#i know it looks like shit on the dash but it's fine everywhere else

[amazingmsme]

Making Briar’s playlist & of course it has me thinking about her. & it’s about time I give y’all the content you probably followed me for. This got away from me so putting it under a read more so I don’t clog your dash, thank me later

But yeah, Briar definitely has a tumblr account & she’s definitely a tk fic writer, but it is her most guarded secret. (Even more so than the fact she’s Spider-Goth)

The epitome of a bratty lee, while still being super shy about it. But she like never gets tickled sooo it’s not really something she like, has to worry about lol. But if she sees it happening to someone else around her she goes stiff as a board & looks away & tries to act like she’s paying attention to someone else. & if she hears The Word she perks up & you can practically see an exclamation mark pop up above her head lmao

Being the older sibling, she wasn’t on the receiving end very often & has a pretty mean ler streak. It comes with being the oldest. But she tries to act all bored & aloof if someone brings it up while she’s internally freaking out. If someone asks the dreaded question she just gives them a blank look & says something along the lines of “no” or “you’re kidding me, right?”

Her worst spots are her thighs, knees, underarms & tummy. Don’t ask me why, she just gives me those vibes, but she’s pretty sensitive everywhere

If you act like you’re gonna get her or even just threaten her with tickles she spits out the most violent sounding threats & insults, but she is all talk. Like once you get her she curls up & lets out the cutest giggles you ever did hear. No fight whatsoever. & if they point it out she insist it’s cause she doesn’t wanna hurt them. She tries to act all huffy & put out afterwards but she’s undeniably in a better mood

Her blog is p popular & she has a lot of fics on her blog, some flop but others do the fuckin’ numbers

1 time she was in the middle of a mission with Pavitr & Miguel & she was pulling a Miles typing on her phone while she was effortlessly beating up the bad guy. But of course that shit won’t fly with mr stick in his ass

He’s like “what’s so damn important that you’re not paying attention? Who are you texting?” & she just scoffs & is like “I’m not texting, I’m writing.”

“That’s even worse!” & Pavitr takes up for her like “well she’s still contributing so it’s fine. It’s nothing I haven’t done” & that makes Miguel chew both of them out while they’re rounding up the bad guys & Briar is ignoring everything he’s saying & just continues to type away at her phone

Miguel’s fed up & is all like “ok that’s it” & webs her phone out of her hand & is like “wtf is more important than a fight” but she fucking panics & makes a B-line straight for him & kicks him & snatches her phone ‘cause there’s no way in hell she’d EVER let him see what she writes

After the fight tho she gets an ear full ‘cause not only was she “not engaged in the fight” (she was, it was a super easy & lame fight) & how she “turned on her fellow team” (you fucking stole my phone, what do you expect?) & just making her feel bad & guilty

After they get back to HQ & they had some time to cool off Miguel tries to interrogate her like “for real, what the hell were you writing that you’d kick me square in the chest to prevent me from seeing? Was it porn?” She blushes sooo much ‘cause that came way outta left field & she’s like “NO?!?!”

“Come on, I won’t judge, it was porn, wasn’t it? Isn’t that all fanfiction is anyways?”

“Of course that’s what you’d think. & that’s exactly why I’d never let you see anything I write.” & Pavitr pipes up like “Could I read it?” all bright eyed & excited & she’s real hesitant like “mmmm idk if you’d like it” just cause she knows Pav has a blabbermouth & a half & she doesn’t want any of these cool superheroes knowing what kinda fics she writes lol

But Pav begs nonstop & she finally caves & swears him to secrecy. She lets him read what she was writing during the fight & he’s like “oh my gosh that was the cutest thing I’ve ever read! Why not just tell him?” & she’s like “are you fucking kidding me? He can never find out. & if you tell him I’ll kill you, got it?” & he agrees but he’s just like that smug cat meme. She should’ve never told him tho ‘cause now he nags her about when she’s gonna update an ongoing fic or post one she’s been talking about

But she was probably writing for something kinda niche & Pav is just like “I don’t know who these people are but I love it!” I just feel like he’d be the type to read fics for stuff he doesn’t even know to support his friends. Or I can say fuck that & say she was writing a supernatural fic since she’s a lil basic (in the best way) idk you decide: was she writing for supernatural, or something like ace attorney?

It still lowkey drives Miguel crazy if he lets himself dwell on it for too long. Curiosity killed the cat & at this point he doesn’t even care about what she was writing, he just wants to find out to spite her for being such a lil bitch. (She literally told him to his face that she’d sooner die than show him anything she posts)

[malka-lisitsa]

For the mun on a writing level or.. muse level, how do you tackle a controversial character or topic? Like.. you know it stirs up interest in both good and bad.

Novi's advice column

The absolute first thing you need to know is that this is tumblr, and someone is always going to have a problem with you no matter what you do. Straight up- Someone is going to hate you no matter how hard you try to avoid it. So just accept that right out of the gate you will in fact always piss someone off whether you have controversial shit in your portrayal or not.

Once you've accepted that- then you really just have to decide who you're writing for and what you want out of your tumblr experience. Personally, I think you should always write for your muse first, you second, and your audience last. Your muse deserves to be done justice not chopped up and spun into bite sized little pieces more palatable for the puritan crowd on tumblr. If your muse is a bad person, play your muse as a bad person. If your muse is a murder, con artist, kidnapper, whatever the fuck- keep them that way.

Put a trigger warning in your pinned, on your card, and in a bio, make sure to tag your threads where you need to and most people will either not follow to avoid the topic, or block the tag so they don't see it on the dash. You will get trolls, if you can't handle the butt hurt people telling you how to run your blog because they clearly speak for everyone everywhere and definitely know what's best for the entirety of tumblr- I suggest you turn OFF anon, because those people are all cowards and wont have the guts to say it to your face <3

Like I said most people will simply block or not follow and you'll be fine- a lot of people have very specific topics as deal breakers in their rules, so defo make sure you're also looking for those before you follow. The long and the short of it is, is that when it comes to muses who have done, are doing, and will do shitty things your audience is going to be smaller- but this is the internet and there is an audience for EVERYTHING and I do mean EVERYTHING.

You simply have to decide what's more important to you, the topic, or your audience/writing partners. I always advocate for keeping your muse pure and NOT cherry picked. Villains are supposed to make people uncomfortable that's why they're villains. Morally grey characters are supposed to make questionable and concerning choices, that's why they're morally grey. If your muse did something controversial in their past, chances are it had a huge part of shaping who they are or the people around them today and it's not fair to erase that.

So, how I handle it PERSONALLY- I have in my pinned I refuse to water Katherine down and she absolutely IS a morally grey character and does some pretty shitty things. I also state that she has a lot of trauma I wont water down either. Make the topic(s) clear up front and then communicate with the people who do choose to write with you, and be cognitive of their triggers/hard nos. After that there's nothing else to really do. You write your character the way they're meant to be written, and anyone who has a problem with that doesn't have to follow.

[doomdays]

i'm putting this under a read more because 1) i've never known how to stick to one topic at a time and 2) this is just my mind buzzing everywhere so i'll spare the dash <3

taissa has carefully curated this picture - perfect life for herself.  perfect wife, perfect family, perfect career, perfect reputation, etc.  simone, while she does love her, does not give her the 'spark' she knows people typically find in their partners -- and she has settled for that, because it's easier, because it's what works, because the 'spark' has nearly gotten people killed in the past by things she didn't understand back then and she definitely doesn't understand now, even still.  it's easier with simone and she tells herself that's fine.  she doesn't think about that not being fair for simone because it's fair for her.  

she has repressed all her trauma -- not just from the wilderness, but even long before that when she was a child -- and she doesn't ever deal with anything.  she projects her issues onto other people, and often, she judges them for it, or she invalidates it.  it's not necessarily something she's actively aware of, even when she's called out on it.  

"[therapists] make their living off of problems that don't get solved]."

"for someone who went through some shit of their own, it never ceases to amaze me how shut off you are to help."

"psychogenic this, dissipated that-- besides all the jargon, did she actually have any fixes?""

"she says [sam's] behavior stems from overwhelming stress."  

"for fuck's sake."

most notably it happens with her own son;  everything that happens through her alter self is something she usually inevitably blames on him.  sam is dealing with overwhelming stress because taissa is the source of it,  because she is projecting her own onto him, because he is trying to protect her from "the bad one" whether he understands what that means or not.  

"did she actually have any fixes?" is so important because she is someone who needs control, she needs real, tangible evidence of help.  she has always dismissed her own trauma and pretended it wasn't there, pretended that she was okay, etc -- but she is terrified of herself, terrified of what's going on in her own mind, and she doesn't want to think about that with sammy, either.  she does with him what she does for herself:  claim everything is fine.  

she does the same with nat.  she judges nat for the lifestyle she has and the choices she's made to deal with their grief,  at least outwardly  --- but she doesn't mean it.  she's honest to shauna about how she helps nat because nat has no one else,  but she turns around and openly judges nat for her choices because it's just easier for taissa.  because she doesn't fully understand it,  and nat is right to call her on it:

 "and i know you think i'm crazy, but you know what i see?  you guys are just as fucked up as i am.  you're just better at lying to yourselves.  you're not healthy.  you're not stable.  you're living on the brink, just like me."

because that's literally it:  taissa is just better at lying to herself.  she's not healthy.  she's not stable.  she is living on the brink.  

so when i say she's an unreliable narrator,  i mean that nearly everything i write, especially in her adult verse, she's lying to herself, so she presents herself in a way that contradicts everything she's actually experiencing.  she judges nat for coping with her trauma with drugs, etc., because she's ignoring the way that she herself copes with it,  repressing it so much that she thinks her son is responsible for the horrors she's committed when she's in that state.  she looks at the other survivors and she thinks that she's the only one who accomplished anything because she's lying to herself, and she's only pretending that her life is perfect.

"well, i was going to go to howard. pre-law, with a double major in history and philosophy. and date a bunch of beautiful women, make first string on the soccer team, graduate first in my class. and then i was gonna go to columbia law and land an internship in one of the biggest firms in the city."

"you did do all those things."

"yeah. but if i'm being honest, not a single one of those things felt... real."

but she's honest with shauna.  she is always her truest self when she's with shauna.  she admits to shauna that she helps nat because she sees that she's alone,  she admits to shauna that she's sleepwalking and she feels like she's a danger to everyone around her,  she admits to shauna that she got everything she wanted out of life and still felt empty for it.  the things she admits to shauna are often things she's unwilling to admit even to herself.  she's an unreliable narrator to almost everyone, but that's rarely true when she's talking to shauna.  

that's true as a teenager, too.  she belittled van for believing in lottie and yet she actively participated in those things,  too.  she made fun of the necklace, and then she stole it from van to protect herself  (  unconsciously, and she doesn't remember doing it, but she knows it protected herself and only herself.  )   she doesn't tell van about the sleep walking, and she doesn't tell her what the necklace did for her.  van openly believing in lottie is scary to taissa because it feels like bullshit to tai -- and yet she is actively participating in that 'bullshit,' just unconsciously, and admitting that to van means she is giving up that control herself which means she's never willing to have that honest conversation ( and, imo, is likely why they don't make it. )

anyway i love listening to taissa turner talk because she makes me so mad and sad and excited all at the same time. she is always lying <3 to everyone else and to herself <3 most of the time she doesn't even realize she's lying <3

writing taissa threads is so funny because she’s just constantly lying to herself, and then I have to explain that she’s lying to herself because she is an unreliable narrator!! and it’s fun for me 🖤

[terreisa]

The Savior and The Scoundrel: Should I Stay or Should I Go

Emma has had a few titles attributed to her in her life: princess, captain, pirate but none sat so heavily on her shoulders as Savior. When fate forces her to step into the role prophesied before her birth the only saving she wants to do is to bring back the man she loves. Fulfilling the Prophecy along the way is an additional reward. Sequel to A Crown and A Captain.

Prologue, Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 4, Ch 5, Ch 6, Ch 7, Ch 8, Ch 9, Ch 10, Ch 11, Ch 12, Ch 13

ff.net, AO3

“I don’t see why I can’t just go ashore by myself!  You said we don’t have to worry about Zelena anymore, right?”

“Just because we don’t have to worry about her doesn’t mean there aren’t hundreds of other ways to get into trouble.  Especially when you have no clue how anything in this land works.”

Emma watched Marty and Turner argue with little interest.  She didn’t have much interest in anything at all but she was trying to put on a good show for everyone else.  They were treating her as though she were moments away from a breakdown but she only felt numb.  It was easier to act as though her world hadn’t imploded with a false smile than staring blankly out at the water waiting for another pointless day to end.

Nearly a week had passed and it was the first time she had emerged above deck since the day Zelena had told her the awful truth about the curse.  Emma had stayed holed up in her quarters for the first few days, only emerging to give Turner the order to sail the Jewel into the town’s harbor.  There had been a small snowstorm not long after she’d given the order and she tried not to think of it as a sign of some sort.  The next day they had moored the Jewel in an empty berth with little fanfare.  She’d forced herself to remain below deck in order to resist the temptation of going to Killian to explain everything.  It was also an attempt to keep herself from returning to Gold’s shop to try and see if she could discern if he was truly a heartless Dark One or not.

It was currently the morning of their second day anchored in the harbor and she had reluctantly emerged on deck when she had heard raised voices.  Discovering that Marty was simply having another fit about having to stay on board had irked her at first, mostly because she had been forced to leave the confines of the lower decks.  She was about to escape back down into her quarters when she heard someone shouting for permission to come aboard.

Exchanging a shocked look with both Marty and Turner she quickly walked to look over the port side rail to the docks below.  She did nothing to hide her frown when she saw that it was Walsh standing there.

“Ah, good to see you Miss White!” He called up to her with an insincere grin. “I’d like to speak to the, uh, captain of this boat.”

“It’s a ship and you are,” she said back, leaning her hip against the rail and crossing her arms. “What can I do for you Sheriff?”

“Can I come up?  I’d prefer not to keep shouting at you, especially with the matter we need to discuss-” he said, his grin mellowing into a stern look.

She gave him a terse nod and his grin bloomed again as he began to climb the gangplank.  As much as she didn’t want him on her ship she was even less willing to step off the Jewel herself.  Moments before his head appeared over the rail she heard the sounds of others emerging from below.  With a sigh of frustration she turned to find that everyone was grouped below the helm, watching Walsh step on deck.  She heard his surprised intake of breath and rolled her eyes before turning back to address him.

“Welcome aboard the Jewel, Sheriff,” she drawled, lazily waving her arm to present the ship.  She then waved over her shoulder, “This is my crew.”

“Ah-” Walsh’s eyes roamed over the deck and those at her back, wide and with seemingly reluctant respect. “Can we, uh, maybe go somewhere a bit more private?”

“I’m going to have to say no.  The last time I had a private conversation with you you threatened me before forcing me to choose between saving my own hide or Jones’,” she said with a raised brow. “I think wanting a few others hear what you have to say to me is understandable.”

Walsh bristled, his jaw ticking and his hands clenching into fists at his side.  There was a low chuckle behind her that she believed was Roland but didn’t want to look to be sure.  They still weren’t on the best of terms even in light of recent revelations.  That he was showing his support of her, in the smallest of possible ways, had her squaring her shoulders, ready to square off against Walsh as long as was needed.

“I received a call this morning from the harbormaster,” Walsh grit out.  Then, unexpectedly, his eyes lit up with malicious glee, “He reported that a boat, oh sorry, ship had docked without permission or payment.  Thought I might take a gander and lo and behold it’s something that belongs in a museum and it’s supposedly yours.  Am I to believe you sailed this here?  I mean, you did say that Jones had picked you up in Portland, right?”

“She is mine and of course I sailed her here,” Emma spat back, incensed at his condescending tone. “Since you can’t even seem to believe that much can you blame me for telling you something your small mind would find easier to understand?”

“Watch your tone Miss White!” Walsh snapped. “You wouldn’t want to go back to the station in cuffs now would you?”

“I’d like to see you try,” she said with a smirk, resting her hand on her hip, a finger width away from the hilt of her sword.

“Now now, that could be seen as threatening an officer,” he rebuked with a disapproving click of his tongue.  He placed his hands on his own hips, revealing a leather harness with what appeared to be a small black firearm holstered in it, “We don’t want things to get messy here.  How about you come back to the station with me and we can sort this all out like civilized folks.”

“Wouldn’t she take it up with the harbormaster?” Regina asked, the sneer evident in her voice.

“If I wanted your input Ms. Mills I would have asked for it.  Come along Miss White.”

“I thought I told you to leave them alone.”

“Madam Mayor!”

Walsh spun around so fast that Emma wondered if he had been trained to do so at the sound of Zelena’s voice.  For her part she merely rolled her eyes and blew out a frustrated breath as the woman appeared over the rail.  She gazed longingly at the hatch leading down to her quarters, resigning herself to dealing with the two people in the whole town she wanted to interact with the least.

“I never gave you permission to board,” Emma sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose.

“As if you wouldn’t make me wait a god awful amount of time for it,” Zelena scoffed.  She looked at Walsh, “Baum isn’t there a jaywalker you need to scold or some school children that need to be scared straight?”

“Er, no but there was a complaint-”

“Miss White and her… companions have brought their ship here at my request for the Founder’s Day festivities.  Which is why I’m here-” Zelena gave her a wide, beaming smile. “I believe we had an appointment?”

“Madam Mayor-”

Zelena’s eyes slid to Walsh and when she spoke it was with a quiet fury, “I believe I told you to go.”

Emma couldn’t see his face but from the way his shoulders stiffened she knew he wasn’t taking kindly to the order.  She half expected him to argue further with the way he shifted his weight from foot to foot.  Instead he threw her a disdainful look over his shoulder and stormed off the ship, seemingly murmuring to himself the entire way.

“Ever since you showed up he’s started getting a mind of his own,” Zelena sighed.  She frowned as her eyes scanned the deck, “I thought you’d have a… better crew put together.  Then again the one you had before was hardly a good effort so I shouldn’t be surprised.”

“Tell me what you’re doing here, now, or you can get the hell off my ship,” Emma snapped.

“Not out here where practically everyone within earshot can hear us.  Especially when there is more than one person in this town who shouldn’t hear what I have to say,” Zelena said with a roll of her eyes.

Emma could practically feel the others tensing behind her, ready to argue over one thing or another.  Not wanting Walsh to turn back or attract the attention of any passerby she threw a glare over her shoulder at her unhappy crew.  She turned back to Zelena and indicated the hatch leading down to the lower decks.

“After you.”

With a look of disgust curling her lip Zelena climbed down into the ship.  Emma went to follow and saw disappointment looking back at her from nearly everyone else.  In a bizarre twist Regina was the only one who wasn’t.  Instead she was looking down into the bowels of the ship with a mixture of awe and disgust.  As she stepped down into the dim bowels of the ship Emma could only hope that someone wouldn’t end up with some kind of injury before too long.

They ended up settling in the galley.  She’d had a passing thought of leading Zelena into her cabin but it was too personal and with the way the others had followed her it wasn’t large enough to hold them all.  As it was they had to cram themselves around the table with Roland and Turner forced to stand back by the doorway as there weren’t enough chairs.  Zelena scowled at her but Emma merely scowled back and settled back in her chair.

“Alright, we’re here where no one can hear us.  What do you want?”

“Did you have to allow the peanut gallery to join us?” Zelena sniffed, obviously annoyed at the company.

“It’s either that or I escort you off the ship,” Roland growled, crossing his arms over his chest.

“If I had my magic I’d turn you into one of my monkeys just to watch you dance.”

“Stop threatening my crew or I’ll help him throw you overboard,” Emma said, glaring at Zelena and trying not to smile at the thought of tossing her into the freezing harbor.  “I’m not going to ask again: Why are you here?”

“This is the first time you’ve deigned to show your face in week-” Zelena glared back, “and I need reassurance that you won’t be breaking the curse.  There’s a lot at stake here.”

“Why should we even trust you?  How do we know you’re not lying just to keep this warped reality you reign over in tact?” Regina snarled.

“Please, you think I warned you out of the kindness of my heart?  Who do you think that beast will kill first if the curse is broken?  I'm merely trying to save my own neck and if that means aligning myself with you then so be it,” Zelena huffed, looking as though she had just swallowed a lemon.

“Why his heart?  Why any of this for that matter?” Regina asked, throwing her hands up in frustration. “You’d already beaten me,  I was at your mercy and you had everything.  You didn’t need to cast the curse.”

“Of course I did,” Zelena spat out. “He didn’t think I would do it for all the reasons you stated and more.  I had to prove him wrong, show him that he had underestimated me, again.  And I didn’t have everything, your face did.  I had to fix that as well.”

“Unbelievable,” Regina scoffed. “I knew you were the jealous type but I had no idea you were this insane.  When the Savior breaks the curse I’m going to enjoy watching him snap your neck.”

“She’s not going to break the curse,” Zelena said confidently.  She smirked at Emma, “Not when she’s of the same ilk as her hero parents.”

“If we-” Emma hesitated, the words catching in her throat. “If we don’t break the curse then the people here will be miserable for the rest of their lives.  They won’t ever remember who they were- are.  They won’t know that they’re missing pieces of themselves, that there are people they lo-love that they think are nothing but another face they walk by day after day.  Or worse they won’t know them at all.  It’s not fair.”

“Life’s not fair, princess, anyone who tells you different it just selling something,” Zelena said with a roll of her eyes. “You break the curse the darkest of Dark Ones wreaks havoc on every realm he can get his scaly carcass to.  You don’t and people live blissfully ignorant lives where they don’t even know what the hell they’re missing anyway.  I believe that should simplify your choice.”

“For someone without morals perhaps,” Grace murmured from her seat at the corner of the table.

“We can argue this round and round until we’re blue in the face but eventually you’ll have to decide,” Zelena said, pointedly glaring at Grace.

“I need more time-”

“You’ve already had a week!” Zelena growled.

“And I’ve spent over a year believing I was coming here to break the curse!” Emma snapped back, flames of anger licking up her spine. “I scoured our land for any clue as to what you did, where you could have sent everyone, and when I found something to lead me here I had to find a way to actually cross realms.  For every second of every day since you cast the curse and up until this very moment I’ve had a prophecy hanging over my head, declaring me as a savior because for some reason I’m the one fated to break it.  Then you come along and tell me in no uncertain terms that I can’t because you made a mistake that could cost us everything if I do.  So forgive me if I need a little more fucking time to figure out what choice I’ll be able to live with.”

She was breathing hard, as though she’d just crossed blades with Zelena instead of words.  Her hands were shaking violently but they were in her lap, hidden from most everyone’s view under the table.  All eyes were on her, mostly in surprise at her outburst but she could see concern among them too.  Keeping her focus on Zelena she was pleased to see that the woman was finally looking at her with a small measure of respect.

“Fine, whatever the princess wants I suppose,” Zelena said begrudgingly.  Then after a pause she said, “There is, however, another matter we need to discuss.”

“What else do we need to talk about?  I’m pretty sure I have nothing left to say to you,” Emma said, her voice somewhat hoarse.

“Then just listen,” Zelena said with a tinge of frustration. “There’s something I need you to get for me, something that we’ll need if you make the stupid decision to break the curse-”

“Alright, you need to go now,” Emma said shortly, the barely tamped down anger rising again.

“You’ll want to hear what I have to say,” Zelena protested.

“I said go,” Emma growled, pointing a still trembling finger at the door.

“Fine,” Zelena huffed.  She stood and held her head high, as though it was her decision to leave, “You should know that I wasn’t kidding about your motley crew participating in Founder’s Day.  Festivities start at ten and I expect you to put on a good show.  If you refuse I’ll give Walsh plenty of reasons to scour this boat from warped mast to mealy biscuit.”

Zelena pushed past Roland and Turner, leaving Emma gaping at her back as she left.  She turned to Regina.

“What is she talking about?”

“It’s this ridiculous festival that everyone remembers happening every year because of the curse but no one’s actually been to,” Regina said, still gaping at the empty doorway. “It’s supposed to celebrate the founding of this stupid town with booths selling cheap homemade knick-knacks and historically inaccurate reenactments throughout the town.  Someone always gets arrested for getting too drunk off the spiked cider and it ends when Zelena’s trumped up speech about harmony and prosperity in the town gets interrupted by one thing or another.  Last year it we had a two for one when Jones drunkenly accused her once again of killing his brother. It took both Walsh and Archer to successfully drag him off the stage.”

“But that didn’t actually happen, right?” Emma questioned as Regina’s eyes snapped to hers in surprise. “You said this festival is just a false memory but you’re talking about it like it actually happened.”

“It… no… I remember-” Regina’s eyes had clouded over and her fingers were nervously tapping on the table.  After a few seconds she blinked rapidly as her eyes cleared, “No, you’re right, it’s never happened.  The cursed memories are stronger if they’re ones I haven’t been constantly trying to keep straight.  You’ll probably have to give tours of the ship or at the very least come up with some lie about how a ship like this brought over the original settlers.”

“You mean make a mockery of us?” Turner said with distaste. “There’s a reason this ship is named the Jewel of the Realm.  It’s not some mere pleasure vessel for entertaining the masses.”

“Newsflash, Blast from the Past, but ships like this are nothing but novelties in this realm,” Regina said testily. “Walsh already thinks there’s something going on here and we don’t need Gold getting any kind of idea what this ship and all of you really are.  If Zelena said you’re going to be part of Founder’s Day she’s already told at least thirty people and each one of them have told thirty more.  By Saturday you’ll have a crowd of people clamoring to get on board.  There’s no choice here, it’s going to happen.”

“Is she doing this to torture us even more?” Roland asked in disbelief.

“Probably,” Regina said with a shrug. “She knows she has the upper hand for now.  If Emma doesn’t break the curse we’ll have to play by her rules.”

“And if she does then we’re sentencing everyone to the whims of an untempered Dark One who we have no idea what he will do,” Grace sighed.

“What if we kill him first and then break the curse?” Marty piped up, clearly eager to be included.

“How might I ask?” Roland asked with a raised brow. “According to that witch the man is dead already.  Our only hope would be the Dark One’s dagger but seeing as no one had seen hide nor hair of it while he was imprisoned I doubt we’d find it here.”

“Even if we did whoever killed him would become the Dark One,” Emma said with a bitter smile.  She stood, her legs barely able to hold her up, “Although, it’s not the worst option on the table.  I’d even volunteer to do it myself.”

The collective gasps were seemingly still echoing in the galley as she sped out, almost tripping over Turner’s feet in her haste to get away. Grace called after her but she kept moving forward.  Finally she made it to her cabin, slamming the door behind her as her breath came in quick pants.  The emotions she had pushed down had suddenly burst, pouring over her like a bottle of ale that had been shaken too vigorously.

Sliding to the floor she tried to reign everything back in but it was hopeless.  Her hands were shaking uncontrollably as she gasped for air.  Black spots erupted in her vision as the horrible choice Zelena had forced on her swirled in her head.  Dropping her forehead to her knees she scrabbled for Killian’s ring, grasping it like a lifeline as she waited for the overwhelming feelings to subside.

Eventually her breathing evened out and she could hear the normal sounds of the ship over the pounding of blood in her ears.  When she felt confident enough to stand she made her way to the table where only two things were resting upon it: her journal with her letters to Killian and the second of the two magic beans she’d found in Blackbeard’s hat.  Sitting at the table she resumed staring at the two items, as she had been doing for nearly three days straight as she tried to decide what to do.

The sound of Roland’s voice broke through her musings.

“Planning on running away from it all then, are you?”

“The door was closed for a reason,” she answered without looking up, gently spinning the bean with her finger.

“I came to check up on you since you’ve been holed up in here for two hours.”

Emma glanced around and was surprised to see that her quarters were mostly in shadow from the afternoon sun.  Roland was watching her warily and she sighed, turning her gaze back to the bean.

“Come to argue with me some more?  Or are you here to try and convince me one way or the other about what I should do?  Either way I’m not in the mood.”

“How about a drink instead?”

Looking up with a raised brow to see him produce a bottle of the darkest rum she’d ever seen and two pewter mugs from behind his back.  With a shrug she nodded at the chair across the table from her as she sat back in hers.  Uncorking the bottle with his teeth he poured out a generous measure of rum for the both of them, gently placing one of the mugs in front of her and then the bottle in the middle of the table before sitting down.

She picked up the mug and held it up for a toast, “To the lucky bastards living under the curse.  At least they can sleep peacefully at night.”

“I don’t want to drink to that,” Roland said with a frown.

“Then don’t,” she said indifferently, downing her rum in one swallow.  Shuddering slightly she poured herself another round, scowling at Roland as she did, “Where the hell did you get this from?”

“I, er, knicked it from Daniel’s cabin-” the tips of his ears began to turn pink and he quickly took a sip of his rum, coughing harshly after he swallowed.

“Daniel?” Emma repeated, confused until Roland flushed deeper and his eyes skittered away from hers. “Oh, is that Turner’s first name?  Add that to the list of things I didn’t know.  Although it does go to show that you’ve been so pissed at me that you decided to hide whatever it is you two are now.”

“Emma, it’s not like that,” Roland said, even as he still avoided looking at her.

“No?” She asked, scoffing in disbelief.  She took another drink of her rum and uncurled a finger from her mug to point at him, “So if I were to ask Turner why neither of you said anything he won’t tell me that you asked him to?”

“He will, but not for the reason you think,” he said, finally looking at her. “I didn’t want to flaunt it in your face that we’re together when you can’t be with Killian the same way.  It’s not fair that we found happiness when you’ve been given nothing but misery.”

“But you’re mad at me!” Emma blurted out, her hand dropping to the table causing some of the rum to splash over the sides of her mug.

“Not anymore.  It’s hard to stay mad at someone when they’ve got the weight of the world on their shoulders,” Roland said with a shrug and a pained smile.  The blush returned to his cheeks, “Daniel might have also pointed out that I wasn’t being fair or helpful by constantly badgering you about the curse when I’m not doing anything to actually help you break it.”

“If I decide to break it, you mean,” she pointed out.

With a less than steady hand she brought her cup back to her lips, downing the lot.  Roland followed suit, coughing again as he reached for the bottle.  He poured more into both of their mugs, lightly tapping the rims together when he picked his up.

“So is this your plan then?” He asked, looking pointedly at the bean in front of them.

“To run?” She nudged the bean with the bottom of her mug, “Not in the way you’re thinking and I don’t even know if I can bring myself to do it.”

“What do you mean?”

“You’ll think I’m cruel.”

“I could tell you at least fifty different thoughts I’ve had that would have you thinking the same of me,” Roland said with a raised brow, sipping at his rum and only grimacing as he swallowed. “I promise not to judge.”

“I keep going back to two options, other than the ones Zelena forced on me.  One: we somehow convince our family and friends to come on the ship-” Emma gripped her mug tightly.  She wanted to slam the rum back as quickly as she had with the other two but knew she was well on her way to tipsy and she needed to have some of her wits about her as she finally told someone the thoughts that had plagued her. “We could use the bean to take us back home and we break the curse on them there.”

“Leaving the Dark one here, still cursed and somewhat safe,” Roland said with a nod, showing no sign of shock at her suggestion. “I take it Zelena would be left behind as well but so would-”

“So would scores of other innocent people,” Emma sighed, finally taking a sip. “Even if we could convince even half the people we want to save to board the Jewel can’t hold them all.  Who are we to decide who gets to stay and who gets to go?  And if we do how can we be sure the curse will break for those we take?  Or if it does what if it somehow still breaks over here and the Dark One is freed anyway?”

“All valid questions,” Roland hummed, tapping his mug with a finger. “And the second option?”

“We use the bean to send Gold to a different realm.  But then that brings up a whole different set of problems.  What if he ends up somewhere that has magic?  What if going through the portal somehow wakes him up?  And again, if we break the curse here maybe it breaks it on him wherever we send him and he happens to be somewhere with magic.  It’s even riskier than just breaking the curse here where we already know there’s no magic.  At least that will stall him for a little bit-” Emma took a deep breath before continuing softly, “I’ve been going round in circles trying to figure out what to do.”

“I can see that,” Roland chuckled. “Did Marty’s suggestion ever occur to you?”

“To kill Gold and hope for the best?  For about a minute in the dead of night until I realized that it was the worst option of all and I stayed awake until dawn because of it.”

“Have you slept at all?”

“When I’m not worrying about what to do,” she sighed.

“So… that would be not a wink,” he huffed.

“You and Turner?  Exactly how long have you been spending time in his cabin?” Emma asked in a clear attempt at changing the subject.

Roland rolled his eyes but once again his blush belied him.

He took a small sip of his rum before mumbling into his mug, “Since the night after I ran into my father and Regina came on board.”

“Decided you needed to free up a bunk in the hold or was it you just couldn’t stand her that much?” Emma snorted.  She raised her mug, “How’s this for a toast?  To being with the one you want in order to get away from one of the bitches that ruined your life.”

“See, this is why I didn’t want to say anything-” he gave a put upon sigh even as his lips were twitching and he raised his own mug. “Too bad Killian isn’t here with us.  He’d gladly toast to that.”

They both drank their rum but Emma had to fight to keep it down.  In the few moments where she wasn’t overwhelmed by the momentous decision she had to make she had nearly driven herself mad trying to figure out what she could possibly say to Killian.  It was because of her desire to tell him everything and whisk them away to safety that she had first thought of the bean.  Then her sense of obligation to her kingdom’s people and the guilt of even considering leaving them behind in favor of those closest to her had begun to trickle in and her thoughts had spiralled on and on from there.

There was one other option that she hated herself for even thinking and couldn’t bring herself to tell Roland even if he had thought it had been her plan for the bean.  The worst part was that it was the most sensible and feasible of anything she had come up with but it was by far the most terrible of them all.  They could simply weigh anchor and leave with only themselves on board, return to Misthaven with broken hearts but safer for it.  She once more shoved the thought of it away, too painful to consider for more than a moment, and drained her mug for the third time.

“I get it, you know,” Roland said quietly.  She gave him a puzzled look as he dropped his gaze to the rum he was swirling in his mug, “Why you’re having all these doubts and can’t bring yourself truly decide what to do.  I didn’t at first, which is part of the reason I was so mad at you, but now I do.”

“So why?  Why can’t I just choose and be done with it?” She whispered, not entirely sure of the reason herself.

“Killian,” he said with a matter of fact shrug. “He’s falling in love with you again-”

“You don’t know that,” she interrupted quickly, realizing she didn’t want to know why after all.

“True, but Daniel does.”

“What?  How?”

Roland gave her an unimpressed look, “You sent Killian to find him right after taking off with that loathsome Walsh guy, did you expect them not to talk?”

“Well, no, but they’re strangers without his memories and they weren’t together that long,” she argued.

“You forget Daniel’s known Killian a lot longer than either one of us has.  I guess even without his memories he’s behaving exactly the same as when he fell for someone back when he was younger,” he said with a sad smile.

“He told you about that?  He wouldn’t say anything about her to me.”

Emma dropped her gaze, trying not to feel betrayed that Turner had told Roland about Jaqueline when he had all but refused to tell her.  She knew it was because they were something more, that they were together, but it still stung all the same.

“He didn’t tell me anything either, not really-” Roland tapped his mug on the table to catch her attention.  She looked up and he gave her a knowing look, “No need to be jealous, he just told me that he’s seen the way Killian is when he’s falling in love but it was different this time.”

“Why, because he’s already married and my being here has him feeling confused and guilty?” She drawled sarcastically, eyeing the bottle of rum.

“No-” Roland huffed, grabbing the bottle and pouring her a pitiful amount, “because you love him too and you’ll do whatever it takes to make him happy even if it makes you miserable.  Which is why you can’t decide what to do about the mess we’re in.  He’s unhappy and apparently vilified under the curse but he’s safe and if it breaks then he gets you and his rightful life back but then Dark One could just destroy it all with the snap of his fingers.

“And don’t tell me it’s the same argument you’ve been having with yourself concerning your father or Red or anyone else stuck in this town because it’s not.  I may not have exactly what you do with Killian and it’s only been a few weeks but I know if it was Daniel I’d be right where you are now.  Except I’d have probably broken out the rum a lot sooner.”

“Who says I haven’t,” she murmured.  She looked up at him, doing nothing to keep her emotions from showing and was unsurprised that tears began to form, “What should I do?”

“I don’t know,” he whispered, his own eyes glassy. “I’m sorry Emma, but I don’t think this is something we can help you with.”

“Because I’m the Savior?” She asked with a warbling voice.

“Yeah,” Roland answered, looking as though he wished he was telling her the opposite.

Emma cleared her throat and gave him a shaky smile, “I hate that prophecy more and more by the way.”

“I'm sorry I was ever enthusiastic about it,” Roland said with a grimace.

“It's not like you knew what was going to happen,” she pointed out. “Can we just drink and talk about something else?  Anything else, please?”

“Sure,” he said easily, pouring the rum until it was almost to the rim of her mug. “What about that Founder’s thing?”

“Ugh, not that either.  How about being raised by the Merry Men?  It has to be almost as interesting as faking my way into being a feared pirate captain.”

Roland laughed and launched into a story about being left in the care of Will Scarlet and Little John and escaping them both.  Emma tried to keep her attention on the tale but her thoughts began to run away from her from everything her and Roland had discussed.  She only hoped that the rum swirling through her veins would slow them down enough to finally get some rest, if not peace along with it.

It took nearly until the morning of the festival, two days later, for Emma’s hangover from her talk with Roland to dissipate completely.  It wasn’t helped by the hoards of curious onlookers that circled the docks, shouting questions at her while she had a pounding headache, regarding their participation in the festival.  With the crew’s reservations and her urge to not bow to Zelena’s whims Emma had nearly ordered them to return to the cove almost three times.  The only thing that held her tongue was Regina’s suggestion that they require people to pay to board the Jewel during the festival, something that she assured her would irritate Zelena to no end.

Despite having only just gotten over her night of excess with Roland she nonetheless found herself eyeing the cabinet where she kept her liquor as she dressed for the day.  With a sigh she focused back on fastening her vest correctly and trying to remember the story they would be telling the people who would be crawling across the Jewel’s deck like rats before she knew it.  Regina had tried to convince her to say the ship was an integral part in the founding of the town but Emma had scoffed at that and stated that she was a pirate captain and that was exactly what the people would get.  She hadn’t even bothered to hide her smile at Regina’s frustration and Turner’s distaste at her declaration.

The only somewhat good that was resulting from the festival was that between it and her recovery she hadn’t dwelled as much as she had previously on the decision she still had to make.  In the few moments her thoughts would stray Roland would suddenly be at her side commiserating in their shared misery or Turner would be consulting her about the level of the stores in the hold and the state of the ship.  She had appreciated their concern but no matter how hard they tried to distract her during the day the nights were consumed by nightmares of Killian blaming her for the decision she had yet to make.

“Emma, are you ready?  There are already dozens of people waiting to board and they’ve been pacing the dock since daybreak it seems.”

Emma shook her head at the annoyance she could clearly hear in Roland's voice but couldn't blame him.  There in fact had been people queuing up since nearly dawn that morning, when she had tried to escape from her nightmares above deck.  She had watched them from the shadows near the helm figuring they were as good a distraction as any.  Then she had thought she had seen that Killian was among them but when she had rushed to the rail to invite him on board early it had been a stranger looking back up at her.

As she crossed to the door she strapped on her sword, almost hoping that Zelena would see it and remember the promise she had made back at the jailhouse.  When Roland caught sight of it at her hip he merely rolled his eyes and stepped out of her way.  She elected not to comment on the hilt of a dagger she had seen poking out of the top of his boot.

“I still can't believe there are people actually willing to pay us just to step on board and not actually go anywhere,” Roland scoffed from behind her. “This realm is so strange.”

“Is Turner still determined to stand guard over the hold?” She asked as she reached the ladder leading up to the deck.

Roland snorted, “He's still upset that we knicked his good rum and he trusts those strangers much less than he does us.”

“Excuse me, who stole his rum?” She asked, turning to glare at him.

“You as good as stole it-” Roland shot back with a grin, “I would have never believed someone as tiny as you could drink that much!”

He deftly dodged her half-hearted swing at his arm, laughing at her scowl.  When she turned to climb up to the deck she let her smile unfurl.  She hadn't realized how much she had missed him while he had been angry at her until he no longer was.

When she stepped on deck she wasn't surprised to see the others looking at her with a range of emotions. Regina was by the starboard rail, the scowl twisting her features deepening as the voices of the crowd swelled from the dock at the port side. Grace was at the helm looking apprehensively between her and Marty, who was bouncing excitedly on his toes by the foremast.  Roland stepped up beside her and gave an interested hum.

“Is it too late to say I don't think we should do this anymore?” Emma sighed.

Roland snorted, “I believe that ship has sailed, Captain.”

“Not funny,” she said with a roll of her eyes.  She looked at Regina, “I guess it's time.”

“I still don't know why I was roped into helping you with this,” Regina huffed, stalking across the deck towards the gangplank.

“Because you're the only one who knows how to handle the coin of this realm,” Emma said with only a hint of the annoyance she was feeling. “And it's not like you have anywhere else to be.”

“Besides-” Roland chimed in, “you’re the one who insisted we go through with this charade, it's only fitting you should suffer along with us.  Even if you did refuse to dress the part.”

“I won't debase myself by putting on those rags you found in the hold,” Regina sniffed haughtily.

“They're better than the ones we found you in,” Emma said under her breath causing Roland to snort in amusement beside her.  With a smirk she said louder, “Just go so we can get this over with, Regina.”

With one final sneer Regina walked down the gangplank and out of sight.  As they heard her address the crowd Emma moved toward the stern of the ship.  She returned Grace’s uneasy smile as she took her place at the helm, where she'd have full view of the deck and everyone upon it.  Grace stepped back behind her as Roland situated himself directly below her.  When the first curious head appeared over the rail Emma took a steadying breath and drew her lips into a welcoming smile.

After a few hours Emma felt as though she had a handle on how to deal with the townspeople, at least the ones she didn’t know.  It was only the early afternoon and there had already been a steady stream of familiar faces that had stepped on board.  Roland had even gone so far as to slip below deck when Robin had walked up the gangplank.  Emma hadn’t been much better when David and Red had shown up within ten minutes of each other, both circling the deck as she had stayed rooted at the bow, barely able to converse with the man who had been asking her questions at the time.

By far the worst moment had been when a group of children had come on board.  Their adult minder had told Emma that they were from the local orphanage with some of the older ones along to keep the younger ones in line.  Grace had been standing near her and had looked over at the group with a gentle smile that dropped from her face in an instant.  She had nearly fainted on the spot and it had taken both Emma and Roland to get her below to the galley, both yelling for Turner to bring them water.  After a few harrowing minutes Grace had raspilly whispered that her own missing children had been with the group and though she hadn’t seen them for years she was certain that it had been Jack and Jill among them.

After sending Roland back up to the top deck Emma had stayed with Grace for another hour or so.  Finally Grace had regained some of her normal color and insisted that she would be fine.  Emma had been reluctant to leave her but her urge to check that everything was still running smoothly had been the final push in getting her to leave Grace’s side.  By the time she had emerged on deck the group of children were gone and there had been a whole new set of curious onlookers roaming about the deck.

“I think the whole damned town is going to step foot on the Jewel before the day is over,” Roland grumbled.

Emma grimaced, glad they were somewhat alone by the helm, “We’re something new in a town where apparently time hasn’t moved for over a year.  I’d be suspicious if they didn’t.”

She looked over the deck and tried not to catch the eye of Walsh as he moved methodically from stem to steer.  He had been on board for nearly a quarter of an hour, inspecting innocuous things like the fastenings for the lines or knocking on the deck with the heel of his shoe.  Unsure what exactly he was looking for Emma hadn’t let her gaze stray away from him for too long.

“And are you?” Roland’s voice broke through her concentration on Walsh.

“Am I what?” She asked, turning confused to see him looking at her worriedly.

“Suspicious that Killian hasn’t shown up yet,” he quickly looked towards the gangplank where no one was currently stepping on board. “I thought he would have been one of the first ones here.”

“Me too,” she sighed quietly.

It had been a niggling thought throughout the day, constant and irritating in the back of her mind.  Killian had always shown up when she least expected with a smirk on his lips and mischief in his eyes.  She had been waiting anxiously all day for him to sneak up behind her and whisper in her ear about her outfit or the ridiculous farce they were performing but she had been so far left disappointed.  Roland bringing it to the forefront of her attention had only succeeded in bringing about her worries as to why Killian had yet to appear.

“Perhaps he’s waiting for the crowds to lessen,” Roland suggested halfheartedly. “Or until the sheriff over there has looked his fill.”

“If it was the crowds Killian would have found a way on board before everyone else and I’m pretty sure he doesn’t give a rat’s ass about Walsh or his presence,” Emma huffed, narrowing her eyes as Walsh lightly kicked at the main mast. “Even Pinocchio has stopped by twice and I broke my promise that I’d return to his library.”

“The curse may have made them forget you but everyone still seems to hold on to their devotion to you whether they realize it or not.  I didn’t miss the way your father or Red kept looking at you like they already knew you.”

“Robin was almost doing the same-” Emma pointed out gently, “You disappeared too quickly for him to get a good look at you though.”

“Yeah, well I’m not as strong as you,” Roland said with a shrug. “I doubt-”

“Excuse me?”

They both turned to find a woman around their age standing behind them.  She had wide, brown eyes and hair to match, though only the ends of it could be seen poking out of her knit cap.  Her dress was much the same as the rest of the townsfolk but there was something slightly scandalous about it, her thick coat open to reveal a bright pink shirt that exposed her chest and stomach in equal measure and trousers so tight Emma wondered if she had been sewn into them.  She looked between the two of them with slightly suspicious eyes before focusing on Emma alone.

“Are you Eva?”

“Yep,” Emma said with the false cheer she had been talking to the townspeople with all day. “Captain of the beautiful ship you find yourself on.”

“So you’re the one helping to feed my husbands delusions,” she said in an accented voice that was as cold as ice and eyes that were as hard as steel.

“Excuse me?” Emma asked in shock, sharing a puzzled glance with Roland.

“The high and mighty private detective here to solve the murder that our sheriff’s department has been working on for ages-” the woman sneered, planting her hands on her hips, “You think you can just waltz into town and wiggle your nose and just like that you’ve solved it?  I don’t think so.”

“I don’t know what you’ve been told but I only want to find out the truth, whatever it may be,” Emma said placatingly as she wondered how far talk of her false reason for being in the town had spread.

“Doesn’t explain why you’re set on seducing my husband while you’re at it.  You got your claws in him but I won’t allow it, you whore.”

Emma stepped back in surprise at the vitriol in the woman’s voice just as someone rushed up beside her.  She was further surprised to see it was Killian instead of Roland as she had thought.  He was shaking with anger, his breaths were shallow and his hand was clenching and unclenching in what seemed to be an unconscious gesture.

“That is enough, Deb,” Killian growled.

Emma took another step back, her back pressing against the helm as she realized who the woman was.  She somehow felt she should have known it was Deborah, the woman cursed to believe she was married to Killian.  Watching Deborah’s face slide from a jealous rage to simpering adoration was almost enough to make her lose what little food she’d eaten that day.

“Oh, hey baby!  I didn’t see you,” Deborah crooned, batting her eyelashes. “I thought you’d be down at the Hole like every year.”

“I had more pressing matters,” Killian said shortly with half a glance back at Emma.

“Talking to her?” Deborah’s nose wrinkled as she looked her over from head to toe.

“That’s it,” Emma said sharply, coming out of the daze she’d stumbled into with Deborah’s and Killian’s presence.  She stepped around Killian and into Deborah’s space, “You need to leave.”

“What?  I paid good money and I have every right to be here!” Deborah shrieked indignantly, her face turning red in anger.

“And we appreciate your patronage,” Roland’s voice rumbled deeply from behind Emma. “You can either go voluntarily or I can escort you.  Either way you’re leaving now.”

“You aren’t going to let them treat me like this are you, baby?” Deborah whined, once again changing her demeanor in a split second as she turned to Killian with tears swimming in her eyes.

“I’m going to let them treat you however you deserve,” Killian said coldly.  He turned his back on her and looked at Emma with no less anger in his gaze, “Can we talk in private?”

“Sure,” she answered, ignoring Deborah’s spluttering and murderous glares.  She looked at Roland, “Make sure she’s off the ship and on her way anywhere else.  Let Regina know not to let her back on under any circumstances.”

“You can’t do that!”

“She can and she did, Ma’am,” Roland said with a wide grin. “If you’ll follow me then.”

Deborah continued to yell about the way they were treating her but Emma left Roland to deal with it.  With a tilt of her head she began to lead the way to the hatch that led straight to her cabin.  She paid little attention to the gazes of the townsfolk that were alternating between watching her movements and the scene that Deborah was making.  It was, however, hard to brush off Killian’s presence at her back and she could barely get a calming breath in as she descended into her cabin, Killian right on her heels.

Her quarters weren’t fit to receive visitors and she resisted the urge to rush about setting things to rights.  Her bunk was a mess of blankets with a multitude of clothing piled on top, all items she had deemed unfit to wear for the crowds along with the boots she had kicked across the room in fits of pique.  The table was littered with loose papers, books, her half eaten breakfast, broken quills and ink pots, and in the center of it all was the journal of letters to Killian, open to the last letter she had written late the night before.  With blood pounding in her ears and a scorching heat in her cheeks she quickly crossed to the table and slammed it shut not giving a damn if it caused Killian to become curious as to what it was.

Turning back to him Emma realized she shouldn’t have worried.  Killian was standing at the base of the ladder, head down, a muscle in his jaw ticking as though he were chewing on something tough.  She wondered if he was trying to calm himself after Deborah’s words and the commotion she had caused.  Her answer came when he looked up and his ire hadn’t abated.  Instead it seemed to be burning hotter.

“Just what was all that, lass?” Killian asked in a low growl.

“Your wife apparently,” she snapped back, immediately rising to the defensive. “I would think you’d at least recognize the woman you yourself said made you miserable.”

“Sod Deb, that’s not what I’m talking about,” he snarled, taking two steps towards her before coming to an abrupt halt.  He waved his hand jerkily towards her then up at the ceiling, “That ridiculous show you and those others are putting on today, what is all that?”

“Something appropriate for your town’s ridiculous festival.  I would think that much would be obvious,” she drawled as she propped her hip on the table and crossed her arms over her chest.

Killian’s nostrils flared as an angry flush began creeping up his neck, “Don’t get bloody cute with me, lass.  This has that bitch’s scent all over it and I want to know what she said to you to that has you jumping through hoops like a trained dog.”

“What the hell is your problem?” She asked angrily.  She also felt a sting of hurt that he was attacking her and tried to hide it with a frustrated frown, “This is my ship and what I do on it is none of your business.”

“Your ship?” Killian asked mockingly. “Is it now, Captain Swan?”

Emma’s heart stuttered in her chest.  She was still leaning against the desk and glad for it otherwise she would have collapsed to the floor hearing her moniker from out of his mouth.

“Wha- what did you say?”

“I read your bloody book,” he spat.

He fumbled with a satchel at his side that she hadn’t noticed, pulling out the story book she had given to him for safe keeping at Sunset Storybrooke.  Emma had nearly forgotten all about it in the aftermath of Zelena’s revelations.  She had thought that Killian had given it to Turner who in turn had held onto it while she had kept herself apart from the others.  In truth she almost wanted nothing to do with the book that was filled with the memories of happier times.  There had been no intention whatsoever of letting Killian read a single word from its pages.

“Yes it’s quite the fantastical tale, what with all those Disney characters coming together in a magical land.  Although there were quite a few names I didn’t recognize from any cartoon I’ve ever seen,” he gave a mocking smile as he strode to the table and dropped the book unceremoniously on it, causing Emma to jump to standing in her startlement.  There was a vein throbbing in his temple and his voice was deadly calm, “Can’t quite comprehend your fascination with a book of fairy tales, lass.  Especially when you tell me it’s real and that I need to keep it safe before getting whisked off by that wanker Baum.  Then come to find out you have a tet a tet with the devil herself and suddenly eager to obey her demands?  What the hell do you take me for anyway?”

Emma took a deep breath, forcing herself not to fidget as she tried to come up with a plausible explanation.

“It’s complicated-” she started, wincing as his hand clenched into a white knuckled fist. “What I talked to the mayor about, this idiotic show for the town, even that book, it’s all a part of this stupid complicated thing and I just… I can’t tell you what it is right now.”

“You can’t tell me,” Killian scoffed in disbelief.  He leaned towards her and growled, “After I read it I was certain you were having a laugh, a cruel joke but still in the realm of possibility.  Then I thought it was some kind of allegory or metaphor or what have you.  It could have been a front for the real tale at the heart of it because only a nutter would believe that fairy tales were real, but you were so damn adamant that the bloody book be kept safe.  Then when I come here to ask you to explain I find you playing pirate and lying to my face.”

“I’m not lying,” she retorted hotly, wondering how she had completely lost control of everything.

“A lie by omission is still a lie, lass,” he said with a roll of his eyes.

“And you’ve been so forthcoming with me?  Do you know how many people have told me that you’re involved with whatever it is that got your brother killed?  Which, by the way, it wasn’t only that hag and her puppets that mentioned it.  How idiotic are you to think that that’s the way to prove anything?”

“This isn't some bloody game!” Killian yelled, throwing his hands up in frustration. “This is my life and I’m doing what I have to in order to finally find some peace for both me and my brother.  I'm not some do-gooder prince from over the rainbow or some kind of hero out to save the day.  I don't need this fanciful bullshit distracting me from finding what I need to take Viridans down.  So either get on board and actually help me or go back to wherever the fuck you came from.”

Emma felt as though he had slid a knife between her ribs.  She could hardly breathe.  Killian had never spoken to her in that way.  Ever.

“Get off my ship,” she said through numb lips.

“I- what?”

“I said get off my ship,” she repeated slowly, hand resting involuntarily on the hilt of her sword. “You came here with accusations flying out your mouth and an itch for a fight in your blood but I’m not going to sit back and take the punches as they come.  You don’t need my bullshit distracting you?  Fine.  There’s the door.”

“Oh, no.  You can’t just throw me off the ship like that!  I deserve some kind of explanation!” He hollered, stepping towards her to tower over her.

“You deserve nothing!” She yelled back, refusing to back down and having to crane her neck to stare him down. “I thought I could trust you.  I did trust you and you just threw it back in my face.  Funny, having met Deborah I can now see how you two are a perfect match.”

“That’s a low blow, lass,” Killian growled.

“And here I thought you didn’t understand the concept,” she snarled. “Now get the fuck off my ship.”

“I’ll do no such thing.  Not until you set some things straight.”

“I believe the captain has given an order,” Roland’s clipped voice sounded from across the cabin. “It would be wise to follow it.”

Killian spun on his heel and Emma could see both Roland and Turner standing inside the doorway.  They were both glaring at Killian, Roland somehow seemingly standing taller than he already was and Turner with his sword half out of its sheath.  She had never needed someone else to fight her battles but she was grateful all the same that they had appeared before she had said something she’d truly regret.

“Tell Tweedledum and Tweedledee that we’re not done with our little chat yet,” Killian said with disdain as he turned back to look at her. “I have more questions and I'm not leaving until I get some answers.”

“Too fucking bad,” she spat out.  She looked around him to the doorway, “Turner see to it that Jones here finds his way back to the dock and let everyone else know they’re welcome to leave as well.”

“Aye, Captain,” Turner said with a nod, sheathing his sword and stepping towards Killian.

“You touch me and I’ll make sure I’m not the only one handed man about town,” Killian snarled, glaring at Turner.  He then sneered at her, “This isn’t over, lass.”

Emma kept her face impassive, biting her tongue as Killian waited for one last retort.  With a scoff he left making sure to hit both Turner and Roland with his shoulder as he did.  Turner gave her an apologetic glance before following him out as Roland walked to her side pulling her into a hug.  Her shoulders slumped and she sighed deeply as her arms wrapped around his waist.

“Why is it every time I see him I end up wanting to punch him in the face?” Roland asked conversationally.

“You’re not alone,” she mumbled as she sighed again. “It’s been a passing thought for me nearly the entire time I’ve known him.  How’s Grace?”

“Could be better,” Roland said with his own sigh, giving her a quick squeeze before releasing her. “She came back on deck not long after you went below with Killian but she was far away from here.  It took hearing you two yelling for her to snap out of it.”

Emma winced, “You could hear us?”

“Why do you think Daniel and I both showed up when we did,” he said with a shrug.  He gave a quick glance to the table and the book sitting innocuously on its surface, “So, what are you going to do?”

Looking at the book she felt torn between wanting to burn it and curling up on her bunk with it to find comfort in its pages.  She thought back to the devastated look on Grace’s face when she’d revealed that her children had been on the ship, how Roland hadn’t been able to face his father, the indifference in Red and her own father’s eyes, and of course every single interaction with Killian from the moment they’d arrived.  Letting out an unsteady breath she knew what her choice was, what she had already decided deep in her heart.

“I’m going to break the curse.”

If you’d like to be tagged so you don’t miss future chapters let me know.

Tagging: @teamhook, @galadriel26

[griffintail]

Finding a Forgotten Memory

Summary: A happy ending for this post and this one. 

Pairings: Parental! Ghostbur x F! Child! Reader

Tommy x F! Child! Reader

Warnings: ANGST! But there’s a happy ending.

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

         Tommy swept his gear on the floor as he paced the length of his bedroom in his hotel, warm tears rolling down his face.

         He remembered the day Ghostbur had stormed into his home, balling, his tears creating smoke, that he couldn’t find his little blue. He had assured the ghost, she was fine. Probably hiding or she wandered a little farther than she should have.

         Grabbing his sword in case the search took too long, he followed Ghostbur into his sewer he’d moved back into after Tommy’s freedom from exile. Inside, Tommy had a few doubts as he looked at the bit of wreckage around the place.

         “Did you do this looking for her Ghostbur?” Tommy asked, sitting a barrel upright.

         “N-No. I-I s-s-s-he…” The ghost couldn’t form a coherent sentence.

         “I’ll look outside. Stay here in case she comes back alright?”

         Ghostbur nodded rapidly, clutching onto an already full piece of blue. Tommy nodded before leaving the sewer calmly then booking it to Phil’s.

         “Phil!” Tommy shouted, slamming the door open, startling the man and his crows. “There’s something wrong with Ghostbur.”

         “What? What’s wrong?” Phil immediately stood up.

         Tommy explained the situation and they both gathered everyone they could, a search party formed. (Y/N)’s name was shouted into the wind as everyone separated into many corners of the Dream SMP land and the L’Manberg land. Even people like Sapnap and Punz helped them look in their more familiar areas.

         But they couldn’t find the little girl and mobs had started to come out. Tommy, Phil, Techno, Fundy, and a few of L’Manberg citizens continued their searches. Techno and Phil went into more in-depth searches or rather questionings. Yet…there was no word of her…

         That was the night Phil fabricated the lie.

         “We’ll only use it till we figure out what happened. Ghostbur will have to believe it because Fundy refuses to talk to him but he likes (Y/N).” Phil assured the younger as he fidgeted in worry.

         They’d try to figure out what happened in the next few days!

         …

         Then a few days turned into a few weeks. And a few weeks turned into two months…

         They’d lost hope and even though there was no message on the walkies, they knew the magic had a range and (Y/N) …she had to be gone…They didn’t know what happened, could only speculate.

         Time had to move on and people grieved, Tommy taking it hard as the little girl had helped him through hell without knowing. She was part of his family and she had made him smile when he needed it the most, not even knowing he had needed her little games and laughs. He wished he had those when he had gone through the final battle with Dream, yet even after his victory, he continued to grieve and now seethe as Dream dangled a fruit of revival in front of him.

         Listening to the same horse shit, day after day…

         They had told Ghostbur once or twice in the beginning but Phil told everyone to keep up the lie when the ghost would just break completely, unable to function at all. Tommy couldn’t handle it anymore that Ghostbur didn’t remember the one thing he thought the ghost would never forget. That he wasn’t grieving like him. The little girl only helped Tommy through a rough time but that same little girl was Ghostbur’s entire world! It wasn’t fair to her memory that Ghostbur simply forgot the end of it!

         He knew the ghost couldn’t help it and that the ghost would break if he actually remembered but it frustrated him to no end because Tommy didn’t forget and broke at his own memories and he couldn’t live like this anymore! He…he couldn’t let the little girl be gone any longer…

         He looked at the prison from his window, before clenching his hands. He needed to pay an “old friend” a visit.

         …

         Tommy stood on the other side of the netherite blocks as the lava behind him finished cascaded down and the barrier was gone between him and the smiley masked man.

         “Tommy! What do I owe the pleasure?” Dream asked, spreading his arms as he laughed.

         “Business. I want that revive book Dream.”

         “The revive book? You know I can’t just give that to you Tommy. I won’t revive Wil—”

         “Not…Wilbur,” Tommy muttered.

         Yes, the boy wanted his older brother back but he wanted this little girl back first.

         “Not Wilbur? Who would you want? Not Schlatt.” Dream mocked and Tommy clenched his jaw.

         “Just shut up you bastard and listen!” Tommy shouted and Dream stopped, watching. “You’re going to bring (Y/N) back or I’ll never visit you again and we both know how much you want me to visit.”

         Dream stood there before grinning wickedly behind his mask. “(Y/N)? Huh. You’re going to have to remind me who they are…”

         “YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHO SHE IS!” Tommy snapped, doing his best to keep his tears in. “She was the little girl you hated because she made me happy during exile!!”

         “Oooh, right. Ghostbur’s kid.” He chuckled, turning from him. “How’s he doing?”

         Tommy restrained himself with great difficulty.

         “Such a bad memory, his child going missing, I’m sure he’s practically been destroyed…”

         Tommy felt the warm tears in the corner of his eyes as he took deep breaths.

         “Or did he finally forget the little brat?”

         He lost it.

         He pinned Dream to the obsidian wall and barked at his smiley mask.

         “YOU’RE GOING TO BRING HER BACK RIGHT NOW YOU GREEN FUCKING PRICK!”

         Then Tommy saw his wicked grin under his mask.

         “I’d love to Tommy, but I can’t bring back what’s living.”

         “W-What?” Tommy sputtered, confused.

         Dream laughed as Tommy let him go.

         “You never saw the message because there was no message to have! It wasn’t my goal after all to kill her.”

         Tommy’s world stopped before his heart pounded. She…She was still alive?! But Dream had been in prison for three months after they finally decided she was gone. She…She wouldn’t have survived…

         “And now that you know, the clock is ticking Tommy. Will you lose her and have to deal with another ghost? Of course, I can make it simple. Let me out and I’ll give her right back.”

         Tommy shook. He had mourned for her. He had stopped…looking for her…

         Shaking his head, Tommy stepped behind the barrier, it going up, shocking Dream. No, Tommy needed to make this right.

         “I’ll find her. Suck it, green boy.” Tommy snarled, before stepping onto the bridge.

         “YOU WON’T! SHE’LL DIE BEFORE YOU FIND HER TOMMY! ONLY I KNOW WHERE SHE IS AND SHE’LL STARVE SLOWLY!”

         But Dream underestimated Tommy’s determination…

         …

         ��PHIL!” Tommy shouted on the walkie as he sprinted back for his hotel for his gear.

         “Don’t talk to me, Tommy! How could—” Phil started to yell at him.

         “(Y/N) IS STILL ALIVE!”

         “W-What?” Phil stopped.

         “I went to Dream to revive her and he admitted to taking her. She’s still alive. We need to find her now!”

         Tommy slid slightly as he got to the entrance of the hotel before dashing in.

         “H-How, what?!”

         “IT’S A LONG STORY NOW WE NEED TO LOOK! We need to every fucking place Dream’s ever been!”

         They had figured she had been kidnapped. They just hadn’t known by who. Dream had been prime suspect, but even then, he had an alibi; and at the time, they couldn’t exactly search the most powerful man’s places.

         “O-Ok. Ok! I’ll get everyone!”

         Tommy grabbed his gear and went to meet with everyone else. The search was back months later but they had new information. Dream was tricky with his hiding and everyone had to be clever as they went into different corners of the world…

         Tommy didn’t sleep for two days as they searched everywhere they could as his thoughts went rampant. What if Dream was just messing with him again? Lying to get him to let him out! What if Tommy had just given everyone false hope…

         Then as the sun just breaking into light purples on a new day, Tubbo cried out on the walkie.

         “WE FOUND SOMETHING! WE FOUND SOMETHING IN DREAM’S BUNKER!”

         Fear didn’t even grip Tommy as he sprinted for the nether portal. Tubbo, Ranboo, and a small crew of others took to the task of taking the bunker physically apart in hopes to find anything.

         Tubbo justified by saying this was where Dream had held his biggest cards. He wouldn’t have kept (Y/N) too far from there.

         Tommy stumbled into the room as he saw Ranboo standing back to be there if someone got stuck as Tubbo, Foolish, and Jack carefully digging around a mechanism they had destroyed. Tommy pulled out his own pick and joined them.

         After some time, they managed to crumble away stone into a hallway.

         “I’ll go,” Tommy muttered.

         He hated the tight space of the hall but he had to know and if it was a trap, he wanted to take it. Carefully going down the hall with his axe instead, he didn’t go too far before he found a door. Opening it slowly, he found a plain room and…a little girl in a dirty blue hoodie spinning around bored in the room.

         “(Y/N)!” Tommy choked on a sob before dashing into the room and hugging her tightly.

         She yelped in surprise before grinning widely. “Uncle Tommy! I told Dream you’d visit!”

         Tommy cried as he squeezed her. She was so naïve as always. She hadn’t changed in the missing months…He missed his niece so much.

         “Your crying! I don’t have any blue.” She said, looking around the empty room.

         “I-I’m ok (Y/N).” He laughed quietly. “They’re happy tears…but there’s a ghost that would love to see you…”

         She gasped. “I missed daddy! Is he here?”

         “No…but I know he’d love to play a game of hide and seek…”

         “Ok, do you have any food? The tall man hasn’t brought me any.” She explained as he stood up.

         He frowned in confusion before his eyes went wide. The person that had been helping Dream while he was in prison.

         “(Y/N), what did she look like?” Tommy asked quickly.

         She shrugged. “He was very tall and he wore funny clothes and he wore a mask.”

         “Like Dream’s?”

         She shook her head. Tommy frowned deeply. Who the hell had been helping him?

         “I don’t have food on me but I’m sure Ghostbur will gladly give you dinner.”

         She grinned as he carried her out. The others cheered seeing the pair, sharing hugs with her as Tommy continued to hold her. Everyone over the radio celebrated as Ranboo made the announcement. Phil nearly collapsed in happiness when they got to L’Manberg, relieved he hadn’t lost another child he had helped care for.

         Reluctantly, before Tommy brought her to the sewer, Tommy told her not to tell Ghostbur about her “trip”. It was a little secret between the two of them. She promised not to tell and Tommy brought her into the sewer, seeing Ghostbur was doing his daily morning to find his little blue. He hid (Y/N) in a barrel he knew Ghostbur checked before rushing out.

         He waited by the door as he heard a cry of laughter, smiling lightly before leaving, his work done.

         “There you are little blue! It’s breakfast time, not time to play hide and seek!” Ghostbur laughed, hugging the little girl tightly, not really understanding why he had before he gasped hearing her stomach rumble. “You’re starving! Let’s have a big breakfast!”

         She giggled, agreeing with him as she snuggled into him.

         “Your hoodie is getting dirty, we’ll wash that before we go visit Phil and Tommy, ok?”

         “Ok, daddy. I love you.”

         “I love you too my little blue. I love you so much.” He muttered without thinking, nuzzling the top of her hoodie.

[yutanology]

Promise Me | Yandere! Nakamoto Yuta X Fem!Reader

Warning : 18+, possessive, foul behaviours, sexual content(nothing biggie), mental illness, death, etc. No proofread. Please, don't be too harsh on me. I'm still new and this is my first ever one shot/fanfiction here :)

Word count : 2.4k+

"Could you just stop?" Y/n whisper shouted at her seatmate who had been bothering her since this morning.

It's not like this is new to her or to anyone in their class but today, he seemed to be more clingy and touchy than he usually was and she found it quite unusual.

By the time she stepped into the school campus this morning, he abandoned his game with his friends on the soccer field just to greet her with his dashing smile and a nice warm hug.

She didn't mind it at first as she was already used to it but when she thought he's going to leave her alone after that, he followed her around instead like a lost puppy. She could almost see a furry tail happily wagging behind him.

Everywhere she goes, he's there right beside her. Either his hands were holding hers or his arms were wrapped around her lower waist. Some people were jealous or happy when they thought they're finally officially together and when someone questioned their relationship, Y/n would immediately respond saying they're just friends while Yuta would say otherwise, leaving them confused.

He was still attached to her during her classes and even ditched his just to be with her. The teachers could only sigh in defeat and shake their head. They knew that whatever they say, there's nothing they can do to make the stubborn guy follow their orders.

At the end, he'd always get what he wants.

The Japanese boy glanced at her side profile. His head was laying on top of his other hand. Seeing her brows furrowed irritatedly, he stopped for a moment before continuing to twirl a few strands of her silky hair between his long fingers.

It doesn't look like he has any plans of keeping his hands to himself at all. She'd been trying to get rid of him for countless times and she failed with all of those useless attempts. She's so close of getting angry at him but she doesn't want to lash out on him and seem like a bad person.

With her another sigh passing through her soft reddish lips, she looked at the clock on the wall. ‘Just five minutes more, Y/n. Just a little more patience, you can do it.’ she tried to convince herself. By those five minutes, she let Yuta play with her hair.

When the school bells rang and echoed around the campus, she immediately fixed her things and rushed out of the classroom before the teacher could even dismiss them. The corridors are already crowded and she could only hope that Yuta wouldn't be able to follow after her this time.

She decided to go to the restroom and stayed there until she was certain that Yuta's nowhere around her. He's really acting weird and she couldn't understand why. Whenever she asked what's wrong with him, he'd always say the same thing like 'I'm fine. It's all in your mind.’

His gaze, the way he looks at her also felt different this time. She felt something uneasy somewhere in the pit of her stomach or maybe there's something wrong with 𝘩𝘦𝘳. Maybe she's just overthinking way too much since that's what she always do mostly when she doesn't get enough sleep and she stayed up late last night.

That's right... these shit are all just in her head.

She released an exhausted sigh and turned the faucet on to wash her face, hoping that it would also wash her frustrations away. She reached for a handkerchief from her bag and wiped her face dry as she made her way out of the comfort room.

Her heart almost jumped out of her ribs when she found Yuta standing just a single step from the exit. She gasped and her hand immediately flew to her chest in surprise. "Yah! Stop scaring me like that!" she yelled and he only chuckled in amusement.

"I've been waiting for you. What took you so long?" he asked her, locking his hand on hers as he lead her to the canteen. Eyes of the people they passed by were immediately on them like they're more interesting than the lessons that their teachers taught them.

"Wait, why were you waiting for me?" confusion was evident on her face.

"So we can eat together for lunch, of course. Come on, we don't have all the time. Classes are going to start after forty minutes." he casually said, pulling her closer to him when they walked passed a group of boys and he didn't fail to notice the way they looked at Y/n.

He didn't like it, not even a bit.

Y/n seriously couldn't count how many times she sighed at how she always end up letting Yuta do whatever he wanted to do with her. From the simple hand holds to sudden random kisses that he pepper on her face. No matter how hard she tried to push him off, he'd always stick himself even more closer to her.

It was like that for the passed weeks and it was honestly so tiring as hell. Yuta just won't leave her alone even when she goes to the restroom, he would insist to wait outside the cubicle that she had to push him away and lock the main door of the room.

She could barely talk to other people peacefully as he would shoo them away immediately and ask them to leave her alone. It was so frustrating and she's getting fed up of his unexplained foolish practices.

She's well aware that the guy likes her more than just a friend and she also can't deny that she's attracted to him but these behaviours of his are just too much for her.

The said dirty blonde haired Japanese guy was sitting closely beside her, his chin rested on her right shoulder as he watched her turn pages of the book that she's reading. He wasn't paying attention to the words written on the dead leaves. His eyes stared at her small hands, wondering how they would feel like around his cock—

"Yuta." the guy's ears perked up when she said his name. Snaking his arms around her waist, he pulled her to his chest and planted a kiss on her neck. Her cheeks heated at the unexpected skin contact but she tried her best to ignore the butterflies that he's giving her.

She's planning to finally confront him and she had to make him stop whatever he's doing cuz it's no fun at all. It's not entertaining and she's not amused at all. "Yuta." he hummed, his kisses getting wet and he started to graze his teeth on her skin, lightly nibbling on them until he finally bit hard enough to leave a mark.

A whimper tried to escape her mouth but she's fast enough to bite her lower lip, trapping the sound until it disappeared on it's own. He was disappointed when she didn't make any sound for him, thinking that he didn't do well enough to make her feel good so he ran the tip of his tongue on her neck.

His hot minty breath heated her skin and tingles spread around her body when he blew her sensitive ear, nibbling her earlobe and placing a kiss on one of her flushed cheeks. His hands wandered under her blouse, caressing the side of her hips with his thumb.

He slowly dragged his large hands up under her breasts and just when he was about to touch them, Y/n pulled away from him. A low whine and groan simultaneously erupted from him, complaining at the lose of skin contact from her.

Y/n looked around the library if someone saw them and she was thankful that no one was there but only them. She straightened her blouse, closing the book and stood up. "Where are you going?" he also stood up from his seat, ready to follow her wherever she's going.

She didn't answer him. She slung one of her bag's strap on her shoulder, walking away with the book and placed it back to where she took it. Yuta was quick to keep up with her steps, confused of why she was suddenly in a hurry.

When they finally got out of the library, she stopped at the nearby bleachers where students barely pass by and turned to him with an exasperated sigh, "Yuta, seriously, what's wrong with you?" the way she questioned him came out more stressed out than how she wanted it to be.

Yuta blinked his eyes a few times as if he's trying to figure out what she meant. "What do you mean, what's wrong with me? I'm totally fine. Are you okay?" it was his turn to ask her, walked close to her and placed a hand on her forehead.

"Are you sick? You don't seem fine to me. Let me take you to the clinic—"

"Yuta, stop." she stepped away from him before he could even hold her hand. He halted, his brows met as his eyes stared at her worryingly.

"Stop whatever you're doing to me and please, leave me alone. I also need some time for myself and other people around me, alright? You can't keep me from interacting with anyone. This is honestly suffocating, Yuta. We can't keep doing this."

He felt like his heart shattered into tiny pieces. His chest tightened and his airways narrowed, making him unable to breath properly. Without him knowing, tears were already streaming down his cheeks.

Y/n was taken aback at this, immediately feeling guilty for making him cry. She didn't expect him to be this emotional for his appearance.

"Look, I'm sorry but—"

"D-don't you love me anymore, Y/n?" He didn't let her finish her words, leaving her speechless at the question.

Her mouth left agape, struggling to find the right words to tell him. "Did you find someone else better than me that's why you're planning to leave me, is that it?" more salty water poured out of his eyes.

"Yuta, w-what are you talking about? We're not in a relationship to begin with."

"Then let's be together officially! Just you and me, Y/n. I'll do anything just to be with you. I promise, I'll be the best boyfriend you'll ever have. I'll give you everything you want—" he held her arms, "—just promise me I'll be the only one you'll ever love and want to be with. Promise me, Y/n. Promise me!"

Yuta secured his arms around her, holding onto her desperately. Scared that if he lets go, he might lose her. He can't let that happen. Like what he said, he'll do whatever it takes just to have her.

All for himself.

"Y-you have to promise me, Y/n."

Her head was clouded with a lot of thoughts. She was barely thinking straight and her emotions also messed up with her. She really likes Yuta. The increasing speed of her heartbeat and the butterflies flying around her stomach with euphoria whenever she's with him didn't lie at all but it felt wrong.

These feelings didn't feel right.

She pulled herself away from him and shook her head. "I'm sorry, Yuta..." that was all she said before she left him without even looking back at him.

She had no idea how it broke him and how it made him do things that a normal person wouldn't do. He saw nothing but red after she disappeared from his sight. Everyone who tried to touch or talk to her the next day suddenly disappeared, a minute after they left somewhere else.

At first, she didn't think much about it until the number of people disappearing quickly increased and made everyone alarmed. All schools around the place were forced to close for a moment and people were told to stay at home with tight security to keep them safe.

Everyone was scared including Y/n, of course.

It made her so anxious that she could barely sleep at night. One morning, a knock on her door echoed around her silent apartment and she panicked, quickly hiding on her bedroom.

She almost peed her pants in fear when the knocking and ringing of doorbells continued for minutes. Her phone went off on her nightstand and she ran to it. Yuta's calling.

Without a second thought, she answered it with trembling voice. "Y-yuta..."

"Y/n, are you okay? Please open your door for me, I have to make sure you're safe. I'm the one outside your house."

And that was all it took for him to be with her. Make her scared to be outside, convince her that everyone is dangerous and he's the only one who can protect her.

Whenever he goes outside to buy food and other necessities for the both of them, he'd always return with a small cut or bruises and it made Y/n scared that she might lose him too.

He's all she had left.

He made her thought of that. He's all and everything she could ever need. She'd be nothing without him.

"Do you love me?" he asked and she nodded silently.

"If you really do, promise me that you'll love me and only me, Y/n. I wanna hear it from you." Yuta looked at her straight in the eyes when he said those words.

"I promise." his heart raced inside his chest.

A smile stretched out on his plump lips. "I love you, Y/n. So much than you could ever imagine." He meant it. He always had and always will. He leaned his body closer to her, locking his lips with hers and they moved in sync.

This is paradise to him.

He couldn't explain how much happy he's right now. With her here in his arms, it's the only place where she's safe. He watched her drift off to sleep, he kissed her forehead when her eyes finally closed.

He could look at her like this forever. The love bites that he painted on her skin looks so beautiful. She's like the most beautiful painting he'd ever seen and she deserve to be placed on his art gallery but she's only for him to be looked at.

He sighed dreamily as he continued to press more kisses on her neck. He successfully made her love him. There's nothing he could ask for, now that her naked body is already tangled with him under their soft blanket.

He could only hope that she'd keep her words and stay true to him.

Feedbacks are pretty much appreciated and requests are open! Feel free to share your thoughts!

I will not always be active but I will try my best to attend each of your requests and to also interact with y'all.

I apologize for not being word-perfect in English. English sadly ain't for me—

[lapetitechatonne]

as someone who lives in the Midwest United States (and only a state over from where Amity Park canonly is) i’ve created a list of things that are inaccurate/overlooked in Danny Phantom:

first of all, at least 75% of the student body should be lit af, and 50% of the teachers. just a lot of weed.

no one mentions meth even once, which is like the biggest problem out here, and everyone is always talking about it. from meth lab explosions, to cousins on meth, to neighbors with a meth lab in their basement.

i’ve had the neighbors call the cops on us because our grass is too long, the Fenton’s would literally be fined out the ass and taken to court, but i’ll let you have it because suspension of belief

the weather is unpredictable at best. not even the weather boy knows until the day of. it could be mid 40s and storming monday, 77 and sunny tuesday, and snowing wednesday day. just look up the indiana weather, you’ll see what i mean.

“it wouldn’t be bad if it wasn’t for the wind.” most said midwestern phrase. always check the windchill, otherwise suffer.

small towns usually have like 100 year old houses that are literally falling apart. like, can’t turn your living room light on because it rains down sparks, or there’s holes in your roof. lots of roof leaking. and usually no central air.

window air conditioners. kids sleep in the living room cause the stairs doesn’t have one and its 95 degrees out.

portable heaters in every room. the bathroom one is the most important.

bats somehow always get into your house. everyone experiences it at least once. it’s traumatizing.

there’s literally three things to do in a small town: go to walmart a town over, go to steak ‘n shake cause they’re the only place open, or the park.

literally so many parks. small town kids know how to find the best parks, even when somewhere else, and will most likely visit at least one park on vacation.

there’s always that one park that goes back into the woods. there’s always a bench. at least one of your friends has, or knows someone who has, sucked dick on that bench.

yee-haw boys. they have lifted trucks with american flags and wear cow-boy boots. they pretend they’re tuff and are most likely to bully people. Dash should actually be a yee-haw boy.

sweatshirt and shorts. everyone has worn this outfit at least once. add a baseball cap turned forward and you have the frat boy uniform. some frat boys will even wear this while it is actively snowing. 

cornfields. everywhere. so much corn.

we never go into the cornfields. ever. 

everyone is related to someone somehow. aunt, cousin, great aunts ex-husbands kid, there’s always someone. 

so. many. churchs. one every 10 blocks. maybe more. they’re everywhere.

cops will pull you over for everything. they have nothing else to do. one told my friend, “i pulled out over because you were making too many turns.” she made three.

the fear of racoons and opossums. my mom one had a stick she kept by the door to hit on the porch before she went out at night. because of the opossum she saw. it was bigger than out house cat. 

1 out of 5 adults are functioning alcoholics, or were alcoholics.

everyone has that one family member who’s been in and out of jail, probably for drugs, but they’re always the family gossip.

you also have that one gay/lesbian cousin. there may be more, but this is the one that came out first. they start shit for fun.

we all hate ohio. with a burning passion. all of us.

anyways, here’s some insight into the midwest, the became me rambling a bit so thanks for sticking with me. feel free to ask any questions.

[writemekpop]

Ex’s and Oh’s | Jung Jaehyun

Pairing: Jung Jaehyun x Reader

Summary: Drunk and stranded at a house party, you have no option but to call your ex Jaehyun. When you see him, you realise you want him back. How far are you willing to go to prove it?

Genre: Ex-Boyfriend!Jaehyun, Angst, Suggestive

Word Count: 1.6k

Gif: @johnni​

“W-watch it,” you slur.

Liquid splashes down the front of your sequin dress. It takes your rum-riddled mind a moment to work out that someone’s spilled their drink on you.

You can’t tell if the room is spinning or you are. “God, why did I drink so much?” you mutter. But deep down, you know why you did it – to forget about him.

You push through the crowd in the living room into the garden. Drunk people are littered across the lawn, some making out, some fast asleep.

The fresh air calms you, but only for a moment. A sickening feeling washes over you. You grasp at your purse, but to your horror, it’s empty.

“My phone!”

You look back at the heaving house. There’s no way you’ll be able to find your phone in that mess.

“Hey, you!” You dash towards a boy sitting near you, almost tripping over your heels. “Can I borrow your phone?”

The boy nods and hands it over.

You stare at the keypad, desperately trying to remember any phone number that isn’t his. But it's useless. You can only remember one string of digits. The ones seared into your heart.

The phone rings three times before he picks up.

“Jaehyun?”

There’s silence.

Then, “Y/n?”.

And it all comes rushing back – Jaehyun’s dimples, his deep laughs, his pink hands and pinker cheeks. You’re so overwhelmed by the memories that you forget to answer.

He snaps you out of it. “What do you want, Y/n? It’s 2AM.” Jaehyun’s once chocolatey voice is ice cold. You suppress a shiver.

“Jaehyun, I’m sorry for calling you but I’m at a house party and I lost my phone and I don’t know how to get home and-” you gasp. “Can you please come and pick me up?”

You squeeze your eyes shut, praying that he’ll say yes.

There’s more silence.

“Jaehyun…” you plead. “I didn’t know who else to call. I’m… I’m scared.”

You hear a sigh. “Alright. Stay where you are, Y/n. I’m coming.”

Warmth trickles through you. Thank god.

You sit on the porch step, shivering in your mini dress. Just as you're about to doze off, you hear the low hum of an engine. Your eyes snap open.

You see a battered blue Prius pull up in front of the house. You’d recognise that car anywhere. After all, it’s where you lost your virginity.

Jaehyun steps out, and you almost gasp. He’s just as handsome as you remember – scratch that, he’s more handsome.

A head of soft purple hair frames his smooth skin. His dark lashes fall onto towering cheekbones, with those deep dimples you could spend eternity in.

Jaehyun’s wearing a simple black T shirt, but you can see a new definition rippling underneath.

When he sees you, Jaehyun's lips form a tight line.

“Aren’t you cold?” he asks, gesturing at your skimpy dress.

You wrap your arms around him, locking him in a tight embrace. “Not anymore,” you mumble against his chest.

You breathe in his cologne, grapefruit and cinnamon. You're weak at the knees - and it's not just the alcohol. But Jaehyun is frozen under your touch, hands hanging limp by his sides.

“Thanks for coming, Jae.” You hiccup.

“Well, I couldn’t just leave you…” Jaehyun says, avoiding your eyes. “Come on, let’s go.”

Jaehyun starts pacing towards his car.

You hurry behind him, but you can barely manage a straight line. Suddenly, your heel snaps, and you thud onto the wet grass.

Jaehyun whips his head round.

“Y/n! Are you alright?” he asks, crouching down in front of you. His brows crease with concern. When he catches you staring, his face falls blank.

“Why did you have to drink so much, Y/n?”

“Why do you think?” You nurse your scraped knee, which stings more with shame than pain.

Jaehyun holds his hand out for you. You grasp it, ignoring the sparks that fly through you, and let him haul you up.

When you stand up, you’re so close to his face that you can see the faint blush on his papery cheeks.

“God, you’re gorgeous.” You slap your hand over your mouth. “Did I just say that out loud?”

The tiniest smile appears on Jaehyun's face.

The drive home is quiet. Every time you try to talk, Jaehyun just looks away.

The passing streetlights pulse bright amber on Jaehyun's face. He grips the steering wheel so tight his knuckles go white.

You rest your head on the door and stare out of the window. The world fades into black…

When you wake up, you realise you’re in the parking lot of your apartment block.

Jaehyun is standing outside the car, on the phone. His denim jacket forms your makeshift blanket. It smells like the Christmas you shared together.

You step out of the car. Jaehyun sees you and hangs up.

“Who were you talking to?” you ask.

Jaehyun just purses his lips. “Do you think you can walk alone?”

You nod.

The bright lights in the lift make your head throb. “Was that your new girlfriend you were on the phone with?”

Jaehyun pauses, then nods curtly, avoiding your gaze.

Your stomach clenches with bile, and you have to grab the lift handle for support. Thankfully, the elevator door dings open.

You stumble down the hallway to your apartment, Jaehyun following silently behind you.

You step inside your apartment, chucking off your high heels.

Jaehyun stands at the doorway, picking at invisible dust on his jeans.

“Thanks for bringing me home. Do you… want to come inside?”

“I better not.” Jaehyun says, pushing his hand through his hair.

“Fine,” you mumble, feeling a lot more hurt than you’d expected. You pick up a glass of water from the side table.

But then, the glass slips out of your hand and smashes onto the floor. You stand there dumbfounded, staring at the broken shards by your feet.

Jaehyun runs into the apartment. “Don’t move. Are you hurt?”

“I…” you touch your cheek. Your fingers come away wet. You hadn’t even realised you were crying.

You take a step towards Jaehyun. Your bare foot lands on a shard of glass, and you yank it back, hissing.

“I told you not to move!” Jaehyun steps towards you, his Timberlands crunching on the glass.

Jaehyun places one arm around your waist and the other under your legs, lifting you into his arms. He carries you bridal style towards your bedroom. You don’t have to tell him the way.

You feel so safe in his arms. “Why did we break up again?” you murmur.

Jaehyun sighs softly. “You broke up with me, remember?” You turn your face into his shirt, feeling his warmth pulsing through. Jaehyun’s heart speeds up.

Jaehyun pushes your bedroom door open and gently sets you down on your bed. You lie and watch as he picks some pyjamas from your wardrobe.

He places the clothes on the pillow beside your head. “I really should go now…”

Jaehyun turns towards the door, but you catch his wrist before he can leave.

“Wait… don’t go,” you whisper. Jaehyun stands frozen. You lace your fingers with his.

“I miss you… and I’m not just saying that because I’m drunk.”

Jaehyun’s broad shoulders rise and fall. You can’t see his eyes, but you pray that they hold the same longing you feel.

You gently tug Jaehyun around till he’s facing you.

You take in Jaehyun’s glistening eyelashes, the firm set of his jaw, his head hanging low. Your heart breaks to see him like this. This is your fault.

Jaehyun slumps down on the bed next to you.

“Please say something,” you whisper, your heart thumping against your ribs.

Jaehyun lifts his head and stares at you. You notice, for the first time, that his hazel eyes are flecked with gold. Your breath catches. Why had you never noticed that before?

You place your hands on his shoulders. Jaehyun stays absolutely still as you drag your lips up the soft skin of his neck.

“Jaehyun…” you murmur.

You lean in and kiss him on the mouth. Jaehyun gasps, but his hand trails up and cradles the back of your head.

Jaehyun kisses you back, and you slide back together like no time has passed at all. You feel his lips everywhere, his warm breath touching every inch of your skin.

When you pull away, you’re both panting.

“You should get some sleep,” Jaehyun says softly, tucking a loose strand of hair behind your ear.

As if on cue, your head starts to spin. You nod, mentally promising to never drink again. You can’t imagine what you look like right now – a mess wouldn’t begin to describe it.

Jaehyun helps you pull your dress off over your head. He averts his gaze from your chest as he helps you into your pyjamas.

When you’re dressed, you crawl under the duvet cover.

“Will you stay till I fall asleep?” You hide your burning cheeks with the duvet.

“Of course,” he whispers.

---

The morning sun presses on your eyelids, forcing you awake.

You clutch your head as you sit up, feeling liquid rolling forward in your stomach.

Your eyes go to the bean bag at the end of your bed. Jaehyun is slouched, fast asleep, long limbs spilling onto the floor. His purple hair sticks up in crazy tufts, but he still manages to look angelic.

Warmth floods your veins. He stayed!

Suddenly, you hear a phone ring. The sound smashes into your skull at a million decibels.

You scramble to stop the hideous noise, and see a black phone on your bedside. Without thinking, you accept the call.

“Hello? Y/n speaking,” you mumble.

A woman’s voice crackles over. “Who are you and why do you have my boyfriend’s phone?”

You gasp. His girlfriend. You totally forgot.

You hang up without responding. You look over to Jaehyun, who’s wide awake. His face is deathly pale.

Shit.

[calpalirwin]

Mosaic Broken Hearts

Summary: More secrets spill out the more your relationship with Bucky grows

Word Count: 4.4k

And away, and away we go!

__

Bright flashes of light, explosions, blood spattered everywhere, pain, indescribable pain. You screamed for it to stop.

“Hey,” a voice was calling out, a hand nudging at you. “Hey! Y/N! C’mon!”

You screamed louder as your eyes snapped open, scrambling to get out of bed, and promptly face planting on the floor in the process. “You have exactly five seconds to explain who the hell you are, and what the fuck you’re doing in my room before I kill you. One!” You made your voice as threatening impossible, as you pushed yourself up into a sitting position. Where the fuck was a prosthetic when you needed it? Could you kill this guy from the floor? Well… It’d be messy, but you sure as hell would try.

With your mind racing, it took a minute to register that your intruder was laughing. Why the fuck were they laughing?

“Two!”

“It’s me! It’s Bucky. You had a nightmare.”

Different flashes went through your head. Screaming in the lab for a knife. Bucky offering to carry you to your room. You asking him to stay. “Oh…”

“C’mon,” he said softly as he appeared in front of you. One of his arms went around your back, the other hooking under your left knee as he picked you up and set you back in bed. “Do you wanna talk about it, or just leave it?”

“I- Gimme a minute,” you told him, taking a series of long, slow deep breaths as the adrenaline pounding through your veins slowed. “Fuck… You’re just seeing every ounce of vulnerability I have, aren’t you?”

“Could have just as easily been me having the nightmare.”

“Only you wouldn’t have face-planted out of bed in the process. Or at least you would have been able to get up by yourself if you had,” you replied bitterly.

“Can you not play that tough guy role who has it all together all the time?”

“I dunno, let’s ask my pride.”

“I’m not going to judge you, if that’s what you’re worried about. Or think less of you, or whatever else your head is telling you I’m gonna do. You can’t scare me off, Y/N. The only thing you’re fighting here is your own pride.”

“Yes, I’m well aw-” you started, then sighed. “Thank you. I’m, uh… not used to this. So I’m probably gonna be bad at it for a while. But thank you. For staying and stuff. Now… if you wanna go ahead and be the vulnerable one for a bit, that would be fantastic.”

Bucky chuckled, his arm snaking across your shoulders to hold you loosely at his side. “I’m sure it’ll happen eventually. I’m pretty broken myself. And rumor has it you have a soft spot for broken things.”

“Aw, he pays attention, how sweet,” you teased, squishing his cheeks in your hand.

He chuckled again, and you admired the throaty sound of it. “So, the nightmare?”

You let out a sigh. “It’s always the same one. Two car accidents. Two explosions. Lots of blood. Lots of screaming. Which is ridiculous to me because one of the car accidents I wasn’t even there for. It was my parents, and I was just told about it. But I still dream about it like I was there.”

Bucky stiffened, and you assumed it was in sympathy to having nightmares about memories that weren’t your own. “And then the other accident is yours and Tony’s?”

You nodded. “Yep. My family should just stay away from cars. We don’t exactly have the best track record with them.”

“How old were you when it happened?”

“When what happened? My parents, or my leg getting blown off?”

“Both? If you feel comfortable. It’s fine if you want me to shut up.”

“No, it’s fine. I was… Let’s see… I was 11 when my parents died. And I was 28 when I lost my leg.”

“You said after your parents died you went straight into the Army. How could you do that if you were 11?”

“Okay, so I left out some steps. My parents died. I finished school. Went to Westpoint, became an officer, then got shipped overseas. All the while Tony did whatever the hell it is Tony does.”

“And you were 28 when you had your accident, which means…”

“That I’m 36, yeah. Still younger than you, even though all that time spent frozen and whatever magic in that serum slows the aging process makes you look about 32.”

“I was going to say it means we were the same age when we had our incidents. But thanks for reminding me that I’m technically 99.”

You snorted. “God, my boyfriend’s old.”

“Boyfriend?”

“Shit… Jumped to conclusions… Fuck, sorry.”

“No, don’t be. I, uh, it’s fine. It’s more than fine.”

“Yeah?”

“Yes. I happen to like you quite a bit, Y/N. In case I haven’t made that obvious.”

“Good. Cuz I happen to like you quite a bit as well.”

~~~

Waking up in the morning with Bucky’s arm thrown around you was nice in a way you didn’t expect. While your friendship with him up until this point had already made you feel better than you had in longer than you could remember, the dating part was already adding to that feeling, even though it’d only been a handful of hours since you made the change from friends to boyfriends, most of which had been spent sleeping through the night. Bucky made you feel seen in a way you weren’t used to, and while it scared you, it also thrilled you. And it was more than just being able to see you. He understood you. He understood your pain. And it didn’t scare him. It was a relief to not feel so fucking alone, or have to put up a front.

Your problem now was not wanting to wake him up. He looked so peaceful, the long locks of brown hair acting as a curtain in front of his face. You knew if those fluttering eyelids flashed open, you’d find the most stunning pair of blue eyes, which was quite the statement considering you’ve known Steve for five years. Was it an unspoken requirement that you had to be god-level hot to be a super soldier? Or did the serum do that? Either way, it was grossly unfair.

You were awake, and your stomach was growling, and now you were in a predicament. One, despite your hunger, you didn’t want to leave your bed. There was a hot man in it with his arm flung around you. Two, getting out of bed when your prosthetic limb was still in the lab wasn’t going to be an easy task, unless you woke up said hot man sleeping in your bed. Which you didn’t want to do, because A.) he looked so peaceful and B.) you knew how hard peaceful sleep was to come by, so you didn’t want to be the one to ruin it for him. But god damn, you needed food. And to get to the lab to build a new leg.

It was fine. You could do this. You could get across the room to your closet where you had a pair of crutches without waking Bucky in the process. You were the king of stealth.

Through some small miracle, you managed to make it out of your room without waking Bucky, leaving behind a small note as to where he could find you.

As you made your way to the giant kitchen area, you remembered why you usually either hid in the lab until you made a new leg, or used an office chair to scoot about the place. These crutches were a pain in the ass, beads of sweat forming on your face by the time you got to the kitchen, where you came face to face with what could possibly be your worst fucking nightmare: the full team of half awake Avengers staring at you in shock.

“Morning,” you greeted, making it the rest of the way to a countertop, and leaning on it.

Mumbles of “hey”s and “morning”s chorused back at you, with the exception of Tony who went “Kid, get a chair. With wheels.”

Peter looked up from his bowl of cereal. “Got it, Mr. Stark,” he replied before dashing off.

“Tony, that’s not really necessary,” you started. “I’m just gonna grab something and head to the lab.”

“Don’t play the stubborn hero act. It’s annoying,” was all he replied with as Peter reappeared with an office chair. “Thanks, kid. Sit, Y/N. Toast?”

“Thanks, Peter,” you smiled gratefully, easing into the chair, leaving the crutches leaning against the counter. “And yeah, toast or whatever’s fine, Tony. Thank you.”

“So cordial, are you sure you’re a Stark?” Steve teased.

“Ha-ha,” you deadpanned, scooting your way over to the table.

“Your leg okay?” he followed up with genuine concern.

“Which one?” you asked sardonically.

“Yep, definitely a Stark.”

“So hanging around the Manchurian Candidate helping you embrace amputee life finally?” Tony asked, setting a plate of toast before you.

“Actually it was an explosion that made me embrace amputee life. You were there, remember?”

“My brother, the comedian,” he said with an eye roll. “You know what I meant.”

You shrugged your shoulders. “I mean I guess. It’s still not something I’m gonna go around mentioning for the hell of it. Kinda like how you don’t go around mentioning certain things.”

“Mentioning your business isn’t my business, Y/N, it’s yours.”

“I appreciate the discretion.”

“I’m sorry,” a man spoke up. “Is anyone else lost, or just me?”

“Scott, this is,” Tony started, but thought better of it. “Fuck it, it’s your business, you tell it.”

“Y/N Stark. Tony’s younger brother. Ex-military. Not an Avenger, I just live here,” you rattled off the basics. “Oh, and my right leg below the knee is fake thanks to yours truly,” you pointed at Tony. “Well, right now it’s non existent because I had to stab the prosthetic I did have. Different story, different time.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Tony interjected as people stared at him with their mouths open in shock. “I did not blow off your leg. Stark weapons did.”

“Same difference. And it wasn’t meant maliciously. Just a fact. Anyway, I’m pretty easy to find if you need me because I’m usually in the lab. Speaking of, do you need me today, Tony?”

“No, we’re fine.”

“Cool. Cuz I gotta make a new leg.”

“Aw,” Bucky’s voice pouted from behind you, “and I was starting to like carrying you around.” He pressed a quick kiss to your cheek. “You could’ve woken me up,” he murmured.

“Um… what is this?” Tony asked, waving a finger between you and Bucky.

“None of your concern,” you replied bluntly.

“Bullshit it’s not. Hanging out with him is one thing, Y/N. But whatever that is, shut it down, and shut it down now.”

“I’m going to say this as respectfully as possible 1.) because we’re family and 2.) because I don’t want my morning to become more of a spectacle than it already has been. But you don’t get a say in how I live my life. You had your chance to be involved after Mom and Dad died, and you ran away from that chance. And I try really hard not to hold a grudge against you for that. And I appreciate everything you’ve done for me since our accident. But I’m a grown ass man, Tony. Who I chose to involve myself with is none of your concern.”

“Oh, so you’re fine with your new boyfriend being a mass murderer?”

You laughed. You laughed so hard you doubled over in your chair, your sides aching and tears forming in your eyes. “That’s the best fuckin’ joke I’ve ever heard!” you kept howling with laughter. “Mass murderer boyfriend, do you hear this shit? Cuz the rest of us in this room are so innocent, right? Cuz our hands aren’t covered in the blood of someone else? Oh, God! Yeah, you’re gonna have to try a lot harder than that, Tony.” You snorted. “Mass murderer. Yep. That’s a good one.”

Your brother’s eyes flashed darkly. “So, you’re aware that part of his mass murder history includes our parents? Or did Sergeant Barnes conveniently leave that out?”

You stopped laughing as you glanced upwards at Bucky. His hands were gripped tightly on the back of your chair, the knuckles on his right hand white from the force of the grip. His body was rigid, eyes screwed shut. “What?” you croaked out in a barely audible whisper.

“Yeah. The reason you got robbed of a childhood with Mom?” Tony clicked his tongue, pointing at Bucky. “Right there.”

You continued to look up at Bucky who stayed in his frozen state. “Tell me he’s lying,” you pleaded quietly. When Bucky still didn’t move, you shoved a hand into his chest. “Tell me he’s lying, Bucky!”

Slowly Bucky opened his eyes, his face, his gorgeous face, a painting of pain and sorrow. “I’m sorry…”

You hated this. You hated Tony for blowing up your life a second time. You hated Bucky for not telling you this himself. And you hated yourself for daring to believe that for once you could be happy. But you’d be damned if you’d let them see you break. You took a slow breath, sealing yourself off, the walls building around you. “I have work to do,” you said, starting to push away in your chair, but Bucky’s grip still held you in place.

“Y/N,” he said in a cracked voice. “Y/N, please.”

“You have exactly five seconds to let go of my chair, Sergeant Barnes, before I break your hands. One,”

“Y/N.”

“Two.”

“Please, let me explain.”

“Three. I swear I’ll break those hands. Metal or not.”

“Love, please don’t do this…”

“Four,” you continued to count, feeling your voice start to shake at the way he called you “love.”

He let go, and you pushed yourself quickly out of the room, not daring to look back.

~~~

In the lab, you tried to distract your brain, but it still raced. There were so many swirling parts, and you were so angry that you couldn’t pinpoint what was actually making you angry.

Footsteps and a throat clearing had you snapping up your head, body tense, not ready to face either Bucky or Tony. So when you saw it was Steve, your defenses fell. “Hey, Steve,” you greeted half-heartedly.

“Hey. How you feeling?” he asked, testing the waters as he slowly made his way to you.

“I’m not gonna bite your head off if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“Don’t think I could blame you if you did. What happened back there was… intense. Tony was out of line.”

“When isn’t Tony out of line?”

“Fair point. But hey, I’m here if you want someone to scream at. Someone to help answer any of the thousand of questions running through your head.”

“I don’t want to scream at anyone. Kill Tony, maybe. But I’m kinda used to that feeling. I just… Fuck, I dunno, Steve. I don’t know what to be mad at, or about. I just know that I’m mad. Hurt. I’m hurt.”

“So start at the beginning. Work through it.”

“It’s true, right? What Tony said about Bucky?”

He nodded. “Yeah. I’m sorry.”

“How long did everyone know?”

“It came out when we brought Bucky in. So a few months now. Obviously Bucky knew longer.”

“Obviously,” you snorted, then sighed. “Well, that explains Tony’s feelings towards Bucky.”

“But it’s still not an excuse for how it came out. There was a way to handle that situation and that wasn’t it. So if you want to be angry with Tony for that, you’re well within your right.”

“Oh, I’m livid. Like don’t trust myself alone in a room with him, livid. And I hate the position it puts me in. Being mad at him for telling me the truth. Sounding like an ungrateful, spoiled brat.”

“You can appreciate what Tony’s done for you while hating the circumstances that led to it. It doesn’t have to be black and white.”

“I deal in absolutes, Steve. It’s what makes the most sense to me. Facts. Fact: my parents died. Fact: Bucky caused their accident. Fact: their death shaped the way I lived my life, and the way Tony lived his. Fact: Tony’s actions ruined my life, not once, but twice now.”

“And where does that leave you with Bucky?”

You sighed. “That’s where things get convoluted. Fact: he was brainwashed as the Winter Soldier. So I can’t hold that against him. And I don’t. Me knowing Bucky caused their accident doesn’t make them less dead. So as stupid as it seems, I’m not mad about that. I’m mad he didn’t tell me himself. But even then? Part of me can still understand why he didn’t. I mean, there were things about my past I kept from him. And at what point do you drop a bomb like that?”

“So where does all of that leave you?”

“I don’t know. That’s the problem. Part of me wants to clock Tony for running his mouth. Part of me is screaming that this is exactly why I don’t let people in. And part of me is still stupidly head over heels in love with Bucky, even though I feel like my trust in him got betrayed.”

“In love with him? Does Bucky know?”

You shook your head. “We barely started dating. And I mean barely. Like it happened last night barely.”

“And now it’s already potentially over.”

“Yup…”

“Well. And you can do whatever you want with this advice. But, it sounds like the real issue is with Tony, not Bucky. So try not to confuse the two.”

“But how do I trust him, Steve? I laid everything out on the line, and he couldn’t do the same for me.”

“Sounds like you trust him just fine if you’re able to do all that. So is your real hurt, with Bucky at least, in the fact that you feel he doesn’t trust you back? I mean, and correct me if I’m wrong, but this is just my observations. You don’t let that vulnerable side of you show often, if ever. I mean, everyone back there expected you to rip Tony’s head from his shoulders and you barely raised your voice. You have a very tight control on your feelings. You have a very tight control on what you let others around you in on. So if you allowed yourself to be vulnerable to Bucky, I can understand how that powershift makes you feel out of control. I can see how any indication of him not trusting you back is a huge act of betrayal in your mind. It’s like you loaded the gun, and handed it to him yourself.”

“Have I ever told you how much you scare me with how observant you are?”

Steve chuckled. “I knew Bucky a long time before he was the Winter Soldier. He’s not gonna be the guy to let you down. But me telling you that, and you believing it are two totally different things.”

“So what do I do, Steve?”

“You gotta figure that out for yourself. But talking might be a good place to start.”

“Thanks. Seriously. This helped me a lot.”

“Anytime, Y/N.”

~~~

Your next visitor was Tony. “So…” he started, peering over your shoulder at the leg you were halfway finished with. “Break up with him yet?”

“So… find a new way to blow up my life yet?” you fired back.

His jaw clenched. “Blew up your life by telling you the truth?”

“Blew up my life by fucking ruining everything, actually. I was happy, Tony. Actually fucking happy. And you let me have that for all of what? 30 seconds?”

“So you’d rather your happiness be fake? Be a lie then?”

“It wasn’t fake, that’s the thing! Look, I get that you hate him. I get that you and Steve were at odds with each other because of Bucky. And I get that hearing the news that he’s the reason for our parents’ death doesn’t make you exactly keen on being his friend, or having him around here. But, God, Tony! There were a million different ways you, or Bucky could have clued me in on things. And of course, you went with the one that would hurt him the most, not even hesitating long enough to think about how it would hurt me in the process. I knew you were a spiteful bastard, but this is a new low, even for you. Whatever happened to ‘it’s not my business to tell’?”

“That’s why I’m here to apologize.”

“That was an apology?”

“It would be if you let me get there.”

“Well, go on then.”

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I let my issues with Dad get in the way of me being there for you after they died. Not that at the age I was in any way ready or capable of taking on the responsibility of looking after a kid. And I’m sorry that it led you down a path of eventually getting caught in the crossfire of my mistakes with the company. And I’m sorry for how I handled the news of you and Barnes and the subsequent fallout.”

“Wow,” was all you could come up with to say. Tony wasn’t exactly the apologetic or remorseful type. He was the “throw money at the situation in hopes it went away” type, a classic Howard Stark trait Tony had been unfortunate enough to inherit, alongside the arrogance. And yet, here he was, apologizing to you for everything. And all you could say was, “Wow.”

“Yeah, great talk. If you connect those two wires, you should be good,” he said, nodding his chin at your leg.

You looked at it, “Oh. Thanks.”

“Yep.”

“I mean it,” you said as he started to walk out. “The apology? Thanks.”

“Yeah, if we could not mention it, that’d be great.”

You let out a small laugh. “Works for me.”

~~~

Your final visitor was Bucky. “Been wondering when you’d show,” you said, as you walked around the lab, testing the newest prosthetic.

“Yeah, I, uh… would’ve been by sooner but I got caught up in a few things.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah, I might have gone off on Tony after you left. And then Steve might have banned me from seeing you until I calmed down. And by the time I did that, he had already talked to you, and Tony was in here. So I talked to Steve. And… yeah.”

“You mean I missed out on another fight between you and Tony? Damn.”

“Heh, yeah… And look, I’m not here to act like an apology is going to magically make this all okay-”

“Good,” you cut him off. 

He sighed. “But I am sorry.”

“I don’t want your apology. I don’t need it.”

“Then… Could you yell at me, or something? This eerily calm thing is really freaking me out. Yell at me, Y/N. Tell me you hate me. Tell me I’m the reason you’re broken. Something. Anything.”

You paused in your small laps around the lab, looking at him in confusion. “Why would I do that? I’m not the starry-eyed prince who cries when his knight in shining armor isn’t real.”

“I- What?”

You winced at your words. “Bad analogy. I meant that I’m not the type who’s going to cry and scream every time my feelings get hurt. So if you’re waiting for that to happen, it’s not going to.”

“Y/N, please… I don’t know what to do here. I want to make this right. Tell me how.”

“There’s nothing to make right. I’m not mad at you, Bucky.”

“You’re not?”

“No! You were fucking mind-controlled for half of a god damn century. And Howard wasn’t exactly winning Dad of the Year Awards. Fuck, I can’t even find it in myself to be mad that you didn’t tell me. I’m hurt, Bucky, but I’m not mad.”

“I didn’t want to hurt you, that’s the thing. And I know. I know I had so many chances to tell you, and I didn’t. But how do you tell someone that without hurting them?”

“God damn it!” you snapped, your temper flashing before you could reel it back in. “That’s not why I’m hurt, Bucky. I’m hurt that I trust you, and you feel that you can’t trust me back. I’ve trusted you with parts of me I don't let anyone even get near. Hell, I’ve known the original crew of Avengers for five years, and today’s the first time they figured out I’m an amputee. That’s how hard it is for me to let my walls down. And I let you break them like they were nothing. And as great as it is to feel chosen for once, I cannot fuckin’ stand that it’s one-sided. Trust me back, Bucky. Let me choose you back!”

He took a step towards you. “Love, I-”

There it was again. “Love.” God, did he know what he was doing to you when he called you that? “Can’t do it? Think you’re too broken, and you’re gonna scare me off?” you asked.

“No, that’s not what I was going to say.”

“Then what were you going to say?”

“I...don’t know actually.” He took a few more steps until he was mere inches from you.

“Well, you know where to find me when you figure it out.”

You turned to leave, but his hand wrapped around your wrist, twisting you back around the strength and suddenness of the movement causing a splintering sound in your newest prosthetic while you collided into his chest, both of your eyes wide. “Shit!” Bucky swore. “Okay, that was not supposed to happen.”

“Bucky…” you growled, both in agitation that your new leg was already broken, and in slight desperation of if he didn’t hold you steady soon, you were going to face-plant into the floor.

Thankfully, he understood the hint, and more. His arms snaked around you, holding you upright while his head tilted down, his lips crushing into yours. “Please choose me back?” he whispered desperately against your mouth.

“Not choosing you back was never an option, Bucky,” you assured, your arms wrapping around his neck and deepening the kiss.

__

Tag List

@cxddlyash​ @stanofalotofthings​ @philthepegacorn​ @youngblood199456​ @binxiboo​ @creator-appreciator​ @felixtok​ @iknowyouthinkimbulletproof​ @jessalyn-jpeg​ @lilyoflower​ @mychemicalimagines​  @milea​ @partiesandblurrypolaroids​ @summerdaughter​

[eliemo]

Permafrost: Chapter 1

Summary: After Virgil agrees to follow Roman into the Imagination, a shift in the weather and an unfortunate misstep sends Virgil plummeting into uncharted waters. If only it didn't take a matter of life or death and a race against time to realize the Prince might not hate him after all.

TW: Drowning, progressing hypothermia, effects of severe cold

Notes: Romantic Prinxiety (pre relationship, they’re pining idiots) Right now I think this will only be a couple chapters, but let me know if I should make a taglist for this story!

Part 2 Part 3 Part 4

“This is stupid,” Virgil said for the third time in the last ten minutes. “We’re gonna freeze to death.”

It was very clearly pissing Roman off, and if he wasn’t so miserable he’d be grinning like an idiot at the Prince’s clear exasperation. “We’re not going to freeze. Don’t be dramatic, Negative Nancy, that’s my thing.”

Virgil scoffed, glancing up at the expanse of snow covered trees towering overhead, branches bare and twisted, coated in sparkling white. It felt endless, everything around them perfectly identical and a little overwhelming.

He shuddered as the wind picked up again, drowning out anything he might have been about to say, and he absently shook off snow sticking to his shoes, really wishing he’d decided to wear his combat boots today.

Then again, he hadn’t expected to be trapped in the Imagination in below freezing weather.

“Let me complain, Princey,” he said, hoping that their familiar banter could make this whole thing suck a little bit less. “You’re the one that trapped me in here.”

“You’re the one that agreed to follow me,” Roman shot back, a little more sharp than Virgil had been hoping for. “You didn’t have to.”

“You invited me. And someone has to make sure you don’t get killed in here.”

“I’m perfectly capable,” Roman said. “The cold is no match for a dashing Prince! Besides, the beast is dead, my realm is perfectly safe when I need it to be- if it weren’t for someone refusing to enjoy the scenery, this might actually be a nice walk.”

“It’s freezing and we have to walk for another hour,” Virgil argued. “How the hell am I supposed to enjoy this?”

It hadn’t been snowing when they’d first stepped into the Imagination, some two hours ago now. It had been warm and sunny, the world around them lush and green, bright and inviting as Virgil followed Roman on his apparently routine adventure.

He hoped it hadn’t been obvious how excited he’d been when Roman had asked him to come along. He and the Prince had never been close, (that was putting it lightly, Virgil was all too aware of how much Roman hated Anxiety) but ever since Virgil had revealed his name things had been...better.

Not great, nowhere near perfect, but better. Their fights had started to devolve into banter, and Virgil found he actually enjoyed talking to Roman now. He wasn’t reduced to a villain anymore, and he’d never actually realized just how much he hated the tight feeling in his chest when Thomas had always dismissed him as the bad guy. He’d been pushing the hurt down for so long and now…

Now wasn’t the time to think about it. Now was the time to focus on moving forward, as shaky as the progress was sometimes. It was still progress.

Virgil knew Roman didn’t like him, and he probably had no intention of even being real friends, any effort to be polite for Patton and Logan’s sake only.

Which Virgil might have been able to live with, if he hadn’t recently figured out that he really, really liked Roman.

He’d sort of...not actually hated the Prince for a while now, just another hopeless, gnawing feeling that drove him to consider ducking out in the first place.

The feelings had come out of nowhere, slowly sneaking up on him and only growing now that they were closer, and he still wasn’t entirely sure how to feel about it.

The things Roman did that Virgil had once thought were annoying became...begrudgingly endearing. His rants, his dramatic gestures, the constant singing and humming under his breath...it was all so stupidly charming. Roman was funny and kind and passionate and brave and...and Virgil might have developed a little bit of a crush.

Dammit.

He knew nothing would come from it. He could be pretty stupid, but he wasn’t stupid enough to think otherwise. Roman had declared him an enemy since day one, and Virgil was just beginning to hope the Prince might actually tolerate him enough to call him a friend. Just a friend.  

But Roman had invited him into the Imagination today, to be an extra set of eyes while he slayed the monster patrolling the realm, and Virgil had agreed without a second thought. If he and Roman could just learn to coexist...Virgil didn’t need anything else. Anything was better than being hated.

And having Roman as a friend was far from the worst thing in the world. It still gave him the Prince’s smiles, his laughs, and his company.

That being said, trudging through the snow and freezing his ass off for the next hour was not how he’d like to be spending the day. Why couldn’t Princey invite him to do something normal like watching a movie?

“Aren’t you supposed to be Creativity?” Virgil called over the wind picking up. God, it was cold. “Why can’t you just change the weather back?”

Roman had his back to him, keeping a few paces ahead, but Virgil could practically feel his eye roll. “I don’t control the weather here. Thomas does.”

“Thomas?”

“Not intentionally,” Roman said. “When it’s snowing like this, it probably means he’s worried or…or stressed about something.”

Virgil didn’t miss the slight hesitation, the way Roman glanced back at him, and he instinctively hunched his shoulders and pulled his hood tighter around himself.

It wasn’t his fault. He knew everyone liked to point fingers and place the blame on Anxiety whenever Thomas wasn’t feeling his best, but Virgil wasn’t here to hurt him. He just wanted to help, and he’d been trying so hard to be better lately, but he still managed to be the bad guy.

He opened his mouth to mutter an apology the Prince would probably only scoff at, but Roman beat him to it.

“Ignore that,” he said quickly, tone suddenly nowhere near his usual bravado. “I didn’t mean to imply...nevermind. Sorry.”

It was clearly forced and a little desperate, just like it had been in front of the others whenever Roman would catch himself on an insult or a nickname, but Virgil found he appreciated the effort all the same. As awkward as it was.

“It’s fine,” Virgil said. “Seriously, it’s whatever. I’ll...I can check on Thomas when we get back.”

Roman didn’t respond, but he did look over once again to flash Virgil a genuine smile, and he forcibly pushed down the butterflies rising up in his chest. It was just Roman. He was not about to get flustered because Roman had smiled at him.

But maybe it was a sign that they were getting somewhere. Maybe-

“Shit!”

Virgil froze, Roman’s curse almost drowned out by the sudden CRACK that echoed through the snowy forest. A chunk of ice broke under Roman’s boot, just big enough for him to stumble, his leg disappearing up to his knee.

“God dammit that’s freezing!”

“I thought the cold didn’t bother you,” Virgil teased before he could stop himself. He moved to help, only for Roman to hold out a warning hand. “You ok?”

“I’m fine.” The Prince wobbled a bit before he managed to pull his leg up and out of the ice, the soaked and dripping cloth clinging to his skin. “Except that my leg is going to fall off!”

Virgil couldn’t imagine how cold that must be, to feel icy cold wind against soaked clothes, but he could recognize that Roman wasn’t actually hurt or scared, despite the way he’d started shivering a bit. Thank god the water was only up to his knee.

“Stop panicking,” Virgil said, and smirked despite his own rising worry. “That’s my thing, Princey.”

Roman scoffed and shook out his leg, drops of water seeping into the plush white snow. The ice they hadn’t even realized they’d been walking on creaked under the movement and Virgil paled, eyes flying to Roman who quickly noticed the anxious side’s distress.

“Relax,” the Prince said. “It was just a weak spot, and it’s only a couple inches deep. I could reach the bottom.”

“We should still be worried about getting our clothes wet in this weather.” It seemed to have gotten colder, even as Virgil remained perfectly dry. “Didn’t Logan do a whole lecture about hypothermia a few years ago?”

“We’re not getting hypothermia, Panic at the Everywhere. Logan gives a lecture on everything. Worst case scenario is I come down with a little cold, and our dear Patton feels guilty and smothers me for a few days.”

Virgil laughed, carefully stepping around the hole Roman had created. “I’m pretty sure it’s not Patton’s fault you’re so clumsy.”

“No, but he practically forced me to bring you out here.” And just like that Virgil’s good mood was gone, stomach twisting uncomfortably as the words set in.

It shouldn’t be a surprise- of course Roman wouldn’t voluntarily spend the day with him. Patton wanted everyone to get along for Thomas’s sake, and he’d made Roman drag Virgil along like an unwanted nuisance.

“Oh.”

“So if we look miserable enough when we get back, we can coax Pat into making us cookies and hot chocolate,” Roman said, and he didn’t seem to notice Virgil’s shift in mood. “Just try to watch your step, ok?”

Roman clearly didn’t think he had said anything wrong, only scowling at his now soaking wet pant leg before turning to continue forward. He obviously thought Virgil knew this, that he wasn’t stupid enough to think he was actually wanted.

Well, at least Roman was giving him the benefit of the doubt. Even if Virgil apparently was that stupid.

They kept walking, Virgil ending up trailing a bit behind with slightly numb hands stuffed deep into his hoodie pockets. Roman managed to make it even farther ahead, humming some vaguely familiar tune as he watched the snowfall, and Virgil wondered if he should just let the Prince make the rest of the walk by himself, kind of wanting to just lay down and let the snow bury him.

The wind was picking up, and Virgil was clearly finding it more difficult to trek through the snow than Roman was. The Prince didn’t seem inclined to leave him behind though, slowing down and smiling patiently at the anxious side every few moments, letting him catch up on his own time.

He wondered why Roman didn’t just quicken his pace and leave him. It wasn’t like Virgil would go tell Patton just to get him in trouble. As much as it hurt knowing Roman wanted nothing to do with him, that someone had to make Roman spend time with him, it hurt worse to think that the Prince had just been faking it.

He’d thought...God, he’d actually thought they might be getting somewhere. That maybe, maybe Virgil’s feelings for the Prince weren’t as pointless as they’d once been.

The soft little smiles sent his way, the light touches on Virgil’s back or shoulder, the quiet jokes meant just for him, the way Roman’s eyes would linger for just a second…

He noticed it a second too late, caught up in his own head instead of paying careful attention to where he was stepping like he usually would, only pulled from his thoughts by another ear splitting crack as a piece of ice gave way right where he’d stepped down.

It was sudden and loud, and Virgil yelped when he stumbled and fell to the ground, hands losing feeling completely as they grabbed at the snow and his foot disappeared under the ice.

“Fuck- Roman!”

He heard Roman laugh, but it was almost impossible to make out over the howling of the wind and the pounding of his own heart. The water was so cold, (thank god he’d managed to stop himself before it went past his shin) like a million little knives dancing along his skin, paying no mind to what little protection his clothes offered.

“You’re fine,” Roman called, voice small and distant like he’d kept walking. Virgil didn’t dare look up, eyes on the ground beneath his hands. “It’s not deep, Virge, you can stand up.”

Virgil nodded even though he doubted Roman could see it, his voice refusing to cooperate. He squeezed numb hands into shaky fists, took a breath, and pushed himself up to stand on his free leg.

The next moment happened so fast, Virgil didn’t even register that more ice had broken under his weight until he felt himself falling, and suddenly the icy cold water was much higher than just his leg.

It felt like he’d been hit by a bus- a very, very cold bus- and Virgil gasped as all the ice below him gave way, the water rising up to his chest, wrapping around his body like a vice and yanking him forward without warning.

It was like hundreds of frozen hands were grabbing at him and tugging viciously, shoving him along with the water’s surprisingly violent current while trying to drag him down below the dark surface. Virgil barely had half a second to force his arms to move, frantically reaching for the nearest chunk of intact ice.

He couldn’t feel his fingers, and his hands were shaking so bad he almost didn’t make it, but he managed to get a grip on the edge just in time.

He gasped as he pulled himself to a sudden stop against the relentless current, weakening arms protesting the sudden strain, choking and coughing on the frigid water that managed to lap at the corners of his mouth.

“Princey!” he tried to scream, but he could barely hear himself over the roar of the river. The water hurt, the cold seeping into his skin and stealing his breath, and it took all of his quickly fleeting energy to keep holding on. “Roman!”

There was no response, at least not one that Virgil could hear, and he couldn’t bring himself to lift his head to see if help was coming, terrified that if he looked away from his hands he’d forget how to hold on.

He had to strain to keep his head above water, and he felt like there were boulders in his pockets weighing him down. He was left kicking desperately against the water, because it was definitely not shallow enough for him to stand.

Roman had said it was. Roman had laughed and kept walking and he’d...he hadn’t...he hadn’t left, had he? If he’d done this on purpose-

The dread and fear that came with the thought was almost more overwhelming than the thought of drowning, and Virgil squeezed his eyes shut as he tightened his hold, because Roman wouldn’t do that. He may not like Virgil, but he wasn’t cruel. He wouldn’t...he wouldn’t do this.

A grim voice in the back of his head told him Roman wouldn’t care, that Virgil would never be worth worrying about. Maybe it wasn’t the wind and rushing water blocking out the Prince’s voice...maybe he’d really just already walked away.

He choked back tears and put all his fading focus into staying above the water, the current’s pull growing stronger as his kicking became weaker and weaker. He couldn’t keep holding on. It was so cold and he was so tired-

“Virgil!”

Roman? It was so hard to tell for sure, everything distant and hazy compared to the roaring in his ears and his own too shallow breaths.

Oh god, he couldn’t hold on, he was slipping, he was going to fall-

“Virgil! Hold on, I’m coming!” Either that was Roman, or Virgil’s brain was being very cruel to him right before he died. The latter honestly seemed more likely. “Hold on, please just- I’m coming just hold on!”

He couldn’t feel his hands, barely able to comprehend anything around the all consuming pain settled around him like a blanket, leaving him shaking and numb, teeth chattering in his skull louder than a gunshot and he couldn’t do this- he couldn’t hold on he couldn’t-

“Virgil!”

Virgil didn’t even register what had happened, left only to wonder why the strain on his arms had suddenly been lessened for a single blissful second before realizing his frozen hands had slipped from the ice.

There wasn’t time to take another breath, the river seizing its opportunity to rise above his head and push him under the dark and freezing water, everything suddenly horribly silent.

[raindownforme]

Green

Ted Nivison x reader [she/her used]

“This sucks. This really sucks.”

“Money is money Ted.” y/n readjusted her elf costume. “Maybe just pick the better idea next time.”

Ted groaned as he looked at the camera. “I’m not doing a transition.”

“It’s your video. Come on, get in the spirit!” y/n watched Ted go over to the tripod, the bell on his hat jingling the whole way.

“I’ll turn the cold air on. Then we won’t over heat in these things.”

“Well don’t make it too cold. It’s already 70 out.”

“Ooooh cali girl can’t handle cold weather.”

“Can you at least say the full name? Put some respect on it.”

Ted rolled his eyes, walking back over to y/n. “Okay, camera’s on. We’ve got all the ingredients, is there anything else?”

“I’d liked to say we look adorable as elves.”

Ted blushed a furious red, muttering something under his breath, but y/n didn’t notice as she was turned to the table of ingredients. “Anything important?”

“Where’s my food dye?”

“Why?”

“It’s Christmas time. It’s a Christmas cheesecake.” y/n walked over to Ted’s pantry and dug around the shelves for the small bottles. “You can pick which layer is red and which is green!”

Ted sighed, then straightened himself as he prepared to do the video. “The things I do for you.”

“Oh please you love me.” y/n took her spot next to Ted and cleared her throat. She looked up to Ted, him being quite taller than the former, and frowned. “Ted? Buddy?”

Ted was stuck in a state of shock almost. His face had become bright pink as he stared dead ahead. “Uh. Yeah love you too.”

“Jeez alright. Come on man we got a video to do.” y/n nudged him slightly and watch him smile to himself.

“And now it is Christmas!” Ted gestured with his arms as he talked to the camera. “As you can see we are elves for this festive Yuletide cheesecake that y/n has so graciously given us the recipe to.”

“Thank you Ted. Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas. So now we start with the…. Crust?”

y/n nodded as she took graham crackers from the box. “You take roughly 30 crackers and place them in the baggie, then crush them to small crumbles but not dust.”

“Hmm. Like a Nickelback concert.”

y/n paused. “What did you say?”

“I said what I said.”

“Alright, well take them into the bowl now.” y/n continued to demonstrate how to make the crust, then the two moved onto the cheesecake filling that consisted of sugar, vanilla extract, eggs, and of course cream cheese. After mixing the filling for the full 30 minutes, Ted chose to make the layer red, adding just too many drops so it looked more like blood than Christmas.

“Okay, then this will bake for 50 minutes.”

“That’s an oddly specific time.”

“Do you want cheesecake or not.” y/n poked fun at Ted before she slipped the cake into the oven. “Now what? Dishes? Are you changing into Santa clause this time?”

“I was just going to put on music or something.”

y/n fake gasped. “The famous Toyota Tacoma playlist? It couldn’t be.”

“Oh sorry because you have one playlist that’s not even named.”

“Whatever dude.” y/n smiled as she put dishes in the sink.

“You don’t have to do the dishes. It’s my house.”

“Well, yeah, but it’s my stand mixer we used.”

“y/n. It’s fine. You’re my guest.”

“I’m literally here all the time. I’m allowed to do something nice for you.”

Ted watched silently as y/n washed the large mixing bowls. Quietly, he walked over to her side, resting an arm on her shoulder. “Hey-“

“Jesus fuck.” y/n dropped a bowl in the porcelain sink, making a large clattering noise. “You need to move that smoothly? You quiet little weirdo?”

y/n turned to face Ted. “You didn’t hurt yourself right? No glass?”

“No it’s just a metal bowl.” She reached up and poked his cheek. “You’re so cute when you’re worried for me.”

Ted pushed her away. “Pssh. Am not.”

“Yes you are! See-“ y/n reached to take a steak knife of of Ted’s knife rack, but he raced over to stop her, setting his hand over hers. “Ted.”

“Knives are dangerous! Also I don’t know what your plan was there.”

“Mostly to make you worried.” y/n let go of the knife, letting the blade snap back to the knife rack, but Ted didnt let go of her hand. Instead, he turned it around and brought their fingers together, interlacing them. “Ted?”

“y/n.” Her face felt warm and she tried to look away from the tall man. “I’m your friend. I’m allowed to worry about you.”

“I- I didn’t say you weren’t.”

Ted let go of her hand. “You’re right. You look adorable as an elf.”

“Dude I’ll get you I swear.”

Ted smiled to himself. “Yeah right cali girl.”

The two continued peacefully for the next hour, allowing the cake to cook and fully rest before the next step.

“Alright, so roughly two and a half cups of sour cream-“ y/n plopped the sour cream into a glass mixing bowl with a spatula. “Then vanilla and some sugar. Ted what color do you pick this time?”

“GREEN.” y/n watched as he emptied nearly half a bottle of green food coloring into the previously white mixture. “GREEN.”

“Alright you barbarian. And now we mix.”

“You know.” Ted watched as she stirred the sour cream mixture by hand. “This could be easier for you if you just let me dry the dishes.”

“They can dry on their own I just need to mix this for, like, two minutes.”

“Two minutes?” Ted watched as she set down the bowl and turned for a second. He took that to his advantage, dipping his finger into the mixture. As she turned around, he took the chance to smear it across her nose. “That didn’t seem like two minutes to me.”

“Ted!” y/n stuck her fingers into the mixture as well, jumping up to smash it across his mouth and jaw.

The two stared at each other, anticipating something. Ted grinned, grabbing a heaping handful of the green sour cream. “Oh it’s on.”

Ted chased y/n around the kitchen, splattering green sour cream all over her skin and the cabinets and the counter tops. y/n retaliated, picking up the bowl and using the spatula to fling green at him liberally.

“Oh I’ve got you now.” Ted had her cornered, standing over her with the height difference. She stood defensively, aiming the green-stained spatula at his neck. She shuffled to the side, hoping to get around him. She dashed for it, but slipped on sour cream on the floor. “Shit I’ve got you-“

The spatula clattered on the ground as Ted caught y/n in his arms. y/n held her breath. She was inches away from Ted’s face. She lightly placed her arms around the back of his neck. “Ted.” Her voice was hushed as he slowly lifted her upwards, keeping his face still inches away from hers.

“y/n.” The two leaned closer, barely centimeters away, before Ted closed the distance, smashing their faces together. He couldn’t help but smile as she kissed him. She kissed him! Ted pulled her closer, crossing his arms behind her waist.

“Wait wait stop.” y/n pushed him away slightly, separating by barely two inches, but Ted still loosened his grasp on her waist.

“Did I say something? I’m sorry I shouldn’t have assumed-“

“No no it’s just… you taste like green sour cream and it’s- it’s so off putting.”

Ted laughed, pressing his forehead against hers. “Was that okay then? Cause I’d like to do it again if you don’t mind.”

“Maybe when you don’t have sour cream everywhere. Speaking of which, we have extra right? Because I think we used it all.”

Ted pressed another kiss to her forehead before standing upright. “I’ll buy you all the sour cream you want.”

“Good because this Christmas cake needs it.”

Ted laughed, pulling her back to the counter. “Ready?”

y/n took his hand in hers, interlacing their fingers. “Ready.”

[tinyyoungblood]

quarantine madness | t.h

summary: you knew quarantine with tom was going to drive you both nuts, but now he wants to reenact a scene from age of ultron and possibly break his back, and you’re ready to punch harry for going live on instagram to share his brother’s misery with the world

pairing: tom holland x reader

warnings: just fluff

requested by: @shythingstudentdragon

* * *

Thud.

“Y/N, are you awake?” A deep voice whispered.

You rubbed your throbbing temple and stared dizzily at the mop of brown curls. “I just body slammed the floor. Do you really think I could’ve slept through that?” He grinned cheekily and pulled you back up, but the simple motion made your head spin, and he was quick to steady you.

“Careful,” he said. You let out a paltry grunt and collapsed back onto the couch. Harry glanced at you for a moment before darting to the kitchen while muttering jumbled words under his breath. From afar, tiny exciting paws reverberated against the hardwood floor and you forced your eyes open to greet the precious bundle of joy.

To your luck, Harry had opened the blinds to the living room, allowing sharp sunlight to flood what once used to be the comfort of a dark cave. You almost hissed. Pitch-black eyes were jumping up and down in front of you and you were quick to scoop Tessa into your arms.

“Hey, baby,” you cooed. “Did you get here all by yourself?”

A snort sounded from the side, and your eyes flitted to a warm smile leaning against the doorframe.

“She did. She’s a big girl now. In fact, she drove us over all by herself, right, love?”

The couch dipped as Sam sat beside you to pet Tessa as she frantically whipped her head from side to side as if to wholeheartedly agree. A chuckle slipped from Sam’s lips before his gaze locked with yours. Concern crossed his eyes.

“Y/n.” He licked his lips tentatively. “I’m saying this in the nicest way possible, but you—”

“You look like shit.”

Harrison entered the room and crossed his arms with a look of disapproval and worry on his face.

Bemusedly drawing your brows together, you cocked your head and listened to the footsteps coming from the kitchen. “Is Twain also going to pop out of nowhere? How did you guys even come in?”

Silently walking over, Harry handed you a glass of water, his blank stare never wavering as you chucked the liquid.

“Spare key.”

Harry took the glass from you and placed it on the coffee table. “And Twain’s coming over later. Thought we might check in on you guys. See if you’re still alive.”

“It definitely doesn’t small alive in here,” Harrison said, grimacing.

Someone had opened the windows, and you had to admit it was nice to breathe crisp clean air again. Cowering under their worried looks, you crossed your legs and glanced at the clock on the wall. How was it already three o’clock?

“Okay, maybe quarantine got a bit over our heads,” you said and picked up a sock from the armrest. “But it’s not like we’ve gotten completely insane. We’ve just been…wasting away.”

Sam eyed the towering stack of Blue-Rays on the coffee table and a teasing grin swiped over his lips. “Wasting away with a movie marathon, I’m assuming?”

You smiled sheepishly and shrugged. “Not much else to do around here.”

Stretching your limbs with a gratifying sigh, you placed Tessa on Sam’s lap and stood up. “I’m hitting the shower, guys. Make yourself at home.” You gestured spiritlessly and patted Harry’s shoulder on your way out. Just as you stepped over the threshold, you spun around and stared at Haz’s leaning figure. “Where’s Tom?”

“Would you look at that.” He laughed, his crystal blue eyes loosening up from the stern gaze. “It only took you five minutes to remember your boyfriend’s existence. And they say romance is dead.”

Swatting his arm with a mock scowl, you looked around the living room and then spared a glance into the hall. “Seriously, we fell asleep on the couch together. Where is he?”

As if on cue, a loud thud bellowed from above, and your eyes widened. You had already turned on your heel and dashed upstairs before anyone could answer. The door to the office room fell open and you gawked at the sight ahead.

Tom was sprawled underneath the long velvet sofa, holding it up with both arms. He lowered it with a heavy grunt, and lifted it again with an even heavier grunt. He seemed to be deeply entranced in his action, not even taking notice of the footsteps nearing him until they stopped right by his side.

Stopping mid-action, he looked up and beamed at you. “Hello, darlimg.”

“Hi, love,” you said, amusedly. “Busy?”

“Uhm.” His eyes flickered to the sofa. “You could say that.”

“Just one question, Tommy.”

“Go ahead.”

“Why?”

Tom blinked at you. “What do you mean why? You know why.”

He was quick to scoot out from underneath, jump on his feet, and stand in front of you with the faintest scowl plastered on his face. You racked your hand through your tangled hair. “But I don’t. Should I know?”

His mouth fell open. “Yes. Yes, you should. You were there.” Your face remained expressionless. “Yesterday? When we watched the Age of Ultron scene on Clint’s farm?” Nothing. He groaned. “When Steve and Tony had an argument and Steve ripped that log in half, and you bet I could never do that?”

Finally, realisation crossed your mind. “Tom, I was half-asleep during that part. At that point, I was just mouthing gibberish,” you reasoned and laughed lightly, but it died down the second you realised Tom was not fining any trace of humor in this conversation. “You know I didn’t mean it, right?”

Vibrant blue caught your attention and your eyes flitted across the room to a blue yoga mat in the middle of the floor. “Oh no.” You groaned and let your head fall into your palms. “You’re going to rip a log in half?”  

Your question was muffled, but Tom caught it and nodded proudly when you met his gaze again.

“You could seriously injure yourself, you know that?” He hummed and leaned forward to press a soft kiss to your cheek before wandering over to the mat.

“For instance, you could get a splinter and die of blood loss.”

Again, he hummed while lowering himself to the ground, starting with slow pushups.

“And you would die before Spider-Man 3 was filmed and the whole world would just explode in chaos.”

“Yes, love. You’re right,” he said in between pushups and you sighed.

“You’re going to do it. You’re going to rip a log in half. I’m dating a maniac.” You threw your hands up and spun around when Tom hummed again, stopping what he was doing to lock eyes with you.

“I think the others are right. We’ve gone insane,” he said.

You nodded and hugged yourself as your giggle settled into a soft smile. Your expression melted at the sheer sight of your boyfriend making a complete fool of himself merely to prove his point. A second later you noted that he still managed to look too attractive for his own good.

Your eyes trailed the lines of his back muscles, screaming to tear his tight gym shirt in half, and down to his prominent bicep, flexing with each movement. Knowing there was no point in trying to persuade your competitive dork of a boyfriend, you left the room to take a much-needed shower.

The rest of the day went smoothly. As planned, Twain stopped by and together with the boys, you had managed to have a nice afternoon consisting of board games and trivial chatter. It was nice to be surrounded by other humans again, and you appreciated their company.

But what you appreciated a little less was Tom’s sudden spur of insanity. It’s been almost four hours and the guy didn’t find it in himself to stop preparing for what he had now titled the “Big Reveal”.

He was everywhere and nowhere. When you couldn’t find him plank in the middle of the living room, he was probably doing sit-ups on the staircase. At some point, you and the others had just accepted his new maniacal hyperfixation.

It was the kitchen encounter at 7.25 PM when you had finally found the courage to ask him the godforsaken question. It wasn’t by choice, really, but rather a lost bet with the others.

You were attempting casualty, maneuvering around his body to snatch a random bowl from the kitchen counter like it was the most normal thing—stirring air with a fork. Tom was currently doing pull-ups and you watched for a moment how his arms flexed and sweat glistened across the skin of his forehead.

“You alright, love?” His voice pulled you out of your trance and you shuffled on your feet.

Clearing your throat, you spotted the tiniest hint of a smirk revealing itself on his lips, and your eyes narrowed. “I’m good, thank you,” you snapped and rounded his body to stand in front of him. “You ready for the Big Reveal?” The words made you grin inevitably, but Tom didn’t notice. He plopped to the floor and beamed at you.

“I think so.” A smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. “Ready to regret yesterday’s words, love?”

                                  ───

“Wait, I didn’t agree to go live. Harry, no.” Tom’s warning fell on deaf ears as his brother simply grinned at him. He held up his phone and filmed the two of you with the back camera.

“Too late,” he mouthed and you were left with no other choice than to wave awkwardly.

“Hey, guys. Welcome to this very much unplanned Instagram Live.” He doted a mock glare in Harry’s direction and wrapped an arm around your waist to pull you closer to his side.

“Some of you might already know, but this is my lovely girlfriend Y/N. Trust me, she’s usually not this stiff.” Tom poked your side and flashed you a toothy grin. Playfully gasping, you leaned forward and spoke to the camera.

“Hi, guys.” You smiled. “Some of you might already know, but this is Tom. Our not-so-friendly neighbourhood psychopath.”

The boys snickered. You winked at the camera while Tom chuckled next to you. It was infectious and never failed to make you smile and feel at ease, so you continued your role as a moderator. After you had explained the absurdity of the situation and gestured to the provisional log standing representatively on the grass, it was time.

Stepping backward, you watched as Tom confidently, but with a certain waver of caution, picked up the log to examine it. A fleeting shimmer of doubt crossed his eyes but it was gone with the blink of an eye.

It seemed like the whole of London had agreed to stand still. There was only the sound of your droning heartbeat that filled your ears. The others had frozen completely. Even Tessa watched curiously.

Tom’s eyes flicked to yours and back to the camera. “If I break my back, you know who to sue.” He laughed heartily when you swatted his arm with a gasp.

“Just do it, Holland.”

And then it happened.

Gripping both sides of the log, Tom tugged at the piece of wood until it ripped down slowly in the middle and tore apart only a second later.

The yard exploded with noise.

The boys shouted, yelled, and cheered while running across the grass. Harry whipped from left to right like an excited child, trying to capture every moment.

Only you stayed put on the spot, your eyes flitting across the yard to the big ax stuck in another log. You cracked a private smile. It seemed as if only Tessa had caught on, and you winked at her knowingly. Your gaze wandered back to Tom and Haz who were both standing in front of Harry and talking to the phone.

“He might have lost his mind, but not this bet and never his fashion sense,” Harrison said proudly into the camera and Tom showered in glory.

Coming down from his blistering high, he turned around and his gaze landed on you. With a broadening smile, he was quickly by your side and smothering your cheek with tiny kisses.

“Thank you.” Kiss. “For doubting me.” Kiss. “I would’ve never made it if it weren’t for you.” Kiss. Harry came closer with his phone and you jokingly pushed Tom away, feigning a disgusted face.

“Move over, man. I don’t like you that much.”

The others laughed, and Tom leaned in, his warm breath fawning over your face as he chuckled. Lifting your chin with his hand, he guided your lips to his and captured them in a kiss.

“Get a room, mate!” Sam shouted from across the garden.

“There are children watching!” Harrison hissed.

You pulled back from the kiss and rolled your eyes at their quarrel, smiling. Unwrapping yourself from Tom’s embrace, you stepped back and gave the camera a two-finger-wave. “Alright, enough PDA. It was great to talk to you all.”

Just as you had turned around, a hand curled around your wrist and pulled you back.

“Not without me.” Tom leaned in again, nose bumping, and a dreamy smile hanging onto his lips. You huffed, but your grin betrayed you.

“Fine,” you said.

Tom pecked your lips and pulled away, hugging you even closer. He flashed you a cheeky smile and said, “But I’m not going, so neither are you.”

* * *

can’t believe i’m back. it’s only been like what? four years? :’) hope you liked this one! thanks for reading <3 

🦋 masterlist

taglist: @honeypie-holland​ @himarisolace​ @duskholland​ @insidiousslut​ @siriuslyslyslytherin​ @hollandsrecs​ @quaksonhehe​ @chloecreatesfictions​ @writertoo18​ @fl0ating​ @luwloki​ @missnxthingg​

[multifandhoem]

server collab || i

Server Collab from the Haikyuu HQ server with the prompt: Mirror fuck.

A/N: i apologize already to everyone reading this. It is LONG.

Genre: fluff, smut, a little bit of angst

Warnings: girlxgirl, girlxboyxgirl, it’s polyamory people you get it, some cursing, dom!Hanamaki, dom!Kiyoko to some extent, a bit of switch!Kiyoko, sub!Reader, anal stuff, toys, double penetration, oral everywhere, praise kink (is that a warning?), no actual mention of the word but.. anxiety, teeny tiny bit public stuff, mirror sex (duh)

Word count: 11.402 (i am sorry)

Gripping the straps of your backpack tighter you stepped into the hall of your new university, the bustling and shuffling of all the new freshmen and welcoming upperclassmen intimidated you a little bit. The girl that stepped infant of you seemed like an angel sent from heaven, something to concentrate on in this sea of new information. 

Her talking to you was probably mandatory. But after looking at her and not believing your own eyes after realizing the immense beauty she possessed made you feel special that you were the one receiving attention from that goddess. 

She introduced herself as Kiyoko Shimizu, a college senior, who wants to inform you about all the things you could do to put emphasis on yourself in college, especially if working and/or studying in a male-dominated environment.

You could hear your heart beating in your ears, desperately trying to snap out of the daze you were in to actually engage in a conversation with her. 

“What about potential jobs in my field?” You feared you were rude by interrupting her, but you had to blurt it out before the courage left you again. 

And the way her eyes lit up at the question of interest, fumbling her phone out of her pockets and basically thrusting it into your face. “I can tell you in detail if you want! Over coffee! Today or tomorrow, whichever you prefer!”

You didn’t even like coffee. And you had plans for the next days. But you still couldn’t stop yourself from eagerly typing your number into her phone, telling her you’re free whenever. 

Kiyoko messaged you two hours after you’ve left the venue, only walking around with your head in the clouds after the encounter with the pretty girl, which was also smart and seemed interested. A jackpot. 

She asked you if you were free the next day at noon and you replied embarrassingly fast, agreeing to the time and place she picked out. You would even grab something to eat together! Not just coffee! Did this classify as a date? You were more or less fresh out of high school, taking a gap year in between to take internships, travel, and really decide what major to choose. 

And now this drop-dead gorgeous woman wants to have lunch with you. 

Kiyoko told you to call her Shimizu in the first fifteen minutes of your lunch date. She laughed at your awkward jokes and even wiped some crumbs of your cheek. You talked about the ways how you could get a job in your field and she gave you helpful tips, but you also talked about everything else. Favorite foods, childhoods, family, and so on. 

Your nervousness faded the longer you talked and you really started to be yourself around her, especially when you left the small diner to just aimlessly walk around, chatting the whole time. It wasn’t until the end of your meet-up when everything came crashing down. 

“I have to go now, every Thursday it’s movie night for me and my boyfriend and today it’s my turn to pick! But we should totally do this again!” 

Of course, it was too good to be true. She hugged you with blushy cheeks, keeping her hands on your shoulder after distancing herself again. “Where do you live? I’ll walk you home!” 

“Oh, that’s not necessary. I live on campus, it’s close by!” You tried not to let your hurt show in your words. 

Why were you even hurt? You met for the second time today. You didn’t even know her. Your stupid hopes were to blame. You turned around quickly, throwing her a half-assed smile before hurrying back home to have a frustrated cry and then hopefully getting over her. 

— — — 

“15 minutes later and I would’ve been legally allowed to choose!” Hanamaki Takahiro waved his favorite comedy around with a cheeky grin, standing up to press a kiss to Kiyoko’s lips when she kicked her shoes off and placed them neatly onto the shoe rack next to the front door. 

“I’m going to change, then I’m ready.” She gave him another peck, before sauntering off into their shared bedroom, fingers already tugging on the blouse she had tucked into her jeans. “How was the lunch date with your junior?” 

Makki plopped back down onto the couch, spreading his long limbs, waiting for his girlfriend to come back. “Good. We talked a lot, she’s really nice. And very cute, too.” At that, he perked up. “Yeah?” The door to the bedroom opened again and Shimizu came out, now clad in sweatpants and a loose shirt. “Yeah. Reminds me of Yachi a bit. But in a hotter way, you know?” 

“In a hotter way? Tell me more! You should invite her to the apartment sometime!” With a big grin on his face, Makki pulled her closer to his chest, after she finally put her choice of a movie into the DVD Player and sat down onto the couch. 

“Maybe I will. She doesn’t really know anyone here in Tokyo. Maybe we can invite Mattsun, too. Or Iwaizumi. Maybe some of the Karasuno boys. But only Sawamura or Koshi, the others are too wild.” Makki had to laugh at that. “You just said she was hot and now you want to play matchmaker?” 

“Let’s talk later and watch the movie. But I really want to do more with her. She’s nice.” 

“And cute in a hot way,” he teased her, before concentrating on the starting movie. 

— — —

When Shimizu messaged you and invited you for dinner at her place you nearly died a little on the inside. That was until you remembered the boyfriend. But did it really matter? 

You still don’t know her fully, having only met her a couple of times. And you had great conversations the times you’ve met. Maybe you should get over your teeny tiny crush you imagined for the girl and just try winning her as a friend. 

You regretted it a bit when she asked if it was okay if her boyfriend and a friend of his joined you. But you still said it didn’t matter. 

So here you were, the bottle of mediocre white wine in your slightly shaking hand in front of the building. Shimizu had sent you the address the day before, also telling you which floor and apartment so you slowly entered and made your way up the flights of stairs, to not be sweaty when appearing in front of her doorstep. Unfortunately for you, it wasn’t her who opened the front door when you finally rang the doorbell. 

The man had a bright grin in his face, looking down on you with an unusual amount of interest. 

“You must be, Y/N, right? Nice to finally meet you, Mizu has been talking a lot about you!” I extended his arm in a friendly manner, even though he seemed more like the hugging type. 

Maybe Shimizu had told him that you weren’t that keen on first-time skinship. 

“I’m Hanamaki, but you can call me Makki.” He started talking again and only then you realized that you had not said anything yet. “Sorry, I’m Y/N. Nice to meet you, too!” 

Why did you introduce yourself again? He already knew your name. Stupid. 

But he practically beamed at your response, stepping aside to let you in. “Come in, come in! Mizu is in the kitchen. I’m going to show you around for a bit. Well, it isn’t big anyways. As you can see we’re in the living room.” He seemed a bit nervous, but maybe you were just misinterpreting him. 

Shimizu interrupted him by coming out of an archway, hugging you in an instant. “I am so happy to see you again! How are you?” 

You felt your ears burning, being this close to her, but still managed to stutter out a response. “I’m fine, I think I’m kind of getting used to living alone.” Shimizu smiled at you approvingly. “Well, if you need help with anything, don’t be afraid to ask. Even if- oh shit!” Ringing from the room, you presumed it was the kitchen, interrupted Shimizu and she was quick to dash back there, leaving you alone with Hanamaki again. 

It was quiet only for a second before he was talking again. “Well, there is the kitchen. The apartment is pretty small really, through this door is a small hallway, our bedroom is on the left and the bathroom on the right.” He opened the door to the small hallway, pointing at the two doors while talking. 

“Ehm... Hanamaki-san.. is there a place where I can put this?” He blinked at you for a second, before his eyes darted down to your hands, which still clasped the bottle of wine between them. “Oh shit! Sorry, sorry, I’ll take it and put it in the refrigerator. That’s what you’re supposed to do with white wine, right?” He beckoned for you to follow him into the kitchen, where Shimizu was busy cutting away. You immediately felt a bit more relaxed around her and it seemed as it was the same for Hanamaki-san. 

“By the way, you really don’t have to call me Hanamaki-san. Just Hanamaki or Makki is fine!” The grin on his face was inviting and even though he didn’t seem that much as you type, you still found him attractive at that moment. Lazily leaning back against the counter, eyes focused on you, and grinning in such a friendly but still with a teasing edge to it. You nearly forgot to answer. “O-okay, Makki-san.” He playfully rolled his eyes at the honorific but decided to leave it at that. You had to chuckle a bit at his antics, missing the content smile that adored Shimizu’s face while she was watching you over her shoulder. 

“Can I help you with anything, Shimizu-san?” You felt bad that she was the only one working, now stirring the pot she had added the freshly cut vegetables into. “No, no, it’s okay! I’m nearly finished, anyway, I just need to add the stock and then this will have to cook for a while.” She threw you a dazzling smile and to accentuate her words, she poured a jug of liquid into the pot, putting a lid halfway on afterward and setting a timer. 

You knew that it would still take a while until you would start eating together. But it still felt weird being here without any purpose. 

“Let’s go back into the living room!” Hanamaki gently laid a hand onto your back, pushing you back into the biggest room of the apartment while Shimizu washed her hands. “Do you want to open a bottle of wine?” Shimizu called after you and you made an affirmative noise. “For me a beer!” 

Hanamaki and you took a seat on the couch, he was comfortably spread out while your position was still a bit stiff. You didn’t know him after all. 

 “Wait, babe, you should’ve said something!” He shot up again, helping Shimizu, who balanced two wine glasses and a bottle of beer in one hand and a wine bottle already in a cooler in the other. “You could have used your head!” The jab could’ve been snappy, but the playful tone softened in a way that made you understand their relationship for the first time.  

They must’ve known each other for a long time.

“How did you two meet?” The question escaped you before you could hold your curiosity back. “I managed the boys' volleyball team in high school and Hiro was on our opponent's team,” Shimizu explained while giving you a filled wine glass. “I nearly hit the other manager of her team with a stray ball.” Hanamaki giggled at the memory. “Mizu here saved poor Yachi and I went over to apologize and well, as they say, the rest is history!” He blinked exaggeratedly at Shimizu, who just scoffed with a smile. “We didn’t really start talking until we moved to Tokyo. And then I met him on my way to the convenience store and we decided to talk a bit.”

It was so normal and simple. But still very romantic in your eyes. “Like we were meant to be!” Hanamaki dramatically threw himself back onto the couch, his now opened beer bottle securely in his hand. Shimizu took a seat in the armchair slightly across from you and you felt kind of weird, separating the couple like that. But both looked content, you didn’t want to destroy the atmosphere by doing something awkward. 

Knowing you, it would happen sooner or later anyway. 

But at least for the next few minutes, you had peace, engaging in various small talk with the two of them, gradually relaxing and even cracking some jokes on your own, much to the delight of Hanamaki. And as the lightweight you were you could already feel the glass of wine, admittedly, you had downed that very quickly on a near-empty stomach. But you didn’t mind the relaxed atmosphere. Not worrying about everything you did or said was quite soothing for a change. 

“Oikawa was pretty dumb, you know one time…” Hanamaki interrupted himself by laughing and seeing his eyes crinkle in joy made a dreaded warmth bloom in your chest. You were reminiscing on your old high school days, Hanamaki being at it with stories from his team captain for the last twenty minutes. When he wanted to start again, still gasping for air, the doorbell interrupted him, and an excited look shot across his face. “Mattsun!” 

With a huge grin on his face, he darted across the room to the front door, opening it in an abrupt motion, to showcase the tall dark-haired male behind it for a second until he was already engulfed by Hanamaki. Both men hugged for a solid minute until Hanamaki ushered the other one, Mattsun apparently, in. Shimizu had also stood up to hug the newcomer, leaving you kind of awkwardly standing by the side. “That’s Y/N. She’s a friend of Shimizu’s and a freshman!” Thank god for the wine or you would’ve nearly passed out when Hanamaki suddenly threw an arm around your shoulder and pressed you into his side. 

“Hi, nice to meet you! I’m Matsukawa Issei. Hiro and I went to high school together.” The tall stranger extended his hand towards you and you shook it with a friendly smile on your face. “Nice to meet you too, Matsukawa-san.” 

After Matsukawa had finished his first beer, you and Shimizu were nearly down with the bottle of wine, the timer rang from the kitchen, indicating that the sauce was finished and the meat was perfectly tender. 

Eating something felt good, it cleared your head a bit from the alcohol, especially the glass of water you had next to your wine helped. Matsukawa was a bit quieter than Hanamaki but still held an active conversation. Shimizu however was another story. She was much quieter than when you met up with only the two of you, silently observing everything going on at the table and only occasionally adding her thoughts. You liked it. It would be overwhelming to have multiple different opinions voiced at all times. And getting to know something different about Kiyoko Shimizu was always a pleasure.

Matsukawa and Hanamaki were joking the whole time, making you snort into your glass more than once, but you got rewarded by the proud smiles they sent your way. As the second bottle of wine slowly disappeared into your’s and Shimizu’s stomach, the men cracked their third or fourth bottle of beer open when everyone was more than stuffed with the delicious dinner Shimizu and Hanamaki had conjured. 

 “So, I would say we load up the dishwasher, and then we wait a bit before dessert or else Mattsun will blow up.” Hanamaki stood up and started collecting all of the plates, ready to take them into the kitchen. “Damn right, I will,” Mattsun grunted affirmatively but stood up with everyone else to make the cleanup faster. 

Shortly after you were all huddled in the living room again, the couch now more crowded with Shimizu, Hanamaki, and you, while Matsukawa took up the armchair, dangling his legs from the sides. If you would shift just a bit, your thighs would be touching Shimizu’s. But you tried to contain yourself. It would only make everything uncomfortable for everybody around. 

It was weird sitting there with them. You anticipated feeling left out, they all knew each other since high school and you only got to know two of them today. Yet everything fell somehow into place. Shimizu’s occasional giggle or when she added something to the stories the other two were animatedly telling, Hanamaki’s touchy personality, where he hit you continuously every time he laughed too hard, apologizing afterwards, still with a glimmer in his eyes and Matsukawa’s jokes he cracked. 

The evening turned into nighttime and sooner than not you were growing tired, yawning every other minute, head slightly dropping down only for you to catch yourself again. 

“Aw, baby, are you growing tired?” In the past hours, they had teased you about being the youngest, all of them being two years older than you. Shimizu had once even described you as her baby, obviously not knowing what it did to you. She even asked very concernedly if you were alright when your face looked like a blazing tomato. 

You could only nod at Hanamaki’s words, rubbing your eyes and standing up, a bit wobbly on your feet from sitting so long and the amount of alcohol you had consumed. “I’ll call it a night then. Thank you for inviting me.” You shot a smile at Shimizu and Hanamaki, turning to Matsukawa right afterwards. “It was nice meeting you!” 

“Likewise!” You shared a quick hug before you made your way over to the door, to slip into your shoes. “I’ll walk you home, it’s already late.” Hanamaki surprised you a bit when he also slipped into an oversized bomber jacket and worn down sneakers, grabbing a set of keys and patiently waiting next to the door. 

“No, no, you really don’t have to. I’ll be fine,” you tried to convince him, only receiving an unimpressed stare as an answer. “It’s better like this. It’s dark and you drank something. But still text me when you get home, okay?” Shimizu embraced you in a long hug, swaying you around very slightly while you nuzzled your face into her shoulder.

“Makki?” 

“Yeah?” 

The fresh air had done wonders to sober you up and now you had been walking alongside Makki for a while, engaging in a bit of small talk but it had been quiet for the last few minutes. “What do you do for a living? I just realized you never said anything.” He chuckled at your question. “I thought something serious was coming. And I work as a real estate agent. I like working with people and so on, but I don’t think it’s something longterm. I’m honestly considering just dropping everything and getting professionally trained in pastry making. Maybe even going to culinary school, who knows.” 

The smile he shot you was different than the others you had seen from him. It was rawer, more gentle than his usual teasing ones. “Really? I can actually see it, I mean the small raspberry cakes were amazing! I don’t think I’ve ever tasted anything that delicious before!”

His smile widened at that and he straightened up a little bit more. “That was nothing! You should taste my creampuffs. They are my favorite, that’s why I make them so often, they’re kind of my specialty,” he admitted and scratched the back of his head. “I’ll make them for you next time. You should come over soon anyways. Shimizu likes you. Usually, she doesn’t talk that much when we have people over.” You looked at him surprised. Shimizu talked even less usually? Does that mean you weren’t wrong when you thought you had a special connection? 

A blush crept across your face at the thought but you quickly tried to dismiss it again. “You know, you’re pretty cute.” 

Remember when you tried not to blush that hard. It’s not working. Not at all. 

“You can’t say something like that!” Wildly flailing your hands around did nothing to help your flustered state and that strawberry idiot had the audacity to laugh at you! 

Apparently, the alcohol hadn’t cleared up as much as you had thought, or else your heart wouldn’t hammer so loudly against your chest. 

Luckily your building was coming into view, hopefully freeing you from your embarrassment. “But I’m serious, we should do something together again. Soon. If you want, Mattsun is still here tomorrow, we could hang out again. Or well, anytime you want to hang out, I’m sure you just have to give us a call and in like 95% of all cases we’re down.” He scratched the back of his head again. “Oh.”

That kind of surprised you. It was already a wonder that Shimizu, the hot senior girl, talked to you for more than a second. But now her equally hot boyfriend wanted you to join them more often. You weren’t anything special, why would they want to hang out with you? They for sure had other friends. 

“I am free tomorrow if it really isn’t a bother.” You had to take your chances right? Even if hanging out with the attractive couple would probably make your heart go into overdrive the entire time. 

“Of course it’s not a bother!” His step was a lot more feathery, that was until you came to a stop in front of your building, him stopping a couple feet in front of you, turning around with a questioning expression on his face. 

“That’s my building,” you explained, vaguely gesturing towards the entrance. “Okay, alright. Do you need me to walk you up to your room? It really would not be a bother!” 

“It’s okay, there’s security. But thank you for walking me. I guess I’ll see you tomorrow?” Saying goodbye felt kind of weird.

“Yeah, sure, I think Shimizu will text you the details, if not, I will!” 

After a goodbye hug which lasted way too long to be considered normal, you parted again, with him watching every step you took towards the entrance hall. 

“Y/N! Over here!” Shimizu was waving her arm around for you to spot her easily. As if it wasn’t easy enough already with Hanamaki and Matsukawa towering over her and literally everybody else. “I’m so happy you could make it!” Shimizu clasped your hands in hers, pressing them unnecessarily close to her chest, in your opinion. Had nobody here respect for your poor heart? 

The group had planned to do some shopping before Matsukawa had to grab his train back to Miyagi. It was quite fitting anyways, you needed some new clothes. 

Matsukawa left after a few hours, hugging every one of you for goodbye. You had offered going home too, not wanting intrude on their couple time, but both of them were adamant about taking you with them. So here you were, looking at some clothes while Shimizu was in the aisle behind you and Hanamaki was roaming through the dresses next to you, after you had mentioned you wanted some. “What do you think about this?” Shimizu reappeared in your aisle, holding up a dress for you to look at. “Well, it’s pretty, but I don’t know if it’ll suit me..” Cue to the dress being thrust into your hands. “You never know until you try!” You kept on browsing for a while until you and Shimizu disappeared in two changing cabins with Hanamaki waiting in front of them in the designated seating area. 

“It’s pretty, but a bit short I guess. I mean, if you bend down you would flash literally everyone.” “If it were tighter around the waist it would be a better fit.” “That’s good, but not elevated. A nice dress for your free time, you know?” Hanamaki was a surprisingly good shopping companion, giving insightful comments to everything you and Shimizu tried on. 

“Oh, this one looks so good!” Shimizu was already finished, now sitting outside with her boyfriend, looking at you with wide eyes as you came out with your personal favorite. Hanamaki’s eyes shot to Shimizu for a second, before landing on you again. “You look hot!” Shimizu nodded in agreement. “You have to take that!” You blushed at their comments, fingers toying with the hem of your dress. “Are you sure? Isn’t it too much?” To be fair, you were fishing for compliments a little bit. It looked really good, but it was also kind of expensive. Not that expensive where you have to gasp when seeing the price but it wasn’t classified cheap either. “Yeah, take it. Hiro is right, you look stunning.” The way Shimizu talks is as if she’s always stating facts does something to you. Especially when she was praising you like that. 

After those two days you spent with them, your hangouts became much more frequent. If your schedules aligned you would eat lunch with Shimizu in the cafeteria, Hanamaki would pick you up in his car when the weather was bad, driving you to your dorm or occasionally to their apartment. You had stopped feeling weird about hanging out with them on your own. They were a great couple to be around, not overly touchy, and just respectful of you being there. 

The worst part was by far the fact that your initial attraction to them had blossomed into a full-grown crush. It didn’t help at all that Makki was a touchy person, often throwing arms around your shoulder or your waist, sometimes cuddling up to you on the couch on movie night every Thursday. But you didn’t want to let that have any impact on your friendship. Not only were they really great friends, but it was also pretty helpful as a freshman in a new city to have older friends from college and work life, who could help you with some things where you would usually have called your parents in frustration. So you just kept it to yourself, blushing every time when Shimizu nuzzles her face into the crook of your neck or holds your hand to not lose you in a crowd. 

You still wouldn’t have it any other way. Being with them like this was enough for you, especially since they liked babying you as the youngest. To be honest, you thrived in the attention you were receiving in those moments. 

One time you were cooking together and you had cut your finger, it wasn’t anything deep, really, but you bled a little. And both of them immediately huddled around you, cleaning your finger and putting a plaster on the cut, all while Makki was holding you and Shimizu was cradling your hands, even pressing a small kiss on the cut. 

But at the end of the day, you were still only friends while they were a couple. Even if you wished it was different. 

“Here, little one. Here, babe.” The kiss Makki pressed to the crown of your head startled you. Usually, it was Shimizu who showed her affection like this, and feeling his lips on your head made a heat blossom in your chest, all the way up to your face. He did the same to Shimizu, setting two small plates with sweets in front of you, together with a new jug of lemon water. 

You shot him a thankful smile, even though the redness on your cheeks was probably still prominent. 

It was leading up to finals week and you and Shimizu were studying alongside at their kitchen table, trying to push every last drop of information into your overflowing brains. 

Makki was also pretty busy since he decided to really quit his job and start an apprenticeship at a bakery in the midst of Tokyo. 

“You should take a break, babe.” 

“Yeah, Mizu, you’ve been studying for hours, come join us.” 

Makki and you were trying to coax Shimizu into joining you on the couch to relax a bit before going back into studying. You had finished the course you wanted to revise today and called it a day since it was already late, but Shimizu was still going strong, not even pausing once for anything other than going to the bathroom. 

Makki threw you a look when Shimizu didn’t respond and in a second he hurled her up into his arms, forcefully carrying her over to the couch. You giggled a bit at the picture, skipping behind them to sit on the other side of Shimizu, throwing your arms around her. “What are you doing? I need to study!” She was squirming in your holds but it only made you hug her harder. “No, you need a break. Let’s order pizza and cuddle.” 

Makki chuckled at your words. “That’s a perfect idea. You can still study afterward, okay babe?” Shimizu slowly gave up in your holds and an idea came to your mind. 

Before your courage left you again you moved a bit and pressed a small peck to her jaw, something she had done to you countless times. 

A gasp escaped her and she looked at you with wide eyes, making you blush instantly. “I’m sorry, I thought it was oka-“

And suddenly her lips were on yours. The sensation left before you could even blink. Your eyes were fixed on the dark-haired girl in front of you, who nervously bit on her lip, then they shot to Makki. And he smiled. Why was he smiling? His girlfriend just kissed someone else in front of him? 

Nobody said anything for a while and you felt like you were going into overdrive. You didn’t feel like you could move and the beating of your heart was prominent in your ears. What was that supposed to mean? Was it a friendly kiss? Why were they looking at you like that? 

“I- I mean we, we kind of like you, you know.” It was Shimizu who finally broke the silence, nervousness evident in her tone. What.

They liked you? You? Out of all people? And where were they going with this? 

“I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable, I thought you were interested, too. I didn’t want to ruin anything!” Tears were appearing in her eyes and your heart broke a little at the thought that you were the reason for that. 

“I- know- I mean I like you. Both of you. But- why?” You finally managed to push some words out of your mouth, still not believing what was happening. “Why we like you? Oh, Y/N, you’re like so nice, and cute, and you’re always there and brightening up our lives! In the beginning, we thought it was just an attraction, but over the past year it became so much more than that.”

One of Makki’s arms left its place around Shimizu and he gently cradled your face in his hands. “We would like to try being in a relationship. With you. Like all three of us, together.” 

This was a dream. It has to be. There was no way they would sacrifice their normal relationship to do something like this with you. 

“Can I kiss you again?” After you didn’t answer for a while, Shimizu shyly spoke up again. “Please.” If it was a dream you could at least live it to its fullest. 

This time you kissed her back, pushing yourself against her until you all fell against Makki, who leaned back and let you make out on top of him. 

Softly, Shimizu’s tongue started prodding at your lips and you opened your mouth a bit too willingly, ready to take whatever she was willing to give to you. 

“Can- eh- me too?” Makki’s eyes were big and hopeful when you parted and surprised you turned your head towards him. They said they both liked you. But it was still unbelievable. 

You leaned down, either way, to connect your still wet lips to his’. 

You don’t think you’ve ever been that content as you were now.

“So, you want to try? The relationship? With us?” It had taken a while until you were finally able to disconnect your lips from theirs, as soon as you finished kissing one, the desire to feel the other one would arise. “Are you sure?” You felt dumb as soon as you asked the question and Shimizu’s small giggle only confirmed your fears. 

“Of course, we’re sure. We’ve talked about it for months since we weren’t sure how to introduce you to the topic without it being like weird or overwhelming.” Makki pressed another kiss to your lips, chuckling at the way your face lit up afterwards. “Is that a yes to the relationship?” 

“Yeah, of course! I mean.. I really like you.” They cooed at your words and immediately you were getting covered in kisses again. 

“Do you want to stay the night?” The question made you tense up. Even though you had moved to the bedroom to continue your kisses in a more comfortable way than with one of you nearly falling off the couch, you still didn’t think you were ready for something sexual. You couldn’t believe everything was real yet anyways. “Not in that way. Like, just sleep,” Hanamaki was quick to correct himself. 

 Despite being friends with them for almost a year you had never stayed the night alone. Once, three other people from their high school days, Daichi, Nishinoya, and Mattsun, stayed over after all of you went partying, but every other time Makki or both of them had walked you home since your apartment was only a 20 minute walk away. 

“I- yeah sure.” Sleeping and cuddling were fine. And you wanted to live out this dream for as long as possible. “I’ll give you a shirt of mine and some shorts from Mizu! Do you want long or short stuff?” Excitedly Hanamaki jumped off the bed, leaving you cuddled up in Shimizu’s arms. “Short, please.” Shimizu and you also stood up, once Makki had everything laid out, leading to a slightly awkward moment, whether you would change here or separately. “I’ll head to the bathroom.” You didn’t quite feel comfortable shedding everything right now so you used the opportunity where none of them offered something else. 

When you came back, both of them were already in their sleeping attire, too. A sting of jealousy hit you right in the heart, at the thought that they had already seen each other naked and once again your brain reminded you of the fact that they were already in a relationship for more than three years, making you just the new awkward add on. But they immediately took you back into their arms and it was like all your worries disappeared. 

“I can’t stop kissing you.” To emphasize his words Makki pressed little pecks all over your face, making you giggle. “I can’t believe you’re ours now.” Shimizu looked at you with big loving eyes, squeezing your hands for a second. 

“Well, let’s continue our earlier plans. Pizza and cuddles, right?” 

In the weeks to come, you didn’t have as much time for them as you would have liked. Hopefully, after your last exam that would start to change, especially since you were getting kind of needy. There were only that so many times how often you could wake up with Hiro’s boner pressing against your ass without him doing anything, other than maybe grinding up into you when you started a small make-out session. You really wished that would change once you all had more time on your hands. 

“Congratulations on finishing all your exams!” Shimizu engulfed you in a hug before you even had time to shout your hello’s. “Thank you, Mizu.” You giggled excitedly, the euphoria of finally completing all your exams overwhelming your emotions. “What do you say we go on a date? We never went on an official one, so we can do that once Hiro’s off work.” You nodded excitedly at her offer, pressing your lips to hers. You were becoming addicted to their kisses, never being able to go long without them when they were in close proximity of yours. 

It didn’t take long until her fingers were tangled in your hair and you were pushed back on the couch, her other hand roaming over your body, but being careful not to touch any of your intimate areas. 

Only when you obviously ground up into her hands she tentatively took one of your boobs into her hand, squeezing it experimentally. It wasn’t much but for your touch starved body, it was enough to enlist a small moan. 

“We should wait for Hiro, baby.” She was a bit breathless when she sat up and withdrew her hand from your boobs. “Don’t pout. Go shower and get ready for our date, I’m going to make reservations and inform Hiro.” She fully crawled off you, leaving an empty feeling behind but you still complied. “Where will we go?” Your voice was a bit hoarse from not talking for the last 20 minutes and you coughed a little to get it back. 

“Something fancy. Do you have fitting clothes here?” Smiling she leaned down again to kiss you another time, much shorter than before and that made you realize that maybe, she was equally addicted to you. 

“I have some dresses but I don’t know if it’s really fancy. Maybe I’ll have to go home for a bit,” you admitted. “That’s okay baby if you do your makeup here, how much time do you think it’ll take?” If you already knew what you were going to wear it shouldn’t take long. But maybe you had to iron it for it to really look good. But probably a max of 20 minutes. “I don’t know, 20 minutes maybe if you help me pick something out.” Shimizu chuckled and the sound alone was enough for a smile to emerge on your face. “We will join.” 

After her promise she sent you to the bathroom with a slight tap to your butt, sending tingles up your spine with the short contact. 

You really hoped that she got the hint that you wanted to do something more. You would probably be to shy to ask them directly. And you even shaved every hair on your body that wasn't necessary in your opinion. You wanted to be at your best for them, cleaning especially thorough down there.

Never in a million years would you look good next to the goddess named Kiyoko Shimizu. She had an enticing lipstick on and you never wanted anything more than to kiss it right off her. Her body was adorned by a black midi dress with a slit at the side and a dangerously low cleavage. 

“Shimizu you look so good!” You couldn’t stop gaping at your girlfriend, hands running over her sides, smelling her sweet perfume. “Thank you, baby!” She pressed a soft kiss to your lips, careful to not destroy your makeup. 

“Shit, I’m so lucky.” Hiro was staring in awe when leaving the bathroom, his eyes trained on Shimizu, whereas your eyes couldn’t believe what they saw. In what world did creampuff loving Hanamaki Takahiro have a body like that?

He was fresh out of the shower, only clad in tight black boxer briefs, ruffling through his hair with a towel. It was like a painting. And when he came over to give Shimizu and you a kiss on the lips you once again realized how gorgeous those two people were. And then there was you. 

“Do you have any idea what you’re wearing yet? Thanks, babe.” He took the grey button-up and the black pants with a slightly checkered pattern Shimizu ironed earlier out of her hands with a huge smile. 

“Noo,” you wailed and dramatically fell back onto the bed, pleased with yourself once you heard them laugh. “I’m sure we’ll find something amazing. You look hot either way. You already do, now. I could eat you!” Shimizu jokingly pulled you closer to the edge where she stood by your legs, hovering over you only to press a feather-light peck onto your lips. 

Hiro chuckled at the way you shuddered and shot you a knowing wink once your eyes met, making you blush a deep rose. 

“I don’t think I’ve ever been here.” Hiro and Shimizu looked around interested, even though your small room was not that great at all. “It’s nothing special.” You got a bit shy at the way they were inspecting everything in great detail, leaning down to analyze every picture. 

“What do you think of this?” You tried taking their attention off your family picture you had on your desk, holding up a dark green trouser with a black blouse. “It’s cute, definitely a contender. I would have to see it on you, though.” You nodded in agreement, laying the outfit down carefully on your bed, which has been nearly unused for the last month. “What about this?” Your next choice got a unified shaking of heads and after the third failed attempt you didn’t know if there was anything left in your small closet that was to some extent suitable for today. 

That was until you pulled the last dress out. Personally, you probably wouldn’t have gone for it out of fear to be overdressed, but Shimizu and Hiro were delighted. “That’s it. You have to wear that! We’re going to be the hottest group in Tokyo!” Hiro was especially enthusiastic but he got quiet real quick when you shyly pulled your sweatshirt over your head to change into the dress. It wasn’t as if you had other choices. You didn’t want to change in the bathroom down the hall and your room didn’t really have any other options. 

 “Fuck, baby, give a man a warning next time, will you?” Both of them moved closer to you, hands starting to roam your body, pressing the occasional kiss to your shoulders. “You’re so beautiful, baby.” Shimizu’s fingers played with the hem of your sweatpants, helping you out of them. “We have to go to the reservation, don’t we?” Hiro’s voice sounded pained and he pulled back his hands from your body. Shimizu followed his example, giving you room to continue changing. Now overly aware of their eyes on your body you slipped into the dress, turning around in a silent request for someone to pull your zipper up. 

“God, you’re hot.” To hear something like that from Shimizu, the equation of a goddess was unreal and in an instant you blushed again, hand moving up to fix your hair, which didn’t need any fixing at all. 

“But there are some panty lines visible.” Hiro’s comment made all eyes fixate on your private region and the lines on the side of your hips. “Do you have any other underwear here?” You shook your head at Shimizu’s question. “I already chose the one with like the least seams. “I don’t think we have time to go back to the apartment or else I could’ve lent you some.” Shimizu seemed deep in thought and even though the thought of wearing Shimizu’s underwear made you feel some kind of way, you only had one possible option in mind. “I could take them off.”

“Do you need anything else? A coffee maybe? Or another drink?” The waiter in the restaurant was reappearing, after taking your empty dessert platters back. “No, thank you. Just the check please.” Hiro’s hand felt hot on your thigh. It hasn’t moved since the main course was finished, occasionally giving it a squeeze. 

When the check arrived and you wanted to fish your wallet out of your bag the hand squeezed you again, harder than before. “It’s okay, baby. I’ve got it. This is a celebration for you, after all!” You didn’t order anything of the most expensive stuff, but you still felt bad at him spending money on you. “You don’t have to, you know? I can pay for myself!” He silenced you with a smile and just gave the waiter his card, not letting you see the amount under the line. 

“Thank you, really. You didn’t have to pay for me.” You took both of their hands in yours, squeezing them to really show your thankfulness. “Baby, we wanted to. On top of that, splitting the check would’ve taken too long. I’m quite impatient, to be honest.” Shimizu smiled at you knowingly, only making you blink dumbly. “Impatient?” 

They both laughed at that, Hiro opening the car door for you and Shimizu as you reached the vehicle. “Knowing that you don’t have any underwear on is killing me on the inside.” He murmured into your ear and immediately you felt heat engulfing your entire body. Flushed with embarrassment and excitement you took your seat on the backseat. 

Only then you realized that both of them seemed pretty tense, hurrying already in the restaurant to go home as soon as possible. You had thought that maybe they had another thing planned and apparently you weren’t that far off with your assumption. 

Nervousness was laced in every step you took up to their apartment. “Hey.” You jumped a bit when Shimizu laid a hand on the middle of your back in front of their front door and turned around to face their concerned expressions. “We don’t have to do anything, you know that, right? We can stop at kissing, we can go all the way or something in between.” You nodded. “I want to.” Your voice was quiet but certain. And as soon as you said that she kissed you in a way she hadn’t kissed you before. The prior make out session probably came the closest but with this kiss, you could feel every intention was to get you naked and writhing underneath her. 

Hiro gently pushed you through the now opened door, feeling you up at the same time. 

“Fuck, you’re gorgeous. And so filthy. Going out without your underwear. How did it feel knowing you were sitting in that room full of people?” His hand sneaked over your backside, squeezing and pinching every bit of flesh available. 

“Did you ever think what you were doing to us? If it was me without any panties I would’ve for sure creamed on the chair with how wet I got at the thought of you.” You whimpered at their dirty talk, unable to form an answer, only trying to make them feel what you felt, hands carefully groping at Shimizu’s breasts, hips rutting into Hiro’s crotch. 

“Come on, baby, go to the bedroom. Today’s about you.” They followed you closely, closing the door behind themselves. 

Immediately the feeling in the room was different. You turned around to face them and came to face with Hiro unbuttoning his shirt and helping Shimizu out of her dress right afterwards. It made the fire of anticipation burn even hotter in your chest. Their hands soon were back on your body again, this time even slightly dipping under your skirt, caressing your bare thighs. “Turn around.” You nearly missed the murmur of Shimizu against your collarbone if it weren’t for her turning you around herself. She pulled the zipper down excruciatingly slow and you felt goosebumps appear all over your body at the way the dress slowly slipped from your figure, different pairs of lips covering every newly exposed skin in light kisses. 

They led you towards the bed, making you lay on your back. It felt weird, having your lower half uncovered but still having a bra on. Apparently, Hiro thought the same thing, releasing you from the garment. “You’re dripping,” Shimizu noted, dipping a finger between your lips and coating it in your essence. “Give me a taste.” You didn’t know you could get even hornier just by watching Hiro lick your arousal from your girlfriend's finger. “Please.” 

Both of them looked at you with a smile on their faces and Shimizu brought her finger back down, softly rubbing at your clit, enjoying the way your body twitched at the small shots of pleasure. “Adorable,” Hiro commented, perching himself next to you on the bed to dedicate himself to your boobs, nipping and licking away at your nipples. 

Your hands twitched towards Hiro, wanting to touch him, too, to do something other than just laying there, but they were immediately swatted away. “Next time, baby.”

You wanted to protest, but Shimizu’s finger slipped into your cunt, wiggling around and making you gasp in surprise. “Hiro, babe, you should continue, you have bigger fingers and we really want to spoil our princess, don’t we?” He pressed one last kiss to your breast, leaving your abused nipples to let his hand wander towards your pussy, not giving you any time to adjust but just pushing his pointer finger inside and relishing in the way you moaned. “Shimizu. Please. I want to do something!” Your breathing became more uneven by the second but you still weren’t content with just laying there doing nothing. “If you’re a good baby and come soon you can eat me out while Hiro fucks you,” she offered you, making your hips twitch towards Hiro’s hands, to speed up the process. Him fucking you with his finger felt good, but you would need more than one to come. “More fingers, please!” He complied with a chuckle and added a second one. 

“Greedy little baby.”

He fastened his pace too, varying between just thrusting his fingers and scissoring and curling them, making all kinds of noises escape your mouth. Shimizu straddled you backwards, facing Hiro and hovering her cunt in your field of vision but just out of reach. You could just grab her and pull her back towards her face but as soon as your hands even twitched by your side Hiro let out a warning growl. “Don’t even think about it or I will tie you up while I fuck her on top of you for hours.”

You whimpered at that, crying out in surprise when suddenly Shimizu began rubbing your clit again. The combined stimulation was already making the knot in your stomach form. You would’ve never thought that just looking at Shimizu’s pussy would do that much to you. You could see her folds glistening and it looked downright delicious. If you breathed in deeply you could even smell her. 

She intensified her rubbing on your clit, leaning down more to take her tongue into the action, lapping at your bundle of nerves without hindering Hiro in his moves. Your moans got louder and you became more and more breathless by gasping for air the whole time. And when Hiro added a third finger, thrusting into you even harder you were done for. 

Spasming under Shimizu’s weight they didn’t halter their movements, holding your legs open to continue. 

Hiro hadn’t even pulled out his fingers completely when Shimizu was already moving back, thrusting her pussy into your face, making you lap up her juices like a starved man. You couldn’t hold back your moans at the way she tasted, relishing in the deliciousness. 

“Here babe.” Hiro thrust his fingers into Shimizu’s mouth, making her gag and as a result her pussy clenched around nothing. How bad you wanted to just finger her, maybe fuck her with a dildo, make er feel good. But you were scared they were going to stop completely when you disobeyed.

All your thoughts vanished when Hiro suddenly pushed his whole length inside you, making you moan loudly against Shimizu’s cunt. “Fuck, you’re doing so good, baby, please keep going, I’m going to cum soon.” She started rutting against your face, trying to rub her clit against your chin, while your whole body shook with every thrust Hiro delivered. 

“Fuck, baby, you’re tight. You’re practically milking me!”

The overstimulation was going to your head, you were already feeling another orgasm approaching. The attempt to rut your hips against Hiro’s was quickly diminished by his large hands holding you down onto the mattress. 

“You look hot, babe.” You could practically hear his grin out of his voice, feeling Shimizu chuckle. Then there were two new sensations. Two fingers slipped between your chin and Shimizu’s clit, rubbing figure eights, as well as on your clit. The pleasure was building up more and more, you couldn’t even try to decipher whose hand was whose, you just wanted to chase your high and apparently they shared your sentiments, since this time nobody intervened when you met every thrust of Hiro with your hips. 

You were the first to come with a loud cry against Shimizu’s cunt, still trying to stick out your tongue to maybe provide her with more pleasure. Shimizu followed with a guttural moan, a new gush of wetness releasing all over your face, getting greedily lapped up by you.

She climbed off of you not long after, chuckling at your whine when Hiro pulled out. “On the floor, on your knees.” Both of you complied instantly, waiting next to each other as he started jacking himself over your faces. 

It didn’t take long until spurts of hot semen shot across your faces, partly landing in you awaiting mouths. “Fuck you look good like that. My girls. I’m so lucky, shit.” He lovingly caressed your chins with his thumbs, pushing some of the excess cum into your mouths. 

You already wanted to swallow, when Shimizu turned your head towards her, connecting your lips together and mixing your spit and cum, probably tasting herself in the process.

When you parted again Hiro looked incredibly proud, helping you back to your feet. “You both did so well. Lay down, I’ll get a towel.”

You had often cuddled with Shimizu, but feeling her naked skin against yours was a whole other feeling. But you weren’t complaining. And when Hiro joined you, too, after having cleaned up your faces and lower parts, it was as if everything was perfect.

You didn’t know why it hurt so much, seeing them walk up the stairs arm in arm. Of course, they were having dates on their own. You sometimes hung out with one of them at a time, too. But something about them being all dressed up and in love without you made pain shoot through your chest. 

You had a really bad day, the weather was shit and you had woken up late, nearly missing one of your most important lectures, only forgetting your umbrella and coming to university wet from the rain, in sweatpants without having brushed your hair and without any makeup on. 

 And now seeing your boyfriend and girlfriend happily coming back from a date after not answering your calls if one of them could pick you up because of the weather, it hurt. 

You couldn’t help the tears that shot into your eyes and in an instant you tried to escape the oncoming situation, dashing towards the elevator, pressing the button to hopefully disappear before they saw you. “Y/N?” Shit. That worked out perfectly. You rushed into the elevator, not being able to repress your sob, immediately pushing onto the buttons that closed the door and the ground floor. “Y/N!” 

Your eyes met for a second and you could see them taking hurried steps towards you when the doors closed. As soon as you were out of their sights the tears didn’t stop falling, the painful twinge in your chest getting stronger by the second. Gasping for air you tried to not cry before being back in your room, which you wouldn’t have for long, anyways. You had been in a relationship for nearly a year and it was in the planning that you would move in with them soon, but you weren’t so sure if you wanted that anymore. You always felt like the add on, especially with them living together and you spend at least two nights a week at your own place before morning classes, since your way to university was shorter that way. 

What you didn’t expect as soon as the doors opened again at the ground floor was Hiro, nearly taking four steps at once, flying down the stairs to pull you into his arms as soon as you even stepped out of the elevator. 

“Please don’t leave.” His voice was strained as he mumbled the words into your ear and at that moment every resistance you had broken down, tears falling freely, soaking his black button-up as you shook in his arms. 

You couldn’t even try to form any words to explain yourself, to bring yourself to turn away, everything that escaped you were loud sobs as he slowly maneuvered you back into the elevator and pressed the floor of their apartment. He was stroking your back constantly, pressing kisses into your head in-between mumbled shhh’s. 

When you were back in front of the apartment the door was already open, Shimizu waiting with a worried expression, rushing towards you as soon as she laid her eyes on you, making you cry even harder.

They settled you onto the couch, caged in their arms without any of you saying a word. 

“Baby..” You were shocked to see tears streaming down Shimizu’s face when you looked up to meet her eyes. How could this affect her?

“I’m sorry,” you finally brought out. “I don’t want you to feel sad!”

“Baby, you have nothing to be sorry for. What happened? Did we do something wrong? We didn’t have any connection in the restaurant and when we tried to call you back you didn’t answer.” They had called you? Did your phone die? It must have. You didn’t hear any ringing. “I’m sorry,” you repeated. 

The way they were clinging onto you made you feel incredibly loved. You already didn’t understand how you could ever think they didn’t love you. They had shown you multiple times how much they cherished you but your doubts always got the better of you as soon as you were alone. 

“I’m sorry! I- I had a bad day and then you didn’t pick up and I thought you were tired of me.” Finally, you could give them an explanation. And show them that you really had to apologize for jumping into conclusions and making them worry. You didn’t deserve them.

“Of course we love you, Y/N. We love you so much, I can’t even comprehend sometimes how I can love somebody as much as I love you and Shimizu.” Even Hiro was crying, his face still buried in your hair. 

“But you’re so perfect! And I’m me. I always doubt myself and need constant verification for everything.” 

“That’s the point, though. You’re you. And we love showering you in affection. At least for me, it makes me feel like a goddess, being able to put a smile on your face just by kissing you and giving you handmade lunch for uni.” 

“But you are a goddess,” you pouted, making her laugh slightly. 

“Let us show you again.” Hiro lifted his face, hands cupping your face to wipe your tears away, softly kissing you. “Please let us show you.” 

“Look at yourself, Y/N. You’re beautiful. You’re everything we could ever want in a girlfriend.” They had stripped you bare and sat you on the bed, facing the big mirror on the closet doors. Shimizu was kneeling on the floor between your spread legs, softly kissing the inside of your thighs, smiling at you through the mirror. “Caring for you, making you come, seeing how you’re desperate to please us, and follow our command, it makes us happy. There’s nothing I would want to do more.” To confirm his words Hiro took your hand to rub it over his hard length without allowing you to grab it. “And seeing you cry was horrifying, to be honest.” Immediately you felt bad at Shimizu’s words. Your puffy red eyes were still a constant reminder of that, practically mocking you in the mirror. “So let’s make you cry because of a different reason.” You couldn’t even try to think about what she meant when she dove right in, lapping at your pussy with long strokes of her tongue, nibbling on your lips every now and then. 

You moaned in pleasure, closing your eyes and leaning back against Hiro to really relish in the feelings. “Keep your eyes open, baby. Look at us pleasuring you. Look at us enjoying it.” 

You opened your eyes again and they immediately fell on Shimizu’s face. She was looking up at you from your cunt and you could see so much adoration in her eyes you already felt tears of shame prickling in yours at the memory that you had ever doubted them. 

“Babe.” Shimizu got alerted through Hiro’s call and you also looked in the mirror to see what he was doing behind you, moaning when you caught sight of the double-ended dildo you had often used with your girlfriend, sometimes with Hiro joining in, sometimes with him only watching, sometimes with him only being able to enjoy the aftermaths when he was coming home to you two being completely wrecked, the dildo lying forgotten on the floor. 

“You want us both today?” Shimizu licking her lips after departing from your pussy made you moan again and you nodded wildly only for her to dive right back in, this time lowering herself quite a bit. Hiro adjusted your position, spreading your legs further and making you slide farther towards the edge of the bed so Shimizu could continue prodding at your asshole with her tongue. “I can’t wait, please, finger and lube.” Hiro laughed. “Help her, then.” 

Shimizu detached herself again, moving to the side a bit so you could have the full vision of yourself in the mirror, your own fingers toying with the tight muscle, slightly pushing in even without lube. “Don’t be greedy, baby.” Hiro took it upon himself to take the clear gel and let it drizzle over your fingers, generously coating them. Taking the finger was much easier now and in a matter of minutes, you had two of them in, your arousal only heightening when having eye contact with your partners through the mirror. 

It was unusual for them to be this quiet, normally endless praises would be falling out of their mouths. “I’m ready! Please!” You hadn’t prepared yourself as thorough as usual and by a cock of his eyebrows you realized that Hiro knew that, but he didn’t say anything when he heaved you onto his arms, hovering you over his erect dick. 

“Fuck, I love your ass.” He was nearly halfway in and you felt more stretched than you ever had all the other times you had taken him like this. Your thighs twitched and you slipped even further down, when Shimizu pushed one of her slender fingers into your dripping cunt, wiggling it around slightly. “Don’t be impatient, Mizu. We have time. Look at our princess. She’s dripping.” You moaned at his praise and thanked every god that Shimizu didn’t interpret Hiro’s words as a command to pull her finger back out. “She’s gorgeous. Looking so pretty with her ass filled.” She pressed more kisses on your thighs, only stopping when red bites and bruises were littered across them. 

Hiro slowly pushed the last inches in, letting out a guttural moan when he was finally fully buried within you. Shimizu took that as her cue to start moving her finger, adding a second and third one after a couple of seconds before finally taking the dildo into her hand, holding it up to your mouth. “Don’t just lick. Take it in.” You complied, taking as much of the double-sided dildo into your mouth as possible. “Hold.” She let go from the other side, moving out of the way for you to have a full view of yourself in the mirror again. 

“Look at you. Maybe I should just fuck myself on your mouth, leaving your little cunt empty. Would you like that?” You tried shaking your head without letting the dildo falling out of your mouth. Your pussy was aching to be filled. Tears were already forming in your eyes from the constant strain on your throat, but the proud smile on Hiro’s face only showed you that this was exactly what they wanted to do. Make you cry out of pleasure. 

With one hard tug, Shimizu pulled the dildo out of your mouth, not caring about the trail of spit that fell down your face and chest. The power with which she shoved it into your cunt made the first tears escape your eyes as you yelped in pleasure. “Fuck, yes, please, Mizu, more!” She looked happy with her accomplishment and then she sank down onto your cock, taking the other side of the dildo deep into her mouth until her nose touched your clit, nuzzling it a bit just to toy with you, shaking the dildo doing so and making you shake out of pleasure at the same time. 

She didn’t repeat that maneuver often, the small drops on the floor already evidence enough that she was equally as impatient as you were. 

“Look at yourself. Look how two people are fucking you at the same time.” It was hard to see anything clearly as soon as Shimizu sank down onto the other side of the dildo and both of them began to move, Hiro gripping the middle of the dildo to make it thrust in and out of both of you in an equal pace. “Still think you’re not loved?” 

“No, no! I am loved, I love you, both of you, so much. I’m so sorry I thought otherwise. I love you, I love you!” You couldn’t chant anything else, the pleasure being overwhelming, tears streaming down your face even though you were not sure if that was out of happiness or pleasure. “I- I love you too, baby.” Shimizu’s movements got even faster and she kissed you with all of her heart, shoving every ounce of love in there. 

“Fuck, baby, I’m going to come. Your sweet ass is making me come. I love you so much, baby, shit.” Hiro’s thrusts became harsher, making you snap up into Shimizu, all three of you groaning and moaning while desperately trying to hold on to each other. 

As announced, Hiro came first, filling your ass with his cum, stilling afterwards but still slightly thrusting the dildo between you and Shimizu. 

You didn’t know who of you came first, just that both your movements suddenly stilled, clasped in absolute pleasure, connected at your most intimate parts. 

“Look at you. Does that look like someone who isn’t loved?” You tiredly raised your head, drinking in the picture before you on the foggy mirror. 

It didn’t. Hickey’s were littered across your thighs, Hiro’s come was slightly dribbling out of your asshole and onto his only half-hard dick, Shimizu was covering your top half with her’s, the dildo lying on the floor forgotten, both of your holes still twitching, wetness coating your cunts and thighs. It didn’t look like anyone of you was not loved at all. 

“Thank you.” Your throat was dry from moaning too much and you swallowed a couple of times before continuing. “I’m sorry again for doubting you. I know you love me a lot. I always know.” You kissed both of them and shot them a smile, hoping that they were going to forgive you. 

“Stop apologizing. Everybody has those days from time to time. The most important thing is that you know now again.” Shimizu was nearly sleeping but you couldn’t blame her, the post crying and post-sex exhaustion catching up to you. 

Not much later you were all cuddled up on fresh sheets after taking a short bath to clean yourself from all the sweat, cum, and lube. 

“I love you, Hiro. I love you, Shimizu,” you mumbled contently smiling at their similar answers. Maybe this really was paradise. You may not deserve it, but you certainly weren’t complaining. 

[devilrainbunnie]

.- anthurium -.

X/2/3

shigaraki x reader

a/n: kind of an au, first piece! hope you guys like, i was feeling angsty. part two maybe?

CW: anxiety warning, cheating, manipulation, reader is depressed, sexual themes and description of sexual themes. minors DNI.

—

“for the millionth time, nothing is going on!” he snapped, rolling his eyes as he shuffled in his chair. fingers carefully laced around the hand held device. the vermillion eyes were full of fire, a fire that burned in agitation. towards you. he dared not to look into yours, for that would be almost like he was admitting to the accusations.

“then why do you smell like perfume that isn’t mine? why are you gone hours at a time without ever going to a meeting? why can’t you even do as little as look at me? why do you—“ your voice began to shake, feeling your fingers tremble with the hem of your shirt.

“you’re being paranoid, quit projecting your fucking insecurities on to me y/n. this conversation is over, now fuck off and let me relax.” he snarled, shifting his body away from your stance. he continued to play on his device, paying no mind to the girl with a river of tears pouring from her eyes.

you knew how it would end, and it always consisted of him leaving for the rest of the day. coming home the next morning, sometimes not even bothering to shower. you weren’t stupid. you could see the love bites on his scarred neck, his swollen lips, the way his sea foam colored locks were in a tangled bunch, he reeked of expensive perfume... you’d even found hair strands that weren’t either of yours. you knew, he knew that you knew, but he didn’t care that you knew.

it’s been going on since tomura was declared leader, king of this new group— the paranormal liberation front. since then, he’s put himself on such a high pedestal and his eyes began to wander. it wasn’t too noticeable at first, you thought you were just being insecure. because your boyfriend of over a year was beginning to spend less and less time with you. for the first time since you both got intimate, he stopped sleeping with you in your shared bed regularly. his often touch starved nature of wanting to be held and hold you constantly, began to stop. after a while, he wouldn’t so much as ruffle your hair anymore, or touch your back as he walked past. he stopped smiling at you.

he stopped loving you.

you noticed a specific girl with him from time to time, she was so different from you. outwardly sexy, confident, and most of all, she had him. she had beautiful emerald eyes, and dashing natural red hair. her figure was unbeatable. someone who would’ve been regularly out of his league, just due to her status, and often snobby nature. deep down, you knew that’s probably why he felt so enticed. she was unattainable. just like you had been to him once. he was always one to strive for the best, you guessed that meant lovers too.

you almost felt bad for him, considering the knowledge you had about her... she did this a lot. fucked around with higher ups as a way to gain better status, be placed in a higher rank, and get special privileges bother plf members wouldn’t originally receive. you’d heard this from dabi, she apparently tried to do the same thing to him, but he said, he “had better standards than that”.

you chuckled at dabi’s comment, you were the only one in the league he treated like a genuine friend. thankfully he could always make you crack a smile or two.

then like usual, the sadness came back.

there you were, alone in your shared apartment inside of the plf building. you sat at the edge of the windowsill in the living room, the lights were off. nothing but the distance sound of owls, wind, and branches to be heard. the moons glow to illuminate the scenery just a touch. your e/c eyes red, and glistened with the aftermath of an overbearing storm of a meltdown. your cheeks still burning, lips chapped and your hands doing anything else but standing still. since it got bad a few weeks ago with him, this is all you’ve been able to do. cry. let out your loud sobs all day, and whenever tomura was due to return, you’d go back to the way he preferred you. quiet, distant, and minding your business.

even with your quirk, your depression had led to all of the plants in each room to wilt. it’s almost poetic how accurate that displayed to your feelings— and of course, tomura didn’t even notice them.

anytime you did anything, it agitated him. there was no use in speaking, unless he was the one to initiate it. asking you what you made him for dinner, asking if you’ve seen a certain item of his, or asking you to do something for him, like stitch his tethered hoodie. sometimes telling you that he was annoyed with you being around dabi.

you began to nibble on your bottom lip again, trying to stop the fresh new wave of tears that threatened to spill. you promised yourself to not cry anymore, stop it. you stood from your spot, adjusting the simple outfit you wore. just usual long sleeve and leggings. using your sleeves to dry your face from the evidence of your overwhelming sadness. deciding that you should just take a shower, get ready for bed, and sleep. what else was there to do anyhow?

you soon felt refreshed, your heart still aches but the overwhelming pain subsided. you rested your head against the familiar scented cotton pillow case and grabbed his pillow. holding it close to your chest.

this is all i really have left of him now... wow.

—

the next day was seemingly uneventful. with a rare spotting of tomura coming in, showering, getting dressed, eating, and leaving once again. he paid you no mind the entire time. just simply glazing over your figure as you sat in different spots within the hour or two he was there. there were no words to he spoken. he didn’t even greet you when coming in. he just walked in the bedroom, rummaged around. looked at you as you were just waking up, and went about his business.

the pain settled in even more. every day it hit harder, and harder, but today, you were numb. the tears you held were all gone. you couldn’t cry, you couldn’t aimlessly sob. nothing. the core of you was empty.

“how much longer can i take of this...” you whispered to yourself tucking your knees to your chest. arms protectively wrapped around yourself.

you looked over to the once beautiful anthurium, it was completely wilted. the vibrant red petals were beginning to fall off. that plant was the one you connected the most with, it had a piece of your soul with it at this point. it would’ve been an easy fix to keep it from dying. one touch, and it would be right back to normal.

would the flower remember it’s neglect? the times you slacked on giving it water and proper daylight? would it simply forgive so easily just by your touch? can you forgive him, just by his touch?

“i don’t know.”

—

days had passed, he hadn’t come by since that night to your knowledge. sometimes you stepped out for a bit, just to clear your mind. you began to grow anxious, something was wrong. definitely wrong. you needed to know, to have some closure. every minute that passed seemed to crush you, it felt as if the world was ending.

against your better judgement, you got dressed. fixed your hair, and shakily tried to calm yourself down as you looked in the mirror. overanalyzing every single detail about your appearance, you looked like hell.

you were planning to go searching for tomura around the building. maybe even ask dabi if he had seen him. you stepped into your converse, taking deep breaths as you prepared yourself to find whatever might lie ahead. the feeling in your stomach didn’t stop churning.

one touch can’t fix it.

he won’t fix it.

he doesn’t want you.

you hugged the jacket tighter to your frame, feeling clammy and weak in the knees as you began to search around. he wasn’t anywhere you were looking, you checked everywhere you usually found him. you came across dabi before stepping into the elevator. he seemed concerned, he grabbed your shoulder before you walked away.

“y/n?” he quietly asked. his tone laced with anxiety.

“o-oh, hey.” your trembling form turned to face him. “long time no see.”

“what the fuck is going on?”

“it’s nothing, don’t worry about it—“

“don’t lie to me.” he cut you off, his voice laced with venom. he was always like a big brother figure to you, always protective and so easy to catch on. “what’s going on y/n? do i have to kill that creepy little fucking gremlin?” he snarled.

“n-no! no! it’s fine, really. i’m just uh, trying to find him that’s all.” you said sincerely. your voice wavering the entire way, stepping away from his hold on you.

“y/n don’t walk away from me, talk to me about this. you look like shit.” he called after you.

“i’m sorry.” you said in a voice so small he barely was able to grasp it. dabi just stared at you with disbelief, and anger.

—

then came the room you dreaded most. subconsciously you wanted to search it last, due to fear of what you might see.

you knew he was cheating, but you were in denial until you could see it.

you were about to give up and go back to your room before you heard a specific sound. coming from the office tomura used most often, but wasn’t always in. the way the table sounded against the wall and hardwood of the floors made your body tense, the breathless panting, the high pitched moaning... and worst of all, the sound of tomura groaning in pleasure. did your ears deceive you? bile threatened to shoot from your stomach. you eased open the office door, to a sight you wish you never saw. there was tomura, thrusting into the girl you feared and envied most. he was lost in lust, suckling, kissing, and grabbing every part of her flesh that was visible. like he used to do to you.

used to.

you stood there in horror, feeling like everything was crumbling before you. he didn’t even notice your peering eyes staring right into the depths of his soul, and hers. his groans got louder, he muttered something he hadn’t told you in such a long time. it made you want to scream so loud that your lungs bled.

“f-fuck, i— love you.”

you shakily slammed the door behind you. hard, and heavy breaths struggling to be let out, as you ran to the elevator. smashing the buttons to go back to your room. tears streaming down your face once again, you let out hushed cries, trying to regain your composure. as you ran to your room. it happened all in a daze, you loudly cried as you packed some of your things into a backpack, hating that things still smelled like him. you sobbed finding old polaroids if each other. deciding to throw the stack at the wall above the bed.

once you had everything ready, you realized something. you were still wearing a necklace he gave you a bit ago. it was a small anthurium made of ruby. you held the delicate item in your hands, debating what to do with it. the burden of owning it haunting you much more than letting it go, so that’s what you did. you placed the necklace on the counter. grabbing the notepad that was usually on the counter as well to write a quick note on top for him to find. your eyes flooded over the room, drinking it in as much as you could before leaving. all of the memories, decorating it with tomura, having sex for the first time on the bed, the first time he came home like he often did now... you felt a sob threatening to release again as you recounted the memory.

lastly you dropped the key next to the necklace, never to be seen again.

you exited the building with little hassle, tears still free falling across your face like usual. the hood of your jacket was up to conceal yourself, you wanted to leave without a trace. luckily it was late enough to do so, the only person who spotted you was spinner. for some reason he was alone by himself outside. he seemed concerned about your disheveled and unfamiliar appearance. but he didn’t utter a word to you, letting you walk out before him. you wondered what he thought of your pathetic sobbing form pacing out of the entrance.

you barely had a plan, a place to go for that matter. all that mattered now, was you.

you need to let go.

he can’t fix it this time.

don’t let him fix it this time, y/n.

>>>

tomura arrived to the apartment hours after you had left, he wasn’t expecting anything but a nice hot shower and a warm bed to sleep in. his body was sore from the steamy evening he spent with the red head. she really rocked his shit, he chuckled at the thought of her.

he didn’t bother to look around the main room, before heading straight into the bedroom. the light was on, which wasn’t that unusual. what was unusual though, was the mess around the room. the closets were wide open, pieces of film thrown all over the bed, and floor. at first he was mad, barging into the bathroom to yell at you. flipping on the light, to see nothing. you weren’t in the bathroom, or bedroom.

“y/n why did you leave everything such a mess? why did you throw pictures everywhere? what the fuck is going on?!” he called out to you. annoyed. like usual. he walked out of the bedroom, noticing finally, you weren’t here. “y/n.” he spoke sternly.

he walked cautiously around the space, looming over every detail, not able to make out your form anywhere. he remained calm but he was a bit worried, you were acting super unstable lately. though he’d never let you know that. he seemingly searched everywhere in depth, before he noticed some items on top of the island counter. switching on the light switch to get a better look. his heart sunk.

the necklace he gave you.

the beautiful ruby anthurium he gave you.

the one you wore every day since.

the one he gave to you as a promise to his love, the love he promised to be undying.

“fuck...”

along with the key to the apartment.

the one you both shared.

he noticed the note, it was written in your handwriting.

‘i hope you love her as honestly as you once loved me. i left everything behind i never want to see again. i won’t be ratting you out and i won’t be returning to you.

good bye, thanks for the memories.

y/n.’

[marchioness-caprina]

Saving Senpai

Pairings : Senpai! Tamaki x Kohai! Reader

Writing Style : 3rd Person

Warnings : Mild Cussing , Watch out for Dadzawa (:3

Word Count : 2527

3rd Person's POV

Ah Yes Valentine's Day. The Day Girls give chocolates to Express their love and The Day Unpopular boys dread in complete jealousy and bitterness. So much for a fun activity.

The Day Tamaki greatly Despised.

One Indigo haired Male though was utterly speechless when Girls flooded towards him Trying to Hand him Chocolates and some even screaming how much they like him.

Now Tamaki was not used to things Like this at All. In fact he never interacted much with people because of his social anxiety. This caused the Male to Tremble backing towards the Wall as Panic Flooded his system.

His Anxiety Level went off the roof and he couldn't even form any words. Where was Hado and Mirio when you needed them!?.

His legs began to wobble and his hands were sweaty and clammy, he felt dizzy and he was starting to hyperventilate. He was about to pass out. He was definitely going to Pass out.

' Can someone Please Come and Save me! ' he yelled in his mind as the girls closed in on him.

There was definitely No escape this Time.

But as If the Heavens Heard his prayers. Someone did come to his rescue.

" Hey! You guys! Look! It's Almight! " A girl with h/c hair shouted pointing at the other direction of the halls and those girls who were crowding him turned their heads towards the direction the girl was pointing.

The Girls were Distracted and the h/c haired girl immediately squeezed her way through the crowd grabbing the dumbfounded indigo haired male and he was swept away from this horrid scene with the girl dragging him through the halls taking sharp turns and when they were in an empty room she let go of his hands.

Tamaki was in a daze. In his own little world because he had never seen someone.... Someone this heroic and attractive at the same time. The way her hair bounced while they were running, How her brows furrowed when she was irritated, how she bit her lip in anticipation. It was adorable and now that they were in an empty room. He felt her hand let go of his and the sudden loss of touch actually pained him. He wanted to feel the softness of her hand again... Her warmth .

" Hey, Senpai? Are you ok? " Y/n asked waving her hand around to see if the male would react. The girl thought that the poor boy must be traumatized after that but little did she know that Tamaki was still in the process of falling for her even more.

" I... I-I'm... F-Fine... " He stuttered out his lips shaking.

" I'm glad you're fine! Hahaha, I was walking through the halls and saw that you were clearly uncomfortable so I thought I'd help you out or something. " The girl explained while her eyes met his.

Her eyes pierced his very soul, they look so big and so mesmerizing Tamaki could drown in them if he keeps gazing back at her.

" T-thanks... I.... I appreciate it... I just didn't know... How to handle... Things... Like that " Tamaki stated looking down on the floor .

" Don't you remember me? I'm from Class 1-A ! Well I can pretty much guess why you didn't remember me since you had your face against the wall the whole time " Y/n chuckled and Tamaki was sent in another mode of panic. She was in that class!? He must have made himself look like a fool infront of her! Damn his stupid self for giving her a horrible first impression.

" I... I'm Sorry " Tamaki mumbled his eyes darling everywhere avoiding her eyes at all cost. His face lighting up in embarrassment, he can't face her! Not after she saw him at his most pathetic state! .

" Senpai don't apologize. Everyone has weaknesses.... And I think yours are pretty Cute... Just like you " The girl complimented and flashed him a toothy grin that sent Tamaki's heart on overdrive.

Did she just compliment him? Did she just say she thought he was cute?!. That made Tamaki's heart pounded at a very alarming rate as his eyes darted back to hers to see if she was lying but he was met with the brightest and most beautiful grin he had ever saw.

" U-um.... I-.... I.... Umm.. " Damn it Of all the times he couldn't form words it has to be now! Why is the world so against him!?.

" You're Adorable Senpai, But I have to Go. Aizawa sensei will be mad if I arrive late Bye~" Y/n smiled and turned to leave but unexpectedly Tamaki's Hand darted towards her holding her arm in place.

Y/n glanced back in surprise and was met by a very red Tamaki, he looked as surprised as she was.

' Oh my god what have I done!? Why did I do that!? What do I do?! Oh no... I can't speak... Words please come out! Why do I keep embarrassing myself infront of her!? '

Those were the thoughts in Tamaki's head, he kept cursing himself to speak but it was no use.

His hand still clutching on her arm his eyes reluctantly meeting hers, his hands shaking and he tried. He really tried to let go of her hand but his body seemed to have a mind of his own.

Once his eyes were once again trapped in her gaze Tamaki saw the questioning look she gave him, Tamaki's words were caught in his throat and those very words seemed to die once they reach his mouth and no sounds could be heard.

Opening his mouth to at least try to say something but it was futile, his lips only wobbled and quivered as sweat began to form on his forehead.

Then y/n's questioning look turned to a bemused expression .

Tamaki flinched as more thoughts flooded his minds.

' Now she'll think I'm a coward! Or even worst a creep! She'll laugh at me.... She'll make Fun of me! '

Tamaki gulped closing his mouth and squeezing his eyes shot preparing himself for the insults or the laughter about to be thrown his way and he was right.

Tamaki heard y/n's melodic laughter that was so pleasant to hear but it would have been better if he wasn't in this situation where y/n could possibly be thinking that he's pathetic.

His heart faltered at the thought that she could be making fun of him. But all those thoughts were crushed immediately when Tamaki felt a pair of lips peck his own.

His eyes shot open to see y/n leaned so close against his face that they were only a few inches apart.

" Did.... D-Did y-y-ou just--" Tamaki stuttered but he was cut off when y/n gave him another peck that was too short for his liking but her lips for him is like heaven.

" Yes... I did... Senpai we'll be late, I'll see you soon Ok? " Y/n chuckled as Tamaki's hand slowly released his grasp on her arm to which y/n appreciated.

His thoughts were clashing with one another. His heart was about to burst, his face couldn't get any redder. And by now steam could be coming out of his ears.

" Thanks... Bye senpai! " Y/n bid her goodbye but before that she leaned in to give the Indigo haired male another peck before dashing out of the empty room.

" Her... Lips... Were so... Soft... Warm... Gentle... " Tamaki muttered as the image of her pecking his lips kept on replaying in his mind and then he couldn't take it anymore. It was too overwhelming.

He passed out.

_____________________

Luckily the moment Tamaki Passed Out Mirio had accidentally passed through the walls and he found his Friend lying unconscious on the floor.

Mirio brought Tamaki to Recovery Girl's Clinic and Recovery stated that Tamaki was fine. He may have fainted because of being too nervous.

Meanwhile in Class 1-A y/n was being punished by Aizawa Sensei because she was Late.

" But this is just my first offense! " Y/n argued but her teacher only shot her a glare that shit her up immediately.

" Ughhh" Y/n groaned in her seat while Mina rubbed her back comfortingly.

" Jeez, where have you been anyway? " Mina asked and y/n gave her a playful grin.

" Saving the Senpai prince from his wicked admirers " Y/n answered and Mina gave her a questioning look.

" What---"

" Mina! Y/n! , If I hear you talking again you two are getting in trouble " Aizawa sensei growled and the two girls immediately sat straight shaking.

____________ Lunch Time

" Tamaki What happened exactly? I found you passed out in an empty room earlier. Are you sure you're fine?" Mirio asked to which Tamaki averted his eyes his cheeks turning red as he recalled the past events .

" I-I'm Fine " Tamaki answered and Mirio decided to drop it.

When they reached the Cafeteria Tamaki's eyes we're darting every where . His eyes searching for the Kohai who saved him earlier.

He was so busy looking for her he didn't notice his gaze turned intimidating and intense affecting almost everyone in the area, some students even avoided him like the plagued and Mirio had been calling his attention for the last 2 minutes.

" Tamaki! " Mirio yelled this time catching Tamaki's attention bit that's not the only attention Mirio also caught the attention of those girls who tried forcing their chocolates on Tamaki earlier.

" G-gah!? " Tamaki gasped when he was once again crowded by raging fangirls trying to get him to accept their gifts.

" W-woah! " Mirio was pushed aside by the fangirls and Nejire was fast enough to avoid being stomped by them.

Tamaki didn't know what to do and now he was in a foul mood because he didn't hey to see his little Kohai y/n.

The whole cafeteria was in an uproar by the squealing girls.

" Don't you Think it's a Little Rude to Give Chocolates to a Boy who already belongs to someone else? " That sentence was enough to silence everyone in the Cafeteria.

Tamaki recognized that voice. That sweet voice, but at the same time heat rose up to his cheeks.

Y/n had sneakily managed to sneak up behind Tamaki as she glared at his fangirls . Her eyes were glaring yet she was smiling . But not a friendly smile, a sadistic and sinister smile that made the fangirls shiver.

" Sorry girls, He's Taken, He's Mine " Y/n announced as her Arms snaked their way around Tamaki's Torso hugging him from behind as she tilted her head to the side to look at Tamaki's Fangirls.

Tamaki's heart beat was beyond what the heart monitor could read his face flushed feeling two small arms wrap around him. Her touch was intoxicating.

Looking down at the girl who was embracing him from behind he suddenly managed to gather all his courage to place his hand on her hand as he leaned down to kiss y/n's head.

" A-and.... You're Mine Too" Tamaki mumbled but because of how hard everyone was listening they heard it loud and clear.

Y/n sent one last glare to those fangirls and they were gone before tamaki even knew it.

" Hehehe, I saved you Again Senpai. Now I'll let you go now " Y/n chuckled as she slowly let go of her hold around him but she was stopped by tamaki holding onto both of her arms and pulled her closer against his back as he personally guided her arms to wrap around him again.

" Don't... Not unless... Y-you say that y-you meant w-w-what you s-said earlier... I-if you didn't... T-that w-would be r-really mean.." Tamaki muttered .

" I... Because I meant what I said... When... I said you're mine too" He added making y/n widen her eyes.

Her own cheeks turning pink.

" Senpai... Of course I mean it... Only if you want me to" Y/n grinned and that made a smile creep up to Tamaki's lips.

" Of course I... I want you to... You're mine... Right?... And... C-can you stay with me... During lunch? T-they might come back again" Tamaki stuttered making y/n laugh.

" Of course I will, We gotta show them you're mine right? And I'm yours" Y/n cooed .

" Get a Fucking room you fuckers! " Came the obnoxious comment from Bakugou.

And that's when the two finally noticed that everyone was looking at them the whole time.

Y/n and Tamaki immediately jumped away from each other. Tamaki banging his head on the wall due to embarrassment and y/n covering her face in her palms while Mina and the rest of the Class 1-A girls comforted and teased her.

Suddenly the whole room erupted in cheers and loud claps saying that they were a really nice couple.

" Hey y/n I didn't know you got it in you! " Denki teased making y/n give him a punch in the guts.

" Zip it! " She growled but after seeing the teasing looks of her classmates she immediately retreated back to covering her face with her hands.

" Wow! Tamaki! Already getting the girls huh? " Mirio laughed patting Tamaki's back.

" You got a pretty good catch! She's a beauty! And she packs a punch! " Nejire cheered joining Mirio in patting an embarrassed Tamaki.

" Aww, who knew an embarrassed y/n could be so Cute~ this is the first time I saw her like this " Mineta commented but his Comment earned him a glare from Tamaki.

Tamaki was already behind the girl, his hands placed possessively on y/n's shoulder a dark look plastered on his face as he glared down at mineta who. Cowered in fear.

" Scary " The boys muttered.

" What is going on here?! " Everyone turned to the entrance of the Cafeteria and Aizawa and Present Mic were standing there staring at everyone.

" Mic, what happened? You got here before me" Aizawa muttered.

"Yeahhh, it's just a sweet little showcase of affection from our very own Tamaki Amajiki and one of your Daughters in Class 1-A , Y/n L/n " Present Mic's voice boomed .

" Oh shit you're so screwed y/n" Mina chuckled

" Good luck with Dadzawa" Denki added.

" Y/n.... You're definitely getting detention... And No boys until you're 20 , and that goes for the rest of your Girls " Aizawa sensei threatened while pointing at the rest of the girls.

" Huh!? Why us too!? " Hagakure asked and Aizawa sensei's sharp and murderous glare was thrown their way.

" Am I hearing complaints? " Aizawa lowly growled squinting his eyes at the Girls and the his students Immediately shook their heads out of fear.

" What a Day "

[heyitssmiller]

Chop It Like It’s Hot

A Worst Cooks in America O’Knutzy AU

The Sweater Weather Discord group helped me come up with this idea like two months ago, and I haven’t stopped thinking about it since. All credit goes to @lumosinlove for her amazing characters!

Chop It Like It’s Hot Masterlist

Chapter 1: Don’t Go Bacon My Heart

The Day Before the Competition

Interviewer (off camera): Finn O’Hara and Logan Tremblay for their introductions.

Logan: * taps on microphone* Is this mic working?

Finn: How do you still not know how to work a mic? You deal with them all time.

Logan: I signed up to compete in a cooking show, not to deal with your chirps.

Finn: You love ‘em. *winks*

Interviewer: So basically all we want from you guys is a brief introduction for the viewers. I’ll ask some questions, but most of this should be you guys just talking. We can edit things out later, so don’t worry about anything like that. Why don’t you guys start with your names and careers and we’ll go from there.

Finn: Yo, I’m Finn O’Hara, and I’m a terrible cook. *finger guns* Although I guess that’s a given, seeing that I’m on this show.

Logan: *mumbles in French, head in hands*

Finn: This asshole – shit, no – fuck! Sorry, I probably shouldn’t be cussing. This is a family-friendly show.

Logan: Dear God, please stop talking. I’m Logan Tremblay, the unfortunate boyfriend.

*Finn pouts*

Interviewer: And you guys play hockey?

Logan: Yeah, we play in the NHL. Gryffindor Lions.

Finn: That’s how we met, actually. Through hockey. We played together at Harvard, then got drafted to the Lions about a year apart. We’ve known each other for eight years and have been together for three of them. Can’t seem to get rid of this one.

Interviewer: And you’re not worried about being rivals on this show?

Finn: Rivals is a strong word… I mean yes we’ll be competing against each other instead of being teammates, but we know going in that it’s not personal. Just a little healthy competition.

Interviewer: So what made the two of you sign up for this show?

Logan: We didn’t. Our teammate Dumo and his wife Celeste did. They thought it would be funny. *pause* They’re probably right.

Interviewer: Out of the two of you, who is the worst cook?

*Finn and Logan point to each other*

Logan: You can’t be serious.

Finn: You once cooked pasta so much that it turned into literal paste!

Logan: You tried to cook pizza rolls in a toaster.

Finn: That’s what it said in the instructions!

Logan: It said toaster oven, you - *more French*

Finn: English, Tremz. How many times do I have to tell you that? I guess we’ll find out once and for all who the better cook is by the end of the next eight weeks, right? *mouths “it’s me” to the camera*

Logan: Whatever, Fish.

Interviewer: I think we’ve got all we need guys, thanks. Start time for tomorrow is 10:00 am, but plan on being here forty-five minutes to an hour early to get ready. We’ll see you then.

Competition Day

“Are you nervous? I’m nervous.” Finn stated, running a hand through his hair and looking around at the studio they’d be in and out of for the foreseeable future. There were cooking stations everywhere and he could already see tools and machines that he had no clue how to use. There were twelve other contestants that he didn’t know and the crew scattered everywhere, running back and forth trying to get everything ready. “God, how am I sweaty already? Is this normal?”

Logan rolled his eyes but still reached over to grab Finn’s hand, squeezing it lightly. “Relax. It’s not so bad.” Finn smiled down at him, glad that they were at least here together. How in the hell did he get so lucky?

“Besides, you’ll be sent home soon enough. So don’t stress too much.”

Finn laughed. “Wow, I hate you so much right now.” He betrayed his words with a quick kiss. “You’re going down.”

Those green eyes flashed at the challenge, but right as he opened his mouth to respond-

“Good morning, recruits!”

All heads turned towards the voice. Three figures stood towards the front of the room: one they both recognized as the producer, who was flanked by who Finn assumed to be the chefs, seeing that they were wearing chef’s outfits. Chef’s uniforms? Did their uniforms have a technical name? Finn made a mental note to google that later.

Anyways, one was a short woman with dark ringlets tied back in a ponytail and an undiscernible expression on her face. The other was tall, blond, and had legs for days Jesus Christ-

“Welcome to your first day of boot camp! This is chef Dorcas Meadowes and chef Leo Knut; they’ll be your team leaders. We’re going to start with some footage of you all walking into the kitchen, so if you all would wait out there until you’re allowed to come back in. Cameras will be rolling, so be ready! After that, our chefs will explain the first challenge and then you’ll start cooking.” He clapped his hands together. “Alright, let’s get this show started!”

“Why did they make us come in here just to send us back out?” Logan grumbled, following the other shuffling contestants out into the hall.

“Probably easier to give directions to the main studio instead of saying ‘hey, just wait out in the hall.’”

Logan hummed noncommittally. “I guess.” He wasn’t overly excited to be here; most of this (besides the initial push by Dumo and Celeste) was Finn’s idea. And god knows he could never say no to Finn. One look at that pout and brown puppy-dog eyes and he was done for. Logan didn’t like cooking, but he did like Finn. And they’d probably remember this for years to come. It didn’t matter what he was doing, as long as he was with Finn and making memories with him he’d do just about anything.

“Wonder what the first challenge is.” Finn mused, his eyes locked on the doors.

Logan laughed. “Always so impatient.”

“I’m a New Yorker,” Finn grinned, leaning into his accent. “It’s in my blood.”

The doors opened and contestants began filing back into the kitchen. Finn made sure to wave enthusiastically at the chefs with a wide smile. Logan noticed the tall one (god, he’d already forgotten the guy’s name) give a little wave in return as the other chef commanded the attention of everyone else in the room.

“Good morning, recruits, and welcome to boot camp! I’m chef Dorcas Meadowes, and this is chef Leo Knut. He’s the rookie of our crew, but don’t worry – he’s still qualified to teach all of you. Even though that’s not saying much.”

There was a smattering of laughter and chef Leo smiled, revealing dimples Logan could see from where he stood. “Hey, y’all. I’m very excited to see what makes all of you qualified to be put on this show. Who knows? Maybe you’ll give me more gray hair.” Dorcas laughed and ran her fingers through the tuft of gray hair at his temple.

“When did you get this? I don’t remember seeing it when we were in culinary school. Is it from Iron Chef?”

“Nah, this is from having Gordon Ramsay come to my restaurant.”

“Truly a terrifying man.” She shuddered. “Anyways, you guys be nice to this giant ball of sunshine. Even if he’s new, he’s still able to eliminate you from this competition.”

“In order to pick our teams, we need to see what kind of skills you have.” Leo winced. “Or don’t have. So today, we want you to make your favorite dish. Easy enough, right?”

“Oh god,” Finn murmured into Logan’s ear. “What’s my favorite dish? Do I even have one?”

“Finn.”

“You all have an hour to complete this task.” Dorcas said, glancing down at her watch. “And your time starts… now!”

“Fuck.” Finn stated emphatically, dashing off to the pantry.

Fuck was right. God, what was Logan going to make? He was wracking his brain for something while he grabbed two aprons from the back. He tossed one to Finn and took the station beside him before hurrying to the pantry. Chicken was always a safe bet, right? Celeste made a barbeque chicken recipe that was to die for. That couldn’t be too hard. It was just chicken and barbeque sauce. And maybe green beans on the side? He could get those canned ones and they’d taste fine if he rinsed them. This was fine.

He guessed on the temperature for the oven. 350 seemed good. Then he dumped two chicken breasts into a pan, poured the barbeque sauce over them, and put them into the oven.

“What are you making?” Logan startled at the soft voice, turning to see chef Leo at his station.

Blue eyes.

Logan blinked, Leo’s question forgotten. “Quoi?”

“You speak French?”

Why was his brain refusing to work all of a sudden? Get it together, Tremblay. “Uh, yeah.”

“What are you making?” Leo asked for the second time, but now it was in French. Weirdly worded French.

“Barbeque chicken.” Logan responded in French, then switched back to English. “What in the world was that?”

Leo flashed him a grin. “New Orleans, born and raised. We speak French there, too. Now tell me how you’re making that chicken.”

“Uh.” He had never said the word ‘uh’ so much in one sitting. Merde. “I put it in a pan, spread barbeque sauce over it, and I’m cooking it at 350.”

“How do you know when it’s done?”

Was this a trick question? It felt like a trick question. “Uh.” Fuck. “It has to get to a specific internal temperature, right?”

The chef nodded. “And what’s that?”

“145?"

Something in Leo’s expression flickered, but Logan couldn’t figure out what it meant. “Well, good luck. Logan, right?”

“Yeah.”

“See you at the judging table.” He said with a dimpled smile before moving to Finn’s station, which was already a mess. “Oh my. How are you doing over here?”

Finn laughed a bit hysterically. “Not good. Not good at all.”

“Ok. What’s going on?”

“Well I’m trying to make carbo’hara, and –“

“Really, Fish?” Logan called from his station. “That’s what you’re making?”

“What’s carbo’hara?” Leo asked as he watched Finn put bacon in a pan.

“Oh,” Finn waved a hand carelessly. “It’s just carbonara, but a pun on my name, O’Hara. Get it?”

Leo laughed, crossing long arms over his chest. “That’s terrible.”

“Yeah, but it makes me happy. My parents used to make it every night before my brother or I had hockey games.”

“Oh, that’s right. You guys are hockey players.”

“Go Lions!” Finn cheered, taking a spoonful of butter and throwing it into the pan with the bacon.

“Are you putting butter on bacon?” Leo asked with a raised eyebrow.

Finn responded with full confidence, “I didn’t want it to stick to the pan.”

“Ok. Got it. I… I look forward to seeing what you make.” Finn watched as Leo bit his lip and tried his hardest not to laugh.

Cute.

Finn felt his cheeks flush and blamed it on the steam from the pasta.

The last thirty minutes of the task were absolute chaos, but both boys got it done. Finn’s looked messy, which accurately summed up his cooking style. Logan was pretty proud of how his looked; he just hoped it tasted good. He gave Finn a smile and a fist bump. “Ready to be judged?”

Finn laughed, looking down at his plate. He grimaced. “Not really.”

“We’re all bad cooks. Chances are someone else’s dish is worse than yours.”

“That… actually helped. Thanks.”

***

 Finn was chosen to be judged before Logan. He brought up his plate with a sheepish smile and placed it on the table in front of the chefs. Dorcas raised an eyebrow while Leo prodded the pasta with his fork.

“It’s carbo’hara.” Finn stated with pride.

“Well, Finn…” Dorcas met his eyes. “This looks like a mess, but let’s see how it tastes.”

Finn cringed as they both took a bite of his food. Dorcas frowned as she chewed and Leo tilted his head, a confused expression on his face.

“I don’t know how you did it, but this solidifies in my mouth like glue.”

“Oh god, please don’t eat any more.”

“You definitely put a lot of effort in and you have a lot of potential,” Leo said with a small smile. “I think you were just a little too ambitious for this first round and it got away from you.”

“That’s fair. Thanks for the input.” Finn grabbed his plate and made his way back to his station. He wasn’t too upset by those reviews – he already knew he was a bad cook. But he had potential, so at least he had that going for him.

Logan grinned at him back at his station. “I can’t believe you served the judges glue pasta.”

“At least I’m not serving them canned green beans.”

“They taste just fine, thank you very much.”

“Lo, they’re professionals. You’re not getting away with something lazy like that.”

He definitely got in trouble for using the canned green beans. Dorcas looked down at them like they were worms. Leo gave him the ‘I’m not mad, I’m disappointed’ look, which was even worse, please don’t look at me like that.

“Canned food is a no-go, huh?”

“Definitely.”

“And this chicken isn’t cooked all the way.” Leo said, showing him the pink meat. “You said earlier that you’d cook it until it reached 145 degrees, but chicken needs to reach 165 at a minimum.”

“I’m sure it tasted fine, though.” Dorcas added. “You can’t really go wrong with pre-made barbeque sauce and chicken.”

Ouch. Logan grabbed his plate. “Right. Thanks.”

Finn was predictably cackling at his station. “Tremz, they couldn’t even eat yours. Celeste is going to be so disappointed in you.”

“Shut up.”

 ***

As soon as they were back into their hotel room, Finn kicked his shoes off and faceplanted into the couch. “I can’t believe that took so long.”

“Yeah,” Logan sat down and grabbed his take-out. “Who knew cooking all day would make us so hungry?”

Finn made grabby hands at the other food container. Logan laughed and handed it to him. “I haven’t been this hungry since playoffs, fuck.”

They ate in silence and were finished in record-setting time. Finn collected their trash and stood up to throw it away. “So blue team, huh? I’m kind of surprised they put us on the same team.”

“Me too. But Leo seems like a good teacher, so I’m glad we’re on his team.”

“Yeah, he seems so young, too.” Which sounded ridiculous to say; Leo couldn’t be that much younger than them. “If he’s already winning competitions and starring in cooking shows at that age, he must be pretty good.”

“Winner of Iron Chef America, Chopped, Guy’s Grocery Games…” Logan read off his phone with a low whistle. “He graduated culinary school early and opened his own restaurant a year later.”

“Damn.”

“There’s a video of one of his competitions on here.”

“Play it!” Finn said excitedly, flopping back down on the couch and peering over his boyfriend’s shoulder. Logan gave him a strange look. “What? Maybe we’ll learn something useful.”

“I think this is going to be way too complicated for us, but ok.”

So they sat on the couch watching cooking competitions for hours, learning skills and techniques that went way over their heads. Logan wordlessly switched to Leo’s cooking show Cajun Cooking, watching episode after episode of the blue-eyed chef teaching traditional New Orleans recipes.

Little did they know that halfway across the city in his own apartment, Leo Knut was watching Youtube highlights of the Gryffindor Lions, keeping a sharp eye out for number seventeen and number ten.