#i think this is more than just an affection 😦

[xlivr]

i think I'm starting become vi and I've come across this realization in the shower

[imsofuckinggayforwomen]

SANEMI HEAD CANONS

(as determined in the previous poll)

Hello everyone! Thanks so much for all of the 300+ votes I got on that poll, that’s like crazy 😦 rengoku and sanemi tied so we’re just gonna write for both! Rengoku’s will be in a separate post because imma be shitfaced when I’m done with this.

These head canons will involve sfw and nsfw, so if you are a minor please do not read past the part labeled NSFW

Warnings: Smut, Fem reader

(MINORS DO NOT CONTINUE AFTER THE NSFW LABEL I AM SLASH SRS)

Sanemi

Sfw

He’s a cold guy, giving out glares to anyone that looks in his direction.

But for you, his eyes briefly soften.

He refuses to admit it, but he truly turns into mush when you’re around.

Always keeps a hand on one of your body parts, hand, thigh, waist. He’s extremely protective, especially after losing the majority of his loved ones. He swears to protect you forever. Poor genya

Shows more affection when the two of you are alone, not wanting his coworkers to see him all lovey dovey. Only you get to see that

He’s like one of those guys that talk to you in a baby voice asking for attention but then the moment someone walks into the room his voice drops like 5 octaves.

Literally will not let you get out of bed earlier than him. Like his arms anchor you to the bed.

If you’re also a hashira, he makes sure that you both are always assigned together on missions. He knows you are capable enough to take care of yourself, but he can’t help the fear of not being there when you need him.

Trains with you but absolutely refuses to actually spar you. He couldn’t bare the thought of accidentally hurting you.

If he’s called out on his love for you in public he literally turns into a tomato.

NSFW

Oh boy, this guy is insane

He wants to love and cherish your beautiful body but he can’t help but feel the need to claim you

Once you give him the go ahead, he quite literally pounces on you.

Eats you out for hours, it’s basically impossible to pry him off.

Will start out by teasing you, giving small kitten licks to your wetness. He loves the frustrated face you make when he doesn’t give you what you want.

Cant tease forever, he yearns to see you throbbing with pleasure.

When he starts sucking your clit, you almost double over.

This man has a goal and he IS going to get it.

doesn’t even think about his own needs until his face and fingers are drenched in your arousal.

When he finally gets to the real shit, he starts extremely slow. Not wanting to hurt you.

He gives you time to adjust before carefully thrusting into you

However, when pleased mewls began to erupt from your mouth, he simply cannot hold back any longer

Bro changes his pace entirely, gripping onto your thighs and pulling his hips all the way back.

At first, you’re confused, but then he slams himself back into you.

Your breath literally disappears from your lungs as he feverishly thrusts into you.

Please pull his hair

He Bites and sucks on your neck whilst your fingers curl into his white locks.

Reaches his free hand down to passionately rub your clit, quite different from his hips roughly knocking into yours.

When you begin to reach your climax, he nearly finishes from the sight of you.

As your back arches in pleasure, his fingers quicken and his hips continue their pace.

When your orgasm hits, his does as well. The both of you moaning and riding out your high’s together.

immediately gets you water and makes sure you are okay.

Aftercare 100000%

Runs a nice bath and washes your hair for you

don’t comment on his flushed face.

If you fall asleep in the bath, he’ll dry you off and carry you to bed.

I hope you guys liked this!! I’m going to continue rengoku’s part in a separate post, I’ll probably write it later tonight after I shower and do my 1000 step skin care routine.

Comments, likes, reblogs are all appreciated!!

[anxiousnerdwritings]

since we on the ropic of sibling reader can you imagine how pissed bruce + batfam (and alfred, to a degree) would be if like talia ever did get with sibling!reader, she'd be smug af bcuz if bruce's sibling lives in the manor, it gives her a chance to see her love and her ex in one trip. cut to damian standing in the back conflicted that his uncle/aunt has the chance to become another mom/dad but also looking at his mother like "why are you dating my uncle/aunt 😦🤨"

can you imagine tho bruce throwing an aggressive fit if his sibling chooses to date Hal of all people?? Clark, Diana? He's sees the appeal tbh; he won't be too happy, but he sees the vision. Oliver, Dina? another pair of 'sees the appeal'. But Hal???? no no no bruce is shutting that shit down and fast. Barry is really the only safe option and even then he can quite literally sweep his sibling off their feet and away from the safety of the manor.

i want to imagine that the kids feel very strongly against this but also play matchmaker yk?? like some do it to piss bruce off (mainly jason, damian) and a few others do it for the drama (steph + cass by association, dick). the rest are a mix of both.

Talia totally takes pleasure in rubbing it in Bruce’s face that she’s with his sibling now and she loves seeing Bruce affected by it. He’s not jealous that she’s with someone else, let alone his sibling, honestly he couldn’t care less about that. No, it’s the fact that his sibling is in a relationship in general. Bruce is very much the type who thinks that no one is worthy of being with his sibling and no matter what they will never meet his standards for being a romantic partner to his beloved sibling who more than deserves the world and everything else. Not to mention Bruce knows damn well that Talia plans to take the Reader with her eventually and he’s having none of that.

I could kind of see Damian actually wanting the Reader to be more of a mother/father to him, they already act like one to him so why not officially become his second mom/dad. It wasn’t really until Talia was very open with her romantic intentions towards the Reader that had Damian really leaning towards making it all happen. I could also see Damian being very bratty and extremely jealous thinking of the Reader becoming a parent and having a family of their own that didn’t include him. As far as he’s concerned his aunt/uncle is already like another mom/dad to him and to have their focus and affections being taken off of him really irritates and frustrates him to no end. But when Talia mentions offhandedly about taking the Reader home with her, all bets are off and he’s fighting to keep them with him and Bruce. Unless the Reader was actually willing to go with Talia and start a life with her and the League of Assassins then Damian may be willing to go with them, not only to keep an eye on the Reader but also to stay with them as well.

All the batkids have their own OTP ships for the Reader and they would definitely play matchmaker to make it come true. Mush to Bruce’s horror and disdain. His own kids are going against him when it comes to the Reader’s love life. While he believes they shouldn’t have one whatsoever, the kids have their own ideas of what the Reader’s love life should really be. Also, this is all totally happening behind the Reader’s back without their knowledge. And I have no boyfriend that all the Reader’s suitors have and will continue to make impromptu and uninvited visits to the manor to see and spend time with the Reader. Whether the romantic yanderes were in actuality invited by/planned with the respective Baylis shipping them with the Reader or they came of their own accord to be around the Reader is debatable. But it certainly gets on Bruce’s nerves. Hell, even Alfred has his own ship of who the Reader should end up with adding more towards the betrayal Bruce feels with everyone in the batfamily going against him like this.

Just imagining Bruce’s reaction to Hal pulling up to the manor to take the Reader out on a date is so hilarious. I can’t help but see him being the one to answer the door only to slam it in Hal’s face when he sees him. If the Reader is adamant about going out with Hal then Bruce would totally be sat on their bed the whole time they’re getting ready trying to persuade them to cancel or at least go for someone else other than Hal. Bruce just Turing into a bratty sibling is just too funny not to think about. He definitely glares daggers at Hal the whole time he’s there. The only compromise Bruce could come to is either having the Reader and Hal’s date at the manor so it can be monitored or the date turning into a double date with Bruce and either Selina or some random woman he takes out just so he can keep an eye on his precious sibling. (I can’t help but imagine not only Bruce but the rest of the batfamily dressed in hilarious disguises spying on the Reader and whoever they’re on a date with. Or even the respective yandere’s rival suitors doing the same thing too.)

If you think Bruce’s reaction to his sibling dating Hal is bad, imagine how he takes to learning the Reader is going out with Guy Gardner.

[xxnomadsxx]

so floyds colors in the movie look just ever so slightly duller than they did when the brozone bros were younger (at least to me) and that coupled with the down facing ear tips leads me to believe he’s a little gray himself (not surprising after…everything)

maybe thats one of the reasons he didn’t come back? he used to be the sensitive one, most likely the peace maker of the family who tried to talk things out (as seen when he tries to talk vanner into letting him go) and put on a smile to hide his own issues

what if he didn’t come back because he couldn’t do that anymore? that the issues he kept to himself were starting to affect his color and he thought others knowing would cause more issues then it would solve? that is until he was kidnapped and physically couldn’t.

now don’t be fooled im not defending him leaving branch alone by any means it was still a terrible thing to do im honestly just speculating with the little screen time floyd got

i love your au and the fun ideas that come with it keep it up with the amazing work!

also may i be dubbed 🐝 anon?

Thanks for the love!!! And don’t worry I’ll keep it up!

Floyd definitely had to have been grey right?!!?! Especially for a good period of time since his ears were deformed similar to Branch’s and when the other trolls went grey there ears stayed the same so he had to have been grey for a good period of time (maybe he turned grey during a rough patch in his solo career and felt like a failure leaving Branch for a failing career)

Honestly it would be hypocritical of me to hate on Floyd for not coming back because he was ashamed of being grey (when a part of the grey village au is how all the grey pop trolls are to ashamed to go back to pop village)

I give the brothers a lot of hate as you can see in my past posts with how the village is shown to despise them! When in reality I do LOVE them to!! I just have a lot of hate for their actions and feel they should be given consequences for them, such as their brother moving on and getting a new family (plus an entire village that hates them) Honestly I think it’s fine that they left, family can’t be forced to stay with you your entire life (like when your siblings go to college) my problem is how they left during an ARGUMENT! How they cut contact, How they left A BABY!!! In a town with a yearly genocide of trolls (and their grandma) He was left in the care of an old lady, an old lady who was old (I have nothing against grandparent caretakers) She would have had a difficult time raising a baby with her age (not to mention being a gambler, weird thing to learn about her) She seems to have done really well raising Branch from flashbacks in the show or when she’s talked about BUT STILL!! She also could’ve dropped dead any second (who knows what a trolls life expectancy is?!?!?! She could’ve been on death’s doorstep for all we know!)My point is they left him in a bad environment where he could die by the hands of troll eating Bergens Rosie did good, but she was old (also she let all her underage grandkids leave LIKE WHAT??!!?!! She was just playing rummy during the fight too 😦 wtf Rosie!!!)

Sorry this was a bit of a rant- and I don’t mean to offend anyone with how I think it was bad that grandma Rosiepuff was made his guardian because she is old!! I was mostly speaking through my cousins experience with how grandparents can’t be as attentive as they should when taking care of a kid (let alone a baby) because of their age, they will try their best they just have problems due to being older (I mean their bodies aren’t exactly as they used to be)

[pshenyasstuff]

Some sketches of my babies and y/n <3

And maybe I'll add a couple of thoughts about this variation.

cooking together

While cooking together, Karaku and Urogi usually do anything, but not cook. Urogi of course tries to help if he is asked about it, but it turns out badly. At least he tries. Karaku just eats and watches the others do something. Aizetsu and Sekido help y/n cook, but it usually ends up with Sekido getting dirty. Aizetsu is fine as long as he is not allowed to cut the onion, because the baby will then cry even more than usual (0((

Zohakuten does not participate in the cooking because he is still too young, but when he grows up he will be happy to help cook <3

Aizetsu

When Aizetsu has a nightmare or is just sad, he comes to you and cuddles with y/n while she cradles him like a baby. In the end they always fall asleep together 🥹

Don't ask me why but I think Aizetsu would watch Maya the Bee or Pororo. Just don't ask.

He probably wouldn't like games that are too violent, so he'd probably play some kind of peaceful and cute games

I don't know about his hobbies, but I think it would be drawing or jigsaw puzzles🤔

Kill me if he doesn't have a lot of soft toys in his room or he's not a fan of Hello Kitty

His mug would look like this:

Urogi

Urogi is definitely the type of child who jumps on his mother from a running start and hugs her tightly, especially when he misses her

He definitely has a little parrot, you can't convince me otherwise. The parrot has a cute name like "Kiwi"<3

I think we can all agree that he is a big fan of birds, so he would watch any bird documentary or bird cartoon

Bro rarely cleans his room unless he is reminded to clean💀

The most active among his brothers, so his hobbies would be related to sports, I guess

He must have had lice at least once in his life😦

His mug would look like this:

Sekido

Sekido doesn't have much affection for y/n at first, but over time he gets used to her and often holds her hand

I think he's the type of kid who watches horror movies at night thinking he's old enough but then bro can't sleep alone so he comes up to y/n saying things like "Ngh, just Karaku keeps me awake with his snoring 😒" and it doesn't matter that they sleep in different rooms

He's not a big fan of hugs, but he doesn't mind hugging occasionally

He is the oldest among the brothers and he loves to lead them. When y/n can't calm them down, Sekido takes on the role of parent.

He mostly gets mad at Karaku and Urogi. "STOP GIVING TROUBLE TO MOM, IDIOTS!"

I think he would be the only one who drinks coffee with y/n in the morning. His mug would look like this. He doesn't really care which mug to drink from as long as no one touches his mug.

Karaku

Fully enjoys kisses on the forehead and cheeks before bed, and he'll be really upset if y/n ever forget to kiss him.

He has such a soothing voice, so if he reads bedtime stories for his younger brothers, then they immediately fall asleep

Karaku watches horror movies with Sekido, but after just a few minutes of the movie, he looks like "😰"

Bro thinks babies are found in cabbage

I think his hobby would also be related to sports, but besides that, he could collect a herbarium

Maybe the type of kid who steals the parent's clothes

His mug would look like this, don't ask me why:

Zohakuten

He doesn't speak much, but for some reason he swears when his older brothers annoy him💀 how does he know these words..

He likes the company of Sekido, Aizetsu or y/n

He always says "mommy y/n" so adorably <3

I think he would be a fan of dragons and dinosaurs. I think he even has a soft toy dragon that he can't sleep without

As I said earlier, he and Sekido sometimes have violent outbursts where he screams and cries at the same time. After such situations, the poor baby asks for hugs on his own.

For some reason he gets jealous when his brothers try to stop him from hugging y/n. (Bro really looks like "😠")

So I hope you enjoyed this. Sorry if there are typos or anything like that.

[telly0uwhat]

how i think every character of bmw would react to eric and jack dating

cory:

he definitely doesn't have anything against it, but he finds it disgusting every time they show affection in front of him

jumped for joy when shawn reminded him that if the two of them got married they would be from the same family

shawn:

"what? are you telling me you just started dating now? last week when jack said "eric's my partner" i thought you guys were going to get married! i even bought a lamp with your faces on it"

#1 jeric supporter

topanga:

"i'm happy for you guys" and then she had to give cory and shawn 20 bucks for losing the bet.

(she is a great ally but she always thought that the two were just great friends like cory and shawn)

angela:

"shawn already told me that when we met. but i didn't agree with the lamp"

rachel:

"i'm so happy for you guys! i couldn't handle that whole story anymore, now we can be great girlfriends"

amy:

"aw guys that's great! i'm so glad you boys told me that, but it's not like we didn't notice"

loves jack more than her own son

alan:

stared at eric for about 30 secs like 😦 thinking about what to say

"look eric, i thought i would never have to go through this. i thought you were going to wait for us to have a guess and integrate jack into the family like no one noticed and i wouldn't have to have this conversation with you"

mr. feeny:

"well, i believe that the relationship between you, mr. matthews and mr. hunter, is quite remarkable and i have to admit that i had my doubts about this bond that you created. i'm glad that you cared to share this information with me, being in love is the best thing a human being can feel, don't lose what you have. but i think you gentlemen should explain some things to shawn"

morgan:

"eric, i told you that"

[d10nsaint]

DAPHINE

secretive plotter, kim dokja, yoo junghyuk, yoo sangah x gn!reader [separate]

another request from @rouecentric 😦⁉️🤯 so surprised rn. Anyways i love od but he’s not here because i don't wanna make them all have a romantic setting then have od be the only platonic one bcs he’s like 12.also tagging @elychee bcs they're AMAZING and wrote abt the lcf trio with a plus sized reader and you should really check it out [wink wink] i really tried to make this gn pls tell if it isn't THIS IS ALSO JUST ME SAYING NONSENSE BTW IT MIGHT NOT MAKE SENSE

ʚɞ Kim Dokja;

DOKJA is just happy he has a lover.

Really.

He also loves hugging you after a warm day—you’re just so soft and sweet to him (like anybody would be. hes so

He loves touching you. Hes just such a sucker for affection because he had none when he was younger, and he'd be elated to have someone who could handle his touch and affirm him throughout the day that its okay and they dont mind.

When it comes to your body,he really likes your chest.He lays on it when you both are lying down on the couch or even in bed. But once, one thing led to another on the couch and his head ended up on your thighs. he was literally shaking. His mind was going a million miles per hour and his face went beet red, and it was to the point where you had to make sure he was okay.

ʚɞ Yoo Sangah;

SANGAH is so naturally sweet and was raised in a way that everyone is the same—and thats how she sees people! Of course, not until she finds an s/o whos plus sized. She finally realizes the beauty of plus sized bodies !!

after a long day of work getting harassed, she just wants to go home and settle down in her lovers arms with a book and some detox tea !!

once, she was laying atop you reading a book with your back against the armrest of the couch and her back against yours, and then she realized something—you were very soft. Well, to her, atleast. Ever since, you’ve always been the big spoon!!

Shes never really had impure thoughts about you or your body….in fact, you’d have to bring stuff like that up to her in a conversation because of how little she thinks of it, so i cant really do the thigh thing

ʚɞ Yoo Junghyuk/Joonhyuk;

JUNGHYUK would just be happy that you’d survive a situation where he can't get you both food. ( Idk why i wrote that,i can't go 5 hours without getting hungry)

He’d usually carry you around as a form of training—and never admit it. He also does it just to be able to hold you, but whatever.

He'd be very fond of you (in his head) and try to be very subtle with it-he'd throw you a high grade item and say,'here,you're weak' and if you call him out, he'd glare at you and do nothing else.

By the time that you both are dating, he'd have opened up and really cherished you,hoping to make you happy and give you a life like him of the past would have.

If theres a point where youre dating and not fighting for your lives, he'd love to [secretly] just hold you in his arms and cherish you. It doesnt matter if he's standing up or laying down.He's just so happy to have you in his empty regressor life.

ʚɞ Secretive Plotter;

PLOTTER really doesnt care about body types, even when they come to his s/o UNLESS its very unhealthy.

As i’d suppose that you and plotter would be in a nice,loving and healthy relationship, he’s seen your body—no matter how insecure you are. He loves you no matter what, and nobody should ever dare to talk bad about your body and your habits or else he’d (as I said in a previous post) reign hell upon that person.

Putting the reassurance aside, hes very glad to have a thicker/ plus sized partner, due to how much his body is developed. He wouldnt have to see you as a doll and try to hold back his natural strength with all his might (i mean he still has to hold back) but its better than nothing!

he LOVES to put his hand on your thighs. He can't go a DAY without putting his hands on them, if its meant to be a reassuring caress or a more intimate touch. Male? Female? Something in between? He doesn’t care.

[mercillery]

Your writing is so goooood, I’m hooked! Damnatio SFW alphabet, I’m begging 🙏🏼

WARNINGS: GENDER NOT SPECIFIED + NOT PROOFREAD

NOTES: I had to do a retake because I could’ve sworn I did a Damnatio SFW alphabet but apparently not? 😦 I got a bit dry and lazy at the end, sorry!

A = Affection (How affectionate are they? How do they show affection?)

In public? Absolutely not. Public displays of affection are not his style. I’ve stated this so many times and will continue to do so: Damnatio is a private man. He does not want the whole world to know you are together. He values privacy a lot. The most he’ll show affection for you in public is by simply letting you lock your arms with him or just holding his arm, nothing more. The man’s idea of romance in public is letting you walk slightly closer to him than usual. Don’t take it personally, though. It's just Damnatio being—well, Damnatio.

In private? Well, he rarely initiates physical affection on his own. It's not that he doesn't enjoy it—he's just more reserved, even when it's just the two of you. However, if you take the lead and initiate a hug or a kiss, he'll certainly reciprocate. It’s not that he doesn’t want to show affection; he’s just not the type to start it. So, while you might not get spontaneous cuddles or surprise kisses, Damnatio is definitely not going to reject your advances. Just make sure the curtains are drawn and the door is locked—he's all about keeping things dignified and private.

Damnatio shows his affection through words of affirmation and acts of service. When you’re going through your toughest moments, and it’s just the two of you, he’ll reveal a small part of his vulnerability, telling you how proud he is of you and how much he cares. Alongside these heartfelt words, he'll offer logical advice to help you navigate whatever difficult situation you’re facing. Sometimes, he doesn't even need to say the words outright; you can tell what he wants to convey with just a glance. This subtle communication might go unnoticed by others, but you can read him like a book, and you appreciate these unspoken moments of understanding.

If you’re prone to forgetting things, worry not—Damnatio is your knight in shining armor. He’ll remind you of every single task you have for the day, even going as far as writing a to-do list and sticking it on the fridge, complete with a little doodle of his face in the corner 😐 as a small humorous reminder. You can almost hear him emphasizing the "to-do list" part with that stern yet caring look of his.

Damnatio also rises with the dawn, and one of his acts of service is preparing breakfast for both of you. It’s these small, subtle things he does that really show how much he cares, even if you don’t realize it immediately. But if you’re attentive, you’ll catch on to these gestures and appreciate them all the more. So, while Damnatio might not be the most physically affectionate partner, his love shines through in these thoughtful actions and supportive words, making you feel cherished and cared for in his own unique way.

B = Best friend (What would they be like as a best friend? How would the friendship start?)

As a best friend, Damnatio Kira would be a steadfast and reliable presence in your life. He’s not one to form superficial connections; he values depth and sincerity, so his friendships are built on a solid foundation of trust and mutual respect. Damnatio's reserved and serious nature might make him appear aloof at first, but once you’re his best friend, you’ll see a side of him that is considerate and deeply caring—in his own reserved way, of course.

Damnatio isn't the type to engage in small talk or frivolous activities, but he excels at offering sound advice and providing a balanced perspective, especially during difficult situations. He thinks logically and can see through the chaos to offer a clear, reasoned solution. When you’re feeling overwhelmed, he’s the friend who will very firmly help you sort through your thoughts, providing both support and practical guidance. His serious demeanor might mean he’s not the life of the party, but he’s the one who will always have your back, no matter what.

I think the only way you could possibly start a friendship with Damnatio is by working alongside him in the Magic Parliament. Given that he’s all about justice and holds the position of chairman, it's hard to imagine him forging friendships outside of this context. He’s dedicated to his work and principles, and that’s where his social interactions naturally occur.

If you share his commitment to justice and find yourself in the same professional environment, you have a solid chance of getting to know him. Being colleagues provides common ground and opportunities for interaction that might not exist otherwise. Whether it's collaborating on a case or engaging in discussions about the law, these shared experiences can pave the way for a deeper connection!

But don't expect it to be easy or quick. Damnatio values depth and sincerity in his relationships, so building his trust will take time and effort. You’ll need to demonstrate your dedication to justice and your competence in your role. Over time, as he sees your commitment and integrity, he’ll begin to open up. So, while it might seem like a tall order to become friends with someone as reserved and focused as Damnatio, working in the Magic Parliament alongside him is the most realistic way to bridge that gap.

C = Cuddles (Do they like to cuddle? How would they cuddle?)

As mentioned in part A, Damnatio isn't one to initiate affection, or much of it at all. But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t enjoy it. If you take the lead and initiate physical affection, Damnatio is likely to reciprocate—as long as it’s behind closed doors and away from prying eyes. So, if you were to suddenly cuddle him, he wouldn’t mind at all. In fact, he does appreciate it, though his appreciation can come across as a bit reserved.

Damnatio's way of liking affection is more about the quiet comfort it brings than grand displays of emotion. So, while he may not be the most outwardly affectionate partner, he still values and enjoys those intimate moments you share. It’s a quiet kind of affection, but it’s genuine all the same. This part probably should’ve gone to part A, but whatever.

As for how Damnatio likes to cuddle, he's adaptable and goes along with however you want to cuddle. He doesn’t have a preferred cuddling position; he’s more about making you comfortable and happy. But if you’re curious, he does have a small habit that shows his affection—he’ll always have an arm around you. It’s a subtle yet meaningful gesture that signifies his return of affection. So, whether you want to snuggle up close or just rest your head on his shoulder, he’s perfectly content. And that arm around you? It’s his quiet way of holding you close and letting you know he cares, even if he doesn’t say it out loud.

D = Domestic (Do they want to settle down? How are they at cooking and cleaning?)

THE BIG QUESTION: DOES HE WANT TO SETTLE DOWN? No, yes, maybe, no, yes, yes, no, maybe, no, no, yes, no, no, no, yes, maybe, maybe, maybe, yes, no, maybe, yes, no, no, maybe, yes—MAYBE. The answer here is maybe.

Damnatio has thought about that stage in life, but he’s never put much serious consideration into it. His mind is always occupied with upholding justice, so he just kind of sees where life takes him. So whether he decides to settle down depends on several factors, primarily how much he loves and trusts you and whether you want to settle down yourself. He hasn’t ruled it out, but it’s not at the forefront of his mind. If he develops a deep trust and love for you over the years and you express a strong desire to settle down, he will consider it. 

Damnatio is a man of principles and dedication, and if he believes you’re the right person, he’d be willing to make that commitment just for you. So, while the answer might not be a definitive yes or no, it hinges on the strength and depth of your relationship. If he’s convinced that you’re the one and you want to build a future together, he’ll settle down to make you happy.

Oh, he can definitely cook and clean. Just because Damnatio is a royal doesn't mean he's spoiled. In fact, he’s quite skilled in both areas. He’s a very good cook and a competent cleaner, though he excels more in the kitchen. I’d even go as far as to say that he’s like Gordon Ramsey level when it comes to cooking.

Cleaning? Well, he's good at it, but it's clear his passion lies more with cooking. He approaches cleaning with the same meticulous attention to detail, ensuring everything is spotless. So, while there’s not much to say about his cleaning skills beyond the fact that he’s proficient, his cooking is where he truly stands out. Whether it’s a casual dinner or a special occasion, you can count on Damnatio to deliver a meal that’s nothing short of extraordinary!

Someone edit Damnatio with a chef hat right now.

E = Ending (If they had to break up with their partner, how would they do it?)

If you lose him, you fumbled so badly I’m sorry.

No, but seriously, if Damnatio ever had to break up with you, he’d approach it with his usual stern and stoic demeanor. You’d be faced with the same composed and detached side he shows to everyone else, which might make you feel like a total stranger. It's not really his intention to make you feel this way—he just wants to be respectful and get it over with efficiently.

He’d be straightforward, explaining his reasons without sugarcoating anything. He believes in honesty and clarity, even if it’s painful. Despite the emotional weight of the situation, he’d maintain his composed exterior, making it clear that this is a decision he’s thought through carefully.

After delivering the news, he’d bid you well, expressing his genuine hope for your future happiness. It’s his way of being respectful and closing the chapter with dignity, even if it comes across as cold. In his mind, he’s doing what he believes is the right thing, treating the breakup with the same seriousness and integrity he applies to everything else in his life.

F = Fiance(e) (How do they feel about commitment? How quick would they want to get married?)

How does he feel about commitment? Well, Damnatio takes commitment very seriously. If he's so dedicated and devoted to upholding justice, imagine how seriously he treats your relationship. He’s absolutely loyal and dedicated, treating your relationship with the same gravity and respect he gives to his role in the Magic Parliament. He doesn’t play games when it comes to commitment. When he’s in, he’s all in. He values trust, honesty, and mutual respect above all else, and he expects the same level of dedication from you.

He wouldn’t want to get married too quickly. Damnatio strikes me as a man who likes to take things slow and at an appropriate pace. He wants to learn and know more about you—your flaws, imperfections, perfections, non-flaws, and every single little thing that makes you who you are. He’s thorough and meticulous in all aspects of his life, and his approach to marriage is no different. He wants to ensure he’s not marrying someone who’s breaking the law, and he also wants to be absolutely certain that he’s 100% committed to the idea of marrying you.

For Damnatio, rushing into marriage without truly understanding each other isn’t an option. His careful consideration means that when he does decide to marry, it’s a decision made with full confidence and commitment. So, if you’re with Damnatio, be prepared for a journey of discovery and understanding. He wants to make sure that both of you are ready and fully aligned before walking down the aisle. This thoughtful approach might take time, but it’s all about ensuring a lasting and meaningful relationship. <3

G = Gentle (How gentle are they, both physically and emotionally?)

His emotional gentleness is definitely an area where he could improve. Damnatio is heavily inclined toward logic and reason, often prioritizing them over emotions. While he understands that people have different emotional needs and he does make an effort to grasp those, he also wants others to use logical thinking more. So when you’re facing a stressful situation, he’ll default to logic first. His approach to offering advice is practical and well-reasoned, but it tends to lack the emotional warmth that might be comforting.

In essence, while his advice is undeniably useful and well thought out, it can sometimes come across as emotionally detached. He’s more focused on solving the problem than on providing the emotional support that could come with it. It’s not that he doesn’t care; it’s just that his method of caring is more about helping you find a logical solution than offering emotional comfort.

Physically, Damnatio is fairly gentle but with a firm touch—about a 50/50 mix, if that makes sense. He’s not excessively soft or overly forceful. It’s not really something that requires much reasoning; he’s just right in the middle.

H = Hugs (Do they like hugs? How often do they do it? What are their hugs like?)

His hugs usually last only a few seconds—nothing too prolonged.

Damnatio doesn’t hug often, so it’s likely that you’d be the one to initiate hugs first. However, if it’s just the two of you, he’ll return the gesture.

His hugs might come across as somewhat dry, if that makes sense. While he appreciates the affection, he finds hugging a bit awkward. It’s not something he’s used to, and before you, he’s probably never hugged anyone—at least not that he can recall. But despite this, he values your attempts and will respond to them in his own way.

I = I love you (How fast do they say the L-word?)

He will say the L word only when he’s absolutely, positively, surely, and completely certain that he truly loves you. This means it could take some time for him to reach that point, as he needs to be entirely confident in his feelings. But once he does say it, you can be certain he means it with all his heart. He doesn’t throw around such words lightly.

J = Jealousy (How jealous do they get? What do they do when they’re jealous?)

He’s not someone who’s easily jealous. If someone hits on you, whether it’s in front of him or not, he trusts that you’ll handle the situation and let them know you’re already taken. His trust in you is absolute, so there’s no room for jealousy. Sure, it might disappoint him slightly to see you being flirted with, but it’s more of a mild inconvenience than something that stirs up jealousy. His confidence in your relationship means he’s rarely, if ever, jealous. For Damnatio, it’s not about being possessive but about having faith in you and the strength of your bond.

Now, in those rare moments when Damnatio does feel jealous, he handles it with a great deal of maturity. He’s not the type to make a fuss, place blame on you, or lash out at the source of his jealousy. Instead, he might initially try to ignore the feeling, thinking it’ll go away soon, but if it becomes overwhelming, he’ll address it with you directly and calmly—like adults.

Damnatio believes in maintaining the integrity of your relationship, so he won’t let jealousy disrupt what you have. He understands that such feelings are natural but doesn’t see them as a reason to jeopardize your bond. His approach is thoughtful and measured, ensuring that even if jealousy arises, it’s managed in a way that’s respectful and constructive.

K = Kisses (What are their kisses like? Where do they like to kiss you? Where do they like to be kissed?)

Again, if you initiate affection yourself, he will return it—kisses included. His kisses are never rough; they're always soft and gentle.

He doesn’t really have a preferred spot, but he usually goes for your cheek, considering it the most affectionate area to kiss.

He’d be the biggest liar in the world if he said neck kisses or jaw kisses didn’t affect him. Those areas are his weaknesses, and he can’t deny the effect they have on him.

L = Little ones (How are they around children?)

Unfortunately, there’s not much change in his demeanor. He maintains his stern, reserved nature and unwavering commitment to justice, even in the presence of kids.

Need an example? Well, remember that time he tried to execute a 10-year-old girl? Yeah, it wasn't exactly a shining moment. Her eye magic indirectly caused harm to people, and despite the fact that she was possessed and had no control over that, Damnatio was ready to enforce the harshest punishment. Not exactly the poster child for “fun uncle” material.

He doesn’t soften up or become more approachable around children. He’s still that same coldly committed figure, focused on the letter of the law and the principles of justice above all else. So, if you were hoping to see him get all gooey-eyed and playful with kids, sorry to disappoint. Damnatio stays true to his stern and serious self, even in situations that might call for a bit more warmth and understanding.

So while he might appreciate the innocence and potential of children, his rigid sense of duty and justice overshadows any softer feelings. Maybe one day he’ll learn to relax a bit, but for now, kids get the same stern treatment as everyone else—sorry!

M = Morning (How are mornings spent with them?)

He who wakes up at the crack of dawn. Damnatio has duties to accomplish, work to finish, and justice to uphold—so he starts his day early and strong with a cup of coffee to prepare for whatever lies ahead. By the time you wake up, he’s likely already out of bed, preparing coffee for both of you.

If you’re someone who wakes up late, expect a gentle nudge or a soft call to get you up. He’ll make sure you join him for that morning coffee, believing it’s important to start the day together. He might even turn you into an early riser with his persistent yet caring morning routine.

His mornings are structured and purposeful, setting the tone for a productive day. Sharing that morning coffee with him isn’t just about caffeine; it’s more like a quiet moment of connection before the busyness of the day takes over. So while you might not be naturally inclined to wake up at dawn, Damnatio’s routine has a way of bringing you into his world, one early morning at a time!

N = Night (How are nights spent with them?)

He rises early and falls early, meaning he goes to sleep early as well. Before going to sleep, he always makes sure to remind you not to stay up too late, almost sounding like a concerned parent. He doesn’t insist that you go to bed at the same time as him; he respects your sleep schedule as long as you don’t push it to unreasonable hours like 3 or 4 in the morning.

Believe me—this man will literally scold you if he catches you wide awake at those late hours. He’s serious about maintaining a healthy routine and genuinely worries about your well-being. It’s not just about enforcing a rule; it’s about ensuring you get enough rest to be at your best. So, while he might come off as a bit strict, his intentions are rooted in care and concern for you.

So if you’re a night owl, be prepared for some gentle (or not-so-gentle) reminders to hit the hay at a reasonable hour.

O = Open (When would they start revealing things about themselves? Do they say everything all at once or wait a while to reveal things slowly?)

He starts revealing things about himself only when he's absolutely sure he trusts you—when trust is firmly established. This process definitely takes time and requires a good deal of patience, so prepare.

While you might feel a bit impatient or frustrated with how reserved he is about his himself, it's crucial not to rush him. Pushing him to open up before he's ready might actually make him take even longer to share those deeper parts of himself.

Once he feels fully secure, he’ll start revealing everything about himself more openly. It’s like peeling back layers—each layer reveals a little more, and eventually, you get to see the whole picture. At first, he might just share small anecdotes or thoughts, but over time, he’ll delve into his deeper experiences and vulnerabilities.

P = Patience (How easily angered are they?)

Not that easily angered unless it involves someone breaking the law. But even then, he’s not too angry, just really fierce about upholding justice.

Q = Quizzes (How much would they remember about you? Do they remember every little detail you mention in passing, or do they kind of forget everything?)

Despite his mind being constantly occupied with work and upholding justice, Damnatio remembers almost everything about you. His attention to detail extends beyond his professional life and into your relationship. He might occasionally forget the very small things momentarily, but they eventually come back to him with a bit of thought.

Whether it’s your favorite book, a story you told him in passing, or the way you take your coffee, he makes an effort to remember. So even though he has a lot on his plate, you’re never far from his thoughts, and he values every little detail that makes you—well, you.

R = Remember (What is their favorite moment in your relationship?)

His favorite moments in your relationship are when you’re by his side after a particularly stressful, work-filled day and it’s just the two of you alone. Honestly, just being around you after a stressful day makes him feel at ease. These quiet, intimate moments where you both unwind together are what he cherishes most. Whether you’re talking softly about your day or simply sitting in comfortable silence, your presence alone is enough to bring him a sense of peace and relaxation. You’re like his charging station lol.

S = Security (How protective are they? How would they protect you? How would they like to be protected?)

Unless you’re particularly vulnerable or lack any fighting or defending capabilities, Damnatio isn’t overly protective. He trusts that you can handle yourself just fine without him constantly hovering. He has confidence in your strength and abilities, and this trust allows him to give you the space you need.

However, if you are more vulnerable or less capable of defending yourself, he still won’t be around every corner you turn. Instead, he’ll adopt a more balanced approach, checking up on you from time to time to ensure you’re okay. He believes in giving you the independence to manage on your own while still providing support when needed.

Damnatio has never really been the one receiving protection; it's usually him doing the protecting. Because of this, he doesn't have a strong preference for how he likes to be protected. As long as you somehow look out for him, he genuinely appreciates it and makes sure to thank you.

T = Try (How much effort would they put into dates, anniversaries, gifts, everyday tasks?)

He puts effort into all aspects of your relationship equally—and quite a lot of it, too. Damnatio understands the importance of dates, anniversaries, gifts, and everyday tasks, and he ensures that each one receives the attention it deserves.

U = Ugly (What would be some bad habits of theirs?)

His cold devotion to justice. While it's admirable how dedicated he is to upholding justice, he can be incredibly ruthless about it. You sometimes wish he’d show just a little bit more mercy, but that's just how he is, and it's unlikely to change.

His unwavering commitment to justice means he often views situations in black and white, leaving little room for compassion or leniency. This can be frustrating, especially when you see the potential for more humane solutions. However, this relentless pursuit of justice is a core part of who he is, and it's deeply ingrained in his personality.

You understand that his dedication is rooted in a desire to create a fair and just world, but you can't help but wish he’d soften his approach sometimes. Unfortunately, this is one aspect of Damnatio that remains steadfast, and learning to navigate this part of his personality is a challenge you have to face together.

V = Vanity (How concerned are they with their looks?)

He isn’t too concerned with his looks. As long as his hair is perfectly combed back like always and his green robe is free of dirty marks, he’s content. Basically, he’s focused on maintaining a tidy and professional appearance rather than worrying about fashion or trends.

Damnatio’s priorities lie in presenting himself as competent and respectable. He doesn’t spend much time fussing over his appearance beyond these basic standards. His hair is always meticulously styled, and his robe is kept immaculate, ensuring he looks polished and ready for his duties.

W = Whole (Would they feel incomplete without you?)

Yes, Damnatio would feel incomplete without you. If, for whatever reason, you decided to leave him or something happened to you, it would undoubtedly affect him deeply. He would definitely be thinking about it, and it might even distract him from his work just a little. Despite his stoic exterior, Damnatio isn't immune to the pain of loss. The bond you share is unique and significant, and its absence would leave a noticeable void in his life.

While he would try to maintain his composed demeanor and continue his duties, the emotional impact would be undeniable. In those moments of solitude, his thoughts would inevitably drift to you, reflecting on the times you spent together and the connection you had. It’s not something he would easily move past, and it would likely stay with him for a long time. Yeah, for such a stoic and stern man, it’s kinda crazy that you’ve got him this way. But he makes sure to hide his pain well, not wanting others to notice and wanting to keep his professionalism.

X = Xtra (A random headcanon for them.)

He plays the piano. That’s it. That’s the headcanon. I imagine he finds a unique kind of solace in playing it. For him, playing the piano isn't just a hobby; it's a way to unwind and express himself in a deeply personal manner.

I’m saying this because every piano player I’ve ever met seems to exude a certain majesty…

…which aligns perfectly with Damnatio’s own regal presence, y’know?

Y = Yuck (What are some things they wouldn’t like, either in general or in a partner?)

Someone who BREAKS THE LAW. That’s it. If you’re a law-breaker, that’s the biggest and immediate red flag for him. He has zero tolerance for any form of illegal activity, and he’s ready to reprimand you without hesitation.

Z = Zzz (What is a sleep habit of theirs?)

Always sleeps on his back.

And he adheres to a very strict sleep schedule.

The man needs his beauty sleep.

[ohimsummer]

Feed us more suguru and his pregnant lover thoughts please 🥺❤️

How would he be throughout the pregnancy? As your baby grows..

The back and neck massages he would give, would he massage your boobs too if they’re sore..

The baby shopping 🥺

If you get insecure about your weight or embarrassed at the large size of your baby bump

How would he react to the first kick?

Nighttime routine with him as being pregnant

Would he be strict with your diet?

The Pregnancy cravings 🥺❤️

Also being needy at ungodly hours 🫣🫣

GIVE US YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT THESE PLS AND ANYTHING ELSE!!!!!🥺❤️❤️

I think every time suguru goes out, whatever he looks at it reminds him of you and the baby.

Green onesie and he’s imaging your baby in a cute little frog onesie. A cat on the street and he thinks about getting them a little Kitty plushie. A red pen and he’s imagining when they can finally hold things and they’re coloring with a red crayon. It really never ends <<<333

ALSO YES YES MASSAGES YOUR CHEST!!! any part of you that’s sore—legs, feet, thighs, sides, etc. ask and you shall receive (or don’t, he’ll still do it anyway because suguru just Knows)

Suguru tears up when you guys go shoe shopping for The Little One because it’s like omg…these shoes are so so little….they’re going on his cute little baby 🥹 he is So Excited to help them into their clothes and tie their little shoes and show off his mini-me <<<333 also he is PREPAREDDD you guys stock up on so many diapers and wipes and other little baby necessities. you could say he’s going overboard but truthfully you never know </3 you two would rather be safe than sorry

suguru is worshipping your body CONSTANTLY there’s almost no time to feel bad about yourself unless the weight of your insecurities start to outweigh his affections. and if he senses for even a moment that that is the case, suguru is peppering you and your belly in kisses and whispering sweet nothings and caressing your body so much, reminding you of how much he loves you and how he’s so grateful for everything you do for him <<<<333

the first kick….i talked about him feeling the baby kick before but I think the first FIRST time he feels it, you guys are cuddling on the couch, you laying between his legs with your head on his chest while you two watch a movie, and he’s rubbing your belly. and then it just sort of happens out of the blue, his hand goes still and there is this little kick and you jump a little so now suguru also knows he wasn’t imagining things <<333

(After the initial shock wears off he’s like “😦🤨 okay okay” and starts rubbing your belly again because clearly da little one was unhappy that he stopped 😭)

nighttime routine is usually doing your skincare but he does yours for you first and then you two have little small talk while suguru finishes washing his face :3 he helps you put your hair up if you want and anything else you may need, fluffs the pillows and then zzzz mmimimi (he usually falls asleep a couple minutes after you. He likes to look at you all pretty and peaceful and he thinks about how great his life is <<33 loverboy smh)

he’s not like STRICT strict but ofc suguru encouraged you to eat things healthy for both u and the baby hfjfjd pregnancy cravings are one thing but yk he also makes sure you eat like veggies and proteins and stuff with actual nutritional value :>>

AS FOR BEING NEEDY, suguru is nothing if not consistent in helping you with your needs so ofc even if it’s a random 2am morning, he is going to muster up every drop of energy he has to make sure you are fully satisfied 😌

[hyper-jam]

More SecurityWaiter/DreamTheory headcanons I literally cannot get enough of them (part 2 😋😋😋)

This one is probably gonna be fairly romantic and affection focused cause I have brainrot

-Mike gets flustered so so easily because he’s literally chronically bitchless and this is the first time he’s experienced romantic affection EVER however he’s ALSO horribly oblivious and tired so it takes him forever to process flirting and affection half the time but then when he does he just turns bright red and his brain stops working

-Mike gets so incredibly dazed every time Ness kisses him on the lips. A cheek peck or smth is one thing and it will leave him flustered but any and all genuine mouth kisses leaves him completely speechless for a solid second and Ness thinks it’s the cutest thing ever (because it is)

-I saw that whole “Ness has freckles and Mike likes to kiss/count them” thing but literally shut up it is so the other way around cause Mike literally has freckles and Ness would do that shit and it would make Mike feel so warm and fuzzy and just ashsmskkskdkansjsksksjjs and Ness just thinks he’s adorable (BECAUSE HE IS !!!!!!) /lh

-they are such cuddlers they cuddle so much cause Mike is always so sleepy and Ness just loves playing with his hair and watching him as he looks so peaceful because cuddling with Ness actually helps him sleep and on the somewhat common occasion he starts having a nightmare Ness will gently nudge and kiss him awake and comfort him and then Mike can ACTUALLY GET SOME REST FOR ONCE IN HIS LIFE DEAR GOD

-sorry I’m so autism abt these guys

-anyways

-Ness is all abt pet names dear god like Sugar obviously yes but he will literally call Mike anything and everything and Mike will barely pull out a “babe” or a “hon” and that’s like it but Ness is just like “baby, babe, my love, hon, honey, sugarplum, pumpkin, muffin cakes, kitten whiskers, meow meow, pookie, schnookums, puppy, doll, meatloaf, sweetheart, light of my life, I literally love you” and Mike is just like “😦😦😦 wait the fuck did you just call me-“

-they like to hold hands and like Ness is a fast walker so he’ll hold Mike’s hand to help him keep up or if he doesn’t wanna hold hands then Mike will like hang onto his shirt or bag or jacket or whatever else is available so he doesn’t get left in the dust (I’m projecting I’m the short friend who’s love language is physical touch this is literally just me)

-Mike is so physical touch but also gets embarrassed about PDA so he like won’t do much in public but as soon as they get home Mike is like all over him (quite literally like he leans on Ness and cuddles them and shit cause he’s just a little eepy cozy guy) and Ness is more abt the yapping (aka words of affirmation, hence pet names and such) but he also loves physical affection and he knows Mike likes it and it makes him flustered so he’ll purposely play things up and be extra touchy and just ahskslskskdlslsks HELP IM SO AUTISM ABT THESE GUYS

-they are so clingy idc they will text each other for as long as Ness stays up while Mike is working, then they see each other at Sparky’s and Ness forgets they have other tables to worry abt half the time cause they’re so focused on Mike, and then whenever they hang out in private they’re like never more than a few feet away from each other waaaaahhhhhhh

-they both get anxiety when the other doesn’t respond for a while, Mike cause he’s got abandonment/attachment issues, and Ness because Mike is severely mentally ill and him not responding could mean ANYTHING and again they’re also just both clingy asf with each other

-hugs. Such huggers. I know I already said they cuddle but they also hug so so much. Mike always needs a good hug and Ness is more than happy to give him one

-GOD UGH I CANT EVEN

-sorry

-again

-erm

-anyways

-Ness loves playing with Mike’s hair so much. Mike finds it really relaxing and comforting and Ness loves seeing him like that

-they are so so so orange cat x black dog energy GOOD LORD (Ness is the orange cat and Mike is the black dog obviously. Like yes Mike is a soggy cat but he’s also literally just a puppy like look at him)

-I’m being so cringe who let me on tumblr I’m getting too comfortable on here (it gets worse)

-RAAAAAHHHHH

-ok i need to stop before i explode

-I love them sm

-I’m gonna shut up now

-thank you and goodnight

[practicedvmm13fullofpotatoes]

lol wait what? info about the element swapped Simons?? oh my gosh???

(really long post, i think) (and uh these are just copy pasted from my texts to my fren) (also includes texts from my fren) (ps. when it’s my text, it’s this. when it’s my fren’s text, it’s this)

The fire object is a necklace, the slime object is a bracelet and the candy object is.. uh.. earrings I guess?

Fire!Simon is moody and irritable, Candy!Simon is obsessive and kinda possessive and Slime!Simon is a lazy dude with not a lot of cares

Candy!Simon eating candy subjects real??? Yes. Why? Because I said so

I would like to think that the other cursed objects (the earrings, necklace and bracelet) don’t really make the user go mad like the crown did. Like, yeah, the Candy/Slime/Fire!Simons are still a little insane but not like Ice King. The earrings, necklace and bracelet just kinda morphed Simon’s personality a bit. It kinda changed depending on what he felt when he wore it.

I guess, that’s how I would explain it

Candy!Simon was just so smitten for Betty when he found the earrings. He was like "These would look good on Betty! I should give this to her!" and when he showed Betty, he wore them as a joke but then the moment he did, he was just all over her saying like "Oh, my princess! I love you so, so much, more than you could ever know!" and Betty’s really confused and I guess a bit scared because he’s just all over her, smothering her with love and affection. "Yeah, thanks, you love me and I love you too but like.. What the hell? Something happened, what’s wrong w/you?" And Candy!Simon just spawned chocolate outta thin air for Betty

Fire!Simon was angry when he found the necklace (something happened maybe and he’s just pissed off over something). He showed Betty, put the necklace on and just began to take his anger out on her, scaring Betty and making her run away- And like. That’s super terrifying too because… FIRE POWERS

HE MIGHT BURN HER😭😭

Yeah and when he removed the necklace, he doesn’t remember much of what happened except for Betty’s terrified screams like "Simon! Please— Stop!"

😦

Her screams are forever just in his memory, even a thousand years later

Slimon meanwhile was just super tired and unmotivated when he found the bracelet. He showed Betty, put it on and just kinda.. collapsed on the floor because he was tired—

Betty was concerned, ofc. Like, imagine your fiancé just putting on a bracelet and then they just FELL

Slimon was fine and he was just like "Yeah, I’m fine Betty, don’t stress about it too much, princess.. Or whatever.."

You can tell that Fire!Simon’s Betty may or may not be the most traumatized—

Candy!Simon’s Betty is like "Aww, that’s sweet and all but.. something’s wrong" and Slimon’s Betty is like "Oh, um, alright? If you say so.." as she picks up Slimon and places him on the couch

Lemme just say this, in the other element Simon things, the elements are swapped around.

In Fire!Simon’s Ooo, it’s Candy swapped with Slime and Fire swapped with Ice

In Candy!Simon’s Ooo, it’s Candy Swapped with Ice and Slime swapped with Fire

And in Slime!Simon’s Ooo, it’s Ice swapped with Slime and Fire swapped with Candy

The princesses in their Ooos would be diff names ofc

F!S’ Ooo - Princess Ooze (Slime!PB), Frost Princess (Ice!Flame Princess) and Sugar Princess (Candy!Slime Princess)

C!S’ Ooo - Princess Glacier (Ice!PB), Sludge Princess (Slime!Flame Princess, this name is prolly gonna change) and Blaze Princess (Fire!Slime Princess)

S!S’ Ooo - Princess Blaze (Fire!PB), Caramel Princess (Candy!Flame Princess, prolly gonna change) and Icicle Princess (Ice!Slime Princess, prolly gonna change)

How about the Winter King versions of them

Practically the same. Slimon is much more productive, Fire!Simon is less irritable and Candy!Simon is less obsessive

Hmm, Candy is Sweet, Slime is Goo and Fire is Flare

[maxemilianverstappen]

but stuff happened, lol. Multiple times. And Charles numerously times was acting passive aggressive towards max and there no way Max never saw it. I wish I could just ship them and think “wow, Max obsessed with Charles, how cute😍😍😍” but I’m just annoyed bitch who see it as Max wants some validation from Charles(of all people, him😦). He also was very neutral towards Charles so after 3 month seeing them interact gives me an ick. Okey, I’m agree, Max is the one who needs to decide to himself after all. also, what did you notice as Seb fan?

Brooo..... Max wanting validation?? Lol, that guy needs no validation from anyone. And I neither interpret his actions as being needy nor as seeking validation. Max is possibly the most "complete/whole" person I have ever seen. Let me explain what I mean.

Anyone going thru that childhood and with that guy as a father becomes a scarred person, and we all agree with it. Max is scarred, too. But he also seems to have reached to some sense of peace within himself about his family and his childhood. I won't presume how hard it must have been or how much hurt he must still be carrying, but again, he looks and acts much more in control of himself and his life and grounded and level headed than anyone I have ever seen. He is one of those people who have found his own self-worth and fulfillment in themselves and never in the eyes of others or how others see or perceive them. Max doesn't give a fuck about what others think of him at all. He isn't a people pleaser. He's the last person on that grid who would act against his principles/his thoughts just so that he can look more palatable for other people's approval. This guy has "realized" himself. He is a whole person. He doesn't need anyone to feel that way. And this is exactly why I adore him so much.

Him being fond of Charles doesn't mean he wants his validation and that's why he follows him around like a lost puppy. Growing up together, he knows Charles is a talented racer and he knows when he tells him stuff Charles would understand. Maybe that's just that. A camaraderie of growing up together and being passionate about the same thing in equal ardor and knowing the other understands you. That's all.

I think we all are looking at these people's friendships/relationships from shippy lenses too much. And I know you said you don't ship them, but I am not just talking about romantic stuff. We only see them as much as they let us, and we all interpret their interactions according to our own preconceived ideas about them and even do some self reflection/mirroring. Some people's headcanons affect fans' perception of these guys without even them realizing it. It is not so deep. They are just interacting. If they start to think they aren't the people they think the other guy was, then they can simply stop.

About Seb, I meant how Charles used to act with Seb and how the team fucked Seb over during those years with Charles manager always wearing Binotto's ears off in the garage, lol.

[madamefist]

HOLY SHIT!!! A lot of things happened in this chapter!!! Where do I start?!

1- Esmérelda is a b@#&!

2- Buttercup lost her powers TWICE!

3- Mike is bi! YAY! xD

4- Drama between the sisters! :(

5- Esmérelda is a bitch!!!

6- Him and Esmérelda are aware that Brick doesn't get affected by Esmé's influence!!! 😱

7- Poor Buttercup! My heart broke for her in this chapter! 😢

8- Butch is the best boyfriend Buttercup could ever asked for! 😭

9- ESMÉRELDA IS A BITCH!

10- Brick can see the future??! 😦

11- The Blues finally made up! YAY! xD

12- Blossom finally told her sisters about her heart attacks. I'm glad.

13- Brick started to put two to two together, but he's still not making a move!!! C'mon, Brick! Do something!!!

14- ESMÉRELDA IS A FUCKING BITCH!!!!

Phew! I think that's everything! xD You really know how to write villains, Madamefist! First, Melvin, now Esmé. Seriously, I'm starting to hate her more than Melvin. The Reds didn't get a lot of focus, but I was glad that Blossom told Brick about what the Professor said to her. My heart also broke when her sister ganged on her when Esmé accused her. It was really hard to read. :(

But I can't but just noticed Brick's new "ability" if you will call it that. He now can dream about the future? Can foresee the future? Similar to Him? Hmmmm... it's quite interesting, I have to say.

But man, the ending, with Him appearing and telling Esmé to kill Buttercup... I'm both scared and excited for the next chapter! This chapter was worth the wait for sure. But I do hope you update within a month, I really want to know what will happen next!!!

You take care now. 😄

Okay.. 1 - Yes, you are correct 😂 2 - Poor BC 😭 3 - Yay Mike 💖💜💙 4 - I think we need to refer to number 1 for this one.. I didn't enjoy writing them being horrible to each other I gotta admit! 5 - Yes, that is very true 6 - Yes - they know stuff Brick doesn't - wouldn't that annoy him! 7 - She's going through it.. You wait till the next chapter 🫠😬 8 - 😬😬😬 9 - STILL VERY TRUE. 10 - 🤔🤔🤔 11 - Yay blues 💙 12 - About time really..! 13 - He needs to trust his gut more doesn't he... 14 - YESSSSSSSSSSSS 😆 Thank you so much! I don't know what it says about me as a person being able to pull off writing evil well, but I'm gunna take it as a compliment either way 😏🤣 The reds will take centre stage soon - I worry about my fics being tooooo red sometimes. They are my favourites to write, but I do love the greens - struggle with the blues (but that doesn't mean I don't love them) - but gave myself a little personal goal to try & write them better/more in my Choices/Prophecy fics. I'll do my very best to get chapter 8 up within the month 🫶

[princepipper]

So Gabe and Pip didn't kiss until they started dating, but what sort of things did they do that might have clued them in on liking each other? They were friends for a long time, surely something must have changed along the line that made them realize they had stronger feelings. 😉

AH... yeah they had their first kiss at some point after they got together ✨officially✨ which probably would mean like, 2-3 years into dating at least since it took forever for them to even process that they were a couple lol.

I guess what you're asking is, did they flirt or anything, or maybe more how they knew they wanted to date? l have a fic lined up for the story of how they started going out, and it's already roughly written, hehe.

But, if you want some thoughts, I can give 'em. Here...

I guess to make it easier I'll split things up between Pipper and Gabe.

For Pip:

moving to Thornville as a kid meant leaving behind any friends and relatives (other than her mom ofc) back in Canada, and so she literally knew nothing/no one and was very anxious because of it!

so when her and Gabe started to befriend each other, the combination of him being similar to her with interests and such as well as offering some relief since she now KNEW someone other than her mom was huge when it comes to her overall attachment to Gabriel

I've said it before, but her and Gabe just clicked, in a way that was unique since Gabe's not exactly the most approachable guy

So stemming from her attachment, Pip developed very strong feelings toward Gabe, nothing more than platonic affection at first. She always wanted to hang out, talk to him, listen and support him, and she was (and is) FIERCELY protective of him from bullies and rude people

But as for anything like a crush on Gabe... that likely would not have developed until she was a little older, maybe about 15? And even then at first she wouldn't recognize it as a crush, she wouldn't understand why all of a sudden she feels a fluttering in her stomach sometimes when he's with her, or why she feels stressed or anxious if he's showing excessive interest in someone else (idk if he ever would do that, but even as minor as his brief "relationship" that was with bitter lmao. gabe's like "i have a boyfriend!" and pip is just like "😦 ...really? cool😭")

and by the time she's 17 she understands it completely but also is NOT giving away her feelings, she hides it because she's too worried that gabe will be grossed out or something and it will ruin their friendship

this plays out in the fic i have planned about how they start dating. poor pip just wasn't ready to confess at all haha

Meanwhile, for Gabe:

Gabe's a little different than Pip, which shouldn't come as a big shock since he struggles to process his feelings normally

When he first meets Pip as a kid, and it states this in my writing, he didn't really care at all. It was the classic case of parents mingling and kids being forced to interact

Gabe literally had no opinion on the girl next door to him, and he didn't think for a second that she would ever have any impact on his life

but as the story goes, she starts talking to him at school over something like his drawings or whatever, and when it's apparent they share some common interests, he indulges and is ok to chat

in Gabe's mind, he wasn't opposed to pip being a friend, but he wasn't used to it at all. even as a kid he'd been a bit of an outcast, and so anyone being nice to him like that was very weird, and made him question their intentions

of course pip had nothing malicious up her sleeve, and honestly, Gabe figured that out pretty quickly- she was simple, but very kind, and she genuinely wanted to be around him. it was still weird but he allowed it and liked that he had made a real friend

when his mental health got bad, things shifted. gabe went to the hospital for a while, which was pretty lonely. his answers on one's blog say that his experience there was boring and that "there were lots of weirdos", which tells me he didn't talk to anyone

and like my previous posts say, pip was quick and persistent when it came to finding him again once he was home. gabe at that point was probably unstable and exhausted from it all, so it's a good thing in a way that his dad kept pip away at first!

once they do start to talk and hang out again, things aren't too bad. he's not the same, but he's also not that different... he's just a teenager dealing with a lot on his plate and so having to be pip's friend is harder for him to do

gabe doesn't ever doubt that they are in fact friends, though. there is the instance of him lashing out once in their youth where he very rudely tells her that she means nothing to him (which causes a small fight), but ultimately this was due to him battling his symptoms and stress, and pip forgave him quickly

once Gabe starts to mature and settles on the proper medications, he relents a little about his former behaviour and realizes he's really glad to have Pip around after everything!

unlike pip there was no grand realization of any deeper feelings, and also no denial- gabe knew that pip was important to him in a way no one else was. but he also didn't really feel the need to act on that, he didn't think it was that important to make a big deal out of it and ask her out

not until his 19th birthday, when he's finishing his first year of university does he start to consider that hey, my life is progressing pretty steadily and i don't know where it will take me. but i DO know i want pip to be there too.

and he decides that when she turns 18 the next year he will ask her to be his girlfriend

*wheezes*

Ok, so then, that's about it for how they felt about each other. You mentioned flirting, and I'm sorry to say that neither of them is good at that sort of thing, and never attempted it. Pip sometimes teases Gabe after they're a couple, she likes pet names and joking about how she has the most handsome and smart boyfriend/husband ever, which always makes Gabe crack up.

But otherwise, they didn't know that the feeling was ever mutual, and I can't pinpoint any moments that made them think "Oh my god, I have a thing for them!" when they were younger. If anything Pip probably just got overthinking about something small like her hand holding his for a second or something he said that really wasn't meaningful but SOUNDED like it was. Idk. Either way, it worked out, they are a great dynamic. >:3

[jenrecs]

you're letting us read this... for free?? FOR FREE?? I SHOULD BE PAYING YOU TO READ THIS

You call Minji from the car, but she doesn’t answer. You’ve been best friends since kindergarten; her dad’s house is just across the street from the one you’d grown up in, where your parents still live. You kids have all grown up, and away - you, Minji, and her two brothers - but Mr. Kim still lives in that same house, the light blue one that you can see from your childhood bedroom window. 

NO BUT. when i realized amalthea!jk is KIM JUNGKOOK, I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH MYSELF FOR REAL. i just sat there in silence for a few minutes going 😦

You try not to notice, try not to think about the muscles of those shoulders rippling under your fingertips - enough. Enough, now.

!!! this !!! i felt like i was watching a movie fr, the way you sprinkled these little bits before we got to see what really happened. and even throughout the chapter with the way you weave the flashbacks into the present so seamlessly. when she thought about how she's always been silently orbiting him, never really pushing but never really pulling either, i felt like that was so eloquently punctuated with how u let the story progress, like yeah we're still very much in the present day but then you'd tug it back just a lil bit ?? does that even make sense lmao. but anyway that shit is amazing !!! this definitely reads very differently than wwh or mffmhh and i am loving it??? this is most definitely a fave???

“Explain to me how you got even more beautiful?” he’d murmured, and your heart had leapt into your throat.

yk how dogs kick their legs like crazy when you scratch just the right spot? i shit u not, i literally went berserk like that. not even in a cute "twirling my hair, kicking my feet" way. i went completely insane when i read this line

It had hurt, after. The scrapes from the brick wall. Your sore hamstrings. Your chapped, cracking lips.  His silence. You’d both missed the countdown. Happy New Year.

three consecutive life sentences and counting . i have a good feeling you might end up with 30 by the time this is finished . i cannot stop thinking about that last line there .

But honestly, you can’t even hate him for it. He hadn’t promised you a thing, so logically there’s no reason to feel like a toy played with and discarded - even if you’re left wishing he had never picked you up to play with at all.

i don't think this jin is an ass in any way whatsoever. he clearly cares about her a ton and i am beyond curious to see what his reasoning was for ghosting her like that !!

You’d sit, quiet, watching him work the controls, listening to him whine and groan and complain and shout his way through each map. And you’d feel special, because he let you stay after he’d told Minji to fuck off, because he didn’t mind your presence, because sometimes he’d ask if you wanted him to teach you how, even though you always said no thanks. 

i loveeeeeeeeee this detail. i thought u really came through with this bit, showing how fond he was of her, how much affection he had for her. it's such a nice little visual too. he's a private dude but when he invites her into his orbit... bih i am so soft for them i need to be conked on the head with a brick

Romantic, you think wryly. A garbage date.

lmaoooooo love

And now you’re twenty-eight and the secrets you’ve kept keep piling up - each day you loved him, another pebble atop the pile. The slightest shake could topple the tower, and you’d be absolutely buried. You could never let Minji know you loved him. Not when you were fifteen and he was untouchable. Not when you were twenty, and he was the best part of coming home. Not when you were twenty-six, pressed between him and the deck railing. Not now, after two years of existing outside his orbit again. 

ok i need 700 working days to recover from this. seriously. what in the fuck. how does your brain just come up with stuff like that. why do you keep punching me in the face like that. "and he was the best part of coming home" YOU CANNOT DO THIS TO ME 😭

“Do you have any bean paste?” you answer. “I’m going to go make Minji hangover soup.” Only one word was a lie.

okay miss gurl. go get your man

When you finish the dishes - save for the pot with the remaining soup, still on the stove for when Minji wakes up - you pour your own mug of coffee and sit across from Jin, watching as he finishes his soup. He closes his eyes and sighs happily, then sets down his spoon reverently.

this is so domestic i need to fall into a ditch and curl into the fetal position and be left there for a week. i am obsessed with them and i am terrified of what you're going to put them through

“Tell Minji you made the soup,” you instruct, and then you close the door behind you. 

oh miss gurl you're running away from your man 😭 this seokjin reminds me of puppy jin in the sense that he's also zig zig zagging lol my guy i never know what to expect from you

but anyway. i am fully not prepared for the rest of the fic bc i know it will reach into the depths of my soul and crush me like a gnat and i'd like this to be viewed as me waving a white flag bc please go easy on me i am a weakling i cannot handle them HURTING :o

1. Asterism || KSJ

(banner by @itaeewon)

Title: Amalthea (Masterpost) - Part 1: Asterism

Rating: NSFW - minors go away i mean it Genre: best friend's older brother!au, angst smut fluff trifecta Pairing: Seokjin x female reader Beta team: @yoongiphoria, @here2bbtstrash, @kookstempo

Summary: You can count on two things in life. One: that your lifelong best friend Minji will always be there for you, in your corner, your brightest star. Two: that you'll never be free from her older brother Seokjin's orbit - the gravitational pull is just too strong.

Warnings: language, drinking, angst, kissing, fingering, explicit protected s*x WC: 9.5k

Part 1: Asterism Asterism: (noun) a recognizable pattern of stars that does not make up the full constellation

Things start when your mother texts you asking for a favor.

To be more historically accurate, things started when you were a child. But for the sake of brevity, for a tighter focus on the now, it starts with this text -

[5:41 PM] Mom: can you do me a big favor?

When you send her back “sure”, she calls you, which you expected all along. You’re surprised she texted first at all, instead of going straight to the phone call. She’s a creature of habit, your mother. 

“I cooked a few dishes and stuck them in the fridge,” she tells you. Pacing across your own kitchen, a fifteen minute drive from her place, you squint as you pass through the one exact spot where the afternoon sunlight assaults you from the window every day around this time. You’ve lived here for years - you’ve just been too lazy to put curtains up in this room. Your mother continues, her voice coming through your phone so loudly that you can hold it like it’s on speaker (although it’s not) and still hear her loud and clear. “You’ll see them, they’re in the tupperware with blue lids? Can you bring them over to the Kims’?”

“What?” you say - not because you didn’t understand the directions, but because you didn’t understand the why. She starts to repeat herself but you cut her off, clarifying, “Why are you making food for the Kims?”

“Didn’t I tell you?” she asks. “Or at least Minji? Mr. Kim had his knee replacement today.”

You call Minji from the car, but she doesn’t answer. You’ve been best friends since kindergarten; her dad’s house is just across the street from the one you’d grown up in, where your parents still live. You kids have all grown up, and away - you, Minji, and her two brothers - but Mr. Kim still lives in that same house, the light blue one that you can see from your childhood bedroom window. 

You still live close, and Minji’s just a few towns over. Her brothers moved far - requiring planes and trains to get back. You see Minji at least monthly, if not more often - usually you meet for brunch at a place between your houses. Sometimes, though, you meet back home home - for holidays, usually. The last time you were at her dad’s house with her was for the winter holidays two years ago; you’d rung in the New Year on her back deck. 

You try not to think about that night. 

You let yourself into your parents’ empty house with the code and head straight for the kitchen. As promised, there’s a small stack of blue-lidded containers, and you load them into a reusable grocery bag you steal from the cabinet beneath the sink. You lock the house back up and head across the street on foot. 

Once upon a time - for most of your life, really - you would have just let yourself in. You and Minji grew up in each other’s homes. This was your second home, her dad your second father. It had been like that your whole life. But once you and Minji went away to college, things changed - just slightly. Part of it’s just becoming an adult. You don’t barge in anymore, you knock. 

You expect Minji, or maybe one of her aunts if they’ve come to help, to answer the door. Instead, it swings open to reveal her older brother, Seokjin - full lips frowning slightly, strong brow furrowed as he tries to piece together why you’re standing on his father’s doorstep holding a grocery bag. 

The moment stretches, stills. It can go one of two ways - you can let it be awkward, or you can be sure that it isn’t.

“Hi,” you say, hoping it sounds breezy. “My mom cooked some dishes for you.”

Seokjin takes a minute step backwards, lips parting to speak, but then you hear your name squealed from over his shoulder and you brace yourself for impact. 

Jin acts fast, grabbing the bag of food from you and flattening himself against his open front door as Minji launches herself past him to hug you, laughing.

“I called you on my way over!” you scold her, smiling, hugging her tightly back. 

“Sorry!” she says, still holding you, still laughing. Jin’s still holding your food, just to the side of you, watching this display with a blank face. “I was helping my dad lay down. I left my phone in the kitchen, I think? You should see his knee, it’s disgusting. Is that food?”

She releases you and turns, heading through the house towards their roomy kitchen. You know you’re expected to follow. You reach to take the food back from Jin, shooting him a thankful smile. Your fingers brush as you take the bag, and you drop your gaze, hurrying to follow the sound of Minji’s voice as it floats through the house. Seokjin stands in place as you leave, and you hope he doesn’t see you shudder against goosebumps as you hurry away.

He’s had that effect on you since you were fourteen years old.

But that’s ancient history.

There’s a lot you want to ask him, starting with how long he’ll be in town, ending with… well. Not now. 

In the kitchen, Minji is trying to make room in the fridge for everything your mom sent over. You sit at the table, watching her absently, answering whenever her chatter pauses to ask you something. 

Jin joins you two wordlessly. He reaches over Minji’s head and then turns and holds out a beer bottle, offering it to you.

“Ooh, yes please,” you say, taking it from him. Minji looks up to see what you’re talking about and then nudges Jin’s shin - which is next to her head - to indicate that she wants one too. He sits across the table from you and sets a beer for Minji at the seat to his right. When she’s done in the fridge, she sits heavily next to her brother and they both look at you as they drink.

“So,” you say, because you have to say something about now, have to keep yourself from getting swept up in twenty-something years of memories that this house holds for you. “How’d the surgery go?”

“Great!” Minji beams. “The surgeons said it was exactly as expected. He’ll start physical therapy next week.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” you tell her genuinely. Mr. Kim was always important to you. You turn your attention to Jin, who’s downed half of his beer already. “Are you staying long?”

He nods, swallows, then answers. “A few weeks, probably,” he tells you. “I got approval to work remotely through the end of the month. Hopefully by then he’ll be back to a point where he doesn’t need someone here 24/7, and Minji can just pop in on him…” 

He trails off, his eyes going over your shoulder, watching a few birds hop from the bird feeder to the deck railing. The deck railing where you’d hung wet bathing suits to dry on never-ending summer afternoons, where you’d placed soda cans with rivulets of condensation running down their sides, where you’d leaned with Minji as you talked about boys and school and boys again, where you’d buried your hands in Seokjin’s hair as he’d - nope. 

Not going there. Not unless you want to drown.

“Do you want to eat dinner with us?” Minji asks, throwing you a life preserver by dragging you back to the present. 

“Ah,” you say, letting your regretful tone do the answering for you. “I’d like to, but… I should get home.”

I should get out of this house, you think. I should get away from your brother. 

She grins at you slyly. “Got that man to feed?”

You laugh in surprise. Seokjin is suddenly very interested in the label on the beer he’s almost finished. 

“No,” you say. “He’s out of the picture.”

Minji narrows her eyes at you, assessing. “We don’t seem sad,” she observes finally. 

You shake your head. “We aren’t sad,” you confirm. Jin gets up wordlessly and opens the fridge again, reaching for a second beer. His shoulders take up almost the whole space. You try not to notice, try not to think about the muscles of those shoulders rippling under your fingertips - enough. Enough, now.

You stand, needing the escape, needing to get away, draining the rest of your beer in one long drag that would make your college-self proud.

“Listen,” you say to the room at large, to both of them, after placing the empty bottle back on the table, “call me if you need help, okay? My place isn’t far. I can pop over if you need an extra pair of hands, or a break, or some errands handled. Okay?”

Seokjin’s still hiding in the refrigerator, taking a million years to choose between two of the same beer. Minji, oblivious, takes your hand gratefully.

“Thank you,” she says warmly, giving you a squeeze. 

You start to head back towards the front door, Minji still clutching your hand. 

“Bye, Seokjin,” you say over your shoulder.

He glances up at you around the open refrigerator door.

“See you,” he says. There’s something hollow in his voice. 

You get it, though. 

The last time the three of you were here together, two years ago, he’d welcomed in the New Year buried inside you against the back of their house, gasping your name against the inky dark of the frigid December night.

You’ve never told a soul, and you don’t think he has, either.

You’ve never talked about it at all.

You and Minji spent New Year's Eve out at bars and clubs together almost every year. The year you were twenty-six, though, something had changed. Suddenly, the idea of vying for bar space, in heels, for overpriced drinks and sleazy dudes seemed abysmal. 

“We could stay in,” Minji had suggested. “Pretend we’re sixteen, sneaking booze into dad’s basement again? Seokjin is back in town for the week because he dumped that shitty girlfriend of his for the sixth time, might be kind of fun to all hang out.”

You’d pretended to dislike the idea, grimacing a little as you thought it over. Your brain snagged on dumped his shitty girlfriend. 

“Come on,” she’d said cajolingly. “We can put on 90’s music and play card games, like we used to.”

You knew the whole time that you’d go; all you needed to know was that Seokjin would be there. Since he’d left for college, he only came home twice a year - Christmas holidays, and over summer breaks. Since he'd moved far, even those weren't promised.

Minji ended up with a small crowd - a few that you were friends with in high school, but most of them you thought were friends of her brothers. 

You’d spent most of the night trying to avoid staring at Jin - or at least avoid getting caught staring. It had been about two years since you’d seen him last - four years since he moved away. He was twenty-eight to your twenty-six that year, and you weren’t sure if it was the way he was aging or if it was the tequila, but he seemed - somehow - even more handsome than you remembered. 

It had gotten more and more difficult as the night went on to focus - on conversations, on card games, on how to balance as you walked; your brain wanted to spend its energy cataloging the quirk of his full lips when you said something funny, his windshield-wiper laugh when Minji dropped a whole tray of lemon slices she’d spent twenty minutes cutting, the strip of bare skin his shirt revealed when he bent down to help her pick them up. It was like your brain was trying to soak up every little detail of him that it could after so many years of distance, of him being somebody you used to be close to.

Eventually, you’d retreated to the back deck, alone, just minutes before midnight. Outside, the noise of the party fell away, and you took in deep gulps of cold air, your hands gripping the splintery wood of the railing. 

When the door opened behind you, you expected Minji. Instead, Seokjin stood there, staring at you like he’d asked you a question and was waiting for an answer. 

Maybe, in his own way, he had. Maybe it had been all the quick glances he’d given you that night. Maybe it had been the way he’d stuck close, listening when you talked, smiling wryly when you cracked jokes. Maybe it had been the way his eyes had followed you from room to room, the way his fingers had tightened around his glass when you bent down to grab one of the wayward lemon slices.

You’d stared back at him, unsure what the right move was. This was Minji’s brother, and you’d promised her almost fifteen years ago to never get tangled up with her family. This was Minji’s brother, who had bought you girls beer before you were old enough, who had once driven to pick you up from the mall on a rainy day when your date had gone badly. This was Minji’s brother who’d once held your hand in the backseat of your dad’s car as you sobbed over a broken wrist, who’d often let you sit and watch him play video games even after he’d told Minji to bug off and leave him alone.

This was Seokjin, who was staring at you so intently that for a moment you weren’t sure if he hadn’t asked you something.

“Seokjin?”

His eyes met yours.

“Explain to me how you got even more beautiful?” he’d murmured, and your heart had leapt into your throat.

“I - what?”

He was close enough to touch. You’d dreamed of this for so long - pathetically long, really. You’d never dreamed that he’d want you.

He stepped closer, and you did touch him - one hand acted without permission, coming up and resting lightly on his chest, over his heart. It had thumped beneath your tentative fingers. 

Your fingers had curled in the material of the thick hoodie he’d been wearing, had pulled him just closer.

And then his mouth was on yours, searing, and your hands were in his hair, and that deck railing was pressing into your lower back as he pinned you against it, and one of his hands was creeping beneath the hem of your shirt, and you could feel him hardening against your lower stomach, and -

And through the window, you could see the party carrying on.

You broke the kiss, pushed gently on his forearm to extract his sneaky hand from inside your shirt.

“They can see us,” you’d gasped, and he’d followed your gaze somewhat dumbly, like it hadn’t occurred to him that everyone else existed in the same place as the two of you.

Then he’d taken your hand, pulling you down the deck steps, away from the glow of light from the house’s windows, down into the darkness, where witnesses would have to work a little harder to see what was going on.

He’d pressed you against the wall of the house, beneath the deck, and as you’d tipped your head back to allow him access to nip and soothe lines up and down your neck you’d thought of all the summer nights you’d spent in this exact spot. This is where the keg usually goes, you’d thought absently as that sneaky hand returned to the bare skin of your belly beneath your sweater.

You hadn’t felt even remotely cold, despite the threat of snow in the air. 

You’d kissed until your lips hurt and you wanted it to hurt just a little more, your hands starting to toy with the waistband of his jeans as his thumb rubbed determined circles around your puckered nipple beneath the fabric of your bra. 

“Tell me what you want,” he’d said, the words mumbled against your lips. He’d pulled back just enough, just enough to watch your face as you told him -

“Anything. Everything. All of it… all of you.”

His hand had traveled up the back of your thigh, beneath your skirt, fingers pushing the cotton of your panties aside before stroking through your center. You’d moaned, low, aware that anyone could come out onto the deck above you without warning. His breath had hitched in response, and his hand had left your pussy long enough to tug you to him again, pressing you against his hips for just a second before returning. This time he didn’t toy with you, pressing his index finger into your messy heat, followed quickly by a second digit.

You’d mouthed his name against his jaw, trying to keep yourself upright as he pressed you against the brick of the house, as he pumped his fingers leisurely, fingertips rubbing circles against your front wall until he found the place that made you gasp and buck against his hand. He’d laughed, asked, “Yeah?” in a cocky voice you’d never heard on him before. It’d made you, impossibly, wetter. 

“You’re so fucking hot,” you’d whispered, half delirious, and he’d laughed again, like he knew already.

There had been a flash of foil between his teeth, the sound of his zipper echoing across the frozen backyard, and then he was pushing inside you, fingers still wet from you now gripping your hip to keep you in place. 

You’d groaned in unison as he slowly bottomed out. The brick had bit at your back, the winter air had bit at your face, and Seokjin had bit at your lower lip as he pounded into you steadily. 

It had been hurried. It had been hushed. 

Your name on his lips when he came took the air from your lungs.

You’d wanted this, wanted him, in silence for as long as you could remember. Before you had words to put to it, before you were old enough to understand why your stomach hurt when he left the room. 

It had hurt, after. The scrapes from the brick wall. Your sore hamstrings. Your chapped, cracking lips. 

His silence.

You’d both missed the countdown. Happy New Year.

You don’t know what you had expected after seeing Seokjin at his dad’s house unexpectedly. Apparently, some foolish part of your subconscious thought he’d reach out to you, because you find yourself disappointed when he doesn’t.

Stupid, you think. I don’t know what you were thinking. Aside from that one slip on New Year’s Eve two years ago, you’d done a stellar job at orbiting Seokjin in silence, keeping your feelings under control and out of sight, never pushing yourself into his path but never letting him stray so far as to forget you, either. Nothing’s changed. 

You tell yourself this for two days, until Minji’s name lights up your phone as you’re packing up from work on Thursday evening, your stomach growling and your feet aching to get out of their heels. 

“Yeeees?” you answer her as you power down your laptop and cast your gaze around your cubicle for anything else that needs to come home with you.

“Are you still at work?” she asks, sounding a little breathless, a little irritated.

“Packing up right now,” you tell her, rising and pulling your bag onto your shoulder. You give Dale, your cubicle-mate, a silent wave goodbye and head for the elevators. “What’s up?”

“I tried your mom first, but your parents are apparently out to dinner tonight,” she says. “Is there any way you can swing by my dad’s? I think Seokjin is having a hard time with dad, and I’m stuck here at least another two hours -.”

“No problem,” you tell her, cutting off her explanation. It isn���t needed. “I’ll head there now. Tell him I’ll be like…” You glance at your watch for the time, “...twenty-five minutes, tops, if traffic is bad.”

“You’re a saint,” she breathes in relief. “Thank you. Seriously, thank you. I’ll get there as soon as I can. I promise I’ll hurry. Did I tell you that deal with Mr. Lee fell through? I have been non-stop -”

“Don’t worry about it,” you tell her, meaning it. “I’m happy to help. I’ll be there soon. See you later, okay?”

You grew up on a dead end. You never tell people that, now. You always fancy it up if it’s brought up in conversation - you call it a cul-de-sac, though it isn’t according to the yellow sign that marks where you turn left to reach your parents’ house. 

Every inch of this street is steeped in memories for you - memories of growing up with Minji and Seokjin, running wild through these streets whenever the weather allowed it, learning to ride a bike, having snowball fights and water balloon fights and - once - even a foodfight. Thinking of your childhood with those two, you think mostly of chaos and laughter. 

You miss it, a little, and that’s only a little bit nostalgia talking. Maybe the lack of chaos is nice, but the lack of laughter kind of sucks. 

It takes Seokjin forever to answer the door when you knock. When he does, it’s evident immediately why Minji had called for backup. 

He’s sick as a dog; his nose is red, cheeks flushed, eyes glassy and sleepy. 

“Minji sent me,” you explain. “She said you need help with your dad.”

“I don’t,” he protests, just a little whiny. “We’re fine. Why’d she call you? I told her we were fine.”

This clear untruth is punctuated by a fit of coughing. You purse your lips and raise an eyebrow, waiting. 

He shakes his head, recovering. “It’s just a cold,” he says, doubling down. “I’m sorry you drove all the way here, but I don’t need help. I was just about to help Dad get showered - I need to get back up there, he’s waiting.”

He starts to turn to go, but you reach out, catching his sleeve. He turns, brows furrowing in frustration, but you cut him off.

“Jin,” you say seriously, “come on. I came here to help. What needs to be done? Do you want me to start heating up dinner while he showers?”

He sags back against the wall behind him, raising one hand to rub wearily over his brow, his eyes, down over his mouth. You let his sleeve slip between your fingers and you wait as his resolve cracks. 

He sighs heavily, eyeing the ceiling. “Could you strip his bed and put on clean blankets? So when he’s done showering, I can put him back in a clean bed?”

“Absolutely,” you say, relieved that he’s delegated a task. He leads you upstairs silently. Your feet remember the way to Mr. Kim’s bedroom. You weren’t often allowed to play in there as kids, but you have to pass it to get to Minji’s room; you think you could walk the path in your sleep.

Halfway up the stairs, you pause, stopping by one of the dozens of framed photos on the wall. You smile, putting your finger on the glass. 

At the top of the stairs Seokjin pauses, turns to see why you stopped. Something on his face softens when he sees. 

“Yeah,” he says. “That one’s still up.”

You give him a small smile. The photo your finger rests on is a group shot with blue water meeting blue sky as the backdrop. 

Mr. Kim stands in the middle, beaming, one arm around Minji and the other around Seokjin. Minji’s little brother Jungkook - only a year behind you girls in school - sits on the ground at Seokjin’s feet, grinning with a scrunched nose. You’re behind Minji, peeking around her shoulders, your eyes closed as you laugh. You’re all kids in the picture - Seokjin, as the oldest, is probably around ten. 

You’d been shy to be included in the picture, but Mr. Kim had told you that you were one of his kids in spirit if nothing else. You’d all been at the lake that day. Seokjin had been the one who made you and Jungkook laugh as the camera snapped. You remember it like it was yesterday. After the picture had been taken, you girls and Seokjin had dug a hole in the sand and buried Jungkook up to his neck. You’d splashed in the water, squealing over the slimy rocks that lined the lake’s floor. Later, you’d all eaten thick slices of watermelon, the juice dripping on your bare legs as the summer sun set over the horizon, the four of you sitting in a row on the picnic table bench like a matched set. You’d chased fireflies until Mr. Kim called your names, ready to pack you all into the car to return home, smelling like sunscreen and lakewater. 

It was one of your favorite memories, that whole day. 

You strip the blankets and sheets from Mr. Kim’s bed and toss them in the hamper. You collect a clean set from the linen closet in the hallway without needing to be told where they are. You spent as much time in this house as your own growing up. In the ensuite, you can hear the shower running, the low murmur of both men’s voices as they chat. You make the bed, fluffing the comforter, and then take the hamper down to the basement, where you dump them into the washer and get it started. 

When you head back upstairs, Seokjin is in the living room, slumped sideways on the couch, eyes closed. You’re not sure if he’s awake, if he knows you’re standing behind him. He has that hand pressed to his brow again, and you know a headache when you see it. 

You pad quietly up the stairs and into the hallway bathroom, where Mr. Kim used to keep all the over-the-counter stuff - bandaids, pain-killers, lozenges, even tampons back when Minji still lived here. 

Heading back downstairs, you grab a glass of water from the kitchen and find Seokjin exactly where you left him, pressing his face pitifully into the arm of the couch.

You nudge him gently, and hold out your offerings - fever reducer and the water. 

He grumbles as he takes them, pushing himself to a more upright position so he can drink from the glass without spilling.

When he sets the glass down, he looks over at you somewhat warily. “How have you been?” he asks, and there’s something resigned in his voice. Something defeated. You wonder what battle he’s lost, to make him sound like that. You feel - have always felt - that so much of what goes on in Jin’s mind is kept behind the curtain. For someone so loud, he’s the most private person you know.

“I’ve been fine,” you shrug. “Normal.”

He looks sideways at you for a long moment. “Is that a lie?” he asks finally, voice low. 

“No,” you say, trying to keep your voice light. It isn’t, right? You’ve been fine. What happened between you was two entire years ago, the lid closing tightly on a lifetime of maybes. You’d had your moment together and it hadn’t led to anything. What choice did you have, but to accept it and move on? So, there you have it. You’ve been fine.

You make the decision, right there, not to bring it up - what happened two years ago. His lips on yours, his body under your hands, the way your legs had trembled as they’d struggled to hold you up. Better to let it stay dead. If Seokjin had wanted to talk about it, he’s had two years and four months to do so. If he wants to pretend he didn’t fuck his sister’s best friend and then ghost her completely, who are you to mess with the plan? 

You need something sweet; you’re far too bitter.

But honestly, you can’t even hate him for it. He hadn’t promised you a thing, so logically there’s no reason to feel like a toy played with and discarded - even if you’re left wishing he had never picked you up to play with at all.

You look him over, taking in the sheen of sweat on his brow, the haze you can still see in his eyes. “You look like shit,” you tell him.

He lets out a single puff of a laugh, his eyes closed. “Now I know you’re lying,” he says, lips quirking into a smile. 

“You look like you have the flu,” you say flatly, ignoring his nonsense. 

“It’s just a cold,” he says.

You lapse into silence. He keeps his eyes closed, that hand still resting on his head. Finally, you say, “How about you? How’ve you been?”

He shrugs. “Been fine. Working. You know.”

A tiny smile tugs on your lips. “What are we playing these days?”

The smile creeps sideways across his face and he opens his eyes to actually look at you, sending you a conspiratory smirk. “Now you’re asking the right questions,” he says, and starts to tell you about a console game he got last week. 

You head to the basement when it’s time and move the sheets you were washing into the dryer. You pause in the doorway when you return upstairs, looking Seokjin over from afar. He looks better than he had when you’d arrived - eyes less glassy, cheeks less pink. 

“I think your fever’s down,” you say, as you return to where you’d been sitting before.

“I feel better than I did,” he agrees. He looks at you appraisingly, like he’s seeing you clearly for the first time. And, considering the fever, maybe he is. “So Minji said you live pretty close?”

You nod. “Not far. That apartment complex over behind the plaza with the grocery store? You remember, the one that we used to go trick-or-treating at?”

“Wow,” he says, giving an appreciative whistle. “Those are swanky.”

“I’m swanky these days,” you joke, smiling. 

Just then, there’s a soft beep from outside - someone locking their car.

“That’s Minji,” Seokjin observes, and you find yourself standing, feet carrying you towards the kitchen. 

“Do you need anything to drink?” you call over your shoulder. Jin is watching your sudden departure, clearly bemused. You busy yourself in their fridge, even though you don’t have a real reason to. You just didn’t want Minji to enter the house and find you and Jin having domestic hours on the living room couch.

The front door opens, and Minji calls your name through the house.

“I’m in here!” you call back, and head for the doorway of the kitchen. 

Minji hurries to you, setting her bags down on the kitchen floor and flopping dramatically onto the doorjamb. 

“I am so sorry,” she says. “Thank you so much for coming over.”

“Your brother’s sick,” you tell her flatly. “He had a pretty high fever when I got here.”

Her eyes widen, and she turns to look over her shoulder at Seokjin, who gives her a cheery thumbs up. 

“He says he’s fine,” you inform her, “but he’s got about two more hours before the fever-reducer wears off and then he’s gonna be useless again.”

“Thank you for the warning,” she tells you, while Seokjin squawks from the living room, “I am not, and have never been, useless!” 

You give Minji a quick hug goodbye and head for the front door. 

You meet Seokjin’s eyes as you pass through the living room. They’re sharp, now that the fever’s receded, locked on you and looking. 

“Feel better,” you tell him. “Make sure you hydrate.”

“Hey,” he says, making himself comfortable against the couch cushions, “thanks.” Then, an afterthought - “Seriously. Thank you.”

You give him a tight smile and slip out the front door.

Going home doesn’t stop you from worrying, even though you know Minji is home and capable of taking care of everything. But at work the next day, your eyes keep darting to your phone screen, as if you’re expecting updates on how Jin is feeling, if everything is okay at the house. 

No one texts you. 

You can’t ask Minji. She’s too fucking smart. If you so much as said, “Hey, is your brother feeling better?” she’d be all over it. 

You try your mom instead, texting her, “How’s Mr. Kim doing? Any updates?” 

She answers, “Haven’t heard anything!”

You groan, tapping the corner of your phone on your desk in frustration. You try to focus on work for a little bit, but it’s truly a lost cause. With a defeated sigh, you open your phone and thumb through your contacts. 

Kim Seokjin. 

You’ve had his number in your phone since you got it - your mom was the one who programmed it in for you when you were fourteen, citing Jin as someone you could call if you had an emergency. As if by being two years your senior, he qualified as a helpful adult. 

You haven’t used his number in over five years - not since you were still in college, probably. 

Actually, you realize, you remember the last time - though there were definitely parts of the night you didn’t remember. 

It was your senior year, the first weekend of December, and you and Minji were drinking in some girl’s dorm. You’d never even met this girl before, but there you were, perched on her desk with a bottle of flavored vodka in hand, watching her LEDs change color along the ceiling.

You and Minji were both wasted, even though it was relatively early - not even midnight yet. You leaned against each other, holding the other up, both of you giggling and tapping around on your phones as the conversation flowed around you.

That’s what had happened - you’d noticed it was about to be midnight, the clock about to change from 11:59. And despite being so drunk that Minji was mostly propping you up, so drunk that you had to close one eye to read the letters of this girl’s alarm clock, so drunk that you’d be throwing up in just minutes - a little part of you brain informed you that midnight meant it was officially December 4th. 

You’d texted Seokjin happy birthday at exactly midnight, one eye closed to make sure you were typing actual words. He was hundreds of miles away, had graduated and moved out already, and you hadn’t talked since the day the Kims had loaded all of his shit into a rented moving van, about five months ago. 

And he’d answered - “thank you! what are you doing up??”

To which you’d replied, “getting baja blasted with your sister” and he’d replied, “i do not want to know, thank you!!”

And then Minji had looked at you drunkenly and narrowed her eyes. “Who are you texting with that smile?”

The floor had swooped below your feet, and you’d run for the bathroom. Minji had forgotten about interrogating you, and you and Seokjin had never texted again.

Now, at your job, you stare at his name on your phone screen, wracked with indecision. 

“This is ridiculous,” you finally sigh. Behind you, Dale glances over his shoulder to determine if you’re talking to him or yourself. Ignoring Dale, you tap Seokjin’s name and type, “how are you feeling today?”

You don’t even have time to feel nervous about it - his response is almost instantaneous. He sends you a picture of a gaming screen, where he’s clearly playing a shooter POV. He follows it up with the sunglasses emoji. You laugh out loud, trying to keep your chuckles quiet to avoid calling attention to your cubicle. 

“What a nerd,” you mutter affectionately. You type back, “you must be fine then 🙄”. 

Seokjin’s played video games his whole life; it’s one thing you do know about him. How many hours of your childhood had been spent with him, Jungkook, and Minji crowded around the tv in their basement, fighting over whose turn it was to play?Usually Seokjin got to play the first controller (since he was older, stronger, and technically the console belonged to him), which left you and Minji and Jungkook to fight it out over the second one.

But you remember other times, too - especially as you got older - when you’d just sit in silence and watch him play. By the time you were a teenager - fourteen to Jin’s sixteen - Minji was over wanting to join him. She’d argue for use of the tv, and when she lost she’d flounce upstairs to her room to sulk about it. Sometimes you’d join her - usually, you’d join her. But sometimes you’d cast a glance at Seokjin, see if you were welcome. He’d always play it the same - look at you sideways, give you a tiny nod, pat the couch behind him like an invitation. (Seokjin played video games from the floor, letting the base of the couch prop him up. He said he focused better that way.) 

You’d sit, quiet, watching him work the controls, listening to him whine and groan and complain and shout his way through each map. And you’d feel special, because he let you stay after he’d told Minji to fuck off, because he didn’t mind your presence, because sometimes he’d ask if you wanted him to teach you how, even though you always said no thanks. 

You text your mom and ask what she’s making for dinner.

“Why?” she sends back. “Are you asking me to feed you?”

“Maybe,” you send back. 

You join your parents for dinner, “just because”. It’s not that uncommon for you to join them for a meal now and then, considering how close you live. You go because you love your parents and you want a home-cooked meal - definitely not because you know it puts you back in proximity to Jin.

Your mom glances up at you from across the table approximately every four-tenths of a second through the entire meal, until finally you slap your palm on the table and snap, “What?”

She purses her lips, amused. “Nothing,” she says, feigning innocence. “We just don’t usually see you on Friday nights.”

“Jagi,” your dad warns, his voice full of affection. Like he knows it’s a lost cause but he thinks he should try to rein her in for your sake. 

“I’m just saying!” she says, still all innocence, eyes wide. “I’m not complaining! It’s nice to have you here.”

You grumble a response, aggravated that she seems to be onto you. To escape their scrutiny, you rise and move to bag up the full garbage, tying the top of the bag and heading out to the trash cans at the end of the driveway. 

You pause there after hefting the bag up and into the bin, taking a second to breathe. It’s a nice night - the sun has mostly set, the sky deep and dark above you but still clinging to shades of pink down near the horizon. It’s warm, too, for April. 

You’re standing there, arms crossed, watching the sky inch closer and closer to darkness, when you hear a door shut across the street. Your eyes follow the sound immediately, and you see a man’s silhouette do the same thing you were doing - make its way down the driveway, a trash bag in hand. 

Romantic, you think wryly. A garbage date. You stay rooted to the spot, watching as Jin - just an outline, a shadow - tosses the bag into the bin and brushes off his hands. Then, he stops still, seeming to notice you.

You hold your breath, not sure how this will go, and then he starts to lope over, and you exhale in a whoosh.

“Hi,” he says simply, as he gets close enough that you can finally see his face through the dark.

“Hi,” you say around a tiny smile. “You seem better today.”

He scoffs. “I told you it was just a cold. I just needed to sleep it off.”

“I’m glad,” you tell him softly. Maybe it’s dangerous, maybe it’s stupid - to be soft with him. To act like you didn’t already get your answer from him, years ago. To pretend your affection for him is still as pure and untainted as it was when you were a teenager. 

But it feels safer, out here, away from his dad’s house. In there, the memories of that New Year’s Eve are too fresh, too strong - they cling to the air, slide down the walls. The heating unit sighs to life and you hear your own sighs as Seokjin’s fingers danced along your bare skin. The refrigerator grumbles and you hear the grumble of pleasure that originated low in Seokjin’s throat as he felt you squeeze around his fingers. Someone’s footsteps crunch gravel outside, and you hear the crunch of gravel as Seokjin made his way back to the front of the house in the dark, leaving you hidden in shadows, clutching the bricks and gasping for breath.

It’s better out here. In the fresh air, away from that house, the memories are looser, less focused - bike races, raucous laughter, chalk drawings, bouncing beams of light from flashlight tag.

“Thank you for the help yesterday,” he says, rubbing the back of his neck like he does when he’s embarrassed. “I know I kind of gave you a hard time.”

“You didn’t,” you say, letting him off the hook. You’ll always let him off the hook, for everything. You always have. “How’s your dad?”

He glances back at the house over his shoulder, like he needs to verify this answer before giving it. “Not so good today,” he admits. “He’s in a lot more pain, starting to get frustrated needing so much help.”

“Hmm,” you deadpan. “A Kim man who gets frustrated at needing help. Interesting.”

Seokjin laughs, full from his belly. “Shut up,” he says, but there’s no ire in it. “Can I help it if I’m a chip off the ol’ block?”

“We’re supposed to learn from our parents’ mistakes,” you tell him, like a reminder. “Not continue them.”

Just then, a car turns around the corner, the headlights casting you in blinding white light before throwing you back into shadow. You both turn to look - since it’s a dead end, traffic doesn’t just pass through here. 

You recognize the car - it’s Minji’s. She parks and pops out, calling hello to you, ignoring her brother. He makes a face at you like, what am I, chopped liver? 

“I have your mom’s tupperwares, do you want to take them?” she asks, pressing the lock button on her key fob and making the car behind her beep once, loudly. 

“Sure,” you say, following her into the house. A glance over your shoulder tells you that Seokjin is following, too, a few feet behind you, his hands in his pockets. 

Inside, Mr. Kim is sitting sideways on the couch, his leg propped up on a small stack of pillows, a bag of ice over his knee. He perks up when he sees you, lowering his phone away from his face and pushing his spectacles further up his nose. 

“How are you, sweetheart?” he asks. “I’d come hug you, but -.” He gestures at his leg.

“I’m doing fine,” you assure him. “I heard you had a rough day today.”

Mr. Kim shoots a dark look at his son, who looks innocently at the ceiling. “Just a little pain today,” Mr. Kim demures.

Seokjin glances at his phone. “We might want to get you upstairs soon,” he tells his father. “You know you’ll be asleep in about fifteen minutes, so unless you want to spend the night on the couch…”

You watch, feeling awkward and unable to help, as Seokjin helps his dad swivel and stand, an arm over Seokjin’s shoulders. They make their way slowly and laboriously up the stairs, and you feel a little anxious watching. 

“Are they okay?” you ask Minji as she returns from the kitchen, pushing your mother’s empty tupperware back into your hands.

“They’re fine,” she says easily. “It takes a while but they’ve got it down to a science. Hey, listen, do you want to go grab a drink? It’s Friday, and I’ve had a hell of a week, and what I would really like to do is Uber into town and drink like college-Minji.”

You laugh at this. “I’m not sure I’m prepared for the return of college-Minji.”

“Pleaaaaaaaase?” she begs, blinking her lashes at you. “We haven’t gone out together in ages.”

“Alright, alright,” you laugh. “Let me go tell my parents goodbye and drive home and change. Text me the details and I’ll meet you there.”

“Yessss!” she cries, dancing in place a little. You feel a swell of affection for her; you love Minji with your whole heart. You’ve been through a lot together. You’ve been through a lot separately, but always side by side.

There have been many times through your life where you felt like you were clutching Minji’s hand through the fire. 

You still remember clearly the way she’d bounded up to your locker, back when you were thirteen, squealing and excited because the most popular girl in your year had asked her for her number, had invited her over. 

You still remember clearly Minji sobbing on your bed weeks later when it came to light that the girl - who wouldn’t be the last to try - was just trying to get an “in” with Minji’s hot older brother.

“You know I would never, right?” you’d promised her. Stupid, at fourteen, not clarifying that you mean never use you to get to him. Stupid, because then you were sixteen and then eighteen and then twenty-one and then twenty-six and you weren’t sure what you had actually promised - had Minji heard it as I would never get involved with him? 

“I know,” she’d sobbed, reaching one hand blindly to clutch at yours. “I know you wouldn’t.”

And now you’re twenty-eight and the secrets you’ve kept keep piling up - each day you loved him, another pebble atop the pile. The slightest shake could topple the tower, and you’d be absolutely buried. 

You could never let Minji know you loved him. Not when you were fifteen and he was untouchable. Not when you were twenty, and he was the best part of coming home. Not when you were twenty-six, pressed between him and the deck railing. 

Not now, after two years of existing outside his orbit again. 

The bar she picks is small, but quiet - quiet enough that you can actually carry on a conversation from opposite sides of a wooden booth, which is exactly what you do.

What you hadn’t banked on was that Seokjin would join her, sitting on her side of the booth, complaining loudly that he’s not going to come out with you two ever again, he’s never been such a third wheel in his life.

“You could have stayed home with dad,” Minji says, giving him a swift elbow to the ribs. “Don’t be such a complainer. You jumped in on my plans.”

“Can we please talk about something besides your hot coworker, then?” he begs. “Anything, anything else.”

“We could talk about my hot coworkers,” you offer, even though you have none. But this - teaming up with Minji to push Seokjin’s buttons - is a song and dance you know by heart, something you’ve done since practically infancy.

He narrows his eyes at you. “Believe it or not, that’s not better,” he deadpans. 

You laugh, knocking back the rest of your drink and sliding out of the booth to go get another, leaving the Kim siblings to bicker in your absence.

You don’t expect Seokjin to follow; you don’t expect him to press up behind you as you stand at the bar, waiting for the bartender’s attention. 

But he does, his body heavy and warm against yours. The blood rushes to your pussy so fast it almost makes you mad. All he’s doing is standing in close proximity, can your body get it together?

“What are you doing?” you murmur, trying not to meet his eyes in the mirrored wall behind the bar.

“Minji wants shots,” he answers easily. Like his body isn’t pressed against yours, like he isn’t causing your heart to hammer against your ribs.

“You’re too close,” you manage to say, because it’s the best option you can think of. Better than she’ll see us. Better than you still aren’t close enough. Better than don’t do this if you’re just going to leave again. 

He does catch your eyes in the mirror, then. He must read something honest on your face, because he shifts sideways, leaving you cold. The bartender comes by, takes both your orders. You take your drink back to the table. Seokjin follows with a tray of bad decisions poured into tiny glasses.

Even though he gave you the reprieve when you asked for it, it’s clear he’s got a mission to ruin you. You’re sure of it, more and more sure as the night wears on. Sure of it when you reach for the same shot glass, your fingers brushing, his lingering. Sure of it when his eyes on your face make you so warm that Minji accuses you of having a drunk flush. Sure of it when his foot hooks around your ankle beneath the table, slides up and down your calf, slow and tantalizing, inches from Minji’s stilettoed feet. Sure of it when this causes your breath to hitch and his fingers tighten around his glass and his gaze goes to the opposite wall, anywhere but towards you.

You’re drunk, but it’s Seokjin that’s sending you spinning. 

You’ve made this mistake before, you remind yourself sternly. Nothing good can come of it. 

You excuse yourself and head for the bathroom, a marked up door at the end of a narrow, poorly lit hallway. You grip the sides of the sink and breathe deep, closing your eyes. The room sways and you press your forehead to the mirror, trying to ground yourself. 

“You cannot fuck him again,” you whisper to yourself, eyes still closed. “It wouldn’t mean anything even if you did.”

The alcohol catches up to you as you whisper these words; the truth of them slam you harder than normal. You blink away tears, taking a few shuddering breaths.

“Time to go home,” you tell yourself firmly, turning off the water and wiping quickly under your eyes in case any makeup ran. 

This is what it means to be in Seokjin’s orbit, now: to crash into each other, to fight with yourself - fight with the truth that he doesn’t want you, and then run away scared until he’s too far away to hurt you again. Spin idly along until the next time your circles cross paths. Do it again.

He’s in the hallway when you emerge, arms crossed as he leans against the wall. You have to pass him to get back to the table. He pushes off the wall when he sees you coming, stumbles a little. A tiny, sensible part of your brain whispers that he might be drunker than you are as you sidle into his personal bubble.

“What are you doing, Seokjin?” you ask him for the second time that night. 

His eyes comb your face. You don’t know what answer he’s looking for, what question he’s secretly asked you in his mind. 

“You tell me,” he retorts, which doesn’t make a lot of sense, but speaking somehow brought him looming closer and you’re drowning in the smell of him, the warmth of him, the desire to feel his body hard against yours again, to feel him split you open again, to have his mouth hot on your skin again -

You close your eyes, sag a little. His hands come to your elbows quickly, holding you up. “You’re confusing me,” you whisper, and then look up at him through your lashes. 

There’s something aching on his face, and then he whispers back, “I’m sorry. Y/N, I’m so sorry - I never meant -.”

The click-clack of high heels approach and round the corner. You and Seokjin leap apart like you’re burned, your arms tingling where his fingers had been.

It’s not Minji. The stranger murmurs an apology and brushes past you both, towards the bathroom.

Spooked, startled out of the moment, you turn to head back to the bar, back to Minji. 

Seokjin grabs your arm, pulls you back. You teeter back a step, then look at him expectantly as you regain your balance.

Seriously, so seriously, he tells you, “I swear, I never wanted to hurt you.” Then he releases your arm with a tiny push, guiding you back out of the dirty hallway and into the light.

You Uber home alone. You brush your teeth, remove your makeup. You change into pajamas, drink a glass of water. 

You wake up to your phone buzzing incessantly next to your head.

[10:14 AM] Jin 😎: oh [10:14 AM] Jin 😎: my god [10:14 AM] Jin 😎: i think i am dead? [10:15 AM] Jin 😎: are you dead too? are we ghosts? [10:15 AM] Jin 😎: can ghosts throw up??? 🤔

You giggle despite your own headache. 

[10:15 AM] You: whats wrong old man, you can’t hang anymore?? [10:16 AM] Jin 😎: WOW [10:16 AM] You: 😇

You check all your other socials, answer a few emails, and then finally drag yourself out of bed and head for a hot shower. As you stand beneath the hot water, you think about your first hangover, when you were sixteen. 

You’d woken up next to Minji on her basement floor, a hoodie balled up beneath your head like a pillow. You’d closed your eyes again, hoping the splitting pain in your head and the roiling adrenaline in your stomach were a bad dream. 

They were not.

You spent most of the next hour in the basement’s tiny bathroom, curled up on the floor next to your porcelain jail. When you felt like you could stand, you rinsed your mouth and pulled the pillow-hoodie onto your body, taking comfort in the way it swam on you, the hemline brushing your thighs just below your cutoffs. 

You’d made your way upstairs, hoping to sneak past Mr. Kim and your own parents and make it unscathed to your own bed. You wanted nothing but to sleep for the next fourteen hours. Or years. 

You got busted at the top of the stairs. Luckily, it was Seokjin bustling around the kitchen, not his father.

He had taken one look at you and started laughing, low in his belly. “Too much fun?”

“Shut up,” you’d whined, literally covering your ears against the noise. “Or I will throw up again, I promise.”

Jin had smiled at you, open and easy. “Sit down, kid,” he’d said kindly, jerking his head towards the kitchen table. “I have an age-old remedy.” 

And actually? It had worked.

After drying your hair and throwing on some jeans and a t-shirt, you scavenge your kitchen. You have most of what you need, and you toss it all into a tote bag and hunt for your keys. You finally find them on the floor next to the kitchen counter - chances are you’d tossed them at the counter last night and missed - and head out.

Your parents are home when you let yourself in. They both stare at you, baffled, then exchange a sly, knowing look.

“You’re back, I see,” your mom says, something sneaky in her tone.

“Do you have any bean paste?” you answer. “I’m going to go make Minji hangover soup.”

Only one word was a lie.

This makes your mom laugh, and she rummages in her cabinets and helps you complete the list of ingredients you need. 

The Kims’ front door is locked, so you make your way around the side of the house and fish the key out of its hiding spot, letting yourself in the side door that leads to the kitchen. 

The house is still and quiet, and you try not to clang any pots and pans as you get to work. When you finish, over an hour later, you set up the table - a bowl of hangover soup, and a mug of steaming hot coffee, black.

You text Seokjin, “come to the kitchen”, and set your phone back down, turning to start on the dishes. 

You’re informed of his presence by his laugh. You turn, hands red under the hot water and covered in suds, to see him sitting down at the spot you’d set up. He looks up at you, amazed, an uncertain smile playing across his face. 

“It’s an age-old remedy,” you tell him seriously.

“You are…” he trails off with a quiet laugh and reaches for the coffee. 

You’d love to know the end of that sentence. 

When you finish the dishes - save for the pot with the remaining soup, still on the stove for when Minji wakes up - you pour your own mug of coffee and sit across from Jin, watching as he finishes his soup. He closes his eyes and sighs happily, then sets down his spoon reverently.

“Thank you,” he says, like a prayer, but also like a joke. “That was so needed.”

“Consider it payback,” you tell him. 

It feels different, sitting across the kitchen table. Different than sitting across that booth at the bar. Less charged. Like it wasn’t something physical burning between you, like you’d thought, but the need for catharsis, for apology. Even if you don’t know what he’s sorry for, even if you still don’t know what exactly happened with him two years ago.

He’s thinking about it too, apparently. He says your name quietly, and you look up to meet his eyes. You can read the apology all over his face. The house is still still and quiet, no one awake but you and Jin. Like no one exists but you and Jin.

You’ve felt that way before.

Sitting beside him in the basement. In the passenger seat of his car, driving through a rainstorm. In his backyard, in the dark, your breath visible in the air as it leaves your mouth in desperate puffs.

“I kind of wanted to talk,” he admits, and your stomach twists. Maybe you should have had some of the soup. “About -?”

“There’s nothing to talk about,” you say quickly, already standing, already moving to gather up the tote bag you’d used to carry ingredients. You shrug back into your jacket, ignoring Jin’s wide-eyed look of surprise. “I should get going,” you say, still not looking at him. You go back to the kitchen door you’d entered through, picking up the key so you can return it to its hiding place outside. You pause on the threshold, turning, eyeing the stovetop thoughtfully. 

“Tell Minji you made the soup,” you instruct, and then you close the door behind you. 

Thank you so so much for reading - i hope you like this one as much as I do! Please don't feel shy about letting me know what you think!

Part 2: Retrograde will post next Friday, June 2nd. Hope to see you there!

[lifewiththelulus]

With Cirrus parents, they themselves weren’t against her being trans but were afraid of the bullying she would have been put through and that train of thought really clouded their judgement.

Having parents that say they're accepting but really don't act like it can be so hurtful ;-;

The only good decision they had was leaving custody of their children to Breeze.

You said they got into an accident right?

Yeah, through illness that affects air people. The air in them gets drier and drier until they are nothing more than wisps 😦 There isn’t a cure So they’re plug had to be pulled before they went through the worst of it.

Fuck that's heartbreaking

they at least got to apologize to Cirrus before they left.

I did have a similar thing I was thinking for Mimi. Briar is a single mother. She's just become very overprotective and Karen like

So many parental issues. At least Hazel and Vapor have a good deal