#i think they do have days where they just relax together and muse on the old boss and share stories and hopes | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

hargreeves-duncan · 2 months ago

Note

Hello! I know that you’ve been getting a lot of Five requests, so I hope this isn’t over doing it, but can I request Five x reader where they get to Hotel Oblivion (s3), reader gives him like, a spa day? Just because reader knows he bf went through so much to make sure they’re all safe and wanted to make sure he’s okay and well taken care of

a/n: anon, i love you for requesting this, you’re not overdoing it at all! this was super sweet to write!! hope you all enjoy some piping fresh (and not very well proof-read) content😚

summary: self-care at the end of the world

warnings: mentions of alcohol consumption, swearing

word count: 2.6k

The end of the world as you know it is no easy pill to swallow, and for a man who had spent his entire life trying to put a stop to it, it’s even less so. Since the identification of the Kugelblitz, Five hadn’t stopped running around, searching for every solution to prevent the apocalypse. So far, he had found nothing.

Lately, he had been shorter with everyone, and you were determined to do something to help him relax. After all, he had put so much into keeping you and his siblings safe all these years, most of the time at his own expense. You wanted to find the perfect way to comfort him, and you had just the plan to do so.

That morning, you came downstairs to the lobby, bright and early. Despite this fact, Five was already up and ready - perched at the bar with a cup of coffee.

You approached him with a warm smile on your face, “Good morning!”

He looked up, and his face softened almost immediately, “Good morning to you too.”

Just before you hopped onto the stool beside him, he tugged it closer to his own. He looked you up and down with an amused smile, “You look extremely chipper this morning.”

“That’s because I am.” You smiled proudly as you placed a keycard on the table.

He raised an eyebrow, sceptically, examining the keycard, “417? What exactly is this for?”

“For a room here.” You continued and he smirked slightly.

“Love, you do realise that we already have a room here? One that we’ve been sleeping in for the last four days?” He said, gently tapping the corner of the keycard on the table to justify his point.

“No, well, yeah, but this room is different. It’s the spa.” You said, eyes flickering up to meet his nervously. You couldn’t help but fear that he would think you an idiot for even suggesting it.

“I suppose, one day of relaxation couldn’t hurt.” Five mused, sitting up. He looked down at you, noticing how increasingly excited you grew as he spoke.

He sighed, smiling to himself, “Alright, I’m in. Should be a nice break for the two of us.” He said, leaning down to peck your cheek.

You grinned excitedly, biting your lip, “Okay, you keep that.” You said, pointing at the keycard still grasped between Five’s fingers, “I’m going to go set everything up, so, come up in like… twenty minutes?”

He watched as you got down, hurrying away hastily to prepare. He nodded, chuckling, “Alright, twenty minutes. Got it.”

**************************************************

Twenty minutes later, the door to the spa opened, and Five found you standing, looking like a proud child beside their science fair project, in the totally transformed room.

You had decorated it with sprinkles of confetti and tiny, heart-shaped specks of glitter. It looked like something out of a rom-com, but since you were the one who put it together, Five couldn’t care less how cliche it was.

The wooden table beside you had a red tablecloth placed over it, and on top of that, a wooden tray with two porcelain mugs, a teapot, two champagne flutes, a rather expensive-looking bottle of champagne, and a little note.

Five was almost sure that you had written some sweet notion on it.

Or, better yet, perhaps it was a quote from the latest book you had been reading. He had been the one to recommend it to you, of course. It was a collection of translated French poetry. Some might say pretentious, he said romantic.

Peering into the neighbouring rooms, Five could see the equipment you had carefully prepared for the day’s spa treatments. He knew you must have put a lot of thought into what would be on your itinerary.

As he took everything in the room in, his heart swelled with affection for you. For his entire life, he had tried so hard to make sure that everyone was cared for all the time, especially you, and seeing you put in all this effort just for him had him feeling more grateful than ever that he had you by his side.

“Thank you,” he said gently as he took your hands into his, fingers tracing over your knuckles.

“You’re welcome.” You beamed up at him. He brushed your hair away from the side of your face to cup it with one hand. He pressed a delicate kiss to your lips, and as he slipped his hand down, reaching for your hip, he instead met cloth.

He pulled back, raising an eyebrow, and then glanced down at the bathrobe in your hands that you were holding up to him, like an offering, as you grinned, “Here, you have to have the whole spa treatment.”

“Oh? The whole spa treatment, huh? Okay.” He chuckled fondly, taking the robe from you, “And will you be joining me in wearing this get-up?” He asked with a sly smile as he began to get changed into the robe.

“Of course.” You hummed, sliding your shirt off and slipping into a robe of your own. When Five turned back around, the two of you were matching in your fluffy white gowns. The sight of you was, certainly, a pleasant one.

“What’s first on the agenda then, oh, wife of mine?” Five smiled, hands slipping around your waist.

“Mm…” You paused, thinking about it, your mind a little hazy under his touch. Your gaze drifted back to the table, “Drinks.” You said decisively, making your way to them.

“What do we have here then?” He didn’t truly need to ask; you had told him more times than he could count about the herbal tea they served at your local spa, but he loved listening to you talk, so he asked anyway.

“This is that herbal tea I was telling you about! I didn’t think that I would be able to find any, but they had a bunch of it stocked up in the back room!” You gushed.

“Well, isn’t that just perfect?” Five smiled, pecking your lips again as he slung an arm around your shoulder, “And the champagne?”

“I don’t know, it just felt like a spa-y drink.” You laughed softly, and he chuckled, pulling you closer.

“I see….” He smirked fondly, pecking your cheek. You rolled your eyes, smiling.

“You know what I mean, though, don’t you?” You asked him, noticing his condescending tone.

He nodded, smiling, “I do.”

You nodded approvingly and poured a glass for each of you. You slipped a flute into his hand.

Five took a sip of his champagne, savouring the taste. Then, he looked down at you, mischief swirling in his eyes, “There is something I have to ask about.” He took another sip, “In terms of spa treatments, that is.”

You hummed as you sipped your own drink, tilting your head to the side. His thumb rubbed your shoulder, voice lowering an octave as he leaned closer, “The sauna. Is that set up, or…?”

You nodded, smiling shyly as you leaned into him, “It is set up. No spa day is complete without the sauna.”

“Of course not.” He smiled, kissing your jaw gently. He stood up slightly and adjusted his robe, “Shall we?”

“We shall.” You nodded, walking beside him into the room. He closed the door behind you, and the warm steam encompassed you instantly. You hummed pleasantly and slipped off your bathrobe; Five did the same.

You took one of the towels and slipped it over your body, sitting down. Five watched you do so and soon joined you.

You closed your eyes and felt the heat begin to seep into your muscles, melting away the tension and stress. You could only hope that it was doing the same for Five.

He sat down next to you, his thigh brushing against yours. He stretched his arms above his head, sighing deeply. "This is exactly what I needed," he muttered, closing his own eyes.

You hummed in agreement, leaning your head back against the wall. "It's nice, right? Relaxing?”

Five opened his eyes and glanced at you, a small smile playing on his lips.

"It is," he murmured, his gaze roaming over your figure, covered only by the towel. He slipped his hand into yours.

The two of you sat in comfortable silence for a while. You stole a glance at Five, his skin glistening with sweat, chest rising and falling with steady breaths.

He caught you looking, and a small smirk tugged at his lips, “Enjoying the view?"

You rolled your eyes, feeling a flush creeping up your cheeks. "Just enjoying the moment," you replied nonchalantly.

He chuckled, sarcasm creeping into his voice, "Of course," his voice became softer, "Completely innocent enjoyment."

“Mhm.” You nodded, leaning your head on his shoulder. Five put his arm around you, pulling you closer to him. His hand began to rub soothing circles on your back.

His touch sparked an idea in your mind, and you sat up straighter. You pushed his hands away and smiled at him, “Turn around.”

“What exactly do you plan on doing back there, love?” He asked, with a grin, as he turned.

You watched the ripple in the muscles of his back, strained. You reached up, hands gliding over his skin comfortingly.

“…’m going to give you a massage.” You simpered, pressing your hands deeper into his back. Five groaned appreciatively, practically melting under your touch.

“Lean forward a bit for me.” You gently tapped his back and he obliged instantaneously, with a soft groan.

You saw the tension in his shoulders lessen as your hands dug into the tight muscles, finding the right pressure to soothe the knots.

"You're really tight right here," you murmured, your hands pressing more forcefully into his back.

He inhaled sharply as his shoulders released their tension, “Yeah, well, that comes with trying to stop the apocalypse for two weeks straight,” he grumbled.

You pressed a gentle kiss to the centre of his back, “You shouldn’t push yourself so much,” you chided gently, continuing to work out the knots in his back.

Five let out a sound somewhere between a grunt and a sigh. “Easier said than done, love. There is always something that requires me to push myself with this family.”

“I know.” You soothed softly, moving your hands to a particularly tense muscle near his shoulder blades. “I still wish you would, at least, try to take better care of yourself, though.”

He hummed noncommittally, lost in the sensation of your delicate touches, “I take care of myself just fine…” he muttered, relaxing further under your touch.

“Five.” You said pointedly, pressing down on his back. He hissed.

“Fine, fine… maybe I don’t always take the best care of myself…” He admitted under his breath. His head lolled back with another sigh of pleasure at your touch.

You pecked his shoulder gently. You sat forward and your hands slipped away from his aching muscles and around him in a hug from behind, “You need to be more careful with yourself.”

“The fate of the world shouldn’t be resting on your shoulders.”

Five looked at you over his shoulder, eyes softening. He turned around and pulled you close, his forehead coming to rest against yours in a self-soothing gesture. He was quiet for a moment, contemplating your words.

He knew that you were right, but it was hard to accept that this shouldn’t have been the way things were when it’s how they’d been for as long as he could remember.

He sighed again, his breath warm against your cheek. “It feels like it’s been my responsibility for so long that I don’t know how to let it go.”

You held him closer, wrapping your arms around him affectionately. You pressed another gentle kiss to his shoulder.

“I’m not asking you to let it go, Five.” You murmured quietly, shaking your head. “I’m asking you to let yourself share that burden. You can suffer but you don’t have to do it alone.”

"I’ll try,” he said quietly, his voice barely above a whisper. “I can’t promise it will be easy, but I'll try.” He leaned in, resting his forehead against yours.

“Trying is all I could ever ask for.” You smiled gently, pecking his lips and cradling his face between your hands. Your eyes searched his and suddenly you were all too aware of how long you’d been in the sauna.

Five closed his eyes briefly, relishing the feel of your hands caressing his face.

The steam had made his skin glistening and warm and you could feel the heat in his cheeks, “We should probably get out… we’ve been in here for quite a while.”

Five nodded, smiling to himself, “Good call.” He said, gently helping you up with a pat to your hip.

You gathered your things and stepped out of the sauna. You glanced back over at Five as he pushed his hair out of his eyes, “We can always go in the pool, cool off for a bit.”

Five looked over at you, his eyes still soft from your comfort. He nodded at your suggestion, a small smirk playing on his lips. “Lead the way, love.”

You padded softly across the room and to the pool. You placed everything at its side and eagerly stepped in, becoming embraced by cool, crystal water.

The contrast from the sweltering confinement of the sauna to the pool made you sigh pleasurably.

Five followed shortly after you, wading into the pool with you, the water lapping softly at his chest. He let out a sigh of relief as the water soothed his skin.

“You were right,” he noted as he swam closer to you. “This was definitely the right call.”

“Nice and cool.” You nodded in agreement, swimming over to his side.

“Mm…” Five pulled you closer to his side, wrapping an arm around your waist so that his chest was flush with yours.

He leaned down, his lips finding their way to your neck and placing a few stray kisses there. You leaned into his touch, gratefully, feeling your body grow sleepy under his affections.

His arm around your waist tightened, as he pulled you even closer to him. His voice was low as he spoke, "You look so relaxed, love," he purred, his fingers tracing lazy patterns up and down your back.

“Well, that is the point of going to a spa.” You hummed with a smirk. Five held you against him, leaning his back against the wall of the pool behind him.

Five chuckled, relishing the feeling of your warmth against him, and the cool water now enveloping you both, "Indeed it is..." he agreed, "And it seems to have worked on the both of us."

“Good. I’m glad.” You smiled fondly, pecking his lips twice over.

He returned your smile, his lips finding yours again… and again. Each kiss was more eager than the last. He tightened his hold on you, his arms wrapping around your waist and pulling you flush against him.

You felt your cheeks going warm as you clutched his shoulder for support.

A thundering crash sounded from the corridor. Five pulled back, immediately wary. He squinted at the doorway.

It was silent for a few moments, when the door flew open and Luther stumbled in, out of breath from his haste.

“Jesus! Luther!” Five cursed, turning you around and shielding you from view with his body. Your hands wrapped tighter around him in embarrassment.

“Woah… uh… sorry. Family meeting. It’s important so… you know… if you could both meet us in the bar as quickly as possible...” Luther said, casting a cautious glance between the two of you, cuddled up in the pool.

“Yeah, alright, amazing, thank you, Luther.” Five said, sounding entirely unamused.

When Luther made no attempt to leave, Five raised an expectant eyebrow at him, "Do you mind?" he said.

"Oh! Right, sorry, yeah." Luther smiled awkwardly, excusing himself and walking out of the room. Once his footsteps receded, Five groaned.

"Can't I get one fucking day off?" he sighed, head dropping against your shoulder.

#fanfic #fanfiction #the umbrella academy #tua #five hargreeves #five hargreeves x reader

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octoberautumnbox · 3 months ago

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A Little Goes a Long Way

fromis_9 Roh Jisun & all the other frommies :DDDD

Categories: fluff, cooking, really light blood but it shouldnt be too big of an issue

Word count: 1.0k

a/n: prompt by @msafterhours!! im actually a dumbass bc i got the prompt completely wrong lmao but here yall go!! oki i hiatus again byeee

It’s something about the manner in which the knife cuts through meat and muscle–something about how things come together in the pot that makes Jisun happy as can be. Home isn’t home, she’d think, when the kitchen hasn’t got windows that rays of sun enter through on warm mornings, or when the cupboards and cabinets aren’t stocked for visiting friends or midnight snacks. There’s a romance, a magic, a unique rightness in a home where one cooks for both body and soul.

“Good girl,” she muses, finding the beef sitting in a basin of water on the countertop, “can always count on Jiheonnie.” She replaces the now-cool water with a new pool fresh from the tap, before gathering the rest of the ingredients and getting to work.

Jisun opens door after door of cupboards, taking out each of the rest of the ingredients in turn: green and brown onions, sesame seeds and sesame oil, sugar and salt, garlic and ginger, red and black pepper. Cute, she thought, that each had a partner.

The sun watches intently from the other side of the window, filling her kitchen with a calming warmth you'd scarcely find anywhere else. The clouds rein in the too-intrusive rays, while specks of pollen merrily dance across the glass pane. With her celestial audience on the edge of their seats, she gets to work.

“Yeah it's you, yeah it's you,” Jisun hums under her breath. She measures out each portion carefully, transferring them into tiny bowls that matched colors and handles and rims. It must be something in her bones today, how her step is sprightly and her fingers reach and flex with less poignancy than she's used to.

It isn't long before she thinks back, a green onion steady between the countertop and her left hand while a knife is secure in her right, that she remembers when Jiwon held them wrong and almost cut her finger open. She recalls Hayoung slicing peppers, followed by onions, rubbing her eyes in between every couple of strokes to push away persistent tears that never seemed to run out. She smiles at the memory of Jiheon not knowing solid and liquid measuring cups were different, and the resultant cake falling flatter and growing firmer than their beloved maknae had liked.

Her lip finds itself between her teeth, thinking “Good thing they have me,” as the once-long stalk of green onion grows shorter and shorter. “What would they do without me?”

And yet, it was nothing compared to the contrary. It waltzes to the front of her mind, amidst draining the thawed beef of its former frost, how Saerom put her arm under her after a particularly rough day of practice. It shone like the sun, as Jisun mixes the paste, how Seoyeon talked her ear off when Jisun had run out of things to say. The rush of fondness fills her chest remembering how Nagyung complained when Jisun saw herself in the mirror and frowned at the reflection, all the while she works the marinade into the meat.

As she places each strip into the smoking wok, Chaeyoung enters her mind, the same way Chaeyoung entered the practice room in the baggiest pants Jisun had ever seen, only to pull out a Melona for them to share with their backs against the CCTVs. The scent and symphony of sizzling meat fills her kitchen with a profound sense of melancholy, remembering walking with Gyuri one morning before the sun rose, just one lap around the building, and yet it so happened that it was enough to share four years’ worth of troubles with each other.

She tips the wok over a respectfully waiting plate. The meat steams and settles onto the surface, expelling the tensions of the stove and relaxing into a Jisun-like state. The green onions fall predictably onto the food, meeting nooks and crannies in the meat with attention that welcomes a tongue seeking solace in homemade comfort. A final touch, Jisun thought, to finish the job, to give the palate something to want to come home to the next time it wanders out into the wide, wonderful world: just a drizzling of honey– not too much, certainly not too little. The viscous liquid spreads all over the dish, sending its enticingness to new heights and bringing the delicacy together.

At last, her meal is nearly complete. Jisun sets it on the dining table, right in the center of the square wooden surface. She admires it for a moment, the hard work of the past half hour lost on the world but not on her, before she clears her throat to finally, fully, completely allow herself to enjoy the fruits of her labor…

“Girls, time to eat!” She then counts silently, one, two, three– frantic footsteps grow louder and louder until Jiwon and Hayoung come crashing into the room. They both shriek, “I want to sit next to Jisun!” It makes her giggle, just as much as seeing Seoyeon and Jiheon holding hands and walking in step towards the table themselves. Nagyung and Chaeyoung follow, still glued to Nagyung's phone as Chaeyoung points to the screen, “That's the guy I was telling you about,” before they take a seat across from her.

Jisun takes a deep breath, waiting for one more, and it comes in the form of a comforting hand on her shoulder and a pat on her hair. “Thank you, Jisun,” Saerom whispers with nothing but love in her voice. Her leader takes a piece of the meat and makes a show of eating it, and it's almost comical how much she overreacts. “Holy shit, this is delicious–” Saerom mutters, her hand over her mouth.

Nagyung pipes up, “Thank you, Jisun-unnie,” prompting a slew of variations from each other member at the table, until a cacophony of gratitude fills Jisun's ears. The warmth of their love spreads through her body, filling her with gratitude of her own.

“You're welcome, girls. Eat well,” she says, as she finally takes a piece of meat for her own, giddy in the anticipation of knowing that it'll be one of the most delicious bites of food she'll ever have.

#kpop fluff #girl group fluff #fromis_9 fluff #roh jisun fluff #fromis_9 #roh jisun #fromis_9 jisun #fic box

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maiiuelle · 5 months ago

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❀ warnings: minors dni, alcohol, “daddy” is used, phone sex, mutual masturbation

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your room is like a sanctuary; poofy pink pillows, a silky canapé over your bed, and your fluffy duvet just melt your anxieties away at the end of the day. before bed you have a sort of ritual — after your extensive shower and skin care routine, you tip toe into your princess suite and shut off every light except the floor lamp next to the window overlooking the street.

you have a gorgeous vintage bench beneath the window that functions as your reading nook, complete with floral pink and cream cushions, lace curtains, and your favorite blanket. you’ve been loyal to your nighttime reading since you were little, always setting aside at least an hour to read before going to sleep every night. to really set the mood, you light your favorite cinnamon vanilla bean scented candle and put on a relaxing record.

humming along to lana’s soft voice, you shuffle to your towering bookshelf to look over its contents. the shelves are overflowing with books and knickknacks — most being calico critters and sonny’s angels that live happily amongst the hardbacks, complete with appropriately sized furniture for them. you carefully squeeze past the animal tea party you carefully set up to retrieve tonight’s read—

buzz buzz.. buzz buzz.. buzz buzz..

you sigh, your eyes softly closing in annoyance at your phone ringing against the wooden end table where it’s charging. one peek at the bright screen and you stomp over to answer.

“rafe? its 11:30.”

“yeah? what’re you doing up so late?” you can hear the smirk on his lips, and you roll your eyes.

“well, i was trying to read.” you snark, looking at the book in your hand and skimming over the summary on the back, pacing mindlessly over to your reading bench with the phone pressed to your ear. “what’re you doing? working?”

“nah, actually — i was just thinking about you.” in truth, he was supposed to be working, but the scotch in his glass distracted him. now he’s reclining in his office chair, tapping his pen against his wooden desk as he speaks. “missed you today.”

“mhm.” you muse. he’d invited you to come golfing with him, topper, and kelce but you refused. sometimes it felt like he was a completely different person with them, and you don’t want to be around that. you hadn’t heard from him for the rest of the day, until now.

“what? you mad at me or somethin’?”

“no.. i just — i’m frustrated! i wanted to see you.” you admit, throwing the book down on the bench cushion beside you. “and only you — not top and kelce — just you!”

“aw, pretty girl, m’so sorry.” his tone is almost mocking, clearly not actually apologetic as he slides his toned hand over the bulge in his pants. he really does miss you, and he certainly missed watching you prance around the country club in your mini skirts. even now you’re just too cute when you’re angry, it’s driving him crazy. “how ‘bout you lay down, i’ll help you relax, yeah? yeah.. lemme make it up to you.”

you pause, all of a sudden very aware of how his breathing has deepened. he couldn’t be.. “rafe? what’re you doing?” you ask again, listening closely to the muffled sound of his clothes rustling.

he has the phone pressed between his ear and his shoulder, both hands working to pull off his belt. “didn’t i just tell you to do somethin’, princess? go lay down.”

you blink like a deer in headlights — you want to stay mad at him, after all he had completely blown you off all day. but his gravely voice is already making you push your thighs together, you’d rather he take care of you than prove a point. “mm.. okay.”

“yeah, s’what i thought.” rafe breathes over the phone. you’re always so pliant for him, so desperate to please him you’d do anything he says. you jump onto your poofy bed, scaring your poor cat awake as you roll onto your back.

“wanna tell daddy what you got on?”

you look down your torso, manicured fingers dragging down your thigh as you try to stay patient. “just a tank top n those cute panties you got me. you know the pink lacy ones?” you play with the bow attached to the front of them in thought, remembering how he’d ripped them right off of you last time he snuck over.

“oh yeah? that’s it?” he’s amused, his smirk growing as he pictures you putting on practically nothing to go read. he groans at the thought, freeing his cock from his boxers. “i like ‘em better off.”

“i bet.” you bite your lip, giggling as your fingers slip under the thin fabric to pull them down. you want more than anything for him to appear at your door so he can take care of you properly, his encouragement over the phone just isn’t the same. “you should come here n help me.”

“oh, believe me, i want to. could sneak in the window and fuck you right — like you deserve.” rafe coos. “remember last time? had you on your back, spread out on your bed with your pretty legs around me.” the memory makes you whine, hips moving on their own in search of friction. “you playin’ with that pussy like i do, baby?”

you take that as permission, humming a soft, “mhm..” as you dip your fingers into your mouth to wet them, then settling them in between your folds.

“don’t tell me i’m gettin’ you all wet already, princess.” he teases, his smugness interrupted with a grunt as he slowly strokes himself to your soft moans. “such a good girl, see what happens when you listen? feels nice, huh?”

“ah.. rafe—”

“shh, i got you. you just worry about playin’ with that pretty pussy n daddy’ll handle the rest, a’ight?”

maybe it wouldn’t hurt to skip reading for one night?

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#my inbox is open! ‧₊˚.#obx #rafe cameron #rafe #rafe cameron x reader #rafe x reader #rafe cameron drabble #rafe drabble #rafe cameron smut #rafe smut #minors dni #tw daddy

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prettyboytsum · 10 months ago

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˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚ day off I nanami kento pairing: nanami x reader tags: slice of life (maybe part of the series?), fluff, (no beta, we die like men) wc: 1,005

nanami kento doesn’t have days off.

ever.

in fact, nanami is the ideal employee, as per his (less than empathetic) bosses. he’s always punctual—clocking in at the exact time or ensuring he’s five minutes early to meetings. he’s reliable—even if the assignment was given the night before, rest assured he’ll have it done without working overtime. nanami has never requested for a day off—not for his birthday, not for meet-ups with friends, and not for special dates with you. he delivers the results necessary but rarely lacks or goes above and beyond.

it helps that he has a schedule. up at the crack of dawn—with only one alarm to wake him from his restful slumber. breakfast, a shower, and coffee all in an hour before he’s giving you your usual morning kiss and a reminder about your date that evening.

so, on one of the rare days that you aren’t needed in the office, and the chirping of birds or the slow sway of the sunlight doesn’t wake you up—an unusually warm body beside you does. you almost jump, this couldn’t possibly be your beloved. you half-expected to be able to spread yourself all over the bed for the morning, only to be denied when a lean body hits against your arm.

you groggily open one eye but your brain quickly works overdrive.

”don’t—don’t kidnap me,” you slur, sitting up quickly as you realize that there’s an arm around you. you rub your eyes, tripping over your words before you can muster up a more intimidating way to threaten this intruder. which, in retrospect, you don’t imagine to be very intimidating with your morning hair and nanami’s shirt as your pajamas dressing you. “’s not nice—i know a cop.”

”you do?” a voice responds, awfully familiar but you don’t let yourself get too comfortable. your eyes squint at the sunlight when you hear a gruff continuation. “i didn’t know any of our friends worked for the precinct.”

our friends? what type of friends could you even share with a—

you blink once. twice. before a realization dawns on you—one that swirls confusion, which seems to be a pre-requisite to the budding hope spreading throughout your chest.

”kento?” you ask, sitting a little straighter as you look at the space beside you. alas, your fiancé, in all his glory. nanami’s blonde hair sprawled over the white pillows, a mess before the usual pristine styling. his posture is relaxed, an arm resting behind his head as he looks at you with an amused expression, one that sits behind morning sleepiness that you haven’t been familiar with. not when he’s always the one to wake up. it doesn’t help that he’s topless. you find it a little unfair that he’s this attractive right after waking up.

”g’morning, darling.”

”good—good morning?! do you know what time it is?!” you splutter, looking at the bedside clock. of all your years of knowing him, nanami has never been late. you can’t help but think that tonight might be the first time he’s broken a global record.

you might have to start celebrating this milestone yearly.

”ten thirty-nine?” he muses, the amusement no longer hidden behind the usual morning grogginess. you look at him like he’s grown a third head.

”ten—ten?! kento, it’s way past your hours—”

”i know.”

”you know?! but you’re sitting here like you have a calvin klein shoot—”

”i took the day off.”

”you did what?!” you exclaim, almost as if you’ve heard the most absurd news of your life. to an extent, you kind of just did. “are you sick?”

”not that i know of, no, love,” nanami asks, now genuinely confused at your reaction. any other lover would celebrate a day where they could spend time together; a cafe, a slow day in, anything really. he finds your reaction amusing—and slightly disheartening. “is there a problem?”

there’s a silence as you soak it all in. a day. where nanami kento has willingly decided to not go to work. you can’t possibly fathom a reason why he isn’t clocking in his office with the most uncomfortable chair known to man. surely, there’s paperwork that nanami can’t miss out on—or so he claims every time you grumble about him leaving so early in the morning.

”problem? no. irregularity? yes.” you respond, finally shifting in the bed to turn to properly face him. he’s propped up by his arm—looking far too handsome for a man who just left his company in shambles (he didn’t). “you’ve never taken a day off.”

a pause as nanami thinks before he shrugs. “i guess i haven’t. there’s never been an urgent reason to file for one.”

"oh, and my—”

”yes, darling, your morning pouting is not categorized as urgent.” he responds, biting back an amused smile as you immediately let a huff out. the familiar jut of your lips only entertaining him further. “but it did do a number on me. i thought to take a day off so we could spend time together.”

you squint your eyes in response—almost accusingly as you cross your arms. he lets out a chuckle—a little rough with morning sleepiness but it’s attractive nonetheless. there’s a set of arms that wrap around your waist, pulling you closer to him until you’re practically on his lap. nanami’s chin rests on your shoulder, your back to his chest as he keeps his arm around your middle.

”so suspicious? just cause of my day off?” he whispers into your ear, planting a kiss on your shoulder. your heart stutters. “had the whole day planned out, princess.”

there’s a familiar giddy feeling that spreads through your chest—a familiar sensation when it comes to being around nanami. one of his hands interlocks with your left, his fingers playing with the stone he bought you a couple of weeks ago. a promise for a lifetime together—and an unforgettable wedding, he assures you.

”i’m marrying you after all, it’s only right that i want to spoil my wife.”

✩ author's note: i need him in ways that are concerning to feminism. i need him with me. ⓒ prettyboytsum 2024. all works are posted under this account on tumblr.com and are protected by copyright laws. do not plagiarise these works on any other platform or account.

#₊˚⊹♡₊ luna writes #jjk #jjk hcs #nanami kento x reader #jjk nanami #nanami x reader #jjk x reader #jjk scenarios #nanami kento #jjk fic #kento nanami x reader #nanami x you

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taxfruad4ever · 4 months ago

Note

If you’re taking requests… How does Shadow react when his SO is sick? It’s been plaguing my mind. I imagine not super well considering him having to take care of Maria and her sickness. Can be head canons or fic. Super protective mode activate!!!!

RAAHHHH I LITERALLY STARTED WRITING SOMETHING LIKE THIS TO POST SOON JUST AS I GOT UR ASK!!!

Warnings: Unbearable amounts of fluff.

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

Shadow sat in your dimly lit bedroom, the sun just barely dipping below the horizon, casting stunning rays of golden light throughout the room. He perched on the edge of your bed as he stared down at you. His usual stoic expression was tinged with a hint of unease as he watched you struggle with a fever, a bullet of sweat trickling down your forehead and across your cheek. His gaze unwavering as it remained fixated on you, silently calculating the severity of your condition. Every time you would cough or shiver, Shadow would tense up, unconsciously clenching his fists into your sheets.

He knew he should say something, offer some comfort or reassurance, but the words stuck in his throat. Instead, he continued to watch you intently, and he found himself reaching out to gently brush the sweat-dampened hair away from your forehead. The gesture was awkward, almost forced, and he quickly retracted his hand as if the contact burned.

"I can feel you staring at me..." you spoke wearily, fluttering your eyes open, for the first time in hours; warm and tired gaze meeting his.

He didn't respond, only reaching out to grasp your hand, stroking his thumb over your knuckles; his grip firm and caring.

You let out a drained chuckle, closing your eyes again.

"How are you feeling?" he finally asked, the words coming out concerned and soft.

You vaguely waved your hand, scowling a bit as to simply say: "Meh".

Shadow cocked his head to the side, giving a small hum as he sighed drearily; finally pulling his gaze away from you.

There was a long silence that hung in the air, occasionally broken by the sound of you tossing and turning in your bed, or the quiet sound of yours and his shallow breathing.

"Do... you think she would be proud of me?" Shadow asked, now staring at the ground; an unreadable look painted onto his features.

Your feverish mind took a moment to puzzle together who he spoke of, before it clicked; Maria.

You simpered, raising your intertwined hands up to your lips, kissing the back of his hand.

"Of course she would..." you reassured him. You knew he was a rather troubled man— a new worry plaguing his mind each day— but you didn't mind; reassure and love him, you would always do. He was sensitive, caring and sweet at heart, though he would never admit it.

He leaned his head against your shoulder, now fully laying down as he finally let himself relax after a days worth of care taking and stress.

"I think she would be stoked to see you this happy now." You stated, kissing the shell of his ear, before returning to his chest. He let out a small hum of satisfaction as you did.

"Thank you for taking care of me.."

"Of course, my dear..." he mumbled into your hair, pulling you closer.

"But you didn't have to spend an hour looking for my favorite brand of chocolate." You mused, recalling how he had vigorously searched for the chocolate you wanted, even after you had profusely told him it was okay if he got the store brand.

He gave a chuckle, his snout still buried into your hair.

"Oh? Are you complaining?"

You chuckled.

"Of course not, dummy." He chuckled at your strange choice of endearment.

You buried your face into his chest fur. You loved doing this: hearing his heart beating, his deep voice reverberating in your head every time he spoke, and the way his silky fur tickled your nose. It was all perfect. You felt like you were loved and he was loved; you knew where you belonged, and it was in this fond, feverish, golden moment. In his arms.

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•

I'll prob add some headcanons to this later, but for now, Baiiiiiiiii!!💖💖💖💖

edit: HOLY SHIT THIS GOT 200 NOTES??? HELP??? THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH AAAAAAAA

#sonic the hedgehog #shadow the hedgehog #writers on tumblr #sth #shadow x reader #answered asks #fluff #shadow the hedgehog x reader

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umeumeumee · 5 months ago

Text

𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐲 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐨𝐨𝐧

summary: after one fateful conversation with gojo-sensei, itadori finally realized the importance of his feelings for you.

warnings: fluff!

authors note: this was so cute and so fun to write! enjoy!

windy afternoons were always the most troublesome.

especially in spring, between the brink of winter and summer, when the temperature is warm but the breeze is oh so cold, leaving someone who was minding their business to be left as victim of the weather, not sure what emotion it might be feeling that day.

unfortunately, itadori was one of those said people. so he found himself lounging inside Jujutsu high instead of his usual hobbies he took part of outside, instead occupying himself with manga he’d found lying on the couch side table.

he chewed on a strawberry pocky as he read, awfully invested in the story of the book in his arms, even though it was the third volume. who knew he would be so invested in a shoujo manga?

“hm? you’re here too?” Gojo’s voice rang playfully across the walls of the lounge, causing the pink haired boy to jerk his head to the side to meet the teasing gaze of his teacher.

“ooh, gojo-sensei,” he greeted, watching as his teacher lazily took a seat beside him on the couch, relaxing in the soft cushions.

“why’re you here? i thought you usually get lunch out.” he rose brow at his teacher, who’s smirk failed to fade. “same reason as you. it’s too windy!” he whined, scratching his head as his head pointed upward, only to pause for a moment before turning to face yuji.

Itadori couldn’t see his teachers eyes, but knew they were on him. “where’s y/n-chan? you two are always together.” satoru’s tone had a hint of something yuji couldn’t quite place his finger on, and so he decided to ignore it. “She’s with kugisaki. they went shopping.” he grinned at the thought, unaware of the absolute teasing eyes that were trained on the glint in his own eyes.

“ah, girls,” Gojo tsked, crossing his arms, looking straight ahead. “especially nobara.” he hummed, pausing a few before turning back to his student.

Satoru smirked and scooted closer, Yuji side glancing him at the mischievous smile on his face. “so, itadori-kun,” gojo mused, “what’s your relationship with y/n-chan?” the white haired man almost laughed at the confused expression on itadori’s face, he swore he saw question marks on either side of his head

“huh? what do you mean?” his head tilted to the left a little, “we’re friends.”

gojo hummed, nodding his head as if he understood. “really? i wouldn’t have thought that.” he put a lengthy finger to his chin, holding in his amusement. sometimes his student was so oblivious.

“hah? why?” itadori nudged, looking more and more confused as the seconds continued. his sensei shrugged, “i guess because you two always seem so close, i mean— i would’ve thought you two were boyfriend and girlfriend!” satoru said those two words loudly, quickly looking to yuji in excitement to see the absolutely bewildered look that was likely to be on his face, but was only met with a neutral one. gojo’s joy fell. damn kids.

"oh. well, we're just friends, it's not like that with me and her, you know?" he said back, his eyes glistening over as they usually do when he talks about someone he cares for, but his were extra bright when talking about you.

"Why not?" gojo mused, continuing to milk the subject.

Itadori shrugged, “We just.. we've known each other too long, I think." his reply came with a low tone to it as he flipped to the next page of the shoujo in his lap, unaware of the buzzing man beside him.

Satoru hummed again, silence followed for a moment before he spoke, putting his hand to his chin. "So, you wouldn't go out with her if she asked?"

"I didn't say that.”

yuji’s response came as natural as a human breathes, his voice was smooth and steady— almost like he’d wanted to say it. ah, satoru was right once again, utahime ows him 500 yen for sure.

with that, he stood up, and Yuji’s eyes moved to the menacing smirk on his teachers face. “Ah, well, you should ask her out.” he said with a laugh, “i’m sure she’ll say yes!” he slapped the top of itadori’s head before he dashed out the open door, leaving the boy to ponder.

though, sometimes yuji wasn’t the smartest boy.

but… he did wonder what his teachers goal was. Yuji didn’t like you like that… did he?

you were his friend, someone he loved, so much.

someone he loved.

he loved.

loved.

you.

he loved you.

with the realization, the shoujo he had in his lap was long forgotten as he walked out of the room.

♡︎☆♡︎☆

you sighed, placing a few of Nobara’s shopping bags on the table. really, where does she get the money for all this?

“ah, finally,” kugisaki kicked off her shoes, plopping on the couch of the lounging room with an exasperated sigh. You sat down at the table, flopping your arms over the wood and placing your head down, cheek on the side as you shut your eyes. shopping was exasperating.

“have fun, n/n-chan?” Nobara teased a little, knowing that you were exhausted. you nod, a little laugh left your throat as you did so.

you shut your eyes, breathing slowly. as you began to drift off, the shoji door suddenly slid open to reveal Itadori, who scanned the room.

“Ah! Itadori-kun, you should’ve gone with us, you— hey!” Nobara was cut off when he suddenly reached for you, hauling you to your feet. You blinked away, gasping as you were pulled out of the room. “Hey! get back here! where are you taking her, hah?!” Nobara’s calls were left to deaf ears as your friend dragged you down the hall, “Itadori-kun! what’s going on?” you yawned a little, eyes watering some at the end, as you waited for his reply. but it never came.

you couldn’t see his face, but you could tell he was in thought. he suddenly pulled you behind a wall, releasing your wrist from his grasp and letting out a deep exhale. you rose a brow.

“Yuji, what’s all this?” you cross your arms, looking at his face. His eyes were looking at your own, yet they seemed so far away, so distant. “i need to say something.” his reply came out as his usual voice does, but it was different.

"What? What's so important you couldn't say it infront of kugisa-" you were cut off when his lips met yours, a sqeak left your mouth with the sudden action, eyes widening at the unexpected moment. your cheeks heated wildly when he pulled back, but he seemed just as shocked as you.

“I just kissed you." he breathed out, almost like he couldn’t believe it himself.

“You just kissed me..." your voice came out hoarse, and your throat was as dry as it sounded.

"I just kissed you." he says again, looking at your lips, dazed.

"Why did you just kiss me?" you stutter out, heart racing inside your chest wildly, suffocating you.

"I just wanted to try it once to know what it felt like, and it felt...good. really good. I'm gonna kiss you again." he announced, looking determined as he met your eye. you absolutely exploded into different shades of red, breath hitching as you saw him step closer, your hands coming to grip the end of your skirt for support.

"o-okay!" you shut your eyes, missing the pink that dusted yuji’s cheeks as well.

"okay!" he mirrored, and his lips met yours again.

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xdinaryvamp · 2 months ago

Text

ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁 .ᐟ 💿 ` jongseob as your coffee shop crush!!

there is this one coffee shop next to your university where you always come to study. and everyday you see the same guy sitted at a table on the other side of the room, and you think he is just too pretty.

genre : fluff, coffee shop au, gn reader.

pairings : artist!jongseob × student!reader.

you had always been a creature of habit, so there was nothing strange about the fact that, for a month now, you had been showing up at the same coffee shop at the same time several days a week. by now, you had even made friends with the old lady who ran it, who even offered you a cup of coffee from time to time.

and you also realized that you weren't the only one with this little habit.

for a couple of weeks you had already noticed a boy who always sat at a table on the opposite side to you; always writing on a notebook with his headphones on.

you thought he was very cool - and totally your type - but you were way too shy to go talk to him. sometimes you looked at him, immediately looking away if he looked back at you. always wanting go know more about him, and always biting your tongue before even thinking of going to say “hi” to him.

in the end, you found yourself visiting the coffee shop just to see him, rather than to study. scenario after scenario played out in your head as you tried to imagine what his personality was like, what he listened to on his headphones, and what he always had to write in that notebook. maybe he was studying too? maybe he went to the same university as you and you had never seen him?

you found your answers on a thursday evening, after an afternoon spent reading notes and daydreaming, sitting at your usual table.

you had packed your bag and your coat, and were ready to go back to your rented room, when you realized that you would also have to do some physical exercise before calling the day over.

“really?” you whisper, standing in front of the glass door, seeing the rain falling heavily on the street, remembering that you didn't have an umbrella with you, and that your coat had no hood.

you sigh, now resigned to the fact that you will have to run in the rain, hoping not to fall and not get your books too wet.

but, before you can even open the door, someone positions themselves next to you, so quickly that it almost scares you.

as you turn your head to see who they were, you almost turn completely red noticing that he was the boy with the headphones that you've had a little crush on for the last couple of weeks.

“you don't have an umbrella, don't you?” he asked, “you could use mine. it's not big… but it should be enough to cover both of us.”

he kindly smiles at you, while showing you the umbrella in his hand.

“oh, thank you!” you say, following him outside, careful not to hit him with your shoulder or your bag.

while he holds the umbrella over both your heads, you can see his hand shaking a little, even tho he tries to keep a relaxed face.

“i'm y/n, by the way.” “jongseob”.

you nod, thinking of a way to keep the conversation going. you couldn't miss this opportunity.

“i’ve noticed you, before. you are always writing something in your notebook.” you say, hoping with all your being to not sound like a creep who secretly watches people as a hobby.

which was true, but not in a disturbing way.

“oh.” he looks at you, looking away shyly shortly after. “they’re song lyrics. i would like to debut as a rapper, but i'm still working on my songs.”

“that's so cool!” you exclaim.

“thanks. instead… you come here to study, right?” he asked, looking back at you.

“yes, i have exams that I have to prepare for unfortunately.” he lets out a small laugh, before focusing on the street you were walking on.

“maybe, we can work on our stuff together next time.” he suggested, visibly holding his breath. surprised you started to do it too.

“really?”

“i mean… it's boring to study alone, and it's bothersome writing lyrics inspired by a muse you don't even know well.”

he smiles at you, and you realize that maybe your little crush wasn't exactly hopeless.

☆ :: that's my first fanfiction imma start screaming it's so cliché 𖦹 ´ ᯅ ` 𖦹 but i'm proud of myself

#jongseob x reader #p1harmony #p1harmony x reader #p1harmony x you #p1h x reader #p1h jongseob #kim jongseob #jongseob #kpop fanfic #kpop x reader

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harrysfolklore · 2 years ago

Note

please you write beautiful, so I have to ask you to make a imagine of harry and the reader where she and he write together sweet nothing like taylor and joe, thanks 🥺

sweet nothing

something lovey dovey for valentine’s day, i love you <3

MY PATREON | MASTERLIST

Your relationship was still a secret to the world.

They knew about you and Harry working together for his album, Harry's House, but they didn't know about the feelings that sparkled between the two of you, the shared kisses and intimate moments. They didn't know about your sweet nothings.

Sitting by the piano, with your writing journal and pen in hand, you reflected about you and Harry, about how last July you escaped from the busy life and the spotlights, and went away to your cottage in Wicklow, where you spend every second together, falling more and more for each other. You thought about how one night as you stargazed, he told you that your eyes reminded him of the tiny fireflies he used to watch growing up, and how you both promised that whenever life got overwhelming you'd always find home in each other.

I spy with my little tired eye Tiny as a firefly A pebble that we picked up last July Down deep inside your pocket We almost forgot it Does it ever miss Wicklow sometimes?

The words came to your mind smoothly as you scribbled them down in your journal, during the last few months, you've found out that writing about Harry was the easiest thing in the world.

You were in love, and your songs reflected it.

"Busy there?" his soft voice made you turn you head towards the door, he was leaning against the frame with a relaxed smile and a fond look on his eyes, you couldn't help but melt at the sight, everything about him radiated comfort.

"Just writing songs," you said as you made room for him next to you on the piano's bench, he kissed the side of your face tenderly once he sat next to you before speaking again, "Love songs about me?" his cheeky remark made you let out a breathy laugh, he was right.

"What makes you think you're any good of a muse, Styles?" you decided to tease him, even though he had been your only muse for the last few months, just as you have been his.

"Baby, I'm a great muse! Stevie Nicks said it herself!" his words made you laugh again and you moved your hands to brush away a loose curl from his forehead, taking the opportunity to press your lips to his for a moment. You could never get enough of the other, and you cherished these moments when it was just you and him wrapped up in your little love bubble.

"Remember that poem I wrote on our way home from Wicklow?" you said after a few minutes of silence, with your head against his shoulder, "I do, you never showed it to me tho." his voice was soft and quiet, as if he didn't want to break the tender ambiance around you.

On the way home I wrote a poem You say, "what a mind" This happens all the time

"It is about how I find safe heaven by your side whenever life gets hard" you let yourself be vulnerable, at the end of the day, Harry was the one who taught you that being vulnerable was part of being human.

And Harry could only look at you in pure love and adoration, he felt so lucky that he found someone so honest and real, someone he was willing to protect and take care of.

"You're my safe heaven too, baby. Nothing else matters if I get to come home to you and your sweet nothings" he confessed, every single one of his words touching every fiber of your heart.

You stayed like that for a while, your head against his shoulder and his hand softly caressing your back, scribbling lyrics on your journal and playing soft melodies in the piano. The world outside was full of pushing and shoving, but as long as you got each other you would be alright.

They said the end is comin' Everyone's up to somethin' I find myself runnin' home to your sweet nothings Outside, they're push and shovin' You're in the kitchen hummin' All that you ever wanted from me was sweet nothing

taglist: @cucciolafaerie e @eleanordaisy @sunflowersndpeaches @golden-hoax @alienorknight @daydreamingofmatilda @ivyproblems @ayeshathestyles s s @stylesmygucci @gimsaysay @rosaliedepp @dontworrysunflower @milfrrynation @manifestrry @iceebabies @harrystylesrecs @pleasingrryyy @harianaswhore @noitsmebecky @abeanontoast @grapejuice-rry @vrittivsanghavi @msolbesg @tati813 @sad1esgf @eviesaurusrex @itsgabbysblog @theekyliepage @watermelonsugacry @be-with-me-so-happily @a-strange-familiar @reveriehs @musicforcinemas @harrybabyyyyyyy @tinydeskwriter @noooovaaaaa @tenaciousperfectionunknown @mxltifxnd0m @rach2602 @balletdancerry @b-reads-things @juiceboxrry @lomlolivia @itsgigikay @goldensstateofgrace @missmielyhoran @fdl305 @lightsoutstyles

#harry styles fake instagram #harry styles imagine #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles fic #harry styles blurb #harry styles one shot #harry styles writing #harry styles story #harry styles x reader #harry styles x you #harry styles au #harry styles headcanon #harrysfolklore #harry styles drabble #harry styles masterlist #harry styles fic rec #harry styles fan fiction #1k #hsfolklore archive

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stories-and-chaos · 9 months ago

Text

Shrike: Deal Makers

[Hazbin Hotel reader insert as Alastor’s “darling life and death partner” Ace x ace relationship, both parties are moderately sex favorable.]

[One shot, word count 3629, Cw: violence, blood, death, attempted assault, cursing]

——————

The sounds of Pentagram City, gunshots, screams, and explosions, were a vague drone from within your home. Alastor was perusing the newspaper while you looked over the selection on the bookshelf. You’d read all the books at least once. Many were worn from being read multiple times over the decades. None of them was immediately appealing though.

You heard the crackle of radio static as your husband noticed your hesitation. The lanky demon set aside the paper to focus on you. “Trouble deciding my dear?” he asked, the hint of amusement in his voice telling you he had thought of something interesting.

You looked over at him, relaxing at the breakfast table. “Just a bit bored darling. Anything in the news I should know?” You poured yourself some coffee before sitting across from him.

“Hmm, nothing unusual. The rabble securing space before Extermination Day.” The yearly event was roughly a month away and demons were stepping up their preparations. It was similar to humans boarding up their homes before an incoming hurricane. You couldn’t stop the force of nature (or Heaven), you had to try to weather through it. “I’ll admit I’m feeling some ennui myself.” He sipped his coffee before continuing.

“Although…I did have a thought for some entertainment, cher,” he mused, his smile becoming more of a smirk as he raised an eyebrow temptingly.

“Really? Do share Alastor, don’t leave me in suspense.” You leaned forward, both elbows on the table as you cupped your mug in both hands.

His grin widened. “We know how desperate demons get around now, yes? Souls are easy pickings. So, let’s play a game my dear Y/N.” Your eyes brightened at the prospect and you could feel your wings rustling in anticipation. He continued, “Let’s have a contest between the two of us, cher. Who can acquire the most souls before Extermination Day? The one who loses…” he glanced around your home, trying to think of a consequence.

“The one with fewer new souls does all the dishes for a month. By hand,” you suggested. Neither of you enjoyed washing dishes and being able to use your wind or his shadow tentacles made the chore moderately tolerable.

The two of you had played other games and contests in your afterlife. The stakes for losing were ultimately low between you. You were partners after all. Trapping one’s partner in a deal had no appeal to yourself or Alastor.

Deal making with any other demon? That was entertainment.

“Excellent!” His ears perked up and his antlers stretched slightly as he agreed. This would be a perfect way to alleviate your boredom.

An hour later, the two of you strolled together to a plaza in your shared territory. Alastor took your hand and pressed your talons to his lips. “Bonne chance, cher.”

You used a bit of wind to raise you up so you could easily give him a peck on the cheek. “May the best Overlord win.” You backed up enough not to knock him over with your downdraft and took to the sky. Alastor twirled his cane and strolled off in another direction, humming in amusement.

It was times like this that you missed Husk’s casino. It had been an easy hunting ground. You tend to ensnare souls over time. Offer something small that they desperately wanted. Again and again, building up favors with the other demon. Eventually the favors could only be paid with their soul. Or if they had managed to keep their debt to you to a minimum, they would come to a point where what they wanted wasn’t something small. And if you could provide multiple small deals, surely you could make a substantial deal with them, even if it meant their soul.

The casino had been perfect for that, giving you ample opportunity to tempt Sinners with enough cash for another hand or another roll of the dice. And they always came back for more. A favor to a delicate little thing like you was essentially free.

Until it wasn’t.

But sadly, Alastor owned Husk now and his casino was safely tucked away amid dozens of other strongholds of former Overlords. So you had to find other places to play the game.

Of course there were other places to gamble in Hell. But you didn’t have the same understanding with the proprietors; waltzing in to offer collateral to desperate patrons wasn’t encouraged. Bars and drug dens had just as many degenerate souls craving funds you could offer.

At the moment however, the whole city was clawing to avoid Extermination Day. Being out on the streets was second suicide. If you couldn’t secure a hiding place on your own, working for someone who could provide one was the best option. Protection was worth more than money for the majority.

While Alastor looked like a powerful Overlord, you weren’t immediately intimidating. Sometimes you wished you were of a similar mold to Carmilla or Zeezi. Few doubted them, their presence was so powerful. You were what you were however. You hadn’t let your form stop you yet.

Landing in a distant section of the pentagram, you kept your eyes and ears open for potential opportunities as you walked. Sure enough, you found a perfect chance. And it reminded you of how you met Alastor.

A much more run down neighborhood than you frequented, the Sinners here had no issue with committing atrocities in the streets. Case in point; a trio of demons cornered a much smaller one. “You don’t wanna be all alone on Extermination Day, do you babe?” one of them said. He looked like a skeleton held together by acidic gel. One bony hand was pressed against the wall, cutting off the small cat-like demon’s escape.

The cornered demon shook his head mutely, his eyes pinning in fear. One of the other Sinners, this one a blue and orange cyclops, spotted you. “Whatcha looking at birdie? You can come along too, you’re cute enough.” The third demon moved to grab your arm in a lizard claw. His yellowed scales gleamed as he swung you up to the wall.

You could have broken away, but where was the fun in that? Besides, this was an opportunity to establish yourself in this area.

“Oooo, two for one special. C’mon bitches, we’ll keep you nice and safe from the big bad angels. All you gotta do is work for us.” The skeleton grinned, a green haze leaking between his teeth. “Couple cuties like you, we’ll make you bigger stars than that spider twink.”

The demon next to you shrank into himself, unconsciously hiding behind your wing. You put on a concerned air. “Oh mais la cher, I don’t think you can keep yourselves safe. You all look rather…what’s the word…pathetic, that’s it!” The cat demon looked at you like you were insane.

“What the fuck did you say?”

“I said you all looked pathetic. Weak? Unable to perform? I can go on.” The skeleton pulled back his arm to slap you. Or he tried. The instant he moved, you produced a stiletto that you jammed into his throat. He stumbled back, blade dislodging, with green fluid bubbling out from this mouth and neck wound.

“Bones!” the cyclops yelped as the gel melted away from the demon. That was his name?! You felt more than justified removing such a cliche punk from the afterlife. Before he could do more than yell, you thrust the blade into his giant orange eye. It was a much more convenient target than the man you first killed decades ago. Retinal fluid gushed out as he screamed, flailing at the stiletto.

The lizard demon backed away. “Fuck this shit!” He skittered away on all fours, disappearing into the sparse crowd. You let him go. Dead demons told no tales after all. If you wanted demons looking to you for protection, then you needed tales to spread.

Your talons had fluid splashed all over. “Ew,” you said mildly. The gore didn’t scare you, you’d gotten over that fear in life. But that didn’t mean you enjoyed being covered in it. You flicked your hands back and forth, a bit of wind helping to get the worst off and dry your hands.

The cyclops continued to moan in pain next to the pile of bones that was his buddy. You delicately sidestepped around him, avoiding the splatter of blood and fluid he was making as he thrashed around. “W-w-wait! Wait wait please!” came a shaky call from behind you.

You couldn’t help but grin before twirling around. The cat demon had stumbled forward, reaching for you. “You…you saved me.”

“I suppose I did. You’re welcome, cher,” you said in an airy tone as you started to move away.

“No, please! Help me! I’m not gonna make it through Extermination Day, please I’ll do anything!” he called, fear mixing with hope in his voice. Apparently he was having a very bad time in Hell and saw you as a lifeline.

“Anything? That’s quite a lot to offer to a demon you just met.” You faced him fully. Drawn by the cyclop’s cries and the sense of drama, a small crowd started to gather. “What’s your name?”

“André.”

“Y/N, the Singing Shrike.” There was a murmur in the crowd as some recognized your name. “If you’re willing to offer anything to an Overlord, then I’m willing to make a deal. My protection for your soul.” You held out your hand, still stained with retinal fluid and now emitting a silver light. “Do we have a deal?”

André’s ears flattened as he looked back and forth between your hand and the two demons, one dead and one dying, at your feet. “It’s a deal.” He clasped your hand firmly with his paw. There was a swirl of wind around you both that formed into a collar and chain on your new subordinate’s neck. It was only visible for a second. That’s one, you thought in satisfaction.

“Wonderful!” you chirped, clapping your hands once. “It’s always a delight to form new bonds, is it not? Now then, I’m feeling a bit parched. Let’s find something to drink while we discuss your future André.”

The reality of what he’d just done seemed to be sinking in, but he followed you anyway. It took a couple of blocks of walking before you found a decent looking coffee shop. You ordered two coffees, settled at an outdoor table and gestured at André to sit with you. The coffee was decent and you sipped the hot liquid before focusing on the cat demon.

“Now then. I’m sure you didn’t wake up this morning planning to sell your soul. You’re welcome to live and work wherever you like, so long as you understand that when I call you, you will be there. Follow my orders and we’ll get along fine. Now, what are your skills?”

It turned out he was a stage actor. He’d only been in Hell for a year and a half. The prospect of trying to survive Extermination Days every year made him a literal scaredy cat. Finding out he was an actor was a bonus. “That is perfect. Most of my followers are performers, you’ll fit right in, cher.” You penned an address on a card. “One of the theaters in my district. They’re auditioning after Extermination Day. I can set you up in our territory or you can keep staying where you are. Either way, I’ll call you on the Day to hold up my end of the deal.”

With that you sent him on his way; he said he’d take a look at your territory before deciding. Now you could drink your coffee and wait.

Before long, a female Sinner that had been in the crowd approached you. She looked like a luna moth, soft fluff and light green wings. “Miss Y/N? Are… are you… willing to make other deals?”

“Depending on the terms and the demon. Take a seat, cher, let’s talk.”

By the end of the day, you had five more souls in addition to André. The area you had come to wasn’t currently in dispute, but whoever was in charge was not doing a great job of maintaining any kind of order. So a decent handful were looking for someone, anyone, that could offer more security.

You were back home before Alastor and decided to start preparing dinner. Shrimp and grits sounded perfect after a day of negotiations. Alastor seemed to agree when he arrived. Over dinner the two of you compared your days.

Unsurprisingly, he had a slight number advantage already. But the game had just started and you weren’t about to concede to a mere three soul lead. He’d made a deal with a demon struggling to maintain a few blocks of territory. Once Alastor had the leader on a leash, the few souls he’d owned became Alastor’s as well.

For his part, your husband was thrilled at your disposal of two lowlifes and the lure you’d set in that area. “You’ve come a long way from a singer with a hat pin my dear.”

“So have you darling, from a radio host stalking the night with a knife.”

The month passed. Some days you returned to where you acquired André. Word had spread and other Sinners looking to avoid a second death came to offer their souls for safety. Other days you did offer small deals in other areas, building up to gaining a soul.

Some of your new demons spread word to their friends. And others heard of you from the lizard demon you let escape. Including the wannabe ruler of the neighborhood you were siphoning souls from.

There was a week left before Extermination Day and the end of your contest with Alastor. You had returned to the coffee shop you’d essentially taken over for negotiations. The owner had actually made a deal with you not too long ago, after witnessing you make so many without abusing your new subordinates. So she now had a source of better coffee and new machines due to be installed after Extermination Day. In the meantime she kept you and whoever joined your table supplied with drinks and snacks.

The crowd of Sinners approaching you now didn’t look like they were coming to negotiate however. They looked ready for a fight. One of the baristas whispered, “That’s the leader of the area and his gang, Miss.” You finished your drink and handed the cup to them. “Have everyone stay inside until I come in, cher.” The barista gladly dashed in the shop. Out of the corner of your eye, you could see the workers and customers within scuttling about.

You leaned back in the metal chair as they came up to your table. The group of roughly a dozen demons was led by a skeleton with poisonously purple gel attaching all his joints. Fluid bubbled within the rib cage and a dull blue haze surrounded his shoulders. You simply waited, talons interlaced.

Your silence and slight smile irritated the tall creature. He was used to small female demons being intimidated by him and his goons. Evidently your calm was unnerving.

“So you're the bitch stealing all my people huh?” he finally hissed at you.

You tilted your head, “That’s a very interesting definition of ‘stealing.’ It’s rather difficult to steal something that doesn’t belong to anyone. And I can’t really blame any of the residents for coming to me after seeing the state of things here.”

He slammed a fist on the table, denting it. “First you kill my cousin, then you snatch away my people and now you insult me? I’m gonna show you your place girlie.”

His crowd of sycophants started hyping him up: “You tell her boss, fuck that bitch up, show her whatcha got Knuckles, she’s gotta pay for Bones.” This fool’s name was Knuckles? This lot was just sad if they couldn’t think of anything better.

The haze around his shoulders turned into flames as the bones of his hands grew. More flames erupted along his arms and fingers as his hands turned into spiked boxing gloves.

In response, you summoned dozens of stilettos into the air. They glimmered briefly before launching at the group. Squishy thuds were followed by cries of pain as the blades found their targets; eyes, throats, guts. Knuckles whipped his head around at his crew suddenly dropping in a dozen bloody messes.

You stood up, made sure of your footing, and leapt at the surprised bag of bones. You were too close to manage a flip, but a stab to the torso worked just fine. Or so you thought. As the leader stumbled down, carried by your momentum along with the sudden pain, the gel holding him together spewed fluid from the wound.

All that vibrant color was for a reason you realized as your hand burned with whatever the bastard was filled with splashed on your hand. “Fuck!” You kneed the skeleton in the jaw, sending him flat on his back, before quickly making a little whirlwind around your hand to get the fluid off.

Hissing through the pain, you planted a heeled foot on his skull. “Do you own any souls?” you asked roughly. Amazing how well the skeleton could show fear and confusion. You repeated the question, enunciating each word. He shook head. “Mais la, too bad.” You pulled your foot back slightly, turning his head. Then you kicked sharply with a gust for added power, twisting his head away and snapping his neck.

Stepping into the coffee shop, you called out, “All clear ladies and gentlemen. Zoe,” you gestured to the owner, “I need your last aid kit and the sink. And someone to clean up the mess.” You ran your burned hand under the water for a good twenty minutes, making sure you got all the acid(?) off. It was definitely a chemical burn but it was superficial. It would just hurt like a bitch.

Zoe helped you pay the area dry and wrap it in a clean bandage. “Are you going home Miss?” she asked nervously. You could guess any of the skeleton’s cronies that you hadn’t killed would be out for revenge once they realized he was dead. It was barely after lunch so there was ample time in the day for word to spread.

“And miss out on the next act?” You laughed as you settled back into your seat outside. “What kind of Overlord would I be if I left the job half done?” Only four demons came looking for trouble, but without you there that would have been even one too many.

Three joined their former boss in a heap of bodies. One, yet another gel connected skeleton with a blue color scheme, took a look at the pile of corpses, and decided selling his soul to you was the better option. Once you had the former grunt under your talon, you felt you could leave safely. You summoned a demon that had been with you for years. The hawk demon was used to being your occasional muscle. So you left the two of them to guard the shop. Meanwhile the body clean up decided burning the pile was their best option, especially with the acid skeleton mixed in. As you took off, they were lighting the gasoline drenched corpses on fire.

Alastor was home before you. Once he saw your bandaged hand he insisted on inspecting the wound. “Cher, how did this happen?” He asked, brows knitted as he unwrapped the bandage.

“Folly on my part. I didn’t realize the acidic looking demon was in fact, acidic.” Alastor examined the area and determined it was superficial as you thought. He applied ointment and rebandaged your hand. “At least now that I’ve killed that excuse for a gang leader it will be easier to acquire souls. I’ve got to close your lead cher.”

Your husband returned to the jambalaya he was preparing. “Are you still up to the contest my dear? I wouldn’t blame you for wanting to call it off now.”

“Of course I am!” You smacked the table with your good hand. “I’m not about to let a little injury stop me! I’m having too much fun.”

Your prediction was accurate. Without the neighborhood’s erstwhile leader and Extermination Day less than a week away, already desperate demons were losing their shit. You kept your new muscle, Calve, with you. He proved to be a decent informant. He resented you of course; you’d taken out his whole gang including his cousins. Your charm wore him down and by the end of the week he had a grudging respect for you.

Extermination Day arrived. The night before you had ensconced all your new souls into your territory. Doors and windows were fortified; the angels liked easy pickings and extra barriers meant they often went looking for other targets. It was only when they couldn’t find demons in the open that they started breaking down entrances.

In relative safety, you and Alastor finished your final tallies. 122 new souls for you and 124 for him. The last six days had helped you catch up but he still managed to squeak by a win.

“Ah, I do feel bad, making you wash all the dishes when your hand is still injured,” he mused as screams filled the air outside.

You examined your freshly bandaged hand. “Well, if you are that concerned, you can continue with the chore until I’m healed up. Should only be a few more days. I’ll even add a few days onto my end as an apology.”

“Hmm,” Alastor hummed, thinking it over. He grinned as another shriek pierced the air. “It’s a deal.”

———————

@whitewolfsoldat @edgyboi10000 @ch3sire-blu3 @clearly-awkward @badatpunz @bengewatch @chewbrry

#hazbin hotel #hazbin fanfic #hazbin alastor #alastor x reader #alastor #asexual alastor #asexual reader #asexual #ace representation #acespec #cw blood #cw death #cw violence #cw sa implied

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thenyoumightaswellwrestleangels · 3 months ago

Text

Can we call it home, this game of ours? (even if we lose?)

Day 7 of Thank You, Haikyuu - event masterlist here

pairing: kuroo tetsurou x reader (gn) x kozume kenma

length: 9.1k

genre: heist au !! fluff, hurt/comfort

warnings: exes to lovers, hinata's kind of the villain, reader is physically intimidated at one point but it's all for show

a/n: done ?? au week done ?? can go outside and see sun now ?? (except I know I know I'm coming back for the day that I skipped <3)

tags: @love-and-lore

Tetsurou, much to your comfort, doesn't seem to have changed much in the three years since you've seen him last. As he stands just outside of the prison gates, leaning against the metal fence, you're struck with the thought that maybe the whole world really did stand still while you were gone - maybe time held itself back for you.

But then you blink, looking past him to his car and the empty passenger seat.

"Where's Kenma?" You ask quietly. Tetsurou just smiles in a rueful sort of way and pulls himself to his full standing height, beginning to walk towards his car.

"Come on," he says over his shoulder. "I'll drop you off wherever you want."

"What - Tetsurou," you call after him, breaking out into a jog to catch up to him as he slides into the driver's seat of his car. You pull open the door on the passenger side, looking at him strangely as he starts the engine and begins to pull out of the prison parking lot without another word.

"Where's Kenma?" You ask again as the two of you drive down the long, winding roads and away from the past three years of your life. In the early morning, the sun begins to shine its first rays onto the dew covering the grass and the hard set to Tetsurou's face.

There's a panicked sort of stuttering in your chest as you realize that things clearly did change, that the world tipped on its axis a little bit more while you were locked away.

"He's gone," Tetsurou says abruptly, a tightness in his voice.

"What does that mean?" You push. One of his hands tightens on the steering wheel while the other finds its way to your thigh, squeezing in what you're sure is supposed to be a comforting way.

"It means it's just the two of us now," he says quietly, staring out ahead. You follow his gaze out the front windshield and onto the endlessly stretching road, the sun wafting heat waves across the asphalt.

"I didn't think he'd take it so badly," you say quietly. Tetsurou sighs.

"You went to jail because of him, baby. How was he supposed to take it?" He points out. You frown, your hand finding his on your thigh so that you can twist your fingers with his.

"It wasn't his fault," you disagree. "We all fucked that job up."

"What, so it's my fault?"

"…Tetsurou," you say, shock flashing through your voice. He sighs and lets his shoulders slump.

"I'm sorry," he says honestly, squeezing your fingers in his. "I've been waiting for you for three years, you know… and the first thing you want to talk about is that."

"What, did you want me to kiss you?"

"A little," he confesses teasingly. You roll your eyes and flick him on the side of the head.

"Idiot," you murmur, but you lean over to press a kiss to his cheek anyway.

"That doesn't count," he shakes his head. "You have to give me a better one when we park."

"Yea, yea, alright," you sigh as if it's a weighty task and relax back into your seat, letting silence overtake the two of you as the sun climbs higher into the sky, sending searing tendrils of heat down towards the two of you.

"Did I really get broken up with three years ago?" You ask sullenly. "And I didn't even know?"

"Trust me," Tetsurou says dryly, "it wasn't better for me just because I did know. He… well, it was bad. I just don't think Kenma could do it without you - without it being the three of us."

"What about you?" You muse. Tetsurou glances at you questioningly. "Can you do it without it being all three of us?"

"Are you asking if I'm breaking up with you?"

"Kind of, yea," you shrug honestly. He presses his lips together for a moment, a guilty sort of look covering his face.

"I sort of think that's already happened, too, baby," he says softly. You blow a rush of air through your lips as you tip your head back against the leather seat.

"Wow," you quip. "Who knew prison could ruin your life so much."

"Kenma and I did," Tetsurou responds, his voice weighed down by the severity of his words. "That's why we couldn't stay together."

"I have a job for us," you say abruptly, seemingly ignoring his comments.

"You're… joking, right," Tetsurou asks slowly. "This is a joke. We're not in the game anymore. We're not."

"We are," you say stubbornly. "Just because I was benched for a few years doesn't mean I'm giving it up. I have a job for us - the perfect job. Come on, baby, the ball's in our court now. We have a chance here for something good."

"We had something good," Tetsurou sighs. "And then we fucked it up and you were arrested."

"I want to rob a casino," you say, disregarding Tetsurou's protests. He snaps his mouth shut at that, staring out ahead of him as he drives and blinks several times as shock, then annoyance, then weariness all pass over his face.

"I'm sorry, I hadn't realized you'd gone insane in there," he says tightly, but you just wave your hand dismissively.

"I've had three years to think about this - three years to plan this and I know how to do it. I know how we can do this," you say firmly. Tetsurou's sigh is heavy as he squints through the oncoming sun. It's lifted into the sky now, arching up over the endless blue and shining down on the two of you, illuminating your faces to each other.

"What's the casino?" He asks finally.

"Hinata Shouyou's," you answer immediately. Tetsurou swerves slightly, causing you to grab the handle on your door as he recovers from his shock.

"How did you know -"

"I didn't," you admit. "It's just that I'd take any chance to beat Hinata at this game - you know that. But now… if Kenma's gone, there's only one person he'll have to run to. I know that as well as you."

"You want to steal Kenma away from Hinata and rob, what, $50 million from him?" Tetsurou's voice, much to your amusement, has climbed in pitch as the shock of your words sets further in.

"No," you say plainly. "Three months from now, Hinata's hosting an event at his casino. On that night, there'll be close to $150 million in that vault. That's when I want to grab it."

"Well…" Tetsurou says slowly, shifting in his seat as he turns your words over and over in his mind. "You better have a good fucking plan."

"I do," you assure immediately. "I always do."

It's three weeks after that when the two of you find yourselves in a hotel suite in Las Vegas, pouring over stolen blueprints of Hinata's casino and his vault. Tetsurou traces a finger across one of the pages, frowning.

"This is Kenma's work, all right. Getting through security systems like this… surveillance was always his part. How are we going to do it without him?" You cross your arms and hum thoughtfully as you stare down at the prints.

"There's always Lev?" You suggest. Tetsurou frowns in concern.

"The kid?"

"Yea, I mean he was basically Kenma's shadow for a while before… well, when we were all still doing this together. He's not… he's not Kenma. No one will ever be that good. But I think he's our next best option." Tetsurou sighs at your words and spins slowly on his heel to walk away from you, slouching onto one of the plush hotel sofas and massaging a hand over the back of his neck.

"This doesn't feel right," he says quietly, and a frown tugs at your lips as you follow after him, sitting down next to him and knocking his hand out of the way with your own so that you can smooth over the tension in his neck.

"I know," you say softly. "But if we do this right, we'll get him back and it'll never have to be this way again." Tetsurou looks at you hard for a moment, like there's something eating at him that he's trying not to let out.

"Are you sure Kenma will want to come back to us?" He asks quietly. You hum thoughtfully.

"Hinata cares about the game, about making sure he always has the best hand. Getting Kenma was just part of that… making Kenma see that will be part of getting him back." Tetsurou frowns, looking thoroughly unconvinced, so you tap his cheek with your finger to grab his attention again before continuing. "When we got into this business, we agreed to play like we had nothing to lose - but then we did lose. And now it's time to get that back."

"If it comes down to it," Tetsurou says slowly, "if it's Kenma or the money, which do you choose?" You look at him like it's obvious, like he should know, by now, which direction your heart has always been pulled in.

"Have any of us really ever been in this for the money?" You ask rhetorically. He hums in agreement, but looks at you pointedly anyway.

"Hinata is," he says flatly. You grin.

"I know… that's what I'm counting on." Tetsurou just rolls his eyes at your assuredness and tips himself forward back up to a stand, making his way back to the table to look at the blueprints again while you sprawl out on the sofa.

"What about the money?" He asks over his shoulder.

"The $150 million? What, you can't think of ways to spend it?" You quip back.

"I meant before that," Tetsurou says easily, and your own lips twitch up a the smile that you can hear in his voice. "A job like this takes some serious financial backing. We'll need someone to fund it."

"It's already done," you say flippantly, and when he turns to stare at you, you grin. "Come on, I haven't been out that long. I know how to set these things up."

"So? How are we doing this?" He asks, crossing his arms thoughtfully as he leans against the table and watches you sit up.

"I called Yaku," you explain. "He chewed me out for a while first - he thinks we're idiots to try to do something like this -"

"Of course," Tetsurou interjects. You shrug in agreement.

"But," you continue, "there's also nothing he'd rather do than beat Hinata at his own game. He's on his way - his flight lands in the morning."

"So… it's settled then," Tetsurou says slowly. You nod.

"As long as we get Lev," you point out. He just waves his hand dismissively.

"He'll bite. What about Yamamoto?"

"I figure you can grab him," you say. Tetsurou nods and looks out past you through the tall windows and onto the endless flashing lights and neon signs of Las Vegas, the sun setting low in the sky and bathing it all in an endless soft pink.

"Are we really doing this?" He asks quietly. You follow his gaze out towards the endless horizon, to the light that leads you further beyond what you've ever done before.

"I guess we are," you respond, your voice low. "Looks like I need to take a trip to New York."

What Lev is really doing in New York, you figure, is both none of your business and beyond your sense of wonder. As he gets off of a subway train, though, he pats his pocket rather gleefully and expects to feel the outline of the wallet he's just pinched from some unsuspecting businessman.

Instead of the smooth, worn leather, though, he pulls out a note - a little card that says nice pull! and has the location for a diner nearby scrawled onto it. Lev isn't stupid - he knows your writing when he sees it, knows a job when one comes walking up to him. He tells himself that he's going to say no, that he's only going to meet you to see what you're up to and then he'll leave… because he knows now. He knows better than to get involved with the three of you.

But then he's sitting across from you and you've got those hungry, burning eyes and that wicked, sharp smile and he can feel himself being pulled further, further, too far in.

"You can't rob a casino," he says bluntly, but you just smile in that wicked way of yours.

"It's Hinata's," you point out. Lev stares at you.

"You can't… go up against Hinata," he says haltingly. You cock your head to the side and pout in mock sympathy.

"What, you afraid of losing to him?"

"I won't lose against Hinata Shouyou," Lev snaps, and you smile like a wolf that's just caught its prey.

"Do you want to come prove it, then?" You push, but Lev just sighs and looks at you wearily.

"The last time I got involved in a job with the three of you, I watched you get hauled off to prison and Kenma disappeared," he says quietly. You grow sombre at his words, reaching forward to flick him on the forehead where his eyebrows are pulled together in a comforting sort of way.

"I know, Lev," you say quietly. "But it's not going to happen twice. We're going to beat him this time." Lev groans a bit and runs a hand through his hair and you know that you've got him, leaning back in your chair as you wait for him to cave.

But then he pulls out the plane tickets that he'd snatched from your pocket earlier to look at them and you arch a brow.

"That's your best lift yet," you say honestly. He smiles a bit, a sly sort of thing, before sliding one of the tickets into his coat pocket.

"What can I say," he shrugs. "I'd love to get to play a match against Hinata."

By the time you and Lev are back in Las Vegas, the rest of them are already there in your hotel suite, lounging on sofas or sitting at the large table. Yamamoto, when you swing the door open, claps you on the back in greeting.

"It's good to have you back," he says it easily, but there's a softness in his eyes that makes you smile.

"It's good to have you back," you quip kindly. Yamamoto grins at the comment.

"Of course," he says easily. "It'll be nice working with proper villains again."

"Alright then," Tetsurou claps his hands together, gathering everyone's attention as you and Lev move further into the suite and he finds an armchair to settle into while you pull yourself up to sit on top of the table. "Let's get to work."

"We need to get this part right," you say clearly. "We need to know what we're heading into. There are enough traps and catches and twists with this to get us all locked up if we fuck this up… but if we get it right, it's $150 million split five ways."

"And Kenma," Lev chimes in.

"And Kenma," Tetsurou nods. A heaviness sets over the room, a weight born of the severity of your tangled, shared future as the sun begins to set outside, the purple glow of the horizon blending into the neon billboards of the city outside and flashing streams of colours over your faces.

"The first thing we need to take care of is reconnaissance," you explain. "Cash cart paths, dealer rotations, everything. Casinos are built to keep people in - know the quick routes out. Yaku and Yamamoto, spend some time losing some money there - watch, learn, remember."

"Yaku," Tetsurou goes on to explain, pulling a briefcase up onto the table and tapping the lid, "is taking a vacation to Vegas. He's going to spend some time staying at Hinata's hotel and he's going to hand this briefcase over to security - something about it being full of valuables."

"Being the excellent host that Hinata is," you say dryly," he'll offer to have the briefcase stowed in the casino's vault for safekeeping."

"That'll be me, right?" Yamamoto chimes in. "Yaku'll need a security detail to deliver the case for him."

"Exactly," Tetsurou confirms. "Hope you brought some costume changes." You laugh at the quip, mostly because you know Yamamoto does have a suitcase full of everything he could possibly need for things like this, before you continue.

"The second task is power. The night of the heist, we're going to darken the city - shut off power everywhere on the main grid. Tetsurou will take care of that."

"And" Tetsurou adds, "Lev will, of course, be taking care of surveillance. Whatever you need, we'll set it up here in the suite."

"It shouldn't be too hard," Lev shrugs, his sharp eyes flitting around your faces. "If I can get into their security system, I can watch all the feeds from here and pull you out if things start to go wrong."

"Don't get scared, though, alright?" You warn. "No pulling people out unless there's no other option." Lev fixes you with a hard look at your words, a sternness in his face and voice that isn't often heard from him.

"I'm not letting anyone get caught doing this. Not this time." The room, at that, gets quiet as the sun dips lower, darkness beginning to roll over the hotel suite. Tetsurou flicks on the light switch on the wall and the artificial, yellow glow illuminates Lev's hard gaze and the way you press your lips together.

"We're not going to get caught," you say firmly.

"And I'll make sure of it," is Lev's answer.

The night does, naturally, grow a bit sombre after that, the plans poured over a bit more meticulously as everyone turns over, in their heads, the unspoken truth. If this job goes wrong, if someone ends up in jail… it'll be the last one. Game over. There are no do-overs left here for any of you.

It's late in the evening when Kenma sits in one of the many, many restaurants in his partner's casino, checking his watch yet again. He can't really find it in himself to be surprised - Hinata's always late, always caught up on running the business and winning the game.

Kenma wonders, in a depressed, sullen sort of way and certainly not for the first time, if he just traded one shitty hand for another, never really getting out of this endless match. He knows, as he stares at the date on his phone, that you're free these days, that you're out of prison and on parole. It's much to his own bitter disappointment that he's counted down the days since your release - he didn't want to, really, but he just couldn't seem to help it.

He's swirling the water in his glass, watching the condensation trickle down the sides and onto the expensive tablecloth and wondering why you haven't reached out, when you slide into the seat across from him - the seat meant for Hinata.

"Hey, Kenma," you say kindly, and it's like the world begins to cave in around him. Three years have gone by without him seeing you or Tetsurou and he could almost convince himself that he'd forgotten about you, that you were some figment of his past that time had crumbled away.

But here you are, sitting in front of him and looking at him like you remember how to love.

"You shouldn't be here," he says haltingly. "Hinata will be here soon."

"Will he?" You point out. "I'm not sure you're the type of person who ever deserves to be kept waiting."

"You kept me waiting for three years," Kenma snaps, and you purse your lips.

"You didn't wait, though, did you?" You say gently, your words making Kenma's heart stutter in his chest as he scowls and looks away. "I'm sorry, baby," you add, and Kenma looks at you like he's trying to forget how to love you.

"You shouldn't be here," he says haltingly, and you sigh slowly.

"Hinata's no good for you. You know that, right?"

"Hinata's… safe. He's reliable and consistent and he'll be here any minute," Kenma responds, his voice wavering. You fix him with a disbelieving look.

"How reliable is a man who's never even on time for a date?" Kenma opens his mouth to retort, but then snaps it shut when he realizes he has no defence. You just sigh again in a long-suffering sort of way and stand, taking his hand in yours to press one gentle kiss to his knuckles before bidding him farewell.

"Wait!" Kenma stands in a rush as you turn to leave. "What are you planning?"

"What do you mean?" You ask innocently. He rolls his eyes at the act.

"You don't give up… not like this. Tell me what you're going to do."

"I don't know who you think I am, baby," you say honestly. "I won't pretend that I don't want you back - but I don't take… not like this." With that, you turn to leave again, but your name passing through Kenma's lips has you pausing once more.

"How's… how's Tetsurou?" He asks quietly.

"He misses you," is your simple response before you walk away, missing the way that Hinata shows up next to Kenma, a caring hand on his lover's waist as he scowls at your retreating figure.

"Uh, hey…" Lev says slowly, worry making his voice tight. "I think we have a problem."

"What's wrong?" Tetsurou says from his spot on one of the hotel suite sofas, the rest of you lounging around.

"Aw, I've been caught," you say easily from where you're looking over Lev's shoulder at one of computer monitors.

"Yea," Lev says heavily. "You've been flagged by the casino as an ex-con." Yaku snorts.

"Hinata's flagged you as Kenma's ex. This is just to make it official," he quips from where he's sitting with his legs thrown over the arm of one of the sofas.

"Either way," Lev points out, "the minute you step foot into that casino, you'll be trailed and monitored by security the entire time"

"Good," you say, patting Lev on the back as he frowns. "That's all we were waiting for… Now it's time to really get to work."

"Ok, now remember - Yaku's only got 30 minutes of breathing room in that thing, so we have to be quick about this," Lev says quietly from his place in the hotel suite, his eyes trained on the various screens around him that are showing security feeds from around the casino. Yamamoto doesn't answer, although Lev knows he's heard the comment from the glance he sends to the nearest security camera as he wheels a cash cart through the casino.

Lev does sort of wonder, for a minute, how Yamamoto managed to get his hands on one of the casino staff uniforms, but then you walk in through the front doors and he's distracted. Fortunately, the casino security is also momentarily distracted enough to glance past Yamamoto wheeling the cart through to the staff area and down towards the vault below.

"Are we sure this is a good idea?" Lev asks nervously as he watches security approach you on the cameras, two men grabbing you and hauling you off the casino floor and away from the guest area. "They're heading to the cameras' blind spot."

"Trust me," Tetsurou says comfortingly, clapping a hand on Lev's back. "Our guy's already in there."

"Your guy?"

"He's an old friend. We'll just owe him a favour after this," Tetsurou says easily before checking his watch. "Alright, I'm out of here… take care of us, Lev." Lev opens his mouth to respond, to promise, to plead, to beg for nothing bad to happen, but Tetsurou's already gone and he's alone, watching the game of it all through the safety of his computer screens.

As you get escorted by security into a back room, you note that it looks a bit like an interrogation room and that, funnily enough, there are no cameras to be seen. A bruiser comes in after you, someone big and intimidating as he locks the door behind him and rounds on you, cracking his knuckles.

"Hey, Bo," you say easily, grinning as you sit on the cool, metal table. "How's Akaashi?" Bokuto's smile matches yours as he pulls you into a crushing hug.

"Didn't you get his letters?" He asks as you part. "You owe us a visit now that you're out."

"I did get them - every one," you say as you stand up on the table, reaching towards the ceiling. "And after this - fuck, I'll owe you two a vacation for helping us out." Bokuto reaches up to help you pop out the panel of the ceiling vent so that you can begin to haul yourself up and into the dark, endless tunnel. He lets you prop a foot up on his shoulder, hoisting you up and into the vent before lifting the grate to pop it back in place.

Before he hands it to you, though he stops, frowning with his brows furrowed as he says your name slowly.

"Make sure you get all the way to the finish line this time," he says quietly. "I don't want to see my friend hauled off in handcuffs again."

"I promise," you say easily, fixing him with a genuine smile. "This time… this time, we've got it."

"Alright, time to cause a scene," Lev says into his mic, knowing Yamamoto's heard him when he grins a bit wickedly. He's stowed the cash cart successfully in the vault and is making his way back out onto the casino floor in regular, civilian clothes when Lev gives the heads up.

Fortunately, there's no one who can cause a commotion like Yamamoto, and he's yelling and swearing up enough of a storm that security gets involved, escorting him out of the casino and drawing enough attention that Lev can successfully put the elevator camera feeds on a loop, giving Tetsurou the perfect opportunity to slip in and pop the vent panel out.

You're there, of course, holding out a hand to haul him up and out of the elevator and then pop the grate back into place successfully - and Lev lets out a sigh of relief when it all goes down so smoothly in the time that it takes for security to kick Yamamoto out of the casino and get themselves back on track.

"How's Bokuto?" Tetsurou asks in the quiet darkness of the elevator shaft.

"Oh, he's great," you say easily. "Hey, why didn't you send me letters when I was in prison?" Tetsurou shoots you a bemused sort of look as the two of you begin to set up cords to belay down the elevator shaft towards the vault.

"Is that really what you want to talk about right now?" He asks distractedly.

"Yes," you answer immediately, tugging on your cord to test it. "I didn't hear from you for three years."

"Because…" Tetsurou falters, staring down at the endless darkness of the elevator shaft, at the pitch black that wraps around the two of you, at the three years of his life with you that just… slipped away. "Because I love you," he says simply.

"What, you loved me enough to leave me?" You say, not bothering to hide the sharp pain in your voice.

"I loved you enough for it to make me act like an idiot," he says back honestly, his voice catching. "I still do. Otherwise, I wouldn't be hanging from the top of an elevator shaft with you."

"Hm, I suppose," you say, unconvinced. Tetsurou throws you a long-suffering look, but you can't see it through the darkness. Lev's voice crackles through your earpieces and disrupts whatever it is that you've started with your question.

"Uh, guys…" he says hesitantly. "Not to interrupt, but we're good to cut the power here." Tetsurou makes an embarrassed sort of noise through the darkness and you laugh.

"Do it," you command, and Lev announces it through everyone's earpieces before power throughout the entire casino cuts out.

"You've got fifteen seconds before the generators kick in and the motion sensors are back online, you've gotta go now," Lev says. You and Tetsurou take the command, belaying down the elevator shaft, through the endless darkness until you hit bottom.

Lev watches, on the cameras, as the casino's sent into complete disarray during the blackout and uses the moment to set all of the vault security cameras onto a looped feed while you and Tetsurou give him the heads up that you've reached the bottom of the elevator shaft.

As you pry open the doors and climb out into the hallway leading to the vault, Yaku climbs out of the cash cart that Yamamoto has stowed in there, pulling himself up onto the counter in the middle of the space. He rolls his neck, his muscles tense from having squeezed into the cart, as he spots the briefcase that had been stowed earlier that week.

Clicking open the briefcase carefully, he takes the explosive charges out slowly so that he can stick them to the vault door one by one, knocking on the metal as he places them.

Just outside of the vault, you and Tetsurou stand and stare at the large, looming, metal door.

"There's a 5'4, 140lbs man with $150 million on the other side of this door," you say as you place your hand on the cool metal.

"Yea," Tetsurou says easily. "…Let's get him out. Now." He opens the duffle bag that he's brought with him, pulling out matching explosive charges and listening for Yaku's knocking so that he can line up where he's placing them.

"Count us down, Lev," you say quietly and Lev switches over to the vault security cameras, watching as Yaku bends himself to climb back into the cash cart, trusting the altered metal exterior to protect him from the blast.

"Counting down now," Lev begins. "10, 9…"

"This is it, you know," you say to Tetsurou as the two of you stand in the vault's hallway, backing up further and further toward the elevator door and listening to Lev count down to one. "There's no going back after this." Tetsurou grabs your arm gently, pulling you against him and tangling a hand into your hair as he kisses you firmly. You make a small noise of shock as he does, but your hands find his chest to smooth up his shirt and you let him kiss you - you realize, your head a bit fuzzy, that you'll always let him do what he wants.

"No one I'd rather do it with than you," he says quietly when you part.

"Except for Kenma," you point out, a smile tugging at your lips. He laughs just as Lev's countdown hits one.

"Except for Kenma." With that, the vault door blows and you watch Yaku climb back out of the cash cart amidst the smoke, remarkably unscathed.

"Alright," you say briskly, stepping into the vault and reaching for Tetsurou's duffle bag, pulling endless empty bags out of it. "Now for the real trick."

Kenma sits at one of the many bars in his partner's casino, swirling his drink endlessly around and around and around in his glass while he waits for Hinata to return to him and he wonders, sort of dully, when his life became this cycle.

But he supposes that he can't really blame Hinata - not this time when then the power's just been cut and he's scrambling to regain control of his establishment. But it's not like this is the first time he's been left waiting, Kenma thinks dryly, and he doubts it will be the last.

Hinata is just finally walking up to him, a tense, focused look on his face, when Kenma's phone begins to ring. He answers it as Hinata slides onto the bar stool next to him and he whips his head around to stare at his partner as the voice on the phone asks Kenma to pass the phone to him.

"What's wrong?" Hinata frowns as Kenma holds the phone out to him, a shocked look on his face.

"It's for you," is all he says, and Hinata's frown deepens as he takes the phone and holds it to his ear.

"Who is this?" Hinata's voice is clipped, rushed and business-like.

"This is the man who's robbing you," the unknown voice responds, making him freeze. He stands abruptly, making his way out of the bar and towards his security area, Kenma hot on his heels.

"Show me the vault," he snaps at the employee who's monitoring the camera feeds and, once the man's scrambled to show Hinata, he'd faced with images of… nothing. It's just his vault, entirely intact and full. Bringing the cell phone back up to his ear, he huffs.

"What game are you playing," he snaps. "There's nothing going on in my vault."

"You're watching? Good," Lev responds just before he switches the security feeds, now showing video of three people, masked and in all black and hauling duffle bags of cash out of his vault.

Kenma falters at the sight, taking a step back and away from his partner. It's out of shock, Hinata assumes as he stares at the camera feeds of millions of dollars being taken from him.

"What you're seeing right now," Lev continues over the phone. "Is only half of your current holdings. As I'm sure you already know, you currently have just over $150 million in your vault tonight - we've taken just $75 million."

Hinata takes a step back, his heart hammering in his chest and his head spinning as the voice continues speaking in his ear. Perhaps, if he'd been paying more attention, he would've noticed Kenma slipping away, out of the security room and back out towards the casino floor.

"The other $75 million," Lev continues to explain, "is currently sitting in your vault with explosives rigged. You, Hinata Shouyou, will have your staff take the duffle bags out to the black van that's sitting outside your front doors. If you try anything… if you do anything… we'll blow the money left behind in the vault and the money in the duffle bags."

"Call the police," Hinata whispers, bringing the phone away from his mouth for a moment and watching as one of his employees picks up the landline, dialling 911.

"So, Hinata," Lev continues on the phone. "You can choose to lose $75 million privately or $150 million publicly. The choice is yours."

Lev, from where he's sitting in the hotel suite, spins in his chair a bit before intercepting the landline call to the police.

"Alright, get to it Lev, stop playing with him so much." Lev hears your words through his earpiece, but he can also hear your following laughter and the grin in your voice. He listens to Hinata agree to his terms and then cuts the call without another word as he watches, through the security camera, as the duffle bags are taken by the casino employees and hauled out to the unmarked van parked just outside.

On a separate monitor, he watches Kenma slip upstairs to the casino's hotel, going into his suite quietly. Kenma exhales deeply once he enters, eyeing the bed that he and Hinata have slept in, the mugs from their matching morning coffee sitting on the counter in the kitchen, the lives that the two of them have been intertwining together.

He paces and runs a hand through his hair and wonders, sort of desperately, who he wants to win this game and whose side he's on. He's no idiot - he knows Lev's voice when he hears it and he knows your plans when they begin to unfold. He recognizes the game that's being laid out in front of him…and he's trying to decide how to move his piece on the board.

As he looks out the tall windows towards the city beyond, the endless horizon and the open, deepening sky of the evening stretching on overhead, he feels a sort of spark igniting within him. It's an itch, a hunger that he hasn't felt in almost three years. It's the need to engage in this back and forth, to set up the trap and watch it all fall apart.

As Kenma stares out towards the endless sky, he thinks that maybe it's finally time to play the game again - he thinks that it's finally time to come home.

Hinata watches, on the security monitors, as the SWAT team that he's had his employee call for enters his vault, masked and armed and marching in - all three of them. But as they step over the threshold, the cameras cut out and an explosion is heard over the audio from the feeds, mayhem commencing in the vault. True to what the voice on the phone had said, the $75 million in the vault has been blown… completely destroyed.

Hinata inhales deeply, bracing his hands on the table in front of him and staring at the feeds as they come back online, showing the destroyed vault.

"What about the van?" He asks quietly, his voice burning as he speaks.

"We have a team monitoring it, sir," one of his employees pipes up. "But… the explosives were also set to go off there… I'm - I'm sorry, sir, but the money's gone."

But Hinata's already leaving, sweeping out of the room and stomping down to his destroyed vault. He blinks a bit as he approaches the blown-off, metal door, spinning on his heel a few times as he realizes, for the first time that evening, that Kenma's nowhere to be found. He swears under his breath as he approaches the SWAT team, deciding that his partner's disappearance is a problem to be dealt with later.

"Get out," he snaps as he enters the ruined vault. One of the SWAT team members turns to him, face hidden by their mask.

"We really should -"

"I said get out," Hinata all but shouts, and the person speaking takes a step back.

"It's your vault," they shrug before hauling their equipment bags onto their shoulders, gesturing for their team to do the same until the entire SWAT team is packed up and heading out, making their way up and out of the casino.

Hinata stands, vision blurred and blood thundering through his ears as his breath catches. This careful game that he's been playing, one foot in front of another for years, he's finally lost, and he staggers with the weight of it all.

He stands there for some time, clenching his fists and feeling his knees tremble before he calms and clears his head enough to really look around. It's then, finally, that he looks to his feet and catches a glimpse of the burnt, destroyed money.

But… he blinks. He rubs his eyes and looks again. It must be - no, it can't be. Hinata bends and picks up the charred money and looks around at all of the bills scattered throughout the vault and realizes that… there's no money here at all. They're just… flyers. Paper ads.

Hinata reaches into his pocket, fumbling for his cell phone and dialling up to his security room.

"Someone check the money in the van - now," he orders, waiting as he hears his employees scrambling to find someone who can run outside and check.

"Sir, it's - you won't believe this, but… there's no money here. It's just - the duffle bags were just full of flyers." Hinata lowers the phone from his ear slowly, tossing it onto the floor of the vault before sliding down to a crouch and burying his head in his hands.

"Sir?" His employee's voice sounds from the phone where it lays on the marble floor next to him. "What is - what does this mean?"

"It means," says Hinata, so quietly that he knows he can't be heard over the phone, "that I've been set up… it means I've lost the game." The golden detailing of the floor shines up into his face and the weight of loss sinks into him as he stares at the destroyed remnants of his vault door.

The SWAT van, as it pulls out and away from the casino, is largely ignored by Hinata and his security. But the driver takes his mask off and it's Tetsurou, grinning and laughing. Yaku and Yamamoto take their masks off, as well, and the three of them stare down at the big, black bags of money sitting at their feet, completely unnoticed by anyone as they walked right out of the front doors with them.

"Psst, Bokuto," You whisper as you shimmy through the vent and Bokuto perks up at the noise, climbing up onto the table to remove the grate and help you down from the vent before carefully putting everything back into place.

"Everything's going well?" He asks, his voice a bit tight with worry. You flash him a solid smile.

"Everything's going perfectly," you say easily. He sighs and lets his shoulders drop as you sit up on the table. "Ok," you say, tapping your cheek expectantly. "Land a few solid ones… make it believable."

"I…" Bokuto starts quietly. "I don't want to hit you."

"You gotta, Bo," you say breezily. "Come on, I'll give you a few million for it."

Hinata sweeps out through the blown doorway, nearly running to reach the elevator and leave the vault area. The night that you'd come to see Kenma keeps replaying over and over in his mind and he's certain - he's certain that this was you.

But when he finds himself outside of the interrogation room, he can hear the noises of the bruiser that he'd hired roughing you up. When he swings the door open, Bokuto has you by the collar of your shirt and a bruise is blooming over your cheek.

"Put them down and go wait outside." Hinata's voice is sharp and icy and Bokuto drops you, leaving the room swiftly without looking back at all. You groan a bit and sit up on the table, eyeing Hinata.

"Was this you?" He asks, his voice wavering with barely levelled rage.

"Was what me?" You say tiredly, feigning innocence. He steps closer, his eyes flitting over you as if he'll find some sort of secret hidden on you somewhere.

"Did you do this?" He asks firmly. You shrug.

"I haven't done anything tonight… yet," your joking quip has Hinata scowling, but he steps aside and gestures to the door.

"Get out of here, then," he says shortly, and you rise to a stand slowly, ambling your way out and into the hallway.

In his hotel suite, Kenma's still pacing and chewing his nails nervously, the golden glow of the setting sun shimmering over his yellowed hair as the phone rings. It's the hotel suite phone, he realizes abruptly, and he stares at it for a moment before picking it up and bringing it to his ear.

"Turn the TV on to channel 3," the voice on the other line says.

"Lev -"

"You're not supposed to know it's me. Just… turn the TV on." The call drops after that and Kenma stares at the phone in his hand for a moment before he turns on the television, flipping to channel 3 with dread coiling in the pit of his stomach.

It's… the casino's security footage on the screen, one of the endless, winding hallways of the staff area showing as you walk down it, nursing a split lip and a bruised cheek.

"Hey, just one question, Hinata," Kenma watches you ask - he watches as his partner tips his head back and sighs and stares at you with burning, hungry eyes. "If you could choose… if you could either get your money back or keep Kenma… what would it be?" Kenma feels his breath catch in his lungs at the way Hinata scowls at you.

"The money," he says immediately. "I want to win my money… I'm not here to win people." Kenma actually steps back at that, stumbles and sits on the plush, golden-hued sofa of the hotel suite. He watches as you press your lips together at Hinata's words and shake your head.

"That's a shame," he listens to you say, "because I don't have your money. Looks like we both lost tonight." Kenma switches off the TV at that, nausea rolling through his stomach as Hinata's words ring through him again and again and again.

The last light of the day's sun dips below the horizon and the city begins to come alive, teaming with the neon lights of the casinos and the billboards and the games and Kenma… well, Kenma's never felt quite so far from home. He's never felt, so acutely, like he's somewhere where he doesn't belong, and he feels a desperation tearing at him.

He thinks of your face on the TV, tired and worn and missing him and he stumbles to a stand, nearly tearing his hair out with the way he runs his fingers through it anxiously as he thinks of you and Tetsurou and you and Tetsurou and you.

He rips out of the hotel suite, slamming the door behind him as he tears through the hallways and down toward the main floor, nearly slamming into Hinata when he catches up to him. Hinata shoots his hands out to steady Kenma, his brows furrowing in concern, but Kenma's looking past him, his eyes trained on your retreating figure disappearing through the casino doors.

"Kenma, what -" Hinata begins, but Kenma's sharp, hurt gaze falling onto him makes him clamp his mouth shut.

"You, of all people, Hinata," Kenma begins, his voice hard and firm, "should know when you've lost the game." That's all it takes for Hinata's grip on his arms to loosen enough for Kenma to shake him off, all but running out towards the front doors of the casino and after you.

"Wait!" Kenma's voice catches as he breaks out into a run just outside of the casino doors, watching two police officers cuff you beside their car. "Wait! That's my - that's my partner, just wait." You stumble for a moment at his voice before whipping your head around to stare at him as you're led to the back of the cop car, the door slamming closed behind you.

Kenma stands, breathless and desperate on the sidewalk, as he watches the lights of the police car disappear into traffic. There's a panicked stuttering in his heart as he considers that this is the second time this has happened - this is the second time that he's watched his home disappear in front of his eyes, leaving him alone and reeling and with nothing other than the endless sky to guide him.

"It's just for violating parol," Tetsurou's voice has Kenma spinning around and he sees the man standing, leaning against a fence with his hands shoved into the pockets of his suit.

"Tetsurou?" Kenma says weakly. Tetsurou just smiles in that comforting, sturdy way of his and stands fully so that he can walk to his partner. Kenma, in turn, walks to him as if he can't help it, as if he's being tugged by some invisible red thread that bonds the three of you together.

"It's just for violating parol," Tetsurou says again, smoothing a comforting hand over the back of Kenma's head, taming the hair that's begun to tangle from him nervously running his hands through it. "They'll be out in… three months, probably."

"I'll wait," Kenma says quickly, staring down the endless, sprawling road that the police car had disappeared down. "I'll wait for them this time." Tetsurou hums with a comforting sort of understanding and wraps an arm around Kenma's shoulders.

"I know you will," he says softly, and Kenma looks up at him with teary, pained eyes.

"It'll be different this time, won't it?" He asks quietly, his voice wavering. Tetsurou looks out towards the vast city and the endless road and huffs out a breath.

"I guess this is all how it started, isn't it?" He muses. "What, with them disappearing and the two of us having to try to pick up the pieces? "

"Tetsurou," Kenam says earnestly, and Tetsurou stoops down to press a gentle kiss to the crown of his head.

"It'll be different this time," he assures. "It'll be different."

You hope, sort of desperately, that it really is different this time when you're released once again, three months from that night. Sure enough, it's Kenma who's leaning against the prison gates when you walk out, his hands stuffed in his pockets and his hair pulled back.

You cock your head to the side as you walk up to him, angling your gaze around him to spot Tetsurou asleep in the backseat of the car.

"Just checking," you say as you shrug, turning to face Kenma again. He snorts, rolling his eyes and tugging you by your collar to pull you in enough that he can press a hard kiss to your lips. You make a small, startled sort of noise, but reach to tangle your hands in his hair, nonetheless, as he palms at you and presses you against the prison fence.

A car honking abruptly pulls the two of you away from each other and you look out toward the parking lot to see Tetsurou awake, leaning over into the front seat to lay on the horn as he scowls at you. You laugh, a loud and honest thing and tangle Kenma's fingers with your own as you pull him to the car.

"Come on," you say easily as he grumbles under his breath, a blush spreading up his cheeks as the two of you slide into the car, him taking the passenger seat while you sprawl out in the back, Tetsurou having climbed over the center console to take the driver's seat.

"So," he asks, starting the engine and looking at you through the rearview mirror. "Where to?"

"Well," you drawl, sitting up and leaning forward between the two front seats to press matching kisses to their cheeks. "We can go anywhere we want these days."

Tetsurou laughs and pulls out of the parking lot, travelling down endless, winding roads as the sun shines overhead, bathing the three of you in a vast, golden glow.

"You know what I've been thinking," you snap your fingers, causing Kenma to raise a brow suspiciously as he glances back toward you. "We've gotta get Lev in on more jobs… he wasn't bad out there, I think he's got real potential." Tetsurou blows a large breath out and laughs, rolling his eyes fondly.

"Do you think maybe we could make it fully off of prison property before you start planning the next job?" He quips long sufferingly, grinning while he speaks in a way that gives him away.

"What?" You say defensively, your own smile giving away your happiness. "I'm free, I'm headed home, and I'm with you two. Can't I dream a little?"

"You don't have a home," Tetsurou points out good-naturedly. "You lost that when you went to prison for three years."

"I think," you begin, only half-jokingly now, "that home is right here with you two… right?" The two of them soften at that and Kenma leans back to press a kiss sweetly to your lips - something that you lean forward for until Tetsurou puts a hand on your head and lovingly shoves you back into the backseat. "If you don't put your seatbelt on, we might never find out how true that is, okay?" He says patiently, and you laugh at his concern but settle in and buckle your seatbelt anyway. The three of you sit in silence for a moment, letting the road disappear underneath the car and stretch on ahead of you and behind you as you feel, for the first time in so, so long, like you're moving forward in this life that you three share.

"You're quiet," you say finally, nudging Kenma with your hand. He looks out the window pointedly.

"We're all quiet," he says distantly.

"Hm, no," you go on. "You're different quiet."

"What's up?" Tetsurou joins in, tapping Kenma gently on the thigh as he sighs and shifts in his seat.

"I just think," he begins slowly, "that we shouldn't… give Lev more credit than he's due."

"What do you mean?" You ask, frowning slightly.

"Just that…" Kenma trails off, chewing his lip in contemplation for a moment before he continues. "It's just that… there may have been some times when he got a little… stuck. And maybe, perhaps, there was someone… helping him out a little. Just, you know, nudging him in the right direction… smoothing out some problems for him."

Silence blankets the three of you for some time after that, Tetsurou staring out toward the winding road as you, in turn, stare at Kenma, both of you wearing matching looks of shock with your mouths hanging open.

"Oh my god," you say eventually, tipping your head back to laugh as you lean back across the backseat. "Oh my god, we - you were helping us the whole time?"

"Well," Kenma says slowly, "not the whole time, but… I mean, for some of it… I guess. Just a little."

"Holy shit," Tetsurou says in a dumbfounded sort of way, still staring out towards the endless strip of asphalt. "Kenma, you… Baby, you won the game. You beat all of us."

"No!" Kenma says abruptly. "I didn't beat you - I was on your side!"

"Yea," you laugh, "but you still played us. You beat everyone." Kenma just blushes, grumbling about how it's really not a big deal and this is what he gets for helping people out as he crosses his arms and slides lower into his seat.

"Still," Tetsurou says as you giggle, "you're right - we should bring Lev in on more… the other two, too."

"Speaking of…" you say, clapping Kenma on the shoulder comfortingly. "$150 million split six ways instead of five is still pretty fucking good. Besides… there's always the next job."

"Is this really what home is to us now?" Kenma asks quietly, but there's a brightness in his eyes, a glow hazing the air around him as the sun streams into the car, golden and bright and warm.

"I think it always has been, right?" You respond softly. "It just… takes us a long time to find our way home sometimes."

"Yea," Kenma sighs, looking to Tetsurou and then to you. "I guess it does."

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