner of his mouth. You lean against his chest, face burying in his shirt, taking in the scent of laundry soap and his cologne. One of his hands moves to stroke through your hair.

“‘Love you,” you mumble into his chest. Along with another, tired sounding ‘thank you’.

“Love you too,” he says.

[complete-idiot-inc]

(this post contains outdated information, may not 100% be in the finished work.)

As a belated birthday gift for Psychonauts 2, here are the central characters of the Vodello Family AU (in no particular order except for mentors coming after mentees)

Razputin "Raz" Vodello: a surprisingly strong psychic despite his age still, now he's a constantly curious, energetic, and maybe a bit too determined kid.

Cassie O'Pia: Raz’s mentor/general teacher, calm and wise. Her archetypes adore Raz to various degrees. (Liberian seems to be hiding something, however)

Dion Vodello: almost the exact opposite from canon, now a supportive, and encouraging older brother to his siblings. Also a little more musically inclined due to his mentor.

Helmut Fullbear: he may be a little longer in the tooth, but he’s still the Helmet we know and love. His mental world is now a bit less of a dissonant harmony however.

Frazie Vodello: again similar to canon but without her coming out as psychic woes, in their place however is mild middle child syndrome and a love for messing with her brothers with her cryokinetic GF.

Hollis Forsythe: the "homeroom teacher" of the interns/junior agents and Frazie's mentor, honestly deserves a vacation with what she gets put up with.

Lizzie Natividad: Frazie's GF and one of Raz's cool big sisters. besides that nothing new.

Compton Boole: a LOT less paranoid and self-defeating, patient as a saint and takes the interns on a bi-monthly bowling trip. His mental world is also more of a "cooking with" show.

Norma Natividad: She’s the responsible (Re: buzzkill) of the group, and has a mild rivalry with Raz due to her better education but his psychic proficiency makes her jealous.

Sasha Nein: carbon copy of canon character. Father figure to the Vodello siblings.

Gisu Nerumen: The cool big sister to Raz and Dion’s girlfriend. Enjoys using her devices to have some fun on occasion.

Otto Mentallis: seems a bit more wary about giving his inventions to the interns in this AU. Also seems sullen if talking to just the Vodello kids.

Morris Martinez: tries to be the cool guy, results vary.

Milla Vodello: exact same as in canon, but now raises the siblings.

Samantha “Sam” Boole: weird, but knows what she’s doing (usually). Raz reminds her of Dogen a lot.

Coach Oleander: gruff on the outside but with a soft center.

Adam Joseph-Gette: the kind hearted big brother mentor to Raz and de-facto leader of the interns.

Truman Zanotto: the grand head of the psychonauts is the trope “Reasonable Authority Figure” personified. Plus objectively the greatest dad.

Lili Zanotto: like father unlike daughter. She’s seen the whole “psychic super spies” thing since birth and has become desensitized to the wonder of it all. (Good thing Raz & his siblings make things interesting.)

Robert “Bob” Zanotto: a definite step up from canon. No longer a complete alcoholic due to his husband never dying. Tries his absolute best to hone Lili’s herbaphony.

Spoiler Character: I’ll just say this, they’re the reason the psychic 6 are so secretive, and why some of the 6 keep away from the Vodello siblings.

Ford Cruller: while he never fractured his mind like in canon, due the events during and after Grulovia he tends to just keep away from people that remind him of Lucy or the spoiler character.

[secretsofdbz]

"Fixing" the Goku Black arc, sticking to canon content.

Alright, so the premise (Zamasu, dragon balls, Goku's body, Shin's dead so no Beerus (and nobody thought about fixing that for some ungodly reason), no mortals plan, king kai still doesn't use telepathy...) remains intact, I'm more or less "sticking to canon" in terms of general idea and rolling with it, what I want to work on is actually changing the actual key events in the whole arc so it has a more satisfying payoff, alright?

(also nota bene, I absolutely SUCK at prose. I'm a technical writer and analyst, at best)

I'm also only using what's shown to be possible in canon at that point (Goku has instant transmission so he can use it), and not pulling random powers for plot convenience. I'm only working from established and clear things alright?

It starts by Bulma is killed by Goku Black, shit hits the fan as shown, Trunks' GF (it being Mai or not really doesn't matter) gets injured/saved by Trunks' healing power from the Kaio Apprentice training, and he flees to the past. He explains the situation (and no stupid attack on Goku, Trunks is over 30 at this point, but crying while seeing Bulma is k) and mentions how this new enemy is wearing a potara (Trunks knows potaras, Kibito and Shin wore them, even if he doesn't know about fusion). This is where he gets actual proper martial arts/introspection training with his bae dad (who's finally bae after 13 years) and his bae dad-in-law (Goku :p). Reminder that Future Trunks is actually a bad martial artist (https://secretsofdbz.tumblr.com/post/672921944655577088/future-trunks-isnt-a-good-martial-artist-and-that my hot take about that is here). Trunks already knew Grade 3 was a mistake, but his martial arts knowledge is still lacking, so this first part in the past should fix that. Insert slice of life seeing the results of his intervention, meeting Pan, maybe some introspection about present Gohan vs his Gohan (and learning he has healing powers from Apprentice Kai training? -> regain of hope for Mai), a talk with 13 Yo Trunks (remember he's 13 in Super, the age the Future one was when Gohan died), and maybe a random enemy showing up in main timeline to test their abilities/learn plot relevant stuff/get potaras (aka Chekhov's gun placement). I'd place Present Bulma sliding a space ship into Trunks' capsules as well as the coordinates for new Namek right here, just in case, because reasons. Now that's done, we need it to be both a flashback to "Gohan had the ~potential~ during the HTC training", to tie things with proper nostalgia call back (and Vegeta realizing he was trash at training his baby boi, and taking charge this time) moment, and a foreshadow moment to the end-of-the-arc Thing. So Trunks goes back with his bae dads to the Future and Vegeta and Goku get "gonna deck this guy for killing our wives" moment, they find out about extra zamasu, Arch-Boss Monologue thing, and this approach is a failure, so they retreat. Here's the major change: they don't flee to the past (the fuel is too precious/rare, time travel isn't exactly reliable), but Goku has IT, and a whole universe he can reach.

Destination option numero uno: New Namek. Goku knows where it is and can IT to it (as he's done so already, so it being the future timeline should be no problemo), and Future Trunks also knows it exists (he knew since Dende created new Balls, after all). Rezing Future Bulma is a thing that needs to be on the list of things to do, but both Goku and Vegeta know there's three wishes and that they can ~strategism those wishes (as Goku did with King Kai in the Freeza fight, and Vegeta is already a strategist, I mean, back then he got a lovely bunch of dragon balls, do do do do...). It's easier to patch up when you've got Namekian healers, too. Bulma may have reminded Goku of Future New Namek before leaving the maintimeline (just in case Goku gets tunnel vision).

Destination option numero dos: King Kai. Future King Kai may or may not have been killed by GokuBlack/Zamasu, but Kais being dead has not stopped them from doing anything (they just get a halo), so.. ? Hell he might be training Future Gohan or whatever (I'm still mad at nobody in otherworld interacting with anyone from the future timeline, k, so we getting some CLOSURE here, and it's forshadowed by the discussion with present adult Gohan). If we go the King Kai route, insert the use of Chekhov's gun with Future Gohan (fusion dance? potaras?). Can also insert Goku meeting himself who died of the heart virus, and/or Baba actually bringing someone in for a day (re: Gohanks fusion option, or double Goku fusion, idk).

Regardless of the fleeing option used (or perhaps both, por qué no los dos?) the three Saiyans get to Heal, get some Zenkai, discuss strategies (up to and including the Mafuba and either fusion option). They come back to Future Earth, create distractions, use of Fusions, otherworldly intervention/help, separate the thing into two fights, insert shenanigans as needed for a tense strategist fight, switching opponents and else (a little like the Vegeta fight in the Saiyan Saga). And then the bad guys fusion into merged Zamasu, and now it's three against one. Vegeta is starting to lose his temper (this bch killed HIS Bulma in front of HIS son! This is PERSONAL), taking the whole ordeal much more personally, and gets strongly wounded. Trunks is late to jump on the way, and heals him by sheer force of despair. A well placed smoke bomb by Mai and concealing ki helps them regroup, take a breather, and coordinate against merged Zamasu. Trunks' ANGRY. Like, SSJ2R angry. He doesn't know he healed Vegeta (he just caught him and screamed), that he'll be fine, and this mirrors Goku-Gohan during the Cell Saga. And Yamcha telling Trunks how Vegeta just threw his life by attacking Cell when he'd killed him. Now we've got two big tools to use: the spirit sword (with KaiserNeko's speech because it's badass tbh), boosted by rage, and the Mafuba (as it's the thing needed to deal with immortal stuff). If you want "strategy" planning and battles to be the highlight, you first try the Mafuba, but the double nature of the thing doesn't work, so you do the sword slice thing (fueled by the energy of the living and the dead, kinda calling back to the father-son Kamehameha, here you'd have Future Gohan and Bulma encouraging him), with Goku and Vegeta giving their energy to Trunks as their last hope, and as Zamasu is starting to break apart, Mafuba works on Zamasu (by Future Roshi? maybe?) and Goku Black is yeeted à la MechaFreeza.

Prologue: Get Namekian Dragonballs to rez Future Bulma, bring Dende on Earth to be the new Guardian, get new DragonBalls, and restore loss since Goku Black appeared (android/babidi-era stuff wouldn't work because it's too old), and, idk, since Beerus is dead in this timeline, someone makes that timeline get a new G.O.D and/or find a new Shin (Trunks as G.O.D of that timeline would be interesting, with Future Whis as his attendant, that would be... a thing). The other two wishes can be used to refuel the machine to bring back the dads of the year and, uh, whatever works for The Strategy discussed prior (the use of the DragonBalls doesn't need to be ~after~, it can be a coordinated thing like in the Freeza fight in the Namek arc), and/or ask for a way to solve this Shin-is-dead-so-there's-no-G.O.D problem. After all, Kibito was rezed by the regular Dende Dragon Balls... (also the whole time-limit only works for mass rezes? Dende Balls rezed Freeza after twenty years, so rezing Shin shouldn't be a problem). Trunks as "taking responsibilities and carrying the weight of the world on his shoulder, and being dedicated to his world" by doing the G.O.D thing makes sense for his character, but him not being a great fit for GOD leaves a hint for future arcs. Trunks' the kind of guy who is reliable and responsible, but also very humane despite his -get-shit-done attitude.

Perks of my thing: - There's only one time travel trip (and not deus-ex-machina the fuel in the Present). - It closes some plotholes of the future timeline (why didn't Trunks ask to use the Kami Dragon Balls to know where new Namek was + get a ship just after killing MechaFreeza?). - Emotional payoff: 32yo Trunks meeting (Future) Gohan almost twenty years past his death, and still mirrors with when he met his present-alive-dad-self. Tell Future Gohan about how thanks to his sacrifice, his present version is peaceful, a dad and a scholar. - Mai/survivors do the spirit sword thing and Trunks gets a cool version of the Genkidama which matches his theme. - SSJ2R echoes Trunks' Get Shit Done attitude. He's the hope and defender of his timeline, he needs to win this (with or without a fusion with Future Gohan?). - Mafuba is tested without it being a comedic effect (meeting future Roshi instead of present Roshi maybe?), and its failure may be before of merged (two entities = no bueno) or be countered. - There's a wholesome Shonen message about "you had it within you from the get go", instead of it being yet another Goku win with Vegeta acting as a punching bag to show how the enemy works. Vegeta KNEW that by getting himself beat, he'd wake Trunks' power (like his own power rose when Trunks died, even if that failed; hybrid potential and else) - This would be a Goku steps back to let the father and son have a redo of their Z bond, mirroring the bond Vegeta got with present Trunks in the Buu saga. - There's an opening to "fix" the actual origin of the problem: Shin (and as such, Beerus) being dead. This means potential "going to check up on that" at some point later (foreshadowing future elements). - And finally, there's no Button.

That and you add more exposition about Zamasu's beliefs, and maybe switch it to "it's all the Saiyans/Earthlings' faults" (and not just mortals in general). And here's the kicker: the timeline where everything is at peace, is the actual first, original timeline. The True, Original Timeline, the one that Trunks got killed by Cell to steal his time machine (if you -really- need the Zeno Button, that's the timeline Trunks and Mai should go to!). Zamasu couldn't go to that one because Beerus is still a thing there, but by killing Trunks in the third timeline (aka the future timeline we know), he'd achieve a similar situation. Now of course, we could change things a bit by having a fusion win, having Baba bringing Future Gohan (and have Gohanks win?), but here I only used the otherworld as introspection/emotional investment thing, so to keep more or less to canon events. It's just moving the same pieces rather than doing a full blown what if (after all, the manga has Shin show up, which I didn't use), but damn if I wanted better from this arc.