#i know MORE people than the tags. w ow

[deathxproof-archive]

okay maybe I took a nap but consider this another little st-st-st-starter call while I try to write some other stuff and maybe fuckin freshen up the place while I’m here.

[lovebugism]

hi! reader doesn’t like kids at all, but somehow eddie’s child is just different and the cutest sweetest child who warms their heart

✶ ┄ MAYDAY ! [ the beginning ]

summary: when steve harrington brings you as a plus-one to a munson birthday party, he forgets to tell you it's for eddie's four-year-old, maeve. (1.8k)

pairing: dad!eddie munson / f!reader

tags: strangers to lovers (eventually), slow burn, mutual pining, idiots in love, meet ugly-ish, fluff, girl dad eddie munson™, r is not used to being around kids (and it shows), baby blurb turned spin-off universe <3

When Steve Harrington invites you to a birthday party, he fails to mention it’s for a four-year-old. 

The tiny trailer is decked out in decoration. A fusion of black and rainbow, of bats and unicorns, of vampires and Tickle Me Elmo — like no one could land on a singular theme. 

Steve guides you into the home with a golden hand on the small of your back, his other clutching a sparkly black bag with Count von Count’s face on it. You stop very suddenly in your tracks. Happy 4th Birthday, Maeve! reads a handpainted sign draped beneath the ceiling.

You become very hyperaware of the whiskey bottle in your right hand, something you figured would be the most sufficient thing to gift someone you’d never met before. You just hadn’t expected the stranger to be a child.

“What the fuck, Steve?” you bite under your breath, glaring at the boy beside you. “I thought you said this was your friend’s birthday party?”

“Maeve is my friend,” he answers with a stupid shrug. “Though, to be fair, I did say it was my friend’s kid’s birthday party.”

He most definitely hadn’t.

“What the hell— I brought booze!”

“That’s okay,” assures a wild-haired boy with a pretty pink grin as he walks up to the two of you. The friend in question. 

Eddie Munson wears a silver ring on each finger and a thick leather jacket despite the warming spring season. His laughter sounds like sunshine. His smile is bright enough to give you a goddamn sunburn.

“Maeve’s been getting presents all day— It’s about time someone got somethin’ for me,” he jokes.

You grimace while the two boys laugh. “Sorry…” you murmur as you pass him the bottle, shrinking inside yourself in an attempt to hide from the moment. I’m never letting Steve convince me to leave the house again, you think to yourself.

Eddie shrugs. “Don’t worry about it. Seriously. I’ll go stick this in the kitchen— Make yourself at home.”

Your racing heart quells only slightly. He must be more of a good guy than Steve made him out to be, if he’s willing to keep you around after you brought booze to his daughter’s party. Though, you’ll contend that you were only half at fault for this.

Steve bites back a chuckle as he walks you to the back door, standing with you on the little wooden deck lined with sparkly streamers. There’s a picnic table off in the distance, covered in a bat-patterned cloth and set with Sesame Street-themed utensils. A small crowd of teenagers gather around it, and a couple of their parents, you figure.

The spring breeze only half soothes your burning skin.

“See?” he lilts, trying not to laugh and failing. “He likes you already—”

You swat his chest with a less than kind hand. 

“Ow!”

“I’m gonna fucking kill you, Harrington, I swear to—”

“What’s your favorite animal?” a tiny voice asks from behind you, a smidge too loud and confusing their R’s with W’s.

You look over your shoulder, face flooded with horror. A kid with wild chocolate hair stands at less than half your height, wearing the tiniest Ozzy Osbourne shirt you’ve ever seen beneath a rainbow tutu. You don’t know what to say, so you just blink at it for a moment — at her.

“Hey, Maeve,” Steve greets with a curt wave.

The girl beams, missing her very front tooth. “Hi, Uncle Steve!”

“Wha— Huh?” you stammer mindlessly. ‘Cause you’re not exactly the best at talking to people your own age, let alone to children. They’re too honest. And too loud. And beyond still feeling like a kid yourself most days, you don’t have anything in common with them.

“What’s your favorite animal?” Maeve repeats in the same inflection, smiling until a dimple appears in her freckled cheek. “Mine’s a Hefflelump.”

“Hef… Hefflelump?” you echo quietly, only vaguely registering Steve’s laughter as he disappears through the screeching screen door, leaving you all alone. You’re definitely killing him for this.

“Yeah… From Winne the Pooh!” she says like it’s obvious.

“Oh… Okay…”

“What’s yours?”

You stumble over your words to find an answer. “Um… Uh… I don’t— I don’t know…”

“Everyone has a favorite animal,” she scoffs like some kinda critic with a speech impediment. She tilts her chin to her chest and peers up at you with a pair of doe eyes, so brown they’re almost black. You shift your weight on your feet, visibly uncomfortable beneath her unwavering stare.

“Maybe like a… A blobfish, or something?” you shrug.

Her tiny face screws in disgust. “Gross,” she spits.

You flinch. “What? Why is that gross?” you retort, crossing your arms over your chest, more defensive than you’d like to admit.

“They’re so ugly,” Maeve giggles.

“Why?” you squint. “‘Cause they look differently than we do?”

“No!” she laughs, loud and golden, just like her father. “’S ‘cause they’re so slimy.”

“Well— You— You’re slimy,” you stammer.

The wild-haired girl grins with all her baby teeth (well, besides the front one, anyway). “You’re slimy!” she echoes with a mischievous twinkle in her chocolate eyes.

The screen door squeals open again, the rusted hinges screeching in protest. “Who’s slimy?” a male voice questions from behind you, a smile audible in his voice.

“You are!” you and Maeve chorus at the same time. 

You whip your head around a second too late. Your heart drops to your ass when you find Eddie lingering in the doorway behind you. You stumble over your words while Maeve giggles. “Sorry! I thought— I thought you were Steve! I’m so sorry!”

A chuckle sputters from Eddie’s mouth. He’s nearly as grieved by it all as you are. “He just left,” he tells you with a lopsided smile, cocking his thumb over his shoulder. “I think he’s helping Wayne out front. They’re putting together Maeve’s d-o-l-l-h-o-u-s-e.”

His eyes flit upward as he tries hard to spell the word correctly. Upon your confused look, he says, “I can’t say it, or she’ll know what I’m talking about.”

“Right,” you nod.

Eddie crouches and holds his arms out for his daughter. Maeve’s tiny feet patter against the wooden deck as she rushes to him. He huffs at the weight of her — heavier than he remembers and getting bigger every day (which is weird ‘cause she was a newborn, like, a week ago). He grunts when he picks her up, propping her weight on his side.

“What were the two of you talkin’ about, then?”

“Blobfish!” she shouts with a beam.

Eddie breathes out a faint chuckle and turns to you. “She’s forcin’ you to pick a favorite animal, huh?” he wonders, then laughs a bit louder when you nod. “Yeah, she’s been doing that all day. It’s her new thing,” he says, nuzzling the tip of his nose into her curls. 

Realization seems to him then, and his brows furrow when he looks at you. His face, all twisted in confusion, is an exact replica of Maeve’s. 

“Wait— Your favorite animal is a blobfish?”

“That’s what I said!” the girl laughs.

You shift your weight on your feet and cross your arms over your chest. “I’m… feeling very judged in this moment…” you murmur under your breath, only half joking.

“I think that’s the most creative answer we’ve had yet, huh, Mae?” Eddie chuckles.

You scoff. “Well, I think Hefflelump’s pretty creative considering—”

The boy clears his throat, seeming to sense the rest of your sentence. His eyes widen in a lighthearted glare before he nods to the girl on his hip. Only then do you realize the words sitting on the tip of your tongue. You swallow them down immediately.

“Right…” you nod instead. “Nevermind…”

“Here—” Eddie huffs as he sets the girl down again. “—Go find Aunt Robin, alright? She’s probably decorating your cake as we speak.”

Maeve rushes off at the word cake, tottering on lanky, ungraceful legs. The two of you watch her go and linger in an awkward silence. Neither of you is quite sure how to make conversation without her there. You decide to start with an apology.

“I’m, uh, I’m sorry, by the way. Again,” you laugh awkwardly at yourself, scratching at the back of your neck. “I’m not… I’m not really… great with kids. If you couldn’t already tell.”

Eddie grins, pink and lopsided and pretty. You don’t feel deserving of the warmth swimming in his button eyes, glimmering beneath an early setting sun. “It’s okay. Seriously. You should’ve seen Robin and Steve the first time they met her— they were hopeless. And now they’re… Sort of alright, I guess.”

You force a faint chuckle. “Yeah, I’m— I’m just not used to being around them, I guess. I don’t even think I’ve talked to a kid her age since, like, elementary school.”

“I was the same way. ’Til I had Maeve and all…”

“Well, I couldn’t tell,” you assure him with a wavering smile. “You’re, like, a total pro. You’re great with her.”

He ducks his head to hide his blushing cheeks. The apples of them speckle warm and pink beneath the weight of your compliment. 

“Well… thank you,” he says, deflecting from your praise with that stupid, posh, D&D accent he always uses when he gets nervous. You don’t notice him grimacing at himself because you’re still stewing in your own embarrassment.

“And sorry for the booze, too. I seriously didn’t mean to bring— I mean, Steve didn’t even tell me that—”

“Stop apologizing,” Eddie chuckles warmly. “That part’s not your fault, alright? I don’t know if you know this or not, but your boyfriend’s a total idiot.”

Your face screws up. “Oh, he’s not— Steve’s not my boyfriend.”

The boy’s smile ebbs. “No?”

“No. No way!” you laugh before you mean to. “I’m pretty sure I’m just, like, his replacement best friend since Robin started dating Vickie.” 

Wide-eyed and distantly relieved, Eddie stammers like a teenage boy. “Oh. Right. That’s… That’s cool. Yeah.”

“Yeah…” you echo.

“Well, uh— I’m gonna see if Wayne wants any help,” he blurts despite knowing he’s been barred from doing handy work since he nearly drove a nail through his own finger. He just needs a way out, lest he keep stumbling over himself and lose all of his cool points with you. 

He saunters backward through the opened door and nearly trips over the frame.

You bite back a laugh. He forces a wavering smile. 

“But, um, I was thinkin’ about cracking open that bottle you brought. You know, after Maeve’s in bed and everything. If you— If you wanna hang around that long…”

The silence makes him as nervous as a teenage boy, all writhing and uncomfy in his skin. You nod in agreement, and his sparkling chest swells all over again. “Yeah,” you reply, lip quirked in a poorly hidden smile. “Sure. I’d— I’d like that…”

He smiles, all proud of himself. “Good. That’s… That’s good,” he stutters, then swallows hard and scurries off before you change your mind. 

Before he shuts the squealing screen door behind him, you hear Robin’s voice exclaim loudly from the kitchen. “What the hell’s a blobfish?!”

if u have any other ideas for hijinks these two idiots (and maeve) can get into, feel free to leave 'em here! (⁠ꈍ⁠ᴗ⁠ꈍ⁠)

[backwzzds]

what about a sequel to the plug!zoro cheating on you w/ his girl? he broke up with her. some time goes by and zoro & y/n are at a kick back, getting a little frisky with each other and boom she just shows up.

no because you two would be at some barbecue held in franky’s massive backyard. of course the party animal had to have a pool, so you and the girls were dressed in small fitting bikinis. franky of course couldn’t keep his eyes off robin in her violet colored two piece, and nami sported an orange bikini top that was entirely too small for her tits with small shorts. yours was an olive green color working so well with your undertones, you didn’t even realized that it was damn near similar to zoro’s hair color till people pointed it out.

zoro was sitting against a beach chair with his back to the seat as he smoked on a backwood with you perched into his lap. he proudly took turns betweeen taking a pull of his weed and kissing you on the lips, the two of you sharing the routine for the last few hours.

“zoro get in the pool! it’s nice, haha!” luffy giggled excitedly. “we’re playing tag!”

zoro couldn’t help but roll his eyes at his childish best friend. “i’m good, thanks.” he gestured to his lit wood. with a look up to you, he saw you scrolling through your phone as you rested your side against his body. “y’wanna go in the pool mama?”

you shake your head. “got wet for the day already,” you reply, but do a double take when you see zoro smirk at you.

with a large hand gripping the flesh of your fatty ass, he teased, “yeah? when?”

you kissed your teeth and slapped his chest. “stop bein’ nasty you perv. ‘m finna call the cops.” zoro laughs at your threat before taking another pull of his wood.

“yeah, whatever you say, baby.”

you two end up spending the next few minutes making out, without a care in the world. zoro and your entire friend group didn’t bat an eyelash at the fact that you two were together. zoro had finally broken up with his girlfriend, but he was sure that it wasn’t the case on her end. she was delusional, worse than you.

you spend time in the boy’s arms, getting a whiff of his day old cologne and masculine musk as you two watch videos on your phone. the giggles and laughterspread amongst your friends had stopped and was replaced by numerous yells.

your own friends had joined the party just hours ago, your closest friend armani somewhere in the corner making out with nami. but when you heard armani’s familar loud voice from across the pool, that was when you grew concerned.

suddenly, a familiar figure storms their way over to your direction. “hey, you’re like trespassing on private property bro!” franky yelled as he tried to chase after the girl. within thirty seconds, zoro’s girlfriend—or as he says, ex— is in front of you.

she gives you one look before letting out a laugh. “of course. i knew you’d be fucking with her.”

zoro furrowed his eyebrows. “the fuck did you find me?”

the red girl points to her phone angrily. i fucking tracked your car and phone here!”

“ooh, damn,” you hear usopp turn and pretend to mind his business. but from his side eye and the corner of his long nose, you could tell he was still being nosy. by now, the entire party was.

“you fucking tracked me? are you insane?” zoro delicately lifts you up to place you next to him on the seat so he could properly sit up. “we’re not fucking together no more!”

“that’s not fair, zoro!” his ex cried. “you did that shit out of nowhere, i think i deserve some sort of explanation!”

standing up, you try to mediate the situation. “girl, i think y’all should step inside so no one hears—“

“i don’t owe you a fuckin’ explanation!” zoro exclaims from behind you.

“fuck you, you whore!” the girl points at you. “you’ve been fucking my boyfriend from the start, you dirty bitch!”

now you grow angry. “i’ve been fucking ‘your boyfriend’ since we were sixteen,” is all you say, knowing that would get under her skin. it was true though, zoro’s always wanted you, even before he started selling. you just never cared to give his ass the time of day mostly. “and you met him when, two years ago? please lil girl.”

zoro’s ex scoffs. “yeah okay, home wrecking whore—“

“you sure? i coulda sworn it was a section 8 apartment with the way you’re always up on niggas that’s not him!”

you wouldn’t even call your relationship with zoro homewrecking, not when you had him first and have been on and off with him since you both were teenagers. you just never anticipated that the little fling he had with the girl woulf have turned into something at the very least semi-serious. besides, you’d never fucked zoro when he was in a committed relationship with his then girlfriend at the time. out of simple respect for her, you had stepped back from him and whatever he had going on with her until he assured you that he was done with her and only wanted you.

“don’t get me started bitch before i hurt your feelings,” you threatened, giving the shorter girl a hard look.

zoro’s ex rolls her eyes. “yeah? you think he wants you when he’s coming home to me every other night?”

now you were on ten. “you gotta get a refund on that tracker baby cuz it aint telling the truth. not when the nigga live at my house. you check behind his ear lately? who name on that shit?”

color drains from the girl’s face as she watches zoro look at her with blank eyes. low and behold was your name in a beautiful script font, right behind his ear. his favorite spot he loved for you to kiss.

“you’re insane as fuck. you tried to track this nigga, trap this nigga, thinking a baby gon make him stay. he doesn’t fucking want you!” you scream. you were never this mean. but she was testing your nerves, and you had to show her you didn’t even play like that. “now you just got embarrassed. right after i told you to go inside with him on that bullshit.”

zoro’s ex makes a move to plunge towards you, but zoro successfully catches her in his strong grasp. “let me go!” the girl screams, attemtpinf to lunge at you. you mirror her actions, only to be held back by franky’s own strong grip.

“zee, take your bitch outside before i beat her ass bro!” you heathe, glaring at the girl who was matching your expression. even he couldn’t contain your anger at the moment. it was good franky was holding you back. zoro does as told and practically hauls his ex out the backyard on his shoulder. from a distance, you can see her calm down and melt into his embrace.

“that was some crazy shit,” usopp breathed out.

as if on cue, luffu exits the house with a big BBQ chicken leg in his hand, food stuffed in his mouth. “what the hell happened?”

[yournightmary]

fake dating with ellie… like shes trying to get away from cat (cat has like an obsession w/ her or smt??) and reader ex’s with abby but abby wont leave her alone so ellie and reader start fake dating but ellie gets possesive, wants to spend all day with reader EVENTUALLY STARTS ACTUALLY DATING

lmao this might be rlly bad… i love your writing

Fake Dating with Ellie

content warning:: fem!reader, modern!AU, mentions of drinking and smoking, i don’t know what else

AN:: I passed my exams😋 Hope you enjoy it, I kind of ran out of ideas at the end:/

⇢ ˗ˏˋ Cat thought that Ellie ‘owed’ her something because she did her tattoo for free (even though she literally made the offer). She was constantly on her ass but in a way that Ellie couldn’t really call her out on or anything.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ As for you and Abby- that poor girl got caught up in her first wlw relationship and couldn’t let you go. You didn’t have the heart to just tell her off so you tried to find a different way to let her know it’s not going to work out.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ You and Ellie weren’t really friends, like of course you guys knew each other. But most of your interactions were on parties or during hangouts with your shared friends.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ One time you overheard Ellie talking about Cat to Dina and you shared your own little story with Abby. That’s when you actually talked to each other, not just meaningless small talk.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ Ellie was the one that came up with the whole ‘fake dating’ idea, right after Cat started accidentally showing up at Ellie’s job every single time she was working. She still has no idea who gave that girl her schedule.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ You’ve heard some rumors about Abby telling people ‘you were just on a break’ so you thought, why not? Ellie’s a good friend, there won’t be anything hard about fake dating, right?

⇢ ˗ˏˋ At first it started off as just being everywhere in public together. She’d walk you to your classes, always sit next to you and small things like that.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ But Dina said you don’t look believable. And she was right to be honest, it looked like you guys were just friends (which you were) hanging around.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ That’s when you both agreed on some light touches. You’d hold her hand, she’d keep an arm around your waist, maybe even kiss your forehead when Cat or Abby were looking. (There were a few times she pretended she saw them just to do that)

⇢ ˗ˏˋ Then you proposed that you should starting posting each other on your social media. Not like a hard launch ‘Hey this is my girlfriend’ thing, more like Ellie sneaking in a little candid photo of you in the shitposting hell her insta story is. Which Cat always saw immediately after posting.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ Ellie made the mistake of tagging you on them one time and literally a few hours later you were getting a ‘hey girly’ message from Cat’s account. She tried to convince you that Ellie was cheating on you by sending some old screenshots of their messages and photos of her. Ellie almost pissed herself laughing when you showed her the DMs.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ After a few weeks of fake dating you and Ellie actually became pretty good friends. You had a lot more in common than you thought… other than weird exes.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ You started hanging out alone, or just with Dina and Jesse- since they were both in on it. Whenever she would act couple-y at those times she’d laugh it off as ‘muscle memory’.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ You both agreed that kissing was okay as long as it wasn’t too much, just a small peck here and there. It was mostly because one time at a party Ellie leaned in to whisper something to you and you backed away, unfortunately (or not) Abby saw that and thought it was a little weird.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ After that you acted pretty much like a couple, even in private. Like she’d bring you some take out and you’d kiss her as a thank you, the only thing that was different than actually dating was the fact that you both apologized every time you did that. No matter if it was on accident or not. It wasn’t most of the times

⇢ ˗ˏˋ A good few months passed and Cat finally let Ellie live in peace while Abby moved on from you and went back to Owen. At first you both were relieved that the ‘crazy ex’ thing was over for both of you, but then you realized that meant the end of fake dating. Because obviously you didn’t have actual feelings for each other, it was all just an act, right?

⇢ ˗ˏˋ Yeaaah, not really. You literally didn’t change anything about your relationship after that. Ellie would constantly ask you out on ‘friendly dates’, but you don’t really get high and make out on those, do you?

⇢ ˗ˏˋ Any time you would mention getting a partner she would get so upset. I don’t think she gets angry when she jealous, she just gets sad and thinks that maybe you don’t actually feel anything for her.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ Then you were both at some random party and someone was hitting on you. Before you knew it Ellie was grabbing your wrist, leading you outside and telling you she doesn’t want to fake it anymore (she was a little drunk) ((and high))

⇢ ˗ˏˋ The only thing that changed when you got serious was that you moved in together, as lesbians do. I mean you kind of dated for almost a year, that’s a long time.

I will never ever write in a normal format

[targaryenluvs]

MAKE YOU STAY / EDDIE DIAZ

PAIRING: Dark!Eddie Diaz x Fem!Reader

SUMMARY: Your attempt to leave Eddie won’t work, because he won’t let them, or you.

WARNINGS: Obsession, guilt trip, jealousy, possessiveness, sexual content, manipulation gaslighting & entrapment.

WORDCOUNT: 2.3K Words

A/N: Happy season 7 launch!! I got inspired slightly by @megalony and her new Dark Evan series go check it out!!

Gif not mine, credits to the owner!

Life with Eddie use to be everything you could ever dream of. Whether it be slow mornings getting ready together, sharing a shower and helping Chris get ready. Or an absolute hurricane ripping through your home whilst the three of you stumble over each other to get ready after a sleep in.

No matter the time of day, you loved whatever you were doing, as long as they were by your side.

And Eddie’s protectiveness use to be just another aspect of your relationship you loved, until you opened your eyes.

It use to be small, his anger.

An incessant colleague reaching out for tips and aid in a new project, you being a senior member meaning it wasn’t uncommon for people to reach out to you. You were one of the best workers at the company, well respected and loved as well as brilliant. And always willing to help someone in need.

He use to love that about you. Until it followed you home.

Chris was currently at a friends house, leaving the two of you to an inside date night, “Now on what planet would I ever sit and watch four movies with the title ‘Die Hard’. You sure as hell can’t die that many times.” Eddie shook his head as you refilled each of your respective glasses.

“Sure you can, just ask Chimney.” You gasped before swatting Eddies arm, “Be nice! And put on our show.” The murmuring voices of your favourite characters was more than enough to lull you into his arms, content washing over you. Your ringing phone however, was ready to disturb the peace Eddie had longed for all day.

“Let me just grab this.” His hand scooped your phone up before you could, “Just get it later.” His dismissive tone made you frown, “Give me my phone, please.” You leaned over to snatch it, walking into the hallway. Eddie couldn’t help but massage his temple, did you seriously chose a phone call over peace and quiet in his arms?

He hadn’t noticed how often you picked up your phone, until it interrupted him. It happened often. When the two of you were cooking together, soft music and ambience long forgotten. Almost falling asleep, cuddling, and out of the blue the world was falling apart without you. Eddie thought he could handle it, you were needed, that wasn’t your fault, right? But what he also couldn’t handle was the secretive nature.

Why did you always walk away? Were you hiding something?

And now you were coming home later, clanging into the house at 11, or 12. Sometimes even later. “Where were you?” Eddie stood by the door as you hung your jacket, “Jesus, you scared me E.” His arms were crossed, shoulders tense as you made your way to him, a smile too wide for his liking. “Work ran late, m’ sorry.” As you walked away, his hand caught onto your wrist.

“Ow, let go.” Eddies grip loosened as you retracted your arm, soothing it, “What is your problem?” You looked up to view a sweet smile, “Nothing, just worried about you. When you didn’t call, I got so scared. This world, it’s scary Y/n, you know that, especially during these times.”

Your eyes watered involuntarily at his saddened demeanour, “Oh Eddie, I’m so sorry, I should’ve called. That’s my fault, forgive me?” Your arms came around his neck, before trailing down to his chest, playing with his name tag. “I forgive you, I can also think of a way you can make it up to me.”

His smile was mischievous, and intentions impure. “Oh? And what would that be Mr Diaz?” His hand was heavy on your back and slithering lower by the second, “I think we have an appointment with a bed tonight.”

“I have work tomorrow, so do you.”

“Cmon, for me?” His eyes were pure evil, and you were more than happy to give in, even if you were tired. Really damn tired, but he wanted you, so you should give in right? You did give him a fright. “Take me away Diaz.”

If you’d noticed the signs earlier, maybe you could’ve gotten away. His jealousy, when it did rear its head, was an ugly shade of green.

A late night, again.

Eddie had been by the door for 10, sitting for 20, pacing the kitchen and stress-eating for another 10 before he finally settled into bed. Wide awake of course. The opening of his bedroom door caused him to stir. He watched as you slowly moved around, placing your stuff away, putting your phone on charge and then changing.

He sat upright as you yelped, “Eddie! You scared me, again! Why are you sitting in the dark?” His face was drained of warmth, skin cold to the touch. “Was waiting for you, again.” You frowned at his words, “Baby, you know I’m late these days. Better for you to go to sleep than wait up.” He shook his head, burying his head into your stomach as his body relaxed. Your hands raked through his hair gently, “I think you should consider working from home.”

Your hands stopped in their tracks, working from home? The last time you worked from home was during lockdown, and you’d driven yourself half mad. “Why is that?” Eddie glanced up at you, “You’re barely home, Chris misses you, I miss you. Don’t you want to be with us?” You took a deep breath in before smiling, “Of course I do. I- I’ll see what I can do baby.”

His hands quickly dragged you into bed, “Knew you’d understand amor.” Eddie rested his head in the crook of your neck, his hands slowly making their way underneath your shirt.

“Sweetie, I’m tried.”

“I missed you.” You relented, letting him continue. It seemed to be all you were doing these days, bending backwards and over to please him, literally.

The first time you noticed his behaviour was also when you realised you needed space. Not that he’d give it to you. A new coworker, Harry, had invited not only yourself, but your friend Aleya and Jack out to lunch.

He was a nice guy, very eager to learn and never scared by a little constructive criticism. The only problem was probably his overbearing cologne, very pungent? Intense?

You’d also been driven to work that day, courtesy of your boyfriend. You were working shorter days now, completing about an hour or two of work at home now. It had taken some adjusting, after a few forgetful days and about a million texts from Carla with an impatient Chris at home waiting for you.

You spotted Eddies truck pull up as you wrapped up your conversation with the your three lunch goers, “And that’s me, I’ll see you guys on Monday. Thank you so much for lunch!” You reached out to Aleya for a side hug, the same for Jack and a normal hug for Harry. “Tell Eddie there’ll be a fire at my house later tonight, and he better bring Evan!” Jack joked as you waved him off.

Jack may or may not have a huge crush on Evan.

You hopped in, quickly chucking your purse and files into the back seat before kissing Eddie on the cheek. “Hi! How was Chris’s school?” Eddie shrugged his shoulders, “Fine.” Your eyebrows furrowed at his shortness, “Something wrong?” He turned onto the highway, knuckles tightly gripping the wheel, “You smell like him.”

“Like who? Harry?”

“That his name?”

You rolled your eyes, “No, it’s actually his father’s, middle name Jesus. Care for some wine Eddie?” Not once, had Eddie ever been physical. But raising his voice? Oh that was fair game.

“You think you’re funny huh? Having lunch with other guys and taking the piss outta me?”

“Nothing happened baby, it was lunch. He’s new and trying to fit in and I’m being nice. There’s nothing to worry about I swear.” The silence permeated in the truck, causing the hair on your arms to raise. You hated the silent treatment wholeheartedly.

“Whatever.”

His change in demeanour could flip like a switch, you always assumed it was him putting up a front. But when Eddie showed up the next day, flowers in hand and looking his sharpest, you were forced to reevaluate. “God I wish my boyfriend was that sweet.” Your project partner whispered as you sighed, “That’s Eddie.”

Even your boss wanted you to go with him, “Take the day off sweetie, you deserve it.” And with a pat on the back and a million swooning interns drooling over Eddie, you were sent on your way.

“I got these for you Y/n/n.” Your favourite flowers, arranged perfectly and smelling divine. Your hands wrapped around the bouquet, “Thank you Eddie, they’re perfect.” His smile caused your heart to race, he looked amazing. The Eddie with you that day was incredible.

His infectious laughter, perfect smile and the sweet nothings he whispered into your ear. That, was the Eddie Diaz you knew and loved. A gentleman, who had eyes for only you. Which is why you couldn’t help but wonder, what made him change? How was it possible to go from absolutely furious and unnecessarily jealous to an angel?

You didn’t want to know, and you didn’t want to stay around long enough to find out.

Maybe it was the date, or the fact that you felt as if he deserved an explanation face to face. Either way, if you’d known better, you would have made it away.

“Eddie, we have to talk.” The two of you were currently sitting on the couch, favourite show playing in the background. Eddie hummed along, a slight acknowledgment to your words. “It’s, about us.” Eddie turned the volume down, your sentence piquing his interest.

“What’s wrong?”

“I think, we should break up.”

And with six words, Eddies entire world came crashing down in front of him. What on earth were you talking about? “What did you say?” The smile on Eddies face was anything but sweet or reassuring, a bad attempt at keeping his composure. “You’ve been acting, odd, to say the least.” You stood from the couch as he followed in pursuit, all the way to the kitchen.

“I feel like, all that we’re doing lately is either fighting or sleeping. Every time I come home, you have something to say. Whether it’s about my later nights, about who I was with or what I’m doing on the phone. It’s like I have no privacy at all. I cannot keep a single thing to myself. And if I try to? You blow up at me. I mean last week for example, I tried my hardest to not argue with you by walking away. And all you did was follow me around the house, it drove me crazy. Showing up to my workspace when I tell you I can get more done without random lunch dates. I’m a grown adult but you treat me like a child. And if I stand up for myself I’m cheating. It makes no sense at all Eddie. And I tried to make it work, but I feel like you’re controlling me. I even reduced my hours, because you asked. I moved in even when I wasn’t ready, because you asked. I need a break.” You took a deep breath after your monologue, needing a second.

Turning towards Eddie, he stared straight at you. “I had no idea you felt that way baby. I’m so sorry, I never meant to do any of it. I love you so much, I can’t help but worry. After everything we’ve been through with Shannon,” And there it was, the guilt. It was blinding, clawing its way through you. Shannon. He’d already lost someone he loved, and Chris lost his mother. No wonder he was always to protective over you.

“Hey, I’m not leaving like Shannon okay? What happened was a tragic accident, and I promise nothing like that is going to happen again Eddie.” You immediately engulfed in a hug, his head resting against yours, “I don’t want to loose you, I don’t want Chris to loose you.” Eddie muttered repeatedly as you closed your eyes.

Chris walked into the room, thirsty, tired and curious, “Is something wrong?” You immediately detached yourself from Eddie, wiping away your tears, “Nothings wrong sweetie, did you need something?” He nodded before turning around and walking to his room, “We’ll talk later yeah?” Eddie whispered into your ear before moving ahead.

Sniffles came from underneath Christopher’s blanket, “You alright buddy?” Eddie asked, patting his hair down, “Water.” You watched as Eddie swiftly made his way to the kitchen whilst you sat down, “You need anything else?” Chris’s hand slowly lowered the blanket before smiling your way, “No thanks mum.”

And as quickly as he spoke, he turned over to sleep again. Your eyes were probably protruding out of your head, shock filling your senses. “Mum?” The word sounded foreign on your lips, but apparently comfortable enough on Chris’s.

“He called you mum.” Eddies voice was low, most likely as astounded as you based on the look on his face. You got up slowly, aware of the sleeping boy. You couldn’t help but smile, and kiss his forehead before making your way to Eddie. “I can’t believe it.” Eddies hand came up to wipe away the stray tears before pulling you in and kissing your forehead, “I can.”

“You’re apart of this family baby, always have been.” His words seeped in as he guided you to your bed, whilst you were stuck on autopilot. Chris viewed you as a parent to him, that’s how common you were in his life now, a constant for him to fall back on. He loved you, almost as much as you loved him. Your words weren’t forgotten just swirling in your head, how the hell could you ask for a break now? With this new huge responsibility?

Eddie knew, of course he knew. He was the one encouraging Chris to call you by your new name. Because if there’s one thing Eddie knew he needed, besides Chris?

It’s you, and he’d do anything to make you stay.

[fairlyang]

Prank 🕷️

gwen and miles convince you to help distract Miguel so they can set up yet another prank but there's an unexpected plot twist

w/c: 4K

pairing: miguel o’hara x f!reader

tags: fluffy, no smut soz, cute, soft spot for you, completely oblivious to his feelings for you, you like him, plot twist

part one

"Hey Y/n c'mere real quick!!" Gwen yells as I walk into the cafeteria and head on over to her and Miles.

"What's up guys?" I ask and plop down next to them noticing some boxes on top of the table they were chilling by.

"We thought of a funny prank to do on Miguel....." Miles starts to say as Gwen smiles.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath. It was only a week since they pulled off their last prank on him, with a tiny bit of my help.... I open my eyes and look at them. "Of course you guys did," I start to say and laugh then put on a straight face, "no"

"But Y/n-" Gwen chimes in but I wasn't having it.

"NO- I'm one of the people he can barely tolerate and even now a tiny bit less so if I help again he's gonna actually be mad at me- and for all we know he might be mad as we speak!" I say and shake my head.

"He'll be more more mad at us!! You just gotta distract him for us while we set it up..." Gwen says and makes pleading eyes at me.

"I don't know...."

"Pleaseeee" she says pulling her best puppy dog eyes and nudges Miles' side to do the same.

"I am not doing the eyes-" he mutters and she nudges him again harder.

"Please Y/n- I'm doing this against my wi-" He starts to "plead" but then Gwen covers his mouth and grins at me.

I roll my eyes and shake my head, "He got so annoyed at us last time!!"

"Last time was so harmless though-" Gwen starts to say but I interrupt.

"And this one won't be??" I question and laugh.

"Not what I meant- but look this one is something nice for him-" Gwen starts to explain but I shake my head.

"You guys giving Miguel a nice prank? Miguel O'Hara?" I raise an eyebrow at Gwen then look at Miles.

"In what world-" i start to say but Gwen holds a finger up.

"We felt bad that he got upset last time so we thought we'd make it up to him..." she says slowly and I sigh.

I look at them both and roll my eyes. "Fine but you owe me." I say already regretting my decision.

"YES!!! Thank you!!!!! I promise you won't regret this!" Gwen says excitedly.

"So distract him how?" I ask raising an eyebrow.

"Well I was hoping you'd think of something....." she says and bites her lip.

"Now Gwen-"

"You literally have to do the easiest part!! I mean how hard can it be to distract him...." She says and gives Miles a look.

"I guess I have no choice but to wing it..." I reply and chuckle.

She nods and motions for me to go. "Oh you meant like NOW?" I laugh and shake my head. Crazy.

"Yes now go! We need like an hour or so, good luck!" Gwen says and waves me off.

I wave at them and walk out of the cafeteria. Sneaking one more glance at them and they're whispering and laughing while opening one of the boxes. What did I get myself into?

I sigh as I walk the halls of HQ and heading to Miguel's office. Now the thing about Miguel is he's a very sarcastic, sometimes cold, very angry man. I somehow ended up kind of befriending him by just being nice to him. It wasn't a hard thing to do, I've always been kind to those around me.

Thinking I started on the wrong foot on my first day when I bumped into him like a dumbass but he didn't care. I slowly was gaining his trust and he started opening up to me, he started letting me hang in his office, I'd bring him extra food, we'd be conversing a lot which apparently shocked the other spider people.

I didn't question it, just assumed maybe he wanted a friend, someone he can be normal with. I didn't wanna accidentally read the situation wrong so I just make sure to be there for him when I can.

Although after spending that much time with him it had played with my mind a lot and I only recently started looking at him differently. Feeling something more than what you do with friends, but still I kept it friendly and tried to push those thoughts away even though I couldn't throw the butterflies in my stomach away.

And even with last week's prank he wasn't that cold towards me, he was still civil. Somewhat...

But even then it wouldn't be odd of me to go to his office, I usually visit him anyway and he doesn't really care unless he's in a mood, though he's never exactly rude to me.... But for the sake of allll of us I hope he's chill today.

I made it outside his office and I peep through the window and he's looking at his screens. I open the door as quietly as I can only to be met with his screams at the screens. So he definitely didn't hear me.

I quietly close the door and lean against the wall. He's swiping along muttering swears in English and Spanish and I widen my eyes. Then he turns around to look me right in the eye and snarls, "You're breathing loud Y/n, what do you need?"

Before quickly turning back and muttering, "Chingdada madre-" (mother fucker)

I cover my mouth to hide my laughter and shake my head. I'm fucking breathing loud??? They owe me big time.

"Be nice Miguelito, I just came to... check up on you.." I say and walk up to him.

He turns back around to me quickly pressing a button on his watch to remove his mask, and scoffs. "Check up on me? Oh so now I need hawk eyes all over me at all times? People are always coming in and out asking if I'm okay, if I need help, and I am tired of it. Do I look like I need help?!?"

I bite my lip to keep me from laughing and give him a knowing look. He sighs and turns back to his screens. "I'm getting exasperated. Why do you do it? I'm shocked you aren't sick of coming in daily. I know you're one of the very few who is around me a lot and surprisingly always in good moods, but how do you do it?"

He turns back to face me and crosses his arms "Oye nomas quiero ser buena amiga." I say and laugh sitting on a chair in front of him. (I just wanna be a good friend)

"And I don't know maybe y'know because that's what friends do..... plus i don't like seeing that vein on your neck that looks like it's gonna pop when you're mad. It is not a pretty sight.." I say shaking my head and jokingly shiver.

"That's what friends do, huh? Well, lucky me, then." He says sarcastically making me roll my eyes before he continues.

"That vein is what makes me. So maybe if everyone could leave me be sometimes, that'd be juuuuust perfect. And it won't ever explode." He says and I cover my mouth to not laugh.

"You're acting as if you hate my company. I'm one of the only people you can tolerate." I tease and laugh again. "And not just that one, also the one on your forehead, you could see that one from a mile away on special occasions." I snicker then cover my mouth with my hand. "and hey I never have your vein like that!"

He rolls his eyes, groaning. "Oh, really, never?" He teases. "Are you sure about that?" I stick my middle finger up at him earning me a glare.

"But you're one of the only ones who don't drive me completely insane whenever I see you, that much I'll admit to." He says raising an eyebrow at me.

"Yes I'm sure because otherwise you would've kicked me out, thrown something at me, or wouldn't have let me even take a step close to you." i say with a laugh spinning on the chair. "And awww que amable eres Miggy." I tease and smile. (How nice of you)

He chuckles, and when he speaks, it sounds like he's joking and being sarcastic, "Maybe the reason why I'm so calm around you compared to everyone else, is because I'm secretly love with you, or have a crush on you." I nervously chuckle and shrug, huh?

this man is so random...

He laughs again, and then he stops, he looks more serious. "No, but seriously, you're right, you don't make me want to rip my hair out. I'm not saying we're best friends or anything... but you're at least tolerable."

"Now that would be such a plot twist." I say and let out a nervous laugh. "I'm offended you don't think we are best friends but y'know what, we could get there." I reply with a genuine smile.

"I'm actually a really good guy deep down. I'm only really harsh and nasty to the ones who deserve it." He says with a shrug. "If someone cross the line, it's not my fault for having a bad attitude, it's their fault for making it happen." He says and I shake my head.

"And hey if you haven't noticed it already, I tend to be a very, very stubborn man." He says and I bite my lip. "VERY deep down." I joke making him roll his eyes. I gasp and widen my eyes, "and noooo really? I had no idea." I say sarcastically with a little smirk on my lips making him roll his eyes.

He crosses his arms and looks away. After a few seconds, he turns back to me, and his expression is different. "Why are you here, anyways?" He asks, sounding curious rather than angry. "I know the official reason is to check up on me, but what's the unofficial reason, hm?"

I bite the inside of my cheek and shake my head. Shit. "Unofficial reason? What are you on about?" I say and chuckle. Don't panic don't panic.

"Oh, come on, I'm not that blind. You're here for more than just checking up on me." He folds his arms and has a straight face. "Well, I'm all ears, 'm waiting. Spill it."

His voice sounds like it's a mix between annoyed and teasing, but more of the second than the first. Why does he know me so well???

Then I think of the perfect excuse. "Well I was kinda hoping you would tell me... two little birdies told me to come up for some reason and wouldn't stop giggling." I say letting out a chuckle.

Not a complete lie.

He looks at me, his eyes widening slightly before he lets out a short laugh. "Those fools are up to something, aren't they?" He snickers. "And I'm assuming they didn't tell you what it was?"

"Wait- I thought you would know." I say and shake my head laughing. Thank god he bought it.

"You think I know? There's not a single fucking clue in my mind of what those little gremlins are up to at any given time. They could be pranking someone, pulling the strings behind some kind of elaborate scheme, or planning my downfall. Honestly, who knows?" He says then groans.

I burst out laughing and smile. Too bad he knows them well enough too. "Or potentially all of the above." I say and laugh when a phone rings.

I pull mine out of the pocket of my suit and it wasn't it so I look up at him. He looks back seeing his phone on his desk and shrugs. "Do not tell me they planted a phone in here somewhere to be obnoxious-" he starts to say and I feel a buzzing on the jacket I had on, I widen my eyes and gasp. There it was. HOW THE FUCK????

I take it out and scoff. Those little shits- I answer the phone and scoff. "What are you guys scheming huh?" I ask now completely confused considering I didn't even notice them slip it in.

"Come on down to the cafeteria now!!" Gwen says with a little giggle. "And with Miguel!!" She quickly says before hanging up leaving me speechless.

What the fuck.

Then I look up at Miguel and he looks at me dumbfounded. He takes a step forward and points a finger at me. "Let me find out you were lying to me-"

"I didn't even know the phone was there!!!" I say and shake my head laughing. Sneaky fuckers.

"Well we gotta go to the cafeteria so let's go." I say walking towards the door and motion for him to come.

He groans and soon follows. "If it's anything sticky or stupid-"

"You'll yell at them?" I finish and he shakes his head.

"Oh I could do much worse than just yell-" he says and the protective older sister came out.

"Miguel!!"

"What? They're beyond irritating." He says and lifts his hand up in defense with a smirk.

"They're just kids. Don't tell me you're scared of teenagers....." I tease and nudge him.

He rolls his eyes at me and we continue walking towards the cafeteria. "They're harmless pranks anyway. At least the ones they pull on me... I can imagine they might vary though..." I say and bite my lip to stop myself from laughing.

"What's the worst they've done to you?" He asks looking at me raising an eyebrow.

"I think switch up the salt for sugar. My tacos didn't deserve that treatment." I say and laugh.

He scoffs and rolls his eyes making me snicker. "Do I wanna ask?" I say looking up at him.

"I'll tell you, two days ago, esos cabrones me hecharon salsa tan caliente en mi agua, en frente de mi." He says and I smack my hand on my mouth about to burst out laughing and he gives me a glare. (Those fucks put some extremely hot hot sauce in my water in front of me)

"What do you mean in front of you??? You didn't see the color change???? Or hell- THEM? " I ask before covering my mouth again feeling my stomach hurt because I'm not letting the laughter out.

"I wish I knew how they did it, they're sneaky, quiet, like actual fucking spiders because I didn't hear them but I was just in the office and I took a sip and boom my whole face is red in seconds." He says annoyed making me widen my eyes.

"Did you swallow???!?!" I say finally bursting out of laughter and he glared harder but then looks away.

I gasp and cackle. "Estas ciego?" I ask teasingly and he growls. (Are you blind?)

"Shut up."

I lift my hands up in defense and laugh. "At least it wasn't poison." I say and snicker.

He nudges me but harder than I did it and I laugh harder. "You know what you're right, at least they didn't kill me." He says looking at me and rolled his eyes.

I giggle shaking my head as we walk into the cafeteria and I widen my eyes, my mouth falls open. Oh my fucking god.

I blink and cover my mouth suddenly feeling a flush suddenly creep onto my cheeks. They set up a fucking candlelit dinner for two in the middle of the cafeteria. Was I- was I set up????

I step closer to the table and see Miles and Gwen in waiter suits behind some decorations they set up. I look at them absolutely shocked and they just have little smirks on their faces. I then raise my eyebrows at them and look at Miguel behind me and he's holding two wine glasses with a small smile on his face. "YOURE FUCKING LYING-" I scream hiding my now flushed face and bursting out laughing.

I felt my face turn red, and I was unsure if it was from embarrassment or the fact that I didn't mind it.... I calmed myself down and just stared at everything with a shocked expression.

"Th- this was a prank on ME?" I say laughing and shaking my head.

There is no way......

He smirks and nods. I cover my face and wipe the tears that were falling out from laughing so hard. I turn to look at Gwen and Miles and shake my head. "You two owe me a HUGE favor." I say, playfully glaring at them.

They laugh and Gwen motions for me to take her arm so I grab it and she escorts me to one of the chairs making me grin while Miles just stands up there getting the bottle of wine trying to open it. I bite my lip watching him struggle a bit and Miguel turns his attention from looking at my reaction to Miles. "Oh my god- Miles give me that-"

Miles puts a hand up and waves him off to sit down. Miguel hesitantly sits down across from me but doesn't take his eyes off him. "Did you not get the corkscrew???" He growls and runs a hand over his hair looking stressed as hell.

I laugh and cover my face shaking my head. "No lo quiebres cabron-" he says standing up to grab the bottle from him. (Don't break it bitch)

Miles lets him get it and looks at Gwen who widens her eyes at him. He makes a face back and I turn to look back at Miguel who somehow popped it with his bare hands. Obviously this man is jacked but a cork???

I chuckle and shake my head. He looks back to me and smiles, sitting back down. He serves us both a glass and I happily take the glass from him, taking a sip. "So how did this come to be?" I ask curiously taking turns looking at the three of them.

"Can't say I'm shocked, about these two," I say nothing towards Miles and Gwen before turning back to look at Miguel, "how did you get involved? And why this?" I ask and cross my arms over my chest now looking at all of them.

Miles and Gwen both turn to look at Miguel, I look at him raising an eyebrow, when he speaks, "it was my idea."

"What-"

"I'm gonna be honest with you alright? But I just- I need you to hear me out." He says nervously and I nod.

He then looks over at Miles and Gwen and motions for them to leave which they do, walking over to the kitchen before Gwen gives me a sly wink when Miguel turned to look at me. I bite my lip and look back at him, his eyes looking so sincere and I was just appalled. My stomach felt like it was flipping in circles and I was getting a little nervous myself.

"Over the past few months... I've felt myself open up to you, a lot. I usually don't do that but with you it felt like I could just relax and not have to worry so much and just be myself with you." He explains and I feel my heart racing. Oh my god-

I gulp my nerves down and nod as he continues, "You give me a sense of normality and tranquility in this place and I haven't had that in a long time. You've barely been here six months and I feel like you've changed the way I view things, and how I act towards others. You've changed me for the better." He says then lets out a deep breath, his hands slightly shaking against the table.

"I- I think- no-" he stutters and then takes another deep breath and leans forward still looking deeply into my eyes. "I've grown to like you... a lot... and more than just friends."

I felt my heart race and I bite my lip to try to hide my smile from appearing so quickly. Miguel O'Hara likes me?

I was speechless, I couldn't believe the words just came out of his mouth- I didn't think he, of all people here, would think of me that way.... It made my heart flutter knowing he likes me back and suddenly it clicked, that's why he's been so open to me.

He looked at my face carefully, probably to see if he'd make me uncomfortable at all, but he continued, "so I thought this would be a... alright idea for me to uh admit this to you." He says now looking away from me as I take notice of his pink cheeks. Holy shit-

"Well I'm really glad that I was able to help you, I guess I understand why everyone was shocked when you let me in." I say and chuckle, I continue looking at him as he looked off to the side.

I take a deep breath and smile, "I like you too." I say and his face perks up.

"I've really enjoyed spending time with you, and having all kinds of conversations together. I didn't really want to assume you liked me back, I didn't wanna seem cocky or anything, or accidentally cross a line I wasn't meant to-"

He cuts my rambling off by looking up at me and reaching over to softly grab my hands, rubbing his thumb gently on my skin. I bite my lip and hold his hands back. "So let's have this be our first date, yeah?" He says softly and I nod, giving him a wide smile making him return it back.

Suddenly I hear the sounds of giggles and I didn't need my spidey senses to tell me where it came from. "Alright you guys can come in." Miguel shouts out and instantly the sounds of their footsteps are heard.

They run up to us with Gwen carrying a tray and Miles smiles at me. I smile at them both as I hear Miguel sigh, I turn to him and he gives me a soft smile. Suddenly Gwen is putting down the tray of a very clearly homemade pizza in a decent shaped heart. "Thank you madam." I say and she winks.

She set me up. She and Jess are the only ones who have known my true feelings for Miguel..... I doubt she'd told him, but that's why she knew I would be cool with this. So sneaky...

"You're a real one Gwen." I whisper to her and she mouths 'I know' as she takes a step back to stand next to Miles.

They both whisper to each other as I turn to look at Miguel and realize we were still holding hands. I couldn't help the rising heat on my face, I'd never been one to confess my feelings like that, for anyone, ever. Maybe he changed me a bit too...

I squeeze his hands making him grin and I hear the snap of a picture, or multiple actually. He closed his eyes and breathed in, "Miguel it's fine." I say and smile at Gwen who was holding up her phone.

'Send me them later' I mouth to her and she excitedly nods. "Alright thank you guys for your help-" Miguel starts but Miles cuts him off.

"Wait you're not gonna let us join you-"

"No-"

"We're kinda hungry man-"

"I don't care-"

"Malo." Miles mutters and Miguel lifted a hand up probably to throw something at him, and I reached over and intertwined our fingers together. (Bad)

He looked back at me and let out a deep breath, rubbing his thumb on my skin again. His chest was no longer heaving and his breathing was steady. "It's fine." I whisper and he sighs.

He nods and gives me a small smile, almost like a little thank you. I return it back and grin until Miles decided to speak up again, "No fucking way you calmed down the beast-"

"That's fucking it-" Miguel says and letting go of my hands to stand up and quickly stormed over to Miles who made a run for it as soon as he heard Miguel speak.

I roll my eyes and watch as Miguel began to chase after Miles all over the cafeteria. Gwen sat down across from me and looked down at the pizza, I sigh and nod. She gives me a grin and instantly takes a piece, I follow her lead and grab one as well while we watched the free entertainment in front of us.

[gettinshiggywithit]

Hello! I'm new on this requesting stuff on Tumblr, so please don't mind it if i make a mistake/explain my request badly! (Also English isn't my first language.) Can you do a Kenji x gn reader fluff? reader is the same age with Kenji, and readers ability is like demon, idk how to explain it but the reader has the same abilities with nezuko from kny. if you don't want to write it, that's okay! Thanks if you do it <3 Have a nice day/night!

「ᴋᴇɴᴊɪ x ɴᴇᴢᴜᴋᴏ!ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ」

Scenario:- what’s it like dating the ray of sunshine of the ADA? Oh and also you happen to have a radass ability!

Pairing :- Kenji x gn!nezuko!reader

Genre:- fluff

Type:- headcannons

W/c:- 494

A/N:- I FINALLY GOT THE MOTIVATION TO DO A REQUEST YAYY🥳🥳🥳🥳 also heads up because incase it wasnt clear,reader is 14! I hope u enjoy this nonny!

First of all he finds your ability so fascinating! The fact that you can grow and shrink and use your blood as a weapon?????

“You city folk really are amazing”

Also loves that u have super strength just like him!

Would definitely teach you any little games he made up to play using his ability.

Also i think he’d definitely think its cool and a little funny that both the other kids in the agency that are his age have a ‘demon’ related ability!

Would take you out to all his favorite places in yokohama if ur new and would introduce you to all of his friends around the city

When you have the (reasonable) fears or doubts about some of his ‘friends’ he just laughs and says that theyre harmless!!

When you ask atsushi about it he tells you about that one time he was assigned to work with kenji and how he absolutely REKT those gange members

You never question kenji about his friends after that,okay maybe not never but you do it significantly less.

He knows your ability is hella strong so he doesn’t really worry about you keeping yourself safe much.

And after you get a bit of training from the agency members he’s even more sure of you!

But if by chance you get captured or are in actual active danger,he loses his cool.

He wants to protect the people he cares about but he also knows he needs a clear head.

So after Kunikida gives the team a plan of action,kenji leads the charge.

If you’re in mortal danger he may not even wait for the agency to give him a plan of action.

Kunikida knows he cant stop him so he just sends atsushi and dazai with him.

For dates, other than the aforementioned restaurant trips i think he’d love taking you to parks or places close to nature.

He’d teach you everything he knows and would tell you all about his family and farm

Loved telling you about his cows tbh.

He also gives really tight hugs!

Like the kid will pick you up and spin you around! I mean he can, so why would he not!

The rest of the agency think y’all are cute af

Kyouka loves that there’s someone else her age too!

The three of yall have best friend outings and chill together!

Just three of yokohama’s youngest and deadliest ability users~ no biggie!

When u joined the agency,yosano and dazai made a bet on how long it’d be till yall got together.

Yosano lost and owed dazai a loveless crab dinner btw~

Overall he really does love you and actually thinks you might be the one he wants to spend the rest of his life with!

He’s adorable like that 🥺

Tagging:- @kemis-world @diagonal-queen

All rights reserved © 2023 gettinshiggywithit . Please do not repost, modify or claim as yours.

[written-in-flowers]

Kimura Delivery Service: Part 2

Chapter 2: W is for White Rascals

Pairing: fem!OC x Rocky

Word Count: 11k

Genre: Fluff

Fandom: High & Low: The Story of S.W.O.R.D

Summary: After a life of swinging her fists, Sakyia is hopeful about her easy going job of delivering packages...However, her aunt neglected to mention the "regulars": The gang leaders of S.W.O.R.D. and the undeniable affection they all grow to have for her.

Overall Warnings: blood and violence, fighting, gang activity, crime, mentions of death, multiple relationships, girlboss being a girlboss, not really 'poly' but girl has a string of lovers,

Part 1 &lt;; | > Chapter 3

Tagged: @belle64 @straysugzhpe (if you'd like to be tagged, let me know in the replies!)

***

Once she got a feel for the delivery service, Sakyia began enjoying it more. Her aunt appeared more backed up in orders than she’d realized. Every morning, Sakyia woke up, did her usual routine, put on her jacket and went downstairs. She’d grown to like the Sannoh neighborhood and the people in it. People welcomed her with smiles instead of scowls. They offered her things like bundles of apples for her health or insisted she take a basket of baked goods to her mother. Sakyia had never met such kind people before. Though, with every good aspect comes a bad one. Cobra did not lie when he mentioned the gangs to her. She’d been told what streets to avoid, and what the people wore so should she see them, she could avoid them. Sakyia knew better than to seek out a fight with more than possibly two or three people; she could fight well, but not that well. Whenever anyone asked her, Sakyia said she’d simply drive away if they chased her. During her first week, she didn’t run into anyone particularly bothersome, but she kept herself on guard for the moment it came.

“Just run away,” her mother warned her during their lunch break together. “I don’t want you coming back to me bruised up and bloody.”

“I have no interest in fighting anyone,” she replied, sitting curled on her barber chair and eating her lunch. “I don’t do that anymore.”

“Mhm,” she responded, unconvinced as she prepared her station for her next client. “I see you with that punching bag you found outside. You’re always punching and kicking it like it owes you money.”

She and the other girls chuckled. The Ichiago Milk girls came to the salon as they’d said. Askua sat at a nail station, having a young woman working on her fingers. The twins both finished having their hair styled, and Junko took their place. Sakyia liked having them around; they treated her as one of them and her mother liked them. 

"It's good exercise," Sakyia said. "It keeps me in shape."

And also prepared. She still hadn't told her mother about the SWORD gangs, though she'd approached Hana about it. 

"You know if I'd told you in front of your mother, she'd forbid it. I didn't tell you because I thought you might say 'no'. If you want to back out, then I'll understand."

Sakyia kept the job when her aunt raised her pay. She'd told Hana if fighting off thugs is a job hazard, she'd be compensated for it. Still, she kept it from her mother. Finishing her lunch, she checked her phone. She had a pick up order in half an hour, but she could do a drop off or two beforehand. 

"Pfft, as if you need it," said Junko. "Your body's perfect. All the boys are always staring at you."

"I don't do it for boys, Junko."

"They stare anyways," she replied, staying still in her seat as the stylist started on her hair. "I wish I knew how you did it. All of them like you."

Sakyia knew she said this from a place of curiosity, not jealousy. Shiba and Oshiage told her Junko could be boy crazy, often falling in love with any pretty boy she sees. Sakiya didn't understand it at all, but she didn't judge. 

"I don't know," she shrugged. "I don't pay much attention to them."

"They pay attention to you," said Shiba with a teasing smile. 

"Especially Cobra," her sister gave an identical smile. "He's always looking at you when you're not looking at him."

"It's super cute," Askua said. 

Sakyia blushed, focusing on her phone instead. "Hush, you two," she said in a small voice, hiding her face. "He's not interested, and I wouldn't care if he was. He's just a guy."

A guy who made her feel 'the butterflies' whenever he came around. 

"Ugh, you're so stubborn, Sakyia," Junko huffed. "If I even looked half as good as you…"

"You're beautiful as you are, Junko, and someone will see that soon," she assured her. "In the meantime, I gotta go."

"Already?" The twins said in unison. 

"I have a long list," she said. She kissed her mother's cheek, "I might be back late. Don't wait for me."

"You know I will anyway."

She said farewell to the ladies and began her route. Sakyia went about her day making deliveries and picking up packages to take across town. Regulars already knew her by the second week, and prepared their "tips". These usually came in forms of money, but she sometimes received other items: charms, trinkets, books, or groceries. Sakyia didn’t mind. She’d grown to enjoy it honestly. It became one of the little perks of having the courier position. She usually came home with money to put in the box underneath her mother’s bed, and other things. 

A particularly heavy package made her pause midday. On the top, the receiver’s name was printed on the sticker label. ‘Asahina Yamato, Asahina Motors.’ Yamato happened to be Cobra’s best friend who ran a mechanic shop. This means the possible chance of running into Cobra there. She couldn’t avoid delivering it; she thought about what the other ladies said about him: how he often looked at her when she didn’t notice and his obvious interest in her. Sakyia doubted it, but she couldn’t help flexing her scarred hand when she thought about him. Not many asked about her scars. Usually because they didn’t notice them, but Cobra’s too observant for her. 

She put the mechanic shop in her navigation app, and headed there. The garage door remained wide open, and she saw a trio of motorcycles parked out front. Much like the rest of Sannoh, the building appeared old needing a fresh coat of paint and cleaner windows. Sakyia liked it this way. It reminded her of home, strangely enough. She parked her scooter near the garage entrance, and peeked inside to see a seating area with two worn out couches and a low coffee table. On one of them, she saw Yamato cleaning an engine part with a rag. On the other, she saw Cobra. She took a second to observe him: he leaned back on the couch, smoking a cigarette and relaxed. He appeared to be in thought, deep thought from what she guessed. Yamato didn’t seem to mind since the engine part kept him occupied. She wondered what he could be thinking about. She knew almost nothing about him, but if she learned things about him then he’d have to learn about her. She didn’t know if she wanted to share anything personal about herself. 

“I’m glad Noboru is back and well,” said Yamato. “I hope he’s right about the casino project and Kuryu.”

“He is,” Cobra responded. “Kuryu is going to destroy this town and rebuild it; we can’t let them do that. It’ll ruin so many people’s lives, and change everything.”

“It doesn’t help that it’s corrupted as well.” 

Kuryu? Casino project? She’d never heard anything about it. Her aunt told her that some parts of the town went under redevelopment, and housing costs went up. Luckily, it’d yet to touch the delivery business. The news disheartened her slightly. She’d only arrived in the town. Moving a second time won’t be easy for her, her mother, or Auntie Hana. 

“Are you going to keep standing in the doorway or actually come inside, Sakyia?” Cobra’s voice cut through her thoughts, and she blushed bashfully. 

“Oh, um, well, uh…I didn’t want to interrupt anything important,” she said, shuffling into the light. “I have a package for Yamato.”

“Oh good, it’s here!” Yamato smiled, standing up immediately. “It’s the new part for my bike,” he told them both, coming outside to see the heavy box in her cart. He lifted it out for her to bring inside, “I couldn’t find it anywhere in town, so I had to order it. Now I can get rid of that annoying rattling sound.”

“If you just sign here,” she felt Cobra’s eyes on her, and ‘the butterflies’ came back, “I can head on out of your way.”

“Yeah, of course.”

Yamato took her clipboard to sign, and she gazed around the shop. “Your family owns this place, I’m guessing?”

“Yeah, my dad did,” he said. “He’s the one who taught me how to fix cars and bikes.” He saw her scooter outside, “Is it running okay? Koichi often had trouble with the wheels.”

“It’s doing okay so far,” she replied, trying her best to ignore Cobra, “It’s old, but it runs well enough.” 

“You seem pretty at home on it,” Cobra finally spoke, putting out his cigarette on an ashtray. “Have you ridden one before?” 

“Not really, but it’s mostly about maintaining balance and I’m pretty good at that.” Thanks to Jiro and the hours he made her walk on a beam in their backyard. She could still feel the bar on her feet sometimes. “My dad rode a motorcycle, so I sort of picked up tips from him.”

“So, then you like guys with bikes?” Yamato asked, handing her the clipboard. “Cobra and I go riding all the time, right Cobra?” he glanced over at him with a grin, and Cobra returned it with indifference. “You should come with us sometime. Cobra’s bike is big enough to fit two.”

The image of her riding with Cobra crossed her mind. It reminded her of her parents: her dad steering and her mom’s arms wrapped around him, her cheek on his shoulder and a smile on her face. She pushed it from her mind, “Eh, thanks for the offer, but I think I’m fine on my scooter.” She checked the signature, ripping off Yamato’s copy and giving it to him. “Thanks, guys. See ya around.”

Run. Run from Cobra and his pretty, observant eyes. 

“Wait,” Yamato called to her, “Your tip.” He dug in his overall pocket to hand her a few bills, which she pocketed.  “Are you hungry?” He asked her, “My mom made some rice balls.”

A snack did sound good. The constant traveling and moving about worked up an appetite. But, this meant being in Cobra’s presence. “Sure,” she shrugged, “I could eat.” 

"Great! Have a seat. I'll be back."

Cobra followed his friend with his eyes while Sakyia took the couch opposite him. Yamato's absence left a tense air between them. He and Noboru had been alone when Sakyia rushed out of the gas station. No doubt Noboru told him at least part of her story. 

"So, why did they call you 'Viper'?" Cobra asked, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. When she froze, he said, "Noboru mentioned it to me yesterday. He said you fought in the warehouse fight clubs."

'Fight Club' implies people wanted to be there. She shifted in her seat, regretting the rice ball offer. "People did. I didn't like it."

"Why?"

"Because it was a lame nickname," she said. "They called me that because I was fast."

"I thought you didn't know how to fight?" She saw a shadow of a smile on his face. 

"I'd…well…I'd rather not talk about that part of my life," she said, fidgeting with the loose threads on her jeans. "I’m not very proud of it,” Especially after Yoshi. She looked around the garage once more, and saw photographs nearby. She saw a few photos of Yamato, Cobra and Noboru, all smiling and happy. A very stark contrast to the brooding man she’d come to meet. “You’re close to him,” she said, “Noboru, I mean.”

“We’ve been best friends since childhood,” he replied. “We grew up in this town together. That's why we want to save it. It’s our home.”

“From the redevelopment project?” she assumed. 

“Yeah,” he nodded. “The Kuryu families want to build a casino here, and it’s causing people to move out and abandon their businesses. Tettsu’s family is already thinking of closing their bath house.”

“Hm, what a shame,” she grinned, “I never got to go.” 

Recalling Tettsu’s offer that first night made them both chuckle softly. Sakyia admitted she liked his smile. “It really is a shame though. This place was starting to grow on me. Even with the thugs that hang around this town; the people are really nice. I'm not used to that."

"They see that you're a good person," he said. When she turned to him, "It's a small place. Word spreads around quickly."

"Very quickly."

"I'm back!" 

Yamato returned with a plate of triangular rice balls. Sakyia reached forward to grab one, and her hand brushed right into Cobra’s. The brief touch felt alien to her, but did not make her skin crawl. In fact, it made her want to hold it. They both blushed and picked up opposite ones. She turned the conversation to Yamato, doing her best to avoid what happened. She asked about his family and his garage. She couldn't help noticing Cobra watching her. When will that ever stop? 

"-Then something serious happened with Noboru, and we wanted to give him a place to come home to," Yamato concluded. "But, as you know, he ended up working for Ieruma instead."

"I kind of don't blame him. He must've felt so alone and lost. It'd be like them to corner someone like that," she said. "Luckily, he has you two." Sakyia wished she had friends like that. Perhaps things might have turned out differently. "He did do good things with them, though. He helped my mother and I get away from my stepfather and his debt collectors. Because of his cleverness, I didn't have to fight anymore."

"Fight? You fight? I thought you didn't," he said, bemused. 

She needed to start thinking before talking. "She used to fight in the warehouses on the bayside," Cobra answered for her. "Right?"

"Yeah."

"Wow!" Yamato said, eyes widened. "Those pit fights are no joke. I've heard they fight until someone's knocked out."

"Or yields," she added. 

"You must be good then," Yamato said. "Maybe even as good as Cobra. You should see him-"

"-Yamato-"

"-He's very fast and precise. He's tough stuff. He wouldn't be our leader if he wasn't."

Clearly, the praise bothered Cobra. Humbleness? Or is he like her and doesn't want to show their abilities yet? 

"I bet he is good," she said. "He looks like he could handle himself in a fight."

"Like you wouldn't believe."

Her phone vibrated in her pocket, and realized she'd spent too long there. "Ah, crap, I gotta go," she said, standing up. "Thanks for the rice balls."

"Anytime. Really. Cobra and I are usually here during the day-"

"-Yamato-"

She giggled, "I'll see you two around."

She got back on her scooter to continue her route. Her stomach churned while she rode away. She shouldn't have said so much, but it came out of her. She'd hoped to keep that part of her life to herself; it isn't good and it's not who she is anymore. She worried they might think she's a fighting machine, which she was, but she wanted to leave that behind. She wanted to be normal. She wanted a regular life with regular friends. Her aunt already gave her a job because of what she could do.

Though, she did want to see Cobra fight one day. 

Sakyia rode through the day and into the night. Auntie Hana extended her routes after her first week, so she finally saw the rest of Chikuni City. It was drastically different from Sannoh. People had more money here, and the stores did not appear so run down or old. She walked into night clubs and bars full of people, dropping off packages at back doors and meeting the owners. Her aunt’s clients were glad her service was up and running; they all appeared to be too busy to deliver or pick up from her. She liked the people she'd met, though she still preferred those back in Sannoh. 

Downtown turned into a different place after dark. The lights drowned out the stars, and the noise of the streets filled the air. People walked out of various nightclubs and bars along the strip, and the atmosphere changed. She saw herself coming to such a lively place with friends, out for a night of drinking and dancing. Sakyia never went into a club before. But, fortunately, her route took her exactly there.

'Rocky Mutsugi, Club Heaven, 8pm.' The address of the place was printed alongside the name. Rocky Mutsugi's package was small, no larger than her fist and fit in her bag. She wondered what it could be, but she wouldn't dare ask. What the customers ordered or received isn't her business. The route took her to a nightclub where the name 'Club Heaven' went across the top in sleek, thin letters. A large man dressed in white stood outside the door, letting in groups of people at a time to avoid maximum capacity. Timidly approaching the front of the line, she showed the bouncer her clipboard and mentioned Rocky by name. 

"He's inside. VIP lounge," he answered in a gruff voice. 

A crowd of people protested when the bouncer allowed her through. Sakyia ignored them and walked inside. Music blared through speakers high on the dark walls and over the leather couches; the bright white lines shone from columns throughout the room and high above. A sea of people danced underneath colored lights; almost everyone there wore white. From the dancers on platforms, to the bartenders, and to the DJ at his elevated booth, everyone wore outfits of all white. Only a few of the clubbers wore different colors, usually the men, but some women did as well. Sakyia found it odd; she didn’t know clubs had dress codes. She put this aside and searched around for the VIP area. They're usually roped off from the rest of the room, but she saw no such place in the crowded room. 

Spotting a man in a white jacket and jeans, she walked over to him. His long black hair curtained his face, and he appeared to be scanning the room casually. She gulped thickly and spoke. 

"Uh, excuse me?" She caught his attention, "Sorry to bother you, but I was wondering if you knew where I could find Rocky Mutsugi? I'm Ms. Kimura’s courier?" She prayed to God that he knew what that meant.

Thankfully, he did. Yet, before he could say anything another man quickly came around the staircase and stepped between them. At least, Sakyia thought they were a man at first. Seeing them up close, there appeared to be a sense of femininity about them. She couldn't quite place it, but she sensed it. The woman glared at her, almost bothered by her presence. 

"Hey, he's not interested," she said spitefully. "So beat it-"

"-The hell?" Sakyia instantly shot back. "Look, I'm not interested in him. I'm looking for-"

"-She works for Hana, Kizzy," the man said in her ear. "She has Rocky's package."

The woman's eyes lit up at once and the disgust vanished in seconds. They swept a glance over Sakyia, then she spoke. 

"I'm so sorry! I thought you were hitting on my boyfriend," she apologized. "Welcome to Club Heaven, I'm Kizzy."

They shook hands. The sudden change in character surprised her. "Thanks," she said, "I was asking your boyfriend where I could find Rocky. I have his package and I don't want to be late giving it to him."

"Oh, honey, even if you were late, he'd still let it slide," Kizzy said. "He's upstairs. Follow me."

She followed the couple upstairs into a lounge area behind a door. Inside, she saw more dark furniture and a bar illuminated by white lights. On a long couch sat a group of women, all dressed in white. She noticed the men in the room wore white outfits, and appeared to be eyeing her once she walked in. So much damn white everywhere. Her body instantly tensed walking into the room. She hadn't run into any problems lately, and she hoped she didn't have to do it now. She remembered what Cobra said about the gangs of SWORD. These men must be one of them. 

She didn't want to fight. 

"Rocky," Kizzy said, "Ms. Kimura’s courier is here." 

The man in the center of the couch sat up. Blond hair perfectly coiffed and styled, he wore red circular glasses and a handcuff hung from his left wrist. Dark eyes scanned her over his sunglasses, which made her shift uncomfortably. She'll admit, he was handsome, so she understood why so many women sat near him. Something about him exuded confidence and power that attracted people to him.  His white coat had black zebra stripes down the sleeves, and he wore slacks. More white. Why so much damn white? It gave her a headache. He observed her for a moment, but did not speak. 

"Um, uh, hello," she said awkwardly. "I'm Sakyia. I have your package right here," she withdrew it from her bag to show him, clipboard under her arm. "I'm sorry if I'm intruding on anything, but the instructions said it had to be delivered to you directly," though she couldn't imagine what she's walking in on. 

"'Sakyia'...so close to 'Sakura', how sweet," giggled Kizzy. "Right, Rocky?" 

"Uh, yes, okay, well," Sakyia stepped forward but Rocky stood up. "Here's…the package."

He stood a few inches taller than her. Broad and smelling of sweet cologne, she didn't need anymore examples of why the women in the room eyed him so fondly. Men like him tended to have strings of admirers. It reminded her vaguely of Jesse, who often had a girl or two following him around. Though, he never paid them any mind, much like the man before her. 

"Hana never mentioned her courier would be a woman," he said, voice deep and rough, yet not off putting.  "This job can be dangerous for a woman riding alone."

"It's been fine so far. My aunt wouldn't have given me the job if she thought I could not handle it," she said, feeling the need to prove she could do the job. 

"Hana is your aunt?" He signed her clipboard. 

"Yes. My mother is her sister. We just moved here a week ago, and she offered me the job to help her out." Why was she telling him this? He didn't have to know all that. 

She saw a lit up monitor behind her flashing a logo. The words 'White Rascals' went across and beneath a wolf with a top hat and ruffled neck grinned maliciously.

"White Rascals?" she said thoughtfully. "That's your gang’s name?" 

"It is," he said, giving her the clipboard back. "You don't sound impressed."

"Should I be?" She asked him.  

"Most people are," he said. 

"Why's that? Is it because of all the white in here? Do you use it to blind people before you attack?"

He chuckled softly, "Downtown is our territory. Nothing goes on in this place without us knowing about it."

"Except that Hana has a new courier?"

"I knew about you," he said, coming closer. He noticed her body tense at his approach and he stepped back. "She only neglected to mention you're a woman, that's all."

"Does that bother you?"

"Hana's business can be dangerous," he said. "You really shouldn't ride alone after dark."

"Trust me. These little SWORD gangs don't frighten me. I've met worse people."

"Ooh, I like her," Kizzy smiled with a laugh. 

"It's not only the five gangs," Rocky told her. "There are others much worse. It's our job to protect women who come into our territory; we make sure they're safe and cared for. You're exactly the kind of woman those people would hurt."

"I'm not made of glass. I can handle myself."

Rocky surveyed her. "No, maybe you're made of something thicker."

"Have you met a lot of gangs then?" Kizzy asked, but her amused eyes stayed on Rocky. "If you're so fearless of them?"

"A few," she told them. "I've met plenty where I came from." 

"And where is it you came from?" Rocky asked her, unable to look away from her. 

"Chikuni Bay," she answered. 

"The warehouses district?"

"That's the one." She double checked her phone. It was getting late. "Well, thank you," she gave a short bow of her head, "Enjoy the rest of your evening, Mr-"

"-Call me Rocky," he said, never looking away even once. "Stay for a drink. I imagine you've been riding around all day with how backed up Hana's business has been. You must be tired."

"No, thank you," she said politely. "I'm on my bike and it's getting late. My mother will be worried about me."

"Not even one?" Kizzy came to her side, pouting, "As a thank you for bringing the package all this way?"

"That's kind of you," she said, "But really I should go."

"You're free to come back whenever you like." Rocky handed her a small plastic card with the gang's symbol on it. She supposed it's meant to be a VIP card. "We'd love to have you."

"Thank you," she then smirked, "Would I have to be decked out in white too?" She asked, eyeing the people around them. 

He laughed, "Not if you don't want to. I imagine you're lovely in any color." 

Her cheeks burned when he said this. "Lucky for me, then. White isn't really my color." She stepped away before he spotted her pink cheeks. "I'll see you around then. Have a good night."

"Night, Sakyia."

She left the lounge on her own, going back down the stairs into the main floor. People danced around to the music, sat down on the leather couches talking and drinking, or otherwise enjoying the night club. She’d never been in such a loud place before. She often went deaf in a fighting pit, putting all her focus on her opponent. Here, there’s nobody to fight. There’s nobody coming up to her with anger flaring in their eyes. People are too absorbed into their own frivolity to notice her walking by. Sakyia gulped the dryness in her mouth, and thought she could at least have some water. She turned to the long white bar on one side of the room, and slipped between the patrons lining the front. The bartender, a young man with spiky dark hair, poured drinks expertly and took orders easily. When he finally reached her, he seemed relieved to have such an easy order. He handed her a water bottle, free of charge, and went back to his customers. 

Sakyia took a drink from the bottle before she noticed them. A few seats away sat a young woman in a short black dress, her hair and makeup done up pretty for the night. In front of her stood a man in a dark-colored suit, his black hair slicked back from his face, and a smug grin on his face. The woman appeared to be trying to ignore him, but the man wasn’t taking the hint. Sakyia spotted the woman’s discomfort at once, and her multiple attempts to leave the bar. Not that this worked. When she managed to side step him, the man pursued her. 

“Hey,” Sakyia called out from her seat, “She’s not interested, man. Leave her alone.”

The man sneered at her, “Ah, what? Jealous that I’m flirting with someone prettier than you?”

Ugh, so predictable. “No, I’ve had a long day and listening to this poor woman repeatedly telling you to fuck off is annoying me.” She looked at the woman, “Is this asshole bothering you?”

“Yeah, he is,” she nodded, glaring at the guy. 

“Oh come on, babe,” he smirked at her, reaching for her arm, “You know you want it. That’s why you’re wearing that dress.”

Sakyia grunted, putting the bottle in her bag and walking over to him. Roughly, she turned him to face her. His cocky grin made her want to smack it off. “No, she’s wearing it because she wants to look pretty; not so assholes like you could harass her.”

“Look, honey, if you’re jealous, you can wait your turn,” he eyed her up and down, “You’re not too bad if you take off the grubby jacket and pants.”

“As if I would. I wouldn’t touch you with a ten-foot-pole.” She turned to the woman, “Did you come here with anyone?” 

“Yeah, my friends,” she climbed off the stool, not bothering to take the drink on the bar. “I lost them on the dance floor.”

Some friends, Sakyia thought. She nodded to the dancers, “Let’s go find them.”

She let the girl walk in front of her, before a rough hand grabbed her wrist tightly. It happened out of nowhere. She didn’t know what made her do it, but she did it. In a single swing, Sakyia’s right fist landed right into the man’s cheek. It knocked him back to the bar. Having been hit by a woman in a room full of people, she saw the embarrassment flooding red into his cheeks. Adrenaline immediately pumped through her body. Every muscle in her constricted, and she prepared for another attack. He glared at her. 

“You little bitch,” he snapped. 

He moved to hit her before she kicked him in the groin, which certainly stopped him. Two white figures came to her side, and she shielded the woman from any more attackers out of habit. Briefly, it reminded her of Jiro’s drunken nights; nights where her mother tried to protect her from him. She saw the two figures were Rocky and Kizzy. Kizzy looked at the man with disgust on her face, while Rocky roughly pulled him to his feet. 

“Get this scum out of our club,” Rocky said, the pommel of his cane under the man's chin. He stared down at him with pure hatred, as if he'd pummel the man himself. He then shoved him into the arms of two other white-clad men. “We’ll be watching you. If you hurt another woman like that again, we'll know.” 

“I’m-I’m sor-sorry,” he stammered. “Please, no. I won’t do it again.”

“You're right,” he said, and motioned for the men to remove him from the club. "You won't."

Sakyia’s hand burned. She’d hit harder than she’d intended, she knew. Unable to assess the damage in the club lighting, she stretched her fingers and winced. Her mother will have questions. She doubted it’d be bruised, but she’d need an ice pack when she went home. Turning around to the woman, she asked:

“Are you okay?” she asked. 

“Yeah, thanks to you,” she sighed in relief. “That creep had been bothering me all night.”

“Kimi,” Rocky approached gently, the anger disappearing right away, “Why didn’t you tell us?”

“I didn’t want to bother you with it,” she told her. “But thankfully, this woman saw him and told him to leave me alone.”

“From what I saw, she did more than tell him to leave,” Kizzy said, smiling over to Sakyia. 

“Sakyia, your hand,” Rocky reached forward to hold it, examining her knuckles. Nerves bubbled inside her stomach at his warm, tender touch. "How bad is it?"

"Not too bad," she half lied. She already felt her cheeks reddening from the embarrassment. She'd never planned on causing a scene in this man's club or leaving a nasty impression. "I'll be okay."

"You can hardly move it," he said, seeing her hand in the light. "Come, I'll get you ice for it."

"You don't have to-"

"-I insist."

Sakyia followed him to a quiet spot of the bar, where the bartender quickly grabbed an ice pack from beneath the counter. He gingerly placed the square on her right hand. The ice shocked her skin, and she almost withdrew but didn't. She shouldn't have hit the guy; it was an extreme reaction, but she couldn't help it. She regretted more with Rocky so close to her. The faint smell of cigars came from him, and she recognized the brand from the scent alone. Iwata Cigars. Her father used to smoke them. She liked it. 

"Do you often pick fights with men?" Rocky said, breaking through her thoughts. He was tracing his thumb over the faint scars on her left knuckles, particularly the long one in the middle. "You have plenty of these."

Lying felt pointless. Rocky saw her with his own eyes, and lying only insulted his intelligence. She snorted, "I used to fight often, yeah."

"How'd you get this one?"

"My fist clashed with the guy I was fighting, and it broke the bone." She then answered before she could stop herself, "It took me out of the pit for a while, so it worked out for me."

"Pit?" 

She wished she'd never said anything. "Um, uh, well…" she'd already opened the bag, "I used to fight before. Not because I wanted to," she said quickly. "I did it because we were poor and didn't have a lot of money." Half true. "It was better than the other option," a full truth that unsettled her stomach. "I don't do it anymore though. I swear I'm not a crazy person who acts violently like that. I don’t know. I saw that man harassing that woman, and it bothered me. She clearly didn’t have an interest in him, and he kept going anyway. I wanted to help her out and get her away from him. He came after me and I don't know…I didn’t mean to hit him like that; it’s a reflex I suppose. I hadn't meant to cause a scene in your club." 

Her stomach flopped admitting the fault to him. Seeing him in the lights, she saw his handsomeness close up. Tanned skin remained smooth and clear, she couldn’t help taking in his eyes and lips. A face she could draw for ages. Brown eyes stared over her features, and it made her suddenly nervous. Surely, he must be upset about it; any club owner would be. 

"I'm not angry," he said, as if he read her mind. "That scum deserved it. I would've done it myself if you hadn't taken care of him." He put the pack back on her hand carefully, "What upsets me is that you had to do it at all. I don't like women feeling unsafe here. I made this club so they had a safe place to be." 

"You certainly take their safety seriously."

"I do." He said, "I've seen too many terrible things happen to women. I couldn’t stand by and allow it to continue." He then said, tenderly, "Even to the ones who can handle themselves." She hoped the semi darkness hid her blushing cheeks, but Rocky’s vision is accustomed to the lighting. “Who taught you to fight? You must’ve been good if the scum at the warehouses let you fight there.” 

“My father,” she answered. “He was a boxer before he retired. The rest I learned from people around me.” 

“You shouldn’t have had to.”

Her phone pinged in her bag, and a quick look showed a text from her mother. It's grown far too late now. “I really should go,” she said, sliding off the stool and away from him. “Thank you for the ice, and I’m sorry again about that guy.”

“It’s no trouble, really,” he assured her. “I’m sure we’ll see one another soon. I enjoy your aunt’s service a lot.”

The prospect of meeting this man again blossomed excitement in her. “I’m sure we will,” she responded, “Goodnight, Rocky.”

“Night.”

She felt his eyes on her as she left him. During the route home, she thought about the gang leader. Suave and polished, he’s the mafia boss women write trashy romance novels about. He must think she’s some sort of hot-headed person, which she could be, but she tried her best. She’s not that person anymore. She hated that person. 

She wanted to be different. She wanted to be better. 

***

Rocky turned out to be one of her aunt’s most frequent clients. She mentioned this a few days after meeting him. Sakyia came downstairs in the morning to start packing drop-off boxes in her cart, while Auntie Hana flipped through her records on the counter. 

“Wow, we managed to catch up with Sannoh’s regular flow in such a short time,” Hana awed when she typed new information into the clunky old computer. “Everyone has been raving about you, honey,” she told Sakyia. “They’ve all told me how prompt and professional you are; I told them you’ve always been such a sweet girl.” 

“Bet they believed you,” Sakyia said from outside, figuring out where to put the last and tiniest package. “Being on-time is part of the job…” she found the right place and settled it down. 

“They said you’re definitely an improvement over Koichi,” she told her when she came back inside. “He used to be rough with the fragile stuff, and he could be reckless on that thing. I hope you’re being safe when you ride.”

“I am, Auntie,” she said. 

Hana typed down a few more lines, then printed out the day’s drop off and pick up list. Sakyia took it from the printer to read it, and bit the inside of her cheek. Rocky’s name is on the list. Multiple times. He had several pick up areas around the city, and they all needed to be dropped off at different times. Why didn’t he simply lump them together instead of getting them one by one? By the list, he has five in total throughout the day. She found it odd. 

"Auntie," she looked over at her, "Did you do this route correctly?" She showed her the list, "Rocky's having multiple deliveries in one day. I thought most clients put them all at once for convenience?"

She should've known the answer by the sly grin. "Rocky is a busy man," she said, "He owns a club and different businesses in the downtown area. He can't be running around doing little things like this all day."

"But he has a whole gang. Why not let them do it?"

"He needs them at his side," she told her. "Besides, he is a handsome man and a true gentleman. If I were your age again, I'd be going to Club Heaven every night to see him." She then added, "It is the clients who make the appointments. Not me. Perhaps you charmed him in some way and now he's using this as an excuse to see you."

"Ugh, as if. I nearly beat up a guy in his club," she scoffed, putting the sheet on the clipboard. "He probably thinks I'm a psycho or something."

"Nah, I doubt it. Besides, it was Kizzy who placed the appointments, not Rocky, so I'm sure it was her doing."

Sakyia supposed it made sense, but what did she know about business people? She kissed her aunt goodbye, and was heading out the backdoor when she heard footsteps. Looking up, she saw Asuka, Shiba and Oshiage coming down the alleyway. They all wore their Ichigo Milk jackets, and outfits today. Sakyia noticed immediately they were absent their leader, Junko. 

"Morning, guys," Sakyia said first, seeing their big smiles. "What's up?" 

"We wanted to ask you something-" Shiba said first. 

"-But we didn't want to ask in front of Junko-" said Oshiage. 

"Ask me what?"

"The twins and I got invited to this party downtown," Asuka told her. "It's a matchmaking party. We usually go to local ones around the city, but a friend of mine is hosting one at his apartment this time. We hoped you might want to come."

"Matchmaking party?" She asked, confused. "I've never been to one of those before. What do you do there?"

"It's nothing gross," she assured. "We mostly just drink and dance; maybe meet a cute guy too."

"We'd like it if you came with us," both twins said together. 

Sakyia observed the three of them. She hadn't known them very long, and she'd mostly worked since she arrived. A thought then came to her, seeing their friendly smiles.

"My mom put you three up to this, didn't she?"

"No, not at all," Asuka insisted. "We thought you might like a break from work. You're always working and you should take a break."

They're right, and she knows it. She did consider visiting downtown on her own; possibly going to Club Heaven with her VIP card. The idea of seeing Rocky again made her blush, but she hid it from them. 

"Sure," she shrugged, "That sounds fun."

The three women squealed excitedly and hugged her together. Sakyia let out a laugh, squished between them before they released her. 

"Is Junko coming?"she asked them. 

Their smiles faltered, and they casted glances at one another. "No," said Asuka first. "Don't get us wrong. We love Junko; she's our leader but she gets…excitable at parties. Especially if there are cute guys around."

"She becomes a total 'pick me' girl," said Oshiage. "She tries too hard, and it's embarrassing."

"Isn't it kinda messed up to not invite her though? She is your friend, and I know I'd be hurt if my friends did that."

"You don't want Junko coming."

"Because she's a bit boy-crazy?" 

"No, because you can't take her anywhere without her making a fool of herself to get a guy's attention," Asuka told her. "You should see the stuff she's done."

"It'll be worse with you around," Shiba added, hands in pockets. "She'll think she's in competition with you, and be worse. Trust us. We do hang out with Junko-"

"-Just not at parties."

Sakyia did not question them further. Their reasons sounded valid enough, though she had no idea what they meant by 'pick me' girl. They all agreed to meet up at the Itokan Diner, and hurried away. The thought that it might be a joke crossed her mind, but she dismissed it. They've been kind to her since their first meeting; they didn't appear to be the bullying type. Sakyia thought about what she'd even wear to the party. Riding on her scooter, she realized she didn't have many nice clothes. She never needed them before. Her mother will know what looks best on her; she'd do her makeup as well, since she'll no doubt be over the moon about it. Sakyia’s excitement over the invitation tonight fueled her throughout the day; she greeted her clients with smiles and did her best to not appear so delighted even if she was. She has never been invited to anything before. She daydreamed about the party, where she'd dance and drink all night.

Rocky's first package of the day came from his tailor, who'd fashioned him a long white coat with intricate patterns around the shoulders and chest. Sakyia placed it in her cart, then rode downtown towards his club, since that's where the drop off location happened to be.  She didn't understand why he'd schedule his route that way, but that is his business. She reached the club and didn't see a single soul outside it; no doubt people came later on to party here. No bouncer stood outside, so she carefully opened the main doors. 

Very few lights lit up the room, giving just enough for people to maneuver around the floor. She stared around for someone to point her in Rocky's directions, but didn't see anyone. Not even the bartender showed up yet. She stood around, aimlessly searching until footsteps came from around a corner. Kizzy beamed at her when they saw each other. 

"Sakyia, you're back," she said, walking casually up to her. "A drop off?"

"Yeah. From Mr. Nita, his tailor," she replied, holding the box in front of her. "Do I leave it with you or…?"

"I'll take you to him," she said, wringing her arm around Sakyia’s. "He'll want to try it on. Rocky is very picky with his outfits, since he likes to dress well for the ladies who come here." Sakyia felt her eyes shift to her, "He might even ask for your opinion."

"I'm the worst person to ask about fashion," Sakyia snorted. "The most I can say is it looks nice."

"Fashonista or not, he'll like your opinion."

She sensed the words between the lines. Kizzy brought her to the VIP lounge, where Rocky sat with an entourage of people in all white. She looked at Kizzy. 

"Is he always surrounded by women?"

"Not always," she then smirked, "Why? Jealous?"

"No, not at all. Just seems like they don't do much."

"They work here," she told her. "Come on, let's give him his new coat."

She brought Sakyia further into the room, "Rocky, Sakyia’s here with your coat order."

Rocky looked at her directly. He didn't wear his sunglasses today; they must be a night time look only. She preferred him like this; she saw more of his face this way. He seemed confused for a moment, then glanced at Kizzy. She released Sakyia and went to sit with Kaito. 

"Hey," she breathed, nerves bundling in her stomach, "I have your first package here. I don't know where…"

She looked for a place to settle the box down, since it weighed heavy in her arms. But, it was Rocky who relieved her of the box. 

"Thank you, Sakyia," she bit the inside of her cheek nervously. Her name sounded nicer in his deep, gruff voice. "I appreciate it."

"It's no trouble," she told him. She grabbed her clipboard from the top, and watched him hand the box to one of his gang. "It's my job." She then remembered, "Oh, and Mr. Nita said if the coat isn't to your liking, he'll gladly alter it when you come back to the shop."

"Nita is great at what he does," Rocky opened the box from beside him. On several red tissues sat the coat wrapped in plastic for protection. He pulled it out and removed the plastic. It was a lovely coat. It certainly fit Rocky's polished appearance. "He makes dresses too," Rocky mentioned, removing the jacket he currently wore. Sakyia avoided checking him out, trying not to focus on his tanned arms with their lean muscles. Broad and tall, he could encompass her completely. "You know, should you happen to need one."

"I can’t afford anything specially made," she shook her head. Her cheeks burned again thinking about the muscular figure underneath. "It's a clearance rack for me." She gulped and said, "I'll see you soon. I have other packages to get-"

"-Wait," he said. He straightened the long trench coat and asked, "What do you think?"

"It looks good," she nodded, using this moment to look him up and down. "It suits you."

"Suits me?"

"Yeah, you seem to wear lots of, like, cool, sleek clothes and it, you know, looks nice."

"So, you like cool guys, then?"

"I don't know. Does it matter?"

"No," he said, "I was only curious. How is your hand?"

"It's much better. I didn't hit him too hard, so it was fine the next day." She couldn't help staring at him. God, he's handsome. "I should get going. I'll see you all later."

"Later?" He looked over at Kizzy, who pretended to be admiring her nail polish. He sighed, "You don't have to pick up all those packages. A certain someone should've made the appointments all together, right Kizzy?"

"Hm? Oh, well, I knew they wouldn't be available all at once,” Kizzy replied coolly. “Plus, we obviously tip her more for the trouble."

"It's no trouble," she told him. "Most of my route is in this area, so it won't be difficult for me." Also gave her an excuse to come back. 

"If you're alright with it…" then she swore he'd read her mind. In a low voice, he said to her, "At least, we'd have a reason to see each other again."

She smiled, "It is a perk." She then realized she should've kept that to herself. "I mean, um-"

His chuckle cut her off. "Cute," he said. "I can see why people underestimate you in a fight."

"She's like a feisty kitten," Kaito actually said. 

"It's adorable."

He thought she was cute! "I should really get going. See you around."

"Your getaway phrase," he said with a small grin. "It only makes you look sweeter."

"Um, thanks. Yeah…" 

What do you say to a handsome guy telling you he thinks you're cute? She took her clipboard, gave him one more glance before leaving the lounge. In front of other people, she realized as well. Those other girls sat there around him too. They must've heard him in the quiet room. Lord knows what they thought of it. Sakyia spent half her route thinking of his words and the gentle way he'd said them. He didn't have that creepy, flirtatious tone most men said. She'd felt his voice prickle on her skin, giving her goosebumps.

The second pick up came from a jeweler. She'd seen them place a silver wolf pommel into a fine, velvet lined box for her. She recalled Rocky's cane, and guessed he ordered a new one. She dropped off a few more packages before arriving at the club once more. Rocky sat by the bar with a drink beside him, and puffing a cigar. By the golden band around the middle, she knew it was an Iwata cigar. She smelled the scent of them as she approached, not bothered by the smell but rather his pensive stare elsewhere. Sakyia felt guilty interrupting him. 

"Rocky?" She said his name in a quiet voice, as if afraid to disturb his silence. 

Her voice broke through his thoughts, somewhat startled by her sudden appearance. "Sakyia," he said, "You're back already."

"With your new cane topper thing," she said, holding the box in her hands. She brought it over to the bar where he took up the cane beside him. “The jeweler said it’s made exactly as you asked.”

She watched him twist off the current pommel and set it aside. A bejeweled wolf’s head sat on the bar next to the box. Made entirely of rhinestones, the eyes shone bright red rubies. It must cost more than her aunt’s store, her scooter, and the apartment combined. She examined it from afar until he opened the second box, which held another topper. A running silver wolf topped the new cane, smoother and longer than the head pommel. 

"What do you think?" His deep voice broke her from her thoughts. 

"What do I think? Oh, um, it looks nice. The shape of it makes it a lot more useful in a fight than the smaller one," she said, "And I guess it'll be easier on your hand since it's silver and not covered in stones. You could always have worn gloves, but it's not winter yet and I read somewhere you can't wear stuff that's out of season or something like that? I don't know much about fashion, so don't quote me on that-"

His laugh cut her off, surveying her again. She realized she liked him without the sunglasses; she could see more of his face that way. "No, I don't imagine you are," he said. When he saw her brow furrowed, he explained himself, "I didn't mean anything by it. Not everyone is concerned with fashion like I am. My gang complains about it all the time."

"Dry cleaning is expensive," she replied. "I don't hate fashion. I wish I knew more about it; my mother runs a beauty salon, yet I know so little," she laughed sheepishly. "I should get going. I'll see you-"

"-Kizzy and Koto will get them," he insisted. 

"I told you I really don't mind."

"I do."

"Why?" She then smirked, "Tired of seeing me already?"

"The opposite," he replied. "I prefer seeing you on my own terms, not Kizzy's." He stood from the bar and walked over to her. The sweet cologne faintly wafted over to her, and she did her best to not deeply inhale it. "What are you doing tonight?"

"I'm going to this party with some friends," she said. "It's something called a matchmaking party? I don't know, but it sounds fun and I don't really go out that much." Not at all, truthfully, but that sounded pathetic. 

"A matchmaking party?" He sounded amused. 

"It sounds stupid, I know. I'd never heard of them until this morning, but apparently, it's something people do," she replied, hands in her pockets. "They go to them to meet guys and drink and dance, but I don't really care about that right now."

"Because you're not like other girls?" He suggested, hand on his cane and smirking at her playfully. 

"No," she grinned, "Because I’m still settling into my place. Dating isn’t really at the top of my list.” 

“Hm, understandable. There’s nothing wrong with going to enjoy yourself,” he said. Her phone buzzed in her pocket, but she ignored it. Right at the same moment, Kono, a White Rascal, appeared from around a corner. He stood there expectantly, most likely with news for Rocky. “Work calls,” Rocky looked back over at her. “If you change your mind, I’d be glad if you came.”

She bashfully said her goodbye and they parted ways. Sakyia only recalled one other time a boy suggested they meet somewhere: Jesse. Riding on her bike to her next location, her mind wandered back to the time he asked if she wanted to meet him outside the warehouses. She’d agreed because he was the only real friend she had. They’d walked around Little Asia together, a neighborhood known for its roughness and near lawlessness, and they traveled down the boardwalk a short distance from the bay. 

It’d been on that pier where he kissed her. 

Sakyia didn’t see her mother for lunch. She went to the nearby thrift shop in town to find an outfit for the night. However, when she looked around the racks of clothes, she had no idea where to start. Her mother once mentioned ‘dressing for the occasion’, meaning dressing according to the style of the party. She assumed she’d need to dress up a bit more than she would, but not so much she’s overdressed. It reminded her of Rocky, who’d no doubt know exactly what she should pick. A part of her wished she’d continued her route for him; it gave her an excuse to keep going back to him. Sakyia didn’t expect anything to come from them, but Rocky’s presence brought on feelings so surreal to her. He made her nervous, most people did, yet not tense. She didn’t need to have her guard up around him. But, those walls existed for a reason. 

She stood in front of a long mirror, holding a crimson camisole top in front of her. She’d gotten a similar top in dark green; both were made of satin with draping necklines. After looking at photos online, it seemed like the sort of thing a girl going to a party might wear. As she continued her inner conflict, a familiar voice spoke up behind her. 

“I’d personally choose the red one. It’s one of Rocky’s favorite colors.” 

Kizzy came from behind one of the clothing racks, Kaito following her. Sakyia smiled at her, “Then the answer is obvious, isn’t it?” She put back the red top, “I have to wear the green one now.” The two of them laughed, and she said, “What’re you two doing here? Did Rocky ask you to stalk me?”

“Do you want the real answer or a lie?”

“The real answer.”

“Rocky asked us to tail you,” Kaito answered before Kizzy. 

“Why?” she asked, a bit surprised. “I’m nobody important.”

“Things are getting rough on this side of town,” Kizzy said, walking over to her. “He wants to make sure you’re safe while riding around here.” 

“Why me specifically? He can’t be having every single woman in the city followed,” she said, arms crossed. 

“Isn’t it obvious?” she huffed a laugh, “He likes you.”

The words froze her in place, and Kizzy chuckled. “Ah, you really are oblivious,” she said, picking up a pair of black pants from a rack. She sized them up to Sakyia, nodding her approval, “Rocky is a romantic. When he sees a woman he likes, he wants to shower her with gifts, affection and admiration. He likes to sweep them off their feet and make them feel special.” 

“I barely know him.”

“And he’ll do his best to fix that,” Kaito said, nodding when Kizzy showed him the pants. “That's why he keeps trying to get you to stay at the club.”

“If he wanted me to keep coming back, why did he cancel the deliveries?”

“You already work so much,” she answered. “You’ll need a jacket. It’ll be cold tonight,” she gazed around the racks, “He told me he wanted to see you under more casual, personal circumstances instead of work. Well, he said this to me after he scolded me for doing it in the first place. Like, psh, sorry for wanting my good friend to be happy.”

“How about this one?” Kaito lifted a black cropped jacket. 

“Good choice,” she grinned, taking the jacket to hang over Sakyia. She returned to Sakyia, “Rocky…Rocky tends to pick women who aren’t as intimidating as you.”

“I’m intimidating to him?”

“Not to him specifically, I think,” she said, “But he thinks he can’t woo you the way he does other women. You confuse him. He’s never met a woman who sticks up for herself and for others with her fists before.”

“He must not meet many, then.”

“None like you.” Sakyia spotted a twinkle in her eye for a moment, “I told him he could absolutely woo you, however.”

“What makes you think that?”

“The fact that you blushed from your ears to your cheeks whenever he paid you a compliment,” she said, “Or that you actually agreed to that crazy courier schedule I created. Wanted reasons to see him, hm?"

She turned away from Kizzy, pretending to be concentrated on the pants in her hand. “It would’ve made good money for the day,” she made an excuse. 

“Okay, sure,” Kizzy said, unconvinced, taking her to the register. Sakyia moved to get her wallet, but Kizzy stopped her. 

“Are you gonna come to the club tonight?” she asked casually. “It’s going to be tons of fun, especially since you have that little VIP card.” 

“I already have plans,” she replied. 

“Hm, what a shame,” she frowned, handing Sakyia a paper bag of clothes. “I know I would’ve liked it if you came. I love the other girls with all my heart; I wouldn’t trade them for anything, but it never hurts to have a breath of fresh air there.” 

"Maybe another time,” Sakyia said. “I’d go, but I don’t know if my friends would want to. They’re quite set on the party.” 

Hearing the words ‘I’d go’ brought a small grin to Kizzy’s face. Sakyia realized then she shouldn’t have said it. She thanked Kizzy for the clothes, and bustled off as her phone vibrated in her pocket again. As she rode away, she felt Kizzy and Kaito watch her until she turned a corner. Something deep inside told her that her ‘matchmaking party’ might be canceled tonight. She hoped not, but she couldn’t stop herself from imagining them at Club Heaven instead. Sakyia envisioned Rocky, wearing white, designer clothes, sitting in his VIP lounge. He’d look up at her as if she were the only thing in the world that mattered, and offer to get her a drink. It sounded so nice. Unfortunately for her, Kizzy was right. It’d be nice to have a handsome man give her attention. She’d by no means throw away her dignity to do it, but if Rocky showed any interest at all, she wouldn’t be upset.

Sakyia finished her route earlier than usual, considering Rocky canceled his appointments. She arrived home, and immediately the excitement hit her again. As expected, when she told her mother about the party, she insisted upon helping out. She approved of the outfit, which eased Sakyia’s worries about how it looked, and fixed her hair and makeup for her. Sakyia only wore makeup when she’d been eight-years-old and playing with her mother’s makeup kits. She didn’t realize how much work went into looking presentable for a party. By the time she finished, she looked like herself, but different somehow. She felt different. 

"Ah, you look so beautiful," her mother beamed, pushing a wavy lock from her face. "The boys there will be drooling over you."

"Psh, please," she rolled her eyes, fixing the jacket on her shoulders. "As if that matters."

"It doesn't hurt to have some male attention once in a while, you know. Nothing has to come from it."

She thought about Rocky and those daydreams again. She liked thinking she may run into him somehow, and how he’d put all his focus on her throughout the night. She knew it’s stupid to imagine such things with a person she hardly knows, but it made her feel good. She wanted to feel good. She kissed her mother goodbye, told her not to wait up for her, and headed to the diner on foot. The girls wanted to meet there so then they could all go together, which is something she guessed they did often. She didn’t really think about where she was going and who she’d be seeing there until it was too late. 

Walking into the diner, the sounds of chatter and laughter reached her ears. She spotted Naomi at the bar with Asuka, and the twins sitting at the table with Junko. Perhaps they decided to invite her after all. Yamato, Dan, Tettsu and Chiharu sat around, drinking and talking amongst themselves. It dawned on her that Sannoh Hoodlum Squad hung out here regularly as their homebase. Clutching her bag, she noticed another person sitting at his usual booth, absorbed in a magazine on the table. Cobra’s presence briefly erased Rocky from her mind; the butterflies returned and moved about in her stomach, weakening her resolve and bringing on anxiousness. She hated that he had this effect on her. Cobra saw her walk in first, head lifting from his magazine to see her. She gave a small smile and bowed her head. He did the same, but did not look away. He gave her a once over, a sudden softness in his eyes instead of his usual brooding stare. She blushed and looked away. That was when everyone else noticed her. 

“Wow, you look awesome!” the twins said together, beaming and looking her up and down. 

“Thanks,” she smiled brightly, blushing softly. 

“Guys are definitely going to come to us with you around,” said Junko, smiling excitedly. 

“That’s not why we invited her, Junko,” Asuka said, nudging her. She rolled her eyes, and turned to Sakyia, “You do clean up well, Sakyia.”

She laughed. “Thanks. So do you guys.” 

None of the men spoke. They simply took her in until Naomi snapped at them. 

“Hey, put your eyes back in your heads, idiots,” she barked at them, and the men looked over at her. 

“Don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I wasn’t looking.”

“Psh, whatever.” 

 Cobra, as usual, said nothing and turned his head away when Naomi caught them. He appeared far more interested in a page of his magazine. She tried not thinking about it. 

“So, should we head out? Where is this party anyways?” Sakyia asked, digging through her bag to make sure she had everything she needed. 

Her mother stuck a whole bunch of other things she claimed she’d need: breath mints, face wipes, lip balm, a powder compact, and a small bottle of perfume. Sakyia usually carried her keys, wallet, and a snack for her ride around town. It made it harder to search around.

“It’s at my friend’s apartment,” said Asuka. “He lives downtown, so we better get going if we want to show up on time.”

Sakyia found her wallet, and realized she couldn’t find her credit card amongst it. A streak of panic went through her. She started taking out useless cards to find it, putting them on the table, when she realized it was in the bill fold. 

“Oh my god!” Shiba’s exclamation made Sakyia lift her head up. She saw her holding the white card with its silver wolf printed on the front. “How did you get this? This is a Club Heaven VIP card.”

“You have a VIP card?” Junko came over to the table to see it. 

“Wow, so we’re just taking things now?” Sakyia asked, more amused than affronted. “It’s a card Rocky gave to me when I delivered a package. I’m not really sure what it’s for, but I didn’t want to be rude.” Also, she’d been too distracted by him to ask about it. 

“This card gets you into the door without lining up,” said Junko. “You get discounted drinks, special seating, and everything. I think you’re allowed to bring guests with you too, so we can all go.”

“You’re going to go White Rascals’ club?” asked Dan reproachfully. “Psh, I thought you all had a sense of loyalty to Sannoh.”

“Maybe if Sannoh had proper clubs, we’d stay here,” spat Asuka. She walked over to the table, and checked out the plastic card. 

"And just because we live in Sannoh doesn't mean we can't go to other places," said Shiba.

“Maybe we can go another time?” Sakyia suggested it when Asuka gave it back. “We have a party to get to, no?”

“Um, no?” Asuka scoffed. “No way am I going to some lame party now when you have a Club Heaven card.” 

“Huh?”

“Yeah,” agreed the twins. 

"Club Heaven is way better than that dumb party," said Junko. 

“You guys want to go there instead? What about your friend?”

“He’ll survive,” Asuka brushed it off, grabbing her bag. “Come on, let’s go.”

“Rocky gave you that?” Cobra’s deep voice immediately caught her attention. 

“He did.”

“Why? He doesn’t hand those out for free.”

“I suppose it’s meant to be a tip?” she shrugged, putting it into her wallet. “A tip that keeps on giving.”

“You should be careful,” he said. “Downtown can be dangerous at night.”

She chuckled, “As stated to me multiple times.” She took up her bag again and looked at the other girls, “Well? Club Heaven, then?”

“Hell yes!”

The girls all squealed, and led Sakyia out the door. Perhaps she’d see Rocky after all.

***

A/N: Looks like Sakyia is turning some heads! I really hope you liked this chapter, and it'd mean a lot if you guys liked or reblogged (comments are always greatly appreciated). Thanks so much for reading <3

[laeliana]

Artemis Fowl Tag

Stolen from @tengirl, since the blog appears to be deleted I cannot repost it directly, so I copied and pasted it:

so, i made an artemis fowl tag forever ago on my old blog & thought i’d made a new & improved version! feel free to tag some peeps who might want to do this too, if ya want. without further ado, the artemis fowl tag 2.0!

1) who’s your favorite character & why?

2) what’s one of your favorite scenes in the books?

3) if you could be any species of fairy, which one would you be?

4) do you read af fic? if so, drop one of your favorites!

5) give your ranking of the books from best to worst!

6) if you could say anything to any of the characters, what would it be?

7) if your comfortable w it, share one of your favorite headcanons about the series <3

8) what’s one thing that you would change about the series?

9) if we’re not counting book one artemis, who’s your favorite villain & why?

10) how did you get into the series/when did you first read it?

1) Artemis and Minerva. I mean, everybody loves Artemis and we all know why, so I'm gonna spend a couple of words on Min. I find amazing the idea of another genius who is a foil of what Artemis could've been was he born in a more normal family. I think most of the problems Artemis has stem from his family, so having Minerva could've helped him realize he could still be a genius, but different, less reliant on his mother and his father. Sad thing she disappeared (Fowl Twins does not exist).

2) I think Butler and the troll. One of the best fight scenes I've ever read, period.

3) But I don't want to, I like being human ç ç

4) Hell yes. altus, alti by @pokegeek151, Artemis Experiments Weird by @eldewinddolly, Different by Opal Roseblossom, All in an Instant and Before by NovaWasTaken, The Face I Wear by @piscespixiewastaken, The Truth About Santa by ArtysSexKitten

5) Artemis Fowl - The Opal Deception - The Lost Colony - The Arctic Incident - The Atlantis Complex - The Eternity Code - The Time Paradox - The Last Guardian

6)

to Artemis: by the love of God GO GET MINERVA, SHE'S THE ONE (everything else I would like Artemis to do will cascade down from that)

to Holly: stop thinking Artemis is something different from what he is. You're only gonna hurt yourself.

To Butler: I'd like to say him "Relax, your charge will do fine", but it'd be a lie :D

To Foaly: get down your pedestal and realize there are others that are just as smart or smarter than you. It's a lot less hurtful than realize it after they've tricked you

To Angeline and Artemis Sr: you owe everything to your son, so leave him be. He'll be himself his own way, not everyone else

To Minerva: go slap some sense into Artemis. You're prolly the only one smart enough to do that.

To the People as whole: you're no better than Mud Men, deal with it.

7) easy: Artemis and Minerva stood in close contact (be them friends or lovers, it doesn't matter), because there's no way Artemis finds the only one person that could stand toe to toe with him in a scientific debate and then forgets about her. It would be like for us to discover for the first time that fandoms exists and that there are other people that share our interests.

8) As you could very well understand at this point, more Minerva (I'm working on that). But also Artemis moving away from his family and Holly staying well away from the LEP. Also I'd rewrite the entire interactions of TAC because come on, that's not how you deal with someone with mental illness. Also I generally think that latter books suffer from too many villains, and one of them per book (Minerva, Young Artemis, the Complex) would be more than enough and would have its time to shine. Also, enough of Opal.

9) Again, Minerva (don't know if t counts, and I've already annoyed you more than enough with her) and baby Artemis from TTP, I think the juxtaposition between him and his older self is one thing I really like from TTP. ANother thing I'd change is dump the entire Extinctionist and Opal subplots, and let yong Artemis be the only villain of TTP. He desperate for the money to save his father, and his older self desperate for the lemur to save his mother. Let them clash.

10) Who even remembers lol? It must've been more than twenty years ago

[melrosing]

I think actually the reason in your tags is exactly why people in this fandom (and maybe many book fandoms) is because if you can't draw then it is like those who can get to be the ones who choose what the characters look like and you don't. So complaining about it is how they insist upon their interpretation even when they can't depict it themselves

lol anon i think you have articulated exactly what i was trying to. and ftr i know that to an extent this happens in every fandom, whether it's a visual medium or otherwise (otherwise why would there be so much complaining in hotd fandom), but i think you're right that that's why it's so prevalent in asoiaf fandom, particularly amongst fans who reject the show versions of the characters.

also i think fanart gets more flack because it's harder to avoid encountering it than it is fic, for example. ppl do complain about fic they don't like, but it's a lot more 'what were you doing at the devil's sacrament' like you had to find that fic, open that fic despite tags, read the whole thing and THEN get mad about it. reactions to fanart are more immediate, and fanart you don't like is more likely to wander into your sphere whether you want it to or not.

but yeah idk i just think people who complain about other people's fanworks seem to forget that they aren't owed a damn thing. critique official artists if you must, they were paid for their output, but whining about a picture someone drew for fun on their day off is so pathetic lol. unless the picture is genuinely offensive (and i mean genuinely, like for example whitewashing, not just per some contrived argument about how butch rhaenyra is offensive to feminine ladies everywhere or w/e) then i think people should just go with the age old don't like/don't engage

[whumpsmith-participates]

AI-less Whumptober 2024

Day 15 - waterboarding

Tags/CW: torture, inexperienced whumper, begging

Charles Breckenridge was kidnapped again. Or, actually, this was one of the first times, as it happened earlier on the timeline than the last time I told you about Charlie. This time he wasn't knocked out in a sudden car wreck. Instead, he knew exactly what was going on before it happened, only he was unable to get away in time after he realised it.

This time, the driver who claimed to be filling in for a co-worker who had come down with the flu turned out to be his kidnapper, driving him into a secluded alley and suddenly assaulting him with a syringe filled with some kind of sedative...

They kept him tied to a chair and blindfolded. In hindsight that made sense. Charlie would also want to protect his identity if he was doing something illegal like kidnapping someone and holding them hostage for ransom. Either way he could only really rely on sounds, which did tell him quite a lot.

There was only two of them. And it was obvious which of the two was in charge. He was older, more cruel, and generally unpleasant. The other one wasn't exactly better. He sounded younger, got pushed, smacked and ordered around by the older one, and somehow seemed okay with it all.

Charlie never learned their names. They were careful to refer to each other specifically by something that wasn't easy to identify. The older one just demanded to be called 'sir' and he just called the younger one 'kid.'

Charlie spent most of his time with the kid. He didn't really make for a lot of interesting conversation. Avoiding answering almost all his questions, but when he did they just concerned Charlie about the kid's wellbeing...not to mention his own.

He warned Charlie how bad his partner could treat people. Seemed to almost relish in describing some of the horrific things he could do, but Charlie couldn't see his face, so he wasn't too sure how accurate that observation was. Besides, if the kid enjoyed all of it, why would he give advise on how to avoid getting hurt?

It happened after his first night with them. The kid was escorting a blindfolded Charlie back to his chair after a bathroom visit, both of them overhearing the older one on the phone.

"Change of plans? What do you mean change of plans? .....No of course I'd rather keep the cops out of this, but if I can't chop anything off, what else am I supposed to send? ......of course I now a way, just know it'll cost ya extra!"

Charlie stopped walking as he was starting to get an idea of what was being discussed.

"W-what is he talking about?"

"Hush. You'll be okay." the kid just said, "Chair's behind you. Just sit down."

"Will I?" Charlie asked quietly, carefully lowering himself until he was sure he was indeed sitting on the chair. "Because it sounds like he wants to torture me!"

"Just don't make any smart comments," the kid said, his voice barely a whisper, "stick to 'no sir' or 'yes sir' and he'll go easy on you—"

"Kid..."

Charlie couldn't help but to jump as the older one was suddenly standing a lot closer to them. He could hear the click of a lighter, followed by the penetrative scent of smoke and tobacco.

"What'd I tell you about too much chatting with the hostage?"

"You always have a lot to say about that— Ow!"

It sounded like the older one settled the kid with a decent smack, and it got him to quiet down while the older man stepped closer to Charlie from the smell of it.

"Aren't you the lucky one, Mr Breckenridge?" he said, "Apparently someone tipped off the police, so we need to give your parents a lil nudge, but my client insists you don't have to sacrifice any digits just yet."

"P-police?" Charlie stammered, paling at the man's words, "T-they wouldn't tell! This has to be a mistake!"

"It doesn't matter who snitched," the man said, "someone did and now it's up to you to inspire mommy and daddy to transfer the cash faster. Understood?"

Charlie wanted to protest more, but he remembered the kid's advise and decided to play along in the hopes that he would just have to film a ransom video.

"Y-yes, sir..."

"Attaboy!" the man said, thankfully stepping away. "Grab the ropes, kid. We're tying him to the table— Oh and get the jacks from the van."

"...sir?"

"You'll see what we'll use them for. Go on."

"W-what are you going to do to me?" Charlie shakily asked, "I-I thought we would just film me talking to the camera..."

"We'll do that after," the man said, "gotta make sure the tears are real first."

"I-I can get you real tears!" Charlie pleaded, "J-just give me a second!"

"You'll get plenty of seconds." The man said, "Besides, it's a good teaching moment. Now get up."

"T-teach what?" Charlie asked breathlessly.

The man didn't reply. He simply grabbed a painful hold on Charlie's arm and forced him to stand up, yanking him—presumably—towards the table.

"About time. Help me tie him to the table."

"N-no! Please!" Charlie shouted, starting to sob a bit.

"Oh look, you can cry on command," the man said.

"What are you going to do to him?" the kid asked, having apparently returned.

"We are going to tie him to the table and then you are going to learn something new," the man said.

"S-sir...?"

"Shut up and hold him down for me."

It seemed Charlie's struggled and protests were completely ignored as the rope tying is wrists behind his back was cut and he was promptly manhandled onto the table. His hands were forced above his head, large hands pinning him down, carefully replaced by smaller hands.

Charlie tried to struggle, desperately trying to pull his arms free so they wouldn't do whatever they had planned for him. But after a moment a new, coarse, rope was wrapped around his left wrist and pulled tight, before it was yanked towards one of the corners of the table. Then they repeated the process on his right hand, spreading his arms from one corner of the table to the other.

"Okay, now stop him from kicking."

"Easy for you to say..."

Feeling the kid's hands on his legs, Charlie instinctively began kicking, managing to get a lucky hit in. He only vaguely registered his foot colliding with the kid's stomach, but he was too busy sobbing and pleading to apologise as he pulled against the ropes binding his wrists.

"Really?" the older man commented as the kid appeared unsuccessful in pinning their hostage down.

After a deep sigh, his large hands caught and pressed down on Charlie's knees, reducing his kicking before landing a painful blow to his thigh with his elbow, probably leaving a nasty bruise.

"Knock it off!" he snapped, only just audible over Charlie's pained cry. "Don't just stand there, tie his legs!"

"P-please! Just let me go!" Charlie begged as his legs were slowly pulled apart and stretched towards the remaining corners with coarse rope wrapped around his ankles.

"That's not how this works, you know that," the man said mercilessly.

"I did everything you asked!" Charlie pleaded, "I behaved! Why are you doing this?!"

"Because it's never your own actions that influence your life now, is it?" the man simply replied, before stepping away and tightening the four ropes holding Charlie in place.

Charlie tried to struggle, but the more he pulled against the ropes, the more they dug into his skin. Bruising his delicate wrists to the core, though that was the least of his worries right now. The man and the kid seemed to ignore him for now. The former being too busy bossing the latter around.

"Okay, now I'll lift the table on this side, and you're gonna put the jacks underneath each leg. We want him at an angle."

"Why, sir?"

"So he doesn't die."

"DIE?!" Charlie sobbed.

"You're not gonna die." the man said, "No on my watch at least..."

"I-I don't believe you!" Charlie cried, "Just let me go!!!"

"Can't we gag him for this?" the kid suddenly piped up, much to Charlie's chagrin.

"Unfortunately not." the man said, beginning to use the jacks to lift the table further, until Charlie felt like he was about to slide off.

"Okay, that should do it." the man decided, "Now we'll need a cloth and water."

"Oh..." the kid slowly said, as if something only now dawned on him, "that's what you wanna do."

"No," the man said, "that's what you are going to do."

The kid groaned in response, his footfalls slowly subsiding as he walked off.

"W-what are you having him do?" Charlie asked, his voice not much more than an anxious whimper.

"You'll see— In a manner of speaking, of course."

Charlie whimpered and weakly pulled against the ropes, hoping there would finally be some give, but all he accomplished was to tighten them, pulling them deeper into his raw skin. Though, soon that was the least of his worries, as it sounded like the kid returned with the requested supplies. All but literally dragging his feet.

"Do I have to?" he asked.

"Did I tell you to do it?" the man countered.

"Y-yea, but—"

"No buts. You do as you're told and that's final."

"Yes, sir..."

"P-please...please don't do this..." Charlie begged.

"Ignore him," the man instructed, "you know he'll be fine if you do this right."

"But I've never done this before," the kid argued, not instilling a lot of confidence.

"You've seen me do it plenty of times," the man said, "see one, do one, teach one — as they say in medical school."

"They don't teach waterboarding in medical school..."

"W-WATERBOARDING?!" Charlie sobbed loudly, only to be ignored once more.

"Stop stalling and do as you're told," the man said.

"N-no! Please! Let me go!"

"It'll be over before you know it," was the only comfort the kid offered, before draping something soft over Charlie's face. Then he clamped his hand over his mouth, keeping him still and silent while the older man gave further instructions and pointers.

"It's better if you grab him by the hair to hold him still. And then you just pour until he needs a breather."

"H-how do I know when he needs a break?" the kid asked, switching his grip from Charlie's face to his hair.

"P-please...."

"You can take an educated guess," the older man just said.

Charlie could feel the grip on his hair tighten, before cold water was suddenly poured over the cloth covering his face. He promptly stopped protesting, pressing his lips together as he could feel the water dribble through the cloth. He writhed anxiously in his bonds, breathing carefully through his nose, only to realise that he was just sniffling up more water. He sputtered, coughed, and inhaled more water. Enough to choke him up, but not enough to flood his lungs to drown him.

After what seemed like an eternity, the cloth was suddenly lifted off his face, allowing him to breathe again. Charlie coughed violently between gasps of air, unable to form any coherent words, though he wanted to plead and beg.

"You could've gone a little longer," the man said, "but not bad for a first attempt."

The kid didn't respond to him. Not verbally at least. Charlie couldn't really bring himself to care. He just wanted it to stop.

"Please..."

He pleaded weakly, before descending into a coughing fit again.

"Now rinse and repeat, kid."

"N-no wait—"

The cloth and the water returned, as did Charlie's coughing and sputtering. He thrashed and writhed, but the ropes tying him down and the hand gripping his hair prevented him from fighting back too much.

Please! he thought, Please let it be over soon...

"That's enough. You don't want him to suffocate."

Sweet salvation. Charlie coughed so violently he finally managed to at least wrench his head free, lifting it up so he could try and cough up the bits of water he'd inhaled.

Please let that be it... Please let that be it... Please—

"I think once more for good measure," the man said, "and another time for fun."

"I'm not having fun, sir."

"I am~"

"P-please....not again..." Charlie weakly begged.

"Hasn't he had enough?" the kid asked.

"Do you want me to take over? I could go all day."

"N-no, sir, I'll do it!" the kid quickly said, "Just two more..."

It almost sounded as if those last words were supposed to be some kind of reassuring as he weaved his fingers through Charlie's damp hair before grabbing a tight hold and pulling his head back whilst putting the cloth back over his face. The thought of going through that again filled Charlie with dread, despite the attempt at comfort from his younger captor.

"No no no...."

@ailesswhumptober @lavndvrr for the dynamic duo ;)

Charlie belongs to @illustriousshadow

Masterlist Main account

Based on an RP I did with my homie.

[future-boi]

Get To Know Me Tag Game!

Thanks to @mythical-bookworm and @alex-a-fans for tagging me.

tbh this is just a song rec list LMAO [easier to open in a browser fyi]

1) Spell your name in songs

Y'all get two for the price of one cuz I couldn't decide if I wanted to go with all non-English songs or not.

The non-English songs are labeled with 🧋 in case you wanna avoid 🤪

Warning: Most of the songs in english have swear words so... just in case u got kids or ur strict parents around LMAO.

⚡️ F: Fighter Not a Lover

aro/ace people gonna love that shit ^ + no swear words

alt: fml u fucked me up

⚡️ U: URARA🧋

It translates to 'Oo-la-la', which I now realize is the magazine Biff was carrying around in the second movie... this was unintentional and the meaning of the song is very wholesome, trust me

alt: Upside Down

⚡️ T: this was a demo for this one song...

That one's like 50% f-bombs ^ i love it

alt: Toxic but its NOT Brittany, B*tch 💅

The most aggressive entry on this list

⚡️ U: Up Up and Away

The only f-bomb is in the second verse

alt: Unmei no Roulette Mawashite 🧋

'unmei' means 'destiny' so you know I had to include it

⚡️ R: Raining in Manila (half 🧋)

Couple of dudes just vibin' out in the studio, what's not to love?

alt: RAHHHH

^im convinced this is what suburbanites see in their nightmares

⚡️ E: Electricity (half 🧋)

alt: Extensyon

Both make up the most WHOLESOME entry in this

⚡️ -(hyphen): Hatid Sundo 🧋

Baby. Baby boi. Baby. vibes ^

alt: Hell to Sell

EVIL. vibes ^

🚫🧢 I have a problem with tonal whiplash. Did I cheat and use the hyphen to include the most wholesome and cute song right before pulling out the lowkey most scandalous song in the list? YES.

Just realized it doesn't work as well if you can't understand it, but trust me. I mean just listening to its vibes is enough 😩

⚡️ B: Balik Sa Umpisa 🧋

Any song that samples/remixes 'Stand By Me' is a W in my book.

alt: Bodybag

I'm just self-reporting at this point.

Ok the rest are very wholesome songs I swear

⚡️ O: Oretachi Rookies 🧋

alt: Oh, Imagine That

ok this one's tied for most wholesome in the list

⚡️ I: I/Me/Myself

gnc/nb people gonna love this shit ^

alt: I Really Like You

that was a struggle, R is the top pick to check out imo. E, O and I are the wholesome ones with no swear words if u care.

2) Why did you choose your URL?

Its based. ..off the song in the musical. I got back into the fandom because of the musical so I owe it that much. 'boi' sounds more gender-neutral than 'boy'

3) What is your middle name?

That's a secret!

4) If you could be any mythical creature, what would you be?

Shapeshifter.

5) Favorite color?

Purple. Lavender/Periwinkle specifically.

6) Song you love right now?

What? 🧋 The amount of crackhead energy, but genuine emotion... AND AESTHETIC. it was literally made for me LMAO Ken is so aggro but hes singing about not littering. like why is he so intimidating-- but i support the eco-friendly king. but fr the song is about waving ur flag with pride??? PRIDE???? and they look androgynous asf??? whats not to love

7) Top four fandoms? (Current Fandoms?)

Back to the Future

That's it

jk uhhh, Invincible

Thats it, dont wanna get into past fandoms rn

8) Tag nine people

mf u think i know 9 people??

im playin, lemme tag some cool people... not that u have to do this, i just wanted to bother u 🤪 but feel free to do it, i wanna hear other music 🥺🥺🥺

⚡️ @maxintime LOVE UR ART STYLE. BEEN TOO SHY TO BOTHER U THO 😭

⚡️ @jowritesfanfiction my inspo, my density, ILY. Im never shy bout bothering u in my posts HAVE U GOTTEN THE RESTRAINING ORDER AGAINST ME YET 🤪🤪😭😭😭 ive tagged this mf in every other post istg

⚡️ @moth-makay ur great frfr 😭😭 all the hugs. r u gonna post more art??? cuz u shouuuld 🥺

⚡️ @bttf-dork ur name and pfp give comfy vibes??? its very endearing. dunno how to describe it, but i like seeing u in my notifs 🥰 bUT UR ART DOHHH. immaculate. underrated.

⚡️ @pepsifox88 i hope u continue to cook ✨ everyone go and GIVE THEM SUPPORT, I AM NO LONGER ASKING

and to the rest of u, thank u for liking a bunch of my work, whenever i see long lists of likes like that, or if i see ur name often 'nuff, i always notice 😇, i never know how to say thank you!!

@leftoverspagehhti

@karorurodriguez

@epikprinc

@mapleflavedpepperoni

@xmaster3000

@jayisnotdrawing

@jackofthecards

@ectojester

@cat0marble

Didn't include everyone, but just know that i noticed you!!! 💝

watch me get reported for harassment by all these people 😂

[littlefroginthegarden]

Sold to Heartsteel 1/24

its a liiiittle bit late but whatever... im trying to write an advents calendar fic, theres some buffer but ill write during the month so im also open to input if you have any good ideas :)

hope you enjoy!

Tags: semi-ironic adaptation of 'sold to one direction' trope so yeah theres obv selling involved, angst, fluff, friendship, romance, maybe smut, mlm, transmasc character, some transphobia but mostly just parents being shit but nothing explicit or slurs or stuff, yeah i think thats about it, ill update this if anything changes xoxo

Part 1

Hi, my name is Hwei and I’m a misunderstood artist. Well, that’s not exactly true. My Parents hate my art and they think it’s just a waste of time. But under the name DemonBrush I’m known all around the world, my art account just recently hit two million followers. Which didn’t help me at all in my real life. I’ve been 18 now for a few months but my parents still act like I’m 16. I haven’t finished school yet and I can’t move out because my anxiety has made working impossible so far. My parents don’t allow me to get therapy or meds and I’m on their insurance so there’s nothing I can do. I sigh and try to think about something else but looking out my small window into the dark December morning isn’t helping. I go and pull the curtains, turn on my fairy lights and sit at my small desk that is crammed between the bed and the heavy wooden dresser. 

My reflection stares at me in the mirror, dark shadows under my amethyst eyes, a sign that I slept terribly, once again. The nightmares wouldn’t leave me alone. I sigh and start doing my makeup, nothing bright, just some smudged dark eyeshadow and black eyeliner on my waterline. My mom was probably gonna complain again but I don’t care. Last week she told me “People might think you’re gay!” Yeah, sure mom. I mean, why do you think I have all these Heartsteel posters hanging in my room? Because I love their one song so much? But when she says "gay" she means "lesbian". She would have an aneurysm if I tried to explain to her that I’m trans. And then she would probably throw me out. As if she could read my thoughts, I hear her shouting from downstairs “Come down immediately, Hwa! I can hear that you’re up.”

Ugh.

I throw on a black oversized hoodie that matches my skinny jeans (also black) and put my dark juniper green hair in a messy bun before I run downstairs as quick as I can. Better not make mom wait, she’s awful enough as is.

When I enter the kitchen, I almost bump into a large man in a suit that is standing next to my mom.

“Oh fuck, sorry!” I quickly say, getting a death stare from my mom but for once she doesn’t even berate me for swearing. She just looks between me and this dude, who was wearing dark sunglasses (in December!) for some fucking reason.

“Who is this?” I ask after a few moments of awkward silence.

“My name is Mr. Mundo, nice to meet you, Hwa.” His voice fits his impressive stature perfectly.

My mother steps forward and puts her hand on my shoulder, looking at me more seriously than I have ever seen her. “You know that we haven’t had the easiest time since dad lost his job. And since you refuse to work and pay your share, we had no other choice.”

“What do you mean? What choice?” I ask, slowly starting to panic.

“You’ll go with Mr. Mundo, he has a job for you where you’ll work for six months. You’ll get a room and food and the money goes to pay back all the debt you owe us.”

“Debt? What do I owe you?”

“Darling, you've been living and eating here for free for 18 years!”

“This is insane!” I yell at her. “You’re selling me? You are a monster!”

“Selling? It’s just temporary honey, and it’s a decent job, don’t make it sound worse than it is!”

“You can’t do that, I’m an adult, you can’t force me!” At this point I’m full on panicking. This can’t be happening, it should just be another nightmare. But I know it’s real. My nightmares are way different.

“You are right and nobody is forcing you. But think about this, it would give you the perfect opportunity to get some good job experiences while at the same time helping out your family! Also –” she adds “if you don’t take this offer then you’ll have to pack your bags, we can’t pay for you any longer.”

“If you stayed off the booze you could.” I press through my teeth, anger winning over panic.

She just ignores it and tells me “Please Honey, think about it. If you go with Mr. Mundo at least you’ll have a roof and food. We just want what’s best for you! You’ll thank us in a few years, mark my words.” With this she turns around and leaves me alone in the kitchen with this absolute hunk of a man.

“Go pack your stuff, we leave in an hour.” He hands me a big suitcase before sinking down onto the washed-out red leather couch in the living room, turning the TV on, unfazed by all of this as if it was his daily job. Which it probably was.

Still in shock, I go back to my room and just stare at the mirror for a solid minute. I still haven’t processed what just happened but I start throwing my most important stuff into the suitcase. I have a lot of clothes but most of them are from my parents and I hate wearing them. So it’s not too difficult to fit all my favorite pieces into the suitcase, some skinny jeans, flowy tops and hoodies and of course accessories, I can’t leave my choker collection here. Then I go to my bed and from under the mattress I pull my binder. I put it under all the other things so it won’t be visible if my mom checks my suitcase. She would freak out. I gather the rest of the stuff, making sure I have my laptop, makeup and favorite books, and check the time. I still have 15 minutes left but at this point, the quicker I’m gone the better. I grab the heavy suitcase and try to carry it down the stairs. Two steps in I nearly slip and the suitcase crashes onto the step with a loud Thud. Before I’m even up I can hear heavy steps on the stairs.

Mr. Mundo grabs the suitcase without saying a word and carries it down. I awkwardly follow him, hoping my mom is distracted and hasn’t noticed the commotion. For once I seem to be lucky, she’s nowhere to be seen. At the door, Mr. Mundo turns around and asks me “Are you sure that you have everything? You won’t be able to come back here anytime soon.”

“Yeah I’m not planning on doing that anyways. Can we go?” I ask impatiently.

He doesn’t answer and just opens the door and walks down the driveway towards the black car with darkened windows that is waiting at the end of it. He puts my suitcase in the back of it with ease and opens the door in the back, gesturing for me to get in. I hesitate for a second, but when I can hear the front door of the house open again, I quickly get in before I can hear whatever my mother wants to tell me. He slams the door behind me and gets into the driver’s seat, which I can’t even see from back here because there’s a divider between the front and the back of the car. Like in a limousine. Or a cop car. It feels more like the latter, like I’m a prisoner.

The car rumbles to life and even though the windows are heavily tinted, I can see the shadows of trees racing past us. Where are we going?

[lloydfrontera]

Haven't even finished either story yet (just reading both at the same time and eagerly consuming spoilers - for tged since there is basically NOTHING for the sequel 😭), but I'm still thinking about what an au where Lloyd's swordsman guard is Damian and rakiel is stuck w Javier would be like...

bestie you're telling me i went from a fandom with 100k fics to one with 1k to one with 100 to one with 0 i am starving over here 😭 i think i'm literally the only one in the tag for rakiel and i don't care for twitter so tumblr is my one contact with the tged fandom at all and the situation is,,, dire,,,

y'know i had written a pretty lengthy and thoughtful response about how i think lloyd and damian would respond to each other according to their character and circumstances but then my computer turned off and i lost it so instead you get this:

they both get where the other is coming from, they understand each other perfectly. doesn't mean they have to like it!

lloyd is trying to get out from life ruining debt! he can't afford to have a knight with a high salary who demands bonuses and raises constantly! damian is coming from nigh slavery, of course he wants to have financial security in any way he can get it! they both know the worth of money, how important it is to have it and to demand what you're owed so of course they're simultaneously in the same boat while being directly opposed.

not that i'm saying lloyd is a bad boss, he's very fair and just, always paying on time (something damian actually calls rakiel out on lmao) but he's a penny pincher and likes to save as much as possible. which is something i do see damian having a bit of an issue with because one of the things he really likes about rakiel is how generous he is with people, both with his time, effort and resources despite seemingly getting nothing for himself (of course not knowing about the bonus life lol). and we know lloyd does nothing for free and is shameless about it. so their relationship would be them constantly butting heads as they both try to squeeze as much of each other as possible.

on the other hand, i think lloyd would actually have an easier time getting damian to like him than with javier actually lmao. like, let's be honest, damian isn't the paragon of virtue javier is. as long as he's getting paid and isn't being asked to, idk, burn down an orphanage, he's pretty down for anything. heck, he didn't give a shit about rakiel, the imperial crown prince, being replaced by someone else, because he liked the other guy so he wouldn't give a flying fuck about og!lloyd, recognized hooligan, being replaced by someone who actually cares about the estate he works for.

and damian would be much more direct with lloyd too. he would not keep it to himself if he knew about lloyd being kim suho, that boy would tell him the first opportune moment he got lmao now the question is whether lloyd would come clean or go total denial the way rakiel did,,,, mmmhhhh many thoughts for later,,,

and javier as rakiel's bodyguard! mmmhhhh now this au would require a lot of thought, because so many things of the plot depend of rakiel using the asrahan mana absorption method. but if we go by vibes alone and ignore all worldbuilding, the i think,,,, mmmmhhh what do i think actually,,,,

well honestly to begin with i don't think there'd be too much trouble actually. like. at all. javier is,,, javier. he's thee protagonist, he's good, he's honorable, he's all you can ask for from a main character. he gets rescued from the gladiator arena by rakiel, you better believe he'd pledge his life to him from there. and like, unless we want to make him a carbon copy of damian, then he wouldn't even ask for a big salary like damian did. he'd just stick to rakiel and protect him at all costs. we see how loyal he is in tkbi and tged, he gets saved by arcos and he never serves another master after that, he decides he wants to protect lloyd and he literally ascends to another plane of existence to do it. if rakiel rescued him, there'd be no power on earth that would make him leave his side. and that would only increase as he sees rakiel push himself over and over again to treat and save people by seemingly no reason but that he wants too (again, no one knows about the bonus life lmao). he'd push himself just as hard to be helpful to rakiel and protect him, like he does in tged with lloyd and like damian does too.

and in this particular au i don't even see him having an issue with the whole 'replaced by another person' thing. after all, in tged the point of conflict was that javier is a knigh for the frontera family, not just for lloyd. so it was technically his duty to let arcos know that someone had replaced his son, even if that someone had saved them all from total ruin. but he didn't, because he trusts lloyd and because he thought they deserved to heard it from lloyd himself first.

but in this case, javier would be rakiel's bodyguard. he isn't anything from the emperor, he isn't even a knight, heck, he never even met the real prince, as far as he's concerned he's only loyal to the rakiel he knows which is lee han. he has no reason to be conflicted because he swore loyalty to lee han and lee han is his prince rakiel.

oh and he would hate javilon's guts. utter hatred. like it's on sight for him go straight for the neck lmao

somehow i think he'd be even more protective of rakiel than he is already of lloyd. like lloyd can handle himself pretty well. rakiel can too, but he looks like a strong gust of win will blow him away. it messes with his brain chemistry a little.

and he'd take being the vessel for the demon king pretty hard. especially when he accidentally hurts rakiel. and when he gets sick. like that'd be pretty close to how damian reacts in the novel too.

as for rakiel,,,, i have a harder time deciding how he'd feel about javier. i feel like pretty much the way he does with damian?? i don't think much would change tbh. much of the banter between rakiel and damian comes from damian asking for more bonuses and rakiel complaining about it, and if javier doesn't do that then they'd have to find something else to bicker about. probably rakiel's terrible stamina lmao

so,,, yeah aksdka

[tisiphonewolfe]

Author Ask Tag Game

My thanks to @doublegoblin for tagging me here!

This is going to mostly be in the context of The Tectomancy Saga -

(1) What is the main lesson of your story (e.g. kindness, diversity, anti-war), and why did you choose it?

I don't know if I can say there's a singular main lesson or message that the story is meant to provide. Different characters will learn different things. I want Releine to realise that she has inherent value and isn't only defined by what she can do for other people; I want Almyra to learn that even smaller goals are victories; I want Jessa to learn that you don't have to be who other people expect you to be; I want Tenacity to learn that your goals, however noble, can't come before the people you care about. And I just want Ellimane to get her shit together quite frankly. I don't know that I chose them so much as that that's where those character arcs seem to want to go. I guess they're things I've had to learn to some extent in life.

(2) What did you use as inspiration for your worldbuilding (like real-life cultures, animals, famous media, websites, etc.)?

I honestly find that very hard to pin down! I guess I owe a lot to certain authors in terms of the kind of things I find fun to think about and write ideas from. I guess they would be: Terry Pratchett, Paul Stewart & Chris Riddell, Garth Nix, and Tamsyn Muir. Worlds full of weird creatures, worlds that are weird shapes, worlds that have an edge you can fall off, worlds that are full of cryptic magic. I think I have at least that group of people to thank for getting my brain going. And of course, I have to pay mention to fairy tales and their long history of putting Princesses in towers and guarding them with dragons - that was the whole thing that made me think "and what if the Princess loves the dragon?" in the first place.

(3) What is your MC trying to achieve, and what are you, the writer, trying to achieve with them? Do you want to inspire others, teach forgiveness, help readers grow as a person?

Mostly I think I just want others to love them as much as I do. That's a lot of the fun of reading to me, at least - get attached to someone funky and fucked-up and see where they go. Adore them for their wits and weird quirks, and the things they turn to in themselves when the situation is dire. I want readers to worry for them, post their favourite quotes on tumblr, think about them when they're cooking and cleaning! That's what I do when I love a character.

(4) How many chapters is your story going to have?

Well, MWC&C ended with 47 chapters, and BBS&B is currently on chapter 40 and will probably run longer than its predecessor. There are two more books I can think of in the main sequence, so I'd guess roughly 200+. There are a couple of prequel novels I could write, and I had an idea for a sequel trilogy, but I guess whether I invest in that depends on if I can get anyone reading the original books!

(5) Is it fanfiction or original content? Where do you plan to post it?

It's original content all the way. I'm hoping to get a chance to publish it (agents, please call me), but if all else fails, I guess I'll try and self-publish somehow. Marketing is not one of my great skills though, so it'll be a challenge.

(6) When and why did you start writing?

November 2021. I've talked about this before, but I lost my love of reading for a number of years, mostly because I was depressed and also trying to read the wrong kind of books for me just because I thought that they were the kinds of things that people should read. In 2021 I finally had to know who the spooky bone lesbians on my dash were and read Gideon the Ninth. Then that year I inhaled a dozen more sapphic books and remembered that as well as liking reading, I loved to write once upon a time (har har) and thought I'd give that another go.

(7) Do you have any words of engagement for fellow writers of Writeblr? What other writers of Tumblr do you follow?

What are words of engagement?! Are we courting, or is it pistols at dawn?! I guess I would say - assuming we're talking about interacting with other writers - don't be afraid to just come and chat with me about stuff. If I say something that reminds you of one of your characters, or something about your world, then please tell me, because I'll probably like that too. We can show stuff off to one another and play with our characters like dolls. If you mean words of encouragement, I'd say this: Even a little bit of writing is still writing. Don't beat yourself up if you don't have the energy to bash out thousands of words in a sitting. Do a few hundred; a paragraph; a sentence. You'll get there eventually. And don't bum yourself out waiting for inspiration - sometimes the best inspiration is just typing a horrifically bad sentence. Doing that makes me want to write the next one better.

I follow too many writers to list, but I'm going to tag some for this game (very, very gently), so - @sam-glade @indy-gray @aalinaaaaaa @comicgoblinart

[leaveharmony]

Istg this shit is driving me insane

WE DON’T!  HAVE!  A WOMEN’S DIVISION!!!!

STARDOM IS NOT THE WOMEN’S DIVISION OF NOOJ IT IS A SEPARATE AND DISTINCT THING HAVING NOTHING IN COMMON WITH NOOJ OTHER THAN, NOW, A PARENT COMPANY!  COMMENTS LIKE THIS ARE JUST DEMONSTRATING THAT SHE IS DOING FUCKALL FOR STARDOM PRETENDING TO BE THE FACE OF THE NOOJ WOMEN’S DIVISION INSTEAD BC IDK, WORKING FOR A MERE WOMEN’S PROMOTION WOULDN’T BE ~HISTORIC~ ENOUGH

Jesus christ no wonder dubya rubes are so fucking confused w/ their WHY ONLY ONE WOMEN’S MATCH ON THIS NOOJ SHOW and GIVE THE WOMEN MORE SCREEN TIME when @ no fucking point is anyone saying “Actually that is a Stardom title and it was made for Stardom which is the fucking entire other promotion that Bushiroad bought out half a minute ago and the GLORIOUS HISTORY of said title dates back all of three fucking months and to introduce the NEW FACE OF THE WOMEN’S DIVISION they fucked over two of their own actual contracted women’s wrestlers w/ a match that lasted like ten minutes on the biggest show of the year bc ‘an ex-Big Name slumming it after dubya to exaggerated fanfare like nooj owes them compensation for how they were treated elsewhere’ is now an Equality Statement bc they’re treating their actual talent like trash to showcase them instead in the ‘women’s division,’ too”

Calling it the women’s division is just…I mean first of all inaccurate, but second of all a fucking understatement of what it actually is

And if they’re for some idiotic reason considering somehow merging them instead of frankensteining in women’s matches on american shows (ftr I don’t think that is a bad idea) it would be an active downgrade because guaranteed, then it WOULD be a halfassed women’s division that gets no time compared to the men and they’d PRESENT it like some grand statement of Progress but all it would be is an awkward novelty done half-heartedly not for fans of either company but as a desperate play for more western eyes on the product even though halfassing (which they would) wouldn’t result in anything but bitching and criticism and confusion from the perpetually disgruntled ‘casual fans’ who know next to nothing about either company and only tune in when talent they recognize from elsewhere show up

And irritation from people who actually DO care about either company cringing at nooj expecting woke points for their historic new ‘women’s division’ which everyone is smiling big artificial bear trap smiles over while it gets less than half the time the men do / Stardom fans being called ungrateful that their big historic ~upgrade~ into the nooj women’s division, surprise surprise, ends up amounting to one 8 minute six-woman tag on a 3 hour show