#he's usually like “hmm that's odd. ah well he's just a little weird”

[brinkle-brackle]

more doc doc au featuring confused marty :D he can regenerate little owies with no effort

[dullgecko]

Pulling this out separate because i know i said i wouldnt write anything but @yrbeecharmer this is your fault lol

"We should f-uhhh hmm..." Fabians sentence cut off mid word when he coughed and covered his mouth with his fist, Riz looking up from his notebook to give him a confused look.

The fighter had him well and truly penned in against the wall with the way he was standing, the rogue having set himself up in the corner out in the open since he was currently without the ability to hide in Fabians gym bag. He was half watching the fighters class while he worked on some of his rogue studies for once instead of having a nap because he was currently too big for his favorite spot. It was fine, the teacher knew he was a rogue and didn't mind him skipping out on his own classes to hang out there. Plus, half the class still hadn't noticed he was there so technically he was practicing his stealth.

Ayda had asked Riz the previous day if she could test one of her spells on him, the wizard having been trying to extend the utility of the enlarge spell to last longer than a minute and he had been researching in her library at the time. Riz had obliged the request and technically she had been sucessful, the goblin now standing at double his height and eye-level with most of his party. They'd only expected it to last an half an hour or so but, after a little research, discovered that he'd be stuck like this for at least thirty hours instead. He didn't mind so much but it had been a shock for almost everyone he knew when he'd turned up to school like normal but was suddenly clocking in at a height of six feet.

The first thing he did with his new height was pick up Kristen, Adaine and Fig in a hug and spin all three girls around. All of them laughing at the novelty of it after he put each of them down. He attempted to pick up Gorgug too but had given up fairly quickly. The half-orc was still too heavy for him to lift so they just left it at a bone-crushing hug instead.

Their fighter had completely declined the hug when it was offered, simply shaking his head and holding up a hand which Riz clocked as a little odd. Since that first interaction Fabian had been acting weird all day, and staring, then looking away whenever Riz caught him in the act. This was the first thing he'd actually said to Riz all day and it wasn't even a complete sentence.

"What?"

"Fffight. Yes, fight. We're doing hand to hand practice today and well..." Fabian waved at Riz, the goblin currently stuck at double his usual height due to Aydas botched experiment. "Well specifically we're doing pin's... and grapples. It's a good opportunity for you to learn that we might not get again. I'm sure the teacher will be fine with you participating. Fig is constantly doing the same in Gorgugs classes."

Riz tilted his head to the side and flicked an ear, noting that Fabian looked away again when the goblin grinned at him. "Fabian I know how to do hand to hand combat. I have claws and they're kind of useless if you don't know how to fight unarmed. It's just that I usually practice with people my own size."

"Ah. Right. Of course." The fighter rubbed a hand along the back of his head, glancing at the rest of his class that were still practising on the padded mats laid out on the ground. "Well perhaps you could give me some pointers. Plus, I'm finding myself bereft of a partner since one of us is out sick today."

"Sure, if you need the help." Fabians logic was pretty sound, they were the same height at the moment and if the class was stuck at an odd number getting one of your party members to help you practice was considered pretty normal. Riz flipped his notebook closed, shoving it in Fabians bag for safe keeping before letting his friend drag him to his feet and towards the mats.

Riz ended up deciding that Fabians weirdness that day was just because he was feeling ill. His face was pretty flushed after all and the rogue managed to pin him more often than he would have expected if he was in top health. There was no way that Fabian was letting him win, that would be completely out of character for him.

The rogue decided that his assumptions were all but confirmed when, after several rounds of sparring, Riz had gotten a little too into their mock combat. The goblin managing to pin Fabian on his back with his wrists above his head, straddled his chest and growled at him. Eyes contracting to slits as he held Fabians wrists against the ground and bared his teeth. The next instant Riz had been fully bucked off the fighter to land on his own back on the padded mat, Fabian already halfway across the gym at a full sprint heading for the bathroom before Riz could even sit up.

[dmwrites]

So, I was thinking about in-game/storyline reasons for Bdubs not uploading his pov of Limited Life, and it kind of spiraled from “maybe he’s an npc this season” to “well grian would have to do the administrative work to make a bdubs npc I guess” to “well Martyn’s vtuber lore…”, so now there’s this thing. Uh, enjoy?

——

“Bdubs?”

Cleo heard a familiar throat clearing from behind the tree she and Scar were trying to cut down, and called out to whoever was on the other side of the river.

“Ah, Cleo, hello!”

Cleo smiled cheerily at Bdubs, who was approaching them. Scar waved Bdubs over, and they all started working on chopping down the same big dark oak tree.

“Another life series already, can you believe it?” Cleo asked. She couldn’t help but smile- the sun was warm, her friends were all around her, and a new opportunity for good, wholesome murder.

It was natural, the way that she, Scar, and Bdubs fell into an alliance. They were good together, a kind of natural blend of sarcasm and thirst for violence.

But something wasn’t quite right. She shrugged it off at first, thinking it was the general overhanging anxiety of a clock ticking down to death. But no, it wasn’t until the second boogeyman was chosen that she began to realize exactly what was wrong.

When Bdubs had killed Skizz, not even a minute after he had been named boogeyman number two, Cleo hadn’t been paying attention to him. She had been laughing at Scar, and helping him out of the pond he’d fallen into after being rammed by a goat. But when she looked up, to see a death message in chat and Bdubs standing, axe still raised, that same, broad smile on his face.

“Bdubs?”

There was a moment of stillness, where Bdubs stood there, staring off into the space that Skizz had occupied only moments ago. His head then jerked to the side, and he laughed.

“Ah, Cleo, hello. Ah, well, that’s done now.”

Cleo laughed at his laissez-faire attitude, but couldn’t shake the feeling that she’d seen something from Bdubs that wasn’t right.

“Bdubs! You killed Skizz!” Scar exclaimed, interrupting her thoughts.

Bdubs didn’t respond to that, just smiled broadly as Skizz came over the hill again, swearing up a storm and making everything even more funny.

As much as she’d like to forget the weirdness she felt about Bdubs, it was impossible, since he was right there, cheering her on, joining Scar in calling her Mom. He was being odd, in ways that wouldn’t have mattered to anyone but her. He didn’t wear armor until Cleo gave him some. Whatever was suggested, he happily agreed to. He had that big ol’ classic Bdubs smile, but it was the eyes. There was something missing from his eyes- like they had gone dull and lifeless, like a statue or doll.

“Scar?”

“Hmm? Yes, Mom?” Scar was sitting on the top of the mountain, resting for a moment, and gave a cackle as he spoke.

Cleo elected to ignore that for the time being. “Does something seem a little… off… about Bdubs to you?” She eased herself down next to him.

Scar frowned, and Cleo had to appreciate that Scar, for all of his misgivings and silly nature, took her seriously when it was needed. The two looked towards their rudimentary farm land, where Bdubs was doing some final bits of crop harvesting before the sun fully set. The last rays of sunlight glinted off of the many clocks that hung off of his body. He was planting seeds in a uniform, practiced way, focused on his task without the usual whimsical and jumpy gait to his step.

“No, not really.” Scar said slowly. “But, I will say… isn’t it odd that his skin doesn’t change? We all get reset every season, but he… it’s like his last life season never really left him or something.”

Cleo frowned. Last Life was always close to her mind too, but it had never left any… physical marks. Bdubs looked like a sore that never healed.

“Oh, also, he said this thing I thought was kind of, well, I wouldn’t call it out of character, and it was a throwaway comment at best I suppose, but when he and I were trekking the server with our horses and wares, he said he was content to just watch me, like some kind of hidden camera show. Watching my life. Like he’s just a camera for me. And he’s always egging on my terrible ideas.”

“But he’s always like that- he’s a ‘yes, and’ man. You know that.” Cleo said.

“You’re the one who seems to be worried- why don’t you go talk to him then? I don’t want the family to be broken up so quickly. We already lost Dad.”

Cleo smacked Scar lightly up the backside of his head. “Shut it, boy.”

She did wander out to Bdubs, who was just finishing up the final seed plantings.

“Bdubs?”

“Ah, Cleo, hello!” Bdubs stood up and beamed at her.

“Are you okay, Bdubs?” Cleo asked. “Enjoying your time so far?”

“Of course! I am greatly enjoying this time with my friends!” Bdubs’ face wasn’t changing. He was talking and his mouth was moving, but his eyes still were just that same kind of glassy deadness. It struck Cleo all at once, suddenly, what exactly was wrong. It was the uncanny valley effect that she sometimes got when she made a statue too realistic. Bdubs didn’t look like he was living. It was impossible to tell, most people wouldn’t ever see it, only feel that weird anxiety.

“You’re not the real Bdubs.” Cleo said, trying very hard to keep the tremor out of her voice.

Bdubs’ mouth opened and closed for a moment, those eyes still just as wide and happy as it had been since she’d first seen Bdubs on this sever.

“Bdubs?”

“Ah, yes, Cleo.”

“You say that every time I say your name.” Cleo whispered.

——

“Grian.”

Joel and Jimmy must have wandered off, leaving Grian in the ruins of the mansion (which Cleo secretly giggled about). Grian was typing on his commutator, assumedly some admin stuff to do with the server, but looked up and smiled as Cleo approached.

“Hey, what’s up?”

“Sorry to bother you, but I think something is… off about Bdubs.”

For a moment, a flash of recognition and panic appeared in Grian’s face, then smoothed back out. Grian was good at lying, but Cleo had been dealing with misbehavior and liars for a lot longer then he’d even been alive.

“I don’t know w-”

“Don’t bother lying to me, you’ll just embarrass yourself.” Cleo cut him off abruptly. Her head was pounding- she was right, something was wrong. And Grian knew what it was. “What happened to Bdubs?”

“Cleo, that is an administrative issue, not a player issue. That information is private and between only those who need to know.” Grian was talking fast, and his communicator kept beeping- resetting a whole mansion wasn’t an easy task, clearly. He was clearly distracted. “Bdubs being an npc this season is not- oh no.” Grian groaned at his mistake. He closed his communicator and took out his sword. “Okay, so let’s just pretend that I didn’t say that.”

“You really think you can frighten me into silence, little bird?” Cleo crossed her arms and puffed out her chest. She was very scared, she knew how Grian was when he was backed into a corner. And she didn’t even have diamond armor.

“Cleo, listen. I respect you, and I know you care a lot about Bdubs. But let this one go. It’s not… it’s complicated, okay? No one can know, not ever. It’s too…” Grian looked her over, coming to some kind of decision. “Listen, I may not scare you, but I will kill you. If this gets out, I will slaughter you over and over until your out of the series. With no remorse. I promise this.”

Cleo held her ground for as long as she could, jaw set, brain frantically screaming at her to go. “Fine.” She finally said. “It stays here. For now.” She turned and walked away without another word, mentally preparing for an arrow to the back. But nothing came, and she walked until she was beyond the still-smoldering dark oak forest. She could see her allies, Scar and not-really Bdubs, on the mountain, but she couldn’t go there. Not yet.

So she walked in the flat area around spawn, just kind of wandering, mind racing. So Bdubs was some kind of npc- she vaguely knew what that meant. Non-playable. But how could a person be non-playable? It did seem like he has certain things that he said and did- a yes, and man to the extreme, which wasn’t too far off from the man she knew anyway. She had to wonder if being boogeyman hasn’t been part of the script, if that’s why he’d killed Skizz the instant he’d be chosen. But was that even what npc meant?

“But why have an npc?” She murmured to herself, wandering by a small cave opening.

“What did you just say?”

And faster then she’d ever seen him move, Martyn barreled out of the cave entrance, a wild look in his eyes. It was odd to see her old soulmate, and she almost expected a twinge of pain when he tripped over a rock in his hurry over to her.

“Martyn?”

“Cleo, please- did you just say npc?” Martyn was almost shaking, and held out his hands to her. She’d never seen him look so rattled.

“I- yeah.” She cringed, remembering Grian’s threats. “But that’s just between you and me. What, do you know something about that?”

“I- oh my god.” Martyn ran his fingers through his hair. “We need to talk right now. If you know what npc’s are, that changes everything. I- wow.”

“What on earth are you on about, Martyn?” Cleo asked, anxiety rising in her once again.

“I don’t know.” Martyn said. “Well, I do, kind of, it’s just… can we talk?” He gestured to his cave.

“I- yeah, I suppose so.” Cleo replied. It was almost funny, how they were teamed up together by necessity once more. But this seemed a lot bigger then their own souls. Cleo thought of Bdubs and his empty, wide eyes, and it steeled whatever resolve she had inside her.

“So, where to start…”

[icallhimjoey]

To Have And To Scold

♥ ♥  Joseph Quinn x Fem!Reader

Summary: Your best friends are getting married, and who else can they ask to be their best man and maid of honour but you and Joe? It's just that... you don't really get along all that well, do you? At least, that's what you think.

CW / disclaimer: sort of enemies to sort of lovers (very vague, im sorry, but you'll see), slow burn, language, drinking, rpf, fem!reader

Author’s note: here's part 3! it's looking like this story is going to be surpassing my usual 5 parts... so, um... i hope everyone gets invested enough to keep reading past that!

Wordcount: 4K

part one - part two - part three - part four - part five - part six - part seven - part eight - part nine - part ten - epilogue

You couldn't stop thinking about it, and it was so dumb. But... you simply couldn't help it.

That framed picture somehow would find its way back into your thoughts every so often. It felt a little weird, but you also kept almost automatically rationalising it for yourself. You had photos with Mark all over; your social media pages were littered with photographs of the two of you throughout the years, and the comments accompanying them would probably make anyone feel the same way you did about that framed photograph in Joe's hallway.

So then, why did that framed photograph feel so weird to you?

Joe loved Poppy like you loved Mark, you knew that to be true. The only reason Poppy wasn't weird about your friendship with Mark was because of her friendship with Joe.

You all understood on a level not many other people did.

But still... you didn't know why, but, that photograph of the two of them felt... odd. Kind of raised your hackles a little. So, you asked Mark if he'd seen it when he was over at yours for snack night: a night of lots of snacks and dips as a substitute for dinner.

"So, I've got a question... remember when I went over to visit Joe two weeks ago?"

Mark snuck a baby carrot into his mouth that scooped up a dollop of hummus twice its size, and then immediately wanted to say something.

"Hmm," Mark hummed urgently, his face in a deep frown as he chewed.

It took ages for him to get it down, but you waited because going straight in to call Mark's fiance's friend weird might not have been the best way to go about this.

"Yea, what the fuck happened?" Mark asked, eyes big, but already aimed at another snack to grab from another bowl.

"What do you mean? Nothing happened,"

Mark looked at you all sarcastically as he chewed, as if to say, yea, all right, sure.

"What? We talked about your wedding, set dates for events, you know, figured some things out," you waved a hand around to convey the casuality, "But–"

You were about to ask Mark if he'd seen that framed photo of Joe and Poppy that he'd cropped the two of you out of, but Mark interjected before you could bring it up.

"No... something happened." Mark said matter-of-factly and then he paused and looked at you, ready to listen to what you had to say for yourself. But, you kept quiet too, because what the fuck was he on about? So, Mark continued, "Joe didn't speak to Poppy for like... five days? Four or five days after that, which is," Mark leant back and tilted his head back to shout his next words towards the ceiling, "a huuuuge deal!"

"Oh, well, that must've been unrelated to our meeting... we just talked about your wedding, he said I was nice, and–"

"Ah!"

Mark pointed a finger at you that he held right next to his face, one eye closed as he looked at you.

"That's it. He said you were nice,"

"I am nice," you argued.

"Yea, we tell Joe all the time... but he said you were nice?"

Opting to ignore the fact that you'd now heard from several sources that people were talking about you behind your back, you explained how you'd nearly walked out after Joe thought he was being smart that night. How you had said that you were a nice person, implying that Joe could just have been friendly and polite, and it would've been normal. And then you explained how, at the end of the night, Joe had struggled through telling you that he agreed and thought you were nice too. You mocked Joe to paint a vivid picture for Mark and exaggeratedly stuttered your way through the words Joe'd said.

Mark just ate and listened to you, and by the end shook his head a little at your impression, a dangerous smile playing his face.

"But have you seen that framed photograph he has in his hallway? Right by the front door?"

You finally got to the point you were trying to make.

"Of Pop?"

"The one we're cropped out of," you were hoping for Mark to be a little outraged, but he remained totally calm.

"Yea, Poppy has the same one, we've got it framed upstairs, on the landing," Mark said as he licked spilled mascarpone from his finger. "Smaller version, though,"

"We're cropped out of that,"

"Yea,"

"Mark... we're cropped out of that," you needed more of a reaction from him.

"Yes."

But you didn't get it. Mark didn't seem bothered at all. Like you'd said, Mark was made of trust and had just gone and proven it once more.

"He went and had a photo printed that he then had to cut two people out of... don't you think that's weird?"

"Why would it be weird?"

"I mean, I don't know... there are so many other pictures of the two of them, why did he choose a pic that he had to cut us out of,"

Mark shrugged, said, "It's a nice photo of them," and that was that. It was a nice photo of them. It just... it bothered you. You were unable to articulate why it did, exactly.

A phone buzzed on the table, and both of you looked to see if yours was the one that was ringing. It turned out to be Mark's.

Joe was calling.

"Speaking of," Mark said, answering and bringing the phone to his ear, "Joe!"

Mark listened, then rolled his eyes at you even though you had no idea what Joe was telling him.

"How drunk?"

You couldn't help but let a huffed laugh escape you. Poppy and Joe had gone to the pub, you knew. Context clues filled you in on the situation.

"Fucking hell," Mark said and kind of slumped into your sofa more as he listened to whatever Joe was telling him. "I mean, I'd give you advice, but you've been in this situation more than I have,"

Mark was going to have to leave, wasn't he?

He suddenly laughed loudly at something Joe said, head tipped back, mouth wide open, before muttering, "Shared responsibility," softly, indicating he was repeating Joe's words back to him.

"Yea, no. All right, that's fine... see you in a bit. Keep a close eye on her, though, will you?"

Mark said it with love so evident in his voice, it made you scrunch up your eyebrows. If someone else had been there, you'd have made eye-contact with them and would've probably audibly awed.

Mark laughed again at something Joe said, then shook his head as he looked at you, like you knew what the fuck was going on.

When Mark hung up, he turned to you and without any warning said, "Let's go, we're going to the pub."

When you walked in about twenty minutes later, the place was absolutely packed.

"Go grab four beers, I'll find them," Mark said, and you asked, "Four beers? Not three beers and, I don't know, a sprite for Pop?"

"Four beers," Mark said again, holding four fingers up for emphasis before he pushed himself in between a few people and disappeared into the crowd. Off to find Poppy and Joe.

You turned towards the bar and sighed at the fact that Joe and Poppy hadn't just gone to a normal pub, but somehow, one that seemed to exclusively house an after-work-drinks sort of crowd. Most people were dressed smartly, men in suits with top buttons undone and women in pencil skirts and high heels that crossed their legs at the ankles as they held drinks against forearms that were folded over their stomachs. You were in jeans and converse and definitely felt out of place, but the atmosphere was nice. You almost couldn't hear the music over the loud chatter and the belly laughs.

Just when you thought, okay so how am I going to get these four drinks over to my friends when I don't know where they are, all three of them popped up right beside you.

And Poppy was wasted.

"Babe," she slurred as she slung both her arms around your neck the minute she laid eyes on you; eyes that were barely open and kind of crossed over, mind you.

For someone semi-posh, Poppy got sloppy alarmingly quick when alcohol entered her system. She was like you in that way.

"I love you, you know that?" Poppy sprayed into your ear loudly, voice control out of the window, and it made you wince at Mark over her shoulder.

"I'm taking her home," Mark said and that's when you noticed that Joe was trying to get one of Poppy's arms into her coat. She was still attached to you, however, so it really wasn't working out for him.

"I really do," Poppy didn't pay Joe any mind and instead evaded his hands and grabbed you by the face as she pulled back from her hug. For a second you were scared she was going to plant a fat drunk kiss right onto your face.

"Not like Mark does obviously, but I do love you, you're amazing,"

You frowned through a smile, not sure where this was coming from. Had Joe and Poppy talked about the two of you like you and Mark had talked about the two of them? That didn't sound completely out of this world. Kind of made sense, actually.

"Okay, Poppy," your frown turned into scrunched up eyebrows, but your smile remained, unwavering.

"No, listen to me," Poppy got all serious, her hands still clasping your face. She tried to make stern eye-contact, but her eyes were dancing.

"Let's go Pop," Mark interrupted, but it was like he wasn't even there.

"You're so important,"

She was so, so drunk. You could smell the liquor on her breath.

"Thanks,"

"And nice,"

You shot eyes over to Joe who quickly looked down, folding Poppy's coat over his arm, giving up on trying to get Poppy to put it on. He passed it to Mark who leant in to say something closer to his ear that you didn't catch, but Joe laughed, mouthed, "Tequila," and then held up 6 fingers. Mark groaned.

"Poppy," you moved your hands to covers hers and softly pried them off of you. "Thank you. I love you too. But, look who's waiting," you pointed a small finger over her shoulder at Mark, and Poppy seemed very annoyed which only made you laugh.

"Let's go, babe," Mark took hold of Poppy's shoulders and you saw him work to hold her up as much as he was working to guide her towards the exit. Her feet were everywhere and nowhere, just like her the aim of her eyes.

"Good luck," Joe grinned at Mark who looked back over his shoulder.

The two of you made eye-contact, and within 2 seconds of just looking at each other, you'd said goodbye and promised to call each other tomorrow, all unspoken.

"Don't let those beers to go waste," Mark nodded towards the bar where the four beers you'd just paid for still stood, waiting to be drunk.

Oh.

Immediate panic washed over you.

Mark and Poppy were leaving, which meant now you and Joe had four beers to share and... you and Joe had four beers to share.

Mark could've been smug about it. Could've made a face at you to tease, but he hadn't. Had just quickly said to drink the drinks and then turned his full attention to his fiancé who was bumping and leaning into people left, right, and center.

"You got it," Joe wasn't going to let himself be told twice and slid two glasses slightly more towards you before grabbing the other two, one drink in each hand, double fisting. It looked like Joe had also had a few drinks already, which, of course he had. Poppy hadn't been doing tequila shots on her own, you assumed.

Suddenly, your evening with Mark of bitching about Joe from the comfortability of your own sofa in your own flat had turned into an evening in a posh pub with the actual dude himself. Alone. Just the two of you in a sea of suits, button-ups and pencil skirts. The prospect of it was awful.

Who would mind two wasted beers? No one really. Certainly not you, at least. Joe could have all four if he wanted. You were about to come with a dumb excuse, a polite one, to get out of there, but before you could, Joe cleared his throat.

"So," Joe said, and you couldn't believe what you were seeing. Joe was sort of turned to you, full body language engaged and ready for a chat.

A chat.

With you.

Like normal people.

Like friends.

"Who's going to be your plus one?" Joe asked and immediately busied his mouth as he took a slow sip of beer, peering at you over the glass.

You frowned a little at his question, and then more at the way he looked. All suited up, top buttons of his shirt undone, loafers – he looked like everyone else there, fit right in amongst the office crowd even though you knew very well Joe didn't have an office job. Joe didn't know how to do water-cooler-talk, didn't know how office gossip worked. Why these after-work drinks at the pub were such an important part of working in an office. You did, or had done, but still, Joe fit in with everyone else and it was very clear that you didn't.

It made you feel inferior but also a little rebellious at the same time.

You reached for a drink for yourself, deciding that you actually would mind wasting two beers that you'd paid for and you copied Joe, taking an even slower sip than he did, buying yourself time. If this was going to happen, if you were going to have drinks and be out with Joe, you weren't going to be the first one to back out. You had said you were going to at least try to be friendly, hadn't you? And it seemed like Joe was trying, so now you had to too.

"For the wedding," Joe clarified, like you didn't understand what he originally meant.

You took long to answer, smacked your lips and looked at your glass as you lowered it, saying, "I don't think we get plus ones, Joe,"

It was Joe's turn to frown.

"Of course we do,"

"Don't think so,"

You had the wedding invitation stuck under a magnet on your fridge. Saw it every day. Nowhere did it mention a plus one for you. You assumed later because you'd been asked to be Mark's best man. You'd have actual jobs to do. Bringing a date just to leave him stranded was weird, and so it made sense to you.

"Why wouldn't we?"

Joe hadn't had the same train of thought, it turned out.

"Does your wedding invitation have a plus one on? Because mine doesn't,"

Joe thought back, eyes darting around but not really looking at anything. "I don't... I don't remember word for word exactly what the invitation said–" Joe paused abruptly and looked at you, one corner of his mouth slightly upturned. "Well, I do, of course," He didn't, but he didn't need you to know that. "But surely..."

"I think they kind of want us to focus on the jobs we've been given," you said, feeling all smug that you got to tell Joe something he didn't know yet. One-upping Joe felt stupidly good. You were in jeans! In dirty old canvas trainers!

"Oh yea," Joe quipped, and you didn't like how casual that suddenly sounded.

"Like not forgetting the rings,"

And there it was. In a reflex, you lifted your middle finger up at him and immediately realised that Joe could absolutely take full offense. You weren't people who flipped each other off for fun. You said you were to at least try to be friendly, but nothing else had really changed since your meeting over at Joe's house. You weren't suddenly people who were comfortable around each other to be mean in ways you could be mean with Mark, knowing that the bickering was never damaging but more a fun way to get actual frustrations out.

But luckily, Joe gasped a small gasp through a wide smile. No offense taken.

"I thought you said you were nice," the face Joe made almost seemed flirty.

"And you agreed," you threw right back at him. "Even told Pop about it,"

Joe didn't argue, and so you knew you were right. Joe and Poppy had talked about you and Mark.

A pause followed where you weren't sure how to continue the conversation, and the feeling of wanting to abandon the evening all together crept back in. You'd had half a beer, had said some words to each other, so you knew it'd be all right for you to now go, well, I actually have to go get going. But then, something else crossed your mind.

"Can I ask you a question?"

Joe absolutely wasn't expecting the tone switch in you, suddenly sort of serious.

"Have you thought about your speech already?"

You'd briefly mentioned it the other night, your speeches. You'd said that you would just need to make sure that the vague idea of them wouldn't be insanely different from each other. If you were just going to do a a short quick little cute speech, Joe couldn't do an insanely long one that included a whole PowerPoint presentation, or something else insane, like a song. But, you'd very quickly come to the conclusion that neither of you wanted to speak into a microphone for very long.

You wanted your speech to be heartwrenchingly beautiful though. Mark was going to fucking wail at his wedding, you'd absolutely make sure of it.

"I have," Joe said, nodded slowly, and for a second you thought, how the fuck is this guy an actor?! He was obviously lying.

"Okay..." you phrased it like a question, and a short silence followed where you both narrowed your eyes at each other, not fully trusting what wasn't said aloud. Joe was confusing you and you didn't like it.

"But we really don't get plus ones?"

You knew Poppy would have laughed at the way he said it. You didn't. You just shrugged.

"Maybe Poppy doesn't want you to bring a date, just because,"

Oof. Wrong thing to say. Insinuating all kinds of things Joe didn't appreciate, you could see it in the sudden tension in his jaw. It hit almost below the belt. You kind of meant it, though. Had that blown up framed photo of them on your mind still.

"And perhaps Mark doesn't want you to bring one for the same reason,"

You learnt the hard way that dishing it out was far easier than taking it.

That stung, like it always did when people would assume you and Mark were dating, and wouldn't believe it when you said you weren't.

It stung almost extra because you'd just thrown someone a comment you hated getting yourself, and then got it right back like you deserved. The fact that it was from someone who'd probably gotten the comment loads too made you feel even worse about it.

Served you right.

If the air between you hadn't been awkward but maybe sort of pleasant for a second, you missed it.

Slow sips from wet beer glasses were had, and you cursed yourself for not being able to just call it a night already. You were committed to win this now, even though none of this was a contest. Nothing ever was, but you were just like that. Couldn't help wanting to win at everything, especially when it came to petty shit like this. There was no way you were going to leave this pub before Joe did.

It was all awkward comments, feigned naturalness and ease, and when you finished your second beer, you hated how Joe just went and ordered another two. He kept you there and you realised he was onto you. He fucking knew you weren’t going to say no, weren’t going to be the one to back out first. You were too much like Poppy in that way, you thought, and it felt a little vulnerable. Like Joe could read you, could really see right through you, just because he knew Poppy so well.

But with alcohol in your system, you started feeling invincible. Feelings like guilt and regret took a back seat, which was dangerous.

Made you order the next round, just out of sheer spite. And you'd barely eaten - just things like cucumber and carrots with hummus and tzatziki - and started to really feel the effects of it.

Made you smile at a stranger like you shared an inside joke when he bumped into Joe and made him spill some of his drink.

Made you ask stupid questions, like why Joe had a cropped photo of him and Poppy framed in his hallway.

"I don't know if you've fully understood the situation, but I can explain it in simpler words, if you'd like?"

Patronising. Joe spoke to you like you were an idiot.

"I am friends with Poppy, and have been friends with her for a looong time. We're family, and sometimes it's nice to have photographs of family up on your walls. Some people think so, at least,"

So very patronising, it was honestly insulting. He was also missing the point. Didn't understand what you meant. He probably wouldn't, even if you explained it, you thought, so you left it alone.

"It's okay if you don't get it," Joe looked down his glass before adding, "if you don't have that same sort of bond with Mark, I don't expect you to understand," and taking a sip.

Too far.

You were getting too intoxicated to just... take shit like this.

"Oh you wouldn't fucking know what friendship was if it stared you right in the face," you challenged.

For a second tonight had been about proving to each other that your friendship with you best friends didn't cross any inappropriate boundaries. Now, however, it was suddenly all about proving to Joe that your friendship with Mark outweighed his friendship with Poppy.

Joe had no fucking idea how bonded you and Mark were.

How you'd gone through absolutely shit in your teens, and how Mark had managed to haul you through, pulling you out at the other end with a lot less scars than you'd imagined beforehand.

How you'd spent years not thinking you'd live past your teens, battered and bruised from trusting people you were told time and time again you could trust. Had to trust. But should've never trusted. How Mark was the one who'd held out a friendly hand and had proven to you time and time again that men sometimes didn't want all the things you weren't ready to give. Weren't willing to hand over.

How Mark had fixed parts of you which you'd redeemed unfixable until he'd gotten all up in there.

How Mark was solely responsible for your strong belief in the power of kindness. The power of true friendship. The platonic soulmates type of shit.

Joe had no fucking idea. And so you told him again, "You wouldn't even fucking recognise it,"

Joe was about to fight you on it, but he felt something had shifted. Saw something in your expression, in your eyes, that made him swallow his words whole.

Joe saw something that made him believe you on your word. Maybe his friendship with Poppy was a small tiny thing in comparison.

"I'm sorry," Joe's features softened immediately upon the sight of you, and it was all kinds of wrong.

Somehow everything felt unfair all of the sudden.

You needed to leave.

Needed to be polite and thank Joe for the lovely evening all sarcastically and leave without a good excuse to do so. Just, get out.

Away from Joe who didn't understand. Who made fun. Who judged. And who was he to fucking talk?

When you hurridly turned, intending to run, Joe gently reached and touched your upper arm. Strong fingers, but somehow a soft touch.

"I need to leave," you said, and without saying anything else, Joe let you go and let you walk out.

No questions asked.

No goodbye from either of you.

—

The Taglisted: 

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(taglist currently full, sorry)

[cawareyoudoin]

Season 2 of The Owl House, my live reaction!

It took me like twice as long to watch it, because I had to stop and write down my thoughts, but man it was fun, especially when it came to theories.

I can't get readmore to work in drafts, if it doesn't I am so sorry :(

:readmore:

Episode 1

Eda I love you so much you have no idea. She cares for Luz so much and just casually shows it. She's the best.

Lilith, you fucked up, you gotta deal with it.

Cute pirate head thingy Luz! Also, I knew that theoretically fire magic can not only initiate, but also create fire, but powering a furnace? That's impressive. And very economical.

Eda in a PIRATE COSTUME oh man I am being fed WELL

"So unfortunately for you, my life is pretty great because I'm friends with Luz the human" hell yeah, cut that self-sacrificial crap in the bud!

The golden bird boy is weirdly endearing. Kinda. He's... fun at least? Maybe. Undecided.

OMG THE NEW OUTRO IS SO PRETTY!!!

Episode 2

Hmm. Oh yeah, forgot Amity's parents are assholes. That kinda explains the twins being like that sometimes. Also, the genetics + memories suggest that Amity has her father's hair, but she dyes it to be more like her mother's, which already says a lot. Or maybe it's just witch genetics.

Hahah, figures Lilith would love being back in school. Also, interesting way of seeing how Eda would usually mix her magic.

"No-one ever said power comes with responsibility..." Hahah, King has not watched Spider-Man.

Gus just had a growth spurt? Witch puberty? Ok. I won't question it if the show won't.

Aww, Hooty finally has a friend who likes his company!

Willow has two dads, how nice.

Oh, so Amity's mother is like... The murderous kind of crazy. Right.

Eda knows when to ask for help! And in the end, chaos and order work together to find out something new. Neat.

Wait, so the four elements are... Ice, fire, light and plant? That's an... Odd choice.

Episode 3

Ooh backstory?

So the elements aren't necessarily only the thing they have represented so far. Makes sense.

Ah, the entire house is literally living and meaty about it. Love it.

King, are you gonna take them to the dread pyramid floating in the sky or something?

Oh, yeah, kinda. Alien zombie mummy morphing creature, neat!

OH NO HE WAS EVEN TINIER AND CUTER

Aww :( he's so sad! But wait wait wait. Those ruins and murals were actually ancient, right? The weird creature only got aggressive once Eda got there, otherwise little King would be toast... And he did get the army idea even earlier... And he was just in that castle out of nowhere? Nah, there has to be more to this, I'm calling it.

Called it!

EGG!!!

"I'm not that old, it's possible" wait, he's actually not much older than freaking 8 years old?!!? All this time I thought he was just... A childish adult? A dog cat creature animal adult? I mean he still could be but wow. He actually is baby.

Took a break here, but wow. This show is catering to my younger self like no other. It's bringing me back to Gravity Falls - would it be blasphemy to say I like it more? - and it's healing my inner child by making a better magic world than H*rry P*tter ever was. It is also catering to my older self with... Well, mostly Eda, I'll be honest. She is THE character of all time so far. Wow.

Episode 4

WOAH THAT'S TERRIFYING AND COOL!

Eda's backstory mirrors Luz question mark?

Oh, that's a side effect of the curse, ok. I thought Eda was just detachable like that. Cool.

Whoops. Eda was mommy's favourite. That explains a lot about Lilith.

Ohhh no. Oh no she's a healing crystals mommy. She's so getting scammed. "Keep it away from the eyes of nonbelievers"? Oh yeah.

King wants to meet his dad so bad, which makes me fear that it will not at all be what he thinks it will be.

Oh wait, maybe it will be. Lilith and King are spiraling.

Hooty's actually worried about them, and is the voice of reason for once? Woah!

Whoops. Lilith owl. And she's... Even bigger...

WHOOPS. Sister owls.

They're cool-looking, damn.

If only it were that easy to convince parents like that...

Lilith-beast is attacking Eda-beast... It's the jealousy and mommy issues, right?

Yeah...

Stash hair goals!

Good for Lilith. Probably. I hope.

Whoops. A doppelganger. Well, at least Luz's mom isn't worried... Heh...

Episode 5

I like the new intro so much that I watch it every time.

Heheh, Luz wants to see Amity. Nice.

Amity looks so nice with her hair down!

"After he accidentally texted a poem to their mom" oh? Nonbinary people real?

Wait that was. That was the light glyph. Gus just did fire magic because he believed he would.

That's a cool dragon thing.

Matt character development? Neat.

Hell yeah, terrify the mean girl with statues crying blood.

Yay, graveyard management!

Oh ok, Amity is dying her hair. Glad that's cleared up.

Oooh! New haircut, nice!

A little kiss on the cheek? "Sneaking into people's hearts"? Bold move indeed!

Episode 6

Hmm, ok... The Emperor wants to get to the human realm... Is he that human from the journal? He'd have to be old as balls, but hey, magic is a thing right?

Oh he's cursed. And eating palismans.

"Uncle"? Hmm, then not human, most likely. Nevermind.

Eda in a suit jacket ohh yeah.

OH OK THE PRINCIPAL'S HEAD DEMON THING IS EXPLAINED OK

Whoops. The golden guy's back. And he's... Whistling the theme song?

Lol, he's just a grumpy teen. Draco Malfoy looking ass.

Doesn't have powers without the staff huh... Maybe their family really does have some human in it. Maybe the journal guy is their great however-many-great grandpa. "Many of my ancestors didn't have magic"? Oh yeah. I'm convinced.

Hunter. Neat. I worry for him.

Eda, you lovely, lovely thief. And of course she would have Luz carve out her own palisman. She's all for doing things the most traditional, "wild" way.

I worry for the little red bird, but good for Hunter, I suppose!

Another few days' break here

Episode 7: Eda's Requiem

Uh oh, worrying title (also: started paying attention to titles here)

Ah, poor Eda... She thinks everyone's leaving her :(

Whoopsie

Oh, I've seen this bespectacled character. In fanarts and such.

Look at Eda, being a hero and all

Look at this new person being a hero and all?

AGENT OF CHAOS YES I LOVE IT

Raine Whispers. Ok. Cool name.

"They're not very good at it" oh hell yeah nonbinary people real!

Oh, that's the girl from the first episode! That escaped the Conformatorium! I think.

Hmm, they crushing, are they? Oh boy I fear betrayal...

"You're not our mom!" Hahahahah

"Bye mama Eda!" Hahahahhahahaha

Hmm... Decaying magic? Destructive magic?

Aww, King baby...

Gus helping his dad with the news, nice that side characters reoccur even when they're not needed per se

Hmm, wouldn't it be a better idea for just Luz to fly the race? King is not heavy, but still...

Awww, Edaaaa!

Ah, ok, abomination witches can do more than just abominations...

Eber has a perpetual >:3 face

Using the curse as a weapon? Sounds... Interesting, certainly.

Awe, Eda's gonna have to steal another pair of shoes...

Hahah, and Raine's smile is literally :} cute!

Uh, Eda, I don't like this self-destructive episode please stop...

Ah shit. Ah fuck. Raine, no!

I knew taking King along for the ride was a bad idea.

Awwwww!!!!! King!!!!!

Oh fuck. Oh no. Fate worse than death-ing Raine? We just met them!!!

Episode 8: knock, knock, knocking on Hooty's Door

Aww, Hooty found a way to write letters! Wonderful.

King is a baby!

Wait, I just realized. "hootsifer" not as in Lucifer, but as in Calsifer! I'm a dummy.

Let me drive my mouse into your heart???

OH OK THAT WAS MILDLY TERRIFYING HOOTY DON'T DO THAT

Yeah, don't do that either...

Ohh boy. Well, the bipeds having bile sacs thing explains why some people going to school don't look like elves.

Oh? Hello? Huh? King? Magic? Shouting magic???

Yeah Eda, confront your demon(s)!

Ahh, yeah, her and Raine were exes.

Yeah Eda, comfort your demon(s)!

HELLOOOO???? HELLOOOOOOOO???? HARPY LADY??????

"This is a hot look." AGREE AGREE BIG AGREE

Oh man, Hooty, don't do that...

The worst part is that the cheesy romance stuff was actually working.

Well, Hooty did help everyone, in a way. Yay!

Whoops. King's dad question mark? Well, at least he respects his new name!

Episode 9: Eclipse Lake

Oh, ok. We just get his face. Lucius Malfoy lookin ass.

He's been in the human realm, huh... My suspicions grow...

It worries me that Lilith is in the intro as part of the 3 associated with Belos...

Hahahah, now Eda wants to be a harpy lady on command! Cute.

Well that's a very direct DBZ reference (I've never watched it but come on everyone knows it)

Aww, Amity is doing so well!

Hunter is gonna cause a schism in the empire. Well, he already is causing one kinda.

Also aww, Amity has a white kitty! Fits her.

Hunter makes friends way too easily for his own good.

"A bad but sad boy" ooh, that's gotta sting. Accurate though.

Kikimora is fucking insane. Why does Belos keep these people!!?? The guard lady is much more reasonable.

Ok, my "first human=Belos" theory isn't off the table yet.

Hunter is too honest for his own good too. And nobody listens to him. But hey, he used his ability to bond with Amity well, for his own gain. He's pretty clever.

Well, Eda made a deal with the beast... Hmm.

Hunter, I feel like your pathetic-ness can be very beneficial to you right now...

Amity don't. Don't give him. The key. Fuck.

Ok, good.

The little red bird coming in clutch! And hey, Hunter, you've got magic now, cool eh? I love when antagonists get character growth too.

Ah shit. He knows how to manwife mansplain manipulate.

This is very bad. Hunter is the patheticest little meow meow there is though. That's something. Ah wait. No. Key is broken. But he's connecting with his palisman! Good for him, bad for his rep.

Also, phew, the deal was just to eat some voles.

I'm sorry for comparing him to Draco Malfoy so much, but like... He has a similar narrative role, but is SO MUCH BETTER DONE. Draco Malfoy wishes he had what Hunter has.

A few day's break again

Episode 10: Yesterday's Lie

Oooh, do we find out more about the doppelganger?

Oh no, throwing away Luz's stuff?!

Aww, they seem to not be overtly malicious, just... Took the opportunity maybe?

Aww, everyone's helping Luz!

Ah. Mirrorverse only.

Hmm. Dad's face invisible. I sense issues.

Hahah, they're blinking sideways.

Aww, I've come to really like Luz. She's kind but not naive, smart but not all-knowing, optimistic but not toxically so.

Traps and cameras... Uh oh

Wait, one of those statue guys looks like the journal human! Am I crazy?

Marylin? Eda, Really? XD

Simple solution: eat the rats!

Aaaah, Vee as in V, as in a roman Number Five. Clever yet sad.

Ah, the emperor's people. Of course.

Basilisks in the folklore I know turned people into stone. But draining magic seems like a pretty reasonable equivalent.

"I met a basilisk" oh yeah, I forgot about that episode! Wow! That was last season. The continuity and consistent worldbuilding in this show astounds me.

Awww. I'm all for Luz having a doppleganger sister.

Ah shucks. The museum guy. Of course.

Oh, the museum is "under new management". Uh oh.

Hmm. Is he playing dumb or just plain dumb?

Oh no, he wants to be verified. Worst motivation.

Oh boy. She's gonna tell her mom everything.

Two brothers? OH OK SO ONE LEFT THE JOURNAL AND THE OTHER STAYED AND HAD KIDS AND THAT'S BELOS AND HUNTER boom bang bing I solved it.

YES MAMA NOCEDA IS THE BEST YESSSS

Hahah, a sandal to the face. Strongest weapon.

OH BOY THEY JUST LEFT HIM IN THAT CAGE TO DIE HUH

Oh no. Oh no no no. Luz is gonna have to confront that promise huh.

Episode 11: Follies at the Coven Day Parade

Hooty has to... Dry his skin sometimes?????

"He's just evil and shy. It happens" tumblrinas talking about their poor little meow meows

"Sweet potato" sounds like a very typical term of endearment to me.

Amity just 😳

Oh no. I just realized. Coven day. RAINE!!!

Kikimora of all people was not the person I thought Luz might relate to. And yet.

You know, I'm getting a feeling that this show doesn't really have villains. Just people. People in villainous roles, yes, but who always have their reasons, and really see themselves as heroes of their own story. Like. Pretty much everyone has shown different sides to them. I love it.

Oh no Edaaaaa....

Ok yeah Luz I'm with you on this one actually. Get them to talk.

Oh no no no... Raine is probably mind controlled or something... Aaaah....

Aww, Amity and Willow finally being friends again!!!! Good!

Ohh. Ok, not mind controlled, only memory wiped/altered. That might be worse in some ways?

Hahah, Kikimora is a little creacher

Dueling? Ok yeah I'm into that

"Head Witch, are you hurt? -No. Not badly" AAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!!

Kikimora cares about one thing the most. Her job. Of course. And apparently, she has to. Oof.

Amity and Luz work together so well in battle!

Raine is just being continuously drugged to have their memory wiped, I'm guessing...

"But because of your support I can finally take off this mask" what are you, a Minecraft youtuber???

Hahahah, Gus and Willow agree: meh

Episode 12: Elsewhere and Elsewhen

Flaaashback?

No flashback.

"Buy Amity new glove" aww

Ahh, Lilith, haven't seen you in a while!

Huh. Ok, whip lady.

Oh! Yes flashback!

And a trip with auntie Lilith.

"These are the oldest barnacles I've ever had on my head!" Ah, I love this nerd.

Eda, you gotta talk to your dad, come on.

Hm. Luz saved the journal from burning, thus it survived. So time loops are closed here, I suppose.

Philip is sus

Ohhh yeah.

OH OK WAIT IS PHILIP THE EMPEROR AFTER ALL AND THAT'S WHY HE KNEW THEY WOULD MEET SOON? CALLED IT CALLED IT CALLED IT!

Awww! History nerd aunt Lilith is having the time of her life. Love to see it.

Clawthorne dad is cool.

"I just have to live long enough to see this through" oh yeah he's the Emperor alright. Basically confirmed. Even his voice changed.

But there were two brothers...? What happened to the other one?

Episode 13: Any Sport in a Storm

Ah, Hunter. Arts and crafts are not your thing.

Oh buddy... Leading isn't your strong suit either...

The intro has been weird the last few episodes, what's going on?

Oh, Willow episode? Willow and Hunter episode?

Had to look up what hermosa means. Aww.

"Sure, I've never actually spoken to witches my age" oh god Hunter you so need friends my guy.

Oh no... This is like poor Jehova's Witness kids being sent on a mission...

He's getting attacked by a gryphon. Is his father uncle gonna hear about this?

Gus Porter and Willow Park. I don't think we've gotten last names before.

"Even if you're considered half-a-witch like me" OOF Willow was called half-witch, this had to HIT

I love Hunter so much. I want him to get better, and be in a better place, but I know it will be a while, and I know it will probably get worse first.

Poor Amity was the only one buying the books...

Awww, no, actually, Hunter is doing quite fine. And Darius turns out to be a pretty okay dude?

They kept the team name!

Episode 14: Reaching Out

Ooh, ominous title...

Jean Luc is still... Hanging out...

That voice change spell was impressive Amity!

THE TWINS ARE WEARING MAGICAL MAKEUP

"My student/child" ahhhhh!!! Eda!

Luz, kiddo, why won't you just turn the reminder off?!

Oh. Luz's dad is. Dead. Ah. That explains a lot. Man. This was. A good scene. Really good.

Ed got a mentor of sorts! Or at least an Eda to aspire to. Bad Girl Coven got members!

Amity's dad came back to earth for once. Or... Whatever this planet is. Is this a planet? There's stars in the sky...

"Dishes washed :3 -V" aww! Luz has a basilisk sis!

Oh, the outro changed!

Episode 15: Them's the Breaks Kid

All I can think of with this title is the Snapcube Shadow fandub

Luz is approaching the glyph combos in such a scientific way! Experiments!

Ooooh! Backstory!!!

Oh, all the adults as kiddos! I can guess some of them are parents of the current cast.

Ahhh, ok, Bump not being principal yet when Eda was in school explains why he said that she was "never given a chance to" study all courses of magic.

Little Raine makes me wanna cry in a good way

The plant lady is insane.

Oh, ugh, her being fond of Raine since they were a kid... Bad vibes

Raine is okay! Oh man I was so worried...

Episode 16: Hollow Mind

Oh boy, what a cold open!!!

Oooh, okay, so the abomination guy and beast guy are in it too! That's why Darius was so... Okay to Hunter.

Whoops.

Hmm, inner child Belos? Interesting.

He named the birdie Flapjack! Do those even exist there? (Later I remembered the bird told him the name, silly me)

Raine, buddy, you should REALLY work together with Eda.

Oof, Hunter's gonna have to confront some stuff here...

Oh, Collector's design is coo-ool!

"Making those things just to destroy them" OH IS HE FUCKING CLONING HIMSELF?!?!!?

Ohhh, palismen... But if they're still there, then perhaps...

Yup. Okay, the cat's out of the bag. Belos is P-whatever his name was. The journal guy.

Philip Wittebane.

Maybe he's not cloning himself, maybe he's cloning his brother?

Raine did work with Eda in a way, good!

Can't blame Hunter for having a panic attack. Yikes...

Man, I've been bingewatching, but I just... Gotta keep going! Gotta know what's next!

Episode 17: Edge of the World

Hahah, okay, I immediately know it's a dream sequence.

The letter finally resurfaces, hah. Nice way for the show to make space for other stuff, and postpone this King Family plot.

Oh. Nice. Worldbuilding.

Titan Trappers, huh...

"How did it go? Weh!" Oh ok, so King's dad was the last Titan. Weh.

But wait no, there's a poster next to him, "the grand huntsman cannot... Until the lost son is found by..." So???

Oh, ok, that... Confuses matters.

Oh. Oh no. They're wearing. The skulls. Of Titans. Oh no.

Well, this whole situation is very tragic and very, very awkward.

Oh god, guys, you really gonna kill a fucking kid?!

"Um... Hi." said to the Titan... KING YOU ARE BREAKING MY HEART

Episode 18: Labirynth Runners

Aww, Gus, buddy...

Wait, this is before his uh... "witch puberty", right?

Ah, backstory, got it.

Amity's trying, but still not a perfect friend. I like it.

Oh boy, Flapjack, are you feeding your runaway friend trash from the cafeteria? Is Hunter living in the school walls?

Hahahah, still trying to be sinister and scary. Not the only way to live, dude.

Ugh... Even the kids?

The Illusionist coven leader is... Something.

Sometimes a government raid on a school can be a chance for a bonding experience!

Amity's gotta learn to trust in Willow's abilities, Willow to be more assertive, and Hunter's gotta learn... Well, a lot of things, but basic socializing is a good start. Trusting people. Gus has his eye thingy, don't know what's exactly up with that yet. Cool though.

"Just put him... -out of his misery? Got it. -to sleep dude, to sleep!" Yeesh, somebody's eager... Also, with the context of what Hunter is, creepy!

Gus has to learn that he's not dumb. And to not listen to the voices in his head.

Good for you Severine! Good for you.

Agh, gotta take a break and walk the dogs, but oh I am watching the last 3 episodes today.

I've been thinking about the "Making those things just to destroy them" line to Belos. Because it's true. The "kid" Belos was leading Luz and Hunter exactly to the memories that would almost certainly shake Hunter's belief and make him betray Belos. Damn.

Also, the name "grimwalker" suggests some sort of necromancy to me...

Episode 19: Titan Where Art Thou

Good fucking question!

Oh no, the hunters really did connect King to the Collector somewhat...?

Hmm. Might be a chaotic neutral force. Might be possible to negotiate with them.

Sisters on the run! The Owl House empty! Oh no :(

Jeez, Eda, you have no plan so your plan is to check everyone's bucket lists? Morbid, yet considerate.

Lilith, stop treating King like a king, you're making his feelings of isolation worse! Also he's got a lil hat for his tail aww...

"Why is everything going our way now?" Uhh guys I hate to tell you this but that's like a very clear sign of a trap...

Ok, roadtrip with... Steve?

Hm. Them fixing the cart is a weird parallel to the episode where ye olden times were shown.

Eda just wants her kids safe I cannot...

Oh boy. Wasn't a trap, they were just busy fighting each other and got caught.

"Isn't this how you acted with the Emperor? I'm sensing uh, a little bit of a pattern with you" say it like it is King!

"I can recommend a good therapist" SAY IT LIKE IT IS STEVE!

Oh no, darkest hour...

NEVERMIND, THEY HAVE ALLIES, EVERYBODY'S HERE!

"Everything's come full circle baby!" Of course it did. Cat hoodie, CATS. Also, Raine, that is a wonderful team name.

"We've got all the time in the world" well, two days, but the sentiment is touching.

Episode 20: Clouds on the Horizon

The Collector is a funky little shadow thing. I like them.

"We can make another grimwalker" as an image of a hand bursting from the ground appears... Yeah, it's definitely some sort of necromancy.

NO MAGIC IN TITLE SCREEN I AM ALARMED

Amity's mother is trouble...

Oh. I'm not sure if using the curse is a good idea... It seemed rather... Adverse in effect.

Oh no. Wait. Are they gonna keep everyone alive but also take away their natural magic?!?

Aww, an egg palisman! An ultimate wildcard!

"Titan help us... -I'll do my best..." Awwww, King! Don't put such expectations on yourself!

The twins tried to burn the factory down? Hell yeah, arson.

I do love Luz's little ponytail.

Who animated that kiss? James Baxter? Well, probably not James Baxter, but. You know what I mean.

Oh boy... Can you not... Remove coven sigils? Ever? Oh boy...

Hahah, first thing Eda thought to do when looking like Raine is remove her head. Haven't seen that in a while.

The Collector is... More and more interesting.

Kikimora having beef with a teenager is still one of the funniest things.

Alador and King talking it out was not what I expected. I love how this show puts every interesting character combination together in some way at least once. I love it.

Kikimora, you have a mouth big enough to be useful.

Oh no, she got Hunter. Oh shit.

"Buisness partner" oh ok so they were married literally for tax cuts and such.

Ohhh! Illusion! That explains "Hunter" blowing a raspberry at Kikimora. It seemed... Quite out of character.

Episode 21: Kings Tide

I can't even write, I'm so stressed out.

"Don't. Tell me not to worry" AUGH

The Collector is a bratty kid.

I just realized Belos' nose is crooked because Lilith broke it. Heh.

Oh no. They caught them. THIS is the darkest hour.

HA! HA, SHE GOT HIM! SHE GOT HIM GOOD! HE FUCKING FELL FOR IT!!!

Only the coven-less teens can save the day...

King's little skull is broken nouuu!!

Gus activating Belos' worst memories, and someone who looks a lot like Hunter being the first one... And then a hand bursting from the ground. Yikes.

Hmm. Letting the Collector out might be a bad choice in the long run, but the world is ending, so... Gotta adress that first, huh?

Oh. He just. Splooted Belos. Ok. Well, King, buddy, better think of rules for playing the Owl House. Fast.

OH OK HE JUST MOVED THE MOON OK

Never trust a jester I suppose.

Ugh, that sploot seemed important. I'm sure that won't come back later.

Wow. Well, this kinda sucks. Gosh.

Also, I realized, Eda removing her head last episode was to remind us she could do that...

OH SO SEASON 3 IS 3 SPECIAL EPISODES?! AAAAAARGH!!!! I'M NOT READY TO SAY GOODBYE TO THIS WORLD!!

Ok, thinking about Belos... He had a brother, right? At least I think so. And maybe they got sent to the Demon Realm together, and something happened to him? Perhaps something that made Belos hate wild magic/witches?

Gosh, you guys had years to analyze and speculate, I only have days, okay?! But my speculations have been pretty accurate so far, so. Shrug.

Raine destroying Eda's arm so that she lives, but also so that she can practice wild magic... Because they wanted to keep her safe and also promised Luz... Augh... But also I know in my heart of hearts that Eda is going to have the coolest collection of hooks. Once everyone lives and everything is ok. Right???????

About the Collector: I liked his shadow design much better, but oh well. What does he even collect? Also, note to self: a chaotic neutral with enough power might be functionally indistinguishable from a chaotic evil.

Ok, I've been thinking about what Belos said - that it "hurts every time" the grimwalkers decide to betray him, and also that he "doesn't want more people corrupted by this land". So I'm thinking: the "original" Hunter, whoever he was (brother?) and Philip disagreed on the whole witch hunting thing, and... Something happened, whether it was his intention or not. I've also been thinking about grimwalkers, and the lines "you were the most similar of them all", and "many of my ancestors didn't have magic" - if there is variation in looks and in powers, then I'm thinking that it might not be a case of straight-up necromancy or test tubes, but somehow... Transforming existing witches? Might be easier than creating one from scratch... Idk, I'm just spitballing here.

I'm probably gonna make a separate post about this, but wow this show is. Very good. Especially with developing every single even slightly important character, and giving them an interesting dynamic with the rest of the group. I was thinking about the kids that got sent to the Human Realm, and whether there was anyone there who hasn't interacted with each other... And the only thing I can really think of is Gus and Amity? But otherwise, they all have an interesting dynamic/relationship. I even see some possible interactions with Hunter and Vee, if they have time for it. Just... Man. This show is good. Also, it subverted my expectations so many times. I was like "in any other show, this would not have happened", but it did!!!

I love this show. I'm gonna watch Good Omens 2, but after that passes, I will watch the 3-part finale, and let myself actually join the fandom. Better late than never, eh?

Added later: Ok, now that the GO2 phase has died down, I think I'm gonna watch s3 soon.

[mephinomaly]

[TL] Memories of a Doll/Chapter 2

Time: The same day, after school

Location: Yumenosaki Academy Grounds

Mitsuru: Dashu daashu dadadaaashuuu~...♪

…………

Hmm… Something feels off~

Adonis: Is there something wrong, Tenma? You look a little out of it, are you okay?

Mitsuru: Ah. Adochan-senpai came too?

Nn~. It’s nothing really.

Check me out. I got new shoes! They’re all sparkly and cool ♪

My old shoes got too small and cramped so I hadta buy a replacement. But I still haven’t worn them in yet so it feels all weird.

Adonis: I see. So that’s why you’re not as lively as you usually are.

But, the more you use your shoes, the more you’ll get used to them. You’ll have to be patient for now.

Mitsuru: Yep. Since they’re my new buddy, I’ll have to spend some time getting to know ‘em ♪

Speakin’ a’which, what do you do with your old shoes, Adochan-senpai? My old shoes are still in good shape, so I want to do something with them.

I used to throw ‘em away but Hajime-chan kept tellin’ me that “it’s a waste to throw them away when somebody can still use them!” So, you interested in buying?

Adonis: Fumu. That sounds like something Shino would say.

I also spoke to Shino, in the library during lunch. You seem to care quite a lot about objects.

It seems it's more likely for him to give them away, instead of throwing them away.

Why don’t you try selling your old shoes at a flea market too, Tenma?

Mitsuru: A bug market? What’s that?

Adonis: Fufu. I didn’t understand either until I heard the word recently. It’s a “flea market”. [1]

I’m not particularly knowledgeable on flea markets in Japan, but from my understanding, it’s where people sell things they no longer use.

Shino and I had plans to go this weekend. If you’d like, you can come along too, Tenma.

You’re in the same unit as him, so conversation will be lively.

Mitsuru: Uwaaa, sounds interesting! I’ll tag along too!

Maybe someone will buy my shoes… or maybe I’ll find a super good bargain… Ooo, I can’t wait!

Adonis: Ah. Let’s have Shino teach us a lot about how to care for things.

Then, I will be in contact with Shino. I apologise for interrupting your training, Tenma.

Mitsuru: Nah, I was happy to talk with you Adochan-senpai.

Alrightie. When I go home, I’ll look for more things I can bring to the market!

Until then, I’ll keep practising! Nyoom~!

Adonis: He’s as lively as ever. I will do the same as Tenma, and do lots of running.

However, a flea market…

Maybe I should look for other things to sell too. I’m sure he’ll be happy to hear that since I abandoned him when I came to Japan.

Time: A few days later, the day of the flea market

Location: Park

Adonis: …This is Shino’s stall. There’s lots of pretty things.

Hajime: Mhm. When I moved into the dorms, I bought a lot of tableware and household items.

But it seemed like Hasumi-senpai and Hidaka-senpai were thinking the exact same thing as me…

Since we had a lot of the same things, I thought I could sell them here.

On top of that, I get a lot of novelty goods and stationery from clients, so it feels like I’m putting a little part of myself here.

Adonis: Ah. It’s true that since RhyLin is a well-established agency, many companies give us things with their names on it. Thank you for explaining that.

Hajime: Fufu. It most certainly would be a shame to not use what is gifted to us. I do use them on occasion, since I feel grateful.

Oops. The market is about to open. Everything’s nearly ready, we just need to put the finishing touches to our stall.

Adonis: Yes. All I need to do is organise Tenma and I’s things.

However, Tenma is late. It’s already past when we said we would meet.

Hajime: How odd. Mitsuru-kun isn’t usually late to things. Perhaps he got the meeting place wrong?

I’ll send him a message on HoldHands. Tappity tap…. oh?

Mitsuru: Hajime-chan, morning! I couldn’t wait so I went and checked out the entire park!

The market hasn’t started yet, so it was fine for me to do so…♪

Hajime: Ah, okay. I’m glad you’re here, Mitsuru-kun.

Otogari-senpai was putting his stuff out. Mitsuru-kun, can you put yours out too?

Mitsuru: Can do! I want to sell these unused shoes!

Anddd I’ve also got some clothes that don’t fit me anymore ♪ This is so exciting!

They can all still be worn, so I want someone to have them~

Hajime: Fumufumu. It looks like you have a lot of lovely things, Mitsuru-kun. It’ll be good if someone wants to buy your favourite pieces ♪

How about you, Otogari-senpai? Do you have anything you’d like to sell?

Adonis: I have this doll. I’ve had it for a while, but if a new owner comes along, I thought I could give it away.

Hajime: Oh really? What a cool dolly. As you’ve had it a long time, is it from your hometown?

Adonis: Yes. It resembles a young man from my country, dressed in clothes that were popular at the time.

Perhaps because he was born overseas, his features may not be familiar to you and Tenma.

Hajime: Oh wow… it’s super cool! It’s a little old, and it’s clothes are worn, but it’s so intricate that it doesn’t bother me.

But, do you really want to sell it? If you took the effort to bring it all the way to Japan, surely you care for it a lot…

Adonis: No, your concern isn’t necessary. I’ve thought about it, and I think it’s time for us to say farewell to each other.

Hajime: Alright then. Well, I’ll look after you two’s precious stuff.

I hope someone will come buy all our stuff. Let’s enjoy the flea market as much as we possibly can…♪

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they’ve been saying 蚤の市 (nomi no ichi), with nomi literally meaning flea, which is why i had tenma say bug market. In this line, Adonis says it in katakana (フリーマーケット or furiimaaketto

[rd0265667]

The offer(Chapter 4)

1.7k words

Y/N's POV

I walked into the nearest "The Twosome Place"  with that Yuna girl, she's wearing her hood once again and had her sunglasses on. With her mask on too, she was almost impossible to recognise

"One caramel macchiato, and one..." Yuna said, nudging me in the shoulder

"An espresso, thank you."

"So, Y/N, care to tell me abit about yourself?" "Well, erm, I'm Y/N as I told you, I'm an only child, before...before both my parents perished in a car accident." "I'm so sorry to hear that." "Don't be, You aren't the drunk bastard who killed them. There isn't much I remember about them though. I was orphaned at 5, no foster families or adoptive parents wanted me, no relatives to take me in either, so I stuck around at the orphanage until I was 14, then left to earn money. Couldn't really earn money while studying either, so I dropped out of high school to do odd jobs. That's my life so far I guess. How about you?" "Well, my name is Shin Yuna, and as I assume you can't tell, I am a Kpop Idol." The cogs began to click in my head. I saw her on some Music videos. Hmm, no wonder she looks so pretty. Wait what? You didn't hear that. Anyways, back to her "I'm a member of ITZY, I graduated from the Hanlim Arts School, and I'm in the middle of a comeback with my group."

She then began rambling about her life and members, as she seemed like an infinite ball of energy, but, something was a little weird.

"What about your family?"

Hearing that, she tensed up, and a sour look overcame the face that was so full of light just a moment ago. Oh shit, fuck fuck fuck, I pissed her off

"I'm so sorry, I'm sorry, we don't have to talk about them if you don't want to."

"No, it's fine, you told me about your family, it is only right I tell you about mine. I was abandoned by my parents. They don't want anything to do with me, and I don't want anything to do with them. All I have, all I had left was my Sister."

"Had?"

"She's....missing I guess. I haven't seen her in a very long time, and I miss her a lot."

"That's horrible. I'm sorry you had to go through that. Have you tried finding her? Or the local authorities-"

"I'm sorry Y/N, could we not? Please?" She said as I saw beads of little water droplets drip from her eyes.

"Yeh, no worries, soooo, Could you tell me why we're having coffee together?" I said, trying my best to change the topic and cheer her up, which seem to kind of work, as I saw her wipe her tears and force out a little smile.

"Ah, yes. So, my group has been needing a Personal Assistant to help us around the dorm, but we don't really want someone who's a fan. Don't get me wrong, I love all our fans, but it would be a little weird to have a fan be our personal assistant. And you obviously don't know us from the fact that you didn't recognise me at the store. We want someone who's nice, kind, and you fill in the box nicely. Plus, and I say this with the least amount of offence intended, but even before we chatted, I could guess you needed a job."

"Hey, what is that supposed to mean?"

"It means, Y/N, you look like a hobo."

"Rude, but not wrong....Job sounds enticing though, and to be perfectly frank I need the money. What would my duties entail?"

"Pretty basic stuff, help us buy stuff we need, accompany us out should we need it, cooking and cleaning if necessary, but we usually clean up after ourselves so it should not be much of a problem. If need be, you will need to help our manager keep track of our schedules and escort us for practices and what not. Your meals will be provided for and you'll live in our dorm."

"That sounds good, but me, stay in a dorm with 5 girls? Seems a tad inappropriate doesn't it?"

Yuna smirked before reaching over the table and poking me in the cheek, saying, "Well. unless you're a pervert who plans to do unspeakable things to 5 young maidens, then I think we'll be fine."

I blushed at the sudden skin ship as I shook my head as she smirked. "Good, I'll tell JYP-nim, he'll interview you soon and if he accepts, you'll get the job. In the meantime, shall we chat a little more?"

There, hours seemed like minutes as Yuna and I chatted it up like old friends. She couldn't seem to stop, like a boundless battery had been attached to her. She told me stories about her members, her schoolmates and her life for the recent years, as I looked at her with amazement. We had not met for more than a day, but she seemed so overjoyed to have someone to genuinely talk to. I guess being an Idol is pretty lonely too. Through it all, her smile remained ever so vibrant. It was really refreshing. Suddenly, something flashed into my mind, she looks so familiar, like she was in my dream. Her name was, Gaeul I think? I'd never seen her before though.

"Getting bored of me already?" Yuna pouted as she saw me space out, as I shook my head and said, "Sorry, had a weird dream last night and something popped in my head, what did you say?" "JYP-nim is ready to see you, a car will be sent to pick us up in 20 minutes"

At JYP building

"Ah, Y/N, come in and take a seat."JYP said as I knocked on his door

I sat down in front of his office desk and flashed a small smile, only to be met with a stony stare

"Before we continue, I need you to understand one thing. I treat all my artists like my kids, and if anyone does anything to hurt or endanger them, I will see to it they have no future, anywhere. Is that clear?" "Yes Sir." "Now, before I hire you, I'd like to ask, who in the world are you? My people ran some background checks on you, and we found almost nothing. It's like you haven't existed until very recently. Why is that?" "Well, I'm unsure of that sir. Maybe you need to hire better people." I said, with a slight chuckle, before collecting myself once again under the now both stony and disapproving stare of JYP. Small talk, not my strong suit. "Well, to be honest, I am unsure why information on me is limited, and if that were to make you not trust me, I understand that, there's nothing I can do about that, lost most of my documents ages ago, however, What I can do is promise you that I will take care of your girls to the best of my abilities. I am new to this, and I will falter, but I will do my utmost. That much I can promise you." JYP continued staring at me, seemingly assessing me for any tells of me lying to him, before giving me a small smile and saying, " Well, that's good to hear. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't be able to hire you if I wanted to, as an enigma is hard to trust, however, as Yuna personally vouched for you, I will make an exception. Aish, never been able to say no to that girl. Don't let me down kid." I smiled as I was jumping for joy in my head. First Semi-Stable Job I've ever had, and my employers seem to be really nice. This is great!

I walked out and looked at Yuna, who smirked at me. "Got it?" "How did you-" "JYP-nim doesn't know how to say no to me hehe. Let's go to your apartment to pack up your things, then I'll bring you to your new home."

Yuna and I walked into my grey box as a look of shock overcame Yuna's face "You live here? No offence but our toilet is bigger than this." "Hey, this apartment is the best that no money can buy. Don't judge alright, taking care of you girls is the first stable job I've had." Yuna slithered up to me, grabbing my arm again and resting her chin on my shoulder "I'm your hero, aren't I." I blushed once again, this girl is too damn cute, she's like a temptress or something, and she loves skin ship way too much I quickly swiped her hand off as she chuckled and watched as I packed. Literally a minute later, we were headed out of my grey box. What, did you expect me to need boxes? I have like 4 outfits, the bed came with the apartment, and other than that, I had just a small bag of insignificant junk.

As we headed to ITZY's dorm, Yuna fell asleep next to me. Like she trusted me, just like that. I could never, years of being treated like garbage by everyone left me with a healthy dose of trust issues. She looked so cute in her sleep though, her lips looked so--- oh for god sakes Y/N keep it in your pants. You work for her now. Fuck it up and she can simply fire you. Gotta be on my best behaviour.

Once we reached the dorm, I gently shook Yuna, as she groggily woke up, and somehow, just like that, she was up on her feet and as energetic as ever. How? I swear this woman is not human.

She grabbed my hand and pulled me to the dorm. Opening the door, I saw four other faces. Two of them were closer up front, one with a neutral look and the other clearly with an unhappy face. Two other behind had small smiles as they timidly waved at me.

One of the girls who was in front, who kinda looked like that one Dragon, mumbled "Girls, hurry."

The other girl who was already in front rolled her eyes, as she stepped forward, with the two behind stepping up too, and Yuna joined them too, a smile etched on her face.

"Hana, Dul,Ses, all in us, hello, we are ITZY." The five said in unison.

"Hi, I'm Y/N, I'll be your assistants."

"Y/N, lets gooooo." Yuna said as she tugged me by the hand and rushed me in, past 4 very different girls, with different thoughts and feelings towards me.

This is gonna be interesting.

In the Dark

Knull sat upon his throne, holding a holovid projector as he looked, seeing a masked figure who glared back at him.

"You called for me?" "Yes my pet, I have been informed that the Prince of the Gap dimension has been banished to Earth. His information has just been sent to you.You are to kill him for me, or you know what happens. This prince has a bracelet on him, enchanted to always protect him from any harm. However, like all that the highfather does, it is flawed. The enchantment can be overwritten and will be deactivated if the prince fully and completely trusts them." The masked figure glared at him, rolling their eyes but said nothing. Obedience to Knull was forced, there was no choice involved. "The false gods and self-appointed defenders of the Earth. They shall pay for their hubris, and you shall be the piece that shatters them." "Yes my liege" In the background, Knull could hear some commotion

"Jisoo unnieeeeee, hurryyyyy" Knull chuckled," Ah your humans are always whining huh." "May I be excused." "Go, and I expect results. You know what happens if I do not get them."

[imagine--if]

yandere riddler watching his innocent s/o while she sleeps and wakes her up accidentally by being obsessive and affectionate? like, it creeps her out a bit but she gives in to his love anyways <3 thanks a mill!

A/N: Seriously, soft yandere Eddie is so fun to write about 😍 thanks for the request!!

Pairing: Dano!Riddler x reader (The Batman 2022)

Warnings: Obsessive loving and kinda creepy stalker behaviour 💚

Words: 955

The calmness of the night fills the room and your head as you sleep lightly, curtains ruffling slightly in the evening breeze, the window left open a crack. 'You're so peaceful, so beautiful like this,' Edward thinks with a fond smile and eyes a fraction wider than usual, as he gingerly steps into your bedroom and looks at your curled figure. The locks on the doors of these apartments aren't hard to pick, and some nights you even forget to lock them. 'Sweet girl. So innocent. So in need of me.'

You still don't notice Edward Nashton's presence as he creeps closer to your bed, his hands trembling a little with anticipation and wonder. He crouches at the side you sleep on, only a foot away from your face, and he dares to reach out and tuck a stray lock of hair behind your ear and out of your face. 'God... why do you have to be so perfect?'

Edward thinks of you waking up tiredly, seeing his face and smiling instinctively, mumbling his name and reaching out for him lazily, pulling him in with you. Then you'd fall back asleep again, safely in his arms, knowing that it's the best place you can be, the only place you should be.

It's then that the thought of it makes him whine out loud, needily staring at you with round eyes behind his glasses, and the sound makes you wake up for real. Still, it doesn't deter him in the slightest, not even when you jump and make a surprised noise as you spot Edward just centimetres away from you. If anything, it makes him smile and chuckle, now able to fondle and caress you however he likes since you're awake.

"E- Edward?" you question in a groggy daze, blinking a few times to focus in the darkness of the night. "Is that you? What are you doing here? How did you get in?"

Ah, right. Well, he does understand your initial confusion, since you've probably only seen him as your neighbour before, a very doting one, who gives frequent, odd compliments and stares and smiles wistfully at you for too long when you catch his eye. Edward's gotten used to the habit of adoring you by all of those Polaroids he's taken of you from hidden spaces, but why do that when you're only a few doors away? What better time to get closer than now? After all, this isn't the first time he's been in your house without a key.

"You need to be more careful when remembering to lock your door, angel," he tells you with a small giggle, a thumb stroking your cheek softly as you gaze at him wearily. "Don't want to let any rats in, do you, hmm?"

"Rats?" you repeat under your breath, shaking your head slowly. "Eddie... how long have you been here for? Wh- what do you want?"

"Not long," he responds, eyes lighting up at the nickname as his fingers leave your cheek to run through the ends of your hair. "You just look so angelic, darling. I don't understand how someone as perfect as you can exist in this cesspool of a city. You're a little wonder, love," he coos, as if you're a baby, "and I can't stay away from you. Not now, not ever."

"I..." you try to comprehend his words, but end up rolling onto your back, looking up at the ceiling. "Okay. Thanks, Ed, but I just need to go to sleep, and I think you need to leave."

Edward giggles again, shaking his head, and you watch spellbound as he actually crawls onto the mattress, straddling you for a moment with a grin before slumping down at your side.

"Don't be silly, sweetheart. I'll stay here until you fall asleep again. That'll help, won't it?"

You blink at him, taken aback, but nod slowly, knowing better than to disagree. "Alright. Just... please don't try anything, you know, weird."

"Of course not," Edward replies, seemingly earnest. "I'd never disrespect you like that, angel. You just go back to sleep, okay? I'll be here."

You shift uncomfortably under his gaze. "I don't know. It's not really that easy when-"

"I know!" Ed speaks up giddily with an idea, and then he's suddenly draping a leg over you, cuddling into your side and pulling you into him. You let it happen, wide-eyed in shock by how casually he presses a kiss to your forehead before resting his head against yours and sighing contentedly. "Is that better, my wonder?"

You have to admit, it does kind of feel nice, the warmth of his snug embrace as he lays beside you, as if you've been together forever. And maybe you have, in Edward's mind. All you're left to do now is sleep, somehow, and convince yourself that you won't be hurt or in another place when you wake up. It's hard to imagine that happening with Edward anyway, just by the way he looks at you, and so you roll your eyes at yourself before nodding.

"Um... yes. Thank you."

"My absolute pleasure, darling," he says with a wide smile, rubbing a hand gently up and down your arm. "Sleep well."

You do, drifting back to sleep within a few minutes. And by the time you wake up, there's an absence of heat and the feeling of Eddie's arms holding you protectively as the morning sun streaks through the curtains. But it certainly wasn't a dream, because there on your bedside table, a note is left, a large heart drawn softly in green pencil in the background.

It is mine, but you can only keep it. What is it?  Stay safe today, my wonder ♡

Taglist:

@katjourno @yoyoanaria @yaeyuuki @vinxlsketches @beenz-beenz @ghoulsgraveyard @birds-have-teeth @repostingmyfavs @r3ptiliaaa @for3v3rda1sy @glitterycheesecakegladiator @moonwritesblog @lilyevans1 @httpsunflowers @hxney-lemcn @confusedchildsstuff @phantomofthecathedral @sugahbabieexo @bokksieu @skateb0red @wilburrrsworld @philiasoul @darthcringe @felicityofbakerstreet @bloodypantomime @deadlights-darling @tianotfound @mortem-muse @ireadandream @tinyryder @kpopgirlbtssvt @truecobblepot @jessicainhell

[astaroth1357]

Demigod MC Series: Athena

So. I have to deal with the virgin goddesses… By mythos, there really shouldn't ever be children of Artemis, Hestia, or Athena (yes, Athena was a virgin goddess). PJ got past that by making it canon that Annabeth and her siblings were born from cracking open Athena's skull (yes, that's also more or less the canon explanation). They gloss over it real quick but I remember, Rick. I've always remembered and that mental image has haunted me for years...

I can't, in good conscience, ignore the history around Athena's worship (call it an academic restraint) but I REFUSE to do the skull thing. So, since I make the rules here, I'm going with magic adoption. They still get magic powers, they're just more human than demigod. Cool? Cool.

Demigod MC Series: Intro, Aphrodite, Hermes, Hades, Dionysus, Demeter, Athena

Lucifer

The human that popped out of the portal seemed to have enough sense not to attack everyone in the room for a change, but even Lucifer could tell that was more of a strategic choice than for lack of ability...

Their very existence was highly unusual… and quite worrisome. He wasn't even aware Athena could have "children" of her own, but apparently she had been taking in some particularly bright humans to raise and train like her own...

Unbeknownst to him, a surprising amount of human scholars, diplomats, and generals have her to thank for their trade… and that alone should speak to the level of intrigue at play here. 

Was this an accident or Athena's attempt to plant an Olympian spy in the Devildom too…? Either way, he didn't trust them from the get go…

Look, Lucifer isn’t stupid. Athena is a goddess of Wisdom and War and war happens on more than just the battlefield… 

Since they've shown up records have been going missing, official documents keep getting misplaced, and he swears that there's some kind of bug in the student council room...!

It's infuriating watching the MC suck up to Diavolo when he's almost certain that they're running their own agenda behind the scenes! And he can't prove any of it!! They cover their tracks too well!

Lucifer has one of those corkboards covered in newspapers and string in a secret wing of the Castle - 100% dedicated to just tracking the MC's activities…. The longer they're there, the more obsessed he becomes...

He swears between Simeon, Solomon, and MC he feels like a shepherd wondering why the sheep are growling… The Devildom has never been in more danger than it is right now... Send help.

Mammon

To be honest, he kind of thought that they were just going to be Satan 2.0 but that's not really true.

They're more than just a book sponge! Though they do read, like a lot. Let’s just say from one schemer to another… Game recognizes Game.

They come up with plans and ideas soooo fast, it’s insane! Honestly, there are times where he has a new money-making plot and he just brings it to the MC first to run it over. 

Nine times out of ten, not only do they sniff out any problems but they have a solution for him in a matter of minutes! His scheme game has been on point since they’ve shown up!!

They’re also even better tutoring than Satan is, so he’s even managed to get a couple A’s for the first time in his life! Lucifer actually told him he was proud (which he secretly recorded and now uses as a ringtone much to his brother’s regret...)

So yeah, he likes them... buuut that doesn’t keep him from thinking they act a little weird sometimes... 

Mammon: *points to a unused tower close to the RAD building* Over there is the Tower of Sorrow. We use it for storage.

MC: Ah. Interesting… *starts writing in a notebook, muttering* It may need a few minor tweaks but the location is defensible...

Mammon: *stops* Ya say somethin’?

MC: *looks back up* Nope! Say, you’ve been to the Castle a lot haven’t you? Do you know any good ways in?

Mammon: Uhm… Why do ya want to know that…? *starts looking around for Lucifer*

MC: In case of emergencies. I like being prepared. 🙂

Mammon: Look, I don’t know what Lucifer might’a told ya…

MC: I’ll pay you a thousand Grimm for it.

Mammon: Well shit, ya want those maps with or without color?

... Yeeeah, that’s pretty weird… But it’s probably fine. I mean, as long as they keep giving him money, who’s he to complain? 🤷‍♀️

Leviathan

Also thought that they’d be a lot more like Satan but was pleasantly surprised that they were into more than books.

What else did they like exactly? Military strategy!!

It’s been a looong time since he’s been able to talk to someone who’s actually interested in all the battles he’s fought, both in the Celestial Realm and the Devildom, and their curiosity is kind of flattering...! Not a lot of people take his strategic prowess all that seriously anymore...

Plus, they are the BEST partner to have any turn-based strategy game. Hands down. He once got stuck on a level of D-COM for weeks until the MC walked in and mopped the floor with the AI!! They have a serious head for probability and tactics.

The House once made the mistake of letting these two be on the same team during a Hell Game and they absolutely demolished the competition. Mammon didn’t even get a single shot off before half his team was lost to a rigged paint grenade… It took a whole day to clean up… 

However, Levi’s also noticed some odd things about the human… He likes that they’re interested in his past but maybe they’re a little… too interested?

Levi: -and that’s how we defeated the Four Horsemen before they escaped from Purgatory. 

MC: Wow, Levi that’s seriously impressive!! *furiously scribbling on a notebook*

Levi: Well t-thanks… 😅 But, uhm... are you writing that down…?

MC: Hm? Oh no, just doodling. *they lift up the notebook to show a bunch of cute little sketches on the page… and not the magic-based invisible ink all over them…*

Levi: Oh you draw too? Can you do fanart???

MC: Eh, sometimes. But say Levi, can you tell me about your naval ranks again? I’m still really curious… *gets the pen ready again with a smile*

Satan

Oh, it's been a long game of cat-and-mouse between these two… and unfortunately, it’s been pretty addicting too.

He honestly had every intention of tricking the human into making a huge mess do he could bother Lucifer, but at every turn they proved just a hair too clever for him...

He once gave them a cursed book to “lend” to Lucifer, but they saw through it the moment they touched it and lifted the spell before handing it over.

He rigged a podium to spray glitter during one of Lucifer's speeches but the MC disconnected the trigger mic before he even got on stage. It was pretty dang frustrating...

At one point he got so desperate that, just as a test, he tried to trap them in the House's Music Room. Fortunately for them, it only took a few minutes to work out an escape. They even passed by him in the hallway with a wink!

It's confounding! It's infuriating!! 

...and it's so damn sexy... He should be furious but he’s just in awe!!

Add on that they know their art, literature, and multiple different crafts thanks to the tutelage of their adopted mother and that’s it. He’s finished. This boy is in love.

Truthfully though, a part of him is 90% sure that they’re also gathering state secrets… Like, they’re watching Barbs and Diavolo far too close for comfort - but he just can't bring himself to care. 🤷‍♀️

The MC could walk into his room one day and say, "Hey, do you want to help overthrow the monarchy with me?" and he dreads it because deep down he knows that he wouldn’t say no…

Take some notes, kids. Some bad influences get you to drink or do drugs. Others pull you into a centuries long conspiracy to destabilize and topple rival realms from within… But he has fallen for their brain hard. Devil help them all…

Asmodeus 

They’re pretty clever, he’ll give them that, but uh… Are they a little off to anybody else?

Asmo is a charmer by birthright so he has a bit of nose for when someone’s just a liiittttle too nice… Not much of a nose mind you, because he can be thrown off by compliments himself, but enough to think that the MC might be a little too… “kind” for their own good...

First off, who wants to spend that much time with Levi?? They don’t even seem that interested in anime! They just keeping asking him for old war stories…

Then all the sucking up they do to Diavolo and Barbatos? Look, he gets it. Diavolo is a delicious piece of man-hunk and his butler could give him a lesson or two in sweet-talk (and he has), but they seem to be just a little too… nosy.

Of course, Asmo’s suspicions disappear pretty quickly after they start to spoil him with spa nights and beauty secrets they picked up from “casual research” into the subject.

And you know, get a little Demonus in Asmo and start massaging his back? Oh, sweetie he’ll sing like a bird!! … with gossip. Singing with gossip.

Asmo: So I’ve heard that Lucifer has been spending more time at RAD than usual… His whole club is talking about it, they think he’s meeting with some witch!

MC: Hm, is that so? *works on a knot near his shoulder blades* What do you think?

Asmo: Ooh~! Right there, MC! *purrs and lays his head on his arms* Well come on, this is Lucifer we’re talking about! I’m sure he’s just working.

Asmo: Hmm... though come to think of it, I think I heard him asking Barbatos for the spare keys to the Tower of Sorrow…

MC: Oh really? Huh. *works out the knot and gets up* I just remembered that I left some papers with Satan... I’ll be right back.

Asmo: You’re going already??

MC: *waves him off quickly* I’ll be right back, Asmo. *hurries out the door to do totally on-the-up-and-up things… surely*

Beelzebub 

Honestly he doesn't like this one… But not for the reasons you'd expect.

He agrees with everyone else that they seem a little shady, but Solomon and Simeon are too so it's not like that's anything new... 🤷‍♀️

No, no. He dislikes them because they're the person who FINALLY figured out how to keep him from eating all the food in the kitchen!!

Turns out that the trick was to put a teleportation charm on the fridge door that would send all the food away if it’s opened after a certain time of night… 

And where does it go? The Purgatory Hall fridge. And where does the Purgatory Hall food go…? The HoL fridge…

It doesn’t sound so bad until you remember that it means half of their fridge is now Solomon’s leftovers…. 🤢

After they put the same kind of spell on the pantry, it was all over… He couldn't get midnight snacks from the House anymore… Everything was contaminated by Solomon…

The MC is a nice enough person, he doesn’t have a lot of complaints about them, but he wants them to leave. Now. This is inexcusable… He’s so hungry… and he doesn’t want to die by “goulash” or whatever Solomon calls his latest culinary catastrophe… He’s still too young for death… 😓

Belphegor 

In a way, he absolutely could not have asked for a better person to help him get out of that attic.

… In another way, he got one of the worst possible people to try and kill... Like. They saw through his scheme sooo fast…

How was he supposed to know that the human had training in body language and sniffing out lies???

Getting the door open was a piece of cake for them. They knew enough magic to undo the seals and just rummaged around Lucifer's stuff long enough to find the key to the door. He could not have found a more competent individual for a break out, really.

It’s just… well he didn’t expect to go from locked in a room like a prisoner to tied up in enchanted rope, still like a prisoner but now mobile. 😑 

They even used his own hug ruse against him! They caught his wrists when they got close and tied him up before he could shake them off...

Admittedly, it wasn't exactly the best look for them either - what with walking Belphegor downstairs to the others like a one-man-prison-caravan but they're as silver-tongued as they are sly so they talked their way out of it beautifully… 

And like hell was he going to trust them after that!! And not even Beel liked them so something had to be up...

Well, you want a detective? Look no farther than Belphie (no seriously, it’s in the canon). He can put things together pretty fast when he puts his mind to it and watching the MC for a while gave him enough proof to work off of...

He always knew that, humans were bad news and the MC just proved it to him all over again. They are bad news, bad bad news and they’re going to-!

Overthrow… Diavolo…? Is that what he is getting from them…? Huh…

Wait a second, MC. You might just have him interested… 😏

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

More than just a game

Warnings: dark elements including noncon and rape, oral, fingering, doxxing, stalking, and other explicit content. 

This is dark!Jake Jensen and explicit. Your media consumption is your own responsibility. Warnings have been given. DO NOT PROCEED if these matters upset you.

Summary: You find a new gaming buddy but he sees you as more than that.

Note: So this is my first Jake Jensen fic and it was lots of fun so let me know what you think and hope you enjoy. :D

Thank you. Love you guys!

As always, if you can, please leave some feedback, like and reblog <3

Special shout-out to @navybrat817​ for helping me with this idea

After too many nights scrolling through subreddits and searching for something to keep you distracted, you decided to bite the hook. Several other redditors agreed to hop on Minecraft and it had been a while since you logged in. You missed the almost relaxing ritual of mining and building.

You joined the chat, quick to hit the little microphone emblem as you listened to the voices in your headset. You learned long ago to keep your mic muted on the servers, especially with strangers. The last time you dared to speak up as a woman in a game chat, your DMs had become so overwhelmed you deleted and started a new account on Discord and changed your ID on Steam.

You were all given your tasks as players called out coordinates and you kept to chopping up the side of a mountain. You mostly worked alone, chatting through text instead of voice chat. As you placed a crafting table in your little mine, another player, JJ-Smooth, popped up and dropped some iron for you. 

He stayed close but you didn’t mind. A lot of players tried to work together the deeper they got and you were used to it. As you uncovered some lava, he dumped water before you could get burned and helped you hack up the obsidian. 

He thanked you on the voice chat but you knew any courtesy in return would earn you the attention of the entire server. So you dropped some gold for him and went on your way.

“I hear a zombie,” he warned.

You turned to hack up the undead before it could get you, only to be shot by a skeleton hidden on the next level. Another appeared and you died before you could hide, the bony villain killed by your ally as you watched your possession scatter over the death screen.

“Hey, I got your stuff,” he said as you loaded back up, “I’ll find you.”

You typed quickly in the chat, ‘sorry, mic busted, give me your coordinates and I’ll come to you.’

You waited as ‘JJ-Smooth is typing…’ appeared at the bottom and finally he sent the numbers. You hopped over the blocky hills and through the forests until you found the mine again. He was just outside and handed over all your tools and ration. He headed back into the mine and you followed him. This time, you began your own path in the opposite direction.

Before you knew it, you’d lost track of time. You sat back as you realised it was only you and JJ on the server. The silence should have tipped you off earlier. He was the host and you felt super awkward for staying so long. You typed that you were logging off for the night and thanked him. 

You hit the keyboard with your knuckle and yawned as you opened the screen, 

“God, it’s late,” you muttered.

“Hello?” he said.

Your eyes rounded as you looked at the mic symbol and the lack of red line made you cringe. You’d hit an extra button without noticing.

“Um, hi, sorry, I just--”

“Mic busted, huh?” he asked.

“No, I--” you didn’t know what to say, “anyways, I should--”

“So, you’re a chick? Is that why you mute?”

“Uh, well, it’s just… easier, sorry, I--” even if you weren’t trying to hide from gamer dudes, you weren’t the best at conversation.

“A gamer girl, nice,” he said and you sighed, “sorry, that sounded weird, didn’t it?”

“Mhmm,” you touched your bottom lip as you cupped your chin, “it’s late, I have to work tomorrow.”

“You comin’ back?” he asked, almost hopeful.

“I don’t know--”

“I won’t tell anyone,” he said abruptly, “promise, lips sealed.”

“I really don’t know if I can do this too much, I usually work early mornings so… yeah,” you said.

“I get it but you know you’re always welcome, hope you don’t mind if I send you an invite now and then. No pressure,” he offered.

“Uh, sure,” you shrugged, “okay, yeah, good night.”

You left the chat quickly and pulled off your headset. Shit.

‘I’m Jake by the way,’ a pm popped up, ‘gg.’

You typed back, ‘gg, it was fun’ and quickly logged out. You sat back and rubbed your eyes. Well, he didn’t seem like a total creep, maybe just a bit awkward but so were you. You shut down for the night and stretched out as you switched off the lamp. You were going to pay for your session in the morning.

🎮

A few nights later you got an invite to the server. You debated it but as it was Friday, you decided to make good use of the PC you’d saved up forever to build. You spawned in the middle of nowhere and built a bed before you found the half-finished settlement. You joined the chat but you must have been early as you were the only one there.

You headed back to the same mine, some work done since the first night, and laid your torches as you ventured into the depths. You jumped in your seat as a voice broke your peace.

“I don’t think anyone else is gonna join,” JJ-Smooth, or Jensen said, “you think maybe you’ll unmute?”

You stopped your mining and stared at the screen. You hovered over the mic button and re-read his name, he was the only other one there. You clicked and gave a strained smile to the screen.

“So, um, what’s the goal tonight?” you asked.

“Get some materials and go back to the settlement, keep building, oh, maybe we could try a portal, you ever gone to the nether?” he said but before you could reply he kept on, “shit, I shouldn’t assume, you seem like an experienced player.”

“Yeah, a few times, but I’m more a casual miner,” you went back to harvesting stone and ore.

“Ah,” he said, and it was silent for a moment, “so, you work again in the morning?”

“Not tomorrow,” you said as you focused on the game, “daycare isn’t open on the weekends.”

“A daycare, huh? That sounds fun, I love kids… not in a weird way but you know, I… urgh, I have a niece,” he said with a nervous chuckle, “nah, that’s cool though, sounds more fun than my gig.”

“Oh?” you turned and kept your axe moving.

“IT. You know, some people would be like ‘hey Jensen, why do you spend all your free time staring at a screen when that’s what you do at work?’” he scoffed, “well, who says I’m not mining there too.”

You wrinkled your forehead and gave a small laugh. He was rambling and it was kinda odd. You were happy for once not to be the strange one.

“But anyway,” he said, “I found lots of diamond over here. If we get some lapis lazuli we can build an enchanting table and get some sick armour.”

“Awesome,” you pressed your fingertips to your lip as you leaned on your elbow, “should try to head back before dark…”

“Hard to tell down here. How about you mine and I’ll keep an eye out for monsters?” he offered.

“Sure,” you agreed as he came onto your screen, “that works.”

🎮

Another week went by and you ventured back into the server a few times but not for very long as late nights did not mix with young children. The next weekend, you joined again on Saturday night and like the last few times it was just you and Jensen. You wondered why no one else was joining when the subreddit was so popular but you didn’t worry about it for long.

You mostly played in silence, Jensen did most of the talking and it was never about anything more than the game or his niece’s last soccer game. That night when you left the game, he kept typing on Discord.

‘I like playing with you,’ his message blipped up.

‘Same, thx.’

‘Really, you’re awesome.’

‘Thx :) Tired, gotta sleep.’

‘Sweet dreams.’

‘Night.’

You changed your status to offline and dragged yourself to bed. You opened your phone as you laid in the dark and went to the subreddit, you scrolled through the builds and screenshots of other people’s catastrophes. 

You came to Jensen’s last invite post from that night but all the comments complained that the world code was incorrect. Hmm, you should tell him next time.

You blackened your cell and plopped it on your night table. You rolled over and buried your face in the pillow, the light still etched into your vision. You fell asleep quickly and woke the next day to another invite from Jensen.

‘How about some Fortnite? If you’re into it?’

‘Srry, can’t, my mom’s expecting me for lunch.’

‘2 bad, maybe later.’

‘Maybe’.

You got ready to go see your mother for your usual Sunday afternoon visit and it went by like any other. When she asked you what you’d been up to, you didn’t mention the gaming, she was never a fan of it. When you got back home, Jensen was messaging you again. You didn’t open the notification and settled in to catch up on some streaming before another week of work.

Monday hit you like a train and you were glad you hadn’t spent the night mining again. If you had, you doubted you’d even be able to open your eyes. You got to the daycare centre and welcomed in the kids. You got them set up for the morning snack then cleaned up as Sandy took them over to the reading circle.

You wiped the tables and then did some painting before you went out for some play time in the yard. As you watched several of the children on the swings, you glanced around. There was a man across the street. You squinted through the chain link as he seemed to be watching but assured yourself it was nothing as he quickly headed for the corner and disappeared.

Inside, the kids were due for quiet time, some napped and those who didn’t, stared at the ceiling and yawned. You could have joined them but knew that wouldn’t be acceptable. The end of the day came and you helped the kids pack up their paintings and their sweaters. You waited in the yard with them as the parents showed up and handed them off one by one.

You waved to Danika as she clung to her mother and your eye was once more drawn beyond the chain link. The same faded grey jacket, the same glasses, and the hat with the frayed brim. It was a better look at the man. Was he looking at you? Why on earth was he hanging around outside a daycare?

“Sandy,” you turned and lowered your voice as she neared, “see that man?”

She peeked over and shrugged, “which one? The guy crossing the street?”

You looked up again and like before, he was walking away casually as if he hadn’t just been staring through the fence. You shook your head and huffed. “Sorry, never mind.”

“Ah, don’t worry about it,” she waved her fingers, “come on, let’s clean up.”

With the kids all sorted out, you went back in and tidied up the last of their mess. You and Sandy were friendly but like with any, you weren’t very talkative. You never really knew what to say but you were never unkind.

You pulled on your jacket and checked your purse for your phone and wallet. You checked the time and turned off the lights. You bid Sandy goodbye as she headed for her SUV and you took your usual route down the sidewalk towards your bus stop. 

You stopped short as the man was there. You were paranoid, he must just be waiting for the same route. You approached and he turned to watch you as you sat on the bench. He smiled and the dread sank deep in your chest. 

His rectangular glasses gave light to his blue eyes and a goatee trimmed his jaw. He was tall and well-built, you could tell even under his comic book tee. He was going to talk to you, another weirdo in the city.

“Hey,” his voice was chillingly familiar, “how was your day?”

You stared at him and blinked cluelessly. You looked around, it was only the two of you. You opened your mouth but you had to be wrong. He said your name and you winced.

“Jensen?” you breathed as you stood and squeezed the strap of your bag, “why? How--?”

“You weren’t answering me, I was worried,” he said, “just making sure you’re okay.”

“What the-- I don’t understand how--” He stepped closer and you backed up against the bench. “Don’t, I’ll scream.”

“Scream? Why? I’m just-- You know me, it’s me, Jensen.”

“You doxxed me?” you snapped, “what the hell?”

“No, I didn’t-- I’m just checking on you--”

“I don’t know you,” you said as your heart began to race, “so please, leave me alone,” you edged away from him, “and don’t message me again.”

You sprinted across the street and as you came up on the curb, you looked back at him. He watched you but didn’t follow. You could tell from there he wasn’t happy but the brim of his cap shadowed most of his face so you couldn’t guess if it was hurt or anger. You quickly spun away and continued down the next street to the nearest stop.

You couldn’t believe he’d just shown up like that. You couldn’t believe he would think that was okay. You couldn’t believe he’d think that much about you.

🎮

You blocked Jensen on Discord and left his world on Minecraft. That night you were shaky and nervous, afraid that he would show up at your apartment. Did he know where you lived? He must if he could figure out where you worked.

You didn’t open Steam that night. You paced your small apartment, jumping at every noise. Sleep didn’t come easily but in shallow spurts that left you even more tired. You watched over your shoulder as you walked to your stop and boarded with one eye on the door.

Work was little better as you found yourself distracted in the room full of toddlers. Sandy asked if you were okay as you kneaded play-do violently. You shook yourself out of your paranoia and assured her you were only short on sleep, not a complete lie.

You took out your phone when you stepped out for a small break. Your mom had called but you would have to get back to her when you had two hours to waste. There was another notification, that one from Discord, a friend request from JJ-NoRematch. It wasn’t hard to guess who it was and you declined it right away.

There were several others from Jensen, too. He followed your Insta, blocked; he followed your mostly empty twitter, blocked; and he even commented on your LinkedIn like a weird. You closed your phone and took a breath before you headed back into the kids, their voices rising in their excitement to go outside.

In the yard, you had another look around, expecting to see him there on the other side of the fence. You were slightly relieved when he wasn’t but still on edge. You joined a game of tag then watched several of the kids line up for the slide. You lost yourself in your job as you told yourself he must have gotten the hint, at least not to bother you irl.

Just like the day before, and every day, you left work and headed for your stop. He wasn’t there either and you sat down and phoned your mom, hanging up as the bus pulled up with a promise to call her again when you were home. At home, you felt almost normal again and checked your notifications; no more follows, no more requests, nothing.

Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday passed in a similar fashion. Each saw your anxieties less than the day before. You even resolved to open Steam and start a new world for yourself. You spent hours mining and almost fell asleep in your chair. When you nearly tipped over, you decided it was time for bed.

You slept better than you had all week and woke up before noon. You wanted to log right back on but you had life to deal with; groceries, cleaning, and of course, making that call to your mother you’d delayed the night before. After all that, you felt accomplished and you decided to treat yourself to take out, a rare divulgence.

You called the local Chinese eatery and waited eagerly for your feast as you turned on a new episode of your current binge. You played on your phone until the battery was low and had enough juice to buzz up the delivery man. You dug for your wallet as you went to the door and unlocked it without looking up.

“How much--” you asked as you opened the door.

Your eyes met a familiar pair, two blue gems behind a pair of narrow glasses. Jensen wore the same cap and held the paper bag of take-out with a smile. You grabbed the door and tried to swing it shut but he was too quick as he slapped a large hand against the peeling paint.

“It’s on me,” he said, “I love spare ribs.”

“What the--” you gasped as you pushed on the door helplessly, “please go away.”

“You’re not answering me,” he said as he stepped closer and forced you back as his body brushed against yours, “you blocked me and I can’t even get a hey, Jensen, how are you?”

“I don’t want you here,” you tried to shove him and he shouldered you away easily, “get out!”

He slammed the door and you flinched. He put the bag down on the corner table and reached back to twist the lock without a look. His eyes roved around your entryway and further into your apartment. He smiled as they stilled and focused on you.

“This place is cute… like you,” he said and you heard a slight hesitation in his voice.

You swallowed and backed away from him. You spun on your heel and ran for your couch. You reached over the back to your phone and unlocked it as the battery icon flashed. You had just enough juice to make the call. You dialed as you turned back to him.

“I’m calling the police so you b-better l-leave,” you warned as your voice and hands shook, “I me--”

He was quick and before you could pull away, he swiped your cell out of your hand. He scoffed and tossed it across the room. It hit the wall and landed screen down on the hardwood. You bit down and pressed yourself to the couch. You stared at him and kicked yourself forward as you tried to slip past him. He caught you and wrestled you back into the front room.

“Why are you doing this?” he asked calmly as you struggled in his grasp, “I’ve been nothing but nice to you.”

“N-no, you’re-- you-- let me go,” you stammered as he angled you around the couch. He pushed you down so you bounced on the cushion. You tried to push yourself up and he pointed his finger in your face and wagged it. 

“No, you stay,” he growled and wiped his other hand on his jeans. He was nervous, even if he was angry.

“Please, why-- what do you want?” you grasped the cushion and hovered at the edge of the couch.

He sighed and sat in the chair. He took his hat off and set it on the table as he ran his fingers through his short hair. 

“Good question,” he said as his jaw squared and his eyes turned to pinpoints, “better one, why did you block me?”

“Are you serious? You-- you--” you struggled to get your words out, your voice even more splintered by your fear, “you doxxed me, you came to-- to my work-- and…”

“I thought we were getting along. I thought you liked me,” he said with a frown, “I really did, you sure acted like it and-- I only wanted to make sure you were safe.”

“But why wouldn’t I be? I--” you shivered and crossed your arms as you withered beneath his gaze, “Jensen, this was only supposed to be online.”

He scoffed and stomped his boot on the floor. He shook his head as he looked to the ceiling and his anger bulged along his temple. He tilted his head and looked at you again.

“You know, for years, I have been a nice guy, I am a nice guy,” he pushed his shoulders to his ears as he threw his hand out, “I’m so patient and caring and you girls, you don’t even give me a second look.”

“Jensen--”

“No, really, I mean look at you, you’re no supermodel and yet it’s the same thing, ‘let’s just be friends’,” he spat, “but I watch guys all the time treat women like shit and they don’t have any trouble at all, they got them hanging off of them and I’m a creep for giving them a compliment or opening the door--”

“I don’t… know you,” you eked out, “you have to understand--”

“I don’t understand,” he stood abruptly, “I’m done trying to understand.”

He pulled his jacket open and slid it down his arms. You watched him sling it over the chair and as he turned back to you, you stood. He caught your shoulders and held you in place. His strength was plain in his grip as he squeezed then slowly moved his hands to cradle your face.

“I just wanna be nice,” he said as he leaned in. You tried to pull away but he moved a hand around the back of your head and forced your lips against his. He poked his tongue inside your mouth roughly as you tried to shove him away. Finally, he parted, his hands still firmly around your head, “wasn’t that nice?”

“Please,” you begged as he ran his thumb over your bottom lip.

His eyes searched your face as you stared back at him in terror. He sighed and dropped his hands back to your shoulders. He pushed you down to the sofa harshly and backed away.

“Fine, I won’t be nice,” he snarled as he took his glasses off and folded them carefully. He put them on the table beside his cap and twined his fingers together, loudly cracking his knuckles.

You blinked at him as your eyes grew glossy. You brought your legs up under you and pressed yourself to the back of the couch. You grasped the upholstery and turned as you launched yourself over to the other side. You stumbled as you landed on your feet and ran for the door.

You were yanked back as he snaked his arms around you and took you off your feet. You kicked out and screamed but it was cut off by his palm as he kept one arm around your middle. You scratched at his hand as he dragged you back to the couch. He pushed you face down onto the cushions and planted his knee in the middle of your back, slipping his hand away as he put enough weight on you to keep your voice suffocated.

“Listen, I know I look like some IT nerd but I’m a lot more than that, now don’t make me hurt you,” he played with your hair as he smiled down at you, “you try that again and I will shut you up and if someone hears you, I can take care of them too.”

You sniffed as tears pricked in your eyes and nodded frantically as it felt as if he would snap your spine. He pushed off of you and you stayed as you were, paralysed with fear. He sat and unlaced his boots one at a time. He looked up as he set them neatly beside the foot of the chair and he bent to catch your eye.

“Well?” he pointed at you and traced the line of your body in the air, “let’s go.”

You stared at him dumbly and he stood to pull his tee over his head. His torso was sculpted perfectly and his chest trimmed with hair that trailed all the way down to his pants. He stepped forward and tugged at the back of your shirt.

“You want me to do it for you, baby?” he purred, “I can help you.”

You swatted him away and sat up. You bent your legs to your chest and hugged them. “Please, I’m scared, just leave me alone--”

His hand rested on his belt and exhaled again. His fingers moved swiftly to unloop the striped belt and unbutton his jeans. He pushed them down, nearly tripping as he stepped out of them. He stood in his boxers, tented with his impatient excitement, and gripped his hips.

“It’s okay, baby, I know you’re shy, I am too,” he neared and you winced as he grabbed your wrist. He tugged on your arm and you resisted until he bent your hand back painfully and you cried out. He tickled your jaw as he looked you in the eye and tutted, “it doesn’t have to be like this, alright?”

You went limp and let him pull your arms apart. Your legs slipped down and your feet dangled above the floor. He got to his knees and pushed between yours. He slowly rolled up the hem of your shirt and bent to kiss your stomach as he bared the flesh. You trembled as he forced your arms up and swooped the fabric over your head. It fluttered through the air and to the floor as he cupped your tits through your bright pink bra.

“Is this so bad?” he asked as he nuzzled your chest and pushed your tits up. 

He glided the straps down your arm and slid your bra lower so that you popped out. He nibbled at your flesh and traced your nipples with his tongue. You sat rigid and let him explore your body, too terrified to move a muscle. He reached around you and struggled with the hooks, frustrated he snapped the clasps and the band came free.

He continued to play with your chest, his fingers crawling up and down your stomach and sides. There was a genuine curiosity to his touch and it sent a chill through you. His fingertips pressed to the top of your pants and he pulled at them as his lips travelled down to your hip.

He tugged on your pants and jerked your entire body. He tore them lower as he pushed you up and you lifted yourself to let him peel away the layer. He added them to the floor and toyed with the elastic of your panties. The little bow in the front drew his attention as he pushed your legs wider and ran his nose along the cotton.

He hummed and rubbed his fingers down your crotch, pushing the fabric to your folds as he teased you through them. You inhaled sharply at the tingle it inspired and he pressed firmer against you, flicking his fingers along your bud as he noticed how it made you squirm.

He gently pulled aside the cotton and you felt his hot breath against you. You pushed on his head before he could delve into you. “Please, don’t--”

“Shhhh,” he threw your hand away from his head and bent over you, “just relax.”

He dragged his tongue along your cunt and lingered around your clit. You clenched as it sent a thrill through you and he moved his lips against you, suckling at you bud as your breaths grew raspy. You pushed yourself against the back of the couch and dug your nails into the cushion.

He slid a finger along your cunt and circled your entrance. He rubbed up and down as he kept his tongue swirling over your clit and you swallowed back as gasp as he poked inside. He felt around and added another finger, stretching you as he carefully pushed them in and out of you in time with his mouth.

He lapped you up and you closed your eyes, desperate to resist the coil winding within you. Your legs tensed against the couch and you tilted your pelvis without thinking. He sped up, the noise of his mouth and your slickness filled the silence. You let out a puff and moaned as you slapped the couch. The waves rolled over your flesh and you came into his mouth with a pathetic mewl.

He stilled his fingers as he lazily teased you with his tongue. He pulled his fingers out and sat back, the heat between your legs cooling in his absence as he licked up your juices. He watched you as he sucked his fingers and stood. Your head lolled and you edged forward on the couch. You tried to stand but he caught you and flung you back.

“We’re not done, baby,” he winked at you as he grasped the top of his boxers, “go on, lay down.”

You murmured your refusal and once more tried to get up. You slipped onto the floor and shakily crawled away as he dropped his boxers to his ankle. He grabbed you before you could get around the side and lifted you easily. He turned you and shoved you down onto your back as he lifted a leg over you.

He straddled you and again his hands roved over your body. You smacked at his fingers weakly but he easily ignored you. He kept one hand moving along your curves as he stroked himself with the other. He groaned and shook as he stroked his dick. Your eyes followed his hand and you gulped, he was thick.

He moved his knees back and pushed them up beneath your thighs as he kept a hand planted on your chest. He ripped your panties down your legs and untangled them from your feet. 

He held you down as he ran his tip along your cunt, wetting himself with your coerced arousal. You groaned and grabbed the arm of the couch above you. You tried to pull away from him.

He pushed against your entrance and you looked at him in shock. You couldn’t stop him. His eyes were set between your legs as he inhaled and slowly eased into you. He gasped as he got his tip inside you and his muscles tensed. He bit his lip as he dove further in and you gasped as he filled you inch by inch.

“Shitttt,” he moaned as he reached his limit and you whined at how full you were, “oh, baby.”

His hand slid from your chest and he gripped your hips as he pulled back and thrust. You exclaimed and he did it again, slowly as he watched himself impale you over and over. You curled your fingers against the couch arm and your feet arch as you pressed your thighs around him. He lifted your pelvis high as he angled his dick even deeper.

“You feel so good,” he rasped, “oh, baby, you’re so good. Ahh-hh-hh,” his voice fizzled as your walls clenched him and you closed your eyes as you felt the heat building. 

He moved his hand along your thigh and stretched it over your pelvis, pushing his thumb to your clit as he kept his pace. He purred as you writhed helplessly against him and you panted through the rising ecstasy.

“Please, please, please…” you chanted, unsure if you were begging him to stop or for more.

He moaned as he sped up and you sucked your lip under your teeth as you neared your peak. You quivered as your orgasm crashed into you and you let out a strangled cry. He snarled and planted his hands beside your head as he leaned over you, his hot breath tickled your face as he pounded into you.

Your legs bent around him as his pelvis rubbed against you and the friction drove you to another climax. You held onto the arm of the couch as he fucked your harder and harder. He kissed you and nibbled at your lip as he groaned and hooked an arm under to hold you close.

“You’re gonna make me cum, baby,” he said against your cheek and you turned your head away from, “ah, here I--”

He spasmed and slammed into you. He took several long thrusts and stilled. He grunted and drew heavy breaths as he rested his weight over you. He grabbed your head and turned your head up as he pressed his forehead to yours. You kept your eyes closed as the flames slowly dwindled.

“Was that so bad?” he stroked your cheek and trailed his finger down to poke between your lips, “No, it’s what you wanted, isn’t it, baby?” he wiggled his hips and you hissed, “yeah, you want me.”

[writing-wh0re]

Can we get some George Weasley x Y/N but Y/N caught Fred with Angelina (while Y/N and Fred were dating)

All writings will be #writing-wh0re-requests.

George Weasley x Reader - Fred Weasley x Reader (mentioned/past)

Words: 1,970.

Warnings: Fluff, Angst, Hints Of Cheating(?).

A/n: I hope you enjoy this! I did and didn't make it Fred cheating but you'll have to read it to find out how I did that. Love you all, stay safe and hydrated xo

| | |

Fred had been distant from you for a while now, almost everyday you’d wonder what had caused this distance between you. A Lot of the time you wondered if it was your age gap or if you were too involved in your studies to have time with him. You missed what you had before dating, your years of friendship slowly disappearing. You decided enough was enough and you would ask him what was going on, at least asking would give you a straight answer, one that would hopefully help you sleep at night.

You knocked on his dorm door, waiting patiently for the shuffling feet to reach the doorway.

“Y/n, uh, Fred isn’t here.” George smiled weakly at you before moving from the doorway to let you pass.

“Oh, do you know where he might be?”

“He could be studying, I know that he and Angelina have a joint project coming up.” Angelina, the gorgeous girl that made Fred’s eyes light up. George sits down on his bed, opposite to Fred’s as you cautiously walk over, sitting in front of him.

“George, can I ask you something?”

George simply nods in response as you let out a deep sigh.

“Fred, he’s been distant lately and I can’t help but think it's me, has he said anything to you?” I feel the nerves set in, knowing the twins share everything with each other, I twiddle my thumbs not wanting to look up at George and know the answer before he says it out loud.

George sighs deeply before speaking, “I have noticed him being distant towards you, honestly I think he’s a bit of a twat to be doing that to you, why do you think it’s your fault?”

I open and close my mouth, trying to find the words as my thoughts run wild as well as my emotions, unsure of which one will break free first.

“I can’t help but think it's our age gap, plus I know I’m more involved in my studies and find it hard to squeeze in time for dates or anything of the sort. Plus my parents are strict and don’t even know about him yet, I don’t want them to freak out about me dating a family friend.” I can feel myself blabbing on and on, unsure of when to stop, trying to talk to cover my nervousness. “I know it's over but I don’t think he wants to hurt me.”

George places his hand on my knee, rubbing small circles on my skin with his thumb.

“It’s not your fault, Fred should have tried more.” I roll my eyes at George, tuting slightly.

“A relationship goes both ways, I should have found time for him and told my parents, it has been three months after all.”

“You’re right Y/n, but if I was him, I would sit with you while you studied, bring the date to you.” George sits beside me, tilting my chin up to him finally making eye contact with each other. “Who cares if you parents are strict, it should make the relationship a bit more exciting.” I chuckle at George, pulling away from his hand.

“More exciting?”

“Yeah, the whole sneaking around, taking their daughters innocence.” I feel my breath hitch at the way George says the word innocence, a hint of lust behind his words. I shake the thought from my head, knowing that my longtime small, tiny, crush on George is trying to piece together emotions that aren’t there, ones that aren’t shared.

“Ah, well maybe you should talk to Fred and see if he agrees with you. Prove me wrong in believing this is all over.”

George’s face drops slightly before nodding.

“Let’s go find him then.”

I follow behind George, walking the corridors side by side.

“Do you love him?”

“What?” I stop in my tracks causing George to stop as well, turning to look at me.

“Do you love him? Or was this just because of how close your friendship was? I mean you’ve been a family friend since you were born.”

I frown at George’s questions, having to rack my brain for the answer. Although for the past few months I have been asking myself these exact questions, is it just comfortable and familiar? Did we owe it to ourselves to try?

“Of course I love Fred, I mean, yeah I love him.” I mentally slap myself for sounding unconvincing, more so trying to convince myself. I do love Fred, I have so much love for him, just like I do for all of the Weasley family. George hums in response, kicking the ground slightly before scoffing.

“Romantically Y/n, do you love him, or is it just comfortable?” George boxes me against the wall, his eyes wandering mine for an answer, one I’m not sure I can say out loud, one I’m too afraid to admit.

My heartbeat picks up, my breathing ragged as I stutter out my words. “I-uh, I’m-, lets just find Fred.” I watch George flick his eyes from mine to my lips, I quickly duck under George’s arm, walking a little faster than usual away from the interaction, turning into the library and hoping to find Fred.

I look around the room, feeling George’s presence behind me. I look over my shoulder slightly, confirming with myself that it is George.

“Can you see him?”

I look around the main foyer, before walking to the left, looking down the hallway.

“He’s not here, let's go.” George says hurriedly, grabbing my forearm.

“George stop, I haven’t looked down here yet.” I pull my arm from his grip earning a groan from George, he quickly rushes in front of me, obstructing my view. I chuckle softly, looking up at the tall ginger.

“He’s behind you, isn't he.” George doesn’t say anything, I lick my lips before letting out a deep, almost defeated sigh. “Enjoying his time with Angelina?” I look past George’s body, seeing Fred laughing with Angelina, brushing hair out of her face before kissing her. I feel a pang of sadness mixed with guilt hit my heart, before smiling at my longtime friend. Feeling guilty for ‘keeping’ him from her.

“Fred’s happy with her, George.”

George stays in front of me, his hand softly rubbing up and down my arm. Angelina breaks away from the kiss, before her eyes land on me, causing me to go wide eyed. I quickly duck behind George’s body, knowing he isn’t hiding me very well.

“She saw me.”

“C’mon, we won’t do this here.” George grabs my hand, lacing our fingers together before guiding me out of the room. My heart swells, butterflies erupting inside of me as I glance down at our hands.

George. It’s always been George.

I mindlessly follow beside George, smiling as we end up at the astronomy tower.

“You two really are identical.”

George chuckles at me before sitting down near the railing.

“Yeah, Fred and I both enjoy the view up here.”

I nod in agreement, looking at the view, the breeze flowing through my hair, deciding to lay down on my back.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Of course you can George.”

“You don’t seem upset.”

I stay quiet for a few seconds, before looking over at him.

“It’s weird, I know I should be sad, we were together for three months but nothing really changed from when we were friends.” George nods, before laying down beside me. “We just gave ourselves a title and kissed a few times.” I chuckle at how weird it was to kiss Fred at first, almost as if it was a taboo act. “When you asked me if I love him, I do, but not romantically, kissing him felt odd.” I confess causing George to raise an eyebrow at me. “Don’t tell him I said that.”

“Odd how?”

“Like I was kissing my friend, which I was but it just didn’t feel romantic.”

“Hmm” George hums in response before he can ask me any more questions, rushed footsteps pull us out of our conversation.

“Y/n.” My heartbeat picks up at the sound of his voice.

“Freddie.” I smile, tilting my head and looking up at him from the ground.

“Fred.” George says sternly, a protectiveness hidden behind his voice, I shake the oncoming thought not wanting to spiral in this moment. Fred walks over to me, before laying down beside me.

“I’m not upset with you, I’m happy for you.”

“I-, what?” Fred stutters, causing me to chuckle.

“I have been your best friend for years, I know the look you give someone when you’re completely mad about them and Angelina is a lucky lady.” I grab Fred’s hand squeezing it reassuringly as a deep breath falls from his lips.

“I’m so sorry Y/n, I should have tried more but I don’t know, I was trying to get myself to believe something was between us, but kissing you felt like kissing my friend.”

George chuckles beside me, causing Fred to sit up and look at his twin.

“What’s amusing you about this?”

“Y/n just said the same thing about you, kissing was odd and there was nothing romantic about it.” I slap George’s chest causing Fred to chuckle.

“Guess we tried, it won’t be awkward now will it?” I shake my head before kissing Fred on the cheek.

“We were definitely more friends than partners in these three months, plus I think we saw less of each other while ‘dating’.” I put air quotes around the word dating as Fred sighs in relief.

“Weird how we had to ‘date’ to figure out who we both truly wanted.”

“Wait, what?” I ask, a nervousness falling over me.

Fred stands from laying down as I rest on my elbows.

“I may give Angelina a look but I know who you look at and they feel the same.” Fred winks before turning to walk out of the tower. “Don’t blow it George!”

I facepalm at Fred’s words, knowing he can read me like a book. I turn to George, opening my mouth to try and do some damage control with Fred’s words so I don’t lose George as a friend. However before I can speak my peace, George cups my face pulling our lips together. My heartbeat picks up, my body falling hot as a tingle rushes over my skin. I place my hand on his forearm, his thumb brushing small circles on my face as our lips move in sync.

This, this is what kissing should be.

George pulls away from my lips, a small smile dancing across my face as our eyes lock together, his forehead resting against mine.

“It will break my heart if you say that is how kissing Fred felt.”

I chuckle at George’s response, quickly kissing him again causing him to smile into the kiss.

“It’s always been you George.” I whisper my confession as the younger twin hums, kissing my forehead.

“It's always been you too Y/n, don’t you remember the fight Fred and I had when you started dating?” I shake my head softly as George licks his lips. “It shocked me that you were getting together, everyday I wished it was me instead but I slowly noticed the way you would look at me compared to him. I just knew.”

I blush at George’s confession before mentally scolding myself for not being subtle.

“Did you mean what you said in your dorm? Bringing dates to me, sneaking around with my parents and taking my innocence?”

George smirks, licking his lips as he makes me look into his eyes.

“Every word.” My breath hitches, butterflies fluttering around inside of me as I close the gap between us.

My mind falls clear, no doubt, second guessing or worry wandering through me. Finally content. Finally with George.

| | |

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[mmurderhousewrites]

Sukuna's Favorite

A/N; AH this was so fun to write, it was getting annoying though because i kept getting distracted. But this is a new blog i started specifically for my works. Anyways, i hope you guys enjoy this :)

WARNINGS; Smut, Nsfw, Fingering

It had been three months since you started attending Jujutsu high. You had always thought it was just a coincidence you could see the curses. As a child, they scared you but as you grew older you realized there was nothing to really be scared of since they never harmed you.

It truly was odd, at least that's what most of the staff members at jjk high thought when satoru gojou had brought you to the school.

The sorcerers were used to curses coming after humans with no particular reason so it was strange to them. Why wouldn’t they attack you? After all, you were just an ordinary girl.. Well, that's what everyone thought until itadori Yuuji joined jujutsu tech after consuming The king of curses, sukuna, finger.

Sukuna was an odd one. He usually kept to himself in his little area inside of yuuji’s mind. However, whenever you were near itadori he would always make an appearance somewhere on itadori’s face, hand, wherever there was skin showing.

Everyone had thought it was weird. what would the strongest curse to ever exist possibly want with a girl like yourself?

Sukuna would always have something to say about what you’re wearing and how you look. Constantly making snarky remarks on how you should go change because it's distracting. Of course being the badass you are, you ignore him or tell him to piss off and leave you alone. But that doesn't stop him.

Now, you were forced to share a room with itadori as your room had some sort of ritual that had to be done? You didn’t understand because you have never even seen a curse there so why the ritual?

Itadori had offered to take the floor while you took his bed. But you insisted that you didn’t mind sharing a bed with him since you guys were already close.

Obviously, itadori wasn’t going to pass up this offer. He had been crushing on you for a while now but has been too shy to say anything. Plus him being a teenager, his thoughts were corrupted by his hormones just thinking about being in the same bed as you. Not only that but his thoughts were also corrupted half of the time, due to the curse residing within him.

You had gone to sleep wearing one of itadori’s shirts and a pair of pink laced panties, while itadori was shirtless with a pair of boxers. You didn’t want to wear them but it was laundry day so you didn’t have a choice. Itadori hadn’t said anything about them so you had hoped he didn’t notice.

During the night you were woken up by something poking your stomach. You had tried ignoring it but eventually you had enough and yawned before opening your eyes.

Itadori was sound asleep, snoring a bit with drool coming out of his mouth. You snickered a bit before moving the covers aside to see what was bothering you.

Your face had turned a bright pink as you noticed it was erection poking you. You have no idea what to do.. Should you help him out? Or ignore it. The second option seemed better in your opinion, so you put the covers back over him and sat up before turning to sit on the edge of the bed.

“Ah jeez” you whisper to yourself, putting your head in your hands. This was a bad idea. You should have never come to share a room with him. You should have just gone with nobara and maki, they even offered you to sleep with them yet you declined..

“My my, what do we have here” That deep sadistic voice said from behind you. There was movement from back where itadori laid.

You didn’t want to turn around. You couldn’t.. How could you face him with what you’re wearing? Not only would it be embarrassing but you can only imagine what he could possibly do to you.

That pale hand of his came up from around you to caress your shoulder.

“Sukuna,” you say and hums in amusement from the way his name leaves your mouth. It was like his own personal heaven. “What do you want”

He chuckles and begins to move his hand down towards your stomach. “Well, i was thinking.. How beautiful you would look round with my child inside of you, don't you think?”

You can practically see that creepy but attractive grin on his face as he says that. Yeah, of course you had thought about what it would feel like to have sex with the curse.. I mean even his voice was attractive to you. But of course you could never admit that to anyone.

“Tch, I asked you a question brat” He growls in your ear and you swallow harshly. You could possibly die here if you don’t do as he says..

“I.. i don’t know” you stutter out, too scared to say anything else.

“Hmm, then why don’t we find out?” He chuckles before moving his hand further down before finding its way down to your pink panties. Pressing two fingers against the fabric, you sigh and lean your head into his shoulder. “Ahh, would you look at that. I’ve barely touched you yet and you're already this wet for me?

Well, there was no hiding it now. And on top of that you were terrified that itadori might be awake just unable to control sukuna at the moment. Which meant he would be able to see what was going on..

Sukuna moves your panties to the side and begins to run two fingers up and down your slit. The action made you let out a soft moan which made sukuna groan from behind you.

“Do that again for me” He says and starts nibbling at your ear. He brings his other hand out from behind you and moves it under your shirt to start playing with your left breast.

You moan again but this time louder when he inserts a finger into your tight cunt. Biting your lip, to try and quiet down, Sukuna notices this a bites down onto your ear making it bleed. You let out a squeal and as you do he begins to pull his finger out and push it back in slowly.

He chuckles and puts in a second finger,stretching your pussy out, which makes your back arch.

“Ah~ S-Sukuna” you whimper and he smirks, beginning to pump his fingers in and out of you, starting off slowly and then gradually picking up the pace.

A familiar feeling in your stomach begins to build up, knowing you’re about to cum, you grip sukuna’s neck and pull him closer to you. He hums in response and uses his thumb to rub your clit in circles as he fingers you.

You let out a loud moan as you cum on his thick fingers, your body twitching in delight. You fall limb against his naked chest as you come down from your high.

Sukuna chuckles which send vibrations to your upper half. “Well i had always thought you would look beautiful like this but i didn’t expect you to be this beautiful..”

His words send a shiver down your spine and you can’t help but smile. Had the king of curses really found a soft spot for [f/n] [l/n]? You slowly turn around and as soon as you do sukuna lowers his head to kiss you.

It wasn’t what you had expected from him, since he was ruthless most of the time you had thought kiss kisses would be just as mean, however this kiss was soft and passionate. And not only that but, it held a lot of meaning behind it.

Pulling away from him, you sigh, “let me repay you?” you ask and look up at him. You could feel the print of his hard cock through the boxers itadori had fell asleep in.

Sukuna just chuckles and pats your head, “maybe next time. We should go back to sleep before the brat wakes up”

“Oh- um yeah i guess you’re right..” you say. Sukuna moves out from behind you and pulls you back to lay down with him. Your head resting on his chest while his arm is wrapped around your waist.

“Good night, princess”

You smile, “goodnight, sukuna”

[avatarvyakara]

Tiles on the Roof

An Encanto Fanfic

Prompts 13-24

"Choice of Words"

First | Next

13. Tontería

(nf) nonsense

All of his life, it’s been like all Bruno can do is babble.

First it was fairy-stories for his mother and sisters, told with a four-year-old's certainty. Then it was stories that veered very dangerously into the truth, eyes glowing at odd times and the truth mixing with the nonsense; it left everyone fumbling, including him. After a while, he learned to mark the visions in the sand instead, and learned to hold it in and build and not talk, but they weren't as clear. They didn't hurt—it didn't hurt to see the future—but it was still difficult to work out what was true. More so, in fact. His stories held his view of the world, but not the sand. That was up to the viewer.

Bruno went from a chatterbox to almost a mute over thirty-five long, long years. And it still wasn't enough.

14. Exagerar

(v) to exaggerate, overdo, overreact, ham up; 2nd singular present indicative vos exagerás

“It’s—owwww—it’s all okay!” says Papá, wincing. “Could happen to anyone.”

“Ay, Dios mío, Agustín,” moans Tío Félix, “can you not try a little harder to not be a lightning rod for all our bad luck?”

There's a joke in there, a sad joke, that Luisa doesn't want to think about.

“But the work must be done, Félix!” says Papá dramatically. “What kind of example would I be setting for my children otherwise?”

“You’d be around to see your grandchildren,” calls Señor Gonzales from nearby.

“Hilarious, Diego.”

“Um, Papá? You do know you don’t actually need to do outside work, right?” asks a young Luisa. “I can take care of it.”

Papá, his hand already swelling from the beetle bite, sighs and gives her shoulder a squeeze. “Ah, I know you can, chaparrita,” he says (and if he still calls her “shorty” when at twelve she’s already his height, well, not only is she not complaining—Luisa Does Not Complain—but she finds it kind of fun). “But you shouldn’t need to. And hey, everyone does their part, yes? And I got the wood chopped.”

“But you get hurt all the time—” And I’m the one with super-strength. You mustn’t overdo it just to prove yourself to anyone, you don’t need to do that.

“Ah, what’s a little pain when we get a nice, roaring fire at the end of it? Besides,” he gives her a wink, “your Mamá has a new recipe that she’s been wanting to try out.”

“But what does that have to do with—waaaaaait a minute...”

Papá smiles a little too innocently.

15. Coro

(nm) chorus

The Madrigals find joy in different things, as is only fitting. But the key is to find the joy. Give a little extra encouragement from the sidelines to the stars of the show.

Abuela is less than easily impressed these days, at least when it comes to Mirabel. But she still usually manages to make someone smile, even if it is only Mamá and Papá, just by…well, loving every minute of being here. She can't do much—not in the way the others can—but she doesn't need that.

And there's the odd thing. Mirabel hates the fact that she wasn't good enough to get a gift, but for the life of her can't imagine what her gift would be.

She also can't quite understand how she can manage to get the entire town in on the game when she sings, because that's kind of weird, but nobody actually seems to notice or bring it up so maybe it's better for her not to bring it up…?

16. Apellido

(nm) surname

Standard practice is for the wife to keep her family name, or tack her husband’s onto the end of hers. But Félix Castillo de Madrigal and Agustín Valderrama de Madrigal happily make an exception to the rule for themselves. Félix, after all, has lived in the encanto for long enough to know what it means to be a Madrigal in San Ambrioso, and Agustín still wants to learn, so badly. Becoming a Madrigal is a badge of honour that no sane man would turn down—least of all those who genuinely love the daughters of the house.

17. Risa

(nf) laughter

"Do another!" cry his friends.

Hmm. Who now?

Padre Juan, he thinks. And the minute he does—

"Ayyyyyiiiii, just look at my head! So bright you could see your face in it!"

Alejandro and Paola are in stitches.

(Mirabel has been playing with them less and less since…that night. Camilo tries not to feel guilty.)

18. Reñir

(v) to scold, fight, quarrel; 1st plural imperfect indicative reñíamos

It's just a phase, it's just a phase, Alma reminds herself. Her daughter could manage plenty of sunshine and clear skies before, it's just a matter of getting her to control herself better. Because if she doesn't, she risks destroying us all.

Pepa really has to learn to be less sensitive.

Lightning crackles overhead as Casita (very kindly) extends her awnings a little so Alma can have a bit of shelter.

Wasn't Pepa's room supposed to dampen the effect? Maybe she wasn't there. But where could her younger daughter have gone?

It starts drizzling.

She finds her in the garden.

"Pepita?"

There's her cielito. She stops crying as Alma approaches—the rain slows to a drizzle—but the skies are still dark.

"I can't take it back yet, Mamá," she says. "Soon, okay? Just…not now."

I wish I had never been given a gift.

"Lo se, Pepita," Alma replies. "Do you want some company?"

She shouldn't. She should go down to the village to reassure the others that the storm will abate.

Or she can help her daughter calm down.

(It's a little sad that, as her children get older, she's finding herself talking to the village more than she talks to them. But not right now.)

Pepa looks surprised, and madre de Díos if that isn't the worst rebuke her eight-year-old daughter could give her. But then she nods.

"Just a little bit," she insists. "I'm still mad at you."

"I know," says Alma.

The sky doesn't clear, not exactly. The clouds are still there, in pearly grey. But they aren't crying anymore.

19. Omitir

(v) to omit; 1st singular preterite indicative omití

It's not that Isabela can't do more than flowers. Right? Otherwise, why would she know all this stuff about the other plants? But she understands, somewhere in her five-year-old head, that right about now it's not needed like that. Abuela loves the flowers, and so to Mamá and Papá and her Tía and Tíos. She can leave out the rest for now.

(But not forever. Not forever.

"Sooner than you think, gordita," her Tío Bruno says. "You think this is amazing? Just give it time. You are going to be fantastic. And that's a promise."

It's one of her Tío's nicer Special Stories in recent days, and even Abuela smiles at him.)

20. Mentir

(v) to lie, tell a falsehood; 2nd singular negative imperative no mientas

"Pepa? Where have you been?"

Clear skies, clear skies, clear skies…

"…down by the creek?"

Mamá raises an eyebrow.

"Definitely not up in the mountains again where you said not to go alone?"

"Hey, who blew out the candles?"

Daytime? Sure. Fog in the house? Also.

"Um."

"Josefa Ciriaco Madrigal Sánchez—"

"Told you she wouldn't be able to do it," says Bruno from the sidelines, and jumps back to avoid a very localized lightning strike.

21. Diálogo

(nm) dialogue

Rat minds are surprisingly tidy, given what they are associated with. Thoughts are compartmentalized almost like they're in a tiny human mind, expanding or contracting with education and nurture, focusing on the roles they play more than anything abstract like a toucan's mind. And Antonio is currently listening to what the rats in the walls of Casita have to say.

Scavenger-for-food. Companion-for-Sad-Man. Top-billing-in-the-Teatro-delos-Ratos, says one.

Caretaker-for-Sad-Man. Best-role-in-the-Teatro-delos-Ratos, says another.

Watcher-for-Sad-Man. Aunt-who-has-amnesia-in-the-Teatro-delos-Ratos, says a third.

"What's the Teatro delos Ratos?"

The three rats look at one another and shake their heads.

Flabbergasted-from-Shining-Mind's-not-knowing-the-Teatro-delos-Ratos, says the second. Seeker-to-rectify-this-utter-disregard-for-thespian-culture.

(Sometimes even the animals think in ways he can't understand.)

"Can you show me?"

Hmmm. Reluctant-guide-towards-the-Sad-Man, says the first. Also—seeker-of-lunch? Observer-of-Glasses-Girl, hungry.

Antonio shares a bit of the spare arepa that Tía Julieta insists they all keep on them for emergencies, and follows the rats into the walls.

22. Cumplido

(nm) compliment

Sometimes they talk about her food, her compassion. Sometimes they talk about her body. (Once or twice in ways that had Pepa out literally shocking would-be suitors and Bruno, of all people, lighting up his eyes and saying "This is gonna hurt you more than it will me.")

Flattering? Yes. But it comes after the fact, so to speak. After she's already given them something. It feels like a way of smoothing things down to get more from her, of one thing or another. Julieta will give, but she gives to everyone. That's what it means to be a Madrigal, to give without expecting something in return. Still, she won't give to those who make a point of mocking her family.

Sixteen-year-old Agustín Valderrama, coming up to visit his aunt for the summer, doesn't praise her after he gets his cure. He offers to help instead. That's surprisingly new. And he asks her about her Gift, about how it works and what she feels and whether she likes it (she's not sure, she gets a kind of warm tingling in her bones when someone is cured, and she wouldn't trade it for anything regardless of what she could do otherwise). And not just about her Gift. About other things, like what she likes to do during her time off and what it's like being part of a set of triplets. It's…well, it's confusing. It's a different kind of interest that she's really not used to.

But that's okay. Honestly, it's sweet.

And because he's easily distracted and gets into more scrapes than Bruno and Pepa combined, they end up seeing a lot of each other during the summers.

23. Interpretación

(nf) interpretation, performance, translation

"What is it like?" asks Mariano, while they sit by the fountain one day.

"Mm?"

Mariano does not, repeat, does not touch her ears. (Tempting though it is.) Instead, he gestures to them with his lips, and feels oddly warm at her giggle.

"It's just…is it not painful? To hear every single sound around you at full volume?"

Then Dolores sighs. "It's a little like…hmm. I don't quite know how to describe it. It's…" She snaps her fingers with barely a sound. (For all Dolores' power, she herself is one of the quietest and gentlest people he knows.) "You know what it's like? It's like being on a chessboard. Only every square has a piece on it and you know where all of them are because…well, you just kind of know."

"All across the encanto?" asks Mariano in amazement.

She gives him a shy grin. "Exactly. A little bit beyond, too. Just in case. So on every square there's a piece, and every piece is making a sound as they move about…but I don't have to look at all of them at the same time. I can sort of, well, see with my ears. And focus in on what they're saying. Or what's happening around them. And make it make sense—" she gestures to her head— "up here."

Mariano's first thought is to say: "Then you are everyone's ears." But Dolores doesn't need that. She needs to be reminded that her gift isn't everything about her.

Instead, he says, "I'm just glad it doesn't hurt you."

"Oh, sometimes it does. When I'm around too many people at once, everything is multiplied and it makes it so much harder to bear." Dolores—brave, brave Dolores—smiles at him. "Not as much lately, though. Don't worry, okay?"

"I think I need to learn to worry, just a little bit," he tells her. And he does. He missed so many signs with Isabella. He can't, won't, get it wrong with Dolores. "Will you let me worry a little bit for you, cariña?"

She smiles, and takes his hand.

"Maybe just a little."

24. Abandonar

(v) to abandon, leave, neglect; 1st singular future subjunctive abandonare

Is it desertion? He could come with them. Keep them safe a little longer. And they could all die together.

Or he could stay here in the waters and try to hold off the beasts that hunt them. Los centauros, monsters of old, raiding and raping and pillaging. Those who no longer follow honour and no longer hold to mercy, if ever they did. There's little chance they'll even be distracted by him, much less that he can persuade them somehow to let them go.

But he has to try. For Alma. For the milagritos, the three little miracles she holds in her hands.

Pedro Madrigal steps forward and tries to keep his wits and what meagre bravery he possesses from fleeing. His heart and soul? They stay with Alma.

The Centaurs cut him down.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/36486091/chapters/91028953

First | Next

[retrievablememories]

stuck with you | yoongi

title: stuck with you pairing: yoongi x reader, taehyung and jimin as side characters genre: fluff request: “Can you do a idol!Min Yoongi of BTS request of his crush being best friends with Jimin and Taehyung and him and his crush consistently fluster the other but they never realize until one day he does and finally make as move despite everyone telling them for weeks that they like each other?” word count: 3.3k warnings: some cursing, mentions of the pandemic a/n: i’ve been actively avoiding writing anything concerning the pandemic/lockdown cuz let’s be real, we’re all here to have fun, not think about real-life shit...but i decided to try it here

i wasn’t sure how to write their living arrangements tho since most of them seem to have their own places? so i just used the hannam the hill house for reference 🤪

“How have things been for you guys lately?”

Taehyung and Jimin exchange skeptical looks with each other, which you don’t catch because you’re too busy picking over your food.

“We’ve all been stuck in the same damn place for weeks now, so you tell me.” Taehyung chuckles, shaking his head. 

You visiting their house right before the stay-at-home mandate was issued ended up with the three of you—plus Yoongi, to your luck—being cooped up in the same house for almost two weeks now. It wasn’t wholly a bad thing, since you got to be with your two best friends, but living with three men was pretty much as messy as you’d expected it to be. “Wow. Never thought we’d run out of things to talk about.”

Jimin tries to humor you. “Things have been fine, you know...same as always. Except for Yoongi-hyung acting like a lovesick weirdo. But you wouldn’t know about that, would you…?” Jimin feigns an innocent look.

You look up from your plate. “A lovesick weirdo for who?”

“We’ve been through this like 20 times already, Y/N,” Jimin sighs.

“Yes, and every time I tell you you must have the wrong person because that makes no sense whatsoever.”

“He’s lovesick over you,” Taehyung reiterates, like you didn’t catch the gist the first time around.

“I don’t think Yoongi likes me.” You shake your head and make a face at the notion of it, trying to disguise your irritation at them constantly trying to provoke your emotions.

“Why not? There’s a lot to like about you, don’t downgrade yourself.” Jimin insists.

“He doesn’t even act like he does. If anything, he gets all odd around me.”

“That’s just how he is,” Taehyung says, leaning back in his chair. “You’d think you’d start to catch onto this after being here for so long, but…”

“No, she’s too busy being too embarrassed and intimidated to even get within 4 meters of him.” Jimin and Taehyung both giggle at that, and you shake your head.

“You guys are like little schoolkids. How many more big tales are you going to think up before our quarantine lifts? You could probably write a book by the end.”

Taehyung shrugs, putting his arms behind his head. “I might do that, as long as you let me make you and hyung the star-crossed lovers who are too dumb to tell each other how they feel.” He stretches his leg under the table to nudge your shin with his toes, knowing how you hate when he puts his bare feet on you, and he cackles when you protest loudly.

“Will you stop trying to get my hopes up for nothing—?” 

Speak of the devil and he shall appear. Yoongi steps out onto the terrace with the three of you a few minutes later. He shields his eyes against the sun’s sudden brightness after he slides open the glass door, holding his other arm up.

“Look who’s appeared!” Jimin says excitedly, his eyes glittering with enthusiasm.

“You’re loud,” Yoongi grumbles, though he’s mostly speaking to Taehyung and Jimin. “I can hear you laughing from downstairs.” Your body tenses up and melts all at the same time, and suddenly you feel like you don’t know how to do anything right—like hold your chopsticks correctly. They shoot out of your hand when you try to use them again and hit the patio floor. You look at them forlornly.

“You good?” Yoongi asks, a smile fluttering across his lips at your clumsy actions.

“Uh, yeah I’m fine.” You can only glance back at him, embarrassed that you’ve made yourself look like a clown. Jimin laughs like he’s just witnessed the funniest thing on Earth. You shake your head and push away from the table, wanting—no, needing—a quick exit. “I’ll just find some more of those…”

Jimin shakes himself free of his sudden bout of laughter and jumps at the opportunity. “Wait, I’ll get them for you.” He bolts up from the chair before you can even think about it and goes back into the house, already planning to take his sweet time on his mission to get you new chopsticks. Taehyung picks up the hint almost instantly.

Yoongi turns back to the doorway after Jimin disappears through it, his movements a few beats too late—as if he’s just now realizing the other man left. “What was that about—”

“Oh shit!” Taehyung’s exclamation cuts into Yoongi’s question. In a sweeping motion, Taehyung “accidentally” elbows your water off the table, sending the bottle splashing out onto the patio in sad little streams. You jerk away from the splash, but the water droplets have already gotten you.

“What the hell?!”

Taehyung shrugs like it was inevitable and gives a sheepish smile. There’s an undeniable scheme lingering in his eyes, though. “Looks like I’ll have to get you another one.” He stands up to get your aforementioned water, though you begin to form the idea that you’re not getting any water at all.

You sigh and rub your fingers across your forehead. The heat of the sun has turned from pleasant to uncomfortable, and you don’t even have your water to take the edge off. Great.

Yoongi turns back to you, his eyebrows creased. “That was weird.”

“They’re just trying to…” Force us together? You’re too embarrassed to say anything like that, and your words trail off in a stammer. Why did they ever think this would be a good idea? Yoongi raises his eyebrows in curiosity at your bitten-off answer. “An-anyway, that doesn’t matter. So...what are you doing out here?”

Yoongi shrugs, smirking slightly. “Well, I do live here.”

You snort to cover the way your stomach cuts a flip at his smirk, and you reach for your food in a nervous gesture before you remember your chopsticks are still gone. “You sorta seem like a vampire, though. I’m surprised you came out to get some sun.”

Yoongi mulls over that thought. “Hmm…a vampire, huh?” He runs a hand through his pitch-black hair, and even though the gesture is just an afterthought, it makes your heart skip a beat. You almost want to roll your eyes at your reaction to that simple movement. “Don’t tell me you were one of those obsessive Twilight fans over a decade ago.”

“And if I was?”

“Would you enjoy being bitten by a vampire?” Yoongi regrets it as soon as he says it, and you ducking your head into your hands doesn’t help the flaming embarrassment. “Fuck, that was stupid—sorry.” Your shoulders are shaking with laughter, and even though it’d be cute in another context, he feels like he’s about to combust. So he decides to make a run for it. Maybe a cowardly move on his part, but it seems like the best one right now.

“Hyung, you can’t be serious—” Jimin calls out to Yoongi as the older man brushes past once he gets back indoors, but the other man tries his best to ignore Jimin as a blush crawls up his neck. “Go back and tell her. It was the perfect moment!”

“There’s gonna be a lot more of that mess until we can leave,” Taehyung says, peering through the glass at your now confused expression and shaking his head. “God, one of them needs to say something before I lose my mind.”

--

Like Taehyung predicted, there’s a lot more of “that mess” over the next week. You and Yoongi continue to tip-toe around each other, unsure of how to appropriately handle each other and never unable to shake the awkwardness that colors every interaction.

The most notable incident of all, however, occurs when Yoongi does his laundry one day and somehow finds a pair of your underwear mixed in with his clothes after taking them out of the dryer. How the hell did they even get there, and how did he not notice them before?

Bound to his usual fierce overthinking, he stands there for a few long moments, wondering what he should do. Obviously, the only answer would be to return them to you. But then what if you think that’s weird, him somehow having your underwear? Or what if you assume he’s some pervert who’d taken your panties on purpose?

And to his great luck, that’s precisely when you walk into the laundry room. You give him a timid smile and greeting, which melts away into pure embarrassment when you see him standing there as if he’d just been framed for murder—and your deep red panties sitting in his laundry pile.

Yoongi’s gaze darts between the laundry and your eyes, his jaw working aimlessly as he tries to come up with something that makes sense.

He decides on “I didn’t know they were there,” though this feels just as inadequate as it sounds.

“M-maybe I threw them in the wrong bin,” you rush out, and in the same breath you cross the room to practically snatch them out of the pile of his clothes. You know you couldn’t have done it, though, which leads your mind back to those two sneaky men who’ve been trying to exercise their terrible matchmaking skills as of late.

“A-ah, yeah—maybe,” Yoongi agrees half-heartedly, rubbing the back of his neck.

You both pause for what feels like an eternity, for a reason you can’t decipher, and you think you might burst from the sheer discomfort of it all. “Well—th-thanks. One less thing to wash, I guess.” You try to laugh, but the sound comes out high and forced. Similarly, Yoongi’s answering smile is tight around the corners.

The next few days after that, you are both unable to maintain any kind of eye contact. Taehyung and Jimin are endlessly amused by the way you and the older man dance around each other like two ghosts struggling to inhabit the same space.

You make up for it slightly by turning all of Jimin’s white shirts into a splotchy pink once you find out that this was indeed his terrible and silly idea.

--

You’ve been sleeping in Jimin’s and Taehyung’s beds since you’ve been barricaded in their home with them, which none of you really think twice about. You’ve been friends with them for years and don’t see either of them other than platonically, so it’s not awkward for you or them. Although it was originally intended for you to mostly stay in Jimin’s bed, you end up alternating between the two, climbing into whoever’s bed you feel like that particular night. Neither of them mind the switch-up, and Taehyung likes using you as his personal pillow, so it all works out.

If there was anyone who minded at all, it was Yoongi. It wasn’t a burning jealousy, because he knew he had no right to feel like that about you—not when he couldn’t even admit to you that he liked you. But it didn’t make him want to jump for joy to know you were in either of the younger men’s beds, even just as friends.

He spent many nights imagining you were beside him instead, warming the empty spaces of his bed, whispering to him and telling him about your day. It didn’t matter if he already knew everything you did that day because you’d all been living in the same space for weeks. He still wanted to know. 

But until either of you made a move, he didn’t know when that would happen. If ever.

He didn’t even know if you’d be interested, or if you saw him the way he saw you. You were never as close to him as you’d been with the other two men, and although that could be explained by you being best friends with them for years, he honestly chalked it up to you not liking him as much. Taehyung and Jimin had tried to tell him the exact opposite several times before, but he wasn’t really convinced. Not with the way you seemed to lock up around him—like if you said or did the wrong thing, he’d hate you forever.

If only you knew he could never feel that way about you.

--

You decide to sneak your way to the kitchen for a late-night snack one night, your socked feet scuffing quietly on the floor as you make your way to the kitchen. However, your plan is derailed when you run into Yoongi in the hallway, who has apparently just taken a shower. He’s fully clothed—thank God, because you’re not sure how you would’ve survived it otherwise—but the towel on his wet hair speaks to his recent shower. Your immediate response is to jump in surprise, feeling like you’ve been caught red-handed; although there’s no law stopping you from getting something to eat in the middle of the night.

“Oh—Yoongi.”

“You’re still up?” he asks, pulling the towel away from his face so he can see you better.

“Uh, yeah...I was just getting something to eat, I guess.”

“No crime in that. You’re tip-toeing around like you’re nervous about it, though.”

“I didn’t want to wake anyone up.” You shrug your shoulders, trying to appear more nonchalant than you really feel. “But I see you’re already up…” Your words trail off behind you as you walk into the kitchen. Yoongi watches your retreating back before making the split-second decision to follow you. He’s not really sure why, previously intending to go back to his own room. 

“Were you getting something to eat too?” you ask, turning back to glance at him when you hear his footsteps behind you. You’re admittedly happy at the idea of spending a little more time alone with Yoongi, though you’re still nervous as hell.

It’s probably not the best idea to say I just came because I wanted to be next to you, so he nods to your question. "Uh, sure, I guess. What were you gonna get?”

“I don’t really know, just whatever’s in here…” You open the fridge and stare into it absentmindedly, your eyes raking over the food but not really seeing it—not with Yoongi’s presence hovering behind you.

Eventually you settle on some leftover rice and kimchi—which there’s always plenty of—not wanting to expend too much energy on cooking anything new.

You and Yoongi sit at the table together, using the light of your phone’s flashlight and the under-cabinet lights to illuminate the room instead of the overhead. Maybe it’s a little strange, but you like the ambiance of it more than having the harsh overhead light on.

The room is quiet for a while as you both eat, which you don’t initially mind. But you can’t ignore how Yoongi keeps stealing glances at you, like you aren’t going to notice, like he isn’t sitting right in front of you where you can see. It makes you antsy, but not necessarily in a bad way.

“Is something up?” you finally ask, keeping your eyes on your half-empty bowls, too nervous to look straight at him.

He hums like he’s thinking intently about it. Then he decides to rip the band-aid off and says, “You’re always tense around me.”

“Oh.”

He chuckles at your short response. “Why?”

You feel like you’ve been backed into a corner, and you hesitate. “Well, you’re always weird around me. Why is that?”

“Touché.” Another tense pause where he thinks of what to say, and then, “Jimin and Taehyung swear you like me.”

You try not to react so obviously, but your spoon clatters against the side of the bowl. If he’s acting weird because of the idea of you liking him, how can it be possible that he returns the feelings? Maybe he doesn’t know how to let you down easily. You suddenly feel ridiculous, like you’ve been wasting your emotions on nothing. “...I see.”

“I thought they were...trying to play some game. But, since you’re here now...is it true?”

Maybe if you close your eyes hard enough, you can poof yourself out of existence. If you felt trapped before, you really are now. You blurt out the first thing you can think of, trying to save yourself.

“Before you think I’m stupid for liking you, you should know they’ve been saying the same thing to me about you. So. Yeah.”

Yoongi looks at you full-on. “They told you I like you?” A nervous grin fixes itself on his lips, which makes you second-guess yourself. At this point, your head and heart are tangled in a knot. Why does your love life have to be this difficult? “So that’s it, then.”

“What is?”

“We like each other.” That makes your heart rate pick up. “...and didn’t even figure it out until just now, despite everyone else’s ‘help’.”

You take a shaky breath. “You like me.”

Yoongi nods, glancing between his hands on the table and your face. “I should’ve said it sooner.”

Despite yourself, you feel the corners of your mouth twitch into a slight smile—one that’s colored with relief and a tinge of lingering nervousness. “Later is better than never, I guess.” You find yourself laughing from the way all your stress slowly unwinds itself from your body, and Yoongi joins you, his eyes sparkling in the dark.

“So. This means we’re dating now, right?”

“I hope this isn’t considered our first date.” You snort, looking around the kitchen.

Yoongi shakes his head, placing his cheek in his hand with a sleepy smile. “I promise I’ll take you somewhere nice...after the pandemic is over.”

“We might be waiting a while, then.” Finished with your food, you go to quickly wash the dishes in the sink, and Yoongi slides in next to you to do the same. Another silence falls over the two of you, but for the first time, it’s not uncomfortable or pulled taut with words unsaid.

When you finish, Yoongi leans against the counter, his eyes openly tracing over you, wearing just a big T-shirt and shorts. It’s a simple outfit, but it warms his heart.

“Come sleep with me,” he says suddenly. You crack an awkward smile at that, and he’s blushing before the last syllable even leaves his lips, because he understands how that sounds. “I mean, actually sleep. It’s late.”

You pretend to hesitate on it. “I don’t know, Taehyung might miss me…”

“Taehyung and Jimin have had you all to themselves the past few weeks. It’s my turn now.”

And with that, you let him take your hand and guide you back to his room, maneuvering carefully through the dark house. His bed is new to you, but it’s instantly comfortable—like home. The smell of him surrounds you, as does his arms when he pulls you closer. You smile against the fabric of his shirt as you tuck your face into his chest, his chin on top of your head.

“Goodnight,” he murmurs, his fingers curling around your shoulder. His voice is soft and low, already halfway to sleep.

“Goodnight, Yoongi.”

[feliix]

halloween hookup ↠ lee minho

↠ CEO!Minho x Reader

↠ Genre: Smut, fluff(ish), coworkers 2 lovers

↠ Rating: M (18+)

↠ Word Count: 4.9k

↠ Summary: The details of your company Halloween bash are all a blur once you wake the next morning, well, at least until you notice your boss Lee Minho lying beside you in an unfamiliar bed.

↠ Warnings: unprotected sex, creampie, dirty talk, fingering, nipple play, semi-public sex, nudes (but not the kind you think of lmao), dum/sub themes, mentions of alcohol and drinking. (though this fic does not include sexual intercourse following the consumption of alcohol, please remember to drink responsibly and that consent is not consent if you are under the influence!)

↠ A/N: here’s to spooky season and minho day (even though i’m a day late oopsie). and as always thank you to @jinterlude​ for beta reading ily ♡

The bright morning sun creeps through your curtains, scattering light through your bedroom and grazing your bare skin with its rays. A peaceful way to start your Saturday morning, you muse, snuggling deeper into your bed. As you come to your senses, you notice something is quite off. The room smells stale, your sheets feel slightly more scratchy than usual, and something is weighing down over your waist.

Your eyes snap open, realizing that the object weighing down your waist is in fact, someone's arm. The sheets you’re lying over are not yours, and the odd aroma that’s filling the room can not compare to the sweet scent of your own apartment. As if that isn’t bad enough, you’re not able to identify whose arm is slung over your body, pulling your waist backward against their warm bare chest.

Where am I?

Without waking up the unknown man, you carefully shift your weight to release yourself from his grasp. You take your head into your hands, gently massaging your temples trying to relieve the hangover paging through your brain.

The memories from the previous night are stale in your mind. You rack your brain, trying to come up with some reason as to why you’re here and exactly how you yourself got into this position. You sit up in bed, cautiously wrapping the sheets over your body. It seems like a dream or distant illusion, and you can’t quite piece together how it all went down.

You remember being at the company Halloween bash, you remember having useless small talk with a bunch of your coworkers, playing some stupid game that definitely would have been better if it involved some alcohol, and then it got even lamer, so you left with Minho.

Oh my gosh. You left with Minho. As in your boss, Lee Minho.

Your head whips around your body to look at the sleeping body lying next to you as if you’re expecting to see anyone else placed beside you. The memories of what happened last night come flooding back to you, and it went something like this.

The party was held in your office conference room, which was just big enough to squeeze all 20 people in your department into one space, but small enough where you would bump up against the person next to you if you moved too abruptly. Various types of appetizers and finger foods lined the long meeting table which stretched the entire length of the room. There was also a small end table in the corner topped with various types of soda, a bowl of punch, and some booze that George from IT brought. Not that you would ever drink at an office party, that was way too risky.

A few girls from HR had decided to decorate with some cut out pumpkins they printed off some computer paper and orange streamers that were probably leftover from your last boss's going away party.

After your last boss had left, your company hired Lee Minho, a young business professional from a different location that your company owned. Mr. Lee was a pretty laid back guy compared to your last boss. It was pretty weird having a boss as young as Mr. Lee, but he always made sure to bring some fun into the workplace whenever he could, like this Halloween bash for instance. Not to mention, he was the most attractive boss you'd ever had. All the other female employees seemed to agree, swooning over him with every opportunity that they were given.

Mr. Lee also really enjoyed flirting with his employees, male and female. It was hard to tell if he was being nice or just hitting on you the first time he complimented your outfit. The next time he complimented your blouse you noticed his eyes wandering down to your boobs, and you knew it was not just an innocent compliment, but hey, he was attractive so you were definitely not complaining about it.

The feeling of your phone vibrating in your back pocket of your denim skirt startled you, causing you to jump before fumbling your hands back to reach for the device.

Mr. Lee: I like your cat ears ;)

The sides of your lips lifted into a small smirk before picking your head up to look for Minho across the room. He gave you a small smile and finished his gesture off with a wink before you looked back down, sliding open your phone and responding.

Y/N: thanks! where's your costume? corporate won't let you join in on the fun for once :(

Mr. Lee was dressed in his usual attire, some black dress pants, and a black button-down, but accompanied by a very festive orange and black halloween tie. The slender fit of his shirt made his shoulders look especially broad in comparison to his narrow waist.

Before you could even look up from your phone Minho was standing by your side with a cup of punch in each hand, tilting his head towards one of the glasses to offer it up to you. Nodding your head, you smiled a thank you and took the red cup from his grasp.

You coolly leaned your back against the wall behind you, trying to stay out of the way of all the useless chatter going on between the coworkers surrounding you. Mr. Lee was quick to follow suit, sliding his legs down a little further away from the wall so he could match your height.

"This party is kind of lame," he whispered in your ear, earning him a small grin and soft chuckle from you. Most of the employees at your office were much older than you, so it was hard for you to connect with them. They all had their own families and children, where you had just become financially stable enough to move out of your parent’s house.

"You think anyone will notice if we leave?" You said sarcastically, playing along with his charade, just equally bored of the small talk your coworkers were making around you.

"Yeah, but I think I can get us out of it," he replied smoothly, pushing his back off of the wall and walked towards the conference room door, shooting you a quick wink before he made his exit. You had no idea what Minho had in store to get you out of this party but you sure hope it was good.

Not a minute later, the desk phone in the conference room began to ring. Everyone shot each other questioning glares, slightly confused as to who would be calling the office after hours on a Friday. Minho's secretary sauntered over to the phone before holding her index finger over her lips, signaling everyone around her to be quiet.

"Hello this is Amy," she said, cocking her head to the side and furrowing her brows, trying to understand what the caller was saying at the other end of the line. Her expression quickly changed to a small smile as she looked around the room, eyes landing on you before responding to the caller.

"I'll let her know. Thank you, Mr. Lee," Amy replied before hanging up the phone, "Y/N, Mr. Lee needs help with something and would like for you to meet him in his office as soon as possible."

Trying your hardest not to let a smirk creep onto your face, you nodded your head and placed your unfinished drink down on the table. Curious to see what Minho had in-store to get you out of the party, you made your way out of the conference room and to his office.

Peeking through the office window, you saw Minho seated at his desk on his phone. His legs were crossed with his feet placed upon the surface in front of him. The small lamp on his desk dimly illuminated the room, reflecting some light off of his shiny black shoes. He raised his head, eyes wandering away from his phone as you cracked open the door to his office.

"Mr. Lee, you needed help with something?" You inquired sweetly, giving him a grin while making your way into the room.

"Ah, I've been waiting for you." He joked smiling back at you, "Shut the door behind you." You obliged, carefully wrapping your fingers around the handle and closing the door lightly, sure to not make a sound.

"Is everything alright?" You asked, moving closer to Minho as he swung his legs off the desk and placed his feet on the ground.

"Well I figured we could have our own fun, that party was so lame," he said, holding his hand out for you to take. You hesitated, wondering where this was going but you took his hand in yours, curious to find out. He pulled you in closer so your frame stood between his legs, making your heart jump in your chest.

"What did you have in mind?" You smirked, feeling your body beginning to grow warm with anticipation.

"Hmm," he started, patting his thigh for you to take a seat on, "something not so spooky I suppose."

A knot began to form in your throat, causing you to swallow hard before stuttering out the word "Spooky?" and sitting down on his thigh.

Minho softly chuckled, "I've never seen anyone look so sexy in cat ears before, you were driving me insane in there."

Your breathing hitched as he placed a hand on your thigh, gently stroking your skin up to the hem of your skirt. "Is this okay, baby girl?" His eyebrow raised in question, watching your expression shift into a flustered one. You keened at the pet name, feeling heat rush right to your cheeks. Slowly, you nodded your head in response, unable to trust your voice in a time like this.

"Um, I didn't know you thought about me this way Mr. Lee," you stifled out while uncomfortably shifting around on his lap. Minho caught his bottom lip between his teeth, suppressing a low groan before shifting his body as well, feeling his member harden as he leaned further back into his chair.

"Call me Minho," he smirked, brushing his thumb over your cheek and to your hair, sweeping it over your shoulder.

"O-Okay," you stammered, growing flustered from his sweet yet sensual actions.

"Do you think about me this way, baby girl?" He said smugly, almost as if he knew the response you would be giving him in return.

"Yes, Minho," you unknowingly admitted. The words felt foreign coming out of your mouth, it felt odd calling your boss by his first name. But in some weird way, you liked knowing that he felt more turned on by you compared to the other female coworkers that were desperate for his attention.

"What do you think about, hmm?" Minho hummed, a short smirk fixed on his face. Your eyes widened in embarrassment, choking back a whimper as his hand brushed up past the hem of your skirt. Biting your lip in an attempt to control your breath, his hand wandered higher, pushing your skirt further up to expose your panties.

His long fingers grazed the fabric of the underwear over your core. Letting out a short gasp, you quickly brought your hand up to cover your mouth to muffle the sound. Dragging his fingers along the growing wetness on your panties, Minho kept his eyes locked on your expression.

"I, I think about how nice you always look in your dress clothes," you stuttered, "but I really wonder what you look like under them."

Ending the statement confidently, it seemed as if someone else had taken control of your tongue. Minho raised his eyebrows, smirk still plastered on his face from his prior question. As you felt the bulge in his pants begin to protrude under you, he shifted in his chair once again. He cleared his throat, loosening his tie in the process before speaking up.

"We should go somewhere more private." Minho suggested as he moved you off of his lap. "I don't want to be somewhere that anyone could find us," He finished before pacing towards the hall outside of his office. Following behind him you obliged, walking towards the door and into the corridor. Before you could get very far a faint voice sounded off down the hallway.

"Mr. Lee?" Minho's secretary called out from down the hall.

"Shit," he mumbled under his breath, grabbing your hand and swiftly pulling you into the nearest room to avoid Amy.

The copy room was dark. The small touchscreen on the copy machine and the light that peeked in through the small, rectangular window on the door barely lit the room enough for you to see what was right in front of you.

Breathing heavily, Minho pushed your back up against the door trying to remain out of sight as he followed suit beside you. The feeling of hiding from your coworker with your boss was thrilling, something that was easily so wrong, and definitely against HR policy, excited you.

"Mr. Lee? Are you still here?" Amy called from the hallway outside the copy room door. Minho's startled eyes wandered out the small window on the top of the door to see where his secretary could be.

"Fuck," he let out a deep breath before ducking away from the window.

Minho flipped his body so that he was facing you, placing his arms on either side of your head and his forehead resting on yours. He slowly brought his index finger to your lips, motioning you to stay quiet so you wouldn't be found.

Minho's warm, deep breaths met the skin of your cheeks, his long arm hovered over you, restricting you between his body and the wooden door behind you. The mere inches between your bodies left you craving for his touch yet again. You bit your lip to try and ease your breathing, looking up at Minho through your long eyelashes.

He placed his palm over your lips, trying to silence your deep breaths from the woman pacing around the corridor only a few feet away. His gaze was deep and sultry, it felt as though he was looking straight through you and directly to your thoughts. If only he knew the types of things going through your mind right now – such inappropriate things for an employee to think about their boss.

Tension grew as you stood there, body pressed against Minho’s as you waited for Amy to pass. Being in such close proximity to him was affecting you in ways you would've never imagined. Heat flooded to your core with each deep breath you took; Minho’s seductive stare only furthered your desire.

Without saying a word, Minho removed his hand from your mouth and replaced it with his own. The kiss caught you off guard, causing you to let out a small gasp in return. Minho smiled at your reaction, clearly satisfied with how he was taking you by surprise. His tongue swiped along your bottom lip asking for entrance, in which you easily obliged, slowly parting your lips and allowing him to kiss you even more passionately.

Minho’s knee found its place spreading your thighs apart slowly, teasing you as he rubbed it against your throbbing clit in the process. With slight hesitation, he quickly peeked his head up to the window one more time, making sure that the coast was clear before leaning back down to attach his lips to yours. His hands roamed your body down to the small of your back, pulling you in even closer to him.

Pressing your breasts to his chest, you slid your hand between your two bodies. Your hand found its way down to the bulge in his pants, lightly groping it before earning a moan of approval from him. Instinctively he began to grind into your hand, becoming even needier for your touch.

Minho’s breathing became instantly jagged from the moment you first touched his growing member. Perspiration began to gather at the top of Minho's exposed forehead, the small strands of dark hair framing his face hastily became damp. Your callous touch accompanied with sweet kisses to his lips sent Minho into a state of hunger; his demeanor instantly changed, electrifying the mood of the room.

Minho’s fingertips dragged down your body and to the hem of your blouse, tugging on it slightly before seeking approval to remove it from your body. There’s not enough time to respond before you were fiddling with the tie around his neck, loosening it and slipping it over his head to have better access to the buttons that lined his shirt. Your hands moved swiftly trying to undo each one before Minho's hands reached for his belt, causing you to bring your hands back to your own body.

In an unspoken rhythm, you both discarded your bottoms, leaving Minho standing naked as you wore just your silky black bra. A low moan left his lips as his hand cupped your breast, massaging gently before slipping his thumb underneath the thin fabric to play with your nipple. His touch left goosebumps all over your body, taking the sensation of his calloused fingertips against such a sensitive area.

You threw your head back in pleasure giving Minho access to your neck. Hungrily, he attached his lips just above your collarbone, sucking light marks into your skin. His hands moved to your back, unlatching the clasp of your bra and removing it from your body. The stimulation from both his lips and his fingers left your core aching for more, leaving moisture to accumulate between your thighs.

Without a second to spare, Minho’s hand’s were roaming down your body, parting your legs and dragging his finger down your wet slit. You moaned in response, keening into his touch as sweat began to gather on your brow.

With one quick swipe against your clit you were jumping at the contact. “Minho,” you moaned, “need your fingers inside me.”

A stern look crossed his face, making his seductive expression even more dark and lustful than before. “You have to be quiet,” his voice carried a serious tone as he placed a finger to your lips, “we don’t want Amy coming to look for us again, do we?” His question lingered as he leaned in closer to you, whispering the words softly, before leaving with a small nip to your earlobe causing you to shudder.

“Jump,” Minho ordered, grabbing your ass with each hand as you followed his request, jumping as his strong arms secured themselves around you. Each of your legs rested on each side of his body, gripping him tightly so you wouldn't fall. Minho held his body tightly up against you, taking his time by teasing you and dragging his member along your wet slit ever so slowly.

His hard member slid into you carefully, allowing you time to adjust to his size before pushing himself all the way in. You threw your head back against the wall in pleasure, becoming accustomed to the feeling of his hard shaft stretching out your walls. Slowly, Minho began pumping in and out of you at a slow pace. He was careful not to make too much noise, giving you slow and shallow thrusts before working his way to a faster pace.

He soon attached his lips to yours, moaning into the kiss as you basked in the taste of fruity residue left from the punch he was sipping on earlier. The room was becoming hot and stuffy, the window above you becoming cloudy as your bodies perspired. His movements were fluid and intentional, rocking you against the door as he held you tightly in his grip.

"Hold on," Minho whispered, pulling you off of the wall and walking towards the back of the room. His muscular arms held your body tightly against his, making sure no space was left between you.

Minho pulled out slowly, the sensation of your aching pussy berating your thoughts as he and let go of your legs. Your shaky legs were left to steady themselves on the ground, stumbling to hold onto Minho’s firm chest for support.. Grabbing you by your waist, he quickly turned your body to face the copy machine. In one swift motion you watched him lift open up the top of the machine, letting the beam of light underneath the glass panel illuminate your naked figure. His bare chest was placed flush against your back, standing so close that you could feel his racing heartbeat.

"Bend over," Minho ordered as his hand rested on the small of your back, guiding you to push your chest closer to the copy machine. Following his orders, you pressed your body against the machine, shivering from the cold sensation of the glass panel brushing against your sensitive nipples.

Minho grabbed onto your ass, squeezing it gently as he guided himself back into you. You let out a quiet whine, wrapping your fingers onto the sides of the copy machine to try and stabilize yourself. He returned back to a steady pace, rocking into you with ease while his firm hands caressed your back.

"Fuck Y/N," Minho moaned, "you're taking me so well."

His hand grabbed at your hair harshly, making a makeshift ponytail with his fist, as he pulled your head up. Arching your back, you couldn't help but let out a loud moan in reaction to the new depths Minho was reaching in your dripping core.

"I wanna hear you," Minho grunted between thrusts, his strokes becoming faster and harder. Incapable of using your words, you let out another whine squeezing your eyes shut completely, focused on the sensation of his thick member filling you up and the feeling of his hips hitting your ass with each plunge.

"I'm close," your voice was whiny and weak. Minho picked up his pace, snapping his hips harder into you as one hand left its position on your hip. The loss of contact made you whine, but his hand soon found its place between your legs. His fingers lightly brushed against your swollen clit, the sensation making you see stars. Legs beginning to shake, your grip on the copy machine became firmer, needing to hold onto something in order to steady yourself. The added pleasure from his fingers sent you spiraling, choking you up and causing your eyes to water in bliss.

"Come for me Y/N, I wanna feel you cum all over my cock," he grunted, his voice low and sensual. Moving his hand faster, your clit was rolled between his fingertips. Your orgasm was just out of reach. The satisfaction was just out of reach. But Minho’s tender touch sent you over the edge, relying on the copy machine to hold his unstable body up.

"Minho," you mustered out, riding out your high, pussy throbbing around his dick. He hummed in response, too focused on chasing his own high to form any audible words. The low grunts leaving Minho’s lips became more and more frequent as his thrusts slowed, growing sloppier and careless. But his hands gripped your hips firmly, holding you still as he let out a string of profanities before collapsing onto your back.

Minho rested his head between your shoulder blades, chest heaving as he regained his composure before pulling out of you. Slowly, he stood up, taking a deep breath and admiring your exhausted figure before you followed behind him.

"Wow," was the only word that you could manage, wiping your forehead with the back of your hand as you turned to face him. Minho chuckled in response, smiling gingerly as he picked up your clothes, handing them back to you so that you could get dressed.

After pulling your top over your head your eyes did a quick scan around the room, confirming that you weren't leaving anything behind. If someone were to find an undergarment in here, it would be the talk of the office for at least a week. In the corner of your eye, you spotted a sheet of paper resting on the tray of the copy machine. Raising an eyebrow, you paced back over to the machine and lifted up the sheet.

"Oh. My. God."

You were frozen in place, eyes wide with shock as you look at the image before you. Minho soon whipped his body around, finishing off the buckle of his belt before wandering over to the copy machine.

"I'm so keeping that," Minho said, looking over your shoulder at the picture of your bare breasts printed on the paper gripped harshly in your hands. A smug smirk was plastered on his face as he continued to admire the crude photograph.

"Minho, do you know how this happened?" Your voice was filled with concern, turning your head to face him, sure he was up to something. His eyes were glued on the graphic photo you held in your hands, too zoned out to hear you speak.

"Minho," you repeated more firmly this time, finally gaining his attention back to you from the image, "did you do this?"

A small grin formed on his face, one side of his mouth lifted while he raised his eyebrows. He looked smug...too smug.

"Can't have anyone finding this, now can we?" He chuckled, taking this paper in his own hands and taking one last glance before ripping it into small pieces before tossing the pieces into the recycling bin and extending a hand to you. "I say we go celebrate the occasion with a drink, you in?" Taking his hand in yours, you nodded your head in agreement, following Minho out of the copy room.

"How does a some more punch sound? George brought an extra bottle of juice that I can snag and I’ve got a bottle of vodka at my place with our names on it." Minho spoke, earning a smile from you before walking out the office doors.

Suddenly you feel the mattress shift beside you, pulling you out of your daydream. Minho rolls over to face your direction with his eyes still closed, his mouth slowly opening before taking a deep breath.

"Good morning," he speaks, eyes fluttering open and taking in your disheveled appearance.

"Morning," you manage to mutter out, quickly breaking eye contact, unable to face him from the pure embarrassment filling your system.

"Last night was fun, huh?" He asks, the cheerfulness barely peeking through the groggy tone of his voice. "Last night?" You know exactly what he was talking about, but hope he’s referring to anything except what happened in the copy room.

"Yeah, we came back here to have a drink after we–"

"Oh okay yep! I remember. No need to go into any more details!" You cut him off before he can continue any further, covering your eyes to shield you from his gaze. The flesh on your cheeks are scorching hot with embarrassment.

As you go to stand up from the bed, hoping to quickly gather your things and rush out the door before Minho could mention anything else, his hand reaches for yours. He pulls you in closer to him until your face is near enough to touch; grazing the side of your warm cheeks before speaking again. You lower your head in embarrassment, unsure of what Minho is about to say.

"I really enjoyed our time together last night, I wouldn’t mind having you over again." He brushes the stray hairs away from falling into your eyes, lifting your chin up to meet his gaze afterward. Heart fluttering in response, you catch your lip between your teeth in an attempt to hide the large smile that’s threatening to peek through.

"Oh, I almost forgot," Minho stands up, reaching into the pocket of the pants he wore last night and pulling out a small folded up piece of paper.

"I believe this belongs to you," he curls up the ends of his mouth, biting back a smile while handing it to you. Confused, you unfold the paper revealing a picture of your very own breasts. As if the situation could not get any more embarrassing, Minho stares down at the paper in your hands, admiring your bare chest plastered in black and white, letting out a small chuckle.

As mortified as you are, you figure that the natural instinct to never talk to this man again would not work, seeing that Minho is your boss. Taking a deep breath, you try to find any sort of confidence that could still be left inside you. You look back up at him, cocking your head slightly to the side before reaching your arm out and handing him back the photo.

"Keep it, think of it as a Halloween gift." You say shooting him a smirk, internally crossing your fingers hoping for a good reaction. Minho snickers, taking the paper from your hand and looking at it one last time before folding it back up and holding it tightly in his palm.

"I'll keep it somewhere safe," He gives you a wink and shoves the paper deep into the pocket of his pajama pants.

"Happy Halloween, Minho."

‘Halloween Hookup’ is copyright 2020 @chaangbin​, all rights reserved. Please do not repost on any platform or translate without permission.

[saladejin]

Admire | 07

Seokjin x Fem!Reader | arranged marriage!au, husband!Seokjin | Strangers to lovers, angst, self discovery, loneliness in luxury, touch starvation (eventual smut), eventual domestic fluff

Summary: You’d never needed anyone else. Growing up alone, living alone, existing alone. It all came naturally and effortlessly, quite like breathing. That was until your somewhat distant parents finally decided it was time to make good on a promise. One they’d made before you were even born.

Warnings: Things are getting a lil saucier

Word Count: 5k

A/N: Whew, finally we’re up to date. I FINALLY got around to re-editing and revamping this latest chapter, but once again I’m sorry for the delay on it. Now I can start focusing on my wips :))

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The driver bid you both a chaste farewell and soon you were making your way up to house both of you had grown used to sharing. These days, it was simply your safe space, a place you’d slowly begun to warm up to, where you could live and work peacefully in the unimposing presence of your husband, who worked equally as hard for his family.

This was your place to finally belong, the stupidly large mansion that could house ten more of you plus your family with ease, but alas it was still your mansion.

Our … mansion. 

You couldn’t recall the moment where you’d begun to think of it as a home rather than a house. In your mind, it wasn’t really the house itself, but rather the people who lived there that made it a place you could truly call home.

You looked over to Seokjin and suppressed a sigh of built up emotion. The man was currently bringing most of the bags inside without a hitch, making use of his broad shoulders and hauling weight as if he weren’t wielding enough hierarchical power to get it brought in for him by the driver. Watching the scene only reminded you of how much had changed during your time away. 

For one, Seokjin had shocked you with how easily he’d adapted to the different atmosphere and routine. There were no complaints from him about accommodation, food, or even the over-the-top rowdiness and friendliness of the company. He’d taken it all on board with a curiosity you honestly found adorable, and even adopted some of the various mannerisms. Watching him carrying all the luggage inside was just an example of his new way of living, one you chose to call ‘like a normal person’.

You were also growing closer somehow. The usually stoic man had opened up significantly, and you were discovering new things about him just as quickly as he discovered them himself. For instance, he found an enjoyment for cooking after helping some of the uncles with their traditional barbeque, he’d shown interest in acquiring a guitar for himself as soon as he could, and he was becoming more talkative as he began relaxing his hold on the professional barrier between you.

It was as if he was finally allowing himself to live the kind of life he always wanted. No luxurious parties, no expectations, no having to save face with every public outing. You were a messy mixture of nerves, uneasiness, and excitement at the prospect of getting to know Seokjin for who he was.

He had to discover who he was first, though.

“Dinner will be delivered soon.” His voice filtered out from the kitchen area distantly, and only then you realised you’d been standing in the front entrance in a daze. Lost in your thoughts like a fool. Even so, it was hard to miss the odd note hidden deep within his tired voice.

“Why do you sound disappointed? Is it not what you wanted?” you queried while leaving your bags at the front door for someone to collect later. You made your way into the living room with probing eyes, trying to find where his voice was coming from before spotting his black mop of hair scattered on the back of the lounge.

He didn’t respond at first, only met your gaze with his own investigative ones. You sat down heavily on the other lounge with a sharp exhale. Seokjin drummed his fingers against the leather while lifting one leg to cross over the other elegantly, and you knew he was just trying to avoid talking about what was on his mind.

“You can tell me, you know.” You rolled your eyes at his silence.

He ran both hands through his hair roughly and you almost felt breathless at how messy he’d made himself, like he’d just rolled out of bed. Considering you were both still in your casual clothing from the road trip, it was a sight that made your whole body tingle with a fondness you couldn’t explain. You were just beginning to see more of his hidden personality, and that made you happy in some indescribable way.

“I don’t know, I was hoping to actually try and cook something for once. Like hyung was telling me…”

“Oh? there’s that word again,” you chuckled, trying to ignore the happy swell in your chest after hearing that he wanted to try cooking the same things from a few nights ago, “and you can get the grill out tomorrow night if you want.”

“Hmm, I’ll see how I feel. Anyway, what word?” he asked while sitting back and continuing to run his hand through his hair lazily, expression puzzled. You felt so annoyed at the longing you felt to be the one doing it for him. You had been wondering what his silky looking tresses had felt like for the longest time.

“Is it ‘hyung’?” You smiled in embarrassment, mouthing out the word carefully to try and pronounce it in an acceptable manner at least, though you could never hope to sound fluent right off the bat. Seokjin’s eyes fell to you as the word left your lips, the small lifting of his cheeks being the only hint that he was trying to suppress his amusement. The way his cocoa coloured eyes sparkled at the sound of his native tongue made your heart squirm.

“It’s a good attempt, but no it’s pronounced more like ‘hyeong’. Try it.”

“Hyung.”

“Yeah, that’s … better.”

You hid your grin with the back of your hand, eyebrows shooting up at his unsure sounding feedback. He even managed to crack a tiny smirk of his own, his full lips making him look even more model-like under the soft lighting of your living room.

“Hey, how am I meant to get it perfect straight away? Besides, I forgot what it means already,” you huffed, and brought your legs to tuck comfortably underneath you.

“It’s just a term we use to refer to older males,” he explained, letting his head fall back against the seat slowly. Seeing his eyes fluttering to a close made you wonder how tired he must’ve been feeling. After spending so much time interacting with strangers, and driving, and pretending to be your husband, you supposed.

The jarring noise of the doorbell brought you to your feet, and you went to collect your dinner from the front door as Seokjin gave a quiet nod.

Now that he’s brought it up, I think I’d prefer a home cooked meal too.

“So, am I meant to call you ‘hyung’?” You laughed inwardly while making your way back to him. You were excited to learn more about him now that he was opening up and unfurling in front of your eyes.

He had to purse his lips slightly to avoid smiling again. “No, and please don’t. It would feel way too odd to hear that from you.”

“Oh.” Your heart cracked a little, thinking of course he wouldn’t want his foreign partner to try and so poorly imitate something such as his native language, something he considered close to his heart and home. “Ah, sorry. I didn’t think-”

“It’s okay, it’s just that Korean women don’t use ‘hyung’. If you are female and want to refer to an older male, or partner…” He seemed to hesitate, as if rethinking his decision to elaborate on the subject at all. “Then you can call m- you can use ‘oppa’.”

You swallowed a mouthful of steak before attempting to copy him. “Oppa?”

Seokjin blinked before giving you a tiny nod. Not a single second passed before he was focusing back on his food, the conversation apparently hitting a weird place for him.

“I don’t have to go around calling you that. It’s not like I’m trying to adopt another culture,” you clarified for him, noting how his shoulders seemed to relax at your gentle tone. “I only want to understand you better, Seokjin.”

His hands faltered in their movements to cut the tender steak on his plate. You didn’t catch any change in his expression, as expected, but his eyes gleamed with something you could only describe as appreciation. A few months ago, neither of you probably thought you’d end up sharing your ethnic differences with one another over dinner like this.

The house had always been so silent with just the two of you, and your mind kept thinking back to your old home where there were always maids, cooks and butlers milling about. It struck you as a little peculiar, so you decided to ask.

“Sorry to change the subject, but why is it that your mother requested there to be no live-in staff here?”

Seokjin continued to eat slowly but looked up with a thoughtful gleam in his eye. “I was confused too, but she always brushed it off. Something about family traditions requiring minimal interferences? I didn’t really get it since I’d never heard of said ‘tradition’, but I never really understood her methods anyway.”

Oh…

Your face burned as you understood what he was saying. It was almost laughable, how oblivious he was to his mother’s implications. The thought probably never crossed his mind that she could be referring to the two of you having sexual relations in some way. Well, why should the thought cross his mind?

This was never meant to be anything more than a fake relationship, an array of masks worn only to fool them into believing it was true. It was easy to understand why his mother would think accordingly. You had been trying to trick her, but perhaps you’d been just a little too convincing.

“Yeah, weird huh?” You cleared your throat, offering to take up his dish as you both finished off the meals. The case of the understaffing was forgotten as you moved back to where your husband was half sprawled on the couch, but now the quiet hum of the television accompanied the room and you were thankful to have something filling the silence. Even if it was something was simple as slightly muffled voices from the people on the big screen.

You plonked back down on the leather and felt relaxation crawl up your spine in the best way. You were slowly beginning to believe that there was almost nothing better than this. Spending a night at home with someone you cared about, watching a movie or TV show, nice and warm and comfortable.

You briefly registered that in your current position, Seokjin’s arm that’d been outstretched along the back of the seat now rested just behind your neck. You thought nothing of it, knowing he sure as hell wouldn’t, but let your imagination take the reins at all the possibilities presenting themselves.

Imagining a smile tugging at his lips as he brought his arm down to drape across your shoulders. His warm hand as it cupped your jaw, a gentle thumb drawing tiny circles into the flushing skin along your cheekbone. You imagined the feeling of your smaller hand travelling up the hardened expanse of his clothed chest, feeling the lean muscle and taut ridges underneath the flimsy barrier separating skin from skin.

You felt your face flush further in surprise when your daydream was snapped away into thin air, the cushion underneath you squeaking as he suddenly moved from his slumped position.

“I’m about ready to call it a night. The driving must’ve taken more out of me than I thought,” he said while sporting a grunt of effort, his face wincing at the pop of his joints once he stretched his long legs out. As he brought his arm inwards to follow suit, you felt the slightest brush of his fingers graze your neck. The small shudder that racked your body from the sensation was instantaneous, and you knew that your shameless imagination from earlier had made the cravings for his touch worse.

Unintentionally, your body shifted to try and follow his hand before you managed to will yourself into a stiff, unmoving statue.

Shit, what was that?

You closed your eyes and blew out your cheeks in annoyance, directed at nobody but yourself. Was it really all becoming too much for you the handle at this point? When had you become so … pathetic and needy? This wasn’t like you at all.

It was only then you realised Seokjin hadn’t moved since your loss of inhibitions. You wrenched your eyes open and glanced over to him, knowing full well that his observant gaze had seen the entire display from beginning to end. Oh God no!

“(Y/n), I’ve been thinking,” came Seokjin’s voice through the robotic sounding laughs emitting from the speakers of the television. He was holding his arm awkwardly in the air just above his own lap, as if it had been electrocuted and was no longer capable of moving.

“About what? Oh, when is our next event? I forgot to ask you earlier,” you uttered faintly, trying to cover up your reddening face with one hand. There was no way he was going to let what happened slide, you knew just by seeing the pointed look in his curious dark eyes. He lowered his arm and kept his eyes fixated on your jittery form.

“Not for ages, but anyway that’s not what I was thinking about,” he said with a lazy mumble to his voice that was honestly just a little too low, teetering on seductive but obviously unintentional.

You mentally implored him to forget your stupid reactions. It was getting out of hand and you were already trying your best to rein yourself in.

“Oh?” You raised a brow, waiting for the inevitable questioning that was surely coming your way.

In all honesty, you just wanted to go shower and sleep for the next week. During the trip you’d had so many restless nights, being too caught up on the whole sharing a bed situation. It got better as time went on, but you still couldn’t shake the feeling that you weren’t meant to be there in between the sheets with him. Every time, you held yourself back from the urge to touch him and shuffle closer to his side.

Rein it in. Rein-

Seokjin finally parted his lips in to respond, “It’s just that I can’t help noticing how you get lost in your thoughts lately, along with all the other odd reactions. You keep getting this look on your face, like you’re longing for something, and I can’t help but think back to what you were saying at Taehyung’s party.”

Okay, well this was a bit more than you expected. You felt shivers of humiliation travelling up your skin at the thought of him noticing your fantasizing, of all things. Were you really becoming that obvious even in a state of subconscious? Damn, things were really worse than you thought.

“What? At Tae’s party?” you murmured, trying to awkwardly laugh it off in the process. How did he manage to call you out like that with the straightest of faces? It was almost unfair that he could be so serious and not become affected by these things.

“Yeah,” Seokjin continued. “How you said you craved human touch all the time because the way you grew up left you wanting. I realised during the trip, how content you looked when you were receiving affection from your family members … and me.”

You snapped your eyes up to him, looking to see if his expression would give anything away about what he was thinking even though you knew it was futile. To your shock, his face actually wasn’t the same blank slate you were used to seeing when he pondered. For the first time, you saw him show slight apprehension as he nibbled on his plush bottom lip.

‘And me’ he’d said. You were suddenly thrown back to that one night in the motorhome, which honestly seemed like a mere fever dream, where he’d run his hands along your body and held you close for the first time. That first night you had shared the same bed, and all the dams had broken within you.

It was the night I opened up to him, and maybe that was when he decided to do the same.

“So, I want-”

He cut himself off and sat forward, looking so bewildered and lost that you were beginning to grow concerned. At the recollection of all these memories, you were already feeling vulnerable and ashamed. His vagueness was not helping you keep your shit together.

“I want you to show me what you mean. What are you asking for when you say those things?” He finished by clasping his hands together and looking up at you as hopefully as he could, which was minimal for him. You couldn’t really believe your ears at this point.

“Show you?” you repeated in disbelief. “H-how?”

“Show me what you need,” he rephrased, straightening his back slightly and fiddling with his fingers.

It was a cute little habit you’d never seen before, but your brain could barely register that when you were already reeling from what he was saying. He was close enough that you could catch the scent of his faint cologne, and it was making your head spin faster and faster. The quiet sound of the television faded out as you focused on his beautiful eyes right in front of you.

“You want me to touch you?” You tilted your head, feeling like you were having an out-of-body experience when he nodded to confirm your suspicions.

“If that’s what you want.”

It was strange, not knowing whether to feel happy or whether to feel humiliated, or relieved, or even saddened; all because of your neediness that he’d seen way too many times.

“Okay.”

Your shoulders sagged in a strange sense of defeat. This whole impasse had been your weakness from the start, and now it was finally coming to light. You were ready to help him understand things from your point of view, and maybe he would start to see why you’d been acting this way.

He’d grown up in a similar environment, even despite some stark differences. Why couldn’t there be just a small chance that he might relate somehow?

“What do you feel when you get close to another person?” you asked softly, untangling your feet from under each other and resting them squarely on the ground in front of you. It was intimidating to look up at his looming figure this boldly, yet being so close to his body heat only seemed to put you more at ease.

You wanted to fall into him and have him cradle you in his arms, but you knew that if you were going to show him the right way, you needed to take it slow.  

“I don’t feel so different. It doesn’t happen often, actually,” he mused while keeping his eyes focused on you. “When I see my mother at galas or balls, I suppose it just feels like I want to get away.”

You stifled a chuckle at the thought of his mother’s smothering putting him off. It was like that for so many kids out there, but you couldn’t share that feeling when it was lucky for you to even see your mother once in a while. Seokjin’s tensed frame seem to falter slightly when you knowingly smiled up at him. Gone was the shyness, the tiptoeing, the never-ending feeling of restraint.

This was your husband in front of you, and now he was asking you to touch him.

“That’s understandable Seokjin, but I mean in other instances where it’s perhaps more welcomed, or even instigated mainly by you. Say, you see your brother after a long time, so you hug him. Yes?”

The man’s black hair bounced slightly as he nodded. You hadn’t made any moves to be closer to him yet, and you could sense his confusion, but truly it was best to go gradual for him to understand. Rather than you just throwing yourself at him in a barrage of limbs.

“How does that make you feel, compared to how you feel normally?” you tried again, your eyes wide with a curiosity that probably burned even brighter than his. A month or so ago, you never would’ve thought you’d be having such a close and intimate conversation about his relationships.

Clearly, the road trip had not only changed you both in multiple ways, but it had also changed the very dynamic tying you together. The foundations of your relationship, and what it meant to each of you. The man sitting before you now was nothing but a far cry from the man you’d once faced at the altar. As foolish as it was, you could not be prouder of him.

“I suppose I was taught to just do it in certain situations. I never thought about how it made me feel,” he offered in a low voice, brows furrowing as he tried thinking about how he could be more helpful. The slight pout to his pinkish lips had your heart beating erratically.

“Seokjin, do you care about me?” you asked, and time drew to a stop.

This was the kind of question you told yourself you would never ask him. It was almost impossible to answer considering your circumstances, and the owlish look in his eyes told you that you were right in thinking so.

“Yes.”

Your world resumed spinning, but the silence continued. Honestly, you didn’t think you would have kept it together if he’d answered no. You loved him, that much you were sure of, but before the holiday you had been confused about whether you cared for the man so strongly out of your pure desire for close friendship and companionship. You weren’t dense though. These feelings were far more than that, and you were an idiot for entertaining them.

You stared into each other’s eyes, trying to read foreign minds and figure out what it all meant. He cared about you, and you cared about him. That much was a given, but the true depth of that fact remained a constant unknown. He exhaled sharply, almost as if he couldn’t really believe he’d answered so sincerely. So quickly.

“I didn’t think I would, but since the beginning you’ve turned out to be quite different than who I thought I’d be married to. My life … changed, but it was seamless and easy compared to the complicated mess I thought I was going to have to deal with,” he explained with sad eyes. His gaze had been trained on the floor since he’d given you ‘yes’ as an answer.

You shifted closer and brought one hand up to lift his lowered jaw, angling it to face you so you could see his inquisitive eyes once more. His large hands remained clenched in his lap, unsure of what to do at this point.

“Seokjin I care about you too, so you don’t have to feel like you’re on your own here.” You laughed quietly, noticing his shoulders relax as you moved your hand up to rest on the side of his face. Your fingertips buried themselves into the shorter strands of his hair.

If only he knew the true extent of my feelings.

You cleared your throat, trying to push away the intrusive thoughts before they took over, and switched your teacher mode on quickly. “This is a … type of contact that you can kind of do anytime, and you can even play with the person’s hair, or just kind of massaging gently.”

You demonstrated by slowly bringing your hands up to run through his marvelous black locks, lips parting in amazement at the feeling of his soft hair you’d always imagined combing back with your fingers. Your other hand shaped itself to his face as you tried your best to stop yourself from leaning any further forward.

You couldn’t kiss him like this just yet. Not when it would actually mean something to him, for the first time.

“Why do you say ‘the person’s’? You know I wouldn’t have the nerve to try this with anyone else, right?” He murmured unexpectedly; his eyes somewhat nervous at what you were implying. You were quick to push your surprise away and nodded, because it was the only response you could think of.

He took a small but deep breath to regain himself, letting his stoic persona continue to melt underneath your touch. “May I?” he asked in a soft voice, and once again all you could do was nod your head.

He brought one of his hands up hesitantly and you couldn’t help a small fond smile at the way he was concentrating so intently on the movement. As soon as his hand made contact with the skin of your cheek, you couldn’t stop yourself from leaning into it. He watched in wonder as your eyes fluttered shut, his other hand now carding itself through your slightly messy hair.

If you’d been a cat, you were certain a distinct sound of purring would emanate from your throat.

He smoothed all your hair back until it was no longer ruffled, and then brought both hands back to cradle your face once more. You didn’t realise you’d been leaning forward and running your hands up his chest until the moment you reached his shirt collar, and your eyes zeroed in on the expanse of his neck just long enough to see his Adam’s apple bob up and down in a hard swallow.

“Um, now you can touch a bit lower if you want. Or just hold my hands if you’re more comfortable with that,” you breathed, trying to bring your thoughts to a focal point while removing your hands from him sharply. He looked so picturesque up this close. You just wanted to stay in this position for hours upon hours.

“Like this?” He voiced hoarsely. You tried to keep your breathing normal as one of his hands fell down to encompass yours, but the other traced the line of your jaw before gliding downwards and brushing against the tender skin of your neck. Just has he had in the beginning before all of this had started.

“Yeah.”

You almost whimpered at the tingling sensation, but kept it in for the sake of the exercise. This man was absolutely dangerous for your wellbeing. It wasn’t even his actions at this point, just his undivided attention and careful eyes tracing over the curve of your figure that had your insides turning to jelly.

“That’s probably enough for now. I can hear your brain working,” you spoke and let out an airy laugh when his fingers hesitated in their descent. It was as if he was trying to compute too much information at once, and somehow, the way he was trying his best was oddly charming.

He grunted. “I’m just- I’m trying to understand you.”

“I know, and I appreciate it,” you responded with a genuine smile, noticing how his words mirrored your own from earlier back when you’d butchered his native tongue. “Now I don’t know about you, but I’m so exhausted I could pass out.”

“Yeah, now I’m really calling it a night.” He cleared his throat with a sigh, mind clearly burning out from the overload of new experiences.

He stood from the couch so suddenly, a stiffness taking hold of his movements. Just what was going through his head at a time like this? You missed his close proximity almost immediately.

Like a robot programmed to move, you also heaved your body up from where it was beginning to sink into the cushions. This whole turn of events seemed unreal, and you could feel your heart still throbbing in your chest at the feeling of Seokjin underneath your fingertips. He had been so warm and had looked so beautiful.

You ran your fingers through your hair as the silence permeated the air, the only sounds being your husband's gentle footsteps as he packed away a few things around the house. You gathered your own bags from the front door and sluggishly traipsed towards your bedroom at the opposite end of the hallway.

I don't want to be on my own.

The invasive thought made you take a few shaky steps back. You were ready to put everything at risk and confess to him how lonely and in love you were, yet to your surprise the sound of his voice softly calling your name made you falter in your tracks.

You stood in the doorway looking outwards as he loitered in front of his own bedroom door at the opposite end, one large hand resting on the doorknob as if he'd been hesitating to open it.

"Did you hear me?"

You relaxed your stance, a sudden embarrassment beginning to settle in at how eager your movements were. "Yeah? What is it?"

Please let me stay with you. Please let me-

"Isn't it - doesn't it seem strange?" He seemed to inwardly backpedal all of a sudden, his pretty eyes falling to the floor and his slightly down-turned nose twitched in regret. "I mean, sorry if this is weird, but after sharing a bed for the entire road trip, doesn't it feel strange to suddenly go back to our own rooms?"

“Ah.” You somehow managed to suppress a hefty sigh of relief, pure ecstasy shooting through your body like some special brand of heroin. You tried to bump up his courage with a reassuring smile. "Jin yes, I still want to spend the night with you."

His eyes rose from the floor as the burden lifted from his mind, shoulders seeming to shake free the stiffness that had taken hold of them ever since the couch fiasco.

"I'm glad. Come over here then."

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