#i do drag out my fics and write a lot in them...

[angelyuji]

stepbro what're you doinggg

sorry im like super behind on a lot of my classes cuz i was super sick the past couple days so i think im losing my mind (fun fact: absolutely bombed an exam i thought i did well on so fuck me ig)

a lot of you are fans of my step/fauxcest peter and caleb stuff so i wanna write more for my silly little freaks (both you guys and them) to add some variety ill be doing some stepdad stuff becuz... i can... so ive written for 4 characters and ill be posting them each day or so after some final touchesss teehee so enjoy this one!!

18+!!!! minors dni!!!!!

"bully" reader x "victim" stepbro!peter parker (all adults in this fic!!)

tw // yandere, stepcest, noncon, peter is a little lying shit, bullying, general yandere/toxic shit!!! (lmk if im missing anything pls)

"how many times have i told you to be nice to him?" may and your father glare at you as peter stands behind them, watching you carefully.

"he started it!" you point at peter with a glare. your dad rolls his eyes and may sighs, disappointed.

"(y/n), even the school told us you've been bullying peter." you stay silent, “getting him shoved into lockers? stealing his things? throwing food at him? anything ringing a bell?” your dad reads off the letter from the school.

you stand, indignant, "he was telling his friends that we're dating! he's spreading rumors, so yeah! maybe i did “bully” him, but he's a lying sack of shit that deserves it." you seethe, practically spitting at peter.

your dad gives you a disapproving stare at your last few words, but may's eyes widen as she turns to peter, "is that true, peter?"

peter stutters, eyes flickering between the three of you, "i didn't- i would never-"

your dad raises a hand, making peter pause, "peter. we need the truth. all may and i want is for the two of you to a family."

peter hesitates before sighing, dejectedly, "i used to have a crush on (y/n). i was just telling a couple of my friends about it. someone must've heard wrong." he trails off, but seeing his aunt's bewildered expression continues, "i don't anymore! just you know... i did."

"no! he's lying!" you try to defend yourself, but may exhales in relief and your father looks at you, disappointed once more.

"(y/n), this could've been solved easily if you had just talked it out with your step-brother." you try to speak, but he talks over you, "go to your room. i'm so disappointed in you." you scoff and stomp off. you hear may lecturing peter about letting rumors spread and you slam the door closed.

night falls and the house was quiet once more. you lay in bed, letting your tears fall freely. your window squeaks and you sit up, startled.

"i told you no one would take your side, (y/n)." he speaks, voice muffled by the mask.

"get out of my room, peter." you spit, teeth clenched. he scoffs. "just cause i said i wouldn't tell them about spider-man, doesn't mean i won't scre-" your words get caught off in shock as webs plaster your mouth shut.

“god, shut the fuck up, (y/n).” peter pulls off his mask, annoyance clear on his face. he steps closer and you scooch back in your bed. your back hits the headboard and you eye the door, seeing if you could make it. before you could react, peter was on top of you, forcing you onto your back. he kisses down your neck and presses his lips to your collarbone. his tongue drags across your skin, forcing a whimper from you. he pulls your waist closer to his, pressing himself against you. peter whispers into the deepening kiss, “don’t bother trying to run, (y/n). you don’t have the power here… i do.”

[groovy-rat-man]

Random baseless punch out wii headcanon time!!

I KEEP TRYING TO SAVE THIS TO DRAFTS BUT IT KEEPS POSTING INSTEAD BUT FUCK IT WE BALL (i might add more stuff or change things but this is what I've got so far)

Doc Louis

Hes not the step dad he's the dad who stepped up

Hes got a tshirt that says that and every time he wears it in public mac dies a little inside

Hes also got pictures of him and mac together in his wallet that he likes showing off to people

Im gonna take this time and tell you about this crackship I like. Idk why but doc louis/gabby jay is just very cute to me and i wanted to share that with you

Little Mac

Everyone makes him transmasc, everyone makes him autistic, everyone makes him selectively mute and I just so happen to be part of everyone soooo...

I might however be projecting myself onto him just a little bit but whatev

Him and Birdie are like brothers to me, not biologically but still <3

Pretty awkward around his fans, especially the ones who don't respect his personal space (looking at YOU, nameless women in super macho man's title defense intro😡)

Got called into the counselors office at his school a lot because he was always covered in bruises, every time he just showed them his latest match on his phone like "yeah don't worry everything cool at home I just get my ass kicked as my job"

Tries to be friendly with all his opponents, or at least decent with them

~~~~

Glass Joe

I read the first couple chapters of this fic and now it's just canon to me, he is a single girldad and there is nothing you can do to change that

Well I say "dad" but sometimes I like to make her transfemme just because I can so when I do that she's still a milf instead

Has always had fucked up bones and joints and health problems and stuff, boxing just made it CONSIDERABLY worse lol

Gabby Jay is like his uncle or something

Sleeps like 3 hours a night and hasn't drank water in like 10-20 years, this freak is living off of coffee, bread, wine, cigarettes, and NOTHING else

Tried to be blond, it didn't work on him

The only reason he haven't died in the ring is because god is punishing him for his hubris

His one win was when Nick Bruiser died in the ring due to a completely unrelated brain aneurism

Von Kaiser

Used to crossdress back in his younger years, he may not do it as much anymore but he still has his dresses

Actually enjoys his job as a boxing teacher! He likes instilling knowledge on the next generation

Complete neat freak, trys to suppress it as much as he can but it's always there in the back of his mind

Definitely has SOMETHING wrong with him but thinks that if he doesn't get it diagnosed then it's not really a problem

Probably has like prosthetics or metal implants in his joints or bones or something, idk why else he'd make the noises he does

Disco Kid

I like to think that he does drag in his free time, makes you wonder if him and VK ever talk about it

Can fully SPRINT in high heels, hell he could probably fight in them too if they'd let him

Always has at least a little bit of glitter on him, it's a curse

Boxing is more of a hobby for him than a career, he's just having fun with it

Always makes sure his friends are safe and having fun whenever they go out somewhere

King Hippo

Scares babies and small children on accident just by being around them and feels REALLY bad about it

The first time he met glass joes daughter he made her cry and still hasn't gotten over it

Whenever fans ask him for a signature he either writes it in the most beautiful handwriting you've ever seen or he just draws a lil hippo with a crown, which one you get depends on how he's feeling

Has a storage unit somewhere filled to the brim with all those shitty blenders that had to be recalled

He still tries to pawn them off on people, too, if he ever tries to get you a gift for like your birthday or something you just know it's one of those shitty blenders

Oh and the "king" in king hippo isn't a stage name, he is actual flesh and royalty. His subjects seem to think highly of him and he treats them well. He does a pretty good job running things too but to be fair his kingdom isn't all that big, just one tiny island that isn't on any maps.

He usually doesn't hold his title over people's heads, mostly he's just some guy

Fully CANNOT swim but he can hold his breath for ages and just sort of walks on the ocean floor (gee, almost like his namesake)

Knows what gender is, does not care for it

Likes to sketch and draw :)

~~~~

Piston Hondo

Possibly aromantic? I don't really know and I don't think he knows either.

God why don't I have any headcanons for him?? He's my fucking wife!!!!

Ok I KNOW I said he's my wife but i saw like one person make him and Bear Hugger queer platonic partners and im in love with that idea

I feel like of the two he's the one who was most concerned with putting labels on it and trying to figure out what exactly they were but eventually just decided that even if they're not in a romantic relationship they can still be soulmates and I think thats beautiful

Hes a sweet guy but he can be pretty awkward around people lol

EXCELLENT cook like you have NO IDEA

Bear Hugger

Does NOT know his own strength. He'll go to hug somebody and and break their ribs, he'll go to open a jar and shatter it into pieces. He's trying his best to be gentle but good god.

Also the gay kind of bear (the stage name was on purpose)

Can actually literally for real life talk to animals. No fucking clue how he does it, i guess it's just a Canadian thing

Lost his squirrel after losing in title defense and was DEVASTATED, but DONT WORRY the squirrel was fine

The "i like raw fish" line isn't about sushi, be just sticks his head in a river and comes out with a live salmon in his teeth

Great Tiger

Has at least one if not a plethora of cats (one of which is a British shorthair cause I feel like that's the kind of cat he'd like)

"I feed you, I home you, I give you all the treats and toys you could ask for, and what do you do? You scratch up my furniture and knock over all my nice cups! What do you have to say for yourself?"

"Mmmrrp?😺"

"Hmph, you're lucky you're cute..."

Magic is a difficult thing to control so sometimes when he sneezes he teleports, happesnt to the best of us

It took him weeks to fully resolidify after getting poofed my mac in title defense so for a while parts of his body were just vapor

If i ever draw him I'm gonna give him widdle kitty fangs, trust me

Still trying to work on his music career, the dumbass

Him and don like to gossip together like catty bitches

Don Flamenco

Carmen 100% tops him, I will not elaborate (at least not until I finish my fanfic)

#1 bi4bi couple ever

Whenever he drinks he literally does not shut up about her

"Me gusta mi esposa porque es suave y cálida y bonita y amable conmigo🥰🥰"

Sure, alright dude

I know it's HEAVILY implied that Carmen left him after he lost to mac the first time but I choose to think that he just lost all his self worth and was CONVINCED that she was gonna leave him

That... might actually be worse now that i think about it

But whatever, in the long run they get married and have twins and grow old together and it's great<3

She likes him better without his toupee, more room for kisses<3<3

"I'd kill someone for you, PLEASE ask me to kill someone for you..."

Hes tried on her lingerie more times than he's like to admit, it's gotten to the point where she just bought him his own. She wasn't upset about him stealing her clothes, she was upset because pink is NOT his color

Also I'm sorry that literally all of these are about him and Carmen, I didn't mean to do that

He is a complete giga bitch to everyone except her

I like it when people interpret mac as being Hispanic because I feel like he'd try and start a conversation with don and he'd be like "Lo siento, no hablo inglés. (Lying)" and mac would just be like "¡Oh, está bien! Así que, como te decía..." and dons just like GOD FUCKING DAMNIT

~~~~

Aran Ryan

He used to be normal, but then they put him in a room. A rubber room. A rubber room with rats. The rats made him crazy.

Does not know Irish and refuses to learn because it reminds him of being in school and he fucking HATED being in school

Probably because of the adhd or whatever is going on with his brain

Will break somebody's nose if they make fun of his accent

I see folks giving him a ton of siblings and I really like that idea but I just gave him one cause I thought it'd be easier lol

I named his sister Sharan cause I thought it'd be funny, she's also fucking crazy but when they're around eachother they're too busy trying to reel the other one in to be crazy themselves so they sort of balance eachother out

Shes about 6-7 years younger than than him and even though he KNOWS she can stand up for herself he's still very protective of her

When he first started boxing professionally he would bring her with him to get her out of the house (even though she didn't like seeing him get hurt)

Used to read her stories to help her go to sleep and would stay with her to protect her from monsters

Has fistfought his dad and would do so again if he wasn't dead

Soda Popinski

Literally just this post

Him and his wife that I made up have been trying for a baby but haven't had any luck so far

Gained his sweet tooth after quitting drinking (ya know cause he used to be called vodka drunkinski, god I'm so fucking clever)

Is actually a gentle giant outside of the ring!

His wife started knitting him sweaters once she saw him go out into the snow nearly naked. He loves and cherishes them and wears them every chance he gets but he still goes outside without pants🫠

Has killed someone on accident

Bald Bull

I like to think that he's a pretty chill guy when he's not being hounded by the paparazzi but god damn they will not leave him alone

He was probably glad when mac became champ for all the reasons macho man hated it

I honestly don't know what else to say about him

Fuck it I'm giving him agoraphobia

Him and popinski are pals😊

Has killed someone on purpose

Super Macho Man

I'm gonna be real, in my first draft of this post i completely forgot he existed and if he was real and he knew that he would be thinking about it for WEEKS

His ass: NOT real

His tits: NOT real

Thinks he's talking Like The Youth when he says shit like dude and bogus all the time

Also he's like 50

Definitely has at least one kid that he pretends not to know about, dodges child support like it's bullets in the matrix

Idk what social media was like in 2009 cause I was 4 years old but I like to think that people bully him online

Tried to own the "release the bogus" thing but it was just suuuuuuper cringe

Sometimes I like to make him ftm, I think it's neat

Sometimes I also like to make him fluent in asl but I got that one from a fanfic

Mr. Sandman

Comfypilled cozymaxer (at least when he's not training and stuff)

I feel like he would not be able to play any of the punch out games if they existed in his universe

I really dont know what to put here either

I like to think that under that intimidating exterior hes a real sweetie but I also said that about popinski and bb so it feels like I'm just being stupid

Give him some chamomile tea. Now.

[imsadstuff]

A Royal Romance - A Jungkook and Royal OC Fic (Part 1)

Synopsis: The royal family of Korea changes reigns with a tragic assassination. Crowns are thrust upon the heads of people who never imagined this life. It is a story of many couples, the queen and her prince consort, a king and queen in waiting, a princess and her forced arrangement with Jungkook, but also a disgraced formal royal Yoongi and his boyfriend Jimin. Read along and see how it all unfolds.

Genre: Royalty, Romance, Angst, Love Triangle, lots and lots of romance

Warnings: Mentions of smoking, drinking and drugs, death of side characters, there are mentions of death of parents, some cursing

Word Count: 40K+ (I write long fics what can I say)

Author Note: So, I've decided that the sane thing to do is post the fic in two parts, what I was worried about is the unregulated traction fics in parts get, but it's insane to put an 80k+ fic all in one go. I've also taken a lot of liberties with establishing a Korean royal family, but it is not to offend anyone, it is all for creativity. I hope you enjoy this labour of my love, like, comment, and tell me all the things you loved and didn't! Anyway, enjoy reading!

AO3 Link - if you wish to read this on ao3, enjoy!!

2019

The chill Friday night hits them on the face as they step out from the bar to smoke. A box of removed from a suit jacket pocket and cigarettes are passes around to the rest of the group while the rest get back to their vapes. People talk about clients, money that was made today, dip in the market that happened last week, predictions for next week. These people spend well over 80 hours together every day and mostly talk about work, that’s all they know to do.

“You’re quiet today, what’s up?” Aiden asks as she continues to check something on her phone, her cousin got engaged last night and the group chat is filled with pictures from the glamourous night.

“Nothing, it’s just been a long week” Sarah says as she takes a long drag off her vape and shuts off her phone, deciding to call her cousin tomorrow morning.

Aiden knows somethings bothering her, he wants to reach out and comfort her but he just can’t, not with people around. That why he takes the opportunity to pull her away as the group orders their 5th round of beer.

“Hey” Aiden says as the two of them stand in a quiet, secluded corner of the bar, his arm drape around her waist and she looks up at him with the same flat face she’s had all day.

“You’re oddly quiet today, did I do something wrong?” Aiden asks and Sarah just rests her head on his chest.

“My favourite cousin is getting engaged today and I really wanted to be there but I couldn’t be, I feel so bad for missing this major event in his life” Sarah shares as Aiden rakes his fingers through her hair.

“You have a favourite cousin? Also, why couldn’t you be there? I would have approved that leave” Aiden says the last thing with a playful chuckle and Sarah just gives him a sarcastic look as she pulls her head up.

“Because my mother and her brother, my cousin’s father haven’t been on talking terms for the last few years, we’re basically not supposed to talk with that part of the family. If I went, it would be this whole thing with my mother and I just don’t have the energy for that” Sarah shares and the same sadness returns to her face.

“That’s, um, complicated, how about we leave and go to my place, I’ve got something at my place that’ll definitely help you feel better” Aiden says in a suggestive manner and Sarah just laughs, so ready to leave this dive bar.

Picking pizza on their way home feels like the best decision ever as Sarah takes the biggest puff off the joint, passing it to Aiden. The two of them cuddle even closer as the wind gets colder, smoking on the balcony is definitely always a bad decision.

“You feel better now?” Aiden asks, putting out the rest of the joint for later. Sarah doesn’t say anything, but she does turn around to place a soft kiss on his warm lips.

“So, you wanna go away the next weekend, my place in the Hamptons is ready just in time for Autumn” Aiden asks as the two of them make their way in. Sarah has done this a few times at his apartment now, she walks into the kitchen as starts reheating the pizza like she’s done before.

“You’re my boss Aiden, you have to know that we have to submit the quarterly growth report the following Monday” Sarah says as she looks in the pantry for some kind of hot sauce.

“I’m telling not you this as your boss, but I put Peter in charge of that so that we could go away” Aiden looks at the scandalous look on Sarah’s face as he laughs and removes the tabasco sauce she’s been looking for.

“Why’d you do that?” Sarah asks as he continues to get some drinks for them, Aiden just shrugs as he walks back into the living room. Sarah just follows him watching the 6 feet man get comfortable on his sofa.

“Aiden, you could get in real trouble if people at work found out we’re involved. I mean, I would be in trouble, but not as much as you would be as a senior partner” Sarah says as she hands him a plate with a slice on it and nestling right where she was.

“Why are you so scared to say that we’re dating? Involved with each other? What is it going to be next, you’re just a friend who sleeps over at my place five times a week?” Aiden says as he takes the biggest bite of the pizza.

“I didn’t want to come off to needy by having the ‘what are we’ conversation, you should have just been a man and asked me if you can be by boyfriend” Sarah teases as she stands up and takes a seat on his lap.

“Oh, how sexist of you, I thought you were a modern feminist woman, remember that speech you gave when a client called you sweetheart” Aiden recalls and Sarah just chuckles as she steals his pizza.

“I’ve never seen a white man that scared of a 5’2 Korean woma-“ Aiden stops talking as the front door bursts open, the two of them look shocked as men in military uniform with guns in their hands file into the room.

“Sorry for the intrusion but I’ve been calling you for the past hour and it’s a matter of your security” a man in a suit says as he walks closer to the couple. Sarah stands with confusion on her face, still looking around the room.

“Namjoon what happened?” Sarah asks pulling her robe even tighter. Namjoon looks behind at Aiden and then looks back at her.

“Mr Smith can you give us a minute, I need to discuss some highly sensitive details with her Royal Highness Princess ___” Namjoon talks and Aiden’s confusion just grows.

“What?” Aiden mumbles mostly to himself as he stays still on the sofa. Sarah takes a seat beside him, taking his hands into hers.

“She’s been using an assumed name in the States, she’s actually-“ “Namjoon can you shut the fuck up and give us some space, and get these snipers out of here, I’m sure I’m not in grave danger” ___ intervenes and Namjoon just nods as he takes a step back and does what he was told.

“My mother is the twin sister of the current King of Korea, we moved to the states when I was 4 because my father wanted us to live a sorta normal life. Sarah is just a name I thought fit me when I was 4, it was the name of my baby sitter” ___ shares as she laughs at the last part. She looks up at the room, watching as the men in uniform file out of the room, not brave enough to look at Aiden yet.

“So, um, you’re ___?” “Actually, the correct protocol for you to address her is Your Royal Highness Princess ___ and there after Your Royal Highness” Namjoon intervenes once again as he just stands there.

“You don’t need to do that and can you give Namjoon and I a minute, he wouldn’t have broken in if it wasn’t life and death” ___ asks and Aiden just wordlessly walks into his bedroom, shutting the door behind him.

“I think I have been pretty clear-“ “Your Highness, we do not have time, I need you to get to safety now, things will be explained then” Namjoon says as he picks up her jacket and places it in her lap.

“Is it my brothers, is it my parents, what is wrong?” ___ asks with a small voice, the worst scenarios flashing into her mind.

“It’s not them, but it is very serious” Namjoon is usually a strong, confident man, but tonight, he looks shaken up.

“Where is he, everyone’s here but him” ___ asks Namjoon as the rest of her family walk into the jet. Her father has the same shaken face Namjoon did and it’s not easing her one bit.

“He’s was in London, he’s on his way to Seoul right now” Namjoon says as the rest of the security team walks into the jet. There’re just confused and anxious faces all around, and the unrest just grows

“So, as of the last we know of the situation, a team of assassins broke into the blue palace’s ball room during the engagement dinner. Security blackout protocol was put into place as soon as the first gun shot was heard, so we haven’t been made aware of the escalation yet.” A man ___ has never seen before announces to the family and her mother clutches onto her even tighter as tears escape her eyes.

“We’ll reach Seoul in the next ten hours, all your cell phones and personal devices have been seized by the security team to make sure we aren’t being tracked. I’ll notify you as we get more information, but in the meantime let’s just hope that the royal family is safe” the man with a stone-cold face says and ___ can’t believe that this isn’t a nightmare.

There is a pit in ___’s stomach as soon as the jet it takes off. ___’s father and elder brother continue talking to the security detail as ___ sister-in-law holds her daughter tight and her mother sits motionless.

There’s stillness in the air as the family walks on the tarmac, without much questioning they get into separate cars to a location that they don’t know about. Namjoon is quite through the ride, ___ not having any energy to ask him anything anyway either.

The car pulls into one of the royal estate outside Seoul, one ___ grew up in. Once again, the family takes a seat in the formal living room, waiting for the head of security to share some details.

“So, we now know all the details of the situation. The late king was shot in his cheat twice, he passed away on the way to the hospital.” The head of security stops talking for a second to catch a breath as he wipes a tear that escaped his eye.

“Prince Eugene was shot in his chest and leg and is in surgery right now. His late fiancé, Ms. Yuri Lee was also shot on her chest, and passed away in the royal ball room.” He continues talking and ___ can hear her mother and sister-in-law sobbing away.

“The Queen has a gunshot in her arm and is currently under surgery as well, The Queen Mother wasn’t harmed by the gunmen” the word late king are still ringing in ___’s head as she tried to take deep breaths to calm herself.

The security head continues talking as ___ spaces out, her head is spinning and she wants to lay down. She has flashes of the pictures her cousin sent her just earlier that day, how happy he was when they talked to each other earlier that week, how hope full he was, how much he was looking forward to his life and pregnant fiancé.

“What hospital is Eugene at? I want to be there when he wakes up” ___ finally talks and the all the people turn around to look at her strangely.

“Ma’am it’s critical to your security that you don’t leave the premises” Namjoon speaks from beside her and she looks around as the rest of room agrees with him.

“My cousin who just lost his pregnant fiancé is under life threatening conditions and I want to be there by his side to comfort him, I’m not integral to the royal lineage anyway” ___’s voice is agitated as she looks at her mother and older brother, Wonik.

“___ you’re being irrational and emotional right now-“ “Yes, I’m being irrational and emotional because loved family members passed away and the one I love the most might be too, aren’t I allowed to be irrational and emotional right now” ___ shouts as she cuts off her brother and he just gives her a resign look as her mother walks closer to talk to her.

“You should go, Eugene needs family right now, Mr Park send the maximum-security detail with her, Namjoon, stay by her side. Take care” she says as she brushes her hands and people around them get to work on her mother’s orders.

There is this eerie silence in the hospital hallways as ___ paces around. She restless and needs a cigarette but she’s too dazed to ask for it. The red-light indicating operation in-progress is giving her a migraine but she can’t look away.

“Do we know where in the chest he was shot?” ___ asks and Namjoon goes back to the security report he was handed the second they entered the hospital.

“A quarter centimetre away from the royal prince’s heart” she hears and takes a seat, there’s no clear thought in her head, she’s trying to imagine him coming out of there alive but she’s never been a positive person.

It’s somewhere around 9 am when ___ jerks herself awake and feels a jacket over her and a head on her shoulder. Her eyes barely register him at first but she completely does in a second.

“Yoongi?” she asks mostly to herself, thinking this is some kind of nightmare. The minute it completely registers to her, she engulfs her brother in a tight hug, tears finally escaping her eyes.

“He’s going to make it, I’m sure, he’s always been a fighter” Yoongi mumbles to her as he pulls away to wipe off her tears. There’s thick silence in the room as ___ rests her shoulder on her older brother’s shoulders.

___ is laying in her childhood room as the doors open and a group of people. A Woman lay out black dresses for her to choose from, as another opens the curtains and other lays out a fresh set of breakfast.

“Ma’am the funeral service is scheduled for 9 am, and you’re expected to be there by 8:30. It’s 7 am right now and it important that you’re on time.” Her lady-in-waiting tells her as ___ rests her back against the headboard. It’s been a week since this nightmare started and it’s been non-stop string of heartbreaks and bad news.

“You are expected to be presentable with a bit of makeup as the press might photograph you but no bright makeup” Sora continues talking as ___ reads a string of texts from Aiden on her phone.

“I’m fully capable of dressing for a funeral for half my family, can you all please give me some privacy” ___’s voice sounds broken as the women walk out the room and close the door behind them.

She stands up and draws the curtains back to stop the sunlight from coming in, walking into her bathroom, she lights a cigarette as she looks at herself in the mirror. She looks sick and the tears haven’t stopped since she broke down in front of a team of doctors at the hospital. Eugene, his fiancé, her uncle and aunt had been dead for a week, her mother had been accessed as the Queen. In a matter of week, her world had been flipped upside down.

Yoongi is waiting in the entryway for the rest of his family to arrive, he fixes his tie for the nth time tomorrow as he fidgets. He hadn’t seen most of his family for the past few years and he constantly feels nauseous, at the brink of throwing up. He observes as his niece is holding her nanny’s hand as she prompts them to walk towards him.

Yoongi had only seen the three-year-old Jia in pictures ___ sent him every now and then. Jia finishes eating her banana as she studies Yoongi and he’s feeling more and more uncomfortable as she walks towards them.

“My mother told me that you’re my uncle” Jia finally speaks as the nanny goes to throw away the banana peel. Yoongi just nods and Jia stands very still and very close to him.

“Why didn’t you come to my birthday parties, aunty ___ always came and brought me the biggest presents and she would always buy me flowers too, she told me they were presents from my uncle, are you that uncle?” Jia asks with a small voice and Yoongi is a bit too stunned to hear this.

“I think so, I’m sorry for missing your birthdays, I lived kinda far away” Yoongi lies about the last part but is very earnest about the first parts. Jia just nods as she contemplates but it ends with a smile.

“It’s okay, I kept the flowers by my bed. How did you know sunflowers are my favourite?” Jia asks and Yoongi cracks a smile as well, he noticed how similar their smiles are.

“___ told me” he shares and the three year old nods in agreement, Yoongi is expecting another question from her but she simply reaches over to fix his tie. Yoongi is taken aback and maybe flinches a bit but just looks down at her tiny hands centring his tie.

“My dad’s tie is always a bit at the side, he asks me to fix it for him sometimes” Jia shares and Yoongi is feeling less and less nervous, but there’s more sound coming towards the hallway and he tenses up.

“I miss my friends, mom tells me that we’re going to have to live in Seoul forever and I don’t want to” Jia shares and the sound of heels towards them intensifies.

“I’m sure your friends miss you as well,” Yoongi says not addressing the last part of the question, he doesn’t want to be selfish and think about that right now but it’s been eating him alive.

Two people walk into entryway at the same time, ___ and Jia’s nanny and he’s a bit eased by them, especially ___. Yoongi looks at her sister with worry, he can smell the cigarettes on her as she takes a seat beside him. Jia lights up seeing her aunt and immediately reaches to hold her aunt.

“I found out that he is sunflower uncle, he does kind of look like a sunflower” Jia shares and ___ cracks a smile. The nauseous feeling is almost gone but returns back as Yoongi looks up to see his parents and brother and sister-in-law ready and walking towards them as well.

There isn’t much talking as everyone stiffly hears to the security detail tell them the plans for the morning. His mother constantly has her forehead wrinkles and all he wants to do is ask if she’s okay, but how can she be okay right now.

Yoongi feels like an outsider watching his family discussing something, he watches as his brother picks up his daughter and hug her tightly, his father trying to comfort her sister as another tear slips out hear eyes as they walk to where the service is happening. He’s a few paces behind them, they’re so used to him not being around, and it is all his doing.

Wonik has written a beautiful eulogy for their family, he’s already acting like a king in making and it’s strange to Yoongi, these were never supposed to be their roles. ___ is following her father as they get some last-minute work done before people start arriving. This isn’t the Min family he remembers, they look functional and loving from an outsider’s perspective.

Yoongi is blankly staring at his family at work as he takes a seat at his assigned seat. He’s too zoned out to notice Haein, his brother’s wife take a seat beside him.

“Jia was telling me all about meeting you today” Haein shares and Yoongi just shares a pleased smile, even tho it might be inappropriate right now. There’s awkwardness between them because Yoongi barely knows her, the last time he saw Haein was at their wedding, he remembers that night very vividly.

“I always read about your music label in the news, works been good?” Haein continues the conversation and Yoongi nods before clearing his throat to speak.

“Yes, it’s been fulfilling. ___ told me you got promoted at the firm before all this happened” Yoongi is biting his tongue as soon as he says that, because Haein’s face only falls more.

“Yes, but this is our life now” she says as she watches his husband discuss something with her mother.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have brought that up” “It’s alright, this is all a tragedy out of our control” Haein responds with a melancholic look and Yoongi just nods looking at his sweaty hands.

The funeral and service are exhausting physically added onto the mental exhaustion. Midway through the service ___ makes a beeline towards one of the back door hoping it provides her with some privacy.

She swings the door open to a man in a suit smoking in the corner, he had the same ideas as she did. She looks behind her as she shuts the door, and the sound of that immediately alerts the man.

“I’m sorry, am I disturbing you?” ___ asks as she takes a seat on a bench facing him. The man is alert, too alert, like he forgot what the royal protocol is.

“No, you aren’t Your Royal Highness” the man in a crisp black suit says and ___ chuckles, not used to all this formality yet.

“Can I borrow a smoke? My brother has confiscated my pack” ___ asks with an extended hand, like this is more of an order than a request. The man wordlessly hands him a fresh cigarette and bends down to light it for her. ___ watches as he very cautiously comes close, he’s close enough for her to see a scar on his cheek.

“I don’t know you, so you’re not from my extended family” ___ states and the man looks at her with confusion for a split second before it registers to him.

“Yes, late Prince Eugene was a senior with me in college, he is like a mentor to me, was” the man says, repeating the last part mostly to himself.

“That, um-“ “You don’t have to comfort me your royal highness, I’m sure you’re grieving immensely too” the man interrupts her and ___ just takes a long drag.

“What’s your name, maybe Eugene talked to me about you?” ___ asks after a few seconds of silence and he’s about to answer when the door burst open, ___ turns around to see Namjoon.

“Ma’am your mother is about to go talk to the press and make the speech, you’re supposed to stand with her for support” Namjoon says and ___ immediately jumps to her feet.

“Yes, thank you for this and the talk, can I ask one last favour from you?” ___ asks as she smooth’s out her dress and put out her cigarette.

“Can I steal the pack off you? I have a long afternoon and I can’t just go and buy myself a pack” ___ asks and the man complies with a small smile handing the pack of cigarettes and lighter.

“Take care” the man says and ___ mumbles a small thank you before turning away.

It’s been a month, a long, long month of doing nothing. The residence had the prime minister, business men, financial advisors for the country and other countless important people coming out and in. The siblings have been laying low, Yoongi is getting used to being around family but he desperately wants to go back to his studio in New York. ___ has officially resigned from her job at the hedge fund she started just six months ago. Wonik is still the working for his tech firm, but he’s probably going to have to resign and Haein who barely started as a junior partner at her law firm has quit her job. Their mother, who was a professor of sociology at NYU is now the working as the head of the nation as the queen and lastly their father, part owner and CFO of a hedge fund is in the process of selling in his shares. This bunch of highly successful working people have now been sequestered in their Seoul mansion.

Today was just another day of the week, ___ didn’t even know it was Monday till her lady-in-waiting Sora reminded her of it. It was an important Monday because the family had been called together to have a joint meeting with the press team.

“Hello Jia and Yoongi” ___ says as she enters the dining room and watches the uncle and niece duo who had bonded quite a lot eating breakfast.

“Can I have a toast of sourdough, scrambled eggs with two eggs, half an avocado and chilli oil on the side, also my two shots of espresso with a splash of milk.” ___ asks the cook who nods and goes into the kitchen to get her breakfast going.

“What are your plans for today?” ___ asks Yoongi but Jia is the one who starts talking.

“I am going to a new pre-school today and then I have Korean lessons and then my mom promised me that we will bake a cake before dinner” the four-year-old shares, ___ and Yoongi have delighted smiles on their faces.

“Wow a three-year-old has a more eventful day then me, how about you oppa?” ___ asks and Yoongi hurriedly chews before answering.

“I have a few meetings with a new artist that joined and discussions about an upcoming album, before that we have that press meeting thing, and later I’ve asked to talk to mom and dad about something” Yoongi answers as he takes another big bite of this delicious breakfast.

“Talk about what?” ___ asks as she continues to sip on her water, her skin’s been taking the hit of all the smoking lately and she’s been trying to be healthy. Yoongi doesn’t answer but he rather looks at Jia who’s been done with her breakfast and then at her nanny to take her. The two of them mumble a few good lucks and love you’s as their niece excitedly leaves for school.

“I need to talk to them about returning to New York before we’re assigned any royal duties. I have to, they need me back there, I have so many projects open that need to be delivered soon” Yoongi’s voice is stressed as he shares, he’s been working non-stop since they day they were given back their laptops.

“So, what’s the plan, are you going to like, leave the royal family?” ___ asks with genuine curiosity as the cook brings her food and coffee.

“I haven’t been a part of the family for 7 years now, I don’t think I am a part of this family anymore” Yoongi says more as a matter of fact and that hurts ___ a little.

“They were unsupportive of you wanting to do music, yes. They were very strange when you came out, most definitely, doesn’t mean you’re not a part of this family anymore” ___ says with a soft voice and Yoongi finally looks up from his breakfast.

“___ the world isn’t ready for a gay member in the royal family, if I leave it’s going to be easier for all of us. Imagine the outrage and backlash mom would get, I can’t put her through that” Yoongi says and ___ has altogether stopped eating.

“I’m just not going to be a royal anymore, I’ll still be your brother, I’m still your family” Yoongi reassures with a comforting tap on her hand, prompting her to eat.

“Mom has you and Wonik here, Wonik is already coming into shape as the future king, there’s no space for me here. I have nothing to offer here and I have a boyfriend and business waiting for me in New York.” This is the most Yoongi has talked in the last month, ___ is glad that he’s talking but she doesn’t love the news.

“Okay, have me there when you have the talk, you’re going to need back up with dad” ___ says and Yoongi nods and both of them go back to eating their breakfast.

“Hey, I need to talk to dad before we have the meeting” ___ says to her father’s assistant who just nods and checking a few things on the computer and then standing up to knock on his door.

“___, what do you want to talk about?” her father is in an oddly chirpy mood and it’s throwing ___ off.

“Yoongi is going to come in with a request later to you and mom and I need you guys to be parents rather than members of the royal family” ___ asks as he takes a seat behind the desk.

“What is it?” “He’s going to ask to leave the royal family and I need you guys to let him” ___ asks and her father has a shocked look on his face.

“Why-“ “Father he has a major business-“ “So did I ___, that’s not reason enough to walk away from this” “He’s been publicly out as a gay man for years, he has a loving boyfriend you think the press and people of Korea are going to be kind to him, the news is going to rip his to shreds, it’s going to break him and I don’t want my brother to go through that I hope you guys don’t want your son to go that either” ___’s voice goes up a bit as she stands firm on what he’s saying.

“Leaving the royal family is much more intense than when he left home, there are protocols and procedures in place, I don’t think this is feasible for Yoongi, or anyone right now” her father retorts and ___ sighs, the problems they had in the past seem like champagne problems compared to right now.

“We have to find a way for him, you and mom can’t force Yoongi into royal duties. If he doesn’t leave with a good relationship with you and mom, the thin thread that joins him to this family is going to break” Mr Min feels a tinge of guilt due to ___’s words, he knows what she’s saying is right.

“But-“ “No dad, he’s planning on leaving nevertheless, won’t it be better if you make the process a happier one for him” ___ pleads and her father takes a deep breath.

“If he leaves right now it’s going to make the monarchy look weak, worse homophobic” her father says in a small voice and ___ sighs taking a seat.

“Then let’s not word it as him leaving the royal family, just him continuing to pursue his business and life. We never expected this to happen, our family had a very low probability, we have lived our lives so far as if this was never going to happen to us. Put that out, ask people to be kind as you let your son live out the life he wants to” ___ says and her father nods in agreement with her.

“Why did you come to me with this rather than your mother?” Mr Min asks after a few seconds of silence.

“Because I came to you in the past about him and you didn’t take me seriously and things turned pretty sour. Because I wanted to give you a chance to be a better father to Yoongi” this time he does let the guilt show on his face and ___ can see it very clearly.

“It still isn’t a great look for us, one of the children leaving the royal family even before your mother is coronated” Mr Min says and ___ sighs with aggravation, this is not a winning game, some body has to lose and she’s going to make sure it’s not going to be Yoongi.

“Dad, have you seen the articles written about him already? Have you seen the kind of articles written about me. We’ve been living our lives as tho we were never a part of the royal family and all of sudden you want us to be royals. You married into this, you chose this, we didn’t” ___ has tried to not let the articles get to her, but it’s starting to.

“You were born into this, this is your birth right” He states boldly, getting agitated himself. ___ knows arguing is going to get them nowhere.

“If you mother and I were to let him leave, what would we get in return?” “A chance to fix your relationship with your son” ___ answers but by the look on his face she knows it’s the wrong one.

“I have a proposition, if, hypothetically, we were to agree to let him leave, you in turn would comply and agree with all the tasks, duties and asks that come with being a royal princess, no debating, absolutely no arguing” Mr Min knows his son is difficult and doesn’t always agree, but he also knows that her daughter will fight things to no end if she doesn’t want to do it.

“So, Yoongi’s freedom will cost mine” “Absolutely not, I’m not taking away your freedom, I just want a conformation from you that all the tasks, duties and decisions that come with securing your position as the royal princess, you’ll do them with all of your heart” he may frame it differently all he wanted, but it was still one’s freedom for the cost of another’s.

“I don’t understand why you want me to agree to this, do you really think I’m not capable of being a great fucking royal princess” ___’s getting agitates, all this talk of tasks and duties is pissing her off a bit.

“Because ___, I know that you’re mad, I know you’re so angry at this twist of fate and I know that seeing your brother walk away from this will make you want to as well, and I absolutely can’t allow that” he can read his daughter pretty well, and the crossing of arms were a clear indication of her trying to not be angry.

“So, in return, you want me agree to all the ideas and decisions that you’ll want to make for me in the future, correct” ___ finally words it and Mr Min has a guilty look on his face as he nods a yes.

“I can do that for my brother”

The father and daughter are late to the press meeting and heads turn to them as they take seats in the family room.

“What have the two of you been up to?” ___’s mom asks and her father answers before she can. “___ just wanted me to look over her termination contract, everything is in proper shape and good to go”

“Okay, now before we start with this, I just want to say a few things, I know that last few weeks have been difficult and unexpected. But I am grateful to have you all by my side, my sons and daughters and especially my husband, you all have rallied around me and helped me navigate through this difficult time. I never expected to be the Queen, it was supposed to be my brother, then Eugene and their family so forth. I am not prepared for this role, I may be immensely educated but yet I am not ready for this. But I am going to need you all to fill in everywhere that I am lacking and I hope that we’re all able to serve our birthright as the members of the royal family” the queen says with a stern voice, she’s in much better shape than she was a few weeks ago.

“Thank you, your majesty, for the words, we’ll all be keeping those in our minds. I am Kim Sera, head of the press office for the Queen’s office, but right now, due to the situation, my office will be working for the entire royal family. For now, the country and the family is in mourning for the tragic loss that we’ve faced, the media is being soft with us, but as many of you do know, they have not been so. We’re in the process of dropping your US citizenships, and conversations around this have been bubbling already. With every piece of word that’s spoken by you, every action, the American-ness needs to not be there, absolutely no talking to the press or citizens in English, only and only Korean” the woman in a sharp blue suit says and a lot of what she’s saying is worrying Yoongi.

“For each of you, I have a file of what encompasses as royal duties for you. There are allotments based on your previous work, role in the family and most importantly the age of the country that resonates with you. Have a look at it, understand what your duties are and most importantly, if you have any special interests that you wish to venture into, we’d be happy to facilitate it” she continues talking and ___ sits up straight as an assistant hands her a thick file.

Ms Kim goes on and on about do and don’t what brands they can and can’t wear, what their social media’s are going to look like, boundaries with people they knew previously and much more invasive topics. ___ tunes in again as New York is mentioned again.

“As per the Queens recommendation, Princess Haein and Princess ___ along with a team will be flying to New York to facilitate the move process, all the possible arrangements have been made. They are scheduled to leave this Thursday and return a week after, please have a look at your security protocol for being abroad” Ms Kim says and another file in handed to ___.

“This is all from my end for now, I’ll be back with more details on your royal duties. Any questions for now?” Ms Kim asks and it’s just a room of blank faces who have to digest a lot of information. She just nods, bows and leaves with the rest of her team.

“Haein remember to take the codes of all our safes, I don’t have a list of all the jewellery but there are these specific earrings that I do need for my first appearance” the queen asks and Haein nods, already taking notes.

“I’ve arranged a real estate agent to sell our apartment in the city, have you both decided what to do with yours?” Wonik asks, looking specifically at their mother. Their New York City apartment was very precious to the family, they grew up there, the Queen really came into her own in that house.

“Let’s just keep it for now, we have decided to keep all our assets as is for now” their father answers and the queen nods with a conflicted look on her face.

“Have you had dinner yet?” a voice booms from the door and Yoongi turns around to see his mother standing in his doorway.

“I haven’t, I’m not hungry” Yoongi answers sitting up straight and putting away his laptop immediately. Theres this tension in the Queens eyes as she takes a seat on the bed besides him.

“You don’t eat a lot, you’ve gotten so thin” she says and Yoongi chuckles, looking up for a second, every time he sees her, he just sees how similar they look.

“How’s work been? Are they able to manage without you?” she asks and Yoongi goes back to the mental notes he’s taken for this exact talk.

“Busy, hectic, but they’ve been managing, barely” Yoongi says and the queen nods in understanding.

“I really liked the last song that you worked on, Moonlight. I read that you wrote and produced it” he’s caught off guard by this, and doesn’t do well with hiding his surprised face.

“Most of the music you work on is rap and pop which I don’t understand, but that ballad is beautiful” she continues talking and there’s this feeling of approval that Yoongi is feeling that he didn’t even know he could.

“I didn’t know you listened to music I work on” Yoongi says and his mother just nods as she rubs her hands together.

“I’m sorry” she mutters and a tear escapes her eye and it shakes Yoongi up, not expecting any of this.

“We could have been better parents to you, been more supportive, more loving” she says as she looks at him intensely and that’s what gets Yoongi teary eyed too. He doesn’t know what to say, he barely talked to his mother in the last 7 years, it’s like he’s forgotten how to.

“The lyrics you write are so full of hurt and agony, it breaks my heart” she keeps talking as she wipes her tear and reaches for her son’s hands. There’s a thick silence as she brushes his rough hands, she wonders why they’re so rough.

“But I don’t want this estrangement between us anymore, it physically hurts me when I can’t muster up the courage to pick up the phone and ask you how you are, if you’ve eaten, wish you a happy birthday” a sob escapes her mouth as she thinks back to all the time she’s missed out on. Yoongi wants to say something, comfort his mother, but all he does is stay frozen as a few more tears trail down his cheeks.

“Do you hate us now, have we damaged this relationship past a point of repair?” she asks and Yoongi can feel her eyes on him, for a moment he lifts his head. The sincerity and sorrow on her face is evident and he had to bite his lip to stop a sob.

“No,” his voice is small as he lets go of her hand and stands up to get the two of them some tissues. He sits back, a bit closer as he watches his mother wipe away tears and try and compose herself.

“Now, I know you wanted to talk to your father and I together, but I wanted to come and talk to you myself in an attempt to be a better mother and queen” she stops talking for a second to wipe off the last of tears.

“I discussed with your father and I hope that you like this proposition as well. As you know, members of the royal family aren’t allowed to have businesses and work other than their royal duties. And I understand and realise the hard work and years you’ve put in building your music label. So, I would be happy to let you continue your work in New York.” She says and a sense of ease washes over Yoongi.

“In order for you to do that, you’d unfortunately not anymore be a part of the royal family or be in line for the throne” she continues and Yoongi nods with understanding.

“I was going to ask you both for the exact same thing, your blessing to exit the royal family” Yoongi confesses with a faint smile on his face, grateful for how things are working out.

“But you’ll still be a part of our family, and I want you to be a part of lives, be our son, brother and uncle” she says and Yoongi nods aggressively.

“Would it be okay if this announcement came out in a few months, if I do it right now it would look like the monarchy is weak” “Of course, and I am sorry too, for making your job much harder, there is probably going to be speculation about this, articles about me and who I choose to love” there’s a strain in his voice as he says the last part.

“That’s the least of my worries,” she says and both their eyes focus on his phone that is lighting up on his phone, she is particularly focused on the picture man he’s hugging on his lockscreen.

“This brings me to the last thing I wanted to discuss” she says and Yoongi sits up straight once again, not remembering anything else they had to discuss.

“We’ve decided instead of selling our brownstone we gift it to you so that you live there and I’m assuming here, with him” she says as she points to his lockscreen. Yoongi is once again flustered and at a loss of words.

“It’s too generous mom, and you love that home” Yoongi argues and the queen smiles, she’s feeling her son ease around her a bit.

“Yes, and now it’s yours, this is my way of keeping it in the family. It’s a beautiful house that you now get to make it into your home. Plus, it’s so much better for security, we had all kinds of systems installed and I want you to be safe and happy, in a big beautiful house.” She retorts and Yoongi huffs crossing his arms.

“I’ll have to talk to him, I can’t just make this decision on my own” “Of course, but you guys deserve this, it’ll definitely earn you some brownie points with your boyfriend” she jokes and this is all a bit too shocking to Yoongi right now.

“When will I see you again? You promised to teach me how to paint” Jia cries into Yoongi’s shoulder as he crouches down to be at her level. Yoongi can’t help but coo at her whining niece.

“I’ll be back soon, I promise. We’ll paint and play with your tea set an entire afternoon” Yoongi promises as he brushes her hair out of her face. Jia looks at his face for a second, trying to see if he’s lying to her. Softly, she extends her pinkie for a promise and Yoongi gladly does as she says.

“Sweetheart, he’ll be back soon” Wonik says as he softly picks up her daughter and holds her close to his chest as she still has an unhappy look on her face. Yoongi looks at his brother and they can’t look at each other in the eyes still, it’s still very awkward.

“You take care, have you hired a security team?” this is the best Wonik can come up with and for a brief moment it warms Yoongi’s heart.

“You too and yes I have, I’m going to be fine, nothing to worry about” Yoongi says as he walks away from his brother to say good bye to his parents.

His mother has the same sad look she had the other day in his room while his father is still stoic as usual. Yoongi just bows to him as hugs his mother, she’s clutching onto him quite tightly.

“Call me often, send me pictures, write less sad songs and eat well, you got it?” there’s almost a hint of threatening in her tone, like she’s ordering this as the queen.

“Got it, take care” he mumbles as he pulls away from her. With a solemn look he turns around and takes a seat in the car where ___ and Haein are already seated.

“So, who’s ready for a fun week of packing” ___ says as the car pulls out from the driveway. There are a few reporters clicking away as they make their way to the main road. Nobody still used to the constant paparazzi.

“So, I have a game plan, I take up our place, it should take two days, meanwhile, you get done with yours. The parents place should take three days at maximum if we’re both there to look over it. For the two free days, I’ll go and say goodbye to the people and office and meet up a few friends. ___ you remember to break up with your boss/boyfriend, it shouldn’t take more than two days right?” Haein looks at ___ very seriously and ___ has a very incredulous look on her face.

“Yes, two days are quite enough to breakup with my boss/boyfriend” ___ voice is dripping with sarcasm and Haein just smiles coyly.

“What were you even thinking sleeping with your boss, what’s he like 33, what is he even doing dating a 21-year-old” Yoongi asks and ___ groans burying her head in her hands.

“He’s 29 and he’s British and very handsome and so so good in bed, do I have to break up with him” ___ asks and all she hears is scoffs.

“Yes and don’t sleep with him, you aren’t Sarah anymore, you’re Princess ___ now, you represent the monarchy” Yoongi answers and Haein chuckles in agreement.

“That’s very rich coming from a former member of the royal family” ___ retorts and Yoongi gives her a very stern look.

“Sass me all you want but your choice of men is still trash”

The apartment seems bigger with no furniture and just big packed boxes. ___ sits on the kitchen counter as she drinks wine directly from the bottle, she’s already donated all her dishware. She’s online reading another article about her past boyfriends, they’re all oddly all similar looking. ___’s not used to reading about her like this, people speculating who all she’s dated based on her social media history, which is now all gone.

The bell rings and she springs off to open the door, she knows exactly who’s on the other side. She takes a moment to compose herself before she swings the door open.

“Hey” “Hello, Princess ___” Aiden responds sarcastically as she lets him in, this is no going to be easy.

“So, it was just a chill Monday morning for me, I was looking forward to my girlfriend being back in town, suddenly there’s a NDA from your lawyers, a lot of ambiguous language that basically translated to me never being able to publicly talk about my “relationship” with you” Aiden spills out the second she shuts the door, he’s been holding onto this for a while.

“So, technically we have never dated? I’m just your boss that you had a close professional relationship with” Aiden continues as ___ massages her head.

“Aiden, this is out of my hands, I’ve been ordered by my press team to do this” ___ says and Aiden scoffs, he takes a moment to look around the empty apartment, where they’ve spent many nights together.

“Don’t hide behind it-“ “Aiden I am not hiding behind it, I lost important and loving people of my family over a month ago, my entire life has been turned upside down, people in the press are calling me a slut because I dared to date people in college, the future that I looked forward to now looks dreadful, my life is not what it was a month ago and all I’m trying to do is take the right steps to not destroy my family and the monarchy. Don’t you think all this is also hurting me, don’t you think that I didn’t want to do this but have to for the greater good?” ___’s yelling all the things that have been frustrating her for a while now, things she hasn’t been able to dwell on yet.

Aiden is silent as he watches her huff with anger. “Just sign the NDA, as a parting gift to me” ___ says and Aiden takes a deep breath, not saying what he wants to.

“Why are you going along with all this nonsense, you’re a smart woman, snap out of this princess fantasy” Aiden speaks and it’s the final straw for her.

“No, I am a dumb woman who wants to play dress up for the rest of my life, cut ribbons and make insignificant speeches, for the rest of my life I want to be a public figure that people get to ridicule and speculate about. Is that what you want to hear Aiden” the tears she’s been holding back for a while finally escape her as the new reality is dawns.

Aiden walks closer but ___ stays firm, she’s had enough of this, she’s tired. “I thought what we had was real, I am definitely in love with you and tell me you don’t love me, because I know you Sarah” Aiden tries the gentle approach this time.

“We are done Aiden, just sign the NDA” ___ asks with a soft voice and she can see the he’s hurt, it’s evident in his eyes.

“I already did, I sent them to your lawyers before I came here” that’s the last thing he says before he slams the door on his way out.

Yoongi is jolted awake with the bell ringing and simultaneous banging on the door. His eyes barely open as he looks through the peep hole to check if it’s another reporter and give them an earful for waking them up at 1 am. It’s someone else but they’re still going to get an earful from him.

“You were supposed to be here for dinner, what took you so long” Yoongi asks ___ and then looks at Namjoon standing just a few steps behind her.

“She was drinking at her place and waiting for her ex to come over” Namjoon answers for her and ___ just sighs pushing past her boyfriend.

“Okay, what’s in that bag?” Yoongi asks pointing to the bag she’s carrying to the kitchen. ___ doesn’t answer, instead she rummages through a few drawers.

“Ice cream, snacks and cigarettes” Namjoon answers for ___ once again but she just nonchalantly takes out a big tub of ice cream and starts eating it. The two men watch her stuff her face with chocolate chip ice cream and exchange looks with each other.

“Namjoon, you go and get some sleep, I’ve got it from here” Yoongi says and Namjoon just nods and leave. Yoongi watches ___ for a whole minute as she continues to eat ice cream like a sugar depraved child.

“___ you want to talk about it?” Yoongi asks as he walks over to her. ___ just mumbles a no as she takes another spoonful, he sighs and gets her a glass of water.

“Honey?” A voice booms from one of the bedroom and Yoongi sighs as he walks closer to their room.

“I’m downstairs, ___ just came home” Yoongi answers as he quietly contemplates what to do. He’s deep in thought watching his sister when he hears footsteps.

“What’s wrong with her?” Jimin asks with a groggy voice as ___ removes a tub of strawberry ice cream, finding the chocolate to be too over powering.

“She broke up with her boyfriend” Yoongi answers as he lays his head on his boyfriend’s shoulder, he’s had a long few days himself.

“You go back to sleep, you have work in the morning. I’ll deal with this” Jimin says seeing how Yoongi can barely keep his eyes open.

“Are you sure?” “Positive” “Okay, but absolutely no drinking” “I promise”

“So, you wanna smoke a joint with me and eat ice cream after?” Jimin asks and ___ nods finally putting down her spoon.

“It is ridiculous that you’re taking two suitcases full of trader joes snacks” Yoongi comments as he steps out the car on the tarmac. A long line of luggage is being put into the private jet, finally packing up this New York chapter.

“If we had more space, I would have taken a lot more” ___ didn’t care if she was paparazzied shopping at trader joes, she needed her fix.

“I can just send you a care package anytime you want, I can send you all the snacks you want, whenever you want” Yoongi’s tells and ___ smiles just for a brief moment.

“Can I not go, just stay here and ignore the life that is waiting for me in Seoul” ___ whines as she locks her arm with Yoongi.

“Come on, it’s going to be an interesting challenge. You were looking for a challenge like this just few months ago, this is universes weird and cruel way of presenting it” Yoongi has been choosing to deal with death in their family with sarcasm so far and people don’t love it.

“The press team wants me to go to college, make me more relatable to the youth” the file that the press team sent her a few days ago has been bothering her ever since she read it.

“College is fun, isn’t college in Korea mostly drinking and going out, that’s right up your alley” the sarcasm doesn’t seem to be working so far on ___ but Yoongi loves the annoyed look she gives him.

“The worst part of that press file was a timeline of my life, apparently, I’m supposed to start dating someone with the intentions of marriage by 2023, get married by 2025 and have my first child by 2027. The worst of it all, I can’t just keep dating someone because mom disapproves of them because apparently, she’s the queen now” ___’s using sarcasm to hide the actual horror she felt by reading that file.

“Well, if it all gets too much, fly to New York and smoke pot with my boyfriend and then lie about it to me. You can always do that” Yoongi accuses ___ with a stern tone and she just sighs as they stand in front of the flight stairs.

“Jimin promised to not tattle on me” “You both were high out of your mind last night watching tv and shouting at the Bachelor for giving the rose to the wrong person, he didn’t have to tell me” Yoongi states with a straight smile as he recalls being awoken by laughter multiple times last night.

“I was going through a lot” “Yes, but the invitation still stands, pot and otherwise” Yoongi says as he pulls in his younger sister into a tight hug. He is truly going to miss ___ showing up at their apartment at drunk at night.

“I love you, I’m going to miss you so much and you better take good take of yourself” Yoongi mutters into her hair and ___ nods clutching onto his very tight as well.

“Love you too, you take care too, make me lots of money” ___ jokes as she pulls away from him, her desperate attempt of keeping it light right now.

“Take care Haein” Yoongi says to a very tired Haein who smiles politely as she reaches over for a side hug.

“Jia has gotten attached to you, she’s going to ask to talk to you all the time now” Haein remarks and Yoongi giggles thinking of his four year old niece.

“Just let her, I’ve gotten attached too”

With a tinge of reluctance, ___ straps in the seat belt as they begin take off. New York City truly looks like the city of dreams, more so because now it’s just a part of ___’s imaginary dreams.

2024

The ballroom is light with soft yellow lights and jazz music as prominent people continue to file in. It’s late January and tonight people have gathered for the third coronation anniversary for the Queen. These events are less about celebrations and more of a networking event, with people in their fanciest outfits.

Last four years have been a shock to the system for everyone in the Min family. The members struggled to find their place as public figures. Every member was still fumbling around with their positions, making it look like they’ve got it together. Wonik, Haein and Jia are by far the favourites, constantly being photographed out and about as family, and Haein being pregnant with their second child is definitely helping. The Queen has been the best of all with her eloquent speeches and a nation rallying behind her, her husband doing absolutely everything to help her in the background. Yoongi laid low for the initial few months after he left, there are always articles stopping a formal royal and his boyfriend but they bother him less and less every day, his label has absolutely taken off, him on the verge of releasing an album himself.

 ___ compared to her family, struggled quite a lot to fit into her role. The few initial months of royal duties were difficult for her, she’s a naturally outspoken and opinionated woman and people don’t like that a lot. Things eased for her quite a lot as she enrolled for a masters in international studies, the press now lovingly calls her the number 1 campus crush. Her existence as a royal was to appear like a poised, educated woman in her mid-twenties so that she was desirable to all the men in her country, how vain.

She stands behind the rest of her family to make an entrance, she used to feel nauseous coming to events like these, but she’s found the right amount of small talk and always a glamorous dress. Theres clapping and bowing as they enter, a few minutes of formality later and everyone goes back to their drinking and celebrating.

“It’s unusually cold for January isn’t it” ___ tells to a man who cornered her right as she walked in. Not that she was disappointed to, he’s a handsome young man, who like most people in this room comes from immense amounts of wealth and privilege.

“Yes, January always makes me miss Chicago-“ “The cold makes you miss a much colder city?” ___ asks with amusement as she takes the smallest sip of champagne.

“Contrary to what people assume, Seoul is much colder in the winter, and with my family around it gets just so much more icier” the man says with a very straight face and ___ laughs out loud, catching the attention of a few people around them.

“Oh, I like you, you’re funny” ___ confesses and the man stands there with a charmed smile.

“How has it been for you your royal highness, you must miss New York” the man asks and ___ stifles a scowl as she takes a much bigger sip of her drink.

“It’s all a faint memory now, Seoul and Korea are my present and future” she says just as instructed my Ms Kim, yes, they had pointers to talk about when New York was mentioned.

“I read that interview about your hidden food gems in Seoul, your press team really fed you some good ones” the man says and he watches the look of awe on the princess’s face.

“I didn’t know I came off that transparent in my interviews” ___ question is a bit pointed but her smile says otherwise.

“You don’t, but as someone who’s been media trained my whole life, I can see the signs” the man confesses as he polishes off his drink, so does ___. She’s out of a response and it’s like the universe knew of it as Ms Kim clears her throat, bringing both their attention to her.

“If I could talk to Princess ___ for a few moments, we have something urgent to discuss” she states and the man passes ___ a charming smirk before taking a few steps away from them and asks her to come find him later.

“You can socialize with the grandson of the Samsung chairman all you want but don’t go falling in love with him” she states and ___ chokes on her drink, still not used to how straightforward she is.

“Now, I know this could wait till tomorrow, but I’m just too excited about it” the more Ms Kim talks the more confused ___ gets but she just continues to wordlessly follow her. They stop right by a man in a grey suit as he continues to talk to Wonik. ___ knows what this is all to well by now, he’s another man she’s going to be introduced to as a romantic partner and things are not going to work out, again.

Ms Kim clears her throat once again, and the men turn around promptly. ___ was expecting another handsome man who has been a tremendous success in field but also comes from a great lot of privilege, what she didn’t expect was Kim Taehyung.

“Princess ___, I wanted to introduce you to your new press secretary, Mr Kim Taehyung.” The words are ringing in ___’s ears and she doesn’t do much to hide the shocked look on her face as the man bows to her.

“Since your royal duties would get exceedingly demanding soon enough, I thought it would be a perfect time for you two to become acquainted with each other” Ms Kim looks at ___ expectedly and all she does is extend her hand. A warm, stiff hand shakes her and it’s almost like she’s being shaken back to reality.

“It’s a true honour for me Ma’am” Taehyung finally speaks up, his voice, deep just as she remembered. ___ just nods, afraid she’s going to say the wrong thing.

“I’ll just let the two of you talk, get to know each other. Prince Wonik, lets go and make those introductions now” Ms Kim is gone as swiftly as she came and once again ___ is standing in silence.

___ looks around, hoping there aren’t any eyes on them and swiftly gets a hold of Taehyung’s sleeve as she finds them a quiet corner.

“Namjoon, I just need some privacy and I bet my new press secretary isn’t looking to kill me, are you?” ___’s voice is agitated as she holds back the women’s room to restrict her bodyguards entry.

“I assure you there is going to be no killing happening tonight” Taehyung mutters as he stands behind the princess, not entirely believing in what he’s saying.

“Yes, so just make sure no one comes in, we need to discuss a few things” Namjoon begrudgingly takes those orders as a door is slammed on his face. The moment ___ turns around, Taehyung can notice how red her eyes are, maybe it’s the alcohol, most likely it’s the anger she’s feeling against him.

“You’re not taking this job” ___ announces as she takes a few steps forward, Taehyung just moves backwards, he should have expected some of this anger.

“I’m sorry, I would have called to ask you first but you changed your number and I’ve already signed a contract” Taehyung tries to reason and ___ finally stops in her tracks.

“Contracts are broken all the time, and you and I both know that I can’t have someone who I used to date working for me” ___ says calmly, Taehyung just sighs as she crosses his arms.

“But we didn’t date that long” he finally speaks after a long stretch of silence and ___ finally looks up at him. He is right, they didn’t. ___ didn’t think that that would hurt, but it did a little bit, how could a old wound hurt.

“Yes, we just dated for three months, I told you who I really was, what my plans for the future were and you dumped me out of nowhere” ___’s voice may be soft, but her words are harsh.

“Because you had plans to live in the US, I wanted to return to Korea, I simply did not want us to invest in a relationship that would just end in a whole lot of hurt. I didn’t know that your life would have these turn of events” Taehyung states and ___’s scoff is very loud in this room.

___ hasn’t said something for a whole minute and it’s starting to terrify Taehyung. He takes a few small steps towards her, this time she is the one walking backwards. He can see how distressed she is just by how tightly she’s gripping her arms.

“Why did you say yes to this job?” “Because it is a pivotal career move for me, how rare is it for a role such as this to be offered to a 30-year-old rather than a 50-year-old, this kind of experience can set me up for life” ___ does get an answer but it doesn’t make her feel better one bit.

“I don’t come with a background and pedigree like the rest of the people in that ballroom, people haven’t offered me jobs because I’m related to someone, it has all been because I work hard and get the necessary results.” Taehyung’s compassioned words finally force ___ to look up.

“Anything that was there between us was, god, eight years ago. I will understand if you don’t want me to take this job, but please reconsider it for a minute” Taehyung pleads and he can see it working because of the soft look on her face.

“Okay” ___ mutters softly as she moves past him, stopping right by the mirror to fix her appearance before they leave.

“Okay? Oh my god thank you, you are not going to regret this ___” Taehyung has a big smile on his face as he turns around as well, but the sharp look on ___’s face makes it disappear instantly.

“I’d assume my press secretary would know the proper protocol to address me is either your royal highness or ma’am” she speaks and Taehyung once again takes a step back.

“I’m sorry ma’am, that was the last mistake I make” he apologizes as he watches the princess go back to fixing her lipstick. He’s feeling fear and excitement for what lies ahead, but for now, he chooses to focus on the excitement.

February in Seoul is feeling colder compared to what Thailand felt like. ___ rolls into the palace still in a summer dress and sunglasses and earns a few looks just in a few seconds. She’s too relaxed from here vacation to care.

She would have gone straight to her apartment, but she had been asked my Ms Kim and her press secretary to make this stop, probably some bad news they wanted to share while she still had her vacation buzz.

“You summoned me?” ___ asks as she plops her handbag on the table, she’d been in this office way too frequently for her liking in just the last month.

“Your royal highness, how was the vacation?” Taehyung asks in the nicest tone he can muster up while he takes away all the files from her reach.

“Amazing, I think I’m still drunk” ___ boasts with a wide sarcastic smile as Taehyung nods awkwardly.

“Well, Ms Kim and I just wanted to discuss some of your upcoming royal activities and the pictures of you that have been circulating online” Taehyung whispers the last part because he can see the sharp look coming.

“What pictures, the one of me drinking, or the one of me smoking with my friends, or the public favourite, the one of me in a bikini at the beach” “The ones of you smoking ma’am” says a voice from behind her and she knows the voice too well by now.

“Have you had a few strong drinks Ms Kim, the urge to smoke after them is crazy and let me tell you, you would do so much better after a few strong drinks” ___ says as she turns back to type something on her phone.

“That may be your opinion ma’am but as a member of the royal family you can’t be paparazzied smoking-“ “If I may interrupt, the vacation pictures are actually pulling in positive opinions for Princess ___, the people like her more when she behaves like a college student, which she actually is” Taehyung speaks and the two women are looking at her, one more fiercely than the other.

“While I appreciate these theories Mr Kim, these opinions are not substantiated-“ “Actually they are, me and my team have been using this social listening tool and Princess ___ positive favours have been on a significant rise since the pictures came out” Taehyung came prepared with all the facts and figures and ___ won’t accept it but she is a bit charmed.

“And this lead me to a few more insights, rather than having the princess at business events for companies that were built a 100 years ago, how about we have her focus on the demographic that actually likes her” Taehyung continues talking as he picks up another file, which he now hands to both the people.

“The monarchy is seen as a positive figure by the people 50 and above and there has been a growing younger population that doesn’t see a need for it. Let the princess cover that demographic, they already like her” ___ has a small smile on her face as she watches the scowl on Ms Kim’s face grow.

“Highschool kids, people in college, young professionals, the population that lies within the age group of 15-35, these are the part of the population that the princess needs to be seen with rather than 70-year-old men who are chairmen to billion-dollar companies” Taehyung is speaking with a lot of conviction because he’s done his research on the topic but the unwavering look on Ms Kim’s face is still affecting him.

“Mr Kim, we have a structure in place, while you might have the figures, we can’t just go around changing the entire set up” Ms Kim says as she continues reading the files she’s been handed.

“I’m sorry but the more the princess goes to the events and duties you have been putting in for her, the worse press she’s been getting, I don’t think the structure has been working so far” Taehyung rebuttals and ___ is trying her best to hold in her gasp, some popcorn would make this perfect.

“The plan I have laid out, uses the princesses’ strengths to her favour rather than forcing her to pretend to be someone else. She is a charming, delightful person and I feel like the people deserve to fall in love with her rather than an uptight princess who’s out of touch” Taehyung is done speaking as he rests against the table and Ms Kim is showing just how flabbergasted she is.

“Alright, but I will have to have the queen’s press team approve of these new royal duties” Ms Kim is showing a lot of sass today and ___ is totally loving this.

“I already did a week ago and have received all the necessary approvals, the queen actually had a look and she was quite impressed” ___ looks at Taehyung who looks quite cocky and proud as he hands her a few more files.

“So, Ms Kim, what was it that you wanted to discuss with me after all” ___ asks as he looks up at a little bit upset Ms Kim. There haven’t been a lot of victories for ___ in the past few years but this one feels like a huge one.

“Nothing apparently, I’ll see you Mr Kim at the Queen’s briefing” “I’ll be there bring and early Ms Kim” the two of them watch Ms Kim walk out that office and ___ immediately erupts into cheers, so does Taehyung, and for a second of ill judgement they’ve about to hug each other when he pulls away and takes a step back.

“Oh my god, you did so good, sticking it to her so good” ___ continues the cheering as she sits back down, letting the awkward second just pass away.

“My motive was not to ‘stick it to her’, I did that because I could not stand another bad article being written about you” Taehyung says as he walks back behind his desk, maintaining the appropriate distance.

“But this is good, the stuff you have in there is the kind of work I will enjoy doing. The kind of work that makes me feel like a human being rather than a puppet” ___ is a little too excited as she goes back to the file, something she has not done in the past few years.

“I am glad you think that I’m doing a good job your royal highness” Taehyung feels a little relaxed as he sits back in his chair, Ms Kim could have very easily thrown out his weeks out work down the drain, but she didn’t.

“Now, if I remember correctly your third semester starts in three weeks” he asks as he opens up his calendar, now is when the real work starts.

“Yes” “Okay, we’ll ease in with the new demographic and will be starting off by you attending a celebratory party for a game company, they’re launching a new game and have invited young celebrities, influencer and young age reporters. I was able to pull a favour and get you an invite to the event” Taehyung talks and ___ has a concerned look on her face.

“You want me to attend a nerd event” “The game company is so popular with the demographic and most importantly, they don’t sexualize women in their games” Taehyung shares and the concerned look starts to go away.

“And another thing I really wanted to discuss, you really need a stylist preferably someone who comes with a makeup team” “Do you not think I have good style Mr Kim” ___ asks and he knows he should have worded this differently.

“That is not what I meant, you’ll be doing a lot more public appearances now and each will require a specific look and I just want people to be falling in love with you and we like it or not, it starts with your appearance” Taehyung once again thinks he might have misspoken but the small smile on her face is saying otherwise.

“Alright, so let’s get me a stylist and have people falling in love with me”

A massive hotel room was booked and the top stylists around the city were asked to come and present their ideas. The minute they heard that they were presenting to the princess, all their ideas were centred around royalty and elegance, nothing too original about it.

“If I see one more ostentatious golden down, I’m going to throw a fit” ___ mumbles to Namjoon as the next designer continues to set up their boards and presentation.

The person who’s setting up for the next designer giggles as ___ continues to complain. This catches both Namjoon and her attention.

“Hoseok, was it, does your bosses presentation also have a collection of ostentatious gowns?” ___ asks as she sits up straight, and the man in a very green outfit just nods as a looks around scared.

“I had a few better ideas but he’s a senior and I didn’t want to be fired” “If you were to style me, what would it look like” ___ is genuinely intrigued because of how boring this morning has been.

“I made a few mood board for you, but for the Golden Games event, I had a more glamourous dress in mind, something with cut outs and more flowy rather than structures, something that shows off your figure and personality rather than hiding it” Hoseok speaks as he hands ___ a iPad with very well designed mood boards. She continues to slide until she comes to the dress he’s talking about, and it’s shocking how much ___ likes it.

“The dress is Versace and I have contacts with the brand to be able to source the dress, for jewellery, since the dress is so loud, a pair of earrings from a local Korean brand called Sia, all of this can be sourced” He continues explaining and ___ is seeing her vision come to life for the first time.

“How much trouble would you be in if I wanted to hire you instead of your boss?” “So much, but it’s all worth it”

“What is wrong with you, why would you do that Ma’am” are the first words out Taehyung’s mouth as she walks into his office. ___ just scoffs as she takes a seat on the brown leather sofa, she’s come to find this sofa a bit more comfortable than she’d like to be.

“What do you think I did now Taehyung” “Why would you hire a junior stylist instead of the senior one, she has the kind of experience and contacts you need” Taehyung mutters as he massages his head, it’s been a long week, all he wants to do is go home.

“I liked him more, his style embodies my essence, plus he found me this super sexy dress and everyone else just wanted me to look like any other royal” ___ speaks and Taehyung finally looks up, she wonders what she said forced him to look up.

“See this is why I wanted you to hire a senior stylist, your outfits can’t be too outrageous, I had specific guidelines-“ “Taehyung, he is the one who enforces all of your anal requirements for me, no senior stylist will ever do it. And it’s not sexy in a way of being too revealing, but rather in a fitting and tasteful way” ___ is used to cutting of Taehyung and seeing the “Oh” look of realisation on his face.

“I assume you’ll be joining me for the event, picked out your finest suit?” ___ asks as she opens one of the mini water bottles, Taehyung’s noticed that she’s always needing a bottle of water or snack when she’s here, he’s arranged a small basket full of it.

“I have a personal thing that I can’t miss, but I’ll make sure to drop off the talking points for tomorrows Charity Gala” Taehyung has been quite literally buried with work, turns out doing a good job requires a lot of work.

“My first event as ___ with new approach for the new ‘demographic’ and you the chief manipulator of it all won’t be there, what’s the personal thing that is more important than your job?” ___ is a bit too sassy for 11 am, she’s had two coffees and no breakfast today.

“It’s my mothers first chemo appointment and I just want to be there, even if she doesn’t want me to” Taehyung knows he’s oversharing a bit, but being the oldest sibling and not talking about this with anyone else, it was bound to come out. The minute he looks up, he realises how guilt stricken his boss looks.

“I’m so sorry that I made a joke about that, of course you have to be there, make sure to leave early, and you don’t need to drop off the talking points for tomorrow, I’ll have someone pick it up” the worry in ___’s voice makes Taehyung smile a bit, it’s almost like he was wanting to someone to worry about him.

“Okay, but I’ll have Yena by your side, she’ll be at your place by 9, be ready by then. Also” he trails off as he sits up from his desk chair and picks up the report he’s been asked to hand her.

“I can’t fight Ms Kim, the Queen and your father on their need to find you a husband, I’ve gotten Ms Kim to agree that the most you’ll look for is a boyfriend with husband potential, so you’ll really need to get started with it. These are the options, I’d hope that you’d stick to this list” Taehyung hands ___ a thick file with a tiered list of potential partners. ___ sad for other reasons now.

“Can’t I just meet someone and fall in love with them naturally” “You are the royal princess ___ of the nation of korea, anyone you fall in love with first will be for strategic reasons to reaffirm the standing that the crown has with the people of our nation,” Taehyung repeats with a specific tone that Ms Kim uses and ___ just sighs as she stands up. For a second, their faces are mere inches from each other before Taehyung takes a step back and lets out a cough.

Years ago, she used to smell of flowers and spring, today she smells like vanilla and winter.

Everything about ___ is glowing, be it her hair, legs, dress, jewellery and even eyes. She has this glow she hasn’t had for years now and it’s a bit startling even to her. She’s quite used to public and private appearances like these, she knows her camera angles, which smiles the paparazzi like the most, what small talk do people like, but these always is this pit of nervousness in her stomach, but it’s gone as she looks at herself in the mirror.

Hoseok can see the glow, it’s glaringly obvious. It’s like the pit of nervousness has been transferred to his stomach, he knows just how make or break today’s outfit doing well is.

“Yena honey can you help me with these earrings” ___ asks as the makeup artists finishes with the lipstick.

“Let me” a voice booms by the door and no one in the room has to turn around to know who it belongs to. The entire room is scrambling to stand up and bow, but the queen just asks everyone to be at ease, she just wants to chat with her daughter.

“By the way mother, this is my new stylist Jung Hoseok, he’s the reason why I look so ravishing today” ___ brings Hoseok in the front as the rest of the team continues packing, done with making her look all pretty.

“Thank you, Mr Jung, ___ does look like she’s blooming” the queen’s compliment catches the two of them off guard. Soon the entire room is empty, with just the mother and daughter sitting by ___’s broken coffee table.

“Honey, you do look gorgeous, I haven’t seen you happy like this in a while” the queen says and ___ can’t help but show her a wide smile.

“This is your first event by yourself, all prepared?” “Yup, Taehyung quizzed me on my answers and I have flash cards for the small talk I’m sticking too. Hopefully I dazzle everyone tonight and the press finally writes something positive about me” ___ says as she fidgets with her earring, Hoseok warned her of how heavy they were, and it was already starting to get to her.

“You found a good partner with Taehyung, he really understands you” the passing statements from the queen has ___ thinking of Taehyung once again, he’s probably already at the hospital, she should text and check up on him.

“I’m sure you’ll be wonderful tonight, but that is not why I’m here tho. I got a call from Yoongi earlier today that he’s planning on going on a tour once he releases his first solo album. He wanted to ask my permission to schedule tour dates in Korea. Your father and I are unsure as it could go either ways from our perspective, I wanted to know your opinion on this” ___’s a little stunned by this, her opinion hasn’t really mattered to her family much, ever. ___ stands up to get some water, wanting to thing this through.

“I think him performing in Korea will be kinda great, it would show to the press and the people that even tho he’s not a royal yet, he’s still part of our family and always welcome here. Sure, there may be a few articles about him and Jimin, but we could easily divert that by me attending the concert with a few friends, even Wonik and Haein if they agree to it” ___ explains as she pours some sparkling water into a glass, she’s been on a strict diet for this dress and the soda craving doesn’t go away.

“I think so too, but your father is really worried about the bad press” “Mother we need to stop being so terrified of the press about this, Yoongi is gay, which is a completely normal arounds most of the first world country. We have to stop teetering around it like it’s a taboo subject. What is Yoongi has a boyfriend, someday, he may and a husband and are we still going to be so afraid of the negative press, would that stop you and father from attending his wedding” ___ speaks with the kind of composure that has her mother stunned, she’s finally coming into her own.

“You think they’re going to get married?” the queen asks and ___ rapidly nods her head, knowing she and Jimin had talked about this just a few weeks ago.

“Jimin found a ring in Yoongi’s office and he thinks he’s going to ask soon, Yoongi hasn’t talked to Jimin’s parents about it, but we think that he’s going to on their next trip to Korea, for the tour” ___ may be oversharing, but Yoongi would never tell her all this anyway.

“___, um, you think, Jimin’s going to want to ask for Yoongi’s hand?” ___ can see the guilt striken look on her mothers face, she doesn’t have the heart to tell her that Jimin’s already asked ___ for that.

Jungkook can feel his heart in his mouth, he’s nervous beyond words but in his suit and slicked hair he barely looks so. At important events like these, he remembers when the first game he put out around 5 years ago. He’s loved video games and as an overworked coder, he somehow still found time to put out his video game. The game didn’t make any noise for two years, but suddenly, one night it blew up. The past three years have been a whirlwind full of success, new beginnings, starting a company, making money beyond his imaginations and working more than he has ever before.

“All the last-minute checks for the event have been made, the cars have been sent for the VIP guests” Han tells Jungkook as he continues to adjust his cufflinks.

“The event company has informed me that the press has arrived and is waiting for the guests, taking in the delay from the proposed time for the unveil, you’ll go on stage at 10:05 and unveil the walkthrough for the new game at exactly 10:23. The walk-through ends at 10:28 and you end with a small thank you speech and get off stage for pictures with guests at 10:30. I have the list of the attendees that you have to absolutely take a picture with, do you want a reminder right now?” Han asks and Jungkook just nods a no, he opens his watch drawer and contemplates which one to wear tonight. The first Rolex may be the way to go but he could also wear his father’s watch for some good luck.

The drive to the event is filled with Han going over all the details but Jungkook has practically tuned him out, he’s more focused on what to do with his hands during pictures. A peace sign would be too dorky, crossing his arms may look too serious and hand in pocket may look weird with the jacket.

“So, I have arranged for you to greet all the guests as they go in for a photo op, this makes sure that you have face time with all of our most important guests” Han continues talking as they step out the car. Jungkook can see the beautifully set up venue, with the on-theme décor and paparazzi already waiting for it all.

“I’m going to go in and do some final checks with the event, why don’t you stay here, get some lip service with the press, most important of it all, stay on subject” Han leaves with one last bit of information and Jungkook just nods trying to muster all the confidence her can.

“Congratulations!!!” Mingyu hollers as he sees Jungkook right before going on stage. The two friends hug each other, first time tonight when Jungkook greets someone comfortably. They met ages ago, in high school and even tho Mingyu is a high-profile model, they’ve stayed close.

“I’m so nervous I may throw up” Jungkook mutters to his friend as he adjusts his suit, it’s right at that moment that there’s a loud commotion, and all the sudden, the press if focused elsewhere.

The two men silently try and focus in on the cause of it all, their eyes stay fixed as a woman with a glamorous golden dress and her shiny hair come into focus. She isn’t just any other woman, she’s princess ___, and that just makes Jungkook more nauseous.

“She’s beautiful isn’t she” Mingyu mutters as the men continue to shamelessly stare as the princess walks closer to the event.

“Breathtaking” Jungkook can feel a few cameras on himself too, but he can’t help but look away. Everything about her grabs his attention, her smile, the flowy hair, the dress.

“Okay, she’s coming closer, I’ll go and smile for the cameras and see you inside” Mingyu leaves with one final tap on his friends back while Jungkook stays turned around, waiting for the princess to come closer. He contemplates if he should walk closer to greet here, and Han is tapping is shoulder before he decides.

“The royal protocol is you bow first, and the formal greeting is your royal highness and ma’am after that, go on, walk to her” Han instructs and Jungkook follows, suddenly right in front of her. He bows like instructed and so does she, ___ looks at her expectantly, and suddenly Jungkook’s forgotten how to speak.

“Congratulations Mr Jeon, now I haven’t played video games ever, but people in my office love playing yours after hours” ___ takes the lead and Jungkook can’t help but smile widely.

“Thank you, your royal highness, hopefully, the people in your office like this one as well” he says as they walk to the stage, at a very glacial stage.

“Oh don’t start with the your royal highness, call me ___, please” ___ says with a small smile, picking up her dress ever so slightly to walk better, the heels are definitely taxing.

“I’m not going to do that, my assistant may actually shoot me if I don’t follow the royal protocol, he’s briefed me on it a hundred times since your RSVP’d” Jungkook jokes and ___ can’t help be a bit charmed by his toothy smile.

“Oh, I don’t want to be the reason you get shot, on a very important day for you after all” the two of them have totally stopped by the stage for this conversation, disregarding all the cameras.

“He’s quite strict, right now, he’s probably accounting all the extra time we’ve taken up to talk and adjust the timeline for the rest of the event” Jungkook jokes, despite how nervous he is, he doesn’t want the princess thinking he’s not funny.

“Oh well, not to make his job too hard, I’ll go on stage and be pretty before you get into more trouble” ___ says as she takes a step back, but still not moving. He eyes go from his big bright eyes, to his many ear piercings, to his folded over shirt collar. Her instincts tell her to just reach and straighten it, but she smiles and indicates to it, suddenly all aware of the cameras.

Jungkook shyly nods as he fixes her collar, looking back at her. “Thank you for this, and coming here” “Thank you for inviting me, and come find me inside” she says as she walks away.

Han had been feeling breathless all day, he’s been working towards this for this last three months, and that was just the event. He thought he would almost faint the moment Jungkook misspoke during the presentation, but to his relief, his boss just laughed and continued on. As Jungkook gets off the stage, done with the formalities of it all, the dinner is served and he feels like he can finally breath again.

“Where am I seated for the dinner?” Jungkook asks as he unbuttons his suit jacket, if it were up to him, he would have removed it all together.

“With your family,” Han says as he leads Jungkook to the assigned table, they stop every now and then as people congratulate him.

“I’ll go and see my parents, but if you could find me a table on the princesses table, she asked me to come find her” Jungkook speaks with a small smile, when up on stage, he could see her very clearly in her golden dress, she listened very intently for someone who doesn’t play video games.

“I’ll see, Mingyu has been keeping her company so I’ll move him or ask her safety officer to move to the next table” the thought of Mingyu chatting her up suddenly has Jungkook a bit bothered, but before he can think more of it, his mother engulfs him in a warm hug.

“Have you taken your medicine?” Jungkook asks his father as the first course is being served. Han texted him that moving anyone is not possible right now, he’ll have to come and find her once dinner is over.

“I did, you need to stop worrying about me, and celebrate your success today” his father says with a gentle tap to his hand. Jungkook worries, constantly worries after the minor stroke his father had a few months ago.

His brother is busy talking to his wife, so are his parents and the sudden quite at the table forces Jungkook to look around. He sees a room full of the most important people to his and his country as they continue to chat away, the room is full of voices and constant sound of cutlery.

He sees his senior team as they discuss something, he sees a table full of influencers as they continue to be on their phone, the table full of his investors among the many tables around him. But he’s looking for one specific one that he just can’t spot yet.

“Who are you looking for?” Nari, his sister-in-law asks as the dessert is served. On a normal day, Jungkook would absolutely be attacking this dessert, but he just doesn’t have the appetite today.

“Princess ___” Jungkook answers honestly, he’s known Nari for years now, she’s not someone he can lie too. Nari giggles as she turns around in her seat, trying to spot the princess and she immediately does.

“She is quite dazzling, very royal. She doesn’t attend events like these, how did you even manage to invite her?” Nari asks as she takes a bite of tiramisu. Jungkook smiles as he thinking back to a letter that Han explained over a month ago.

“It’s a secret”

“I’m speaking at a college tomorrow, it’s a panel about a complicated topic that basically means how important it is for women to be in higher education” ___ shares with her new friend Kim Mingyu. Tonight she’s seated with Mingyu on one side and Namjoon on the other, there are other business people on the table that she hasn’t bother to talk to much. They had disappeared after dinner to socialize themselves.

“Wow, you’re getting your masters right?” Mingyu asks as he takes a sip of his champagne, now that the dinner is done, there’s a more causal feel in the banquet room, with free-flowing drinks and talk.

“Yes, that reminds me that I have to meet one of my professors about some study material he’s assigned” ___ shares as she nurses her second gin and tonic of the night. Her new friend chuckles before he drowns his drink entirely.

“I never went to college, I was scouted during high school. It happened at a game room that Jungkook and I were leaving. Jungkook was scouted too, but he had his eyes set on Seoul University” Mingyu shares and flashes of Jungkook in his double-breasted jacket and crinkling eyes as he smiles come back to her.

“That’s where I’m speaking tomorrow, Mr Jeon’s alma matter” “Mr Jeon?” a voice booms from behind them, its Jungkook with two drinks in his hand.

“Namjoon scoot over, let Mr Jeon sit” ___ nudges her security officer who has a very straight face that scares Jungkook, he just smiles shyly as he takes the seat next to the princess.

“No Mr Jeon, just Jungkook your royal highness” “Well, that can only happen when it’s ___ instead of your royal highness Mr Jeon” Mingyu watches this banter and in a blink of a second, it’s almost like he’s invisible, not that he’s complaining. He’s observed his best friend look at the princess with stars in his eyes all evening, still Mingyu isn’t sure it’s being he’s enchanted by her or because she’s a princess.

“Actually no, it has to be your royal highness or ma’am for him, there’s way too much press here for him to address you casually” Namjoon interjects and ___ has truly never gotten over Namjoon being the straight man.

“You see ma’am, you come with rules that I just can’t look past, now I’m afraid he’s going to shoot me” Jungkook jokes taking a double take to the very muscular man to his other side, a man who can definitely take him down.

“But I am younger than you, ma’am makes me feel middle aged” ___ complains as she reaches over for one of the glasses of champagne Jungkook brought over. She’s breaking the two-drink rule tonight.

“Ma’am is for respect, your royal highness you are third in line to the royal throne” Namjoon interjects again and ___ wants to reach over and punch him, but she knows it’s only going to hurt her.

“Can we step away for a moment, for a smoke maybe” ___ asks Jungkook and he’s immediately pushing his chair back to stand up while Namjoon mutters a no.

___ has been in this hall for another gala before, her special talent has become finding hiding spots from the crowd all around the country. She’s walking a few steps ahead of Jungkook as they take up the stairs to the balcony. ___’s about to look back to check if he’s still there and at that moment she wobbles in the heels for the first time tonight.

“Careful” Jungkook’s voice is just a notch above a whisper as his hand comes around her waist to steady ___, through the cut around her dress, she can feel his warm hands on her cold waist. The warm feeling on her waist and suddenly all over her body makes her wobble again and Jungkook just chuckles keeping his hand firmly on her waist for support.

___ almost sighs out loud when his hand drops the second, she’s at the top of the staircase, but she just picks up the pace and tries to open the loud, creaky door as quietly as she can. Jungkook stands back for a second as he takes it all it, the princess standing against the railing with a wide smile as she turns to look back at him. Jungkook knows he’s being impulsive, there are a lot more people back in the room whom he hasn’t had the chance to talk to yet, important people that he needs around for business.

There’s almost no talking but Jungkook can read ___ pretty well, she has a different look now than she had back in the room, back there it was more glamorous but now it’s more natural. Jungkook watches as she slips off her heels and sigh with relief, she looks a bit shorter next to him now and he has to look away to smile and try and control his blushing.

“My brother has threatened me to stop smoking, so I have stopped for a while, but it’s still a good excuse to get away” ___ looks forward into the beautiful garden as she speaks, she can spot some roses and they look lovely in the winter night.

“I did too, my father had a stroke a few months ago and it set me straight” Jungkook answers as she leans against the railing, turning towards her ever so slightly. It’s mid-February so it’s still quite cold in Seoul, which is quite evident with the way the princess keeps rubbing her arms and shiver. Without much thought, Jungkook slips off his jacket and places it on her shoulder, the sudden movement causing her to look up at him.

“Is your father doing well now?” “I have forced my parents to get a dog which in turn forces them to go on walks twice a day, so there’s some progress” Jungkook remembers the day he showed up with a small puppy in his hands, that has for a record been the most his mother has been mad at him.

“Creative problem solving, so you do have the qualities that make you this successful” ___’s tone isn’t the one of humour, but that of fact stating and it validates Jungkook very much.

“Honestly, I mostly write the code still, my brother is the CEO because he’s actually run businesses for years and went to business school” Jungkook explains like he does to most people, he doesn’t see himself as this successful founder most of the times, just an ordinary coder.

“That is why you aren’t on my list, you have to be a CEO or be part of a family business dynasty to be on my list” ___ had been handed a list customized for today right as she sat in the car, so far she’s spotted five people from that list at this event.

“A list?” Jungkook asks with curiosity, the princess confuses him, he wants to ask her many more questions.

“A panel of people consisting of the queen, my father, their press secretary, my press secretary and a few other advisors have devised a list of prospect husbands for me, or at least boyfriends as I fought back. Me being a 25-year-old single princess doesn’t sit right with a lot of people, especially that panel” ___ answers in a very matter of fact way, these things are a fact of life for her, but the shocked look on Jungkook’s face is saying otherwise.

“They have a spreadsheet with a life plan for me with multiple routes of actions, actions that help me establish my position with the people and also help the crown. But the most prevalent plan is me having a husband by 27, a child by 30, because even if I am a princess, I am still someone who has to be a wife and mother” Jungkook can sense some bitterness in the princesses’ words, but he is dumbfounded on what to say, which is very clear on his face.

“I’m sorry to be trauma dumping Mr Jeon, I have no right to complain. I am a wealthy, privileged princess and these complaints are childish” ___ says with a soft smile, she feels comfortable to talk to him for some reason, she just wants to keep talking and empty her brain, and heart.

“Well, do I still stand to score a date even if I’m not present on your list” Jungkook says with a light chuckle, he couldn’t have mustered up the courage to do this if not for the three glasses of champagne. His biggest fears do not come true and she doesn’t turn and boo at his face, but rather she has a big smile as she holds his jacket tightly.

“Score a date, mind you Mr Jeon you’re talking to the royal highness princess ___, third in line to the royal throne” ___ jokes as she takes a step closer to him, she’s still a bit cold and in need for warmth. To her surprise, he doesn’t pick up on her joke but rather stiffen up as his face falls.

“I’m sorry I didn’t mean to-“ “That is exactly how I want, need you to talk, drop the formalities and score a date with me, ___” she has a bright, gorgeous, wonderful smile as she takes another step forward. His eyes are following her hand as they reach over to fix a piece of hair.

“Oh” he mutters as her hand travels downwards, to the collar that was once out of place. There is absolute silence and deep breaths as both her hands come around his neck, his jacket falling off her shoulders right at that second.

Compared to a confident smile that ___ usually wears, she now has a small, shy one. If it were any other man, he would have instantly captured on this moment, but Jungkook isn’t just any other man. He’s a bit clumsy and somehow it adds to his charm.

“Ask me out again” ___ instructs and all the sudden the wheels in Jungkook’s brain are working again. He bites his lip anxiously as he finally does something, circling his arms around her waist, she may not need some steadying right now, but he does.

“Can I take you out, to my favourite barbeque place that feels so comfortable in a behind alley somewhere in Incheon. We could share some soju and I get to know you, ___” Jungkook barely whispers her name, worried someone other than her is going to hear him. To his shock, she isn’t confidently saying yes to this, but rather, hiding her face around his chest, he’s worried if is heart is beating too loudly.

In a moment of confidence, Jungkook beings his hands up to ___’s face. For a second, he sees her more as a vulnerable, shy, 25-year-old ___, rather than a confident princess. It doesn’t surprise her, but he rather wants to see the former ___ again.

“Tell me, you want me to pick you up on my bike and take you out?” Jungkook asks again, her sudden lack of confidence fills him with it.

“Yes, but only if I get to wear a cute pink helmet” ___ talks once again and Jungkook has to take a deep breath to calm himself down.

“Of course, do you have a specific pink?” Jungkook asks and ___ gets on her tip toes to get closer not to his lips, but his cheek. His grip around her tightens as she leaves a soft peck on his cheek, leaving an imprint of her salmon pink lipstick.

“I wouldn’t dare to wash my face after this, but I need to get a few more pictures taken for the press” Jungkook confesses as the two of them stand still, not wanting to move away, just yet.

“Do you have a napkin?” ___ asks and Jungkook immediately drops his hands around her to look for something in his pockets, he does find the napkin he’s been using all night to wipe away the sweat, hopefully, she can’t smell any of it.

The cheeky twinkle is back as she places the napkin against her lips to leave an imprint. He stares at it for a second too long as she hands it back before folding it and placing it back in his pocket.

“I think we should get going, you should be talking and networking with people, taking in all the praise” ___ talks as she bends down to pick up his jacket, rather than handing it back to him, she’s helping him putting it back on.

“Yes ma’am” Jungkook jokes as he takes a step towards the door, ___ mocks some anger as she scowls her mouth but he just chuckles as he keeps the door open for her.

“I want to ask you something that’s been gnawing on me all evening” Jungkook asks the princess as they reach the end of the stairs.

“What?” “What am I supposed to do with my hands when I get photographed?” the genuine anguish behind Jungkook’s words makes ___ giggle, this just adds to his clumsiness.

“There are two options, you either keep one hand in your pocket and other beside you, or, my favourite one, have a date, so you always have something, or rather someone to hold” ___ says and now Jungkook is the one blushing.

“Where did you disappear to?” Mingyu asks as the princess takes her seat back at the table, most tables are empty now, everyone standing around and chatting about one thing or another.

“Just here and there, talking to people” ___ replies with a cheeky smile as she reaches over to her handbag to find her lipstick and reapply it.

“Well, I’m throwing a surprise celebratory afterparty for Jungkook, a few of our common friends are going to be there, lots of booze, I’ve reserved the rooftop of a hotel to party our heart away. You should come” Mingyu asks, trying to help out his friend who’s clearly interested.

“The party isn’t much of a surprise as Jungkook already asked me to join too, but like I told him, I have an event early tomorrow and I absolutely can’t be hungover for it” ___ tells like she told Jungkook, who retorted with ‘Then you’ll blend in right with all the rest of the hungover students’

“That’s too bad, you seem quite fun and Jungkook can’t take his eyes off you” Mingyu teases as they both catch Jungkook looking right at ___ as someone continues to talk to him.

“I can’t either, but I have duties, royal duties for which I can’t slip up even a little” ___ is going back to being a princess after a few fleeting moments of being herself and there’s nothing she can do about it.

“Ma’am, should go around the room, there are some people Mr Kim wanted you to talk to, we’ll have to leave after that” Namjoon says from right beside her and at once she stands up, understanding that the work needs to be done.

Jungkook’s watching from a distance as the princess goes around, more like people coming and finding her one after the other to share a word. She dazzles each, making them laugh, people definitely walk away a bit awed and definitely charmed by her.

She talks to a few important people in business, fan girls over a celebrity or two and it’s right as she’s about to leave when she looks around to say goodbye. Jungkook spots her wandering eye immediately and excuses himself from a much boring conversation.

“Leaving so soon ma’am?” Jungkook asks as he walks closer, Han just a step behind him.

“Yes, I have royal duties tomorrow as well, the princess duties don’t stop” ___ says with a bit of a pout, something Jungkook finds incredibly adorable. ___ can spot an impatient man standing behind Jungkook, she assumes it’s the assistant Jungkook spoke off.

“Mr Han, I wanted to congratulate you as well, this event that I was told you’ve been working very hard towards and was quite fun, hopefully the game will be too” ___ finally addresses Han and he as opposed to Jungkook, bows with quite conviction.

“Thank you your royal highness” “Can I walk you out ma’am-“ “Actually you still have a few people you’re yet to talk to” Han interrupts Jungkook and ___ can’t help but laugh out loud.

“I see you’ve got an interrupter yourself, you better listen to him Mr Jeon” “I better, we’ll it was delightful to meet you, I’ll definitely being seeing you soon your royal highness” “You will”

___ struggles to use a cork screw, but she finally has a glass of wine in her hand. She got back at her apartment few moments ago and the rush of all that has happened today is all coming back to her. She hasn’t done this kinda thing in months, years, and all she can still think about is how good he smelled, how big and warm his hands are, how his laugh forces her to smile, she feels like a giddy teenager with a crush.

All ___ wants is to get out of this dress, but the zipper seems stuck and she just might have to ask one of the security officers to help her out, no matter how embarrassing it is. It’s like the universe can hear her thoughts, because the doorbell rings right at that second.

“What are you doing here?” is the first thing ___ asks as she opens the door, swinging it open, not just anyone can ring the doorbell, security lets them through first, and she is utterly shocked seeing Taehyung here, in the same suit he was this morning.

“I wanted to hand these myself, it is your first speaking engagement with me as your press secretary after all” Taehyung says pointing to another folder filled with documents.

“How was the appointment, come on in” ___ says as she takes a step back and Taehyung walks behind her, not used to seeing ___ in such glamourous dress. He has to force himself to look away.

“It went well, I mostly worked through it as mom watched some tv, still a bit nauseous from the hospital smell” Taehyung answers frankly as ___ picks up the bottle of wine again.

“Are you driving home?” “No, I live walking distance from here” Taehyung answers and watches ___ pour him a quite full glass, he definitely needs it.

“Before we get to work, can you do something for me, follow me to my room?” ___ asks as she crosses through the living room, leading him into the bedroom. It’s quite a contrast to the last bedroom of ___ Taehyung remembers. The college apartment was decorated, the bedroom used to be messy, but now it’s all decorated, clean, lacks character.

“I think the zipper is stuck, help me please” ___ asks as she turns around and gathers all her hair in the front. Taehyungs frozen but he does as instructed, bringing the zipper down midway her spine and stopping there.

“I just need to get out of this and get the makeup off as well, sip on your wine and I’ll be back” she’s gone swiftly and Taehyung just awkwardly stands, not knowing what to do, what to see, where to sit.

He spots the pile of books he suggested she read, to be more fluent in korean, flowers in the room, arranged neatly and evenly into beautiful vases, so much white furniture and blankness, not art or paintings, her desk with her laptop and straight piled books, no sticky notes or calanders in sight, this is a stark difference to the room ___ had in college.

“Taehyung, can you hang this dress in the other room, the hanger is in the bathroom” ___ says as she steps out in a navy-blue collared pyjama set and the dress on her arms. The matching, proper pyjamas are once again a reminder that this isn’t the same ___ he knew years ago.

The supposed guest room is empty, entirely set up, but empty. Taehyung just does as he says, hanging the dress and taking a step back to look at it, he’s already seen almost 50 reports just about how gorgeous she looked, numerous tweets, people already starting to fall in love, just as intended.

He walks back to her room, the bathroom door completely swung open as she continues to remove her makeup. Taehyung watches her quietly for a second till ___ catches him through the mirror.

“I haven’t had the chance to look online yet, but what are the articles like?” ___ asks as she continues to massage in the cleansing balm.

At the slight mention of work, Taehyung is back on it, reading her a few excerpts from what he read. The people particularly loved the pictures of her and Jungkook right before she got on stage, there were video edits made already.

“So, overall success, multiple people posted with you on social media. I was thinking even we could put up stories on your Instagram, congratulating Mr Jeon and his company, I can get pictures from one of the many photographers” Taehyung says already texting people as ___ washes her face.

“Definitely, also Hoseok suggested I wear a suit tomorrow instead of a dress” “Definitely”

Taehyung sees cheering crowds every time ___ attends an event, speaks to a crown, attends a gala or even a time she went out shopping. This all feels new and surreal that all this has happened in a matter or one and a half month. Today ___ is volunteering at an orphanage, spending some time with the kids, playing a few games with them, but to their surprise most kids are between the age of 10-15, breaks his heart.

“Jesus fucking christ, Taehyung these are teenagers, teenagers are scary, what do I talk to them about?” ___ asks as they’re greeted with a bunch of smiling kids, ___ had been assuming that it would be little kids who don’t ask the difficult questions, but it’s teenagers, people she has no experience with.

“Kids in this age group have a hard time being adopted, they’re just children, maybe a little traumatised but still children, just talk to them like you would with Princess Jia” Taehyung says as they walk even closer to the people who run this place, who were more than delighted when Taehyung called to arrange this.

“Jia has been a nightmare lately, Oh hello kids, these flowers are so pretty, thank you” ___ switches it mid-sentence, the flowers look like they have been picked right from the garden and it’s the most beautiful bouquet she’s received recently.

After a lot of formal greetings and more flowers all of them make their way to the open amphitheatre, and she looks around in awe, this place is rather well made, must help the kids a lot. There’s still some press as they take a few photos every now and then, ___’s still not used to the flashing lights.

“Hello everyone, thank you for such a warm welcome, it’s a beautiful morning isn’t it” ___ speaks on the microphone. The kids look at her with such wide smiles that it hurts her that she called them scary a few minutes ago.

“Now, I want to propose a little bit of challenge to you guys, instead of me standing on stage the whole time and answering questions, which I hear you guys have a lot of. I sit with you up there and everyone that has a question comes up and asks me on stage. You guys wanna do that?” ___ asks and it’s a mix of loud no’s and some yes’s. She just laughs it off as she looks around again. Talking to their head caretaker earlier, she learnt how the kids sometimes struggle with confidence and being seen, hence the change.

“Come on it’ll be fun, and I have a simple trick for when you’re nervous on stage, look directly at me when you speak and just forget about the rest of the people, can you do that” ___ asks again and there are a few enthusiastic yes’s and that’s a good thing.

“Alright, one after another, come up on stage, tell us your name and ask me the question.” ___ takes a seat between the kinds after this and they’re visibly shaking with excitement when she does.

Most questions are easy, asking if she likes the sunset or sunrise, summer or winter, what was she like in high school, what clubs was she a part of in school, how did she decide what she wanted to study, she’s not puzzled till a shy girl in her floral dress comes up on stage.

“Hi, my name is Choi Seun, and I wanted to ask, um, how does one know when they’re in love?” she asks and continues to take deep breaths after she’s done speaking. The kids look at ___ with anticipation, and she tries to string together an answer, she should have anticipated this, these are teenagers after all.

“Well, love um, it’s a deep feeling that comes from a lot of respect, care and affection for one another. It’s a very complex feeling, but for me, I have known that I am in love when I feel extremely comforted just by their presence, when I can talk to them about everything that is bothering and exciting me and most importantly, when I want to share my food with them” ___ jokes about the last part and to her delight the girl is laughing and so are the rest of the kids, indicated she did good.

There are a few more questions and they finally break for lunch after. The pictures keep constantly happen as she sits with the team that takes care of the kids. She finds Taehyung and mouth him to come talk to her.

“Yes ma’am” “The press must have gotten enough pictures by now, for the tour of their rooms, can we ditch the cameras?” ___ asks as all the people around her listen intently.

“It’s a private place for the kids and I do want to spend some time with them without the cameras” ___ continues and Taehyung is already formulating what to say to the press.

___’s given a tour of the living space for the children, the walls are so colourful, books all around, even a specialized room to play video games, which she’s told the kids love.

“This room was donated by Mr Jeon, he’s actually one of our biggest donators” the caretaker shares as a few kids continue to stay glued to their video games. Even his name brings a small smile on ___’s face, it had been a week since they met and exchanged texts every now and then, he’s busy with work for now.

“That’s wonderful, he’s a great person isn’t he” “He’s the best, despite how busy he is with work he makes sure to come in and check with the kids every month. The money is good, it definitely helps, but he really gives the kids the attention and care they really crave” she says with a similar smile that ___ has.

“Wow, you guys have really decorated your room well” ___ exclaims as she walks into one of the girls’ dormitories. The walls are full of kpop posters, pictures, lots of cd’s, even an old-fashioned cd player.

“Oh, look at this picture, when was this taken?” ___ asks picking up a framed picture from one of the bedside table, once again, to her surprise it’s of Jungkook and the girl, it looks like it was taken just months ago.

“Jungkook oppa throws a big party for us every ear, he calls it a group birthday celebration and he takes all of out to a restaurant and we cut so many cakes and it’s so much fun, this is from the last group birthday” the thirteen-year-old explains with excitement and ___ is endeared enough to mutter out a aw and whip out her phone to send this picture to Jungkook.

“I’m sending this to Mr Jeon, he’s quite busy with work so this’ll cheer him up” “I saw pictures of Jungkook oppa and you from his event, are you guys dating?” an older girl asks and causes ___ to stand up straight immediately. That question is immediately followed by “Oh my god, you guys looked so good together” “You looked so pretty” “He’s so handsome isn’t he” “He’s so nice, who wouldn’t fall in love with him” “You guys are the IT couple”

___’s tired beyond anticipated as she finally falls in her sofa, it’s been a longer day than anticipated by a longer than expected stay at the orphanage and a dinner with the chamber of commerce afterwards.

Tomorrow is again a busy day, just like today. But the right kind of busy with lectures and presentations. With her laptop on her stomach, she continues editing one of her submissions when she feels her phone ringing.

“Hey, what a surprise” ___ doesn’t try to mask her excitement at all as she picks up the call, it’s from Jungkook, they haven’t talked on the phone yet.

“Hi” Jungkook says as he stands up in the empty conference room, he doesn’t even know what caused him to call her, he just wanted to.

“Thank you for the picture, really brightened my dreadful day” Jungkook says with a bit of excitement, his day has gone from bad to worse in a matter of hours but right in this moment, he doesn’t care.

“Dreadful?” “My team is on top of it, hopefully it’ll be resolved by the time we launch the game” “In seven days, you excited” ___ asks and Jungkook smiles widely, noticing how she’s been keeping a note of when the game launches.

“I’m so nervous all the time, last night I had a nightmare that the game was a flop and people kept yelling at me” Jungkook confesses and he can hear the giggles from the other side, it’s great that his misery is funny to someone.

“That’s not going to happen, in other news, you’re have a lot of adoring fans at the orphanage, a few teenage girls with massive crushes on you as well” ___ shares and this time Jungkook is the one giggling, he has had a change to look at the thousands of pictures posted online from ___’s visit, it looked like she had fun.

“Yes, and they aren’t very subtle about it, the last time one of them asked me what my type was and I chocked so hard on water” Jungkook says and ___’s laughter is making him feel a lot better, but the feeling is starting to vanish as Han knocks on the door once again.

“So, what is your type?” ___ asks and she is sure that she sounds like one of those teenage girls with crush, but she doesn’t care.

“How about I tell you that when we meet, in eight days because I really need to go, Han is looking at me like a crazy person” “Okay, well, um, you take care” “You too”

It had been a busy month for ___. First full month of new and refined royal duties and the response has been overwhelmingly positive. The narrative has shifted quickly from ___ being a nobody in the royal family to her finding her actual footing in the family and with the public.

But today this is the least of her worries, today she’s waiting at the airport to pick up someone she’s been dying to see. As she parks and hands Namjoon the keys, it’s hard not to notice a few eyes turning towards here, people starting to click pictures as soon as they realise who she is.

“You taught me how to drive, how can you not trust me to drive?” ___ whines as Yoongi tries to snatch the keys away from her. Now that his concerts in Korea have been approved, Yoongi decided to fly out here to meet the family and make some arrangements for the coming tour.

“Are you seeing this parking? Hand me the keys now” ___ doesn’t fight much, she doesn’t enjoy driving anyway. Namjoon is banished to the security car that follows them, and the sister brother duo are quick to get on the road.

“I listened to the album, and it’s surprisingly hopeful with the lyrics, what happened to the angsty Yoongi?” ___ teases as she checks her phone again for the fifth time, Yoongi’s already taken note of it.

“Life became better, I am so madly and deeply in love and most importantly, what I say now is scrutinized to death, so I only want to put the best foot forward” Yoongi answers but he can see how she’s not entirely listening to it as she checks her phone once again.

“So, who is the new man who hasn’t texted you back yet?” Yoongi asks and ___ finally puts her phone down, he’s busy, unlike her, he’s got work.

“He’s not on the list so I’ve been trying not to fall for him” ___ answers with a deep breath. There hasn’t been much contact between ___ and Jungkook, his game launches day after tomorrow and he’s buried under work. There’s only been a few texts here and there, Jungkook promises to come through with the barbeque thing very soon.

“Is it the Jungkook guy, the internet has been all over you both, Jimin had to make a burner account to like all the tweets, so much speculation and gossip and the way he looked at you” “Starstruck?” ___ jokes and Yoongi look at her for a soft smile.

“Adoration,” Yoongi says as he turns from the highway onto the city roads. His answer keeps ringing in ___ mind, if Yoongi could pick up on the adoration, what else did other people pick up on.

Usually, the royal family would live and gather at the blue palace, the biggest and the oldest palace in the history of Korea. But ever since the terrible day of shooting, no member of the royal family has ever lived there. The Queen and the Prince consort live at a smaller palace right in the middle of Seoul, Wonik, Haein and their two kids at the Incheon Palace, a palace that was made for the king in waiting and ___ doesn’t live in any of the royal properties, she rents just like many other college students, but unlike them in their smaller apartments, she rents the entire penthouse to reserve the floor.

But today, the Min family has been gathered at Seoul Palace, which the royals may think is small but is a massive sprawling property with gardens all around. They’re all seated outdoors for a brunch, and ___ realises all of them haven’t been together for over four months.

Yoongi is surrounded by Jia and her two-year-old brother Jiho. Jia had her 7th birthday recently, so Yoongi came bearing gifts, lots of them, for all the kids. Wonik is engrossed in a conversation with their father, discussing an upcoming speech he has to give. Haein tells their mother about a few stories of Jia from school, Jia has been quite a lot of trouble in school lately. While all this happens ___ sits by herself, focused on the food, the food at the Seoul palace is always the best.

“So, you’ve made quite a splash in the news” her father asks as Wonik goes and pick up a crying Jiho, it hasn’t been easy for the kids and it is quite evident.

“Jealous?” “Proud” he answers as he continues to sip on his coffee. ___ hasn’t done much lately to make her father proud, she doesn’t like that this validation makes her feel better.

“Especially what you spoke at the women’s development club speech, you were in such a rare form, reminded me of the ___ who would destroy kids on her debate club” he remembers that ___ vividly a 15-year-old in her school uniform who’d debate a topic to death, even if she didn’t agree with it.

“You chose well with Kim Taehyung, he puts a tough fight with Ms Kim but he’s always looking out to serve you, he really sees you in a way none of us do” he says and all ___ can do is smile. It’s just been two months of having Taehyung on her team, and on most days, he makes the role of a royal princess much less suffocating than it did before. ___ was thankful beyond words, there had been a growing affection there, or rather respect.

Yoongi is up before ___, he’s still on New York time. He brings out the suitcase full of trader joe snacks and starts arranging them into the surprisingly empty kitchen, wondering if she ever cooks at home.

“You’re up early” ___ remarks as she ties her robe as she walks out her room. Yoongi took the liberty of having some groceries delivered, he can’t cook with all the snacks she has.

“I had a call and what do you eat, you didn’t even have any spices?” Yoongi asks as he folds an omelette. For today’s breakfast, it’s soyabean soup, kimchi, omelette and rice.

“I usually eat takeout between getting ready for events or at the events, I have cooked at home a few times tho” ___ says as gets started with the coffee. She needs coffee before any food, especially after this bad night of sleeping.

“And what was that, toast?” “Popcorn” ___ answer just makes Yoongi scoff. “Sit down and eat this before you drink any coffee, no coffee on an empty stomach” Yoongi instructs snatching the coffee cup from ___’s hand and forcing her to sit and eat.

“For today, what do you want to do?” ___ had reserved her Friday for Yoongi, just lots of catching up, eating and drinking. But she asks him none the less, hoping he has something more exciting on his mind.

“I told Haein that we could take Jia shopping, Jia has been having a tough time with the press, media and feeling different in school, afternoon with her and then we can get drunk at home, you could even “cook” some popcorn” Yoongi says and ___ scowls at his cook remark.

“Sounds fun, what are you buying Jia and me, expensive dresses, expensive shoes oh, oh, expensive jewellery-“ “Stationary, since Jia is seven I’m buying her stationary. I found this cool store that makes a bunch of fun pieces” Yoongi explains as ___ takes a big bite of rice, home made does taste different, maybe she should start cooking, or hire a cook.

“Ma’am, His Royal Highness, Prince Consort has asked to see you at his office, urgently” Namjoon says as he walks into the living room, interrupting Yoongi explaining his tour plan.

“Urgent what, everyone is alive and well right?” “Yes, he didn’t mention what it was about but both your royal highness and Mr Taehyung have been asked to come see him, immediately” Namjoon explains and ___ looks at Yoongi with confusion, what could it possibly be.

___’s led to her fathers’ office, wondering what caused him to ask for her urgently. Namjoon keeps the door open for her and she immediately catches her father who stays seated with his arms crossed. What causes her to stop functioning her for a second is the man in a suit, dishevelled and tired man in suit who immediately stands up to bow.

“Jungkook?” ___ simply asks and he barely looks her in the eye, she turns around for answers but her father has the blank face that he usually does. To her left stand Ms Kim and Taehyung, but it’s only Taehyung who has a worried look on his face.

“___ why don’t you sit down, Ms Kim will start explaining things” her father says and ___ still very confused takes a seat on the sofa beside Jungkook. She turns around to look at him again, but he just continues to stare at his hands.

“My office was contacted by Dispatch, to let us know that they are planning to release the following pictures on sunday” Ms Kim says as she hands ___ a folder, she’s the only one who doesn’t have this folder.

Flipping it open, her heart sinks the second she sees the first picture, of her kissing Jungkook’s cheek on the balcony. Her hands are clammy as she flips to see the second one, and it’s of Jungkook and ___ at the after party, talking. To add to her fears, there is a third one, one where Jungkook held her hand and lead her to one of the hotel rooms. She stares at the last one before finally looking up.

“They’re set on releasing these pictures, but we’re worried about what the reaction might be to your royal highness being in a hotel room with Mr Jeon” Ms Kim talks and ___ once again turns to look at Jungkook who is looking at her this time. But his eyes aren’t the same, they look hurt and deceived.

“What reaction, we went into the hotel room to talk, if someone was there taking pictures they would have also seen me leave, minutes after” ___ yells as she stands up, throwing the pictures on the coffee table.

“Ma’am that does not matter, this still looks like you and Mr Jeon were, um, intimate” Ms Kim barely mumbles the last part and ___ looks at Taehyung, really hoping he says something.

“So, after some discussion with Ms Kim and Mr Taehyung, we have come to the conclusion that post the pictures are released, we announce that you and Mr Jeon have been dating for six months now. It can’t look like you went into a hotel room with a man you barely knew” Mr Min says and ___ can hear Jungkook taking a very deep breath.

“What is so wrong with that father?” “It questions your decision making, it makes you look impulsive, it makes you look easy-“ “Oh shut up will you” “No I will not shut up ___, post the announcement there will be a several of activities and pictures to make the two of you look like a solid royal couple. In eight months, we will announce that the two of you are engaged” the more her father speaks, the more it’s making her head spin.

“We absolutely don’t need to do that” “___ you haven’t realised that you are a royal princess and not a common civilian, you don’t get to sleep with someone when the public knows of it and now that the public will know of it, you have to make it look like it was because of a solid relationship and not just a minute of misjudgement” Mr Min is now standing as he starts to get agitated explaining all of this.

“Ms Kim, Taehyung can you leave, I need to discuss a few more things” Mr Min says and the two walk out immediately as they close the door behind them.

“I’ve discussed this with Mr Jeon, we have come to a wager” Mr Min says and ___ once again looks at him, what could he possibly be getting out of this to agree to this.

“Last night, Golden Studio’s only investor pulled out their investment, they wanted managerial control with the growing success and Mr Jeon refused. Without any investment company backing then, the company would go bankrupt in matter in 180 days. So, with my connections, I have found an investor that has agreed to invest without any managerial control” Mr Min shares and ___ is starting to connect the dots, this must have been the work disaster that he was talking about before absolute silence.

“So, in return for that you’re forcing him to marry me, how is that fair to him?” “___ get this through your head once and for all, that you are a woman and not a man, people will not excuse a royal woman caught up in this, all this is happening because of your misjudgement, I wouldn’t have gotten involved if it wasn’t for you” her father sounds and ___ takes a step back.

“These pictures will make the public question not just your character but the families as well, the queen’s character. The public is barely starting to accept and think of us as the royal family, but with this without any follow up, will not help it at all” he continues talking and ___ takes support against a wall, wanting to be as far away from Jungkook as possible.

“And as you promised to me five years ago, you are obliged to go through with anything that helps with your position as the royal princess, and this unfortunately is one of those things that you have to comply with, without any arguing” Mr Min continues talking mostly to his daughter and Jungkook can’t help but wonder why he even called her that night.

“Jungkook you don’t have to do this, you can find another company-“ “No your royal highness, I can’t, I haven’t slept for the last 48 hours and have tired everything and this is the only solution that has presented itself. No investment company wants to touch my company because of my stipulations. If I don’t take this deal I’ll be forced to delay launching a game that we have been working on for the last three years, lay people off, tarnish our reputation and force me to loose something I’ve put my life into” Jungkook finally speaks up and there is this iciness in his eyes that disturbs ___.

“For all intents and purposes the two of you are a real couple to the country, the world, news, your family, friends, each and every person excluding us, Ms Kim, Mr Taehyung and Mr Jeon’s assistant” Mr Min says as he finally sits down. ___ doesn’t feel all this to be real, just a very bad nightmare, where the man she thought liked here looks at her with fury.

“This marriage is going to be a royal one, so there’s no out, no divorce, you two together for all of this now, for the rest of your lives” Mr Min’s words are ringing in Jungkook’s ears, he feels claustrophobic, the nauseous feeling very much back.

Jungkook hasn’t had an easy life, his parents passed away in a car accident, they were on their way back from work and suddenly the cars break failed, causing them to collide with a wall and dying, right at impact. This happened when he was 7, and over 20 years later, he still has the memory of his mother’s best friend telling him what happened late that night.

Jungkook was right away adopted by his mother’s best friend and her husband, his grandmother was too old to take care of him and his mother’s mother never wanted to see him again. That was the first time in his life that he felt the feeling of having no control over his life. He remembers crying about the loss of his parents and adjusting with his new family in bed for years. He just wanted to stay at his home, at his family home, but he was forced to go live at some strange house.

Jungkook worked at one of the biggest tech companies right out of college at 21. For the initial few months, he was excited, thrilled, worked 12-hour days happily. But about 2 years in he was assigned a project that involved using private, vulnerable data to influence them into buying products that make their life even worse. That was the first time in his adult life he realised that he didn’t have any control over his life, to companies like these, they were a mere data point to be manipulated.

When he started his company at 24, the initial money came from the settlement money from the car manufactures that caused his parents death. Jungkook vowed to never have outside investors, he knows how these companies worked, investing in companies and controlling them for their gain. He never wanted to have the feeling of not having control over his life, so any investor that they did talk to was made clear, no managerial control.

But this minute as he sits and listen to Mr Min and ___ fight is the most he’s felt that he has no control over his life. He’s agreed to completely let go any control of his personal life to save his company and Jungkook isn’t sure how he feels about it. But he knows that he feels sick.

Mr Min leave, asking the two of them to talk to each other while he goes and discusses a few things with the press secretaries. There a harsh silence in this office, Jungkook had deluded himself into looking at ___ as just ___, but if today is any proof, he should have only seen her as a princess.

“You were right that night, I should have just stayed home” ___ finally speaks up as she takes the seat beside him once again. But the close proximity to her is suddenly making him feel uncomfortable, evident by how he stands up.

“I, um, just got swept away with the infatuation of it all and now we’re in this mess” ___ continues talking as Jungkook sips on some water, looking a bit shaky still.

“Jungkook, you know I don’t want this, I have no part in this, I am just part of this unforgiving system that I don’t want to be in” ___’s vomiting words right now, because she very desperately needs Jungkook on her side.

“I don’t want to do this to you, you have to believe me Jungkook” “What does me believing you even change now your royal highness? It doesn’t change this situation at all” Jungkook finally speaks up, the two red bulls he drank earlier finally kicking in.

“Look, we can just think of this as an challenge and do our best to harness any real feelings we have for each other-“ “Ma’am, let me make myself very clear, any feelings of affection I had for you have now been replaced with obligation” Jungkook’s voice is strained but firm, ___ definitely understands what he’s trying to tell, and it breaks her heart.

“Jungkook don’t be like this” ___ pleads as she stands up herself, and Jungkook just scoffs looking her straight in the eyes.

“Don’t be like what? Ma’am you don’t know me well enough but I lost my parents to a brutal accident when I was 7 and it made me realise just how much I don’t like it when I don’t have control over my life. But here I am, giving up control to the most intimate parts of my life to save my company. So, please don’t ask me to find any feelings for you right now, because even if I try very hard, I can’t seem to find them” Jungkook answers very candidly as he buttons his jacket, his phone has been going off all morning, he needs to be back at the office.

“So, please don’t ask me to find feelings for you as I watch the plans of my personal future slip away” Jungkook can see just how much his words are affecting her, her eyes on the brink of tears but she’s fighting them still.

___ wants to argue, tell him that it’s not all that bad, they can make it work, if they try really really hard, but she can also see the emotional walls he’s starting to put up around himself.

“Please your royal highness, excuse me, I am needed back at the office, the place where I still have some control”

The office is filled with people, Han had arranged for everyone to be around when the game goes live and the celebratory vibe around Jungkook is starting to feel like mockery.

“Where the hell have you been?” Seokjin asks as he rushes out his office the second he spots Jungkook, as the CEO he wants to yell at him, ask him where he’s been all this while he waited for a word from him, but as a brother he’s deeply concerned by what he sees. Jungkook looks disoriented, pale and shaky, it’s very concerning.

“I…I, went to the roof and fell asleep on a bench” Jungkook says truthfully, on his way back from the royal office, instead of going straight to his office, he went to the roof to think, and smoke and promptly fell asleep.

“What? Jungkook are you okay? Do you have a fever?” Seokjin asks as he immediately checks his temperature and he’s shockingly cold, too cold.

“So, Mr Black is going to send over the contract, they are doubling the investing amount, helping us expand and market in the west and are completely okay with no managerial control, apparently he does this just because he sees potential in good business and not for control which is shocking. Also, there’s going to be some news about me and my girlfriend soon, but that’s mostly out of my control, it’s not all bad, but it’s definitely something. And I talked to our server company and they have assured me that the servers will be incredibly the best right as the game launches. Also, I’ve had five red bulls today and what time is it” Jungkook keeps rambling on as Jin drags his brother into his office, the concern only keeps growing as Jungkook keeps babbling.

“Jungkook drink this water and sit here, I’m going to go get Han” Jin instructs handing him a bottle of water from his table and asking his assistant to go get Han.

The water starts to help with the dehydration, but the migraine is only growing. Jungkook continues drinking from a second bottle as Han and Jin walk into the office again.

“He’s drank five red bulls and given how sensitive he is to caffeine, should we take him to a hospital?” “I know a doctor, I’ll ask him to come check on him, you take the contracts to legal and see to that, I’ll take care of him” Han instructs and with a few more cautious looks Jin finally leaves.

“Jungkook, do you have any chest pains” “Yes, my heart hurts” Jungkook answers as he unscrews the third bottle but doesn’t drink anyway. His statement only causes Han to panic even more as he scrambles around for his phone.

“Han, stop, listen to me, I made a deal with the Prince Consort, for the investment, tomorrow they’re going to announce that her and I have been dating for six months, that we met through mutual friends and have been getting to know each other well with plans of future of some crap, and in eight months, apparently I’m going have to propose to her and after that we are going to spend the rest of our lives together, oh my god I think I’m having a panic attack”

As Jungkook lays on the floor of his brother’s office, the consequences of what he’s agreed to are starting to dawn on him. Today was supposed to be one of the happiest day of his life, but he can use today to pin point today as the day his life officially left his hands. But the second he shuts his eyes, the image of sitting in that hotel room comes into his head, when will he start to forget about that night.

“Good suggestion, it is definitely too loud outside” ___ says it the second they exit the rooftop, Jungkook is quite tipsy himself and all he wants to do it reach over and hold her hand.

“Mingyu gave me a hotel room, he just wants me to sleep for 12 hours and not think of work” Jungkook says as he flashes a hotel key the moment they reach the hallway. ___’s starting to over thing all of this, she shouldn’t have texted him, she shouldn’t have come here, but she really wanted to see him and she’s had about a half bottle of wine.

“You’re stumbling a lot, how much did you drink?” ___ asks as Jungkook slumps against the door, struggling with the key card, but on the sixth try, the door finally swings open and Jungkook almost falls on his face, but ___ holds his hand and stabilizes him right on time.

“Your hands are very cold, unusually cold, you should see a doctor about it” Jungkook says as he pulls her in and shuts the door behind them. ___ laughs, finding this honest and unleashed Jungkook hilarious.

“Maybe, my hands are cold because I was standing on a roof in a hoddie and jeans and your hands are so warm because you’ve been drinking” ___ says and Jungkook takes a seat on the bed while she continues to stand in front of him.

“You were shining like the sun today, you looked like hope” Jungkook giggles as he flops back on bed, sitting up is just taking too much effort at this point. ___ is struck with his observation, she received a lot of compliments today, but this one is by far the best one.

“Like hope?” “Yes, the kind of hope, not in the way people usually mean it…but the kind that sneaks up on you when you’ve stopped expecting it” Jungkook barely stands up on the bed again, and he’s starting to sober up seeing just how sad she looks. He stands up in a panic when the tears finally escape her eyes.

“Oh my god, I am so sorry, did…did, I say something wrong,” Jungkook asks as his hands rake through his hair, he should have just kept drinking more outside, or kept his mouth shut.

“No, um, I should go, I’ve had a lot of wine and I have to speak at a college tomorrow and I should go” ___ is just hit with all of it, why did he even see any hope, she doesn’t have any, in herself or to give, she’s quite hopeless.

“Hey, I’m sorry” Jungkook says as he holds her back by her wrist the second she turns around. This was going so well, right up till he opened his big giant mouth.

“Don’t be, you should go out there, celebrate your success, we’ll talk later” ___ rids of his hand in one swift movement and Jungkook’s left there standing, wondering, overthinking.

Yoongi knows something is off, ___ was excited for his visit but all the sudden she’s quite and shut off. They were supposed to go shopping and spend time together, but she showed up home to late to do any of that. He definitely smelt cigarettes on her this morning as she’s oddly quite, still on her phone.

“___, we have that family dinner today, how about we go shopping before that?” Yoongi suggests as she continues to munch on her dry toast, that’s all she can stomach right now.  ___’s been told by Ms Kim to tell Yoongi and her family about Jungkook, before the news comes out today at midnight and she still hasn’t been able to iron out a story to lie about.

“I actually have to go see my boyfriend” she says as she cautiously watches Yoongi’s reaction and to just as expected, he’s choking on his coffee right as she says that. She could very easily lie to the rest of the world, but lying to Yoongi is difficult.

“What, who, which boyfriend, WHAT” Yoongi asks as he completely disregards his coffee and comes and sit on the sofa beside her.

“Well, um, Jungkook,-“ “You’re dating him, he’s your boyfriend?” “Of six months” ___ says and Yoongi stands up in shock of it all, she tells him everything, every good and bad thing, how has this not been told yet.

“How, why, how has it not come up yet” Yoongi asks incredulously, ___ once called him between a bad date, how did a boyfriend of six months not come up yet. Yoongi wonders what else has been going on with her that he doesn’t know about.

“Because I didn’t even know if it was real at first, he doesn’t really fit the model of boyfriend that the press or even mom and dad are expecting,” ___ did take some notes to get her story right, she can’t just be freeballing this.

“why is that?” “He has tattoos, an arm full of them, at a point he used to have a lip piercing, he doesn’t come from a chaebol family, he has a video game business and not some boring finance or business thing, he has stated his political opinions out loud, to the press, he’s, he is,” ___ stops for a second as she tries to breath away that panicky feelings she’s been getting.

“He speaks out about the issues he believes in rather than being diplomatic about it, he’s kinda clumsy, his family, um, he was adopted and spends a lot of time with orphaned children” ___ says and Yoongi exhales sitting back besides her.

“He sounds like a wonderful, strong headed, caring and generous man” Yoongi says softly and ___ doesn’t say anything but rather leans her head on his shoulder.

“So, why didn’t tell me about him, earlier, or much rather after the first date?” Yoongi asks as he rubs her hand, ___’s clearly still struggling with something.

“Because I wasn’t sure if I wanted him in all this, my world, as a royal, with all the press, media and attention” ___ says that knowing full well Jungkook is about to enter her world with full force, without having any say in it.

“Well, it’s simple, do you love him?” Yoongi’s question stumps her, the dry toast coming back up the more she thinks about it. There’s no option here, and Jungkook’s made it very clear that she’s just an obligation to him.

“Yes” “It’s simple then, if he didn’t, he wouldn’t have stuck around for six months without realising the reality that comes with your title” the more Yoongi talks the more ___ realises just what a horrible thing she’s doing to Jungkook.

___ hoping Yoongi doesn’t have any more questions, because just thinking and lying about this situation is depressing her. To her surprise, she’s saved by the doorbell and knows exactly who is on the other side, exactly why she’s dressed in business formals on a Saturday morning.

Yoongi swings the door open as ___ picks up her handbag, but there’s one more thing she might have forgotten to tell him.

“Taehyung? What are you doing here? ___ why is your ex-boyfriend doing here?” Yoongi asks and the two of them look at each other awkwardly.

“He’s my press secretary” “Why is your ex-boyfriend your press secretary-“ “Because he’s good at his job and can you stop calling him my ex-boyfriend, people can’t know about it” ___’s not even dazed with this secret now, she has a much bigger one to keep.

“I’m sorry for being a bit late, I was at the hospital and the discharge was a struggle” Jungkook’s voice breaks the weird tension that has taken over the conference room as Han helps him sit down. ___ sits up as she spots the IV bag that was wheeled into the room with him.

“What happened?” ___ asks from across the table, for some weird reason the sitting arrangement ended up with Jungkook and her being at the two ends of the table and it’s only adding to the tension.

“Mr Jeon was taken to the hospital post launch for severe dehydration-“ “I’m fine” Jungkook cuts off Han who just nods, opening the file that has been waiting for them. The sole purpose of this meeting is to get their stories straight, and thanks to their press people, they will have the perfect fairy tale story by the end of it.

“First off, congratulations Mr Jeon and company, the news has been very favourable since the launch last night-“ “Can we get straight to the point, my work is not being controlled by the royal family” Jungkook’s harsh tone is biting, but ___ can’t help but notice how pale and frail he still looks.

“Okay, first thing on the agenda is getting our stories straight, do the both of you have any input?” Taehyung asks as shifts in his seat, Jungkook’s glare is piercing and he doesn’t know how to neutralize this tension.

“Mr Taehyung, right? I’m sure you already have a story prepared based on research, so how about you just tell us what it is, instead of asking for our input” Jungkook is still clearly very angry, but all ___ can do right now is nod and ask Taehyung to proceed.

Taehyung sits up and starts sharing the perfectly crafted story. About eight months ago, both of them attended a charity gala, that’s the first time they met. They connected over shared interests, spend time in private to avoid media attention. But with the picture coming out, they’ve decided to be share about the relationship in an effort for more transparency from the royals. They way they’re spinning their match in the media consists around the simple though of how their union combines the tradition of the royal family with the modernity that Jungkook brings in.

“To get ahead Dispatch, I think it would be the best if Mr Jeon attended the dinner today for the Prince Consorts birthday. I will tip of another paparazzi about it and place them for pictures as her royal highness princess ___ and Mr Jeon enter the restraunt. Those pictures being released prior to the dispatch ones are essential to establish this as a committed, serious relationship” Taehyung stops talking for a second to take in the mood of the room and it’s even more tense now as ___’s eyes stay fixed on Jungkook for any reaction while he continues to stare at the report in front of him.

“He’s too sick for a dinner-“ “I’m not, what time am I expected?” Jungkook interrupts ___ and she sighs, leaning back in the chair. Looking around the Golden Studio office, she can see the remnants of yesterday’s celebrations.

“Around 7:30, pick up ma’am from her place-“ “No, my brother’s staying at my place, it’s best if I meet him outside the restraunt, I can’t take a car ride with him and Yoongi” ___ can imagine the amount of questions or rather the interrogation that would take place and they’re bound to break in front of him.

“Alright-“ “Do I need to pick up a gift? I can’t come empty handed if the motive of this meeting is also to make the royal family like me” Jungkook asks as he looks ___ directly in the eyes, his eyes are very void of any emotions and that disturbs her.

“My father likes wine, so I’ve bought him an old French bottle, we can say that it’s from the both of us. Don’t wear a suit tonight, we’ve decided to keep it causal so just dress pants, a shirt and a sweater, I can have my stylist drop off-“ “I am capable of dressing myself” Jungkook interrupts her as he looks away and she just nods going back to looking around.

“Alright, I’m still trying to iron out the possible public and private spotting that will happen. The statement to announce the relationship will be made by our office and when asked for a comment on the same the reply from Mr Jeon’s office is going to be the same.” Taehyung is now talking mostly to Han as the two people in this relationship are focused looking elsewhere.

“Hi mother, how are you doing?” ___ asks as she walks out the conference room, standing by one of the windows as she looks out at the sunny February day.

“I am good, your father and I went on a hike this morning, very refreshing” a chipper queen responds and ___ just sighs as she gears up for what she’s about to ask.

“So, I have been dating someone for a while now, and I was thinking that today is the perfect day for him to meet my family. With all of us around, the pressure won’t be as heavy on him” ___ is getting good at this lying thing because given how soft his voice is, she sounds believable.

“Would that someone be Mr Jeon Jungkook?” “Yes, how’d you know?” ___’s voice is panicked for a moment wondering if she too knows about their arrangement.

“You attended a party for his game launch, it’s not usually the kind of event you’d attend as a royal princess. And based on the pictures from that night, it looked like he was delighted to have you there” her mother’s words just remind ___ of Jungkook from that day and she can’t control the tear that rolls off her cheek.

“Yes, and Jungkook’s excited and a bit nervous to see you all, I just wanted your go ahead before I talk to him about this” the queen hasn’t met any of ___’s boyfriend yet, and she doesn’t hide her excitement as she says yes.

“How long have the two of you been together” “Six months, it’s getting quite serious so I thought now would be a good time for everyone to meet him” ___ talks with a clenched fist as she breaths really hard, trying not to break down.

“That’s wonderful ___, I’m looking forward to meeting him” “I’ll see you later” ___ turns around to go back to the conference room to give everyone the conformation but gets startled when she catches Jungkook waiting for her.

“My mother gave her go ahead” she says as she takes a shaky breath. The stiffness between them grows stronger but no one does anything to help it.

“I need to take a few press calls about the launch, Han will brief me on everything later” Jungkook answers and she nods. He watches as he opens her mouth twice, but just moves forward with silence.

___ takes her seat in the conference room, letting every one of the queen’s approval. Han and Taehyung continue to discuss possible event they can attend together, ironing out as many details they can foresee. Thanks to the glass walls in this office, ___ watches as Jungkook takes a seat in his office and immediately starts working.

“I’ll just let Jungkook know that we’re leaving, can you pick up dad’s gift from the kitchen” ___ asks Yoongi as she finishes putting on her heels and shoots off a quick text to Jungkook. She shuts off her phone when he sends back an okay.

“It’s strange to me that one moment I don’t know you have a boyfriend and the next he’s meeting our entire family” Yoongi talks as he comes and finds her in the foyer. Her brother hasn’t been sceptical about this, he’s rather been teasing her about the whole situation.

“I usually come to you when the relationship is turbulent, when we’re clearly not right for each other, but it’s been different with him” ___ says in hopes that it settles this once and all with Yoongi but he just gives her a pursed smile.

“But shouldn’t you be breaking him into this gently, I’m a bit hurt that given how close we are you didn’t choose for me to meet him before the rest of the family does” Yoongi presses further as he picks the car keys and ___ follows him, taking deep breaths.

“I thought the pressure on him would be less if he meet everyone together as a group and then individually for you, I’m just trying to look out for him” ___ explains as they wait for the elevator to come up. Yoongi doesn’t say anything he just nods.

The drive to the restraunt feels exceptionally small but ___ knows they’ve reaches as she spots Jungkook standing right by the entrance. Yoongi can feel how nervous ___ is with her constantly fixing her hair and shaking leg.

“Look, your man is waiting for you, with flowers” Yoongi jokes trying to lighten the atmosphere as he stops the car right by the valet. ___ can’t even hear him at this point, there’s this loud ringing in her head and she had a pit in her stomach, feeling as tho things are about to fall apart.

Jungkook’s squinting his eyes as he tries to see if this is ___, he’s hoping that it is, because he’s not prepared to face her parents all by herself. To his relief ___ steps out the car and it’s right at that point when a car whizzes past her.

“Be careful!” Jungkook yells and the surroundings are starting to sink into ___, how she was just about to be hit by a car, would not be the worst thing to happen today.

“I’m fine” she tells both the men and Yoongi stares at her with concern, her head’s been scattered all day, he noticed it first when she tried to pour coffee without having a mug there and then forgetting to zip up her dress.

“You okay?” Jungkook asks once again as she’s walking closer to him, for a second, he’s forgotten just now nervous he is about all this.

“I’m good, Yoongi, Jungkook, Jungkook, Yoongi” she introduces the two men who share a small handshake and Jungkook looks at the two of them just as blankly as he did this morning.

“No need to be so scared man, it’s not like you’re meeting the royal family” Yoongi jokes and Jungkook chuckles awkwardly and ___ plasters on the practiced smile.

“It’s so nice to meet you, ___’s told me so much about you” Jungkook’s starting the lying early so that he’s practiced when he meets the rest and given Yoongi’s wide smile as his eyes shift between the couple, Jungkook’s feels like he’s doing a good job.

“I can’t say the same because I didn’t even know she was dating someone until this morning” ___ can feel the interrogation coming and she has to find a way to distract Yoongi before it begins.

“Why don’t you go in, we’ll be there in a few minutes” ___ isn’t asking her brother, but rather pushing him away and Jungkook just smiles tightly as he watches the man walk away. Once he’s out of their earshot, both of them take a big sigh of relief, trying to remember what comes next.

“Okay, so I saw the cameras earlier, they’re right by the trees” Jungkook talks looking at his feet as he fidgets with the flowers. Recalling Taehyung’s instructions, she reaches and straightens his jacket. The strange movement causes Jungkook to look at her strange, but he has the realisation a second later.

“My family’s going to want you to talk rather me, so short sentences, no political comments and compliment my mother’s bracelet, tell her how I told you the story of the bracelet and my father proposing with a bracelet rather a ring on his birthday, stick to business with Wonik, and don’t go into any one-on-one conversations with Yoongi, Got it?” ___ asks looking up at Jungkook, her eyes scanning him to look for anything else that is out of place.

Jungkook doesn’t say anything, despite the nerves swirling inside him, he takes a hold of his hand, just as Taehyung asked them to. The move would be comforting if it wasn’t so strategic.

The restraunt is warm and smells of wood and fire, the entire place was reserved for the royal family who Jungkook spots right away. Under the warm lights they don’t feel as scary as they smile back at him. He gingerly lets go of her hand as he bows, greeting them all based on protocol and the people around her laugh and his worst horrors are starting to come true.

“Why are they laughing?” Jungkook whispers as he leans closer to ___ and she is smiling herself, a fond little smile.

“You’re supposed to greet my mother first, then Wonik, then my father and then Haein” ___ explains as she pulls them closer to their seats besides her Yoongi, Jungkook is all frazzled already and he’s so ready to give up on this dinner.

“It’s fine Mr Jeon, our family is not big on these formalities anyways, we’re still trying to fit into our roles” her mother says as the couple takes their seats, Jungkook knowing that they’re on display does what most gentleman would do. Pull ___’s chair out for her.

“Where are the kids?” ___ asks Wonik and Haein, she was hoping that the kids would be around to take all of the adult’s attention.

“It’s past their bed time ___” Wonik answers as the server comes around to fill their glasses of wine. Jungkook has been told very seriously to not drink for at least a week, but he doesn’t want to be rude.

“Are you supposed to be drinking?” ___ whispers to Jungkook as Wonik and her father go back to discussing the upcoming royal tour.

“I’m not but I also don’t want to be rude” Jungkook whispers and his hot breath on her ear derails her train of thought, but her mother’s eye on them brings her right back.

“Don’t drink, excuse me, don’t fill his glass, he’s still recovering from being sick” ___ speaks up for him and it comforts him for a bit, evident by the small shy smile he has as he looks around.

There are rounds of congratulations to Jungkook, apparently everyone on this table has been keeping tabs on the new launch. Jungkook starts looking at them like a normal family as the cake comes around. It’s all going better than expected and it shocks the both of them.

“So, how’d you two meet?” the dreaded question comes around as the dinner is being served and Jungkook takes the initiative knowing they want him to talk.

“We were both at the charity gala hosted in Busan about seven months ago. Everyone I talked to was looking forward to talking to the princess, or talking about the princess or talking how beautiful the princess looked” he stops for a second to pass ___ a smile and trying to feel if the room is responding to what he’s saying.

“And when she came around to our table, we just struck up a conversation about my upcoming trip to New York and her vacation in Thailand” Jungkook answers and ___ tries to hide her look of shock the best she can as Jungkook speaks verbatim from the script Taehyung handed to them.

Another person on the table who is quite amused at how well Jungkook is handling all this is Mr Min and he doesn’t try to hide it at all.

“The more we talked, the more I realised just how warm, funny and grounded she is and it’s been months since then and thank fully we’re still talking” Jungkook delivers excellently and Mr Min who previously had no confidence in him sits in shock as the rest of the table eats up their story, just like the rest of the country will too.

“When I learnt that ___ was bringing a boyfriend to this dinner, I was quite shocked, while we have known most of her boyfriends, we haven’t had the privilege of meeting them” Mr Min asks in an attempt to put them on the spot, this is the best place for them to practice talking about the relationship.

“Well, um, I am not the same ___ I used to be years ago and whether I like it or not, who I date does affect all of us as the royal family now. And as much we’ve loved being together in private, I would like to go to a café with my boyfriend and go on a vacation with him” ___ is definitely scrambling but the reassuring look Jungkook gives her helps for sure.

“What I mean by all that rambling is that, I care about him very deeply and what we’ve found with each other is rare and my hope by bringing him to meet all of you is an attempt to do all this right. I, um, I love him” her voice dips at the last sentence, the weight of it all feels heavy on her heart but just as written on the script, she speaks despite not being able to at first. Her mother and Yoongi are smiling, so she must have convinced him.

“You must go on a vacation after all the work you’ve been putting in, do you have any specific locations in mine. I’m looking for ideas too, because we haven’t been on one, in four years” the queen asks candidly and Jungkook chuckles nervously as he tries to think of an answer.

“We’ve been discussing Hawaii, but I would strongly recommend Switzerland, I took my family there for a vacation last year and it’s truly breathtaking” Jungkook’s eyes wander between the two parents and the tight smile on Mr Min’s face is an indication that he’s been doing well.

Jungkook talks a bit more about his Swiss vacation and ___ is absolutely in awe of how well he is doing. How eloquent he is when he talks to Wonik about the new business developments from around the country. But of course, he is charming, a bit different from the day he first met her, but still very charming.

“Jungkook was in rare form, despite the twitching every now and then. But you need to put a lot more work, you were all shaky and nervous” Mr Min says as the rest of the family including Jungkook walks ahead of them, ready to head home.

“Thanks for the feedback father, oh happy 65th birthday too, I hope you stop meddling with my life as the wisdom of old age dawn on you” ___ speaks with gritted teeth as she moves ahead to catch up with Wonik and Jungkook, who are still talking about the economy or something.

“___ you did well” the queen tells ___ as her mother circles an arm around her. There is no doubt that she is impressed by Jungkook, not just as the queen but also a mother.

“You think the public will like him too?” ___ asks with genuine concern as her gaze drifts to Jungkook. He looks much more confident now, at least one of them should be.

“What is important is that you love him-“ “and how easy he is to control, ‘No he won’t be drinking, he’s still recovering’” Yoongi mimics ___’s tone from earlier and she laughs dryly as she swats her brother. If someone were to look at them from a distance right now, they’d look like a normal family.

The parents leave after final pleasantries with Jungkook, ___ watches as he exhales deeply the moment, they car drives away. The same can’t be said for ___ because she’s tense as ever.

“You did good today, the day I met the parents went much worse” Haein tells Jungkook as they wait for the rest of the cars to arrive. Jungkook hasn’t had a chance to talk to her much, but he’s thankful regardless.

“It wasn’t that bad” Wonik pipes in and Haein chuckles as she thinks back to that day. “Oh it was bad, we were already engaged and I met the parents on a complete accident because all of us happened to be in the Hamptons, if it were up to Wonik, I wouldn’t have ever met the parents” Haein shares and the group laughs, more relaxed laughter now.

“I was scared to introduce her only and only because of dad, no matter how amazing our partners are, he always scrutinizes them and I only wanted to shelter you off that” Wonik claims and Haein scoffs, Yoongi can’t even fathom to find the courage to introduce his parents to Jimin yet.

“Well, thankfully ___ has always been his least favourite so Jungkook was saved of the scrutiny” Wonik teases but it causes Jungkook to look at her with a raised eyebrow, she just stiffens up more with her tight smile and crossed arms.

“She’s definitely not his least favourite, I have been wearing that crown proudly for years” Yoongi chimes in an attempt to neutralize the situation. Jungkook’s starting to understand just how complicated this family is now.

“But you’re mom’s favourite and she’s the queen, she’s quite literally the head of the country” Wonik comments and the joking tone has now been replaced with a more serious one. Yoongi chuckles dryly, wondering why are they talking about this.

In Jungkook’s eyes, the evening went fine, better than expected other than the last few moments outside the restaurant. But based on how quiet ___ is in as he drives, he’s starting to wonder otherwise.

“Are you cold, should I turn up the heat higher?” Jungkook finally breaks the ice and the princess just nods as she rubs her hands together. Jungkook noticed her shivering the second they stepped out the restaurant.

Jungkook can’t handle the quietness, but he also doesn’t have the energy or the courage to talk, so he just turns on the radio. And to his dismay, it’s a soft romantic song, it’s like the radio is mocking him. ___ watches and Jungkook stops on a red light and try to find some appropriate music on his Spotify.

“What kind of music do you like?” ___ asks as she turns to him ever so slightly, he looks at her for a second too long with a puzzled look before the car behind them honks.

“Soft pop, rnb… ballads” he answers as he zooms through the empty streets, it’s pretty close to midnight and they’re just minutes away from the disastrous pictures coming online.

“It suits you” she says as he looks around his mercedes in a bleak attempt to get to know him better. Theres’s sanitizer and hand cream where the coffee cups should be, at least he cares about his hands.

Jungkook’s about to ask something himself, but he’s cut off by her ringing phone which she picks up with a frown.

“Yes Taehyung?” she asks with a flat tone and Jungkook is tries to focus in as much as he can to listen to the call, despite the pop music he put on.

“The dinner went well, the queen clearly liked him, so did Wonik and those are the only two people in my family who’s approval matters right now” her tone is biting and she’s clearly still bothered by what Wonik said earlier.

“Why are they even there? Isn’t it unsafe for them to know where I live?” ___’s agitated as she massages her forehead, the cigarette smoking is clearly getting to her.

“FINE Taehyung it’s just, alright” she hands up and leans back with a sigh, Jungkook looks at her a couple times, wanting to know what the call was about. She finally catches his eye and she’s clutching her hair with frustration before she starts talking.

“Apparently, there’s hidden paparazzi outside my apartment building and Taehyung wants us to put a show for the cameras, to drown the hotel pictures that are coming out” she shares and Jungkook’s starting to tense up more as the hotel pictures are mentioned.

“Show how?” “Physical affection, something that will counteract against the pictures they already have of us. Something that gets peoples attention, a hug, maybe a kiss” ___ repeats what she was told on the phone and Jungkook looses control of the car just for a second.

“Don’t get out” Jungkook whispers the second he parks his car, she follows him as he walks towards her door and she’s taking deep breaths as she prepares herself for what’s waiting for her.

He doesn’t say anything as he swings the door open, but rather offers his hand which she takes with hesitation. She wonders if he can feel how clammy her hands are but they stay put as he closes the door behind her.

“What do we do, do we hug?” ___ asks as she notices just how surprisingly close, they’re standing, Jungkook’s hands go from her hand to her waist and close all the distance between them.

“I can’t believe my life has turned into this circus show” his tone is sharp as his arms hesitantly circle around her, this closeness brings back the nervous feeling that the two of them have been ignoring.

“I am so sorry-“ “What is you being sorry going to do now, put your hands on my chest” Jungkook instructs with a curt smile and ___ gingerly does so. From a distance, the two of them probably look like a couple caught up in an intimate moment.

“Because I feel bad for doing this to you, you can still go out and find yourself another investor, I still have to pose around with someone my father picks out” ___ explains as she finally looks him in the eye, she needs him to understand her. Jungkook just scoffs as his grip tightens around her.

“No investor is going to touch my company after one of the biggest investors in the country loses faith in us” Jungkook speaks with a smile, he’s at awe of just how badly things turned in a matter of day.

“If I don’t do this, I lose my company, people lose their jobs, something I poured my heart and soul into would become one of the many failed tech ventures and most hear breaking of it all” he keeps her hanging as his hand comes up fix her hair. The sudden touch is making her mind go in a tizzy but Jungkook seems unfazed.

“I would have poured the money I got as a part of my parent’s death settlement into a failed business rather than continue their legacy” his voice is shaky but he looks her square in the eyes, her red and wet eyes. Her chest tightens with the weight of his words, she knows how she is the absolute worst person in the world in his eyes, and she doesn’t see that changing.

“Jungkook I am so sor-“ Jungkook seizes all the distance between them with a fierce kiss, his warm lips against her freezing ones shuts off her brain entirely as the handbag drops down her shoulder and she holds him even closer by his hair. For a second the two of them entirely forget about this arrangement, they forget about the cold wind and what the future holds for them.

For a second, she almost pulls away, but Jungkook brings her back in with a violent fervour but he stops himself, their foreheads resting against each other for a second too long. He’s just doing all this for the cameras, is what she’s telling himself.

___ lights a cigarette in the kitchen as she waits for the coffee to be done. It’s been a week since the pictures came out and just how Taehyung orchestrates, the pictures of them kissing are what people focused on. She’s restrained herself from going online because if it’s anything negative it would just devastate her.

The front door opens and Namjoon comes into the kitchen followed by Taehyung as the two men give her a disappointed look.

“Your royal highness” both the men say in a unison as they bow, “The prince consort has called you 11 times today, he wants to talk to you, soon” Namjoon says and ___ grumbles sitting up on the counter, the coffee’s taking longer than expected.

“She has time tomorrow after her lectures-“ “No, I don’t want to see him right now” ___ interrupts Taehyung and Namjoon just nods as he leaves. Taehyung takes a good look at ___ and she does not look fine, unlike what she’s been texting him.

“I just wanted to share the positive response we have been getting since the pictures-“ “Oh how wonderful, people love that two people are forced to be together even tho they don’t want to” ___ tone is sarcastic as she takes another long drag.

“The plan is to slow play the relationship, despite the official announcement, we want to gently introduce people to the relationship” Taehyung says with a soft voice as he moves closer. He’s been worried sick, and part of his job is making her miserable, which makes him more miserable.

“Call it an arrangement” ___ says as she struggles with pouring herself coffee, her hands shaking with the lack of eating. Taehyung doesn’t want to berate her right now, so he moves swiftly and pours her cup while also looking around for food.

“Do you want to eat something, I can order food, or even cook something” Taehyung asks gingerly but he just hears a soft no.

“Just tell me what I have to do next” ___’s tone is curt and Taehyung complies as he briefs her on the upcoming events and duties she has lined up. For ___ everything is business as usual, she’s still carrying on with her royal duties, mind numbing work of smiling to cameras and making small talk.

It’s been a long week for Jungkook. His phone is constantly ringing with a call from either a reporter or someone he briefly knew, suddenly he’s gone from rising name in tech, to the boyfriend of the princess and it’s been taxing. But works still as usual, they’re still monitoring how the new game is going and in a weeks’ time, they have achieved the goals they set for the first quarter. This is a major victory, but Jungkook doesn’t feel like celebrating.

He leaves the conference room and walks to his office when he’s ambushed by the one of the many people he’s been dodging recently.

“Hyung? I thought you were busy with our advertising agency all day today?” Jungkook asks Jin who is currently blocking the entry into his office.

“That was yesterday and why haven’t you called me back or even texted me back” Jin asks as Jungkook stands still, thinking of a lie to make up.

“My phones been ringing like crazy, reporters and stuff” Jungkook isn’t entirely lying about it and Jin pulls Jungkook by the collar as he pulls him into the office. His brother is terrifyingly quiet as he shuts all the blinds.

“You’ve been dating someone for six months, no not just someone, Princess ___ and you met with her family, no the royal family and I find out all this from tabloids and newspapers?” Jin asks with a low voice as he rests against the table. His brother looks at him with worry and Jungkook wants to reassure him, but he can’t even reassure himself right now.

“Hyung it’s just… ___ is such a public person, I didn’t want to share something before I knew it was serious” Jungkook is thinking fast but Jin’s eyebrows stiffen as he scoffs.

“And you couldn’t trust me with that secret, your own brother?” Jin’s hurt, him dating a princess has gotten the company some weird scrutiny and he is worried about that as a CEO, but right now he’s more worried about his brother.

“It was not about trust, we were just in our own bubble” Jungkook’s answers are short because he’s still trying to think his way out of this. Jin walks and takes a seat beside him, “You do understand who you are dating right, because if this does go on, you’re promising to live a very public life?”

Jin’s question makes the migraine Jungkook’s has had for over a week, but he still musters up a bleak smile before he starts talking.

“I love her” Jungkook whispers, he doesn’t have the courage to lie about something so strong with his chest. But he can see that the simple statement is working as his brother eases and sits back on the sofa. Jungkook just did what ___ did during the dinner, a simple statement that made everyone on the table believe her.

“It’s amazing that you’ve found love, you deserve it, but are you sure you can take all the heat that comes with loving her?” Jin asks and Jungkook is starting to feel queasy with the word love being thrown around so casually.

“I um, I am not, I don’t know if I can take it all if I’m quite honest. It’s only been a week since we officially announced it and there are a few articles about me and my past that I don’t love” Jungkook stops for a second as he takes a deep shaky breath.

“But, I feel at ease when I’m around her, I’m always wondering what’s on her mind, when she smiles my problems don’t matter” Jungkook doesn’t know how he’s coming up with all this, maybe some lingering feelings from the day they first met. Jin is a bit blown away by all this, he came in hoping for all this to be nothing more than a fling but Jungkook’s words are wearing him down.

“Okay, so I guess we should arrange to meet her, you should invite her to mom and dad’s 25th anniversary celebration” Jin speaks and the terror returns to his eyes, how did he not anticipate this.

“Isn’t that too much, maybe just a dinner with you and Nari to start with” Jungkook knows he can’t keep her hidden from his family for much longer, especially when they’re making it look like a serious relationship.

“Sure, lets start there, next Saturday, at our place?” Jin asks as he stands up, it might be a Friday but there is still a ton of work that needs to be done.

“Okay, we’ll be there”

Yoongi is blabbing about how good a jacket fits but ___ could care less right now. She’s too focused as she scrolls on Instagram. People have made such cinematic edits, and the more shocking of them all are the video edits of Jungkook. People can be so creative with these and ___ just continues scrolling, not taking her eyes away even a bit.

“Clothes are just tailored better here, American brands don’t ever fit me like this” Yoongi speaks as he looks at himself in the mirror and that’s when he notices his sister hunched over her phone. Quietly, he walks by her and hunches over to see exactly what has taken her attention from shopping.

“Admiring your hot boyfriend, I can relate to that” Yoongi’s voice breaks her trance and she almost drops her phone, scrambling she checks if she didn’t accidently like the video, because that from her official profile would create some chaos.

“People are calling him the perfect hot nerd, I don’t know if that’s derogatory or not?” ___ asks referring to a specific edit of Jungkook in suits and glasses, she may have watched it one too many times.

“Hot nerd is good, do you know how rare it is for a man to be smart but also hot” Yoongi comments as the salesperson comes back with a rack of pants for him to try.

“Don’t call Jungkook hot, it’s weird” ___ exclaims with her knotted eyebrows and Yoongi just laughs as he picks up a few pieces and makes his way back into the dressing room.

“I’m stating a fact, come on, some appeal of being with Jungkook has to be how hot he is” Yoongi shouts and ___ is thankful that the owner closed the store just for them because of how embarrassing this is.

“Attractive, use attractive as the adjective” ___ interjects as she stands up herself, now that she was dragged here why not try on some jackets.

“Tell me the truth, the relationship started as a fling didn’t it. A man that hot doesn’t commit this quickly” Yoongi slides the curtains back as he looks at ___ with a cheeky smile and the blush on her face is giving him all the answers he needs.

“No it didn’t and again stop calling him hot” ___ mutters with gritted teeth as she puts on a leather jacket a few sizes too big.

“And given the article I read about his list of ex-girlfriends, he’s for sure not been into monogamy before you” Yoongi and ___ have always discussed her boyfriends of the past, this isn’t something new, but Yoongi talking about Jungkook like this feels very foreign.

“And given your skills in the bed room and I’m assuming his too-“ “Enough, we aren’t going to discuss that” ___ shouts with a stern look and very red ears. This is all the conformation Yoongi needed about this relationship being serious, ___ has always shared all the salacious details of her dating life, except once in the past when it was serious.

“That jacket is too bit for both you and Jimin” ___ notes as the sales person bills the leather jacket she had tried on earlier.

“Because it’s for Jungkook, who we are meeting for dinner, I can’t show up empty handed” Yoongi remarks and it takes a while for ___ to register what exactly was said.

“What? Why? When did you even? How did you get his number?” ___ asks as she scrambles to find her phone, she hadn’t checked her phone in a while because of all the shopping.

“Because I can’t leave without meeting him one-on-one, I got his number from Namjoon and he was quite frazzled when he picked up the call as well” Yoongi teases as ___ glares at Namjoon, her security officer isn’t explicitly told of the arrangement but he’s very perceptive and there is no way ___ would be dating someone without him knowing.

Just as she expected, there are a thread of panicked texts and a few missed calls from Jungkook. One text in all caps particularly stands out to her, WHY IS YOUR BROTHER CALLING ME

“When did you call him?” ___ asks and her voice is way too panicked. She is not prepared to pretend tonight, she isn’t mentally ready after what happened last night.

“Because you’ve been coming up with excuses to delay me meeting him properly, I went directly to the source” Yoongi’s tone is casual as he hands his card for all the damage made in just a few hours.

“He’s been busy-“ “Yes, but I’m your older brother, I need to check out the man who you seem to be making out on the streets” Yoongi teases and ___ flips him off as they make their way out.

“This is so sneaky of you” ___ whines as Namjoon and him continue to put the shopping bags in the car. ___ also texted Jungkook a He completely blindsided me and I’m so sorry to reassure him.

“Sneaky is your thing” “What’s that supposed to mean?” ___ asks with her crossed arms and Yoongi chuckles as he shuts the door behind him.

“You’re the one that kept him a secret for six months, I’m simply catching up” he remarks as he gets inside the car and ___ just huffs as she gives in.

Jungkook: Let’s just stick to the script and you handle the tough questions

___: Yes and again I apologise

Jungkook: My brother cornered me into invited you to dinner too

Jungkook: I may be a bit late, my workout went on longer than expected

___: It’s okay, I’ll see you there

They made their way to a hip new Italian restraunt from the backdoor, they are seated all the way in the back in an attempt to not gather too much attention. ___ is too nervous to focus on how cool the restraunt is, she’s trying to get back to pretend mode. She has to sell this relationship hard, because Yoongi can read her well and there can’t be any slip ups.

She’s chewing on her lip are Yoongi reads the wine list, her eyes are fixed on the backdoor, she’s hoping something comes up last minute and he has to cancel. The lights are dim but she can clearly see Jungkook walk closer to the table with a small smile.

“I am so sorry for being late” “You smell of cigarettes” Yoongi comments the second Jungkook extends his hand for a handshake. He had to calm himself down before this, he didn’t account for the smell.

“Well yes-“ “Is he the reason you started smoking again? What purpose does it even serve” Yoongi starts off with the same lecture and Jungkook smiles timidly as he takes a seat beside ___.

“Can you not, I am an adult, I can smoke if I want to and so can he” ___ is much more proactive today but she loses her cool for a second when Jungkook drapes his arm behind her chair, the closeness feeling even more suffocating.

“I don’t love the habit-“ “You have asthma for fucks sake, it is so bad for you” Yoongi interrupts Jungkook once again and he just clears his throat, this is clearly not off to a good start.

“I’m fine, can we just drop it” ___ ignores the two men as she picks up her menu and the two men do the same. The server comes and takes their orders promptly and more than enough food is ordered while the two siblings quietly continue to sip on their wine.

“So, I herd that you’re going on tour soon, that must be exciting” Jungkook can’t take the silence anymore, this is a whole new stubborn ___ he’s seeing today and he can’t take it anymore.

“Yes, 18 shows, I’m in town to finalizes some final details” Yoongi shares as the appetizers are served. The food distracts them for a while as the two men make some more small talk about the upcoming tour.

“How serious is this,” Yoongi asks as he gestures between the two of them with a fork, “Has she staked claim over a dresser at your place” Yoongi asks so casually but the two of them understand just how nuanced the question is.

“Space in my closet yes” Jungkook answers as he takes a big sip, completely emptying the wine glass. Yoongi is clearly satisfied, given his cheeky smile.

“There isn’t any of your stuff at her place, or even her room” Yoongi insinuates and ___ takes a deep breath while Jungkook takes a big bite, she’s answering this one

“Why were you snooping in my room?” “I was looking for moisturizer” Yoongi answers promptly, still waiting for an explanation.

“You use more skincare than me, you have moisturizer in your bag right now and Jungkook doesn’t come over at my place often, to keep a low profile” ___ answers and Yoongi nods with understanding, from his point of view, all of this looks good so far.

The rest of the dinner stiff with a few laughs here and there. Jungkook is sweating under his jacket as he realises just how unprepared the two of them are, at least they are good liars.

“What are the weekend plans?” Yoongi asks after explaining how he’s leaving for Japan tonight. “What do you want to do?” Jungkook asks almost instinctively and the blush on her cheeks reappears, not knowing what to say.

“Nothing, you probably need lots of rest, you’ve had a busy couple weeks” ___ says softly with a familiarity knowing that what she’s saying is what she actually means and not pretending right now.

Yoongi observes as the couple faintly exchange a few words every now and then, shuffling closer and closer as more wine is poured. ___ has this calmness when she talks to him that he hasn’t seen before, maybe being with Jungkook isn’t all that bad.

“My time at boarding school the greatest, those four years felt like one long sleepover with my best friends” ___ shares with Jin and Nari as Jungkook looks at her with awe, every day he learns something new about her.

“Did you not miss your family, your support system?” Nari asks with genuine curiosity and ___ chews her food a bit quicker to answer enthusiastically.

“I did at the start, but I was so busy with classes, sports, extra curriculars, it forced me to find a support system there” ___ shares as she eats another big spoonful of soup, she’s glad that they didn’t chose anything fancy for food but rather stuck to Korean food.

“I think it’s helped me so far in life very well, I read people well, I can acclimate to new situations better” ___ shares and Jungkook sits quietly as he observes her eating so well, he wonders if this dinner is her first meal of the day.

“Our kid isn’t even born yet but I can’t even bare the thought of being away from my child” Jin finally speaks up and ___ smiles widely at the expecting couple, Nari is currently four months pregnant and they are already in the protective parent mode.

“Wonik and Haein used to be like that but they are seriously considering boarding school for Jia” ___ shares ever so casually like she isn’t talking about the other two most important people in the country after her mother.

“Jia isn’t exactly the most low-profile person in the country, and the attention she’s been getting is definitely affecting her” there’s concern in ___’s voice as she shares, Jungkook wonders if the attention has been affecting her too.

“Being away from the country may let her have somewhat normal experiences while she can” ___ voice is soft as she recalls having this exact conversation with Haein a few months ago.

“It makes sense, the attention has been affecting me, it’s bound to affect a child” Jungkook finally chimes in and ___ turns and looks at him with worry.

“It has been?” the warmth in her voice catches Jungkook off guard, him almost choking on his rice with she places her hand on his. ___ quickly recoils from the foreign touch, going back to her rice like business as usual.

“Nothing I can’t handle-“ “He’s been enjoying the attention actually, cheesing on edits of himself” Jin chimes in and Jungkook snares at his older brother while ___ chuckles.

“Right in the middle of a stand-up meeting, mind you” Jin adds as the couple across the table cracks up while Jungkook goes red with embarrassment.

“Those editors are quite talented, making an average person like me look like royalty” ___ joins in the joke, her timing and sarcasm making everyone on the table laugh.

Jin’s starting to get why his brother is so enamoured with her. She’s likable, funny, confident, there’s something magnetic about her. He sees the way Jungkook steals glances every five seconds, like he can’t believe she’s sitting beside him.

Conversation flows from work to vacations to their upcoming child to the latest celebrity gossip. Jungkook’s glad any difficult questions that required sticking to the script didn’t come up, he wasn’t sure how well he could lie to two people he loves so much.

___ sighs deeply the second they enter the elevator, the dinner seemed to go on forever and it just added to the long day she had. The sigh concerns Jungkook, in his eyes this did go well, better than it did with Yoongi anyway.

“Did I come off too prepared? I asked Taehyung to prepare potential small talk, did I come off like I was reading off a script” ___ asks candidly and Jungkook goes back to the dinner, realising why she was steering the conversation in her ways, of course she prepared to keep up appearances.

“No, you did just fine” Jungkook comment and ___ sighs, just fine is clearly not good enough, no matter how hard she practices. Jungkook still finds it a bit strange with they go from acting like a couple in love to strangers standing next to each other.

“I’m supposed to be picking you up from university on Tuesday night, right?” Jungkook asks opening his calendar as they walk to her car. The familiarly in his voice now replaced with straightforwardness. Namjoon’s already waiting with an open door and she slides in, ready to head home already.

“Yes” “Alright, Tuesday, 6 pm ma’am” Jungkook leaves with a curt bow, his formality and walls come up every time it’s just the two of them.

It’s early March and the cold isn’t as mind melting as it was a few weeks ago, but it’s still cold. ___ hurried out of her apartment this afternoon, knowing she was running late for her lecture, and in that rush, she forgot about a jacket. Her thin sweater is doing the best it can, but the minute she walks out the lecture hall, the chill hits her spine.

“You wanna come out with us, they have a college festival going on in NSU, we’re thinking drinks after?” Yeonjun asks pointing to the rest of the people who look just ready to get drunk.

“I wish I could but I have some duties early tomorrow and my boyfriend’s coming to pick me up” ___ talks as Yeonjun chuckles walking right beside her. Yeonjun may be the first friend she’s made in Seoul, he doesn’t care that she’s a princess and that’s why she likes him.

“And we’re getting dinner afterwards-“ “Maybe also a bike ride around the city, how dangerous your royal highness” Yeonjun says and ___ looks at her confused but the realization hits her when she looks the way Yeonjun is.

Jungkook’s standing against his parked bike, the lose jeans and leather jacket are starkly different to the suits she’s used to seeing him in. His hair sits flat on his forehead while he continues to smoke the cigarette. He looks so different than he usually does and ___ doesn’t know how to act.

“Your smoker boyfriend can join us, maybe smoke something better than a cigarette” Yeonjun jokes as they walk closer to them, ___ playfully punches him and that’s the second Jungkook zeroes in on them.

“That’s a very dangerous thing to say to a royal princess young man” ___ jokes as they walk even closer, Jungkook is quick to put out his cigarette as he sees the two walking closer to him, he recognizes the man and according to the tabloids, he’s a friend of hers.

“Introduce us, do you talk to him about your rascal friend who you steal joints from sometimes?” Yeonjun jokes again as they cross the street and ___ almost pushes him off the crossing. Jungkook looks at him with mystery, the more he sees her, the more he realises just how much he doesn’t know much about her.

“Hey” ___ switches onto girlfriend mode quickly and seizes the distance with a quick peck on his cheek, Jungkook is a bit frazzled for a few seconds, he still doesn’t get how she acts so seamlessly.

“Hey” Jungkook jumps up and stands straight, he still finds it difficult to touch her, he feels like he isn’t allowed to. But he also knows that there are camera men all around, hiding somewhere, Han told him.

“Jungkook, this is Yeonjun, he is a business major but he likes to sit in psychology class because he’s evil” ___ introduces her friend and Jungkook can sense this familiarity between the two, he feels a twinge of some feeling he isn’t too sure about.

“It’s not for evil purposes, understanding psychology is key to any business” Yeonjun explains as the two men shake their hands. ___ looks at Jungkook, he’s particularly stiff today, she wonders if things are tough at the office.

“___ tells me that you guys have plans tonight but you should come to the party I’m throwing in Jeju, it’s my birthday and I sold my first company so I’m fat with money right now” Yeonjun talks confidently and ___ chuckles awkwardly as she kicks her friend.

“It’s happening next Saturday, you have to come, I need to pick your brain about that supremely successful business of yours” Yeonjun talks again and Jungkook is hyperaware that all he’s spoken so far is a soft, ‘hi’.

“I’ll have to check my calendar but I’ll try my best” Jungkook answers dryly as ___ rubs her hands together, if Yeonjun wasn’t such a social butterfly he would have caught up on this awkwardness.

“Well, I’ll leave the two of you to your fairytale, royal highness” Yeonjun bows and turns around to the people waiting for him, Jungkook removes his jacket and slips it on ___, she shivered twice and he noticed.

“Thank you” ___ talks and it doesn’t sound so scripted, like she actually meant it. She remembers this jacket, it’s the one Yoongi gave to him.

Jungkook mumbled at a red light asking if she was hungry and ___ mumbled a no as she gingerly kept her hands around him. She’s scared and it’s very clear to him, he should have just driven his car.

The drive outside the city is starting to relax as the air starts to get thinner, the traffic more sparce and Jungkook easing up on the accelerator. Her fingers tightly grip onto his t-shirt, every now and then her hands graze his torso, making him lose his train of thought every time.

“There’s a place around the outskirts, they got the best ox tail soup” Jungkook shares as they stop at another red light, to his left he can see the passenger in the car clicking their pictures, this has happened a few times today.

“We can eat something local if you’re scared” Jungkook asks as he cracks his knuckles and ___ mumbles a small ‘it’s fine’ that’s interrupted by him reaching for her hands and placing them firmly around his torso. She’s taken aback by this movement, but at least her hands aren’t cold and safely under his t-shirt.

The sky is lit with orange hues of sunset as Jungkook kicks the stand and they finally stop. Sure ___ was scared at first, but midway she started focusing on the scenery around her and her hands weren’t cold anymore, she started enjoying it.

It’s Jungkook’s hands that are cold as she reaches over for help, the road outside is gravelled and she wore heels assuming they’d go to some regular restaurant.

“Namjoon, there’s a hoodie in the truck, can you bring that?” ___ turn around to ask Namjoon who nods as they’re seated in an old-style restaurant. A few eyes linger on them but thankfully they’re able to find a table in the back.

“It smells amazing” ___ comments as an older lady comes by to take their order. She is definitely starstruck given how much she’s fidgeting.

“Ox tail soup is my favourite, how long have you guys been running this restaurant?” ___ asks in an attempt to comfort her as Jungkook fills their cups with warm water.

 “My grandfather started it back in 1945, to make warm meals for truckers, now we have a lot of visitors from the city, wanting a respite” she answers with a warm smile.

“We only serve one thing, helps keep our costs low, so I will make sure that your soups are extra delicious” she jokes and ___ chuckles with charm, Jungkook watched how quickly ___ made a pretty nervous woman feel comfortable around her, she truly does some magic on people.

There’s quietness on the table as they eat, ___ spent years in boarding school where she picked up the habit of not talking while they eat and Jungkook doesn’t know what they could even talk about.

“You don’t have to come to the party, I’m sure you have a ton of work” ___ finally speaks up as they get a refill on their rice. The soup is actually fixing the migraine Jungkook’s had for a while now, but the mention of the party tenses him right back.

“Do you not want me there?” Jungkook’s tone isn’t accusatory and he’s trying very hard to mask it. ___ coughs as she chokes on the soup and Jungkook quickly refills her water and hands her a tissue.

“It’s not that, um” she stops to take a big gulp of her water, his eyes fixed on her all this while, “I don’t want to impose” “You aren’t, wouldn’t it be natural for your pretend boyfriend to be at a party with you” Jungkook speaks as he goes back to focusing on his soup and ___ is stumped about how to deal with this.

“It’s not that I don’t want you to come, I don’t want to force you to spend time with me when you don’t have to” ___ shares and the blank look on his face doesn’t give her any answers, he just goes back to eating.

“Ma’am the hoodie” Namjoon hands her a grey hoodie as they’re walking out the restaurant. She passes it onto Jungkook who puts it on right away, it takes a minute for it to click but ___’s starting to remember where the hoodie is from.

“Oh no, you can’t wear that” ___ stops him with a firm hand on his chest, he looks at her confused, waiting for her to explain herself.

“It’s one of my ex boyfriends, give me that, I’ll wear that and you wear your-“ “You wearing your ex boyfriends hoodie on a date with your current boyfriend is so much worse” Jungkook abruptly pulls the jacket around her, wanting to keep it put and pulling her closer in the process.

“Namjoon is there any other jacket there?” “No ma’am” ___ sighs as she breaks away from his grip, hopefully they don’t encounter any paparazzi who connect the dots.

“Which on does this belong to? Aiden, Hunter? Peter, is it William or Jaco-“ “It’s none of them” ___ huffs as she walks away and in a rare moment of honesty, Jungkook chuckles following her.

“You have dated a lot of rich, white men, a very specific type isn’t it” Jungkook continues the teasing as ___ leans against the bike, she had hoped that Jungkook wouldn’t come across those articles about her dating life, but be obviously has.

“Do you have a smoke?” “Ma’am there are paparazzi across the street, I’d advise against smoking” Namjoon interjects, but ___ still looks at Jungkook expectantly who just points to his jacket.

“Of course they are here, everywhere I breath they’re there, I can’t go to the doctor without being ambushed by them” ___ whines as she lights a cigarette, Jungkook turns around to access the situation, there are approximately 5 cameramen.

“Last week they caught me without makeup and now I have plastic surgery recommendations from netizens, I get a pimple sometimes, am I not a human” Jungkook doesn’t answer right away. Instead, he watches her, really watches her. People scrutinize him, sure, but they don’t pick apart every inch of his body, every breath he takes, every tiny imperfection they can find. He isn’t expected to be flawless. She is.

“Do you ever wish that you weren’t born into the circumstances that you were?” Jungkook’s question is nuanced, he’s though about this a thousand times thought his life. To his surprise she smiles as she passes him the cigarette.

“I wish I wasn’t born sometimes” ___ answers as she pulls the jacket tighter, “My first memory is of my grandfather telling me that I belong to the people, even before I belong to myself” ____ shares and Jungkook is stumped by all this, he expected a joke, snarky comment, even some truth, but he didn’t expect this kind of vulnerability.

“He told me, my name, my face, my choices, none of them belong to me. Every breath I take is for my service to the people” ___ continues talking and Jungkook takes a long drag.

There’s a long silence as they continue to share the cigarette, but it isn’t odd or uncomfortable. For the first time today Jungkook feels comfortable with her, probably because of how vulnerable she has been.

“People are comforted by your presence, I saw how you were with the lady in there” Jungkook talks as he puts out the cigarette. “If someone else were born as the princess, the people would have missed out on you”

Jungkook’s compliment sits heavy with her, that’s all she can think about on her way back. The bike ride stretches on, the city lights flickering in the distance, but her thoughts keep drifting back to his words. He spoken so easily, without pretence, without needing anything in return.

Monday mornings are very important to Jungkook, he uses the day to set the right tone for the week. All his meetings are usually scheduled for Mondays, he wakes up extra early to get a long workout in. But today instead of driving directly to the office, he has an unexpected pit stop.

The apartment is completely dark, Taehyung stumbles upon some heels the moment he walks into the living room. There is half eaten food on the dining table and a spilled water right by her room.

“What happened here?” Taehyung asks as he picks up the now spilled bottle of water, “She came back from Jeju this early this morning and has been in her room ever since” Namjoon answers walking into the kitchen and plops a rag on the water before someone slips on it.

“Oh, that party, god the pictures have caused so much frenzy, she makes my life so difficult” Taehyung grumbles as he knocks again.

“She’s allowed to let lose sometimes, and it was just drinking and some smoking, my security team made sure that there weren’t any drugs there” Namjoon defends ___ as he knocks too. The doorbell rings and Namjoon immediately walks away to open the door.

“Your royal highness” “Go away, I’m dead” ___ grumbles as she turns around in the bed, her head feels heavy, she feels weak, she’s thrown up twice since she got home but she’s still nauseous.

“Ma’am we’re here for the meeting, you asked for us to be here” Taehyung talks through the door. Jungkook walks into the apartment, he’s never been here and he too almost stumbles on some luggage.

“Taehyung I’m dying, you should be out there applying for new jobs” ___ yells but it’s pretty muffled as she wraps her entire body in the warm duvet. She’s cold but also hot, her brain doesn’t work anymore.

“If you’re sick you need to let us in-“ “The door isn’t locked” ___ cries out and Namjoon comes and opens the door for them. The inside isn’t much better, all the lights are on, the door to the bathroom is open, the tap is running for some reason, and there’s a lit cigarette on an ash tray and an half empty bottle of vodka on the side table.

“What happened?” Taehyung asks as he gingerly walks closer to the bed to put out the cigarette before it starts a fire. Jungkook watches all this as he rests against the doorframe, this is a lot for Monday morning.

“Can you save the stupid question for later, given I don’t die” ___ speaks as pulls the duvet down. Taehyung sighs as he crouches down to her level.

“Mr Kook and I are here for the meeting” Taehyung speaks softly and she grumbles as she tries to stand up and failing twice, she may still be drunk.

“It’s fine, we can do the meeting tomorrow if she’s hungover” Jungkook’s voice is hurting her head but she peeps and realises there are three men in her room and she doesn’t remember if she put on her pyjama pants.

“I am so sorry for disrupting your mornings, but this will be a nice memory to remember me by when I’m dead” Jungkook can’t help but chuckle as he watches ___ struggle with turning around, she just gives up and lies back down.

“Okay, this works out because I have people from the press waiting in my office” Taehyung practically runs out the room and Namjoon picks up the duvet and covers her feet properly.

“How bad is it, the sophomore year Halloween party or the freshman year Halloween party?” Namjoon’s voice booms from the foot of the bed and ___ is starting to get nauseous again.

“This is the new worst, Namjoon what if I die, of too much vodka” ___ cries out and Jungkook chuckles again and she glares at him, she’s too hungover to care about how bad this looks.

Namjoon is amused as Jungkook rummages through the kitchen, he opens a few drawers and sighs out loud at the empty fridge.

“I’m sure she’ll apologies about this late cancellation tomorrow-“ “Namjoon can you have someone do a grocery run, and stop at a pharmacy?” Jungkook asks looking around for something to write the list of stuff on.

“You’re staying, I’m sure you’re needed back at the office” Namjoon retorts picking up a notepad and pen from the study and handing it. Jungkook quickly jots a few things down and hands the list to Namjoon.

“It’s fine, she has duties this afternoon, doesn’t she?” “Yes, she’s and the rest of the royal family are hosting a lunch for the US president at 1” Namjoon answers and Jungkook nods removing his jacket and rolling his sleeves.

“So, we have five hours for her to be not hungover and drunk-“ “She’s drunk?” “There was a half empty bottle of vodka by her bed, she’s definitely still drunk” Jungkook answers and picks up his buzzing phone.

“Yes, Han my text read right, I’ll come to the office by lunch” Jungkook speaks as he leans against the kitchen counter. “I understand that the dev team came into the office especially for a meeting, just tell them my girlfriend is sick, it’ll remind them to have a life outside of work”

Namjoon and a few other members soon bring in all the things that Jungkook asked for. He’s had a few wild nights himself and the formula is simple, something for hydration, something for the upset stomach and something to throw up.

Jungkook’s back in her room and she is clearly asleep evidenced by the soft snores. He makes his way to the bed and places the green smoothie by the bed stand.

“Ma’am, it’s almost 11, you need to get up” Jungkook speaks softly as he removes the duvet from her face, most of it still hidden with her tousled hair. She doesn’t wake up right away, but murmurs something as she turns away.

“___” Jungkook speaks again as he takes a seat on the bed, this is foreign territory to him, being in her home, in her room, sitting on her bed. He could have easily just left for office, but he didn’t.

“Taehyung why are you here, start planning my funeral” ___ mumbles and Jungkook laughs, she jerks up when she recognises the laugh.

“Why, why, um why are you here?” her voice is coarse and the world is spinning, she blinks rapidly not knowing is she’s dreaming this.

“Because you called you yesterday and asked me to help you” Jungkook voice is low and calm, breaking through the fog of confusion she’s clearly in.

“I did,” “Yes, now drink this, crucial first step” Jungkook says as he picks up the big glass full of green smoothie while ___ tries to get her hair out of her face.

“Do I have to?” ___ asks as she painfully holds her head, she would be embarrassed about Jungkook seeing her in this condition but the hangover is using up all her brain cells right now.

“Yes, drink up” Jungkook holds up the glass in front of her and she complies. She sips it slowly, the taste not as bad as she expected, though it's still hard to ignore the strong taste of vegetables that makes her stomach churn slightly.

“This will fix this?” she asks handing Jungkook back the empty glass, “No this will make you throw up” Jungkook answers as he stands up and ___ scowls, the liquids already churning in her stomach.

“WHY?” “Because I have a fool proof plan, I’ll leave the door closed but don’t you dare go back to sleep”

___ puts up her hair in a towel and fastens her bath gown before she steps out the room. She doesn’t feel all better now but it’s still so bad. She tightens the belt of her bathrobe again, feeling uncharacteristically self-conscious as she steps into the open space. Jungkook is leaning against the counter, sleeves still rolled up, scrolling through his phone like he belongs here. Like it’s normal.

“That helped, didn’t it?” Jungkook asks coming over with another glass of something, she’s more hesitant taking this glass this time because she possibly can’t throw up any more.

“Will this make me throw up?” “No, it’s coconut water, sip on it slowly and eat this” Jungkook instructs as she takes a seat on the dining table, she doesn’t have any energy to keep standing.

“Dry toast? Greasy food helps with hangovers?” ___ asks as Jungkook takes the seat beside her, “That’ll upset your stomach”

She sips on the coconut water, the cool liquid soothing her throat. “You didn’t have to do all this,” she says, her voice quieter now.

Jungkook sits back his arms crossed, “You called,” he repeats, as if that alone explains everything.

She doesn’t remember much from last night, but she remembers that—reaching for her phone, his name the first one she thought of. She wonders what exactly she said, what kind of mess she dragged him into, but she doesn’t have the courage to ask.

___ puts up her hair in a towel and fastens her bath gown before she steps out the room. She doesn’t feel all better now but it’s still so bad. She tightens the belt of her bathrobe again, feeling uncharacteristically self-conscious as she steps into the open space. Jungkook is leaning against the counter, sleeves still rolled up, scrolling through his phone like he belongs here. Like it’s normal.

“That helped, didn’t it?” Jungkook asks coming over with another glass of something, she’s more hesitant taking this glass this time because she possibly can’t throw up any more.

“Will this make me throw up?” “No, it’s coconut water, sip on it slowly and eat this” Jungkook instructs as she takes a seat on the dining table, she doesn’t have any energy to keep standing.

“Dry toast? Greasy food helps with hangovers?” ___ asks as Jungkook takes the seat beside her, “That’ll upset your stomach”

She sips on the coconut water, the cool liquid soothing her throat. “You didn’t have to do all this,” she says, her voice quieter now.

Jungkook sits back his arms crossed, “You called,” he repeats, as if that alone explains everything.

She doesn’t remember much from last night, but she remembers that—reaching for her phone, his name the first one she thought of. She wonders what exactly she said, what kind of mess she dragged him into, but she doesn’t have the courage to ask.

The makeup and hair team keep her busy as she dozes off in the chair, Jungkook periodically picks up some work calls while he’s busy moving around in her kitchen. Jungkook doesn’t cook very often, most of his meals are delivered to the office but he can still make some porridge.

“Thank you for all this” ___ is back to her graceful self as she takes a seat back on the dining table in her matching tweed set. Jungkook looks at her, now perfectly put together, as if the dishevelled, hungover mess from earlier never existed. It’s almost comical how seamlessly she’s slipped back into her role as the royal princess.

“Even tho you didn’t have to” ___ talks as she plays around with the porridge, she isn’t too sure if she trusts her stomach yet. But she still gingerly takes a small bite and it instantly helps her.

“Feeling better? Because you definitely look better” Jungkook speaks as he continues to clean up around the apartment.

“I definitely don’t feel like death anymore” ___ speaks as she takes another bite, she hadn’t realised how hungry she was till she started eating. To her surprise, Jungkook comes over with a bowl of food for himself and starts eating. All this is way to domestic and she’s not used to it.

“Ma’am the car is ready for you, also the coffee you ordered” Namjoon speaks placing the coffee by Jungkook. He may know how to cook, but he doesn’t know how to operate her complicated coffee machine.

“This one’s for you,” Jungkook places a cup in front of her and she’s the happiest seeing coffee, “Namjoon told me that you prefer iced coffee but a hot latte will help right now” Jungkook explains as he picks up his as well as her utensils.

They step into the elevator, their coffees in each their hand and to an onlooker they may look like any regular couple on their way to work. The quiet hum of the elevator fills the space between them, the scent of freshly brewed coffee lingering in the air. She takes a careful sip of the latte, the warmth spreading through her, easing the last remnants of this hangover.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, your office?” ___ asks as they step out their building, “Yes, and no drinking for the next 48 hours” Jungkook jokes as he fishes out his car keys from his jacket. They’re both back on their own way, but ___ wonders what caused her to call him at 4 am, why did he even pick up. Jungkook had no obligation to be there. He had no reason to put his entire morning on hold just to make sure she was okay. And yet, he did.

The panic ___ feels is getting worse and worse as she walks through the palace. The old doors creak as she forces them open but she finally spots her mother sitting in one of the many reading rooms.

“You’re out of breath” her father comments but doesn’t look up and ___ catches her breath and takes a seat across them. The queen knew ___ would come to see them, just wasn’t aware that she would be so panicked.

“So, it’s Jungkook’s parent’s 25th anniversary soon and I’m invited, but attending a party full of people would be fine, at most I’d just have to impress then for ten minutes top. But his mother called and insisted that I join them a day early, just with the family and I think I’m having a panic attack” ___ huffs and takes a deep breath as one of the servants comes and hands her a glass of water.

“That’s wonderful, isn’t it?” the queen asks as she removes her reading glasses and closes her book.

“No, it’s terrifying,” ___ responds quickly, wrapping both hands around the cold glass. “What if I say something wrong? What if I mess up some tradition I don’t know about? What if they don’t like me?”

Her father finally looks up from his newspaper, arching a single brow. “You do realize you’re a princess, don’t you? People are literally trained to like you.”

___ groans, sinking deeper into the chair. “It’s different. This isn’t just public appearances or charming a crowd for ten minutes. This is his family. They’ll see right through me.”

Her mother watches her carefully, a knowing smile playing on her lips. “You like him.”

___’s head snaps up. “What?” “You like him,” the queen repeats, tilting her head slightly. “If this were just another obligation, you wouldn’t be panicking like this.”

“I—No, that’s not—” ___ stumbles over her words before shutting her mouth entirely. She looks away, staring at the heavy curtains instead, but the warmth creeping up her neck betrays her.

Her mother hums knowingly. “You’ll be fine. You were raised to handle situations far worse than a family dinner. Just be yourself.”

Her father who’s still reading his newspaper replies “And don’t be weird about it.” ___ groans again, sitting back. “Great advice, thanks.”

“It’s great that things are going well with the two of you” the queen talks as she continues taking small sips of her tea. “Yeah great, so great, fantastic” ___’s voice is still panicked as she finishes off the glass of water and reaches for a cookie.

“It’s too bad that things with Wonik and Haein are so turbulent right now” the queen shares and ___ stops chewing the cookie.

“They are?” “I don’t know the details but there have been one too many loud arguments. Jia was crying about her parents fighting to the school counsellor.” The queen is worried as she puts her tea cup down. It’s more than just her son and daughter in law fighting, it’s the future king and queen having marriage trouble.

“I am sure they will figure it out, they have to” her father chimes in and ___ sighs sitting up straight.

“What if they don’t?” ___ asks with genuine curiosity, when they got married ten years ago Wonik wasn’t the king in waiting, they couldn’t have possibly thought how differently things would be.

“It’s a royal marriage in a country with low marriage rates, the future king can’t be a divorced” her father chimes in as he finally closes his newspaper, “So, they have to work to have a functioning marriage, even if it resembles an arrangement” the last bit seems to be directed solely at ___, the last word weighing heavy on her.

Jungkook is deep in sleep around 4 in the morning, his alarm doesn’t go off for another two hours but his phone is already buzzing against his cheek. He barely opens his eyes, but they jolt open the second he reads the name of the caller.

“Fucking finally, I’ve called you like a hundred times already” ___’s voice booms from the other side and Jungkook groans putting the call on speaker as he lies back down.

“For the record, I wanted you there, in Jeju with me but I didn’t want to force you to spend time with me, it is very clear to me that this is all an arrangement” ___ slurs on her words but it’s the hurt in her words that Jungkook’s more focused on.

“I am sorry that because of my lapse of judgement has caused you a suffering life time with me” she says, her words carrying more weight than he’s prepared for. Jungkook’s chest tightens, and his stomach twists in response to the vulnerability she’s exposing, but all he can do is listen. There’s nothing else he can say right now, not with the hurt so evident in her voice.

“But for once can I be selfish, can you take care of me tomorrow, pretend like you actually care because the way I’ve been drinking,” she stops talking and Jungkook can hear her taking a long sip of her drink.

“Because I’m going to get real depressed tomorrow, having to take care of myself in that lonely apartment that feels like a hotel, I can’t cry myself to sleep one more night, I want a day of rest from this loneliness that eats me alive” ___ rambles and Jungkook takes a long sharp breath, his heart sinks as her words hit him with a weight he wasn’t ready for. The rawness in her voice, the way she’s spilling her emotions, it catches him off guard. He had always known she carried a lot, but hearing it laid out like this—it’s impossible to ignore.

“Okay, I’ll be there, I promise you won’t have to do tomorrow by yourself”

Tag List - Tag List - @soblavk @livingkoalaface @solastica @futuristicenemychaos @yooforeaa @11thenightwemet11 @rkivestation

[hiddenobject-fanblog]

His Soul (Chapter 24)

Only Yours

Summary: After saving the abducted collectors, you were trusted with Curioso's box. What seems like a dangerous possession slowly turns into an opportunity to learn more about this creature and his curse. Can you earn his trust, and possibly, his affection?

Pairings: Curioso/Reader, Curioso/The Detective

--

You struggled to articulate what you were looking at exactly – two glowing red dots peered at you from behind the slits of a helmet. The presence was large and overwhelming, crushing your body under the armor’s weight. It was like one of those decorative knight statues had come to life and was on top of you, choking you. You struggled for air as you kicked at him, but the effort was futile. Colors were prickling at the ends of your eyes.

There was a flash of blue and the figure above you was roughly shoved off your person. You coughed and sat up, pain shooting through you in reminder of your wound. Your eyes were wet as you looked up at Aydan, who was gawking at something in the corner of the room. Your head turned to his sight and found the knight-like man sprawled on the floor, recovering himself just as you were. 

“Oh, this is interesting,” the man chortled. “ Interesting , indeed.” 

Your arms shook as you helped yourself to your feet. Your body went into fight or flight mode seeing your aggressor was also standing, but the magus across from you held up his hand before he could pounce on you again. His orange eyes were locked with yours, stepping towards you in fascination. You took a step back, any power you had felt in this situation diminishing under your fright. 

“You have a servant,” he marveled at you, then shook his head. “That answers everything.” 

“He is not yours,” you growled. 

“But he will be,” Aydan countered, reaching into his pocket and surfacing a small pistol that was familiar to you. He cocked it and aimed it straight at your head, causing you to hold your breath. His attention was around the room instead, in search of something. 

“Either you come out, or I will kill your master,” he warned aloud. 

“ Don’t !” you exclaimed, and before you could blink you felt the barrel pressed firmly against your forehead. Sweat formed on your skin as you stood there, eyes darting to the bodyguard who advanced on the two of you. Making any movement would get you killed. 

“Don’t,” you whispered again, tears welling in your eyes. 

The man let out a satisfied noise, and you looked up in time to see Curioso sitting on top of the Grandfather Clock. There was a cocky attitude to the way he crossed his legs and rested his mask in his hand, as if this situation didn’t faze him at all. It encouraged you to wipe the fear off your face. If he wasn’t afraid, then there was no reason for you to be, either. 

“Oh, you are wonderful,” Aydan sounded hypnotized, like he was looking at a thing of beauty. “I can see it now. You will entertain my guests and be my personal jester. I’ll be a King.” 

“You should take that gun away before I kill you ,” Curioso warned from above. 

Ulysses advanced in his direction and the jester didn’t even flinch, turning to him with his trademark smile. It was a standoff as the two stared at each other, unmoving and not speaking. Aydan seemed to think about something before nodding to his bodyguard. 

“Search the premises for a box. And see if you can find Elise’s, too, if you can,” he instructed him. 

“ Master ,” the knight’s voice was incredibly deep and somewhat warped. It sounded off to you. “ I cannot leave; I need to protect you– ”

“Go.” 

At his forceful tone, Ulysses teleported elsewhere. The clock under Curioso felt like it was ticking until the inevitable time his box would be uncovered in your car, and Elise’s would be found along with it. The two of you needed to act now. While his head was turned, you threw your fist at the side of Aydan’s face, and smiled in satisfaction as your pistol was thrown from his hand. His finger had activated the trigger as it moved, and a deafening blow echoed in the small room. 

Your ears rang as you ran after it, but you were grabbed by him and thrown aside. Your body landed forcefully on the hard floor and your mouth fell open as you could feel your stitches opening. The impact caused it to bleed again. You clutched your shirt in pain and tried to apply some pressure to stop it, gritting your teeth at the cold sensation. 

You glanced up to see Curioso’s pearl-white legs standing in front of you, guarding you from Aydan who was now across the room. He had your pistol back in his possession and held it at his side. It was at this second you wondered where the Hell Elise was. You hadn’t asked her to tail you around like your jester, but asked that she stay close and intervene if necessary. This was a great time to step in and overpower Aydan. 

She seemed to be on the man’s mind as well. “You took her, didn’t you? Brainwashed her into helping you?” 

“The only one…who brainwashed her…was you ,” you took deep breaths in-between words, the pain unfathomable but the adrenaline overwhelming. “You don’t deserve to have her.” 

“Hah! That’s rich. The only one here who doesn’t deserve anything is the fucking Detective who somehow got their hands on a servant for magicians.” 

He emphasized the word, and you felt like he had a point. These were no ordinary servants who kept a house and took care of a family. They were almost like Gods, able to conjure up anything they wished and were powerful creatures who could teleport wherever they wanted. You remember how confused you had been with the book, unable to wrap your head around the encrypted text. Aydan would’ve been able to find his way around it with no problem. 

But you were not Aydan. You did not force yourself on Curioso, and treated him like you would anyone else. He was your paramour now. You could not fathom forcing him to grovel at your feet like the magus so desperately wished to do. 

“Get him,” you ordered quietly.

It was a sight you could barely comprehend as he lurched forward at Aydan and brawled with him. He used his sorcery to force the jester back and send blows his way while Curioso burned his hands and fingers. There were some physical punches and kicks thrown, which worked to your love’s advantage as he did not feel any pain when his artificial knuckles cracked under Aydan’s jaw. That particular blow sent him backwards, clutching his face and groaning. 

Something flashed and the jester was propelled, nearly sent into the wall as he rolled onto the floor. He looked up and teleported away at what he saw. Ulysses had returned and you gasped at the sight. He held Elise by the collar of her suit, throwing her down and stepping harshly on her stomach. 

“ Traitor ,” he spoke with malice. 

“I-I’m sorry, Detective…” she whimpered under the pressure. “I tried my best to hide the boxes. He was chasing me. There was little I could do–”

“That’ll be enough ,” Aydan stepped forward and spat on her, which made you flinch in disgust. “You betrayed me, Elise. You understand what this means.“

Ulysses provided the floral box you’d had before, which was taken and you heard her gasp. You watched with helpless eyes as he began pressing the gems in a pattern you’d only read about. A pair of shackles and chains magically encircled her gloved wrists, and her hands fell to the floor under the sudden weight. It looked like all the color had drained from her form as she crumbled to her knees, now without her power. 

“ Please ,” she sobbed. Aydan picked her up by the sleeve and practically chucked her onto his desk. 

“You wait this one out, sweetheart. We’ll have a good talk after this Detective is taken care of.” 

Attention was drawn back to you. You were sprawled out on the floor, concerned with the small puddle of blood that had formed underneath you. God, you felt so weak. You couldn’t stand or do much of anything during this entire confrontation. You held back a whimper as Ulysses walked over to you, and inhaled sharply when he forced you to sit up. You felt like you were dying. 

Aydan was in front of you, holding Curioso’s box in your reach and smiling kindly. You wanted to spit in his face like he’d done with his maid not a minute ago. 

“I will ask nicely first,” he began. “Hand over your servant to me, and maybe I’ll let you live,” his tone dropped. “But if you try anything funny, I will not hesitate to have Ulysses crush your skull in. He’s done it before.” 

You shook your head, feeling dizzy as the world spun around you. “No.” 

“Don’t be stupid. You and I both know it’s just a few buttons to press. Do that , and this will all be over.”

Blood bubbled in your throat as you looked at him defiantly. “I’d rather you kill me.” 

“And believe me, that’s not a problem,” he grinned down at you. “With you dead, I can take his soul using this box right here.” 

“He will not…give it to you,” you managed under a breath. Aydan tsked, surfacing your pistol again and checking if it was loaded. With a satisfied hum, he pointed it straight at you, inbetwixt your eyes. You’d had this happen to you thrice tonight, so you were unmoved. 

“I’ll enjoy this,” he whispered ecstatically. 

“Wait!”

It felt like your heart caved in on itself when your jester resurfaced in the room, lowering himself to his knees and bowing his head. It was a gesture so unlike him that you blinked in surprise, unable to understand why he was giving up. Your life was not worth this. He was immortal, he could live forever and eventually find a way out again. Why was he doing this? 

“Curioso, no ,” you held your hand up weakly in his direction. 

“Ah, so Curioso is your name,” Aydan stood to his full height while Ulysses refused to part from your side. “I like it. It’s fitting. ‘Fool’ is just a bit too on the nose, isn’t it?” 

“If you spare their life, I will be your servant,” he said in a tone that was not at all recognizable to you. 

“Stop!” you hissed, wishing you could put an end to what was happening.

“It’s alright,” he assured you, his mask fixated on you from afar. You didn’t believe a word of it and narrowed your eyes at him, feeling betrayed that he was willing to give up his soul for this monster. 

“You heard him,” the box was shoved in front of you again. “Give me his soul.” 

Ulysses grabbed your wrist and forced it on top of the gems on the box. Tears streamed down your face at the pain you felt in your heart and your body. You could not betray him like this. You could never do this to Curioso. You did not want to lose his soul, his trust, his love – 

You cried out as Aydan began forcing your fingers down in the needed combination. You fought against the iron grip on your hand, but it was useless. Seconds later, the box sprang to life and it reacted to Aydan’s touch. He grinned at the sight, having a pep in his step as he stood and walked over to Curioso, who was bowing to him on the ground below. 

“And as a precaution,” he began, moving his fingers quickly. 

You felt completely hollow as the same sight as before happened, where shackles and chains had somehow made their way onto your jester’s wrists. Unlike Elise, he did not falter under their burden, and instead raised his mask to look at Aydan. 

“ No !” It was Elise’s turn to cry out, shimmying off the desk and running over to them. Ulysses delivered a hefty smack to her face, sending her falling again and laying limply on the floor. 

You remembered when Curioso told you about his time at the circus, his enchantress used to put those same restraints on his wrists as a punishment. It completely deterred his magic, rendering him useless. You panicked at this reality, knowing now that there was no help your way. 

You felt just like he did, a prisoner unable to do anything. 

“Wonderful,” the magus sounded giddy. “Another servant to my collection. Pretty soon I will have all of them in the world. I speculate there’s only five of you around. And now I have three. Fascinating, isn’t it?” 

The room grew quiet beyond your heavy breathing. He looked back at you and frowned, pretending to look concerned as he regarded your condition. You had no fight left in you.

“You’re not looking so good, Detective. You’re leaving quite the nasty stain on my floor.” 

Your eyes were nearly fluttering to a close, wanting to fall asleep. You were finished. You’d left a mark on the world, solving cases and helping people. You’d even saved a few lives. But you couldn’t stop this organization in time, and that was what disappointed you the most. You couldn’t save Elise nor Curioso…you were a failure and you deserved to pass away already. 

Aydan must’ve seen the acceptance in your eyes, as he reached forward and patted you gently. “There, there. I’ll take good care of him while you’re gone.” 

A bellow of rage erupted in the room, and your jaw dropped in shock when Aydan jumped out of your view. Curioso was screaming, putting an ample amount of pressure on the chains that hindered him. It looked to be futile at first, until you could hear the strain and see the chain cracking. The magus backed onto the wall, looking at the scene before him with incredulousness. 

“No, you can’t be-” 

A loud snapping noise came, and the shackles easily slid off of him. The first thing Curioso did was charge at Ulysses. The knight was forced onto his back as the jester conjured some magical string – you’d seen it before, used to encircle the wrists of Raymond, Julia, and even Andrew Collins. Treating them like his puppets. But now the string was being forcefully wrapped around the bodyguard’s neck, restraining his movement when his arms and legs were tied together. He flailed around but could not free himself. 

Aydan fumbled with the box, pressing different gemstones to try and hinder him again. But nothing was working. Curioso left Ulysses on the floor and approached Elise, gripping the chain between her hands and easily snapping it into two. She slowly rose from the floor, reaching for his shoulders to steady herself. 

“He’s yours,” he granted, grinning deviously at her. 

And that was when he ran over to you, discarding your old bandage and wrapping up a new one tightly around your wound. You wanted to thank him, to say something , but words failed to leave your throat. You were so weak you felt like you couldn’t move at all. He reached underneath you and held you close to him, his mask pressed against your forehead. 

You didn’t know what was happening while he held you. You heard different noises, Aydan’s groans of pain accompanied by Elise’s triumphant exclamations. You assumed she was carrying out her justice and only wished you could help. When your head lolled against his shoulder, his box was gently pushed against your chest. 

“Take back my soul, Detective,” he told you quietly. “It is yours and no one else’s.” 

All you had to do was touch it. When you applied pressure to one of the gemstones, it gave in under your fingertip. You both released a sigh of relief. You glanced over his shoulder to see Aydan laying against the desk, his hands tied behind him while blood seeped out of his nose. He was still breathing, which meant he would receive his sentencing. 

It was then colors shone from outside a nearby window. It was not Curioso’s red and blues, but the sirens of police cars pulling up outside. You’d never been so glad to see some backup. 

Elise joined the two of you, her gloves stained with her master’s blood. “I called for the police before Ulysses found me.” 

“Bring me your box,” you told her weakly. There was no argument as she picked up the item and held it out to you. You used the last of your strength to press the pattern most familiar to you, and it glowed a brilliant pink in return. Her soul belonged to you now.

You smiled at that sight before succumbing to your exhaustion, going limp in his hands. 

You were startled awake when something pushed you. As your eyes darted around, you recognized the inside of an ambulance. There was a woman seated beside you, holding a hand firmly on your arm to keep you steady. You relaxed, realizing you had just hit a bump in the road. She began speaking to you, but you didn’t register any of what she said. Your head fell to the side as you observed the rows of medical supplies. 

Your eyes drifted down and saw a familiar set of sharp teeth on your sleeve. You smiled. 

As you were admitted to a room to properly treat your injuries, you were briefed by the police on their findings. They arrested at least ten patrons of the organization, and Aydan was undergoing questioning as they spoke. You warned them that these were powerful wizards and maguses, and instead of scoffing at you like they did last time, they took your word in earnest and promised they would be taking necessary precautions. 

As you laid in the bed, eying the IV attached to your arm, you nearly laughed. What precautions were there to take? Maybe that was something you’d have to look into. If magical servants could be hindered, then so could their owners. 

The sergeant had approached you in your room earlier, asking if you needed any of your belongings retrieved. You adamantly told them to bring you two decorative boxes – claiming that there was something important inside them that you could just not part with. He obliged to your request, and now you had Curioso and Elise’s boxes at your bedside. 

There was a new one, too. The sergeant found another box at the scene, and brought it along because it looked like the others. He asked if it was yours and you said it was. This box was completely black with red gemstones and sharply-lined decorations on it. It must contain Ulysses. You already tried to gain control of it, but the gems did not bend to you. The only person it would work with was Aydan, who was in custody and likely wasn’t going to see freedom for many years. Unless he died during his time in prison, you weren’t going to be able to open it anytime soon. 

You were perusing the channels on the small television, trying to find something to cure your boredom. When you flicked onto one, you saw Curioso projected onto the screen. He was juggling some balls in his hands with wacky music accompanying his act. You set down the remote and watched the sight, allowing him to humor you for a minute or two. 

“This show sucks,” you said aloud, and he let the balls fall from his hands. 

“I’d like to see you do any better,” his voice was crystal clear from the television, unburdened by the speakers. “How are you feeling, Detective?”

“Great,” you did an act of stretching your arms. “Only a few more days and I’ll be out of here. Then I’ve gotta find a way to pay the hospital and ambulance bill.” 

“You solved a case they couldn’t. I’d be surprised if you DIDN’T get a pay raise.” 

You glanced over at the pink box sitting on the table. “Where’s Elise?” 

“How should I know?” He started his next act on juggling bowling pins. “Probably sleeping, like you should be.” 

“Can you guys visit each other? Like in your boxes?” you asked curiously. 

“No. Just you,” his head turned on the screen to look at the black box sitting further away. “You might have some trouble getting in that one, though.” 

You shrugged. “I don’t trust Aydan with it, and there’s no harm in keeping his bodyguard in there. He’s dangerous to let out. I don’t think I could control him even if I tried.” 

He caught the pins. “What Elise said is probably true. Ulysses must have lost his humanity. I wonder what happened.” 

“I’ve been thinking about that, too. Your curse turned you into something that’s not human. It must be easy to forget what you once were.” 

“If I ever get that way, Detective, please let me know.” 

“Don’t worry, I’ll tell you if you ever get a sudden thirst for bloodshed.” 

He chuckled, and you raised the remote to flick the screen off. The room went quiet. You clasped your hands together and closed your eyes. He was right. You should be getting more rest. Sleep was imperative to get yourself out of the hospital, and that’s exactly what you wanted. To be home. With Curioso…

Everything had  worked out in the end, but you had yet to ask him how in the hell he managed to break free from his magic-obstructed spell. You couldn’t get it out of your head, the scream he let out and how hard he pulled to break those chains…From Elise and Aydan’s reactions, it shouldn’t have been possible. His powers should have been far from his reach, but he regained control of them easily. Or maybe it hadn’t been so easy. You didn’t know. 

You put an end to these scrambling thoughts, allowing yourself to drift off as you had so many times before. All you wanted to do was sleep.

[strawberrymochin]

𝐏𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐦𝐲 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭 ☀︎

Rockstar!gojo x art student!femreader

synopsis- satoru gojo fell in love with you when he was 17. He tried everything to gain your attention—joining the student council, participating in every extracurriculars, performing well in academics yet nothing worked. That was until high school. In college, having been forced into a band, he needed to find a new artist for their posters which he requested shoko to take care of. What he didn't expect was shoko to bring you as a volunteer—

warnings- college!au, satoru being heads over heels for you, he’s so damn in LOVE save my boy, friends to lovers, misunderstanding, SEMI PUBLIC SMUT, fingering, oral fem receiving, PUSSY DRUNK GOJO, dirty talk, creampie, BALL OF FLUFF, ANGST, mentions of smoking and alcoholism, super cute ending

w.c- 8.2k (have faith)

a/n's note- i'd poured out my heart in this (especially the smut). i hope you all do like this. your comments and reblogs are highly appreciated as it helps motivating me for writing long ass fics. taglist is open you can ask me to join. love ya' all!!

When satoru met you for the first time, he was 11 years old. 

You were the daughter of his mother’s friend whom he heard of so many times. Though the accidental reunion in the mall while grocery shopping was the first time satoru ever had the opportunity to meet you face to face. 

It was a totally random encounter, coincidental even, you can say when your mother recognised satoru’s mom and both squealed like teenagers. They'd a lot to catch up with, thus having their kids entertain each other in the play section was convincing enough for them to chit chat in a cafe.

And this is how satoru ended up being stuffed, hand in hand with you, to go enjoy in the play section as his mother patted his back, asking him to be good to you. 

“Don't leave her hand, okay toru?! Make sure you both stay together.” His mom said before scooting herself with your mom. 

Satoru looked at you, his hand locked in yours as you made eye contact with him before shying away, looking in the other direction. He stood confused before pulling you to the gaming section, without any word. 

He scanned amongst the box of video games, before pulling out one which caught his eyes with his unoccupied hand. He gave a side look to you, reluctantly asking “you want to play this?” 

You gaze down at the video game he held in his hands, eyes sparkling a bit, if satoru wasn't seeing things, then raise your head to look at him again. “It has vibrant colours.” 

Satoru nodded, feeling a little giddy that you liked his preference. “It's called mario kart.”

“Oh.” Your eyes widened as he revealed the name. 

“Do you know how to play it?” You shake your head at his question. “Then I can teach you!” 

“Really?” 

“Yeah, let's go and install it on the playstation.” 

By the time satoru’s mother returns with your mum, they find satoru giggling along with you, hands still locked with each other, as he points to various stacked video games. 

That day slowly came to an end and satoru didn't get to see you for the next two years till your giggles became a distant echo and your face a blur. 

By the time he was 14, he almost forgot you. 

Until that one day when he noticed you, sitting alone with your lunch staring at the sky at the campus of his high school. 

You were biting on your chopsticks with dreamy eyes as recognition drew in satoru's mind. 

Y/n— he thought. His brows frowned, thoughts slowly going in a muddle. How are you here? eating lunch in his high school campus unless— you're a student over here too! Satoru felt foolish, his lips slowly curving in a smile lifting one hand, abandoning the basketball in the other to greet you. 

However, before he can get his words voiced out to you, gaining your attention, a brown haired girl comes up to you dragging you along with her in a hurry. 

Satoru's hand froze in mid air, awkwardly stretching it above his head before bringing it down and turning towards his friends. He sprinted back to his group resuming the game, yet his mind stayed with you and your dreamy eyes. 

He wanted to say ‘hi’ and watch your eyes grow wide before nodding your head just like you did back then. He wanted to show you the basketball he was holding and maybe teach you how to play ball just like he did back then. 

“Oi satoru! Why are you missing the catch?!” one of his friends shouted, breaking him free of his daze. “sorry…taking a break!” He said, excusing himself, before going and plopping himself down on a nearby bench. 

He recognised the brown haired girl—Yura. She often came to him asking for little favours. Did she know you? A friend? You studied in the same school and yet he only saw you today. Where were you all this time? Satoru was the same age as you. So you were bound to be in the same class, maybe different sections but he knew students from the other sections too. How come he didn't notice you yet?

The recess was over soon and he ran back to his class. Before entering the class, he noticed you again, hurrying to the class next to him. 

Class 1-2.

Satoru felt silly as he read the classroom name in his mind. 

As the final semester rolled on and a new semester started, satoru found out class 1-2 changed to class 2-2 and this year he was in the same section as yours. 

He was excited to finally be able to talk to you without any awkwardness. After all, you were in the same classroom now— which means you will know him when he introduces himself on the first day of class. You will see him, introducing himself aloud and clear and recognition will draw on your face as you remember him. 

That's what he initially thought the night before the first class. Until satoru felt the urge to perfect his speech and kept on practicing it, holding the crumpled sheet in his clammy hands, past midnight. 

As a result he woke up late and by the time he hurried himself to school, the self introduction was half-over. He mumbled his apologies to his homeroom teacher, before hastily introducing himself and going to his assigned seat. 

With that his perfect speech plan of gaining your attention bombed miserably. He raised his head in the direction of your seat—first row second desk, way far than his— fourth row last desk. 

That's when he decided with the determination inclining in his heart to get your attention and make you remember that it's him. 

The plan was simple. He just have to wait till recess and watch his chances closely. Once you're free and alone he will go make a move saying ‘hello’! Maybe even ask for your number. 

Recess hour came by and his plan chose to bite the dust with girls and boys swarming around him to get his number and be friends with him. The group kept him occupied for the entirety of the recess and by the time he was done you were no where to be found in class. 

Similar things happened the next day and the next day and the next day, never ceasing to leave him alone. 

Satoru eventually came up with another plan— excelling in academics. The more he's good in academics, the more are the chances for you to come up to him wanting his help to understand a problem. And the plan worked exceptionally well with girls frequenting him with a doubt in their lesson— except for you. 

This time satoru came up with his active participation in extracurriculars and sports. The more he active he is the more is the chance of you joining the same activity or maybe seek his assistance for the upcoming sports day.

This plan too, was indeed prodigious and did attracted a lot of attention except yours. 

His last option was of joining the student council. As the spirited member of the top student council, you might come up to him with a problem you're facing or anything you want to change. 

So, without thinking much he did joined the student council, hoping to finally gain your attention. However the following week, concerns and requests for changes decreased promptly. The other council members sighed, few scrutinizing satoru. After all no one in the entire school would want their so very handsome, energetic and popular Satoru Gojo to have a heavy work load after school. 

“Since we don't have any work to do now, thanks to gojo-kun, I'd gladly like you all to only maintain the regular class desk arrangement.” the student council president announced before leaving the council room. 

Satoru sighed, this isn't what he thought. He just wanted your attention not the entire school’s. Everyone looked at him, when he walked, when he sat, when he ate, people always turned around to take a second look. Yet you never laid your eyes on him. Even being in the same class you never came up to him to chat. 

Back slouched, with his tie undone, he slammed the door open of his classroom to pick up his bag. 

You flinched. 

Hand covering your mouth, a dust wiper on the other, you looked at him as he froze. 

One entire year, was how satoru spent to gain your attention, to get you look at him, and when it finally happened the time seemed to halt. The sun rays pooled into the room with slow breezes messing up your bangs and satoru couldn't mutter a word but stare.

Conscious about him gaping, he tore his gaze away from you before shutting the door, this time gently. 

The council president asked them to take care of class desk arrangements. However, the desks in his classroom have always been arranged, even before he joined the student council.

“you…um arrange the desks everyday?” He said fixing his tie, slowly walking up to his desk, wiped clean by you. “Yes.” 

Satoru accompanies you cleaning and arranging for the rest of the time in complete silence. Soon you take your leave, and so does satoru but this was the time he was happy like really really happy. 

He didn't exchange any words of recognition with you, from the day at the mall. He didn't talk. Yet he was beaming radiant, for just being with you, momentarily alone, in peace. 

That day soon came to an end and another year passed by. Satoru did nothing but admire you from afar. This was the only way he felt the closest to you. He saw how you wiped and arranged the desks everyday; help people without even letting them notice; lend the only pencil you have without a word; and care for the garden whose garish flowers were disregarded by others. 

The more he saw, the more he knew you. And the more he felt his heart slipping away. 

You were kind, gentle and soft. You noticed people behind their masks. You regarded the smallest of the things with such care. And your delicate hands, often smeared with paint, held the responsibility of others without complaining. 

He often saw yura asking favours from you, shoving her cleaning duties to you, sending you to get her lunch from the 7-eleven nearby and never once you said 'no'. You were so so precious. 

He knew he’d to stop; the way you engrossed him, linger on his mind all day to the point that he was unable to think of anything but you was straight up creepy but his eyes never stopped searching for you.

Even in the midst of the crowds on a random road his eyes would unconsciously seek for you. 

And by the time he was 17, satoru was hopelessly, absurdly and miserably in love with you.

Another year passed by and he could do nothing but stare. And the fact that you often looked at him too made things even worse. 

He was so down bad for you that he couldn't keep on going like this anymore. He was so sure he'd confess to you on the day of graduating the high school, not caring about rejection. 

Satoru stayed up an entire night, perfecting his confession. But by the time the graduation ceremony ended and he went to look out for you, you were nowhere to be found. 

He asked yura about you, to which she replied that you went back home early and satoru had his heart broken at 18. 

He couldn't move on easily but giving you up was the only option left. Unwillingly, satoru made his devastating decision of giving you up. He never thought he would see you again until a few years later in college, shoko brought you right in front of him. 

“We need a new artist to cover up for this concert.” said geto suguru, stuffing his phone back in his pockets. “Why? What happened to ren?” 

“Got himself into an accident and fractured his right arm.” Geto plops himself back down on the couch beside satoru, before pulling on the fretboard of his bass. 

“Should visit him then.” 

“Forget it.” 

“Why?” frowned satoru, geto suguru—his best friend, the one he went to middle and high school with, was not the type to feign indifference. His behavior indeed had satoru confused. 

“Nanami informed he got drunk at the last concert before getting himself into the accident. Drunk driving it is.” 

“Did yaga find out about this?” 

“Fortunately, he didn't. Nanami covered the case before him finding out,” geto brought his hand, swiping back his string of bangs, “if it reaches yaga, he will ban us from using the campus stadium.”

“lucky I'd say…so what now?” The next concert is in 3 days and the band poster is still incomplete. 

Shortly after satoru joined his college, suguru started a band along with two other guys. The band was doing well but due to a disagreement they decided to split up. Suguru then suggested satoru join the band and the following year they gained another member named nanami kento. 

They used to hold performances at random pubs but as its popularity increased, the college decided to give them the campus stadium to hold their concerts. Something they did extra was hiring an artist to do their band poster— hand-drawn. It'd become a little tradition— a lucky charm says suguru, and now that their artist had broken his hand right at the eleventh hour before the concert they will have to— 

“Find a new one.” 

“nana—” geto shuts him before he could finish his sentence. “Nanami is trying his best, so am I. So, you try finding one too.”

“How am I supposed to?” 

“Well I'm sure if you go with a face like this to the art department, people would volunteer in a line.” 

“Same goes with you, why don't you go and ask. I'm sure if you could wear your shirt a little loose you can surely get your clingy ex find a good one." Gojo says in a mocking tone, grabbing his guitar and looping it around his back before leaving the club.

He was sure annoyed, but he will have to find one, geto wasn't in a mood to joke earlier either. Rather than going by himself, he decided to ask shoko get it done for him; he was sure she'd agree for a few packs of cigarettes. 

Walking on his way to the parking lot he texted shoko to meet at their regular cafe. 

“Sup!” 

Satoru smiled knowing shoko could never fail him, even if she didn't agree right away a little guilt trip will do. 

“All good?” 

“Yeah, what do you need?” 

“Just a little favour.” 

“And what that might be?” 

“Get an appropriate artist from the art department. Ren broke his arm and suguru's so down about going himself, ya’ know about his ex,” shoko started grabbing her cup of iced coffee to retreat when gojo slammed two packets of cigarettes on the table. “I've two more packs to offer.” 

Shoko returns to her seat, a big smile on her face. “Okay! Since I'm your empathetic, gracious and compassionate friend, I will try and see what I can get done.” 

“Yes please…” 

“I'm not doing it for cigarettes ya’ know.” 

“Mhmmm” satoru nods his face dramatically.

“Get the other two packets out.” 

“Sure.” 

Satoru knew four packets would get the job done as he parted away from shoko, driving his way back home. 

And the next day when shoko texted him that she got a volunteer and is bringing her to the club, he didn't expected it to be you.

Shoko looped a hand around your shoulders “so this is the club,” chewing a gum, “and this is satoru gojo.” 

“Hi…” you said looking at him, before taking a look at those instruments laying behind. 

It’s you. It's really you. He couldn't believe his eyes yet stood unblinking as if you were some mirage and will fade away once he closes his eyelids.

“Gojo?” Shoko waved a hand infront of his face and realizing he didn't respond to you, he bent his torso bowing to you. 

“Woah,” shoko’s face scrunched up, cringing at his behavior, “when did you start being all formal?” 

You giggled at her comment while satoru hushed her with a series of ‘shut ups’. 

“I'm—” 

“Y/n.” satoru whispered almost as if reminding himself the way your name sounded in his lips. “Y/n, i know.” 

You chuckle at his words, tugging a strand of hair behind your ear. 

“You know her?” shoko tilted her head at him, not expecting you to be acquainted with him. 

“We went to the same high school.” You say when satoru does nothing but gape at you with dreamy eyes. 

His heart did a whole somersault at your sentence. You remembered him; you remembered his name; you remembered he was in the same high school as you. The fact that you regarded him made him so giddy that he was practically ready to throw his hands up in the air or kiss the floor on which you walk.

“Kay’ I'll leave you guys to talk then.” She smirked before raising a cocky eyebrow at satoru, excusing herself from the club. 

“So…you're the only one?” 

“Huh?”

“In the band— i mean…”

“Oh no” he dragged, “there are two more members along with the back musicians…” 

You humm, taking a proper look at the club. 

“You like it?” 

“It has vibrant colours.” 

Your words echoed in his ears, the same which you said to him at the mall. Oh how bad had he wanted to hear those.

“The jazzies,” you read the name of their band aloud, “why jazzies? You only play jazz?” 

“No…we play all sorts of music…it's just a name suguru chose for the band.” 

“you do originals?” 

“Both originals and covers. Anything suguru comes up with.” 

Your mouth forms a little ‘o’ as satoru explains to you. 

“geto seems to be doing all the stuff, what do you do?” 

“You know him?” satoru’s brows furrowed. “Whom?” you ask.

“geto…geto suguru.” 

“Ofc, he was in the same class as us.” 

“Oh.” 

Ofcourse. Both he and geto were in the same class as you. It was no big deal for you to remember both of them. However, accepting that he wasn't any special was bitter. 

Satoru’s eyes followed your figure as you went out to reach for his guitar, mindlessly drawing your finger on its printed patterns.

“You didn't answer my question…”

“I guess I found you for our band.” 

When none of you says anything, satoru breaks the ice, clearing his throat.

“You know how to play?” 

“Err…no.” 

“I can teach you.” 

He slided his index among the few string instruments before pulling out an acoustic one, bringing it to you. 

“Hold the fretboard with your left hand,” satoru pulled the strap over your shoulders, “and bring your right hand over the body, fingers near the sound hole— yep that's right,” he turned your back to him, gently holding the back of your palms. 

“Now, pluck the chords for me,” his chest was against your back as he guided you through the strings. 

“Like this?” you ask him.

“Yes, you're doing very well.” 

The guitar in your hands, played smoothly as satoru guided you through it. 

Just like when he taught you how to play mario kart. 

Satoru looks down at you smiling in excitement. Oh how cute you looked like that. He could admire you twenty-four seven, never wanting to tear his gaze away, for you're that ineffably eesome in his eyes. 

Time almost ceased when you looked up at him, eyes crinkling with a smile that soon died as red creeps up your cheeks. 

Satoru’s face was mere inches away from you, his eyes wavering down to your lips. 

“SATO—RU— oh,” geto bursted in along with nanami causing you both to flinch. 

He quickly leaves your hand. 

“Y/n??” Geto dragged out your name, looking at you with his eyebrows knitting and lips forming a silly smile. 

“Hi,” you pull the strap over your shoulders abandoning the instrument on the nearby couch. “I'm here to volunteer.” 

“You do?” 

“Yeah…” 

“That's great! I can't believe satoru even managed to talk—” satoru smacked him mid sentence. 

Nanami, for some reason, found the ceilings very interesting today, totally ignoring his two seniors.

Geto explained to you about their little tradition of hand drawn posters and showed you the posters they used for the last concerts. You, then, asked them to send them a group picture of the three and their preferences for colours and themes. 

“For that I might need your number—” 

“I- i can send it to her…” Geto passed a suggestive smile at satoru, which he ignored and awkwardly forwarded his phone to you. 

“Yeah that sounds fine. Here's my number, save it and text me later.” 

“Kky!” 

You pull the sling of your tote bag up to your arm, giving them a little nod, before turning your back to leave. 

“Wait!—” satoru held your arms frantically pulling you back. He hurried to the back near the couch you plopped the guitar and shoved it to you. “T-take it.” 

“Ah— no I can't do that.”

“Take it. You can learn how to play and I- I can teach you.” he tried not to stutter yet failed miserably. 

“No i rea—”

“consider it as a gift— from me.” 

You frowned a bit but agreed anyway. 

“That's really sweet of you satoru! I will wait for your text! Bye!!” 

He waved back to you. 

“What was that?” Geto implies in the direction of the exit door through which you just left. 

“nothing.” 

Later, You sent the photo of the finished banner to satoru. It took you 42 hours to finish it. 

Satoru on the other hand was practicing really hard, totally different from his half hearted performances from the previous ones which wasn't unnoticed by the other members. 

He has to be the best. After all, this concert will be different from the previous ones. This time you will be there to see him, cheer for him, and notice him. 

You soon bring the banner rolled up to the club. “Woah! You really did a great job.” 

“This is much better than ren’s.” says nanami before going back to his drum set, giving you a thumbs up.

“Satoru?” 

“Y-yes.” 

“You liked it?” 

“I loved it. It has vibrant colours.” You giggled at his answer, shifting your direction to his gaze. His fingers seemed to flake off any dust on the surface of your work, handling it so gently. 

It wasn't his fault he felt so overwhelmed. All these years he'd yearned for one kind word from your lips yet he was left starving. 

And now you'd drawn him with such precision, that it was as if you were accustomed to drawing him for the hundredth time. 

His heart fluttered at the thought. 

“I will be there at your concert,” you say, turning your back to him. “All the best!” 

The campus stadium was full with a bunch of students and hippies, it was really hard for satoru to try locating you amongst the sea of crowds. 

The music rang loud, brisking fiery cheers from the crowd, full of vim and vigor. The spotlight shone on the three— geto with his vocals and string of bass; satoru with his acoustic guitar; and nanami with his drum set. 

The crowd roared in excitement as music coursed through their veins. 

Will you be cheering too? 

Satoru raised his head from the guitar, plucking chords effortlessly, to his audience. 

And as if it was fate that drew both of you together, his eyes found yours. You were there in the vip section, along with shoko and another girl. You were moving with beats, swaying your arms in rhythm to their music. 

His eyes locked in yours as you waved a hand at him. Oh how, how pretty you looked. Everything except you was a blur to him. 

The crowd goes even more wild, seeing satoru blush, not sensing it was you who caused it. 

The concert continued till past midnight as the vibrations thrumming around the air slowed and wrapped up with their ending song: “Where Our Blue Is.”

As the applause slowly start to dissipate, satoru pulled off his instrument, running to the edge of the stage, and hopped down the raised platform. 

The college girls shrieked baffled, some even reached out, grabbing on his wrists and clothes. He politely got out of their grip making his way to the vip section, geto and nanami following him. 

The still air felt electric as he approached you. 

“you liked the show?” 

“Ofc it was amazing!!” The girl beside you answers in your stead, whom he now recognised as yura.

“It was really good.” you say swallowing a laugh bubbling up your throat at his huffed out appearance. 

“Thanks to your banner, it even attracted more audience.” geto remarked, placing his arm around satoru’s shoulders.

“Thank you.” 

“You should thank me for bringing her in.” Shoko reclaims, looping her hand around your arm, “let's go steal some shots.” 

“Oh no i can't— i don't drink. And I need to hurry back home it's late.” 

“Kyaahh— you've let me down y/nniee. Only two packets of cigarettes can get my mood uplifte—” 

“I will bring it tomorrow.” You say shutting up her whines. 

“kk bye and text me when you get home the rest are joining me right ?”

“Count me out. I'll be driving her home tonight.” Satoru says sheepishly, ignoring the smirks and exchanged looks of his bandmates, a slight blush creeping up his cheeks.

“No but I was about to go home with her —” yura interrupts.

“Satoru’s fine. You're coming with us.” Shoko dragged her along with geto and nanami, which satoru was glad of. 

Finally he'd be alone with you.

He guided you to the parking lot from the back of the stage, before getting his car keys out. 

It's metallic jingle echoing softly as he presses the button on his key fob. The car responds with a soft beep unlocking as satoru opens the passenger door, holding it open for you. 

“Here,” he gestures with his other hand, “get in.” 

“Sure.” You say gulping thickly.

The thick smell of your cologne mingling with the leather scent of the car.

He closes the door before sprinting to the other side, getting himself in. “Don't— ” he stops you when you reach out for your seat belt. “Allow me the honor” his finger brushes against your skin as he reaches out for the seat belt. 

Your heart practically jolts at his action. 

The click of the seat belt buckle echoes softly in the quiet car, as he straightens back to his former position. 

“Where do you live?” He clears his throat, starting the car engine and flicking on the headlights before pulling out the car into the driveway. 

“In the downtown.” 

“That's quite far from the campus, how bout I drive you everyday back home?” His eyes suggestive, making you chuckle.

“I can't let you do that.”

“Why?” 

“Since it's far from the campus and you won't be visiting often.” 

“Who knows, I might be visiting your place often.” 

You turn your face from the window to look at him. 

“What?” 

“I will have to— to teach you guitar.” 

You crack up at his silliness, finding yourself melting again.

“Okay fine. But that still doesn't counts.” 

“Why not!” 

Since that day, satoru did visited you often, sometimes barging in with shoko and sometimes alone teaching you how to play guitar, plucking on chords and notes. 

And you attended all of his concerts. Their previous artist has recovered now and has resumed his work, so you no longer work with them. However they insist you tag along each time and it's not like you complain. 

You liked satoru’s company. He was handsome, charismatic and popular. You'd watched him your entire high school. He was the one of most popular students, good in a millions of things, starting from academics to being athletic. He'd win every sports competition and even participate in all the extracurriculars. You'd admired him for he could do the things which you didn't had the courage for. 

You liked how he didn't judge people, helped them in their need, and even took care of those garish flowers nobody seemed to double take.

You'd previously met him before high school, though he never brought that up. You wondered if he even remembers the day at the mall. You wanted to ask him so bad, however—

Your world was only limited to papers and paints.

So you painted. 

You painted him so many times that you'd have more than five sketchbooks with paintings full of him.

You wanted to be friends, maybe even more than friends.

But that didn't matter now. He was near you and you would do anything to keep your thumping heart in control and not have satoru cut you out of his life. 

But how can you?

How can you control it when satoru so gently, so lovingly, takes your hand in his. When he smiles so sweetly at you. When he teaches you how to pull chords and other instruments. When he drops you home from college almost everyday. When he hugs you and tells you to take care. 

How are you supposed to be just friends when he's so overly affectionate to you?

Or maybe it's just your overthinking.

Satoru was always polite and sweet, he'd always been sweet to others and you were no special. 

“What are you thinking baby?”

You come out of your daze, rolling your eyes at the nickname.

“How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that…” 

“Not my fault you aren't paying attention to me…” he pulls you closer to him, resting his face on your shoulder. 

“Have you always been this hungry for attention?” you ask, getting yourself comfortable abandoning the guitar beside you on the couch— of the club.

“I've been starving.” 

You cringe at his words. Satoru has another concert today and they just finished practicing an hour ago and now they are taking a break. 

Geto and nanami and other back artists wanted to get some fresh air so they left you and satoru alone to entertain each other. 

“Are you really skipping on me?” He looked at you with puppy eyes. 

“I've a gallery exhibition tomorrow.” You need to scoot back home to get ready for it. It's a big event for you to showcase your arts. 

Satoru hummed, nuzzling his face on the crook of your neck, “I'll be there. You're going to do great.” 

An uncertain lump forms in your throat, hard to swallow, you say nothing. Your heart was in a conflict again, no matter what you can absolutely not—

“I will be going then. All the best for your concert.” 

You push satoru away, reaching for your tote bag from the side of a random arm chair. “Wait I will drop—” 

“Who's leaving?” shoko barges in with yura and others. 

Satoru points at you. 

“I just got here. You can't leave already.”

“Yup! Yup! Please stay a little longer, baby. I'll drop you back home, no worries.” 

Shoko exchanges suggestive glances with geto and they somehow persuade you to stay a little longer.

They start practicing for another round when shoko pulls your head closer, “what do you think about gojo?” 

“Huh?!” You shout over the music, unable to hear her. 

She grabbed your hand and pulled you outside, with Yura following closely behind you both.

“What— “ 

“What do you think of gojo?” 

A burning sensation hits you slowly as shoko’s question registers in your mind.

You ears turn red. 

“Eh…um h-he’s a nice guy. A nice musician…and—”

“And?” Shoko wiggled her brows at you, a sly smile on her face. 

“A-a nice friend.” 

“Just a friend?” You nod at her, seemingly more embarrassed at her implications. 

Shoko's face literally radiated disappointment. It was as if someone told her that cigarettes are now banned in the country. “I think he's interested in you,” you choked on air at her remark. “No?” 

Yura shrugged. 

The music slowed down and then paused, bringing your conversation to a momentary halt. 

Satoru rushed outside, complaining about why you left in the middle of his practice.

“Bruh, chill, I'm not trying to steal her away from you. We're just talking!” Shoko jokes as you laugh all flustered. 

Just when you were about to leave one of his fangirls suddenly appeared from nowhere and threw herself into his arms, wrapping hers tightly around his neck. He stumbled back a step, surprised, before regaining his balance but he didn't put her down rather he spinned her around before setting her back down, with a polite smile on his face. 

The other members just saw the scene unfold with amusement. Nanami was surprised at the fan’s boldness and geto simply observed the scene as shoko rolled her eyes, finding it hysterical.

“What do you think of shoko’s remark?” said yura, looping her hand around your arm. 

“What?” You say suppressing the slow tinge of jealousy. 

“About gojo being interested in you…” 

“I-i don't think so.” 

You try to laugh it off.

“Yeah, he's just polite. To pretty much everyone.” 

Her words felt like a splinter to your heart. You shouldn't feel like this. It'd happened before— not now again. 

Yura’s right, satoru is just polite and will do the same for everyone what he does for you— because he's kind. And you're no special.

The entire ride was silent. Satoru kept asking you if anything was wrong but you just guised a smile at him, insisting it was nothing.

The next day at the gallery event, you behaved oddly. You smiled at him but  didn't reach your eyes, your answers to his question were of one word, even avoiding his touch. 

“Did I do something wrong?” he asked warily.

“No.” 

Days passed by and you distanced yourself more from him. 

Satoru, on the other hand, was almost losing his mind. His world turned upside down. You stopped coming to his concerts, ignored his texts and even refused to let him drop you back home. 

It was yesterday you’d allowed him to teach you the guitar yet today you behaved as if you'd long forgotten him. You were cold and distant, leaving him puzzled by his own thoughts upon your sudden change in demeanor. 

He couldn't help but wonder whether he'd done something that made you this upset? 

You'd said it was nothing.

Then why?

What the fuck did he messed up?

Satoru missed you terribly and violently.

He eyed you from the inside of his car parked a bit far from your department. Today was another day you refused his offer to drive you to class. ‘I'm kinda sick so I won't be going.’ This was what you'd texted him the morning and yet there you were getting off your uber. 

You lied to him. 

“Come with me to their concert today.” Shoko urged you, her lips pursed in a thin line. 

“I'm sorry—”

“No you're not so sorry. Tomorrow’s Saturday, come with me, gojo’s getting mad without you.”

You suck in a breath at the mention of his name.

“What's wrong?” shoko says sipping the last of her drink before plopping it on your tea table. 

“Nothing.” 

“Then come.”

You agreed eventually. Attending the concert won't be a big deal. 

And it wasn't, except for satoru’s piercing gaze burning holes in your back. You accompanied Shoko backstage and casually greeted everyone— including him. 

“God, haven't seen you in so long.” geto side hugged you as nanami gave you a nod of acknowledgement before running off to the stage for some last minute preparations. “Satoru missed you like crazy.” 

You attempt a weak smile in satoru's direction, darting a hesitant glance his way. His gaze was fixed on you, but his expression was unreadable, almost giving shivers down your spine. 

One of the other members suddenly hurried over to Geto, urgently speaking about some issue, he politely excused himself and exited the room, closely followed by Shoko. Now, you were left alone with Satoru, the only two remaining in the room. 

“I should go and check what's the proble—” you try sprinting your way out the door, “wait—” when satoru stops you. 

His hand on your arm, preventing you to go any further and when you struggle to get out of his grip, he tightens his grip even more slamming you to the wall,  pinning you caging your body. 

“What's wrong with you?” 

“Gojo you're hurting m—” 

“Gojo?” His voice cracked, grip losing before letting your arms go, “why? Why must you do this to me?” 

“Do what?” You drift your gaze away unable to look at satoru, who's this close tearing up.

“This— why must you do this? Why must you ignore me? Why must you be distant from me? Why must you lie to me so that I won't bother picking you up or dropping you home? Why must you reject my affection?” He sucks in a breath “You know I can't live like that—” 

“why?” 

“Don't pretend like you don't know…” 

“no no don't say it,” you throw your hands up in the air frantically, “don't— I can’t fall again…no— I know you're just being polite and you will do this for anyone, but I can’t help it if I don't—”

“I love you—” he whispers, bringing your hand up, placing the palm flat to his chest.

“No you don't.” 

“Yes I do— what do you mean you can't fall again,” he suppresses your struggles of wrenching free your hand from his grip. “You have no idea how crazy I'm for you. I love you and I've loved you since I was 17. I was about to confess to you on our graduation day but you just disappeared leaving me alone. And now that I have you I'm not letting you go— make no mistake baby, if there's anyone I’d ever kneel for— it'd be you.” 

Thick silence covered the entire room, except your heavy exhales. Satoru gojo was inches close to you, your hand still laid flat against his heaving chest. 

“B-but I wrote you a note confes—” 

“What note? I never….” confusion twisted on his face bitterly. 

“You threw it in the dustbin— the one I wrote to you the day before graduation.”

His face told the truth, as he shook his head denying it. He never received any note from you— nevertheless having the audacity to throw it in the trash when he'd been hopelessly in love with you all these years.

“Yura told me—” you shut your mouth as the realization hits you. The person whom you considered as a friend backstabbed you long ago. 

She lied about him discarding it while it was actually her who had stolen it off his desk before satoru even noticed.

Your head raised in embarrassment, ready to apologize for the misunderstanding when suddenly, Satoru's lips met yours in a tender kiss. The kiss was filled with such affection and tenderness that you felt as if you might melt in his embrace. His arms held you close, firmly yet gently, as he deepened the kiss. Your heart pounded in your chest as you responded to his kiss. All thoughts of the misunderstanding were forgotten in that moment of pure intimacy before satoru pulled away with frowned brows and a dazed smile. 

“Tell me, would I kiss anyone the same way I kiss you?” he pulled you again, smacking his lips on yours as he snaked a hand around your waist, the other, still firm, holding your palm. 

You could feel his heartbeat going rapid the more he deepens the kiss, sucking on your upper lip. 

He pulls away again.

“Tell me, would my heart beat the same way as it beats around yours?” He smacks his lips again, this time pinching your waist making you gasp as he slips his tongue in.

His hand fumbles with the hem of your dress, pulling away again, a string of drool connecting both of your lips. “Would I be breathless the same way as I'm now?” 

His hand travels up your inner thigh, till it reaches the wet blotch of drenched silk. You grasp his shoulders, when he starts drawing circles over the fabric, smirking before nuzzling his face on the crook of your neck. 

“Satoru, what if someone walks in—” your body jolts, nails digging into his back as he pulls the fabric to the side, plunging a digit in without any warning. “Let them…” he goes back to sucking your skin while rubbing his thumb over your swollen clit. 

Your teeth sank on your bottom lips, his finger slowly plunging in and out of you. “Nngh ‘toru, you’re—” small trembles quivered through your body as he plunged with a faster rhythm. 

“Shh baby! Let me take you” he inserts another digit as your teeth dug even deeper into your lip, stretching you and filling you so well. 

He was stroking you, curling his fingers inside until hitting your most sensitive spot. Sweat beaded your forehead as your trembles gave way to full body shudders, shutting your mouth with your hand not wanting to be loud. 

Satoru drew himself back from your neck, satisfied marking and suckling, withdrawing his digits, slick from you as you wince at the loss of his fullness. 

He brings them up and sucks your essence off his fingers with a pop. “I want to eat you out.” 

Before even you can make out his words he kneels down bunching up the fabric to your hips pulling your panty down properly and latching onto your swollen clit. 

“Fuck ‘toru.” he lapped his tongue on your clit, drawing circles, tasting your sweet before drawing himself back, “I am fucking you baby.” He says, licking a fat stripe on your vulva, his rigid tongue swiping back and forth over your clit sending sensations that make your body jolt. “Here and raw” he hummed against your pussy, his breath warm and hot sending vibrations to your core, before vacuuming on your clit. 

Your hand grasping his hair, as he worked on your orgasm.

He plunged his digits again, rhythmatic with the little pants escaping your mouth, along with the slick sounds of your hips buckling down his fingers. 

He smirked internally at your enthusiasm.

“So fucking nasty for me huh?” He said against your pussy, licking and sucking till you were nothing but withering in mindless pleasure. You were taking it well, suppressing your moans into breathless pants until he sucked, fingers pressing the most sensitive spot inside you. 

A shriek fell past your lips, knees buckling, followed by a string of moans and whimpers. “Oh— fuck..” you try closing your thighs which he prevents with his iron grip of one hand, forcing it open till he has better access. “Don't even dare closing on me…” 

The wet sounds of his fingers, plunging in and out of your gummy walls, echoed throughout the empty room.

Something coiled hot and fuzzy in the lower pit of your stomach. You clenched hard around his finger, when the bass-heavy beats of the band's concert began, causing you to involuntarily shove satoru’s face deeper into your cunt as you heard voices from the stage outside. 

Geto's unmistakable voice rang out, accompanied by the heavy drumming of nanami. They had started performing without satoru. 

“Nn’toru they start—” your voice died down into a breathless gasp as you felt your pelvic muscles clench, tension looping around your entire body as fiery sensations erupted. You arch your back against the wall, unable to stop your toes curling at the intensity of his tongue lapping, finger fuckin' you, as your vision gets blurry. 

“Yeah…cum for me baby” his velvety murmurs were all it took for you to turn into a mess of sensations, your body erupting as your high came down bursting, dripping and spilling down your thighs, his chin and his neck. 

Satoru lapped up the drops carelessly strewn about your skin, his tongue tracing a path along the droplets splattered on your inner thighs as he savored everything with anticipation.

“Tell me, would I kneel infront of anyone and let them cum this hard on my fingers?” He straightened himself up, “and then drink it up like a pussy drunk male whore?” his gaze never left yours, wiping the leftover slick from his chin with the back of his hand before licking it clean.

The music from outside has now gained its intensity, thrumming even louder.

No— you mouthed. 

Satoru’s gaze was still fixed at you, when he unzipped his pants, his aching cock sprang out red, already leaking precum. 

You gape at his girth. 

It was big.

And fucking thick. 

Leaning in, Satoru brings his lips close to your ear, his voice clear over the blaring music from outside, “Like what you see—”

You didn't get to answer him before he slammed right in. 

A cry of pleasure tore from your throat, as you loop your hands around his neck, nails digging on his back.

He hissed out a breath, restraining himself from moving till you adjusted to his size. 

Only then did he slowly pull it out leaving only the tip inside. You grimace at the loss of fullness until he slams back in causing you to clench around him. 

He let out a low guttural moan which was almost inaudible to you over the roar of music if you weren't so close to each other, feeling the raw desire of his voice vibrating on your skin.

“Tell me— hahh- would I let anyone clench this hard on me if this weren't you?” 

You were at a loss for words. 

The kind, polite, sweet satoru you knew was gone. In his place was someone who fucked hard. 

When you don't answer he pulls out and slams right back in harsh, eyes gleaming with wicked intent. 

Satisfied, satoru guides his one hand to tapping on your thigh suggesting you wrap your legs up around him. 

He repositions his dick on your entrance, before supporting your weight with one hand, pinning your body completely to the wall, while the other hand grabs your neck, choking you before giving you a sloppy breathless kiss. 

“You like it don't ya’ hmm fuck— so tight—” 

Your cries came out choked as he pounded into you, in an insane manner, desperate and primal.

“Tell me—” 

Thrust 

“do you—” 

Thrust 

“still think I'm just being polite?”

Thrust.

The roar of geto's voice singing out aloud different notes masked out the filth of your moans. 

The sensation was in again, hot and uproar, coiling beneath the core of your consciousness. Satoru sensed you being close to your climax, continued to plow into your pussy, now supporting your weight with both hands against the wall. 

Your toes curled again, nails digging down his back almost scratching the fabric, “yes that's it love,” your eyes rolled back as you arch your neck unable to handle the pleasure, “cum for me…” 

Your mouth forming a little ‘o’, mind blank as your eyes saw stars. The only consciousness left in your body directed you to the burning of your heat, till it came crashing down.

You came hard letting your head fall on his shoulders too spent for anything.

Satoru too chased his high, thrusting into your swollen pussy, his cock twitching inside you, till you felt him getting sloppy and tense before cumming into you.

The music was still very loud, beats thrumming your flushed veins. 

None of you said anything, remaining in the same position. Satoru pulled himself out, his cum dripping out your vagina, before walking over and placing you on a nearby chair. 

He cleaned you up gently tugging your clothes back and fixes himself before cleaning the mess near the wall. 

“They— they started performing without you…” you huff out, drained still in the very euphoria of your pleasure satoru showed you. 

“I told them to do so…” he shouted over the noise. 

You remain stunned for a while, letting out a breath. “I'm sorry…I avoided you.” 

“Here I thought you were giving me a thousand kisses as an apology.” 

You chuckle at him, back to his normal self— your sweet, kind and maybe not so polite satoru…

He came over to you, lifting you effortlessly before plopping himself down on the chair with you on his lap. 

“I missed you.” 

“I missed you too.” 

“No but I missed you like crazy…” he pouted. “y/n be my girlfriend…please.” 

Tears start forming in your eyes, overwhelmed, you never thought the satoru gojo you met at the mall, the satoru gojo you loved your entire high school would someday ask you to be his girlfriend.

To paint his heart with your love.

“I will.” 

“no wait— marry me instead!”

You dug your face deeper into his chest, laughing at his playfulness. And satoru just smiled.

Finally he would be yours. 

you and Satoru started dating since then and things couldn't have been any better for him. He practically announced to the world that you were his girlfriend, always picking you up and dropping you off from campus, and claiming a kiss as his reward. You’d also cut Yura off, not wanting any more negativity in your life. Satoru was yours, and you were his. And He couldn't be any happier.

Tags: @cccandynecklaces @secretfankoala

© strawberrymochin 24 | plagiarism won't be tolerated |

[reidmania]

Hey😁 you said request were open and i was wondering you could write a spencer reid fic where him and the reader get into a petty argument or something and he says something a little mean and has to grovel to the reader because she’s upset? I love your work by the way and you can add or take away whatever you want👍😊

not so funny | spencer reid

summary; after a rough day, Spencer accidentally takes his frustration out on you leading to a lot of guilt and grovelling.

warnings; spencer is mean, fem reader, he calls reader a bitch but he makes up for it, arguments, hurt x comfort, crying, it ends up being pretty cute.

an; ITS MY BIRTHDAY GUYS!!!!

“Come on spencer” You almost groaned as your voice itched with irritation, your hands flew up before dropping by your side. You were stood in the kitchen, trying to make dinner but the pasta on the stove and vegetables half cut on the counter were long forgotten.

Spencer spluttered, “You aren’t listening to me!” He groaned, bringing his hands up to his face dragging them down over his eyes as he turned his body away from you to the side. You couldn’t help but roll your eyes — this entire argument was pointless.

It started all because Spencer had come home after a bad day and was slightly snappy with you, just briefly and when you made a joke about it — he didn’t seem to take it as a joke.

“It was a joke — God” You sigh, turning back to the vegetables you were dicing before he walked in the door after work, but honestly with the annoyance bubbling in your chest you doubted you should be responsible for a knife right now.

His eyes widened, “But it’s not funny! You were just being a bitch” He mutters out, shaking his head before the realisation of his words fell on him the same time they fell on you.

Your entire face fell. Never had Spencer called you anything like that — he had commented repeatedly how much it pissed him off when peoples partners called them names like that. He had never been anything other than gentle with you.

He said your name as his eyes fell on your face. Before he could even open his mouth to apologise you were pushing past him to walk away. His hands reached out to grab ahold of your wrist as he repeated your name but you only flung his arm away from yours and you continued walking to the bedroom.

Spencer stood with his head in his hands as he knew better than to follow you right now. All the anger he had felt from the day that had built up slipped away when he saw the look on your face. — Hurt. He hurt you all because he had a crappy day.

He heard the bedroom door slam shut causing his shoulders to flinch slightly. He wanted nothing more than to follow you and spend the rest of the night apologising to you, he didn’t think there was anything he could do to express how sorry he was.

But he knew better than that. He knew it would just annoy you more if he walked in there right now and that was the last thing he wanted.

Instead he spent the next hour in the kitchen finishing the dinner you had started making — He knew wouldn’t taste nearly half as good as it would if you made it, his cooking skills no where near as good but he found himself doing it anyways.

He relished in the slight distraction but it only did so much as his mind continued travelling to you and the words that had left his mouth. He didn’t mean them. You weren’t a bitch. You were nothing of the sorts and the fact that he had even let that slip sent guilt coursing through his veins.

The day had been nothing but shit. To say the least. Everything was going wrong and Spencer couldn’t shake the annoyance. It didn’t help that right before leaving he had gotten into an argument with Morgan about something on a past case.

He didn’t mean to take his bad day out on you, he never did.

He finished the dinner, but the appetite he once had disappeared as it replaced the spot in his stomach with nothing but guilt. His feet trailed towards the door of your shared bedroom.

Every step was filled with dread as his mind traveled to every possibility. His heart shattered into a thousand little pieces as he heard your soft hiccup through the door.

“Honey?” He brought his hand up to knock on the door gently with his knuckles. His tone was the softest he had used his day — completely the opposite to what it had been the last time he spoke to you.

You didn’t reply but you went quiet. Probably trying to hide the fact you were crying. That made him feel worse — he deserved to feel worse. He knew that.

“Dinner is ready.. Are you hungry” He asked, not pushing his way through the door he was talking to you through. There was a pause on the other side of the door.

You, were curled up on the middle of your bed. Spencer’s hoodie was tugged up over your knees as they pulled to your chest. Your face was blotchy and scarred by the soft tears that stained your cheeks.

You hadn’t been able to shake Spencer’s words no matter how much you tried. You knew he was angry and had a bad day but you couldn’t help but be beyond mad — unfortunately when you are mad it ended in tears.

You wiped the tears from your face as if that would have any effect on the sound of your voice. “No.” You replied, trying to put on the most secure voice you could muster up but it wavered none the less and stayed quiet.

Your heart pounded as you closed in on yourself. “Can I come in?” He asked.

You wanted to say no, push him away and tell him to go fuck yourself, but you couldn’t bring yourself to, a small part of you aching for his comfort no matter how mad you were, you wanted to hear him apologise, even if you failed to believe it.

“Okay.” Your voice was small.

The door was being pushed open gently a moment after and you avoided meeting Spencer’s gaze, keeping your gaze fixated on the plush of the crisp white sheets that covered the bed.

If you did look at him, you would’ve seen his heart break all in his features at the sight of your tear stained face. His feet pattered towards you as he sat down on the edge of the bed, a respectable distance away from you, not wanting to push any boundaries.

“Im sorry” He said quietly, it sounded genuine and it burnt a way into your chest. You never brought your eyes to meet his as your mind failed to comprehend a response. You didn’t have a whole lot to say.

So instead, you just nod.

He frowns. “I am really - Im so sorry.” He said, shifting uncomfortably on the bed, eyes trailing over your face, uncomfortable silence washing over the room as he tried to figure out what to say next. “I had a shit day — which isn’t an excuse. I should’ve never called you that. I shouldn’t have taken my bad day out on you” He muttered.

You nodded curtly. “Okay.” Was all you said in response. There wasn’t a lot you could muster up as despite his apology his words burnt into the back of your mind, leaving a engravememt on your brain.

He frowned deepened. He knew he didn’t deserve your forgiveness and he didn’t expect it. He hurt you and he apologised hated that.

“I love you.” He said softly. Even if you didn’t believe his apology he wanted you to at least believe that he loved you.

You just nodded feeling a lump in your throat as your chest grew impossibly tight. You kept your arms wrapped tightly around your knees, holding them close to your chest almost as if to try and numb the burning sensation that made its way through to your ribcage.

You didn’t answer.

“I’ll leave you a plate in the microwave okay?” He muttered after a moment of silence. The silence dawned heavy and cold. You didn’t bother replying as he stood up.

His gaze lingered on you for a moment before a soft sigh left his lips. “Im really sorry” He apologised again.

You didn’t see him again that night, you assumed he slept on the couch which made you feel slightly bad but you were so.. hurt.

The argument was stupid. He knew that, he knew it was a joke and any other time it wouldn’t have bothered him in the slightest, he hated how the one time it did he took it out on you.

The next day you didn’t see Spencer when you woke up, you assumed he went to work which made a puddle of relief fill your stomach as you realised you were able to self indulge in your feelings while he was away.

You missed him.

The door opened at 7:34, a lot later than when Spencer usually arrived home and for a while you were genuinely considering maybe he wasn’t going to come home.

You turned to face him as he stepped into the kitchen where you were, the same positioning the two of you had been in when the argument first arose.

“Hi.” He said softly, placing his car keys on the counter. You looked over him and guilt fell as you he looked a mess.

He pulled his arm from behind his back, handing you a gorgeous bouquet of flowers. He chewed at his lip nervously as you didn’t say anything but took the flowers from his hand, looking over them.

Your favourites.

“I know flowers aren’t an apology, thats not why I got them” He said quietly, you remembered a conversation you had with him about hating how guys got their girlfriends flowers as an apology — and he agreed, going on to say that guys should be getting flowers constantly.

You perked up slightly as you furrowed your brows in confusion — if not an apology why now.

“The last ones I got you are browning.” He said, reading your look of confusion. Your lips pursed as you looked over at the vase you always kept the flowers Spencer got you in. They were in fact browning.

He dragged his hand through his hair as he placed a grocery bag on the table, before looking back at you. “You aren’t a bitch, you weren’t acting like a bitch, if anything I was.” He said, taking a few things out of the bag.

Your favourite snacks, your favourite drinks and a small velvet box.

Your heart tightened slightly.

He took a step towards you and you stayed in place, pulling your eyes away from the items on the table. “Im really sorry I ever said that. It was stupid and disgusting of me” He hesitantly brought his hand up to your face.

You tensed slightly but didn’t flinch away, allowing him to push strands of hair behind your ear. “You are gorgeous, inside and out. There isn’t a bitchy bone in your body and Im sorry.” He said gently.

“I am so mad at you” You said, the first proper thing you have said to him in days. He knows it shouldn’t but just hearing you talk made his pulse relax slightly — and then speed up all over again.

“Good.” He said gently, “Thats- Its a good thing. You should be mad.” He said softly, “Id never want it to be a situation where you allowed that.. where it happened often enough for you not to be mad. Be mad, mad is good. Don’t be silent” He said as his thumb brushed gently over your cheek.

You hummed. You knew deep down silent treatment was the worst for Spencer, but honestly last night you had nothing to say. “You can yell at me, scream — hit me if you want” His tone was so gentle. You just scoffed, “Im not going to hit you” You said.

He smiled, “I know.”

“You have a lot of making up to do you know.” You pushed out, trying to ignore the way your face instinctively leant into the warmth of his hand, relishing in the soft roughness of his hands.

He nodded, “I’ll do anything, sweet heart.” He said and his tone held nothing but genuine emotion.

“Okay.” You nodded.

“Okay?” He asked.

“Okay.. Spence I just said that” You huffed out. A smile lit his lips, he leant down to place a gentle kiss to the top of your head, you tried to hide the smile on your face.

“Okay.” He repeated making you groan but you were smiling nonetheless.

Spencer spent every second apologising for the next two weeks, buying you everything he saw that he thought you would like and going above and beyond until you physically and verbally said that you forgave him.

[navybrat817]

Mr. And Mrs. Barnes. Are they ever worried about being apart from each other?

It gets to them from time to time, nonnie.

Hurry Back

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Female Reader

Summary: Bucky has to leave for a mission, and it feels a bit tougher than usual.

Word Count: Over 1.8k

Warnings: Established relationship, crying, being in love, feels, light angst, Bucky Barnes (he's a warning, okay?).

A/N: Before Mr. and Mrs. Barnes got married. February has had some lingering January energy, and I hope you enjoy what I was able to write! ❤️ Not beta read and written on my phone, so any and all mistakes are my own. Divider by the talented @saradika-graphics. Please follow @navybrat817-sideblog for new fics and notifications. Comments, reblogs, feedback are loved and appreciated!

You woke up earlier than expected today. You and Bucky were typically up early anyway thanks to work, but he was up well before the sun rose since he had a mission to get ready for. He wanted you to get some more sleep, but you refused. Sleep would come later, and you wanted to be wide awake to see him off.

Helping pack his bag, you paused and brought one of his shirts to your face. Gently inhaling, you smelled the new detergent he recently switched to. You smiled at the memory of him in the store aisle bringing each cap to your nose to smell. When you asked why he was making you smell all of them, he said he wanted to use the one that smelled the most pleasant to you. He had done the same thing with his cologne, and he made sure to get your favorites.

“Smell is one of the closest senses tied to memories,” he said once you were home. “Whenever you smell my cologne and whenever I smell your perfume, we can think of each other.”

“Is that why you like a spritz of my perfume on your pillow?”

“Yeah, baby,” he smiled gently. “I smell it and I know I’m home.”

Setting the shirt in the bag, you grabbed your bottle of perfume and lightly sprayed it over the open bag. With Bucky’s heightened senses, he’d be able to catch the scent when he opened it. You hoped it made him feel like he was home.

Bucky came out of the bathroom just as you set the bottle back, your breath catching when he ran a hand through his wet hair. You wished you had time to drag him back to bed. Not even for sex, but just to hold each other. “You’ll have the alarm set while I’m gone, right?”

“Of course. I have alerts on my phone, too. I’ll be fine,” you assured him.

He barely nodded. You were aware that he didn’t exactly like the idea of you being there by yourself, but you reminded him the night before that you lived alone before the two of you got together. This wasn’t any different. You also understood the worry, and you appreciated that your safety mattered so much to him.

“Thanks for helping me pack,” he said, his voice thicker than usual. There was a noticeable tick in his jaw, too.

You tried to give him your best smile as you smoothed out the sleeves on his black t-shirt. “Nothing to thank me for,” you said, your voice thick, too.

This wasn’t the first time he had to leave for a mission, and it wouldn’t be the last, but today did feel a bit different. Not because of the worry for your safety, but maybe because it was the first time he had to leave since you two moved in together. In the past, you didn’t have to watch him walk out the door, and he didn’t have to look back to say goodbye.

Goodbye wasn’t exactly something you liked to say since it felt too final.

He captured one of your wrists before you could step away and brought your hand to his cheek. Your heart turned over as he nuzzled your palm, his scruff tickling your skin. “I hate this, you know.”

“Hate what?” you asked, tucking a bit of his hair back. You’d have to help trim it again soon. It meant a lot that he trusted you to help cut his hair.

“Having to be apart from you,” he answered after a moment, his eyes searching yours. He looked lost, but only for a moment

“So do I,” you admitted. He was a hero and people needed him, but it didn’t make him leaving any easier. Waiting for him to come back was the worst part. The dusk before dawn. “But it’s just a couple of days, right? And then you’ll be back before you know it.”

He’d be back with you in the comfort of your home where you both belonged.

“Right,” he said, kissing the center of your palm before he inhaled. “You sprayed your perfume.”

“I did,” you confirmed. Your man didn’t miss a thing. “I wanted it to smell like home for you.” Your voice cracked unexpectedly, and you feared breathing another word in case you burst into tears. You needed to keep it together. The last thing Bucky had to deal with before leaving were your tears.

His gaze went soft, and you nuzzled him when he touched your cheek, the same way he nuzzled you. You already missed the feel of his hands on you though he hadn’t left yet. He was going to miss your touch, too. “I love you,” he whispered.

“I love you, too, Bucky,” you whispered.

You knew in your heart you would never love anyone else the way you love Bucky. He was your best friend, your lover, your soulmate, your everything. If you lost him today whether by death or him walking away, you'd never move on from him. The overwhelming intensity and knowledge of that hit you like a freight train, and you couldn't stop the tears from spilling over. Words alone weren't enough to convey what you felt for him, and the deep emotion in your heart had to overflow and come out somehow.

“Baby,” he whispered, his thumbs quickly wiping away the teardrops. Looking into the deep blue of his eyes through your blurry vision, you saw the same overwhelming sense of love reflected in them. “Breaks my heart when you cry. How can I stop it?”

Stay.

But you refused to ask that of him. You could handle a short mission like you had before. You were a big girl.

“I’m fine, and I’m so sorry,” you told him. He had a mission to concentrate on and didn't need to deal with your tears, good or bad. “I swear, I’m not trying to cry. I’m stronger than this.”

“Don’t be sorry,” he stated, his brows pinched like he was trying not to cry himself. “Crying isn't a weakness. It never is.”

You nodded. It was something you said to him once after he had a terrible nightmare, and they weren’t just empty words. Tears were a sign of vulnerability, but also a sign of strength.

“And you’re so strong. You’re one of the strongest people I know,” he added, his mind in tune with yours. It comforted you. “I mean, you have to be strong to put up with me.”

He chuckled when your eyes narrowed. “I do not ‘put up with you’, so don’t say that,” you argued. He was your man, and you loved him. If anything, he put up with you. “You really think I’m strong?”

“I know you are. You may shed a few more tears when I leave and that’s okay if you do as much as it breaks my heart,” he replied, kissing one last tear away. “But I know you’ll pick yourself up, put a smile on your face, and kick the day’s ass like you do every day.”

You laughed a little and turned your face to meet his lips. He saw the best in you, and he brought it out of you. “I’ll do my best. And I know you’ll kick the mission’s ass.”

“And I know you’ll also find me and kick my ass if I don’t hurry back,” he half teased.

“Damn straight,” you smiled, taking a deep breath and slowly pulling out of his grasp when his phone dinged. Steve was probably waiting outside. “So, we’re just a couple of ass kickers, huh? That makes for a good team.”

The two of you were similar in many ways, but also so different, and it created the perfect balance.

“The best team,” he winked, patting his pockets. “Keys, wallet-”

“Still on the nightstand, ready for you to keep them safe and sound on the quinjet,” you said, nodding to where they sat. “And I have your coffee ready in your favorite to-go mug.”

“I’d say ‘what would I do without you?’, but…” He pulled you back to him, his stare robbing you of your breath once again. “I don’t want to ever find out,” he said.

You didn’t want to find out either.

Your heart fluttered when his lips covered yours. He easily coaxed you to open your mouth to his and allowed him to take what you were always willing to give. It wasn’t easy to be the one who had to stay behind, but it had to be harder to be the one who went ahead on the path. He felt alone for so long, but he’d always have the support of his friends. And he’d always have you.

Even if you physically weren’t beside him during a mission, you would be in his heart, mind, and soul.

You heard him swallow when he pressed his forehead to yours. Some days you wondered if it wasn’t just his senses that the serum heightened, but his feelings and sense of self. He fought for and tried to protect Steve before the serum. Did he fight so much for you because he had something to cherish and protect? Did he love more fiercely because of it? Maybe it simply enhanced the man he was and the heart within him.

“I know you’d stay longer if you could, but you shouldn’t keep Steve waiting,” you said.

Bucky reluctantly released you and slipped into mission mode, silently grabbing everything else he needed, including a knife you gifted him with. You couldn't help yourself. The man was proficient with many weapons, but something about a knife… Maybe you could find an outfit for him to cut off once he came home.

Once you helped him put his leather jacket on and handed him his coffee, you snuck in one more kiss. You refused to cry again. “Love you, handsome. Be safe, and hurry back.”

“Love you, beautiful,” he breathed, slipping his dog tags around your neck with his free hand. When had he grabbed those? “Keep those safe ‘til I get back.”

“I will,” you promised.

A weight settled in your chest when he opened the front door. You liked to believe some days that Bucky was invincible, but he was mortal at the end of the day…. Human. He bled; he suffered. But the weight within you lifted when he stopped and looked back at you with a loving smile. He was human, but he endured, he survived.

Bucky Barnes never gave up, and he never would.

Touching the dog tags, you smiled, too. Life was unpredictable, fleeting, and anything could happen when he left, but the love between you was steadfast, everlasting, and you had to believe he’d come home to you. And you’d welcome him back with arms open and the love he deserved.

I hope this month is kind to everyone and that you have love like the way these two love each other. ❤️ Love and thanks for reading! ❤️

Masterlist ⚓ Bucky Barnes Masterlist ⚓ Ko-Fi

[whitefeathers]

literally if you write ANYTHING for squid games i’ll read it, there’s not enough fics for any of the characters (aside from player 067 lol but still) 💔

ILY real af there needs to be more

I’m just struggling w ideas that haven’t already been done 😩 lots of thoughts abt messy SLOPPY sex with sang woo in the squid game toilets tho…

Tags: minors do not interact. Legal age gap, daddy issues, sang woo refers to himself as old enough to be your dad & calls you little girl (but you’re 20+), rough bathroom floor sex, Sang woo probably ooc bc he’s evil but a little bit soft for you, IDK MANNN this isn’t my best work I wrote it in 10 mins

You’re folded over and pinned to the floor, Sang Woo’s jacket the only thing protecting you from the dirty floor of the men’s bathroom. He’s a gentleman - in some ways, at least. Definitely not in the way he fucks you.

Sang Woo is rough. He’s strong and tall and powerful, moving his cock almost out of you before slamming back home in a quick thrust, so deep you’re sure he has to be in your guts.

He has your cunt dripping, your pussy slick and warm as he forces your insides open around his cock.

“Hear that, little girl?”

“H-huh?” Your eyes flutter open, staring up at him, dazed. You fight hard for them to not roll back as he continues to pound you into the floor, exactly the way your poor pussy (and daddy issues) crave.

“That sound. You’re soaked,” you listen to the plap, plap, plap of his thrusts, and whine in embarrassment. Fight or flight is gone. The fear of the games is gone. All that you are is his, brainless and drooling on his cock. It strokes something inside Sang Woo. Your vulnerability, your trust, his capability to have you a mess. He wants to drive you further into this headspace until you’re crawling after him to protect you.

“All this over a man old enough to be your dad. You’re messed up, sweetie,”he looks relaxed, other than the slight sheen of sweat on his chest and arms, barely exerting himself as he fucks you into oblivion. It’s so hot that he’s this experienced and physically fixed that you clench, and Sang Woo laughs at you, stroking your cheek with his thumb as he continues to fuck you. You nuzzle into it, closing your eyes and feeling.

“So vulnerable. I’ve got you,” he drives his point home by slowing his thrusts but making them impossibly deeper, letting you feel the slow drag of his length in your little cunt as he stuffs you to the hilt.

“Going to make it out of these games together. Going to spoil you, little love.” He doesn’t know if he’s lying or not. He thinks he is - but the sight of you sprawled out has his heart and cock thinking stupid things, stupid things like betraying his greed, his morals, his need to be the best.

In this moment, that doesn’t matter. All that matters is you.

[lilreidgirl]

Perfect

Summary: You`re insecure and your boyfriend, Spencer, thinks the absolute world of you, he trys everything to make you see what he sees.

Warnings: fem!reader, insecure reader, bad body image, comparing to fictional charecters, kissing, hurt/comfort?, not proof read, if i forgot anything; let me know, English is not my first language

WC: ~1k

A/N: I won`t be posting for about the next two weeks cause i have three exams, once exam season finally ends, Ill be able to post my many ideas that just seem to keep on coming. Until then, here`s a short Spence hurt/comfort fic MWAH

Perfect.

A word that feels as foreign to me as an alien language. It’s something I’m definitely not. No one is perfect, of course. But I feel like I’m standing several miles farther from it than most.

Spencer calls me a lot of things: beautiful, pretty, cute, smart, hot, exquisite, funny, tantalizing, sexy, insatiable. The list is endless. If it’s complimentary, he’s said it at some point.

Except perfect.

Spencer is a man of science and logic, and logic dictates that perfection doesn’t exist. It’s an unattainable ideal, a concept too flawless to have a place in a messy world like ours. And yet, standing next to him—this near-perfect person—I feel the ache of falling so much shorter than the mark.

There are people, though, who seem to come dangerously close.

One of the many things I love about Spencer is his love for books. He reads endlessly, often with the same devotion he gives to solving puzzles or understanding the human mind. He’ll bury himself in stories until his eyes droop, refusing to let fatigue stop him from finishing just one more chapter. And I know the women in those books, how they’re described: Silky hair, impossibly soft skin, hypnotic eyes, lips meant to be kissed, figures sculpted to perfection, and smiles bright enough to light up the darkest corners.

That’s what perfection looks like, isn’t it?

It’s certainly not me.

I see myself every day in the mirror. No silky hair here—just strands that seem to have their own rebellious personality, refusing to fall in place no matter what I do. My skin? Far from flawless. My eyes? Ordinary, nothing mesmerizing about them. My lips are… lips. Not the kind poets write about. My body? Just a body. Functional. Unremarkable. My smile doesn’t light up rooms; at most, it’s enough to convey, Hi, I’m friendly, please don’t ask me for directions.

Yet somehow, here I am, dating Spencer Reid—a man who feels carved by the hands of something divine. It’s almost painful, how unfairly beautiful he is. I’ve searched for his flaws, scoured every inch of his personality, his quirks, his habits. Nothing. If they’re there, they’re too small for me to see. He’s just… him. Perfect in all the ways that I’m not.

Two soft knocks on the door break me out of my spiraling thoughts. They’re gentle yet deliberate, spaced so perfectly it feels like they were timed with precision. Of course, they were. This is Spencer we’re talking about. Even his knocks are perfect.

I drag myself toward the door, feeling the weight of my imperfections in every step. My fingers fidget with the hem of my sweater as I go. It’s oversized and rumpled, the fabric hanging well past my wrists. My sweatpants cling stubbornly to my thighs but sag around my ankles. I’m a mess, right down to the fluffy socks that glide across the floor I haven’t bothered to clean in three weeks.

When I open the door, the sight of him steals my breath as it always does. Spencer.

His hair is perfectly disheveled, a chaotic tumble of curls that somehow looks intentional. His features are sharp, striking, and utterly unfair. His eyes hold the kind of depth that makes you feel like he sees every part of you, even the parts you’d rather keep hidden.

“Hi,” he says, his voice soft and warm, and that smile—the one that makes me feel like I’m standing in the sun—graces his lips.

“Hey,” I manage, though my voice feels embarrassingly small in comparison.

“I missed you so much,” he says, stepping inside before I can respond. His arms wrap around my waist, pulling me into a hug that feels like home. He lifts me slightly, spinning us in a slow circle, and I can’t help but laugh softly at the gesture.

“Me too,” I whisper, the words barely audible as my lips brush against his neck. When he sets me down, I press a kiss to his lips. It’s brief but firm, enough to feel the spark between us ignite.

He pulls back just enough to look at me, his dark eyes roaming my face. His pupils are wide, the dim light of my apartment making them expand until they almost swallow the brown of his irises. He looks at me like I’m something precious, something worth studying and memorizing.

“God,” he breathes, his voice low and filled with something I can’t quite name. “You’re perfect.”

The air leaves my lungs. For a moment, it feels like the world has tilted on its axis. I open my mouth to respond, but the words won’t come. My thoughts are spinning, but all I can focus on is him, standing here, calling me perfect.

Could perfection exist after all? Maybe it does. Maybe it’s right here in front of me, holding me, looking at me like I’m something extraordinary.

Or maybe perfection isn’t about appearances. Maybe it’s about this feeling—this warmth that spreads through me whenever Spencer is near. Maybe it’s about the way he sees me, flaws and all, and still calls me something I never thought I could be.

Perfect. That’s him.

Perfect. The word he used to describe me.

Perfect. The way I feel, despite my imperfections, whenever I’m with him.

I blink back the tears threatening to spill, a soft laugh escaping my lips as I finally find my voice. “Mm… so are you,” I whisper, leaning into him as his arms tighten around me.

And in that moment, I believe it. I believe that maybe, just maybe, perfection isn’t about being flawless. Maybe it’s about being loved by someone who makes you feel like you are.

@emma-e-a

[ennabear]

Hiya ennnabear!! Back with another req (　ﾟ 3ﾟ)

can i ask for sum sevika x hyperfemme!reader? Could either be a fic or a list of headcannons, nsfw or sfw, i really dont mind !! >3< the prompts up to your interpertation!! Whatever u feel comftorable with!! ＼(^o^)／

I can just imagine Sevika, with her pastel pink, poofy-dressed eyecandy, sitting on her lap as she plays cards .. the people shes playing with all sorta eyeing reader because like what the fuck?? And reader is just like 'oh sevikas just so adorable shsjkassjksksk cutie patootie i wuv her!!!!!' while Sevika is off in the distance beating someone half to death because he touched her shoulder .. on accident ( ﾟーﾟ)

also, i beg of you to use inspo from that one scene in deadpool where he meets yukio. I kid you not thats where i got this requests inspo from.

"What in the fuck knuckles is this?"

(Sevika, with a literal living doll in her lap) "Shes my girlfriend you intolerant shit."

"Woah! Pump the hate breaks, fox-and-friends! Im just suprised anyone would date you! Especially pinkie pie from my little pony."

aaaaa i love this woman sososo much ( ´∀`) my 6' criminalistic murderer drug (shimmer) addict babygirl (〃_ _)

thanks in advance if u decide to write this !! sorry for the agonizingly long yap sesh (^_^;)

--🃏🌀⭐️

(and now to crawl back into my pit of lesbian shame .. (ФωФ))

HIII ANON sorry this took me so long to answer but i’m occupied with writing 2 sevika oneshots so i hope i can earn your forgiveness once they’re out 🫶 also i yapped a lil about hyperfemme!sevika here so ignore the fact that i can’t follow a request to save my life!!! 18+

ok so the way i envision sevika’s girlfriend would be a little bit… drag-ey?? i don’t really know how to explain it so allow me to elaborate…

1. we already know that femme lesbians are feminine in a way that’s different from feminine straight women (more cutesy, stylish, female gaze, etc.) but also…

2. with the way people dress in zaun (when they’re not murdering each other) and the general way they’re animated is very costumey. lots of face paint, masks, sophisticated outfits.

so i think in the arcane universe you’d probably dress something like this. painting your skin weird colors, covering yourself head to toe in body glitter, wearing expensive wigs, corsets, and heels that look impossible to move in, and stuff like that.

that means sevika would try to make sure you’re comfortable 24/7!!! especially if you’re wearing something potentially dangerous like heels that are two feet tall, she wouldn’t let you walk the whole night, instead picking you up and hauling you around.

as if the money silco pays her isn’t enough, she makes tons of money from the guys she gambles with. she spends every last PENNY on you. it’s not like she needs to spend it on herself though, her arm and her scowl are a pretty deadly weapon, and she doesn’t go all out with clothes like you do.

also i think she’d completely fold if you ever wore a low cut top or even no top when you go out with her (and she doesn’t believe in bras… so…) especially if you have piercings in/around your tits, she’d be fondling them and groping them all night!!!

she 10000000% has a thing for public sex!!!! while she’s playing cards, she’ll slide your skirt up (if it’s even long enough…), and have you ride her strap. the dumbfucks she’s playing with would gawk and stare at what’s obviously going on in her lap, but she’s about to rob them of their money, so they really shouldn’t be focusing on it.

oooh and once you finally cum, she’d be like “good girl, now give me another. okay?” and her fingers would start vibrating as you slump down next to her… of course you might get weird looks, but if anyone tries to say or do anything about it she could literally just kill them. (or maybe she’s feeling nice and will break a few of their ribs instead, who knows…)

she’d be constantly covered in some kind of your makeup. especially if you wear a crazy color lipstick like bright blue or something, her lips and cheeks and nose would be that color the whole night. and if you wear body glitter, it would look sooooo pretty on her skin. she’d be glaring at people all night like 😡😡😡😡 but her face and hands would look like ✨✨🌈🦄🩷✨✨

adding onto that, she’d look sooo pretty if she let you experiment (which is a pretty big IF), but imagine her with her hair curled, wearing pretty purple glitter on her cheeks and arms, in some sort of heeled boots that make her even taller than she needs to be, and in a dress?? in a short dress??? sevika in a short dress???? i’ll (s)cream right now…

if someone manages to corner you and talk to you about sevika, the conversation would be hilarious and very unproductive. they’d be like “why her? doesn’t she scare you?” and you’d be like “sevika? my little baby bear?? my knight in shining armor who screams at the sight of bugs??? no… she doesn’t scare me…”

meeting silco and the rest of the last drop crew would be… quite the experience. they’re all staring with wide eyes, practically shaking because of how scary she looks, and then there’s you with your hands entwined with hers, some of your bright pink face paint smudging onto her cheeks and neck as you nuzzle into her. silco’d find her alone for one moment and ask “who the hell is that?” and she’d reply with “my girlfriend. 😾 don’t mess with her.” and he’d be like “your girlfriend? your girlfriend is a barbie doll?? o…kay… congrats to both of you…”

[parfaitblogs]

you're losing me ❀ s. reid x reader

in which he's an entirely different person after prison, and your relationship is crumbling. 

pairing: spencer reid x reader genre: angst tags: post prison reid. no happy ending. argument/fight. strong language. word count: 2.0k a/n: big fan of soul crushing angst. clearly. i dreamt this one up in an everything shower. likely place for me to plan fics? whole lot of nothing happening i love yapping about sadness!! my least favourite spencer trait is that he doesn't think he deserves good things so he pushes them away so obviously i have to write novellas on him doing just that? this used to be based on tolerate it but i listened to ylm the entire time so erm. things change! lol enjoy xoxo

Perhaps you were stupid. 

Very, very stupid. And ridiculous. And every other synonym for those two words that your brain could not possibly imagine up right now. You were all of them. But also none of them. Because you also felt like there was not a single word that could describe you anymore; if there was, maybe you'd consider yourself a person. But clearly you weren't a person. Not anymore, at least. Not to him. 

An awfully painful year it had been. And maybe that's what stripped you of your right to be a person. Maybe it was the overtime. Maybe it was the lack of sleep. Maybe it was everything all at once. Maybe it was nothing at all. 

Three years of dating one man meant you learned quite a bit about who he is as a person to you. Eight years of knowing him meant you knew very well what sort of person he is in general. 

And this wasn't him. 

He was sitting on your couch. A piece of furniture that had, in just one year, erased the memory of you from it, there no longer being an indent on the right side where you always sat. A book was sat in his lap, but he wasn't properly reading it. You could tell from how slowly he turned the pages. From how he stopped every few minutes to rub his eyes, his eyebrows creasing and a quiet, irritated huff leaving his lips. 

It was a habit he had developed. 

This was how it was every night. Three o'clock came, and your body would wake you up from an otherwise restless sleep, and you would drag your feet out to where the man who should be occupying the other side of your bed, actually is. And he wouldn't look up, but you both acknowledged each other's presence, silently. 

And you would watch him for an hour. Until your eyes began to droop, and your feet started to ache, and your heart couldn't handle any more shattering for the night. And then you would drag yourself back to the bedroom, and you would climb into a now cold bed, and you would fall back asleep for another two hours. 

Like clockwork.

You were good with him. So patient. You would make him mugs of morning coffee that he wouldn't drink, and you would wash clothes he wouldn't say 'thank you' for. You wondered if he was actually grateful or not. 

You were too scared to ask. 

"Hey," you said, quietly, when he had come home from work, shrugging his bag off his shoulders, and slipping shoes off his feet. 

"Hi," he answered. As if on instinct, he moved to where you were seated at the barstool to kiss you in greeting, before brushing past and heading into the kitchen. 

You watched him for a few moments as he found a piece of bread to eat, nothing on it. Just... dry. Before your eyes returned to the laptop screen you had open in front of you, fingers tapping away at your keyboard. 

"There's been another terror threat," you said to him, tilting your head to the side. "But they let me work from home."

"Why'd they do that?" he asked, but he could not sound less interested. 

You lifted your head, because you thought he knew. "Because of you, Spence."

"Oh, okay," he answered, and you watched as he threw out half of the bread he did not eat, before he disappeared down the hallway. 

He didn't even care. 

You stared at the empty space down the hall, where he had once been, heart lodged in your throat in an uncomfortable lump you couldn't swallow. This was why you felt stupid. 

Maybe you were sick of feeling stupid. You must be, because subconsciously, your feet had already planted themselves firmly on the floor, and your legs were already taking you down the hall in the exact direction he had just disappeared to. 

He was taking his button up off when you appeared in the doorway to your bedroom, replacing it with a t-shirt. You had never seen him wear so many t-shirts until now. 

You cleared your throat, alerting him of your presence, and he turned, his eyebrows furrowing when he saw you. 

"You know you can talk to me, right?" you said, voice wavering with cautiousness. 

His lips parted, then they closed, and all he managed was a short nod, before he turned back around to find pyjama pants in his drawers. 

"Spencer, I'm serious," you pressed, taking a step into the room. "You need to talk to someone about this."

"I have those counseling sessions at work," he answered, turning back around to face you only once he was wearing pants. 

Your lips pursed. "You hate those."

"Yes, but I'm talking to someone."

"Not someone you trust!"

"And if I talk to you, it would be so different compared to a counsellor, right?"

You froze. He froze. Maybe he realised the implication of his words, you certainly did. That such a simple spoken sentence had your heart stuttering in your chest. 

You shakily exhaled. "I'd hope it would be different," you decided to say. "But I wouldn't be surprised if it isn't anymore."

He stood straighter at your comment. Perhaps not the best thing to say. Certainly not the most mature. 

"What does that mean?"

Right. The reason you decided to follow him in the first place. "I just—I don't feel like you care anymore. And I have tried to be patient, Spencer. I really have. But you shut me out, and we don't even talk anymore. I make you coffee, I do your laundry, I offer to cook, I clean up the house, I do everything I possibly can so you can focus on healing, and I can't even get a proper sentence out of you unless we're arguing."

He inhaled sharply, staring at you. "I don't know if you forgot, but I was locked in a prison for three and a half months."

Your shoulders deflated, your eyebrows creasing and lips pulling down into a frown. "Seriously? I express that I am feeling neglected, and your only response is that you've been in prison—"

"—Well, it kind of changed who I am!"

You fell silent for a few moments, trying to collect your thoughts before you threw them all in his face and actually ruined things between you two. 

"I just feel like you don't care anymore," you repeated, voice awfully soft compared to how hard your body was shaking in anxiety. 

He ran a hand through his hair, and he opened his mouth to speak with that same frustrated frown, so you cut him off. 

"And yes, I know you're dealing with everything that happened to you in prison. I only know what they told us, so I can't even imagine how much you're withholding. Because I know that's what you do. But that doesn't give you an excuse to treat me like I'm not important in your life anymore. I mean, If I'm not, then tell me. If you really don't care, or you've decided that you can't be in a relationship and process everything at the same time, then I'd like to know."

The silence is uncomfortable. And thick. And you're staring at him with eyes that burned with tears you weren't ready to shed yet. He's coming up with a response, so slowly you think maybe prison actually did break his brain. 

"I do care," he finally said, and you wondered if it took him three minutes to come up with that because he was controlling a lie. You pushed that thought out of your head. "But I also don't want you to wait for me to be better, if it's making you feel this way."

Oh.

"Okay," you manage to say, voice not above a whisper as you stared at him. 

"Okay," he echoed, and the tears you were trying so hard to keep in brimmed your waterline, blurring your vision. If he hadn't become one big blob in your vision because of them, you might've seen his eyes soften and his shoulders deflate. 

Maybe he was waiting for you to confront him about it all. So he could end things. Maybe he's been thinking about this for too long, and this was just the final push he needed. You'd like to hope it was a spur of the moment decision, and he wasn't banking on this relationship ending. 

"I'll stay at a friend's," you then murmured, wiping the tears from your eyes, sniffling pathetically. 

"No, this is—"

"—You deserve familiar walls," you cut him off. "I'm sure anything else would freak you out."

He fell silent, because you were right. But he didn't want to kick you out of your own home. He didn't want to kick you out of his life, a sickening revelation he was having all too late.

Maybe that was why, when you turned around to leave, he called your name. Pleadingly. So, you turned back, and he stared at you, and silence fell over you two again. 

"What?" you breathed out after a few too many minutes of quiet. 

"I don't know how to talk to you. Or anyone. Not—not just you."

"About what happened?"

"In general."

You stilled, confusion sweeping across your features, for the thousandth time tonight alone. "You don't have to talk to me, if you can't. Regularly, I mean. That's not... that's not what I'm asking of you. I just need you to communicate with me. I feel like you don't even have feelings for me anymore. That's where most of my issues lie."

"I do have feelings for you."

"It doesn't feel that way."

More silence. More thick, deafening silence that felt like you had submerged your head underwater. And you really just wanted to come to a final conclusion. If this was the end.

"Then is it just that you don't want to be with me anymore? If it is, please tell me," you said, voice pathetically desperate.

He stared at you some more. Silence accompanying him, like some (annoyingly) comforting best friend amidst this conversation. And you slowly nodded your head as what he wanted became clear to you, your heart stuttering uncomfortably in your chest. Your stomach flipping. 

"Indecision doesn't look good on you," you finally cut through the blanket of quiet. "I need a verbal answer, Spencer."

"I do want to be with you—"

"—Then fight, dammit!" you finally snapped, the tears you had managed to control coming back to you, a sob lodging in your throat. "I am sick of you saying you do feel this, and you don't feel that. Make a fucking decision. Please. I cannot keep up a fight for the both of us anymore. You're losing me here, Spencer."

"I'm scared!" he shouted, and you took a step back, his voice vibrating throughout the room. He waged an internal battle for a few moments at your recoil. "That. That right there is what I'm scared of. I am so scared of scaring you."

"You scare me more when you shut down. I will take your anger over your silence."

"I won't," he snapped, watching you flinch. Again. You wanted to stop flinching. 

"It proves to me that you're actually feeling things. Spencer, I feel like I've been living with a ghost."

"I can't control my anger anymore," he added your name with a voice crack, mirroring your heart.

You blink some more tears down your cheeks. "You don't have to. You are allowed to be angry."

"Not around you," he shook his head, his hands brushing curls out of his face. "What if I—I hurt you."

"What if you don't?"

It seemed he hadn't considered that possibility, because he fell silent, and averted his gaze to the ground. He shook his head after a beat. "I can't take that risk."

You stared at him for a moment longer, weighing up your options, before you sighed. "Fine. Don't." He said your name again. "No. If you're not willing to fight, then... then fine. Don't fight. But neither will I."

He didn't say anything as you took a step back from the room. And even as you stilled for a few seconds longer, achingly but silently begging him to ask you to stay, he didn't utter a word. Which was, really, all you needed in confirmation. 

And so you left.

your reblogs and replies are always appreciated dearly ♡

[byuntrash101]

the drill

reader x switch!yunho ft. wooyoung and mingi smut | mdni 6.8k yunho cant seem to pick up anyone at the club. for two main reasons, two problems if you will. the first one: his rizz level is negative and the second one... well it's bigger. much, much bigger. a huge problem wooyoung has named "the drill"

nsfw tags under the cut

alcohol consumption, ons to lovers (?), yunho's kind of a loser but so are you, mingi is a fuck boy, woo is the annoyingly clairvoyant friend <3, switch dom leaning!yunho, pushing the monster cock!yunho agenda (consider this fic a peer reviewed academic study), no but seriously he's H.U.G.E., size training, oral (m & f), very difficult blowjob (because duhh), choking on cock (duh x2), a dash of spit kink, fingering, pet names (baby, good girl), praising, protected sex (good job kids), bulge kink, slight edging, slight begging (not my fic without it lol), slight cumplay

a/n: i had a blasttt writing this im pretty happy with this i hope you will enjoy reading it too. thank you @cybrsan for beta reading this. you are so kind and i learned a lot <3

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Yunho didn't even know why he stood here. He didn't know how he let Wooyoung and Mingi drag him to yet an other party. To this packed night club while he originally invited them over to play league of legends, maybe drink a couple of beers and chill. Cause that's what he wanted to do. He wanted to spend a quiet night in, hearing Mingi complain about how he didn't want to play healer anymore and having Wooyoung shatter his eardrums with that infuriating hyena laugh of his.

And that? That was the exact complete opposite of it.

There was nothing quiet and chill about this night. Only one thing was still on the order of business. His ear drums were being damaged beyond repair, not by the high pitched laugh but by the loud and bass boosted blaring noise music. He could already feel the headache coming in.

Yunho brought the lukewarm and flat beer to his lips. He finished the drink with a grimace before setting it on the edge of the bar, his eyes scanning the amalgamation of sweaty bodies grinding and pressing against each other.

"Why the long face?" Wooyoung asked as he slipped to his tall friend's side.

Yunho sighed and chose to answer the question with another one.

"Why did you bring me here again?" He asked, round eyes turning sharp as he peered at the younger man.

"Oh I don't know," Wooyoung started sarcastically. "Maybe to drag you out of your cave for once?" He replied in disbelief, he should be grateful he’s being such a good friend to him!

Yunho only rolled his eyes and grunted in annoyance at his response. Why did he care this much that he enjoyed staying in and being on his own? 

"Look at Mingi," Wooyoung said over the music. Yunho followed his gaze to glance at his other friend on the other side of the club. "He knows how to have a good time!" Wooyoung said with a smirk.

Yunho quirked his eyebrow as he observed Mingi chatting up not one but two girls. Whispering something in one girl's ear while he curled his arm around the waist of the other one. Making them both giggle and look up at him while he peered at them over his sunglasses. 

Mingi was Yunho’s friend. Maybe even his best friend but… he looked like a douche.

"What kind of guy wears sunglasses inside… at night?" Yunho spat.

"The kind that gets bitches," Wooyoung remarked, jabbing at Yunho. 

"Fuck off Woo," Yunho barked at him. 

Yeah so what? Yes it had been a hot minute since he found himself being… intimate with a girl but it wasn't his fault! It was only because of his… issue…

"Come on dude. You don't have to stay bitchless, you know?" Wooyoung nudged his tall friend. "Why don't you try your luck with one of the dozens of women here that came for the same thing as you?"

"I," Yunho emphasized. "Did not come for that." He cleared his throat. "And you know I never get very far Woo!" He barked again. Truthfully Wooyoung was getting on his nerves.

"Bro! There's no way you can't find just ONE girl here that would be willing to take on the drill?"

Yunho shushed him and looked around him frantically as if anyone could have heard him over the blaring music.

"I already told you not to call it that!!" Of course Wooyoung only laughed at his friend's concern.

"I'm sorry but it's only the truth. Like that massive thing can only be handled by a licensed professional." He laughed again.

"Fuck off!" Yunho repeated, unconsciously crossing his hands over his lower half. 

“No, but seriously. You just gotta find one that matches the vibe,” Wooyoung said, his eyes narrowing into a sly frown. His gaze wiped over the crowd while Yunho only sighed, turning his back to his friends to go get another beer. 

“Wait,” Wooyoung gripped on his shirt before Yunho had the time to flee his friend’s ridiculous plan. “What about this one?”

The tall man followed Wooyoung’s finger pointing at a girl sitting at the bar, seemingly alone and absentmindedly stirring the mint leaves in her mojito.

“Woo, can you please shut up for a second while I get myself another overpriced beer and try to forget about this conversation forever? Thank you!” Yunho said, exasperated and turning on his heels again.

“No, no, no! Dude,” Wooyoung called him out again, holding his friend by his side. The shorter man rolled his eyes at his tall friend’s stubbornness. “I really have a good feeling about her.” Wooyoung insisted.

“And why is that?” Yunho asked, obvious mockery underlining his tone.

“Look at her, man!” Wooyoung pointed, choosing to completely ignore his friend's sarcasm. “She’s slumping over the bar counter, she’s been stirring her mojito for the past ten minutes but hasn’t had a single sip of it. She keeps looking over at Mingi with a scornful pout and look! In a second she’s gonna check her watch again.” he paused for a second. “See!!” Wooyoung exclaimed and turned to his friend who looked rather unimpressed. “She’s like you, man! She does not want to be here and she’s at least as lonely as you.”

Yunho frowned at the younger man, that last bit was totally unnecessary. 

“Plus, she’s pretty! I know she’s your style.” Yunho frowned in an attempt to deny Wooyoung but it was true. Wooyoung felt like he was gaining the upper hand in the negotiations so he continued.

“You should go talk to her. Just talk!” Wooyoung added when he saw Yunho open his mouth to protest again. “I mean just talk, see if it goes anywhere and if it doesn't, then it doesn’t and I promise I’ll kick Mingi’s ass back into the car and drive us all home right that second!” He pledged.

Yunho looked over again at his tall friend and his two targets of the night. Even though Mingi was considerably taller and bulkier than Wooyoung he knew about the latter’s determination and sheer force of will that would turn any wolf into a sheepish puppy. So he didn’t doubt one second that he would be doing just that.

But first at had to “shoot his shot” with… you.

The girl moping at the bar, as if a rain cloud was perpetually following her around. And there was a good reason for it. You recently got dumped. Your friends took you out to this club to celebrate and hopefully get you over him. Truthfully, you had felt relieved because Jongho was just a jerk to you and you have been slipping out of love for a while but still! It hurt that you had to come to the realization that it was over for real this time around.

Granted you were in fact single but you were not so ready to mingle…yet. At some point in the evening they got tired of trying to cheer you up and just left you at the bar to enjoy the company of your little rain cloud by yourself.

“You don’t look like you’re having a great time either,” Yunho said, ordering another beer for himself. The deep voice pulled you out of your day dreaming as you looked up at him with round eyes. “Can I sit here?” he asked and you nodded silently. He didn’t let it show but he’s actually kind of relieved you didn’t turn him down on the spot.

“Yeah I'm not having the time of my life that’s for sure,” you sighed, clinking the melting ice cubes against the glass with your soggy paper straw.

“Why?” Yunho asked while casually wiping his sweaty palms over his distressed jeans.

You bit your lip. Trauma dumping about your not-so-prince-charming jerkface of an ex to a total stranger wasn’t probably the best idea in the world even if the alcohol in your system said otherwise, luckily you still had far too few drinks to start this conversation. So you opted for the easy going explanation.

“My friends ditched me for Mr. Tall-Douchebag over there.” 

Yunho followed your gesture to Mingi bending over to whisper something in a girl's ear as he slid his sunglasses back up the bridge of his nose while his other hand held onto the other girl’s bare waist, rubbing his thumb on her skin as she giggled, the cropped top she was wearing not concealing the patch of skin there.

Mingi was Yunho’s friend but he was also a dog. And that was just the plain truth despite the fact that their friendship went back to middle school.

“Yeah that guy looks like an asshole,” Yunho said in all sincerity.

“No shit,” you scoffed “What kind of giga chad wears sunglasses in a club… at night?” you rolled your eyes in disbelief and finally brought your straw to your lips to take a sip of the diluted mojito.

Yunho started to laugh. Maybe Wooyoung wasn't wrong after all. There was something about you that was right for Yunho, somehow your vibes matched. He even started to relax ever so slightly next to you.

“But did you say ‘either’?” you questioned. “Does that imply you too are not having a grand ol’ time?”

Yunho chuckled humorlessly.

“Well, no. Not really,” he confessed as he grabbed the beer the barman was handing out and shoved a couple of wrinkled bills in his hand in exchange.

You returned the mojito to the bar counter and turned to him, now that he was seeing you a little better you were indeed pretty, prettier than what the bar’s red and purple neons were leading on from a distance. But up close Yunho realized Wooyoung was right about that too, you were his type. 

He swallowed thickly, your undivided attention brought back a sense of nervousness into him and he sipped on his beer for a small dose of liquid courage. “I invited a couple of my friends over and we were supposed to stay in and play League but instead they ganged up on me and dragged me here,” he sighed. 

That was the truth! Yunho only carefully omitted all the parts where his friends made him sound like a lonely loser. So that wasn’t a lie! It was curated truth. He sipped on his beer once again to ease his nerves.

You gasped loudly and Yunho’s eyebrows arched in surprise at your reaction.

“Oh I wished I would have done that too,” you pouted, before taking another sip. “And how did they convince you to end up here then?” you asked once again, setting the glass down and looking up at the tall brunette seated next to you.

Uh oh.

That was bad. Yunho wasn’t actually the best at performing under pressure. And especially when said pressure was looking at him with beautiful shiny lips and such a wholesome and genuine smile.

“Well I-...uh,” Yunho started to stammer which seemed to entertain you as the genuine smile turned into an amused little grin. The tall man brushed his long bangs back in an attempt to regain his composure which worked to some extent. “I’ve been on my own for a while, too long if you listen to my friends and they said that maybe they could find me a nice girl to… keep me company,” he said before clearing his throat and attempting to push the lump in his throat back with two large gulps of cool beer.

Wow, that was lame. So much for not sounding like a total loser…

“And I'm the nice girl you settled for?” you asked, breaking eye contact. Yunho felt uneasy again, he couldn't make of your expression right there. Did he blow his chance by being too sincere with you? And why did he feel so bad that he just might have? Did he want to impress you that bad? When initially he only wanted to exchange a couple of sentences just to call it quits and get Wooyoung to drive him home but now was he actually trying?

“Too honest maybe?” Yunho said before pinching his lip between his teeth as you shrugged nonchalantly and took another sip. 

Yes, maybe a little too honest indeed you thought as you sipped on the drink that was basically only water at this point. You were just another girl that was to be used to feel a little less lonely…

“Ughh. I suck at this,” Yunho groaned in frustration.

“At what?” you asked, his tone peaking your curiosity right when you thought you had figured him out.

“At this!” Yunho said, gesturing at the air between the both of you. “At chatting up pretty girls! At flirting!” He sighed again, feeling defeated.

Key word: pretty. 

You grinned, you too felt lonely and you figured there was no harm in helping each other out. For tonight at least.

“It’s okay,” you said, suddenly wrapping your hand around his, tightly holding the beer pint. Which made him stiffen in the uncomfortable bar stool. “I don't really like the smooth talkers anyways.” You sent him a cheeky wink and Yunho felt like his stomach had somehow acquired a trampoline. 

“Really?” he said, lips going round in surprise, eyes snapping to where you were rubbing small circles on the back of his hand.

“Yeah,” you chuckled, satisfied with the effet this simple touch had on him. “I’m not really into fuck boys,” you said, gesturing to the tall man in sun glasses once more.

Yunho knew you were referencing Mingi again but he didn’t have it in him to peel his eyes off you to look at him. His eyes traveled from your hand, up the curve of your arm, to the low neckline of your beautiful black dress (where he stayed longer than he intended) and finally (with much effort) to your own eyes fixated in his. Yunho was mesmerized, like a shipwrecked sailor being bewitched by the chant of a siren, like a parched pariah catching sight of an oasis on the horizon after days of wandering in the desert. 

“So…” he started hesitantly, his heart beating against his ribs and resonating in his ears. “If I offered you a ride home to get out of this hell hole and get to know each other, would you maybe say yes?” 

It wasn’t a coincidence that Yunho spoke in the conditional tense. He didn’t want to jinx himself, he never was the superstitious kind but as he was experiencing this streak of luck with you he found himself to be. 

You chuckled again at his cuteness. 

“Yes,” you said, batting your eyelashes flirtatiously. “Yes, I would.”

***

It wasn't long before you found yourselves tangled up into each other on your couch, your last drinks getting warm on the coffee table, barely even touched.

To your surprise, Yunho’s hold was gentle and patient. You felt comfortable in his arms as his warm and large palm gently pressed against your nape. His soft lips finding yours and pulling you in this delicate kiss, almost like a good morning kiss. It isn't rushed at all, like he has the whole day (or in this case night) to get to know you and to give you a thousand more. If he really was as touch deprived as he claimed to be he wasn't letting it on at all.

That raised suspicion on your side and you broke the kiss. Immediately Yunho’s eyes fluttered open and he caught his bottom lip between his teeth, worry taking over his features again.

“So,” you start, slightly shifting in his hold. “Tell me why you said you weren’t good at flirting again?” you say as you plant a soft kiss in the crook of his neck, making his Adam's apple bobble in his throat. He could feel himself getting hard and you felt his fingers lightly twitch around your nape. “Because to me it seems like you are pretty good at it.” You licked a large swipe on his blazing skin and drew back to look at him. “I mean, less than an hour ago I was moping on my own in the club…” you slipped your hand up his shirt to undo the first button. “And now I'm all over you, kissing you and about to do much more,” you whispered softly. The promise of what’s to come had Yunho’s length jumping between his thighs. 

“I thought you’d be all over me, tearing my clothes off the second I got to lock the doors. But there you are taking your sweet time. It doesn't add up.” You popped off another button and slipped your hands over his collar bone.

Yunho was torn between the heat that pooled in his stomach with every single one of your touches and the actual dread he felt to move things forward. Because he knew all too well what usually happened at this point of the story. 

And although it was actually fear that kept him from tearing every single article of clothing clean off your body, you mistook it for some kind of elaborate plan to get you alone.

“I’m actually pretty nervous, that's why I haven’t done… a lot more,” he said, hesitantly.

“About what, baby?” you cooed, latching your lips on his skin again, earning a cute little whimper, your fingers working their way down to the last couple of buttons still holding his shirt together.

The pet name made Yunho’s heart sing, thousands of butterflies launching in his stomach, sending waves of tingles towards his groin. 

“Because this is usually where it stops.” He let out a shaky breath as you pushed the cotton off one of his shoulders and let your fingertips drag across his soft skin, going down to his collarbone to his pecs to his abs. “Because the girls usually leave at this point.”

“Why?” you said, lips still pressed to his skin, hands reaching the button of his jeans.

“Because I’m…” Yunho hissed as your other hand came in to play with his nipple while you still went down, your hand brushing over the jeans. “Because I’m too big.”

There. He said it.

This coincided with the moment your hand laid over the colossal bulge in Yunho’s pants. You couldn't help but to stop everything, you stayed there frozen upon your discovery.

Yunho could only close his eyes shut as he felt you immobile all of a sudden. 

Well, it was fun while it lasted at least.

“I can go if you want me to,” he said as neutral as possible, but he couldn't help but let disappointment tint his voice. He can’t explain why but it felt different this time, he really wanted it to work with you. He wanted you.

“No!” you said as you held onto him when he shifted to get out of your hold and onto his feet. “Wait,” your fingers gliding over the bulge, moving once more. Instantly he sat down again against you. You cupped him, gauging the size and evaluating the challenge at hand, said challenge generously spilling out of your grasp as it could not be contained within your palm.

“We could at least try, right?”

“Really?” he exclaimed, before letting out a choked gasp as your grip grew a little tighter.

“Yeah,” you sighed, still gently rubbing over his hard on. “I’m determined and stubborn and my parents didn't raise no quitter,” you said, trying to throw some humor onto this to deescalate the situation and it did the trick.

“The only thing is… I don't think I have a condom that would fit you,” you say, suddenly bashful.

“Oh… hm. I brought mine” Yunho started to pat his pockets hastily. “It’s in my wallet, in my vest, in the… car,” he said, voice growing quieter as he realized he will have to go get it.

You then hopped on your feet. Yunho's hips instinctively bucking up, chasing the friction.

“How about you go get it and come back to meet me in the bedroom?”

Yunho only nodded vigorously before you turned on your feet and walked to one of the closed doors of the hall, he couldn't stop his eyes from falling down to look at your ass roll in the black dress as you walked away. You turned back before disappearing behind the door.

“Don't take too long, ok?” you teased him with a smile.

Yunho didn’t need more to snap him out of his trance and run, no, fly to his car. He barged in the hallway of the apartment complex, not even trying for the elevator, he knew with his long legs he'd be faster if he took the stairs. So he flew over the two flights of stairs and ran to his car to practically rip the wallet from the inner pocket of his coat and stuffed the condom in his back pocket before swallowing the two flights of stairs again and coming back into the apartment, short of breath. 

As afraid as he was a couple of minutes ago to go faster with you, now every second where he didn't have you to himself felt like an eternity.

The apartment was completely dark except for a ray of light that was coming from under the door you disappeared behind. Yunho velvet traded across the living room to the hall and to the door, guided by the line of light, the golden thread he ought to follow to reach heaven.

He delicately pushed in. And he felt like he had opened Pandora's box. He found you completely nude, waiting cross legged on the edge of your bed for him. The dim light from the nightstand sweeping across your form and casting the otherworldly shadow of your divine outline onto the wall. You were absolutely sublime. A sight that went straight to his groin, pumping brand new and boiling blood to his half hard member. 

You sat up straight putting both your feet flat on the ground as Yunho approached you. You held your palm flat to him without a word and he handed over the magnum condom in a black and gold packaging. You settled it on the nightstand before bringing your attention back to the elephant (quite fitting term) in the room. 

Now that he was standing close to you and you were really at eye level with the thing you were really getting a feel for it. Yunho was indeed really big, the thick outline of his length progressed way down his pant's leg making it impossible to miss. 

You gently undid the button of his jeans and pulled on his zipper, the vibrations on his length making him frown, completely entranced by your hand moving on him.

You hooked your fingers onto the waistband of the pants and his underwear and very gently pulled the fabric down, Yunho’s open shirt still floating as his sides. Gradually you had a peep at the trimmed hair of his pubic bone and then you uncovered the base of his cock. He was incredibly girthy and it only got bigger as you continued to pull on his pants. It was only when you were mid thigh that the member sprung free infront of your face and you audibly gasped at the size. 

The girthy member sat heavily between Yunho’s thighs, the tip an angry shade of red and profusely leaking at the slit. Even if he wanted to, he couldn't have masked how eager he was for you. His cock has been leaking ever since you got in his car and he got to smell your flowery perfume without the parasitizing smell of smoke and alcohol from the club. But that he couldn’t possibly say out loud.

He held his breath when you wrapped both your hands around his base, his cock twitching at the minimal contact of your fingers interlaced around him. You were still measuring him, getting an idea. He was as long as your forearm and as thick as your fist. 

In other words, he was ridiculously big. If he had said one hour ago when you were back at the club that he was walking around with a literal third leg you would have laughed in his face and left him there. But now that you were seeing it with your very eyes, it was different.

Yunho grew nervous as you stayed there eyeing him down with this puzzled expression.

“So what do you say?” He asked, his toes wiggling on the carpeted floor nervously. 

You didn’t even say anything back, only aimed the tip at your lips and started to lick around the sensitive cock head. Yunho emitted the most beautiful sound you had ever heard, a deep sigh of relief and pleasure as he let his head roll back, his large palm instantly finding your hair to intertwine his fingers with it.

You licked around the tip thoroughly, earning more airy sighs from the brunette before you pursed your lips and sent a big wad of spit on his length. Making him moan a little clearer as you dragged your warm spit down to his base with both hands. You spat again to make sure to lubricate him thoroughly, before taking him in your mouth.

As soon as your lips wrapped around the tip, you heard Yunho softly curse from above you. Your lips stretched around the girthy tip with difficulty and slid down as far as you could manage until he hit the back of your throat, and you weren’t even halfway through. 

But Yunho didn't mind, it was the first time somebody even got that far and he swore he could have cum just by the look you gave him when your eyes snapped back to him and he saw your pretty face stuffed full of his fat cock, hair slightly disheveled by his doing, eyes glazed over with unspilled tears and your beautiful lips stretched to an unbelievable extent. 

You felt him twitch on your tongue before you popped him out, taking a deep breath and going down again. His free hand dipped down to play with your breasts, he cupped them and flicked your hardened nipples a couple of times making you moan on his cock. 

“Fuck baby,” he breathed. “Your mouth feels so good,” he panted. The praise made you confident enough to push your head a little further down, his cock reaching down to a brand new depth inside your throat.

“Fuckkkk,” Yunho sighed his hand on your hair holding you there for a second, just long enough for him to feel your gag reflex triggering and your throat clamping down on his cock trying to reject the massive foreign object that was obstructing your air pipe. When he pulled out again long strings of thick saliva linked your red and swollen lips to the raging tip of his cock and you coughed a couple of times, choking, the air burning your sore throat.

“Need you on my tongue right now. Wanna taste you,” he whispered as he practically tore the shirt off his shoulders and slipped out of his pants. He carefully pushed you towards the bed so you would be laid on your back and very gently his big hands wrapped around your thighs to pull them apart to finally lay eyes on your center. 

Yunho licked his lips in anticipation, his mouth watering at the sight of your glistening folds covered with your slick, the transparent liquid cascading from your entrance and running down your thighs, some even staining your bedding. He swiped a single finger on your slit, gathering some of your arousal.

“Fuck, baby you got this wet just by having my cock in your mouth,” Yunho smirked when he noticed you twitched at his words. So you liked a little dirty talk, that was good to know. He brought the digit covered with your essence to his mouth, moaning against his own fingers as your sweet and velvety nectar enveloped his tongue.

“Fuck, you taste so good.”

Yunho pulled on your hips so your ass would sit at the edge and he kneeled on the ground. He planted a couple soft kisses on your inner thighs and pubic bone, making you squirm, itching to be touched in the right places. Maybe next time he’ll make you beg for it but today he needed you as much as you needed him.

He gently wrapped his mouth around your clit, taking the swollen bud into his mouth and sucking on it gently. Your reaction was immediate, it has been quite a long time since you have felt the touch of somebody else and Yunho was good at what he was doing. 

He went down to dip his tongue inside of you, parting your folds with his tongue and tasting the deepest parts of you, you arched your back and let his name fall off your lips.

“Aaah, hmph… Yun-ho,” you struggled to say as you unconsciously started to roll your hips against his face, smearing your juices over his cheeks and chin.

The way you called out his name and fucked yourself back on his face, shamelessly using his mouth to chase after your high had him leaking on the floor, as his aching cock sat heavily between his thighs.

That’s when he chose to stick two long fingers inside your tight heat, making you moan louder and stop dead in your tracks. You don't know how he managed that but he somehow found the perfect angle right away, curling the two digits right into your sweet spot, so you stayed put, exactly where you were while he pumped his fingers in and out of you.

He alternated between fast strokes then slower ones when he rolled his fingertips inside you teasing your g spot, to then go back to the quicker pace. Taking you on this rollercoaster of pleasure where he made you go up and down but never to your peak. 

Yunho had no intent on making you cum, at least not right now, now he only wanted to prep you to take him inside you. He was stretching you out as much as possible to make sure he could fit his huge cock inside your tiny little pussy. 

You had figured out that much but that didn’t keep you from slowly growing frustrated and therefore hungry for more. Much more.

So he slipped a fourth finger in.

At this point your body was covered with a light sheen of sweat making you beautifully glisten as the dim night stand lamp shone on you. 

You gasped at how full you felt, arching your back, your hands fisting the sheets as you called his name again.

“You’re doing so good.” He pressed a soft kiss on your sensitive bundle of nerves. “My good girl,” he cooed before he started to swirl his tongue around your clit, making your cunt clamp harder around his fingers.

You felt yourself throb at the possessive pronouns. You both knew you weren’t his. But for the both of you it was what felt good. You’ll have plenty of time to feel lonely again in the morning. Just for tonight you belonged to each other. 

Your hands flew between your thighs where your fingers untangled with the long strands of brown hair, tugging at it, your frustration getting the best of you. 

Yunho enjoyed the dull burn on his scalp as he kept on abusing your swollen bud, sucking, licking and flicking it. Until he felt you throb on his tongue. But before he could finish you he felt you pull on his hair hard enough for him to look up at you.

You were panting, your chest heaving up and down, disheveled from thrashing your head around and pushing it back into the mattress.

“Wanna cum on your cock,” you urged, panting, as plainly as that. After all of this teasing, you wanted to save your appetite for the main course. 

Yunho could have bursted and cum all over the carpet with just those words. But instead he got back up and grabbed the rubber from your night stand, tearing the wrapper away and rolling the condom down his huge cock.

When he came back between your thighs he laid his cock on your stomach, and that's when you fully understood what you got yourself into. The sheer weight of the thing was in itself impressive but that was nothing compared to the size of it. It reached all the way to your midriff, the massive thing laying menacingly on your bare, sweaty skin.

Yunho then took the thick base in his hand and rubbed his tip at your entrance, coating it with your slick.

“You ready?” he asked, cheeks taking a pink hue, flashing you the most adorable of coy smile as if he wasn’t tongue fucking you a second ago. You only nodded, bracing yourself. Scared but foremost eager to be filled up again.

“Try to breathe, okay?” he advised right before he started to push himself inside you. Instinctively you let out a whine at the way your walls stretched around him as he gradually, very gently pushed his huge cock inside. You caught your lip between your teeth as your brows met on your forehead. Yunho was very attentive and didn't blink once to make sure he could read your micro expressions, so he could adapt the pace. He knew when to let you take a breather and when to keep pushing in. So when you let out a small cry and your hips jerked upwards slightly, he stopped.

“Am I hurting you?” he asked, soft voice laced with concern. 

“Well the obvious answer is yes.” You chuckled softly at his adorable worried expression. “But at the same time… It feels so good,” you said, half whispering, half moaning. And you felt his cock twitch inside you.

That was the very first time somebody has ever said that to him. He would lie if he said he didn't like that.

“Please keep going,” you said, whiny tone bordering on begging. 

“Fuck baby,” Yunho breathed out. “Say that again.” His voice was somewhat urgent.

“Please Yunho, fill me up, I wanna feel you all inside of me.”

Yunho cursed under his breath again. He didn't need more to push the last couple of centimeters inside you. And just like that you’re full of him. He flipped both of your legs on his sturdy shoulders and leaned forward to kiss you. The softness is masked by the state of extreme urgency in which you both find yourselves in, the kiss is messy, sloppy, heated. Your teeth grazing against each other before you stuck your tongue out to let Yunho suck on it, you taste yourself on his tongue making you light headed before you bit on Yunho’s bottom lip to let it snap back against his teeth.

“Please fuck me,” you whispered against his teeth.

“Anything for you, baby.” 

He started to pull out gently and pushed in again, with each thrust he went faster, his large frame still laid over you as he fucked you in the mating press. The position was just perfect, with both his feet firmly on the ground, Yunho had great control over his movements and could easily adjust the pace as a plus the angle was absolutely divine.

You whined and whimpered and cried with each stroke, his big cock perfectly brushing and poking at your soft spot, deep, deep inside you. A spot nobody had ever been able to reach, not even yourself. The new found source of pleasure made you cry out in bliss, your cunt taking a vice grip around Yunho’s huge cock.

“Fuck,” you yelped. “You’re so…aaah… big,” you moaned. “Feel so good inside me. Please keep going. Fuck me please,” your words were slurred, you barely made any sense but it didn’t matter. Yunho knew exactly what you meant.

“You’re so good, baby. So good to me.”

He moaned against your mouth, prying your jaw open with his thumb and letting his tongue slip into your mouth, his warm spit running down your tongue. You swallowed his saliva, along with each of his pants and grunts. The way you felt around him was surreal, your wet sopping cunt coating him with your slick making it so easy to slip in and out of you, so much so that at some point he found himself absolutely drilling into your cunt completely losing himself inside you. The lewd wet noises bouncing off the small dark room as he rearranged your guts.

“I won't last for long,” he whined, eyes closing shut as he tried his best not to burst.

“I’m almost there,” you said, your legs tensing up and wrapping around Yunho’s hips.

He stood back up straight and put one hand on your waist firmly gripping your side to pull you back on his cock every time he thrusted in. Admiring the outline of his cock poking inside of your stomach creating a visible bulge with every snap of his hips. He laid his large hand over your stomach, lightly pressing, making you yelp and feeling every come and go as his thumb found your swollen and throbbing clit.

The sudden pleasure made you cry out a sob. Yunho started to play with your clit as he was deep inside your guts. Drawing tight circles on it, teasing it so perfectly that you grew even tighter around him.

“Please be my good girl and cum for me,” he said in a strangled moan, knowing he could only last for a few more seconds. Snapping his hips into yours, making your tits jump with each powerful thrust. “God please, please cum,” he begged in a desperate little whimper, as he wanted nothing than to make you cum but he also knew he could only keep up for a few more agonizingly long (at least to him) seconds.

That's when you crossed the edge, your walls fluttered around his big cock as you reached your peak, white heat radiating from your core to each of your limbs, making your body shake uncontrollably and your cunt grip into Yunho’s length like its life depended on it. You were completely delirious with pleasure, the earth shattering orgasm washing over you and convincing you the monstrous cock plowing into you had definitively ruined you for anyone else. You didn’t see how you could ever be satisfied again with any other cock.

The twitch of your cunt is Yunho’s queue to finally let go as well. He pulled out of you and ripped the condom away. He only had to give it a couple of strokes before cumming all over you. Thick white ropes of burning hot cum spurting out of his slit and crashing on your heated skin. Yunho had never cum so hard, his cock is like an open tap. Squirting cum all over your stomach, your tits and some powerful spurts even reaching your pretty face, which you hurriedly lick off your lips and chin. Making Yunho’s huge cock twitch in his balled fist.

He nearly collapsed when he’s done, his legs suddenly turning into jelly. But he still managed to haphazardly wander into the bathroom to give you a clean washcloth he found and even goes back to the kitchen to get you a glass of water.

After that he blacked out next to you, completely drained (in more ways than one). You chuckled next to him when you heard him snort softly as you set your still half full drink on the nightstand and switch off the light. Naturally finding your place snuggled up against him.

***

The incessant vibrations of his phone abandoned in the pocket of his jeans was what woke up Yunho the next morning. He got off the bed half asleep and picked the device to answer the call. Because he was still in a daze he didn’t check the caller but he definitely should have when he heard Wooyoung yell at the end of the line.

“SO DID YOU GO BACK TO HER PLACE??? DID SHE SURVIVE THE DRILL?????” he shot out question after question, not taking the time to breathe between each one. Yunho shushed him right away, looking back over his shoulder at your sleeping figure.

“Shut up! she’s sleeping!” Yunho said as he struggled to turn down the volume on his phone.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!” the speaker resonated even louder. “Come by to my place we’re going to brunch, you’ll tell me all about it and then I promise I’ll play all the League you want for the rest of eternity!” Wooyoung pledged as Yunho chuckled. That's exactly why he loved him.

“Brunch and then League?” Yunho heard your groggy voice from behind. “That sounds fun…” 

“I’ll call you back,” Yunho briefly said before hanging on a screaming Wooyoung. He beamed at you. 

“Wanna come with?”

IF U WANNA HELP ME PLEASE REBLOG WITHOUT USING THE COMMUNITY LABELS 🖤

a/n: oooffff omg that was something. i had so much fun writing this and omg i loved yunho in this he was so cute but hot ughhhhh. tell me if you liked it. that would make me so happy and i will def kiss u if do <3333

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[leighsartworks216]

Sweet Tooth

Sylus x gn!Reader

I was nodding off while writing this cuz 1. I need a nap so bad and 2. It's just so peaceful the vibes of this fic are really nice

Edit: fixed some minor phrasing

Warnings: biting, kissing, established relationship, fluff, food/baking

Word Count: 1,771

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Love and Deepspace Masterlist

AO3

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No matter how long you spend with Sylus in the N109 Zone, your sleep schedule remains persistent. Sure, you stay up as late as you can to spend the night with him while he’s up and about, but the darkness, warm ambiance, and your body’s own internal clock turn against you sooner or later.

Sylus does the same for you, too. He grumbles about it, but he does enjoy spending the morning with you when you’re extra cuddly, searching for the last vestiges of your sleep before you have to get up. He’s better at staying awake, but you catch him dozing a lot, head tilted back and eyes closed as he lounges in a chair near you. It’s adorable. You love the effort you both put into trying to maximize your time together.

But today, Sylus is conked out. He was gone for most of the night and came back worn and weary. He didn’t have any visible injuries, but when you cupped his cheek and used your Evol, you could feel how drained his own was. He nearly fell asleep right there, eyes closing dangerously as he leaned into your touch and the soothing warmth of your ability. You dragged him to his bedroom, kissed his forehead, and told him to sleep. He mumbled vague threats about you waking him up, but they fell into silence before he finished any of them.

With the mansion to yourself for the day, you have to find ways to occupy yourself.

The twins and you play Kitty Cards for a bit, but they cheat so horrendously and tease you for losing, so that’s out until Sylus can sit behind you and glare at them any time their fingers try to slip more than one card from the draw pile.

You go through his books. A few are interesting; texts about Protocores and Evols stealing your attention for a time. But they have you yawning and wanting to crawl into bed with Sylus.

You even go to his dedicated exercise space, but without a partner to spar with, you don’t even work up a sweat before leaving.

Normally, you aren’t so restless. Any other time you had to spend the day with yourself, you were able to settle on something for long stretches of time, even into the night if you weren’t careful. Now, you can’t sit still for 30 minutes.

You check the time. 9:56. It’s not even 10 yet and you’re already struggling to come up with things to do. You fall into a couch in one of the lounge rooms with a humph, pulling out your phone and preparing to fall into a doomscroll through old Moments posts.

Fortunately, one of the first few posts is the perfect motivator not to: a recipe promising to be the number 1 rated chocolate chip recipe. You click on the article and scroll through until you reach the comments.

These are the best cookies I’ve ever had!!!

mmmnn wanna eat the dough raw its sooo gooooood

Tossing my store-bought cookies out rn I will only be making these from now on

It seems promising enough… You look at all the ingredients you need. It also seems simple enough for you to manage without burning the place down. You’d be surprised if the kitchen wasn’t already stocked with everything listed. But just in case…

You head down to the kitchen where the chef is coming up with meal suggestions for dinner. He’s jovial, always red in the cheeks and bright eyed. You wonder how he got hired on. You ask for help gathering the ingredients you need, and he’s happy to bounce from cabinet to fridge getting everything. Once they’re all laid out on the counter, you thank him and ask if you can have the kitchen to yourself. He bows and tells you to have fun, going over his list of notes as he leaves.

You turn the oven on, setting it to the correct temperature and letting it preheat. You forgot to ask the chef about bowls and measuring cups, but you find them easily and set them on the counter with the ingredients. Once you have music playing (quietly) on your phone, it’s easy to lose yourself in the process.

The world hones in on each step. You measure out the flour and sugars, mixing them together with a whisk. Without any preplanning, you have to soften the butter in the microwave before you can add it. Eggs are cracked against the countertop, calcium-rich shells scraping quietly as you set them aside to throw away later. A dash of vanilla, and a generous amount of chocolate chips, and the dough is ready.

You find a couple baking sheets and line them with parchment paper. As you roll small amounts of dough in your hands, you bounce on your feet, excited to taste your sweet treats in just 15 short minutes. You pinch off a little extra from one dough-ball and pop it into your mouth. If this was a preview for the finished product… You hurry to get them into the oven and set a timer.

To distract yourself from constantly checking the time, you clean up your mess. You put away what you remember the designated locations of, and set the rest aside for somebody else to deal with.

Hm, you should probably leave some for the chef, as a thank you for letting you borrow the space. And save a few for Luke and Kieran, or else they’d bug you for “forgetting” them for the rest of your days.

You open up cabinets until you find plates. There’s a set, the perfect size to divide the batch of cookies between three parties. You reach for it, stretching to be on your tip-toes. You gasp as a hand comes into your vision. When you try to back up, you hit a wall of muscle. A clingy wall of muscle, if the way his arm wraps around your waist and holds you there is any indicator. He grabs a plate from the stack.

“Ah, I need three,” you quickly tell him. He sighs, but does as you say, bringing down three plates and setting them on the counter. As soon as his hand is free, you’re being fully embraced by Sylus, both arms holding you close to him as he presses his face into your neck. You reach up to run your fingers through his hair. “Did I wake you up?”

It doesn’t seem like he’ll answer for a moment, until he breathes in deeply and presses a soft kiss along your shoulder. “No. I could smell whatever you’re making through the whole mansion.” His voice is quiet and rough, affected by his slumber.

You smile and turn your head to kiss his forehead. “I’m making cookies,” you say. “They’ll be done soon. I was gonna leave some for the chef and the twins. But most of them will be just for us.”

You glance at the timer, anxious to know how much time is left, but you still have several minutes before you need to worry about it. You tap his arms and he reluctantly loosens his hold, enough for you to turn around and hug him back. His arms tighten once more.

“You’re clingy when you’re tired, you know that?”

He huffs a laugh against your skin. “As if you haven’t insisted on having me carry you around everywhere before because you were, quote, ‘too tired to walk anymore.’”

You tug playfully at his hair. He groans and bites your neck. It’s not harsh, but it does sting. You’re sure it’ll leave a mark regardless.

“Now you’re just being mean,” he growls.

You laugh and kiss his cheek. “Only a little. I think it’s cute.”

He doesn’t answer. His teeth nibble lightly along an invisible path, interspersed with light kisses. One of your hands combs through his soft hair, scratching his scalp lightly as you pet him. The other trails slowly along his back, side, and around to his stomach, searching for injuries hidden beneath his clothes. He notices, but he says nothing.

“Are you okay?” you whisper to him.

He pulls his mouth from your skin, finally lifting his head to look down at you with half-lidded eyes. The striking red of his irises seem softer right now, like the delicate plumage of a cardinal. “I’m alright.”

You study his face, as if you’d know if he was lying to you. But you believe him. So you nod and press a feather-light kiss to his lips. He sighs at the contact, like he’d never been touched so sweetly for hundreds of years. It’s such a beautiful sound.

The oven’s alarm startles you out of the moment. Sylus groans with a frown, letting you go and stepping away until his back hits the kitchen island. Your hand squeezes his side apologetically before you pull away.

You don a couple of oven mitts and open the oven door. The cookies are all aligned on the baking sheets, golden brown and slightly oozy from the overkill of chocolate you added. You excitedly pull each pan out and set them on the stovetop, before turning off the oven.

The recipe says to let them cool for five minutes… but you don’t have the patience for that today. You grab one of the plates from the counter and a spatula from a drawer, and carefully deposit some cookies onto the plate. You’re positively beaming when you bring them over to Sylus, holding the plate up to him.

“Want one?”

He hums. “Yes, but…” He takes the plate from you and sets it behind him. “You’ll burn your mouth if you eat one now.”

You half-heartedly glare up at him. “C’mon, Sy, I’ll be careful. I worked hard on these!”

“And you can stand to wait a few more minutes to taste the fruits of your labor, sweetie.”

“You just want more cuddles, don’t you?”

“Of course.” He grins. “Is there any better way to pass the time?”

You sigh, long and dramatic. But you wrap your arms around him, resting your head on his chest, right over his erratic heartbeat. He tangles a hand in your hair this time, cupping the back of your neck to hold you in place.

He feels the exact moment you go to reach for the plate and snatches your hand away from it, holding it captive by intertwining your fingers together. “Sneaky, but I’m not tired enough to pull that trick, kitten.”

You chuckle and press your nose against his septum. “It was worth a shot.”

[absurdthirst]

Fucking Fungus {Joel Miller x F!Reader}

Rating: Explicit

Word Count: 6k

Warnings: SEX POLLEN, dub con, post apocalyptic world, scavenging, guilt, shame, desire, Joel having a bad attitude, mentions of periods, rough sex, neediness, unprotected sex, cream pie

Comments: Coming across Wymore, NE, you hoped to find some much needed supplies for the coming winter but you find that the fungus has mutated in dangerous and frightening ways. Needing to insure that there are more hosts to infect in a very basic kind of way.

🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉Happy Birthday @storiesofthefandomlovers!!!! I love you and hope you have the best damn day! In thotty tradition, here is a sex pollen to celebrate another year around the sun!🎊🎉🎊🎉🎊🎉

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Click Keep Reading only if you have read the Rating and Warnings and understand the warnings may not be complete to avoid listing spoilers. As AO3 says 'creator chooses not to use warnings'. You also agree that you're the right age to be consuming anything here.

The world has changed in the past twenty years. None of it for the betterment of humanity. The crunch of the dried leaves grinds under your boots and your head rotates left and then right as you watch, listen. Waiting for any sign of life or more importantly, danger. The weight of your rifle is heavy in your hands, although you hold it down, unassuming but ready to be lifted at a second’s notice. 

“I don’t know why you don’t just hook it over your shoulder.” Ellie snorts, her backpack bouncing slightly on her back from the steps that seem so unencumbered by worry. Why should she worry when there are two fully armed adults on either side of her. Her own personal guard in a manner of speaking. “There hasn’t been anything out here for daaaaaays.” She drags the word out like it's the most horrible thing in the world that it’s been peaceful. 

Joel snorts, rolling his eyes as you glance over at him and then look back out at the surrounding terrain. “Yeah, that’s why we are on guard.” He grunts, even though his own rifle is on his shoulder. His hand gripped the shoulder sling loosely but he had only just put it up there half an hour ago after you had taken your turn relaxing as much as you can. “it’s too fucking quiet.” 

He’s right. After the disasters that had been Kansas City, you had tried to avoid major cities, but even in the small towns, you had come across plenty of cordyceps and clickers. You hate the clickers with a passion.

The isolation can account for a lot of the silence. Miles stretching between remnants of civilization. The crumbling buildings and overgrown roads give the entire midwest a sense of peace. It’s unnerving. 

Your grip adjusts, head rolling around your shoulders slightly to try to loosen the knot that builds up in your shoulders after so long. The weight of your pack isn’t as heavy as it should be, the rations not exactly filling since you had to escape that one clicker in Du Bois, Nebraska. Your pack had been ripped and most of the food you had been carrying was lost. 

You glance over at Joel, noticing the way his shoulders seem to hang, almost a reflection of the way you feel. “We need to risk a larger town.” You murmur quietly, knowing that his first instinct will be to argue with you. You stumble slightly over a rock and hiss when you feel the hole in the sole of your boots. 

“Too dangerous.” Joel snorts, shaking his head even as he watches you regain your footing. “I’ve got some duct tape in my bag.” He reminds you, knowing that you should probably reinforce that shoe before you lose the sole all together. 

“It’s not just shoes.” You protest, trying to ignore the way that Ellie groans obnoxiously loud and stomps her foot. 

“Come on, man!” She throws her own arguments into the ring. “I need tampons! We could find them if there was jack shit out here, but there’s not. Do you want me to attract wild animals?” She presses, glaring at Joel who looks equal parts horrified and unconvinced. She cracks an evil grin. “Circling us in the wild as I just leave behind a trail of blood? Aaaaand tears.” She adds, lifting her brows. “Periods are really emotional things.” 

Biting your lip to keep from snorting, you watch as Joel; normally stoic, no bullshit Joel, can’t seem to string together the words to respond. His eyes slide over to you, almost pleading with you to say something. 

Your brows lift in question and he twitches slightly, his dark eyes unhappy with you not immediately jumping in to save him. “We could use the food if we can find any.” You rationalize, smirking when his brows pinch together and he looks like he had just been betrayed. 

“Clean underwear!” Ellie adds. “Or….cleaner. And a heavier fucking coat.” She shivers slightly and you can see that is the moment when Joel caves. He acts like a prick most of the time, but he’s got a soft spot for the kid. He won’t admit, maybe not even to himself, but he looks over at the faded and nearly rusted out sign. 

You continue walking, not pressing any more and you can hear the grumbling thoughts that are rolling through Joel’s mind. The now half hearted protests about why this is such a bad idea but you wait for the sigh. 

Almost even with the sign is when it comes, heavy and it sounds almost pained. Like he is going against everything he believes in. “Stop.” He huffs, shuffling to pull his bag off his back and kneeling down with a groan and the small pops of fifty plus year old knees. Unzipping the pocket where he keeps the Atlas and flips the worn pages to Nebraska. Glancing back at the road behind you and then at the sign before looking at the map. Tracing the route that you had already traveled before looking ahead at the towns that were on highway 77. 

Ellie doesn’t say a word but she practically bounces on her toes as she waits for his decision. You know that he’s going to agree, it’s just a matter of which town he chooses. He knows the truth of the situation. Winter is going to come quicker than any of you want, your food supply is low, you could probably all use a new set of boots, and all of you would kill for a halfway decent musty mattress to sleep on. Four walls and a hopefully non-leaking roof over your heads would be the icing on the cake. 

“Wymore is coming up in fifty-eight miles.” He taps the map and looks up at you to see what you think. 

Ellie shuffles slightly and instead of grinning, you crane your neck to look at the map yourself. “It looks like it’s bigger than the last few towns, but at least it’s not like we are running into Lincoln.” You hum before you nod. “I say we try.”

“Yessssss!” The teenager pumps her fist in excitement and she grins when Joel rolls his eyes. You’ve noticed that like any normal teenager, her favorite activity is annoying any kind of parental unit and pushing boundaries. This applies to Joel whether or not he likes it. “I want to find another joke book too.” 

Joel groans but you just turn around, grinning yourself as Joel mumbles under his breath, stuffing the map back in his pack and zipping it up. Joel and Ellie are alike in a lot of ways, especially their penchant for mumbling. 

You resist the urge to offer him a hand up, knowing he will be even more pissy if you do. For someone who complains about being older, he gets downright grouchy when he’s reminded of that same fact. “Well then, the quicker we get there, the quicker we don’t have to hear ‘are we there yet?’.” You snort, making Ellie grin shamelessly as she shrugs, knowing she will do exactly that. 

“So let’s get going.” She doesn’t wait for anyone, just setting off down the road and leaving the two of you to catch up with her. 

****

It takes you nearly three days to get to Wymore. All of you are tired, but Joel is the one who barely sleeps, even when you force him to lay down. It’s as if he cannot stop trying to protect Ellie, and also you, long enough for him to rest. He gets upset when he has to sleep, staying up until he is nodding off. The coffee supply has been exhausted and it’s probably a good thing. He would drink it all day to the point where his hands would shake from too much caffeine. Still he just wouldn’t trust you to make sure that no one snuck up on you for a few hours until he was past the point of being useless. 

The first signs of the town are a welcomed relief but it’s also an added source of tension. Each mile that you had traveled had added to the fear that this might be the time that you fail. That something goes wrong and someone else dies. The road here has not been easy and the losses have weighed heavily on all of you. Joel still won’t even mention Tess and you hate it when you wake up in the early morning hours to find him staring down at the broken face of his watch with a look that breaks your heart. 

Every approach into a new area can mean danger, either from the clickers or from humans and honestly you don’t know which one you fear more. Your gun is back in your hand, the weight of it familiar and comforting as you pass the first gas station, the windows busted out and dried fungus clinging to the building. 

“Fuck.” You hiss, uneasy at the presence of the fungal vines, even if they look like they aren’t active.

“I wonder why it looks pink.” Ellie frowns as she squints at the building. “It’s usually an ugly brown color, right?” She looks towards Joel for confirmation, but he’s busy frowning at the building himself. 

“Maybe this isn’t a good idea.” If the cordyceps have spread this far out of town then there’s a possibility there are still active branches closer to the supplies that you are looking for. 

“Come on man.” Ellie groans, kicking a dirt clod. “There’s nothing for miles. It’s probably all dead.” 

You know that Ellie is probably right, but it’s a risk. You bite your lip, looking over at Joel. “Why don’t we sweep the town and we can see?” You ask, knowing that if everything is dead, you could desperately use the rest. Cordyceps rarely return en masse when the vines have withered and died. It could be a safe place to recharge and for Joel to sleep for more than ten minutes at a time. 

You’ve stopped walking as you talk, Joel looking around as he contemplates your alternatives. To be honest, there aren’t many and both of you know it. Not without a lot of backtracking which none of you want to do. 

Joel sighs and you know that he’s going to agree. He turns to Ellie. “Don’t fucking touch anything until we say it’s alright.” He points at her for good measure, as if his finger would impress the importance of his words. “Got it?” 

“Got it.” She huffs. “Jesus, you act like we haven’t done this before.” You roll your eyes and look away, knowing you shouldn’t encourage her right now. 

It takes hours to make your way into the center of town. Not because you are blocked by clickers or avoiding humans, it’s because you are stocking up. It’s like the fungus took over this town and just let it rot. Nothing inside the first few blocks of town is disturbed. No looting has been done here, plenty of supplies to be had. 

Both you and Joel have been cautious but slowly optimistic as you’ve found boots and heavy jackets, gloves and hats. A new pair of clothes have been rolled into everyone’s bags and you’ve even grabbed another pack to fill with the mylar sealed packs of camping food from the sporting goods store. It was a miracle that nothing had been ransacked, but it makes you wonder exactly what the fuck happened here. Did the army sweep through and round up all the residents right away? It would make sense, but then why were there dead spores of the fungus here? You haven’t seen one body so far and it makes you nervous. 

“This place is a fucking gold mine.” Ellie grins like a kid in a candy store, perhaps because you’ve actually found candy and she has been sucking on the jolly ranchers until the top of her mouth is raw. “Now we just need to find a place to sleep. I want my own room.” 

Glancing over at Joel, you expect him to immediately tell her no, but he doesn’t say a word. Continuing to look around like he is expecting a clicker to pop out from the doorway of the local McDonald’s, now completely covered in that strange pink fungus. It’s like he doesn’t even hear her as he frowns at the building. 

She takes that as approval and immediately starts talking about how she’s going to spread out. Making you snort when she talks about sitting in her underwear for an hour. There hasn’t been a lot of privacy out here on the road, so you can understand that desire. 

“Joel.” You murmur his name softly, knowing that the best thing you can do is to find the motel and get settled down for the night before the sun sets. Even if this town is as safe as it appears on the surface, you would rather not be fumbling around in the dark . He doesn’t look over at you, still staring at the overgrown building as if it’s holding the secret. Maybe it reminds him of the Boston Museum, ominously covered with the tentacles of the fungus and the horrors that you had found inside it. “Joel!”

“What?” His head whips around, body tense as he’s ripped out of his thoughts. Relaxing when he finds you and Ellie staring at him. “We need to find the motel.” You remind him, nodding towards the sun getting lower in the sky. “I think we could all use a good night’s sleep.” 

He stares at you for a moment, his eyes searing your face, looking for some hidden meaning beneath your words before he glances over at an eager Ellie. “Yeah, sure.” He agrees, adjusting his rifle to sling it onto his shoulder and adjusts his now much heavier pack on his back. “Probably on the other side of the main drag.” 

His new boots thump against the cracked pavement. The roads leading deeper into the town is the guide towards what will hopefully be a comfortable bed and at least eight hours of sleep. 

Your own new boots feel pretty good, but maybe a day or so here, going through supplies and really making sure that you can take on the coming winter would be a good thing. Allowing you to break in the shoes without blisters. You’ll have to talk about it with Joel after Ellie sequesters herself for the night. 

It’s about another fifteen minutes before you get to the small motel that looks like it will be a good place to spend the night. Half the building is covered in another large cluster of the fungus, the pink hue looking particularly bright in the fading sun. 

“We’ll get some keys.” It will be better than breaking down doors, especially since the motel wasn’t equipped with the keycards that the high end hotels had started switching to before society came crashing down. 

The bad news is that the motel doesn’t have any adjoining rooms, so Joel and Ellie get into a small spat about her having her own room, Ellie eventually winning after promising that she will block the door with a dresser and he’s allowed to sweep the room before she locks herself in. Half the building is so overtaken by the vivid pink fungus that you swear looks like a big splat of bubblegum thrown over the walls. 

She doesn’t even want to have dinner with you and Joel, making the man go through the room and then telling you both goodnight and shutting the door in your face. Making you laugh as Joel frowns at the door, rethinking this entire situation. 

“Well, you can have a room to yourself too.” You offer, smirking as he cuts his eyes towards you. You know that Joel would rather everyone sleep where he can keep his eyes on them, so you getting privacy is off the table. 

“Shut up.” Joel grunts, walking down towards the next room and kicking it open, watchful even though you’ve both already been in the room and deposited your bags. It’s a nice room, two double beds so each one of you can stretch out and relax. 

You laugh quietly and decide to walk down the railing towards the portion of the building that has been overtaken by the fungus. Your curiosity about this variant is finally getting the best of you and you want to get a better look at it. 

It’s thick. The tendril that is draped over the metal railing of the second floor, wrapping around it and up the support column. You bite your lip, tilting your head when you see the withered remnants of some kind of flower. What kind of fungus sprouts flowers?

You jump when something touches your back, whirling around to find Joel behind you, holding his hands up. He smirks at you, his eyes crinkling in amusement. “Fuck you.” You hiss, narrowing your eyes and he huffs. “What are you doing?” He asks. 

Turning back towards the fungus, you sigh. “This is different from any other kind I’ve ever seen.” You comment, stepping closer to it only to feel Joel reach for your arm to pull you back. “It’s dried out.” You remind him, jerking your head towards the husk of the cordyceps. “Have you ever seen anything like this?” You know that he spent a lot of time sneaking out of the Boston QZ, it’s possible he had seen it before. 

He grunts, relaxing his hold on you and he shuffles slightly closer, looking at the flower buds that extend from the tendrils. His own suspicions about anything fungus related is deep, but it’s dried. “I haven’t.” He admits after a moment, narrowing his eyes slightly and trying to think if there is any reason why this pink coloring has the hair on the back of his neck standing on end. 

“So it’s something new.” You bite your lip and lean in, feeling the disapproval radiate off of Joel in hot waves but you ignore him. Tilting your head and reaching out to touch one of the dried flowers. 

“Don’t-”

The second your finger touches the wilted bloom, it bursts open, spurting you and Joel behind you in a cloud of pink dust. You gasp, holding your breath but there’s no hope for not inhaling the pollen. 

“Fuck!” Joel coughs, shaking his head and backing up so quickly he hits the side of the building and reaches out to drag you away from the lingering cloud of dust and starts to practically beat it off the two of you. “We need- we need-” He leans over and starts coughing, obviously having inhaled just as much of it as you had. 

“We’re okay.” You gasp, shaking your head and brushing the dust off your clothes. “We- it’s dead. Right?” You hate that you are asking that, but you hadn’t expected that from a dried out fungus.

“It- we should clean up.” Joel blinks, the pollen making his eyes itch and that has to be the cause of the rush of heat that slides over him. It’s just adrenaline. Fear. Anything that would scare both of you would make the slight nip in the air disappear and make you feel like your skin is superheated.

The water is gravity fed. The large cisterns on the roof are still full and while it’s not warm, perhaps a cold shower might be better right now. Joel drags you both to the room and locks the door, although he doesn’t push a dresser in front of it in case Ellie needs you in the night. 

In the bathroom, you are shaking as you start to strip down, worrying about how stupid you just were and if you completely fucked yourself. The anxious fear covering the way your skin seems to burn and feel so sensitive to everything. Shuddering when your hand brushes over your thigh as you push your jeans down and kick them off before you pull your shirt over your head and remove your bra. 

Clean up. Get the pollen off your skin and cool down. Your body seems to be working on overdrive. Your nipple hard under the cold water and instead of gasping in shock, you moan softly. Enjoying the sensation and reaching for the bar of soap that is still wrapped in plastic. 

Hurry up, hurry up. Joel paces around the room, his hands curled into fists. Practically sweating even though the air is cool as the sun sets. His body feels like it’s on fire, like he is battling a sickness. 

Over and over again, he goes through the symptoms of the infection of the cordyceps, there’s no veining, he’s stopped and checked his eyes and reflection in the peeling mirror about twenty times in the five minutes you’ve been in the bathroom. And he doesn’t fucking think the fungus makes his cock harder than a fucking rock in his jeans. 

He’s not thought about sex in months. Nothing beyond fleeting moments of attraction to you that he swiftly buries under guilt and responsibility. Normally, it is when you’re bent over and your ass is presented to him in such a way that he thinks about sinking into you from behind, or when your shirt pulls tight over your breasts and he imagines cupping them in his hands as you sit on his cock. Immediately dismissed and ignored as he reminds himself of how he had failed Tess, he doesn’t deserve to find warmth and comfort in your arms. 

Now, it’s all he can think about. The urge to palm his cock makes his fingers twitch and he almost moves his hand over his crotch before he flinches back to reality and tries to examine his face in the mirror again, wondering if his eyes are bloodshot from lack of sleep or if he is infected. 

Scrubbing your body is nearly painful, wanting to stop and touch yourself, but you can’t. You need to get this done and get out so Joel can shower. Still, despite the cold water, you feel like you are on fire when you shut off the water and realize that you didn’t bring your bag into the bathroom. You will have to go out there in nothing because you can’t put those clothes back on. Not until they have been washed. 

Moderately dry, you hear Joel bang on the door. “Hurry up.” He growls, making you clench your thighs together at the raspy tone and hating how it spears through you. You know Joel isn’t interested in you, hasn’t ever looked at you like that and the crush that you had on the man had been buried deep. 

“I’m done.” You don’t have a chance to be embarrassed as you open the door and Joel practically shoves past you into the bathroom and slams it behind him. “Fuck.” Your annoyance cools the heat for a moment, but it’s only temporary. 

The water is icy, but still, Joel curls his hands into fists against the shower wall. He’s fucking hard. Harder than he had probably ever been in his entire life, even when he was a horny teenager and would have fucked anyone who let him between their thighs. He’s not felt like this ever. The need to touch himself builds to the point where his hips are rocking into thin air against the spray of the water. Want clawing up his throat and pooling in his stomach in a heavy knot. 

You don’t dress, you can’t. Crawling under the covers of one of the beds, you listen to Joel groan in the bathroom, it’s muted over the sound of the shower but it’s sexy. All of his sounds are sexy, from the low grunts he gives when he’s stiff and sore, to the huffs and groans of annoyance. It’s all sexy to you. The rasp of his voice when he’s not spoken for a few hours. 

Closing your eyes, it’s easy to give in, to let your hands drift over your skin. He’s not here, you can take care of this frantic need that is swirling inside you. You just need to slide your hand between your thighs and ease it. It wouldn’t take much more than a few swipes of your fingers against your pulsing and aching clit. 

Trying to fight it, you concentrate on your breathing, in and out. Inhaling slowly and holding it so you can exhale when the burn in your lungs tells you that you’ve reached your limit. It helps, but not much. Not when you’re imagining Joel in his shower. Touching him. Being free to touch him and having his hands on your body in return. 

Your hands slip over your breasts, squeezing them hard enough to moan softly and your legs shift to press together. Clenching around nothing and wishing that you were full while your hands start to move down over your stomach. 

The first touch is almost a relief, your entire core quivering as your fingers press against your clit. It’s overwhelming and not enough. You need more, fingertips pressing and rubbing around the puffed up bundle of nerves. You’re already soaked and can feel it dripping down your slit. 

Spurred on by that insatiable need, you slide your fingers around your entrance and start to press them inside. Biting your lip to keep yourself from moaning. Imagining that it’s more, that it’s a cock that is starting to break you open and fill that void that is aching. 

You are so caught up in the bliss of that first stretch of your fingers that you don’t hear the shower turn off. The quiet curses coming from the bathroom are muffled by the rush of blood in your ears, the feeling of relief coursing through your nerves and taking over. You don’t hear the click of the lock and the turn of the handle. The door opening doesn't even register as you plant your heels on the bed and push your hips up, needing to get your fingers deeper, not quite reaching the spot inside you that craves fullness. 

You don’t hear him until he chokes out a sound that is pained and low, like he’s injured. Your eyes pop open as you lurch up off the bed, your fingers ripping themselves out of your cunt hard enough to make you whimper. Fixed on Joel’s towel draped body, tented over his waist. 

“Joel, I-” “Fuuuuuck.” He growls, his eyes closing and his hands bunches into fists, one holding his towel and the other by his side. “I’ve tried to not think about you, about touching you.” His words are rasped out, strained against his vocal cords. “I’ve goddamn beat into my brain that you aren’t to be thought about this way and now, I can’t stop.” His stomach clenches and his body twitches as he struggles to keep still. 

Your chest heaves and you see his eyes drop down to your uncovered tits. His jaw clenching and his Adam’s Apple bobbing as he swallows. “I - I need to touch myself.” You admit breathlessly. “I - it hurts so bad and I need something inside me.” 

Joel groans again, shuddering so violently that you can see him shake from where you are. “I’ve jerked off in the shower twice and it's still hard.” He drops the towel, revealing his hard and leaking cock, making you whimper at the sight and clench around nothing. “I think that- that we- that the flower-” “I don’t care.” You moan, shaking your head and crawling to your knees and shuffling forward. Showing him all of you and so goddamn desperate to touch him that you think you are about to explode. “Touch me, Joel. Fuck, touch me, please.” You beg, your hands on your own body. “We-” He shakes his head and his face changes, morphs into pain.

“Fuck me.” You hiss, watching as his resolve breaks. His cock bounces as he lunges for you, hard and swift, driving you back to the bed with a bounce. Almost as if he is attacking you. 

He’s not gentle. His mouth finding yours in a harsh kiss, your permission unleashing the coils of restraint that he had tried to put on himself. His grip bruises as he hauls you up the bed and settles between your thighs. 

You’ve always attributed Joel with rough gentleness. The type of man who would make you ache and then hold you close. Groaning in pleasure when you find out that is exactly what Joel Miller is like. His hands spreading your thighs with a desperation that proves he is just as afflicted by this fungal pollen as you are. His cock hard and pressing against your folds as he rocks his hips forward to line up. Almost unable to find the hole with his eagerness to sink into you. 

“Joel, hurry.” Your hands shake, holding onto him and urging him closer to you, frantic with need now that you know that you are going to have him inside you. 

“Goddamn, I’m trying.” He hisses, hating to let you go so he can take his cock in hand. Rocking into his own grip as he shuttles his hips forward. “I’m fuckin’ trying, sweetheart.” 

You whimper when you finally feel him pressing against your entrance, choking out a sound of need that is animalistic. Only to cry out in bliss as he pushes inside you without another delay. 

He groans, eyes cinched shut as he slides inside you to the hilt, burying himself in your heat and feeling that coil in his stomach tighten even more now that your walls are around him. Immediately starting to move just as soon as he fills you, driving by that need and burning in his very veins. 

It’s exquisite, the pain and pleasure blending and fusing in your stomach, nerves alight and responding to every small movement. You can’t get enough of him, you need more. Wrapping  your legs around his hips, you rise to meet his harsh thrusts. Clenching down around him every time he hits that spot deep inside you that you couldn’t reach with your fingers. 

He shouldn’t be inside you, he shouldn’t be touching you, but now that he is, he can’t stop. Turning his head, he presses his lips to yours and slides his tongue into your mouth. Needing more. Kissing you like he had imagined a thousand times before. Giving into every urge he has had since the day he met you and repressed before right now. Snapping his hips forward sharply and pulling every groan out of your mouth to swallow down. 

Every thrust makes it better, eases that burning in your core, your cunt slick and squelching every time he drives into you. He absorbs every sound you make, almost greedy for them. His hips jarring as they slam into you. Rocking you both up the bed. 

“Oh god,” breaking away from the kiss, you moan into his ear. Closing your eyes as he pants and puffs while he fucks you. “So deep, so deep, Joel.” Your nails drag down his back, making him hiss in pleasure and pain. 

“Shit.” He groans your name, lost in the rhythm of his thrusts and the building pressure. “You needed this?” He growls, making you clench down around him hard and whimper his name. “Yessss.” You agree, nodding against the pillow. “Needed it so bad.” 

“Fuck, you’re so fucking tight.” He huffs, burying his face against your neck. Continuing to pound into you, and not letting up even though his back is screaming in pain. His body won’t let him do anything but rock his hips. Driven by a need that overrides everything else. 

His words make you burn, making you even more desperate for him. Your hips rock up and legs tightening around his waist even more. Loving how his cock stretches you out and scrubs against every nerve in your cunt. Lighting up your body until you are gasping on the edge of that much needed orgasm. 

Every plunge into your body brings him closer to cumming, desperate to feel that emptiness, that wrung out filling once he has filled you. He shouldn’t cum inside you, he knows that, but he’s not going to be able to stop himself. He can barely pull back enough to rock his hips back into you. 

His arms have banded around you, holding you into place as he fucks you. Deep and primal, as if he is trying to fuse the two of you into one. His cock punches into the depths of your body that you never imagined anyone reaching, but he touches it with ease. Your body pulsing with that need to come apart. 

“So close, I’m so close, baby.” You whine, body starting to tremble underneath him. “So close.” Your nails dig into his shoulder, grounding yourself to him in desperation. “Joel.” 

“I gotcha.” He groans, eyes closed and his breath fanning against your skin. “I’mma take good care of you, sweetheart.” He promises. “You’re gonna cum all over my cock, ain’t cha? Just like you wanted.” 

His words throw you over the edge, that need built up so tight inside you that it busts on the next thrust. Lights careen and collide behind your eyes, bright and beautiful as your whole body ignites into pleasure like you’ve never experienced before. Crying out loudly and soaking  him in a wave of your juices. Cumming harder than you ever have before. 

Joel growls your name, his hips stuttering as you come apart around you. Unable to hold back any longer. He buries himself deep into your hot passage and paints your walls with sticks ropes of his seed. Panting against your lips as he empties himself body and perhaps his very soul into you. 

Both of you pant, relieved and exhausted from the pure exertion of need as you had taken from each other. Joel presses into you, trying to catch his breath, but the fire is still burning low in his belly, his cock still not softening as it twitches inside you. 

“Oh fuck.” You feel that same desire still curling in your stomach, not satisfied by the intensity of the orgasm that you are still coming down from. “Joel-” 

He huffs and shakes his head. “Don’t-” he presses his lips to your again, body screaming as he starts to move again. “Shhhhhh.” 

The need still burns and both of you are still locked in its fiery grip, not yet free from the desire that washed over you from a burst of pollen. 

****

“What the fuck man, open the door!” The thudding on the door finally penetrates the bone deep sleep you had finally fallen into. You don’t know how many time Joel fucked you, or how many times he had spend himself inside you as you blearily open your eyes. 

Joel grunts, slowly opening his own eyes and unwinding himself from the tangled together position that you had passed out in. The knocking on the door keeps on. “Joel!” Your name is also shouted, Ellie starting to sound somewhat panicked when neither one of you is immediately opening the door. 

“Fuck! I’m coming.” He drags the top blanket off the bed and wraps it around his waist before flinging the door opened to blink into the harshness of the sun. “What?” He growls roughly, making Ellie’s eyes blow wide with shock.

“Holy shit, what happened to you?” She demands, pushing into the room and stopping short when she sees you sitting up in the only bed that has been disturbed, the sheet anchored beneath your armpits. “Oh shit, you fucked.” She gasps, turning and shooting Joel an impressed grin. “Way to go, old man, you made a move.” Her grin quickly turns into an expression of mild disgust when she realizes that she’s congratulating you two on having sex. “Uh, I’m gonna go now.” She huffs, wrinkling her nose and pinching it. “It smells in here.” Waving her hand in front of her face, she darts back out the door and Joel just stands there for a moment before he rolls his eyes and goes to shut the door before he thinks better of it. Sticking his head out of the room, he shouts after Ellie. “Stay away from the fucking fungus!” 

You snort, grinning to yourself as your body starts to ache. Fucking fungus indeed. 

[revelboo]

An idea for the Metroplex x reader fics in the long term, it’d be interesting to consider the reader finding a way to merge with him sometime down the line! It might be difficult to explain with a human reader, but a little plot convenience never hurt anyone.

If you haven’t read the Windblade comics, merging is where a regular cybertronian connects with a titan, sharing one mind and also having access to their entire frame. It’s cool stuff. When Windblade does it, she does see a vision of Metroplex (relatively regular sized) holding out his hand to her.

I’ve been thinking about titans a lot and I think while merged Metroplex would be able to feel as if he’s being held like a normal bot, even if that’s not really happening. I ramble on. The Windblade comics are so good I recommend them to everyone, that is my message. Thank you for delivering us top tier fics with lightning speed 🫡

Looks they’ve pulled the IDW TF comics from Kindle aside from what I already own. I need to track down a copy of the Windblade series and drag the bulk of my physical comics out to reread.

I Can Feel You Pt 5

Metroplex x Reader

• It’s a slow process. One word at a time. Repeating yourself until he slowly, painstakingly responds. Simple things since that’s all you’re really capable of with the limited phrases in the educational files, writing a question and repeating it out loud for the massive Autobot. Then quickly copying down his response to try and translate it. You spend all night that way, stretched out on the floor, the aching in your back and shoulders distant as you focus on Metroplex. On talking to him, needing to let him know you see him. He’s not alone or forgotten.

• Centering himself with the feel of your heartbeat, he watches over you as you sleep, cheek on your outstretched arm where you’d fallen asleep waiting on him to form a response as day broke. All night speaking to him, that knowledge spreads warm through his spark even as exhaustion drags at him. Making such small things, detailed things, so difficult, sapping his energy and ability to focus. But to be able to talk to you, it’s worth it. Do you understand how much the effort means to him? That you’d tried at all when no one else bothers?

• It’s mid afternoon when you wake up, body aching from laying on the hard floor. Pushing yourself upright, you lean back against your berth. Reluctantly pulling yourself to your feet, your sleepy mind almost doesn’t notice the dark rectangle of missing floor in a corner. Moving closer, you peer into the darkness below, seeing stairs winding down and as you look, biolights flare, running like circuitry in the walls. Did he want you to go down there? He must, but your nerves jangle as you lay a hand against the wall, faintly uneasy at the claustrophobic space and darkness. He can’t know how much you hate small spaces, but he’s reaching out again. You can’t just ignore him. “Okay,” you whisper, skin prickling as you start down the stairs. Realizing he’s leading you into his massive frame and unsure how you feel about that.

• Your palm slides along him as you move slowly down the stairs and he can feel you trembling faintly. Afraid? Why now? Flaring biolights for you as you keep going, he’s aware of the way you keep looking up toward the rectangle of light, of the way your breathing is becoming less steady. Trusting him enough to keep going, though. But so silent. He’s so used to you talking to him constantly that he’s very aware that you’re not talking. Just a little further, though. Deeper inside the labyrinth of his frame. He’s not even sure if this will work, but wants to try. Needs to know.

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[platinumshawnn]

to strangers | benjicot blackwood x fem!bracken reader

a/n: yes i am fully aware i should be writing him as davos out of respect for the accuracy of the show and character but i'm still mourning what could have been. also leave it to me to write a little prequel tying this to my own fic a little bit by writing what this guy was really up to on his "hunting trip" lol. have some poorly written smut anyways, if anyone sees that I accidentally called the bracken’s estate “hedge stone” instead of “stone hedge” no you didn’t shut up it’s been fixed

synopsis: benjicot likes to rile up the women he likes i guess

Content warnings: MDNI — 18+, adult language, mentions of blood, violence, and war; era related sexism, smut (fem p in v sex, unprotected sex, degradation) [not proofread]

Word count: 5.5k words

you had never been one for conflict — especially not that of drunken councilmen who became red in the face, knocking over cups and irate over matters of politics as they shouted. despite your father’s efforts to maintain diplomacy and restraint during meetings, it almost always ended in a screaming match at the table these days — even your uncle could not bear to sit through them, and often doubled up on the amount he drank just to sit through them, barely able to walk as he stumbled out.

you were almost always met with apologies from your father as he found you outside the doors of the hall, given a squeeze of hand, and ushered to bed. you did not care for politics, but there was no escaping the recent events — it affected everyone, reaching beyond stone hedge’s walls, but your father the most. he appeared to have aged significantly over the past days, eyes exhausted and on edge whenever she greeted him.

but this particular night had been…a lot more than usual. your cousin, aeron, had come back, shaking as he’d returned from a survey of the lands with your brother; having got into another squabble over the boundaries with some blackwood boys who had dared to come too close to their land, in aeron’s words. the whole thing dripped of theatrics — “that filthy…cunt, benjicot”

your head popped up from the handkerchief you were working to embroider, your mother on your right as the pair of you sat in one of the several cabinet rooms that your father had designated for your lessons as a child; having since used it as an escape from the noise. even your mother had been alerted by the commotion as the boys clamored into the hallway, looking out through the door that had been cracked open to provide some airflow in the room. there, your cousin stood, his nose bloody and still dripping as your father summoned the maester while ranting to your uncle, attempting to shush the boy-knight who was on the border of shouting. your interest was only peaked by the name, sitting up and turning your body towards the three men, ceasing what you had been doing and placing the handkerchief in your lap to listen.

your father had made eye contact with you as aeron continued, grabbing him by the shoulder and reaching to close the door before you could hear as he dragged your cousin away. your mother had encouraged you to continue, the look she gave reminding you of proprietary and of your place — with a curt nod, you had returned to your task.

that had been at midday, and since then, there had not yet been a break. you could hear the shouts from your room, and you could picture your father amidst it all, trying to bring order and peace — a task he was successful in every so often, silence falling over the room and quieting to hushed whispers that would only last a short time before the yelling continued.

sometime before midnight, the silence had ended finally, stood at the top of the stairs as the councilmen dispersed; other members of your house trickled out. you had stayed up, waiting to approach your father, in hopes to get some sort of information on the outcome. but the exhaustion was clear on his face, being met by a soft, “on the morrow, not tonight, my dear.”

he had pressed a kiss to your head and brushed past you, receding to his chambers for the night, leaving you at the base of the stairs. as you went to retreat to bed yourself, you heard the cursing mutters of aeron who had finally exited the great hall doors behind you, still seething after several hours — you were relieved at least to find that his nose had since stopped bleeding.

“aeron,” you called out, turning to descend down the four stairs you had climbed just as he stopped in the hallway towards his own chambers. his eyes found you. you approached him, hand reaching out to grab his face between your fingers, turning to assess his face for any additional injuries you may not have noticed earlier in the day. however, much to your relief, he was otherwise unharmed, “you really ought to stop antagonizing those men— you’re going to get yourself killed.” you scolded, sighing and dropping your hand.

aeron winced slightly, more from the reprimand than any lingering pain. “I can’t just let them insult our family, you know that.”

you shook her head, a mix of frustration and concern in your eyes. “I know, aeron, but there’s a difference between defending our honor and looking for trouble. what good will it do if you’re dead?”

He avoided your gaze, jaw clenching. “I just can’t stand the way they look at us, like we’re nothing and like they can do whatever it is they please. Like they own the riverlands. someone has to stand up to them if your father won’t.”

“standing up to them doesn’t mean getting into brawls. use your head, aeron. we need you alive, not battered and bruised,” you said, your tone softening.

aeron had sighed and muttered something unintelligible, only able to make out a ‘yeah’ before he withdrew to his own rooms.

you had tried to sleep — you did. but at some point, the heat, humid and sticky, had made it impossible to; instead, turning and tossing in your bed, growing increasingly frustrated before you stormed from the bed with a huff. the conversation between you and aeron had been stuck in your head, the sight of him bloodied haunting you — how did benjicot look then? was he unscathed and unharmed?

you knew he had always been stronger, a fiercer opponent but you couldn’t help the worry that plagued you.

you had quickly changed as best you could in the dark, without falling over in a way that would alert the guards; pulling your dress on and watching underneath the door as you smoothed out the fabric, doing your best to be silent in opening the door. peaking your head out and checking that both ways were clear, you slipped out and closed the door behind you, walking on your toes as you snuck through the house and out a backdoor that led into the fields.

you did your best to stay low and out of sight as you bolted through the fields towards the boundary stones, trying to remember who would be on surveillance — you couldn’t for the life of you remember, despite your best efforts to eavesdrop on your cousin's conversation earlier.

hell, you weren’t even sure you would see him.

sometimes you did, other times you didn’t — weeks would pass sometimes before you saw him again. sometimes it was hours before you saw him, sat, pulling at grass as you waited, knees to your chest.

today felt like one of those days, as you approached the river, out of sight from any prying eyes and sat by the edge, your eyes straining to see through the dark. the moon did little to penetrate the dense patch of trees. as the hours passed, your head had begun to drop against your knees, dozing off. there would be no way of keeping yourself awake all night, after a long day, opting as a last ditch attempt to awaken your senses by dipping your toes into the stream as you kicked off your shoes.

the water was a nice welcome in the heat, a content sigh leaving your mouth as you kicked your feet; splashing the water upwards. the wait seemed to drag on forever, growing impatient and trying to decide on whether to return home or not.

you’d give him another hour at most. If he didn’t come, then you would go home.

your gaze scanned the river, serene and peaceful as the rushing body of water sloshed around your feet; cool and refreshing. you’d have time.

you stood back from the water and fumbled to strip down to your chemise, discarding the dress to the grass by your shoes before easing down and into the water, letting out a hiss. slowly, wadding into its shallow depths, you moved forward until the water touched your thighs, lapping at your body as you cupped some of the water between your hands and tossed it up in front of you.

“you’re far from home, lady bracken.”

your head whipped toward the sound of a voice from the treeline, water sloshing around your legs as you faced the boy who the voice belonged to. the ends of your skirt had been released in the turn into the water, feet tangling in the soft sand of the river’s floor, just catching yourself from falling into its rapid rush by the luck of the Gods; the ends of the fabric now soaked by the flowing water that swirled around you. there he stood, barely peeking out from the cover of the trees as if that would somehow conceal his identity, hugging close to the trunk of one while he watched you from his shaded spot. there was hardly any way of seeing him in the night, the moon’s light not quite reaching him but his voice -- you would know that voice anywhere.

you stepped forward, halfway across the shallow depths of the river that flowed between the two lands of bracken territory and blackwoods, the cold water just reaching mid-thigh as you looked up at him, “as are you.” you quipped, heart rate rapid as your heart thrummed against your ribs.

despite the limited visibility, you could see his mouth quirk up in a half-smile, his amusement clear as his head tipped to the side while his eyes continued to watch you closely like some sort of prey. the limited sense of vision allowed you the ability to hear as he inhaled through his nose, breathing outwardly before he finally stepped forward to the edge of the water, his hand at the hilt of his dagger on his hip as his eyebrows rose, “and do you always take moonlit strolls through my land?”

you stilled, hands resting at your sides as your fingers dipped into the cool water below you, the cold nipping at your fingertips, “only when called for— the night was too beautiful to resist.” you replied, chin lifted to look up towards where he towered over you, “and what’s your excuse?”

he snorted, boots shifting against the dirt with as he moved to widen his stance, “the same perhaps,” he said, eyes glancing up to the sky above the riverlands that was littered with stars, “or maybe I was hoping to find a curious lady wandering too close to my territory.” he said, his voice a low rumble.

there was nothing threatening about his tone, however, his body language said otherwise — his eyes scanning their surroundings before looking back to your face, his body suggesting that he was on edge. as though he expected bracken men to burst through the trees behind you any minute. you took another languid step forward, closer to enemy territory, the thrill of it never failing to excite you.

“are you suggesting I’m trespassing?” you asked, your words steady as you bordered taunting the man who eyed you.

you could see as he squinted, narrowing his eyes at your words, “just…observing that you’re quite far from where you’re supposed to be at this hour, my lady.”

you hummed, eyebrows raised as the water continued to lap at the fabric of the cream coloured chemise that had been worn underneath the dress of typical bracken colours of yellow and brown having been discarded at the edge of the grass. you could see the moment his eyes lowered to scan down the length of the fabric, disappearing into the water and drifting higher up your thighs, bordering translucent against your skin, slow in dragging his eyes along the length of your body, “but i suppose the river doesn’t care for borders, does it?” he suddenly asked, his eyes returning to meet yours.

your mouth curved upwards, a wry smile on your face as his gaze emboldened you, “no it doesn’t, but neither do I, it seems. I don’t believe the assize said anything about the river.”

benjicot tutted condescendingly at her, smug as his hands shifted over his dagger, “careful, you're starting to sound like your cousin, bracken.” he warned, tone sharp, “do you not ever worry about what might be lurking in the shadows? his words came lighter now, the tension gone from his voice.

you let out a dry laugh, beginning to feel the effects of the frosty water that reached your hips the further you wadded, a cool breeze causing your skin to prickle with goosebumps. you shivered, sucking in a deep breath through clenched teeth, “only when they carry a dagger and a half-smile, I suppose.” you said.

his hands twitched, the grasp at his blade loosening as he seemed to contemplate reaching forward to drag you from the water at the sight of your shivering frame. however, he stopped himself and instead lifted his chin, mouth pressing into a tight smile, “then its a good thing I’m in a benevolent mood tonight.”

your head lowered to look down at the water, using your fingers to skim its surface, “I will take my chances.” you confidently said, lifting your gaze after a moment of pause.

he let out a ‘hmph’ sound, watching as you slowly closed the gap between the two lands to stand directly in front of him, the water shallow once again and only meeting mid-thigh. the now soaked gown did nothing to provide any ounce of modesty, sheer and clinging to your lower half as you stared up at him. your eyes followed his movements as he crouched, bringing him eye-to-eye as an elbow planted against one of his knees, “well, I suggest you be careful, my lady. the night is full of dangers.” he said, his voice low and quiet.

“and so is the day, but I’ve never been one to shy away from either.” you said, voice matching his volume before you stepped forward until you stood against the ledge, your other hand planting in the grass just between his boots as you lifted your right hand toward him, “are you going to help me or shall I call for my men?” you taunted, a grin on your face.

he rolled his eyes, smile broadening as he stood upright and bent to grab your hand, using his strength to pull you up and over the ledge, out of the waters with ease. you were brought to your feet, stood face-to-face with him, his face leaning close to yours as he spoke, “you wouldn’t dare.” he muttered, “how do you plan then, to explain your presence so close to blackwood land at this hour? alone, in a nightgown, with the heir?”

your chest brushed his as you leaned in towards him, “I’ll figure something out— you underestimate me.”

he hummed with a nod, his nose bumping yours in the close proximity. though his mouth did not yet make contact with yours, his breath fanned over lips, his eyes scanning your face, “oh, I’m sure you will. but do you think they will believe you?” he asked, the lazy smirk on his face laced with arrogance, “do you think there won’t be whispers? said whispers, questioning your maidenhead?”

“they’d be foolish to make such accusations against the daughter of amos bracken.” you countered, shoulders squaring with pride.

the man in front of you let out a sardonic chortle, releasing the hilt of his dagger and finding your hip, gripping the fabric of your chemise in his fist, stepping back and forcing you with him, “oh please.” he mocked, his hand dropping from your hip to reach down to your thigh and begin to hoist the soaked fabric upwards towards your waist, leaving you bear to the elements, “if only they could see their lord’s daughter, out parading herself like some whore on blackwood land. What do you think they would say then, hm?”

“‘Tis not their business what I do, nor my father’s.” you muttered.

“oh but i think they might say otherwise. you’re a noblewoman,” he jeered, his knuckles brushing against the bare skin of your belly as his hand dipped below your naval, “a highborn womb.”

you knew benjicot did not share their views -- in the very few occasions he had opened up during your late night escapades, red in the face with anger, rambling on about the audacity of his councilmen as he dressed. he had ranted about what the very outlook had done to his mother, that women were more than for breeding. but he enjoyed knocking you down a peg sometimes, humbling you back down to earth during these moments. he liked to mock the sanctity of your womanhood, even if for a moment, but then he would go back on himself and praise you once all was said and done — praise the very thing he mocked. However, on this particular night, something about his words lit the flames of pure, feminine rage, staring eye to eye with the man you had visited countless times over the past months.

“I am more than that.” you muttered, trying to keep your voice steady.

he let out a melancholic hum, “you think so?”

he spoke to you like you were a child, who lived under the guise of a delusion — like a childish dream that you were expected to grow out of. the tone of his voice, paired by the sudden feeling of his hand between your thighs bred a slew of confusing emotions to spread within your chest; shamed and desperate, humiliated and seething as his fingers found the sensitive bud between folds that were slick with arousal that had you hot with embarrassment, fingers gliding up along your folds as you gritted your teeth, “how dare you—!”

the nature of his words stung when you knew how much he despised when other men looked down on women the way you had grown accustomed to; somehow after he had entrusted you enough to open up to you, he still had the nerve to throw it in your face—

he caught your hand that came up towards his throat, eyebrows raising as if to warn you, a grin on his mouth as his hand between your thighs stilled, “no need to be so hostile, sweet girl.” he said, guiding your hand down to your side as he moved to drive your back towards a tree, that hand coming to hold your chin in the space between his thumb and fingers, “I know you are a brave, resilient woman…” he quietly muttered, face coming close to yours and trapping you between his body and the tree, a knee coming between your thighs.

despite the rage that still burned within you, scorching like a wildfire, the warm contrast of his fingers on cold skin was welcomed; jolting up as his fingers pressed against you, fingers circling the bud and earning a soft sigh of a moan as you reached out to grab him, pulling him closer as though you were trying to crawl underneath his skin and become one. His mouth finally made contact, attaching itself to your throat and placing open-mouthed kisses to the skin, nipping the delicate skin with his teeth as his fingers worked against you.

“my clever, beautiful girl.” he praised, mouth reaching your collarbones.

you belly clenched, another moan elicited by his words as your hands fisted the cloak around his shoulders, his hand moving briefly to tug the fabric of your gown back up and out of his way as it dropped from its place around your hips. benjicot had a way of leaving you breathless and desperate, a flustered mess under his touch, the only man that could draw out the carnal sounds of pleasure; broken sighs and crying out as his middle and ring finger pushed themselves into you.

by the roots of his hair, you brought a hand to the back of his head and tugged him towards your mouth, his lips encapsulating yours in a feverish kiss; all teeth and tongue. you cried out, muffled by his mouth, as his thumb continued the prior pace, rubbing blind shapes into your clit as your mouth dropped open, too distracted by experienced fingers that slipped in and out of you with ease to reciprocate the kiss, “oh—, fuck.”

“yes, just like that,” he encouraged, voice soft. “just relax, my love.”

the weeks of pent up hunger and anticipation for this moment curled within you, settling into your lower belly, thighs attempting to clench around his hand. though you were stopped by the firm, strong thigh that had been planted there to prevent such from happening, his hips pressing into yours.

“ben, please…” you cried out, beginning to become overwhelmed between his mouth that returned to your throat and his hand, his pace increasing.

rather instead, he knelt suddenly, head buried beneath the thin chemise that draped over his head as he leaned into you. his shoulders brushed your thighs as his mouth replaced his thumb’s task, latching to the bundle of nerves and leaving you gasping, gripping his hair as your chest heaved. a low groan vibrated through your core from the man below you, reaching every end and nerve of your body as you struggled to keep up on your feet as your peak washed over you. his arm wrapped up underneath your right thigh, holding you against him and pressing against your hip as if that would somehow ground you as you nearly collapsed against him, your entire body alight as your walls squeezed around his fingers, clenching so tight it could restrict movement.

he was barely any gentler as he reemerged from your skirts, your head slumped back against the tree as he stood to tower over you once more, using the fabric of your gown to hold you up and practically manhandle you up against the tree that scraped your skin with each move. loose strands of hair had freed themselves from the half done up style, hanging in your face as you panted, mouth agape as you looked up at him; lips glistening with the reminisce of you — your cheeks heated with embarrassment, reaching out to touch his cheek.

he was beautiful, especially with you on his lips.

you dropped your hand and pulled him towards you by his hips, using the belt to your advantage to jerk him forward, his own lazy smirk mirrored by your tired smile as your hands fumbled to undo the laces of his pants. he aided in the task, skillful fingers pulling them with ease and shoving his pants down just enough that they sat high on his thighs, freeing his hardened cock from their confinement, your hand instinctively coming down to wrap around the length and stroke him. his lips parted above you, hands coming to cup your face, thumbs brushing your cheeks as his nose nudged yours.

you could have stayed there forever, in that moment — with the sight before you, a flush in his face as he appeared fucked out already, hair in a disarray from your fingers.

he reached across his chest to undo the clasp of his cloak, dropping it from his shoulders; getting rid of the only shield that hid you from any potential prying eyes — if anyone burst through the bushes then, there would be no hiding the act and it would be without any doubt what was happening.

‘parading herself like a whore on Blackwood land’

benjicot would be correct. if your cousins had dared to wander close to the borderlands again, you would be done for. there would be no protecting any ounce of your dignity and modesty at that point — you would be shamed by your entire family, and even worse, your father…he would be beyond furious and nothing less than gutted.

the thought and feeling of sheer shame it brought had you clinging close to the man in front of you, his body easily capable of concealing yours as one hand went above your shoulder to the tree, too blissed out to put an end to this and go home right then as his mouth pressed to yours in a sweet, affectionate kiss. you moaned against his mouth, his hand replacing yours around his cock to glide it up along your slit; gathering the slick as a means to lubricate the head of his cock, that already leaked pre-cum that mingled with your own arousal, the tip red and angry.

you braced against the tree, trying to regain footing, nearly slipping into him. he steadied you with the arm above your shoulder, wrapped around your ribs and forcing your chest against his as he slid into you, earning a gasp, breaths mingling as your own arm wrapped around his shoulders; clutching to him like your life depended on it — and in some ways, it did.

he held you up against the tree, having to shove the fabric of his tunic and doublet high up on his hips out of the way as he thrusted up into yours. each movement of his hips, shallow due to the position, his pelvis brushed against your clit, providing enough stimulation to leave you struggling for air as you fisted his clothing in your hands.

“fuck…” he rasped, lips brushing your own as they parted, each breath from his mouth sucked into your lungs as you relied on him for the strength to stay upright, slumping into him.

you were a jumbled, incoherent series of sounds as any paranoid thought of fearing your cousin's appearance went out the window, all consumed by him. your leg lifted by his hand guiding it by the back of your knee, thigh hooking around his hip and pulling him further, deeper into you and releasing a sob. you felt so full, it physically ached, walls clenching down around him and eliciting a hiss of air from him.

the sound of a branch cracking somewhere in the distance of the bushes caused you to jolt against him, eyes peering over his shoulder, wide and panicked as the thought crossed your mind again just how open you were to being exposed. you had done this time and time again, but never with his own men just several feet from the bush you were hidden among, and never during a war that had everyone on edge. the looming war had your father in particular paranoid, leading to an increase in fleets that surveyed the boundaries of bracken’s land and the thought instilled again, that fear that you could be caught.

as if he sensed your worry, his mouth caught yours in another kiss, forehead pressing to yours, “my love…” he muttered, bringing your attention back to him.

and he was successful, your gaze doing one last scan and straining into the dark before you were faced with his tired, lust-filled face, his cheeks flushed and striking even in the dark. the sweet name swelled your chest with adoration, your breath quick as you let out a moan, spiraling into bliss against him as his hand came between you to once again rub against your clit.

“ben, i can’t— please—“ the sound was weak and feeble, choked out and gasping for air as your body burned.

it was met by deaf ears as he gently shushed you, his mouth grazing yours, cock relentlessly rutting up into you with desperation — seeking for release as your walls fluttered around him. the groan he released was animalistic, deep from within his chest and carnal as you clutched onto him, struggling to keep yourself up against him and pulling him into you; seeking some kind of anchor to keep you grounded as his hand on your clit worked in unfaltering shapes that had you weak.

a final sob of pleasure left you as you clamped down around him, body tense and slumping against his as you released yourself around him. the final plea of his name and your walls were followed by a few sharp, final thrusts as he released his seed into you; fucking it deeper into you with a deep sigh of your name, a hand coming to your throat as he glanced down, his forehead resting against your chin.

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

you stepped up onto the riverbank of your family’s side; thighs still aching while benjicot’s hand supported you from behind before he too crawled up behind you, not seeming to care that he was now soaked from his thighs down. He stood back, allowing you a silent moment to wring out your dress of any water as best you could, hands twisting the fabric and letting out a grunt of exertion before letting it drop back down to your feet. You bent to collect your dress, benjicot finally stepped forward to help in your task of redressing, hands smoothing the fabric over your hips and straightening your shoulders with a gaze down, not daring to make eye contact.

you both knew this could have been the last time you saw each other, the dawning realization casting an awkward, tense silence over the two of you as you eyed the fabric of his doublet; making a mental note of its ridges, the pattern of the woven article of clothing. he tensed as you lifted a hand to touch the fabric with your fingers, too intimate a gesture as fingers ran across his chest and up towards his shoulder before stilling there, your palm coming to place over his heart.

“when are you to marry the…” he began to ask, his face screwing up in disgust at the idea as he spat out the name, “Lefford boy.”

you gaze only briefly lifted towards his face when he spoke, a small snort leaving you at his reaction and smiling softly at his antics. The smile dropped after a moment, though, inhaling and sighting out a breath as you straightened out his own clothing with gentle tugs, brushing over the fabrics, “two nights from today.” you quietly replied.

he made a sound of disapproval, his gaze on your face as you finally looked him in the eye again, his hand rising to capture your wrist in his hold. You had heard the whispers as well throughout the halls of stone hedge, trying to picture it as you looked at him, “I hear rumors you’re to be married, too.” you pointed out, his face twitching.

he released your wrist, stepping back and looking towards his feet as he fixed his sleeves, “My father plans to betroth me against my will.” He admitted, his words a grumble as he shook out his arms and looked up at you again.

you nodded, “who? has he said anything of his intentions?”

“some girl.” he admitted, shaking his head with a shrug of his shoulders, cheeks expanding with a sigh, “the lord paramount’s granddaughter, I suppose.”

you smiled, tilting your head as you looked at him, “serra tully, right? that’s her name, yes?”

“unfortunately.” he grumbled in complaint.

“she’s quite beautiful, I hear.”

he shrugged again, letting out another grunt.

“well, you should probably be on your way,” you said, hands folding behind you as he looked across the river, the sun already beginning to come up. “your men will be looking for you soon.”

benjicot nodded, stepping forward and reluctantly reaching out to your waist, fingers gently pressing into your sides as he leaned forward to press a sweet kiss to your mouth, “I will see you soon.” He said as he withdrew from your mouth, face still hovering close.

you raised a hand and pressed it to his cheek, smiling as you looked up at him, “yes. maybe.”

his eyes rolled as you lifted a hand as if to gesture ‘just as I suspected’, looking over you as a sharp whistle sounded from somewhere beyond the trees from his camp, hands dropping from your sides and straightening the belt at his hips; you watched as his fingers went to the dagger at his right hip, removing it from its sheath, much to your confusion. He withdrew it and used his free hand to pull one of yours forward, pressing the blade into your palm and looking at you, “a wedding gift.” He quietly said.

you looked down at the blade, frowning and blinking rapidly a couple of times before looking up at him, mouth opened in a stutter, “benjicot, I- I can’t accept this. you might need-”

“I have plenty back home,” he assured, wrapping your fingers around the handle of it and licking his lips that were then pressed into a line that resembled an amused smile, “have it…in case that Lefford boy ever pisses you off.”

you let out a laugh, a smile coming to his face as your hand dropped from his, the dagger clutched by your side, “very charming of you.”

He chuckled and pressed another quick kiss to your forehead before he brushed past you, hurrying into the river with a splash and sloshing back in the direction he had come from. you watched as he climbed out of the water, entering back out onto blackwood territory and giving one last glance as he retreated back into the trees.