#i should go to open mic karaoke more often
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citricchatter · 1 year ago
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Only thing I miss about working nightshift in fast food is when you lock up for the day and you start cleaning every once in a while, you get to hear someone sing. It was often far away, and it could be bad karaoke singing or someone who sounds like they've had some training, but either way... it feels pretty uplifting and just so so human
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mitamicah · 11 months ago
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hi! i would've sent this to your other blog but wanted to be on anon😅 but i wanted to ask how you keep finding these social/hobby events! like a songwriter open mic or that diary reading night. we definitely don't live in the same country but i wonder how you look for them in your case?
Hi anon - thank you for your question 🤗💚
Btw this reply got quite long so I've kept it under the line :'D
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Maybe I should start by stating that I live in a somewhat big city - it is not the capital yet big enough so there's a lot of different events happening IF you know where to look - what I am trying to say is pretty much that I don't live in a rural area which might influence how convenient or not it is to find the events :'D
To answer your question let me give you three examples of how I've learned about specific events around my city:
I remember back in 2020-21 where I had been craving an open mic event but didn't think any existed until randomly an event popped up on my Facebook about this open mic once every month on a sunday. By putting myself out there and trying to go to one of said events I now have become a volunteer at said open mic event and so I'm attending pretty much every month to help set up and clean up the stage. The diary event and some poetry slam events I've attended have come about by me overhearing some people at the open mic considering to go and being too curious to stay behind - also the music group thing I was attending two weeks ago had left postcards at our open mic I then took with me home. Us volunteers also have a facebook group chat where we often speak about going to karaokes together.
2. There's this queer cafe event every month I got invited to in person by a friend. Through attending that event I've also learned a lot about specific pride events that the organisation is hosting (mostly pride related but also been to a free "queer" comic book course...). By tagging along to the one queer club in my city after the café event ended I've gotten introduced to even more cool events (trans support groups, karaoke evenings, rock themed bar days, book store visits etc.).
3. At one point a friend of mine tagged me in a post about the national asexual community needing some help for Copenhagen pride. I then contacted the organisation and ended up not only joining them at pride but entering the organisation - through being a member I've learned about meet ups for asexual people in my city and one of the most active people there is very nice to share links about upcoming events around the city of queer talks and the like. He recommended for instance a talk I went to about the overlap about being transgender and autism ^V^
So in short:
I have been finding these events mostly through
Social media (in my case Facebook) and word of mouth (either through people linking events, people in chats talking about going/advertising an event or friends directly asking me) ^V^ - And then of most important of all being curious and trying to go to events I am unsure about but sounds fun ^V^
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neocrush · 4 years ago
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— enhypen reaction to hearing you sing for the first time !
genre: fluff + established relationship for heeseung and sunoo
pairings: idol!enhypen x gn!reader
note: requested by anon ♡
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★ heeseung
you got into an argument, a dumb one actually
but you both being the stubborn people you are, you decided to give each other the silent treatment
you couldn’t handle it much longer
you just wanted to say sorry and cuddle with him
but then again - you didn’t wanna deflate your ego
so directly speaking to him was a no-no
so you sat there in his bed, grabbing his guitar and started strumming it
until you started playing and singing get you by daniel caesar
heeseung must’ve heard you as he slowly walked towards his room, pressing his ear on the door
he didn’t know you could play the guitar and sing
pls he had massive heart eyes
was convinced he fell in love with you all over again
he completely forgot the argument ever happened and just barged in
“you’re the love of my life.”
you stopped playing and singing and just went *instert shocked pikachu face*
“can you sing for me? please?” and you just shake your head no
pouts and gives you puppy eyes
you give in and kiss his cheek “fine, but only if you do it with me”
he nods and cuddles you as you both sing each other to sleep
★ jay
you were a new trainee at belift and he was at the studio, preparing a new song with jake and a producer
the producer had called you in to record a demo for one of the hybe groups
he wasn’t that fazed when you entered the room - the both of you having a mask and bucket hat on
as you entered the recording booth, you removed your mask and hat
you listen to the instrumental and re-read the lyrics once again as you asked the producer if you could record the song without instrumental first
the producer agreed and started recording
you got straight into the chorus, surprising jay
that specific part was in a very high key and he was shocked at how effortlessly you sang it at the first try
the recording went pretty well
but the way jay kept on looking back and forth between the lyrics he was writing and you in the booth didn’t go unnoticed by jake
you were done and had to return to practice as you bowed to the boys and producer - leaving the room
jake nudges jay, signalling him to go follow you and at least say something
jay took the hint and left the studio
“y/n!” he called out and you turned around
“your voice is beautiful. would you want to record with me- i mean enhypen some time?”
★ jake
you were part of a girl band
you played the bass and was also the lead singer
your company - a fairly small one - was just recently bought by bang pd so you were under hybe labels
your group used to perform for different high school festivals and you just happened to have performed at sunoo’s
after hearing the news that you were under hybe too, sunoo begged his members to come with him see your band at the company
“sunoo they’re there to practice, not to do free concerts” - jungwon
jake chuckled and he was the only one who agreed to come with sunoo
“hyung did you know their lead singer is the same age as you” sunoo said wiggling his brows as they both made their way to your practice room
jake just shook his head at his younger member
hearing a familiar melody, sunoo dragged the older member to what he was sure was your practice room
“sunoo you can’t just barge i-“
was he seeing an angel?????
“sunoo i thought they did rock”
“yeah but they have bsides in other genres too yknow”
you were singing your solo song twilight
jake nodded and watched you in awe, admiring how into the song you were
your members weren’t there and it may seem lonely but your voice echoing throughout the room made the atmosphere feel heavenly
once the song was over, sunoo cheered and clapped his hands as you grew shy, finally acknowledging their presence
the two boys introduced themselves to you and you did the same to them
you chuckled as you saw jake fumble on his words
“i know who you guys are, i watched your very good cover. you should try doing rock sometime, it seriously fits you guys!” you complimented them
as they grew shy, you couldn’t help but notice jake’s unique smile and how he plays with his hands when he’s nervous
“do you wanna grab lunch with us?”
“is the jake sim asking me out?”
“is the y/n l/n rejecting me?”
you both laughed as sunoo playfully rolled his eyes and you went to go get lunch with the two
★ sunghoon
you were at karaoke with the guys
all of them were having the time of their lives, doing song after song without taking breaks
jay and riki were singing new face and you were busting your lungs out watching them get tired of the never-ending song
remember when yoongi went “when does this song end” when bts was singing new face during that one run episode? yeah that’s them
when the song finally finished, jungwon noticed how you have been laughing and just sitting there the whole time
so he took the mic and pointed at you
that little shit
sunoo had already queued asap by stayc for him to sing, but jungwon insisted that you sing it since you should at least sing one song
“but that’s my song!” - sunoo
“sunoo you can do the choreo while y/n sings” - jungwon
sunoo nods, also wanting to hear you sing
(ps he wanted to do the choreo lol)
you refused and kept shaking your head until your crush, sunghoon, placed his hand on your shoulder, making your heart do backflips
“cmonnnn y/n, please?” he pouted at you
finally giving in, you stand up and grab the mic from jungwon
starting the song, your body was stiff
but once you reached the chorus, you and sunoo were doing the choreo while you sang with a big smile on your face
not you being a whole kpop idol whoop
sunghoon couldn’t help but look at you and smile to himself and blush - you looked so cute and your voice was so addicting
you even lipsynced the “i think you’re really cool” part (the one before the chorus) while winking at him
the song really brought out your inner confidence as you made sunghoon a flustered mess
once you were all finished and went home, riki showed you a video he took of sunghoon when you were singing
“dude i swear he’s super into you! look at him smiling ear-to-ear!!! he looks like he just saw an angel”
“oh shut up riki”
you mentally thanked jungwon for setting you up like that
★ sunoo
“can you sing me to sleep please?” you asked sunoo asked with puppy eyes
he poked your cheeks, nodding
“you’re so cute. of course i’ll sing you to sleep baby”
getting in bed with him, he started playing with your hair and caressing your shoulder
he softly sang love is not over by bts
what took him by surprise was that you suddenly joined in, harmonizing with him
he knew you liked music but wasn’t aware that you had such an amazing voice
he held your hand as you both finished singing the song, giggling
“baby you have the sweetest voice ever, you should sing more often” he playfully pouted
you softly laughed as you moved his bangs out frame, kissing his forehead
“i’ll only sing for you darling, i don’t want others to fall for me”
he playfully hit you as you laughed at your own joke
facing you, he looked into your eyes
“i love you so much.”
you blushed at his words
“i love you even more sunoo.”
★ jungwon
your group and enhypen were appearing on weekly idol together
your members kept on teasing you because you had previously revealed that jungwon was your ideal type on knowing bros
what you said garnered a lot of attention from knetz and engenes, some negative but most of them positive
“they would make an adorable couple”
“i wanna see them sing together”
“their visuals together would shake the whole country”
you were glad engenes didn’t hate your guys for being open about your admiration towards the boy
you being nervous was an understatement - this was your first time seeing jungwon in real life
and you expected the hosts to bring up what you said about him so you were prepared to face him directly
pls this sounds like ur about to have a boxing match w him
anyways filming started out okay until the hosts (ofc) brought up what you said
a few laughs here and there but suddenly they had an idea
“so you’re the main vocal, correct?”
you nodded at one of the hosts
“that’s perfect because it’s time for our karaoke session!”
you ended up getting paired up with jungwon to sing just one day by bts
you made eye contact the whole time and it didn’t take a genius to see the instant chemistry
your voices went so well with each other that even you and his members were shocked at how heavenly you both sounded together
you were both smiling and you could just melt right then and there
once you were done, you covered your face with your hands as you were a blushing mess
your members and enhypen clapped and one of the hosts went “you guys should sing an ost together”
you both got super shy and the rest of filming went well
a month passed and the episode aired
engenes and your fans went insane on sns and knetz were demanding a collab
it wasn’t anything serious until your ceo brought you in in a meeting with hybe executives and he popped up the question
“how would you like to feature in enhypen’s newest album?”
★ riki
your classmates were cleaning the classroom as it was the last week of the whole school year
you were sweeping the floor, humming the song that was silently playing in the background as the room was filled with chatter
riki was removing the decorations on the walls, listening to your soft hums
the songs that were being played were fairly calm
until a more energetic song suddenly played
your classmates suddenly became all energetic when i can’t stop me by twice started playing
you smiled, singing along
you were just playing around but you didn’t realize that you just hit nayeon’s high notes
“woah! y/n??? you’re really good”
you saw that riki was listening the whole time (and so was the rest of the class lol) and you got shy
you shook your head and stopped singing
“no keep going!” - a classmate
you gave in and went on with the song and riki gave you a “you’re so awesome” look
once the song was over, your classmates started playing even more hype song
a guy went “lets do karaoke!”
a girl chimed in “y/n has to go first!”
riki softly laughed and nudged you to go sing
you used the broom in your hand as a fake mic and mic stand as you sang blue hour by txt
he filmed you, zooming in on your smiling face
he was sure going to cherish that video forever
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tpwkay · 4 years ago
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Medicine (h.s.)
You’re finally given permission to cover the song you’ve wanted to perform for years and a special surprise during your performance sweeps you off of your feet.
Word count: 11.5k
Rating/warnings: NSFW - A lot of this is plot but there is smut as well. Contains explicit language and consensual sex acts between a man and woman. This is a story written in the 2nd person (“self insert"). This isn’t written to be exclusionary, it’s just my preferred style! Author’s note can be found at the end!
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"Ladies and gentlemen, I cannot thank you enough for coming out tonight to listen to me and the band. We've got a couple more songs coming up for you but I just wanted to take a minute to tell y'all how much we appreciate you." You gesture to yourself and the band behind you as the lights on stage come up a bit. "We wouldn't be where we are without your support. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you!"
The crowd cheers and you can't help but experience an insurmountable feeling of joy. It never gets old. You'd been in the spotlight for a few years now, already at the end of touring your second album, though the size and scope of venues this time around was much, much larger. There was nothing that compared to being able to sing your own songs and have a crowd of thousands scream them right back at you.
Being an up-and-coming singer and songwriter in the genre of country music hadn't been easy. Girls your type had been a dime a dozen, hoards of Taylor Swift-wannabes covering "Teardrops on My Guitar" during open mic night. You held nothing against them; there was a path to success for everyone, but yours had been, well, different. 
It was a karaoke cover of Brooks & Dunn's "Boot Scootin' Boogie", a song that you'd been singing since you were a toddler, that had gotten you noticed by a recording artist one night while out with your girlfriends, which led you to where you stand now, performing in front of thousands. You were liked for the range of your voice, with it's easy easy transitions from the sounds of pop to country and rock, in addition to the way you performed, and your take-no-shit attitude towards the entirety of the industry. People liked that you were forward and left nothing on the table, though you had to admit that it was mostly an act, a means of coping with the pressure of working your way to the top.
///
"It's refreshing!" Jax, your manager, had shouted one day, arms flailing as you had argued that maybe your attitude was going to get you into trouble one of these days.
"Aren't you, as, you know, my manager, supposed to be the one keeps me in line?"
"You aren't out doing coke, killing anyone, public indecency and all that," he had shrugged. "Far as I'm concerned, you are in line. People talk about you because of your attitude. They like it! They like you. Why is that so hard for you to accept sometimes?"
"Maybe I just haven't been caught doing those things," you grinned, effectively dodging his question. Fame hadn't helped break down the walls that you'd long ago built around yourself. If anything, you had done some reinforcing, built a moat even, in an effort to ensure that you protected yourself from getting too close to anyone that would only end up using you in the end. You had seen the way people in life had been used, and what it ultimately led them to, and you had promised yourself long ago that even if it meant being known as the Boot Scootin' Bitch, you would protect yourself and your heart at all costs. 
"Your momma would tan your hide for much less than any of those, you know. Hell, you should be more afraid of her than you are of me or anyone else… 'cept maybe God."
///
You shake your head, working the memories free from your mind as you grab a bottle of water from the platform on which the drum set rests.
There's one more song of yours to sing before you performed a new cover, the one you had been looking forward to for months. Although you'd gotten permission to perform it not long into the start of your tour, the set list had been rehearsed already and every other detail ironed out around it. You'd convinced Jax and the crew to let you slot it into the last concert of the tour, Austin, Texas. These folks knew their music and for some reason, they liked you so you were thrilled to be able to share something new with the crowd that had welcomed you to their city with open arms. 
You grab your guitar off its stand and slide the strap over your shoulders, adjusting it as you step forwards to the mic stand. A shimmering blue shirt catches your eye in the crowd and you do a double take because surely it can't be Harry because he's—
And it's not him, of course, though the fashion of the gentleman in the pit area would surely catch his eye as well as it's right up his alley. It's not him - it can't be him - because you know exactly where he is right now and it's not in the pit of your Austin performance. 
A grin stretches over your face as you think of him. You strum the first chord of the first song you'd ever written about him, although there had been many more since. He probably knew this one was about him, having come just after your first meeting. 
/// 
A friend of yours was good friends with Kacey, who had been the guest artist that night. Her name had been added to the VIP list and in the summer of 2018, just as you were hitting your own stride in your career, you tagged along with her to Harry Styles' live tour performance in your hometown of Nashville. 
If you were being honest, prior to his concert, you hadn't heard much of his solo work, apart from the various huge hits like his Kiwi or Watermelon Sugar and a few other ballads. You liked his sound, seemingly influenced heavily by rock stars of days past, but you'd had other influences to worry about in your own side of the industry. 
Sure, he had country music connections through the likes of Kacey Musgraves and Cam, and legends like Stevie Nicks, but his pop and soft rock style was pretty far removed from most country playlists that you yourself had graced. Your genres just didn't cross paths and the two of you seemingly operated in different realms of the music industry, topping your own charts and breaking your own peer's records. 
Of course, you hadn't been completely oblivious to The Harry Styles. One Direction had been too big of a deal to ignore and you'd often found yourself bopping along to their old hits, singing along as they played amongst the other nostalgic pop hits to which you listened. 
The concert had been in June, a hot sunny day followed by a perfect breezy evening. Downtown Nashville was always busy, but that night the city seemed to buzz, bright with music and life. After meeting for drinks at Acme on the River, you allowed yourself to luxuriate in getting lost in the crowd that milled about on Broadway. It was a surprising thing to not be recognized in your hometown, but you weren't one to complain about it. It was one reason that you value your time in Nashville over other music-centric cities like Los Angeles - it seemed that people here respected the private lives of musicians. There was an odd fan here and there, but you'd lived a majority of your "famous" life in Nashville in relative peace. 
You were early to the venue, your friend having wanted to have a chance to see Kacey backstage. You were excited to finally meet the star - though you'd been around the block of fame a bit already, there would always be people that you never had an opportunity to meet in passing. You had been greeted at will call and had been led backstage.
The arena was alive with excitement. At that point, you yourself had never toured a venue that large, so the experience of being backstage and seeing the operations first hand were thrilling and a bit overwhelming. In her dressing room, Kacey pulled you straight into a hug, gushing about how excited she was to watch your career take off. She insisted on sharing her personal cell phone number with you, urging you to call her to get together on a collaboration. You were in shock leaving her room, blown away by her kindness and the way the music industry worked in the most bizarre of ways, when you turned a corner and ran smack into a tall, solid, smiling Harry Styles. His arms had come out quickly to steady you on your heels boots. 
"Fuck," you swore, shaking your head at your clumsiness. "I am so sorry. What a great way to introduce myself."
He laughed and the sound flowed through you, warm and sweet like a cup of tea with honey. "Y'alright?" His eyes looked you over, and you couldn't help but notice the way they lingered. 
Your cheeks blushed and a wave of embarrassment washed over you. "I'm the one that should be asking you that. I don't think your adoring fans would be very happy if I took you out with a textbook tackle right before you're due to go on stage." You took a moment to give him the same appreciative glance he had already given you, admiring the way his deep blue custom-beaded suit jacket fell open to reveal a black dress shirt, unbuttoned halfway down his chest. 
"Ah, 'm fine. Lil' thing like you couldn't do too much damage to me, even in those heels. Don't think they'd be very happy though," he said, nodding his head in acknowledgement of the already-rowdy crowd while offering his hand. "I'm Harry."
You laughed as you introduced yourself, shaking his hand. 
"I've heard that name before, but I'm sorry to say that I don't recognize you. You don't seem like one that's easy to forget."
"I sing, write music," you shrugged, not sure how to explain to a superstar that you were on the way up, yet still somewhere much farther down the fame totem pole than him. "Country, mostly. Not sure if that's on your radar."
"The new stuff's not, but I may have to change that." He was tapped by one of the event producers, needed for another pre-show procedure. "Where will you be tonight?" 
"To your right, in the pit."
He smiled and you had almost immediately fallen in love with the crinkles that appeared under the corners of his eyes. "I'll look out for you. It was wonderful meeting you. Oh, shit, wait, just remembered— may I?" he gestured for the phone that was in your hand and you unlocked it before passing it to him. 
You watched as he dialed a number and put the phone to his ear. He paused for a moment before he grinned. "Hi Harry, it's you from before the show. This is a message to remind you to text this number and ask the owner of it out on a date. She's the one with the beautiful smile and great tackling skills. You won"t have forgotten her. 'Kay, bye!"
You laughed at an almost embarrassing volume, blown away by his cheek. 
"Why not ask 'her' out now?" you pondered to him as he handed the phone back.
"What, and risk getting shot down? Wouldn't want to be sad and disappointed through my whole show, now would I?"
"It would make the ballads a bit more emotional," you had reasoned with a grin.
"Ouch! They're already filled with emotion, love. You'll see, I'll sing 'em right to you if I have to. Gotta run, thank you for letting me use your phone, that was a very important message!"
You laughed again as he took off. "Harry!" you had shouted to get his attention in the busy hall. He turned quickly, a small smile on his face. "She definitely won't say no, but you can wait until later to ask if you want to."
His grin stretched wider and he'd pumped a fist in the air before turning and jogging down the hallway. 
You liked to joke with anyone who knew the story that your life had changed that day all because you met Kacey. Which wasn't a complete lie - it had been her dressing room you'd come out of before slamming into Harry in the hallway. 
///
Singing the last lines of one of your songs, your stomach began to flutter in a bit of nervousness and a lot of excitement. Performing the next cover was something you had been looking forward to for months, and the moment that you got to share it with your fans was finally here. 
You retreat from the mic stand to pass your guitar off to a stagehand, taking another sip of water to settle yourself. 
"Doing alright?" Wyatt, your drummer, shouts over the pounding bass drum and you give him a thumbs up before turning back to face the crowd. 
"I've got one more cover to play for y'all tonight," you say, grasping the mic stand to keep your hands from shaking. "I've been working on getting permission to play this one for quite awhile now. I fell in love with it the first time I heard it played and now here I am, performing it for you all. It's an unreleased piece by a very, very good friend of mine, but his performances of it are all over the internet so some of you may know the words. This song is called Medicine."
The song starts out with a steady bass line and the rhythm centers you a bit, steadying any nerves that still linger. The intro gives you a minute to shake out your shoulders and get comfortable at the mic stand once more like Harry does at each performance. You catch yourself having fun mimicking him and feel thankful that you're able to perform one of your favorite songs of his. When the bass drops in pitch and the electric guitar riffs, you slide in close to the mic stand.
"Here to take my medicine, take my medicine," you sang the opening lines, already settling into the sexy rock sound of the song you and the band had rehearsed relentlessly over the last few weeks. No, the genre wasn't one you normally dabbled in, but part of the fun of performing was taking chances, risks. You had to admit, you liked the sound a lot. It tempted you to branch out a bit more on your upcoming album. 
The opening lines of the first verse throw you back into thoughts of meeting Harry that first night. You hadn't imagined what would follow the concert, let alone have the foresight to see it bringing you to this very moment in time. 
///
You had been standing outside the arena after the concert, ears buzzing and heart thumping still from the incredible show Harry had put on. As soon as he disappeared from the backstage hall earlier, you had immediately saved his number to your phone, still in disbelief over the night's events. 
Your heart had soared when your phone began to vibrate, not in a text message but in a voice call. Harry's name appeared on the screen and your friend had nudged you, clearly approving of the night's turn of events. 
"Harry," you answered, ready to praise him halfway to Sunday on his performance. 
"Let me take you out," he interrupted you. "Right now. Please? Anywhere you want to go." 
You laughed and paused. "Yeah, okay. I might know of a place."
There was a lot of shuffling on his end before his voice came back on the line. "Might've had to do another fist pump."
"Told you she wouldn't say no."
"Where are you?" You heard the smile in his voice, already familiar with it. 
"Demonbreun and John Lewis, headed towards the park."
"Give me 10, I'll pick you up." He paused. "Be careful, okay?"
"I'll stick with the hoards of your fans milling about, maybe ask some of them for the hot gossip on you while I wait."
"Don't believe anything they say," he said, and you could tell he was still smiling as he hung up. 
He and his driver arrived shortly after, Harry's hair damp and covered with a baseball cap, dressed down in black pants and a simple loose white shirt, tattoos peeking out everywhere you looked. He exited the car and opened the back door for you, helping you balance as you stepped up into the large Suburban. 
"We'll go to Pecker's," you said to his driver, laughing as Harry snorted next to you. "Shut up, it's just a bar. Take a right up here onto 24 and it'll take us all the way to Fairfield. It'll be on the right."
He looked at you and smiled before reaching out to hold your hand in the middle seat between you. 
Taking Harry to Pecker's had just felt right. It was where you'd been discovered, where all of your adventures had started, and you weren't sure why but you wanted to share that small part of you with him after watching him up on stage that night. 
"Won't people recognize you? I looked you up before the show, you're apparently a pretty big deal around here." He had asked, smirking, sipping on the locally-brewed beer that Clint, the regular bartender, was serving that night. 
"Locals are pretty good about not interrupting our normal lives. Pecker's isn't as well known to tourists either, so it's a good hideout. This is where a lot of producers, executives and all the other professionals come to unwind." You ignored his comment on your fame and had taken a sip of your margarita instead. "Unless, of course, there's a drag show scheduled, then it's a bit of a madhouse."
Harry laughs into his drink and you grin. "So," he started after a pause, twiddling with the rings on his right hand. "What'd you think?"
"It was incredible," you said without hesitation. "Truly one of the best live shows I've seen in a long time, country acts included. You've got such a magnetism about you that people can't help but want to watch." You blushed a bit, alcohol and the quick comfort of him loosening your lips. "The whole water spraying trick was hot," you admit, making him blush. "And don't tell Stevie, but I think I might prefer your version of The Chain."
"Sacrilege! That's some incredibly high praise," he said, a small smile teasing at the corners of his mouth. 
"Earned and deserved," you said, tilting your glass to his. "Honestly, Harry, you're an incredible musician. There aren't many out there that have the whole package like that."
"What about you? You seem like the whole package."
"I don't know if I'd say that. If you looked me up, you've likely seen what they say about me. 'My attitude won't get me far' and all. But I don't think it's my attitude, so much as it is my willingness to take the risks that others won't. I'm not out here to make music that's just there to be sold. Hell, I couldn't care less about the money. All I want is to create music that makes me feel fulfilled, and I think that honesty scares them." You twirled your finger in the condensation of the glass in front of you. You glanced up to his face finding his eyes already on yours, holding your gaze steadily. "It doesn't scare you, does it?"
"It's the most refreshing thing I've heard in a while. Not many people in the industry are fearless in the face of failure like that."
"I'm definitely not fearless; I just refuse to change who I am to make a buck."
"Who are you then?" Harry had asked, and telling him your story was easy. You couldn't understand how it was so natural, opening up to a stranger, but as the conversation wore on, you realized how similar you and Harry were in terms of the way you conducted your professional lives and that was without apology. 
And you also realized, as the evening continued and you and Harry crept your bar stools closer and closer to one another, feet and knees bumping, his fingers tracing the ridges of your knuckles as you shared life stories like long lost friends, that you didn't want it to end. 
///
"He's acting like a gentleman," you continue, changing up the lyrics slightly as you finish the first verse. The line always made you smile and you let yourself briefly flash back into your reminiscing about the night you'd met Harry, and how, even though he had acted gentlemanly upon dropping you off for the evening, you wanted to be anything but a gentlewoman. 
///
After enjoying drinks late into the evening at Pecker's, Harry had insisted on having his driver take you home rather than allowing you to call an Uber. 
"Such a gentleman," you commented as he opened the car door for you once again. 
"Maybe my gentlemanly actions have motives," he said, sliding his hand along your lower back as you step past him and into the car. Your grin matched his smirk as he shut the door and you decided that he'd been right - not calling an Uber was the right thing to do.
The car ride back to your apartment building was too quick and before you knew it, he was at your door again, offering a hand for you to hold for balance as you exited the car. Neither of you let go as you walked through the lobby towards the elevators. 
"You're uh— You're welcome to come up, if you'd like," you said, suddenly shy but not wanting to chicken out on asking for what you wanted, asking for some continuation of this sweet but likely brief meeting between you two. "For a drink, I mean, or to keep chatting, you know."
Harry smiled and glanced around the empty lobby. His hand in yours smoothed up the length of your arm, over your shoulder, and came to rest at your jaw. "I'd love to, believe me. You have no idea how much I want to." He leaned towards you, pressing a quick kiss to your forehead and your skin burned at the contact of his lips. "But I want to do this the right way. Don't want you to get the wrong idea of me."
"What if I want the wrong idea of you?"
He laughed, the sound open and honest and it had given you hope. "You called me a gentleman earlier and I have to admit that I liked it, coming from you. Would like to keep up the facade that I am, even if it's just for a bit." His face searched yours, each of you trying to read the thoughts that were flying through one another's minds. "You have beautiful lips," he whispered suddenly, his accent thicker than it had been all night. 
Your mouth quirked into a smile, unable to do anything but preen at his compliment. "You do too," you replied, just as softly. 
"Can I kiss you?"
"Please, yes." Before the words had settled he was kissing you, slowly and with too much care, like you would break if he wasn't gentle enough. It was over much too quick but you knew you would remember every moment of it for the rest of your life. 
"Christ, I'd wanted to do that all night." His thumb smoothed over your cheekbone, smiling when you leaned into the touch. He glanced up as the elevator doors swung open and gently nudged you towards them. "Thank you, truly, for a wonderful evening. I promise to give you a call soon."
"I'll send Kacey after you if you don't!" you laughed, stepping into the lift.
"Good night darling." He winked and the doors slid shut, leaving you alone with your thoughts and the delicious ghost of his lips on yours. 
///
"Give me that adrenaline, that adrenaline, think I'm gonna stick with you," you finish the first verse as Ryann rips through the chords on her guitar. You loved that the song built slowly, and even though that meant a quieter beginning, it promised an explosive end. 
Though the crowd had been hesitant at first, you can see that the first few rows of them are nodding along, countless phones out recording the performance. You know that somewhere out there at your request is a member of your press team, professionally filming the cover. You may only be doing it once, but you were determined to make sure you would never forget it.
///
You had enough time at home to check some of your social media accounts, shower and get comfortable in bed before your phone rang again. For the second time that day, your heart soared seeing Harry's name light up your screen.
"If you're going to say that you're downstairs because you've reconsidered my offer for that nightcap, I'll need a few moments to prepare as I'm currently in my pajamas," you said as a greeting and you were met with his warm laughter once again.
"No, no, I had to go back to the arena for a bit anyways, pack up and all of that," he said, still chuckling. "I just— I wanted to make sure you weren't offended by me declining your offer. Because I wanted to— I didn't want the night to end there. There's something about you that's… Transfixing. And I don't want to ruin that and make you think you're just a fling."
"That's quite a compliment," you said, a bit awed by his words.
"What was it you said earlier, "earned and deserved", yeah?" He said, quoting your toast to him at the bar, making you grin. "I want you to be more than that. I'd like to get to know you, the gentlemanly way."
"Okay. Will we have a chaperone at our next date then?" He laughed but didn't correct your referral to that evening as a date. You had snuggled a bit deeper into the sheets, still disbelieving that all of this had been the result of being dragged along to a concert. 
"No chaperones," he chuckled, "but yes, I do want to take you out again, if you'd let me."
"Hmm," you jokingly pondered aloud, as if answering with anything other than a resounding "yes" was on your mind. "I suppose I could fit something into my schedule."
"I hope that's a yes."
"Of course it's a yes! I didn't want the night to end either. And don't you dare say that you just did another fist pump," you had laughed, hearing the familiar shuffling of the phone on his end of the line.
"Me? Never!"
"You're adorable," you had said, a smile stuck on your face.
"And you're beautiful. Two can play this game."
There had been a comforting silence between you for a moment before you had spoken up again. "Harry?"
"Yeah, love?"
You had blushed at the pet name but loved the way it sounded being directed your way. "Thank you," you had whispered. 
"Should be me thanking you. Sleep well sweetheart." You'd fallen asleep with your phone in hand, hopeful that you wouldn't wake up the next morning to realize it had all been a dream.
/// 
It hadn't been a dream, and here you were, nearly two years later, performing one of the songs that Harry himself had sung the night that you'd begun falling for him.
The second verse continued quickly and you let the lyrics wash over you as you sang, loving the way the rock energy of the song sounded with a bit of your band's country influence. 
"Here to take my medicine, take my medicine, rest it on your fingertips," you sang, holding your pointer finger in the air much like Harry did every time he performed the song before bringing it to your lips as you sang the next line. "Up to your mouth, feeling it out, feeling it out."
/// 
Beginning to date Harry - properly date him too, not just make FaceTime calls to one another from across the world and sending texts back and forth until the wee hours of the morning thanks to the differences in time zones, sharing everything and more with one another as best you could digitally - had been the most exhilarating experience of your life, and you had performed in front of sold out crowds and accepted awards on live television. His tour was due to stretch on for almost another month throughout North America and the next time you saw him was when you'd been invited as Harry's guest to his show in Chicago just a few weeks after you'd met. 
While he had put on an incredible show for the United Center, there had been moments that felt like he was performing just for you, glancing over to where you stood in the Friends and Family area, meeting your eyes and grinning. By that point, you could sing along to every song of his and you knew he loved it, loved watching you dance along to the music that he had created and was performing. 
In a moment where you were thankful for the differences between the genres in which you two performed, you hadn't been recognized at all by his fans. You'd both talked about wanting to keep things quiet as you got to know one another, and you hadn't wanted a relationship with him, an already incredibly famous artist, to somehow influence the trajectory of yours. While it had been easy when you were apart, being together without seemingly being together was difficult. Especially in that moment, when all you wanted to do was curl up into him and soak in the post-show bliss with him. Instead, you sat on the couch with him, a cushion apart from one another, holding his hand tightly while you chatted about the concert. 
"Someone is gonna notice that you looked to my side of the pit constantly all night," you said and he grinned guiltily. 
"I like knowing you're in the crowd," he shrugged. "Besides," he scooted closer and threw his arm around you before dragging you in close, "you look incredible, how could I not want to stare at you all night?"
"Anyone could walk in," you pointed out, watching as his eyes followed your lips. 
"Just want a little taste," he said, moving in closer, "Haven't I earned a kiss from my girlfriend after all of that work up on stage?"
Your eyebrows raised in surprise as you looked at him and he seemingly realized his slip-up. 
"I mean— What I meant was— Shit," he scrubbed a hand over his face but you could tell he was hiding a grin. "Wasn't exactly how I wanted to ask you, but… Will you officially be my girlfriend?"
"Yes, H. I'm all yours."
"Love it when you call me H." He pulled you in for a kiss that you both lost yourselves in, finally able to experience the feeling of one another after being denied it for so long. When a knock at the dressing room door came, Harry had to all but drag himself away from you, hair disheveled and lips swollen, scowling at the door. 
You threw your head back and laughed as he stalked over and pulled it open with a flourish. 
"What?"
"The hell's your issue?" you heard Mitch ask before Harry widened the door so he could see you laughing on the couch. You raised a hand in greeting and Harry's scowl deepened as Mitch chuckled, taking in both of your disheveled appearances. "Oh, shit, hey, sorry. Uh, car's ready when you are. See you tomorrow bud." 
"Harry!" you chided once he'd closed the door in Mitch's face, giggles still bubbling out of your mouth. "He was just being polite."
"Interrupting arse is what he is," Harry said, sitting down and pulling you into his lap. "Where were we?"
You threw your arms around his neck and pressed your body as close to his as possible, hoping that he'd thought to lock the door before returning to your embrace. "Right about here, I think." With a hand on your hip, sliding under your shirt to reach warm skin and one at the back of your neck, Harry kissed you until you were breathless and not only wanting more but very seriously needing it. 
"Come back to the hotel with me," he murmured against your lips as you ground your body down on him, reveling in the way the action made him throw his head against the back of the couch and exhale sharply. 
"You sure?" Your hands smoothed over the chest of his skin, tracing the dark swallows with your fingertips as you rolled your hips. 
He shuddered at the light touch and gripped your hips tightly, pressing his up as you pressed yours down and the action made you sigh, the pressure a delicious tease of what was hopefully to come. "Absolutely," he said, his grin telling you he was pleased with the noises he was causing you to make. "Want you so bad, like I won't be able to breathe right until I properly have you."
You leaned in to kiss at his neck, his shower-damp curls tickling your cheek. "The feeling is mutual. Adored watching you up on stage tonight. Have I told you yet how much I love seeing you perform?" You nuzzle at his neck, urging him to tilt his head back farther, exposing more of his skin to you. 
"Yeah, you have, but tell me again," he sighed, his hands running up and down your back. 
"It's like when you get on stage no one else before or after you matters," you said honestly, letting your lips against his skin hide how truthful you were really being, spilling all of your thoughts about seeing Harry up on stage. It was scary, feeling so deeply for him already. But you wanted him to know, at least in part, what it meant to be able to watch him perform. "Something about your live voice just makes my breath catch in my throat, I can't get enough of it."
Harry breathed deeply for a moment, working to center himself while you nosed at the curls around his ear and heaped praise upon him. 
"It's like you connect with every person out in the crowd, like you're singing just for them. You can tell that you're having fun and people want to join you in that. They know you love the attention," you whispered and he hummed in appreciation (or agreement), the sound low in his throat. "They'd stay out there all night for if they could, screaming about how much they love you."
"And you feed into it, playing it up for them. You know exactly what you're doing when you get to act a little bit naughty up there, driving them all mad," you said with a smile. 
He chuckled and you could hear and feel the sound rumble through him. "Played it up for you tonight. Did it work?" 
"You mean did it make me want to jump your bones the second you came off stage? Yeah, it worked."
"Fucking hell," he said, holding you close with his hands on your butt as he stood up. "Our first time is not going to be in a dressing room so we need to go now."
He let you slide down his body and held you steady as you balanced on your legs. "Would be pretty fitting though, don't you think, given how we met and what we do?"
"Yeah, but then I'd think about it every time I was in one. You wanna torture me relentlessly?" He pulled you tight against him, kissing you once more before separating to grab his bags. 
"Yeah, relentless torture sounds like something I might be into." 
He glanced up at your words, eyes dark and hungry, a smirk on his lips. "Careful what you wish for, love." 
///
The bass line increased behind the riff of Ryann's guitar and you leaned into the mic stand, eyes closing as you continued singing the first bridge. "I had a few, got drunk on you and now I'm wasted, and when I sleep I'm gonna dream of how you…"
There were a few fans of yours and Harry's who apparently knew the words as they helped you out, screaming the unwritten word that finished the sentence: "tasted."
///
Harry was quick to say goodbye to everyone on the team before pulling you quickly through back hallways and down quiet staircases, sneaking quick kisses when he was sure there was no one around. You were both out of breath when you finally climbed into the car, grinning like kids getting away with sneaking around. 
The hotel ride was quick, mercifully, but Harry had been anything but patient, his hand at your knee creeping up slowly, closer and closer to the hem of your dress, toying with the hem while he chatted with the driver. 
"I'm gonna head in first with Martin and Eric will loop around and drop you off at the side entrance. I would wait in the lobby for you but this hotel hasn't been the best in the past with uh— containing sensitive information, we'll say, so Martin will meet you on your floor to get your stuff, then bring you up. Is that okay?"
"You sound like you've done this before, Styles," you said with a wink, using humor to cover the nerves that had settled in the pit of your stomach. 
He blushed and you loved knowing you got under his skin so easily. "The band used to stay here when we toured… and I was young and dumb once, yes."
"Just giving you a hard time, H."
His grin stretched as he leaned over to peck your lips once more. "See you in a minute, love."
Harry climbed out and the driver took off once again, slowly circling the block. "He's quite taken with you, you know," he said, glancing up in the rear view mirror as he parked the car at the curb. He got out and opened the door for you in the empty street then used his keycard to unlock the heavy side door of the hotel.
"Thank you," you said, both for his actions and his omission about Harry. Sure, you had talked to him as often as possible over the last weeks and had yourself been on the receiving end of his attention, but it felt validating to hear that Harry's feelings for you may have gone a bit farther than just a small crush if people around him had also noticed his behavior. 
Harry's bodyguard was waiting by the elevators and escorted you to your room to gather your luggage, then led you to Harry's door.
"Car'll be around about 9 tomorrow morning, H. Flight's at 10:30." He turned to you. "I understand you have business to continue here in Chicago?"
"Yes, meetings tomorrow and then I fly back to Nashville in the evening."
"There'll be a driver ready for you tomorrow as well. He's been instructed to take you wherever you need to go and he'll stay until you depart. Have a nice evening," he nodded at Harry, who was smiling in the doorway, before departing.
"You didn't have to do that for me, I could've managed by getting an Uber," you said, stepping into the room past Harry to set your bags down and kick your shoes off. 
"I didn't, was Martin's idea; says he doesn't want anything to happen to the one thing that's made me so happy these last few weeks."
"Oh yeah? I'm the one thing, huh?"
"You're everything, honestly," he replied a bit sheepishly, taking your hands in his. "Think I might like you a bit more than I already should. Lettin' my heart get a bit ahead of my head, I suppose."
"Yeah, I know the feeling," you said softly and he beamed. 
He moved his hands up to cup your face, pulling you close for a sweet kiss that quickly turned insistent, heat rising between the two of you. Harry slid his hands under the hem of your shirt to rest where your spin ended and yours wrapped around his neck, dragging him down to you as you stepped behind you towards the bed. His long legs tangled with yours and you tumbled backwards, laughing as you hit the plush bed and Harry collapsed on top of you.
He propped himself up on his elbows and looked down at you with a smile, pushing the hair that had fallen into your face aside. "Hi baby," he said softly.
"Hi."
"Missed you," he said, leaning down for another sweet kiss. 
"We were apart for like, eight minutes," you giggled between his kisses, your laughter giving way to a sigh as he moved to press a kiss to your nose, your cheek, your chin.
"Doesn't matter," he breathed into the crook of your neck, pressing small open mouth kisses to the soft skin there, "Any time apart is too long."
"The two weeks left of the tour will fly by. You should enjoy them while you can."  
"Wish you could come with me, love performing for you." He kissed his way across the base of your neck, collarbone to collarbone as his fingers trailed to the small straps on your shoulders. "Would you like to take this off?"
"Please," you sighed, desperate and aching for the feeling of his skin against yours. 
Your first time sleeping with Harry had been exactly what you'd wanted and expected - hot and fast, admittedly over a bit more quickly than either of you had wanted, but worth the weeks of wait. 
Harry's skill set hadn't ended at singing and playing instruments. If anything, his vast experience using his hands and mouth only helped him excel in other pastimes that also utilized those parts of his body. To both of your delights, he had proven his adeptness in all areas multiple times that night, and once again in the morning before he had to rush into the shower, dragging you along with him simply to get more time together before you were forced apart once again. 
/// 
You had spent the next two months away from one another, Harry having wrapped his tour and immediately beginning work on his next album. You'd spent your own time mixed between writing and recording an upcoming single. You had already written a handful of songs that were inspired by him and you'd wondered, albeit a bit nervously, if the sentiment was shared. When he stopped in Nashville on a long layover, pushing his flight back even longer to stay with you for another night, you'd tried to pry the information out of him. Unfortunately, no amount of sexual teasing or denial had convinced him — he, however, had you singing like a canary almost immediately, teasing you in the best way about how easily you opened up for him, telling him all about the music that he had already inspired.
You had been FaceTiming him late one night weeks later, both tired from long days spent in the studio. He had suddenly gotten shy, biting at the skin around his fingernails. 
"Hey, stop that. What's the matter H?"
"Wanna ask you something," he mumbled, but a smile was peeking through where his fingers were still at his lips. "Jus' don't know how to."
"Baby," you sighed, "you can ask me anything. Y'know that." 
"I know, I know." He paused and took a deep breath before a wide smile stretched across his face. "Would you maybe want to come home with me this Christmas? To London? Wouldn't be for long, maybe just a couple nights, I just wanna introduce you to my mum already, she's been pestering me nonstop lately 'bout meetin' you and Gem's joined in on it now too, so it's two against one when they call and I've told them that—"
"Harry," you said chucking, trying to interrupt his nervous rambling.
"—and she actually called me Harold last time she told me to bring you 'round and that got me a bit worried so I—"
"Harry! Of course I'll come with you. I'd absolutely love to."
You met him at the airport weeks later, desperate to pull him close and kiss him silly in the confines of his darkly tinted car, but you refrained, knowing how seriously Harry took the protection of your relationship from the press. You may not have been able to see anyone straining to capture pictures of you two, but you knew there was always the chance. 
It was an entirely different story, however, when he'd finally pulled the car past the mechanical gate and into his private drive. You both reached for each other immediately, arms tangled and shifter knob pressed uncomfortably against your side, but perfectly content so long as his lips were against yours. 
"Fuck— I missed you— so much," he muttered between kisses. He pulled away, forehead resting against yours, sly smirk pulling at his lips. "Mum won't expect us for a few hours at least."
"What is it that you're insinuating, Mr. Styles?"
"That there's plenty of time to give you a tour around the house, that's all," he said innocently. He gave you a sweet smile before hopping out of the car and coming to the passenger side where he helped you out and picked up your bags.
You were eager to be given a house tour, more than keen to learn all of the things you could about his London life. The house was decorated in a way that made you smile - eclectic but with a definitive air of cohesive taste. It suited Harry to an absolute tee. From the artwork that decorated the walls to the mismatched but homey furniture, you could tell immediately that this was Harry's sanctuary - every inch of the home screamed his name. 
"It's incredible," you said as he led you into the largest room, the master. He walked over to the dresser that sat under the window and pulled open the top two drawers. 
"I know we won't be here long, this time around, but I cleaned out a few drawers for you here, if you want to unpack some things. And there's space in the closet for you too," he nodded towards the door on the other side of the room, dragging a hand through his hair as he talked, "I had too much in there anyways and some of it needed to go and I wanted you to be able to leave some things, if you felt comfortable, of if Mum drags us out shopping and you don't want to take it all home now you can leave it here and-"
"You- you cleared out a drawer for me?"
"Well, yeah," he said, resting his hand on the back of his neck. "Made some space for you in the bathroom too, though I doubt it'll be enough, with all that you bring along to fix yourself up." He paused and thought for a moment. "I know how our lives are. I just wanted you to have some of your own space here; want you to feel as comfortable in my home as I do. Is that too much?" 
"H," you said with a sigh, your lips curling into a smile, "it's perfect, and so thoughtful. I'm sorry I haven't done the same for you in Nashville yet."
"'s alright, love. I've already got a toothbrush there at least. I can take some time when we fly back to come and help if you'd like me to. As long as you don't end up wearing all the clothes that I leave there," he chuckled.
"You know me too well," you said, reaching for his hand. He lifted your entwined fingers to his lips to brush a kiss over your knuckles.
"You do look good in my clothes," he confessed, pulling you close to face him. "Look good in my house. But you always look good anyways."
"Said the pot to the kettle," you said with a smile. "I like being here already," you shrug, hands resting on his shoulders. "It feels like you, like home. Thank you for inviting me," you add, as though the measly voicing of your appreciation is enough to convey what you truly feel. 
"You're welcome anytime, if I'm here or not."
"You trust me that much?"
"Yeah, I do. I'll get you a key and everything." He leaned down to kiss you slowly, relearning the map of your lips and mouth, before pulling away. He laughed when you made a noise of protest.
"The bathroom's over here if you'd like to freshen up." He had pulled at your hand, stepping towards the other open door in the room. "Figured a shower might sound nice after a long day in an airplane. Besides, I've gotta clean up before we go to Mum's anyways."
"Gonna join me?" 
"Yeah, thought I might, if that's okay." His smirk had been wicked as he pushed you the rest of the way into the bathroom. He dropped your hand to reach for the hem of his shirt, pulling it over his head quickly. As he reached for the buckle of his pants, he had met your staring eyes. "See something you like, love?"
You definitely had, though you didn't think your attraction — physically or emotionally — for Harry had stopped at something that was as weak as "like." Getting to know him over the last six months had made you worry that there wasn't ever going to be anyone else like him, anyone that made you feel like he did. You had fallen for him, desperately hard, and the realization of it as you stood in front of his half-naked self almost embarrassed you. 
"Babe? You alright?" he asked as he stripped down to his boxers. 
"Yeah, you just got me all distracted," you had grinned, pulling your sweatshirt and remaining clothes off quickly before joining Harry under the warm spray of the water.
Meeting Harry's mom that evening went better than you could've ever dreamt it would. The two of you got on like old friends, and Harry had stared, almost in wonder, at how easily you seemed to bond with her. And then he had stared in horror as Anne offered to pull out the photo albums filled with pictures from Harry's childhood, particularly when Anne offered up the album filled with photos from Harry's and Gemma's emo phases. 
As the evening wore on, you caught Harry on more than one occasion glancing your way, cheeks bright from the red wine he was sipping on and eyes warmly reflecting the bright Christmas lights. He always looked like he was a split second away from saying something, only to shake his head and look away with a small smile. 
Later, in bed, Harry pulled you close to him. He was laying on his back, you on your side, and you threw a leg over his waist, soaking in all of the cuddles you could get on this short trip together. The room was only illuminated by the ambient light coming in through the blinds. 
"Mum liked you a lot," he murmured, gently stroking the skin at the base of your spine, "said I should hang onto you". 
You returned the gesture, running your fingertips along the lines of ink that make up his many tattoos. "I liked her too. She's wonderful, I see where you get it from now."
"Hey now, 'm wonderful all on my own!" He tickled your side and you couldn"t help but arch towards him, shrieking and laughing at the touch. 
"Stop that! You are an absolute pest, you know that?" you said, grinning up at him.
"Ah, you love me," he whispered, and his joking tone made you smile but the way he pulled you tighter as he said it made you brave. 
You let the weight what you were about to say wash over you, aware that things were going to change forever with just a few words. "I do love you, Harry," you whispered, moving up his body to press a kiss to his lips.
"Thank God," he had said, wrapping his arms back around you and pulling you on top of him. "Cause I love you too."
Leaving Harry after that had been even more difficult. All you wanted to do was be with him, but you had too much coming up with the future release of your album and Harry was still in the midst of doing his own writing and recording. 
It was your professions, along with the desire to keep your relationship private, that kept you apart. You weren't sure how you did it, but your relationship had withstood the distance and odd-hours. The only step now would be deciding if, when, and how to confirm the suspicions to tabloids and fans alike that you were an item.
The wait was killing you. All you wanted was to show off to the world that Harry was yours.
///
The bridge of the song was followed quickly by the chorus and the heavy guitar and pounding drums had you rocking on your feet, body swaying into the mic stand as you let yourself get lost in the lyrics. "If you go out tonight, I'm going out 'cause I know you're persuasive."
The crowd was even more into the song now, many picking up on the words quickly and screaming them along with your singing. The rock and roll vibe of the song was coursing through you and the crowd, the arena electric with energy already. 
"You got that something, I got me an appetite, now I can taste it."
You remove the mic from the stand and dance towards one end of the stage, singing as you move to the beat. "We're getting dizzy, oh, we're getting dizzy, oh! La da da da da! You get me dizzy, oh, you get me dizzy, oh!"
///
You had been on the phone with Harry one day in July, nearly five months after the release of your album, having him help you decide what the setlist of your tour would be when it began in November. 
"I wish I could cover one of your songs."
He had laughed and slurped his tea, the sounds comforting to you, even over the phone. "That'd be a bit obvious, wouldn't it love?"
"I don't mean cover Golden or Kiwi," you said, tapping your pen against the pad of paper in front of you. "What about one you wrote for 1D? What about Perfect? Or Stockholm Syndrome! That was always one of my favorites."
"Getting permission on those might be a bit more difficult, s'not just me that's gotta sign off on it. Besides, do you really wanna be the artist that covers a One Direction song on her own headlining tour?"
"Guess I'll stick with singing along to them in the shower then."
You were both quiet for a moment, lost in your own thoughts. 
"What if I covered Medicine?" you asked suddenly, realizing it was the perfect compromise, not to mention your favorite song that Harry himself performed oh his own tour. The rock sound wasn't a far cry from the roots that country music had and you knew it would sound great. "Even if it was just for one stop!"
"Hmm," Harry mused. "It would sound great with the band, I'll give you that. But videos will go around, people will know it's my song you're singing and they'll connect the dots about us."
"H, I'm ready for that if you are. I love you, and I'm ready to be able to share that love that I have for you with the world. Sneaking around has been fun but I want people to know how proud of you I am and how much you're loved and appreciated. Half of our fans know already, it's just a matter of us confirming it. I think that we could really-"
Harry was laughing at your rambling on the other end of the line. "Alright, alright, you drive a hard bargain, love. I think you're right, maybe it is time we stopped sneaking around. I'll try, but Jax and everyone else still have to agree to it too. It might be easier to convince everyone if it's just a one time thing. Pick another cover, something you'd normally do, in case it takes some time to work things out."
"I'll ask him right now! Thank you Harry!"
"I just have one condition," he said, and you could hear the grin that was surely pulling at the corners of his lips. 
"What's that?"
"I get to perform it with you," he had said, and the smile already on your face widened exponentially. "If we're finally gonna make "us" public, may as well do it with a bang."
///
In the moment after the chorus, an 8 count beat is carried by the drummer and guitarist. For this performance, and the only performance you'd put on of this song, you had rehearsed the 8 count repeating once between the chorus and the next verse, as you needed a bit of extra time to announce your guest performer. 
"Ladies and gentlemen," you shout into the mic, grin wide and face beaming already at what was about to take place. "To help me finish this performance, please help me welcome my very good friend, Harry Styles!"
Harry emerges from behind the stage holding his own wireless mic as much of the crowd screams - he may not be a country artist, but he was absolutely known worldwide. You step back with a wave of your arm, smiling as he begins the next chorus. His performance is for the crowd but he's singing the words directly to you. 
"Tingle running through my bones, fingers to my toes, tingle running through my bones," he sings, voice smooth like whiskey, and the crowd adores him, eating out of the palm of his hand. "The boys and the girls are in, I mess around with them, and I'm OK with it." 
You can't help but dance as he sings, his voice and the energy of the crowd propelling you to move. He watches you, eyes no longer on the crowd, as he sings the next lines. Immediately, heat pools low in your belly at his glance and the words. 
"I'm coming down, I figured out I kinda like it. And when I sleep I'm gonna dream of how you…"
You gyrate your hips at the unsung line of "ride it", listening with a sly grin as some in the crowd scream the two words that go unsung. 
///
After giving him a key, Harry had moved some of his clothes to your apartment in Nashville some time while you were away on the first leg of your tour. He had found the city to be incredibly welcoming and inspirational for his upcoming album and had decided to stay there for a spell while you continued to tour around the country. 
You had scheduled a short break between your concerts over New Years, wanting to be able to grab at least one or two nights at home with him to celebrate the holiday before you were back on the road again. 
"So fucking glad you're home," Harry panted, pulling your shirt over your head before attaching his lips to yours once again. "Missed you like crazy."
"Missed you too," you moaned as his lips moved downwards, across your neck and over your collarbones, down the valley between your breasts. Before he could reach around to unhook your bra, you reached for his shirt, as desperate as he was to see and touch what you'd been missing. 
As he pulled the half-unbuttoned blouse over his head, you pulled your leggings off and reached for him, pushing him back onto the bed behind him. He unbuttoned his pants as he scooted up towards the middle of the bed, shoving them and his boxers off in one swoop. 
You climbed on top of him, hurriedly reaching to kiss him as you rubbed your clothed center along the length of his hard cock. 
"Fuck," he hissed, throwing his head back to allow you room to kiss his neck. "Desperate aren't you, darling?"
"Want you so bad it hurts," you whispered, sucking a bright hickey right where it would absolutely be seen by anyone.
You moved to continue kissing down his chest but he stopped you with a hand under your arm. "Not gonna last long, love. Wanna be inside you."
His cheeks and chest were flushed bright red, lips puffy and pupils blown wide. This was when you loved him most, being able to have him like no one else did. The same feeling always hit you at certain moments, particularly ones of domesticity, like when you watched him back the car out of the driveway or when he stood in the kitchen in the morning in nothing but socks, boxers, and his ratty old robe, singing along to old big band jazz as he waited for the coffee to brew. There was Harry Styles the musician, Harry Styles the actor, and Harry Styles the performer, but then there was your Harry. 
"Yeah, okay," you sighed, moving off of him quickly to remove your bra and panties. You climbed back onto the bed and threw your leg over his hips, straddling him. He immediately reached for you and pulled you flush against his chest, his lips capturing yours in a bruising kiss. 
You rocked your hips against him as he held you, your slick arousal gliding along his length, drawing a moan from both of you. 
"Baby, please," he panted, and you could only mod in agreement, lost already to the sweeping feeling of your close release. 
His hands rested on your hips as you positioned him at the entrance between your legs. You groaned in harmony as you worked down him slowly, the only sound in the room was your shared heavy breathing and gasps. 
"Fuck me," he sighed as you set a slow pace, rocking on top of him to reach each spot that you know will get you there. 
"Workin' on it," you grin. A quick swivel of your hips hit at just the right angle and you tossed your head back, repeating the movement over and over again until you shuddered with a final snap of tension, your orgasm rolling over you as Harry helped you move, hands tight on your hips, to wring all you could from the release. 
"You look so beautiful right now, like a fuckin' angel," Harry said, voice low and gravely, accent thick with need. 
"How's that line go?" you said as you slowed down, smirking when a harsh rock of your hips caused Harry to moan. "'Turns out she's a devil in between the sheets'?"
"Fuck," he groaned again, eyes closed tightly. "Can't just go reciting my own lyrics to me while I"m buried in ya like this, love."
"And there's nothing you can do about it," you continued, singing the line of his song this time, and his hips buck up into yours harshly.
"You're gonna pay for that," he had said, quoting another of his songs, before he had flipped you over onto your back and set his own brutal pace.
///
Like he can read your thoughts, Harry beams and wags a finger in your direction and the crowd screams at your chemistry together. You grab your mic from its stand and take a step towards Harry to sing the chorus together.
"If you go out tonight, I'm going out 'cause I know you're persuasive." Harry dances off to the side of the stage, performing once again for the crowd. 
You dance at center stage with your wireless mic, too excited about performing with Harry that you can't stand in one spot. The music and Harry's energy make you want to move. "You got that something, I got me an appetite, now I can taste it." 
"We're getting dizzy, oh, we're getting dizzy, oh! La da da da da!" Harry throws his head back, singing along in his own world and you can't look away from him. He really was a rockstar and getting to share the stage with him like this was an experience you'd never forget. 
"You get me dizzy, oh, you get me dizzy, oh!"
There's a great pause in the lyrics where the guitar, keyboard, and drums play together, increasing the tension of the song. You and Harry take off towards opposite ends of the stage, both reveling in the performance for the crowd as you dance and stomp to the beat. Eventually, with a slide down the keys of the keyboard, the instrumental quiets into just the steady beat of the bass line joined by the hi-hats. 
You and Harry urge the crowd to clap along as you both return to the middle of the stage to sing together once again. He always said that this portion of the song was one of his favorites to perform, the repeated line from the bridge ending abruptly with the lights going out before flashing back on, the added theatrics of the performance elevating the climax of the song completely. Having rehearsed that Harry would sing the following chorus alone, you let yourself get lost in his gaze as it settles on you.
You stand facing one another behind the mic stand, once again singing more to one another rather than to the crowd. You step closer towards him as the lyrics progress, nearly chest to chest now with your voices sharing one another's mics. "I had a few, got drunk on you and now I'm—"
Before you can sing the last word of the line and the lights can blink out as rehearsed, Harry leans forwards and captures your mouth in a hungry kiss. The crowd erupts with screams as the lights above the stage go dark.
You can feel rather than hear him say the words "I love you" against your lips and you have just enough time to repeat them back to him before the drums and guitar pick the beat up once again, the lights flashing back on brightly. He moves away and continues to sing the chorus that follows as if nothing had happened. You're a bit stunned, not having prepared for his relationship-revealing public display of affection to happen during your performance of his song but it was perfect and he knows it. Your smile is wide and you can't help but stand rooted where you are and laugh at what has just finally happened.
"If you go out tonight, I'm going out 'cause I know you're persuasive," he sings, smirking at you while you blush across from him. 
You join him in singing the last lines, your right hand joining his left hand where everyone can see your fingers entwine. 
"You got that something, I got me an appetite, now I can taste it. We're getting dizzy, oh, we're getting dizzy, oh!"
You urge the crowd with a waving hand to join in and they do, singing along with you and Harry. "La da da da da! You get me dizzy, oh, you get me dizzy, oh!"
The drums and guitar end the song on five quick beats and the crowd erupts once again in screams. You immediately jump towards Harry, throwing your arms around his neck in a close embrace. His hands wrap around your waist to hold you close, and you can feel him smile where his face is pressed close to your jaw.
"How was that?" he asks, chuckling against you.
"It was perfect, you're perfect. Thank you, H. For everything."
"Can take you on a proper date now, yeah? Wanna show my girl off to the world."
"Yes, please!" You can't wipe the smile from your face as he sets you down and Harry continues to beam at you as the crowd continues screaming, reeling from your shared performance. 
Harry nudges you gently before turning back to them, lifting his and your arms high in the air and leading you in bending for a bow. He steps away from you and turns, opening his arms wide to you for the crowd to praise and you laugh, tearing up at his gesture and the overwhelming emotions of the performance while you take another bow just for yourself. 
He pulls you into another hug and you can't help but angle your face up towards him, wordlessly asking for another very quick, very public kiss.
He glances down at you, smiling. "You're gonna love this now, aren't you?"
"Course I am. love showing them you're mine."
He leans down to peck your forehead, your nose, and finally, your lips, as the crowd goes wild. "Love showing them you're mine. You've got a show to finish, love. Go kill it."
///
Ahh! So much fun! This has been such a joy to write and I appreciate you taking the time to give it a chance! It’s my first (of hopefully many) Harry fics - reading all of the stories here has been immensely inspiring, and I’m so looking forward to writing more!
Tagging my love @morganlatte​ who is a wonderful hype woman and beta reader. Thanks buddy!
Anyways! Thank you for reading! My love language is words of affirmation (aka I have a praise kink) so leave me a comment here if you feel so inclined!
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purplebass · 4 years ago
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Hanging On // Thomastair AU
#5 and last Celebratory Fic! It was meant to be something else, but then I didn't finish and I thought this one would be better. You'd probably get the other fic sooner or later, as well as the other requests you may have sent me during these last few months. I had the idea for this Thomastair AU while watching this ambience video. Perhaps you could watch it while you read, use it as bg music. lol. Like the title said, this is a Thomastair coffee shop AU with Eugenia, because I've wanted to write something with her in it. Enjoy!
Characters: Thomas Lightwood, Alastair Carstairs, Eugenia Lightwood Words: 1637
Thomas stared at the early evening crowd of the coffee shop where he worked part-time and sighed. He liked his job, and not just because his parents owned the place and entrusted him and his sister Eugenia to run it. There was something about coffee-making and cake-serving that fascinated him. Perhaps the faces people made once they got their orders or the simple fact of interacting with them, even if they just told him what they wanted. Not everyone was open to conversation, so Thomas mostly observed the clients. He saw a different array of expressions everyday. Relief. Despair. Pain. Joy. There was someone who even cried while sipping their hot chocolate once. It wasn’t the chocolate’s fault.
The coffee shop where Thomas worked was mostly frequented by university students. People around his age who had decided to go on with their studies instead of hunting for a job. He was interested in following some paths, but didn’t feel like enrolling into any institute to pursue his interests, at least for the moment. He was happy making other people feel better for now.
“The coffee won’t make itself, Thomas,” his older sister Eugenia said, serving a brunette at the far end of the table.
He hated when his sister rushed him, but then again he had been distracted for a while. “Coming,” he replied with a sigh, and gave a professor his order.
It was Friday, which meant that it wasn’t just the last day of classes for students, but also their karaoke night. It wouldn’t start until eight, and some small groups of people were already tucking their notebooks away and gathering to order their dinners before their tone-deaf singing session at Thomas’ expense. Eugenia might not know that, but Thomas didn’t ask to have the 6pm-10pm shift because he was crazy. She told him that only someone who didn’t value his free time could choose that shift, because people got very excited when they sang karaoke together.
“What is going on?” Eugenia asked, shaking Thomas from his thoughts.
He was staring at the door and he probably hadn’t heard her. “Nothing is going, sister. Nothing,” he repeated, and used that as an excuse to go to the bathroom before rush hour.
He didn’t want to tell his sister that he had been waiting for someone to show up, and that person was late. Well, he didn’t know if he was late, but he was usually there to eat dinner around that hour, and he hadn’t showed up yet. Thomas bit his lip. Perhaps he had a date. An exam. Something that prevented him from coming. He knew he was overthinking. His sister was right, there was something going on, and he needed to take care of it. He should have kept distractions to a minimum while he worked, unless he wanted Eugenia to tell their parents that he wasn’t doing his duty the way they expected him to.
Thomas shook his head, hitting someone along the way because he wasn’t paying attention due to his overthinking. “I’m sorry,” he muttered. He was about to gasp, because the person he had bumped into was exactly the one he had been waiting for.
“You should watch where you’re going, giant,” the guy said, locking his ebony colored eyes with Thomas. He was frowning, but then again, what was new? He always frowned. That dark haired man was one of those people who no matter how many coffee drank, they always seemed defeated. As if not even that could help their mood. Perhaps the guy was someone whose coffee made him more nervous. Maybe he was a tea guy. No, he likes black coffee, Thomas. And you know it. It’s not the coffee’s fault if it doesn’t lift his mood.
Thomas wanted to say something, anything to keep the conversation going, but he couldn’t find the words, so the handsome stranger walked away, leaving him there with his heart thumping and two flushed cheeks.
Thomas knew that his heart would thunder in his chest when the stranger would go on stage and sing a song. For whom, he didn’t know, since he was often by himself typing away on his laptop until the shop’s crowd would thin and he would leave. What he did know was that the guy’s voice was amazing, that he couldn’t stop staring whenever he went on stage. Why was nobody listening to him? Tonight, though, while groups of two or more students went on singing random hits and wouldn’t leave the mic to someone who could actually sing, the guy stayed focused on his computer.
“Alright, I’m going home,” Eugenia announced at some point. Good thing he had been waiting for her, otherwise she would have found him staring and he didn’t want to answer any question she might ask. Not yet. “Will you be okay closing the place by yourself?”
Thomas, who had been doing it for weeks, just shrugged. “For the millionth time, Eugenia, yes,” he glanced at the tables, seeing movement in the direction of the area where the guy was sitting.
“Hey, don’t get angry, little brother,” she got closer to him, just as the guy stood up and got the mic from the last improvised singer.
“I’m not angry, just tired,” Thomas said a little bluntly, his eyes already set on the stranger as the song he chose to sing started playing.
“He’s good,” he heard Eugenia whisper to him. “I didn’t think he knew how to sing.”
“Do you know him?” he wondered with interest.
Eugenia raised an eyebrow, already trying to make up the reason why Thomas had asked. “I don’t, personally. But our sister Barbara does. He’s an International Relations student named Alastair, or at least that’s what she told me the last time she was here and he was too.”
“Really?”
“Yes, Thomas, for real. Why do you want to know?”
Thomas was thankful that the lights were dimmed, otherwise his sister would have caught his flushed cheeks. “Can’t I be curious? It’s not like I’ve asked you the secret formula for Coke, sister.”
Eugenia nodded with a smirk plastered on her face. “Do you want me to introduce him to you?” she offered, and Thomas stilled.
“What, no,” he said, trying to seem as disinterested as possible.
His sister shrugged, then she walked away. In the meantime they were talking, the guy had already sung his piece and sat back down at his lonely table.
Thomas glanced at his wristwatch. There was still one hour before the place would close, maybe he would sing another song? Nope. He just ate in silence as he checked things on his laptop and occasionally typed other things from a notebook by his side, which was his only companion. The clock soon signaled that it was a little past 10, and after the last group of customers had left, Alastair was the only one left in the room. Had he lost track of time? Because he seemed unbothered. Thomas believed that was the universe giving him a chance to talk to him, but he still waited half an hour before doing that. Silly.
He took one big breath of encouragement and walked to the table. You can do it. “I’m sorry, but we are closing. You must leave.”
Alastair’s hands halted on the keyboard, and he looked up. “For a person so imposing, you have the bad habit of saying sorry too much.”
“What’s wrong with saying sorry?”
“Absolutely nothing. But I’m not sorry for staying here past the service hours,” he replied with what Thomas thought was hostility. “I’m finishing a paper, can’t you wait a little more?”
Thomas frowned. “I’m sorry,” he said again, then bit his lip in frustration. “But I have to close the shop and go home.” What was he doing? Why wasn’t he saying that he didn’t mind if he stayed more? Ah, yes. Embarrassment. But also determination. He didn’t know this person, and even if he liked him, he couldn’t make an exception for anybody. Right?
Alastair started to laugh, and Thomas was puzzled. “It’s the first time I’ve seen you laugh,” Thomas said before the other could say anything.
Alastair’s eyes widened in surprise. “It’s the first time I had the guts to talk to you,” he replied, then started packing his things in his black laptop bag.
Thomas started sweating. He didn’t expect it. “Me too,” he said. There was an imperceptible stop in Alastair’s movements, as if he had been caught off guard just like he was.
“I was joking,” he told him, rising from his chair, and Thomas froze. “About finishing the paper, I mean,” he added, and Thomas didn’t hide the relief he felt at the admission. “I just wanted to talk to you. I’ve been wanting to do it for several weeks, Thomas.”
“You know how to sing, Alastair,” Thomas said, wondering how he knew his name. But it was fair, he also knew his name through third parties. He registered Alastair’s shock. “What do you say we meet tomorrow after my shift and we talk more?”
“I thought you would never ask,” he answered.
“I thought you would never agree,” he countered.
If only I talked to him sooner, Thomas thought, as he and Alastair exited the coffee shop. It was okay, the ice was broken now. He finally had the guts to interact with him, and he thought that the evening shift was totally worth it, unlike what Eugenia may think.
Taglist (if you want to be added or removed, send me a PM): @princesslucinda @kit-12 @immortal-enemies @lucian-evander @esa-emery @danieldyers @blackthorn-trash @rinadragomir @fortunesandfables @itsdaughterofthemoon @silvenys@thomastair3 @livvyheronstairs @ holding-infinity-and-a-book @lovelaces @axoloteca @autumnangel20 @cordelia-cardale @lucie-blackthorns @thephcastcouldsteponme-please
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sunjaesol · 4 years ago
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baby, you ain't being slick
juke | human!au + strangers | title: juice // lizzo 
He didn’t want to be here. Alas, his friends could be persuasive if they wanted to. 
After a shit day in the studio, another rejection letter from agencies all around, contrived lyrics scratched on lined paper and one sugar crash, Alex and Reggie decided to go to a karaoke bar. Of all places they could go to take the edge off, they decide on an establishment that would literally be his cause of death. Luke despised karaoke bars. Why listen to drunk people blabber lyrics they didn’t know (nor cared about) into a shitty mic at two am while sipping on an equally shitty margarita? Why torture himself with music when music itself was kicking his butt as of late? 
But then Alex told him mocking drunk people was fun and Reggie begged for a chance to sing ABBA, so Luke couldn’t refuse. He already acted like a douche enough today. 
So there he sat, on a barstool at Neon Affluenza on a Wednesday night peering into the aforementioned shitty margarita. The place recently opened and has gotten pretty good reviews, Luke quietly admitting that the vibe of the bar was pretty dope. Dark walls and black hardfloor flooring, dimmed lights and purple LED giving everyone a mysterious glow. The stage was small, as usual, with an underpaid DJ on the side playing the tracks. It was packed, loud chatter and clinking glasses overpowering the slurring words of the heavy-lidded, burly man onstage working his way through a Céline Dion track. Luke wondered for a second if the singer thought about how many people butchered her song and brought slander to her name every second of the night in all the karaoke bars all over the world. Oh well. At least she had a record deal and, you know, any significance. 
Alex sat next to him, grinning face illuminated as he texted Willie, as Luke lazily let his gaze drift across the room. The man has stopped and gotten a weak applause, the next person ascending the stage and singing - Jesus fucking Christ, kill him now - “Firework” by Katy Perry. This night truly was the worst. 
It didn’t help that for some reason, three girls have come up to him. Was this an ongoing bet from one friend group or something? To see which one of the girls could crack him? Any other night, he would’ve relished the attention, maybe even chatted one up enough to go home with. Flirting was second nature to Luke. The third girl was his type too! When he rejected her avances, she just shrugged and continued her way to Reggie. Which, he must admit, was a pretty confident move on her part. Regardless - Luke wasn’t in the mood and nothing, or no one, would change that. (Maybe he could sneak back to the studio...)       
“Excuse me-” A female voice called out, tapping his arm. 
He rolled his eyes. “Not interested.”
She scoffed. “You’re sitting on my jacket, asshole.”
Turning to face her, he froze for a beat. His unimpressed glare turned surprised at how pretty she was. Like, “double take on the street”-pretty. If he thought the girl from before was his type, he was mistaken. This was his type. She regarded him with minimal interest, brows raised and arms crossed. 
“So?”
His reply stuttered out slowly. “Uh... huh?” Awesome. He was twenty-three and unable to speak to a pretty girl like some pimply eleven year old playing spin the bottle for the first time. 
She tugged on his stool and - oh. The stool wasn’t leather, it was suede. He was sitting on her leather jacket. Shit. He terribly hoped he didn’t have butt sweat, or else mortification would take him out and not the piercing belt of the drunk singer. Either way, he embarrassed himself. 
“Shit!” He rushed from his chair and held the garment out for her. “Sorry!”  
With a sneer, she grabbed it from his grasp, fingers brushing and letting heat ripple up his arm. Holy shit. Yup. The night took a turn. He had to know who she was. 
She pulled the jacket on. “Thanks, I guess...” Just as she was about to disappear back in the throng of drunkards, he called out for her. 
“Uh, hey! I didn’t get a name!”
The girl turned around, an amused - hella attractive - expression flitting across her face (damn, in what factory did they make her?), and tracked his body with her eyes. Instinctively fixing his slouch, he hoped she was into that punk-rocker aesthetic. That jacket was sort of a clue, right? 
An ironic smile tugged on her lips. “Thought you weren’t interested, loverboy.”
Oh, fuck. His flirting game found their match and it was wrapped around a 5′4 girl with glossy curls and eyes glinting with challenge. Luke recovered as fast as he could from his whiplash and swaggered over to her, a charming smirk falling on his lips - the one he so often pulled to make the front row fawn. The girl didn’t look away, raising her chin to level his intensity. A giddy feeling spread in his chest. This could be fun. 
“That’s before I knew the leather jacket belonged to a pretty face like yours, princess.”
“Trust me,” she laughed, also attractive. Everything about her was fucking enigmatic. “I’m not a princess.”
He tried again. “What’s your name?”
“What’s yours?”, she shot back. 
He licked his lips, grinning, and held his hand out. He’d gladly bridge this animosity if it got him a name and a number. “I’m Luke.”
His hand was met with cold air, the girl laughing again and showcasing the cute, little gap between her teeth. It should be an imperfection, but it kind of made her better. Jeez, he didn’t even know her! Why she was laughing, however, he didn’t know. He’d lie if he said his ego wasn’t slammed. 
“Are you-?”
“Next up: my girl Julie with Lizzo!” The DJ yelled in the mic, a gaggle in the crowd hooting and whistling. His dream girl winked, throwing a thumb at the stage and shrugging like she felt sorry for interrupting the conversation.  
“That’s my cue. Bye!”
“Wait!” Argh! He didn’t pay attention to the DJ! Now he still didn’t now her name! A beat later, though, the latter words processed. Lizzo. This girl was going to sing... Lizzo? The most revered pipes of the 21st century? Yeesh. Maybe she wasn’t so perfect after all. 
The girl jumped on the stage like she owned it, the first notes of “Juice” booming from the amps, her body moving with the beat. Straightening her jacket and mirroring the smirk he just sported himself, Luke’s throat went dry. 
“Oh.” Alex casually came to stand next to him. “That’s Julie.”
“What?!”
But then she opened her mouth and any sensical thought flew out the window. Her voice was fucking magnificent. Clear, kind of raspy, yet loud and strong and an undercurrent that suggested years of rigorous training. This was not just some girl singing - she was singer. 
If I'm shining, everybody gonna shine I was born like this, don't even gotta try
Her eyes searched across the heads and then stuck on him, that damned smirk widening and sending him a look that would bring any man to his knees. And then, to finish him off, teasingly waved at him as she spit the lyrics. 
I'm like Chardonnay, get better over time Heard you say I'm not the baddest bitch, you lie!
Julie zoomed through the lyrics with ease, dancing and singing like it was breathing, and oozing every bit of confidence a person could have. Cocky nods and flirtatious winks and sinking in her knees to direct a lyric to people in the crowd. He corrected his previous thought: she wasn’t a singer, she was a performer; and she had him stammering. 
All of a sudden, she jumped offstage with the mic, the adoring audience parting for her like the Red Sea and the bartenders brightening the LED’s to give everyone a proper look at what she was doing. Luke should’ve known that one verse wasn’t enough - should’ve known that if he was the Flirt King, Julie was the Flirt Queen. He couldn’t keep the grin off his face though. She was incredible and - fuck it - the coolest girl he’s ever met. 
Coming to a halt right in front of him with that smile meaning checkmate, she obnoxiously pointed at him as she sung the bridge to the audience. 
Somebody come get this man I think he got lost in my DMs, what? My DMs, what? You better come get your man I think he wanna be way more than friends, what? More than friends What you want me to say?
Luke was shaking from laughter, flushing red yet buzzing with exhilaration at this girl putting him in his place. Putting on a show! Where has she been all his life?! 
Before he could snatch her waist, she ran back to the stage to belt out the last chorus with all her might, a dazzling smile breaking through. It was the first genuine, earnest one of the night and... wow.  Julie was breathtaking. 
Alex, unfazed, pressed his phone in his face. “She’s a singer from LA. Thought you’d know her.”
Her song ended, applause so deafening the pedestrians probably heard too, Julie making a silly face and bumping fists with the DJ. She must be a regular here. Weaving her way back to the bar, Luke mustered all his bravado into a laid-back stance and nonchalant smile. He couldn’t hide the mischievous spark in his eye though. That checkmate was still up for grabs. 
“A water, please,” she asked the bartender. Catching her eye, she turned towards him. “Hello again.”
“Gotta admit, Julie-” he leaned back, elbows propped on the bar. “-wasn’t too bad.”
From the way her eyes lingered on the movement, triumph flared in his chest. She came closer, cocking a hip and placing her glass next to his arm. “Ha! I can sing circles around you.”
He leaned in with a grin. “You’d be surprised.”
She didn’t back down. “Is that a challenge?”
“Ask me again in the morning.”
Huffing, she uttered: “What makes you think I’d go home with you?”
“Cause I do ‘wanna be way more than friends’ and, well-” He closed the space between them, calloused fingers tugging on a curl and tucking it behind her ear. Her skin was hot from the lights. For a beat, her resolve waned.“You’re still here.”
Those eyes that have been driving him wild flickered to his lips. He held his breath in anticipation. One night with this girl and some snarky lyrics later and he’d be back on the saddle. This was what he needed to get out of his funk. After, everything would just go back to normal. Right?  
Her lips suddenly grazed his, gaze flicking up and giving him a killer grin. Right - maybe not entirely back to normal. He wouldn’t mind Julie giving him a look like that more often. 
“You got yourself a deal... loverboy.”
@blush-and-books @willexx @unsaid-emily @alexjulies
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moccahobi · 4 years ago
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Dear Diary [Jimin x Reader]
Warnings: Tooth rotting fluff
Rating: E for everyone
Summery: You’re moving! Finally. Getting into a masters program in South Korea meant soooo much to you and it also offered the perfect opportunity to move in with your favorite pen pal and high school friend from an exchange: Park Jimin. A sweet and caring squirrel hybrid.
Word Count: 6.3k words
Genre: Fluff, Hybrid AU, Roommates AU, Friends to Lovers
A/N: OMGGGG. Formatting this was soooo annoying. Never again am I going to do so many dividers. It was not it chief. Lolol. I love this fic though! It is part of a collab for hybrids (check out the masterlist here) you should totally check them out! All the authors here are soooo amazing and their works are amazing in this too! Also! Thank you to @jung-hoseok-s-airplane​ and @spicykoreantatertots​ the two amazing people who betaed this fic for me! They helped soooo much!
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Unlocking the door to your shabby apartment, you were struck by how empty it looked. It was really more of a ghost of your apartment at this point. You’d been slowly shipping your stuff over to South Korea for almost a month (really, as soon as you were accepted to Seoul University’s master program and Jimin agreed to be your roommate) and by now, all you had to take with you on your flight tomorrow was a small day bag with your necessities and a suitcase full of the clothes you’d worn this week. Your empty apartment really made the move feel real (something your job’s kind send off party hadn’t done). This move was real.
You had gotten accepted into your dream program across the world.
Tomorrow afternoon you’ll be leaving this area and moving in with Jimin.
You giggled and sat on your couch with a dazed smile stuck on your face. It wasn’t really your couch anymore was it? Your landlord was keeping all the furniture. Not that you really cared. How would you have possibly carted your large furniture across the world anyways? 
After almost four years of living here though… you’d be leaving behind many memories stored in this apartment. Like when one of your friends spent the night here after an evening of clubbing and ended up vomiting all over the rug you’d placed in the living space. He promised to pay for a deep cleaning the next day, which you took him up on… but then he just rented a steam cleaner. He was a funny person like that. Although… it was much less expensive than a cleaning service probably was. Looking back, you laughed at how worried you were of him finding one of your many journals stored on your bookshelf, so worried that you hid them under your bed. Not that it really mattered. He was a sweet friend and your journals just looked like notebooks.
Had you packed them? After shoving them under your bed all that time ago, you didn’t even think about looking back on them. Maybe if you hadn’t been reminiscing, you would’ve forgotten them here and lost them forever. Surely your landlord would just throw them away without a second thought. 
You’d been sleeping on an empty mattress and a small pillow for three days now, your comforter and sheets already in Korea with Jimin. You shuddered against your cold floor as you knelt down on the cold hard floor to grab your almost forgotten journals. With them in hand, you settled onto your pillow-less couch and carefully opened up the last journal you’d written. It was from the study abroad you did in South Korea in your last year of high school. Without that study abroad, you’d never have met Jimin and you most definitely wouldn’t be moving across the world for your masters program.
You wouldn’t want to do anything else though. Jimin was probably your best friend and this program was the opportunity of a lifetime. With a nostalgic smile on your face, you started to read.
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Dear diary, 
Something crazy happened today! Ahhh! I was so shocked when Jimin, THE social butterfly of my school, came up and started talking to me. He’s a hybrid of some sort, not that it matters to me. He’s got a black bowl cut too… it looks funny with his furry pointed ears sticking out of it. Anyways, the conversation was a little stunted at first… I barely knew Korean and Jimin barely knew English but somehow we had a really good conversation. I am honestly so shocked. Here I thought that as an exchange student in South Korea, I’d just talk to other exchange students and mumble a few words to other students. I mean… I know Korean some but not much. It was… AHHH! I had so fun talking to Jimin. He’s so sweet and kind. I even added him on Kakao. He’s my first non-exchange family member on my Kakao. I can’t wait to get to know him more.
Dear diary, 
Jimin and I talk almost daily! Mostly through text because we don’t see each other much during school but that’s ok! He is in a lot more advanced classes than I but I think we are planning on meeting up for lunch this Wednesday. He even asked if I wanted to join him at the dance club but I said no… I don’t want to embarrass myself in front of my only friend. Given, Jimin is so friendly and sweet that I bet he’d just laugh and try to teach me but still. Besides, he apparently competes. That’s what I’d heard from others at school at least. I don’t want to distract him from preparing for competitions. 
Dear diary,
I went to a karaoke booth with Jimin and some of his friends. It was so fun! Jimin’s friends were a little shy to talk to me but they opened up as we started to sing more. I didn’t expect them to be such weebs like me! Lol. They all joined in to sing the current theme song of One Piece. It was soo funny. The mic didn’t know who to focus on and we got such a baddddd score. Jisoo was sooo funny while singing (Jisoo is a sweet cat hybrid). Jimin is surprisingly a great singer though! I was surprised. Is there anything he is possibly bad at? I don’t know. 
After karaoke, he and I went to a park and just chilled. Instead of sitting at a bench, Jimin dragged me off to a small clearing and sat on a low tree branch. It was the first time I really thought of him as a hybrid because… like… sitting on that tree with his tail swaying slowly as he ate ice cream… I don’t know. It was nice to just be with him there but still. It didn’t help that he kept batting at me with his tail until I joined him on the branch. I could have sworn the branch shook as I joined! We probably both almost died because of that branch broke, we would have fallen! I am exaggerating… but still. 
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You were such an extra kid at times. A laugh left you as you thought back on that afternoon spent talking while chilling on the tree branch. Now you knew there was no way you would have died even if the branch fell. The worst thing that would have happened would have been a broken bone (although with Jimin’s quick reflexes and hearing, he might have noticed the branch start to splinter before it even became an emergency for both of you). 
Looking over at the clock, you noted that it was almost nine at night. Jimin would wake up soon and start his last day roommate-less. You chuckled thinking about what he might be doing right now. Maybe he’d be meticulously rolling over his couch so that his hair wasn’t all over it when you first sat down, or he was washing all the blankets to make sure they were extra soft (in reality, he was probably hitting snooze for the 100th time that morning).  Either way, he was probably just as excited to see you again as you were. Sure you’d texted each other almost daily but it wasn’t the same. You both became super busy and the time zone difference made it hard to video chat often. 
Life happened and no amount of texting or video chatting seemed to make up for that.
For all you knew, Jimin looked so different from what you remember that when you arrive at the airport and look for him holding the “Welcome Y/n” sign he made, you will only be able to recognize him by the sign (and his tail… unless he dyed the dark brown tail to be some other color). 
Maybe you’d changed too. Your hair and style have undoubtedly changed… but would Jimin notice changes other than that? Maybe your scent had changed. You knew that hybrids had more sensitive noses and often identified people by scent (you learned that the hard way by trying to play hide and seek in the dark with Jimin and some of his friends at a party… never again). During your exchange, Jimin claimed you smelled like blossoms (from how you’d read about smells in the past, you knew there was more to one’s smell than just one thing but you didn’t push Jimin for more). Maybe you’d ask Jimin again sometime.
A vibration from your phone took you out of your thoughts and when you checked the notification, you chuckled. It was as if Jimin knew that you were thinking about him. 
Jimi: I built your bedframe~
Jimi: When your sheets arrive today I will make your bed. That way you don’t have to worry about all that after such a long flight. 
Jimi: Can’t wait to see u again!
You: Thank you
You: I am excited to see you soon too!
Looking down at your worn journals and gently rubbing their spines, you decided you wanted to have a journal for this journey too. Given your track record of starting and dropping journals, you’d probably only keep at it for a month or so but could still be very nice. There was one simple issue with your plan though, you didn’t have a notebook to write in… or a pen. Those things were in Korea by now. 
You’d have to leave the house to get that stuff… or you could just buy it at the airport tomorrow. The airport only sold overpriced stuff though… plus it would be cool to start writing now.
With that thought, you got up, put your shoes on, grabbed your wallet and keys, and walked to the closest general store. After little deliberation, you bought a slender black dotted notebook and gel pens. Excitement bubbled up inside you as you sat on your couch again, pen poised to write. This would be fun. 
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Dear diary,
I am moving tomorrow. 
I am moving halfway across the world to live with Jimin, a squirrel hybrid and my best friend. I was accepted into my dream masters program and will be living in South Korea on a student visa. I am so excited to see Jimin again. Has he changed much or is he still the same old sweet guy who hid in trees to think and talks to strangers? I’ll know soon. 
Well… it won’t be that soon. I have to fly to South Korea first. 
It’ll be a long flight. I’ll arrive in Seoul tomorrow at 5pm and Jimin will take me out to dinner with some of his friends before we just relax at our shared apartment. Almost all of my stuff is already in the apartment. I’ve been shipping them across for a little over a month or so now. 
I am so excited. 
I should probably eat something and go to bed though. Tomorrow will be long and full of tedious airport procedures… yay! Note the sarcasm. 
Good night. 
Let’s see if I use you.
Dear diary,
It is almost time to board. I am so excited. When I was packing, I thought that I would be more anxious about the move and make a little sad about leaving my friends and family behind, but I don’t feel anxious or sad. Ok… I am a little sad. But my excitement outweighs my sadness. I’ll be leaving some friends behind but I will be making so many more! And I’ll finally get to see Jimin again as well. 
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Oh.
My flight is about to board. I guess I will talk to you later then!
You were exhausted by the time you finally sat down in your seat, ready to see Jimin again and sleep in a made bed. The flight would be a long slog full of you getting up to use the bathroom, walking down the isles just to move, reading a book because it was one of the few forms of entertainment you had, and drinking lots of water. It was exhausting (somehow), yet time moved and eventually you found yourself staring out at Korea’s landscape. 
The city was alive and so pretty. For a moment you forgot that you were tired. Given the second you got up, you remembered it all again. Your legs felt sore and tired from sitting in one spot for so long and your eyelids were almost sheets of lead by now. As you waited for the people in front of you to leave the plane, you turned your phone back on (you’d bought a cellular plan last week for when you would be in Korea). As soon as it connected to your new plan, you were bombarded with excited messages from Jimin that he’d sent all through his day. From photos of food he’d cooked for your first dinner together to the ‘Welcome to Korea Y/n’ poster he made for you. It made you smile and  as you neared where he said he would be waiting for you, you grew even more excited once again. 
Would you get along with his friends?
Would your schedules match? 
Jimin came into view before you could keep thinking, his “Welcome to Korea Y/n” sign much bigger and grander than you imagined. There were two hybrids flanking either side of him, one you recognized as Jisoo from high school and the other you’d never met before. Even from the six or so meter distance you were at right now, you could see Jimin’s tail quiver excitedly. You sped up. Six meters couldn’t end soon enough. Jimin handed the poster to one of his friends and engulfed you in a suffocating hug, his warmth flooding you. Almost immediately, you felt a sense of home in Jimin’s arms, your bodies melding together nicely and a sense of calm settling over you. You didn’t want to let go. It wasn’t until one of his friends coughed awkwardly that Jimin released you and held you at arms length while giving you a once over. 
He looked good. 
Not that you expected much else from the dancer. Numberless days spent in the studio sculpted his body better than any artist you knew or studied could have done. Miraculously enough he’d somehow developed a sense of style. You especially loved his colorblocked button up shirt that seemed to shine in the dingy airport. 
“Nice to smell you again, Y/n-ah.” Jimin said, a shit-eating grin splitting his sweet smile as he winked at you.
A loud snort left one of Jimin’s friends, who appeared to be a pig hybrid. A cute pig hybrid at that. A shy blush bloomed across his handsome and plump face before he asked to take your suitcase (something you happily let him take). Jimin chittered quietly next to you as you quickly introduced yourself to his friends (the pig hybrid’s name Minju and the other, a mutual high school friend, Jisoo). The four of you started to leave the airport. 
“I wouldn’t have invited Jisoo and Minju to come and pick you up but I don’t have a car… I figured that you’d rather not lug all your stuff around the subway.”
“Out of all three of us – four of us I guess– I am the only one with a car.” Jisoo injected happily, twirling his keys around one of his slender fingers.
You laughed and nodded. Content to just listen to the three of them banter and talk as you were led to Jisoo’s car. They seemed content to embarrass each other by telling you about things they’ve done in the past that varied in severity from mistakes while dancing to drunken nights spent together. At one point, you even added in a story of Jimin and Jisoo fighting with sparklers, getting burned, and then burning all the sparklers as “revenge”. The banter didn’t stop until the car stopped and by then you’d felt as if you had spent more than just one year and a car ride with them.
“Now, Y/n-ssi, I know that you and Jimin talked about going back to his place and having a relaxing night–”
“We did and I’m excited to eat the food Jimin made. If it’s edible.” You added, smiling as Jisoo laughed and Jimin shouted.
“Yes. Well, Jimin had to make a deal with me to get me as a chauffeur.”
“It was a damn rotten deal.”
Minju laughed, “Whatever you say Chim. He’s still gotta honor it. So we are getting some food.”
A large and towering building faced you from outside the car and if the sign was anything to go by, it was more than just a restaurant. It was a karaoke place. A smile grew on your face as you looked up at it. Tonight would be fun… even if you were tired.
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Dear diary,
Tonight was amazing. Sure I’d hoped to just settle into Jimin’s and my apartment and go to bed early after eating… but instead Jimin treated Minju, Jisoo, and I to dinner at a karaoke place. I’d have to look but it might have been the same place Jimin, Jisoo, some of Jimin’s friends, and I went to in high school. Not that it matters too much. We had so much fun! By the end of the night I even had Jisoo’s and Minju’s phone number too. Hopefully we can all be friends. 
Jimin has changed in ways I hadn’t noticed when we talked online. He seems to have picked up this habit of chittering. I want to try to figure out if there is something that causes him to chitter or if it just happens. Near the end of the night I tried paying attention to that but it was hard. Almost always when he started chittering, I was doing something. It’s good to be around him again. I missed him more than I realized.
Dear Diary, 
I start classes tomorrow! Yay!!! I also have a job interview tomorrow… which is less exciting. I knew that I would need a job and that I would have to wait until I had officially signed the lease (which happened literally the day after I moved in), but it was still so much work! Jimin has been helping me through which has been suuuuper helpful. After he comes home from the studio and eats– I have been cooking for him since he’s been busier than me– he’s been helping me modify and send in my resumes to places. It’s nice. We sit next to each other on the couch and just… put our heads together to get it done. 
After finishing that, he and I watched a movie after (this has happened two times!). We’ll cuddle together and watch some movie Jimin’s decided I need to watch. He’s a good cuddle buddy. I’ve enjoyed it. Well… wish me luck on my job!
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“You’re back? That was fast! I barely had time to finish making dinner!” Jimin called out as you entered, tired from a long week (more like a long month or two by now) of classes and work but nonetheless happy to be home with Jimin. 
Throwing your bag on the closest chair, you went to him and gave him a tight side hug. Almost immediately, you felt some of your built up stress leave you. He was magical like that. You could be having a horrible day and just the sight of your best friend would make it all so much better. The nights where you would sit on the couch together and read or watch tv or just talk were your favorites. Jimin’s head would slowly drift into your lap and you would start to play with his soft hair and ears, your eyes trailing his beautiful face. Tonight would probably be one of those nights if you had any say in his evening plans. 
Jimin’s tail quivered and tickled your nose.
“I am sorry you had such a rough day, Y/n-ah.” Jimin said with a whine and you felt him move to set whatever he was holding down.
“It’s life, I guess.”
“That doesn’t make it any better, ”Jimin turned around and started hugging you tightly as well, gently rubbing his cheek against your neck, “I don’t like it when you’re this stressed, Y/n-ah. Let me take care of you tonight. I don’t want you stressing anymore tonight.” 
You laughed but gave in as Jimin started leading you to the couch before he started to bring the food he made into the living space as well. Soon enough, you were being coddled by Jimin who was making sure you ate and cuddling you as the two of you watched some random show. Sleep didn’t find you that night though. For some unknown reason, butterflies were hatching in your stomach and all you could do is feel them flutter around while wondering why you were possibly feeling such flutters. 
Less than a month later, as snow started falling down rapidly, you found yourself in a similar situation. It was your turn to make dinner, which wasn’t a problem because it also happened to be one of the rare days you had off. It was almost 8 at night by the time you finished dinner, the sun long set and Jimin would be home soon. You’d just finished setting the table and were scared by how harshly Jimin slammed the door shut. Normally he was so careful with closing the door, respectful of your neighbors and not wanting to damage anything. 
“Jimin-ah? Is that you?”
“Who else would it be? Have you been giving spare keys to your friends?”
You laughed and grabbed his backpack from him, “Aish. Why would I do that? We agreed not to. How was your day?”
Jimin walked into his room, his door open as he started changing. All the while he was venting. The students didn’t catch on to his newest dance as fast as he’d hoped and during break he heard them complaining. Then he ended up needing to take on an extra class because one of his coworkers bailed and he didn’t have time to practice for his showcase next week. Which was also a complete mess because everyone was being complete idiots, not that Jimin would ever tell them that.
“I’ve been looking forward to dinner all day though.” Jimin said with a large smile on his face as he sat down at the table, you joined him.
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After dinner, you and Jimin sat on the couch and as Shrek was playing, he curled up next to you and rested his head on your lap, demanded pets. You wanted to laugh and make fun of him for being so clingy but refrained. He was so stressed. Now wasn’t the right time to make fun of him and his vulnerability. Plus, part of you relished in him wanting cuddles from you. 
Dear Diary,
I am sorry that I’ve been neglecting you. Lol. I’ve been so busy! Being a student full time with a part time job is stressful. Who would have thought? Jimin’s been stressing sooo much over his latest dance performance. It is honestly stressing me out. 
It probably isn’t healthy for him either. He literally spent the whole weekend practicing at the studio… I dropped off lunch for him both days. AND yesterday was one of his days to make dinner and instead of telling me that he couldn’t, he simply didn’t return to the apartment until, like, 10pm. I was so worried. THEN! He got upset at me for assuming he’d be cooking when his show is this Friday. Like, sorry I wasn’t informed that you wouldn’t be. 
More importantly though, I am worried about Jimin. He used to come to me before his performances and we would talk. I was a person he could turn to for stress relief, but all he’s done leading up to this performance is snap at me and hide away in his studio in preparation. I don’t want him to be this stressed out… 
What should I do?
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By the next day, you’d figured out what must be done. You were going to forcefully bring Jimin home and the two of you would relax. All of Jimin’s favorite foods were laid out on the living space’s coffee table and you’d even gotten some extra skin care stuff because you knew Jimin loved that. This night would be all about relaxing. Hell, you were even prepared to massage Jimin’s gross feet and back. You’d do anything to make sure that Jimin could relax some. 
You just had to… go to his studio and interrupt him in the middle of his practice… and forcefully bring him home. 
No big deal. You could do it.
Right?
Right.
With a deep sigh, you gave your relaxation set-up a final once over and left the house. It was already 5pm and if you were going to make Jimin relax, you were going to need to start it soon. All throughout driving to Jimin’s studio, you were thinking over the many ways you could try to convince Jimin to relax and when you finally made it to the studio, you realized another issue: 
You had no idea which room he had rented out today.
With an awkward smile and a nod at the receptionist, you made your way into the building. Hopefully it wouldn’t be too hard to find Jimin… 
Of course it was hard. He just so happened to be in the third floor studio furthest from the stairs. When you found his room, you noticed he wasn’t alone. Minju was also visiting him. Neither of them noticed you approaching the door. Both were sitting and talking and when you reached the door you started to be able to hear tidbits of what they were saying.
“You’re going to… Seriously?”
“Yeah. I figured it’d be a super sweet way to confess. It’s why I am stressing so much about this performance. It has to be perfect.”
Oh.
You didn’t open the door.
Jimin liked someone? 
Why didn’t you know?
You were best friends right?
Best friends were supposed to tell this stuff. 
Sadness and disappointment filled your stomach and you contemplated turning around and just letting Jimin practice. Clearly this was important to him. You didn’t want to get in the way of him and another person.
“I don’t know man. Y/n… like this.”
“Like you would know? You’ve known her for the equivalence of a year and then some! I have been… five years now. I was… and as she celebrated!”
“Woah, Jimin-ah… I’m going to go now. Good luck.”
What?
Your brain was short circuiting. He liked you? You must have misheard that. That wasn’t possible. Jimin was… he was a catch and you were just you.
Did you even think of him that way? 
“Oh! Hi, Y/n-ah. Crazy seeing you here!” Minju practically shouted, a smirk on his face as he looked back at Jimin. 
Fuck! Somehow you managed to mumble a hello to Minju before shuffling into the dance studio and looking at Jimin. He looked tired. He also looked shocked and afraid. 
You weren’t supposed to hear what you just heard.
“O-Oh… Y/n-ah! What are you doing here?” 
“Well… I, uhhh, I came because I was worried about you. You’re coming home whether you like it or not and you’re going to relax with me.” You tried to be assertive but all the gusto you’d worked up seemed to have disappeared with Minju. 
“O-Ok.”
“How much of that c-conversation did you hear, Y/n-ah?”
You sighed, “I…,” Were you about to be honest about this? 
Did you want him confessing in front of a crowd of people?
No.
“I think I heard you say that you were planning on confessing to me after your performance?” You didn’t sound sure of yourself, not in the slightest. Not that you knew how anyone could possibly be sure of themselves in such a situation. Jimin himself seemed to deflate, his eyes wide.   
“Fuck. This isn’t how you were supposed to find out. I had–”
Butterflies erupted in your stomach at his confirmation of wanting to ask you out.
Why?
Did you have a crush on him?
“So you were planning on confessing?”
“Yeah? I am so sorry if this makes you uncomfortable. Fuck. I didn’t think this through. We’re roommates. This–”
“I’d be down for a date…” 
“What?” Jimin jumped up, his tail quivering and ears twitching.
“I’d be down for a date. I… I don’t know if I like you back, romantically at least… but I might and I won’t know unless we try.” Jimin looked at you with shock and you started to feel much, much smaller than Jimin.
“What? Really?”
You nodded.
“Omo! Omo! You won’t regret this one bit!” Jimin was bouncing around the room, excitement clearly evident on his face as he celebrated. 
Next thing you knew, you were being pulled into a tight hug, Jimin gently rubbing your neck and repeatedly saying “thank you”. Those damn butterflies never left and as you looked at him, you started to really enjoy the idea of dating him. 
He was your little squirrel… but he wasn’t that little.
“When do you want our first date to be? Oh! I need time to plan! Can we have it after my performance? I really need to keep practicing for it… even if I’m not confessing to you after it anymore. Is that ok with you?” Jimin pulled away from the hug, holding you at arms length and looking worried once again. His brows were furrowed and his teeth worried away at his plump lips.
Huh… You’d never noticed just how cute his plump lips were.
“Hmmm… no.” Jimin paled once again, “Our first date… will be… right now.” You said with a smile and a laugh as his brows furrowed deeper. 
You reached up and soothed the space between his brows with a soft coo, “You’re super stressed, Jimin-ah. I don’t enjoy seeing you stressed. I planned to take you away from the studio tonight. I have skin care and food back home… and if we want we can also go to your favorite bibimbap restaurant before going back to the apartment. How does that sound?” 
Jimin looked conflicted, his cute beady eyes searching your face and moving around the room as he thought. Unless he spoke, you wouldn’t know what he was thinking over and you had half a mind to ask him to speak but instead, you simply waited for Jimin to come to a decision.
“I mean… I was hoping to have some really extravagant first date,” He started but he had already moved to his bag at the side of the room, “This does sound like a great date though… maybe more of a second date or a third date in my opinion–”
“Let’s count it as our second date then. No need to split hairs, Jimin-ah. I’ll wait for you outside the locker room.”
Without giving Jimin time to say anything else, you left and made your way down the stairs to where the locker rooms were. Jimin ran quickly down the stairs and bolted into the locker room, his soft brown ears pinned to his head from how fast he was going. You laughed before settling onto the floor outside the locker room and playing one of the games on your phone. It would be a flip of the coin to see how long Jimin would take. You were personally betting that he is so excited to go on the date that he rushes and is out in fifteen, but he could also want to look good for the date and in turn take an hour. 
Not that he didn’t always look good. 
Even when you just thought of him as a friend, you knew he looked good. Did you think of him as more than a friend? Possibly, yeah. The idea of going on dates with him and being romantic with him sounds amazing. You were really excited to see how this date will go. Distractedly, you tapped away at your game, your mind in la-la-land as it started to think up a future with Jimin. 
“Ready, Y/n-ah?” Jimin asked when he finally finished in the changing room. 
In the end, he took a whole hour and a half to get ready and you were almost positive that you saw Jisoo sneak into the changing room with a bag from your apartment, his sleek tail almost hit you in the face as he exited the locker room. As you looked up at Jimin, you were once again struck by just how handsome he was. He styled his hair away from his face somehow and he looked unfairly good in his black skinny jeans and an oversized sweater. 
You clambered up onto your feet, your legs numb from sitting in one spot for so long, and nodded at him with a shy smile. Gingerly, as if he was scared of breaking you, he grabbed your hand and the two of you left the dance studio. 
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Dear Diary,
Jimin asked me out! I was so shocked! Like… it isn’t bad at all… It is actually nice. Really nice. I like it a ton… and even though we’ve only gone on one date so far, I am really starting to like the idea of dating Jimin. He is so… so cute and kind and attentive. We got bibimbap and then just did skincare and stuff. 
Something I am really glad about though is that I found out tonight. Apparently, Jimin was hoping to ask me out Friday after his performance… which would have been so embarrassing… (Imagine the pressure and… PDA is roughhh)… but I overheard him talking to Minju. Gosh. I wonder how Minju thinks of this. Did Jimin text him that we started dating? Is he just waiting until we see each other next? I don’t know what I’d prefer. 
But uhhh… Jimin and I talked about having a “real” first date after his performance. I’m a little apprehensive though… I don’t want him to be exhausted during our first date. I trust Jimin though. He knows himself better than anyone else and if he thinks that he can handle a date after his recital… then so be it. 
AHHH! I am so excited! Wish me luck. I really hope this works out. 
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You adjusted anxiously in the theater seat, your dress feeling all too tight in all the wrong places as you looked over the recital directory. Jisoo and Minju were next to you, glancing at you and smirking every once in a while. Jimin most definitely told them that you’re dating… and it doesn’t help that you showed up to the recital over-dressed in preparation for your date with Jimin afterwards. Which was at some super fancy place… how he roped you into that? You don’t know. You were just glad that he’d agreed to go dutch. There wasn’t any way in the world that you’d let him pay for both of your meals at such an expensive restaurant. 
The recital hall was packed, people murmuring and talking excitedly. All of it stopped though when the lights dimmed and the host (a stout looking woman with some sort of large ears on her head) came on to introduce people. Soon enough the recital started and you became entranced by the many dancers who flounced around on stage. They all seemed so… natural up on the stage. Your breath was completely taken away when Jimin performed though. He was practically flying on stage and the way he moved was so… graceful and fluid. All too soon he was done. He’d taken the show. All throughout the rest of the recital you were transfixed. Jimin’s dance was playing on repeat in your mind, your breath stolen and thoughts completely empty. Soon enough, the show finished up and everyone around you was cheering. Almost half-heartedly, you joined along and followed Minju and Jisoo to where the meet-up was. 
Why were you so anxious about seeing Jimin now? You were about to go on a date with him and yet all you could think about was his dance. In no time, Jimin was bouncing over in a nice suit of his own. 
How were you supposed to function? 
Not only was he the best dancer in… in the world but he was also undoubtedly the most handsome man you’d ever met. The three were talking around you but you were still transfixed. A hand gently touched your back and you jumped. 
“Are you ok, Y/n-ah?" 
It was Jimin. He was looking at you with concerned eyes and a soft smile. Minju and Jisoo were gone. You two were alone. 
"I… Yeah. You were amazing out there. I am just… speechless.”
Jimin laughed quietly, a smug smile on his face as he wrapped his arm around your waist.
“You’re ready for our date?" 
You nodded excitedly, walking out of the theater with Jimin in tow. This was going to be an amazing night. 
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Dear Diary,
Tonight was AMAZING. I know I was apprehensive before about dating Jimin but OMG IT WAS SOOOO GOOD. He was such a gentleman and when we held hands I felt butterflies erupt and it just.. It felt so nice. Tonight literally couldn’t have go-
Dear Y/n’s Diary,
I promise to take good care of her. We had a great night and I plan on making her my girlfriend soon. Now if you excuse us, I need cuddles from her.
Jimin.
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pixie-cocaine · 4 years ago
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ATEEZ Reaction To: their S.O. wearing baggy clothes
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ateez reacting to their gf wearing a short plaid skirt with a super oversized sweatshirt that goes down to almost their skirt length 
Theme: different dates :D
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Hongjoong ♡:
• You were both were going out to go to a famous planetarium
• You always did like looking at the stars and how they hung in the sky, sparkling like the moon’s reflection in any body of water
• So this was a cool little experience that both you and Joong could have together
• You wanted to dress casual, so settling with a roomy beige sweater, decorations of black diamonds sewn in, along with a red plaid skirt was what you went with
• By roomy, you meant damn-near covering the skirt, which gave the look a lax, puffed out appearance
• That shit was B I G
• His reaction?
• The softest eyes ever omfg I’m sobbing-
• No dramatic gasps, no squealing (I’m looking at you. Mingi)
• Just being able to see his indifferent expression melt away into a pure puppy face as you emerged from the hallway into the living room
• All you were wearing was a skirt and sweater but to him, every single outfit brought out more of your beauty
• You never failed to amaze him
• Allowing a small smile, he’d use his hand to gesture toward you
• “You look lovely”
Calm outings with Joong are always the most wholesome smfh I’m so mushy because of this goldfish-looking bit-
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Seonghwa ♡:
• A sweet picnic-esque date in a secluded flower meadow with Hwa?
• You’d be mad to say no
• It was a nice warm-air temperature outside, so you settled for a yellow loose knit sweater and a matching yellow plaid skirt to go with it
• The sweater swallowed up most of the skirt, resulting in only a small bit of the skirt being visible, but you thought nothing of it
• Seonghwa certainly did
• He’d been eyeing you all the way to the picnic spot, face shadowing over with pleasant surprise when you came to stand in front of him, and sparkling eyes flicking over to your direction every couple minutes
• god can you imagine feeling his gaze on you?
• looking over at him, and watching as he would catch your eyes, only to quickly focus back on the road in front of him
• I’m gonna turn your kneecaps to dust if you don’t fucking speak up, Hwa
• Eating cutely-packaged lunches on top of the pastel pink blanket turned into Seonghwa’s head lying on your lap as you plucked the various flowers and placed them in the silky tresses of his inky black hair
• Sweet peas, Marigolds, and Hydrangeas flecked Hwa’s locks, complimenting gorgeously against the slight tan of his skin, as well as the patches of sunlight gleaming onto his face through the leaves of the tree you sat against
• He was truly stunning, especially when he opened his previously closed eyes to stare up at you, a smile slowly tugging at the corners of his lips
• You brush a thumb across Seonghwa’s cheek, “Why were you looking at me earlier?”
• “Because of your outfit,” The hand already resting hand against your thigh began to play with your skirt 
• “What about my outfit?”
• “It makes you look adorable”
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Yunho ♡:
• You already know fairs and amusement parks with Yunho are gonna happen
• Like are you kidding me?
• Baby LOVES doing wild things with you
• It was in the afternoon, pretty cool weather, and you kinda just threw on what you saw
• What you saw, being a very big black cotton sweater and blue plaid skirt
• Nothing too much, nothing too less
• Bruh, he really couldn’t stop calling you cute
• Even as soon as you came out of the room, he was like
• “aWAWAWWWWW LoOk AT yoU”
• Loud as hell, as usual
• Walking around and playing all the games, as well as riding the rollercoasters and such, Yunho couldn’t stop staring at you every now and then
• You were beaming; neon lights and vibrant colors glowing against your face as you both roamed around
• Adorable UwU
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Yeosang ♡:
• This man is a freak
• He’s literally so weird lmao
• But that’s what you find so damn goofy about him
• Anyways, bowling! :)
• “How cute,” he smiled from his spot on the couch, cooing upon seeing your outfit of an oversized wine red sweater and black plaid skirt, barely visible upon the sagging top
• You giggled, giving him a small spin before you guys were off
• He really did like the look, and he wasn’t afraid to tell you either
• A couple hours after getting your ass handed to you in the rounds of bowling, you and Yeosang took a seat with a couple of fries and rootbeer floats
• You could feel his eyes on you, so you looked up from your food
• “Yes?”
• He grinned and pointed to your exposed legs
• “I just never noticed how pretty your thighs are”
I still can’t believe he stirred eggs for +2 hours. A literal crackhead.
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San ♡:
• Karaoke night, y’all
• Hitting high notes? Girl- a breeze
• Just scream into the mic and turn people deaf, they won’t be able to tell the difference
• Anyways
• Your choice of outfit?
• A pink fleece sweater and black plaid skirt
• You were stunning omg
• San would be melted, bro
• “Oh!”
• Literally couldn’t say anything else besides that you were fluffy-looking. Jus wanted to cuddle you right there and then, yanno?
• Turning up to the karaoke bar would be wild. You’d stand on that mini stage and be doing little dances here and there
• San wouldn’t be able look away from how small you looked in that sweater
• Like a liddol lamb
• A proud hubby
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Mingi ♡:
• When I said he squeals, he SQUEALS
• He’s loves soft things, and so when you come out looking like a purple marshmallow in the puffy oversized sweater and slate grey plaid skirt, it automatically makes him let out weird noises of adoration
• Tackles you in a hug
• Babbles on about how huggable you are and random things in general while pretty much crushing you
• After he’s done squeezing the life out of you, he’ll be all bouncy 
• Roller skating tiiiiiiime
• Y’all gonna get CRAZY crazy
• Cuz I already know this man right here is gonna be falling on his ass a lot
• But he’ll make sure to stay by you, always giving you a push and hyping you up
• “You look like a little fairy. Pose!”
• After your ankles are bouta pop off and you guys sit down, he’ll be looking at your outfit again
• “You should wear stuff like that more often. You look really cute”
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Wooyoung ♡:
• Bumper cars, bitch
• Cuz every other idea I had involves not being able to wear a skirt unless you wanna flash everyone casually walking by
• I’m not judging if that’s what you want tho
• After rummaging through your closet for a bit, you settle for a plain white knitted sweater and black plaid skirt
• Woo would find you absolutely darling, bro
• “Aww, cute, cute”
• But wouldn’t be mulling over it too much
• Because you always look good, and this is only one of the many cute outfits he’s seen you in
• Still, he’d give you some up-and-down’s a couple times throughout the night, probs compliment you a couple times, too
• Other than that, the date would be very fun 
• [insert Woo’s devil laugh]
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Jongho ♡:
• Big big babie
• A simple ice cweam and city roam date with Jongie 
• god it’d be so soft
• Also, he’d be in love with how your sweater was so big that i gave you sweaterpaws, as well as the drape of it over your form
• He’d just wanna put you in his pocket and take you everywhere with him
• HAND HOLDING OMFG LEAVE ME TO CRY ALONE
• “You look really nice”
In a nutshell, Jongho deserves the world
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idontlooklikeiwanttolive · 4 years ago
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How MHA boys react to reader singing the intro of Amour Plastique by Videoclub fluently
Tamaki Amajiki
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You walked inside a public library, looking for an empty space to sit on. You found yourself in the horror section where almost nobody went. Well, you really didn't care as long as you were alone.
Sitting down on the floor, your back against the wall, you pulled out your phone and put your earphones on before plugging it in. You played your favorite song which was "Amour Plastique" a french song. You weren't french or anything close to it but you knew how to pronounce the lyrics.
You played the song and you closed your eyes, singing along to the lyrics.
"Dans mon esprit tout divague
Je me perds dans tes yeux
Je me noie dans la vague de ton regard amoureux
Je ne veux que ton âme divaguant sur ma peau
Une fleur, une femme dans ton cœur Roméo
Je ne suis que ton nom, le souffle lancinant
De nos corps dans le sombre animés lentement"
You sang those lines repeatedly, you stopped once you felt someone gazing at you. You opened your eyes and the first thing you saw were indigo coloured eyes from behind the books on the shelves staring at yours. "U-uh.." you said standing up and pulling your earphones out. The eyes widened and the books fell from the shelves revealing your classmate, Tamaki Amajiki. He had bumped his head on the shelf, causing the books to fall out.
"Amajiki-kun, were you just watching me..?" you asked approaching him "N-n-no! I-i was just p-passing b-by and uh... y-yeah i was w-watching a-and listening t-to you sing.." you just stared at him "i-i hope y-you don't find me more w-weird.." he mumbled which you heard "I don't, i'm just a little shocked." you replied "Well since we're already here, i guess i'll just confess" you smirked "W-what do you m-mean b-by that..?" he asked "I'm practicing so that i could sing that song for you." you admitted
"W-what..? Y-your singing was so f-fluent.. T-that was all for m-me?" he questioned "Yeah. I've been working on it for weeks, i'm not french so that's why." you replied smiling at him "So? How was it? My singing."
"I-it was amazing. I almost t-thought you were actually f-french.." he said facing you instead of the shelf
"Thanks Amajiki."
Izuku Midoriya
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You sat down on the couch of your dorm room waiting for Izuku so the two of you could finally spend some time together.
After some time he finally arrived, he had a plastic bag filled with both your favorite drinks and snacks, he saw the new controller you bought just for him. But before the two of you could start playing [favorite game] you pulled out your phone "Hey Izuku, want me to sing a little before we start?" you asked "Sure! What song will you sing?" Izuku asked, you just smiled at him and the instrumental of Amour Plastique started playing on your phone. You closed your eyes and started singing.
"Dans mon esprit tout divague
Je me perds dans tes yeux
Je me noie dans la vague de ton regard amoureux
Je ne veux que ton âme divaguant sur ma peau
Une fleur, une femme dans ton cœur Roméo
Je ne suis que ton nom, le souffle lancinant
De nos corps dans le sombre animés lentement"
You finished singing. You opened your eyes and saw Izuku staring at you, blushing a little. He shaked his head "Wow! That was awesome! What language was that?" He asked smiling "It was french, i'm not fluent with french but i nailed at pronouncing the lyrics!" you exclaimed "Haha, you sure did! You should sing to me more often!" Izuku beamed. You stared at him because you were only joking about nailing the pronounciation part, you grinned "I will, Izuku."
Shoto Todoroki
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Shoto was waiting right outside of your dorm room, so that his date with you could finally start. You opened the door and met him there. "Ready to go?" he asked offering you his hand "Yeah." you took his hand and gave it a squeeze walking towards the hallway.
You went into a café, an amusement park, the mall, an arcade.
Once you walk into the arcade you couldn't help but notice the tiny pods with karaokes inside of it (A/n: idk what those are called sorry) Shoto noticed how you stared at the pods, so he grabbed your hand and led you inside.
You looked at the list of possible songs you could sing for him. There's one song that caught your eye. "Amour Plastique" by Videoclub. Before you typed the code in the karaoke, you asked Shoto "Is it alright if i go first?" He nodded. "Yeah sure."
You typed the code in and the instrumental started playing, you took a deep breath and started singing.
"Dans mon esprit tout divague
Je me perds dans tes yeux
Je me noie dans la vague de ton regard amoureux
Je ne veux que ton âme divaguant sur ma peau
Une fleur, une femme dans ton cœur Roméo
Je ne suis que ton nom, le souffle lancinant
De nos corps dans le sombre animés lentement"
You stopped singing and noticed Shoto's eyes were sparkling "Sorry those were the only part i could sing, i don't even know if i pronounced the words properly ehehe.." you said putting the mic down "No no no, it was beautiful actually, your pronounciations were perfect." he protested "Really?" you confirmed
He nodded and sat beside you, putting a kiss on your cheek "I'm having fun with our date." Shoto said, slightly blushing
You smiled at him "Me too."
Katsuki Bakugo
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Finally a break from training, you immediately head over to the rooftop, sitting on the railing. You were trying to correctly pronounce the lyrics of a certain french song. Not because you wanted to sing for anyone, for yourself rather.
You pulled your phone out and put your headphones on. You played the song Amour Plastique so you could start singing along
Bakugo was just passing by, then he saw you. He thought you were going to jump off the school building so he ran over to you shouting "HEY! DON'T-" he was cut off by you singing
"Dans mon esprit tout divague
Je me perds dans tes yeux
Je me noie dans la vague de ton regard amoureux
Je ne veux que ton âme divaguant sur ma peau
Une fleur, une femme dans ton cœur Roméo
Je ne suis que ton nom, le souffle lancinant
De nos corps dans le sombre animés lentement"
You took your headphones off and coiled them around your neck. You turned around saw Bakugo looking down. "B-bakugo?" you asked "Don't scare me like that you dumbass, i thought you were going to jump off." he said, still looking down
You got off the railing and hugged him, surprisingly he hugged back. Even though the two of you barely talked in class. He rested his head on your shoulder. "Bakugo, what got you like this hmm?" He didn't answer. He just hugged you tighter as you stroked his hair to calm him down
The two of you stayed like that for a while until you saw Kirishima and Kaminari staring at you both
"OHOHO WHAT'S THIS? BAKUGO IS GOING SOFT" Kaminari teased
"WHAT'D YOU SAY YOU PIKACHU FUCK!?" Bakugo let go of you and faced Kaminari
Welp, atleast he's back to normal. You and Kirishima just laughed at Bakugo and Kaminari fighting.
A/n: i live for soft bakugo.
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skullsandwineglasses · 4 years ago
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Hi! There is a show: ZYW and some other guy travel for 3 days. From what I've seen, it's his morning routine to warm up his vocal cords Also ZYW is hugging trees and basically most of the time they eat lol Also they talk a lot, so I guess it should be cool to understand. When you have two minutes, could you tell us what this show is about in general? The name on youtube: 《仅三天可见》[第六期] 姜思达 周一围|一个冠军给我带来了无妄之灾 Perhaps they're visiting some place important to ZYW? Thank you so much for all your help!)
Yeah, so in brief, the show is about the host, Jiang Sida (JSD), who spends 3 days with a celebrity in each episode to try to understand them better. 
ZYW in particular is a celebrity who really interested Jiang Sida because of how quickly ZYW gained popularity after Birth of an Actor, and also because of all of the negative rumours swirling around his personal life. ZYW is often insulted by the media for being 油腻, which means greasy. Greasy is an insult used to describe older, middle-aged men who are sleazy, self-absorbed, and on the heavier or chubbier side, although sometimes this insult can be leveled at younger, in-shape male celebrities too who come off as kind of douchey. 
It’s sad because even though ZYW doesn’t often express it, you can tell that the rumours do get to him. For instance, during the first meal in the show, he wanted to use a toothpick, but he was wary about using it in front of the cameras so he pocketed it away. The host noticed this and sympathized and playfully said, “Ah, too protective of your image. Stop the camera. Let’s go upstairs to the third floor, I understand you.”
The vocal cord warm up (that occurred during the hike before that meal) happened because ZYW asked JSD “you studied production right, not broadcast? If you studied broadcast, this would be a good place to practice your sound”, to which JSD replied, “show me” (or, “give one”). ZYW proceeded to demonstrate a dantian qi exercise. 
In the voiceover during the hike, JSD  said that even though they were friendly, things were still a little awkward and distant between them since they hadn’t gotten to know each other yet. 
On the third floor rooftop, JSD opened up to ZYW about a film he wanted to write about. JSD shared his ideas to ZYW, saying that the film would tell the story of his father who spends a year away at sea fishing. ZYW then shares his feedback, saying that it’s a really meaningful story because it’s about the loneliness of a man out at sea. Basically, this conversation is what finally allowed JSD to connect to ZYW because they were finally talking about deep and thoughtful topics like the art of storytelling and life lessons. ZYW said to JSD, you need to think about what kind of perspective you want to show. Is the story about the son’s feelings about his father’s return, or is the story the father’s story at sea, and the son is just an observer meant as a stand-in for the audience? ZYW then said that he was pleasantly surprised to learn about this side of JSD because he now knows that JSD is able to understand him. He also encourages JSD to keep pursuing his dream of wanting to make this movie. It doesn’t matter whether the end result is good or not, but it’s a joy to be able wake up everyday and pursue your goal. JSD says that he spends everyday thinking about this story he’s creating, because he wants to get to know the story better since it’s still so unfamiliar and foreign to him. 
During the tea segment, JSD asked ZYW if he was bothered by the things the media says about him and he kind of just shrugs it off and says that it grounds him. They talk about how he used to love karaoke (KTV) when he was younger, JSD asked him what his wife likes about him, and ZYW said that you have to ask his wife why. ZYW mentioned how people would call him PUA, or “pick up artist”, and then JSD if those things bothered him. ZYW said that he learned to ignore those things, but they do bother his wife. The tea segment ends with them noting that it looks like it’s about to rain soon, and ZYW says, when it rains, you can choose to stand in the rain, or avoid it and go indoors. 
During the evening meal, ZYW is asked again about how he feels about what people say about him and why he doesn’t address the rumours. ZYW says that it’s pointless because his voice alone isn’t going to make all the rumours stop. JSD says that it could be cathartic to be able to yell back at people, and ZYW laughs and says it’ll only be for a moment’s satisfaction but it won’t change anything. When asked if he is a person who likes to win, ZYW said that he likes to finish things, but does that make him someone who likes to win? He doesn’t compare himself to others, but he just wants to do what’s expected of him. JSD then tells ZYW that the director of the show asked him if he was worried that netizens would accuse him of trying to use this show to try to rescue ZYW’s image (洗白, which means to “wash white”, or clear someone’s name). JSD tells ZYW that his goal is to present celebrities in an honest and genuine manner, and if it just so happens that the celebrity is actually a better person than what netizens thought, then that’s the truth and he’s not fabricating anything. 
The following evening, they have a conversation about happiness. ZYW says that he doesn’t compare between the years in his life or classify certain years or decades as being bad years or good years. He doesn’t wish to forget the bad years. He says, why would you need to forget the bad years?
By the river, ZYW asks JSD if he ever thought about what kind of animal he wanted to be. JSD says that it doesn’t really matter what animal, but if you asked him if he would rather become someone else, he’d say no. ZYW says that not wanting to be another person is a pretty good answer. 
During the final sit-down interview, JSD starts off the conversation by saying that ZYW looks relaxed most of the time, but he’s actually 绷 (”beng”) on the inside, meaning stretched-tight. ZYW asks how so. JSD says that ZYW is constantly noticing things around him, and avoiding things and people and cameras. ZYW says that it’s part of his job to notice more details more than the average person. In terms of avoiding cameras, he’s constantly being scrutinized, there are always cameras around him. Even during this interview, they have to put on a show of being relaxed in casual conversation, even though there’s a whole sea of cameras and people with mics and earpieces around them. So it’s only natural to want to try to find a balance between reel and real life by being a little aversive towards cameras and people’s scrutiny.  
JSD then says that ZYW seems like he has a lot of thoughts that he keeps to himself. JSD says ZYW is 拧巴 (”ning ba”) , which kind of means uncomfortable, awkward, restless, wanting to do something but not doing it, like for example, being uncomfortable with rumours but not addressing them. ZYW says that what’s the point of explaining? How is it meaningful? Will explaining something change you as a person? You are still you whether you choose to explain something you not. Likewise, you are still you despite the rumours. The rumours (no matter how bad they are) don’t change who you are. Only you know who you are.
This really reminds me of what Xiao Qi said in episode 64 of TRP: “If there’s anything that needs to be explained, then no matter how much you try to explain it, it’s never going to be explained away. Let them spread the rumours.”
ZYW explains that there is no way that a single word or statement from him can possibly fend off the tens of thousands of words from netizens, so there is no point. In addition, rumours are only momentary and they ebb and flow. The netizens are always going to look for a new rumour or scandal to talk about anyway, so the uproar about him is only temporary. 
ZYW also says that there will always be rumours. There’s no truth. He will never expect that a single interview can change people’s minds. First of all, the viewers can’t experience the conversation in the same way the he and JSD are currently experiencing the conversation now in this moment. The audience will be watching it through a screen. The audience will only seeing an edited recording of the conversation, but they will never be able to know or understand the “true” nature of the conversation that he and JSD are having right now because the audience isn’t here with them. This is actually some really deep and philosophical insight from ZYW lol. What is real? What is the truth? 
JSD asks ZYW is this means that he’s disappointed and lost faith with the audience. ZYW says no, this is just reality. We can only hope to influence people who are able to influence, like people in our immediate circle, but when it comes to noise or mass opinions, you don’t have control over that. 
JSD then asks about fatherhood. JSD says that most men would talk about how fatherhood has changed them. ZYW says that most of his friends talk about this, but he doesn’t. But if he doesn’t talk about it, does he think about it? ZYW pauses to reflect. In another interview, ZYW noted that all kids have their own life “scripts” that they act out and deal with (this was in response to how he doesn’t seem to be home often to be with his kid). In that interview, he said that that was the way in which he had to grow up, figuring out his own script (and essentially not relying on anyone), so he doesn’t expect it to be any different for his own child. This once again result in the media backlash against him and questioning his role as a father. Which is why when faced with this question from JSD now, ZYW has to pause to think carefully about how to answer. 
JSD asks why can’t ZYW give a straightforward answer for the audience. The audience doesn’t want to hear an answer buried in layers of meaning, but they just want a simple answer to things. ZYW says that sometimes he isn’t completely sure of what the answer to something is, and so he can’t give a straight answer. It would be easy to give the answer that the audience wants, but he needs to be able to give answer that is genuine and resonates with him. 
JSD asks how ZYW would respond if the audience calls him self-absorbed. ZYW turns the question back to JSD and asks him to provide a response for him because he doesn’t know how to. ZYW said that he would just not respond and let it pass. On top of that, ZYW says that he doesn’t think of himself as being self-absorbed at all. He’s actually dissatisfied with himself in a lot of ways, and all he wants is for the audience to not pay attention to him so that he can be peacefully left alone. 
JSD asks if ZYW is he is more afraid of being criticized or being forgotten. ZYW says that being forgotten would mean that there is a problem with his acting skills. In terms of being criticized, it would depend on the criticism. He would mind criticism towards his acting because he would want to improve any problems in craft. However, if it’s personal criticism, then he doesn’t care. 
ZYW says that someone he admires once said, it’s a complicated world out there, so find a comfortable position, change positions, and learn to live with it.
JSD’s second last question to ZYW is whether he’d rather choose a comfortable position/posture or a beautiful position/posture. ZYW said that he would choose a comfortable position. JSD asks if ZYW thinks his current “posture” looks good (i.e., if his current standing and image is favourable). ZYW asks that you’ll have to ask someone else in order to know. 
The last question asked whether ZYW can predict how this interview will be received by audience. ZYW says that they touched upon many deep topics, but it’s hard to say what kind of effect it will have on the audience, or how the audience would choose to interpret it. He’ll welcome thoughtful discussion, but it would regretful if the audience took away very superficial things from the discussion. 
JSD asks if ZYW is happy with the discussion today. ZYW says that if it weren’t for the cameras, they could have gone deeper into some topics, but because there are cameras, he has to have impose boundaries on the things he’s willing to reveal. But he says that he would be interested in having more private conversations with JSD.  
JSD ends the episode saying that ZYW is an old soul who knows himself, knows what he wants, and already has his own “world” (meaning he already has what he needs). 
lol I was at first only going to summarize the first few minutes of the episode, but I ended up watching the whole thing because I was so memorized by ZYW’s insights, so here you go, a scene by scene summary of the episode. 
For those curious, you can watch it here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzt31O7imS4
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be-ready-when-i-say-go · 4 years ago
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"should i ask for song requests?" MA'AM- anyways Show Me Love by Mali Hood with Cal pls
LMAO, look, it’s just a thought. Also I love Mali, but Robin S’s version--a BOP. So I’m going to base it off that version. 
It’s long, whoops. 
CW: Mentions of gaining weight. So if you’re sensitive, feel free to skip this! 
___________
It wasn’t in Calum’s plan to be out this late. He had planned to finish up the first season of Unsolved Mysteries on Netflix. He had planned to order himself a pizza, extra large so that he could have a few slices for lunch tomorrow too and possibly a White Claw, or two, or more. Who knows? He surely wasn’t going to count those calories. 
However, when Calum and Ashton found themselves deep into the evening running over lyrics along with some other friends and somebody mentioning hitting up a bar nearby to get some food, Calum figured he could tag along. He’d avoid drinking until he got home but greasy bar food could be an easy substitute for pizza. 
It’s as Calum dips the end of fries into the ranch given on the side a tap sounds of the speakers, cutting through the music that’s been playing in the background. “Hope everyone’s doing great tonight,” a voice states. 
Calum looks over his shoulder to see a man up on a stage. “Karaoke’s opening up in fifteen minutes. Find me at the bar to sign up or feel free just to jump in.”
“Oh, we gotta stay for this,” Ashton laughs. The rest of the group readily agrees and Calum shrugs, polishing off the last half the fries before going in for another bite of his sandwich. 
It’s not until the music cuts out again that Calum realizes the fifteen minutes as flown by. The first two people are a little wobbly, and giggling into the mic as they sing their choice in song. One goes for Journey which gets most of the room to sing along too. It hits a lull after about the fourth person. The DJ calls for people who didn’t sign up to just jump in. 
There’s a thick silence and across the room, Calum catches a shriek. “We have one!”
He turns to the shrill and sees a pocket of girls at a booth. Three of them are tugging at a fourth that remains seated, shaking her head. However, her unwillingness is no match to her friends and they end up dragging her to the stage. Calum watches as she speaks for a moment to the DJ. 
Her friends cheer front and center. Their claps somehow echo throughout the entire building. Under the light, Calum can see more of her features, high cheekbones, brown skin dazzling and peaking out from the fishnets covering her long legs. She chuckles nervously into the mic just as the music cuts in. The low sound, the husky voice makes Calum gasps. 
He hadn’t seen her ages since they ended their fling. And she looked different--her cheeks were fuller. The weight gain made her look healthier than ever. She looked fucking good in the green plaid mini shirt and white high neck sleeves top. Her thighs shake just a little as she taps the beat out with her heel and soon, she belts out the opening note to Show Me Love vocalizing before the lyrics are pushed out from her chest. 
What hadn’t changed as how at ease she seemed to be on the stage. Though she always protested it. The second someone put a mic in her hand and a spotlight on her, she turned into a whole new person. “I really need a lover, a lover that wants to be there,” she belts out and smiles before stepping down the stairs. 
Through the crowd, she dances, singing along to the electronic beat holding steady. “You got to show me love,” her voice dips to match the note change and she points out to someone in the crowd, singing to them for a moment before twirling her way down the room. The crowd eats up, cheering along as she sings and taking moments to dance along with her. 
“Words are so easy to say a lie, you got to show me love. I’m tired of getting caught up in the one night affairs,” she sings and gaze lands on Calum. Her eyes go wide. They hadn’t really run in the same circles for a while after Calum ended things. 
And admittedly, he ended them for legitimate reasons. She was leaving for school abroad and said they could try to just be friends. But that wasn’t something he was looking for and rather than string her along knowing he’d ultimately be breaking her heart, he was honest. And she understood that. She thanked him for it. 
It was harder than he thought it would be--watching her leave. He wanted to text her, reach out and see how things were going, if she had settled in nicely. And the urges lasted longer than Calum had never admitted to anyone, but they did eventually dissipate; it took him unfollowing her social media. 
And come to think of it, he still noticed when she liked something of his--as few and far between as his postings were and he wasn’t even that active on his private account but whenever he was, she always wound up liking it. Every notification made his heart flutter just a little. 
She moves on, still not missing a beat to the song, though she does brush a hand over Calum’s shoulder as she passes, sending a wink his way before she carries herself to the bar. Her heeled boots wind up clicking up and down the length of the bar counter. She dances with a few more people, women and men, smiling as she twirls about. 
Returning back to the stage, the last note falling off from the speaker, she thanks the crowd and DJ and quickly steps back down the steps. The crowd gives her a standing ovation and she waves before returning back to her booth. Calum’s thankful he’s on the end and excuses himself for a second. No one seems bothered by his exit--Ashton’s the only one that could possibly recognize her and it’s not shock he doesn’t.
Calum walks over to the table and even though she’s smushed into the corner, on the side of the group, he knows he can’t leave this bar tonight with talking to her. He smiles as he approaches the table. “Evening, ladies.” Everyone is at lost for words but at least smile and nod at his approach. “I-I just wanted to say that that was a great performance. You’re extremely talented.”
“Thanks,” she returns, leaning out. “Would you believe it if I said I don’t do that sort of thing often.”
“Could’ve fooled me,” he laughs softy. He goes to ask her to talk, or if she needs a refill but the air’s tense, a little awkward. “But honestly, you were amazing.” He nods again at her and throws up a quick wave before continuing on like he’s headed to the bathrooms. That is not how he wanted that to go. But how does he act like the last they haven’t lost contact for nearly four years. Calum splashes some water onto his face, staring up into the mirror. 
She remembered him, clearly. Maybe it was that defense mechanism, the part of him that was trying to tell him that it was too much time passed. She possibly had moved on from all of that. Yeah, she probably had moved on, Calum thinks to himself. If she had, there would be no use in trying to make a move, he’d get rejected anyway. 
He grabs some paper towel and dries his face and hands before pushing open the door to the bathroom. He doesn’t get more than a four steps from the door before a voice calls out his name, “Calum. Hey, wait.” A hand grabs to his elbow. 
He spins to find her, smiling a bit lopsided and lips still glossy as they always were all those years ago, with also a bit of a darker lip liner around the edges. “Sorry,” she rushes out, dropping her hand from his elbow. “I just-I just wanted to say thanks. For the compliment. And, uh, if you weren’t busy, if you wanted to catch up sometime. Over a drink, coffee, lunch, whatever.”
“I would love that,” he exhales in a rush. 
“Cool. Here’s my number--I had to change it become of my ex, but that’s not what I want to focus on.” She hands out a napkin with numbers scribbled onto it. “Just text me and we can arrange a date and time.”
Calum takes it with a nod, reaching for his phone from inside his pants pocket. “I’ll text you so you have my number too.” He taps her number in before typing a quick message and pressing send. 
“To be honest, I didn’t think you’d recognize me or like want to talk or anything.”
“What-what do you mean by that?”
“I mean, there might just be a pound or two more on me than the last time you saw me. And when I left, we kind of just ended things and I-I don’t know. We hadn’t spoken in a while. I just moved back into town about six months ago. Seeing you just made me feel like I did when I was 19.”
Calum can’t lie and say he never suspected that she had feelings for him. At that time, he wasn’t looking for anything. “Well, first, you still look fucking gorgeous so I wouldn’t worry at all about that. Things are different now. I’m looking for different things now.” She nods, casting a look to the floor. “It’s like the song said,” Calum continues, “I’m tired of giving my love and getting no where.”
“You probably think I’m crazy or something, all these years. But there’s always been something about you, Calum. Something I couldn’t shake.”
“Nah, it can’t be me. Do you know how many times when you first left I almost messaged you? And I know I kinda put a cork in things then. But if you think there’s something about me, allow me to introduce you to yourself.”
She laughs, playfully slapping at his bicep. “Oh god. Quit while you’re behind.”
Calum laughs in return, watching the way she shakes her head. “What are you doing tomorrow, around 1?”
“Um, nothing. Tomorrow’s my day off. Why?”
“Let’s get lunch. Anywhere you want to go.”
“There’s a new sushi place. Just up the block from here.” She rattles off the name and Calum nods. He went there last week to try it out. “There if you’re okay with it?”
“More than okay,” Calum agrees. “But uh, I don’t want to take you away from your friends too long. So I’ll see you there tomorrow, at 1.”
“Okay, yeah, yeah. Tomorrow at one.” She steps into him, almost as she’s going to bypass him but stops just before doing so fully. Her hand comes up to his cheek and she presses a kiss before finally stepping away. Calum exhales, lungs nearly collapsing in his chest. He forgot that about her--how she was open and actionable, always willing to make the first step even if blew up in her face. 
He watches her, finally composed enough to turn around as she slips back into the booth with her friends. He hears her laughter above the sounds of Led Zeppelin, another person singing for the crowd. 
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joe-mazzello-archive · 4 years ago
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Party For One
A Joe Mazzello x Fem!Reader fic
Word Count: 4k whoopsssss
Rating: PG
Warnings: language, drinking, angst for most of it, a teeny bit of fluff, joe is a bit of a shithead in this one, sorry gang
A/N: hey remember how i was supposed to be finishing doj part two and instead i word-vomited this out in five hours at work yesterday? anyway, enjoy.
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He hasn’t changed a bit, you thought to yourself as you watched him, always the life of the party. He’d been that way all through high school, the summers you saw him between college semesters, and the few gatherings he made appearances at when he was home.
You’d always been right beside him, too. Pre-gaming at a friend’s house, sharing the mic during karaoke, rubbing his back as he leaned over the toilet, crashing on the couch or the floor or wherever you could find a spot.
But now you were out of your element. You were in his other world. You were surrounded by vaguely familiar faces, people you knew you had probably seen in a movie or a tv show but you couldn’t place them exactly. And there he was, across the room, animatedly entertaining a small group with some anecdote you’d probably heard before.
He was obviously the reason you were here. He had been begging you to come out to Los Angeles for years now. Years of you’d love it out here and you and I both know you’d take the industry by storm and I miss my best friend. Eventually, you relented. Mostly because your career in real estate was exhaustingly boring and you needed a change. Acting had always been something you enjoyed but never looked at as a career opportunity until now. But you had to admit, you missed your best friend too.
So you packed up everything, drove across the country, and settled into Joe’s guest room. You had a meeting with his agency on Monday, but of course Joe, always the party host, insisted that you needed a welcoming get-together upon arrival. Which soon turned into a complete blow-out. In fact, you were pretty sure most of the guests in attendance had no idea what the party’s true origin was, let alone who you were.
So there you were, only hours since you had arrived, left to nurse your beer off in the corner. Part of you wished you and Joe could have had a quiet night in, catching up over pizza and a comedy special. But you knew deep down that would have just exacerbated the situation you found yourself in. Seeing Joe in the flesh once again had caused some...feelings to resurface. Feelings that you had worked for years to suppress, and had been hoping were completely gone by now.
All it took was him opening his front door and pulling you into a tight hug for all of those feelings to come rushing right back.
Sometimes he did things that made you feel like maybe, just maybe, he felt the same. Like the way he used to wrap a protective arm around you when the two of you walked around Brooklyn at night. The way he could sense when you were having a rough day just through your texts, and suddenly a delivery of Insomnia Cookies would arrive at your apartment door. The way every hello and goodbye hug lasted just a moment longer than was probably appropriate for two friends. But surely you were reading into it.
You knew he wasn’t avoiding you. No, he couldn’t be. Sure, the second other guests had started to arrive, his focus turned from you to them. And sure, he hadn’t given you the time of day since. But he wasn’t avoiding you, no. He was just a popular guy, he always had been.
You pushed those negative thoughts away, not willing to accept them.
“Well, aren’t you a sight for sore eyes?” sounded a familiar voice with a British lilt from behind you. You turned and were met with ocean blue eyes and chiseled cheekbones.
“Gwil,” you breathed out, almost in relief. Someone you knew. The tall man pulled you in for a bear hug, immediately putting you at ease. You appreciated the gesture considering you and Gwil weren’t even that close, only meeting each other a few times back when the Borhap cast was briefly in New York.
“Did that asshole leave you here alone at a party full of people you don’t know?” Gwil asked as he pulled away. You chuckled at his frankness.
“You know how he is,” you mused, offering a smile and a shrug. “He’s gotta entertain everybody.”
“Now did I hear correctly that you’re moving out here?” Gwil questioned, casually leaning a shoulder against the wall next to you.
“Got here a few hours ago, in fact,” you explained. “I’ll be occupying the guest room until I find my own place.” Gwil chuckled at that.
“You quite literally just got here and he’s off chatting with people he sees all the time?” Gwil clarified, earning an exasperated nod from you. “I’m going to go ahead and apologize on behalf of that bastard.” You let out a genuine laugh at that, clearly pleasing Gwil if his smile was any indication. “So how was the trip out here?”
And that’s how you found yourself tucked into the hallway of Joe’s apartment, just exchanging stories with Gwil. You welcomed the change in subject, not wanting to harp on the whole Joe situation. You told him about the weird truck stop in Ohio, the delicious pizza you devoured in Chicago, the loud hotel neighbors you encountered in Colorado, and your brief stint in Las Vegas. Gwil offered his own road trip tales before the conversation shifted, and eventually he was regaling stories about various sets he’d worked on, actors he’d worked with, and general knowledge of the business. He even offered some much needed advice, melting away some of your initial anxieties about your career change. All feelings of loneliness and inklings of frustration at Joe were long gone, and you mentally thanked Joe for inviting at least one person you knew.
“Can I ask you something?” Gwil inquired after a little while, the two of you finding yourselves settled out in chairs on Joe’s balcony, enjoying the night air of LA.
“Fire away.”
“Did you and Joe ever date or anything?”
You burst out laughing at the question, shaking your head.
“No, no, definitely not,” you replied before taking a sip of your beer. You chanced a look at Gwil, finding him eyeing you warily.
“That’s surprising,” he admitted before pursing his lips and gently caressing his own beard, a gesture you noticed he did often.
“Why is that surprising?” you asked, furrowing your eyebrows.
“Just the way he talks about you…” Gwil trailed off, his gaze focusing on the city lights before him. Your heart slammed against your chest at his words. You tried to keep your face neutral, not wanting to let Gwil know just how important what he was saying was to you.
“How...how does he talk about me?” you followed up, attempting to hide the quiver in your voice. Gwil immediately turned back to face you, his eyes glinting mischievously. His lips curved into a soft smile before he said your name gently.
“He...he’s in awe of you,” Gwil confessed. “I swear he talked about you constantly while we were shooting the film. ‘She’d be a great actress if she wanted to be. She’s funny, she’s charming, and she’s got the looks and talent.’ Everything reminded him of a funny story involving you. We practically knew you before we even met you.” Your heart was practically beating out of your chest as Gwil spoke. Sure, Joe had complimented you before. But something about the fact that he had practically bragged about you to people who didn’t even know you made your stomach flutter.
You realized Gwil had stopped talking and you met his gaze, finding his eyes narrowed at you.
“You should tell him,” he finally said after a few moments.
“Tell him what?” you asked, playing dumb. You knew exactly what he was referring to. The man had seen right through you. He smiled, this time seeing right through your act of denial.
“How you feel.”
You ran your hands over your face and let out a groan.
“I literally just moved in, Gwil,” you reasoned. “I don’t want to make him feel awkward about me staying here by telling him about the feelings he very clearly doesn’t reciprocate.” You gestured inside the apartment, where Joe was still talking it up with a few guys you recognized from Undrafted.
Gwil leaned forward, shuffling closer to you and placing a gentle hand on your knee.
“I know his actions tonight make it seem like he couldn’t care less. But I promise you, he’s so happy to have you here. He adores you. More than you even realize.”
You chewed on Gwil’s words, your mind swimming. You believed him; he had no reason to lie to you. But you just wished what Gwil told you lined up with how Joe had been behaving all night.
Eventually the two of you made your way back inside, to find the party had somewhat died down. Joe had shifted into clean up mode while the last small group was starting to make their exit. You instinctively began to straighten up, grabbing beer bottles and paper plates and disposing of them while Joe worked on packing up the leftover food.
You were tying up a full trash bag when Joe brushed past you, not even acknowledging your presence. Your heart sunk, knowing full well you couldn’t use the excuse that Joe was just distracted by others this time.
He was actually ignoring you.
As you opened a new trash bag, you began to wrack your brain for what you could have done already to piss him off. Gwil pulled you from your thoughts, pulling you in for a goodbye hug and a peck on the cheek. When he pulled away, his brow furrowed.
“What’s wrong?” It was amazing how quickly Gwil learned how to read you. Or maybe you were just that bad at masking your emotions.
Your lip trembled as you tried to prevent the tears from falling.
“He’s ignoring me now,” you revealed, earning a sympathetic look from Gwil.
“I’m sorry, love,” he offered quietly. “He’ll figure his shit out eventually.” Another hug, this one a bit longer as he held you against his chest. “I’ll text you next time I’m in town, we’ll all grab lunch.” You nodded with a soft smile before pulling away, turning your attention back to your cleaning.
Another minute passed, the last of the voices faded away, and the door clicked closed, leaving a silent apartment. You let out a sigh as you tossed the last of the plates you had found in the new trash bag. Pulling another beer out of the fridge, you ventured into the living room where you found Joe pushing the coffee table back to its original position. You awkwardly leaned against the arm of the loveseat as you waited for him to say something.
But he didn’t. After finishing rearranging, he passed by you once again, not even sparing you a glance, before heading back into the kitchen. You let out another sigh, following after him.
“Okay, can you please tell me what I did so I can fix it?” you pleaded, completely at a loss. Joe silently pulled a bottle of disinfectant and a rag out from under the sink and breezed past you another time, heading back into the living room. You scoffed at his actions, your sadness being replaced with anger at his immature way of handling himself.
You placed your beer down on the counter and trudged back into the living room, stopping in front of where Joe was wiping down the coffee table and crossing your arms.
“Joe? Are you going to talk to me or continue to ignore me like a fucking child?”
He froze, dropping the bottle and the rag on the table before finally, finally looking at you for the first time in hours.
“You’ve been here for what, five minutes? And you’re already trying to fuck my friends?”
Your jaw dropped.
“Excuse me?”
“You and Gwil seemed awfully cozy,” Joe replied before picking up the rag and continuing to wipe down the coffee table. You grabbed the rag from his hand, earning a sharp glare. “Hey--”
“Are you fucking serious right now?” you roared, your blood boiling. “I hang out with the one fucking person I knew at my supposed ‘welcoming party’ besides you and suddenly I’m trying to fuck them?” You were shell-shocked at the accusation. Joe simply shrugged.
“The two of you were inseparable all night, what was I supposed to think?” he reasoned as he began to walk back into the kitchen. You scoffed again, tossing the rag onto the table in frustration at his nonchalant tone.
“How about the fact that you left me alone at a party full of strangers so I spent time with Gwil since you were busy with your other friends?” you fired back as you stomped into the kitchen. Joe began to wash his hands, still ignoring your piercing stare. “Like, holy shit, Joe. I know your world does not revolve around me, but the least you could do was acknowledge my existence. It’s my first night here, for fuck’s sake.”
That made him pause. He stared at the counter and you could practically hear how hard he was thinking. Suddenly, he met your gaze once again, a brazen look on his face.
“You could have come up to talk to me. I shouldn’t have to babysit you.”
His words were like a sword through your chest. Your jaw practically hit the floor this time.
“Fuck. You.” You turned on your heels and headed for the guest bedroom, angry hot tears escaping down your cheeks. You thanked your past self for barely unpacking anything before the party as you began to scoop up your toiletries and few pieces of clothing laying out on the bed and threw them back into your suitcase. 
You felt ashamed and so so stupid for thinking that this had been a good idea. And the worst feeling of all was the embarrassment at thinking that there was ever a chance of Joe reciprocating any feelings for you. You were nothing but a burden to him. Someone he felt like he would have to “babysit.” You didn’t fit in in his world and you were foolish to think you could.
“What are you doing?”
You jumped at the sound of Joe’s voice behind you; you hadn’t even heard him approach. You swiped at a stray tear and finished zipping up your bag before lugging it onto the floor and pulling up the handle.
“I’m going to check into a hotel,” you explained as you pushed your way past him, luggage dragging behind you. “I don’t feel welcome here.” You began to make your way towards the front door, already feeling overwhelmed by anxiety. You had no idea what your next move was going to be. Stay in LA and try to figure things out? Go back home to two parents who would chant “we told you so” until they were blue in the face?
Joe’s hand caught your wrist, stopping you in your tracks.
“Please don’t do that,” he pleaded, his tone from earlier completely gone and replaced with a much softer and more desperate one. “I’m sorry. Please stay.” You whipped around to face him.
“Which part are you sorry for?” you asked sharply. “The part where you ignored me? Or where you accused me of trying to sleep with your friend? Or maybe it’s the part where you said you shouldn’t have to ‘babysit me’?”
“All of it,” Joe replied. “I’m sorry I lashed out at you. I’m just--” he trailed off as he turned away, almost bashfully. “I can’t help but feel protective of you.”
You furrowed your brows. It didn’t make sense. He felt protective of you but didn’t want to have to ‘babysit you’? He felt protective of you but he got mad at you for talking to Gwil? You stuttered as you tried to put the pieces together, coming up empty.
“I don’t…” your voice petered out. You were completely flabbergasted. “What do you want from me, Joe?”
Joe’s eyes met yours once again, and you could see the conflict written on his face. He was struggling with something. It was almost as if he--
“I want…” he began, before taking a deep breath. “I want you to stay here tonight.”
You let out the breath you didn’t know you were holding. For some reason, a part of you was hopeful he would say something else. The two of you stared at each other for a few more moments, giving him the chance to say more. But it never came. So with a soft nod, you reached for your suitcase again, pulling it behind you as you walked back into the guest room, closing the door behind you.
✧✧✧
You awoke to the smell of bacon wafting into your room. You sat up, throwing your legs over the side of the bed. With a deep breath, you pushed yourself up and headed toward the bathroom.
The sight of your face in the mirror made you cringe. You hadn’t taken off your makeup before crying yourself to sleep the night before, leaving black streaks of mascara across your cheeks. You washed your face before running a comb through your hair. You knew you looked awful, but you didn’t care. Joe had seen you worse, and honestly, his opinion of you was not high on your priority list after his hissy fit last night.
You sauntered into the kitchen with a bit of hesitation, unsure what you’d be walking into. You found Joe, furiously whisking some pancake batter.
“Hey.”
He practically jumped out of his own skin, clumsily dropping the bowl of batter to the counter, luckily with little to no mess.
“Hey,” he replied, running a hand over the back of his neck. “How did you sleep?”
“Alright,” you lied. You had agonized over every detail of the evening until practically three in the morning. But you didn’t want Joe to know that. If he knew, he didn’t let on, instead offering you a small smile.
“I made bacon and I’m about to make pancakes,” he stated, gesturing towards the stove behind him. You nodded simply and took a seat at his kitchen island.
Things were awkward. You didn’t even know where to begin. Part of you wanted to tell him to forget everything and start fresh. It would make things easier. But part of you wanted to stand strong, make sure you held him accountable for how he’d hurt you.
You mulled over everything, idly chewing on a piece of bacon as Joe worked at the stove, mumbling under his breath about the pancakes cooking inconsistently or something. After a few minutes, you were pulled from your thoughts by a plate of pancakes being placed in front of you. You glanced up to see Joe eyeing you, an uncertain look on his face.
“I’m a huge asshole,” he admitted. You opened your mouth to agree with him but he kept going. “You were right. I was avoiding you during the party. It was easier for me to convince myself that you were having a good time than to check up on you myself. I thought I…” he trailed off, losing momentum. He shook his head and began again. “I assured myself that I could handle being around you again. That enough time had passed and I could be your best friend again without a second thought. But then you walked through my front door and it all came rushing back and I panicked.”  You shook your head, trying to keep up with what Joe was trying to tell you.
“I don’t understand--”
“I’m in love with you.”
For the third time in less than twenty-four hours, your jaw dropped.
“I honestly think I’ve been in love with you since high school, but it took me well into my late twenties for me to actually realize it. And I got so caught up on this fantasy of you and I being this acting dream team, showing this fucking town who’s boss, together. And then you were here and you had spent the last week road-tripping across the country yet somehow you looked so fucking beautiful? And I just...couldn’t handle it. I invited practically everyone in my contacts to come over right away because I needed a buffer. I turned my focus to everyone else at the party because it was familiar and certain. With you there was so much uncertainty.”
He paused for a moment and collected his thoughts once again.
“And then I saw you with Gwil. I knew it wasn’t anything. But you were smiling and laughing with him and I just couldn’t help but wish you were spending your time with me. I know that doesn’t make sense. But I just got so caught up in my own head so when you finally confronted me, I panicked again. I threw everything back at you because I was afraid and embarrassed.”
You watched him as he plopped down on the stool next to you with a sigh.
“I wish I could do it all over again. There wouldn’t be a party. Just you and me like it used to be,” he continued. He turned to you, eyes sad with regret. “I am so so so sorry. You were right about everything. Except one thing. My world does revolve around you. The day you told me you were coming out here was the happiest day I’ve had in awhile. I’ve thought about nothing else since. But I completely understand if you want to leave. Hell, I’ll pay for your hotel and help you figure out what you want to do. But I also understand if you want me to just leave you alone.”
To say you were stunned would be an understatement. Your heart was pounding out of your chest at Joe’s confession. You didn’t even know what to say. There was so much that needed to be said, but you were frozen in place.
So you didn’t speak. You just moved.
You gripped the sides of Joe’s head and pulled him in for a bruising kiss. He let out a small noise in surprise, but quickly melted into the kiss, his own hands reaching for you and landing on your hips. You kissed him hard, pouring every emotion you felt into it. Every past pang of your heart when Joe had gone out of his way to do something for you. Every past flutter of your stomach when he had wrapped his arms around you. Every ounce of frustration and hurt that flooded your heart last night. He kissed you back just as eagerly, pulling you off the stool and closer to him, your chests pressing together.
You finally pulled away to gasp for breath, your forehead still pressed against Joe’s.
“I love you too, you asshole,” you breathed out, earning a chuckle from Joe. He pulled back to look at you, gently caressing your cheek with his thumb. “You think I’d uproot my entire life and move across the country if I wasn’t completely in love with you?”
Joe’s face lit up before he dove in for another kiss.
“Does this mean you forgive me?” he asked, running his hands up and down your sides. You pursed your lips as you thought it over.
“I’ll only forgive you if you help me finish unpacking,” you reasoned, a smirk playing at your lips. Joe beamed, pulling you closer to him so you were practically in his lap.
“So you’re gonna stay?”
“Of course I’m staying. Why stay in a hotel when I can stay with my former best friend?” Joe’s brows furrowed.
“Former?”
“I guess I just figured ‘love of my life’ was a better title for you,” you revealed with a smile, running your fingers through his auburn locks. Joe pulled you in for another searing kiss, standing up and pressing you against the island, earning a squeal from you. After a moment, he pulled away, grabbing your hand and practically running down the hall towards the guest room, pancakes long forgotten.
✧✧✧
Permanent Taglist (crossed out names won’t let me tag): @queenlover05​, @mrhoemazzello​, @madamsledge​, @sadhwstudent​, @johndeaconshands​, @puffnstuff08
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idreamtofthereaper · 4 years ago
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Na Jaemin as your Ex (Clarity Oneshot)
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NCT 127 // NCT DREAM // WAYV // Clarity Main Masterlist
A series of oneshots for different groups, for each member, wherein instead of them being your boyfriend, how they will be as your ex.
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Nana
if you knew how his nickname would stuck him
and even become a meme
you would’ve put a copyright claim
get rich
and start your own company 
it all started out when you didn’t know that you were a lightweight
and a specific na jaemin
decided to take you out for some drinks when you finally went legal
the same day he did
because nothing shouts more ‘soulmates’ 
than having the same birthday
“To us finally being 20″
“To the both of you hopefully not being arrested, happy birthday you Two.” You, Jaemin, Johnny and Jaehyun cheered from Mark’s little toast. The bottles clicking at the center of the table followed by a sip.
2 bottles later, you could barely understand what you’re saying. 
The only reason you could even recall what happened is because Johnny filmed everything. Because, what else would you do if your friend is the most drunk you have seen in their life? Film them for future use.
The day after, which was already 1pm, you woke up beside Jaemin. You were hugging him as if he was that bear he won for you at the fair. Arms draped over his chest as you snuggled close to him.
Jaemin’s arm was served to be your pillow, the other one being stretched out while his legs were on top of yours while the other on top of the pillow as if he was stretched over the bed.
Or so you thought.
“Look, if you guys still won’t wake up I’ll start pouring the vase water over you.” Jaehyun’s voice said, your eyes fluttering open to see him crouching down to both of you. 
You groaned as you stirred, realizing you were hugging Jaemin, which in instinct you slapped his chest hard enough to get a reaction from him. This was nothing new, you may lose to Jaemin when it comes to his words, but you were definitely neck to neck when skinship is the competition.
Jaemin stirred as your hand connected to his chest, mumbling incoherent words that both of you doesn’t really cares what it meant. You were already sitting up and rubbing your eyes when Jaehyun stood back up. “I would let you guys sleep but you are occupying the space.” 
“What?” You asked groggily, not really catching his words and understanding him at the same time. Jaehyun handed you a glass of water and some medicine, and a few moments later, everything starts clearing up and you found out what he meant- you and Jaemin were at the living room.
Jaemin managed to sit up himself and you give him the pill and water, which he downed slowly. Jaehyun taking the glass back and disappearing from the kitchen. 
The both of you managed to make your way to the couch, fondling with your phone while your head rested on Jaemin and in there, you saw the groupchat exploded of videos of you. 
There were others but it was mostly you.
In it, you saw yourself doing the karaoke with Johnny, challenging Mark to a dance off, playing a game of ketchup with Haechan and everytime he would slap your hand (which wasn’t even that hard and would often miss as he was also drunk) you would let out an angry sound and slap his face, which was also not doing much as you missed.
You then stumbled on the video of you back at the karaoke, a mic on your head as you pointed at Jaemin, who was now knocked out sleeping on the table. 
“TO MY BIRTHDAY BABE, THIS SONG IS FOR YOU!” You then proceeded to sing the Batman theme song, replacing the ‘Batman’ to Jaemin. Shouting the words “Nanananananananana, Jaemin!” Making it sound like the Perry Platypus theme song instead.
Since then, everyone around you started calling him Nana
You thought Jaemin would be bothered by it
but instead, he find it really cute and endearing
if anything, he was bothered how other people would call him that because originally
he wanted that nickname to be just for you
but then he realized how, he would always have a piece of you in that way
oh how things have changed
The Realization
“You should rest up, it’s getting late.” You said through the phone as you yourself made your way to your bed with your eyes already half closed. 
“I couldn’t sleep without you.” You just groaned at Jaemin’s cheeky response, already pulling the blankets over you as you snuggled yourself with it. “It won’t take long, maybe just 30 minutes and I’m home.”
“Stay in the dorms, get some rest already.” You mumbled, the phone on the verge of falling from your grasp. “I’ll visit tomorrow- or later, it’s 1 am.”
“I’m on my way there. I love you!” He said enthusiastically, followed by a bunch of kissing noises, only making you hum in response. Muttering an ‘I love you’ back before turning the phone off and falling fast asleep.
When you woke up in the morning, you felt Jaemin’s arms wrapped around you. Causing a smile on your face, rubbing his hands rested on yours stomach before lifting it up to place a kiss on it.
He stirred a little at your actions, before pulling you closer to him and burying his face on your neck. “Keep sleeping, it’s still night. The moon is fooling you.” You chuckled at him, caressing his hair as you decided to stay in bed for a little while. 
“Okay you could stay here, let me make breakfast. I’ve been wanting to eat some pancakes.” Getting out of the bed was a struggle, but with Jaemin it was a nearly impossible task.
When you finally stood up, you head to the kitchen and on the counter, was Jaemin’s keys, phone and wallet and on the chair was his bag. You didn’t mind it, walking deeper to the kitchen to make breakfast.
And as you were mixing the ingredients, Jaemin’s phone continuously pinged. And again, you didn’t mind it. It was normal for Jaemin to not mute the groupchats he was on, which really gets irritating when it’s night and you’re sleeping- or trying to at least.
But then, the phone started to ring. After pouring the mixture into the pan, you decided to pick it up after seeing it was Jaemin’s manager. Wiping the hands on your apron, you slid the answer button. “Hello oppa, Jaemin is still sleeping. Maybe I could leave a message for him? Or just tell him to call you back?”
“Ah yn-ssi, yes, just tell Jaemin to call me back when he’s awake. Isn’t it a little bit too late for him to still be asleep?”
“It’s okay, oppa. He got home late anyways.”
“Oh yeah I forgot about that. Well, tell him to just call me back.” After agreeing and exchanging another pleasantry, you remove the phone away from your ear and without even noticing it, accidentally read the messages his manager sent.
“Yah Jaemin, the company really doesn’t like that you’re not listening to them, especially when it comes to yn.”
“I told them that there’s nothing wrong with it but they wouldn’t listen.”
“I told you don’t be too occupied around your phone, the dance instructor feels very disrespected and reported you.”
“Jaemin-ah, you have to reply.” 
“Jaemin your relationship with yn isn’t really much of a problem only if you remember you’re an idol and at the moment, your career is your priority. If you continue messing up the company will cut you.”
“Answer me please.”
When Jaemin woke up, the pancakes were burnt.
The Breakup
“Jeno, is Jaemin around?” You greeted Jeno, giving him a hug as you saw him about to exit the dorms in his biking gear. 
“He’s in his room I think, no one is around too.” Jeno gave you a knowing smirk, you replying with an eye roll. “I’m kidding, I’m going to head out. I think I’ll be back in 3 hours or something, are you going to stay for dinner?”
“I don’t think so.”
--
The smell of Jaemin’s shampoo welcomed you in his room. On the bed, sat Jaemin along with the stuffed dinosaur you gave him for his 16th birthday in his arm while he was fiddling with his phone.
Upon seeing the smiling pink and green creature, the idea of breaking up with Jaemin became harder than it already is. You remembered how long you and him have been together, how even before he auditioned you were already there for him. 
After reading those texts, you remembered your promise to him- how you would do anything to make sure he would have a great future. The entire week, you acted cold and distant so he would get used to you being not there around him, but in all honesty the person you were preparing the most was you.
Jaemin for an entire week was confused, not knowing what put you in a grumpy mood. That was the first week he didn’t slept beside you, but always made sure to write you paragraphs of how his day went before he could sleep.
Jaemin doesn’t deserve to have you. 
“Hey, I missed you.” Jaemin said, in a normal voice and not in his usual baby-ish voice. 
He immediately stood up and after pulling you in for a hug just did you snap out of your thoughts. Wanting to push him back but not having the powers to do so and instead, you pulled him closer to you.
With his arms wrapping tighter around you, his head resting on yours as his thumb rubbed your back comfortably, you started to sob. This was the last time he will hold you like this, this is the last time you will be held like this.
You didn’t even know that you were already sobbing, Jaemin taking this as another difficult day in the office and was just mere frustration or even pent up anger. 
You finally managed to pull away from him and before Jaemin could even say anything, you held his face on your hands and pull him in for a kiss. One he returned with so much love and care you could taste it.
You broke the kiss, wiping the tears away from your eyes and after breathing deep- “Let’s break up, I’m moving. My family is moving to another country, I’m sorry.” You really were.
“What? I don’t understand, yn don’t joke like this.”
“I’m so sorry, I’m always going to be your number fan. I love you, nana. Please take care of yourself.” You turn around and left in a haste, Jaemin chasing you out but gave up as you held a cab.
You just lost the love of your life.
The Aftermath
brushing off jaemin was hard
but after 2 months, he sent a final message to you
“Yn, I really don’t know what happened. I don’t know if it’s because of something I did or me itself. Still, I want to apologize. I don’t know how many times I need to say it for you to take me back but I’m really really really sorry for everything I ever did. But like you said, I need to take care of myself too. I can’t always be crying and thinking of you when you don’t even know me anymore. I just want you to know that despite everything, I still love you and I always do. Nothing will change that. I love you more than I could ever express, but I have to love me too knowing you’re not there to do that anymore. I love you, yn. Be happy, thank you for everything.”
you were itching to reply and say nothing was his fault
and to say how much you love him too
but you couldn’t
not when he finally could move on from you
the message didn’t do much but hurt you more
jaemin doesn’t have any bone in his body to hate anyone
especially you
and like you said to him
you are his biggest fan
you still watched their lives, interviews- everything
8 months has then passed after the breakup
and now, you gradually see the glow back to him
he was happy again
your nana was back
only, not for you
We Boom 
“Did you guys sent this?” Renjun asked, examining the bouquet of flowers he picked up that was waiting outside their dorm.
All of the boys shrugged, Renjun opening the door to their dorms and once inside, examined the card attached to the side. Reading it out loud for everyone “Hi dreamy babies, congratulations at the success of your new album. Please take every time you could get to rest and eat, treat yourself some ice cream~” 
All of the boys inside smiled to themselves, the short message causing everyone to grow more curious as to who sent the flowers. Renjun then handed the flowers to Chenle, who passed it to every member who wanted to examine it themselves which then landed to Jaemin. “You guys don’t mind if I keep this in my room right?” Everyone agreed, Jaemin happy as another touch of color was added to his and jeno’s room- placing the flower on jeno’s side of the room.
After taking a shower, he went to his bed and as he was fixing the flowers on the nightstand, the letter fell from the wrapper. He was about to put it back when he caught a glimpse of the content.
He couldn’t mistake it, it was yours. 
2 Weeks Later
After your breakup
and how sudden it was
dreamies didn’t really contacted you
you weren’t on their good graces anymore
which is why jaemin didn’t said anything upon seeing your handwriting
it’s just a flower, it’s nothing
but it was definitely not nothing when the smell resembles the one in your room
and as the flower started to wilt, he thought
fuck it
but not that hard because nana could never
“The flower you gave me, where did they came from?” Before Jaemin could even think further, the message was already sent to you.
Yn wouldn’t respond-
“Why?” 
Ever since the breakup, this is the first time you replied. And it was fast too.
In an instant, Jaemin sent a reply. “They’re dead, I like them.” Again, his phone was on his hands, thinking if your reply was something he imagines but after another reply of yours, he was sure he wasn’t.
“I’ll just buy you a new one.”
“How are you?” 
--
You contemplated if you should reply, you shouldn’t have replied in the first place. But it was as if your fingers were moving on its own as it typed a reply and sent it.
“I’m okay, congratulations on your new album.”
“Thank you. So about the flowers, where did you get them?”
“My grandmother grew them, she said you looked really good and wanted me to give them to you and the others.” 
--
Jaemin chuckled at this reply, remembering how your grandmother seemingly loved him more than you.
Jaemin wanted to ask if your grandmother knew, but opted out of it as this is the first time he talked to you in a while and don’t want to ruin anything. 
While typing a reply, a new message appeared. “I’m sorry for everything, for causing you so much pain. But seeing you now and how good you’re doing, I’m also so so sorry for saying I don’t regret anything. If I knew in the past breaking up with you would get you to where you are now, I would do it again.” 
Reading your reply tore him, though still confused him. “Is that why you broke up with me? Because I still don’t get anything.”
“Maybe we should talk this out? I think it would be better. There’s this cafe 2 blocks away from your dorms called Clarity Coffee, my treat.”
Jaemin thought about it hard. He remembered how much pain you caused him and how the breakup negatively affected him, and now that he was finally back on track he couldn’t imagine going back down there.
But it was you, and he could never say no to you.
After typing an agreement followed by the time, Jaemin only had one thing in mind.
He won’t come back all sad and broken like before, because you’re back, and that’s what matters.
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sunflowers-rae · 4 years ago
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Pray - Katsuki Bakugo
The first in a possible song inspired series called Stage Fright
Inspired by the song Pray by Xana
Warnings: a little swearing and a lot of dirty dancing
Characters are all aged 18+
1,683 Words
The common room was busy this Friday night as everyone from class 1-A got set up for the small party they were having. You were busy putting snacks in serving bowls when Mina popped up beside you.
 “Y/n!” she giggled excitedly, taking the bowl from your hands. “Denki and Sero are almost done setting up the Karaoke machine! Are you planning on doing a song?” Everyone in the area turned their heads to you in curiosity.
“Yeah, y/n!” Izuku piped up from across the island, “We’ve known you for years and I don’t think any of us have heard you sing before!”
You smile sheepishly, cheeks turning a light pink. “Well, I have pretty bad stage fright, so I never really sing in front of people.” You glance across the room and meet a pair of bright red eyes staring right at you. “I don’t think I would do too well up there…” you trailed off, tearing your eyes away from the blonde.
Kirishima came up on your other side and placed a hand on your shoulder. “Ya know, Bakubro has a thing for people who face their fears.” He smirked when he said it, seeing your face flush red.
Everyone in the class knew about your not-so-subtle crush on Katsuki after Hagakure had accidentally yelled it out when you told her. No one could figure out what you saw in him. You were sweet and innocent, always happy and smiling. Bakugo was, well, Bakugo.
“You know what, I think I will sing something.” You said, shooting a hard glare at the boy who was still staring at you. “Mina, why don’t you come help me pick out an outfit?”
~~~
The party was in full swing and you found yourself sitting around the makeshift stage with your classmates. Denki and Mina were singing their hearts out to some song they found on Tiktok that was definitely not meant to be a duet, both doing the dance that goes with it when the chorus comes. 
“Who’s up next?” Shoji’s voice suddenly coming from your left made you jump.
Jiro laughed slightly, “y/n is up next, then Izuku, then Momo after him!” You settled back into your seat, adjusting your outfit. The song was almost over and you were starting to get nervous again, considering skipping your turn all together.
“Y/n is singing? In front of people? This y/n? The y/n that won’t even hum if she thinks we can hear her?” Sato’s teasing tone distracted you from your worry and you stood up, hip checking him with a smile.
“Hey!” You grin, feeling his arm wrap around your shoulder. “Just because I haven’t done it before, doesn’t mean I can’t!” Playfully batting his arm off of you, you stick your tongue out at him. Before he can respond, the music dies down, signaling the end of The Electric Duo’s performance. “Ah shit.” You groan, head rolling forwards.
The snippy voice you knew all too well snapped you back to reality. “Tch, you won’t do it. You know you won’t do it. We all know you won’t do it! Why don’t you just back out now before you make yourself look stupid, Angel.” Katsuki’s teasing nickname for you sounding more venomous than usual. He started calling you Angel the first week of school when you were assigned to the villain team for the practice battles. You did not do well at being bad and he often picked on you for being sweet and innocent.
“Oh fuck off, Kacchan.” You bit back at him, flipping him off. “You clearly don’t know me as well as you think.” You spun on your heel and took the mic from Mina, climbing onto the stage. Your heart was racing when you gave Jiro a thumbs up. She mirrored your action and the music began.
You closed your eyes and took a deep breath, singing the first verse with your eyes still closed.
Tell me what’d you get yourself into
It’s not like I’m gonna stay with you
The demons in my head
I bring ‘em all to bed
Tuck ‘em in the sheets
Let ‘em dance ‘tween our feet
The room was completely silent, everyone staring wide eyed at you. No one had expected you to make it this far, let alone for that voice to come out of you. Even Mina, who had listened to you quietly practice in your dorm room was shocked to hear you sound so confident.
You opened your eyes, drinking in the astonished faces of your classmates. You weren’t a bad singer. In fact, you were a very good singer! You were just nervous about singing in front of people.
Baby’s all dressed up in white
Crazy girl knows what I like
You found Katsuki’s gaze and held it, singing the next lines right to him.
Lover haven’t you heard
The Devil was an angel first
His eyes grew impossibly wider when you smirked at him, feeling yourself fill with confidence. You loosened up and walked over to the microphone stand, placing the mic in the holder. You sang out the chorus as Mina and Denki started cheering from the couch where they were sitting. Your eyes scanned the room to find every single person watching you with interest as you sang.
Seeing Katsuki staring at you open mouthed gave you a wonderful idea. You pointed to Sero and motioned for him to join you on the stage. His face lit up when he realized what you were plotting. He hopped up on the stage as you took the microphone back into your hands. You pulled him against you by his collar with one hand and the two of you danced against each other for the entire second verse.
Red lipstick, hot on my kiss
Thinking that you got this
Honey, you don’t know what’s comin’ for ya
There’s a fire in my ribs
You feel it when we kiss
It’s something dangerous
You broke away from him and he moved behind you, placing his hands on your hips as you looked dead at Katsuki with a look that could kill.
Now I’m thinking maybe we should ditch this
I know with me, you’ll get a little bit addicted
Your hand reaches down to tug on the hem of your little white dress as you swayed against Sero, still keeping eye contact with Katsuki.
Sugar’s pulling up her skirt
The Devil was an angel first
Half of the class was still staring at you while you sang the chorus, the other half looking between Bakugo and Sero. Mina and Denki were absolutely losing their minds seeing you like this. The two of them knew that you had it in you, but neither of them expected to see it come out in front of anyone but them. The fact that you were absolutely killing it on stage and making Bakugo noticeably flustered was causing them to go nuts cheering you on.
And I could be good
I know that I should
But heaven closed the gates on me
Sero moves so that his arms are wrapped against you, holding you to him as he continues dancing against you,
Golden to the touch
You miss me so much
But heaven closed the gates on me
On me
Heaven closed the gates on me
You unwrap yourself from Sero’s hold and push him back, causing him to hop back off of the stage. With a smirk, you belt the rest of the song, head thrown back, losing yourself in the music,
And when she lays down to pray at night
She’ll be screaming my name
Katsuki could barely contain his disbelief when he heard that line come out of your mouth. He wanted to kill Sero for getting to dance with you in that manner while you were in this state. Never before did he think that he would be so enamored by the class Angel. He definitely didn’t think he would ever find himself thinking about all of the dirty things he wanted to do to you.
She’ll be screaming my name
Mm mm m mm 
As the song finished, your eyes fell closed and Mina came flying towards the stage to engulf you in a hug. The rest of the class slowly followed her lead when the shock started wearing off.
“Holy shit, y/n! That was insane!” Hagakure yelled.
“Of all the things you could have done, I was not expecting that!” Ojiro said with his hand on his neck.
“I’m very impressed, you have very good control,” Shoto said, straight faced as always.
You smiled, face growing hot from all of the attention. “Thanks everyone, could you please let me go? I’d like to get a glass of water…” Everyone broke off and went back to where they were before as Izuku was ranting to Jiro about how he wasn’t sure he wanted to follow your act.
When you finally made your way to the kitchen, you grabbed a plastic cup from the counter and filled it with water from the sink. You turned around and leaned against the counter, holding it with your free hand.
“What the fuck was that?” You choked a bit when you heard the voice. No one else was in the kitchen when you had entered and you didn’t realize someone had followed.
“What do you mean? You didn’t think I would do it, so I did.”
Katsuki let out a dramatic sigh and moved to stand directly in front of you. “I don’t care about that! Why would you pull Tape Face up with you? Why would you sing a song like that in front of everyone?” He grabbed your arms and pulled you against him. “This outfit isn’t you,” he breathed. “None of this is the Angel I know.” His tone was accusatory and angry, but you could hear the confusion behind the words.
“Maybe that’s because you never took the time to get to know me.”
His gaze softened as he looked you over. “How about we change that?”
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bubblesuga · 4 years ago
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Oblivious To Adoration - Prologue
A/N: Hi all! So this is a Prologue (written after the story, oops) that can work as a standalone but I highly suggest also checking out the rest of the story as well! 
W/C: 3,757
Warnings: smut, alcohol consumption, oral (m and f receiving), fingering, cum swallowing (if that should be a warning... idk lol), masturbation
Part 1
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Exam season is finally over. 
You throw your pencils into your bag and slip it over your shoulder. Despite having studied for ages on each test, you still couldn’t shake the fact that you may have failed. Thousands of dollars down the drain simply because you didn’t absorb the information enough. Jungkook tells you that you’re too smart to worry about things like that but it just wouldn’t leave your head. 
You step out of the lecture hall and spot Jungkook leaning against the wall and talking to a girl. She seems to be flirting by the way she leaned next to him and batted her eyelashes. He seems uncomfortable, his eyes seeming to stare passed her. You roll your eyes, it’s not the first time that Jungkook had been hit on by a woman he was clearly not interested in. 
The moment he sees you, his expression changes and his face is lighting up. He seemingly forgets completely about the girl and pushes himself off the wall and fights his way through the crowd. 
“How did it go?” Jungkook questions, immediately leading you away. 
“I’m not sure yet.” You shrug, sighing in frustration. 
Jungkook gives you a look of sympathy, deciding not to press the matter while you head towards the exit of the building.  
“Get outta the way bitches, (Y/N) just finished her last exam!” Jungkook yelled, his hand on the small of your back while he pushes fellow students out of your path. You roll your eyes at the attention now brought on you, attempting to hide your smile. 
“Kookie you can’t call people bitches.” You groan as he pushes the door open. Jungkook abruptly slips his backpack off his shoulders and punts it down the long stairs. You gasp as it slips right in between a couple of students and Jungkook cringes in apology while he runs down the stairs to go pick it up. 
You let out a laugh, skipping down the stairs yourself and returning in your place beside Jungkook. Instinctively, he wraps his arm around your shoulder while he leads you towards his car. 
“Okay. Everyone has been waiting for today so we can officially celebrate the end of the year. Yoongi and Jin’s apartment at 8 tonight, alright?” Jungkook speaks as he pulls out of the parking lot. 
“Is Namjoon gonna be there?” You ask, picking at your finger nails. Jungkook tilts his head towards you, “Of course.” 
You crinkle your nose jokingly, knowing that Jungkook didn’t like the fact that you and Namjoon teased each other quite a bit. Truthfully it made Jungkook feel jealous, as far as he was concerned you were his best friend and Namjoon had a way of sliding his comments into conversation so effortlessly that had you both laughing and hitting his shoulder. 
Jungkook pulls into your apartment complex a few moments later. You lean over the center console and wrap your arms around his shoulder, “I’ll see you tonight.” 
As you turn to get out, Jungkook grabs your wrist, “We’re going to get wasted tonight, by the way.” 
“Mm,” you nod, humor evident on your face, “can’t wait, Kookie.” 
~*~*~
You already hear music playing lightly through the door of Yoongi and Seokjin’s apartment. You don’t have the chance to knock because Hoseok swings open the door, “Get in here, girl.” 
Hoseok grabs your wrist and pulls you in, your hands gripping the bottle of tequila tighter. 
Suddenly you felt over dressed, spotting your group of friends gathered in the living room as Seokjin and Taehyung yell about some fighting game on the television. Hoseok takes the bottle of tequila from your hands and grabs three shot glasses. 
“Jungkook! (Y/N) is here!” Hoseok calls out to the living room, causing Jungkook to whip his head around. He hops over the couch and immediately reaches for one of the shot glasses. 
“Ah, to possibly making or breaking our future careers!” Jungkook doesn’t wait to tap his shot glass on yours, downing the shot in seconds and reaching to pour another. 
Okay, clearly you had some catching up to do. You could smell the remnants of beers on Jungkook’s breath, and you mentally cursed yourself for running a little late.  You follow his lead, pouring yourself a couple more shots and downing them while Jungkook watches you with shiny eyes. 
Hoseok seems to sense your discomfort of sobriety, reaching into the fridge and pulling out a beer of your own. You silently thank him and pop it open on the edge of the counter, chugging it down. 
Jungkook leads you to the living room and the two of you sit in the corner of the sectional. Already you could feel the heat of the alcohol coursing through your veins, and for once in your life you were grateful for being a lightweight. 
“Ah,” Namjoon spots you, “who invited you?” 
“Awh, don’t be so sad, Joonie. I know you’re secretly really happy I’m here.” You grin, seeing humor alight in Namjoon’s eyes as he turns his attention back to the screen. 
Jungkook notices the exchange between you and Namjoon and can’t help but burn holes into the side of your head. Not that he could do anything about it though, it’s not like he could stop you if you and Namjoon had decided dating or something. Though he cringes at the thought. 
The only thing that steadies his mind the the feeling of your head hitting his shoulder while you giggle at Jimin beating Seokjin at the game and cheering in victory. 
Jungkook relaxes against you, his hand picking up a piece of hair at the back of your head and twirling it softly between his fingers. It takes every bone in his body to prevent him from leaning down and pulling you in for a kiss but he just couldn’t. Even if you wore such a short dress and pranced around in front of him more times than he’d like to admit, or when he can’t help but stare when you bend down to grab something only for Jimin nudge him out of his trance. 
You didn’t like him like that, it just wouldn’t work out. 
The night is going by as every night that you found yourself in one of the boys’ apartments with liquor running through your system. Jungkook and you have been fed drinks constantly and you could officially say that you were drunk, but that was the whole point of this night anyway. 
Yoongi and Hoseok were in the middle of doing awful karaoke, singing some song from a movie that you had never heard of. 
You were practically on top of Jungkook’s lap at this point, the two of you giggling as Hoseok’s voice cracks on a particularly high note. 
“Oh come on you’re better than that Hobi!” You shout over the music and laughter, your eyes glossed over. Jungkook’s arms wrap around your waist and pull you close, your hand flying to his chest and your fingers dancing across his hands. 
“Shut up!” Hoseok shouts back, his voice echoing from the reverb of the mic. Yoongi laughs in the middle of his verse and you realize that these guys truly made you happy, you couldn’t have asked for a better group of friends. 
Especially the man beneath you, who’s strong arms made you feel safe from the beginning of your friendship onward. He always made sure to protect you, but was also well aware that you didn’t need the protection. You allowed him to protect you because you loved the way he could send a boy away from you with a simple look and his arm snaking around your waist. 
You were suddenly hyper aware of how close you were to him, but you didn’t care. You like how he smells too much to stop cuddling him. 
In fact, the feeling of his abs tensing beneath your body caused heat to wrack your lower half. You see him shirtless often, so you didn’t have a problem imagining what he would look like holding himself above you. You tried to push the feeling down, but the alcohol was winning this fight. You needed to have him and you needed to have him now.
“Jungkook?” You ask him quietly, turning his head towards yours. 
“Yes?” He responds, his forehead shining from the heat of your body on his but he didn’t want to push you away. 
“Do you want to come to another room with me?” 
Jungkook raises an eyebrow, “Uh, sure?” 
You stand abruptly, but everyone else seemed too enthralled in the performance in front of them to notice. You quickly tug Jungkook with you, a giggle leaving your lips when you notice how he struggles to keep up with you. 
You open the first door you see, spotting a keyboard and guitar in the corner of the room. Jungkook immediately sits on the bed, laying back and groaning. The way his shirt rode up his abdomen ever so slightly and revealed the ‘v’ dipping into his jeans caused you to swallow. 
“So what’s up? Get a little overwhelmed?” Jungkook asks, rubbing his eyes then keeping his gaze trained on the ceiling. 
Now that you had him in the room you were unsure of how to handle the situation. So, you decided to let your instincts guide you. 
You shakily press a step forward, then another, until your knees bump against Jungkook’s. He tears his gaze away from the ceiling and eyes you curiously, causing your face to go red. He smiles comfortingly, “What’s on your mind?” 
Without responding, you climb onto his lap and rest a knee on either side of his thighs. Immediately Jungkook tenses at the movement and sits up, your hands landing on his shoulders. This is different from your usual drunk touchy habits, your heat was a mere 3 layers from his, and the thought alone causes his mouth to water. 
“What are you-” 
Jungkook doesn’t get the chance to finish his question because you slam your lips on his. 
Jungkook freezes entirely, every fiber of his being telling him to kiss you back but the shock of the situation causes him to shrivel in a puddle of confidence-lacking ooze. He had wanted to kiss you for so long - years at this point - and now that you were suddenly kissing him he had no clue what to do. 
Instead of pulling away and accepting defeat, you poke your tongue between your lips and swipe it across Jungkook’s bottom lip and instantly he opens his mouth. 
You smile in victory, your tongue entering his mouth and exploring. The taste of tequila and lemonade laced his tongue, and in a surprising turn of events Jungkook wraps his lips around your tongue and sucks softly. 
He pulls away, meeting your eyes, “How far do you want this to go, (Y/N)?” 
“Need you,” you whine, your fingers wracking over his clothed torso, “need all of you.” 
“Fuck.” Jungkook groans, leading your hands beneath his shirt and allowing you to feel his hot tanned skin directly. He falls back onto the bed while you push his shirt over his head and toss it behind you, hearing the twang of a guitar string. You glance back to make sure the guitar is okay before hearing Jungkook giggle softly. 
He leans his hand up, reveling in the feeling of your soft skin against his, and pushes your hair behind your ear, “You’re so pretty.” 
You press your lips against his again, “Tell me I’m pretty when I’m covered in your cum.” 
Jungkook’s eyes widen and you can nearly see the switch in his eyes from Kookie to Jungkook. His fingers fumble with his belt and he quick to unbuckle it, tapping your hip to tell you to lift your body so he can slide his pants down. 
His semi doesn’t take long to harden completely once he feels your hot breath through the thin fabric of his briefs. You bite your lip, looking up at him as you loop your fingers through the hem. 
“No, baby. You’re wearing far too much clothing right now.” Jungkook says, his thumb running over his swollen lips. 
You raise an eyebrow, standing up staring down at Jungkook’s mostly naked body. You smile, your cheeks flushing while you slide the straps of your dress down your shoulders. Jungkook watches your every move, his eyes following your hands while you slide the black material down your body and step out of it. 
Your underwear is by no means flashy, you didn’t expect anyone to see them tonight and you’re about to apologize to Jungkook for the plain pink matching bra and panties but his eyes tell you that you do need to. 
“Off.” He demands, gesturing his hand to you. He wasn’t one for strip teases but he could watch you undress every night and never get tired of it. You reach behind you, unclasping each clasp slowly until the band of your bra falls loose. You’re quick to catch the cups before the slip off, walking closer to him. 
You allow the bra to fall in has lap, your nipples hard with anticipation. This was the first time that Jungkook has seen you so exposed, and he was enjoying the sight. He leans forward and clasps his teeth around one of your nipples and you let out a moan at the feeling. 
You liked this side of him, dominance radiating from him and causing you to drip. 
“I’m gonna make you feel so fucking good, baby.” He groans, and in seconds your tossed onto the bed beside him. His lips attack your neck, sucking and biting in places you didn’t know could be so pleasurable. Or maybe it was just that fact that Jungkook was the one doing it. Either way, you writhed beneath his lips as he trailed kisses down your body. Reaching your hips, he presses a kiss to each of your hip bones. Looking up at you hesitantly, you see him loop his fingers around each side of your panties. 
“Well what are you waiting for?” You tease, biting your bottom lip. 
Jungkook lets out a breathy laugh, “Just making sure I’m not dreaming.” 
With that, he drags your panties down your legs almost painfully slow. His eyes don’t leave yours, and you wonder if he’s second guessing his decision. He must have noticed the doubt in your eyes, so he presses a kiss softly just above your mound, right on your pelvic bone. 
You relax instantly, his eyes large and filled with lust when he finally tears them away from yours. Jungkook holds both of your ankles in one hand as he finally slides off your panties the rest of the way. You exhale a shaky breath, Jungkook’s position just in front of the bottom of your thighs caused your mind to wander. There were so many ways you wanted him to take you, and your feet on either side of his head was the first way. 
Jungkook lets go of your ankles and you keep your legs raised, slowly opening your thighs where Jungkook finally turns his gaze. 
Your stomach flutters while Jungkook lays on his stomach in front of you, and swipes his ring finger up your slit. Instantly, a loud moan falls from your lips and Jungkook chuckles confidently. 
“Who knew you’d be so wet for your best friend, huh?” He doesn’t allow you to respond, as his tongue darts out of his mouth and swipes a long stripe from the bottom of your heat to your clit. 
You lurch forward, your hands lacing through his hair. 
“Oh god, that feels so good.” You moan, arching your back as Jungkook begins to press two fingers into your cunt. He wasn’t hiding how much he was enjoying this, either, because he moans loudly against your cunt as you tug at the roots of his hair. 
You watch him carefully, biting your bottom lip and your face contorted in pleasure. Jungkook’s eyes were closed, all his energy going into pleasing you. 
He begins to rut his hips against the duvet, whining against you for some sort of release but he doesn’t stop until your coming undone beneath him. “Oh fuck me,” you moan, “Jungkook!” 
You feel his smile against you as you ride out your high against his tongue, your hand gripping his hair harshly. 
“Wow,” he pulls away, his thumb collecting the moisture of your release around his lips and then slipping it into his mouth, “you taste even better than I imagined.” 
Your mouth falls agape, “You imagined what I taste like?” 
“Oh baby,” Jungkook stands for a moment, slipping his boxers down his muscular thighs, “I’ve wanted to taste you for so long.” 
Your eyes drop to the apex of his thighs, his cock springing upward and hitting his abdomen. He’s huge, you thought, he’s going to tear me in half. 
And you couldn’t wait. 
You gesture for him to get back on the bed, and in seconds your spreading your thighs. Jungkook strokes his cock for a moment, his eyes washing over your body and he silently pleasures himself at the sight of you. You could come just from watching him, but you were so enthralled with the way his large hands stroked himself that you forgot what you were doing in the first place. It’s not until he’s about to thrust inside of you do you snap back, “Condom?” 
“Ah,” Jungkook blushes, “sorry, one second.” 
He reaches into his pocket and pulls out his wallet. The tiny silver foil was a welcoming sight, and you grin. 
Jungkook spots your salacious smile and can’t help but mirror it, walking over to the side of the bed. He stands tall above you, and he hands you the foil packet. 
“Put it on me.” 
You don’t hesitate, your teeth tearing open the condom and placing the bubble at the top in your mouth. Jungkook hisses when your hand grips the base of his cock and strokes him a few times before you lower your mouth onto him, rolling the condom down his shaft with your tongue running underneath. 
As you reach the base of his cock, you hold yourself there. Jungkook feels your throat contract around him and thrusts in softly, “If you want me to fuck you, you’re gonna need to stop sucking me off.” 
You fall back easily, spreading your legs once again and reaching your fingers down to rub your clit in a few circles. 
Jungkook places himself between your thighs again, and presses his cock into your heat slowly. 
You watch the way his thumb shakes as he falls in, his body crashing above you as he catches himself. He can’t help but capture your lips in his as he finally feels you pulse around him like he wanted you to for so fucking long. 
Jungkook has never had so much trouble trying not to cum, but you just felt so good. Your warmth was enticing, and kissing you was distracting him enough not to release. 
“Move, please.” You whisper against his lips, grinding your hips against his. 
Jungkook pulls away until just the tip of his cock is inside, then he slams back in. Still, his lips stay steady on yours and you cry out his name while he thrusts into relentlessly. 
“You take me so well, baby,” Jungkook’s voice was throaty and thick, much different than what you were used to, “squeeze around me so good.” 
He doesn’t leave your lips, breathing heavily through his nose as he continues to thrust harshly. You reach up and drag his bottom lip through your teeth, trying to quiet your moans as you suddenly remember the 6 other people in the apartment. 
Then again, maybe you didn’t care if they heard you. Maybe you liked the thought of the boys hearing Jungkook make you scream. 
So, with Jungkook thrusting particularly harshly, you let out a scream of his name and toss your head back, electricity sparking in your tummy. He reaches deep and slows his thrusts once he feels that your close, long strokes replacing them. 
The fact that Jungkook lay so close to you as he thrusts, the scent of him overwhelming in your nostrils, played a huge factor in pushing you closer and closer to the edge. As you finally feel the twist building in your stomach uncoil in flashing heat, your jaw drops open, “I’m coming!” 
“That’s good,” Jungkook kisses your jaw, “you’re doing so well.” 
He stops his movements and you moan,falling back and trying to catch your breath. 
You open your eyes and meet Jungkook’s, grinning and reaching up to move his fringe away from his forehead, “Did you cum?” 
He shakes his head, “You said you wanted to be covered in my cum, right?” 
You nod hastily, and Jungkook slowly pulls out of you. You groan at the emptiness, but quickly recover when you see Jungkook slip the condom off of his member. 
Again, he stands proudly above you, “What? You think I’m gonna do this myself?” 
You giggle, reaching forward and beginning to stroke him. You’re much faster this time, and Jungkook is thrusting his hips in your hand. He’s gripping your wrist but following the movement of your hand with his eyes screwed shut and his head tossed back. 
Then you hear him suck in an air of breath and you open your mouth, sticking out your tongue and feeling the saltiness of his release paint your tongue. He looks down quickly, as if not wanting to miss the way his cum rests on your tongue. He grips your jaw in his hand, “Swallow.” 
You eye him mischievously, sliding your tongue in your mouth and swallowing, then opening again to show him. 
“Good girl.” He whispers, his eyes still black with lust. 
He places another kiss to your lips, and you pull him down onto the bed with you. 
You both lay, catching your breath and watching each other. Jungkook’s grin is just as wide as ever, and you realize exactly what you had just done. 
You just hooked up with your best friend. Your first friend on campus, the person who’s there for you whenever you’re going through anything. You may have just completely ruined your friendship with him because you let alcohol take over your thoughts. 
Well, at least that’s what you’re telling yourself. It definitely wasn’t the fact that you had been suppressing your attraction to him for years. Nope. 
Definitely wasn’t that. 
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Text
Best One Yet
Gendry choked as he opened the Tyrell’s front door and a fog of dried ice assaulted him. However he waved it away and gallantly held the door open wider so that Arya could slip under his arm and enter. 
“Wow Margaery really outdid herself again this year didn’t she!” It was more fact than question, one Gendry didn’t bother answering as they took in their surroundings for the evening.  Margaery Tyrell had gone all out this year and had decorated her house as if it were a mausoleum, if mausoleums were underground vampire clubs of course. Columns that Gendry was at least seventy-five percent sure hadn’t been there before, now lined the entrance  and into the ballroom  of the estate. Instead of twinkling lights or whatever it was that they usually used for parties it seemed like Margaery and Loras had acquired a couple hundred sconces to light the house in a flickering candlelight. Gendry hoped that when the eventual fire would start Arya and he would be long gone. Though it seemed as though Arya had no such plan, eyeing the “mood lighting” in absolute delight.  
“This is amazing! Robb had said Margaery had been going crazy the last week or so with planning, but even he has to admit it was worth it!”  
“I don’t know, I kinda like last years theme better.” Last year had been a pumpkin carving party with tons of alcohol involved. 
“That’s just because you enjoyed seeing Joffrey accidentally cut himself with a carving knife.”
“And you didn’t?” 
“Well lets just say I wasn’t boo hooing as his goons dragged him to the hospital for stitches.” Arya smiled as she thought back to Joffrey almost fainting from the sight of all his blood.  
“Arya, Gendry! I’m so glad you came!” Margaery Tyrell was on them in an instant hugging and kissing both on the cheek before pulling away to look at them. 
“Love your costumes by the way! Please tell me that you’ll both enter the couples contest!”  Margery spoke over the music. Arya looked up at Gendry coyly and shrugged. This year they had decided to go as Batman and Catwoman.  Not the most original costume idea they’ve had but one that suited them fine nonetheless. In fact Arya was rather proud of the look. Having decided to go with a more vintage looking Catwoman, taking her inspiration right from Julie Newmar. 
Arya had begged Sansa for months to make the costume and after promising to cover Sansa’s chores for the rest of the year. (As well as forking over the money for materials needed and a little extra for service) Arya couldn’t be happier! How Sansa had gotten the pattern needed and an almost exact type of fabric she couldn’t say but damn was her sister good at what she does. Sansa had even offered to help her do her hair and make up, styling it like Brigitte Bardot. 
Arya had thought Gendry would go with the Nolan batman costume or something of that nature. To show off his stature and muscles, also because it was overall just bad ass if she had to say so. However, to her surprise Gendry showed up to her house in the Adam West Costume eyebrow mask and all. Once Arya could stand up straight again after laughing too hard she asked him why the choice? 
“Who doesn’t want to be Adam West? Besides the other costumes made me look strange with all the extra padding sewn in on them.” Gendry did mention off-handedly, obviously a little embarrassed at the explanation but Arya couldn’t see why.  Gendry had a great fucking body, one that was constantly on her mind if she was honest. He was well built from years of sports and hard work, lifting and carrying car parts and tools at his job at Mott’s Garage. He wasn’t crazy muscular  like Dany’s Boyfriend was but he was still fit buff. In Fact with him wearing the batsuit she was reminded of vintage photos of American football players. 
Shaking away her thoughts she turned back to Margaery admiring her own costume choice,  Margaery had opted for a vampire look, befitting this year's theme.  She was wearing a long flowy black sheer and laced corset dress with black and red roses adorning her hair in a makeshift crown that ended up cascading strategically down the back of her hair in smaller roses. 
“Margaery your costume is great, I can see why Robb spent so much on his costume!” Arya 
“Hey from what I heard my costume didn’t cost anything near what  yours did. Hey Gendry what’s up? Batman nice!” Robb had joined the little group, greeting Gendry with their usual hug and leaned over to try and muss Arya’s hair who expertly dodged. Robb’s costume was very similar to Margaery's having an almost Victorian design with the same details sewn into the dress cape he wore.  The group talked a little longer but Margaery had to excuse herself having hosting duties and Robb being the ever dutiful boyfriend followed her.  Arya turned to Gendry eyed him up and down a glint in her eyes as she spoke
“Mr. Wayne would you care to dance?”
“Only if you call me Batman when we are out in public, Don’t want to have my identity known.”
“Purrr-fect.” Arya jokingly said as she grabbed Gendry’s hand and excitedly led him to the dance floor. Where a dark techno beat was blasting. For the next hour or so they danced. It was truly an eclectic set Margaery had put together. one moment it was a haunting waltz music which unsurprisingly for the group that had gathered all knew. (products of their upbringings) Gendry was a little nervous only having learned these dances later in life but Arya gently reminded him as they went and soon it was no problem at all for him, even surprising her once or twice with twirls and dips. 
There were also the songs where they pull each other closer, moving rhythmically to the slowed hypnotic beats. A growing frustration at wanting to be even closer to each other, often forgetting where they were and getting caught up in the moment. Only getting a warning  click of disapproval from Jon once, before his girlfriend Ygritte dragged him away.  
 While jumping along when rave music blasted.  After one final dance, one that was exceptionally energetic, Gendry pleaded for a break and both moved towards the refreshment tables. Gendry in search of food and drink for them while Arya looked for a place to sit.  
“Arya come sit at my table!” Sansa’s voice rang out clearly but Arya had trouble placing it until a wild hand beckoned her forward.  
“Sansa is that you?” Arya was shocked instead of seeing her normal long Tully red hair Sansa was wearing a short dark black wig. Styled in a classic men's side part. It was jarring to see her with dark short hair. Arya thought rather enviously that it suited her even better than when Arya sported a short cropped hairstyle all those long years ago. Sansa’s delicate features were highlighted even more. And was it possible that Sansa’s blue eyes looked even brighter  because of the dark color? Life was unfair.
However, Arya didn’t dwell on it like she would have years ago instead she smiled widely and  approached Sansa who for her part was lounging at the table she had acquired and was looking around the room from time to time.
“This is great isn’t it? I think it’s even better than junior year's Rocky Horror theme!”  Sansa exclaimed as Arya plopped down beside her. 
That year had been a karaoke party while the film continuously played on loop on one of the dance floor walls. Sansa had been dragged up to the mic to sing and pretty much stole the show.  Well at least she had until Olenna Tyrell walked down the stairs for a drink  and came face to er- Renly Baratheon's gyrating hips as he danced drunkenly on one of the tables.
 It had been a night to remember truly. Especially when Olenna surprised everyone and grabbed the mic from Sansa’s hands and with a strength that a woman of her age shouldn’t have possessed pulled Renly down from the table and had him singing along with her in no time. 
“That was a pretty great party.”  Arya admitted remembering Sansa’s scandalized face at the time.
“Hey Arya I grabbed a whole bunch of different things to eat! I even snagged a goodie bag for dessert. I figured we can grab a few more later. Margaery isn’t going to notice- Oh hey Sansa almost didn’t recognize you!  Great costume but I thought Arya said you were going as the little mermaid?” 
“Oh I am, however somebody made a better case that they should be Ariel” Sansa replied casually with a conspiratorial  smile forming across her lips as she looked behind them. 
“Sup Bitches! Gendry I love what you’ve done with your brows!” Theon shouted loudly as he placed two bottles on the table, a water for Sansa and a beer for him.
 Gendry who had taken a bite out of his cupcake  once again  began to choke, though Arya couldn’t be worried at the moment as she grinned wildly at Theon reaching over the table to give him a high five.  Theon had a long red wig on and a purple seashell bra that was slightly skewed. His bottom half Arya was happy to see covered by a mertail.  Which was connected to a stick so he could move it around. 
“Alright I give up, Gendry I don’t think we are going to win the costume contest.”
“That’s fine with me, if you guys don’t win it, the contest is rigged!” 
“Come on now, I think we’ve got a good shot to win this year” Ygritte's voice came from behind as everyone turned to look at them. Ygritte and Jon looked absolutely ridiculous in their Scoops Ahoy costumes. 
Jon had absolutely refused at first, saying there was no way he’d walk around looking like that. Contest or not.
 However, it was no surprise to Arya that, that evening as she was walking through the hallway she spotted Jon meticulously adjusting the sailor hat to sit perfectly on his locks. Jon having caught her looking only sighed defeatedly and shrugged his shoulders.  As if to say  “what can you do?”  
Everyone moved around so that there was more room at the table and Theon nodded his head regarding the newest members of the table looking them up and down  before his normal sly smile crept across his face.
“I’ll give it to you, you’ve got the upper hand in terms of popularity at the moment. But what Sans and I’ve got is pure classic nostalgia, and humor. Though I do have to admit Snow, those shorts are a riot!”
“Not to mention you really nailed the hair Harrington!” Robb joined the conversation plopping on the only chair left at the table next to Jon and ruffling his hair. Causing Jon to curse moving out of reach and adjusting the hat once more.
“Where’s Margaery? Sansa asked, looking around for her.
“She’s setting up for the runway right now.” Robb answered as he swiped Theon’s beer taking a sip for himself while Theon went to go get more drinks for the table.
“She got a runway for this?” Gendry asked in disbelief, rich people never stopped surprising him.
“Hey at least it’s not a haunted mansion like she rented three years ago.” Robb offered knowingly. Patting Gendry on the back.
“But Harrenhal was awesome. I want to go back!” Arya defended. Gendry looked visibly ill at the thought. That was back before they had become a couple, they had decided to go to the party with their friend Hot Pie. It was not a good night for Gendry who up until that moment had been able to keep his fear of jump scares and ghost to a minimum. It also didn’t help that some pretty boy named Jaqen had gone along on their group's tour, walking with Arya and laughing at the scare actors and tour guide as they went. 
The only thing that made the tour bearable was after one close call of Gendry nearly hitting a worker with his Thor hammer. Arya having realized what was wrong, left the front of the group to walk side by side with him the rest of the night. Taking his hand in preparation for the next scare, and squeezing it to reassure him before letting go again. At some point in the night Gendry just kept a hold of her hand. And within the week they were going out. So yeah maybe Harrenhal wasn’t as bad as he remembered.  But still the thought of the creepy burnt house and all the ghost and ghouls that were there was enough to keep him away for a lifetime
The rest of the night ended up staying for the most part at the table, laughing and reminiscing on Halloween’s past. Theon caused everyone to cry from laughter as he retold highlights of his tricks as a child. How he had successfully tee-peed old Walder Frey's house and never got caught. To which Robb added that he never got caught only because Robb was blamed for it instead. It cost Robb a month of cleaning and yard work at the man’s house to make up for it. 
Arya had moved from her chair at some point to sit on Gendry’s lap and leaned into the crook of his neck enjoying the feeling of his body laughing at her brother’s wild antics. It was nice to see the usually stoic man open up and enjoy other peoples company. But Arya  knew it was only because this was her crazy family and he’d known all of them just as long as she’d known him. He was just as much a part of the stories as anyone else.  
The group ate and drank the rest of the night, Robb having left half way through to go help Margaery once more, and soon the contest had begun.  The crowd cheered as each couple walked the runway.  Margaery and Robb walked first after having explained they wouldn’t be competing but still thought the costumes deserved to be appreciated. They looked like quite the power couple. Then after a while Jon and Ygritte had their turn. Both laughing as they walked, people screaming their character’s names and quoting the show as they went.  As they sat back down Jon winked at Arya.
“Beat that.”
“Oh trust me, we will!” feeling her competitive streak rise up Arya hopped out of Gendry’s lap and grabbed his arm dragging him along. After quickly consulting with each other on what they were going to do Arya ran back stage to hand her phone to Margaery asking her to play it on the sound system. By the time Arya got back to Gendry it was almost their time to walk. And as soon as the original batman theme started playing the crowd went wild. Gendry ran out on stage karate chopping and punching the air in wild broad strokes in time with the music. Meanwhile Arya waited until he was about two thirds of the way down the runway and then she was going. Thanking her parents for all the years of gymnastics she had taken Arya carted her way down. Twisting and flipping perfectly down the line. Before landing perfectly next to Gendry. Both grinned like idiots as they took a sweeping bow. Confident in their spot they hopped off the Stage Gendry catching Arya easily in his arms which added more fuel to the fire as the crowd laughed and cheered even more. Walking back to their table Arya eyed Ygritte coyly before asking.
“Still think you're winning?”  
“No, no we know when we’re beat.” Ygritte laughed.
“I just hope you know when you Are.” Jon said with a chuckle as he pointed to the stage where Sansa and Theon were alreadying posing. And once the regular music started once more. Both started to strut the runway. In tandem looking like ridiculous models. At some point Theon somehow was able to wrap the part of the tail that was attached to a stick around his neck dramatically like a scarf before ripping it free at the end of the walk. Sansa for her part pulled out a sword from a hilt and started brandishing it. Arya quickly realized it was her prized fencing sword Jon had bought her.  But couldn’t find it in herself to be mad. Instead she threw her head back wolf whistling as Theon turned “seductively” around showing the complete costume.  In the end it really was no contest. Sansa and Theon won by a landslide. And after a long winded and completely  unnecessary acceptance speech on Theon’s part. (which Arya was very sure she heard Jon muttering to himself that he wished Theon would actually lose his voice.) The party had drawn to a close. The group separated all feeling like the night wasn’t quite over. Gendry hummed in content as he and Arya made it back to his apartment. Having ditched the costumes for more comfortable clothes Arya was snuggled up on the couch in one of Gendry’s large t-shirts, as Gendry flipped through dvd’s before finally settling on one. Quickly putting it in and turning off the lights he sat on the couch as well, gladly letting Arya into his space as she leaned against him once more.  Arya laughed as the title menu for the batman show lit up the screen. 
“Not tired of it yet?”
“No way gotta pay homage to it right?”
“Right, and what better way than a marathon and candy?”
“Oh shit I forgot to get the goodie bags!” 
“I know, that’s why I swiped them, when you were asking Robb if they needed any help cleaning.”
“Why you crafty little thief there’s like 10 bags here!” Gendry laughed as Arya pulled her bag she had taken for the night out and revealed all the treats she had grabbed. Arya merely shrugged, pulling two out and tossing one to Gendry.
“ What can I say? I really wanted to pay homage to Catwoman.” 
This was hands down Margaery’s best Halloween party yet.
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