#i'm not even going to say what time of the morning it is here

[i9messi]

Don't break up with me — Oscar Piastri

Because of a misunderstanding, Oscar thinks you want to break up with him. Signals made him suspect he was right, but in fact, you just want to surprise him with a new puppy.

word count — 1,3k

note: i promise you this is pure fluff and romantic stuff. oscar here loves reader soo much, so I hope you enjoy it!

MASTERLIST

Oscar started to think about the last half of the year. Everything in your relationship had been so wonderful in those last few months, almost too perfect to be real.

You went to support him to his races every weekend, had romantic dates in your favourite places, went to museums and book stores and enjoyed ordinary things such as going together to the market. You had a beautiful relationship, where you supported each other and talked about your concerns as well as your future. Having known each other since you were teens, you and Oscar had talked many times about what you wanted to do in the future: to get marry and start a family.

Your families were very close, his mother loved you and you loved her, even spent time with her when he was not around. Your side of the family adopted him as their son, showing love to him.

There was no way you would break up with him. It made no sense.

However, the signs were there. That morning before heading to the circuit he had called you and you interrupted him, saying you were busy. That would have made sense and it was fine, except then he talked later to his mom and she told him you had been texting her all morning. Why didn’t you want to talk to him?

It was bad. That couldn’t be happening.

“Oscaaaaaaaaaaarr.” Someone shouted and that made him come back to reality.

Lando was in front of him, while he was sitting on the couch. Oscar used to be the most calm in your relationship. He took things easy, used to think before taking action, but now thinking so much was turning him into a person full of insecurity.

“What's wrong?” Lando asked, realizing that his teammate was acting differently than usual.

��Nothing.”

“Is this about your girlfriend?”

Oscar didn't try to hide the truth, not with him. “I think she’s going to break up with me.”

Lando was silent for a moment, until he burst out laughing.

“Don’t laugh, I feel bad. I’m devastated.”

“She’s not gonna break up with you, mate.”

You didn’t live together yet, you hadn’t taken that step in your relationship yet, but you practically lived next to each other. Your apartments in Monaco were only a few meters away. Yesterday he had invited you on a date and you told him that you couldn’t go. Lately it was as if you didn't want to spend your time together, as if his mere presence was annoying to you.

“How are you so sure?”

“Because you're the perfect couple. You love each other, you show the world how adorable you are, and then make everyone else feel miserable.”

“I don’t think that’s true anymore, Lando.”

“Go talk to her, then. Crying and feeling bad about it won’t solve a thing. Go and win back your lady.”

Oscar listened to his teammate, knew he couldn’t waste time or the opportunity to talk with you. He found you just a few minutes later and you hugged him, while he left a kiss on your forehead.

“Baby, I missed you.”

“I missed you too, Oscar. Congratulations for the race, I'm very proud of you.”

That had to mean something, didn’t it? If you hadn’t missed him and if you didn’t want him more in your life, you wouldn’t have answered that. Oscar was trying to convince himself that he still had a chance with you.

“Let’s go to my house.” he suggested, as you raised your head and looked at him with a face that showed no feelings.

“We better go to mine. We need to talk.”

Damn. You were going to break up with him. You never spoke like that, you had never said those words before.

On the way to your apartment in Monaco, he drove quietly. Oscar noticed you were nervous. You ran your hand through your hair and barely spoke. You were acting strange. He was increasingly convinced that once you arrived at your home, you would tell him that you wanted to break up with him.

The road was eternal and the worst of the worst. You arrived and stayed in the living room.

“Would you like some water?”

“Yes, please.”

You went to the kitchen to get a glass of water and came back a few seconds later. He drank the water in a single instant, too thirsty and nervous.

“Is something wrong, Oscar?”

“Do you want to break up with me?”

You stayed silent, until Oscar spoke again. His eyes were shining, his hair was messy from all the times he had passed his hands over it.

“Don’t break up with me, please. I don’t know what I would do without you in my life, you're my everything. I love you, that’s all I know. If I did something wrong just tell me, I'll try my best to not make the same mistake again."

“Oscar, baby…”

He hesitated, but he walked a step closer to you. Oscar was trying to not lose his mind.

“We can’t break up."

His supplicant gaze begged you not to leave him, not when he needed you so much.

“I love you and my life would be shattered without you.”

And something happened. You smiled.

“Oscar, I’m not breaking up with you. I don’t know what made you think I would.”

Calm made Oscar relax, but he remained confused. He was very sure of all the signs he had seen, he wasn't crazy and he was not imagining things. You had been acting strangely in those last days.

“Then why have you been acting so weird?”

“Wait for me, I’ll be right back!”

You left and came back a while later with something in your arms. A little puppy.

“It’s for you, honey.”

Oscar couldn’t help but come closer to you to see the puppy. The animal looked at him with a little mistrust, but once his hand came to caress the dog, the puppy began to move his tail with happiness, while you saw him with a smile on your face.

“A dog? For me?”

“It was a surprise. I talked with your mum about it and she even helped me. When you'll be busy with work stuff, I will be taking care of him.”

Your boyfriend grabbed the animal in his arms, the puppy ran his tongue over his face and Oscar squinted his eyes, while he couldn't stop feeling his heart beating frantically in his chest.

“l didn't expect this, thank you.”

“I would never break up with you, Oscar. You make me happy. That’s why I thought of adopting a puppy for you.”

“Then why were you acting so weird?”

“Because I wanted it to be a surprise. Yesterday I went to get him and that’s why I canceled our plans. Today the puppy peed in the clothes I was going to wear, just when you called. Also, he started barking and didn’t want you to find out. It was my little secret.”

Oscar had never been so happy, he left a kiss on your lips. Your mouths joined and he smiled so happily.

“I love you, you made me the happiest man in the world.”

“We have our little family now, Oscar. We are parents of a dog.”

Even as you planned to start a family when you were old enough, sharing the life of a pet was everything to him. Sharing the care and affection of a puppy made his tender and loving part appear.

“I love you and I love this animal. I will take care of you and him for my whole life.”

You weren't breaking up with him, that was the best part of all.

[sturnioz]

the fraternity are hosting another event — this time, it's family weekend. authors note. theres no part two to this.

you pause at the entrance of the frat house on a saturday morning, taken aback and blinking in surprise as you watch frat brothers dart around like they're in a race against time.

some lug bags stuffed with trash, while others are holding rags and bleach, scrubbing away vigorously at surfaces. the sound of vacuums buzzes loudly in your ears too, and the sharp scent of fresheners fills the air, trying—and kind of failing—to mask the smell of lingering alcohol... and men.

normally, you'd see them all set up for a party by now—maybe even see a few pregame with beers and drugs—but to see them all cleaning like their lives depend on it, yelling at each other to hurry up and get it right.

it's a scene that almost feels surreal.

you stand there silently, unsure of what do do. should you sneak back out and come at a better time? or should you ask someone what's going on? are you dreaming? you feet feel glued to the floor as you shuffle nervously, hoping someone will notice you and fill you in on what's going on.

you turn your head slightly, your eyebrows raise in surprise when you spot kitty leaning against a wall in the corner of the room, dressed in one of matt's oversized shirts and loose comfy shorts. round-framed glasses rest on the bridge of her nose, slightly askew as she munches on a bag of chips, clearly amused at how frantic everyone is acting.

you slowly make your way over, apologising when you accidentally bump into a frat brother who lets out a startled screech as he rushes to past you, his arms flailing slightly as he dashes into the kitchen, yelling something about more cleaning supplies.

"what... what's going on?"

"hey, bun," kitty greets you with a warm tone, holding out the bag to offer you one. you can't resist; dipping your hand in to retrieve a chip. "it's family weekend—they all forgot about it so now they're running all over the place like fucking idiots."

"family weekend?" you echo, your eyebrows knitting together in curiosity. "what does that mean?"

"it's where their parents or some family members come over to bond—like, i don't know, get brunch, watch a lacrosse game, explore the campus, tour the house, just shit like that," kitty explains to you as she pops another chip into her mouth. you nod slowly, trying to absorb everything in. "they're having a family bbq later too, so some of the boys are out back in the garden making sure that it's all clean."

"who is coming for matt and chris?" you ask quietly, moving to the side as a frat brother nearly trips over the carpet, pointing accusingly at another for shifting it out of place. "will nick be here too?"

"nick won't be at the bbq later; he refuses to come here. but he'll probably join for the other stuff outside the house," kitty replies before she turns to you, her gaze steady. "their parents are coming."

their parents are coming. the words repeat in your head, a strange flurry of emotions churning in your stomach. will you have to see them today? how will you be able to face them considering your situation with chris? the thoughts send your heart racing, and you glance around the room, swallowing thickly, gathering the courage to ask.

"are you staying here when they come? should... should i go home?"

"why should you go home?" kitty furrows her eyebrows, her expression shifting to defiance. "if this is because of your whole thing with chris, then fuck that."

"kitty..." you say her name wearily, feeling the weight of your worries press down on your shoulders. "chris doesn't even tell his mom i'm in the room when he talks to her on the phone. i don't think he'd want me here."

"so? you're still friends with matt and nick. they'll introduce you," she replies, her tone firm. you remain silent as she leans in closer, her eyes locking onto yours with some sort of reassurance. "you're part of their group, bun. you shouldn't hide away just because chris is being an dick."

you're still a little uncertain, but her confidence stirs a hesitant nod from you as you fiddle nervously with the jewellery around your fingers, feeling the cool metal against your skin as she gently guides you away from the chaotic living-room and into the kitchen.

however, you pause in the doorway when you spot chris sitting on the kitchen island, a can of pepsi in hand. he stares down at it, lost in thought, while matt stands in front of him, speaking with a tone that feels a little intense, and protective.

for the first time, you see the little brother side of chris—he seems so small and quiet, nodding slowly to whatever matt is saying, his expression pensive as he chews on his inner cheek. matt ducks his head, trying to catch chris' gaze, his voice low and steady as if he's sharing something important and personal.

the rustling of kitty's chip bag suddenly catches both of their attention, and chris straightens up when he sees you. instantly, the pensive look on his face vanishes, replaced by the hard expression you're all too familiar with—his jaw locks, and his eyebrows furrow into a scowl.

a flip has been switched.

"what are you doin' here, kid?" he asks, his tone sharp and blunt. "i texted you tellin' you that the frat party was cancelled, didn't have to come here."

"my phone died so i didn't see..." you respond softly, giving him a sheepish smile. "i left my charger here last night."

chris pinches the bridge of his nose, and he squeezes his eyes shut for a moment, as if trying to push away the annoyance bubbling inside him. with a heavy sight, he pushes himself off the kitchen island, wrapping his fingers around your upper arm as he leads you out of the kitchen and toward the stairs.

the air feels thick with unspoken words as you follow him upstairs in silence, and you even stand at the end of his bed quietly as you watch him rummage through his unmade sheets, searching for the charger lead that's likely buried beneath the chaos of clothes, pillows and other belongings of his.

"i didn't know you hosted family events," you try, a gentle smile spreading across your lips at the thought of chris meeting his family, bonding with them. "are you excited to—"

"y'know you can't stay, right?" he cuts you off abruptly, his tone sharp and dismissive. it makes your smile falter, wavering as you process his words.

"but.. kitty said—"

"i don't care what kitty said, kid. you're not stayin' here," his voice holds a finality that feels a little harsh, and you watch as he runs a hand through his hair, holding the charger out with the other. "just... just go home, yeah? y'can come here tomorrow."

a mix of emotions rises within you as you reach for the lead—confusion, hurt, disappointment, and an understanding that's difficult to digest.

meeting someone's parents is a big commitment, and even though chris has already crossed paths with yours a few times... he's not ready to share that part with you.

it stings, but you can't force him. you never will. so you nod slowly, keeping your expression neutral. "okay. i'll go."

"thank you." he says unexpectedly, his voice dropping to a whisper, the words carrying more of a weight that his usual remarks. the softness catches you off guard, and you feel a warmth at how different he sounds. you nod again, silently acknowledging his gratitude, clutching the lead tightly in your hands as you turn to leave.

as you walk out of the room, you hear chris following behind, a sharp clear of his throat echoing in the space, breaking the silence that has settled uncomfortably between you.

when you reach the stairs, a frat brother approaches, giving chris a friendly pat on the back and you a friendly smile, which you return with a polite wave as you continue your descent.

but your progress halts on the last step when you spot matt in the foyer with kitty, deep in conversation with two older people—the sight of them makes your heart skip a beat.

recognition hits you instantly.

from the pictures you've seen on nick's instagram, you immediately recognise their parents, and your eyes widen slightly, a blend of surprise and anxiety flooding in your chest.

you feel chris stop behind you, both of you watching as mary-lou wraps matt in warm embrace, her face lighting up with joy as she squeals happily. after a moment, she moves on to kitty, her hands delicately cradling kitty's cheeks as she gushes about how beautiful she looks.

matt shifts his attention to his dad—jimmy, you remember from one of nick's posts. he steps forward, wrapping his arms around jimmy in a hug which he returns with a firm pat on the back, warm and welcoming.

chris presses his hand against your back, nudging you forward as if to help you make a quiet escape while the others seem busy with their greetings. you start to comply, but just as you begin to step away, mary-lou suddenly spots chris. her eyes light up with joy, and she gasps, her curly hair bouncing with each step as she makes her way toward her son.

you side step just in time for her to wrap chris up in a tight embrace, and you watch as chris' arms immediately slide around his mother's shoulders, his expression softening as he holds her.

his nose brushes against her hair, squeezing his eyes shut and breathing in her familiar scent. "hey, ma..." he murmurs softly, his voice barely above a whisper.

mary-lou pulls back slightly, her hands resting on his cheeks, her smiley bright as she admires her son. chris leans into her touch, his face pressed against her palm while she coos softly, a sound that warms you up.

when the two finally part from each other, chris' head turns towards his dad, who steps closer. you notice as chris gently takes his mother's hands off his face, straightening up as he does so.

"hey, kid," jimmy greets, his hand reaching out toward chris, the gesture intended to bridge the gap between them.

"sir," chris responds, his body jolting when jimmy gives him a firm pat on the back—similar to what he had done with matt earlier—before his hand moves to chris' shoulder, giving a few massaging squeezes.

"how's that knee?" jimmy asks as he scans chris with a once-over, lingering just a moment too long on the knee in question. you raise an eyebrow, a little confused, and your own gaze flicks down to chris' knee, searching for signs of any issues. "not causin' you any trouble?"

"no, sir," chris shakes his head, his voice steady but clipped. "not at all."

"good," jimmy nods, his smile widening as if he's relieved to hear that. "i've been in contact with your—"

"hey, dad," matt suddenly cuts him off, stepping into the conversation to grab jimmy's attention. jimmy peers over his shoulder to look at matt, a hum of acknowledgment escaping his lips as he stares at his other son.

your own attention is still focussed on chris', watching him shift slightly, his posture loosening just a bit as he observes jimmy interacting with matt. there's a flicker of something in his expression, and you can't quite tell what it is.

but the way he stands there, so still and silent... it feels odd to you.

you don't like it.

you don't like it at all.

divider credits. @issysh3ll

© STURNIOZ

[fanfoolishness]

Going for the whole list. Trying to make the most of my time before I head back to work!

48 fics. Holy cow! Then again, I love writing things in the 1000 - 5000 word range, which makes this sort of nonsense possible.

Something new... I can't say that there's much I did that's utterly new. I really stuck within my wheelhouse of angst, hurt/comfort, family feels and Dragon Age romance. I've also been at this ficcing thing for nearly 25 years, so it's getting a little hard to be entirely new with what I write. Unless you mean new things like new characters, which I certainly did, with dives on all the Batch and then exploring things like Lucanis and Spite's dynamic.

The Bad Batch has inspired the most work of the year, between awesome challenges like @summer-of-bad-batch and friends encouraging me. But, I know that Dragon Age is going to be a powerful engine for my creativity for the next several years if the previous games are anything to go off of, thanks to the magic of replayability and making new characters.

I wrote mainly for Jedi: Survivor, The Bad Batch, and Dragon Age: The Veilguard with a little dabbling in The Mandalorian.

Harding x Rook, though I was so dazzled by getting through the game I didn't get as deep in my feels as I might have. I might replay some parts of my first Rook just for that. Lucanis x Rook has really stolen my heart though. I'm nothing if not a sucker for a tortured man, especially one where the romance ends hopefully!

Cal Kestis, Crosshair, Omega, Tech, both of my Rooks, Lace Harding, Lucanis, really the Veilguard in general.

Yep! The Bad Batch was totally new, and we didn't get the Veilguard until Halloween.

Most meaningful fic for me to write.... a rain that sounds like home tackles sibling grief, recovery, and learning to accept help through a character who struggles with admitting he feels anything at all. Dragging Crosshair through his feelings for 8 chapters was a painful and meaningful joy.

Loved working on the waves flowing, the dawn blooming. Tears kept seeping out of my eyes as I wrote. It's full of a bittersweet pride and fierce family love that Hunter feels for Omega, with a side look at a Crosshair who's fully at peace.

What fic was most satisfying to finish: a sickness of the soul. 10 chapters when I don't often do chaptered fic (usually one every few years, but this year I had two!!), deep conversations between Cal and Merrin, Weird Force Shit, and a deep look at Cal's fears and hatreds. This was really fun even when it was difficult, and I still love rereading it.

a rain that sounds like home, hands down. I stewed over it for weeks, maybe months, before I got enough down to start to feel confident posting it. It was so hard to avoid the temptation to have Crosshair be a mess right away, when he's THE MOST emotionally unavailable character in the history of ever, and while I wanted my big messy breakdown I forced myself to take 30K to get there. Many things to @just-here-with-my-thoughts who listened to me beating my head against the wall on this.

the thing with feathers (it isn't hope.) was surprisingly fun and easy and I banged it out in a morning with very little editing needed. Spite and Lucanis figuring each other out with a healthy side of whump makes me happy.

Longest: a rain that sounds like home at 43,000 words. Shortest: Spite's Sight, where Spite sees something wrong with Rook but can't describe it, 119 words, almost a true drabble.

Oooh, fav writing songs. Twice by Little Dragon is a hypnotic, spare little piano song that helps me get into a groove easily; Tell My Lover by Kathryn Joseph is another deeply moody piano song that winds up on almost all of my shipping playlists when I need an angsty vibe. Barnacled Warship by Johnny Flynn was one I really loved for chipped Crosshair vibes. I loved Cinder Well's Two Heads, Grey Mare for Cal's grief when writing a sickness of the soul.

Hardest fic to title: the shorter they are, often the tougher they are to pull out a phrase for the title. Little drabbles often just get one or two interesting words to name them.

Oooooh, fav title. a sickness of the soul grabbed me immediately as Merrin's diagnosis for Cal's dark side leanings; but I think I just adore the take on Emily Dickinson's poem with the thing with feathers (it isn't hope). For a single word title, I really liked Senescence as a rather medical word applied to the Batch entering their twilight years, a callback to the Kaminoans' presence in their lives from birth until death.

Favorite opening line?? oh man. I'm really not that great at opener lines, they're not my favorite. My very first Bad Batch fic, Still, had a decent one: It’s a feeling every soldier knows instinctively: the unique prickle of the hairs on the back of the neck, the slight stiffening of the spine, the body’s realization coming a split second before the mind’s. 

Favorite closing line is going to be much more difficult. I love closers. But upon review this year, I didn't have any that really bowled me over! I do like this one from ill-fitted, about Crosshair in The Solitary Clone: The shadows pool around him, and he waits to go and keep the peace.

Favorite piece of dialogue: I really liked this open moment from Hunter, set during Breaching the Wall when Crosshair isn't sure if he can recover. "Crosshair, you’re the most stubborn bastard I’ve ever met.”  Hunter’s voice was warm, affectionate.  “If you decide to get better, you will.  I know it.  You just… you have to decide you deserve it.”

Funniest line might be this exchange between Tech and Phee in A New Fascination:

“We still need to get you back in one piece.  I have a feeling your family would have strong words for me if I left you here for the birds.” “The gulls would not be interested in me unless I had already died,” Tech pointed out.  “I am far too large to register as a prey item for this species.”

21. What surprised me while working on a story? I was quite surprised to go on a tangent in a rain that sounds like home and introduce Crosshair to a bunch of elderly characters on Pabu. Crosshair, darling of the elderly. It didn't change the whole story, but proved a great way to show him starting to weave himself into daily life on Pabu and start to form his own connections with the community separate from his relationships with his siblings.

22. Ugh, Google Docs because I can write from my big heavy gaming laptop at home or from my iPad Pro at a coffee shop. I know they're evil, yes, I know.

23. Finishing TWO chaptered fics with concepts that were difficult to wrangle, where both fics stymied me at multiple times, where both challenged me and I challenged them right back.

24. How do I celebrate finishing fics? Often by scampering off to my husband to chatter at him about how excited I was to finish it.

25. Go back to the source material, especially for Dragon Age. Going to dive right back in after this most likely.

26. Go check out my art blog at @doodlingfoolishness :-D All my art goes there. I also customized two droids and a puffer pig this year as part of my general Star Wars fandom, haha, and worked on multiple Batuu bounds/cosplay ideas.

27. Just Summer of Bad Batch and the upcoming Changed zine with a focus on Tech and Crosshair!

28. I would thank @stardustandash for hanging out in multiple fandoms with me, @mordororbust for patiently listening to me freak out even when we haven't had fandoms in common for years, @red-velvet-panda and @azertyrobaz for just being generally awesome (even if I got some very stupid Crosshair related nicknames on Discord from them), and @rederiswrites for being an awesome writer and also for sharing my love for Lucanis x Rook/cheering my writing on in general.

29. I wrote nearly 172,000 words this year!!!! Could I write 3000 more tonight to get to 175K??? Doubtful but I'm still extremely proud of this, it was my best year ever!

30. So. Much. Dragon Age. And we're heading back to the Severed Floor soon... there's going to be an awful lot to explore!

A slightly revised version of last year's questions! Two ways to play: Reblog and have your followers send you numbers, or answer the whole list!

How many fics have you worked on since January?

What’s something new that you tried in a fic this year?

What piece of media inspired you the most? (This can be the fandom you wrote the most for, the one that spawned the most ideas, the one you thought about the most, etc.)

How many fandoms did you write for this year?

What ships captured your heart?

What characters captured your heart?

Did you write for any new fandoms or ships this year?

What fic meant the most to you to write?

What fic made you feel the happiest to work on?

What fic was the most satisfying to finish writing?

What fic was the most difficult to write?

What fic was the easiest to write?

What were your shortest and longest fics posted this year?

What were your go-to writing songs?

What was the hardest fic to title?

What's your favorite title of the year?

Share your favorite opening line

Share your favorite ending line

Share your favorite piece of dialogue

Share your funniest line

What's something that surprised you while you were working on a fic? Did it change the story?

What writing programs did you use? Did you write by hand?

If you had to choose one, what was THE most satisfying writing moment of your year?

Did you do anything special to celebrate finishing a fic?

How did you recharge between fics?

Did you create fanworks other than fic?

How many events did you take part in? (bangs, exchanges, ship weeks, zines, prompt memes, they all count!)

If this were an awards show, who would you thank?

What's left on your to-do list for 2024?

What would you like to write next year?

[peachylynnie]

glasses

word count: 1.2k synopsis: in which you wear zayne's glasses. contains: zayne x mc!reader, slightly posessive zayne, whipped zayne, mentions of violence, slight angst, and fluff overall. a/n: i really like zayne's glasses (the frameless ones). do not copy or translate my work. zayne does not endorse plagiarism. reblogs and comments are appreciated :) lads masterlist: here

zayne doesn't expect you to be awake when he comes home. given how late he leaves his office, he's not surprised to find you fast asleep in your adorable pajamas with your mouth open and legs splayed by the time he arrives at your shared bedroom. though, there are times when he finds you awake, either treating your wounds from another day of hunting wanderers or sitting outside on the balcony to gaze at the stars. but, those times are rare. (not to say he doesn't appreciate them; he's in awe of how strong you are whenever you ramble about taking down a wanderer as he bandages you up and how the stars don't even compare to how stunning you look whenever he joins you at the balcony).

point is: zayne doesn't expect you to be up so late at night (morning at this point) when he walks in. so, he's surprised to find you awake... in his glasses.

the prodigious doctor freezes in place after closing the door. there you are, legs crossed on the couch with a book in your hand and your eyebrows furrowed as you flip a page, causing his glasses to tilt on the bridge of your nose. oh, god. he can feel his knees buckling. not from the eight-hour surgery he just finished, no. but from the gorgeous sight in front of him. his glasses looked so good on you.

"darling?" he calls breathlessly.

you yelp, causing the glasses to nearly fall until you swiftly catch and adjust them with your fingers. he thinks it's the most seductive thing you have ever done (besides the time you insisted on shaving his chin on a rocking chair). "zayne?!" you stand up immediately, abandoning the book on the couch and rushing to him to wrap him in a hug. "how long were you standing there for? i didn't notice you at all!"

"was the book that interesting?" the man questions as he returns the hug, careful not to apply too much pressure. he doesn't want to break his glasses after all. not because they're his, no, not at all. but because he wants to see you wear them more often.

you look up at him from his chest and nod. his heart soars at the sight. the glasses...they bring out the light in your eyes.

"oh? thanks, zayne." you giggle. ah, he said that out loud. his ears grow red as he averts his gaze to the side.

"ahem," he coughs. "why are you wearing my glasses, anyway? do they match your prescription?"

"yes, actually!" your beam. "i couldn't find my glasses earlier, so i decided to use yours." you lean playfully to the side to see his face. zayne can't help but smile upon meeting your eyes. they really did look good on you, and he couldn't be happier to hear that his prescription matches yours. "i hope you don't mind," you say sheepishly. "i was only going to use them for tonight. i'm sure my glasses are lying around here somewhere." at that, you twist left and right to scan the living room.

"no need," he says almost immediately. he really doesn't want your eyes to leave his right now, not with you wearing his glasses so mesmerizingly. you look at him with curiosity when his hands slide up your neck and stop at your face, gently cooling your cheeks.

"are you alright, zayne?"

he nods silently and presses a delicate kiss to your forehead. "i'm alright, darling." caressing your cheek with his thumb, the man adds, "and i don't mind. not at all. wear them whenever you like. i have some spares back at the office."

"oh, okay." you're taken aback by how eager he sounds. it's almost as if he wants you to wear his glasses, and his glasses only.

except that's exactly what the man standing before you wants. to continue to wear his glasses whenever you please. the idea of you enjoying a book while donning his glasses fills him with an immaculate sense of pride. he takes it even further by imagining the faces of all the interns who dared to gawk at you with starry eyes whenever you visited him at his office. he's sure once they see you with his glasses, they'll get the message.

"but i still have to look for mine at some point," you yawn. he takes note of how his glasses slide down whenever you scrunch your nose. "they weren't exactly cheap, you know?"

"i'll help you look for them in the morning," he says as he guides you to the bedroom (lies, he's going to hide them). your sleepy eyes look even more adorable with his glasses on; oh, he swears he can feel himself melting (and that says a lot given his evol).

"thanks, zayne," you say sleepily as you settle under the covers. "you always take care of me, you know that?"

"i'm your primary care physician. it's my job to take care of you," he answers as he sheds his coat and hangs it in the closet.

"you're also my boyfriend, remember?" you grumble, shifting onto your side.

"no, i forgot," he replies monotonously.

you jerk your head back, shooting him a glare. him and his dry humor.

zayne remains unfazed as he joins you in bed. "you should remember this too," he murmurs your name. "you don't ever have to thank me for taking care of you." pulling the covers up to your chin, he adds, "i will always take care of you." you open your mouth to speak, but he beats you to it. "not because i am legally obligated to do so, but because i love you. please remember that."

you blink, taken aback by his words. it's not often you get to see zayne so honest and close to you like this. due to your busy schedules, tender moments like these are hard to come by. determined to make the most of this, you cup your lover's face and plant a kiss on his lips. indulging in the much-needed warmth your lips provide, zayne deepens the kiss, his hands finding your waist.

after pulling back for air, you throw him a cheeky smile. "thanks, zayne."

he looks at you unamused. "what did i just say?"

you laugh before shifting onto your back, ready to sleep. sparing him one last glance before you close your eyes, you say, "i love you, zayne."

"i love you too," he whispers as he watches you drift off peacefully. it doesn't take long for him to turn and reach for the pull chain on the lamp. except he notices something.

you forgot to take his glasses off.

chuckling to himself, zayne carefully removes them from your face. as much as he loves how they suit you perfectly, he wants you to be comfortable. after placing his glasses on the nightstand, he returns to your side and notices another thing: the small dents on your nose bridge left by the pads from his glasses.

unable to stop himself, your lover admires them by gently tracing his finger over them. it seems there are many ways to show that you are his and he is yours. he's delighted his glasses are one of the ways.

after finally pulling the lamp chain, zayne presses one final kiss to your forehead.

"goodnight, darling."

[ylangelegy]

i’m actually obsessed with your jealousy prompts…. what’s better than the most jealous mf around???

seungcheol + “they did that on purpose”

★ seungcheol x celebrity!reader ┆ word count: 970 ┆ part of my closed jealousy drabble game.

ⓘ established relationship, secret relationship, pet name ['baby'], angst [if you squint]. combined with another prompt c/o anon: "i'm going to scream."

"I'm going to file a complaint."

Seungcheol is being dead serious, and yet you laugh at him. You laugh!

"Baby," you start to say, your tone edged with that familiar exasperation you take on whenever you think he's being silly. He's having none of it tonight, though. He knows his theory is one hundred percent correct.

And so he juts his lip out in a pout, crosses his arms over his chest, and whines out his next words like he's some teenager instead of a 29-year-old man. "They did that on purpose!"

That, being the recent announcement of who would be the special hosts of MBC's year-end music show. When Seungcheol first caught wind that a member of SEVENTEEN might have the chance to share a stage with you, he had been ecstatic. While your relationship wasn't public knowledge yet, he was ready to make it glaringly obvious should he be chosen to be your co-host.

He's had whole daydreams about the moment. The hand he'd casually rest on the small of your back. The smile he'd give you that would have Twitter speculating for weeks. Maybe he could even post something vague on Weverse afterwards, some cutesy message of I'm so happy~ ❤️

Alas, all his hopes were dashed when the memo about the hosts went out this morning.

"They put you with Jeonghan on purpose," Seungcheol grumbles.

Jeonghan— the one person Seungcheol wouldn't be able to openly go up against. The company must've known Seungcheol would throw his idol image out of the window, must've known that there was only one person who Seungcheol wouldn't pick a fight with.

The fact that Jeonghan is being extra annoying— relentlessly teasing, calling himself 'Mr. Steal-Yo-Girl'— has only added insult to injury.

You reach out to tug Seungcheol into your side. Even though he's technically supposed to be upset, he can't help himself; the leader leans into your touch, draping himself over you.

Your couch has always been way too small for the two of you, even though Seungcheol insist it's a 'perfect' fit. He considers it perfect because he can always pull you into his lap and bury himself in you, which is exactly what he does now despite his sullen mood.

When your fingers instinctively entangle in his hair, a part of him relaxes. That very part bristles just as quickly when you quip, "Well, Jeonghan is the pretty one in the group."

"I'm going to scream," Seungcheol threatens.

You know your boyfriend enough to understand that he's at least half serious. "Alright, alright," you huff, giving his hair a light, reprimanding tug.

Seungcheol hisses at the sensation. You appease him by pressing your lips to his cheek.

You shift in his hold so your gazes can meet. The look on your face only makes Seungcheol's frown deepen. You're enjoying this. You're amused. You're not taking his predicament seriously.

"If he's so pretty," Seungcheol starts, ignoring the way you begin to roll your eyes as you anticipate what's to come.

"If he's so pretty, why don't you date him, then?" he asks, punctuating his words with a dejected sniffle. Seungcheol looks the part of a wounded puppy.

Eyebrows furrowed? Check. Lips pursed? Check. Boba-like eyes, meant to tug at the heartstrings? Check, check, check.

Unfortunately for him, your long-term relationship has steeled you to his petulance. You take his attempt at moping in stride, opting to press another kiss, this time to the corner of his mouth.

"Because I don't want him," you say patiently. "I want you, baby."

The words still manage to make Seungcheol's heart soar. He tries not to let it show on his face. He's trying to prove a point here. He refuses to be won over by sweet nothings, even if you're so lovely as you say them.

"You're going to be on stage with him instead of me." Seungcheol's arms tighten around your waist, his expression darkening slightly. "People are going to ship you."

A surprised bark of laughter escapes you. "How do you know what shipping is, huh?"

"You're changing the subject."

"Baby—"

The words come out of Seungcheol in a rush, fueled by his gripe with management's decision. "I want people to ship us," he grouses. "I want them to look at us and think, 'They look like they'd be the perfect couple,' because we are!"

Something softens in your expression, then, and Seungcheol knows exactly why. Promises of going public have been made since the beginning, but now it's several years in and there's no relationship announcement in sight for either of you.

Seungcheol's voice is quieter, a little more even, as he buries his face in the crook of your neck.

"I just want everybody to know that I love you," he says, the words muffled against your skin. "And that you love me, too."

You stroke Seungcheol's hair soothingly. He relaxes at the familiar ministration, letting his breaths even out.

"Soon," you mutter. "I promise, baby. We'll get that really soon."

Seungcheol bites back the urge to say that it's been soon for the past three years. This is something beyond both of your control. He's not about to make you feel guilty for something neither of you can change.

He settles for the next best thing. He tilts his head just so, allowing him to catch your lips in a kiss. It's sweet and unhurried. His favorite type.

It's the kind of kiss that makes the endless 'soon's worth it.

When you pull away for air, he wordlessly reaches for his phone. You're a bit out of breath as you watch him angle his screen away from you and type something out.

"What're you doing?" you ask, craning your neck to try and catch a glimpse.

"E-mailing the CEO of MBC," he says matter-of-factly. "To make me your co-host instead of Hannie."

"Choi Seungcheol!"

[cherrygirlfriend]

pairing: frat!rafe x tutor!reader synopsis: reader attends a frat party where the theme is to dress up as your type warnings: fluff! wc: 1.3k i got this idea from the wonderful @rafeyscurtainbangs and it had me dead because it's so funny and i can picture him wearing that… i also tried out a new kinda formatting for funsies ^_^ also i'm surprised i’ve never posted for frat!rafe? anyway first fic for 2025!

you'd never really been much into parties, your best friend constantly trying to get you to go to some of the various parties the social butterfly had gotten invited to, but you simply held up the book you were in the middle of and let out a soft hum as a way to say that you had your own plans. after some more pleading, lexi always gave up trying to convince you to come and left you in your own devices, returning in the early hours of the morning, trying to be as quiet as possible yet waking you up every time.

but this time, all the girl had to do was mention the frat party she was going to that night when you let out a sigh and told her you'd come with her. maybe there was a second reason you wanted to go, other than to just please your friend.

"we're having a party this friday."

you chuckled, turning your gaze from the book in front of you to the boy next to you, "you're in a fraternity, rafe. i'm pretty sure that happens every friday without exception."

your words caused the boy to roll his eyes, yet the small grin you'd grown to like still remained on his lips as he repositioned his backwards cap, "yeah, but it's a themed party. you should come."

"why?" you furrowed your brows in suspicion and confusion as to why he'd want you to attend, "what's the theme?"

"you're supposed to dress up as your type."

"and what are you going as? some kind of variation of jennifer from jennifer's body? or regina from mean girls?" you let out a small snort.

"guess you'll have to come if you wanna find out." the boy poked your forearm with the rubber end of his pencil, licking his lips, "i wanna see what kind of guys you are into. i bet it's some thrifty hipster dudes or some broody bad boys that secretly get hard for poetry and emily dickinson and shit."

you felt your cheeks warm from the memory as you placed the backwards cap on your head. you looked in the mirror, clad in loose jeans that hung low on your hips so it'd show off the calvin klein logo on your underwear, and a sweatshirt adorning the logo of your university. the outfit you wore looked just like something rafe would wear during one of your tutoring sessions. hell, he probably had.

lexi looked at you with raised brows, the muscular girl who usually wore dark, baggy clothes looked strange in the blue sundress she'd borrowed from you, her biceps basically protruding from the short sleeves, the girl's short black hair pulled up into a tiny attempt at a ponytail, wearing some simple makeup that you'd helped her apply.

"you're going as a frat guy? to a frat party?" she snorted, taking in your ensemble, "damn, you date so little that i had no idea that's the type of guy you were into."

you rolled your eyes, throwing her the handbag that she'd asked you if she could borrow, "and you're going as...?"

"a straight girl." lexi said, her usual shit-eating grin taking over her lips.

"in that case, you could've just worn like, a grey hoodie, those flared leggings, and a pair of white nike air force ones. most straight girls here do. i think you've failed at your assignment."

"shut up."

you were surprised by how many people actually dressed up according to the theme, especially over the number of frat boys wearing different types of skirts and dresses, some of them even sporting poorly done makeup looks on their faces.

having gotten separated from lexi almost the moment you arrived to the party, you were now leaning against the living room wall, hiding a part of your face behind a red solo cup half-full of some sort of concoction you'd found as you looked around. you'd always been better at standing aside, observing what everyone else was doing, rather than trying to join in.

you lifted the cup to your mouth and drank some of the nasty liquid, nearly spitting it out when you spot rafe chatting to his friends, just about managing to swallow it before you keel in laughter.

he stood confidently in a grey cardigan strewn over a white button-up that was so small on him it actually turned into a crop top, showing off the lower part of his abs, a faint happy trail as well as a defined v-line leading to a short black pleated skirt, his calves covered by black socks that ended just below his knees.

it seemed that your amusement had caught rafe's attention, as the moment you'd finally managed to straighten yourself up, the boy was strutting over to you, his hands on his hips in a way that almost caused you to go into another laughing fit.

"what's so funny?" rafe asked with lifted brows as he reached you, looking over your outfit with a pleased look on his face before gesturing to his own, "you don't think i look hot?"

"oh, definitely. the hottest." you snorted, bringing the drink to your lips and taking a small sip before pursing your lips in thought, "so, what's your type? britney spears?"

the boy's brows furrowed at that, "huh?"

"you look just like her in one of her music videos." you explained, your lips falling open in shock as his eyebrows continued to remain furrowed, "you don't know 'baby one more time'?"

"i haven't seen it." rafe shrugged, "what, you can't recognize who i'm trying to dress as?"

"i can't say i do. who?"

"i'm dressed as you."

you knew that if you were able to see yourself, your eyes would comically widen the moment the words left rafe's lips; and as you looked at him up and down, you realized, that his outfit was something you'd usually wear; just more lewd. "you're... dressed as me?"

"yeah. and clearly you're dressed as me."

"based- based on what?" you laughed incredulously, feeling your cheeks light up, bringing the cup to your lips and drinking just so you'd be able to hide a part of your face from the boy.

"well," rafe snatched the cap on your head, placing it on his instead, making his entire ensemble look even goofier, as he took hold of the front of your sweatshirt. "i'm pretty sure i've worn this exact same outfit."

"that doesn't mean anything… plenty of guys wear this." you mumbled from behind your cup, only to have rafe grab it from your hands, your eyes widening as you watched him finish it in one swallow, scrunching up the cup and throwing it on the floor somewhere.

cupping your chin with his finger and lifting it up so you were looking up at him, rafe brought his face closer to yours, his ice-blue eyes looking into yours in a way that made you feel like you were naked as his lips twisted into a knowing grin, "it doesn't?"

"n-"

before you could finish denying it, rafe's lips were pressed against yours; your eyes still wide open when his free hand slid to your waist, pulling you closer to him.

slowly, you felt yourself melt into the kiss, your eyes automatically closing as your lips moved against his. your hands were pressed against his chest, slowly moving down to feel his defined abs over the sheer button-up.

you could feel rafe's grin against your lips before he even pulled away, looking down at you with a knowing look on his face, the boy licking his lips causing you to bite down on your lower lip, your head spinning from just kissing him.

"so, that didn't mean anything, huh?"

[mysteryshoptls]

SR Jamil Viper - New Year's Attire Voice Lines

Due to event restrictions, Groovy related lines are locked until the event has been cleared. I will update once these are unlocked. Login line has been captured. New Year's Attire Jamil does not have a vignette.

Summon: This is the perfect day to welcome in the new year. Now, look around at our wares to your heart's content. If you need it, I can even give you a tour.

Groovification: --LOCKED--

Home: What do you think, stylish, right?

Home Transition 1: Looks like it's time for me to take a break. I got a message from Kalim a short while ago, so I need to check what he sent... I sure hope it isn't anything dire.

Home Transition 2: It's much easier to move around in this outfit than I thought. With how black it is, it absorbs the sun's rays, keeping me warm outside, too.

Home Transition 3: Jack's not going to listen to anything the rival team says, huh? He's a little too stubborn, isn't he? I would have liked that he'd at least listen to any suggestions I had on how he could improve his conduce.

Home Transition - Login: A Happy New Year to you. This time of the year sure can get chilly... especially in the early morning and late evenings. We should keep moving to keep ourselves warm.

Home Transition - Groovy: --LOCKED--

Home Tap 1: A shopping list is great to have to cut back on any unnecessary purchases. However... You won't be needing one today. Here, you should buy as much as your little heart wants.

Home Tap 2: While I was attending the register, Malleus-senpai asked me how it was possible that it didn't break when I used it. Well, there's no known reason for that... wouldn't you say?

Home Tap 3: When we have any issues or complaints, no other staff member is better at handling them than Floyd. You think he goes overboard sometimes? Hmmm, I'm afraid I don't know what you mean.

Home Tap 4: When you pick something up, I'd like it if you'd put it back in its designated place. Small incidents like that can add up, making our work to clear it up more tedious.

Home Tap 5: While working here, I've found I'm always shocked whenever we have a polite customer come in. Especially since during a sale, most often you'd see a ton of over-the-top folks.

Home Tap - Groovy: --LOCKED--

Requested by @farfalla049.

[starsenha]

[12] FIRST IMPRESSIONS - just choreo

synopsis: riki was a big fan of your group Devilish, but when he met you for the first time, he made a very bad first impression and now you hated him. rumors started to spark saying how you hated each other and to calm the rumors, the company decided to make you two hosts a variety show together for two months. wc: 2k tw: lots of sexual tension

You arrived at the brightly lit practice room of Hybe Entertainment. You hurried a bit, the clock showing 10:03pm. You were three minutes late. Your bag slung over one shoulder, and your usual determined and focused expression on your face, even if you were exhausted. It was a hectic week with Devilish as you were preparing for your upcoming comeback. Yet, here you were, late at night rather than resting, obliged to rehearse this chore for the variety show. The production team thought it was a good idea to use both your and Riki's talent in dance and do a little choreo section in the next episode. Like you both already hadn't enough on your plates.

As you pushed open the door, the familiar beat of Under The Influence by Chris Brown resonated in the room as you saw Riki rehearsing the chores. You both received the demo just this morning and from what you saw, he almost had it down already, the same as you. He noticed you arriving in the mirror and stopped the music, offering you a cheeky grin.

"You're late,' he teased, walking over to grab his water bottle.

You dropped your bag near the corner, rolling your eyes, but a hint of a smile was playing on your lips. "3 minutes. I literally just got ut of practice with the girls."

"Oh please, I just finished practice too. Don't find excuses," his playful tone didn't irritate you as much as it used to, which honestly surprised you. But you guessed it was probably because of your actual conversation you had with him a few days ago.

You smirked slightly at his comment, pulling out your phone to glance at the choreo notes one last time. Your smile didn't go unnoticed by Riki, who felt his heart skip a beat for some reason.

"Did you have time to watch the demo?" he asked, trying to sound as casual as he could.

You nodded. "Yeah. I'm genuinely surprised they went with something so...suggestive."

He chuckled. "You and me both. But hey, it's a chance to show our chemistry, right?"

"What chemistry?"

He placed a hand over his heart, feigning hurt. "Ouch. You wound me."

You couldn't help but let out a soft laugh. "Let's just get started."

The two of you moved to the center of the room. You had studied the routine on your way here, but performing it in person was completely different, especially with him. You first started by reviewing the chores without music, trying out the formations and steps to make sure you were in complete sync. It was a bit intricate and required you to actually have cohesion.

When you reached the first section that required physical contact, Riki hesitated for a split second before tilting your chin upward with his fingertips. The action was quite brief but charged. Your breath hitched a bit unexpectedly as you realized just how close you were to each other, your eyes locking onto his. When he stepped around you as the choreo demanded, you felt a little pang of disappointment. What was happening?

"Too much?" Riki asked, a playful glint in his eyes as he noticed your reaction.

You scoffed, masking your unease by being a bit defensive. "I'm fine. It's just choreo."

The suggestive sections were next, and you could feel the heat of the room intensifying. He executed a sharp hip thrust while you popped your hips in perfect sync.

"Wow," you heard him mutter under his breath, but loud enough for you to catch.

"What?" you asked.

"You're actually really good at this," he admitted, his voice genuine, even if you caught him checking you out a bit in the mirror.

You blinked for a moment, a bit taken aback. "Uh, thanks. You're pretty good too."

"Pretty good?" he raised an eyebrow, feigning insult. "I'm incredible. Best dancer of 4th gen, and you know that."

You chuckled, swatting his baseball cap to pull it down ever so slightly. "Yeah, yeah sure. let's not get carried away, okay?"

He chuckled, too, and put his cap up a bit. You went through the choreo several times, doing it with music too. After a few times, you plopped down on the wooden floor, leaning back on your hands and catching your breath. You could feel the thin sheen of sweat on your body. Across from you, Riki sat cross-legged, chugging water from his bottle, and you couldn't help but let your eyes wander to his Adam's apple going up and down as he gulped. He then wiped the sweat from his forehead with the hem of his shirt, exposing his defined abs. You quickly looked away, pretending not to notice.

"That wasn't so bad..." you muttered, reaching for your own water bottle.

"We aced that," he said with a boyish grin, and you couldn't help yourself but smile as well.

You both laughed and talked a bit, the conversation flowing quite naturally between you two. You found yourself actually having a good time, the way you bantered a bit too made it interesting.

After a moment of comfortable silence, Riki cleared his throat, a hint of nervousness creeping into his expression. "Hey, uh...can I ask you something?"

You raised an eyeborw, curious. "What?"

He figedted with the hem of his shirt, avoiding your gaze. "Do you...maybe...want to exchange numbers? You know, since we're gonna be working together for a bit, we might wanna talk about schedule or...stuff."

You tilted your head, surprised. He was alwyas so confident and playful but he seemed quite shy now. It was almost, cute? "Sure,' you simply said, pulling out your phone.

His face lit up as he handed over his own phone. Your fingers brushed briefly during the exchange, and you felt a spark you quickly ignored. As you entered your number, he watched you with a small smile, trying not to make it obvious how giddy he felt.

“Here,” you said, handing his phone back. “Don’t text me at three in the morning or something. I need my beauty sleep.”

“Noted,” he replied, grinning. “I’ll make sure to only annoy you during waking hours.”

You rolled your eyes but couldn’t hide the small smile tugging at your lips. For a brief moment, you caught his gaze, and the air between you shifted. 

“Ready to go again?” You asked, breaking the silence as you stood up.

“Always,” Riki replied, his voice steady, though his heart was pounding.

You moved back into position, the track starting up once more. The choreography demanded precision and a level of intimacy that made the room feel smaller, hotter.

At one point, you decided to shed your oversized button-up, leaving you in just your sweatpants and a cropped tank top. You were completely oblivious to the effect this had on Riki, who suddenly found it difficult to concentrate. The way your tank top clung to you, revealing toned arms and just a hint of your midriff, made his throat dry.

Riki tried to focus on the choreography, but his eyes kept drifting to you. She’s so fucking hot, he thought, mentally scolding himself for letting his mind wander. He had to stay professional, but it was getting harder by the second.

You, on the other hand, was too engrossed in the routine to notice Riki’s internal struggle. You were, however, hyper-aware of your movements, the way your bodies seemed to naturally sync. Your styles complemented each other perfectly. It was like you were made to dance together, and the realization only added to the crackling energy between you.

As you reached the section where Riki had to tilt your chin, he hesitated for just a fraction of a second before doing it. His fingers brushed against your jaw, sending a shiver down your spine. You met his gaze, your lips parting slightly as you tried to steady your breathing.

You moved into the next section, the one with the suggestive grinding. You rolled your hips in sync with him as his hand rested on your shoulder, and you avoided his intense gaze in the mirror. The mirrors reflected your chemistry, the way your bodies moved as if drawn to each other. You tried to ignore the way your pulse quickened.

“Good,” You muttered breathlessly as you finished the sequence. “That was better.”

Riki nodded, though his focus wasn’t entirely on your words. He couldn’t stop staring at you, the way your hair clung to your neck, the flush on your cheeks. You looked incredible, and it was driving him crazy.

“Let’s run it one more time,” you said, your voice firm despite the growing tension.

“Yeah,” Riki replied, his tone slightly husky. “One more time.”

And you did. You ran it one last time, but as the music faded into silence, you and Riki stoof in the center of the practice room, your breaths heavy, your bodied inches apart. It was your best run through yet, every moment was perfectly synchronized.

Your chest rose and fell as you tried to catch your breath, your eyes locked on his. There was a look in his gaze you coudln't decipher, something that made your stomach twist in ways you didn't want to acknowledge. Your mind screamed at you to step back, but your feet refused to move somehow.

The tension was thick, alsmot suffocating and you both were hyper aware of hos close you were right now. He could feel the heat radiating off of you, and you could see the way his chest rose and fell with each deep breath he took. You hated how your pulse quickened and how your body was reacting to him.

He swallowed hard, his eyes flickering down your lips before snapping back up to your eyes. His hands twitched at his sides as if he was fighting the urge to touch you in any sort of way.

Your heart was pounding so hard you were sure he would hear it. You wanted to remind him that this wasn't allowed, that you both had some sort of dating ban to respect, but the pull between you was way stronger than logic.

He took a step closer now, and your faces were so closed that you could feel the warmth of his breath against your skin. Your eyes flickered to his lips and you hated yourself for it, hated the way you leaned ever so slightly, as if your body had a mind of its own.

Riki's hand hovered your waist, hesitating, as if he was giving you a chance to pull away of you wanted to. But you didn't. Your eyes locked, and in that split second, the outside world disappeared.

He leaned in, his movements slow, deliberate, as if he was afraid to scare you off. Your heart raced as you felt the barest brush of his nose against yours.

Your lips were a breath away from touching when a sudden noise shattered the silence—a loud thud from somewhere outside the practice room.

You jerked back as if you'd been burned, your eyes wide with panic. “I—” you stammered, your voice barely above a whisper. “I need to go.”

“Yn, wait—” Riki reached out, but You were already grabbing your stuff, your movements frantic.

“Good, uh... good practice today,” you said. Your voice was steadier now, though your heart was still pounding in your chest. “See you Friday.”

Riki stayed rooted in place, his hand falling to his side as he watched you flee. You pushed open the door and disappeared down the hallway, leaving him alone in the empty studio.

Riki ran a hand through his damp hair, letting out a frustrated sigh. His chest felt tight, his mind replaying the moment over and over again. He wanted you so, so bad.

The only sound in the room was the faint hum of the air conditioning, a stark contrast to the whirlwind of emotions swirling inside him. Riki sat down on the floor, his head in his hands, and whispered to himself, “What the fuck am I doing?”

previous / m.list / next

TAGLIST: @pkjay @d-dilemma @heartheejake @lunaritex @dreeki @inishij @rikirritated @whoiss4m @sleepyxxhead @aanniikkaa @right-person-wrong-time @aespaqq @starry-eyed-bimbo @nerdywitchcrown @yuniesluv @lovestruck-sky @ariluvssssss100 @rei4sunoo @wildtigerlili @jakef3ver @seungminsapuppy @kittsnewera @regalfox @rairaiblog @pairinnn

[bunnithechubs]

transcript:

[TEXT THREAD W. REINA] yesterday V: Good Morning, Blue. Ami I finally going to get a response from you? R: SimPay $250 NAILS V: Can I at least get a pic of your nails??? Today 10:15 AM V: Morning, Blue. hope you enjoyed your nail appointment. Think we can grab coffee soon?

V: What's for lunch today, Dad? A: Salmon stew. How was your work out, Papi? V: Pretty good. I was actually able to increase my reps. A: That's good! Go on and eat. I'll meet you after I make my espresso. V: Alright, thanks for the food dad.

A: By the way, your brother said he wanted to come visit. V: sighs You mean he wants to come here to lecture me. A: He just misses you and he’s even bringing Mae with him. Dad, you don’t have to lie. V: I know he’s mad at me partying. A: If he is he has not said anything to me. I think he just missed us while he was in Henford. V: Riiiiight. A: Go up and shower. I’ll clean up, Papi. He’ll be here soon.

[TEXT THREAD W. REINA CONT.] 11:30 AM V: Blue. just let me follow you, damn.

[TEXT THREAD W. REINA CONT.] 12: 06 PM V: I will literally give you whatever you want if you let me follow you. R: SimPay $1.5K PICTURE

[TEXT THREAD W. REINA CONT.] 12:10 PM V: I really wanna be vulgar to you right now, but I'm trying to stay on your good side. R: ?? V: ... your boobs + my face = dream come true 12:30 PM V: Alright Reina. I'm tired of the thirsting over you. I'm making reservations for dinner. I want to take you on a date. Saturday night, I'll send you a car at 7:30 pm. R: See you, Satursday. R: I will not be seein gyou clubbing or seeing women, correct? V: No you will not, Reina.

A: You’ve been on your phone a lot lately. Did you finally get through to Jennifer? V: No. Jennifer blocked me a while ago. I met someone new and I’m going to take her out Saturday. A: Who is this new girl who has my son smiling and texting so much? [doorbell rings] V: We’ll have to save that for another time dad.

C: Hey Vin- V: Hand her over! sighs C: Nice to see you too. coos V: You missed your Uncle Vinny huh? Man she’s getting so big. Last time I saw her she barely had any hair. C: Don’t remind me, I wish I could keep her that small forever. She loved the bear you got her for Winterfest by the way. V: I knew she would. See that’s why Uncle Vinny is your favorite- right?

A: There’s my hijo. How was the trip here? C: Hey dad, smooth. The roads here are clearer than in Newcrest. A: No Kitty today? Nope just Mae and me. C: Kitty had a deposition for work. She sends her love though. A: How’s she doing with the pregnancy? C: It’s been pretty rough for her so I’m convinced it’s a boy. A: Do you want me to come by more often to give her a break? C: That would help out a lot actually. A: I’ll pack a bag and stay a few nights. Give Vinny some time alone.

A: She must have been up the whole car ride with how quickly she went down. C: Oh yeah, she babbled at me the whole drive. She definitely got that from her mother. A: Soon she will have a little sibling babbling with her. C: Yeah, I hope they are best friends. A: You boys were close as kids. I’m sure they will be too. Do you think she will be jealous with there being a new baby? C: I don’t think so but I’m sure we will handle it if it comes up.

C: So, Vinny- V: I’m fine, Cain. C: You expect me to believe that? V: I expect you to act like my brother and trust me when I say I’m fine. C: There is no world where going out every night and sleeping with multiple women in a week is fine, Vinny. V: You’re one to talk. Need I remind you of where I learned this from? C: Exactly. I wasn’t fine when I was doing the same shit you were. So want to try this again but with honesty?

V: I am being honest- I’m fine. C: So Jen having a new boyfriend doesn’t bother you? V: No and why do we even need to bring her up? She broke up with me, remember? C: Vinny, she asked for space and you said- V: I knew she reached out to you. C: She did and for good reason. V: Look, I’m fine. I found a new girl and I actually like her. Ask dad I haven’t been out this week and I haven’t been seeing anyone. A: He’s not lying. C: Dude, a girl is not going to fix what’s eating at you inside.

V: This is why we never talk anymore. You’re too damn nosey. If I want to sleep with all of the women in San Myshuno then I will. Right now I really like this girl and I’m on my best behavior. Maybe you should send her a thank you card or something. C: What’s her name- maybe I will? V: I’m not telling your nosey ass one more thing. C: You really like her? V: I do. C: Then I hope it works out for the best Vinny. I just want to see you happy. That’s all. V: Start with bringing Mae around more and hanging out with me. C: I can do that.

[makeitmingi]

When Flowers Bloom In The Dark [Chapter 10]

Genre: Romance, Mafia!AU, Violence, Angst, Slow burn

Pairing: Hongjoong x Reader (y/n)

Characters: Florist!Reader, Mafioso!Hongjoong, Mafioso!Seonghwa, Mafioso!Yunho, Mafioso!Yeosang, Mafioso!San, Mafioso!Mingi, Mafioso!Wooyoung, Mafioso!Jongho

Summary: When you appeared and wept at his mother's funeral, Hongjoong found himself wanting to find out more about you. A regular girl, who owns a flower shop in his territory and has a relationship with the mother that he hasn't spoken to in years, why hasn't he ever noticed you before?

[Warning(s): 18+ for violence, use of weapons, smoking, alcohol consumption, slight gore, gang affiliation, tattoos and character deaths. Minors DNI. This is a work of fiction and does not represent the Ateez members in real life.]

Word count: 3.3K

Chapter warning(s): Mentions of the boys' one night stands outside of the house, Mingi is flirty

Usually, Hongjoong would have been cooped up in his office the entire morning. The others were used to seeing him skip breakfast. So it was weird when they saw him sitting in the second floor lounge, going over papers.

"What's wrong with your office?" Seonghwa asked. Even he was curious as to why the captain was out here.

"There's nothing wrong with my office. I'm just sitting out here for a change of environment." Hongjoong wasn't the best at lying, especially to his best friend.

"Whatever you say..." Seonghwa wasn't convinced but he was hungry and wanted breakfast.

"Can you ask them to send me another coffee when you're down there?" Hongjoong asked. Seonghwa nodded and headed downstairs.

"Morning, hyung." Those that were having their breakfast in the dining room greeted the oldest.

"Morning. Send Hongjoong another coffee. Second floor lounge." He acknowledged the others then gave Hongjoong's order to the maid. She bowed and ran to the kitchen to make Hongjoong's coffee.

"How was Mingi's race last night? I didn't hear anything from him." Seonghwa asked Yunho. Yunho merely shrugged.

"I have no idea, I haven't heard from him either. But considering how he isn't in his room, I'm guessing he stayed out the whole night, probably to celebrate a win. You know those girls like to glue themselves to him." Yunho chuckled, taking a sip of his coffee. Seonghwa hummed and ate his breakfast.

"Mr Park, the physician is here. Shall I let him in?" The butler came in, informing Seonghwa with a bow.

"Yes, wake San and let him know then bring to doctor to his room directly." Seonghwa replied. The butler nodded and bowed before leaving the dining room.

"Was it that bad?" Jongho asked.

"The opponent last night clocked him bad. We just want to make sure there's nothing internal that's too serious." Yeosang informed.

"I've got to go, got a meeting with my contractor for the new casino. Have a nice day everyone." Wooyoung jumped up, grabbing his suit jacket off the chair and running out of the room.

"Wooyoung hyung's been so busy with the casino nearing completion." Jongho noted.

"From what I saw last time, it's coming together nicely though. San's still going through the investors that you put together for him. Everyone seems to want a stake, the two did a good job in securing the lot since it's in prime real estate." Seonghwa said.

"That's a good breakfast. Now it's time to go to work." Yunho stretched and stood up to take his leave.

"There's a car coming in. Open the gates." They all heard Hongjoong come down the stairs, announcing to the mansion staff. Turning their heads, they saw the captain jog past.

"What visitor does hyung have?" Yeosang asked. Seonghwa shrugged but did look at the door way curiously.

"(y/n)! You're here." Hongjoong greeted you at the door.

"Hongjoong, good morning." You bowed. Honestly, you were still trying to keep your shock and awe to a minimum upon seeing this place, it was huge.

"Your drive way is very long. Luckily I took a cab or else I would have had to walk." You chuckled.

"Ah, sorry about that. I should have told you. But anyway, I would have gone to pick you or send a car over." Hongjoong said.

"I'm just kidding. It's no worries at all." You removed your shoes. Hongjoong walked before you, leading you further into the house. The maids and butlers that crossed your paths bowed to you and Hongjoong. It was awkward for you so you just bowed back, compared to Hongjoong who just continued ahead.

"(y/n) sshi, you're our new gardener?" Yunho's eyebrows raised in surprise as he greeted you, as if this was the first time he knew that you were going to be the gardener.

"Temporarily. I overheard Hongjoong needing one so I offered my help." You explained.

"Ah, I see. I guess it's good to know our garden is in the safe hands of an expert." Yunho complimented.

"I'm not an expert but thank you for thinking so highly of me." You smiled kindly. Hongjoong cast a slightly suspicious look at you then at Yunho, then back to you.

"So, the garden is this way." Hongjoong intercepted. You hummed and followed him out the glass doors to the back garden.

"Wow... It looks even better in person." You gasped.

"All the work of the landscaper when we got here and all the other gardeners that have worked here. I'll be honest, none of us here are really good with plants. It's just nice to look at so we decided to keep it and maintain it." Hongjoong rubbed the back of his neck.

"Ah, I see. I'll take note of that." You chuckled.

"Also, if you need anything, any extra tools or equipment, go ahead and get them. We'll reimburse you, you shouldn't pay out of your own pocket." Hongjoong smiled a little.

"Thank you. I'll just survey the garden now." You bowed your head awkwardly and stepped up.

"Isn't that..." Jongho tilted his head.

"Mhmm." Yunho nodded as they all gathered there, keeping their distance but still observing you and Hongjoong in the back garden. Seonghwa remained indifferent.

"You did this... Didn't you?" Seonghwa looked up at the tallest. Yunho merely shrugged in response but his smile was enough of a reply.

"Is it okay for her to be here?" Yeosang asked. No one replied to that, Seonghwa was too busy analysing.

When you looked up from where you were observing the plants, you looked behind Hongjoong to see his 4 friends or brothers standing there, staring at the two of you. Suddenly, you became so self aware and self conscious. Hongjoong followed your line of sight and turned around to see the 4 there.

"I'm good on my own, Hongjoong. If you're needed somewhere else..." You cleared your throat. Hongjoong nodded stiffly, realising he was just standing there with nothing much to add anyway.

"If you need anything, just let me know. Or let any of the staff know." He said. You hummed and watched as he headed back in.

"What are you guys doing?" Hongjoong asked.

"I should be asking you that. Since when were you close enough to her to ask her to be our gardener?" Seonghwa raised a questioning eyebrow. Hongjoong shrugged.

"We're not close. She overheard that we needed a new gardener and volunteered to help temporarily." Hongjoong explained.

"Oh, she overheard coincidentally?" Seonghwa shot Yunho a look, who looked away innocently.

"What?" Hongjoong blinked in confusion.

"Nothing. Just... be smart about this. Inform the others about her being here. I don't want to imagine what will happen to her if she sees us drag a corpse out there or something." Seonghwa said. Everyone nodded and Seonghwa went up to his office.

"Is this why you were working outside today, hyung? Waiting for her arrival?" Jongho nudged the captain. Hongjoong shot Jongho a dirty look and pushed his arm away.

"Of course not. I just needed more breathing space. My office was getting too stuffy." Hongjoong said.

"Sure..."

"Don't you all have work to do?" Hongjoong barked.

"Alright, alright. Geez, hyung. No need to shout." Yunho winced and covered his ears. They didn't realise that you were looking at them the entire time.

"They're an odd bunch." You noted to yourself as you inspected the plants in the plots.

"So are you going to be working outside the whole day, hyung?" Yeosang asked. Hongjoong glared at them and they all scurried away.

"Listen, if she needs anything, get it for her. Drinks, snacks, whatever, you understand?" Hongjoong turned to the butler. The butler nodded and bowed respectfully as Hongjoong went back upstairs. He gathered the files and papers that he had left in the lounge and returned back to his office.

With his coffee in his hand, he pulled back the curtains behind his chair, letting in all the light from the big window. And Hongjoong's eyes immediately found you.

"She's something else." He says to himself as he sees you used your fingers to dig through the soil.

All the other girls he has come across never liked getting their hands dirty but you so enthusiastically touched the dirt with bare hands.

"These two should not be planted next to each other." You noted, looking at the herb garden that was there. You assumed that it was for those that cooked on the estate.

"No wonder you're dying." You pouted a little, talking to the plant as you touched the wilting leaf.

"Miss, please help yourself to some refreshments and snacks. If you need anything else, please do not hesitate to let us know." A butler came out with a tray of items and a small, foldable table tucked under his arm.

"Thank you! Let me help you." You rushed over to help him unfold the lawn table he had with him. He seemed surprised that you had dropped what you were doing and came over to help him.

"Oh, miss. Don't worry, I can handle it." He bowed repeatedly but you took the tray from him politely.

"It's okay." You giggled and put the tray down on the table.

"Thank you so much, miss." He bowed deeply and poured the drink from the job into the glass for you. You smiled and received the glass, taking a sip.

"Ah, wait. There is something. Do you know if anyone uses the herb garden out here?" You asked him before he left.

"I'm not sure. Let me check with the kitchen." He said and went back into the house.

"So there is a kitchen crew here." You mumbled to yourself. You sipped the cold, fruit tea that was prepared. It was very delicious and refreshing while standing out in the sun.

"Miss, I have asked and the chef said that he used to take from the herb garden but lately, the herbs have not been in very good condition and they are not as fragrant as before so he has not been havesting." The butler came out, informing you. You nodded with a hum and thanked him.

"Looks like we have to repot and add some new plants while I try to revive these other ones." You said to yourself, making a mental note.

"So, how bad is it?" A voice came behind you. You straightened up and turned around to see one of men there. You didn't recognise him or knew his name.

"Hello. Nice to meet you. It's not that bad, just need to move the plants around." You bowed respectfully.

"That's good to hear. My name is Seonghwa. (y/n), right?" He tilted his head.

"Yes. Nice to meet you, Seonghwa sshi." You awkwardly bowed again. He exuded so much confidence and power, plus he was so elegantly beautiful, you couldn't take your eyes off him.

"Thank you for helping us. Hongjoong said you volunteered to be our gardener." Seonghwa said.

"Oh, no need to thank. Any chance to work with plants in such a big garden." You shook your head. Maybe you didn't know him but there was an intimidating aura around him. Seonghwa was purposely trying to psych you out.

Just in case you had any ulterior motive in being here and getting close to Hongjoong. He didn't know that Hongjoong was the one constantly seeking you out.

"Do you need anything so far?" Seonghwa asked.

"Not at the moment. I didn't bring my tools with me but I will the next time. Hopefully to revive the herb garden." You said.

"What is Hwa doing?" Hongjoong's eyes widened when he turned to the window and saw Seonghwa standing there, talking to you. You were shifting on your feet, looking a little frightened.

"What's a pretty girl doing out here?" A deep voice appeared. Mingi stood there, a smirk on his face.

"No, Mingi ah. No." Seonghwa shook his head. Mingi obviously didn't recognise you from Hongjoong's mother's funeral.

"Selfish." Mingi scoffed but obeyed and headed into the house. Seonghwa sighed and shook his head. Having seen Mingi come, Hongjoong had raced down. Mingi was one of the ones that liked to get flirty with girls. For some reason, he didn't like the idea of Mingi trying to flirt with you.

"Was that Mingi?" Hongjoong lied and acted nonchalant, trying to hide the fact that he was panting from how fast he ran down the stairs. You blinked in confusion at his behaviour.

"Yes, why? He just got home." Seonghwa raised a questioning eyebrow.

"I... Uh, needed to ask him something... So, (y/n), how's the garden?" Hongjoong changed the subject.

"It's alright. My plan is to revive the herb garden and some stuff need to be moved around, they shouldn't be grown together. And some of them are planted in the wrong soil." You explained.

"I guess the gardener before you wasn't as good as we thought." Hongjoong joked.

"They're common mistakes, I guess." You chuckled.

"Didn't you have to find Mingi?" Seonghwa cleared his throat as he reminded Hongjoong. Hongjoong nodded stiffly, giving Seonghwa a suspicious glance.

"See you later, (y/n)." Hongjoong said. You waved as he went back into the house. Seonghwa didn't stay too long too since you just went back to what you were doing. Honestly, it was awkward to have any conversation with him so you focussed on the plants.

"Mingi ah. You don't recognise her?" Hongjoong asked. Mingi shook his head, a look of confusion on his face.

"She's the girl that was at my mother's funeral... The one that knew her..." Hongjoong reminded.

"Oh! Oh... I didn't recognise her. I've only seen her like once, hyung. I barely remember all the girls that hang with us." Mingi shrugged. Hongjoong facepalmed.

"Whatever but no flirting, okay? She's here to be our temporary gardener, that's all." Hongjoong lectured.

"Yeah, yeah, captain. I get it, she's off limits." Mingi waved him off.

"I was going to tell everyone about her being here and working in the house tonight but I guess I should tell everyone now." Hongjoong sighed and took his phone out to send a text to the group.

"And Mingi, no weapons, no blood, nothing of that sort on the days she's here." Hongjoong said.

"Yes, captain." Mingi saluted and went to the kitchen to find some food since he was a little hungover from partying all night.

"The doctor's done with San." Seonghwa came and informed Hongjoong. The captain nodded and headed upstairs with his second in command to check on their brother. Seonghwa knocked on San's door lightly before the two of them entered. San was against the headboard, with an annoyed look on his face.

"Oh, hyungs. It's the two of you. I thought it was that annoying doctor again." San rolled his eyes, reading documents on his iPad. Seonghwa shook his head.

"He was just telling you to get bed rest, San ah. Yeosang said you went down bad last night." Seonghwa said.

"I'm fine. It's just some minor injuries, it's normal. I don't need bed rest." San shrugged.

"Just listen to the doctor, San. No fighting for a bit. In the mean time, help Wooyoung out with the casino stuff." Hongjoong instructed. San was going to protest but decided against it.

"Fine." He slumped.

"At least until you've recovered. Oversee things as the owner, just don't participate." Seonghwa told him.

"Easy for you to say, hyung. You get into a motorcycle crash and still continue racing." San glared. Seonghwa's eyes widened but San knew what he was doing.

"You what?" Hongjoong asked. Seonghwa muttered a curse and shot San the stink eye before slowly turning to see Hongjoong there, with his hands on his hips and a disappointed frown on his face. San smiled victoriously, he wasn't going down on his own.

"It wasn't a major crash." Seonghwa sighed.

"Still a crash, nonetheless Hwa! How could you continued racing?" Hongjoong scolded. Seonghwa rolled his eyes and held Hongjoong's shoulder, pushing him out of the room.

"Hongjoong, don't overreact. It was a minor thing. No serious injuries." Seonghwa said.

"Still, you should tell me if you get hurt." Hongjoong said.

"I will, I will. Now please get back to work. I don't want to find you loitering in the garden." Seonghwa teased. Hongjoong squinted his eyes at Seonghwa.

"Don't even go there." He warned and walked back to his office to do work.

If Hongjoong was worried about you, he could just periodically check in on you from his office window. No, not creepy at all.

"Luckily I have my spade at least." You sighed in relief as you dug through the soil to uproot one of the plants. You felt bad for creating such a mess and getting the soil onto the pavement. But you needed to move the plants, you would have to help them clean up the pavements later when you're done.

"There you go. Welcome to your new home." You smiled as you placed the plant into the new hole you dug, shovelling the soil over the roots and lightly packing it down.

"Excuse me, where's the bathroom?" You entered the house.

"Let me take you, miss." The maid bowed and led you down one of the hallways. She opened the bathroom door for you.

"Thanks." You smiled and entered. The first thing you did was wash your hands thoroghly, not wanting to drop any dirt or soil on the ground of the house.

When you were done with the bathroom, you stepped out and almost bumped into someone.

"I'm so sorry!" You exclaimed and bowed repeatedly. The man shot you an odd look. He was covered in injuries.

"It's fine." He mumbled and walked past you, continuing on his way. Even if you didn't know him, it was concerning to see someone so badly hurt. Was he in a fight? Or did he get beaten up?

"Miss, do you need help getting back to the garden?" A maid came up to you when she saw you standing there in the hallway. You lied and nodded your head. With a small smile, she led you back to where the backyard was.

"Thanks." You smiled gratefully and went back to the area you were initially working on.

"Yunho sshi?" You blinked, seeing him stand there, looking at the hole in the soil that you had dug up previously.

"Why are you digging holes?" He asked.

"Some of the plants are in the wrong soil or shouldn't be grown next to each other so I'm trying to move them. I can't do it all today but I'll start plot by plot." You explained.

"Isn't all soil the same? It's dirt." He stated. There was such a confused look on his face as he tilted his head at you.

"A lot of people think all soil is the same, just dirt. But there are different nutrition levels, the way they retain water, all that differs from soil to soil. Even how they pack around the roots." You giggled.

"Oh... If all the soil here is the same, our gardeners before you must really suck." Yunho clicked his tongue.

"Hongjoong said the same thing earlier too but all I can say is, being a gardener isn't as easy as it seems." You shrugged.

"You're too humble, (y/n)." Yunho smiled charmingly. The two of you burst out laughing. You were unaware that Yunho sent a small wave to someone who was watching your entire interaction from his office window.

~

Series masterlist

[remedyturtles]

10 with Leo and Raph would be so interesting. (Thought I can't really picture either of them saying somthing that mean to eachother, so maybe mystics are involved?)

I hope you have a nice day!

great minds think alike y'all. thanks @bluemoonsymphonies and anon for the prompt! i hope u both enjoy....

wordcount 1k, pre-movie

10. "Please... what am I doing wrong?" "What aren't you doing wrong?!"

Leo’s throat hurt. 

Just add it to the list of bullshit that Raph was doing to him. Because there was absolutely no reason that Raph had to come and interrupt him while he was snoozing on the bean bag. Like, this lecture could’ve totally waited until later. Maybe after Leo had gotten some fucking sleep. 

“You’re not taking this seriously!” Raph said.

“You could not be more of a broken record if you tried, Rapha.” Leo hadn’t gotten up from the bean bag and suffocated a yawn into his fist. He was tired of the grating arguments and he was tired, just bone tired of the fighting for no reason. And tired in general. Because his head was so loud and when he laid down to sleep there was just… screaming there too. 

“That’s because you’re not listening to me.” Raph poked him right between the eyes. “I gotta drill it in that empty head somehow.”

Leo twitched. That was a bit harsh, especially since it wasn’t a gentle poke. He was feeling a little ganged up on and crawled out of the bean bag to stand his ground, crossing his arms. “Yeesh, tell me how you really feel.” 

“I think you’re lazy and unmotivated.” Raph scoffed. “We’ve got so much we could be doing and you’re sleeping in the middle of the day.”

Leo… paused. Stared at his brother with a bit of hurt shock. He was really coming at him, no holds barred. He held up his hands in surrender and said, “And wow, I think you’re a huge jerk. What the hell, dude? For your information, I barely slept last night, so get off me.”

Something flickered in Raph’s eyes. But it didn’t stay. He scoffed again, louder and more derogatory, raising up his lip to sneer with his snaggletooth. “You’re not even trying.”

“Wow.” Leo repeated. Hands still raised, skin goosebumping, a chill from the undisguised scorn. This was different from the usual annoyed arguing. This was … mean. “Okay. Please, let's hear it. What am I doing wrong, then?”

“What aren't you doing wrong?” Raph spat back, chest heaving. Genuine anger sung hot and heavy. 

Leo stared. This sounded a lot like the inside of his own head. Which didn't make sense, because that wasn't Raph. He pushed and he pushed but he was never like this. Not his Raph. Not his lovable big lug of a brother who truly only wanted the best for all of them. 

“Nothing to say?” Raph tilted his head to the side. His eyes were rather blank, now that Leo was making painful eye contact with him. 

“Are you feeling okay?” Leo prompted.

Raph blinked rapidly, surprised, then shook his head. “What are you talking about? You’re the one who's a problem here."

"Yeah, something is definitely wrong." Leo stepped forward, cataloguing other symptoms as he went. "You give me a hard time, you piss me off, and you nag me. But you're never, ever mean. So what gives?"

Raph was sweating. Not any of his usual sweat, not a scent Leo could pinpoint with scary accuracy. Something unheard of. When Leo got closer, he could see the pin-pricked pupil and too-quick breathing. He practically growled at Leo as he got close. 

"Relax." Leo smiled, charming, getting another step closer to the lion's den. Flickering his gaze over Raph to try and find some kind of clue. "I get you, I know you want me to try, etc etc. But you wouldn't just brush past me telling you I hadn't slept, because you know I hate being honest about that. You'd be beating my ass with a pillow to go to bed then and try again in the morning. So either you've been possessed by a demon or cursed. Which is it?"

"I'm not –" Raph lurched forward.

But Leo had already spotted it. He pinched the little bug between his thumb and forefinger and pulled – a parasitic scarab bit down into the skin of his neck. The moment it left Raph's body, the little pincers wiggled agitatedly in the air, and Leo surveyed the bug with a distasteful eye. 

Raph inhaled sharply, hand flying to his neck, and took two staggering steps backwards. He breathed, "What the fuck."

Leo waved the evil little beetle at him. "Did you piss off someone? Maybe walk through a magical rainforest?"

"I – I – " Raph's face morphs into one of pure horror. "I'm so sorry."

"Aw, buddy." Leo opened a portal and flicked the beetle through it, sending the fucker to the moon. Then he waved it away and opened his hands in offer. "It's okay. I know you better than that." 

Raph scooped him up in a hug so tight it took his breath away. He squeezed and squeezed and Leo bore it with the patience of someone who'd been a teddy bear for this man many a time. 

"It's okay." Leo mumbled to him. 

"Not really." Raph replied, miserable.

"You didn't mean it." Leo shrugged.

The arms around him tightened. Raph shuddered a breath.

"Okay, maybe you meant it a little bit." Leo amended, because it wasn't like this conversation was new. Just the vitriol at which he spat it. "But bud, I know you're not coming at me to hurt me. I'd never think that. You're literally doing this because you want me to be my best. I'm not stupid. I'm just really, really good at acting like it."

Raph pulled back enough to show his red eyes. "Then why won't you work with me here?"

Leo couldn't say, because I'm scared my best isn't good enough. Instead he pat his big brother's arm and said, "Let's get you checked out and make sure that beetle didn't cause any lasting effects, hey?"

"Leo–" Raph growled.

Too late. Leo eeled out of his grip and danced away, waving over his shoulder. "Come on, chop chop, I don't have all day you know."

Raph… sighed. And followed, shoulders hanging.

[just-a-carrot]

I'm not really in the mood to make a festive Happy New Year's post. So instead I'll just say... we made it. I made it. You made it. The year is over and we're still here. And that is enough.

It's no real secret by this point but 2024 has been one of the worst years of my life. From constant anxiety and panic attacks over job stability in the spring, to losing two family members, to the depressive spiral I entered after finishing OW, to the second spiral in the fall just when I thought maybe I was finally doing a bit better and everything came crashing back down, my mental health has been worse than it's ever been. And I've spent a lot more nights than I'd like to admit wishing I wouldn't wake up in the morning. (And downed a lot more sleeping pills than I'd like to admit because it's the only OTC thing I can get to mildly decrease my anxiety and help numb me a bit LOL)

I just want... this year to be over. Even though I have no hope for 2025 either and mostly just feel anxious and hopeless about it. But I will continue trying. Continuing grappling for the bits of joy that can keep me going. And maybe I finally will get a little bit of calm and peace. Who can say. I guess we'll see what 2025 decides to bring. I just really want to feel a bit better finally. And I hope that 2025 might take pity on me and allow me some mental respite.

2024 did have its moments of joy. Despite it sending me into the spiral, I am ofc glad that I finished OW finally this year. I consider it one of my greatest accomplishments. And I still can't believe that I put 3 whole years of work into this thing and just how much of my soul went into it. Even if my depression keeps trying to convince me that it (and me) are worthless.

I feel like I grew a lot in my art over the year. Trying new and more complex things. Getting better at composition and poses. Which led into my starting Broomtail, which gave me really the first renewed spark of creative joy since releasing the finale and actually made me excited to work on something again.

Speaking of joy amidst melancholy, DD2 was released this year, and it became the one thing that could keep me going at times. It brought me so much joy and inspiration when nothing else would. And it still holds my heart captive in its grip. From all the DD2 art I did, to the O2A2 game, to my silly tragic music video, to a very self-indulgent fanfic, it gave me so much creative energy, and I want to do more art for it in 2025 too! (And I'm still waiting for that DLC, Capcom...) I can't think of another game ever that's had this much of a hold on me before. Though I do attribute much of that to the fact that in my head it's mostly an OW AU since I could make Iggy and Genzou and play out their tragic love story and it was so beautiful and Genzou was so so sweet and cute GUH. Yeah... that helped a lot.

I think my main goal for 2025 is just to keep trying. To keep surviving. To keep trying to find hope and joy where I can. To believe that I can feel better and things can be better. Even when it's hard. And that hopefully... hopefully I will be able to find some peace in there finally.

I do have various projects I'd like to work on too. Like finishing the remaster, continuing Broomtail, maybe working on another game later on. But I'd rather just think of those as things I'd like to do for myself and because they bring me joy, rather than as any kind of goal or pressure. Especially since I never want to make any promises given the instability of my mental health.

I'm just so tired always. And I hate feeling scared and worthless all the time. I hate feeling trapped. Even if I know it's my own life choices and debilitating fear of change that has led to a lot of this. So it's my own fault in the end. But I hope I can find some solace. And I hope you can, too. I hope 2025 will be a kind year to everyone. And even if it's not, that we can find some joy and hope to help us through it.

Sorry this felt a bit morose LOL I guess I wanted to just take this opportunity to reflect back on the year a bit for some catharsis. I shall now sleep for 24 hours to recover from my flight hahaha.

if you saw this post a day ago for a few seconds i'm sorry -- i was working on it in my drafts and must have accidentally clicked post instead of save(??) somehow(???) idk but it posted and i panicked and deleted it and then had to rewrite it from scratch LOL

[onmyo-jin]

ZYZ + ZYC (49. …out of necessity)

(asexual-ZYC attempts to make an advance on ZYC, out of what he feels is necessity, hurt/comfort ensues ♥️)

I cannot tell you how much joy this prompt gave me, thank you so much! It took a while to get this story down the way I wanted to, I hope you enjoy 🖤🩶🤍💜

Zhuo Yichen isn't blind. He has long since seen the eyes Zhao Yuanzhou makes at him when he thinks Yichen isn't watching, or even when he is. He has heard the flirtations (the same as directed an Wen Xiao), has heard Yinglong say zhiji, he has noticed the others giving them space to be alone, creating chances for him to confess. 

It's not that he doesn't like Zhao Yuanzhou. Most of the time the demon is sharper, funnier, more interesting, more true to his own nature than anyone Zhuo Yichen has ever seen. He wants to spend time with the demon, he wants to be the one sitting next to him, wants to feel as comfortable around the other as his friends seem to be– as Wen Xiao seems to be, despite the demon's endless stream of flirty comments.

Except…

Love is a confusing thing, to Zhuo Yichen. He loves (present tense, always present tense) his brother, his father, loves his friends. Only that doesn't seem to be the kind of love that makes people do ridiculous things. The kind of love that makes young people foolish and old people feel young, the kind of love that inspires so much art and poetry and song– This kind of love is not something Zhuo Yichen feels. Well, that or he is the most sensible person the world has ever seen.

Regardless, he likes Zhao Yuanzhou. In a way that feels different to the way he cares about his family and friends, he really likes that annoying demon. And the demon seems interested in him. So according to all the great stories, the songs, the poems (he has done his research, thank you very much), if two people like each other then they kiss. And that's how you're sure that it is love, and not just like.

And that's how he ended up here, waiting for everyone else to retire after their dinner on the veranda, hoping Zhao Yuanzhou doesn't go to bed before the others do. It is late, and they've already collectively bullied Bai Jiu into going to bed, with placations and lies that they too are about to sleep. Pei-daren may even have been telling the truth, for she retired soon after. Ying Lei is still talking, going on about this divine feast he was invited to some decades ago and about how he wants to recreate a specific dish. Wen Xiao knows him better than anyone, and winked at him when she left, claiming she had some more studying to do.

Zhao Yuanzhou has been eyeing him all evening, and Zhuo Yichen has never before had cause to wonder if this is what a piece of fruit on a market stall might feel like. He's not sure he likes the feeling of waiting to be picked, of being judged, or perhaps of being assumed to be something delicious– anyway. 

Ying Lei yawns halfway through his meandering description of herbs he'd need to grow, and stands from the table. "I'm heading to bed as well, you two night owls behave yourself!"

"What do you-"

"We always do," Zhao Yuanzhou answers over Zhuo Yichen. The mountain god snorts and shakes his head as if they were children and not an ancient demon and a human more responsible than their little runaway god himself.

With Ying Lei gone this would be the perfect time to make his move. The only thing he needs to do is to turn to Da Yao and… kiss. Just kiss him. Somehow the songs and the stories failed to mention how hard that next step would be. Zhuo Yichen stares at his tea cup, and finds himself wishing for something stronger. The tea stares back at him, growing cold in accusation of his inaction. The silence loudly proclaims his failure to act, the night sky moving inexorably on to morning.

"Zhuo-daren?" Zhao Yuanzhou's questions startles him, and he turns to the demon. "You've been preoccupied all evening, am I really so very distracting?" He knows the smirk the demon will be wearing before he even turns to look at him. When he does it is hard to look away from those lips.

"No," the lie is painfully obvious to Zhuo Yichen, and of course the demon notices too. For the first time Zhuo Yichen can say he is grateful for the fact that Zhao Yuanzhou is such a flirt.

"Did you know demons can sense lies, Xiao Zhuo-daren? Why don't you tell me what's really on your mind-"

"-Can I kiss you?" The words are out of his mouth before he knows it, and he cringes at how silly, how earnest, how innocent he sounds. His cheeks are burning, and he'd give anything to be elsewhere right now. Perhaps the earth can open up to swallow him, perhaps enemies can beset the capital, hordes of demons attack the Bureau, absolutely anything… Anything would be better than sitting under the stars by the light of a few candles as Zhao Yuanzhou stares at him.

Surprise is the first emotion that flashes across Da Yao's face, but amusement follows it swiftly enough. Close behind it is a hunger Zhuo Yichen doesn't have a name for. Is that what love is, or even lust? A hunger? It seems strange, but Yichen doesn't have the time to think about that now. The silence stretches too long, and Zhuo Yichen is about to start making excuses, blame the food, the time of night, even an imaginary fever or poison.

Then the demon is moving, swift as a blade, and Zhuo Yichen almost tries to block and evade until he realizes: he asked for this. Zhao Yuanzhou lunges for him like he is attacking, but grabs him as soft as one would hold a flower, one hand snaking around his waist and the other around his neck. His lips meet Yichen's in a soft greeting, asking without words to touch him and yet being so much more eloquent about it. It's… strange. People do this for fun?

The lips against his own are warm, and while not unpleasant it's a little weird. People use their mouths for eating, and talking, and breathing– and then they also want to touch their mouths together? For extended periods of time? It isn't bad, per se, and Yichen is no poet or artist, but this does not seem like something that inspires such great art.

"Xiao Zhuo?" Oh gods. He's been thinking too much, and Zhao Yuanzhou has noticed while kissing him that he… doesn't care for kissing, apparently. "What's wrong?"

How does one explain to the person you just asked to kiss you that no, thank you for the scientific experiment, I'm not actually interested in doing that. In hindsight Zhuo Yichen realizes how awful his question was. He got the demon's hopes up over nothing, only to disappoint him. Li Lun's words about humanity's cruelty echo in his mind. Zhao Yuanzhou's eyes are searching his face, increasingly concerned with his lack of answer. He is still holding Zhuo Yichen ever so gently, their faces still close enough to feel the demon's breath ghost across his skin.

Zhuo Yichen shrinks back, breaking that gentle hold, trying to hide himself from those kind, concerned eyes. "I'm sorry."

Da Yao reaches for him, this time slowly instead of knife-fast, and lays a careful hand on his arm. The weight of it settles with the weight of a thousand expectations and Zhuo Yichen stares at it like it is something fearful. Whatever Zhao Yuanzhou reads in his gaze makes him retract his hand quick as lightning.

"I'm sorry," Zhuo Yichen repeats. He might be apologizing for either of his actions, or both, or for even waking up and thinking this was a good idea. He's honestly not sure which one it is. Perhaps running away like Ying Lei did is not such a ridiculous action after all. Especially because the ground isn't obligingly opening up and swallowing him whole. He focuses his attention on his abandoned tea cup, because he can feel Zhao Yuanzhou's eyes searching his face.

"I'm not sorry," the demon announces, and it's such a weird thing to say that it makes Zhuo Yichen look back into those dark eyes. "I got to kiss my favourite human, so whatever it is that you've done: I don't mind." His smile is entirely cheerful mischief and is such a 180 from moments before that Zhuo Yichen knows he is acting, and reacts accordingly to roll his eyes.

"There, that's the infamous Zhuo-daren I know," Zhao Yuanzhou drops part of the mischief-mask, but keeps his smile. He returns to his own seat instead of being so terribly close, and waits patiently for Yichen to sit upright and collect his thoughts. "Now, if Zhuo-daren would tell this lowly demon what he has done wrong, perhaps this one can forgive him, hm?" He makes it sound so easy, Zhuo Yichen thinks. He makes it sound so tempting, as well: forgiveness. 

Zhuo Yichen stares at the demon for a long moment before deciding to put away his pride. It's the least he can do for leading the demon on like that. "I… have never kissed anyone," he begins, and resolutely looks away from the smirk Zhao Yuanzhou lips curl into at those words. "All the stories say people kiss, but I've never understood why? It just… has never seemed interesting." 

"And it was interesting enough to ask now?"

"I wasn't sure– so I thought I should check, because kissing seems to be how people tell if they…"

"If they like one another?" Zhao Yuanzhou completes the words that Zhuo Yichen cannot make himself say.

"Yes," he admits, looking firmly at the table.

Laughter is probably the last reaction Zhuo Yichen expected, but Zhao Yuanzhou is laughing. "Ah, Xiao Zhuo, I have good news: there are many more ways to tell a person you like them besides kissing."

When the demon says it it sounds so simple, so obvious. Zhuo Yichen wonders why he hadn't thought of that, why the stories are so full of kissing if there are other ways to show love. Still, he feels the need to check: "You don't mind?"

"Mind? That I was given your first and last kiss? Why, Zhuo-daren I am honoured-oof," Zhuo Yichen punches him in the shoulder for that, but stays to wait while Zhao Yuanzhou gets them the wine he offered earlier. They've got much more to talk about.

[m2marie]

Mission with the Newbie

Summary: Y/n is send off on a mission with her new Mentor. Natasha Romanoff. Of all people, the woman who doesn’t seem to like her. Or so she assumed.

It’s been a week since I moved into the Avengers Compound, and honestly, I haven’t had much time to settle in properly. Everything still feels a bit overwhelming. It's like everyone knows what to do and how to act, and i just haven't found my place yet.

I get along well with everyone though —well, almost everyone.

Wanda is always so joyful and kind, she helped me settle in the last couple days and I'm so glad to have her around. We just clicked immediately and she really seems to get me. Natasha thought is the complete opposite.

I can’t shake the feeling that Natasha doesn’t like me. Every time we’re in the same room, she either throws some sarcastic comment my way or just stares at me for way too long. It’s like she’s analyzing me or waiting for me to mess up. I have no idea what I did to get on her bad side, but it’s starting to drive me crazy. I’ve tried to ignore it, but it’s impossible when the tension is so obvious.

This morning, we both ended up in the kitchen. She was leaning against the counter, sipping her coffee, while I fumbled around looking for a clean mug. The silence was unbearable until she finally spoke.

“You always take this long to find a cup, or is it a special skill?” she said, her tone dripping with mockery. I turned to face her, trying to keep my voice steady.

“I didn’t realize coffee mugs were a competition around here.” She smirked and took another sip. “Relax. It’s just an observation. You’re so jumpy all the time.”

“I wouldn’t be if you didn’t keep staring at me like I’m about to explode,” I shot back, unable to hold it in anymore.

Natasha raised an eyebrow, her smirk fading slightly. “Maybe you’re just imagining things.”

“Maybe,” I said, though I didn’t believe it for a second. The room fell silent again, but this time it felt even heavier. Wanda and Pietro entering the kitchen finally ended my misery. Pietro had taken off his shirt, it was hanging over his left shoulder. A bit of sweat running down his forehead He was chatting with his sister, wearing a black sports bra and some red leggings. The same exhaustion visible on her reddened face. They obviously just came back from some sort of sport.

I am already proud of myself for standing in the kitchen, dressed and ready for the day at 7:30 am. Their energy really is a mystery to me.

"Hey Y/n, Tony wants to see you in his lab later.", Pietro tells me while peeling his orange. "Me?", i ask back, a bit perplexed. Tony and I have only exchanged a few sentences so far. As far as I noticed he spends most of his time in the lab. Fury was the one wanting me on the team. It's not like Tony seemed to have a problem with it, he didn't really care much for my presence so far.

"Yes you. Don't be so shocked, it's been about time he talks to you about your job on the team.", Wanda chuckled, "And he wants to see you too Nat."

She lets out an audible sight "Great. Lets get this over with then"

I follow the redhead to Tony’s lab, where he was leaning over a holographic display. When we walk in, he turns with his signature smirk. “Ah, just the ones i was looking for. Glad you could join me.”

“Get to the point, Stark,” Natasha said, her tone sharp. Tony chuckles . “Alright, here’s the deal. A small mission’s come up—nothing major, won’t take long. Natasha, I want you to handle it. And,” he gestures toward me, “take our newbie here along. Teach her a thing or two about going undercover.”

Natasha’s eyes narrowe. “You’re kidding.” She exhales slowly, the irritation clear in her voice. “So now I’m a babysitter.”

“Call it mentorship,” Tony says with a grin. “You’ll thank me later.”, what was that suppose to mean?

The drive to the motel is quiet for the most part, save for Natasha’s occasional muttering about Tony’s brilliant ideas. When we finally pull up to the small, run-down building, she kills the engine and looks at me. Her green eyes sparkling in the sun. I never noticed how mesmerizing her eyes are. “Welcome to your first undercover lesson: how to survive terrible accommodations.”, she smirks.

I followe her inside, and the receptionist hands us one key. Natasha doesn't say anything until we walk into the room. She stopps dead in her tracks. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

I peek over her shoulder and see the problem immediately—there was only one bed.

“Well, this is cozy,” I say awkwardly.

Natasha doesn't respond though, she throws the key onto the nightstand and crosses her arms. “You take the bed. I’ll take the chair.”

“You don’t have to do that! It's big enough, we can share.” I offer quickly. Too quickly maybe. She is barley bearable with a good nights sleep, i don't want to get to know a Natasha who just spend 8 hours on a hard wood chair.

She gave me a pointed look. “I’m fine. Just try not to snore.”

“Do you always sound this thrilled about missions?” I asked, trying to lift the awkward mood.

She smirks faintly, sitting down in the chair and kicking her feet up on the table. “Only when I’m stuck with rookies.”

I wasn’t sure if she was teasing or being serious, but I decided to leave it at that. This was going to be a long mission.

"So..." i start, not really knowing what I want to say. I am just trying to get away from this awkward tension. "... do we have a plan? Or are we just winging it."

"Lesson number two: We are never 'winging it', there is always a plan. And in this case, you follow mine." She explains. "Got it!", do i thought? Im not really better informed than i was a minute ago. But Nat didn't really seem to care much. My so called "Mentor" just started unpacking her bags. Silence. Again. I watch her every move. How she moves so gracefully across the room. Her red her swinging from side to side while she placed her few belongings to their new temporary places. She always seems so cold, distance. But there is something drawing me to her. I can't really place it , can't explain it. "It's important you dont get too distracted tomorrow. Try not staring at me too much or you'll mess up the whole mission " She interrupts my thoughts and i can feel the head working its way up into my head.

"No distractions. I'll remember that.", i answer looking down to hide my blush. But her little smirk still doesnt go unnoticed by me.

"You know, I never know what to call you.", I try to change the subject. Natasha looks at me, confusion written on her face. "Natasha, Nat, Romanoff... everyone has a different name for you", i clarify. Her green eyes piercing in my direction, slightly tilting her head,"You can call me whatever you want".

"Alright", i said slowly, unsure if that was actually helpful.

The next morning i woke up alone in our small room. Stretching my arms I looked across the room. The chair Nat demanded to spend the night on was turned towards my bed. The door cracks open slowly and Nat enters the room, holding two plates and two cups of coffee. "Rise and shine. We have a mission to attend to.", she says with a million dollar smile across her face.

Did i wake up in a new dimension? Why is she so enthusiastic all of a sudden. She really cant wait to get this babysitting job over with I assume.

"While you are getting your beauty sleep in, i made some research and this mission is even easier then expected."

And she was right. Unsurprisingly. The mission itself had been quick. We did the groundwork, got the intel, and i followed her lead. Nat worked effortlessly, efficiently. Her good mood from this morning didn't change either. Her icy professionalism long gone and instead replaced with linguine gaze. Either im starting hallucinating or THE Black widow, Natasha Romanoff, is checking me out. I dont know what changed, what caused her change in demeanor, but im not complaining about it.

When we got back to our Motel, Natasha didn't speak a word. Parking the car she grabbed my arm and pulled me towards our room. The hallway was quiet, almost as if we were completely alone in this motel. She turned around, looking into my eyes. I forced myself not to turn my gaze away from her dominant stare. Im almost certain that her eyes are slowly turning darker. Or it might me duo the flickering lamps. "This Hotel is total crap.", she states, as if she could read my mind. "But its on us to make the best of it, right?", her signature smirk returning again. Am in reading this situation completely wrong or is she shamelessly flirting with me right now?!

Without thinking, I stepped closer. The space between us disappeared easily, and suddenly, I was right in front of her. The air was thick with tension, and she didn’t back away—if anything, she leaned in, her presence making my heart race.

Before i could say anything else, i could feel her lips on mine. It was electric, urgent, like we’d both been waiting for this without realizing it. Her lips were soft but insistent, pulling me closer. The kiss deepened, and I felt the world around us fade away. It was just the two of us, caught in the heat of the moment.

Pressing me against the door, her thigh in between my legs. "Maybe we should... go inside?" I husk out when our lipa finally part.

"Why? Afraid someone will see us out here?"She stepped closer, her fingers brushing lightly against my arm. “Or are you just eager to get me alone again?”

The way she said it made my pulse spike, and I was certain she could tell. I swallowed hard, struggling for a clever comeback, but before I could say anything, she grabbed the key and opened the door herself, glancing over her shoulder as she walked inside.

“Coming?” she asked, the smirk never leaving her face.

And just like that, I knew she had the upper hand—but for once, I didn’t mind.

Thats it :)) My first time writing something, so i hope it wasn't too weird and chaotic... otherwise give me feedback

[phoenixyfriend]

Holiday Rec List

Alright, got a couple requests on this post, and I'll toss in some holiday-ish fics as well. I'm going to keep this list to Star Wars.

Time Travel - Got its own post

Friends to lovers

The most unique concepts you’ve come across

Leaning more into the prequel tragedy vibes, even through AUs

Holiday Fics

In my cultural background, presents are given on New Year's Day due to changes that were enacted a few decades back to marry the several religions and different calendars that were in use throughout Yugoslavia. Christmas is Jan. 7th for me and mine, but Dec. 25th for the Croats, and the Bosniaks were majority Muslim, so the the gift giving was moved to the secular holiday instead, and a lot of people never switched back.

The clock just hit midnight. Happy New Year! Here's the gift!

(I've tagged what authors I could.)

Friends to Lovers

I find this prompt a bit broad, but here's a few good ones.

Rivers and Roads by PhenomenalWoman This is an Anakin Skywalker/Kitster Banai fic, with an overarching plot of Saving Tatooine.

you, or your memory by cinnamonsalt Obikin, Amnesia AU. Obi-Wan, not remembering how he half-raised Anakin, no longer has any compunctions against flirting with his best friend.

In Your Dreams! by @exonerin Mermaid Anakin! Dream invasions! Also Obikin.

To Our Halcyon Days by @krispyscreams, @lothcatthree QuinObi, and IDK if I'd call it Friends to Lovers so much as Friends to Lovers to Friends to Married to Co-Parents to Friends to--

A Smile Full of Sunshine by @jayofolympus Anidala falling for Rex, who is already dreadfully in love with them both.

24 Seconds by @c-m-li-s-fanfic-corner QuinObi, though it's mostly in hindsight? IDK I just wanted an excuse to recommend this one, it's really good.

The Creche by @blue-sunshine-mauve-morning Obikin, but they don't meet until Anakin's an adult and already considering Ahsoka for an apprentice... and Ahsoka's crechemaster is Obi-Wan! They become friends, get a little side-tracked by a bunch of drama that often takes the shape of Qui-Gon Jinn, and then resolve things to kiss.

falling up by @obiwanobi, @shatouto More of a... Enemies to Friends to Lovers then just the last two. Obikin, unsurprisingly (y'all have the best fics for some reason, I swear), in a RaisedSith!Ani universe.

He Said Yes by @threebea QuinObi, omegaverse, very qpp. Are they even lovers? Unclear. They're married, though.

Concord Dawn Bed & Breakfast by @ironhoshi Modern AU, QuinObi. Obi-Wan's family inn is haunted. Like, so haunted.

Out in the Corner of the Dark with You by @kazmirone Another Obikin! This one's omegaverse.

within and without by @maderilien Rexwalker go on a date!

Supplemental Equipment Maintenance by subtropicalStenella Time to get some Rexsoka in here! It's very, very horny, and very, very explicit. Fun!

Most Unique Concepts

Post Order 66 Exile AU by @livsy Partial O66 AU, lots of dead Jedi but not all. Everyone wants Anakin to be locked up or even executed for the Vader Stuff, but instead he's taken away by Obi-Wan for In The Field Rehabilitation. I'm not describing it well, but it's a very easy fic to get invested in.

The Dutiful Wife by Dirtymindtrick (Dancinglightsabers) X-rated, noncon bodymod, noncon sex. But damn is it unique. (Palpatine/Obi-Wan, beware the tags)

stubborn in the bones by @tideswept Anakin is a magical panther cub. Then he grows up and turns into a catboy, and it becomes Obikin.

The Care and Feeding of Our Jedi by @bitter-chocolate-stars I love a good epistolary fic, and this one is real solid. Clones POV.

Palpatine is Arrested for Fashion Crimes by @jedi-order-apologist Exactly what it says on the tin.

ForTheRepublic.mp4 by @padmestrilogy You don't need to know the YouTuber being referenced to find this funny, but it sure does help. Also, nothing can sell this one better than the official summary:

Popular HoloTuber Spacebomberguy uploads an exposé on Chancellor Palpatine, resulting in destructive results.

Skywalker Family Values by Ariel_Sojourner Did you ever want canonverse Parent Trap AU where Luke and Leia decide to sabotage an imperial propaganda event and it helps topple Sidious? It's the best.

The Warrior and the Pacifist by @threebea I'm biased but everyone should read this. Duke Kryze/Jaster Mereel.

Some Assembly Required by beasfics Seemingly on hiatus? But the premise is very fun, that Myles the Mandalorian and Obi-Wan have a bond for years before they ever met, and it has... consequences? Results. Effects. Things happen, basically.

sometimes, the feeling is right by @ossidae-passeridae Obi-Wan is intersex, in a way that's reflective of real-world forms of intersexuality. The fic is from the POV of his rather frustrated medic.

Lion Jinn by @esamastation After the events of TPM, Anakin breaks into a zoo in Theed, and steals a lion cub that is apparently Qui-Gon Jinn reincarnated.

every planet, every star, every single grain of sand by @loosingmoreletters Just gonna use the author's summary:

In which Darth Vader finds 9-year-old Luke on Tatooine, proceeds to have a breakdown, kills Palpatine and makes his preteen son Emperor, as you do. Otherwise known as the Adventures of Teeny Tiny Emperor Luke and his Royal Dad Guard Darth Vader.

Rulebreaker/Wildheart by chapstickaddict IDK if I'd call it unique as a concept (raised a Sith!Anakin, after Padme's death, falls in love with Obi-Wan), but it's uniquely good in its execution, so I'm counting it. I think about it often, and some of it has definitely influenced my own writing and AUs.

Fishhooks by @yellowocaballero Boba was quick-aged to about eight years old and then decanted to age normally, so he's about eighteen at the time of the war, and doing a Mandalorian rumspringa. Unfortunately, little sister Omega, ten years old, stows away with him, and Kamino is pissed about it.

My Dad the Purge Trooper by @nutella531 Purge Trooper Cody takes his job, "protect Luke" very seriously. So seriously that he abducts the kid to protect him from Vader.

R2-D2 Saves the Galaxy (Okay, so Obi-Wan helps a little) by @feybarn Exactly what it says on the tin. Takes place in AotC. R2 causes Obi-Wan to become an unwilling emperor, among other things. The entire fic is just comedic escalation after comedic escalation, purely accidental on Obi-Wan's part, and very much intentional on R2's.

A Star to Steer By by @dogmatix, @norcumii Okay so yes it's a crossover and thus by default much more unique. But also. It's so good, guys. I read this before I watched Stargate, and it was just as amazing then. It's like 115k so far and not yet done. Go read it, shoo.

Pitter Patter by IronCannon There are tiny versions of the Jedi that live parallel to the Jedi themselves. Sometimes multiple versions of a given Jedi!

Unmake Me (Not For Long) by Utter_Immolation Winter Soldier Ahsoka.

forge the iron in your veins by @afearsomecritter To quote the summary: "The Jedi are warships, and the clones were made for them."

Legally Blonde Jedi AU by @trixree After Melida/Daan, Obi-Wan didn't rejoin the Jedi. He went to law school. Then became a lawyer, married Maul, and adopted Anakin Skywalker. Not in that order. Also most of it is Fox POV. And it's amazing.

The Corteous Art of Correspondence During A Galactic War as Performed Aptly by Certain Sith and Jedi by @je-suis-deux Epistolary fic. Rael sends letters to Count Dooku. They're not very pleasant letters.

Be Careful What You Sith For by @11paruline44 Sithly magic reveals 'cause of death' for every individual in the galaxy! Things happen quickly after that.

Untitled Soulmate Game by @twilightofthe ObiAnidala are being harassed by magic geese into soulmate-hood. This is one of the first Star Wars fics I ever read. I still come back to it sometimes.

Prequel Tragedy Fics

in the fractions of our lives lost to peace by @loosingmoreletters Force Dyad but make it horror.

Twilight on Owl Creek Bridge by @yellowocaballero I'm also reccing this in the time travel list, but it is SUCH a good tragedy. Leans heavily into how the march of a whole government towards fascism isn't something that can be avoided with just one small change. There is no one big shift.

at the edge of the cliff by @loosingmoreletters Anakin doesn't fall during RotS, and neither does the Republic... but Padme's still dead, and Anakin's teetering at the edge of a cliff.

Well It Goes Like This by orphan_account Anakin doesn't fall during RotS, but it doesn't fix much. He saves a single creche clan on his way out of the Temple. After that, it's just a matter of surviving.

No Choir by @adiduck Obi-Wan and Cody on Tatooine after O66 (platonic). Also heavily intertwined with Owen and Beru and Luke.

between pole and tropic by Anonymous Anakin/Rex/Maul. Even without Anakin succumbing to the dark in RotS, someone must. Anakin's also very untrusted by the Jedi at large because they found out about the Tuskens right after AotC.

[helloalycia]

𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐄𝐕𝐄 𝐌𝐄 [𝐓𝐖𝐎] — 𝐒𝐊𝐘𝐄 𝐑𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐘

one / masterlist / wattpad

summary: as Skye's paranoia gets even worse, you're left to help her through it.

warning/s: same as last time tbh.

authors note: here’s the second and final part! hope you enjoy it :)

Skye and I didn't argue often, so I was pondering ours the whole night, trying to figure out how I could have acted differently. I just wanted her to be okay and to feel safe. And yes, maybe I didn't believe her, but only because she truly was overworked and it only made sense that she was sleep-deprived and imagining things.

But the last thing I wanted was for us to grow distant because of all of it.

The next morning, I sent her a text message asking how she was, but she didn't reply. I only worried I'd made things even worse, so in the afternoon, I grabbed my things and went to the dance studio where I knew she was rehearsing. I was hoping that giving her the morning to have some space might make our chat a little easier, but I couldn't be sure.

Thankfully, I'd timed it perfectly as I found her on her break, refilling her water bottle at one of the dispensers.

"Skye, hey," I said, stopping behind her.

She glanced up before her expression hardened a little. "Hi."

I frowned, glancing around and seeing we were alone, before saying, "I texted you, but you didn't reply... I've been worried."

"Well, I'm fine," she said with a sigh, looking back to the water dispenser and capping her bottle.

"Skye, I'm really sorry," I apologised, trying to meet her gaze. "I didn't mean to discredit your feelings yesterday."

She winced. "Forget it. I don't wanna talk about it. I just wanna focus on rehearsals."

"Skye–"

"Please," she said softly, frowning to herself. "I just– maybe you were right. Maybe I'm seeing things."

I wasn't expecting that, raising my brows slightly. "What makes you say that?"

She shook her head, running a hand through her hair. "I don't know. Everything is a lot. I don't know."

She didn't seem sure and my heart ached for her.

"I just wanna focus on rehearsals," she said decisively, before meeting my gaze with sad eyes. "We're okay."

I had a million things I wanted to say, along the lines of her taking care of herself and us figuring this out together, but she looked tired and the last thing I wanted was to stress her out further. So, all I could do was nod.

"I'll hang around," I said slowly, in a way that gave her an opening to tell me otherwise, but she didn't. "I might grab a coffee later. Do you want anything for when you're done with rehearsals?"

She shook her head, chewing on her lip.

"Alright, well–"

"No, wait," she changed her mind, making me quirk a brow. "Can you get me an iced hot chocolate?"

I tried not to smile. "That's a thing?"

With a disapproving look, she answered, "I'm trying to cut down on my caffeine intake. But I want something cold."

"Suit yourself," I conceded. "One iced hot chocolate coming up."

She relaxed slightly, taking my hand and squeezing it. "Thanks."

I offered her a small smile and she stepped forward, leaning her head on my shoulder in a half hug, before letting go and returning to rehearsals.

For the next hour or so, I worked in one of the empty studios, sorting through some social content for the next six months, before heading out to get mine and Skye's drinks, knowing I'd be back by the time she was done.

Holding a cup holder with two drinks in it, I found Skye's dressing room and struggled to open the door with my hands full.

"It's me," I called to her as I attempted to grab the handle without spilling the drinks. When I finally got it open, I continued, "You know, I'm pretty sure an iced hot chocolate is just a chocolate milkshake, but–"

My eyes widened as I looked up, seeing a strange man standing in Skye's dressing room, pinning her against the wall with his hand pressed to her mouth to stop her from making a noise. He immediately looked to me with surprise, a deer caught in headlights, and he was wearing no shirt, revealing his giant tattoo of Skye's face on his chest.

Skye's squeals for help beneath the man's hand pulled me from me my reverie, her eyes wide and full of tears as they pleaded for help. Before the man could make a move, I yelled for security at the top of my lungs, knowing someone would be around to hear it, and instinctively threw both iced drinks at him.

He shouted at the impact, letting go of Skye and giving me the chance to move forward and grab her hand, pulling her away from him and out the door. Acting on pure fear and concern for Skye, I slammed the door shut and held it closed until Skye's security team ran to us to help.

"There's a crazy guy in there!" I shouted at them, letting go of the door, and they seemed to get the hint as they let themselves in to deal with the man.

I spun around to find Skye and felt my heart racing as I saw her sat on the floor against the wall, knees tucked to her chest and head hidden between them. Ignoring the commotion as other members of Skye's team arrived on the scene, I knelt before her and placed my hands on her shoulders, leaning my head close to hers so she could hear me.

"Skye, are you hurt?" I asked, trying to hide how horrified I was.

She didn't reply, but I could feel and hear her breathing become ragged as she tried to catch her breath. Realising she was shocked, I leaned my head against hers and rubbed her arms gently.

"It's okay, darling, they're sorting it, just breathe," I said as steadily as I could. "Come on, just like this."

I took her hand, unwrapping it from her knees, and placed it to my chest which made her look up. My heart broke as I saw the panic in her watery gaze, but I focused on making sure she was okay right now. My hand rested on her chest and I took some breaths slowly to show her.

"You feel that? Just breathe," I encouraged gently, eyes focused on hers as we breathed in sync.

It seemed to work as I felt her breathing regulate, though I could still feel her heart beating like crazy.

"It's okay," I repeated, hand moving to her knee.

Suddenly, the door to her dressing room burst open as two of her security team dragged out the stalker. The man was shouting as they did, eyes searching the hall until they settled on Skye like a predator with its prey.

"Tell them to stop, Skye!" he yelled at her, struggling against the security team, but he was nothing compared to their strength. "Tell them I'm your friend! You said we were friends! Tell them!"

I blocked his view of her as I moved over slightly, trying to calm Skye's breathing as it became unsteady yet again.

"Ignore him, just look at me," I said calmly, blocking her view too and forcing her to meet my gaze. "It's just me and you, Skye. Nobody else."

She was trembling and the stalker was still shouting at her, begging for her attention, only making her panic more. I covered her ears and she closed her eyes, trying to block him out.

"Get him out of here!" I yelled at the security team behind me, growing impatient as Skye only seemed to get worse, shutting in on herself.

Finally, the stalker was dragged out of the hall and away from us, and Skye's mother showed up just in time. She must have pieced everything together as she exchanged worried glances with me before shouting orders to everyone who was simply standing and watching like it was a TV show.

Meanwhile, I returned my attention to Skye, resting my forehead to hers and uncovering her ears but still holding the sides of her face, thumb stroking her skin soothingly.

"It's okay," I repeated quietly, so only she could hear, and she swallowed thickly as she nodded, taking in my words.

Deep down though, I knew it wasn't okay. And the guilt was eating me alive because I didn't believe her and I was wrong, and now look what had happened?

—

Shortly after that whole commotion happened and Skye could finally breathe again, she insisted on showering, wanting to scrub herself clean of rehearsals and the stalker's touch on her.

So, I found myself sat on the sinks in the communal bathroom as she showered in one of the cubicles. I couldn't blame her for not wanting to return to her dressing room, at least not so soon, nor could I blame her for not wanting to be left alone.

The sound of the water splashing against the tiles was the only thing to be heard, but it did nothing to drown out the guilt that was spreading in my chest. I couldn't stop imagining the worst, thinking about what more could have happened if I hadn't arrived to Skye in time. She'd tried to tell me that she didn't feel safe and I hadn't believed her. Why didn't I believe her?

Her mum was currently berating her security team, trying to understand how this stalker got past them and how nobody had caught him. I already knew she was probably debating firing the whole team and replacing them with someone better.

The sound of the shower being turned off made me stop overthinking, instead straightening up as I looked at the cubicle Skye was in.

"Can you pass me my towel?" her voice came from the other side, soft and timid, and my guilt only deepened.

"Yeah," I said quickly, grabbing her towel from beside me and going to the door, passing it her over the top.

She accepted it and I moved back to give her some space, watching her step out a moment later. Everything about her looked so small, the colour still drained from her face, eyes still holding a shock that wouldn't go away. I didn't even know what to say to make her feel better, because how could I say anything that would help her forget about the fact she was assaulted twice by the same crazy fan and nobody did anything to prevent it?

"I got you some fresh clothes," I said instead, aware it wasn't perfect.

I motioned to the pile of clothes next to the sink.

"Thanks," she muttered, eyes not meeting mine as she moved towards them.

Giving her some privacy but knowing she'd made it clear she didn't want to be left alone, I turned around and stared at the all whilst she got dressed.

After I no longer heard the shuffling of her movements, I turned around and saw her sat on the edge of the sink, legs hanging over the side. She was looking down at her lap, preoccupied. I joined her, leaning against the sinks beside her and looking over at her.

"He's gone?" she asked quietly.

I nodded, assuring her, "He is. The police have arrested him. Your mum is sorting everything out with security. You're safe."

At this, her tense shoulders relaxed slightly and she nodded. I swallowed thickly, eyes running over her side profile guiltily.

"Skye, I'm so fucking sorry for not believing you," I finally said what I'd been thinking this whole time. "I should have."

Other than the slight frown on her lips, she didn't react to my apology, and I didn't expect her to. What could she say?

"Are you hurt?" I asked worriedly, resting a hand on the small of her back. "Did he... did he hurt you?"

She shook her head slowly, putting me at ease slightly, though I couldn't imagine how terrifying the whole experience still must've been for her.

"I want to go home," she said, just above a whisper. Her eyes finally met mine, tired and frightened.

I leaned into her side slightly. "Alright. I'll go and arrange a car for you."

"Please, come with me," she added, the implication of her fear of being alone present yet again.

I nodded, wrapping my arm around her fully and pulling her into my side. "Of course."

The thought of not being able to watch over her was awful, so even if she hadn't asked, I would've offered anyway. After everything, I needed her to be safe.

—

It was heavily insinuated that I would be staying at Skye's place for the unforeseeable, and I didn't mind one bit.

Despite the few words she spoke, it was clear she wasn't okay. Over the next few days, we stayed exclusively at home, with her taking a short break from tour-related things. She was jumpy, constantly, afraid of her own shadow even though she wouldn't admit it. And if I dared bring it up, she'd assure me she was fine.

I had to swallow down my guilt and worry for her, despite noticing how she wouldn't go into any room in her apartment without me there with her. I couldn't blame her, the fear of her crazed stalker still in the back of her mind.

Though this behaviour made sense and I was glad she was taking some time for herself, her mother wasn't in the same boat. Elizabeth would call her, at first to check in but then to hint when she would be back at the studio for rehearsals. At that point, Skye ignored her calls and so Elizabeth deemed it necessary to bother me instead, to which I may have ignored some of her calls and cut other answered calls shorter.

It was easy to stick up for Skye and tell Elizabeth that it wasn't appropriate for her to return to work just yet, but of course all Elizabeth cared for was the tour. This, on top of the fact that my own manager was getting on my back about my workload and mithering me about if there was even going to be a tour at this point, was a lot. But I tried to keep it all away from Skye as long as I could.

Eventually, of course, Elizabeth had had enough and decided to stop by the apartment unannounced. Skye was sat at her piano, playing some chords and writing some things in her songbook, and I was reading my book on the couch when there was knock on the door. Skye tensed up momentarily, not expecting company and still on edge, so I quickly got up and rested a hand on her shoulder.

"It's alright, I'll check who it is," I assured her, squeezing her shoulder comfortingly.

She nodded, relaxing slightly, her own hand touching mine briefly before I went to answer the door. That was when I came face to face with Elizabeth, to my surprise.

"Elizabeth," I breathed out, eyebrows raised. "What are you–?"

"Where is she?" she cut me off, impatient.

Knowing she was definitely about to make everything worse, I gave her a knowing look. "Now isn't the best time–"

"It never is," she noted with a hint of irritation, before pushing past me to let herself in. "Skye?"

I blinked, not expecting that, and closed the door behind her before rejoining her as she looked down at Skye at the piano.

"So you do remember you're a musician," her mum commented with narrowed eyes. "Nice to know."

Skye looked up at her, expression unreadable. "Hi, mum."

"You've been ignoring my calls," Elizabeth told her.

Skye shrugged slightly, looking down to the piano keys. "I didn't feel like talking," she answered truthfully.

I sighed and went to take a seat at the kitchen island, watching the conversation from there.

Elizabeth quirked a brow, unimpressed, before speaking. "Your tour starts in a week."

Skye tensed her jaw slightly. "I know."

"And?" Elizabeth prompted impatiently, waving a hand.

Shrinking in on herself a little, Skye didn't answer, so I chimed in, trying not to sound so defensive.

"Elizabeth, she's been through a lot," I reminded her as calmly as I could muster. "Give her a break."

Momentarily, her mum's expression softened. "I know that. And it was horrible, but the world hasn't just stopped."

"That's not fair," I said with a twitching frown, trying not to start an argument.

"It's fine," Skye said to me softly, before her mother could reply with an insult, no doubt. After releasing a breath, she looked up to her mum. "I'll be back for rehearsals tomorrow."

Losing my irritation, I stood up and looked to her. "Skye."

Ignoring me, her mum nodded with satisfaction. "Good. I knew you'd do the right thing."

A scoff flew from my lips as I watched her kiss the top of Skye's head.

"Rest up," she told Skye. "You'll need it."

Skye nodded, expression vacant.

I clenched my jaw slightly, eyes falling back to Elizabeth. "That it?"

Her mum resisted the urge to roll her eyes as she met mine. "Yes. Is that okay with you? I wasn't aware she had a second mother."

I narrowed my eyes, but chose not to let her antagonise me further, especially not in front of Skye. Instead, I went to the front door and held it open for her, hoping she'd get the hint. She did, but I followed after her, closing but not clicking the door behind me.

"This isn't fair," I whispered aggressively to her. "She's not okay, Elizabeth. She hasn't been okay all week."

"The world can't stop because of this," Elizabeth whispered back, just as harshly and definitively. "Everything is set. Tickets have been sold. She has to be okay."

I was certain I was at boiling point as she spoke about the damn tour yet again, completely dismissing her daughter's wellbeing.

"She can't even go into her bedroom alone and you want to throw her back into work!" I whisper-shouted, voice rising.

"I am her manager for a reason, Y/N," Elizabeth snapped back. "She needs this, especially after this past year."

"You're also her mother," I reminded her bitterly.

She met my sneer with her own. "And you're just the girlfriend, so stick to that, yes?"

I bit my tongue, refraining from saying something I'd regret, mostly for Skye's sake. Instead, I settled for a different approach. "Don't you think that after everything, we should probably listen to Skye this time? We were both wrong about the stalker. We ignored her, blamed it on stress, and look what happened?"

Her mum frowned, looking away. "It was unfortunate."

My expression faded into one of regret as I held her stare. "It was more than that."

Shrugging it off, Elizabeth replied, "Skye said she's fine."

"She's saying that because she has to. You haven't seen her this past week."

"I know my daughter. And my daughter knows the business. She can't afford more time off," she said decisively. "End of discussion."

She was so easily dismissive that it frustrated me to no ends, but she'd always been like this and it was one of the reasons we'd never gotten along. And as I watched her walk away, I silently fumed, taking a deep breath and making sure I was alright before returning to the apartment. As soon as I stepped inside, I jumped when Skye was stood there.

Forcing a small smile, I said, "Hey. Sorry, your mum was just sharing your schedule."

Skye frowned, eyes reading mine. "I heard, like, quiet shouting." I pressed my lips together, attempting to think of an explanation, but she continued, "I appreciate you sticking up for me, Y/N, but it's okay. I had to return to everything at some point." 

I shook my head, concerned. "Not if you're not ready."

She rolled her eyes. "I'm not a child."

"I know," I said gently, "but you are human. And anybody who went through what you did wouldn't be ready so soon."

"Well, I am," she reassured me, before going to sit on the couch.

I sighed before following after her, sitting next to her. I thought she'd push me away, but she looked right at me with a knowing expression.

"I know things aren't good for you with your boss," she said knowingly. "Everyone's on your back, aren't they?"

I cursed inwardly, assuming I'd done a better job at hiding my work calls from her. "It's not your concern, Skye."

"It is," she disagreed, tilting her head. "Because they're worried I'm gonna delay the tour. And you can't do your job when you're here babysitting me."

"Hey," I said disapprovingly, holding her hand. "It's not babysitting. I want to be here for you."

She sighed softly, brown eyes dimmed. "Because I'm scared to be alone."

I furrowed my brows, eyes fluttering over her face. "So what? I'll follow you everywhere if it means you'll feel safe, Skye. There's nothing wrong with that."

She didn't seem to agree, judging from the slight curve of her frown and the reluctance to meet my eyes.

"I don't care about any of that," I said, leaning into her, fingers intertwining with hers. "I care about you."

Her thumb stroked mine distractedly, before she looked up to me. "You feel guilty because you didn't believe me."

I was ready to retort whatever she said, but this stopped me in my tracks. Annoyingly enough, she'd got it spot on. Of course I still felt guilty. It was my fault.

"I do," I agreed, finally speaking after a moment's hesitation. "But that's not the only reason I'm here right now. A part of it, yes, but the other part is I love you and I want to help you."

She pursed her lips, searching my expression, before taking both my hands and holding them. "I'm returning back to work tomorrow, Y/N. And so are you. Things have to go back to normal."

"It's not fair–"

"It's the job," she cut me off, before exhaling tiredly, squeezing my hands in hers. "It'll be okay."

I frowned, very much disagreeing, but she offered me a small smile before laying her head on my chest, and so I had no choice but to respect her decision.

—

Last-minute prep for the tour kept everyone busy, including Skye and I, and mentions of what happened didn't come up. Despite Elizabeth thinking everything was fine and dandy again, I still kept as close an eye on Skye as I could, knowing she wasn't a hundred percent.

Even though Skye gave me her word that she was doing a lot better, the fact that she rarely left my side when she could was indicator enough. And once her tour officially begun, it was a similar routine of getting ready, sound check, performing and then back to the hotel or tour bus to do it all over again.

As she always did, she threw herself right back into it, and though I wanted her to get the rest she deserved, it was nice to see her a little more at ease when she interacted with her real fans, the ones that reminded her why she was doing the tour in the first place.

About a week into her tour, after a show, we were both back at the hotel. I was sat on the couch, doing some work bits on my phone, as Skye was sat on the bed in her robe, having just had a shower to freshen up.

"Hey, Y/N," she called softly, "can I talk to you?"

I looked up from my phone, seeing her move to sit at the edge of her bed and watching me hopefully.

"Sure," I spoke, moving to sit beside her as she patted the spot with her hand. "What's up?"

She exhaled contently, hands wrapping in on themselves on her lap. "I had an idea."

I watched her curiously. "Okay..."

"Even though I'm on the road, I want to talk to someone," she continued. "About... everything."

I nodded encouragingly, surprised she was bringing the incident up on her own accord.

"I can't keep putting it all on you," she said, eyes meeting mine, "and you can't always help." As I opened my mouth to say something, she quickly added, "And that's okay, it is. But..."

"You want professional help," I finished for her, to which she nodded slowly.

"I found a therapist," she explained. "She's remote and she can work around my tour schedule. And she can help me get over this hump, stop me from feeling so paranoid, you know?"

I nodded, beginning to smile. "That sounds great, Skye. I think it could really help."

She mirrored my smile. "I think so too. I want you to stop worrying and know that I can get help. I will."

"I'll try," I admitted, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and pulling her close. "It'll certainly be easier for me knowing you're talking to someone about it all. I'm proud of you, Skye."

She leaned into me, relaxing, and I kissed the top of her head, feeling my concern ease into relief at the thought of her getting the help she needed.

"There's something else," she said after a moment, wrapped up in each other.

"Yeah?"

Her hesitation is what made me look down, noticing the nervous look on her face. Catching my confused glance, she pulled away and straightened up, clearing her throat.

"So," she started, eyes flickering from mine to her lap. "You basically come over to my place all the time anyway, so this seems silly. But I like having you there and I thought, well... do you want to move in with me? Like, permanently?"

I raised my brows, surprised, and then my heart grew warm in my chest as I noticed the nervousness in her expression.

A smile tugged at my lips as I rested my hand on her fumbling ones. "I'd actually love that, Skye."

She finally looked up. "Really?"

I couldn't help but laugh. "Really."

Her lips curved into a smile. "Good. Most of your stuff is there anyway, but when the tour ends, maybe we can move the rest of it in."

The thought of moving in permanently made my smile widen. "Sounds good. I'm surprised you're not sick of me yet."

She laughed wholeheartedly, the room lighting up in an instant. "I could never be sick of you."

I rolled my eyes playfully and she lifted her hand to caress my cheek, pulling me close.

"I love you," she said softly, with a tender smile and twinkling eyes, before kissing me.

As I kissed her back, I knew things would get better. We were already halfway there.