#hoping this happens before we're hit by the angst train

[asfodelle]

The first time old Xian blesses up with an in-story panel of Mo with a big bright smile, we're gonna lose half the troops in here.

[dustofthedailylife]

You were not supposed to hear that...yet

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Pairing: Alhaitham x (gn!) Reader

Summary: Alhaitham reveals a secret about the inner workings of his heart to his friends over a cup of wine and in between some banter. However, he did not expect it would go this wrong...

Tags: Fluff, crack, comfort, teasing, consumption of alcohol (by characters), the whole 4ggravate crew is here, friendly banter between friends, a small sprinkle of angst because reader is insecure (but it's unjustified)

A/N: Dust posting a new fic?! Not an April Fool's joke, despite the date! Finally felt inspired and well enough again to finish this fic that has been rotting in my WIPs forever. I hope you like it. And feel free to hit me up with asks and reblogs - it'd motivate me greatly after my long break 🥺

The usual friend group of Cyno, Kaveh, Tighnari, and him - Alhaitham, was sitting at the Tavern. A gathering like it happened almost every weekend at this point.

The wine bottle on the table had been emptied around two or three times already when Kaveh ordered a new one yet again. At this point, Alhaitham had actually lost count of how many glasses of wine he'd already had, too. But one thing was for certain, he could feel the alcohol in his system and the warm blood that was rushing to his cheeks. All things considered though, despite feeling a little tipsy from the intoxication, he was still able to think clearly.

"Let me guess I'm the one who will have to end up covering your bill again?" He took sarcastic a jab at Kaveh. 

The man in question just squinted his eyes and glared daggers at him before opening his mouth in an attempt to protest before it was quickly shot down by Tighnari's hand covering it.

Alhaitham leisurely leaned back in his chair smirking to himself, training his focus back onto the TCG cards in his hands and considering his next turn of action in the game he was playing against Cyno.

"What, am I just supposed to take it all the time and be quiet?!" Kaveh retorted, directed at Tighnari. The fox's ears were beginning to droop lower and lower as his expression became more and more deadpan.

"You all know as well as I do that if [Y/N] was here he wouldn't be acting like this. He would be on his best behavior and pay for the drinks without so much as complaining or being so cocky."

"By the way," Tighnari attempted to divert the attention away from Kaveh's ranting. "Where are they? Didn't you say they wanted to stop by the Tavern as well today, Alhaitham?"

Alhaitham played his round, throwing his card Cyno's way before looking up at Tighnari again.

"They mentioned it but I suppose something must've come up instead. I will ask tomorrow."

"Isn't it strange?" Kaveh addressed the others. "Whenever it involves [Y/N] he graciously offers himself up to talk to them and seek them out but whenever someone else is looking for him he is nowhere to be found."

"Maybe you just can't find me because I simply don't have anything to discuss with you." Alhaitham threw another jab at Kaveh with a smirk, which was promptly followed by a light punch against his bicep by the blonde architect.

"What? I constantly have to talk to you already when we're at ho-"

"SHHH! Don't say that out loud." Kaveh hissed, quickly covering Alhaitham's mouth in panic, since he didn’t want him to spell out that they were currently living together. “It's embarrassing enough that I currently have no other choice, no need to add to my misery.”

A witty quip was burning at the tip of Alhaitham's tongue after Kaveh's remark yet again, but he decided to swallow it. He didn't want to upset him too much, especially since he knew he'd had it rough lately. Even if it would've been said in jest, there was no need to add insult to injury. Instead, he simply resorted to taking another sip of his wine with a low chuckle and a glance in the blonde architect’s direction.

“Aaaaanyway…”, Tighnari cleared his throat, addressing Alhaitham once more. “What is it between [Y/N] and you anyway? You've become quite close haven't you?”

“That's an understatement.” Kaveh groaned, dropping his head on his folded arms on the table dramatically. “He can't stop talking about them. Day in and day out it’s [Y/N]-this, [Y/N]-that.”

“We started working on a project about six months ago. Things are progressing quite smoothly if I do say so myself. Certainly makes things easier if you're working with someone who is both hardworking and intelligent in every way. I’ve been lucky to have been assigned to the project with them.” Alhaitham answered Tighnari’s question rationally while ignoring Kaveh’s dramatic display.

“Here he goes again.” Kaveh huffed, directing his comment at Cyno and Tighnari. “Whenever he talks about them you hear nothing but praises.”

“If someone is doing a great job, is it not logical to give them the credit they deserve?” Alhaitham added matter of factly.

“No… I mean yes, but no. It's just not something I'd see you doing. It’s so out of character.” Kaveh huffed. “And before you say anything, yes, maybe I just don't know that side of you because I don't give you any reason to praise me. No need to add that, thank you.”

Kaveh poked his tongue out at Alhaitham before taking a big sip from his wine.

“Why, if you want to be praised you just need to say so, Kaveh. I think you're quite brilliant - your shortcomings aside.” He just had to add that last bit. Kaveh was just way too easy to tease. And what would this friend group be without the playful banter and jabs at each other?

Kaveh choked on the drink immediately and slammed his cup down onto the table with a loud clang. A fire burned behind his crimson eyes when he spoke next.

“This is exactly what I meant, thanks for proving my point!”

Kaveh looked at Cyno and Tighnari gesturing in the direction of Alhaitham with a move that said “Do you see what I mean now?”.

Tighnari just facepalmed and shook his head.

“And what is your point exactly?” Cyno inquired, playing a card from his hand.

“Did you not listen to what he said?” Kaveh gasped.

“Not really,” Cyno admitted honestly, his eyes trained back on the cards in his hands.

“It's the fact that he can praise others too, but never without also pointing out their faults in the same sentence. Did no one ever notice that? However, he never does that when it's [Y/N].” Kaveh explained.

“And?” Tighnari and Cyno replied in unison, looking puzzled as to where Kaveh wanted to go with this.

Kaveh put his head in his hand and groaned in frustration. “Sometimes you all make me feel like I am surrounded by idiots.”

Now everyone raised their eyebrows at him.

“You're all so clueless… anyway.” He sighed dramatically and accusingly pointed a finger at Alhaitham. “This guy. This admittedly handsome but blockheaded, know-it-all, stoic, annoying-”

“Get to the point.” Alhaitham chided, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Fine, fine." Kaveh spread his arms like he was holding a presentation and Alhaitham his canvas.

“This guy's right here, as alien as it may sound – has fallen in love.” 

“You're in love?!” Cyno exclaimed his eyes widening. “With who?!”

Tighnari rolled his eyes, knowing full well Cyno hadn't listed at all the past ten minutes because he had been so absorbed in his cards, and gently slapped the back of his head.

“[Y/N], of course!” The Forest Ranger exclaimed with a huff.

Cyno, now rubbing the back of his head just ushered a “Wait really?” while Kaveh and Tighnari just curiously began eyeing Alhaitham in the hope of seeing any type of confirmation on his face. However, it stayed as unreadable as ever.

He nonchalantly took another sip of wine from his cup while leisurely looking back and forth between the cards on the table and the ones in his hand before playing another turn as if this conversation just now hadn't happened.

“So!?” Kaveh asked, almost hysterically at this point. “Do you intend to enlighten us?”

Just how had he gotten into this situation now? Alhaitham suppressed a sigh before turning to Cyno: “Your turn. Two of your cards are down.”

“Archons!” Cyno cussed, immediately attempting to go back to study his cards but a fist slammed the table harshly, drawing all attention to it.

Tighnari flinched in shock and Cyno, too seemed to be pulled back to reality. Kaveh’s hand was trembling slightly, visibly agitated.

“Stop changing the subject, Alhaitham. The more you keep avoiding answering the question the more I think I am right in my assumptions.”

Alhaitham pinched the bridge of his nose beginning to truly feel a little stressed by Kaveh’s insistance. The man was truly too nosy for his good.

“Kaveh, just let it be if he doesn’t-” Tighnari began before being cut off by Alhaitham.

“And what if you are right? What then, Kaveh?”

Everyone at the table fell silent and everyone was staring at him with a mix of disbelief and shock.

He hadn't planned to reveal any of this yet, especially since he feared they would try to become his wingman. Which, admittedly, may be a nice gesture on paper but with them it could only end in disaster. Plus he would prefer to deal with his feelings alone first and think them through thoroughly, before talking about them with anyone. Besides, it should be you, if anyone, who should hear about them first - alas he was too deep into this now to weasel his way out.

“What?!” Kaveh’s mouth hung open in shock.

“So it is true then?” Cyno inquired, putting the card in his hand down on the table, now suddenly fully hooked on the tea that was being spilled.

“Hold on. Pause.” Kaveh sat upright, before quickly gazing over Alhaitham’s shoulder. “So you-”

“For Archon’s sake.” Alhaitham was beginning to get annoyed because he didn't know how much clearer he had to become for them to get it. “Yes - I’ve been in love with them. For a while now-”

“Alhaitham-” Kaveh tried to interject.

“No, don't interrupt me now, you pestered me about it for the past twenty minutes now you'll have to listen. I have never met anyone who is so hardworking, intelligent, and stunning in any way. Of course, I would be infatuated with a person like them. It would be hard not to fall for them.”

“Uhm Alhai–” Kaveh laughed awkwardly before being interrupted by Alhaitham’s ongoing monologue once more.

“At first I wasn't sure about it but I am now. I am thinking about them first thing in the morning and last thing when I go to sleep - unless you're hammering away on some project again that keeps me awake, Kaveh.”

Kaveh waved for him to shut up already but Alhaitham didn't let that bother him. If he wanted the full story with all the details - he'd get it. He hoped that would get this discussion out of the way once and for all.

“And guess what? They even remembered how I liked my coffee just after I told them once and gifted me a book that I had been trying to find for weeks. So yes, Kaveh. I love [Y/N]. There, does that suffice now, or?”

Kaveh let out a squeal as soon as Alhaitham had stopped speaking but upon further inspection of his expression, it hadn't been one of excitement but rather pure terror and awkwardness. 

“Alhaitham…” Cyno and Tighnari said in unison and he only then noticed as well how their gaze was trained on a spot behind him.

“What?” Alhaitham inquired, curling a brow up in confusion before all three men pointed their fingers at something behind him.

When he turned his head around to look at what they were trying to show him, he felt his heart drop to his stomach for the first time in ages.

To his utter shock, you were standing right behind him. Or rather, you were frozen in place, your hand still half lifted in greeting as if you had just been about to greet the lot of them. Your mouth was slightly open in shock still and your pupils were but the size of pinpricks and transfixed on Alhaitham.

And judging by your reaction you must've heard every last word he had said.

“I-I…” You started stammering, clearly confused about what you had just heard. “I uh-, I'll head back home.”

You abruptly turned around on your heel and marched straight out the Tavern door you had just come through as if someone was chasing you.

Alhaitham hadn't moved a muscle ever since he had spotted you standing behind him and he looked like he was frozen in place. Everyone at the table had fallen so silent, one would've been able to hear a needle drop.

Alhaitham's eyes were still fixed on the door you had left through. The little bell that chimed every time the Tavern door hit it on the way in or out was still dangling lightly from the impact. But the movement was dying down slowly but surely - just like Alhaitham, who felt like someone had dropped a boulder on his chest.

You were not supposed to hear that, yet.

“You uh…, Alhaitham you should probably follow them.” Tighnari was the first to speak again. He awkwardly scratched behind his ears. Cyno hummed in agreement while Kaveh just sat there with his mouth wide open.

Alhaitham exhaled in frustration, unable to properly place his emotions. But they were somewhere between unsettled, nervous, and discomforted.

When he got up it felt like someone had tied heavy iron blocks to his ankles that were weighing him down.

“Yeah, I guess I do,”  Alhaitham muttered before marching off.

When you stormed outside the Tavern the cool evening breeze gnawed at your skin and made goosebumps erupt all over. Although you weren't quite sure if it was the temperature or your emotional turmoil at play here.

There was no way Alhaitham had just said that and actually meant it. He wouldn't be the type of man to flat-out admit that he had feelings for anyone. Or would he? He had been talking to his closest friends after all.

You were questioning your sense of reality and thought you must've fabricated it all in your mind. Or maybe you misheard what he said and he was talking about something else entirely.

But no, he said your name, and the others looked panicked when you entered the tavern and approached the table.

As you rushed through the streets of Sumeru City the chilly wind kept whipping in your face. Not even you knew where you were going at this point. You simply went where your feet were carrying you.

But eventually, you realized you had run up the Akademiya and to the blue-green mosaic pavilion that glistened in the last rays of sunlight. The spot at which you and Alhaitham often spent your lunch break together. 

You sunk down on the bench exhaustedly and stared holes in the ground.

No way.

There was just no way.

Alhaitham. The man you had fallen for so hard that he had begun to occupy every waking thought you had. That man was supposed to have feelings for you and had just flat-out admitted it?

No, this simply had to be a dream. A bad joke. Or maybe even a bet between the group that they orchestrated to prank you.

You could feel your heart thumping in your head and it felt like your head was swimming. It was as if you had downed an entire bottle of wine by yourself, but you were as sober as one could be.

Yes, that had to be it. It was a bet between the boys over one too many cups of wine and they had all acted their parts out flawlessly.

You got up again walking to the railing, overlooking Sumeru city that shone majestically in the last remaining rays of sunshine that the day had to offer. Another gush of wind blew your way, making tears well up in your eyes. Although it may have also been your emotions who were to blame for that instead.

You inhaled deeply. Once. Twice. But nothing seemed to help calming the rapidly beating heart in your chest.

In your daze, you completely missed how someone had quietly come up to the pavilion as well.

Alhaitham leaned against the railing himself, looking over the city in silence, too. He was clearly ringing for words. Although you assumed the wrong reason for his struggle.

“Look,” you began, trying your hardest to suppress the tremble in your voice. “If you came here to apologize - please, spare me your words.”

He looked at you opening his mouth before closing it again right after with a silent nod. His cheeks were dusted in a light pink shade - you assumed it was caused by the alcohol he had downed at the tavern with the others.

“I hope that we can go back to normal tomorrow and just finish our project. I’d prefer if we kept our distance after that. I think it’s for the best” The words left your mouth at normal speed, but it felt like you had to force every single one out. They felt tenacious, like old chewing gum that you tried to pull out from in between your teeth.

“I understand.” He stated calmly before retraining his gaze back into the distance. 

You both kept standing next to each other in silence for a long while before you decided to confront him about it directly. You eventually decided it was for the best if you got things off your chest now so that you could get over him quickly. Ripping it off like a band-aid would hopefully give you the relief you so desperately craved right now.

“You know,” you began. “I don’t know who came up with the idea and I also don’t care, no need to tell me. But you guys should never do this to anyone again because you never know how much it might end up hurting someone else’s feelings.”

Alhaitham stood upright and turned to face you directly. He crossed his arms over his chest and slightly cocked his head like he always did when he was thinking about something you said.

After a momentary pause, he asked: “What do you mean?”

“I mean that you shouldn’t toy with someone’s feelings as a prank. It’s never actually funny for anyone but the people who orchestrate such a prank. No matter if the other person reciprocates the feelings or whether they believe the statement, they always end up being the one who is being ridiculed.” You explained as rationally as possible, which was a stark contrast to the tempest that was raging both inside of your heart and mind.

“Especially when the person hoped to hear those exact words for the longest time, too…” You added. It wasn't more than an utterance under your breath - so quietly it was barely audible. But Alhaitham heard nonetheless.

“But I meant everything I said.” He stated matter of factly, seemingly catching on to the fact that you must’ve assumed the wrong things about the whole situation.

“What?! Alhaitham, please, there is no need to add insult to injury. You had your fun now–”

“No.” He gently took your hands in his, exhaling heavily. “Archons, you weren’t supposed to find out like this.”

He rarely swore which made the impact of his words even stronger.

“I wanted to tell you face to face and was waiting for the right moment to do so. But, just know that every word you heard and everything I said back at the tavern was the truth. No bet or scheme made me say it. Not that anyone would be able to make me say these things in the first place.” He sighed once more, giving your hands an emphasizing squeeze. “I meant it.”

“You did?”

“Every word.”

You felt the blood rush to your face and immediately lowered your gaze in an attempt to hide your flusteredness.

“Had I known this would happen, I would’ve told you everything right from the start. I don’t like how this went now but–”, he moved his hands up to cup your face. His beautiful turquoise eyes trained on no one but you. 

“I’m absolutely certain I like you. You drive me crazy. And I love and hate how much you occupy every waking thought of mine because I can’t focus on anything when you’re around. And when you’re not, you’re still always on my mind. So please – be mine.”

Do not repost, copy, translate or edit - © dustofthedailylife || reblogs, comments, and asks about Genshin or my fics are always greatly appreciated and motivate me! Maple dividers are mine - do not copy.

[rosenclaws]

congrats on 600 followers!!! so happy for you hun 💗 for your celebration, can i request “This will be the last time you lie to me.” with worst!logan?

warnings: reader is a human and doesn't know logan is a mutant

600 follower drabble masterlist

a/n: I'm recovering from arcane s2 act 2 but I love me some logan angst so I hope u enjoy!!

Hours. That's how long he made you wait. Again. Stuck at a restaurant getting pitiful looks from the waitstaff after your boyfriend stood you up. This was how many times now?

When you first met Logan you knew he wasn't your typical guy. He wasn't going to be that perfect boyfriend who you take home to your parents and you were okay with that. He worked construction and had a weird roommate. He held more alcohol than you thought a man could and he never seemed to get sick.

You knew who he was. Or you thought you did. You didn't expect big dates or grand gestures from Logan. He still made you happy. He loved you in his own Logan way. But when he promised you something you thought he'd be there.

Rain checking dates over and over without reason. At first it was fine but then it kept happening. He made up a variety excuses but you were fed up. He had work, family emergency, vet emergency. What isn't he telling you? All you wanted was for him to be honest.

You call the waiter over and pay for your side of fries. You weren't even hungry anymore. The rain is pouring down onto the pavement as you exit the restaurant.

You took the train here but they've stopped running by now. Normally Logan would pick you up because he hates when you take public transportation. You'd turn on the radio and he'd grumble about how bad the music of today is but you'll catch him humming along sometimes. You miss that. You tighten your jacket around you as you step into the pouring rain. Deciding to walk home tonight. The rain soaks your clothes to the bone. You're cold and shivering and you're just sad.

"What the hell are you doing?" A voice shouts at you through the rain. That's Logan. Heavy footsteps pound the towards you but you ignore them.

It doesn't take long for him to catch up to you. The rain stops and you look up to see an umbrella above you. The rain now hitting his clothes as he makes sure you're covered. He's all dressed up but it's too late.

"Do you have any idea how dangerous it for you to be out here?" You roll your eyes and ignore him. He doesn't stop following you.

"I'm sorry for missing our date." He watches your face, no change in your reaction.

"I was on my way I swear but the Wade called and I..."

"Enough!" You snap.

"Logan I like you, I really like you but you just keep lying!" You frustrated tears mix with the rain as you yell at him.

“This will be the last time you lie to me.” Logan catches your arm before you can storm off. He knows he's been a dick. He has been lying but not for the reason you think. He's trying to protect you.

"Sweetheart please, let me explain." He begs. You're the one good thing he's found and he won't lose you.

"I. I'm..." He can't find the words. How does he explain it all. You don't know who he is, what he is.

"Goodbye Logan."

"I'm a mutant!" He blurts out. "I. I'm an X-Man" Your eyebrows furrow in confusion. Of course you heard of the X-men. Who they were. But they're gone now. He can see you don't believe him so he holds his hands up. Claws shoot out of his knuckles making you gasp.

"Why wouldn't you tell me?" You gently run your fingers around the sharp blades.

"Destruction follows me wherever I go sweetheart. Mutants, we're never safe. I wanted to keep you safe and as selfish as it sounds I couldn't walk away from you." The claws slowly sink back into his skin. It heals up before your very eyes. Your hand cups his face, his eyes closing at your touch. He pulls you close. The umbrella shielding both of you from the rain now.

"I'm not afraid of you, or what being a mutant means Logan." You're human, you don't have any special powers or anything but you do know how to love and you love Logan.

"No more hiding okay." You grab his hand and he takes it, thanking whatever power that you're still here. He doesn't have to hide who he is, you're not afraid.

[ilyuu-archive]

right where you left me.

synopsis : it takes years to build up feelings and memories that means the world to you and him, and it all takes one evening for it to break down and leave nothing but time standing still and a relationship that could've been. (or you recall the night you broke up with kazuha, thinking it all over again.)

tags : angst/no comfort, modern!au, childhood friends to lovers to strangers, mentions of getting high, light swearing, ambiguous ending.

wc : 2500+! (2635.)

a/n : and yes this is all based off of taylor swift’s right where you left me from perse!! along with that, please do excuse any grammar and formatting mistakes

for the saudade event by the all amazing and angsty creative @soleillunne! the first half is written by the wielder of cat pics, @https-furina, and the second half from yours truly. ready your tissues because in spite of the beautiful and vivid wording from verse, it hurts (in a good way, of course)! nonetheless, i hope you'd enjoy this as much as i did! <3

also, perse, thank you; i had so much fun writing this! the possibilities were endless for me, and reading your part when trying to get a feel for this story made me roll up in a corner and cry (not actually though, so don't worry about me, hehe),,

There's idle chatter and the faint clinking of cutlery and wine glasses, almost drowned out by the harsh winds and rain that batters the restaurant's dimmed windows.

The lights are soft and subdued yet hold a warmth that hugs every living being inside the building - some sheltering from the rainstorm, others rekindling with their lovers or families. That should be you, rekindling with a lover that was never yours in the first place.

To your left, you hear the gossip of two friends; a couple in their friend group recently broke up, "good riddance," one girl chirps, "she deserves better than him." The conversation promptly shifts to that of one regarding marriage and weddings. What would you have looked like on that fateful day with white veil and a glittering ring on your finger, the thought makes you grimace.

"What a sad sight," an elderly woman whispers to her husband from where they're settling at a table not too far away, she's gazing at you with a sorrowful look, "poor girl."

The words shift a small crack of a smile onto your face - is that truly how you looked to the unknowing bystanders around you? Did they think you'd been stood up on a first date?

If only.

The more you stare at the empty, red crushed velvet chair in front of you, the more the realisation starts to hit even harder than before that he isn't going to magically turn up, dressed ever so handsomely in smart casual attire with his silver hair in its usual messy ponytail.

You hadn't seen his face since that night, how pained he seemed as he watched you smash the empty wine glass adorning your table, his eyes trained on the way it shatters into a million pieces on the white cloth. It was almost a perfect metaphor for your heart at that exact moment.

"You know we're here because we need to talk, right?" His voice is familiar, nostalgic almost as he places his blazer over the back of his chair. He hasn't changed since you were children, sneaking after school to the nearest McDonalds until your curfew, "y/n.."

"Do we have to talk?" You respond quickly with a sharp tongue, your hands shaking as you find anything to do with them, this even includes unfolding and folding the napkin in front of you repeatedly. Conversations are whispered all around you, some followed by short laughter.

Kazuha almost winces at the tone of your voice but he knows it's deserved. You had been friends since you could remember, joined at the hip no matter what happened. Your mothers always commented that you were inseparable, never found without the other close behind - so how did it come to this?

It came to this because you had became attached, craving his presence at all times even as you went to university. You wanted him and nobody else could even remotely compete with the man that Kaedehara Kazuha had grown into somehow from that clumsy toddler you'd wrapped around your chubby fingers all those years ago.

For a while, the rebellious teen thought the exact same about you. He would ponder over the hours the two of you spent together in his dorm room, sharing a joint as you forget the stress of the exam season you'd just barely managed to survive.

He would reflect on the nights he'd carry you on his back, taking you back to your dorm after an exceptionally rough night clubbing with your friend group, who always roped you into unbelievable scenarios.

He had expressed his concerns over your friend group more than once but you had shrugged him off, flashing him that playful smile he couldn't get enough of. "It's fine, Kaz," you reassure him as you apply a layer of mascara to your eyelashes, "we only live once, right?" When you'd responded with that, Kazuha initially thought 'yeah, we do.'

Nights under star scattered skies sharing joints would only last so long, after all Kazuha was at university to study business management, the heir to his father's publishing company. With this future responsibility came the family reputation and the eventual arranged marriage to another rich family - that was a criteria that you had never fit in and pre-emptively, you never would.

"You know it's not my decision, y/n," His voice is almost breaking when he takes the seat in front of you, clammy hands clasped together in front of him on the clothed table. You scowl a little, it had never been his choice, had it? "we should seen this coming."

"We?" You repeat, narrowing your eyes at him, "you - you should have seen this coming."

Kazuha lets out an exasperated sigh, closing his eyes for a moment as he listens to the bustle of the restaurant around the pair of you. He starts to consider that a restaurant was not the best location to be having a lover's quarrel.

When he reopens his eyes, they fall to you across the table. Your eyes are glittering like the chandelier that hangs from the ceiling in the centre of the room and he can almost make out the tears starting to pool in the corners of your eyes.

"I never wanted to hurt you, you know that, right?" For some reason, those words hurt your heart more than he most likely intended.

They feel like knives, sharpened daggers that plunge deep into your most fatal organ and tear it apart in ways that Kazuha would never be able to grasp. In that moment, you nearly wish that you could inflict this kind of pain on him so he could feel how your heart ached at that exact time or how the tears stung at your eyes, blurring your vision to the point where you could barely make his figure out.

Even with a singular tear running its uneven path down your cheek, you find the chance to smile, turning your gaze away from him as you let out a soft, pained laugh.

"If that's true, you should have known it would have hurt less for you to have turned me down instead of giving me a chance like you did." Your words bite at Kazuha more than you would ever know.

He hides the way his nails press into his skin, digging into it so hard they leave red, crescent moon marks and almost draw blood. Kazuha chews down on his tongue, the metallic taste of his blood flooding his mouth when he conveniently suddenly finds it hard to swallow, leaving him to succumb to the consequences of his own actions.

His mouth is dry when he opens his mouth to speak but words don't come out, just a simple exhale as he processes the back and forth argument that will continue for the rest of the night, "I've met her already."

"And? Is she nice?" You reply shortly, holding your tongue. There are thoughts running through your mind, hundreds in tens of seconds that you can't even grasp yourself. His family was wasting no time in selling this marriage to the media, gaining that social coverage they crave as socialites.

Kazuha lets out a small hum as if the energy had suddenly shifted back to normal between you.

"She's alright," Kazuha starts and you part your lips to speak, quick witted and sharp but Kazuha holds a hand up, silencing you before he continues, "but she isn't you."

"No, you don't get to get to pull that shit now, Kazuha," you laugh, it's bittersweet and causes Kazuha to visibly wince, "you damn well don't get to say shit like that anymore."

Kazuha's ruby eyes fall to how you are gripping an empty wine glass on the table, one that was supposed to be filled with a dark red liquid by now, its fruity taste becoming bitter on your tongues.

You have every right to be angry with him and Kazuha is drowned in remorse when he catches your knuckles turning white before the stem of the wine glass cracks in your palm, dropping the bowl of the glass onto the white cloth decorating the table as it shatters into sharp, broken shards.

The visual of glass breaking causes you to blink quickly, suddenly back to reality as you realise you're gripping at your phone in your hand with almost the same strength you'd put into the wine glass that night. Your muscles relax, leaning forward on the table as you rest your head in your hands.

It’s time to go.

So? There’s nothing much you can do now, and as much as it leaves such a bittersweet taste on your tongue that you can’t bother to swallow at all, it’s as much as the truth. Not as if some miracle can fly across the sky and everything will end in a happily ever after like in a fairytale. To rely on that, really, is desperation (is it really?) as its finest. Or maybe that’s your feelings talking. Maybe that’s just the lifetime worth of memories you held with him, sweeter and lighter than this entire evening has been, that’s making you want to hold onto that thin, fragile string of hope that means nothing in the grand scheme of things.

You feel your chest ache, a familiar feeling lately that you’d rather disappear, fade, or just… vanish. Really. Just anything to make this go away; it’s more of a reminder than anything that makes it twinge whenever you run through that night in your head too many times to count, each small detail almost nothing, a blur, when all you see is the way Kazuha looked at you. Pained? Helpless? A combination of something you couldn’t pin on in the midst of your own heated thoughts?

You wipe the corner of your eyes with each hand, your warm palms something of a comfort. Not the time.

A moonless night bears witness to the two of you lying atop of the roof of your apartment complex, years felt like days, from your school days, with how clear the memory of Kazuha looking over to you with such adoration swirling in his eyes along with the faint stars.

Your shoulders start to tremble.

The embrace of a familiar warmth wrapping around your waist, the blanket slipping onto the floor from the edge of the couch nothing compared to the comfort seeping into your skin.

Muted colors play across the two of you from the movie - it’s nothing but a backdrop anymore as you find yourself a bit more focused on his hand, your fingers wrapped in his, the pad of your thumb lightly caressing the back of his. You feel his breath, a huff, waft over your neck from that.

You try to let go of a sigh. It only comes out as a broken whimper.

His lips shifting against yours, soft, so sweet, as quiet sounds are shared between two of you. His shallow sighs of your name dripping with every nights’ worth of what ifs, every waking days’ worth of thoughts that crossed and blurred a line between friends and something more.

A chance, a hope, a dream - all of it was woven into the few words Kazuha murmured against your lips, over and over, bounding it with you in his hope that it’d make it real.

You know it all meant something to Kazuha.

Every mote of sand of time that fell within the two of you meant something to him, cherished it close and closer to his heart than anything else. You know that much. It was obvious - so obvious, too obvious - in every word he said that carried gravity and care to you, in every act he’s ever done for you for the sake of making you smile. It hurts, it hurts, it hurts.

He loved you. Kazuha loves you in every sense of the word. It was only that very love that led to this, as much as the two of you shared in it. This is the best for the two of you.

You know that, and he, of all people, especially knows that. It meant something to him, and so he just had to go ahead and say yes, let you into a world that was only for the two of you, and led you on until the edge of the world and into the reality you’re in now.

Do you blame him for that? For all of this? You’re not sure anymore.

Sure, of course, on that night, he knew where… this, the relationship, was going, how it was going to end. Kazuha could’ve prevented this if he hadn’t held your hand on that one day, stared into your eyes long enough for you to see that he felt the same - he instead gave you, this, a chance.

Things might’ve been better if he didn’t.

You click your tongue. Nope. Don’t think about him, or just don’t think in general - your thoughts are bound to come back to him regardless, no matter what you do. There’s no use thinking about this, no use in even giving it a second of your evening like this.

You stood up. The chatter stirs around you, aware or not, fades to the backdrop. It’s not exactly ideal to stay here, especially since you feel as though you’ll start crying at any given moment. You pick up your umbrella leaning against the leg of the chair, still dripping a bit.

In your thoughts, in your dreams, in your what ifs, yes, but this is neither of those things - this is the truth. This is your reality (how many times will you say that to yourself until you finally realize it?), and the reality is, amid soft, crackling candlelight, a gentle coat of companionship, cottony velvet rolling across the cushions, decor ivy slithering on the walls, just that - a rather pretty veil over your eyes to try and cloud the emptiness that sits with you across the table.

He’ll be alright. Of course he’ll be alright. He’s Kazuha.

You hadn’t realized you were already outside. The light jingle of the bell atop of you fades, leaving a lonely echo. The thrum of the rain felt underneath your feet, clearer than it had been inside.

There’s a heaviness in the air you can’t quite place either, or maybe that’s just all you and the feelings you can’t seem to leave behind (not that it’s easy to do so in the first place.)

For some reason, whenever it rains, you’d feel as though you can finally breathe (he’d know that). You try to smile. It’s weak, shy of breaking down, and to the point that even you don’t believe in it, but it’s a smile nonetheless; it makes you feel a bit better.

You bid goodbye to Kazuha, the thought of him.

You bid goodbye to the man you love.

You bid goodbye to the memories you know you’ll visit later whenever anything and everything reminds you of him.

Will he be happy? Will he be alright? You know you’ll find yourself thinking about this some time later, but you try to find comfort, even as thin as it is, in the idea that he’ll think of the same things you’ll be - that’ll he find that pseudo happiness in a past that’ll already be too far to reach into.

You open your umbrella, the panels springing open. The canopy you’re under trickles with rainfall, pelting said umbrella in an almost melodic symphony if you try hard enough to hear it. You take quiet pleasure in that as you walk out and into the tears.

You’ll be alright. He’ll be alright. You both will be alright.

(He doesn’t like the rain that much.)

The rain itself drowns that one out.

[missvelvetsstuff]

With Friends Like You, Who Needs Enemies

Steve Rogers x Reader, Steve Rogers x Natasha Romanoff, Bucky Barnes x Reader

Reader is a mutant with the ability to turn sound into light who was 'adopted' aka stolen as a child by Baron Von Strucker to use for experimentation. She was given a form of the Super soldier serum so in addition to her mutant abilities she also has super strength, enhanced senses and healing. When he starts experimenting on his volunteers, the Maximoff twins, she tries to convince them to escape with her but they tell the Baron that she's planning to escape so he doubles her cell security. Steve and reader met when the team recovered Loki's scepter from Strucker.

She falls in love with Steve and becomes good friends with Nat but they aren't the friends she thinks they are.

This story is canon adjacent except that Thanos never happened.

I try to keep my readers description vague but, as always, she's female and above average height.

****Previous chapter

At the compound they were still trying to find where Nat and Rainbow had disappeared to when Tony hollered "YES! I've got it. I know how to find her."*****

Chapter 10

Warnings: swearing, angst, violence

Bucky bolted to Tony's side to see what he had found and stared at him expectantly "Well?"

Tony turned to see him right in Tony's face "A little space, Barnes."

Bucky scoffed and backed up "Fine"

Tony looked at Bucky and Sam before glaring at Steve "Well, obviously I had FRIDAY searching for Y/N and Nat but no luck so far. Then it hit me, she left with her sister Yelena so I found some video from her visit and Friday is searching for her now, too." He grinned, pleased with himself.

Bucky nodded "Yeah, that's not a bad idea" he sighed heavily "I hope it works."

After a few hours Friday alerted them "Mr Stark? I found her, Yelena Belova was just sighted in a Kroger in Cleveland, Ohio."

Tony grinned "Send the Iron Legion to detain Miss Belova"

"Yes, boss"

"WAIT!" Bucky shouted.

Tony looked over at him, brows raised in question.

Bucky shook his head "The Iron Legion isn't very stealth. If Nat even thinks we're on to her she might pack Rainbow up and bolt somewhere and..." He trailed off before Sam spoke up

"And what?"

Bucky was lost in thought for a moment not realizing that all eyes were on him "She was raised in Ohio, with Yelena. Before her training in the red room, to acclimate her to the states and work on her accent."

He looked up to see everyone staring "What if they're staying at their childhood home?"

Sam stared "Do you know where in Ohio? Maybe we can narrow it down. Like set up in the general area before picking up Yelena?"

Bucky shook his head "No, maybe. Fuck I don't remember exactly, just Ohio."

Tony nodded "Alright, fair point. How about we just send Vision ahead since he can fly and be practically invisible? He can pick up Yelena and find a discrete place for us to meet them."

Everyone sounded their agreement and after a kiss from Wanda, Vision was on his way.

Tony looked at the team, pointedly passing Steve over "Suit up kids, wheels up in 10."

Steve headed towards the quinjet hangar before Bucky stopped him "Not a chance, Rogers, you're waiting here."

Steve started to protest before Tony nodded "Yeah, Barnes is right you can wait here. I think the rest of us can handle Nat and her sister if she gets involved. So go take a nap or whatever and we'll see you later."

Steve bristled "No way I'm sitting this out, you need me. Y/N needs me." The last part was almost under his breath but Bucky heard.

Bucky took a few deep breaths to keep from hurting him "Y/N needs you? Like when you spent most of your relationship with her off fucking Nat? Like when you helped Nat coordinate this bullshit and would be doing god knows what to Y/N right fucking now if Nat hadn't betrayed you?"

His eyes burned into Steve as he fought to keep control "It's your goddamn fault that she's in Natasha hands and I think I speak for the team when I say we can't trust you. You're just as likely to betray us and try to sneak away with her as you are to help in any way.'

A chorus of agreement followed Bucky's words and Steve deflated. "Fine, I'll go on my own."

Tony shook his head "I don't think so, can't have you coming in with your own agenda."

Steve laughed "You can't hold me prisoner here, I'll-" he looked at Tonys armored hand and grabbed at the sting in his neck "What the-' he almost dropped to the floor but Bucky caught him and threw him over his shoulder then carried him to Steve's room, dropping him on the bed.

Once Bucky left Steve's room Tony spoke up "I knew those tranq darts would come in handy. Friday. Please keep the Captain locked in until we return."

"Yes boss."

As they boarded the quinjet 10 minutes later they heard from Vision "Miss Belova is with me and we will be waiting for you..." and rattled off the coordinates.

Tony grinned, finally something good "You heard the, uh man? Friday take us to his coordinates, fast as you can. Everyone strap in."

They landed in an empty field and when they opened the ramp Vision walked Yelena into the jet, and the ramp closed behind them.

Yelena looked at the team with disdain "What are you assholes doing here? We left the city like you asked so now what do you want? Wasn't it enough to kick her out of your so called family?"

Bucky tried to keep his voice calm "It would have been plenty if she hadn't decided to kidnap Y/N on her way out."

Yelena scoffed "Why would she do that? We have enough to do to find the rest of the widows, after Natalia gets some rest. That's why we stopped here for a few days. I would know if there was another person with us."

Clint shook his head "Are you sure? She couldn't have Y/N hidden away somewhere on the property? Maybe somewhere that she's spending time to "recuperate"? She lied to you about the whole drama so maybe she's still hiding something."

Yelena started to object before her eyes widened "No, she wouldn't I mean she couldn't but........She's been hiding in the basement. Said she had some kind of project to help find the missing widows. She was so distraught about leaving the Avengers that I thought I should give her some space."

She shook her head

"I should have known she was up to something, girl never knew how to let anything go."

Suddenly Yelena's phone rang "it's her"

she paused for a moment before answering

"What's up sestra? Oh sorry I didn't realize how late it was getting, I've just been chatting with some of the locals. No I'm fine, I'll be home in a few."

They set up a rough plan and the team waited 30 minutes for Yelena to get home and settle in before converging around the property to ensure Nat couldn't get past them.

Bucky and Clint took the lead through the front door, being the more stealthy members of the team. Sam followed right behind. Wanda and Bruce stayed further back to make sure Nat didn't escape. Vision went through the outer basement door, while Tony stayed behind to make sure she didn't try to sneak out that way. Wanda set up a field surrounding the property. Bruce just stood back hoping there wouldn't be a code green for the woman he had once loved. His feelings for her were gone but he didn't know what the other guy would do to her.

Yelena let the first two into the house and showed them the door to the basement.

Clint went first hoping that their friendship would be enough to distract her so the others could get to Rainbow.

When the door opened the slight creaking caught Nats attention

"What are you doing Yelena? I told you not to come down here, I still haven't quite been able to work this properly"

She was standing at a work bench next to a wall of fresh drywall with a door. She jumped as an arrow hit the wall, barely missing her face, then quickly turned to face him.

"Clint? Very funny. It's about fucking time you remembered who your real friend is. Go hang out with Yelena, I'll be up in a little bit."

Clint scoffed "Friends, right. You need to let her go, she never did anything to you."

Nat looked at him in shock before quickly pulling herself together "She who? I don't know what you're talking about. I'm working on a way to find-"

Clint interrupted. "I know she's here, Natasha. Please, for the sake of our friendship, let her go before this gets out of hand."

She smirked at him "You gonna try to take me down? Maybe if I was alone but I have Yelena on my side and you don't stand a chance."

Clint shook his head "No one is on your side except maybe Rogers and he's not here. You've gone off the rails and taken someone who doesn't deserve your ire." He paused, sad that his closest friend had come to this.

"Besides, I'm not alone and I don't want to hurt you. None of us do. Well maybe Barnes but you can stop this madness and let her go."

Nat snapped "Fuck you Barton that little bitch is leaving here one little piece at a time and there's nothing you can do to stop me."

Bucky stepped out of the shadows

"How about me, Natalia? Anything I can do to stop you? I'm not Barton and don't have any reservations hurting you if that's what's needed."

Nat eyes grew wide with fear, knowing first hand what the soldier was capable of, before she quickly composed herself

"Aawww, the Soldat came to rescue his little princess but I'm not quite done with her yet."

Bucky bristled "You're done, Natalia. Done as an Avenger, as a SHIELD agent, as our family or friend, as a free woman. Let her go now before you're done living."

While Bucky and Clint kept Nat distracted, Vision found Y/N, bruised bloodied and half dead, and worked to release the binds keeping her in the chair. Once he had her freed he decided not to remove the knife still in her stomach so she didn't bleed out. When he went to carefully pick her up the chair fell over and made a loud noise.

Nat jumped at the noise and turned towards the door in the drywall "Dammit, you and your friends are ruining everything. Why do you even care so much about a stupid little girl?"

When she opened the door it slammed her into the wall, stunning her as Vision walked to the stairs and out of the house with Rainbow. Vision advised Bruce that he had her and was on his way, giving all the info he had on her condition.

Bucky was distracted for a moment when he saw the terrible shape she was in. He felt like his heart stopped as his eyes followed her up the stairs until they were out of view.

Then he turned to Nat, jaw clenched, face turning red, hands balling into fists and soft whirring from his vibranium arm. His chest ached and his breathing was heavy as he fought to keep the Winter Soldier at bay.

His voice was low and dangerous as he growled out "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you right now, Natalia."

Nat stuttered "But James muy lobuv, we can be together now. For real, in the open. I had to get her out of the way, she was dangerous. A silly child who could get us all killed. Please. Ple-"

Bucky grabbed her by the throat with his vibranium hand squeezing until she couldn't speak, could barely breathe. "Yeah, that wasn't it. You know, Steve told me we should let you live, have you sent to the raft but he is just as much of a snake as you are so I know he would try to find a way to get you out. Hell even Tony said I shouldn't kill you and maybe he's right but I don't know if I can live with the knowledge that you were out there somewhere, plotting against us. Against her. Maybe if we take you into custody you'll be tried and executed anyhow or locked up somewhere you can't escape but I just" he sighed "I just don't think I can live with that. Good bye, Natalia."

He quickly snapped her neck and let her body drop to the floor without a second thought, quickly following Visions path to the quinjet.

Clint looked at the remains of his old friend sadly before wiping a tear away and hurrying to the jet, softly apologizing to Yelena on his way past her.

Once the team was all in the jet on their way home, Bruce advised them of all Rainbows injuries before he contacted Helen Cho so she could prepare for their arrival.

Bucky sat by Rainbow on the med bed for the flight home, holding her hand and speaking words of love and encouragement softly as his tears fell onto her. She died twice in the air but Bruce was able to revive her. She was barely hanging on as they landed and Helen took over, barking out orders as they rushed to the med bay.

Bucky said a prayer to any gods, to anyone that would listen, that his Rainbow would be alright.

Chapter 11

@vicmc624

[yourmomsgranddad]

— 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐆𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐏𝐋𝐀𝐘 𝐈𝐍 𝐌𝐘 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐍 𝐘𝐎𝐔'𝐑𝐄 𝐀𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃

— CHAPTER SIX: After last night, I think I'm in love with you

— SUMMARY: The aftermath of you and Kate's eventful night.

— WARNINGS: mentions of sex and sexual themes, cursing, a little angst (i think)

Kate wanted nothing more than to talk to you after what happened. But you demanded that you go to sleep afterward. You were tuckered out and it was late. So she abided, you went to sleep quickly but she just couldn't close her eyes.

Her mind was going a mile a minute, like it usually was.

What did it mean for your friendship? Were you ever going to do it again? Were things going to change between you now? Were you going to do it again? Was this the end of you being her life?

WERE YOU GOING TO DO IT AGAIN?!

Her heartbeat was the sound of EDM right now. It couldn't still with you right next to her.

She had to climb onto the floor, at least there she couldn't feel your breath right next to her ear, she couldn't hear your heart thumping alongside hers.

And she finally got to sleep.

Kate woke up the next day, feeling extremely groggy. She needs to stop eating so much sugar before bed. She couldn't do anything else until she went to the bathroom.

She slumped out of the bathroom, still very confused. First, she needed to find her pants, luckily, they were on the floor, where she was laying.

She climbed back onto the bed, hoping to find her shirt but for some reason, you weren’t there. Where did you go? Was it so bad that you made her leave?

She tried so bad not to jump to conclusions. Maybe you wanted to wake up in your own bed. Maybe she hated being here. No, you probably just wanted to-

Her brain train stopped. She heard her front door open. Was she getting robbed? Who would break in this early in the morning? She grabbed the bow she kept underneath her bed and treaded lightly. She listened as some feet shuffled around her kitchen.

She jumped off the stairs, she pulled back her arrow and let fly. She didn't see who it was before they ducked.

"I have nothing to steal!"

"Kate, it's me! Put the weapons down!"

She lowered her bow as you stood back up, looking scared. There was now an arrow in her wall, probably not the first time.

Suddenly, the energy was awkward. Why? You had seen each other naked, everything after that should have been a breeze. Then why was Kate searching every part of her brain for something to say in this moment?

She knew what she wanted to talk about. But her brain stopped as soon as she saw you.

"Where did you go?" She wondered, stepping closer to you. She didn't know how close she was allowed to be so she stayed on the other side of her small kitchen. "I went to get breakfast, I was hungry."

Her heart calmed down, she was worrying about nothing.

"Oh."

"Don't worry. I'm not a hit-and-quit it type of person. I figured you would want to talk about it and I wanted to have food in my stomach when you did so go ahead."

You ushered her on as you began to open to your food. She went to open her mouth, nothing. She tried again and she felt the words bubble up. "Hey, I got you something too. Do you still like breakfast burritos?"

She didn't want to open her mouth, what if she forgot what she was trying to say? She just gave a nod. You reached into the bag and handed it to her. Back to what she was trying to say.

"So, um, we—uh. How do I say this?"

"Kate, we're both adults. Stop with the 8th grade talk."

She nodded, you were right. She needed to get over it. She mentally slapped herself, she could say it.

"Well, we had sex. Should we talk about what it means?" She looked to you, awaiting for your expression to change but it stayed the same. determined to swallow all your food whole.

"Honestly, I think it could have just been a fluke. I mean I was in an emotional state and was reeling from my break-up." You nodded, almost like you were trying to convince yourself of this statement.

But Kate didn't like that relevation.

Was it just a fluke? Was it something you did on a whim and didn't care about at all? Did you not care about Kate's feelings at all?

"So that's how you feel?"

You looked up at Kate, did you forget what you just said? You just said it. "I mean yeah, it was just an accident. Nothing real."

If the room was any quieter, Kate would have thought you heard her heart shatter into a million pieces. She thought her heart broke when you left but this was ten times worse.

"Nothing real? Got it." She nodded, tears already forming in her eyes. And it did not go unnoticed.

"No, Kate, I-"

"I think it's better if you left. Take your breakfast with you." Her voice cracked as she wiped a stray tear from her eye. She tried her hardest to turn away from you, she didn't want you seeing her like this.

"But Kate-"

"No, leave. We both know you're very good at that."

You felt like you got hit by the strongest weight ever known to man, getting the air knocked out of you. Your mouth dropped open.

You had told Kate about one of the most harrowing moments of your life and she threw it right back in your face. You didn't have time to wipe away all the tears that started spewing down your eyes.

She could tell she did bad as you looked like a wounded animal, surprised and amazingly hurt. She wanted to take it back. She opened her mouth but nothing came out.

"You really suck for that."

You gathered your food up into the bag and left, like she told you to.

She really wished she didn't, at least not like that.

All day long, neither one of you could get that interaction out of your head. You both wanted so bad to take back what you said. But stubbornness won and you didn't speak all day.

"Kate! Are you okay? You've been zoned out for the last 23 minutes. Is talking about missions that boring for you?"

She jumped out of her brain long enough to remember she was supposed to going over this week's mission with Natasha. But she was too busy thinking about you.

"No, I'm sorry. Go ahead."

She went to go back to reading but she could tell things were still off so she asked.

"Kate, what's wrong?"

She looked up, pretending confusion. "What do you mean?"

"You look like you've been down in the dumps since you got here and I heard you sniffle, like you were crying? What gives?"

And that's all it took for Kate to just let it all out. She told Natasha everything. The summer you left, the reunion, the dinner party, your boyfriend, and especially, last night.

"Damn. I did not think you were about to give me a literal romance novel but I'm glad you did. I love drama. So what'd you do this morning? I know the morning after is usual the worst part."

"I asked if she wanted to talk about it. She said it didn't mean anything and it doesn't change anything about our friendship."

For a second, Nat was happy for her but then she saw the look on Kate's face, she was not excited about this at all.

"You wanted a relationship, didn't you?"

There was a moment of silence. Kate was thinking. "I mean I don't know. I'm not going to lie to you and say no. I've definitely thought about it. Ever since we kissed when we were younger, I've never thought of her another way."

And therein, she answered her question.

She wanted to be with you.

The thought made her smile but then she realized. She said something unforgivable to you this morning. She made you cry. You definitely wouldn't want to date her now.

And she would definitely obey your wishes. No matter how much she missed speaking to you right now.

Your "not talking" period lasted about a week. Mostly because Kate didn't want to mess with you.

It was bothering you both.

So you did something about it.

Kate was getting dressed for her day when she heard her phone ringing across the room. Without thinking about it, she jumped over all of her clothes to grab it.

"Hello?" She answered in a jaunty voice, trying to sound positive to whoever was calling her.

"Kate?"

She recognized that voice almost immediately, it was you but you sounded more quiet, almost like you were sad.

"Yeah, hey. What's up? What's wrong?" She was already on the mend. "Um, can you just meet me at the park?"

She didn't even question it, she wanted to see you.

"Sure."

She didn't walk, she ran to the park. She didn't even wait for her hair to dry from her shower, she just hoped her speed would dry it before she got to you.

You didn't give her a location, just the park. So she was just running around, hoping to find you through all the leaves and trees.

Luckily, you were sitting underneath a tree. It was almost the perfect picture but you seemed to have wet cheeks. You had been crying. Kate was set off immediately.

She ran over to you and plopped down right beside you.

"You called?"

You looked over, you didn't seem surprised.

Just silently looking down on the ground, listening to wind whip off the leaves on the trees.

"When we were younger, you were the only person I attached myself to. I had other friends who were in and out. But you, Katie? I wanted you around constantly. You were the only person I told my secrets to. You were the only one who was allowed to sleep in my bed. I never felt weird around you. I was comfortable with you. You were my person."

Hearing those words come from your mouth, Kate's heart stopped even more. If that was even possible.

"You're my best friend," now you were looking right at her. "I'd never want to make you uncomfortable. Now I realized I probably crossed a line." Her eyes went wide, you thought she was mad at you?

"I should not have-"

"Pause, do you think I'm mad at you?" She was look over at you like a hurt puppy. You were suddenly confused, your face crumpling up.

"I'm not mad at you for what happened. I'm mad at what you said afterwards. I thought about that night over and over again. I wanted so badly to expand on it afterwards and you shut me down. You said it didn't mean anything. Well, guess what? It meant something to me."

Your once sad eyes widened, you couldn't believe what you were hearing. And to make it even worse, "Y/n, I love you. I have loved you. I've loved you since that first kiss. And it didn't feel great that after we had sex for the first time, you tell me it was a fluke."

Now Kate was on the verge of tears.

There was a moment of silence. Until your hand dropped to her thigh.

"Kate. It wasn't a mistake. And I don't know why I said that. I enjoyed it as much as you did." Your tears were long gone and so were Kate's. She noticed the look in your eyes.

"Do you want to get out of here?" She quirked her brow at you which you just smirked at.

You didn't even say anything back. She just grabbed your hand and you began bolting it out of that park, right to Kate's apartment.

[captain-mj]

there's a lot of really good new ideas happening right now but I'm still hoping that graves as a swanmay gets continued, please can I get a little more of hyper-specific shapeshifter angst?

Hey, so I will be honest, I don't like the swan maiden au. I tried, but I don't know if it was how I went about it or just the quality of the writing, but I'm not going to continue it. But! Consider this blanket permission for anyone who wants to use the ideas in it! The only thing I ask is you make Price a different species as I made Alpies up myself and use them original stuff not tied to COD.

Now, to the fun stuff. I do still like Alpie Price and I thought about it and... well. I can deliver this. Graves is just a different kind of shifter! The shifter angst is a lot more Price based as well.

Price sharpened his nails quietly. SpecGru and KorTac were currently in a training exercise with each other. A simple take the flag exercise. He was currently sniping quietly. It was really just a laser gun, but he had picked off quite a few people already.

He didn't like working with KorTac, even in something as low stakes as this, for several reasons. The main one being Graves and Valeria. Also Mace. He didn't like the way Ghost and him stared at each other like they were going to tear each other to shreds.

Mostly, it was Graves. Price bristled at the man no matter how casual the encounter. Something about him got under his skin.

With Farah talking with him, Graves had been around more and more. Ghost, Soap and the Vaqueros were still angry, understandably. But they had found a tense... agreement. Mostly they all ignored it and Graves made himself scarce when possible.

He heard the soft creak of the ground and yanked around, switching to his shotgun. The gun stayed aimed at the doorway carefully.

Some more movement before a small nose poked through the door. It sniffed gently before pulling back. A paw gently pressed in, scrambling at the floor. Price stood up and kept a gun right at them.

A small coyote poked their head in. Giant eyes blinked at him before closing as they sniffed the air.

Price was fairly certain there were shifters other than the bear one. He hesitated and continued to stare at it. The little coyote quickly darted back behind the door.

Price waited for a few minutes before glancing at the window for only a moment.

His sensor went off and he swung back around, seeing Graves confidently staring back at him.

Price immediately felt his ears press flat against his head and snarled. "Dirty trick."

"Got you didn't it?" Graves spun his gun around his finger. "You keep your tufts up so I assumed that's what we were doing."

"Can't exactly get rid of them." Price pointed out.

"Can't change that I'm a shifter then." He grinned, flashing white teeth.

Price growled and hit the sensor, hearing the countdown. "Right. Well, I'll go and find a new spot. Supposed to practice right?" His countdown hit 0 and he "revived".

Graves shot him again.

Price paused, staring at him. He hit the sensor. "Funny." He stood up, stretching. Ignoring Graves, he brushed past him and went down the stairs. As soon as his timer hit zero, Graves hit him again.

Graves then followed him. "So. Your main thing is a sniper?"

"Yep." Price stared at him and right as his own timer went to zero, he shot Graves. "Now, we're even."

Graves laughed. It was... nice. Most shifters had features of their creatures afterwards. Big bulk for Bears. Mocking laughing for Hyenas. But with Graves, there was nothing obvious. His eyes were completely different. Maybe the way his hair stuck up was similar to coyote ears, but it was tenuous at best. "Damn. You shot me."

Price's lip twitched but he mostly ignored him.

They went back and forth, every time the timer hit zero, they'd rush to shoot each other.

Price mistakenly smiled with his teeth, flashing a mouthful of sharp fangs.

Graves looked and paused, his smile dropping.

Price closed his mouth with a click.

"Can you not... put those away?" Graves was being careful. His choice of words and softened tone made Price bristle, even though it was clearly genuine.

"No. They're stuck." Price clicked his teeth and closed his mouth again. "Always there."

Graves nodded. "Must get annoying."

"Bite my tongue a lot." Price joked.

"I meant people like me looking." Graves looked in his eyes and the air heated up. Price could hear his heartbeat. See the warmth of his body. He blinked rapidly to get rid of it.

Price shrugged. "You're not too bad. i'm more than used to people staring."

"I think you have better things to stare at."

Before Price could ask what that possibly meant, there was a whistle indicating it was over and Graves shifted and ran off. His tail stuck straight up to draw attention to himself in case Mila or Oz saw him.

Price stared at him, feeling something funny in his chest.

[honeyhotteoks]

into the aurora - chapter thirty-one (ot8)

chapter thirty-one: the nights before christmas 

chapter summary: the holidays are hard, and you finally tell yunho why.

special note: well, we're finally here, in the home stretch of this fic. some things will be revealed this chapter, and i hope you feel like i handled these topics with grace and care. as always, thank you for reading. warnings: discussion of anxiety and depression, past trauma, minor character death (in the past), discussion of grief/loss, allusion to a physical injury but not described in detail, a lot of hurt and a lot of comfort. be warned, this one is a bit of a pain train.

pairings: ot8 x reader

genre: fluff, angst, romance, ateez ensemble x reader, polyamory, non-idol!reader, fem!reader, smut

word count: 7.1K

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please see the end of the post for more notes~

This time of year is almost always impossible. A few weeks before the holidays it always hits, the first whispers of Christmas music, the sparkling lights wrapped around lamp posts. Like a rushing wave it feels like no time has passed at all, like you’re still waking up to find everything has changed, your father’s voice crystal clear in your head. 

You’ve always been able to get through the anniversary of the event itself without too much trouble since it happened in November before the explosion of holiday glitter and cheer, and you always ensure you are busy, intentionally over-scheduled to the point of physical exhaustion. Doing your best to ensure you don't have a single second to think through the things knotting together in your gut. It’s always the holidays though that snaps time back like a rubber band and twists the knife, the inevitable slowdown of work and social life as everyone else pivots to family obligations. A welcome vacation for them and a painful reminder for you. 

It’s always easier to slip away into yourself for the duration of Christmas and the new year when you live alone. It’s a lot easier to ignore the fact that the holidays are continuing for yet another year when you close yourself inside your tiny undecorated apartment. When you moved into the dorms, it hadn’t occurred to you that this would be a problem, but the boys just love the holidays. The apartment is covered in tinsel, a large tree glittering by the window, Jongho humming carols, little touches of red and green everywhere your eyes land. 

When they first start to talk about their holiday plans, you find convenient excuses to skirt around what you’ll be doing. Their break means that they are all traveling home the weekend before Christmas to spend the holiday with their families, something that deep down you are happy for. They need the break, they’ve earned it, but the closer the weekend comes the talk of holidays and families is incessant. It’s grating, and you can feel yourself closing in, stepping back, folding yourself down small and tight to keep it away. You just need to hold out a few more days and then you can finally be alone and let this wash over you. 

Two days before the mass exodus of the dorms, for the first time in your relationship, you tell your boyfriends a real lie. It leaves your mouth so easily – Yes, you were going home, of course. You would see your family; you just weren’t leaving until the evening after they all left. No, of course, they don’t have to worry about you.

You turn the conversation quickly back to them- what had they bought for their siblings? Their parents? Knots turn in your stomach as you listen, but you’re so practiced at smiling along while people talk about things like this. After dinner you excuse yourself, feigning a headache, and slip away to bury yourself under the covers. 

Hours later, when the boys have all gone to bed, you are still lying awake staring at the ceiling. Your mind plays over your last Christmas, your last real Christmas, and you try to shake the feeling off but can’t quite escape it. Frustrated, you pull yourself out of bed and slide open your door. The dorm is quiet, a light still on upstairs but no real movement to indicate anyone is still up and about. You move across the room and gently slide open the glass door that leads to the balcony. The chill hits you instantly, your arms erupting with goosebumps, but you don’t mind it, the cold is a welcome distraction.  

You watch the city for a while, the steady sounds of cars and people creating a comforting din of white noise around you. After a while, you settle back into one of the chairs and tuck your legs tight to your chest, wrapping your arms around yourself and leaning your temple against your knees, eyes closed, softly listening to the city, and trying not to think about things, to cry. 

It’s not clear how long you stay like this, but the sound of the sliding glass door breaks your concentration, and your head snaps up. Yunho stands in the doorway, dressed in a pair of thick gray sweatpants and a long-sleeved black shirt. 

“What are you doing out here?” He asks quietly, stepping out and sliding the door shut behind him, “it’s two in the morning… and it’s freezing out here,” He shivers, throwing a glance out over the balcony at the starkly cold winter night.

“Sorry,” you say automatically, unwrapping your arms, “did I wake you?” 

“No, no,” he shakes his head, “I was up late on my computer, I came out for some water and saw you,” 

“Ah,” you nod, but there’s nothing else to say. 

“What’s going on?” He is still standing, watching you, expecting you to get up and come inside with him but you don’t, “couldn’t sleep?” 

“Something like that,” you admit and run your hands over your face, swiping at your tired eyes, “it’s fine, you should go to bed and get some rest.” 

A look passes over his features, and he pulls the other chair over to yours and plops down in it, crossing his long legs at the ankles and clasping his hands to rest in his lap, “Something’s up,” he says simply, nodding towards you, “you can talk to me, you know.” 

“I know that,” you answer quickly, “it’s nothing you can help with though,” 

“Mm,” he squints his eyes at you, “I don’t think you’ve had the benefit of my emotional assistance before. I’m quite the advice giver,” 

A smile tugs at the corner of your mouth, and normally you would banter back with him, but it’s not that kind of night and so you just shake your head gently, “I know, but I’m okay really, it’s not something I need advice on.”

He leans forwards, pulling his legs in and leaning his elbows on his knees, angling towards you. “Okay, so you don’t need advice. How about a friend?” 

His warm brown eyes stay on you, his face soft and empathetic, and a deep pang echoes through your chest. You swallow tightly and consider it, the thoughts lodged in your throat and threatening to spill out. You pause just long enough for him to continue, “Something’s been bugging you for days and you’re not yourself. If you’re stressed or if something’s bothering you, you can talk to me or just vent if you need to.” 

He turns one of his hands over, palm open and slightly extended towards you, a careful invitation. You reach out without hesitation, letting his large, warm hand close over yours. You turn the thoughts over in your mind and finally say, “I really don’t like Christmas.” 

“What?” his brow furrows instantly, not at all what he was expecting you to say. “How do you not like Christmas?” 

You look down, that sentence your least favorite every time you tried to explain why the holidays just weren’t for you anymore. “It's a hard time of year for me,” you admit, “there’s something I haven’t told you.” 

The words have an immediately sobering effect, and you feel Yunho’s hand still, his opposite one coming to close over the back side of your yours, “Okay,” 

“It’s not a fun story,” you confess. 

He scoots forwards, dragging his chair a little closer and strokes your forearm comfortingly before simply holding your hand in his. “That’s okay, you can tell me if you want to.” 

You nod and look up, meeting his eyes, “I know I said I was going home for Christmas, but I lied.” 

You watch as Yunho’s lips close, and he nods for you to continue, not wanting to interrupt. 

“I haven’t seen my family in a long time,” you shift, clearing your throat a little, always hating this part. “I didn’t want you all to worry about me, or try to make things better, but this time of year just isn’t good for me anymore. I don’t usually like to talk about it,” you murmur, “and most of the year I don’t think about it anymore, but the holidays are hard.” 

“I’m sorry,” he says, his voice warm and low. 

“There’s nothing to be sorry for,” you shake your head, “you didn’t do anything.” 

“I’m still sorry,” he rests a hand on your knee, thumb massaging comforting circles, “why haven’t you seen them? Can I ask that?” 

You nod and grip his hand a little tighter, “Yeah,”

He waits for you to speak again, nodding once and squeezing you a little tighter to let you know he’s here, he’s listening. 

“Four years ago, there was an accident,” you take a deep breath and look down, you can’t seem to look at him for this part, but you hear his steady breath, and you can feel his gaze on you. “I was seventeen when it happened. I was driving home with my mom and my brother, and we were hit by a drunk driver. They hit the left side of the car head on at a high speed, and I don’t remember much except for waking up in the hospital, but they were both on the left side, my mom driving and my brother behind her. They said it was instantaneous for both of them,” you swallow and unconsciously your hands form light, tense fists, “but I’m not sure if that’s just something that they say.” 

“y/n,” his voice is soft, “I can’t imagine,” 

You’re so grateful he doesn’t say he’s sorry this time. People always say they’re sorry. 

You exhale and say the last part as quickly as you can to get the story out there and over with, “After that my father fell apart, he started drinking and I don’t think he ever stopped. It wasn’t a good place for me anymore, and as soon as I was done with high school I left. I haven’t been home since,”

“Sweetheart,” his voice is soft and gentle. 

“Anyways,” you clear your throat and look out over the edge of the balcony to the city below, “the accident happened in late November, so this time of year is always the hardest.” 

“Come here,” he pulls your hand lightly, leaning back and reaching out for you, gesturing for you to come closer to him. 

“I’m okay,” you shake your head, “I’ve cried plenty and I don’t need you to make it better, it's just one of those things. It’s just the one time of year that I can’t really ignore it.” 

“I’m not trying to make you cry,” He tugs your hand again, “I just want to be close to you, can I be close to you?” 

You feel your shoulders relax. The last partner you told expected you to cry, shocked when you couldn’t and always looked at you like he was waiting for it to happen, looking for confirmation of how he thought you should feel about it. Yunho’s face is calm, collected, with no expectation behind his eyes. You take his hands and let him pull you gently towards him until you’re in his lap and he pulls you in close so that his chin rests on top of your head and his arms curl all the way around you. You sit sideways, your legs carefully maneuvered over the arm of the chair, and your cheek against the warmth of his chest. His heart thuds steadily against you. 

Yunho’s hand runs across your hair, his lips against your hairline, and when his voice comes again you can hear the crackle in it, “You were hurt?” 

You nod against him. 

“The scar on your back,” he surmises, his hand ghosting down your spine. 

“Yeah,” 

“How bad was it?” He asks. 

“Yunho,” you breathe, “don’t, I’m okay now,” 

“I just,” he exhales against you, “I just want to know.” 

You sigh and tell him. “I had a fractured spine,” his hands tighten around you, “and broke my leg, and some cuts and bruises. It took a while before I was out of the hospital, but I’m okay now.” 

It’s unspoken that you could have died too. It’s unspoken that you might have never made it here, that they might have never met you. Time stretches on, and though the air is cold, Yunho’s arms stay wrapped around you and you barely feel it. He kisses your head, and quietly he murmurs, “Tell me about your brother,” 

The emotions well up instantly, a weight pressing in on your chest. A vision of your brother’s face appears in your mind, but the sound of his voice, his laugh, are too far away now and you can’t quite conjure them in your mind. You don’t cry, but it doesn’t hurt any less. “He was two years younger,” you say, “and he was a pain in my ass, but he always helped my mom with dinner and was diligent in school. He was so funny, he used to make me laugh until my sides hurt,” 

Yunho nods against the top of your head and you continue, “He wanted to go to school for literature, and he was good at soccer. He was almost sixteen, and he hadn’t had his first girlfriend yet, but I know he had a crush on this girl from his class. Nari. I think he might have asked her out once, but whenever I teased him about it, he would just go beet red in the face. He liked dogs. He was taller than me by the time he was thirteen, and he really loved American music. He wanted to learn guitar. He wanted to do a lot of things,” 

“I think I would have liked him,” he says softly. 

“You would have,” you tighten your hand against his chest, “he would have liked you too, eventually. He was always suspicious of the boys I was around though,” 

“Smart,” Yunho nudges you softly and you can feel him smiling. 

“He was,” 

“What was his name?” Yunho asks. 

“Tae Hyun,” you murmur, the feeling of his name on your tongue foreign after so many years, “his name was Tae Hyun.” 

“Tae Hyun,” Yunho repeats, committing it to memory. 

“Thank you,” you murmur, closing your eyes and leaning against him. 

“For what?” he smooths his hand down your back again. 

“For asking about him,” you say quietly, “it’s been a long time since I thought about those things.” 

“Thank you for telling me,” He says, the timber of his voice vibrating against your cheek. He kisses you again and shifts, “we should go in. It’s too cold out here and you need to try and sleep,” 

“Okay,” your eyes open and you move to get up, but Yunho’s arms stay locked around you, stopping you from going anywhere. When you meet his eyes, you can see that he had been fighting back tears. You don’t acknowledge it, but after a moment he releases you and you climb off him, rubbing your sweatshirt sleeves across your face and exhaling into the cold night air. He’s on his feet a moment later, his hand once again warm on your back as he draws you inside and quietly takes you back to your bed. 

You don’t talk, but he tucks you back into bed, adding an extra blanket over you, before pulling your bedroom door closed and sliding under the covers with you. He reaches for you and pulls you into his chest, your back fitted tightly against him. He drops a warm kiss against your bare shoulder and tucks his knees up to mold against the back of your legs. His palm rests open against your chest, fingers brushing your collar bones, thumb softly grazing against your skin in a lulling pattern. 

For a moment you think he has fallen asleep behind you, but his voice whispers through the darkness sometime later. “I don’t think you should be alone this weekend,” 

You shake your head softly, “I’m okay, I know what I’m doing,”

He curls himself closer, “I want you to come home with me,” he says. 

“I can’t do that,” you protest, “I can’t intrude on your family,” 

“You can,” he pushes back, “trust me.” 

“Yunho,” you sigh and turn your head to see him over your shoulder, “I don’t know if I can do it, be around your family like that when I’m,” 

“You’d rather sit here alone?” He asks softly, cutting off your thought, “I don’t think I can leave knowing you’ll just be here by yourself, I wouldn’t be able to stop thinking about it,” 

“Yun,” you sigh, head against his shoulder, “I’ll be okay, I promise.” 

“Please,” he laces his fingers with yours, “please just come home with me. We don’t have to talk about it or think about it, I just don’t want you to be alone.” 

In bed like this, with his warm body around you, the tension in you starts to unravel. You don’t expect him to let this go, he’s always determined about whatever he’s set his mind to, and you can feel that he’s set his mind on this. “What would your family think?” you ask quietly. 

Yunho sighs behind you, dropping his lips against your head, “You’re a friend,” he says, “a friend who needed a place for the holidays. My mother would be thrilled to have another woman around to talk to. Trust me,” 

You turn the idea over in your mind before you say, “I don’t want anyone else to know,” 

“The members?” he asks, surprise evident in his voice. 

“I wouldn’t mind them knowing I’m with you, obviously,” you start, “but it would open a lot of questions about why I’m not going home, and I don’t want anyone else to know yet. I don’t want to talk about it. Everyone would want to try and help, and I’d give it five seconds before someone offers to stay back at the dorms with me. I just don’t want to,” 

Yunho interrupts softly, “You don’t want two days of pity and everyone walking on eggshells.” 

“Yes,” you exhale against him, “I’ll tell them after Christmas, but it’s hard enough that you know.” 

“I won’t make it hard,” he murmurs, “you can talk about it or not talk about it, whatever you want. In the morning things go back to normal, and we’ll just be the last to leave on Sunday. No one has to know.” 

“Okay,” you nod against him, “I’ll come,” 

He sighs deep, exhaling the breath he had been holding. “I know I’m being selfish,” he says, “but I just wouldn’t be able to leave you, I know myself well enough,” 

“It’s okay,” you soothe, “I’ll come with you, but for now let’s just be here. Let’s just sleep,” 

He nods against you and cuddles you closer, wrapping the blankets tight. You fall asleep quickly, his steady breathing behind you guiding you into rest. In the morning you wake tangled together, finding each other under the covers in the early morning light. Without speaking you move together unconsciously, bodies connecting in comfort, his hand over your mouth to stifle your pants and moans as the rest of the house moves around just outside the doors. 

For two days, Yunho doesn’t mention it. He barely talks about the holidays and keeps you pleasantly distracted with movies, work, and making meals, and when talk of the impending family trips arise, he smoothly diverts the topic away before the attention can land on you. 

No one would notice what he’s doing, but you do. 

By the time you’re packed and ready to leave on Sunday, there’s nothing left to do but say goodbye to the boys one by one as they leave for their respective family homes. In the end, you’re left alone in the dorms, the setting sun filtering in through the wide windows. 

Yunho takes his spot next to you on the couch and rests the back of his hand on your knee, palm up and open in offering and you slip your hand in his. “Are you ready?” He asks you quietly. 

“Yeah,” you squeeze his fingers, “your family knows I’m coming, right?” 

“Mhm,” he nods. 

“What did you tell them?” You shift to look at him. 

“I spoke to my mother,” he says, “I told her I was bringing a friend that didn’t have family around this year for the holidays.” 

It was just ambiguous enough to avoid pity, but you hoped they would also pick up on the fact that they shouldn’t ask. You hoped Yunho was clear enough on that. With a sigh you lean against his shoulder, “She’s okay with it?” 

“She’s happy to have you,” Yunho smiles, cupping your cheek to bring you forward for a soft kiss. 

You nod against him before pulling away and tucking your hair behind your ears, “Okay, when do we leave then? Is one of your managers going to circle back to get us?” 

Yunho laughs and shakes his head, “No, baby, I’m driving,”

“You’re driving?” 

“I can drive,” he rolls his eyes, “you know this.” 

“I know it, but I’ve never actually seen it,” you clarify, “I didn’t know your managers would be okay with it.” 

He shrugs, “I live the farthest, and I explained the situation.” 

“That I’m coming home with you?” 

“Yeah,” he squeezes your knee and then hops off the couch, “they just asked that I be discreet and leave after dark to avoid being photographed. It’s not a problem.” 

You glance outside at the now set sun and darkening sky, “It’s a long drive, I can take a shift if you need me to.” 

He smiles and shakes his head, “Four hours isn’t bad, don’t worry.” 

It takes you another twenty minutes to gather up everything, Yunho carting it all to the car despite your protests and offers to help, but soon you’re buckled into the passenger seat and pulling your hoodie up over your head. Yunho’s concealed well with a cap, a mask, and hoodie pulled up, and as you drive through Seoul you keep things casual and distant. Cameras could photograph you both through the front windshield while you were in the city, so it was just safer to keep a little formality and stay concealed. 

As you finally pull away from Seoul, the highway opening up on your way south, Yunho tosses his hat in the back and slips off his mask, relaxing into his seat and dropping a hand off the wheel to rest on your thigh. You drive quietly and slip in and out of sleep on the way there, the radio quietly playing in the background. By the time you arrive it’s late, and though the city of Gwangju is awake and glittering with Christmas lights and decorated trees, Yunho’s sure his family is asleep by now, so you slip into their apartment quietly using his spare key. 

He’s right, but in the low light you can see how large the space is. Yunho creeps further in, and when he looks down the long hallway he smiles, “My brother’s up,” he whispers. 

“Oh,” you’re not exactly sure what you should do, so you stand in the entryway and wait as Yunho heads down the hall. 

You take a few steps further inside and peek around the corner, and you can see Yunho heading back already, a younger boy the spitting image of him tucked under his arm. 

“y/n,” Yunho says quietly when they meet you in the entry, “this is my brother, Gunho.” 

“Hi,” you whisper and Gunho waves, but twists to look at his brother. 

“So, I guess she’s not sleeping with you in your room?” 

“What?” Yunho’s brow furrows. 

“Mom said your friend could sleep in your room,” Gunho has a pleased smile, “but I think if she knew you were bringing home a girl, she wouldn’t have said that.” 

“Yunho!” your eyes widen, “You didn’t tell her?” 

“Not in so many words,” Yunho smiles at you, shrugging slightly. 

“Oh my god,” 

“I thought you weren’t allowed to have girlfriends,” Gunho observes.

“Don’t,” Yunho groans, “it’s not like that, she’s my friend,” 

“Okay,” Gunho smiles and turns back to you, “it’s nice to meet you, Yunho’s friend, not girlfriend.” 

Yunho pushes him by the shoulder and sighs, before picking up your suitcase, “Come on, you can sleep in my room and I’ll take the couch,” 

You follow him back, waving goodnight to Gunho, and Yunho clicks the light on in what is clearly his childhood bedroom. He’s lived in Seoul since he was a young teen, and most of that time with his grandparents anyways, so this space is like a little time capsule, and you grin at him. “Oh my god, look at you!” You snap up a picture on his dresser immediately, and in the photo of the two boys in their backward caps you can identify Yunho instantly. 

He rubs the back of his neck, a little sheepish all of a sudden now that standing in a place, he hasn’t added a decoration to since he was thirteen. “Well, this is me,” 

“Mhm, I can tell,” you smile at him, teasing. 

“Mm,” he chuckles and with a quick glance down the hall to make sure Gunho has gone to bed he leans in for a quick kiss, “I should let you get some sleep,” 

“Okay,” you give him a fast peck back and he smiles, “Good night, Yunho.” 

“Night, baby,” he murmurs. 

He leaves you alone, shutting the door tight behind him, and you’re alone, surrounded by little pieces of his past. It feels a little like you’ve been brought home to meet your boyfriend’s parents, something so shockingly normal in the midst of what is anything but a normal relationship. You’re nervous about meeting them, but there’s nothing left to do now but sleep. 

In the morning you wake and reacclimate to the new space, and you hear the sound of voices down the hall. You’re not sure if you’ve slept too late or not, but either way you’re desperate to not be rude or inconsiderate the first time you meet Yunho’s parents, and you pull yourself out of bed to get dressed quickly and brush out your hair. At the door, with your hand on the handle, you hear it. 

“He brought a girl home,” Gunho is clearly just teasing his older brother, but your stomach tightens. 

“I was getting to that,” Yunho sighs. 

“You did what?” His mother’s voice isn’t angry, but you can hear the confusion in her tone, and you lean forwards to listen more closely, not wanting to interrupt this moment and make it more tense. 

“The friend I told you about,” Yunho reminds her, “I set her up in my room and I slept on the couch.”

“Jeong Yunho,” his mother scolds and you wince, “did you bring your girlfriend home for Christmas and not even tell me about it?” 

“Not girlfriend,” he clarifies, and you know he hates lying to his family, but this isn’t easily explained to anyone let alone his parents, “but she’s here. Eomma, please.” 

“Not girlfriend, but you’re spending Christmas with her?” His mother asks, a little disbelief in her voice. 

“It’s not like that,” he says, and you can practically picture the face he’s making.  

“Were you careful?” She says and you don’t know what she means until Yunho jumps in. 

“Nobody took our picture,” he groans, “God, you’re as bad as Hongjoong.” 

“You have to be careful with your career,” she answers immediately. 

He’s exasperated, a tone you’ve never heard from him, “I know that, I promise I know, but she’s my friend and I couldn’t just leave her alone at Christmas.” 

There’s a pause and his mother’s voice is almost too low to catch but you do, “Why is she alone? She doesn’t have a family?” 

“Not anymore,” Yunho says softly, and your stomach clenches, “and it’s not something she likes to talk about, okay? So please, no jokes,” you can practically picture him staring down Gunho, “and don’t pry.” 

“Oh,” you hear his mother’s tone softening, realizing what his words must mean, “alright then, let’s meet her.” 

“I’ll see if she’s up,” Yunho says, and you wait until the sound of his footsteps are close enough to the door before you open it. He looks surprised, but smiles widely, “Hey,” 

“Everything okay?” You ask, your voice low. 

“Of course,” he nods, “it’s nothing but her worrying over me. Don’t be nervous,” He pushes you forwards with his hands gently at your back and ushers you into the living room, hand dropping away as you round the corner together. 

His mother is small, only an inch or two taller than you, and beautiful. She’s small and fine, with long black hair twisted into a neat bun and despite how intimidated you are and the conversation you overheard, her eyes are soft and kind, like her son’s. A man stands up from the table behind her and you realize his father is here too, just a quieter presence. Both Yunho and Gunho have at least six inches on him which makes for a charming picture. 

“Eomma, Appa,” Yunho says affectionately, “this is my friend, y/n.” 

They’re overwhelmingly kind, and before you know it Yunho’s mother is smiling at you, “I have baby pictures,” she says, and the rest of the morning is spent pouring over old albums. By the time you’re done you think you know the name of every cousin in Yunho’s family tree and a story to go along with it. 

The plan is that you and Yunho will stay with them through the twenty-seventh, driving back that night so that Yunho and the rest of the boys can pick up their schedules on the twenty-eighth. He and his family celebrate in small ways, you come to find out, the holiday just another excuse for him to get away from idol life and see his loved ones. It’s less tinsel and cheer than you expected, and you’re grateful to not be surrounded by it. 

If you had stayed at the dorms, you’d probably be halfway through your second round of takeout and watching an endless stream of sappy dramas to keep your mind off things. It was what you always did, and it always worked, but you’d be lying if you said this isn’t better. By the end of the night on Christmas Eve, you’re cooking with his mother, and Yunho was right when he said she wouldn’t mind a woman around to talk to. Without the obvious pressure of being brought home as the girlfriend, you avoid the scrutiny of being a potential wife and things are more relaxed than you could have hoped. 

It’s Christmas day when someone finally asks you, the curiosity getting the better of his mother while Yunho’s occupied elsewhere, playing video games with Gunho. She’s made you tea, honey chrysanthemum, and you see the moment in her eyes across the table when she decides she’s going to say it. 

“Your family,” she says, her tone much softer than a moment ago, “they’ve passed on?” 

Your fingers tighten on the delicate teacup, your stomach flipping with sudden discomfort, and you nod, “My mother and brother, yes.” 

“When?” 

“Four years ago,” you sip your tea, glancing away from her empathetic gaze. 

“And you father?” she prompts you. 

You take a deep breath and lift your eyes, “I don’t see him anymore. I know how that sounds,” you shift in your seat, “but he drinks and he’s not himself anymore.” 

She nods and sips her own tea, and you wait for some kind of judgment or rebuke, but she simply meets your eyes and nods again, “Someday he may come back to you,” 

Heat rushes to your face instantly at her words, hot tears pricking your eyes and you swallow hard to try and keep them at bay. It’s so clear to you now where Yunho gets his kindness, his overwhelming openness and lack of conceit. She rests her hand gently on top of yours and you can barely breathe, a flash of Yunho and his faceless future wife being embraced by her flits in your mind’s eye, and tight jealousy knots suddenly in your throat.

“Come on,” she says, standing suddenly and waving for you, “I want to show you something.” 

You blink the tears away and follow her down the hall, past Gunho’s room where he and Yunho are currently sprawled out on the floor, their eyes locked to the game on the television screen. She takes you to a den, a small sitting room with warm lighting and wide windows and kneels in front of a small wooden table covered in white candles. 

She’s quiet for a moment before she sparks a match from the box on the table and lights six candles. Extending her hand, she holds out the box of matches and nods, “If you’d like to light two for them.” 

“Oh,” you’re a little unsure, suddenly feeling out of place. 

She smiles at you kindly, “You don’t have to pray, it’s just to remember.” 

You look at the six burning candles in a line and wonder who she’s lit hers for, but today is hard enough without dredging up more pain, and you get the sense that she means the remembrance just for you. Accepting the box, you kneel next to her and quietly select two candles to light and strike the match. You’re not a praying person, but the whisper of their names in your head feels like enough. The first candle sparks and catches, and so does the second, and Yunho’s mother plucks the match from your fingers to shake it out as you start to cry – a sudden overwhelming wave as you watch the little lights flicker. 

She rests her hand on your arm softly and keeps it there, a steady presence saying nothing, but giving you everything. With the dam broken, it floods from you and you sink lower, covering your face with your hands and letting her single touch anchor you. 

You inhale sharply and you’re trying to recover yourself when you hear his voice behind you both. 

“Eomma,” Yunho sounds upset immediately, knowing within a moment from your place in front of the memorial candles that she must have said something, “I asked you not to,”

His tone makes the tears come quicker, and you swipe at your eyes, his mother squeezing your shoulder softly. “It’s just a candle,” she tells Yunho. 

“It isn’t,” he insists. 

It’s probably the wrong decision, but you make it anyways, getting up off the floor quickly and wrapping your arms around his middle, tucking you face into his chest and shutting your eyes, “It’s okay,” you interrupt him, “it’s really okay,” 

Yunho’s arms settle around you, one of his large hands cradling the back of your head as he looks down at you in his arms, “You’re upset,” he protests, so defensive of you. 

“That’s okay,” you sniff back tears and regulate your breathing against the steady thump of his heart. 

He strokes your hair softly. Buried in his chest you don’t see the look his mother gives him or the knowing hand she lays on his arm, but when you finally ease back down, you realize he’s rocking you slowly and humming quietly in the middle of his family home. 

You pull back and look around you quickly, the room empty except for you and Yunho, and you blush red, “I’m so sorry,” you tell him, swiping at your eyes, “I don’t know what came over me.” 

“y/n,” he smiles a little, “it’s fine, you don’t have to worry.” 

You sigh, a deep exhale, “Thank you,” 

“It’s all right,” he soothes you again, cupping your cheek, “and I should be apologizing to you, I asked her not to pry into your life,” 

“No, it’s,” you search for the right words, struggling to articulate what her quiet reverence for your family and your pain had meant to you. You turn into his palm and press a kiss there, “I think I needed it,” 

“Oh,” his eyes widen a little, “yeah?” 

“Yeah,” you murmur, “it doesn’t hurt to remember them like it used to, especially here.” 

“Come here,” he tugs you back into his arms and squeezes you tight, exhaling a deep sigh, “I’m so glad you came home with me,” 

“Me too,”

If his mother has made any assumptions about the way her son held you in the den, she doesn’t acknowledge it. It’s as if the conversation between you and the candles and your crying are fully forgotten, leaving you to return to things like helping with dinner and getting dragged into a game of FIFA with Yunho and his brother. It’s easy with them, light, and you feel like a weight has dropped off your chest now that you’ve acknowledged your family. 

After dinner, Yunho’s parents feign exhaustion and tell you and Yunho that they’re turning in early, but you don’t miss how his father points out a bottle of sparkling wine in the fridge and reminds Yunho quietly that his bedroom and theirs share a wall. 

Yunho’s ears run scarlet, but his parents have disappeared down the hall before he can muster up a response. You pour two glasses of wine while he recovers and you watch him, thoroughly amused by the panic across his face at his parents even acknowledging sex. 

“I don’t know what I expected, but that wasn’t it,” he manages. 

“I keep expecting your parents to give me the third degree,” you hand him a glass of wine and take a sip of your own, “they clearly think there’s something going on between us.”

“That’s probably because there is,” he smiles. 

“Mm,” you lean against the kitchen counter, taking another sip. 

“I feel like they left us on a date,” he chuckles. 

“I think that’s the idea,” 

Yunho thinks about it for a moment, and then hands the glass of wine back to you, “Give me a couple of minutes,” he asks, grinning suddenly. 

“Okay?” You watch him disappear around the corner and when he returns, he has your coats slung over his arm. 

“Are we going somewhere?” You ask.

“Just outside,” he shakes his head, “but it’s freezing out there, so put this on,” 

He helps you shrug into your long coat before pulling his own on and takes you outside on the large patio balcony. It’s softly lit with warm white lights, and though the air is cold, you don’t really mind. 

“It smells like snow,” you sigh, leaning on the balcony’s edge and looking over the city. 

“Yeah,” he exhales a large fog of warm breath and stands next to you, leaning on the balcony by your side. 

“Yunho,” you turn towards him, sipping your sparkling wine, “if we were a normal couple, where would we be right now?” 

He smiles, and you study his profile as he looks out the city, “I don’t know,” he says honestly, “I’ve never dated normally or had a Christmas date.” 

“Pretend then,” you nudge him with your shoulder. 

“Hmm,” he sighs, leaning into your arm and looking down at you, “I could take you to Mudeungsan,” 

“Is it pretty?” You ask him, having only ever heard about the national park, but never visiting. 

“It’s cold,” he laughs, “but it’s worth it. It’s beautiful, especially when it snows.” 

“What else?” 

He overlooks the city again and thinks a moment, exclaiming when he figures it out and claps his hands, “There’s this terrible little restaurant not far from my old trainee academy,” 

“Terrible?” You raise a brow. 

“I mean the food isn’t,” he groans thinking about it, “the food is so good, I miss it. It’s just the smallest place, and it’s only open on random weeknights, I have no idea how it stays open.”

“Okay,” you laugh, “so a mountain walk, and some delicious food at a place with weird atmosphere, I like it.” 

You sip your drinks quietly for a minute, just enjoying being together in a quiet moment without your guards up. Yunho sets his now empty glass aside and sighs, “There’s so many things here I’d like to show you,” 

“Yeah?” You ask, shivering slightly in the cold night air. 

“Yeah,” he says, stepping behind you and moving close to your back, pressing you both together so that he can wrap his coat around you both, cocooning you in his radiating warmth. He drops a kiss on your head and continues, “I have so many memories here,” 

You lean against him, resting your head against his chest, “Tell me about them,” you whisper into the air. 

He holds you close, folding your cold hands in his to keep the remaining chill away, and tells you about his home. He tells you stories of his family, his childhood friends, and his early trainee days – the way he practiced singing and got accepted into a program without his family knowing, proving to them that he could. You sink into his memories and try hard to stop thinking about your own, just for a little while. 

When the cold gets to be too much you go inside, cheeks warm from the alcohol, and he takes you quietly to bed. The house is silent, and you barely fit on his childhood mattress together, Yunho’s feet hanging over the end and your legs tangled together. You wouldn’t dare try to do anything more than kiss, holding each other warmly in the icy evening under the blanket, but you need him here and he stays. 

Yunho doesn’t ask what happened with his mother earlier, he doesn’t push for you to unlock your feelings further, he just stays, holding you without a word when a fresh wave of tears washes over you. He stays until you’re sleeping, waiting for your fitful twitches to settle and your expression to clear, before he slips out and returns to his post on the couch, wishing desperately he could have stayed. 

additional notes: i understand that for some, i may be crossing a bit of a line including yunho's family in this. i have taken a lot of time to only include details that he himself has shared publicly (such as his brother's name) just for authenticity, but i did not make any attempt to find out more information that isn't publicly available. things like his mother's disposition, father's height, description of their apartment, etc. are all fabrications and like always, this is a work of fiction and in no way meant to represent yunho, his family, or ateez in a real way.

i also have made an assumption that yunho may have grown up catholic, given that we know his baptismal name is stefano. while i don't discuss catholicism directly, the scene lighting candles is an allusion to that and to the catholic practice of candle lighting for lost loved ones, though i know this practice does exist in other christian denominations and non-christian religions and cultures. to be perfectly clear, to my knowledge yunho nor his family have never self-identified with any faith publicly, i only know that he has a baptismal name.

as always, i appreciate your continued support on this fic and i hope that you enjoyed this chapter. if you have experienced the loss of a parent or a sibling, please know that you are not alone, and my DMs are always open.

[ggukseoulcafe]

— put a spell on you | jjk

pairing: knight! jeongguk x princess! reader

genre: royalty! au, fluff, slight angst

summary: For Jeongguk, it's another ordinary day in life. An ordinary day that involves accompanying you on your latest quests (wherever that may be), watching over you as you go about doing things (whatever they may be) and realizing, yet again, how much he loves you. And if he gets to make you smile? That's just the peach on the cake.

word count: 1.4k

warnings: themes of monarchy, jeongguk has it bad for oc, suggestive themes, few brief hints of sexual thoughts (but its pretty light, no descriptions), a singular bad joke (i’m sorry)

a/n: this was written as a part of @ficscafe's au pairing event! #22 knight x royalty: where a love forbidden is the sweetest of all.

i always wanted to write for knight jeongguk so this is my poor and unedited attempt at it ♡(｡- ω -) mayhaps i'll continue this story sometime. i hope you enjoy!

The blowing mid-summer wind hitting his face, cooling, as if to apologize for the almost unbearable heat that the kingdom was subjected to every year around August.

He remembers it.

The distant voices of the children, his childhood friends, playing together, laughing as they lived through every moment of their naivety. Innocent, happy days involving running through the small, patchy forest spreads surrounding the kingdom.

He remembers it.

The sound of the royal guard's marching as they surveyed the kingdom and surrounding areas, the sound that ringed in his ears like dreams manifested.

He remembers it.

He remembers it all so clearly.

His childhood wish of working for the royal family, just like his parents did, oh how he wishes he would've known back then. Known that he didn't have to try so hard, that he was destined to work for royalty.

That his dreams had already been written down before he started dreaming them.

But what he wishes he should've known back then the most is the ray of sunshine, now standing just a little distance from him, picking fresh fruits for baking those absurdly colourful but sweet and delicious fruit cakes, as always, for any and every occasion she could find.

Jeongguk opens his eyes, only to watch you strutting around the plants with curious eyes. Definitely excited to try out a new fruit combination, he guesses, seeing as you have those wide eyes and small smile, looking around happily.

The silk of your dress making you look like a Goddess from where he's laying under the tree, in the fresh produce garden on the castle grounds.

He doesn't regret it. Working for royalty.

In fact, if anything, he's grateful. Because if not for his position now, how could have he crossed paths with a soul like you?

He still remembers the day he met you.

Such a sweet sweet day it was. The memory fresh in his mind, like the scent of his childhood room. A scent he never quite forgot. It faded over time, sure. But if he strains his memory even now, he can still smell it. The scent of comfort.

"Jeongguk, today we're taking you to the palace. Make sure to behave yourself there," he hears his mom say sharply, implying that he is not to take what she's saying lightly.

"For what mom?"

"You'll see in time, son. But no talking back and no tantrums, okay? We expect you to be on your very best behaviour," his mom sounds very stern, he notes. So he nods.

Jeongguk has never visited the palace before, despite his parents working there for years now. He's nervous but also, excited.

When he reaches the palace, things happen so fast, almost too fast. One moment, he's in awe, looking at the luxurious place with wide eyes, barely containing his "wows" as he looks around. And another, he's being pushed into a large room which looks even more luxurious than the one before.

But his train of thought is broken when his mother grabs his head and pushes it down slightly, making him bow.

Jeongguk hears her say, "Your Majesty, this is our son, Jeongguk. He's new to this kind of a setting so he's surprised, that's all. Please forgive if any of his behaviour is not as expected."

But then, he hears a hearty laugh fill the room. Looking up, it's the King himself. Laughing fondly as he looks over at Jeongguk.

For Jeongguk, the moment doesn't seem real. To be in such close proximity to the King, the ruler of the kingdom, seems surreal. The thought too dreamy to be true but the slight ache in his neck from being forcefully strained earlier tells him otherwise.

He bows again, out of respect but upon raising his head, catches the King smiling at him, beckoning him closer.

With one nod from his mother, he moves forward. Standing in front of the King, he can feel his legs shiver.

"Hello, Jeongguk. What an adorable boy you are. I have someone I'd love for you to meet," the King says, as he signals something to one of the guards.

"Someone I should meet?" Jeongguk repeats the question, tilting his head.

The King smiles wider, "Yes, my dear. I hope you'd make friends."

Just then Jeongguk hears loud feet walking in, or more like, stomping in.

A small girl, with hands folded on her chest, a small pout permanently etched on her face, walks in.

"There you are, my princess," he hears the King laugh fondly.

"____ sweetie, won't you greet your new friend? Say hello to Jeongguk, darling," he hears the King say as he walks up to her, gesturing her closer to him.

"A new friend?" He hears her timid voice say, a stark contrast to her father's deep, gravelly voice.

"Yes, a friend. He'll be with you from now on."

Jeongguk looks at her, all shy himself. But then, he watches as she comes closer and sticks out her hand for him to take.

He stares at it for a moment and shakes it, looking at her again. That's when she smiles. So radiant.

"So happy to have a new friend! Nice to meet you, Jeongguk," she chirps happily.

Just then, the King almost pleads, "Jeongguk won't you take her as a friend? For now? Hmm?"

And oh how he wishes to take her. Take her completely. As a friend, a partner, a wife. And much more. So much more.

Jeongguk opens his eyes again. You seem farther now, looking for fruits at the other end of the garden. But he can easily find you. Always. Anywhere.

His eyes are always stuck to you. Wherever you go, he will follow. And he feels blessed to be able to do that without coming off as weird or inappropriate. Perks of being the only knight for the princess. The closest to her, at all times.

You seem so happy today, he notes.

To him, your happiness is equivalent to the light of a hundred suns. So bright, almost blinding and he realizes he wouldn't mind getting blinded if it's you. Everything is sweet pain if it comes from you.

He watches you rush back to him.

If only you'd always return to him like this. Always.

"Jeonggukie, I'm done. Let's go," you give him a hand to help him get up.

"Princess, it's 'Jeongguk' remember? I am not a small kid anymore and neither are you," he says as he scans you head to toe.

Definitely not a kid anymore. You're a grown woman now and oh so gorgeous, he could drown in you. If only you'd let him.

He shakes that thought off as he moves to take your basket from you.

"Guess what flavour I chose for the cake today, Jeonggukie?"

Jeongguk ignores the name and closes his eyes. Deep breaths, Jeongguk.

And he looks over at you. Beautiful. So beautiful, he just wants to watch you blush. Just wants to touch. So he does exactly that.

Raising his hand to wrap around your waist as he draws closer, breathing warm air over your ear.

"For the cake? Peaches, Princess?" He smirks.

He watches you flush red and feels a gentle wave of triumph wash over himself.

Oh how he wishes to watch you flush red in another setting too. Where there are no trees, no fields. A place that looks like his bed, all soft sheets and silk pillows. And you. Laying on top, waiting for him. The most beautiful princess. His princess.

But those thoughts are better kept for another time.

"Jeonggukie, that's not fair. I was being serious," you pout.

He wants to coo at how cute you are.

"And I was too, Princess. Am I wrong?" He asks with wide eyes and a matching pout.

He watches a spark of confusion flash in your eyes as you seem to contemplate his words. Eventually, you give in.

"Apples. I decided to scratch the cake and make an apple pie."

"Sounds good," he nods.

"You say that everytime," you raise an eyebrow.

"Because everything you make is delicious, Princess. I promise," he says as he grins.

He watches as you look away, trying hard to not blush. He loves it.

For Jeongguk, you will always be his driving force, his source of happiness, the person who taught him love.

And for that, he'll follow you everywhere you go. For you are his light and without you, he's sure he'll lose his way in the darkness. For you are his love and without you, the love that shakes him to the bones will have nowhere to go.

And being able to protect you from everything is an added bonus. Again, perks of being the the only knight for the Princess. The closest to her, always.

all rights reserved ©ggukseoulcafe | copying, translating and/or redistributing the work is strictly not allowed.

[books-and-catears]

And the angst train keeps running T_T Life is MISERY.

Here's part 1

The Brothers dying in your arms as requested by @splashporpoise

Part II

Satan

I didn't know what true grief is. Not until you rushed to hold me, wailing like the wind. And I didn't love true love until I felt the sharp pain in my chest watching you holding onto me so desperately.

"Satan, Satan please don't go! Don't go. Don't leave me, please!" You were pleading as if it were an all powerful spell that could stop time from taking me. You sounded so desperate, I secretly hoped it would work.

"Oh MC, I'm not going anywhere. I'll haunt you forever, okay? You won't get rid of me ever, kitten." I tuck the hair away from your face and revel in the hope that is ignited behind your eyes.

"Yes, yes, you'll stay right here with me. I'll hold you right here. I won't let you go." You hold my face and let your warm tears fall. And then I feel guilt. Unending guilt.

It's a lie, MC. It's a lie so I can stop your heart from breaking. Because truth be told MC...unlike my brothers, I didn't have a proper soul of my own. So I don't know what will happen to me.

But I know this MC, I might have lived the shortest out of all my brothers, but I'm dying the happiest. You did the impossible, MC. You did what all the books in the world could never do. You taught Wrath how to love.

"Once you're okay, we'll go to that Cat Cafe that's opening. I heard they have a huge and exclusive book collection. We'll read all of them together!" You ramble mindlessly, holding to your sanity.

That's when it hits me. The dread that there's so many things I can never do with you again. And suddenly there's an ache in my own chest, and something warm overflowing from my eyes. I don't want to go away like this....

"MC..." my voice barely a whisper, "All my books I want you to have them. Don't stop learning just because I may not be around to teach you like before. I want you to be so strong. Be strong for the both of us. And take care of all the kittens for me too, won't you? Live long and learn everything, okay?!"

"Satan?! Satan no!" You wipe at my eyes, holding me tighter. And I feel overwhelmed.

I am crying, choking on my own grief. Pain is so persistent. Now we're both just a grieving mess. Will I really never see you again? I feel like a child. I feel so helpless MC, I don't want to disappear like this.

"MC, MC..." I scramble to kiss you. It might the last one I ever have. "MC I hope I meet you again. Over and over, if I'm lucky enough to get reincarnated, I hope I find you MC. You're the only one I could ever truly love. Let's meet and fall in love again, okay MC?"

Asmodeus

I thought my death would be a grand event. Surrounded by all the cries of the many many demons who adore me. But I know how empty that would feel, so I'm glad it's just you, MC. What a sight for sore eyes you are, MC.

I've always been the selfish one. Always looking out just for myself. But it gets lonely after a while. So I gave into my sin, so I don't feel alone anymore.

Then you came along. And suddenly I had someone else I wanted to look out for. I know I'm fading away but I can't seem to stop smiling MC. I feel so loved MC.

"Asmo! Say something please! Keep talking,keep talking and stay awake for me okay?" You plead but all I do is smile. I talk too much anyway, MC. Today I want to lie quietly and listen to you.

"No MC, I want to spend my last moments, just quietly listening to you. I want to look at you and only you, won't you let me do that?" I say pulling you closer.

You nod your head and start singing our favourite song in a broken voice. I touch your throat and feel you pour your heart to me. Oh MC I love you. I was so lucky to love you. I am so lucky to die like this.

I lay quietly with a smile on my face. You loved me despite my emptiness. You loved me no matter how I messy I looked in the morning. You loved me on my sick days, on my worst days.

And I knew I would not hesitate to die for you.

But you're so careless when it comes to yourself MC. You'd never take care of your self unless I forced you to. I hope you don't fall under the bad habits again.

I am not good with my words like Satan or Lucifer, but there's something I do better than anyone. I pull you in and kiss you deeply, my hands caressing your hair. "I love you..I love you so much MC.."

Your face is so red from crying I can't tell if I could make you blush. But the small smile I managed to give you will carry me safely to whatever afterlife I might have. Thank you MC.

"MC, you're the most beautiful thing to be born. Even more beautiful than me. Always remember that, okay?"

[iwas-baby]

“affection”

iwaizumi hajime x f! reader

tw/cw: insecurities, beauty standards, mentions of cheating, reassurance, hurt/comfort, angst to smut, angst with a happy ending, comfort sex, make up sex, oral (f. receiving), vaginal penetration, cream pie, aftercare, lots of praise.

fights between couples was common and healthy, though in the heat of the moment words get thrown around and people say things that they don't really means. fits iwaizumi were rare, though they still happened. his eyebrows would pinch together and his hands would form fists.

both of you hated having to raise your voices, especially over insignificant issues. all you'd asked of you was to try coming home from work a little bit earlier, but with all the stress that had been on his back iwaizumi found himself snappier than usual.

"you really don't trust me, do you?" his eyes narrowed and you felt yourself shrink. you didn't want to feel so upset every time someone yelled at you but all you wanted was a bit more of his time, to feel special, to feel loved.

"that's not what i said, hajime," you reply, just as angry deep down, "i just don't know why you come home hours after you tell me you'll be back." you had never thought iwaizumi was capable of cheating, he was too much of an honest man.

"work is busy, don't you realize we're training for the fucking olympics?!" his frustration was clear, irritation seeping through his veins. you felt your lip quiver, you just wanted to scream.

"well how am i suppose to know? you never answer my text, you-you," unable to finish your sentence, you heard him scoff.

"i what? i'm fucking other girls? i'm a cheater? if i wanted to cheat on you i would have by now?" at his words you could feel your heart sinking lower and lower. "because believe me, there've been girls a million times prettier than you and i've said no, and for what? to come home to your constant nagging?"

iwaizumi stopped, eyes widening, processing what he was actually saying as he looked into your teary, exhausted eyes. he was waiting for you to hiss back, to say something equally harsh in return, but you didn't—you couldn't.

moving from where you stood in the living room you started for your shared bedroom, not bothering to even look at your boyfriend. your mind had always been riddled with insecurities, how iwaizumi was out of your league and you'd even spoken to him about it before. your eyes stung as you simply threw yourself under the covers, hoping that crying yourself to sleep would work.

iwaizumi knew he fucked up, sitting on the couch, cursing himself for being so hotheaded, for hurting you so badly. he huffed, rubbing his temples, wondering if you'd still even want him to sleep next to you.

yes, girls had thrown themselves onto him, but cheating had never crossed his mind, he'd never considered it because they all dimmed in comparison to you.

he stood outside the bedroom door, gently knocking on it. you didn't reply and he assumed you were either too upset with him to answer or you'd fallen asleep. regardless, he slowly opened the door and found you curled up form holding your pillow close to you chest.

"baby," his tone was soft, greatly contrasting how it was earlier. iwaizumi stepped towards you, noticing your closed eyes and tear stained cheeks. with a guilty sigh, he sat down at the edge of the bed, placing his hand on your thigh.

you peeked your eyes open and you debated whether or not you would talk to him but seeing the harsh frown lines on his forehead, it was best to resolve the issue now.

"i'm sorry," you whispered, sniffling, you were too nervous to meet his eyes. you didn't have to say it but he knew what you were thinking; telling him to find another girl, someone better than yourself.

he placed his other hand on your cheek, rubbing away a single tear that manged to slip, "don't be, you don't need to apologize." his body shifted as he hovered over you, leaning his head close to your face.

"i was out of line and i know i can't take back what i said," he stopped, letting his words linger in the air, "but i want you to know that i'm all yours." you sniffled again, nodding slightly.

iwaizumi pressed a quick kiss to your lips, sliding his hand up to your waist. you gulped, letting his touch bring you that familiar comfort as he continued with his apology,

"you were right, baby, i haven't been here for you when you needed me," he kissed your lips again, "so, please, let me make it up to you. alright pretty girl?"

“okay...” your tone was soft and barely audible, iwaizumi was lucky to have heard you. he’d never felt so relieved to hear that word, all he wanted to do what to make you happy, to show you how much he cared.

he carefully moved your hips allowing you to lay flat on the bed, slowly parting your legs and giving him room to crawl between them.

"i promise i'll take such good care of you," and you knew that iwaizumi was always one to keep his promises. you let him take the hem of your pants, tugging them down to leave you in nothing but your panties. a caring smile broke his face, moving his head towards your pussy.

his hands gently grabbed your thighs, spreading you even wider as you felt him press his nose against your panties, licking through the fabric.

your quiet whimpers had already begun and soon, he'd taken off your underwear, faced with your already dripping cunt.

iwaizumi groaned, kissing you clit, lapping up your juices while teasing your hole with his tongue. he felt your plush thighs pushing against his grip, he almost chuckled, you were so cute when you squirmed.

he spared a second to look up at you, face already fucked out and heated with embarrassment. he took this and swirled your sensitive bud, feeling you tug on his hair.

“‘m gonna cum haji-ahhh,” he smirked against your cunt and like you said, your cream coated iwaizumi’s tongue as even his face.

“you’re so beautiful,” he breathed out, coming up and planting a kiss against your lips, letting you cup his face and better station his torso between your legs. you groaned, feeling how his dick was pressing against you through his pants, hard as a rock.

he began to strip of his remaining clothing before ripping off your shirt, the two of you pressed together, naked. iwaizumi peppered kisses all over your chest, fingers delicately brushing over collarbones and any beauty marks.

he met your eyes with a guilty look, still not able to fully forgive himself. you only cupped his face, pressing your lips into a soft, thin smile.

"i love you so much," he breathed out, shuffling his hips to begin to line up his throbbing cock with your slick folds. you groaned at the contact, running your hands over his neck, as you nodded.

"i love you too," with that, you felt the tip of his dick push into you, your mouth hanging open, gasping at the feeling. inch by inch, iwaizumi took his time, splitting you open on his cock.

he had bottomed out, watching your face contort in pleasure, giving you a minute to adjust. “are you feeling alright sweetheart?”

“please move, haji.” he huffed with a nod, watching you carefully as his hips began to rock back and forth. your head tilted back, the feeling of the thick veins that decorated his cock brushing against you sensitive gummy walls sending you into a state of bliss.

you could barely hear the praise and compliments he was giving you, too fucked out to process time itself. it felt as if he'd hit your g-spot more times than you could count, his fingers rolling your overstimulated clit around like it was nothing.

"you're my good girl," he spoke with such tenderness you felt like you were melting into his embrace, wrapping your arms around his neck and pressing the two of you even closer together.

"fuck, you're all mine." he repeated, your stomach filling with butterflies, the familar feeling of the cord in your gut snapping was getting closer and closer. you dug your nails into his back, whimpering his name, warning him about what was to come.

"it's okay baby, just let go," he talked your thought your orgasm, kissing against your lips and pecking your cheek as he finally finished chasing his own high.

his cum dribbled out of you and the two of you stayed in that position for a moment longer, his dick softening and a pool of your juices mixing on the sheets.

"i love you, never forget it." he kissed your lips for the nth time that evening, this one filled with just the same passion. you sniffled, nuzzling into the crook of his neck.

"i love you too, haji," you spoke against his skin, feeling him pull out of you, letting your head gently rest against the pillow, promising to come back with a damp towel and some water.

as soon as he cleaned the two of you up, you rested your head against his chest, listening to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. his arms wrapped around you, bringing a smile to your face, his protective nature and comforting embrace was just what you needed.

[latte-fairytaekwoon]

Personal Training (Choi Jongho + Song Mingi) Rated

Pairing: Dilf! Choi Jongho × Younger! Reader (Female) × Dilf! Song Mingi

Genre: Smut, Slight Angst, Fluff.

Summary: Wanting to get closer to her P.T for so long, who would have thought it would take his friend to be able to break the tension between them?

Word Count: 4.6+K

Warnings: Age differences (but still within legal boundaries), public sex, thigh riding, oral (male and female receiving), face fucking, orgasm denial, slight size kink, slight degradation, brief mention of the word 'daddy', unprotected sex (always use protection), creampie, threesome, Dom! Jongho, Dom! Mingi, Sub! Reader.

Taglist: @galaxteez @multidreams-and-desires @little-precious-baby @yunhofingers @yunhoiseyecandy @brie02 @deja-vux @daniblogs164 @couchpotatoaniki @a-soft-hornytiny

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"Oh god no."

The muscular male let out a long and exhausted sigh as he watched the perky and enthusiastic trainee wave at him as she poked her head at the entrance door to the gym. His athletic friend next to him heard his exhaustion and looked to see what the source of the trouble was.

"Who's that Jongho?" He pointed to the girl who was letting herself inside the gym, hassling a little when her bag got caught as the door was closing.

"That's Y/N, the newest person I'm training. You know? The one I told you about?"

The light bulb went off in his friend's head, recalling Jongho mentioning bits and pieces of information about the new trainee that enlisted his help. He looked back at the young woman, assessing her briefly with his eyes.

"She's cute."

Jongho shook his head as he picked up the weight he had dropped when he heard the excited voice call out to him.

"Yeah I know Mingi. Too cute." He grumbled.

The lively girl ran up to her P.T and the stranger that she had never seen before, but one look at him and she was just as mesmerized by him like she was with her trainer. He was taller than Jongho and although not as bulky as him, he still had a handful of muscles that were making her weak.

"So what are we working on today?"

Jongho gave her a puzzled look.

"Ummm we're not scheduled to train today Y/N. Remember? It's sort of a holiday, hence why the gym is empty." He reminded her, although it didn't surprise him that she'd show up just to see him.

"If we're not supposed to be here, then why are you here?" She counteracted his statement, arms crossing over her chest as her foot tapped against the floor mat.

Jongho looked over to Mingi, who looked like he was about to burst out laughing, lips pursed tightly to keep from making a sound.

"Me and my friend were actually just leaving now Y/N, so it was really pointless for you to come. Just go out, have fun with friends. Have a little cheat day if you even want." He tried everything to get the girl to leave, hoping she'd get convinced. He thought he made good progress when she slumped her bag over her shoulder, but he was wrong. Y/N wasn't about to let him go that easily.

"Then may I join you two? I don't have any plans for the day and I'd just...really like to spend some time with you today Coach." She bit her lip at him, hoping he'd get the hint.

Jongho's eyes nearly bulged out of his sockets, his friend turning around to take a sip of his water bottle as he slowly walked away from the pair, smirking to himself at how funny the situation was. Clearing his throat, Jongho stood up straighter and looked Y/N in the eye.

"I'm- I'm sorry Y/N, I think that it'll be best for you to go now."

He turned around and began picking up his stuff, trying to ignore the fact she was not only still standing behind him, but was actually coming closer to him.

"Do you not think I'm pretty coach? Am I not attractive enough for you? Have you never thought about me in that way.....even once?" He could hear the heartbreak in her voice, positive that if he turned to look at her, a childish pout would be plastered on her features. Indeed, as he glanced briefly back at her, her bottom lip was slightly quivering.

"I think you're very beautiful Y/N, but thinking about you in that way, much less getting into a relationship with one of my trainees is very unprofessional. So I think it's best if we keep our ties strictly business related. Plus..... I'm way older than you."

She shook her head at that,

"So? I don't mind the age difference and it could stay a secret between us if you'd like." She took his hand in her own, squeezing them as if her life depended on it, her eyes begging him to finally say yes.

"Y/N I..... I'm sorry. I can't."

Pulling his hand away, Jongho quickly gathered his stuff before rushing past her to make his way to the showers, leaving the helpless girl there stunned and with a hollow feeling. She looked at his figure that disappears with a heartfelt longing. She couldn't understand why he was so cold to her. There's no way he wasn't attracted to her, she'd caught him staring at her one too many times while she did squats and there was even that time where he nearly kissed her as he helped her do crunches. So why did he avoid her as if she had the plague. She didn't realize that she wasn't completely alone until she felt a figure looming behind her.

"Tsk tsk tsk. What a shame to leave such a pretty and young woman like that when she's practically throwing herself at you. He always was rather dense and stoic you know."

Placing his hands gently on her shoulders, Mingi rubbed his thumbs on the top of them, a slight smile tugging at one of the corner's of his lips.

"If I were him, I wouldn't hesitate to say yes to someone like you."

Y/N shuddered slightly when she felt his lips press against her ear.

"I'm not Jongho, but if you wanna forget about him for a few minutes, I'll be in the male sauna room. If you're interested of course." Even though she couldn't see his face, Y/N could practically feel his lascivious smile bearing down on her smaller figure, and it made her press her thighs together. Patting her on the bum with a firm grip, Y/N inadvertently exhaled a breath she didn't know she was holding in as she watched Mingi send her a flirty wink before making his way down the hall and out of her sight. Her teeth tugged at her bottom lip as she pondered over Mingi's words. She wasn't going to deny that he wasn't attractive. He was devilishly handsome, not to mention tall as hell and the size difference between them was making her soak her panties even more. And she had absolutely nothing else to do......

What was the worse that could happen?

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Hearing the door open then close immediately, Mingi smiled at the figure that had just came in, her body covered by the small towel tucked around her chest. Looking her up and down, Mingi not so subtly grazed over the bulge that was already poking out from underneath the towel tied around his waist.

"So you actually came. I'm actually quite surprised."

Patting his lap, he beckoned for her to come over and place herself on top of it, which she obediently did with no hesitation. When she sat down, the knot at the front of the towel came loose, nearly falling down, but luckily she caught it just in time before anything peaked out.

"Oh come now little one, don't be shy. Why don't you show me that pretty body of yours?" Mingi lifted his hands to her waist, smoothing out the cotton fabric that was keeping him from gazing upon her bare figure.

Lifting herself up just slightly, Y/N slowly peeled the towel off herself, letting it drop to the floor before perching herself back on top of Mingi's thick thighs.

"Oh geez. You're even more stunning than I imagined. Absolutely breathtaking."

Y/N closed her eyes as she let Mingi wander his large hands across her bare body. She felt embarrassed about being unable to contain her soft, murmured shaky breaths as he cupped both breasts in his palms and massaged them amply. She shuddered when his thumbs brushed back and forth across her nipples, highly sensitive to any touch placed on them. Mingi of course knew this and thus decided to take advantage of it. He tweaked and pinched at her tiny buds, enjoying the tiny shrills she was voicing out.

"If you're already like this with my hands on your chest, how will you be when I play with that pussy of yours my little one?"

Y/N emitted a long groan, her already aroused core secreting more slick that was pooling on the towel underneath her. She didn't think that nickname would affect her so much, but it was definitely doing something.

"Like being called that? Like being reminded that I'm not only taller but also much older than you doll?" And he hit on another one of her weaknesses, turning her into absolutely putty, even more so as his hand came down to brush against her mound.

"You really are something else doll. Jongho told me several things about you. Showing up in skimpy workout clothes just so he'd look at you, purposefully bending over so he'd check out your ass. Even asking him for help during stretching just so he'd lay his hands on you. By the looks of it, you're just a little slut that wants to get fucked so badly."

Y/N whined as his fingers came down to work on her clit, swirling around it in a slow and gentle pace.

"You're so dirty you even accepted to get fucked by your crush's best friend because you're that desperate." Mingi shook his head with a fake disappointment. His fingers started to go a little faster, rubbing fervently across her little button. Y/N's breathing started to quicken as well, her hips grinding against Mingi's thigh to the rhythm he moved his fingers on her clit.

"It kinda irks me to know I'm just a replacement for Jongho......" He let out an amused scoff as he suddenly halted all movements on her clit.

"Guess I'll have to fuck you so damn hard so you forget he even exists."

Y/N gasped when she was suddenly pulled off his lap so he could turn her to face him. Y/N's face turned a bright crimson color when Mingi pulled the towel off his waist, his cock springing free and standing erect. She couldn't stop staring. There was no mild way to put it: Mingi was huge. Bigger than anything she'd seen or taken in any of her holes. It scared yet thrilled her to think that cock would be in her at any moment. Mingi clasped a hand on her chin, making her turn her gaze back to his face.

"Glad to know you're drooling over my cock. "

Taking hold of her waist once again, Mingi guided her so she would be sitting right on top of his right thigh. He exhaled deeply when he felt her wet folds come in contact with his bare skin. He couldn't wait to feel her come undone all over them. Giving her ass cheeks a tiny squeeze, he dropped one hand down to strike against one of them.

"Don't just sit there little one. Rut yourself on my thigh like a bitch in heat." He ordered her.

Steadying her hands on top of his broad shoulders, Y/N began to grind her hips down onto his thigh. Mingi's thighs were extremely thick, toned, and the muscles were absolutely amazing for riding. Everytime she'd push herself up, Mingi would make sure to flex his thigh so that her bundle of nerves would be more stimulated. She kept a nice and easy pace so far, feeling bliss at rubbing her core all over his thigh. Mingi didn't seem too pleased though.

"Come on darling. I know you can do better than that."

Taking it as a challenge, Y/N gripped tighter onto his shoulders as started moving faster. She shut her eyes as her mouth began heaving out harsh pants. She rode Mingi's thighs as if it was the last thing she was going to do. His hands which were on her hips decided to take control, moving her down as they wanted her to. Mingi forced her even faster on his skin, his eyes fixed on seeing how her folds were coating the top of his thighs with her slick. And he could tell she preferred him guiding her pace, her breathing had hitched and become more intense when he took over her.

"Oh? Are you going to cum already?" Mingi chuckled when he noticed she started whimpering.

"I- yes." Y/N admitted shyly, her hands dropping from Mingi's shoulders to his chest, palms pressed against the top of his pecs.

"Damn. How horny and needy were you that you're about to come undone this fast?" Mingi teased her, to which Y/N pouted.

"Very."

Of course she was, Mingi thought. She came all the way over just to see if Jongho would fulfill her fantasy and fuck her, so no doubt she was horny since she left her house. Luckily for her, Mingi was a very giving individual.

"Then go ahead little one. Cum all over daddy's thigh."

Y/N let out a sharp and high pitched cry as she started to cum all over Mingi's thigh. He held her in place, continuing to rubbed his thigh against her clit to further heighten the sensation of her climax. Leaning his face forward, he placed tiny kisses in between her breasts as she started to recover from high she went through. With her back turned and Mingi's face buried in her chest, neither one of them noticed the door opening until the one coming in slammed it close behind him in am angry manner.

"What the fuck?!"

Both of them turned to see a very furious Jongho standing there, fists clenching and unclenching as he took in the state the two people in front of him were in. While Y/N looked horrified to see him there, Mingi had a shit eating grin plastered on his face as he gripped the girl closer to him.

"Nice to see you Jongho. Came to watch the show?" Mingi snickered.

"What the hell do you think you're doing with her Mingi? You're taking advantage of her!" Jongho accused in an indignant manner.

Mingi raised an eyebrow at him.

"I'm not taking advantage of her when she herself came to me willingly. Honestly I'm just doing what she wanted you to do to her."

Jongho widened his eyes at that.

"Wait what are you-"

"Come on! Stop acting dense man. You know she's been wanting you to fuck her since the day she met you, yet you barely even bat an eyelash at her. So I'm giving her what you won't and she's not complaining."

Lifting her up, Mingi turned her to face Jongho, setting her back on his lap as he made sure to spread her legs so his friend could see the mess that had already been made in between her thighs. Although he tried to look away, being faced with his trainees nude figure had an immediate effect on him, which his friend obviously noticed.

"Just look at her lust filled face, look at her wet pussy begging to be fucked and tell me- No.... tell her you still don't want her."

Jongho looked up to find Y/N staring at him with pleading eyes, her bottom lip caught in her teeth. He started to have an internal conflict with his mind and body, one reminding him to stop and turn around right then while the other screamed at him to just give in.

"So what'll it be Jongho? Are you really gonna leave this beautiful girl, who's lusting for you, just like that?" Mingi spoke up again.

Before Jongho could say anything, Y/N's voice finally piped up.

"Please Coach. Just this once? Don't you want to fuck me?"

Jongho stifled back a groan at her persistence, his resolve was growing even weaker, more so when he saw Mingi lean in and start kissing across Y/N's neck. He pressed his lips against her, murmuring something which she seemed to agree with. Next thing Jongho knew, Y/N got off Mingi's lap and went over to him, getting on her knees in front of him as her hands reached for the towel that was girded at his hips.

"Wait- what are you?"

"Just let her be man. She just wants to show you how much she wants you."

Jongho gulped when he felt Y/N's hand wrap around his base. Looking up at him, she started to pump her hand up and down his shaft, her thumb circling around his tip so his precum could help in easing the handjob she was giving him. Y/N hummed as her eyes fell from Jongho's face to his cock. He was so thick, thicker than Mingi, although not as long as his friend. Nevertheless, he was packing a lot and his size made her mouth water. She began thinking about how far it could reach in her mouth. Itching to find out, she brought the head to her lips, tongue dipping into the slit before swirling around it to coat it with her spit.

"Fucking hell.." Jongho gasped, hands coming out to cup her jaw as she eased her mouth down his length, not stopping until she gagged when she felt him hit the back of her mouth, surprisingly not just the man in front of her, but his friend who was anxiously watching in the back.

Y/N closed her eyes and hummed as she pulled off his length before sinking it back inside her. Every time she stuffed him back in, she made she to give his length a long suck that made Jongho moan out in ecstasy. He couldn't deny it, he was enjoying it. Enjoying watching as his hot, young trainee was slurping around his cock, head bobbing as her tongue stroked all over him, making sure that not one inch of him was left dry or unsucked. Her cheeks were stuffed with all of him, tongue too busy occupied with making him feel good. Too good in fact. Before Y/N could even realize it, Jongho was pulling her off him. He chuckled lowly when he heard her disappointed whine as he made her stand up again.

"As much as I would have enjoyed watching you swallow me, I think I'd prefer to cum inside that little hole of yours. If it's all right with you of course." Jongho smiled so innocently at her, thumb grazing over her upper lip as he pushed her back to sit down on the upper deck of the sauna, right next to Mingi. He moved her so she laying right in between them, parting her legs so he could drop his head to hover right above her mound.

"I know someone who would be more than willing to have you swallow his cum though." Jongho signaled towards Mingi, who shifts himself so his cock could be right in front of her face. He smirked at her surprised face, slapping each of her cheeks with his tip.

"That is if she can even make me cum." Mingi challenged, sparking the competitive side of Y/N.

"Trust me, you'll be spilling yourself in her before you even know it." Jongho assured him.

Y/N parted her lips and moaned as Mingi engulfed her wet heat with his long dick. He gave a few experimental thrusts, wanting her to get comfortable before he got rough about it. He loved playing that game, starting off sweet and gentle before face fucking his lovers until they were a complete and utter mess around him. He rested his fingers on the sides of her cheek, carefully guiding her movements so she could suck him as he liked. He was caught off guard when she suddenly moaned loudly around him, the vibrations being felt all over his lower half.

"Jongho can you at least give a warning?" Mingi had looked over to see Jongho already burying his face in Y/N's heat.

"Nope. I prefer the surprise factor." He winked over at him.

Parting her wet lips, Jongho licked a long stripe along her slit before laying his tongue flat against her little button. Alternating between flicking his wet muscle on her clit and then tugging it forward with his lips as they lightly nibbled on it, Jongho's ears were attentive as he tried to listen to any sound coming from her mouth that were currently muffled by Mingi's cock. But her body reactions were enough to let him know she was enjoying it, given how she'd grind her hips up closer to his face.

"Someone is enjoying getting eaten out." Jongho smirked as continued suckling onto her clit.

"Yeah so much that she can't concentrated on sucking me off."

Deciding that it was time to get her attention back, Mingi gripped her jaw as he pushed his entire length until she was choking around him, holding it there before pulling out. Y/N had just enough time to take a deep breath before he was plunging his cock back inside. She was spurting out garbled whines, drool starting to trim down the sides of her lips and falling on the sides of her cheeks. She was so stuffed with Mingi's cock while Jongho ate her out to the fullest and it only fueled the growing arousal piling up inside her. She concentrated on relaxing her jaw and slurping around the cock lodged in her throat while simultaneously trying to enjoy as her coach's mouth worked on her core, expertly bringing her closer and closer to the edge with each swipe of his tongue. Feeling Mingi's dick twitch, she herself was about to spill over when Jongho dipped his tongue at her entrance, nose pressed down agains her clit.

"Fuck! I'm gonna cum- cum inside that pretty mouth of yours."

Without any further words, only shaky grunts, Mingi held her face in place as he furiously rutted his hips up, pumping his cum into her mouth which she gulped back with no problem. Once he came down from his high, he pulled out his softening dick, a line of spit being drawn as he removed his cock. Her lips were swollen and covered with a mixture of her saliva and his cum, making her look even more irresistible, especially when her bottom lip was poking out, presumably due to the fact the man between her legs had detached his lips from her heat a few seconds ago, denying her from the orgasm that she was just about to have. With a frown plastered on, she looked down at Jongho, who was sitting up and climbing in between her body.

"Don't give me that look you little vixen. It's only serving to make me want to fuck you even harder." He admitted, lips ghosting over her own.

"So why don't you?" Y/N questioned him, to which Jongho responded by pulling both of her legs and resting them on his shoulders. Taking hold of his dick, he rubbed his bulbous tip along her reddened clit before slapping it a couple times.

"Think I won't?"

Pushing in with one quick thrust, Jongho's immensely thick cock started working her open, walls stretching out to accommodate the intrusion of his member. Y/N could feel him so deep inside her, she was sure if she be able to, she'd probably feel him on her lower abdomen. She could already feel him rearranging her organs from how hard he was pounding into her, it would be a miracle if she'd even be able to walk afterwards. When she tried to close her eyes and drop her head to just succumb to the feeling, she felt Jongho's hand clasp around her chin and hold her face up so she could look at him.

"Don't shut your eyes. I want to see every expression you make as I fuck your tiny pussy. After all, isn't this what you wanted?"

Y/N cried out louder when his pace got faster and harsher. She tried desperately hard to keep looking at him but it was unbearable, especially when her inner thighs were starting to get sore.

"Wanted me to fuck you? Are you happy you finally got what you wanted?"

She could only manage to respond with groans and pants. Their heated and sweaty bodies began sticking to each other, the loud slapping of skin resonating through the room. Jongho kept his eyes fixed on her, staring with fiery intensity at her. He kept driving his cock into her, pounding so deep that he'd be able to break her if he wanted to. But he was content with watching her slowly come undone by him, her shaky breaths and trembling thighs signaling him that she was on the verge of exploding all around him.

"Awww you're gonna cum already? Are you that easy? Or is it cause your finally getting fucked by a real man that you're coming undone so fast?"

Y/N whimpered and started writhing underneath him, tears pooling at the sides of her eyes as the knot in her stomach was seconds away from breaking loose. Jongho's hands gripped down on her thighs to keep him steady as his hips continued slamming against hers. His fingers dug into her soft skin, threatening to leave bruises from how strong he was clutching at her. His face continued to look smug and full of pride as he looked at how worn out his trainee was looking. He'd never outwardly admit it, but he enjoyed seeing her disheveled appearance after working her so hard and push her limits. Only now that feeling was intensified by the fact his dick was getting wet by her juices.

"Cum all over me then. Cum all over my fat cock you little vixen." He ordered her, eyes filled with lust and desire to see her break in front of him.

Unable to keep her eyes open anymore, Y/N scrunched her eyes shut and blood rushing to her head as her walls contracted around Jongho's cock, clinging to him as a flood of release was spilling all over him. Her palms were heavy pressed onto the wood deck under her, laying flat as she began to unwind from her orgasm. Just a minute later after savoring her reaction, Jongho's hips jerked sporadically as he started emptying himself inside her. Keeping himself lodged in her warmth, he slowed down his thrusts, making sure to pump all of his essence inside her before gently pulling out of her. Both of them released hisses at the sting and emptiness of not being connected anymore. Jongho looked in fascination as the brim of her hole was still leaking out his white, milky cum, a sense of pride washing over him at seeing a part of him be plastered into her body.

"You ok?"

Y/N let out a tired groan as Jongho helped her sit back up.

"I don't think I can walk." She wrapped a hand around her stomach, already feeling a burn on the muscles. Jongho giggled at her, pulling her against him as he kissed the top of her head

"If you want, I can take you off the schedule until you recover properly." He offered.

"And not see you?" She raised an eyebrow.

Poking her nose, Jongho shook his head.

"Silly silly girl. Obviously I'll come over to check up on you."

Y/N's face brightened up with a smile as she realized what he meant. A loud and exaggerated clearing of a throat broke them out of their little world.

"Well since obviously I'm not needed here anymore, I'll just take my leave now."

Picking up his towel and wrapping it around him again, Mingi went over to the door to give them privacy, but not before making sure of something.

"Just be sure to invite me once in a while to join you both."

[missvelvetsstuff]

Where ya goin, Star?

Biker Bucky Barnes x Rich girl reader

Summary: Reader meets Bucky when the truck hauling her show horses breaks down as she is trying to leave for an event and he works for the mechanic. Passionate, secret love affair ensues. After a confrontation with her father, Bucky decides she deserves better than a poor biker like him and leaves town with his friends Steve and Sam.

Three years later, reader is trapped in an abusive relationship and about to give up hope of things ever improving, when Bucky comes back.

Notes: This came into my head a couple of weeks ago after I heard Billy Joel's 'Uptown Girl' so I guess it's very loosely based on that. It has been clogging my head up and kept me from focusing on Guarded Heart so I had to toss it out here

Please let me know what you think. I have more planned but need to know someone will read and enjoy it, even a little bit, before I dig into this story any more cuz it's gonna get very angsty.

Chapter 1

Warnings: swearing, angst next chapter, SMUT!! 18+ ONLY No Minors

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It was a hectic morning as Y/N tried to get everything together and on the road for her next event. The horses were loaded, her tack was polished, covered and set in the tiny tack area in the trailer. She had her riding habit, cleaned and pressed hanging in the trailer closet, helmet on the shelf above it.

Where was her lucky hair net? She was going crazy tearing her drawers apart looking for it. She hadn't competed without it in years and wouldn't stop till she found it.

As she was looking under her bed she heard a knock on her front door so pulled back and went to the door to see her mother standing in the doorway with her net. She jumped up and hugged her "Where was it, Mama?"

Her mother laughed and hugged her back. "Silly girl it was in my bathroom. Remember it got wet so you hung it up to dry."

Y/N shook her head "Oh my gosh, I forgot. Thank you for helping." She looked at the clock "Oh no! I have got to go. I'll see you on Friday mama."

"Good luck dear. I know you'll be amazing. I can't wait to see your new dressage routine on Friday." She kissed her daughter's forehead before Y/N bolted off.

Y/N climbed into the front seat of the truck with her groom and driver Clint. She looked over and smiled, holding up the hair net "Mama had it. I'm ready to go now."

Clint smiled "Alright kid, let's hit the road."

About an hour into their drive the truck started acting up and when they pulled off to look at it, it was smoking badly. They let it cool down but it wouldn't start back up.

Clint grimaced "I'm sorry kid but I think we're stuck." He grabbed his phone to call a tow truck for the truck and set up a truck to pick up the trailer.

When they arrived Y/N couldn't help but hover, nervous about Lulu. It had taken ages to train her to even go into the trailer and Y/N didn't want her stuck in it for too long. Charlie was fine in the trailer as long as he had hay to munch on.

When she found out Clint was going with the broken down truck and another driver would be hauling the trailer she insisted on talking to him while he was hooking his truck up.

"Hi. I'm Y/N. That's Lulu and Charlie in there and they're my best friends. Have you ever hauled horses before? You have to be careful they don't get knocked around too much. I'd be devastated if anything happened to them."

The man looked up at her with the most beautiful blue eyes she had ever seen and it made her knees weak. Then he looked her up and down and smiled. She felt her stomach explode with butterflies. Suddenly she was very shy.

"Hey doll, I'm Bucky. Don't you worry about a thing. I'll be extra careful with your horses. I promise."

His voice was so soft and soothing she couldn't do anything but stare at him, mouth ajar. She was no virgin but no man had ever affected her this way before.

"You ok there doll?"

She jumped "What? Oh of course. I'm fine" she gave him a shy smile and Bucky felt the butterflies too. For the first time in a while he was interested in getting to know a woman and not just into her pants. He chuckled to himself, remembering just a little while ago when they got the call and he bitched about spending the day driving some princess and her horse to some dumb show. Now he was thrilled that he would have the next couple of hours to talk to this girl. He realistically knew that a woman like her wouldn't have any use for a guy like him but that didn't stop him from thinking about the possibilities, in another life.

Clint came over to check on the horses and Y/N. He looked at Bucky warily "You take good care of them and don't cause any trouble."

He looked at Y/N "I'll meet you there this evening. Get them set up in their stalls and get us checked into the hotel. Early bed tonight, we have to get up early for a practice run since we will be too late tonite." He pulled her into a hug "Watch out for this guy, I've heard about him and his biker friends."

He helped her up into the truck and gave Bucky a threatening look before he left with Steve.

Bucky chuckled and Y/N felt her face heat up "I'm so sorry about Clint. He treats me like I'm 6 instead of 26. It's my father's fault, he's one of those cold overprotective types." She shrugged "My mom says it's how he shows he loves me."

Bucky smiled gently at her "At least he does something, my dad has been in jail since I was a kid."

She gasped "I'm so sorry. That must be rough." And gently touched his arm.

Bucky felt an electric thrill where she touched him and jolted then his eyes darkened looking her over.

She pulled back "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to overstep. I mostly work with horses and dogs and they respond well to positive touch. It's just a habit." She looked at her hands.

Bucky shook his head "It's ok, just surprised me. I don't mind."

She sighed softly, disappointed that he didn't feel the same electricity that she felt when she touched him. Of course he didn't, she thought, look at him he's like a god sculpted from marble and look at me... too tall, too curvy and always dirty from horses.

Bucky turned the radio on "You can pick out some music if you want, I can listen to anything."

He watched her out of the side of his eye while she looked for some good music. He had never seen anyone so beautiful, from the twinkle in her eyes to her leather boots she was perfect. She settled on a classic rock station and sat back, trying to look at him without staring. She could see through the too tight sleeves of his t-shirt that he had some ink on his right arms but couldn't tell what it was and was too shy to ask.

After a couple of songs had played she was able to push past the shyness and try to make small talk. They started with the weather and the conversation flowed to all manner of topics from there. The 3 hour drive passed in no time and they were both secretly disappointed when they arrived at the showgrounds.

Once the horses were unloaded and he had unhitched the trailer Bucky was hesitant to leave. He told himself it was out of concern for her safety "Are you sure you'll be alright, doll?"

Y/N smiled at him "Of course I'll be fine. I've been doing this since I was a kid and know most of the people here. Besides I'm sure you have better things to do than babysit me. I have to go get checked into the hotel."

She grabbed her suitcase and locked the trailer.

Bucky couldn't bring himself to leave "Why don't I drive you to the hotel and we can have dinner after you check in? I promise I'll get you back to your room early." It took a second for him to realize how that sounded "No, wait I don't mean like that. Not that I wouldn't want that but we just met and I-"

He stopped when he heard her giggle and the sound made him smile. He offered her his hand "Dinner?"

She smiled back and took his hand.

They ate at the restaurant in her hotel but she insisted on paying, having it charged to her room before he ever saw the check.

"That's not fair doll. You have to let me pay next time."

She felt her insides warm, did he really want to see her again. "Next time?" she flirted.

Bucky blushed and looked at the ground "I mean yeah. If you want."

"I'd love to." She handed him a business card "I know they're dumb but I'm supposed to be promoting our stable so I have to carry them."

Bucky flashed her the charming smile that could drop panties in the clubhouse "I'll talk to you soon, Y/N."

On Friday, the last day of the event Y/N smiled when she saw her mom in the bleachers as she she waited to start her routine. She looked around hopefully but didn't see her father, he never came to her events, always claiming he was too busy. She reminded herself to be grateful that he kept her and her horses in the lap of luxury.

Scanning the crowd she saw a pair of blue eyes and her breath hitched. Bucky grinned at her and winked. She couldn't figure out what he was doing here. She had talked about horses and shows and how excited she was to perform her new routine for the first time in front of judges. He seemed interested in everything she had to say but didn't seem to understand the horse thing so she was confused.

Y/N contemplated his appearance here while she waited for her turn and felt butterflies when she thought he might have driven 300 miles just to see her. She shook it off, he probably had to tow someone here or help with their car. A guy like him, a biker/mechanic covered with tattoos wouldn't be interested in boring her, whose life was horses and school.

When her number was called she took a deep breath and guided Lulu into the arena. Once she went through that gate, everything else faded into the background and nothing existed except for her and her horse.

After she was done she left the arena to thunderous applause and smiled feeling like she had done well. She took Lulu back to the barn and rubbed her down before putting her away. As she went to get Charlie ready for her next class, Grand Prix jumping, Clint strolled into the barn.

"Nice round kiddo. You should definitely place for that one." He paused and considered her for a moment. "Anything you want to tell me about your trip here? I noticed you have an admirer here today. Something going on there?"

She looked at him surprised, she had pushed the thought of Bucky away as soon as she entered the arena. "What do you mean? We chatted on the drive here and I bought him dinner to thank him for his help. I had no idea he would be here today.

I don't think he's here for me, probably had another tow or something."

Clint nodded "He seemed very interested in your round and left right after. Maybe I'm seeing something that isn't there but he looks at you like there is. Just be careful, from what I know of him he can be very charming but goes through women like potato chips. His gang has caused a lot of trouble and you don't want to get caught up in that.

I'm going to get something to eat, you want anything?"

She shook her head "You know I can't eat before a jumper class but could you grab me a tea? Lemon, no sugar."

Clint nodded "Got it, tea. We'll go out for dinner tonite."

She smiled "Fine but we have to make it quick, I don't want to miss out on the barn parties. You never know who you'll meet."

Clint groaned "I hate those damn parties. Putting up with those snobs isn't my idea of a good time."

Y/N had an idea "You don't have to stay with me. You can go back to the hotel and I'll just get a ride. I think Britt and Kyra are staying there too."

Clint looked at her skeptically "You hate Britt, remember? She moved in on that horse you wanted."

She rolled her eyes "Oh please, that was last year. I can be nice enough to get a ride. Don't worry Clint. I'm a grown woman.

Go get some rest old man, we have to hit the road early because I have lessons right after lunch." She shoved him gently.

He thought for a minute "Fine but call me if you need a ride. No taxi or uber."

"Of course Clint. I'll call you if I need one but I won't."

By the end of the day Y/N had placed 1st in her hunter jumper class and 3rd for dressage. After a brief chat with one of the judges, who she had known since she was a kid, she had notes on her weaknesses and a game plan to improve before the next event.

They went back to the hotel to get cleaned up and she ate dinner with Clint before he dropped her back off at the equestrian center.

Y/N went through the barn to make sure enough people saw her and a few pics were taken of her there. Then she wandered away from the festivities and pulled her phone out to reread the text from Bucky 'lmk when the coast is clear' and sent a reply 'I'm at the north entrance, it's empty'

She felt a chill when she heard his motorcycle roar up. Bucky stopped the bike and looked her up and down, admiring her black leather hi/lo trench with lace accents, white leggings and black thigh high boots.

He whistled "Damn doll, you look good enough to eat"

She winked at him "Maybe later" she looked him and his bike over "Got a helmet for me?"

He helped secure the helmet before facing forward so she could climb on. Once he was satisfied that it was secure she climbed on behind him, resting her hands gingerly at his hips.

Bucky smirked "You'll need to hold on tighter than that" and grabbed her hands so they met over his belly which pulled her flush against his back. Once he was satisfied. the bike roared out into the street and she gripped him tighter which made him smile.

They went to a small diner to have coffee and talk until Bucky looked at his watch and told her it was time to go. They climbed back onto the bike and headed out until they came across a movie theater.

There was a pretty big line for almost midnight and she commented "I hope this isn't Rocky Horror because I don't have my costume."

Bucky turned and grinned at her "That's not really my thing but this here is one of my favorite movies."

Y/N saw the poster, The Lost Boys, and smiled "Mine too. Sleep all day, party all night, never grow old, never die. It's fun being a vampire" and laughed as he joined her on the last line.

Bucky took her hand and pulled her up to the door, smiling at the doorman who let them in ahead of the line.

They already had assigned seats so she headed to the restroom and he went to the snack bar. When she came out of the restroom she had to look around to figure out which theater they were going to when he came up behind her and asked "Where ya goin, Star?"

Y/N jumped a little because he caught her off guard but laughed when she realized it was him. He put an arm around her, holding their snacks in a tray with the other hand, and guided her to the theater.

Bucky was a perfect gentleman during the movie, not going any further than putting up the arm rest and his arm around her to pull her close.

After the movie they walked back to his bike. He sat down and pulled her to him. "So now what, Star? It's almost 2, do you need to get back into the hotel? Or are you up for more."

Y/N looked at him and fluttered her lashes "Why don't we go back to the hotel and I'll show you what I'm up for"

Bucky grinned and kissed her hard on the mouth "Then what are we waiting for?"

When they made it to the hotel she warned him "I have my own room but Clint is right next door so we have to be quiet."

Bucky smirked "Lets hope the rooms are soundproofed"

As soon as the door to her room was closed Bucky pushed Y/N up against the wall and kissed her, his hands roaming all over her. "Too many clothes, Star" he moaned in her ear.

Y/N let out a little whine and pulled her hands back to struggle with the belt buckle on her jacket. Once she unbuckled it she grabbed the zipper and slowly pulled it down. Bucky helped her push the jacket off of her shoulders and his breath hitched when he saw the pale blue, lacey bra she was wearing.

"Damn Star." Was all he could come up with as he walked her back to the bed and sat her down. He pulled her boots off and then her leggings.

Bucky looked her up and down, seeing the thong that matched her bra.

"Jesus Christ, Star. You are just, fuck. You look good enough to eat."

Y/N shifted, uncomfortable with all the compliments, and covered her soft belly with her hands.

Bucky gently moved her hands and looked her in the eyes "No Star, don't hide from me. Not ever. You are the sexiest woman I've ever seen and I'm gonna worship you like the goddess you are. And you will take every compliment, every bit of affection and most importantly every orgasm I offer.

You understand?"

She nodded.

"No, baby. I need your words."

"Yes, sir." She replied softly.

Bucky growled and tore her bra right off of her.

"Bucky!" She protested.

He grinned at her "I'll buy you a new one" before he took a nipple in his mouth, distracting her while he suckled, nibbled and flicked his tongue against it.

Y/N moaned "Fuck that feels good"

He moved his hand down into her panties and growled when he felt how wet and swollen she already was. "Damn baby, this all for me?"

Bucky pulled his hand away and showed her how wet his fingers were before sticking them in his mouth and closing his eyes, moaning "Fuck Star your pussy is so sweet I need more" and she whined so he pulled away and gave the other one his attention.

"Stop teasing, Barnes. I need you."

Bucky smirked "As you wish, Star" he pulled away to quickly strip while she stared "See something you like doll?"

She nodded "all of it."

"It's all yours doll" he told her softly as he kissed his way down her torso until he ripped her panties off and sat back to look at her pussy, wet and swollen and twitching for attention.

"Please Bucky!"

Bucky felt like he might blow just from the view of her body and the sound of her beautiful begging so decided to put both of them out of their misery.

He buried his face in her pussy and started devouring her, licking and sucking her clit, fucking his tongue into her until she came, squealing his name, and soaked his chin and neck.

When he pulled away, face shiny from her slick, he took a minute to enjoy the fucked out look on her face before grabbing a condom, putting it on the lining himself up, rubbing his achingly hard cock through her juices until the tip caught on her twitching hole and he heard her gasp. He eased his way in slowly, fighting back the urge to bury himself in one thrust because he wanted to feel and enjoy every bit of her.

Y/N whined as he filled her, almost afraid he would be too much but the stretch was perfect, filling her completely. She moaned softly, trying not to be too noisy, and felt his cock pulsing inside her. It almost felt like he was getting harder, the thought making her even wetter.

"Fuck, Star, pussy is so God damn tight and wet and warm, I could stay here forever with you wrapped around me."

Bucky kissed her with everything her had, all teeth and tongues and passion. Then just barely rolled his hips, seeing if she was ready for him to move and she moaned into his mouth.

"You ready for me baby?"

"Yes Bucky, please."

Bucky slowly pulled out and slammed back into her, groaning "I can feel your pussy grabbing onto me, pulling me back in. Like you needed some good cock. Shit, so good."

They built up a rhythm and she bit on his shoulder to keep from screaming how good he was making her feel. Like no one ever had before. She came again and felt like she had left her body.

Bucky held her hands beside her head, thrusting and rolling his hips until she was almost crying, exhausted but needing more. "So good Star. I need one more from you. Need to feel this sweet pussy milking my cock before I can cum."

Y/N shook her head "It's too much, I can't."

Bucky tskd at her "Of course you can. I know you want to because my pussy is squeezing me so tight and getting wetter. Just let go and give it to me."

He reached between them to rub gently on her clit and that was all she needed. Her body froze up and her grip on him became so tight he couldn't move so he just ground his hips against her and let go.

Y/N buried her face in his shoulder and whined to keep from screaming, squirting all over his chest and thighs.

Feeling her cum was all Bucky needed and he groaned before filling the condom. He stayed still for a moment to catch his breath.

He kissed her again, this time it was less urgent but still as passionate, then pulled back to look at her in awe. Usually when he was done he was out the door or sending her on her way but he didn't want that with her. For some reason he wanted to hold her all night which was something he never did. He wanted to see her face in the morning with messy hair and bad breath, he wanted-. Didnt matter, this night was magic but he knew a girl like her wouldnt want a guy like him for real. Fucking the bad boy was one thing but he knew he wasnt the guy that a girl like her would settle down with.

He pulled out, disposing the condom, and pulled her to his chest. They both dozed off until her alarm went off.

"Bucky? Bucky. Its time to go. I have to get up to go home and Clint will be awake soon."

Bucky groaned but got up and went to use the bathroom. He came out to see her halfway dressed in sweats and a t-shirt.

"Dressed again already? Next time we'll have to plan so we have more time." He grabbed her around tbe waist and pulled her close to him hefore kissing her softly.

Y/N bit on his lower lip. "You gonna call me or should I forget you exist?"

Bucky shook his head "You're not getting rid of me so easy. I'll call you. Soon" he kissed her one last time then haphazardly pulled his clothes on, not noticing his shirt was inside out. As he threw on his leather jacket he flashed her a wink. "I mean it" and walked out the door.

[xneens]

i do

Warning: language, major character death, violence, angst

Word count: 3.4k

Summary: Soulmate AU where the last words you will ever hear from your soulmate is written on your wrist so you won't know it's them until you've lost them.

Staring at the words on your wrist, you held back another sigh, tracing the black ink with your finger, dread and sadness washing over you. You shuddered at the words, unable to rid of the lump in your throat.

I do.

Born with the words on your wrist, no one knew when they would meet their soulmates, unknown to who your other half was until they died. It was cruel, knowing the last thing they'll say to you would cause you immense pain. Horror stories stemmed from the agonies of other's pain, movies made out of the tales that would become famous.

Some, those who were protective of their hearts, buried themselves away from others, but fate always led them to their soulmate. No matter how short the time would be stretching from the duration of your life to a single second before you'd lose them. The best outcome to happen was when two lovers let go, and spend their lives together, to die at when they were to, finding out they had spent their lives with their one and only. That possibility was becoming more and more realistic with modern technology and wishful thinking.

Yet, there was some tragedies. The unfortunate ones would have their sentences written on their wrist, knowing they'd only know their soulmate for a short time, or not at all. “It's nice to meet you.” "What's your name?" "Can I get your number?" "Sounds like a date." Not knowing them at all was, to most, was worse than to know them at all.

A few rare situations when your soulmate would die young. Parents told horror stories, reading the words off their kid's wrist. "We're playing dodgeball in gym!" "I didn't do my math homework." "You can come to my birthday party. I'm turning seven next week!"

Then there were the most terrifying stories. They were the ones turned into thrillers, a real life story turned into a disrespectful horror movie. They'd lose each other, aware there was nothing they could do. "I thought you locked the door." "I don't think we're alone." "Behind you!" "Someone's in the house."

Thankful none of the situations applied to you, you still couldn't get the words branded in your wrist out of your head. It lingered, whispering the last words before your heart would be torn, only healed when death came for you. Some looked on the positive side, knowing meeting their soulmate was inevitable.

Natasha broke you out of your reverie as she tackled you down on the mat, leaving you breathless at the sudden attack, confused to how you've become acquaintances with the ground. You spit your hair out, grimacing in disgust as a few strays stuck to your lips. With your hands tied behind your back, and crushed against the former assassin's body, you turned your attention on her smug smile, glaring daggers.

"Okay, get off before Tony pictures us scissoring again." you grunted, too tired to push her off of you. Natasha laughed, letting your wrists go as she shifted her weight off of you, sitting next to you on the thick mat. You rolled onto your back, closing your eyes in exhaustion. "That was unnecessary, Nat."

Spending the day at the gym with Natasha seemed like a good idea after being beaten by Clint the day before. You knew you were getting rusty, without all the life threatening missions and people to save, your skills wasn't needed. Besides, you loved yourself too much for Steve to convince you to join him on his suicide runs. He woke up before the sun rose, and it only took a few runs to realize that even you couldn't keep up with his fast pace. ("Although, I would love to see his fast pace in the bedroom. Ow, Sam!")

After tying the score—despite the lack of training, you and Natasha still tied when it came to hand to hand combat—you had sat down on the bench, which was now sweaty, and sulked, sighing over the words written on your wrist.

Natasha rolled her eyes, leaning on her elbows as she eyed your expression, eyes narrowing when you didn't return her smile. "What's with the sad face? Are you thinking about your soulmate mark again?"

"You know I only allow myself to think about it once every other month." you replied. Natasha made a noise in respond but you ignored it. "Shut up, I know I'm pathetic. No need to voice your opinions."

"You're not pathetic, just compassionate." she whispered, her eyes sparkling with remembrance. Natasha had lost her soulmate on a mission a few years before the Avengers were formed, but it didn't stop her from living her life. You hoped you could follow her path when the horrid time came. "Out of curiosity, if you had to guess, do you think you've met your soulmate by now?"

You've given it much thought, coming up with a good theory that even Tony Stark would be impressed by. Of course, you didn't share it with anyone, giving Nat the simplified version of it. "With the amount of people I've met, I like to think so."

The playful smirk returned to her lips, a wiggle of her eyebrows as she digested your words. "And do you think a certain blond, big-hearted, super soldier might be it?"

You reached for the nearest water bottle, throwing it at her only to have it hit the wall behind her as she dodged it. Natasha laughed, putting distance between you, sensing an attack. You scowled at her but it lacked real annoyance. "Oh my, God. I have, like, the smallest crush on him and you're already planning our children's proms."

"I'm thinking: under the sea." Natasha joked, grinning when the corner of your lips curled up. The both of you burst out laughing, thinking about Natasha in a ridiculous kid-friendly dress as she chaperoned yours and Steve's future offsprings.

As if summoned, Steve chose that moment to enter the training room, freezing in his tracks when he saw you and Natasha cackling. His expression made Natasha double back into another round of laughter while yours subsided in giggles. Steve cleared his throat, looking down as a slight blush decorated his face.

He murmured your name, walking up towards you, his blue eyes eyeing the ground with too much interest. "Did you hear about the party Tony is making all of us go to?"

Natasha stopped laughing immediately, jaw clenching at Tony's betrayal. They had a truce where Natasha would stop hacking into his system to play Spice Girls—with the help of Bruce, of course—and Tony was to stop throwing parties every month. It's been three months since the last party, the one where Natasha has almost killed the billionaire. Tony couldn't hold off any longer. She stood. "I'm going to kill him."

Before either of you could get a word in, Natasha was already out the door, her stance deadly as Tony Stark awaited his death. The door slammed close behind her as Steve sat down beside you on the mat, fidgeting with the hem of his shirt.

You admired his ruffled hair, blond strands hanging down on his forehead. You had mentioned to him that he looked sexier with his long hair, and it seemed like he was following your advice. Dressed in a simple black t-shirt and gray sweatpants, Steve Rogers was every girl's waking fantasy. It truly was unfair how good he could look in sweats.

"Hey." you greeted, smiling sweetly at him. Being happy around Steve was as easy as giving Pepper Potts presents. He returned the smile, grinning from ear to ear as he looked away, his cheeks reddening even more. "What can I do for you, Stevie?"

"Thor wanted to have some kind of Asgardian contest that may or may not level the top floor. I thought you might want to do something else, have a peaceful night instead of risking our lives to one of Thor's games?" he asked sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.

Not letting excitement cloud your senses, you grew cautious, eyes narrowing as you looked around the room, trying to search for a hidden camera that would allow Tony to get you back from ruining his thousand-dollar crocs. Steve Rogers was not asking you out in no way.

Steve saw your expression, quickly backing off. "Only if you want to. I'm sure you missed Thor and all. It's okay, I can suffer a few third degree burns—"

"No!" you shouted, making Steve flinch at the suddenness. You cleared your throat, cheeks heating up. "Uh, I mean, yeah. I wouldn't mind missing the party. Where did you plan on going?"

Slightly surprised, a smile crept on his lips. He ran a hand across his face to hide the cheeky grin. "Wherever you want to go."

You threw him a smile, unhealthily giddy. If Clint were here to comment, he'd compare you to a happy school girl with a massive crush. "Oh. Okay."

A voice interrupted the short silence, scaring both you and Steve. You suspected the AI, Friday, had been invested in your conversation. "If I may make a suggestion, I advise you both to leave sometime in the next hour before Mr. Stark ropes you in. I'm inclined to think Mr. Stark won't be above blackmail."

"Thank you, Friday." you murmured. The AI said it's goodbye, far too amused for your liking.

Steve got up, offering his hand for you. Both of you were smiling like idiots, cheeks hurting from the too-big smiles that adorned your faces. You had a suspicion you somewhat embodied a clown. The super-solider kept his hand wrapped around yours. "Would you like to leave at this moment, or get changed?"

You shook your head, liking the warmth of his touch. "I'm good. Let's leave."

Steve Rogers was a gentleman, that was confirmed by his acts and the influence of being raised right. Despite that fact, he was a savage in the bedroom. Or half the time, out of the bedroom. You had been surprised, yet pleased, when you fell into his bed halfway through the second unofficial date. After that night, Steve finally built the courage to ask you to be his girlfriend—a term he found silly but otherwise a happy milestone.

After years of being friends, Steve was ready to begin the rest of your lives together. No one was surprised, besides you, that he had proposed three months after the first official date. Being head over heels, you excitedly agreed, only to blanch when Tony started a petition to let him plan the wedding with you. Pepper had stopped him.

No one knew what happened the night of Thor's and Tony's party. Though, Steve made a smart choice to ditch it when you both found a floor of the tower littered with blackened metals and slightly burnt walls. The team wouldn't speak of the incident, not that neither you or Steve cared. You had both been too jubilant to interrogate them.

The wedding day came. Steve had been stopped by Thor, failing to sneak into the room you were in. No matter how strong he was, Thor wouldn't allow any bad luck to happen especially after you had lied to him about naming your firstborn after him. Steve tried, and failed, to tell him you weren't going to name his son after the God of Thunder. Bucky was too busy arguing with Sam about the flower decoration to help out Thor.

Dressed in the lavender bridesmaid dress, Natasha burst into the room, a smile adorning her face. She had thanked you multiple times for not dressing her in those ugly dresses she had seen on Pinterest. "You getting cold feet yet?"

"Mine are toasty warm." you mumbled, hands trembling at the thought of declaring your love in front of a crowd. You wondered if it was too late to get ear plugs so no one would hear all the gooey, cheesy vows you would utter to Steve.

"Very convincing." Natasha teased, taking a shot of the wine laid out on the table. Placing the flute down, she eyed the door, prepared to attack Steve if he managed to get away from Thor. "Alright, what're you worried about?"

You bit your lip, messing up the fresh layer of lip gloss Pepper had put on. Glancing out the window, you saw the crowd settling down in there chairs. The anxiety built up inside you. "Um, falling down the aisle. Accidentally saying the wrong name. Messing up in my vows. Dying of embarrassment."

"You'll be great, I promise. No one's going to die. You won't trip because Tony wouldn't let you. You won't say the wrong name because Steve's is practically implanted in your brain and you'll be too busy staring into his ocean blue eyes that you won't mess up. Now, are you still worried?" she asked, laughing when you managed to trip over your wedding dress.

"If anything, Tony's going to purposely trip me." you muttered, tempted to take a swig of some liquid courage, but the fetus in you held you back. The ceremony would start soon, and being too nervous, you hadn't eaten any breakfast. It was probably a good thing considering the nausea you were feeling. Why call it morning sickness when it didn't happen in the morning?

"You're being paranoid, everything will be great." she sighed, turning to the window, staring directly at the green hybrid. The Bruce and Natasha thing was unsurprising but kind of weird, especially with the whole sex thing. You had gagged at the thought of Bruce trying to fit inside of Natasha, and stopped altogether. "I'll be right back, I gotta do something."

She left the room before you could address her, groaning when she left a tiny crack in the door. Natasha knew how much it annoyed you when people left the door open when you originally had it closed. Heaving a sigh, you went to close the door, only to be met by a small force. Steve stuck his head through opening, his worried frown turning into a dazzling grin as he spotted you.

Without a word, he took you in his arms, his hand cupping your cheek as he pressed a quick kiss on your lips. You smiled into the kiss, closing the door behind him as your arms wrapped around his neck.

You pulled away, wiping the lip gloss smeared across his lips. Steve did the same, smirking at his handy work. "Hello, Mrs. Rogers. How do you feel?"

"Like I want to tangle myself around you in every way possible." you whispered, pressing another kiss to his lips. Steve chuckled, his thumb drawing small circles on your back. "How about you, Husband?"

"I've been waiting for this day for a very long time. You can't imagine how jovial I am." said Steve. He gave your nose a quick peck, and you giggled. "I know it's suppose to be bad luck to see the bride before the ceremony but I couldn't bear it."

Giggling, you pulled him closer, your lips meeting his neck as you sucked softly at the sensitive skin. "Hmm, I can't wait until I'm officially yours. Do you think we have time for a quickie? It'd really help with my wedding nerves."

Steve laughed, but the sound came out a little breathless. Even with the thickness of the wedding gown, you could feel him on your hip, smirking when he shifted. "While that's a very tempting offer, both Natasha and Pepper would kill me for ripping apart this beautiful dress."

"But Steve—" your whine was cut off by Natasha pulling Steve out of your arms.

The redhead glared at him, pushing him towards the opened door. "You, out, now."

"I'll see you—" Steve began to say, only to be cut off when the door slammed in his face. Natasha turned to turn her death stare on you.

"Look at your makeup. I can't believe he snuck in here with Thor on his ass." Natasha complained, pushing you towards the vanity, quickly applying the tube of lip gloss on your lips. You blinked back the tears as she practically poke your eye with the mascara wand, trying to fix Steve's touch on your slightly smeared mascara. "You look like you're going to puke."

You shook your head, taking a deep breath. "I'm good. Where's Tony?"

"Right here." he answered, entering with a velvet box in his hand. The billionaire set it down on the vanity before eyeing your stance. "Wow, you look ..."

"Like I'm gonna throw up all over Steve's suit?" you finished, panic rising.

"I was going to say gorgeous but now that you mention it, you do look a little green." he teased, earning himself a nudge from Natasha. Tony rubbed his ribs. "If you want to ditch, I have the car running in case you want to make a quick getaway."

You rolled your eyes, wishing you hadn't let him talk you into such a big wedding. All you wished at the moment was to take Steve with you and elope. "Thanks for the offer but I'm good. Let's get this over with."

"And here I thought you weren't romantic." Tony joked, handing you the bouquet of flowers.

Natasha checked her watch, the music audible. Morgan, the flower girl was already walking down the aisle along with Pepper's nephew on her heels. The former assassin opened the door, grinning. "Wait a few seconds before you follow me."

And with that, she walked down the short hall before stepping outside, the aisle was cleared by flowers adorning the sides. Weeping willow branches hung down from the huge tree, creating an illusion of fantasy, the little arch at the end of the aisle was created of leaves and even more colorful flowers. You were surprised no one was sneezing with the amount of pollen.

You took Tony's arm, taking another deep breath. Looking at him, you swore he was a bit proud. He smiled at you. "I hope you know I take full credit for the union of your two souls."

Ignoring his mini jab, you raised an eyebrow. "And how so?"

"There was never a party." he informed, grinning cheekily. He pulled you towards the opened door, walking down the hall. "I made it all up so Rogers would get the balls to finally ask you out."

"Then what the hell happened to the tower?" you asked, confused. People were beginning to stand but your curiosity became more important than your nerves.

Tony winked. "That's for me to know, and for you to dot dot dot."

"God, you're such a nerd." you mumbled, turning your attention ahead as your feet hit the white carpet that moonlighted as the aisle. The nerves began to bubble, and you gripped his arm tighter in fear of falling face first.

The ceremony was a blur, Steve just as nervous as you had been, becoming more and more braver as he spoke his vows. By the end of it, you could barely see him through the tears brimming your eyes. If it wasn't for the waterproof makeup, you were sure you would've cried your face off.

You had just finished your vows when the priest had asked if you would gladly wed the man in front of you for the rest of forever. You whispered a soft "I do."

The priest turned to Steve, the super-soldier happy beyond belief. He asked him the previous question he had asked you. Yet, Steve, being eager, had almost cut him off near the end.

His eyes bored into yours, filled with love and warmth. "I do."

Then everything turned black.

You awoke in the Medbay, needles puncturing your arm, a tube tied to your nose. Every single inch of your skin hurt, your eyelids heavy as you opened your eyes, only to close them once again when the bright fluorescents shone. You felt someone squeeze your hand, a finger brushing along your wrist.

Turning your head, you glance at the person, finding out it was Tony. While he was relieved you were awake, something in his eyes made you believe he wished he had more time to prepare you for the worst. At the moment he uttered those words, you wished your ears had been damaged in whatever hell Hydra had dropped on your wedding.

"Steve's dead."

[edgeofpanic]

 @yangsbandana​ ranked her top 10 bees moments and then i got in my feelings about them so fuck it!! here's my top 10 after the cut

10. that little eyeroll and smile blake does in v1 when yang picks up the chess piece in the emerald forest and says "how about a cute little pony?" they've only been partners for about for 30 minutes at this point, and blake has spent multiple episodes practically screaming "I DON'T WANT TO GET CLOSE TO ANYONE, I AM A BAD PERSON WHO DOESN’T DESERVE HAPPINESS." and still yang gets the prickly ex-terrorist to smile. gay.

9. yang's reply to blake at mountain glenn. blake is still so torn up about running away from home, her actions while with the white fang, running from adam, her present, her future. and all yang says is that she knows she won't run away from a challenge. that she's strong enough to face it and come out on the other side better than she was. the utter faith of it all!!

8. all of v4 lmao. but i have narrow that down so it's when yang looks at the pile of books in her very first scene in that volume and then turns away with the saddest look on her face. she misses just blake so much even though she left!!! and she doesn't want to because missing someone has never brought back the people she cares about, but she is anyway! bees angst is usually not my favorite but when it hits it hits and v4 and v5 were it

7. the dummied out cherry stem yang ties with her tongue while staring directly at blake in v2. she is extremely gay and she is trying so, so hard to show the girl she likes that she's interested. bless her. crwby, yall are cowards for taking this away from us

6. nora at the rally going "friends? just friends? i think they have more going on". nora is easily one of the most emotionally intelligent characters on the show so when she says two people wanna kiss i believe her. it's also notable that this is the first time anyone in-show has acknowledged blake and yang have something happening, even if they aren't necessarily together. praying that there's a followup to this in v10 where she outright asks what the deal is now that they're back from survivor island in the Time Pit

top 5...god i suffered for ages over this and i still think i forgot something

5. "i'll destroy everything you love...starting with her." cw for this vid: dismemberment, abusive relationships

i'm a relatively new fan having only picked up rwby in late 2019. my friends who were into it kept telling me it was pretty gay and one friend routinely sent bumbleby fanart because she knew it would entice me to start the show faster. and sure i thought they were cute, but i was still unsure if this was for real or not. but this scene. this one right here is the one where i went, "oh. oh, we're actually doing this.” there is no real way to read this as other than romantic. the framing, the timing, like.... man.

i’m also a sucker for devotion in ships and if sacrificing an arm to save the one you love and not even blaming them for running away isn’t devotion, i don’t know what it is.

4. burning the candle.

if number 5 convinced me, burning the candle was the one that got me on the train. here was my reaction from a friend sending gifs of this without too much context

and then i finally watched and got hella emotional. it’s a lot of firsts: yang opening up about her past, disagreement, blake allowing herself comfort. but they still manage to talk, work through how they feel, and leave better than they were. and i think it’s what i love about them the most? regardless of what happens, they have each others backs and always work toward a compromise. ugh. god.

also that stupid flirty wink is fooling no one, just say you’ll meet her under the bleachers

3. "what if I needed her there for me"/"yang was strength"

yes it’s kind of cheating to put two different scenes in one spot but they share real estate in my brain. these are the pinnacle of v5 bees angst, for me. there’s a lot left unsaid and literal continents between them, but they’re both saying the same thing. “i miss her a lot. i really wish she was here.” and at this point they haven’t been in the same room for almost 2 seasons. they have a lot of emotional ground to cover when they see each other and even more healing to do.

regardless of it all, they can’t stop thinking about each other. someway, somehow, they want to make their more-than-friendship work.

speaking of seeing each other again

2. beeunion 2.0

blake walks into the battle at haven at the most bizarre time. weiss has a big giant wasp summon (and it looks like she’s been stabbed???? but she’s fine???????), her friends are here, all the bad guys are also here, there’s some random kid fighting a juiced up dude with a cane. everything is fucking happening at once. and all blake can say is "yang?" In that little scared, hopeful voice

and like. the look on yang’s face as she sees blake for the first time is of utter awe. this person she never thought she’d see again singled her out in a room of utter chaos looking just as amazed to see her.

also there’s this gay little moment after yang comes out of the vault

1. “we’re protecting each other.”

to this day, this is the only scene in rwby that has almost brought me to tears. it really is all about both of them realizing they don’t have to face their ordeals alone ever again. they’ll be each others’ pillar with unwavering faith.

just! fuck me up!!!!!!! JUST FUCK ME UP

quick honorable mentions:

blake's gay little skip in v6

sun saying that yang would never blame blake for what happened with adam

bumblebee the bike ramming into adam at high speed

yangs gay meltdown over the haircut

“do you think...she thinks less of me?”/”you could always try calling yang...”

beeunion 3.0

actually all their moments in v7 (the talk in the truck, the moment in the airship, getting ready for their totally a date but not a date before the election)

[nothing-but-dreamy]

DRINKING SHOTS WITH CHRIS AND LEON PT. 2

A/N: So, one person asked for a sequel and even I couldn't get these two out of my mind so, here it is: the unplanned second part. Just enjoy it

Characters: Leon Kennedy; Chris Redfield; Reader

Warnings: angst; fluff

Words: 2.016

As you awoke the next morning, you remembered every single bit of the last night and even if you would hope it would be just a dream, you knew it was all real.

Chris as a cuddly teddy, you never thought this was possible.

How he has called you his 'little baby sister'.

And most important, Leon Kennedy had kissed you.

You had an odd feeling about that but you and Leon had to talk.

"Hey, Chris.", you greeted the big guy who sat alone at a table in the dining room.

"Ugh, not so loud.", Chris whined and held his head.

"Sorry. How are you doing?", you asked, slightly regretting his state because of you.

"Fucking wonderful. Next time, remind me that I don't wanna drink with you. Never again. Why are you even this fit?", he asked low, checking your appearance.

You searched for an answer because Leon's kiss had made you sober almost immediately, "Oh, uhm... Water. That's the trick. Where's Leon?"

"I hope he’s rotting in hell for not stopping you.", Chris cursed without looking up.

"He's at the shooting range.", a team mate called through the room.

You frowned. The shooting range was the last place you had expected Leon to be for such an hour but on the other hand, it was what he did when he needed distraction.

You patted Chris encouragingly on his shoulder before you turned around to leave him alone with his hungover.

As you reached the shooting range, Leon stood there, tall and proud with the gun in his hand. He aimed for a wooden target several metres away. You watched him correcting his stand, raising the gun before he pulled the trigger to make a perfect shot in the middle of the head.

Like always, you liked watching Leon. This man was good at anything he touched. He even had trained you at your first days but now, as you looked at him, something felt different. You weren't just impressed by him. You were admiring him. And to your surprise, this wasn't even a new feeling. It always had been there.

You weren't sure if he had seen you until, "Good morning.", Leon said low without looking at you while aiming for the next shot. He pulled the trigger and hit the wooden target in the spot where the heart would be.

As he was done, Leon put the gun down and secured it before he turned over to you, leaning with crossed arms against the table behind him.

Suddenly, everything felt awkward around you. You swallowed down the knot that had appeared in your throat. Everything had made sense in your head but now, where you stood in front of Leon, your brain felt like mud, "Y-you look good. Aren't you hungover?"

"No. Water is the trick.", Leon answered low but then, he went silent.

You stepped forward, trying to calm yourself with your hands buried deep into your pockets, "We should talk.", you said finally as the silence was too much.

'No, we should forget what happened.', Leon thought but as he saw your waiting and mostly insecure glance he couldn't say it, "Yeah.", he admitted finally.

"That wasn't what you really wanted to say, right?", you guessed.

Leon was surprised. Could you read him this easily? You knew him well but he always hoped he wasn't this easy to decipher.

You looked at the ground, playing with a small rock with your foot, "Actually, I can understand if you say it was just because of the alcohol. We can forget it.", you offered an easy way out and before Leon could say something, you turned around to leave. Taking his silence as an answer and losing your courage.

"It wasn't just because of the alcohol.", he said low and for a moment, he thought you hadn't heard him.

But then you stopped, facing him with your back, "So, what Chris said was the truth? You like me and never said something?"

"I haven't had much luck with women and you know that.", Leon said and as you turned around, he looked at the ground.

He was right. Since you knew him, he had flirted with some women and sometimes, he had spent the night with them but nothing lasted very long. You always asked yourself why it was like this because, in the end, Leon was handsome as hell, funny, nice, protective ... actually, everything you searched in a man, "It could be different between us.", you said low.

Leon looked up into your eyes. Hope was displayed in them and for a moment, he considered giving in but Leon had to be stronger, "I doubt that. It has nothing to do with you-"

"Right."

Leon stepped forward, "Believe me, yn. It's not about you. Yes, yesterday, with the alcohol, I got the courage to kiss you but...it should be a one time thing. Trust me, it won't end well if we try something. Our friendship is more important."

You nodded slowly before you went away avoiding that Leon could see your tears you tried to hold back. He wanted to stop you but he couldn't. He had seen the tears and the sight hurted more than he thought. That was exactly what he wanted to avoid, seeing you hurt because of him.

**

Leon stayed at the shooting range until his gun was empty and the wooden target almost destroyed. He had taken his anger out on it. Over and over, his mind was running through the happenings. The kiss. The talk. The things he had said. Your tears.

It was true, he liked you a lot and many times he had imagined to have you by his side as more than just a friend but then, he reminded himself how the most things with women ended for him and the last thing he wanted was to lose you.

Leon decided to go back into his room to find some distraction and to get a clear mind. As he walked through the dining room, he spotted Chris sitting at a table, a bottle of water in front of him, "You're such an idiot! I hope you know that.", Leon said angrily, stopping next to his friend.

Chris held his head between his hands, "Whoa! Quieter, please! And I have no idea what you mean.", he whined.

"You told yn that I like her.", Leon pointed out, ignoring the painful expression of his friend.

Chris looked up, confusion written on his face, "I did- what? No, I didn't. I would remember that!"

Leon chuckled dryly, "Sure. You remember calling her your 'little baby sister'?"

Chris' eyes went big, "I did... Oh, bloody hell! You think she's mad?", Chris asked fearfully.

Leon huffed out, rolling with his eyes, "Not about you.", he muttered.

"What are you talking about?", Chris asked confused.

But Leon just shook his head. It wasn't to blame Chris. In the end, Leon had kissed you. No one had forced him to do that. He had been weak for one second and now he had to deal with it, "Nothing, forget it. If you see her, tell me.", Leon said and went to his room.

**

The whole day, you were running up and down in your room, considering what you should do or what you wanted. And even if it became evening, you were still busy with thinking. All his words Leon had said were running through your brain over and over again.

He was right. Your friendship was great but you were sure, you and Leon could combine the friendship with a relationship and it would be even more great. You really believed that.

You stopped because you had enough of all the thinking with no point. With determination, you left your room and a few moments later, you knocked firmly at Leon's door.

Slightly annoyed, Leon opened the door. His face changed as he saw you, "YN? Wh-"

"One time thing my ass!", you said, grabbing Leon by his collar to bring him down to kiss him. It was a hungry, desperate kiss with all the emotions you had and as you two broke apart for air, Leon looked you deeply in the eyes. His rapid breath was fanning over your face while you waited for any kind of reaction.

He took some time to look at you. Your eyes were filled with hunger and your lips slightly swollen. Like always, you were simply perfect, and still Leon had doubts. He leant his forehead against yours, "We... we shouldn't do that.", he whispered but even for him, it didn't sound that convincing.

"You already said that.", you cupped his face, searching his eyes, "Listen, I understand your point, Leon. But you know me. I'm not just some random girl. We're doing the same things. We’re facing the same things. We're fighting side by side. And if you give this a try, I will even fight for us to work out."

"But I don't wanna hurt you..."

"Then, instead, forget your concerns for one second and tell me what you want.", you breathed with a racing heart. This, right now, was the time for honest talk and you feared the outcome.

Softly, he leant his forehead against yours and closed his eyes, "You're unbelievable. I'm not strong enough to resist you, you know that, right?", Leon asked low.

"I know. And now, please, answer the question. Leon, what do you really want?", you asked.

Determined, he opened his eyes, "I want you.", Leon answered before he cupped your face and crashed his lips on yours. You snaked your arms around his neck and swiftly, Leon raised you from your feet to carry you inside.

You steadied yourself with your legs around his waist as Leon kicked the door shut and pressed you against it. Pinning you with his lower body, Leon roamed over your curves with his hands and slid underneath your shirt to feel your soft skin.

You did the same, just more eager. You grabbed the rim of his shirt to pull it over his head. Hungrily, your hands were dancing over his muscled chest. Touching as much as you could find of him. While Leon kissed down your neck, you clawed your fingers into his long hair which caused him to moan because of your roughness.

Slowly, Leon looked up into your face, admiring everything on you before he carried you to his bed, hovering above you, "God damnit, you're so much hotter than I imagined.", he said, roaming over your body with his eyes.

You smirked, stroking over his naked back and scratching into his skin what let him shudder. You were about to say something as several strong knocks let you two freeze, "Leon!"

Leon laid his index finger on his lips to signal you to stay silent and you nodded. But as it knocked again, you shrieked slightly by surprise and Leon placed his hand over your mouth before he answered as calmly as possible: "Yeah? What is it?"

"I... I haven't seen yn the whole day. I can't find her. You think she's alright?", Chris asked through the closed door.

Looking at you with a devilish smirk, Leon called back: "Yeah, I'm sure she's pretty fine. I guess we will see her later." Leon answered grinning. As he heard Chris’ slowly leaving footsteps, he removed his hand from your mouth.

"Shouldn't we tell him something?", you asked, thinking about Chris and how concerned he had sounded.

Leon shook his head slowly, "No. He was the one who had blurted out my feelings for you. He can suffer a little bit more."

"Actually, Chris is the reason why I'm here right now. You should thank him.", you responded with a smirk.

Leon leant down, matching your smirk and nudging your nose with his own, "Maybe. But not yet. My attention is somewhere else right now.", he breathed before he kissed you deeply.

None of you knew where this would lead but silently you and Leon swore to each other to make this work.