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pennyblossom-meta · 8 months ago

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L Lawliet: a deep dive into the expanded universe pt.01

EDIT (07/04/2024): Added some imgs.

Apologies for being so late to give this a follow up to @maevearcher's meta which can be found here and here. As usual, she’s made excellent points and I'll try to answer the ones which caught my eye.

Since this post ended up gaining a life of its own and becoming a bit too long, I’m splitting it in 2 or 3 parts. The core of the content for part 01 starts after under the button to Read More.

Here we talk about L's humanity.

I'll start with a disclaimer of my own: while I consider the manga as the base for the story, I'm very much open to the expanded DN universe as a complementary study of the characters and their motivations — sometimes even filling in the blanks for some of the background mysteries, such as the dynamics of Wammy's House and how L's successors view him.

To further clarify: by canon I mean the manga and any works by Tsugumi Ohba as the base material. I think @maevearcher and I are more or less in agreement on that, from what she mentioned in her own posts. As she said, the written word is indeed the baseline truth.

The expansion of the DN universe also has its own very special set of problems; for example, in many ways, L:CtW (L: Change the WorLd) commits the sin of overindulgence by throwing in considerations that, arguably, go against canon. Besides the ending where L lives for a final 23 days and Watari dies, the portrayal of Near in the movie (though in the novel he's also walking a fine line between becoming partially and very much OOC) is also a point of contention. I confess that I really wasn't fond of the way they portrayed Misa as a potential crush of L given canon insights on his opinion about Light whether in the role of Kira or as a person (pg.64 of Vol 13: How to Read, henceforth referred to as V13:HTR), but aligning L to become more humane and forgiving was at least interesting.

The same happens with the live action movies, the 2015 series, and the musical. At least the game Spiraling Trap isn't clashing with canon elements — that I could tell. The main plot is separate from the events of DN and the dating sim is a little slice of heaven into L's thoughts and emotions which I dearly love.

However, while L:CtW does indeed overindulge, the novel AN:LABB (Another Note: LA BB Murder Cases) gives us a singular glimpse into L through the eyes of Mello while keeping the events mostly accurate to the main plot, even with its slight deviations. It's certainly an optional perspective to the core of DN, but one that I always found very insightful. In V13:HTR, Obha mentions how he would’ve liked that there were more novels about L and how he solved previous cases, in a similar fashion to how Nisio Isin approaches AN:LABB. Here’s what Ohba says in pg.61 of V13:HTR:

(...) I didn’t think up much for [L’s] past. For him to be in such an influential position, he must have solved an amazing amount of cases, but I have no idea what kind of cases they were or how he solved them. But I would love for NISIOISIN, who wrote the Death Note novel, to write more stories about that (...)

This means that, to some extent, even the original author, Ohba, accepts AN:LABB as close to canon — or rather, as canon as it can get given the creative liberties allowed to a third party writer. To that point, Nisio Isin took L’s capoeira demonstration during the Yotsuba arc and made it a whole thing in the novel, with L taking inspiration from Naomi Misora’s skills. However, given the importance of that event, in the main story, L takes a while to even remember Misora so we can infer that either the stress of the case is getting to him OR learning capoeira and subsequently Misora’s role in it didn’t leave that much of an imprint on him because true canon didn’t really put that much emphasis into it. Either way, it’s an extrapolation that works. The technicalities can be overlooked given how ambiguous the scene is, as there is more than room to deduce a different past.

At the same time, I am an apologist that there are shared characteristics to L throughout the different mediums. My own interpretation of L's character has the manga as a baseline, but the expanded universe has taught me that there are sides to him that might not be so easy to perceive in dialogue bubbles or illustrations alone. Little things like L's addictive personality or the way he represses feelings are visible in the manga but caught beautifully in the novels, for example.

Going from the written word into the screen also represents a loss of the purity achievable only within the narrative in-book, where you can extrapolate and reach your own conclusions without being subject to the bias of sound and movement — though manga aggregates the visual to words and with it an altogether different dimension of meaning. That's one of the many things I enjoy about elements of fiction introduced through books; the stillness of the images and the narrative are more complex. Every time the baseline gets adapted, it loses something or that something shifts to fit into the perception of others. It ceases being pure and its essence is fundamentally shattered. Like the concept of a musical score on paper that gets played by an orchestra, there will never be an adaptation as good as the source material because it breaks the illusion.

While I can certainly extrapolate and accept the loss, I find that the written word from the novels, the tone of a VA's voice and the body movements in a live action still complement the manga well, despite narrative clashes.

About L’s humanity

Recently I've been re-watching the anime and it's incredible how Alessandro Juliani's understanding of the character resulted in such a well-rounded voice for L. I actually prefer the EN version to the JP because of the voice acting. It's superbly brilliant, even if L becomes less listless. He's certainly still aloof, but his aggressiveness is portrayed more vividly; in contrast, L in the manga feels a bit more dangerous and scary to me due to the range of expressions that the anime didn't manage to add in due to time and budget constraints. If anything L tones down how dangerous he can be. He does this on purpose so that he can trick and trip his adversary, as can be seen during his earlier interactions with Light. At times, L makes a mockery of himself, apparently placing himself in the position of a more demure individual while sharply observing the world around him and forming conclusions.

As to @maevearcher ‘s first point:

(...) An image of this lonely autistic genius, locked inside the confines of his ways, waiting for the right person to come along and save him from the banes of his solitary existence…until he meets Light and realises there’s someone out there who he can relate to, for understanding and stuff. I personally don’t buy too much into that.

The depth to which L relates to Light can be overestimated, but not without reason. Theirs is mostly an adversarial relationship with varying deviations throughout the expanded universe, but if we solely consider the manga then we get this comment from Ohba regarding whether L has any friends on pg.64 of V13: HTR:

Nope. And when he says that Light is his first friend that’s a big lie. He never considers him a friend. He probably secretly thinks really negative things about him.

During the Yotsuba arc, L is at a disadvantage. Light has turned the tables, tricked him into what Beyond Birthday could not do and thus gained a solid position into rendering L almost powerless to charge him. To elaborate on the latter point: BB wanted to create the perfect, unsolvable crime to humiliate L, making him lose, and thus “spend the rest of his life trembling in fear of B’s shadow” (pg.163, AA:LABB); L would know who the guilty party was but wouldn’t be able to prove it or bring that person to justice. As such, L would not be able to solve the mystery. At the end of the novel BB fails due to Misora’s quick thinking and that’s that. However, Light has several advantages that BB lacked, starting with his own social position, charm and the impeccable reputation of a model student and the prized son of a police chief who helps solve cases every now and then.

We can argue that, what truly happens in manga canon, is L and Light showing how much they respect each other for their detective skills, forming a sort of strange kinship within the cat and mouse game, especially when Light loses his memories of the Death Note. The game thrills them and they enjoy pushing each other’s buttons. No one else has ever challenged them like this. That being said, the first time they meet up for coffee after the tennis match, L is observing Light like a hawk, keeps testing him for a reaction and seems somewhat irritated at how much Light talks. I would venture a guess that L doesn’t actually like Light that much, even when he loses his memories. He might even find Light a nuisance when he waves the flag of morality — though this is a common problem L is confronted with when dealing with the Task Force, in particular Chief Yagami and Aizawa. This also places him at another gruesome disadvantage, as he’s surrounded by people who openly dislike and criticise his methods. The Task Force is also extremely wary of the way L pursues Light and think he’s being stubborn without proof to substantiate his reasoning. Ironically, it’s Aizawa, one of L’s most critical subordinates, who initiates Light’s downfall years later once he starts to consider L’s suspicions in light of Near and Mello’s tactics.

Both L and Light respect the game, no matter where it takes them. I would further make an educated guess that Light even preyed on L’s vulnerabilities during the Yotsuba arc, predicting how L might fall into depression for failing at the game. Light was more than capable of understanding that L’s competitive and childish side would make him a sore loser, especially given that he had already “lost” the first round of battles just by showing his face. Even if there is a sliver of friendship between both during Light’s months of amnesia, it’s dead and buried the moment he becomes Kira again.

My conclusion here would be that, while what happened with Light was extreme, it was also somewhat similar to Beyond Birthday’s eternal enmity towards L: the challenge, the need to humiliate and take down the greatest detective, one of the most brilliant minds to ever walk the Earth. There are some notable quotes from AA:LABB that reference what it is to be L, surrounded by future challengers and individuals who both look up to L and want to prove they’re better than him:

Pg.69

By simple arithmetic, L's ability in 2002 was the equivalent of five ordinary investigative bureaus, and seven intelligence agencies (and by the time he faced off against Kira, those numbers had leapt upward several more notches). This is easy to think of as a reason to respect and admire someone, but let me say this as clearly as possible: that much ability in one human is extremely dangerous. Modern danger management techniques rely heavily on diffusing the risk, but his very existence was the exact opposite. In other words, if someone was planning to commit a crime, they could greatly increase their chances of getting away with it by simply killing L before they began. That was why L hid his identity Not because he was shy or because he never left the house. To ensure his own safety For a detective of L's ability, self-preservation and the preservation of world peace were one and the same, and it would not be correct to describe his actions as cowardly or self-centered.

Pg. 117

L was the goal of everyone in Wammy's House. Everyone of us wanted to surpass him. To step over him. To step on him. M did, N did, and B did. M as a challenger, N as a successor. B as a criminal.

Pg. 160:

B approached Naomi Misora, calling himself Rue Ryuzaki. Rue Ryuzaki - L.L. For anyone from Wammy's House, there could be no higher goal than identifying yourself with that letter - and Beyond Birthday seized this case as his chance.

One of the biggest problems with these quotes is that they paint a very complicated — and, ultimately, suffocating — picture of what it is like to be L. Ohba himself mentions Watari’s predisposition towards collecting geniuses from all over the world and what Wammy’s House has turned into, under the snippet for Watari’s character (pg.60 V13:HTR):

He’s a guy who cultivates detectives for fun. That’s kind of terrible, isn’t it?

Everyone profits from L. Watari becomes richer than ever. Wammy's House becomes breeding ground for geniuses who end up dreaming of a life where they enjoy constant thrill and challenge. However, in order to do so, the dream cannot be complete until the successor crushes the original; until M, N, B and A defeat L. At least one of L’s successors couldn’t handle the pressure and committed suicide. B, known as Backup, runs away from the orphanage and goes on a murder rampage. Having never met L in person, he deduces several personality quirks that the “original” demonstrates, going as far as exacerbating them in order to be creepy and repulsive. Mello, who boasts of having met L in person and being privy to stories about how he defeated several other detectives (then taking their aliases as a trophy) both fervently admires L and wants to step on him.

Step on him. That’s quite the turn of phrase. It does sound scary, doesn’t it? To be surrounded by people who would take the opportunity to pull you down, no matter how much they admire you. They want to be you, to prove that they’re better than you. It’s game and ego. Life and death. Winner and loser.

And that’s perhaps the most blatant summary in approved canon of what it is like to be L that we’ll ever get. We can, of course, argue that Watari cares about L. He’s not only his handler, but also the one who brought him into Wammy’s House. It’s fairly clear that he nurtured (and even enabled) some of L’s most distressing character traits, though I wouldn’t necessarily say it was with a purely utilitarian agenda. It’s perfectly acceptable to extrapolate how Watari might’ve wanted to keep L, a child of great intellectual genius, happy by allowing him to be challenged and properly educated. In fact, AN:LABB (pg. 145-46) even gives us L’s perspective on the kindness that justice can achieve, which is confirmed within the expanded universe to be similar to Watari’s teachings as L confronts Kujo in L:CtW.

"I have nothing to do with him," L said. "To be completely accurate, I do not even know B. He is simply someone I am aware of. But none of this affects my judgment. Certainly I was interested in this case, and began to investigate it because I knew who the killer was. But that did not alter the way I investigated it, or the manner in which my investigation proceeded. Naomi Misora, I cannot overlook evil. I cannot forgive it. It does not matter if I know the person who commits evil or not. I am only interested in justice." "Only... in justice... " Misora gasped. "Then ... nothing else matters?" "I wouldn't say that, but it is not a priority." “You won't forgive any evil, no matter what the evil is?" "I wouldn't say that, but it is not a priority." "'But..." Like a thirteen-year-old victim. "There are people who justice cannot save." Like a thirteen-year-old criminal. “And there are people who evil can save." "There are. But even so," L said, his tone not changing at all. As if gently admonishing Naomi Misora. “Justice has more power than anything else." "Power? By power ... you mean strength?" "No. I mean kindness." He said it so easily. Misora almost dropped the phone. L The century's greatest detective, L. The detective of justice, L. Who solved every case, no matter how difficult... " ...I misunderstood you, L." "Did you? Well, I'm glad we cleared that up."

I would, once again, venture another educated guess that, while Watari’s primary reasons for starting a program of successors to L was noble, it ultimately backfired on an individual level. Society wise, the letters, as L calls them in L:CtW, are a force for good. They solve crimes, help law forces around the world to keep peace. Some of them even become scientists like Dr Kujo — though she becomes the main antagonist in the spin-off novel. However, the pressure this kind of lifestyle fostered creates a group of individuals who are highly competitive and manipulative. Some, like A, can’t handle it. Even L has his own troubles, being called a reclusive sociopath, possibly by the police forces who treat him as a utility rather than a person. He’s someone they admire and resent, who is tolerated given how effective he is at cracking down cases.

This passage from L:CtW paints a grim picture of the way L suppresses his own feelings as he breaks down for not being able to prevent Maki from being kidnapped (pg. 150-51):

"Light...it hurts. My heart--" It was a hurt that L Lawliet had suppressed, that he had to suppress in order to continue his existence as the peerless Detective L. How had the world's top detective been described in regard to facets of his personality rather than his ability as a detective? He had been called a kinky detective who relished bizarre murders, a human computer capable only of measuring mass murders in terms of cold numbers, a reclusive sociopath. What L thought of such estimations of his personality only L could know. But no one could truly understand L. How L did not and could not forget the faces of thousands of victims. Who could comprehend the man who had lived his life, and had to live confronting all the lives that ended prematurely, the tears of grief-stricken survivors, the devaluing of life as a daily reality. How was it possible to measure the pain of such a man? Was it a strain so heavy that L's back curved under all its weight? Was it an agony so terribly to leave the indelible dark circles around his eyes? Was it a feeling so bitter that every bite he took needed to be coated in sugar? The chronically rounded shoulders, the inevitable dark circles, the eccentric tastes--L suppressed the pain of being a champion of justice, but the evidence of the pain was moulded into his very body.”

Even within the clear disparity from the official canon, this passage slaps. It humanises L further, making the detective become a person and not just a machine who is content with his lifestyle. I know there’s a tendency for those who prefer the manga to see L as someone who is unabashedly himself and perfectly alright with the life he lives. I would argue that the Kira case was not only the most difficult challenge L ever faced, but also a series of moments where he had to be at his best — and at his worst. He had to do everything within his power to solve the case, not only because of his pride but because of what he considers to be his sense of justice. Saying with such confidence ‘I am justice’ is a rather cheesy and childish thing to say out loud, though I read it as both what started as a child’s stubbornness and what L became, as he positioned himself as a barrier to prevent crimes.

L suppresses himself, represses his emotions; he tries to control them, as Fu Takashi says in an interview, he is “dependent on games or battles of the mind”. Perhaps this is a consequence of the foundations of his personality. Despite L’s innate stubbornness, it could be argued that this is as much his fault as it is Watari’s, who didn’t nurture L’s social skills as he should have when he was a child. By not having an outlet outside of his hobby, L is trapped in a prison of his own making. Superficially, L is a “smart guy who hates losing”, but what about the rest? What about the things that make him human, the connections with others? In the same interview, it is mentioned how L feels lonely and needs affection. But what affection can you get when you isolate yourself from the world and keep everyone at arm’s length? He’s not a machine. Even machines become obsolete with time, and need outside help to keep functioning.

As for the latter point, if everyone around L is trying to step on him, humiliate him and surpass him, then it’s only natural that his emotional defences would be up. Aside from Watari, whose loyalty he can count on, he’s alone. L has no one else. And everyone around him will have a dangerous, significant probability to betray him.

Next in part 02: About romance, having someone close and intimate, the meaning of the Monster speech.

Tagging @rinneroraito and @sharkiethrts who might be interested in this meta.

#death note #l lawliet #death note meta #light yagami #spiraling trap #l lawliet headcanons #l lawliet x reader #watari #mello #mello death note #nate river #mihael keehl #near death note #beyond birthday #another note #l change the world #l death note #l lawliet death note

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janesociety · 2 years ago

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daddy issues

tony stark x teen!reader

type: hurt/comfort (?)

summary: you get really sick and call tony dad

warnings: reader is sick, placement of an iv, allusion to painful past events (nothing described)

notes: this is very old and kinda cringy <3

pt ii

masterlist

✩ ✩ ✩

It started as a cold. Steve went to wake you up one morning when you didn’t come down for training and found you blowing your nose next to your trashcan that was almost overflowing. He gave you the day off, and then the next day, and then the next.

By the third day, the whole compound was concerned. Bucky had convinced you to try and get up and eat breakfast and so you did. You were so weak that he had to try and help you out of your bed.

“It’s okay, doll,” he mumbled as you apologized profusely as he helped you stand. The two of you trudge slowly into the main living space, drawing the attention of the other Avengers who had been waiting for you.

"Didn't think you'd want anything too heavy, so I made toast," Steve said, setting a plate down at the table in front of you. You smiled weakly at him, sitting down.

Natasha watched from afar. She was always concerned about you. There was never a moment she wasn’t worried. So this, this had her frantic. Not that she was showing it though.

Forcing the toast down your throat was harder than you thought, but you did it anyway to appease those around you. They had bigger problems, and you having a small case of the flu was not on par with everything else.

“Mornin’,” Tony said, stepping into the kitchen with a cold coffee mug. He dumped it in the sink before turning to the running coffee maker. “How you feeling, kiddo?” Tony asked you, waiting for the machine to fill his cup.

You dryly pushed the last of the toast down your throat and smiled up at him. “Fine,” you answered, trying to keep the croak out of your voice.

“Take it easy,” he said, exiting the kitchen with his new mug.

Everyone walked on eggshells around you for the remainder of the day. Instead of staying cooped up in your room, you instead sat on the couch in the living room. Different people made attempts throughout the day to entertain you, but for the most part they let you rest as your favorite movies played in the background.

Later in the evening, you laid on the couch between Wanda and Bucky. Your head laid in Bucky’s lap as he stroked your hair with his good arm. Wanda sat by your feet, listening to the goofy sitcoms playing on the tv when you began to shift.

“Make it stop… make it go away,” you muttered in your sleep. Both Bucky’s and Wanda’s heads snapped towards you. “Make it stop!” you yelled louder this time.

Wanda immediately went into your mind, trying to fish for what you were scared of. It came up blank.

“We need to get her to Dr. Banner,” Wanda said, standing up off the couch.

“What’s-“

“Just get her to Banner!” Wanda yelled, her eyes flashing red with anger and fear. Bucky didn’t hesitate to scoop you up quickly in his arms.

Him and Wanda raced across the compound, bursting into the lab where Tony and Bruce sat working on new tech.

“Something’s wrong!” Wanda yelled. The two men looked up, worried expressions on their face. You were still in your fitful slumber in Bucky’s arms, still mumbling nonsense under your breath.

“Bring her over here,” Bruce said, jumping up and gesturing over to the infirmary section of the lab. He had Bucky lay you down on one of the beds as he started to check your vitals. “Her fever skyrocketed and her heart rate is rising.” Tony watching from the foot of the bed as you kicked out your legs and your arms wrapped around your stomach.

“Make it stop!” you yelled. You rolled in on yourself, tucking your knees to your chest and still holding your stomach. Wanda was getting visibly more upset as time went on. Her attempts to go in your head were still coming up blank.

“What’s wrong with her, Banner?” Tony said, agitated. He hated seeing you in pain and it made him feel totally helpless.

“Not sure yet, I’m gonna give her an IV and get her hydrated in hopes it helps her fever,” he said, prepping the machine. “Can you hold her still?” he asked Bucky. Bucky nodded, moving closer to you. He pried your arms away from your stomach and pushed your legs straight. He pinned one arm against your chest and the one closest to Bruce he pushed flat against the bed.

“No! Stop!” you shrieked. Your eyes flew open and bounced around wildly. You were taking anything in. Your brain wouldn’t process anything around you, so as far as you knew. you were still in your dream. “Stop! Stop it! Let me go!” You writhed under Bucky’s hold as he did his best to keep you still without hurting you.

“This won’t work,” Bruce said. “Wanda, can you hold her?” Wanda looked up at him with teary eyes. She hated the idea of using her powers on you. “Please, I need her still.” She nodded, raising her hands up. Red ribbons of her powers flowed across your limbs as they went stiff at your sides. You screamed again.

“No! No! Please, make it stop!” you sobbed. Your voice was beginning to go hoarse from screaming. Tony finally moved from where he was standing and went up next to you. He crouched down near your head.

“Hey, kiddo,” he said, gently stroaking your hair. He could feel how warm your head was. “You’re okay, everything’s okay. No one is trying to hurt you.” His gentle words seemed to calm you down even in your confused state. Your eyes still stared blankly around you and your breathing was still ragged and strained, but your screaming stopped for a moment. “That’s good, there you go.”

You flinched as Bruce put the needle in your arm after finding a vain and started to cry out.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay, it’s okay,” Tony whispered. “I’ve got you, you’re okay.” Your head turned to the side, looking at Tony, but not really seeing him.

“Dad?” your voice croaked out quietly. Tony stiffened. He looked into your eyes, them seemingly looking straight through him. “Dad?” you called out again. Wanda and Bucky both watched Tony for his reaction.

“Yeah, yeah, you’re okay,” he said, rubbing a small circle on your shoulder. “Everything’s okay.”

“Her oxygen levels are low,” Bruce said. “I’m gonna put her on some.” Tony brushed all the hair out of your face to make it easier for Bruce to place the tube under your nose.

“Dad, what’s going on?” you muttered, moving your head around after Bruce placed it.

“It’s nothing, kiddo,” Tony said softly. He signaled for Wanda to released you, which she did. “You’re okay now.”

“They had me again,” you mumbled. Exhaustion was starting to over take you again. “They were hurting me.”

“They can’t hurt you anymore, I promise,” he said softly. “Just go back to sleep now.”

#tony stark #tony stark x you #tony stark x reader #tony stark x teen!reader #tony stark x daughter!reader #avengers fanfiction #avengers x reader #avengers #avengers x teen!reader #marvel #wanda x teen!reader #bucky x teen!reader #bruce banner x teen!reader

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0cta9on · 7 months ago

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Their schedules got canceled and they are stuck in the hotel. What would you do if you've got 10 minutes in each of their rooms?😉

And which hotel room would you end up staying in?

Hmmm, 10 minutes isn't a lot of time, what to do...

Sakura: She makes me sit on the bed and straddles my lap before pulling her top up to free her breasts. I start sucking on them while her hips grind against my crotch until my erection strains uncomfortably in my pants. Before we can take things further, however, she tosses me out of the room, saying she'd rather work on her crochet projects and catch up on some sleep now that her schedule is open. Right as the door closes, I catch a glimpse of a sly smirk on her face as I stand in the hallway horny and disappointed.

Yujin: When I get to her room, the door is already unlocked and I can hear muffled moans from the other side. Upon entering, I see that she's already splayed out on the bed, masturbating. After noticing my presence, she beckons me with her finger, begging me to fuck her just by the look of her eyes. I pull her hips towards me, plunging my still-erect cock into her dripping heat, and after a couple thrusts, Yujin cums quickly thanks to her touching herself already. Right as I suggest another position, she gives me a small peck on the lips before kicking me out of the room, saying that she's too tired now and wants to rest.

Chaewon: I knock on her door, and once she answers, she immediately notices the bulge in my pants. With a smirk on her face, she pulls me in and sits me down on the bed, whispering in my ear about how she'll "take good care of me." Chaewon kneels in front of me, unzipping my pants and freeing my cock for the third time that night. She begins deepthroating my cock, licking my precum and commenting how I "taste a little like Yujin." Right as I'm about to blow my load down her throat, her phone buzzes and she stops to read the text, much to dismay. Chaewon says that the Le Sserafim girls want to get some dinner now that their schedule cleared up and that we'll have to continue this some time later, leaving me alone in her hotel room.

Liz: While sitting alone in Chaewon's room, in desperate need of a release, I get a text from Liz telling me to come to her room to watch a movie with her. Not expecting anything, I knock on her door, and Liz answers wearing nothing but a silk bathrobe on. The sight of her exposed shoulder and her slim legs is enough to drive me crazy. I barge into her room, shutting the door behind me before untying her bathrobe and forcing her to bend over the bed. My fingers dig into her hips as I plunge my cock deep inside of her pussy, caring about my own pleasure over hers. Before I can even think about pulling out, I dump a massive load inside of her while my soul ascends to a higher plane of existence. My body collapses next to her on the bed, and I apologize for the roughness. Liz giggles, assuring me that it's okay and that Yujin texted her to take care of me since she couldn't. We spend the rest of the night cuddling while watching a movie, eventually falling asleep in each other's arms.

In the end, I think I would pick Liz's room to stay in :) She seems like she would give the best after sex cuddles and there's just something about the cute face paired with that hot body that's so alluring. Maybe its her dimples :3

Thanks for the ask, frisky! This is probably a longer response than u were expecting, but it was really fun to write so lol

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ddarker-dreams · 2 years ago

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current dumb thought of the day: trying to watch a movie with yan phantom troupe members.

for chrollo, you need to present a dissertation to explain the merits that will be gained from watching said movie. if not, he gets this slightly condescending air where he acts like he's doing you a favor by letting you watch it. he sighs and goes 'i suppose we could watch this, if that's what you really want...' in truth, he's just seen your favorite movies so many times he can repeat them word for word. he wanted to analyze why you enjoy the media you enjoy and may or may not have read some academic papers on your favorite movies. he gives you less of a hard time if it's a romance, he thinks it'll help put you in an affectionate mood. god rest your soul if it's a movie based on a book. he will be comparing and contrasting for the rest of the night. then at breakfast the next day. you'll be hearing about it for awhile. good luck.

feitan doesn't give you a definitive answer. you take his silence for a 'no', so imagine your surprise when you go to turn in for the night, there's this shadow looming over your bed wondering what you're doing. as if you shouldn't be asking him that. he found some bootleg version of the movie you mentioned, dubbed in another language, with subtitles that don't even match the audio. it doesn't matter if the movie is an hour or three hours long, he's staring at you the entire time, which makes it difficult to relax. will offer to show his favorite movies if you don't look engaged enough, an offer you do not want to take him up on.

phinks is actually kinda ecstatic. this is... normal, right? regular couple stuff! you must be coming around. he knew you'd get over the whole 'kidnapped by a murderer' thing eventually. these things take time. he tries to go all out. gets popcorn, soda, your favorite candy, stuff that makes it feel like you're in a movie theater. he burns the first two microwave popcorn bags but the third one is edible. burnt popcorn is an unfortunate smell, though. he tries to do that thing where he fake yawns so he can put an arm around your shoulder, only to burst out into a coughing fit. gets irritated if the characters do anything stupid and talks to the television screen like they can hear him. overall, it's surprisingly not an awful experience.

watching a movie with shalnark is a test in patience. he insists he'll turn it off unless you're cuddling up next to him beneath a blanket. he eats the popcorn from your hand if you're too slow in bringing it to your mouth. oddly enough, he laughs at the strangest times, like when there's a tragic character death. critiques the special effects and points out where the SFX team forgot to add a shadow for .0003 seconds. if there's not enough action, he'll fall asleep on your shoulder, and he's heavy. should you successfully manage to shrug him off, he'll get revenge by pulling his phone out and setting it at max brightness. proceeds to play candy crush on the highest volume until you give 'a sufficiently cute apology.'

#they're all such nightmares #yandere chrollo x reader #yandere feitan x reader #yandere phinks x reader #yandere shalnark x reader #phantom troupe x reader #hxh x reader #concepts

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spnhunter4life · 2 years ago

Text

Familiar Chapter 2

Word Count: 7.9k

Warnings: little bit of canon typical violence

A/N: This story was originally meant to be a one shot. But then I decided, "You know what? I'm not really happy with this ending. I'll just write one more little chapter to wrap things up." 🙄 Well guess what? If you've been following my work, you know that things always turn out longer than expected. So my 'little' wrap up chapter ended up being kind of long and had to be brought to a stopping point. So here's chapter 2 for you, and you can expect a third chapter as well! That will definitely be the last chapter though (she says with way less confidence than she would like).

Thanks to everyone who has liked, commented on, or reblogged the first chapter! I'm completely blown away by how many notes it's gotten. If you missed the first chapter, read it here!

Summary: Y/N comes back from a walk one day only to realize she can't remember where she was or what she was doing. The new case she and the boys were working must be abandoned in order to recover her memory.

Masterlist

Two months had passed since the shapeshifter hunt, and despite Sam’s encouragement, I still hadn’t said anything to Dean. He was making it extremely difficult for me to ignore my feelings for the older brother the way I always used to. Between his constant pointed looks and making up excuses to leave us alone together, I was about ready to snap.

My dreams about Dean were becoming more frequent too. With thoughts of him almost always on the forefront of my mind, he regularly featured in my dreams. I still had dreams like the one the shapeshifter had taunted me with, but these dreams had branched out into more sweet versions of Dean that left me longing for him even more.

I woke up from one such dream – one where Dean and I were in our very own house, snuggled up together on the couch, a movie playing in the background as we talked – in the back of the Impala. I looked around and saw that we were still on the interstate. We were on our way to Nebraska to check out a new case Sam had found. Four teenagers had shown up dead, all apparently drowned, but their bodies nowhere near water.

“How much further is it?” I asked.

“About 20 miles,” Dean answered.

I sighed and leaned my head against the window. Sam met my eyes in the rearview mirror and raised an eyebrow in question. I just shook my head. He glanced at Dean and back at me, smiling at the small frown on my face this gesture caused. He was getting annoyingly good at figuring out when I had been dreaming about his brother.

By the time we got to a motel, I was irritated and in need of some time away from both brothers. I told them I was going to walk to the diner we saw about 10 blocks away and bring home food for everybody. It would give me time to clear my head. I really needed to find time to talk to Sam about stopping all the teasing and trying to be supportive. Even though it wasn’t his intention, it was only making things worse.

~~~~~

“There you are!” Dean’s relieved voice greeted me as soon as I walked in the door.

“Seriously, Y/N, what took you so long?” Sam chimed in. “We were getting worried. I think Dean was about ready to start a search party.”

“Sorry,” I apologized, not sure why they were so worked up. “I haven’t been gone that long.”

“It shouldn’t have taken you an hour and a half,” Dean argued. “Where’s the food?” He added almost as an afterthought.

“What food?”

“The whole reason you left was to get food,” Sam told me. “What have you been doing?”

“Nothing,” I answered. Then I thought about it. What had I been doing? I was certain I hadn’t been gone for very long, but then, I realized that all I could remember was the walk back to the motel. “Just walking I guess? I don’t actually remember.”

“How can you not remember?” Dean asked.

“I don’t know!” I yelled, frustrated and confused.

“Ok, well what do you remember?” Sam asked.

“I remember… waking up in the Impala on the drive here. I guess I kind of remember getting to the motel. Other than that… I’ve got nothing.”

“Come here,” Dean said, gesturing for me to walk over to him.

“Why?” I wondered.

“Just come here.”

I walked over to him and he immediately began feeling around my head.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“Looking for a lump or some other injury,” he said, continuing his search.

“I think I’d know if I hit my head,” I told him, backing out of his reach.

“Apparently you’ve lost your memory. How are you supposed to know what happened?”

“If I’d been hit on the head hard enough for it to affect my memory, don’t you think I’d have a horrible headache at the very least?” I reasoned.

“Point taken. But clearly something happened. We need to figure out what.”

“Let’s just all head towards the diner,” Sam suggested. “We still need to eat, and maybe something on the way will jog Y/N’s memory.”

Nobody had any better ideas and he was right, we did still need to eat. So we went outside and started walking towards the diner. We’d made it six blocks when Sam stopped us. This particular part of town was the area where commercial buildings started being replaced by residential. There were multiple small businesses scattered throughout the neighborhood. Some buildings were obviously both people’s place of work and their home.

“Do you think you might have gone in there?” He asked, pointing at the music store across the street. Through the window I could see guitars spaced out on the wall, a row of pianos under them. I loved the piano. I grew up taking lessons and badly missed being able to play. It was an easy, surefire way for me to calm down and clear my head, a fact both brothers were aware of.

“You did seem stressed when you left,” Dean agreed. “I’d actually be surprised if you didn’t go in. And that would explain why you were gone for so long.”

“Maybe, but it doesn’t explain my memory loss. Think about it. An hour and a half, just gone. What are the odds of me forgetting such a specific chunk of time? Someone had to have done this to me. We need to find out who. And why.”

“I agree. Which is why I think we should go in,” Dean said. “If we’re going to find answers, we need to retrace your steps. We have nothing else to go off of.”

We crossed the street and Sam led the way inside. A little bell above the door announced our arrival. I scanned the room, looking for anything familiar but coming up empty. I walked over to the line of pianos, lightly running my hand along the tops of each one I passed. I stopped at the fourth one in line. A blur of memories raced through my head, but nothing that would help solve my current memory loss problem.

This piano was very similar to the one I grew up playing. I remembered the hours spent on it, favorite songs learned and played enough times to become annoying to my family. The very same songs forgotten about when they became too easy and a new favorite came along. I placed my hands on the keys and played a few chords.

“Anything?” Dean asked. I just shook my head.

“Oh! You’re back!” Exclaimed a balding man who appeared out of the back room. He was probably in his early 50s and had a very friendly, cheerful demeanor. “You decided to buy this lovely instrument after all?”

“Uh, no. Unfortunately I have nowhere to keep a piano. No, I was just… passing by again and couldn’t resist,” I told him.

“Well, if circumstances ever change, I’d love to help you out!” He said.

I thanked him and placed my hands back on the keys, playing the opening notes to an old favorite song.

“Have you had a lot of business today?” I heard Sam ask.

“No, it’s been pretty slow today. But then, Mondays usually are,” the man answered easily.

“I figured it must be a slow day when you recognized Y/N so quickly,” Sam said, subtly fishing for information.

“Well she was the only one in the store at the time, but even if there had been 20 other people around, she plays so beautifully I could hardly have missed her.”

The conversation ended there. Or at least, I think it did. I lost myself in the song I was playing, and all other noise faded away. Once finished, I turned around to face the three men. The owner of the store was looking at me with the appreciation of a fellow musician. Sam looked impressed as he always did when he heard me play. Dean… I couldn’t quite read the look on his face. The closest word I could come up with to describe it is awe. But I knew that wasn’t right.

The store owner glanced at his watch and regretfully informed us it was closing time. He thanked us for coming in and I thanked him for letting me play. The three of us exited the store and started walking in the direction of the diner again.

We stopped in a couple more stores we passed that I might have gone into in an effort to destress. A small little used bookstore that was absolutely packed from wall to wall with books and an antique store, the kind that always reminded me of my history loving father and the countless stores he took me to growing up. Neither of these places sparked any memories either though, and as far as we could tell, I hadn’t stopped inside earlier.

“Well we have some explanation for where you were at least,” Sam said when we’d been seated at the diner.

“Yeah, but we still have no idea what happened to me. How are we supposed to get my memory back when we don’t even know where to start?”

“I don’t know yet. But we’ll figure it out. We always do,” Sam assured me. This wasn’t much of a comfort to me at the moment, and Dean seemed to realize that.

“We’re going to figure it out, Y/N. I promise. I’d never let anything happen to you. You’re our priority right now. Everything else gets dropped until we figure this out. You’re our new case. Have we ever not solved a case?” He asked.

I smiled, feeling more confident with my situation. He was right. There was nothing we couldn’t solve when we worked together.

“What’s our next step, then?” I asked.

“I have no idea,” Dean admitted.

“Our next step is going to the motel and getting some sleep,” Sam answered. “It’s getting late and we have no leads. Our best bet is to sleep on it and get a fresh start tomorrow. And who knows? Maybe we’ll get lucky and your memories will be back in the morning.”

I didn’t really want to wait. I wanted to solve this now. But I knew Sam was right. We had nowhere to start, and being low on sleep wouldn’t help anybody, so I grudgingly agreed to this plan of action.

~~~~~

When I woke up the next morning, I kept my eyes closed and just laid there for a minute, working up the energy to actually get up. I heard the deep, even breathing of a sleeping person coming from the direction of the beds and the occasional shuffling of paper or clacking of a keyboard from the other side of the room.

I rolled over so I wasn’t facing the back of the couch and was greeted by a rare sight when I opened my eyes. The unmistakable sounds of research I’d heard were coming not from Sam as I’d assumed, but Dean, up before his brother, the notorious early riser.

“What time is it?” I asked as I sat up. He looked up at me.

“Oh, hey,” he greeted. “It’s… almost seven.”

“And Sam’s still sleeping?” I asked around a yawn. Dean still picked up on the disbelief in my voice.

“I know, right? Lazy ass. Of all days to sleep in.”

I chuckled at his annoyed teasing and went to the bathroom to start getting ready for the day. When I stepped back into the room, dressed and teeth brushed, I saw Sam up and rifling through his duffle.

“Hey,” he said. “I don’t suppose you remember anything?”

“Unfortunately, no,” I sighed.

“Ok. Well I guess we should go get some breakfast and discuss next steps.”

“No need,” Dean interjected. “I already came up with our next step while you two were catching up on your beauty sleep.”

“You did?” I asked, surprised.

“What do you think I’ve been doing?” He answered. Before he could continue, Sam interrupted.

“How long have you been up?”

“I don’t know. Couple hours.” He took a drink from a to go cup of coffee that I hadn’t even noticed he had.

Sam glanced at me, the look on his face one that he reserved for times he wanted to say ‘You two are so meant to be together’ but couldn’t say it out loud because Dean was in the room. He had said it to me on more than one occasion when Dean wasn’t around, which is how I know what the look translated to.

“Anyway,” Dean continued. He picked up a phone book that was laying open beside him. “I found this psychic in town that should be able to help us. I figured we’d stop by her place after breakfast.”

“A psychic? I don’t know, Dean.” The thought made me nervous. Most of the people who advertised themselves as psychics were phonies. And even if this one wasn’t – which I didn’t know how Dean could be sure of – what if she wasn’t able to help? What if she saw something I didn’t want her to see? I’m a pretty private person, and the thought of someone digging around in my head is incredibly unappealing.

“Hear me out,” he insisted. “I’ve done my research, ok? She’s the real deal.”

“How can you be sure?” Sam asked.

“Because. I’ve done my research,” Dean repeated. “Look,” he said, spinning the laptop to face us. It was open to a website for The Amazing Annabelle. “There are dozens of reviews on here, and every one of them says she was able to help. And look at this.”

He slowly scrolled down to the bottom of the page, showing off the dozens of symbols and sigils scattered throughout. A lot of them I recognized as protection from various supernatural beings. There were a lot that I didn’t recognize too. They clearly marked her as knowing about the world of supernatural creatures though. Unless she had just pulled together symbols she thought looked cool in order to give herself an air of authenticity.

“Alright, fine. But a few good reviews and a bunch of symbols used by hunters doesn’t exactly prove that she’s psychic,” Sam argued. I had to agree. I didn’t want to hurt Dean’s feelings since he’d clearly put some time into this and I knew he was just trying to help, but psychics made me nervous. There was no way I would agree to go unless we knew for sure she was legit.

“Yeah, I thought the same thing. Which is why I talked to Bobby,” Dean responded. So this was the reason he was so confident. Bobby was highly respected among the hunter community. If he gave his approval on this Amazing Annabelle, then we really couldn’t doubt her abilities. “He said he’s not super familiar with her, but he has heard of her. She’s good at what she does and someone who can be trusted.”

“Ok,” I agreed. “Breakfast and then a visit to the psychic. I suppose the worst that can happen is she isn’t able to help.”

~~~~~

The first thing I noticed about Annabelle was how… normal she was. With the exception of Missouri, all the other psychics I’d ever seen were dressed in over the top outfits, their places decked out with all sorts of nonsense that was supposedly necessary for them to do their job.

If I’d seen this girl on the street, I would never have guessed what her occupation was. She was about our age and short, standing a full head below my 5’ 6” frame. And she was very pretty. I noticed both Sam and Dean’s immediate appreciation of her beauty. She was wearing white leggings and a purple shirt, her night black hair was in a messy ponytail that suited her very well, and her golden brown skin was flawless.

“What can I do for you?” She asked when she opened the door. Dean cleared his throat before answering.

“I’m Dean. This is Sam and Y/N. We were hoping you could help us with something.”

“I gathered that much,” she smiled. She opened the door wider and stepped to the side. “Come in.”

We stepped inside and she led us to a room that had an armchair and a comfortable looking couch as well as a round table with four chairs. She sat in the armchair so the three of us settled ourselves on the couch, Sam and Dean on either end and me between them.

“So. What can I help you with?” She asked again.

“Do you have any experience with trying to recover memories?” I asked.

“Some, yes,” she said. “It really depends on how the memories were lost. Some are easy to find. Some take work, but can still be found with patience. Some, like in the instance of an injury to the brain, can’t be recovered.”

“We don’t actually know what happened. That’s part of what I need to remember. Our assumption is that magic was involved though,” I informed her.

“That shouldn’t be a problem,” she assured me. “If you’ll come with me?” She stood and moved to the table, gesturing for me to sit across from her. The boys came and stood close by to watch.

“I’ll need some information from you in order to know where to look,” she said. “Give me as much detail as you can about these memories. How long ago was it? How much time are you missing? Is it relating to any specific object or person? Anything you can give me will help.”

“It was yesterday,” Sam explained. “She has an hour and a half chunk of time just missing and we have no clue why.”

“What were you doing when you lost your memory and how did you realize you’d lost it?”

“I was just walking from our motel to a diner to get some food. I only realized what happened because I couldn’t actually remember why I left the room and I definitely didn’t think I was gone that long.”

“Ok,” she said, taking my hands in hers. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and instructed me to do the same. “I need you to concentrate as hard as you can on the moments from that walk that you can remember.”

Then she chanted a couple lines of Latin and suddenly I was back on the sidewalk outside the music store. I was walking in the direction of the diner once again when I hit a block. It was like an invisible barrier I couldn’t pass. I tried to go around it and when that didn’t work, turned around to go the other way. No matter what I tried, I was stuck where I was.

And then I was back at the table with Annabelle, Sam and Dean hovering over my shoulders.

“Well?” Dean asked.

“I still don’t remember anything,” I told Annabelle.

“I know. Your memories were definitely blocked using magic. It’s a stronger magic than I was expecting. It’s up to you to decide how important it is that you get them back. If you want to continue, I’m going to have to put you into a trance in order to access them.”

“Is that dangerous?” Dean asked.

“It can be. But only if you don’t have a good anchor,” she answered.

“What does that mean?” Sam asked.

“I’m going to have to send Y/N deep into her subconscious to find answers. Doing this requires an anchor, a tether to reality, someone to bring her back. Otherwise she could be stuck in her own subconscious with no way out."

“That’s not a problem. Both of them would be willing to do that,” I told her.

“I’m sure they would, but your anchor can’t be just anyone. It has to be someone with a very strong emotional connection. Normally I recommend close family members or significant others for this sort of process. I’m assuming they are neither?”

I hesitated. The answer, of course, was no. But I didn’t see how I couldn’t have a strong enough connection with them for this to work. Living the way we did – being with each other 24/7, trusting each other with our lives – created a very strong bond. Not to mention the way I felt about Dean. But maybe if it was one sided it wouldn’t work. And I wasn’t about to say that Dean was the safer bet because I felt our connection was stronger.

“Dean can do it,” Sam announced.

Dean and I both whipped our heads to look at him. I was sure the shock, irritation, and minor panic I could see on Dean’s face was mirrored on my own. I knew we were panicking for entirely different reasons though. For Dean it was worry that he wouldn’t be a strong enough connection for me. He didn’t want to risk me not coming back. For me it was worry that Sam was going to rat me out. And boy would we have words if he did.

“What?” He snapped at the death glares we were both now fixing on him. “You know it’s true. You’ve known Dean longer than you’ve known me. You two get along so well and know each other so well that if I didn’t know any better I’d think you’d known each other your entire lives. I promise your emotional connection is more than strong enough to handle this. And I swear if either one of you tries to deny how close you are right now, I will not hesitate to punch you.”

I looked at Dean at the same moment he looked at me. There was uncertainty in his eyes, but his jaw and shoulders were set in determination.

“I can leave you alone to discuss it if you’d like,” Annabelle offered.

“I don’t think that’s necessary,” Dean said. “It’s up to you of course – you’re the one taking the risk – but I’ll do my best to bring you back if you’re willing to trust me to do it. Otherwise we can try to find another way.”

“Of course I trust you. That’s not even a question,” I told him.

He watched me for a minute, weighing the sincerity of my words.

“Ok,” he said. “What do you need us to do?”

Annabelle stood up and moved to a shelf full of drawers on the edge of the room, opening different ones and pulling things out as she explained.

“As I already said, I’ll be putting Y/N into a deep trance. The magic is blocking your memories on a conscious level. Sending you into your subconscious will allow you to access them, but only while you’re in the trance. Once you’re awake, you’ll forget everything again.”

“Then how does this help us?” Sam asked.

Annabelle set everything she’d grabbed down on the table and then opened a cabinet underneath, grabbing a clear glass ball and setting it in the middle of the table.

“It helps, because you and I will be able to see everything she’s seeing while she’s in the trance.”

“What about me?” Dean asked.

“Since you’re the anchor, you’ll be inside her head too. You’ll be able to see and hear everything. Sam and I will only be able to see, so you’ll need to pay particular attention to things you hear as you’ll be the only one who knows those details.”

She began combining her ingredients, crushing leaves and mixing together powders and liquids.

“While she’s out, I need the two of you to be absolutely silent,” she told Sam and Dean. “You’ll both be fully aware of the noises happening around you. It could be tricky getting to the hidden memories, and distractions won’t help. Once we’ve found the information you’re looking for, we’ll need your anchor. At that point I need Dean – and only Dean – to start talking to her.”

She now had a liquidy brown paste in front of her. She dipped her finger into it and began drawing symbols on my forehead.

“It doesn’t matter what you say. Your voice, as well as your physical connection, will lead her back into consciousness.”

“Our physical connection?” I asked.

“Yes. You’ll need to be holding hands during this,” she said. Done with my forehead, she quickly drew an intricate swirling knot on the palm of each of my hands. She drew the same design on both of Dean’s palms and then worked on his forehead as well. I assumed the design was identical to mine. “Dean, if you’ll sit across from her, we can get started.”

She sat in one of the two empty chairs and gestured for Sam to sit in the last one.

“Alright. I need you to tell me everything you can remember from the time just before your memories disappeared. Once you’re under, you won’t be able to talk to me. The more details I have, the easier I can guide you to the missing time.”

“I already told you what I remember.”

“No. I need more. Tell me exactly what the last thing you remember is. Is it walking out the door? Did you get a ways before you forgot? What were you thinking? What were you feeling? What could you see, hear, smell? Give me everything you can remember.”

“Well… I don’t remember leaving the room. I kind of remember getting to the motel, but that’s a little hazy. I guess the clearest memory I have is waking up in the Impala about 15 minutes before we got to town.”

“Ok. Let’s start with that then. What details can you give me about that?” She prompted.

“I don’t know. Not much. We were in the car. On the interstate. Dean had Metallica playing. I’m sorry, I don’t know what else to say,” I told her. If this is what it took to get my memories back then I was screwed. Coming up with little details from hazy memories wasn’t exactly easy.

“That’s ok. Don’t worry. How about how you were feeling? Can you remember that?”

I’d just had a dream about Dean. So a big mix of emotions. Happy, sad, longing, irritation. Irritation. Yeah. I definitely remembered being annoyed when we got to the motel.

“I was annoyed. When we got to the motel. I remember being annoyed. I imagine it’s why I left to get the food. And Dean said I seemed stressed.”

“Great!” Annabelle praised. “What else? Do you know why you were annoyed?”

“Um…” How to answer that truthfully but without giving anything away. I looked between Sam and Dean and remembered how Sam had picked up on what I’d dreamt about and silently teased me about it. “Just an argument with Sam.” Sam rolled his eyes.

“What argument?” Dean interjected. “You guys didn’t even talk to each other.”

“No, but just because we’re not as close as you two are doesn’t mean we can’t communicate without having to say anything,” Sam said.

Dean looked shocked. No doubt he was wondering how often we’d had these silent conversations. Little did he know, they were always about him.

“Ok. Anything else you can give me?” Annabelle asked.

“I know I went into a music store and stopped to play one of the pianos. I don’t actually remember doing it though. Sorry, that’s all I’ve got.”

“That’s fine. I’ve got enough to work with. Remember, I need the two of you to stay quiet,” she told Sam and Dean. They both confirmed that they would. “Ok. Dean and Y/N, take each other’s hands and close your eyes.”

She waited for us to follow her instruction before continuing. A stream of Latin, different from the first time, fell from her lips and I felt myself sinking deeper and deeper into my subconscious. It felt a little like drifting off to sleep, so gradual that you’re somehow both aware and unaware of it at the same time.

~~~~~

Dean’s POV

As Annabelle’s chanting trailed off, a picture of my surroundings slowly began to take shape. I recognized it immediately. It was the inside of the Impala – from Y/N’s perspective. She was in the passenger side backseat, her usual place.

“Can you hear me Y/N?” Annabelle asked in a calm, soothing tone. “If you can hear me, I want you to get out of the car.”

I watched as my hand – No. Not mine. Y/N’s – reached for the handle and then she swung her legs out and stood up.

“Great. I’ll do my best to guide you to your forgotten memories, but this is mostly on you. If you seem stuck, I’ll help you figure out where to go, but otherwise I’ll stay quiet and let you figure things out for yourself. Now I need you to focus for me. I need you to think about the motel.”

The background around us flashed through a series of images. Different motels we’d stayed at over the years.

“The motel you’re staying at now,” Annabelle clarified. “The one you got to last night.”

The flashing images slowed and came to rest on one.

“That’s good, Y/N. Now I need you to focus on your emotions from last night. You got to the motel and were annoyed with Sam because you’d just had an argument.”

Y/N’s mind flashed back to the backseat of the Impala, Metallica’s Fade to Black playing through the speakers. She was looking at Sam in the rearview mirror, his eyebrows raised. I could tell by the view shifting back and forth that she was shaking her head. Sam looked quickly at me and then back to her, smiling. And then, memory over, we were back outside the motel.

That’s it? That was their argument? No wonder I’d missed it. What did it even mean? I caught myself just before I actually asked these questions out loud, remembering Annabelle’s instruction to stay silent.

“You wanted to take a walk, so you offered to go get food for everyone,” Annabelle continued. I watched this memory version of Y/N walk out the door. “You stopped at a music store along the way. Did you stop anywhere else?”

We all sat in silence as we watched Y/N walk for several blocks, never stopping. She looked around as she walked, frequently turning her head to look at different things. I remembered Annabelle telling me I would be the only one with access to the sounds in her memory and started paying attention. I heard the chirping of birds, the occasional car driving by, a bell ringing inside a store as someone opened the door. Nothing out of the ordinary.

Y/N walked past a group of teenagers and I listened in to their conversation. They were discussing the loss of their friends. The information I got from them was useless as far as Y/N was concerned, but I memorized their faces so we could question them once we’d helped Y/N and were ready to work the case we actually came here for.

She walked for another block and then stopped outside the music store. She stopped for a moment to look at it, and the world around me disappeared as she relived a different memory. I saw a child’s hands on the keys of a piano. I heard the music being played, a simple melody of Jingle Bells that the child was singing along to. I heard a grown man singing with her. The song ended and she looked up into the smiling face of the man I knew to be her father.

She crossed the street and walked into the store, heading straight for the pianos and trailing her fingers over them as she walked by, much as she had her second time through with me and Sam. She stopped at the same piano she did with us. Having seen the childhood memory, I now understood the draw to this particular instrument.

I listened as she played a complex set of chords that transitioned into a haunting melody. I was entranced, as I always was when she played. It was clear it was something she deeply enjoyed and missed. I was startled as Annabelle’s voice cut in over the music.

“What did you do next? What happened when you were done playing?” She asked. I suppose this part of the memory would be particularly boring to her and Sam, who couldn’t hear what I could. Not to mention it wasn’t exactly helping us find out what happened. We did need to keep moving, I supposed.

The memory jumped to the last few notes of what had to be a different song entirely. Then Y/N turned around and saw the store owner standing there, listening intently.

“You’re a wonderful pianist,” he told her.

“Oh, that? I was just messing around,” she mumbled at the compliment.

I listened closely to their conversation. While he was pretty low down on my suspect list, he was also technically the only person on that list as he was the only person we knew to have interacted with her. Nothing sparked my suspicions though.

He continued to praise her abilities, she continued to brush them aside, and he asked if she had any interest in buying the piano she’d been playing.

“I would be very happy to sell it to you,” he told her. “It’s not often I get to sell an instrument with the confidence it will be used and well loved.”

She politely turned down his offer and then told him she needed to be going, that her friends were expecting her to be back soon.

She left the store and continued her walk. Although I couldn’t actually feel her emotions, I could tell that playing had calmed her down significantly. There was just something about the way the world looked to her now.

She made it another half a block before she stopped. I could discern no reason for this. She simply stopped walking. After a few minutes it became apparent that something wasn’t right.

“This is where you got stuck the first time we tried finding your memories, isn’t it?” I heard Annabelle ask. “Whatever happened to block your memories, this is where it happened. The magic is still putting up a fight. I need you to push back. It can’t stop you from seeing. It’s all in your head that you can’t go any further. Just keep walking.”

We all waited for a couple minutes as she struggled with pushing past whatever spell was holding her in place.

“You can do it,” Annabelle encouraged. “You’re stronger than the magic is, I promise. Keep walking.”

Another minute passed and I knew she was winning because noises – which I hadn’t even realized had disappeared – started filtering through. It was like hearing something from underwater. Muffled, hard to make out, but definitely there. Then, all at once I could hear voices clearly and we were moving forward again.

I heard the sounds of a struggle coming from the alley in front of her. She quickly walked to it and then slowed to a stop just outside, listening. There was the unmistakable sound of chanting and underneath it, gurgling.

“Perfect,” she muttered under her breath. She reached into her boot to grab the silver knife she always had with her. “Wish I had my gun right about now.”

She peeked her head around and saw a teenage boy standing over another one. An endless stream of water was spewing out of the lips of the boy on the ground and he was choking on it. The chanting boy was facing her. The second she stepped into the alley she’d be spotted. But the drowning boy didn’t have time for her to find a better plan of attack.

She rushed in and the boy stopped his chanting when he saw her. He started a different chant, just a few words, and then he raised his arm, flinging her into the building beside her. The knife she’d been holding went flying out of her hand. I desperately wanted to run to help her, to make sure she was ok or to kill that boy. I didn’t know which desire was stronger, but I reminded myself that it didn’t matter. This was a memory. It was all in the past and I couldn’t change it now. I just had to watch and learn what I could. That’s how I would help her. Because now we had his face and we could track him down.

Hand still stretched out to hold her in place, he looked back to his original target, now desperately gasping for breath. He continued his chanting, and the poor boy on the ground only lasted a few more moments.

“Why are you doing this?” Y/N asked him. “What could he possibly have done to you to deserve that?”

“I don’t expect you to understand,” the boy snapped at her. “No one does.”

He started marching in her direction.

“You should have left it alone,” he snarled. “If you’d just kept walking, everything would be fine. But now you’ve seen too much. And you have to go too.”

He started up his chanting again, directing it at Y/N this time. I could hear water falling from her mouth and hitting the ground. I could hear the sound of her gurgling and choking. I couldn’t bear it. How had she gotten out of this?

“Thomas!” A sharp female voice called from the other end of the alley.

The chanting stopped as the boy looked in the direction of the voice. Y/N immediately started coughing the water out of her lungs and gasping for breath. She looked at the person who had spoken. She was a woman in her late 40s or early 50s at a guess and she was fuming.

“What is wrong with you?” She asked as she smacked him over the head. “Don’t you think you’ve left enough bodies behind? Do you want to attract the attention of a hunter?”

“She saw me! What was I supposed to do?” He protested.

“You were supposed to have not killed another person to begin with! We talked about this! I’ve covered your messes your whole life, but I can’t hide murdered teenagers. Especially when you’re as sloppy about it as you’ve been and especially when you don’t even tell me about it!”

The boy hung his head in shame. But not guilt. Apparently he’d been raised to do a better job of hiding his crimes. Witches. I hated them.

“Well I have to kill her now. She’s seen too much,” Thomas argued.

“No. We’re already far too at risk of hunters coming to town. You can’t add another person to the body count. Especially so close to your father’s store. Do you want him to find out it's you killing people? About the fact magic is real, and you use it? No. We’ll erase her memory and send her on her way. She won’t be a problem.”

The witch grabbed an already made hex bag out of her purse and placed it in Y/N’s immobilized hand, forcing her fingers to close around it. I knew that she would have been fighting to get free, but since she was completely stuck there were no visible indications of this. I had been in that position more than once and knew the frustration of being unable to move.

The boy’s mother started up her own chanting and the memory we were in started fading to black. It continued with Y/N standing just outside the music store. She seemed confused at first, looking around as if trying to get her bearings. Then she turned and headed back in the direction of the motel, completely oblivious to what had just happened.

“Ok,” Annabelle said. I’d forgotten she was even there. “It’s time to bring her back. Go ahead and talk to her, Dean.”

At the mention of my name, I saw my face flash through her mind. I was sitting beside her on a couch and smiling. I didn’t remember this particular day. It could have been on any given day at any random motel.

I wasn’t really sure what to say, and just babbling whatever words came into my head seemed silly, but getting her back was more important than my discomfort.

“Y/N,” I said, pausing to think of my next words. The memory in her head changed. Now, rather than seeing from her perspective, I was in an outsider’s point of view. And I felt like the wind had been knocked out of me. “What the hell is that?” I gasped out.

With a mix of excitement, shock, and confusion, I watched a guy who looked remarkably like me – although it couldn’t have been because I knew this had never happened before – lift Y/N in the air, spin her around a couple of times, and then set her back on her feet before leaning down to kiss her.

“I thought we were in her memories,” I said.

“You are,” Annabelle answered.

“No we’re not. We can’t be. That never happened.”

“Then it must be a memory of a dream. Focus, Dean,” Annabelle instructed. “Be her anchor. Bring her back.”

I tried to concentrate on my job, but all I could see was the image of us kissing playing over and over in my head.

“Can you please think of something else?” I practically begged her.

I was grateful when the memory – or whatever it was – flickered and changed into something else. Only this was no better. We were kissing again, only this time sitting on a very nice couch in a very nice room. It changed again. Sitting in the front seat of the Impala together, just the two of us. Kissing. Another change. I had Y/N pressed up against a wall. We were really kissing in this one.

It changed again and I breathed out a sigh of relief. She’d pulled up a random memory of her in one of her college classes, back before she quit school.

“Ok,” I breathed out and then cleared my throat. “Ok.” If I thought I didn’t know what to say before, I was really stuck now. What was I supposed to say to her after seeing all of that?

“Ok,” I said yet again. “You need to come back now. You have to find your way back. Sam and I are waiting for you.”

“It’s not going to work,” Annabelle said. “She’s trying too hard to keep her memories in control to focus on finding her way out of the trance. Y/N, don’t worry about what memories surface during this. Your only job is to come out of it. Listen to Dean and don’t worry about anything else. And Dean. Don’t worry about finding the right words. Say whatever comes naturally. That’s what she needs.”

Say what comes naturally. This would be a lot easier if I didn’t know Sam was listening to my every word. But Y/N was counting on me. I took a deep breath to prepare myself.

I said her name again. The memory of the classroom flickered to one of me in the driver’s seat of the Impala, singing along to Led Zeppelin. Y/N was in the back, singing with me and Sam was smiling in the passenger seat, refusing to join in.

“If I’m being honest with you, I don’t really know what I’m supposed to say right now. But you trusted me to get you out of this and I’ll be damned if I let you down. So I need you to do your part too. Find your way out of this. Come back to us.”

Memories flashed by as she searched for a way back into consciousness. I saw memories of real things, memories I shared. Us in the car, in motel rooms, on hunts. Her patching up a knife wound on my bicep, me holding her close and carrying her after her run in with that shapeshifter. There were more memories of things I didn’t recognize too. More dreams, I suppose. Us out on what could only be interpreted as a date. Us curled up together in bed, talking. Us dancing together in an empty parking lot, a slow song playing from Baby’s speakers. And more dreams of us kissing in various scenarios.

It would have been so easy to get lost in all of these memories, in seeing myself the way she saw me. And in wondering how she could apparently dream about me so much, apparently have feelings for me, without me ever knowing. But I made myself focus on being her anchor.

“Do you know how glad I am that you’re a part of my life? I sometimes wonder how I ever managed without you. And you know you can’t leave me and Sam on our own. We wouldn’t last without you. We’d probably kill each other.”

I watched as the countless swirling memories of us switched to ones of me and Sam. She remembered more than one instance that proved me wrong. She thought about all the times Sam and I had leaned on each other and kept the other going. She was essentially telling me that while she appreciated the sentiment, she knew we’d be fine without her.

“Alright, fine,” I said. “Maybe we’d get by fine on our own. That doesn’t mean either of us want to. You’re too important to us. So come back to us,” I repeated.

She seemed to be flipping through her memories, as if looking for the right one to bring her back.

“Come back to me.”

I became the focus again, a memory of me standing outside on a bright sunny day and laughing at something she’d said flitting into her mind. But she pushed it away to start looking again.

“Don’t worry about the memories, remember?” I told her. “Just focus on me. Listen to my voice. Try to feel my hands,” I encouraged her. Different memories floated by again, pulled up at random by my words, or maybe the tone of my voice. I didn’t know. They almost all circled around just the two of us though. More dreams of us kissing flashed by.

The shock I felt at these images was lessening and I was beginning to be more comfortable with them. So, following Annabelle’s advice, I let myself respond naturally. I let go of the tight leash I usually kept on my natural inclination to flirt. It wasn’t something I’d ever done with her, not wanting to scare her away. If only I’d known how she really felt.

“You know,” I drawled, wishing I could flash her a smile. “If you wanted to kiss me so badly, you only had to say something. We can definitely do something about that. But only if you come back to me.”

There was a rush of memories flipping by so quickly I couldn’t make anything out in any of them. Then everything went black and I became aware of my own body again. I tentatively opened my eyes and saw Y/N sitting across from me, Sam and Annabelle on either side of us.

I smiled a little. I wanted to know if she’d found her way out so suddenly out of embarrassment and a desire to escape or excitement and anticipation.

“Don’t forget, she won’t remember any of what just happened,” Annabelle warned me.

“I know,” I said. That wasn’t a problem. It was a lot easier to take a shot when you could see clearly. And I could finally see everything.

Chapter 3

Tags: @123passwort @buckybarnes-1917 @chicken-nuggs-and-cozy-hugs @globetrotter28

#familiar #supernatural #supernatural fanfiction #dean winchester #sam winchester #reader insert #sam winchester x platonic!reader #dean winchester x platonic!reader #dean winchester x reader

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rebelliousstories · 8 months ago

Text

Ruined Friendship

Relationship: Nick Burkhardt x Reader

Fandom: Grimm

Request: No

Warnings: Angst, Fluff, Happy Ending

Word Count: 2,367

Main Masterlist: Here

Grimm Masterlist: Here

Summary: The past few days has put a strain on a very special friendship for a certain detective.

My love for her is so great, that if all the leaves on all the trees were tongues, they could not declare it.

Getting the call to come in for a case was not how Nick imagined his night going. He was looking forward to hanging out with his best female friend, gorging himself on carbs, and settling in for a movie with a beer to end the night. But instead he was here. On the side of the road, looking at a homicide scene. Meeting Hank on the sidewalk, the man chuckled at the irritated look on Nick’s face.

“Someone isn’t happy. I sure hope your Friday night plans weren’t ruined.” Griffin teased, looking over the scene.

“We had just finished dinner. Gonna finish the current season of our show, and then, I get the call.” He groaned, checking over the scene with his partner.

“Ooo, my man. Getting some action finally!” Hank cheered, but Nick shot him down.

“Not that kind of night. I was with my friend.” He tried to distract from the current conversation but it was not working. Griffin slapped his partner on the shoulder and Burkhardt turned to face him.

“The cutie that you’ve know since school?” He inquired,a puzzled look on his face. Nick floundered for a few moments, before he shut his mouth with a tight lipped smile.

“Yeah. Her.” Thankfully he was saved by sergeant Wu walking up to the duo.

“We’ve got a normal and easy one.” The two detectives breathed a sigh of relief.

“Really?” Nick asked, face full of hope for once.

“No,” they deflated, “but, hopefully this will be resolved soon. Two perps, William Deveraux and Taisie Reynolds. It appears they shot and killed each other right here.” Both detectives were confused.

“So why are we being called in?” Hank inquired, raising one eyebrow in a quirk.

“We think there was a third person here. It looks like they shot each other, but no gun has been found. Guns don’t just get up and walk away on their own two legs.” Wu explained, before being called away by one of his officers on the scene.

“Well, lets try and find out who associated with our vics. I think that’s the only shot we got here.” Nick went back to his car, and sighed deeply behind the driver’s seat. Pulling out his phone, he dialed a number, pressed it to his ear and waited.

“Hello?” A melodic voice answered.

“Hey, it’s me.” Nick did not know how to start this phone call.

“Hey! Are you okay? You left in kind of a hurry?” Her questions made Nick smile as he relaxed ever so slightly in his seat.

“Yeah. I’m fine. We just got a case and I don’t know when we’re going to be able to continue movie night.” He was starting to hate how demanding his job was.

“Nick, don’t apologize for something you can’t control. It’s fine. Your job is important. Listen, once you solve the case, which you always do, let me know. We’ll have a celebratory movie night. Okay?” She offered the detective.

“I’d appreciate that. I’m just glad you’re not mad at me for running out like that.” Burkhardt breathed a sigh of relief, and scrubbed his free hand over his face.

“Of course. Now, go be a superhero and save the day.” They said they’re goodbyes, but the man did not pull away from the scene just yet. He sat there and let his feelings wash over him in an attempt to understand them. Something tugged at his heart when he had been unable to finish their night together. Whatever it was, it scared Nick a little bit.

The drive to the precinct was full of thoughts that ran too fast for him to catch. Having been out of the dating game for a while now, it concerned him to even be having thoughts of that. After Juliette, Nick vowed to throw himself into his work, and to stay away from romantic entanglements till further notice. Stopping the car in a spot, he made his way to his desk and did just that. Hoping that he could drown out al thoughts and feelings not related to work for at least a little bit.

It took five days to wrap up the case. However, for Nick, it may as well have been five weeks. In that time frame, he had gotten less than five hours of sleep per night and had barely spoken to his friend, let alone seen her. Being able to slap the cuffs on the third man in connection to the double homicide felt amazing. Finally, he was able to go home and get some rest, but there was one more thing that he needed to do first.

Answering the call with her name, Nick let a grin stretch across his face. Grabbing his jacket as he left his desk behind, he did not even care if Hank was teasing him behind his back.

“Hey. Is that celebratory movie night offer still standing?” The door to his truck was opened, but the engine was left alone for now.

“Of course it is! You solved the case already?” There was something moving around on her end as she was speaking.

“Yeah. We did. What are you doing over there?” He questioned.

“Oh I was just starting dinner prep. Gotta let stuff soak, and cook, and whatnot. Well, you let me know when you want to do movie night and we’ll plan around it.” There was more noise on her end as she, presumably, fixed herself a plate of food.

“Can we do tonight? I’ll pick up some takeout on the way home. I just-” Nick sighed again and breathed deeply.

“You just what, Nick?” Her voice washed over him once more.

“I just really want to get away from the world for a while.” He admitted, and allowed his head to drop forwards.

“Listen, why don’t you pick up some dessert and I’ll make you a home cooked meal. Maybe those enchiladas you like so much?” She teased, as the detective chuckled a bit.

“Yeah,” his head picked up, “that sounds wonderful. See you at seven?” With her conformation, they said their goodbyes, and Nick still sat there. He wondered how he got into this position. How was he this excited about seeing a girl? He had not been like this since Juliette, and refused to be this way after her. Yet, here he was.

The drive home never felt so long. Nick stopped by a twenty-four hour diner that they occasionally went to and got their favorite cake slices. The older woman behind the counter sent him an impish wink that the detective laughed off, and made a speedy escape. He had a little over an hour now until he needed to leave his house and make his way to her home.

Over the past few months, that has been the distinction that he has made between their living spaces. His apartment felt cold and distant most days. There was nothing wrong per se, but it lacked something. He had knickknacks and photos strewn about, but he would much rather spend his time with her at her place. She was warm, and glowing like the sun, with a smile that could brighten up the- what was happening to him?

The shower was a welcome distraction. For a moment. But once he stepped under the running stream, they returned with a vengeance. Nick was bombarded with thoughts of his friend who just so happened to be a girl. He was fine. There was nothing weird about their friendship not matter what Hank says.

His shower was extra long, but eventually he had to step out so that he could still arrive on time. Before he could catch himself, he was fussing over which shirt he should wear, and threw down both shirts in his bed with a sigh. It was just movie night with a friend. Trying not to think too hard about it, Nick grabbed a shirt and a set of jeans, and changed before he dried his hair. Would it be too much to put some product in? She had seen him without it, but it made his hair fall nicely. This was starting to annoy the Grimm.

His watch informed him that it was time to leave, and he grabbed the cake slices with a sigh. Making sure they were secure in the passenger seat, Nick scrubbed his face for what seemed the thousandth time that day. The closer he got to the home of his friend, the faster his heart raced. His palms sweated against the steering wheel.

The home in question pulled in his view soon enough, and he hastily made his way into the driveway. Getting out with two piece of cake in his hand, he knocked on the heavy wooden door before him. What greeted him when the door was pushed aside was worth the wait. Her hair was messily tied back and her face held a barely noticeable amount of makeup. Her smile grew when she saw the man in front of her, and he barely managed to pull the cakes out of the line of fire before she launched herself at him.

“Nick, it’s so good to see you again!” Came her muffled shout in his chest. Said man chuckled and wrapped his arms around her while letting her name roll over his tongue in a familiar pattern.

“Good to be here.” They pulled apart and hung there for a moment. Neither one could explain why they stayed, but neither wanted to move just yet. However, a timer dinged and she pulled herself out of the embrace of the man before her with a blush and shy smile.

“Set the desert on the counter. Enchiladas are done.” Nick did as she asked and helped her set out the stuff for dinner. They made light small talk as they ate, and even though he hung on every word that she said without complaint, too soon had he found them sitting next to each other on the couch. He flung his arm across the back of the couch, and stiffened up as she settle into the vacant spot that was now there. They sat there in that position for a while, and while she had relaxed a little bit, Nick had not. It was fine, but she could not help feeling like there was something going on with her best friend.

“Is there something wrong, Nick?” She asked, sitting up and staring at the man next to her.

“No. I’m fine. Why do you ask?” He tried to play it off, but even he did not believe his own words. Grabbing the remote, she paused the movie so they were not going to be interrupted.

“Come on, Nick I’ve known you for years. You may be able to lie to yourself, but you can’t lie to me.” She had him there; she was one of the few people he would never be able to lie to. “So out with it. What’s going on with you?”

Nick sighed deeply, and once more, scrubbed his hands over his face. He tried to find the right words to say, but nothing would come out. Nothing sounded quite like what he wished to say, and what he actually said was not better.

“I don’t wanna be friends anymore.” He blurted out. A shocked gasp was released from her lungs, and she jumped away from the couch as if burned. Realizing what he just said, he tried to call her name as he reached for her but she was faster.

“So what is this then? Do you have fun playing with my feelings like this?” Her voice broke as tears welled up in her eyes and her throat knotted.

“No! No, I- that didn’t come out how I wanted it to. Please, listen to me.” Burkhardt tried once more to grab her hands as he stood, but she just kept backing up to get away.

“Listen, I get it if you don’t like me like I like you, but I don’t think it’s bad enough to stop being friends with me over.” She cried, and it broke his heart. To know that he put those tears in her eyes was almost too much for him.

“No, please listen.” Her back thudded against the wall, and he finally grabbed her hands in his as he closed in on her.

“I don’t want to be just friends anymore.” He whispered, getting closer and closer to her.

“What are you saying?” Her tone was confused, and it matched the adorable furrow in her brows.

“I’m trying to ask you out on a date, and doing a horrible job.” Nick laughed a little bit, and tried to diffuse the situation.

“But you said-” he cut her off, “I don’t want to be just your friend anymore. I want to try and be your boyfriend. If you’ll let me.” Burkhardt watched the tears slow, until they disappeared completely from her eyes. Once she was no longer crying, she began laughing; quietly at first, but it soon grew louder as Nick joined in.

He slipped his arms around her waist and drew her into his chest, while her hands trailed up his arms to wrap around his neck. They stayed there for a while, just breathing and being in that moment together. She started laughing again, which prompted Nick to laugh with her.

“What?” He asked, pulling back, just enough to see her face.

“I just find it funny that you were trying to ask me out on a date and I thought you were legitimately done with me.” She replied, burrowing her face back into his chest.

“I guess I need better communication skills, huh?” Nick pressed a kiss to her head,and pulled further away this time.

“Can we finish the movie now? Before we plan a date after this?” Chuckling, the couple made their way back to the couch, and snuggled up closer to each other. She rested comfortably on his chest, while his arms kept her close.

#rebelliousstories #writing #nick burkhardt x reader #nick burkhardt #nick burkhardt imagine #grimm imagine #grimm

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zombiebastian · 5 months ago

Text

Beavis and Butthead in Saw

I have decided to repost my B&BH Saw fan fiction here on tumblr, the original is on AO3 my account is MrScissorsFanboy, enjoy the story!

Disclaimers: this fan fiction of course, contains violence and stuff, it is based on Saw after all. Second of all Beavis and Butthead are positioned differently than Lawrence and Adam were in the movie and the bathroom is a bit smaller. Third of all I hadn't watched Saw in a while when I first wrote this so I apologize if I get some details wrong

ENJOY!!

They had found themselves in an odd situation, the last thing Beavis and Butthead remembered before waking up in this cold dark place was watching TV at night, then they noticed a weirdo in a pig mask had been standing in a dark area in the room, next thing they know everything had faded to black.

"Damnit Butthead is this some kinda prank?!" Exclaimed Beavis, pulling the plug from the cold bathtub he had woken up in "Where the hell did you take me?!"

"Shut up bunghole, I didn't take you anywhere!" Butthead yelled back, unlike Beavis he didn't wake up in a bath tub but instead was on the cold hard floor.

Beavis rolled out of the bath, and tried to walk around the pitch black room, only to realise there was something around his foot "Uhhhh, Butthead, whats this round my foot?" He asks.

Suddenly the lights turned on, it turned out they had awoken in a dirty bathroom with one of their foots chained to pipes, Beavis pulled at the chains trying to pull his foot out "What kinda weird prank is this?!"

"Hey Beavis, remember that chick in the pig mask?" Butthead asks, "Oh yeah, I remember her," Butthead explained his theory,

"What if like... She kidnapped us and she's one of those -kinky chicks? Whats that thing called again... Ehh... BTSM?!"

Beavis replied "Whats a BTSM?"

"Ehhh... I think it stands for Bandage To Slut Moms? Its when she like ties you up and like... Rides your weiner?"

Beavis is confused by what Butthead just said "How does someone even ride a weiner?" He asks, Butthead answers

"Hold on, wait my memory is coming back, its when she ties you up and like handcuffs you, and then she takes you to this special theme park where you ride this big roller coaster where the cart looks like a weiner, huhuhuhu,"

-"Maybe we should wait and that kinky chick in the pig mask will come back and take us to the weiner coaster, HOLY CRAP BUTTHEAD LOOK!" Beavis suddenly yells when they somehow just realise that there is a dead person in the middle of the bathroom.

This dead person is covered in blood and holds a gun in one hand and a tape recorder in the other.

"This chicks a murderer!" Exclaimed Beavis "We have to find a way out of here before she comes and kills us too!"

"Shut up Beavis," replied Butthead "He's holding a gun in his hand, I think I know what this means, not only is she into tying up people and putting handcuffs on them, she's also into something called gunplay!"

"I don't like the sound of that!" Beavis said with a slight tone of fear in his voice

"You're not getting it Beavis, soon that kinky pig chick will come in here, and we will finally do what we've been waiting to do for our whole lives, we shall score,"

"BUT I DON'T WANT TO SCORE IF THAT MEANS I'M GONNA GET SHOT, WHAT THE HELLS WRONG WITH YOU?!" Yelled Beavis, that clearly didn't really calm him much.

"Don't worry, maybe we can convince her not to do that gunplay thing, I have some crushed up nachos in my pocket maybe we can give those to her and then she wont shoot us or something," Butthead explains as he reaches into his back pocket, except he didn't feel any of his crushed up nachos but a weird square shaped object.

"Hey Beavis, whats this?"

Beavis answers "Uhhhh, it looks like a small tape, like the ones we keep our special movies on, except that wouldn't fit in the TV and I doubt there's any hot chicks on there,"

"Hey Beavis, check your pockets, maybe you have something else we could give to that chick so she won't shoot us," Butthead suggests

"Yeah yeah, good idea," replies Beavis

Beavis reaches into his pockets and also finds a small tape "Damn its just another one of those tape thingys! I doubt these can convince her not to do the gunplay stuff with us,"

"Calm down dude, she won't score with you if you're all jittery like that, chicks aren't into that typa stuff," Butthead says in annoyance.

Beavis of course, doesn't calm down, yes he's wanted to score with a hot chick for so long but not one who might shoot him in the head!

"Hey Butthead, I just came up with an idea, what if we put these tapes... In that dead guys tape recorder!" Beavis said,

Butthead says back "No dude, thats dumb, in situations like these we have to like, think out the box or something,"

"Whatever, you do you, I'm gonna put my tape in there," Beavis tried to reach for the tape recorder in the dead guys hand but it was too far for him to reach

"Eh! If only I wasn't chained to this thingamajig!"

"I told you it was dumb, Beavis, now start thinking outside the box like I said!" Butthead exclaims angrily.

"Think outside the box? Butthead we aren't even in a box! Unless..." Beavis had came to a revelation "Butthead I figured it out! We aren't in some random bathroom! We're in a giant box!"

There was a moment of silence before Butthead replied "That could make sense, afterall the room is square shaped like a box, but why would someone put turd filled toilets and a huge bathtub in a box? Not to mention that dead guy,"

"Maybe its to like... Throw us off? But we figured it out with our genuis!" Beavis said, now with a more cocky and excited tone.

"Yeah yeah, more like my genius, I was the one who said the box thing first," Butthead responds.

The 2 sit there trying to figure out what to do next, but eventually Butthead falls asleep due to being a lazy teenager.

Beavis looks over to check if his friend is still asleep before attempting to get the tape recorder from the dead guy again.

"Think outside the box my ass," he rambles to himself, clearly not agreeing Butthead's "genuis". He attempts to reach over and grab it but keeps failing.

"Damnit dude why couldn't you have died a little closer?!"

Eventually Beavis is able to get the tape recorder by bending fowards and using hid big forhead to drag it across the floor. He then took its and put his tape recording into it.

The tape started to play and it was a lot louder than expected so it woke Butthead up

"God damnit Beavis I told you to never wake me up or I'd kick your ass! You're luckily I'm chained to this pipe,"

"Ahaha sorry about that, I was just listening to this tape," Beavis then rewinds the tape so they can both listen to it.

"Beavis, this is your wake up call. Everday of your life, you and your friend Butthead watch TV and talk about sexual intercourse, and at school you misbehave and drive your teachers insane. I'm giving you a chance to rebirth yourself, your aim in the game is to kill Butthead, if you do not kill him by 6:00 your TV will be destroyed and you will be left here to rot. Just remembered X marks the spot for the treasure. Let the games begin. Follow your heart,"

The 2 were left in shocked silence.

"Oh no... HE'S GONNA DESTROY OUR TV!!" Yells Beavis in absolute horror

"Calm down Beavis, put my tape thing in there, it might give us another way to save the TV," Butthead, despite being terrified that he may lose his beloved TV, tried to remain calm.

Butthead threw his tape at Beavis, and Beavis put it into the tape recorder.

"Rise and shine, Butthead. You're probably wondering where you are. I'll tell you where you might be. You might be in the room you die in. Up until now all you've done is watch TV and talk about sexual intercourse with your friend Beavis, and when at school you do the opposite of what all of your teachers say. Now I see you as a strange mix of someone angry, yet stupid, mostly just pathetic. So are you going to watch yourself die today, Butthead. Or are you going to do something about it?"

"Woah... Huhuhuhu, cool, I might die, like the people in that sick zombie movie," Butthead spoke "Anyways we need to look for the clues in the tapes, have any ideas Beavis?"

Beavis at this point was hyperventilating and having a weird panic attack "BUT... OUR TV!!!" He screams.

"Shut up bunghole, the sooner we find clues the sooner we can save the TV, then we can watch our "special movies" with the hot chicks,"

Beavis tries to calm down but is still clearly in distress "Okay okay... In my tape he mentioned something about being rebirthed... Rebirthing myself... REBIRTHING MYSELF?! AM I PREGNANT WITH MYSELF?!"

"I don't think so, where would the rebirthed version of yourself come out? Your butt?" Butthead asks sarcastically.

The 2 sat in silence for a few seconds before Butthead broke the silence once more

"So like... What do we do?"

Beavis exclaims "You're the one who said look for clues!"

Butthead then replies "Yeah but like... I never knew it would be this hard,"

They both looked around for clues before Butthead laughed

"Hey Beavis, there's a heart on the toilet next to you, its drawn in poop, huhuhu,"

Beavis looks and begins laughing alongside his friend

"It does! Hahahaha!"

Butthead then suddenly came to a revelation that this may be their next clue

"Hey Beavis, you have to dig your hand in the toilet, that is our next clue,"

Beavis looked at Butthead for a few moments with an angry expression "What the hell?!" He exclaims "No Butthead you do it! There's like... Turds in there!"

Butthead replied "You're closer to it dumbass!" Before throwing the tape recorder at Beavis, howevet it missed him and hit the top of the toilet which knocked the tank off.

"What the hell is wrong with you, fartknocker?! Oh wait! Look there's something in there," Beavis says, standing up and taking the lid off the tank to reveal a bag.

"You see Beavis? Just stick with me and before we know it our TV will be saved, and maybe we'll get to score with that pig chick," Butthead said cockily as Beavis places the bag on the floor and opens it.

In the bag were two saws and a picture of them both watching TV

"This picture... This was taken just before that pig chick showed up!" Beavis exclaims

"How do you know?" Butthead asks

"Because we're wearing the same shirts!" Answers Beavis

Butthead proceeded to throw a random object he found on the floor towards Beavis again, this time it hit him in the head

"That's because we always wear the same shirt dumbass!" Butthead yelled angrily.

"Ah! Oh yeah you're right... Hehehe,"

"Anyways, I think we use the saws to like, cut the chains off," suggests Butthead, Beavis answers

'Yeah yeah good idea,"

They try to cut through the chains using the saws but it doesn't work, the chains are too strong

"Damnit, its not working!" Beavis exclaims angrily

"Son of a bitch," Butthead sighs when his saw broke while trying to cut through the chains "This sucks," in frustration Butthead threw his broken hacksaw at the wall, specifically a part where there was a mirror, it smashed against it and as the glass shards came tumbling down, it revealed a camera.

"Woah Butthead, I think you found another clue!" Beavis says "So somebody is watching us..."

"Yeah, uhhhh, hello?" Butthead tries to communicate with the person watching them through the camera but then realises they probably cant talk to him "Maybe we should like, turn the lights off so they cant see us or something,"

Beavis noticed that next to him was a light switch, so he did what Butthead said and turned off the lights "So what now?" Beavis asks, Butthead answers "Its pretty obvious you fartknocker, we try figure out our next clue,"

The boys look around trying to find the next clue, when they notice an X on the wall written in some sort of glow in the dark substance.

"Look Beavis, X marks the spot, like the guy said on the tape. Its all starting to make sense now," Butthead explains, the X was close fo Beavis so he went ahead and checked it out.

Beavis pushed at the wall expecting some Indianna Jones type secret passage way to be there, but nothing

"Uhhhhh... What do I do?" He asks

Before Butthead could suggest anything, a vibrating noise was heard coming from behind the X, thats when Beavis realised he should probably break the wall open.

He tried to punch it open but of course he was not strong enough

"What should I do Butthead?!" He asks in a panicked state, Butthead replies

"Uhhhhh... I dunno,"

Beavis then grabs his saw and uses the handle part to break the wall open, eventually it smashes and reveals a box, but it took a while because Beavis was too much of an idiot to find something stronger to break it.

Beavis reaches inside and grabs the box before opening it, inside was a phone which explained the vibration noise, a piece of paper and a cigarette. Beavis notices words written on the paper and tries to read it.

"T-h-e... Kigarete? Aree, hayrmlees, i, promysee... Nope I cant read this," he attempts and tries his best but he does not understand such complex spelling and vocabulary.

Butthead then suggests "Why don't you throw it to me? I think I can read it,"

"Yeah good idea, hehehe," Beavis replies

Beavis tries to throw Butthead the paper but it lands too far away from both of them so neither of them can reach it now

"Oh well, it probably wasn't that important anyways," Butthead states carelessly.

"I'll answer the phone," Beavis says before flipping the phone open and answering the person calling it

"4 hours, Beavis," the person on the other line said before they began to play one of Butthead's "special tapes" on the TV, Beavis felt like crying.

"No... Her sweet voice, how dare you! Where is our baby?!" He yells "Where did you take our TV?!"

But the person on the other line did not answer, instead they just hung up. Beavis was now trembling in both anger and grief, the TV... The hot chicks... MTV music videos... If they did not find a way out of this they'd lose all of it.

"Beavis, we need to get out of here fast!" Butthead exclaims, but seemingly not as panicked as Beavis.

Beavis trembled and mumbled for a few moments before finally saying something "Hey Butthead... I think I know who might be behind this..."

Butthead turns towards Beavis and replies "Really? Who?"

Beavis remembered to one night almost 6 months ago, him and Butthead were doing what they did every night, watching TV on the couch while eating nachos, Butthead had fallen asleep and since Beavis didn't want his butt to be kicked he did not wake him up.

A News report had came on talking about this "Jigsaw killer" who would kidnap people and put them into weird traps, for example one girl named Amanda Young had been put in a "reverse beartrap" type contraption that would tear her face open if she didn't get the key in time, Jigsaw put her in that trap just because she did drugs, she survived her test somehow.

And another example was a guy named Paul Leahy who was put into a maze full of razor wires because he tried to kill himself, unlike Amanda he failed and bled to death, at the time Beavis thought this was really cool, but now that his TV and special movies were at stake, he didn't like this Jigsaw guy anymore.

Beavis explained all of this to Butthead

"I see..." Butthead expressed "And this guy still hasn't been caught?"

"Nope," Beavis answers

Beavis looks at the phone and says "Maybe we should call someone, who though?"

Butthead suggests "Maybe Todd, he's cool and strong enough to get us out of here and kick that Jigsaw's ass,"

"Good idea, hehehe,"

Beavis tried to call Todd's number (which he didn't even know but tried anyways) but for some reason the phone wouldn't let him call anyone.

"Its not letting me!" Beavis exclaims angrily, before recieving a call again from the same person as before, Beavis answers.

"3 hours and 30 minutes until your TV is destroyed, Beavis, not only that but we have implanted a nuclear bomb in your school which will be set off at the same time your TV will be destroyed, meaning all of your classmates and teachers will be blown to bits! Also, I've kidnapped your friend Stuart and his parents, if you don't escape by 6, not only will your TV and school be destroyed, but Stuart and his parents will be shot and killed,"

"Woah... Huhuh, cool!" Butthead says happily "Its a shame all of the hot chicks at school will die though, but its honestly worth it,"

The person on the other end hangs up

"No... Our TV... But at the same time, Stuart and everyone at school will die, which is amazing! I'm starting to consider just staying here, we can always buy a new TV, right? But all stupid school, all of our annoying teachers, our classmates, plus Stuart will be gone forever! Imagine not having to deal with those fartfaces anymore?!"

"Yeah, I'm sure we can save up money to get a new TV and-" before Butthead could finish his sentence, Beavis collapsed to the floor screaming and shaking in pain as if he were being electrocuted, soon enough Butthead would also be shocked just like this.

The both of them eventually passed out, in their unconscious state their life flashed before their eyes... Their TV... Most of their time together was spent in front of the TV... Beavis and Butthead's first memories as toddlers was watching TV together, even during Christmas and each others birthdays they both watched TV, their favourite movies and music videos, all of the hot actresses, the epic fire and explosions...

Thats when they both realised... This wasn't just any old TV, it was *their* TV, a TV that carried so many fond memories, a TV that was the only thing that had stuck with them throughout the years apart from each other, a TV that always played their special VHS tapes they had obtained from a peculiar man in an alleyway.

It was *their* TV.

No amount of annoying people dying and school being destroyed forever would make up for the loss of such an amazing, loyal, spectacular TV.

Soon Beavis woke up to the buzzing of the phone, he looked around to see Butthead still unconscious. Beavis felt quite tired but he picked up the phone anyways, his voice all groggy.

"Hello?"

"30 minutes until your TV is destroyed and everything you love will explode, Beavis, clock is ticking,"

"What? No no no! There's no way...."

Beavis realised him and Butthead had been unconscious for 3 whole hours "Butthead wake up!" He yells in extreme anxiety and horror. Butthead wakes up "Whats going on Beavis...? Just give me a minute..."

"No no no! You don't understand you idiot!" Beavis shouts "We slept for 3 whole hours! Our TV.... Our TV! All of those hot chicks! The fire! The memories!" Beavis cries.

Butthead then realises what his happening and panics too "Oh no... We need to get out of here now!!"

The phone is still on the line and the person calling them suddenly seems in distress, there is a lot of yelling going on in the background and things being thrown.

Eventually a few gunshots are heard and Beavis's heart stops.

"No... Whats going on out there?! What have you done to the TV?!" he screams, now in actual tears, but no reply, whoever wad behind the phone had just hung up with no answer to wether the TV was okay or not.

"Damnit... I'm not gonna let that stupid Jigsaw get away with this!! I'm not gonna die here!!" Beavis yells before he grabs the hacksaw.

"Hey Beavis... What are you doing?" Butthead asks with surprisingly not much emotion in his voice, he then grows a bit more concerned when Beavis holds the hacksaw to his leg "Woah Beavis, you're gonna cut your foot off?"

"I'm doing whatever it takes to save our baby!!!" He cries out before beginning to roll his pants leg up.

"Don't cut your leg off, Beavis, you'll die... Or something," Butthead says, only to be ignored.

Beavis cries out as he proceeded to saw his foot

"Oh god!" He yells "Damnit I need to get our TV!"

Butthead can only watch in horror as his best friend slowly and painfully saws off his foot while screaming, but in actuality, deep down he can only think "Wow... Huhuhu, cool,"

Eventually the foot comes off and blood spills all over, Beavis screaming due to the amount of shock seeing his own severed foot put him in.

Beavis eventually calms himself and wriggles himself over towards the dead guy in the middle of the room, whimpering in pain. He then takes the gun from the dead guys hand and points it at Butthead.

"Wait Beavis... What are you doing?" Butthead asks

Beavis answers "Only one of us can leave this room alive, Butthead, and since I'm the one who cares about the TV the most, thats gonna be me,"

Butthead suddenly looks quite pissed "You buttmunch, you can't shoot me, you're nothing without me, you suck without me,"

Beavis continues to hold his best friend at gunpoint, which increasingly made Butthead mad. Until, suddenly Beavis pointed the gun away from Butthead.

Butthead looks to wear Beavis is pointing it, and sees a man standing there who also holds a gun, but before the man can say anything Beavis shoots him multiple times, this man was Jigsaw.

The 2 were in silence for a few seconds after Jigsaw fell to the floor, before Beavis crawls over towards Butthead.

"I... Have... To go now..." Trembled Beavis as be grabs Butthead's shirt, Butthead then realised that his friend would be leaving him and replied with a stern

"No you aren't,"

Beavis continues to tremble as he says "You're going... To be alright... Butthead..."

"Of course I am dumbass," Butthead replies "But you cant just leave me!"

"I'm.... Going to go... And get help..."

"No,"

"If I don't get help..." Beavis rubs his hand against Butthead's face "I'll... Bleed to death... And we need... To save our TV..."

"Don't leave me! No! you buttwagon! No!"

Butthead continues to yell no as Beavis begins to crawl away out the door the man they just shot came through. Before he leaves though he turns around and says.

"Don't worry... I'll bring somebody back... I promise..."

He then continues to crawl away, much to Butthead's negative feelings.

"Beavis! Beavis you dumbass get back here right now!"

Beavis continues to crawl but as soon as he got to the front of the door he turns around to look at Butthead one last time.

"Are we like, gonna be okay?" Butthead asks, with Beavis replying "I... I wouldn't lie to you..."

Beavis soon crawls away, leaving Butthead all alone. Butthead then begins to search the body of the now dead Jigsaw Killer to see if he had a key to his shackles in his pocket, he pulls out his wallet and ID only to find nothing.

"Well at least if the police get here, they can discover the identity of the jigsaw killer using this," Butthead thinks to himself.

Butthead continues searching "Come on, where the hell did you put my key? Idiot,"

Butthead then pulled out a tape recorder from Jigsaw's pocket, looking at it in confusion. Dumbfounded, Butthead began to play the tape.

"Hello, Mr. Hindle. Or as they called you around the hospital, Zep. I want you to make a choice. There's a slow acting poison coursing through your system, which only I have the antidote for. Will you destroy a TV and murder a whole school and an innocent family to save yourself? Listen carefully, if you will, there are rules... ”

Butthead then says "Uhhh... My names Butthead, not Zep you idiot, this doesn't make any sense. Ugh I hope Beavis will be back soon,"

Butthead then notices a strange motion in the corner of his eye, he slowly turns towards it only to see that the man who had been dead on the floor for the whole game, the man who had been shot, had stood up like nothing had just happened.

"Uhh... Are you like, a zombie?" Butthead asks.

The man ignored him and began to rip off the blood and gunshots from his face as if they were just special effects, because they were.

"Dude, you were pretending to be dead this whole time? Why didn't you say anything we would've like, helped you escape and stuff," Butthead said.

The man slowly turned towards Butthead and pointed at the bathtub where Beavis was

"The key to your chain is in the bathtub,"

Butthead turned towards the bathtub and saw all of the water inside had been drained, and nothing inside of it

"Beavis you idiot! Because of you my ticket out of here is in some rusty pipe, I swear when I get out of here I'm gonna beat your ass, and I don't care that you're technically disabled now,"

Butthead was now just really angry at everything, so to take out his anger he decides to grab the gun and try and shoot the man, knowing he probably has something to do with all this, but before he can pull the trigger he is faced with an electric shock again.

The man had a remote that would shock them both the entire time which explained what happened before. Butthead ended up dropping the gun as he is electrocuted again, the gun flying too far for him to reach again as the man walks towards the door.

"Hey, get back here, fartknocker, I'm gonna kick your ass for this," Butthead says, but the man of course continues walking away.

The man then turns the light off in the bathroom and walks outside the door turning around and looking at Butthead for a few seconds. He then grabs the edge of the door and before slamming it shut yells:

"Game over!"

The door is finally closed and Butthead is left in complete darkness.

"Hey dude, I'm sorry about trying to shoot you... Uhh... Can you at least bring my TV here? Dude? Damnit I think he can't hear me now,"

I hope you enjoyed it, and yes I will be doing the other movies 👍🏻

13 notes · View notes

pandenewie · 11 months ago

Text

Prom King

SYNOPSIS:

Y/n and their best friend Intak made a bucket list to make their final year of high school absolutely perfect. Although Y/n’s list of to-dos is now complete, Intak has just one more thing to tick off - win prom king. All is well, until they hear a certain Kim Sunoo is also running.

PAIRING: sunoo x gn!reader

GENRE: nonidol!au, highschool!au, enemies to lovers, slowburn (they hate each other for most of it) fluff, crack, ft P1harmony Intak, Itzy Yuna, Le Sserafim Kazuha, Ateez Seonghwa, Stray Kids Minho, TXT Beomgyu, Enhypen Jay

WORD COUNT: 18.2k

FRIDAY - 21 DAYS TILL PROM:

“Bestie!”

Part of Y/n regrets teaching Intak internet slang. The amount of “slays” and “side eyes” heard each day would draw any sane person to their limit. But they suppose the goofy smile on his face makes up for the near insanity. Just.

Y/n and Intak have been friends since middle school after he accidentally made them cry because their team lost dodgeball. One apology and a shared popsicle later, they were inseparable. Now, all these years have passed and he’s still the same 12 year old boy from back then, stealing their pens and waking up early just to carpool to school (he claims Y/n’s car’s a.c is better, but really he just wants to spend time with them.)

“You literally saw me an hour ago.” Intak can’t help but roll his eyes at his friend’s words, pulling Y/n into a side hug nonetheless. “That’s like… a whole 60 minutes.” He groans, causing Y/n to sigh. “Oh no! Poor little Intak… how are you gonna survive when we go to university? Or even worse, when we have actual jobs?” Intak lets out a laugh, attempting to brush his hair out of his face. “Bold of you to assume I’m not attached to your hip for life.”

Intak has always been clingy - or better yet, loyal. Once he opens himself up to someone, he attaches himself wholeheartedly to that person. It’s one of his many dog-like qualities that make him so easy to be around - so easy to adore. Stressing over homework? Intak will lend his mostly wrong answers. Crying over an ex? Intak’s over within minutes with movies and ice cream. Y/n feels very lucky to have someone like him in their life.

A lot of people at their school assume that the two are dating, which is honestly laughable to them. Obviously to an outsider, this sort of affection may seem a little odd but with Y/n and Intak it’s just natural. Their relationship is anything but romantic. Besides, Intak is just so… Intak.

“You know, I feel bad for your future wife.” Y/n sighs as they walk with Intak to their next class. The boy turns around to look at them confused, Y/n mentally cursing at his long legs as they struggle to keep up with his speed. “Why? She’ll love you too. We can be a cute little trio!” Intak gushes. “And be a third wheel for the rest of my life? No thank you.”

The rest of the day speeds by quickly and before they know it, the final bell rings, dismissing the students for the day. Students rush to get out of their seats but are immediately stopped by their teacher, Mr Lee.

“Before you run off, don’t forget you have your final presentations due next week. Try to meet up with your buddy over the weekend if you can.” A class of groans erupts at the teacher’s words - bar Intak and Y/n, who look at each other with a smirk. Pros of being partnered with your best friend.

“Oh, and the list of contenders for prom king and queen is up by the gym. Voting starts next week and remember you can only vote once so… yada yada no one’s listening. You’re dismissed.”

Before Y/n can even finish packing up their books, Intak grabs their hand and pulls them out of the classroom. “What the hell Intak? My car is that way!” Y/n groans as he pulls them through the halls, not so gracefully bumping into a few people along the way.

As they eventually come to a stop, Y/n realises that he has taken them to the gym. “Look, there’s my name!” Intak gushes, pointing at the bold Hwang Intak that’s written on the paper. Y/n smiles lovingly at their friends happiness but can’t help the gentle roll of the eyes that follows. “Did you just take me here to brag about running for prom king?” “No, I’m here to check out the competition.”

At the beginning of the year, Intak and Y/n each wrote a “bucket list” containing the things they wanted to achieve in their final year of high school. It was full of simple things, like having perfect yearbook photos, joining certain clubs, etc. Y/n ticked off their final one just last week, after they had finally gotten an A on Mr Park's “unbeatable assignment” they’d heard upperclassmen complaining about for years. Intak however, has just one more thing on his list. Win prom king.

Intak’s eyes vigorously scan over the list before his shoulders seem to deflate. “What’s wrong?” Y/n asks, immediately squeezing in next to him in order to see the list as well. Their eyes quickly scan the names before landing on the one right at the bottom… Kim Sunoo. “Well… there goes my bucket list.” Intak laughs, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

Sunoo has always been Intak’s rival of sorts. It all started years ago, when the two took the same dance class. Intak and Sunoo were each other’s biggest competition. When it came down to Sunoo’s fluid and flexible dance style versus Intak’s bold and precise one - Sunoo almost always came out on top. Intak was good, sure. But Sunoo had a natural charm to him that Intak just couldn’t compete with. The same thing happened throughout school, when they both decided to join the drama club. Intak once again, was in second place - constantly losing roles and opportunities to Sunoo.

Finally, high school came around and Intak managed to find something he really shined in, which was soccer. Not only did he really enjoy it, but there was also no Sunoo around to steal his spotlight. That was until Sunoo joined the cheerleading team and once again, the spotlight became shared.

“Come on, I’ve got practice but I can walk you to your car.” Intak attempts to pull Y/n away from the list but they stay put - anger practically dripping from their body. “That selfish asshole.” Y/n scoffs, aggressively poking his name, as if proving a point. God, even his handwriting is annoying. “He’s already the captain of the cheer team, the lead in the school play, has nearly perfect grades and is on the student council. He just needs to have this too? Can’t stand someone else having the spotlight for one fucking night?”

Y/n is fuming. It’s no secret that they aren’t the most fond of Sunoo, especially due to what he put Intak through over the years. This is just the icing on top of the “reasons to hate Kim Sunoo” cake.

“Hey, it’s alright. I don’t care that much anyway.” Intak attempts to calm his friend, finally managing to pull them back the direction they came. “You wouldn’t have put it on your list if you didn’t care, Intak.” Y/n sighs. “Well yeah but I’m up against Sunoo! I’m not gonna win so there’s no point in making a big deal of it.” Intak mumbles. Y/n can tell that he’s disappointed. For whatever reason, winning prom king is really important to Intak. So in that moment, they mentally promise to do whatever it takes to make it happen.

MONDAY - 18 DAYS TILL PROM:

Intak doesn’t hate people. No matter what they do or say to him, he just can’t bring himself to do it. Y/n however, isn’t anywhere as nice as Intak. So they hate people for him. This is evident on their face as they make their way towards Sunoo’s desk as soon as class is over.

“We need to talk.”

Sunoo looks up from his book at the sudden presence, and his eyes light up with mischief as they lock with Y/n’s.

“Y/n! To what do I owe this pleasure?” His voice drips with sarcasm as he lays his chin in his palm, looking up at Y/n with a smirk. Violence is never the answer but god, does Y/n want to punch him right now. “Oh cut the crap Sunoo.”

Sunoo knows all about Y/n’s hate for him. And although he swears he’s done nothing to deserve it, he certainly isn’t opposed to biting back. What’s the harm in dishing out the same treatment? Besides, Y/n looks extremely cute when they’re mad.

“You know, you look so pretty when you smile, Y/n. It’s a shame I only see you when you’re scowling.” Sunoo teases, bringing his finger up to gently poke at the furrow between Y/n’s brows - causing them to push it away almost immediately. “Stop being such an ass and I’d have something to smile about.”

Sunoo can’t help but laugh at Y/n’s meaningless jab, only making them even angrier. “Why the hell did you sign up for prom king?” They spit, almost as if the words were venomous. Sunoo can’t help the confused expression that makes its way across his face. They’re upset over that?

“I don’t know, Yuna signed me up without telling me.” Sunoo shrugs nonchalantly. This answer only adds fuel to the fire that is Y/n’s anger. “Oh you’ve got to be kidding me. Do you even care about being prom king?” They scoff, causing Sunoo to shrug once more. “I think the whole thing is stupid to be honest.” He says. “Great! Drop out.” And with that, Y/n swiftly turns on their heel and walks out of the classroom.

The silence however is short-lived as Sunoo jogs up behind them. “Why the hell would I drop out?” He asks, causing Y/n to roll their eyes. “You said it yourself, you don’t care about it. And yet you running for prom king directly stops other people from having a chance.” Y/n states. Now it’s Sunoo’s turn to roll his eyes. “You’re acting like it’s a scholarship or something. It’s just a dumb plastic crown-” “-WOULD IT KILL YOU TO THINK ABOUT OTHER PEOPLE FOR ONCE?” Y/n yells, cutting off his sentence.

“Kim Sunoo! Y/N L/N! Why aren’t you two in class?” Mr Lee pokes his head out from his classroom, looking at the two with a scowl on his face. “And what is so important that you need to yell in the halls?” He continues. Y/n looks at the ground sheepishly, mumbling an apology. “I want to see the both of you in my classroom at the end of the day, now get to class.” Mr Lee scolds.

Sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with Kim Sunoo across from a visibly frustrated Mr Lee is not exactly how Y/n saw their afternoon going. Intak waits nervously outside the classroom, pressing his ear against the door in hopes to hear what his best friend is in trouble for now.

“It’s not just today’s stunt that I’m upset with. You two have a knack for… disturbing the peace whenever you’re together. And honestly, it’s doing my head in.” Mr Lee sighs. “Now we obviously don’t expect all of our students to get along perfectly, you’re human beings after all. But is it too much to ask for you both to be civil about it? Or at least wait to scream at each other after school hours?” He continues. “No offence sir, but I would rather jump in front of a moving bus than see Sunoo after school hours.” Y/n says, causing Sunoo to scoff. “It’s after school right now, dummy.” Sunoo rolls his eyes. Mr Lee sighs once again, sensing that an argument is about to start.

“This is what I mean. When I don’t get along with someone, I go out of my way not to see them. It seems you two go out of your way to fight.” Y/n and Sunoo both mumble out apologies.

“I’ve been talking to some of your other teachers and we all agree that something should be done about this. So, we’ve decided to sign you up with the community centre down the street. They needed new volunteers and it’s the perfect opportunity for you two to put this weird feud to rest and make some real change. And, it’ll look good when applying for college, which is a nice bonus.”

Y/n and Sunoo look at Mr Lee as if he’s just told them the worst news imaginable. In some way, he has. “Look Mr Lee, I’m all for helping the community and all but can’t Intak and I do it?” Y/n asks, causing Sunoo to roll his eyes. “That defeats the whole purpose if you do it with him.” He scowls. “I don’t want to hear any fuss about this. It’ll be two days a week, after school Thursdays and Sundays. And if I hear that either of you are acting up I’ll have no choice but to strip away your senior benefits - which means no senior trip and no prom.”

If Y/n hated Mr Lee a minute ago, those words that just came out of his mouth made them love him again. Poor guy doesn’t know that he’s just given Y/n a great idea… Sunoo can’t run for prom king if he’s been kicked out of the whole event. All Y/n needs to do is find a way to get Sunoo in trouble at this community centre without getting themself involved.

THURSDAY - 15 DAYS TILL PROM:

Waiting outside the community centre in the scorching heat is not how Y/n planned to spend their afternoon. And with no sign of Sunoo, their anger starts to boil up - much like the temperature outside.

Just as they’re about to give up and tell Mr Lee that Sunoo was a no-show, a familiar car pulls up in the carpark and none other than Kim Sunoo steps out.

“You have some nerve. I’ve been waiting for like 10 minutes!” Y/n scowls, causing Sunoo to furrow his brows. “What time were we supposed to get here?” He asks. This only frustrates Y/n more. He doesn’t even respect them enough to value their time?

“God, you really are selfish. The email said 3:30.” Y/n pulls out their phone to back up their point with the email, only for their face to fall. “3:45 babe.” Sunoo smirks, watching as Y/n’s face heats up in embarrassment. They were sure it said 3:30. “Were you just so excited to see me that you came early?” He asks, making Y/n scoff - avoiding eye contact. “You wish! I was just… showing my dedication to… y’know, serving the community and… stuff.”

For the first time in what seems like forever, Y/n feels small under Sunoo’s gaze. They are so used to butting heads, always having a snarky remark or point to make. It seems that this interaction has somehow managed to knock Y/n off their pedestal - at least a little.

“I’m sure you standing out here has done so much for the community. Now, I don’t know about you but I’m gonna go inside.” Sunoo says, playfully ruffling Y/n’s hair before entering the building. Y/n scoffs out a few insults before fixing their hair and following suit.

Inside the building is a lot cooler than outside, the cold air conditioning a stark contrast to the outdoor heat. The two stand awkwardly in the front reception, watching as the person behind the desk talks on the phone.

“Wait, I’ve got people. Go complain to someone else.” The person says before abruptly hanging up, his irritated expression flipping to an almost scary smile. “Hi! How can I help you?” He asks. Sunoo nudges Y/n, who rolls their eyes before speaking up. “We’re here for the volunteer thing.” Y/n says, glancing down at the name tag that reads Minho - with a small cat face drawn next to it.

“Cool, what department?” He asks, typing something on his computer. “Uh… what?” Y/n asks, causing Minho to let out an exaggerated groan, spinning in his chair for added effect. “What department are you in? It’ll be on the sign up email.” He clarifies. Sunoo scrambles to check the email from Mr Lee, not seeing anything about a department. He shows Minho the email, causing his eyes to light up. “Oh! You’re the trouble kids?” He asks, turning his attention back to the computer momentarily. “I wouldn’t say that…” Y/n mumbles, causing Minho to laugh slightly. “It’s not a dig at character, trust me. Nothing wrong with a little rule breaking.” He winks. “Don’t tell your teachers I told you that.” He adds before standing.

“Looks like you’ll be doing a little bit of everything. I’ll throw you in with Seonghwa at first, that way you can come to me when you actually know what you’re doing.” Minho says, unlocking a backdoor before gesturing for the two to follow.

Minho leads them down a nicely lit hallway, pointing out different rooms and doors as they go. “Since we mainly do goods distribution here, we’re split into department’s so it’s easier to manage. You’ve got Seonghwa for kids - so that’s everything from toys, baby products, anything else children need. Then Beomgyu is in grocery. That’s just your basic food items. And then finally I’m on clothes and pet stuff.”

After his little introduction, he stops at a door before loudly knocking, causing Sunoo and Y/n to jump slightly. The door quickly opens and the head of a man who looks around Minho’s age pokes out. “Fresh meat.” Minho jokes, gesturing to the two students. “I told you to stop calling them that! And you wonder why people say you’re scary.” Seonghwa sighs, opening the door fully. “I’ll take it from here. You can go back to your phone call.” He continues.

Minho bids his goodbyes before walking back off down the hall. “Don’t let him scare you. He’s secretly a big softie.” Seonghwa says. “Anyway, I’m Seonghwa. I run the kids department here. I’m guessing you’re Y/n and Sunoo?” He asks, causing the two to nod silently.

Seonghwa looks at the two suspiciously. “Are you sure the school sent the right kids? Your teacher said you’re at each other’s throats 24/7.” He asks. “I’m sure Y/n will start something soon.” Sunoo mumbles, causing Y/n’s eye to twitch. They bite their tongue however, if they want this plan of getting Sunoo in trouble to work then they’ll have to make sure they’re on Seonghwa’s good side. “I’m sure we can put our differences aside for this. Especially since it’s helping the community.” Y/n says, causing Sunoo to roll his eyes at their words. “I hope so. It’s amazing what can happen to a bond when you do something like this. You should’ve seen Minho and Beomgyu when they first started.” Seonghwa says. “Right, I guess I’ll give you a tour of the department.” He continues before walking them down the hall to the storage room.

FRIDAY - 14 DAYS TILL PROM:

“And we barely even argued! Which is weird.” Y/n exclaims, after reciting their experience at the community centre. Intak hums, shoving some of his lunch in his mouth. “Maybe you two are finally getting along.” He says nonchalantly. “Oh please, I’ll never get along with someone like him.” Y/n scoffs, causing Intak to roll his eyes.

“I still don’t get why you hate him so much. You guys are more similar than you think.” He points out, causing Y/n to gasp. “First of all, never say that to me again. And second of all, he made your childhood miserable! Of course I’d hate him.” Y/n states matter-of-factly. “I wouldn’t say he made it miserable. I’m already insufferable as it is, imagine how big my ego would be if I never lost anything! Plus, it’s not like he beat me on purpose. That’s just how stuff goes sometimes…” Intak rambles. The two lock eyes for a moment and for a second Intak thinks his little speech got through to Y/n. “I’m still gonna hate him.” Y/n shrugs, causing Intak to sigh.

SUNDAY - 12 DAYS TILL PROM:

By the time Sunday rolls around, the fact that Y/n will have to spend all day with Sunoo finally settles in. Sure, they’ll have loads of stuff to do to hopefully keep them busy, but that won’t change the fact that he’s there. His presence alone is enough to frustrate Y/n.

“Sunday’s are pretty busy since it’s the one of days we hand everything out. So we have both delivery trucks picking stuff up and individual people. I’ll probably keep you two on sorting for now, just so I don’t overwhelm you too much.” Seonghwa says, making Sunoo and Y/n nod. “We do grocery on a separate day from clothes, kids and pets because of the amount of stock. So Beomgyu will be wandering around if you need any help and can’t find me. He’s only a few years older than you guys so I think you will get along well. You can always ask other volunteers too if you’re stuck.” With that, Seonghwa dismisses the two.

“Why the hell would you do it that way?”

“Babe, Seonghwa literally said there’s more than one way to do it.”

“Stop calling me babe! And if he saw what you were doing, he’d change his mind.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

The sound of Y/n and Sunoo’s argument fills the sorting room. It all started with Sunoo deciding he was going to stack the lego boxes upright rather than laying them flat. His thinking being that it takes up less room and leaves space for other things. Y/n however, insists that laying them flat leaves plenty of room for things to go on top - as well as making the container easier to close. Both are technically correct, but that’s not an acceptable answer to them.

As the two continue to argue, Sunoo yanks the box of lego out of Y/n’s hands - causing it to fall, splitting open and scattering lego pieces all over the floor. “Oh you’re so fucked.” Y/n laughs, causing Sunoo to complain about how they started the argument.

“Who the hell is screaming in here?” A voice asks. The two turn around to see Beomgyu standing in the doorway, his eyes lighting up as he sees them. “Oh hey trouble. I should’ve guessed it was you two.” He says, his gaze then falls to the lego all over the floor. “Oh shit.”

Sunoo and Y/n quickly try to pass the blame onto each other, causing Beomgyu to wave them off. “No offence, but I don’t give a shit who started it. Let’s just pick it all up before someone stands on it. Stepping on lego might as well be a torture method.” He says, crouching down to grab the broken box.

He notices the quiet atmosphere in the room and awkwardly laughs. “Don’t get scared now, this kinda stuff happens sometimes. If it makes you feel any better, Seonghwa takes home the faulty ones to add to his collection.” He says. The thought of Seonghwa at home surrounded by lego sets makes Y/n and Sunoo laugh slightly.

“Just… try not to do this sort of stuff when you’re in my department, okay? Spilled lego is a lot easier to handle than food.” The two nod as Beomgyu places the box on the counter. “Well, I’ll leave you two to it, then. Maybe try to be a little… quieter with the next argument.” He winks before leaving the room.

MONDAY - 11 DAYS TILL PROM:

“So… how was Sunday?” Yuna teases, causing Sunoo to look at her with an unimpressed expression. “Oh shut up.” He mumbles, causing her to stifle a laugh.

“I just feel bad for Y/n.” Kazuha says. “Being forced to spend time with Sunoo would be hell for anyone, but especially them.” Sunoo rolls his eyes at his friend, flipping her off before turning his attention back to his food. “Zuha’s right, you’re gonna drive them insane.” Yuna says. “Hey! They do the same to me!” Sunoo complains, causing Yuna to roll her eyes. “Well yeah, but they do it because they actually don’t like you. You do it because you’re trying to live out some weird enemies to lovers fanfic trope.” She points out. “True, not sure why you thought that would work.” Kazuha jumps in. “We get it, I’m a dumb guy who doesn’t know how to communicate my feelings. You’ve said this all before.” Sunoo dismisses.

“Just saying… maybe if you, I don’t know… spoke to them like normal people do to their crush.” Yuna shrugs. “Cause that works out so great for you two.” Sunoo deadpans. “You’re bitter because you know we’re right.” Kazuha teases, causing Sunoo to roll his eyes again.

TUESDAY - 10 DAYS TILL PROM:

Speak to them like a normal person. The thought has been running through Sunoo’s mind ever since lunch yesterday. Given the nature of his and Y/n’s relationship (if you could even call it that), he never even considered talking to them normally to be an option. But as he spots them walking down the hallway as school comes to an end, he figures what better time to start than now?

“Y/n!” Sunoo calls out, jogging through the halls to catch up to them. “Go away.” Y/n replies. “Oh come on babe, would it kill you to give me two seconds of your attention?” Sunoo asks, grabbing Y/n’s wrist. “Let go of me.” Y/n snarls, despite making no effort to pull away. Sunoo chooses to ignore their request, opting to teasingly pull them closer. “I wanna show you something.” He smirks, causing Y/n to roll their eyes. They quickly pull their arm out of his grip, folding their arms securely across their chest. “Well make it quick, I’m going to watch Intak’s practice.” Y/n mumbles.

Sunoo rolls his eyes at the mention of Intak but chooses not to comment. “One of my neighbours was talking to my mum about a care package she got. Apparently she’s signed up with the community centre. My mum sent me a photo.” Sunoo says, grabbing his phone and showing the picture to Y/n.

On his phone, is a picture of one of the boxes they packed on Sunday. This one is one of Y/n’s (you can tell from the way the lego box is placed). Y/n’s eyes light up at the photo, which doesn’t go unnoticed by Sunoo. “She said her sons were super excited when it arrived. They made the lego set together almost immediately.” He says, swiping to show a photo of the completed lego set.

“Oh my god! That’s so cool!” Y/n exclaims, leaning closer to get a better view of the photo. Sunoo attempts to ignore the way his heart skips at the gentle pressure of Y/n’s shoulder brushing against his. “I know right? Obviously it’s nice to make a difference but… actually seeing it is just… it’s awesome.” Sunoo says, causing Y/n to nod enthusiastically.

It goes silent for a second as Y/n suddenly notices how far they were leaning into him, immediately stepping back. Sunoo can almost see the invisible wall being built between them as Y/n puts their guard back up - the sight causing Sunoo to frown slightly. “I uh… thanks for showing me that. I’ll see you on Thursday.” Y/n mumbles awkwardly before walking off down the hall.

THURSDAY - 8 DAYS TILL PROM:

With prom just over a week away, Y/n can feel their plans of getting Sunoo kicked out slowly start to slip through their fingers. Turns out, trying to get Sunoo in trouble whilst staying out of trouble themself is a difficult task. It’s not like they can just start an argument like usual, and Sunoo’s unfortunately not the type of person to easily fall for sabotage.

“Hey trouble!” Minho exclaims as the two walk into the community centre. “Are you ever gonna stop calling us that?” Sunoo asks, causing Minho to laugh at the slight pout on his lips. “Stop breaking Lego sets and maybe I will.” He teases. The two teens visibly tense at his words, causing Minho to only laugh harder. “I’m just messing with you, shit happens. But do that in my department and neither of you will reach adulthood.”

He’s joking. It’s a joke. But the downright evil smirk on his lips almost makes it seem like it’s not…

“Anyway, this week is your last week in the kid’s section so try to make the most of it. We’ll rotate you every two weeks so you get used to all of the departments, then you can pick which one to volunteer in for the rest of the program.” Minho explains. “Oh! And before I forget!” He adds, aggressively wheeling his chair towards a cabinet - pulling something out of one of the drawers before wheeling back to the two.

“Your very own name badges! I didn’t draw anything on them since we don’t know what departments you’ll be in but we can always add to them later.” Minho says, handing a name badge to each of the students. “The drawing is for the different departments? I just thought you really liked cats.” Sunoo shrugged. “While that’s also true, they have a professional meaning too. Cat because I run the pet department.” Minho states. “But don’t you also run the clothes department?” Y/n asks, causing Minho to sigh. “That’s just temporary. Used to be run by this dude called Jay but he… took an early flight. If you get what I mean.”

“He means an actual flight.” A voice interrupts the conversation. The three turn around to see Seonghwa standing in the doorway. “Jay went back to America to be with his family. You really need to stop telling people he died, dude.” Seonghwa clarifies, earning an eye roll from Minho. “He’s dead to me.” Minho mumbles, causing Seonghwa to scoff. “Anyway, I’ll get these two out of your hair. That lady from Goodwill is supposed to be dropping stuff off in an hour so try not to ignore her when she gets here.” Seonghwa says. Minho waves him off nonchalantly before going back to whatever it is he does on his computer.

As the three walk back towards the storage area, Sunoo takes note of the little drawing of a lego block on Seonghwa’s name tag. He nudges Y/n gently - subtly pointing it out to them, earning a gentle smile and quiet giggle in return.

“Since you’ve already mastered packing boxes, I figure I’d let you unload and organize today. All these boxes came from a delivery truck yesterday. You’ve just got to unpack them and put them on the right shelves. Easy?” Seonghwa asks, earning affirmed nods from the two. “Great, if the three of us work hard it should only take us an hour or two. Then we can go over some stock checks and maybe do some more packing if there’s time.”

There's not a lot to argue about when you're busy working. Especially when the two are working with Seonghwa - someone they absolutely don't want to annoy. But it's a weird feeling for Y/n, practically spending hours on end with Sunoo yet not even muttering an insult.

“Okay, that’s us.” Seonghwa announces suddenly, causing the two students to look up at him confused. “But we still have a few orders to pack?” Y/n questions, causing Seonghwa to wave them off. “I’ll finish these later - we get in trouble for keeping you after hours.”

The two collect their things and go to leave but get stopped by Minho and Beomgyu, who are chatting about something in the reception area. “Woah woah, where are you two running off to?” Minho asks. “Uh… home?” Y/n asks, causing Minho to narrow his eyes at them. “You got a ride?” He asks accusingly. “I drove.” Sunoo nods, before the attention shifts to Y/n. “Oh, uh I caught the bus.” Y/n admits. Minho sighs at their words, rummaging through one of his desk draws before pulling out a set of keys.

“Beomgyu will drop you off.” He says, placing the keys in Beomgyu’s hands. “Have you seen the state my department is in? I don’t have time to play uber driver.” Beomgyu argues. “So you’d prefer our little Y/n here to catch the bus at this time of night?” Minho argues. “Why don’t you drop them off?” Beomgyu asks, placing the keys back in Minho’s hand. “I’ve got a very important business call and Seonghwa will kick my ass if I miss it.” Minho shrugs.

“Well, I’m sure Sunoo can drop them off.” Beomgyu suggests, turning his attention back to Sunoo. “Uh… I guess I could-” “-Really, it’s fine. It’s only like a 10 minute bus ride.” Y/n clarifies, earning a death glare from both Minho and Beomgyu.

“Y/n, if you get on that bus and get kidnapped and murdered, I will personally study witchcraft and bring you back to life just to kill you again myself.” Y/n’s eyes widen at Minho’s words, causing Beomgyu to awkwardly chuckle. “What he means is, we don’t feel comfortable with you taking the bus alone and strongly advise you to get a ride with Sunoo.” Beomgyu reasons.

The thought of spending any amount of time alone with Sunoo makes Y/n want to pull the hair out of their scalp. But they suppose it is better than potentially getting kidnapped. And Minho and Beomgyu don’t seem like the type of people to budge on this sort of thing. So Y/n reluctantly agrees, and Minho makes sure to walk the two to the carpark and personally watch them drive away - for extra precautions.

The car ride is silent and awkward. Despite the lack of arguing that has been going on between the two, it is blatantly obvious that there is still a massive wall placed between them.

Sunoo doesn’t know what to do to break the tension. Does he just let the two sit in silence? Does he try to talk about his day? Does he turn the radio on? Deciding a conversation is probably the best way to go, he lets out a shaky breath before mumbling:

“So, how are you liking the community centre?”

With the silence that follows his words, he almost thinks that Y/n didn’t hear him. Either that, or they hate him so much that they’d rather ignore him than have one conversation. Considering it’s dead silent, the latter unfortunately seems like the more likely option. Sunoo’s thoughts however, are cut short when Y/n replies:

“It’s more fun than I thought it would be… and the guys are really nice.” Sunoo nods at their words, letting out a small hum of agreement. “I was a little scared of Minho at first.” He admits, his attempt at potentially lightening the mood successfully landing, as Y/n lets out a small, breathy laugh.

"Yeah… I don't think I've heard someone affectionately threaten murder so much before." Y/n jokes. They're still turned away from Sunoo, opting to stare out the window in order to avoid looking at him. But at least they're joking now. It's progress.

"What happened to your car, by the way?" Sunoo asks curiously. Y/n sends him a confused look, causing him to elaborate. "I mean… don't you usually drive Intak to school everyday? Why didn't you drive here?"

Y/n let's out a scoff, looking back out the window. "The idiot tried to cook a pizza on the dashboard. Some bullshit about it being the hottest day of the year. He saw it on tiktok." Sunoo's face scrunches up, mumbling a small ew. "Apparently it'll take a while to clean, too. I think melted cheese got into the radio or something." Y/n shrugs.

"Does that mean you'll need a ride on Sunday too?" Sunoo asks without thinking. He internally face-palms as Y/n visibly tenses up at his words. God, why does he have to be so stupid?

"Uh… Intak should be free on Sunday…" Y/n mumbles. Sunoo has to stop himself from rolling his eyes. A habit, he likes to claim - opting to ignore the tiny amount of jealousy boiling in the pit of his stomach at the mention of the other man's name. Of course Intak would be the one to take them. The two are practically joined at the hip.

The car is silent for the rest of the drive, with the two only mumbling short goodbyes as Sunoo pulls up to Y/n's house. He chooses to stay, watching as they walk up the driveway and into the building. Y/n doesn't look back.

SUNDAY - 5 DAYS TILL PROM:

“Oh, how's the plan going?” Intak asks suddenly, as he pulls into the community centre parking lot. "Huh?" Y/n asks confused - causing Intak to deadpan at them. "Your whole thing of getting Sunoo to drop out of being prom king. It's on Friday." He clarifies.

Oh right. That plan. Y/n honestly forgot all about it, especially after the awkward interaction they had in Sunoo's car on Thursday.

"I haven't made much progress." Y/n sighs. "Because you're making progress in other areas?" Intak asks, a small smirk spreading across his face. "Don't think I haven't noticed the tension at school, and different from the old tension." He adds, earning an eye roll from Y/n. "I think you need to get your eyes checked." Y/n retorts, ruffling Intak's hair before grabbing their stuff and getting out of the car.

"You're picking me up tonight, right?" Y/n asks. "No, I'm gonna abandon you." Intak deadpans. Y/n gives him an annoyed look, making him laugh. "I'll text you when I get here." He says, causing Y/n to wave him off. "No need, I can spot your shitty car from a mile away." Intak goes to reply but Y/n shuts the car door- making sure to slam it for added effect.

As Intak goes to drive off, he winds down his window. "Have a fun day at work my Pookie Pie!! I love you." He calls, blowing a dramatic kiss to add some flare. Y/n rolls their eyes, flipping him off before entering the building.

Sunoo is already there, signing in at the front desk with Minho and Seonghwa. "I didn't know you had a boyfriend, Y/n." Seonghwa says, earning a scoff from Sunoo. "Yeah, a shitty one. Where was he the other night?" Minho grumbles. "He was busy with soccer practice. And uh… he's not my boyfriend." Y/n says, awkwardly scratching the back of their neck. "Might as well be." Sunoo mumbles bitterly, his comment not going unnoticed by Minho and Seonghwa, who both mumble short apologies for the mistake.

The two share a knowing look before Seonghwa claps his hands, gaining the attention of the two teens. "Right, since today is your last day in my department we'll just focus on practising what you already know. And later on, Beomgyu will give you a tour of his department so you can get straight into things next week."

Minho watches as Seonghwa gets the two to work, immediately going to find Beomgyu and explain to him what the heck just happened.

There is something wrong with Sunoo - that much is clear. He and Y/n aren’t friends of course, but there hasn’t been this much tension between the two since they started volunteering. Y/n doesn’t understand what went wrong?

As Sunoo ignores their question for the umpteenth time, Y/n finally feels themself snap. They grab the box of toys out of his hand, shoving it back on the shelf before crossing their arms across their chest - effectively cornering him in the storage room.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Y/n whisper-yells, not wanting to gain the attention of Seonghwa. “What’s wrong with me? You just ripped a box out of my hands?” Sunoo rolls his eyes. “Because you’re ignoring me!”

It’s stupid, Y/n knows. They’ve spent their entire high school career wishing for the day that Sunoo would start ignoring them. But now that it’s here, they hate it.

“And why do you care? We aren’t friends, Y/n. Even if I try to talk to you, you just go right back to running off with Intak every chance you get.”

And then it clicks. Everything always goes back to Intak.

“Oh my god, Sunoo. This is all about Intak? He’s my best friend, dumbass. And your stupid grudge with him doesn’t change that.” Y/n is fuming, and their volume is no longer at the front of their mind. Sunoo scoffs, pushing past Y/n and picking up the box once again. “I think you’re the dumbass, Y/n. Because everyone but you can tell that you and Intak are not best friends.”

Before he can get back to work however, Y/n catches up and shoves his shoulder - causing the box of toys to fall to the floor. “You’re a fucking hypocrite, you know that?” Y/n scowls, earning another eye roll from Sunoo. “I’m not the one in love with my best friend.” “People can be just friends, Sunoo! You of all people should know that!”

Y/n knows they are yelling, but they don't really care. In fact, they hope that the entire building can hear every word they’re saying; maybe then Sunoo will understand how ridiculous he is being. Even if they were in love with Intak, which is so far from the truth, what the hell does it matter to Kim Sunoo?

“No one says shit about you and Kazuha. Or you and Yuna. How is this any different? Do you get like this when they talk to other people, or am I just special?”

Of course you’re special Sunoo wants to scream. But he holds back - knowing better than to dump all his emotions onto Y/n. Especially now that they’re this worked up.

“Are you two finished?” A calm voice breaks through the tension, and both teens snap their heads to look at the figure. Seonghwa stands leaning against the doorway, his face expressionless as he looks at the two.

It’s as if they’d seen a ghost, and Seonghwa has to hold back his laugh at this. Remembering that he is, in fact the grown up in this situation - he takes a deep breath before ushering towards his office. “Come on, let’s all have a little chat, shall we?”

Seonghwa is scary when he’s mad. Minho and Beomgyu would be too, if they weren’t spending their time trying to hold back their giggles. They can’t help it though - not with Y/n and Sunoo sitting there like two children being scolded by their parents.

“I have tried my best to not… interfere with the relationship between you two. Simply because it is none of my business. But when you are in our building, you must obey our standards, and whatever that was back there is certainly not the type of behaviour we like to see.” Seonghwa states, his voice clear and stern. “Isn’t that right, guys?” He adds, turning to the other two adults in the room - who clearly were not paying attention.

“Uh… yeah.” Beomgyu replies, his voice cracking slightly. This finally sets Minho off, his fit of laughter soon turning into a safety hazard as he begins to choke on his own saliva. Seonghwa can’t help the sigh that escapes his lips, watching in mild disappointment as Beomgyu pats Minho’s back in an attempt to help clear his throat.

“Anyway, we think it will be best to separate the two of you for a little bit, until the hostility goes down. Sunoo, you’ll spend the rest of the day with Minho and Y/n, you’re with Beomgyu. I’ll continue where you left off in kids.” Seonghwa says.

“Wait, so you can’t deal with them so you just pass them onto us?” Beomgyu asks, offended. “Be grateful you’re not getting both of them.” Minho rolls his eyes, letting out a yelp as Beomgyu pinches his side.

It’s weird to see them talk so openly about the two, as if they aren’t sitting in the very same room. Y/n can’t bring themself to look away from Seonghwa, a strong sense of guilt building up in the pit of their stomach. He looks stressed, and Y/n can’t shake the feeling that they’re a major factor.

“Well… is there anything you two would like to say before I send you off?” Seonghwa asks, the attention in the room turning back towards the two teens. Y/n gulps under the gaze, glancing at Sunoo from the corner of their eye - who is avoiding eye contact all together. The two mumble quiet apologies, which almost go unnoticed by the others. Seonghwa sighs once more, gesturing for everyone to leave his office.

MONDAY - 4 DAYS TILL PROM:

“You look like someone died.” Kazuha states, dropping her food tray on the table and effectively snapping Sunoo out of his thoughts. “His relationship with Y/n did.” Yuna snickers, letting out a shriek as Sunoo’s empty milk carton flies towards her head. “Resorting to violence, now? No wonder Y/n doesn’t like you.” Yuna teases, throwing the milk carton back towards him.

“Wait, what happened with Y/n?” Kazuha asks. Sunoo sighs in response, picking at his food. “Nothing, I just fucked everything up… like always.” The response earns some eye rolls from the girls. “Stop acting like a pick me and explain what happened. Or I’ll go ask Y/n myself.” Kazuha threatens, although her words are all bluff.

Sunoo lets out another sigh, deciding there’s no use trying to argue with his friends. “I got jealous of Intak and said some… things. Y/n got mad, for obvious reasons and now we’re not talking.” He doesn’t even need to look up at his friends to tell that they are rolling their eyes at him.

“You are one of the dumbest people alive.” Yuna scoffs. “I know.” Sunoo whines, resting his head in his hands. “What did you actually say to Y/n?” Kazuha sighs, mentally putting on her couples counsellor hat. Sunoo hesitates, knowing he’s about to get ripped into by the girls. “I said that there’s no point in us being friends if they’re just going to run off with Intak every chance they get… and that it’s obvious their relationship is more than that.”

The table is silent for a few moments as Sunoo’s words set in. “You are the reason I hate men.” Yuna groans. “No literally, do you realise how hypocritical that is?” Kazuha asks. “Obviously but I was angry and just said whatever came to mind.” Sunoo frowns.

The girls give each other a look before turning back to Sunoo, who continues to wallow in his self-pity. Sighing, Kazuha moves to sit next to him, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “Maybe it’s time to be honest and tell Y/n how you really feel about them.” She says, causing Sunoo’s head to shoot up from it’s position on the table. “Be honest?” He asks with wide eyes. “Yes, Sunoo. If you tell Y/n that you said that because you were jealous and you like them then maybe they’ll actually give you a shot. It’s a much better plan than whatever the hell you’ve been doing this entire time.” Yuna points out. “And if they reject you, at least you tried.” Kazuha attempts to reassure, only to be met with glares from her two friends. “Way to boost my confidence.” Sunoo mumbles, picking up a spoonful of his lunch.

THURSDAY - 1 DAY TILL PROM:

“So… I heard you’ve got prom tomorrow?” Beomgyu asks, trying to break the ice. He hasn’t been alone with Y/n before so he’s not entirely sure what to say. Judging by Y/n’s groan at his words - he definitely said the wrong thing.

“Not looking forward to it?” He adds. “Since Sunoo will be there, no, I’m not.” Y/n mumbles, trying to turn their attention to the box of cans they are currently unpacking. They have nothing against Beomgyu, he’s sweet and all but god, does he not know how to take a hint.

“What happened between you two, by the way? I know you never got along but something must’ve happened to cause such a fight.” Beomgyu pries. “I really don’t want to talk about this right now.” Y/n sighs. Being met with silence, they think that Beomgyu has finally given up. Until he speaks again:

“You know, I heard that hating someone uses almost as much passion as loving them.”

This causes Y/n to choke on the air in their lungs, looking at Beomgyu with wide eyes. “I’m not lying! Hate sex is apparently really good… not that I would know, of course.” Y/n chooses not to pry at Beomgyu’s blatant confession and instead raises an eyebrow at him. “Are you really recommending hate sex to a highschooler?” They ask, causing Beomgyu to wave them off nonchalantly. “It’s an example, Y/nnie. I’m just saying that hate can be a confusing emotion. Sometimes you think you hate someone, when really you like them and just don’t know how to express it.” “That sounds pretty toxic.” Beomgyu waves them off again. “Just trust me. I know a lot about this stuff.”

“So… how are things going with Y/n?” Minho asks, his sudden words causing Sunoo to look at him with wide eyes. “I… huh?” Sunoo asks, confused. Minho rolls his eyes at this. “I’m not an idiot, I see the way you look at them. And judging by the way they treat you, they do not feel the same. So what’s the plan?”

Sunoo is overwhelmed by the sudden topic. “Uh… give up and go home?” He mumbles. This was not the answer that Minho wanted, judging by the look on his face. “I would slap you right now if Seonghwa wouldn’t fire me for it.” Minho threatens. “Listen, as someone who is basically an expert at this whole hate to love thing - I’m going to give you some advice.” He continues, placing a hand on Sunoo’s shoulder.

“You need to be obvious enough with the flirting that they can pick up on it but subtle enough that they think you’re just trying to annoy them. Then, when the tension gets high enough, you go full on flirt-mode. Catch them by surprise and reveal your feelings while their guard is down. And if you’re too scared to talk, just kiss them. Works like a charm.”

Sunoo looks at him skeptically, causing Minho to roll his eyes. “You think I’m joking? Beomgyu would tell you the same thing.” His words are very clearly alluding to something but Sunoo chooses to ignore them. “What if they just end up hating me even more?” He asks - his words causing Minho to let out an annoyed groan. “Then you suck it up and move on. If you open up about your feelings and they don’t accept it, then they’re not the right person for you. Was I this clueless when I was a teenager?” Noticing Sunoo’s hesitation, Minho continues. “Look, you’re a nice guy and you seem to really care about Y/n. I’m sure they only hate you because of some petty bullshit and not because you’re a terrible person. Have confidence in yourself!”

Sunoo nods affirmingly at Minho’s words. Have confidence in yourself.

FRIDAY - PROM NIGHT:

“Can I look yet?”

“No.”

“How about now?”

“Still no.”

“...”

“Intak, I swear to god, if you open your damn eyes…”

“I won’t!”

Y/n rolls their eyes at their best friend, looking themself over once more in the mirror. Once they’re happy with the completed outfit, they turn towards Intak - who’s stood in the middle of their bedroom with his hands covering his eyes.

“Okay… you can look now.”

As soon as the words leave Y/n’s lips, Intak’s hands are flying away from his face. His eyes fall on Y/n’s outfit as they stand awkwardly in front of him. “Woah… is it wrong for me to say you look hot?” Intak laughs, letting out a scream when Y/n hits his shoulder. “Hey! Don’t crinkle the suit!” He whines, earning an eye roll from Y/n. “Then don’t say cringy shit.”

“I’m serious though, you look great. Everyone’s gonna go crazy when they see you.” Intak compliments, causing Y/n to scoff. “Yeah, right. If I look so good, why am I taking you as my date?” Intak frowns at this. “You’re the one who turned down my idea of you and Sunoo going together.” He points out. “Yeah, cause that would literally be considered a form of torture.” Now it’s Intak’s turn to roll his eyes at Y/n’s exaggeration. “You’re just pissed that you guys fought. It would’ve been a great way to make up, you know?”

“Can we not talk about Sunoo right now?” Y/n asks, almost desperately. Intak narrows his eyes for a moment before sighing. “Fine. But as soon as this thing is over, you’re explaining what the hell happened with you two.”

Prom - the supposed “best night” of a high schooler’s life. The glitz and the glam. Food, drinks, music. It’s everything a teenager could wish for.

As Y/n and Intak walk into the school gym, they look around in awe at the decor. “You know, this turned out a lot better than I expected.” Y/n comments, causing Intak to nod in agreement. “I know, right? It barely smells like feet in here.” He jokes, letting out a pained noise when Y/n jabs him in the side. “So… are we going to the dancefloor first or the snack table?” Intak asks, causing Y/n to look at him with a blank expression. “Snack table it is.” He adds, laughing as Y/n aggressively pulls him towards the assortment of foods.

“I’m just gonna head to the bathroom!” Y/n mumbles, their voice slightly muffled due to the music. Intak sends them a thumbs up, letting them know he got the message. After a few moments, Intak feels a sudden presence behind him and turns around to see Sunoo standing there.

“Looking for Y/n?” He asks, causing Sunoo’s eyes to widen slightly. “Uh… yeah. I thought they’d be with you.” He mumbles. “Bathroom.” Intak shrugs, earning a slight nod from Sunoo. Intak gestures for him to take a seat and Sunoo hesitates for a moment before sitting down.

“How did you know I was looking for Y/n?” Sunoo asks, causing Intak to shrug. “Well, you weren’t coming to hang out with me.” He jokes, earning an awkward laugh from Sunoo. “Are you still upset about… you know?” Sunoo asks. “Oh, god no. I got over that like, freshman year.” Intak says, waving him off. “Oh. Okay, well… I feel like I should apologise anyway. I wasn’t like… trying to compete with you or anything.” Sunoo says, causing Intak to laugh. “It’s all good, like I said, I forgave you ages ago. Y/n on the other hand…” Intak trails off, causing Sunoo’s eyes to widen.

Everything finally seems to fall into place. Y/n hates Sunoo because of what happened with him and Intak? He supposes it does make sense; they are best friends after all. But if Intak is over it, then why isn’t Y/n?

“Can I be honest about something?” Sunoo asks, causing Intak to look at him confused. “As long as you don’t confess your undying love for me. You’re cute but not really my type.” He jokes, making Sunoo laugh so hard he almost falls out of his chair. “Trust me, you’re not my type either.” He responds, causing Intak to scoff in feigned offence. “You know what? Maybe I do still hate you.” Intak pouts. He keeps the act up for a few moments before returning back to his smiley self, gesturing for Sunoo to go on.

“This is gonna sound really weird but… whenever I see you and Y/n, I can’t help but feel jealous. Like, you guys are so in tune with each other and… you’re close with them in a way that I can only dream of. I don’t know… guess it made me unknowingly hate you which probably added to why Y/n hates me.” Sunoo rants. Intak’s face doesn’t give much away, as he stares forward with furrowed brows. For a moment, Sunoo thinks he’s said something wrong.

“Y/n’s a complicated person. They like it when people are open and honest, but hate being open and honest themself. They’re also super stubborn… you probably already know that. They hate admitting when they’re wrong but really admire it when others do.” Intak says. Sunoo looks at him confused, not entirely sure what he’s trying to say.

“Y/n’s basically a hypocrite, who looks for people that do and say the things they refuse to. That’s why we’re so close, we balance each other out. You, however, are more like Y/n, which is why I think you guys butt heads. You both want to be more open but your stubbornness gets in the way and you argue. I think that’s the difference between me with Y/n and you with Y/n.” Intak points out.

Sunoo’s face screws up at Intak’s words as he lets out a dry laugh. “Doesn’t sound like me and Y/n are a good match, then.” He mumbles. “I think you can understand Y/n a lot better than I do. Sometimes they do things and I just don’t get why. But if you and Y/n are going to be friends… or more, one of you will have to adjust a little. And judging by this conversation we’re having, it looks like you’re trying to.” Intak says, a genuine smile on his lips.

Sunoo is in awe. He’s never felt so called out yet reassured at the same time. “Where the hell did you learn to give advice like that?” He asks, shocked. Intak laughs slightly, scratching the back of his neck. “I watch a lot of couples therapy programs. It’s a guilty pleasure.” He mumbles. Just as Sunoo is about to ask what shows, the two are interrupted by Intak’s phone going off. He looks at the screen to see Y/n calling, immediately answering and putting them on speaker.

“Intak! You have to come outside and see this dog. It’s wearing a little bow tie!” Y/n exclaims, happily. “Outside? I thought you were in the bathroom?” Intak asks. “I move quickly. Now hurry up!” Y/n ushers, continuing to rave on about the dog as Intak waves goodbye to Sunoo.

“Ladies and gentlemen, if we could have you all to the dance floor to announce this year’s Prom King and Queen.”

Y/n is probably feeling more nervous than Intak - judging by the way they’re squeezing his hand. “I think you’re gonna break my knuckles.” Intak leans down to whisper, causing Y/n to roll their eyes. “Shut up.” They whisper back.

Has the principal's intro speech always been this long? No one asked about how proud you are of all the contestants, they just want to hear who won. After what feels like literal hours of talking, the drumroll begins to play throughout the gym.

“And the winner of Be Lift High’s Prom King is…”

“Hwang Intak!”

Y/n is probably more excited than Intak, too - judging by the way they practically scream in his ear. Intak grins widely as Y/n shakes him back and forth, receiving a few pats on the back and whoops from the crowd around them. Snapping out of his shock, Intak gently pulls away from Y/n’s grip and walks up to the stage to be crowned.

Despite Intak walking away, Y/n immediately feels another presence beside them. They turn to see Sunoo standing there, watching fondly as Intak accepts the crown. Y/n attempts to ignore him, turning their attention back to Intak. Despite this, Sunoo had already felt Y/n’s eyes on him and gently nudges their side to get their attention.

“He looks really happy.” Sunoo points out. His statement earns an eye roll from Y/n, who immediately turns to him with a smirk. “Jealous you didn’t win?” They asks snarkily, causing Sunoo to laugh slightly. It’s not the sarcastic laugh he usually does around Y/n. It’s a small, genuine laugh. “No, he deserves it.” Sunoo smiles before turning his attention back to the stage, where Intak is about to start his acceptance speech.

The smirk on Yn’s face immediately drops as they take in Sunoo’s words. Sure, he doesn’t have to be jealous… but Y/n at least expected a snarky comeback. Why is he smiling like he and Intak are friends?

“You look really good by the way.” Sunoo says, not taking his eyes off the stage. Y/n immediately scans his face for any signs of sarcasm or teasing. None. Awkwardly coughing, Y/n turns away from Sunoo and back towards the stage. They mumble a quiet shut up but the subtle blush that spreads across their cheeks shows they didn’t hate the compliment.

“And we’ll now announce Be Lift High’s Prom Queen…. Nakamura Kazuha!”

“Fuck yeah!” Yuna screams, immediately covering her mouth when she realised the rest of the crowd hadn’t started yet. She mumbles a few apologies before pushing Kazuha towards the stage.

With Kazuha now joining Intak on the stage, Yuna squeezes herself between Sunoo and Y/n - slinging her arms around both of their shoulders. “Do you think anyone heard me swear?” She jokes, causing Sunoo and Y/n to laugh. “Judging by the way Mr Kim is currently glaring into our souls, I’d say yeah.” Sunoo says.

The trio watch in amusement as Intak shuffles aside for Kazuha to give her speech, her sending him an awkward yet genuine smile. “They’re kinda cute, don’t you think?” Yuna asks, causing Y/n to scoff. “Oh please, she’s way too good for him.” They laugh. “I don’t know, Zuha’s taste in guys is…” Sunoo trails off. “Questionable.” Yuna finishes for him. Y/n shoots the two a confused look but chooses not to ask further questions.

“So, what were you and Sunoo talking about when I was on stage?” Intak asks as he and Y/n slow dance together. “Oh god, don’t remind me. Weirdest conversation we’ve ever had.” Y/n rolls their eyes, causing Intak’s to lighten up with interest. “Come on, spill the tea.” He says, laughing as Y/n physically cringes at his choice of words.

“I don’t know, it was just weird. Like, he was saying how you deserved to win and when I tried to tease him about it, he just didn’t react. And then he said I looked good… without being sarcastic!” Y/n rants, earning an eye roll from Intak. “You call that a weird conversation?” He asks. “Well yeah, it is for people who hate each other.” Y/n huffs.

“Y/n… you don’t seriously think Sunoo hates you, do you?” Intak’s question causes Y/n to look up at him, a confused expression painted across their face. “Uh… have you seen the way he acts around me? We’re like… constantly at each other’s throats.” Y/n points out. “Yeah, and who starts almost all of those arguments?” Intak asks.

Y/n falls silent for a moment as they think back to all their arguments with Sunoo. Sure… they’re often the one that takes it from teasing to yelling but… that doesn’t make Sunoo completely innocent.

“I think you should apologise to him.” Y/n’s eyes practically fall out of their skull as the words slip past Intak’s lips. “I think that’s the dumbest thing you’ve ever said.” Intak raises a brow at Y/n, almost in a challenging way. “Y/n… you know how much I love you but as your best friend, it’s my job to tell you when you’re being stupid… and this whole beef you’ve got with Sunoo is stupid… maybe if you start seeing him as a person rather than as some annoyance in your life, you’ll start to recognise that.” Intak says, finally, before dropping the topic.

Y/n pouts slightly as they mull over Intak’s words over and over again… he’s right. Y/n hates it when he’s right.

THURSDAY - 6 DAYS AFTER PROM:

I think you should apologise to him.

Those words have been repeating in Y/n’s brain all week. It’s very rare for a piece of Intak’s advice to stick with them for this long - usually he just says a few quotes he stole from Twitter and hopes it does the trick. It doesn’t.

Walking into the community centre, Y/n is surprised to see an unknown man sitting behind the desk instead of the usual Minho. As soon as he hears the door open, the man looks up and sends a small smile to Y/n.

“Uh… hi?” Y/n asks, walking up to the desk, puzzled. “Hey. You’re one of the volunteers, right? Y/n?” The man asks, causing Y/n to nod quietly. Their eyes quickly flicker down to his nametag - reading the name Jay along with a small drawing of some shoes. Jay? As in, the guy who used to work here?

“I thought you were in America?” Y/n asks, causing Jay’s eyes to widen slightly. “Oh… I was, yeah. But now I’m back.” He shrugs, passing Y/n the name tag box. Their eyebrows furrow slightly when they see that both Minho and Beomgyu’s name tags are still there. Just as they’re about to ask, they get interrupted by the door opening.

“Sorry I’m late, the coach tried to have an extra cheer practice.” Sunoo says as he walks into the building. He stops in his tracks when he spots Jay behind the desk. “Who are you?” He asks, bluntly. “Jay, and you must be Sunoo.” Jay says. Sunoo glances at Y/n, as if to ask what is happening. Y/n just offers a confused shrug back.

“Okay, as you can probably tell, I’m not Minho. Something happened and he had to take the day off which means, obviously, Beomgyu had too as well.” Jay says. Y/n and Sunoo aren’t sure why that’s obvious but they choose not to question it. “Because we’re down two people, things are going to look a bit different today. We can’t have you both in departments by yourself because, no offence but you’re not fully trusted to be left alone yet. Seonghwa’s still in kids, but he’ll also be checking on you two in grocery. I’ll take care of clothes and pets myself.” Jay says, earning affirmative nods from Sunoo and Y/n. “Cool, Beomgyu should’ve left you a note of what he wants done today but if you need any help, just ask me or Seonghwa.”

Beomgyu’s “note” turned out to be the computer password so they could access todays food pack orders along with the words “fuck things up and I’ll kill you” scribbled at the bottom. Not extremely helpful but Y/n expected nothing less.

“So we just… put the stuff on the list in a box?” Sunoo asks, making Y/n realise that he hasn’t actually worked in grocery yet. “Oh… yeah. We print off the order ticket, grab everything that's on it and put them in a box, stick the ticket on the top and then tick the packed button on the computer… it’s pretty simple once you get the hang of it, and everything’s labelled so you shouldn’t have any trouble.” Y/n rambles, quickly demonstrating how things work.

The two quickly get to work, in complete silence. It’s a little awkward. This is the first time Y/n has actually seen Sunoo since prom, other than quickly passing each other in the halls, and the first time that they’ve worked with him in the community centre since their fight.

I think you should apologise to him.

Groaning slightly, Y/n turns their attention back to the order they’re currently working on. The last thing they need right now is Intak’s stupid face in their brain, trying to convince them to apologise.

“Hey, Y/n? Can you come check this for me?” Sunoo suddenly calls, snapping Y/n out of their thoughts. “Uh... yeah, one sec.” Y/n replies, putting the finishing touches on their order before walking over to where Sunoo is working.

They find him in the produce section, looking puzzled. “Everything okay?” Y/n asks, causing Sunoo to jump slightly at their sudden presence. “Oranges and mandarins are the same thing, right?” Sunoo asks, causing Y/n to giggle slightly. “Um… no. Mandarins are little and come in pieces that you peel off, oranges are big and you need to cut them.” Y/n says, causing Sunoo to nod. “We only have oranges, then,” He says, turning to look at Y/n. “And I need mandarins.”

Sighing, Y/n does a quick scan around the produce section. There are in fact, no mandarins. “We’ll have to check the back storage.” Y/n says, walking towards the door to find Seonghwa. “You coming? I can’t carry a bulk box of fruit by myself.” Y/n says, causing Sunoo to immediately follow them.

Once the two grab the key from Seonghwa, they make their way to the back storage room, where all the unneeded products are kept. It’s weird being in here again. Last time the two were in this room, they were screaming at each other. Walking past the kids and pet sections, they finally find themselves in the grocery area.

“Over there.” Y/n points in the direction of the fruits, going to walk towards them. They realise that Sunoo is oddly quiet and turn around to look at him. “Are you okay?” Y/n asks. It’s silent for a few more moments before Sunoo blurts out two words Y/n never thought they’d hear him say.

“I’m sorry.”

Y/n doesn’t know how to respond. It seems that even Sunoo is a little taken aback by his words, judging by his wide-eyed expression. “Um… what?” Y/n laughs awkwardly. Where was this coming from?

“I’m sorry for… everything, really. I’ve been giving you hell for years for basically nothing. I was just jealous of you and Intak and I took it out on you when I should’ve just-” “-Are you kidding me?” Y/n asks suddenly, interrupting Sunoo’s words. “I’ve been thinking about apologising to you all week and you beat me to it?” They continue, causing Sunoo to look at them confused. “It’s not a competition…” Sunoo laughs awkwardly. “But I’ve hated you for years because of something you did unknowingly as a kid… and you didn’t even do it to me! Why the hell are you the one apologising?” Y/n asks, a small pout to their lips. Sunoo can’t help but look at them endearingly… are they really upset that he apologised before they could?

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Y/n asks, causing Sunoo to laugh slightly. “Sorry, you’re just really cute.” He says, causing their eyes to widen. A pink blush immediately spreads across their cheeks, earning a slight smirk from Sunoo. “Shut up.” Y/n mumbles, avoiding eye contact.

“Would you feel better if I took my apology back?” Sunoo asks, half jokingly. Y/n pauses to think for a moment before silently nodding, causing Sunoo to break out into a toothy grin. “Okay, then… I'll take it back.” He says, his words causing Y/n to look up at him again. They bite their lip nervously as he quietly waits for them to speak.

“Okay so like… I’m sorry for being a bitch and hating you for something you didn’t do. It was really childish of me and I hope that we can be friends… maybe.” Y/n rambles, their eyes nervously flickering from Sunoo’s to various parts of the room. Sunoo smiles at their nervousness, his heart swelling slightly at their words. “It’s okay… when I found out you didn’t like me I started purposefully annoying you. If you can’t tell, I think you’re cute when you’re mad.” Sunoo says, the pink blush on Y/n’s cheeks turning darker with each compliment. “Stop calling me that…” Y/n mumbles.

“You don’t like when I call you cute?”

“Hate it.”

“Your blush says otherwise, babe.”

“Shut up!”

“So… are you just gonna ignore the fact that I said I was jealous of you and Intak?” Sunoo asks, causing Y/n to look at him confused. “Why?” Y/n asks. “Because I like you and I hated that he was close with you in ways I couldn’t be… thought he had a better chance with you than I did.” Sunoo mumbles, causing Y/n to scoff slightly. “Oh please, Intak wouldn’t have a chance with me if he was the last man on earth.” Y/n says, choosing to ignore the part where Sunoo said he likes them.

“What about me?” Sunoo asks, stepping forward slightly to minimise the gap between them. “Uh… what about you?” Y/n asks, attempting to step back but getting stopped by the shelf behind them. “Would I have a chance?” Sunoo asks, continuing his steps until he is directly in front of Y/n, their back pressed up against the shelves. “Um… if you were the last man on earth, you mean? I guess, I don’t know. I don’t even think I’d survive long enough for us to be the last people on earth. Especially if it was like a zombie apocalypse or something, I’d probably die super… early.” Y/n rambles, the last words trailing off as Sunoo gently grips their chin, lifting it slightly so they’re making direct eye contact.

“I mean now, Y/n. Would I have a chance with you now?” Sunoo asks, his grip on Y/n’s chin stopping them from looking away. Y/n’s breath seems to get caught in their throat as they see Sunoo’s eyes flicker down to their lips. “I don’t know…” Y/n breathes out.

Their mind feels fuzzy. Up until about a week ago, they don’t think they’d ever had a positive thought about Sunoo. And now here they are, trapped between his body and a shelf, as he confesses that he likes them? Y/n has no idea how to process this new information.

“Are you guys okay in here?” A sudden voice calls out, causing Y/n to immediately push Sunoo away from them. They shut down the part of their brain that immediately misses his touch and peek behind the shelf to see Jay looking around the room for them. “We’re fine! Just took a while finding what we needed.” Sunoo calls out, going to grab one side of the mandarin crate. Taking note of Y/n’s slightly dazed expression, Sunoo can’t help but laugh slightly. “Actually, do you mind helping us carry this? Y/n’s a bit out of it.” Sunoo calls out again, sending a teasing wink to Y/n who immediately scowls at him. Guess that his feelings for them won’t change the constant teasing.

“I saw you drove today, your car’s fixed?” Sunoo asks as the two walk out of the community centre. “Yeah, it is. Which reminds me that I need to get Intak to pay me back.” Y/n says, taking a mental note. “Well, if you ever need a ride again, just know my passenger seat is always free for you.” Sunoo says, his words causing Y/n to blush slightly. They mumble a small thanks, causing Sunoo to smile endearingly. “Well, I’ve got to go. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Sunoo says, causing Y/n’s eyebrows to furrow. “School, babe.” Sunoo clarifies, making Y/n’s mouth fall into a small “oh”. Sunoo shakes his head with a gentle smile, ruffling Y/n’s hair affectionately. “Have a good night, Y/n.” He says before going to get into his car, waiting until Y/n has gotten in theirs and drives off before he leaves as well.

FRIDAY - 7 DAYS AFTER PROM:

“I told you so!”

Y/n reaches over to cover Intak’s mouth with their hand, shushing him as they look around the classroom. Thankfully, everyone else is busy with their own conversations to be listening in on theirs. Intak licks their hand, causing them to immediately pull away with a disgusted look. “You’re so gross.” Y/n mumbles, wiping their hand on Inak’s shirt sleeve. “I don’t care, you and Sunoo are getting together, I was finally right about something.” Intak teases, earning an eye roll from Y/n. “We’re not getting together, he likes me. There’s a difference.” “But you like him too!” Intak urges. “And how the hell do you know that?” Y/n asks, defensively. “Because we’re besties! I can basically read your mind at this point.” Y/n looks at him with a blank expression, clearly not believing his reasoning. “Plus you’re blushing, which is kind of a dead give away.”

Y/n throws their pen at Intak, who only pokes out his tongue in retaliation. He is right - they both know it. Which is what makes the whole situation more frustrating. Being confronted with the fact that you might like someone when you’ve spent years thinking you hate them is not a fun feeling. Y/n can’t help but think back to the conversation they had with Beomgyu last week. Sometimes you think you hate someone, when really you like them and just don’t know how to express it. God… did everyone see it but Y/n?

Obviously, they always knew that Sunoo was attractive (although they’d never admit it). And yeah, maybe a small part of them did secretly enjoy having Sunoo’s attention - good or bad. But does that really mean that they like him? Like, want to go on dates and hold hands and kiss and post cute couple pictures with cheesy captions to annoy their friends kind of like? Surely not…

…

Okay, maybe.

But liking Kim Sunoo and wanting to date Kim Sunoo are two completely different things. You can like someone and leave it at that - a hypothetical crush with no real drive to transition into an actual relationship. Just someone to watch from afar and dream about until you either get over them or fall for someone else. That is exactly what Y/n plans to do with this whole crush thing. Sunoo, unfortunately, is not making this easy.

“Y/n!”

The sudden call of their name causes Y/n to jump slightly. That doesn’t sound like Intak. And Y/n doesn’t speak to any other men at school because, why would they? Which means it has to be…

“Do you know how long I’ve been looking for you?” Sunoo asks once he’s finally caught up to Y/n. They look like a deer caught in headlights, looking directly into the eyes of the one person they’ve spent all day avoiding.

Y/n is almost too distracted by the situation to process the words coming out of Sunoo’s mouth. He’s been looking for them? That should not make their heart flutter the way that it does.

“Where have you been?” Sunoo asks, his follow-up question finally breaking through the thoughts that are overflowing Y/n’s brain. “Oh, you know… around.” Y/n attempts to play it off, aimlessly waving their hand to appear as nonchalant as possible. Sunoo doesn’t buy it for a second, looking at Y/n with raised eyebrows. “Okay… well, I was wondering if you were busy this afternoon?” Sunoo asks. “This afternoon? There’s a game on.” Y/n says, causing Sunoo to chuckle slightly. “I know. I’m a cheerleader, remember? I was meaning before the game.”

They always get paninis with Intak before his games - something he claims gives him good luck. Despite this, Y/n can practically hear Intak screaming at them to say no, they’re not busy, and they’d love to spend the afternoon with Sunoo. But some part of them is holding back, scared of getting too close to Sunoo.

Sunoo notices Y/n’s hesitation and his face falls slightly, though he immediately covers it with an understanding smile. “Intak?” He asks, already knowing the answer. Y/n nods slowly, an overwhelming feeling of guilt washing over them. Why did feelings have to be so confusing?

Sunoo goes to walk away but Y/n suddenly calls out, their voice leaving their body before they even have time to comprehend the words. “You can come,” Sunoo stops in his tracks, turning around to look at Y/n once more. “If you want.” They add.

It’s silent for a moment before Sunoo smiles - not the sad one from before, a genuine smile. “Sure… how about I bring Yuna and Kazhua, too?” He asks. Sunoo’s not an idiot, he can tell how uncomfortable Y/n is in his presence. If he wants things to work out with them, he needs to give them time to get comfortable. If that means bringing their entire friend group on what he wanted to be a date, then so be it.

“I’d like that.” Y/n smiles.

“So uh… where are we going?” Yuna asks, curiously. Her grip tightens on Kazuha’s arm as the trio walk down the street. “That cheap Italian place down by the library.” Sunoo says, his words immediately causing Kazuha’s face to screw up. “Who gets Itallian before a game? Isn’t that more of a post-game meal?” She asks. Sunoo shrugs. “Apparently Intak needs his good-luck panini before every game and I’m not really in the mood to argue with our star player.”

“He plays like that because of a panini?” Kazuha asks, shocked. “It’s not the panini, idiot. It’s the fact that it’s his lucky food… think of it like manifesting.” Yuna explains. “But with paninis.”

Thankfully, the restaurant isn’t too far away from the school. It’s likely why Y/n and Intak started going. As soon as the group walks up to the little building, squished between the public library and a laundromat, Sunoo realises that it’s not as bad as he thought. Freshly painted with what looks to be a handmade sign hung carefully above the door and intricately decorated on the interior.

Stepping inside, the group’s eyes immediately land on Y/n and Intak. They’re the only customers in the restaurant, so it’s impossible to miss Intak’s wide smile and over-exaggerated wave.

“Wait, this place is so cute!” Kazuha exclaims, immediately going to sit down with Y/n and Intak. “How long have you two been gatekeeping this?” She continues, pointing her finger accusingly between Y/n and Intak. Y/n immediately raises their hands in surrender. “Ask Intak, he’s the one who didn’t want anyone stealing his luck.”

Intak’s eyes widen at Y/n’s statement. “Hey! Don’t turn this on me!” He exclaims, his face heating up slightly as the group laughs. “It’s okay, the golden boy just didn’t want anyone stealing his precious spot. No biggie.” Yuna teases, patting Intak’s shoulder with feigned sympathy as she moves to sit down as well - pushing Sunoo to sit in the spot next to Y/n before sliding in after him.

Sunoo attempts to keep some distance between himself and Y/n so as to not make them uncomfortable. Yuna doesn’t seem to get the message though, sliding into the booth and pressing Sunoo right into Y/n’s personal bubble. They don’t seem to mind though - judging by the subtle blush creeping up their neck and gentle smile on their lips.

“Is now a bad time to say that I’ve never had a panini before?” Yuna asks. ‘Oh god, don’t make him start.” Y/n mumbles. Their words fall on deaf ears, as Intak begins to ramble about paninis and all the amazing combinations you can have. Y/n zones out of the conversation, aimlessly flicking through the menu instead.

“What do you recommend?” Sunoo asks, quietly. Y/n looks up at him with a raised brow. “Don’t trust Intak’s recommendations?” Y/n asks, jokingly. Their words cause Sunoo to chuckle quietly. “More like, I want to have your favourite.” Sunoo mumbles, playfully winking when Y/n’s face flushes.

This is going to be a long night.

“Oh, shit. What time do we have to be there tonight?” Yuna asks, pulling out her phone to check the time. “Practice starts at 5, game at 6. I’ve only told you, like, 4 times today.” Sunoo says, a not-so-subtle roll of his eyes earning him a slap on the arm. “Thanks, Kim Sunoo. Where would I be without you?” Yuna replies snarkily. “Not the game, that’s for sure.”

“Are you coming early too, Y/n?” Kazuha asks, finishing off the last bite of her panini. “I always do. Intak forces me to watch him practice.” Y/n says. “It’s not forcing! You can say no…” Intak pouts. “If I say no you get like this, which is not as cute as you think it is.” Y/n laughs, causing Intak’s mouth to drop in offence. “I am so cute! You’re just blind, clearly.”

“Maybe this time you can watch our cheer practice, instead.” Yuna suggests, “I know a certain someone would love that.” She continues, a little quieter so only Y/n and Sunoo can hear her. Y/n’s face heats up at the implication behind Yuna’s words as Sunoo nudges her in the side, his face telling her to knock it off.

“Or just watch boring Intak, whatever you want.” She finishes with a shug. “Since when was it International Bully Intak Day?” Intak asks, sulkily taking a bite of his (third) panini.

Intak gets pouty when Y/n doesn’t pay attention during his practice and games. Y/n has made that mistake far too many times, and now makes sure to keep their eyes on the field at all times. Why is tonight so much more difficult? Kim Sunoo… that’s why…

Y/n never really watched the cheerleaders before. Like they said, Intak got pouty. But tonight, their gaze can’t help but slowly drift to where Sunoo stands. They jump slightly as Sunoo tosses one of the smaller girls in the air, lifting her up like she’s nothing and catching her with equal ease.

He must be pretty strong.

Y/n immediately shakes the thought out of their head, looking back at the field. The game has long started since now, the bleachers filling up with loud, enthusiastic supporters all there to watch their team win. Intak’s on fire, as usual. The crowd roars with every point he scores, expecting nothing less from their school’s star player.

As Y/n fixates their full attention onto their best friend, they hardly notice Sunoo walking over to where they’re sat. Sunoo smiles down at Y/n, finding their concentration cute before playfully ruffling their hair.

“So, we’re pretending you weren’t literally staring me down a minute ago?” He asks, his words and action causing Y/n’s attention to immediately flicker to him. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Y/n mumbles, swatting his hand away before fixing their now ruined hair. “Course you don’t, babe.” Sunoo replies, messing up Y/n’s hair once more before taking a seat next to them.

“Aren’t you supposed to be on the field… you know… cheering?” Y/n asks, trying to make it seem like they’re annoyed by his presence. Y/n’s never been an actor though and Sunoo can read right through them. “You expect me to cheer for the whole game? That’s so tiring.” Sunoo frowns. “I should get to have a good time, too.” He adds, sending a playful smile to Y/n.

That’s how Y/n and Sunoo ended up watching the game together. With every scored point, everyone around them got more enthusiastic - their excited movements pushing Y/n and Sunoo closer together. Neither of them minded, though.

Sunoo suddenly lets out a groan when he spots Yuna calling him back onto the field. “I have to go back.” He mumbles, looking at Y/n apologetically. “It’s okay… go do your thing.” Y/n smiles. Sunoo can’t help the way his smile mimics Y/n’s, even the tiniest bit of their happiness is contagious to him. God… they’re so pretty. Before he can even realise what he’s doing, Sunoo leans in to press a quick kiss against Y/n’s cheek, ruffling their hair once more as he stands before running back to the field, yelling about how he’ll “be back.”

Y/n sits there, stunned, for a moment. Did that really just happen? Did Sunoo just kiss them? They bring a hand up to gently press against the spot where Sunoo’s lips just were. The skin burns slightly at the touch, likely from the ever growing blush that seems to be constant whenever Sunoo’s around. It takes Y/n a handful of seconds to snap out of the fluttery trance Sunoo’s kiss put them in - and he didn’t even kiss them on the lips! This crush really is going to be the end of Y/n…

“WE WON!”

Intak’s yell could probably be heard from the other side of town. But Y/n doesn’t care, as they run happily into his open embrace. Every win for Intak is like the first; it’s only fair that Y/n matches his enthusiasm.

“You did so good, Takie.” Y/n says, giving Intak a loving squeeze before pulling away. Kazuha is next, running to give Intak a hug - much to the surprise of the rest of the group. “Guess we’re all hugging Intak.” Yuna shrugs, running up to him as well - making sure to grab Y/n on the way and pull them into the, now group hug.

Sunoo watches the group with an amused smile on his face. “Bring it in, bro.” Intak winks, making Sunoo laugh slightly. “Okay, bro.” Sunoo says teasingly, before joining the hug as well - making sure to take a position next to Y/n.

“Why are we hugging?” Y/n asks. “Because I did so amazingly that you guys just wanted to show how much you love me?” Intak asks, hopefully. “Whatever you say, buddy.” Yuna laughs.

Pulling away from the impromptu group hug, Y/n can’t help the way their eyes naturally drift to Sunoo, who was already looking at them. The rest of the group immediately notice their two friends, Yuna giving Kazuha a knowing nudge.

“Hey, Intak. Didn’t you need to show me and Yuna that… thing?” Kazuha asks, suspiciously. Intak’s face lights up at this. He loves this game. “Oh, that’s right! I almost forgot. I’ll go show you now. Just you, me and Yuna.” Intak says. Sunoo has to stop himself from physically face palming at the performance. “I think they get the hint.” Yuna laughs, grabbing the two by the arm and pulling them away from Y/n and Sunoo.

“Well that wasn’t suspicious at all.” Sunoo jokes. “What would he even have in his car to show them?” Y/n laughs, looking back in the direction the three went, only to spot them not-so-subtly crouched behind the bleachers. “They’re watching us.” Y/n mumbles. “Of course they are.”

Silence falls between the two as Sunoo appears to have a sudden wave of nerves wash over him. Y/n looks up at him with slight concern - Sunoo doesn’t normally get nervous. “Look… I just wanted to say that I had a really good time with you today… it’s nice to just hang out without working… or yelling at each other.” Sunoo starts, causing Y/n to laugh slightly. “We do yell at each other quite a bit.” They agree. “That’s not stopping, by the way. If you do dumb shit I will call you out on it.” Y/n playfully warns, causing Sunoo to laugh. “Oh, 100%. Just like how I’m going to keep purposefully getting on your nerves.” Sunoo teases.

Due to the conversation taking a playful turn, Sunoo’s nerves start to subside. “Look, I know this is all very sudden for you so I don’t expect an answer straight away but, I was wondering if you wanted to-”

“-yes.”

Sunoo’s eye brows furrow slightly at Y/n cutting him off. “Would you let me say it?” He asks, teasingly, causing Y/n to laugh. “Sorry, I got excited… keep going.” Y/n urges him to continue, looking at him with a playful smile. “I was wondering if you wanted to go on a date… with me… and not our friends, this time.” Sunoo asks, smiling gently.

Y/n can’t stop the giddy feeling that’s building up in their stomach. It’s almost like they want to start jumping around, they’re so restless. Never in their entire life would they have thought that they would have these feelings about Kim Sunoo… guess the heart works in mysterious ways.

Y/n nods enthusiastically, jumping to pull Sunoo into a tight hug. “This is new.” Sunoo comments, hugging back nonetheless. “Sorry, I’m just weirdly excited and I didn’t know how to say it in words.” Y/n mumbles against Sunoo’s shoulder. “Don’t apologise… I could definitely get used to this.” Sunoo says, tightening his grip around Y/n’s waist.

The two stand there for a few seconds, trapped in their own little bubble. Their precious moment is soon interrupted by the hushed whispers of their friends, who still haven’t left their hiding spot. Sunoo pulls away with a groan, shooting a fake glare towards the others. “Okay… let’s go get those idiots.” He says, wrapping an arm around Y/n’s shoulder to pull them in the direction of the rest of the group.

“So, just so we’re being clear… our next date is gonna be with our friends, too?”

“Without, Y/n. Without.”

“Sorry without… Yuna and Kazuha, but Intak is coming.”

“Bring Intak and you’re not getting a second date.”

“I’m just teasing. Besides, I doubt you can stay away from me after this.”

“You know what? I��m starting to regret confessing to you.”

As the two playfully bicker back and forth, Yuna, Kazuha and Intak notice them coming over and decide to leave their hiding spot. “So the lovebirds finally got together, huh?” Yuna asks, earning eyerolls from Y/n and Sunoo. “Nothing’s official yet so don’t jinx it.” Sunoo warns, causing Yuna to look at him with a teasing smile. “So I shouldn’t talk about how you’re madly in love with Y/n and it’s taken you literally years to-” Yuna’s ramble gets cut off by Sunoo charging at her, causing her to end her sentence early with a loud squeal.

“Zuha, help!” Yuna exclaims as she attempts to run away from Sunoo. As the three friends laugh and chase each other around the now empty field, Y/n feels the sudden presence of Intak resting his chin on the top of their head.

“You look really happy.” He comments, the simple words causing Y/n’s smile to spread even further across their face. “I am.” They reply. “Sunoo’s cool… he’ll treat you well.” Intak mumbles, yawning slightly due to it getting later. Y/n snorts slightly at his words, playfully elbowing him in the stomach. “Why are you acting like my dad?” They ask, earning a shrug from their best friend. “I’m just happy that you’re happy.”

SUNDAY - 9 DAYS AFTER PROM:

Walking into the community centre feels a lot different on this particular day compared to all the previous times. Perhaps it’s due to the fluttery feeling in Y/n’s chest at the thought of seeing Sunoo again. They haven’t seen him since Friday night, where they agreed to go on a date. They did, however, text throughout most of yesterday.

Minho is back in his position at the front desk, with Jay, Beomgyu and Seonghwa in various other parts of the reception area. Sunoo also stands in the reception area, signing in for the day.

“Y/n, come and clear this up for me.” Minho says as soon as Y/n makes their way through the sliding glass doors. Their eyebrows furrow slightly but oblige nonetheless, not wanting to piss of Minho this early in the day.

“This kid says that you and Sunoo didn’t argue at all last week.” Minho scoffs, pointing accusingly at Jay, who holds his hands up in defence. “I honestly didn’t even know they were the problem kids until like, 2 hours into the shift.” Jay argues. “We didn’t argue.” Y/n shrugs, causing all the adults to look at them in shock. Sunoo tries to hold back his smile as he finishes signing in, unfortunately not going unnoticed by Beomgyu.

“Did something happen between you two?” Beomgyu asks with a smirk on his face, throwing his arm over Sunoo’s shoulder and shaking him a few times. “Beomgyu, that’s none of our business.” Seonghwa attempts to scold. “I see blushing.” Minho teases, pointing at Y/n’s face. “Let’s just get to work, are we going back to the old schedule?” Y/n asks, turning their attention fully to Seonghwa. He almost looks startled by Y/n’s question. “Can I trust you two to work together properly?” He asks, looking at both Y/n and Sunoo suspiciously. The teens quickly nod. “Okay… we’ll go back to the old schedule. You two will be in with Beomgyu today and then you’ll start fresh with Jay in clothes next week.”

“Okay but like… you guys are dating now, right?” Beomgyu asks as he walks into the food storage room, a large box of bread in his hand. Y/n and Sunoo look at each other, both questioning his words. That’s not even something they’re sure of. They agreed to go on a date… does that mean they are dating?

Beomgyu notices the confusion and chuckles slightly. “We’re not labelling it, huh? I remember those days.” He smiles, placing the box on the table. “Just try not to let it get in the way of your work… no matter how hard that might be.” Beomgyu says, almost as if he’s speaking from personal experience.

WEDNESDAY - 12 DAYS AFTER PROM:

Going on a date with Sunoo is exciting and terrifying at the same time. Everything is changing… they went from spending all of their time with Intak, to suddenly being in a friend group with Intak, Sunoo, Yuna and Kazuha. What if this thing with Sunoo doesn’t actually work out? Their friend groups have already basically intertwined and Intak seems to really enjoy having the others around. The last thing Y/n wants is to ruin it for him. They really like Sunoo, too. This needs to work out.

“Stop worrying about shit that isn't going to happen." Intak playfully scolds, softly hitting Y/n over the head with his book. The act immediately snaps Y/n out of their thoughts, making them look up at Intak with a small pout. "You didn't have to hit me." They mumble. "Yes, I did. You've been like this all day. Your date tonight's gonna go fine. I don't get why you're so worried." Intak says. "I'm just scared that I'll mess everything up." Y/n frowns, shaking their head in their hands in an attempt to silence their negative thoughts.

"You didn't mess it up when you literally hated him… how could you mess it up now that you like him?" Y/n struggles to argue with Intak's logic. They know that their insecurities are irrational and yet there's still this tiny part of their brain, shouting about how terribly this is all going to go.

"Well, no time to be insecure, here he comes." Intak says, gesturing over Y/n's shoulder before walking off.

The sudden presence of an arm around their shoulder causes y/n's entire body to relax. They know it's Sunoo; it always is.

"Where's he going?" Sunoo asks. "You scared him off." Y/n jokes back, causing Sunoo to laugh slightly. "Hey! I'm not even remotely threatening, thank you." He argues, pinching Y/n's shoulder. Strange how as soon as Y/n is in the presence of Sunoo, all their negative thoughts from before seem to mysteriously vanish.

"Are you all good with going right now? Or did you want to head home first?" Sunoo asks. "Well I didn't bring my car today and my ride just abandoned me so, I guess now works." Y/n shrugs.

Dinner and a movie - the most timeless first date. There's enough time at dinner to talk and get to know each other whilst also being able to just ignore each other during the movie if the dinner part doesn't go to plan. Y/n and Sunoo don't exactly have to get to know each other, though. It's more just getting to know this new side of each other.

So far on the date, Y/n has learnt that Sunoo is quite the gentleman. They're not sure if he's just pulling out all the stops because they're on a date or if he usually treats his partners like this but the chivalry is spot on. Letting y/n choose the restaurant, holding open the door, pulling out their chair, the works.

"You know," Sunoo starts, pointing a fry in Y/n's direction. "You never actually told me that you like me." Y/n rolls their eyes at his statement. "Yes Sunoo, I agreed to go on a date with you because I don't like you." They reply sarcastically. Sunoo holds his hands up in defence. "Is it wrong for me to want to know how my date feels about me?" Sunoo asks teasingly. Y/n's heart flutters at the word date but they try to ignore it. "When you're only asking because you want to hear me say it, yes."

Sunoo looks at Y/n expectantly, making them sigh. "Fine… I really like you, Sunoo." Y/n says, the genuine tone in their voice makes Sunoo smile brightly. "I really like you, too." He replies. Y/n grumbles something about him being stupid, which makes Sunoo laugh before turning back to his food.

"Okay, they didn't have any mint chocolate left which is… honestly criminal, but they had your favourite so I just got two of them." Sunoo says, happily handing Y/n an ice cream cone. "How did you know cookie dough is my favourite?" Y/n asks suspiciously. They have had many conversations with Sunoo, none of which involved anything they liked.

"You always bring those little cookie snack bars to the community centre… so I just took a guess." He shrugs. Y/n's eyes narrow at Sunoo. "What else do you know about me?" They ask, making him laugh slightly. "I'm very observant, so, a lot. You'll find out eventually." Sunoo winks, causing Y/n’s eyebrows to furrow.

Once the two find their seats, Sunoo pulls out the rest of the snacks that he had snuck into the theatre (why would he buy a bag of lollies for $6 when he could get the same ones at the grocery store for $2.50?) Y/n’s eyes widen as Sunoo lays out the snacks he had brought, each one being one of Y/n’s favourites.

“Okay, you’re messing with me now. You asked Intak for help, didn’t you?” Y/n asks, skeptically. “I swear, I didn’t.” Sunoo says, only confusing Y/n further. “Then how did you know to get me all of this? Y/n asks, their eyes shining in awe as they look at Sunoo. “Y/n… I’ve liked you for… almost 2 years now? It’d be weirder if I didn’t know about these kinds of things.” Y/n’s eyes widen at Sunoo’s words. It’s as if all the air has been knocked out of their lungs. “You’ve liked me for two years?” Y/n asks, almost in disbelief. “Why didn’t you say anything?” They ask, going to hit Sunoo’s shoulder but Sunoo catches their hand instead, holding it gently in his. “Be honest, Y/n. Would you have liked me back 2 years ago?” He asks. Y/n falls silent. They both know the answer to that. “I don’t know what to say.” Y/n mumbles. Sunoo smiles, reaching over with his other hand to ruffle their hair. “You don’t have to say anything.”

Their hands stay intertwined throughout the entire movie. It just feels right, the coolness of his skin contrasting against Y/n’s warmth. The way they each tighten their grip whenever a particularly tense scene plays or how Sunoo’s thumb gently grazes over Y/n’s knuckles when a sad one does. Neither wants to let go. Even when the movie comes to an end, the lights in the theatre turn on and everyone starts getting out of their seats, their hands stay intertwined.

“Okay, turn right at the next street.”

“No, the one after that.”

“There’s like this big tree, remember? That’s the one.”

“You missed the turn off.”

“Has anyone ever told you, you’re really bad at giving directions?” Sunoo laughs, as he does yet another u-turn. “Why do you think I’m usually the one driving? I don’t give directions, I take them.” Y/n grumbles. “We’re going to your house, Y/n. Surely, you know how to get there.” Sunoo laughs. “I’ve never been this way so I don’t know the names of anything.” Y/n argues. “Babe… use google maps.”

With an exaggerated sigh, Y/n finally pulls out their phone and types their address into google maps. “There, since I’m clearly no help.” Y/n pouts, shoving their phone on the dashboard. Sunoo can’t help but smile affectionately as he watches Y/n sulk. He reaches over to playfully pull at their cheek, causing them to swat his hand away. “You’re so cute.” Sunoo coos, laughing at the way Y/n’s face immediately turns a dark shade of pink. They mumble a quiet shut up reaching forward to link their hands with one of his, once again.

By the time Sunoo pulls up outside of Y/n’s house, they’re no longer sulking. Sunoo puts the car in park, taking off his seatbelt before turning to Y/n with a smile. “I had a really nice time tonight.” He says, reaching forward to take hold of Y/n’s hands. “Me too.” Y/n smiles. “And I’d like to do this more… a lot more.” Sunoo says. “Me too.” Y/n laughs, feeling overwhelmed with the amount of affection they feel towards the boy in front of them.

“Can I be your boyfriend, Y/n?”

Time in the car seems to stop just as those words left Sunoo’s lips. Kim Sunoo… as Y/n’s boyfriend? Months ago, Y/n would’ve thought that to be one of the worst things to happen to them. A form of torture… they’d probably say. But now… as they sit in Sunoo’s car, their hands intertwined with his, after one of the best first dates they’ve ever been on… they can think of nothing they want more.

Well… maybe they can think of one thing they want more. As their eyes flicker down to Sunoo’s lips, Y/n can’t help the overwhelming thoughts of how they would feel pressed against their own. Sunoo seems to notice, with the way the corners of his mouth turn up into a slight smirk. Is he licking his lips subconsciously? Or is he trying to drive Y/n even crazier than they already feel?

Y/n realises they haven’t answered Sunoo’s question. With their mind racing a mile a minute, they don’t even know what to say. Y/n’s brain flashes back to what Sunoo said earlier in the night… You don’t have to say anything.

Y/n decides to communicate their thoughts through their actions, not trusting their brain or voice to formulate a better response. With a simple nod of the head, Y/n slowly leans in, their eyes fluttering closed as they finally feel Sunoo’s plush lips against their own.

Y/n hasn’t kissed enough people to know what makes the perfect kiss but they reckon this one comes pretty close. They were never one for cliches, but the sparks, the butterflies, everything’s there. Everything’s right.

Maybe Intak was right (this seems to be a pattern recently.) As their lips dance together, Y/n can’t help but think that nothing with Sunoo could go wrong. They know it’s unrealistic, that all good relationships run into problems along the way, but that’s for future Y/n and future Sunoo to worry about. Right now, they can just relax in their ignorant bliss.

THE END

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stuck-in-the-ghost-zone · 5 months ago

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hiiii mackerellll my brains also bad soup rn soup brain solidarity BUT nhw.... winters family torment nexus..... i did have a question for u actually. currently wading around in the tranches (early game nhw) n i wanna write them doing silly like teen traumatized child soldier shit like playing truth or dare or shit like that... what do u think their two truths & a lie would b? also like. do u have any thoughts on their civilian life. when they are Not on the job or fighting extinction level threats or having panic attacks at school. u know. that 10% <333

ALSO. NHW WAVELENGTH..... do u have any thoughts on him. my only secret backstory caveat is that he has to have the fucking worst shit nightmare rube goldberg machine luck of all time. third & final question im just curious was danny phantom vivisection real & canon or just like a Thing??????

ok im going to start with the danny phantom question bc im dyinggg to talk about this. pun intended. also this is my equivalent of rent-lowering gunshots. if u cannot deal with my dp posting u do not deserve my pd posting etc etc etc !!!

THE ANSWER IS. BOTH YES AND NO. it never Actually Happens but it is talked about!!!!!!! the whole thing is like. dannys parents are ghost hunters and dont know about his powers so theres a lot of him like. overhearing talking about them dissecting ghosts and experimenting on ghosts and such. not knowing that he is one!!! prime territory for somes angsty ass fics. however i am of the small minority that doesnt actually think the fentons are monsters apparently. they dont know!! how could they know!!!!! theyre scientists!!! do you know how much scientists casually talk about dissecting things!! its a lot!!! also theres been a few different instances of them finding out about dannys powers (almost always retconned by time/memory shenanigans but its fine) and EVERY TIME THEYRE SO SUPPORTIVE OF HIM. AND THEY TELL HIM THEY LOVE HIM REGARDLESS. AND IN ONE CASE THEY EVEN APOLOGIZE FOR SAYING THOSE THINGS AROUND HIM BC THEY DIDNT KNOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! anyway. anyway. i digress bc i love the fentons. anyway! there are so many. SO MANY fucking fanfictions out there of danny getting dissected/vivisected. so many in fact that its one of the things the fandom is best known for by outsiders. enough that there was literally a FANDOM-WIDE DEBATE about whether to call it dissection or vivisection because dannys status as alive/dead is so unclear!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! lmao!!!!!!!!! worlds most fucked up fanbase i love it here

putting the nhw stuff under a cut. subjecting my followers to my dp ramble bc fuck you!!!!!! read about my ghost boy first

OK I AM SOOOO FUCKING BAD AT TWO TRUTHS AND A LIE. IM SO BAD AT IT I CAN NEVER THINK OF ANYTHING. so instead i am just going to think of fun facts about them. so actually im gonna kill two birds wiht one stone here and answer both of ur questions abt them. here we go !!!

i think it would be REALLY funny if william is the only one with a drivers license bc he grew up in Not The City (just because he has a license doesnt mean hes GOOD). dakota is lactose intolerant but chooses to be in stubborn denial about it (he canonically doesnt like ice cream!). virion, despite being compared to a cat so often, is allergic to cats. speaking of animals, william likes animals but animals DO NOT like him!! on the other hand animals absolutely love dakota he is friends with every stray dog and cat in the whole city. virion was homeschooled by his parents/the greats. virion also doesnt know much about anything in regards to pop culture/general everyday civilian life? because he was never completely removed from the cape world at any time growing up. no non-cape adults in his life. so he and william still have their movie nights where william introduces him to shitty b-movies hehehe. dakota tries to get him into more Normal movies like. disney or ghibli or whatever but virion likes the shitty ones more. ASSIGNING THEM FAVORITE GHIBLI MOVIES WHILE IM AT IT. this is not which ones i think theyre the most like, just the ones i think are their favorties. dakota likes ponyo, william likes howls moving castle, virion likes princess mononoke, ashe likes spirited away . dont ask me why. UHHH FAVORITE PLACES TO HANG OUT OUTSIDE OF THE BASE/HOUSE. dodgeboy memorial library. lightspeed hangs out there and they like her <3. antonios pizza. he lets them loiter bc they always tip really well. william likes going to the park because he has chronic Grew Up In The Woods disease and needs outdoor time or else he'll go crazy. hes not used to city life. dakota likes the park bc there are lots of little animals there and he can Run Around, virion doesnt like the park as much bc its a lot of Vulnerable Open Spaces and those make him nervous. speaking of which in my head ive grown so attached to the idea of him being so hypervigilant at all times. look at him ive given him anxiety!!! just like. the insane betrayal losing every important figure in his life immediately leading into a life basically on the streets alone picking fights with other capes led to . idk man i keep thinking about it like sleeping in shifts but its impossible to do that with only one person!!!!!!!! do u know what i mean!!!! basically translating the "growing up on fauna where everything wants to kill you" energy into this setting. HMMMMMM. I THINK THATS IT. THATS ALL I CAN THINK OF RN . SORRY FOR THE BLOCK OF TEXT

ohhhhhhh god. oh god oh fuck. i literally Have Not Thought about nhw mark yet like AT ALL only bc i know if i do ill get so sick about it. worlds most suffering man ever he is losing everything!!!!!! ok bc im thinking about lizard stuff tonight im going to answer your question with a question. we;ve kind of sort of talked about the existence of harttawa in relation to overlord and cauldron does he still get fucked up lizard mutations!!!!!! ALSO CAN WE TALK ABOUT HIS POWERSET. i have a lot of feelings abt him being at least partially a tinker. i think before u also called him a striker (maybe? am i remembering that right) i dont think i know strikers yet what does that one mean. WHAT WAS HIS TRIGGER EVENT. OR IS HE A CAULDRON CAPE. SHAKING YOU. I KNOW I HAVE MORE QUESTIONS THAN ANSWERS BUT. I NEED 2 GET TO THE WORM SECTION WHERE I GET TO LEARN ABOUT NHW ASHE SO BAD. actually i didnt get to read any worm this weekend so im gonna stay up a Little later just to get past this section where theyrre fighting the dragon suits. ouagh EXCITED.

#well. i say it never happens. but there is one time danny gets his ghost half ripped out with big mechanical claws.#thats kind of like a dissection if you think about it.#i dont know why im being so aggressive about dp HABJDHFA . im just a littel silly. \#auasiguoagah!!!!!!!! i don t have much else to say in the tags. hi i love u thank u for giving me cool fun things 2 think about #i hope ur soup brain is also going ok <3 #friends!!!#new haven wards #asks #intertexts

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snowyslytherinowl · 11 months ago

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My Views on Coriolanus Snow and The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

This is a Harry Potter blog, but not even Harry Potter can capture my mind and soul like the Hunger Games can. I’ve read TBOSAS three times and I have some opinions to share. My conclusions will be based on the book since I didn’t particularly like the movie.

Note: I haven’t read the book in about 2 months so I apologize if anything I say is blatantly incorrect. I don’t mind if anyone disputes what I say, but please be respectful.

And of course, SPOILERS BELOW THE CUT!

Point 1: Coriolanus cared for Lucy Gray in his own weird way, but he never loved her

After reading the book for the second time, I thought that Coriolanus never loved Lucy Gray and that he was only ever using her. After reading it for the third time, I wouldn’t go so far as to say that he was only ever using her. I think that he genuinely cared for her before and during the 10th Hunger Games. For example, he felt disturbed at how she had nothing to eat and didn’t talk about what happened to Clemensia since she had bigger problems than he did. Also, Coriolanus kissing Lucy Gray in public during their final goodbye before the Games was one of the only moments where he broke from his true character (and this missing scene from the movie is one reason why I didn’t particularly like it). Coriolanus’s number 1 priority was maintaining his public image, so the fact that he kissed a District girl in public was a big deal.

However, I don’t think he truly loved her since he viewed her as a possession. Coriolanus admitted to having an obsessive nature, which extended to him being obsessed with her. The first huge red flag in his relationship with Lucy Gray was when he gave her a matching rose before the interviews as a “reminder of who Lucy Gray belonged to.” Throughout the novel and especially after the Games, Coriolanus continually refers to Lucy Gray as “his girl.” He was also perpetually jealous of Billy Taupe even though she assured him time and time again that she loved only him. The most profound statement that proves his possessive nature towards her is when he thinks, “In some ways, it had been better to have her locked up in the Capitol, where he always had a general idea of what she was doing.”

Coriolanus was someone who valued stability and control, while Lucy Gray was fiercely individualistic. So please stop thinking that it could’ve ever worked out between the two of them.

Point 2: Lucy Gray is not a pick me girl

At least for the first few months after the book came out, people were claiming that Lucy Gray was what we would consider a pick me girl. The first time I read the book, even I thought that she gave off the vibe of not being like other girls. Lucy Gray emphasizes that she and the Covey were neither District nor Capitol; they’re just the Covey. But after reading the book for the second time, I realized that she only held this view because she was proud of who she was. At the same time, she didn’t think that being Covey made her any better or that District people were worse than her. She also said, “People aren’t so bad, really. It’s what the world does to them.”

I think that the “not like other District people” view originated from Coriolanus. From the beginning, Coriolanus viewed people from the Districts as brutish and subhuman. He used Lucy Gray’s identity as Covey as an argument that she wasn’t like the subhuman District people; she was special and one could even argue that she was even Capitol. It was unfortunate that she and the Covey were rounded up into District 12. I think he developed this idea as both a way to gain sympathy from Capitol viewers and to convince himself that he wasn’t in love with a “worthless” girl. He also would’ve disagreed with Lucy Gray’s quote since he viewed only District people as truly bad to the core.

Point 3: Lucy Gray survived

I don’t think we will ever get an answer as to what happened to Lucy Gray. I think her fate is supposed to remain a mystery, just like Wordsworth’s Lucy Gray’s fate remained a mystery. Nonetheless, I personally believe that she survived.

Coriolanus hated the mockingjays because they were abominations that resulted from the breeding of high-tech Capitol jabberjays and the local District mockingbirds. And who is similar to the mockingjays? Lucy Gray. She was a songbird who wanted to be free and never wanted to be controlled, while Coriolanus wanted to control everything. Just like the mockingjays came to be and flourished in District 12, Lucy Gray also survived. She was a clever bird who survived the Hunger Games and tricked Coriolanus.

I know that my opinion is based all on symbolism, but many aspects of Suzanne Collins’s writing are symbolic.

Point 4: Coriolanus never cared for Sejanus

First of all, let me say that the movie did Sejanus DIRTY. They portrayed him as a pain in the ass (he was that in the book, but he was so much more as well) and I even saw some people saying that he deserved what he got. No one says that to my Sejanus.

Anyway, back to the point: Coriolanus always viewed Sejanus as the bane of his existence. Sejanus was going to steal Coriolanus’s fortune and he always stole Coriolanus’s spotlight. Coriolanus thought that Sejanus brought the tributes food to take the attention away from him; not for one moment did he think that it was because Sejanus had a heart of gold. He viewed Sejanus’s attachment to District 2 as stupid since he should’ve felt lucky to have a comfortable life in the Capitol.

Yes, Coriolanus jumped off his bunk and threw his arms around Sejanus when he arrived in District 12. But it was not because he was genuinely happy to see Sejanus; he was happy to see Sejanus because he reminded him of home. After their first conversation in District 12 was over, Coriolanus admitted that the news that the Capitol didn’t hate him was what brought him back to life. And while they were “friends” during their time as Peacekeepers, Coriolanus felt like he always had to get Sejanus out of trouble. Coriolanus was constantly watching over Sejanus to ensure he wasn’t communicating with the rebels and he was trying to convince Sejanus not to do anything extreme. This feeling got so bad that he wanted Sejanus out of his life.

One thing I will say is that I don’t think that Coriolanus wanted Sejanus dead, per se. When he recorded Sejanus’s plans using the jabberjay, Coriolanus thought that Strabo would donate tons of money and have Sejanus removed from District 12; he didn’t think he would be killed. I think Coriolanus felt slightly guilty for essentially putting the noose around Sejanus’s neck, but he also thought he was doing Sejanus a favor. He had saved Sejanus from dying multiple times before that, so it was only a matter of time before Sejanus died. So no, Anus^2/Snowjanus wouldn’t have worked out either.

Point 5: Coriolanus wasn’t completely evil from the beginning

I’ve seen people saying that Coriolanus was always evil or that he wasn’t even evil in TBOSAS. My viewpoint is in the middle between these two opinions. I think Coriolanus had messed up thinking from the very first chapter, but he wasn’t evil. He did have some morals, like genuinely caring for Lucy Gray’s well-being and feeling guilty over Clemensia’s snake bites. I don’t think he actually wanted to kill Sejanus or attempt to kill Lucy Gray, but he would kill anyone if it meant he would make it out alive and unharmed. I think Coriolanus would’ve eventually turned evil as he grew older even if the 10th Hunger Games had never taken place. However, I think that Dr. Gaul sending him to District 12 accelerated his path to becoming evil. By the end of the book, Coriolanus had devolved into the primal state resembling humans living without a social contract.

Point 6: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes isn’t a romance

Point 5 brings me to this point: TBOSAS is a piece on human nature and political control. There is romance and I will admit that I giggled and kicked my feet as I saw Coriolanus kissing Lucy Gray like a starving man (this was despite me already knowing everything that would happen). The main actions of TBOSAS actually revolve around Dr. Gaul’s points on chaos, contract, and control (which originated from Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes). Without a government and without a social contract, people are primal creatures and will kill at a whim. The only way to civilize people is to place them under a social contract, and thus there must be a strong government to enforce this contract and control the people. Coriolanus took Dr. Gaul’s lesson to heart and genuinely believed that only the Capitol could hold Panem together. Throughout the book, Coriolanus starts from a person with questionable thoughts to a person with no morals whatsoever. The downward spiral of his moral compass truly begins when he arrives in District 12, but he loses all morals once he leaves for the woods with Lucy Gray and abandons civilization. Therefore, Coriolanus fell victim to Dr. Gaul’s thesis.

GIF Credits

Intro: @aemondtagaryen

Point 1: @xthecaptainssaviorx

Point 2: @myrcella-lannister

Point 3: @kvtnisseverdeen

Point 4: @clemensiadovecotes

Point 5: @fyeahvillains

Point 6: @xthecaptainssaviorx

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hereforthefanficsandromance · 7 months ago

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Fan Prize Story #4: Once Bitten, Twice Shy, Thrice Prepared

Masterlists

AO3 Blogger Tumblr Audio Versions

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Chapter Summary

Modern AU Cal takes you on your third date, this time to the Ren Faire. Rating: Teen+ Words: 3.7K

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You are laying out tomorrow’s clothes, hoping to jump start the day to make your mornings a little easier. Your phone lies on the bed’s bottom corner, the mirrored black screen lighting up, drawing your attention.

Cal

Hey! Wanna go with me to the Ren Fair this Saturday?

Your heart skips a beat, a rush of butterflies filling your stomach. You’ve been on two prior dates with Cal, making this offer the inevitable third date. Three dates fill you with fear since you’ve survived the first two dates without hooking up. These days, waiting to fuck makes you an excellent candidate to become a Sister at the church. Except you don’t want to have sex on date three, but you know the ridiculous expectation is common.

You perch on the bed’s edge, staring at the message, debating the best way to respond without giving him the wrong idea. You really want to say yes. Cal has been sweet, and his good looks don’t hurt. But he’s a guy, and after the experiences you’ve had, it’s best to assume all guys are the same.

The Renaissance Festival is over an hour’s drive, putting you at his mercy for the adventure into the mountains. It’s surprising he wants to see you again, considering you haven’t shared your first kiss with him yet. Maybe he wants to isolate you so that you can’t reject his advances.

If he wants to sleep with you, and you refuse, he’ll dump you, just like the others. While it hurts, it’s not the end of the world. Better to weed out the bad guys. But if he rejects you, it’ll ruin your birthday on Sunday.

To make things worse, Cal and James are friends, and after what James did, it’s possible Cal will do it too. You flop back onto the mattress, dropping your phone face down onto your chest. The ceiling offers no reassurance, but you search the texture for answers. Your phone vibrates again, and despite your hesitations, you are quick to pull the screen before your eyes.

Cal

No pressure! But, if you do want to go, I was thinking we could dress up? Just let me know what you’re going to wear and I’ll try to match you.

His messages offer enough reassurance to type out a response, confirming the date. He’s been kind during previous dates, buying all the snacks at the movie theater. Not grabbing your hand when you’d sneak a fistful of popcorn from the bucket.

He’s even an attempted gentleman. He tried to pull out your chair at dinner, which was disastrously awkward. Apparently, neither of you knows how to work together for such a simple task. He ended up hitting you in the back of the knees with the seat and you fell back into the chair, too far away from the table, scooting in yourself while he mumbled apologies.

But you won’t take any risks, creating a game plan to keep yourself safe, and alerting your friends of the details. You rifle through your closet, trying to figure out a good costume for the weekend.

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I wait, my heart pounding, for her response. Most of my closet contents lay strewn across my bed. Obviously, I will need to go shopping to get an adequate costume. I’d like to match her if she agrees to the date.

My phone chimes with the ringtone I assigned to her. She said yes.

I look over the description of what she’ll be wearing and make a plan in my head. Saturday is going to be great, as I’ll have her all to myself the entire ride there and back.

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You’ve got it all figured out; friends on standby, ready to drive over an hour away to pick you up if a repeat of the James incident occurs. For extra safety, you’ve got a pocket knife clipped in your boot.

Cal is joyfully telling you a story in the driver’s seat, dressed in a regal patterned tunic with a shoulder cape, brown pants, and boots to match. He looks adorable and you can’t help but smile at how much thought he put into matching you. You’re wearing a floral print corset with off the shoulder puffy sleeves, a knee length blue skirt, and a brown belt matching your boots.

Cal’s ranting, though a smile stays on his face. “So she comes into my work, screaming, obviously, because her tea was the wrong color. What does that even mean? It’s tea!”

You offer a sympathetic laugh. “Customers are crazy.”

“That’s for sure. I can’t stand this job for much longer. I need to get something real.”

You tilt your head. “What job do you want?”

He crinkles the freckle kissed skin between his brows. “I dunno, maybe something in an office. You know, nine to five, PTO, insurance.”

“Sounds boring.”

“Yeah, but it’s better than what I’m doing.” He sighs dramatically, his jade eyes playfully meeting yours. “What job do you think I should get? You know, something exciting?”

You giggle. “Exciting…how about…an astronaut? Or secret agent?”

He’s almost bouncing in his seat. “How ‘bout both?”

You shake your head. “A secret agent astronaut? I didn’t realize there was so much space crime that needs a man on the inside.”

He laughs loudly, the sounds warming you. “Well, there might be, and I promise, if that becomes a job, I’ll be the first in line.”

“Maybe you should stick with the nine to five.”

He looks both ways before taking a turn. “What, you think I can’t handle it?”

You roll your eyes. “I think I’d miss you if you left.”

He checks his mirrors before looking at you. “Really?”

You sputter. “Oh…well, yeah, of course. Because we’re friends.”

He looks disappointed. “We’re friends?”

You speak too loud. “No! I mean, yes, but…nevermind.”

The car is quiet for a bit, only the sound of the radio on low. Cal doesn’t reach to turn it up, the hint of a smile on his face. You stare out the window, watching the pine trees passing on the scenic drive.

Worry seeps into you, remembering how your last date went. How James tried to force himself on you in his stupid, dirty sports car. Your skin crawls at the memory, wishing you could scrub your skin until it no longer lingers.

You won’t be a fool this time since you have a plan to ensure your safety: no physical contact. You can have a good time together without touching.

Only Cal is terribly good looking. His sharp jawline and muscular form both intimidate you and draw you in. He could have anyone, and yet he keeps asking you on dates, surely because of what James told him. Maybe they have a bet, trying to see who can get the furthest with you.

Cal pulls you from your thoughts. “So not that I think you’re a criminal or anything…”

You whip your head to look at him. “What?”

He puts a hand up, a big smile painting his face. “Hang on, lemme finish. The fair has a strict policy about weapons. They gotta be peace tied. You don’t have any weapons on you, do you?”

“Oh!” A laugh escapes your lungs. “Sorry! Yeah, I have a pocket knife, and it’s not, uh, peace tied or whatever.”

He smirks. “I don’t really think it’s time period appropriate, and I don’t have any zip ties so that we can bring it in. You’re welcome to leave it in the glove compartment, though.”

Your heart drops, knowing that part of your plan for safety will be eliminated. But you take the small weapon out of your boot and slip it into the glove compartment.

“Great, thank you.”

He nods, turning into the crowded parking lot. “For sure! Glad I asked.”

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The festival is in full swing as you enter the castle gates. Lords and Ladies yell down compliments of your costume from the watchtower overlooking the entrance. Cal gives you a reassuring smile and leaves to grab a map of the park.

A group of men dressed as the entire adventuring party from Lord of the Rings walks past as you wait for his return. Children dressed as princesses and princes squeal as they look around the fair for the first time. A woman dressed as a fairy sells individual long-stemmed flowers to happy couples from a wicker basket draped over her arm.

Cal returns. “Alright, we fit right in.”

You take the sides of your skirt and drop into a mock curtsy, earning a chuckle and half bow from Cal. “Thanks for suggesting we dress up.”

He unfolds the map. “It’s fun to do stuff like this together. So, where do you wanna go first?”

You look over the events. “I really like the big cat show.”

He offers his arm with over-the-top politeness. “The big cat show it is. Looks like the first performance is starting soon. Let’s head over.”

You had promised yourself that you wouldn’t let him breach physical contact. But this surely doesn’t count since it’s in character. You brush off the anxiety over such an insignificant gesture and link your arm through his, allowing him to guide you towards your favorite event.

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The big cat show is your favorite for obvious reasons. How often do you get to see large predatory cats unleashed and uncaged? Remarkably, they stay on stage and don’t glance towards the audience, focused instead on the treats provided by the trainers. Though, there is a warning not to let small children run around near the front.

You both sit in the dangerous seats, two rows back. You considered taking the front row, but decided you’d rather not get eaten first if things don’t go well.

The entire show is incredible and three different species perform a variety of tricks, showing off their immense power and speed. You perk up when the black panther comes out, practically bouncing out of your seat to see over the heads of those in front of you. It runs up a wooden pole and immediately receives a reward, earning a cheer from the crowd.

Cal shares in your excitement, glancing between the stage and your face. He pulls out his phone to snap a few photos of your favorite cat before pocketing the device and taking your hand. His larger, warmer fingers wrap around yours, and in your excitement for the show, you accept the intimacy, squeezing his fingers as they meet your palm.

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After the show, you are buzzing with excitement, going over all your favorite parts while Cal eagerly listens. He has not let go of your hand, so he drags you over so that he can tip the performers, the humans, not the cats. The two of you stroll through the many booths, looking over the trinkets and festival specific oddities.

Cal releases your hand to try on a dragon mask and you laugh and shake your head. As he puts it back on the wall of colorful masks, you wonder if you made a mistake getting carried away by excitement and allowing him to hold your hand. So far, you are doing a terrible job of keeping your promise to not allow physical contact. Cal interlocks his fingers with yours as you continue to the next booth and you make a decision that to counteract the physical contact, you limit your responses to one-word answers. That way, he doesn’t get the wrong idea about your eagerness.

He pulls you towards a booth with chain mail and various weaponry. “Look at the metal working over here! Do you wanna go over?”

You smile and nod. “Uh, sure.”

Cal pulls the various swords out of their sheath, thumb flicking perpendicular to the blade to test its sharpness. At the end of the stall, is a selection of metal worked tiaras that catch your eye. Cal follows your gaze and gently guides you towards it, trying to determine which one caught your eye. He guesses correctly and takes the delicate piece, placing it on your head. You blush and close your eyes momentarily as he adjusts it.

He pulls back to admire you. “It suits you. You must have been a queen in another life.”

You let out a laugh, almost toppling the jewelry from your head. “Maybe.”

He adjusts the crown, snaps a quick picture of you in it, and places it back on the rack. “Anything you wanna do?”

You shrug. “Whatever.”

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Trying to beat the lunch rush, you break for mealtime early and easily score food and a decent table. A dish with an artichoke sits in a slathering of melted butter, prompting you and Cal to exchange a knowing glance.

He clears his throat. “This looks messy. Stay here. I’ll go get us some napkins.”

You arrange the food on the table, trying to only take up a small portion of the community picnic bench.

“Okay.”

Cal places his phone on the table, marking that he is also sitting there in case the food rush starts early. You get settled in your spot and hear his phone chime go off. You don’t mean to look, but his settings allow for full messages to show on the lock screen, and your eyes naturally read the message.

Daniel

Hey dude, you planning on staying down there tonight?

The constant chatter of the festival turns to white noise as blood pumps through your ears. You feel a sense of cold dread wash over you, reminding you that Cal is no different from the other men. He’s not the first to expect more, especially by the third date, and he won’t be the last. Maybe you should give up dating all together.

You have tried so hard to set limits for men who only want to stomp right across those boundaries. You stopped kissing before the third date because they would get the wrong idea and expect a lot more. That backfired with James. He barely made it through the first date without assaulting you.

Cal returns, a goofy grin on his face. “You’ll never guess what I saw while grabbing these.”

You’re barely listening. “Huh?”

He babbles on. “There was an exceptionally drunk Ring Wraith arguing with Doctor Who over the accuracy of the festival in this time period.”

You stare at the pile of napkins he deposits on the table. “Right.”

He sobers. “You okay?”

“Yeah, just hungry.”

He smiles. “Let’s eat then.”

The meal is dead silent, despite Cal’s attempts to keep the conversation going. After a few halfhearted stories and commentary, he focuses on his food, offering you space to think.

You wonder if you should text your friends, let them know what you saw and that they should probably start the long drive to save you. But you don’t want to inconvenience them, especially if you’re wrong. You really want to believe Cal isn’t like that, but the evidence is damning. At the very least, confronting him is necessary before bailing. You can’t just disappear in the middle of nowhere or you’ll accidentally set off a manhunt.

After an awkward lunch, you stop at the privies, which is nothing more than a line or porta potties, but there is a sink outside to wash up after the meal. You return to Cal and he looks nervous, like he has something he wants to say, mirroring you. He doesn’t take your hand, but walks towards a clearing in the crowds, away from the now bustling food stands.

He wrings his hands. “Hey, you seem distant. Did something happen? Did I upset you?”

You press your lips into a tight smile. “Everything’s fine.”

He shifts his weight, not quite meeting your gaze. “Okay…it’s just, you haven’t looked happy since lunch.”

The illusion cracks. “Nope.”

“And I thought that maybe something happened?”

Your face flushes and you tremble. “It’s…I saw…nevermind.”

He looks confused and sad. “What? What did you see?”

You don’t let his puppy dog eyes win. “So you’re just trying to sleep with me, right? Use me and be done?”

He shakes his head, eyes wide, voice raising. “What? What are you talking about? I’m not trying to sleep with you. I mean, I am, but-”

“I knew it. You’re just like James!”

“What?”

“Men like you just want a bed warmer!”

You storm off, leaving Cal standing near a storefront selling metal roses.

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You find a secluded spot away from the crowds near the jousting arena. Sitting in the cool shade of a large pine tree, you face away from other guests and cry. It’s humiliating, crying in public, so you keep the tears minimal and wipe them away quickly to avoid smudged makeup. There’s a lot of discomfort with how the conversation went; you wanted to confront him to hear what he had to say, but your anger got in the way and you don’t really remember much of what he said. You do remember that he said he does want to sleep with you, and that is enough to justify your outburst. Plus, this entire event has surely ruined your birthday tomorrow since you will be laying in bed all day.

As endorphins from crying replace the anger, you find it easier to think. Which unfortunately has the side effect of making you realize that you may have been brash. Cal has always been nice to you, never pushing to kiss you on the earlier dates, unlike James.

He’s seems genuinely pleased to be around you, not like he wants something from you. Maybe you were wrong. Maybe Cal isn’t anything like the guys from before. Even if James is his friend, it doesn’t mean he is the same.

You rest your forehead against your knees, realizing your mistake, having judged too quickly out of fear instead of giving him a fair opportunity to prove himself. Even if he is a good guy, he definitely isn’t going to want to date you now.

A voice cuts through your thoughts. “Hey.”

You lift your head, sniff, and use your fingertips to catch the remaining tears. “Cal.”

He holds his hands behind his back, squatting to join you. “I’m really sorry. It was that text, wasn’t it?”

Another sniff. “Yeah.”

He gives a gentle smile. “I’m not trying to use you, or just get in your pants. I mean, I’d like to…get in your pants, if you would, one day. But it’s not my end goal. I really like you.”

You let out a chuckle, and Cal’s smile widens. “I’m sorry Cal. It wasn’t fair to assume that you wanted to hurt me. You’ve been nothing but nice to me, and I ruined our date.”

He gives a full, toothy smile. “So, this is a date? I was worried when you said we were friends.”

You shake your head. “I just didn’t want to make you think that I’d let you use me, too.”

His face changes to worry. “Too? Who hurt you?”

You swallow. “Um. It’s a friend of yours.”

“Who?”

You sigh.

“James. He took me to dinner, and he invited me back to his place when we got in the car. I said no, and he tried to force himself on me, to…convince me… I pushed him off and he yelled at me, called me names, and told me to walk home.”

Cal’s eyes harden. “Are you serious? What a tool! For the record, he is an acquaintance, not a friend. And after what you said, he’s an asshole that I won’t be associated with. Definitely going to talk to the guys about how we can handle him.”

You look at the grassy ground. “You don’t have to do that for me.”

“Are you kidding? Of course I’m going to. I’m not like him, and I won’t be friends with any guy who treats women like that! I’m really sorry that you had to go through that. I understand why you’re scared of sleeping with me.”

You meet his gaze, and his expression softens. “Thank you, it’s not that I don’t want to, one day.”

“I get it. You don’t have to explain at all. I won’t push you into anything you don’t want to do.”

“Thanks, Cal. You’re really great.”

He pulls his right hand from behind his back, holding a long-stemmed flower. “Here. I got this for you.”

You accept the vibrant pink peony, brushing his fingers in the exchange. “My favorite! How’d you know?”

He soaks in the joy on your face. “You told me on our first date.”

A smile creeps across your lips as the jousting show begins. There is a long introduction of the competing knights and the rules for the tournament. Cal sits in the shade beside you, turning to watch.

As the first knights take their position at the ends of the field, Cal leans over. “Can I hold your hand?”

You giggle and trade the flower to the other hand. “Of course!”

The first horses race forward, the blue and white knight versus the red and white. The red one takes a lance square to the center of his chest and falls from his steed. Blue moves onto the next round as green and yellow prepare for their match.

Cal squeezes your hand. “I have another question.”

You look at him. “What is it?”

A smile ghosts his lips, his eyes hooded. “Can I kiss you?”

You part your lips and nod. His soft lips connect with yours, fitting perfectly against you. His free hand moves to cup your cheek, his thumb stroking your skin.

Cal pulls you in, parting his lips. You mirror the action and he slips his tongue in the front of your mouth, brushing the underside of your teeth before pulling away.

As you separate, he keeps close, looking into your eyes, hand still on your face. “I really like you.”

You look down at his lips, then back into his eyes. “I like you too.”

“I’d like to keep seeing you.”

“I’d like that too.”

He chuckles softly, pulling further away, ensuring he can properly see you. “I’m sorry, but I have one more big question.”

You look up at him. “Yeah?”

He sucks in a breath. “Would you be my girlfriend? Because I’d really like to keep kissing you.”

You bite back a huge smile, feeling shy. “Yes, Cal. I’d like that.”

He lets out the breath he was holding and laughs. “Okay good.”

He pulls you in for another kiss as the knights collide. You don’t know who fell from their horse, too distracted by kissing your now boyfriend.

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#hereforthefanficsandromanceworks #cal kestis x reader #star wars fanfiction #star wars jedi survivor #jedi survivor #sw jedi survivor

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welcome-to-green-hills · 1 year ago

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I’m gonna ask you this question because you’re the SCU expert/die-hard fan of the movies, did Tom change careers? I ask because the first movie Maddie makes a quote about Tom being a manager and then the second movie does really reference him being a cop. Do you think that he changed careers?

Hello, my dear!❤️✨

First, I must apologize. While I 100% appreciate the compliment made about being an SCU fan, I do not think that it's wise to put me on such a high pedestal. I love these movies, but I'm an expert. I’m just a fan of his deep love for these movies. Sorry, I had to get that out of the way. I do appreciate what you're trying to say.

Now we can get to your question.

You are correct: there's a line of dialogue made in the first film that caught my attention. Towards the end of the film, we see Tom and Maddie in their newly renovated dining room and painting the walls. Tom asks his wife a question and Maddie responds with, "Yes Mr. Manager" before they have a play fight with paint. This happens right before (I'll leave a link to the clip HERE if you're interested). I don’t necessarily think that this line is a joke (like the equivalent of calling someone bossy when managing a project). It’s really 50/50. If it is a joke, then I think that the conversation that Tom and Maddie had about getting closure on fulfilling a wish is a good indicator of him seeking new aspirations.

In the second film, there aren't enough references evident to support that Tom is still sheriff of the town. What we do see is that Wade has taken on more responsibilities. Wade sits in the sheriff's car at the speed trap, his uniform is slightly different than the first movie, and he makes a comment about being the active sheriff for the weekend. Keep in mind that there are other sheriffs that work in the small town as well. It's not just Tom and Wade. When returning to Earth, Dr. Robotnik makes a sly comment on how he wanted to seek revenge on the Wachowski family. Even though Dr. Robotnik references Tom as the "idiot sheriff," keep in mind that he was stuck on the Mushroom Planet for nine months. A lot can happen in nine months.

As soon as I saw your ask, I've made sure to skim the Prequill comic too. In the first story, Tom and Wade are on an ice fishing trip on the edge of town. Tom makes a comment about slowing down and relaxing more. Tom's has had enough adventuring while saving Sonic's life. Wade is eager to have more adventure in his life and practically envies Sonic and Tom's relationship. Yes, Tom tags along in Wade's need to respond to a bank heist robbery in a neighboring town, but he lets Wade call the shots as he keeps an eye on him.

With the quote of the first film, Tom's desire to settle down and relax more in the comic, and Tom's eagerness to vacation and do more hobby-like tasks, I think that Tom has potentially changed careers... or on his way of stepping down as Greenhills' Sheriff. I've kind of assumed that he was out the door of being a sheriff since the first film. In the novels, it makes an effort to state that Tom will do odd jobs around town. Sometimes he'll paint houses, other times he fixes and cleans gutters. He's known to fix cars once in a blue moon... usual handyman stuff.

In short, I think it’s safe to say that he might have changed careers... or became a Stay-at-Home dad to be there with his son(s) by the third film. Then again, these are just my thoughts. Maybe even more of a headcanon at most. I definitely believe that we're seeing him step away from that title and being Sonic's parent more.

I hope that this answers your question, my dear!

#sonic movie #sonic movie 2 #sonic wachowski #tom wachowski #wade whipple #sonic pre-quill comic #mystery anon #off topic #sonic movie 3

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purplerakath · 1 year ago

Text

Ramona's Guilt

So I wanna talk about a bunch of the stuff in Scott Pilgrim Takes Off and how it looks at, answers, and smooths over some generalities in the other two Scott Pilgrim narratives (mostly the comics as the movie didn't do much with Ramona). More of what I'm writing under the cut. Spoilers for all three but most pressingly for Takes Off.

So overall the frame here is going to be on how much guilt Ramona carries over her actions, and how much amends she goes for in the new narrative of Takes Off. And how much that matteers.

See, in the other two versions Ramona 'dumps them and leaves' is painted as a singular through line, a universally identical action across all her relationships. That isn't the case here. Each relationship is painted as 'Ramona leaves' but how much that matters varies.

Going to go through each Ex in order:

Matthew Patel

So it is painted as both 'a relationship that could go somewhere' but also 'dude you knew her in middle school.' Ramona doesn't apologize to him, doesn't accuse him of kidnapping Scott, or really interact with him because 'middle school.'

To Matthew's credit as a character, he gets a massive growth arc through finding a passion he loves rather than obsessing over a girl he knew when he was twelve. His 'take over Gideon's empire and follow his off Broadway dreams is a good avenue for his character to grow.

Lucas Lee

Ramona makes it clear she still cares about him, and has always been rooting for him she just- ran off. And that her doing that did significantly change him. And that part she apologizes for. It's also clear she mostly questions his guilt because of the league, and not because she thinks he's evil (referencing back to his 'evil for being a sell-out, I guess' from the books).

He's not the nicest person, but she sees though his facade. And barring his tossing a child onto the roof of a car to steal his skateboard, he's pretty much harmless. Lucas Lee is a lot of attitude but nothing really behind it.

But he did need to hear that Ramona cared about him, and was sorry.

Todd Ingram

Todd is in a weird place, one is he's not in the montage of Ramona running away from what she loves. So he's more of a rebound when she got scared with Lucas. Two he's always been in love with Envy Ramona was just 'there' not 'there for him.'

Third he's Gay. The story kind of makes it pretty clear he just didn't know that about himself. (Which is fine, Todd doesn't have two brain cells to rub together.)

So she doesn't apologize and Ramona didn't really do anything for him.

Todd is also in a weird place where he's less 'Ramona's evil ex' as he is 'Punchable Avatar of Envy Adams.' His major element in the books is as Envy's current boyfriend to deal with Scott's 'the big ex' problems.

Roxie Richter

The most deserved and needed apology of any in the series. While Ramona didn't mean to hurt her, because she wasn't aware of how much their thing mattered to Roxie. It. hurt. her.

So Ramona needed to apologize, more than any other ex.

This also changes Roxie from the 'safe ex to run back to' (because Ramona doesn't count her as a real relationship, in the comics) to 'terrifying relationship Ramona wasn't sure how to deal with' (because they got so close and Ramona runs when she feels scared). It's overall a very positive change to how this relationship worked.

And like with Lucas, post-apology this Ex is no longer evil.

The Katayanagi Twins

So Ramona doesn't really... interact with them at all. The ending montage shows she did love both of them, but she also dated them at the same time because they were, well, fuckboys. So it's less a 'she hurt them' as it was a 'she is the karma they deserved.'

The twins, overall, are painted by their nature in the future of being overall good guys who don't care about all this. I would like to see more of them but they aren't very useful narratively to Ramona's plot. Because they're useful to the whole 'how do we make this new Scott Pilgrim story go Brrrrrr.'

Gideon Graves / Gordon Goose

His inclusion in the final montage of 'running from love' is weird, because I do think a major element of a potential Season 2 is Gideon's kidnapping of ex girlfriends for a complete set. This is what I assume was in that vault from Ep 2, the one Matthew couldn't blast into.

Still, Ramona didn't apologize to Gordon, she chastised him and threatened him should he treat Julie the way he treated her. Which is deserved, Gideon is the worst. He doesn't get an apology because this time Ramona was right to run.

So what does this all Do!?

What it does is keep Ramona's character flaw (she runs when things get complicated) without making it seem like running is always the same, with the same weight, and the same responsibility on her. Of the evil exes, while six out of seven are no longer evil. Ramona was only needed to fix two of them.

It means she's a flawed person, as is the theme of this show. But not some secret heartbreaker. Just another scared little girl with intimacy issues.

And it means when a relationship was going to end on someone else's terms, having her chase down that relationship like a dogged detective makes her less a prize at the end of a story, and more her own person.

And that's a pretty great change.

#Scott Pilgrim Takes Off #Scott Pilgrim Spoilers #Ramona Flowers #Character Study #Glad Roxie got her Due #The movie kind of shafted her #which is not very cash money of it #Lucas Lee also got a good middle ground #between himbo king and skater d-bag #and I'm into that #I do think they aren't erasing Gideon's seven girlfriends in freezers thing #that feels like his endgame still #that or Scott still facing his ex girlfriends

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aajjks · 1 day ago

Note

GHL!JK

“Do you think that she thinks that we are perverts?”

eunwoo shrugs his shoulders. “i doubt it. why? were you looking~?” he teases, causing heat to rush to jungkook’s cheeks. eunwoo laughs at his friend’s timidness before focusing back on alina, who still isn’t happy to see him. “so, when are you gonna let me take you out, huh? we could go to the movie theatre and see ‘train to busan,’ or maybe we can hang out in my dorm room and kick it there” alina rolled her eyes.

“how about, never?”

“so tomorrow? next week? the week after?”

“you have no shame”

“and you are playing hard to get, but you’ll be mine soon. just wait”

soon, you emerge from your bedroom in grey sweats, a white tank top, and your hair in a low-messy bun. “hello. sorry to interrupt you” you apologize before sitting beside alina who looks relieved about your intrusion. “um, my name’s y/n. it’s nice to meet you guys!” you say excitedly. you shake eunwoo’s hand as he introduces himself but when you try to shake jungkook’s, you notice he’s hesitant. “sorry, he’s not the ‘touchy’ type” eunwoo explains.

“i understand. handshakes are overrated anyway” you say before bumping fists with jungkook instead. it’s a bit awkward, but you don’t let his shyness stir you away from making conversation with him now and then. you find jungkook and eunwoo’s company to be enjoyable and when eunwoo brings up a freshmen party happening later tonight, your head perks up. “a freshmen party? where is it?” you ask him. “it’s in building C on the third floor in room 613. the party starts at 8, you girls going to be there?”

“hell yeah! right, alina? we’ll be there. yeah, we’ll be there” you answer for alina before she can protest. “are you going to be there jungkook?” you ask sweetly, your voice as sweet as honey and soft like silk. at first, he’s hesitant, but jungkook agrees to accompany eunwoo to the freshmen party tonight. “good! well, i guess i’ll be seeing you gyals later. c’mon kook” says eunwoo who stands up from the couch and comes close to alina. “i’ll see you tonight, sweetheart, ~” she rolls her eyes and walks them out.

“see you guys!” you say, but your voice gets a little lower when you lock eyes with a certain doe-eyed boy. you smirk “bye jungkook~”

~🫧

The whole day he spends his time, trying not to think about his encounter when the mysterious girl that is Alina’s roommate.

But the way you just looked at him, did something to him.

Eunwoo notices his friend being distracted, but he doesn’t comment too much on it, he’s already distracted by the fact that he needs to woo Alina and maybe get laid, tonight.

“You know… Alina’s roommate? She’s just like you in a way. Personality wise I can tell.” Jungkook comes out of the shower and suddenly comments, taking his best friend by surprise.

Eunwoo looks at him and laughs. “Yeah. She’s hot like me.” He winks and Jungkook pretends to gag.

But he’s not wrong.. you are really hot.

It’s undeniable

Especially when he saw you in that towel…. You know you’re hot, he can tell.

•••

It’s 7:30 pm when he finishes getting ready. Jungkook thinks that he did pretty great at getting ready for the party, even though he didn’t really want to go, but he exactly doesn’t want to remain the shy kid forever.

And there’s a reason why he’s coming to the party and that reason might be because he’s so intrigued by you.

He gives himself an appreciative look into the mirror, “MAN HURRY UP YOU LOOK FUCKING GOOD ALL RIGHT? NOW COME ON HURRY UP!”

Jungkook rolls his eyes because his moment has been ruined by his pathetic excuse of a best friend

“Shut the fuck up, Lee.”

He looks good tonight.

He hopes that everyone at the party will also think that.. especially one person in particular

•••

The party continues in full swing, the energy palpable as people fill the space with laughter and conversation. Jungkook is standing off to the side, drink in hand, his eyes flicking around the room, but his mind is still occupied by you. The teasing from Eunwoo hasn’t stopped, and it’s only making him more agitated. Eunwoo leans in, his grin wide as he nudges Jungkook in the side.

“You’ve been staring at Y/N all night,” Eunwoo says with a playful smirk, voice slightly raised over the music. “What, you too shy to talk to her now, huh? Did she steal your voice, Kook?”

He’s not wrong because you look too fucking good in that outfit of yours… why are you so… sexy?

It’s like you’re not even trying.

Jungkook feels his face heat up as he glances at the drink in his hand, avoiding eye contact. “No… I just…” he trails off, unsure of how to explain the strange unease that comes over him every time he sees you. “I’m not staring. Just… looking.”

“Sure,” Eunwoo teases, flicking a finger at Jungkook’s temple. “Keep lying to yourself, man. You’re just waiting for the right moment to swoop in, right? Maybe if you keep standing there like a statue, she’ll come over to you and start the conversation.”

Jungkook glares at his friend, but the heat on his cheeks doesn’t fade.

He’s not entirely sure what it is about you that makes him feel so exposed. He’s always been in control, but with you, everything is different. Eunwoo, as usual, picks up on his discomfort.

“You’re blushing, man,” Eunwoo says, teasing his best friend relentlessly. “You’re totally into her. I can see it. Just admit it.”

Before Jungkook can retort, they’re interrupted by the loud voice of a group of girls, including Alina, who steps into the conversation with a roll of her eyes. “Are you still flirting with me, Eunwoo? You’ve been at it all night,” she says,

Eunwoo laughs, throwing an arm around her shoulder in an exaggerated move. “Come on, Alina. You know you want me. I’m irresistible.” His grin widens as he winks at her, and Alina’s reaction is a playful eye roll that she tries to hide behind a sip of her drink.

Jungkook, still feeling a bit flustered from the teasing, turns his attention back to the room. His gaze drifts across the party, scanning the crowd for a familiar face. That’s when he sees her.

Winter,

a senior, stands out in the crowd with her striking beauty. She’s dressed in a sleek, tight-fitting black dress, her hair styled perfectly, and she moves through the party like she owns the place.

Her confidence, her effortless elegance, captures his attention immediately. The way she holds herself, with a kind of quiet power, makes her impossible to ignore. She catches his eye from across the room, and there’s a moment of silent recognition. Winter gives him a small, knowing smile, and for a moment, Jungkook feels a sudden rush in his chest.

He quickly averts his gaze, feeling shy, but it’s too late. Winter has already noticed him. Her eyes linger a little too long for it to be just a casual glance. She’s beautiful, and exudes a kind of seductive energy that makes Jungkook feel slightly uncomfortable.

But before he can process it any further, he’s distracted by another figure who walks into the room.

Sehun,

another senior, strides in with a quiet confidence that immediately draws attention. His sharp features and casual clothes make him look like he’s stepped out of a magazine, and the air around him crackles with that same undeniable self-assurance. Sehun’s eyes sweep the room, and when they land on you, there’s a brief flicker of interest in his gaze. Jungkook watches as Sehun begins to make his way over in your direction, his stride purposeful. It’s clear he’s intrigued by you, and for some reason, that makes something flare in Jungkook’s chest.

Eunwoo notices Jungkook’s sudden shift in focus and follows his gaze. “Ah, I see what’s going on here,” he says with a knowing grin. “You’re not just shy about Y/N. You’re worried about Sehun, huh?”

Jungkook doesn’t answer, but he cannot help but be shocked by this random dude’s name.

“Who’s this Sehun guy?”

his eyes are locked on Sehun, who’s now standing a little too close to you for Jungkook’s liking. His jaw tightens, but he doesn’t move. Instead, he forces his attention back to Winter, who’s still eyeing him across the room.

Eunwoo continues, not letting up on his teasing. “I told you, man. You can’t just stand there forever. If you want her, you’ve got to make a move before Sehun or someone else does.”

Jungkook clenches his fist, but it’s not just Sehun he’s worried about. It’s you, too.

The way you carry yourself, so confident and completely unbothered by the attention around you. His chest tightens again, and he can’t shake the feeling that time is running out.

The music pulses louder as the night carries on, but Jungkook’s focus remains split between you, Winter, and Sehun.

He’s no longer sure if he’s ready for this challenge, but he knows one thing for sure…

he’s not going to let anyone else have you without a fight.

jungkooks look:

#ask: gh: lovers!jungkook #eunwoo got my heart fluttering

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iguana-eyanna · 1 year ago

Text

In Another Universe Pt. 6

Pairing: Ned Leeds x superhero! reader

Summary: Ned's world turns upside down when his new powers bring a stranger to his world. What's more strange is that she knows who he is.

Everything was set in motion. MJ was assisting Sorcerer Supreme Wong to prepare while Doctor Strange was practicing his incantation. Ned and Peter were sent off to grab everything else.

Ned went straight to get ahold of some herbs in the potion closet, muttering the ingredients to himself.

"Need a hand?" Peter asks.

"Sure, hold these." Ned said in a rush, stacking bottles in Peter's arms.

"Look, about earlier... I'm sorry if I crossed a line." Peter said but Ned doesn't look over.

"You're fine Pete, no worries." Ned said, walking away to get the spell book in the library. Peter followed in tow.

"Ned, I'm trying to apologize. Could we just pause right now?" Peter asks.

"Funny you should say that cause when I wanted to talk to you, you were busy elsewhere." Ned looked over his shoulder as he went up on the ladder to look where it was located.

"Okay, I deserve that. But I feel like you need to take a break and breathe for a sec. You're preparing for something that could kill you."

Ned breathed through his nose as he looks at Peter.

"I am done letting people, especially you, tell me what my limits are. I'm not a kid, I'm not your sidekick, and I'm not rushing this. So you could just let go of your pride for a second and be there for me just this once?" Ned raised his voice.

Peter seemed unsettled with his friend's temper. He never saw Ned angry. Ned returned his focus and turned over to his right, finding the book he was looking for.

It was different than the darkhold or the other books that were on the shelf. This had egyptian hieroglyphs that kept on moving on the cover, glowing a soft gold color.l

"The Book of Thoth." Ned whispered as he went down the stairs.

"That's the God of Knowledge from the Egyptian Mythology. But why does that book sound familiar?" Peter asks, looking down.

"Don't you remember the first issues of the Captain America comic books? He defeated the Witch Queen alongside Bucky when she was resurrected with this book. I thought it was just something they made up but apparently, this is real."

"That's so cool. I gotta ask Mr. Barnes if this is familiar." Peter said, slightly fan boying.

"Only if I get to tag along." Ned joked.

"Of course man! Mr. Barnes is so cool, I think you guys will like each other. He read the first copies of Lord of the Rings."

"No way!" Ned said in disbelief.

The two laugh a bit before Peter looks at Ned.

"I'm truly sorry for the way I've been treating you. It wasn't right to just ignore you like that. You literally took down an evil doppelganger with your powers and you're doing something pretty selfless. I'm proud of you Ned, I hope you know that." Peter said.

"You're my best friend Pete, I don't mind you being with MJ, I like hanging out with her too. I just missed when it was the three of us, or rather me not feeling like a third wheel."

"We're going to change that. No one is going to be left out or forgotten. And Ned? You were never a sidekick."

Ned smiles and gives Peter a hug.

"No matter what happens, I'll be there man." Peter assured Ned.

The two let go and they use their free hand to do their handshake before heading back.

"So, just to clarify, the girl you told us you were dating is or is not your girlfriend?" Peter asks.

"It's more of a cover really... but with these memories I told her that I was falling in love with her."

"WHAT?" Peter half yells which Ned shushed him.

"What?" Peter whispers again this time.

"That's why I'm wanting to do this. Although the memories I have of her are real, it feels more of a movie I watched than actually living them. I need to find the answer if I love her because of me or him."

Peter nods his head.

"Well, I'm glad that both of you are at an understanding. It must have been hard to face those feelings alone." he says

They finally reached the middle where everyone else was as they were busy. You look over at Ned, giving him a soft smile.

"Yeah, you could say something like that." Ned replied.

Ned gave Wong the book as everyone placed the items on the ground. MJ was using chalk on the ground in order to contain the incantation.

"You ready kid?" Strange asked.

Ned nods his head.

"Let's bring Edward up."

Wong opens a portal and out came Edward who looked unfazed of being transported out from his prison.

"If you do anything to jeopardize this, I will make sure you will be transported to the icey glaciars of Greenland." Wong warned him.

"Yeah, that totally makes me want to to do more trouble now." Edward says sarcastically.

"It's a bit unsettling to see them in the same room." Peter whispers to MJ.

"Yeah, I agree." She says.

"Okay. Ned 1 and Ned 2... listen up so I don't accidentally melt your brains into smoothies."

The two Leeds look at Strange with an unsettled look.

"Not the best time for jokes, I get it. But, you should really listen. Here, drawn by MJ, is a circle. Do not step OUT of the circle. This rune will make sure that those inside will only share the others memory. You're not allowed to interrupt my incantation. This hasn't been done for about a hundred years, and we don't want to see the outcome if it goes wrong. Am I clear?"

"So what you're saying is don't step out and shut up?" Edward asks, crossing his arms.

"Pretty much."

Ned looks over at Peter and MJ.

"If anything happens, tell my parents and my Lola I love them."

"You're going to them yourself Ned." MJ reassured him.

"I'm here bud." Peter says, as MJ squeezed Peter's hand as he was nervous.

The two Neds then look at you, expecting any last parting words from you.

"Please... be careful." you whispered.

The two boys stood apart in the circle and looked straight at each other.

"This may hurt a bit." Strange said before reciting the incantation.

Ned was about to ask how much, but soon his eyes glowed yellow. He floated in midair, unresponsive. You were about to go up to him, but Wong held you in your spot.

"We need to do this." Wong stated.

Soon, Dr. Strange waived his hands in a circular motion and brought out the dreams Ned had.

It was like you saw a projection of every moment you had with Edward. They were all in golden colors, and each memory moved as if you were in the moment.

One was when you had your first date at the state fair, and Ned won you a stuffed panda.

One memory that caught you off guard was the second night you spent with this world's Ned on the roof of his apartment. You were looking at the sky and saw how he fell in love with you.

"How is that possible that Ned remembered all of Edward's memories?" Peter asks.

"Any dream you have of yourself is most likely a memory a version of you had in a different universe. Apparently, all these memories of Spidergirl's Ned are the most vivid with our Ned."

Peter walks around the circle, seeing Ned's memories and caught one of them freshmen year of high school. They looked so shy in class, but Ned peered over when he saw that Peter had a star wars comic book on his desk. They started talking, and soon it was the first day of being friends.

Peter sniffles a bit, remembering the time it was them against the world.

Everyone was too preoccupied of looking at the memories floating in the air, the voice in Edward's head became louder.

'Now's our chance, you know what to do.' Hobgoblin said.

Edward reaches into the hidden pocket of the jacket he's wearing, feeling the small explosive he has saved in case of emergencies. He finds where the Book of Thoth was left unguarded. Edward was about to throw the explosive towards it, but then he heard something.

"You won't catch me!" You yelled out loud. "Yes I will!" Ned replied back.

"Huh?" Edward looks back and finds the memory. It appeared him and you were at a park, you wore this white spring dress that was covered in blue flowers. You were smiling, laughing as Ned was chasing you.

"Gotcha!" Ned replied, catching you by your waist as he spinned you back to his chest. "I let you!" You joked, playfully shoving his shoulder. "What will take you for me to release you?" He asks. You hum a bit before an idea pops in your head. "A kiss." Ned becomes easily flushed. This was your fourth date with each other and he has been too shy to kiss you. Maybe it was because he wanted to go slow and be the gentleman he always was, but this was his first kiss. He was worried he was going to mess this up. "Hey... it's okay. I'm not going anywhere. I'm with you till the end of the line." You said, placing a hand on his chest. Ned felt a flutter in his heart as you remembered that was a line from the Captain America and Bucky comic book he showed you. He placed his hand on top of yours and stared at you with such warm eyes. Without hesitation, he tilts his head down and kissed your lips for the first time. Both of you closed your eyes, feeling a thousand stars were surrounding you. Once you pulled away, you brush away a strand of hair that was in his face. "Nothing beats a first kiss." You said, smiling. Ned widen his smile as he picked you by the waist and spun you again and kissed you again with all the love he could give.

"That quote was your favorite movie." Edward whispers, looking down on the ground.

You break away from the memory and look at him.

"Ned?" you call him.

He turns around towards you, his eyes looking almost familiar.

Suddenly, he hisses in pain as he grabbed the sides of his head.

'STOP IT.' The voice yelled in his head.

"What's happening?" MJ asks.

"Something is blocking his mind for the memories to enter. Strange can't do anything when Ned is unconscious." Wong said.

"It's not something... it's someone." You said, hearing a sort of high pitch from your spider sense.

Edward thrashed his head violently, until he paused... giving a bone chilling laugh that filled the air.

He looks at you, smiling at you wickedly.

"Miss me?" Edward's voice slightly changing.

"Hobgoblin." You whispered.

"I can't wait to show you what I have in store." He says, his eyes growing a darker shade.

You don't know what he meant, but you could see Hobgoblin reach for something in his pocket.

"Peter! The book!" You screamed.

Peter ran to wear the book went as Hobgoblin threw the explosive at his direction. Peter almost reached towards, but then the explosive blew up, sending everyone off their feet. Artifacts flown around the room as some laid down on the floor and the book was lost in the chaos. Wong made a magic shield around MJ to protect her from any debris as you and Peter landed on the walls.

You could see all of Ned's memories slightly glitch, as the magic was being disrupted due to the rune on the floor was damaged.

"Someone needs to fix this quick!" Strange grunted, trying to not let any of the memories escape as they now swarmed in the air. Without the book, Strange couldn't maintain the spell. You could hear all the voices of each memory overlap, making it hard to focus.

"I can fix the rune! But you have to keep Hobgoblin inside!" MJ screamed.

"Find the book, I'll deal with him." You said to Peter. He nod his head.

MJ grabbed a chalk and started to connect the runes once more. You went in the opening and went up to Hobgoblin.

"I don't want to hurt you anymore." You said, hoping your Ned would hear you.

"Too late for that." Hobgoblin replied as he threw his fist at you. You knelt down as you caught it in thin air, but it was hard to maintain his grip. Hobgoblin used this opportunity to swing his leg towards your ribs that were already bruised. You let go, groaning, but you stood tall and raised your fists.

"This ends tonight." You gritted before both of you charge.

MJ rushed fixing the symbols on the floor as you and Hobgoblin fought. You ducked most of his punches, but he was almost invincible to take down.

"I'm almost done! You need to get out!" MJ screamed.

"I need more time!" you yelled back, trying to use your web fluid but Hobgoblin breaks free in seconds.

"There's not enough! I can't contain the memories anymore!" Strange yelled.

You look up and see Ned's aura fading like all of his memories. You can't leave Ned like this. And you can't leave Edward either, not again. You look over at MJ and nod your head.

"Do it."

She nods her head and scribbles the last symbol. Finally, the floor glowed around you three. Peter found the book in time and gave it to Strange as he recited the last lines.

"I know you're in their Ned, you can fight against him. You're able to decide for yourself, not him!"

"STOP TALKING" Hobgoblin spoke as you could sense that he was losing control over Edward's body.

"I'm not going anywhere, baby. I'm right here. I-"

You stop as you were now gasping for air.

The air was still for a moment. You could hear your new friends calling your name and you look down, seeing that Hobgoblin found a dagger lying on the floor and pierced you in the stomach.

Hobgoblin smirks back at you.

Suddenly, the soft glow of yellow turned a violent shade of orange. Hobgoblin took notice and turned around, seeing Ned now towering over him, his eyes glowing like raging fires.

"Wong? What's going on?" Strange asks.

"He's still conscious! His emotional ties towards her is stronger than we realized, Ned might not break free from this rage!" He yells back.

Ned took Hobgoblin by the collar and levitated up, flying as Hobgoblin dangled in mid air. Ned didn't even say a word, but his features turned menacing. That innocent kid that he once was is now gone.

"Just do it, kill me now. But if you don't you're just as weak as Edward." Hobgoblin spat.

"Stop, you're better than this!" Peter screamed.

Ned, not facing towards his friends, raised his hands toward them as they became frozen in place, even with Doctor Strange and Wong. But with Strange's lost of control, all the memories began to violently fly around the room. There was screaming, so much screaming. Everyone now saw the horrible things Edward had gone through. His manic episodes when he was lost in the sewers, his destruction towards the city when innocent lives were lost, and the times he fought with you before you were transported towards this world.

"Ned..."

Ned looks down as he sees you lying on your back, starting to bleed out.

"I'm with you till the end of the line."

Suddenly, the memories came to a halt as everyone became quiet. Ned lets go of Hobgoblin. He thought he was about to fall to his doom, but he levitates in the air.

"You're wrong about us. We're not weak... we care a lot. And frankly, I think you're time is finished."

And with that, Ned raised his hands to Hobgoblin, blasting all of the memories at Hobgoblin.

Hobgoblin screams out as Edward fights for control as both of the Leed boys shine bright as the sun. Everyone else closes their eyes as the light overcame their senses. Soon, it began to dim as well as the hold that Ned had on them. They break free from their frozen places and look up to where Ned and Hobgoblin once were.

They see Ned holding Edward's shoulders as he seemed half conscious.

"I got you, man." Ned whispered as they soon stood on the floor. Everyone else surrounded them, unsure.

Edward regains his senses, looking straight at Ned.

"It's... it's quiet. I don't hear him anymore." Edward said in disbelief. Both Ned and Edward smiled as they hugged each other, realizing that it worked.

Edward smiles brightly as he tries to look for you, calling your name.

"I remember now! I remember everyth-" Edward stops speaking as he sees you lying on the floor, eyes closed.

"No," Ned whispered.

Both he and Edward race to your side as Edward lifts you in his lap, trying to shake you to wake up as Ned held your hand.

You lied in his arms, cold as your blood decorated the floor. Peter and MJ go up to their friend as Peter knelt down besides Ned.

"I - I killed her." Edward whispers.

"It's not your fault." Ned said.

"It is. She's gone because of me."

Ned looks over and sees his teacher a few steps away, still shocked as he witnessed Ned's power.

"We can't do anything, can we?"

Wong lowers his head.

"It is forbidden. We must not disrupt the balance of the living and the dead."

"How about the book? There has to be a way-"

"There is. But it requires for one soul to be exchanged in order to bring back the other. We're not risking your lives again."

"What if we shared half of our souls to her?" Edward asks.

Everyone turns back to Edward.

"Half of my soul and half of Ned's creates one soul. Can that work?"

Wong and Strange look at each other, unsure.

Ned looks back at you, as you lied there peacefully

"We have to try."

Edward lies you on the ground as Ned took the book and looked at the spell.

"Hold her hand and I'll hold the other. Whatever you do, don't let go."

"I won't." Edward said.

Ned looked down at the book, repeating the words that was written on the page. Everyone around them saw a small glowing orb erupting from Ned's and Edward's chest.

"That's their souls." Wong whispered to Peter and MJ.

They flew in the air at the moment, slowly twirling around each other until the souls flew in your chest. A few seconds past and you gasp for air. Ned and Edward jump back from you unexpectedly. You look down and see that how your stab wound healed completely, barely leaving a scar.

“What- what happened?” You ask, looking around.

"You died for a good 5 minutes. All hope was gone till we decided we split our souls so you could come back."

"We?" You ask.

He looks over your shoulder and you turn around in his direction, seeing Edward standing alone.

Ned helped you get up until you were on your feet and you slowly take a few steps towards him.

He looks so scared as you got closer to him.

"Is it really you?" You ask, your heart still unsure if your Ned was back.

"On our first date... we went to go watch that new Disney movie. You looked cold so I gave you my letterman jacket. And when you wanted to hold my hand, I warned you that I had sweaty hands and you said -"

"-I had calloused hands so it was perfect." you finished his sentence

Edward and you laugh quietly as he looks at you, close to tears.

"I am so sorry, for everything. If I could take everything back, I would-"

You stopped Edward as hugged him tightly.

Besides you two, everyone around you began to tear up. Strange had to step away because he was more of a mess than all of you.

Edward choked as he quickly wrapped his arms around you, needing your touch like it was the only thing that was keeping him alive.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Thank you, for everything." You said to Peter and MJ as you and Edward were about to leave this dimension.

You've stayed for an extra two days, wanting to regroup all the events this week. But, you two decided it was time to go home.

"Of course, I'm glad that you're able to go back, Ned." Peter said.

"Actually, I think I want to be called Edward from now on... it kinda grew up on me." Edward said, intertwining his hands with yours.

"I like it too." You smiled at him.

At a fair distance, Ned looked at you and Edward happily in love.

"How are you?" Wong asks as he walked up to Ned.

"I'm... i'm alright. Made my piece that they'll be going back. I'm happy for them." Ned said, smiling contently.

Wong nodded his head.

"We need to discuss about your magic. Strange and I were talking and we had never seen someone advanced this quickly during their training. You're powerful Ned, more than you realize."

Ned looks down at his hands, knowing that too.

"Like I told you awhile ago, my Lola told me that we had a long line of people who were gifted."

"It's more than that, Ned. I believe you are a descendant of a powerful lineage. It ties to a mystic artifact that we've encountered: the Ten Rings. No one knows its origin, not even the man that beholds it."

"What's his name?" Ned asked curiously.

"His name is Shang-Chi. I will be meeting him in a few weeks to research more about this from his late mother's homeland, and I want you by my side on my expedition."

"I'm honored, Master Wong. I won't let you down!" Ned replied, about to hug Wong, but decided to bow instead.

Wong smirks and releases a sigh.

"I'll make an exception, just this once."

Ned smiled brightly and hugged Wong.

"Guys! Guys! Guys!" Ned yelled, running toward his friends.

"You didn't tell him everything, did you?" Strange asked.

"That what... he may be a descendant of the most evil sorcerers of ancient times?" Wong asked.

"I get it Wong, he's a good kid. But he needs to know his fate if his powers will corrupt him like The Duwende."

Wong sighs. He thought hearing Edward's alter ego sounded so familiar until he realized that duwende was the Filipino word for elf and goblin, or rather Hobgoblin.

"I will, but for now, we let him live the life he wants. He shouldn't be burdened of a historic destiny when he's finding himself."

The two look over to see Ned smiling and laughing with his friends. He almost died on countless attacks, disappeared from the blip and had to redo half of his education.

But one thing about Ned was that he stilled smiled, even in the face of casualty.

Wong and Strange walked away to give the teens some privacy as they discuss more of their expedition.

In a few minutes, everyone began to say their final goodbyes.

Ned was faced to-face with Edward.

"What are you going to do now?" Ned asked.

"I wanna see my family again. Just thinking about my Lola is making me tear up right now." Edward sighed, brushing his eyes with the back of his hand.

"But I'm going to get help. Even if I'm not Hobgoblin anymore, I need to make things right with the people I've hurt and take responsibility. Thank you, for reminding me of who I am." Edward said, lifting his hand.

"Actually, can we try something?"

Ned quickly taught him the handshake that him and Peter do and were laughing at how cool it was to be doing this with their doppleganger.

"Be kind to yourself, Edward. You were always a good person, don't ever forget that."

Edward smiles at Ned's words as the two hug each other.

"Mind if I steal you for a minute?" You interrupt.

Edward goes next to you and smiles, squeezing your hand before you and Ned were talking.

"I guess this is it." You said, rubbing the side of your arm.

"Yeah... it was um, nice to have you around." Ned said.

You look at him in a bit of disbelief.

"You know I have half of your soul, and that's how you're sending me off?" You sassed.

Ned couldn't help but crack a smile.

Your feels a bit heavy as you went up to him, holding his hand.

"I'm forever grateful for what you did for me these past few days. I'll never forget you Ned Leeds. I have apart of you with me."

Wong steps forward and signals that it's time to go. You look back at Ned and slip your hand away. Wong opens the portal and you and Edward look forward, seeing your New York.

"Ready?" You ask over your shoulder.

"Yeah, let's go home." Edward says.

Everyone waves them goodbye until something in Ned broke.

"Wait!" Ned yells after you.

You turn and see Ned run to you, wrapping his arms around you.

You hold onto Ned as you two began to cry. If these past days taught you anything, it was that love came at the most strangest of places. And you found a different kind of love with him, it was when two people who were hurting found each other.

He gave you a loving look as he wiped his tears away.

"Thank you, for the memories."

You gave him a tearful smile.

"Any time, I hope that one day soon, you'll find someone to share them with." You said, kissing his cheek as you slowly walk away from him as you go back to Edward. You two look back at the people who changed both of your lives.

And it was the last time you ever saw Ned.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1 year later

"Okay, ready? Smile!" Ned said, taking a picture of Pete and MJ by the pond at the Boston Gardens.

It was now breaking into warmer weather, so the gang decided to treat themselves of a day of adventuring after finishing their exams from MIT.

Just when he's about to show them the picture, a soft whimper caught his attention. Ned's eyes lit up with curiosity as he spotted a cute, lost puppy wandering near a cluster of trees.

With a warm smile, Ned crouched down and gently scooped the puppy into his arms.

"Hey little guy." He cradled the adorable canine, looking around for any signs of its owner. Just as he began to worry, he hears a familiar voice.

"Milo? Milo!" the voice came closer as he saw them running to Ned with a dog leash that matched the small bulldog's collar that Ned saw.

"Oh my god- is that-" Peter asks.

"Yep. Our world's version of Spidergirl." MJ said, slightly blown away.

Ned was in utter shock as you came closer with relief on your face.

"Thank you so much for finding my Milo! I wanted to have him run without the leash for a few minutes but he's such a troublemaker, always wanting to find new friends!" You said, a bit out of breath.

Ned broke out of his spell and gave you back your dog in your arms.

"Yeah, I uh- I'm glad I bumped into you." Ned said, still in disbelief that you were standing in front of him.

"What do you mean? I should be the one thanking you! How can I repay you?" You ask, about to look in your purse.

"No no! It's okay. I really don't want anything."

"Are you sure? I mean... I could treat you to a coffee. It's the least I can do." You said, wanting to show your gratitude (especially since you thought the guy in front of you was really cute.)

Ned smiles as he looks over to his friends, giving him a thumbs up.

"Yeah, I'd like that."

In a different world, two of the same people were by the beach side in the west coast, soaking in the sun.

"This is much needed." You whispered, as you cuddled closer to Ned as you were enjoying your first vacation with just the two of you after your first year of college.

"Agreed." He whispers in your ear as you guys relax, hearing the small waves crash against your bare feet.

A lot has changed within the year.

Edward had a tearful reunion with his family, and may or may not have been slapped with his Lola's house slipper of his long disappearance, but she hugged him tightly afterwards, afraid to let him go again.

He get the help he needed during his road to recovery. He had moments where he doubted if he was a good person, but you were always there to remind him all the good things he has done.

"What are you thinking of?" Edward asked.

You took a deep breath as you hug him against your chest.

"Just thinking how lucky I am that you're here."

Edward looks back at you with a loving gaze.

"I think I'm the lucky one."

"Oh yeah?" you ask.

"Yeah... and I'll prove it." He says as he turned more in your direction.

You were about to ask what until he inched closer and kissed your lips. Both of you closed your eyes as you felt fireworks, the same way you felt on the day of your first kiss with him.

You connect your foreheads together, later kissing his head as you two stared off in the sunset together, feeling your souls intertwined.

A part of you felt Ned somewhere in another universe. Somehow, you knew that he felt accomplished and accepted... and found someone that would one day love him with all of her heart:

You.

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