#i’m a sucker for fluff

[silliestintheworld]

should I finish this or scrap it/gen

Ganke paced back and forth, the dim glow of the streetlights filtering through the curtains. His mind raced with worry as he glanced at his ridiculously bright computer screen. It was well past 1 in the morning, and Miles still hadn't returned.

Ganke had spent the last couple of hours working on both his and Miles's homework, trying to distract himself from the gnawing worry in his chest. He had even managed to complete an entire essay in that time, fueled by stress and the desperate need for something to do besides worry. But it wasn't working. Not when Miles was out there, somewhere, and he had no idea why he hadn't come back yet.

He was giving himself a headache.

"No but seriously, where is he?" Ganke muttered to himself, his voice tinged with concern. He knew Miles had a habit of falling asleep on patrol, but it was 12 degrees outside.

Ganke shivered at the mere thought. "He's gonna freeze his ass off, and then I'll have to explain to everyone why my best friend died from hypothermia!"

Why couldn't New York be warmer!?

Great, now he was talking to himself. Might as well change your name to Miles while we’re at it.

He considered calling Miles's parents, but dismissed the idea almost immediately. If they knew Miles wasn’t with him, they would likely be even more worried. It wouldn't help anyone if they all panicked.

His phone remained silent, devoid of any response from Miles. That was very unlike him. Ganke knew Miles hated seeing him worry, and he always made an effort to keep him up, especially when he knew he would be out late. The fact that he wasn't answering a single text only added to the unease in Ganke's heart.

He was supposed to be the calm one.

A thousand scenarios played out in Ganke's mind. What if something had happened? What if Miles was hurt, trapped somewhere, alone in some stranger's basement? The thought was ridiculous, he knew, but in moments like these, the worst-case scenarios seemed all too possible.

"He's fine, stop stressing yourself out," Ganke told himself, trying to project calmness into the air. But his own voice wavered with uncertainty. He wanted to believe his words, to have faith in Miles's abilities, but the fear gnawed at him relentlessly.

"He'll be fine. He'll come back," he mumbled to no one in particular.

"He always comes back." But deep down, he couldn't shake the feeling of dread that settled in his chest.

[welcome-to-green-hills]

Shadow: (seeing sonic hold his hand). Uh why are you holding my hand? Sonic: (holds it tighter). It helps me stay focused. (And then they both beat up the Biolizard).

[kitten4sannie]

I FEEL PERFECTLY NORMAL ABOUT THIS

Glowing Caverns | C.SN

「pairing」 : san x fem!reader 「word count」 : 4.5k

「synopsis」 : you were on vacation, taking the time to get away from your chaotic city life and enjoy the tranquility of the beach. it was supposed to be an easy laid back few weeks yet you weren't expecting to catch the eye of a lifeguard who just couldn't seem to keep his eyes off of you.

「genre」 : smut, lil bit of fluff, lifegurard!san, summer fling au

「warnings」 : MINORS DO NOT INTERACT!!!, cussing, kissing, flirting, unprotected sex, biting/marking, messy makeout, rough sex, slight clit play, dirty talk, teasing, dom!san x sub!reader, overstimulation, pet names (princess, baby, pretty, pretty girl...), multiple orgasms, slight buldge kink, creampie, dumbification, slight manhandling, praising, breeding, lmk if I missed anything!!

「notes」 : this has been sitting in my drive half finished for at least a month now and I can't believe that I'm just now getting back to it 😭, but lifeguard san was the first thought that came to mind when I saw the crazy ass video he posted 🥴. special shout out to @kitten4sannie for listening to insaneness and letting me share my crazy ideas, this ones for you babes! also, HAPPY NEW YEARS!! 🥂

The sun was shining brightly in the sky, warming you to the core as you walked along the beach. The book in your hand is long forgotten as you soak in the warm rays, enjoying the sea salt air. It was refreshing to finally have a place that didn’t have you running around like a chicken with its head cut off or a manager that would yell at you for every little thing that you did wrong and even the aches in your body due to overtime were melting away the longer you stood in the summer breeze.

Moving your hand up, you shielded your eyes from the bright sun as you looked around, you saw only a few families on the beach, parents lounging around on their towels under large umbrellas while the kids were off playing in the water or giggling with one another as they attempted to build sandcastles a little too close to the water. You couldn’t help but smile as you watched the three kids jump to their feet with squeals as a wave crashed over their newly built sandcastle, completely demolishing it.

This was the life that you had longed for, and you would give anything to be able to call this your ‘every day,’ but you knew that it would never be true. You couldn’t leave your life in the city behind; as much as you would love to, there was just too much at stake.

Letting out a conflicted sigh, you turned back to the ocean and watched the waves roll calmly on the surface. The gentleness of it all lured you in like a siren's call, tugging at every fiber of your being, and you took a step forward, allowing the cool water to wash over your bare feet, the temperature causing a chill to run down your spine.

After a few moments, you could feel the burning gaze of someone’s eyes, the hairs on the back of your neck standing tall. Peeking over your shoulder, you met the eyes of one of the lifeguards; he was perched on top of the watch-out chair. Heat flushed your cheeks as you took in his appearance, his shaggy hair falling in front of his eyes, but it didn’t hide the intensity of the look he was giving you. Your eyes took in more of his appearance, and you felt like your face was going to burst into flames at any moment. His honey skin was on perfect display. The only thing he was wearing was the bright red swim trunks that all of the lifeguards were wearing.

Swallowing thickly, you raised your hand, sending him a small wave, and your heart nearly stopped when he smiled, waving back. A smile of your own spread on your lips as you turned back around to look out at the ocean once more.

San’s eyes stayed glued to you even after you turned back around; something about you intrigued him. He’s never seen you around town before, and he knows almost everyone. The town doesn’t have very many tourists, so he was curious. It was like there was an invisible string tethering him to you, and he felt a pull, one that wouldn’t go away until he learned more. So he leaned over the other side of the lookout chair, searching for someone.

“Hey, Jongho!” He called out to the other male, who turned around a pair of dark sunglasses adorning his features. “Can you cover for me for a few minutes?” San asked, causing the younger to cock an eyebrow.

“What’s in it for me?”

“I’ll buy your lunch for the rest of the week.” San bargained, and Jongho thought about it for a second before ultimately nodding and agreeing.

“But don’t think I won’t throw your ass under the bus if boss shows up,” Jongho told him pointedly, and San chuckled before patting his shoulder.

“Thanks!” San then turned and jogged over to where you were standing while Jongho climbed up the ladder, drink in hand, as he leaned back in the seat.

You were crouched down, your book in your lap, as you combed through the sand to find any seashells. The sound of footsteps nearing you tore your attention away, and you pulled your hand from the water. Looking over, you found the lifeguard from earlier making his way towards you, so you shook your hand, trying to dry any of the leftover water before standing to your feet once more. Your heart fluttered when he got closer, and you were able to see his dimpled smile and his teeth peeking out from behind his lips.

“Hi.” He greeted you as soon as he got close enough, stopping just a few feet away from you.

You turned to face him, returning his smile as your fingers curled around the spine of your book, “hi.”

“I don’t think I’ve seen you around town before.” He tilted his head a little bit, causing some of his hair to fall further into his eyes, but he didn’t seem to mind.

The only thing that came to your mind as you watched him look at you curiously was that he was cute. His soft brown eyes drew you in like a freshly made batch of brownies, and his sweet smile left you wanting more. 

You laughed softly at his statement before nodding your head, “That would be because I’m new around here.” You told him before quickly adding on, “Only for the summer though, then I’ve gotta go back home.”

San didn’t miss the solemn look that crossed your face when you mentioned going back home, and he couldn’t help but feel a bit bad for you. However, hearing that you were going to be here for the summer gave him an idea, albeit possibly a horrible idea, but an idea nonetheless.

“Would you care for a tour of the town? I can show you all the best places around.” He gave you a cheeky smile, and you felt your stomach flutter.

The last thing you expected was for someone to offer to show you around the foreign town, let alone someone who was like a godsent. You thought it over for a few moments before ultimately deciding that it wouldn’t be a bad idea, seeing as you were going to be in this town for at least another three months, so you nodded your head with a smile of your own.

“I’d love that.” You told him before you heard shouting from behind him causing both of you to turn only to find an older man marching down the beach.

Chuckling nervously, the boy turned back to you, rubbing the back of his neck, “That would be my boss, I should probably get back. Do you know where the ice cream parlor is?” He asked, and you nodded, recalling seeing it as you were on your way to the beach. “Awesome, I get off at six. Meet me there?”

“San!” You heard someone shout causing the male in front of you to look over his shoulder, seeing the older man now standing next to the lifeguard post with Jongho.

“You should probably go,” You laugh softly. You would hate to see him get into any more trouble for staying and talking to you.

“Probably…” He sighed, turning back towards you, “I’m San, by the way.”

“I’m y/n.” You smiled up at him, and San felt his stomach swirl at the sight, but the moment was ruined when his boss once again yelled at him to get back to his post, causing the poor boy to let out a defeated sigh.

“I’ll see you later y/n.” He waved at you softly before turning and started jogging towards the lifeguard stand but stopped short when he remembered something, “Oh, y/n?” You looked at him at the sound of your name with a hum, “Make sure to wear your bathing suit.”

You nodded softly before watching as he walked back over to the lifeguard stand where his boss started giving him an earful as the boy who was sitting on the chair watched, a straw in his mouth. You couldn’t help but laugh at the sight. This might just be the best summer you’ve had yet.

Just like San said he would, he showed up at the ice cream parlor a little after six. He found you sitting in a booth off to the side with an empty cup in front of you as you scrolled through your phone. Walking over, he stopped just short of the table with a small smile tugging on his lips.

“Is this seat taken?” He asked, causing you to lift your head, and as soon as you saw him, your face lit up, a smile spreading across your glossed lips. You shook your head before telling him to sit down, to which he happily obliged, sitting across from you and propping his arms on the tabletop.

“So, where are you taking me first?” You asked, taking a sip from your watered-down soda only to grimace slightly due to the bland taste, causing San to chuckle, ‘cute,’ he thought, watching you push the cup away with a small pout forming on your lips.

“Well, I was thinking we would just make our way back down to the beach.” He told you, and you looked at him with scrunched eyebrows. Weren’t you guys just at the beach? Noticing your confusion, he added, “There is a cavern just slightly off the beach that glows at night.”

Your eyes widened at the thought, you have heard of them before but you never thought that you would actually be able to go and see one in person. It would also make sense why he told you to keep your bathing suit on. However, a sudden unease starts to settle in the pit of your stomach at the thought of the sea life that normally comes out after dark.

“What about sharks and whatnot?”

“We won’t have to swim to get inside, plus the underwater entrance is too small for anything big to get in,” San reassured you, and your unease died down as you took in the sincerity that gleamed in his eyes. “If you’re ready, we can start heading that way.” 

You nodded with a bright smile before standing from your seat and turning to grab your trash, but San was quicker. He walked over to the trash can, throwing it away as you followed behind him closely.

“You didn’t have to do that.” You pouted slightly, not used to people doing anything like that for you.

San just offered you a smile, walking to the door and opening it for you, “after you.”

–

About an hour and a half later, you walked side by side with San down the beach, your sandals in your hand as you talked. He had shown you so many small shops that had all kinds of things that you couldn’t find in the bigger cities and even took you to the small animal shelter where he volunteers from time to time. It was refreshing to see, and you wished that you could make it your everyday life, but alas, you couldn’t.

“The entrance is just over here.” San pointed off to the side of the cliff, the flashlight in his hand illuminating the ground underneath your feet. You followed after him until you made it to more rocky ground, so you stopped to put your shoes back on.

You had managed to put one on without too much struggle, but as you were putting the other on, you lost your balance, toppling over. However, instead of crashing on the ground, you felt arms wrapped around your midsection, keeping you upright. Looking up, your breath hitched in your throat as you noticed just how close San was. Stammering out an apology, you pushed away with a flustered face, and San watched in amusement as you avoided his eyes.

After your shoes were on, San led you to the entrance, “it's just through here.” He pointed the flashlight at the small entrance, glancing back at you. You followed after him, making sure to stay close so you don’t get separated. Then, finally, you broke through the entrance with a deep breath; the air smelled heavily of sea salt.

A small gasp fell from your lips when you looked up as San turned the flashlight off. The whole cavern was illuminated in an oceanic blue. The reflection of the water from the ceiling made it feel like you were underwater.

“It’s beautiful.” You spoke quietly as you stepped forward, and San looked over at you with a silly smile on his lips.

Heat flushed his face as he took in your appearance. The lights from the algae made your skin glow. You were breathtaking, and every fiber in his body was yearning to reach out to touch you, but when you looked over, catching him staring, he decided against it.

“C’mon, let’s get in the water.” He quickly spoke before you had a chance to even question why he was staring and jogged over to the edge of the water. 

You stood there in confusion for a moment before looking back over at the taller male as he kicked his shoes off and pulled his shirt over his head. Your mouth watered slightly at the sight of his bare skin, watching the muscles in his back ripple as he threw his shirt off to the side.

Heat crept up your neck as he looked back at you with a small smile, but there was a gleam in his eyes that made your stomach flip. Swallowing thickly you walked over to the water’s edge as San dove in and kicked your sandals off once more.

“This is safe, right?” You asked, your voice coming out shaky as you took in San’s appearance after coming out from under the water.

“I’ve been swimming here since I was a kid. I promise it’s safe.” He offered you a reassuring smile, and you nodded before reaching for the hem of your shirt.

San couldn’t tear his gaze away from your body as you pulled your shirt over your head, revealing the bikini top that you were wearing underneath. He could feel his whole body start to burn as you pulled your shorts down your legs before tossing both items over with his discarded shirt.

You could feel his eyes burning into you as you threaded through the water, which was surprisingly warmer than you expected it to be. When you got close enough to him, he swallowed down the lump in his throat, but then you got a mischievous idea.

Cupping your hands together, you splashed water at him, drenching his face and hair. You broke down into a fit of giggles at the shock on his face after he wiped his eyes.

“Oh, you’re playin’ a dangerous game.” He chuckled deeply, and you felt a shiver run down your spine at the noise, heat pooling in your gut, but you tried to ignore it as he sprayed water right back at you.

A squeal fell from your lips as he rushed at you, and you ran from him, the whole cavern filling with the sounds of your guy's laughter. 

You tried to get away from San’s outstretched hands after splashing him once again, but your foot slipped, and he managed to grab your arm. He pulled you towards him, your body almost weightless in the water.

“Got you.” He huffed, looking down at you as your hand fell to his chest to keep your balance. 

The air around you grew still; the only sound was your heavy breathing. San’s eyes were glued to your face, and you could feel your body growing warmer by the second. He started to lean down, his lips ghosting over yours, and your eyes fluttered closed as he closed the space between your bodies.

San’s lips were soft against yours; the kiss was sweet, but it didn’t take long before it started to fill with need. His tongue swiped over your bottom lip, groaning at the taste, a mixture of sea salt and your strawberry lip gloss. The sound was enough to leave your core dripping as you parted your lips, allowing him to invade your mouth.

A small whine fell from your lips as he bit down on your bottom lip gently before trailing kisses down your jaw to your neck. You rolled your head to the side, giving him more space to leave wet, open-mouth kisses along your skin.

“San…” You let out a breathy moan as he nipped at your skin, his hands wandering your body while yours squeezed his shoulders to try and ground yourself. Your breath hitched in your throat when his hand cupped your boob over your bikini top.

“You sound so pretty, moaning my name.” He groaned against your skin, his senses going haywire as he kissed back up to your lips. He just couldn’t seem to get enough. He wanted more.

A small yelp fell from your lips when he picked you up effortlessly, your legs wrapped around his waist as he carried you out of the water. His lips then found yours, capturing them in a heated kiss.

Not a word was spoken as he laid you down on the smooth floor of the cavern, fingers dancing across your skin. Every fiber of your being felt like it had been set aflame as his hand crept down your stomach, tracing the hem of your bottoms.

He pulled away from your lips, taking in your disheveled appearance and your swollen lips glistening under the light. The sight made his dick swell in his trunks, the material straining, causing him to groan. Pulling back a little more, he curled his fingers around the fabric of your bottoms and looked back at you with a questioning gaze. After giving him the green light, San wasted no time in discarding you of your bottoms, leaving your dripping core on full display.

You felt small under his gaze, and you started to close your legs in embarrassment. However, San was quick to stop you. Grabbing your knees, he spread your legs once more, his cock twitching at the sight of your glistening pussy.

“Fuck.” He cursed, mouth yearning to latch on to your clit, but his aching cock was telling him that there was no time. So he prayed to the gods that he would get another chance to eat you out before the summer was over.

“San–” You were cut off by a choked moan when he pressed down on your clit suddenly, groaning at how wet you were. He leaned back over your body, caging you under his as he looked at your lust-filled eyes.

“Shit princess, you’re so fucking wet.” His head leaned down, his hot breath fanning over your ear as he continued to toy with your clit.

“San, please!” You whined, back arching off the ground when he added more pressure to your clit. Your body felt like it was on fire, and your core ached, begging to be filled. The growing desire becomes insatiable.

“Please, what, pretty girl?” He cooed, raising up to look at you with a teasing smirk, and that’s when you noticed the chain dangling from his neck. 

Biting back another moan, you reached up and wrapped your fingers around the cool metal before pulling him down until his lips brushed over yours, “stop teasing and fuck me.”

San chuckled before removing his hand from your little bundle of nerves, “so demanding.” 

You were about to retort, but all words died on your tongue as he leaned up to pull his trunks down just enough to let his weeping cock pop out. Noticing the shocked look in your eyes, he smirked before leaning over you again, lips brushing over your ear.

“You were the one demanding that I fuck you, so take it like a good girl, hmm?” His voice was deep, causing you to clench around nothing, a small whine falling from your lips.

Your whole body jolted when you felt his tip running over your slit before bumping into your clit. Then he started pushing into you without so much as a warning, causing you to choke out a broken moan of his name.

“San!” You cried out, nails clawing at his back, nearly breaking skin, and tears brimmed in your eyes. “‘S too much.” 

“But you wanted this baby.” He cooed, thumb brushing under your eyes as tears started to fall, and you’d be lying if you said you didn’t find his forcefulness hot. Your walls squeezed around his aching cock, sucking him further in and he groaned, “plus you’re sucking me in, your pretty little cunt is just begging to be filled.”

Your eyes rolled back when he finally bottomed out, your mind fuzzing over from the full feeling. San watched you intently as you pulled at his body, wanting him close to you, a pathetic whimper falling from your swollen lips.

“Sannie!” You cried out, and his cock twitched at the whiny tone in your voice. The pressure was overwhelming, and you felt like you were about to combust if nothing was done about it soon. Your hips rolled up against San’s, and a choked gasp fell from your lips when his tip brushed over your sweet spot. “M-Move, please. San, please.” You spewed pleas like a mantra, and San’s lips curled into a smirk as he took your hips in his hands.

He pulled out until just the tip was left before pushing back in with enough force to make your tits bounce. A strangled cry tore from your lungs, and your hands flew to his forearm. His pace was slow but deep, hitting all of the right spots and turning you into a blubbering mess.

“Look at you taking me so well,” He cooed, pistoning his hips into yours until his tip hit your cervix.

Stars danced across your vision when his pace picked up, his grip so tight on your hips that you were sure that it would leave bruises the next day. However, all thoughts melted from your brain when his hand pressed down on your lower stomach, making you feel him even more.

“S-San– fuck! You feel so good, oh my god!” You cried out, back arching off of the ground when his thumb made contact with your clit. Your legs trembled around San’s waist as he brought you closer to your climax, your velvet walls squeezing around his throbbing cock like a vice.

“Shit, if you keep squeezing me like that, I’m gonna cum.” San groaned, his body leaning over yours to litter your chest with sloppy kisses. “Is that what you want, pretty girl? Me to cum in this sweet pussy of yours? To claim you as mine, is that it?” He growled against your skin, and it felt like your brain turned to mush at the thought of him cumming in you, and you tightened around him once more, giving away exactly what you wanted.

With just a few more thrusts, he sent you toppling over the edge, a string of broken moans falling from your lips as he fucked you through your high. Detaching his lips from your collarbone, he leaned over you, chain hanging just in your peripheral. Without so much as a second thought, you grabbed the jewelry and pulled him down, slotting your lips over his.

The kiss was anything but neat; he kissed you with a bruising force, and a mixture of spit covered both of your chins. Any sound you made from his relentless pounding was swallowed by his lips. Tears of overstimulation clouded your vision as you tried to tell him to slow down, but all that left your lips were incoherent babbles.

“Fuck! I’m sorry, pretty, just hold on a little bit more; you can do that, can’t you?” He grunted through gritted teeth as he sat back up, using his hold on your hips to plow you into oblivion. Your nails dug into his forearm, threatening to break skin as he pushed you closer to another climax.

“S-San!” You choked out a moan as he brushed over your sweet spot, causing stars to cloud your vision.

“Shit.” San groaned as he felt his own high right on the tip of his tongue. His hand then moved from your hip, trailing up your body until he caught your chin between his fingers. “Look at me pretty girl, I want you to watch as I fill your womb with my cum.” 

His words were enough to have your eyes rolling to the back of your head, your body trembling as another high washed over your body. Your pussy spasmed around his cock as you continued to gush out your own cum. An incoherent mixture of his name and curses spewed from your lips as he continued to fuck you through another high until his own thrusts became sloppy.

“Eyes on me, princess.” He tapped your cheek, watching in amusement as you tried your best to focus your attention on him despite all of the pleasure your body was receiving. “F-Fucking–” His voice cracked as his climax hit him like a freight train, his warm seed spilling deep into your walls.

“Sannie!” You whine at the sudden feeling, back arching off of the ground once more when he stilled inside of you.

“You did so good for me, baby.” He huffed, leaning over to pull your lips into a gentle kiss, and your shaky arms wrapped around his neck, wanting to keep him as close as possible.

The two of you stayed like that for a few moments more until San pulled away, causing you to whine at the sudden loss of contact. With a chuckle, he slipped out of your spent hole, watching as a mixture of his and your cum pooled on the ground beneath you. Swallowing thickly, he tore his eyes away, afraid that he would get hard again, and instead pulled his trunks back up before helping you back into your clothes.

“C’mon, we can go back to mine and watch a movie or something.” He smiled sweetly at you as he helped you pull your shorts over your hips, and you felt your face flush.

“Throw in some snacks, and I’ll be yours.” You teased, and he chuckled before grabbing your hand and intertwining your fingers.

“I can make that happen.” He then pulled you back towards the entrance of the cavern and back to the beach before the both of you headed back to his place for the rest of the night.

You couldn’t help but think that maybe, just maybe, if you kissed your city life goodbye, you could be happy here. The thought of having to leave San at the end of the summer after what just happened left an ache deep in your heart. So that’s all it took, was another flash of San’s dimpled smile to call your boss and tell him that you were going to quit.

@wwooyology | Do not steal, plagiarise, translate, or repost any of my work

𝖉𝖎𝖘𝖈𝖑𝖆𝖎𝖒𝖊𝖗 : ᴛʜɪꜱ ɪꜱ ɴᴏ ᴡᴀʏ ᴀ ᴛʀᴜᴇ ʀᴇᴘʀᴇꜱᴇɴᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴ ᴏꜰ ᴀɴʏ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴇᴍʙᴇʀꜱ. ᴛʜɪꜱ ɪꜱ ᴘᴜʀᴇʟʏ ꜰɪᴄᴛɪᴏɴ ᴀɴᴅ ꜰᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇ ᴇɴᴊᴏʏᴍᴇɴᴛ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ ᴀɴᴅ ɴᴏᴛ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴛᴀᴋᴇɴ ꜱᴇʀɪᴏᴜꜱʟʏ.

[moonyswoony]

Lost and found

Pairing: Five hargreeves x reader

Summary: You an Five discover more than just plants and strawberries in the greenhouse

Warning(s): kissing, fluff, nothing really

“What the hell is this place?” Five muttered, his voice tinged with suspicion.

“Beats me,” you replied, stepping further inside. “But it’s not like we’ve stumbled upon a better place than this one so far.”

The two of you had been on the run for what felt like an eternity. Your attempt to figure out the subway had gone sideways—again—and now you were stuck in this strange, green timeline with no clear path back.

Five stayed close as you ventured deeper into the greenhouse, his sharp eyes scanning every inch. “This doesn’t make sense. None of this should be here.”

You brushed your fingers against a nearby vine, feeling the life pulsing through it. “Maybe this is just a small piece of the world that refused to die.”

Five huffed, the ghost of a smile on his lips. “That, or we’ve stumbled into some kind of twisted fairytale.”

“Great. Does that make you the grumpy old troll under the bridge?” you teased.

“If I’m the troll, that makes you the annoying adventurer who won’t stop asking questions,” he shot back, though his tone was more fond than bitter.

As you explored, you found yourself drawn to a patch of strawberries growing along the far wall. They were perfectly ripe, a vibrant red that stood out against the greens and browns around them. Without thinking, you plucked one and popped it into your mouth, savoring the sweetness.

Five watched with raised eyebrows. “You sure that’s safe?”

“If it’s not, at least I’ll go out with a decent meal,” you replied, plucking another and offering it to him.

He hesitated, then took it, biting into the fruit with a thoughtful expression. “Not bad.”

“High praise from you,” you quipped.

There was a brief, comfortable silence as you both absorbed the strange beauty of this place. The tension that had been winding tighter and tighter over the past few days—or even years—slowly began to ease, the peacefulness of this place working its way into your entire being.

As you wandered deeper, you came across a patch of wildflowers bathed in golden sunlight. You knelt to touch them, their delicate petals soft under your fingers. “This feels like a dream,” you murmured.

“Or a trap,” Five countered, though his voice lacked its usual edge.

You looked up at him, catching an unguarded expression in his eyes,something softer, more vulnerable than you were used to seeing. “Five?”

He stepped closer, the sunlight casting a warm glow across his features. “You’ve always been fearless,” he chuckled,though his voice was quieter than usual.

You blinked in surprise. “What are you talking about? I’m not fearless, I’m—”

“You are,” he insisted. “And I should have told you sooner.”

“Five…”

“I’ve spent so much time trying to fix everything, trying to keep us all alive, that I forgot there are things I want, too,” he said, his gaze pined on you.

His words hit you like a punch to the gut as you realised what he was implying—not in a painful way, but in a way that left you breathless. You had always known there was something between you, a connection that went deeper than partnership or friendship, but his words still had that affect on you.

Without giving yourself time to overthink it, you reached up and pulled him into a kiss. It wasn’t rushed or frantic, but slow and deliberate, a promise in every brush of your lips against his. Five responded in kind, one hand slipping around your waist while the other cupped the back of your neck, holding you close.

The kiss deepened, his tongue teasing your lower lip before slipping into your mouth. You felt your knees weaken as a wave of heat washed over you, your fingers gripping the front of his shirt as if to support yourself. His hand slid down your back, pulling you flush against him as the kiss grew more intense, more desperate.

It was a kiss that spoke of everything you had both been holding back,years of unspoken feelings, of missed opportunities, all coming to the surface in this one, perfect moment.

When you finally broke apart, both of you were breathing hard, your foreheads resting against each other as you tried to catch your breath.

“I love you,” he said, his voice rough but certain.

You smiled, your thumb brushing against his jaw. “I love you too.”

For a moment, you both stood there in silence, the reality of what you had just confessed settling over you like a warm blanket. The world around you didn’t feel as interesting anymore, not when he was in front of you.

Five glanced around at the greenery, his expression contemplative. “You know, we don’t have to leave right away.”

You raised an eyebrow. “You want to stay?”

“Just for a little while,” he admitted, surprising you with the softness in his voice. “It’s been a long time since we’ve had a moment of peace. We could use the rest and some proper food.”

You looked around at the lush greenery, the golden sunlight filtering through the broken skylight, and felt a sense of calm settle over you. “Yeah,” you agreed, smiling up at him. “Let’s stay.”

With that decision made, the tension that had been a constant companion began to melt away. You found a spot to sit, leaning against a wall covered in ivy, and Five joined you, his hand finding yours and holding it tightly.

For the first time in what felt like forever, you let yourself relax. No missions, no timelines, no disasters—just the two of you, in a place that felt almost unreal.

Five squeezed your hand, drawing your attention back to him. “You know,” he said, his voice low and teasing, “if we’re staying here, we might as well make the most of it.”

You grinned, leaning in to kiss him again, this time slower, savoring every second. “I couldn’t agree more.”

[sanatomis]

cw. none, except for satoru being disgustingly cute.

to outsiders, your relationship with satoru is as much a blessing as it is a curse. it’s a blessing, because even your mere presence causes satoru’s talking to drop by a hefty 80% at the very least. it’s a curse, because satoru only stops his chattering to cling to you.

he wraps his arms around your waist, and nuzzles into the crook of your neck. he holds your hands, and cups his own face with them. he tucks your hair behind your ear and squeezes your cheeks together. he’s so utterly enamoured with you, that words suddenly feel unnecessary. and you let him be.

it’s his way of recharging, of finding little bits of peace in a stressful day. so, you allow him to do as he wishes, and simply continue whatever conversation you are having—as if satoru wasn’t currently biting your finger. you dismiss the looks of disgust people throw at him, finding the way he clings to you like a baby koala oddly endearing.

it’s a custom, by now. a custom that’s loved by the both of you, and only the both of you. so, yes—a blessing and a curse. satoru is quieter when you’re around, but in exchange for a (not so) healthy dose of pda.

pick your poison, as one would say.

[scealaiscoite]

bodyguard/protectee prompts ˗ˏˋ ꒰ 🍊 ꒱

-ˏˋ. dialogue ˊˎ-

⋆ “um, look- i know i’m only meant to be here for you in a professional capacity, but if you ever need anything i’m here for you.”

⋆ “come on, just admit it- i’m starting to grow on you, aren’t i?”

⋆ “since when does your job extend to giving me relationship advice?” “it doesn’t, but i wouldn’t be able to live with myself if i didn’t at least try to tell you how much more you deserve than that idiot.”

⋆ “don’t tell your coworkers, but you’re my favourite.”

⋆ “i know it’s like your job or whatever, but i- i’ve never had anyone protect me like that before. so, uh- thanks, i guess.”

⋆ “don’t worry. i’m not going to tell anyone that my big bad bodyguard like to be the little spoon.”

⋆ “i think if you let people see this side of you more often, you wouldn’t have any need for me.”

⋆ “we’re gonna be in this car for eight hours! you’re not gonna combust if you speak to me more than one word at a time.”

-ˏˋ. actions / scenarios ˊˎ-

⋆ while the protectee is in the process of overworking themselves, the bodyguard reluctantly steps in to make them take a break

⋆ after an event that shakes the protectee, the bodyguard silently takes their hand and doesn’t let go until they’re safe again

⋆ the bodyguard gets injured in the process of coming between the protectee and a physical threat and, in a panic, the protectee fusses over them as they gingerly tend to their wounds

⋆ after overhearing a personal argument that leaves the protectee upset, a very out-of-their-depth bodyguard tries their best to comfort them

⋆ whilst trying to cheer up a downtrodden protectee, the otherwise stoneyfaced bodyguard divulges the first pieces of personal information they’ve ever given to anyone on the job

⋆ during an overnight protection detail, the bodyguard finds themselves keeping company to an insomniac protectee

⋆ one finally building up the courage to ask the other out on a date once their professional relationship is over

[moonlight-hwa]

This was absolutely incredible, every moment was amazing and I don’t really have any other words to describe how much I loved this💗💗

Also Chapter freaking 9, probably the craziest chapter I’ve ever read in a fic. Just the uneasiness that I felt through out the entirety of it, unmatched to any other fic I’ve read. That chapter is definitely going to stick with me for a while.

The End of the F**king World Pt. 10 - Final

Byun Baekhyun X Reader

Word Count: 22.2k

Warnings: Language, violence.

Genre: Apocalyptic/Alien Invasion AU.

A/N: I don't have any good words left. For anyone thats stuck around, waiting for me to finish this, THANK YOU so much and I'm incredibly sorry for the ridiculous wait. I hope I made it worth it at least!

Your eyes were burning. You hadn’t slept at all, you were sure you hadn’t even blinked all night. You couldn’t help yourself but to feel stupid, so stupid. It was almost all you thought about, how incredibly stupid you felt. You knew Baddie could shift into whoever he wanted, probably whatever he wanted too. This whole time, for three years, you’d been so cautious about everything. You’d been able to protect yourself at every turn because you were smart and you were careful. Somehow you’d let yourself become so desperate to have Baekhyun with you that you ignored every gut feeling that told you something wasn’t right. That man…that man was your biggest weakness and your greatest strength.

All night you had waited so patiently for Baddie to move or at least loosen his grip on you. You’d even tried praying for a chance to break away but he’d kept his arm tucked firmly around you and your legs trapped under his.

When you started to think back on the last couple of days you were sure you hadn’t done anything to make him believe that you were at all suspicious or that you might take off in the night. However it concerned you that he didn’t move an inch all night. Then you started to wonder if he’d even gone to sleep at all or if he was faking it to make sure you didn’t leave. Did he even have to sleep? Had he really been in a coma, was that a lie too? Every minute you went without sleep made you even more paranoid than the last minute that had passed until you became certain that he knew that you knew.

In lieu of sleep you focused on keeping your heart rate normal. You practiced keeping a smile on your face and making it feel genuine. You worked on resisting the urge to cry every three minutes. Convince him. You repeated the mantra over and over all night long. Convince him. Convince him.

Convince him you weren’t absolutely terrified.

Convince him you were in love with him.

Convince him you still believed he was Baekhyun.

Convince him like you’d convinced yourself for days.

It was your only option, you didn't know much else at that moment but you were positive of that. As long as he believed that everything was okay, that whatever his plan was hadn’t been ruined, you figured you had a chance. All you needed was to find a way to get a minute without him. Even if it was for just a moment. That’s all you needed and you were sure you could get away. And if you were ever going to talk him into giving you time away from him, he had to really believe you would come back.

It wasn’t until the room was showered with the warm glow of the sun that he stirred behind you. His hands moved over your skin, his lips pressed against your shoulder, your neck. You tried not to tense, or hurl, or tremble. With a light sigh you wrapped your hand around his fingers as he attempted to get a little too fresh. You pulled his hand away from the front of your pants to your lips to press a kiss against his knuckles.

“Five more minutes.” You groaned, and moved around a little as if in an attempt to get comfortable.

“Anything for you.” He sounded happy. You felt proud of your performance so far. You could do this.

After a few minutes you felt him kiss the top of your head and ease himself away from you. Keeping still, and your breathing steady, you listened as his feet moved across the room. There was a tiny click of the door shutting. You didn’t know where he was going or how long he’d be gone so it didn’t seem like your moment but you let yourself breathe and your muscles relax for the first time in hours.

“Fuck.” You whispered into the quiet of the room. You strained yourself to keep from weeping. If you cried he’d be able to tell and then you’d have to explain why you’d been crying and you just didn’t have it in you to come up with a good enough story.

He gave you what felt like exactly five minutes before he was back. When the door opened again you could hear the sound of music wafting up the stairs. After a deep breath you turned to face him.

“I found peaches.” He smiled, holding up the opened can as proof.

“Yummy.”

You watched him come into the room and take a seat next to you and you sat up. You couldn’t stop staring at him. Fascination had taken over your fear for just the moment. It was amazing how much he looked like Baekhyun. If you had to you could probably delude yourself into believing it was him again. Though you truly hoped you didn’t have to.

It was quiet between the two of you as you shared the can of peaches. He watched you eat and you watched the details of his hands, his mouth, his eyes. It was all the same but somehow you just knew it wasn’t him. It did make you ache for him. It made you feel entirely alone. You had to make your move, you weren’t going to be able to hide how miserable you were for much longer. Not if you kept thinking about Baekhyun like you were, and you knew you would.

“You seem to be in a much better mood.” Baddie noted as he looked over your face.

“I am in a much better mood.” You rolled your teeth over your bottom lips slowly, suggestively. “I think last night was exactly what I needed. Thank you.”

He took a deep breath, his chest puffing out slightly as he grinned. “Of course. I’m here for you…whenever you need me.”

“Yeah?” You pushed yourself up and moved your leg over his lap so that you were straddling him. “Whenever I need you?”

He pushed the empty can to the side and brought his hands up to grip your hips and he hummed happily at the fact you’d taken initiative. “Say the word.”

With the tiniest gulp you steadied yourself and closed your eyes. You latched onto the memory of Seulgi’s wedding night. Dancing with Baekhyun, your lips reaching for his. It’s Baekhyun. It’s Baek. You tried to lie to yourself as you leaned in and kissed him. Just one kiss on the lips, that was it.

It was more than you could really stand and it wasn’t supposed to last that long but he’d sucked your lip between his and wouldn't let you go. You let out a groan and hoped it sounded like you were enjoying yourself. Then you wriggled in his lap a little, pushing against his chest until he set you free. You moved your mouth to the side, to his cheek and his jaw so he didn’t think you were outright rejecting him. Plus it was easier to kiss him there.

“You want me right now?” He asked as you kissed along his neck. His hands moved up your waist to cup just under your breasts. .

Lifting your mouth to his ear you gave him a little nip with your teeth. “Later.”

“Later?” He asked, pulling back to look at you in disbelief. “Why later? Why is it always later for you?”

You sat back on his lap with a bright smile trying desperately to hide your disgust. “I like making you wait. You get a little…rough… in your desperation.”

“Oh? You like it when I get a little rough?” He asked and pushed himself up, landing you on your back beneath him.

Laugh. Your brain begged you to laugh instead of stare in fear. You let out a little giggle and pushed at his chest with your fists. “Hey. Focus.”

“I am. I’m focused on you.” He said and leaned in to kiss you. You turned your face just in time and he kissed below your jaw and then down your neck to your chest.

You laughed again and pushed him off of you as playfully as you could manage. “I’m serious. I want to talk to you, stop distracting me.”

Letting out a deep, slightly annoyed sigh, he sat back. Grabbing your hands he helped pull you back up so that you were sitting as well.

“What’s so important we need to talk about it when we could be kissing and touching and...”

“I think you were right.”

He raised an eyebrow, finally intrigued. Your eyes felt strained as you held back a deep eye roll. Fucking narcissist.

“I was? About what?”

“You said we should stay here a couple nights. Me and you.” You dragged your fingers gently over his forearm. “I think I’d like that. I could use the break from everything, everyone.”

“You deserve one.”

“If we’re going to stay, there’s some things we need. So,” you took a nervous breath, “I’m thinking I’ll go out for a bit and find some food, some more water, medicine and bandages… a surprise. For you.”

His face turned into a scowl as he thought about it. “You want to separate? You want to leave me?”

“Not for long.” You laughed lightly, and squeezed his hand. “If you come with me, my surprise won’t be much of a surprise, will it?”

“I don’t know.” He shook his head, “I don’t like it. We still don’t know what’s out there. Who’s out there.”

“Baby, come on.” You whined, “Let me do this for you. After you’ve done so much for me! Listen if you stay here, you can set up this room to be more like the one we shared together our first night. Remember?”

“Umm…” You knew he didn’t. You weren’t sure when his knowledge of Baekhyun’s memories started but it was before the mall. How much further back you didn't know yet. “Of course.”

You lifted your hand to his cheek and moved it back into his hair. “It’ll be romantic.”

“Tell me what the surprise is and I’ll let you go.”

“I was thinking something red,” you smirked, “and lacey.”

“I see.” His eyes sparkled as he looked at you. “Okay, you’ll be quick though?”

“You won’t even know I’m gone.” You stood up and kissed the top of his head.

He watched you diligently as you tugged your boots on and tied them. After the first boot was secured he started to look hesitant, like he might take back his permission. Tying up your second boot you smiled over at him.

“I love you, Baek.”

You watched as his shoulders visibly relaxed and he smiled back at you. “I love you too.”

Not wanting to wait for him to change his mind, you stood up and threw your bag over your shoulder. You even bent down and gave him a kiss on the side of his mouth before quickly pulling away.

“Hey.” He called, and you looked back at him as you got to the door, “Our first night, what was your favorite part? In case I can’t find all the stuff to make it just right.”

With a thoughtful sigh you said, “The stars.”

“Hey.” He called again as you turned to leave. When you turned back he smiled. “You know I really do love you.”

A thick gulp moved down your throat, ���I know.”

You weren’t going to be stupid anymore. You had learned from that mistake. You knew at the very least he was going to follow you down to the door. He was going to watch you, you knew that too. So you weren’t at all surprised, as you made your way to the door, that you could see his reflection behind you in the large silver water pitcher as you passed it. And it didn’t shock you as you moved down the sidewalk that you could see his reflection on the building across the street when you looked through your peripherals. Just standing in the door, watching your back as you walked away. You just hoped that's as far as he would follow.

Your body was trembling as you walked down the sidewalk. You tried to remain calm, to look normal. Not too quick, not too slow. You knew he was watching you and you didn’t want to seem suspicious or give him a reason to believe you’d figured it out.

The first chance you got you made a turn off the sidewalk, it ended up being an alleyway. Stumbling forward a few steps you got a one handed grip on an old, rusted garbage and doubled over. Partially digested peaches splattered on the ground at your feet. Then it was mostly bile. Then finally it was just dry heaves. The plus side to living in an apocalypse was that you never had enough food in your stomach to really throw up. The downside was that you never got that sort of satisfying moment afterwards where you felt okay. Like you’d purged everything from you that was making you sick.

There was nothing more you wanted in that moment than to purge everything from your body. Every touch, every kiss, every single time you said I love you. Instead all you got was viscous bile that you spit on the ground and tried to scoop out of your mouth with your fingers. Eventually you were clear headed enough to realize that no matter how hard you tried you’d never get it all out.

When you were finished you moved back to the entrance of the alley and looked down the sidewalk. You were half surprised he wasn’t still standing there, outside of the antique shop. Watching and waiting like a psycho. You’d hoped he’d gone back inside. It might mean that you had been convincing enough. Maybe he was in there cluelessly trying to figure out how to make the office the way you wanted it. Feeling satisfied that for the time being you were safe you turned back around and headed down the alleyway to the next street over.

You’d gone about two blocks when you walked past one of those specialty stores where they make bath bombs in front of you and let you wash your hands with their all natural soap. The store had been ignored so much that you had to really shove into it to get the door open. The little bell above the door almost gave you a heart attack, but at least there weren’t any Lurkers. At least you thought as you realized that you didn’t even have a weapon. Lurkers never made much of an effort with buildings that weren’t already broken into or destroyed unless they knew something alive was inside.

Bypassing all the tables still filled with merchandise you headed to the back. You knew what you wanted. There was a tub sink on the back wall and you turned the faucet after a little prayer. A bit of relief came as the water started to pour out of the faucet although it was brown from the rusted pipes. You let the water run as you searched the store for the next item on your wishlist, an all natural loofah. You grabbed a soap and a shampoo as well but not really caring about either one, you just needed something. By happy little surprise you found a display for wooden toothbrushes near the register. A little chalk sign sat next to it, Save the Planet, One Brush at a Time.

When you got back to the sink the water was running clear. Though you were grateful for that you also knew you would have used the brown water too. Anything was better than your current state. You washed your hands first, using almost the entire bar of soap and having to get another one, scrubbing your hands and forearms clean. You tore your shirt over your head and eventually dragged your pants off as well.

You scrubbed every inch you could reach until all of your skin was raw and burning and your gums bled from the excessive brushing. You’d even used the entire bottle of shampoo on your head. Washing and washing until you’d convinced yourself you’d gotten him off of you. Out of your hair, off your skin, out of your mouth. You just wanted to be clean.

When you were done you sunk down to the ground in just your underwear and cried until you could barely breathe. After spending all night keeping it in you just wanted to get it all out. You’d spent almost an hour in the shop and you knew you couldn’t waste much more time. Unfortunately, you didn’t have the privilege of being sad today. He’d look for you soon if you didn’t return and you still weren’t entirely sure where you were planning to go. Pulling yourself back together you got dressed and drank some water from the sink before heading back outside.

There were a few options. The first was to keep heading in the same direction and trying to make it to the hotel. You were still sure that’s where everyone would have gone. The problem with that was it also meant leading Baddie directly to everyone else. You didn’t know how exactly but you were sure he was tracking you.

That led you to the second option which was to take off in any other direction to lead him away from everyone else. Though with that option there was the chance he’d still go to the hotel. If he didn’t…well then what? You’d just keep running until he eventually caught up?

There were two other options that pulled at you a little harder than the first. One of them was to go back to the intersection where the fight had been.

No one knew what happened when Baddie shifted into another person. You didn’t know if that person had to be dead in the first place or if they died right after. You didn’t know if they lived. The worst possible situation, in your mind, would be if he somehow entered the person physically.

It was ironic because Baekhyun himself had been the one to suggest it the night you all came to the realization that Baddie was becoming different people.

“‘Maybe he wears them like meat suits.”

He’d been so casual about it, like what he said wasn’t the most disturbing thing he’d ever said out loud. At the time you’d all been sitting around the couch. Seulgi had thrown her granola bar at him. You gagged at the thought then and you gagged at the thought now. Worse than before because it was him you had to imagine. You gagged so hard you thought you might start dry heaving again and grabbed onto the nearest building for support.

It couldn’t be that, you couldn’t let it be that. You needed it to be that he was somehow alive out there, that was the best option. Second best was that he had died and didn’t have to deal with any of this anymore. Maybe he was at peace somewhere just waiting for you.

Still the possibility you liked best was that he was alive. If you went back to the intersection maybe you could look for him. The real him. You could imagine it perfectly. Pulling up some huge chunk of plywood off of him and he’s alive. Severely dehydrated, likely, but alive. He missed you and he’d hold you so tight and you could cry and he’d tell you everything would be okay now. That wouldn’t be the case though, you couldn’t delude yourself enough to believe that’s how things ended.

With the reality of that at the back of your mind, out of all of the options, the one that pulled at you the most, the one you couldn’t stop thinking about, was the option where you went back to the building across the street from the antique shop.

It was crazy. You felt insane for it, but something had been pulling you to it last night and it was pulling you there now. It could be Baekhyun. In your heart of hearts you really believed it had been him in that window. He could be there now, waiting for you to figure it out. With a deep sigh you knew you’d made a decision. Even if you were wrong, you had to know.

If you were going to go back your chances of running into Baddie jumped exponentially, and you’d be best off if you were prepared, so you stopped by a few places as you circled back around. You found a better backpack and stuffed some food in it, a couple water bottles, some bandages. Then you found a boutique and shoved the first piece of red lingerie you saw into your bag as well. That way if he found you, you could prove you had been exactly where you said you were going. As an added bonus, you found a decent knife and tucked it, in its sheath, into the back of your pants.

Almost an entire thirty minutes passed as you stood around the corner from the entrance of the abandoned building. The entrance that sat directly in front of the old antique shop where you’d left Baddie. You watched and watched and watched a little longer. The door, the front windows, the windows in the office upstairs. You looked for shadows and movement. You looked for him, but he didn’t seem to be there. You waited as long as you thought was smart.

While you wanted to make sure you waited long enough that you would see him if he was there, looking out on the street for you, you didn’t want to wait so long that he would get curious about where you were and would actually come looking. It was an incredibly delicate balance. Not to mention he could already be out on the street looking for you and then you’d have just wasted your precious time.

When you were near certain he wasn’t lurking near a window and wouldn’t see you sneak into the building, you took your shot and moved around to the front and through the entrance. It was an office building, which was obvious from the inside, though you weren’t entirely sure what kind of business. To the right was a set of glass doors that opened up to what you could see was a cafe. Along the back wall were three elevators. And to the left there were desks and offices and conference rooms.

At your feet you could see recent tracks in the thick layer of dust on the ground. Following them with your gaze you reached three dead Lurkers. They were spread out on the ground near the front desk. They’d been killed by a blade, that was obvious, but it made figuring out who had been there that much harder because everyone used a blade for the most part.

With a sigh you looked down at the trail that was left in the layer of dust on the ground. It was a little chaotic and hard to follow at first but then you had it. Whoever it was had dealt with the Lurkers as soon as they came in. From what you could tell they moved to the small cafe area, likely looking for food. An opposing set of tracks made it obvious they’d moved back into the foyer, and through to the offices on the other side.

You followed the tracks from there. It annoyed you at first. The way the path zigged and zagged around the desks like whoever was here had all of the time in the world. You couldn’t tell where they had been going, what their intentions were. Drawers had been pulled open and things seemed contextually out of place along the way. Though you couldn’t be sure if it was whoever was here last night or if it was from the chaos of the day of the invasion. Not knowing what the end goal was made you itch. Then you realized you knew exactly who would be so casual in their movements and your heart began to race.

As you moved around you tried to see the space the way he would have. The details he’d have noticed as he walked through. It was an incredibly open space. Any rooms that were enclosed were done so using glass walls. There weren’t any cubicles, only communal desks with computer setups. According to business cards you'd found on several different desks this place had been a publishers office.

People had been here the day of the invasion. You could tell not only from the ancient dried out coffee mugs, but also the upturned chairs. The pencil holders tipped over on their sides, their contents spread out over desks and across the carpet. And the blood. So much dried up blood. You could practically hear the screaming echo through the empty office. The sound of absolute terror that rang through the streets those first couple of weeks would never leave you.

Finally you reached a hesitation in the trail. A hallway that was tucked away. There was a set of bathrooms on one end and on the other side, three more dead Lurkers. One of them had fallen in front of a doorway, holding it open. It looked like the Lurkers had been trapped in a stairwell and whoever had been there had released them. You pulled the flashlight from your backpocket and switched it on, the light following up the first set of steps. With a deep breath you stepped over the pile of Lurkers and into the stairwell.

The door to the second floor was already open when you got to the platform. It had been propped open and the sunlight was shining in. The layout up there was completely different from the first floor. Still the same style, open desks, glass walls for all of the offices. However up here there were shelves everywhere, filled with books and the desks were covered in manuscripts.

You weren’t entirely sure how to get to where you needed to be. The monotonous style of the glass and maze-like setup of the desks made your head spin with misdirection. It was lucky, you thought, that whoever had been there had left a trail. Bright yellow post-its were stuck against the walls every yard. Looking closer you noticed that they all had hand drawn smiley faces on them, in green pen ink. It was smart, you thought, once your eyes had adjusted to the dark it would be pretty easy to see the little squares. Whoever had been here last night wouldn’t have needed their flashlight to follow their path back. And they wouldn’t have wanted to use it if they were worried it was something Baddie might see.

Once at the end of the path, on a large glass pane, there was an entire smiley face made out of the sticky notes. Again each one had a little face drawn on it but they were all different. Swirls for eyes on one and a wavy mouth on another. You couldn’t help the way it made you smile.

“Baekhyun…” you muttered under your breath as your fingers moved over the little yellow notes.

It was him. You were so certain now that it had to be him. No one else would have even thought to do it. You could picture him so perfectly. Standing in the empty room, a stack of post-it’s in one hand and a pen in the other from where he’d taken them from a desk downstairs. He’d probably been bored and decided to leave something. Stuck up here because the street was filled with Lurkers.

If he’d seen you in the window maybe he knew you’d try to look for him. Maybe he knew you’d find it and he figured it would make you smile. If he knew about Baddie, that you were stuck with him, he wouldn’t be foolish enough to leave an actual note with any pertinent information in case you weren’t the one that found it. But he’d be thoughtful enough to leave you something like this. He’d be thoughtful enough to leave you something hopeful.

You plucked one of the post-it’s from the wall, your favorite one, the one with the hearts for eyes, and pressed it against your chest.

“Please be you.” You begged over and over again until finally tucking it into the inside pocket of your jacket along with your pictures.

There was a renewed hope inside of you but it was coupled with a severe doubt. You were certain that whoever had been here was Baekhyun but you were also sure that you’d do anything for him to be alive and to be with him again. You knew it would be too easy for you to delude yourself into thinking just about anything was a sign that he was alive. You were desperate for it to be true. You needed it to be true more than anything. Even just trying to imagine the worst brought you to a horribly dark place and you knew you’d never survive if that was your reality.

Letting out a deep sigh you tried to breathe out all of the heaviness in your chest. You kept moving down the hall until you saw the broken windows. Going into the office space you noticed a stack of books on one of the desks. Several of them were opened. Dropping your pack on the desk, you took a minute to read a few of the pages. A couple of them, you noticed, were marked with green ink.

Your favorite highlighted passage had been in a book, a collection of poems. It had been circled so vigorously the pen had torn through the page.

‘No mountains, nor sea,

no thing of this world

could keep us apart,

because this is not

my world…

…you are’

Finally you moved over to the windows cautiously. You stood for a moment looking down at the antique shop, at the little bench in the window you’d sat on. It looked so close and so far at the same time. You wondered what it looked like from here at night. What the person in the window had seen, if anything. There still wasn’t any movement in the shop windows now and you felt pretty certain that Baddie was out looking for you.

Turning away from the window you looked down at your feet. There were dozens of burnt down matchsticks scattered all over the floor. Your hands shook as you knelt down beside the window. There was also a small rectangular box among the matches. You grabbed the box and flipped it over. It was from Cordially. Your blood was practically vibrating in your veins. It must have been Baekhyun. It had to be. If you had to keep an open mind it could have been Chanyeol. He could have even been here with Seulgi and Irene. For a second you stopped feeling completely alone. Only a second though.

“Not sure why you’d be in an abandoned building looking for supplies.”

You nearly jumped out of your skin as Baekhyun’s voice hit your ears. Though it was his voice you knew now it wasn’t him. Standing back up, you turned to look at Baddie. Every inch of you was trembling as he looked you over.

“I, um,” you gulped and nodded toward your backpack on top of the desk, “I already found supplies. I just wanted to look around to see if I was right about last night.”

“And were you?” He was calm, way too calm, as he took slow steps towards you. “Were you right?”

“Someone was definitely here.” You held your hand out towards him, showing him the matches.

He didn’t say anything, only stepped in front of you. He lifted his fingers to your neck, curling them around the nape, and urging you forward. Your lips were pursed tightly as he kissed you. Pulling his lips away he kept his forehead pressed against yours and let out a deep sigh.

“How did you figure it out? Where did I mess up?”

You squirmed, trying to get out of his tight grip, “I don’t know what you mean.”

“Don’t lie to me.”

Leaning in he tried once more to kiss you. He pressed his mouth so roughly against yours you thought you’d end up bruising. Finally you had to turn your head away with disgust.

“What did I do wrong? What did I say that gave it away?”

“Please.” you gasped, as it all began to set in.

With another sigh he lowered his head to your neck, running his nose over it, inhaling your skin. “I had really wanted this to last longer. I wanted a little more time with you where you loved me. But it’s okay, you’ll love me again…eventually.”

Silent tears streaked your cheeks. Your chest hurt with the thought of what had happened to Baekhyun. The real Baekhyun. Your Baekhyun. It was impossible to go on not knowing, you had to ask even if you knew the answer.

“Did you- Baekhyun is he...he…” you couldn’t even stutter out the words.

“You want to know if he’s dead?”

You let out a whimper and covered your mouth with your hand to stifle your cries.

“If you really want to know you have to say it. Use your big words like a big girl. Ask me if your boyfriend is dead.” He said harshly, as if he had any reason to be angry with you.

“No.” You shook your head, your chest growing tighter with every second. “No b-because he can’t be. I can’t…I can’t breathe”

You opened your mouth as if to gasp but you couldn’t get the air in your lungs. There was such an intense pain that tore through your chest that it dropped you to your knees. You felt sick and you knew if there was anything left in your stomach you would have thrown up on the spot. Baddie squatted down beside you and cupped your wet cheek in his hand. You could barely see him through the tears.

“I hate to break your heart, but he can be and he is. I killed him. I watched the light leave his eyes. They looked a little like yours do now.” He said quietly before leaving a gentle kiss against your forehead. “He’s back at that pathetic battle ground. I left him out there, just another pile of dust. Now he’s all mixed up in the dirt and the rubble with all of your useless friends. And now I’m all you have left, beautiful. Being with me is the only way you get to see him again.”

Your entire body was tense with pain, every muscle felt tight and cramped in your skin and you couldn’t remember a moment in your life when you’d felt like this. You’d been heartbroken before. You’d loved and lost plenty of times before Baekhyun, but you didn’t know you could feel a broken heart so physically.

It felt as if the heart in your chest had literally been torn apart and the shattered pieces were slicing through your insides. You balled your hands into fists and you couldn’t handle the brick on your chest any longer so you let out a scream of complete agony. It helped in the sense that you could finally breathe but the pain was still more than prevalent.

“Stop crying.” Baddie groaned after a few minutes, annoyed. “It won’t bring him back.”

“No…” It was the only thing you could think to say. “He’s not dead. He’s not, you’re lying. You’re just trying to hurt me. He was here. It was him, I know it was him!”

“You’re being delusional and dramatic.” Baddie said as his foot tapped against the floor. “Will you get up? Despite my best efforts you obviously have friends left hiding around here and I need to find them. I’ll have to kill them before they get any stupid ideas and ruin my plans any further. And I’ll obviously have to do something with you. I clearly can’t trust you to just…stay put, can I? The second I leave you’ll run off somewhere.”

That stilled you. The tears, the sobs. You stopped everything, your head took over your heart for just long enough that you found clarity. The matchbox you’d found was still squeezed in your palm. And momentarily you allowed your concern for your friends to outweigh the pain in your chest.

If it was Chanyeol that had been in this building or if it was Seulgi… It was more than likely that they didn’t know Baekhyun was dead. Baddie would have the upper hand. You had to warn them. You could at least do that. It would be the last thing you did, but it was something. With a deep steadying breath you got to your feet.

You wondered if you sounded as tired as you felt, “What do you want? I’ll do whatever you want. I only ask that you leave them alone.”

Baddie grinned and you had to look away. It was miserable for you to have to see him as Baekhyun. “I know you’ll do whatever I want, my beautiful girl. You don’t have a choice”

You asked again, “So? What is it that you want?”

“I want you to tell me where they are.”

“How could I know? I’ve been with you.”

“Don’t play dumb. You wanted to go to a hotel, some place you expected all your friends would go if they survived. Take me there.”

“Can’t you just leave them alone? Haven’t you done enough?”

“I’ll tell you when I think I’ve done enough. Now tell me. Or I’ll tie you up and leave you here and find them myself. If you make me do it that way, I will hurt them, just for the inconvenience.”

“Fine. If they know you’re not Baekhyun… they might not even have gone back there.”

“That’s what we’re going to check. If they’ve figured it out, they have to be dealt with. If they haven’t, I’ll let you say goodbye and then we leave.”

“Leave where?”

He sighed heavily, “Wherever the fuck I want. Will you stop procrastinating and just do as I say? Take me to where your friends are. Now.”

It seemed the romance era of your relationship with Baddie was definitely over. Now that you knew who he was he didn’t have to hide his true self from you. So you walked and he followed. After grabbing your backpack you walked him down the hallway, past the post-it note smiley face which you still swore had Baekhyun written all over it. You walked him downstairs. You walked him out into the street. You didn’t know what to do or how to warn your friends about what was coming so you walked slowly in hopes that something would come to you sooner than later.

Baddie made taking your time even easier by the fact that he insisted on checking every accessible building that you walked past for signs that someone had been there, just in case. You kept your eyes open as you moved down the street, looking for a sign of life. Looking for a friend. You didn’t know if you were more happy or heartbroken that you didn’t see anyone. You wanted to be saved, but not at the risk of someone you loved getting hurt in the process.

“Tell me about him.” Baddie said calmly as you followed behind him.

The two of you had been zigzagging back and forth down the street for hours, looking into shops to see if they were empty and then moving on. Mostly he was doing all the work as you wandered aimlessly around the city trying to make it look like you were taking him where he wanted to go. Really you were just waiting for a plan to drop into your lap while you thought about Baekhyun and how much you missed him and how nothing would ever be the same. It had been awhile since either of you had said anything so the sound of his voice surprised you.

“What?” Your voice cracked from having kept your mouth so tightly shut for so long.

“Your guy. Baekhyun.” His name coming out of that mouth filled you with a rage so instant it was nearly paralyzing. “What did you like about him so much? I can try and do that for you. I already have the look down, maybe if I capture his personality you won’t act so put out by the situation.”

“You could never be anything like him. You could try for the rest of your life and never even get close.” You scoffed. “You’re a psychopath.”

“Humor me.” He sighed, “There has to be something specific. Something he did that made him special for you.”

“He’s perfect.” Your lips trembled. You weren’t sure what more you could say without breaking down again. “No one has ever loved me the way he does. He’s thoughtful and caring-“

“Doesn’t sound very spectacular.”

“He is.”

“Was. He was thoughtful and caring and made you feel loved? Sounds pretty generic to me.”

Your jaw tensed with anger. “That’s why you’ll never be him! The difference is you have to ask. You literally had to ask what you can do to be better, to make me fall for you, to be more him. Baekhyun never has to ask. He just knows. What I want. What I need. How to love me. He knew how to love me when I didn’t even know how to love me. And he didn’t ask once. He always paid enough attention that he didn’t have to.”

“He was only paying attention so that you’d fuck him.”

“No, that’s you. And you were just barely paying attention.” You shook your head in disbelief. “The most Baekhyun thing you’ve ever done is remember enough about me to know I’d be impressed by that stupid record player last night. And I’m half certain you did it because you knew hearing that song would terrify me and you get off on torture.”

“You have such a horrible opinion of me.” He laughed.

“Can’t possibly imagine why.”

“I really can’t. I’m not the malicious monster you think I am. And I’ve only done what I had to to get to you.”

“Get to me? Why would you want to do that?”

Baddie stopped and looked back at you over his shoulder, “What a precious thing you are. You can be truly oblivious, can’t you?”

Ignoring him as best you could, sure that he was just trying to annoy you, you looked just past him. That’s when you saw it. It was a half-cocked plan but it was worth trying. What would he do if he found out you were lying? Kill you?

You lifted your hand and pointed just ahead, “That’s it, that’s the hotel.”

Baddie turned back around to look. It was obviously a hotel, not your rendezvous hotel, but he didn’t need to know that. You could take him inside, walk around, pretend to look for your friends, and tell him they must have realized what was happening and run away. You had your doubts but you still hoped it would work. If he didn’t believe that maybe you could get him distracted enough that you could get away and warn them properly.

Torre Circolare was probably the most expensive hotel in the entire city. It was a part of La Grande Hotels, a chain of internationally famed Italian hotels and resorts. Or at least it had been. You’d never stayed in the hotel before but you’d heard all about it. You didn’t know what to expect when you walked in but you had to pretend like you were plenty familiar.

“What about Lurkers?” You asked as he gripped the brass handlebar of the front entrance.

“What about them?”

“What if they’re inside? We don’t have any weapons.” you said, not wanting to give away that you had a knife.

“One of the benefits of being with me, darling, is that you don’t have to worry yourself about weapons. I’m the only weapon you’ll need from now on.” He pulled the door open and gestured inside , “Ladies first.”

The hotel was famous for its architecture, one of the only rounded tower buildings in the entire city, and the largest by far. At its center there was an enormous spiral staircase that went all the way up to the fortieth floor. No one that stayed past the second floor ever used the stairs, but they made for a beautiful Instagram picture. It was all marbles and gold, and red velvet carpets. Now that you were inside you weren’t sure what to do.

“Well?” Baddie stepped up behind you, “Where are they?”

“It’s a big hotel, how should I know?” You asked with a little gulp. “Would you like to check every room, one by one?”

“Why don’t we walk around for a bit? If they’re really here like you say they are, surely someone will pop up eventually, right?”

“I never said they were here. I said this is where I thought they would come.” You glared over at him, “You seemed pretty confident up until this morning that every one I knew and loved was dead so I don’t know why you seemed to have been expecting a big welcoming party.”

“Well there’s at least one of them out there isn’t there?” he asked, “The one from the other day. Maybe they’ll come back here and I can make it a quick ending so everyone can move on.”

“Yeah, maybe.”

He gestured over to the staircase, “Come on then. Maybe we’ll find something. Perhaps they left a note saying where to find them if not here.”

You started up the staircase and he followed along. One floor then another and another until you were already four floors up and hadn’t even seen a hint of another person. Either he didn’t notice or he was stringing you along just as much as you were stringing him. Whatever it was, each floor gave you more time to try and think of a real plan. So far all you had come up with was to run and that a plan was mediocre at best. It might end up being the only one you’d get as you continued up two more floors without seeing anyone or anything. Not even so much as an open door.

On the sixth floor there was something other than just long hallways lined with locked door after locked door. There were two double doors that opened to what would have been a bar or club area. Along one side there were three pool tables and a couple dart boards. In the center was a small dance floor and the rest of the room was dotted with two person tables with leather seated chairs. The bar itself ran along the entire back wall. A long marble slab and a number of barstools. There were used glasses on the bar as if someone had been here. Most likely, you thought, the day of the invasion. It looked like everyone had just up and left with no warning. Darts were on the board and one of the pool tables was still set up with a half played game.

This had to be it, you thought to yourself, any further up and you’d never have the stamina to make it all the way out of the front door. You walked along the backside of the bar still concocting your half a plan. Half a plan was better than none. Then Baddie's voice bounced off the walls of the bar.

“You really think I’m a fool.” He said watching you walking around the bar, putting as much distance between the two of you as possible.

“What are you talking about?” You stopped at the furthest spot you could find.

“This isn’t where your friends have been staying. No ones been in this hotel for months, years probably.” He laughed lightly, “I knew before I even opened the front door.”

“How?”

“You asked about Lurkers. I know your crowd. I know you clear a place out before you stay there. You wouldn’t have been worried about them if you thought your friends were truly here.”

There was really no use in lying. “If you knew then why did you play along?”

“I wanted to see how long you’d try and drag it out.”

“So what do we do now?” Your voice was calm but inside you were shaking with nerves.

“You lied.” Baddie said, the annoyance clear in his tone. “I asked you to do one thing. I told you if you did it I wouldn’t hurt your friends. It’s like you want me to punish you. Do you want me to kill them?”

“I want you to leave them the fuck alone!” You yelled, fear and frustration taking over your calm demeanor. “I want you to leave me the fuck alone!”

“Is this how you’re going to behave? Deceitful and childish.”

“Deceitful? A liar?” You spat, “AND WHAT ARE YOU? You’re a murderer who’s been lying to me about who you are for days! You make me sick! You make me wish I was dead!”

“I don’t understand why you’re so upset about this. You love me. You saved my life!”

You let out a frustrated yell and swiped your arms across the bar top. The motion sent bottles of alcohol and dusty drinking glasses cashing down on the floor. It wasn’t just his words that got to you. It was the fact that you’d been pissed at yourself already knowing that you’d helped in getting him stronger. If you hadn’t looked, or if you’d only just left him he could have even been dead by now but you fucked it up.

“I saved you because I thought you were someone else! I thought you were someone I actually love! ” You stared at him, furious, “I would do anything for the people I love. That’s why I’ll do everything I can to keep you away from everyone else I care about.”

“As long as you have people left out there that you care about you won’t be able to find it in yourself to care about me.” Baddie offered calmly. “Maybe if you could understand that you’d understand why I can’t just leave them alone.”

“You are just one red flag after another.”

“I know what you’re thinking.”

You glared back at him. “You don’t know shit.”

“You think you can get away from me. You want to save them and you don’t know how. So you think you can get away and at least warn them, right? Tell them to run because you think eventually I’ll just give up looking.”

He moved around the bar towards you so you moved with him. Something about the dance seemed familiar. Then you remembered Baekhyun and how he’d gotten away from you that night in the galleria. You kept moving, slowly, both of you circling the long narrow bar.

“I can play this little game all day.” He said with a bold arrogance, tucking his hand in his pocket.

“Good.”

You waited a few more steps until he was at the opposite side of the room as the door. Your hand wrapped around the pool stick that was leaning against the bar and you took a deep breath. Turning on your heel you sprinted out of the room. You pulled the doors shut behind you and shoved the pool stick between the brass handles. It wouldn’t give you a lot of time but you hoped it would give you something.

As fast as you could you started to run down the red velvet carpeted stairs. You could hear Baddie, pounding heavily on the door and yelling out muffled angry obscenities. You were nearly to the next floor when you heard a massive explosion. You could feel pieces from the wooden door raining down on your back, but you couldn’t stop.

You didn't even look back, you just kept going. There were four more floors. Maybe, you thought, if you could just get outside you could find a place to hide for a minute. You needed to catch your breath and sort out your surroundings.

By the bottom of the next set of stairs you could hear him behind you. You knew you weren’t going to make it but you kept your feet moving. You couldn’t just give up. Then his hand was closing around your backpack strap. He spun you around to grab hold of you but you put up a fight.

“This is fun.” He said angrily as you smacked his hands away from you. “You can stop whenever you’re ready.”

“Fuck off!” You growled and sunk your teeth into the hand that was holding onto your backpack. He released you just long enough for you to start running away but this time he was just behind you from the jump.

“Stop. Running.” He grunted.

You’d made it to the top step but his hand grabbed at your shirt, your body spinning around towards him once more. He lifted his hand, you expected that he was going to hit you, but you already had your free hand at the small of your back. As he swung his hand forward you brought your hand up. There was something satisfying about his own momentum helping your blade sink into his hand.

“Fucking bitch!” he groaned, finally releasing you from his grip.

As he pulled the knife from his hand you tried again to make it down the stairs. Halfway down the next set you felt a sharp pain at the top of your head as he grabbed you by your hair. You fell back onto the stairs, stumbling to get back on your feet as he pulled you up by your hair. The last thing you did was watch the angered sneer on his face as tighten his grip on your hair. Then everything blurred and blackened as he slammed your head into the wall.

-

The hit had left you teetering in and out of consciousness. At first you found yourself running. You were in a thickly wooded forest, somewhere far from the city. There wasn’t any panic in your steps, you weren’t being chased. Instead you felt calm, almost joyful, as you moved across the floor of fallen branches and leaves.

Then, with no effort from you at all, you were somewhere else. The first time it happened you struggled to recognize your surroundings, your vision was too blurry. It took you a long moment to realize you were viewing the world upside down. Your body was hanging over something that was both soft and hard. It was moving you down a set of stairs. You could feel something, a shoulder, dig into your gut with the bounce that came with each step.

You didn’t prefer that reality. That one came with a sharp pain at the side of your head. You were grateful when your eyes fluttered closed and you were back in the forest. Back to running. The pain in your head was dull there and you felt a sense of freedom. You were looking for something or someone but hadn’t yet figured out who or what.

When your eyes opened again your whole body was shifting, sliding down the front of a man until he held you in his arms. It was much brighter than before. You recognized the warmth and light of the sun on your face. It was nice at first. Familiar. However the brightness made the pain behind your eyes sharpen and you groaned at the ache.

“Good, you're still with me.” The voice you heard was garbled in your mind. Like you’d only heard it through the chest your head was rested on. “I worried I’d lost you for a while there.”

“Baekhyun?” You muttered drowsily, “Is it you?”

“Of course, y/n, it’s me.” He dipped his face down to yours and left a kiss.

“I love you.” You whispered, wrapping your arms tighter around your delusion.

“See, I knew you could.” He replied happily. “Sleep now. I’ve got you, Princess.”

When your eyes closed you found yourself in the forest but you weren’t running any longer. And you knew it was a dream and you knew Baekhyun didn't have you safe in his arms. Baddie did. And you didn’t try to fight your way back to consciousness. You knew what you were here for. You knew who you’d find and you didn’t want to go back to a miserable reality. You wanted to stay here with him.

Standing alone in the forest, you felt different. Lighter? You were wearing a summer dress. Red, floral, and flowing. Cold metal blades were still strapped against your thigh beneath the soft fabric but you didn’t feel the urgency of needing them like you usually did. Now it was just from habit. Looking up you could see the sun was high in the sky, and through the branches overhead it looked clear and blue.

For a long minute you stared down at your feet. You stared down at the sandals that you’d never usually wear because they weren’t practical. Then you heard it. The laughter. It was like a boost of serotonin to your system and a smile grew on your face. It was a familiar and bright little song that filled the air.

You moved quickly through the trees towards the sound until you found the opening to a wide open field of grass and wildflowers. For a while you stood quietly, just watching Baekhyun as he stood with his back to you. He was wearing just a T-shirt and some jeans and he was drenched in the sunlight, just glowing. Your eyes filled to the brim with tears because he didn’t even have to look at you and you knew it was him. You didn’t have to worry about him being anyone else. It was safe here.

When he looked over his shoulder at you his smile was warm and perfect. “Thought we lost you for a minute.”

“I’m right here.” You whispered to keep your voice from cracking.

Lifting his arm he opened himself up for you, “You wanna be over here instead?”

Your feet were already moving before you started to nod. In a blink you’d crashed into him, tucked into his side with his arm around you. Home.

“This is just a dream.” You muttered sadly against his chest.

“Everyday with you is a dream.” His lips pressed softly on top of your head. “He found a rabbit. Said if he catches it he wants to keep it.”

A smile found your lips. “And let me guess, you agreed to the terms?”

“Of course I did! You never let me keep the wild animals I find, but I know you can’t say no to him.”

Looking out over the field you found what you knew was the source of laughter from earlier. The little boy with his fathers soft hair flopping up and down as he chased the poor animal through the grass. You wished you could see his face but you knew you wouldn’t.

“Don’t go too far!” You called out, it wouldn’t be effective so you just leaned heavier into Baekhyun. “I was so stupid before.”

“How so?”

“I thought I was okay just surviving. I thought I’d wake up and try to survive and go to bed and I’d be fine doing that everyday until the one day I finally stopped surviving or stopped waking up. I was wrong. I was so incredibly wrong.” Your lips trembled as you spoke. “I want this. I want this with you. Now I’m too late. I’ll never have it.”

“In another life then. We can have it all.”

He dropped his head just a little, just enough to kiss the side of your head. Pain bloomed from the spot. Throbbing that matched the beat of your heart and you knew it was time to wake up. While you still could, you tightened your grip around Baekhyun. You hoped you could pull him with you back to reality.

-

It was definitely your pulsing head that woke you. Baddie wasn’t making a sound. With your eyes still closed you wondered if he was even with you, wherever you were. You tried to assess your situation before opening your eyes to reality, not really wanting to be back so soon.

Blood was dripping down the side of your face along your hairline. You knew it wasn’t sweat because it was too viscous and warm. It was slow, not gushing, so for the moment you felt at least that wasn’t going to kill you. Your arms were tired and sore, tied up above your head. The arm that had been dislocated was throbbing as much if not more than your head and you wondered if it had been dislocated again, you sighed in defeat. It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered much anymore. Twisting uncomfortably you tried to find an angle that didn’t feel miserable. The task was difficult

You looked around the room, if you could really call it that. You were on one of the top floors of a clearly unfinished building. There was an opening where a window would have gone if they’d been able to finish construction and looking out of it you imagined you could probably see almost the whole city when the sun was up. It was already dark, and down below in the streets you could hear the lurkers gathering. No one would be coming for you. Even if they did, they'd never get to you.

Baddie was in the corner shuffling through your belongings, probably trying to find some clue as to where your friends would be. You almost didn’t want to interrupt him. You knew he wouldn’t find anything so you didn’t care if he went through your pack. And every second he didn’t realize you were awake was a second you didn’t have to listen to him. But there was something you’d been thinking about.

“Why him?” You asked quietly, the question had been weighing on your mind for some time. “Why did you choose Baekhyun?”

He turned his head to look at you with a bright smile. “Well, hello there sleepy head.”

You watched him stand up and begin to walk towards you so you asked again. “Why Baekhyun?”

Brushing some of the hair from your face, he looked at you like it was just the silliest question. “You told me to choose him.”

“What are you talking about?”

“In your dream. I asked you to tell me who you loved the most. You made it very clear.” He shrugged, “You loved him so much you would give your life for him. He was the easiest way for me to get to you.”

“What dream? Get to me?”

“I told you before that everything I’ve done was to get to you.” He was so casual about the conversation as he paced slowly around. It was driving you crazy. “You should really try listening.”

“Get to me for what? To kill me? You’ve had plenty of chances, why don’t you do it already?” You asked, “Or am I here for you to torture for your sick, psychotic pleasure.”

Baddie turned to you, he looked genuinely upset. “Y/n, kill you? It’s never been my intention to hurt you. I came here for you. Why would I want to hurt you?”

“What does that even mean?” You were frustrated now, tired of him being so vague about his intentions. “Came here for me? What do you mean here? To earth? How would you have even known I was here or who I am?”

“Not to earth.” he specified, as he moved in front of you. He lifted his fingers to your face. Though you flinched away from him he just gave you a little look before brushing his thumb against your cheek. “To this city. I’d been watching you for months. I needed to meet you, to know you. When I finally saw you in the flesh that first day I knew I’d made the right choice. The fear in your eyes when you looked at me...unmatched.”

““How? How did you watch me? How did you know about me?”

He leaned forward brushing his nose against your cheek, “Oh, I can’t tell you all of my secrets now can I? We should really try and keep a little mystery in our romance. Especially since I know I can’t trust you to keep it to yourself.”

“I still don’t understand what you want with me. Why did it have to be me?”

“I told you, I’ve been watching you. Little bits, here and there, every day for months. It started to feel like I really knew you. You’re so impressive. You know I watched you take on five talorcs at a time. There are people of my kind that can’t even do that. You’re the strongest of the women on this planet that I’ve found. You’re clever and intelligent.”

“Talorcs?”

“Lurkers.”

“That’s how you watched me, isn’t it?” You asked, “You’re connected to them somehow. You can see what they see. Even from halfway around the world. Command them to do whatever you want. That’s why they won’t hurt me, you’ve programmed them not to.”

“When you put your mind to it, you are truly a genius .”

“You're really not going to kill me? ”

He laughed, amused by the idea. “No. Not now that I’ve met you. Now that I know your touch. Now that I know your taste. The way you taste. I’ll keep you forever. My favorite pet.”

His hands spread over your hips and pushed up your shirt to cup just under your breasts. You wanted to cry, you felt so disgusting. His lips moved down your cheek to your mouth, where he dragged your bottom lip between his before letting it go.

“But what to do with you in the meantime until I can take you home?” He muttered, mostly to himself.

With your forehead creased with confusion, you responded anyway. “Home?”

“My planet.” His head shook with amusement, “I’m not exactly from here, beautiful.”

“Well why wait? There’s barely anyone left alive. They’ll never be able to rebuild what you’ve destroyed. Why not just leave and let them live out what time they have left?”

“Oh, that’s not what this is about. That’s never been what this is about. I don’t care how many humans live or die. Eradicating human life from the planet was not and is not my priority here.” he chuckled, “We needed a neutral ground for the War so that our own worlds don’t get destroyed. Humans had what we needed and so we took it.”

“We?” your chest tightened.

“You didn’t think it was just me did you?” he smiled, strangely proud, “I’m honored you thought so highly of me to believe I was capable of all of this on my own.”

“How many are there?”

“Of my kind? Countless. Coming here? Nine more. My brothers. We’re…what I guess you would call princes. Royalty. It’s our duty to rule, keep order and protect our planet. And right now it’s in danger. So we will win the war and when it’s been completed, I will take you home with me. When it’s safe again.”

“Ten Big Baddies.” you muttered, feeling any hope you’d had left drain from you. It truly was over.

“Big Baddie. I like that. I’ve always liked that.” he smiled brightly and then leaned in to kiss your neck. “Of all the names the people of this planet have given me over the years, I think I like that one best.”

Your skin was absolutely crawling. There was no way you could live like this. A tear slipped down your cheek as he teased the waist of your jeans with his fingers. If he wasn’t going to kill you, you’d have to do it yourself. Just as soon as you got yourself free from these ropes.

“Yes, I like Baddie, but you can call me…” his lips tickled beneath your ear, “Baekhyun. If you’d prefer. If it would put you at ease with me.”

Your lips trembled and you couldn’t hold back any longer. You were so angry and your heart was so shattered that the tears fell freely from your eyes.

“You might wear his face. You might even use his voice...but I will never call you by his name. You can never be him! You’ll never be anything like him! And I will never love you the way I love him!” you screamed before spitting into his face. “Fuck you, you monster!”

Baddie’s smile faltered as he gripped your chin roughly between his fingers, and growled, “You already did, but we can do it again if you liked it that much.”

It was obvious as he wiped his face he was furious. Even as he laughed, brushing his hand clean on his pants. He looked at you and his face tightened. His jaw clenched and his eyes sharpened. You could see the evil in them. Stepping forward he wrapped his long thin fingers around your neck and squeezed just enough.

“You’re right, Princess.” He leaned in, lips brushing against yours, and he whispered. “I will never be your little boyfriend, Baekhyun. I will always be better than him because look around… I won. I win. And anyway, I don't need you to love me to get what I want from you. It might even be better if you don’t. I do love when you put up a fight.”

You turned your face away from him in disgust. Growing bored with you he released a sigh, turned and walked away to contemplate further just what to do with you. He’d set up a couple lights in your immediate area but for the most part the floor was dark with shadows. Sniffling as you tried to get control of your emotions again you stared into the darkness. Tired on a dozen different levels you thought you started to see movement in the shadows.

Before you let panic set in you had to remind yourself that you’d barely slept in the last two days courtesy of your realization that Baekhyun was not Baekhyun. Physically and emotionally exhausted, it was almost as if you didn’t want to believe there was something in the shadows because you didn’t want to deal with anything new threatening you. However the movement was growing closer, it was more distinct and becoming more difficult for you to ignore.

Your breath caught in your lungs. What if Baddie had changed his mind and really was going to turn one of his Lurker minions on you. Or what if he didn’t know it was there, what if he didn’t have the control over them he thought he did and this one was here to take you both out. Your mouth was half open, ready to mention the movement to him when you decided against it. Whatever it was didn’t move like a Lurker. Your eyes followed the movement curiously as it grew closer. If your arms hadn’t been tied above your head you might have even shrugged with how little you cared. At this point if you died you died.

Then you realized what it really was. The mystery moving in the shadows. A tiny gasp escaped your parted lips.

Baddie had his back to you when you looked over to him to see if he’d noticed. He hadn’t, he’d been too in his own head. Taking a deep breath you turned back, hoping he was still there and that you hadn’t dreamt him up.

Baekhyun. Your Baekhyun.

He was crouched down behind a half fallen wall. His finger was pressed to his lips as if to try and shush you. To keep you from reacting too obviously. You were able to keep yourself from openly gasping, or speaking or screaming but your vision blurred completely as tears welled in your eyes. Though you let a little whimper escape, for the most part you’d stifled your sobs. You’d even stopped your tears long enough so that you could see him again. You had to see him again. Face drenched in tears and lip trembling you were finally able to blink back the last of the tears until your vision of him was clear again. He looked miserable, it was killing him being unable to just go to you.

He moved his hands and mouthed to you directions but you’d become too distracted by your longing for him. He was alive. He was alive? He was alive! He looked so warm and safe and all you could comprehend was your need to be in his arms.

It wasn’t until you realized how frustrated he was becoming that you forced yourself to focus. Baekhyun repeated what he was saying several more times before you finally realized he was telling you to get Baddie’s attention. You needed to distract him. Looking between the two of them you tried to think of something, anything. Then, like getting your head slammed into a wall, it hit you and you knew what to do. You just hoped you didn’t have to do it for too long. Obviously you were a miserable actress. You wiped your face on the sleeve of your jacket as best you could and cleared your throat.

“I’m sorry.” you said as genuinely as you could muster.

Baddie looked over his shoulder at you curiously, “Come again?”

“I would like to apologize.” you gulped.

He moved back across the room and stood before you. Eyes completely on you, you had every ounce of his attention. Good.

“Yes, well, go ahead.”

“I’m sorry about how I behaved. I overreacted. I’ve just been through a lot the last few days.” You tried to not groan at your own words, “I should be grateful that you chose me. Grateful that you want me above anyone else.”

“You should be, shouldn’t you?” he agreed. “Despite your cute nickname, I’m not a bad guy. I’ll be good to you. I mean I have been so far haven’t I?”

You couldn’t help but think about the dull ache at the side of your head where he’d slammed you against the wall and tried not to roll your eyes.

He noticed anyway, and frowned as if he already knew what you were thinking. Or more likely he’d seen the streak of dried blood running down your face, “That…I had to. I had to stop you from running and I couldn’t think of another way fast enough. If you’d just behaved…but either way, I won’t do it again.”

You nodded as you tried to discreetly watch as your Baekhyun maneuvered around the room, inching closer. “Of course.”

Baddie leaned in, brushing the loose hairs from your neck before pressing his nose against your skin and inhaling you.

“You do seem happier.” he smiled, “Finally happy to be with me?”

His eyes blew wide in front of you. Baekhyun popped up behind his shoulder.

“No,” he growled, twisting his blade into his doppleganger’s side. “It’s for me, you fucker.”

Baddie choked out a cough, warm blood splattered against your cheek, and gushed heavily down his chin. His eyes bore into yours with a sense of anger and betrayal. He didn’t look away from you as his eyes turned a blinding white and he lifted his hand.

“Baek, watch out!” you screamed barely a moment before he twisted his body and shot an orb of electric light from his palm.

Baekhyun ducked with just enough time to avoid getting hit. The orb flew past him and slammed into a cement wall that burst into hundreds of chunks that scattered across the floor. You pulled uselessly at your restraints to try and free yourself as they fought. You were getting nowhere quick and your arms were aching with pain before you finally resolved yourself to the fact that all you could do was watch and pray to whoever was out there. Surprised at how evenly matched they seemed, you were proud of Baekhyun.

The only upper hand Baddie seemed to have was his actual hands, the ones he continued to use to blast energy orbs. Your Baekhyun was swift and had been able to avoid getting hit which only further irritated Baddie. So frustrated with the fight he gathered every ounce of energy within him, creating a massive boulder sized orb which he threw uselessly against the ground creating a huge crater sized hole. The entire building shook and rumbled and you assumed the orb had made its way down to the very first floor, if not completely into the ground.

Baekhyun took advantage of the outburst, sprinting towards Baddie with knives in both hands and slicing the palms of Baddies outstretched hands. From his panicked attempts to use them afterwards you could see they’d been rendered useless, and he roared in frustration. The playing field was truly even now and a wave of hope washed over you. With every blow Baddie seemed obviously weakened. Baekhyun however seemed strong, like he could go all night. And you’d never felt so proud.

“Did you enjoy the show last night?” Baddie asked with a sneer, blood still dripping from his mouth into the ground as they circled each other in front of you. “Did you stay until the climax? Doesn’t our girl come so pretty?”

Your forehead creased in confusion by the comments but it was clear by the anger on Baekhyun’s face that he knew exactly what Baddie was going on about. With a rage filled growl he charged forward and hooked Baddie in the chest with his shoulder lifting him into the air and then slamming him down against the cement floor. Baekhyun bent forward on his knees to catch his breath. You watched as Baddie shook with laughter on the ground.

“Hit a nerve, did I?” he pushed himself up into a sitting position and choked out another laugh, “I hit a bundle of her nerves over and over again last night, but you knew that. I knew you wouldn’t be able to look away.”

You watched shaken, as the heel of Baekhyun’s boot clipped Baddie’s nose with a crunch, throwing him backwards, an arch of rich, red blood flinging through the air with him. His head slammed back down against the cement floor with a crack. It shook you to your core to see Baekhyun so angry. He’d never been that upset in front of you before. Even when he’d yelled at you it was more out of frustration than anger. All the joy you were used to seeing in him was replaced with pure rage.

“Say it again, you piece of shit! Give me a reason! I’ll shove my foot through your throat!”

“I fuck her better than you do, and you know it now!”

It was then that it hit you. Last night, in front of the window. It was Baekhyun across the street, you’d been right, and he must have seen everything. Feeling sick, you wanted to say something but you knew you couldn’t distract him. In another burst of rage he stomped his foot into Baddie’s gut. He lifted his foot to do it again but Baddie reached up and wrapped a hand around his ankle. Baekhyun very smartly twisted his body around with his ankle to avoid letting Baddie break it but he crashed down onto the cement in the process. He groaned but he seemed okay. Both of them used the opportunity to stand and face each other once more.

“You’re both fools.” Baddie said before spitting a mouthful of blood on the ground at his feet, “You can’t even fathom what’s coming next.”

“If it’s anything like you,” Baekhyun said panting, “I’m not too worried.”

He bolted forward with his blade, ready to end it all. You saw the flash in Baddie’s eye from where you were but it happened too fast for you to even say anything in time. He dipped his shoulder like Baekhyun had done to him and lunged towards him, lifting him completely into the air. He charged about a yard and a half before ramming Baekhyun’s spine into a steel beam. You felt the air leave your lungs just from watching how hard he hit before slumping down onto his hands and knees. Baddie stumbled backwards, having used most of his remaining energy on the act. Baekhyun choked out for air, unable to stand back up.

“Baekhyun!” you shouted across the room. You weren’t sure what to say, maybe you’d just needed him to know you were there.

“I’m okay!” he coughed out as he tried standing back up again.

“But for how long?” Baddie asked and you looked over to where he was dragging a hunk of two by four behind him.

Baddie lifted the length of wood over his shoulder and all Baekhyun could do, still too weak to get up from the ground, was close his eyes and wait for impact. You watched in horror as Baddie swung the two by four down onto Baekhyun’s back. You turned your head, unable to watch, but you could hear him repeat the action two more times.

When you looked back Baekhyun was sprawled motionless on the ground as Baddie moved to lift the wood once more.

“Stop! Please! Just leave him alone!” you screamed desperate to pull him off course. “God, please just stop!”

Baddie sneered over at you. His teeth, his whole mouth, his neck and his shirt were all drenched in blood and sweat and dirt. He dropped the wood to the ground with a clatter and stormed back over to you. The long fingers of one of his hands grabbed roughly at your jaw.

“Why,” he hissed into your face, splattering spit and blood against your cheek, “should I?”

“I’ll do anything.” every part of you was shaking, “Anything you want.”

“I’ve heard that from you before, y/n. What makes you think I trust you now?”

“This is different.” You begged through sobs, “This is Baek. I won’t try anything, you know I won’t. I swear I’ll do whatever you want. Please, just don’t hurt him anymore.”

“You’ll come with me?” he asked, shoulders relaxing.

“Yes. Anywhere, it doesn’t matter.” your words were frantic, anything to get him to leave Baekhyun alone. “Let’s just go right now. Just don’t hurt him anymore please. Please.”

“You promise you won’t fight me?” he asked.

Your eyes were squeezed shut as you sobbed, as you kept begging, “I swear. Just leave him alone. Please just let him go. Let him be and I’ll be good. I’ll be fucking perfect.”

“Look at me.” he said quietly. You opened your eyes slowly. “If you’re lying I will kill him, slowly, and I’ll make you watch. Then I will take from you what I want anyway. Do you understand?”

“Yes.” You gasped.

He licked his lips as he looked at you, trying to decide if you were being genuine or not. He dragged a bloody finger over your forehead as he brushed away a few stray hairs from your face. Finally deciding that you were telling the truth he leaned in to test your willingness with a kiss. You closed your eyes, not wanting to watch, but his lips never met yours.

“I did not…” Baddies hands lifted from where he’d had them at your sides and your eyes flew open. Baekhyun had his blade pressed against Baddie's throat, droplets of blood already streaking the metal. “Spend all this time trying to get her attention, just to get cockblocked by a douchey version of myself.”

He walked Baddie backwards towards the still fresh gaping hole in the ground. He turned him around, blade still at his throat.

“I’d say it’s been a pleasure, but I think we both know it definitely was not.”

Holding onto his collar Baekhyun let the blade of his knife slice through the skin of Baddie's neck until it was gushing blood. For good measure, and a little bit for himself, he dug the blade into his gut several times before shoving him backwards through the hole.

It happened quickly. Satisfied it was finished Baekhyun turned and smiled at you, absolutely beaming. Seeing his sweet face so happy lit you up like a fireworks display and you smiled back. Then fast, too fast, you watched the confusion on his face as his body jolted and then his mouth fell agape and his eyes went wide. You looked down in time to see that the hand of Baddies falling body had tightly wrapped a strap that had been hanging from Baekhyun’s jacket around his hand before he fell.

“No!” you screamed helplessly, as Baekhyun’s feet flew up from beneath him and he fell backwards into the hole as well.

You continued your relentless screaming, only half aware you were even doing it. You tried to tear your body from your restraints again and again, desperately trying to escape. You tugged the ropes so hard against your hands and wrists that they’d gone raw and you started to drip blood down your arms. Even then you tried again, you'd have ripped your arms from your body if you could have. Having started your struggle with very little strength to begin with, you eventually exhausted yourself and slumped against the wall defeated. All you could do now was cry and wait to die, however death would choose to come.

“Baekhyun…” you whimpered, you’d just gotten him back and in a breath he was gone again.

There was a gasp and then you heard, “Yeah?”

Your eyes darted towards the hole where you’d seen him fall through. You stared for what felt like a long while and then you saw them. His long fingers among the rubble, clinging to the side of the opening.

“Baekhyun!?” you shouted this time.

“Yeah…” he grunted painfully, “hold on.”

“Baek?!” Your mind reeled as you tried to figure out what was happening. “You’re okay?”

“There’s a ledge down here,” he called out, and then groaned, “just give me a minute.”

“Oh god, okay,” you cried, “I can’t get this stupid rope off. I can’t get to you! I can’t help!”

“I know!” there was another deep grunt and then you watched his leg swing out of the hole and hook to the side. Then agonizingly slow, but sure he climbed his way to safety. Once out of the hole he laid on his back for a minute panting, trying to catch his breath. Finally he rolled over to his side and smiled over at you, “That's why I'm coming to you.”

Once the shock of seeing him passed, again, your whole body shook with hysterical sobs that you could not stop.You’d lost complete control. You felt unable to withstand any more dips or rises in this rollercoaster of emotions. Tears gushed relentlessly down your cheeks as an exhausted Baekhyun dragged himself over to you.

When he reached you the first thing he did was grab your face with both hands and plant a kiss on your mouth. You could finally feel yourself come down. With your focus on his lips you breathing steadied and you felt calm.

“Hey, pretty girl.” He muttered into the kiss.

“Hi,” You sniffed.

“I’m gonna get you down, okay?” You nodded as he pulled out of the kiss.

You watched as he grabbed a blade from his ankle strap and sawed at the rope you were hanging from until you collapsed into his chest. His arms wrapped tightly around you and he sank to his knees bringing you down gently to the ground. Then he sat down against the wall and pulled you into his lap.

“Are you okay?” You asked, looking him over. “Are you bleeding? Are you hurt anywhere?”

“Oh, I’m hurt all over. But I’m okay.” He answered, his eyes looked glossy with tears as he looked at you. “I’m fine now.”

“Are you sure?”

With a small smile he nodded, “I have you. I’m fine. I feel great.”

With trembling hands, still tied with rope, you grabbed his face and kissed him like you’d never kissed anyone in your life. It was such a flurry of emotions that finally ended with you breaking down again.

“I can’t. It’s-it’s just too much. I-I-” You sobbed. It felt like, after everything that had happened, your sanity was teetering on a very thin string that was just waiting to snap. “I need...it has to stop. I can’t keep losing you.”

He laughed lightly, his own tired arms ran over your back comfortingly as he left gentle kisses on the top of your head. “I know. It’s over. You did so good. You’re so brave.”

“I. Love. You. So. Much.” you gasped between sobs. You wanted to stop crying but you just couldn’t.

“I can tell,” he grinned. How he could possibly be so happy seemed beyond you but then you realized that most of the overwhelming feeling inside of you was joy. You were happy and you were relieved. “I love you too. God, I really missed you. You can’t imagine. I’ll never leave you again.”

“Don’t. Don’t ever leave me.”

For a moment you just sat looking at him, calming yourself down as he cleaned the tears and dirt and blood off your cheeks with his thumbs and left you little kisses all over your face. After you moved from his lap, sinking down onto the floor beside him, he helped you untangle the rope from your raw wrists. Suddenly you started to wonder if it was really him or if it was possible that Baddie had just re-transformed into an updated version of him. You started to worry that you’d never truly be able to trust him again. That the trauma would be too much for you.

Then after a soft, sweet kiss against your lips he pulled back with a cocky smirk, “I told you losing me would break your heart.”

“Ugh, god.” you muttered, “It’s definitely you.”

“You were expecting someone else?” he asked, still with his smirk.

“Not this time.” Finally you found yourself able to smile. It was him. “I missed you. Even when I thought you were right next to me I missed you. I should have known then.”

“Wow, would you look at that,” he sighed and lifted his hand to your face, his thumb running over your smiling lips. His eyes glistened and though he was smiling his lips trembled, then you watched several tears trickle down his cheeks. “Damn. There it is. That’s the most beautiful thing I’ve seen in my whole life”

You blushed and buried your face in his chest before mumbling out a joy filled, “I hate you so much.”

“I love you too. Love of my life. Perfect, beautiful wife.” He mumbled against the top of your head.

“Mm, say it again?”

“What? My wife?”

“I knew you wouldn’t forget.” A deep sigh of relief escaped your lungs.

“Absolutely not.” He jolted slightly and you leaned back to look at him. “Oh! I have something of yours!”

Your brow creased in confusion, “What is it? Are you gonna make a bad joke? Is it a sex joke? Is it your dick?”

“No, I’m saving my bad sex jokes for later, when my ribs aren’t throbbing and my arms, and my back. God, my back hurts.” He laughed and reached down the front of his shirt. He pulled out the chain he’d been wearing, the one you’d given him. There, dangling beside his own ring, was the ring you’d lost. “I found this. I was hoping you’d want it back.”

“Oh my god, Baek…” your eyes filled with tears that you didn’t even realize you had left in you as he released the chain from his neck.

Your smile only brightened as you watched him place the ring on your shaking hand. He lifted your fingers to his lips and pressed a kiss against your knuckles. “Back where it belongs, just like you are.”

“Where? How? When did you find it?” You asked and realized you had about a dozen more questions to ask. “Baekhyun, what happened that day? Why did you leave me? Why would you do that? What were you doing? What were you even thinking? You’re so reckless. Why are you like that? I could have lost you. For real lost you. You know how upset I would have been? I’m so mad at you!”

“Breathe.” He said slowly, his hand gently rubbing your arm. “Calm down.”

You took a deep breath and released it slowly, “You left me. What was so important you had to leave me?”

You watched as he reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a thin silver chain. He held it in front of you until you opened your hand for him to drop it in your palm.

“What is this?”

“Everyone has a weakness. Everything can be destroyed. I just had to figure out what His was.”

“And his was a… busted necklace chain?” You asked flipping it over in your hands

“Do you remember he used to always wear that veil?” You nodded, “The veil was attached to a chain. This chain. It’s titanium.”

“How’d you know it was his weakness?”

“Every time someone stabbed him or shot at him or whatever, he always recovered instantly. We watched it happen on videos, we saw it happen right in front of us. His cell rejuvenation was insane. That’s where we went wrong. It’s where everyone went wrong. We weren’t using the right weapons.”

“Okay, but you figured this out, how?”

“I had been watching him. I remembered that Taeyong had gotten him with a solid right hook on the face. I remember because afterwards Tae was bleeding pretty bad from his knuckles and when I asked what had happened he said it was the chain, that it had sliced him.” He recalled, “Anyway, so I was watching him and I realized that Baddie had a cut on his cheek. It was still there. He was still bleeding. I figured whatever that chain was made out of...that’s what we needed.”

You shook your head with confusion “And you just happened to know it was titanium and had a titanium weapon lying around?”

“Ummm.” He hesitated. “Well, I may have stolen one of your blades off of you when you were crying at me, which I knew was titanium. You hadn’t used them yet, I think in the chaos you forgot they were there. And it’s not so much that I knew…”

“Byun Baekhyun…” you said his name so slowly and pointedly he felt a shiver run down his spine, “I hope you’re not about to tell me you risked your life on a guess.”

“Well I’m not gonna tell you that now.” He laughed until he saw the less than amused look on your face, “but I mean, if it had been a guess, it was a really good one. Don’t you think so?”

With an annoyed sigh you rolled your eyes, unable to stay mad at him. “Okay...but why would he just wear his great weakness right on his face?”

“Self flagellation.” He said simply. “It was like a reminder to stay humble, that he wasn’t invincible.”

“Oh and he just told you that?” You asked sarcastically.

“I did ask and, well,” Baekhyun gestured to the destroyed space before you, “we both know he’s one of those super villains that likes to talk.”

“When? When did you have this conversation? Wasn’t there a massive explosion? It knocked me out.”

“There wasn’t, not exactly. That’s not what happened, at least not the way we were used to seeing.” He shook his head. “I jumped on him from behind just before he could do it. He lost his balance and threw his arms out. The light shot like a beam from his hands across the streets, demolished a bunch of buildings. You could have been blown back from that but there wasn’t an actual explosion. That’s when most everyone that was left took off. I thought you had too. I was still behind him, and I grabbed the chain on both sides and just fucking pulled. It sliced right across his face. He threw me off at that point. We fought, he rambled. Something happened. Something caught his attention. Maybe it was you, maybe you were waking up. Either way he blasted me in the gut with his light bullshit. I was knocked out instantly but apparently I flew down the alley like a ragdoll.”

“Oh, Baek…” you muttered into his shoulder, pained by the thought of it.

“Luckily Jongin and Taemin had been watching, they found me after the blast.”

“Jongin?” You gasped, “He’s alive?”

“Yeah, he and Taemin took me to a hiding place. They told me I’d been out for three whole days. I woke up the evening of the fourth. They had dragged me into an abandoned building and took care of me. When I woke up they said after I got hit Baddie was taking down buildings in a panic, like he was blocking himself in. They figured he’d got wounded pretty badly and wanted a chance to heal without people being able to get to him. He blocked off that whole area. It was a bitch to get back to...but I’m getting ahead of myself. I had asked about you as soon as I woke up and they told me they hadn’t seen you or the others. I...I assumed you were with Yeol and Seulgi. I’m sorry about that. I should have been looking for you so much sooner, but I thought you were safe.”

“You didn’t know.” You said quietly. “Hell, I didn’t even know I wasn’t safe.”

“Still…” he sighed, “I wanted to leave right then, I had to be with you, but it was storming out. Taemin and Jongin and I, we all went to find the others at the rendezvous the second the sun was up and the streets were clear of Lurkers. They’re okay, by the way. The others. Irene was hurt pretty badly but she’ll recover. Seul’s leg is messed up, I don’t think it’s broken, but she’s struggling with it. Obviously it wasn’t until I got there that I realized you weren’t with them and I-“

He paused, the memory of how it felt thinking he’d lost you still very fresh. You knew the feeling many times over. Having lost him and gotten him back and then losing him again and then getting him back…

You reached your face up to his and gave him a kiss, “It’s okay.”

“So I ran. I didn’t wait, I didn’t even think about it. I fucking ran and I couldn’t stop until I was back to the block where I lost you. I had to find you. I had to know for sure, you know? If you were alive or if you were ...no matter what had happened, I had to know, either way.” He continued while you gently slipped your arms around his waist, “Chanyeol and Taemin found me there after a little while and tried to help look. Yeol said he was gonna follow right after me but trying to get Seul to stay at the hotel, to stay safe and not try to come to find you was a miserable job. We searched for hours. All I’d found was the ring. I’ll be honest, I thought it meant the worst. I was devastated. I was ready to give up. Like...give up.”

“Baekhyun…” you gasped. You wanted to hold him closer but you didn’t want to hurt his sore body any further. “If you off’d yourself and I was still alive, I would have found you in the afterlife and absolutely strangled you.”

“I know.” He chuckled and then added thoughtfully, “I, I um, found your set up in the pharmacy. It’s how I knew you were out there, alive. I didn’t tell Yeol that I found the ring. While they kept looking I’d gone in to see if I could find pills or something. I just wanted an easy way out and then I found all the stuff you’d used. My jacket was there. I didn’t understand because I had literally been wearing it, but it was there and it smelled like you. Your shampoo, that smell saved my life.”

As if needing to assure himself you were really there he paused his story for just a moment to bury his nose in your hair. “I guess that’s when I figured it out. What he’d done...I told the others what I realized. We climbed back out of there and we kept searching. Sehun found us looking for you.”

“Sehun!” your heart swelled, “He’s okay too? Oh, god. Oh thank god.”

“He said he’d seen you just a little earlier and that you were with me but he thought it was weird because he thought you saw him too but you took off in the other direction.”

“It was him?” You asked. “I saw him. I didn’t know it was him. I didn’t get a good look. I found his blade, I thought….maybe. ”

“It was him, he’s okay. “ he assured you. “I took off to where he said he’d seen you and found the two of you a couple of blocks over coming out of a store. It was weird. It was so weird seeing you with me but knowing it wasn’t me. I can’t explain it. You looked mad at me, him, but then you forgave me. Him. I saw you kiss him...I don’t know, it was like getting to see what we look like together. I loved it and I hated it. I was following you after that, waiting for my moment. It killed me a little, to watch him sabotage you. Did you ever realize that?”

“What do you mean?” you asked, trying to think back to the day before. You could only recall being increasingly frustrated and having gone several miles in the wrong direction.

“I assumed you would have gone back to the hotel. You’re smart, you would have known that was where you needed to go to find everyone.” you nodded in acknowledgement that he was right. “Well every time you were going in the right direction he’d pull you into a store and when you’d come out he’d lead you in the opposite direction. Until you had, what I assume was a bit of a breakdown. Then, well, you guys found that antique shop. Last night may have been the worst night of my life.”

“I...” you shuddered at the thought of what Baddie had said and what that meant. Knowing both what you’d done and that he’d seen made you feel sick all over again. “I’m so sorry. You must think I’m disgusting. You probably hate me, but I hope you know I would have never, Baek.” You trembled, trying to keep yourself from crying again, “I would never hurt you like that. If I’d just known...I should have known. I am so sorry.”

“Don’t.” He tightened his hold on you, “Don’t do that to yourself. What happened to you was horrible. I thought I was dying, not being able to stop it, to stop him. I never wanted to kill anyone so bad in my life. I would never hold what he did against you. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“You would have known it wasn’t me.” You whispered, burying your nose in his shirt to breathe him in. “You’d have known immediately. You always know everything. It took me days. He practically had to write it on his forehead for me.”

“You’re wrong.” He sounded confident, “If I had two options, one of them being accepting that you were dead and the second was having to convince myself that someone pretending to be you was actually you… I would choose to believe it was you every time. I would live in that delusion for the rest of my life because the other option is not acceptable for me.”

“Did you know I’m in love with you?”

“I had really hoped so,” he mumbled against the top of your head. “Otherwise I would have to assume you only married me for my money.”

You shook your head with a laugh and leaned your head against his collarbone.

“I left my bag by the stairs. I can go get you some water if you’re thirsty. There might be a granola bar left too.”

“No. I’m okay.” Your arms tightened around him and then you looked up at him, eyes practically pleading for him not to leave. Still you said, “If you want to go get it you can...if you're thirsty.”

He looked down at you with a grin. He knew you didn’t want him to leave you, not even for a second. To be honest he wasn’t ready to be any further away from you than he already was either.

He shook his head. “I’m good.”

You tucked in even closer to him and eyed the empty space around you roughly, keeping your head on his chest and wondered out loud. “Do you think it’s safe here? I’m so tired. I just want a tiny itty bitty nap.”

“Sleep. You’re safe with me.” He promised, resting his head on top of yours. His arms tightened around you and you knew he wasn’t letting you go any time soon.

For a while you stayed just like that. Arms wrapped around one another. You kept your head near his chest and listened to the steady beat of his heart until your eyelids had grown heavy. And he hummed. You didn’t know the song and you didn’t care, it didn’t matter. You were exhausted but you didn’t want to sleep because you were terrified that you’d wake up and this wouldn’t be real. Eventually you closed your eyes, or more like they refused to stay open any longer. You really had only meant to rest them for a moment but they had other plans.

When you opened your eyes again it was still dark outside, but there was a feeling that you couldn’t quite describe that let you know it was morning. At some point the two of you had moved to lying on the ground. Baekhyun was sleeping beside you, he’d given one of his arms to you to rest your head on and the other was wrapped firmly around your body. You were trapped the way you’d been the night before but this time you were much more grateful for it.

For a long time, you weren’t sure how long, you just watched his sleeping face. Your fingers ran through his still soft hair and did your best to wipe away the dirty mess on his face without waking him up. Every once in a while you caught sight of the ring on your hand and it made you smile. After a while he reached his hand up to wrap his fingers around yours and he just smiled. Practically glowing with joy and he hadn’t even opened his eyes yet. You wondered how many times you could tell him how much you loved him before he’d get tired of it. Because it was the only thing you really wanted to tell him, the only three words you’d even need to say to him again.

Instead you teased him with, “Good job looking out.”

He yawned as he pulled you closer. “Well, you were just supposed to be taking a nap.”

Finally he opened his eyes and somehow seemed even more happy. You chewed on your bottom lip as you looked at him. And he smiled at you, just smiled and stared, like there was nothing else in the world more interesting than your face. You tried not to think of how dirty you looked. You spent so much time crying and the whole building you were in had been so filthy with dust. You knew you probably had some smears of dirt on your face somewhere and the dried up blood on the side of your face. If you did have a filthy face, he didn’t care. He was there smiling at you, staring like you were the only thing that had ever brought him joy.

“I missed you.” He whispered in the quiet of the morning.

Your face warmed instantly at his words and he lifted his hand to brush his thumb over your blushing cheek. With a content sigh you closed your eyes; just enjoying the feel of his hand moving over your skin and running through your hair.

“I dreamt about you.” He admitted and you opened your eyes again. “When we were apart. Every time I closed my eyes it was you. It felt so real I didn’t want to wake up.”

“Why did you?” You lifted your hand to cover the one he had on your cheek.

“Insatiable need to be with you.” he let out a breath of a laugh, “the real you, not the dream you. She’s much too nice, very agreeable. Not very realistic.”

“Mmmhmm. Do you remember it?” You asked, he nodded. “Tell me.”

He hummed thoughtfully as if trying to think of where to start. His hand dropped down to your hip and with very little prompting you inched your body towards his. Baekhyun didn’t even say anything, he just kept smiling. While he continued his silent thought you could feel his fingers absentmindedly start to trace circles on your hip. It was a little mesmerizing and it made your skin tingle.

“I guess it was before this. Or maybe this had never happened. You know, the invasion.” He sighed, “I was on a beach. Alone at first, but I wasn’t worried, you know? I didn’t feel lonely. I wasn’t scared. I was happy, calm. I was content.”

“What were you wearing?”

“Oh you want to know what I was wearing, huh?” He teased happily.

“Paint me a picture.”

“White shirt, grey swim trunks, bare feet.” He laughed as you wiggled your eyebrow at him. “Sand was white, soft and warm. The water was crystal blue. Setting sun was just glistening on the tops of the waves like diamonds. Very sexy, very romantic.”

“Sounds beautiful.”

“I had my toes in the wet sand, watching the waves crash over my feet again and again.” He stopped to think for a moment and smiled happily, “Then I turned around and there you were. Took my breath away, it was just you and you made my heart stop. You were wearing this cream colored dress and your hair was down. Face was bare except for that smile.”

“So easy to please.” you grinned. “How’d you know it was a dream? How’d you know to come back to me?”

“You mean besides the dress that you wouldn’t have been caught dead in?”

“Ha. Ha.”

“Just a feeling, I guess.” he answered earnestly, “Everything was a little too perfect. And don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against things going right for me, but this was eerie. I knew it wasn’t real and if it wasn’t real then I wasn’t really with you.”

“So you woke up because things were going too well for you?” you laughed.

“I woke up because I wanted the real you, not some idea of you.” he shrugged, “If you think about it I woke up to save you. And I did.”

You just smiled as you looked over at him. It felt good to see him. There was such an obvious difference to you now between him and Baddie. A brightness that had been missing before. The way his genuine joy made you feel good just by seeing it.

“I saved you.” He grinned, fingers moving gently through your hair. “I always thought it would be the other way around. I would need saving, you’d do the saving.”

“I would have. I did sort of save you.” You frowned, “I just saved the wrong you.”

“Right, and I know this is really upsetting for you. At the same time you just have to live with the fact that I’m taking the win on being the real hero between the two of us.”

The harder you glared at him the happier he seemed to become. His smile grew wider and wider at the sight, and at the knowledge that he really would always be the one that saved you and that there was nothing you could ever do about it. Ultimately you just rolled your eyes and let out a deeply unsatisfied groan. That’s the only acknowledgement he’d be getting from you. For today at least.

“Will you come with me somewhere?” he asked after a long stretch of comfortable silence.

You nodded, “Anywhere.”

With an achy groan of his body he pushed himself up off the cement floor and helped you to your feet. Squeezing your hand with his he walked you over to where the stairs were. He bent down and grabbed his backpack from where it was sitting, just outside the room, and led you upstairs. He brought you all the way up to the roof where it was relatively dark. It was about dawn, the light from the sun barely hitting the horizon. You followed him until he found what he was apparently looking for. A nice little spot where you could sit and watch the sunrise take over the city. While it was still dark he dug into his backpack and made you drink most of the water in his water bottle and found some trail mix for you to eat.

As you watched the sky taking shape and changing into a thousand different colors, you sat with your head on his shoulder. It hadn’t even been a week since you’d watched the sun rise and thought it might be your last. That morning had felt like an ending but this one was definitely a beginning. You were happy to spend it with Baekhyun. You hoped and prayed he felt the same as your thoughts became bombarded with the knowledge that he’d see what you’d done and that you could never take it back. He’d told you not to worry but he could have been lying.

“There’s something wrong, you’re worried.” he said watching as the daylight lit up your face. “What are you thinking about?”

“I’m worried you don’t want to be with me anymore.”

Baekhyun threw his head back and laughed so loud it echoed off of roof tops. You watched him laugh so long you couldn’t help but smile even though you still sat there with your concern. When he was done he let out a sigh of a breath and slapped his hand against his thigh. He looked back over at you and his smile faltered.

“Oh.” He said with genuine surprise. “You’re serious.”

“Yes, I am.” you confirmed.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to laugh, I just thought you were making a joke.”

“Well I wasn’t.” you said softly, “What are we going to do if you don’t want to be with me anymore, physically? How could some platonic marriage with me be enough for you? I mean I guess I could understand if you decided not to be with me anymore. It would hurt terribly, but it would be my own fault…”

He let you keep going, just running through scenarios of you not being enough for him. Of him leaving you because the lack of sex would be too problematic. He sat there quietly and let you run your mouth until it was dry and out of ideas. Then after you’d been quiet for a minute, just to make sure you’d gotten it all out he spoke.

“You know what, I think you're right.” He said solemnly.

“You do?” The surprise and the pain clear in your voice.

“Yeah and I think we both know there’s only one way we can fix this. One way that I’ll be able to finally get over it, and then we can begin to really fix ourselves.”

“What’s that?”

“I have to find a lady alien and have sex with her in front of you. And honestly I hope she has three boobs. I’ve always been really interested in the three boob concept.”

“You sound ridiculous.” You frowned, “You’re making fun of me.”

“Good, I’ve made my point then. You sound ridiculous!” He laughed incredulously. “Me not wanting to be with you? That’s literally crazy!”

“No, it’s not.”

“You really think I’m so old fashioned that I’ll think you’re…what, tainted? You were with Siwon for like six years, right? You lived together for most of those six years. Did you think I thought you were some right out of the package virgin?”

You shook your head in frustration, “That’s different.”

“It’s not though.” He shrugged, “Y/n, there’s nothing wrong with you. I’m never going to think there’s anything wrong with you. Stop tearing yourself up about something that wasn’t even your fault.”

“I can’t just pretend it never happened.” You mumbled.

“Sure you can.” Baekhyun gasped dramatically, “Unless you’re pregnant!”

“That’s not funny.”

“Oh my god, what if you are?” He asked leaning into you, grabbing your hips. “How would we know whose baby it was? Do you think it’ll come out looking weird?”

“I’m not! Don’t joke about that.” You grinned as he leaned against you, pushing your back flat against the roof.

“What if it looks like a little alien?” He asked, his fingers tickling your sides as he inched closer, “What if it comes out all gooey and scaley? And it has sharp little teeth and claws!”

“Baekhyun! Stop!” You laughed as he nipped at your neck.

“You’ll have to love it because it’s your baby.” He grinned. “Your gross, slimy, little alien baby.”

“You’re not funny.”

“No?” He smirked, “Then why are you laughing?”

“Because you’re stupid and I hate you.” You groaned.

“Oh yeah?” He asked, leaning in for a kiss which you gladly gave him.

“Yeah.” You said quietly when he pulled back.

“Please stop worrying that I don’t want to be with you.” He was serious. The first thing he’d said seriously at all, it felt like. “If there’s one thing in this life that you never have to worry about it’s whether or not I want you and want to be with you.”

“Have I told you yet today how much I love you?”

“Huh, I don’t think you have.” He smiled down at you, “but, just so you know, there’s no limit to how many times you can tell me that per day. Maybe a minimum, no maximum.”

“Oh, is that right?” You moved your arm over his

shoulder. “What’s the minimum?”

“A billion.”

“And you’ll be keeping track of this right?” You asked, leaving a kiss on his cheek and then the bridge of his nose and then his other cheek.

“Mmhmm” he hummed, the sound vibrating against your mouth as you gave him a kiss on the lips.

He moved his arms around your head, almost protectively, as he leaned down. The two of you kissed for a while and it gave you all the silly, butterfly feelings that you’d gotten that first night at the galleria. Though after some time had passed you could feel the energy of it change to something more serious. You knew he’d want more, and you genuinely wanted more with him. Still there was an anxiousness that built in your belly and you knew you couldn’t give him what he deserved. So to save it from going too far or making him feel like you’d teased him too much you pulled away from his kiss.

“I still don’t know if I’m ready for more.” You whispered. “I’m sorry, Baek. It doesn’t have anything to do with you. I swear.”

“Hey…” he smiled, a soft kiss pressing against your cheek. “Don’t. There’s no rush, we’ll wait until you’re ready.”

“You’re not mad?” You asked cautiously.

“Not even a little.” He wrapped his arms around you in a hug, tight but not so tight it hurt your arm and then pulled you up to your feet. “I have an idea. There’s some people I know that would really like to see that you’re okay. Can I take you to them?”

“Okay.” You smiled, genuinely excited at the idea.

With your hand securely wrapped in his, you followed Baekhyun back down the stairs. The two of you split up just long enough for you to run over and grab your backpack when you hit the eighth floor. Then you were back together, hand in hand, making your way down to the ground floor.

On the second floor platform you stopped in realization and pulled Baekhyun back to you.

“What’s wrong?” He asked instantly.

“What if there’s Lurkers still?” You asked. “Stay here, let me check?”

“I can go.”

“Baekhyun.” You said his name so sternly that he lifted his hands in defeat.

Having lost him for what felt like a hundred times there was no way you were letting him risk himself again.

“At least take a knife or something.” He pulled his pack around to the front and grabbed one for you out of the front pocket and one for himself just in case.

You made your way down the stairs carefully, quietly. At the bottom you snuck over to the door that led to the open floor and your ultimate exit. Your stomach seemed to drop as you took in the sight. Under the cover of the building there stood hundreds of Lurkers. They looked like an army waiting for orders. As your eyes moved over them you realized it went even further. There were Lurkers standing out in the street. It was like they’d all converged on the spot where Baddie had been and then just hadn’t left.

“Oh god,” you whispered and moved back up the few steps to Baekhyun. “They’re still there. They’re everywhere.”

“In the light?” He asked.

You nodded and he went past you. Down the steps to see for himself. You followed a little, staying on the stairs just in case. He stood at the door frame for a long time. A long, quiet time. Then you watched as he looked around the bottom of the staircase for something and then picked up a chunk of cement. He moved over to the door and tossed the debris through the air. You could hear it clatter somewhere further off. Then nothing.

“They’re not moving.” He turned around and came back to the stairs. He still looked confused himself but he reached his hand up to you, “Come on.”

Stepping down to meet him you intertwined your fingers with his and followed him slowly down the stairs. Baekhyun held his blade in his free hand and you held the one he’d given you out of his pack. You didn’t know what to think when you finally made it out of the stairwell, in clear view of about three hundred Lurkers. None of them moved, not an inch. It was like they were frozen in place. You followed behind Baekhyun as he weaved through the crowd of Lurkers.

“Do you think it’s because he’s dead?” You asked.

“Maybe.” He said pushing forward anxiously, “We should still get out of here, there’s cloud coverage coming. We don’t want to be stuck in the middle of hundreds of them if that’s not the case.”

As you inched your way through the mass of Lurkers you tried not to touch any of them, worried that it might trigger something in them if you did. It was just so curious to you. They almost looked like they’d been turned into statues. Some of them looked like they were in the middle of doing things. Several of them had their mouths wide open as if they had been letting out a howl.

Baekhyun paused for just a moment trying to decide which way to go next and that left you stopped in front of a Lurker that had been reaching out when it was frozen. Leaning in close you tried to get a good look at its eyes. They were shiny and black like little marbles. Their teeth were razor sharp.

Just as you thought to reach out and touch it Baekhyun tugged on your other hand to pull you forward. Your fingers touched the tips of the Lurkers claws, just barely, but it froze both you and Baekhyun. You held your breath as you waited for any signs of life and watched as the tip of the claw seemed to disintegrate. It looked like it had been just a statue made of ash, crumbling into little flakes that slowly fluttered down to the ground. It lost momentum, slowing and stopping at about the elbow.

Looking over at Baekhyun he just shrugged, he knew as much as you. Lifting your hand back up you shoved the Lurkers shoulder. Both of you watched as it quickly collapsed into a huge pile of ash at your feet. You turned and watched Baekhyun as he lifted his own hand, slowly pressing his fist into the Lurker in front of him. He’d gone through the stomach and you watched the monster crumble around his arm until you could see his fist come out the other side.

“Huh.” Baekhyun said quietly, “Holy shit.”

“Careful.” you warned.

“For what?”

He tugged his arm back through the Lurker causing it to collapse. He’d also pulled his arm back so hard he elbowed another Lurker behind him. One of them collapsing wasn’t bad, but two of them collapsing and colliding at your feet caused a plume of ash to billow back up. You were quick to cover your mouth with your shirt to avoid breathing in Lurker ash. It was pretty amusing to watch Baekhyun choke on the ash, the realization of what he was choking on cross his face, and then the subsequent gagging and spitting.

“Let’s get the fuck out of here.” He groaned.

“Carefully.” You noted.

This time he agreed, “Carefully.”

The maze of Lurker bodies went on for almost two blocks. You wondered if that was all of them. Or if you’d be finding Lurker statues hidden around the city in dark corners for years to come. While the idea was unpleasant you realized how thrilled you were at the idea of having years to come. As you weaved through the last remaining Lurkers before the clearing a smile spread across your face so big it made your cheeks hurt.

Once you were finally in the clear you pulled Baekhyun back into you with such vigor that he nearly tripped on his own feet. Before he could even complain you planted an unexpected kiss on him.

“I love you.” Was the only response you could think of for the bewildered look on his face when you pulled back.

After a breath of a laugh he leaned back in, giving you a kiss of his own. Then with a seconds worth of thought he said, “Nine hundred ninety-nine million nine hundred ninety-nine thousand nine hundred ninety-nine.”

And just like that he threw his arm over your good shoulder and the two of you started the long trek home. Though it only lasted a moment before you heard your name being yelled down the street. You looked up and saw Chanyeol and Seulgi about a block away. Your breath caught in your chest as you watched for a second as she limped towards you on crutches. Without a second thought you tore yourself away from Baekhyun and sprinted the rest of the way to her, holding on tightly to your limp arm.

The second you were within reach she dropped the crutches and threw her arms around you. You were able to get your good arm around her and then the two of you just hugged and cried. You didn’t know exactly how long it was but it was long enough that Baekhyun was able to casually walk his way to where you were. Baekhyun and Chanyeol mostly just smiled with content as the two of you sobbed and babbled at each other. Nothing really coherent at first, but you knew what she was saying and she knew what you were going on about.

“I’m here too.” Chanyeol pouted after a few minutes.

Seulgi leaned back and grabbed the crutches from him so she could actually stand without you. And you turned to give him a big hug too.

“Hey kid, I’m really glad you're okay.” He said, “I don’t know if I could take care of these two without you.”

“I think you did okay.” You laughed, “Thank you for keeping her safe… for the most part.”

“Okay,” Seulgi whined, “give her back.”

As you turned back to her you could hear Chanyeol ask Baekhyun what happened. She held your face in her hands for a minute and then you watched her eyes well up with tears again.

“Oh god.” she started to cry as she wrapped her arms around your head, kissing your forehead, “You look like shit.”

You gave her a squeeze as you laughed, “Thanks, Seul.”

“But you’re alive.” She said and almost as if she was finally letting it hit her she cried even harder and held you tighter. “You look like shit and you’re alive and I’m so happy.”

“I’m alive.” You laughed through your own tears, “We’re alive. What a crazy week it’s been.”

“When Baek showed up without you...when we realized we didn’t know where you were.” She shook her head as she pulled out of the hug. “It hurt so much I thought I was dying. I don’t think I moved an inch until he came back yesterday and told us he found you. Not just because of my leg, mind you.”

“Your boy did good.” Chanyeol said with a proud nod. “The way he just kept going. I don’t think I would have been strong enough to keep going but it was like he just kept getting stronger.”

“My hero.” You grinned and held your hand out to him, wrapping your fingers around his before pulling him close. “I’m a lucky girl.”

He just rolled his eyes at the praise before leaning his head against yours. His arms moved around your waist and he had half a mind to keep you there forever.

“You’re so in love with me.” He whispered against your ear.

“I really am.” You agreed.

Then you felt the first splatter of rain against your skin. You welcomed the rain, you were ready for it.

“Hey look.” Chanyeol nodded behind the two of you.

Turning around you watched as the Lurkers nearest you started to get hit with raindrops. They were dissolving. It was slow at first but as the rain came down heavier they just completely disappeared. You watched for a little bit as the large mass of them started to melt away. Then you turned back and started to head down the road. It was a nice, slow and steady pace. Partly for Seulgi’s benefit, partly because for the first time in a long time you weren’t in a rush.

“Irene’s okay?” You asked after a few blocks.

Seulgi shrugged. “Her leg is definitely broken, we’re doing what we can though. We found Seungcheol, Baekho, and Solar. They’re with her back at the hotel.”

You nodded, with Sehun, Taemin and Jongin that was eleven. “Any others?”

“Not yet.” She said quietly.

“Baddie said there were more coming.” You’d wanted to enjoy having won the battle a little longer, but you knew they deserved to know that it might not have been the end of the war.

“Well who knows what that means?” Baekhyun asked, “He could have been lying and no one is coming at all. Or maybe they are coming but it’ll take them years to get here. Maybe they’ll be here tomorrow or later this afternoon. Just…who knows.”

“What do we do?” Seulgi asked.

Chanyeol brushed his thumb over her worried cheek. “The only thing we can do. Wait.”

“What do you think we should do?” Baekhyun asked you, always eager for your opinion.

“I think I want you to take me home.”

A smile lit up his face and he tightened his grip on you. And then he did exactly that.

[oliviascully]

I have a headcanon that at some point Daniel introduced the terms “spooning,” and “big and little spoon” to Armand, but Armand has never fully understood why it’s called that or how to use these terms.

So when he wants to cuddle, he’ll say “Daniel, can we be spoons?”

And Armand really likes being little spoon.

[sea-lanterns]

Final Girl! Reader in Navia’s fic is so downbad for her that she does not care that she ate people. (Tbh, they deserved it for trying to sacrifice her in the first place)

Anyways, what’s funny about this is that I can see Navia coming back from her late night hunts with blood all over her face and Reader is like “Navia! What did I say about washing your face after you eat?” And then proceeding to wipe her face clean with a wet napkin like she didn’t just eat the flesh of other humans.

Domestic daily life with a succubus gf 🥺

[starrgaziinggg]

BOYFRIEND TEXTS PART THREE | kim seungmin

idol seungmin x reader

->anon request: seungmin doesn’t say I love you enough and gets upset about it

Hope you enjoy this one my lovely anon!!! Thankyou so so much for the request <3

[shaythey]

You actually draw the fluffiest cutest reed900 honestly

Thank u!! I love these idiots 😭 ♥️

[holographic-mars]

How did Cosmos and Soundwave get together? Were they pining for centuries or were they open about feelings? How did other mechs react to them being together?

OUHH I HAVE SO MANY IDEAS FOR THIS ONE I STRUGGLE TO MAKE A DECISION,, I was actually talking with a mootie (FORGIVE ME MOOTIE I FORGOT TO REPLY IM SO SORRY) about this and I still couldn’t make up my mind on how I think they’d get together.

There’s definitely pining. Cosmos is the first one to realize his feelings and he tries really hard to deny them at first. He’s not had a good history with relationships and he fully believes that Soundwave is WAYY out of his league (unfortunately, he’s not very subtle with his feelings, and the cassettes find out nearly right away and tease him so badly about it).

Soundwave doesn’t develop feelings right away; it starts off as a fascination with Cosmos. Cosmos is insecure yet bold, he’s funny and a little airheaded but incredibly capable and has a quick wit. Soundwave eventually gets comfortable and content with Cosmos, and it kind of all hits him at once. Soundwave suddenly realizes how safe and warm and happy he feels with the autobot, and his plating suddenly feels hot and his spark feels like it might burst out of his chest. He quickly pushes the feeling down and goes on about his day.

They pine for eachother in such an obvious and embarrassing way that everyone around them is so sick of it and so confused as to why they can’t see how obsessed they are with one another. I like to think that Cosmos gets bold eventually, he’s comfortable with Soundwave and the cassettes teasing sort of puts a fire under him to start subtly, almost jokingly, trying to court Soundwave. Of course the mech doesn’t realize it at first—his recordicons had to sit him down one day and spell it out for him, that when Cosmos offers to bake his favorite treats and watch some earth documentaries with him it’s not a completely platonic gesture.

As Soundwave becomes more receptive to Cosmos’ courting gestures (and eventually subtly returns them) Cosmos gets more bold and sappy with his flirting. He learns that Soundwave likes directness. He learns that Soundwave gets flattered easily by cute ufos. Once they start actually ‘dating’, he also learns that he needs approval from all five of Soundwave’s recordicons to even think about conjunxing the mech. And he decides it’s all worth it for Soundwave.

Anyways this is so all over the place I’m so sorry 😭 I like to think that getting together was very long and drawn out because both of them are pretty hesitant and kinda don’t really know what they’re doing, but by god Cosmos has more cheesy pickup lines than he knows what to do with so he’s gonna use them.

THANK YOU FOR THE ASK IM SORRU IT TOOK SO LONG TO ANSWER!!! 💚💚🛸🛸

[circe69]

Hello! can i request sub!ghost x dom,f!reader

*cracks knuckles* *rolls neck* yes.

a soft whimper involuntarily escaped ghosts mouth as you slowly climbed up onto his lap.

he’d been reading a book, lounging on his cot in almost complete darkness before you grabbed the book from his hand and threw it onto the floor beneath you.

“what’re you doin, pest” he whispered, as you scooted up his lap to close the distance between the two of you.

you hummed in response, “needed a place to sit,” you said as you gripped his balaclava from the back of his head, making his chin turn upwards and revealing the flesh of his neck to you, which you started placing slow open mouthed kisses on.

“mmph,” ghost moaned, but tried to cover it up with a hand over his mouth.

“you like that?” you said, placing your tongue on his collarbone and sliding it all the way up to his sharp jawline.

ghosts hands fidgeted, he was nervous, but dangerously excited for what you’d do next. “y-yes,” he stuttered out as he softly squeezed the meat on your hips. you were in the middle of sucking a dark hickey on his toned pec when you leaned up to say, “speak up.”

“mm, yes,” he grunted loudly, almost embarrassed. what if someone heard him?

“good,” you leaned up to peck the side of his lips slowly, “i’m glad.”

[painted-kneecaps]

would you guys be mad at me if this week’s p&p&t chapter was just insufferable found family fluff and did nothing at all to advance the plot. because i think we need that collectively as a society

[creamecream]

“Whiskey on ice,

Sunset and vine,

You’ve ruined my life by not being mine,

You’re so gorgeous, I can’t say anything to your face, ‘cause look at your face,

And I’m so furious at you for making me feel this way,

But what can I say?

You’re gorgeous,”

Magnolia May belongs to @abyssnighthawk

[lingering-42-long]

Hiiii. I really wanted to ask for a fic about Captain Price. Something telling about him being in a relationship with someone who is younger (an appropriate age). Details: Can be an NSFW or SFW, either option is.

Thank you, I love your stories ^3^)

Age

John price x f! reader

Hello everyone! Once again, I have failed to load on a daily basis lol. I blame my writers block.

The story you are about 12 year separate in age. You are 23 and he is 35.

Enjoy!

Warnings: fluff, no mention of (y/n), John being slightly insecure about his age.

John felt old, like really old. When he got out of bed this morning, he could feel his bones crack and pop underneath the pressure, his back hurt slightly, and he was already in a grumpy mood, without his coffee or cigar for that matter, but deciding it was too early for the cigar, he settled with the coffee.

Looking over at you, he couldn’t help but feel old. Between you and him, It was an age gap of 12 years. It wasn’t a super big gap, but it definitely was off putting one too some. Some people called her a Golddigger and some people called him a creep. He didn’t care so much what they called him. As long as they kept you out of the picture he was fine he could deal with the torment.

Being a military wife wasn’t easy and he knew that. There have been multiple times where you had to make the tough decision of choosing between attending school or helping him on more than one occasion. He hated that. Being in the military meant that you moved a lot online school was an option, but you really wanted to attend inside a building with other people, your age, studying and learning together. John sometimes felt like he had ripped that away from you.

John rarely felt loathing for himself. He was very comfortable in his own skin and his own decisions. Sure, he had made decisions poorly in the past, and he does regret those, but he sees no reason onto why he should linger what he can’t fix. But it was days like these, where he got to really reflect on his life did he realize how much of an impact he had on other people… on you. If there was one thing, he hated the most it was the fact that he had to constantly be on the move leaving you to fend for yourself, in a new town that you had just moved in only to be picked up once again by the winds to move to another new town, again.

He knew that your education was so important. You’ve been working on your bachelors in your respected field and it had taken so long for you. With the constant moving and readjusting almost every two years or so, it was hard on you both.

John also regretted not having a proper honeymoon with you or a proper wedding for that matter. Yes you too did have a wedding with close friends and family members and it was really cute a little backyard wedding at one of his friends cottage farms, But he knew that you liked the city. He knew that you had a ton of other people that you wanted to invite, but due to him, leaving for departure soon, getting married, and at that time, not really having the greatest amount of money… it was rather hard for both of them who they wanted to invite.

The honeymoon was also postponed for a solid year as well, and when he was able to take you, it wasn’t nearly as long as he wanted. Once again, getting whisked away to serve his country. What was supposed to be a whole month was reduced down to only two weeks.

You were always OK with it. You always understood that this was just a part of being in the military. There was barely any time really for you two, as you both were competing for one another, as well as for the workplace calling out for him. Any time he had to tell you that he had to pick up and go again, you always gave him a smile and said where to and always try to make the best out of the situation…. He loved that about you. He loved how resilient you were. It took a lot to really irritate you and that’s what draw him to you. What had become a simple greeting at a local grocery store, had become their lives now.

Going back to reality he finally made his way to the kitchen to make coffee for both of them. He knew you would be up soon. You rarely slept in when he woke up. He was an old man with old habits. Waking up at three in the morning was some thing he was very accustomed to. You had adapted to that.

He made his coffee black while fixing yours the way you like it. Milk with a little bit of sugar to cut the bitterness out. His mind returning back to his wariness about his own issues. He didn’t understand why he was so reminiscent and methodical about the past.

He felt a hand, gently rest on his shoulder, followed by a head. It was you. You had just woken up and was still coming around.

“Morning love.” Price smiled softly as he turned around to hand you your coffee, and give your father had a gentle kiss. You had your hair in that cute little messy bun that he always enjoyed seeing you in, wearing an oversize shirt over his boxers that you had stolen. You had that tire drunken look that you always got in the morning when you were first waking up.

“Did I disturb you?” he asked, even though he knew the answer.

You shook your head and gently slept on your coffee while leaning on your husband.

He carefully ushered you into the living room with him so that he could enjoy his coffee sitting down with you versus standing up in the kitchen. You carefully curled yourself around him and wrapped a blanket over both of you. As the coffee was slowly kicking into your system, you asked,

“Did you sleep well?”

He had to think about this one actually. Did he sleep good? He felt like he did but at the same time he didn’t really feel all that restful, not like the other times he had.

“ It was all right. What about you love? This morning I caught you snoring.” he chuckled as he made light teasing with her. She made a pathetic, whining sound, and gave his shoulder, a gentle slap, which in return, made him chuckle and give her a tighter hug before placing a kiss on the top of her head. They sat in silence for a few more minutes. This was their ritual to slowly wake themselves up from their sleepy minds.

Once again, Price’s mind wandered. It was drifting all over the place. He felt like he was on a raft in a very rough sea. He felt a tap on his shoulder before he looked at you.

“Hmm? Yes love?” He asked.

“ What are you thinking about?” You ask as you gently set up a little bit more straighter, watching and reading his expression. He may be a soldier and a captain At that, but you had mastered the ability to read this light little details in his face. The way his eyes creased when he was smiling or the way his brow furrowed when he was in deep thought about something that he wasn’t too sure about. The way his left eye would twitch if something was irritating him. And the way he would pop his hands if he was bored.

“Am I too old for you?” John never beat around the bush. He was straight to the point all the time, but this wasn’t also the first time he had asked this question. He had asked it a few times prior before marrying you and during your marriage.

“ you know my answer, no of course not. Besides, I like older guys they have better understanding of how the world works and they have a better grip on their shoulders.”

You looked at him, letting him know that you approved at his age. He gave a slight home as he took more sips of his coffee.

“ I’ve just been thinking… I guess my mind is playing tricks on me… I’ve never been the type to be insecure about myself, but… I guess this morning when I got out of bed and felt pain, It made me feel really feel old, And I guess it’s borrowed from there.” He looked at her. “ if we have kids by the time they turned 10 I will be well into my 40s or 50s…. Are you sure you still want a life like that with me?” He looked at her with those soft, steel-blue eyes.

“Always. I would always want a life with you. I looked back at my friends who are marrying young guys, and their relationship isn’t doing as great as ours. Either both or one of them is more immature than the other, and it leaves the relationship feeling hollow or unstable…. I mean I hope you feel that we have a strong relationship, I feel like we do.” His wife fiddled with the blanket that was on top of them.

“Love you make me the happiest man, I love you never forget that, yeah?” He smiled and kissed her, this time on the lips.

“I love you too, my captain.” You chuckled and kissed back, feeling his bristly beard hairs, tickle your cheek as he deepened the kiss.

“So….” She looked at him once the kiss ended.

“So what my dear?” He asked.

“When can we try for a baby?” You asked looking innocently at him which was the worst timing for him, as he was just taking a sip of coffee before nearly spitting it out, which still resulted in him coughing a little bit.

“Are you serious love?” He frowned looking at her “ I don’t want you making any irrational decisions on my behalf.”

“Don’t be silly! I want a child too! I’ve just been waiting for you.”

“But what about your schooling? Would it be easier for you to finish that first before starting a family?” he was also worried about his career, not being able to spend time with his children, but that was for a different note.

“ I think I’ll be fine.” You smiled. “Schooling will always be there for me to go anytime, but the opportunity for a child may not always be there.” John sat down his mug on the little end table and hugged her close. “When should I start?”

“How about now captain?” You smirked, also setting your mug down.

“Oh my dove, you are one feisty woman arn’t ya” he chuckled and brought his wife’s wish to reality.