#hmmm the smell of possible angst

[tornado1992]

The moment Surge and Kit realize they can actually beat the bros just by switching targets this is going down.

Sorry I just realize the connection today.

[desswright29]

Sweet Lady

Pairing: Shuri x Blackfem reader

Authors note: This is Part 3 of my Shame series. It’s a little something for everyone in this chapter Chile! It’s a series so walk with me loves. Shuri is basically having flashbacks trying to figure out where she went wrong. So each Chapter gets worse. Reader eventually becomes a singer, but not yet so I’m not putting that reader is a singer. ANYWAY! Enjoy My Loves. I’m having fun writing this! And remember I’m hella new to this so be gentle with me.

Chapter Warnings: Angst, Fluff, It’s a lil smutty (18+), Foul language

Word Count: 6,652 (like I said walk with me lil baby)

Shame pt. 3

PRESENT DAY

That dance. That one dance changed everything. Introduced Shuri to a love she’d never believed to be possible. It also lead to an endless spiral of fucking drama. ‘Shit, to this day, that’s why I’m locked in a fucking bathroom hyperventilating now, Pathetic’. Shuri chuckled through her tears still looking at herself in the mirror. You’d always had a crazy effect on her. Like you held a remote control to her body. It activated at the mere mention of your name. But in that same reality you’d make her feel powerful. When you and Shuri connected that day it brought out a beast in her. One that everyone had to sit up and take notice of. It’s what made her the worthy Queen she was today. Imagine her people who thought so highly of her seeing her in a puddle on the floor of a bathroom all over  some woman. Ha! But you were so much more than just that. Everyone who could get close to you knew it. 

‘Get it together!!!’ Shuri screamed at herself inside. 

‘You cannot do this here’.

She turned on the cold water, placing shaky hands under the powerful stream, she collected water and splashed it against her face. 

‘Pull it together. You are a Queen. You have work to do’

She looked at herself in the mirror, eyes swollen and puffy, face drenched in water. She reached for the paper towels. Pulling out a few and pressing them to her face, allowing them to soak up the moister. She reached into her small bag draped across her body pulling out her shades and her gloss. She applied her gloss and placed her shades over her eyes. 

She gave herself a once over, smoothing her hands over the wrinkles in her suit. 

She walked over to the door unlocking it, placing her hand on the knob she let out a deep exhale opening the door. 

Nakia and Okoye stood still awaiting her command. 

“I’m ready” She spoke as if nothing had happened, having successfully numbed herself temporarily. As she walked, avoiding looking at any screen, the conversations surrounding her, the name continuously being called overwhelmed her. And she found the memories came flooding back again. 

—————————————————————————

BACK IN THE DAYZ

“Mmm Fuuuuuckk” Shuri whispered. She was supposed to be preparing for her nightly call to her girlfriend. Instead, after she’d gotten in from the market. She found herself turning on soft Afro-beats music. It came pouring from speakers built in and strategically hidden in the perfect places around her Luxury apartment inside the palace, surrounding her in the beautiful sounds. Lying back on the couch in her room, the days events played on repeat in her mind. She found her hands slowly moving down her body. Down past the band of her briefs her fingers found her folds dripping wet. “Hmmm” she sighed. Imagining her. Her naturally intoxicating scent. The way her soft, kinky textured hair smelled of butters and oils, a hint of Mango.

Y/n found herself in the shower body pressed against the slick marble wall. Her hands having traveled the same path as Shuri’s own, not being able to get the feel of Shuri’s strong hands guiding her waist out of her head. The way her R’s rolled so beautifully off her tongue. The way her voice and body flowed one in the same. Silky smooth. Yea. That describes Shuri with perfection.

Shuri rubbed circles around her clit as she thought about how buttery soft y/n’s hypnotizingly brown skin, that seemed to be flaked with specks of gold, had felt in her arms. How her warm center had felt pressed against her thigh. “Ahhh Bast!” She was so close.

Y/n continued rubbing her clit. As she inserted 2 fingers with her free hand, doubling her pleasure. “Ooo my…!!!” She moaned out head thrown back against the wall as the feel of Shuri’s thigh pressed against her center ran so vividly through her imagination that she swore she was in the room with her. She pumped and circled her hands as she felt her core clench. A warm sensation starting in her belly taking over her entire body. She slid down the shower wall as her body began to convulse. “SHURI!!”

“Y/N!!” Shuri moaned out, her back arched as she came to the image of Y/n riding her pussy. Breast bouncing with each thrust of her hips. The image slowly disappeared from her mind as she came down from her high. She lay breathing heavily hands down her pants, when her Kimoyo beads Chimed. 

Griot: Panther incoming call from “Sthandwa Sami”

“Shit” Shuri said removing her hands quickly as though Eve was walking through the door. 

“Uh answer griot”

“Molweni, thando!” Shuri answered breathless and over enthusiastic.

“ Heeeey, baby?” Eve answered with a question in her tone. “I take it you aren’t mad at me anymore? You sound out of breath.”

“Oh you know I can never be mad at you too long Sthandwa. Just got out of a last minute training session. You know Okoye wants to spring them on me just so I can s-stay prepared. You know with the whole me being uh Black Panther now thing” Shuri rambled as she scrambled around the room pacing.

Shuri never Rambled. She was always cool, calm, and collected. This all had her frazzled. What the hell is happening to her.

“Hm, okay. Are you good, love?”

“Oh y-yea fine..fine. It’s just uh been.. been a really long day.” She says yawning and stretching. “I’m super tired” ‘From masturbating to another woman who’s walking distance from me’. Shuri’s shakes her head. 

“Um still no word of you making it anytime soon?”

Eve sighs “Not yet my love, I am trying.”

“Of course you are my dear. No rush”

Eve’s antennas immediately went up. What was going on? 

“Just like that?” Eve was confused. This conversation never fared this well.

“No need in arguing. I know how much your work means to you. And I respect that.”

“Wow, that’s a big jump in maturity since yesterday” Eve says brain begining to go into overdrive.

“Well what can I say. I learn pretty fast” Shuri says placing an exaggerated fake yawn at the end. 

“Okay love. You sound so very tired. I guess I’ll let you get some rest. Call me tomorrow.?”

“Yes tomorrow definitely. Ndiyakuthanda so much. I love you Thando”

‘Wtf was that’ Shuri and Eve simultaneously thought. 

“Ok baby. I love you too” Eve chuckled mischievously. The call ended. Something was definitely up and she was going to figure it out.

Shuri walked into the bathroom, while Y/n stepped out of the shower in her own room. They both walked up to the mirror. Y/n wiping the steam off of hers. Shuri looked at her self in the mirror shaking her head. 

“It should be out of my system now” they both say in union. 

“Griot have 5 dozen roses sent to Eve. The note should say “Just because it’s Monday”. Have them delivered tomorrow” Shuri demanded as she prepared for her own shower. 

“Yes Panther.” Griot answered.

—————————————————————————

Your alarm goes off the next morning and though you tossed and turned most of the night you found yourself awake and anxious about the day ahead. Would it be awkward? Will she still want you here, or would it be best for you to leave? What the hell was that feeling? Your body reacted when you thought of her. It wasn’t just lust though, that was the easiest thing to acknowledge. But there was an underlying need for her that you couldn’t quite place. You just wanted to be close to her, take care of her, make her smile. And that scared you, because you couldn’t have her. 

  You were due in the lab to help out with the progression on the borders, but decided to take a little extra time on getting ready today to calm your nerves. “When you look good you feel good,” You say. And you could definitely use a vote of confidence. 

 Going to handle your hygiene and refreshed your braids, you decided to put on a little concealer, some mascara, line your lips with a brown pencil and apply gloss. You placed on a burgundy biker short and sports bra set, adding burgundy joggers that had 3 orange stripes down the front, you let them hang low on your waist. Your top adorned with a mesh long sleeved top that stopped above your sports bra playing peakaboo with the top of your breast. You wore white, black and gold sneakers and finished off the outfit by tying the matching jacket to the pants around your waist. Giving yourself a once over in the mirror, running your hands over your straight back that hung to your waist, you looked pretty damn good. You went to the fridge to get 2  tupperware bowls filled with overnight oats you’d prepared the night before. One for you and one for Shuri. You were ready for the day. 

—————————————————————————

Shuri lay in bed staring at the ceiling not having slept a wink. Anxiety taking over. ‘Shit did anyone record?’ Ofcourse someone recorded. She face palmed. ‘Eve’s gonna find out without a doubt.’ Shuri tried to call her and was being sent to voicemail. “Fuck,Fuck,Fuck!” She knows. I wonder how Y/n’s feeling about all of this. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door followed by a twist of the door knob. 

“Sleeping in today Princess?” 

Shuri shot Okoye a glance but didn’t respond. Okoye gave a slight nonchalant nod as she continued walking towards her bed.

“Hm. How’s Eve?” Shuri immediately brought her hands up to cover her face as she let out a frustrated groan. “Okoye. I am in trouble.”

 “I’d say so I heard you and your scientist gave quite the show at the market yesterday.”

“Ooh BAAAASSST! It was just a dance! Everyone does Kompa all the time here!”

“Hey. I am not the one on edge about it here. But I will say that what I saw hardly looked like just a dance. I’ve seen the “friendly” version of Kompa and that wasn’t it”

“ SAW! Shit! Someone did record! Okoye, Eve has everything I’ve ever wanted in a woman.”

“I never questioned that.” Okoye said hand coming up to her chest in sarcasm.

“Buuut since you brought it up…Does she?”

Shuri looked at Okoye with exasperation.

Okoye continues. “Sure, Eve is gorgeous. But in the years you’ve been together, How has she been there for you? In the time you spent together, how have you found yourself compatible, mentally, spiritually. Do you really feel a connection?” 

Shuri doesnt give it thought. “I love Eve.” 

Okoye nods “ Ofcourse you do. You spent years together. But ask yourself this… When is the last time you felt with Eve whatever it is you were feeling when you danced with Y/n, or hell, even when you’re around Y/n. You can’t even control the way you look at her for Bast sake, We’ve all seen it.” 

Shuri was stuck. 

 “All I’m saying is you need to figure out what you want and reel this in before people start getting hurt…. You’ve got a long day ahead. Time to get going.” Okoye says as she leaves Shuri with her thoughts.

—————————————————————————

Shuri entered her lab searching for you before having to go to train with Okoye. Shuri’s eye’s landed on you as you spoke with some of the other scientist over a projected diagram of the river boarder. The burgundy against your buttery cinnamon skin making her heart drop. Shuri halted mid stride groaning at the sight of you. “Holy shhhiii-“ 

“Princess” one of her lab assistance interrupted Shuri’s thinking out loud. She recovered quickly, clearing her throat.

“We weren’t expecting you here today.” Tolu looked at Shuri with bright eyes and a pretty smile. Aware of her assistance little crush, she smiled nicely.

“Not here for long. Just stopping in on my way to training”

“Yes. I see” Tolu says, obviously checking Shuri out in he form fitting compression suit. 

Shuri raises a brow “If you don’t mind. I’m going to take a look at what they’re working on” Shuri motions over to where you and her  other scientist are working with her head.

“Oh, of course” She lifts her arm to touch Shuri’s bicep lightly before turning to walk away with an extra sway to her hips. 

Shuri shakes her head turning to make her way towards you all, she’s met with your intense gaze taking in the scene. ‘Is that jealousy I see?”

She made her way over and you quickly averted your eyes elsewhere. Delving back in to appear busy. Shuri nods and greets everyone. As she enters your space. 

“Hello Ms. L/n, how’s everything going here so far?”

 “We’re making  progress going over a few calculations. We’ll need your expertise with the depth of the Sonic barrier” You say still avoiding eye contact with her, staring down at a clip board.

  “Ah, we can work on that tomorrow. I have training and my first prep meeting for coronation today. Will that work for you?”

“That works fine, Princess.”

Shuri smirks while staring a hole in the side of your face. Her bottom lip settling between her teeth. You felt her eyes, but refused to look.

“Thank you all for working diligently. I appreciate you all  for your dedication during my absence. If you will excuse me and Ms. L/n a moment. She will be back with you all shortly.”

Shuri grabs your forearm and walks you up the stairs to her office. Your heart raced as you took in the muscles in her back as you walked behind her. They moved leisurely under the fabric of her form fitting shirt. She led you into her office closing the door behind her. She let go of you, moving to sit on the edge of her desk looking at you as you looked down at your feet. 

“Princess huh” Shuri says mockingly.

“That would be your title as of now right. Or should I refer to you as my Queen now.”

“Neither really since you are not Wakandan” she replies sarcastically.

“Cut the bullshit Shuri why am I here?”

“Hoooo! Hostile today aren’t we? We left off on pretty good terms yesterday as I remember. What changed?”

Shuri said both eyebrows raised as she awaited your answer. You both knew what the problem was. Her little exchange with Tolu had irritated you. ‘So she just flirts with every fucking body’. But you be dammed if you said that to her. Especially since being mad at her didn’t make any sense. You know, the whole she’s not your girl thing. 

“Y/n, are you planning to avoid looking at me the entire week?” Shuri speaks up.

 “I’m not avoiding looking at you” you said still looking down. 

Shuri stood placing her hand under your chin lifting your eyes to hers.

“ There she is..now tell me really. What’s up?”She took a step back taking her seat back on her desk. You look her in the eyes and there’s a brief moment of tense silence. 

“It’s really nothing Shuri. I’m fine”

“I apologize if yesterday was too much. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

“No, no. I wasn’t uncomfortable. I-I l-liked it.” You stutter.

Shuri looked at you with a glint in her eyes. 

“Yea? Me too” Shuri says biting her lip. 

You break eye contact looking around her office, this being your 1st time inside, because she rarely uses it. Your eyes fall on a gorgeous photo of her and Eve that sat perched on her desk. A head shot of them. Shuri with her intense eyes staring forward wearing a sexy smirk head leaning slightly towards Eve, as Eve smiled big almost in a laugh with her head tossed slightly back. They both wore black. Eve with beautifully flawless chocolate glowing skin, A perfect smile that reached her deep dark eyes. With long single braids that flowed perfectly straight behind prominent collar bones. They were stunning together. 

“ You guys make one hell of a couple” 

Shuri was not surprised. She could pretty much gauge where your eyes had gone. She was aware of how striking of a couple her and Eve was. People literally stopped and stared when they were together. But you definitely rivaled her beauty. You looked back at her to see her eyes still very much focused on you. 

“ We do don’t we. It is almost to good to be true huh.”

“It is true though. Looks pretty damn true.”

You retort quickly, looking at her sternly. 

“You look really good today Y/n”

“Shuri-“ you huff

“ We don’t need to go there Y/n. I won’t beat around the bush. I won’t lie and say I’m not attracted to you. We danced. That’s what it was. We got a little caught up in it, but we’re both aware that that’s all it could be. I am in a relationship. I am not here to confuse you”

“ I won’t lie you kind of already have.”

“ I apologize, that is not my intention. We won’t cross that line again. No more dancing.”

“ Ok well that’s that then”

“ So nomore awkwardness?” 

“It’s done.”

“OK… “ Shuri looks you over. 

“ I must say you do look very nice today though. A little extra effort huh? What’s the occasion?” She says, eyebrows lifting with a sly smirk. Your heart stuttered. But you were quick on your feet. 

“ Since I’m taking over your lab for the week I figured I’d try to keep up with your lab swag”

Shuri Chuckles. 

“ Lab Swag?”

“ Man what! Not to pump your head up or anything but the swag is impeccable!”

Shuri threw her head back in a laugh.

“We’ll you’re definitely giving me a run for my money today. The look suites you.”

“Why thank you.” You smile. “Have you eaten today?” Shuri smiles 

“ Seems I’ve forgot again”

“ Not for long.” I made you some overnight oats they’re in the fridge in the lounge. You have a long day ahead you have to eat something. Let’s go get it”

“ Yes general” Shuri stands and salutes. 

“Don’t” you both laugh and go to get her fed. 

—————————————————————————

2 DAYS LATER.

The next couple of days you and Shuri grew closer quickly. True to your word, you made sure she ate atleast twice a day. She really enjoyed your cooking so she was eating well and that satisfied you. She would come to the lab each morning before training to check on progress made, and eat whatever breakfast you made her. You also started packing snacks and a lunch for her to eat in between meetings, trainings and rehearsals for coranation. 

    You also made sure you dressed impeccably every day. The stolen glances and slight flirtatious remarks from Shuri being your guilty pleasure. You’d spend late nights in the lab making sure everything was going as close to Shuri’s standard as possible. She would join you after her last workout of the night. You guys would talk and laugh, play music and just catch a vibe. But Sometimes touches lingered too long, She would be talking and you’d find yourself zoning just staring at her lips, and you would catch her doing the same. Sometimes, she’d stand to close behind you while getting a glance at something you were working on, you both catching eachothers scent, feeling her breath on your neck. It sent chills down your spine, and a flutter in your tummy. You both would always manage to reel it in though. You would “force” her to eat a little something else before sending her off to bed. But behind closed doors feelings were growing faster than you two could manage. 

This particular day you hadn’t seen her all day. She didn’t stop in the lab at all. Nor did you bump into her at all. You’d planned her favorite meal today for dinner, but guessed she’d have to eat it tomorrow. You’d decided to head in early tonight being that today had been successfully productive. Now you were in your room cooking the sides to your meal, dancing around to your 90’s r&b playlist in your boyshorts with no bra and a black silk pajama shirt that was long enough to cover just the cusp of your ass. You had only one button of it buttoned in the center, braids taken out allowing your puffy waist length hair to flow freely.

 You were turning everything off in the kitchen. When you turned around to see someone standing in the center of the room obviously enjoying the view. 

“GYATDAMNIT SHURI make some fucking noise when you enter a room.”

Shuri laughed from her belly until tears came out of her eyes, hunching over.

“ Bast! I needed that laugh after the day I’ve had. You should be more aware of your surroundings.” 

“ What happened to knocking” 

“You seemed preoccupied.” 

Shuri steps closer to the light in the kitchen and that is when you get a good look at her. Your breath hitched. Her hair had been braided jewels adorning the braids. She wore black slacks and a long black dashiki jacket with gold stitching on the high neck collar, down the lapel, and on the cuffs. (reminiscent  of T’Challa’s black and silver throne room outfit accept with gold) The look finished off with shiny black chunky heeled booties with a gold detailing on the toe.  She looked regal. Like the Queen she would soon be. 

“You ok” she asked.

“Fine.. I mean like I’m fine. Not like you’re fine. I mean you look really nice, but that’s not what I was talking about I meant like I’m cool.” You say mentally face palming. 

She looked at you with those intense eyes, one eyebrow raised, her mouth turned upward on one side, where you could see the top of her perfectly straight white teeth. She licked her lips as she walked closer to you. Getting closer to you she looked down at your short frame and leaned close to your ear.

“There’s no way I look better than you right now babygirl. But thank you” Your knees buckled as she walked around you to the pots on the stove. You remembered then how undressed you were, reaching to button the rest of your shirt. The wind of her passing smelled of vanilla and Sandlewood, putting you in a trance. 

“Huh?” You say to the question she’d just asked. 

“ I said it smells delightful in here. What are you making?”

“ Oh yea! I remembered you telling me Oxtail was your favorite so I decided to make Oxtail, Jollof rice, cabbage and plantain for you.”

Shuri turned and looked at you. 

“Are you serious?”

“Very. You’ve got a lot going on and I see it starting to weigh on you a bit, and well im here to be here for you right. It’s nothing really. I love to cook. But I thought I wouldn’t see you today so I was getting ready to fix a plate and put yours up for tomorrow.”

Shuri continued to look at you. An unreadable look flashes in her eyes.

“Well I’m starving tonight. So shall we eat?”

“Of course your majesty. I’ll use the good dishes for you.”

“Wow. You’re so funny.” She says with a sarcastically with a straight face. 

“Ha! Girl fuck you”

She stuck out her bottom lip and looked you up and down.

“I mean you do look pretty fu-“

“Don’t go there”

She steps behind you as you were about to climb up on the cabinet to reach for the plates, placing a hand on your left hip, pressing her front into your back. She grabbed the plates sitting them down in front of you lingering she brought her lips down to your ear.

“Why not?”

This was gonna be bad. You didn’t have much fight left in you when it came to your want for Shuri. You wanted her bad, and obviously the feeling was mutual. She brought her other hand to your waist and massaged. There it was again. Her breath on your neck.

You held your breath leaning forward ass pressing back into Shuri, hands gripping the cabinet as you closed your eyes tight biting into your lip. ‘Lord give me strength’ you thought to yourself. Releasing a shaky exhale you turned yourself around in her arms. 

Looking directly into her eyes (terrible idea) you mustered up enough strength to speak. 

“You know why.”

“That’s the only reason though”

“Doesn’t matter. It’s a damn good reason Shuri.”

“So you dont feel this…this tension between us.  How right you feel in my arms sthandwa. It’s like some magnetic pull when I’m around you”

“Shuri really let’s not do this. There’s no need to discuss it, because it can’t happen.”

“But you do feel it don’t you?”

“ Let’s just eat. Don’t make this awkward please Shuri.” You say removing her hands from your waist, you turn back around and grab the plates, walking over to plate the food.  Shuri silently walked to the sink, washing her hands before grabbing silverware and wine glasses setting them on the table. She removes her jacket draping it on the back of her chair. Leaving her in a form fitting black crew neck T-shirt. It was tucked snuggly into her pants being held up by a black belt stitched with gold detailing, complimented with a small gold buckle. The gold of her necklace that held her panther suit shining against her chest. She walks over to the wine fridge. 

“White or red.” Shuri asks

“Red”

“Sweet?”

“Yes” You say as you walk over to set the plates down. You glance at Shuri and your heart drops to your belly. ‘Why is she so fucking fine’. Shuri opened a bottle of wine and poured. You went to sit down and Shuri grabbed your wrist, pulling you to her. 

“ I didn’t mean to make it awkward. Sthandwa. We can continue to pretend. I won’t press. I just want to be near you tonight. Is that alright?” 

She asks eyes searching yours. ‘She knows what she’s doing. Play it cool girl’

“ It’s fine with me.”

“Good” She walks you over and pulls your chair out for you. You sit.

“ You don’t have to do stuff like that “

“ I want to” Knowing that there’s no need in arguing with Shuri you chose to move the conversation along. 

“Try your food! Let me know what you think.”

Shuri picked up an Oxtail with her hand, piling some rice, cabbage, and a piece of plantain on it with her fork. She brought it up to her mouth sucking the tender piece of meat and garnishments off the bone. She closed her eyes and sat back as she chewed nodding to herself she hummed in approval. You bit your cheek to keep yourself from moaning. She opened her eyes catching your lustful stare. She smirked.

“That’s damn good sthandwa” You smile with a blush. 

“Thank you”

“Stunning, a genius, funny, and can do no wrong in the kitchen. You make this hard for me.“

“You’re such a flirt”

“ Only with you” She said picking up her glass of wine and taking a sip. You chuckle and you guys continue eating making lighthearted conversation.

When you guys finished she helped you clean up. Washing dishes and all that. As she put up the last dish. You pushed yourself up to sit on the tiny island. 

“So can I ask what went on today. You said you needed a laugh when you 1st came in..”

Shuri sighed pouring you both another glass of wine. She leaned against the counter across from you.

“I’m just tired Y/n. I don’t know if I want to do this. Everything has just been so go go go. I haven’t had time to process. I haven’t heard from Eve at all in two days. My body aches. My mind is everywhere. I’m eating thanks to you but sleep still fails me most nights. The only thing keeping me going right now is my duty to the throne, and that’s only because I feel like I owe it to my family. They’ve given their lives for this and it’s up to me to keep it in the family. It’s so much pressure. I never believed it would come to this. I’m only a scientist. Now I am to be the ruler and protector of Wakanda, and I’m doing it all alone.Nobody seems to care that I’m hurting. There’s no room for me to display weakness.” Shuri had tears streaming down her face she didn’t bother to wipe. You hop off of the island and pull Shuri into an embrace.

“ You’re not alone Shuri. You’ve got Nakia, Okoye, M’Baku, Ayo, Aneka and a whole nation of people who love you. Not to mention me.” You say sarcastically, Drawing a small smile from her. 

“Honestly, I don’t know what Eves problem could be and I’m starting not to like her very much, but focus on the people that are here and you can handle that issue when the time comes.” 

You lift her head from your shoulder holding her face with both of your hands. “You’re loved and we’re here for you if you let us be. Tell us what we can do to help from now on. Okay?” 

Shuri nods as you wipe her tears with the pads of your thumbs. Shuri felt her heart flutter. She looked down at your lips, tongue coming out and running against the bottom of her own. 

You felt yourself being pulled closer. Your lips almost touch when you pull away looking down. Shuri looked over to her left, eyes landing on the guitar she’d bought for you. A beautiful acoustic electric guitar with the amp and all.

“ All the drama that day in the market caused and I’ve yet to hear you play” 

You look back up at Shuri appreciating the change in subject. 

“ I can play for you. I usually go out onto the balcony at night to write and play. I’ve been working on a song. I only really have the first verse and the chorus”

“Oh you write your own music? I’d love to hear it”

“ Sure. Don’t judge though. It’s not perfect.”

“ Ahhhhh damn! You suck don’t you” 

You smack your teeth and laugh as she grins.

“I’ll let you be the judge of that”

You grabbed your guitar and she grabbed the amp and you guys moved your party onto the balcony. She sits as you set it all up. Sitting down you strum a few notes. She watches in anticipation. You look up and smile.

“Alright here we go.”

You lean over and pressed play having had recorded the guitar harmonies nights prior. You folded up your legs into the chair on the balcony. Closed your eyes and started to play. 

(s/n: guitar is so sexy to me)

Now any other day I would play it cool,

But I can’t now,

Cause I want you

You shocked Shuri as you’re smooth, seductive voice sung over top of the melody. 

See I’m hooked on

How you flex your style

And I wanna talk for a little while 

Shuri sat up in her chair not taking her eyes off of you, paying close attention to the lyrics you wrote.

I’ve never really seen your type

But I must admit

That I kinda like

So baby if you have the time

We could talk about

You being mine baby

You opened your eyes to find Shuri’s eyes burning a whole through you. You met her eyes  as you went into the chorus. 

Sweet Lady

Would you be my

Sweet love for 

A lifetime

I’ll be there 

When you need me

Just call and receive me. 

A fire starts to burn in Shuri’s belly as she reaches over for her glass of wine chugging the rest of it, while you went into the chorus a second time. Liquid courage. You stopped singing as you continued to play putting a little extra sauce on it making the guitar sing for her.  

You came to stop. 

“What did you think?”

Shuri stood, walking over to you. She removed the guitar from your hands sitting it gently next to your chair, crouching in front of you. Before you could think your next thought, Shuri’s lips were pressed against yours. You didn’t put up a fight this time. You couldnt if you wanted to your body was putty to Shuri’s touch. You brought your hands up around her neck as your hand traveled up her nape, rubbing her undercut. Her tongue came out licking against your bottom lip. You opened your mouth allowing her entrance, causing you both to let out a moan. Her hands wasted no time reaching under your thighs. Taking you from a seated position, to your heated core being pressed up against against her firm stomach. She walked you both back into the room. Sitting on the couch with you straddling her lap. 

  You both pulled apart to get some air. As oxygen poured back into your body so did a bit of common sense.

“Shuri we have to stop” 

“No….I have to stop”

“Huh? That’s what I said”

Shuri shook her head

“Y/n I can’t do this anymore. Pretending like I don’t want you. Like you don’t drive me fucking insane. Like I don’t touch myself thinking about you and the way you move. You’re always on my mind. The way you walk, the way you dress. Bast, the way you smell, how you take care of me, how you just get me. You make me feel loved and cared for. I want you so fucking bad baby. But I do have to stop. But you don’t…” 

You sat stunned at the confession. Waiting for the rest.

“I want to watch you cum on my thigh. I want to see my fantasy become reality baby. You said you want to be here for me….”She’s unbuttoning your shirt.

“Give me a show. Give me something to think about at night, ride me babygirl.” You moan as she pulls the silk shirt slightly off of your shoulders, not removing it just revealing your breast. She leaned back onto the couch. Bottom lip between her teeth eyes low, both arms lifted onto the back of the couch. 

“I won’t touch you. I just want to watch you get what you deserve from me. For Being so good to me Princess.”

All will power left your body as your hips started to move on their own.

Shuri nodded.

“Uhhuh. There you go baby. Ride that shit. Keep your eyes on me. Yes, just like that”

Her jaw went slack mouth slightly open watching your body roll on her thigh. You looked into her sexy dark eyes as you ground your panty clad pussy onto her muscular thigh. You were so wet the panties were purposeless. A squelching sound now echoing throughout the apartment. 

Shuri’s eyes rolled to the back of her head hearing how wet you were.

“FUUUCKK. That’s right make a mess on my pants baby. Little pussy so creamy for me. You needed me huh.” She said looking you right in your eyes. 

“ Aaaahh Shuriiii!!” You moan head falling back. You could cum just off of her words and the way she looked right now. You grabbed and held onto her belt for leverage speeding up your movements. Breast bouncing in her face. Shuri squeezed the couch cushions trying not to touch you. Shuri chuckled.

“Oh Fuck yea I knew you were a fucking pro. Work for that shit Y/n”

 You looked back into her eyes.

“Shuri please..”

“Tell me what you need love”

“Touch me! Kiss me! UUUUUhn please baby!”

Shuri let go of restraint gripping onto your hips guiding your hips to move even faster. As her lips attached hungrily to your neck. Biting and sucking on your skin. You moved your hands behind her neck squeezing as your core started tightening. She brought her left hand up to squeeze your breast, bringing her right arm around your hips moving you herself as she started a humping motion moving her leg to cause friction for you as she stayed attached to your breast. 

She moved her hand from your breast for a second to hook her finger into your panties and move them out of the way. Some of your juices got on her fingers and she brought them up to your breast rubbing them on both of your nipples adding some sauce to her meal. She devoured them.

“ You taste so fucking good”

“Oooo shit Shuri. Y-you’re m-making me feel so GOOOOOD!  I’m gonna cum!”

Your knee was accidentally buried inbetween her thighs grinding against her soaking wet clothed pussy. She humped against you as you humped her thigh. Shuri groaned starting to feel heat pooling at her core as well. You both looked so erotically feral desperately using eachother to chase euphoria. Shuri sat back pressing her core harder into your knee. Still grinding, wanting to watch you release. Both her hands going back down to your waist. She smacked the side of your ass.

“Come on sexy give me that shit. Make a fucking mess baby. I got you”

With that your face contorted mouth falling open letting out short choppy breaths “Ha ha ha ha ha MMMMMMMMMM” you convulsed on Shuri’s thigh coming to a shaking orgasm. Letting out the most disgusting of moans. Shuri’s brows furrowed together mouth falling all the way open, she let out a guttural moan.

“OOOOOH MY BAST! That shit was sexy! I’m gonna cum! FUCK!” Shuri said with surprise.

Watching the way you came so erotically quickly brought Shuri to her own orgasm pulling you in by your waist holding you tight against her while she buried her face into your neck, mouth wide open, eyes rolling to the back of her head, saliva dripping from the side of her mouth. “Uhn.. uhn.. Uhn.” groaning loudly with every thrust, cumming hard in her pants. 

You both held tightly onto eachother as you came down from your mutual highs. You were wrapped up in eachother. Breathing heavily. 

“Damn b-baby you came through your pants like that. You needed somebody to take care of that lil pussy too huh panther” You let go of her and looked at her one eyebrow raised, with a smirk on your face. Her eyebrows shot up to her hairline. You both burst into laughter.

“Don’t get cocky. We already broke the rules. I can carry you over to that bed and really send your sexy ass into a seizure.” Your mouth dropped as you slapped her arm.

“ You making fun of the way I cum?”

“Quite the opposite my love. That shit was sexy af”

Both of you laugh again as you fell back into her arms and she fell back into the couch holding you while you lay in her bosom.

Then there was a knock at the door, interrupting your moment. 

“Fuck” you say. You got up buttoning your  shirt and scrambling to find pants. 

“Did you have Dora with you?” You whispered panicked. 

“No. But I did let Okoye know I’d be here. It’s probably her.” Shuri said.

“Just a moment” you say while hopping into your pajama pants. 

“What if someone heard us?”

“ Calm down, just answer the door Y/n.”

You walked over to the door looking freshly fucked. Hair wild on your head, Eyes blown, lips swollen, hickeys forming. You opened the door. 

Your eyes go wide. 

“ I was told I could find Shuri here”

Eve.

______________________________________________

A/N: Welp hope y’all enjoyed! We’re gonna pretend the song Sweet Lady didn’t exist until this story. And it was written and Sang by a woman. AIGHT BYE!

Taglist: @oceean@blacksapphhicmaddonna,@doramilaj233,@sleepynggafr,@oceean,@6-noir

Forgot the Taglist my bad

[f1-disaster-bi]

Can you write Lando centric angst hurt/comfort for tattoo au?

Hmmm

Lando was alone in the studio when the power went out. He paused for a moment, dropping his pencil when it happened and just sighed. He knew it was a possibility. He knew that it was the storms that they had this week. He had planned to be home before it hit, but he'd lost track of time again as he checked his phone and saw the weather warning pop up. Lando just shook his head as he heard the rain start to thunder down around the studio and began to tidy away his things. He didn't have to have this design finished for another few days so he tucked it away. He'd promised Max and Lance that he'd stop bringing his work home with him, that he'd start relaxing more and he meant it. He checked all the switches, making sure they were switched to off and unplugged anything that he was worried about causing an electrical fire in case there was another surge. It was as he was gathering his bags that he heard it first. The sound of someone jingling the handle of the front door, jingling it so hard that it made Lando freeze. His chest constricted painfully, and it felt like the world was closing in on him for a moment. There was a crash from the front of the store that made Lando run. His hands scrambled for the door to his office. He could feel himself working himself into a panic attack as he slammed it shut. His fingers missed the lock at first, trembling too hard but eventually he got it done before he was desperately trying to find something to barricade it because his mind was being thrown back to a year ago. He could feel the gun being pressed against him as if it was real. He could smell their breath, feel it on his neck. His hands scrambled to the fading scar on his stomach, hands pressing down hard, expecting hot sticky blood to be spilling over his fingers once more but there was nothing as he listened for footsteps outside the door. Lando's phone lit up on his desk, and Lando scrambled for it, tucking himself under the desk as he tried to breathe. Lance's name was on the screen and Lando hit answer quickly, squeezing his eyes shut. "Lando, are you on your way home?", Lance asked from the other end of the phone but all he got was Lando wheezing in reply, "Lando? Lando, what's wrong?" "They're here Lance", Lando whispered, terrified tears spilling over his cheeks, "They came back. They're here. They're here" "Lando, baby, they aren't there. They got them, remember? They can't hurt you anymore", Lance reassured Lando before he seemed to pull away from the phone, yelling for Max before his voice was back, "We're going to come get you, okay?" "No!", Lando whispered loudly, choking on his fear, "You can't, Lance you can't. They'll hurt you" "Baby, we're on the way", Max's voice came over the speaker, "No one is going to hurt you, or hurt us. We're going to be there in a few minutes, and I promise you, we'll all be okay" "But what if they're still here?", Lando whimpered, trying to breathe but he was so scared. He didn't want to do this again. He didn't think he could survive this again. "Hey, we're right here, no one is going to hurt you", Lance reassured, "Can you do something for us, babe? Can you tell us five things you can see?" Lando tried to listen to their voices. He listened to their soft encouragments as Lando stuttered through listening five things he could see before moving onto the next round until he could hear Max knocking on the office door. His muscles were sore as he tried to climb out from under the desk. He managed to crawl over to the door and unlock it before he tucked himself against the wall out of fear. He waited for Max to appear, and the moment he did, Lando was scrambling for him, sobbing into is shoulder once Max had him. Lance sat behind them, his hands were soft as they soothed Lando's back while Max held him through the last of his panic attack. "We've got you", Lance repeated as Max kissed Lando's head softly, just holding him close, "You're safe" Lando, as Max carried him to the car, wondered if he woud truly feel safe because even after a year, they were still haunting him.

[warmaidensrevenge]

Eddie x reader

I had this idea of our reader denying Eddie's feelings. So let me see if I can work it out. I feel like Eddie would fall for every girl who felt something similar. And it never lasts....hmmm

If you want to read my other work you can find it HERE

Warnings: angst cursing. Not proof read and no word count.

😮‍💨💔

If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything.

🖤💚

" Now what am I supposed to do with that information Eddie!?"

Your friend of 10 years has finally came to address his feelings for you. This upset you. Of course you felt the same way but Eddie was Eddie. He always fell head over heels for some girl. And you weren't going to be the next one.

" I just thought maybe you felt the same." Eddie's voice was strained.

You had went over to his trailer to watch a movie when in the middle of The Shining Eddie said he wanted you to be his. You wanted to but no.

" Eddie. I've liked you for a long time. But you're not serious about this. And you have a girlfriend."

"How do you know that I'm not? How could you possibly know that for sure? And Chrissy and I broke up like 2 weeks ago. I told her I was in love with someone else."

"Because Eddie you're always "in love" with someone else."

"Why is it so hard for you to believe?"

" Eddie." You were angry and hurt that he would do this now. When you were finally moving on and started to get close to someone other than him. " Because your only doing this to not lose me. You do this every time you "fall" for someone. I'm sure at the time you thought how you felt was real. And that you were certain you were gonna marry that person and you actually did love them. But tell me Eddie. How many girls have you told that you loved them? How many stupid speeches have you told to get the girl? Which one of them are you with now?"

Eddie's silence answered your question.

" See...that's what I mean. You move from person to person like it's nothing."

"I only did that because I thought you didn't like me."

"Please Eddie don't lie to yourself. I know how you felt about all of them. I'm your best friend. You told me everything. And I suffered in silence hoping one day you would get over your stupid teenage hormones and want something that was actually real."

She was right. You wore your heart on your sleeve and you didn't know what you wanted. Maybe it was wrong to fall in and out of love so easily but you did love all those girls. You always looked for something that you could never find. You had dreamed of the a life. With the big family, the house, the dog. But every time you looked at your wife her face was just a blur. Now that y/n was distancing herself your future wife had a face. Hers. It was always her. Sure you got a lot of chicks. They were always so easy to charm. But y/n would be the only one to call you out on your shit. She never put up with your bullshit. She was there. Always there when you needed her. You wanted her. But I was a different type of want. Like a need. You needed her. You need her friendship, her smile, her smell, her love. You need her to talk to, to tell you what you need to hear not just what you wanted to hear.

"Look Eddie it's like we are on the same path. It's just I keep waiting for you to catch up and you never do."

" Well I'm here now!"

" It's not real and its to late for that now."

"I know what I feel for you is real y/n. I fucking love you!"

" YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT LOVE IS!" You paused for a second. "If you did you would have chose me a long time ago."

[thatweeboverthereisthirsty]

Can I call you mine?

A commission from the lovely @carlottastudios who I absolutely adore after only having a few conversations with. These were jealousy scenarios with a bit of spice! I went over my word limit on Jamil’s but that’s just cause I love him so much! Please enjoy! And commissions are open still! This one cost $3

Warnings: slight spice, fem!reader, jealousy, protectiveness, possessive behavior, light light LIGHT angst, marking kink (is that a thing? oh well. Basically a love bite that displays their claim.)

   “In the jungle, the botanical jungle, a lion sleeps all the time~!” you sang out teasingly. Leona huffed and his tail thumped against the ground once in irritation. Giggling, you slid closer and poked said tail, which retracted swiftly, prickling in annoyance.

   “Scram herbivore.” Leona’s tone was mildly annoyed but had no bite to it. Truthfully he hoped you would inch just a bit closer so he could grab you and hold you hostage as his pillow. 

   You hummed and stood, much to his displeasure, and grabbed your school stuff. Quietly you packed everything away and threw out your lunch trash before returning to Leona’s spot one more time.

   “I have class now, Leona. I’ll see you later, kay?” he grunted in agreement and watched you walk away, nose twitching as he inhaled your fresh scent one last time before it began to fade. The down side of the botanical garden was that any smell other than flowers was quickly dispersed by the sickeningly sweet perfume of nectar.

   The lion sighed and stared up at one such flower with distaste. How dare they try to outdo his beloved? He would never appreciate their scent more than hers. He rolled his eyes at the ridiculous thoughts and fell back asleep. He hummed as he did so, mimicking the tune you had sang to him. He missed you already.

----------

   5:48 P.M. You were 18 minutes late. 18 minutes had passed since you were supposed to be in Leona’s bed, curled up next to him, petting his ears, and doting on him like the king he was. 18 minutes where Leona gradually became more worried, as well.

   It wasn’t like you to be late. Especially not late to a night with him. It set his instincts off and he was on high alert, tensed, ready to pounce on anything that dared touch his mate. Finally when the clock turned 5:20 he sprang out of bed and strode down the hall with power that sent the message “don’t mess with me”.

   In the Savanaclaw lounge you were seated next to the decorative pool, chatting amidly with a fellow student. Leona glared and growled when he spotted you, far too close to the other man for his liking. He watched in anger, as the student slid even closer to you so that your hips touched briefly.

   Rage flashed in Leona’s eyes and his expression darkened into something dangerous. He stalked over behind you and the student, who seemingly didn’t notice his presence and hastily picked you up before throwing you over his shoulder. 

   “Hey! Put me down!” you cried out and he snarled at you. “Quiet, herbivore!” Recognizing your boyfriend's voice you stilled and relaxed a bit. At least it wasn’t some stranger. 

   He mentally gave you points for fighting back when you didn’t know who it was. “That’s right, only I get to touch you.”

   Looking down at the student who had been sitting with you, he noticed your homework was on his lap and realized he had just been helping you. He growled and turned walking away, a bit upset that he didn’t have a good reason to turn them to dust. Not that he needed one, but he couldn’t imagine upsetting you by harming one of your classmates, no matter how much he wanted to.

   Soon he reached his room and threw you on the bed. You landed with a gasp and looked up at him in confusion and slight annoyance. “Leona! What was that-MPH!”

   He silenced you quickly by shoving you down on the bed and sliding his tongue into your mouth. Immediately your body relaxed underneath him and he smirked when you brought your hands up to weave into his hair. 

   Only he got to touch you like this. Only he got to kiss you. Only he got to say that you were his. His and his alone! 

   You panted when he pulled back and started to ask why but he kissed you again so you couldn’t. “Jealous. Protective. Possessive. Mine” He said between kisses and soon trailed them along your jaw and down to your neck.

   A breathy moan slipped from your lips as he sucked on the sensitive skin near your collar. He kissed up until he was right over the junction between your neck and shoulders. Then he bit down hard, drawing a loud cry from you. 

   The taste of your blood only just barely appeared before he pulled back and began to kiss the wound. He knew that licking it would irritate it further due to his cat-like tongue, but he still attempted to soothe it as much as possible.

   Finally he pulled back completely and gazed down at you with a smirk. Several different bruises and love bites littered your neck, shoulders, and collar. Only one had been deep enough to break the skin. It would scar he was sure and the thought of you always wearing a symbol of his claim made him purr.

   He stopped though when he realized he could have hurt you. “I’m sorry. Princess, I didn’t mean to get so upset, it’s just instincts.” he sighed. 

   You smiled at him and pulled him down for another kiss. “Don’t worry. I find it super sexy when you get possessive.” His eyes widened in surprise and he took in your mild blush. “Hmmm…” he purred with a smirk. “Well in that case you don’t mind if I mark you up a bit more… and while I’m at it you can use that pretty voice of yours to remind the whole dorm that you’re mine and mine alone!”

   Jamil gritted his teeth and turned away from the lounge. He made his way to the kitchen and immediately began to prepare more horderves. Kalim’s party was going wonderfully, of course all due to his hard work. Although he supposed he appreciated a week's notice and Kalim did help magically with some of the decorations.

    He was still stressed, but not quite as much as he could have been, had Kalim not given him a warning. In fact he was looking forward to actually trying to enjoy one of Kalim’s parties for the first time since he was born. 

   It was a very nice party and since everything was going smoothly, Jamil found time to sit down and sip some juice. Alcohol wasn’t allowed on school premises but grape juice mimicked the taste nicely depending on what brand you bought. Kalim was partial to the sweeter stuff, while Jamil preferred it to be more sour.

   However, he found that the sour taste in his mouth wasn’t from the juice at all when he spotted you dancing joyously with some other student. His smile fell into a frown and he watched angrily as the student pulled you close and said something that made you laugh.

   You had a beautiful laugh, it was the kind that made everyone in the room sigh in content when they heard it. Jamil fell in love with it almost as hard as he had fallen in love with you. Especially because you rarely laughed for anyone but him.

   To hear you generously sharing that sound with some nobody sent flashes of anger through him.  He clenched his fists and dug his nails into his palms a bit. Just remembering it made him pissed.

   Shaking his head to clear it, Jamil got to work cutting up some more vegetables at a fast speed that would intimidate anyone who tried to approach him. He wasn’t in the mood to deal with anyone so he glared darkly at the food in front of him in an attempt to send off silent go away signals.

   Kalim, who entered the room to find Jamil after seeing him storm off, caught sight of the frustrated man and paused to observe his body language. Ever since Jamil’s overblot, Kalim had been trying to read his friend's emotions better. Luckily he caught on quickly and left the room.

    Jamil sighed in relief and set the knife down. Why the hell would you wanna hang out with anyone but him! You were his and his alone! The only thing he had claim over, or ownership of. Mentally he berated himself for thinking that way. You weren’t an object, you were a person and you should be allowed to do whatever you want. He would be a hypocrite if he tried to restrict your choices and behaviors.

   “Jamil?” The man spun around and found you standing behind him with a concerned look on your face. “Kalim told me you looked upset, is everything alright?” Your tone was soft and worried. It eased Jamil’s emotions in the way it always had. You always put him first, a habit he both loved and hated. On one hand he adored being pampered for once, on the other he knew what it was like to ignore your own wants and needs for another person.

   He sighed and put on a smile, taking your hands in his own. “Just tired that’s all.” you frowned and glared up at him in the way you always did when he lied.

   “Now, I know that’s not true. I’m not gonna force you to tell me, but I also want you to know that you can be honest with me. That’s why I’m here.” Jamil bit his lip and turned away, a flush rising on his cheeks.

   “The truth…” he hesitated. “The truth is I don’t want you hanging out with that other student!” The sudden exclamation took you aback and you blinked in surprise. “I don’t want to control you or tell you what to do and who to hang out with, but I also want you all to myself. No one else should be able to touch you or whisper in your ears, or dance with you, or make you laugh and smile. That’s my job, because your mine, not theirs!”

   At this point you were blushing as well, but noticed he was beginning to get upset. “And I’m so sorry for saying that like you’re some object, cause you’re not. You’re a person who deserved to make their own choices and decisions, but goddamnit I can’t help wanting you all to myself. You’re- you’re…” he paused and looked at you. “You’re special… to me. I don’t want anyone taking you away from me. I know i’m being a hypocrite but don’t go back out there. Stay here and be mine-”

   Jamil was cut off by you kissing him passionately on the lips. His eyes widened before they fell closed and he snaked his arms around your waist, tugging you flush against him with a growl. 

   His tongue swiped at your lips and you parted them obediently. He smirked and chuckled lowly before slipping it into your mouth. “Good girl.” You moaned through the kiss and felt your knees weaken. He pulled you around and lifted you effortlessly onto the counter. His kisses moved from your lips to your neck where he simultaneously worshipped and abused your skin.

   Love bites and dark bruises displayed his rough treatment, but the sighs that fell from your lips told him that you were enjoying it greatly. Silently he pulled back to observe his handiwork and smirked at the amount of marks he had left behind. Some would be easy to hide, whereas others he had left strategically in places that would be impossible to cover up. He felt a little guilty, knowing that you would be slightly upset later for making it so hard to hide the fact that he had been kissing you, but seeing something almost like a name tag, or a brand, that signified you were his and his alone, stirred something in him and he was tempted to never let you leave his sight without a mark warning people off about advancing on you.

   “Jamil…” you spoke shakily. He looked at you and how wrecked you were just from some kisses and his gaze darkened with lust. His tongue licked his lips subconsciously and he watched you shiver in reaction. “I have something important to tell you…”

   He raised an eyebrow and moved his head to the other side of your neck, placing kisses and marks there as well. It made it very hard to think so you momentarily pushed him away, making him growl in displeasure. “Don’t feel bad about being possessive over me, okay? Because when you are…” you hesitated, “it’s really freaking hot.”

   His eyes widened and an almost evil smile drew up on his lips. “That so… well, then I guess you don’t mind me leaving a few more marks over here,” he licked a stripe up your neck drawing a gasp from you, “to show the whole world that you belong to me!” He snarled it out before biting lightly at your skin and relishing in the way you tilted your head to the side with a moan. Yeah, he could get used to you hanging out with other boys so long as he got to do this to you before and after.

[kookieswan]

Downpour Series – Rainfall

Jimin x Reader (f)

Word Count: 593

Warnings/Tags: Fluff, very slight Angst. Kissing in the rain lol.

Notes: Cute. I made it cute. And a tiny sad.

-----------------------------------------------------

“Hmmm stay close to me love” You giggle cutely, leaning back into Jimin’s side. It had poured earlier, the rain coming down rather hard during most of the day. It had dissipated as evening came, leaving behind a few stray clouds and a pink sky.

Jimin had came to you, grabbed your hand, and tugged you outside without so much as speaking. You had followed idly, curious to know what his intentions were. Both of you were wearing lounge clothing, but he didn’t seem to care all that much. Walking out of your apartment, he started down the road. You walked together in silence; hands clenched around one another’s tightly. It smells amazing, the mixture of oncoming night air and rain calming your sense completely.

Now, you can see that you’re in a more secluded area, close to a park. The sidewalk is covered in puddles of all sizes, some dep and some small. Jimin lets go of your hand suddenly and sprints forward. With a cry, he jumps up and lands in a puddle, stomping around in it. Turning his head, he gives you the most boyish and charming smile you’ve ever seen.

“Well? Aren’t you going to play with me?” With that, you run over to him, jumping around in the puddles, and splashing each other with the fallen water. You’re lucky there’s not more, Jimin would probably try to splash you if it was at all possible, or dump some on your head. You don’t notice the sky start to darken as you do so again, more clouds moving in as night makes it decent.

Losing track of time, you both only pause in your antics as a large drop lands on the ground, a soft pitter pattering starting before it starts to fully sprinkle. The rain comes down gently against your skin, but starts to soak you, nonetheless. Laughing a little, you shake your head and poke at Jimin’s chest jokingly.

“Well, it seems you led us straight into the storm Min.” He rolls his eyes a little, but grabs you by the waste, just holding you there close to him. You glance up into his eyes, a little stunned to see how smoldering they are, how deep they’re staring into your own. He looks so handsome, hair plastered to his facey, lips pursed slightly, and eyes on fire. You can feel your face heating but refuse to look away, meeting you boyfriend head on in the staring contest he started.

“You know, I love you right? I love you so fucking much pretty girl. You mean the world to me.” You nod, moving in to kiss his cheeks on either side. Since your big fight last week, he had been doing anything he could to make it up to you, even if you reassured him multiple times that everything was okay and that you had let it go.

“I know Jimin. I love you just as much baby. I can’t even picture myself with anyone else but you. You’re it for me…” You trial off, eyes becoming wet as you think about the possibility of him leaving again. He doesn’t allow it, wrapping his arms around you tightly and brining you into his chest. Rocking back and forth, he twirls you around slowly in the rain as you clench at his wet clothing. He tilts your head up a bit, gentle smile on his face. Leaning in, he whispers against your lips before leaving a soft kiss.

“Your place is with me baby. Don’t you ever forget that.”

[genshin-obsessed]

Hmmm.. not sure whether or not this is original enough but if it is shoot your shot!

Can I please get Razor, Diluc, and Kaeya reaction to reuniting with their S/O after 3-5 years of them being missing and possibly thought to be dead?

Whether or not you choose to make it an angst or fluff is up to you!

Have a great day!

You gave me too much power, anon BUT I was responsible with it. I made 2 of them angst and one fluffy!!! This was cute and I liked it. I hope you have a good day too🥺💖I did my husband dirty too ;-; forgive me Diluc!

Memories

“RUN! (F/N)! GO!”

“No! I won’t leave you!” You tried to push the large boulder out of the way but it was clear it wasn’t going to budge. You stared at your partner with fear and sorrow, but she only smiled in return.

“Go… please. It’s ok.” The domain was crumbling and you had no choice but to leave her behind.

“I’m so sorry!” You screamed as you started sprinting. She watched you go with a smile as a large boulder collapsed on top of her. As you ran, you started to feel the hope dwindle. The domain was too big and you were too far from the entrance. You had very little time.

You kept running, until you finally saw the door. It was open and you were so close, but it quickly crumbled with more pieces falling apart. Some fell on your head, knocking you out.

Three years. It had been three years since your disappearance along with your friend’s. No matter what he did, he just couldn’t find you. No matter how many search parties, who he talked to, wherever he went… there was no sign.

Eventually, he stopped looking. After the first year, on the one year anniversary of your disappearance, he broke down. He’d never cried that much in his life.

After that night, he never searched again but he was also never the same again. There was something about Kaeya that was just… sad. The lack of effort, emotions, compassion, everything. Jean and Lisa knew what happened was bad. They tried to help, but he just told them to back off.

They were positive you were gone and Kaeya had finally admitted it too. That was until the faithful day he saw you. His heart broke immediately. All those years of believing you were dead, all those nights he spent crying, all those days he would stare at those pictures of you two… and there you were.

It was worse when you walked right past him without batting an eye. Almost like you didn’t remember him. But as you did, he could smell you. You… you smelled the same, just like the day you disappeared from his life.

Today marked the fourth year since your disappearance. It was still hard, four years, 47 months, 208 weeks, 1460 days… all that time without you. He’d never felt so lost and confused. He’d often wonder what he did for something like this to happen to you. You were such an amazing, beautiful person. Why would you get taken like this?

Diluc tried everything. He found any and everyone that could have a clue on where you were and spoke to them. He used his connections, but nothing. It was like you stopped existing.

The first few months, Diluc was convinced you’d come home. He thought you might’ve gotten distracted or something. He even saw hallucinations of you… more like delusions. No one had the heart to tell him otherwise. It was the only thing that kept him sane. 

However, on the one year anniversary of your disappearance… he realized you were never coming back. That night he cried. He cried, begged for any god out there to bring you back. Hell, he even begged Venti to do something and all the anemo archon could do was hold him as he cried.

Then he saw you. On the four year anniversary of your disappearance. Just when he was sure you were gone but here you were. He was convinced it was another delusion, sure you were just fake. He was so angry, he wanted to go over and… nothing. He wanted to fall at your feet, cry, and beg for you to come back to him or take him with you. Then you walked past him… why… didn’t you see him?

You had been gone for 3 and a half years. He and his lupical all tried searching for you. All the wolves did, picking up on your scent. They even found the domain but through all the destruction, you were nowhere to be found.

The other wolves realized you’d died in the domain, but Razor held onto a faint hope that you’d come back. But every day passed by, he was presented with disappointment. Every day he’d wake up, believing and hoping he’d see you… but he never did.

His lupical did everything for him. They tried every damn thing they could think of. But that never stopped his tears. It never stopped the restless nights he spent crying, the days he spent with hope, the days he thought he could smell you. Nothing.

Then he saw you. Three and a half years later… there you were. Bright with life, your eyes glimmering under the sun. You had a bright smile on your face and you looked so beautiful. So damn beautiful. You looked the same as the day you did when you left him. Razor couldn’t even move as he stared… then your eyes met. 

There was a look in your eyes. Something familiar. You dropped what you were carrying and ran. You sprinted and jumped on him, wrapping your legs around his waist. Before he could speak, your lips were on his. You kissed him over and over, holding his face, saying his name again and again. His face was enough to rid you of your amnesia.

[dreaminlittlenightmares]

gahhh sorry i haven’t been asking anything i’ve been trying to think of more things!! hmmm i got a lil writing request this time- maybe a lil angst/comfort oneshot of the granny and a female reader talking about things in the depths, when suddenly something you say or bring up makes her really upset and start to cry? your choice on what that may be (im a wreck abt her man i like thinking of comforting her cus she deserves it)

It's been so long since I got a writing prompt! Sorry for the wait on this one, (I think I know who this is) Anon! Hope this one summoned the onion ninjas!

Ask box is open for writing prompts, too!

Title: You and the OG Sea Witch Word Count: 1212 Characters: the Granny, Female Reader (though, it’’s more like Ambiguous Reader)

"So, I go back to refill the stupid bucket again, carry it back downstairs to the kitchens, and those stupid twins tripped me! ARGH! I hate them so much!" You weren't suppose to yell so loudly while you were down in the Depths of the Maw, but you couldn't keep the frustration in any more. It was a long and bad day, and the only person on this god forsaken ship that you could vent to was the elderly woman that lived down here. You enjoyed visiting her as often as you could, but traveling down to the most sunken part of the ship wasn't allowed. The current Lady of the Maw forbid it, but it was more that she didn't want anyone to find her former mentor. You accidentally found the old mistress a while ago, and took comfort in her company and opinions.

"Ah yes, the boys like to be pains in the arse when they're not cooking," the Granny chuckled, "I remember the time they tried to serve me lobster, but took out all the meat. It was very impressive, but I got them back."

"What did you do?" you asked eagerly. You loved hearing the sea witch's stories. It was like listening to pirate tales, except hers were real.

"Why, I hexed the shells to grow triple its size and made it chase after them!" She wiggled her bony fingers in the air, like a puppet master pulling strings. "Ahh, the Chefs pissed their pants and hid in the broom closets. That's what you get for trying to cross me!"

Your eyes lit up. "Can you teach me magic, Granny?" If you could use magic, nobody would mess with you ever again.

The Granny sighed. "I cannot, Little Minnow. Ever since the Succession Ritual, I've had little to none of my former power. That wretched successor of mine has it now, as she should. You'll have to ask her to teach you magic."

"Awww..."

"Anyways, the Twins are mere pushovers," the old woman continued, "You just need to scare them a bit and they'll listen to you."

Suddenly, a deep rumbling sound shook the walls and pipes around the Depths. You and the Granny looked over to the garbage shoot and cringed as a torrent of sludge pours out. You already knew the Depths was where the Maw sent its waste. It was barely breathable down here, which was probably why the old sea witch stayed submerged most of the time. She bared her teeth in disgust.

"Bah, I keep telling them to stop flushing things down here!" she hissed.

"I'll tell them!" you offered. It was the least you could do to help a friend.

"That's very kind of you, deary," the Granny smiled, "But, I've been complaining about this for years. I don't think they'll listen to you, too." She looked back at the slime and filth that piled in the corner. "I just will have to clean that again."

You looked at the sludge, too. "Gross. Why is everything in the Depths smelly and gross?"

"You think I'm smelly and gross?" the Granny snapped.

You looked down at her, confused at why she was suddenly so angry; but, the dots connected quickly. "Oh...wait, no!" You took a nervous step back away from the water's edge. The Granny was visibly angry, much angrier than you'd thought possible from an old woman. You knew she hardly left her murky pool, but the way she rose slowly onto the platform reminded you of an alligator persistent of catching its prey.

"YOU THINK I'M SMELLY AND GROSS!?" The hag's voiced boomed so loudly, it made ripples in the water. You didn't like yelling. It made you feel small and weak; so, you ran for it. You could out speed most of the people on the Maw easily, including the Granny. You fled upstairs and only stopped halfway to catch your breath, collapsing into a fetal sitting position and shaking. You didn't mean to anger the Granny, or insult her. She was the only person you counted on to cheer you up on a bad day, and you knew she saw you the same way. You had to go back and apologize properly.

After a quick trip to the Kitchens to steal some fresh meats, you tiptoed back down to the lower parts of the Maw. As expected, the Granny was no where to be found, not even in her favorite chair. You torn off a chunk of the meat and threw it into the water. It bobbed for a second or two, then was pulled under. You found her. You threw the rest of it into the water with a loud plunk! It sunk, unlike the smaller piece, but then it was lifted out of the depths on one palm by the Granny.

"What do you expect me to do with this?" the old sea witch said.

"I'm sorry," you begin, "I didn't mean to piss you off, Granny. I swear! I just meant...the trash."

"So, you think I'm trash now?" the Granny growled.

"No!" You start panicking. The best and fastest way to smooth things over with the Granny was with flattery, but that was hard to do. You struggled to think of something to calm her down. To your surprise, you hear her laughing.

"Bah, I'm just teasing you, Little Minnow." She swam over placed the meat on the ledge before pulling herself up, too.

"R-Really?" You were too nervous to approach her. She could drown you without a second thought.

"Yes, really. Now, come here..." The Granny invited you over to sit next to her. You obeyed, but took a seat just out of her reach. "I'm sorry for snapping at you, Little Minnow. I'm used to being called smelly, gross, and trash. It's what happens when you're no longer wanted or liked by others." It was hard to tell if she was crying or if it was water droplets falling off her, but she looked down.

You blinked. "I still like you."

The Granny looked at you with surprise. "Really?"

You nodded sincerely. "Yup! You're the coolest person on here! I'm friends with a sea witch! The sea witch! How much cooler is that?" Your were taken aback by her barking laughter, but you remembered that she had a snide sense of humor. Perhaps the enthusiasm was too cheesy, but she perked up again; and, that made you smile.

"Yes, I am the sea witch of the Maw!" the Granny boasted, "And you would do well to remember that, Little Minnow! Or else I'll hex some fish bones to come after you!" She wiggled her fingers to emphasize her point. It was your turn to laugh. You weren't as cowardly as the Twin Chefs, and the idea of a skeletal fish coming after you was kind of funny.

"Oh no! Not the fish bones!" you pleaded jokingly, "Please, o' mighty Sea Witch of the Maw! Not the fish bones!"

The Granny smiled proudly at your attempts to show fear at her former power. "Oh, alright! No fish bones for you. Maybe lobster shells instead." The two of you laughed like you used to, relationship mended, and went back to talking about whatever came to mind.

[crystalirises]

Okay,so,there's this artist on IG, Gaecactae, who created this headcanon: when a Minecraft couple love each other very much,there's the possibility of a baby spawing nearby one of the parents as a new entity who shares both of the parents genes. So,following this headcanon...what if lil Yogurt was Dream's and Fundy's "spawn" son, who spawned back when they really loved each other? Or, since I think smpFundy deserves better, 5up's and Fundy's? (Ya know,since both 5 and Dream are white creatures, one of them could easily be Yogurt's other parent) :)

Hmmm... this is an interesting headcanon! I went with Fundywastaken instead of 5undy though since I want that little angst on the side lmao (and cause it's Fundywastaken week, so ya know XD). But yeahhh, Yogurt being Fundy and Dre's "spawn" son awwww ;-; Poor kid, I guess he also has daddy issues--- *gets bonked* Rip, I guess Dream will never know.

Anyway, hope you like the one-shot (ft. Fundy’s “amazing” naming skills)

(Also I know Fundy found Yogurt while he was with Tubbo and they found him near Las Nevadas, but I changed it up cause I wanted to.)

He struggled to pull the berry off the branch, little hands pulling until it finally gave way. He let out a little happy yip before eating the berry.

His stomach continued to growl. He let out a small whimper. He was still hungry.

Before he could make his way back to the cave he had settled in, his nose caught a scent. Food. He didn’t think much before he began to follow after the smell, if he was lucky, maybe it was papa or dad finally come to take him home.

He came across a cabin near the forest, smoke rising from its brick chimney. There was an open window at the back, and he didn’t even wait before crawling inside, wishing to grab a meal before the owner of the house could come back and punish him for stealing. His feet landed against soft orange carpet, his fluffy tail wagging slightly at how warm it was inside. He liked the cold, but that didn’t mean he didn’t enjoy being warm too. He followed the smell, pausing before a door that was slightly open. He took a peak inside, but the room was empty.

He entered, immediately taking notice of the plate of steak on the table.

His ears flicked on top of his head, but the house was quiet. He giggled before reaching for the steak, grabby little hands taking it off the plate before biting into it. There was light coming from a stone contraption nearby, it being the source of the smell that had driven him to enter the cottage. He took his time with the steak, knowing that it might be the last decent meal he’d have for a while.

He went closer to the stone contraption, relishing in the heat for a moment. Sitting like that, next to the warmth, he could pretend that he was safe and happy in his papa and dad’s home. He had came to existence a long time ago, but his papa and dad had never come back for him. He waited until his stomach began to growl and his thirst had made his throat dry. He wished papa and dad would come for him soon. He really wanted to go home with them and sleep in a real bed. He was tired of sleeping on leaves and twigs. He wanted to go home.

He heard a creak behind him. He jumped, turning around to see—

“Papa!” He forgot about the steak, lunging towards his papa’s leg, claws digging into cloth. His papa stared at him in surprise, blinking quite quickly. “You’re here!”

His papa continued to gawk before falling to his knees, a hesitant hand reaching out towards his hair. His tail wagged at the prospect of getting a head pat, but his papa only wanted to look at his hair. He giggled when papa looked at a white lock of curly hair. He knew he looked a lot like dad, maybe that’s why papa was so surprised, but he was a fox hybrid like papa! After a few seconds, his stomach let out a loud growl, breaking his papa from the daze he had been in. Papa wrapped his arms around him, carrying him back towards the table.

He was set down on a chair, papa heading over to the stone contraption before breaking out more steak. His eyes widened, hands reaching up towards the food. Papa placed a plate in front of him, and he knows he should be making a better impression, he couldn’t help but dive in. He had been hungry for so long. But now papa had found him and he could eat a lot now! While he continued to eat, papa ran a hand through his hair, sometimes even patting his head.

“When did...? Have you been alone in the forest? Do you even have a name?!”

“I don’t know.” He blinked up at papa. He couldn’t tell time. He couldn’t even count. Papa sighed, patting his head again. He purred, glad to know that papa wasn’t going to make him leave. He chewed on a steak, finally slowing down once his stomach began to protest. He looked towards the door, expecting dad to come in at any moment. But the door remained closed, and papa didn’t look like he was expecting anyone else. He pouted, catching his papa’s attention who quickly began to dote on him. “Papa, where’s dad? Is he coming home soon?”

“He’s... uh... trapped doing... stuff... Ya...” He frowned, but tried not to dwell on it. At least papa was around now. After finishing the steaks, papa picked up the plate and left it on the counter. Papa reached down for him, bringing him up into his arms. He curled into the warm hold, feeling embarrassed once he remembered how dirty his clothes were. “Let’s get you settled in... You need a name.”

His papa thought for a moment, “... How about Yogurt?”

[whereisten]

Sweet Pea

A Haechan fic that’s part of our Halloween Series!

Summary: Who knew the undead could be so..lovely. You hated arrogant singer Haechan when he was alive, but could you love him now that he was..dead?

Pairing: Rockstar!Haechan (turns into a zombie) x Journalist!female reader

Genre: fluff, angst, horror, a little smut

Word Count: 9K

Warnings: death mention, car accident mention, blood and gore mention, wild animal death, character death (and resurrection?), cursing, some violence, cheating mention, smut: mention of penetration.

(A/n: THANK YOU GUYS FOR ALL YOUR SUPPORT FOR THIS SERIES SO FAR!! We hope you enjoy everything we put out🥺❤️ i did not proofread this so sorry for any mistakes uh ha ha)

————

“Lisa..I really don’t want to interview Mr. I-Am-God’s-gift-To-This-World.” You sigh and hold your head down while sitting at your desk.

“Well, do you really want to switch and dive into the dark web for me?” Lisa turns to face you.

The two of you are journalists assigned to two very different topics for this week’s news articles.

You, being the one responsible for writing articles based on the music industry, were faced with the grueling task of interviewing pop rock’s most famous star, Haechan.

From what you had heard, Haechan was an arrogant bastard that gave all of his interviewers absolute hell. He gave sarcastic, abrupt answers that they could barely work from. But lucky for you, you were the one assigned to interview him as he promotes his second album in your town.

If there was anything worse than a crazy rockstar with a bad reputation, it was one that was incredibly good looking too. 

You had to admit, from the pictures you had seen, Haechan was dangerously handsome with brown wavy hair and skin kissed by the sun itself. Girls swooned over the way his delicate fingers strummed his guitar and the way his soothing, high pitched voice sang words about love to them.

You had to remind yourself that it was all an act, however, he didn’t give a damn about them or anyone else besides himself.

Could interviewing him be worse than risking your life by going too deep into the dark web? Maybe.

You looked up at the ceiling and bit your lip as you thought about it.

Lisa scoffed and shook her head. “Don’t tell me you’re actually thinking about it.”

“Listen…I-“

“You got this, what’s the worst he can do? Call security on you like that one magenta-haired rockstar guy did to his makeup artist?”

You groaned and placed your head back down onto your arms. But she was right, what was the worst that could happen?

———

[The Next Day]

You were let into Haechan’s dressing room by his manager.

“Well, good luck in there.” His manager raised his brows and quickly closed the door. It felt like you were being let into a Lion’s cage with no way out.

You took a deep breath. Your hair was tied back, your bun felt tighter than it did five minutes ago. You smoothed your hands over your pencil skirt and quickly fixed the collar of your button down shirt.

When you turned around, you saw the legend himself, typing on his iPhone. He was probably tweeting something out to his 10 million followers or coming up with some “sweet” caption for his Instagram groupies.

You cleared your throat, you didn’t want to interrupt him, but you really didn’t have much time. 

“Excuse me...Mr. Lee?”

He didn't respond, he kept typing.

“Mr. Lee?!” You said with more volume.

He rolled his eyes and looked up. You felt your breath get caught in your chest. He was magnificent. Not a flaw in sight. His eyes were of a perfect crescent shape and sparkles in the light of the vanity mirror. And his lips were a beautiful heart shape as they puckered before he spoke.

“Yes?” He answered with annoyance in his tone.

“My name is y/n, I’m here to ask a few questions.”

“Oh..I see, well, I’m not really into the “boorish teacher type” but I’m sure we can make it work with some role playing..” Haechan bites his bottom lip as he eyes you up and down.

“Um..I..”

He places his phone down and walks over to you.

“Tell me, teacher, do you have a ruler to spank me with?”

You stumble backwards, your back hitting the door.

“I-I from the Neo Chronicles actually, I am here to interview you.”

He stands over you in his leather jacket, placing his hand on the door beside your head as you cower. He seems to be misunderstanding your purpose for being there, but you did like being close to him. He smelled like fresh lemons and summer. His warmth was unlike anything else and with his face being so close to yours, you could see every beauty mark. You knew any other person would’ve been a puddle had they been this close to him, but you were growing to be quite annoyed.

He leans down to whisper in your ear. “Oh, so you want to be a journalist, okay then so you want to record me? I can make any sound you’d like me to make, all you have to do is touch the right spots.” He says seductively while staring down your shirt.

You shiver and shake off your goosebumps. “Oh my God, Haechan! I’m just here to ask a few questions okay?! I’m not some..escort!”

He steps back and furrows his brows. “What? Then what the hell are you here for?”

“I’m the journalist!” You show him your badge with your name on it as it hung from a lanyard around your neck.

He rolls his eyes and plops down into his chair. 

“Boring. Go on.”

He waves a hand and motions for you to continue.

You sigh and hurry through your notes so you can get the hell out of there and away from this weird man.

“Okay, well let’s start off with your name. Your real name is Lee Donghyuk, why did you choose ‘Haechan’ as your stage name?”

“Why did you choose to pair that shirt with those god awful shoes?” Haechan begins to type on his phone again.

This little brat. 

“Haechan, please take my questions seriously, your manager has only given me ten minutes with you.”

“And yet, I could be doing so much more with our time than answering your useless questions..” he stops typing and looks you up and down again. “I could be giving you an interview to remember, don’t you think?”

You chuckle. “No offense, but you’re not my type, and also, I’m faithful to my boyfriend.” The first part was a lie, but you hoped he would feel a blow to his ego.

He scoffs. “Honey..I’m everyone’s type..”

“Anyway...what inspired you the most when writing this new album of yours?”

“Hmmm...you.”

You slam your iPad down onto the counter. “We don’t even know each other.”

“I wasn’t finished...Youuuutube.” Haechan smirks as you get more and more visibly upset.

“Haechan...I respect your musicianship, but you’re making this interview really difficult. I can’t do my job if you keep acting like this.” You try to play nice, maybe that would work.

“Well you’re not very good at this job, I have another job for you, if you’d like to try that.”

You scoff and raise your eyebrows. “You know what…”

He places his phone down and crosses his arms. “What? Is it time for the part of the interview where you storm off back to your little cubicle and fabricate an entire interview with bullshit answers I never gave?”

You remain still, silently thinking of ways to kill this man without being caught. 

You grit your teeth.

“Write a nice and pleasing story about me, sweetheart. I’ll be anticipating it.” He gets up and walks towards the door but you step in front of him to stop him.

“Listen, you little twat—“

He furrows his brows and gives you a frightening glare. “No, you listen. I’m the rockstar here, I don’t owe you anything, I’m worth so much money, you wouldn’t be able to wrap your head around it if you tried. You don’t matter to me or to anyone else. There’s 5 million of you and only one of me, the only difference between you and them is that other journalists are smart enough to get on their knees and prove that they’re worth a celebrity’s time. Now, miss—what was your name again?”

“Y/n.” You say through tight lips.

“Move.”

You step to the side as he walks past you, bumping into your shoulder on purpose before leaving.

You tried your best not to cry as you headed home that evening. You knew he was an asshole but you didn’t think he’d be *that* bad. You were thankful that you’d never have to see him again, but you hated the fact that it was up to you to create some story about your interview and fake his answers so that he’d remain a positive figure in the spotlight.

It pained you to lie. Would you risk your job to just write about your actual experience and expose him for who he really was? No. You couldn’t do that, you needed this job. So you went home to your boyfriend.

But your boyfriend wasn’t there. He came home about two hours late. 

“What happened, Mark?” You sat up in the bed and watched him take his work uniform off. 

“Oh, nothing, y/n. The boss just kept me late to finish up some work.”

Mark was lying through his teeth and you knew it. You had your suspicions for a few months now, for he always came home late with that excuse. But you ignored your feelings for tonight, you just wanted him to cuddle you as you complained about your “interview” with one of the worst celebrities alive.

Mark held you close and comforted you as you told him your worries of being bad at your job. He listened carefully, but thought about how he had planned to tell you the truth. He wasn’t working at all. He was staying home with another woman during the day, doing an online job and spending time with her while he made money. She was pregnant and Mark knew that he would have to break the news to you, but he couldn’t, not now while you were at your lowest.

He rubs your back as you fall asleep.

————

[The Next Day]

“Breaking News. There’s been a massive accident on Highway 15. Several injuries and possible deaths are being reported. We are on standby as we gain more information from those at the scene.”

You look up from your computer in your cubicle and at the TV above you.

“Coming to you live from exit 45, it seems that there is a car on fire and an overturned tour bus. Upon closer inspection. It seems that it is the tour bus of none other than pop star, Haechan.”

Your eyes widen. Gasps fill the room as everyone watches the live footage from the scene.

“As of now, we are unsure if Haechan is in the bus..”

The reporter continues, but your focus shifts to the car on fire.

“Oh my God, y/n, what if—“ Lisa starts but you shush her with your finger in the air. 

Your brows furrow as you stand up and take a closer look.

A red Dodge Challenger...the car on fire is a red Dodge Challenger.

No. 

You take a closer look at the license plate and see ‘WTERMLN.’ That’s his personalized license plate. 

You pull your phone out and dial Mark. But there’s no answer. Lisa places her hand in yours and squeezes it. “Y/n..I’m sure he’s fine.”

You dial him over and over again but still no answer. You watch in horror as they begin to pull bodies out from the cars and the bus, they’re covered but your heart aches. 

“Breaking news. It has been confirmed that Haechan is of the casualties lost from this terrible accident.”

While the office cries out in a collective “no!,” You run out to the bathroom and start to cry by yourself.

“Mark..please answer.”

But he doesn’t, and a few hours later, you get a call from the hospital informing you that Mark was also killed in the accident.

———

[1 Week Later]

Days go by and you mourn Mark’s death. You can’t fathom that he’s really gone. Your apartment feels strange and empty. And his family didn’t make things any easier, they didn’t speak with you or tell you anything. They acted like you were some stranger.

“You’re not invited to the funeral, we are sorry.” You hear Mark’s mother say over the phone and before you can ask why, the line goes dead. Tears flow from your face like a waterfall. How could they do this to you? Did they really dislike you this much?

The world mourned Haechan’s death, everyone was shocked, vigils were held everywhere in the world. From Brazil to Japan, and Ghana to Turkey. He had a massive impact on the world as musicians from all over covered his songs and sang them on YouTube or in the streets for live entertainment.

Everywhere you went, you saw RIP posters or T shirts with his face on them. His album was released early and topped the charts in all countries. The world was grieving but finding comfort in his music.

But none of that mattered to you, you were truly alone, left to an empty apartment and crowded with memories of your moments with Mark.

They wouldn’t even let you into the hospital because Haechan was there too and there was so much ruckus with the media. The deaths of everyone else never made the news. It was all about Haechan. And that made you even more upset. They painted him out to be some perfect angel, if only they knew what a jerk he was.

———

[Two Weeks Later]

Your family and friends did the best they could to help you move on, but you just couldn’t. 

Everything reminded you of Mark, you couldn’t eat or sleep properly.

One day as you jogged through the park to clear your mind, you ran into an old woman by accident. 

You had been staring at the fountain that you and Mark used to sit at while eating treats from the food trucks nearby. You didn’t see her standing in the walkway throwing pieces of bread to ducks.

“Oh, I am SO sorry.” You reach out to help her up, but she only laughed. 

“That is okay, dear..” she gasped as she stared deeply into your eyes, her curly white hair fell into her face. She quickly moved it out of the way and continued to stare at you intently. Her brows furrowed.

“Dear...you are in pain, so much pain.”

You gasped as your mouth fell open. She read you like an open book and your eyes weren’t even red from crying.

“I-“ you stuttered.

“I can help you, I am a psychic, come to this address, tonight at 7. I will help you.” She quickly handed you a card. You look down at it in your hand then looked back up to respond but by the time you looked up, she had already started walking away. You stepped towards her.

“Ma’am?” 

Then suddenly a bicyclist ran right in front of you, stopping you in your tracks. You lost sight of her and turned to head home. You thought about how strange everything was, but even more strange was your desire to actually show up to her place.

You were welcomed in exactly at 7.

The door creaked as did the floor once you stepped inside.

“Dear..I am so happy you came.”

“What is this about? How can you help me?”

You looked around the strange cabin decorated with beads and distinct ornaments hanging from the ceiling.

“You’ve lost someone dear to you, haven’t you? Mark..that’s his name.” She said as she sat down at a table in the center of the room.

Your mouth fell open. “How do you..how do you know that?”

“I’m a psychic, I see things.” She said with a wide smile.

You raised your brows. “Yet, you couldn’t see me running towards you this morning.”

She laughed out. “I see MOST things. Take a seat.”

You sat down across from her.

“What if I told you that you could bring him back and be happy again?”

“No..no that’s not possible.” You shake your head.

“But it is, dear. And I’m gonna show you how.”

“This isn’t right, don’t get me wrong..I miss him..I miss him so much, but I can’t do this.”

You swallowed hard as you started to tear up.

“Why not? Death took him away too soon, right? He’s a young man, he deserves a second chance at life and you deserve to be loved.” The old lady held her hands out. “Here, take my hands.”

You thought about what she had said, could this be possible? Could you be reunited with Mark?

It sounded too good to be true. But you were desperate. You held her hands.

“My father passed away when I was just two years old. But I grew up with him right in front of my very own eyes. My mother was able to bring him back to life so he could be with her and raise me. It is possible, I’ve seen it work firsthand and I want to provide you with this opportunity so you will no longer feel the pain that my mother felt.”

“Why? Why do you want to help me? You don’t even know me.” 

“Because..I know that I have a way to make things right.” She reaches under the table and picks up what looks like a piece of granite stone. It has strange writing on it in a language you don’t understand.

“I can’t sit by and watch people suffer.”

“What is this?”

“Listen carefully, this is what you must do. Take this tablet to your dwelling, keep it on a table in the room that the two of you spent your most time in. Surround it with objects that Mark used most when he was alive, then light five candles and repeat these words five times.” 

She hands you a crumpled up piece of paper.

“You must say this sternly, do not falter or have weakness, or it will not work.”

“But what if—“ you still stare at the rock in confusion.

“You must do this at 8:23 tonight for it is when the full moon will be at its strongest. It will protect you from other beings that will try to enter our world.”

“Wait, other beings?..”

A harsh knock fills the room. You look behind her and see a door with all sorts of bolts and chains on it from the bottom to the top. She moved to the side to block your view of it.

“You must leave now!.” She jumps up from her chair and grabs your hand.

“Oh! Okay!” You walk hurriedly to the door as she practically pushes you towards it.

“May you be blessed, my child.”

“Thank-“ the door shuts in your face and you hear the lock turn.

You think about all that’s happened and wonder if you should really try to bring him back.

You decide to sit in the center of the living room by the coffee table, where you would play video games with Mark, and lay out items that reminded you of him. His favorite hat, his watermelon charm, and several pictures of the two of you together.

You turn all of the lights in the apartment off after you’ve lit five candles as instructed.

You sighed as you sat down. “Please bring him back to me, I love him.”

You place your hands over the tablet and read the words on the paper out loud, in your best imitation of Latin.

“Anima corpori, fuerit corpus totem resurgent.”

You repeat it four more times. The flames go out.

A gust of wind blows through your apartment, causing your blinds to shake and your hair to blow forward slightly.

Your eyes widen as you sit in the darkness.

You sit in silence and wait for the unknown. Would he just pop up? Would he knock at your door? Did you say “copori” or “corpori”?

You breathe heavily and sit for about 2 minutes in the darkness, trying not to shake as you feel the air become crisp and freezing. You jump up from the floor and turn your lights on.

Nothing’s changed. You search around the apartment and don’t find him, so you begin to feel a sense of defeat. With tears in your eyes you take a shower then fall asleep. How could you be so desperate? You felt like a fool, there was no way this crazy old lady knew what she was talking about, she just wanted to see you act like a fool.

He was never coming back, you had to accept that.

———

[The Next Day]

You’re woken up by glass breaking.

You hop out of your bed and grab your baseball bat that Mark gave you for protection.

Someone had broken into your apartment. You quietly around the corner with your back against the wall.

When you peak out, you see that your door was hanging from its hinges. Your mouth fell open. Whoever this was, was clearly big and hefty, powerful enough to break down your freaking door.

What damage could this baseball bat do?

You heard grumbling and groaning sounds as the person shuffled through your fridge.

You stepped closer with your bat in hand.

But when you got a closer look, you saw that the person was small, slim and...grey.

They smelled too, like raw meat from the butchers market or more specifically, rotting flesh. 

“Hey!” You called out and swung your bat up high.

They spun around quickly. Your eyes widened in shock.

It was leather jacket wearing...Haechan?

He grabbed the bat from you, snapping it in two before throwing it across the apartment.

He was incredibly strong, but you couldn’t focus as he then grabbed your ankles and pinned you onto the kitchen counter.

“FOOD!” He yelled.

His eyes were of a white color, like he was blind, his face was a mix of purple, green, blue and grey, and bone in his neck stuck out of his skin. He looked—dead.

His fingers were frigid cold as he gripped your skin.

You looked in horror at him, confused. Had he not been holding you, you probably would’ve lost all feeling in your legs at the sight of him and collapsed onto the floor. 

“Haechan?? How is this..how is this possible?”

“GIVE ME FOOD.” He yells again as green spit oozes out of his eyes and mouth, you nearly pass out from his smell.

“Let go!!” You yell.

“IM HUNGRY.” He dashes his arms across the counter in one sweep, causing all of your utensils to scatter across the floor. 

“Okay, okay! Um..I..I don’t have anything here..oh my God what the fuck is happening?”

Between the mess in your kitchen and Haechan sounding like the Hulk while looking like something from the Walking Dead, you didn’t know what to do. Was it possible that you accidentally brought Haechan back instead of Mark?

“BURGER.” Haechan grabs you by the collar and groans.

You nod quickly. “Okay! There’s a McDonald’s down the street, I’ll be right back, um.. stay here.”

Haechan shakes his head violently. “RAW..RAW.”

“Okay! You like it raw, I get it, you can let me go now!” You fling your freezer door open and shuffle through your collection of ice cream, hoping to find a frozen package of beef.

Haechan bangs on the counter and grumbles as you search.

“Found it!” You quickly hand him the package and watch as he tears the plastic cover off and devours the raw meat.

Your face crinkles in disgust. What have you done?

About thirty minutes pass and Haechan slowly starts to look and smell better. His eyes have cleared and returned to their brown color, the green and purplish veins no longer stick out as his skin returns to its normal, warm color. He looks more like a human than a monster. However, the bone in his neck still sticks out.

This all felt like a dream...or nightmare, rather.

“Where am I?” He opens his eyes slowly.

You hand him a napkin to clean up the blood and meat around his mouth.

“You’re at my apartment..Um..do you remember me?”

He squints as he stares at you. “I don’t remember much..”

You step closer. “What do you remember?”

“I remember the music, the crowds, my mother..my father.. but that’s it.”

Your brows raise. “You don’t remember who you are? You’re Haechan, you have the biggest ego in the land, you treat people like crap and you even told me I meant nothing.”

“What? I did that? But why?” Haechan looks so surprised, you can’t help but feel sorry for him. He rubs his neck, wincing at the pain he feels when he brushes his palm over the exposed bone. “Why does my neck hurt?”

You shake your head. “It wasn’t supposed to be you..” you whisper quietly.

“What?” 

“You’re only here...because I summoned you. There was a big accident a few weeks ago and..you died..my boyfriend died too. I was desperate..I tried to bring him back.” You sighed and closed your eyes. “I’m an idiot. Because now I’ve brought you back instead.”

“I DIED?” Haechan sits forward.

“Yeah, but you were a dick, I just want my Mark back, not you.” You turn away from him, he looks up with sad eyes.

“I don’t remember who I was before, but I apologize for whatever I did.” His tone was so sweet, he was virtually unrecognizable from the man you interviewed. 

“That’s fine, Haechan, but you’re missing the point. You’re back now and I don’t know what to do with you. You can’t leave because then everyone will wonder how you’re alive again especially after they’ve spent so much time mourning you.” You rub your temple.

“Woahhh. I was a superstar?” 

“Yes, a superstar I hated.” 

“I don’t feel so good.” Haechan clutches his stomach.

You stand up straight. “What do you mean?”

“I feel..sick.” He starts to rock back and forth, you start to see the color drain from his hands and face. His tone becomes deeper, he starts to sound more and more like he did before he ate.

“Shit..it’s happening again.” 

Haechan groans and grabs onto the table as he transforms back into what seems to be his zombie form.

“Need..to EAT.”

“Oh my God, your appetite is crazy.” You rush to your freezer and find a frozen chicken. 

You turn around to toss it to him, but Haechan is already behind you, he growls and grabs the chicken from your hands.

With wide eyes, you watch him devour yet another piece of raw meat.

When he’s done he sits back in the chair and lets out a loud belch. You chuckle as his cute and handsome face returns to normal.

But you couldn’t ignore the fact that you truly had no idea what to do with him.

“You can kill me..since you hate me.” Haechan says softly while staring at the table.

“What is this..thing I’ve become..I don’t know why it’s happening, but when the hunger kicks in, I feel like eating everything to satisfy it. My mind goes blank, I can’t even form normal thoughts. I only see red. I’m sorry for doing this to you, I’m sorry for breaking in.”

Your heart breaks when you hear him apologize and look up at you somberly. “No..it’s not your fault. It’s mine, and I won’t kill you. I’ll find a way. I have to find her.” You pick your bag up and grab your car keys.

“Where are you going?” He stands up fast.

“Stay here, I have to find the lady that got me into this shit.”

———

You bang against her door. “Open the door, lady!”

After a few minutes, she reluctantly opens the door. “Yes?”

You push yourself into her house.

“Hey!” She yells to try to stop you.

“What the hell? You set me up!”

She scoffs. “I did no such thing! I gave you the tools you needed.”

“I have a zombie in my apartment! He goes berserk, like full frickin monster mode when he doesn’t eat raw meat for just 30 minutes! Do you know how crazy this is?!”

“Oh, dear, I’m sorry, you must not have done the spell correctly.”

“No! No, don’t blame this on me, I know you gave me that cursed tablet because you didn’t want it in your house anymore! I knew it was too good to be true but I trusted you! And I have no fucking clue why!”

You stepped closer to her as you yelled.

“You have to fix this!”

Her face fell. She had no idea that you would’ve suspected she was trying to use you to get rid of her curse, but you were right.

She sighs. “Dear...there is no way to get rid of this curse..it is final.”

“Final my ass! I should’ve brought him here so he can eat YOU! But you’d probably taste like shit because you’re full of it!” 

A loud groan and beastly sound comes out from behind that same door.

“Shhh!! Lower your voice!” She places her finger on your mouth.

Your brows furrow. “Is that...your dad?”

She looks to the floor. “It’s..my son.” 

The beast wails loudly.

“I thought...if I gave you the tablet, he would be released from this curse..but I was wrong. He doesn’t seem to be getting any better.”

“Are you serious? You knew about this..you knew what would happen, yet you let me do it too?” You scoffed.

She nods. “I am sorry, dear, but let me help you.”

She walks to her kitchen and brings back a large jar of lavender colored powder.

“If you mix 1 teaspoon of this powder with water and give it to him every day..he will be “normal” for 24 hours.”

“And what happens when it runs out? How do I stop him from eating everyone and everything in sight?” You snap back.

“I will be here, come back to me and I’ll give you more but this should last you for at least a year.”

“Really? So you’re telling me that there’s 365 teaspoons worth in this jar? Also, why don’t you use it on your son?”

She closes her eyes. “I’ve been doing this for twenty years, I’ve experimented with him, trying to find a permanent solution, however, when I cast a spell on him, it gave his body and mind a tolerance to this potion, meaning that it no longer has an effect on him.”

“Where do you get this from?”

She chuckles and opens her eyes as she looks out of a window. “From the fairies...they do not wish to be seen, but if you offer them something, they will leave a gift.”

You take the jar from her. “I am going to try this..if it doesn’t work, I’ll be back and I’ll be sure to bring him.”

“I hope that you and your lover can live peacefully in the end, dear.”

“Oh, that’s the thing, he’s not my lover.” you roll your eyes and slam her door shut.

———

[2 Months Later]

Living with zombie Haechan was..interesting. The potion worked and Haechan didn’t have those crazed hunger pings that turned him into a monster straight out of an 80s film. 

You were thankful that he wasn’t like who he was before the accident, an ignorant asshole. He was incredibly sweet and helpful. He didn’t speak much because of his decaying brain, but he kept you company and helped to clean.

You bought him clothes and eventually replaced them with Mark’s, for you couldn’t bear to see his things anymore.

You’d leave for work and come home to see him fixing things like the cabinet doors he broke.

“I don’t remember much, but I do remember my father..he never liked to watch me sing at school..he’d rather I have a hammer in my hand. He taught me how to fix most things when I was just 7 years old. But my mother..she supported everything I did..I miss her.”

Haechan said quietly as you both ate dinner. You ate spaghetti and meatballs, he ate the same thing but the uncooked version of course.

You felt a slight pain in your heart as you thought about how this must’ve been for him. Surely, he would want to console his mother and tell her that he’s okay, but he couldn’t.

You helped him dye his hair a dark red color and gave him a new haircut. His luscious licks were now gone, but if he wanted to go outside, he’d have to look different than he did before.

So you bought him round glasses and a scarf to wear to conceal his broken neck bone whenever you went to the supermarket together.

You still missed Mark, but you had been so busy with caring for Haechan that you sometimes forget the loss and pain.

You cleared your throat and thought of something quickly to distract Haechan from thinking about his mother.

“What is something that you would like to do? For example, I’m sure you couldn't go ice skating when you were famous right?”

Haechan chews and looks up to his right as he tries to remember. “I don’t think I’ve ever done that.”

“Would you like to?” You say with hopeful eyes.

Haechan chuckles and smiles at you, making your heart run wild. What was this feeling? Why did he make your chest weak?

Was it this new undercut that he had? Or perhaps the dazzling smile paired with beautiful eyes and a dainty nose?

“When I’m here alone, I watch TV and I saw an advertisement for..the fair?” He asks innocently.

“Oh! You want to go to the fair?” Your eyes widen.

“Yes.” He nods.

———

[The Next Day]

Haechan tightens his scarf around his neck tightly before the two of you get on the next ride.

“I like this one a lot, we used to ride it over and over, me and M-“ you stop before saying his name.

“Mark?” Haechan sees your hesitancy. He wishes you wouldn’t be in pain over his death anymore. He didn’t like seeing you like this, he wanted you to be happy, especially when you were around him, for your smile felt like a garden of bright flowers had bloomed simultaneously.

“Yeah..” you hold your head down.

The man at the ride lets the two of you on. It’s the pirate ship that swings back and forth, rotating you guys upside down as you scream your heads off.

Haechan holds onto you for dear life as you are flipped over in the air and held there for nearly 5 seconds.

You giggle while he screams and closes his eyes tightly.

When the ride is finally over, you jump up from your seat and take his hand in yours. He freezes and stares at your hand. It was the first time you had touched him. He felt sparks fly from your beautiful fingers to decorate his skin.

“Come on!” You say excitedly while beaming.

He smiles like he’s just seen gold and jumps up from his seat as well.

The two of you continue on through the fair, going on the worst rides just so you can laugh at how Haechan suffers through them.

After about an hour and a half, you decide to get some to eat.

Haechan looks up at the menu from a food truck. 

“Uhhh..do you have anything...uncooked?”

“Uncooked? Like..raw?” The chef looks at him with concern.

“Yeah. Like just a turkey leg..without the smoke?”

You run up to him after leaving the restroom. You can see from the puzzled look on the man’s face that the conversation doesn’t seem to be going well.

“It’s for our dog!” You quickly exclaim while wrapping your arm around Haechan’s. He once again felt soft from your touch. He loved being close to you, seeing you smile, feeling your warmth and love. The two of you had grown close as time went by, and even though he slept on your couch, he’d never felt more at home.

The man nods and hands Haechan a raw turkey leg. You get a hot dog and lead Haechan to a corner of the park where he can eat his food without being watched.

The two of you ate quickly as you hid, the sun was starting to set and you were growing tired.

“No one seems to recognize you!” You take a bite of your hot dog.

Haechan nods.

“It’s the haircut..thank you, by the way.”

You nod. “You’re welcome, sunny.”

Haechan stops chewing, his eyes widen. Did you just come up with a cute nickname for him?

A piece of meat dangles from his mouth.

You giggle as he stares. “What? Don’t choke now.”

He quickly chews and swallows. “Why ‘sunny?’’

You shrug your shoulders. “Hmmm i don’t know,..you’re bright..like the sun!”

Haechan blushes. “You think I’m bright?”

“When you’re not full monster mode, yeah..”

“What can I call you then...hmmm...sweet pea!”

You chuckle and throw your head back. Haechan’s smile widens.

“Sweet pea?”

“Yes! Because you’re sweet and small like a pea,”

Haechan teases and steps closer to you.

“I am NOT small.” You wave a finger.

“You’re shorter than me so…”

You laugh and turn away from his strong gaze. “well, I guess you have …”

You stop in your tracks when you recognize the brown haired man stepping out of the restrooms.

No, it couldn’t be.

You walk up to him and tap his shoulder.

“Mark?”

Haechan follows behind you. 

Mark turns to you slowly, gulping as he feels your touch.

“Y/n.. I can explain.”

You step back and bump into Haechan while covering your face with shaking hands.

“What’s wrong?” Haechan asks.

Mark steps forward.

“I-I..wait, it worked after all?” You tear up.

“What—are you talking about?” Mark’s brows furrow.

“You died and I brought you back to life..but..”

Mark shakes his head, thinking that you aren’t handling his “death” well.

“Y/n..no..I didn’t die..I faked my death, I’m sorry..I-I had to.”

“What?!” Your hands fall from your face.

“Baby, who’s this?” A pregnant woman walks up to Mark while holding her back and wincing in pain.

“This is..y/n.”

She holds her hand out for you to shake, but you glare at Mark.

“Baby? Mark, what...is this..are you messing with me right now? Am I on camera? Haha very funny, jokes over.” You hold your hands out and look around you for the cameras, for none of this made sense.

Mark sighs. “Y/n..I was going to tell you, but I couldn’t. I cheated on you with her and got her pregnant. I got into the accident but left the vehicle as fast as I could and escaped the fire. Im fine but..I told everyone to tell you that I died.”

You chuckled and bent over.

“I’m serious..I needed to start over..without you.” He continued.

You stand up straight with tears flowing down your cheeks. “Was I that bad, Mark? Was I that worthless?” Your voice cracked.

“Did I mean nothing to you?” 

Mark shook his head. “No..you were everything to me. Which is why I did what I did like a coward, I didn’t expect to see you here.”

“Do you have any fucking idea how much I cried over you? What I DID for you?” Your voice starts to raise.

Mark’s mouth falls open into silence, for there is truly no excuse for his shitty actions.

“You’re a lying bastard and I wish you nothing but the pain I felt when I thought you were dead.” Upset wasn’t even a strong enough word to describe your feeling right now.

Haechan also grows upset when he sees how hurt you are.

“You know what? I’m really hungry right now.” Haechan stepped forward, a low growl escaping him. You stepped in front of him and held his hand. 

“No..”

“You look familiar…” the woman beside Mark speaks as she looks at Haechan.

“And you look like the whore my boyfriend, wait, EX boyfriend knocked up! Come on, let’s get out of here.” You took Haechan’s hand and led him out of the park.

You drove in silence, a million thoughts running through your head. Once again, you felt like a fool.

Later that night, you crawled into bed and sobbed quietly, but Haechan heard you.

He opened your door slowly. 

“Sweet pea?” He says softly in the darkness.

You can’t help but laugh when you hear the nickname.

Haechan smiles when he hears it.

“Yes, sunny.”

“Do you need a hug?”

You roll over onto your back and swipe at your eyes. “Yes, please.”

Haechan climbs into your bed and pulls you into his arms tightly. You place your hands over his as he rests his chin on top of your head, and the two of you fall asleep soon after.

The next day, you wake up to Haechan rustling through your pantry.

He wails and groans loudly. You jump out of bed.

“Shit. I’m late.” 

You run out to the kitchen, Haechan tosses things out of the fridge while green and purple veins bulge from his grey skin. His hair is messy and great and he sounds demonic as he screams. You dodge his thrashing arms and quickly mix the potion for him.

You hold his head and keep him still with both hands.

“Haechan! Drink! Now!” You look into his white eyes.

You grab the glass and pour the liquid into his mouth. 

24 hours was up from about 30 minutes before you woke up. You had to be on time or Haechan would quickly change into zombie mode and could potentially leave the apartment to find someone to eat. This was the downside to having him around. But it was your curse and you had to deal with it.

You always thought it fascinating how he never tried to eat you.

Haechan calms down and sits onto the floor while panting.

He holds your hand and looks up at you with teary eyes. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry ..I’ll clean this up, I promise.”

“It’s okay, Haechan.” You sigh and head back to bed.

———

[Three Months Later]

You and Haechan live together happily, you slowly get closer, sleeping together in bed on most nights and doing coupling things like going to the movies or taking dancing lessons. 

He helped you get over Mark, he made you feel so loved. 

He couldn’t talk much so he was unable to get a regular job. But one day, the two of you walked by a floral shop. Haechan stopped walking and stared at the lilies. They were beautiful.

“They’re beautiful, aren’t they?”

You smiled as you touched the flowers.

“Yeah..Like you.”

You felt your face become warm as he stared into your eyes.

“I like flowers, which explains why I like you.”

Haechan says smoothly.

“You like me?” You say giddily and tug his hand.

Haechan rolls his eyes. “You’re cute.”

“What if you worked at a place like this since you like flowers?”

He nods “I’d love that.”

And so, you spoke to the owner and helped him get a job there. Of course, he’d have to wear his scarf to conceal his “scar,” but other than that, he would have no issue with preparing bouquets and cleaning up.

He’d bring home flowers for you all the time, making you smile and forget all about the pain you felt months ago.

——

“Sunny!” You cry out as Haechan flips you over his shoulder and takes you to the bathroom.

“Ha! I love hearing you call my name, baby.”

He helps you into the shower then steps in with you.

“Ah! I don’t have much time..”

“I know, that’s why I’m going to help you shower..”

He rubs you down with body wash, slowly caressing your body as you fall weak in his hands.

His touch was soothing, gentle..

“Are you sure you don’t want to call out sick today?”

He whispers into your ear as his hands trail down your abdomen.

You turn to him and kiss him for the first time. It felt like you were skydiving, falling through the blue sky without any indication of stopping, you felt a rush so indescribable your mind went blank.

Haechan can only think of how beautiful you are, he doesn’t want this moment to ever end. You’re refreshing and his chest feels like a hundred butterflies are roaming around freely in it.

He kisses you back slowly tracing his tongue over your lips. You inhale each other’s breath, closing your eyes and adoring the warmth of each other’s skin.

When you have finished showering together, Haechan carries you to the room and lays you down onto the bed. He crawls over you and lays his lips back onto yours while gently pressing his hands onto your sides.

You moan and hold yourself up on your elbows. 

You hold his face in between your hands while you kiss for what feels like hours. He gives your thighs a light squeeze.

You widen your legs and fall back into the bed.

“I don’t have much time, go ahead.” You say breathily into his ear.

He bites his bottom lip. “Are you sure?”

You nod. “Absolutely.”

He pushes into you slowly, merging your bodies in the bright room and on the plush bed for the first time.

You gripped his shoulders and wrapped your legs around his waist. Your fingers trailed up to his soft hair as he kissed your neck.

It felt magical, unreal, you felt like you had a small piece of heaven during your moment together.

Haechan whispers “I love you.” as the two of you lay in bed after.

“Is that code for “call in sick so we can do it again”?” You tease him before kissing his nose.

——

[6 Months Later]

You were running out of time to find more powder for your solution. You tried not to be worried in front of Haechan but he knew you were.

You were both worried about the future of your relationship.

You headed to the old lady’s cabin, hoping to get more.

But when you reached the exact spot, you were frightened to see an empty area littered with black dust.

“No..this can’t be..what the-?”

“Can I help you, ma’am?” A man on a bicycle passing by asked you.

“Yes, where is the cabin that was here?”

“You’re looking at it, honey. There was a fire about three months ago. The sweet old lady that lived in it passed away after inhaling too much smoke..”

Your mouth fell open as you searched the area. This couldn’t be real. How would you get the solution now?

———

[A Few Days Later]

You searched the Internet long and hard for a solution but found nothing. You were playing a dangerous game by shortening the amount you gave him, in hopes that it would last longer and give you more time.

But instead of the effects lasting for 24 hours, they’d only last for 18 before he started to grumble while the two of you laid in bed together. 

You’d quickly grab some meat from the closest supermarket and feed it to him, but that also meant that you couldn’t sleep at night.

“Hey..you’ve been at it all day. What are you looking for?” Lisa asks you one day at work.

The truth was, you couldn’t tell anyone about your predicament.

“I..it’s nothing, it’s just some old recipe I’m looking for.”

“Oh really? What’s it called?”

“I’m not sure, my mom used to make it, but it involves some pretty scarce materials.”

“Ohhhh..sounds interesting, well, what I can tell you is that when I did research on the dark web, I found a website that included weird stuff like 16th century recipes for potions and shit, it was crazy. They’d be like “you must drink four quarts of animal blood for this to work.” Wild.” Lisa shook her head and went back to her desk.

What if you needed to delve deeper into the internet, what if you searched for the potion on the dark web? 

No, you couldn’t, you’d just be asking for trouble.

Later that day when you went to pick Haechan up from your work, you saw that the shop had been destroyed, glass and flowers were scattered all over. The door had been ripped off and thrown across the floor.

You stepped out of the car but was stopped by the owner.

“Get out of here! You’re the reason for this! What the hell is wrong with your boyfriend? Look at what he did to her!” The owner pointed to another worker at the shop.

She was whimpering and holding out her arm. When you looked closely, you saw that she had been bitten. A chunk of her arm was missing. Your eyes widened as you backed away.

The potion..it wore off.

“Oh no..” barely left your lips.

“He was eating her like a maniac! I came just in time to run him out!”

The owner yelled as you jumped back into your car.

You drove around the area looking for him. You're on the brink of a full meltdown. What if he had attacked someone else? What if the police tried to get him and failed? How many more people could he hurt? 

You had to find him...now. 

You parked the car and ran around a park nearby. It was relatively quiet until you heard bones cracking. You snapped your head in the direction of the sound and rushed towards it.

You heard the high pitched cry of an animal. You peered through the bushes and saw a terrifying scene.

Haechan guzzles down the meat of a deer. He grumbles and makes demonic sounds as the deer’s eyes close slowly.

“Haechan..” you croak out quietly.

His head snaps up towards you while he still devours the intestines of the poor animal.

“Haechan..stop.. please..” you start to tear up. Your lover is unrecognizable in front of you, grey and purple skin and black fingernails. His mouth and chin is covered in blood and guts and his teeth are nearly fully decayed and yellow. His hair falls from his scalp like leaves fall from a tree.

He stands up slowly as he finally comes to realize who you are. He steps towards you but you don’t back away, you only stand there and cry.

“I’m sorry..I’m sorry I couldn’t help you in time.” 

You sob.

He breathes heavily and looks into your eyes, he’s confused because he doesn’t feel the need to feed on you, he feels like...crying, and the monster doesn’t know why.

You take him to your car and drive him home while he eats what’s left of the deer. The last thing you wanted was a dead deer in your car, but it was the only thing that kept him from thrashing around and being dangerous towards you. Once there, you use chains to tie him to a chair. You pour out the final teaspoon of powder and mix the drink.

He yells and groans as you give it to him to drink. You had never seen him this bad before. He has holes in his grey skin and his veins are now black. He was decaying faster than ever before.

His eyes were completely white and he spat out black blood as he yelled and strained against the chains.

“Haechan..please..baby it’s me, sweet pea..” you give a small smile.

But he doesn’t stop yelling.

You try to force the liquid down his throat but he coughs it up and spits it out.

“Haechan! No!!” You watch as the last bit of potion splatters onto the floor

You fall onto the floor and sob into your hands. What could you do now?

You remembered a conversation that you two had a few months ago.

“Should I threaten your safety or the safety of anyone else..you must kill me..” Haechan says while squeezing your hand and looking up at the stars.

You laid on the roof of your apartment building and watched the stars together.

“What are you saying..you know I can’t kill you.” You chuckle.

“Y/n...I’m serious...I am a monster, and if I lose control..” he shakes his head. “I can’t bear to think that I could hurt you. So you have to stab me in the head, that’s the only way.”

“You’re being ridiculous. I’d never do that.”

He turns to you and holds your chin in his hand while looking deep into your eyes. “Sweet pea..I love you, but please take care of yourself first.”

You raised your head as you sat at his feet now, the man in front of you being completely different from the man beside you on the roof long ago on that night.

“I love you too, sunny.” You cried harder and stood up. There was no going back, you couldn’t find any solutions and he was only getting worse. You loved him but he was right.

He lets out a loud groan as you walk past him and to the kitchen.

You take out a sharp knife and close your eyes before driving it into his skull.

The wailing stops.

You fall to the floor again and cry. 

———

[The Next Day]

You wake up and see Haechan’s lifeless body slumped over.

You miss him so much, your feeling of desperation begins to creep in again. And so, you jump onto your laptop and get to the dark web.

You scroll through many websites, some leading to porn websites, some leading to games with jump scares, and some just leading to flat out dead ends.

But as time goes on, you get closer and closer to what you need, finding websites about satanic rituals and sacrifices.

You eventually find a resurrection spell.

With nothing to lose, you take the knife out of his head and lay him down on the floor. You set the stage and prepared for another ritual, you should’ve learned from what happened the first time, but you loved him dearly, you needed him.

“I call upon the ancient power to help me in the darkest hour… with a drop of my blood…” you use a small knife to cut into the center of your hand. You wince from the pain and squeeze your hand to let drops fall onto his forehead.

“I will heal this man with all my love..” you say a few more words in Latin and close your eyes.

When you are done, it’s silent in your apartment, but your eyes are still closed.

Then you hear it.

You hear a breath leave his lips.

He sits up straight suddenly and opens his eyes. You gasp and watch as his skin heals and his eyes turn to brown. His teeth are back to being bright and white and his hair is luscious.

He smiles when he sees you. “Sweet pea..”

You grin with tears in your eyes.

“Sunny!” You got to hug him, but his body disappears and you fall to the floor.

Your smile fades, you hold yourself up from the floor and look behind you. Haechan sits there with a look of confusion.

“Y/n..”  he holds his hand up.

You sit back up in front of him and place your hand on his, but your fingers fall through thin air, failing to grasp his hand.

You didn’t read the fine print..the terms and conditions. This spell only worked for you to be able to see someone that has died, not for you to touch them.

“Haechan..I’m so sorry.” You begin to cry but he touched your cheek, it comes off as a light gust of wind.

“Don’t cry, sweet pea..I’m here..with you.”

And he stayed with you as a ghost for the rest of your life. He comforted you even though you couldn’t feel each other. You still explored the world together, watched movies and slept together. You missed his warmth and he missed yours, but seeing your beautiful face was enough for him. Even as you aged while he stayed the same, he thought you were the prettiest woman to ever grace the Earth.

And when you too had passed, you joined him as a ghost, walking hand in hand as you roamed the world.

come back tomorrow for the next spooky story...

[alreadyblondenow]

In favor of Chicago

nurse student!Johnny x art student!reader // SMUT, FLUFF, angst? Summary: Dating your ex’s best friend turned out to be a life changing chapter of your life... and you two can’t have sex because he thinks he has STD.  Word count: 11k Warnings: Mentions of STD, swearing, explicit mature themes, unprotected sex, back to back cheating, oral, sending of sex tape without consent. Note: This is just a fic, purely from my imagination. 

The library was packed when you decided to work on your Claude Monet paper that you have to hand to Mr. Moon before you head home. Picking a spot where a lot of students sitting and getting stunned by your presence was a huge distraction to you and hearing them gossip about your love life was way beyond disturbing. So the word is out. Not that you cared, but your attention span is really short. Being popular in college was not actually bad, but at times like this you just want to be a no one.

You’re in deep concentration with your paper and you’re five paragraphs away from finishing it. Taking a short break to check your phone and update your boyfriend that you’re almost done and you will go straight home after you hand this to your professor.

Jaehyun: So now you’re fucking my best friend? Real classy, y/n.

Jaehyun: How did this happened?

Jaehyun: Where are you? We need to talk.

Last time you check Jaehyun is not talking to you but now that the word is already out he suddenly cares. The breakup you had with Jaehyun was actually peaceful no fighting or shouting just pure talking and a lot of crying. Jaehyun is not the person you’re expecting to message you right now, you haven’t talked to each other since the night he broke up with you. So what if the popular girl is dating the university’s fuckboy? Is Johnny not allowed to finally settle in with someone?

Speaking of the devil, when you were headed to the faculty Johnny called you. You figure maybe he’s done with his shift at the university hospital.

“Hello” you answered your phone with a sweet smile that too bad Johnny won’t see.

“Hey, just calling to check if you’re okay. You know, everyone is going crazy about finding out about our relationship” through the phone you hear him open his locker, you’re right his shift is over.

“Well, they’re eight months late. Johnny were not hiding, I think everyone was just not looking enough... until now” you giggle through the phone and he couldn’t agree more.

“Okay okay, I’ll see you at your place. Just need to do something here at the hospital, will not take long but you go home safe, okay?” You answered a sweet “okay” still walking and smiling all by yourself like a crazy person.

“I love you my future art curator”

“I love you too my future nurse”

As you went home safely and take a hot shower before Johnny comes, you were brushing your teeth when the door opens and you finally see your sleepless boyfriend. For the first time today. He wraps his arms around your waist letting you finish brushing your teeth in peace. His chin rests comfortably on top of your shoulders, hearing him let go deep and heavy sigh.

For a normal person a sigh may be a sign of ’tiredness’ but for Johnny, it means he’s finally with you and he’s really happy to be with you now, watching you brush your teeth.

“I brought you your favorite Chinese takeout” he said as you two walk towards your small kitchen kissing him with your minty lips. Seeing the bag of takeout on the kitchen counter already making your place smell like freshly cooked stir fry, “yum, baby! Oh I’ve been craving”

After dinner you and Johnny are cuddled up in the middle of your bed. His giant figure does not fit in your small bed but he loves sleeping beside you. Sleeping beside you is like having sex with you but without actually having sex.

“Good night” he said softly, but it doesn’t really mean he’s going to sleep. It means, ‘close your eyes and relax while I make you feel good until you pass out’. You feel his hand creep around your stomach, lifting you sleepwear up to expose your boobs. Soon his lips touch yours, kissing you like how he loves you, feeling smiles in between kisses. As you lay on your back comfortably and Johnny kissing you down until you’re buried under the soft pillows, his big hands continues to cup your boobs, pinch your nipples and brushing his thumb on it because it’s your favorite thing.

“Why don’t you tell me about your day? I’ll listen” he said pulling away from your lips so you could talk. Johnny starts to kiss your jaw down to your neck until the valley between your boobs. You feel wild, open mouth kisses around your upper body hands are playing with your boobs, sliding on your sides, soothing your tummy as he goes down. You try to construct your sentence as you start telling him about your day.  

“I’m d-down with my last few papers…” he’s taking time kissing your lower abdomen before removing your thin shorts and panties. “just a few more research papers and professor Moon will write me a recommendation paper for the intern- fuck, Johnny” it became harder for you to talk when he finally stick his thumb on your wet clothed pussy, slowly removing the fabric down to your legs, spreading it wide and blow cold air on your pussy lips. You shiver at what Johnny did and tried to close your legs but he’s quick to stop it.

“Baby, continue” Johnny demands before devouring your pussy finally.

You can’t stop moving your hips once his tongue touched your pussy. The way his tongue glides up and down your pussy just tells you how wet you are and horny for Johnny. “If the company liked my portfolio, I’ll land an internship there and there will be a big possibility that they will absorb me- hmmm!” pushing your hips to his mouth to feel more of his tongue, imagining that it’s his cock he’s fucking you with.

“Oh-baby, mind spreading my pussy lips?” you know it’s a request Johnny can’t refuse, and so he did. Spreading your pussy lips with both of his hands, licking your cunt up and down fast and hitting that nerve. Johnny is proud how well he’s making you feel good, listening to your moans and watching you between your legs with eyes closed, lips parted and gasping loudly.

You don’t know what to do with your hands by this time. Touch Johnny’s soft hair and push his head more against your cunt? Cup your boobs and touch yourself? Grip the sheets?

Yes.

Grip the sheets. That way you wont hurt Johnny or yourself with those long nails of yours. Throwing yourself on edge, Johnny gave your slit long slow licks from bottom to your clit, both if his hands still holding your pussy lips. Pushing your hips off the bed to feel more, rolling your hips fast on Johnny’s tongue hitting his mouth, using it completely to go off.

He knew you reached your sweet climax when your legs are shivering and you’re gripping the pillows tightly, moaning and grunting softly. You feel your body warm and sweaty and to be honest, you can’t feel your legs. Still breathing heavily and catching your breath, you feel Johnny clean the mess between your thighs, got you a clean pair of panties, rolled down your sleepwear and covered you with the thick sheets.

“How I wish we could really have sex” you know it’s the wrong thing to mention but you just can’t help it. It’s not fair that Johnny fucked almost half of the population of pretty girls at the university and now that he’s your boyfriend he can’t have sex with you… “At least I don’t have to worry about getting you knocked up” he jokes but deep inside you know he’s hurting. As you two lay in bed tired and still horny, you finished the night like how you two usually do. Kiss. Finish the night with dirty and filthy smooches.      

Eight or nine months ago, just when you and Johnny are getting started with your blooming relationship he admitted that he’s not sure if he’s clean. “Well why don’t you get tested?” you asked worriedly propping your elbow on the mattress and facing him. “I’m scared of the results. I-I’m not yet ready, you know? What if I have it, or or worst-“  Johnny sounded scared, sad and angry all at the same time.

“What if you’re not? Baby, I’m not forcing you but I’m telling you it’s the right thing to do.” And that scares Johnny the most, when you tell him to go take the test but he had to refuse.

“I’m sorry, Y/n. I really can’t do it. I feel fine, healthy, and as long as I can breathe, walk and study, I will not take the test. Not until I’m ready. I can’t let it ruin my future” he finished explaining and closed his eyes, bringing his hand in the middle of his forehead and gently massage it.

From there on, you don’t question him why. But you do tell him to go take the test without sounding like you’re forcing him to do something he’s not ready to do. Instead, you both enjoyed the relationship you had. Sex free and full of love. Though you two can be filthy at times, but most of the time your intimacy comes in different shapes and sizes.

And that fuckboy reputation? Completely gone.

You knew what you signed up for. You expect Johnny to cheat and find different women in his apartment whenever you visit, getting yourself ready for multiple heartbreaks and never ending forgiveness. But no, the boy was completely loyal to you and it’s almost too good to be true. Johnny has been fucking around since his freshman days, showing off different girls night after night, and not taking nursing school seriously. It’s a miracle how he managed to keep his GPA. “I always envy Jaehyun. I always want to have someone like you, I think I just got lucky to have exactly who I want”  

The relationship you two built is like no other. It’s like you’re both facing adulthood together and finding a way to make life easier with the help of each other. Being a senior in college means you’ll have a hectic schedule before you finally graduate.

For Johnny, that’s being an intern at the university hospital and taking shifts there until he’s qualified to transfer to another hospital. For you, you’re taking up classes and finishing a few papers and wait for The Art Institute of Chicago take you as an intern. It was never easy but the you have Johnny and he has you.

You believe that Johnny is the man you’re marrying someday and you’re willing to take care of your relationship with him whatever it takes. Johnny thinks the same way, over the past few years he’s been watching you and Jaehyun love each other wildly. And now that he has you, he will not fuck it up. “I didn’t stole you from Jaehyun, right?”

You giggle at his question thinking how someone like him is actually worried from stealing you from your ex. “No, Johnny. We broke up months ago when you came back from Chicago. I remember telling you the story though-“

“Yeah, yeah. I know. Just checking again”

As the world watches you two have a peaceful relationship, a lot of people try so hard to ruin what you two got. You’ve been getting a lot of messages and stories about how different girls fucked Johnny already, telling you that he’s probably cheating right now at this very second. But again, you knew Johnny better than anyone else because you are his first love and he only opened his heart for you. Besides, those bitches got nothing on you.

While different girls try to ruin Johnny’s image for you, a specific someone tries to ruin your image for Johnny. Your ex, Jaehyun. But just like you, Johnny knew better than losing his shit for Jaehyun.

Days and weeks went on like this and stress just keeps getting the best out of you and Johnny. You’re busy writing hundred pages long for a specific artist, and Johnny is busy with hospital duties. Which is making him crazy without his coping mechanism and stress relief that is usually sex. And he knew all too well that he can’t have sex with you even if he use a condom.

One night he found you sleeping soundly on your bed and he was completely exhausted because of overtime and he really needs you right now. He kissed you softly until you wake up, your eyes were really tired from facing your computer the whole day but you understand that Johnny is home, so you need to wake up. “I missed you” he whispers softly, feeling soft touches around your thighs. Lips still on Johnny’s and you’re not planning to pull away any minute, “can’t make you eat me tonight baby, you’re dead tired” you said with a hoarse voice, it surprised you when he shook his head. Telling you to be quiet, he gently removed your shorts and panties and giving your pussy a peck.

You watch him put his middle finger in his mouth as he sucks it while looking into your eyes making you feel shy and exposed that your legs are widely spread in front of him and your cunt is waiting to be touched. But it’s Johnny you don’t need to be shy.

He insert his middle finger inside your tight cunt a little rough. Pulling it and out from you, making you crazy and moan loudly. “close your eyes” he said with the most sexiest voice ever. Your mind goes to every scenario possible. Ice play? Overstimulation? Fucking you with a dildo?

Feeling excited as you wait for him to make his move, you don’t know but he’s unbuckling his belt, removing his pants and pumping his cock. Hesitating to fuck you raw and making an unreasonable decision to have sex with you tonight.

“This will feel good baby, I promise”

His hands are both on the sides of your head, taking advantage of your closed eyes. Your heart is thumping loud you swear you can hear it. Smiling wildly feeling Johnny’s kisses on your neck until you feel the tip of his cock lining at your entrance.

Everything happened so fast. You pushed him way to hard like he was some kind of rapist. Immediately feeling the guilt and regret that you let yourself open your legs wide for him.  Wearing your panties again and putting back your thin shorts, feeling angry at the man you love and you don’t know what to do with him.

Johnny is apologising over and over and over again but you don’t listen to him. You don’t hate him of course, you’re just… scared and worried for yourself because this is the first time Johnny became like this.

“I’ll pretend this never happened Johnny. I’ll sleep on the couch, you need to sleep well tonight”

How do you expect him to sleep like a baby after what’s happened? On the next day, he felt like shit and even more guilty when he found out you already left for your morning classes. He made it to the hospital without any sleep and rest, and it was a tough day at the hospital.

“Well you look like shit” His friend Karen gave him another cup of cheap coffee from the vending machine because she thought Johnny needed it. “Rough night?” she added, keeping Johnny’s attention to her.

“Tell me about it. Fucking newbies don’t know what to do most of the time, can you believe that shit” he let it out really annoyed and tired, drank the coffee in one down. It wasn’t really hot, it’s always like that that’s why it’s cheap.

Karen is an intern from another university, a younger nurse than Johnny. If he’s single and if he doesn’t have you, he will definitely fuck Karen at the nurse lounge. And he can’t believe he’s thinking about banging his co-intern after what happened last night.

“I get you. Being a junior in this hospital fucking stresses me out, I’ve never been to a hospital so stressful. I mean for an intern like me? It’s too much, don’t you think?” she sighs, “I need sex, lots of sex”

Johnny almost choke when he heard what she said, he can’t believe they’re thinking the same thing. ’Sex.’

“Now that I let that out of my chest, do you… uhm” she scratched her neck being awkward about the situation she singlehandedly made. “Want to have sex…with me? I heard you’re like uhm, popular here because of… you know. Definitely no strings attached just pure adult stress release”

Being from another school definitely made her miss the memo that Johnny is with the most popular girl in campus, running valedictorian, and basically his future wife. The saddest part is, Johnny thought he’s completely a changed man and that no other temptation can make him turn his back around and dive into hooking up with other girls. It makes him sad that he’s about to do it.

The two hit it off at the empty nurse lounge at the other building’s basement. Since they’re both familiar with how the hospital works, they’re sure know no one will catch them there.

In the middle of pounding Karen and Johnny’s balls deep inside her, it felt really good now that he’s fucking someone again. Imagining that it’s you he’s fucking feeling the guilt even more. “Why didn’t we did this a little sooner?” Karen was moaning uncontrollably, muffling her screams whenever Johnny tells her to be quiet and give her ass a juicy slap.

“Feels good, fuck. You aren’t a virgin right? But fuck it feels like a virgin’s hole” his hands are on her hips watching how her massive boobs bounce up and down right in front of him.  Thumbing Karens clit, pushing her on edge careful not to release at the condom yet. He pulls out immediately and licks her cunt until she cums. Letting her shiver on top of the hospital bed with no sheets. He slams back inside her again, making her cum using his cock giving her the full experience of being fucked by Johnny.

“It’s good that we fit… You know that?” he grunts while fucking her with a steady pace letting Karen moan his name loudly until he cums finally.

Feeling guilty and shy as hell, he cleans himself and went outside the room letting Karen make herself presentable again.

While Johnny is inside someone’s pussy and having the time of his life, you on the other hand who is completely clueless, is thinking about making him dinner and tell him the good news that you finally got the internship in Chicago.

“You leave in two weeks” you remember Mr. Moon telling you the great news. Calling every person that actually cares for you and telling them the big news, screaming and shouting on the phone excitedly as you walk back to your apartment. Still wondering why Johnny haven’t answered his phone.

You put on some classical music to calm your excited nerves, making Johnny his favorite dish and trying to finish everything up before he arrives. Opening a glass of wine and drinking it while you cook, thinking how you more than deserved this.

“Hi, babe! Right on time, I have good news” you welcomed him with kisses at the hallway and walked him towards the dinning room. “But first let’s eat dinner while the food is hot”

All throughout the dinner you noticed Johnny’s mood. Maybe he’s tired? You can’t take the silence anymore so you asked what’s wrong, hoping that it’s nothing serious. Did he finally take the test? It’s making you anxious every second that passes. He’s not looking to you in the eye, he’s not touching his food but he already had three glasses of wine.  

“I had sex with someone. Today, at the hospital”

EIGHT MONTHS AGO

Before your last semester as a junior in college ends, Jaehyun decided to breakup with you. “I just don’t see my future anymore with you, Y/n” his exact words. After being together since high school and almost half of your college years, putting up with every bullshit he gave you for the last six years now he’s finally letting you go. Thankfully the breakup was nothing but peaceful and there were no shouting or cursing at each other. But it was painful for you.

This is your first summer without Jaehyun and theres no better way to heal from a breakup by getting yourself busy. You’ve been working on your portfolio day and night and you think it’s better than just watching a sad Netflix movie. There’s no way that you’re not going to land your future job in Chicago right after graduation so you worked your ass off.

Today you need to mail a physical copy of your portfolio and went to the post office alone to your surprise you saw a certain someone. Johnny Seo, Jaehyun’s best friend. Looking a little different from the last time you saw him.

“It’s great to see you...in a post office” he said and you both laughed awkwardly. He noticed your well wrapped thick portfolio and figured things out  from there. He quickly received what he was going to get and helped you mail out your item.

“How are things with Jaehyun? I heard he quit being a dj for the school radio when I went home to Chicago. The fool didn’t want any partner but me” he said as he walks with you not knowing where to go.

You figured he wasn’t around when Jaehyun broke up with you so he missed the news. “We broke up, two or three months ago, I think” trying not to look so hurt by what you said, you avoid eye contact and looked at your shoes as you both continue to walk. He apologised for what he said and for being insensitive but you told him it’s fine, he was away that time so you understand him.

“Well, you don’t look fine. Can I buy you ice cream?” it was a leap of faith for Johnny to ask you to spend some time with him and he was hoping you would really give him a chance.

“Is this the part where you ask me out and ask me to sleep with you because I’m not with Jae anymore?” heart beats really fast because of what you just said. You didn’t mean to be bold and straightforward but knowing about his fuckboy reputation in campus just makes you put your guard up.

Now that you’re not with Jaehyun anymore you figure maybe you don’t have the immunity from being added to the list of the girls he fucked already.

“No y/n, I’m simply being nice to you. And if I want to fuck you I’d tell you ‘let’s get out of here so we can have sex’ but I didn’t right?”

You feel ashamed for what kind of behaviour you showed him but Johnny is nice enough to still buy you ice cream. At the the end of the day you had a great time eating ice cream with him and talked about random stuff. Maybe you’re exaggerating a little but you feel alive again after for so long.

Way back when you and Jaehyun are together, you only see Johnny when you’re looking for Jaehyun at the dorm or whenever Jaehyun is way too drunk to walk, Johnny is the person to call. They’ve been friends since they were freshmen and just building their own selves through college. Jaehyun is the university’s star athlete and sexy chef while Johnny is the known hot fuckboy from the nursing department. Everyone is crazy about them especially when they started to dj at the university’s radio. Their ratings were high because people simply can’t get enough of their handsomeness.

Ever since Jaehyun introduced you to Johnny, he always tells you how sometimes Johnny looked at you like you were some type of meal that he’s been craving for. “You don’t know him like I do, babe. Just promise me to avoid him even if he’s being nice, even if he’s my best bud.”

But now that you’ve been hanging out a lot with Johnny you see him as a warm person. Nice enough to help you land a good internship once senior year starts, a family guy who loves his parents so much, and  gentleman enough to sneak in your room using your opened window while you’re sleeping.

“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday happy birthday... happy birthday to you”

In your dark room, you heard him singing you happy birthday just when the clock strikes twelve. Johnny is holding a small cupcake with one lit candle, smiling so sweetly to you as he waits for you to make a wish and blow the candle.

No one has ever surprised you in such a way and you didn’t expect that Johnny will be the first. “How did you even get in?” whispering and careful not to be heard by your parents you asked Johnny and he points to you the opened window as his answer.

It’s weird how things move so fast for you and Johnny but slow enough to achieve what you both had in mind. You think it’s too early for Johnny to put his arm around you while walking outside the neighbourhood, incredibly close to each other but you let him. You don’t know why you let him sneak in your room almost every night and spend the night with him just laying on your bed talking softly and giggling like little kids.

Not wanting him to leave yet, you invite him to lay with you in bed. Letting him slide under covers and keep you warm. It’s obvious that you two like each other but no one is taking advantage of that but today’s your birthday, being selfish for once won’t ruin your ‘friendship’ with Johnny.

“Can I kiss you?” You blurted out.

“Can I kiss you?” He repeats your question, emphasis on the ‘I’ and you nod your head as your answer. “Happy birthday” he added before kissing you again sweetly, putting you on top of him. Enjoying how his lips are finally touching yours, enjoying the happiness you’re feeling after being trapped to someone for so long.

As senior year starts you spend almost every second and every minute with Johnny now that you move out from Jaehyun’s apartment and have your own. Johnny didn’t move in with you but he basically lives with you because he can’t stand not being with you with every time he’s got free time. No one knows how senior year will eat up the time you two should be together and Johnny came prepared for that.

“Let me live with you here but not really live, live… get it? I can take care of you, I’m going to be your private nurse, I will do the laundry, I will give you pleasure” he kissed the knuckles of your right hand, “I will be your boyfriend. I will show you how a proper boyfriend should treat his girlfriend. Once we’re both interns in Chicago, I promise you… we’ll stay at our house”

“That’s a lot of promises Johnny Seo. Chill, you can live with me. Let’s take care of each other, you don’t need to do everything”

“How did I get so lucky!” he’s squeezing you with a tight hug on the couch, bodies closer as usual.

And you did took care of each other. Whenever you feel sick, tired, or worn out, Johnny is always present. Him being a nurse is actually good for someone who gets sick a lot. You made him be a better person, helping him study more for nursing exams and helping him maintain his GPA.

Playing house isn’t the term, but you two helped each other whenever someone is struggling financially. If Johnny is short for his tuition money, you don’t hesitate to cover for it.

“Do you want to stop studying? In the middle of fucking senior year?”

“No” Johnny accepts defeat.

“Then shut up and take my money, come on I’ll pay with you”

And if you’re the one who’s short for rent money, Johnny got you covered. He doesn’t tell it to you but you found out that he’s been paying for your rent fee whenever you’re behind.

“Do you want to live in my small apartment? With Ten?”

“No” This time it’s you who accepts defeat.

“Thought so too. You don’t want to live with two filthy nurses right? So I already took care of the rent baby, you don’t have to worry about it”

EIGHT MONTHS AFTER / PRESENT TIME

“This is it then? You’re breaking up with me?”

“No. Johnny I’m not breaking up with you. All I’m asking is some space, let me think about staying in this relationship. Let me think about what you did. I’m trying my best to convince myself not to leave you, so please just give me some space”

“Baby, please. It doesn’t mean anything”

“Sure it doesn’t but what if I do the same thing to you?” your tone was a little loud this time, every second this conversation grew you, your frustrations grew double. “You will be heartbroken just like me right now. I don’t know if Im fooling myself for thinking that maybe you’re the one for me, now I’m asking space so I can make sure that I still want you to be part of my life”

Johnny was speechless when you walked out in front of him. He wanted to ran to you and beg for more but he needs to get back to the hospital.

It’s been a painful three days for the both of you. Neither one of you functions well. You’re a wreck, he’s a wreck. And truth be told you both can’t afford a breakup right now because it might affect your work performance. At least that’s how you feel about the breakup, you don’t know about Johnny.

During the nights you were sleeping alone, you remember how you and Johnny dance and drink beer in the middle of a bar that has a live band. And no one would care if you two were just enjoying your own little world. Walking around campus hand in hand while he’s eating his sandwich in his hospital scrubs and you’re holding a book and reading about more artists. It doesn’t matter if no one is talking, what matters most is that you’re together.

Sure he’s just some guy but he’s been a part of you already. And what Johnny did ruined your relationship. You’re crying right now because you’re madly, deeply in love with him and what he did is like putting a knife straight to your heart and you don’t know what to do about it.  

The night before you leave for Chicago, Johnny went to your apartment after his long hour shift. You can see that he’s tired and sleepless but he still chose to go to your apartment, “I’ll help you pack” he said weakly heading towards to your closet and folded your clothes. It’s not that you’re letting him help you, you don’t have the energy to argue further with him.

It was dead quiet. Something has never happened in this apartment of your whenever Johnny is around. The air feels heavy and you want him to leave now after he zips your luggage. “Listen, uhm- I maybe can’t drive you to the airport tomorrow. I have an early shift-“

“It’s okay. I can handle everything by myself” You’re still not looking at him, crossing your arms waiting for him to head out. At this point, why are you still surprise that Johnny can’t drop you off.

“Okay. Uh… Can I hug you?” he was hopeful you can see it in his eyes. You want to grant his request but that’s not how space works.

“Good night Johnny, you know the way out. Get some sleep.”

On the next day, it’s a good thing that you’re excited and you don’t feel sad and bad for yourself. This is the only thing that you have full control with, your future. After everything you did to get where you are right now, you can say that you’re proud of yourself. You’re excited to work, meet Mr. Choi and have the time of your life.  

“Chicago is great, Mr. Choi and the company gave me an amazing apartment. And the people at work are so nice, not to mention the Museum! Ugh! The museum is beautiful, Wendy! You should go visit here” since you don’t have Johnny to tell all these stories, you pour them all to your best friend, Wendy.

“That’s great! Hey, listen…” she clears her throat, “Have you talked to Johnny lately?”

“N-no, why would I?”

“I don’t know y/n? He’s been asking me every week about you and he looks like shit, though I heard he nailed that internship there… In Chicago. So you know, prepare yourself?”

“Thanks for the heads up Wendy. It’s okay, tell him I’m fine and I’m doing great here” After you hung up on Wendy, theres a familiar figure that’s looking for old LP records and you decided to take a closer look. Before you could even get closer, the man turned around and saw you.

“Y/n!”

Jung fucking Jaehyun. Looking so handsome as always. Just like the firs time you met him, but now he has brown hair. “What are you doing here in Chicago?” you asked him, staring like a statue and you didn’t know you have the brightest smile flashing in front of him.

“I’m an intern here. You know cooking meals for some famous people, I’m actually here for about three months already I’ll go back to campus in a matter of weeks. Wait for graduation when I get back, how about you?”

“I just got here a week ago, I finally got the internship at The Art Institute”

With Jung Jaehyun’s presence you suddenly felt home again. You’re happy that he’s finishing his internship here and he’s going to have his own restaurant when he graduates. Jaehyun was excited to tell you all of his plans for himself and for his business. You on the other hand, thought that maybe breaking up wasn’t so bad.

He invited you to his place and told you he’ll make you dinner, “come one, just like old times” he winks at you and put an arm over your shoulder.

You watch Jaehyun cook in his small but decent kitchen, and you got to admit you miss watching him cook his heart out for you. It’s only been a few months since you two broke up and you can’t believe he has changed so much.

“Try this, it’s hot though” he put he fork right in front of your mouth and gave you a mouthful of pasta. “Hmm! Jaehyun, it’s good” he chuckles at your reaction, watching you eat the past with some garlic bread.

“I only hear you moan like that in bed” he said, smiling at you and teasing you like you two never broke up in the first place. Playfully you smack his arm and continue eating.

The night went on and on of you two talking about your past. After one casserole of pasta and three bottles of wine, you’re now laying on the couch with Jaehyun in between his legs with a small blanket on your leg.

“You sure Johnny won’t mind of you being here?” you feel the vibrations of his voice against your back whenever he talks.

“He wouldn’t dare. Were kind of not together now. He slept with someone from the hospital before we could even, do it.”

“So you never had sex? That’s a shocker, I used to think you two fuck like rabbits”

“Jaehyun you’re disgusting” as much as it disgust you, it made you giggle and laugh, “Johnny thinks he’s not clean, he can’t have sex with me. He’s scared to be tested”

You don’t see it but Jaehyun is really disappointed with Johnny. “I may be an asshole to you, but I never cheated” Jaehyun says proudly, reaching for his glass of wine and drinking it in one down. Hugging you from behind and keeping you close to him, you can smell his familiar perfume. Something you haven’t smell for some time now but you still know it’s Jaehyun’s.

“Do you miss it? The sex?” he broke the comfortable silence.

“Of course. You know me Jae, sex was like a big part of our relationship. But that was us. Me and Johnny were okay even though we don’t get to have sex, but yeah sometimes I miss it. And maybe Johnny missed it a little too much”

After having great dinner at his apartment, Jaehyun brought you to your apartment safe and sound. Inviting you again for the next day, “I could stop by at the museum and we’ll go grocery shopping” it wasn’t a bad idea, you’re sucker for good a great company and Jaehyun is the perfect person for that. Before Jaehyun fly back home, you two spent time with each other. He brought you to he restaurant, you brought him to the museum.

Jaehyun is the one doing Johnny’s promises to you.

Four days before Jaehyun leaves, is supposed to be the date of your seventh year anniversary. “Let’s celebrate it, no ones going to die if we celebrate it” Jaehyun said through the phone, inviting you to his place again tonight, to celebrate. It’s not a good idea of course but it will be just good food, wine and a lot of talking.

Or so you thought. The whole dinner time Jaehyun was flirting with you and you’ve been rolling your eyes over and over again for the past three hours.

You’re looking at his LP collection while you listen closely to the music he played. Standing in front of the record player reading the track list and sipping wine. You feel Jaehyun put your hair on the other side of your neck and kiss your exposed shoulders. Soft lips on your skin, hands caressing your shoulders, you miss this feeling.

“Were both single and were not looking for relationship. We both want the same thing, right”  his voice is deep whenever he wants something from you. You nod at what he said quickly turning you around to face him. Kissing you without a warning, tasting the expensive wine that still lingers on your lips.

Leaving the record play beautifully as you two walk towards his room, leaving a trail of your discarded clothes on floor and reaching the bed already fully naked. He kissed your neck, whispering how much he missed you, kissing your jaw down to your boobs cupping them and kneading as he goes back to your lips again to tell you, “you always have the prettiest nipples”

Suddenly, you remember Johnny.  

You watch him lick your nipples, left and right. Pinching it softly and gently careful not to hurt you and eventually sucking it until it’s both swollen. “Does Johnny knows your nipples turns pink after an hour of just sucking it and playing with it?” you just listen to Jaehyun as he do what he pleases.

“You’re the most beautiful girl I’ve ever been with, I’m an idiot for leaving you” he went down to your exposed sex, kissing it softly but not making you sensitive. You feel him kiss your upper thighs, slowly putting his tongue out when he reaches your pussy lips. “I bet Johnny gave you a lot of oral,” you nod your head weakly watching him smile in between your legs, “I’ll make you wet and fuck you the whole night, something he can’t do” it breaks your heart hearing those words.

Jaehyun spits on your cunt and kept it wet and ready for his cock, playing with your hole for some time so you won’t get hurt. When you finally saw him pump his cock and line it to your entrance, you’re tempted for a second to make him stop so you closed your legs.

“We’ve done this a thousand time y/n, it’s just me” Jaehyun made sure to make you calm and remind you that this is just sex, “this wont mean anything” he added.

With one smooth thrust, Jaehyun is inside you. And after for so long you’re having sex again with the same man who fucked you for the past six years. You put your legs around his waist, keeping him close to you as he thrust in and out. “Happy anniversary” he teases while giving you hard thrusts that makes you grunt and your boobs bounce. Chest to chest and forehead to forhead, Jaehyun is fucking you good. Moaning his name as you enjoy the feeling that you’ve been missing for the last couple of months.

“I was hurt when I found out about you and Johnny” he gave you hard piercing thrust. One by one, putting his anger on his thrust remembering how it hurt when he knew about you and Johnny. “I didn’t broke up with you so he could have you, no no” he’s giving you the same thrust hearing him breath heavily. You on the other hand is taking it all, the hurt and stretch of his cock, the impact of his thrust, his bites on your shoulder, everything.

You and Jaehyun fucked again and again that night. Kissing your body to sleep on his cozy apartment, and doing the same thing the moment he wakes up. “Good morning beautiful, what do you want for breakfast?” he kisses you body all over until he finally sees your sweet smile and morning glow, “and don’t tell me you want me for breakfast. Please you worn me out last night” he added, kissing your lips and smiling at you.

Poking his dimples before you tell him what you want for breakfast, he catches your finger and playfully bites it. “I’m fine with pancakes and strawberries, with lots of syrup and freshly brewed coffee”

“Okay. Now get your sexy ass in the shower, I’ll make us breakfast” he kissed you one last time before he heads to the kitchen.

When Jaehyun heard you’re busy inside the bathroom, he messaged Johnny. Sending him a video of you and him, having sex last night. Feeling so accomplished that this time Johnny will feel double the hurt Jaehyun felt when he found out about your relationship. Soon after he flipped a couple of pancakes, Johnny replied to his message.

Johnny: At least delete the fucking video, I don’t need to watch it.

Jaehyun: Meet me at the café near campus tomorrow night. We need to talk.

“Hey chef, the pancake is ready to be flipped” you came out of nowhere and Jaehyun was quick to put away his phone. Giving you his innocent dimpled smile, “here you go” drizzling the syrup on top of the pancakes watching Jaehyun put some confectioners’ sugar. You had a peaceful breakfast with Jaehyun before he could leave and catch his flight back.

“Jae, just so you know… I still love Johnny. I will take of the consequences just please, don’t tell what happened- I’m ashamed”

It’s too late for that now, Jaehyun kissed your forehead and promised you not to meddle. Even though he already did, just like you he will face the consequences by himself.

Johnny on the other hand feels so broken. You’re right, it hurts like hell. He didn’t need to watch the video but it was a wake up call for him. He’s tired of just sitting back and watching you slowly fade in his life. If he wanted to prove something to you, he knows exactly what he needs to do.

“Hey Ten, I need you to do me favor- fuck, I don’t how to do this but, I need to get tested today. Before I fly to Chicago in a week, I need to finally do it. I’m losing her”

Ten is Johnny’s best friend, he pulled some strings at the hospital to make the test and the results private. Johnny is a famous man and every person who knew him will lose their shit if they found out about the STD testing.

Jaehyun and Johnny met at the café as planned. The tension between the two men grew worst when Jaehyun told Johnny that he’s been sleeping with you for a week even though that part is not true and that you two celebrated your seventh year anniversary.

“I came here for y/n, not to listen about your little play house with her” Johnny let out a big sigh and sipped on his coffee, “she needs you there and as much as it hurts me, I’m thankful you guys met there”

Jaehyun was lost, but surprised that Johnny is not using his fists anymore to settle things like how he used to. “She loved you more than she could ever love me, and dude you fucking wasted it. Even though you fucking cheated, she still loves you like crazy.”

“I’m well aware of my mistakes Jaehyun, that’s why I’m making things right from now on. Funny how I used to fuck every girl just for fun but now that I want to have sex with someone I love, I can’t.”

“Why didn’t you just use a condom?”

“Are you stupid? The fact that I’m doubting if i’m clean is not safe for her already. She doesn’t deserve that”

“And the girl you cheated with deserved shit? Oh come on Johnny-“

“She got tested and it’s negative so you could shut the fuck up now Jaehyun”

“Okay okay. Now it’s time for me to talk” Jaehyun clears his throat and looked at Johnny straight in his eyes, “I’m getting her back. And once I do that, I will treat her right”

“I doubt that Jaehyun. She loves me”

Jaehyun’s threat scared the shit out of Johnny if he’s being honest. And putting up a straight face in front of Jaehyun was hard, Johnny knew he is capable of getting you back. The fact that you two slept together again is a good sighn for Jaehyun already, and Johnny is scared to the bone right now. He took the earliest flight to Chicago after a week and he will find you and do everything just to win you back.

It’s a busy day for you and tonight you can impress your boss and show him what you’ve got. The Art Institute of Chicago will held a public screening by morning until after and a private screening on the evening. You mentally cheer for yourself as you read notes and guidelines for today’s event, nervous but you’re sure as hell you can do it.

Just as you’re finished for the first part of your work, your high heels is killing you right now so you decided to get out of the crowd and rest your feet some place quieter. As you stretch your feet and grunt for a few times, you saw someone standing in front of Claud Monet’s Water Lilies.

“Good evening sir, unfortunately this is a private screening-“

“Oh sorry, I didn’t know that. But I do know someone special to me that Claude Monet is her favorite artist. She scans her father’s books and she found countless of pictures of Monet’s landscape works, and she tries to copy it. That’s how you started to love art.”

You told him that story on one of those peaceful nights back in your room before senior year even starts. Not expecting him to remember that stupid story of you decided you wanted to pursue art. That was the first time you opened up to Johnny and told him more personal stuff about you.

“h-hi, I really didn’t know that this is a private screening. I just wanted to see you, watch you work from a far and talk when your work is done”

“No, it’s fine. Though I should get back, sorry” you walk away from him and try to hurry back to the event but suddenly you felt like crying. You love Johnny with all your heart but the relationship you had right now is complicated and you want to fix it so bad but you don’t know how to. With big steps and not minding your tortured feet, you came back to Johnny and hugged him. “I’ll be right back baby. This won’t take long”

Johnny didn’t want to let you go, he just wanted to hug you and keep you close. He kissed your forehead and watched you walk away from him with tears on your eyes and a big smile. Mouthing him that you’ll be back.

After a long day at the art institute and in Johnny’s case having a long flight, you two entered your apartment with lips never leaving each other. “I miss you so much” Johnny said in between kisses, keeping you close to him.

You feel him unbutton your shirt but you stopped him. Breathing heavily as you pull away from him and hold his hand down, “lets talk, yeah? I have to tell you something” you walk towards the kitchen and made you two coffee first. Johnny grew silent waiting for you to talk, completely clueless that  you’re having a hard time constructing your sentence.  

“Is this about Jaehyun?”

You stopped what you’re doing and turned to face him, “how did you-“

“We talked, man to man. And I want you to know that it hurt me but, I don’t care. I’m crazy in love about you y/n, I know you are too. And right now what we have is complicated but look where we are right now? We fucked up because were not perfect, lust is lust and we both learned that the hard way” it hurts Johnny to watch you cry in front of him but he can’t move his legs. Like you he’s overwhelmed and full of emotions, he wanted to give you some air. “I bet you were thinking about me when you two did it, because I did when I did it when Karen”

You nod without hesitating, reaching in for him because you feel weak and Johnny catches you with a tight hug. “I’m sorry baby, I started this that’s why I’m fixing it. If you want me get on my knees and apologise I will do it, just to win back” he said with a hoarse voice, whimpering like a child. It almost didn’t sound like Johnny because you see him as this tough guy but now he’s just vulnerable.

“What are you talking about, I’m the who messed up big time. I’m sorry too can you give me another chance?” tears fall down to your face and it’s getting hard to talk because of your heavy crying. But Johnny was giggling in front of you admiring how cute you are right now. Giving you a soft kiss that tastes salty because of tears.

There’s a saying that sometimes we have to kiss the wrong man to know what’s right. In your case, you have to fall hard and fucked up so bad to realise that you want to be with Johnny forever. What you and Johnny had was real and you learned it the hard way.

Of course it was not that easy to start again but one thing is for sure, you’re crazy about each other and you love each other deeply. Setting boundaries and fixing the mess you two made was the hardest part of it. Johnny took care of Karen already and the girl says sorry, you scoff at that thought, “If I see her around the campus, I’m gonna slap the shit out of her” you told Johnny with all your might knowing perfectly well what you’re capable of. He was happy you’re back at being his protective girlfriend.

“Speaking of violence, I might kill Jaehyun if that’s the case baby” he scoffed and pour himself another cup of coffee. Johnny wouldn’t dare ruin your relationship with Jaehyun just because you slept with him, he wanted you to take care of it yourself without him meddling.

“yeah well, no shit” you yawn in front of him, “don’t you have hospital duty?” he shook his head and put your mug on the sink. He stood in between your legs and carried you using his strength, keeping your legs around his waist. He kept on whispering apologies to you, sweet apologies that warms your heart and tighten your hug placing you on the bed gently, “can I sleep here?”

“Of course Johnny. Never leave me”

He let out a soft chuckle and lay beside you, “Never again”

The next day you woke up without Johnny by your side. You’re starting to think that maybe it was a dream? But you smell fresh coffee and toasted bread with butter or maybe that was grilled cheese.

“Good morning, sorry you woke up alone. I had to go to the farmers market” you hugged him from behind, kissing his muscular back “Now, I’m not a good cook like Jaehyun but you always loved my coffee, here” he hands you your hot coffee and asked for a good morning kiss that you happily gave.

“Do you have work today?” he asked looking at your morning face admiring your messy hair and swollen face.

“Nope. What do you have in mind”

“Meet my parents today?” you almost spit your coffee when you hear him say that.

The whole car drive was full of questions about his parents mainly because you have no idea what they’re like. Johnny was amused at how worried you were even though he’s confident they’re going to love you. “How many girls did you introduce to them already?” you asked Johnny nervously watching him laugh at your serious question, “You’re the first. I told you, you’re my first love- will you stop worrying? Look there they are” he waved at them happily as you smiled to his parents, waiting for Johnny to finish parking the car.

First impression to his mother, well she looks nothing like the one you imagined. You can’t believe you imagined your boyfriend’s mom as someone who will stare you down the moment she meets you. In reality, Johnny’s mom is bubbly and she welcomed you with a warm hug the moment you got out of the car. Johnny’s dad looked a lot like him and also welcomed you with a warm hug and a big smile his eyes almost disappears, “come inside, the food is ready”  

Johnny’s home is comfortable. A normal asian household in a neighbourhood in Chicago. The dinner is set at a patio in their backyard, every food you see at the table are made by Johnny’s parents. The Seos are funny people, all three of them made you laugh the whole dinner. Telling you stories about Johnny’s childhood and mostly talked about how they love their son. It’s really heart warming because you feel the level of intensity of their love for Johnny and you understand them because you love Johnny too.

“Are you enjoying The Art Institute of Chicago?” Mrs. Seo asked you as she watches you cut the cake and put a piece first on Johnny’s plate. She was watching you the whole time. How you talk to Johnny, how you smile at him, how you answer their questions with respect. She thinks you’re a natural when it comes to caring for her son and that he’s in good hands, and it gives her great relief.

“Yes ma’am, I enjoy every second of it. Though it’s hard to impress my boss and earn a permanent spot at the institute but, I’m getting there and I won’t stop” you gave her a piece too then Mr. Seo. From there on, Johnny couldn’t stop talking about you in front of his parents, he even told them how you clean your apartment spotless.

Meeting Johnny’s family was fun, they were cool parents and you’re positive Johnny got his wits from his mom. Back then you wonder why Johnny is such a gentleman to you but now you know the answer to that question. His dad is a natural sweet guy and a real gentleman. Looking at them made you think that love is real and maybe for the next 30 years that’s going to be you and Johnny.

When it’s time to go home already his parents walked you and Johnny to the car. “If Johnny doesn’t marry you I will seriously get mad” Mrs. Seo whispered beside you letting Johnny and Mr. Seo walk pass you two. You giggled at what she said to you, it makes your heart happy that she likes you. You and Johnny waved goodbye to his parents and gave them hugs before you two leave. “I told you they’d love you” Johnny holds your hand while he drives and kissed your left hand too many times because he can’t kiss you on the lips.

The moment you got back to your apartment you went straight to the bathroom and took a shower leaving Johnny at the living room couch as he rest. While you were busy taking a shower, Johnny messaged Jaehyun and sent him a picture of you and his parents laughing together over dinner.

Johnny: [attached picture] I win. This has to stop Jaehyun. I’m going to propose to her after graduation.

“hey baby, go take a shower while I finish up here” you invited Johnny inside your bathroom, accepting your offer a little too excited. You were busy brushing your teeth when Johnny made his way to the shower trying not to peak at your boyfriend’s gorgeous body. He likes singing in the shower and you love listening to his beautiful voice while you dry your hair. When he got out wet and hot, his lower body is covered with a thick towel but the bulge on his crotch is still visible. And he’s big.

Johnny stood behind you watching you put lotion through the mirror with loving eyes, “What?” you asked him, turning around to put a smaller towel on top of his head and you start drying his hair. Making sure to tiptoe so you’re able to reach him. His hands travel down to your covered ass keeping you close to his body you could smell the shower gel from his skin. Playing with the hem of your panties you smirk at him because he’s too predictable but you can tell he’s stopping himself, “put it inside” giving him consent without looking at him.

Following what you said, he squeezed and kneads both of your ass cheeks until you’re finished drying his hair. Giving him a peck on the lips and walked out of the bathroom. You turned on the lamp shade and jumped right in your comfortable bed, waiting for Johnny to get dressed but he has other plans.

“Why are you just standing there and staring at me looking so sexy with that towel wrapped around your waist. Come on, get dressed already and come to bed” you whine and watch him walk on the edge of the bed looking like a lost god inside your room.

Removing his towel in front of you, his eyes never leave yours but yours left his to look at his hard cock. “It’s not fair that I’m the only one naked here” he whispered so sexily beside your ear and eventually bitting the shell of your ear. Hands helping you to remove your shirt and panties without a rush. Pushing you down on the mattress as he spread soft kisses around your neck, shoulders and lips.

“I got tested last week”

With wide eyes you pull away from him just enough to look at him clearly and check if he’s saying the truth. “And?” your heart beats so fast as you wait for his answer, hoping for some good news.

“I think I rather show you than tell you. Hmm?”

“Fuck Johnny!” you shouted at him showing your happiness tears pooling on the corner of your eye.

“Yes, that’s what were going to do all night”

You hugged him tight until he tells you he needs air, pulling him on top of you letting him put all of his weight on your body. He’s fucking heavy but you don’t care. Too happy and excited about the great news you kiss him down to the mattress and waited for yourself to relax. Putting him under your spell as you made your way on top of him, Johnny felt cheated and quick to grab your body closer to him as he switch positions with you so easily. “Uh-uh. I’m on top, you can have second round”

His hands are quick to travel around your body, making a trail of wet kisses from your lips down to your lower abdomen. Stopping yourself to moan a little to louder because it’s been too long since Johnny touched you, only he can make your whole body sensitive. “Let it out, I love hearing you and you know that”

Big hands are caressing both of your thighs as you spread your legs in front of him so he can kneel between you. Going back to kiss your lips, putting his right arm in between your bodies, “were like virgins” you both chuckle at what he said but yours turned into a long moan when you feel him play with your slit, feeling his finger spread your juices and make your pussy more wet.

Even though foreplay is not new for the both of you, deep inside you’re both nervous. Nervous because finally tonight you two will have sex and the excitement is balling up in your bodies. Kneeling in between your legs again, Johnny moved intentionally slow and took his time with you. Thinking about how he doesn’t want to fuck you like how he fucked other girls.

He lifts your right leg gently, feeling your soft skin on his hands and placing kisses on your leg and shin. “This is the first time that I get nervous for sex… I’m just full of love for you I don’t know how to start. But oh the amount of things I want to do with you, baby” it is indeed surprising to see Johnny so nervous in bed and what he said to you made you smile beneath him.

“Don’t smile like that, you don’t know what your smile does to me” he kissed your leg again softly, placing it above his shoulders and leaning down close to you until you’re chest to chest. Johnny’s head perfectly rest on your left shoulder kissing it and your neck as he pleases. He lines his cock to your entrance pushing in slowly making you feel his veiny cock stretch your cunt for the first time. You hiss from hurt of the stretch gasping sharply as your arms swings around Johnny’s. Breathing fast and sharp near his ear, raking his soft hair as you feel all of him.

Neither of you can’t believe that Johnny is inside you. He told you how you feel so warm around him, incredibly tight and wet. How he wants to go deeper inside you but he doesn’t want to hurt you. Like you, he is breathing deeply and sharply near your ear whispering those words to you and kissing you more to tell you he means it.

While Johnny was whispering you sweet and dirty words, you focus on what you’re feeling down there and wonder how did it fit inside you. He has a big cock that’s for sure. Johnny continues to push in slowly, it’s so big you let out a soft ‘ouch’ and ‘ow’ from time to time. He loves the sound of it.

“Am I hurting you?” he stopped for a second and you nod your head breathing heavily. “Good” he said with a smirk and went back to pushing in his cock. “You sure Jaehyun fucked you good all those years?” you pinched his nipples with all your strength while you take his cock, making him whine and turned on even more. At least you made him shut up about Jaehyun.

This is it. Grunts and moans surrounds the room the moment he started rolling his hips. Kissing you to let you know how he’s getting addicted by how you feel so good around him.  

You let out the word, “big” with airy and breathy tone giving you more hard and slow thrusts so you will never forget this moment. Hitting you deep inside, he double his pace until your boobs bounce and your nipples brush on his chest making you moan louder. You reach for Johnny’s soft lips to shut yourself up and kiss him while taking those thrusts but pulling away eventually to let out a moan.

“Johnny- oh fuck! nipples, so sensitive touch them please” with no questions asked his free hand goes to your left nipple pinching it and gripping your boob just the way you like it. The position of your leg on top of Johnny’s shoulder is making you crazy, it hits perfectly deep on the spot where it feels so good.

You put your point finger inside Johnny’s mouth letting his tongue play with it until your satisfied, looking straight into his eyes as you removed your finger and transfer it in your mouth, “that’s hot” he groaned and bit your left nipple

Locking eyes with you as he put down your leg kissing you hungrily as you swing back your arms around his neck wrapping your leg around his waist. You can feel his hard abs against your stomach as he thrust still with that unbelievable pace, thinking about how hot what it is you’re doing with your boyfriend right now just simply puts you on edge.

“Johnny- huuuhh!” you call him out and part your lips, telling him that you’re about to cum as you shut your eyes and furrow your brows.

“I know baby, I know. Fuck you look so hot right now”

Both on edge and ready to let go, Johnny managed to pull away from you to grip your waist with both hands. Lifting your hips from the mattress unconsciously as he continues to give you quick and hard thrusts. “Fuck dont stop!” gripping the sheets as you let go and clench your pussy for as far as you can hold.

Watching you shiver beneath him and enjoy your high while he’s still catching for his sweet release is like an accomplishment for him. Shooting his cum inside you, Johnny whimpers loudly and moans your name with heavy breaths and sharp gasps.

You clear your throat and reach for him, “Kiss me Johnny.” As you devour each other’s lips again, Johnny’s thrust became slow and relaxed just perfect to remind you that he’s inside you still.

“Johnny, I can’t feel my legs”

That made him finally stop moving but still not pulling out. “Mind if I stay in for a while?”

Arms flying around him again to push him closer to you, loving how Johnny feels inside you. “I don’t mind baby, stay forever”

As always, you two finish the night with a lot of kisses. Soft, gentle, rough hungry kisses all night long until you two get tired and sleep naked, hands intertwined and happy that you two finally made love.    

…………………………………………. Masterlist

I told myself I will stop making Johnny fics and give chance to other members but here I go again. Forgive me, he’s not even my ult :(( haha Anyway, thank you for reading this! This has been the longest thing I’ve ever written and I will never write a love triangle fic ever again. hahahha kidding. I got the inspiration from this photo, hahaa Jaehyun looked so handsome here like ‘boi who u textin huh’

[dulce-pjm]

drunk in love

word count: 3.6k

genre: fluff, angst

summary: it’s that time of the year again. you’re drunk and jungkook is taking you home. but he has bigger concerns than whether or not you’ll puke on his shoes. 

Jungkook is exhausted. 

It may only be ten p.m., but after spending all day in the library working on his paper on the political climate in 18th century Europe, piggybacking you back to your apartment is the last thing he could possibly want to do. His mind and body are screaming for rest. But here he is. Dealing with your drunk ass. 

“Have you ever thought about adopting a monkey?” You yell your question despite being inches from Jungkook’s ear, making him flinch. 

“A monkey? Is that even legal?” he replies incredulously, nearly shouting at you to calm down when you start bouncing excitedly. He doesn’t doubt he’ll have back problems after this. 

“I dunno but they’re just so cute.” Jungkook rolls his eyes. “I saw a video of someone with a pet monkey and I haven’t stopped thinking about it.”

“They might be cute but they stink.” You poke your cheek with your finger and smirk.

“Hmmm, just like you?” Jungkook scoffs incredulously in spite of the smile forming on his face. 

“I’m gracious enough to carry you home and this is how you treat me?” 

“Kidding! I’m kidding, Jungkook.” You press your nose into his shirt and breathe in deeply, making his stomach flutter. “You smell nice. Like Tide detergent.”

Jungkook wonders how he even got himself wrapped up in your mess. Let himself get dragged and strung along beside you. Actually, no. He doesn’t have to wonder. He knows exactly how. 

It was a year ago when Jungkook made the mistake of letting you in. 

The two of you happened to be at the same frat party. Jungkook knew of you, knew that you and his roommate, Taehyung, were close. But he’d never spent much time speaking to you other than directing you to his roommate’s room when you happened to stop by. That is, until he excused himself to go to the bathroom and on the way back out, quite literally ran smack into you. 

“Ow! My god,” you shouted, rubbing your forehead with the heel of your hand. “What are you, made of steel?” Jungkook might have blushed at the comment if he wasn’t so desperate to get out of here. 

“Sorry, I’m so sorry!” he exclaimed. The lighting was just bright enough for him to make out your smudged lipstick and panicked expression. 

“It’s fine, I just need to get in the bathroom.” Jungkook didn’t question it and attempted to sidestep around you, but as he did, you were quickly yanked with him. 

“Ow! Shit!” You hissed, grasping at your head. Upon looking down, Jungkook realized that during your collision, your hair had been caught and tangled into his jacket. The strands had somehow wrapped themselves all around the zipper, not going anywhere soon. 

“Oh, god. I’m really sorry.” His fingers fumbled to remedy the situation but you batted him off, attempting to untangle the pieces of hair. 

“It’s okay, it’s not your-” You froze, peering over his shoulder. His back was now facing the hallways that led to the rest of the party, but before he could turn his head and follow your gaze, he was abruptly pulled back into the bathroom, stumbling as he went.  

“Wha-”

“Quick! Shut the door!” Jungkook found himself complying, though he wasn’t sure why. You reached around him to flick on the lights, and that’s when he fully recognized you. 

“Y/N?” You weren’t fazed in the slightest, only returning to working at the strands still caught in his jacket. 

“Hey... How have you been?” you asked, as if that were a normal thing to do right now. You didn’t even attempt a smile. Your tongue poked out of your mouth as you concentrated, carefully unknotting your hair. 

“I- What? I’m okay. Are you okay? What was all that about?” You sighed, almost as if you’d just expected him to silently go along with your antics and then go on his merry way. 

“Ahh, sorry. I was running from an ex and saw him heading this way. And I’m kind of attached to you at the moment, so...” Jungkook nodded in understanding. He’d definitely had some poor encounters with his exes before, so he had sympathy for your situation, though he wasn’t particularly happy to be trapped in the bathroom with you for the time being. 

“It’s okay, I get it. I hope things didn’t end too badly...” You shrugged, still focused on the task in front of you. 

“He was getting too clingy, so I ended it before things got out of hand. But I guess he still has feelings for me, because he’s been telling me he still loves me for the past hour. It’s exactly like one of his drunk voicemails but I can’t just ignore and delete it this time.” Jungkook’s jaw dropped. He wasn’t sure what exactly he expected you to say, but it was not that. Jungkook found himself thinking you were... cool? Maybe a bit heartless too, but he didn’t know the relationship, so he wouldn’t judge. 

“Oh. Damn.” You laughed. 

“Damn is right.” You pulled the last of your hair from Jungkook’s zipper, leaving him impressed you’d managed to get it all without having to cut any off. “Well, thanks for letting me hide. I’ll be on my way now!” You brushed past him, back into the fray. Jungkook followed you out, but, for the second time tonight, quickly found himself being shoved back into the bathroom. 

“Woah!” You slammed the door shut behind you, flicking on the lights again. “What are you doing? Y/N?”

“I need a favor,” you hissed. “He’s down the hall waiting for me.”

“Y/N?! Please, just talk to me! I miss you, okay! Is that what you want to hear?” A muffled voice called from behind the door, words slurred from inebriation. You sighed, pinching the bridge of your nose. 

“I’m not nearly drunk enough for this. You know, I was just about to do the keg chug before now!” Jungkook felt like he was buffering, unable to think properly and at your mercy. It was all moving so fast. 

“I love you!” The mystery ex started pounding on the door, but all you could manage to do was roll your eyes. Jungkook looked back and forth between you and the door, still unable to keep up with the situation. He felt more like a bystander, an extra in the movie that was your life. 

“Okay, I have a plan. Follow my lead.” Before Jungkook could question further, you threw open the door, nearly causing the man on the other side to fall forward into the bathroom. 

“Y/N!” The man immediately started smiling, that is until his eyes slid to Jungkook’s. He was clearly drunk out of his mind, his brown hair tousled and eyes glassy. He flashed Jungkook a confused and worried look.

“Jackson, you have to stop,” you began, putting two hands in front of you. “You’re drunk and I’m dating Jungkook now.” You threw an arm around his midsection and pulled him into you. “And if you don’t quit, I’ll have him beat your ass.”

Jackson looked appalled, glancing back and forth between the two of you in drunken confusion. 

“Wh- what?” Feeling like he had no other choice, Jungkook spoke up.

“Uh... yeah. Back off.” You nodded vigorously in approval. 

“Please?” Jungkook added. 

Jackson looked at you. He looked at Jungkook. And then he started crying.

“I- I just care about you so much, Y/N.” Big, fat baby tears slid down his cheeks as swiped away at the snot dripping from his nose. Jungkook was panicking, but you merely groaned. 

“I know, I know. But Jackson-” You took him by the shoulders. “You can do so. much. better. You’re hot. You’re smart. And there’s a whole bunch of girls out there who’d love to chat you up. You gotta move on. I know you can.” 

“I can’t!” he wailed, sobbing into his hoodie sleeve. 

“You can. I promise it’ll be okay. And you’ll feel a lot better in the morning.” You spoke to him like a preacher giving their sermon, your eyes alight and confident. 

“Really?” Jackson was captivated by your words (actually, more like captivated by you) and relishing in your touch. 

“Really. Why don’t you go talk to Irene for a while? She’s nice. She’ll make you feel better than I will.” Jackson nodded, wiping away at the last of his tears and straightening his posture. 

“Okay. I will.”

“Then go!” You spun him around and gave him a gentle push before he stumbled back into the main area of the party. 

“Well, that’s over.” Jungkook started, having forgotten he wasn’t a fly on the wall simply observing the whole ordeal. 

“I- You-” Jungkook’s eyes were wide, like a deer caught in the headlights. “That was terrifying. And kind of amazing.” You shrugged. 

“Not particularly.” Jungkook is both appalled and astounded at the same time. Not one part of him understands how you managed to both berate your ex into tears and then life coach him into moving on. All while, at minimum, tipsy. 

The two of you made your way back to the party, Jungkook in shock while you were unfazed. 

“You know, Jungkook-” His head whipped to yours, afraid he was about to be scolded for his poor acting skills. “You’re pretty cool. Let’s be friends.” You stuck out your hand.

Jungkook wondered if this was all a fever dream. That he’d wake up tomorrow and realize none of it ever happened. 

“I- okay?” Jungkook reluctantly took your hand and shook it. He couldn’t help but feel like he was making a deal with the devil. 

And that’s how it all began. 

Day after day for the past year, Jungkook found himself dragged into your life, stuck in your orbit.

The two of you shared a required biology class, and suddenly you were partners. And then you were studying together and getting to know each other. 

You ran into each other at your mutual favorite coffee shop, so then it became tradition to text each other before heading that direction. You often spent hours studying together in the small cafe, since it was almost always empty except for you two and another student who also frequented the place. 

You realized how close your apartments were and now you and Jungkook walked to classes together. 

It took no time at all for Jungkook to quickly find himself assuming the role of your best friend, which meant being there for you throughout your shenanigans and helping clean up the disasters you created. 

But it’s not like he particularly minded. 

While his first encounter made him entirely afraid of you, Jungkook quickly learned that you were no one to fear, just noncommittal. All bark but no bite. And you made good company. The two of you shared music tastes and often nerded out over comics and dramas together. He spent more Friday nights than he could count holed up in your apartment, binging horror movies with you and yelling at the characters for being idiots. 

And Jungkook knew you took care of him. You often thought he was too uptight, too stressed about everything. So when you sensed he was getting too worked up, you were the one who dragged him out of his bedroom and back to reality. Before you, Jungkook solved most of his problems by simply getting hammered and then creating a whole other slew of problems for himself while intoxicated. That’s not to say that your therapy sessions didn’t also often involve alcohol, but you were always able to give the constructive and honest advice Jungkook needed before the two of you got drunk out of your minds. 

Jungkook took care of you, too. Your trust in him was absolute and unwavering. Though sometimes Jungkook found himself slightly regretting allowing you to build that trust. 

Like now. 

“You’re so cute, Jungkook, you know that?” Jungkook’s fingers clench (which makes you cry out in pain as his hands were also supporting your thighs), but he doesn’t respond. You were poking at his cheeks now and giggling absurdly, your hair blowing in the chilly November breeze. It was nice, content, peaceful. He should have been enjoying himself, aside from the fact that he was lugging your weight around

There was just one problem. 

Jungkook was in love with you. And he couldn’t stop thinking about it.

He had been for some time now, though it wasn’t until recently that he realized the true extent of his feelings for you. 

The two of you had been watching some cheesy rom-com when he caught sight of your face in the dim glow of the television. 

“People who love each other don’t miss each other like this!” the male lead cried, confronting the female lead in the rain.  “Every time I get a phone call and it’s not from you, I’m disappointed. When someone walks through the door, it’s always you I hope I see. It’s always been you.”

And with your head in his lap, half-asleep while his fingers ran through your hair, Jungkook started thinking. Which, according to you, was never a good thing. 

Those lines had struck a chord with Jungkook, though he wasn’t sure why. He wasn’t sure why until he realized that he missed you the exact same way. You were always the person on his mind. He quite often found himself wondering where you were, if you’d gotten yourself into trouble, if you wanted to get coffee...

And as the male lead finally professed his love and reunited with his ex-fiancée, Jungkook realized he was in love with you. Completely and unequivocally. 

“Pfft,” you scoffed, laughed even. It was a harsh, abrasive sound that tore through Jungkook’s thoughts. “That was stupid.” Jungkook’s heart was beating in his throat.

“Hahaha... Yeah, for real.”

“Wanna watch something else?”

“Uh, sure.”

Jungkook knew he was fucked. 

And now, with you nuzzling into his shoulder and showering him with compliments, Jungkook felt just as hopeless and panicked as he did that night. You’d wormed your way into his life over the past year and now there was no backing out.

“I just wanna wrap you in a hug and never let you go,” you murmur, playing with his hair. “You’re like a teddy bear.”

“And you’re drunk.” It’s all he can manage to say. 

The wind blows, the moon shines. It’s a beautiful night. Jungkook wishes he had the courage to tell you that you were beautiful. 

But Jungkook’s a coward. After all, he’d seen the way you’d tossed Jackson aside, tossed several other men aside when things got too serious. You didn’t do serious relationships. You didn’t do serious at all. So you certainly didn’t do love. 

If Jungkook wanted to keep you around, which he desperately did, he could never. ever. admit how he felt. 

“Jungkook.” You tap on his shoulder as if he weren’t the only person around. “Jungkook.”

“Yes, Y/N?” You sigh, pressing your forehead onto his back, fingers still carding through his hair. 

“I’m so sad.”

“Yeah,” he replies. “I could tell earlier.” He knows you well enough to be able to have seen the hurt in your expression when you showed up at his and Taehyung’s place a few hours earlier, pregamed and ready to go. 

“You could?!” you shout. Jungkook flinches. “Why didn’t you say something?”

“Because you wouldn’t have told me!” he replies defensively. “You would have scolded me for asking. And you don’t like to talk about it when you’re sad, so I let it go. I mean, you definitely don’t talk to me about it when you’re sad.” You huff, beginning to fiddle with the neckline of his shirt, making Jungkook gulp. 

“I’m sorry,” you whisper, your voice wavering. Jungkook glances back to see a single tear rolling down your cheek, making him begin to panic. Now there was two things Jungkook had never seen you do. You didn’t apologize, never took responsibility for your actions. And he’d never seen you cry. While alcohol made some people an emotional mess, it only ever made you excited and clingy and talkative. Not emotional.

“What? It’s okay! I didn’t mean it like that.”

“No!” you cry as more and more tears begin spilling from your eyes.  “That’s not why I’m sad!”

“Then why are you sad?” Jungkook doesn’t know what to do, this has never happened before. He's glad no one else is around, because this situation would not look great for him and you’d lose your shit knowing multiple people saw you cry, not just Jungkook.

“Because-” You sniffle, trying to calm yourself down. “Because I like this guy. So. Much.” Jungkook’s eyes widen. He didn’t know that. His stomach begins sinking. You didn’t ‘like’ people or cry over them. They did that for you. 

“Oh.”

“And he’ll never ever like me back, I know it for sure.” You sob softly into his shirt, reminiscent of that night he met you a year ago. Despite the anxious feeling in his chest, Jungkook’s heart breaks for you. You don’t deserve this. “I’m too mean.”

“You’re not mean.”

“I am, Jungkook! I’m mean and selfish and he doesn’t want me.” You hiccup.

“It’ll be okay,” he says, soothingly. 

“Will it, Jungkook?” You ask him like it’s a prayer, like you’re pleading with a higher power for help.

“It will. You can do better.” He reuses the words you’d used on your previous exes, but instead of cheering you up, they only make you sob harder. 

“But I can’t. He’s so perfect and sweet and-” The words choke in your throat and you continue crying and sniffling, unable to elaborate further, which Jungkook is grateful for. He doesn’t know if he can take you going on and on about your dream guy. The guy that isn’t him. Jungkook observes that despite your increasing emotion, you still manage to be contained when you cry. Restraining yourself in even your most vulnerable moments. Jungkook sighs.

“I understand.” The words slip out before he thinks better of it.

“You do?” It’s too late now, he supposes. Your choked sobs stop for a moment as your attention shifts to him, so Jungkook continues before you can be consumed by your own sorrow again. 

“I- yeah. There’s this girl I’ve liked for a while now. I think I might love her, actually. But she’ll never think of me the same way.” Jungkook doesn’t notice the way you bite your lip, forcing yourself not to cry more. Or the way you smother another sob with your hand. Even in your drunken state, protecting him is your top priority. 

“I’m sorry, Jungkook.” Your breaths are starting to even out, your sniffles being exchanged for shallow hiccups. 

“It’s okay. Because you know, at the end of the day we still have each other,” he glances back at you, who is completely enamored by his words. “Right?” A small smile itches its way into your feature. 

“Right.” You wrap your arms around his figure, taking comfort in his strong arms and kind words. And then you giggle. “You’re never getting rid of me, you know that?” Jungkook laughs, the sound tinkling and echoing in the night. 

“Oh, I know it.” You giggle more with him, returning to combing your fingers through his soft black hair. 

“I love you, Jungkook.” 

There’s a prolonged pang in Jungkook’s heart, a pain that makes him want to burst into tears just like you were a moment ago. It’s because he knows that when you say ‘I love you,’ you’ll never mean it the way he wants you to. 

The rest of the walk to your apartment goes over smoothly. You continue rambling on about whatever pops into your head next, from pumpkin pie to those gross subway bathrooms to how cute you think Jungkook is. 

Jungkook nods along, entertaining your antics. But inside, he feels like absolute shit. 

As he tucks you in, he wishes you were sober and asking him to stay. As he turns off the lights, he wishes the two of you were exchanging kisses. As he walks out the door, he wishes he didn’t feel like this. Helpless. Miserable. Tired. 

“Wait, Jungkook!” He spins around, surprised you’d been able to clamber out of bed and into the apartment complex hallway without falling on your face. But he doesn’t have too much time to think about it before you grab his cheeks and press your lips onto his. 

Jungkook is frozen, eyes wide while your eyes are half-lidded, lips itching to stretch into a grin. The kiss is slobbery and sloppy, drunken and clumsy. Jungkook’s hands find purchase on your waist before enough seconds have passed for him to think and he immediately pulls away.

“Y/N?!” You smile, your thumbs rubbing circles into his cheeks. 

“Thank you,” you whisper before giggling. “I love you so much.” You step back into the apartment before Jungkook can react and close the door. He can hear your laugh chiming as you stumble away to your room, letting out a whoop of joy before going completely silent. 

It isn’t until Jungkook’s cheeks start aching that he realizes he’s smiling like an idiot. 

He walks back to his apartment in a daze. He wonders if you’ll remember this in the morning. 

The last thought that passes through his mind before his head hits the pillow is that maybe he’s not so fucked after all.

[gojoscloset]

Blame.

GETO SUGURU X READER ANGST/FLUFF

Warnings: Bad words

Shitty writing /unedited

Pt. 3 / 4

(Please read A/N at the end, I’m sorry )^: )

❣️❌❣️❌❣️❌❣️❌❣️❌❣️❌❣️❌❣️❌❣️

Geto’s senses were overstimulated at the sight of you.

He was overwhelmed with what felt like a rush of warm colors; it was enough to form Goosebumps on his skin.

The sound of your voice made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up straight.

Your voice was music to his ears, like each word that slipped from your mouth was honeyed and he desperately needed a taste.

Geto immediately recalled the nights he watched the videos he had saved, ones that had your voice in them and how would replay them over and over again until it almost became an obsession. But those nights were nothing compared to how your voice made him feel now.

He could smell your perfume. The perfume.

One he had gifted you many moons ago, one that drove him wild, and he insisted you wear for him whenever the two of you went out on dates, And you did, because you weren’t one to deny him of anything he asked for.

Knowing that you took the time to put it on gave Geto Hope. Hope that maybe just maybe he still crossed your mind like you crossed his.

But it was when his eyes met yours that did it for him. The pseudo smile he carried wavered instantaneously. He repeated your name with trembling lips and averted his gaze, but quickly brought it back to meet yours. He had been deprived of your entire being and didn’t want to deny himself of what he'd been craving for weeks, yet his demons yelled in his ear to look away. He felt undeserving being in your presence.

It was evident you utilized your time away from him properly, it showed in the way you carried yourself. Fear struck his heart with realization that all he did while you were away was sulk while you worked on yourself.

He began to have doubts about whether or not you would come back to him if he hadn’t worked on himself as much as he should.

“Suguru…” you whispered and reached over to gently take his hand in yours, he immediately laced your fingers with his.

The kind gesture that was meant to soothe the pain only made him cry more. “I think I’m ready to talk…” you whispered softly, looking at his torn expression tugged on your heart strings. “Let’s go to the apartment, yeah?” You suggested since it seemed he wasn’t going to stop crying anytime soon.

—

The walk to the apartment was silent,with the exception of occasional sniffles and the sounds of you taking sips of your coffee. The silence was not uncomfortable, but it was unfamiliar.

Under better circumstances he would talk and tease you, but for now you two walked next to each other, like friends. There was a gap between the two of you, but it wasn’t vast, to you, But for Suguru it felt like it was a mile wide.

It wasn’t until you entered the apartment that the uneasiness hit you. Everything was eerily untouched, exactly how you left it, almost to the T.

The sweater you wore that same day still on the couch sprawled over the armrest. Your house slippers in the same position, you tried sneaking a glance into the room you two once shared, but the door was closed.

Your mind couldn’t help but wonder if the drawers were left open and if things were still scattered across the floor.

“Sorry..about the mess.” He spoke quietly and took a seat at the dining room table, you sat across from him, giving him a smile.

“Don’t worry about it.” Again there was a silence between the two of you, not uncomfortable, but unfamiliar.

“Do you need a moment, Suguru?”

“No.” His voice cracked.

“Okay...Uh… hmmm...Where do I begin?” You looked around the room while you organized your thoughts.

“I do have a lot to say, I hope I was not interrupting anything….”

He quickly shook his head giving you the floor.

“Then Please allow me to tell you how I feel… about everything” you cleared your throat and he nodded, listening closely, tears having stopped but heart was understandably extremely sensitive.

“Being away from you made me realize a lot Of things, A lot of things, Suguru. First and foremost being how much I love you. But I also realized I love myself more, which is why-“

“Please don’t leave me…” he interrupted softly before you could continue. “I know I have been selfish and it is becoming a commodity in the relationship and I don’t mean to interrupt you and don’t expect for you to change your mind, but in case you do leave me I just want to tell you how much you mean to me and how much I need you.”

You swallowed the lump forming in your throat, the ‘tough cookie’ exterior you put on when you approached him quickly crumbling the more he spoke.

You weren’t going to leave him, that was the last thing on your mind,you wanted to give him a piece of your mind before continuing to live the life you two created together.

“Being encased in a home we built together is karma I put on myself. I miss you. I miss everything about you. Everything” he emphasized with hand gestures.

“Your smile. The way you smell. The way you call my name. The cadence in your voice, your walk, your talk, sometimes I would go out and someone laughed like you and I-...I ...“ he choked out a sob and buried his face in his hands.

“I’m not leaving you Suguru…” The two of you locked eyes with each other, there was hope in his eyes.

“I just wanted to tell you how much that shit sucks. Being accused of infidelity when I gave you as much of me and my love as I possibly could, but even so…” you wiped the tears from your eyes, Geto was hit with deja vu, recalling the scene the day you left and how he wished he could wipe the tears for you.

He was being given another chance at redemption and he gladly took it.

He stood up from his seat, making his way to you, he knelt down beside you and wiped the tears away, as he should have the first time.

“I’m so sorry… I love you more than I could ever put into words y/n. What I said was out of insecurity. This doesn’t justify my actions or what I said, but my words came from a place of insecurity and fear. I was afraid you would go to Gojo because he literally has everything you could ever want…”

“You ARE everything I want so stop saying that!” you quickly interjected before he spiraled into a self deprecating headspace.

His hands laced with yours and he dropped his head. You could almost physically feel the doubts that had been eating at him disappear with those 9 words.

“I love you..so so much…” he sobbed quietly whilst lacing your fingers together. He brought your knuckles to his lips placing multiple kisses on them.

“And I love you so so much” you whispered, cupping his face in your free hand, wiping away his tears.

The rest of the night consisted of non stop chattering and laughter. Tears were shed and stories exchanged about how the two of you felt away from each other.

Boundaries were reset and apologies were made, a new chapter in your relationship was written that night, and as long as the pages are written with love, the story will go on forever and ever.

—-

🤠 howdy! It’s me again! Ahh I apologize for this chapter, I was in the middle of writing it when the snowstorm hit (I live in shithead Texas) and pretty much my whole life went to shit momentarily.

But thankfully things finally went back to normal ..kinda (after 2+ fucking weeks of no water) the damages are fixed and stuff but guess who is now $2k+ in debt

That’s right! Yours truly!

LMAOO hate it here

Y’all don’t invest in a home in America unless the area is good. And please check the foundation because wow. I hate it here sometimes.

Anyway, again I do apologize for such a shitty written chapter, but expect a part 4 (the final chapter) and also hopefully with a lot better writing. Like I’m literally so so so sorry I feel like it’s so anticlimactic but I got y’all, don’t worry. Ahhh again sorry if it’s anti climatic as fuck

I wanted to put something out for y’all so bad )^:

Anywho

Please anticipate my next works and also a master list and finalizing my blog theme

Finally lololol.

Thank you

I love you

Neptilian ✨

[imabeautifulbutterfly]

The Reunion - Part 11

Summary: Heading back to Ord Mantell after being rescued, Hunter takes a moment to think about their first mission

A/N: Hello Lovelies,

Hi guys alright, so I still haven’t decided if you are getting one or two more chapters, it will depend on the season finale this Friday.  As some of you are aware, and you have already put your votes in, you guys have a say in what happens in the Season Finale for The Reunion.  The Reunion will probably be  back around the same time as Sins of the Father, December 1, 2021 but I might wait till the show is back on, and time it along the same way, or I might give you guys a whole bunch of back stories before the show.  Not sure which.  So this is the part of the announcement that is really exciting:

You guys have a chance to save Phoenix Ghost, if you want her to come back.  If you would like to see Phoenix Ghost back, send me a message, comment, or reblog with the #SAVEPHOENIXGHOST.  Only thing that can save her is your voice.  The choice is yours, save Phoenix Ghost, give Echo his love back, or watch as Echo tries to move on.  Ohhhhh!!! I’m so excited.

Warnings: Angst, there’s an attempt to embarrass someone into kissing someone else (not sure what that would be), unwanted flirting, yelling, misdirected anger, mentions of blood, mentions of medical procedures, canon typical violence, I think that’s it.  If I miss a warning, just let me know. 

Thank you all for showing this story, so much love, if you would like to be tagged on this or any future story, please let me know.  Especially if you don’t want to miss the Season Premiere.  

Feel free to drop some love, a comment and/or a reblog.

AO3 Link |   Words: 11,573   |   Previous -> Masterlist -> Next

HUNTER POV

I kept looking back to the med bay, I don’t know what I was expecting, it’s not like Phoenix would just walk over and pretend it was all a joke, no matter how much I wished I was wrong, that Phoenix wasn’t lying there, cold and dead, it was true.  I also didn’t want to have Crosshair wake up and have to explain what happened.  How did we get here?  It feels like just yesterday, we went on our first mission, and I met Myri…

Receiving our orders for our first mission was nerve wracking enough, we were informed on more than one occasion, how we performed on this mission would determine if we had a place in the GAR or if we would be sent for decommissioning.  Watching my brothers worry about the possibility this could be our first and final mission was making my stomach queasy.

“Maybe you should go to the med centre” Tech advised

“I’m not going to see any medic.  I just need some fresh air.”  Crosshair and Wrecker watched as I stood on shaky legs, having heightened senses and being surrounded by their nervousness wasn’t helping.  Crosshair stood beside and put my arm around his shoulder.

“Cross, what are you …”

“Taking you to the med centre”

“I told you …”

“Shut up, Hunter.  Want the Kaminoans finding out you can barely handle the nerves.  Come on.”  We walked slowly towards the centre, as soon as I walked in, the smell of disinfectant hit my nose hard, the queasy feeling only grew stronger.

“Hi there” a short female medic came up to us, “I’m Medic Kambe, how can I help?”

“He’s feeling nauseous” Cross answered for me

“Okay, no problem, put him on the bed” she went to grab a basin and handed it to me, “just in case you vomit.” She offered a small smile, but it didn’t assuage my mistrust.   She walked away for a while.

“Hmmm” was all Cross said

“Hmmm?”

“Didn’t know there were female medics here”

“Does it matter?”

“No, just hmm”

“Hmmm”

The conversation didn’t continue for too long before she came back around, with several supplies.

“Okay, first things first, did you ingest anything you shouldn’t have?”

“What kind of question is that?” Crosshair sneered

“You’d be surprised how bored some of the Regs get, they tend to bet each other to do dumb things.”

“We’re not Regs” Crosshair responded, his teeth gritted.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean any offence.  Just needed to know.”

“No” I offered

“When did the nausea start?”

“You know we can just go” I suggested sitting up again, only to feel more woozy, the medic pushed me back into the bed, her hand felt like it weighed a ton.

“Yeah, you’re not going anywhere, just lie back down” she let out a light giggle at my weakness, as she went to grab a pack of clear liquid from what I could see.

“Roll up his sleeve for me” she motioned to Crosshair, as she prepared a needle.

“Why?”

“Don’t be difficult, just do it”

“Not until you tell me why”

The medic let out a long sigh, “This” she motioned to the bag, “is anti-nausea meds, I need to inject it into his veins, the faster I do, the better, he’ll feel.”

“Hurt him, I hurt you.  Deal?”

“Deal, now will you roll up his sleeve” I watched as she didn’t even flinch at the death threat from Crosshair, maybe it was the pain, but I noticed her features were quite beautiful.  She had soft eyes, a striking nose, and her mouth drew me in.  I closed my eyes, it must be the nausea, that’s what’s making me act weird.

It wasn’t long before I started to feel better, “If I’m not mistaken” she began, “Hunter, right?” I turned to look at her, realizing my eyes were still closed, I opened them slightly to see she was focused on Crosshair, “He has heightened senses, correct?”

“Yeah, what of it”

“Okay snippy, relax, I just need to understand what caused the nausea”

“Why, so you can tell those long necks?” Crosshair was getting angry, but it was because he was scared. I shifted my hand subtly to tap his, reminding him to calm down.

“No, so I can provide him with the best course of treatment.  This isn’t going to be a one-time thing.  If he has heightened senses, he’s going to need to know how to deal with situations like these”

“Oh”

“You always this protective of him?”

“Of my brothers, yes”

“I get it, I’m protective of my sibling too.  Which is why I’m here”

I watched as Crosshair looked from the medic to me, “How long will he be like this?”

“About half an hour, then I’ll try and see what sort of meds I can give him on a more permanent basis just in case this happens again, that way he doesn’t have to come here, and you won’t end up killing some other medic.”

“You’re still breathing”

“A comforting thought” I watched how she smirked at Crosshair, it irked me a little, seeing how comfortable she was around him, even though Crosshair practically threatened her life.  Not sure exactly what happened afterwards, as my surroundings slowly turned dark.

I slowly opened my eyes to see I was back in my bunk, the guys were reviewing one of our many plans.

“I believe Plan 23b is the best solution for the scenario we will probably encounter” I heard Tech propose.

“What are you guys talking about?” I offered as I slowly rose from my bunk

“How are you feelin’?” Asked Wrecker

“Better”

“The medic gave me some meds to give you, in case it happens again” Crosshair said motioning to the meds on the table.

“According to Crosshair, she’s really pretty” Wrecker said

“Wouldn’t know, don’t care.  She’s a medic”

“Not all medics are the same” Tech offered

“Maybe not, but all the ones I’ve met are, frankly I don’t want to talk about this anymore.  Are we ready?”

“Wrecker went to the armoury and got everything we needed.  I’ve looked over the schematics of the base we are to infiltrate, the information seems to be housed in this area” Tech motioned to a room in the back of the building.

“How many droids?”

They all looked at one another, “What?” I asked

“The information appears to be missing” Tech informed

“What do you mean missing?”

“It appears to have been removed from our information packet”

“Lama Su”

“That seems to be the implication from what I could find”

“They want us to fail” Wrecker said

“We won’t give them the satisfaction, we will take this one step at a time”

“Which is why I said Plan 23b seems to be the best in this scenario” Tech reaffirmed

“Very well” I looked over at Crosshair, he was quieter than usual, “Cross, what are you thinking?”

“One of us may not make it back”

I looked at them all, I could see their concern, “No, either we all come back or none of us do, we don’t leave one another behind.  Agreed”

“Agreed”

“Ya”

“Affirmative”

“Alright, I suggest we all get a good night's rest, we have to leave at 0500 tomorrow.  Tech what ship did they give us?”

Tech looked at me before rolling his eyes “an omicron attack shuttle, we will need to modify it for it to be truly worthwhile.”

“What will need to be modified?”

“Shielding, guns, hyperdrive, bunks, everything”

“Do we have the time now?”

“I’ve modified what I could so far, but we’ll have to do more when we come back”

“It will do for now, make a list of what needs to be modified, what equipment and materials you’ll need, I’ll speak with Nala Se when we finish the mission”

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The hangar was busy, several troopers were heading out to resupply the GAR with fresh troops.  We headed to the shuttle, it wasn’t the worst shuttle, but clearly it wasn’t something they truly cared about if it came back.  My blood boiled, they wanted us to fail, they wanted to prove that we were worthless, not worthy of newer equipment.  I heard several troopers off the side laughing at our ship, they wanted to make fun of us, that was one thing, to make fun of our ship, even if it was a piece of junk, it was ours.  I was about to turn towards them when Crosshair placed his hand on my shoulder, he just gave me a simple shake of his head.  I nodded and we walked on to the shuttle.

“Wait!” I heard someone shouting, I ignored it, clearly it wasn’t for us.

“Hunter! Crosshair! Wait”

Cross and I both stopped on the ramp, we turned to look at the person shouting, it was the medic, great!  She stopped at the ramp, panting like she just ran a 15k, neither Cross nor I said anything, we just stared at her, she took a deep breath, and gave us a warm smile.  That smile made my stomach flutter, ugh! She was so irritating.

“You guys can’t leave without me”

“Watch us” I said

“Well, too bad, Nala Se assigned me to your crew, I’m your medic” her smile never wavered.  I sensed Wrecker and Tech walk towards us, they stood at the entrance of our shuttle watching the medic.

“We were not informed of this” Tech answered

“She just told me about an hour ago” the medic offered

“We don’t need a medic” Cross responded

“Well you’re getting one”

“Listen, medic” my tone was laced with annoyance and irritation, we didn’t need a medic and certainly not her, “we don’t need you.  We can’t do our jobs and watch out for you.”

“First, I’m not incompetent” she responded

“Hmm” Cross said

“Second, I won’t get in the way”

“Debatable” Tech offered

“Thirdly, this is an order from Nala Se, so would you like me to contact her and tell her, you are refusing her orders?”

We all looked at each other, we had no choice.

“Fine, you can come” I stepped closer to her, “get in our way, delay us, or get my brothers injured because they were trying to protect you, and I’ll kill you myself” I glared into her eyes, lacing my words with as much dislike and detest as possible.

“I thought he was supposed to be the super mean one” Kambe pointed towards Crosshair

“What can I say, medic, either put up or shut up.  Makes no difference to me.” I responded.  Everyone watched as I walked away from her, I don’t care how nice she pretended to be, I knew the truth, all medics were cold, calculating, and were only interested in results, nothing more.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

I watched as the medic sat in the common room, she hadn’t moved from there since we boarded the shuttle, aside from going to sleep or using the fresher, she just sat, with her head buried, reading her data pad.

“I think you were too hard on her,” Wrecker said, in his not so quiet tone.

“She hasn’t said anything since she came on board” Tech added

“Not my problem”

“Actually” Tech began raising his finger, “as the Sergeant of our crew it is your problem, you are the one to make sure we all feel part of the team”

“Why did Nala Se have to send a medic?”

“Maybe to make sure we don’t fail” Tech answered, “I have observed that Lama Su and Nala Se tend to have differing points of view when it comes to our usefulness.”

I looked over my shoulder to see her head still buried in her data pad, she appeared not to be paying attention to our conversation.

“You could introduce her” Cross suggested

“Fine” I grumbled as I got up and walked over to her. I stood in front of her and waited, she was so engrossed in whatever she was reading she hadn’t noticed my approach.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

HUNTER AND KAMBE POV

“I hope you're more aware of your surroundings when you are in the field” the Sergeant’s voice pulled me out of my reading, I flinched at the reprimand, he was right I was completely unaware.  Damn it! I hadn’t been able to do anything except irritate the Sergeant since I stepped into the hangar.  

“Yes, yes I am” I offered as I looked up to him, when he came into the med centre, a week ago, I couldn’t help but notice how handsome he was, the tattoo on his face was clearly a way to prove he was tougher and to intimidate others, not to mention his dark and broody personality just aimed at keeping people in check, which I had to say was working.

“Did it hurt?” I asked, he seemed taken aback by my question.

“Did what hurt?”

I motioned to the tattoo, “It covers a significant amount of nerve endings on your face, especially under the eyelid, and cheek, I would have imagined that hurt.”

“Why do you care?”

“Just making conversation, Sergeant, I imagine that’s why you walked over here”

“I came over to tell you, you need to introduce yourself to the crew” I motioned for her to walk over to the cockpit, I wish she would stop being so false, she should just be like every other medic I met and stop reaching out.

“Alright guys this is our medic” I called the attention of the guys, I motioned for her to continue, as I leaned against the wall.

“Oh, uh, hi” I gave a weak wave, “nice to meet you guys, I’m Myri … Myri Kambe, everyone just calls me Kambe, ummm…” I looked around the cockpit, “you guys have a nice ship” I heard the Sergeant scoff, okay, clearly the wrong thing to say, as everyone just looked at me and didn’t say anything.  “So … um … oh, how many missions have you done so far?” They all looked to one another, still not answering, okay, clearly another wrong thing to say.   “Well, … how about … names … there we go, uh, what are your names?”

“Crosshair you’ve already met” I began, as I motioned to Cross, “big guy there is Wrecker” Wrecker offered a tiny wave, “that’s Tech” I pointed, “and as you know, I’m Sergeant Hunter,” my tone was exasperated, her voice was practically grating across my flesh.  

“Crosshair, nice to see you again and officially meet you, and Tech, and Wrecker” she smiled as she repeated the names, “it’s nice to meet you guys”

“How many combat missions have you been on?” Tech asked

“Oh … um … hold on let me think,” I mean I have been on combat missions, after all that’s what a combat medic did, but did I want to admit both were relief missions, and the third one was over with minimal casualties in a matter of two hours, “three, I’m often shifting back and forth between crews and the med centre on Kamino.”

“Why?” Crosshair asked

“I excel at research, so when they need an extra hand, they ask me to join them on Kamino, currently I have a few research projects going.”

“You like research?” Tech asked

“I do, I often enjoy testing out my theories and experimenting” I noticed how Tech’s smile grew at the medic’s statement, somehow that irked me even more.

“What do you experiment mostly?” Tech asked

“New drugs, faster healing patches, things that you guys can use in the field.”

“Is that what you were doing?” Wrecker asked while motioning to the common room behind me.

“In a way, I needed to research all of your prior medical histories so I know what to expect when I’m out there with you guys, just in case.”

“Seems reasonable” Wrecker suggested

A beeping came from the console in front of Tech, “we are arriving at our destination, we’ll be dropping out of hyperspace, in five”

I took my seat, I watched as the medic looked around the room not sure what to do, just as I saw Tech reach for the autopilot switch, the hyperspace lane shut, we all lurched forward, the medic lost her balance, I grabbed her and pulled her into my arms.  The weight of her in my arms felt right, her scent filled my nose, I watched as the pulse point on her neck started pumping harder.   Makers, she was so irritating, everything just … I was going to make sure this was her first and last mission with us, we didn’t need a medic.  

I’m not even sure what happened, all the sudden I felt strong arms around me, pulling me into a strong chest, I looked down to see two strong plastoid covered arms wrapped around my stomach, I peered over my shoulder to the Sergeant, he looked amazing from this angle, and he smelled even better.  I tried to swallow, but my mouth was dry, words escaping my brain at the sheer closeness to him, “Uh… thanks” I offered, my face felt like it was on fire, being this close.

“Next time, take your seat” he ordered gruffly.  I simply nodded.  Great another strike, I don’t even understand why he hated me so much, it was as though he purposefully was aiming to make me miserable.  

Once Tech had the ship under control, I shifted her off of me, “Take your seat” I ordered again, she didn’t bother to look at me, she simply nodded and headed off.  I looked over at Crosshair, he had a smirk on his lips.

“What?”

“Nothin’” he raised his hands, but the smirk didn’t go anywhere, it remained plastered on his face, which only infuriated me more.  

I headed back to my seat, I was so stupid, I should have taken the clue when the Sergeant took his seat, and everyone buckled back in.  What was I doing?  I shouldn’t be here.  My combat medic experience was a joke, it didn't matter that I had high marks on blaster use and slight hand-to-hand knowledge.   I sat down at the table again, picking up my data pad off the floor. It must have fallen when we dropped out of hyperspace.

“You know how to use that thing?” I heard from behind me

“The data pad?” I asked Crosshair

“The blaster, Kambe”

I couldn’t help but smile, it was the first time any of them actually used my name, “Well enough.”

“We shall see” was all he said as he grabbed his rifle and sat beside me, cleaning it.  We sat there in comfortable silence, for a few minutes before we landed.

“Alright” I started as Wrecker, Tech and I headed out of the cockpit towards the medic and Cross.  “Medic and Tech, you guys go together, Wrecker you’re with me, and Crosshair you got the high ground.”  I watched as they all filed out once the ramp was lowered, “Medic one moment” I motioned for the rest of the guys to wait outside.

“Yes, Sergeant”

“You stick with Tech out there, I don’t care what sort of experience you have.  I don’t like you, I don’t want you here, but I’m responsible for you. Which means if anything happens to you, I’m the one who has to answer to the bigger ups.  Do you understand?”

“Loud and clear, Sergeant, but I think you’ll warm up to me”

“Stop it!” She looked surprised at my outburst, “I don’t know what your game is, but I’ve met enough medics to know, they don’t give a womp rat’s ass about us, especially us,” I motioned to my brothers outside, “so whatever you are trying, whatever your agenda is, just stop it!”

That’s it, I had enough, it had been days and days of the silent treatment not just from him, but from all of them.  We were in hyperspace for nearly five days before he even made his way over to me, telling me I should introduce myself.  None of them even acknowledged me, after I stepped on to the shuttle.  Barely, even remembered to leave enough caf for me to have when I woke up, or even helping me to reach a ration bar that they put on the highest shelf, and I had suffered all of that silently.  However, being blamed for someone else’s mistakes, that was the final straw.  

“Fine, but listen here HUNTER, the only agenda I have is keeping you and your brothers safe.  Whatever, any other medic did that’s on them.  I apologize if you’ve dealt with less than perfect people, but guess what we’re all imperfect.  So take your self-righteous, holier than thou, pain in my ass attitude and shove it.  Sergeant.”  I pushed past him and joined Tech.  

“Ready?” I asked him

“Are you?”

“Definitely, I’m itching to shoot something” Tech nodded and motioned for me to follow him.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -  

KAMBE POV

Tech and I continued walking on in silence, we were two klicks from our point of egress, I could see him glance over every so often, my eyes were dead set on keeping a lookout, eventually though it got a bit much.

“Either ask your question, or stop glancing over at me like I’m a porcelain doll”

“You’ve said you had three combat medic experiences”

“Yes”

“Except that is a lie”

“No, technically not”

“Truth is you’ve never been in a combat situation”

“How did you…?” I stopped and looked at him

“I researched you, when you told us your name, you were on two relief missions, where there was virtually no combat, and the last one, according to records, the fighting ended quite quickly with minimal injuries.  In fact, you personally only treated a twisted ankle, and someone who suffered from heat stroke.”

“I… okay, technically yes, there was no actual fighting involved, but it still counts as experience.”

“That is not my question”

“Oh, okay”

“You have worked on numerous med centres, somewhere they only did butcher surgery, until they could transfer the trooper to a facility that had proper surgeons, you are quite skilled from all the reports I’ve read, all your patients overall have a 96.865% recovery rate, something most medics don’t even begin to achieve.”

“Okay, so what’s your question?”

“You are highly skilled in your field, yet you volunteer to be a combat medic, you could remain safely on Kamino.  Not to mention, you haven’t really had combat experience, yet your blaster assessment indicates you hit your targets 97.688% of the time.”

“Oh” I said, as we continued walking, “well on my home planet, we are trained from a young age how to use a blaster, women especially.  Our planet borders three territories, pirates, Separatists and Republic.  Technically, we were a neutral system, but when the fighting began we joined the Republic. Since then we’ve had an onslaught of never ending fighting, Separatists are constantly trying to occupy our planet, and pirates are constantly trying to take us to be sold into slavery.  Without the Republic’s help, and our ability to defend ourselves, we would have all been carded off long ago.  I decided to join the fight, I wanted to be a trooper, but my request was denied again and again, however, I ended up being accepted for training as a medic.  Don’t get me wrong, I love being able to help in any way I can, but if they need volunteer medics to go, I’m usually one of the first to offer.  I can’t just sit behind a glass wall and watch the world pass me by.  I … I need to fight, I need to do something.”

“That is commendable”

“I didn’t realize you could find all that out, your quite skilled with the data pad”

“It’s my enhancements”

“Yeah about that, so I was reading your medical records, were these enhancements something that the Kaminoans did, or was it a by-product of the cloning process?”

“Interesting question, in fact, it was a combination of both.  There was a defect in our creation, however Nala Se used that as an opportunity to experiment, and therefore enhanced all of our mutations.   For example, I have an aptitude for science, technology, including engineering, decryption and language translation, hence I serve as technical adviser and strategist.  Wrecker developed physical strength and stature far exceeding any previous clone, he serves as our demolition expert.  Crosshair has exceptional vision, far superior to any clone, he serves as our lookout and sniper.  Hunter has enhanced senses, he senses electromagnetic fields, so even though maps might be wrong, Hunter never is, he’s our leader.  He has always looked after us.”

“Is that why he’s so mean to me?”

“No, I don’t know why, but he has been poked and prodded by more medics than the rest of us, because of his enhanced senses.  We all have an aversion to medics, but Hunter more so.”

“Oh, I didn’t know”

“Why would you?”

“I should probably try to give him the benefit of the doubt, huh?” I don’t know why but I felt guilty, I looked back over my shoulder in the direction the shuttle was parked, long since gone from my sight, and Hunter off somewhere with Wrecker, no wonder he freaked out on me.  My heart broke a little for all of them, when was the last time any of them had a gentle touch, a caring hand?  

“Just give him time, he’ll come around.  We’re here” Tech nudged my side.  

“Hunter, come in” Tech spoke into the comm on his wrist

“Tech”

“Hunter, we’re in position, let us know when you are in position, Kambe and I will begin our incursion.”

“Understood”

“Thank you, Tech”

“For what?”

“For telling me about what you guys went through, and” I looked to the ground, “for using my name.”

We didn’t say anything more, we didn’t have to wait long, we waited by the edge of the compound, safely hidden by the hedges, before Tech’s comm pinged, “That’s our signal, let’s go” he motioned for me to follow him.  I readjusted my med pack so it wouldn’t slip, I grabbed my blaster, and followed behind him.  The hedge gave way before us easily enough.  

“Try to avoid shooting any droids right away, not until they begin the distraction”

I nodded to his order, Tech moved towards the panel of the back entrance, Tech had found a hidden exit when reviewing the plans, it wasn’t long before we heard a huge explosion coming from the front of the compound.  I swear I could hear Wrecker’s laughter coming from the front riding the breeze over to us.  

Tech opened the door with no difficulty, we moved in together, my heart was racing, this was an actual combat situation.  I couldn’t believe it, I was really here, really part of a unit.  Tech held up his fist, we stopped as we reached the corner of the hallway, so far we hadn’t run into any droids, but that didn’t mean that it wasn’t going to happen.  He motioned his hand to the right, we turned down the hallway, heading towards the room that contained the intel we needed.  We were two feet from the door, when I heard a door slide open behind.

“Uh, are they with us?” I heard a B1 question

“Uh, I don’t think so,” the other B1 answered.  I didn’t hesitate, I took them both down before they could signal the alarm, unfortunately, by firing the alarm automatically turned on.  I turned to look at Tech, the jig was up.

“Time to run” was all he said, he didn’t yell, maybe that would come later.  We rushed into the room, closing the door behind us, as more B1s started coming into the hallway.  I thought my heart was beating fast before, but I was  clearly mistaken.  We looked around the room, there were some deactivated droids on the far side of the room, I watched as Tech moved to the centre console.  The room wasn’t well lit, but there appeared several stations.  

“I will need time to download the information.  Stay focused on the door, anything comes through, shoot it.”

I nodded, “I’m sorry” I offered, if it wasn’t for me, we could have gotten in and out quietly.  

Tech didn’t even look up, just focused on his task, I needed to stop distracting him, “What are you apologizing for?”

“For shooting those two droids”

“If you hadn’t shot them, I would have.  We made it mostly in, before our position was compromised, that is not your fault, Kambe.”

“Thanks.  However, you and I both know when Hunter finds out, he’s gonna chew me out.”

“He won’t and if he does, I’ll defend you” I looked over to Tech, he glanced up at that, I nodded towards him.   Ten minutes passed when I heard Tech’s voice.

“Done”

“That was quick, I thought you would have had to do some fancy finagling to get the information you needed”

“Truthfully, so did I, but the information was quite easily retrievable”

“Was that all there was?  Maybe you can download as much as possible, just in case, don’t give Lama Su any sort of leeway”

Tech focused on me for a second, “What do you know about Lama Su?”

“Nala Se, told me that you guys were under a microscope.  He’s looking for a reason to get rid of you, I volunteered to join you guys to make sure you were looked after.”

Tech nodded, “I think I have enough data cylinders to download all we can”

“Tech” came Hunter’s voice over the comm

“Hunter, we’re almost done, we’re trying to download as much as possible”

“Did you get the information?”

“All too easily, Hunter”

“Easy for you, but there’s at least two battalions of droids out here, hurry up” Hunter ordered.

“Tech” I began, he looked at me, I motioned to the deactivated droids, “could we rewire them to fight on our behalf?”

Tech looked from me to the console, to the droids, “I think so”

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

HUNTER POV

“Wrecker, watch your ten o’clock”

“Copy”

We had destroyed at least a battalion's worth of droids, and more were coming “I have a droid popper ready” Wrecker shouted.  

“Cross, on my count, ready?”

“Ready”

“3, 2, 1, now!” Wrecker tossed the droid, I simultaneously threw my knife in the air, and Cross fired, the laser bolt bouncing off my knife and hitting the droid popper, in mere seconds an entire squadron of droids deactivated and fell to the ground.  It gave us some breathing room.  We were getting ready for another assault, when the droids turned their attention to the entrance of the compound behind them.

“Hey, what’s going on?” A B1 droid shouted

“Save Bad Batch” a droid that had exited the facility began repeating, I noticed as more and more droids filed out, pretty soon there were 20 droids all chanting ‘Save Bad Batch,' they were simultaneously destroying all the B1 droids, B2 droids, several commando droids, and 4 droidekas.  Wrecker and I stood from our positions as the last droid that had come to defend us fell to the ground.  There wasn’t a single droid left.  

“Cross, any movement?”

“None, looks like those tinnies took out the rest”

“What happened?” Wrecker asked

I shook my head, not understanding either, I walked over, and picked up my knife from where I had thrown it earlier.  

“Woohoo!” Wrecker shouted, I looked up to see Tech and the medic walking out of the facility both laughing and joking.  Seeing how at ease she was with Tech, really made me feel … I don’t know, irritated.  Seeing that she actually proved herself, annoyed me even more.  I wanted her gone.  

“Was that you?” Wrecker asked

“That was Tech” the medic motioned to my brother who was beside her.

“Only after your helpful suggestion” he stated while adjusting his goggles.  Oh brother! I rolled my eyes at the two of them, before I walked over to meet up with the three of them.

“You both were supposed to go in quietly, what happened?” My tone was short, and my temper just bordering.

“There were these two droids…” she began, her voice was timid, so different from when she yelled at me on the ship.

“You alerted your presence!” I shouted, maybe not the right approach, but this is what I needed to get rid of her, “You’re a jeopardy to us here on the field! You belong back on Kamino and not with us.  When we get back, I don’t ever want to see you again!”

“Actually” Tech began holding up his finger, as he stepped in front of her, “she saved my life.  Those two droids came out of a room that wasn’t on the plans to begin with; had I gone in by myself, I would not have been able to complete my mission.  Considering, I would have been dead.” Tech’s eyes never faulted and bore into me, “Therefore, I would appreciate you not yelling at Kambe who saved my life.”

I looked over to her, her eyes were downcast, I could see the formation of tears beginning, I also heard her heartbeat quicken, also a smell of fear coming off of her.  Was she really that scared of me?

Tech turned, put his arm around Kambe and walked past me towards the ship.  I looked at Wrecker who shook his head, resting his hands on his hip, a silent reprimand.  

“That was smooth” came Crosshair’s voice over the comm

“Shut up, Cross” I yelled at the comm, it wasn’t his fault, it wasn’t even Kambe’s fault that I was so on edge.  Wrecker headed off to the ship, he didn’t really look at me.  I looked at the ground, my first real mission, and I was screwing it all up.  I followed Wrecker, I took one last look at the facility, and the destroyed droids.  Regardless of what happened, we won.  We proved we could accomplish any orders given, even when they tried to make sure we failed.  

It didn’t take us long to walk back to the shuttle, when I walked up, Kambe, Tech, Wrecker and Crosshair were standing outside of the ship.  

“You guys certainly caused quite the havoc there” Kambe motioned to the facility.

“Ha! Yeah! Like a marauding band” Wrecker shouted

“Huh” Tech began

“What?” Cross asked

“That’s what we should call the ship”

“Marauding band?” I asked

“No, Havoc Marauder”

“Havoc Marauder” I said

“Havoc Marauder” Wrecker said nodding

“Havoc Marauder, it fits” Cross said

We all turned towards Kambe, she looked at all of us, “What?”

“What do you think of the name?” Tech asked

“Oh, sure, sounds good for you guys”

“But what about you?” Wrecker asked

“Me?”

“You’re part of Clone Force 99, right?” Tech nudged

“I …” she looked at me, “I don’t know, I mean I was for this mission, but I don’t know what Nala Se wants me to do when I get back.”

“Forget that!” Wrecker shouted, “You’re one of us, so Havoc Marauder?”

“Sure,” she smiled.  They all moved towards the ship, it didn’t take long before we were back in hyperspace, I stayed in the bunk the entire time, I just needed time to think.  What really was my issue with her?  Was it that she was a medic?  Was it because she saw me at my weakest?  Or was it because she … she just filled my head with … I sat with my elbows resting on my knees as my thumbs held my chin, and my fingers interlaced by my mouth.

*Knock, knock*

“Come in” I didn’t move or look to see who it was.

“Sorry, Sergeant, but just making sure you’re not injured, since I didn’t get a chance to ask you earlier” her voice was lower, I could hear how her heartbeat quickened, her breathing had sped up too, she was nervous.  

“I’m fine” I answered through my clenched hands, still not moving, she didn’t respond, but she also didn’t leave.  She just stood there.

“Something to add, medic, or you just observing for your report”

“Alright, that’s it” she began, she stomped over pulled a chair from the desk and moved it so she could sit in front of me, “aside from me being a medic, what is your problem with me, Sergeant? I mean, I have been nothing but nice and polite, and you act like a royal pain in the ass.  Tech told me …”

I moved my hands and glared into her eyes, narrowing my own, “What. Did. Tech. Tell. You?”

She moved back slightly, but bumped into the bunk behind her. If I thought she was nervous before, then she was downright frightened now, “Um …” I saw how she swallowed, “Tech may have mentioned … how … um, you all were experimented on, and that … that maybe … that’s the reason you don’t like me.”

“And”

“And?”

“What else did he say?”

“Nothing, well he may have also mentioned you were experimented on more than the others, but that’s it.  He didn’t say anything else.”

I stood from my bunk and began walking away from her.

“Wait” she shouted

“I don’t want to hear it, medic”

“NO, I’m serious, stop!”

I turned around to face her, her heart beat returned to a normal rhythm and so did her breathing, “Who do you think…”

“Shut up for a second” she walked towards me, I noticed her eyes were looking at my side.  I looked to see blood trickling from my shirt.  

“I thought you said, you were fine” she came closer to the wound, not touching, but examining as best she could without evading my personal space.

“I thought I was”

“I’m gonna have to lift your shirt, are you okay if I lift it?  You can do it, or I can ask one of the guys to help me, if you don’t feel comfortable, but we have to take care of this.” She motioned to the injury.  

I was speechless, no one had ever given me an option, they just told me what to do.  

“Can you get one of the guys?”

“Sure, who?”

“Doesn’t matter”

She nodded and exited, I slowly lifted the shirt and noticed there wasn’t just a cut, there was a bruise too.  Must have been when one of the droids kicked me as it fell down, I thought I felt something pull, but I didn’t really feel anything.  The door slid open as Kambe and Crosshair walked in.

“Tech and Wrecker were having a debate about something, Crosshair was free, I hope that’s okay”

“That’s fine”

“Crosshair, can you get him on the bunk, please?”

Cross simply nodded, he walked me over to the bunk, helping me lie down.  “Do you want me to help you with your shirt?”

“No, it’s okay, I just want you here”

Cross simply nodded and moved to sit on the desk, Kambe had gloves on, as well as her med pack beside her.  She sat on the bunk beside me, the warmth from her thigh seeping into my hip. It was comforting, I watched as she leaned down and pulled out gauze, bacta patch, sanitizer spray, and forceps.  

She looked me in the eyes and had her hands raised, “I’m going to lift your shirt, Hunter, okay?” I nodded, I couldn’t believe she asked, “If I do anything that makes you uncomfortable, or you want me to stop, just say so, okay, and we’ll take a step back.  Deal?”

I nodded, I couldn’t help but admire her features yet again, this was the second time she was looking after me, and just like the first time, she was kind, she didn’t yell at me, didn’t just act without telling me what to do, she wasn’t brash with her actions, she took her time, and was patient.   I watched as she leaned over me, slowly raising my shirt. I don’t know why but the whole scenario felt very intimate and at that moment I was regretting having Cross here.  I took a deep breath, slightly shuddering from the sensation of the shirt grazing my wound.

“Sorry, you okay?” She looked into my eyes full of concern, I couldn’t answer, not when she looked at me like that, I simply nodded.   The room was quiet, I could feel Cross watching her every move, just like he did when we were in the med centre.

“Why don’t you tell me something?” She suggested

“Why?” Cross asked

“Sometimes it helps patients, makes them feel more at ease.  Tell me about your first mission.”

“You were there” I offered

“What are you talking about, this is the first time I came with you guys?” She responded, she moved from my side to her med pack, she grabbed a sort of spray.  I watched as her hair slid to her left shoulder, it was beautiful, the way it cascaded down her head, I wanted to reach up and tangle it in my fingers.  

“Exactly” I hissed at the cool sensation of the spray

“Sorry, I know it’s cold, but you won’t feel anything in a minute, it’s a cleaning and numbing agent, anyways, continue”

“This was our first mission” I continued

“Oh, I didn’t know.  Nala Se didn’t mention that to me.” I watched as her eyes narrowed and focused on the wound, she looked over to Cross and motioned him over.

“Hunter” she looked me in the eye, “you have a piece of shrapnel inside the wound I’m going to need to pull it out, okay.  The numbing agent should be working, but in case it doesn’t I’m going to need you to remain as still as possible.  I’m going to try to pull it out as quickly as I can.  Okay.  If it hurts too much, let me know, and I can knock you out, but I don’t want to do that unless I absolutely have to, okay?”

I nodded, “Crosshair, hold his hand.” Cross didn’t say anything. He came and kneeled by my head, and held my hand. I was surprised really, he hated to show emotion or compassion.

“This never happened” he hissed out as he looked to my hand

“Deal” Kambe said

“Deal” I smirked

“Ready?” She asked me, I nodded, I felt a slight pressure, and then like something was scraping my insides, I squeezed Cross’ hand, the sensation was unbearable, stupid heightened senses.

“Hold on, Hunter, I almost got it” I heard her, my eyes were closed, the pain was getting unbearable.  “Scream if you need to” she coached.  I couldn’t hold it in, I let out a loud yell, “Got it!” She yelled, holding up the shrapnel, it was a long thin piece of metal, probably from the droid's foot.

I let go of Cross’ hand, I saw how Kambe smirked at Cross, “Need some bacta for your hand, tough guy?”

“Laugh all you want, you weren’t the one holding his vice grip hands”

She laughed and shook her head. She put the shrapnel in a small container, I watched as she sanitized the area, completely cleaning it of any infection, before applying the bacta patch.  “Alright, we’re almost done.  I’m going to wrap some gauze on you, then I want you to rest all the way to Kamino, got it?”

I nodded, she really was beautiful, the way her hair framed her face, those lips that I wanted to trace with my finger, and press against my own.  

“You okay there, Sergeant?” She looked at me quizzically

“Uh … yeah”

“You looked like you spaced out there for a second, you sure?”

“Yeah, fine.  Let’s get this over with” the tone was more clipped than I wanted, however she simply nodded, and before long the gauze was in place, and she had cleaned up the area.  

“Come on Crosshair, let’s let him rest” she motioned for him to follow her.

“Kambe, wait” I called out, she turned to look at me as Cross exited, the door slid shut, “I … um … thank you.”

She smiled, “You’re welcome Sergeant, and thank you”

“For?”

“Calling me Kambe and not medic” she nodded and headed out.  I closed my eyes, when I opened them again, Kambe was hovering over me, looking at my wound.  I didn’t want her to know I was awake, she looked beautiful like this.

“I’m just checking your wound, making sure it’s not bleeding anymore”

“How did you know I was awake?”

“You held your breath, for a second”

“Very observant”

“No good as a medic, if I wasn’t”

“True”

“Everything looks good” she lowered my shirt gently, and smoothed it out, “I didn’t mean to wake you”

“You didn’t” we just looked into each other’s eyes, the air in the room grew thick, I tried to swallow but my throat went dry.  She leaned down and grabbed a canteen.

“Take slow sips, but not too much” how did she know? I raised the canteen to my mouth, and took a few quick sips, “Better?”

I nodded, “You’re different”

“I’ll take that as a compliment” she smirked, I noticed at that moment, she was sitting on the bunk with me, “you must have had some pretty crappy medics, if you hate them that much.”

“Well, one couldn’t wait two-seconds for me to take off my shirt, so he just cut it off, cutting me in the process.  One medic refused to give me any meds when I broke my arm.  Another one, was resetting my dislocated shoulder, and pushed so hard, they dislocated it the other way.”

“How old were you, when this happened?”

“The shirt cutting incident when I was 10 in Kaminoan years, so about 5 in normal years, the broken arm was when I was 12 so 6, and the dislocated shoulder 14, so about 7 in normal years”

She shook her head, “I am so sorry that happened to you, were they clones or kaminoans?”

“Does it matter?”

“No, but maybe I can train them to do better, or give them a taste of their own medicine”

“It’s okay, at least I know there is one good medic out there.”

“Well, if anything happens to any of you guys, you find me right away, I’ll take care of you.  Okay.”

“Okay” she nodded and stood, I watched as she headed to the door, she was about to walk out, when she turned back to me.

“Hunter”

“Yes”

“Thank you for allowing me to join you guys on this mission.  I know you didn’t want me here to begin with, but … I feel I actually helped the Republic, so thank you.”

“What I said before?”

She waved her hand, “It's forgotten, all good.”

“I still feel I need to say it, I’m sorry.”

She gave me the best smile I had ever seen. I knew at that moment, that smile was going to haunt me for the rest of my life, “Don’t worry Hunter, it’s all good.  You’re forgiven.  We’ll be arriving at Kamino in two days, after that I’ll be out of your hair.  Take care of yourself.”

“You too”

She pressed the control for the door, it slid open, “Hey, Kambe”

“Yes, Hunter” she turned to look at me once more.

“You’re always welcome to join us”

The smile that she originally had given me, was nothing in comparison to the smile that beamed off her now, “I’d like that, thanks Hunter” she nodded and headed out.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

KAMBER POV

“Alright boys, that was fun” I readjusted the pack on my shoulder, “I told Hunter already, but if you guys need anything, come see me first alright.  I’ll make sure you guys are treated right.”

“Thanks, Kambe” Tech offered, “if you ever need help with research or an experiment let me know, I’ll be glad to help.”  

“Thanks Tech” I stepped forward and hugged him.  It may have taken them two weeks, but at least Tech was warming up to me and so was Wrecker.  Crosshair and Hunter it was still touch and go.   Tech was a bit thrown off by the gesture but reciprocated quickly enough.

“I want a hug!” Wrecker shouted

“Come here, big guy” I gave him a hug as he picked me up and squeezed, “okay… okay … need to breathe.”  

He put me down, as he rubbed the back of his head, “Sorry”

“No worries, at least I know what to expect for next time”

I looked to Crosshair and Hunter, “Take care you two” I waved and headed to my quarters.  

I was almost to my quarters, when I heard someone shouting, “Hey Kambe!” I turned to see Hardcase run up.

“Hardcase, what’s up?”

“Where you been?  Missed you” he quickly fell in step with me as I headed to my room.

“Oh really?”

“Yeah” he bumped my shoulder, I laughed and shook my head.

“I think what you missed is being the only clone who has a girl sit with him at lunch”

“Well maybe, but how else am I supposed to win you over, after all my looks speak for themselves”

“You honestly think, that’s what interests me, looks?”

“You saying it doesn’t help” he wiggled his eyebrows, I couldn’t help laughing at his stupidity.

“Hardcase, you are a lot of things, but becoming my man, isn’t one of them”

“Oh!” He gripped his chest, I watched as he stepped closer to the wall, his hand searching, “your words they cut right through my heart”

“Di’kut”

“The light, the light is getting darker”

“Get off the floor”

“My life it ebbs away”

“You’re making a scene”

“Quick kiss me, to save me”

“I don’t think so”

“Kiss me! Kiss me! Kiss me!” He began chanting, “Kiss him! Kiss him!” The others chanted along with him.

“Hardcase” okay this was just a bit much, I kept rubbing the back of my neck, as everyone kept chanting, “Hardcase, I’m not going to kiss you”

“Aw come on!”

“I’ll kiss you” came the voice beside me, I turned to see Hunter and the rest of the guys around me, the rest of the troopers that were chanting had all moved away.  Hardcase, blinked a few times and stood up, readjusting himself.  

“Thanks Sergeant, but you’re not exactly my type”

“I can give you keldabe kiss”

“What’s that?” I asked Tech

“A headbutt”

“Oh.  OH!” I started laughing, “Kiss him!” I started, a smirk appearing.

“Mesh’la, how could you?” Hardcase began.

“Hey, you tried to embarrass me into kissing you, it’s fair turn around.”

“I suggest you walk away if you don’t want that kiss” Hunter walked in front of me.  

“See you, Kambe”

“Bye, Hardcase”

“We having dinner later?” He shouted as he walked away

“You’re kidding, right?”

“Hey guy’s gotta keep trying right?” He shouted the further away he was

“NO!” I shouted back, he waved, I laughed at his stupidity.  

“Does that happen often?” Hunter turned to look at me

“Nah, that’s just Hardcase, he means well, but he’s a bit of a di’kut”

“You know Mando’a” Tech asked

“Only a few words here and there, what are you guys doing over here, anyways?”

“We wanted to know if you wanted to join us for dinner?” Wrecker asked

“Oh!” I wasn’t expecting that, “I would love to …” my comm beeped, “Sorry, give me a sec”

“Kambe”

“Kambe, please report to Nala Se’s office”

“Right away” I turned to the guys, “sorry, guys, I gotta go” I started walking away, “What time you guys gonna be there?” I shouted at them

“1900” Tech responded

“Alright, I’ll comm you Tech if I’m able to make it, sorry, gotta go” I shouted back and ran to my quarters.  I dropped off my bag, and ran to Nala Se’s office.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

HUNTER POV

I watched as she ran off to her quarters.  I don’t know, the idea of not seeing her again, was really bothering me.

“Do you guys think I scared her off?” I turned to the guys as we started heading to our quarters

“You scared off that Reg easily enough” Wrecker announced

“She didn’t seem to flinch or mind that you stepped in” Tech responded

“I thought you didn’t like her” I looked to Cross, I didn’t really have an answer, I mean I didn’t like her, right?  Not … that’s not … I shrugged.

“She’s not like the others”

“I’ll say” Wrecker laughed, we all looked at Wrecker, “What?” He lifted his hands up in the air, we all just shook our heads.

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

We sat at the mess hall, I knew she wasn’t going to be coming, why would she want to eat with us, well with me, I treated her horribly, and my apology was … it was pathetic.  Maybe …

“You okay, Hunter?”

I looked at Tech and nodded, my back was to the entrance of the mess hall, “Alright, let’s talk about what we need to modify on the Havoc Marauder” I suggested.

“I think a med bay would be handy” came a soft voice from behind me, I turned to look at Kambe, I couldn’t control the smirk that appeared, as she took her seat beside Wrecker in front of me.

“Thought we scared you off”

“Sergeant, you’ll have to try harder than that to scare me away” she smirked

“Noted”

“You were saying” Tech asked looking over Wrecker, Kambe began laughing.

“Wrecker?”

“Yes, Kambe?”

“Can I switch with you?”

“Sure” Wrecker picked her up and slid her over, and then he took her seat, her face was priceless, she wasn’t expecting it, her eyes bugged out of her head, as she yelped.

“Okay, for future reference, Wrecker, give me a heads up next time”

“Sorry” he rubbed the back of his head

“Are you always this sensitive?” Crosshair sneered

“I’m sorry, I wasn’t expecting to be lifted four feet off the ground.  Maybe you're used to being manhandled, I’m not.”

“Easy, princess”

“Princess?”

“Yeah, a sensitive little princess” I watched as Kambe nodded, took a spoonful of her food and flung it into Cross’ face.  We all cracked up laughing.

“Oops!” She offered, not really sorry.

“If it’s war you want, Princess, it’s war you’ll get”

“What?” Her face went white, and sheer terror eked throughout her existence.

“As fun as it would be to throw our nutritional requirements around” Tech began, “we were talking about what needed to be modified on the shuttle.”

“You guys definitely need a med bay” Kambe suggested

“Noted”

“Maybe a fresher that has a shower?” Wrecker offered

“How about a high perch, I noticed there were a lot of wasted space in the ceiling” Crosshair added

“Maybe make the bunk room soundproof” I added.

“Oh, I suggest having stash compartments,” Kambe said, we all turned to look at her.

“Stash compartments?” Wrecker asked

“Yeah” we all just stared at her, “you guys have never heard of stash compartments?  You know they’re hidden compartments where you stash stuff.  Supplies, meds, drug runners use them for spice, but you know it’s useful for other things.  Snacks, food, weapons, clothing, whatever.”

“I believe the proper term is caches” Tech corrected

“Eh, same diff”

“Kambe!” We turned to see another clone, call her, I looked at her face, she looked like she wanted the ground to swallow her.

“Know him?” I asked

“He’s one of the medics I work with at the med centre”

“Don’t like him?” Cross inquired

“He’s okay, just doesn’t know when to quit.  Hardcase is just an idiot, but him,” she moved her eyes to the clone that called her, “he’s convinced I’m in love with him, and keeps trying to touch me, like hug me, back rubs, hold my hand, stuff like that, and I keep telling him, to leave me alone and I’m not interested, but he just won’t listen.”

My hand clenched hard, to see her so uncomfortable, something akin to a loth-wolffe woke inside me, and all I wanted was to protect her.  I looked over to Cross, his hand was also clenched, we each gave a slight nod.  

“Kambe! My love, come sit with me.”

“No thanks, Sands”

“Why must we always play these games?” Sands came to stand closer to the table.

“I think she’s made it clear, she doesn’t want to go with you,” I answered.

“Listen defective…”

“SANDS, SHUT UP!” We all turned to look at her, was that the same woman who was timid not even five minutes ago?  She stood from her seat, everyone in the mess hall was watching, but it was like she didn’t care.

“Babe…”

“DO NOT CALL ME BABE! I AM NOT YOUR BABE! I have been patient, I have given you the benefit of the doubt, but I draw the line at you calling names to troopers who are just defending me.  What is wrong with you! If you say one more word, just one more, I swear, you’ll be the victim of friendly fire.”

“Okay, okay, I was just joking”

“No.  You weren’t.  WALK. AWAY.” Sands holds his hand up like he’s surrendering and walks away.

“What was that?” Tech asks. Kambe looks around the mess hall and sees everyone watching us, there were troopers who were frozen, food halfway to their mouth, just staring at her, others were half standing, half sitting down, and a few just remained steady, even Wrecker’s face was priceless, his eyes were wide and his mouth was gaped open.

“Oh, um… I should …” she steps out of her seat, and grabs her tray, before any of us can say anything she bolted out of the mess hall.

“I … I don’t get what just happened” Wrecker finally speaks

“She did appear to be offended when Sands was about to make a comment about us being defective, more specifically when Hunter was about to” Tech clarified.  Wrecker nodded and stood up from his seat.

“Where are you going?” Tech asked

“To make sure she’s okay” we watched as Wrecker headed out of the mess hall, I … I was shocked, it was true, she became all shy and timid, when he was just bothering her, but the minute he turned his attention on us… on me, it was like something snapped and she became super protective.  

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

KAMBE POV

I can’t believe I just did that, I wholly and completely embarrassed myself.

“Kambe!” Great, now what? I turned to see Hardcase walk up beside me, “So …” he began.

“Yes, Hardcase, something to say?”

“Don’t want to get yelled at like Sands did”

I closed my eyes, my arms tightening around me trying to keep myself warm, I shook my head. I couldn’t even explain what happened, if I wanted to, “I…” I rubbed my hands over my face and through my hair, “I honestly have no idea where that came from.  I mean you know me, I don’t yell at people.  I … I mean I put my foot down when I have to … but … but nothing like that”

“In my opinion, he deserved it.  He was crossing several boundaries, if you hadn’t said something, I would have.”

“Right, sure,” I said mockingly.

“No, I was, you just beat me to it, by a mere 0.002 seconds” I watched as Hardcase smirked at me, “I also owe you an apology” I looked at Hardcase, this couldn’t be the same msn from earlier, “Clearly, something that should have been done a while ago.  I’m sorry Kambe, if I ever made you feel uncomfortable, or if I ever pushed our friendship too far.”

I stopped and smiled at him, “Thank you, Hardcase.  That means a lot” I gave him a hug, “just so you know, this is a one time deal.”

“Understood” he chuckled, he held me closer and a bit tighter.

“Oh, uh, sorry, Kambe” I looked over to see Wrecker.

“That’s alright Wrecker, Hardcase was just apologizing” I pulled away from Hardcase, he nodded and walked back in the direction of the mess hall.

“You okay?” I asked him

“Am I okay?”

I nodded, “Yeah, you seemed shocked, I figured you came because you were having some issues or something?”

“No, I came to check up on you.  You’re my vod’ika”

“Your what?”

“Vod’ika.  Means little sister.”

“Oh” I couldn’t look him in the eyes, “thank you, Wrecker, it’s been a long time since someone actually considered me family.  Usually most of the guys” I motioned to all of Kamino, “see me as entertainment, more than anything else.”

“Not to us” he responded, “you know how you said, if we ever needed anything we should come to you” I nodded, “it goes both ways.  If you ever need us, we’re here for you.”

I looked up at the big guy, “Thanks, Wrecker” I chewed on my bottom lip, “actually there is one thing … well maybe two things, I would like.”

“Name it”

“Can I have a hug?”

“Ha! Like you have to ask” Wrecker stepped forward and picked me up, holding me tight, but not as tight on the ramp of the Havoc.  “Want me to carry you to your quarters?” Wrecker asked

“That’s silly” I mumbled

“Are you falling asleep?”

“Mmmmmmaybe”

“Ha! Alright, I’ll take you,” never knew being carried by a giant teddy bear was the best sleep one could have, “Kambe” Wrecker called quietly.

“Yeah?”

“We’re here”

“Already?”

Wrecker laughed, “Yeah, want me to punch in your code?”

“No, no, it’s okay.  I got it.” Wrecker placed me down on the ground gently, but my legs certainly didn’t want to work anymore, not when a giant teddy bear was willing to just pick you up like I weighed nothing.   After a few attempts, I was finally able to open up the door.  I stepped in, turned and smiled at Wrecker.

“Thanks … how do you say brother?”

“Vod”

“Thank you vod, appreciate it.”

“Anytime, vod’ika, get plenty of rest.”

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -  

HUNTER POV

I wished I had been the one to go after Kambe, we’d only known her for almost three weeks, really, but I realized just how wrong I was about her.  I also realized what was really bothering me.  Ever since I could remember, the idea of a loved one, of a mate, was something I pushed down, deep inside.  I always thought I wasn’t meant for that, I couldn’t have it, not just because I was a soldier, not just because I was a clone, but because at the end of the day I was a defective clone.  Sure I had desirable mutations, but really it was just a way to say defective, an acceptable defect, but a defect nonetheless.

Wrecker told us how he came across Kambe and Hardcase hugging, that the Reg apparently was apologizing to her.  He also told us what she said, to know that so many would try to just see her as entertainment value, it made me angry, sad, protective. There were so many emotions coursing through me.  Regardless of what I felt for her, I couldn’t be another one of those clones, who saw her in only one way.  Anyway, it’s not like she would be interested in me.  A woman like that could have anyone she wanted, she was caring, kind, and patient, there was no way she’d be interested, especially after the way I treated her those first two weeks.

My comm beeped, “Sergeant Hunter”

Comm: “Sergeant, please come to my office”

“On my way”

“I wonder what she wants” Cross jeered when I turned off the comm.

“Maybe to give us our next mission, or to go over what we did wrong?”

“Want us to come?”

“No, but keep your comms on, in case she does want you there,” all three nodded at me, as I exited, I headed down the hallway.  Yet, knowing that I was headed to Nala Se’s office, with the possibility that we could be decommissioned, wasn’t what was troubling me, or keeping my mind preoccupied.  It was the look on Kambe’s face, when I told her she could travel with us anytime, that smile, her radiating beautiful smile, lived forever in my heart.  I closed my eyes and it was there.  I looked in the refresher’s mirror and it was there.  I looked out the window, and she was there reflecting back at me.  

I knocked on the door to Nala Se’s office, it slid open, quite quickly.  

“Come in, Sergeant”

I nodded and walked in, the room was brightly lit, her office was the more desirable room, compared to her medical room.

“Take a seat, Sergeant”

“Thank you”

Nala Se, was reviewing a data pad, “I had a very interesting conversation with Medic Kambe,” my nerves started again, oh makers, what did she say, “she was impressed with how effectively you all communicated with each other.  She also stated that you had an exceptional command of leading the others.  The reason I asked you here was to see how you felt about making her your permanent medic? She may not be …”

“Yes!”

Nala Se stopped and looked at me, “I’m sorry, please continue,” I offered.

“Hmm, what I was saying was that she may not always be able to go with you, as she is an excellent research assistant.  We have needs for her abilities here too.  Do you agree to work with her, with these conditions in place?”

“Yes”

“Good, then I'll inform Lama Su, please make sure you will all be ready for your next assignment.”

“If I may, ma’am”

“Go on, Sergeant”

“Would it be possible to have supplies and equipment so we can modify our shuttle to be more beneficial to us?”

“Do you have a list?”

“Yes”

“Provide me the list and I will make sure you get everything you need”

“Thank you, ma’am”

“You’re dismissed, Sergeant”

I stood and bowed, I needed to see Kambe, I had to be the one to tell her.   I was at the door when Nala Se called me again.

“Sergeant”

“Yes, ma’am?”

“Medic Kambe is in the med centre”

“Uh, thank you?”

“You weren’t just going to find her?”

“I …”

“Dismissed”

I bowed, nothing more to say really.  My feet carried me faster than it ever had to the med centre, I can’t believe I was willingly going into the med centre.  As soon as I walked in, I saw her. She was standing there with a Reg, she was talking and it seemed like she was fine, but I just couldn’t help remembering what Wrecker had told us.  I walked up to them.

“Kambe”

She turned to look at me, the Reg that had been talking to her, was annoyed I had interrupted, but her expression was one of pure joy, she looked so happy to see me.  My breath caught in my throat, my heartbeat quickened, my palms got all sweaty, I wondered if maybe I was getting sick, maybe I picked something up when we were planet side.   She excused herself from the Reg and guided me over to the other side of the room.

“Are you okay?” Her tone was kind, soft, but I sensed her concern, how could I think she was anything like those other medics, like the one who shoved a needle into me so hard, it hit bone.  

“Yeah, I’m fine”

“Oh good”

I looked around the room, it was practically empty, there were two troopers in the beds further away from the doors. I watched as the Reg she had been talking to, pretended to keep busy while keeping an eye on her.  I also watched as another Reg came from around the corner eyeing her too.

“Are you okay?” I motioned with my eyes to the men behind her, I saw her subtly glance behind her and smirk.

“Yeah, the one that’s shying away, that’s Sands, the one I yelled at in the mess hall, he’s on his best behaviour, won’t come within ten feet of me, barely even talks to me now.  The other one is Post, he’s fine, he looks out for me, treats me like a person.  So no worries there.”

I nodded as she explained, she eyed my face curiously.

“Wait, did Wrecker tell you what I told him?”

“Don’t be upset with him, he told us so we can keep an eye, that’s all.  After all, you’re his vod’ika”

“Oh, but not yours” I saw how her eyes shifted away from me, her tone was quieter too.  

“I don’t think after the way I’ve treated I have a right to call you that, but I would like to be friends.”

I noticed how that smile, that beautiful radiating smile that burned into my heart appeared again, she looked into my eyes, “I’d like that, friends” she stuck her hand out, I reached forward and shook it.

“Also, I came because I have some news”

“Oh!”

“Nala Se informed me, they’re okay with having you as our permanent medic, splitting your time between your research and with us.  I told her I was okay with it, but if you don’t want to, I understand, after the way we treated you, I won’t hold it against you if you don’t want to join us.”

“Hunter, I would be honoured to be Clone Force 99’s medic,” she squeezed my hand, I looked down and completely forgot I was holding it, a smile graced my lips as I looked at her.

“Welcome to Clone Force 99, Kambe”

“Grateful for the opportunity, Sergeant”

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[philliamwrites]

The Dawn Will Come [Chpt.3]

Fandom: Fire Emblem Three Houses

Pairing: Dimitri x Reader, Claude x Reader, Edelgard x Reader, Yuri x Reader, Edelgard x Byleth, lots of minor pairings

Tags: #gn reader, # platonic love byleth & reader, #reader is a tactical unit, #angst, #slow burn, #subplots, #unreliable narrator, #pining, #remporary amnesia, #reluctant herp, #canon divergence, #lost twin au, #many chapters, #original content

Words: 7.7k

Summary: Waking up in a forest without any knowledge of your past and who you are, you join the house leaders of the Officers Academy to search for a way to return your memories. Unfortunately, the church has different plans for you, and Fate places you in the centre of a cruel game with deadly stakes. It certainly doesn’t help to fall in love with a house leader who is doomed to be your demise.

Notes: Chapter 2 | Chapter 4

Chapter 03: Ties That Bind

Where war, and joy, and terror Have all at times held away; Where both delight and horror Have had their fitful day.

The happiest under heaven A king of powerful mind; A company so proven Would now be hard to find

Gawain put on a good cheer. ‘Why should I hesitate?’ He said. ‘Kind or severe, We must engage our Fate.’

[Sir Gawain and the Green Knight]

    „Breathe,“ Hanneman says for the third time. At every tap of his pen against the table, you flinch as if someone is knocking right against the inside of your skull. “You have to feel the Crest, become one with it. Don’t think of it as an addition; see it as an extension of your very self.”

    You exhale but it’s hard to focus after you’ve been sitting in the same position for nearly two hours and your legs keep falling asleep.

    “Focus on it,” Hanneman continues. He starts to gesture with his free hand, an indicator that he’s just as frustrated with your lack of progress as you are. “Focus on the feeling that took hold of you when you fought the bandits. Imagine what you want. Ask yourself what it is you really want, and take hold of that picture.”

    Well, first of all, you really want a sandwich.

    For the past few weeks, you’ve been waking up before sunrise to attend private lessons with Hanneman to get a hold of your Crest’s power. Now the end of the month approaches, and still your body refuses to get accustomed to work at such an early hour, and more importantly without eating first. An hour ago, your stomach started growling, but Professor Hanneman has proved again and again to be very successful in ignoring factors that disturb his lessons. You continue breathing through what you consider hunger pains instead of the raise of new powers, but with the sound of screaming students outside and the occasional flapping of wings as Pegasus Knights fly by on their patrol, it’s anything but successful.

    “Focus!” Hanneman chides again as if he can read your mind and knows exactly you’re thinking of the pheasant roast with berry sauce on the menu today.

    “I’m trying,” you groan and slump into the chair, defeated. “But I don’t feel anything.”

    “Hmm hmmm,” Hanneman hums and looks at you like you were supposed to understand what he’s conveying with that sound. “Maybe we’re looking at it the wrong way,” he says once you don’t follow up on his inexplicable sound. “Maybe we should stop thinking of it as a common Crest, but approach it like it is something entirely different.” He quickly notes something on his paper, then proceeds to flip through the open books he’s splayed out on his desk. “There is so little we know about the Crest of the Herald. I am much frustrated no one thought of studying it a thousand years ago!”

    “I don’t understand. How can it be different?” Your first lesson solely focused on Crests. How they are thought to be power incarnate, bestowed upon humans by the Goddess countless ages ago. Today those who are descendants of Fódlan’s Ten Elites and Four Saints, who fought during the War of Heroes beside Saint Seiros, wear Crests, a sign of wealth and nobility.

    “Well, one possible explanation could be that for whatever reason, the first Herald was different from his fellow warriors, the Ten Elites,” Hanneman offers, leaning back into his chair and looking a lot more interested in the conversation now. “The Goddess must have found him worthy of her power just as she found Saint Seiros worthy.”

    “Then why wasn’t he a Saint?” you wonder. From your understanding, the Four Saints were special comrades of Saint Seiros, just as guided by the Goddess as their leader. What had made the Herald from back then different? “According to everything you told me, he sounds a lot like this Macuil person. Focusing on strategy and all that.”

    “Saint Macuil,” Hanneman corrects you, but there’s no bite in his voice. “And yes, perhaps he was akin to the Saints, but that clearly wasn’t what determined the final decision to name him Herald.”

    “Well, that’s just my kind of luck,” you mumble, but when Hanneman makes a puzzled sound, you ask instead, “And you’re sure I’m a descendant of him?”

    “Most likely! You bear a Major Crest, which means the Herald’s blood runs strong in your body. After he disappeared, he might have settled down and started a family. Unfortunately, nothing is recorded about him after the War of Heroes concluded.”

    “Then how come there was no one else in a thousand years who bore the same Crest?” You aren’t sure you fully understand how they work. Apparently, Crests grant special powers to those who hold them such as high aptitude for magic or enhanced strength. But you know better than anyone that the Crest of the Herald is special. It doesn’t simply give you a boon, it allows you to command the flow of battle. But is it really a blessing bestowed by the Goddess? You don’t remember a divine revelation or talking to a Goddess. Or did that maybe occur even before you were found by the Officers Academy’s students? Before your memory loss? You certainly don’t feel chosen by a deity.

    “Trying to explain the Goddess’ whims would wield about the same result as asking this question,” Hanneman says. “Sometimes a Crest may skip generations. No one can say with certainty who will be chosen. If it will be the first or third born. That is why we must further study Crests! For example, why, unlike other Crests, has your appeared physically visible?” Hanneman mutters more questions under his breath and notes them quickly on his paper. It’s remarkable how enthusiastic he approaches the topic if it only didn’t make you feel like an experiment lying on a dissection table.

    “I want to know so much more about the first Herald,” you mumble. “What was his name? Where was he from?” Why did he disappear and what were the costs he had paid for such a title. Only one month in and Lady Rhea already granted you an impressive room to reside. People treat you with respect and admiration even though you aren’t doing much besides wave at them on the streets or hold some conversations. If being the Herald only encompasses these tasks, you’ll gladly take on the role and speak to people. But that would be a dream too good to be true.

    “We can only speculate,” Hanneman says. “Some believe the Herald came when Seiros needed him most. Our Goddess’ answer to her cry of help. Others believe he was simply a general who originated form a farmer’s family. Other, smaller sources talk about a prince from a far off land who passed through Fódlan and decided to stay. But in all cases, the Herald was a great asset to win the War of Heroes and save Fódlan from the tyranny of the Fell King.”

    “Yeah, no pressure there,” you mumble, sinking further into your seat. Hopefully no one expects you to save Fódlan from evil monarchs. If yes, it certainly won’t happen on an empty stomach. When Hanneman releases you, there’s only one place for you to be. The Dining Hall is crowded at this time of hour. Students and faculty bustle everywhere, eager to get their favourite meal on a plate. Just like them, you are drawn in by the amazing smell of roasted meet and freshly baked pastries.

    The only thing you can live without is how once you enter the room several heads turn in your direction, and a ripple of “Look, it’s the Herald” goes through the crowd, spreading like a wave. Or a disease, you think with a sour taste in your mouth as you move through the parting sea. They want you to acknowledge them but Goddess forbid you actually engage in conversation with them and they flee like you’re the Herald of Pest.

    “Herald!” Well, not everyone escapes. Some seem to like living dangerous.

    Edelgard looks straight at you from between the other students from the Eagle class sitting at a table, removing any doubt she means anyone else but you. Running from her would be a sign of defeat, so you drag yourself over to the Eagle table and give the round an uncertain smile. “Hello.”

    “Herald, if you have time, please sit with us,” Edelgard offers but the look she pins on you doesn't give you any choice. The silence of her classmates speaks louder than words, and a quick glance to Hubert tells you that he very much would like for you to notsit with them.

    “Sure,” you say lamely and sit opposite from her where Bernadetta quickly shuffles to the side to make room, and then further down the bench until she jumps to her feet and flees from the hall. It’s a miracle she’s out of her chambers in the first place, undoubtedly Byleth’s work.

    “Did you manage any progress with Professor Hanneman?” Edelgard asks, carefully cutting her pheasant roast into small bite-sized pieces. She looks the complete opposite from someone capable of hacking away their enemies but you wouldn’t dare to underestimate her.

    “It’s slow,” you admit, solely focusing on shoving potatoes from one side of your plate to the other so you don’t have to look at anyone. “I’ve only grasped the basics of how Crests work and the Herald’s is so different.”

    “Research might prove more fruitful if you’d be called into action,” she says, and it’s difficult to determine if that statement is a simple observation or underlying critique towards Rhea’s decision to leave you out of the major education system. At least that’s something you’re sure of. Edelgard is difficult.

    “Maybe. But chances are higher I get myself killed somehow on the battlefield.” You’re already dreading the approaching noon hours. Byleth has worked out a special training programme for you and the house leaders. So far there hasn’t been a day without aching muscles and bruises for you. Thinking of Byleth, you can’t help but ask, “So how’s Byleth as a Professor?”

    Edelgard considers her plate with mild interest, but her index fingers start tapping against her cutlery. She has small, delicate hands. Cute hands. You gawk at them for two seconds before noticing Hubert starring daggers at you, and quickly avert your eyes to your cup of ginger tea like it’s the most fascinating thing in the world.

    “Our professor shows knowledge in the most curious things,” he says, surprising you by joining the conversation. “I think the Adrestian Empire will benefit greatly from that.”

    You aren’t sure how leading the class correlates directly to joining the Empire, but you don’t want to point that out. Hubert is still too much of a puzzle you’re adamant on not piecing together because whatever picture waits for you after the assembly might be one of horror.

    “She really is one to look up to,” Edelgard agrees, but she isn’t looking at anyone, so it seems she’s saying it more to herself. You want to try and read more out of her expression, but distraction comes quickly in form of more students from the Eagle class. Caspar is the first bouncing excitedly towards the table, and still he somehow miraculously manages to keep his food from flying everywhere. “Herald!” he calls and slides right on the seat right next to you. “How’s the head situation going?”

    “Caspar,” Linhardt chides and gives his friend the disappointed look of a parent that can’t bring his child to use a fork to eat. “Would you stop pestering the Herald with the same question every day?”

    Linhardt hits the mark. It was nice in the beginning to have someone show so much interest in your wellbeing, but now you don’t know if the daily reminder how you fail to regain pieces of your past is rude or just Caspar’s naive politeness.

    “Yeah well.” You try to stuff as much potatoes in your mouth as possible just to avoid talking about it. “Nothin’ yeff.”

    “Herald, please try to keep your manners in check, will you?” Ferdinand comments because of course he catches you with your mouth full and sauce dripping from the corners. Unlucky for him, you don’t really care.

    “Well, sorry.” Caspar frowns and scratches the remains from his plate. The two minutes you needed to finish your potatoes, he’s cleared his whole plate. “I just thought it might help.”

    “Help to be reminded what’s missing?” Linhardt doesn’t look convinced. “I think the Herald knows so better than anyone.”

    “Guys, drop the subject,” Edelgard intervenes. “Let us finish our meals now. Classes resume presently and I don’t want to hear any stomachs growling, understood?” The last part goes with a pointed look towards Linhardt, who answers with a lazy shrug while continuing to poke at his food, looking bored out of his mind. It lasts about three seconds before he brightens up and turns towards you while rummaging through his school bag. From that, he pulls out notes and a pen, and unceremoniously shoves them into your hands. “I have a question, Herald. Would you be so kind and look over these strategic proposals I’ve developed from the last lesson? I understand what you taught us were basics as we find them in the library. I simply took the time and applied those to the strengths and abilities of my classmates.”

    You raise your eyebrows. “You did?” Up until now, you didn’t know Linhardt was paying attention whenever you gave the students your sorry excuses of lessons. You feel like you’ve seen him asleep far more than actually looking at the board or writing, so him presenting his notes to you now is more than a surprise. He has a clean handwriting, small letters that curl into themselves and forget to take a break between words. You squint at the sentences, trying to make them out. It sure doesn’t help that half of it is crossed out by what looks like a strategy sketch with little circles and everyone’s names filling out the space.

    “This looks … elaborate,” you comment, unsure if you’ll ever be able to solve this enigma.

    “No worries.” Linhardt gives a little smile. “Please give me your answer report until tomorrow. And feel free to correct me on anything I’ve done wrong.”

    He’s probably done a much better job than you on your lesson notes, but you nod with a lopsided smile. “I will.”

    “Oh, and while we’re at strategy talk,” Caspar jumps right in, “any good ideas how to take on a taller opponent?”

    “A good kick to their shins?” you suggest.

    “A dagger to their liver?” Edelgard says.

    “Poison in their cup?” Hubert offers.

    “You’re all animals,” Ferdinand says.

    Linhardt groans. “I toldyou how to win in a fight like that, Caspar. Why won’t you listen to me?”

    You don’t want to be part of the argument breaking out between them, so you turn away and try to see what the other students are doing in the dining hall. At the opposite end, Claude catches your eyes and waves like he’s been waiting way too long to finally get your attention. He points at Edelgard and flaps his arms like a chicken. He points at you and spreads his hands behind his head, forming antlers with his fingers. When Edelgard follows your eyes, his head whips around and he pretends to agree with whatever Lysithea just said.

    “I hope you forgive Caspar’s enquiries,” she says, steering your focus back to her. She’s gently tapping the corners of her mouth with an embroidered napkin, and oh there they are again, her delicate fingers. You look away before Hubert catches you staring again and decides to put poison in your cup7. “I speak on behalf of everyone in the Black Eagle House when I say we wish for your full recovery to be soon.”

    “If wishing would only get the job done, I might have something to work with by now.”

    Edelgard doesn’t blink, her expression frozen. “Meaning?”

    “I thought I'd come here and one of the Church's healers would just wave their hands to return my memories,” you mumble, scribbling a tiny Claude with little, evil horns on his head in the corner of Linhardt’s notes.

    Edelgard looks at you like you've just insulted her whole noble lineage. “That isn't how magic works.”

    You throw your arms up in frustration to emphasise that yes, that's the point. You don't know how anything works in this place, and you doubt Byleth's four pages of lesson plans are going to help.

    “If no one comes to your aid, maybe it is time you take matters into your own hands.” You flinch at the scornful sound in Edelgard’s voice. Judging the expression on her face, she seems just as surprised about her outburst. She gets up abruptly and bids farewell with a curt nod, followed closely by Hubert as always. Her classmates look after her, each more puzzled than the next.

    “Didn’t she seem … angry to you?” Linhardt thinks aloud, blinking into the empty space.

    Ferdinand harrumphes. “She’s always like this. Please excuse her, Herald.”

    You don’t think she’s done anything wrong, and yet she certainly doesn’t appear as always. Something about her last words strikes you as especially sharp; reproachful. Those weren’t meaningless words, but you don’t have any ways to decipher the message. A little voice tells you she isn’t wrong either. So far nothing has helped returning your memories—Manuela’s medicine, herbs from the Greenhouse, Hanneman’s spells. It seems like your brain has built defencive walls to repel any probing, which begs the answer to the question what is hiding in secret even more. But can you really do it on your own, like Edelgard suggests? It seems impossible.

    With newfound doubt you finish your meal, saying your goodbyes to the now scattering Eagle students as they scurry off to their next lesson. Two hours are left before you’re meeting with Byleth and the house leaders, and since you agreed to look over Linhardt’s notes, the library seems a good next stop. You still want to go over the seven classical manoeuvres of war, especially since the students didn’t really grasp the remaining two last time, and it gives you a good excuse to look over them again as well. At the beginning, you thought there was nothing you could teach those children, not with experienced colleagues at your side who have participated in countless battles themselves. Who could have thought that talking about tactics and strategies came as natural to you as breathing. Well, Rhea did for certain, and even the students drink up your every word like it is a message from the Goddess herself and you her chosen herald. The irony of it.

    But it isn’t only the students accepting your guidance. Something inside you changed in the last couple of weeks as well. When you started going through the books in the library, it was more stumbling and slipping on foreign terrain, but just in a couple of days, you moved through the matter like a fish following smoothly the currents of its native waters. It felt like home. Like building the foundation of a house from thousand variables, the result different each time but still the same: art. You build the art of battle, the last decision that will bring victory or death. You love every second of it. Which opens the possibility that it really isn’t your first time, but also more questions: Who taught you? What battles have you fought? How many of them did you win? Since those aren’t as simple to answer, you focus on fulfilling the first purpose, and hope that it will some day be enough for the students to survive battles.

    If only it would end there. Your second duty isn’t as easy or pleasant, and it lies in wait for you everywhere, stalking you like a dark shadow with monstrous fangs.

    “Herald.” A soldier gives a courteous bow, intercepting you in the Great Hall on your way to the library. “Pilgrims ask for you near the Entrance Hall. Please allow me to escort you.”

    Immediately, your nerves tingle with nervous anticipation. This is the scary part. Meeting the people, seeing the hope in their eyes. You’d gladly send them back where they’ve come from, but some have travelled for multiple days, and denying them audience would be cruel.

    “Don’t let me stop you from your duties,” you say, unconsciously tugging your clothes in order to appear presentable. “I will welcome them on my own.”

    The soldier nods and bows again, his expression barely readable under the helmet before he disappears as quickly as he came.

    Planning lessons is easy. You can find whatever you need in the library and work out the flow with the students. But nothing can prepare or teach you how to act like the Herald people wish for. Nowhere is anything written on the old Herald, how he talked to them and what promises he’d whispered when day broke. That is where you are on your own. Not even Rhea could answer that question. She only instructed that you see them, and remind them about their devotion to the Goddess—for she was the one who made it possible in the first place.

    The Entrance Hall is emptier than usual. Most of the students are in class, and a handful of knights and soldiers might be at the advanced training camp Jeralt and Alois hold in honour of the Blade Breaker’s return. So spotting the pilgrims isn’t difficult. Especially with the Gatekeeper waving his arms in wide arcs as if fearing you might overlook him.

    “Greetings, Herald!” His grin is blinding. “The pilgrims are waiting for you just at the at the foot of the stairs.”

    “Yeah,” you say. “I can see them.”

    “Oh, yes, of course! If anyone causes problems, count on me to help!”

    “Thanks.” You answer his thumbs up with one of your own before moving downstairs. What a refreshing young man. Certainly good looking under his helmet. Byleth seems to like talking to him a lot as well.

    Today’s pilgrims aren’t much different from other days. Old people are supported by their family members, who have brought baskets with sweets and flowers, presenting them at your feet.

    “Herald,” they breathe in awe, bowing. No matter how often you’ve seen it by now, it still feels incredibly wrong.

    “Raise your heads,” you tell them, helping an elderly woman up to hrer feet. She gasps at your touch, then clings to your hands. You try to swallow past the lump in your throat. “The Archbishop and I bid you welcome. The Goddess will smile upon your devotion.” Your cringe slightly when echoing Rhea’s words and wonder if any second the goddess might punish you by throwing lightning your way.

    “We are blessed to finally meet you,” a younger woman says, taking the old woman from your hands—mother and daughter maybe? “Please accept our gifts, and may the Goddess guide you on your path to light.”

    “She will answer your prayers and guide me so I can bring you peace,” you reply just so you can say something they might want to hear. Judging their delighted expressions this wasn’t the worst you could have said. Dorothea would probably be proud looking at your acting skills. Or point out your bad posture and how you’re avoiding their eyes. Dorothea would probably tell you how much you have to polish your acting skills.

    “Bring us peace?” someone from the last row spits, pushing to the front. “You know nothing, the Herald will bring chaos and ruin!” A man in his forties looms above you, an ugly, padded scar crossing his face from one temple to his chin. A war veteran? They way he holds himself looks like he’s been beaten up once too much to get up again.

    “You heathen, don’t you dare speak to our Herald like that,” the old woman barks, immediately doubling over in a coughing fit. Her daughter supports her, glaring at the man. “Go in peace, but go if you only came to talk ill about our Herald,” she says, clearly upset. "Doubting them is doubting our Goddess. How dare you."

    “First I want to see the Herald do something! What if … if this one is an impostor.” The man turns towards the others, throwing his arms in the air. “Bring forward proof that you are not here to ruin our lands, but to actually serve in the Goddess’ name!”

    This time his demand meets less resistance. Until now people were fine with seeing you and the Crest, but to want actual prove? You could easily threaten them and ask if they doubt the Goddess’ decision, but you’d rather leave that method to Rhea. You don’t want to sound like her. You don’t want to scare people. Yet admitting that you don’t really have a clue how to really use the Crest would surely support the man’s accusation. Diminishing the people’s trust in the Herald is the last thing you want, especially if it means facing Rhea’s scorn.

    “I—”

    “Herald!” A voice calls from the top of the stairs. When you turn around, Sylvain waves and jogs downstairs, looking like he’s been running for some time. “There you are. The Archbishop wants to see you.”

    Oh no, has she heard of your failure already? Giving the choice of facing a group of doubting people or Rhea, you’d immediately go to the people. You give him a curt nod, unable to speak because you don’t trust your voice.

    “I apologise,” you say to the pilgrims, clearing your throat when it comes out as a croak. “I will have something prepared for another time.”

    “No, you do not need to prove anything to us,” the elderly woman says. “We will always believe in you. Please tell Her Grace we are constantly praying to our Goddess and thank her for sending you to us.”

    “I will.” You squeeze her hand a last time. “Save travels.”

    The man still glares at you, but without a chance to keep you present any longer, he turns away and follows the rest. You can’t wait to leave all that behind, and as you steel your nerves for what’s waiting for you in the Audience Chambers, you look up to Sylvain and ask, “Did Lady Rhea say what it is about?”

    He looks over at you and blinks a couple of times, then seems to remember. “Ah ... yeah, about that. I lied.”

    You stop dead in your tracks. “You lied?”

    “Yup. I don’t know what Lady Rhea’s doing. But you looked like you were about to puke at those poor pilgrim’s shoes. As hilarious as that would have been, I wanted to spare you the embarrassment.” He stops now as well and smiles a boyish crooked grin. Sylvain knows exactly what to do with his face so girls fall over themselves to do him a favour, and boys grow jealous of all the attention he gets. Two weeks in, and you’ve figured out his game, keeping a respectable distance that wouldn’t birth the thought you’re avoiding him. In fact, this could be the very first time you’re actually holding a real conversation.

    “Well, I … thank you? But I had everything under control.”

    He looks like he doesn’t believe you. The gatekeeper you’re just passing looks like he doesn’t believe you. You press your lips into a thin line and dare any of them to disagree.

    “Okay.” Sylvain shrugs. “But now we’re here.”

    “Sylvain, what do you want?”

    “Cutting to the chase, huh?” He crosses his arms behind his head. “Why do you think I want something?” Your raised eyebrows seem to be answer enough. Sylvain laughs a little helplessly and returns his hands back to his front, raised as an offer of peace. “I promise, I want nothing. Just a little talking. A little talking hasn’t hurt anyone.”

    Something inside you wants to argue against it, but without a solid argument in hand, you follow him silently, wondering where his destination and intention lies. He belongs to the many students you can’t really read, nothing about his ambitions or goals. Sometimes he gives you this strange look through half lidded eyes, his gaze focused on your right eye—his interest in your Crest undeniable, and yet he’s been one of the few not to talk about it with you. It’s strange because whenever you come together, he looks like there’s something he’s dying to say. This time is no different.

    He leads you to the wooden pavilion in the gardens, but instead of offering you a seat, Sylvain leans his slim hips against the table, half sitting on it. Seteth would be furious seeing this.

    “How’s the Herald business doing for you?” he asks the one question you wouldn't expect from him. “Other than you having ‘everything under control.’” He has the audacity to air-quote. This isn’t a conversation you want to hold right now, leastwise with him. Sylvain must discern that you’re ready to bold from whatever your body is showing. With a quick step, he’s standing between you and the escape route, lazily leaning one arm against a column to uphold the illusion that you’re only having a pleasant talk when in reality his body stands between you and your freedom.

    “Do you talk to the other faculty members like that as well?” you say through gritted teeth, crossing your arms. Sylvain blinks like he doesn’t understand, but you’ve seen this act before, followed by an eerily precise repetition of a subject to one of his classmates when he thinks none of the teachers pay attention. Sylvain is playing dumb and deliberately hiding a sharp mind.

    “Oh, I didn’t mean to offend,” he quickly says, nothing about this crooked smile appearing apologetic whatsoever. “I’m generously curious. You’re holding up really good.”

    “In comparison to what?” you demand, your heartbeat picking up. Is he trying to call you out on something? That you aren’t heraldy enough? But to your surprise, Sylvain looks genuinely surprised by your reaction.

    “To nothing. In general?” He shrugs. “Back on the ceremony day, you didn’t look so good standing up there, and His Highness told us everything happened really uh … ‘suddenly.’’ More air-quotes, whatever they mean this time.

    “If you mean I wasn’t really asked to become the Herald, then yes.” Your arms drop back to your side. “It was suddenly.”

    Sylvain watches you for a moment, and again, there’s this look in his eyes; the need to say something he can’t. He kneads the back of his nape, avoiding your eyes. “All I’m trying to say is … having that Crest out of nothing is cool. Probably. And maybe terrifying? And just—”

    You grow impatient. “Come on, get the words out, Sylvain.”

    “A Crest isn’t just this nice letter of invitation to a privileged life. Just take care, is all I’m saying.”

    And there’s another page to the book of surprises with Sylvain’s name on it. The immediate lack of response catches him off guard; it’s like he only notices now that the vital part to understand this conversation is missing: The source of his doubt towards Crests.

    Sylvain’s body turns in a split second, his feet facing the direction he’s ready to bold towards, but this time you stand in his way and block him off. “Sylvain, are you okay?”

    He blinks in confusion, then furrows his eyebrows in deep thought like you demanded he recites the Ten Heroes from memory or else fails classes. His face contorts with the effort of looking fine. “Why, yes! Just peachy. Why would you think something is off?”

    “Because I have eyes in my skull.”

    “Very pretty eyes, if I dare say.” His answer comes out like a fire spell, hard and fast, seemingly more instinct than anything else. He clears his throat and scratches his chin, loosing momentum. “Goddess, I am bad at this.”

    “You are.” No need to sugar coat it. “If something happened, just say it.”

    “Nothing really happened, I just—” He exhales audibly and stares into space for a long minute, before side stepping you without difficulty. “Actually, I remembered Professor wanted to see me after class. Something about extra lessons about eh. Horse riding. Yeah. I’ll catch you later, Herald.” He winks and bolds away, darting under your outstretched arm before you can catch him. For someone this tall, he’s surprisingly agile and fast, already disappearing behind a tall hedge towards the main building.

    If that wasn’t the strangest conversation you’ve held with anyone, you don’t know what might excel that. Maybe it’s time you stop avoiding Sylvain.

    The Training Grounds smells of sweat and oil. Many students and knights train, which is surprising at this kind of hour, the short break between afternoon and evening classes. You’d like to know what they’re working on, but Byleth doesn’t tolerate inattention in a classroom or on the battle field, and demands you do push-ups each time your eyes wander somewhere off. You hate her a little for that. For whatever reason, Claude has taken on the role of your partner in crime, and does whatever necessary to make Byleth punish him as well.

    “What can I say, I like a good workout,” he said when you asked. He didn’t even try to hide his lie, looking as miserable as you felt. Probably hating Byleth a little as well.

    It’s the fourth week of private training with her and the house leaders, and so far you can definitely say that you were not meant to fight on the field. You see how your opponent moves, you can somehow predict what they’re going to do next—but your body simply protests to act accordingly. You stumble, you fall, you need a second too long to get up and before you can do anything, a training sword is at your throat. Byleth always looks like she wants to facepalm her fist through her forehead. Or yours.

    “Herald, this is not how you disarm someone,” she says, as always, and demonstrates it in one smooth, swift movement, as always. You blow hair out of your eyes, knowing you’re about to fail again. At least that gave Claude a reason to give you a new nickname, though if it’s better than the last is debatable.

    “You gotta twist your wrist, duckling!” he calls from the other side of the hall, immediately drawing Byleth’s attention to him. He and Dimitri are facing off, both wielding a spear which should give Dimitri the upper hand. So far, he hasn’t landed a single hit on Claude.

    “Keep your elbows in!” Byleth berates Claude. “Stop flapping them like some kind of chicken.”

    Claude lets out a disturbingly convincing cluck.

    You raise an eyebrow. “At least someone’s having fun.”

    Byleth sighs. “He’s going to get himself killed sooner than later.”

    “I don’t know. He’s managed so far, hasn’t he?”

    “I’m not sure if it’s a talent or a fault.” She turns back to you and nods her chin towards the side. “Take a break. I’m going to see how the boys are doing.”

    You nod, tensing all over because that’s where Edelgard is currently standing and picking out a training axe. You haven’t talked to her since lunch, and you can do without it for a couple more hours. She barely glances at you when you walk over, and instead checks out the edge of the wooden blade, turning it left and right.

    “Is she as strict in the classroom as in here?” you ask, unable to go on in awkward silence. Edelgard hums, throwing a quick glance towards Byleth from under her long, white lashes. “She’s systematic and consistent. Capable in both fields. I have no reason to raise any kind of complaint.”

    “That’s impressive.” You sure as heck still wouldn’t want her as a teacher. “Even though she’s been pushed into all this, she handles it like she’s never done anything else.”

    “I think as a mercenary, she is used to changing approaches depending on the employer.” Edelgard is still looking at Byleth. Reading her expression is impossible, and you don’t want to point out that sticking a sword into thieves and bandits is not the same as teaching kids how to fight in a battle. Her head whips to you suddenly, and she considers the training sword in your hand. “Speaking of different approaches,” she continues, “have you considered that your field of combat might be magic?”

    You have, so the answer comes immediately. “Chances are higher I set myself on fire.” You stare at her. “I didn’t mean it to rhyme.”

    Edelgard ignores your last comment. “But you haven’t really tried it out, have you?” Your lack of response is answer enough for her, and she nods like that proves a point.

    It’s complicated. You haven’t really tried it out because … the simple answer is, you’re afraid. It gets tricky once you try to search for the answer to that. There’s just a strange sensation when you try to use magic, like there’s a vast sea of possibilities and one step inside is enough to get you lost. It isn’t as bad with wind spells or white magic. You haven’t touched Fire spells because a crippling fear chills you to the bones every time you manage to nourish a small flame inside your palm—the complete opposite to Dark magic. When you tried a MiasmaΔ for the first time it felt strangely … secure. The rope tying you to a shore, it had felt like—

    There’s a loud crash when the spears collide and Claude knocks Dimitri off his feet. The whole room is silent as everyone watches how Claude taps the blunt end of his practice spear against Dimitri’s chin. “Steady on there, darling,” he says with a smug grin. Dimitri flushes bright red, and pushes with more force than necessary the spear away, quickly climbing to his feet.

    “That wasn’t bad.” Byleth quickly steps in before Dimitri can throttle Claude. “Dimitri, you rely too much on your brute strength. That’s a big disadvantage against someone like Claude. And you, young man,” she turns to Claude who’s been smiling victoriously, “are scheming too much and lose time to take action. In a serious battle, you won’t be as lucky as today.”

    “Noted.” Claude whirls his spear from left to right, almost dropping it when Dimitri drills his elbow into his side. “But in a serious battle, I won’t be upfront. I’ll be hanging back nicely, and skewing my enemies with a myriad of arrows.”

    “You can barely shoot three at the same time,” Dimitri grumbles, his cheeks still splotched with red specks.

    “You wanna bet—”

    “That’s enough, guys, save it for then next round.” Byleth ignores their sulky expressions and turns to you, raising a single eyebrow. The message is clear. What are you waiting for?

    Your feet feel like they’re glued to the ground. Edelgard doesn’t hesitate at all. “Let’s go.”

    She strides in the middle, training axe raised. It’s made out of wood, but you don’t doubt that she’s able to severe a limb from your body if she only tries hard enough—and what you know of Edelgard is that she alwaysexceeds even her own expectations. You grip your sword tighter. It’s a clear disadvantage, but better than anything else you can handle. Maybe it won’t be as bad.

    The fight lasts for about seven seconds. The moment you raise the blade, Edelgard is on you and unleashes fierce strike after strike, the power behind each hit forcing you back. She doesn’t bat an eyelash when she easily disarms you, the wooden sword flying over your heads and the edge of her axe on your throat. Somewhere behind her, you hear Byleth sigh. “Again.”

    The next hour is torture. Edelgard throws you to the ground, again and again. Byleth keeps telling you to get up, again and again. One might think they would cut you some slack, being the Herald and all, but it feels like Edelgard is so much more aggressive today because you’re the Herald. Or maybe it’s personal. Maybe she’s appointed you to be her sworn enemy, and won’t miss out any chance to make it as hard as possible for you.

    This isn’t fun. Being watched by Dimitri and Claude, who whisper conspiratorially to each other isn’t fun. Luckily, Byleth notices them gawking and bellows them to focus on working on their stances. Right now, you’re thankful nothing escapes her eyes and she calls her students out on their bullshit. It doesn’t make your current situation easier though. Every muscle burns, just raising the sword is exhausting and your feet feel like they’re about to give out any second. This must be hell.

    When Byleth finally ends lessons, you ignore everything and crumble to the ground, splaying your limbs out in all directions. Surely they can clean up without you, two hands less will barely make any difference.

    A shadow settles over you. You know who it is, and don’t bother to open your eyes. “Go away, Byleth. I don’t want to hear how bad I am.”

    “Personally, I think you have improved, Herald.” Your eyes snap open. Dimitri looks down at you, his forehead still glistening from perspiration. “But facing Edelgard as an opponent usually wields those results. Don’t let it bother you.”

    You want to point out that he and Claude don’t seem to have as much problems as you, even though yes, none of them have defeated her yet in practice. He goes down to your level and sits beside you, and you hate how this all barely made him breath hard, like it’s just a stroll around the monastery whereas you’re trying to climb the mountains surrounding it.

    “I think she hates me,” you blurt out. Luckily, most students have already left the hall, Edelgard included. Dimitri considers this a moment, and you don’t know what to make of his lack of immediate response.

    “I doubt she hates you,” he finally says.

    “But?”

    “But she has a hard time warming up to people. Give her time. Once the ice is broken, you will see that her personality is one you’d like to have around.”

    “Oh?” You watch him for a moment, but Dimitri doesn’t blush or look away. It was a heartfelt, sincere statement, which flusters you for some reason. No one should be that honest.

    “Talking about breaking ice. Do you know if something happened to Sylvain?”

    “Sylvain?” Dimitri raises both eyebrows. “Please don’t tell me he harassed you in some kind of way.”

    “No, no, he just—” You finally get up from lying on your back, and try to explain it by frantically moving your hands. Dimitri still looks puzzled. “He said some weird things about Crests in general?”

    “Hm.” Dimitri stares at your hands for a moment, then quickly raises his eyes back to your face. “It’s complicated.” Well, that answer is as good as none. “And I won’t go into details without his consent. I can only say that if he talked about Crests, in whichever way, his brother must have upset him again.”

    “He has a brother?” Now you’re wide awake. Many students have siblings. You know of Hilda’s brother and Raphael’s sister. It shouldn’t surprise you Sylvain has one as well even though he’s never mentioned it before.

    “Do you have siblings?” you ask, generously curious. As heir to a kingdom, it’s hard to imagine his parents would have settled with one child. But he hasn’t mentioned any sisters or brothers as well.

    “Hmm, I have a step-sister,” he says, although very hesitant and you can see if someone doesn’t want to talk about a specific topic. He doesn’t return the question, which is kind of him and makes you wonder … maybe you have a sibling as well. Somewhere. Maybe somewhere in Adrestia or Leicester a younger brother or an older sister is currently looking for you, unrelenting in their journey to be reunited at last. The thought alone brings a flicker of hope alive. Maybe they'll come once word of the Herald’s return travels far enough.

    “I guess as long as Sylvain doesn’t disturb classes or acts out of order, I would leave him to his brooding. I can tell out of experience, only Felix is capable of cheering him up.”

    “Felix?” Your eyebrows rise to your hairline. “Are we talking about the same Felix?”

    A smile forms on Dimitri’s mouth. “I understand why imagining that might prove difficult, but I assure you, Felix is one of the view exceeding in handling the mess Sylvain is from time to time.”

    “Felix and Ingrid?” you guess, earning a nod from Dimitri. “Ingrid is a very nice girl,” you continue, picking at a loose thread from your uniform. “But Felix seems detests me. Every time he sees me, he looks like he wants to throw his sword at me.”

    “That is—” Dimitri stops mid-sentence. “That might be not so far off from his true intentions.”

    You groan.

    “But I assure you it is for a different reason than you think. Felix is simply … difficult with people holding a commanding position.”

    “He doesn’t seem to have the same problem with Byleth,” you point out. No, whenever he trains with her, he manages something close to a smile and accepts her guidance. Then again, she isn’t his teacher.

    “I’m sure you’ll be able to make him consider his opinion on you during the Mock Battle. I as well am looking forward to how you will guide us.” Dimitri beams. You stare at him like he’s just lost his head.

    “What?”

    “The Mock Battle three nights from today?” Dimitri’s smile falters a little. “Have the Professor and Lady Rhea not told you yet? You are to participate in the Mock Battle as the commanding unit of the Blue Lions.” Now he’s pulling his eyebrows together in worry. “Herald?”

    “I—” You jump to your feet. “I have to go.” Go far far away. Just yesterday you introduced the students to the tactic called Feigned Withdrawal, which involves staging a retreat in order to induce the enemy to abandon its position and plunge ahead in an attack. Dimitri abandons his position, getting up to go after you, but instead of turning back to surprise him with an ambush, you flee the battle and hope the enemy doesn’t pursue.

[pedropascalssimp]

My brain is literally VOID. I can't come up with any fic ideas for our boi Quinlan Vos. So I copy this promp list! Send me a number for Vos (or anyone else from star wars you'd like to read about! Clones included!) and I'll write anything or anyone!

Caution: it's only a fluff or angst ordeal because I don't write *cough cough* smut.

Also this IS NOT my own prompt list, I only copy a few things from someone else's, this account to be specific. @thesinfulmockingbird I hope you don't mind 👉👈

“You're hair is really soft after you wash it”

“You're an idiot” “but I'm you're idiot”

“take my hand, just trust me”

“why are you scared of loving?”

“I told you to take care of yourself”

“You're the only thing that matters”

“stay”

“would it be alright if I barrow you're sweater? It smells like you”

“I might of slept with you're robe while you were gone”

“if you steal the blankets, I'm putting my cold feet on you”

“you are very endearing when you're half asleep”

“but I want to hear you sing”

“don't get up — I'll do it!”

“You're bed head is really cute”

“how about a kiss?”

“aw, you're blushing”

“uh oh I know that look, what do you want?”

“I don't want to forget this moment”

“are you really flirting with me right now?”

“I like the way you're hand fits in mine”

“you have something in you're hair, hmmm... Want me to get it out?”

“it's nice that you're voice is the first thing I heard this morning”

“wait don't pull away, not yet”

“No like, I can't believe you're wearing my clothes”

“I've been trying to get ready for like an hour and a half, because I know you're going to look so good and I need to try match up”

“I wanted to say "I love you" for the first time without stuttering, but that failed”

“my friends get so annoyed by how much I talk about you sometimes”

“you are so beautiful, so kriffing beautiful”

“And just where do you think you're putting you're hands?”

“I love you in every possible way”

“Don't you dare hurt a single hair on (her/he/they're) head”

“Shh, you're safe. I won't let you go”

“It's not a double date, we're just third and fourth wheeling”

“look, I know we don't know each other that well, but I'm still worried about you. No one deserves to be alone”

“I remember practicing how to ask you out in the mirror...”

“is that my shirt?” “you mean our shirt”

“home stopped being a place when you entered my life”

“you should probably go home” “but I'm already home”

“you took all the pillows, so I'm using you as one”

“could you say that again?” “were you not listening?” “No I was, I just like hearing you're voice”

“can you just hold me?”

“I'm pretty sure y/n is my soulmate”

“I haven't seen (he/her/they) smile like that in ages”

“You're really warm”

“can I stay here tonight?”

“I've been in love with you since we were kids”

“I couldn't get you out of my mind”

“You're just a softie”

“you owe me” “fine, whatever you want”

“You're crushing me right now”

“darling I love you and all, but please step out of the kitchen”

Angst prompt list

“I love (he/her/they) and I know I shouldn't”

“why do you keep lying to me?”

“we both know I should walk away, but I can't”

“You're safe here, I got you”

“if you go, I'll know you never loved me”

“she was crying because you”

“nothing has changed!” “yes it has and you know it”

“love isn't supposed to hurt this badly”

“we're never going to have a happy ending, just remember that”

“every time something goes will, I momentarily forget how much I despise you”

“I can't keep this secret from you anymore”

“I don't hate you. I hate how after all this time, you're still trying to lie to me”

“I remember when (he/she/they) used to look at me like that”

“what you're doing is going to kill you one day”

“You're mind must be a horrible place”

“I didn't think you'd wait forever, I just hoped...”

“did you always know you were going to leave?”

“we grew apart, and at this point I'm glad”

“I'm leaving” “of course you are, that's all you know to do”

“did it mean anything to you? Did I mean anything to you?”

“how was I such an idiot to believe you, out of people, could ever love me”

“don't look at me like that” “like what?” “like you still love me”

“let me go”

“I loved you, I loved you so much. But you hurt me”

“they warned me about this”. “about what?” “you”

“you deserve so much better”

Feel free to give any of these numbers! 😊