#i hate studying in the library it doesn't work for me but I'm going insane

[omarfor-orchestra]

Ok I'll try to go study in the library next month

[idyllcy]

and on and on, i'll be by your side

word count: 11.9k

warnings: non-explicit sex, unstable family relationship (reader)

summary: senior year romance means everything from fluff to angst to teenage hormones

"I like you. let's date."

Jason chokes on his water, coughing as you hand him a napkin to wipe off the water.

"What the fuck did you just say to me?"

"Let's date?"

"before that."

"I like you." You blink at him, raising a brow. "What? Can't believe it?"

"No. I was not expecting to get confessed to on the first FUCKING DAY OF SENIOR YEAR." He hisses. "Why are you even asking me out? You had a crush on some other guy all the way until like before junior year ended."

"Yeah..." You tap your chin. "You see, I had a revelation over summer while we studied at the library together."

"I don't want to hear it."

"Well too bad!" You shrug, smile on your lips. "I thought, hey, I've kinda been on and off with my feelings with you for a while now, why not just get the closure I need?"

"So you asked me out without expecting me to accept your confession?" Jason hands you the second sandwich Alfred packed.

"Yeah!" You hum. "Thank you."

"And if I accept your confession?"

"Then we date." You shrug. "I have no L in this situation."

"What if I leave you hanging?"

"I have one L in this situation." You grimace. "You're not that mean, right?"

Three years. Jason Todd has been in love with you for three whole years — sitting through your hopeless rants about how attractive you found the most mediocre guys in the school, on the verge of going insane when he had practically turned into your ideal type only for you to pat him on the chest and tell him he'd definitely pull. Jason Todd had not expected you to casually drop the bomb that you had liked him on and off or the question of dating on the first day of senior year, the two of you sitting in your shared English teacher's classroom. He can feel his teacher's eyes on the back of his head as he stares at you incredulously.

"I'm not that mean," He shakes his head, heart racing in his head. "We..."

You look at him expectantly.

"Is it taking advantage of you if I agree to date you?" He winces.

"Nope! If anything, it could be me taking advantage of you." You beam. "Is that a yes?"

"Uh, yeah." Jason really hopes this doesn't come to bite him in the ass later. "Sure. Let's date."

You grin. "Should I call you babe?"

"Too fast." Jason deadpans. "If you don't finish that half of the sandwich I'm going to take it."

You gasp in fake offense. "I'm savoring it."

"Not with the lunch bell ringing in five minutes."

"I hate you." You grumble, going back to your sandwich. "What do people who date even do?"

"Well, they—"

"If you pull a single date idea from one of your classics I will throw this sandwich at your face."

"Alfred's hard work!" Jason raises a brow. "You dare disrespect that?"

"Either this or my backpack." You mumble, finishing the sandwich. "The backpack it is."

"I was going to say we could start with the park, but if you're going to smack me with your backpack, then I'd say we just break up." Jason jests.

"World's fastest breakup." You mumble. "We could break a world record with that."

"That's impossible. Someone out there has broken up faster than this. Also, I never said we'd break up." He mumbles. "I was threatening you."

You shrug, the bell going off.

"What's your next class?"

"I sent you my schedule like two weeks ago!" You gasp. "You didn't memorize it?"

"Alright," Jason sighs. "What's my next class?"

"Creative Writing. Bingo, loser."

"You can't do this to me." Jason grumbles.

"Oh, I can and I will." You grin.

"Have fun in your TA period." Jason walks in the other direction.

"You did memorize it?!" You yell at him in the hall as he walks off. "Liar!!!"

Jason ignores you, speeding up instead. The realization would settle in later, he thinks. The realization that after three years of pathetic pining on his end, you had asked him out on the first day of senior year with no will to continue living in Gotham. It was uncertain. Maybe you were just using him so you could say you had a boyfriend in high school. He would let himself get used, as long as it was you. In that case, he might as well put in the full effort to have you fall harder. Starting with... your ideal date, he supposes.

He sighs, looking through the list of books you had sent him earlier during summer that you completed, grimacing at how many questionable ones you had read. Though, that's not his problem. The two of you loved reading, even if they were totally different genres. Thankfully on his end, you had ranked them based on how much you liked them. He starts with the first book, a long night ahead of him.

"Red."

"Hm?" Jason holds down the thug with his foot. "What?"

"Are you listening to an audiobook on duty?"

"What of it?" Jason knocks the man out with the back of his gun.

"Why are you listening to smut while on duty?"

"Little wing, did you get a girlfriend?"

"What?"

"Why else would you be listening to romance while on the job? Obviously for research."

"He could also have a crush."

"I think it's his friend from school." Dick reasons. "He's had a crush on her since forever—"

"Oh my god, can you both shut up?"

"Get back to work." Bruce's voice rings on the line. "I don't care what he's listening to. As long as he's getting the job done."

Jason lingers in the city once patrol is over, scouting out an area to take you that wasn't the park. You hadn't looked that excited for the park when he joked about it. You did mention an arcade at some point early on in your friendship, and there was one in the area. Jason would have to take you by bike there. It'd be hard to park in the area. He pauses at the sight of the mall. You work there, huh?

"Where?"

"Mall. Are you deaf?"

"I have work this weekend." You blink at Jason. "Did you forget?"

"You dumbass. You work in the mall. I'll take you after work."

"I'm going to be all sweaty and gross!" You grimace.

"You sweat from a gift shop job?" He raises a brow.

"That was an excuse. I'm going to be dressed in a white tee and jeans. I'm barely going to look presentable." You frown.

"I'l give you my jacket. We can match."

"And have your chest out for the whole world to see? No." You deadpan. "Oh... maybe a compression shirt."

"What was it about not letting the world see my chest?"

"If you're going to wear something slutty I wanna match. You can wear your baseball jacket." You tap your chin. "Or we can both wear tees and jeans. I wanna wear a compression shirt too..."

Jason contemplates the idea of letting the world see your chest.

"No complaints?" You tilt your head.

"Wear what you want. I can fight." He smiles.

"Omg," You gasp. "Like a booktok boyfriend!"

"I'm defenestrating you."

"Jokes on you I'd be into it." You grin, eyes crinkling from how hard you were.

"Do you want me to bring you a change of clothes?"

"No. I'll just wear my tee and jeans." You hum. "And your jacket?"

"And my jacket." Jason takes it off, helping you into it. "There."

"You can wear a white tee and jeans." You smile. "And bring a sharpie. I want to draw on your shirt."

"Got it." He hums. "Anything else you want?"

"Can you bring me coffee?"

"Your usual?"

"Yes please."

"Alright."

The rest of your friend group tells you you seem to be happier these days. You joke that it's because you're ahead on your college apps. They don't pester you beyond that. You're glad they don't. You don't know what kind of madness your friend group would pull if they found out you were dating your best friend. They'd probably... you don't want to think about it.

"Hey," Jason hums, handing you your cup of coffee as you step out of the store, shift over.

"Hi," You hum, pressing the coffee to your lips. "Thank you."

Jason fishes out a Sharpie from his pocket next, handing it to you as you find a place to sit down, the smell of the pen filling the air as you scribble weird characters onto his back.

"What are you drawing?"

"The skrunkly." You mumble.

"The soots from Spirited Away?"

"Yes."

Jason waits for your to finish, handing you his phone to take a photo of your artwork. You click into his BeReal instead, taking a photo of his back and then of you, sharpie still in hand. You are picking violence today. Does this count as a hard launch? You don't know. All you know is that the baseball team is going to jump Jason for not telling them he has a girlfriend. You type out a caption, handing him his phone back as he stares at the drawings.

"You should apply as an art major."

"I don't have a portfolio." You deadpan. "Unless you count the shirt."

"Or the sketchbooks full of our classmates' faces."

"Or that." You close the sharpie, putting it in your pocket. "Where to?"

"I brought my car. You wanna go anywhere?"

"I wanna go... with you? To your home?" You pat his shoulder twice. "I'm kidding. Let's hit up the arcade."

"Sure." Jason hums. "Oh, did you get sharpie on my skin?"

"Want me to check?"

"Please."

You run your hand under his shirt, lifting it as you check for marks. You pause, admiring his back.

"You've got a lot of scars."

"You know what it's from."

"Your nighttime activities."

Jason can practically see you wriggling your brows at him.

"Yeah. Call it that."

"Can I be part of that?"

"Depends how you want to be part of it." Jason hums. "No marks?"

You let his shirt fall back down.

"None."

"Shall we go?"

"Let's." You hum, standing up with him, slipping your hand into his, the two of you head for the escalators.

Jason SUCKS at dance dance revolution.

You discover it after hitting the arcade, his weird skills in pulling out plushes from the crane machine and his eerily good aim at shooting games knocking the air out of you, but you find that no matter how fast he was on his feet as Red Hood, he sucks at dance games. Which brought you to this point.

Jason gawks at how high your score is.

You laugh, tickets spilling out from the machine, holding the bar as Jason stares at his score, offended a score that low could even exist.

"I kicked Dick's ass last time we played."

"Sure, totally believe you." You grin. "How many years ago was that? Four? Five?"

"I'm going to defenestrate you."

You snort. "I thought I told you I'm into that."

"From the top of Wayne Tower?"

"I'll call Dick for help." You hum. "He'll save me with that tight suit of his o—"

Jason slams a hand over your mouth, glaring at you.

"I'm kidding." You pull his hand away. "Why would I ask him for help when my boyfriend is right here? Oh, right. My boyfriend's the one defenestrating me. I should call Tim instead. He'd probably be in the building anyway."

"Sweetheart."

"Or maybe your dad. He'd probably be in the building too."

"Babe."

"Or I'll just fall to my death and force you to live with the guilt of—"

Jason grabs you by the face, glaring at you. "That's enough."

You jut out your lips, grinning. "Are we about to kiss?"

"Too fast." Jason sighs, letting go. "Are you happy with your plushies or do you want more?"

"How many more coins do you have?"

"Sixteen."

"Can I get three more?"

"Which ones do you want?"

You hold onto the bag of plushies as Jason wins you four more, the coins running out and a laugh spilling past his lips when you ask him for help. It was nice to not play at a rigged crane game, but Jason's ability to pull every single plush on the first try was baffling.

"Hey, how are we getting home? Didn't you take your bike?"

"I drove today." He deadpans. "Your memory game is still real strong, huh?"

You gasp, feigning shock. "I have GREAT memory."

"When's my birthday?"

You purse your lips. "Can you get my phone?"

"I'm hurt."

"August 16." You laugh. "I celebrate it with you every year. Did you actually think I didn't know?"

"You have terrible memory."

"I'm offended." You grumble. "We can split the children."

"Shared custody?"

"We're not... divorced?" You raise a brow at him. "Unless this is a breakup call—"

"Nope. Which ones do you want?"

"I want the franchised ones."

"So like, more than half of them."

"I'm kidding. I want the Nightwing one."

"Not the Red Hood one?"

"I didn't finish saying which other ones I wanted. I want all the Batman-themed ones." You mumble. "Especially the Red Hood one."

"Why the plush," Jason leans down, lips to your ear, blowing on it, "when I'm right here?"

"Are you saying you'll stay at my place forever?" You raise a brow at him, leaning back.

"I don't see why not."

"Absolutely not. My parents would have a heart attack if I brought a boy home." You grumble. "You've met them before."

"They've seen me. They've never met me." Jason shrugs. "Do they know you're on a date?"

"No." You hum. "I can tell them you dropped by and we were at the arcade."

"They're fine with us hanging out?"

"They just don't want me to date. Not when college app season is in swing, at least." You pause. "Where are you going?"

"Gotham, obviously."

"Ugh." You grumble. "Wish you'd leave the city with me."

"Can't."

"I know." You mumble. "You have to stay."

"And you have to go."

There's beauty in Gotham, you admit, but it's not the city you can see yourself living in the long term. Not even when your boyfriend would make sure you never die or get hurt. Not even if his entire family ran around keeping the city safe. You wouldn't be able to live in a city like this, even if you were used to the spontaneous kidnappings and death threats floating around the city. Even if you were used to the life in Gotham, you couldn't see yourself continuing down the road.

"What happens to us after high school?" You grimace.

"We'll figure it out." Jason hums. "Enjoy what we have for now."

The drive home is quiet, a silence that's comfortable for the two of you. It's a silence that rests in the air when the two of you are too tired to talk to each other, familiar to the two of you, a constant in your lives. You bring everything upstairs, falling asleep immediately, too tired to explain where the plushies came from and why you had been gone for so long.

Jason watches as you apply to the bigger schools, a thousand extracurriculars tucked behind your application, a hundred awards to cram into the five slots. You had more than he could imagine. He knew you had been an overachiever, but he hadn't known how hard you worked. It showed on your application, and it showed in December when you were accepted into your dream school with a full ride.

"You're leaving for good, then?" He rests his head on your shoulder, watching as you accept the offer.

"Yeah." You chew on the straw to your milk, puffing air into your cheeks.

"Will you miss me?"

"Babe, it's December." You remind.

"Yeah, but will you miss me?"

"I'll miss you more if you take me to Winter Formal."

"I already have a proposal in plan. Be patient." He grumbles, biting into his apple. "Are you going to ask me to Winter Formal?"

You smile. "Apple."

Jason sticks his tongue out, a piece of laminated paper on his tongue, glancing at the words.

"Yes. I'll go to Winter Formal with you. How'd you even get the paper in there?"

"Secret." You laugh. "I rolled it up and jammed it in there and then put edible paint on to cover the marks."

"Creative." He grins. "Love you."

The two of you stare at each other as you register Jason's words, and your lips part before closing again.

"You love me?" You crane your neck to look at him better.

"You don't?"

You laugh. "I love you too."

"Maybe I should apply there." He mumbles.

"You can't leave Gotham."

"It's not that I can't." He corrects. "it's just that I don't want to."

"Right, right." You nod. "But it's fine. Gotham needs you."

"Yeah." He mumbles. "That's not far, is it? I can still visit."

"Yeah." You hum. "No. It's four hours."

"Oops."

You laugh. "We'll figure something out."

Jason matches with you for Winter Formal, showing up with your favorite flowers, flowers matching the color of your dress and his corsage, your house empty for the night. Jason wonders some days why you never introduce him to your parents, but it's not his place to pry. He had terrible parents on his own. He doesn't even want to think about what could have happened had his birth mom gotten the chance to ruin his life like she wanted to. But it didn't matter, especially not when Winter Formal is crashed by a supervillain and he's forced to take action.

You laugh when he finishes, hand held out to help you from the ground. His siblings are scattered throughout, Dick and Bruce talking to Gordon, debriefing the whole situation. He lingers by you, checking your skin for any injuries of sort.

"Sorry Winter Formal got ruined." He mumbles through the helmet.

You pat his chest twice. "Can we get Batburgers?"

"With my helmet on?"

You roll your eyes. "Whatever you want."

"Yeah, we can," He hands you his car keys, swinging onto a nearby roof to change out of his clothes, mask off. You open the door for him as he slides in, the two of you one of the last to leave. "You aren't mad Winter Formal got ruined?"

"No. I like seeing you in action." You smile. "Besides, your brother—"

"We have got to do something about your addiction to Nightwing." He grumbles, driving off. "Drive through or walk in?"

"Drive through." You observe the helmet. "Does this have any defense mechanisms?"

"If you try to pry it off my head, it cuts your finger. The needle has poison on it too."

"Damn." You mumble. "Anything else?"

"It's got a bomb built in."

"WHAT." You blink at him. "You can self-destruct?!"

"Mhm." He hums. "Your regular order?"

"Can I get ice cream?"

"Yeah."

You pull the bobby pins from your hair as he orders, staring at yourself in the vanity mirror. There are a couple of bloodstains on your dress that definitely don't belong to you, and you spot the same stains on Jason's dress shirt, tie loosened and unbuttoned to relax a little. You wonder why they targeted your school's dance. They could have gotten more money if they held the nearby private school hostage. You shrug as Jason pulls up to the window to pay.

"Here." He hands you your order as he pulls into a nearby parking lot, his own order on his lap.

"Why'd you think they targeted our school?"

"Because of me," Jason bites into his burger. "Billionaire's son."

"The private school has more rich kids." You reach for a napkin.

"Yeah, but my father's a billionaire. Those kids are all millionaires. Their net worth isn't even worth mine."

"True, huh."

"Are you sure Winter Formal wasn't ruined?"

"No. I got to see your tits bounce while you fought."

"Deadass?"

"No. Your chestplate kept it in tact." You chuckle. "I'd like to see you shirtless sometime."

"Why not now?"

"I am not fucking you in an empty parking lot at 2am."

"Really?"

"I am not letting that be my first time."

"Alright, fair enough." He mumbles. "Where should our first time be?"

"Forgot you're a virgin despite the body." You lick your fingers clean of the sauce. "Don't ask me."

"You wanna fuck in Bruce's room?"

"NO."

"Not a hotel."

"Definitely not a hotel."

"In the Batcave?"

"Jason, I love you, but we are NOT fucking somewhere where your dad can catch us on the cameras."

"Your house."

"No."

"Then where?" He picks up his soda, blinking. "College dorm."

"I'll let you fuck me at the hotel I'll be at before moving in for college." You shove the spoonful of ice cream into your mouth.

"Bet." He grins. "I'm holding you to that."

Jason's ability to drive in Gotham surprises you some days. The two of you have been to every corner of the city, even to the places the two of you are definitely not allowed to visit. The abandoned factories, the galas that you never receive invitations to, everything from head to toe had been visited before. But every place is an adventure, even when the two of you are laying in the grass of Gotham's empty parks, naming the shapes in the sky, bloody red mixed with a sickly green. You find that it reminds you of Jason's eyes, pretty grass-colored irises reminding you of flower fields.

"What shape is that?"

"I don't know," You mumble, staring at his face. "I'm not looking anymore."

"What are you looking at?" He raises a brow at you.

"Your eyes." You blink at him, a stupid smile on your face. Jason looks at you with the same smile on his face. The smile of two idiots in love.

"Yeah? What about them?"

"They're pretty." Your fingers press to his chest for support as you lean in closer, staring right into them. "They look like the fields in the Alps. Like a cottage in the fields I wished I lived in, like the comfort of the morning dew that helps ground me."

"You like my eyes that much?"

"I like everything about you." You mumble.

"Can I kiss you?" His voice is barely above a whisper.

"Always."

Jason kisses you with fervor — passion you forget he has sometimes. He kisses you like you're the last person in the world, making your lashes flutter and head spin from the taste of his lips, your nails digging into his biceps, moan slipping past your lips as his fingers dig into your waist to pull you to sit up. You pull away with a hard inhale, Jason chasing after your lips immediately, hands flying to your face, tongue pressed to yours, barely breathing himself. You wonder if his lungpower came with the vigilante business. You certainly can't keep up, pushing him away at some point, panting.

"One more."

"No." You grumble. "Can't breathe. Head spin. I'm going to die."

"Most that'll happen is you'll pass out." He grins.

"No more." You point at him, eyes hard. "I'm not passing out at a park... or getting arrested for public indecency."

Jason laughs, pulling you close, resting his head on your shoulder, arms wrapped around your waist snuggly. You frown, running your hands through his hair, closing your eyes to see if you can listen to his heartbeat with how close his chest was pressed to yours. You hum gently, letting the vibrations rumble between the two of you, the sun peeking past the clouds in Gotham for once. You wonder how many more times you would get to do this.

"Jason?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm going to miss you." You mumble into his skin. "A lot."

"I'll drive up to you every weekend."

"That's four hours and a shit ton of tolled routes." You mumble.

"Daddy's got money to spare."

You laugh, leaning further into Jason's body, smile making way onto your face again. "Yeah? How about you fly over?"

"Wow, babe, I thought you cared about my carbon footprint."

"Then go by boat." You hum.

"Not a bad idea. You want a rich boyfriend who knows how to sail?"

"And get to brag to all those rich kids who can't date for shit about it? Yeah." You hum. "Plus, you'd look so hot sailing while shirtless in nothing but swim trunks."

"You think about me shirtless more than I can imagine." He rubs soothing circles on your waist. "What else do you think about?"

"Think about your tits."

"Pecs, baby."

"Think about biting them."

"In a—"

"In a completely normal way. Just. The urge to bite and squish?"

"In the neurodivergent way?"

"Yeah." You hum. "But I also think about you at night."

"Oh?"

"Worry about you. Who's going to patch you up when I'm gone?"

"Alfred."

"Yeah, but," You swallow. "I won't know if you're alive or awake the next day."

"I can text you."

"I should just take you with me." You sigh. "Pack you in my suitcase."

"You want me to go to college with you?"

"Yeah." You mumble blissfully. "In my perfect world."

Jason opens his mouth before you cut him off by pulling away from him.

"Jay," You mumble. "Do you think we're going to break up?"

"Do you?"

"I hope not." You mumble. "I wouldn't dare to."

"I don't think we're going to break up." He hums. "Not with the way I'm in love with you, at least."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." He whispers back to you, pressing his forehead to yours, noses brushing. "Not at all."

"That's all I need to hear." You grin.

Jason takes you to prom, as all high schoolers do, arm around your waist as you press the lemon water to your lips. There's no punch out of a fear that people are going to drug it, even when everyone is searched. You wonder if you want to go to the afterparty as you dump the rest of the drink. It's nasty. You wish there was soda. At least you could work a mocktail with a Sprite and the fruit on the table. The prom location is awful too despite the pretty paintings. It smells like a high school boys' locker room.

"There's karaoke in the back," He mumbles into your skin, pressing a kiss to your neck. That too. Jason's been getting more and more frisky. He should really have some sense of shame. "Without too many people."

"There's karaoke?" You ignore the way he squeezes your waist.

"Far back. Behind all the paintings."

"Oh, fuck yes." You mumble, making a beeline for the back, bolting to the first seat by karaoke you find. Jason texts you the list of songs available and asks you if you want to sing a duet. He watches you laugh at his text and send him a song, reminding him to ask when the two of you were going. He stands behind you, hands running up and down your neck, fingers digging into your back.

"You giving me a massage?" You rest your hand on his as he pauses.

"How are your feet doing?"

"Much better now that I'm sitting down." You mumble.

"Need to swap shoes with me?"

"I'll be fine." You hum. "You ready to sing?"

"Two losers who never speak up in class singing? You bet." He laughs.

You toss your friend your phone to record the two of you.

Jason may suck at DDR, but he's a great singer. His voice rings through the room, and you're sure more than one of the students in the room has fallen for him just based on his voice, but you're having fun singing a duet with him. It's always nice to be reminded that Jason sounds like an angel despite the build. You'd have him sing with you when he drives you up for college, you think. Yet, you yell the lyrics to the Taylor Swift song with him anyway, screaming the high note and bursting into laughter afterward. Jason continues singing, holding his hand out for you to get up.

It's the highlight of your high school life, you think. The highlight isn't when you got into your dream college, the highlight is Jason Todd serenading you at prom to a Taylor Swift song. You continue singing along with him, ignoring the way your heels hurt like a bitch. Maybe you'd have him drive you to get another Batburger. Even better, you'd have him grapple you to get Batburgers. That would make the night better, you think. You'd love to fly with him.

Jason finishes, mocking a bow to the crowd, the students cheering at him.

He pulls on your hand to have you bow too. You oblige.

The two of you leave prom early. Jason pulls you away from the karaoke room immediately when you finish, the two of you bolting for his car. Your heels click against the cement of the parking lot, digging into your feet, and you spin, your phone in Jason's hand as he takes photos of you. You hope he's good. Maybe he's one of those boyfriends who manage to catch photos of you at your worse. Oh well. The idea of it makes you laugh, the high from too many students ringing in your head, the deindividuation getting to you. You smile at Jason loopily, and your camera clicks in his hand, the moment immortalized.

"For your information," Jason catches you by the waist, showing you the photo of yourself. "You look gorgeous."

"Should've had Tim take photos of us before we left." You mumble. "Can you carry me back to the car?"

"My pleasure." Jason sits you on the sidewalk, helping you out of your heels. He throws you over his shoulder, resting his hand on your ass as he takes your heels in the other hand. "This good?"

"I feel like a sack of potatoes." You laugh. "But this is fine."

"Wanna go anywhere after this?"

"Can we grapple to get Batburgers?"

"You want to grapple?" You can feel Jason raise his brow.

"Yeah." You mumble. "Can we?"

"You good with flying? Your dress is too slippery, babe." He pats your ass.

"Oh, come on."

"Silk is too slippery." He hums. "We can do it another day."

You grumble. "Can we still get Batburgers?"

"With ice cream?"

"Yes, please." You mumble as Jason opens the door to your side, settling you into the seat and putting your heels next to your feet.

"I have a change of shoes in the back of the car because Dick told me that heels make your feet hurt after a while." He kisses the corner of your eye. "I also have a change of clothes if you don't want to ruin your dress."

"Jay, I'm going to marry you," You moan in bliss. "I'll pop the ring."

Jason laughs. "I can pop the ring."

"Yeah?" You turn your head to look at him, loopy smile on your face.

"Absolutely." He laughs.

The two of you sit in the parking lot again, Jason's shirt pulled over your dress to avoid ruining the silk, biting into the burger.

"This is bliss."

"Babe." Jason hums. "Why'd you ask me out again? Not the reason you told me. I think you asked me out for another reason."

You blink at him, swallowing the bite in your mouth. "I asked you out because I actually had a pathetic crush on you."

"Deadass?"

"Yeah. I fell for you as soon as you showed up looking like my type last Halloween. I didn't know if you did it on purpose, but holy shit I had to use every last ounce of self control to stop myself from just pulling you by the collar and making out with you in the middle of the hallway. Jay, you're hot as fuck." You muffle a laugh. "Wanted you so bad that day."

"Not anymore?" He raises a brow at you.

"Still do." You bite back into the burger. Jason watches as you chew and swallow. "If anything, even more now."

"Why haven't you told me?"

"Every time you've made out with me," You sigh. "We've been in public."

"What's a little public indecency? That's definitely not the most illegal thing I've done." He taps your thigh, squeezing it.

"It would be the most illegal thing I'll do." You grumble. "Nothing illegal before college, please."

"Anything for you." He reaches for the ice cream. "Can I have a bite?"

"Finish the whole thing if you'd like." You finish the burger, reaching for a napkin. "Got a little greedy tonight."

Jason laughs.

"Right." You make sure your fingers are clean, pulling the shirt over your head. "Chose this dress because it's crazy easy to take off."

Jason raises a brow as you reach for the ribbon on your back, pulling as the whole dress comes loose on your body.

"Isn't public nudity also a crime?"

"Sure," You reach for the shirt again, pulling it over your head. "Hope you liked looking at my tits."

"Would rather be sucking on them."

"Wow, Freud would have a field day with you." You mumble. "Maybe when we're not both dying."

"Do you have a curfew?"

"Told my parents I'm going to the afterparty." You shrug. "Clearly not."

"What time are you supposed to be back?" He runs his hand up your thigh again.

"We are NOT fucking in a parking lot."

"Never said we had to." He grins. "B's got a billion safehouses around the city."

"You're going to fuck me in a safehouse?"

"And? There's no cameras there."

"You're doing all the work." You grumble.

"Wouldn't dream of having you do anything your first time."

Your back slams into the seat as he races off to a safehouse.

Jason makes quick with what you're wearing, tugging his shirt over your head, lips pressed to your skin, biting and sucking where you would let him, desperate to taste every single inch of you. You whimper multiple times, and at some point, you stop him, fingers pressed to his chest, lashes fluttering as you struggle to stay awake, apology spinning in the air as your back met the mattress again, mumbling about your exhaustion. Jason leaves you alone after it, pressing a kiss to your shoulder, pulling your makeup remover from your purse, wiping the makeup from your skin as you rest in his arms. It was domestic. He liked it.

The two of you fall asleep like that — half naked, too tired to shower off the nightmare called prom.

Jason doesn't like visiting your place while in gear. He's usually bloody with someone else's blood by the end of patrol, and he'd rather bleed out in the Batcave than your room, but he doesn't have much of a choice this time, gash too big. He calls for backup with a press of the button, letting himself rest on your balcony for a moment.

"Jesus fucking christ," You throw your window open, first aid kit in your hand. "Do I need to get used to this?"

"Nope."

"You're fucking lucky I chose sportsmed as my pathway in high school, you nerd." You grumble, sterilizing the needle and disinfecting his wound. "You need stitches."

"Yeah?"

"Shut up and take it." You shove a cloth into his mouth. "That's clean. Bite if it hurts."

"I've taken worse befo— oW!" He bites into the cloth as you start stitching him up. Your fingers are fast, and in a couple of minutes, his wound is stitched up. You wrap the gauze and bandage around his waist, securing it. Jason notices you're frowning the whole time.

"Not the first time, huh?"

"I hope it's the last." You grumble. "Did you call for backup?"

"Night's coming."

You sigh, leaning back against the railing on your side. "What happened?"

"Some guy with a sharp ass knife."

You raise a brow at him.

"It was a henchman. Six to one."

"Fucking hell." You grimace. "You're not gonna die one of these days, right?"

"I've dodged death once. I can do it again."

"Don't say shit like that." You grumble.

"Little wing! Oh, hey," Nightwing smiles at you, and you nod.

"I stitched him up. Have Al check him at home too, please. He's got more experience than me."

"We will. Thanks for patching him up."

"I hope it's the last time." You grumble. "Are you going tomorrow?"

"Might stay home. Send me the notes?" You don't need to see Jason's face to see him wince.

"Sure."

You've visited the Wayne manor more than enough times to know how to get to Jason's room, showing Alfred the notes from school, a grin on your face. You apologize for intruding, only for Alfred to tell you you're welcome whenever. You wonder if his family knows the two of you are dating. You have a feeling Tim caught his BeReal from when the two of you first started going out. Oh, well. It wasn't as if you needed to hide it from his family. Your parents were the harder ones.

"Hey," You wave at Jason. "Brought your notes and homework."

"Thanks. Anything from Lit?"

"Nope. Still the end of year project. You gonna be there for AP testing?"

"Yeah." He mumbles. "You gonna sleep while testing again?"

"Yeah." You deadpan. "Hundred percent."

"C'mere," He grabs you by the waist, sitting you on his lap as he continues on his laptop.

"Whatcha up to?"

"Hacking the CIA's firewalls." He mumbles, fingers clicking on the keyboard.

"That's a Tim answer." You raise your brow. "Why are you doing it?"

"Wanted to see if I got rusty."

You watch as he does, blinking in surprise when he manages to get into the files, scrolling through the files.

"Are you deleting your file in the CIA database?"

"I do it to fuck with em." He smiles. "Wanna read my file?"

"Fuck, yeah." You mumble, scrolling through all the information they had on him. "They never got your blood sample?"

"Never. The goons who get my blood don't have the equipment for DNA matching, and they would definitely not work with the CIA."

"You're on a watchlist, then?"

"I run crime in Gotham."

"An antihero." You point at the line in the file. "You minimize crime by controlling it from within."

"It's good to have a leg in everything."

"That's a lot of legs." You count on your hand. "Way more than two."

"You know what I mean."

You grin. "Yeah. I do."

"Wanna go anywhere before grad?"

"Wanna drive to New York?"

"And blow daddy's money?"

"Your daddy's money," You tap his chest playfully.

"He won't even notice." He smiles. "Motor or car?"

"Car."

"Bet."

AP testing could be a lot better. You sleep through half of it, finishing your multiple choice and essay questions too fast, exhaustion all over your face when you finish, calling your friend your savior as she hands you your coffee order. You could leave early if you really wanted to, but you don't, for some weird reason, and you stick by the rest of your classes, physically exhausted from all of the APs. Your coffee does little to minimize the psychic damage you received while taking the exam.

Even when Jason takes you to get dinner together, you're half picking through your food, half actually eating.

"Tired?"

"I can't wait to graduate." You mumble. "At least we don't need to be here during finals week."

"You gonna travel?"

"Wanna fly to Bruce's place in Hawaii?"

"Too cliche," Jason mumbles. "How about his mansion in the Alps?"

You gasp. "Deadass?"

"I can ask. I doubt he'd say no." Jason reaches for a fry on your plate, his empty.

"Want the rest of them?"

"Not hungry?"

"Not really." You reach for the second half of the sandwich. "Burnt out, more."

"Wanna take two weeks of independent study to run for the Alps?" Jason blurts.

You blink at him incredulously. "My parents would kill me."

"Not if I have Bruce lie and say it's for a camp."

You tilt your head at him. "My dad hates your dad."

"He does?"

"Daddy issues. Inferiority complex." You chew on the sandwich. "Doesn't matter. Send me a ticket. I'll lie and say it was for a class project to try and figure out the probability of lotteries and by some weird stroke of luck I got it."

"Gotcha."

The lie works, and the two of you take two weeks of independent study for the Alps, something only three people know the real reason for. It's really only Jason's family. The two of you both have stellar grades — it doesn't matter if you take a break. You wander into the Wayne mansion, surprised at everything you see. It's kept in crazy good condition despite the lack of servants.

"You guys got a maid here or something?" You mumble at the lack of dust.

"Bruce had it cleaned a couple days ago because I said we'd be coming."

"Can we wear cute clothes and head to the farmer's market?"

"Of course."

You pause. "Are we still going to New York?"

"Do you not want to anymore?"

"No." You hum. "I'm down. I just figured since we're in the Alps..."

"We're still going unless you cancel."

"Not canceling." You cross your arms. "Definitely not cancelling."

You find out just how much money Jason gets in a month's allowance on the trip. You're not allowed to pay for anything, jaw dropping at the black card that you didn't know a teen could even own, and the sheer amount of cash that Jason had was just baffling. You felt bad at first, only for Jason to pull up his bank records and show you just how much money was in his account. You wish you were born as a billionaire's son. Maybe you should've stolen car tires to get adopted by Bruce Wayne — the thought makes you laugh.

"You feel better?"

"If dating you means self care trips, I'm going to get down on a knee and propose. If we break up, I'll haunt you to your death." You yawn, grabbing another handful of blueberries. "Kill myself, even."

"That's a little extreme. I have no plans to break up with you." Jason pushes his shades up, turning to look at you.

"How's Gotham? Aren't you supposed to be there to control crime n shit?"

"Burner phone." He waves the old device in his hand. "Henchmen."

"Loyal?"

"Enough." Jason hums. "Wanna go to the fields later?"

"Yeah. Let's bike." You grin.

The fields of grass remind you of Jason's eyes, a green that you only got to see during spring and the rare moments of peace in Gotham. Dare you say it, it reminds you of Ivy's plants sometimes. Or the look of that one time toxins spilled into the river. The green of his eyes is vibrant in all the best and worst ways, but it's still dazzling to you. Laying in the grass makes you remember your date in the park. This time, the fields are pretty much empty.

"Wanna pick up from the park?" Jason rests on his side, fingers tapping your chest.

"I thought I told you I'm not doing anything indecent in public."

"Making out is hardly indecent."

"Your teenage hormones and the way you've been staring at my tits in this dress? Indecent." You yawn, turning to face him. "Does Bruce have cameras in the mansion?"

"Not in the master bath."

"Deal."

"Don't fall asleep this time."

"Oi," You punch him lightly. "Rude. That was after prom. I was tired."

"Just saying."

You punch him again in retaliation.

Jason wastes no time in having you, fingers pressed to your skin again, harder this time, nipping and biting at your skin, ignoring the way you try to tell him not to leave visible marks. You could live with a couple hickeys for two weeks. He nips at your neck, sliding the sundress down your shoulders, tugging at the string hiding your tits from him, lips pressing to you again as your fingers thread through his hair.

Jason didn't think it would be possible to love someone to this extent. He watches as you breathe in his arms, head pressed to his chest, bare skin pressed onto his, chests meeting. His fingers brush your cheek, heart warm and alive, lashes fluttering as he continues staring, hickeys formed on your skin, something you'd probably smack him for later. But he's sure you enjoyed it. He made sure that you did. He holds his breath as you shift in his arms.

"G'mornin." You mumble.

"Mornin'." He smiles.

"'m sore." You grumble. "Bitch." You punch him weakly.

"Was it good, though?" Jason laughs at your frown.

"Yeah." You sigh. "I'll go make breakfast."

"I'll do it."

"You're going to burn the kitchen down. No." You grumble. "Carry me around... I'll cook?"

Jason lifts you in a chair as you tell him to move you around, laughing when he starts ignoring you on purpose, smile on his face when you call for him. He complies after the third time, helping you plate the food and adjusting your seat height so you were comfortable.

"You should cook for me forever."

"I think you should move into my college dorm with me." You deadpan. "Just join me there. Bruce can donate a building or something."

"That's illegal."

"And you're a white man. Pick a privilege."

"Should I go blonde for the full white man privilege?" Jason taps his chin. "Would I look good blonde?"

"You'd give your family a heart attack, that's for sure." You mumble. "We should photoshop you to make you blonde."

"Are you into blondes?"

"I'm into you." You smile, the two of you going quiet before a laugh breaks past your lips. "I've been waiting to use that."

"I can tell." Jason hums, lips pulled into a smile.

"If you go blonde..." You pause. "No. Don't go blonde. Blonde gym rats scare me."

"Excuse you, I am not a gym rat."

"You'll stick out like a sore thumb during patrol." You grimace. "It's all black and then your hair is glowing in the dark like you're a flashlight."

"That's just insulting." Jason covers his mouth. "I wear a helmet, babe."

"It's the truth."

"Bruce would have a heart attack." Jason hums. "Sounds tempting."

"We can bleach your hair while here." You offer. "Your whole head."

"And ruin my perfect hair? No thanks."

"Says the loser with white hair."

"Now that's insulting." He taps your nose, frowning. "You and I both know why I have white hair."

"Cuz you almost died?"

"Yeah."

The two of you settle with Photoshop instead, cutting and pasting some random guy's blonde hair on top of Jason's, making him bald in the process. You take a photo to send to Dick and Tim, putting blue eyes on top of Jason's too, turning him into the textbook white man. You fall over in with the chair from how hard you laugh, Jason left to deal with the result of you sending the family his white man portrait. Dick sends a portrait to get edited too, and you go through the whole family, giving them blonde hair and blue eyes. You send the family photo into the groupchat, changing all of their contact photos to the edited version of them in the process. Jason finds it pointless, but from how hard you're laughing, he lets it pass.

"So? Do I look good blonde?"

"You look good no matter what you look like." You hum, leaning into his chest as you delete any evidence of the images on the desktop. "But really, you should join me for college."

"Too much work."

"You're a valedictorian."

"So are you."

You sigh. "I'm going to be all aloneeeeee."

"I'll call you every day."

"You can't promise that."

"We can call while I'm on patrol."

"Babe, I'll be asleep by then."

"With your sleep schedule?"

You go quiet.

"That's what I thought."

"We should send each other photos every day."

"One of those cheesy phone apps?"

"Yeah." You grin. "Or make video diaries."

"I'm not making a video diary."

"I'll make you video diaries to show you what I do in a day." You grin.

"Will I get to see your tits?"

"When I change, sure."

The two of you fly back at the end of the week, the hickeys from Jason all faded and the scratches from you all healed. It was like it never happened — save for the teeth mark you left on Jason's chest before leaving. You just wanted a bite, nothing more.

Both you and Jason turn in all your work when you return, grades still intact, end of the school year at your fingertips, buying tickets for grad. Jason has to buy more tickets from the students because of how big his family is. You joke that Bruce is going to end up with 14 grandchildren. The way Jason grimaces makes you think that it isn't exactly impossible. You don't want to find out.

You help Jason pin his grad cap into his hair so he doesn't look bald.

"Where was this idea when I graduated?" Dick clicks his tongue as you pin Jason's hair down.

"Probably with the girls," You have Jason shake his head to check if the cap was secure. It is. "I saw your grad photos. It's the classic image everyone gets."

"You gonna pin my cap in for my grad too?" Tim hums.

"Don't you have a girlfriend?"

"No?" He raises a brow.

"Huh. Thought you did." You shrug. "I'll do it if you don't have any friends who figure it out."

The two of you head out, waving bye to the Wayns as Jason sits in his car.

"We're meeting in the gym, right?"

"Yeah. No bags." Jason hums.

"I'll just clip all of these," You clip them onto your gown.

Graduation is a blur as you take photos with your friends and with Jason, fireworks going off in the back, lips pressed to his in the darkness, pulling away when the two of you break into your own respective friend groups, photos taken with each other. You wonder if you should just introduce Jason to your parents officially at grad. You find that you don't have much of a choice when you spot Dick with your parents. You have no idea how he did it.

"Little wing!"

Jason groans at the nickname. "Hey, Dick."

"You're done!" Dick puts Jason into a headlock, and you take the flowers from your parents.

"Congrats." They smile at you.

You smile back. "Thank you. Ah, uh, this is Jason."

"We've met." Your mom smiles at Jason and he stands up, sighing.

"Dick, don't be rude."

"No, like," You pause, grimacing. Jason takes your hand, rubbing soothing circles, speaking up instead.

"We're dating."

"Oh." Your mom blinks, eyes wide.

"How long?" Your dad cuts in.

Jason looks at you as you swallow, squeezing his hand. "Since the first day of senior year."

Your dad is about to speak up when Dick spots Bruce and the rest of his siblings, waving for them at the spot. Your mom squeezes your arm, almost as if to tell you that you would talk later about it. Jason pulls you off to meet the rest of his family, Cass placing a lei around your neck, congratulating you for graduating. You smile at her thanking Bruce as he hands you a card. You don't want to think about what's inside of it. You slip that into the gift bag Tim hands you, thanking his family for the gifts, only to get pulled to the side by your other friends' families, more photos taken and leis thrown around your neck. You catch Jason end up pulled to the side by his friends, and you somehow end up in the mix.

By the end of the night, you're thoroughly spent, slouching in the back of your parents' car, exhaustion all over your face.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Your mother's voice is quiet.

"Didn't think you'd approve."

"Then why date him?" Your dad speaks up this time, voice hard. "If you knew we didn't want you dating that Wayne kid, why did you—"

"Cuz I like him." You sigh. "Love him a lot. Love him like the two of you love each other."

"You can't guarantee that. You're only in high school." Your mother reasons. "I'm sure there are—"

"Don't want another." You mumble, curling into the gift bag Tim handed you. "I know he's the one."

The car stops at the red light, and you glance to look at your dad's expression.

"Since when?"

"I told you, start of the school year—"

"No. When did you decide it was alright to keep secrets?" He raises his voice, and you wince.

"Honey, she's young, she'll—"

You blink, exhaustion in your body making it impossible for you to argue back with him, the arguing would have been futile anyway. You wonder if Jason is enjoying his graduation party. Maybe he's getting the night off from patrol since it was graduation. Maybe you'll text him later when you get home. You probably won't. You're too tired for it. Your dad's yelling is tuned out automatically, your body on autopilot when you bring everything to your room and drop it to the ground. You really hope Tim didn't bring you something that would break easily. You'll look tomorrow.

The knock at your window after you shower makes you pause.

"What are you doing here?"

"Wanna go grapple?" Jason smiles.

"My hair is wet. I don't wanna catch a cold."

"Put it in the helmet. It's waterproof." He pops it off his head, locking it around your neck. You glance at his domino mask.

"Do I need shoes?"

"I'll carry you the whole time." He hums. "Lock your door."

"Already did." You adjust the helmet on your head, wrapping your arms around his neck as he warps an arm around your waist. You hear the sound of the hook launch, and you stare through his helmet as he swings you into the air, the city of Gotham beneath you, warm wind of summer blowing against you, the cityscape rendering you breathless. The sound of screams and cars cancel each other out as Jason lands on a roof, adjusting his hold on you so you'd be more comfortable.

"So?" He raises a brow at you.

"It's gorgeous." You grin, turning to look at him. "Do you see this every night?"

"Only when I grapple. Usually I don't get to see because I'm grappling to catch a criminal."

"I love it." You hum.

"Want a batburger?"

"Fuck yeah."

The two of you swing down to the place as Jason puts you down in a booth to order. You fold your legs up, grinning at Jason as he hands you an ice cream.

"How'd you know I didn't want a burger?" You raise a brow.

"Too late for burgers." He hums. "You said you only liked ice cream after two."

"Thank you." You beam, watching Jason stare at you. "Something happen?"

"Your dad looked like he was going to hit you." Jason mumbles. "Did he hit you later?"

"No. He just got mad I kept it from him..." You pause. "And that I'm dating you. They think you're going to break up with me."

"Hope they have fun at the wedding, then." Jason hums. "You're alright?"

"I tuned them out on the car ride home." You smile.

"Alright. Dick was worried too. He said your dad looked like he was going to burst a blood vessel when I pulled you to my family." Jason hums. "Should I have dinner with them sometime?"

"No. They aren't going with me to move for college, so it doesn't matter." You mumble.

"You need help packing? I can send Cass."

"It's fine." You tap his hand. "I promise."

"Are you cutting ties with them?"

Your breath catches in your throat. "I... don't know."

"If you do, Bruce says he'd be more than willing to fund your education." Jason whispers.

"Woah, I'm already part of your family?" You gasp.

"Yeah." He nods. "So if you cut ties with your family, you have mine."

"I'll be fine." You mumble, staring at his hand. "I promise."

Your parents don't catch you. As mad as they could get, they didn't really care about what you did in your free time. Not even when you snuck out. You don't know why they're so mad about the whole dating situation, but given Bruce and Dick's public images, you aren't surprised they'd think Jason would do the same — even given the fact that you had been friends with him since you started high school.

When you get ready for work the next day, you barely notice the way your parents are sitting on the couch like you owe them a conversation.

"Young lady, where are you going?"

"Work." You turn to look at them.

"Or on a date?"

"This is what I wear to work." You repeat yourself.

Your dad raises a brow at you but doesn't speak further when you leave.

You're really contemplating running away from home. You don't have an actual reason to, so you stay home for the most part, ignoring the knocks on your door and hopping out your window when you wanted to go somewhere. Jason resorts to calling you when he isn't jumping in your window to talk with you for a bit. You can do with the distance, but it isn't ideal. The exhaustion from your lack of mobility is catching up to you.

"What do you think could change their minds?"

You frown, finishing first in Mario Kart. "Nothing."

"Not even a dinner?"

You frown. "They don't like the rich."

"They know I'm adopted, right?"

"They won't like that you're an orphan either."

"They're picky."

"Really picky." You grumble. "Last time I brought a boy home, they scared him off."

"They won't be able to scare me off, you know?"

"Yeah." You pause. "Maybe you should eat with them sometime."

"Dinner?"

You frown. "They're hosting a barbecue next week. I'll invite you."

"You're going to force me into the guest list?"

"It's better with more people." You mumble. "The fact that you were wearing a valedictorian gown might also help."

"When is it?"

"Next Saturday at 5pm." You mumble. "You know how to barbecue?"

"Would it surprise you if I say yes?"

"Yeah." You hum. "You know any of my friends' families?"

"Two. Good terms too."

"Alright. Don't be late."

"Should I bring meat?"

You seriously contemplate asking him if he wants to bring Wagyu, but you decide against it. "Bring beer."

"Ey, we can't drink yet."

"I'll rush to help you. My dad's probably going to get me to buy beer anyway."

"The expensive kind?"

"I'll send you a couple of brands." You pause. "Invite Dick too."

"To charm your mom?"

"Yeah." You grin. "To charm my mom and her friends."

You know your parents better than Jason realizes. When you help him bring the beer into your house, your father's expression softens, asking Jason if he wanted a bottle. Jason turns it down, mentioning that he still has to drive home later, also that he wasn't technically at the legal drinking age — not that it stopped people. You let out a breath you were holding when your dad pats him on the back and walked off to talk to the other people.

"So?"

"Went well." You mumble. "How good are you at barbecuing?"

"I'm on barbecue duty when we do it at our place."

"You're practically a barbecue dad." You gasp. "Woah."

"Yeah?"

"You have the build too. You're only missing a hawaiian shirt now." You pat his back. "You can go figure out how to help at the grill, I have to go check on my mom."

"Hope Dick hasn't stolen her from your dad."

"I sure hope not." You wince.

It ends well, the barbecue. You don't get yelled at for inviting Jason, and your mother tells you all about how Dick was such a charmer, a real ladies' guy. Your dad doesn't mention it, but from the way he kept eating, you can guess he liked Jason's grill skills. You should text him about it. Maybe you'd go for their summer barbecues sometime. You don't know.

Your dad pulls you to the side the next day.

"I'm sorry for lashing out." He pauses. "I was. It's stressful, knowing you're dating the second son of a family of players."

"I get it." You swallow. Not really. Your goal is just to make sure he likes Jason now.

"He's... he's good for you." Your dad smiles at you weakly.

You wonder if he's only saying this because Jason wouldn't leave your side earlier. Or maybe it was because your mother had told him that Jason looks at you like you're his whole world. You don't know why. But you suppose his acceptance is enough. At least you're allowed outside of the house now. You tighten the straps of your swimwear around your neck before leaving the house.

"He was good with you leaving?" Jason hands you a helmet for the bike.

"Yeah. Trusts you." You mumble. "Think Dick did a lot of work. Did you thank him?"

"Yeah." Jason hums. "Hope you're not tired of barbecue."

"Am I going to yours for it?"

"You can taste Alfred's cooking, and you can get a little more of mine." He hums. "Arms around the waist, babe."

"I'm excited." You mumble, lips quirking up as you wrap your arms around his waist. "Ooh, rock hard."

"I'm going to leave you here."

"You wouldn't dare."

"Love you too much for it."

The Wayne Manor is a mansion. Well, that much has been established, you suppose. You are, however, surprised to see a giant ass backyard with a huge ass pool. You've never been to the backyard, now that you think of it. Jason's never taken you.

"Did you bring swimwear?"

"Under the clothes," You pull your shirt over your head, ditching the shorts. "Tadaa!"

Jason laughs. "Put the shirt back on. Your tits are for me to see only, babe."

You frown. "Why not your shirt?"

Jason pulls his shirt over his head, throwing it at you. "That good enough?"

"Sure." You pull your arms through, placing your stuff to the side, jumping into the water to join his siblings.

You like the manor. Despite the constant bickering, the place felt warm, and that wasn't something you got often. The house is warm. It's warm as the Gotham sun burns into your back when you sit in the water by the ledge, head resting in your arms, it's warm when the charcoal in the grill burns, and it's warm when Cass pulls you out of the water to dry off before dinner. You could smell the food from where you were in the pool — you might just move here for the food.

Jason fills your plate for you, grabbing a little bit of everything, cutting your steak for you in advance as his family watches in awe.

"Little wing is capable of this?!"

"Steph, you owe me twenty."

"Bruce, you owe me 20k." Cass pokes at their dad as he stares at Jason.

"They bet on you?"

"Heard I got a girlfriend a while ago, and suddenly they started fighting each other over what kind of a boyfriend I would be." He switches plates with you, shrimp peeled and steak cut. "Oyster's clean, by the way."

"I'm gonna marry you."

"We've established this, I know."

You shrug, stabbing the shrimp. "Just reminding you."

"Don't beat me to the proposal, by the way." He points his knife at you.

"Master Jason." Alfred clears his throat, and Jason puts his knife down.

"Sorry, Alfred."

You hold a shrimp to his lips. "C'mon. As a thank you."

"Oh, at least you care." He bites down, chewing. "Don't beat me."

"I hope you get me a red diamond just to empty your pockets." You mumble.

"You want a ring with a gem worth a million dollars?"

"Yeah." You grin, holding a piece of steak to his lips. "You don't wanna give it to me?"

"I'll steal it."

"Oh, how romantic." You quiet down as you start eating the steak.

"You really want a red diamond?"

You glance at him, lips pulled into the fakest smile you can manage. "Yeah."

"Want it before you leave?" Jason raises a brow, the skin on his own shrimp finally peeled.

"You telling me you're gonna propose to me right out of high school? That's a recipe for disaster."

"Babe, we've been a disaster." He hums. "From you not telling your parents to me sneaking you to Switzerland to skip school, we have not been normal at all."

"Don't forget about New York."

"When is that again?"

You pretend to be offended. "I'm breaking up with you."

"I don't know what just happened, but I'm on her side." Dick cuts in.

"Me too."

"Me three."

"Guys." Jason groans.

"It's fine. We never set a date. How about in two weeks?" You hum.

"Yeah." He mumbles. "Wanna leave in the morning?"

"Sure. There's less cars then, huh?"

"We can stay at Bruce's penthouse."

"Does he have a house everywhere? New trivia game, where does Bruce Wayne NOT have a house?" You mumble.

"I don't have a place in Finland." Bruce calls from the end of the table.

You hold a hand over your mouth. "You got a place in Dubai?"

"A whole building."

"Woah..." You mumble. "How 'bout China?"

"Got a penthouse."

You blink in surprise. "Singapore?"

"Own a mansion there."

"You're not even a crazy rich asian." You mumble. "That should be a trivia game."

"For family game night?" Jason raises a brow at you, plate now empty.

"Yeah." You switch plates with him. "Which place does Bruce Wayne not own property."

"You're full?"

"Mhm." You nod. "You can have the rest."

"You sure?"

"Yeah." You mumble.

Jason's driving does not scare you. You feel like it should, considering he drives pretty rough, but it does not scare you. If anything, you're worried about getting ticketed. Well, not like he was driving past the speed limit. At least you have the aux.

"How'd you convince your parents to let you go?"

"Told em it was a girls' trip." You yawn. "Lied straight through my teeth."

"You're awful."

"You're the influence."

"Makes both of us awful I guess." Jason hums. "We're staying at a hotel instead of Bruce's."

"Why's that?"

"Wanna have you without his security cameras."

You laugh. "Your horny little teenage brain."

"Both of us."

"Nuh-uh," You shake your head. "I don't think about jumping you. I think about biting you nonsexually."

"Yeah?"

You go quiet. "And marking you up. No visible marks this time." You deadpan. "New York is a hot mess and I still need to try clothes on."

"You gonna go shopping on fifth avenue?"

"Will you let me?"

"Go blow my money."

"Then I won't go easy."

Jason leans on the wall as you show him different clothes, doing a little spin for him when he asked. You try a bunch of stuff on only to buy three articles of clothing. You still feel bad for spending his money. Besides, he was paying for the hotel. You really wonder if you should buy him coffee as a thank you or something. Though, as Jason rips the tag directly off one of the dresses you try on, the thought disappears.

"We'll take this one." He hands the tag to the cashier. "Keep it on. You look good."

"Thank you." You grin, taking the bags from Jason as he pulls out his card. You blink as he swipes it without thinking. You wonder if you'd get to live a life like that.

"Thinking?" He takes the bags from your hand again, card in his wallet.

"I wanna be a rich kid..." You mumble. "I'd love to be rich."

"You have me."

"Yeah, but it's still different from being rich yourself." You hum. "Let's head back for the day."

"Tired?"

You frown. "I don't want you swiping your card any more."

"Why not?" He moves his bags onto one hand, lacing his fingers with yours. "It's for you. Bruce is fine with it."

"Yeah, but." Your face drops. "too much."

"Alright. But this much," Jason holds the bags up. "That isn't really considered much if you consider—"

"I'm not one of them, Jay." You squeeze his hand. "I'm fine with what you've got me already. Wanna go to the ice cream museum tomorrow?"

"Sure." He smiles. "Make the reservations."

"Got it." You grin.

Because no matter how willing Jason is when it comes to swiping his card for you, he still respects your words. Even when you're telling him it's too much, he knows when you truly draw the line, in the way your eyes harden and your voice drops. Jason would spill his entire fortune for you, anything for you, just for your happiness. That was all that mattered to him — the little sparkle in your eye when you were happy, the small upward tug of your lips when you were content, the way your body relaxed when you were truly at peace. You. As long as you were happy, he was happy. Hand on your cheek and lips pressed to yours, he was happy.

"You gonna miss me in college?" He squeezes your cheek as you stare at the NYU banner.

"Definitely." You hum. "You should go here."

"Why's that?"

"It's where all the rich kids go." You grin.

"Daddy's money could get me into your school too." He smiles, leaning down to press his forehead to yours teasingly.

"Then why not use it?"

"Cause Bruce actually values honesty." He pulls away, glancing at the banner.

"And you?" You tilt your head.

"I don't care." He grins. "Want me to get in with Daddy's money?"

"Want you to join me next year with just your grades."

"Want me to leave the city behind for you?"

"Yeah."

"Just to join you?"

"Yeah."

"One year, babe."

"Bet."

You take a photo with him at your school when you move, scribbling 1 year in pencil on the picture.

A year later, Jason's your dormmate, a new photo pinned on the mini bulletin board in the room.

Jason presses his lips to your forehead as you shift in the morning sun, smile on his lips as he greets you. You mumble a greeting back, falling asleep again. His lips pull into a gentle smile, closing his own eyes. His breathing syncs with yours, hearts beating together, the rays of the morning sun warming his skin as he shields you from the light. You never liked waking up because the curtains were too sheer.

For him, even getting you a star in the sky seemed like a menial task.

After all, if you were happy, so was he.

And as he feels your body relax into the mattress, he's sure you'd say the same for him.

[virtue-and-beneviolence]

Midnight Snack

You catch Shuji's eye in the library at uni and he absolutely must take you out.

Just some shuji fluff for the dash. He's a little weird here sorry lmao. Reader is grumpy and tired. Unproofread.

Shuji can't get enough of you. He has a nasty (though endearing) habit of staring.

It's actually how you met.

In the library at uni, trying to get away from noisy roommates and distractions, you sat yourself in a gloomy corner, eyes hazy and unfocused on the article you were "reading."

Until movement caught your eye.

You don't see him at first, the playful fuck. He ducks behind a DiffyQ textbook that, looking back, definitely isn't his. You pay no mind. Whatever. Let the motherfucker stare, you've got shit due tonight. It's not like you're unaccustomed to annoying attention from men and their "you'd look so much better if you smiled" bullshit.

Fuck. You got yourself in a mood now.

Like clockwork, a tuft of grown-out bleached hair and a pair of golden eyes peeks out hoping to catch yours without detection. You snap in his directions and he ducks again. You swear to God you hear a giggle and the rustling thud of a heel knocking into a limb.

When you look, no, glare back, the decoy textbook is down and he's smiling, wide and goofy (and rubbing his shin). You raise a brow and go back to your work, fruitlessly, because he takes the acknowledgement as an invitation. Before you know it hes dragging a heavy wooden chair loudly and sitting across from you.

He's tall. He's huge, really. He's objectively rather gorgeous with a nice jawline and lively eyes that study you, like you're the only thing, even in a building full of decades and decades of knowledge, worth studying.

"Can I fucking help you?"

"i think you can."

"I've got a deadline in 2 hours, make it quick."

"Let me take you for a late night meal. A reward for finishing your....school thing." You almost want to laugh. School thing? Does he even go here? He must sense the shift in mood and it further boosts his confidence. "Come on," he lets the word wobble like a kid pushing their luck, "you're the coolest girl in this place, let me show you a good time."

You can't place it exactly, maybe it's in the wiggle of his eyebrows or the groan of secondhand embarrassment from his friend not far away, but you get a relatively innocent vibe. You turn him away with a terse, maybe and watch as he wanders back to his friend, bounce in his step and high on premature victory.

His gaze isn't as heavy for the duration of your time there. He busies himself with doodles in the margins of Kisaki's work that he thought was math, but maybe is actually Greek; Shuji doesn't care. He's got an absolute beauty on his mind.

He's enraptured by her. Her focused scowl and the way her eyes narrow at the screen. The way her lips purse around the straw of what once was probably iced coffee. The art in her skin that he can see until the aircon kicks on and she puts another layer back on. Shuji is reminded in that moment that he hates the cold so, so much, and even more now that it's stolen away a part of the art he'd been admiring.

He huffs and loses himself if scribbling whatever comes to mind to kill time. He misses you packing your things quietly, work completed just before the deadline and he jumps to cover his scribbles when you clear your throat.

"I'm hungry."

"Hi hungry, I'm Hanma."

You groan, "Actually I'm leaving."

"Come on it was funny!"

"Are you twelve?"

You bicker with the cute giant the whole way out of the library with a smile tugging at your lips. You'd seen the scribbles, he wasn't slick.

Variations of, "God she's kind of insanely pretty. No seriously she's so pretty" up and down the margins. This guy was kind of embarrassing, silly, a wildcard, and well, those are the best people to eat fast food with at 11:59 pm.

It's the first of many midnight snacks.

Yeah that's right bitch this one's for you @sin-and-punishment shuji is down bad for you and I will not be told otherwise.

[bookishwenchmeltha]

Textbook are insanely expensive

I teach. I get absolutely no say in what textbooks my students need to buy in college over 98% of the time, and it bothers me tremendously that the mark up on textbooks is so high that a large portion of my students no longer get the books and instead try to learn everything without a reference. Twenty years ago, $250 would buy a semester of textbooks. Today, in most cases, that won't even buy the books for a single class. The price has about tripled, conservatively.

In the classroom, I can do absolutely jack about this. I'm not even allowed under my contract to mention that there are other options than the campus bookstore. I receive absolutely NO kickback on the textbooks, so please realize, most professors HATE what's happening to textbook prices and LOATHE feeling like we have no options.

So, the following is a list of ways to get around buying the damn hyper-inflated pricey textbooks that most of us will turn a blind eye to.

If it's a popular book, which can happen especially in lit courses, go to a library and see if they have a copy. For some reason, students totally forget that libraries might have the book they need. Even if you have to return it late at the end of the semester, the late fee is going to be a lot less than the price of the book. If your library doesn't have the book, ask a librarian to do an inter-library loan for you. In a lot of states, this means you have access to it, for free, from any library in the state or possibly any other state.

If you prefer studying off of paper because you like taking handwritten notes, get a bunch of students in the same class together and chip in to buy one book. Then go to the library or a copy place and run off the pages you need for that week. Do the same thing the following week. If the book costs $250.00 (and some of them are a LOT more), a copy is usually 10 cents. You would need to make 2,500 to equal the price of the book, and I guarantee you your textbook is not 2500 pages long. Five people splitting the cost of the original text books for $50 can photocopy 200 pages of textbook for $20 (that can actually be 400 pages if you can fit too pages on one copy). The one way this can go wrong is if you get library staff or a copy center employee who objects to you photocopying copyrighted work. This is understandable with a living author. It is far less understandable when you are photocopying someone who died 400 years ago. Unfortunately, they can get you in trouble or toss you out, which is why I strongly suggest making only ten or so photocopies at a time. If however, you mange to copy the whole dang thing, or scan it, you can now sell it back, possibly during the return window.

This one, no one can stop you. Chip in with a few people to buy a copy of the textbook. Then pull out your phone and take a picture of the pages you need. Either keep it on your phone or download and print it. The one drawback here is a lot of professors do not like students to have their phones out during class. Again, if that's the case, print it out. It's going to look a lot less suspicious printing stuff from your phone at a copy place than trying to make multiple of a textbook in the middle of a library or copy joint. Again, you can space this out and print the pages when you need them.

A few words of caution: if the book is already reasonably priced, it's better to buy it from an ethical standpoint. This lets bookstores and publishers know that this book is popular and keeps it from getting "retired." Using the Internet for some works is great, but it doesn't provide the same page number, or sometimes even the same line numbers, for citations. Online works can also have problems with censorship, removing so-called offensive sections without the reader even realizing (I've seen this happen with a website of Poe's work that purported to be full and unabridged and was most certainly not). Sometimes, footnotes or author/editor commentary will also be missing, different, or even just plain wrong. If humanly possible, use the same edition as the rest of the class.

One last thing: if the professor wrote the book, you're basically screwed. Buy the book.

One final thing that is highly unlikely by still worth knowing: keep an eye on used books for sale in unlikely places: garage sales, second-and book shops, etc., especially near colleges or universities. I've seen the latest edition of $400 textbooks for sale at a library book sale for $2. Just make sure the edition matches because it's common practice among publishers to change the exercises with each new edition. That insures the older editions can't be reused or sold for a lower rate; it's awful, and it also means if you have to turn in homework, an older edition will not help you.

[iceddecafcaramel]

05/15/2024 23:15

I'm sorry I haven't been writing. Well, I guess it's a good thing because I haven't felt distressed enough to need to vent on here.

However, I am scared. And I am going to be honest with myself.

I'm scared of this retirement. I've wanted to retire and be happy for so long, safe in a faraway place from dance. But now that I'm retiring in 2 weeks, I can't imagine how hard this change will emotionally damage me. How fat am I going to get? What if I burn out and realize too late that social work is too hard for me? What if I miss dance? What if I won't be as good of a dance teacher anymore because I can't demonstrate anything? There are so many unhealthy, spiraling questions in my mind.

I'm also stressed because finding a 9-5 that pays well with flexible hours that makes more than 45k a year in the social work field is extremely difficult. I'm just waiting for the universe to show me how this is going to be offered to me by the end of June.

What if I don't get a scholarship? It doesn't matter because my parents are paying for grad school (which is insane because imagine how much money I would've had if they had just given it all to me directly if I could be financially independent) but I hate relying on them because I don't feel completely independent nor successful, and it almost feels like I will never be able to. I feel like a fraud.

My ex is suicidal. I would have never thought I would say or write that sentence down. But he is. He has a plan to drop off Chalk in Houston and to road trip to national parks til he runs out of money, and then the plan is to kill himself. He even wrote goodbye letters to me, his girlfriend, and his parents. I love him so much and it is so painful to be here, not being able to help him at all. I'm only alive and here right now because of him. I don't know what I would ever do if he were to commit suicide and I couldn't stop it. I would never forgive myself for not being able to save him like he saved me.

He is the strongest person I know, and also holds himself to the highest standard. He is never bad at anything because his ego won't let him be mediocre. He's stressed about his attending, his probation, his rent increasing if he isn't able to renew it for a yearly lease because his probation meeting isn't til after the due date, he's nervous about being able to stay next year, because if he doesn't, his degree would be useless, and he'd be in so much debt. Besides, his identity is so tied to this career and he has invested so many years into it. I completely understand why he would feel suicidal because it's so much pressure on one single person. But as selfish as it is for me to say so, I need him alive. I know that if I were God and I could choose between the two of us to stay alive, I would choose him every time. He is smart, wants to help and give back to the community, is so ambitious and has so many dreams. He is inspiring and he is the most hardworking person I know. The world needs him. I need him.

And to top it off, my dating life hasn't been great either. But here are some positives-

I didn't even apply to any other school and got into the MSW program I wanted to be in

I am not a pushover anymore and will cut off any guy that isn't deserving of me

I have self respect and I walk away from situations that drain me or doesn't serve me

My close circle consists of people who reciprocates my efforts

I love teaching at my dance school

I get to be reborn, and finally experience a life without dance

When I posted about my retirement, I got upset because I started to doubt myself if I had made the wrong decision to quit something that I was good at and enjoyed. But I know that I had been unhappy for a while, and I also know that I'm so excited to study about social work because all the courses sound like the materials I read in my free time anyway. Additionally, I saw the numbers 1393 that day. That's my library number from CMIS. It's like the universe was saying that I get to restart and experience what it would have been like if I wasn't forced to live out someone else's dream and dance. I get to pursue the career I want now, and I get to save people from getting to a point of hurting as much as I did.

[pumpumdemsugah]

I'm about to start college soon, and I'm also a young woman with adhd. Do you have any advice/tips about how to survive college with ADHD?

When I went uni I didn't realise I had it but If anywhere on your unis site it says fuck all about inclusivity milk it for your ADHD lol. Find out what accommodations you're entitled to and what your unis policy is. Establish you have it with your lectures before you fuck up. Very sweetly say " I can bring my diagnosis if you need me to "

Sleep and take a multivitamin if you're going to eat like a stray dog. Vitamin deficiencies can make you feel like you're dying

There's something called body doubling where people with ADHD focus better when someone or animal is near them so, organise a study group or join one you show up to once a week to help you keep on top shit you WILL forget. Every session doesn't have to be long but it's a good way to keep yourself in order.

Make a habit of going to the library multiple times a week for no damn reason. Habits will save you when your memory doesn't. And usually after I would end up in the library, I'd read since I was there but I tended to write my essays in my room. Sometimes you just have to turn up to places with no expectations so if you do something it's very motivating lol

Experiment with different techniques and revisit things until you find things that work

Leave your room as much as possible or you might almost develop agoraphobia the way I almost did lol. Walks are your best friend.

Join student societies and it doesn't matter if these people aren't your best friend, as long as they're ok people. People can get so hung up on an ideal uni experience they make themselves extra miserable by isolating themselves. As long as you don't hate them lol

My body personally loves caffeine. Caffeine helps people with ADHD focus.

I was less insane when I used to regularly exercise and it probably helps calm the ADHD brain so maybe join a spin class or kick boxing class

You will forget things and probably be very reckless because of how your brain is wired. Expect that you'll make mistakes

Good luck and make sure to enjoy yourself and your degree

[dilucids]

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤSacrificial duties, Mondstadt ver.

would they sacrifice you or mondstadt?

includes: jean, lisa, kaeya, diluc, amber, albedo and venti.

( i'm too socially inept to request for someone to do this so i took matters into my own hands. )

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ〔 JEAN GUNNHILDR ━━ DANDELION KNIGHT 〕

━━ is this even a debate? jean would sacrifice you to save mondstadt.

━━ the question would tear her apart though, she'd spend so much time trying to find another way to save both her city and you that she'd neglect her health ( basic needs, like eating, sleeping )

━━ if it were a person or god who was demanding these terms, she'd try to negotiate anything to save both, even her own life, though if you were willing, she'd hesitantly ( literally beg you to not go through it and reassure she'll find another way ) let you go.

━━ no matter what she chooses, she'll still feel incompetent in the end, as if she isn't good enough to be the acting grandmaster and would probably overwork herself to try and focus on something.

"I'll do it," Jean looks back at you, horror flashing through her eyes though you didn't falter, still staring the entity in her eyes. The wind picks up as if feeling the ameno swordswoman's vivid emotions, she shakes her head, taking small steps towards you as she reaches out for your hand. You cringe when she fell to her knees, "no no no, please, you don't have to do this."

You don't look at her, knowing it would only make things worse for the both of you, you didn't want her to be the last thing you saw nor did you want your face to plague her dreams like a ghost. "I care about Mondstadt too, Jean." You hope she understands that you were also doing this for your city and doesn't blame herself, "it's my duty."

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ〔 LISA MINCI ━━ WITCH OF PURPLE ROSE 〕

━━ lisa is a bit more of a wild card.

━━ lisa only oversees the library of mondstadt but it's really unclear the extent of her care for the city itself.

━━ it's impossible for one to say if she would hold a lover priority over a city due to lack of background so that's why she's more of a wild card right now, because i could see her potentially doing either.

━━ though i'm leaning a little towards sacrificing you because of her closeness with jean and her involvement in the knights of farvonius, she knows it would be morally wrong to sacrifice an entire city for one person, lover or not.

"It's okay," you reassure her, smile still gracing your face albeit the heavyweight pressure of death for your city digging it's claws into your shoulders. "I'm sorry," she apologises for the nth time and you can do no more than squeeze her hand in affirmation, knowing a hug would be too much for the both of you right now.

You feel her fingers slip through yours and your hand is embraced by the winds of Mondstadt, a sudden change from the electricity that plagued her fingertips and passed onto yours. You take a shaky breath and leave her behind you, her eyes watching your back along the way until you were nothing more than a dot in the horizon━━ ready to become a star in the sky.

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ〔 KAEYA ALBERICH ━━ FROSTWIND SWORDSMAN 〕

━━ another wildcard!

━━ unlike lisa, however, i'm leaning towards sacrificing monstadt.

━━ even with all his background knowledge, kaeya is still a character that holds a lot of secrets and it's canon that he's a mysterious figure, cavalry captain or not.

━━ don't get your hopes up though, because he still may sacrifice you ( after a talk with jean or diluc/j )

━━ kaeya lets anything happen as long as it falls into place of how he has expected to end, he really doesn't know what to do when an unknown entity shows up and demands the price of you for his city or vice versa.

━━ really hard to get a grasp on him.

━━ i could see him spending one last day with you after deciding he was going to give you up ( you obviously knew of this ) but after 24 hours with you, away from mondstadt, he might realise that, even if he regrets it for the rest of his life, he'll never be able to give you up.

━━ alternatively, if he didn't open up to you about this or went to jean or diluc, they would convince him to "do what's right" and give you up.

"No. I'm not doing it," his tone differed from the norm━━ he was never like this, not even on official knights' business. His eyes unnervingly determined, tone you were unable to refute, and words that scared you. "Kaeya, you have to," your fingers place themselves over his, which were barely touching your cheeks.

"I'm not doing it," he reaffirms, sounding as if he were trying to convince himself out of all people. "I'm━━ I'm not losing you to some city. I can rebuild a city, we can find a city elsewhere," he states, eyebrows furrowed and not taking a single breath between his words. You pry his fingers away from your cheek, holding them over your lap. "Kaeya, this isn't just 'some city', it's the city you love. The city we love." You coax, finally getting him to look into your eyes. "You're the person I love." He says, exasperated.

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ〔 DILUC RAGNVINDR ━━ DARKNIGHT HERO 〕

━━ hate to be the bearer of bad news,, and as biased as i am to this man, he would give you up.

━━ wouldn't open up to anyone about it, he'll just drive himself insane pondering both options.

━━ and although it would literally make him insane even thinking about losing someone precious to him ( again ) but his loyalty lies within the city of freedom and the city alone.

━━ even after the dispute with the knights of farvonius ( in the webtoon ), he still remains as the protector of mondstadt and i don't think nor am i able to see it will ever change.

━━ unlike kaeya though, i don't think he'll be able to see you at all once he decides to sacrifice you, he'll just be reminded that he'll never be able to see you again and the terrible decision that he's going to go through with.

━━ will also throw himself into extensive work to get you off his mind afterwards.

"You okay there?" Your eyebrows furrow, leaning against the open door of Diluc's office, seeing his hair tied back into a bun, hands in his face as he gazed deeply at his wooden desk. His head flies up at the sound of your voice, clearing his throat, "when did you get here?"

You shrug, taking steps towards him as he leans back into his chair, "being a hero taking a toll on you?" You tease him, taking a seat on his desk next to him and placing your feet on the chair, leaning forward to cup his cheek. He turns away. You're no stranger to his austere ways so you merely lean back, balancing yourself with your hands against his desk, telling him about your day.

"━━and then he wrapped it up and sent it to me, which was awfully disturbing might I add."

"I'm sorry," your eyebrow quirks when he suddenly cuts into your storytelling. You push yourself forward, reaching out for him and redirecting his gaze ( which hadn't looked in your direction even once ) onto you. "What's wrong my dear?" He only grimaces at the nickname━━ wincing almost and still refused to look at you, gaze cast upon the floor behind his bangs. You couldn't even see his eyes.

"Your guilty act is making me ponder if you've had previous relations with someone else, Master Diluc," you frown a little, using your other hand to force him to peer at you. He leans forward, placing his forehead on yours and whispers, "never."

"I just wanted to apologise for the future," you smile a little and place a kiss on his forehead. "I will always forgive you."

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ〔 ALBEDO ━━ THE CHALK PRINCE 〕

━━ albedo's original creator hails from khaeri'ah and venti, archon of mondstadt, was one of the original seven who aided in the destruction of khaeri'ah; is that enough reason to destroy it for a lover? no.

━━ would he still do it? yes, yes, yes.

━━ we all know he considers himself a threat to mondstadt but i don't think he would've ever thought this was why he was a threat, to hold an entire city in his palms and be able to destroy it with a single word was quite a terrifying thought.

━━ it wouldn't stop him though, i really don't think albedo holds any sentimental attachment to mondstadt, he only works and lives there as of right now but he's currently heeding his creater's words and pursuing the truth of the world.

━━ he might grimace over losing a few people that he holds dear and end up rethinking his decision but in the end, will choose you.

━━ another reason i think he would destroy mondstadt is that, once albedo discovers something or the feeling of enlightenment that comes with studying something new disperses, he is quick to stop studying that and abandon it due to the "bittersweet truth" hitting him so if he grew tired of mondstadt,,,,,, rip to jean 🙏

Your eyes flicker from the sight of his back to the unknown entity, hovering just above the floor, her eyes uninterested in you as she gazed into Albedo's eyes, maybe trying to read his expressionless face. "Have you made a choice, Kreideprinz?"

Nothing is said. Nothing from Albedo nor you, you didn't seem to have a part in this private conversation but you also seemed to be an integral part of it due to the way Albedo kept looking back at you, squeezing your hand as if to remind himself that you existed. "I'm choosing them."

She peers at you now, her eyes boring into yours as she scans you for something, "are you sure about this decision?"

For some odd reason, you're not offended by her words, maybe because she didn't sound like she meant it in a rude way ( it also seemed out of her standoffish character ) but was genuine in her curiosity if Albedo would go back on his words. He squeezes your hand again, rubbing circles on the back of your hand━━ something he did to calm you but it seemed that this action was to ground him instead.

"Yes, I am."

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ〔 AMBER ━━ OUTRIDER 〕

━━ YOU.

━━ in the most heart breaking – heart warming way ever, she'd give you up.

━━ notice how more than half of these mondstadt fuckers would give you up? yeah 🙄

━━ on a serious note, a lot of them have devoted themselves fully to protecting the city and i don't see any one of them being able to give the command to destory the city, even if their s/o was being held with a knife to their throat right infront of them and amber is the very same.

━━ even though we don't know to much about her, she is seen as a perfect example of justice by kaeya, and is extremely devoted to her work, she's just below diluc and jean in the most to least likely to sacrifice you in my opinion. it's simply overlooked due to her lack of presence in the game.

━━ i think her compassionate and kind side will make it harder for her to come to a decision because she doesn't want to have to lose one thing to keep another but in the end, she will give you up.

Amber seemed extremely distressed, immediately running into Jean's office once arriving back at the Knight's base after finishing her usual trek of Mondstadt's surroundings. You had attempted to call out her as she ran through the halls but she didn't even look your way, which was peculiar to you but you could only guess something dangerous must've happened due to her eagerness of reaching Jean's office, slamming the door wide open.

You quirk an eyebrow and Kaeya, stood beside you, whistled briskly, hands on his hip. "Someone's in a hurry," you roll your eyes at his comment and simply grab his arm, dragging him over to Jean's office, "just shut up and come."

The minute you knock and open the door however, the room is quiet. Jean sat on her chair, elbows placed on the table and concern burrowed deeply within her furrowed eyebrows and Amber, who was shaking her leg up and down in anxiety, fiddling with her nails.

Kaeya seems a little amused by the situation, unlike you, who was extremely concerned by the little actions of anxieties Amber was exhibiting, striding over to her side in an instant. Placing your hand on her shoulder, she leans into you almost instantly and begins quietly sniffling into your shirt.

You mouth to Jean that you're taking her out and Jean nods, thanking you with a small smile on her face. You guide Amber into a quiet room in the headquarters, letting her silently cry as you attempt to soothe her. "Hey, hey, what's wrong?"

She shakes her head, only repeating a small, "I'm sorry."

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ〔 VENTI ━━ WINDBORNE BARD 〕

━━ venti is characterised as a free spirit, like the freedom that the city of mondstadt represents, he carries that within him but at the end of the day, he is still mondstadt's archon.

━━ so we all saw this coming but you 👫

━━ i don't really think there's a lot to explain, he's their archon and even if he loses everyone he's ever loved, his priority is mondstadt.

━━ he'll probably take you on that ride on dvalin he's been promising you for the past year with no explanation.

━━ you'll ask him why he's dragged you from work and he'll just say he's feeling nice or that the winds are good for a ride right now.

━━ you'll stare at him with that, 'don't–you–control–the–winds?' look and he'll wink at you, telling you to stop staring at him or he'll blush.

━━ will completely come undone when he seed you happily laughing on dvalin's back, arms spread open as your laugh echoes into the wind.

Your excited whooping is all he hears, previous nervousness abandoned with his hands placed on your waist as Dvalin pierced up above the clouds; the ground nothing more than a fleeting dream to you both. It's such a shame that young, immature Dendro Archon got his hands on you first, gifting you his gift of Earth's nature━━ if not for the God of Wisdom, Venti would've gifted you heaven's winds if he knew how simply being in the sky made you so ecstatic.

The adrenaline finally dies down when Dvalin arrives just above the clouds, wings creating new and dispersing the old. You lean into Venti who takes this as an invitation to push himself further into your side and begin playing with your fingers, allowing you time to simply relish in the situation. "You're awfully quiet today," you muse, staring at Venti with a small smile.

He hums, "it's quiet up here," in nothing less of a whisper. You nod along with his words, fighting the urge to jump into the clouds, knowing you'll pass right through them. Venti sinks into you further somehow, like you were a passing cloud; his shoulder pressed into the crack of your arm and torso, head leaning on your shoulder. "You'll be okay Venti," and you embrace him.

[tt205]

UNCONDITIONALLY

LAN XICHEN x READER

Summary: Your somewhat boyish behavior always bothered many , especially now whole of Gusu Lan Clan was pissed with you . Sharing feelings with Lan Xichen is something that brought you quite close this days . Will love be enough to cover up all of your 'flaws' ?

Requested? : YES by rozesdanze and I'm apologizing again for this late upload .

WARNINGS: minor cursing, low self esteem , slight bullying nothing that may trigger you too much .

Words count : 3.440

•---------•---------••---------•---------••---------•---------•

You always were a free spirited person , not caring much about what everyone gotta say and just minding your own business while offering a helping hand where it was needed .

It was your nature , something you couldn't change.

Sometimes people told you to be more "feminine " or "act like a girl of your age " your somewhat boyish behavior bothering them .

You didn't mind it at all .

You grew up with only male friends except for Jiang Yanli and that's why you have adopted this 'strange for a girl ' behavior .

Everything was fine until you entered The Gusu Lan Clan Sect's area in the Cloud Recesses.

Your not so much disciplined ways of living bothered Lan Qiren and the rest of the ladies , that were supposed to be studying there and not gossip around .

It firstly started as comments now and then " dress like a girl " " style your hair like a girl " " why are you not wearing your hairpins ?" And such .

You brushed off the first couple of weeks but when the whole student community started making fun of you , you couldn't take it any more .

Your pride was indeed hurt .

If Wei Wuxian wasn't there you would have left this hell of a place and return back in Yumeng Clan, your hometown.

He was supportive as always , reassuring you that everything was fine with you and that you didn't have to change yourself in order to be accepted by others .

Your own self is what makes you unique.

If someone doesn't likes your real self then they dont deserve being with you .

•---------•---------••---------•---------••---------•---------•

You passed through the hallways trying to get in class when a group of so-good-for-nothing girls blocked your way .

A short girl two years older than you spoke first with this high pitched voice that make you want to slap her straight in the face "oh y/n I pity you so much .. how will you be able to find a good match in the future with such a poor manner set ? Tsts" she chuckled making your eyes go wide at her rudeness.

"I'm sure I will have more possibilities to find one than you .. I may not have the good manners you are claiming to have yourself but at least i am not rude with people i know nothing about " you answer her back bowing your head and trying to move through them .

"Move !" You ordered one of her side chicks Ling the stupid one .

" Oh my goodness.. this is not a way a lady should talk to another y/n " another one of her bitches talked.

You glared at her trying to push Ling to the side.

" why are you even talking to her Feng ? She cant even walk in a proper way yet not even get dressed up as a lady of her status she is a waste of time .. better let her become a puppet of her stupid friend the Yiling Patriarch-- "

"If you ever curse on Wei Wuxian in front of me I ll make sure to shut your mouth with my fist ! He is not making puppets to your information he is just controlling the Yin iron with skills you wish you could have ! Now move out of my sight !" You tell them totally pissed of .. you grab your sword case trying to put some sense in them but they dont seem to mind

" Stupid bitch no one will ever love you in this way ! Every one will pity your for being an unmarried pathetic bitch! In the end even your own family will abandon you - oh I forgot you've got none! " She curses at you and you feel like something is twisted to your core .

2 thing are what you hate the most 1. having people pitying you or telling you that they do and 2. People talking about your family .

That's it , before giving it a second thought you uncover your cased sword harshly .

You move it to your untied hair grabbing a fistful of them before moving the blade on them.

" 1st of all you are not even in the place to think about my family lowly peasant! Do you think that no one in here knows about your relationship with an already married man? " you ask her and she widens her eyes .

"secondly this is for you ! I'm a woman of my status and none my hair , clothing or manners can prove it otherwise! At least I'm not someone's slut!" You close your eyes before moving the blade in one sift motion and cutting half of your hair's length shortening it to shoulder's length.

"Now fuck off and don't dare to look at my direction again emptyheaded bitch!" You scream at her throwing all the hair on her face before making your way back to your room .

•---------•---------••---------•---------••---------•---------•

3 hours have passed since the incident and no one has reached for you yet .

"Good" you thought, because reconsidering your action you've broken more that 6 of Gusu lan clan's rules and show disrespect to your rank status by cutting your hair .

Before realizing it you heard someone knocking on your door "shit" you cursed in your brain , moving to the doorframe and opening the door only to come face to face with the Clan-leader-to-be Lan Xichen.

You bowed your head , forcing a smile on as you rubbed your hands together to sooth your embarrassment, way too shy to look your 'crush' to the eyes .

"Greeetings Zewu Jun " you said moving aside and making room for him to enter .

"Lan Qiren asked me to bring you to him" he said the smile that always hugged his features non apparent anymore.

"Your uncle?" You asked wishing to get a 'no' as an answer..

"Unfortunately yes !" He said looking down the floor .

After putting on your cloaks , you both made your way out of your room and moved to Lan Qiren's residence.

After a really long chat with him you were free to go NOT REALLY .

He asked Xichen to take you himself to the library in order to make 1.500 copies of the latest book he bought this year.

You sighed again in the thought of the pain your arm will have after finishing this task , only to earn one of Xichen's concerned glances .

•---------•---------••---------•---------••---------•---------•

As soon as seating down to your used by many times spot , you grabbed the pen and deeped it into the new-cut ink .

5 hours passed since you first started copying books and despite having nothing actually to do xichen seemed rather occupied.

You gave him a questionable look as you leaned your head in your hands looking to his place .

"You knew that this was going to put you in trouble y/n , why doing such a thing just to prove them wrong?" You raised your head upon hearing this words leaving Xichen's mouth , not formality in them , just casual talking.

" they have been getting on my nerves for more than 2 months I couldn't bear it -" you tried to explain yourself but he interrupted you

" You could have just come to me right from the beginning!" He looked pissed and you sifted in you seat shivering from the tone in his voice .

This man surely had some nerve in him, being more than a head taller than you was something that from the very start make it clear that you could better not get in any trouble with him .

Seeing his genuine and kind nature made you loose down your walls , allowing your heart to form feelings for him and now you are here unable to form a single word without stuttering in between.

" Y/n ? Cant you see it ?" He asked and you gave him a confused face in defense .

"What do you mean-?"

" I - i do care about you y/n , watching the others making your life a living hell including my uncle drives me crazy ! I tried so many times to show you how i feel about you just to give you a shelter, a safe place but you are not getting it " he sighed to himself clearly frustrated.

He removed a strand of hair out of his face looking to your not so calm face that was by now painted in a really deep shade of read .

Being the lil tease he secretly is , he wanted to get you even more freaked out by little .

He looked into your eyes with this calm face of his while saying " I love you y/n " and then returning to his desk and grabbing back his pen .

" I love you too " you said loud enough to even have the bunnies hear too outside , the silence inside the room making an echo to your voice .

In quick realization you moved your palm to your mouth clapping it fast and shutting down the curses about your stupidity that were ready to spill out .

" What ?" He asked in a teasing tone lifting his body higher and then sitting up completely moving to your place until he was studying right in front of you hovering some heads above you and then repeating then same question calmly.

This drove you crazy .

" How can a person be so calm in a situation like that ? " you screamed out loud mostly to yourself before reaching in front you and pinching the skin of his lower thigh .

You looked up to his face as he let out a high peached scream of pain "Lan Xichen you are driving me insane!"

You pinched him again with both hands now only to have him beg to be left in peace "Please y/n don't do this ! " he half laughed half screamed for the poor skin of his legs before reaching down and grabbing both your wrists once you didn't stop after his begs.

You squirmed in his grip before he moved both wrists to his lips , kissing the skin there and putting them back down the surface of your desk .

Your mouth was hanging open , such a big skin contact all of sudden leaving you shooked.

" I have done 14 copies of the book you are copying.. I'm taking a break for now but I'm returning back in 15 minutes straight! You continue your work little girl " he said before blinking his eye to you and moving out of the library .

"Excuse me ?! " you screamed as loud as you could looking both to your wrists and his distant form .

"This man is gonna drive me crazy sooner than I thought " you told yourself before returning to your work .

•---------•---------••---------•---------••---------•---------•

It's been 4 days since you started dealing with your punishment and you already have 276 copies ready to go but way more many on the way .

Today is a special day for Gusu lan Clan and it's students so it's the perfect opportunity for you to take a break tonight.

Gusu Lan Clan's biggest has come and you are now getting ready to attention the lantern festival with Wei Wuxian been apart for so many days making you miss him to death .

A sudden knock on the door made you jump on your spot .

Waiting for Wuxian you opened without asking for the person outside.

To your huge surprise there was not Wei Wuxian but Lan Xichen .

" I'm allowed to go in the festival today ! I asked your uncle this morning! You cannot keep me here- " you rushed to say to afraid of loosing your only chance out .

" I'm here to take you out myself so that you can return to the library straight after the ceremony finishes , my uncle has no intention searching for you so he sent me to make sure that there will be no way for you to sneak out " he said calmly giving you a teasing smile .

You looked around searching for Wei Wuxian but there you found him next to Lan Wangji holding a paper lantern together.

You giggled at the view of Wuxian's flashed cheeks when his hand touched Wangji's accidentally.

The moment when all of the lighting lanterns had to fly to the sky arrived so you moved to catch the one in front of you but regretted it at the sight of Xichen doing the same .

You felt shy at your silly mistake don't understanding that the lantern wasn't for you but for him and you bowed in discomfort cursing to yourself for making you look even more stupid to him .. your fucking crush .

" I think this is for the both of us y/n " he told you taking your hands in his making you catch some part of the paper .

" Every one can make a wish as their lantern will make their way up ! I'm sure that each and every wish of yours will be fulfilled in the near future and luck will always saw a good face to you and your loved ones ! This year was one of educational progress, health and wisdom. I hope that all of you will follow the path we Gusu Lan Clan taught you about , a path of righteousness, fairness and virtue. Now I'll count up to 5 so all of you will have to prepare your lanterns! " Lan Qiren announced making you look around for some fire to put in the light .

"One" he started

"Two" the lantern was ready to go so you thought about making a wish

" I wish y/n would give me a chance to prove my sincere feelings for her while living and following the path of the good , avoiding the sinful road and having zero regrets. " the man next to you whispered mostly to himself with closed eyes as he hold onto your lantern tightly.

Your eyes blinked twice the having the man you wish to call yours one day admitting his feelings again .

" I wish I'll become a woman of my status so I can let myself be loved by the man I love without minding if I'll ruin his reputation with my inappropriate image " you whispered to both to him and to yourself, admitting how you really felt with this complicated situation .

You didn't want to change yourself, no not at all, but you just hopped the time could change you into what you could call ideal woman , wife , without feeling much pain in the progress.

It was true , him loving you would ruin his and the Gusu Lan Clan's reputation .

The future Clan Leader having feelings for a punk?

A girl with no manners?

Without a family and depending only on Yumeng Sect and her uncle ?

Sometimes you wished you were different, somewhat like your cousin Yanli but no , in the end you wouldn't be you , you would be someone fake .

You would be someone even more miserable.

You are clearly confused by now .

Shall I change and become what the world around me wants to or be myself and let them talk shit without minding a bit ?

The 1st one is the easy way , but the 2nd one is what will make you struggle but be you at the very last .

"Three " Lan Qiren spoke as you tried to regain your composure and focus .

"Four " all of the disciplines lifted their lanterns up readying them once more .

"Y/n would you like to be the person I call home from now on ?" Xichen asked you .

"I can't-"

" Yes you can ! If there is love in between everything can be worked out !" He cut you

" Is there any love from your side y/n ?" He asked you and you didn't want a second more to know the answer

"Yes there is "

" See ? There is no reason you can't let me love you , call you mine , make you the person I want to return after the storm . I want to be the person you need , you love , I want to be your everything, would you allow me to do that ? "

" Don't you mind I'm who I am ? "

"Five! Let them go and fly high " Lan Qiren called and you did as you were told

"No , I don't . I love you for who you really are y/n not for who I want you to be " Xichen said making you look down the floor to afraid to be loved but at the same time loose who you really love .

"I really like you , no I can say that I love you , everything you do . And all I want is to protect and take you home with me .

Will you come and live in Gusu with me ?

I wanna be with you forever and even though it's really early to say would you like to marry me one day ?

I'm sure that even though you are not my uncle's favorite person out there he will accept the fact that we want to be together.

We can call your uncle to come and set a marriage for us in the years to follow .

I will give you as much time as you feel like taking but I want to make my feelings clear to you from the very beginning.

Would you like to marry me and be the next Gusu Lan Clan's Leader wife ? " he asked always to rushed as his cheeks took a red color painting his pale skin .

"Yes I would love to ! Even if i could marry every man on earth you would be my one and only choice in every lifetime and every dimension I could live , I would choose you again"

You answer him with a little smile in the end as both of you hugged gaining glares from all the people around you .

" Does this mean that we are official?" He asked

"I guess so " you told his hiding you face in his strong torso .

" FELLOW HUMANS IM GETTING MARRIED TO MY BELOVED Y/N I WISH YOU ALL CAN MAKE IT TO OUR MARRIAGE IN THE NEAR FUTURE !" He screamed making you punch him lightly in his lower abdomen as he fake screamed in pain .

" That means that we will be siblings by law y/n?" Wuxian asked while jumping his way to your derection happily

" What do you mean A-Xian?" You asked confused .

" We are getting married too brother !" Lan Wangji said as both yours and Xichen's jaw dropped open .

" Congratulations!" Both of you screamed out loud as you went hugging them .

The four of you hugged while jumping together but then there he came Jiang Cheng.

" That means I'm the only single bird rn? Thanks guys thanks!" He said while glaring at you four .

" No you are not sweetheart!" Nie Huaisang appeared giving Cheng a misiviews smile before hiding his now flashed cheeks behind his fan .

" BOLD OF YOU TO ASSUME THAT I'M THAT DESPERATE! I BETTER BE PUNCHED IN THE FACE BY WEN QING AGAIN RATHER THAN DATING YOU ! " Jiang Cheng screamed in Huiesung's face before storming away in order to search for his short tempered other half Wen Qing .

" There we go again " Wuxian said

" Yes there we go again " you added and the four of you started laughing until tears formed in your eyes and too little oxygen was making it's way into your lungs.

This is the best feeling.

Be with people that you love and love you ,

Without loosing faith in you ,

Without wanting to make you someone else ,

Without wanting to control you

People that love you unconditionally.

————————————————————————————

Please follow & like for more content!

Stay happy & healthy ♡

Be yourself + love yourself.

Hope you enjoyed reading

[spaghettiremix-blog]

Another Story Duo in Hogwarts

RFA in Hogwarts could be found here

Note: I won't be doing all of Saeran's alter egos but only the egos we see in his route in Another Story so this may or may not containing spoilers! Constant vigilance, everybody!

anyways enjoy reading, my dudes!

—

V / Jihyun Kim

"A Hufflepuff through and through!"

his wand is 10½ inches long, made of willow and has a unicorn's tail hair for it's core

his Patronus is a Borzoi

his favorite and best subject is Herbology and you can't change my mind

he doesn't find any of Hogwarts' subjects too blandish or boring or insanely mentally scarring so he doesn't really have a subject that he dislikes although, the terms with Dolores Umbridge and Gilderoy Lockhart were rather unpleasant memories

his grades aren't as extraordinary like Jaehee's but his never ending politeness makes up for it

he doesn't know how to play Quidditch because he's like, half-blind so he settles for watching the players playing it instead

but he would make a good Chaser though

but then again, he's terrible with flying the broomstick so;;;

he can understand Parseltongue but only to a certain degree

he has a talent for non-verbal spell casting

potions-making makes him uneasy

heck, potions in general makes him uneasy

he barely leaves the Hufflepuff Common Room, but if he does though, you can usually find him with Jumin (and Elizabeth 3rd) hanging out in the library or in one of the Hogwarts Greenhouses

Apparation is a blessing to him

probably has Metamorphmagi blood in him

this dork loves to collect the magical cards that comes inside the chocolate frogs he has over seven hundred by now and he doesn't plan on giving them away

a Half-Blood but Jumin doesn't even care :)

Ray

"...he is better off in Hufflepuff!"

Hufflepuff's Golden Boy

his wand is 11 inches, made of hornbeam and has a dragon's hearstring as a core

his Patronus is a seal because as though as they may be percieved as adorable and cuddly in actuality, these mostly amphibious animals can be vicious, carnivorous predators

he plays Seeker on the Hufflepuff Quidditch Team

and he shall destroy you

affectionately

his favorite subject is Herbology and he's Professor Sprout's favorite student I'm so sorry Jihyun;;; but Potions comes in second place though

he finds Muggle Studies interesting but he doesn't really act to actually learn it

he somehow manages to sucks at Defense Against the Dark Arts and he hates it

he's actually very skilled in Alchemy so I guess that makes up for it

tries to learn Occlumency and he never bothered to learn it again because it hurts :(

non-verbal spell casting isn't really his thing but he tries

he can't find the heart to eat the chocolate frogs and collect the cards that are hidden inside so he settles for No-Melt Ice Cream instead and it's not really a bad investment

same as his brother, he's a Pureblood but Rika someone managed to thoroughly convince him that he's Muggleborn wizard

Unknown

"Welcome to Slytherin!"

his wand is 14 inches long, made of holly and has a dragon's heartstring as a core

his Patronus resembles a hippogriff, although it's non-corporeal, hinting that his past didn't really have any major positive outcomes that was strong enough to make his Patronus clearly defined

he plays as Beater for the Slytherin Quidditch Team

is it a foul to knock your own teammates with a bludger?

probably endures over 20+ penalties in every game he's in and it drives Snape absolutely insane

note: he still manages to become Captain;;;

although he's too much of a dick to admit that he has a favorite subject, he really likes Transfiguration

maybe it's because that he can just turn you into a teacup in just a just flicker of his wand, just in case you become too "annoyingly pretty stupid" in his eyes—which is a lot (he never actually does it though)

he doesn't bother to attend Defense Against the Dark Arts (nor Divination nor Herbology nor Care of Magical Creatures) since he thinks it's a pretty useless subject

"Why in Merlin's fuck do we need DADA for anyways? We're gonna be hexing, jinxing and cursing our way into battle anyways so might as well skip the bullshit and just learn Dark Arts instead."

he only ever attended DADA during "Mad Eye Moody"'s term with them

again, he's not really good at non-verbal spell casting, neither at Occulumency nor Legilimency but he's good at hexing people

he once tried to hex Saeyoung with a Instant Scalping Hex but it somehow manages to hit Zen instead

many cried that day

he prefers Chocolate Skeletons than Chocolate Frogs ("I'm telling you, my dear toy. The reason why they're so popular is because of these damn wizarding cards.") but he secretly brings back a whole box or two of No-Melt Ice Cream whenever you guys get a trip to Hogsmeade

he's proud of being a Pureblood but he's not proud of his family name nor lineage

he constantly disses on the Ministry of Magic

NE!/GE!Saeran Choi

"He belongs in Gryffindor!"

his wand is 12 inches, made of hawthorn and has a unicorn's tail hair as a core

his Patronus is a falcon — a representation that he was once a troubled soul but decided to cast away his old, evil habits to fly down the hard, right path

unlike Unknown's (and possibly even Ray's), Saeran's Patronus is lucid, well-defined and bright

when you asked him what makes it so bright everytime he conjurs it, he replied "Well, you're bright. So that makes sense if each of my memory of you is bright as well."

⁄(⁄ ⁄•⁄o⁄•⁄ ⁄)⁄

damn boi, when did you get so smooth?

plays as Seeker for the Gryffindor Quidditch Team

Saeyoung's #1 fan and cheerleader

"WoOooO! There goes my brother, the shining, shimmering, lustrous, luminous, ever glimmering—"

"Mr. Choi, please."

"—AND EVER BLOSSOMING SAERAN CHOI! Now, ladies, I see you make a line towards him everyday but let me break it to you in the most subtle way possible—"

"—the poor boy is haplessly in love with MC."

"Saeyoung!"

whenever his brother speaks on the microphone (or just opens his mouth, in general), he gets an incoming migraine that he mentally prepared himself to repress

he loves him to pieces but Merlin's crocs, there are times where he catches himself wishing for his brother to get eaten by Aragog

he really likes Herbology, and tends to pull a Hermione Granger when it comes to this subject

Defense Against the Dark Arts is also his strong suit

although, somewhere in Lockheart's term with them, he tries so hard not to cast a Sardine Hex on him

he might have not have done it but he still holds a grudge

"That narcissistic buffoon unleashed some Tiny Tumbelinas of Terror as a form of lesson, MC. Tina Tumbelinas of Terror."

he just noped out of DADA when it was Umbridge's term

Gryffindor lost a lot of House points that year

he really likes going to Honeydukes and would probably make it his home if it was allowed

Ambrosius Flume and his wife like him very much and vice versa

"Dear, get the papers! We're adopting this boy!"

he brings a lot of sweets back to Hogwarts every weekend

two full sacks

and a lot of letters get sent to him by Ambrosius' wife nagging him to eat more healthily during the weekdays

he's good at non-verbal spellcasting, although it's kinda get hard to get used to

he's good a Legilimency but he doesn't use it very often — he's working on his Occlumency though (because Saeyoung won't leave him alone sometimes)

Apparition and using of Port Keys make him nauseous so he settles on commuting by broom instead

everyone thinks he's a Metamorphmagus because of his powdered hair

again, he's Pureblood but he doesn't really care because he'll love no matter what blood status you have :)