#i had a bittersweet time filling the room up with clutter as if it's my own room huuuu living in a loft is a dream of mine - one day!

[mienar]

at the artist's loft

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[ginxyy]

Back to you

Mingyu was always there i just didn’t know it

The bass thumped against my chest, a tactile reminder of the vibrant club that surrounded me. The lights danced with a fervor that filled the air with an almost electric energy, swirling shades of blue and pink mixing in the darkness. I had promised myself that tonight would be about letting go. It had been a year since I walked away from everything my relationship with Woozi, the music that once filled my heart with joy, and the connections I had formed with his bandmates. Each beat of the music sent ripples through me, coaxing feelings I thought I had buried deep within.

As I sipped my drink, the bitter taste mingling oddly with the bittersweet memories, I scanned the crowd. Faces blurred into shades of longing, laughter, and blurred recollections. But then, like a beacon in the chaotic sea of bodies, I saw him Mingyu. My heart skipped a beat, a familiar rhythm rekindled in an instant. He was always the one who lit up the space around him, his smile illuminating the dimness in a way that made everything seem possible.

He hadn’t noticed me yet, his carefree laughter echoing above a sea of voices, and I held my breath. The last time I saw him, I was still tangled in the complicated emotions of betrayal and heartache.

Now, the ache felt like a distant pulse, but there was a different kind of warmth simmering beneath my skin as I watched him share jokes with a group of friends. It was surreal to see him, to feel part of my lost past tugging at my heartstrings.

I remembered the days that Mingyu and I would steal glances amidst rehearsals, those quiet moments filled with unspoken promises. He was always kind, always the one who could make me laugh even when the weight of my world felt heavy on my shoulders. But loyalty had pulled me toward Woozi, and any thoughts of a blossoming connection with Mingyu remained buried beneath the surface, locked away because of my relationship locked away because of betrayal.

But now, the heavy cloak of the past was beginning to lift, and I felt the unmistakable tug toward him, an undeniable magnetic pull. I bit my lip, hesitating.

Should I approach him? Would it hurt? Or was it time to reclaim a piece of my past that I never got to explore? The questions spun around in my mind like the very lights that ensnared the dance floor.

Before I could talk myself out of it, I pushed through the crowd, the music guiding my feet. As I got closer, the laughter around him seemed to fade, and for a moment, I thought he might sense me before I reached him. Mingyu turned, his eyes widening as they found mine. Time slowed, the room shrinking around us until it felt like we were the only two people in existence.

“Y/N?” he asked, a sweet recognition painting his features. His smile was infectious, that familiar warmth radiating from him like sunlight breaking through the clouds. All at once, the ache of the past mingled with the thrill of the present, leaving both a bitter and sweet taste lingering on my tongue.

“Mingyu,” I breathed, unable to suppress the smile that tugged at the corners of my mouth.

He stepped closer, and in that moment, I felt the world around us cluttered with life and exuberance fall away. “I thought I’d never see you again,” he said, his voice laced with genuine surprise mingled with a hint of something deeper, something unwrapped.

“It’s been a while,” I replied softly, memories rushing through me like a tidal wave the secret glances in the practice room, the way he saved me from gloomy silences, and how his laughter felt like a balm to my wounded heart.

“We missed you,” he said, his sincerity wrapping around me like a warm embrace. “The group hasn’t been the same without you.” The statement struck me. I hadn’t expected to hear that, hadn’t anticipated that they would still care.

Mingyu offered me a drink, and we found a quieter corner of the club, where the thundering beats were muffled a world within a world. We talked about everything, and nothing, filling the air with laughter and unfiltered conversation. As we spoke, I began to peel away the layers of hurt that wrapped around my heart, the grievances of the past slowly dissipating like fog under the morning sun.

“How have you been?” he asked, genuine curiosity flooding his features. It felt safe sharing that space with him, as if I could lower my guard for just a while.

“I spent some time finding myself, I guess. Learning to let go of what happened with Woozi. I didn’t think I’d run into you,” I murmured, suddenly feeling vulnerable.

Mingyu’s expression softened.

“About that… I’m really sorry you had to go through that. You didn't deserve it, Y/N.” His words hit me like a soft breeze, cooling the heat of my memories while sparking warmth in their place. In that moment, something shifted between us, an invisible tether that pulled tighter.

“And you,” I started, and then hesitated, struggling to find the right words. “You were always a light in the group. I just never had the courage to ”

“To what?” he prompted gently, his brow furrowed with concern, yet the flicker of hope ignited in his eyes brought me courage.

“To explore what was between us,” I confessed, holding his gaze. His breath caught in his throat, and for a long beat, I could see his heart unfolding in response to my confession.

“I always felt it too,” he finally replied, his voice barely above a whisper, the admission pulling a smile to my lips. “But I didn’t want to overstep. I thought it was just a crush, or friendship nothing more. But seeing you now, after all this time… I don’t think it’s just nostalgia.”

The club pulsed around us, yet we existed in our own Eden of forgotten promises and newly sowed seeds of connection. As the night carried us forward, I knew, deep down, that this reunion was more than just a chance encounter.

As the last remnants of our conversation faded into the background, an unspoken tension simmered between us, electrifying the air. The steady bass from the speakers thrummed through my body, syncing with my heartbeat as Mingyu’s eyes searched mine, warm and unwavering. In the dim lighting, his gaze was more intense, tracing over my face as if each feature held a memory he couldn’t quite let go of. His hand lingered on mine, a gentle yet undeniable connection that made the rest of the crowded club slip away into insignificance.

“Dance with me?” he asked softly, his words almost drowned by the music. Without a second thought, I nodded, feeling his fingers slip through mine as he led me back toward the dance floor. The pounding rhythm enveloped us, the colors of the lights pulsing around us like waves. As we found our place among the dancers, he pulled me close, his hand settling on my waist, and suddenly, everything around us felt like it faded into slow motion.

We moved together, our bodies effortlessly falling into sync, my hands resting on his shoulders as he held me near. Every step, every sway, seemed to draw us closer, the space between us shrinking with every beat. His eyes never left mine, and I could feel the same desire simmering within him, matching my own. Mingyu’s hand on my waist slipped lower, his fingers pressing lightly against my back, igniting a fire beneath my skin. His breath was warm against my cheek, close enough that each word he whispered felt like a caress.

“It’s like nothing’s changed,” he murmured, his voice rougher, hushed just for me.

My heart fluttered in response, and I felt my cheeks flush under his gaze. “But everything’s changed,” I replied, almost a whisper.

He leaned in, his face so close that our noses brushed, his eyes flicking down to my lips before meeting mine again. The tension between us was palpable, a fragile thread ready to snap. I felt the rhythm of the music slow to match the thud of my heartbeat as I let myself lean in, my lips brushing his. The world blurred, everything crystallizing around this single moment as he closed the distance between us, our mouths finally meeting in a kiss that felt both familiar and new, a promise that had been waiting for far too long.

His hands tightened around me, drawing me even closer as the kiss deepened, and I felt my own hands tangle in his hair. The years of longing, the quiet glances, the secrets we’d both kept buried all of it rose to the surface, released in a cascade of emotions I couldn’t hold back. I could feel the heat of his body against mine, his heart racing beneath my touch. Mingyu pulled back just enough to catch his breath, his forehead resting against mine as his hands moved up, cradling my face with a tenderness that left me breathless.

“Let’s get out of here,” I whispered, my voice barely audible over the music, but Mingyu’s eyes lit up with an understanding that sent a thrill down my spine. Without another word, he took my hand, weaving us through the crowd and toward the edge of the dance floor. We moved quickly, finding a secluded hallway that led to the back of the club. The pulsing music softened as we moved away from the main room, leaving us in a quiet, shadowed corridor.

The second we were alone, he pressed me against the wall, his lips claiming mine with a fervor that left me dizzy. The intensity of the kiss was overwhelming, and I found myself melting into him, my hands exploring the solid planes of his shoulders, the warmth radiating through his shirt. He pulled back, his breath coming in short gasps as he looked down at me, his gaze heavy with longing.

“Are you sure?” he whispered, his voice hoarse but laced with undeniable anticipation.

In response, I pulled him closer, capturing his lips in a kiss that left no room for doubt. The thrill of our closeness, the heat of his hands on my waist, the sheer exhilaration of being with him after all this time it felt like a dream. Before I realized it, I was guiding him toward the nearest door, a private restroom tucked into the back of the club. We slipped inside, locking the door behind us, sealing ourselves off from the world outside.

The room was dimly lit, with only a faint glow illuminating our reflections in the mirror. His hands found mine, pressing me back against the cool surface of the wall, and I felt the tension between us intensify, the air thick with unspoken desire. Mingyu’s eyes roamed over me, his gaze filled with an intensity that sent a shiver down my spine. He leaned in, pressing soft, lingering kisses along my neck, his lips tracing a path that left my skin tingling.

Every touch felt electric, his hands exploring with a gentleness that belied the passion simmering beneath the surface. My own fingers traced along his jaw, down his neck, feeling the rapid beat of his pulse under my touch. The intimacy of the moment, the stolen privacy, made everything feel sharper, more vivid. I could feel his breath, warm and steady, as he looked into my eyes, his hand brushing a stray strand of hair from my face.

“We’ve waited too long for this,” he murmured, his voice barely above a whisper, but the weight of his words settled in my heart like a promise.

“Then don’t make me wait any longer,” I replied, my voice soft but charged with anticipation.

He needed no further encouragement. In the small, enclosed space, we let go of everything—every hesitation, every worry. His touch grew bolder, our connection deepening with each passing second as we explored this uncharted territory between us. The outside world fell away entirely, leaving just us, wrapped in the warmth and passion of the moment.

As the night blurred into something we could keep only for ourselves, I knew this was more than just a reunion, more than just a memory of what could have been. It was the beginning of something real, something neither of us could walk away from anymore.

Mingyu’s lips found mine again, this time with a hunger that matched the heat flooding my body. The intensity between us grew, an unrestrained passion that had been simmering for too long. His hands, warm and steady, trailed down my sides, sending sparks wherever his touch lingered. He pressed me firmly against the wall, his body flush against mine, and I could feel the strength of him, the solid warmth that felt both reassuring and thrilling.

Our breaths mingled in the small space, filling the air with the urgency of our movements. His hands slid down to my hips, pulling me even closer, his fingers tracing slow, lingering circles along my waist that made my pulse race. I ran my hands up his chest, feeling the muscles tense under my touch, my fingers slipping under the collar of his shirt, tugging him closer. The heat radiating between us was palpable, every touch, every caress fanning the flames of desire that seemed to burn hotter with each passing second.

His lips moved down, brushing against my jaw, then lower, pressing heated kisses along my neck. The way he held me, the tenderness mingling with a barely controlled intensity, sent shivers down my spine. I tilted my head back, giving in to the sensation, his mouth trailing lower, his breath warm against my skin as he explored the sensitive spots that left me breathless. My fingers tangled in his hair, holding him close as he continued his slow, deliberate exploration, each kiss a promise, each touch igniting something deeper.

“Mingyu…” I whispered, his name escaping my lips in a breathless sigh. The sound seemed to spur him on, his grip on my hips tightening as his lips claimed mine again, this time with an urgency that left no space between us. His hands roamed over me, mapping the contours of my body as if he wanted to memorize every inch. The feeling of his touch, the way his body pressed against mine, the heat building between us it was all-consuming.

In the dim light, his eyes met mine, and the desire there was unmistakable, mirrored in the quickened pace of his breathing. He pressed his forehead against mine, his fingers sliding up to cradle my face as he looked into my eyes, his gaze filled with an intensity that sent a thrill through me. “I’ve wanted this… wanted you… for so long,” he murmured, his voice rough with the weight of his emotions.

I could barely respond, overwhelmed by the sensation of his hands on my skin, the warmth of his breath against my lips. Every part of me felt attuned to him, drawn to the energy that seemed to hum between us.

Mingyu’s gaze stayed locked on mine, his breath hot and shallow as he brought his lips back to mine with a fierce, unrestrained need. Every touch, every press of his fingers felt like a deliberate attempt to draw me even closer, as though proximity alone would never be enough. His hands explored my back, slipping beneath the fabric, his fingertips tracing small, heated circles against my skin. My own hands roamed freely, sliding up his chest, feeling his muscles tighten beneath my touch, his heartbeat pounding as fiercely as my own.

Our breaths mingled, fast and shallow, while the room around us blurred, leaving only the warmth of his skin, the roughness of his touch, and the intensity of his gaze. With every caress, every whispered murmur, I could feel him reaching for something deeper, something that felt like it had been waiting for us in the shadows of time. His fingers laced through mine, and he pressed my hands gently against the wall, holding me there, his smile full of warmth and mischief as his lips found their way to my ear, his whispered words sending a shiver down my spine.

The world outside the small, dimly lit room seemed like a distant memory, our quiet breaths and muffled laughter blending with the low hum of the music outside. His hand cradled my face, his thumb tracing the edge of my jaw with a tenderness that felt like a promise, yet his gaze held something deeper, something that seemed to acknowledge the years we had missed, the moments we never had the chance to explore.

We pulled back just slightly, our foreheads pressed together, catching our breath, though neither of us made any move to separate. The air between us was charged, thick with the weight of emotions finally let free. His hands dropped to my waist, pulling me even closer, and I could feel his heartbeat racing beneath my touch. The intensity of his gaze softened for a moment, his expression shifting to one of vulnerability.

“Come with me,” he whispered, his voice barely audible over the muffled sounds of the club beyond the door. His hand found mine, his fingers interlocking with mine in a way that felt both reassuring and exhilarating.

With one last glance around the small, shadowed room, we stepped out into the throbbing energy of the club, our hands still clasped tightly. The music felt distant, the neon lights casting a soft glow around us as we made our way through the crowd, moving as if in our own world, wrapped in a newfound sense of freedom and connection. The energy of the night seemed to pulse through us, amplifying the quiet thrill of finally, truly, being together.

Fast forward a few months, and I had grown used to the quiet comfort of Mingyu’s presence in my life, a warmth I hadn’t realized I’d missed. Our time together felt easy and real moments of laughter, shared glances, and endless conversations that turned into night. Even the simplest things, like bringing him his favorite drink during long practices, had become my favorite way to surprise him and see that contagious smile light up his face.

But today, as I made my way into the practice room, the excitement thrumming through me felt mixed with a tinge of nerves. I hadn’t seen the rest of the group in nearly a year, and though Mingyu reassured me they’d be happy to see me again, part of me wondered if it would truly be that simple. Especially with Woozi.

The practice room door was slightly ajar, and I could hear laughter mixed with the rhythmic thud of the bass echoing through the walls. Taking a deep breath, I walked in, holding the iced coffee I’d brought for Mingyu. As I entered, their eyes turned toward me, a mix of surprise and shock flashing across each of their faces. Mingyu’s face lit up with that familiar grin, his eyes softening as he spotted the drink in my hand.

“Hey,” he called, coming over and wrapping an arm around me in a warm, casual gesture that felt entirely natural. I smiled, feeling the comfort of his embrace, but I could already sense the weight of the others’ stares.

“Y/N? Wow, it’s been ages!” Seungkwan said, his tone cheerful, but the glances exchanged around the room were telling. I could see the unspoken questions behind their friendly greetings. They wanted to know why I was there and more importantly, why Mingyu’s arm was around me so comfortably.

Then, I noticed Woozi’s expression. His usual calm had shifted to a tight-lipped look of barely restrained irritation. I hadn’t realized how much his presence would affect me, the past we’d shared stirring something bitter in my chest. Our last interaction had been a final conversation full of hurt and betrayal, emotions I’d forced myself to bury. But the flicker of anger in his gaze brought it all rushing back.

After a brief silence, Woozi cleared his throat, his tone sharper than I remembered. “So… no one thought to tell me about this?” He addressed Mingyu but his eyes never left mine. The question hung heavy in the air, making everyone shift uncomfortably.

Mingyu’s arm tensed slightly around me, but I spoke before he could respond, unable to hold back the words that had been simmering since the moment I walked in. “Tell you about what, Woozi?” I replied, keeping my tone steady, though my pulse quickened. “That Mingyu and I are together? Because last I checked, you lost the right to care about my relationships when you cheated.”

The room fell silent, the tension thick enough to cut. I could see the others exchanging awkward glances, clearly uncomfortable with the confrontation, but I couldn’t let it go. Woozi’s expression darkened, his jaw tightening as he crossed his arms.

“This isn’t about that,” he shot back, his voice low but laced with anger. “It’s about trust. I would’ve expected you, at the very least, to tell me yourself. Not just show up here like this.” He scoffed, looking away as if he couldn’t bear to meet my gaze.

“Trust?” I repeated, incredulous. The audacity of it made my blood boil. “You think you get to lecture me about trust after everything that happened? After how you left me feeling like I was the one at fault?”

He stepped forward, his voice rising as the frustration in his eyes matched mine. “This isn’t about what happened between us, Y/N. This is about the group. About the mess you’re dragging into my space without even a word of warning.”

I felt Mingyu’s hand press gently on my arm, as though asking me to let it go, but I couldn’t. Every wound from that relationship was suddenly raw, open, and I needed him to understand needed him to feel the weight of what he’d done.

“Your space? Don’t make me laugh, Woozi. You don’t get to act like the victim here, like this group is somehow yours alone. I left because you shattered every bit of trust I had in you. And for the record, I didn’t plan to just ‘show up.’ I came here to see Mingyu, who has treated me with more respect than you ever did.” My words came out sharper than I’d intended, but the truth was a relief to say.

His eyes narrowed, hurt and anger flashing across his face. “Fine,” he said, his voice edged with bitterness. “You and Mingyu maybe you deserve each other.”

The comment stung, but before I could respond, Mingyu stepped in, his tone calm but firm. “That’s enough, Woozi.” He turned to face him, his usually gentle expression hardening. “You don’t get to speak to her that way, not after everything that’s happened. Whatever issues you have with me, leave her out of it.”

Woozi’s gaze flicked between us, his shoulders tense as he struggled to find the right words. But the hurt in his eyes was unmistakable. “You know what? Do whatever you want. Clearly, you two don’t care about how this affects anyone else.” With a bitter laugh, he turned on his heel and walked out, leaving a stunned silence in his wake.

The others exchanged wary glances, and I felt a pang of regret, knowing that this moment, while inevitable, hadn’t been easy for anyone. I took a deep breath, steadying myself before looking up at Mingyu, who offered a reassuring smile, his hand still resting on my shoulder.

He turned to the others, his expression softening. “I know this is a lot, but Y/N’s a part of my life. I hope you all can understand that.”

One by one, the members nodded, their expressions a mix of understanding and relief. The tension began to ease, replaced by a cautious sense of acceptance. As the atmosphere relaxed, I let out a sigh, feeling a weight lift from my chest.

“I’m sorry if I made things complicated,” I said quietly, addressing the group, who gave me warm smiles in return.

Seungkwan stepped forward, patting me on the shoulder. “No worries. It’s good to have you back, Y/N. And besides, this means we get to see Mingyu smiling more often.”

A ripple of laughter spread through the group, breaking the tension, and I felt myself relax as we all began chatting and catching up. Mingyu squeezed my hand gently, his eyes meeting mine with a look of pride and gratitude.

As the day wore on, I could sense the dynamic slowly returning to normal, and it was clear that while the confrontation with Woozi had been painful, it had also been necessary a final closure to a chapter I had finally left behind.

As practice wound down, Mingyu pulled me aside, his hand slipping into mine as he led me toward the door. “Let’s get out of here,” he said, his voice soft and reassuring. The promise of the future in his eyes was all I needed as we stepped out together, leaving the past firmly where it belonged.

A few days passed, but the weight of what had happened in the practice room lingered with me. I couldn’t ignore the tension that had grown between Woozi and me, knowing I’d hurt him despite my own resentment. The memory of his hurt expression was something I couldn’t shake. I knew we’d once shared something real, both as friends and more, and as much as the betrayal had stung, I didn’t want to jeopardize his friendship with Mingyu or risk a permanent divide within the group.

After some thought, I texted Woozi, asking if we could talk. I wanted a chance to clear the air, face to face, just the two of us. A few minutes later, he replied with a simple “Meet me in the studio.”

I took a deep breath as I made my way to his studio, an all-too-familiar place filled with memories both good and complicated. Pausing outside the door, I steeled myself, then knocked lightly before stepping inside. Woozi was at his desk, headphones around his neck, his usual focus on his work replaced by a guarded, wary look.

“Thanks for meeting me,” I started, closing the door behind me. I took a tentative step forward, keeping a respectful distance. “I know I should’ve told you about Mingyu and me. It wasn’t fair for you to find out like that.”

He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “I appreciate you saying that.” He looked down, seemingly struggling with his own thoughts. “I just… It felt like everything changed so fast, and seeing you with him it caught me off guard.” He paused, his gaze flicking to me, softened by something more genuine. “But I shouldn’t have reacted like I did either. That was my own… unresolved stuff talking.”

Hearing him admit that gave me hope that we could work through this. “I know it’s complicated. But the truth is, I didn’t want to risk hurting you or making things awkward for the group. That’s why I didn’t say anything sooner.”

He nodded, his expression thoughtful. “And it’s not like I don’t get it. Mingyu… he’s a good guy. I think, deep down, I knew something was there between you two even before we broke up. I just didn’t want to admit it.”

I took a deep breath, deciding to be as honest as I could. “Woozi, I never wanted to hurt you. What happened between us… it hurt me too. But what I valued most was the friendship we had before anything romantic happened. I know we’ve both changed, and maybe we’re not those same people anymore, but I’d like to try to get back to that place if you’re open to it.”

His eyes softened, the tension finally melting from his expression. He let out a small, almost relieved laugh. “You know, I think I’d like that too. I miss those days—when everything felt simple. When we could just… talk.”

A wave of relief washed over me as he continued. “We had a good thing, Y/N, and losing that friendship it stung more than I realized. But I can see that you’re happy now. I don’t want to stand in the way of that.”

“Thank you,” I murmured, feeling a warmth and sincerity in his words that reminded me of why I’d once been drawn to him. “And for what it’s worth, I’m glad we’re talking about this. Maybe it took longer than it should have, but… I’m glad.”

He offered a small, genuine smile, one that reached his eyes for the first time since I’d arrived. “Me too. And I think… maybe we both needed that time to figure out who we are now. You’re with someone who makes you happy, and that’s what matters.”

For the first time in a long time, it felt like the weight between us had lifted. We shared a comfortable silence, as if somehow all the hurt, confusion, and bitterness of the past year had been laid to rest.

“Hey,” Woozi said, breaking the silence with a hesitant smile. “We’re actually heading out for dinner tonight as a group. I think it would be good if you came too. Everyone misses you.”

The invitation caught me off guard, but I could see in his expression that he meant it. “I’d love that,” I replied, feeling a renewed sense of ease settle over me. This was the first time I felt truly welcome, not just in Mingyu’s life but as part of the group I’d once felt so close to.

A few hours later, we all gathered at one of our favorite spots, a cozy restaurant that had always been a staple for group outings. Mingyu sat beside me, his hand resting on my knee under the table, the small gesture grounding me as I laughed and chatted with the others. Woozi was seated across from us, and though there were still a few glances that lingered, he seemed at peace. The tension between us had faded into something more familiar, a comfortable camaraderie that hinted at our old friendship.

As the night went on, Seungkwan cracked jokes that had us in stitches, and the atmosphere became light and joyous, reminding me of the best moments we’d all shared together. Mingyu’s fingers intertwined with mine, and he shot me a warm, knowing smile that made my heart flutter.

At one point, Woozi raised his glass, catching everyone’s attention. “To moving forward,” he said, glancing at me briefly before looking at the rest of the group. “And to keeping the good things close.” The group cheered, clinking glasses, and I smiled, my heart full as I took in the moment. It was clear that we had all made it through our own challenges, and somehow, we’d come out stronger.

After dinner, as we walked out into the cool night air, Mingyu slipped his arm around my waist, pulling me close. The rest of the group walked ahead, laughing and joking, while Mingyu and I hung back, lingering in the glow of the streetlights.

“So,” he murmured, looking down at me with that smile that always felt like home. “Does this make it official?”

I laughed, leaning into him as we walked. “I think it does.”

He leaned down, brushing a soft kiss against my forehead. “Good. Because I’m not letting you go this time.”

With his arm around me and the laughter of our friends filling the air, I knew this was where I was meant to be. The hurt of the past had finally faded, replaced by a new beginning filled with promise and the unmistakable feeling that I was exactly where I was supposed to be.

[lynenspray]

like a flower in june (got me blooming for you)

(wenseulrene gp!wendy threesome polyamory age gap au)

when college student kang seulgi spends her summer before senior year back in her hometown, she crosses paths with enigmatic older couple joohyun and seungwan. for better or for worse, she finds her life entagled with theirs. 

sprout

the morning sun shone through the window of seulgi's dorm room, casting a golden light on the cluttered space. it was an uncommon sight for her, as she rarely had time to appreciate her dorm these days. too often she had extra curricular activities that had her out from sunrise to sundown, but she figured that its rarity made it that much more special. 

she sat on her bed, surrounded by piles of clothes and textbooks, as she packed up her belongings. the school year had drawn to a close, and now she would make her way back to the sanctuary of her hometown for the summer.

a bittersweet wave of nostalgia washed over her as she meticulously folded each piece of clothing, tucking them away in her trusty suitcase. 

though she had come to cherish her college town, there was a certain magic about her childhood abode that she knew she would miss. that was why, despite the tradition of spending summer breaks with her tightly-knit group of friends, seulgi had made the decision to journey homeward this year.

at the other end of their shared dorm, hyunjung slumped in her chair, her pouty expression conveying a sense of woe as she let out a dramatic sigh. "i'm going to miss youuuuu," the younger girl whined, drawing out the final syllable.

seulgi chuckled, not even pausing in her packing. "okay, what did you do with the real hyunjung?" she teased, a wide grin creeping across her face.

the other almost-senior heaved another, even heavier sigh, placing her phone down on the bed. "it's going to be so different without you here! who's going to be my partner in crime for late-night mcflurry runs?" she lamented with a hint of humor in her tone.

"stop being so dramatic, it’s unlike you."

"i’m serious! we gotta keep in touch and chat on the phone," hyunjung suggested. "and we can plan some fun trips for when we're all back at school. make. sure. you. message," she emphasized.

seulgi nodded. "alright, alright,” she waved a hand dismissively. “and sure, that sounds like a great idea."

hyunjung perked up at the idea. "maybe you'll even have some new friends to introduce to the group. god knows i need a break from you three," she joked, rolling her eyes playfully.

seulgi shrugged, zipping up her suitcase. "hey, anything's possible."

as the sun began its slow descent in the sky, seulgi took one last sweeping glance around her now-empty side of the dorm room. her heart felt heavy as she realized that her junior college year had come to an end, but as she stepped out into the warm, inviting summer air, her spirits lifted.

the sweet fragrance of freshly cut grass and blooming flowers filled her senses, and she closed her eyes, savouring the feeling of freedom and possibility that came with the start of summer. with her trusty suitcase in hand, seulgi made her way down the street towards the bus stop, her heart racing with anticipation. even though it was a long journey back home, she couldn't wait to be reunited with her family and friends.

"remember to text me, okay?" hyunjung urged from beside her as they walked. the girl was definitely not that expressive about her affection, but her actions betrayed her; who would walk all the way to the bus stop across campus for someone they didn’t care about?

seulgi grinned, trying to ease her worries. "of course, i'll keep in touch."

"try really hard. the last time we were apart, i found out you were two hours away from campus because you wanted to go hiking."

seulgi shrugged, a mischievous glint in her eye, reminded of her thirst for adventure. it wasn’t like hyunjung was any different. that was how they became fast friends in the first place, despite being strangers when they met. 

"it was worth it. i made it in time for class, didn't i?"

hyunjung shook her head, rolling her eyes at seulgi's carefree attitude. "take care," she waved as seulgi left with a salute, getting up on the bus and leaving her behind.

—

when seulgi finally walked down the familiar streets of her hometown, she felt a sense of comfort wash over her. she passed by the park where she used to play as a child, and memories flooded her mind. the ice cream truck, the swings, the merry-go-round - it was all still there, just as she remembered it.

seulgi's heart thumped as she walked along the pavement, surveying the quiet street that led to her house. more memories of playing with her friends and riding bikes flooded her mind. when her house finally came into view, took a deep breath and walked towards the front door, ringing the doorbell.

"seulgi-yah! you're home!" her mother exclaimed, rushing towards her and wrapping her in a tight hug. "how was the trip here? i’m sorry we couldn’t fetch you, your brother borrowed the car."

seulgi grinned and hugged her mother back, feeling the warmth of her embrace. "i missed you too, eomma," she said, laughing as her mother grinned. “the trip was fine, and don’t worry about not being able to make the drive, i understand. oppa’s got his own things going on.”

as they pulled away from the embrace, her father emerged from the living room, smiling at the sight of his daughter. "princess, it's so good to have you home," he said, embracing her in a bear hug.

she smiled, feeling her father's strong arms around her. "thanks, appa. it's good to be back."

after a moment, her mother broke the embrace and suggested they take her things inside. "come on, let's get you settled in," she said, leading the way towards the college student’s room.

"i'm just so happy you're here," her mother said, smiling at her. “what about your plans to go abroad? are those still pushing through?”

“well, about that…” seulgi replied as she settled down in the living room, tucking her legs under her just as she did as a child. “i wanted to spend at least one summer back home before i go. i know it won’t be forever, but i guess… i just wanted to have a taste of it before everything starts changing.”

her parents nodded understandingly, and her father patted her hand. "aigoo, our princess. we're just happy to have you here for as long as we can," he said.

"i know you must have missed your friends and your life back in the city," her mother added. "but you'll always have a home here, and we'll make sure you have a wonderful summer."

seulgi's face lit up with a smile. leave it to her parents to be constantly in a cheerful mood. with a quick thanks to her mother who served her cold tea, she then asked, "anything new in the neighbourhood?"

"well, as a matter of fact," her father replied, "there are new neighbours. they moved into the big house on the corner last winter."

seulgi's interest was immediately piqued. that was the most expensive house in the street. "really?" she hadn’t been expecting that house to be sold… well, ever. it was practically a modern mansion in the corner of a regular suburban town in the countryside.

"yes, the new owners are a couple," her mother added, excitement evident in her voice. "both in their thirties and they have quite a reputation in the city."

seulgi's curiosity was now fully aroused. 

"their names are joohyun and seungwan," her mother replied, a smile spreading across her face. "they seem like lovely people. say hello when you get the chance, won't you?"

seulgi nodded thoughtfully. that was… nice, she guessed. it was interesting that a young couple decided to move into an old neighbourhood like theirs; there were barely any benefits to living in such a remote area. 

it would probably be a difficult place to adjust to, especially for cityfolk. the nearest gas station was two towns over, and there wasn’t even a hardware store beyond the small bodega her family owned. if they needed any professional house repairs they’d have to wait a few days and make do with whatever they could figure out themselves, much like everyone else in the neighbourhood did.

at least, while seulgi was gone, since she was the town’s handyman.

suddenly, she was struck by a bright idea.

"eomma, do you think they might need someone to do odd jobs around the house? if they haven't had it thoroughly renovated, there might be a few things i could help with."

"i don't recall there being any construction work done, no." her mother raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"any amount of money would help for my trip after senior year. and besides, it would be fun to do what i used to do as a kid. not only that, but it's just a way for me to get to know the new neighbours."

as seulgi finished explaining her reasoning, her parents exchanged a look before her mother turned back to her.

"well, why don't you give it a try? who knows, they really might need some help and appreciate the offer."

—

seulgi's heart was pounding with excitement and nerves as she made her way to the corner house. the mansion was huge. she knew this, of course, but to see it up close and from the porch was a completely different perspective.

as she walked up the steps, she took a deep breath, trying to calm her racing thoughts. straightening her shirt, she hoped that her simple outfit of a long sleeved shirt and thick cargo pants would be appropriate for the occasion. she had debated what to wear for hours, wanting to look nice but not wanting to appear too formal or overeager.

her nerves started to get the best of her when she eventually came face to face with the doorbell. what if they weren't home? what if they found her visit intrusive? she shook her head, trying to dispel her doubts. after all, her parents had encouraged her to say hello, and it was perfectly normal to introduce herself to new neighbours. 

but the other day, after a little more small talk, her mother had mentioned that joohyun and seungwan were both gorgeous, and seulgi couldn't help but feel a tinge of panic at the possibility. it didn’t even matter if it was true or not, the teasing worked.

as a gay woman, she knew all too well the typical anxiety that came with meeting someone she found attractive.

fuck. okay, stay cool. you’ve got this.

she took a deep breath and rang the doorbell, waiting for someone to answer. a few moments later, the door opened to reveal a beautiful woman who was only beginning to age gracefully. she had long, flowing hair and piercing brown eyes that seemed to look right through her.

christ in heaven.

“u-um,” she stuttered ridiculously. “hi! i'm seulgi," she extended her hand, knocking it in the doorway with a loud bang but ignoring the pain completely to save face. 

the sound itself startled the other woman, but seulgi’s practiced statement was enough of a distraction for her to ignore it. "i just moved back home for the summer, and i wanted to introduce myself and offer any services you might need."

the woman smiled warmly and shook her hand with a gentle grip, and seulgi was unsure if the throbbing in her knuckles caused her to feel her blood pump throughout her body with striking sensitivity, or if it was something else. 

"it's lovely to meet you, seulgi. i’m joohyun," she said. then, she tilted her head. "services?"

seulgi felt her cheeks heat up in embarrassment, realizing how fucking weird that sounded. "i mean, like, odd jobs or house-sitting or something. i don't desperately need the money, but any amount at all would help. plus, i used to do this kind of thing all the time when i was a kid, and i thought it would be nice to revisit those memories. i can mow lawns, clean pools, fix plumbing, any minor repairs or chores that don’t need a professional eye."

the woman’s eyes softened as she ended her stupid rambling. "that's very kind of you, seulgi. my partner, seungwan, is in the backyard. she was just complaining about something wrong with the pool heater — if you’re not busy right now, do you think you could take a look?”

“of course,” she replied, feeling a sense of relief that her offer was accepted.

joohyun led seulgi through the pristine front garden, past the magnificent doorway, through the immaculate living room, past a dining area fit for a banquet, and into a state-of-the-art kitchen that looked like it had never been used. the transparent sliding door at the other wall showed the beginnings of a large backyard with only slightly overgrown bushes.

“seungwan and i work long hours and we often have to travel for business, so it leaves us little time for basic upkeep and maintenance. we were thinking of hiring some help but…” joohyun looked away, looking a little embarrassed, then cleared her throat. “we changed our minds. it’s a pretty empty house, it’s more of the outdoors that need a helping hand.” 

seulgi listened attentively, eager to help in any way she could. "i can definitely help with that," she said with a smile. "i’ve lots of experience with outdoor maintenance, from outdoor plumbing to gardening, and i'm good with pets too, if you have any."

“thankfully not.” joohyun seemed to shudder at the very thought. “seungwan-ah! we have a visitor.”

the college student watched as a woman with platinum blonde hair squinted at the shed by the pool, seemingly lost in thought before finally noticing their approach.

“really? this early?” seungwan grinned, eyes alight with interest. “and someone this young?” seulgi blinked. early? young? for what?

joohyun walked over, her face tight with a look of mortification. "seungwan-ah," she said, her tone sharp. "this is seulgi-sshi, our new neighbor. she's offering her services."

“services?”

seulgi’s eyes darted between them in confusion. “yes? i'm offering to do odd jobs or house maintenance for a small fee, if you need it."

seungwan's eyes widened before looking at joohyun with a blush. confused, seulgi could only tilt her head in askance. "oh," the blonde exclaimed, looking embarrassed, raising her hands and shoulders as joohyun approached. "yes! we could definitely use some help around here," she quickly said, laughter sounding nervous.

joohyun cleared her throat, looking just as disturbed. "honey, weren’t you just taking a look at the heater? do you know what’s wrong?"

seungwan seemed to deflate and pout, which would have been strange for any other woman in their thirties, but both of them seemed so much younger. if not for some of the laugh lines around their faces, they could pass off as seulgi’s college classmates.

“no. it won’t even turn on.”

seulgi stepped forward. "i can take a look if you want," she said tentatively.

with their approval, she crouched down and opened the door to the shed. she peered inside, examining the various parts and pieces of the machine powering the pool. it didn't take long for her to find the culprit – a clogged filter.

"i think i found the problem," she said, pointing to the dirty instrument. "i can clean this out for you, or you can get a new one if you'd prefer. i suggest i clean it anyway, since the nearest hardware store is a few towns over by car."

seungwan and joohyun looked at each other, silently communicating. finally, joohyun spoke up. "if you wouldn't mind cleaning it out, that would be great. thank you so much, seulgi-sshi."

she nodded in response, feeling a sense of satisfaction at being able to help out. "no problem, i'll take care of it," she said with a smile.

as she worked on cleaning the filter, seungwan and joohyun kept her company, chatting about their work and how they found the area. seulgi was surprised to find that the couple were incredibly friendly and welcoming; it almost felt like they were welcoming her to the new neighbourhood, which was a funny thought. 

"you’re the ceo of son security?" her eyes widened in surprise at seungwan mentioning her job. if that were true, then seungwan was not just rich, but ultra-rich. son security had a near-monopoly over security systems all over the country.

seungwan, however, seemed almost shy. "yes. it’s more of a legacy thing, since my grandparents were the ones that started it all," she trailed off awkwardly, rubbing the back of her neck with a blush as joohyun gave her a look of adoration. "in fact, joohyun is even more impressive!"

seulgi was intrigued and turned to the raven-haired woman. "if it’s alright to ask, what do you do, joohyun-sshi?"

"i'm a ceo of a company in the agriculture industry," joohyun replied with a small smile.

whoa. "agriculture? like, the farming industry?" she asked, blinking in surprise.

joohyun's smile grew bigger. "yes, we practice sustainable and organic farming," she replied.

seulgi was impressed. "that's incredible!" she exclaimed sincerely. she’d always been a fan of nature and sustainability. to discover that someone near her was elbow deep in that kind of work was truly astounding. it wasn’t an easy task to think about the environment in an age of quickly advancing technology.

joohyun and seungwan exchanged amused looks at seulgi's reaction. 

oh shit. they’re paying you to work, not thirst, genius. seulgi quickly returned her attention to the filter, feeling a little embarrassed.

as she finished up, seulgi felt a small bubble of laughter form in her. she and her brother used to trespass in this very backyard — which was empty back then — and sneak in to use the pool when the owners were away.

but now, here she was, being entertained, in a way, by the owners themselves and even being paid for her services. it was a strange feeling, but seulgi found herself feeling grateful for the opportunity and turn of events.

joohyun's question interrupted seulgi's thoughts, causing her to snap out of her reverie. "seulgi-sshi, do you have to leave already?" she asked. "why don't you come inside and have some juice? we've got some snacks too, if you're hungry. it’s really not enough for just the two of us."

seulgi was about to politely decline, but then her stomach rumbled loudly, seemingly in agreement with joohyun's suggestion.

the three women laughed, breaking the tension that had built up during the awkward moments of their initial meeting. "sure, that sounds great. thank you," seulgi said, feeling grateful for the offer.

joohyun led seulgi inside the house, and the cool air from the air conditioning was a welcome relief from the sweltering heat outside. they made their way to the living room, where seungwan had already laid out a plate of sliced fruits and sandwiches.

seulgi felt a bit awkward as she sat down in the pristine living room, feeling a little out of place among the elegant furniture and expensive artwork on the walls. however, joohyun and seungwan quickly put her at ease with their friendly conversation and easy-going demeanor.

“so, seulgi-sshi, what do you do for work?” joohyun asked as she poured seulgi a glass of juice.

“um, i’m actually still in college,” she admitted, scratching the back of her neck. “i major in landscape architecture and urban planning,” seulgi replied, feeling a bit self-conscious.

"that's impressive," seungwan commented, taking a sip of her own drink. "what made you interested in that field?"

as they chatted and snacked on the delicious treats, seulgi already knew she admired the two women, but she felt it rise as the minutes passed. they were both successful and accomplished in their respective fields, but they also seemed so down-to-earth and kind.

eventually, seulgi realized that it was time for her to go when it was already dark out. she thanked joohyun and seungwan for their hospitality and headed out, feeling grateful for the unexpected encounter.

—

"i can't wait for the party tonight."

seulgi tried not to eavesdrop, she really did, but it was like her body had a mind of its own as she stopped behind a wall in the living room. 

"me neither. i've been looking forward to it all week."

“are the toys ready, love?”

a smack of lips. “of course, honey. you know how much i love it when you use them on me.”

seulgi felt her face flush until her ears turned red. it was seungwan who last spoke. and wasn’t it obvious what kind of toys adult women would be talking about?

her heart raced at the image that unwittingly surfaced in her mind. blonde hair splashed along crisp white sheets, sweat rolling down a smooth pale back, sticking raven tresses against alabaster skin.

fuck. she needed more water. seulgi nodded to herself, turning around and heading back to the kitchen before she got caught, one piece of information floating in her head as she poured a drink for herself.

a party.

—

a party, huh.

she couldn’t help herself. that night she lay awake in her the darkness of her room, looking out the window to see a few nondescript cars visiting the couple's house, which didn't seem out of the ordinary. sure, they were luxury cars, but was it really surprising to find out that a rich couple had rich friends?

what was peculiar, though, was that some of the cars stayed for days. they never 

it wasn't until the day before she was scheduled to come over and clean their garden and pool that all of the cars finally left. joohyun and seungwan, too, seemed to have left the house alone for now, probably busy with work. that was why they left her some spare keys.

she was admittedly a little high-strung when she entered the couple’s home. as she walked through the large doorway, she didn’t know what to expect. empty bottles of alcohol and messed up furniture? probably not – this wasn’t a college party. if there were any empty bottles, they were surely ones of expensive whiskey or wine properly set aside and not some cheap convenient store beer littering the floor

but it wasn’t seulgi’s duty to clean the interior of the home. joohyun and seungwan could perfectly handle that themselves, as they mentioned, and they did. there was not a single speck of dust left inside, only filled recycle bins that seulgi was tasked with bringing out when the garbage truck came by.

under seulgi’s responsibility were the outdoor areas: the roof, the garden, and the pool. she gulped, hands shaking, and proceeded to the backyard. 

and there it was.

the usual pristine surroundings were in disarray, sunbeds askew, towels left over tables – 

used condom wrappers on the floor.

what the fuck. what the fuck. 

she looked around, hoping that she had somehow misread the situation, but the unfamiliar clothing items and accessories confirmed her worst fears. she was compelled to stay in place, staring at the offending latex scattered between blades of perfectly cut grass and splayed across the marble edge of the infinity pool.

was this a nightmare? was she supposed to say something?

no. no! of course not, idiot. why would she mention something like that?! it shouldn’t have bothered her – she was an adult. true, she felt uncomfortable about the situation, but she wouldn’t say anything. 

how often did they do this? did they invite strangers into their home? and why didn't they warn her about the party beforehand?

irrelevant. shut up. stop freaking out like a child.

with a nod to herself and the miracle of only a small grimace, she slipped on her gardening gloves. she tried to remain composed as she cleaned up the evidence of the party, but she couldn't shake the feeling of embarrassment that gnawed at her. 

seulgi had always considered herself an adventurous person, and her road trips and summer vacations with her friends were a testament to that, but this was different. she felt like an outsider, as if she had stumbled upon a secret society that she wasn't meant to be a part of.

she got to cleaning up the used condom wrappers and moved on to the towels and sunbeds, straightening them out and restoring some sense of order to the outdoor area. as she worked, seulgi tried to push the whole experience out of her mind, but it lingered there like an unwelcome guest.

she finished swiftly and with less attentive grace than usual, leaving as soon as she could and not a single moment longer, because what the fuck was that. 

at least at home, everything would be normal.

—

“princess, how is working for joohyun and seungwan?”

seulgi jumped at the sudden question. her heart raced as she struggled to come up with a response, hands deep in soapy water. well, mom, they apparently like to have wild fuck parties. yeah, tell her that and give her a heart attack.

"they're good, eomma. they were really happy with how the pool turned out, now that the heating is fixed." seulgi said, her voice slightly shaky.

her mother didn’t seem to sense anything was off. “we heard some rumors about them. they’re probably just baseless, but you know how old people like to meddle."

seulgi's heart beat so hard she thought it was about to burst out of her chest. what rumors? and how did her parents find out? even if the backyard area of the couple’s home was in open air, it still had a lot of privacy, surrounded by tall trees that blocked the view of anyone past their fence. 

wait, why was she even worried?! it wasn’t like it was any of her business if the neighbourhood found out.

she tried to compose herself before answering. "what rumors, mom? and who told you?"

“people are saying that they're actually on the run from the tax authorities in the city or something. they think the couple is hiding out here to avoid getting caught."

seulgi felt a wave of relief wash over her. so it wasn't about the party after all. she had almost forgotten about the reason she was supposed to be worried. "oh, that? yeah, i've heard some rumors about that too," seulgi said, playing it cool. "but i don't think there's anything to worry about. they seem like nice people, and they've been treating me well at work."

her mom raised an eyebrow skeptically. "are you sure about that? i don't want you getting mixed up with any illegal activity. you know how dangerous that can be."

seulgi rolled her eyes. her mom could be so overprotective sometimes. "mom, i'm just cleaning their backyard. it's not like i'm involved in anything illegal. and besides, it's just rumors. we don't even know if they're true."

her mom sighed. "i guess you're right. but just be careful, okay? i don't want anything bad happening to you."

seulgi nodded, grateful for her mom's concern. "don't worry, mom. i'll be fine." as she said the words, though, she couldn't help but wonder if she was being too optimistic. there was something about joohyun and seungwan that made her feel uneasy.

how could they look so… harmless, only to be hiding such a secret as that? 

and why did they let her see its aftermath?

—

that night, seulgi's dream was intense and vivid. she found herself standing by the pool, the sun beating down on her skin. 

her eyes were drawn to joohyun and seungwan, lounging on deck chairs with drinks in their hands, their naked bodies glistening in the sunlight. they took turns kissing each other passionately, their bodies entwined in a sensuous dance.

seulgi tried to look away, feeling a flush of embarrassment creeping up her neck. she didn't want to see this, didn't want to be a part of it. but she found herself unable to tear her gaze away, as if she were trapped in a spell.

suddenly, joohyun sat up and looked directly at seulgi. "come join us," she said with a smirk.

seulgi shook her head frantically. "no, i can't. i shouldn't even be here. this is wrong."

but seungwan chimed in, voice low and seductive. "you know you want to. don't be afraid to let go, seulgi."

seulgi's heart was pounding in her chest as she stepped closer to them. their hands reached out to her, pulling her onto the deck chair between them.

the dream became hazy and surreal, a blur of bodies and sensations. seulgi felt like she was drowning in pleasure and desire, unable to resist the pull of joohyun and seungwan.

suddenly, she found herself undressing and joining them as they pulled her in the pool, where they explored each other's bodies in ways seulgi had never experienced before. the water around them churned with their movements, the air filled with their moans and sighs.

but then she heard a voice, faint at first but growing louder. it was her mom, calling out to her from the other room. seulgi's eyes snapped open, and she realized that it had all been a dream. she was safe in her own bed, alone.

it all felt so real that seulgi woke up feeling disoriented and agitated, with her body wet with sweat. she couldn't shake the images from her mind, and she wondered what it all meant. she sat up in bed, her heart still pounding, and took a deep breath.

“what the hell was that?" she whispered to herself.

—

seulgi couldn't shake the images from her dream as she got ready for work. the vividness of it all had left her feeling disoriented and off-kilter. as she gathered her cleaning supplies, she tried to push the thoughts out of her mind, but they clung to her like a persistent mist.

luckily, seulgi had a job to do that would take her away from joohyun and seungwan's house for the day. she was scheduled to clean mrs. kim’s roof at the other end of their neighbourhood, giving her some much-needed time and space to clear her head.

seulgi took a deep breath and set out, determined to focus on the task at hand and leave the dream behind her. the roof was covered in leaves and debris, and seulgi could see that it hadn't been cleaned in a while. she took a deep breath and got to work, using a leaf blower to clear away the loose debris before scrubbing the stubborn stains with a specialized cleaning solution. 

as she worked, seulgi felt a sense of satisfaction at the visible progress she was making. despite the heat and the sweat trickling down her back, she was determined to do a thorough job and leave the roof spotless.

“seul!”

seulgi was startled by the sound behind her but breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that it was only jisoo, mrs. kim's daughter, peering out of the window by the ladder. she was pleasantly surprised to see her old friend after months of not catching up. "jisoo! it's so good to see you," seulgi exclaimed with a smile.

jisoo grinned back and said, "likewise! i'm glad to see you're still working hard. how have you been?"

seulgi took a moment to gather her thoughts before replying, "everything's been good. just busy with work this summer."

"hey, you want to take a break? i've got some drinks inside, and we can catch up."

seulgi was relieved to have a sense of normalcy tethering her and nodded, "sure, that sounds great." she followed jisoo inside the house, walking through the familiar hall. they sat at the kitchen table and caught up on old times. seulgi found herself relaxing in jisoo's company until the conversation took a turn she wasn't expecting.

"so, have you heard about joohyun and seungwan?" jisoo suddenly asked.

seulgi's heart skipped a beat, and she nervously swallowed her juice before responding, "what about them?" as much as she tried to avoid thinking about joohyun and seungwan, it seemed like they were constantly finding a way back into her thoughts.

jisoo leaned back in her chair and continued, "i heard from a friend that they're actually running some kind of underground club. you know, like a swinger's club or something. it's supposed to be super exclusive and secretive."

seulgi felt a wave of shock and dread wash over her. she didn't know how to respond to jisoo's statement. she took a sip of her juice to try and calm her nerves, but it did little to quell the sense of panic rising inside of her. "that's... interesting. i don't know if that's true or not," she said hesitantly.

jisoo shrugged. "it's just a rumor, anyway. but if it is true, it wouldn't surprise me. do you even know their day jobs?"

seulgi thought for a moment. "seungwan runs son security and joohyun owns a company involved in agriculture," she replied unsurely.

jisoo blinked. "oh. okay. that's kind of boring, actually," she said with a laugh, not bothered by the uncertainty of the situation.

with only a shaky laugh in reply, seulgi spent the rest of her day with a knot of uneasiness in the pit of her stomach.

seulgi couldn't stop thinking about what jisoo had said as she finished up the job on mrs. kim’s roof. as she climbed down the ladder and made her way back home, her mind was racing with questions and doubts.

could it really be true that joohyun and seungwan were running some kind of underground club?

she tried to shake off the thought and focus on the task at hand. but the image of joohyun and seungwan, the couple everyone knew to be kind and somewhat reserved, running a swinger's club was too much for seulgi to ignore. she decided she needed to find out the truth for herself.

when she arrived home, she tossed her work clothes in the hamper and pulled out her laptop. she started searching online for any information about the supposed underground club, but found nothing. it was as if it didn't exist at all.

frustrated and exhausted, seulgi decided to call it a day. she climbed into bed, hoping that sleep would come and bring some relief to her troubled mind. but as soon as she closed her eyes, she was back in the dream, watching joohyun and seungwan explore each other's bodies with wild abandon, cajoling her, inviting her, pleasuring her.

fuck.

—

the next morning, seulgi woke up feeling more tired than ever. she reluctantly got out of bed, hoping that a cup of coffee would give her the energy to face the day. as she walked to the kitchen, her phone rang.

"hello?" she answered groggily.

"hey, seulgi-sshi! it's joohyun," came the cheerful voice on the other end. "listen, our tv has been acting up again, and we were wondering if you could come take a look at it?"

seulgi rubbed her eyes, trying to shake off the sleepiness, still only half awake and only 10% aware of what was even spilling out of her mouth. "sure, i can swing by later today. what time works for you?"

joohyun and seungwan agreed on a time, and seulgi made her way over to their house once again. as she worked on the tv, she couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed about the dream she had the previous night. she tried to push the thoughts to the back of her mind and focus on her task at hand.

"so, seulgi-sshi, how's the tv looking?" joohyun asked with a smile.

"it looks like there was just a janky wire. i cut and fixed it for you."

"thank you, seulgi-sshi. we appreciate your help," seungwan said, her voice laced with a hint of something that seulgi couldn't quite place.

joohyun and seungwan led seulgi outside to their garden, mentioning something about its overgrown state. seulgi noticed that she did indeed leave it that way, completely forgetting to trim the hedges, and she felt a pang of anxiety mixed with a strange sense of intrigue at the way the couple was eyeing her.

"i'm sorry i wasn't able to trim the hedges last time," seulgi said, feeling herself give way to the insistent eyes boring into her.

joohyun and seungwan exchanged a look. "why not?" seungwan asked. “was there something else you had to do? did the weather not permit it? or… is there another reason?”

seulgi's heart sank as she realized the conversation was taking an ominous turn. joohyun and seungwan's persistent questioning about why she couldn't do her duties felt more like an interrogation than innocent curiosity.

she shrugged in an attempt to evade their questions, and seungwan seemed like she was about to start another round of questioning, but joohyun cut her off with an elbow to the ribs and a glare. 

"seulgi-sshi, we're not going to judge you. we just want to understand why you left so quickly last time."

seulgi felt a cold sweat break out on her forehead. she knew where this conversation was heading, and she didn't want to be a part of it. "i'm sorry, i just had to leave."

"why is that?" seungwan pressed, nonplussed by seulgi’s reluctance to give a straight answer. "we're not upset, we just want to know."

seulgi hesitated, feeling her nerves fray at the edges. she knew that she was about to reveal something she shouldn't, but the fear of what would happen if she didn't was even worse. 

"i didn't want to invade your privacy," she finally admitted, her voice barely above a whisper.

joohyun and seungwan exchanged a look, and seulgi knew she had made a mistake. "you know, seulgi, there's nothing wrong with exploring your wild side. we actually have a friend who is throwing a little get-together next weekend. we were thinking of going, and we'd love for you to come with us."

seulgi's heart skipped a beat. she couldn't believe what she was hearing. was this really happening? she felt a mix of excitement and fear, unsure if she was ready for what they were suggesting. 

"i don't know. i mean, i'm not really into that kind of thing."

seungwan placed a hand on seulgi's shoulder as the two of them sat on either side of her on the couch, inciting goosebumps to burst across her skin and a flush to take over her face. 

"it's okay, seulgi-sshi. you don't have to do anything you're not comfortable with. it's just a small gathering with a few like-minded friends. nothing crazy. you can just watch. if you want to.”

seulgi chewed on her bottom lip, feeling the weight of their offer. she knew deep down that she was curious, that a part of her wanted to explore this side of herself. 

“we’ll take care of you, baby. you don’t have to worry about anyone touching you other than us.” joohyun’s voice was low, seductive, her fingers trailing behind seulgi’s ear as she tucked loose strands of hair out her face.

“she’s right, sweetheart. won’t you consider it?” she felt her eyelids flutter at seungwan’s tone, breath ghosting her ear, her palm rubbing soothing circles on her stiff back.

she couldn't get the dream out of her head.

joohyun and seungwan, their bodies intertwined with reckless abandon, had invaded her subconscious and refused to leave. she knew that she wouldn't be able to get it out of her system unless she saw it for herself.

"i'll come," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

joohyun’s face lit up at seulgi's response, but there was something sinister in her expression that made seulgi's skin crawl. "we knew you would," she said, a sly smile playing on her lips.

what was she getting herself into?

[zimwritez]

summer stars

WC: 2.1 K

Warnings/BYR: nothing!

A/N: hiii! this is my first story on here! i wanted just to test the waters with some pure fluff (plz read it), but there will be a part two with more suggestive/smut parts! let me know how you like it! <3

After coming in from loading up the moving truck, you stand in front of the off-white house, your eyes wandering over its familiar suburban facade. Memories of your younger years come flooding back as you take in the sight before you. It's been years since you last saw this house, before you left for college. As you take in your surroundings, you realize that you had almost forgotten its shape.

Stepping inside, you're greeted by the scent of roses that fills the air. Your mom has always been obsessed with these flowers, ever since you were a little girl. The scent is so familiar that every time you catch a whiff of it outside your house, you're hit with an odd sense of deja vu. But here, inside the house, the fragrance is overwhelming, as if it has been bottled up and released into the air. The living room is cluttered with boxes of all shapes and sizes, piled high in every corner. The cardboard smell of the boxes mingles with the sweet scent of roses, creating a strange, yet comforting aroma. 

You had to come back home, out of the city, because of your dad’s hospitalization. Your mom has to move full time near the hospital because of your dad’s permanent residence there. He’s always had health problems, but they haven’t been this serious until now. You'll be spending the summer here too, in case anything happens. 

As you move through the house, you notice how much has changed since you left for college. The furniture is different, the wallpaper has been replaced, and there are new curtains hanging in the windows. You step into your childhood bedroom, and even though the rest of the house is changed, this room seems to be stuck in time. The posters are still on the wall, the bed is still perfectly made, and the air seems still. You scan the picture frames on your dresser, each one holding a memory of days gone by. They're snapshots of a time when life was simpler, when your high school friends and you would spend hours laughing and making memories. The faces staring back at you are those of friends you barely even see anymore, people you once considered your closest allies. In the years since you graduated and parted ways for college, time has lapsed and made it difficult to stay in touch. It's a bittersweet feeling, realizing how easily life can pull people apart.

You focus on one particular picture, a small frame holding a picture of you and a boy around the age of six. You squint your eyes and furrow your eyebrows, trying to remember who he is. The picture is a bit faded, the edges of the frame worn and chipped with age.

Suddenly, it all comes back to you. It’s the boy that you live next door to. You were friends up until middle school when he randomly transferred to online school. Somehow, you can’t remember his name. It may have started with a K? A C? You're not too sure. 

You hear your mother calling your name from downstairs. Sluggishly walking down the stairs, you see another slightly older woman standing in the kitchen. She’s wearing a pink, knitted sweater, which is odd because it’s so hot outside. She wears a genuine smile on her face, too.

“Oh, Hello Ma’am.” “Woooow~ You’ve grown into such a beautiful woman!”

You stutter for a moment, trying to remember if you’ve seen this lady before. She barely looks familiar. Thankfully, after almost a full minute of silence, your mom chimes in.

“This is Mrs. Ji, from next door. She’s going to be helping you out if you need anything while I’m gone helping your dad.” 

It all clicks in your head. This must be the mom for the boy from before. You speak, 

“Oh, thank you so much! I doubt I will need much, but it’s nice to know I have someone to lean on!”

“Yes..You must remember my son, right? Changmin? He’s home for the summer too!”

Bingo.

“Oh that’s nice, I’ll have to say hi sometime.”

There’s a silent agreement as your mom whisks you away to continue moving boxes into the U-Haul, you take a moment to look around the house that you once called home. Despite the bittersweet feeling of having to help your mom leave, you push aside your emotions and focus on the task at hand. You diligently continue packing boxes and loading them onto the U-Haul, trying to make the move as smooth as possible. 

Hours pass by as you work tirelessly to finish packing up your belongings. You finally reach the end of the moving process, but you're left with only the bare necessities in your temporary home. The house won't be sold until you go back to college for the next fall semester, so you'll be staying in this old place for the next couple of months.

As you say your last goodbye to your mom and watch her drive away, you take a deep breath and feel a mix of emotions wash over you. Relief that the move is over, sadness that you're leaving your childhood home, and excitement for the new chapter of your life that lies ahead.

After, you decide to take some time for yourself and settle into the new house. You turn on a movie and make some popcorn, enjoying the familiar comfort of an old favorite. As you sit on the couch, you realize that even though this house is new and unfamiliar, it's slowly becoming a home.

When looking at the clock that reads 11:58, you start to drift off, getting sleepier and sleepier as the night goes on. Just then, you hear a quiet knock at your door. Scared and confused, you move towards the blinds to look outside, but you can’t see anything since it’s so dark. You were contemplating opening the door when you hear a whispered voice call out your first name, followed by the words, 

“It’s Changmin! Open the door!”

Even more confused, you gently crack open the door, and finally get a look at the boy that you haven’t seen throughout all of these years…and he’s beautiful! A small tipped nose, cute round eyes and an oddly long neck, you stare in awed silence as you admire who’s in front of you, pushing the confusion aside.

“Uhh…Earth to Y/N?”

You snap back to reality, focusing your eyes on his slightly concerned expression.  You finally speak,

“Sorry. What did you need? Was I being too loud?”

He thinks for a moment, and continues, 

“No, It’s not that. Um..” He stalls. “Do you maybe wanna go somewhere?”

Confused, you ask,

“What do you mean?” “Like right now, we can go somewhere and talk. I know a spot and I’m bored and I really need some fresh air.”

As you hear the poor boy stumble over his words, you can sense his nervousness. Without a second thought, you compassionately say yes and quickly put on your shoes. As you step out of the door, you feel the cold nighttime wind hit your skin, bringing back memories of sneaking out as a freshman in high school. You can't help but feel a sense of childhood mystery in the air that used to be filled with overworked tiredness. Tonight feels different.

You take a look at the tall boy who is kicking rocks with his worn-out Converse as he walks. He seems to be focused on nothing but the ground, lost in thought. You notice his slightly sparkling brown eyes and hair that's tinted differently due to the orange-colored street lights. You feel a sudden urge to know more about him and say, 

“So…”

“Ah, sorry…I don’t talk much”

“Yeah, you aren’t really like the kid I remembered you to be. You used to scream bloody murder all the time, scaring every parent around. You smiled all the time too.”

“Hey! I smile now, you just haven’t made me do that yet”. 

“Oh…I see…That’s my job?”

Flustered, he spurts, “No! I didn’t mean it like that, I’m just trying to show how I’m a positive person”.

You both quietly laugh as you hear cicadas in the background, really exemplifying the mood of summer. It gets quiet again though, between the two of you that is, and after a few minutes, he speaks. 

“I’m sorry about your dad”.

A little stunned with such a dark topic, you continue, “Oh…It’s okay. It’s always been like this”

“Yeah, I remember. It’s just gotten worse, and I feel bad”

“What do you have to feel bad for? You’re the one that got him sick or something?”

He almost gets offended, but laughs again. “No-no, I just want to make sure everyone’s okay”.

As the conversation between you and him continues, you can't help but feel a sweet yet slightly awkward vibe. It's strange to see someone who you haven't seen in years, especially since so much has changed within that time. You find yourself staring at him, trying to see if there's any trace of the person you knew all those years ago.

You remember the last time you saw him, and how different things were back then. The way he spoke, his mannerisms, and his interests all seem different now. However, despite the changes, you're grateful that he's turned out to be a decently good guy. For some reason, it gives you a sense of satisfaction.

“Oh here, this is what I wanted you to see”

He reaches for your hand and pulls you through a small section of woods, where you come out to see an amazing view. You’re at “The Cliffs”, the town's high point. You can see everyone and everything from up here, and the sunsets are beautiful. Right now, though, you see hundreds of lights, some of them shutting off as the people of the town go to sleep. It’s always been a place that’s tender to your heart, because you spent it with…

“Do you remember?”

You stall for a moment, frozen in your tracks. This is the place where you spent many nights with Changmin, sneaking out of your parents house to go watch the sunset. You would talk about childish things, and it always made you two feel closer. 

“Of course I do. Thank you so much for bringing me here, again”.

He smiles shyly, looking out towards the horizon and taking a seat on a rocky edge. You can’t tell if it’s just you, but there’s so much energy to get to know him, or eachother. It’s like you want to make up all the time that you lost.

“So why did you disappear when highschool started?”

He looks up at you with those big brown eyes, that are slightly illuminated by the moonlight. He murmurs around for a minute, and speaks,

“Oh, It’s just because I didn’t really like school. The days started to drag in middle school and you were one of the only reasons why I went everyday. The bullying was bad so I just decided to drop it.”

You had known about the bullying before, and how bad it affected Changmin, but you can’t really change much now so there’s nothing to say. What shocked you was what he said before that. The way he said it so matter of factly was so shocking. He said it as if wanting to see you everyday was a normal thing, which you guess it was. You two were friends, and who wouldn’t want to see their best friend everyday, right?

“That’s nice…I mean! It’s not nice that you were getting bullied, it was nice that you felt comfortable enough to drop school.”

He laughs at your embarrassed expression. “It’s okay. Was it lonely without me?”

Sarcastically, you speak, “Oh my god, it was unbearable. The worst torture I’ve been through in my whole life.” You both laugh.

The silence was back, but it wasn't awkward anymore. It was like a giant wave of calmness washed over us, making everything right. The air was filled with unspoken thoughts and emotions, but it was a peaceful silence that we both welcomed.

Changmin's nervousness melted away and was replaced with a feeling of security and comfort. You could feel the trust he had in you, like he knew that he could open up to you about anything without any fear of judgment. You felt a sense of responsibility, but also gratefulness for having him in your life.

Sitting there under the stars, you both knew that this moment would change everything. It felt like the entire summer was full of new possibilities and a chance for a deeper connection between you two. The future felt uncertain, but there was an unspoken promise that hung in the air, luring you to take a leap into the unknown.

[chasingpj]

𝐇𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐒𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐭 𝐇𝐨𝐦𝐞

"Bye, for now, puddles."

pairing: percy jackson x child of hecate!reader

words: 6,220

warnings: a little angst, missing a meal, death of a parent, i believe that is all.

timeline: post sea of monsters

if you want to be tagged every time I update this story, click here

a/n: hi hi! I'm so excited to finally get this chapter to you guys. I'm sorry this literally took a month. i was taking two writing-intensive courses this summer and i was just burnt out. i hope you enjoy it!

Part One Part Two Part Three Part Four Part Five Part Six Part Seven Part Eight Part Nine Part Ten

A grunt escapes you; your contorted body weighs down the top of your suitcase as your damp fingers slip off the metal zipper. The unforgivingly humid weather provokes the heat of your efforts, adding to your discomfort. There’s urgency in your fingers, your frustration growing at each failed attempt to close your suitcase.

“Y/n! Hurry up!” Atticus shouts from outside of the Hermes cabin. As the zipper slips out of your grasp once again, you throw your head back in annoyance, hand coming up to push away wisps of hair that fall on your face. A familiar chuckle comes from the corner of the room, grabbing your attention from the wooden ceiling. Connor sits on the side of his bed; his comic book forgotten beside him as you fussing over your suitcase seems to be more interesting to him.

“It’s not funny,” you grumble, sitting onto your heels.

Connor rises from his bed, shrugging his shoulders with a smirk. He kneels by your suitcase, “It’s kinda funny.”

The corners of your mouth almost curve up, but you stop yourself, opting for a roll of your eyes instead.

“What the hades do you have in here?” The tips of his fingers turn white as he pulls on the little piece of metal. You shift your weight to the corner he works on, but it helps him as much as it helped you earlier.

“My brother’s left a bunch of books behind, so Lou Ellen and I split them up. She’s taking half, and I take the rest. We’ll study them and then exchange notes.” A hum of acknowledgment comes from Connor’s lips as he inches the suitcase closed.

“You guys are a bunch of nerds.” You squint at the other with a playful offense, and he laughs at your hardened features. “I bet you guys study more than the Athena Kids,” he teases.

“There’s a lot to learn,” you say simply, watching as he brings the zipper to the end. He leans back on his heels, and you move to take in the half-empty cabin.

The sight of the Hermes cabin being this tidy was foreign. There aren’t any sleeping bags on the floor; the belongings of your many cabin mates didn’t clutter the walls or the corners of the room as they usually do. It’s funny. There are always complaints of the cabin being too small, but it appears bigger without the mess.

“Will you and Atticus visit throughout the year?” Connor’s expression is hopeful. As the last day of camp approached, Connor’s wishes of a full cabin all year round became more apparent. The shift from a max-capacity cabin to a half-empty one must be a tough transition for social people like Stoll Brothers. If it were you, you’d be counting down the days of everyone’s departure.

You ruffle his brown locks, “we’ll probably stop by for, maybe, spring break?” Connor’s hopefulness begins to sag, and you frown. Spring break is pretty far from now, huh? “Depending on how mortal life treats us. You know, we might be back soon,” you add on quickly, hoping to lift his smile.

Though you wish to go home, you’re dreading all the supernatural activity you’ll have to deal with once you leave. Your father works tirelessly to protect the house, but entities always manage to get in. And if they can’t, they don’t mind hanging outside.

The hopefulness that faded from Connor’s face restores, and he gives you that famous mischievous smirk. “Well, I hope the ghosts bother you guys enough to come to visit early.” His tone is playful, but you can tell he meant some of his words. You laugh hesitantly and nod, rising from your suitcase.

“I’m glad you’re that eager to see us again.”

You thank him as he leans down, lifting the heavy suitcase from the ground for you.

“Y/n!”

“I’m coming!” You tug on the handle, glancing at Connor. “The year will go by fast, and soon this cabin will be bursting at the nails with new unclaimed people. Atticus, Lou, and I included. Anyways, you have your brother. You guys will find something to entertain yourselves.” You nudge him as you make your way outside.

“Yeah, you’re right. You will write to me, yeah?” Connor asks.

“Of course. I’ll send you snacks that you can’t buy at the gas station.” Connor’s arm pumps back to his side, hand in a fist as he hisses a “yes.”

The corners up your mouth hesitantly pull up as you push open the cabin door, finding Atticus and Travis talking on the porch. For the past week, the anticipation of your departure was killing you, but now that it was time to leave, you feel gloomy.

You knew the cause of your heavy heart was the uneasy tone of your going. Living day by day with the intention of moving on was hard. Because every time you look at their newly occupied beds, the sinking feeling in your chest returns. Every time you find yourself wandering in the forest, the memories of your often chaotic magic lessons flood your mind. You remember when Alice misaimed her wind spell, shooting Alabaster far into the trees. While you all rushed to check on him, Alice burst into tears because she was convinced she killed him only to approach a laughing Alabaster who shouted, “Right on!”

Every time you were in the Arts and Crafts center, you remember how you, Sage, and Lou would do Tarot Readings for the campers and how you would argue with the Apollo kids when they insisted your tarot cards are as honest as fortune cookies.

At the armory, you remember how Ambrose ran into James so hard, he stumbled and knocked down half of the shelves of weapons.

In the courtyard, you remember how Ernest, horrified by heights, produced the highest pitch scream he possibly could as he rode a pegasus for the first time under the persuasion of Alabaster.

All these memories, whether hilarious like your spell mishaps or bittersweet like when you and your sibling’s group hugged around Sage when she cried about her abusive stepmother, held a special place in your heart. Because the times where you laughed and cried together reminded you of the genuine bond, the family that was ripped away from you overnight.

“We'll see you guys soon. We should go. Argus will leave without us," Atticus says, relieved that Argus is still waiting for you on top of Half-Blood Hill.

“Have a safe trip, guys,” Travis says, patting Atticus’s shoulder before reaching out his arm and giving you a short side hug. You grab your things, hastily saying a final goodbye, and soon, you and Atticus are trudging up the hill.

Your free hand pats the pocket of your shorts, calming your worry of forgetting the necklace at the cabin. What rests in your pocket is a raw tourmaline crystal, now smooth with the help of Beckendorf, encased in a silver spiral cage.

You and Atticus carry protection crystals all the time, and they help with staying out of the radar of monsters and entities. After hearing Percy’s many stories of monsters bothering him, you figured he couldn’t be too cautious. Then after finding a spell in Alabaster’s many books that can dim down a demigod scent for a while, you decided to make him an enchanted necklace to wear.

You pack into the truck with Atticus right on time. Atticus sits in front of you, chatting away with Cecil as you make yourself comfortable in the back row with Ambrose. You frown; among the three other campers in the van with you, Percy isn’t one of them. Argus peeks into the back, doing a rough headcount. Great, now you’ll have to wait until next summer to give it to him.

Right, when you were going to chastise yourself for not giving him the necklace yesterday when you were done with it, a distant voice shouts, "wait!"

Argus halts in the middle of closing the sliding down and turns around. He shakes his head with disapproval while opening the door all the way, revealing out of breath Percy.

A smile widens across your face as he gets into the back seat with you, and you nudge Atticus’s seat.

"See, I told you we wouldn't be the last ones here.” You side-eye Percy, seeing the corners of his mouth pull up in amusement.

“Some people just don’t know how to get to places on time, huh?” Atticus says, and his eyes flicker to Percy before giving you a wide grin.

“Didn’t sleep in today, firefly?” There is a playfulness in Percy’s voice, and you smile proudly,

“Nope, not today.”

“It’s a miracle,” Percy mutters, loud enough for you to hear, and you scoff. Atticus snickers and nods in agreement.

“We were supposed to gang up on him, not you two on me.” You stick your tongue out at Atticus, and he returns the action.

“It’s more fun making fun of you,” Atticus teases.

“Rude,” you mumble with a slight smile on your face. The two boys chuckle, Atticus turning more into his seat to tell Percy something about a new Marvel movie. Excited voices fill the van as the other boys join in the conversation, and soon they are debating if Batman is really a superhero or just a rich guy in a suit.

You had to admit, as the conversation became more passionate, you were pretty entertained, but as you catch sight of Camp Half-Blood growing farther in the distance, you’re reminded of the ache in your chest. It’s only a temporary leave, but when you return, things will never be the same, and the false hope of your siblings returning has been proven to be foolish.

☆’.･.･:★:･.･.’☆

Following a ghost dog while weaving through the hustle and bustle of Grand Central is almost impossible. Atticus’s hand is latched to the straps of your bookbag as you move through people, trying not to roll your eyes at the way Ambrose turns to bark as if he was reprimanding you for being too slow. Easy for him to say when he can walk through walls and people.

“Track 28,” Atticus reminds you as your eyes find the number written on the tan bricks of the high walls. You make a sharp left towards the entrance of another hallway, ignoring the groans of a grouchy bystander that you may have cut off. The next hallway you enter is a lot less crowded than the main floor, and you slow down your pace.

“Where do you guys live again?” Percy asks as he jogs up beside you. He had insisted on walking you guys since his train departs in the same station.

“Sleepy Hollow.” Percy scrunches his face as if he recalls something, and you smile, waiting for the question everyone asks when you say you live there.

“Have you seen the headless horsemen?” Percy asks, half-joking. A snort leaves your throat, and you look at Atticus, who’s equally amused.

“Oh yeah, plenty of times.”

“Really?” Percy asks, his eyes wide with surprise, and you laugh.

“No.” Your response makes his face drop comedically fast, and Atticus bursts into laughter. “It’s just a story, but there’s a lot of history there, so the place is crawling with ghosts. We’ve met the guy who wrote the story, though,” you mention.

“No way,” Percy squints his eyes in disbelief.

“I’m serious! Atticus and I take walks in the cemetery sometimes. We leave drachmas on the graves of newly passed people, so their venture into the underworld is smooth, but some people like to wander.” You shrug. “Washington Irving is one of those people.”

“Cool,” Percy says with such enthusiasm that it makes you smile. Ambrose turns around and barks again, standing at the golden entrance that leads to the grey tunnel lit with fluorescent white lights where your train waits beside the concrete platform.

“He always rushes us,” Atticus complains, and Harvey lets out a coo that sounded close to a groan as if he agreed with him.

The marble floors turn to concrete as you enter the tunnel. The blue and silver train on your left hums as it sits dormant in its station. Ambrose trots ahead, peaking into the doors and windows to find an empty cart to occupy.

As you follow a few feet behind him, your fingers fiddle with the necklace resting in your pocket. You’re regretting not giving it to Percy earlier because, for some reason, the idea of giving it to him now was more intimidating than if you had done it earlier on the bus.

Ambrose decides on a cart, and Harvey jumps off Atticus’s shoulder, squealing happily as he follows the hound while completely ignoring a worried Atticus trailing close behind.

"I, uh, made this for you," you sputter, the words coming out fast like vomit. Your fingers pull out the crystal necklace abruptly, and you put it in the palm of his hand. "It's black tourmaline. It has protective qualities; good at keeping negative energy, negative auras, things like that. I put a spell on it to dim down your demigod scent for a while, so you catch a little bit of a break. It'll last for a few weeks, maybe a month or two if the spell caught on well."

You bite your lip as Percy studies the necklace resting in his hand. "Wow, really? Thank you, Y/n. This is great.”

Nervous, you shift on your feet under his bright, smiling orbs. "It's no problem. After everything that happened at camp, I think it’ll be good for you to have one.”

Percy nods, his features softening all of a sudden, and he shifts. “Thanks for protecting me,” he says, and you feel heat rush to your cheeks. “Getting rid of that thing became more than you expected. I felt bad that I couldn’t help. Swords aren’t really useful when it comes to demons, huh?”

A small laugh of agreement leaves your lips. “It was nothing. I wasn’t going to let you be tormented by that thing if I could help it.”

An announcement echoes in the hall, reporting the departure of your train in a few minutes. You glance over, catching Atticus, Ambrose, and Harvey with their noses practically pressed against the window as they witness your interaction with Percy. The amused smirk on Atticus’s face makes you roll your eyes; he’s definitely going to tease you when you get on the train.

"I should go.” You face Percy again, catching him securing the necklace around his neck. The stone rests a few inches under his camp half-blood necklace. "Thanks for walking us here. Be careful getting home."

"You too…” he trails off, noticing your brother looking out the window. For a second, he seems as embarrassed as you do and a nervous chuckle leaves his lips. “Your brother is waiting."

“He’s so annoying,” you complain, and Percy’s next chuckle doesn’t sound as hesitant this time. "Well, uh, bye, for now, puddles,” you tease, butterflies dancing in your stomach.

"Bye, for now, firefly."

You both awkwardly wave at each other before you turn around, getting on the train with Atticus. With your gaze fixed on the floor, you plop into the seat next to him. You don’t even need to look to know he is smiling teasingly at you.

"How cute,” he teases, nudging your shoulder repeatedly with his own.

"Ew, shut up.” You shove at his shoulder, your nose scrunching as he flails his arms against yours as if you were fighting. Atticus chuckles and a string of sounds come from your familiars as they join in to tease you, and you couldn’t help but laugh too.

☆’.･.･:★:･.･.’☆

The suburban streets of your neighborhood are filled with the chirps of birds and bugs and the sounds of cars that pass every once in a while. There isn’t much conversation between you and Atticus as you trudge up the hill leading to your dead-end street.

“Gods, I hope we can get inside without being seen,” you manage to say through your heavy breaths, lazily holding on to the handle of your suitcase as it rolls behind you. Ambrose’s nose nudges the back of your knees as if to encourage you, but it’s more cute than helpful.

“There’s no way that we are. Janie and Celia are always sitting on the neighbor’s porch.” You grunt in acknowledgment, knowing that Atticus is right. The neighborhood ghosts are friendly enough, but their company can be annoying.

As if on cue, you hear a delighted squeal from ahead the moment you reach the top of the hill. Two ladies wave their handkerchiefs in the air a handful of houses away.

Celia, the tallest of the two, wears a steel blue dress with a high neckline and a big bow tied on the base of her neck. She has a jacket button closed over her corset with a frill at the end of her sleeves. Her skirt is floor-length and complete, with ruffles cascading down its entirety. And, of course, no one can miss the high-crowned hat decorated with fake flowers, bows, and crimped fabric as it all sits on top of her blonde hair in an intricate updo. Janie, her sister, wears the same style of dress and headpiece only in a burgundy red. The resemblance between the two makes it clear that they’re siblings close in age. They have the same high pinched noses that jut in the air; both of their faces are regal like those in renaissance paintings.

You’ve seen them around for as long as you can remember. They were two sisters who died of scarlet fever a year before their first courting season, which was a big deal according to their constant moaning and groaning about it.

You look ahead, your expression blank as if their high-pitched voices didn’t fill the streets and they weren't racing toward you with their skirts in their hands.

“My word! It’s the end of summer already?”

“Atticus, you’ve grown taller!”

“What a handsome boy! Y/n, your shorts are too short, don’t you think?”

“It’s quite bizarre how such clothing is acceptable these days.”

“How beautiful you’d look in a gown like ours!”

“Where’s Alabaster?” Janie asks, attempting to circle her arm around Atticus’s, but he raises his arm to push back his damp hair to avoid the contact. She scoffs at his rejection and sighs.

“Alabaster was sweeter to us than you guys!” Celia pouts. Your heart sinks a little at the mention of him. Of course, they’d ask about him, and of course, your father will ask too.

Gods! Your father will ask about him.

You had forgotten you’d have to break the news today. These past few weeks, you debated whether or not you should do it by letter, but it felt wrong. It was only right that he’d find out in person.

“We know you can hear us,” Janie huffs.

“I hope dad doesn’t work late tonight. Do you think Grandma will be waiting for us?” You ask. As annoying as it was having spirits follow you, it was a little fun ignoring them when convenient for you. Atticus nods,

“Probably-”

“No one’s home,” Celia cuts in, and Atticus pretends to shoo a bug away to conceal that he paused from her interruption.

“But I don’t think dad is going to take long. He said his last lecture ended at three,” Atticus continues, and you nod.

‘I hope grandma came by to visit. I missed her.”

“I just said no one’s home.” Celia snaps, and you press your lips together to hide your smile.

Atticus sighs. “I know, I’m dying for those moon cookies she makes us.” At the mention of those cookies, your stomach grumbles. You hope Celia was wrong because you’re suddenly craving your grandmother’s cooking and her company. Her funny stories and voice that’s always a little too loud for the indoors never fails to cheer you up. As short and frail as she is, her voice and personality could fill a room.

“Me too,” you say shortly.

“Hello?!” Celia waves her handkerchief in your face, and you persisted in ignoring her. Suddenly, a sound of disgust comes from Janie as she brushes off her skirt.

“Y/n, retrieve this monster of yours!” She squeals as Ambrose bites the fabric of her dress, tugging on it with a growl.

“Damn this dog,” Celia shouts, attempting to shoo him away, but yelps in surprise as Ambrose snaps his jaw shut near her hand. “Get this thing under control! Y/n!”

Your hand comes up to cover your smile even though the two are shuffling behind you and a stifled chuckle comes from Atticus. The sound of Janie’s heels on the concrete becomes louder as she rushes beside Atticus again, and your smiles drop. The sight of your house comes into view, and you tilt your head confused; your father’s car is parked in the driveway.

“You said no one was home?” You say out loud, and Celia gasps beside you,

“Now you speak to me?” She snaps, halting as you approach the fence. She stands tall, hands folded in front of her elegantly as Janie’s expression is gleaming like a child on Christmas. “Your father requested to keep it a secret, so I obliged his wishes. He canceled his last lecture today to make you both a meal. What a lovely man.”

Your hand finds the latch for the white picket fence as you smile at the familiar narrow victorian-style house ahead of you. A path of cobblestone leads you to the brick steps of the small porch.

Your home sticks out from the more modern American houses that surround the area. It’s an antique, a snippet of history, as your father likes to say. The house is a russet brown only because the bricks are so old they’ve darkened in color. The house accents such as the window trims, porch overhang, and columns are copper, and the hipped roof has brown tiles that look like fish scales. Beside the porch, the bay windows from both stories stack on top of each other, and above the porch roof is the dormer that’s a part of your bedroom.

Gods, you’re yearning to be in your room. You just want to pull out your Murphy bed from the wall and bury yourself in your sheets. The idea of being in bed puts a pep in your step, and you are careful to avoid the salt ring that surrounds your house.

A butterfly passes by your face, flying to the bunchberry bushes your father has planted in the front garden. Among the grass, there are various flowers and herbs that your father grows in the summer. You’ve inherited many things from your father, but his green thumb isn’t one of them. He takes his gardening seriously while you can barely keep the cacti in your room alive.

“Enjoy your meal! Come talk to us one of these days. We missed you two!” Janie shouts after you as you make your way up the stairs. You turn around, Atticus smiling at them.

“We missed you, girls, too,” he says as if he didn’t want to admit it. Janie squeals something about how handsome his smile is, and you scoff, amused as you grab the doorknob.

Once you push the door open, you're hit with a rush of deja vu. The history channel plays faintly in the next room as you take in the home you’ve missed dearly.

There are two bookshelves against the wall on your right, a wide ledge with pillows under the bay windows. A messy coffee table filled with letters and stacked with books sits in front of the comfy reading nook, letting you know that your father was recently hanging out there.

There is a brown mahogany staircase that ascends upstairs to your left, and right beside it is the altar for your mother. A statue of her rests in the middle of the rectangle table covered in a black table cloth. On top of it lies the many offerings for your mom. Herb-dressed candles burn beside bowls of fruit, bouquets, a crystal enamel wine glass filled with alcohol, feathers, and other things. You ignore the altar as you put down your stuff beside the door, following Atticus as he takes off his shoes.

“Kids?” You hear your father call enthusiastically from beyond the foyer, and you persist forward into the entryway ahead of you.

“We’re home!” Atticus announces as he enters beside you. Ambrose barks making a beeline to the right and behind the kitchen counter. He jumps on your father with so much force he stumbles back.

“Gods! Why does he look even bigger?” Your father exclaims through a laugh, fixing the round glasses that threaten to slip off his nose as his other hand grips Ambrose’s paw. He yelps in surprise as Harvey's claws rest on top of his head, clinging to his hair to steady himself.

The warmth and smell of home fill your senses as you catch your dad’s gaze. “Well, come here! Are you going to hug your pops or what?”

You rush over with Atticus. Both of you hug your dad tightly on either side of him, and you smile as he presses a kiss on your temples. “I missed you guys so much!”

“We missed you too!” The smile on your face falters as he looks up, scanning the archway as if he was waiting for someone else. You shift, not ready to be faced with the question, and you peer around his body to look at the food on the stove behind him.

Your father notices your interest, and he chuckles. “Come on, let’s eat. You guys came right on time.”

You shuffle through the kitchen with Atticus, making your way to the rounded table at the end of the kitchen.

“Dad, what have you been up to?” Atticus asks teasingly, and your father perks up.

“I've done a lot of things to keep me busy. I volunteered to teach summer classes while you were gone. I’m reading this book with a fascinating perspective of the shift from Paganism to Christianity in Rome. It’s an amazing read; I highly recommend it. Though, I don’t quite agree with it.” Your father hums thoughtfully. “Oh! And I bought gnomes for our garden! And the thrift store had this little house and this old lady figurine! I put it on the porch. I don’t know if you’ve seen it, but she’s the official guard of the door," he declares proudly. "And…” He twists and turns before heading to the bookshelves in the living room area. He grabs something from the shelf then he showcases a cartoon Dobby bobblehead with wide arms. A high-pitched cackle leaves his lips. “It completes our collection!”

“Woah! Where did you get it? We went to three different places for it, and we couldn’t find it.” Atticus matches your father’s excitement, and you snort at the two.

“I went to a mythology convention in Boston a few weeks ago. There was a game stop across the street from the center, and I thought, ‘why not?’ I went in, and I saw this little guy by the register.” Your father is giddy as he nudges the head and watches it jiggle in his hands.

You think of what your grandmother’s reaction would be if she saw all the things he bought on his trip to the thrift store. She’d definitely complain. She always said that even growing up, your father had a liking for knickknacks. On your shelves and counters, there are always little trinkets lying around. It even extends to the walls, a variety of paintings and diagrams are neatly hung beside each other. From the state of your house, it’s clear your father is a maximalist in its purest definition.

“Wow! That’s awesome!” Atticus reaches out his hand for it as your father brings over his entire collection of Harry Potter bobbleheads, the toys huddled in his chest before he places them on the dining table. “The whole gang can hang out with us for dinner.”

“I hope they like pasta,” Atticus comments, lining them up as your dad retrieves the pan of food.

Your stomach grumbles at the sight, and you’re quick to serve yourself as Atticus and your Dad talk about anything and everything. You guys discuss what your grandmother has been up to, how your father’s classes were going, which led your father to ramble so much he formed a tangent on top of another. The conversation was going so well that you were sure he wouldn’t ask about your summer, but you had assumed too soon.

“So enough about me! How was Camp?” Your father chirps, and you shift in your seat.

You smile with confidence to hide the wariness you felt. “It was great!” You figured if you keep your answer short, you could move past it quickly.

“Yeah, the usual. Fun as always,” Atticus adds.

Your father’s eyes flicker between the two of you, and the first thing he notices is the way your smiles don’t reach the rest of your face.

The clanging of metal utensils on glass plates fills the room as the both of you fixate on your food but neither take a bite. The camp was never a touchy subject. The sudden unwillingness to speak about it makes his eyebrow cock up in suspicion. His eye averts to the empty dining chair beside you and the dinner place settings that remained untouched. Alabaster was supposed to join your return home. At least, that’s what he had assumed.

“Did Alabaster decide to stay at his foster home?” There’s caution in his tone, and he’s taken aback at how both you and Atticus tense up. The clings of metal halt abruptly, and slowly, you move to glance at your father.

“Dad, something happened at camp this summer.” Now, it was your turn to have a tone laced with caution. Alabaster lived with you for months and quickly became a part of the family. Your father saw him as his second son, and you were afraid to break the news that he may never see him again.

“What happened? Did he get into trouble?” You frown at the sudden edge in his voice. Atticus shifts beside you,

“He took the others to go fight for the Titan Lord.”

“What?”

“Mother came to speak to him and told him that it was best to fight for the other side since their chances are better,” you say slowly. “They left at the end of July. Only Atticus, Lou Ellen, and I stayed at camp.”

Your father’s expression darkens, grief written all over his face. “And you haven’t seen them since?”

You shake your head, not wanting to delve into the details. “I don’t think we’ll be seeing them again in a while and not in the best circumstances.” Your father nods, understanding the implication in your words. “Mother promised that she’d take care of them if they fight for the other side. I didn’t want to go; it wasn’t right.”

“That must be why everything is rotting,” your father mutters more to himself. You furrow your eyebrows.

“Rotting? What’s rotting?”

“Our offerings to your mother,” he clarifies. “All the fruit I leave on her altar goes bad in a few days. The flowers wither quickly too. The garden, in general, hasn’t been doing well either. I didn’t understand why.”

Your focus returns to your plate. Suddenly, you weren’t that hungry anymore.

She must be angry, you think to yourself. A part of you wanted a sign from her to let you know if she was bothered you didn’t join. When the sign didn’t come, you assumed she didn’t care; that, in a way, you were dead to her. It didn’t dawn on you to ask how the altar or the garden your father dedicated to her was doing.

“Can I be excused?” You strain, your face a little hot, and you’re not sure if it was from your anger or from the tears you’re blinking away.

“Of course.” The warm smile on your father’s face fails to budge the dread you’re feeling. “You can be excused as well, Atticus.”

You miss the way your father and Atticus exchange looks as you stood up. There wasn’t a verbal agreement, but Atticus stands up tall, determined to make you feel better. He trails behind you, and suddenly, he slings his arm across your shoulders. “You know what’s one of the things I missed at camp?”

“What?” You ask, trying to ignore the heavy feeling in your chest.

“Beating you at Tekken,” Atticus teases. Your lips curve slightly; his playful nature manages to brighten up your mood a little bit. “Let’s play. I’ll go easy on you, but I’m sure you’ll still lose regardless.”

“You’re on,” you nudge him, and Atticus chuckles, walking ahead of you and up the stairs. Your hand grips the railing, and you walk up a few steps before halting, and your eyes find the front door.

“You don’t get it!”

“I don’t.” You shrugged, amused at the way Atticus’s eyebrows knitted in disbelief. He ignored you, grabbed the remote, and played the Star Wars movie again. You groaned, seeing the slanted letters move up the TV screen. “Atticus! I can’t watch this!”

“Why not?!”

“Well, first off, my dyslexia won’t let me read that quickly, and if a physically written prologue is needed before a movie… it’s not a good movie!”

“How dare you!” You threw your head back as a laugh bubbled in your throat. The exasperated look on his face was too funny. You had no desire to watch these movies, and you figured if you bothered him enough, he’d give up trying to show them to you. The shrug of your shoulders made him scoff. “Just watch it!”

A huff left your lips, and unwillingly, you returned your gaze to the screen. Suddenly, a hollow knock came from the front door.

“It’s late,” you said, but Atticus was too caught up in the beginning battle of the movie to pay any mind to you. Rarely did you get visitors, definitely not past midnight on a Friday. Cautiously, you rose from the couch and moved toward the door.

Rain erratically hit against your curtain-covered windows; the wind and cold made the walls around you creak as they adjusted. Whatever waited for you at the door, you just wished it was a person, not a weird ghost or monster. Your finger latched on the side of the curtain, allowing you to peek through the glass of your front door.

A gasp left your lips. Alabaster, soaked from the ruthless rain outside, was the last person you expected to see. But even though you didn’t expect him, you had an inkling as to why he was here.

Hastily, you unlocked the door and flung it open. “Al?” You sputtered; his green orbs were surrounded by tired eyes and puffy skin.

“He died this morning,” he strained. Your expression softened, and before you could say anything, Alabaster stepped forward and hugged your shoulders tightly. The raggedness of his breath, the shutter of his body, sent your chest a weight of sorrow. You couldn’t imagine being in his shoes and losing your father to a long battle with cancer at 14. Tears threatened to spill from your eyes; the person you looked up to the most was breaking down. You never thought he would need your help for anything, but it seems that you were wrong. “I’m sorry. You guys live the closest to me, and I didn’t know where to go-”

“It’s okay,” you interrupted. “Oh, Al, I’m so sorry,” your voice cracked, hands rubbed his back as a sob left his lips. A creak of a floorboard caught your attention, and you turned to see a confused Atticus emerging from the living room. With a sad look, he understood what happened, and soon his expression was mimicking yours.

“I’ll wake dad and get clothes,” he said, then rushed upstairs.

Your father didn’t even hesitate to help Alabaster, opening the doors of your house to him. In his greatest time of need, the three of you stood beside him, and overnight, he had a place in your home and in your heart. The three of you spent so much time playing video games, getting into trouble around town, learning magic. All the good times you and Atticus shared with him, were they really worth throwing away to fight with Kronos? You realize now that his departure was never only a betrayal to the camp but to you, Atticus, and your father, and you couldn’t help but think perhaps, you guys didn’t mean as much to him as he meant to you.

A shaky sigh leaves your mouth at the thoughts persistent to ruin your mood. The desire to leave camp was to avoid all the things that reminded you of your siblings, but now that you returned home, you realize that running away isn’t as easy as you thought.

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if your username is bolded that means i can’t tag you ! you probably have your visibility settings on!

[sunshineandbnha]

After All These Years - Denki x reader (Denki birthday special)

Word count: 2,355 Warnings: not edited A/N: I really did try to get this out on his birthday, but now it’s 8 minutes too late. It’s kinda rushed, but I really like this idea. Hope you like it.

~

"It's almost our third year in UA."

"I know, crazy right." Kaminari laid back in the grass. His hands were folded behind his head.

The wind combed through your hair. It was a nice day and you both agreed to meet at the park.

"You know, back when I applied to UA, I thought I'd have a girlfriend by now."

"Yeah." You absent mindedly nodded.

"I know! If we're still single when we're thirty, we'll marry each other!" 

You laughed, not taking his suggestion seriously. "Well, I would want to date someone before I marry them. Besides, how do you know I won't become a hobo by then." you said jokingly.

He let out a sigh. His gaze drifting down to his side. "I just don't want to be alone." 

You paused before rolling your eyes a little, but you decided not to tease him about it. You jokingly agreed, "Yeah. Sure."

~

It was your first day off in a while, and you took this precious time to sort through the growing mess in your room. Picking up each individual item and trying to figure out what to do with it. You came across an old photo. The frame around it was a nice wooden brown, though it was clear from touching it that it was just plastic. It had collected some dust

It was a photo of you with your friends while you were still in highschool. Among them was Kaminari. You smiled as you sat back on the one area of your bed that wasn't cluttered from cleaning. It had been years since then.

Wait.

"Shoot!" You stood, "It was his birthday today wasn't it?"

You quickly walked out of your room to find your phone. Both to check the date and to text him if it was. You were in the process of searching for it when a knock at the door interrupted you. You didn’t recall anyone saying they were coming over. You carefully walked up to the door.

"It's me, Denki."

You opened up the door to the smiling blond on the other side. 

“It’s my birthday! Miss me?”

"Hey! Not that I'm upset, but what are you doing here?"

"I thought I texted you that I was coming over?" He said.

With an eyebrow quirked, you found your phone after a minute of searching and checked.

"Oops. Sorry, I had it on silent."

“No problem.” He bounced on his toes. “It’s been a while since we saw each other in person. Like, a month or so?”

“Yeah.” You nodded. “Wait a second, that was in winter.”

His eyes widened. “Oh! Right! Yeah, it was cold that day. So, ouch, five months ago.”

“Good for catching up. Sorry, I completely forgot it was your birthday. I swear I had just remembered and was about to text you before you knocked.”

“It’s all good.”

You nodded and fell into an awkward silence. Both wanting to talk about something, but having no idea where to start.

Kaminari smiled. “So, thirty, right? Back in U.A. I almost thought I’d never get this far.”

“Yeah.” You laughed. “We’re getting old.”

“I know,” he nervously nodded. “So are we gonna date now?”

“Excuse me?”

“Remember about fourteen years ago when we said if we didn’t find anyone by now, we’d start dating?”

“Holy- we’ve been friends that long?” You shook your head. “But, I did? I don’t remember... well, I guess I kinda remember that now that you mention it?”

“Oops, I guess it was a while ago.” His head sunk into his shoulders and looked to his side with a nervous grin. “But… wanna try?”

You bit the inside of your lip and looked up. Well, considering this was your day off, you didn’t have much better to do. Of course, there was the clutter in your bedroom, but you were also subconsciously keen on looking for an excuse not to do it. Plus, you really didn’t have a problem with going on one date with him. And…

"Fine. We'll go on a date and see how we feel by the end of it."

His golden eyes lit up and his smile grew the biggest you'd seen it in a long time.

You loved to see him happy.

"But, I have one condition," you had said, "it can't get out to the media."

The media and citizens loved to meddle in pro heroes' love life. Simply going to a café together would get you on trending pages for the next week. And though you never experienced this, you've seen how stressful it could be. Lord knew how much hate Shouto's girlfriend received from his fangirls when a camera first caught them. There was even a rumor about reporters going to her apartment when someone found out which complex she lived in.

Of course, you didn't know her or Shouto personally. It happened around five years ago, and you didn’t even know if they were still together. But it was enough to convince you to try not to get caught up in that kind of drama if you could help it.

"This mask is kinda stuffy," Kaminari tugged at the black mask on his face.

You walked by his side on the sidewalk. The air felt still and hot. But at least the night prevented it from getting any warmer. The temperature actually felt comfortable if you were sitting.

"Sorry. I just don't want someone to see us together and blow it out of proportion. Especially since we don't know how we feel about this yet."

"True. But it's so hard," he whined.

"Hopefully you didn't pick a restaurant to go to."

"I actually didn't. I hope you'll really like it."

It all felt so strange, because it didn't feel odd. You were both talking and hanging out like you usually would. The only difference now was that there was the official title of "date" going along with it.  You both spent a lot of time together like that when you were still high schoolers. He actually asked you out a few times, but you always said no and insisted on being just friends.

Though just a few months before graduating, you started to develop feelings for him. You ignored it. You knew he didn't feel the same. It hurt to see him asking other people out at that time, but it was fine. It hurt, but you knew your silly feelings meant nothing and you liked being friends with him.

You past shops, getting closer to the park.

Initially after graduating, you didn't see each other very much. You were both busy and it put strain on your friendship, or maybe just you. It was because you wanted to talk to him, you really did, but you had other, more pressing, things you needed to do. It was around that time, when you weren’t constantly seeing him for the first time in a few years, that you realized how much you relied on him, despite you being the one to remind him of homework and keep him out of trouble.

You wandered into the park. Kaminari took your hand and led you off the path and towards the pond.. You tilted your head in confusion, but followed. He stopped by the water next to a cherry blossom tree, though by now the pink petals were gone and replaced by glossy green leaves.

He stared out onto the water, you did the same. The night seemed so much more still here. The sky was a beautiful black with flecks of diamonds that reflected off of the water.

You almost forgot you were still holding hands.

"I've always wanted to take someone special to me here on a date." He smiled. "But I've never gotten to before."

"So, I'm the first?" Out of all everyone, were you really the only one to get to see this with him.

"Yep."

You thought for a second. "What about Natalie?"

He gave a small laugh, but one that was filled with some sort of bittersweet emotion. Sadness? Longing? None of those were really the right word. Maybe if there was a word that meant "remembering a happy what-could-have-been".

"Yeah. Natalie was amazing, but by the time I was comfortable enough to take her here our schedules didn't allow it."

You picked at your memory. "She was born in America, right?"

"Yeah, but she couldn't remember it since her family moved to Japan when she was three."

You nodded, then your eyes drifted downwards. "Sucks she had to move to Paris for her career."

"Yeah. But that’s in the past. I hope she's doing good right now. I bet she has awesome clothing lines out now." He stared up in the sky.

The tension was way too thick for you right now. You playfully bumped his arm. "Admit it, you liked her because she could draw."

"Yeah! Her drawings were amazing!" his eyes lit up and had a distant look, like he was remembering them. Then he paused "Waiiiiit, are you saying mine aren't good?"

"What? No, no!" 

You burst out laughing and he did the same. It rang out across the water and in the night air, where everyone could hear, but you didn't care. It felt like your own tiny world.

"You know," you started. "Back when you said that whole 'if we're thirty and single' thing, I thought you were joking. You know,” you said before he could respond, “Back in the last year of U.A. I actually did start to have feelings for you.”

“What?!” he jumped back in surprise. "You liked me? Why didn’t you tell me?!”

“Because you didn’t feel the same.” 

“True,” he said in a quiet voice, “But I did earlier, you were just a year too late. I mean, since then I mostly saw you as a friend, but another part of me wondered what it would be like if we did date.”

You hummed and nodded. “But for me, it took me forever to get rid of those feelings. A part of me almost didn’t want to do this because then that time would be wasted.” Especially when it hurt so much and took so long.

He glanced at you, but didn’t say anything. You didn’t blame him. If you were him you wouldn’t be able to find any words for what you just said too.

"I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault."

A silence fell on you.

He bit his lip. "So, I guess you're my friend, a really close one, but at the same time I also see you as something more. If that makes any sense." 

You nodded. "Yeah, I think it does." 

"So, you actually, really, like me, at least at some point?" He said slowly.

"Yes. Stop asking. This is really embarrassing." You covered your face with your hands.

"Hey! Don't cover your face!" 

He fought to get his fingers around your wrists to pull them apart. You did your best to keep them in place, hands shaking in effort, but he was stronger. You angled your face away in a futile attempt to prevent him from seeing it, but all with a smile on your face.

He put his finger under your chin and turned your head toward him. He was already smiling. The small amount of light coming from the city reflected in his eyes. But then his features softened. He leaned in ever so slightly.

"Gosh, you're beautiful." 

You could feel his breath fanning your face as he whispered. You felt yourself being pulled closer to him, as if some magic force moved you, and your lips met. The moment they touched, you felt a tingle, not quite like electricity, but there was no other way to describe it. You felt yourself relax. Muscles you didn’t even know were wound up went slack. You found your hand reaching to the back of his neck and gliding up into his hair. His arm snaked around your waist to hold you closer.

It was like your forgotten dreams were coming back to life, stronger and more vivid. You felt walls you built crumbling down before him as you melted into the kiss and the moment. And for that moment, you were the only ones in the world.

Then that moment ended. You suddenly squinted from a sudden flash of light.

The kiss broke from your mutual confusion. You blinked hard and looked to see where it came from. What you found was a guy, who appeared to be in his twenties, though it was hard to tell in the light. And in both his hands, he held a phone, ready to take a picture.

Oh, this was NOT happening.

You stomped up to him. The look of fear on his face was comical. It was hard to tell, but you think he turned pale.

“Delete that right. Now!”

He frantically nodded, fumbling with his phone. You stood over him, staring at his phone to make sure he deleted it and didn’t upload it to the internet. As you did so, Kaminari walked beside you and bumped you with his elbow.

“Still shy?” he whispered.

You pouted, eyes turning down slightly. You waited for the guy to be done. After inspecting his recent photos to make sure he did, you gave his phone back. He apologized before running away.

“I just don’t want anyone to know for now. It's just... this is personal for me. Just... give me time, okay?" you said.

"I've been waiting forever to be with you. I'm pretty sure I can wait to tell my friends about it." He wrapped his arm around you.

It was a beautiful night. The still water glistening. The trees decorating the horizon. The stars shining above you, witnessing the event. Crickets applauded you. Aside from that, the world was quiet, as if respecting this special moment 

.

.

.

"But seriously. Don't tell your friends about it, okay?" 

"Okay. Okay. I won't. I promise."

"That's what you said with the pop tart incident!" 

"Okay then, I pinky promise. On our love... and friendship! Alright?" 

"Alright."

[darling-dummy-blogs]

A Dummy's Heartbreak- Victor Li (PT 1)

Summary: Cassie and Victor broke up 4 months ago and haven't spoken to or seen each other since they went their separate ways. The day of their anniversary comes around and after realizing the importance of the day, Cassandra is hit with intense and conflicting emotions. She ends up irrationally calling Victor and admits...

Paring: Victor Li x Cassie (OC)

Genre: Angst

Warnings: Mentions of break-up and alcohol use.

Fandom: Mr. Love Queen's Choice

Word Count: 2.3K

Notes:

Backstory; After Cassie and Victor broke up, Cassie left Loveland City and moved back to her hometown, she found a job at a production company and lives in her (now deceased) parent’s house with her aunt (who took over as the head of the house to care for Cassie’s younger siblings after their parent's death ( and yes she has siblings))

This part will be Cassie’s POV (1st Person View)

Here it is! The first part! So Sorry for the delay! I appreciate in all the support everyone has given me to write this piece and I'm feeling even more encouraged to write more again! Enjoy the angsty ride my lovelies! <3

Today was just not my day.

As it usually isn’t. The week was barely starting and I already felt as though the weekend needed to arrive quicker. Although...To be fair, everything has been a mess ever since he walked out of my life...

To start off, I missed my alarm this morning. What a great way to start the day...

I quickly rushed to get ready and ran straight to work, feeling frantic and anxious for being late. Only to see that work had begun to pile up on my desk. Just by looking at the huge pile of papers, I already felt drained.

“Looks like I might be working late tonight…” I muttered to myself and held back a resigned sigh and frowned.

“Cassie! How come you were late? Everything okay?” A voice, filled with concern suddenly spoke out, making me snap out of my thoughts to find where the voice came from, only to look at one of my co-workers, Lillian, who just so happened to also be a close friend of mine.

Me and Lillian were friends in high school, we had connected and bonded pretty well, she was like a sister to me. However after we graduated, we sadly lost contact.

I didn’t think I’d get to see her again, however when I started working for this production company just a few months back, I found out that she worked here too. We instantly connected again. It felt as though we never lost contact.

I gave her a small exasperated smile as I shook my head dismissively, sitting down at my desk which was across from hers.

“Ah.. everything is fine, I just slept through my alarm this morning. That’s all, no need to worry about me.”

“No need? You know, I always worry about you silly.” She frowned, she held two steaming cups of coffee in her hands, setting one down on my desk for me.

I let out a breath of relief giving her a small nod, as thanks for the coffee. I didn’t have time to stop for breakfast or get some coffee. I let out a small laugh. “You sound just like my mother. I’m okay, there isn’t anything to worry about.” I gazed at her, taking a sip of the coffee she gave me.

She rolled her eyes, a small smile replaced her frown, “I might as well be your mother, because you gave me a scare!”

“Yeah, yeah. I know. I’m sorry.” I gave her a sweet smile and pleading eyes. “Forgive me?”

“...Fineeee, you’re forgiven. Just don’t do it again!” She huffed, lightly ruffling my hair. I nodded with a grin, “You got it. It won’t happen again. Come on, let's start work before the boss scolds us for slacking. Wouldn’t want to set her off now would we?”

I giggled out as I mustered up my courage and got to work immediately, Lillian did the same, her face now filled with less concern and more happiness.

This is where my day suddenly takes a turn for the worse…

I tried my hardest to get through the heavy workload throughout the seemingly long day, however my mind kept slipping up and I gradually kept making mistakes over and over again. Now the day was almost over and yet I still had piles of paperwork to sort through.

I let out a huff as I stared down at my work, feeling frustrated.

Lillian looked up from her seat, seeing my frustrated gaze. She spoke out to me in a gentle tone. “Cass? You okay?”

I looked up at her, after a moment, running my fingers through my hair as I nodded slowly after a moment of silence. “Y-Yeah.. I’m just.. frustrated that I’m noticing more errors… I don’t understand why I’m like this today… I’m not usually like this…” I let out a heavy sigh as I rested my head on the desk, shutting my eyes.

What could it be…? Why am I feeling so weird today...?

“Is something on your mind, maybe?” She stood up from her desk, walking over to mine, leaning against it as she gently stroked my hair, knowing that it was something to help soothe me whenever I felt down and anxious.

“I… I honestly don’t know….” I muttered quietly, I then looked up, resting my chin on the desk, my eyes trailed across the clutter of stuff around me, frowning as I tried to figure out what was truly bugging me. My eyes then land on the calendar.

I eyed the month. June…

“Lillian…” I suddenly croaked out, my voice coming out as a mere whisper. “What is today’s date?”

“June 1st … Why do you ask?” She spoke clearly, confusion evident in her voice.

Crap… How could I forget about this day….

A sudden wave of sadness hit me, and I could feel the tears well up in my eyes, I blinked them back as I looked away, sniffling.

Lillian immediately noticed something was wrong and grew concerned once again. “Cassandra… What's wrong?”

I took a moment, shutting my eyes tightly, wiping at the oncoming tears. It’s only been 4 months but it still hurts… I let out a shaky breath, clearing my throat as I gazed at her. “Today is… mine and my ex’s three year anniversary today. We broke up four months ago… It still hurts… I-I’m sorry…”

My voice became hoarse as I tried holding back sobs. Lillian frowned as she then pulled me into a warm embrace, she rubbed my back, she then spoke out. “I am so sorry to hear that… I never knew you were even in a relationship before… why didn’t you tell me about that?”

I sniffled, hugging her back after a moment I spoke out again. “The pain was still too fresh… It was hard to talk about him with anyone.” I let out a small sob before continuing.

“W-When… When I came back home, it was just days after the break up. I moved back into my parent’s house and into my old room… and it was harder because I brought my ex back to my home nearly every holiday and special occasion… We made memories there with my family… It hurt so much…”

My voice became a whisper, she listened silently as I rambled on. “And what makes this worse is, I still love him. I miss him so much… But since the day we broke up, I have not spoken to or seen him in four months…”

I shut my eyes, sobbing quietly against her, hiding my face from her view. I couldn’t bear to look up and see her sad expression, it would only add more fuel to my sadness.

“H-he meant the world to me… I thought I would be with him f-forever… It h-hurts so much...” My voice trailed off, all the repressed emotions I’ve tried holding back all those months ago came rushing out in quiet sobs and rivers of tears.

Lillian continuously stroked my back, before speaking gently. “I know it hurts, it will hurt for awhile and that’s okay. You need your time to heal…” After a pause she added.

“Why don’t you head home? You look like you could use the rest and working right now isn’t what is best for you. I can cover the rest of your work and I’ll tell the boss to hold on the workload for you, okay?”

I tried to compose myself. Shaking my head, stubbornly. As much as she was right, I needed to do something today, anything to keep my mind from wandering back to him and this day. “N-no… No I can’t ask that of you…”

“But I want to. You clearly need the day off to cope. Throwing yourself into work isn’t going to help you Cassie.” She looked down at me with a serious expression.

Hah… at that moment, she reminded me of him. That was something he often told me when he felt as though I was overworking myself. At times, I did.

But only because I wanted to make him proud…

I wiped at my tears, giving her a small smile, as I gave in. “Alright…” I spoke in a soft tone, my voice barely coming out due to all the crying I just did.

She released me from her hold as I gathered up my belongings, gazing at her once again with a bittersweet smile. “Thanks Lillian, I owe you one. I’ll see you later.” After waving my goodbyes to her as I left the office with my head hung low.

Not wanting others to see my depressed state, I quietly yet quickly made my way back home, thankful that the office was just a good twenty minute walk from my home grabbing my keys from my bag. I walked in.

The house was quiet, which was a good thing. It meant my aunt wasn’t home. Although I had already known that she wouldn’t be home.

I moved in with my aunt four months ago when I returned after leaving Loveland. I was grateful that my aunt took over the house after my parent’s passing. She took care of my younger siblings when I couldn’t. I was forever grateful that she was so accepting of me coming home.

If it wasn’t for her… I wouldn’t have a place to live.

However, I knew she wouldn’t be back until tomorrow; She was out of town on business and left the house to me for a few days. I let out a breath as I dropped my belongings on the table, dragging my feet into the living room, plopping down onto the soft cushion of the couch, staring mindlessly at the ceiling. Unsure of what to do to occupy my time.

The more I stared up at the ceiling in silence, the more I got trapped in my thoughts. He began to fill my head once again. I shut my eyes, feeling the build up of my tears once again. No. Not again.

“Why can’t I stop thinking about him?!” I spoke out loud, my voice echoing throughout the large room, I was beginning to grow frustrated rather than sad at this point.

I lightly tugged on my hair, as I tried to compose my emotions which were only drastically changing with every thought and memory I made with Victor. As if that wasn’t enough, images began to flash within my mind.

His soft smile…

His loving gaze…

Hearing his gorgeous laugh and the way he’d affectionately call me a “dummy” every time I did something silly or stupid. Oh how I wish I could hear him call me a dummy one more time...

I really am just a dummy… A dummy still hopelessly in love with him

I didn’t even realize the tears that began flowing down my face once again.

Goddamn you, Victor Li. Why did you make me fall so hopelessly in love with you?!

Peeling myself off of the couch, I made my way over to the kitchen, the only way to drown my sorrows and feelings for him was with alcohol. I didn’t even care if it was too early in the week for this.

I need to get him out of my head.

I sniffled as I pulled out a wine glass and a large bottle of red wine. I then made my way back to the living room, sitting myself down once again, filling my cup to the brim of the glass before turning on the tv. I needed distractions. Maybe playing a movie will help.

After scrolling through what seemed like countless channels, I settled on a random movie. It wasn’t like I was going to pay much attention to it. I’m too busy crying my eyes out. I took large sips of wine, my eyes still blurred with tears.

No matter how much I drank, he still was on my mind. Even the alcohol didn’t seem to help me in my time of need. I downed what seemed like my fourth or fifth glass. I didn’t bother to keep track. Setting down the now empty glass on the table, I laid down, curling up on the couch, my head suddenly spinning. I let out a small groan.

Perhaps having too much wine after crying so much probably wasn’t a good idea… I rubbed at my eyes, drying up my tears. After a moment of regaining my eyesight, my eyes gazed over to my phone, laying flat on the table beside the glass.

...Should I call him…?

No… No I shouldn’t. We haven’t spoken since we split. It would just be weird to suddenly contact him out of the blue after everything that happened between us.

As much as I knew my mind was trying to be rational and reasonable about the situation. I couldn’t stop my hand from grabbing my phone, scrolling through my contacts and finding his contact. I took a shuddering breath before pressing the call button.

My heart anxiously churned within my chest, as I sat up properly, chewing on my fingernails while the phone rang… and rang.

It kept ringing. I began to think that maybe he would not answer. He probably blocked my number or something… Yet, on the last ring, he picked up.

There was a moment of silence before a quiet voice could be heard on the other end.

“Hello…?”

My heart skipped a beat, I swallowed as I tried to muster up the words to speak. What am I doing?! Why did I think this was a good idea!? Gosh, I really am an idiot…

I scolded myself mentally, as I shakily spoke out. “H-hey… Hey Victor.” I took a pause, before adding. “I-It’s been awhile…”

“It has… Why did you suddenly call me, Cassie…?” His voice came out soft but it also had a hint of sadness to it. Was that just my imagination..? Is he still hurting too?

“I-....” I swallowed, tears filling up my eyes. “I just….” My voice wavered. In order to feel better, I needed to tell him.

“I Miss You. I Miss Us..."

--

Author's Note: Part 2 will be out hopefully by the end of today if not Thursday morning! It will be in Victor's POV and will include more detail about why they broke up! Thanks for Reading <3

[edenbrookcelestial]

cold as you || [ethan ramsey x mc]

summary: love doesn’t always burn. sometimes, it freezes.

warnings: angst, harsh ethan.

author’s notes: song title from taylor swift’s cold as you, story inspired by it.

word count: 2327

you have a way of coming easily to me and when you take, you take the very best of me so i start a fight 'cause i need to feel something and you do what you want 'cause i’m not what you wanted

“ ethan, please. ”

ethan touched a hand to his forehead, as though to soothe an ache building there. “ avalon. i don’t know what you want from me. ”

avalon stared for a moment, incredulous. “ what i want? ethan, i want something. anything. any sign that you’re willing to commit to this, to us, to me. ”

the man closed his eyes and turned toward the window of his office, gazing out at the city buzzing below. “ does everything have to be such a drama with you? ” he mused aloud, driving yet another knife deeper into the younger doctor’s heart.

she gritted her teeth and blinked away the tears threatening to spill; no, she would not give him the satisfaction. “ one moment you say you want to be with me. the next, you’re telling me you can’t see a future.”

“ that’s not what i said, ” ethan murmured, a heavy sigh accompanying the words. ‘’ i said no one can know what the future holds.”

“ so you make a choice, ” she countered, voice like thunder. “ you choose to commit to a person, despite the fact that you don’t know what’s coming. ”

ethan’s mind wandered to the stack of paperwork currently cluttering up his desk. he moved to sit behind it and selected a pen, never once glancing up at avalon. “ i don’t have time for this.”

avalon watched as he began to fill in forms, the top of his fancy fountain pen tapping against his lower lip. she let out a humourless chuckle and clenched her fists, moving her gaze to her feet. “ no. you never do.”

ethan didn’t look up until after the door had swished open and shut, until avalon was long gone down the hallway.

oh, what a shame, what a rainy ending given to a perfect day just walk away, no use defending words that you will never say and now that i’m sitting here thinking it through i’ve never been anywhere cold as you

the streets were slick with rain. thick clouds sagged and poured water down across the city, avalon’s thin grey hoodie a poor deterrent to the weather. by the time she’d made it three blocks away from the hospital, she was soaked to the bone. at least the rain covered her tears. how could she possibly have ended up here? aching for a man who shut her out more often than he ever let her in? she thought back to her first interaction with ethan; how cold and stand-offish he’d been. as she reflected on all the months that had passed since, she realised, that coldness had never quite thawed. his edges were still sharp enough to cut if one were to get too close. and every time she believed there’d been a breakthrough, she’d blink and find herself left outside in the rain all over again.

you put up walls and paint them all a shade of gray and i stood there loving you and wished them all away and you come away with a great little story of a mess of a dreamer with the nerve to adore you

they say that insanity is doing the same thing again and again and expecting different results. avalon had been fighting ethan’s defences since the moment they first met. over a year later and not a dent was to be found. at work, she threw herself into case after case, diagnosing the impossible, gaining respect and admiration from every coworker by her side. as great as it felt to be on top of her game professionally, nothing could help the drop she experienced once she clocked out. her friends dragged her to donahughes nightly, buying beers and betting on games of pool. she tried her best to enjoy herself, to show her friends that she appreciated their efforts. one night, a couple of weeks after their arguement in his office, avalon spotted ethan at the bar. he was out with several of the more senior doctors, harper emory, baz mirani, june hirata, even naveen. they hadn’t spoken much in a personal capacity in days. aurora, elijah, jackie, sienna, and bryce were all too aware of what was distracting the blonde junior doctor.

excusing herself to head to the bathroom, avalon kept her head down as she moved through the crowd. unfortunately, she’d have to pass ethan’s table to get to her destination, and she prayed fiercely to slip by unnoticed. however, once she was a mere few feet away, her name was spoken by harper, causing her to stall.

“ summers is doing very well, wouldn’t you say? ”

june shrugged, a glass of wine in her hand. “ she’s capable of the job. ’

baz rolled his eyes at his co-worker. “ she’s fantastic. she sees things the rest of us can’t, she’s diagnosed more patients this month than we have in a long time. you made a good call, boss. ” he nodded to naveen, who smiled serenely. his gaze flitted to ethan, his face carefully neutral.

“ and you, ethan? what do you think? ”

avalon held her breath, she shouldn’t really be listening in, but then again... they were discussing her. she strained to hear ethan’s words over the buzz of the crowd and the music playing from the jukebox across the way.

“ she’s capable. she works hard. ”

well, there were worse things he could have said.

june smirked over the rim of her glass. red wine swirling like blood. ‘’ that all you have to say about your favourite resident? ‘’ she bared her teeth in a wicked smile. “ we all know she follows you around like a lost little puppy dog. ” ethan smiled too, slightly strained.

“ ah, june. you know what residents are like. they get an idea in their head, they run with it. nothing more than idle gossip, and i would have thought you to be above listening to that. ”

avalon felt her heart shatter in all the places it once glowed under ethan’s remarks. without a word, she turned from the table and pushed through the crowd again, this time aiming for the door. her friends hadn’t noticed, still believing avalon to be in the bathroom. she was thankful for this, the tears pouring down her face making her distress obvious. but she didn’t want to talk about it. she was done talking about it, about him. she was just done.

you never did give a damn thing, honey, but i cried, cried for you and i know you wouldn't have told nobody if i died, died for you, died for you

how cliché was it possible for one person to get? not only had avalon fallen for her boss, now here she was, tissue box by her knees, sniffling through heartbroken tears. a half-eaten bar of chocolate in one hand, her phone in the other. in her earphones, my chemical romance soothed her ache. the muffled sounds of knocking at her bedroom door lifted her attention. she flung a pillow in that direction, which landed just short of the doorframe with a pathetic thwump. she rolled onto her side, taking another bite of her chocolate. like everything in her life these days, it was dark and bittersweet, and when she opened her mouth to yawn she tasted salt on her lips. she clenched her fists, crumpling the wrapper with a crinkle. when the night grew into early morning, she ventured from her room to wash her face and grab a drink. elijah was by the fridge when she got to the kitchen, his expression in the dim room one of concern. “ hey, av,” he greeted softly, wheeling over to the kitchen counter. “ hey, eli. ” she cleared her throat, hoarse from lack of use. “ early shift today? ” he shook his head. “ just couldn’t sleep. ” she nodded, understanding the feeling.

“ i know things haven’t been easy for you, lately, av… ” the breath hitched in her throat. he reached for her hand, warm and soft. “ i just want you to know, you deserve better. ” his voice was so earnest, his words so genuine. she meet his gaze, red-rimmed emerald on soft, caring brown. “ you deserve so much more than this. you deserve so much better. ” avalon blinked, more tears slipping down her face. elijah’s heart ached, at the sight of his friend so distraught. he loved her deeply, she was like a sister to him. and to see her broken-down and aching because of a guy? it killed him.

he squeezed her hand, tight, and she sat heavily on one of their wooden stools. her head found a resting spot on elijah’s shoulder. she sobbed, and he brought his arms around her, holding her to his chest “ i’m sorry, eli, i’m sorry. ” he hushed her gently. murmuring to her as he rubbed her shoulders in soothing circles.

“ you have nothing to be sorry for. it’s not your fault. ”

they sat like that for more than hour, until the barest hint of sunshine streamed in through a chink in the blinds.

oh, what a shame, what a rainy ending given to a perfect day every smile you fake is so condescending counting all the scars you made

“ doctor summers? ”

her stomach twisted in on itself. ethan’s voice was nothing but professional, yet her nerves sprang to the edge when she heard it. leaving a patient’s chart by the nurse’s station, she turned to meet his icy blue gaze. “ a word? ” he asked, as casual as you like. avalon nodded and followed him silently to his office. the automatic doors slid shut with a gentle hiss.

he turned to face her, expression unreadable. “ i just wanted to check in. ” she replayed the words in her head, remaining silent as she processed. “ avalon? ”

she moved her eyes over his face. looking for some hint of what he wanted, what he really meant. he stepped closer and tilted his head, a tinge of worry seeping onto his face. “ it’s been a while since we spoke, ” he said, reaching to brush her wrist with his fingertips. she jolted at the gentle touch, and he stilled, his eyes meeting hers.

“ we don’t need to talk. ”

avalon’s voice was stronger than she had expected it to be. ethan was taken by surprise at her words, raising an eyebrow. “ i’m sorry? ”

she shook her head, a solemn expression on her face. “ no, you’re not, ” she whispered, and straightened her shoulders, meeting his gaze straight on. “ we don’t need to talk outside of work. okay? we talk about patients, and treatment, and strategy. other than that… i have nothing else to say to you. ”

ethan’s blue eyes widened, his lips opening in a silent oh. he seemed frozen to the spot, unable to move or speak.

“ we - there is no we. ” avalon decided. “ we are colleages. we work together. we don’t see each other outside of it. we don’t… i deserve better, ” she said, defiantly. “ the way you have treated me… i don’t deserve it. ” to her own surprise, she didn’t feel like crying. no, she felt better and better as she went on, finally standing up for herself. “ and i get it, you have issues, you have baggage, well, newsflash. we all do. and i should have walked away, before now, i should have. but i didn’t. and i - i’m sorry, ethan. i’m sorry that you would rather be alone than be loved. than let yourself love. i’m not a freakin’ rehab clinic. it’s not my job to fix you. it’s my job to fix our patients. ” she paused a moment, gauging ethan’s reaction. just shock, it seemed.

she sighed, sad and deep, and slightly relieved. “ i can’t do this anymore. so you need to stop. you don’t get to decide that you want me one minute, and then don’t want me the next. if you can’t respect someone else, regardless of your own trust issues, you really shouldn’t be in a relationship. ” she swallowed, hard, and felt the tension in the room swell as she finished her monologue. she didn’t exactly regret it, but did she wish she had picked a better place? yeah, maybe. but it wasn’t like she had even planned on saying any of it. it was just all too much. the weeks of crying herself to sleep, of watching ethan ignore her. elijah’s words of encouragement had echoed deep in her heart and her mind. and avalon finally knew that she respected herself too much to stay as ethan ramsey’s emotional punching bag.

ethan finally nodded, slowly. “ i hear you. i understand. ” his voice is monotone, lacking any trace of emotion. nothing really new there. avalon regarded him with caution. “ i mean it, ” she said, slowly, emphasising the words. ethan broke his gaze away, looking toward his desk. he nodded stiffly, and stuck his hands in the pockets of his lab coat. avalon backed up until she heard the hiss of the door. with one foot in the hallway, ethan spoke again, softer, the slightest note of regret in it. “ you’re right, you know. you do deserve better. ”

when she looks back over her shoulder, he’s resting his hands on his desk. his head turned to the side, watching her leave. blue eyes warm, but wet. her throat tightened and for a moment, her resolve faltered. there was a moment of heartwrenching vulnerability, just about visible.

it was too late. avalon put her hand on the doorframe, leaning against it. “ you deserve better, too, ethan. ” ethan watched her walk away, each receding footstep another crack to his heart. he closed his eyes and tried to even out his breathing. it was over. he lost her.

she was gone.

and now that i’m sitting here thinking it through i’ve never been anywhere cold as you

[phairfantooooom]

Bleak

Merry Christmas!!!! Secret Santa gift for @ellie-winthrope​. I hope you enjoy it! Thank you @ginkgowritings​ for hosting the MLQC Secret Santa!!!

Pairing: Lucien x Reader

Warnings: Possessiveness, Mentions of injection, Drugs

Word Count: ~2.2k Words

Synopsis: You had finally come home, and you had quelled Lucien’s worries. But now that snow has begun to fall once more, a grim possibility rears its head. Angst with a happy ending.

A lack of color.

That’s.... what had started all of this hadn’t it?

The gentle lulls of Ray Conniff and Frank Sinatra echoed quietly in the small apartment, a holiday tune being sung sweetly through the old speakers of the record player he owned. The cheery song was as stark a contrast to the cold expression he wore on his face as day was to night.

He silently maneuvered his way around the cluttered space, violet irises focused on you the entire time. So at ease, so peaceful..... He had lived in your apartment for so long he knew the area like the back of his hand.... for him it would be... it would be all too easy to just...

Gritting his teeth he dragged his gaze off your slumbering form, innocently resting the day away, oblivious to the fact that an all too familiar war was being waged inside him. 

His eyes caught on the glass balcony door, the root of his ire coating the ground in a crisp sheet of white. A reminder.... a memory of another world. Of a different time. The control he had so delicately crafted beginning to ebb and chip away.

Oh, how this covetous sin yearns to exist.

Your life was yours to live, no matter how he longed to lock you away somewhere nice and safe. To mute your senses and clip the wings of freedom you cherished so deeply.

My life has no meaning without you, after all...

You who had brought vibrant color to his world, and left desaturated hues in your sudden demise. All those shades of color that had blessed his vision had begun to fade back to into those familiar blacks, whites, and grays the longer your absence went on.

Life had become dull.

Bleak.

His gaze had wandered and he found himself staring at you again. The radiant and beautiful owner of his small little world. “My little fool...”

Reaching out he gently stroked the top of your head, his neutral expression collapsing and revealing a broken man underneath. A man that was steadily getting closer to the edge of his breaking point. A low husky whisper left him, and he found himself glad you were too deep in your sleep to hear his plea.

“I... I love you.” His voice shook to his dismay and he took a moment to steady himself before continuing. “I want you, in every aspect. I long to have you in your entirety. Your heart, your dreams, your very future. I am but a humble fire that burns for your very existence....”

He leaned down and placed a kiss atop the crown of your head, a solemn look of consideration crossing his face. “Yes... I am a blaze that will continue to burn... for you and you alone. Until all that remains of me are warm ashes...”

“Should I become an rampant inferno... I wonder if you would be able to forgive me...”

It was like watching an old film.

The scene in front of you was colorless, the world was hazy around the edges of your vision as you took in the view of what laid in front of you.

It was a laboratory, with not much of note. The walls were cracked and peeling, and the linoleum floor was stained with splatters of black. The tables and cabinets were toppled over, the workspace in a state of disarray, save for the piece of equipment in the center of the room and the work table next to it.

A large tank stood from ceiling to floor, the inside of it was filled with water and an unconscious body. As the body shifted in its forced slumber, bubbles would occasionally rise from the bottom of the tank. Watching quietly the scene almost felt peaceful. The same type of peace one would feel when drowning and succumbing to the watery depths.

The serenity that only death could bring.

You felt yourself drift closer to the tank and a strange sensation filled you as you peered at the face of the slumbering person. A mask was pressed against their face, with a tube attached for oxygen while wires and smaller tubes were attached to their arms. Leaning closer you narrowed your eyes trying to figure out what exactly it was that you were seeing. After all it seemed almost as if...

Your eyes met those that resided inside the tank and you felt your stomach lurch slightly in fear and confusion as it dawned on you who it was. Their gaze wobbled as they weakly tried to move their body, shifting one of their hands to press against the glass.

To escape.

“Movement detected. Administering Midazolam and Propofol Ketamine... please stand by.”

An automated voice sounded from the machine in front of you and you watched as the body in the tank suddenly thrashed as fluids were injected into them. It was but a brief moment before you saw the dim light of consciousness in their eyes be once more snuffed out. The body once more floating stagnantly, limp and lifeless.

“My little fool...”

A familiar voice spoke behind you and you felt a chill race up your spine. Turning cautiously you looked at the man that spoke, but found his gaze was not on you but on the person in the tank.

For the person in the tank was you.

Lucien slowly strode up to the tank, his gaze focused on it like an artist admiring their work. The clothes he donned were unlike those he usually wore, the color of his current suit was light in its hue yet eerie all the same. It…. it reminded you of….

“A perfect world… just for the two of us…”

He lifted one of his hands and lightly pressed his palm against the glass, the glimmer of madness in his eyes erratic in a controlled way. 

“Evol detected. Analyzing… Welcome Back, Lucien.”

The automated voice spoke once more and Lucien hummed in response, not sparing a glance away from the sleeping body as he continued.

“Update me on her progress.”

There was a noise of a processor whirling briefly before the automated voice responded. “Evol extraction is at 71% and running smoothly, however an anomaly was detected approximately ten minutes ago. Signs of Evol fluctuation and burnout were registered and recorded with the times marked.”

Lucien’s brows drew together and he paused a moment before speaking. “How much longer till it is complete?”

“Estimated time remaining is thirty minutes.”

“.....and what of the Black Queen?”

Another low hum of machinery and a crackle of static before the automated voice responded.

“The autopsy report has revealed a genetic array that can be used in aiding Evol extraction.”

“Oh? Continue.”

“The deceased body of the Black Queen has provided the necessary replacement tissue and blood needed for Evol extraction. With the unique DNA her body has provided, the hypothetical Evol transfer is possible.”

“In what form?”

“A single injection with the Queen’s Evol will be all that is required. Once extraction is completed, the Evol and Queen’s gene will be compiled for use and record keeping.”

Lucien’s lips quirked up into a thin smile.

“Excellent. Inform me when it’s finished, as I will be the recipient of the injection…”

You shook slightly, the words and implication behind them making your heart sink. In this place, this world, this future… Lucien had killed the Black Queen… and confined you… and was going to take your Evol…?

Why?

Why had this happened?

You wanted to reach out to ask, but the man before you was someone that had given up hope and control. Someone that feared losing you so much that he snapped. The current situation would be frightening if it were not so completely tragic.

As you realized the cause of all of this your heart thudded with a singular goal in mind.

You’d save him. You’d save him from his worst enemy.

Himself.

Bleak.

Yet bittersweet.

As Lucien was going to stand up and leave you to sleep in peace he felt a gentle warmth wrap around his wrist, causing his eyes to instinctively flicker up to yours at the sudden movement.

For a brief moment you merely looked at him, your tired eyes looking into his. The emotion that swirled in their depths was easy to see and understand. The adoration and love he saw… it was almost a reflection of his own for you. 

His heart skipped as he watched you sit up and draw him close. Your touch was like a magical remedy, it pushed away the worries and concerns like the sun dispersing clouds on a hot summer day. It was only when you were away that the dark temptations were no longer held at bay. 

As you held him he held you in turn, his eyes falling shut as he laid his head on your shoulder. No longer was music playing in the apartment, only comfortable silence remained as you brushed away the demons that lurked in his head.

“Lucien…”

He felt his heart seize as you whispered his name. You sounded… somber. Reluctantly he pulled away, the ever familiar calm smile on his face as he replied. His mind on auto-pilot, pretending as if his mental tranquility had never been threatened by the very woman that sat in front of him.

“Yes? What can I do for my little fool?”

“Lucien.”

He held off the reflex to flinch, your tone slipping further from that familiar sweetness, to something forlorn. As if you knew something he didn’t want you to know. Few times had this occurred before but in every instance…

He didn’t respond this time, but held an even gaze as you looked at him with sympathy and melancholy. It made him frown, he hated to see you sad, even more so when he was the cause of it. You were an existence he wanted to protect from all that was wrong in the world.

...Including himself.

“No.”

He blinked and watched as you shook your head. Had he accidently spoken that aloud? As he scrambled to make an excuse for himself he was caught off guard when you leaned up and embraced him once more. 

“Lucien, it’s okay. You don’t need to worry anymore. Everything is going to be okay… I’m not going anywhere. I promise.” You pulled him down slightly and laid his head over where your heart was. “Can you feel that? It’s my heart beating… Sometimes it slows down and other times it picks up speed…”

“Just because something behaves differently doesn’t mean that it’s no longer the same.”

He felt a strange ball of emotion swell in the back of his throat, and merely murmured in response, but didn’t miss the reassuring gaze you gave him. “The world may be harsh, but the very same world gave me you… and I wouldn’t trade that for anything. Not for peace nor power…”

A soft laugh that reminded him of the early mornings he’d spent with you rumbled in your chest and he couldn’t stop a small smile from gracing his face. “I suppose in that respect we both are quite selfish, aren’t we?” He lifted one of your hands, chastely kissing your wrist. “As I feel the same, I wouldn’t trade you for anything in this world or beyond…”

Lucien felt a weight lift off his shoulders at your words and his own. Communication was always an important thing…. when had he gotten so caught up in himself that he neglected how he appeared to you? This would need to be rectified immediately…

“My silly girl, what is your wish for Christmas?”

He watched your expression change as you thought it over, clearly you were taking it seriously which made him want to fill your wish all the more.

“I… I want you to promise me something.”

He rose a brow but nodded his head for you to continue.

“I… want you to promise not to lose faith in me. Or this world.”

It dawned on him what your words meant and he felt his heart waver. For you to say such a thing… you must have seen something in your dreams. A possible future perhaps… in which he…

Ah. He had done something, hadn’t he?

With a sigh he nodded his head, this being one of the few times where he’d struggled with your requests. “I promise you that I will never lose faith…”

You smiled and he felt his heart start to race. He would cherish you until the day he died, but he wouldn’t try to clip your beautiful wings, no matter how tempted he might become.

A promise is a promise after all.

“In return, Lucien, what would you like for Christmas?”

A calm sort of tranquility overcame him as he thought of his request. The desire to tease or be honest fighting on the tip of his tongue.

But in the end he lost to his heart.

“You. My silly girl… all I could ever want is you.”

[silverbyeol]

Mittens | Peter Parker

Summary: (Y/n) walks around New York on Christmas Eve, thinking back to when she was a teenager in love.

Author’s Note: I got this idea when I heard ‘Mittens’ by Carly Rae Jepson! This is my first ____ x reader story on Tumblr, would love feedback (: 

Word Count: 1.8k

Warning... Angst and mentions of dead

*Anything in italics is a flashback (memory)*

18 years old is too young to die.

Today was Christmas Eve and I was back home from university for holiday break. Coming back to New York has been hard, especially since it has been almost a year since the incident-

“(Y/n)? Are you coming?” came my moms voice from the doorway of my room. My head snapped up, breaking me from my trance. I sent her a smile and a small nod, “We’re all waiting for you,” she finished with soft eyes and went back to the dining room where guests sat at a grand table, enjoying Christmas dinner.

I stood up from my childhood twin sized bed and looked around my old room. Nothing much changed since I last was at home. My old bed still had girly bed sheets and an old princess comforter lay neatly across the mattress. The walls were painted a light pink that seemed to fade more and more daily. A desk stood across from the bed and on top of it, lay clutter items. They all seemed boring, but one item, which caught my attention almost immediately. It was placed face down being illuminated brightly by the moonlight. I walked closer to inspect the object. It was a photo of Peter and I. A tear fell down from my eyes as I remembered…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Pete!” I yelled as I let myself into his apartment.

“Hey, (Y/n),” I heard Peter’s aunt call out.

“Hey, May!” I said and smiled at her. It was new years eve today and May was dressed in an evening dress and had her makeup done- obviously heading out for the night.

“Peter is getting ready- PETER! (Y/N) IS HERE!” she yelled for Peter, “You look so cute, (Y/n)! Where are you two heading off too?” she asked. I looked down at my silver sequin mini dress and smiled.

“My best friends party! We’re going to pick up Ned on the way over,” I smiled and answered her question.

“Hey, (Y/n),” I heard a male voice and turned my attention towards Peter’s room, “you ready?” he asked, standing in the middle of his rooms’ doorway.

“I’ve been ready, Parker, just waiting on you,” I said and walked over to give him a hug. There was suddenly a flash and a squeal making Peter and I look at May.

“What? You two looked so cute. You’ll thank me later for this photo,” she said and we rolled our eyes at her

…

“Let me see, dork,” I teased as I looked at Petes phone. It was the photo that May snapped of us earlier in the night.

“We look good,” Peter commented, making me inspect the photo. Our faces were hidden, buried in each other’s necks, and our arms were grabbing at each other's backs, as if we relied on one another to stay afloat.

“You can barely see our faces,” I giggled.

The photo held so many emotions between two teens who had no idea they were in love with one another…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“(Y/n)? How do you like Princeton?” asked the familiar voice of Peter’s aunt, May. I looked up from my food trying to not make eye contact.

“It’s going pretty well,” I replied vaguely. There were so many thoughts and emotions running through me. I needed fresh air, “I’m sorry. I need to excuse myself,” I said and stood up from the table, all eyes on me. Before my parents could call after me, I grabbed my coat from the closet and ran out of the building.

I looked around the dark streets of New York and, absentmindedly, started walking towards nothing in particular. Hearing and seeing May after all that happened was overwhelming. It’s been almost one year since Peter Parker, my boyfriend, died. It was a sudden death, in which he was outnumbered and outskilled.

I stopped in my tracks and looked into a dark alleyway.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was a sunny mid-afternoon. Everyone was busy with either being at work or at school, so the streets of New York were, for the most part, empty. I was walking home from an early school dismissal; headphones in my ears blasted a pop song, a lollipop was in my mouth, and my school uniform was unbuttoned, revealing a band t-shirt underneath. My eyes were locked onto my phone's screen as I swiped through Instagram, liking a bunch of my friends’ photos. I feel a tap on my shoulder and stop in my tracks. I pull out an earphone and make eye contact with a stranger.

“Sorry, Miss. I was wondering if you have a dollar to spare? I’m really hungry…” he trailed off. I scanned him up and down, he looked dirty and his clothing was all torn up.

“Sure…” I said, feeling slightly sad about his situation. I reached into my backpack and pulled my wallet out, I was about to hand the man a twenty dollar bill, so that he could get himself a warm meal when suddenly my wallet was snatched out of my hand. I looked up and saw the same man running away, my wallet in his hands

“HEY!” I yelled and took off chasing after him, which was a mistake. He turned into an alley and as soon as I was out of the view of people, four other guys came out of the shadows and circled around me.

“She’s just a high school student,” one of them said angrily and shot daggers into the homeless looking man.

“Is okay. We can use her as ransom…” another guy trailed off.

“Or maybe even have some-”

“Or maybe, I can kick your criminal asses,” came a voice from above. We all looked up to see a tall slim figure. He wore a red and blue onesie making him instantly recognizable. It was Spider-man.

“Oh yeah? Whatcha gonna do, huh? Tie us up with your webs?” asked the first guy.

“Yeah. That’s exactly what I’m going to do,” he said and all five guys were suddenly stuck to a wall with white web like material. Spider-man jumped in front of me making my eyes go wide.

“Are you okay, Miss?” he asked. His voice was calm and collected, opposite of the voice he used when talking to the men.

“I don’t even know what happened, it all went down so fast…” I mumbled looking at his mask, trying to read his expression, “Thank you, Spider-man,” I said coherently and smiled.

“It’s my job,” he said and shrugged his shoulders. Without thinking I slowly reached for his mask, “What are you doing?” he asked slightly panicked.

“Thanking you…” I said. His mask was quickly pulled up to his nose, revealing his chin and lips. Without thinking, I stood up on my tippy toes and gave his lips a chaste kiss. In the distance sirens were heard making the hero pull away.

“Th-thanks for the k-kiss, I-I’ll see you around,” he stuttered and shot up onto the sky, leaving my grinning.

Spider-man just saved me and I kissed him....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I smiled looking down the alleyway. It was the first time I met Peter and the first time I kissed him as well. A bittersweet memory. I kept walking looking up at the sky, thinking back to how Peter and I came to become friends and eventually boyfriend/girlfriend.

I halted in my steps as I stood before the cemetery. New York City was dead silent, only the sound of the wind traveled through the air. My eyes scanned the area and fell at one headstone. It was filled with a lot of pictures, stuffed bears, candles, and of course a lot of spider-man merch. I walked towards the area and carefully made my way through all the objects, trying not to step on anything.

‘Peter Benjamin Parker’

Spiderman

2001-2019

I kneeled in front of the headstone and just looked at the words; Peter Benjamin Parker. After he passed away, everyone learned of Spider-man’s real identity. Classmates from high school came out to show support and the media made millions from reporting his death, none of that mattered though. Nearly a year later, people still come out to his grave to show their appreciation to everything he’s done for the city. Peter was not only a good person, he was a hero, but, unfortunately, not all heroes live forever.

I looked down at my red hands. The night was freezing and I only had my coat to keep me warm. I placed my hands into the pockets of the coat. The fingers of my right hand came in contact with something fuzzy. Quickly I pulled the object out, it was a pair of mittens… Peter’s mittens.

~~~~~~~

“(Y/n)!” I heard a male voice yell my name. I quickly spun around and saw the familiar face of Peter Parker. His brown locks bounced up and down as he ran towards me.

“Hey, Peter,” I said and gave him a small smirk as soon as he caught up to me, out of breath.

“You’re fast, you know?” he said, frowning his eyebrows as he bore his chocolate coloured eyes into mine.

“What? I was just standing here…” I said, pointing at the bus stop.

“I waited outside your school, I wanted to walk you home,” he said, scratching the back of his head, looking away. My smirk suddenly got wider.

“You’re my boyfriend, Peter… You can just text me to let me know you want to walk home together,” I said and kissed his pink tinted cheek, “Let’s go,” I grabbed his hand into mine and started leading him towards my home.

“Do you not have gloves?” he asked, noticing my uncovered hands.

“No, I was in a rush today,” I answered and he halted our tracks.

“You must be so cold!” Peter said with a hurried voice. He grabbed both my hands and brought them up to his mouth, exhaling warm breath onto my fingers. I giggled at his action, my boyfriend is so cute, “What?”

“You’re just so cute,” I commented, making him roll his eyes. Peter quickly removed his black gloves and his warm skin made contact with my icy hands.

“Here. Put them on,” he curtly said, holding his gloves in front of my hands. I took them hesitantly.

“Aren’t you going to get cold?”

“Don’t worry about me, your presence is enough to warm me up,” he winked and gave me his dorky smile.

~~~~~~

“You may be gone, but you’re still looking out for me,” I chuckled to myself, talking to Peter, as if he was there by my side. I slid my hands into the mittens, already feeling much more warmer. I brought my hands up to my face and covered my nose with them, inhaling the scent that was still left over from their previous owner.

“Thank you, Peter…” I whispered looking up at the sky.

“I miss you…”

~

I hope that you enjoyed reading! 

[thepeakyfckingblinders]

āmentĭa || Thomas Shelby x reader

⤠ MASTERLIST⤟

Anon requested: “Can I request #16 with a jealous tommy, angsty pretty please?”

Summary: n.16 from prompt list: “Another’s hands on her skin” Warnings: swearing, anxiety, angst, a bit of smut, jealous desperate Tommy making my soul ache

Author’s notes:

Behind each one of these works there are sleepless nights and something really close to multiple mental breakdowns, so, please, take a minute to send me a message about it, I need actual feedbacks to understand how to improve my skills and grow ♡

Paragraphs written in italics are flashbacks.⤟ IMPORTANT

Sentences between bold quotation marks (❝  ❞ ) are Tommy’s thoughts.⤟ IMPORTANT

I wanted to thank you darlings for all the love you’ve been sending me, you truly make me happy, I’m so grateful to share my works with you ♡

I’m sorry for being this late, but I’ve been really busy in the past days and writing is never just easy, it demands concentration and effort, plus I don’t want you to be disappointed, so I’m always extra accurate while working. I hope this is worth the wait!

If you want to be added to my tag list, please, directly message me

I’m Italian, English isn’t my first language, so I apologize for every possible mistake I made. Also, please, help me improve my writing by telling me if there’s something wrong

ENJOY!

āmentĭa [amentiă], amentiae  feminine noun I declension

1. compulsion, disturbance, raving, hysteria 2. malaise, vexation, affliction, regret, 3. viciousness, anger, furor, choler, 4. impetum, violence, heat, rush, impulse 5. separation, rupture, abandon 6. paroxysm, yearning, eagerness 7. infatuation, frantic desire, amorous fervour

Heavy rain incessantly hit the windows sideways, giving life to a perpetual recurrence of dull sounds relentlessly haunting Tommy’s eardrums, yet he remained laying on his cold bed, motionless, with his glacial stare disturbingly fixed on the ivory ceiling. His bare chest kept raising and lowering in toil, labored breath coming out of his slightly parted lips in agonizing sighs, goosebumps slimily crawling on his more than ever pale skin, due to the extremely low temperature in his room; still, he didn’t seem to care.  Two deafening chimes abruptly ripped apart the bleak air, midnight struck with no mercy, inexorably, raiding into his black lungs, plundering all of the oxygen he had left. The day had eventually come, the day in which he would’ve lost you, forever. Thomas brusquely stopped breathing as his raw flesh seemed to lacerate, it felt like the Devil’s acuminate claws had pierced his ribcage, penetrating through his bones, carving to reach his cardiac muscle, ruthelessly stabbing it, brutally slicing into his stomach. For a full, interminable minute, blind panic took over his paralyzed body, having him pant and whine, making him look like a dying animal in pure agony, while his empty gaze never left the spot right before his dilated pupils. Tom had met you three years before, by the time war had just come to an end: it’d been only a few months since Harry had hired you to help him handle the pub, and when the Shelbys finally entered the Garrison again, after four long years, you clearly didn’t have a clue of what was going on.

Your boss had tensely hurried to instruct you on what your job was for that night, apparently, it only consisted in following those three men in their private room, favoring their every wish, always with a smile and kindness. You remembered looking around the tavern, deeply confused, since the whole clientele had suddenly fallen deadly silent: every man in there was gazing at the ground and taking off his hat out of respect, causing you to be even more disorientated by that odd situation. “Just keep your head down, y/n, those guys are dangerous, I mean it. They take whatever they want, whenever they want, whether people like it or not” Harry’s words kept echoing into your mind, Tommy’s crystal eyes immediately piercing your soul when you quickly reached for their privè. There was some sort of  unsettling stravation sailing through his granitic irises, while he shamelessly stared at you, barely blinking his eyelids, and a cheeky grin peered out on his angular face. Breath unexpetedly shattered into your throat, your forearms rippled with evident goosebumps, as you truly began to see what that previous alarming reccomendation was about. Your heart grievously skipped a beat because of that abrupt scene mercilessly flashing before your tired eyes. A huge amount of air was forcefully shoved down your pharynx in a miserable effort to put to rest any of your conflicting emotions, yet you didn’t seem able to abort your detrimental thoughts; once more, your restless glare fell on the wooden pendulum clock pinned to the wall in front of your queen size bed. “Oh my God, what happened?” Thomas watched your hexyl hand shake before your open mouth, an expression of pure horror mixed with shock virulently took over your soft features at the sight of bleeding abhorrent wounds mutilating his marble skin. “Let me in” That order dropped from his busted lips, but it sounded like nothing more than a feeble prayer, as he painfully cought up blood on your doormat. His stomach unusually clenched when he sensed your tiny arms carefully wrap around his torsum for the very first time, in order to support his weight, thus his head innately tilted in your direction, making your noses rub one another by accident, while his icy-blue eyes carved deep into yours. “You’re a fucking angel” He whispered at the end of his rope, already being in a state of partial unconsciousness, therefore it took only a few more instants for him to effectively faint in your warm embrace. That brief memory led Tommy to hastily lift his back, a crippling feeling of anxiety, along with deep overwhelming fear, came unbidden, having him struggle to inhale as much oxygen as possible, while he crawled towards the edge of the mattress, then sitting and propping both his elbows right above his knees; his left hand convulsely run through his face, like that simple gesture could’ve helped him get rid of those loathsome sensations devouring his guts from the inside. Bells rang again, another hour went by, time continued to unrelentingly slip between his fingers. “Just be rational for once!” Tommy ferociously shouted in your face, thick veins appallingly throbbing in his neck, blood traces invading his white orbs; as usual, he was plainly too despotic and hardheaded to let anyone around him make their own decisions. “I don’t see what the problem is, Thomas. You’ll find another bloody bartender, for God’s sake!” Soon afterwards your reply brusted out in another yell and your hands started franticly moving into the air, as you were strenuosly fighting for your sacrosanct right to finally leave Birmingham and move to Paris to begin a whole new life, putting all of that shit behind you.  Yet, before your brain could process what was actually happening, you felt your back hardly clash with the cold brick wall, Tom’s mighty figure trapped yours forthwith, one of his fists vehemently grabbing a consistent strand of your hair, so to make your mouths collide in an unexpected tempestuous movement. “That’s my fucking problem” An atrocious knot cluttered up your gullet, forcing you to scarcely gasp for a fresh breath again, your velvet fingertips unwittingly went to brush your slightly wet lips, due to a lonely tear which had just tumbled from your full lashes. You could almost sense his touch on your fervent skin.

Faltering, you dragged yourself on your feet and your shoulders shriveled, for a cool draft brutally hit your quivering body; with heavy steps, you reached for your wedding dress armonically rested on a copper mannequin. Ivory tulle coursed amidst your fingers, while your blurred vision remained anxiously fixed on that wonderful piece of haut couture at the fathal stroke of the third hour of the morning. “You belong to me” That husky grunt lingered the soft skin of your naked chest, instantly followed by Tommy’s luscious kisses, his callous palms utterly enveloping your curves as your live flesh superbly engulfed every inch of his length and his hips kept diving into yours, miraculously giving life to an exquisite blend. He was revelling in the sight of your erotic beauty, he couldn’t just avert his thirsty glacial irises from your winsome shape now twitching with raw pleasure.

Those ruthless sequences of images irretrievably haunted his dark pupils, unfolding into his head over and over again. Thomas squeezed his eyelids nearly in physical pain, allowing himself to drown in his bittersweet memories: he was still perfectly able to feel your edges fill his hands, your voluptuous voice reawaken his numb ears, your mild thighs fondling his sharp pelvic bones. “Fuck!” All of a sudden, his hoarse tone clamorously reverberated in the room, brutally tearing apart the previous stillness, while Tommy berserkly stood up and, affected by a pernicious choler, he savagely ravaged every single thing in his path, until the floor was completely covered in shards and his breathing showed clear symptoms of hyperventilation. Everything was shot in pieces because of him, because of his pathetic selfishness and his shameless arrogance; you had loved him from your skin to your bones, never leaving his side, offering him a safe harbour from his private hell, stoking that cataclysmic fire, only to let it consume yourself with each passing day. He’d always been aware of that, in truth, he’d always felt the same about you, still, he had treated you like nothing more than one of his whores; afterall, it was just a matter of priority, and business was his one and only priority, obviously. So, when you had eventually presented him with a definitive choice, demanding to know  what your strange affair truly meant to him, he had almost laughed in your face, deliberately making it clear that, whatever that thing was, it would’ve never become something more.

The thought that in the end you might have really left him didn’t even remotely cross his mind, not once; nevertheless, barely a year later, you were about to marry another man, and it was too late for him to fix all of his uncountable mistakes. ❝  There will be another’s hands on her skin, Tommy. He’s gonna hold her, he’s gonna take your place, and it was your fault, you wreck everything you touch ❞ That voice inside his brain continued to scream that obnoxious truth with no mercy, steadily driving him to madness, violently gouging dire tears from his hollow eyes. Intoxicating fury festered his already rotten blood, pushing him to throw several raging punches at the door, excruciating shrieks kept escaping his maw, until two deep dents ploughed it and his bleeding knuckles broke under the abnormal strain of his animalistic blows.  Thomas surrendered to his agonizing sorrow, soon he let his empty corpse fall against the damaged wooden surface, his fractured fists henceforth laying along either side of his bust, while his growling voice didn’t seem to find peace, as it was still spilling from his lips into deafening cries alternated to beastly snarls and sporadic curses. Sure, Tommy Shelby had learnt far too soon what pain and darkness were, he had experienced death, loss, abandon, even the gory war itself, but never before that wretched day he had felt his soul disintegrate into his aching ribcage in such a diabolical, cruel, inhuman way.

tag list:  @spidey-pal, @shadow-of-wonder, @shelby1baby, @peachlle, @livvtheangel, @myjbphase, @namelesslosers, @crazyonesarethebest, @vxxn128, @keithseabrook27, @spaghettirogers, @writingstudent​

[lunar-jimin]

while taking the last box out of the empty room i looked back for a moment times we cried and laughed goodbye now

Pairing: Namjoon x fem!reader

Raiting: 18+

Genre: fluff, smut, tiny bit of angst, expecting parents!au

Length: 1k

Warnings: bath sex, fingering

a/n: Part of @ficswithluv​‘s Bulletproof Bingo. 

bingo m.list | bingo card | m.list

The room felt different without the clutter of your things filling it with life and vibrancy. Your back protested as you hoisted up the last box, and you groaned internally. Luckily your new home had a jacuzzi bathtub that you would be taking advantage of very soon.

"Hey, are yo-, baby, I thought I told you not to pick up any boxes. It isn't good for the baby."

You smiled as your very concerned husband rushed over to take the box from you. Despite only being a month and a half along, Namjoon was very worried about stress taking a toll on your little bean. While his concern was endearing, it was getting to be a bit much. He wouldn't let you pick up so much as a cup at this point.

After Namjoon left with the box, you took a moment to give your old bedroom one last glance over. Warm memories flooded your mind. Everything from the first time he had made love to you to the days you had no motivation to do anything beyond snuggling in bed and watching anime. You barely noticed as soft tears began to trickle down your cheeks. You quickly wiped them away, ashamed of feeling so sad when today was supposed to be happy.

Just as you were about to leave the room, Namjoon reappeared, eyes immediately fixing on your red ones.

"Oh, baby, are you okay?"

His deep voice melted over you like chocolate as he collected you in his warm embrace. A flip switched inside you and before you knew it, you were sobbing into your husband's shoulder. He sat with you for what seemed like hours as you dirtied his shirt with your tears. His hands softly rubbed your back, soothing you touch. Your tears eventually dried and you looked up to your husband's loving face.

"You're the best, you know that?"

He chuckled, "If you say so."

"You're going to be an amazing dad."

Red tinged his face, as he looked down at the floor.

"You're going to be an even better mom."

You grinned, before bringing your lips to meet his in a soft kiss.

"Shall we take one last tour, my love?"

You nodded eagerly, taking his hand in yours. The apartment was fairly tiny, which was part of the reason you were moving, so there wasn't much to tour, but you still took your time to appreciate each room and the memories they came with. The bathroom where Namjoon had often held your hair up as you retched up whatever alcohol was still left in your system. The kitchen where you had to save your husband from many cooking disasters. Your living room where you would collapse into his arms after a long, tedious day at work.

All of it was special, but you had outgrown the small space. It was time to move on. The two of you had bought a cute house in the suburbs, perfect for raising your little bean. It was where you would start your family.

You finally reached the front door, where you stood wrapped in each other's arms, giving your apartment one last once over before closing the door forever. A bittersweet feeling washed over you, but you pushed aside to smile as you followed your husband down the stairs and out to the waiting car.

The vehicle was stuffed to the gills with brown boxes, each filled with a little bit of your life. Some of Namjoon's friends had already brought the bulk of your stuff to the new house and were waiting there for you to unpack it. You spaced out for most of the drive, so lost in your thoughts, that you barely noticed pulling into your new driveway.

You had spent all of your life living in an apartment. Even as a kid, it was all your single mom could afford. Having a house with a yard and space to breathe was a novelty to you and one you were very excited about. You were happy that your children would have luxuries you hadn't had.

Bringing all the boxes and furniture into the house took another three hours, and while you helped where you could, Namjoon had basically sidelined you, though you couldn't complain: your back was killing you. That evening, you celebrated your successful move with takeout and a warm bath. There was still a lot of unpacking to be done, but that could wait until tomorrow.

The water felt good on your skin, as the heat eased the ache in your back. You sighed in content. The only thing that could possibly make this better was a good merlot, but you wouldn't be touching alcohol again for awhile.

Namjoon soon joined you, slipping in behind you. You sighed happily as his hands rubbed soft circles into your skin. Your head tilted back to rest on his shoulder, as his hands slipped around to massage your breasts. You let out a soft moan, core tingling at the sensation. One hand abandoned its post to slip down to your clit.

Your thighs tightened around him as you whined. Ever since getting pregnant, your sex drive had gone through the roof. It only took you minutes to cum and your refractory period was almost none existent. Sure enough, all it took was Namjoon slipping two fingers in you while leaving soft kisses on your neck to make you see white.

Your muscles seized up, making your back arch as pleasure flooded your senses. When you finally came down, you collapsed against Namjoon. He smiled at your exhausted form, before carefully slipping out from behind you to grab some towels. You barely registered him carrying your listless body to the mattress on your bedroom floor.

All you registered was his soft lips kissing your cheek, before slipping under the covers next to you. A smile graced your sleeping face and as you dreamed about the beautiful future you had laid out before you. Oh how lucky you were.

[ionlycareaboutyou]

henlo it is me sending u a prompt!! u can pick either pairing that u mentioned i don't mind but can u do them moving in together for the first time, specifically dealing with all the weird quirks + household habits that you discover when you start sharing a space with someone? what odd things do each of them do + what makes the other person annoyed or enamoured? ty ily 💖

hello thank u! i thought i’d do sethon for this one bc it seemed fitting for them! ily 2! this turned out SOOO sappy so i’m sorry if it gives you a toothache fkdajs

cw for smoking and references to sex

After their wedding, they go to Seth’s place right away, skipping the cast and crew after-party to drink wine in bed and kiss, undressing each other slowly and almost carefully. Their lips are stained and bittersweet, and Seth’s delighted to find that Stefon had worn something pretty under his skinny jeans and Ed Hardy shirt.

“I can’t believe I almost let Anderson have this,” Seth half-jokes, mouth hot over the lacy front of Stefon’s panties.

He giggles. “I knew you’d chase after me.”

“Am I that predictable?” Seth quirks an eyebrow, one hand coming up to squeeze and stroke his husband’s inner thigh.

“Mm...not predictable...stubborn,” Stefon replies, then lifts his hips up a bit. “Now, can we please consummate this marriage, Seth Meyers?”

“Is it considered consummating if we’ve done this before marriage?” Fabric is pushed to the side. A kiss is pressed to a sensitive place. A gasp echoes in the room.

“Well--oh--no, I think that just makes us sinners.” Hands thread in between dark hair that’s streaked with silver.

“Sounds about right,” Seth decides, and shuts up from there on out. 

Afterwards, they’re thoroughly exhausted, but manage to keep their eyes open for a little longer, to clean themselves up and brush their teeth side by side. When he looks up in the mirror, Seth is struck at the tender image of them, and he can perfectly picture a future where this is an everyday occasion. 

They slide into bed, legs entwining and lips pressed to jaws, necks, underneath ears. “I want to ask something,” Seth says, before he can forget it and drift off. 

“Mm, ‘kay.”

“You wanna move in with me?” He lets his hands run up Stefon’s chest and over those broad shoulders that have been a subject of maybe ten different fantasies.

Stefon cracks one eye open. “Like, here?”

“‘Course. Where else? I mean, if it’s too soon--”

He gives a light and airy giggle. “We’re married, aren’t we?”

“Yes, we are,” Seth replies, a finger trailing up his husband’s neck. “But I’m open to whatever you’d like, I don’t know if you’re really attached to that apartment.”

Stefon doesn’t actually live in a garbage can like he joked about once on Update, but it’s barely a step up from one. Seth had picked him up from the place a few times, and Stefon always claimed that he was barely there, it was a place to sleep every other night if nothing else. It’s a tiny studio above a shady drugstore that keeps odd hours and always has flickering lights. The ceilings are low, and Seth isn’t sure how Stefon manages to get around with his long legs without hitting his head constantly. So it’s not really a surprise when he says, “No, not too attached. I like it here better. My lease is up next month anyway.”

“Good.” He gives him a sleepy smile. “I’ll help you move.”

“Perfect,” Stefon says, and nestles his face into Seth’s neck. They’re asleep within minutes.

--

Stefon doesn’t own too many things, but what he does own is extravagant. The closet in Seth’s--their bedroom is suddenly filled with color. The top row of shirts are a mix of patterns and neon and pastel and strange sayings. The bottom row is filled with button ups in neutral colors: greys and blues and light greens, and maybe a plaid patterned one to switch things up. It’s apparent to anyone whose clothes are whose. The living room is decorated with strange and abstract art that Stefon got from friends. Each tiny sculpture or painting or sketch has a story. Russian and French literature in their original languages joins British literature on the bookshelf. Boots with sequins and heels go next to loafers in the coat closet. Intricate and pretty bongs are not very well hidden in the living room. It’s something that requires adjusting, that’s for sure, but Seth loves it. He loves the color that his husband brings to their home, and his life.

There are other things that require adjustment, too, and they’re a bit harder to adjust to than the new things that clutter their place. Seth knew Stefon kept weird hours, but experiencing it firsthand is another thing. He’ll roll over at 3 AM, open bleary eyes, and find the other side of the bed is empty. Stefon is pacing in the living room, feet light and silent, like some sort of cat. Seth always tells him to come back to sleep and Stefon will tilt his head, eyes half lidded as he nods slowly and waves a hand. He’ll slip between the sheets sometime before the crack of dawn. Seth will sometimes ask in the morning why he woke up, and Stefon will shrug and say “I was just thinking”. It’s something that they’ll work up to, Seth reminds himself.

They find differences that they didn’t notice before. Seth wears socks in the house, often mismatched, and often a point of teasing by his husband. “No one sees them except you!” He insists. “They’re no-shows!” Stefon, on the other hand, wears slippers that slide across the tile floor of the kitchen every morning, or just pads around barefoot with his toes always painted a different color. Bark Ruffalo usually trails behind him.

Stefon has an interesting affinity for healthy vegan food despite not being vegan himself. The freezer has dairy free ice cream (that, Seth has to admit, isn’t so bad) in it, and one week Stefon finds himself on a kale salad kick and eats them for dinner nearly every night. Seth can’t understand the appeal, but Stefon is the one who does most of the grocery shopping, so Seth is just quietly amused by the presence of all the green foods in his pantry and fridge. It doesn’t stop them from drinking sweet wine now and then, or buying a small cake just to buy one and kissing the frosting off the corner of each other’s lips.

Seth quit smoking a few years ago, but sometimes he’ll smell smoke from the balcony of their place, and Stefon will be out there, smoking a long and skinny cigarette and looking over the city. “It’s not good for you,” Seth always says, even though they’ve smoked together plenty of times outside of 30 Rock. 

“I know,” Stefon says, one time. “But I can’t stop giving in to peer pressure. Everyone tells me I won’t be cool if I don’t smoke.” His voice is adjacent to a bad Fonz impression.

Seth kisses his lips, not minding the smoky taste at all. “I thought coming out here while you were smoking would make me crave a smoke, but--”

“Oh, I know what you crave, Seth Meyers. I can see it in your eyes.” They kiss some more, until Seth pulls him inside so they don’t get in trouble for balcony-indecency.

Despite their many differences, there’s things in their life that come together with incredible ease. Their shower schedules match up perfectly; Seth in the morning, Stefon in the evening, but it doesn’t stop them from sharing one every now and then. They still brush their teeth side by side in the morning when they’re both up at the same time, smiling around their toothbrushes when they make eye contact. Sometimes Stefon will prefer to languish in bed while Seth gets ready for the day, but he stays awake until Seth leaves so he can give him a goodbye kiss.

Within weeks, they’ve “christened” every room of their place, and found out countless things about each other, and they’ve had moments where they’ve been frustrated and they’ve needed time apart, for just a few hours. But they always come back, they always curl into bed at the end of the day, closely intertwined with their dog at the foot of the bed. Lips will press against lips, jaws, ears, foreheads. It doesn’t feel like the first time every time, rather, it feels better than the first time. There’s new things to discover and fall in love with and laugh about together every day.

[lailannajacobs]

A Gaudy Gala, A Sly Prince and a Bittersweet Exit (Handmade Thieves Final Chapter)

Pairing: Loki x fem!Reader

Summary: Reader unwittingly finds her way onto Asgard and has to deal with all the attention that follows being a mortal in the extravagant realm. To his surprise, Loki finds himself having just as much trouble if not more than reader in dealing with it. 

Chapter / whole series inspired by this request: May I request a lil thingie where Loki and the reader are in Asgard (for whatever reason you want,) and reader gets a lot of “attention” (all kinds) because she’s a mortal and those are kinda rare to see? There’s a galla coming up and she’s like a magnet there as well. Loki doesn’t like it. (loki and reader don’t have a relationship yet. sorry if this is long and confusing!

Warnings: A nice little mix of fluff and angst

Word Count: 6.1k

A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who has bothered to read this series, I love you all from the bottom of my heart so thank you, thank you thank you! This ending didn’t take me where I thought it would, but I think it’s fitting with the characters so I hope you like it too! Thank you again to the anon who requested this initially, it’s been a ride and if you took the time to read it, I’d love to hear what you think!! Thanks again loves <3 

Handmade Thieves | Chapter 13

Smoothing down your dress, you searched the party for the one person you actually wanted to see and sighed when you came up empty.

The dress that had been left on your bed earlier that evening wasn’t attention grabbing or flashy, but it was the most beautiful gown you had ever seen. The cut was simple and flattered your body far more than any of the other dresses you had worn, and the material soft and unrestrictive. Whoever had chosen the dress had also been kind enough to decide on something that, as far as dresses went, didn’t restrict your movements much and wouldn’t leave you with an array of angry red dress marks. When you had seen yourself in the mirror, you had smiled. You actually felt like yourself and that was more you ever would have asked from a dress.

With so many other stunning Asgardians that had shown up, you doubted the reason so many of them were looking at you was because of your attire. You guessed it was more likely because they still hadn’t gotten over the fact that there was a Midgardian in their midst. But you didn’t care about getting their attention. Their attention didn’t matter to you and it terrified you that there was one person whose attention did.

You hated how disappointed you had been when Loki had told you he wouldn’t come to pick you up.  It wasn’t only that you liked having him by your side when you walked into fancy meetings and parties, but also that you…liked him. The realization had blindsided you and you couldn’t, for the life of you, figure out when or how it had happened. As soon as the thought had crossed your mind, you had shoved it to a far corner where it needed to stay and never resurface. And getting ready had been a whirlwind of emotions, especially when you had looked into the mirror and had wished he could see you without the distractions of the party around. But you knew you couldn’t feel this way about him. Not because of who he was, but because of what it might do to you when he told you that he didn’t feel the same way.

Although those thoughts had raced through your head the moment you had learned you would be walking into the party alone, you were pretty sure you had hidden your feelings well, hoping you had brushed it off without him suspecting a thing. You were a grown woman. Despite the fact that you wanted him to take you to the gala as if he was your prom date, you had strode into the ballroom with your head held high.

It had felt like an eternity since then. You had no idea where the prince was or why it was taking him so long to get here, but the gala was in full swing now, and you had no idea what to do with yourself. From your past party experience, hanging around the buffet table in the back of the room had seemed like your safest bet, especially considering the fact that Odin didn’t want you attracting any attention to yourself, so it was what you had done. Laying low was something you were more than happy to do. Honestly, without the prince there to convince you to stay - or to keep you company for that matter - you were seriously considering leaving.

If your presence here had to be discreet than what better way than to leave early. It was probably better that you weren’t here at all. A night reading, alone, not talking to a single soul…well that was a hell of a lot more appealing than being at a party and being told not to socialize. Not that you really wanted to socialize anyways.

A few of the kinder Asgardians had taken pity on you and had stopped to say hello, but the conversations had quickly died out. But even though only a few came and talked to you, and even if you had been making yourself as small as possible, you still felt their eyes drawn to you like magnets. Once again, you found yourself wishing for the prince.

Without a watch, you had no idea what time it was, but you figured you had waited here, alone, long enough. You had made an appearance, which had to count for something.

You were weaving through the crowd and heading for the door when you heard a familiar voice.

“Excuse me (y/n), may I have this dance?”

You pasted on a smile and turned, knowing it wasn’t Asger’s fault you were alone and miserable. If anything, he was actually trying to help, and you weren’t about to tell him to go away simply because you thought he was someone else. No. If you were going to pretend your feelings didn’t exist and pretend everything was normal, then you were going to start by dancing with Asger.

“Of course,” you nodded, placing a hand in his, “I would love to.”

He led you towards the centre of the room, and place his hand tentatively on your waist. The two of you moved slowly, an awkward space between your two bodies despite how many people were dancing so close around you. You weren’t sure what to say, or if you should say anything at all. The music was upbeat, the beat growing as the song proceeded. You didn’t know if it was the crowded room or your heart following in time with the music but your it began to race, and you were starting to feel like you wanted to crawl out of your own skin. You were more than ready for this day to be over, but you took in a steading breath and told yourself to at least finish the song.

“(y/n)?”

You looked up into those soft brown eyes, “Yes Asger?”

“I was hoping that” You didn’t hear the rest of what he was saying but you knew exactly where he was about to go with his sentence.

Looking at him, you wondered why you couldn’t feel anything for him instead. He was kind, honest and beautiful, and yet you knew with absolute certainty that you would never feel anything other than friendship for him. Your brain kicked into overdrive as you began to panic, wondering how you were supposed to respond and suddenly it felt hard to breath.

“(y/n)?” Asger stopped moving, probably having asked a question that you should have answered by now.

You just - you needed to get out. You needed to get a handle on your thoughts, somewhere where it didn’t feel like the world around you was so cluttered and jammed with people that you couldn’t hear yourself think.

“I’m sorry Asger…I just…I need a second.” You managed. “But thank you for the dance…it was lovely.”

You tried not to look at the confused and hurt look on his face before you tore through the crowd, trying to make it to the back doors of the room. You needed to get out of the ballroom. It felt like everyone was on the dance floor and the harder you pushed to escape, the more it felt like everyone was closing in. Your head spun, disoriented by the bustle of people around you, and you could feel the panic taking over as you lost sight of the exit.

Suddenly, almost as if on cue, there was a break in the crowd, and at the other end of the tunnel of people, directly in your line of sight, there he stood. You stopped moving. As if sensing your eyes on him, his searching gaze found yours, and as soon as the corner of his mouth quirked up, visible even from a distance, you let out the first deep breath of the evening. The urge to leave was quashed under the need to go to him, but you remained rooted to the spot. Maybe you would have gone to him before you had discovered these feelings of yours, but you weren’t about to risk him figuring it out by going to him instead of waiting for him to come to you.

He strolled towards you, but you noticed something a little off about his gait. Then, you smiled, the familiarity of it all - the posh party and the prince’s cunning - releasing the pressure in your chest. The closer he got to you, the easier it became to breath, until the only reason your heart fluttered was one that under any other circumstance, wouldn’t have been considered a bad thing.

He stopped for a moment, letting another party guest pass by, before taking the final steps to reach you. You inhaled another deep breath, the smell of partygoer’s perfume and circulating hors d’oeuvres filling your nose, no hint of his familiar pine and lemon scent.

He extended his hand, silently asking you to dance, but you shook your head.

“I don’t want to dance with you Loki.” You watched his face fall, confusion flashing across it, but you only smiled. “It’s a good illusion, one of your best really, but I like my dance partners to be, you know, alive and real.”

For a moment, you weren’t sure you had guessed correctly, but then the illusion faded, and what you saw behind it made your heart stop.

There in the centre of all the Asgardian colours and fashion stood Loki in a fitted, black Midgardian suit. If the otherworldly clothes didn’t set him apart then the fact that he was clad in black from head to toe did. The shirt underneath matched his ink hair, which he had slicked back, letting it fall to his shoulders. The corner of his mouth quirked up in a satisfied little smirk and as he approached you noticed that the shiny lapels of his jacket and tie were not actually black but a green so dark the colour could only be seen in the right light.

The crowd seemed to part for him and when he stopped in front of you, you were speechless.

He smirked, rocked back on his heels and bent at the waist with his hand out, “May I?”

You nodded, unable to say anything as put your hand in his. Straightening, he pulled you towards him, his strong hand on the small of your back and his fingers intertwined with yours as he led you into a slow dance. With your bodies pressed together, you could feel his heart pounding in his chest, and you smiled, knowing this was no illusion. You were sure he could also feel your pounding heart in your chest, and you tried to push away the feelings and just enjoy yourself.

He dipped his head down, his lips brushing against your ear as he whispered, “I thought that this time they could take their eyes off of you by looking at me instead.”

The dangerous tone in his voice sent shivers down your spine, “And how’s that working out?”

“Not very well,” he growled, “they can’t take their eyes off of you.”

You laughed, “Rightfully so. We’re stunning.”

He stopped moving and pulled back so that he could look at you, his eyes scanning every inch of your face.

“We are.” He murmured. “Absolutely stunning.”

Afraid you would so something stupid, you broke away from his intense gaze and stared straight at his tie instead as you started dancing again.

“So, where were you?” You asked, trying not to focus on the fresh smell of lemon and pine, “I was beginning to think you weren’t going to show up.”

“I had last minute things to attend to that took a little longer than I had initially believed they would.” Something sounded off in his voice but when you dipped back to look up at him, his raised eyebrow and sly grin said the opposite.

He was about to lead you into a spin, but you paused, noticing a black smudge on his jaw. Before you could even think about what you were doing you lifted your hand to wipe it away.

Your fingers came back with a black substance that was all too familiar. His eyes, which had been following the movement, widened when he saw what was on your fingers.

His long fingers wrapped around gently around your wrist, a roguish grin replacing the look of surprise, “Careful. You wouldn’t want to get that on your dress, it stains.”

“I know that.” You smeared it between your thumb and forefinger, “the question prince, is why would you have engine grease on your face?”

“You don’t believe I teleport everywhere I wish to go, do you?” He asked while the black vanished from both your fingers and his face.

You were about to demand more of an explanation, but Odin’s voice cut across the room, silencing the room with its power for attention.

Loki’s fingers slipped further around your waist at the sound, keeping you close with a steady pressure. The reaction was unexpected, but you didn’t mind the closeness. Even though you knew you normally would have shrugged him off, you stood tucked into his side, listening to Odin’s speech about his visions of continuous peace.

The king’s gaze scanned the room as he continued to speak but instead of brushing over you like it had all night, it lingered on you for a moment. Something in your gut curled in terror. You couldn’t explain why, but that one eye seemed to bore into you with such hatred, you had only needed the two seconds it had lingered on you to feel it.

When he wrapped up his speech, you clapped along politely with everyone else, but you weren’t really present in the room. Your mind was racing with thoughts about the king, wondering what had happened in the last week to make him look at you the way he did. A part of you wondered if you had caught a glimpse of the looks Loki received from his father but you had known it wasn’t true. Deep down, you had known the look was meant for you.

“Midgardian,” His whisper against your ear made you jump, “I didn’t mean to scare you, but how about we leave this gala. I believe we’ve been here long enough.”

You only nodded. His arm left your waist and you shivered, feeling cold without its comforting weight, but he took your arm in his and lead you toward the exit. The path you took was long and winding, weaving in and out of crowds until finally, you emerged out onto a balcony similar to the one you were on last week.

Loki took a step away, running his fingers through his already messy hair. Something seemed to be bothering him, and he opened his mouth to speak twice but shut it both times. You had never seen him look so disgruntled, and the worry that had settled deep in your gut at the gala found itself resurfacing.

His warring mind seemed to have come to a conclusion when he let out a long breath and turned to face you, a grin plastered on his lips. That was when you knew something was wrong. You had never been on the receiving end of that smile, and the fact that you were getting it now could only mean that he was about to lie to you. You were about to tell him not to bother with whatever was about to come out of his mouth, but his words stunned you into silence.

“I found the piece you needed for your ship.” The words were barely audible, and you were tempted to ask him to repeat it but you knew you had heard correctly.

You could go leave. Get back to Earth.  

“Why?” You didn’t want to question a good thing, but you couldn’t help it. “Why now?”

He shrugged as if he had no particular reason, which you knew was as far from the truth as possible. There was nothing he did that he didn’t think through first.

“Think of it as a prize for having guessed my illusion so quickly.”

“What’s the real reason?” You shot back.

He raised a brow, annoyed. “If you don’t want to leave that’s fine with me.”

You stopped protesting. He was right. This was your way out. He was ready to hand you what you had been working so hard for the last months. You looked him over, noticing once again that he looked like he couldn’t stand still, which wasn’t like him. Your gut told you that he was hiding something, but the prospect of leaving Asgard was finally hitting you, and it was getting hard to think things through properly.

“I don’t mean to rush you Midgardian, but it’s now or never.”

Those green eyes were bright and alert, ready for your answer.

You nodded, “Yeah, of course. Let’s go.”

His shoulders relaxed and he motioned for you to follow him. Maybe the two of you had really become friends and he was doing what he thought was right. Maybe that was why he looked so uncomfortable, you thought, staring at his back as you picked up the pace to catch up to him.

The two of you walked down the hallways in plain sight, nodding your hellos to the passing Asgardians. Of all the escape plans you had imagined in your head, this one as far more out in the open than you had pictured.

You headed through a part of the palace you had never seen before, and not before long, you stepped out onto a narrow cobblestone road that lead out into a forest less than a hundred yards from the palace.

Taking in a long deep breath of fresh air, you smiled, feeling like you could properly breath for the first time in months. You were going to your ship! Suddenly the idea that you were leaving Asgard felt very real, and you felt your excitement build.

Loki looked down at you with a little smirk on his face. “How does it feel to be an outlaw?”

You grinned back at him, “Like home.”

His eyes searched your face for a moment before he cleared his throat and looked back out to the forest, “Come. We’re almost there.”

The trees formed a thick canopy above your heads, plunging the two of you into darkness. Loki pulled a lamp out of thin air and set the forest aglow, casting eerie shadows as you wove through the trees.

The cloth slippers you were wearing were now soaked through from the wet earth and when you stepped in a puddle you hadn’t seen, the sound caught Loki’s attention.

“I have something you might like Midgardian.”

He conjured your boots, your dirty socks crumpled in them because you hadn’t had time to wash them, but the sight made you sigh with relief. Your toes had been starting to tingle with the cold, and you hadn’t been sure how much longer you would have been able to walk.

He lifted his lamp a little higher so that you could see a large, nearby boulder, and you sat on it to put your boots.

It felt strange that neither of you were speaking, but the looming prospect of departure seem to steal the words from both of you. As excited as you were to be free, a small part of you was a little sad to be leaving. Not Asgard. No, you wouldn’t miss the place much, but one person in particular.

He nodded when you were ready to go, and you followed at his side, the dim light barely enough to see the roots and holes in the ground.

“Was that Asger I saw you running away from?” He asked out of the blue, glancing down at you with a roguish grin on his lips.

At the sudden break in silence, the only thing you could utter was, “What?”

“At the gala. Right before we danced.” He offered helpfully.

You rolled your eyes at him. “I was not running away.”

“Then what exactly were you doing?” The disbelief and humour in his voice palpable. “It looked a lot like running away to me.”

“I wasn’t running away from him, I was…” You hesitated for a moment.

“Running to find me?” The pale light set his mischievous eyes aglow. “Seems you can’t get through a simple gala without me.”

You crossed your arms, though quickly uncrossed them when you tripped over a root, “I’d have to say the same about you. I’m sure that’s the real reason you’d been keeping me around all this time.”

“That’s precisely why.” You could see the smile on his face, but once again, it didn’t quite seem to match up with the usual tone you heard in his banter.

Whatever the real reason was, you told yourself it didn’t matter. You were leaving now and that was all that mattered.

“We’re almost there.” He continued seriously.

You made the rest of the way in silence, and when you came to the clearing made of broken trees and mounds of displaced dirt you let out a whoop.

Not waiting for him to follow, you ran up to it and gently touched the scraped and dented edges as if you might hurt it even more. You couldn't stop grinning, and you were trying to fight the urge to jump up and down with joy. Skipping around to the back, you found the door still open, the walkway panel left out and extended to the ground.

Running in, you glanced around you ship and found everything exactly where you had left it, awaiting your return. Your grease stained gloves were by the door, ready for the moment you would put the piece back in and your toolbox, spilling out various tools you had hoped in vain would help fix your problem.

You could barely believe you were here. Somehow it felt like you had just left to find the spar piece, but at the same time, as if you had been away for an eternity. A laugh bubbled out and you couldn’t believe it. You ran from side to side of your ship, touching your trinkets and memorabilia stacked along the walls like a mother hen checking on all of her chicks.

You were so caught up in the moment that you didn’t notice the Loki had followed you in, remaining in the doorway. There was a strange look on his face as he took in the surroundings, but you were too happy to even bother with trying to decipher the look.

“Where’s the piece?” You asked, running over to your tools by the door, “I’ll go install it right now.”

He took a small step toward you, shaking his head.

Your heart dropped and shattered in your chest. “You don’t have it, do you.”

Snapping out of his daze, he tore his eyes away from the colourful chaos of your ship and stared at you as if he had forgotten that you were at the centre of all of this chaos.

“No, I don’t have it.” The corner of his mouth lifted slightly, “I already installed it. Your ship is-”

He never got to finish his sentence, because without realizing what you were doing, your lips were on his. You only realized what you had done when nothing happened. But before you could pull back and apologize profusely by telling him that you were so happy you weren’t thinking, his hands tightened around your waist, his lips capturing yours.

All reason vanished from your mind and you buried your fingers in his hair, combing through with your finer nails. He groaned against your lips and backed you up against the wall of your ship, scattering trinkets to the ground. He moved from your lips to your neck, hands roaming and tugging as if he couldn’t get you close enough. His long fingers dipped down and back up, playing along your thighs, your waist, your back. The clothes between the two of you suddenly felt like too much space between you. You were untangling your fingers from his hair to take off his jacket when he stopped you with his lips on yours, pressing hard and demanding entrance with his tongue. Getting the message, you left your hands where they were, tugging gently. He moaned your name, a low guttural sound that sent shivers down your spine and heat to your core.

And then he was gone.

You blinked your eyes open at the sudden loss of contact, trying to figure out what had just happened. He stood a few feet away, trying to appear casual with his hands stuffed into his pockets, but his hair was a mess and he was panting as hard as you were.

There was an expression on his face unlike any you had ever seen before, conflicted, almost pained, but the longer you watched in silence, the more that look disappeared, a cold mask sliding in to replace it.

What had happened? Why had he pulled away? Was it you? Was it him? You could tell he was fighting something inside him, something that would determine whether or not you got answers. And as much as you wanted to shake him and demand he tell you what was going on, you waited.

“You have to leave. Now.” He ordered when his breathing returned to normal.

You stared at him, not too sure you had heard right. “What?”

He shrugged, “You’re getting out of Asgard tonight. Right now.”

Although you had been waiting to hear those words since you had crashed, this wasn’t the way you wanted to hear them. Something felt wrong. You wanted to go - obviously - but why was it that a small part of you kind of wanted to stay too?

“I don’t understand.” You finally said, unsure of what else to say.

“I’ve repaired your ship. You’re leaving.”  He motioned for you to go start your ship.

You didn’t budge. “Loki what’s going on?”

The sound of his name seemed to solidify his mask and he remained silent, all the fire and emotion gone from his eyes.

“What happened?” You growled, now much more frustrated than confused, “Why now?”

The question seemed to catch him off guard and he hesitated, sucking in a deep breath then swallowing his words.

“Why now?” You repeated, your voice barely a whisper, knowing you were so close to getting an answer.

The confusion vanished from his face and he became a blur of shimmering green, his Asgardian tunic replacing his Earthly clothes, and he stood a little straighter, the cocky prince replacing the real Loki you had come to like so much.

He lifted his chin slightly, “I’m calling in your end of the deal.”

“What?” You were starting to wonder if you could say anything else than two worded questions.

“You were to help me when the time came,” he reminded you, “And now the time has come Midgardian. I need you off this realm.”

“I thought…” your words trailed off.

A cruel laugh escaped his lips, a jarring contrast to the little huff you had gotten so used to hearing - the one that had always made you want to smile too. This one only made you cold.

“I beg your pardon,” He sneered, “You thought what?”

You didn’t answer. You couldn’t admit aloud what you had been keeping to yourself all night. It had been stupid to even feel that way about him and you couldn’t admit to him that you had lost your wits. You may have been played for a fool, but you weren’t about to lose your pride over it too.

You crossed your arms over your chest in an attempt to hide the fact that your body was shaking with emotion and tried for business like when you asked, “What’s the favour?”

“Simple. I need you to escape.” He said

“Why?” You blurted the question before you could stop yourself, “Why tonight of all nights?”

He squeezed his eyes shut and sighed before opening them again. “Because everyone will believe that a thief tried to escape on a night when all eyes were turned from her and toward peace instead.”

You stared at him in disbelief. “I’ll look like the villain, using peace for my own gain.”

He shrugged. “One of us has to be.”

You tried to leash your anger through clenched fists, never breaking eye contact. “So, what will that make you then?”

“A stand in while Odin deals with the mess he made. After all, he was the one who decided to keep you here.” His lips curled into a vicious grin.

“But they have no idea who I really am and what I’m doing here.” You pointed out. “They won’t care that the ambassador has left.”

He chuckled, the sound void of real humour. “Don’t worry about that Midgardian. They will.”

“Fine so you expose Odin’s foolhardy decision, then what Loki? Because from where I’m standing, you send them after me and I’m dead. And I did not agree to die for you or anyone else.” You snarled.

“If you must know, you’ll have enough time to escape and find a place to lay low until it all blows over. I know a thief like you must have hiding placing in the galaxy.”

He looked so calm, you wanted to shake him until you knew exactly what he was thinking and planning behind that cold veneer of his. You almost took a step toward him to see if anything you had imagined in the past few months was real, but you didn’t. At the same time, he seemed to take a step forward but thought better of it as well.

“You’ll have twenty minutes Midgardian. After that, Hiemdall will be aware that your ship has left, and they will be hunting you.”

You wanted to argue for a plan that guaranteed your safety, but you didn’t. You knew there was no plan that would ever get you safely off now. You would be exposed as an outlaw and there was no backing out. This was your best chance at escaping. It wasn’t like there was anything for you here, he had been clear about that. You had imagined all of it, and it was time you went home.

Without another word, he spun on his heel and walked out the door, never once looking back.

Tears burn behind your eyes, but you held them back. You weren’t going to cry over this. Not when you were expecting it all along. But you weren’t, whispered a small voice in the back of your mind, you had been a fool and had gotten swept away in all of it instead.

You pushed that voice aside and tucked your feelings away in a place far away so that you couldn’t feel them anymore. You had to leave and you had to do it now. There was a way off this realm, but you were going to need every second you could possibly get to do it. Gulping down a shaking breath, you walked over to your seat and dropped down into the cool, familiar material. The feeling managed to partially ease that shaking feeling inside.

Staring at your dashboard, you were unable to do anything even though you knew you had to. Everything had happened so quickly, you weren’t even sure you knew what had happened exactly. You knew you were mad, but you knew, deep down, you were also hurt. With another deep breath, you tried once again to push your feelings aside. There would be a time to go over them later. It wasn’t like your brain would stop playing the events of the night over and over again if you let it. Right now though, if you weren’t focused you weren’t going to get a chance to figure out anything at all.

You forced your fingers to press the buttons, flip the switches and start the engine. It sputtered to life, not having liked crashing or not running for almost a year, but it pulled through. The sound wasn’t smooth, but it was steady enough you knew it would make it off the ground and to wherever you needed to take it. The prince might not care if you lived or died, but he wasn’t going to risk having the chase end quickly, so you were certain you could make it back to Earth.

Even though you kept telling yourself that he didn’t care, an uneasy feeling in your gut told you that a small part of him had to…right? You couldn’t have imagined everything. Or had your feelings made you so blind that you had forgotten who you were dealing with? You shook your head. No. You had caught a glimpse of something real in him and you hadn’t imagined it. It didn’t matter though. It hadn’t been the side of him that had won out.

You scolded yourself for getting so off track, rolled your shoulders back and gripped the control wheel. Earth was already preset as your destination and within moments, you were off the ground, heading off this realm for good.  

The prince had been right. You were almost out of Asgard when the first ship had appeared on your radar, but by then, you had known you were in the clear. Two jumps had taken you to a secret little pocket of the galaxy where you knew you would only have to wait a day before heading back to Earth unnoticed.

Maybe it had been so easy to escape because the prince had been right about your knack for staying alive. Or maybe, just maybe - even if you hated thinking it - he had waited a little longer than he had said to expose your escape. But even that possibility did nothing to wash away your fury and leftover adrenaline.

Hovering in your ship with not much else to do, there was nothing you could do to hold your feelings from rushing back in. You were with angry at him as you were with yourself. You couldn’t believe you had been so stupid. It was no secret that he had been planning something, and it wasn’t like he hadn’t come through with his end of the bargain. He had gotten you out of that dungeon and off of Asgard.

Groaning, you let your head fall back, annoyed with how upset you were. The more you tried to figure out how you had gotten so caught up in everything, the more your fingers tightened around the arm rests.

If only you could figure out what had changed. Because as far as you could tell, you weren’t the only one who had enjoyed that kiss. But you knew as hard as you tried to figure everything out, the more exhausted you would become. There was nothing you could do about it because you were missing a piece to the puzzle, and the only person who had the missing piece was the one person you were never going to see again.

When your but was sore from being seated for so long, you stood up, and noticed a large package on the passenger seat you hadn’t seen before. It didn’t take a genius to know who the sender was, and you stared at it in hatred.

Inside the box was a large, golden artifact, shaped like an eye with intricate designs in its lower half. You weren’t sure what it was, but you knew an artifact this big and ostentatious was worth something.

Although a small part of you was relieved you wouldn’t be return to Earth empty handed, you held onto your anger, knowing a pretty little gift didn’t erase the hurt in your chest.

You picked up a small note that must have fallen to the ground when you had opened the box. It read:

Against your better judgment, you let out a breathy laugh and flipped it to the other side.

Despite everything that had happened that evening, you felt yourself smile. You could practically hear his voice, the challenge in it loud and clear.

You would meet again.

If it wasn’t for the explanation he sure as hell owed you, then it would be to give him the stab wound you sure as hell owed him. Either way, you had gotten his message loud and clear.

The story wasn’t finished between the two of you.

Really, now that you were free, it was just the beginning.

[mrsdemolitionlover]

For my birthday my hubby, knowing I like scary stories, wrote me a short story. I asked him if I could post it here and he says it's cool. So enjoy

Coming of Age

Jebediah takes a deep breath and smiles, letting the golden radiance of the morning sun wash over his face and hair. A gentle breeze fans the smell of grass and trees over the rolling hills of his parents’ ranch. His shirt, drenched in sweat, clings to burgeoning muscles, and his threadbare pants, heavy with mud and sweat, weathers to frayed tendrils of denim just a few inches above his ankles. "Hhm,” he chuckles warmly, remembering his mother’s fussing about how quickly he wears through clothes these days.

“Did you finish your chores?”

Jebediah tenses, startled by the sound of his older sister, which brings him out of his pensieve reflections. “Susanna! I was just taking a break. Don’t tell father-” Susanna interrupts Jebediah’s mounting defence with a disarming laugh and a playful tousle of his hair. “Fear not, Jebediah. I don’t think you can even get in trouble today. Thirteen!” She says with mock importance. “You’re a man now!”

Jebediah knocks Susanna’s hand off his head and smiles back. He knows she is teasing, but can’t help but be excited. After all, you only get one thirteenth birthday. They turn in unison when they hear their mother call them in for breakfast. Could it really be seven a.m. already?

Their mother waits for them with arms wide, waiting for a warm embrace which comes pounding in like a battering ram of love. Her two children pounce on her with coiling embraces so fervently, it nearly knocks her over. Gerta, their mother, laughs hard in spite of the pain in her back. “Ok, ok! Breakfast is ready. Wash up and serve your father first. He’s been out there since four this morning setting up for your big day.”

Their home is humble, but handsome, with warm tones of wood and leather, freshly oiled and polished. A cold hearth rests in the corner of the small living room, waiting in repose for fall, which won’t be arriving for more than a month now. Most of the dishes and cutlery in the kitchen are homemade, but artfully designed in a quaint, rustic motiff. No television or modern appliance clutter the simple design, but the family was all too grateful to have added electric lighting to the house just last year. They enjoyed a simple life, free from distractions like the internet, cellular phones, radio, or any influence of pop culture. A small collection of books adorn a sturdy bookcase next to a large, cozy-looking homemade leather chair, and serves as the primary source of entertainment when the weather was not permissible for outside play activities. But today, the weather was in their favor, which was good, because Levi had been planning his son’s birthday party since last winter.

Levi came out of the washroom just in time to see his mud-covered son grinning at him. “Goodness, son!” He belts with a throaty laugh. “You are filthy!” Jebediah smiles back at his father, and rushes into the washroom to clean up.

“Change your clothes before joining us for breakfast, son,” his father calls after him. Faintly, behind the door of the washroom, his son calls back dutifully. “Okay!

Susanna obediently grabs plates and cups to set the table, while Gerta rubs Levi’s broad shoulders. “Were you able to finish setting everything up?” She asks softly. Levi squeezes Gerta’s hand lovingly. “Yes, dear. His birthday party will be just-” he pauses to kiss his wife’s lips, “perfect.”

Gerta sighs happily. “I’m so proud. He’s growing up so quickly, too. Did you see he outgrew another pair of denim pants already? I can’t mend them fast enough!” She remarks with a bittersweet sigh. After Susanna finishes setting the table, she smiles and brings in the food. “Who knew he’d grow up to be half oak tree?” She comments with adolescent sarcasm. “He’s going to be taller than you, dad!” The family shares a warm chuckle as Jebediah comes back to the family room washed and dried and wearing fresh clothes. “What?” he inquires innocently. Again, his pants clench tightly to his calves, too short and too slender to drape properly over his muscular legs. The rest of the family share a knowing smile.

Breakfast is hot and filling, with eggs and flapjacks, bacon and steak, a tall glass of fresh milk and a piping hot mug of coffee. Conversation is warm and encouraging as they digest their food, and then the ladies clean up as the men rise from the table to get ready for the next, and most important, phase of Jebediah’s birthday.

"Did you enjoy your breakfast, son?” Gerta asks with a wink. Jebediah eagerly nods his head, “Yes mom! I wish I had another stomach so I could eat more!” His father smiles warmly. “Well, if we’re to have a dinner as good as breakfast, we’ll need to earn it,” Levi states authoritatively. Jebediah’s excitement was like a vibration in the air when they start marching to his father’s shed.

Gerta and Susanna watch on proudly as Jebediah gets ready to go on his first hunt. 

The shed is a short walk from the house, and defended stalwartly with heavy locks and thick, reinforced walls. Inside, there are hunting rifles, cleaning and hunting knives, crossbows, a bow with a quiver, and a variety of hunting accessories, including camouflage clothing, scent pouches to mask odor, and various calls, snares, and traps, as well as a dusty map and compass on a small desk. Levi leans over the map and jabs a calloused finger at a point on the map representing a recess between hills where a creek and several trees crop up. “I’ve set the traps here. In the holler. We’ll need to corral the prey there. If anything gets caught in the traps, then you can pick them off quickly and safely. Remember son. We don’t let them suffer more than they have to. It’s a gift they’re giving us. The meat we gain from a single kill can feed us for the rest of the month. Anything else we get, we can cure and preserve for the winter.”

Jebediah nods reverently, but can’t keep his eyes off the weapons. Levi gets the hint and smiles. “Pick one,” he says warmly.

The birthday boy bursts into action, checking the rifles and crossbows first. “I think I want the rifle,” he says excitedly. “Good choice, son,” Levi replies with pride. “They’re easy to load and easier to shoot. The crossbow is better for experienced hunters. It adds to the challenge and makes the hunt feel more fair. But don’t forget,” he says dramatically, “the hunting and cleaning knife.” From a sheath strapped to his hip, he pulls out a large, glistening blade with a wicked curved side, and jagged teeth on the other end. Jebediah’s eyes are wide with wonder as he admires the craftsmanship of the homemade polished bone hilt knife. “After your first kill, I’ll help you make your own. In the meantime, choose…” Levi gestures to a collection of older, more worn knives. Jebediah picks a large one, roughly eight inches, with a thick leather wrapped handle.

After draping themselves in camoflauge, selecting the rest of their supplies, and covering their scent, they head out into the hills with an excitement that bursts through their mutual restraint and expresses itself in a cocky bounce with each step. They come to the woods and Jebediah pauses to take the whole scene in. “C’mon son! We’re almost there,” his father chides. Jebediah scurries to catch up to his father.

They arrive at a cellar that had long ago been used as a storm shelter. Levi opens the heavy lock on the cellar door and steps inside. Here, there is no electricity, so Levi has to light an oil lamp hanging from a large hook. They proceed slowly so they don’t trip in the dim light. The flickering orange glow of the lamp reveals several cages, most of which are empty, but three have animals sleeping in them. Levi presses a finger over his lips and sneaks closer to Jebediah. Gently, Levi whispers, “They’re drugged so they sleep until we wake them. I’ve kept them fed but always a little hungry, and I prod them daily so they stay feral and hate people. Remember, son. They are very dangerous. Corner them, and they’ll try to kill you, so get toward the back wall, and point your rifle at each one I release until it’s gone up the stairs.”

He grabs a cattle prod and waits for Jebediah to get in position. Starting with the one closest to Jebediah, he prods the first one awake: a scrawny, but scrappy female, who screams in pain enough to stir the others. “Noooo!” She cries desperately. “Please no! Please let me go!” She charges the cage and gets zapped again for her effort. While she twitches on the ground, Levi pulls out his bone handle knife and sticks her in the thigh. She howls again in pain.

“Shh… shhh. You’re going to wake the others too soon,” Levi whispers to the weeping woman. “Hey,” he coos soothingly. “Today’s your lucky day. I’m going to let you go free. But that wound in your leg… it’s going to kill you if you don’t run and find a doctor. Now, don’t worry, it isn’t a major artery, but those anticoagulants I’ve been giving you will keep the wound from closing very quickly. I figure you’ve got until nightfall at best before you are dead.” He opens the gate to the pen and gestures to the door. “I suggest you get going.”

The woman looks confused and frightened, but Jebediah points the rifle directly at her left eye, and that’s all the motivation she needs. She scrambles toward the door, weeping and panting in pain with every step. Levi smiles at Jebediah. “That’s one.”

He steps forward to the next one and zaps him: a portly, elderly male, whom he stabs in the ample belly and gives the same instructions. He stumbles away, begging for his life. “The older meat is more tender, son. He’ll be a good catch.”

He then prods the third one, a tall, muscular male. He recovers quicker than Levi expects and punches through the cage at him. Levi offers a shocked laugh when he barely avoids the strike. “See what I mean son? They’ll get you if you give them a chance.”

“I’ll kill you, hillbilly son of a- AAAAAAGHHH!” he screams as he gets the prod again, and doubles over in pain. Levi stabs him in the shoulder and gives him the same instructions as he gave the previous two. However, before opening the gate, he makes sure Jebediah has the rifle on the big male. “Or you can die right here,” he says as he opens the gate. Fury, pain, and fear in his eyes, the big male charges out the gate and up the stairs.

Wiping off his hunting knife, he looks up at his son and smiles. “Alright, son! You ready?” Jebediah takes a deep breath and responds excitedly, “Yeah!”

“Then let’s go hunting!”

***    ***    ***

Levi sheaths his knife, and leads the way up the stairs. Once Levi confirms that the prey has left, he signals Jebediah forward. “See the tracks? And the blood trails?” Levi shows his son the tell-tale marks of footprints and crimson droplets left on the crushed grass. Jebediah touches the blood and rubs it between his fingers and smiles when comprehension hits. “They’re heading the right way!”

“Except one. Can you figure out which?” Levi responds with an educator’s tone. Jebediah hmms about it for a few seconds, but feels the pressure to answer quickly as their quarry increases the distance from them. “The doe?” He asks hastily.

“That’s right, son! The footprints are smaller. The old bull and the stag are heading the right way. So let’s get the doe first.”

After a brisk jaunt over the hill, they spot the woman frantically limping through the grassy hills, screaming for help. Considering her injury, she was covering an impressive distance. Jebediah lines up his shot, aiming for the base of the skull, just like his father taught him. The bullet fires with a thunderous sound, sending a screaming red-hot hunk of metal shearing through her left shoulder. She shrieks in agony and drops to the ground. They catch up to her. Softly she whimpers the same word over and over. “Please, please, please...” Tears choke her words and she clutches and unclutches the grass, tearing small divots into the soft turf of the verdant hill. Levi nods to Jebediah, “Finish it quickly… don’t make her suffer.”

Obediently, Jebediah kneels down and gently pulls her head up by the forehead, revealing the soft creamy flesh of her neck. “Thank you,” he whispers to her as he drags the shimmering edge of his knife across her jugular. Fear and pain, slowly fade to confusion and then ultimately the dull glaze of death as waves of crimson dribble from the newly formed gaping grin spread across her slender throat.

“We should hunt the old bull, next,” advises Levi. “But first, let’s get the meat back to the women so it can be cleaned and deboned.” A scream echoes through the open hills from the woods… the voice of the bull. “He got caught by the traps… good. That’ll buy us some time,” comments Jebediah, a little worried that his prey would get away.

Susanna and Gerta look excited when they see Levi carrying the first kill over his broad shoulders. Gerta looks to Susanna, “Ok, now. Go wash up. The carcass needs to be cleaned and filleted, and the hide needs to be tanned for leather. Gerta helps Levi set the body down on the cleaning table and looks a little disappointed. “A shot in the shoulder? That’ll damage the hide, and takes out some good stew meat.”

“A good kill, though. Especially for a first one,” Levi says, clapping Jebediah on the back. “Don’t forget to set aside a thigh bone for a knife handle. We should get going. There are two more to get, and at least one of them is caught in a trap.” Gerta shooshes the men out the door and gets to work instructing Susanna on how to remove the skin without damaging it. 

Levi and Jebediah beeline for the woods, taking care to reference the map once they get into the threshold of the holler. Going by memory to the last place they think the sound came from, they find a snapped bear trap, dripping hot, wet blood from its metal teeth. A splattering trail of scarlet viscera leads the way to the location of the bull. Jebediah leads the hunt, more confident now that he’s made his first kill. They sneak silently through the trees and foliage, listening for the telltale sounds of a limping, wounded bull. They come upon the creek, to find him passed out near the bank, his skin pale from blood loss. Jebediah looks visibly deflated knowing that he didn’t get to take the kill, but lights up when he hears the old man groan. Jebediah gasps and looks excitedly at his father. “The bull is still alive!” he rasps enthusiastically. Levi nods. “You know what you need to do, son.” Jebediah skips happily over to the old man, and kneels down. “Thank you,” he whispers to the bull, but then is taken by surprise when his prey rolls over, holding a rocks and slams the boy in the face with it. “OW!” Jebediah screams. Levi, also startled by the sudden display of aggression, begins to charge forward, but is grappled to the ground by the young stag, who slams fist after pounding fist into Levi’s jaw and cheekbones!

Jebediah rolls backward as the old man grasps at him and manages to latch onto the gun. He and the bull wrestle over the sweat slick firearm for several seconds. The old man grunts with the strain and twists hard, trying to wrench the rifle loose, and Jebediah retaliates with a series of vicious kicks to the head.

Levi takes the punches bravely, focusing all his energy on getting to his handmade bone hilt knife. Finally, he unsheaths it and swipes it across the stag’s defensively raised forearms. Blood sprays in a crimson arc, but the stag is fueled by fear and adrenaline. He rolls backward, and Levi springs to a stand and charges in to lash out with another vicious cut. Then he steps on a plate of metal and hears a loud clank. SNAP! A bear trap clamps down on his calf, biting through flesh and cracking bone. There wasn’t supposed to be a trap there! Levi thought desperately himself. He had to admit, he was impressed that the stag managed to find a trap and relocate it without springing any of the others. The bull and the stag had set up a very clever ambush. But Levi didn’t have time to admire the cleverness of his prey. His son was calling out to him, and they were both in a lot of trouble.

The stag kicks him hard in the face, launching him sprawling to the ground, and sending the hunting knife skittering along the rocks. The stag doesn’t hesitate, and scrambles for Jebediah and the rifle. “Get the gun!” The old bull shouts to the stag. It’s clear that with his injuries, the bull is losing the fight to Levi’s son, so the stag swings hard with a vicious right jab that sends explosions of light through Jebediah’s brain, but he holds tight to the gun. Spinning quickly, the boy jams a thrusting kick into the stag’s groin, causing him to double over in pain, then he jabs his thumb into the stag’s shoulder wound. The young man howls in agony and drops to his knees, grabbing young Jebediah by the throat. The boy clings to the rifle desperately, but he knows that soon, he will either have to let go of the rifle, or die.

Jebediah looks at the old bull, whose precious life blood continues to pulse from his leg and stomach wounds. His eyelids are drooping, and his face is blanched from lack of blood. It won’t be long now. Maybe I can hold out, the boy thinks to himself, but he can feel the stag’s hands close around the jugular. If it gets crushed, Jebediah won’t have much time either. He closes his eyes and begins to say his silent prayers...

He feels the stag’s grip lighten on his throat and then slip away completely.

Jebediah opens his eyes to see Levi standing over the stag with his knife buried to the handle in the back of the younger man’s thick, muscular neck. Levi’s leg is shredded and unnaturally twisted from the ravages of the bear trap, but his love for his son gave him the strength to free himself from the trap and cross the twelve feet to rescue the boy. Jebediah jerks the rifle away from the old man and kicks him in the head one last time before coming to his father’s aid. Levi wipes the blood drenched knife on his pants and then hands it to Jebediah. “Here you go son. You earned it,” He huffs through the pain. Jebediah sets his father gently down by the bank and stabs the old man in the side of the neck, finishing the kill.

“How’s your leg?” He asks his Levi. His father inspects the damage. “It’s not the first, and it’s not the worst. I’ll live. But we need to get back home to your mother so she can clean it up.”

Using field dressings from their pack, they bind the wound. It takes Sussana and Jebediah two trips to bring back the last two carcasses from the hunt, but they finally get everything home and ready to be butchered. They find Levi reclining in his chair with thick bandages on his leg. “Good thing we caught enough to get us through the winter,” He says with a smile that is half grimace. “Your mother says it could take six weeks for the leg to heal.”

Jebediah balls his fists. “I should’ve made that fat old bull suffer for that.” Levi shakes his head. “No… that’s just an animal doing what he can to survive. You can’t blame him for not wanting to be eaten anymore than you can blame us for wanting to eat. Besides, it was an important lesson about being overconfident. It makes you stupid. Next year, they won’t be trapped unarmed, and kenneled, son. Next year, they’ll be whatever comes on our property. Some of them may even have weapons. So, we should learn from this.”

Gerta nods her head approvingly at the important lesson about hunting, then holds out a cleaned and polished bone for Jebediah. “I’ve got your thigh bone ready for you to carve, son.”

The End.

[momo-de-avis]

Wordtober Day 5: Build

𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚕𝚕𝚘𝚠𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚒𝚜 𝚊 𝚝𝚢𝚙𝚎𝚠𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚗 𝚌𝚘𝚙𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚕𝚎 𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚛𝚢 𝚏𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝚒𝚗 𝙰𝚞𝚛𝚊 𝙼𝚊𝚍𝚞𝚛𝚘’𝚜 𝚓𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚗𝚊𝚕, 𝚕𝚎𝚏𝚝 𝚊𝚋𝚊𝚗𝚍𝚘𝚗𝚎𝚍 𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚏𝚊𝚖𝚒𝚕𝚢’𝚜 𝚑𝚘𝚖𝚎, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚏𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝙼𝚊𝚛𝚌𝚑 𝟸𝟶𝚝𝚑, 𝟷𝟿𝟾𝟹.

I can see it through my window. Every morning, every night, every afternoon. I watch the dancing shapes between the rustling leaves and branches and every single time I am certain, I am positive, something lurks in there, watching me, taunting me. That path, that perfidious, treacherous path. The last path my brother walked.

It feels like something calls for me. It’s been calling for me every day since I last arrived here. A week. That’s how long I’ve been here—one whole week—and I can’t tell, today—for the life of me, I can’t—how the hell did I spend twenty years in this house, sleeping in this room, looking straight at that path. The first sight upon waking up, and the last thing I saw before I pulled the curtains shut. Just right outside my window, like an unwanted guest.

The house isn’t much better. The walls are painted with mementoes, and everywhere, there are memories engraved on every slab and tile of every wall. The white sheets that cover the furniture in almost every room, left abandoned for eight years, have something daunting to them. Traces of something bittersweet. Where the dust should settle, I swear—on my life, I swear—there are little marks of something I can’t understand what. As if my mind is trying to recollect happy memories that were here before he was gone, but now all my eyes see is the charred corners of a photograph that was once colourful.

And I’ve been sleeping here, right under these ceilings, for a week. Every night, I lie under the covers and I pull the sheets up to my head and sometimes, like when I was little, I glance quickly at the walls around but there’s never anything there. That’s what’s so disconcerting. I can’t see anything yet I am sure there is something, in those abstract lines of humidity and the cracks of the plaster that has chipped off with time. Something lurks, something leers at me, something mocks me, torments me, laughs at me. I can’t hear it either. The house is so silent now it feels the silence itself is the haunting. 

But the house isn’t haunted. If anything is haunted in this place, it’s that path, that narrow strip of earth that zigzags through the juniper bushes up to those two pillars, those two pyramidal pillars with that rusty chain swinging between them. It’s absurd when you think about it, because they stand alone by a wall of green, a fortress of foliage barring entrance from all and any who dare cross that barrier and sneak into these parts off the limits of our house, yet it’s just a pair of pillars with one single line of chain links locked on its flanking whitewashed stone.

Perhaps that’s what enticed Sam. He saw that pathway, saw those two pillars and thought: what could be wrong? It guards nothing. Anyone who looks at them thinks they could just go around, but somehow, they never do. In truth, it’s pretty ineffective as a barrier itself. There’s even no warning, nothing fending off possible intruders or curious adventurers who need to be reminded this is private property. Nothing. Anyone can just... hop it. But no one ever does. No one ever did, except Sam and me.

Of course, I crossed it too. When Sam dared to go into the forest through that chain, I had to go with him. We always went together, and every time Sam found something worthy of some good hours of exploration, he took me with him. Except this time. 

He always did take me with him. We’d wander off into the immense bald land, meandering through the golden twigs and weeds, charred by the blazing summer sun, and hop between the abandoned railroad tracks as we counted our every step. We’d steal old wooden planks and stones and wire and pipes and build our forts below an oak tree, overlooking the shepherds that wafted placidly between the bushes, the clappers on the necks of every sheep clanging loud in a hollow singing behind them, carried by the warm winds that kissed the sweat on our backs. We’d construct these corners for ourselves—shelters, havens, hideouts—for me and my brother only. Our very own corner.

We always loved building things. Just little places for us to hide, enough protection for ourselves only, and outside, an entire real world we willingly ignored. 

Then one day, I caught him staring at those two pillars, and I knew he wanted to cross them. There was just a beaming desire spread about his eyes. He took one step, then another, then another, and when he was so close them temptation gripped his breath, I called him. 

“Sam,” I screeched, “where are you going?”

He turned around, and in that moment, I could swear his face was different. Paler. Emptier. Dull. Like all emotion he had ever felt before in his life died, and what was left was his carcass, hollow and waiting to be filled with something else. I shuddered in dread, even as he answered my question with a slight pursing of his eyebrows and a slash of his lips I took for a smile: “You ever wondered what’s beyond this little chain?”

I wanted to say we were not supposed to go beyond it, it was the only answer my childish mind had at ready, but somehow, I didn’t speak. So when I saw his leg raise and leap across, I followed him. I couldn’t let my brother go alone. I had to go with him.

It took me fifteen years to realize crossing that chain was what set it off, but back then, it all seemed normal enough, save for the slight trepidation the action had caused in me, though I am still uncertain whether that was an omen or just my guilty conscience. We found, thirty minutes after walking between the thorny foliage and cluttered, narrow paths, a clearing. It stood beneath two trees that bent over like a rooftop, branches entwined together into a perfect pyramidal shape, casting a sombre shadow on the bare, whitewashed ground. Dried leaves and twigs cracked beneath the soles of my brother’s feet, and I watched as he started to rummage through the meshes of brambles and weeds for wood and rock to build something, moving so excitedly about he barely paid mind to the bloodied scratches on his hands.

I couldn’t understand why he suddenly seemed so eager to build something. It was an impetus I had never seen before.

“This is the perfect spot,” he said. “This is the perfect spot to build our hideout.”

I wanted to say he was wrong, that I didn’t want us to have a hideout in that place. Something felt wrong about it. The air was dense and prickled the back of my throat as I breathed in, and every shadow seemed heavier than any other I had ever seen. And something lurked there, that I know. Like a thousand pairs of eyes watching us.

Sam was focused on his job, moving so frantically he barely noticed the sun setting around us, until I tapped his shoulder hurriedly and begged him to stop. I had no idea how long had passed when I forced him to stop. When he breathed out, something new possessed him. Before him, stood a tiny hut, no higher than a meter a half, made of twigs tied together with ropes made of dried roots, just as he had taught me to do, but so perfectly constructed I had no clue how it came to be. I had stood there, the whole time, and couldn’t explain how something like that came to be, but as the years passed, I have accepted that time simply moved differently there. Not faster nor slower, just in a different rate, a different reality. Things come to life, I suppose, if you wish them so—but there is a price to pay I haven’t entirely understood just yet.

We returned home, and never mentioned our discovery. Then, for the following week, I barely set my eyes on my brother at all.

He would leave by the morning and return only as night settled. By the time the sun would cast its last rays of light over the treetops, he was irritable, restless, but most of all, furious. His hands were bruised, dried blood around his fingernails, and slender hoops of red circled his eyes, like life was slowly sucked out of him. I was, for the first time in my life, afraid of him. Sometimes, I’d hear him mumble something between gritted teeth in his bedroom and as I peered through his door ajar, I’d watch him furiously scribble something on torn pieces of paper he’d crumple into a ball and fling madly against the wall. When I finally dared to ask him where he’d been—because I had searched for him all over, because we had plans together, because I was worried for him—he simply answered: “The animals keep tearing it down.”

It took me a week to realize what he meant.

The pieces put themselves together as time passed, and I finally understood where he was spending his days. When I didn’t find him at the railroad tracks, or the several tiny huts we had built on the fields with cardboard and wooden planks, I knew there was only one place he could be in. 

It made me shudder in anticipation. I stood for a long time before those two small columns and that dangling chain, watching the lurking shadows of the dancing twigs and rustling leaves, and realized, for the first time, that no sounds came from beyond. It was empty. Even the trees were silent, and no birds chirped. The wind died at that chain link, and the sun fractured about the greenery in washed-out sepia tones. 

I didn’t want to go. I didn’t want to cross. But beyond the calling that pulsated through the darkness, what I felt was my brother’s presence there. I had to go. So I stepped forth, and I crossed the chain a second time.

It took me a surprisingly short time to find the way, and I could swear the path I had taken was shorter than the last time. Sam was kneeling on the ground, right in the middle of the clearing, and the canopy-like foliage above him rose like a castle of his own. I could swear there was a golden ambience cast around us. Before him, something white and dull rose, so opaque I barely made it out against the background. A tiny little house made of something white, rising to the same height as Sam’s previous construction. A meter and a half only.

I asked him what he was doing; Sam jumped in fright, turned around and looked at me. His eyes were scooped, his face craggy, and shadows fell on his semblance, creating shapes I had never seen before. When he laughed, I didn’t know that laugh. That wasn’t my brother, but someone who had been completely possessed by something alien. He stood up, patted his hands together and gave two steps to his left, a hand waving at his new construction like an artist presenting his work before the audience. His fingertips were stained with white dust, and his pants were torn and ratty around the knees.

It was a house, small and humble, with nothing but a tiny door and a gable roof. It looked almost sweet and admirable, had I not given a step forth and realized what it was made of.

Bone. Sawed, scraped bone, polished almost to a shiny surface. But bone all the same. I could tell it was bone because Sam had kept the shapes in its alignment, tied together with the same scrubbed root he always made rope out of. But so many bones—piling together in order, beautifully arranged to compose walls and a roof and a door.

I stumbled back and began to cry immediately, but Sam didn’t seem to notice the tears in my eyes. “Is that bone?” I whispered, barely able to breathe at all. “Where did you find those bones?”

There was a maniac glow to his eyes. His smile disturbed me so deeply my body shuddered again, and I felt forlorn in the opened space of the clearing, the trees above engulfing me whole, ready to swallow me like a gurgling monster. But worse, I was sure, was that it was my brother they wanted to swallow whole.

“The wood didn’t last,” he said—his voice raised to an octave, high-pitched in excitement, “the animals destroyed it overnight. I had to do it again. But this was the only thing that worked.”

“How long have you been here?”

He eyes opened wide, wider than before, and a screech escaped his lips, something that would have been a laugh, but entirely different then. “I don’t know,” he said. “I’ve been here all night.”

I looked up at the skies, but could see the sun. It was around noon when I left the house—had he been there all night and all morning, working tirelessly on his construction? The idea of my brother completely alone in that place, that horrid place, touching bone with his bare hands, horrified me. I grabbed his hand—it was dry, his fingers thickened and full of callouses—and tugged his arm.

“Let’s go home,” I begged. “Please.”

He pushed me aside, his eyes now glowing in anticipation. “No,” he said. “I have to try it.” A glimmer of madness, and another laugh—a distant, alien laugh. “I have to go inside.”

I screamed for him to stay away, but he didn’t listen; my eyes burned with tears and I watched, frozen in terror, as my brother opened the tiny door and looked inside—the darkness luring him in, cold and bristly, clawing at his existence like that same gurgling monster I had felt before, had envisioned before, only now coming to life in full as he lurched himself at that tiny door. My voice grazed my throat, my lungs collapsing as the air was sucked out of my body, but I couldn’t move—how much I have detested myself since, for watching my brother being sucked into that tiny black hole and unable to do anything if not to scream.

Then, there was a hollow thud, and the door shut. All around, there was silence—no, the absence of sound. Even my blood rushing through my veins was silent, and my heart ceased to beat; I was left to my own isolation in the woods, alone in the clearing as I watched, shaking on my knees, the door that sucked my brother away into this fortress of bone. I trudged on carefully, quivering hand reaching for the door, and pressed it slowly—a shove came then. And another, and another. I flung myself at it until my shoulder hurt and my body turned sore from pushing it with all might, but it didn’t budge. It didn’t even shake a little bit. It was rooted to the ground, firmly shut. Forever.

The house looked too tiny for him to fit inside, and too frail to stand, and yet, beyond that door, there was nothing—just absolutely nothing. Not even a sound, however faint, even as I screamed his name and banged the bony structure with my bare knuckles—there was nothing coming from inside. As if he had been sucked by something hollow, a hole torn open in the ground beneath this skeletal fortress that had swallowed him. As if he simply ceased to exist. 

I stumbled back, glanced around—night settled fast. The dancing shapes of shadows dashed through the corners of my vision, and that prevalent feeling of a constant absence made me quiver; holding my breath, I ran back, ran home, cut and bruised by whipping twigs and thorny branches, vision blurred by tears, until I was safely home to tell my parents what had happened.

They didn’t believe me. Nobody did. Sam was reported missing the day after. I never saw him again.

It’s been fifteen years since he was gone. I have been back at this place for a week now, watching that pathway for as long as there is sunlight, counting the times the rusty metal dangling between both columns creaks in the setting sun. There is still no life beyond it. The wind still stops at the chain link, and no birds chirp past the two stone pillars. The foliage on either side has grown thicker, the juniper bushes flanking that path unkept and wild, but past those two pillars, everything is the same, as dead as it ever was. Except for one thing different.

I swear I can har my brother calling me.

I’ve stood here for seven nights in a row, watching that hideous, horrid path, unable to shake away the sense that something keeps calling for me, just as it called my brother. I never went back to that clearing, never crossed the chain link again, even though I stared at it for ten years from my bedroom window. I used to see things moving beyond it, something dark and hungry, and sometimes, I heard the sound of bones smacking against each other, like chittering teeth, piercing my ears in the night, though I’m unsure if I wasn’t just imagining things. Now, I hear them again, but the melody is finished with the soft murmur of Sam’s voice.

Time has passed, and time has come at last. I wonder if the bone house is still there.

Yesterday afternoon, I had an impulse. I picked up my camera and walked outside, standing so close to the two pillars the creaking sound of the chains rattled inside my ears; I looked through the lens but saw nothing. Then, my eyes drew away, and I heard something—a voice, a male voice I hadn’t heard that clearly in fifteen years—my brother, calling me, saying my name, loud and clear. And in a shudder of dread, my finger pressed the shutter, and I took a picture.

I haven’t developed it yet. It’s still inside my camera. I am afraid to see what’s in it.

I think I’m at the end of my journey, now. I think this is where I’m supposed to go. I might not come back, but at least I will know. Even if the whole world finds itself with not one, but two unsolved mysteries, at least I will have answers I need.

I won’t deny that I am terrified; I don’t want to cross that chain again. But I need to find Sam, I need to know what happened to him. I need to see if he’s still inside the little bone house he built. 

I need to make sure the door will open for me.

__

𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚊𝚞𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚛 𝚜𝚎𝚎𝚖𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎 𝙰𝚞𝚛𝚊 𝙼𝚊𝚍𝚞𝚛𝚘, 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚛𝚎𝚙𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚘𝚗 𝙼𝚊𝚛𝚌𝚑 𝟷𝟿𝚝𝚑, 𝟷𝟿𝟾𝟹. 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚓𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚗𝚊𝚕 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚊𝚌𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚙𝚊𝚗𝚒𝚎𝚍 𝚋𝚢 𝚊 𝚗𝚎𝚠𝚜𝚙𝚊𝚙𝚎𝚛 𝚌𝚕𝚒𝚙𝚙𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚛𝚎𝚐𝚊𝚛𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚍𝚒𝚜𝚊𝚙𝚙𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚂𝚊𝚖𝚞𝚎𝚕 𝙼𝚊𝚍𝚞𝚛𝚘, 𝚛𝚎𝚙𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝙹𝚞𝚕𝚢 𝟽𝚝𝚑, 𝟷𝟿𝟼𝟾. 𝙱𝚘𝚝𝚑 𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜 𝚍𝚒𝚎𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚊𝚕 𝚌𝚊𝚞𝚜𝚎𝚜 𝚊𝚌𝚌𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚘 𝚕𝚘𝚌𝚊𝚕 𝚖𝚎𝚍𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚕 𝚛𝚎𝚙𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚜, 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚙𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚟𝚎𝚕𝚢, 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚒𝚗 𝟷𝟿𝟽𝟸 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚏𝚊𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚒𝚗 𝟷𝟿𝟾𝟸, 𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚛 𝚍𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚑𝚜 𝚊𝚙𝚙𝚎𝚊𝚛 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎 𝚒𝚛𝚛𝚎𝚕𝚎𝚟𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚊𝚜𝚎.

𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚒𝚕𝚕𝚊𝚛𝚜 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚒𝚗 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚎𝚍 𝚋𝚎 𝚜𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎 𝙼𝚜 𝙼𝚊𝚍𝚞𝚛𝚘’𝚜 𝚋𝚎𝚍𝚛𝚘𝚘𝚖 𝚠𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚘𝚠, 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚌𝚛𝚒𝚋𝚎𝚍 𝚋𝚢 𝙼𝚜 𝙼𝚊𝚍𝚞𝚛𝚘 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚋𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚏𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍.

𝙼𝚜 𝙼𝚊𝚍𝚞𝚛𝚘’𝚜 𝚓𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚗𝚊𝚕 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚏𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚗 𝚘𝚗 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚔, 𝚊𝚕𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚘𝚗𝚊𝚕 𝚋𝚎𝚕𝚘𝚗𝚐𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜, 𝚒𝚗𝚌𝚕𝚞𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝��𝚘𝚗𝚎𝚍 𝚌𝚊𝚖𝚎𝚛𝚊 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚊𝚗 𝚞𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚕𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚍 𝚏𝚒𝚕𝚖 𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎. 𝙿𝚑𝚘𝚝𝚘𝚐𝚛𝚊𝚙𝚑𝚒𝚌 𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚋𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚌𝚘𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚙𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚋𝚎𝚕𝚘𝚠.

𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚕𝚎 𝚙𝚑𝚘𝚝𝚘𝚐𝚛𝚊𝚙𝚑 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚏𝚒𝚕𝚖 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚊𝚕𝚜𝚘 𝚋𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚍𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚕𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚍.

_________

Past Challenges:

Wordtober Day 1: Ring

Wordtober Day 2: Mindless

Wordtober Day 3: Bait

Wordtober Day 4: Freeze