#it must have taken a while to digest all of that

[lavender-phoenix-flames]

Mdzs is quite hilarious if you look at it from juniors' pov especially jingyi's perspective. Going from saying hanguang-jun isn't a cutsleeve to finding out he infact is very cutsleeve and the person that is supposedly a lunatic gay man is The yiling patriarch, who isn't actually a villian the people painted him to be but is a hero and now is married to hanguang-jun and all this happened in the span of like a month or few, right in front of you!??!

They just witnessed the most crazy romantic yet tragic gay love story unfold in front of them and learned about the hypocrisy and corruption of the world around them all at the same and in such a short time, it's crazy.

[luvvixu]

mind over matter pt. 3

synopsis: witness how your marriage was bound to fall apart with you on the front seat and your husband gojo had missed the show—now, he gotta figure out the story on his own.

content: arrange marriage au, angst, husband!gojo, mean!gojo, mention of blood, strong languages, some unsettling scenarios, emotional trauma, read at your own risk

a/n: yooooo, finally an update!! thanks for waiting everyone~ i actually took a small break because my friends and i had a beach outing and that was great!

previous / masterlist / next

you feel like you had the longest dream in your entire life the moment you slowly open your eyes and reveal the white plain ceiling with matching beeping sound coming out from the machine.

it takes a second or two to realize that you're in a hospital.

like a seemingly newborn, your half lidded eyes traveled across the room until it reached the sight of some peculiar white haired male with his face buried on your arm, sleeping uncomfortably while sitting on the cold hard chair.

you could feel your whole body ache when you tried to move some parts of your body to stop it from numbing when you noticed some kind of empty feeling—like something was missing.

it did not take you a while to realize that your stomach feels so empty right now, and you know it's not because you're hungry, but because you couldn't feel your baby anymore.

an anguish screech escapes from your mouth when you realize that the baby isn't part of your body anymore. tears stream like a waterfall as your body automatically sits up and hugs your lower body, specifically your stomach, because you cannot accept the fact that your baby has been taken away from you.

this immediately woken satoru up and started to console you. “hey, hey, y/n! i’m here. i'm here.” his voice was soft and comforting but there's a hint of shakiness due to your sudden outburst.

“satoru, my baby! i can't feel my baby! my baby is gone!” as an upcoming loving mother, it hurts you so bad that you'd rather die than to accept this.

the sound of the machine keeps on loudly pulsating, meaning that your heart rate is rising quickly and it's dangerous for you to get stressed since you just came out from the operation.

“y/n! the baby is fine. our baby is fine. they were being cured by the best doctors so don't worry.” pulling your body close to his, satoru caresses your hair and keeps on murmuring some comforting words to calm you down.

but it seems that his actions were no avail when he saw your lower stomach bleeding. feels like his own blood had disappeared, his pale face becomes more paler when your extreme sadness cry turns to extremely painful cry.

his body seemingly moves on its own and presses the button to call for help while still managing to calm you down.

“where's my baby? g-give me back my baby! satoru, do something!” it pains satoru to see you like this. a whole crying mess who cannot even digest the fact that her baby was in intensive care so they can become better.

suddenly, the door in your room opened, revealing the doctor and their nurse—shoko was there too. they immediately inject you with midazolam to calm you down and it works almost instantly. satoru watches your body go limp as your wound continues to bleed.

satoru and shoko were instructed to wait outside as they transfer you to another room to tend your wounds. after you were scouted to exit the scene, satoru fell on his knees and leaned his back on the wall.

god, what did you do to deserve this kind of thing?

letting out a soft sob, satoru prayed once again—something that he just learned yesterday. he prayed that all of your pain, burden, suffering, and all must disappear because satoru couldn't list any single reason why you must suffer like this.

“you should go back at least for now, gojo. i’ll handle things here while you freshen yourself up.” shoko suggested but satoru just shook his head, refusing to leave your side.

“don't be a fucking stubborn. you still have other things to do, don't forget that.” shoko hissed.

“but i need to be by her side. i need to be there to support her whatever i can.” satoru slowly let himself up and looked shoko straight in the eye.

“do you think she still needs you to be by her side? oh please, not after what you had done.” the doctor rolled her eyes as she toys with the unlit cigarette on her lips.

for some reason, satoru was having a deja vu, it was like they're in her clinic once again and they argue where you heard things that you shouldn't have. as much as satoru would like to shut her down, he's worried that you might hear him say nasty things that he didn't mean to say.

“shoko, please…i know you're mad at me and you wanted to be hostile towards me. i actually don't care if you hurt me or insult me, just not now. i need to stand by her side and i don't need you to tell me what to do.” satoru stood up and his gaze on shoko became hard.

the doctor just tsked and decided to drop the conversation for your sake. there's a whole silence in the atmosphere when satoru suddenly thinks about your little breakdown earlier. you're looking at your child and he is too. he really wants to go to the baby but he thinks it would be better if the two of you are together.

satoru was excited to see his baby, sure. but something inside stirs up something that he personally couldn't explain. was it because he remembers your conversation when he first knew of your pregnancy? that he found himself unable to answer your questions during that night?

but whatever the reasons are, satoru was ultimately willing to ignore it and just focus on becoming a better husband and now a new father towards his child with you.

the strongest sorcerer of his generation, the one and only satoru gojo, the pride of his clan, your husband on papers, your most hated person, your child's father—swore to himself that he will treat his son as his own flesh and blood, not as the heir that will dethrone him from being the pride.

and most of them all, he swore to himself that you will be treated way, way better than everyone, specifically and especially him. satoru will patch up the wounds that he had caused you.

but not all wounds can be treated by a mere bandaid.

an hour had passed and now you're once again in your room, but this time, you're more than calm as you finally understood the situation—thanks to shoko who patiently explains everything to you.

like right now, she's standing by the end of your bed while satoru was on his seat just like the first time you saw him in this hospital. shoko carefully and softly explained what was going on with you and gave you some sort of assurance.

“you suffered from placenta abruption which caused your placenta to detach from the inner walls of your uterus. it unables the baby to receive oxygen and nutrients with the placenta detached. that is why the doctors had no choice but to put you into a cesarean delivery so it can save both of your lives.”

“and about your baby, don't worry, they're in safe hands. currently in the neonatal intensive care unit where the baby is under process of developing it since it came out during your six months of pregnancy and is premature.” she continued.

then, shoko put a hand on your shoulder, slightly massaging it to give you some comfort. “worry not, y/n. we're not going to let anything hurt your baby. they're safe here and are guarded with blessings and restrictions so no other curses or unauthorized people could touch your child.”

all this time shoko speak, your head was hanging low and it seems like you're having a hard time digesting everything. but you still get what she meant by putting you under a cesarean because it's the only way to save you and your baby's life—which you're incredibly grateful for.

“c…can i see my baby?” your tone was quite hushed, probably because you hadn't really talked to anyone after what happened to you.

shoko gently shook her head and gave you an apologetic smile. “i am so sorry, y/n. but you need to rest first and we, the doctors, recommended you to not move too much since it can open up your cesarean stitches once again.”

to everyone’s relief, you nodded at her words, like you agreed to get better first before seeing your child.

“alright, i gotta excuse myself now. i have an appointment later this afternoon.” shoko gives you a smile before sending a knowing gaze at the man beside you, saying ‘you better not forget that you still have other things to do’ look.

“mhm. take care and thank you for helping me during all of this, shoko.” you replied tried to return the same smile but it only reached a have, you just wished she could feel your sincerity towards her.

“i don't accept thank you’s, yet. i can only accept it if i see you in a much better condition. so if you want me to say you're welcome, then get better.” her words make you giggle a little but you take that as a note.

giving you a one last smile and a secretive glare at your husband, she finally left the scene…and that leaves you two, you and your husband. silence engulfs the whole room, only the sound of your beeping monitor keeps on echoing and adds awkwardness to the atmosphere.

you take a small peak at satoru who's looking at an empty space somewhere, looking like he's in a deep thought. you're not sure if you want to talk to him or not, but taking the preceding events from earlier, you see no reason.

on the other hand, satoru was lost in his thoughts because he's trying to construct everything that he needed to say to you. he's kinda bad at impromptu when it comes to you and mostly forgot his points and other subtopics because he's being blinded by the emotions that keeps on distracting him.

satoru also noticed your small gazes towards him and it feels like you're not planning to talk to him first, so he finally initiated a conversation.

“do you feel any pain in your body?” he asked you.

however, it took you a while to answer because you're not sure if your following responses are gonna be normal, sarcastic, or not answering at all. but you choose the first one because the two other choices would most likely put you into stress and makes your healing process becomes slower.

“my tummy hurts but i'm fine…and i'm also hungry.” you replied, that's it.

satoru was glad that you're answering him…well. anyway, he smiled at you and carried on with the conversation. “if the pain gets worse or it causes you discomfort, you must tell me immediately. and about that hunger, we still need to wait at least eight hours for you to eat something heavy. but for now, you can only take liquids and…the doctor said you could eat oatmeal and eggs—maybe we should get that. the doctor also to avoid greasy food and it would take at least six weeks for you to recover, and then��what are the other things he said again?”

while satoru was busy yapping, you slowly think that he's speaking to himself more than he's speaking to you because of how concentrated he looked and it somehow brings some sort of warmth in your chest because he really tries himself to remember all of the things that the doctors had prescribed him for you.

“satoru…” you called out to him, but he's still busy talking about do’s and don'ts and keeps on going while you occasionally call his name.

“satoru.” he's still busy talking.

“...satoru?” yep, still talking.

his yappings are getting too long and you're running out of thin patience, so you hold into his arms and that makes him look at you and stop talking instantly. breathe in relief, you finally stopped him from his own shenanigans.

“i—i’m sorry, i talked too much.” satoru awkwardly chuckles to himself, but you just shrugged it off. “anyway, what is it?” he asked.

“satoru, i was wondering…how did i end up here? all i know is i was in my room, i feel my tummy hurts really bad and it got me so worried about my baby. then all of the sudden, there's blood seeping down on my legs then everything black out.” you said.

“well…” then satoru proceeds into another minutes of yapping about what happened based on what they had said to him back then. you'd understand that yuuji and megumi were planning to cheer you up by a surprise room visit when they smelled blood and that made them instantly realize that something was going on with you. so they called shoko and yaga to break into the room, and there they saw you lying in your own pool of blood.

nodding slowly, the question that was formed because of the preceding events were finally put into the end. “oh, so that's what happened. anyways, do you think yuuji and megumi could be here tomorrow? i wanted to thank them.”

“sure. i’ll come with them tomorrow. but now, let's get you some light foods so you can sleep tonight.” satoru stood up but he froze as his feet were not walking. you watch him turn back to you while you give him a confused look.

“will you be alright being alone for like…five minutes? i’m just gonna be quick and get you some food. i promise i’ll be back before you know it.” you just let him do what he wants and just continue watching him. satoru looked at you for a long seconds, rather seemingly so hesitant. but you told him you'll be fine and just do his thing, so satoru assured you once again that he'll be back then uses his teleportation.

now, you're alone (for a while) in this room. your thoughts wandered towards your baby who you knew is in the same building as yours. you really want to run towards that room where they are located but you forcefully shut yourself because it'll just make things worse. you're still in the process of healing and you want to be at your strongest when you're with your baby.

but something was still arguing inside your head. it's the desire to run towards your child and the desire to get better—

“y/n.”

“shit!”

something—no, someone was suddenly in the room. it was satoru who's pouting at you like a puppy who got lost. his sudden appearance makes the beeping machine beside you go wild as you curse out profanity because you're that shocked.

thankfully, your heart beat becomes normal again and nothing bad happens. but you'll be sure to send out a death glare to your husband who's still pouting.

“what the actual fuck, satoru?! do you want me to die of a heart attack?!” you glared at him, still your hand is at your chest.

“i'm sorry about that. but i cannot bring myself to leave you like that even for a minute.” he said.

“i told you i'll be fine. you don't need to guard me 24/7 anyway, so go and grab or do whatever you want.”

“no!” satoru whined…and that surprises you, because this might be the first time you saw him whine like a child, especially without any involvement of alcohol or sugar to activate this kind of his system. this was just a new sight to you.

“then how are you going to get some food?”

“i’ll just have them deliver it here.”

“seriously? you're going to order and deliver oatmeal and eggs?” your eyes were wide at his crazy idea. like yeah seriously, for an oatmeal and eggs? he could literally get it from a convenience store.

“what? i'm gonna order some food for myself too, you know.” he pouts, again.

“okay, you order your food online. and we'll get mine at a convenience store.”

“what? no! i told you i don't want to leave you alone.”

“then i’ll come with you. we'll go and buy my food together if you're really that worried about leaving me alone.” you said sarcastically.

“what the hell is that suggestion? absolutely not!” satoru gasps. he's so dramatic.

“well then, i’ll just starve!” you huff at him before turning your head away from him.

“i—wait, i'm sorry. i really can't force myself to be away from you. i'm just scared that when i'm gone even for just a minute, s-something might happen again and i’m not there to help you out instantly.” the sad look on his face is back, similar to what he looked like when he confronted you in the hallway.

after hearing his explanation, you turned back to him and said, “there are things that come unexpectedly. you cannot also force yourself to stick with just in case an emergency would occur, you'd be there. for all that i know, you still have other things to do, like you have your priorities.”

“but you're my priority,” he said seriously. well that caught you off guard.

“whatever, just go and get me some food.” you brush it off.

“...”

“...ok.”

the night ended with satoru eating his ordered food happily while you were still glaring at the man because he really stick to his words and ordered your food online instead of just running to a convenience store or buying the hospital once. although, it makes you wonder, how is there a plain, plain! oatmeal and a boiled egg that has been selling online?

well, whatever it is, at least your hunger has lessened and your relationship with satoru has gotten…at least a little better.

[part 4 is up tomorrow! and you know the drill, for those who would like to be added to the taglist , just comment — ©luvvixu2024]

taglists: @mistymuii @kalopsia-flaneur @sherryuki-callmeyuki @aish777 @tttttttf @username23345 @slyhersophia @netyxms @rirk-ke @lvstru @roscptalsaa @labelt-san @shinruo @yaninnaacu @testrella @sad-darksoul @kurookinnie @mountvesuvu @chwesuh-imnida @cole-silas @elernity @buttermilktea11 @berenevenstarzetaestelar @maddie-jayne @yozora7154 @kawaiivillainess98 @jiupark @forourpoets @aishies-stuff @numblytemporary @souyasplushie @hotsauce247 @catarinemirandax @aerithsthingss @h1gh4ru @ssetsuka @jskodn @khoiyyu @the2ndl @veryverysadauthor @vebbiewuzhere @kouyoumarryme @dreamyescapesfromreality @local-mr-frog @haesify @openthenyoor01 @blkmystery @slowlyshycomputer @babybarbs12 @thickemadame @bleppt @leavem3al0n3 @arminloverlol @roscpctals99 @megumisthirdog @shirabane @skepticalleo @sheismaryy @tragicgirl444

a/n: istg guys i'm trying my hardest to get y'all tagged but some really did not appear when i @ your blogs huhu. but don't worry, that won't stop me from tagging y'all, so i am just going to manually mentioned you on every chapter update ;)

[bella-goths-wife]

How alec, Johnny and Jane court Cullen reader

Warnings: obsessive behaviour, possessive behaviour, oblivious reader, inexperienced reader, mentions of abuse from Cullens

Alec:

Alec has to be subtle about his affections and intentions with you

Your ‘family’ already hate him, they have since the day Edward was introduced to the volturi and could report to the Cullens every thought alec has had of you

His courting had to remain subtle for his forbidden flower, for his sweet Juliet to his Romeo

He found that at first his best option for being close to you was ask for a dance at one of the balls that the volturi threw for the introductions of new members of big time clans

These balls were for the most part mandatory, meaning your family couldn’t just lock you away and you could spend time with other vampires with minimal fear

Alec would walk to to you with one of the volturi kings next to him so that If you accepted a dance with him, they could distract the Cullens long enough for Alec to slip the two of you onto the ballroom floor

He never was one for dancing before you, coming from a poor village in the medieval times he never really had to learn

Even after joining the volturi, he copied basic moves whenever he had to dance with someone for the sake of politeness

But after meeting you and realising that you came from a different time period to him, he begged some of the female volturi members to teach him some steps to dances from your time

He tried to master them but sometimes you still have to correct him, to which he’ll claim that you must be seeing things to save himself embarrassment

He also tried to learn courting culture from your time, but he never could do with all the politeness from it

He preferred being improper with you, it gave him the opportunity to see the real you

So he’d sneak up to your room after the Cullens locked you up for the night

He’d sneak through the window and the two of you would spend the night talking and laughing together, considering neither of you needed to sleep

It made him feel closer to you, made him feel special to have that time with you

He knew that no one else had that experience with you, and that made his worries of you being taken from him

He’s done everything in his power to make sure the vampire clans know that he has claim on you and is courting you, he’s seen the newer clans looking at you like a piece of meat and he thought it best to show who you belong to

If any others try and intrude on your time together, they’ll be hissed at viciously and the volturi kings will be told of the interference to their plan to match you with either Alec or Jane

His last act of devotion to you was to swear you that he will free you from the Cullens grasp, and you can only pray he’s truthful

Jane:

Jane isn’t the most loving person

She struggles to express most emotions, but showing her adoration and love is the hardest

So she tries to court you in more practical ways, such as acts of service

Anything that you need doing, she will have the task completed by sundown

Your struggling to find clothes because the Cullens only give you childish clothes? Jane had handmade clothes tailored to match and compliment your body type and skin colour and she leaves them in your room for you

You’re thirsty but you don’t have any blood to feed with? Jane killed a human for you two to share during your teatime

She even asks for it to be baked into pastry’s even though neither of you can digest food anymore so you both end up coughing it up

You need entertainment while you’re locked away in your room? Jane will sit outside your door and read your favourite books and poems to you and keep you entertained

She also tries to work on her physical affection for you

She offers you an arm when you walk together through the garden at night, she places her hand over yours when you need comforting, she will place small kisses on your hand when greeting you in private

These are all things she never thought she’d be comfortable with until she met you, so she’s slowly improving in private

When she’s feeling extra possessive, she will cover you head to toe in her signature scent either by spraying you with perfume or briefly holding you and rubbing her cheek against your neck

This means she can put a subtle claim on you to show that you are hers and that anyone who tries to touch you will feel the wrath of her painful stare

Her final act of devotion from when she saw you last was swearing to free you from the Cullens so the two of you could stay near each other forever

She does all of this and yet your still completely oblivious to the affections her and her twin hold for you

Johnny (post meeting you)

Johnnys methods of courting is mainly just trying to help you discover more of yourself and help you separate your identity from the one forced upon you by the Cullens

I suppose it would fall under the category of quality time as he will spend hours upon hours with you helping you learn a new skill or remember an old memory

He helps you acclimate to the more modern parts of society that the Cullens never taught you about, such as dating culture and party culture

He tries to find things for the two of you to do that he thinks you’ll enjoy the most

An example of this is him taking you to a petting zoo and letting you control all the cute animals because it made you feel better then hunting with the Cullens

He also used his power to his advantage and he will shape his shadows to make shadowy animal figures for you to admire

He will also get very secretly proud of himself every time he sees you’ve enjoyed yourself doing an activity he chose out

He’s also very big into PDA as he’s less afraid of what the Cullens will do to him

He’s always got an arm around your shoulders or waist when you walk or he’s holding your hand as you talk to each other

But always with permission, he understands that you can have a slight touch Phobia because of your time with the Cullens

He was also raised as a lord, so all of his courting will subconsciously be very gentlemanly despite his playful and rough persona

So that means the sidewalk rule is being obeyed, he’s always taking your arm when you walk together and he’s always generally acting with honour and decency

He’ll do all this and you’ll still swear that he hates you though

Thoughts guys? 😭

[prettycottonmouthlamia]

So I might as well write down my thoughts on Babel, now that I have had some time to more fully digest the story while not in the throws of deep emotional pain. Going to put my thoughts in the read more below

On a very overhead view of things, I think that I am a little frustrated with how long it has taken for this information to come out of the game. It's been the game's best kept secret for five entire years, and something that the game has clearly been hinting at for huge amounts of time, but it does sting a little bit that we had to wait so long for the truth to come out. Boy, does it come out in this event, but it's a been a long, hard, confusing wait.

It has, as well, resulted in what I believe to be one of the best written events in all of Arknights. Babel is, in itself, a tragedy that acts as the opening act to the tragedy that is the Twin Kings and their rule over Kazdel. It is a demarcation of their acknowledged struggles against the rest of the world, against the Sarkaz, and against themselves. It provides a really refreshing amount of depth and context to the Londinium crisis and why things have turned out this way.

The thread of fate is a constant refrain over Arknights. It touches Patriot's tale and Amiya's prophecy, it touches Theresis and the prophecy of his death in Londinium, it colors the viewpoint of the entire Cyclops tribe, and it affects the Twin Kings and Ascalon in turn. This event gives us an answer to the lingering question that has been in the backs of our minds for a while now: is prophecy certain, and is Fate guaranteed? The answer to this, is no. Prophecy must be inferred, and in that inference can we find the way to resist it, even if only for some time. I suspect that this is here because Amiya's prophecy, something that has only been brought up again in Chapter 12, will come back in intensity in whatever Part 3 there is, as Amiya gradually begins to unlock more and more functions of the Civilight Eterna. And in turn, will Theresis even die, or will he find a way to avoid his fate?

Babel is also a story about what it means to be a Sarkaz. The question is brought up about how the Sarkaz are not really the same race at their core. The Nachzerer and the Vampires are not kin in the same way Perros are to each other. How could the Twin Kings hope to unify them? Theresis and Theresa's answers are their responses about who the Sarkaz are. Theresis is pessimistic, trapped in the past, a past that is unfortunately real and undeniable. He sees that war is the only solution, that inevitably, the Sarkaz can only come together when war either offers them an outlet for their revenge or threatens their home. It is in times of peace, Theresis would argue, that the Sarkaz are at their weakest and most disparate. For Theresa, the answer is that the Sarkaz are entirely capable of unifying with time and effort, and with further time and effort, are capable with unifying and coming to terms with their past too. She is the optimist answer, the idealist answer, she sees in the Sarkaz the strength to let go of the past and work towards a better future, a better future that the Sarkaz have long denied.

Theresis and Theresa did not want to drift apart, this much is certain, but it was completely unavoidable. The same Theresis who knew that his sister would make the better ruler, that his sister had the qualities needed to be a leader, was the same Theresis who saw those qualities push her down a path that he saw as too slow for the future of the Sarkaz. Theresa, who watched her brother struggle to become a warrior, saw his tenacity and perseverance pointed against her. Maybe, in a vanishingly small possibility, they could have compromised, and found a path forward. But that wasn't in the cards for them.

Theresis, Theresa, and ultimately, the Doctor all end up making heavy choices under their respective burdens. The Doctor's part of the story is fascinating and a fulfilling answer to the questions around the Doctor brought up in Vigilo. Who was the pre-amnesia Doctor? They were a single person, a lost remnant of their civilization, tasked with an impossible question of how to handle the future. Their identity burdens them with guilt, foreknowledge that they are the only remaining one of their kind, and the choice put in front of them is tragic.

A) Do you move forward with the last of your civilization's projects to its completion point? Do you allow all on Terra to be assimilated into Originium, to preserve it and protect it eternally as information stored in the amber mineral? Do you prolong the suffering of the people you've grown to care about? Do you make the one you care about most, Amiya, suffer more and ultimately die because of a grand ideal of what will happen to her?

or

B) Do you resist the last hope of your civilization? Do you fight back against Originium, do you work to reverse its assimilation process, do you along with Theresa work to unassimilate everything out of the Assimilated Universe, in the hopes that maybe their lives will mean something? Even though you know that the force that destroyed your much more advanced and powerful civilization could just as easily destroy theirs? That their lives will be fleeting?

The Doctor ultimately makes a choice. The Doctor does not merely betray Theresa by aiding in her assassination. They do not merely betray Kal'tsit by failing to trust her. The Doctor does not merely betray Babel by having it destroyed. They betray everyone. They turn their back on the identities that they have built, the relationships they formed with everyone, in order to say to themself quite clearly:

"I am Oracle, and I am the last of my kind"

It's why their demeanor changes. It's why their curiosity towards Terra dies out. It's why their mind, in clear understanding of what their goal was, is now suddenly able to direct the lives of the people under them with perfect precision. They become the perfect, calculating commander that Ace and Scout remembered them as, because now, in the face of everyone's inevitable end, in the face of the assimilation of Terra in the given century;

Does any of their lives truly matter?

The answer is no. On some level, I believe the Doctor still cares, but they no longer allow that sentimentality to fully interfere with what they have to do. Look no further than how they betray Amiya. They not only kill Amiya's maternal figure for the sake of the Originium Project, their first betrayal. They let their relationship deteriorate to the point where even Amiya is aware that the Doctor has become quite different. They no longer share the curiosity and joy in being with Amiya as they once did, their second betrayal. And once the Doctor makes up their mind about what they have to do, once they make their choice and meet with Theresis under the statue of the Twins, they never bring up curing Amiya's Oripathy ever again. Their third and final betrayal, the breaking of a promise.

They chose to let the person they care about most in the world suffer, and die, from Oripathy, because being assimilated into the Originium Project is the correct path.

Babel is super narratively and thematically dense and honestly I am probably not the person you should expect to uncover it all, but I just have so many thoughts that it would probably bloat this post even more.

[i-am-baechu]

ᡣ𐭩 Title: Unread 

ᡣ𐭩 Paring: Class President! Kim Namjoon x Shy! Violinist! Reader 

ᡣ𐭩 Summary: Having a crush is hard, especially on someone like Kim Namjoon. At least her letters can tell him how she feels without facing the sad reality. 

ᡣ𐭩 Rating: Explicit (18+) 

ᡣ𐭩 Genre: Fluff, romance, angst, smut, extremely shy reader, heartfelt, Cinderella-ish, and crush situation 

ᡣ𐭩 Part of the The Legendary Seven

ᡣ𐭩 Playlist: Someday, Somewhere - Jolin Tsai and Understand - Keshi 

ᡣ𐭩 Warnings: Insecurities and bullying

ᡣ𐭩 Authors Note: I completely changed this story. I had it ready to post but I wasn’t happy with the story. So, I rewrote it. I love how this turned out and thank you for being patient! 

“Two of The legendary seven are taken. The world is ending soon. I just know it. That’s why they're moving as fast as they can to be with someone. It’s interesting to see that Kim Taehyung is taken by someone like a fortune teller's daughter. It makes it more interesting that before they became exclusive, Taehyung was actually seeing Jennie. The other heartthrob of our lovely school. I know people can change overnight but this is a scientist's worst nightmare. An unexplained outcome. The new couple has been seen countless times at Boo Seungkwan games and they got together because of his help. His aunt’s party was one of the stepping stones they needed. What really got them together was Taehyung’s grandmother's party. The lovebirds have been together since. I do wonder if she knows about the relationship that Taehyung had with Jennie. I wouldn’t want to be with someone that held secrets from me. Especially when these secrets are about past affections with someone. Until then, Pen.” 

Y/N just like everyone else read the post on the website but unlike everyone, she didn’t digest the gossip in excitement. Everyone always has something to say regardless of status. An opinion is always there. Sometimes it's needed but other times it's unnecessary and cruel. This blog did just that but she’s guilty because every Friday she comes back to read. It wasn’t a good feeling but one must know what's going on. Even if it’s bad.

Y/N glanced through the music window and her eyes landed on Kim Namjoon. The way the sunset highlighted his features could make a painting jealous and the way he smiled could bring in ships on a dark night. She looked away and glanced down at her shoes as she felt her face get warm. She hated to stare and she knew it wasn’t ladylike but even she broke the rules when it was necessary. 

Just then the door opened and she looked up to see who it was. Her face brightened when she saw who it was, “Soo-Young.” 

Park Soo-Young was her older cousin by two years and her only friend in this big school. All her other friends graduated. Soo-Young always took care of her because of her timid nature. Soo-Young was everything Y/N wasn’t. A person who stands up for what she believes in while Y/N stays quiet and takes the abuse from others. 

Soo-Young glanced at her violin and smiled, “Practicing for the competition?”

Y/N nodded her head and glanced outside. Her eyes landed on Namjoon who was talking to Seokjin, “I made the piece myself.”

“Oh? What’s it about?”

“Unrequited love.” 

L/N Y/N ranked number 10 in Seoul University and is known as the diamond of the L/N family. The timid swan that plays beautiful melodies that could make the flowers bloom in winter has a secret. She’s in love with Kim Namjoon and she has been since their first meeting. It happened four years ago…

Every year her father held a ball in celebration of his business. Everyone was dressed in the most beautiful dresses one can acquire with the most expensive jewels. Y/N hated these balls but she went to them because her parents wanted her to socialize. They knew their daughter was timid so they thought making this party would make it easier for her to interact. Y/N was dressed in a nude embroidered tulle gown with wing sleeves. It was rather simple compared to everyone else but she liked that. If she were in an art gallery, she would be the frame, not the painting. 

She pushed her hair behind her ear and moved towards the instruments. The players were taking a break and she couldn’t help but look at the violin. She gently picked it up and headed towards the garden. No one even noticed her leave. She sat on the bench and started to play a melody that came to her mind. As she played, she didn’t realize someone was watching her. 

When she finished, she smiled to herself but it quickly faded when she heard a clap. She quickly stood up and her eyes landed on a tall figure with a kind smile. She glanced away and bowed her head in an awkward manner. 

“You played beautifully.” 

She looked back at the mystery man and smiled, “Thank you...” It was so quiet that even the wind didn’t catch it but he did. 

“How long have you played?” 

Her lips formed a tight smile and she felt her face get hot, “I’ve been playing since I was six.”

“Oh, wow. Are you a professional?” 

“Oh, go-god no. I could never meet their levels.” 

“Well, I think you can.” 

Their eyes locked onto each other but she was the first to break the stare, “I-I have to go.”

“Can I get your name?” 

She glanced back at him and looked at the flowers below him, “Y/N...L/N Y/N.”

He smiled at this and it was a gentle smile that made her heart feel safe, “I’m Kim Namjoon.”

How could she not fall for him? He was the only one who noticed her leave the room. She wasn’t used to that attention. It wasn’t much but it was enough to make her heart flutter. She was so sure that he forgot about her. She never saw him at the parties again and she couldn’t talk to him at school. That would be a death wish. 

She turned towards Soo-Young and smiled, “Is Irene ready for us?”

Soo-Young smiled and nodded her head, “She’s waiting for us with Seulgi and Wendy.” 

Y/N nodded her head and stood up, “Let me put my violin away and I’ll meet you at your car. Is that okay with you?”

Soo-Young nodded her head, “I’ll turn the AC on for you.”

“Thank you...” 

When the door closed, Y/N opened her bag to pull out an envelope. She looked at the pink envelope and took a deep breath. Every Friday she did this and she wasn't going to change that. She put her violin away and walked into the empty hallway. She glanced around and went inside the student council room without making any sound. That’s the benefit of being so quiet. No one notices you. She glanced at Namjoon’s desk and opened her envelope to read her letter, 

Dear Namjoon, 

I have no idea if you read these but if you do then you know my affection towards you. I wish I could say it to your face but one doesn’t want to get humiliated. I saw your speech about the students the other day. I admire the way you can inspire others with your confidence and reliability. It’s amazing to see that especially someone your age. I wish I could be like you and maybe then I can say those unsaid confessions to your face. Someday I can...

Until then, 

Have a nice day. 

She folded the paper back into the envelope and placed the letter in the folder that he always reads. She took one final glance at the folder and walked out of the room. She quickly made her way to the parking lot avoiding everyone in the process. 

Namjoon was talking to Seokjin and frowned, “Is Taehyung okay?”

“They’re okay. It’s just Lin right now. She doesn’t like to be known as the fortune teller's daughter.” 

Namjoon sighed and nodded his head, “I know. I hope she’s doing okay.”

Jin smiled and nodded his head, “She has Taehyung. She’ll be fine.”

Namjoon glanced over Jin’s shoulder and saw Y/N running with her head down. He smiled to himself and looked back at Jin, “We should still check on them.” 

“Well, we're going to meet up with them at Hoseok’s dance competition tonight. Should we do it before or after?”

“Before. So then we can focus on Hoseok for the rest of the night.” Namjoon nodded his head and glanced over Jin’s shoulder but Y/N was gone. He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, “We should get going then.” 

“Yes, class president.” 

“Don’t call me that.” 

Y/N came into the car and Soo-Young leaned forward pushing some hair away from her face, “You look flustered. Are you okay?” 

She swallowed some spit and nodded her head, “I-I’m okay. I had to tune my violin and I didn’t want to keep you waiting. I rushed out here as fast as I could. I’m sorry.”

Soo-Young shook her head at this, “Y/N I was only waiting for six minutes or something. It’s okay. You don’t need to say sorry.”

“Sorry.”

“Y/N.”

“Sorry..oh, god.”

Soo-Young let out a laugh and turned up the radio, “Let’s go before Irene yells at us for being late.”

“Okay.” 

The car drove away and Y/N glanced outside. Her eyes landed on Namjoon who was standing outside Seokjin's Porsche. She smiled to herself when she saw his smile and she turned away with the smile plastered on her face. Namjoon glanced at the car that was leaving the parking lot and he continued to watch the car until it was out of his sight. 

“You're coming in?”

Namjoon let out a small laugh and nodded his head, “Yeah.”

.*･｡ﾟ☆ﾟ.*･｡

Y/N Walked down the hallway with her head down. She glanced at the popular girls (it was hard not to when they were so loud) but she quickly looked away when one of them returned the stare. She turned around and started to walk away but was stopped when she heard her name. 

She slowly turned around and was met with Jessica who was giving her that look that made her feel so small, “When is the ball?”

“It’s next month...”

“What? I can’t hear you, be louder, mouse.” 

“Jessica, leave her alone.” 

She turned around and saw Bora with a stern look. Bora was Jungkook’s new girlfriend and the talk of the school a couple of months ago. Y/N has never talked to her and the closest she has ever got to a conversation was when Bora asked for paper. Y/N blinked her eyes in shock and continued to stare at Bora who was now in front of her. 

Jessica glared at Bora and crossed her arms, “What are you going to do about it?”

“Didn’t Jungkook tell you what he would do if you messed with me?” 

Jessica clicked her tongue and she turned around to walk away. Before she could, she glanced at Y/N over her shoulder with an annoyed look, “I’ll see you at the party.” 

Y/N watched her leave with a confused look. She turned towards Bora and bowed at her, “Th-Thank you.” 

Bora turned towards her and smiled, “Jessica is unbearable and no one should deal with her high-pitched noise that she calls a voice.”

Y/N frowned and shook her head, “I’m sure her parents like to hear her voice.” 

Bora let out a small laugh, “They don’t have a choice but we do. Where were you heading to?” 

“I was going to the music room.” 

Bora nodded her head and glanced at Y/N’s violin case, “I heard you place at the Cosmic Hall last year. It was beautiful.” 

Y/N felt her face get warm and bowed to her, “Thank you, I appreciate the listen.”

“Are you performing at this year's competition?” 

Y/N looked away from the curious eyes and nodded her head, “I-I will be...”

“I will tell Jungkook to come and listen to your music.”

“Yo-You don’t have to do that. I’m sure he has better things.” 

Bora shook her head and let out a small laugh, “He doesn’t. Everyone should listen to you play. The peace it can bring into someone’s life is remarkable. I’ll see you Friday night.”

Y/N bowed at her and watched her leave with curious eyes. Bora was nice and the more Y/N thought about it the more it made sense for Jungkook to be with her. Opposites attract. Y/N turned around and continued to make her way to her second home. She opened the door and was met with Soo-Young’s bright smile as she played the piano, “Y/N, I’m excited to hear your piece.” 

Y/N closed the door and nodded her head, “I don’t know if it's good.”

Soo-Young frowned at this and walked away from the ivory keys. Y/N stared at the white tiles as she listened to Soo-Young’s heels clicking, “Y/N, have some confidence. I think you're amazing. Everyone thinks you're amazing, please think the same.” 

Y/N slowly looked up to see Soo-Young’s pleading face. Y/N looked away and nodded her head, “I’ll try.” 

Namjoon was at the picnic table in the sitting area with his friends outside. It was one of those rare days where everyone had their classes canceled. It felt like high school all over again for Namjoon. He was listening to Lin talking about what her mother said about Taehyung’s future when Bora came rushing in with an excited grin, “I have news.” Jungkook moved and Bora sat next to him. His arm naturally wrapped around her shoulders as she looked at her friends with excitement, “We’re going to the Cosmic Hall this Friday!”

Lin raised her eyebrow and tilted her head, “Cosmic Hall?”

Bora nodded her head and turned towards Lin, “Every year they have a competition for violinists. Last year, my dad won tickets and I heard the most beautiful song. She of course won the whole thing but I wasn’t shocked, she was.”

Jimin raised his eyebrow at this, “Who was?”

“L/N Y/N.” 

Namjoon almost dropped his water bottle at this. He turned towards Bora with wide eyes, “Y/N still plays the violin?” 

“Yeah...well I assume so. She’s playing this Friday, do you know her?” 

“O-Oh, I’ve heard of her.” Of course, I know who she is. 

Jungkook looked at Bora and pushed some hair away from her forehead, “Of course we’ll go. It’s peaceful.”

Taehyung scoffed at this and rolled his eyes, “Like you would know what peace is.”

“For your information I do.” 

Namjoon zoned out and remembered what his sister told him, “Y/N stopped playing out of nowhere. Everyone was shocked. I don’t know why though. I hope everything is okay with her.” This happened three years ago and he wondered why she stopped playing in competitions. He could only hear her play when he was walking past the music room after school. It was his favorite routine to do. Hearing her play was like a painting coming to life. It was magical. 

“Namjoon, did you hear me?”

He quickly shook his head and looked at Bora with a sheepish smile, “I’m sorry, what did you say?” 

“I asked if you were coming with us? I know you have that meeting-”

“I’m going.” 

Y/N continued to write on her music sheet as Soo-Young laid down on the piano and played on her phone, ���Irene, is picking us up today.”

Y/N set her pen down and she smiled at this, “Oh? That’s exciting.”

Soo-Young sat up and gave Y/N that look that made her nervous, “She’s taking us to eat at this restaurant. It’s owned by Seokjin’s family.” 

Y/N’s eyes widened at this and turned her body towards Soo-Young, “That place is so expensive. Shouldn’t we go-”

“Y/N, don’t you remember we’re rich? It’s fine.” 

Y/N shook her head at this, “It doesn’t matter. Money is money. Being responsible is good regardless of status.” 

“Y/N, let’s go have fun. It will be good for you.” 

She glanced down at her notebook and then back at Soo-Young, “Okay...I’ll tell-”

“I already told your parents. They said it will be good for you.” 

Y/N shook her head with a small laugh escaping her lips and glanced at the window, “I suppose. I have to go to the bathroom. I’ll be back.”

“Okay, be safe.” 

The scene was déjà vu for her. Her shoes barely make a sound, it would make a mouse confused. She glanced down at her envelope and smiled to herself when she remembered her words, I saw the way you smile and it would make the sun jealous. The way your eyes sparkle are like the stars dancing around the moon. Your whole being is my universe. Even though I will never be able to say it to your face. Please forgive me but I do mean it. Your whole being is my universe. 

She went to open the door but stopped when she heard footsteps. She quickly hid behind the lockers and watched Namjoon listening to his music. Her eyes widened but she didn’t make a sound, this was going to make her sick with anxiety. He opened the door and closed it behind him. She let out a breath that she was holding in and glanced down at her envelope. 

She bit her lip and she was debating on what to do. She could run away with the letter and just give it to him next week or she could slip it under the door. If she slipped it under the door, she would have to be quick. She wants to give him this letter but is it worth getting caught? Perhaps. She took a deep breath and in a flash she slid the pink envelope under the door. She did it so fast that she didn’t process that she was running away. She continued to run until the music door was in front of her. She regained her composure and wiped her sweaty hands against her jeans. She opened the door and her anxiousness was dissolved when she saw Irene talking to Soo-Young, “Irene.” 

Irene turned towards the door and smiled, “Y/N-inee” 

Y/N made her way and hugged Irene who happily returned the hug. Irene was like the sister that Y/N never had. Being the only child, she never had the chance to have an older sibling. Soo-Young was her cousin but she saw her as her best friend/partner for life. 

Soo-Young scoffed at this and crossed her arms over her chest, “Why don’t you act like that with me, unnie?” 

“Y/N is my daughter, you are not.” 

The restaurant was something out of the movies. It was so spacious and beautiful. There were people playing the harp with the many paintings dancing to the soft melody. It was beautiful. She now understood why this place had a five-star review online. They sat down at a table and she listened to the harp and she couldn’t help but think of Namjoon. 

The day was normal, Y/N was going to go to the library and study for her Biology test. Nothing more. Nothing less. She turned the corner and her eyes widened when saw Namjoon leaning against a bookshelf reading a book. She quickly hid behind the tall shelf and peeked around the corner to see his tan skin getting highlighted by the terrible library light. Somehow, he even looked good under them. His black hair gently touching his forehead and his earrings that made him even more attractive to her. 

If she had Soo-Young’s personality, she could talk to him. But she isn’t her cousin. She looked away and leaned against the shelf with a frown. Namjoon would never like a girl like her. He needed someone who was sexy and confident. Everything she was not. She walked away and stared down at her shoes, she would never be with Namjoon. 

“Y/N, are you okay”

She shook her head and gave Irene a fake smile, “I am.” I’m not but...what choice do I have? 

The night went normally, Soo-Young and Irene argued about random things as Y/N laughed. She took a sip of her water and she looked around the room to see Namjoon having dinner with what looked like a girl. Her eyes widened and she saw how his eyes softened when the girl was talking. She swallowed her spit and glanced down at her plate with a frown. She knew this would happen but why did it have to happen in front of her? 

Y/N glanced at herself in the mirror of the dressing room. Today was the day of the competition. She was so nervous to the point that her stomach was attacking itself. She clenched the vanity under her as she tried to regain her breathing. She closed her eyes and tried to picture something happy but all she could see was Namjoon with the girl from a couple of nights ago. She shook her head and glanced down to look at the black fabric. She was dressed in a lace tea-length dress. Her mother was so excited about her competition that she had the dress custom-made for her. 

The door opened and she turned her head to see her mother who had a soft smile. Y/N returned it and her mother placed the bouquet of flowers on the coffee table, “I know that look, flower.” 

Y/N sighed and turned towards her, “What happens if I mess up?” 

“Then you mess up. As long as you get your piece played that's all I care about. Mistakes and all.” 

Y/N glanced down at the flowers and smiled, “Thank you.”

Her mother smiled and walked towards her. She placed a kiss on the top of her head and pushed some hair back, “Amaryllis, your favorite.” 

“I just want to do good...I want to prove...”

Y/N’s mother brought her into a tight hug as she rubbed her back gently, “I will always be here for you. You don’t have to prove anything to anyone, only to yourself. I love you, good luck.” 

Namjoon sat next to Jin as he listened to the violinist. It was nothing to compare to Y/N. Y/N playing brought color to black and white while this person was simply following notes on the page. Like a robot. Namjoon looked down at his pamphlet and smiled when he saw Y/N’s name. 

When he saw her at her father’s party he was so happy to finally meet her. It wasn’t the first time they met.

Cosmic Hall was silent and Namjoon sat next to his sister. Today, his little sister wanted to see the talented violinist. He heard she was a L/N. They were at the top of the technology business and they only had a daughter. There were rumors that they tried to have a son but it almost resulted in death. Resulting Y/N to be an only child. Y/N was the diamond of the family. Everyone looked at her as a picture-perfect heiress. She was ranked in the top ten and she was ranked number three in Korea for his violin skills. What more could you want from a daughter? 

Namjoon didn’t care about violinists. He was only here for his sister. Taehyung would’ve loved being here. He loved classical music and the fine arts in life. Although Namjoon liked classical music, violins never stood out to him. 

The music became dark and his focus was on the main stage. A girl appeared and his eyes widened, she was dressed in a lilac dress that showed off her shoulders perfectly. She had a diamond necklace that could bring light in the darkness. She looked like a painting came to life and Namjoon couldn’t look away from her. She was so elegant in the way she moved that it looked like she was floating. That didn’t go away when she started playing. It was as if he saw the notes coming towards him in pastel colors. Each note told him a story that only he knew. It brought peace. He felt stupid about how he never cared for violins. 

When he saw Y/N at the party, he acted like he didn’t know her. It was obvious that the girl was shy and he didn’t want to scare her away. Even in person, she brought a sense of peace. She was elegant but somehow clumsy. When she ran away from him, he couldn’t help but laugh at how she looked. Not in a mean way but in an enduring way. There were whispers around the campus about the heir to the L/N business. Some said she was cold and never made eye contact with anyone because of how egotistical she was. In reality, Namjoon knew the truth. She was a white daisy in a garden of thorns. 

The audience got quiet and Namjoon sat up straighter to see the stage better. She walked out and his eyes couldn’t leave her figure. She bowed at the audience but there was something different with her tonight. There was something sad about her expression. She sat down and the speaker read her description, “This song was made by Y/N herself. The song describes an unrequited love. The piece is melancholy but it has a small glimpse of hope. A very moving piece that describes her real life.” 

Namjoon raised his eyebrow at this and frowned, “Unrequited love...” 

Y/N took a deep breath and started playing. With each note she made, she saw Namjoon. The way he smiled at her that day and the way he noticed her when no one did. Then the sadness came through when she saw him with a girl at the restaurant. The piece describes perfectly how she felt. In love with someone who will never see her. 

“The winner of the Cosmic Hall Competition is...L/N Y/N!” 

Namjoon was the first person to stand up and he started clapping. Jin looked up at her with a confused look but stood up and started to clap as well. Y/N bowed to everyone and accepted the award. Y/N smiled at the audience but her eyes landed on her parents who looked at her with proud eyes. She felt happy to know she made them proud. It was a feeling she wasn’t used to. 

She walked backstage thinking she would meet with her parents but her eyes widened when she saw Bora. Bora walked up to her and handed her some roses, “You did an amazing job. I loved every minute of it.”

Her eyes glanced over Bora’s shoulder and saw Jungkook who was giving her a wide smile. She looked back at Bora and bowed, “Thank you. You didn’t have to give me any flowers.” 

“Nonsense, you deserve more flowers for your performance.” 

Y/N happily grabbed the roses and bowed at her again, “Thank you.”

“I thought you said you didn’t play at a professional level.” 

Y/N stood there for a moment before moving past Bora. Her eyes landed on Namjoon who had his glasses on and a dress shirt. He looked like he had a business meeting with how sharp he looked. Y/N stared into his eyes as he returned the stare. Normally she would look away from intense eyes but she didn’t want to at this moment, “You remember that?”

“Of course, I remember.” 

She looked down at her shoes and then back at him, “I-I wasn’t expecting you to be here.” 

“Do you want me to leave?”

“No-No, I...I was just shocked to see you.”

Just then a girl came and hugged his waist. Her eyes widened and glanced at her arm. Namjoon smiled and ruffled her hair, “My sister wanted to see you. She begged me to take you.” 

Y/N glanced at Namjoon and nodded her head. That's why he came...for his sister. “I’m glad you like it.”

Namjoon’s sister smiled and nodded her head, “I took him to Jin-oppa's restaurant to get him to say yes.” 

Namjoon rolled his eyes and wrapped his arm over her shoulder, “I could never say no to good food.”

“Oh, was that this week?” Please say yes...

“Yeah, it was on Tuesday. Why?”

Y/N shook her head and felt relieved at the answer, “Curious. I apologize, I have to go. My parents are waiting for me.”

Namjoon nodded his head and did something that shocked her. He leaned forward and pushed some hair off her forehead, “You played wonderful tonight. Thank you for playing.” 

“Th-Thank you...bye.”

She quickly left with a strong grip on the roses as her face was blazing. Why did he have to look at her like that? 

.*･｡ﾟ☆ﾟ.*･｡

Namjoon, the class president, has been reviving love letters. I saw it right before my eyes. Though, I didn’t see who it was. I do know whoever it is, they can run fast. Who wouldn’t have a crush on Namjoon? He’s sensible and intelligent. Anyone would fall for him. I noticed she delivers her letters every Friday when classes are over. It's obvious she knows Namjoon’s schedule because she only does it when he’s gone. I am curious to see who it is. Until then, Pen. 

Y/N felt the world around was crashing. She knew she shouldn’t slide the letter under his door. Whoever this person is, they're writing about her now. It’s not a good feeling. She walked into the lunch room to see Jessica fighting a girl. 

“Are you the one giving Namjoon letters?” 

“I-I’m not! I swear!” 

Y/N eye’s widened and she quickly left. She clenched her shirt in panic and felt sick. She’s been giving him letters for years and never got caught. How could she get caught now? Now everyone is going to want to know who the mysterious person is. Especially Jessica. She started to run and she didn’t even know where she was running to but anywhere was better than here. She stopped and looked around her. She ran straight to the university park, a quiet place for her running thoughts. She sat on the bench and started crying. She didn’t want this to be known to the public or even Namjoon. Though he didn’t know it was her specifically it still made her want to die from embarrassment. 

“Y/N?”

She looked up to see Bora and Lin giving her a concerned look, “Are you alright?” 

She quickly wiped at her face and gave them a smile, “I’m not the best...I’m sorry. I’ll move,” 

She went to get up but was stopped by Lin, “Please stay. No one should cry alone.” 

Y/N listened and stared at the grass as a tear went down her face, “I feel embarrassed...”

Bora and Lin glanced at each other and nodded their heads. They sat on the sides of Y/N as Lin wrapped her arm around the girl, “Y/N, do you want to talk about it?”

“I don’t...I-I should go.”

Bora rubbed her shoulders and gave her a gentle smile, “You can just cry with us. We won’t ask any questions. Just cry.” 

Cry is what she did. She never felt so embarrassed but she couldn’t tell the world why she was. They wouldn’t believe her in the first place and she would get pinned down by Jessica. It would be a waste to speak about it but she could express it. The only way she could do it was to cry. She cried on Lin’s shoulder as she stared at the grass that was waving back and forth. Her secret is out even though no one knows it is hers. 

Namjoon looked at the folder and sighed. He kept all the letters in binders by his desk. He tries his best to reread them when he has time. It brought joy to his heart. They weren’t like other confessions he had received. This was different. The letters had affection that he had never received from another person. Whoever was writing these letters knew how to write from their heart.  

“What are you going to do?”

Namjoon looked away from the pink envelopes and saw Yoongi’s concerned face, “What do you think I should do?”

“Catch the person.”

Namjoon let out a laugh and closed the binder. He got up from his chair and walked towards the window, “They are not a criminal.” 

“I know you're curious about who they are.” 

Namjoon sighed and nodded his head, “Who wouldn’t be curious? The letters are beautiful. I kept each letter because the wording was moving. I never had a reason to look for the person but now I want to look for them.” 

“Is it because you wish it was Y/N.”

Namjoon stiffened at this and turned towards Yoongi, “Why do you ask?” 

Yoongi smirked and shrugged his shoulders, “No reason.” 

Y/N finally calmed down and continued to stare at the grass, “I’m sorry...”

Bora shook her head and pushed some of her hair away from her face, “Don’t be sorry. We all need to cry.” 

Y/N nodded her head at this and looked down at her fingers, “I appreciate the comfort.” 

Lin smiled at this and nodded her head, “I’m glad we could comfort you.”

Bora nodded her head and looked at Lin, “I was actually going to ask...if we could be friends.” 

Y/N turned towards Bora with wide eyes and pointed to herself, “Me?”

Bora let out a small laugh and nodded her head, “If you let me.” 

Lin smiled and pointed to herself too, “I want to be friends with you too.” 

Y/N looked at Lin and frowned, “Why?” 

“Ever since I saw you play last year...I wanted to be your friend. I saw you around but every time I wanted to talk to you, you would walk away. Did you realize how fast you walk?” 

Y/N looked down at the grass and frowned, “I-I’m sorry.” 

“Stop saying sorry. The time wasn’t right then but now it is.” 

“I suppose we can be friends...I-I’ll think about it...I just don’t know how to interact with people.”

Bora nodded her head at this, “That’s alright. Take your time.”

Y/N stood up and bowed at them before leaving. Her heart was beating fast and she didn’t know what she did to make them see her. Why is it so hard to be hidden away? It makes life easier to be hidden away. She entered the music room and saw Soo-Young who was giving her a worried look, “I was looking for you, Y/N.”

“I-I’m sorry-”

Soo-Young brought her into a hug and Y/N nuzzled her head into her chest. Soo-Young rubbed the back of her head as Y/N cried. Soo-Young kissed the top of her head and frowned, “I know about the letters.” 

Y/N pushed Soo-Young and gave her a shocked face, “H-How did you know?” 

“I was worried about you. You were taking longer than usual so, I walked down the halls to see you with the pink envelope. I wasn’t sure what you were doing but you looked flustered. One can put it together.” 

Y/N frowned and looked down at her shoes, “Now, he knows...”

“He doesn’t know it's you.” 

Y/N shook her head, “It doesn’t matter he still knows someone has been giving him letters...like a stalker.” 

“You're not a stalker. Just a person with a crush.”

“Some would say they're the same.” 

Soo-Young shook her head and rubbed her shoulder gently, “Do you love him?”

“I-I-”

“Do you?”

Y/N looked outside the window and then back at Soo-Young, “I do...” 

“Let’s make it known that it's you.”

Y/N sat in the library as the day got darker. She told her parents she would be late and wanted time to herself. They understood but that didn’t mean they weren’t worried. She looked down at the empty page and let out a loud sigh. She couldn’t focus on anything and it just made life harder. Why does the mind like to play these games? It’s frustrating. 

She closed her notebook and stared down at the desk with empty eyes. She wondered how Namjoon reacted to the news. He’s probably sick of getting confessions. She heard the chair in front of her move and she looked up. There staring back at her was Jessica with a smirk, “I need you to do something for me, mouse.” 

“I-I-”

“I know you won the poetry competition last year. I need you to write a letter for me so I can give it to Namjoon.” 

“What?”

Jessica rolled her eyes and tapped her nail against the dark wood, “If you write this letter for me, I’ll stop messing with you.” Y/N shook her head and tried to gather her things but Jessica grabbed her wrist, “I wouldn’t do that.” 

“I-I can’t do it.” 

Jessica brought her nails into her wrist and Y/N bit her lip to keep her quiet, “You’ll do it, mouse.” 

Y/N glanced down at her wrist to see blood trickling down and nodded her head, “I-I’ll do it.” 

Jessica smirked at this and let go of her wrist. She looked at her nails and then back at Y/N, “I want a letter by tomorrow morning.” 

Y/N didn’t say anything but she watched Jessica leave the library with a hop in her step. Y/N glanced at her wrist and saw the blood coming down. She looked up at the ceiling and frowned, Why couldn’t she be the frame? She gathered her things and made her way out of the campus. Everything felt like a blur until she got to her car. She pushed her hair and opened the door but closed it when she heard her name. She turned around and saw the familiar brown eyes. 

Namjoon smiled at her as he set his things on his bike, “Fancy meeting you here.” 

Y/N nodded her head, “It is.” 

Namjoon glanced at her wrist and saw that she was rubbing it. He walked away from his bike and towards her, “Is everything okay?”

“It-It’s fine.” 

Namjoon gently took her hand and turned it to see the cuts. He glanced up at her with worry and anger in his eyes, “What happened?” 

“I hurt myself.”

“Y/N, I am not stupid. Don’t treat me like I am. Someone did this to you.”

Y/N looked away and shook her head, “I can’t tell you.” Namjoon sighed and intertwined their fingers together. She glanced at their hands and then at him, “What are you doing?”

“Taking you to the nurse. I can’t let you walk around with an injury. It would hurt me to know that you were hurt and I did nothing for you.” 

Y/N nodded her head and they walked towards the medical building. Y/N glanced at their hands and she watched his thumb gently rubbing her knuckles. She felt her heart speed up at the feeling but she tried to ignore it. He opened the door and everything went a blur. She sat on the bed and waited for him. He came back with a bandage and smiled, “Let me patch that up for you.” 

Y/N nodded her head and brought her hand up towards him. He took the bandage out of the package and placed it on her wrist. She watched him and then she looked away when he smiled at her, “Thank you.” 

“You don’t have to tell me anything but Y/N just know...I’ll protect you.” 

Her eyes widened at this and turned her head to look at him, “Pr-Protect?” 

He nodded his head, “I care for you. Let me walk you back to your car.” 

Y/N nodded her head and Namjoon put his hand out for her. She glanced down at his hand and then back at him with a confused look, “What?”

“I want to hold your hand. Is that okay?”

“Is that okay for you? Do you want to hold my hand? I don’t want you to feel-”

Namjoon intertwined their fingers together and walked out of the nurse's office. The halls were empty and she was glad that no one would see her. It would make her feel embarrassed. Today was a wild day for her and she didn’t need anything more to make it crazier but here she is. Holding hands with Namjoon. The person who she’s been in love with. 

Namjoon smiled at her and glanced at his bike and then at her, “Do you want to go somewhere with me?” 

Y/N pointed to herself and gave him a shocked face, “Me?”

“Yeah, I never have the chance to talk to you. This is the perfect time.” 

Y/N glanced down at her wrist and then back at him, “O-Okay...” 

Namjoon sat on his bicycle and turned towards her, “Are you going to be okay? You have to hold on to me.”

Y/N slowly nodded her head and looked at her fingers, “Is it okay?”

“Yes, Y/N.” She sat on his bike and put on the extra helmet he had. She glanced at his back and took a deep breath. She wrapped his arms around his waist and hid her face in his back. Namjoon glanced at her and smiled, “Are you ready?”

“Yes...” 

The ride was peaceful and Y/N gripped his waist tighter when a turn would happen. Her heart was beating so fast but unknown to her, his heart was doing the same thing. He stopped the bike and she looked up to see a small cafe. She tilted her head at him, “Sunflower?” 

Namjoon smiled and nodded his head, “My mom recently bought it. I thought it would be the perfect place to take you.”

They walked in and she looked around with a curious look. The cafe was nice and small. It was clear it was new. Namjoon took her in the back and they sat in the hidden space. She was surrounded by flowers and she looked at Namjoon, “What is this?”

“It's a hidden place. I asked my mom to create me one so I can hide from the customers.”

Y/N nodded her head and touched the white daisy with her fingertips, “It’s pretty.”

Namjoon smiled at this and pulled out a chair for her, “Please sit. I’ll get us some croissants.”

Y/N nodded her head and sat in the chair as she watched him leave. She looked around the place with a warm face. How did she get here? She was sitting with her crush in a beautiful garden. This couldn’t be real. She glanced down at her wrist and then back at the daisies. It didn’t feel real.

“I got you a bottle of water too.”

She looked over her shoulder and saw Namjoon wearing that smile she came to love. She nodded her head at this, “Thank you.” 

He sat down and took a bite of his croissant, “I was so happy to hear you play at Cosmic Hall.”

She nibbled at the croissant and her eyes became wide, “Really?”

“I was. I enjoy you playing. My sister told me that you stopped playing for a while...may I ask why?” 

Y/N glanced down at her croissant and then back at him, “I...I just wanted a break.”

Namjoon nodded his head and took a sip of his water, “Everyone deserves a break. You did tell me you have been playing since you were six years old.”

She felt shocked that he remembered that and he laughed at her expression, “You remember that?”

“I told you that I remember what you said to me.” 

She felt her heart flutter at this and took a bite of her pastry, “Thank you...I took a break because I mentally needed it. I went to Japan...it was nice” 

“Everyone deserves a break. I’m sorry you felt like that.” 

Y/N shrugged her shoulders and looked at the daisies, “I’m sorry...I’m not the best at conversations.” 

“That’s okay. I like to talk so we make a good pair.”

Y/N eyes widened at this and turned towards him, “A good pair?” 

“Yeah.” 

The rest of the night was them talking to each other and she realized how easy it was to talk to him. He truly was a sun that brought warmth and comfort. As they talked, she knew what she had to do with Jessica. She was going to listen to Soo-Young and go against Jessica. She’ll take the abuse from her as long as she does what her heart wants her to do.  

Namjoon rode his bike back to her car on the school campus and smiled at her, “I’ll see you tomorrow?” 

She nodded her head at this and waved goodbye. She got into her car and was confused when she saw him waiting by her car. She rolled down her window and looked at Namjoon, “Aren’t you going?” 

“I wanted to wait for you to get in the car.” 

Y/N smiled to herself and nodded her head, “Thank you for tonight. I had fun.”

“Let’s do it again.” 

Y/N rapidly nodded her head and gave him a wide smile, “Yes, let’s do it again.” 

That night's drive was peaceful. She knew what she needed to do and she was going to do it. No matter what happens. Even if her mind tells her no, she’s going to do it. Everyone deserves to be spontaneous once in their lives. 

Y/N didn’t know how she did it but she did it. She avoided Jessica all morning and went straight to the music room. She began to practice her piece and she watched Soo-Young smile at the melody, “It’s beautiful. You can feel the love.”

Y/N smiled at this and nodded her head, “Do you think he will like it?”

“He would be an idiot if he didn’t.” 

Y/N smiled and gathered her things, “I guess it's time. Wish me luck.”

“Good luck Y/N. No matter what happens I’ll be here for you.” 

Y/N nodded her head and for once she felt the confidence going through her bloodstream, “Okay.” 

Y/N walked towards the student council and right before she opened the door, she felt her hair get pulled back. She let out a loud yelp and she fell to the ground. She looked up to see Jessica glaring at her. Jessica leaned down with a glare that could set fires in the forest, “Mouse, remember what I said. Girls get it.” 

Just then two girls came out of nowhere and grabbed her violin case. Y/N looked at her violin and then back at Jessica, “I-I’m sorry.”

“It’s too late to say sorry, mouse. I bet you were going to confess. Newsflash, Namjoon will never be an idiot like you. A mouse with no squeak.” 

Y/N glanced down at the ground and shook her head, “Yo-Your wrong.” 

Jessica pulled her hair harder and Y/N felt tears forming, “Don’t talk back Mouse. Nina, you know what to do.” 

Y/N turned towards Nina and watched her take out her violin, “Please don’t. I’ll write your letter.”

“Nope, you had your chance.” 

Just then Nina smashed Y/N’s violin and she sat there with a shocked expression. The violin that she came to love was now in pieces. Y/N was so shocked that everything around her became silent. She didn’t even realize Soo-Young came and pushed Jessica away. Nor did she realize that Bora and Lin pushed her goons away.

Her world felt like it was crushing down. The one thing she loved most in this world was destroyed. All this to show that she loved someone. Maybe Jessica was right. Namjoon wouldn’t love her. This felt like the universe was telling her to walk away before more bad things happened. 

Y/N slowly stood up and walked towards her broken violin. The broken instrument gave her confidence and now she has nothing. She let out a tear and shook her head. She ran away, “Y/N WAIT!” 

Y/N ignored the voices and ran. She ran towards the girl's bathroom and locked the door behind her. Maybe she was meant to be alone, all she does is make things more complicated. Life is already complicated, why would she make it more complicated? Love isn’t made for her. The universe made that very clear today. There was a soft knock at the door but she didn’t budge from her position on the floor. 

“Y/N...please.” 

She ignored the pleas and after a while it became quiet. She sat on the tile floor as the coldness of the bathroom comforted her. She deserves this treatment. She tried changing and the universe didn’t like that. Obviously, she deserved the punishment. 

“As student body president and Chairman, Jessica deserves to be expelled.” 

The chairmen glanced at Jessica and then at Namjoon, “Go on.”

Namjoon glared at Jessica and looked back, “Without the help of my friends, Jessica would’ve continued to bully L/N Y/N.”

The chairman's eyes widened at this and stood up. He slammed his fist on the table and pointed at Jessica, “You dare to mess with the L/N family?” 

“I-I”

“NO EXCUSES! JESSICA LEE, YOU ARE EXPELLED!” 

Namjoon smirked at this and bowed to the chairman, “I would love to stay but I have important business to attend to.” 

Namjoon didn’t wait for an answer, he ran out of the room with Bora smiling at him. Namjoon ran like his life depended on it. He hoped that Y/N was still in the bathroom. He couldn’t miss his chance. He stopped at the bathroom and was breathing heavily. He knocked on the door with fear, “Y/N, it’s me. Please open the door.” 

He looked at the ceiling and prayed that she was still there. If she wasn’t there then he wasn’t sure what he was going to do. The door opened and he turned towards the door but his expression dropped. 

“President?”

Namjoon bowed to her and apologized. He quickly left and went towards the second place he knew she would be. He opened the music room and he saw Y/N crying. He quickly closed the door and made his way towards her, “Y/N…”

Y/N looked up and she saw Namjoon's concerned eyes. Y/N tried to look away but Namjoon wouldn’t allow her. He gently put his fingers under her chin and turned her head, “Please don’t look away from me.”

“Namjoon…”

“Please don’t push me away. I just got you, I can’t lose you.” 

Y/N frowned at this, “Wh-What do you mean?”

“Y/N, can’t you see it? I love you. I love how you show your feelings through music and writing. You bring peace to my world, especially on days that feel like it’s erupting from chaos. I liked you the moment I heard you play. You are my sweet melody that brings paintings alive, my favorite melody. Please, please don’t push me away. I can’t bear this distance anymore.” 

Y/N stared at him and saw the truth in his eyes, “Writing?”

“Yes, I know about the letters. I knew it was you.”

“How?”

Namjoon let out a small laugh, “I had a class with you. I saw the way you wrote and well…”

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

Namjoon frowned, “I’m an insecure man. How could you love me? A man who couldn’t even comprehend a simple melody before I met you. I’m the heir to my fathers business but other than that, I have nothing more.”

Y/N shook her head and placed her hand against his cheek, “You are much more than that.”

“I want to hear you say it. I’ve read the letters but I want to hear your voice.”

Y/N took a deep breath and closed her eyes, “I don’t deserve a well composed man to love me. I can’t help feeling affection towards you especially when you're the only person to notice me. I…I love you. Whenever you talk about your speeches, I’m always listening. Your words move me like no other… I don’t know how to love nor am I good with my words…please be patient with me..give me a chance. I thought it was a mistake to fall for you. I felt like the universe was telling me I wasn’t worth loving someone. It felt like everyone was against me because I wanted change. I’m still so scared..what if the universe doesn’t want this for me?”

“Fuck the universe. Y/N just listen to your heart. I’ll help you with your anxiety and insecurities. Take a chance on me, take a chance on us.”

Y/N opened her eyes and saw how close he was and nodded her head, “I’ll take the chance.”

She didn’t realize how close he was to her. The air was thick and the desperation she saw in his eyes was a mirror of her own. She could feel the heat radiating from his body and it made her want more, “Y/N...do you have a boyfriend?”

Y/N shook her head and glanced at his lips, “I don’t.”

“Do I have permission to kiss you?”

Y/N smiled at this and put her forehead against his, “You do.” 

He leaned in closer and looked her into the eye once more before pressing his lips against his. She grabbed the front of his shirt and her fingertips became one with the soft fabric. One of his hands found its way behind her neck and brought her closer. The sound of kisses filled the room and she pushed away to gain her breath, “Joon...”  

He hums and his dark brown eyes told her everything she needed. He picked her up and sat her on the piano. She gently touched his face and gave him a gentle smile, “Serenity...” 

“I’ll give you that as long as you allow me. I am yours.” 

“I-I am yours as well.” 

He started to unbutton his shirt and she watched with nervous eyes. The more skin that started to show, the more real this became. She pushed his shirt off of his shoulder and her hands brushed against his bare chest. She leaned forward and placed a kiss on the center of his chest. His hands reached out to cup her cheeks and pulled her face towards his, kissing her deeply. 

After a moment he pulled back and slowly pushed her down on the piano. She gave him a small smile and a node. He pulled her shirt and leaned down to kiss her bare stomach as her fingers brushed through his hair. He moved back up and pulled her into a deep kiss. She slid her hands from his neck to his biceps. His hands tickled her bare skin. He cupped her face, running his thumb slowly over her cheek. They pulled away and she intertwined their fingers and she placed a kiss on his knuckles. 

He smiled at her and moved his lips back to hers as their tongues twirled around each other. After a moment of kissing, his fingers went behind her back and unclasped the material. He trailed his fingers down her arms as he pulled down the straps. He watched the goosebumps appear and he couldn’t help but feel proud. He gently dropped the fabric and took in what he was saying. He smiled and looked up to her, “You're so beautiful.” 

“Joon...”

“Is this okay?”

“Anything with you is okay...I trust you.” 

He eagerly leaned down to take one of her nubs into his mouth. She covered her face and let out a small moan. He sucked on her nipple while gently rolling her other nub between his finger and thumb. He felt her hands brushing through his hair but that quickly turned into tugging it. He slowly let his tongue slide over her stomach again and reached her skirt. He pulled down the pink skirt with her underwear. He leaned up and there before him was the women of his dreams. He pulled down his jeans and leaned forward kissing her chest, “Are you ready?” 

“Always.” 

He scooted a bit closer to her and placed his hands on her waist. He let his nose rub over her bare shoulder and placed a quick kiss. He slowly sank himself into her wet entrance and the both moaned, “Okay?”

“I’m okay.” She breathed as she closed her eyes at the feel of him. He started to move and Y/N couldn’t help but moan when she felt him slide in and out at a steady pace. She brought his face to hers and brought him into a passionate kiss. He placed two fingers over her clit and started to rub making her push back against him in pleasure. 

“Fuck, Y/N.”

He started to quicken his pace and she closed her eyes at the pleasure she was feeling, “Don’t stop...” She moaned as his fingers dug a little deeper in her skin as he pushed himself into her, over and over again. 

“You’re mine.”

She leaned up with her elbows and kissed his neck, “Yours. I’m going to-”

She felt her orgasm hitting her and Namjoon felt her walls clenched. The feeling was too much and he couldn't help himself. They both let out a loud moan and he fell forward with his head near her breast. She ran her fingers through his hair and kissed the top of his head. He looked at her and smiled, “Don’t push me away.”

“I won’t...” 

He pushed some hair away from her sweaty forehead and frowned, “I’m sorry about your violin.” 

She let out a sad sigh, “I’m sure I can find another.”

“I hope so...I would love to hear you play.”

“You already heard me play...”

He kissed her collarbone and then her neck, “A private concert.” 

“I would love to do that...we should get dressed.”

Namjoon nodded his head and helped her get dressed. When they were fully dressed, he brought her into a passionate kiss, “I love you, Y/N.”

“I love you, Namjoon.”

.*･｡ﾟ☆ﾟ.*･

“Did you hear about Y/N?”

“I did...she’s with the Kim's son.”

“Interesting matchup.” 

Today was Y/N’s father's ball for his business and she was dressed in something that was different for her. She was in a strapless tulle ballerina dress with a diamond necklace that Namjoon gifted her. She walked into the room with her heels clicking away. Soo-Young made her way to her and smiled. She pushed some hair off of her shoulder and smiled, “You look beautiful, Y/N.”

“Thank you, Soo-Young. You look beautiful as well. Green has always been your color.”

Soo-Young smiled and looked away with a smile, “He’s looking for you.”

“I kind of figured. He sent me a text saying he was dying to see him. Men are always the dramatic ones.” 

“Tell me about it. He kept saying he couldn’t wait one more minute for you. At least you know he's completely devoted to you.” 

Y/N smiled at this and nodded her head, “I suppose...I’m going to find him.”

Y/N walked around the ball and bowed at random people. Her eyes landed on Bora and she smiled. She quickly made her way and bowed, “Hello.” 

Bora and Lin turned around to give her a smile, “We were just talking about you.”

“Oh?...”

Lin smiled and placed a hand on her shoulder, “Good things. I wanted to see your dress.”

Y/N glanced down and then back at Lin, “Is it too much? My mother got it made and she wanted it-”

“Y/N you look beautiful.”

She looked to see Taehyung giving her a gentle smile and she nodded her head, “Thank you Taehyung.” 

“I told you to call me Tae.”

Jungkook scoffed at this and rolled his eyes, “She doesn’t even call me Kook, what makes you think she’ll call you Tae?” 

“I’m better looking, that’s why.” 

Bora rolled her eyes and turned towards Y/N, “Namjoon is with your parents.” 

She nodded her head and bowed again, “I’ll see you guys later.” 

Y/N quickly made her way to her parents and there he was in his black suit. Namjoon was talking to her father about something and she couldn’t help but smile at the closeness they created in a short time. Y/N slowly made her way towards them and Namjoon glanced over her father’s shoulder and smiled. He quickly excused himself and went towards him.

He picked up her hand and his finger gently traced her jaw. His eyes had sparkles in them as he looked at her, “You look beautiful.”

“I like your suit...”

He leaned forward and placed a kiss on her forehead, “I’m grateful for your mother’s taste in fashion.” 

She let out a small laugh and gently hit his chest, “Sorry, I kept you waiting.”

“It’s alright. I was dying to meet you. Being away from you can make the strongest cry.”

She smiled and glanced at the dancefloor, “Would you like to dance?”

“It’s my job to ask that. Y/N will you like to dance with me?”

“I would love to.”

They moved through the people until they were in the center. She smiled at him and he returned it. He wrapped his arm around her waist and they started to sway with the music. Y/N’s parents watched with pure happiness. Her mother leaned towards her father to whisper in his ear, “She looks so happy.”

Her father nodded his head and looked at them dancing, “I knew this day would come.”

“What day?”

“That I would lose my baby girl.”

“Honey, she’s not getting married. Stop being ridiculous.” 

Y/N and Namjoon became a couple after their moment in the music room. He took her to Sunflower and had a proper date. The campus was shocked that Kim Namjoon was with L/N Y/N. The fact that the class president was with the famous timid violinist made its round around campus. At first this bothered Y/N and she felt like she was bringing his image down but Namjoon told her otherwise. 

Y/N also became friends with Bora and Lin. They shared so many similarities, something that shocked her. They were very different in personality but she blended in perfectly fine. Lin’s mother gave her a fortune and everything seems like it is only going to get better. She even met Seungkwan and they became somewhat close. It’s amazing what a short matter of time can change.

Jessica was expelled and no one was shocked. There was finally peace at school but Y/N still had a feeling that there were more bullies hidden away. Waiting to come forward. There was one hidden enemy that she wanted to know who it was, Pen. Whoever Pen was, she was always close and always watching. Especially towards the legendary seven. She told Namjoon that it had to be someone close to them but he couldn’t think of anyone. They dropped the subject but she couldn’t stop thinking about this mysterious person that knows everything. It wasn’t a good feeling to know. 

Namjoon twirled Y/N and they placed their foreheads together, “Come to the garden with me.” 

“Of course.”

They walked out and went towards the place where Y/N first met Namjoon. He led her towards the garden that had purple roses and she couldn’t help but laugh. He plucked one and handed it towards her, “I have a surprise.” 

“Is it the rose? I love it.”

Namjoon laughed and shook his head, “It’s not the rose but if you like it then it's part of the surprise. Close your eyes.”

Y/N nodded her head and closed her eyes. Namjoon smiled and went behind the bench to bring out his surprise. He made his way towards her and let out a small cough, “Open your eyes.”

She opened them and her eyes widened, “Namjoon...”

“Open it.”

She opened the black case and her mouth dropped. The violin before her was covered in a daisy design; it was a beautiful piece of art. She gently took the violin out of the case and she couldn’t help but a smile, “I-”

“I wanted to get you a new one. This one is special. Turn it.” 

She turned the violin and she wanted to cry. It had their initials carved into the wood and her fingers gently touched it. She let out a small laugh and looked at him with pure love, “I love it.”

“I’m glad you do. Can I get that private concert?” 

She let out a laugh and nodded her head. He sat on the bench and she gave him one final smile before she started playing. This song felt like it belonged to a Jane Austen novel. It made you feel like you were in a love story and you can picture everything. He closed his eyes and started swaying back and forth. The music notes were clearer now and bursts of pastel colors erupted with each note. When she finished, he opened his eyes and clapped his hands, “That was amazing.”

“Thank you.”

He stood up and kissed the top of her head, “That was a new piece. Does it have a name?”

“It does.” 

He pushed some hair behind her ear and smiled, “What’s it called?”

“I called it Unread.” 

Namjoon let out a laugh, “Is it based on true events?”

“Somewhat...we should go back before my parents start looking for us.” 

Namjoon nodded his head but he wrapped his arms around her waist, “Let’s stay like this for a few minutes. Just you and me.” 

She let out a small laugh, “Let me put my violin away and then we can dance in the flowers.” 

Behind the hedges and hidden figure watched and wrote something in her notebook. She quickly hid the notebook in her jacket. She started to walk away but stepped on a branch causing Namjoon to look up, “Who's there?” 

The girl cursed under her breath and ran as fast as she could before they could see her. Y/N and Namjoon made their way towards the hedges and looked at each other, “What was that?”

Namjoon glanced down at the grass and saw that the person dropped something. He picked up the pen and saw that a name was engraved on it, “It says Pen.” 

Y/N’s eyes widened and she looked at the pen, “Do you think it's her?” 

“Maybe...” He put the pen in his coat pocket and sighed, “Let’s forget about this for now and dance in the roses.”

She glanced at his hand and nodded her head, “I would love to dance with you.” 

“I will always dance with you, my violinist.”

────°˖✧ ✧˖°────────°˖✧ ✧˖°────

Tag List:

@sumzysworld @futuristicenemychaos @joonlover1207 @mimidonut

[felixcloud6288]

All descriptions taken from TvTropes.

Cantarella:

Cantarella is a fantasy manga about the youth of Cesare Borgia, warrior, politician, and second son of Pope Alexander VI. Only here, he's possessed by demons, with a Red Right Hand to prove it.

Death Note:

In the land of the dead, a bored Shinigami named Ryuk decides to create some entertainment for himself by dropping a Death Note into the human world.

Light Yagami, a brilliant-yet-disillusioned Japanese student, sees the notebook fall into his world and picks it up. On a whim, he tries out the instructions held within its pages, and discovers that he can kill whomever he wants, however he wants, by writing their name and (optionally) cause of death into the Death Note.

While initially horrified at his actions, Light rationalises that he can use the Death Note as a force for good by purging the rotten and corrupt elements of society, thus creating a world free of crime and violence. A cult following soon arises around the mysterious assassin killing off criminals across the country, christening him "Kira". Kira's actions soon attract the attention of the international police community, now with grave concerns about the vigilante killings, and the world's greatest detective, an enigma of a man known only as "L".

L becomes determined to solve the mystery of Kira and his impossible killing method, employing increasingly aggressive and risky strategies to get the information he wants. Meanwhile, Light spirals into madness as he becomes consumed by both his egomaniacal "Kira" persona and his desperate need to stay one step ahead of L's investigation. It's a cat-and-mouse game neither man can afford to lose — and both of them want to win at all costs.

Dungeon Meshi:

In a fantasy world of dungeon exploration, guilds go out on expeditions to raid dungeons, hoping to find the mysterious Golden Kingdom claimed to be the ultimate treasure of a particular island dungeon, said to be created by a Lunatic Magician after sinking the Kingdom below the ground. Human knight Laios Touden and his adventuring team are saved from a Total Party Kill by a fearsome beast, the Red Dragon, when his sister, Falin, sacrifices herself to teleport them all out of danger. Now she's in the dragon's belly, and it's only a matter of time before she's digested and it's too late to revive her. Laios and his friends must delve back into the depths to recover her remains — but there's not enough time or resources to buy enough rations for the trip. His solution: take advantage of the sprawling ecosystem of the dungeon itself by cooking the various monsters within into delicious, wholesome, dungeon-sourced meals.

Fruits Basket:

After the death of her mother, young Tohru Honda has been secretly living on her own in a tent. Her life changes forever when she stumbles upon the secret of the estate she is living on illegally: the land is owned by the Sohma family, who are afflicted by a Hereditary Curse that changes thirteen members of the family into animals of the Eastern Zodiac (plus the Cat, an animal who would have been part of the Zodiac but was left out) when they are hugged by someone of the opposite sex that is not also a Zodiac member. Oh, and the family is a hotbed of horribly abusive parents and children with enough emotional issues to make a shrink very wealthy.

Upon being discovered and taken in by the Sohmas, sweet-natured Tohru becomes embroiled in the dysfunctional family's various crises, bringing the outside world to the closed-off family while also having to confront some issues of her own.

Goodnight Punpun:

Goodnight Punpun (Oyasumi Punpun) is a supremely bizarre Seinen manga by Inio Asano about the title character, Punpun. Punpun is a young, innocent, and naive child, who, in some kind of strange stylistic choice, is depicted as a simplistic sketch of a bird despite everyone outside of his family looking like a normal human. He has no real dreams, his father is an abusive deadbeat (at least, he appears to be), and his mother is a drunk who regrets having him, but Punpun has one thing: a pretty girl named Aiko whom he fawns over. Well, her, and an afro-clad and slightly useless god he can summon by chanting 'Dear God, dear God, tinkle hoy!'

The story begins as a Slice of Life comedy, following Punpun through his childhood as he deals with his family life, his school life, his social life, and his budding romantic life. While noticeably dark, it also contains a hint of child-like innocence. However, as the series progresses, it develops into an extremely dark Coming of Age story, with all innocence being wiped away. While the humor remains, it takes a backseat to experiences of Punpun, his family, and his acquaintances as they deal with the hardships of adolescence, adulthood, and life in general. The story is split roughly into four arcs: Punpun's life in elementary school, middle school, high school, and as a young adult.

Running concurrently with Punpun's story is a very odd side plot about a cult-like movement trying to (apparently) save the world through "good vibrations", which some of Punpun's classmates end up involved in. It's possibly even more weird and unsettling than anything going on with Punpun, as it's never quite clear if it's real or the mad ramblings of its leader.

Haikyuu:

In junior high, Shōyō Hinata gained a sudden interest in volleyball due to seeing a match on television, which featured a star player nicknamed "The Little Giant", and yearned to follow in his footsteps to become a volleyball ace despite his short stature. Hinata starts his own volleyball club, which no one joins, and practices rigorously by himself. Eventually he convinces enough people to make up a rag-tag team consisting of a couple of members who haven't even played volleyball before just so he could compete in a tournament. His team is quickly annihilated by Tobio Kageyama - "King of the Court" - and his champion team. After suffering a miserable defeat, Hinata vows to defeat Kageyama and surpass him as a volleyball player.

Upon entering Karasuno High School - the school "The Little Giant" attended - Hinata learns that he's now on the same team as Kageyama. The two must learn to work together so they can restore Karasuno to its former greatness.

Ouran High School Host Club

Welcome to Ouran Academy, a distinguished school that provides education to the children of the rich and powerful. Only the wealthiest families can afford to send their sons and daughters to the academy. Thankfully for those whose bank accounts aren't nearly as inflated, Ouran does offer a scholarship program to any hopefuls who wish to attend.

Enter Haruhi Fujioka, one such scholarship student who dreams about becoming a lawyer like her late mother. Unfortunately, her plans to study hard and keep to herself are destroyed when she happens upon the Host Club. This unusual high school club entertains female students through a combination of flirtatious banter and roleplaying, with each of its six members catering to different tastes in boys; there's Takashi "Mori" Morinozuka, the tall and stoic type; Mitsukuni "Honey" Haninozuka, the bubbly and sweet type; the Hitachiin twins, Hikaru and Kaoru, a pair of tricksters who pretend to be madly in love with each other; Kyoya Ohtori, the cool and aloof type; and Tamaki Suoh, the princely type and the Host Club's leader and founder.

Flustered by her discovery, Haruhi's attempt to leave Music Room 3 ends with her accidentally breaking an incredibly expensive vase. Mistaking her for a boy at first, Tamaki declares Haruhi their errand boy, only knocking "him" up to host status when he sees Haruhi's potential. It isn't until after he gives Haruhi a customer quota that Tamaki discovers she's actually a girl.

Before she knows it, Haruhi is swept up into the Host Club's eccentric world as well as the private realms of its individual members. As their school life unfolds, both Haruhi and the rest of the Host Club will affect each other's lives in ways none of them could have imagined.

Please Save My Earth

Alice is an Ordinary High-School Student and Friend to All Living Things. One day, as she's serving as the Badly Battered Babysitter to the neighbor's trip-and-a-half of a boy, she has a chance encounter with two guys from her school class, and in the course of the discussion, it comes out that they've all been having dreams about being alien scientists on the moon studying earth, all in precisely the same continuity.

Eventually, all seven of the scientists at the base are found to have been reincarnated as Japanese teenagers. Their base — and all its weapons — is still operational, and the seven of them must find a way to balance their obligations from past lives with their new lives on Earth…

Tsukihime:

After being involved in a major accident, the young heir of an affluent family, named Shiki Tohno, awakens in a hospital to find parts of his memory are missing and he can see glowing, pulsing red lines covering everything in his sight, from inanimate objects such as his bed to the living doctors and nurses treating him. Furthermore, he discovers that by tracing something along these lines, whatever they're on will fall apart with frightening ease. Growing increasingly unstable staring at a world that could literally fall to pieces with a mere touch, Shiki attempts to escape the hospital, only to come face to face with a self-styled "Magician", who teaches Shiki about his condition, tries to instill in him the beauty and value of life, and as a parting gift gives him a special pair of glasses that hide the lines from what the Magician calls his "Mystic Eyes of Death Perception". Finally able to somewhat recover, Shiki is soon sent away to live with a branch family of the Tohnos, while his sister is made the new heir in his place.

Years later, Shiki is now a high-school student and living a normal life — that is, until he receives some devastating news: his father has died, and he must return to the main Tohno household at once. As Shiki settles into his new home and altered school life, and attempts to reconnect with his estranged family, he happens to cross paths with a strange blonde-haired girl with piercing red eyes on the street. Seized by an overwhelming, unknown desire, Shiki follows her into an alley, and by the time he has regained his senses finds he has cut her into 17 distinct pieces for no apparent reason before passing out in shock… only to then wake up in his bed at home. Was he dreaming? What force could possibly compel him to commit such a horrifying act? Is this somehow linked to his Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, or his family's rumored occult past? And… hang on, did that red-eyed girl just show up again claiming he murdered her? Despite looking no worse for wear? And… does she have a crush on Shiki?!

Umineko no Naku Koro Ni:

Umineko: When They Cry is a kinetic sound novel by 07th Expansion that takes place primarily on October 4th and 5th, 1986, on the island of Rokkenjima. The rich Ushiromiya family is gathering in order to discuss what will happen to patriarch Kinzo's inheritance, since he has been ill in recent days. The protagonist, Battler, has returned to his family after 6 years of rebellion and is eager to reunite with his cousins.

While the arguments about the inheritance ensue, a typhoon traps all 18 people on the island. The family then finds a mysterious letter from a person claiming to be Kinzo's alchemy counselor, the Golden Witch, Beatrice. Beatrice claims that she has been summoned by Kinzo to claim the inheritance, as the family has been deemed unworthy of it. Unless someone solves the riddle of the epitaph on her portrait before 24:00 hours on October 5th and becomes the family successor, Beatrice will claim everything that the family owns, including the ten tons of gold that Kinzo claims will be given to the successor. This is only the beginning of the strange and shocking events that will occur on the island during these two days. Panic, reasoning, romance, heated confrontations and TONS of Mind Screw ensues.

Wolfs Rain:

The Earth sits on the edge of death; years of war between greedy Nobles have reduced the world to a handful of high-tech, Giger-esque cities amidst a barren wilderness. Only a single, small hope still remains: an old legend which says that in civilization's last days, wolves will follow the scent of lunar flowers to Paradise. It sounds promising, but no one has seen either a wolf or a lunar flower for centuries… or so they think.

The world's remaining wolves learned how to project illusions that make them look and sound human in order to protect themselves. Four such wolves — Kiba, Tsume, Hige, and Toboe — meet up in one of the decaying domed cities after noticing the scent of lunar flowers in the air. They soon discover the source of that scent: Cheza, a mysterious young girl genetically bred from a lunar flower by a group of Nobles who want to open a gateway to Paradise.

When a Noble by the name of Darcia kidnaps Cheza to use her healing powers to help his ill fianceé, both the wolves and the feuding Nobles behind Cheza's creation chase after him. An obsessive wolf hunter named Quent complicates the feud, as he knows exactly how wolves protect themselves and works tirelessly to kill them at all costs (with the help of his loyal dog, Blue).

[superkooku]

Dionysus' iceberg

This post is what remains of an initially very long rant idea. That means there will probably be a part 2 😏.

Here's the reason for my title :

In theory, you can stop there since my meme pretty much summarizes my complaints. But since I like ranting, I'll continue 😈

The tip of the iceberg

When you think "Dionysus", which words come in mind first ?

Probably "wine", "party", "alcohol" "fun god".

These words are what most people remember about Dionysus. And yes, I'm not going to deny, they fit.

Unfortunately, my problem comes with the fact that 9.5 times out of 10, Dionysus' personality will exclusively revolve around these aspects.

Since the issue is about modern adaptations and perceptions, I'll use a modern term.

I'm sure most of you are familiar with flanderization, right ? If not, the link to TV Tropes' article on the subject is available.

Many adaptations fell into that trap for, I think, every single Olympian.

Hades, god of the dead, lord of the Underworld = Satan, evil death god, darkness and sorrow

Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty = Superficial bimbo who only cares about her pretty face

Zeus, king of the gods, lord of the sky and thunder = 100% pure God OR more recently : evil king god who constantly abuses women.

The gods are stripped of their complexity to fit simpler and more "digestible" characterizations. It doesn't help that the cultural context surrounding them is also taken away...

But this is about grape boi, right? Well, Dionysus is no exception to that rule. In fact, he might be one of the worst cases.

So far, he was never really portrayed in an "insulting" light, like Apollo in Lore Olympus or Hades in the Percy Jackson movie. Fortunately.

But, from all the popular adaptations I've seen, none of them manage to portray Dionysus ! None ! Does that make them automatically bad ? No, of course. It's just something I noticed.

God of war ? Doesn't appear, only mentioned

Disney ? Don't even try 🤣. Just a drunk goofball. Yes, that includes the fantasia segment and Hercules.

Lore Olympus? Well, he's a baby for 99.99999% of the time, so it doesn't count. But he's still a quiet little Gucci bag for Persephone.

Hades I ? Just a nice guy. But hey ! He can give us useful boons ! And I like his sass.

Maybe he'll do more in Hades II. They're usually more accurate than most, right ? Though that's not a very high bar. And they know about Zagreus ! Surely that's a good sign, right ?

Nevermind...

Here's what all these adaptations tell us :

Dionysus is the god of wine, feasts and parties

He's an Olympian

He likes to get drunk and party 🥳

And that's it.

Again, I'm not blaming anyone, but if the myths stopped with those three points, wouldn't everyone wonder why he's even an Olympian ? I sure did when I was a kid.

We have the god of thunder, the goddess of wisdom and war strategy, god of music/arts/medicine/100 other things, the god of the oceans ! Many cool gods !

And some drunk dude. He's not given any particular power, except the power to stay super passive no matter the stakes ! If the story revolves about epic godly fights (which is often the case), he's absolutely useless.

Heck, Hades II even actively depicts him as a pacifist who can't handle war. While he's not physically a weakling, he sure psychologically is.

Why is this a problem ?

I am not going to beat around the bush: this gives us a very incomplete and incorrect perception of the god.

Even the things that aren't forgotten about him (like his link to wine) aren't explored.

The thing with Hades II (that's the last time I'll mention it) is that it tries to deepen the flanderized version of Dionysus. He's not stupid, but afraid. He drinks to forget his issues.

While this characterization can be very interesting taken separately, we must remember that this isn't an OC, but an interpretation of a cultural figure.

It must be accurate ! While I can accept some liberties, I think that those should mostly be an extension of the original material, not a total deviation.

Dionysus isn't a scared little boi or a stupid drunkard you can manipulate. In fact, that's quite the opposite. And he's not afraid to get his hands dirty.

(even if the "dirt" in question is the blood of his enemies).

Under the surface

Though it's rather "stuff you can find on Wikipedia". Or by reading the myths.

More about it in part 2 of the rant...

It'll be about theater, madness, travels, link between mortality and immortality and... pirates turning into dolphins.

The actual interesting stuff about Dionysus.

Edits :

1. Thanks to @st4riel-the-w1tchling for clarifying the situation about Percy Jackson. I made my own research about BoZ. My opinion is basically still the same. Again, nothing terribly offensive, but nothing that interesting for Dionysus either.

2. I made part 2 a while ago, might as well add it here :

[spaceofentropy]

The fic has been out for a few days already, but I can finally make my own post and inflict it on y'all, and nobody can stop me, bwahahahahahah!

*cough* So, I took part in the Stranger Things Big Bang (2024 edition) and was so lucky that @lemonhitsu claimed my fic and made some amazing art for it, and also this banner up here! I'm so honored to have his great art on my fic, and proud to have inspired him even just a tiny bit! T^T Look at what he made! So pretty! So sad! So perfect!

My fic is a story about pining boys, with a big dose of angst and fluff, and a happy ending (and some smut just at the end). It's titled Flesh for Fantasy (thank you for the title, Billy Idol!) and you can find it here on ao3.

It's inspired by a Teen Wolf fic that I have reread a bit too many times and never fails to give me all the feels thanks to so much delicious angst and I'm a sucker for good angst, oh, yes I am! But I digress.

I loved writing my story, and mixing reality and Fantasy was a fun way to stretch my writing muscles. I was very lucky that @dragonflylady77 beta-read it for me, and that she and @medusapelagia patiently listened to me ramble while I was still writing it.

Anyway, here's the link to the story once again, and here are the info about the fic itself:

Flesh for Fantasy Rated E; 32000 words; no archive warnings Relationship: Billy/Steve Characters: Steve Harrington, Robin Buckley, Billy Hargrove, the Party, Maxine Mayfield, Jim "Chief" Hopper, Neil Hargrove, Susan Hargrove, Steve's parents The big tags: no Upside Down AU; Neil Hargrove; Child Abuse; car accidents; hospitals; blood and injury; broken bones; touch-starved Billy Hargrove; fluff and angst; emotional hurt/comfort; Platonic stobin; hopeless crushes; eventual smut; homophobia; non-sexual intimacy Synopsis: In a world where if you Fantasize about someone, that person feels it on their skin, someone starts Fantasizing about Steve Harrington. But instead of being sexual Fantasies, it's for cuddles and soft touches, so restrained that Steve has no idea who his phantom hugger is. All he knows is they must have a good reason to keep hidden like that.

I also have a little (?) snippet, but it's under the cut so the post is not too long on the timeline :P

"Do you think I look lonely?" She's taken aback by what must feel like a sudden change in subject. "Uh… No. I mean… sometimes, maybe. Babe, what does this have to do with anything?" "The Dreamer. It's never, like, a sex thing." "But that's what Fantasies are for. For sex!" "I know, okay, but this is… It's hugs. This person, whoever it is, hugs me." Steve gives Robin a couple of seconds to look at him in stunned silence and digest his words, then he asks her: "Do I look like I need a hug that bad that someone feels it's their duty to provide one?" "How long has this girl been giving you Fantasy hugs?" Robin asks, her tone poised somewhere between bewildered and worried. "Aside from the fact I don't even know if it's a guy or a gal, it's been… uh… weeks? A month? Maybe more, I'm not sure." "And you never told me a thing?!" she shouts, outraged. "I just did!" Robin smacks the back of her hand on his arm in an offended gesture. "That doesn't count and you know it!"

[sunkissedscribbles]

Prejudiced - Chapter Eight

this is only a part of the series, the previous and next chapters can be found here 

a/n: this one is a little more *extreme* and rather experimental for cass but i had so much fun writing it, i hope y'all enjoy!!

word count: 2347

tw: wlw, drugs & alcohol use, cassie being oblivious, ki's daddy issues (this is gonna be a permanent warning i guess)

summary: though starting off a little more serious with ki & cass' conversation, it gets more lighthearted the moment the boys enter the picture

<previous chapter          next chapter>

dividers by @chachachannah

I'm sitting on Ki's bed, my back sunk into her pillows behind me as I anxiously fidget with the strings of my plaid trousers as we're discussing the events of the previous hour when Harry's name flew out of the red flames of the goblet.

"I don't know, Cass," she sighs, shaking her head at me. "It doesn't sit right with me either."

"It's always him," I drop my head onto the pillows. "This is a bad omen."

"He is a bad omen," she rolls her eyes sarcastically and I shoot her a glare. "You think it has Voldemort behind it?" Kiara lowers her voice and I nod slowly but surely.

"Yeah, I mean... I kinda heard him talking to Ron and Hermione about him having nightmares. And now with his name..."

"But what if he put it into the Goblet?" Ki asks, somewhat hopeful that there's no dark force behind it, to which I shake my head.

"He couldn't possibly do it–"

"I know, I know, the age shit. But Granger must know some potions or charms to confuse the circle," to that, I shake my head.

"She said it to the twins herself. There's no way. Plus why would she or Harry want to risk his life? Cedric, Fleur and Krum are all of age, Harry's inexperienced and his knowledge isn't as wide and deep as theirs."

We both stay silent for a few seconds, just digesting what's been said just now.

Kiara's the one to break the quiescence, "I've heard Karkaroff was a Death Eater. What if he put Harry's name into it?" I frown at the suggestion. It would make sense.

"Do you think he was there? At the World Cup?" I ask in a reserved tone.

"He could've," she nods as she rolls onto his left to face me comfortably. "We didn't talk about it enough, did we?"

I shake my head. "I don't know. It's not really our–"

"But it affected you," she insists and reaches out for my hand to squeeze it. "It affected you more than me because–"

"Because dad and 'cuz my whole family consists of Death Eaters?" I cut in with a roll of my eyes – we're on topic again...

"No. I mean, partly," she shakes her head, to which I frown. Just partly? "Cass," she continues with a sigh, "because of your cousin. And mostly because of Mattheo."

I'm taken aback by her words, not quite understanding why she brings them up now.

"How do they come here?" I shake my head.

"C'mon, don't pretend like you don't know..."

She's somewhat right. Even if Draco and I don't act like family anymore, I still care about him. And knowing my uncle, Lucius will force Draco into whatever that's going on. It doesn't sit right with me how collected Draco was at the World Cup back in August when the Death Eaters arose from nowhere. I bet his father was amongst them – why else would he have been so at ease while it happened? He knew. And the ministry's trying to cover for it so desperately like it was nothing. Something is off, I just can't explain it properly. So, yes, I do care about my cousin and don't want him to make the same mistakes our fathers did.

And Mattheo... he hasn't had a good night's sleep in months, he's my friend, one of my best mates and I'm worried about him. Merlin, I can already imagine the hate he'd get if the whole Voldemort misery started again. People would accuse him of helping his father, and not only at Hogwarts but in the entire Wizarding World. His and Harry's nightmares are a concerning sign.

"Cass?" Ki's worried-curious voice shakes me out of my thoughts. "What is it?"

I shake my head – I promised Mattheo not to tell the others about his nightmares and sleeping problems. But at the same time...

"I shouldn't really tell you about this, but..." I start in a voice which piques Ki's attention immediately. "Remember when Matt and I borrowed Harry's cloak...?"

"How could I forget?" she grins, which gives away she's thinking about those two kisses Matt and I shared that day, and I just roll my eyes at her.

"You can't tell anyone about this, especially not Theo but..."

So, I tell Ki how Matt came over the night before I had to temporarily steal Harry's invisibility cloak, but obviously, forget about the part where he pinned me to my bed after I'd woken him up and wanted to kiss him for the first time. She reacts more casually than I did – she seems like she wants to tell me about something as well, but maybe I'm seeing things and it's not the case.

"Are you dressed? Hope not," Theo's voice follows a line of knocks on the door, aborting the conversation we had going on, then the door opens and Theo's grin fades into a mock-disappointed frown, accompanied by a sigh. "Why hide those gorgeous bodies from a bit of attention?"

Semi-uncomfortably, I fix the tank top I have on – now thinking it was a bad idea to wear as it embraces my upper body completely, trying to resist the urge to pull the blanket on me completely and show that I am insecure about my skin and body.

Ki in the meantime grins at Theodore but flips him off as well.

Mattheo and Enzo follow Theo, the latter with some brownies in his hand, from which I already don't expect much because A, it was made by the boys who definitely are stupid to the kitchen, and B, because of the weed the cookies contain.

We all settle down on the floor and Ki pulls a box full of beverages out from under her bed. Of course, why'd I expect anything else?

"Thoughts on Potter?" Enzo speaks up as he places the plastic box in the middle of the circle next to the bottles of firewhisky and wine.

We share a look with Ki, and then I glance at Mattheo, and I don't answer.

"Attention seeker, he's–" Theo starts with a shrug but Kiara cuts him off.

"Let's not bring this up now."

Gratefully, I look over at her before opening the bottle of wine. I didn't have a headache this morning after last night's session in the Astronomy Tower but to say the least, I don't remember much.

"At least it's not one of our names, hm?" I try to look and sound reassuring as I take a long sip from the bottle.

A bottle of wine consumed into the night and Ki lies down on the floor. "I wanna kiss him so bad," she practically whines in misery.

Theo towers over her with a grin, "I'm here, Piccolina," but only earns Ki to push him away, at which we all tilt our heads.

"Not you, cazzo," she grunts and I chuckle, Mattheo and Enzo too, Theo looks offended. I've spent enough time with Kiara to know 'cazzo' means the same term of endearment I prefer to call McLaggen, like 90% of the time: prick. "Seb," she clarifies.

"Who?" Theo furrows his brows a bit possessively. At first, I have no idea either. But then it hits me.

"Harper," Enzo and I mutter together, and Mattheo snorts a laugh.

"The Astronomy teacher?" Matt shakes his head in a mix of shock, disbelief, and some humour and Theo places a hand over his heart overdramatically.

"Ow, Cara Mia, you wound me."

"Little Miss Daddy Issues," Enzo teases and Ki just laughs at him in the haze of her tipsiness.

"You know," Theo objects, "if you were my little girl, I'd do whatever I could do. Anything for you."

I laugh and shake my head at the entertainment. Whenever Theo drinks, he becomes more insistent. More possessive, he wants Kiara all to himself, all the time. I'm starting to think he's more into her than she is into him.

Ki keeps insisting on wanting and needing Professor Harper, so I come up with an idea when Theo looks almost hurt.

"Let's list the pros and cons," I shrug as I reach for my black notebook in my bag and open it at an empty page. Ki doesn't question anything, the boys do, by only sharing an intrigued, almost sceptical look.

Ki takes the notebook and the pencil and starts scribbling unstoppably.

daddy

tattoos

brown eyes

smash

sweet

kind

helpful

single,

I see as Ki places the notebook down in the circle, open.

"Bet his dick is tiny," Theo scoffs jealously.

"Bet it's bigger than yours," Mattheo teases with a grin, to which he earns an offended middle finger flip into the air from Theo's direction.

"Kind and sweet?" I raise my brows.

"Your first interaction with him was five points deprived of Slytherin," Enzo adds as he nods at me. I didn't think he'd come tonight – he's been pretty busy lately.

"Yeah, and like... he's our teacher," I continue.

"But," Ki takes the notebook again before showing us her new point with a finger pointing at the words.

HE’S ONLY 32 

"He's 32," I repeat with a look of disbelief and a disapproving shake of my head.

"Reversed paedophilia," Mattheo snorts while Theo's trying to come up with new insults about Seb's size.

"Could be your dad," Enzo adds.

Ki scoffs and shakes her head, "But he's only twice my age!"

"YES. twice your age, princess, he could’ve knocked your mum up when he was 16 and you’d be here," Matt rolls his eyes, using the pet name sarcastically, and I shoot him a glare.

"Fuck you, that's literally my life story," I shove him mock-offendedly

A few new pros follow this conversation on the paper.

perfect conversations

sassy

his smirk

he’s hot when he licks his lips

"When did you see him lick his lips?" Enzo frowns.

"I had to go stalk him with her today," I mutter in amusement as a response.

"But I can look sexy licking my lips, too!" Theo shakes his head.

cute smile

intense eye contact

tension between us

his lips seem soft

"Don't like his shoes," Matt rolls his eyes and with a nod, I agree. Professor Harper has these shiny, really elegant shoes which muggles wear to formal events.

"Don't like him," Theo adds gruffly, leaning back against Kiara's bed.

Feeling like my body needs a refill from the wine, I take another drag from the bottle, and then, after some convincing from Mattheo and Enzo, I try the brownies.

Theo at this point kind of gives in with resignation in his voice as he says, "At least he can give you House Points..." to which Kiara grins and with a nod writes it down. Then, she moves her hand to the top of the paper and writes only one word on top of the list in all caps:

HANDS

I frown – I've never really understood the thing with hands, so I shake my head. "What about hands?"

"WHAT ABOUT THEM?" she asks offendedly. "He has big, veiny hands that would make a great necklace."

I roll my eyes and scoff playfully, the brownies hitting already. "I have veiny piano hands and you don't look like you'd die to sit on my fingers."

"Why, you want me to?" she grins lightheartedly, almost flirtatiously.

I smirk back at her, not expecting more than the usual banter, "Please."

To that, Ki leans in whimsically, and I, playing along, start to close the gap between us as well until our lips meet in the middle, to my biggest surprise. I've never kissed Ki, let alone any girl but why does it feel kinda nice? Ki grabs my neck and pulls me in by gripping a handful of hair on the back of my neck, and I bite her bottom lip in response. Her sudden little moan at the sensation of my teeth sinking into the pink flesh takes me by surprise, and I grin against her lips. I feel the alcohol pumping in my veins and mixing with a sudden rush of adrenaline as I forget about the outer world, about kissing my best friend so eagerly while our other friends are probably staring at the escalating heated scenes. We end up kneeling up as we melt more against each other, and running my fingers through the silky locks of her hair, she shudders and lets out another involuntarily groan. I'm a little taken aback when she grabs my hips and pulls me closer, and how her hand then starts to travel up my body under my crop top, tugging the fabric up and revealing inches of skin. As we continue kissing each other frantically and hungrily, I can't help but tug her closer to me by hooking a finger into the waistband of her PJ pants, desperate to take control of the situation. But it's only a vain dream as she breaks the kiss to yank my head backwards to give herself better access to my neck, and she starts to nibble at the skin and leave a spot that for sure will be visible tomorrow. With foggy eyes, I look at Kiara the moment she pulls back and grins at me when she sees her dedicated work.

"My hickey looks good on you."

I smirk back at her, completely out of my head because of the effects of the weed and the alcohol, "Want one too?"

"Sure," the grin is impossible to be erased from her lips as she nods.

So, without any hesitation, I tug the neck of her shirt to the side to get to her collarbone and start sucking at the soft flesh over the stiff bones. This is how I receive her first hickey and she does mine.

Ki's technically stolen from me as Theo pouts, "My turn!" and he pulls my best friend closer to himself while trying to kiss her senseless to make her forget about the previous moments she shared with me possessively.

I turn back to Mattheo and Enzo in a dazed state and see them share a look. "Why was that kinda hot?" Matt asks.

tag list: @inksoakedparchment @mqstermindswift @reys-letters @girllblogging777

[delta-pavonis]

Dreaming Week 2024 Day 3

Dreamling Week 2024 Day 3 Prompts (from @mr-sadman): solarpunk, painting, meet cute, massage

Dreamling || Rated T || 1093 words

tags (other than the prompts above): fantasy, urban fantasy, solarpunk, drow druid/sorcerer Dream, half wood elf bard/gunsmith Hob, investigator partners with a history, they get captured and held for days as torture, passing mention of biological consequences of being tied to chairs for days on end, confessions

Read Part 1 here. Part 2 here.

(In chronological order, Part 2 comes before Part 1 and this comes after Part 1. Mentions events of Part 1 and events discussed in Part 2.)

“When we get out of this the first thing I am doing is getting a three hour massage, bloody fuck these chains are tight.” Dream tries to twist his wrist to get some wiggle room and can't even manage that; all the movement does is jostle their chairs. His partner whines. “You alright there, Hob?”

They are chained to a pair of chairs, back to back, with heavy steel links. The chains aren't spelled, but they don't need to be when they are this tight: there is no way Dream will pull off even the smallest somatic component restrained like this and Hob certainly can’t play an instrument or draw a gun. Even worse, the room is unnaturally dark.

Dream hadn’t realized how used he had gotten to the sunlight and the greenery of the surfacelands until they were taken from him. For a moment he takes comfort in thoughts of twirling tree branches forming the beams of great towers, arched windows carefully grown in between, columns of elevators going so high they meet the top of the building in the clouds. He thinks of winding streets made of sandstone and brass and overflowing with greenery, the whirring music of solar panels as they track the sunlight along with their flower-kin. 

The thought of the movement of the sun reminds Dream that time has been passing, that they have been in here long enough that he is starting to have trouble tracking time–the only clock he has to go by is his heartbeat and that is only reliable for so long. Hunger has long since passed into a dull ache, which tells him it must be more than a couple days. Both of them have vacated all the remaining volume of foodstuffs left in their digestive tracts, removing another marker of time. 

They have not seen another soul since they awoke here. There is a dim illumination that comes from… somewhere, but Dream cannot pinpoint it. It is only enough to see his own knees by, make out the faintest outline of the large stone blocks of the ceiling that is a mere few feet above their heads. It is not enough for Hob to see anything, dull as his half-human senses are. 

Cruelly enough, water drips from the seams in the stone structure in a few places, landing on the top of their heads, on Hob’s shoulder and chest, on Dream’s cheek. It is the bare minimum to keep them alive and Dream suspects that is very much on purpose.

Dream leans his head back with a sigh and it presses against Hob's. 

“You ever wonder what would have happened if we met under different circumstances?” Hob's speech is slurred enough that it makes Dream reconsider if those arrows they got hit with were a poison targeted for those of the surface. It adds a new layer to the puzzle of who has captured them. “Like, if I wasn't working that night in the tavern, wasn't being the biggest distraction possible?” He is silent for a beat. “I would've asked to join you at your table. Start back up properly, like old friends might. But we’re not friends, are we?” His chuckle is hollow. “No, most definitely not. Perhaps I would’ve tried to woo you with song… paint you a picture with music. Gods, you were so beautiful. Are. So beautiful.”

“Hob…” He doesn't sound like himself, can't possibly be meaning to say any of this. 

“Do you have any idea how badly I want you? Fuck, like all the time. From the very first moment I saw you, when you walked into the Guildhall while I was trying to convince them to hire me. I can even still hear the swissh-click of your airwalker boots on the wooden floor.” Dream can hear him swallow. “It never goes away, you know? This yearning for you. It lives inside me now.”

He closes his eyes and tries to ignore it. Hob cannot be meaning to say this right now and Dream certainly does not want to hear it without Hob’s consent; he is relieved when they lapse into silence once again. 

But it doesn't last.

“If you get a chance to escape, you have to promise me to take it, even if you can't get me out.” Hob’s voice is a threadbare whisper.

No. They can't talk like this. He won't have it. “Hob, you’re-”

“I am not delirious and I am not talking nonsense!” He is panting now and Dream swears he can hear Hob's racing heartbeat. It is another piece of evidence that he is not himself. “Promise me, Dream. Promise me you will save yourself if you have the chance, even at my expense.”

“No.” Absolutely not. Dream's answer is immediate and brooks no argument; he won't even consider it. The idea is anathema, like teaching the Druidic language outside of a Circle or attempting to unbalance Nature itself. “I will not leave without you.” 

Hob’s breath rate is increasing, pushing into hyperventilating, and his voice is unsteady as a newborn foal’s legs. He sounds almost on the verge of tears and it makes something in Dream’s heart crack. “Please, Dream! I need you to promise me.”

He grits his teeth hard enough to make them squeak. “I will make no such vow.” Dream growls. It is harsh, he knows, but he will also not lie to Hob. Not after everything they’ve been through. 

They never got a chance to talk about it, what lay implied between them from their adventure with that soul-swapping curse. Not properly. Not before this case, which pretty much immediately went tits up. Fuck, they should have spoken about it. 

Dream adds this to his long ledger of regrets.

When Hob speaks again the words are clearly forced through a rising tide of panic. “I need to know you’ll be safe, that y-” 

“Breathe Hob. We don’t need to plan-”

“Promise me!” he sobs. “I need to know you wi-”

That something in Dream breaks.

“I will not leave without my Mate!”

For a moment the only sound in the small room is Hob’s panting, then Dream lets his head fall back; this time it lands on Hob’s shoulder with a dull whump.

“You were right. What you felt during the curse.” Dream closes his eyes. “I am sorry I didn’t tell you. I just… we were… we’ve been…”

Hob turns his head, twists his shoulders, as much as possible, until his nose nudges the point of Dream’s ear. “Stupid. We’ve been truly. Amazingly. Stupid.”

[daily-singularity]

Hello. I am here to ask you about their paralells and how insane they make you. Pretty please... you're the only one feeding us the good food...

Going insane. white knuckling my pen and paper. I will do my best to make this coherent, apologies in advance if its a mess!!

In the simplest terms both Gabriel and Hux are carbon copy assembly line units created by Huxlee industries for the purpose of colonizing planets and prolonging the human race.

Gabriel is a tool just as much as the Huxlee units are.

"Each individual was manufactured for a different societal function... The idea was to create a functional society that would operate flawlessly." - Gabriel Soma BIO

"Unlike human clones, the HUX-A7 required no food, no water, no sleep, and no life support system. It was created specifically for outer space exploration and the construction of colonization hubs." - HUX-A7-13 BIO

Gabriel was specifically designed by Huxlee for planet colonization. Outside of his time on Dvarka, I gather that Gabriel was in a permanent deep sleep/cryostatis. All of his memories of his family and childhood are fabrications- he has no real life or directives or experiences outside of his work on Dvarka.

---

Both were under the threat of termination, or reprogramming should they fall out of line.

"Dmitri’s not trying to help… he’s trying to get me to stop asking questions. What does he know? What’s he hiding?" - Tome 16, Memory 2998 (Gabriel Soma)

"It remembers its objective. It must assist the crew in terraforming Dvarka. Failure to do so will result in termination."- Tome 16, Memory 2665 (Hux-a7-13)

When Gabriel first starts noticing discrepancies in his memories, his crew's medic writes off his issues as "problems that dont exist", and gives him a drug that fogs up his senses. Its a clear attempt to force him back into subservience, a message of "Stop digging or else".

We're never able to find out what would happen to Gabriel if it became known that he found out about the fact hes a clone, but I gather he would be removed from the project. Terminated so he wouldn't spread panic.

--

After Gabriel finds out about the fact he's a clone, it's a lot harder to get more direct info on his mentality, since thats where his Memory archives end.

Neither of them have much experience with free will.

Due to the fact that both Gabriel and Hux were taken by the entity near immediately after learning they were a clone/gained sentience, it isnt much of a stretch to say that neither of them have experience with a sense of individuality.

Gabriel learns that his entire life has been a fabricated lie and then is immeidately shoved into a killing game. He doesn't really get that chance to come to terms with who and what he is before having to fight for his life.

Hux on the other hand, had more time to digest his new worldview. He was able to start forming his own desires and wants even if they were as simple as "Kill the inferior human worms who created me", or abstract as wanting to "the remake the universe in my image over infinate lifetimes"- whatever the fuck that means Hux. Its really unfortunate that he barely begins to form these desires before theyre all stripped away from him and he is once again forced into subservience.

---

I was gonna put like idk an insightful little footnote here, but i spent absolutely way to long writing this post. Anyways. Gabriel and hux are both tools struggling with a sense of self while being forced to kill or be killed.

Also. can Behavior please fucking explain to me why Gabriel was waxing poetic about the beauty and godliness of the machine that he watched slowly kill his entire crew, like goddamn ogling that machine, then he exploded it. and then like. went "ok damn still godlike."

I just wanna talk with whoever wrote this please. what was. what does this mean. i need to know.

"It had fabricated a new body for itself. Part flesh. Part silicon. Part human. Part machine. Massive. Powerful. Beautiful and majestic like—

An ancient God."

"Gabe raced across the meadow and into the forest. When he looked back, he saw the HUX emerge from the flames and smoke. Burning. Melting. Shrieking. Deformed. Terrible and wrathful like—

An ancient God"

[daisukitoo]

Humans are small ecosystems animated by hive minds, which present themselves as singular "multi-cellular life forms," as if such a thing were possible. When dealing with humans, it is best to humor this self-presentation, as they have been known to become violent if this self-image is challenged or if you attempt to appeal to their components individually.

When communicating with a human, you will be addressing the verbal module of one organ of one cellular subset. This verbal module itself possesses no apparent intelligence or self-awareness, but it draws upon the resources of other processing systems. Again, it is safest not to remind humans of this, nor to take their languages' frequent use of the second-person plural in place of the second-person singular as recognition of their collective agency. When addressing one human ecology, "you" is treated as a singular, despite the grammatical and biological absurdity. Reference the interspecies relations manual for FAQs on this topic.

Human ecosystems exist in multiple layers. The most central "human" organisms are a collection of symbiotic, specialized cells built from a common template. Humans will often recognize this layer as "you" and expect other species to be built similarly. They do not recognize the existence of other layers as themselves.

For example, the entire surface of a human is a "microorganism" battleground, where Earth yeasts and bacteria fight for eminence. If any faction wins, the ecology will be stabilized and the human will both die and become uncommunicative. Do not offer aid or comfort to any involved faction. Humans will take personal offense at discussions of their surface microorganisms.

Humans are not capable of digesting their own sustenance. Rather than absorb any common energy wavelengths, humans must consume other organisms and absorb them into the local ecology. They call the first several steps of their digestion "cooking," by which sustenance is physically and chemically altered before ingestion. Their "gut bacteria" is a collection of captured subspecies that they have incorporated into their corporeal bodies. Again, offering to "cure" gut bacteria is considered offensive and is potentially fatal (although not quickly enough to be valuable as a combat technique; see the relevant subsection of the interspecies relations FAQ).

Humans are strangely aware that all of their "cells" contain other organisms in a symbiotic relationship as a powerhouse. This recognition extends only to these "mitochondria," with the usual offense taken if other subsections of the ecology are recognized or addressed.

Avoid contact with any liquid emitted by a human. Human ecosystems aggressively reproduce themselves through the transfer of components in liquid form. While not all toxic human liquids are active assimilation vehicles, assume that the human is present and potentially attempting to assimilate in any liquid form. This is only a class 3 danger for most life forms, but exposure can be fatal in biologies sufficiently similar to humans. Humans emit liquids at and in each other frequently as a form of communication and fellowship; do not be surprised if humans offer their liquids to you in a variety of forms of direct contact. Humans may take offense at a refusal of liquids or contact, but most humans you are likely to encounter off Earth are sufficiently aware of norms to attempt to hide this offense. Humans may be aggressively eager to assimilate or create hybrid lifeforms, despite the rarity with which this is biologically feasible. Attempts should be avoided, as success is at least as likely to be fatal as the attempt.

It remains unclear whether one aspect of a human drives the collective or if the collective is a true hive mind. Again, the verbal component that communicates with other life forms seems unaware of most ecological factors happening in "itself," and this is so consistent that it is hard to believe it is a humanity-wide deception being played against other lifeforms.

Most humans seem to possess an instinctive revulsion to other hive minds and collective ecological lifeforms. Because the human communication module is unaware of its own collective nature, it is not helpful in providing insight into whether this antipathy is driven by factors such as a competitive drive or a need to avoid self-recognition.

As above, a subset of humans will eagerly attempt assimilation with other collective intelligences via liquid transmission in either direction. There is no apparent biological difference in these humans, and these contacts are usually fatal to at least one party. Verbal recognition of this fact has no apparent connection to a human's eagerness, again speaking to the verbal module's inability to observe what motivates the collective ecology.

It is best to isolate different forms of collective intelligences from each other to avoid either conflict or assimilation attempts.

[onefellsloop]

WIP Wednesday (this is a thing, right?)

From my Brigid Maturin WIP - in which Brigid discovers Capitalism, and admires a Spleen

She had always assumed that she and her father were very poor, for they lived in their uncle’s house, and her father never bought new clothes. The one thing that they did seem to have in abundance was books; from this she concluded that books were distributed free of charge by charitably-minded printers, a belief that persisted until she was almost taken up for petty larceny by an irate stationer. The source of the books remained a mystery until the day she rowed with Aunt Sophie about another of her silly rules.

‘Brigid, we have been through this. You cannot come to Dorchester if you will not wear your shoes.’

‘I hate my shoes. They make my feet feel horrible.’

‘Well, that is hardly a wonder, my dear: they must be two years old if they are a day. If you had allowed Mr Bellamy to measure your feet –'

‘I don’t want new shoes.’

‘Yes, you have made that very clear. But sweetheart, your old shoes are much too small; it is no wonder that they hurt your poor feet. Why don’t you put them on now, and we can go to Mr –’

‘I don’t want new shoes!’

‘But whyever not?’ cried Aunt Sophie, and she said, trembling with wounded pride, ‘Because my Papa cannot afford them.’

Aunt Sophie very incredulously gave her to believe that her father could afford to buy out all of the cordwainers in England, if only he would think of doing such a thing, and spoke rather severely about the impractical minds of men.

She did not like this way of speaking about her father; still, she went up to his rooms and found him bent over his desk, spectacles quivering on the end of his nose. ‘Brigid,’ he said, ‘you are the very one I was wishing for. Would you blow into this tube, now.’

She blew obediently, and he wrote something down. Then she said, ‘Papa, do we have a great deal of money?’

‘A sight too much, I am sorry to say. Why, only last week I put up two hundred pounds towards a chair in zoology; I went to my bed with a great sense of lightness, and in the morning I found that, like the dreadful Hydra, some infernal government bond had spawned three hundred pounds of its own. I have very little idea what to do: perhaps if we tried to make money, it would eventually leave us alone. To be sure, it has worked for your uncle.’

During his speech the tube had somehow become tied around his neck, and she digested this news while he untangled himself. Then she said, very hesitantly, ���Ought I buy some new shoes?’

‘Shoes?’ he said, as if he had never heard of such a thing. ‘I suppose that I have known young ladies to have shoes. But Brigid, have you not been putting a dent into our reserves? Have you been leaving me to deal with the vile stuff alone? What good is it to possess a daughter if she is not helping to rid me of my capital?’

‘I am sorry, Papa; I did not know. But I will certainly buy some new shoes now.’

‘And stockings,’ he said eagerly. ‘And fripperies, my dear; you must surround yourself with fripperies.’

‘What are fripperies?’

He frowned at her and said, ‘They are the feathers that ladies wear in their hats. As for your shoes, there is some money in the press, I believe, along with’ – he brightened considerably – ‘the spleen of a right whale, which I have plans to dissect this evening. Should you like to join me?’

‘It is a lovely spleen.’ It was sitting plumply on a silver tray, which teetered atop a large and untidy pile of coins, banknotes and a few gold ingots.

‘I doubt that it will keep until the morning; already I believe I observe the slightest of olfactory disturbances: you had not noted it? No, I supposed not; but your aunt becomes unhappy when I let the organs linger. Now, if only we had a walrus spleen, you would find the comparison most instructive. I will look out my old notes, and you may read them over dinner.’

[czenzo]

Just an Act

[ao3]

summary: When Lockwood & Co. are called out on a case involving a jealousy-ridden Visitor, Lucy is forced to confront her own tangle of feelings and why it bothers her so much to see someone shamelessly flirt with her boss.

words: 6,360 rating: T

notes: this is my secret santa gift for Mar (@thegirlfromthesea)—I hope you like it! thank you to the Lockwood discord for hosting it again :)

happy holidays!

“So, Mr Lockwood, where’d you learn to use your rapier like that?”

Lucy snorted; she couldn’t help it.

A girl, not much older than Lucy, looked up at Lockwood through thick lashes. She was stereotypically pretty—irritatingly so—and had taken quite the shine to the company leader.

Lockwood smiled politely. “I took lessons as a young boy. Fantastic teachers, they were. Now, er—if you don’t mind, Miss…?”

“Haine,” she said with a smile. “Emily Haine. But, ooh, just Emily is fine.”

Watching Haine stick by Lockwood’s side as he inspected the nooks and crannies of the master bedroom made Lucy think of a limpet. The girl leaned in further and ogled his figure in that slightly too tight suit of his; it negated the explanation she gave of wanting to ‘learn the tricks of the trade’ when they first encountered her. They were only an hour into their work for the evening, and Lucy had already held back several scoffs.

Lockwood awkwardly cleared his throat. “Miss Haine, if you would be so kind as to give us a tad more space so we can work efficiently, that would be wonderful.”

She took a single step back.

George, who had been mid-tea sip, spluttered. “Christ. Lockwood, I’ll go and get a head start on the other room readings while you deal with this. Luce, do you want—”

Lucy scooped up her bag and held the door open for him. “Yes.”

Once the door swung shut behind them, George turned to her with a knowing look. “Not too keen on her, are you?”

She gave him a sidelong glance as they advanced down the hallway. “You don’t seem to be, either.”

“Anyone—or anything—that hinders our work is a nuisance in my book, sweet young girl or not." He paused to clean his glasses on the hem of his jumper then added with a chuckle, "She batted her eyelashes so much I thought she’d fly away any minute.”

Lucy held back what she was sure was a very ugly bout of laughter. “I can’t believe Mr Albrecht is letting his staff run around all willy-nilly while we’re trying to work.”

“I doubt that's the case,” George said. “This place is massive. He’ll have loads of staff, but she’s the only one we’ve come across. There must be a reason for it.”

Lucy’s reply tapered off as she eyed up the closed door they were distancing themselves from. Lockwood was on the other side of it—and now, with a lack of audience, Haine was likely to throw all shame out of the window. Lucy shook away the mental image of her idiotically cuddling up to him. Lockwood had self-respect and at least a shred of common sense, she reminded herself. He would keep turning down her advances despite being alone, surely?

“Luce?”

She blinked and turned to George, only to find they were no longer walking. “What?”

“You trailed off and stopped. Everything okay?”

She looked back to the door again, for what she told herself would be the last time.

“Ooh, she’s really gotten under your skin, hasn’t she? Tell you what, how about we get some recordings of this…” he pushed open the door beside him and it opened with a menacing creak, “lovely little bathroom—god, it looks like it’s never been used—and then we can crack open the biscuits?”

Biscuits were a good solution to (or rather, distraction from) many problems. Not that Lucy had any in that particular moment—Lockwood could fend for himself, Haine’s pursuit of him was not her concern—but she wasn’t going to turn down an opportunity to dig into the digestives.

The bathroom wasn’t far from the size of Lucy’s bedroom at 35 Portland Row, and George hadn’t been kidding when he first peered inside: it was squeaky clean. When Mr Albrecht, their filthy-rich client and owner of the property, had given them one last briefing before hightailing it out of the place, Lucy recalled he had mentioned something about eight bathrooms. At the time she’d brushed it off in favour of focusing on the important info—i.e., the Visitor that was disturbing his family and targeting staff—but as she swept her gaze across the pristine porcelain and sparkling tiles, it came back to her with clarity. Eight bathrooms between its three non-staff occupants… no wonder this one looked as if it had been pulled straight from a catalogue.

“I’d bet good money we’re the only human contact this room’s seen, besides the installers,” George sniffed, pulling out his notepad. “I’d bet those digestives that nothing’s here, but we ought to take readings anyway.”

They went through the motions. Lucy checked temperatures (nothing out of the ordinary, as suspected) and Listened for disturbances (the pipes were a bit squeaky, but that didn’t count as a psychical threat), while George jotted everything down. Once they were done, they wasted no time in retrieving the biscuits and thermoses from the depths of their bags.

For the first time that evening, Lucy took the skull jar out. It sat between them in their small iron circle (made more out of habit than necessity) and immediately began pulling faces at George. It had formed an annoying habit of waffling while clients spoke and shouting random numbers as she took readings, so for the sake of her own sanity she’d kept the jar shut tight.

Up until now.

“I reckon if you bludgeon that soppy little fool you could hide her body in this bathtub and it’d be years before anyone found her.”

George looked at Lucy expectantly.

“It doesn’t like Miss Haine,” she translated. George simply nodded and dunked a biscuit in his tea.

“That was some shocking paraphrasing, Lucy. I never said I didn’t like the girl—I said I’d be completely at peace if you caved her skull in and made the body disappear. Two very different things, I tell you.”

Lucy decided that didn’t warrant a reply. “What do you think about the case, George?”

His face lit up at the chance to delve into it again; it was so charmingly George that Lucy felt a sudden surge of fondness for him. “The staff’s reports of a detailed apparition makes a Spectre quite likely. One mentioned it looked like a young man, so I researched deaths on the property while at the archives—and sure enough, a few poor sods have met their end here. An ancestor of Albrecht’s from the 19th century got shot just outside, a lad who used to work here not long ago slipped down the main staircase, and a burglar recently got caught in the act and had a heart attack when the police apprehended him. What a way to go, eh?”

“Would any of them have a reason to return, though?”

George shrugged noncommittally. “In one way or another. The ancestor’s death stopped the ownership of the property transferring to him, the ex-staff might’ve been unhappy with how he was treated here, and the burglar… well, if I died in those circumstances, I’d be pretty miffed. I’d come back to haunt the place as a distraction from that embarrassment.”

“Your whole life’s an embarrassment.”

This time, it was Lucy’s turn to splutter mid-sip.

“What? What did it say?”

She shook her head. “Nothing important.”

George narrowed his eyes, but soon let it go. “Another biscuit?”

“Go on, then.” Lucy reached for the proffered sleeve but froze when an ear-splitting shriek echoed down the hall. She shoved the skull jar in her bag and discarded the tea and biscuits in favour of bolting in the direction of the scream, with George not far behind.

Lucy threw open the door, rapier in hand.

The skull, half-sticking out of her bag, peered over her shoulder and cackled. It let out a comment so crude Lucy would have winced if she weren’t so distracted by the way Haine had her arms wrapped around Lockwood.

George panted heavily beside Lucy. “What happened?”

Haine held on for a moment longer, then had the gall to look sheepish as she slowly pulled away. “Oh, I’m so sorry, Mr Lockwood! I could’ve sworn I saw something move out of the corner of my eye, and oh, it looked awful, and I knew I could count on you to protect me from it.”

“Pah! What a trollop.”

Lucy, rapier still raised, looked to Lockwood. His face was pointedly blank as he considered the blushing girl beside him. In the blink of an eye, one of his trademark smiles appeared—to Lucy’s relief, it wasn’t one of the charming or flirting variety, but instead one of careful politeness.

“I’m glad you feel you can put your trust in us,” he said, “but I can assure you there’s certainly no psychic activity in this room, according to the readings we got. Not a single death glow, either. There’s a slight draught in here—perhaps the movement you saw was the curtains.”

��The atmosphere seems to be taking a toll on you, Miss,” Lucy said. Her knuckles ached from her grip tightening around her rapier hilt. “We should get you set up to stay somewhere else for the night, so we can work without you getting in the—er, without you being at risk.”

“Nice catch, really smooth. Though personally, if I cared enough about dear old Locky, I would’ve just told the bint to sod off.”

Haine eyed Lucy with disdain. “What on earth is that thing sticking out of your bag?”

“Nothing,” Lucy said, shoving the jar further in and out of sight. She hadn’t the time to flick the lever in the same motion, so the skull’s cries and colourful insults were still audible. She prided herself on her ability to keep a poker face as it described, at length, where exactly Miss Haine should shove it.

Lockwood swiftly moved the conversation on. “Good idea, Luce. Mr Albrecht mentioned he usually has a team of night staff—where are they tonight, Miss Haine?"

“Most stayed home. The few who didn't get the memo in time and showed up anyway were sent to a nearby hotel for the night... But it’s so late now, they wouldn’t possibly take me in.”

Lucy narrowed her eyes. “Why didn’t you join them?”

“Ah, well, when he informed them all of the arrangements, I was preoccupied.”

“With what?”

“I was—er, ah… I was polishing. The bathrooms. You saw how clean they were, yes?”

George peered at her over his glasses. “We assumed it was because no one used them.”

“Oh no, they do. And I clean them—a lot! So I missed Mr Albrecht’s instructions. And then I stumbled upon you three!”

“Four.”

Lucy frowned. “If she gets hurt, Lockwood… We’ll be liable.”

“Yes, that is true,” Lockwood said, his smile now laced with a hint of uncertainty. “Time’s ticking, though, and we need to get a move on. Since we’ve deemed this room safe, we can keep her in here. The two of you can help me quickly fortify the room, and then we can resume work. Is that alright with you, Miss Haine?”

Lucy had never seen her expression look so sour. Her short reply of “Yes” was not convincing at all, but the trio got to work laying out protection for her nonetheless.

“All sorted,” Lockwood said, clapping his hands together. “You shouldn’t be disturbed in here, but just to be safe, don’t leave this circle. If you need anything at all, give us a shout.”

“There’s some tea in that thermos,” George added, “and I’ve generously donated a few biscuits. That’ll keep you going til dawn, I reckon.”

“Thank you,” Haine said stiffly.

Lucy plastered a smile onto her face, though she couldn’t manage the same amount of fake politeness as Lockwood. “You’re welcome.”

Without the hindrance of a fourth unqualified person, Lockwood & Co.’s efficiency skyrocketed. Lucy lost count of how many rooms they took readings in. The place was eerily labyrinthian, and she was grateful that George had the mind to print out a map beforehand.

The evening grew darker, and after locating the area with the most psychical red flags—the staff quarters, a small series of rooms in the basement—set up their own iron circle in preparation for any oncoming manifestations.

After filling Lockwood in on his suspicions, George sat cross-legged and leaned back on his hands. “I’m surprised we haven’t heard a peep out of Haine yet.”

“I thought she’d be calling out for her knight in shining armour in minutes,” Lucy said, an amused smirk creeping onto her face.

Lockwood raised an eyebrow. “I’m assuming you’re referring to me?”

“‘Course I am. She was all over you.”

“I wouldn’t say that… ” He averted his gaze. “But she did seem rather fond of me.”

“God knows why. I’d rather neck a street rat than look Lockwood in the eye.”

Lockwood frowned as he watched the skull’s ghostly mouth move. “What is it saying?”

“Nothing out of the ordinary.”

“Should we let Albrecht know one of his staff’s gone rogue?” George said, straightening to stretch his back with an odd groan.

Lucy wasn’t sure why every fibre of her being was advocating for the girl’s downfall. After a moment’s consideration, she chalked it up to being ‘hangry’—as Bobby Vernon once used to describe George in a heated conversation—and grabbed another biscuit.

“Legally, it would be the right thing to do,” Lockwood mused. “But I’d hate to be the reason the poor girl loses her job. If she keeps shtum for the rest of the night, I’m happy to let it go. Is that fair?”

George shrugged. Lucy made a noise of vague discontent. The skull voiced its own unpleasant opinion.

“Great,” Lockwood said with a grin. “It’s settled.” He popped a piece of gum in his mouth and checked his watch. “Miasma’s setting in. We ought to be seeing activity soon… Have you heard anything yet, Luce?”

As a matter of fact, she had—the skull’s voice notwithstanding. “The occasional word. I can’t make out what it's saying, but it’s definitely a young man’s voice. It’s steadily increasing in volume and frequency.”

“Good, we’re on the right track. George is probably spot on with the Spectre assumption. And considering where we are, it’s likely to be the lad who used to work here.” He eyed up the room around them, and Lucy followed suit. 

Presumably, this was where Albrecht’s staff spent their breaks, away from the demands of the filthy-rich family. They were in the ‘lobby’, so to speak, of the staff area. It was a small room with sparse seating, various mops and brooms propped against the far wall, and an old radio next to some stale refreshments. Branching off from the main room was a restroom and a dingy bedroom containing the flattest mattress she’d ever laid eyes on. It was so far from the life of luxury the Albrechts lived it almost felt like a different building entirely. It meant George was probably correct about yet another thing—the deceased staff member might have returned seeking revenge against his stingy employer.

Lockwood’s narrowed eyes suggested he was having the same train of thought. “What I am wondering, however, is why now? You said he died a year or so ago, George, but Mr Albrecht said his staff only started complaining in the past few months.”

“Can’t say for sure. Maybe someone disturbed his Source while working?”

The skull let out a cackle. Lucy’s gaze snapped to it. “Do you know something?”

“Maybe I do.”

Lucy raised her eyebrows. “And?”

“Maybe I don’t.”

“There’s no need to be difficult.”

“I’m not being difficult, it’s just” —it let out an elated cry—“this is hilarious. You’re so close to the truth! I’d bet good money you can’t get it through your thick skull, though.”

“What?” She frowned. “What do you mean?”

Lockwood leaned forward. “What’s it saying, Luce?”

“It knows something. Said we’re close to the truth, but doesn’t have faith we’ll work it out.”

“No no, I said you. Cubbins’ll be on it in no time, I reckon. He isn’t riddled with the same distractions as you are.”

She carefully repeated its words, and George’s face lit up. “Oh, now I really want to know what it’s going on about.”

“Are you talking to a jar?” An annoyingly familiar voice said from the entrance.

Three heads whipped around in surprise, one haunted skull cackled gleefully, and one Spectre manifested in the middle of the room.

Haine screamed as Lockwood leapt forward, rapier slicing through the Visitor within seconds of its appearance.

Lucy and George scrambled to their feet. With the skull as a distraction, Lucy hadn’t noticed the disembodied voice becoming more prominent, but now it had her full attention. The pressure in her head made her wince and let out a hiss of pain. George gently placed a hand on her shoulder, thumb rubbing soothing circles in a silent moment of understanding.

Lockwood hauled Haine into the iron circle. “What—and I say this out of concern for your safety—the bloody hell do you think you’re doing, Miss Haine? We asked you to stay inside the circle. You could’ve been killed!”

Haine was deathly pale, and it took far longer than expected for her to voice a reply. “I… I know him.”

“You recognised the Visitor?” George said. The skull continued to laugh.

She nodded shakily. “His name is Adam. He works—worked here. We… had a thing, so to speak. He was lovely. But one day he… he—oh, god, he—”

“Slipped and fell down that huge staircase in the foyer?”

Haine let out a choked sob.

The voice had quietened; Lucy was able to think clearly again. “You said you ‘had a thing’?”

“His return could have something to do with that,” George said.

Lockwood nodded. “It’s likely. Now, Miss Haine, I beg you to stay inside these chains. We’re dealing with a dangerous Type Two that has personal ties to you. He may target you. Please let us work unhindered.”

“Or, if you do get in the way, at least make your death entertaining.”

“Unfaithful…”

Lucy tried to discreetly whisper to the jar she’d left on the floor. “What?”

“I said, if she does get in the way—”

“No, no, not that. The other thing.”

“That wasn’t me, Lucy. All this time being your partner in crime and you can’t even recognise my voice?” It scoffed. “Those biscuits have a higher IQ than you.”

“Mine…”

The words were a welcome distraction from the way Haine clung onto Lockwood’s sleeve. “I can hear him. I can make out the words.”

“What is he saying?”

“Unfaithful. Mine.” She paused, and then, “Cheat.”

Haine tightened her grip. “Adam said those things?”

“Oh,” George said. “Oh.”

“What did I say, Lucy? I bloody knew he’d catch on first! Oh, I’m a genius. I deserve some kind of award.”

“What?” Lockwood said, somewhat impatient.

“Miss Haine,” George said slowly, “are you naturally flirtatious?”

The sudden change of topic startled her. “Well, I wouldn’t say that… But if a man’s good-looking, I’m not going to ignore it.” She glanced at Lockwood for a split second. “Take Richie, for example—he started here earlier this year, and I know we’re colleagues, but you only live once. I wouldn’t turn down the opportunity to—”

“When did he start working here?”

“Er… A few months ago, I think?” Her irritation was visible as she spoke to George; it was a stark contrast to how she behaved with Lockwood. “How is this relevant?”

“There we go,” George said with satisfaction. “Adam still has feelings for you, and isn’t particularly pleased to see you moving on.”

Haine let out a small, dumb, “Oh.”

Lockwood whistled, long and slow. “Visitors with romantically oriented returns tend to be the most aggressive. Stay on your guard, everyone. And once again, Miss Haine, do not—”

He didn’t finish his sentence, though everyone surely knew what he planned to say. They were all too distracted by the Spectre’s return to dwell on it, however.

He stood—or rather, floated a few centimetres off the ground—near the iron circle, and now Lucy could get a closer look at him. He was faded and blurry around the edges, but she could still make out the inner details. He wore a similar getup to Haine, with the dark trousers and a slightly wrinkled white button-up. His attire, combined with his red hair and thin face, made him look alarmingly like a fusion of Lockwood and Kipps. What caught Lucy’s attention the most, however, was the ugly bruising circling his neck. It was a grim reminder of how he met his untimely death.

He was so young. He couldn’t have been much older than Lockwood or George. Emotions were distracting; Lucy let out a shaky sigh and tried to let it wash over her. Meanwhile Haine, untrained and vulnerable, broke out into a fit of sobs.

“How are we dealing with this, Lockwood?” George said, ready to leap into action with his rapier in hand.

“Miss Haine, I’m sorry to ask this when you’re feeling so delicate, but we need to locate Adam’s Source. Do you have any idea as to what it could be?”

Haine sniffed and ungracefully dragged a sleeve across her damp face. “No. I haven’t got a clue, I…”

Lucy felt a pang of sympathy. It was almost enough to make her forget what had irked her about the girl earlier. “It could be anything with sentimental value to him, or something involved in his… passing.”

The skull scoffed. “Don’t start going soft on her now.”

Haine turned away from the Spectre and curled further in on herself. “He wasn’t a materialistic person. Never let me get him gifts. But—oh. Oh! He was working when he fell, he…” Her eyes swept the room and stopped when they found the mops. “He was using one of those! Oh god, you don’t think…?”

Lockwood nodded solemnly. “It could be one of them, yes.”

Adam’s voice was still audible in Lucy’s mind. “He’ll pounce the second we step foot out of these chains.”

Haine moved closer to Lockwood. In the blink of an eye she was leaning into him, one hand resting gently on his arm. “I’m so scared. What if he—”

A cry ripped from Adam’s throat as he rushed forward.

Lucy flinched and stumbled backwards. She crashed into Lockwood, who caught her and set her upright. “Miss Haine, try to keep your hands off our boss. Your late ex isn’t very fond of him.”

“He sees Lockwood as competition? By far the worst case of insecurity I’ve ever seen.”

“He sees Lockwood as competition,” Lucy murmured, then repeated it louder as it dawned on her. “Lockwood’s riling him up. If we can get Adam to disregard him, he might calm down long enough for us to reach his Source.”

“Good thinking, Luce,” George said.

Lockwood took a careful, wide sidestep away from Haine. “How are we pulling that off?”

“You’re a real threat to him if you’re single,” Haine said. “You are single, aren’t you?”

Lucy’s head pounded as Adam’s voice boomed.

“Er,” Lockwood said eloquently.

“Not any more,” George declared, before pushing Lucy and Lockwood together. They collided and instinctively grabbed onto one another to avoid tumbling out of the chains.

As Lockwood looked down at Lucy, George’s intent dawned on her. She adjusted herself so one hand wrapped around Lockwood’s torso, and leant into him like she’d seen Haine doing all evening. Slowly, Lockwood’s hand reached up behind her and rested at the nape of her neck, toying with the hairs there like it was second nature. Lucy’s stomach did strange flips while the skull feigned retching and loudly voiced its complaints.

Haine made an odd noise. George smiled like the cat that got the cream and turned to face Adam triumphantly—only to find he was no longer there.

“Give it a minute,” he said. “Miss Haine, try coming onto Lockwood again.”

“You can’t force those kinds of things,” Haine insisted.

“Try it anyway.”

She rolled her eyes. “Mr Lockwood, you’re looking rather dashing in that waistcoat.”

“Blind as a bat, she must be.”

Lucy turned her head to look at the waistcoat in question and was met by a familiar smell she’d come to associate with the feeling of home; for a brief second, she almost forgot she was out on a case.

The waistcoat did look nice, albeit a bit snug.

“Oh, I’d gouge my eyes out if I had any.”

George was tense in anticipation, but relaxed after a few moments of nothing. “I dare say I think it worked. Adam seems happy that Lockwood can’t possibly be interested in Miss Haine if he’s preoccupied with Luce.”

“‘Preoccupied’ is an odd way of putting it,” Lockwood said. His thin fingers continued to drift along the back of Lucy’s neck, and it was a whole world of distraction. She struggled to think straight and subconsciously tightened her grip on Lockwood’s waist. If he noticed she’d brought him closer, he didn’t let on.

“Stay there,” George said, holding his hands up as if they were jittery animals. “I’ll have a look at the mops.”

“It would be pure comedy gold if Cubbins kicks the bucket while you’re busy fondling each other. God, Lucy, you’re only supposed to be acting. Dial it back a bit, you desperate ninny.”

Lucy watched with bated breath as George cautiously stepped over the chains. He held his rapier aloft in anticipation and in a few large steps reached the far wall where the mops stood. Keeping his back to the wall, George stayed alert as he passed a hand over each mop. He violently flinched upon making contact with the last; it teetered and fell to the floor with a loud clatter.

“Got it. It’s freezing cold.”

Lucy held tightly onto Lockwood. His hand had steadied on her shoulder; the weight kept her grounded as she Listened for oncoming danger. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Haine alternating between giving her strange looks and watching George.

The skull faked a yawn. “Just get on with it already.”

The sound of its voice mingled with Adam’s whispers—he was still present, still watching, and had taken notice of George’s movements.

“Hurry, George,” Lucy murmured. Her hand came to rest on a salt bomb in her belt.

From the depths of his duffel, George had to retrieve one of their largest silver nets. It came out snarled and scrunched, and for an excruciatingly long moment, he stood there untangling it.

“God, this is painful,” Haine said. She watched for a second longer before huffing and stepping out of the chains towards him. “Here, let me—”

“CHEAT!” roared Adam; he materialised mere feet away and wasted no time in rushing towards Haine with outstretched arms.

Lucy and Lockwood moved synchronously. Together they leapt, Lockwood brandishing his rapier and Lucy taking aim with a salt bomb, and landed in the space between Haine and her enraged lover. Lockwood’s blade swung and the bomb soared from Lucy’s hand; both hit Adam with a vicious hiss of ectoplasm and a ghostly howl.

Not a moment later, George unceremoniously dropped the silver net on the mop.

Lucy’s ears popped and her jaw ached as the effects of the Visitor’s presence lifted. She didn’t mean to lean into Lockwood as her shoulders slumped, but neither of them moved away, and at some point his hand had returned to her shoulder.

“That was possibly the most boring outcome,” the skull lamented. “I was hoping to at least see Lover Girl croak. Not you, Lucy, the other one.”

“That was simple enough,” George said, nudging the sides of the net inwards.

Lockwood grinned. “Good work, you two. And as for you, Miss Haine”—his smile faded as he turned to her—“we’ll have to inform Mr Albrecht about what went down here, which means telling him you, er…”

“Went rogue,” Lucy supplied.

“Rogue, yes.”

Haine’s gaze was unflinching. “Perhaps I should tell him the true nature of your company, then.”

He frowned. “I beg your pardon?”

“Being involved with your employee isn’t a good look, Mr Lockwood,” she said, with a hint of smugness.

Lockwood scoffed and exchanged glances with Lucy and George. “And what do you mean by that?”

“Are you kidding?” She nodded to him and Lucy, who suddenly became minutely aware of how much of Lockwood’s body was pressed against hers. The warmth of his hand seeped through the layers of her clothes. “It’s obvious that relationship distraction wasn’t an act at all. Tell Albrecht I was here and I’ll tell him what you two really got up to in his bathrooms tonight.”

“Oh. I’m starting to warm up to her, actually.”

*****

As they waited for a taxi outside Albrecht’s manor, Lockwood shivered and turned up his collar. “I can’t believe she blackmailed us with a complete lie.”

“It was either that, or find yourself on the front page of tomorrow’s Times,” George said.

“Lovebird agents shag in millionaire client’s bathtub,” the skull chuckled. “What a headline.”

“We should have found another way around it,” Lucy said indignantly. “Albrecht deserves to know the truth of what happened tonight, whether Haine threatens us or not. Besides—who’s to say he’d even believe her, anyway? She’s only one of… many staff.”

“We can think of something after a good night’s rest.” George yawned. “All the stairs in that place tired me out.”

He fell asleep in the taxi, notebook open in his lap and pen still poised to continue writing his notes. Lucy carefully placed them back in his bag, then caught Lockwood watching her from the passenger seat. His smile was small but tender. It was the one he usually reserved just for Lucy, the one that never failed to make her heart flutter.

“I need to talk to you before you turn in for the night,” he said. He looked at George, then back to her. “Privately, if you don’t mind.”

She suddenly felt as tense as she had been in the iron circle. “‘Course. Is everything alright?”

“Oh, everything’s fine. Nothing to worry about.” He flashed her one of his bigger smiles, then turned back around to face the roads swathed in the light of the ghost-lamps.

Despite Lockwood’s reassurance, it still niggled at the back of Lucy’s mind the rest of the way home. She gently shook George awake as they pulled up outside 35 Portland Row and bid him goodnight before he began to trudge upstairs.

After dropping the skull jar off in her room, she found Lockwood in the kitchen turning the kettle on. He set out two mugs and turned to lean his back against the counter. When his eyes met hers, he smiled. “Luce,” he said, quietly. “Tea?”

“Yeah, thanks.” Her feet ached from the long night; she hopped up to sit on the counter near him. “What did you want to talk about?”

For a moment his brows furrowed, his gaze drifted to the side, and he seemed as if he were trying to recall something—as if he’d planned out exactly what to say, and was now struggling to find it again. Lucy restlessly shuffled her weight around, trying to make herself comfortable on the cool granite.

Lockwood took a breath. “What Haine said… it bothered me.”

“Well, yeah. She blackmailed us with an outright fib—she’s a nasty piece of work.”

“No—I mean, yes, that was awful, but that’s not what I’m talking about right now. She said it was obvious that us being together ‘wasn’t an act at all’, didn’t she?”

“Yeah,” Lucy said slowly. “But it clearly was. She’s probably as thick as she is manipulative.”

Lockwood’s gaze flicked up to the ceiling; a subtle wince passed across his face before he spoke. “Was it?”

“What?”

He looked back to her, face utterly sincere. “An act.”

Lucy narrowed her eyes. “I’m not sure I know what you’re getting at, Lockwood.”

Lockwood’s mouth opened and for a second, he appeared on the verge of saying something uninhibited. The kettle clicked, snapping him out of it, and he got to work putting their drinks together. “It was unprofessional. A complete lapse in judgement. I wanted to apologise to you, Lucy, in case it made you uncomfortable.”

“Er… Well, it’s not like there was an alternative. And George was the one who orchestrated it, anyway.”

“That can’t have been our only option,” he insisted. “I shouldn’t have gone along with it. I should have looked for another way for us to deal with the situation.”

“Lockwood, it’s fine. It was fine.” She leaned to the side, putting herself in his line of sight. “You’re fine.”

“Am I?” His usual smile and bravado were gone, leaving nothing but worry etched into his features. “I’m concerned I’m blurring the lines too much in my relationship to you. Yes, I’m your friend, but I’m also your employer. I forget how much power I technically hold over you.” He let the spoon clatter into one of the mugs. “Accidentally using it against you would be my worst nightmare.”

“You haven’t. And even if you did— though you wouldn’t—we both know I wouldn’t let that slide. If you think I can’t stand up for myself and give you a good kick to the backside if you need it, you’re sorely wrong, Lockwood.”

“No, I know. You’re good like that. I just…” He sighed. “I hate how quickly Miss Haine got the wrong impression of us. We were just doing our job—in a slightly unconventional way, yes, but it was for the sake of the case—and she so easily twisted it into something else. What if she thought I was manipulating you, in some way? What if I was, and neither of us realised?”

“Lockwood, you’re being a bit silly.” She took one of the mugs in both hands and soaked up its warmth. “It’s late, you’re tired, and you’re overthinking it.”

He leaned against the counter and stared into his own mug. “You’re probably right.”

“Besides”—she took a sip, winced at how it scalded her tongue, and surprised herself with the words that fell from her mouth—“I never said it made me uncomfortable.”

“You didn’t have to.”

“Stop jumping to conclusions.”

Lockwood’s body stilled, and his gaze flicked to her. “What do you mean?”

She sucked her teeth and decided to throw all caution to the wind. “When George contained the Source, I could’ve let go. I had more than enough space to back away from you. Did I?”

“…No?”

“I held on. I leant into you.”

“You were weary.”

“I enjoyed it,” she said. It was an admission to both Lockwood and herself; part of her wanted to curl up and hide as it dawned on her that she had thoroughly loved being so close to him, and that Haine hadn’t just been annoying, she’d been… competition?

Something clicked, and suddenly Lucy understood Adam.

“You enjoyed it,” Lockwood repeated quietly.

“And hypothetically, if we had to do something like that again, it’d be fine. I’d be fine.”

“On the job, of course.”

The corner of her lip twitched upward. “Of course.”

“And hypothetically,” he spoke slowly, edging away from the counter and closer to her, “if something like that were to happen outside a working environment, how would you feel?”

Her words came out close to a whisper as anticipation flushed her cheeks. “Why don’t you find out?”

“Oh.” Lockwood stopped in front of where she perched on the counter. They were almost at eye level. He held her gaze for a moment before faltering, then spoke with uncertainty: “I don’t know what I’m doing. I’ve never—should we—”

“Me neither,” Lucy said, then pulled him in by the waist to kiss him. He stiffened for a second before melting into her touch; she parted her knees for him to move closer.

Lucy’s grasp softened at Lockwood’s sides when he reached up to cup her face. A small noise escaped her before she leant further into the kiss.

Time seemed to warp—though their lips parted after a few moments, it felt as if a whole hour had passed while they were engrossed in each other. They pressed their foreheads together as their quiet gasps for air filled the otherwise silent kitchen.

Someone cleared their throat by the door.

Lucy and Lockwood’s heads clacked together as they startled, warranting identical hisses of pain as they jerked their heads in the direction of the noise.

George leant against the door frame, clothes rumpled and hair unruly—it was clear he’d fallen straight into bed after coming home.

“Got peckish,” he said, adjusting his crooked glasses. “I see you’ve sorted things out. Took you long enough.”

Lockwood was the first to snap out of the shock. “What?”

“Kipps reckoned it would take another few months, at least,” he said, rummaging through the cupboards. “I had more faith than that.” He poured himself a bowl of cornflakes and drifted back out into the hall. “Goodnight!”

“Goodnight,” they both replied, though it came out sounding like a question.

Lockwood caught her eye, and they fell into a fit of laughter. Her head fell onto his shaking shoulder; the rush of giddiness had her feeling wide awake.

For a brief moment, she was not an agent in a Visitor-infested world, she didn’t have to frequently put her life on the line for work, and she hadn’t lost her best friend because of a system that let her down. Instead, she was a normal teenage girl getting flustered over a teenage boy, giggling into the warm fabric of his shirt and hoping he didn’t notice how red her cheeks had become.

Lockwood brushed her hair away with a gentle swipe of his fingers, then pressed a kiss to her temple. “We really are fantastic actors.”

Lucy burst into laughter all over again.

*****

end note: right before posting this I realised I gave Haine almost the exact same name as Metric’s lead singer?? I swear that wasn’t on purpose lol I love u Emily Haines

[i-am-baechu]

Preview:

ᡣ𐭩 Title: Unread 

ᡣ𐭩 Paring: Class President! Kim Namjoon x Shy! Violinist! Reader 

ᡣ𐭩 Summary: Having a crush is hard especially on someone like Kim Namjoon. At least her letters can tell him how she feels without facing the sad reality. 

ᡣ𐭩 Rating: Explicit (18+) 

ᡣ𐭩 Genre: Fluff, romance, angst, smut, extremely shy reader, heartfelt and crush situation 

ᡣ𐭩 Part of The Legendary Seven

ᡣ𐭩 Playlist: Someday, Somewhere - Jolin Tsai 

“Two of The legendary seven are taken. The world is ending soon. I just know it. That’s why they're moving as fast as they can to be with someone. It’s interesting to see that Kim Taehyung is taken by someone like a fortune teller's daughter. It makes it more interesting that before they became exclusive, Taehyung was actually seeing Jennie. The other heartthrob of our lovely school. I know people can change overnight but this is a scientist's worst nightmare. An unexplained outcome. The new couple has been seen countless times at Boo Seungkwan games and they got together because of his help. His aunt’s party was one of the stepping stones they needed. What really got them together was Taehyung’s grandmother's party. The lovebirds have been together since. I do wonder if she knows about the relationship that Taehyung had with Jennie. I wouldn’t want to be with someone that held secrets from me. Especially when these secrets are about past affections with someone. Until then, Pen.” 

Y/N just like everyone else read the post on the website but unlike everyone, she didn’t digest the gossip in excitement. Everyone always has something to say regardless of status. An opinion is always there. Sometimes it's needed but other times it's unnecessary and cruel. This blog did just that but she’s guilty because every Friday she comes back to read. It wasn’t a good feeling but one must know what's going on. Even if it’s bad.

Y/N glanced through the music window and her eyes landed on Kim Namjoon. The way the sunset highlighted his features could make a painting jealous and the way he smiled could bring in ships on a dark night. She looked away and glanced down at her shoes as she felt her face get warm. She hate to stare and she knew it wasn’t ladylike but even she broke the rules when it was necessary. 

Just then the door opened and she looked up to see who it was. Her face brightened when she saw who it was, “Soo-Young.” 

Park Soo-Young was her older cousin by two years and her only friend in this big school. All her other friends graduated or weren't old enough to enter. Soo-Young always took care of her because of her timid nature. Soo-Young was everything Y/N wasn’t. A person that stands up for what she believes in while Y/N stays quiet and takes the abuse from others. 

Soo-Young glanced at her violin and smiled, “Practicing for the competition?”

Y/N nodded her head and glanced outside. Her eyes landed on Namjoon who was talking to Seokjin, “I made the piece myself.”

“Oh? What’s it about?”

“Unrequited love.” 

[secretobsessionstuff]

Sick Micah at formal event

Inspired by THIS post, and here's a little snapshot of it:

A and B are in an extremely formal situation where they are required to stand for long periods of time.

A has been running a pretty nasty fever since the night before, but they both HAVE to be there (think of a social event that will impact their whole career, so they really have no choice but to go).

----------------------

Sometimes Micah felt sick over the idea of being an adult. The very concept of taxes made him want to puke. And as life would have it, the one night when he was excited about being grown and taking on new responsibilities was the night when he felt like puking for real. This wasn’t the psychosomatic queasiness that came from paying his bills; it was the type of queasiness that came from a bug in his digestive track. 

He'd been up all night with Alexi. His lovely, perfect boyfriend had sat with him on the bathroom floor while he vomited and dry heaved for hours. Now, that same lovely, perfect boyfriend stood with him at the thirtieth anniversary for Phoenix Fire Press. That was the publishing company that was going to publish Micah’s very first novel. This evening was a big deal, not just because it was a milestone for the medium company, but because they were opening their business to new potential shareholders. Micah had been given an invitation to attend the event in hopes that he would invest in his future at the publishing company. 

The one downside was that the talk of owning shares and how that whole process worked came at the end of the evening. First, they had to celebrate the many new authors who had joined them in the past year, Micah included. 

The night dragged on for quite some time. Micah couldn’t say how long because his sense of reality was altered by the heat in his brain. He saw mirages everywhere he looked, like blurry lines of text or the sweet promise of his bed. He must have caught his head from rolling off his shoulders a million times. 

“Oh, good, you’re still conscious,” Alexi said as he came back to Micah, holding glasses of water. “I thought I’d come back and find you on the floor.” 

Micah could not remember what sarcasm even was, therefore, he did not return the jest. “Lexi, how long have we been here?” 

Alexi almost—almost—spilled the water all over himself when he turned his wrist to check his watch. But he caught himself in time, placing the glasses down on a ledge before seeing that they’d been at the event for a little over an hour. He told Micah this who simply groaned. 

“I’m sorry, baby.” Alexi gently rubbed his thumb over Micah’s flushed cheek. His skin was hotter than phoenix fire. “The fever reducers aren’t working, eh?” 

“No,” Micah grumbled as he wrapped his arms around his stomach. None of the meds he took were helping. The nausea hadn’t lessened and neither had he aches in his body. He was just a blob of pain and useless medication that floated thickly through his bloodstream. 

They’d gotten to the event late (on account of Micah needing to retch emptily on the side of the road), meaning there was only standing room available. All the tables had been taken. It seemed the Press hadn’t bet on this many people showing up. But they were a reputable company that would only go up; it was no wonder that many people were interested in owning shares. Micah had been ecstatic about the idea of investing in something that he was passionate about. He loved the publishers, and editors, and marketing team at Phoenix Fire Press. He wanted to grow with them. He wanted to recreate himself with this opportunity. This was an adult opportunity that he was ready to take on. 

But all he wanted was to curl up in his bed and cry. He didn’t feel very adult in that moment, with his aching tummy. 

He shifted his weight from one foot to the next, trying to remain upright and sooth the aches from standing so long. The balance needed to do this was not there, and twice and had to catch himself before he fell. His vision darkened at the edges with each attempt. Micah put his hand over his eyes and moaned. 

“Micah, you’re shaking,” Alexi whispered from behind him. 

“I can’t do this any longer.” His voice wobbled with emotion. 

Suddenly Micah felt Alexi’s hands on his waist. He let himself be pulled back against his boyfriend’s chest. It was strong and secure; he could so easily let go of the tension in his shoulder if he…could…just…

“It’s okay. Lean on me,” Alexi whispered in his ear. His breath was warm on Micah’s neck. The poor sick boy shivered despite the heat that Alexi felt radiating off his back. He swore he could see the air make lazy waves around them. 

Micah didn’t need to be told twice. He dropped his shoulders, let his head fall back against Alexi’s chest just under his chin, and allowed himself to be enveloped in his boyfriend’s embrace. Some tension sloughed off his muscles. His eye closed immediately, and the sound of the event became a distant white noise.

But before he gave in entirely, he craned his neck to get Alexi’s attention. A kiss on his temple let him know that he had it. “Give me a nudge when they start talking about the shareholders.” 

“I will.” Alexi’s lips fluttered softly over his temple. “Just relax. I’ve got you.” 

Alexi was pleased with the heavy weight that settled in his arms. It meant that his boyfriend got a small rest, even if it wasn’t of the best quality. He wouldn’t feel much better until he could lie down for real, close his eyes, and forget about the world. But this was a start. 

While Micah drooped, his fever rose. It burned in his face, turning his cheeks into red roses. Little blooms of heat sprouted beneath his eyes. Alexi worried that Micah would burn up into ashes, and that he wouldn’t rise again. He’d been so sick all last night and throughout the day. He was surprised that Micah had enough fluid left in his body to turn his eyes glassy, what with all the sweating and vomiting and diarrhea. This bug was testing him, but he knew that Micah would pull through. 

But just then, Micah didn’t have the energy to keep pushing. Alexi could feel his boyfriend slipping in and out of consciousness. He shifted and repositioned himself so that he could keep Micah from slouching or crumpling to the floor. 

They went on like this for another twenty minutes, until the MC announced that the company was moving into a new stage. Interested parties were encouraged to listen and consider becoming new shareholders. The press had received three impressive grants which allowed for development and expansion. They wanted all their clients and peers to consider taking a chance on the business. Together they would grow exponentially over the next thirty years. There was much talk about rebirth and protentional and fiery passion. Of course, a bunch of literarily nerds would lean heavily into the metaphor. 

Speaking of leaning heavily, Alexi nudged his boyfriend awake. “Honey, this is it. We’re almost done.” 

“Is it time?” 

“It is.” 

Alexi helped Micah to stand up straight on his own. They stood now face to face. Micah’s face was sweaty and flushed, but also ready to wear a mask of health. Micah blinked hard, rolled his shoulder to wake up his sore muscles, and kept his head high. Alexi only saw the smallest knit in his eyebrow because he knew of the many emotions that ran through his boyfriend’s mind. 

“Micah, I know you’re nervous about the future, but I also know this is right. You’re going to grow as a writer and as member of this team. It’s scary starting something new, but I’ll be with you for the whole thing.”

Micah sighed and closed his eyes. “Thank you for supporting my decisions. It feels easier with you here.”

Alexi kissed him on the nose. “Go on. I’ll be here when you get back, unless of course you want me to come?” 

“No, I want to start this on my own. I’ll tell you all about it later.” 

“Sure.” Alexi had a pretty good hunch that later meant much later. 

And his hunch turned out to be right, because his boyfriend returned nearly an hour later, frazzled by the social interaction and exhausted from the ache in his bones. He shuffled his feet on the floor, looking like a zombie who had no business being in a nice suit at a fancy meeting. 

Well, the meeting was over, and judging by Micah’s expression of relief, it went as well as it could have. Things were in motion now and their shared financial future was tied to a company that Micah was proud to work with. 

The light in the halls dimmed and brightened in time with the beating of Micah’s sluggish heartbeat. As he walked back to his boyfriend, happy about leaving soon, the beating in his chest got stronger and faster. He felt sweat prickle the back of his neck and nausea bubble in his stomach. As soon as he was within arm’s reach of his boyfriend, he let the veneer of health crack and slip from his face, a grimace of pain and discomfort contorting his features.

Alexi hugged Micah to his chest. “Oh, baby, you’re so sick. Can you make it to the car?” 

Micah shook his head and mumbled into Alexi’s neck. “I’m gonna throw up.” 

With the gurgling growing louder in Micah’s tummy, he felt himself being pulled to the washroom. As expected at the end of a big event, the washrooms were flooded with people milling around. Micah moaned and covered his mouth with his hand. 

“Come on, this way,” Alexi said quickly, pulling his boyfriend along.

They hoped over a thick velvet rope that was meant to block guests from going to the second floor. Screw the fancy obnoxious rope with its condescending sign; Alexi wasn’t about to let Micah embarrass himself in front of the people he just attached his future to. 

The second floor was closer to heaven than any skyrise because it was peacefully quiet and the washroom was unlocked, Halleluiah! Without another soul around, Micah was able to get sick in peace. He dropped to his knees in front of the toilet and retched up bile and blue Gatorade. It was all he’d been able to force down his throat before the start of the event. The yellow and blue fluids coming up from his stomach made for an odd sight in the toilet, not that Micah had his eyes open to appreciate the science of colour. 

“There you go, baby.” Alexi rubbed his boyfriend’s burning hot back. “You did so well tonight.” 

“Did I miss it?” Micah slurred out with saliva dripping from his lips. 

“Miss what?” 

“The share thingy.” A yes, the most adult sentence Micah had said the entire night. “It’s gonna start soon I think.” 

“No, no love. You didn’t miss anything. Everything is okay.” Alexi ran his hands worriedly over the sweat stains that dripped down Micah’s spine. Even through the blazer, his fever was raging. “You’ve got to take this off, Micah. Your temperature is soaring.” 

“What if someone comes in?” Micah said after spitting a glob of spit into the toilet. 

“No one will. I’ll watch the door, if that’ll make you feel better,” Alexi promised, already slipping Micah’s arm out of his sleeve. He got the blazer off and started to unbutton his dress shirt before Micah put his hands over his. “What is it, babe? I’ve got to bring your fever down.” 

“Your hands are cold.” Micah shivered. “I’m freezing.” 

“I know.” He kissed the side of Micah’s fiery head. “It’s just your fever playing tricks. Trust me. I’m going to get you through this.” 

Micah was too tired to put up a fight. He let Alexi undress him from the waist up. He shed his layers like feathers that burned in a fire. Though he was sick and miserable now, tomorrow he would rise from his sleep, ready to start a new day as a new man, or at least a marginally healthier man. In any case, the future was bright and waiting.