#i should go do that assignment though- its like four test grades-

[braveclementine]

Chapter 8

Warnings: None, Readers under 18 can read this book. It is solely fluff- nothing sexual

Copyright: I do not own any Wizarding World characters that J.K. Rowling wrote. I do however own Elizabeth Kane (main character) and Trang Nyguen (best friend). There should be no use of these two names without my permission. I also do not condone any copying of this.

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𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝖓𝖊𝖝𝖙 𝖋𝖊𝖜 days were horrendous for me. Everywhere I went I swear, either Dumbledore, Snape, or McGonagall were shooting me conspicuous looks, waiting for answers. I'd given them a least a months worth of information, what more did they want from me? The grades to people's tests? Every little conversation that was between now and Colin's petrifying?

I was angsty and snapped easily, lashing out at everyone. Hermione had retreated inside herself, not talking to anyone and constantly reading, more than ever. The Hufflepuffs had taken to avoiding Harry despite my assurances that Harry wasn't the one who had petrified Mrs. Norris, and the fact that Dumbledore didn't believe Harry had done it.

A week later on Wednesday, I was with Ron in the library while Hermione was in the stacks of books father back. Ron was measuring his History of Magic essay which was supposed to be three feet long.

"I don't believe it." Ron said, letting the tape measuring shut as Harry walked into the library and sat down next to us. "I'm still eight inches short. And Hermione's done four feet seven inches and her writing's tiny." He let go of the parchment he had written his essay on and it sprang together into its original roll.

"Where is she?" Harry asked, grabbing the tape measure to measure his own essay.

"Mines four feet nine inches." I said with a smirk, able to gloat because Hermione wasn't here. Ron glanced over at my essay and scowled. My handwriting was just as small as Hermione's. Harry chuckled as he sat down.

"Somewhere over there," Ron said, pointing vaguely into the shelves. "Looking for another book. I think she's trying to read the whole library before Christmas."

I snorted with laughter and then refocused on my Potions assignment that was due next week.

"Listen, as I was coming here, I saw Justin Finch-Fletchley from Herbology class, remember him? Anyways, I was going to say Hello to him but he darted off in the other direction to avoid me." Harry said, sounding unhappy and a bit confused. I shifted uncomfortably in my seat and rolled up my potions essay.

"Dunno why you care." Ron said, scribbling as largely as possible to take up more space on his essay. "I thought he was a bit of an idiot. All that junk about Lockhart being so great-"

I scowled, pulling the string around my essay just a little to tightly. My essay crinkled and I had to untie the string and retie it. Even though my Hufflepuff friends were wrong, I didn't like anyone talking bad about them.

Hermione came out from behind the stacks of books, looking irritable. I put my potions essay away and pulled out my charms essay that was due in three days. Shallow charming and is it better than deep charming? Two feet four inches due. UGH! Shallow and deep charms were so boring!

"All the copies of Hogwarts, A History have been taken out." She said, sitting down across from Harry. "And there's a two-week waiting list. I wish I hadn't left my copy at home, but I couldn't fit it in my trunk with all the Lockhart books."

"They're a waste of space, you shouldn't have brought them period." I muttered under my breath. While Ron laughed, Hermione scowled at me, but otherwise ignored my comment.

"Why do you want it?" Harry asked curiously, shooting me a grin.

"The same reason everyone else wants it. To read up on the legend of the Chamber of Secrets." Hermione said waspishly, obviously still mad about my 'Lockhart's books are stupid' comment.

I looked up quickly as Harry asked, "What's that?"

Hogwarts, A History had the Chamber of Secrets legend in it? My book was downstairs, I could run up and get it before class. Did I have enough time? Probably not, Transfiguration started in 10 minutes. I could get it after class.

"Hermione, let me read your composition." Ron said desperately, checking his watch.

"No, I won't. You've had ten days to finish it-" Hermione said in her severe, bossy voice.

I quickly pulled my essay out of my bag and tossed it over to him. "Be quick. I don't want to be late to McGonagall's class."

Hermione gave me a look of disapproval.

"It's two lines, Hermione." I said in defense. "Its a one time pass too." I warned Ron as he clumsily untied my perfect parcel knot.

The bell rang and we parted separate ways- them to History of Magic with Binns, me to Transfiguration with McGonagall.

I sat down in my regular seat in the front of the classroom. We were going to be working on animal to goblet transformations. I had asked Sadie to fly into class today and she was already sitting on the back of my chair. I turned around and petted her head. "Ready for today?" I asked softly. "It'll be quick and painless, I promise. You can always change your mind of course." I added quickly.

Sadie hooted quietly and stuck her beak in my hair like she was grooming me. I grinned at her and petted her head again. Professor McGonagall called for attention at the front of the class and I turned around, leaning forward so that I wasn't pressed up against Sadie.

Suddenly, I was no longer in the Transfiguration classroom, but in the History of Magic classroom. I tried to look around, confused, then realized I couldn't move. I was in a different point of view, looking at Hermione. The view shifted to look at Professor Binns.

"For a few years, the founders worked in harmony together, seeking out youngsters who showed signs of magic and bringing them to the castle to be educated. But then disagreements sprang up between them. A rift began to grow between Slytherin and the others. Slytherin wished to be more selective about the students. . ."

I was back in the Transfiguration classroom. Professor McGonagall was going over the wand movement and Incantation. I quickly started scribbling down what she was saying. What a weird blackout.

I'd had a blackout like that before, last year. I hadn't been looking into the future, just as I hadn't been looking just now. And last year I was in the point of view of Harry. Was I in Harry this time again? I certainly wasn't in Hermione's point of view considering that I had been looking at her for a moment. And I couldn't see a reason why I'd be anyone else.

Then, it happened again. I was back in the History of Magic classroom, Binns still talking. "The story goes that Slytherin had built a hidden chamber in the castle, of which the other founders knew nothing. Slytherin, according to the legend, sealed the Chamber of Secrets so that none would be able to open it until his own true heir arrived at the school. The heir alone would be able to reseal the Chamber of Secrets, unleash the horror within, and use it to purge the school of all who were unworthy to study magic."

I came back to the Transfiguration classroom and looked around quickly. Everyone else had started on their transformation. Sadie hooted softly behind me, and I held out my arm, and she hopped onto it.

"Sorry." I whispered. "I got a bit distracted. I'm going to practice a little first so I get the spell perfect on the first try."

I looked down at my notes. Three taps on the target object then say the incantation. The incantation was Fera Verto.

"Fera Verto, Fera Verto." I said multiple times without my wand in my hand. Then, taking out my wand, I tapped Sadie lightly three times on top of her head and said, "Fera Verto."

She shrunk into a large silver goblet and I smiled proudly.

"Lovely, Miss Kane." Professor McGonagall said, who had started walking around amongst the students, looking at everyone's progress. "Five points to Hufflepuff." Sher performed the counter charm to turn Sadie back into herself.

I let out a sigh of relief. "That wasn't too bad, was it?" I asked, in concern.

Sadie hooted and flapped her wings. Then she tucked her head under her wing and closed her large eyes.

"Tired?" I asked, a little amused, a little preoccupied. I petted her head and down her back. She hooted softly again. I kept stroking her until the bell rang and then carried her over to the window and let her fly off. I watched her for a moment, wondering what the hell had just happened inside my head.

Now that I thought about it, it wasn't really the future, was it? It was the present in a different part of the castle. It had been the present last year as well. What was the difference? Why did it happen? It seemed the more I discovered about my visions, the more questions I had about them. Stupid things.

Grabbing my bag, I left the room quickly and headed down the hallway to get to the Great Hall for dinner. I approached the hallway where Mrs. Norris had been. Coming up from the other hallway, I heard Ron's voice saying, "D'you really think there's a Chamber of Secrets?"

I looked over, seeing Hermione, Ron, and Harry were coming up to me. Harry raised his hand in greeting but listened to Hermione say, "I don't know. Dumbledore couldn't cure Mrs. Norris, and that makes me think that whatever attacked her might not be- well- human."

The came to where I was standing which was right in front of the hallway where the attack had been. They stopped walking.

"That's where Filch has been keeping guard." Ron said, pointing to an empty wooden chair up against the wall.

"Can't hurt to have a poke around." Harry said, dropping to his knees so that he could look for clues better. I raised an eyebrow at him, rolled my eyes, and then looked away from him.

I looked around the empty hallway nervously. We shouldn't be here. I didn't think there was anything we could possibly find here.

"Scorch marks!" He said, pointing to the floor in front of him. "Here- and here-"

Where had the scorch marks come from?

"Come and look at this." Hermione said, across the corridor by the windows. "This is funny. . ."

Against my better judgement, I approached the windows with Harry. Hermione had been pointing at the topmost pane and it took me a moment to see what it was and then I jumped back in disgust. There was a single, long, silvery thread dangling like a rope. There were perhaps forty thousand spiders climbing along it like they were trying to escape to the outside world.

"Have you ever seen spiders act like that?" Hermione asked wondering.

"They look like they're trying to flee the castle." I murmured aloud, frowning. I didn't particularly like spiders.

"No, never. Have you, Ron?" Harry asked. There was no answer. "Ron?"

We turned to look around where Ron was standing well back away from the window panes.

"What's up?" Harry asked, confused and curious.

"I- don't- like- spiders." Ron said through gritted teeth.

"I never knew that." Hermione said with an air of surprise. "You've used spiders in Potions loads of times. . ."

"I don't mind them dead." Ron said, speaking very carefully as though opening his mouth to big would result in a spider in his mouth. "I just don't like the way they move. . ."

Hermione and I giggled.

"It's not funny." Ron said angrily. "If you must know, when I was three, Fred turned my- my teddy bear into a great big filthy spider because I broke his broomstick. . . You wouldn't like them either if you'd been holding your bear and suddenly it had too many legs and. . ."

He broke off, shuddering. Hermione was covering her mouth, stifling her laughs. I continued to laugh out loud.

Harry quickly changed the subject, "Remember all that water on the floor? Where did that come from? Someone's mopped it up."

"It was about here." Ron said, walking even farther away from the windows, his back to the spiders. "Level with this door."

Had there been water on the floor? I hadn't remembered that. It was obviously possible. Perhaps Myrtle had thrown a fit again. Peeves had upset her greatly last night.

Ron raised his hand to open the door and then drew his hand back.

"What's the matter?" Harry asked curiously, pushing forward to see.

"Can't go in there. That's a girls' toilet." Ron muttered.

I laughed again.

"Oh, Ron, there won't be anyone in there. That's Moaning Myrtle's place. Come on, let's have a look." Hermine said haughtily, pushing forward and opening the door.

I walked in first, looking around at the large, depressing bathroom. The floor was damp, like it always was. The candles flickered, dangerously close to going out. The mirrors were cracked and on the brink of shattering. The sinks were chipped, one faucet still dripping. The ceilings had stains on them and the bathroom stall doors were scratched and flaking. One door was hanging off its hinges.

I was never sure why this bathroom hadn't been cleaned up and repaired when it would've been so easy to do with a little magic. Part of me suspected it was because the Professors- or at least our headmaster- respected the ghosts and were lenient to let Myrtle have this place to her own.

I hung back while Hermione approached the last stall. "Hello, Myrtle, how are you?"

Harry and Ron followed Hermione to see Myrtle. I heard her say, "This is a girls bathroom. They're not girls."

If I didn't like Myrtle or understood her sensitiveness, I would've said, "Wonderful observation." I held my tongue.

"No." Hermione said in agreement. "I just wanted to show them how- er- nice it is in here."

I rolled my eyes, crossed my arms, and leaned back against the stall doors, studying the sinks. They were all shaped the same way except for one. One of them, the middle one, had the design of a snake curling around the tap. Strange design, but I supposed since this bathroom was close to the Slytherin common room. Perhaps that was why?

The sound of Myrtle howling in agony made me pull my attention away from the taps and pay attention again. ". . .My life was nothing but misery at this place and now people come along ruining my death!"

"We wanted to ask you if you've seen anything funny lately." Hermione said in a rushed way. "Because a cat was attacked right outside your front door on Halloween."

"Did you see anyone near here that night?" Harry asked, as though perhaps Myrtle hadn't understood the first time.

"I wasn't paying attention." Myrtle said in a voice that I knew meant she was about to do something dramatic. "Peeves upset me so much I came in here and tried to kill myself. Then, of course, I remembered that I'm- that I'm-"

"Already dead?" Ron asked.

Myrtle gave a tragic sob and I heard a splash that meant Myrtle had dove into the toilet. I sighed, getting up from the wall, pinching my nose.

"Let's go." I said, almost bored. "I'm hungry."

Harry closed the door behind us and we started to walk towards the Great Hall and then a loud voice made all of us jump.

"RON!"

We all spun around. There was Percy Weasley, Ron's eldest brother at Hogwarts, stopped dead at the head of the stairs. I could see his prefect badge gleaming from here. I wouldn't be surprised if he polished it every night before he went to bed. He had a look of pure shock on his face.

"That's a girls bathroom!" He said gasping. "What were you-"

Ron tried to shrug it off by saying, "Just having a look around, clues, you know-"

Percy swelled up, looking a bit like Mrs. Weasley in my opinion when she got mad. He strode toward us in long strides and started flapping his arms, moving us forward like we were birds he was trying to shoo away. "Get- away- from- there-. Don't you care what this looks like? Coming back here while everyone's at dinner-"

"Why shouldn't we be here?" Ron asked hotly. "Listen, we never laid a finger on that cat." He said, stopping short. Harry bumped into him.

"That's what I told Ginny." Percy said fiercely. "But she still seems to think you're going to be expelled. I've never seen her so upset, crying her eyes out, you might think of her, all the first years are thoroughly overexcited by this business-"

I felt guilt pierce me like a hot knife. I'd been perfectly friendly with Ginny at the Burrow, but the moment I'd gotten back to Hogwarts it had been Harry, Ron, Hermione, and me. Of course, we were in different years which meant we didn't have a lot of time that we could spend together, but still. We could go to Hagrid's together, explore the forest, study- or I supposed I could tutor her. I had to find some way that we could stay friends. It would be cruel any way else.

"You don't care about Ginny." Ron accused Percy, his ears bright red. "You're just worried I'm going to mess up your chances of being Head Boy-"

Percy's fingers flew up to his Prefect badge, stroking it, almost as though Ron had hurt its feelings. "Five points from Gryffindor!" Percy said angrily. "And I hope it teaches you a lesson! No more detective work, or I'll write to Mum!" He turned around and strode off without making sure we were going to the Great Hall to eat. His neck was redder than Ron's ears.

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𝕴 𝖍𝖊𝖆𝖉𝖊𝖉 𝖆𝖜𝖆𝖞 from the Great Hall by myself instead of with Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Ginny came out of the Great Hall some moments later, looking a bit pale.

"Hey Ginny!" I approached her quickly.

She looked at me, looking even paler, and a little disconcerted, and then said, "Oh, hey Elizabeth."

"Um. . . I was wondering if you wanted to take a walk with me. I have something important I want to tell you." I said, clutching my book tightly. I still wasn't entirely sure what I was going to say. Everything that I wanted to say, read in my head, sounded stupid.

"Sure." Ginny said. We walked out of the castle. The sky was turning pink and gold and it was already very cold. We wrapped our cloaks around us and we wandered down to the Black lake.

"Umm. . ." I started out. "I just wanted to apologize to you." I looked out over the lake, unable to look at her, as ashamed as I was. I wasn't entirely why I felt so ashamed, but I did. I couldn't explain the strange feeling in my stomach. I felt like I had committed a crime.

"Why?" Ginny asked, sounding curious and surprised.

"Because." I said, taking a deep breath, my cheeks turning pink from shame and cold. "Over the summer, I was your friend and then we came to Hogwarts and I stopped talking to you. That was wrong of me. I want to be friends Ginny." I said that as innocently as a twelve year old could. "I understand that I've probably been really cold and that's just. . . no excuses." I finished lamely. "I'll always be around, I promise."

I finally looked at her and smiled, hoping she accepted my apology. The words still sounded stupid.

Ginny smiled back at me. She looked strangely relieved, as though she had expected me to say something else. "Friends forever?" she asked.

"Friends forever." I agreed. A warm feeling spread through my body despite the cold temperature outside. I was definitely doing the right thing. Now, I just had to keep my promise and that was always harder than it sounded.

"I have a report I have to finish for Charms, want to help?" Ginny asked, tilting her head to side hesitantly, as though I might have changed my mind in the last three seconds.

"Sure, let's go to the library." I said, smiling like an idiot. But what can I say? I'm twelve years old and I like making friends. There's nothing wrong with that. Besides, despite having a brother, I'd always wanted a sister. Specifically a little sister I could watch over.

We walked back up to the castle, stepping through the huge front doors and feeling the immediate transformation from freezing to warm. We walked through the hallways and up staircases, talking and laughing.

Reaching the library, we stepped inside, finding a table in the back and pulling out essays. Ugh Shallow and Deep charms. I wondered how Professor Flitwick would react if I just didn't do it. To my pleasure, Ginny needed help on one of her Transfiguration assignments.

As I started to help her with a question that I had done last year, I saw a bubbling cauldron in a bathroom stall.

I pushed the vision away. I could think about those later. Right now, it was just me and Ginny. I wasn't going to break my promise.

⬅️➡️

[authorautumnbanks]

A Thousand Days With You (2)

Series Master list

"We're going to assess your level so we can assign you a grade," Satoru says, stretching his arms out. He went out and got a couple of curses for Kagome to exorcise. Normally he'd do a field mission and observe, but Kagome is a special case. He spent pretty much all last night browsing through the Gojo library for any information on barriers. None of the books he skimmed detailed the barrier Kagome put up at that school.

"I'm being graded? I thought I wasn't a student. Am I going to be tested, too?" Kagome tightens her fingers around her bow. Her long black hair is pulled into a high ponytail, showing off the curves of her neck and bringing more attention to her high cheekbones.

Satoru smirks, slightly amused at her questioning, but more intrigued that a bow is her weapon of choice. "Might give you some pointers if you need it. But nah, this is more to see what level of curses you can exorcise." He holds up one finger. "You got your special grade curses at the top. There are only four special grade sorcerers."

"What's the lowest grade?"

"Four. We don't want to put a grade four sorcerer up against a level one curse. So, in order to assess where you are, I got a variety of curses here. Even got a special grade one if we get that far." He shrugs. Chances are they won't get that far. His eyes peruse the length of her body, not that she knows he is checking her out with his bandages on. There's strength to her body. He does not need the six eyes to tell him that, but there is also a delicate aura around her that makes him think fighting is not her strength.

And that skirt is damn near scandalous.

Kagome nods, not fazed by his explanation. She does not have that crazy look in her eyes like his students. All good sorcerers have a bit of crazy to them. They have to. Comes with the job of seeing humanity's worst.

"Alrighty, we'll start our way up." He walks over to the cage and lets the fly head out. For extra measure, he put up a veil so no one will get hurt by any stray attacks. The fly head goes down in a split of a second. "... Okay, we'll move on then." He clucks his tongue along the roof of his mouth.

Her instincts are good. Reaction speed too.

"You always use a bow?" he questions as he lets out the level three curse, who goes down just as quickly as the last one.

"I prefer it. If I need to use a sword I can, but I'm better with long distance." Kagome wrinkles her nose and waits oh so patiently for him to let the next curse out.

"Thinking maybe we should have done a field mission after all." He skips the other grade and goes for the grade one. This one shouldn't go down with one blow, but he's opened to being wrong. The curse slinks out and darts towards Kagome. It's big bug eyes and tusks for teeth are the stuff of nightmares.

Without missing a beat, Kagome notches the arrow and exorcizes the curse just as easily as the others.

Well... huh?

Satoru crosses his arms and tilts his head to the side. Perhaps he should take her on a mission instead. Just letting the curses out seems to be too easy for her. It won't be that easy in the real world.

"Satoru," Kagome says, "I'm good for us to keep going."

He snorts. "Yeah, I can see that. Just thinking that this isn't giving you a challenge." He grabs the cage, holding the special grade, and holds out a hand. "To better mimic what it might be like out on the field, I'm gonna release this one further out and you'll need to track him down." Of course, he'll be close by. Megumi would never forgive him if he let a special grade kill his teacher.

Kagome shrugs, so he takes that as her acceptance to proceed. He releases the curse further out. A vengeful mother curse. Its body reeks, half of its face looks as though someone poured acid on it. The curse takes off, most likely to get away from him or to go after Kagome. Satoru heads back to where he left Kagome and keeps a safe distance as he watches her.

She stands in the clearing for a bit and then strolls further into the woods as though she left her picnic basket somewhere.

Calm.

Slightly indifferent.

There are different levels of crazy. Hers is more subtle.

The curse finds her first. Satoru's muscle tense. If need be, he'll step in.

"Give him back," the curse mutters in a warbled spiel. "Back."

Kagome lowers her bow as the curse flashes in front of her.

Shit. Why the hell would she lower her weapon? He holds out his hand, preparing to shoot off a red, but his vision goes...pink? His six eyes can't see anything but a blinding pink. It does not feel like cursed energy.

Kagome?

Did she do this?

When the light subsides, the curse lies on the ground. Its skin is healthy. Whole. He moves closer as the curse's body starts to fade away. It almost looks human now.

"I felt bad for it," Kagome says, softly. "It was in a lot of pain. The others weren't like that, but this one was hurting."

He opens his mouth and then closes it. His mind can't comprehend what he is hearing. What he is seeing. The curse fades away with a smile on it's no longer acidified face.

"This is not cursed energy," he says, a bit weak to his own ears. "I'm not sure what you are using, but—"

"I'm a priestess," she says, "I don't have cursed energy. Not even gramps has it and he can't even do a sutra properly." Kagome yawns and stretches her arms up. "So, is that it?"

Is that it?

Satoru laughs. It's a good thing he met her first and not one of those Zenin's. "You're cute," he coos, leaning over to poke her cheek. Her face goes red as she swats his hand away. "Shy?"

"I don't get involved with coworkers," she quips.

"Technically, you haven't accepted the job yet..."

"Because I haven't decided yet."

"Sooo, what you are saying is you want to get involved with me?"

Her mouth drops and she splutters. "That is not what I'm saying! You are so..." she looks up at the sky as if to ask it for answers. "Just forget about it. Is that it?"

"Well...it was supposed to last us a lot longer than it did. Didn't think you would be one-shotting every curse." He pulls out his phone and scrolls through his schedule. "We could do a field mission early, get it over with and I could evaluate how you do in a less controlled environment."

"That's fine. I don't mind getting rid of some of the curses, but am I going to be a teacher here or am I going to be out in the field?"

"Do you just want to be a teacher? You seem like a hands on kind of woman." He puts his phone back in his pocket and looks her over once more.

She shifts her weight to one side and ponders his question. "Hmm, being a teacher is not as dangerous. Mama is definitely over me getting into situations, but it also doesn't sit right with me that we are sending children out to handle these things. Like why aren't there more sorcerers out working the field?"

"Dead," he says matter of factually. "There's way more curse users... people that use their cursed energy to harm others and not help the general population with decreasing the number of curses." No use in sugar coating it. She isn't fazed by the curses, so something tells him that Kagome has more experience than she is letting on.

"Let's do the field mission. I can't sleep at night knowing there's something I could be doing to help." She sighs. "I know I said I could use a sword, but I am a bit rusty. Haven't had any reason to use one in a long time."

"If you weren't fighting curses, then what were you fighting?"

She nibbles on her bottom lip. "Something similar?"

"Not good enough," he says cheerily, as though they are discussing the weather. If there is something else out there, then he needs to know about it. "Yesterday you mentioned knowing someone that could warp like me. Did their energy feel similar to mine?" Could it be that she fought something other than a curse? Or did she not have the proper terminology to name what she was fighting?

Kagome squints at him. "Do you need me to heal your eyes? I'm not sure how you haven't ran into anything yet with those bandages."

"Nice try. Did their energy feel similar to mine?" He bends at the waist, crowding her space. She's hiding something and he is nothing but a persistent man. He can wear her down if need be.

"Sure," she says with an eye roll. "Now, do you need me to heal your eyes before we head out or not?"

"I'm not hurt. I wear this to help lessen the information I take in. Special eyes and all." So, she can heal too, that's good to know. As frustrating as it is, the higher-ups may be more agreeable to her joining with those qualifications.

"So, you are willingly wearing those bandages?"

"Did you want to see my eyes?" he teases as he dispels the veil.

"No, I just think the bandages are tacky," she replies without any hint of malice. "Since it's more of a preventive measure, maybe a blindfold would work best?" she murmurs the last part to herself. Kagome pats his arm. "Don't worry, I'll get you something that would work better. I can't imagine how annoying that must be to put on and take off."

"... Thanks?" His mind tries to make sense of the whiplash of her emotions. How did she turn the conversation around to getting him better eyewear?

"Can we stop and get something to eat before the mission? Forgot to eat breakfast today." She matches his strides, completely at ease with the thought of facing more curses.

Maybe she does have a few screws loose.

"I could go for a bake potato," he admits. "You know I will only step in if I think you are going to be killed."

"Isn't that the point of an evaluation?" She pulls out her phone and frowns at whatever message she received. Satoru uses his height to his advantage and glances at her phone.

"Didn't tell your boyfriend you would be with me?" he questions, voice toeing the lines between playful and annoyed. Which is stupid. He doesn't know her. Why should he care if she has a boyfriend?

"Hojo-kun doesn't understand the words no and we don't work." She types off a retort, not bothering to look at him. "But no, he's not my boyfriend."

"Do you have one?"

"A boyfriend?" She yawns. "That sounds like a pain."

He hums in acknowledgment. A boyfriend would be a real pain in the ass.

Wait.

He stops. Kagome walks ahead and turns to face him. "Something wrong?" She reaches for an arrow. Satoru shakes his head.

"No, nothing is wrong. Just forgot something is all."

Like his damn sanity, or what's left of it. There is no way he is happy about her not having a boyfriend. It's not like he wants to fill that role. Women are trouble. Love is the worst. And like she said earlier, getting involved with coworkers is always so damn messy. Too many sorcerers get out of the field or die because they were too worried about someone else.

"There's some spots close by we can walk to and then I'll have Ijichi swing around and take us to the spot."

"Ijichi?"

"Driver."

"Ah. Is he your personal driver, or does he take the students to their missions as well?"

"Occasionally he'll take the students, but for the most part, he drives me around. If you're any good, then I might share my driver with you."

"But why do you need a driver if you can just warp wherever you want?"

"There's conditions to it." He places his hand on her lower back as they go down the steps. He's only helping her out in case she trips. "Everyone has a pool of cursed energy to pull from. You don't want to be low on your output and get jumped or caught by a curse stronger than you."

"Oh. And without cursed energy, you can't do as much damage then?"

"Well, if you need cursed energy to exorcise a curse, you would have a hard time doing so if you run out."

"... But I don't use cursed energy," she murmurs, deep in thought.

He keeps silent, pretending to not have heard her. Whatever she has doesn't feel like cursed energy. It feels purer. Warm. He bites the inside of his cheek. And it does wicked things to him when she wraps it around him. He peeks a glance at her. A priestess, huh? The notion is so farfetched, but at the same time it holds up.

He doesn't have a choice but to believe her at face value for now.

They don't say anything else on the walk to the restaurant. He pays for both of them, ignoring the way she tries to shove money into his hands. It's cute. She thinks one meal is going to set him back. For now, he allows her to lead the conversation. If he wants to get more information out of her, he needs to play the long game. She is not his enemy, and he is fine with coaxing the information out of her.

She doesn't stop trying to pay him back until they leave the restaurant and reach their destination.

"Alright, I'll hang out inside the veil with you since this is a special grade," Satoru says, lifting his hand.

"I can put a barrier up," Kagome says, patting his arm as if to console him. "You put one up earlier."

His brows bunch together. "Do you not like my veils?"

"I just don't want you to run out of cursed energy in case something happens. Besides, a barrier is nothing." She smiles, so brightly that he can't even muster up a crumb of laughter at her thinking he would ever run out of cursed energy. "You can wait here. This shouldn't take too long." She stretches her arms up and heads into the building with a pep in her step.

Satoru frowns. There is a barrier in place. He sees the energy pulsating. What he can't see is outside the veil, which should hopefully mean no one can see inside either. But more concerning is Kagome set up this barrier without so much of a flick of her wrist or an incantation. It feels different from the one she put up at the school.

Can she change the properties of her barriers?

Is it that different from a curtain Ijichi could put up?

He pulls out his phone and responds to some messages. Just as he is about to switch over to a game to play, Kagome comes out of the building looking as unfazed as she did when she went in.

"All done?" Surprise coats his words. That was a special grade, and she's done already?

"Yep! Now that you're done evaluating me, are we going to discuss how I'm supposed to help the students?"

"Umm... we can start with how your barriers work. Most of them will have a manager like Ijichi around to put the veil up, but it wouldn't hurt for them to know how to do one themselves. And your barriers also hurt the curses if they try to leave?"

"Yeah, it should burn them if they try to leave or if they try to enter." She drops the barrier around them and the sudden sound of cars and people talking hits him like a shock wave. "I could do that and maybe meditation. It helps me with my output, so it might help them increase how much cursed energy they have."

"You are welcome to try, but as far as I know, you have as much cursed energy as you are born with. It's how you use your cursed technique that helps you in battle." Also, he hasn't said a damn thing to Yaga yet about his latest find. Not that he foresees Yaga saying no. And if he does, well, he's Gojo Satoru, he can throw his name around if need be.

"I'm not starting Monday, though. I can't just up and quit at the school. That would be pretty rude." She talks with her hands as they make their way over to where Ijichi is waiting for them. Ijichi looks at Kagome with so much longing behind his glasses that Satoru wants to pluck his eyes out.

On second thought, Ijichi is not allowed to drive Kagome around anywhere.

"Shall we head to the next mission?" Ijichi asks, getting the door for Kagome. He grimaces when he sees Satoru, and Satoru takes that personally, so he crowds Ijichi's personal space for good measure.

"Can we stop by the shrine? It's not too far from him?"

"What shrine?" Satoru climbs into the back seat and manspreads, smiling to himself when Kagome huffs and shoves his legs away.

"Higurashi shrine. I totally forgot to stop by yesterday and check on something. It'll only take a second."

"Checking on a blessing?"

She worries her bottom lip. "Okay, this is going to sound weird, and I don't mean to say it in that whole serial killer way."

Now she has his attention.

"But there's these weird fingers my gramps brought back with him, and they are downright evil, so I need to check on the seals."

Satoru scratches his head. Did she say evil fingers? Is she talking about what he hopes she isn't talking about? He tilts his head to the side. "Serious question. Do you always fight in a skirt?"

Kagome glances at her legs. Her long, wonderfully toned legs that shouldn't be so distracting. "Easier than fighting in jeans."

He nods his head in understanding. Got it. He'll put in a request for a floor length uniform.

[mwplanet]

SDL Tips from Gr. 12s

Struggling with SDl? The seniors have your back!

By Fynley Clarete

Mary Ward students hard at work

Photo by Sarah Emery

Most people can agree that Self-Directed Learning  isn’t the easiest to keep up with, so our Grade 12s have a couple of tips to make it just a bit easier.

For juniors who are just getting used to SDL, it’s more than common to feel the weight of expectations. A new environment, a new work system - who wouldn’t? Looking at the grade 12s on their way to university, it’s easy to feel intimidated. Though, most seniors will tell you they felt the exact same way.  “Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. Grade 9-10 isn’t as important as you think” says Alston. While it's important to keep up with good grades,  your junior years should be focused on navigating the new environment you’re in, especially if it’s anything like Mary Ward. These years are filled with new experiences, friends, and learning styles. The most important thing to focus on is building a foundation, getting to know yourself, and the way you learn and work. 

Different people work better in different environments. Some in more organized and quiet places, while others in more communicative and loud environments. Lianne suggests that you “find a space that you are most comfortable/proactive in.” Finding an area you work best in early on could help you for all four years of high school, whether it be for calming stress, studying for an upcoming test, or catching up on outstanding units. However, it’s important not to spend all your time there. “Don’t work in a department just because it’s comfortable. Get used to working in different departments even if you don’t like the teacher/course” says Jocelyn. Even if you don’t like a course, it’s best to spend some time in its department to talk to teachers and remember to do the work you may or may not be putting off.

  When going through your work, it’s easy to give it a glance and decide it’s too much. Too much text, too hard to do. So it gets put off, and slowly trickles down to the pile of forgotten units. “Personally, when faced with a difficult unit or assignment, I believe it’s better to divide up the work and start small,” says Shauri, “complete the parts you understand first, then spend more time on the difficult portions.” Dividing up your work is a large component of tackling your units, and other seniors can agree: “Remember to divide work into feasible chunks over an appropriate amount of time” says Sheryl. Even when you have your work all planned out, it’s more than likely that you’ll run into a problem or two. That’s when your time in different departments and getting comfortable with different teachers kicks in. It is your responsibility to remain resilient in this system!

Consulting with teachers can seem almost like a nightmare at first: they look so intimidating, and your go-to support friend is too busy to come with you! In reality, it isn’t at all like being chased by zombies. “Talk to your teachers right away if you have a problem about work” suggests Jocelyn, “they’ll be more understanding than you think most of the time.” Regular communication with your teachers can help in many different areas. Having conversations with them can give them a better feel of what you may struggle with in future units, and how they can help you. Although teachers can be intimidating, everything you do all comes back to helping you as a student. Besides, in the words of Ms. Albert, “We get bored if you don’t ask us questions!” Who would’ve thought you could get on a teacher's bad side by leaving them alone?

Navigation in a whole new world is hard, and the Grade 12s know that better than anyone else. It’s important to stay on track, but you can’t do that all on your own. The grade 12s may not  have it all figured out, but if their advice got them through four years of SDL, they must seem like pretty reliable sources. Just remember not to put too much pressure on yourself. Despite how intimidating Mary Ward can be, there’s no expectation to be perfect.

[undertale-outcode-imagines]

Bad Sanses with a sick s/o? 👉👈 If it's okay

The temptation to just write a story for this- I know I'd never actually finish it but also it's hurt/comfort come on- I don't write x reader stuff enough, I should do it more

Nightmare: For a little bit, he'd probably freak out. He'll probably drag you to the nearest bed and sit on top of you until you're willing to stay put. He might even kidnap Sci, if it was bad enough. Once he's calmed down, he'll probably just sit with you, making sure you have everything you need.

Horror: Soup fixes everything, right? Right. He'll just cook you things until you're better, because that's really most of what he knows will help. If he can remember a medicine that would help, and they have it, he might offer it to you, but if you do the whole "ew medicine gross" thing he'll just hid it in your soup- He won't force you to stay in bed, but he may randomly pick you up and carry you if you decide to try and walk.

Ash: They're a doctor, so they're mostly used to this. They'll probably deal with it much more professionally than the others, and are less likely to overreact. They will pester you into resting instead of just powering through it, and offer cuddles like the little boney heat pack they are.

Killer: He doesn't quite know what to do. He knows medicine helps, but really beyond that he'll just offer you hugs until you feel better. Just sitting on the couch, binging Disney movies and drinking broth. Best cure for a sickness, in his eyes.

Dust: He's probably about the same as Killer. He might be more mature about it, and at least drag you to a bed, but otherwise he doesn't do much. He might be a little extra clingy, but no, it's definitely not because he's worried. Never.

Cross: He would completely freak out. Even more than Nightmare did. You do not get to leave your bedroom (or his bedroom) for like, a week. He will sit right next to you and not get any sleep because he has to be awake if you need anything. He'll probably end up being more unwell in the end, because the little guy can't practice self care for the life of him.

Error: "Why are you sick. That was a serious question. No, please, tell me. Why-" He takes a bit to figure out how he can help, this isn't the kind of thing he normally ends up doing. After some frantic googling, he'll just drag you to Sci's. After Sci reassures him that it's just a fever, he'll make you a comfy little hammock and sit knitting you blankets until you ask him for things. He can't make soup, but he might steal some water and crackers from somewhere.

[jenoismydad]

2 + 3 = You In Me

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Pairing: Tutor!Jaemin x Fem!Reader

Genre: Smut (pwp), Slight Angst, College AU

Words: 4.6k+

Warnings: 18+ content. Unprotected sex.

Synopsis: He agrees to tutor you and you end up becoming good friends even though you both so clearly want to be more. What happens when you let you bodies talk for you?

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Jaemin was coming over to help you prepare for a test. You had no clue how he'd agreed to assist you, but you were thankful nonetheless. Jaemin rarely ever studied with girls. Mostly because they were always hitting on him. But it seemed you were an exception. You wondered why but you figured it was because he was trying to make some extra money.

Yes, Jaemin made you pay him. He made everyone pay him so you didn't think too much of it. From what you'd heard, his methods never failed to prove effective. You hoped he could help you study well enough to pass this test. After all, a majority of your grade depended on it.

You'd spent a good amount of your time trying to prepare a nice study space for you both to sit at in your apartment. So far you'd only managed to clean your coffee table and place two cushions for seats at its feet.

Jaemin would be here any minute. You rushed to get everything you'd need for the day, wanting to keep it all ready so that you wouldn't have to interrupt the study session. Your bell rang not soon after. He was here on time.

Opening the door, you welcomed him with a smile. He nodded and entered without a word. Black track pants and a plain white shirt. Jaemin hadn't made much of an effort to dress to impress. He ventured into your dorm, looking around the place silently.

That's when he came across your makeshift study zone. He pointed at it and looked at you.

"We're studying here," he asked, placing his hands in his pockets. He sounded a tad bit dejected. Your eyes widened slightly in panic. Was he not comfortable with sitting on the floor? "Yeah, I figured. Is there a problem," you asked, fearing the worst for no reason. Jaemin shook his head. "Nope, I just thought we were gonna sit in your room. That's where most of the girls take me anyways," he revealed, flashing you a small grin. You immediately felt at ease.

"My room's kind of a mess at the moment," you admitted, joining him near your couch. He took a seat on the floor, placing the cushion behind his back instead. He cleaned his black-rimmed glasses and patted the space next to himself. "Let's get started."

Jaemin was a pro at breaking down the complex concept so that your pea-sized brain could understand it to the fullest. The only drawback with that method was that it took much longer than you'd like it to. Two hours later you'd only finished one of the chapters that would be coming for the test. You still had four more to go.

"Fuck it's already three o'clock," you complained, falling dramatically on the coffee table. Jaemin flipped his pen in his fingers and stretched his body with a yawn. "I don't mind staying overtime," he joked. He'd made a lot of humoring comments during your time with him. The last you'd heard, he tended to be quite serious, never straying from his purpose. Not that you minded or anything, but Jaemin wasn't really meeting the expectations everyone had set for him in your mind. Maybe they were just trying to intimidate you.

"Don't you have to study too," you asked, turning your head to glance at him. He looked at you and shook his head. "I already studied beforehand. Plus, this test's gonna be super easy. You pass it with a breeze," he admitted. As relieving as that sounded, you didn't wanna take any chances. What if he flunked the test because he didn't revise or something. You really didn't want to be the person he blamed when that happened.

"You don't have to stay for my sake. You can go home if you want to. I think I can manage on my own now." you flipped through the pages of your coursebook, sighing in despair. It was a lot to go through. At least you still had half the day left.

Jaemin folded his arms. "Don't worry about me y/n. Not to undermine you, but I don't think you can get through all of this by yourself. I mean, you barely managed to understand the basics. All those chapters just branch off from this one and get increasingly tough to learn."

If this was him trying to convince you to let him stay then it sure as hell was working. You groaned and sat back up. "You promise you won't fail the test because of me then?" Jaemin chuckled. "Of course not. I'll pass with flying colors."

So you resumed studying. Jaemin was right. What he taught you next was more confusing than the first chapter you'd covered. You regretted not paying attention during your lectures. Jaemin never got impatient with you. In fact, he took ample time to make sure you understood everything he explained to you. He was very thorough and you appreciated that. However the more knowledge you absorbed, the more exhausted you felt. It got to the point where you felt like you couldn't study any further. Jaemin then suggested that you take a small break. You couldn't have agreed faster.

"Once we're done you should go through the practice questions that I emailed you," Jaemin reminded, taking a sip of the soda you'd offered him. You gave him a thumbs up and fell on the ground. "You're a lifesaver Na Jaemin."

Jaemin chuckled and turned to you. "I'm guessing it's not just math that you're having a problem with."

You raised your head and narrowed your eyes at him. "Nicely deduced."

"We can get together to study together for your other subjects if you don't mind. No need to pay me either," he offered.

You furrowed your brows. "Jaemin the longer you spend teaching me the dumber you're gonna get."

He brushed you off. "I'm pretty sure it doesn't work like that."

"You never know, and besides, after today you should know that it's gonna take five hundred years to clear all my concepts. Do you even have that kind of time?"

Jaemin tilted his soda can at you. "You'd be surprised at how much free time I have on my hands."

You smiled. "Wait so you're actually agreed to be my personal tutor."

Jaemin rolled his eyes amusedly. "It was my proposition but yes. I wouldn't be your personal tutor though. Just a study partner."

You sat up and leaned back. "So like, studying in the library after class and stuff like that?"

He nodded. "If the library's closed we can come here or I can take you to my place."

You pursed your lips, considering his deal. But something paused your train of thoughts. "Wait a minute. Why are you asking me this all of a sudden? You hardly seem like the type of guy who'd study with someone else."

Jaemin downed his drink, wincing at the fizziness that clawed at his throat. "I've had fun studying with you so far. Like, you're genuinely dumb, unlike some other people I tutor who just pretend to be dumb so they can spend a few hours with me."

You raised a brow. Had he just called you dumb? "I'll try not to take offense, thank you very much."

Jaemin apologized with a laugh.

"Does it make you feel smarter in some type of way," you asked? Jaemin hummed in response. "It kinda does now that you mention it. But I also feel like it would help me revise and clear my own concepts at the same time."

That made sense. "Damn, and here I was thinking you wanted to do this cause you were interested in me."

Jaemin's eyes widened. You raised your hands in defense. "It's just a joke. Don't take it seriously," you assured. Jaemin relaxed at that.

"Let's get started again. We're almost halfway there," he said, changing the topic. You agreed and sat beside him again, pen in hand, ready to go.

_

You walked out of your lecture with a bright smile on your face and headed straight to the library. Sure enough, Jaemin was already sitting there, waiting for you patiently. You sent him a small wave and skipped over to him. Handing him your graded test paper, you watched excitedly as his eyes lit up.

"Oh my god. You passed!"

You squealed and sat next to him, placing your bag near your feet. Jaemin smiled up at you. "This is such a good score," he added, glad that he'd been able to help.

"Henceforth we're studying together for every single test. I don't care if you're sick or at a friend's house."

Jaemin laughed and nodded. "Sure thing. If it means seeing you this happy then I'm down."

You froze at his words, glancing towards him. He clearly didn't seem to realize what he'd just said. Maybe you'd heard wrong. It was possible. After all, he was whispering. You didn't exactly have the best track record when it came to listening anyways. Concluding that you were mistaken, you pulled out your books and got to finishing up your assignments.

A few hours later Jaemin and you exited the library. You both usually parted ways since your dorms were in the opposite direction. However today, Jaemin followed behind you.

"What are you doing," you asked when he jogged up next to you. "We should celebrate your achievement today," he suggested. That sounded nice. "Okay then, what do you propose we should do?"

Jaemin pondered on your question. "Let's go to the cafe. I'll buy you coffee and anything else you want."

Coffee was perfect. You nodded and agreed. Jaemin grinned and led you to a small cafe that was just a little outside campus.

You both entered the small shop, the tantalizing scent of coffee hitting your senses immediately. Even though it was almost lunchtime, the cafe was brimming with multitudes of students. Luckily, the queue was short.

"Go find us somewhere nice to sit. I'll buy us some drinks," Jaemin said, pulling out his phone. Before you left, you let him know what you'd like.

Venturing to the back of the cafe, you found a secluded booth for two. It faced a large window, one that gave a fantastic view of the campus. You took a seat and placed your bag next to you. After a couple minutes of waiting, Jaemin emerged with your drinks in hand. He handed you yours before sitting down.

"Iced Americano? I see you're into the classics," you chimed, deciding to spark up a conversation. Jaemin took a sip of his drink. "Simple is the best after all."

Of course, it was. "Hey Jaemin," you started, setting your drink down on the table. He hummed. "Do you wanna come over later today," you asked. Jaemin furrowed his brows. "But we already finished studying."

You shook your head. "Not to study. Let's hang out, maybe watch a movie or something like that."

He seemed a bit taken aback, but nothing too alarming. It was just that you two never really did anything other than study together. Sure enough, you'd become close because of it. But you figured as friends, there were other things you could engage in to pass the time.

"Let's do it. What time should I come over," Jaemin asked? "Does seven work for you? I'll order pizza, so you don't need to worry about dinner."

Jaemin nodded. "Seven works for me."

_

As soon as the clock struck seven, there was a knock on your door. The ever punctual Jaemin would never be a second late. You let him in, eager to get your night started. He walked into your dorm and went straight to your room, plopping down on your bed as if it were his own.

You'd already been browsing on Netflix, wondering what genre he liked. It had never come up in conversation before so you didn't really know.

"What are we watching," he asked, scrolling through the options. You shrugged and joined him on your bed. "I'm not sure. I didn't know what you like," you admitted.

"I usually just watch whatever's in the top ten or 'new this week'," he shared. He stopped at a movie you would never have believed he'd be interested in.

"You wanna watch Yes Day," you asked in disbelief? Jaemin giggled and nodded innocently. "It looks super lame but I've already finished watching everything," he revealed. Here you were thinking you both would watch something more serious instead of a family movie. Instead of spending forty minutes trying to settle on one movie, you decided it best to just go with the first choice.

Jaemin started the movie and leaned back beside you. It was quiet between you both for the most part. You watched the movie in silence. It wasn't as entertaining as you'd thought it would be, but Jaemin seemed to be engrossed in it so you chose to say nothing and continued staring at the screen.

Halfway into the movie, Jaemin stifled a yawn and fell to the side, rubbing his eyes tiredly. He looked at you and pointed to the screen. "Are we gonna keep watching this?"

You let out a breath of relief and exited out of the movie once and for all. "If you didn't like it why'd you make me watch it," you complained, shutting your laptop. Jaemin sat up and crossed his legs. "I thought you were enjoying it. You even laughed at the funny parts."

You stuck your chin out. "You should know what my fake laugh sounds like by now Jaemin." He raised his hands in defense. "The only time I hear you laugh is when you realize you're doing something wrong."

You tsked. "That's called nervous laughter genius. You suck at interpreting emotions."

He hit you with a pillow softly. "Hey, stop making me out for a robot."

"You're the human embodiment of the AI," you joked, dodging the pillow he swung at you. Raising your hands in defense, you shielded yourself from him. "At least I said you're intelligent."

Jaemin paused his attacks. "You're lucky I think you're cute. I'll let you off the hook for now."

You had another one of those moments where you froze, wondering if the words that had come out of his mouth were true or not. He didn't whisper this time. You'd heard everything word for word. But you couldn't believe it.

"Did you just call me cute?"

Jaemin nodded, not seeming too surprised about it. "You aren't not cute," he added. Maybe you were misinterpreting the meaning behind it. Friends called friends cute. It was normal. That didn't mean that they liked each other, did it?

Noticing the conflict in your expression, Jaemin leaned forward and cleared his throat. "I didn't mean it in an 'I have a crush on you' type of way."

Something about that made your stomach churn. You felt uneasy all of a sudden. You wanted to be relieved, that he didn't think of you as more than a friend. But a part of you wished he felt otherwise. You didn't know why, it just did.

You chuckled awkwardly and faced him. "Yeah, of course, you didn't. I don't know why I thought that."

Jaemin hummed and rested his chin on his palm. "Maybe because you wanted it to be true."

"Huh?"

"Maybe you wanted me to tell you that I like you."

You didn't know what to say to that. So you just smiled awkwardly. "But you don't, do you?"

Jaemin grinned. "Do you want me to?"

"No! Of course not, why would I-"

"I'm just messing with you y/n. Don't worry, we're just friends," he assured, finding you getting alarmed quite amusing. You hit his shoulder. "Don't joke around like that. Who knows what might happen."

Jaemin's laughter died down. He met your gaze sombrely. You knew he wanted to say something, but he remained silent. His eyes traveled down to your lips for a moment. You sucked in a breath, suddenly feeling giddy. Jaemin looked back into your eyes, this time with a small smile. You didn't know what he was doing. You also didn't know if you liked it or not. Your mind said one thing and your body said another. Jaemin subtly licked his lips. You had no clue why the action had such a devastating effect on you.

Before you knew it, your lips were on his. Jaemin didn't seem surprised at all. In fact, he relaxed and snaked his arm around your waist, pulling your body onto his. He fell back on your mattress, bringing you on top of him. Straddling his lap, you placed your hands on either side of his head, kissing him with vigor. Jaemin groaned against your mouth, the sound sending warm shivers down your back. His lips were softer than you thought they'd be and he tasted faintly of coffee.

His hands slipped under your shirt, resting on your skin. His touch felt fiery hot. You rolled your hips over his lap impulsively, biting his both lip as a throaty groan left his mouth. He squeezed your waist and trailed his hands down to your ass.

Before things could escalate, however, your bell rang. You both stilled, separating from each other. When your eyes met, you scrambled off of him and sat at the edge of your bed, completely stunned. Jaemin rubbed his face and sat up as well, not really knowing what to say. The bell rang again, snapping you out of your daze. "I'll go get that," you muttered disorientedly, leaving Jaemin in your room. He nodded and stood up. "Actually, I'm gonna go," he said, leaving your room before you could say anything. You heard the door open and shut soon after. Your bell rang again.

You went to open your door. A delivery guy stood before you, hands empty with a confused look on his face. "The guy that just left took the pizza with him. He said that you'd pay for it." You couldn't believe it. Nonetheless, you paid the man and shut your door. What had just happened?

_

A few days passed after the incident at your dorm. Jaemin hadn't called or texted you and in all honesty, you hadn't made an attempt to contact him. You felt too embarrassed to face him. After all, it was you who'd gone onto him. Even if he didn't push you away it wasn't like either of you had agreed to start making out. You were anxious because you knew you'd ruined your friendship with him.

A part of you missed him. You enjoyed spending time with him, even though all you did was study. Everything was so bleak now that he wasn't around to humor you.

You didn't want to regret whatever had happened that night. It was amazing. You just wished it hadn't ended the way it did. You should have understood that he indeed was joking. Instead, you mistook his prodding for sarcasm.

It made no sense for you to not speak to him. You wanted to make amends, figure out what had gone wrong. But you were scared he'd ignore you. That would just make you feel worse than you already did.

So you passed the days, wafting in your own misery. Pitying yourself as if the entire weight of the world had been thrown on your shoulders.

Little did you know that all it would take was another shitty test score for you to pick up your phone and call Jaemin.

"Help me study," you said as soon as he answered the call. Jaemin was silent on the other end. "Don't just listen to me. Say something," you begged. Your heart felt heavy. You heard him sigh. "I'd rather not y/n." You got goosebumps. "Jaemin, please. We can go to fucking library if that makes you feel better," you suggested, desperate for him to agree. After giving it some thought he finally answered you. "Okay fine. Tomorrow at three. But no longer than three hours."

He hung up, leaving you feeling a tad bit better. You looked forward to the next day. Hopefully, he wouldn't act indifferent to you.

_

Jaemin sat in your usual spot at the library. He was on his phone, leg crossed over his lap leisurely. You walked up to him and took a seat beside him without a word. Seeing you had arrived, he put his phone away and turned to you. "What are we studying?"

You took out your books and opened them. "This."

Jaemin glanced over the material. No wonder you'd flunked your test. He sighed, placing the textbook between you two. Without wasting a second, he began tutoring you.

No matter how hard you tried, you just couldn't pay attention. You were too busy staring at his face, more specifically his lips. They way he'd lick them ever so often made butterflies soar in your stomach. He'd run his hand through his fluffy hair and adjust his glasses, letting your mind run wild. Jaemin didn't seem to notice your lack of focus. You figured he didn't really care. He kept glancing at his watch. It was like he was waiting for your time with him to come to an end.

Much to your dismay, eventually it did.

"I'll send you a picture of some practice material. You can use that to prepare better," he concluded, getting up from his seat. You quickly stuffed your books in your bag and ran after him.

"Jaemin wait!"

He paused. "What," he asked as he turned around. He sounded disinterested. "Can we talk," you asked? Jaemin sighed and shrugged. "What do you wanna talk about," he questioned, placing his hands in his pockets. "About what happened at my place last week."

Jaemin tensed up. "It was a mistake. I think we both understood that."

You shook your head. "I don't know Jaemin, I'm not sure I did."

He furrowed his brows. "What do you mean?"

"The more I thought about it the more I realized that I wouldn't have kissed you unless I wanted to. Not just that but you wouldn't have let it go so far if you thought it was wrong."

He seemed at a loss for words.

"When you called me cute, you did mean it in an 'I have a crush on you' type of way." You didn't need an answer for him to know you were correct.

"What are you trying to say y/n," he asked, sounding defeated.

"That I like you," you admitted. Jaemin's eyes widened. "And that you like me too," you added.

Jaemin bit his lip. "Okay, so then why were we acting like we hated each other for so long?"

You shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe because you overthink everything and I'm a big pussy."

Jaemin chuckled and slung his arm around your shoulder. "I'm sorry about that babe."

You cringed at the nickname. "Don't 'babe' me. We're not dating. Not yet."

Jaemin rolled his eyes. "Does it really need to be that formal?"

You nodded adamantly. "Of course it does."

He sighed. "Fine. Will you go out with me y/n?"

You smiled and shook your head. "I'd rather not Jaemin."

"Yeah whatever," he said with a scoff, leading you outside.

_

As soon as you were past your door Jaemin's lips were on yours in an instant. He pushed you against the wall, wrapping your legs around his waist. You held onto his shoulders, sighing into his mouth. "I missed you so fucking much," he muttered, stumbling to your room.

He dropped you on your bed and hovered over you, staring down at you somberly before kissing you again. His lips didn't stay on yours for too long, trailing down to your jaw and then your neck. You tugged at his shirt, urging him to take it off. When he did, you stared at his chiseled body in awe. "I didn't know you worked out."

Jaemin chuckled at your comment and pulled your own shirt off. He flicked the tiny bow on your bra with an amused grin. "This is cute."

You nudged his arm timidly. "I wasn't exactly preparing myself for this moment."

He said nothing further and latched his lips to your neck once again. Running your fingers through his hair, you craned your neck to the side to give him more access. He gently sucked on your skin, not too harsh that it would leave marks. You sighed and fiddled with the waistband of his sweatpants. "Do you want it off," he asked quietly, lips ghosting over yours. You nodded, biting your lip when he pushed his pants down.

His member came into sight, making your mouth water.

Taking your hand in his, he brought it to his cock. Your fingers wrapped around his girth instinctively. Jaemin suck in a breath as he made you stroke his length. His hand slipped past your panties, fingers toying with your clit. You gasped and spread your legs wider, loving the way his calloused fingertips felt. Tightening your grip around his cock, you jerked him off earnestly. In turn, Jaemin began rubbing quick circles into your sensitive bundle of nerves.

Letting go of his member, you hastily pushed your pants down your legs. Jaemin peeled your panties off of you, marveling at the sight of your glistening pussy. "Don't just stare," you complained, shutting your legs, "do something."

Jaemin wordlessly, spread your legs apart and settled down between your thighs. He glanced up at your through his lashes, asking for permission before licking a stripe up your folds. You pushed your hips against his mouth, eyes falling shut when he repeated the action. Holding onto your thighs, he nipped and sucked at your clit, groaning every time your bucked your hips into his face. You gripped onto his hair, tugging at his roots. Jaemin's fingers prodded at your slit, slowly entering your walls. He curled them up, making your arch your back in delight. It felt so good. He knew exactly what he was doing.

With his tongue skillfully moving over your clit and his fingers continuously pumping in and out of you, it didn't take long for you to feel a familiar knot in your stomach. You sat up, pulling his mouth off of your cunt. "I need you to fuck me now." Your voice was hushed, breathless because of how much you'd moaned. Jaemin's eyes had darkened considerably. He pushed you down on your back again and pressed his tip to your entrance.

Jaemin felt bigger than he looked. Not that you were complaining or anything, it just took a while to get used to. He made sure you were comfortable before slowly starting to pound into you.

You grabbed his arms as he fastened his pace, head falling back in ecstasy. Shallow breaths left his parted lips. "You feel so good," he muttered, burying his face in the crook of your neck. His breath was hot on your skin. You wrapped your arms around his neck, humming in response. You were close. Jaemin could tell.

Gripping onto your waist, he went faster, slamming his cock into you as he chased your highs. You cried out his name, squeezing your eyes shut. Your walls clenched tightly around his length, your orgasm crashing down on you intensely. Soon enough, he twitched inside you. His thighs stilled, hips snapping into you one last time before thick ropes of his cum shot into your walls. He let out a pleased groan, voice deep and raspy.

"That was amazing," you breathed, pushing your hair out of your face as Jaemin moved off of you. He smiled and tugged his pants back on, joining you under the covers. "I'm glad you enjoyed it." Jaemin pulled you into his side, letting you rest your head on his shoulder. You laughed to yourself. "What is it," Jaemin asked. You shook your head, looking at him. "To think this all started after you agreed to tutor me."

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tagging: @neosmutcollective @hoehousenet @kdiarynet @kafenetwork @nct-writers @ficscafe @whipped-kpop-creators @kpopscape

[bl3333h]

Yer shekh ma shieraki anni.

Hiii, so I've spent a lot of time reading fanfics and imagines and this is my first time trying to write one for Changbin. Let me know what you think. Lots of love - Bl3333h

You’re tired. Drained. Emotionally and physically. Who knew four years of studying would be so tiring? You didn’t and that’s a fact. Assignments and tests piled on one another not even to mention the shit ton of practicals. All of this is starting to take its toll on you. But you are two sentences away from completing your final assignment for your degree.

“Fullstop…” you mumble under your breath. I am finally done! I am one grade away from getting my degree! You open the university portal and upload the assignment and click submit. “Hmph…I thought this would feel more satisfying” you whisper as you stare at the laptop screen in front of you. You check the time – 19:12. As you get up from your desk you decide to check up on your boyfriend. Come to think about it, the flat has been quiet…too quiet.

“Binnie?”

Nothing…

“Binnie?!”

“Uh… H- here! I’m in the living room!” he stutters as he calls back. You make your way over to the living room. Your flat isn’t a large, but it has served its purpose and even though it’s not much it’s home.

“You are looking at a woman who has just submitted her last assignment Bin!” you say proudly as you stand in the doorway, hands on your hips, large grin spreading across your face. His big brown eyes in which you could stare into all day long widens as he starts smiling widely. He does the cute little aegyo giggle you love so much.

“Jagi! That’s amazing, we need to celebrate. What do you think? I’m thinking food, fireworks, beer, that candy you love so much, more food!” he exclaims, arms flailing around as he speaks trying to show you how big he plans to celebrate this moment.

“Woaaah slow down mister” you laugh, doubling over clutching your stomach. “I’ve only submitted my final assignment, I didn’t get my degree yet! Let’s just enjoy the rest of the evening. Just you and me, our couch and that kdrama we’ve been meaning to finish.”

“Yah you’re no fun” he pouts shuffling over to you and embracing you. “If you really plan on sitting at home the whole evening binge watching kdramas” he sighs jokingly “you better go get us some snacks!” he points to the door.

“Why should I get the snacks?” you exclaim. “I don’t want to get into other clothes, I’m in my comfies” you say pointing to your shirt and tights – okay fine technically it’s his shirt but who cares you’re still wearing your tights.

“Jagi-ah!” he whines. “If you go, then I’ll get everything ready for the rest of the evening. I’ll set up the couch with all of the blankets you like, I’ll put out a fresh pair of pyjamas for when you get back and I’ll even get our cups ready for hot chocolate, or coffee, or tea, or whatever you want to drink” he pleads giving you a playful pout. You put your arms around his neck playing with the hair in the nape of his neck looking him in the eyes. “Jagiiiiii c’moooooon, if you go to get the snacks, I’ll make this the most magical night of your life” he says smirking and wiggling his eyebrows at you.

“Seo Changbin! As much as I’d love to experience one of your magical nights, I am only able to take the amount of magic that our couch, our kdrama and your warm embrace can give me” you giggle lightly hitting his chest as he smiles down at you. “Fiiiiiiine” you cave in. “I’ll go to the store” you sigh exasperatedly. As you head up to your room you think you see him break out in a mischievous smirk.

“Okay Binnie, I’m heading out. Don’t miss me too much!” you sing as you exit the door.

“I miss you already jagi!” he calls after you causing you to smile softly. Lord knows, you love this man with all of your heart.

While you’re out of the house, Changbin puts up glow-in-the-dark stars on the ceiling along with two lamps (one that looks like the moon and one that looks like the Sun.) To top it off he leaves a loving little note on the coffee table.

As you get back to the house with the bag filled with snacks you call out for Changbin to tell him you got everything. As you enter the door you notice the room is dark and extremely quiet. With a crash you drop the snacks on the floor gasping and covering your mouth with your hands as a tear slips over your cheek. Through your tears you spot a folded piece of paper on the coffee table with your name on it. Slowly you take the note in your hands opening it and reading.

You are my moon, my sun, and all of the stars. So I did this to make sure you always know.

Your heart swells profusely and you start feeling warm all over. No wonder he wanted to get you out of the house so badly.

“Do you like it?” he whispers from the entrance of the kitchen. Your eyes flicker up to him from the note in your hands as you run over to him jumping into his arms and pressing your head into the crook of his neck.

“I love it”

“I love you”

[twistedsin]

Hi, is it possible to request for a nsfw crewel x student! Reader? ;_; the reader is being a tease and tries to flirt with him during class. Then both of them end of doing it after school in his classroom?Thank you for your time! >.<

ABSOLUTELY!! I really like this request, I am sincerely sorry it took me so long to finish it. I’m glad I finally got to write pet-play professor. 

For the context of this fic, we’re going to say Night Raven is a newly co-ed school. Male students still outnumber females, but it is no longer gender exclusive. 

Disclaimer: Teacher x student. Don’t fuck your teachers for extra credit in real life, that is not how you succeed.

“Now, what is the element with the hottest melting point?” Crewel pointed his baton your way, as your fingers perked up. 

“Tungin” You answered, a small smirk on your lips. The rest of the class started laughing, but your professor was smarter than that. 

“Tungsten,” Crewel corrected as the class quieted down, “It is quite a robust element. Incredibly hard.” His eyes connected with yours. “Only in its purest form can you make it putty in your hands.” Crewel turned away and returned to his lecture...

“Now for today’s mini-lab, you and your partner need to list the 15 elements in order of weight. Once you have them all correct you may leave.”  

You paired up with the person next to you and tried to cooperate with them. There was much more you looking over at Crewel than actually helping with the worksheet. 

Eventually you 'accidentally' tossed your pen from your hand in the direction of his desk. It hit the floor and rolled to one of the legs, the placement couldn't have been more perfect. "Oops... I'll be right back." You told your partner, who didn't seem to care since you weren't helping anyway. 

Concealing your bright smile with a mischievous,  you walked over to the professor’s desk, his attention turning to you. "Did you have a question?" He rose a brow looking you over.

"Nope, just needed to get my pencil. It rolled over here." You explain as you drop to your knees in front of him, taking your time to turn onto all fours, your ass up and wiggling as you felt around for your pencil. Divus shifted in his chair, seeming to be looking back at the papers rather than the curve of your ass barely covered by the short uniform skirt. If he leaned back a little, he'd probably be able to see your panties, or if you were wearing any. 

Unfortunately, he did not, and gave you a disinterested response, "If you can't find it. I'll loan you a new one. You should get back to your assignment." A small pout formed on your face before you grabbed your pencil and stood. "Wait," He called out when you were a few steps away. You eagerly turned, "Yes, sir?"

"In class, it's Professor, not sir." Divus held out a paper to you, your last test with the results in red at the top. A 69/100, not great. "Your grades seem to be slipping and this attitude of yours, I think you may need a reminder of who's in charge. See me after school." 

"Yes, professor." You squeaked out trying not to smile too much. Sure you were in trouble but seeing him after school meant that the two of you would be alone together. And that part about teaching you who was in charge, it was way too easy to find a hidden meaning in that. Now it was even harder to focus on the work at hand. Even through the rest of your classes, all you could think about what Divus was going to teach you later. 

Knock. Knock. Knock. 

"Professor?" You called out, entering the classroom before waiting for a response, "You wanted to see me?”

"What is the point of knocking, if you're not going to wait for an answer?" Divus sighed from behind his desk. "You may come in. Be sure to lock the door. I hate when students just think they can barge in." He watched, making sure you did what you were told. Once you had locked the door you obediently went over and stood in front of his desk.

"I made it a goal to be sure none of my pups had red marks this semester." He removed his glasses and moved the stack of paperwork into a drawer. "You are at risk of me breaking this promise, and I won't have it." He stood, and walked around the desk to stand in front of you. "You need more discipline."

"You think scolding me is going to make work harder?" I mean it might, depending on the type of punishment. "Maybe I want red marks." You wanted them more on your body than your report card though.

He was unamused at your response. "I've trained plenty of other litters, my methods have yet to fail. I've dealt with your type too. So, what is this new issue of yours that has you so distracted in class?" He took a step closer, leaving him right in front of you, "Or should I guess." 

“Well... It’s just hard for me to focus on chemical reactions when my body always has such a strong reaction to you. It’s easy for my mind to wander to more reactive activities.”

A smirk crossed his lips, as he leaned in, “Like my tongue inside you?”

You shivered from his warm breath on your ear. You felt your lower regions pulse, thoughts of your little fantasy popping up in your mind. You needed a moment to regain your composure. “Tongue just happened to work with the element, I’m not opposed to any other part of you being in me either~”

“Quite a bold little puppy you are.” Crewel took a step back looking you over. “Since that's the issue let's try and see if you can focus on one of those activities,” He pointed the baton at his desk, “Sit.” You eagerly obey, taking a seat on the side edge of his desk. 

He took off his coat and placed it on the coat stand before moving back to his desk. “If you still can't focus, or misbehave then this stops." He started sifting through the bottom left drawer. “Hold this.” He shut the drawer and stood holding a wrapped condom to your lips. You softly took the corner of the package in your mouth. “Don’t drop it.” 

The order was a bit harder to follow than you thought as he almost teasingly slowly removed his tie and undid a few buttons on his shirt. He ran a hand through his hair before undoing his pants and pulling out his dick. You would have licked your lips if you could.

“You look hungry pet.” You spread your legs as his gloved hand ran up your thigh.  He stepped closer, slowly grinding his erection against your wet panties. You let out a needy whine shifting your hips as a way to encourage him. Your core tightened just from the grinding, it just made you want him more. “You’re so excited, aren’t you? I wonder, how often have you masturbated to the idea of me fucking you in this classroom?” 

You gave him a lustful look as he finally took the condom from your mouth. “Enough to have some expectations” You gave a coy smile but he simply responded with a smirk. 

“I doubt those will hold up to the real thing.” Once the condom was on his hands trailed up your thighs. Your breathing grew heavy with lust at his teasing touch. The way he took his time was driving you crazy.

You narrowed your eyes at him, wanting to scold him to hurry it up, but he simply stared back a small upward curve at the corner of his mouth. His threat of stopping if you misbehaved floating through your head. There was no way you were going to risk this ending not when you were so close. His fingers finally caught the edges of your panties and pulled them off, a strand of your juices dragging out. 

Crewel licked his lips, finally grabbing your hips and tugging you against him. “Let’s see if you meet my expectations.” He rubbed against you a few times before slowly pushing in, leaving you time to adjust. He wasn’t sure how experienced you were and didn’t want to push you too much. While the feeling was tight, and a bit painful with how active your insides had been it wasn’t too bad to adjust to. “Ah~ Y-you’re finally inside, Professor Crewel!" You gasped between your shaky moans. A smile formed on your face from looking down at how he stretched you. There was still so much left to fill you with and you couldn't wait. 

His hand gripped your chin to look back up at him. "Wrong. It's Master or Master Crewel now. Do you understand pet?"

"Yes Master Crewel." It was easy enough to remember the name as you referred to him as such in most of your fantasies anyway. 

His hand slid up your cheek to push some of your hair away from your face, "Good girl. I won't hesitate to drill the idea into you if you forget." 

Now that you had had time to adjust and names were sorted, it was time to set things in motion. His thrusts were smooth and slow at first. Even with such little stimulation, your walls were pulsing around him, squeezing as if trying to pull him deeper. It made him want to go wild, but he of course had control and would wait patiently until you let him do so. 

Your head tilted back, calling out his name. "Good pet. Just like that. I can tell you're enjoying yourself." He smirks, "Is it all your imagined? Or did you want it rougher?" He'd be happy to oblige his student's needs since they waited so long. It would be easier for them to focus if he fulfilled the fantasy correctly. 

"More." Your voice was merely a whisper at first, rising as you knew mewling wasn't a satisfying answer for him.  "I want to take all of you. I want you to move faster. Please, Master! Fuck me! I can take it, I need your cock!" You begged, feeling needy. You had let your thoughts of him been wandering for too long to not indulge yourself. You wanted him to fuck you so that you never needed another fantasy of him, just memories of this moment. 

"Such a needy pet." His hips stilled, "Lay down." His hand rested on your back to ease you into laying down across the length of his desk. He pushed your legs up and open. One of his hand resting on one of your knees, the other on the table so he could lean over you, "Let's test how much you can take."

With this new positioning, he had more leverage, and now that he wasn't holding himself back as much anymore it was almost a whole different experience from when he first ented you. His whole cock was sliding in and out of you.

His thrusts are almost wild, nothing like the slow pace he had kept before. If he hadn't laid you back beforehand you would have fallen back on your own. His entire cock being pushed inside you now, it filled you up so nicely. With these deeper thrusts, his shaft brushed against your sweet spot from time to time. Your body clenched tightly around him each time, never wanting him to pull out yet wanting him to thrust even faster and deeper. He carefully watched your expressions as the pleasure overcame you. The way your eyes became hazy and that small smile as you gasped and groaned. Some words slipping out occasionally, mostly master, yes, and more. 

"Such a good pet. You're already surpassing my expectations." Divus cooed, "Is this everything you thought about?"

"Y-yes!" You cried out between gasps. "It feels so good. So much better than a fantasy."

"Good. Then there is no reason to keep daydreaming in class then." 

"Yes. No... I-" You couldn't focus on his questions right now, or what the right answer was. You just wanted to cum and enjoy the feeling of him thrusting into you. "I'm going to cum. Master please~" 

You suddenly felt a sharp sting on your thigh as his gloved hand slapped your skin. "Answer me first pet. Are you going to focus in class?" His thrusts slowed to your dismay. 

"Yes! I'll focus in class! I'll raise my grade I promise!" You called out a bit panicked and desperate for him to continue. 

Divus chuckled a bit, enjoying your desperation. "I'm expecting good results then." His hips regained their rapid pace from before, "Now you can cum, pet." Now given permission and his thorough pace returned it didn't take long for your body to reach its peak and your orgasm to course through you. The way your body clenched and spasmed around him had him cumming soon after you. He rode out the pleasure high before finally stopping his thrusts and pulling out of you. 

A pout accompanied by a small whine formed at the loss of his cock so soon, but you couldn't stay upset. He just looked way too sexy running his hand through his hair, leaning over you catching his breath. Divus gave a small smile as his eyes caught yours. "Good girl. You performed well." 

He helped you to sit up on his desk then discarded the condom and began fixing his pants. "If you do well on the next test, I'll reward you just like this." Once he was situated, he let you rest your head against his chest while he fixed up your uniform. "If not then I'll have to find other ways to get you to behave." 

You knew it was meant as a warning but it just excited you. "Yes, Master Crewel. I'll do my best."

[noyasboxdye]

Waiting- Tanaka Ryunosuke

Notes:  I can't really say to much with out telling the story so just have fun reading.

Pairing: Tanaka Ryunosuke x Male! Reader

WARNINGS: none it’s fluff

You and Tanaka have been best friends since you were in about second grade. He's always been there for you didn't matter what the situation was. He was your life line and you were his. So when you started distancing yourself from him he took it really hard. It's not like you were trying to hurt him you thought it was the best option for him. He was focusing on volleyball and his grades so he could get into his dream school and you were a 'distraction'.

But after two painfully slow and extremely boring weeks he had, had enough. He decided that he was going to find you and talk to you and get you to talk back since  the last time he tried to talk to you, you didn't say anything you only stared at the floor while trying to move around him.

He was over it. Yes he had his friends like Noya, Hinata, and the others but it just wasn't the same. He needs you, you're his best friend the longest you guys have gone with out seeing each other was three and a half days because he went on a family bonding camping trip but even then he still called everyday.

Tanaka was fidgeting around in his seat staring at the clock as if it'll somehow magically move faster. The seconds felt like minutes and the minutes felt like hours. But finally after 50 minutes of listening to his Spanish teacher explain the rules for his assignment the bell finally rang for lunch, he could finally try and talk to you and see why you've been avoiding him. He thought you just needed space but usually that only last like a school day and then you both  FaceTime or text all night after finishing homework.

Quickly standing up putting his books in his next class so he doesn't have to rush getting his things out of his locker he finally makes it down the flights of stairs and speed walks to the doors of the lunch room waiting for you to pass by him.

Finally seeing you be quickly grabs your arm takes you under the stair case and traps you into the corner not giving you a chance to escape. You know you can't but you try anyways.

'jeez dude really don't want to see me that bad'

"Could you move please" you mumble while looking at the floor. "No. " he says while crossing his arms. "What?" you say as you look up. "No, I'm not leaving until you tell me why you're avoiding me !" he says with an annoyingly determined look on his face. "I'm not avoiding you... " you mumble looking back down. "Yes you are dude we literally haven't talked in or out of school in two weeks" he says holding up his fingers showing you the number two. "Well -... I've.. been busy more or less. " you say looking down again. "No you haven't I know your schedule like the back of my hand and you know mines! You're avoiding me so tell me why and no lying!" he says like a parent scolding their kid. He waits for you to reply and you just stand there and don't say anything. You thought maybe if you just waited for the bell to ring everything would be fine like last time. But Tanaka wouldn't let you do that again, he was going to get you to talk one way or another even if that meant following you home and staying there.

"You can't just stand here and not say anything. I'm gonna get you to talk whether you like it or not. " You can tell that he's not going to let you go so you just decide to tell him. "...go- fine..." " Yes " he says doing a little victory dance. "Well...what...?" you say trying to stall because you really didn't want him to know that you liked him and what not, you thought it was embarrassing because not only did you not know how to control yourself around him but he was straight. You felt like an idiot but now's not really the time for sulking with your huge math test coming up. " Why are you avoiding me" he asked getting straight to the point. You knew it was coming but you were still kind of thrown off by it. Slightly rolling your eyes you say "I told you I've been -" he cuts you off, "Busy yeah yeah. Now what's actually going on, are you like mad at me or something what did I do? " he said getting a little sad at the thought of his best friend being mad at him for unknown reasons. "No, not at all I could never be mad at you bubs." you say feeling guilty. "So then what?" he says. He was getting impatient there was only so much time before you both had to go to class and he didn't know if he would get an opportunity to talk to you like this again any time soon. "Uhm- I'm giving you space because you said that you we're trying to get in to that volleyball program for your college application (idk if it's actually called that I just pulled that out of my ass lol) I didn't want to be a distraction." you said regretting telling him the truth. "You're not a distraction (M/N) I don't know why you thought that." he said getting closer. "Well didn't you bomb your test because of me..." you said like it was obvious. "What-... no. I bombed my test because I didn't study and I ended up falling asleep, but that was because I was binge watching assassination classroom with Noya. We gave up on studying so I wasn't prepared either way.  

You were relieved. I mean you still were going to  avoid him because you're like head over heals for this boy but still at least you know that him failing wasn't your fault.  Well now we have to think of another excuse instead of you liking him, maybe you'll try out for a sport. Maybe swim that seemed like a good sport ran from 3:40- 6:00 then your schedule would be full and then Tanaka would leave you alone.

"So can we hang out today? You don't have anything to do." he says with a hopeful glint in his eye. You couldn't say no not while he was looking at you like that and you just cleared things up... kind of. "Yeah sure! Where do you want to go the movies maybe? I don't have any homework today." you say while thinking about how much you missed him. "Yeah sure and we can get food after!" Tanaka says jumping a little while you giggled at his movements. "Ok meet me outside after school we can drop off our bookbags at my house and then we'll go." he says while smiling with the faintest blush on his cheeks. "Ok see you after science.

••time skip>••

The school day was over and you were at your locker grabbing the things that you need to take home. You grabbed your things and walked out to the front of the school to meet up with Tanaka. You really didn't know how you were going to make it through this afternoon and probably evening with him. "(M/N)" you turned your head towards Tanaka and smiled. He really did make you happy. You hated that you couldn't be around him with out blushing, getting flustered, or over thinking. He was perfect. He really could do everything and flawlessly.

"Hey Tanaka!" you say while running up to him. "So where do you want to go? Still want to do the movies?" he asks looking at you. "Yeah sure I'm up up for the movies. You want to eat before or after?" you ask. "Uhm-... I don't really care we can do what you want to." he says rubbing the back of his neck. "Ok maybe we can eat before and then watch the movie. What do you want to watch?" you say kind of unsure about yourself. "Maybe we can go see (F/M)?" he asks while you guys turn down his street. "Oh yeah sure."

It had felt like so long since you both hung out. It was refreshing being with him again he was like a breath of fresh air for you after stressing about homework, grades, projects, and things like that- basically school as a whole- he was like reminder that everything was going to be ok and that its fine to take breaks (you tend to over work yourself). It was one of the reasons you liked him.

"Come on!" he says as he turns on to his lawn. You hum in acknowledgement as you follow him. "You can put your stuff in my room. Do you want or need anything before we go?" he asks opening his door and walking towards his closet. "No, thanks though."  you say putting your bag down next to his bed. "Ok well I'm gonna change my shirt and grab a jacket." he says taking his shirt off and you blushing like a mad man. "Take one of my hoodies if you want I know how easily you get cold and how cold it can get in the movie theatres." he says looking for a new shirt. "Oh ok thanks dude." you say walking towards his closet and going through it finding one that you liked. "He should we pack a bag? Like with blankets and our own snacks and stuff." he says putting on his signature cologne and grabbing his jacket. "Yeah I think we should. I don't want to pay 20 dollars for 3 boxes of candy when I can get them for four at dollar tree." you say while finally finding a hoodie that you liked and putting it on.

You were going insane while packing the bag. every time you moved his hoodie scent made its way into your nose, you absolutely loved it. The nice smooth vanilla scent with hints of honey and mint it was paradise for you. You were seconds away from loosing it and squealing. I mean like you wouldn't because you would probably never be able to look at him again but still you get the point. He dumped a whole bunch of candy on the bed and said "there now we don't need to buy candy" while looking proud of himself. "Holy crap dude where'd you get this?!" his mom never let him eat a lot of candy so him having this much surprised you. "Secret stash. I've been saving it and buy it then not eating it. Specifically for occasions like this so I don't have to spend as much money.

You put the candy at the bottom of the bag then blankets, your chargers, and water bottles for the both of you. He walks up to the door and sticks his head out of it "SAEKO!!" you flinched slightly being caught off guard. "WHAT" you didn't even know she was home. "TAKE ME AND (M/N) TO THE MOVIES" he says sticking his head back in the room. "Are we sure that's the safest option?" you say feeling unsure about being in the same car as her while it's on and she's in the drivers seat. "I mean no it's not but like it'll be fine and plus would you really rather walk almost twenty minutes with this bag than let her drive us?" he says while zipping up the bag and and putting it on his arm. "Yes. Yes I would rather walk than be in a car with her driving have you seen her drive?" you say while laughing a bit. "Um no slandering my driving its immaculate." she says walking in. "Shawty bae... now you know that that's a damn lie." you say holding in laughter. "Well I think her driving is fine" Tanaka says grabbing you and Saeko's hand and walking out of his room into the kitchen to fill up the water bottle's.

Time skip

After telling Saeko thank for taking you too to the mall you both get out of the car and go inside. You still had time before the movie and were both really hungry you went to (F/R) waited for the waiters to take you to your seat. "So what are you gonna get?" Tanaka says finally breaking the silence. "Oh um I don't know maybe (F/F) still trying to decide." you say looking up at him from your phone putting it away from texting your (P/F) that you might bee home later than usual since it was already starting to get a little dark out. "Hello, I can take you to your table now" the waiter says as Tanaka goes to stand next to you an grab your hand. "Ok thank you." you say blush at the contact, it seemed like he was blushing but you brushed it off as the lighting of the restaurants lighting. You sit in your seat and say a quick thank you to the waiter as he handed you your menu. "Hi my name is Mafuyu and I'll be your waiter today, can I start you off with some drinks or do you need a minute?" the waiter says smiling and pulling out his notepad. "You can go first." Tanaka says putting his menu down with a small smile and a hint of blush on his cheeks.

Tanaka's POV

I'm going to confess to them tonight. I was suppose to a while back but I chickened out and then they started avoiding me so that made it harder, but I'm for sure going to do it tonight no matter what. I told Noya so he knows, he said that if they  rejected me that he had ice cream, candy, and Attack on Titan ready for me to come over all I had to do was be there.

I think they like me back I could be wrong though they don't really talk about there emotions and stuff. But I'd like to think that I'm pretty good at reading them. They said yes to hanging out which I thought they were going to say no to but didn't which is good so phase one of the plan is complete. Next phase is to make them get that happy glow that they get when they're really happy and comfortable around someone. I really like when that happens they're like-...ok you know those super cute, calming and aesthetic cottage core videos on tiktok where they like wear the pretty dresses and the elf ears and are really pretty and they make you feel fuzzy and warm on the inside? Yeah that's what they're like but better.

The waiter guy is flirting with them you can tell. (M/N) probably just doesn't care or isn't thinking of it in that way. "-naka, Tanaka! Jeez dude you were like super zoned out, anyways what do you want to drink?" (M/N) says while giggling. "Oh sorry a  loganberry will be fine." I'm literally so freaking embarrassed right now what the fuck.

"Would you like bread while you wait?" Mafuyu says looking up from his notepad. "Do you want bread" (M/N) asks looking down from the waiter to me. "Yeah we can get bread I don't really care" I say as I shrug my shoulders. "Ok then yea we'll get bread." (M/N) smiles at the waiter as he says that, god they're so pretty what the fuck. "Alrighty~... I'm gonna go get your drinks and bread and I'll be right back. "Ok thank you." (M/N) says going to look back at me. I look up from the table and see them blushing. I wonder if they think that Mafuyu guy is cute, maybe I mean he wasn't ugly he was pretty good looking and it did seem like he had a bit of muscle not a lot but enough to be able to throw a good punch. I notice (M/N) look up at me and "Thank you..." he said. What. "Why're you saying thank you" this really wasn't making sense I didn't even do anything for them to say thanks... well not that I know of. "For following me around and not letting me avoid you. I appreciate it, didn't know how much I missed you." I'm going to combust. Holy shat! They- He- I- HFRNJRSBRB!!! I probably look like a fire hydrant right now. "Oh- um you're welcome! It no big deal really I just missed you and didn't know what was going on hahah." I sound so awkward oh my god I'm embarrassing myself. Ok Noya said be fresh cut swag.

"Here are your drinks, bread, and butter. Are you ready to order or do you need a minute?" the waiters back I really don't like him. He keeps flirting with (M/N) and I mean like its not like (M/N) knows, and they would probably say no if he just asked like randomly and (M/N) isn't like prepared or anything or like doesn't know he's flirting with him. "-and what would you like to order sir?" I look up at the waiter, I mean if (M/N) did date him I could see why he's pretty cute and seems nice but that's also his job as a waiter so- "can I get a bacon cheese burger with a side of fries, Please." I smile at him as he writes my order down. "Is there anything else you'd like" Mafuyu asks looking in-between the both of us. "Yes, please instead of putting the pickles on the sandwich can you put  them in a little container please.  Oh- and can I get blue cheese with my burger. If it's not to much." I say. "Oh absolutely no problem, is that all?" he says writing in his notepad.

"Is that all?" Mafuyu says looking at (M/N). "No I don't want anything else, thank you though!" (M/N) says smiling and going to take a sip out of his drink. Mafuyu walks away putting his notepad in his pocket. "So what time does the movie start?" (M/N) says going to grab a biscuit and put butter on it. (sorry if you don't eat bread lol) "It starts at 9:30... it's 7:00 now so we should have enough time to walk around a little before the movies if you want." I say while eating my bread. "Ok." its kind of awkward right now... I'm just going to- "I'm washing me and clothes" I say while looking down. "To put a fucking story short I shoved a whole bag a jelly beans up my ass, an' it's 24 hours later an' I ain't find nun yet" He said looking up at me grinning widely. "You think those jelly beans ever come outta her ass?" I say looking back at him. "I don't know but I'm finna try and find out" (M/N) grabs his phone and sits there for like five minutes. "So- I can't find anything on it but I think she did...because she could like shat them out or like go to the doctors... I don't know- anyways...-" he says looking up from his phone.

Mafuyu comes up to the table asks if we want more bread and gives something to (M/N) smiles and walks away. "Oh my fucking god what fuck-... uhm... shit." (M/N) says with a panicked look on his face as he turns to I'm assuming look for Mafuyu. "What- what's wrong?!" I say worried. "Uhm- fuck-... he gave me his number! And I like someone!...What the fuck do I do with this?!" he says whispering a little. " I mean I don't fucking know give it back maybe...? You could always throw it away if you don't want to tell him." I say trying not to think about how I'm basically fuming at the fact that 1.) Mafuyu FUCKING hit on him!! 2.) he likes someone and I'm like 85% sure it's not me ugghhh. "Well obviously I can't do that, that's like mean! I'll just tell him- yeah it'll be fine just- tell him." he says starting to calm down and get blush a little. "Yeah and plus if he's a douche I can always fight him.." I say starting to feel a little better about the situation.

Time skip about 15 minutes

"Hello! Here is your (F/F) and here, is your burger with... the.. sides." he says sticking his tongue out looking determined. "Hey um thank you so much for the meal and stuff, but I'm... not interested so... take your number back." (M/N) says while slightly cringing and flinching when Mafuyu chuckles to himself. " oh my god no- please this is so embarrassing crap. Uhm I wasn't trying to flirt I just wanted to be your friend but didn't know how to ask shit- I should've put context- fuck-... I have a boyfriend.. plus I'm not a home wrecker I wouldn't try to ruin your date with your boyfriend please I feel so stupid. I'm sorry jesus christ I'm dumb." Oh- well it's fine... sorry haheh. And we aren't dating he's straight." (M/N) says smile getting smaller a bit. "Oh I'm so sorry jeez you both just were looking at each other like you were in love and he was holding your hand when you first walked in so I just assumed sorry-...! "Oh no it's fine we get it a lot anyways it's kind of funny to me.

Damn, that shit hurt. Yeah I'm totally going to tell him when the night's over because friend zoning dude really ?

After everything cleared up with Mafuyu we ate our food and left. We were walking around the mall going into different stores and getting things. "You want it?" Tanaka says noticing (M/N) looking at a vinyl by (F/S). "Oh umm yeah, but I don't have the money for it." you say looking down and going to look at different clothes. "Okay." he says going to look for new beanies. After walking around for about 15 minutes you both decided that you were ready to leave and start walking towards the movie theatre. You and Tanaka walked up to the cash register. Putting your things on the counter while the cashier scans your stuff. After the cashier finishes ringing your stuff up and Tanaka put his things down he did a awkward speed walk straight towards the section of vinyl's grabbed the one he was looking for and ran back.

"Sorry just had to grab one more thing." he says putting the vinyl you were telling him about earlier on the counter and pulling out his wallet. "No problem sir" the cashier says continuing to scan his things. Putting the clothes, vinyl's, and other random things in bags Tanaka grabs his bags off of the counter and bids a good day and farewell to the cashier, grabbing your hand and practically skipping out of the store. Getting on the escalader and rummaging in his bag he grabs the vinyl and pushes it towards you. "What?" you say confused on what to do with the 1931 edition of a CD. "Here. Take it. It's yours, you were saying how you wanted it but didn't have the money so... I got it for you. So take it." he says pushing the vinyl further towards you.

"You really shouldn't have. It was honestly no big deal like I would've been fine without it, I would've just bought it another time honestly-." you say rambling a bit. "Hey it's fine! I wanted to so don't worry about it too much." he says rubbing the back of his neck with a faint blush on cheeks. "Oh um ok... thanks then..!" you say looking at the floor while feeling your cheeks warm up. "Yeah it's no problem!" he says as you two step off of the escalator, walking towards the theatre.

While standing in line to get your tickets you say "which vinyl did you get?" Tanaka turns towards you while stepping forward and says "I got Tyler's flower boy and cherry bomb albums" hearing this your eyes light up and you reply with "dude we got to listen to them when you get home oh my god!" Tyler was one of the main reasons you and Tanaka were best friends. Well Tyler and the banana fish manga. (if you don't like tyler the creator then pick another artist this is just a head canon lol)

Flash Back

"Hey do you know where the manga section is?" you  say walking up to the blond haired boy. You were new to the school and  didn't know where anything was. The school was like a maze and everything seemed so far from each other. "Yeah, follow me!" the boy says practically skipping and running on his way there. The library was bigger than you thought it would be, your old schools library was nothing compared to this one. "So you like anime huh..." the tan skin boy says. "Yeah it's really cool." you say looking down the aisles for the yellow book with bold black letters.

"So what you looking for, I might be able to help you find it." he says walking closer next to you. "Oh no it's fine you don't have to!" you shaking your hands in front of you. "No really I want to plus your new your going to need help with stuff anyways!" he says in a semi hyper tone. "Okay well it's called banana fish and it has a yellow cover-" you say before getting cut off. "You sure that you want that book." he says looking at you with wide eyes. "Yeah, I got books 1 through 10 but I can't find the others." you say continuing to scan the shelves. "Well the books are over here... I don't know if they have 11 though it might be being used." he says walking to the next aisle as you follow him looking at all the other books they had. "Ummm yeah. Here!" he says holding books 11 and 12 in his hands shoving them towards you. "Oh thanks!... well I have to start heading to my next class so uhm... bye! Have a nice day!" you say walking towards the lady at the front desk to check out the books that you had been searching for, for what felt like like all of eternity.

"Hey, I can take you to your class if you'd like."  the newly met male says while you both walk out of the library doors together. "Well I mean I wouldn't want you to be late because of me." you say continuing to walk. "Its fine and we're going in the same direction anyways- well I'm assuming." he says both of you turning the corner. "So what class do you have?" the blond hair  male says turning his head towards you.

"Um I have chem." you say looking at your schedule to be sure. "Same! Which teacher?" he says smiling. "Oh I have Mr. McGill." you say hesitantly while checking your schedule once again. "I have him too, I can totally show you if you want." he says perking up a bit. "Yeah sure! Also, what's your name? I never got it." you say stopping in front of the classroom door and resting your hand on the handle. "Oh sorry heheh I'm Tanaka... and you are..." he says nodding his head your way. "I'm (M/N) nice to officially meet you, Tanaka." you say smiling. "Yeah, nice to meet you too."  Tanaka says staring into your eyes.

Real Time

"-(/N)! (M/N)!... you zoned out there for a sec, come on." Tanaka says reaching for your hand and pulling you towards the doors that lead you to the lobby and the usher who's waiting to take peoples tickets. "Sorry, I just got lost in thought you explain as you look for (F/C) as Tanaka tried to decide on which ICEE flavour to get.

Walking up to the counter Tanaka asks "hey which flavour should I get?" replying you say "Well your going to get coca cola and cherry mix anyways so why ask?" "You know-... you're right. And why do I ask...? I do it every time we go to the movies." he says you both waiting for the woman in front of you to finish ordering her stuff. "I honestly don't know. But which should I get?" you say watching the lady leave letting Tanaka order for the both of you. Ordering your own food was never really for you.

After ordering snacks paying for them (obviously) and going to meet the usher so you can watch the movie, you both walk into the theatre noticing that there were very few people in the theatre. "You would think that that there would be more people considering its new." you say whispering to Tanaka while trying to find your seats. "Yeah but maybe we're just early." he says sitting in his seat and getting comfortable. "Dude... the previews are over now people just aren't watching the movie." you say going for the big container of popcorn. "I missed this... like hanging out with you like this." he says smiling at you. You becoming grateful that you both are in the dark at the feeling of your face heating up and a fierce blush going across your cheeks. (sorry if you're dark skin I know people can't really tell when you're blushing.)

The movie started and you were about 30 minutes into it. Getting some more popcorn you and Tanaka both reach in at the same  feeling your hands caress one another. Blushing for what felt like the millionth time you grab the popcorn and shove it in your mouth. Tanaka blushes and mutters a quick sorry. "It's fine." you say grabbing your slushie and taking a sip.

After a while the movie got to the best part and that's when Tanaka decided to be a little bold.

Tanaka's Pov

I'm finally going to make a move. Then hopefully I can have more of a chance with (M/N). Deciding that now would be a good time to act on my idea I grab (M/N)'s hand in one swift movement and intertwining my fingers with theirs rubbing my thumb across the back side of their hand.

They seem a bit- "You okay? Do you want me to let your hand go?" I whispered in a questioning tone worried that they didn't like me holding his hand. "No you're fine. But can I have some of the Twizzlers and sweet tart ropes?" (M/N) whispered. "Yeah here." I state handing him the candy.

I think I might have a pretty good chance with him. But we've always had a touchy relationship so its hard to tell. I really hope that they do though. It would be so fucking embarrassing if I took all his kindness and touchiness the wrong way.

20 Minute Time Skip

Getting our garbage and heading towards the door as the movie plays the credits and closing song. Walking out of the theatre, missing the contact of (M/N)'s soft chubby/slender hands I go to grab (M/N)'s hand. Feeling a chill go up my spine while feeling my face progressively get warmer I ask "You want to spend the night? It's getting late." looking at him. "Yeah it is pretty late I tell my (P/F) that I'm staying the night."

Third Person POV

"They said okay." you say putting your phone in your pocket. "Okay, I texted Saeko and she said she's on her way. She's supposed to be no longer than 15 minutes away." he says checking his phone and going to sit on the bench waiting for the blond haired woman and you following in his footsteps. "Hey so can I talk to you about something..." the usually loud and hyper boy says you barley able to hear him. "Yeah sure what's up?" you say going to face him. "So um I'm Bisexual..." he says neevously playing with his thumbs and avoiding eye contact. "That's so cool dude! I'm glad you felt comfortable enough to tell me!" you say a soft smile on your cheeks.

'Maybe I have more of a chance now... nah prolly not he's fucking whipped for Kiyoko' you think as Tanaka smiles giving you a hug and you doing the same to him. "Thanks dude." he says as his phone notifications goes off and reading the message saying that his older sister is outside waiting for you both. "Hai (M/N)! So how was the date~?" she says a huge smile on her face. "HUH- a date what no- he doesn't like me like that we're friends." you say giggling a bit feeling a slight pain in your chest. You really didn't want to be friends with him but as long as he's in your life you feel s though you'll be fine. "Saeko shut up and take us home." he says rolling his eyes playfully with a small smile as he grabs your hand, once again making you blush.

Arriving home and walking through the door you get a smell of fresh baked cookies. "What's that smell it smell so fucking good oh my god!" you say as you and Tanaka basically sprint into the kitchen. (On a Usain bolt type beat.) "Holy shit they smell so good." Tanaka says mouth watering and going to get  a plate to put some on for you both. "Hey- nuh uh no- these aren't for you! Make your own I still have some cookie dough left use that." Saeko says snatching the plate from Tanaka and putting it back in the cabinet after slapping his hand away from the cookies.

"What you making them for cAoCh uKaI~" Tanaka says in a mocking tone. "As a matter of fact yes I did. I owe him and he told me to make him cookies." she says sticking her head up and crossing her arms. "Bleh! Saeko could you please not flirt with him he's my coach dude I thought we agreed people like that were off limits!" Tanaka says in a whiney type voice practically throwing a temper tantrum.

"Oh shut up it's just cookies and plus I'm the older one here so you can't tell me what to do!" Saeko says sticking her tongue out, Tanaka doing the same. "Come on (M/N) we're going up stairs. She's about to start fawning over him" Tanaka says fake gagging while you giggle making your way up the stairs.

After going up stairs you take a shower remembering you didn't have any clothes. "TANAKA~!" you yell opening the door to the bathroom and wrapping your towel around your body and walking towards his room. "Yeah?!" he says opening he door and peaking out of it. "Do you have any clothes?" you say grabbing your leave in conditioner and combing/picking out your hair. "Yeah just pick something out. Anyways I'm gonna go take a shower." he says grabbing his clothes towel and walking out the door.

Coming back in Tanaka flops on his bed scooting next to you resting his head on your shoulder. "What you watching?" he mumbles snuggling more into you. "Twitch." you say resting your head on his. "Oh. Who's that?" he says looking up at you. "Quackity and Corpse." you said. "Oh they're cool." he says. Silence filling the room.

"Hey can we talk?" Tanaka says sounding a bit to serious for your liking. "Uh yeah sure." you say taking your headphone out and sitting up facing him. "So we've been friends for a while now and we're like super close, obviously, and I really like being around you and spending time with you and stuff..." Tanaka says playing with his fingers and hesitating slightly. "Tanaka what's going on? You okay, you bouta like die or something." you say jokingly trying to lighten to mood.

"Okay wait no- so um-... I kind of like... you... romanitcally-" he says avoiding eye contact. "Huh?" you said thinking you miss heard him. "If you don't like me back that's fine. We can pretend I never said anything, I'll just get over it-" he said before you cut him off with a kiss on the cheek, practically looking like a rose. "Um I like you too." you say smiling at him. "Really" the short haired boy looks up at you practically glowing. "Yeah. You wan to go on a date?" you say gushing hard as ever. "Yes!!- I mean yeah sure..." he says scolding himself for not being cool. "Okay." you say smiling at yourself and going to lay back down trying to calm yourself.

"You want to watch something?" he says laying down next  to you putting his head back to the spot it was at before. "Yeah... what you want to watch?" you say hugging him. "Wait so I found this girl on Youtube and I know you don't really watch content like hers but she cool as hell. Her Youtube name is liyah li." he says grabbing his remote and opening youtube.

After watching the recommended channel you both went down a rabbit hole watching her videos for a while, finally deciding that you wanted to go to sleep you both put on a random show him holding you in his chest kissing you on the nose and falling asleep with a smile on your faces.

[writingsfromhome]

Bad Timing I(.5)

A/N: This is the sort of backstory to Harry and you, I think it can be read on its own if you want, or before you read the first part too. It’s angsty af, but it has some death and sensitive topics jsyk. I tried to keep it concise but it got a little wordy as angst does. xx

Part 1

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About 12 Years Ago:

“So are you coming to that party or not?” My roommate asks. She was one of the first people I’d met last year when we started uni and even though we came from different backgrounds we remained friends over the last year, even choosing to room together again. She got me to open up and find the extroverted part of me that was able to enjoy uni outside of academics.

“Ugh, I’m volunteering for the voting booths for the rest of the week. Maybe if I can make it?”

“You’re actually doing that?” She scrunches her nose. “I don’t get it. You’re just way too nerdy to be my friend.”

“And yet you loove me,” I squeeze her against me and she laughs. “It’s my mom, she said I had to do at least one extracurricular so I could meet friends this year.”

“You already have friends,” she points to herself, and with her came her group of friends that’d quickly taken me in last year.

And my mom doesn’t like that I hang out with you, I think. She thought we partied too much even though my grades stayed decent. “She wants me to have nerdy friends too, I dunno. They’re helping me pay my tuition until I get a job so I kinda have to play nice.”

“Parents suck,” my roommate flicks through her closet. I agreed, this was just something I would get through to get through. Then they would leave me alone for the rest of the year.

Little did I know the person they’d partner me with at my polling station was someone who would be in my life for the next decade.

“I’m Harry by the way,” he’d said after we received our orientation and assigned the building we were going to babysit the votes in. “Second year.”

“Me too! I’m Y/N. What’s your major? I’ve never seen you around.”

“Law--well I haven’t decided if it’s law but that’s what I’m in right now.”

“Really? Law?” I was openly judging, he just didn’t seem the law type.

“Well what are you in?” He demands.

“Business,” I cringe.

“Really? Business?” He has a cheeky smile on, one that would become familiar to me.

“Well, you just don’t seem like the law type. They’re usually more uptight, dress way too smart for me.”

“I know, it’s like, we’re not even in the courtroom yet,” he joins in and it makes me laugh--how he could poke fun at his own people. That’s when I knew we would get along fine, and I actually looked forward to the next few days getting to know him better.

“I’m definitely telling my mum about you, she’s been begging me to make friends outside of my circle. I’ll tell her I’m friends with a law student.”

“So we’re friends already?” We’d reached our booth and began setting up the partitions. He takes over when I set it up wrong.

“Obviously,” I say. “I actually like you which means you’ll have a hard time getting rid of me.”

“I’m alright with that,” he grins and I notice the laugh lines that are brought to life as he does. It somehow made him seem more genuinely.

We spend the rest of the time swapping stories, classes, rants. We check student IDs and hand out voting cards in between but it doesn’t feel like a drag anymore. At the end of the day, I invite him to the party my roommate was going to with our friends. If he was going, maybe I would too. He seemed like he might be fun at a party.

“Er,” he suddenly seems nervous. “I’ll have to ask my girlfriend, she wanted to hang out tonight.”

“Well bring her too!” I say excitedly. “Is she law as well?”

“No, she’s in the arts.”

“I like her already,” I push. “Bring her, my friends are fun you’ll learn how to have a good time.”

“I know how to have a good time,” there was the flash of his dimples again. “Text me the address.”

And thus began a friendship for the next four years, partying together, studying together (trying to), and hanging out in each other’s rooms. We would set each other up with other friends, double dated, went out for sunrise-hikes, and took long drives at night when we had to blow some steam off from being over-stressed, over-studied uni students. Our friend circles overlapped, the fabric of our lives eventually bleeding together. We were made of the same fibers, sticking together even after uni, when our friends got more serious about their careers. When they moved out of the country or to another city, we made sure to rent places close enough that we could still see each other often. And somehow, in the new chapter of our lives, without the partying and our other friends to buffer, we became closer than before.

We cared for each other--we didn’t deny that ever. And somehow that platonic love turned romantic as we depended on each other while we navigated adulthood. I can’t exactly pinpoint where things changed, but one evening our relationship was changed forever.

7 years ago:

“She literally wants me to stay until 7, and she was offended when I said no! I’m not even getting paid for that!” I was bitching to Harry about my shitty job.

“That’s bollocks” Harry shrugs. “Just say you’ve got family obligations or something.”

“I said that the one time she wanted us to come in on a weekend and she gave me shite work the following week! I just...I can’t afford to lose this job Harry.”

“That’s shitty, I’m sorry.” He takes the last swig of his beer. “Want another one?”

“I haven’t even finished this one,” I moan at my now warm beer that I’d been nursing for the last hour, too busy ranting to drink it. “It’s getting late though I should head home before it’s dark. Don’t want that nutter that hangs around my building to harass me again.”

“I’ll walk you home,” Harry suggests. He lived a 15 minute walk from me.

“No no,” I get up and take our dirty dishes to the sink. “I didn’t even ask about you, how was your day?”

“Same old,” he sighs against the counter. “I feel like I don’t fit in, everyone my age is finishing their law degree but I don’t think I want to.”

“I knew from the day I met you, you weren’t destined for the courtroom.” I pull him into a comforting hug. “Do what makes you happy, or what doesn’t make you want to say fuck it and quit your job to hibernate.”

“You really know the perfect thing to say,” Harry chuckles but he pulls me tighter against him. I stroke his back, reassuring him he’d be alright in the end.

“Y/N-” he pulls away to say something but freezes mid sentence. I raise an eyebrow but he’s still, staring at my face.

“Harry?” I ask, but he continues staring. “Hello? You alright?”

“Yeah,” he breaks into a sudden smile. That was weird--I make sure he’s okay before letting go.

Before I leave, I kiss Harry’s cheek goodbye--I was never shy in the affection I gave my friends and Harry’s bummed mood needed extra affection tonight. But what I don’t expect is for him to catch me before I pull away, staring intently into my eyes. The lighthearted energy between us disappears instantly as it dawns on me, how close we were, the unspoken feelings in his eyes, the hesitation before he presses his lips to mine.

I kissed him back then, barely understanding what was happening, before pulling away. I give him a smile but that’s just what he sees at the tip of the iceberg, underneath my mixed feelings churn away. My best friend just kissed me, and I wasn’t totally mad about it.

“It’s getting dark I-” I say as Harry says, “Sorry was that okay?”

We laugh awkwardly, neither of us sure what to do at this point. We decide to ignore it instead.

“I’ll talk to you later,” Harry lets me go and opens the door for me. “Watch out for the neighbourhood nutter yea?”

I stand in place, feeling the fibers of our friendship unraveling but feeling hopeless in mending the tear. “Take care Harry.”

I high tail it out, my thoughts going at an impossible rate as I sort out what happened. And we try to ignore it the next couple weeks,

We hadn’t made it official then, too nervous to face what this meant about our friendships. It was only at my sister’s wedding, that I realised what was wrong between us. I’d been mourning our old friendship, and avoiding him in the weeks since the kiss. But what I didn’t realise was that our friendship had been changing over the last year anyway, and getting drunk on champagne and dancing with Harry, while my sister celebrated the happiest day of her life, made me realise there was a cause for celebration here: a new chapter in our lives.

A couple days later, after a stressful day at work, I’d taken the tube to his flat and waited for him outside. He was surprised to see me there, not saying much except to open the door and let me in. As soon as he’d closed it, my lips were attached to his and we’d let our bags drop, coats, and any piece of clothing between us. After that night, we didn’t even try to deny how we felt about each other.

“I didn’t think I could ever be this happy,” he’s whispered to me after. I thought he’d fallen asleep but his whisper in the dark made me grin to myself. “Are you awake.”

“I am. Awake and happy.” I turn to face him, giggling. “Who knew this could feel so right.”

“Our first kiss was quite wrong though wasn’t it?” Harry says and it makes me laugh.

“That’s why I needed to do a redo,” I tease. “Can’t leave you to plan anything.”

“It wasn’t planned I swear, I was trying to be spontaneous.”

“Let’s not try ‘spontaneous’ again then,” I kiss him in the dark. He pulls me snug against him, I never knew how safe it felt. The safest I would ever feel, wrapped in the warmth with my best friend and now something else.

It was a good few months, testing the waters as our relationship underwent a transformation. All of our friends were supportive, but we never missed the glances between them. Apparently, they were waiting for this to happen. But as sweet as those first few months had been, finding out my mum was sick with a timeline was devastating. I came apart at the seams but Harry stayed through it all, holding me together. He’d proposed then, wanting my mum to be part of the ceremony. We had a small wedding, intimate but still magical. It was bittersweet, the amount of love and happiness I felt towards Harry and our loved ones around us as he said I do and as he took my arm and swept me across the dancefloor. But the amount of sadness crushing my chest kept me from being the weightless bride I always thought I would be.

Through it all, Harry stayed by my side. While we were hopeful, the day our hopes were dashed, the days and weeks I mourned. When my sister and her husband came to stay with their crazy toddlers and Harry kept them entertained giving my sister and I time together. I thought he was perfect, that I’d lucked out.

That lasted a few years, 3 and a half to be exact. There were months leading up to our split and we could point to a bunch of things that could’ve led to it. a) him wanting kids, and me wanting to wait or b) long hours we worked as we changed careers and tried to make our way up or c) how hard getting pregnant actually was. Maybe I pushed him away, or he didn’t love me enough to try and make it work.

I think I lied to myself, avoiding the tension creeping into the relationship. The tired excuses and time spent apart, the lack of usual affection, or casual conversations. I was an idiot, I realise every time I think about the end in retrospect. Maybe if I caught on earlier I could have fixed us before we fell apart. Maybe I could have saved us.

“There’s someone coming in Tuesday morning to fix the broken washer, will you be home?” I ask, still in bed and scrolling through my phone. I hadn’t meant to be up this early but Harry woke me as he got up and I couldn’t fall back asleep.

“No,” Harry responds, his back to me as he ruffles through the dresser. “I’ve got a thing that morning.”

“Well I’ve got to go in early Tuesday-I thought you might be home.” I say. I hear an edge to Harry’s voice but I try not to focus on it. He’d been a little cold all weekend and I was scared to think what it meant.

“You couldn’t be bothered to check in when you confirmed the date?” Harry asks harshly.

“I...guess not.” I put my phone down and wait for Harry to turn, maybe I could read his expression. Maybe he was stressed. “Harry?”

“What?” He turns, but he looks at me with no emotion. No stress, no frustration, not even anger. It’s the lack of emotion in his face that cause my eyes to prick with tears. Harry raises his eyebrows and I shake my head, untangling myself from the sheets so he doesn’t see any tears. I rush to the bathroom but forget to close the door out of habit.

“Y/N,” a kinder Harry appears by the doorway. His face has smoothed out the harsh lines, his eyes hesitant and cautious.

“What’s happened with us?” I blurt out. “Why are you so cold all the time? Am I doing something wrong?”

Harry’s face falls and he walks towards me but doesn’t touch me. “It’s nothing like that. It’s...I don’t know. We should talk.”

He reaches his hand out but I flinch away. “Did you meet somebody new or something? What are we talking about?”

“Let’s not do this here. Right now.”

“Why not!” I finally had enough. “I’ve been walking on eggshells for months Harry! I don’t know what’s wrong and I keep waiting for you to bloody tell me!”

“This isn’t working!” Harry raises his voice to compensate for mine. I’m immediately silenced by the volume, and then the words sink in.

“Is there someone else?” I ask.

He doesn’t answer, his gaze on the hanging vines by the window. My heart drops into my stomach like a boulder, and I find it hard to breathe. I clutch the porcelain sink and ask in a surprisingly even tone, “Harry. Answer me.”

“What we have, Y/N...it’s dysfunctional.” He says quietly, meeting my eyes. “It doesn’t matter if there’s someone else, we’ve been fighting for months. Things aren’t the same between us-”

“Who is she?” I ask. I needed to know.

“That’s not relevant,” he shuts my question down quickly. “I’m sorry Y/N, I...I don’t want to hurt you. I care about you, I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Then don’t,” I’d pleaded. “We can go to counseling, talk it through-”

“I can’t Y/N.”

“Because of her.”

“No, because this isn’t good for either of us.” He’d walked up to me, cradled my face. “We’re not good for each other, not like this.”

“Who is she?” I yank his hands away.

“She’s...it doesn’t matter, I swear nothing happened between us Y/N. Knowing who she is isn’t going to help this situation--”

“It is! If it weren’t for her, you’d be willing to work on us--to see a future. You...Harry how could you do this to me? To us?” The tears come with no control. “You’re moving on before we’re even over. How are you giving up on us like that?”

“I’m not!” his voice booms in the tiled bathroom. “I’m not bloody giving up on us! I tried Y/N, so many times. I tried! You just keep pushing at me to be someone I’m not and-”

“I can say the same thing about you!” I throw the brush in my hands into the sink. “We were good! And you got it in your head you wanted a baby even though we’re young, oh my god Harry you kept pestering me to change my mind even though I told you I needed time!”

“It’s not like we could have a fucking baby anyway,” Harry says bitterly before realising what he’d said. “Shit-”

“There you go,” I mock. “I knew it. I knew you were holding that against me. And that,” I jab my finger into his chest. “Is what’s made you so moody, so mean and why we’re always fighting. You held it against me.”.

There was absolute truth to what I said. Last year, Harry had brought the baby topic up. I’d told him we were only in our mid-20s, we had a lot of time, and we still had a career to establish. But he would bring up the topic often enough that I’d given in.To make him happy. And months went by, trying for a baby. Went we finally went to our doctor, she’d told us why it was so hard, it could take us years she’d said.

Harry came home that day dejected, and left me feeling like a failure. I think it tore us up.

“You wanted a baby so fucking bad and when I couldn’t, it made me feel like a complete failure. And I told you that! And you did absolutely nothing to make me feel better. You held it against me, Harry! You didn’t even try to tell me it was okay.”

“It’s not so fucking simple,” he says, his cheeks flushed pink. Maybe it was anger, or maybe it was embarrassment from being confronted with an ugly truth.

“It is. And now you’ve upgraded to a newer model, maybe her version comes with a fertile womb.” I take the cheap shot.

He doesn’t say anything though. And I don’t know why that hurts more than knowing he’d fallen for another woman while he was still married to me. My best friend in the whole world had just broken my heart into a million irrevocable pieces.

“It’s a bunch of things Y/N,” he finally says. “That’s just part of it. We’re not...we’re just not working!”

“Did you even try to make it work?” I ask, swiping my sleeve across my face. “Did you ever think how I felt? How you made me feel Harry? You’ve been slipping away from me without talking to me-” I break off. I couldn’t speak through the heartbreak, the thunderstorm of grief threatens to consume me and my sobs are the only thing that manages to come out.

“I never wanted to hurt you,” Harry tries to place a hand on my shoulder but I jerk away, moving to sit on the edge of the bathtub. “Y/N...”

“Just go,” I say through the tears.

“We can talk more about this later-”

"Just go,” I say louder.

Harry’s phone rings again from the bedroom and he sighs. But he leaves me, crying on the bathroom floor. The sadness that was always in my peripheral consumes me. I’d carried this sadness for a long time--ever since I found out my mum was sick, the sadness plagued me. I’d neatly packed it up once I decided to move forward with my life like my mum would want me to, but now it comes back tenfold, marrying the grief of losing Harry like this. And I stay on the floor crying my grief away for hours, eventually crawling into bed and sleeping the daylight away.

When I wake, it’s 6 and Harry isn’t home. I take that as a sign and get up to pack up a few things. I call my sister who still lived in London then, and crash on her couch, staying there for a few weeks and ignoring any call or text from Harry. When I need to go back, for my things, I find him sleeping on the couch with the TV on, something I always found endearing. But I can’t afford to dwell on how much it hurt seeing him like that.

He must have woken from the noise because when he finds me, he tries to stop me and tell me that we still needed to talk.

“About what?” I ask, just tired now. Too many tears shed and too many hours laying awake thinking about the exact moment we went wrong.

“Us,” Harry looked tired too. He was probably throwing himself into his work with nothing like me to hold him back, I think bitterly. His girlfriend had probably already been to our house--his house.

“What about us?” I barely look at him as I begin folding away all my clothes.

“I don’t know,” Harry sits on the bed. “Don’t you want to talk?”

“I’ve got nothing to say, do you?”

Harry sighs, “I don’t know.”

“Nice talk then,” I say, shoving the rest of my things in just so I could get out.

“I just want you to know I care about you Y/N, I don’t want to hurt you.” He says as I pack.

“It doesn’t matter anymore. If you cared about me, and you didn’t want to hurt me you wouldn’t have done this to us.”

“I wasn’t trying to--I didn’t mean to go and fall for someone else-”

“Just stop,” I cut him off. I couldn’t hear it, how the man I loved fell for someone else. I couldn’t break down here. Again.

He said he cared but it didn’t feel that way. It hurt more than I wished to admit. He knew what I’d been through and he still betrayed me, tossed my heart like it was replaceable. The cut he left in me ran deep.

As I leave he tries to talk to me, but I barrel past him. He still reaches for me and pulls me into a hug, I struggle against him but he’s too strong. He wraps me in his arms until I go still but it’s too much. A sob escapes me, and this time he lets me push him off and leave, my bag banging into my hips every time I take a step. As soon as I got into my Uber, I can’t stop crying. There was an infinite pool of tears where Harry was involved.

3 years ago:

My trust and my heart had been been lost in the war between Harry and I. It only took him a month to mail my divorce papers which sat collecting dust on my dining table until he showed up at work one day and demanded I sign them by the end of that week. I’d taken the day off the day I mailed those in, mourning the end of something that was once so safe and beautiful.

When a close friend calls me on a warm July afternoon, I don’t consider her warning that I shouldn’t check Instagram. That I still had Harry’s friends on my list. I open Instagram before she can tell me why, and see it. Harry was getting married, again. To the woman he gave up on us for. I try to zoom in on a picture without liking it, she was pretty...and blonde. She looked familiar--probably from his office. It didn’t take him long.

It was like someone had taken a retractor to the wound I thought had finally scabbed over. The physical proof that Harry had moved on is just the salt on the wound.

I cry myself to sleep that night.

2 Years ago;

The guy in front of me drones on about his job, mansplaining to me how a mortgage worked as if I wasn’t in finance myself. I excuse myself to use the restroom, checking my phone to see a text from my sister. She’d moved to Scotland this year, to where her husband was from, and I’d missed her terribly in the last year.

A little birdie told me your demon-ex just got divorced 🥂

I stare at the screen, chest feeling tight. I felt vindicated somehow, but I also felt a small bit of sadness. What a fuck-up.

Good for him I had texted back. A part of me wanted him to hurt the way he hurt me.

I went back to my date with a renewed enthusiasm. I’d ordered more wine and got so drunk he was actually interesting enough to take home.

About 1 year ago

“Y/N,” a voice from my past says, one that haunted me some nights. I turn as I exit the shop I was just in. I blink at the sight before me, Harry in a vest and hat. He realises what I’m staring at and laughs awkwardly. “I’m in uniform.”

“You’re...police?” I look up to his face finally. He hadn’t aged a day, although the hat he wears makes him look a little silly.

“Yeah I joined the force uhm...almost 4 years ago now...law didn’t really suit me.”

I know what he was doing, trying to find a baseline to have a conversation. But he was dead to me, and I didn’t want to invite him back in when I was finally forgetting about him.

"Seems like you dropped a lot of dead-weight four years ago.”

I watch his face fall as he realises I wasn’t going to pretend to be friendly.

“Seems that way to you,” he says cautiously. “But that’s not how it happened.”

I shrug. “So. I heard about the divorce. Must’ve been hard being put through that.”

I knew I was being petty, obviously I never got the closure I want (according to my therapist) and I wasn’t over him hurting me the way he did (also according to my therapist). This was how I got my peace, and it wasn’t the best version of me but it was the only one I knew how to be right now.

“Yep,” he crosses his arms over his chest. “So, are you seeing anyone?”

He knew I wasn’t, I don’t know how but the way he stoops to my level I know he knows I hadn’t had a long term relationship since him.

“Not at the moment,” I say awkwardly. “Just focusing on my job...trying to get this promotion.”

“Sorry,” he seems to shake off whatever had come over him. “That was...nosy, I shouldn’t have asked.”

Having him be the bigger person sets something off in me, like there was an anger-bomb inside my mind where he lived and knowing that he was doing okay enough to be able to be the bigger person disrupts this calm I was trying to keep.

“Maybe you shoudn’t have stopped me to ask anything at all. We don’t have anything to talk about anyway.”

I turn around and start to walk away but he catches up, “I wasn’t trying to upset you-”

“Well you have a way of doing that. Please just leave me alone Harry.”

He huffs beside me, “After all this time, can’t we just bloody talk like two adults?”

I freeze and turn to him slowly. He seems to sense this was the wrong thing to say because he takes a step back. “After all this time? Are you serious? I was the one you left behind Harry when you went off to lives your best lift Harry. We’re not living the same life, and we’re not coming from the same bloody place. Don’t fucking patronize me and ask me to talk to you like an adult when you bring out the worst part of me. I meant what I said: I want you to leave me alone. And you know what, if we ever run into each other again, just don’t even talk to me. Pretend you don’t know me. I want nothing to do with you.”

He opens his mouth but his partner calls him from the shop’s entrance. He stays silent, letting me go. As soon as I turn the street corner I rush the rest of the way to the tube, collapsing into a seat and trying to sort out my breathing. It was a shitty feeling, knowing someone was going to be in your life forever because you shared so much history that even when that part of your life ended they were still there. There was so much apart of me, around me, that reminded me of him. And it felt so lonely carrying that around. I wanted to be done with him, I wanted my heart to purge him out. But it couldn’t stop carrying him around everywhere I go.

[artificialqueens]

One for the Books (Rosnali) - Athena2

Summary: Denali works in the children's section of a library and falls instantly in love with Rosé after she comes in with her daughter.

A/N: This is just a fluffy little one-shot I finally finished and wanted to share. Thank you so much to Writ for beta-ing and encouraging me to post this! I hope you enjoy, and please leave feedback if you'd like!

It’s a rare day that Denali gets flustered at work. She works in the children’s section of a public library, where only one baby spitting up on the rug during story time is a good day. She’s handled crying kids and arts and crafts messes that look like horror movie sets and become more familiar with disinfecting wipes than she thought possible. Nothing really phases her.

Except the woman at the desk right now.

She has waves of red hair and the kind of smile you see on TV, one that softens her face and rounds her rosy cheeks. She has an adorable kid on her hip, and Denali can’t look from the gentle curves of the woman’s arms as she holds her.

“Um, how can I help you?” Denali manages.

“Hi, can I make a library card?”

“Sure!” Denali tugs on the drawer of cards and applications so hard it nearly flies out of the cabinet. She grabs a bright yellow card and watches the woman fill out the application in the elegant cursive Denali wanted to snap her pencils trying to learn in second grade.

Denali usually types the patron’s information in the system on autopilot, not even noticing their names. But she looks at the woman’s—Rosé, her name is Rosé—application like it’s a study sheet for a test, like the curves of the letters and her phone number will reveal her secrets.

No secrets are revealed, though, and Denali passes her the card.

“Thank you.” Rosé smiles.

“The tigers, Mommy!” A little voice says impatiently, and Rosé laughs.

“Right, right. Um, can you tell me where the books about tigers are? Luna loves them.”

Denali finally turns her gaze away from Rosé long enough to take in the little girl in her arms. She’s around three and a mini Rosé, with red hair in two fluffy pigtails and a toothy grin. There’s a stuffed tiger tucked securely under her arm, and Denali smiles.

“What’s your tiger’s name?” she asks.

“Hunter,” Luna says, moving the stuffed animal’s head so Denali can see.

“He looks great,” Denali says. “I can show you where the books are, if that’s okay.”

“Perfect,” Rosé says.

Perfect. It echoes in Denali’s head as she leads Rosé over to the books. Maybe it's a good sign. After all, Rosé could’ve insisted on getting the books herself, but she let Denali show her instead, and—

Yeah, Denali is already head over heels for this woman.

She’s had crushes before, but she usually doesn’t fall this hard or this fast. Especially not someone she’s known for all of a minute. But something about Rosé makes Denali feel like she’s known her all her life.

Denali clears her throat. “Here’s all the books about tigers. There are a bunch of other animal books too, if you want to check those out. I’m Denali, by the way. If you need anything else.”

“Thank you so much,” Rosé says, and Denali forces herself back to the desk because she can’t just stand there forever.

She watches Rosé kneel down on the floor with Luna, pulling out book after book and showing each one to her. There’s a softness in Rosé, in how patient she is, in how carefully she re-ties her daughter’s itty-bitty pink Converse. She’s beautiful as she is, but her genuine smile and kind eyes around her daughter make her even more beautiful, and Denali wants to take it every second. When Rosé takes the stack of books to the chair in the corner, pulls Luna into her lap, and starts reading to her, making funny faces and showing her all the pictures, Denali’s heart damn near explodes.

“Girl, get a grip.”

“Wh—huh?” Denali whirls around to see Symone watching with a smirk on her face.

“You’re basically drooling.”

“I am not!” Denali wipes her mouth self-consciously anyway. She spends the next half hour trying to busy herself in cleaning the desk, but she just shuffles the same five pens around and keeps watching Rosé be adorable with her daughter. When she comes up to the desk to check out her books, Denali leaps to the computer to do them for her. Rosé manages to hold the entire stack in one arm and her daughter in the other, and Denali wonders if Rosé’s arms could hold her. She can’t stop imagining herself nestled within them.

“Mommy, can we get ice cream?” Luna asks, smiling hopefully.

“Okay.”

Denali grins as Luna cheers.

Rosé rolls her eyes fondly. “She’d eat ice cream every day if I let her,” she says to Denali.

“I’d eat ice cream every day if I let me,” Denali says, and Rosé gives another infectious laugh.

“Thank you for your help. We should be back soon.”

“I’ll be here,” Denali says, nonchalant even though she knows she’ll be counting down the days.

—-

Rosé comes back the next Saturday, and the one after that. Denali used to loathe the Saturday shifts she got stuck with, the day filled with either absolute screaming chaos or absolute mind-numbing boredom with no in-between, but she quickly gets used to Rosé coming in and making small talk with her while she checks out her books. Before long, she’s actually looking forward to Saturdays, to the tiny window she gets to see Rosé, making silly faces for her daughter and laughing at all Denali’s jokes.

Denali’s heart leaps in her chest when she sees a glimpse of red hair come through the door, and she gives Rosé a little wave and doesn't care how dorky it is, how desperate she looks. Rosé smiles and waves back to Denali as best she can with arms full of toddler and books. She sets the stack on the desk with a sigh, shifting Luna to her other arm.

“Getting your workout in?” Denali teases.

Rosé snorts. “Definitely. The books are about as heavy as she is, I’ve been reading her three or four a night.”

“You can return these in the box outside, you know,” Denali says as she scans them in. “If you don’t want to carry them all the way in here.”

Rosé bites her lip. “But that’s one less time I’d get to talk to you.”

The book slips through Denali’s hands and hits the counter, her cheeks on fire. Her heart skips a beat, then resumes its rhythm with a deep pounding in her chest. Rosé likes talking to her. Rosé likes talking to her so much she lugs a pile of books in here just to do it, and it's a few seconds before Denali can speak again. “Are you--are you getting any other books today?” she stammers.

Rosé shakes her head. “Nah, I just wanted to stop in quick and drop these off. I’m taking Luna to the zoo today.”

“To see the tigers!” Luna adds happily.

Rosé smiles. “That’s right. We’re gonna see all the tigers.”

Denali smiles too, her heartbeat finally returning to normal. “I hope you have fun. Say hi to the tigers for me, okay?”

“We will. See you next week.”

“See you.”

Denali really, really wishes she was going to the zoo too.

---

Denali is still coasting on the high of Rosé’s latest visit a week later, even if neither of them has done anything to capitalize on her comment about enjoying her talks with Denali. But Denali knows the interest is there, knows the way Rosé’s eyes shine when she looks at her aren’t just her imagination. Denali will keep testing the waters, let herself be a little more flirty, and one of these weeks, she’ll fully make her move.

The thought keeps her going all day, through the disastrous clean-up after someone spills an entire box of crayons--the 96-pack, of course--and through the reorganization of the mess someone made of the fairy tale collection. She’s giving the furniture a once-over when she spots a familiar stuffed tiger on the chair, her mind filling with the image of Rosé reading to her daughter here this morning. Luna must have forgotten the tiger, and Rosé was so busy juggling all their books that she must not have noticed.

She could just hold the tiger until the next time Rosé comes in, which will hopefully be soon. But she thinks of how fiercely Luna clings to the tiger and Denali can’t make her go without it; Denali was a stuffed animal kid herself, each one with a name and backstory and assigned night for sleeping with her. Plus the library is closed on Sundays, so the earliest Rosé could get it would be Monday morning, and Denali winces thinking of how rough two nights without the tiger might be for Luna.

Or she can just call Rosé.

Every patron in the library system has a phone number and address in their profile, and though she can’t remember Rosé’s last name, she’s the only Rosé in the system. Finding her phone number won’t take more than five seconds. It feels personal, almost intimate, somehow, looking Rosé up like this, calling her because Denali recognized her daughter’s stuffed tiger. Really, though, it’s no different from looking up a patron’s number to tell them a book they ordered came in, and Denali does that all day--heck, she gets paid to do that all day. This shouldn't be any different. She dials the number before she can think about it too much, warning the butterflies in her stomach to settle down.

“Hello?”

“Um, Rosé?”

“Yes.”

“It’s Denali. You know, from the library. Anyway, I was cleaning up and I found a certain stuffed tiger hanging out on the chair, and I bet someone’s really missing him.”

“Oh, thank God.” Rosé sighs, and Denali can practically see her body slumping in relief. “We just noticed him missing an hour ago, I’ve been going everywhere we went today looking for it. I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

“I’ll be here,” Denali promises.

“Thank you, Denali. Really.”

Rosé is so sincere that Denali’s grateful they’re just talking on the phone and Rosé can’t see her blushing. The tiger keeps her company at the desk until Rosé rushes in, her cheeks flushed and hair messy. Luna looks equally stressed, and Denali can tell she’s been crying. She jumps up from the desk and hangs the tiger to Luna, who hugs it to her chest and sniffles.

“Thank you so much,” Rosé says. “Luna, can you say thank you to Miss Denali?”

“Thank you Miss Nali,” Luna says, and Denali’s heart just about melts.

“You’re welcome.”

Luna runs off to play with the blocks, and Rosé leans against the desk with Denali to watch her.

“I’m so sorry I had to bother you with this,” Rosé says, running a hand through her hair. “I should’ve noticed she didn’t have it, I just—“

Denali brushes her off. “Please. I had to kick a teenager off the computer for watching porn this morning. Holding onto a stuffed animal is one of the better things I’ve had to do today.”

Denali is wondering if that was too much information when Rosé bursts into laughter, so infectious that Denali laughs with her.

“Seriously?” Rosé asks.

“Pretty much a typical day in the library,” Denali says.

Rosé snorts and shakes her head. “Anyway, I mean, if there’s something I could do to thank you—“

“I like ice cream,” Denali blurts, cheeks instantly burning. “I mean, uh—“

“Are you suggesting an ice cream date?” Rosé asks, raising her eyebrow.

“I am,” Denali says confidently, because apparently today is the day she’s making her move.

Rosé breaks into a grin. “It’s a date.”

[xoluvx]

Peter From Chemistry - P.PxReader

Warning: initial fluff, but some smut at the end & swearing

Summary: You meet a cute boy in your chemistry class & though he seems to be interested, nothing really come out of it. Until he texts you one night asking if he can come over. Oh and did I mention? You’re both hiding something.

Word Count: 3.5K

Alright, so this stemmed from a personal experience. Obviously my person wasn’t Peter Parker and they were definitely no Spider-Man. BUT I thought it’d make for a cool Peter imagine. & there’s nothing better than pulling from personal experience. Also kinda had a hard time figuring out how to end, so enjoy or whateva!

-

You stumbled into the cold classroom, gripping the strap of your backpack lazily resting on your shoulder. Your eyes shifted to the clock hanging on the wall. 9:02am. Shit, you were late. Two minutes, but still late. All the seats were taken and now you were awkwardly standing there trying not to cause a scene.

“Nice of you to join us, please take a seat.” Too late.

You searched the room for an empty seat and quickly made your way to an empty stool. The only empty stool. You dropped your backpack on the floor, settling down into the seat. You briefly made eye contact with the boy sitting across from you. It was obvious he was trying hard not to acknowledge you, spare you some embarrassment for walking in late, but his brown eyes caught yours for a second. His lips forming a tight line smile.

The first day of classes always sucked. Syllabi were thrown around; awkward icebreakers were always a must and there were always those uncomfortable silences amongst strangers. You were done with the buffoonery. But alas here you were flipping through the four-page packet compromised of your chemistry course calendar, assignments, and tasks for the next few weeks.

The voice of your professor faded in and out as you skimmed the classroom. You could probably count the number of women in the room with one hand. Your professor being one of them.

You were quickly pulled out of your trance when you heard the professor say, “Okay so please give your name, major, year and why you’re taking this course.” You tried really hard not to roll your eyes. Didn’t professors have any better ice breaker? Better yet, couldn’t they skip it all together? You weren’t here to make friends, you just needed to pass.

You leaned your head on the palm of your hand as you hear people introducing themselves. You really couldn’t care less, until the boy - that one with the big doe eyes and tight line smile - started speaking. He cleared his throat, furrowing his brows. “Um, my name is Peter. I’m a first year undeclared.” The teacher, whose arms were folded, nodded her head. “Why are you taking this course, Peter?”

You watch the boy fumble on the stool, tugging at the bottom of his shirt. “Considering a chemistry minor,” he said giving her a small smile. You tried hard not to smirk, glancing at the dorky pun t-shirt he was wearing; this kid did not look like he needed the course.

Now it was your turn. Having been through this same ice breaker for multiple classes, you were quick. “My name is Y/n. Second year, electrical engineering and physics double major. Minor in chemistry. Taking this course for my minor.”

You felt everyone’s eyes fixate on you. You were used to it. The only pair of eyes that mattered were those of the boy across from you whose mouth had fallen open absorbing in the information. You looked at him briefly, noticing his brows furrowed, one of them unruly. You looked away and towards the professor giving her an awkward smile. “Great, impressive y/n,” she said motioning towards the next student.

That’s how the class went for the next hour and forty-five minutes. It was pure torture. After a painstaking review of the course, the syllabus and the expectations, the teacher closed the class with a quick explanation of the final project.

Final project? You thought to yourself. On cue the professor spoke. “I know the final project is ways out, but this is going to be a partner project so I am giving you the opportunity now to start thinking of who you want to partner with. This is worth 45% of your grade. Partner choices need to be emailed to me by this Sunday. Class dismissed.”

You sighed softly taking in the information, the room quickly engulfed in chatter. People were already busy finding a partner, jotting down numbers, exchanging details. Most of the people here looked like they knew each other. You, never straying from your group of friends and keeping your circles separate, had no idea who you were going to partner with.

As people started exiting the room, you hopped off your stool, grabbing your backpack from the floor. You swung it over your shoulder pulling your phone from its side pocket looking through your texts: roommates wanting to meet up for an early lunch.

You opened the classroom door, ready to leave when you felt a faint touch on your shoulder. You flinched turning to face whoever had touched you. It was the boy. You’d almost forgotten about him.

You walked out of the room, him following close behind.  “You want to be partners?” He asked holding tight to the straps of his backpack as he walked next to you. You looked away from your feet to look at him. He had a look you couldn’t quite read. Expecting? Nervous?

You tugged a piece of hair behind your ear and shrugged. “Sure,” you say calmly. Though inside you were freaking relieved you didn’t have to go out of your way to find a partner. Plus, it didn’t hurt that he was cute.

You see him struggle to get his phone out of his hoodie pocket. Fingers fumbling with the material. You try to restrain a laugh, but a small noise slips through your lips. He finally gets a hold of his phone and pulls up a new contact card. He nervously hands you the phone, cheeks burning from the incident.

You smile, typing your phone number into his phone along with your name. You save the information and hand his phone back before turning on your heel. You keep your face turned to him as you walk away. “I’ll see Thursday,” you say throwing him a small smile before turning your back on him, making your way towards the dining hall where you were meeting your roommates.

Peter stood there, phone in his hand, watching you walk away. He watched as your hair bounced ever so slightly with every step you took. He looked down at his phone, a big goofy smile spreading across his face.

-

You were sprawled across your couch after lunch with your roommates. Hands resting on your belly as you watched one of your roommates working on the coffee table.

Chemistry was the only class you had today, now you had to wait two days to see the cute boy again. You debated whether or not to tell your roommates knowing they’d tease you. He was only a freshman, after all.

Noticing the sudden silence, your roommate looked up putting her pencil down. “What’s on your mind?” she asked. You looked down at her, one of your fingers twirling a piece of your hair. You couldn’t keep the information to yourself any longer, it was just begging to burst out of your chest.

“There’s this cute guy in my class,” you say, mind drifting to thoughts of the boy.

Your roommate quickly got up pushing your legs off the couch so she could sit. “Okay, tell me more!” She pried resting her face in her hand, resting on the couch’s arm chair. “I mean there’s not much to tell. He’s in my chemistry class. We’re partners.” You see her eyes light up mouthing partners using air quotes. You kick her leg, rolling your eyes. “Stop, he’s like super innocent looking.” You say sighing thinking of how awkward he was when asking you to be partners.

Your conversation came to a halt when your phone vibrated. It was resting on the coffee table. Quickly reaching for it, you noticed you’d received a text … from an unsaved number. Curious, you opened the text notification.

‘Hey, it’s Peter. Peter from chemistry.’

You gulped, a small smile forming on your lips. You flashed the phone towards your roommate. “Peter from chemistry,” you say testing how the words sounded slipping off your tongue. Your roommate raised her eyebrows giving you a small joking silent clap. You laugh and look down at your phone, debating what you should say. You settle on a simple Hey.

‘Do we have homework for Thursday?’

You let out a small laugh, shaking your head. You knew this was just a ploy to talk to you because the syllabus had all the homework assignments for the rest of the quarter.

‘No homework :)’

Your reply was short and sweet. The three daunting dots popped up on the bottom of the screen and disappeared just as fast. You sighed putting your phone down.

-

You slipped on to the same stool as the last time you were in this room. This time, you were 20 minutes early. Excessive, yes, but you didn’t want to draw attention to yourself again. You were immersed in your phone, scrolling through social media when you heard the screeching of a stool being pulled out in front of you.

You tried hard not to look up, but not able to resist you quickly glanced up from your phone. Your eyes met Peter’s. He gave you a small smile as he lowered his backpack to the ground. “Hey,” he says playing with his hands now resting on the table. “Hi,” you reply.

You’re not going to lie and pretend like you weren’t hurt by the fact that he never texted you back. You spent all day that Tuesday and the following day wondering if he was going to text back. He never did. Now you kind of resented him for it. He clearly knew you had no homework, yet he went out of his way to try to start a conversation and left you high and dry.

The rest of the class didn’t go any better. The professor lectured. There were awkward glances between you and Peter. Uncomfortable silences when the professor asked your table to “discuss”. You couldn’t wait to get out of here.

-

‘Can I come over?’

The text that flashed on your phone screen as you laid in bed made your heart skip a beat. It fluttered and you feel the thumping all the way up at the side of your face that laid on the pillows. You opened the text, watching the familiar three dot bubble pop up.

They appeared and disappeared and you wondered what he could be typing.

It’d been a few weeks since that awkward incident. By this point, you and Peter had pushed past the awkwardness focusing on the reason you had his number in the first place. The final project. Yeah, you’d gotten to know a few details of his life (as much as he’d let out), but there been no significant moments that made you believe he was into you.

Until now.

‘I want to see you.’

The second text made your fingers cold. The thumping of your heart picked up its speed and your hand could hardly hold on to your phone. But they did, long enough for you to drop a pin and a simple ‘text me when you’re here’.

It hadn’t been more than five minutes when you received a text from the boy letting you know that he was outside. How the hell did he get here so fast? You wondered. He lived on campus, the house you shared with your roommates was a good few minutes’ walk from the dorms.

You struggled to get out of bed, the nerves of meeting him outside of class. At night. It was too much for you. You were a confident person, yeah. But this boy just seemed to make you all mush all the time.

Grabbing a grip of yourself, you pushed your body off the bed. Feet making instant contact with the cold floor, sending shivers up your spine. In the attempt of mentally preparing yourself to greet Peter, you’d forgotten to change into something “visitor friendly”. Your large t-shirt fell mid-thigh barely hiding your small athletic shorts that clung to every nook and cranny of your behind.

You tugged on the bottom of the shirt pulling it down.

‘It’s kinda cold out here’

You blushed reading the text, feeling bad you’d taken so long. You rushed down the hall and towards the door. When you opened the door, Peter had his hands deep within the pockets of his jeans. The flimsy material of his navy-blue jacket hardly shielding him from the cold.

“I’m sorry,” you apologize opening the door wide enough to let him in. He brushed past you blowing air up to his upper lip and nose trying to get warm. You felt your body tingle at the slightly bit of contact you had made with the side of his arm.

You’d also completely forgotten about your outfit until Peter had settled into your house his eyes lingering. His eyes shifted from your bare thighs up to fabric that poorly covered your breasts. You folded your arms, clearing your throat before guiding Peter to your room. You were too afraid your roommates might walk out at any instance.

He nervously followed, playing with the zipper of his jacket. When you’d reach the door of your room, you turned back to Peter giving him a small nervous smile. Peter cleared his throat, stepping into your sacred land.

“You can sit,” you spoke in a soft voice patting the space next to you on the bed. Peter rubbed his hands together, still cold. Yet, he removed his jacket revealing his toned arms in a tight shirt. One you’d never seen before. You bit the inside of your lip, your throat suddenly dry.

Peter slid his body next to yours, his hands crossed on his lap. There’d been zero physical contact, but somehow this felt very intimate. There was a silence, not awkward, between the two of you. It was soon filled with the rustling of your covers moving under your body as you shifted your weight. Peter cleared his throat shifting his eyes to meet your gaze.

“So… you wanted to see me?” you ask, the awkwardness now settling in.

You didn’t feel awkward being in his presence. You felt awkward that he seemed to be the one to always make the first move, but never followed through. Not but ten minutes ago he was asking to come over, stating he wanted to see you. You’d caught a glimpse of the confident Peter you hoped was deep inside, but now he was sitting at the foot of your bed playing his fingers nervously.

“I – I just …” For someone who was wicked smart, he couldn’t articulate a coherent thought. Your hand rested on the exposed skin of your thigh watching Peter’s lips move nervously. 

Peter’s eyes were fixated on you. Yours were fixated on his lips watching his bottom lip quivered as you inched closer. There was an obvious attraction. An unexplainable pull. Two forces destined to be together. The beating of your heart became louder and obvious as your body neared Peter’s, who was now matching your own movements.

You brushed your nose against Peter’s, familiarizing yourself with his breathing. He tilted his head, your lips brushing ever so slightly before pulling away to brush your nose. You gulped; the anticipation too high. The hand that was resting on your thigh moved to hold on to Peter’s arm feeling the way his bicep flexed when he felt your delicate touch.

His lips were parted, inches from yours. You were so close you were practically exchanging breaths. He’d exhale and you’d inhale. Peter brought his right hand to the back of your neck, massaging the sensitive area. His mouth still so fucking close to yours, but never actually touching.

You whimpered, your hand falling down to his thigh gripping it tightly. A plea for more.

Peter’s tongue curiously traced your top lip. He clenched his jaw, still gripping to the back of your neck, before repeating the action on your bottom lip. It took every fiber in your body to control yourself, letting Peter take the lead. He had been the one asking to come over after all, you wanted to see what he could do.

He dug his fingers deeper into your neck eliciting a moan. The moan that sent him over the edge. He attacked your lips with his own. Hunger in each nip and tug at your bottom lip. His tongue brushed your bottom lip begging for permission. You open your mouth inviting him in.

Your tongues danced, so glorious. The feeling rushing all the way down to your core. Your body pushing itself against his side as he played with your hair, faces moving this way and that.

You brought yourself to sit on your knees, hovering over Peter. Both your hands finding their way to his face working on tilting his head to give you the best angle to devour him.

His free hand had cupped the bottom of your thigh and was slowly creeping up your ass and towards your back. You shivered under his touch, his hands still cold from the minutes he spent waiting for you.

“Do you want this?” He asked pulling himself from your grip. Searching your face for answers. You eagerly nodded, the lust slipping through your lips when you felt his hand reach under your shorts to squeeze the supple skin.

He pulled you down so you were straddling his lap. Your lips reconnected. This time it was soft and deep. Your lips connecting and reconnecting as your faces titled in opposite directions every few seconds.

You felt his fingers digging into the sides of your waist, his hips bucked longing to feel your every movement. You ground your hips into his, whimpering into his mouth.

Fuck you, Peter from chemistry. You thought melting under his touch.

& fuck you he did.

-

The birds outside your window brought you out of your slumber. Feeling your tense body, you stretch into a starfish before hitting the back of Peter’s head.

You retracted your hand, mentality cursing. You hadn’t forgotten about last night. Hell, it was going to take a long time to forget about the way he listened to your body. The way he made you quiver. The way he licked the skin under your ear sending you into a fit of moans and whimpers.

How the hell did this boy know how to do all this? And better yet, how could you get him to do it again?

You were snapped out of your thoughts when you felt the body next to you shift his weight. A low groan escaping his lips as he brought his arms up to shield his eyes from the sun peeking through your blinds.

You bit your lip watching the veins in his arms and the way his hair was pointing in all different directions. He was a god. No doubt.

“Take a picture, it’ll last longer.” He mumbled his arms still slung over his eyes but an obvious smirk had taken over his lips.

“HA” you replied turning your back to him, a sad attempt at hiding your flushed cheeks.

It wasn’t long before you felt his body molding on your back, his arm wrapped around you bringing you closer. The tip of his nose caressed your shoulder. You settled into the embrace as he planted a kiss on the same spot. Then the nape of your neck. And finally that sweet spot right below your ear.

“We should get out of bed,” you whisper bringing your hand up to your nightstand to grab your phone. Peter eyed your movements. You pressed the home button to check the time and as soon as your lock screen flashed, Peter’s body went limp.

Noticing the sudden shift, you turned your head towards him as much as you could asking what was wrong.

Peter, still collecting his thoughts, finally responded. “Why do you have a picture of Tony Stark and a little girl as your screensaver?”

Your brows furrowed moving your body so that you were now fully facing Peter. “You mean a picture of myself? ... with my dad?” You asked confused clutching to the comforter.

Peter’s mouth was suddenly dry and he was trying really hard to swallow the shock. “Your dad?” He asked hoping you’d say you were pranking him.

You sat up, pulling the sheets to cover your breast. “I thought you knew? Everyone here knows who I am.” You say referring back to the obvious knowledge. You were an electrical engineer and physics double major with a chemistry minor for fucks sake. Try saying that five times.

Peter laid flat on his back, groaning and placing his palms on his eyes trying to process the information. Did he really just have sex with Mr. Stark’s daughter? Worse. Did she know he was Spider-Man?

“Wait if you’re Tony Stark’s daughter why are you never at the compound?” He instantly regretted saying that knowing he had definitely given up his cover, if she didn’t already know.

“How do you know that?” She asked. Confusion written on her face.

Peter groaned again. Should he tell her? Or should he risk having her snoop around and find out by someone who wasn’t him? 

“I’m Spider-Man!!” He blurted searching your face for some form of comfort or understanding.

Your mouth formed an O. Why did this lifestyle, heroes and whatnot, follow you everywhere? I mean apart from the fact that you were Tony Stark’s daughter and it was kinda written in your cards. You groaned coming to terms with your fate. 

Goddamit, Peter from chemistry. Fuck you. You thought straddling his lap. His hands instantly finding his favorite parts of you.

-

PART TWO 

Masterlist ♥

[onetwosevensquad]

In Which Everything Goes Horribly Wrong

Jaemin x reader

Summary: your best friend gets a girlfriend that goes south very quickly

Warnings: mentions of bullying? Bad writing

Rose: I wrote this just because I was craving some College Bf! Jaemin. Be warned that this is hardly proofread, more or less just lightly skimmed. Also yes I know that there are no links for my Masterlist on my newer posts. My computer pooped out on me but we’re gonna look at it tomorrow. You can find links in most of my earlier posts though. Anyway, enjoy!

Main Masterlist

———

Five. That’s how many customers you’ve served on this extremely slow day. You work at your the coffee shop on campus to get some pocket money as college was already expensive enough. Also you got to work with Jeno which was always a joy. You and Jeno have been friends since sophomore year of high school along with Jaemin. And it just happened that you all ended up in college together.

While you and Jeno are close, nothing compares to you and Jaemin. The two of you have been attached at the hip since fourth grade. Ever since you got your juice stolen and Jaemin offered you his, you have been completely inseparable. And over the years you have developed feelings for your best friend. A cliche, I know. But you couldn’t help it with his sweet smile and flirtatious ways.

“Hey guys!” You heard from the door. It was none other than Jaemin himself just coming back from class. He had his signature smile plastered on his face like always. He sat at the counter right in front of you and launched into a story from class.

“Oh and Jia asked me out!” What. Oh no. This isn’t happening. You could feel your heart being pulled down in your chest. You could only hear Jeno congratulating him as you began to zone out. But as soon as your state of shock started it ended with Jaemin snapping his fingers in your face.

“Earth to Y/n. Did you hear anything I said?” Oh you heard it all too well. What do you say? Hey congratulations, best friend and long time crush. You go have fun while my heart shatters over here. C’est la vie, go have fun.

“Yea Jae, that’s great,” you said, mustering up your best smile. He seemed to buy it and immediately went back to talking to Jeno about the date and Jia. You didn’t know Jia. Just that she was some girl in Jaemin’s class you, by description, was very pretty.

No, this wasn’t the end of the world, though it sure felt it. There would be other guys and, who knows, maybe this Jia thing won’t work out. But you couldn’t help the sting in your chest when you saw how Jaemin’s eyes lit up when he talked about this stupid date.

Once yours and Jeno’s shift was over, you walked back to the dorms sandwiched in between your two friends. You all climbed the never ending stairs, you staying mostly silent. You didn’t have much to say after the bombshell dropped earlier. The boys stopped when they got to your door and said their goodbyes. You watched as the two disappeared down the hallway before entering your room.

Once in, you flopped on your bed, wanting nothing more than to be swallowed by your sheets. You didn’t know why this was affecting you so much. I mean you were a big girl and Jeamin was just a dumb boy. A dumb boy who you’ve been harboring feelings for since middle school. Maybe you were just scared that this was going to change everything.

As you got ready for bed, you couldn’t help but think that today was only Monday. Surely the rest of the week would be better.

———

When Jaemin and Jeno finally got to their room they got ready to go to sleep and procrastinate their homework. Jaemin couldn’t help but think about you though. He noticed how you were acting strange after he told you about the date. Was it really affecting you that much? No. No way. Why would you be affected by wether or not he was going on a date?

In all honesty, Jaemin would rather be on a date with you then Jia. But he didn’t think you like him back as you’ve always made the line between friends and something else very distinct. That didn’t stop Jaemin from being flirty with you. He was flirty with other girls, but it was so much different with you.

He figured that this date would be a good way to get over these feelings. You obviously didn’t reciprocate so why bother continuously pinning. He got so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t notice Jeno calling him until, finally, Jeno got his attention by throwing a sock at him.

“Dude, you were thinking so hard that I could smell smoke,” Jeno remarked. Jaemin mock laughed and threw the dirty sock back at Jeno. “What were you thinking about?”

“Y/n,” Jaemin said climbing into bed. He could hear Jeno chuckle and say something along the lines of “what else”. He just rolled his eyes and continued. “She seemed off after I said I was going on a date. Any idea why?”

“Nope,” Jeno said. Actually he had an idea. He knew exactly why you were so off put. He noticed it too in the coffee shop. He knew about your long thing crush on Jaemin. He also knew about Jaemin’s giant crush on you. But he was sworn to secrecy by both of you. However, he couldn’t wrap his head around how neither of you have figured it out yet while the rest of the group has. None of them were going to interfere though, surprisingly enough, just for the drama of it.

Jaemin went to bed that night, his dreams haunted by your disappointed face.

———

The rest of the week was, in fact, not better. Two of your professors assigned papers due next week, and two others had massive tests coming up. Jaemin also went on that date and wouldn’t shut up about. And it didn’t help that the rest of your friends were being huge pests. Namely, Haechan.

“Y/n you should tell him!” He whisper yelled in the dinning hall. Haechan was a friend added to your group in high school along with Renjun, who was also with you in the dinning hall. “This could be your last chance!”

“Your being dramatic,” Renjun quipped from besides Haechan. He just ignored Renjun and kept going on about how you’ll never know until you try. He only stopped once Jaemin sat in the chair next to you and Jeno next to him.

“Hey so I was thinking,” Jaemin started only to be interrupted by Renjun saying “uh oh.” He got a chip thrown at him by Jaemin. “Anyway, I was thinking that we have a little get together. At our dorm. So that that I can introduce you all to Jia.”

Oh no. Here we go. He wants to introduce this girl to his four best friends. That’s how you know things are going to get serious. But, wanting to be a good sport as well as not wanting to give yourself away, you agreed.

“Yea that could be fun,” you said feigning cheerfulness. That shocked everyone, including Jaemin. The others agreed still eyeing you to see if you were joking or not. Jaemin didn’t know why it was weird to see you agreeing. He was so sure that you liked him. Maybe he was wrong.

“Alright then,” Jaemin said. “Tomorrow then?” Tomorrow was Saturday. And given that none of you had to work it was the perfect days. All of you agreed to go over to Jeamin and Jeno’s dorm tomorrow at 7 for movies and meeting the girl. Soon you all started splitting off to go to your next classes.

As you and Jeno walked side by side, you could tell he wanted to say something. You knew what he was going to ask. Are you ok? No. You were not. But we’re you going to say that? No. You were not.

“Hey, are you-“

“Don’t,” you cut Jeno off before he could get his last word out. He just sighed in defeat and kept up with your fast pace on this silent walk.

———

7 o’clock came a lot sooner than you thought. You found yourself sitting on the floor of Jaemin and Jeno’s room, looking at memes on Jeno’s phone. Haechan was there too, as well as Renjun. Everyone was chill except Jaemin. He didn’t know why he was so stressed about everyone meeting Jia. Or maybe it was just that you were so chill about it.

“Dude sit down. You’re making me dizzy with your pacing,” Haechan said from Jaemin’s bed. Before he could sit down, there was a knock at the door. Jaemin quickly opened it and smiled when he saw Jia on the other side. However, he couldn’t help the dread that filled him. He pushed those feelings away and pulled Jia into the room. He introduced her to everyone and so far, she seemed nice enough.

Movie night was well on its way when you felt yourself get sleepy. You had noticed how Jia was practically on top of Jaemin throughout the whole night. The jealousy that bubbles up inside you was not a good feeling. You were lucky that Jeno was there though, as he had an arm casually wrapped around you and let you lay your head on his shoulder.

This didn’t go unnoticed by Jaemin. And he couldn’t help the jealousy that welled up inside of him.

———

While slightly painful for you, movie night was still enjoyable. It was now Monday and the sting of Jaemin being in a relationship was now depleting. You’ve come to terms with it because as long as he’s happy, your happy.

With it being Monday, you and Jeno were working your shift at the coffee shop. It was almost over when a new customer came in. Jia. Great.

“Hey y/n! I didn’t know you worked here!” She said with a little too much cheerfulness in her voice. There was no getting out of this one as Jeno was in the back taking stock.

“Yep,” was all you could muster. ”What can I get you?” As she rattled off her order you couldn’t help but notice how familiar she seemed. Like a distant familiar but none the less. As you were making her drink she started talking to you.

“Hey you know what? You seem so familiar to me,” she said. Oh so she noticed it too? Is that a good or a bad thing. “What high school did you go too?”

You told her and she shook her head. Then she asked about your middle school and her face lit up. This slightly worried you. Not only was middle school when you developed you crush but it was also a dark time in your life.

“Yes! Now I remember!” Jia said getting a little too excited. “We used to pick on you cause you only had like two friends and were kind of a nerd!” Oh for the love of everything. This was that Jia. The girl that tormented you all though out middle school until she finally moved away. How in the world did Jaemin end up with her?

“Here you go,” you mumbled handing Jia her drink. You mumbled something else about having to help in the back and ran off towards that way.

Before you got to the back, you ran right into Jeno. He had the most serious look on his face ever. That honestly scared you more then the realization earlier.

“So Jia huh?” He said looking slightly annoyed. So he heard. Great. You tried to brush him off but to now avail. “I’m telling Jaemin.”

“No!” You said a little to loud. “No please don’t Jeno. He’s happy with her. And if he’s happy so am I.”

“But you’re not happy and neither is he!” He said. Wait, what? “That’s it. We knew we said that we weren’t going to get involved but I’ve had enough. I’m tired of twiddling my thumbs!” Jeno said talking to know one in particular.

He went to the back and told you to get man the register for the rest of the day. What on earth is her talking about twiddling his thumbs?

———

When you got to your dorm, Jeno grabbed you and started walking towards his own. You kept asking what was going on but he just kept going.

He opened his door and when you entered, you saw Jaemin, Haechan, and Renjun all sitting inside. They seemed alarmed when Jeno pushed you inside.

“What the hell is going on Lee Jeno?!” You yelled at him. You didn’t take to kindly to being manhandled by your friend.

“Tell them what happened,” he said gesturing to the three others in the room. You just rolled your eyes mumbling how in wasn’t a big deal. You could feel panic welling up inside you. You didn’t want to ruin Jaemin’s relationship.

“Y/n what happened?” The man himself asked. Jeamin was extremely worried. He had been since Jeno sent a text to the boy’s group chat say they needed to have a talk. Seeing that everything was ok physically at least calmed him a little. But when you continued to stay silent he looked to Jeno for answers.

“Jia bullied Y/n all throughout middle school. She never told us, though,” Jeno said, sighing. Jaemin froze. Why didn’t you ever tell him? Why didn’t you say anything when they started dating. The other two in the room seemed shocked.

“Why didn’t you say anything?” Jaemin whispered. He felt hurt. Did you not trust him?

“You are making a way bigger deal out of this than it really is, guys. It was only two years and then she moved,” you defended. “I honestly didn’t recognize her until we talking in the store. And I didn’t want Jeno to say anything because you’re happy with her.”

Jaemin just stared at you, wide eyed. Not a big deal? Two years? Happy with her? He was confused.

“You should have said something in middle school,” was all he could say. He sounded almost disappointed. Right when you were about to say something there was a knock on the door. Jeno went to open it and revealed who it was. Jia.

“I’m gonna go,” you said rushing past everyone. You heard someone call your name but paid no attention to it as you raced towards your room.

Why was everyone making a big deal out of it? It was in middle school. That was so long ago. And you still have yet to find out what the hell Jeno was talking about. Was the we he was talking about him, Haechan, and Renjun? Was that supposed to be an intervention about your crush? Did they know something you didn’t?

You contemplated all of this on your bed for 30 minutes until you heard knocking at your door. You really didn’t want to get up and see who it was. But they keep incessantly knocking so you got up a grumbled the whole way to your door.

“What?!” You yelled as you opened it. On the other side was Jaemin, looking like some just kicked his puppy.

“Jae, look I-“ you were cut off by Jaemin pulling you into a hug. Slowly you wrapped your arms around his middle arms he squeezed you tighter.

“I broke up with her,” he stated. “You were wrong. I realize I wasn’t happy with her. I’m happy with you.”

That made you pull back. He kept his arms locked around you though, like he was scared to let go. You tugged on him to pull him into the room and closed the door behind him. When you turned back around, Jaemin pulled you into another hug.

“Y/n, I’ve liked you since middle school. But I didn’t think you liked me back. The boys told me. I’m sorry I’m an idiot. I thought that dating Jia could help me get over you but that went horribly wrong. Because,” he paused. He pulled back and looked you in the eye. “Because, Y/n, I love you.”

You couldn’t help the smile that spread across your face at his confession. He smiled back down at you and you swore your heart skipped a beat.

“I love you too, Jae,” and at that, Jaemin finally pulled you in for a long awaited kiss.

———

[fandammit]

Look how long this love can hold its breath (1/4)

Part Ben Gross character study, part slowburn adolescent romance. 

*******

I’ve hoarded

your name in my mouth for months. My throat

is a beehive pitched in the river. Look!

Look how long this love can hold its breath.

-Sierra DeMulder, “Your Love Finds Its Way Back”

The first assignment of their Freshman year Honors English class is to write a letter to themselves. 

“I want us to capture this very moment -- who we are, what we love, what we hate, what we want,” Mrs. Allen announces with a grand flourish, and he thinks that maybe she would be better suited for drama kids in Theatre than for neurotic, type-A students of this Honors class. “I want us to trap it in amber -- preserve it so that in four years, I can give you back those very same letters and we can marvel at who we were!”

He sneaks a glance over at Devi and can immediately see they’re both thinking the same thing -- it's ridiculous and cheesy, but they’re both willing to go along with it without any fuss.

English teachers tend to have some kind of corny getting-to-know you activity, and despite this overly sentimental first assignment, he’s only heard good things about Mrs. Allen’s class.

So, that night he loads up his printer with his 32 pound bond paper (to show that he takes this assignment seriously) and goes to work trying to capture this moment of his life in amber.

Even saying it in his head makes him want to roll his eyes (he thinks Devi must be thinking the same thing, then immediately thinks about how he can make his letter better than hers).

He knows what Mrs. Allen said -- that this isn’t really an assignment inasmuch as it is a time capsule; that it isn’t a resume, but just a friendly letter so she can get to know them.

But Ben Gross hasn’t gotten this far with his GPA and academic transcript because he’s taken teachers at face value.

He doesn’t lie  -- he honestly doesn’t need to, really. His list of extracurriculars and hobbies take up nearly half a page on their own, and his write-up about his pathway to becoming a diplomat is incredibly detailed and specific.

It’s only when he gets to the final question that he hesitates.

What’s one aspect of your life that you think would make a fun movie and why? Describe it to me!

He re-reads the question, then re-reads his letter and frowns. He clearly comes across as competent and confident -- which is what he was going for -- but also a little dry. This question is obviously designed to see if he has some personality.

Which, you know, of course he does. He’s just not sure how to put that on paper so that Mrs. Allen will see that he’s a well-rounded, intelligent but not overwhelmingly dull honors student.

He thinks about writing about his Bar Mitzvah and Blake Griffin -- that would be pretty cool to see in a movie -- but a voice that sounds suspiciously like Devi’s pops into his mind and calls him lame. He thinks about the time he sat next to Drake in first class on the way to Toronto with his dad, and this time an image of Devi rolling her eyes pops into his head.

He leans back in his chair and wonders what Devi is writing about. She probably has half a dozen stories to choose from, each one more exciting and endearing than the last, and each one bursting with the kind of personality that teachers -- for the most part -- seem to find charming rather than obnoxious (which is what it is).

He’ll never admit it out loud, but even though he knows that he can be charming when he needs to be, there’s an easy charisma to Devi that he’s never been quite able to replicate.  

He frowns at that thought, then scowls at the rather wide tangent his thought process has taken.

The cursor blinks at him as an idea slowly takes shape in his mind. He writes about the long rivalry between him and Devi -- the back and forth exchanges in class that became back and forth exchanges of first prize and first place and ‘best of’ certificates. The sixth grade disaster of their competing Oregon Trail projects, which almost got them both suspended and lead to a long enough truce for them to divide up any extracurricular and project they might ever take part in.

By the time he’s done with his fictional movie, it’s overtaken his letter; the answer to that one question as long as all the rest of his answers combined.

He reads over it and edits a word here and there, rearranges a couple sentences. Not to toot his own horn, but there’s now a buttload of personality in this letter in addition to proof of his competence, confidence and intelligence.

He ignores the smug-sounding voice of Devi in the back of his mind telling him that he couldn’t have done it without her.

*******

Mrs. Allen takes all their letters with a smile on her face and gathers them close to her chest.

“I can’t wait to get to know you better! Reading these letters is the best way to start my year, and in four years, you guys are going to love reading them back to yourselves.”

She turns and puts the letters in a filing cabinet, which gives him the chance to roll his eyes without her seeing.

She turns back to the class and claps her hands together.

“Now this second one -- it’s not everyone’s favorite, but I personally love it because it lets me see everyone in a different light.”

He groans inwardly, basically sure that she’s going to announce some kind of partner or group project, which he absolutely loathes. It’s way too early for someone to dull his shine in this class (or, in the case of Devi, threaten to eclipse him).

Unfortunately, the second assignment is much, much worse than a group project.

“This assignment isn’t for you,” Mrs. Allen says as she starts to hand out the assignment sheet. “It’s for your parents!”

Anxiety gnaws at the pit of his stomach the minute she says it.

“For homework, I need your a parent or guardian or uncle or aunt or grandparent to write a letter about you to me. It doesn’t really matter who specifically it is, it just should be someone who has helped raise you and shape you to become the person you are today. I give suggestions on that sheet about what I’d like them to write about, but really, those are just suggestions.” She smiles brightly at the class. “Basically, I want to see a different perspective on you. This helps me get to know you better and whoever takes care of you at the same time.”

The anxiety has eaten through his stomach and is now going to town on his liver.

“And I know that your parents are busy people, so they have until the end of the week to complete it.”

He slinks as far down in his chair without seeming disrespectful, trying to figure out a way to keep his anxiety from ravaging his lungs.

“What’s wrong, Gross,” Devi asks to the right of him. “Afraid your dad won’t be able to write anything nice about you?”

He shoots up in his chair and glares at her.

“More like I’m trying to figure out how to make sure my dad doesn’t go over the page limit because I’m so awesome.”

She rolls her eyes and turns back to talk to Fabiola, as he turns his attention back to the paper on his desk.

His parents are both out of town until Friday -- his mom’s at some kind of rejuvenation spa and his father is brokering a deal with some artist named Clairo -- so he knows he won’t be able to ask either of them. It makes sense -- they’re busy and this assignment is stupid, and he should really argue about it except that Devi doesn’t seem to care about it in the slightest and has already put the assignment sheet in her binder.

Putting up a fight about it would admit to a weakness -- his only one, really -- and he’d rather drop out of the class or fail than admit that to her. Er. To anyone.

For just a moment, he considers asking Patti, who does meet all the criteria -- she is someone who’s helped raise him and shape him to be the person that he is. He dismisses the idea in the next moment, because even if she technically fits the parameters, he can only imagine the kind of pity he’d get from Mrs. Allen when she reads a letter written by his house manager. He needs Mrs. Allen to be impressed by him, not feel sorry for him.

He thinks about that letter over the next few days and finally comes up with a compromise -- he writes it himself, but from the perspective of his dad.

He then emails it to his dad, who signs it, scans it and sends it back as an attachment with an email that says Couldn’t have written better myself! You’re so smart! Love you!

He takes that as confirmation that all those things he said about himself as his dad were true, and tries to tell himself it feels just as good as if his dad had actually written them.

*******

The following Monday, he overhears Mrs. Allen tell Devi that her father’s letter was so beautiful and heartfelt that it made her cry.

He doesn’t hear what Devi says in return -- some just-right mixture of pride and genuine gratitude, he’s sure -- just turns away and pretends to rifle through his backpack.

There’s a pang in his heart that he tells himself isn’t jealousy, and an odd sense of relief when Mrs. Allen passes by his desk without saying anything at all.

*******

That assignment is the second thing he thinks about when he hears about Devi’s dad and the orchestra concert (the first thought is something that can’t be put into words -- a kind of bottomless sadness shot through with a concern he doesn’t know what to do with).

He wonders if Mrs. Allen will give that letter back to Devi. If doing so would be an unbearable kindness or an unspeakable cruelty. If Devi would even open it if she did.

Mostly he wonders if Devi is ok, and what would make her feel better.

After hours of thinking about it, he realizes he doesn’t know. It makes him feel sad -- or useless, maybe -- that even though he’s known her for almost his entire life, all he knows is how to piss her off.

He briefly thinks about deliberately tanking a test this week to make her feel better, then realizes that he:

A. Is so smart that he probably wouldn’t be able to tank a test, even if he tried.

and

B. Devi would know -- she always knows when he’s up to something -- and it would do nothing but piss her off even more.

So he studies his ass off and gets a higher grade than she does on their Biology test. Her nostrils flare when she sees the grade on his test, and for a moment he really does feel bad -- maybe he should’ve tried to tank the test after all.

But then her eyes flash with something that isn’t sadness for the first time in weeks, and he’s so absurdly happy to see it that he doesn’t even come up with an insult when she lobs one in his direction.

He tells himself it’s because having a nemesis who’s all in makes him a better student, but when she gives a full-on victory cry in class a week later because she’s beaten him on their English test by half a point, that same absurd kind of glee is back with it.

A small part of him thinks maybe he’s just happy that she’s happy, in whatever small way she can be right now. The larger part of him ignores that, and studies twice as hard for their upcoming Algebra test.

*******

He thinks about that letter again on the way home from the Model U.N. trip, as he watches her freeze the moment an ambulance comes shrieking down the street.  

His mind is a jumbled mess of emotion -- anger at the way the conference ended, confusion at the way things have seemingly ended between him and Devi -- but all that fades away in a wave of concern as he sees Devi force herself to take steady breaths.

He almost wants to ask if she’s ok, but in the next moment she catches him looking at her and snaps a question, and he’s so mixed up and off-balance that he falls back on what the two of them do best -- insults and sarcasm.

It’s comfortable, but it doesn’t settle him, and for the first time (maybe not for the first time) he wishes he could be good at something that isn’t a way to hurt her.

*******

He thinks about that again when he’s sitting across the dinner table from Devi, her insults still ringing in his ears.

Now would be the perfect time to hurt her the way she hurt him, to make her as miserable as he feels right this moment.

But then he remembers that letter, thinks about the girl whose dad loved her so much that talking about her made a stranger cry, about the look of misery on her face as the ambulance went by and how awful it must feel every time she hears a siren.

He remembers the feeling of wanting to be good at something that isn’t supposed to hurt her.

So he swallows his bitterness at the way the Model UN Conference ended and swerves away from hurting her, makes some charming jokes about how good she is at diplomacy instead.

She smiles at him from across the table, and later even laughs when he tells her about his awkward pizza encounter (he won’t say it makes him feel better than he has in the last 24 hours, but something loosens in his chest at the sound of it).

It doesn’t take away the loneliness of the day completely or soothe all his disappointment, but even though the day still stings, at least he knows that he can be alright -- maybe even good -- at something more than just hurting Devi.

*******

He knows he’s had more grandma juice than is advisable when he finds himself staring at his reflection and telling himself that he didn’t throw this party just so Devi would come to his house.  

It’s his birthday, he reasons, and people throw parties on their birthday. It’s what his parents wanted when they left him, and he’s nothing if not a dutiful son. Plus, he has the house for it, and the money for it, and the friends --.

Well, he’s still not drunk enough to say -- even to himself -- that he has the friends for it.

But having parties is what cool kids do on their birthdays, and even if he can admit that he isn’t one of them, he’s at least adjacent enough to cool kids to be able to emulate their behavior.

So, yeah. That’s why he threw this party -- to be cool. Not because Devi asked him about throwing one. Not because seeing Devi look at Paxton like he was a goddamn chiseled marble statue come to life in the style of Pygmalion set off a hot spark of something that felt like jealousy in the center of his chest. His throwing this party had nothing to do with Devi, at all, in any way, shape or form.

He tells himself that a half dozen times as he looks at his blurry reflection in the mirror, as he splashes his face with water in the hopes that it’ll miraculously clear his vision, as he walks down the stairs holding his fourth cup of grandma juice.

Then he sees her come through the door and it’s like his vision clears up completely (if momentarily, because apparently emotions do not supersede biology) and he feels a warmth in his veins that has nothing to do with the alcohol currently coursing through it because Devi is in his house and she actually looks genuinely happy to see him.

He takes her on a tour of the house, pointing out the memorabilia from all his dad clients, showing her the game room and the gym and the two indoor pools (one chlorinated, one a saltwater pool), and she’s complimenting it all without even the slightest bit of sarcasm and laughing at his jokes and mocking him without the usual hard edge to her and he honestly can’t remember the last time he was this happy and --

Oh, fuck.

He totally threw this entire party just to invite Devi over to his house.

[adrenaline-roulette]

Four Eighths

Pairing: Four x Eight (Reader) Word count: 2K+ Warnings: Swearing, that’s really the only one for this chapter, I’ll change the warnings as necessary for each part. 

*Disclaimer, I really don’t know anything about the world of computer hacking and such, but I tried my best! 

Chapter one: Finding yourself

                                                  Well hello there! Look, I’m embarrassed and ashamed to admit this, but it’s taken me up until this past weekend to finally getting around to watching 6 Underground.

Now let me tell you, that shit was intense, hilarious, amazing, and my golly gosh, Ben Hardy has stolen my heart once again! There I was, thinking that he couldn’t get any more attractive after playing Roger, but no! I was oh so very wrong!

So basically, I fell down a rabbit hole of Four x Reader fics, and then while I was driving to work the other morning, I had an idea of my own for a story, and now here we are! I’ll let you all know now, this first chapter is basically just introducing Eight, but as of chapter 2 (Which will likely either be out tonight or at the very least by the end of this week), we will begin to get into the actual plot, and lets be honest, the smut. (We all want it, don’t pretend you don’t!)

I’m hoping you all enjoy this, and I would love to hear from you if you do!

@everything-isfucked, my sister from another mister, this goes out to you (You had better like it!)

Anyways, on with the show!!!

⫷⫷⫸⫸

Chapter one: Finding yourself

When your friends had asked you to join them for a night out on Friday, you had lied and said you had already made other plans. It wasn’t entirely a lie, however to most people, by saying you had plans, one would think they would involve you going out, and interacting with other people. This however, was not the case. To an extent you were interacting with people, actually no, let’s rephrase that, you were interacting with other people’s money.

Technology was your forte, everyone knew this, whether they understood the extent of your knowledge in the field, that was another question entirely. During school, all your subjects revolved around computer sciences, and it was to no one’s surprise when you had selected a degree in this exact field. Though you quickly found your assignments to be mundane and repetitive, designing a fully functioning website? You did that in your free time when you were seventeen! Create an app which allowed users to stream Netflix onto two screens at the same time? You had one upped that assignment with ease, your app allowed people to stream Netflix on one screen, YouTube on another screen, Or you could split screen, and have both playing at the same time on the same screen. Needless to say, while you professors were impressed with your abilities, your classmates were often found to be leering at you, snarky comments about how ‘because of you getting such a high grade, everyone else’s got dropped lower because they couldn’t compete.’ To you though, this wasn’t a competition, it was just something you loved to do! Of course, after years of doing the same sort of thing, your interests inevitably began to change. You knew the ins and outs of most apps and websites by now, you had studied them relentlessly when in the process of developing your own. So really, how hard would it be to use their coding against them, wreak a little havoc from the inside?

You had started off innocently enough, getting into your friend’s social media accounts, tweaking things in their settings just to get on their nerves. Slowly you built up to larger scale hacking, such as remotely logging into your professor’s laptop, not only finding the answers to the next five tests your class had, (Which you promptly made several copies of, selling them to your classmates online for $100 each) but also retrieving a few passwords that could have been far stronger than they were, (There’s a reason why most websites tell you if your password is weak, it’s to try and stop people like you from figuring it out!) With the passwords at hand, you were able to grant yourself access to anything you wanted in relation to your professor.  His bank account details? You had them. The password to access his bank account?  Well that just so happened to be the same password he used for his emails, which, oh look, you had that too! You had the ability to transfer all of his money from his account and into yours, something which you found yourself unable to do, despite his flawed internet security, you had no issue with the Professor, and although your moral compass was severely lacking by now, it was still strong enough to sway you away from robbing the man.

Your moral compass could only last for so long though, bills were piling up, your tuition fee was astronomical, add on top of that, your rent for the small apartment you had decided to stay in, to both escape your parents, and to avoid student housing, well the landlord had just upped the cost by $150 per week. You had a part time job, but the shifts had been dwindling as of late, and your savings account had reached dangerously low levels. Anyone else in your situation would do the same if they knew how, you told yourself as you found yourself diving deeper into a list of names you had found after weeks of searching. The list played host to the names of multi-millionaires  who were so called, ‘off the grid’. The people who were in hiding for one reason or another, the people who even the government didn’t know about, and definitely the kind of people that you, a broke student, should have nothing to do with, or know they exist.

All you had to do was select a name, just any name, then came the hard part, snoop around and find everything you need to grant yourself access to their bank. It was one thing to find the details needed when it was your Professor, but a totally other thing when it came the people on this list. These were the kind of people who had passwords to protect their passwords, passwords! Your eyes scan over the list one final time, before stopping on a somewhat familiar name. “What are you doing here?” You hum out, cocking your head to the side as you make up your mind, this is the person.

It took close to three weeks before you had retrieved all the information you required, and in that time, your savings were now obsolete, but that didn’t matter, it was Friday night, and you were about to make yourself filthy rich! “Sorry mate, it’s either this or I move back home.” You smirk, spinning back and forth on the black leather computer chair, your eyes sparkling as you look over the enormous number which was the balance of this strangers account. You knew what you were doing with this part, quickly you entered in  the necessary details, answering each and every security question with ease, before it finally came time to transfer the money to your account. “Just a bit to start with.” You decide, removing a few of the 0’s you had added for the amount you would transfer, “Can’t have the banks getting suspicious.”

                                                                               ********

The man stared at his phone, eyes narrowing into slits as he glared at the ever-changing bank balance. He hadn’t noticed it at first, I mean there was always so much money in there, how was he supposed to remember exactly how much he had? But the balance was dropping rapidly now, not by enough to cause him any concern, but surely enough to get on his nerves. There was nothing he could do to stop this though; he could hardly walk into his bank and demand they track down whoever had somehow gained access to his account.

No, he would have to solve this problem himself, surely it couldn’t be that hard to track them down, right?

                                                                              ********

Hacking was one hell of a slippery slope. One minute you were stealing someone’s money, and the next, you were assisting a group thieves who were robbing an exhibition which had come to the City’s largest museum. The exhibition was a collection of Georgian era clothes, and jewellery, which had been travelling across the globe, displaying some of the most exquisite pieces of fashion the world had ever seen. So far, the collection had made it three quarters of the way through its journey, and it was set to remain in your city for two months, before being packed up and moving on once again.

You don’t know whose idea it was for you all to use walkie talkies to communicate, but you felt like a child playing spies when you were handed yours that night. You didn’t give yourself the chance to think about that for too long though, as you quickly logged on to your set up, having situated yourself in a hotel which stood right across from the museum.  Usually it was packed with tourists, though after offering to pay triple the price for a room with a view of the museum for the night, miraculously the staff had found you an empty room. You had spent the entire afternoon lugging your bags up to the room, all your computer components securely housed in each bag. None of the hotel staff had paid you any mind as you brought up you twelfth and final bag, simply turning a blind eye to the oddity of the situation.

“Okay, I have eyes on the security guards.” You announce through your walkie talkie, eyes trained on one of the monitors which mirrored what the security cameras inside the museum saw. “Foxtrot, you need to go left up ahead. Romeo, stand still, don’t move until I say so, there’s a guard right near you.  Lima, you are getting way too close to a camera up ahead, either turn right now and go another way, or wait a few moments for it to pan back the way it came.”

This situation was stressful as hell, but the adrenaline which pumped through your veins kept you going, igniting a fire within you which begged for more. The trio in the museum listened to your every word, obeying each command as they crept closer to their target. An oval room near the far left of the museum, in this room there sat twenty pedestals, each playing host to necklaces, earrings, rings, and bracelets. Glass boxes encasing each item to keep them safe and protected. Not for much longer. “I can hear footsteps Quebec.” Lima whispers to you, and you frown, looking back to your monitors, scanning for anyone who may be approaching. At first you missed it, your eyes moving on to the next screen, but quickly they dart back, landing on a guard who had been up until a few minutes ago, permanently positioned near the bathrooms.

“Fuck, yes I see him. Foxtrot, Romeo, your path is clear for the rest of the way, but stop when you get to the doors of the oval room, don’t go in until I say so.” You watch the two figures nod their heads in understanding, before making their way as instructed. “Lima, go back the way you came, see if you can get into the storage closet at the end of the hall, I’ll tell you when to come out.”

“Quebec, we’re here and ready to go in.” Foxtrot announces, as you watch Lima close the closet door behind him, the guard who had been closing in on him none the wiser.

“Okay, here’s where it’s going to get loud.” You announce, turning to a new computer, fingers gliding across the keyboard at lighting speed. Delving deep into the security system for the museum, you finally stop when a window pops open, requesting an override password.  You had three chances to get this right, and you had four theories of what the password was. ‘Incorrect password’ the window reads, before you enter your second attempt. You hold your breath, waiting for the same message to appear, though this time it doesn’t. “Thank fuck.” You mumble, typing in the code needed for your distraction.

The fire alarms blares to life, a loud siren sounding throughout the entire museum. The security guards do just as you had expected, they all leave their posts and make their way to the front desk, all trying to find out what had caused the alarm to begin. It wouldn’t take them long to come to the conclusion that the alarm had tripped itself, but it would give your team long enough to smash and grab what they could. The sound of three hammers simultaneously smashing glass in the oval room is obscured by the alarm, and you watch as your masked teammates snatch up jewellery left, right and centre, shoving the items into their backpacks “That’s the last of it.” Foxtrot informs you, throwing the bag back over his shoulder.

“Okay, this is where we go blind, I’m cutting the cameras now, anyone who looks through them will see you arrive, but will never see you leave.” This is the tricky part, not only for your team who have to navigate their way out of the museum through the back entrance without your eyes to guide them. But also for you, who must now cut the security cameras for the entire museum, and then for the street cameras from the buildings out the back of the museum. You don’t have to do all the cameras outside, just enough to give your team room to make a clean getaway, leaving no trace of them to be found. You swipe your phone unlocked, resting it on the desk beside you, hitting shuffle on your playlist, Nutbush city limits playing at full volume. Smiling, you get to work, the song adding to the exhilaration of what you had just done.  Sure, not many people would be proud of robbing priceless artefacts from a museum, but hey, each to their own.

As you finish with the last building, its cameras shut off, your music drowns out the sound of the hotel door clicking shut softly. “Alright, you have a camera free street ahead of you. I’ll see you back at the rendezvous point for my cut.” You sign off on the walkie talkie, switching it off, after hearing an affirmative from your team on the ground. “Fuck yeah!” You cry happily, clapping your hands together three times, taking a moment to congratulate yourself on pulling off something that was this large scale.

“I wouldn’t say fuck yeah, in fact, I was leaning more towards fuck you.” Comes a voice from behind you, causing you to leap to your feet in surprise, spinning on the spot to face the stranger in your room.

“Who the hell are you?” You shriek, hands grabbing blindly at the desk behind you, searching for something you could use to defend yourself with.

“I’m the man you’ve been robbing for the past few months. I’m also the man who is going to kill you for doing so.”

Your fingers wrap around a solid object, and you lift it before you, holding it up in self-defence. You realise too late, that the hotel provided paper weight you were wielding, was nothing against the gun that was pointed directly at your chest.

Chapter Two My Masterlist

[ayma-nidiot]

“Don’t Speak Their Names” - Shrimpshipping fic Chapter 30

This chapter can be found here on AO3.

Author’s note: Yay! I finally uploaded a new chapter! Sorry for the wait, guys. Now get ready for lots of Symbioshipping. Hehehe.

Chapter 30 - Third-Place Man

~17 December 2005~ 

“N-No! Have mercy!” A Protector with Eyes of Blue kicked frantically while Weevil held him by the neck with his right arms. It was just his luck to get cornered in the empty baseball field in the furthest end of the university - and right before his teammates were set to arrive, no less. 

“Apparently, you don’t know who we are, so let me tell you.” Weevil held his sharpened left arms to his victim’s chest. “We are the almighty Earthbound Gods, and we don’t know trivial concepts like ‘mercy’ - especially not for little gnats like you. If you’re not going to join the Earthbound Army, then you’ll join your comrades in hell!”

“Do you really think that killing me is going to solve anything?” Protector with Eyes of Blue felt his breath running out. “Even if you kill me, the God-Shattering Star and Rex will join forces… they will kill all the other Earthbound Gods... and they will destroy you and the Crimson Devil.”

“How DARE you speak his name! Begone!” Weevil impaled his victim, allowing him to fall to the ground in flames. But no sooner had he done so when he could feel the darkness - even just a sliver of it - leaving his heart. “R-Rex… I’m… I’m going to… ngh…”

“Uru!” Anita growled as she tried to shake Weevil back into his trance. “Pull yourself together, man!”

“Aslla… Piscu… It hurts…” Weevil grunted, feeling a headache coming on, as his eyes flashed between demonic red and his normal blue.

Dammit… So, part of Uru is still in love with Rex. I can’t allow him to fall in love with him again. And Watda will have my head if he finds out I let this happen to him. Even the tiniest fault could hamper our plans for world domination. Anita gave up trying to ‘save’ Weevil on her own, but knew of someone who could. “You can’t go to the doctor, nor can you go to most of your classes… at least, not in person. These days, you’ll never know who’s on the side of the Gaming Club.”

“Yes, I’m fully aware of that. Ever since Watda took me under his wing, I’ve done all my assignments and classes virtually. And so have the rest of us! Any other wisdom nuggets you’d like to share?”

“No, but there’s a teacher I know that’s full of… er, what you might call ‘wisdom nuggets.’ He’s one of the few people on this campus that doesn’t know our true identities. He’s actually our biology professor, and his office isn’t far from here. That fool…” Anita snarled at the spot where Protector with Eyes of Blue had burst into flames, “His teammates aren’t set to arrive for another 20 minutes. We should leave before we’re spotted.”

“Do you mean Dr. Heywood Jablomie?” Anita’s suggestion calmed Weevil down a little bit, and he proceeded to walk with her to this office. “I get the feeling that I’m his favourite student. He’s always inviting me to biology symposiums or calling me whenever he finds a rare insect.”

Anita opened the door to the fairly deserted hallway; the few people that were there were part of the Earthbound Army. “So you’ve noticed. I would say that if you wanted to be a biology professor or entomologist, that he’d be the professor you’d want supporting you through your thesis defense. But there’s going to be little point in doing that once we’ve completed our goal.”

“Our goal, huh…” Weevil stared absentmindedly at the door he found himself in front of.

“Excuse me? Dr. Jablomie, are you here today?” Anita knocked on the door.

“Hmm?” Rattling of office supplies could be heard on the other side before a scruffy man answered, inviting the pair further into the room. “Oh! Well, if it isn’t my two favourite students! What can I do for you today?”

It didn’t take long for the scheming Weevil to think of an appropriate answer. “I’d just like to review my grades and career outlook with you. I know it’s a bit soon, but I’d like to start on my senior thesis soon.”

“Ever the ambitious student, eh? I think we all know that you’d have no problem in our teaching program, but let’s take a look at your grades anyway.” Dr. Jablomie pulled up some information on his computer. “Yup, just as I suspected - all A’s for this semester. We normally don’t allow freshmen into this program, but I can make an exception for you.”

“Is that so?”

“Definitely. I’ll send you a few emails in regards to the program; feel free to read it at your leisure. ...And if you keep up these grades, you’ll have no problem being valedictorian.”

“I… I can?” That last word from Dr. Jablomie flooded Weevil’s mind with memories of his father, memories he kept squirreled away for several months. Then… I can finally reclaim what that stupid girl Amber took away from me.

Anita noticed that Weevil was now under Watda’s complete control again. She and Weevil arose from their seats. “Anyway, that’s all we needed, Professor. We’ll take our leave now.”

“We will?” Weevil seemed slightly confused.

“Yes, because President Watda is going to need our attention.” So Anita said, but in the back of her mind, she wasn’t wholly convinced that Weevil was really back on her side. Sorry, Uru, but our president is going to need to do something a little… drastic to make sure you stay with your own kind.

Meanwhile, Rex had only woken up in his hospital room about an hour ago. For the past two weeks, Dr. Balls had convinced him to stay there, knowing that he could go into labour any day now. He didn’t appreciate being woken up this soon before his last final exam, especially for something as uninteresting as an ‘emergency meeting.’ If it wasn’t for Amber shaking him awake and threatening to hide his Tyrant Dragon ‘for safekeeping,’ he would have been perfectly fine with sleeping the whole day without a care in the world. 

“Ugh, making a pregnant person wake up for this… ” Rex groaned and yawned, wondering when the hell Phuckdis and William were going to start the meeting. “It had better be good. Nah, I know it won’t.”

“Come on, Papa, they said it was important.” Amber noticed that despite the Club Army’s recent losses, the size of the army hardly seemed to have shrunk. “See? President Phuckdis is about to start talking. And you better not fall asleep.”

“Nag, nag…” Rex rolled his eyes.

“My fellow Club members!” Phuckdis’ words silenced the growing crowd. “And for our newest members, we welcome and thank you for your presence. As you know, today is the last day of final exams. After today, all of the teachers and most powerful shifters in this university will go home. The Earthbound Army will have no qualms, then, about attacking the university when it’s at its most vulnerable.Those who live in on-campus housing - mostly Club members - will be especially at risk.”

“But we’ve only killed one Earthbound God, and turned another,” piped up Blackwing - Blizzard the Far North. “How do you expect us to kill six Earthbound Gods in the course of a day?”

“...” William looked to the ground in sorrow. “Sadly, we can’t. However, we have recently learned that two of the Earthbound Gods - Ccapac Apu and Chacu Challhua - live on on-campus housing. The two Club members tasked with spying on them have recently learned they take naps at the same time every day, in about four hours. At that time, the two Club members will infiltrate the dorm and kill them in their sleep while they’re not shifted.”

“That’s… sounds risky…” Amber didn’t wholeheartedly agree with this plan. “And if they happen to shift during this infiltration, we risk not only our spies’ lives, but also those of innocent students.”

“Well, I for one like it!” Rex got up and pumped a fist in the air. Everyone in that room could hear his ‘battle cry,’ even though he was in the back of the room. “I wish that I could be the one to give those punks a piece of their minds!”

“Not even an advanced pregnancy can stop your strong will, huh?” Phuckdis chuckled. “In that case, the emergency meeting is adjourned.”

“Now, then… I’m finished with all my finals, but you still have yours for Grandpa’s class.” Amber helped Rex on their way to class. “You did study, right?”

“Um…” Rex sheepishly looked into the lecture hall for ancient history. “Say, do you think Dad will give me a free pass because I’m pregnant?”

“So the answer is no.” Amber sighed and facepalmed, guiding Rex into a backrow seat. “Sometimes, you’re really hopeless, Papa.”

“Just sometimes? ” Rex smiled a goofy, toothy grin.

“Remind me again who’s the mother and who’s the child?” Amber sounded irritated for a spell before sparing a smile for Rex. “Anyway, Papa, good luck. I love you lots.”

“I love you too! Mwah!” Rex kissed Amber’s cheek before she left, taking all of his motivation for school with her. This whole finals schedule reminded him all too well of his high school finals, making him fear his test results even more. “And to think, I have to endure this for three more years…I could do without having to sit through a three-hour test. Or really any test, for that matter.”

“You really don’t like tests, do you?” Espa spoke from the adjacent seat.

“And who would? I’ve always stunk at them.” Rex held even tighter onto his baby bump; he had felt baby Amber squirming all morning. “On top of a war and the fact that my due date is in less than two weeks, I would rather be pretty much anywhere other than here. I’ve got enough to worry about as it is.”

“Your due date is that soon, huh…” 

Espa curled up a little, but Rex could still notice that the psychic duelist was quite chubbier than he remembered. “Espa… Remind me again how far along you are?”

“...” Espa let his arms fall to his sides, revealing his basketball-sized baby bump. “I’m 20 weeks along.”

“But your bump is really big for 20 weeks, isn’t it?”

“Did you forget already that I’m carrying twins, genius?”

“Espa…” Rex held Espa’s trembling hand. “Have you ever seen the on-campus doctor, Dr. Mayichi Balls?”

“Pfft…” Espa’s nervousness eased a little upon hearing that name. “No, I haven’t.”

“He’s this really awesome doctor that taught me everything I needed to know about my pregnancy, and I think he can help you too. After this final, why don’t I take you there?”

“You’d be willing to do that for me? Even after all that I’ve done to you at Battle City?”

“Come on, we can still be rivals and friends. That’s what Joey and I are.”

“Joey, too?”

“Er, well, he says I’m his friend, but I still don’t think that word sounds right when it applies to us.”

“I…” Espa started crying. “I… I… Thank you, Rex. I take back what I said about you being ‘the worst duelist in Domino City.’”

“I’ll forgive you if you can do two things. One, duel me fair and square. Two, cut the crying because the professor is already here.”

“S-Sorry…” Try as he might, Espa couldn’t control his crying very well. “I’ve been having these awful mood swings for the past couple of months, and… well, you should know how that works. Once I start crying, it’s almost impossible for me to stop.”

“Oh, do I know about the mood swings. But you’ve graduated in the top five at Domino High School, so you’re gonna be fine on this test.”

“Th-Thanks…” Espa’s voice still shook as he and Rex received their testing papers.

At least you shouldn’t have a problem with your finals… Weeves probably has it easy too. Rex was certain he bombed his algebra final, but understood the material for this test just fine. Even when he was down to the last ten questions, he didn’t encounter a single question he didn’t specifically remember from class. 

To Espa’s - and everyone else’s - surprise, Rex was the first one done with the test. “Whoa, the airhead Rex Raptor already finished?” one of Rex’s old classmates from high school wondered out loud. 

“Naw, he probably just rushed through it so he could be done,” quipped another former classmate. “He probably didn’t get a single question right.”

“No talking during the exam, unless you want both of your tests to be invalidated,” Spinos spoke all the way from his podium; he only looked up when Rex presented his finished test. “Good job. But just because you’re my son doesn’t mean that I won’t grade you like all of my other students.”

“Hehe, I know.” Rex flipped his hair. “I don’t need special treatment from daddy dear; I’m that awesome!”

“Still full of yourself as always,” Espa spoke from behind as he handed in his test too. “Let’s see if you’re still ‘that awesome’ after report cards come out, eh?”

“Oh, shut it. That is, if you want me to escort you to the-” 

Abrupt contractions hit Rex; though they weren’t as strong as last time, they were enough to raise Spinos’ concern. “Oh, shit…” he turned to one of his trustworthy student assistants. “You and the others are going to continue proctoring this test. My son might be going into early labour.”

“Yes, sir. I understand.”

“N-No…” Rex refused Spinos’ offer to help him walk. “I can get there myself. You stay here and do your job as a teacher.”

“I got this, Dr. Saurus.” Espa tried to wrap an arm around Rex, only to have the dino duelist swat him away. 

“Headstrong and stubborn as usual…” Spinos sat back at the podium. “Very well, if you insist.”

Espa, however, wasn’t wholly comfortable letting someone who could barely breathe or walk take him to the doctor’s. “I bet that if you were bleeding all over the floor, you’d probably be all like, ‘I can do it myself.’ I hope I can be a strong, determined mother like you.”

“And I hope you don’t.” Dr. Balls happened to be walking down the same corridor. “Rex isn’t exactly a role model you should follow.”

“Oh come on, I’m doing the best I can, Doc. Anyway, we didn’t come here just to chat it up. This is my buddy Espa Roba, and he really needs your expertise, if you know what I mean.”

“H-Hey.” Espa nervously waved.

Dr. Balls instinctively could tell that Espa wasn’t a shifter, but had the presence of mind not to ask about his gender identity. “How do you do? I’m Dr. Mayichi Balls.”

“Pfft… Hahaha!” Espa soon found himself in a nearly unstoppable bout of laughter. “Man, no matter how many times I hear that name, it never gets old!”

“Hehe… I’m used to it by this point. If you’re here for an ultrasound, then you’ve come to the right place. Right this way.”

“Actually, Dr. Balls, he’s not your only patient today,” Rex spoke as the three walked to Dr. Balls’ office. “I… I think Amber’s going to come out any day now.”

Dr. Balls offered the two men separate hospital beds. He prepared the ultrasound for Espa while his nurses tended to Rex. “And you would be correct in that assumption. In fact, don’t be surprised if you go into true labour next week.”

“But I want to give birth on my due date,” Rex whined. “Because, you know, it’s my birthday.”

“Then you need to listen to your doctor and take it easy, unless you want your Braxton Hicks contractions to become the real deal beforehand.” Dr. Balls turned to Espa with a kinder tone. “Your babies look healthy to me… Do you want to know their sex?”

“Yes, please, if you don’t mind.”

“You’re going to have a boy and a girl.”

“Darn, I didn’t think of any boy’s names… Although I know for sure I want my daughter to be named Artemis, Greek goddess of the hunt and childbirth. Still...” Espa cradled his baby bump. “I’m going to love my boy all the same, just like my brothers.”

“How fitting.” Rex smiled. “I hope I can get some of that good juju from you.”

“Haha… I just need to discuss with Mako on what we should name our son. But…” 

“But what?”

“I… still haven’t told him how I feel.”

“Oh my gods, Espa, are you serious right now? And how many months has it been? Why the hell haven’t you?”

“Well, I can’t be bold and brash like you. It was just a one-night stand for both of us…” Espa began what he knew would be a long fit of crying as Dr. Balls finished the checkups. “I don’t think he really loves me.”

“Er, well…” Rex hesitated for a bit; as the product of a one-night stand himself, Espa’s words caught him off guard, and he had no idea what to say.

And he wouldn’t have to, because yet again he heard loud stomping rapidly charging up the stairs. 

“Why do I have to deal with people running in the hospital all the time?” Dr. Balls sighed angrily. “Cut it out, you- Hey, where do you think you’re going?”

“Hey, is Espa Roba here?” shouted a voice from the far end of the corridor.

“Who wants to know?” Dr. Balls peered out from his office to look at this intruder.

“The fish duelist, third-place in regionals Mako Tsunami wants to know!”

“What’s going on?” Espa didn’t quite hear the commotion - and as soon as took a look outside, he wished he had. “Shit!”

“Espa! I knew I would find you here!”

As soon as Mako made his way for Dr. Balls office, Espa pushed Dr. Balls aside and shut the door. “I’m not at home!”

“What are you doing?” Rex got up, intending to open the door even though Espa blocked him from it. “This is the perfect time to tell him!”

“Tell me what?” Mako could still hear everything going on. “Please, Espa, there’s something I want to tell you!”

“You’re a gods-damned idiot for passing up a chance like this!”

“I’m not even anywhere near ready yet, Rex!” Espa spoke barely quietly enough for Mako to not hear.

Finally, Mako had enough of being ignored. “Espa, there are monsters outside!”

“What?” Dr. Balls got out his Gravity Axe - Grarl. “But they’ve never attacked the university!”

Rex gently pushed Espa out of the way and let Mako in the room. “Well, lead the way, third-place man.”

“Oh, I can assure you that my deck now isn’t third-place.” Mako revealed his activated Duel Disk as Espa hesitated to leave. “You can stay here - for your sake and the kids’ sake.”

“...” Espa retrieved his Duel Disk from his large handbag. “If Rex Raptor, who is farther along than me, is going, then I am too.”

“Are you sure you want to do this, Rex?” Dr. Balls asked as they ran outside. 

“Most people don’t deliver on their due dates anyway, right?” Rex elected to use his Duel Disk instead of his shapeshifting powers for this fight - much to the relief of Amber, who had already started fighting. 

“Papa!” Amber had just vanquished a powerful enemy. 

“Less talk, more showing off how strong you are!” Rex wasted no time in summoning his Red-Eyes Slash Dragon and Serpent Night Dragon. 

“Finally, something we can agree on.” Dr. Balls quickly changed into Guardian Grarl.

“I… uh, don’t know what’s going on, but I can help too!” Mako played his field spell A Legendary Ocean and summoned The Legendary Fisherman alongside White Aura Monoceros.

“Hmm?” Amber had never met Mako before. “Well, if it isn’t third-place man. Papa and Daddy have told me all about you. You’re a cool guy, I suppose.”

“Will you guys stop calling me that? I’m not a third-place man anymore! White Aura Monoceros, show them what I mean!”

“So… Uh, no Earthbound Gods yet, Amber?” Rex asked.

“Nope, nada. At least not here.” Heka answered for his girlfriend. “And if you’re wondering where Kaiba and Atem are, they’re fighting off two of them by themselves - Ccapac Apu and Chacu Challhua. With my adorable girlfriend’s armies, if I might add.”

“Haha! This will be a piece of cake, then!” Rex summoned Black Tyranno. “You know, maybe you’re a cool guy after all. My daughter’s one lucky girl.”

“Right?” Amber giggled as she shot an Archfiend Empress dead. 

“Um…” Espa pointed to a blue giant coming their way. “I think our luck’s about to run out!”

“It… can’t be! That’s the Earthbound God Ccapac Apu!” Amber rose higher in the air. “Everyone, this foe is beyond any of you. Run!” 

“You should know better than anyone that one does not simply walk away from a fight. Especially if his name is Rex Raptor! Slash Dragon, attack that ugly-ass beast!”

“Ha, ha, ha…” Nortius cackled as he fell the Red-Eyes Slash Dragon easily. “Do you really think that you can defeat me so easily, you damned rabbit?”

“I bet I can!” Amber twirled around Nortius, shooting an arrow that nicked the Earthbound God in the face.

“Huh, so this is the legendary daughter of Uru, eh?” Nortius began to fight Amber - at least for a short while. “Unlike your mother, you’re a worthy opponent, I’m sure.”

“I’ll make you eat your words, cur! Yaaah!”

“I-I can help too!” Espa stepped forward. 

“On second thought…” Nortius shoved Amber to the ground, then diverted his attention to Espa. “I changed my mind. I think I’ll attack the weakest of you first.”

“H-How dare you?! Go! Jinzo, The Fiend Megacyber, and Reflect Bounder!”

“Hehehe…” Nortius attacked back, leaving only Jinzo standing on the field. “You’ve defeated the damned rabbit in a duel, right? If I can defeat you, then it really goes to show how weak he is.”

“You… bastard…” Amber couldn’t fly, as Nortius’ attack left her wings badly damaged. “Argh!”

“Espa…” Mako stood there, speechless, while his monsters all perished trying to defeat Nortius’ lackeys. 

“Mako…” Espa knew that even Jinzo couldn’t stand up to an Earthbound God. “Heh. It’s funny. Even though I’m about to die, I still… can’t say it…”

“No…” Mako felt a burst of energy coming from his heart. “I… No, you fiend! I won’t let you!”

“Any last words, you weak, fake psychic? Oh, that’s right, you’re too chicken to have any!”

Espa didn’t bother to resist, as Nortius already destroyed Jinzo. “I… I just wish… that I could have… Huh?”

“I’m not going to let them hurt you…” Mako, along with his new spear and the orca he rode on, glowed white. 

“Well, I’ll be.” Rex snickered. “Mako’s a shapeshifter just like Weeves and I.”

“Say, Espa… Can I borrow Jinzo for a second?”

“Yeah, go ahead!” Espa fumbled through his Graveyard to find his ace monster.

“Idiot, if a monster like Jinzo couldn’t defeat me once, what makes you think it can defeat me now?” Nortius taunted.

“Yugi and Joey have taught me about a little something called ‘friendship,’” Mako replied as he retrieved a Polymerization out of his deck and played it. “I’d ask you to learn about it, but I’m about to give you a first-hand lesson.”

“You fool! You can’t stand up to the third-strongest of the Earthbound Gods!” Even when Nortius reached out for Mako, ready to crush him, a barrier of light repelled his arm.

“Ha!” The light scattered, revealing Mako to be an iron-clad warrior riding an even larger orca. “I’m pretty sure I can! Take… this!”

“What?!” Before Nortius could react, Mako had impaled him in the chest. “How… How could a… weak shifter like you… defeat an Earthbound God…”

“Dude, that was kick-ass!” Now that the enemies were gone, Rex deactivated his Duel Disk and ran up to Mako.

“Because I’m a proud warrior of the seas!” Mako shifted back into a human, but as soon as he did, he began to stumble backwards.

“Hey, I got you!” Espa caught Mako, but the two still fell to the ground.

“I’m…” Mako breathed shallowly as he looked at the sky. “Dad… I hope I’ve made you proud.”

“I’m sure you did, Mako…” Espa held Mako’s head and stroked his face. “I’m sure you did… But… I was so scared that you were going to join him… Why, oh why did you risk your life for a ‘fake psychic’ like me?”

“I know we haven’t known each other for more than a couple of years, but… Ever since our duel a year ago, I… Your dedication to your brothers… It reminds me of my relationship with my father. We really are more alike than you think.” Mako held Espa even tighter, stroking the psychic duelist’s baby bump. “I… I just wanted to protect the mother of my babies… and the man I love.”

Espa gasped as he stared at Mako wide-eyed. “What did you just say?���

“Didn’t you hear me the first time?” Mako chuckled. “I love you, you adorable freaking psychic!”

“Oh my gods…” Espa cried.

“Do… Do you not love me, too?” Mako frowned.

“Y-Yes, I do!” Espa frantically started kissing Mako all over his face. “I do, Mako! I absolutely love you!”

“Daaaaaaaaaw!” Amber would have jumped excitedly if she wasn’t injured. 

“About damned time!” Rex rubbed the space under his nose.

“You said it, Rex.” Joey gave Mako and Espa a thumbs up. “Congrats, guys. Two great duelists deserve nothing but the best.”

“I’m honoured that you acknowledge my skill!” Mako exclaimed.

“There’s just one problem, love…” Espa held Mako’s hand over his baby bump. “I just learned that we’re going to have a daughter and a son. But I have no idea what our son’s name should be.”

“Hmm… I like the name ‘Caesar.’ I’m not quite sure why, but… it sounds regal.”

“Ooh, I like it! It complements ‘Artemis’ well.”

“Artemis?”

“That’s gonna be our daughter’s name.”

“Oh, you.” Mako cuddled with Espa harder, giving him multiple cheek kisses.

“I hope I’m not interrupting anything,” Kaiba cut in, with Atem behind him.

“Papa! Good gods, you’re injured!” Heka started to heal Kaiba, until the former KaibaCorp CEO stopped him.

“I’m going to be fine, son.”

“And… And Chacu Challhua?” Amber asked.

“That overgrown whale was no match for the Seto Kaiba.” Kaiba smirked. “I see you’ve killed the other Earthbound God… Well done, you dweebs.”

“You… You really are the God-Shattering Star, if an Earthbound God was but a weakling to you.” Amber remarked. 

“Nice to see you again, Mako.” Atem recognized his friend and rival, even if Mako didn’t recognize him - except by his Millennium Puzzle.

“Yugi?” Mako looked confused, especially when he saw Yugi stand right next to Atem. “No, save it for now. After this war, we’ll have plenty of time to catch up… maybe through duels, haha.”

“So that just leaves only four Earthbound Gods remaining…” Amber spoke as she, along with her injured soldiers, made way for the campus hospital. “Papa, it’s only a matter of time before we have to do battle with them. Don’t be surprised if we end up having to fight Daddy.”

“I pray that that’s not going to happen…” Rex trembled. “That Watda is going to pay for making a fool out of Rex Raptor and Weevil Underwood.”

[choupichoups]

Eliott falls helplessly infatuated with his best friend’s little brother— he knows he’s writing up his own death wish going after this boy, but fuck if Lucas isn’t the most beautiful thing he’s ever laid eyes on.

Or: Eliott’s under the impression that his best friend’s new step brother, ‘Lulu’, is a literal baby. Nobody tells him the guy’s actually a fucking babe-y.

It takes two whole days for Eliott to reconcile with the fact that Lucas ‘Lulu’ Delacroix is not, in fact, a five year old toddler. From the way Adrien talks about him, gushing about how tiny and adorable and sweet he is, nobody can possibly fault Eliott for getting the wrong idea.

It takes three more days of juggling the pros and cons before he comes to the conclusion that it’s for everyone’s best interest if he just works on forgetting about Lucas altogether.

Ever since that fateful day in first grade when their teacher had forcefully made her students sit in order of their last names, Adrien has been a stable, grounding presence by Eliott's side. He's not eager to put to test one of the best things he's got going. Not even for a chance to have those pretty blues looking up at him again, not for the feel of those soft hands around Eliott's neck, sliding up to card through the hair at the back of his head, not for the warmth of those legs wrapped around his—

"Eliott?"

Not for any of those. He hasn't even thought about it for a while now. Most especially not the smell of his hair nor the shape of his smile.

“Eliott!”

Carefully, he checks that his mask of indifference is still perfectly in place before he turns his focus back on Christine, a classmate he’s been partnered up with for a small assignment. “Yeah?" he asks, smiling in hopes of it being distracting enough for her to let him get away with the inattention.

It works. Of course it works. She beams right back at him and graciously repeats herself. ”I was asking if later tonight is good for you?”

Eliott backtracks into their conversation, realizing that he has no idea how to answer that. He thinks he’s got it, vaguely remembering her mentioning a gig at some bar. Maybe going out with her would help take his mind off of Lucas.

There’s a muffled thud followed by the sound of books crashing together— the commotion is loud in the hush of the library and Eliott turns his head, peeking in between the shelves. His stomach does a somersault when he spies a familiar head of wild hair frantically moving around in the next aisle.

“So?” Christine asks again, looking steadily more confused the longer Eliott takes to answer.

“Ah,” he says, eyes switching between her and the small gap from where he watches Lucas’ head disappear, presumably to pick up the books he’s tumbled over. Eliott itches to run to him. Alone at the back of the library with his boy? Ever the opportunistic fool, it’s truly way too much for Eliott’s fragile self control to pass up. “I’ll have to check something first, I’ll text you,” he mumbles out quickly, making his leave with a final smile towards Christine. She waves him a cheerful goodbye without remembering that Eliott does not, in fact, have her phone number.

He pauses at the last minute, standing just beside the shelf, watching Lucas return some titles back into the shelf while leaving some on the ground. What little semblance is left of Eliott’s resolve melts right away when Lucas lifts onto his toes to reach for a book but doesn’t quite get there, fingers barely grazing the spine.

Eliott decides fuck it, he’s going to approach. They’re both adults here. And what Adrien doesn’t know won’t kill him anyway.

He watches Lucas huff to himself for a second longer before sliding right up behind the struggling boy and snatching the book off its shelf. Lucas jumps, wide eyes going straight to Eliott. When he turns around, it lands him smack dab into the circle of Eliott’s arms.

Book in hand, Eliott stands there smiling while Lucas blinks back at him like a startled baby animal.

“Um,” Lucas starts, eyes darting from Eliott and then to the book he’s got high up in the air, held well out of Lucas’ reach. “I need that.”

“Yeah, well.” Eliott shrugs, pretending to think about it. “I got it first so… what if I need it too?”

“But I found it first.”

“I have it in my hands.”

Lucas is frowning now, looking dangerously close to stomping his feet. “I really need it today, you can have it tomorrow, I swear.”

It’s cute that Lucas thinks this has anything to do with the book at all.

“Eh, I don’t think so.” Eliott dodges easily when Lucas makes a lunge upward. “You’re the one who owes me over here, Lucas.”

If Eliott’s self preservation instincts are in working order, he’d realize that now is a good time to back off. Irritation practically steams out of Lucas’ skin. “Me? Owe you wh—” Lucas stops then, looking properly up at Eliott rather than the book he’s so desperate to get his hands on. His eyes waver, drifting from Eliott’s face, down to the ground and back, before he seems to have an epiphany, hypothetical lightbulb glowing above his head. “Weed guy,” he mutters under his breath.

Weed guy? Seriously? Lucas has been running maddening circles around Eliott’s head for five excruciating days only for his boy to remember him as weed guy?

Ouch.

“Eliott, actually,” he corrects with a tight smile. He’s been contemplating giving the book back to Lucas after he finally recognizes Eliott but he retracts that thought now— petty in the face of such a dismissal. He holds the book up higher, prompting Lucas to jump up in a bid to snatch it from Eliott’s grip, laughing when it only works to bring them closer together.

Lucas backs up as much as he can, pouting while his eyes track the book. Unfortunately for Lucas, Eliott’s apparently reverted back to grade school mindset so the expression only makes Eliott want to tease him some more. What’s so good about the stupid book anyway? Eliott’s right there, Lucas should be paying attention to him.

“Look, I’m sorry about the party, okay? I was a little drunk.” Lucas drops to his knees and starts stacking the books in his arms.

Eliott lifts an eyebrow. “Sorry about what?”

When Lucas springs back up, it’s with his lips pursed, arms tight around the bundle of books as he gets right up in Eliott’s space. “I’m sorry for stealing your stuff, can I have my book back now?”

After the show Lucas had treated him with at the party, he really thinks that Eliott still cares about that joint? “I don’t care about the weed.”

“Really?”

“I’ve got lots where that comes from.”

“Oh, do you now.”

“Mhm, I’m very resourceful.” Eliott grins, bringing the book back down. Lucas picks it out of his hands, indignant. “They’re back at my place, in fact. Wanna come join me? We can just smoke and chill.”

“No.”

Eliott blinks, not expecting such a quick shut down. “No?”

“I don’t know you.” Lucas rolls his eyes. “I’m not going to a stranger’s place alone.”

His mind whirs for a nonexistent Plan B, sticky little fingers in his brain making grabby hands for something, anything that would interest Lucas enough to have him agree. “Ah, okay. How about… there’s a thing at some bar nearby, me and a few others are heading there tonight. You can come if you want. Heard the music’s gonna be cool.”

“Wow, a thing at some bar? Tempting,” Lucas responds, shaking his head. “But no, I’m not into that.”

He’s missed the mark by a mile. “Alright, fine, I get it. You’re not going out with me...” Eliott recognizes his defeat. "... today.” he tacks on at the end, eyebrows rising playfully when Lucas rolls his eyes yet again.

He doesn’t know what it says about him when Lucas smiles and it still feels like he’s won despite getting turned down. “If it makes you feel better, I’m not going out at all,” Lucas says, squeezing the books closer to his chest. “I’m busy.”

“That’s too bad,” Eliott grins back, shoulders lifting in a shrug. “You look really cute today.”

The pink in Lucas’ cheeks is an unexpected but very welcome surprise. Eliott watches his lashes flutter as Lucas breaks contact in favour of looking down at their shoes. It’s a strange feeling, watching the soft tinge spread over the bridge of Lucas’ nose. Of course he blushes pretty, Eliott thinks absently, wildly elated to be the cause of that reaction, but it doesn’t bring around the usual sense of victory— Eliott doesn’t feel like he’s caught anything at all, though the warmth blooming across his chest the longer he gazes at Lucas has a small part of his brain warning for him to abort mission.

He ignores it, willful that this is nothing out of the ordinary.

“Can I go now?” Lucas asks, breaking the silence. When Lucas tilts his head back up, there’s no trace of that previous timidness to be found, and Eliott finds himself looking into the same playful eyes that caught him on a chokehold that very first time. “Or are you just going to keep staring at me, Eliott?”

His name sounds wonderful coming from Lucas’ lips. Eliott blinks, dropping the arm caging Lucas in place, movement slow and halting like a stringed puppet, the boy in front of him its unwitting master.

“Wait, wait, wait. Give me your number, at least?” Eliott says in a rush, pivoting in the same direction where Lucas is headed. He lifts a hand halfway through but the latter is already out of arm’s reach.

Lucas doesn’t even turn around. “Get it yourself, oh resourceful one.”

And so Eliott’s left in the dust once again— stunned, captivated, and right back on square one.

Pre-game is at Sofiane’s. Or their version of a pre-game anyway, seeing as there’s not a drop of alcohol in sight. The four of them are just hanging around to kill time before heading to the bar Christine had been telling Eliott about. He’d had zero intentions of going there, especially after Lucas’ rejection, but Christine had reminded Eliott about it on Instagram, very publically tagged him on a post about it, and the rest of the guys had latched onto the idea like thirsty little leeches, dying of boredom as they evidently are.

“No but seriously, it was so funny like, Lucas had to climb up the rocks in his fucking suit just to look for the ring,” Adrien’s saying, flipping through his phone as he shows Idriss some more photos from his parents’ wedding. Eliott perks up, previously disinterested demeanour found dead in a ditch at the mention of Lucas’ name.

Sofiane comes out of the kitchen, laughing as he balances about a dozen juice boxes in his arms. “Who thought of putting the ring on the dog’s collar? That’s so stupid!”

“They saw it on Pinterest and thought it was cute or something, I don’t know,” Adrien snorts, pausing on a photo. “Here, Lucas lost his tie and ripped his pants at the knee, he looks like a delinquent.”

Trying to look as inconspicuous as possible, Eliott straightens from his slouch and looks over, propping his chin up on Adrien’s shoulder for a better view.

As expected, the photo is cute as fuck and Eliott has to consciously mind what his face is doing so as to not give anything away. He blindly reaches for one of the juice boxes and sips on it innocently, the image of a rumpled, grumpy looking Lucas engraved in his retinas. The boys keep going through the photos while Adrien narrates the story behind them and Eliott curls himself into one end of the couch, pulling up his Instagram.

Lucas Delacroix doesn’t bring him any positive results but seeing as the official marriage between Adrien’s dad and Lucas’ mom only happened recently, it makes more sense for Lucas to have a different last name. He can try lurking in the people Adrien’s following, but scrolling through thousands of people’s profiles isn’t exactly his ideal way to spend an evening so he’d rather not.

Eliott flicks his eyes over to where Adrien’s still giggling over the photos and nonchalantly asks, “What was your stepmom’s last name? Before marrying your dad?”

Thankfully, no one seems to find the question too odd. It is still somewhat related to their topic of conversation so he’s in the clear for now. Idriss takes the phone from Adrien to continue browsing while the latter looks up to the ceiling, emitting a lengthy ‘uh’ noise as he thinks about it before he settles on an unsure, “Clement?”

Lucas Clement brings up nothing.

“Wait no, Le… Lelonde?”

Lucas Lelonde isn’t right either.

“No! Okay, it was Lallemant.”

Lucas Lallemant

A slow grin breaks out, unhindered, when Eliott clicks on a profile that is unmistakably Lucas’ and he has to straight up muffle a mad giggle as he scrolls through. The opportunity to send a message is right under his nose, but Eliott allows himself to delay a little.

“Why?” Adrien asks, directing the question at Eliott. He misses a beat or two before finally remembering that Adrien is the one to give him the intel and he should come up with an answer right about now.

“Nothing, just wondering,” is his uncreative response.

Sofiane spills his juice laughing at one of the photos and it effectively steals Adrien’s attention away. Eliott goes back to his own phone, clicking at each and every one of Lucas’ posts, finding himself more and more endeared as he goes. Even the stupid meme and blurry concert posts are cute. And don’t get him started on the pictures of his actual face. Fucking adorable.

He doesn’t follow Lucas, inclining towards the safe side on the off chance that Adrien notices the development.

srodulv Gotta love being resourceful

A mark shows up below the message, letting Eliott know that Lucas has seen it, yet he receives no reply. But what is Eliott Demaury if not a persistent little shit.

srodulv So The Clash huh? I get why you wouldn’t be into the bar thing Heard Metallica’s doing a show next Friday I can score us some tickets if you want

lucallemant Who is this

srodulv Your date for next Friday

lucallemant Oh Cancel it

srodulv Wow

lucallemant I don’t date strangers

srodulv But I’m not a stranger I’m your weed guy

lucallemant Oh ok In that case Cancel it

srodulv :(

lucallemant :)

srodulv What will it take for Lucas Lallemant to stop breaking my heart

lucallemant Lol That would require Eliott Demaury to have a heart

The response gives him pause— that’s some awfully spot on roasting for someone who supposedly doesn’t know who Eliott is.

srodulv So you know who I am

lucallemant It literally says on your profile

srodulv I didn’t mean my name How did you know I’ve sold my heart to the devil  

Lucas doesn’t answer. Doesn’t even read the messages. Eliott’s stuck reloading the page like an idiot, exiting and reopening the app just in case there’s a lag affecting his notifications. He’s so focused on mentally convincing Instagram to magically spit out an answer in the form of one particularly frustrating boy that he doesn’t realize Idriss has stood from his spot on the couch and is headed for the space behind him until it’s nearly too late.

“What are you staring at?” Idriss asks, the soft thuds of his footsteps sounding too close for comfort.

Eliott’s fingers spasm in his rush to exit out of the chat and consequently start pressing randomly at his phone screen. “Nothing,” he mutters, accidentally deleting his Twitter app in his fumbling and oh fuck, well, there that goes. He doesn’t use it much anyway. “I’m just playing…” By the time Idriss leans down to peer at Eliott’s phone, he’s got a game up and running, pressing the start button frantically without paying much attention as to what exactly he’s supposedly deemed worthy of his laser focus. “… Temple Run."

“Temple Run.” Idriss repeats blandly.

“Uh, yeah.” He clears his throat, promptly dying when the guy on the screen falls pathetically into a hole. “Got back into it. Addicting as always, hm.”

“Sure.” Idriss eyes him suspiciously but he lets it be. “Come on, we gotta leave or we’ll be late.”

“Can I just stay here?” Eliott says, shuffling into a more comfortable position to get more ground when Adrien stands and starts pulling both him and Sofiane off the couch.

“No, come on, we haven’t done anything in a while.”

“It’s been a week, Adri.” Since that last godforsaken party that landed him in this pathetic situation in the first place.

Sofiane grumbles about having to return the juice boxes back in the fridge but goes easily enough, putting up less of a resistance than Eliott. Adrien gives him a look, sits on the coffee table in front of the couch, and holds up a fist.

Eliott huffs childishly but he answers with a light bump of his own fist against Adrien’s and pushes himself off the couch. It’s a thing they've started since they were children— if one of them notices that the other isn’t cool with something, the other would hold up a fist. An answering fist would mean everything’s fine but an answering palm would mean a bail out. It’s an unchanging dynamic, an existing comfort long before Eliott’s bipolar made itself known.

“Come on, Eli, don’t think I haven’t noticed you stressing out this past week,” Adrien says, draping an arm around Eliott’s shoulder. Eliott gives him a pained smile, guilty as fuck even though his best friend has no idea what exactly he’s been stressing about. “We’ll just take it chill tonight, I won’t even drink that much so we can have intelligent conversations about your superior taste in music!”

So of course Adrien gets face meltingly inebriated long before midnight even hits.

His dumbass best friend is laughing too loudly at a joke one of the bar singers makes and Eliott gives him a dirty look, tempted to hit him upside the head for depriving him of the intelligent conversation he’s been promised. Thankfully, Christine is sober and engaging. Eliott’s been trying his hardest to reciprocate her advances, flirting a little and smiling in abundance.

But the thing is Eliott doesn’t try. That kind of thing normally comes natural for him so he doesn’t know what kind of slump he’s going through right now but it has got to stop. It’s really cramping his style.

He places an arm behind Christine’s chair, nodding as she whispers about… the singer? The bartender? Eliott loses track of their conversation when his phone vibrates in his pocket. There’s no polite way to check on it with Christine sitting so close beside him, especially if the notification is what he’s hoping for it to be.

Eliott waits it out, fingers tapping an anxious rhythm in their itch to dig out the device.

It’s a losing battle.

“Just gonna run to the bathroom,” he says, distancing himself far enough from Christine so that she doesn’t take it as an invitation to follow.

lucallemant What did you sell it for?

Eliott leans against the sinks, only just managing to withhold pumping a fist in the air. He’d honestly thought that Lucas would let the conversation die.

srodulv A chance to meet you

lucallemant Gross

He giggles into his hand. God, he’d give up a limb to see Lucas’ face at this moment.

srodulv Come on that was good You’re smiling

lucallemant No You’re responding pretty fast for someone who’s supposed to be at a bar

srodulv You’re responding pretty fast for someone who’s supposed to be busy

lucallemant Whoops I finished earlier than I thought

srodulv This bar thing is pretty boring Come out with me

lucallemant What right now?

srodulv Yes

lucallemant No

srodulv My nonexistent heart is dying

lucallemant If you can get me out without my parents noticing then kudos to you

srodulv Those are challenging words Maybe I’ll throw pebbles at your window

The door opens with a bang and Idriss comes running in with a flushed Adrien rushing to one of the stalls. Eliott winces when he hears the consequences of Adrien’s excessive drinking going down the toilet.

“Guess we’re cutting the night short?” His question is met with Idriss’ laughter and a groan from Adrien. Eliott straightens up, nonchalant of the fact that he’s been caught standing around smiling at his phone in the bathroom. His friends are too preoccupied to pick up on it anyway.

lucallemant Ok I won’t answer though

srodulv So cruel

They say goodbye to Christine and her friends while Sofiane rounds up the car. Adrien’s nearly asleep by now, depending on Eliott and Idriss to keep him standing. Idriss meets his eyes from over Adrien’s limp head and they roll their eyes at each other. When Adrien really wants to drink, the guy can get drunk and the boys have dealt with the aftermath enough to have an established routine for whenever it happens.

Which means they’re all headed over to Adrien’s and one of them has to stay the night because Adrien’s a needy, weepy drunk.

srodulv Keep talking to me at least

lucallemant I’m going to sleep

srodulv At 22h? Sounds fake

lucallemant Go knock on someone else’s window, Romeo

srodulv I’m a one window type of guy

lucallemant Sounds fake

Eliott gets designated babysitter of the night, Idriss and Sofiane citing that he hasn’t done it in ages. In Eliott’s defence, he hasn’t taken his turn only because he’s been too busy being elsewhere for the last couple of times this has happened. He puts up a token protest just so it doesn’t come off too obviously that he would actually love staying over at Adrien’s. Would have volunteered himself as tribute if the other two hadn’t already appointed him.

As they struggle to guide Adrien out of the car, Eliott looks up at the massive estate— well off is an understatement when describing Adrien’s dad. The man’s an engineer, often working out of the country for weeks and even months on end. Adrien used to stay over at Eliott’s a lot, making the trip all the way into the city where Eliott’s apartment is located, lonely despite of the relatives who come to keep him company. Until Lucas and his mom came along.

“Ah shit, we have to go through the basement so the alarm doesn’t sound. Sofiane, can you find his keys?” Idriss asks, unceremoniously dragging their friend past the pool and towards the back. “Eliott, a little help here?”

Eliott rushes to take half of Adrien’s weight, distracted as his eyes land on the farthest window to the left— it’s the only room with the light on. Lucas.

He’s pretty sure they make enough of a ruckus despite their best efforts to keep quiet but luckily the door to Adrien’s parents’ room remains shut.

Getting Adrien to his room upstairs is a workout, especially since Eliott is more focused on the shadows moving behind Lucas’ closed door than the task at hand. He walks Sofiane and Idriss back outside after, whispering and giggling to themselves, feeling accomplished in their mission to get Adrien home without his parents waking up. There would be hell to pay if Mr. Delacroix catches them interrupting his sleep, especially when they’ve been explicitly advised that he and his wife have an early flight to catch the next morning.

Back in the house, he pauses just outside Adrien’s room. Eliott’s eyes are stuck on the light streaming from the small gap between Lucas’ door and the floor. Lucas had probably listened in on their struggle to put Adrien to bed. Probably thinks either Idriss or Sofiane are going to stay over. Probably doesn’t know Eliott is part of the group at all.

Eliott feels a giddy rush run through him. The next morning can’t come fast enough.

srodulv :) Goodnight, Juliet