#it was so easy to get into seventeen bc i already knew half of them thru monsta x being friends with them (and theyre also pretty popular)

[babieken]

hiiii friends!!!!!☺️❣️ it's me!!! the blog formerly known as Hyunubear!

I thought I should re-introduce myself (and pretend im normal sldjfld) since im getting into a new fandom! 🙄👉🏻👈🏻

I'm Niki, you local kpop hag (28), sometimes I make gifs but mostly i shitpost. I think I really only know 6 groups in totall but I mainly post about vixx, monsta x, and now ✨️seventeen✨️ (who stole my heart on a random friday).

I really wanna make carat friends and moots ;;;;;; my ask box is always open and i love chatting abt anything and everything!!!

[helloalycia]

𝐉𝐔𝐒𝐓 𝐀𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐀𝐃𝐌𝐈𝐑𝐄𝐑 [𝐎𝐍𝐄] // 𝐋𝐔𝐂𝐘 𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐘 𝐁𝐀𝐈𝐑𝐃

summary: when you accidentally catch Lucy Gray upset, learning that her boyfriend has cheated on her, you're left to make sure she's okay, and thus a proper friendship forms.

warning/s: mentions of cheating.

author's note: here’s the first part of three for a lucy gray imagine i wrote, as i watched the new hunger games last week and now im suddenly 14 again lol. Also working on a katniss one bc why not, so yeah, hope someone likes it 😂

two / three / masterlist / wattpad

"You look very pretty, Y/N," my little sister, Y/S/N, said with a smile as I pulled my bag across my shoulders.

I smiled down at her, heart warming at the way she looked up at me. She was only ten years old, but to be someone she looked up to was a responsibility I took seriously, so when she was the one to compliment me rather than the other way around, it was sweet.

"Thanks, Y/S/N," I said, squeezing her shoulder gently. "I appreciate that. You think the guests will like it?"

"They'd be silly not to," she told me with confidence, and it made me chuckle.

I worked as a waitress at the Hob in town, usually being able to wear whatever I wanted and opting for something practical over pretty, but today it had been reserved for the reception of some peacekeeper's wedding. Meaning, I had to be on my best behaviour and wear the nicest thing I owned – a sundress in the back of my closet that I rarely touched.

"Come here," I said to Y/S/N, opening my arms, to which she hugged my waist and I squeezed her tight. "I've gotta go now, but I'll be back by dinner. Let mum and dad know, yeah?"

She nodded and I kissed the top of her head before heading out and walking through town to get to the Hob. It was the middle of summer, so I was already building a sweat by the time I arrived, but thankfully my favourite colleague and bartender, Miles, offered me some iced water when he saw me. The only reason we had ice was because it was a peacekeeper's wedding and they wanted the best for their guests, otherwise it would have been lukewarm as usual.

The reception was yet to start, so I spent the next hour and a half cleaning up the place as Miles got the food and drinks ready. Once all the tables were cleaned and set up, guests began to make their way in, and the act of the day, the Covey, soon arrived and made their way onstage to prepare.

The Covey were the only musical geniuses in the district, the best source of entertainment for those who wanted a party to remember. All six of them were extremely talented musicians, each with their own charm. And when they weren't working at the Hob, performing, they were hired to work birthday parties or weddings, such as today.

As I was with Miles, we were essentially colleagues and it was easy to chat to the joyous bunch of them, especially when we shared a dinner break together briefly between their performances whenever I was on shift. Though, admittedly, I'd harboured a small crush on their lead singer, Lucy Gray Baird, for a while now. It wasn't anything major, but it was there.

It began when I saw them performing once a few years ago, before I'd landed a job here as a waitress and was just visiting for lunch. Back then, it was a mere futile crush on a pretty girl I saw onstage. And then as I got older, now seventeen, and got this job, it didn't go away, and I soon realised I was just one of the many admirers of Lucy Gray, nobody special.

Of course, that didn't mean I wasn't an absolute nervous wreck whenever she paid me any attention or spoke to me. She wasn't intentionally flirty, it was just her personality (and she was also in a relationship with her boyfriend, Billy Taupe Clade), but it left me flustered every time.

It was a crush I knew I'd eventually get over. Some day. At some point. Eventually.

But for now, I was stuck, so I learnt to ignore it whenever I could. Of course, at times it was impossible, such as when they were performing some of their songs at the wedding reception today and I happened to glance their way, meeting her eyes for a split second. She was mid-singing, winking playfully at me before working the crowd as usual, and I knew it was part of the performance, yet I still had to breathe out quickly and remember that I was serving a drink.

The reception was easy to work, arguably easier than a regular night at the Hob because everybody was sober and more collected due to it being a wedding reception and not a night out. I was serving food and drinks, replenishing the buffet, cleaning tables, and it wasn't so bad, plus I was getting paid double just to do it.

Halfway through the event, I was standing at the bar, waiting for Miles to make up a tray of drinks, when I felt someone approach me from the left. I was surprised to see Lucy Gray herself, no doubt taking a breather as her family performed onstage meanwhile.

"Don't you look mighty fine this afternoon," she said with a playful smile, looking me up and down as she leaned atop the bar.

I felt my cheeks growing warm as I offered a small smile. "Thanks, Lucy Gray, so do you."

"Why thank you," she answered, smile permanent on her lips as she continued. "You should wear dresses more often. They suit you, darlin'."

I tried not to laugh. "Thanks, but pants are much easier to work in on a busy night. This is a rarity."

Her eyes glimmered with amusement before she glanced out at the stage and the lively crowd dancing along to the music.

"You guys have been doing great today," I complimented, before getting startled by her intense stare. "You– your voice– your–"

She began to laugh at my awkwardness. "I get it. Thank you, that's very sweet of you to say. The Covey are on their best behaviour today." She leaned a little closer, lowering her voice and adding, "After all, if we do good, we get booked again which means more money."

I nodded in agreement. "Cheers to that."

She smiled widely before leaning back again, and I glanced over at Miles to see he was still finishing up with the tray of drinks.

"So, how's your family doin'?" she asked, leaning her chin in the palm of her hand.

"My family?" I asked, tilting my head.

"You have a sister, right? And parents?"

I was surprised she knew to be honest, considering I'd never spoken about them before in the few conversations we'd shared. We usually just spoke about work on our breaks.

"Oh, yeah," I said with a nod. "They're good. Y/S/N is probably playing with her friends right about now. My mum's sewing, no doubt, and my dad will be in the mines. A typical day in the Y/L/N household."

She cracked a smile, before scrunching up her nose. "Your little sister is adorable. She always has the biggest smile on her face whenever I see her around. Always talkin' to everyone, it's sweet. And Maude Ivory always gets a kick out of playin' with her in the park."

I began to smile at her compliments – it was always lovely hearing great things about Y/S/N. "Yeah, she's always been the happy, outgoing Y/L/N and I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Hey, the happy, quiet Y/L/N isn't so bad either," she corrected, nudging me in the arm slightly, and the warmth in my cheeks returned as I avoided her stare.

Laughing quietly, she straightened up. "I should head back to the stage. Just wanted to check if you're gonna have your lunch break with us soon? Out back?"

I nodded, recovering from my flustered state. "Sounds like a plan."

"Great!" she exclaimed with a grin. "See you then, cutie."

I continued working and the Covey performed three more songs before we were all allowed to have a quick lunch break. It was timed perfectly for when the bride, groom and guests would make their speeches and none of us were needed.

It was hard not to drool as I made up a quick plate from the food offered, courtesy of the bride and groom. Grilled deer, creamy mashed potatoes, fresh vegetables and gravy were a luxury, a rarity, and I was adamant on savouring every last bit.

Once I joined the others outside, they were all sat in a circle on some crates they'd pulled out, already digging into their dinners. As they mumbled about how great the food was between bites, Barb Azure, their signature bass player, waved me over where she'd saved me a seat between her and Maude Ivory, the youngest of the bunch.

I dug right in with my fork, savouring the flavours and making the most of a good thing whilst I had it.

"Y'know, I heard one of the bride's cousins sayin' she was interested in hiring us for her wedding next month," Tam Amber, their resident mandolin player, commented with a nod. "This gig seems to be paying for itself already."

"Let's not get our hopes up just yet," Barb Azure warned. "We don't know what'll happen."

"Oh, I'm sure you'll get another gig," I assured her, before glancing out at them all. "They'd be crazy not to see what you guys can do. Plus, I've been throwing in a good word with the guests, so it's kind of like really subtle brainwashing."

This earned a few laughs from them and Barb Azure nudged my side playfully.

"How's your job goin' today anyway, Y/N?" she asked considerately, and they all waited for an answer.

"Not too bad," I said with a shrug. "The folk here are a little easier to serve compared to an average night at the Hob. A little more–”

"Civilised?" offered Clerk Carmine, their fiddle player.

I tried not to laugh as I amended, "I was gonna say sober, but sure." They chuckled as I stabbed a piece of carrot with my fork and continued. "It's different, but a job's a job."

"Amen to that," Lucy Gray agreed, and everyone repeated after her lightheartedly.

"So, what are you all doing after this is over?" I asked, before sipping my water.

"Well, Lucy Gray over here is probably gonna go straight over to her beau," Barb Azure teased with a knowing smirk. "Been talkin' all day about how she misses him."

Maude Ivory began making kissing noises, eliciting laughter from everyone else, and I cracked a small smile at how embarrassed Lucy Gray became. Her cheeks were dusting pink as she avoided looking at anyone.

"Billy Taupe, right?" I asked. "Isn't he supposed to be performing with you today?"

"Yeah, he's not been feeling well these past few days," she explained, a shy smile on her lips as she looked at the ground. "Just wanna make sure he's alright."

I nodded, looking down at my plate. "That's sweet. I'm sure he's looking forward to it."

"Are you with anyone, Y/N?" Maude Ivory asked from beside me, smiling in a way that reminded me of Y/S/N.

"I am not," I answered, before smiling a little. "Just haven't found someone I'm interested in is all."

"And what are you interested in?" Lucy Gray asked, earning my attention.

She was watching me from across the huddle, eyes glowing with intrigue and a curious smile on her lips. To say I was suddenly nervous was an understatement, and I let out an awkward laugh as I looked away from her, unable to think straight all of a sudden.

"I, erm, I don't know," I tried to find words. "Someone who's funny, caring, trustworthy... it sounds obvious, the basics, but you'd be surprised how many people aren't those things."

She chuckled in response. "I get that... well, I hope you find that, darlin'. You've got all the time in the world."

I smiled a little, unsure what else to say, and then Tam Amber started talking about what song they could perform next, and the attention was thankfully no longer on me.

It wasn't long after lunch when the event finally ended and the guests began to file out. After saying my goodbyes to the Covey, who must have been exhausted after all their performances, I was left with Miles to clean up the place before we closed. He was sorting through stock in the back as I was finishing the brushing up out front.

I was lost in thought about nothing in particular when I heard someone's footsteps stomping on the wooden floorboards by the door, and when I looked up, I was surprised to see Lucy Gray had returned. When she spotted me too, she stopped abruptly, startled by my presence. It wasn't until she rushed to wipe her cheeks did I realise she had red, teary eyes and a frown on her lips.

"Oh–," she stopped, before clearing her throat, "you're still here."

Unsure what to think or do, I looked around. "Er, yeah, I'm just finishing up." After a moment, I knew I needed to check in. "Are you– what hap–"

"Sorry," she cut me off, avoiding my gaze. "I just forgot my guitar."

We both looked to the stage, where her guitar was peeking out from between the curtains. I hadn't noticed it before.

Not saying another word, she made a beeline for her instrument, and I hesitated, gripping the brush's handle. She was clearly upset about something, but I didn't know her well enough to ask.

Then, as I saw her grab her guitar and sniffle quietly, I knew I couldn't just leave her to it, not without a guilty conscious anyway.

"Lucy Gray, is everything alright?" I called to her, trying to dial down my concern for her sake.

She sucked up a breath before turning around, forcing a smile on her face. "Yes, 'course it is."

I frowned, putting the brush to the side before approaching the stage. "You're upset, Lucy Gray. Did someone do something?"

She attempted a laugh to ease the tension, but it only came out halfhearted and broken, and then another tear rolled down her cheek and my concern was skyrocketing because I'd never seen her like this before.

"You don't have to tell me," I added, "but you're worrying me. This isn't like you."

She wiped her tears with the back of her hand, collecting herself, and I wondered what could have possibly happened in the last half an hour between when she left and now. Why was she so upset when she'd walked out of here grinning?

"Billy Taupe wasn't sick," she suddenly said, and it took me a second to process.

"What?"

Was it something worse? Was he dying? Was he in an accident?

"He was cheatin' on me with Mayfair," she said bitterly.

I furrowed my brows, trying to understand. "The mayor's daughter? What?"

She nodded weakly before moving forward to sit on the edge of the stage, shoulders hunched. I blinked, realisation setting in, and wondered how on earth Billy Taupe could do such a thing.

"I caught them kissin' by the market," she said, and I took a seat beside her hesitantly as she continued. "He saw me, and so did she, and then she was smirkin', that no good, dirty–" She stopped herself, though her jaw was clenched. "He tried to explain, but I didn't wanna hear it." She paused, swallowing hard. "I realised I left my guitar here and came back for it."

I was in disbelief, both from the fact that Billy Taupe lied to his family, but also that he cheated on Lucy Gray in the first place. Did he know how lucky he was to have her?

"I'm so sorry you had to witness that," I said, still baffled. "That he did that. You– you don't deserve that at all, Lucy Gray."

She only sighed deeply in response, leaning on her knees and putting her head in her hands with exhaustion. Instinctively, I began to rub circles on her back, hoping it would provide some comfort.

"I wish I could do something," I said quietly, not wanting to upset her anymore than she already was. "I'm so sorry."

And like a switch had been flicked, she began to straighten up, making me drop my hand, and wiped her tears away shyly.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be such a mess," she felt the need to apologise, but I shook my head.

"Don't," I assured her, watching her profile as she avoided my eyes. "Really. You don't need to– I'm sorry. I– I don't know what to do or say, I know it's all still fresh. But I'm here for you."

Taking a risk, I wrapped an arm around her shoulder, with the intention of giving her a side hug, but then she pulled me closer, hugging me properly. Knowing she needed it and only wanting to put her at ease, I squeezed her gently, letting her know I was there. It was horrible not being able to do much more.

After a moment, she began to pull back slightly and I did too, searching her expression for a hint to how she was feeling. Her brown, glassy eyes met mine, and for the first time since I'd known her, they were anything but playful and teasing. I was touched she was letting me see this side of her, a side not many were privy too, but I wished it wasn't under these circumstances.

"Thank you for that," she said gratefully.

"No worries," I said, sensing she felt a little better, but not completely. "I meant what I said, about being here for you. And I don't really want to leave you alone like this. Do you want me to walk you back home?"

She smiled guiltily, shaking her head. "I can't ask that of you, Y/N."

"It's okay, I want to," I said, before standing up and straightening my dress. "Just give me two minutes to put the brush away and say bye to Miles."

A little relieved, she nodded, and I did just that. With everything going on with her, it was as if the usual nervous, awkward Y/N that always came out when I was around her had disappeared. Now, I just wanted her to be okay.

After saying my farewell to Miles, I grabbed my bag and returned to the front, surprised to still see Lucy Gray sat waiting for me. I was certain she'd have left, using my two minutes as opportunity.

"You ready?" I asked, before noticing her guitar in hand and offering to take it. "Here, I'll get that for you."

"Oh, no, you don't need to–"

"Hey, I don't mind, really," I assured with a smile before taking the handle of the case from her.

She exhaled softly, a small smile tugging at her lips as she nodded, before we left the Hob.

The sun was setting in the sky as we walked through town and to the woods, past the Seam where she and the rest of the Covey lived. Their home wasn't far from my own place, so I didn't mind the trip. It was quiet between us as we walked, the sound of our feet crunching on the gravel the only thing to be heard.

I was worried about her, but I knew she probably appreciated the quiet, so I didn't speak until she did.

"The others don't know yet," she said, voice cracking, as if feeling the need to explain. "I'm gonna tell them."

"I won't say a word," I promised, glancing over at her.

She was fixated on the ground. "Everybody will find out anyway, but yeah."

"They won't find out from me," I said with a nod, and she glanced at me gratefully before staring ahead.

The remainder of the walk was a peaceful quiet, and then we finally reached her home, a small shack that all six of them lived in together. Though, I did wonder how that would change now that Billy Taupe had basically exiled himself.

It wasn't my concern though, so when we stopped outside her front garden, I gave her back her guitar case.

"Thanks again, Y/N," she said appreciatively.

"I'll be here if you ever wanna talk about it, or anything," I told her gently. "I know we aren't super close, but I'll be here."

She smiled a little, but it didn't reach her eyes. "I appreciate that."

I tried not to stare at her too long, but my gaze lingered a little longer than it should have. I couldn't help it – I'd never seen her like this, and it wasn't fair in the slightest.

"Lucy Gray?" I said before she could leave.

"Yeah?"

I paused, wondering whether it was appropriate to say. "You deserved better than him anyway. He was kind of punching with you."

She let out a small laugh, momentarily free of any hurt he'd caused her, and it made the warmth in my chest blossom intensely. I smiled at her once more before leaving her to it, walking back home with a fuzzy feeling inside of me.

It didn't take long for gossip and rumours to spread around the district about Lucy Gray, Billy Taupe and Mayfair Lipp, at least amongst everyone in our age group anyway. By the end of the week, everybody knew about the cheating and Billy Taupe's new relationship.

It couldn't have been easy for Lucy Gray, and I wasn't sure how she'd been doing as I didn't see her until that following weekend at the Hob, but I'd been thinking of her the whole week. When she rocked up with her family, excluding Billy Taupe who I assumed was no longer part of their group anymore, she looked a little better. I wasn't sure how much of it was a facade though, a front for the audience and the gossips.

I was working that evening, serving as usual, but I'd tune in to some of their songs and noticed a few new ones had made the list, namely about Billy Taupe and what he'd done. At least Lucy Gray had channeled her anger into something productive.

Once again, I was at the bar giving Miles an order when Lucy Gray found me on her quick break.

"Hey," she greeted, earning my attention, and I couldn't help but smile.

"Hey," I replied. "You're looking good." And then when I realised how forward I sounded, I tried to backtrack, my nerves returning the longer she watched me with her red-painted lips, upturned into a playful smile. "I mean, happy good. Like emotionally, and not upset, but–"

"I get it," she said, unable to stop her amusement from showing. "And thanks. I'm feeling a little better. Thanks again for bein' there."

Relaxing a little, I nodded, glad to hear it. "Anytime."

She quirked a brow as she asked, "So, what did you think of the new songs?"

I smiled. "They were great, Lucy Gray. Just when I thought you couldn't outdo yourself with your lyrics, you prove me wrong."

At this, her eyes lit up. "Gosh, you mean that?"

"Of course," I said like it was obvious, because it was. "Everyone here does. Sorry, did you not hear the applause?"

She was suppressing her smile, unusually embarassed as she looked the other way for a moment, and I couldn't help but smile at how cute she looked. It didn't last long though, as her eyes caught something behind me, causing her smile to fade away.

Confused, I glanced over my shoulder to see what she was looking at, only to spot none other than Billy Taupe and Mayfair herself walking in. They didn't notice at first, but then Mayfair met Lucy Gray's stare and proceeded to roll her eyes before tugging Billy Taupe by the arm.

"Just ignore them," I said to Lucy Gray, eyes softening at the flash of hurt crossing her expression.

She clenched her jaw slightly, looking down. "Easier said than done. He's headin' this way."

I furrowed my brows, turning to see, and he approached us alone, Mayfair somewhere ahead and not looking the slightest bit happy that Billy Taupe was talking to his ex.

Lucy Gray kept her eyes locked on the ground as Billy Taupe cleared his throat, merely glancing at me before nodding to her hopefully.

"Lucy Gray, you're lookin' real stunnin' tonight," he tried his luck.

My gaze flickered to her, curious, but she kept her lips shut, saying nothing.

"Really?" he pressed, growing slightly annoyed. "You're gon' stay quiet?"

She looked like she wanted to be anywhere but here, as uncomfortable as I'd ever seen her, but Billy Taupe didn't care in the slightest.

"C'mon, you can't ignore me forever," he tried again. "I only wanna explain."

Again, she was quiet, and before he could say another word, I decided to give him a suggestion. I usually wouldn't get involved, but Lucy Gray was not comfortable at all and I wasn't just going to watch as he harassed her.

"Maybe you should give it a break tonight," I said as politely as I could to him. "She's clearly not in the mood."

Aside from the annoyed glance he sent my way, it was as if he hadn't acknowledged me at all, instead resorting to calling her name again.

"Billy Taupe," I tried to get his attention, getting a little annoyed myself now.

"Lucy Gray, c'mon," he was continuing to plead, and she was shrinking back the closer he got, only wishing he'd go away.

He suddenly touched her arm, an attempt to get her to look at him, but she snatched it back just as quick.

"Billy Taupe," I repeated with a firm voice, fixing him with a glare, and when he tried to grab her again, I stepped between them, pushing him back slightly. Just enough to earn his attention, and boy, was he unhappy with that.

"Are you deaf?" I asked him, raising an eyebrow.

He sneered at me. "I ain't never seen you around before."

"So, blind, too," I added, making his fists clench. "I'd drop this unless you want to be escorted out."

He tried not to laugh. "And who'll be doing the escorting?"

I raised an eyebrow, before glancing over at Miles behind the bar, who had witnessed the commotion unfold. One hard stare from him was enough to have Billy Taupe straightening up nervously. Mayfair soon appeared from behind him and tugged him away, but not before glaring at Lucy Gray and I.

A hand rested on my arm and I turned around to see Lucy Gray watching me with a knowing look. "Thanks, but you shouldn't have done that. Mayfair already hates me, there's no point in adding you to her list too."

"It doesn't matter. I can't just let someone be a bully," I told her, before glancing over at the retreating figures of Billy Taupe and Mayfair.

Lucy Gray snickered quietly, making me look back to her. "You're cute," she decided, "but stupid."

I wasn't sure what to think of that, nor how to react, but she continued speaking before I could think about it for much longer.

"I should head back onstage now, but see you on break?"

"Sure," I agreed, and she flashed me a smile before returning to the stage.

I watched her go, knowing I was getting too involved and it was definitely going to be a mistake, but I couldn't help it. Even if it wasn't Lucy Gray, I'd still do what I could, unable to stand aside as someone was being mistreated. It was only right. Though, I suppose, it being Lucy Gray also added to my worry a little more.

"She's right y'know," Miles suddenly said, pulling me from thought. He was sliding over a tray of drinks towards me as he continued, "You shouldn't get in Mayfair's bad books. She's got connections."

I sighed, taking the tray. "I know, I know. I won't now, swear."

He suppressed the urge to laugh. "You're in deep, my dear. It's written all over your face."

I didn't even need to ask what he was talking about, and it made my face heat up with embarrassment. Was it that obvious?

The rest of the evening played out and neither Billy Taupe nor Mayfair paid Lucy Gray or the rest of the Covey any mind, thankfully. I wish I could've said the same for myself. Clearly they weren't very fond of me, and it showed by the glares they'd send my way whenever I happened to be serving food or drinks in their vicinity.

I was delivering another tray of drinks to a table near them when Billy Taupe decided it would be funny to 'accidentally' bump into me, knocking the drinks all over and, subsequently, the glasses to the floor in a shatter that was barely heard above the music and audience.

"My bad," he said between stifled laughter, and Mayfair joined in with the laughing, making me roll my eyes. They weren't worth it.

I bent down to pick up the bigger pieces of glass and put them on the tray, knowing I'd need to brush the rest up as soon as possible before someone hurt themselves.

"Hey, what's going on here?" I heard Miles' voice from behind me, and I looked up to see him kneeling beside me. "You alright Y/N?"

"Just peachy," I replied with a forced smile.

"Here, give me that," he said, already taking the tray from my hands. "You go get cleaned up outside."

"You sure? I don't mind–"

"Just go," he said, giving me a look. "Please."

I sighed, nodding gratefully, before getting up and making my way to the back. Grabbing a rag from behind the bar, I went outside and let my shoulders drop tiredly, appreciating the fresh evening air. As I was dabbing the drinks from my shirt, trying my best to get rid of the dampness if not the stain, I knew it was pointless. I still smelt of booze and was inherently sticky.

Letting out another sigh, I leaned back against the wall and took a moment. Okay, so maybe confronting Billy Taupe and his new hotshot girlfriend wasn't ideal, but I couldn't just stand by and let him harass someone. This was a mild inconvenience at most, though terribly gross.

The door behind the Hob opened and I glanced over, expecting Miles, but straightened up when I realised it was Lucy Gray. I was certain she was performing only a moment ago.

"There you are," she spoke before I could open my mouth, and let the door close behind her as she approached me. Her eyes lowered to my shirt with a frown. "I saw what happened from the stage, but had to finish my song. I'm so sorry, Y/N, I never wanted you to get involved. He can be so petty and–"

"You don't need to apologise for him, for either of them," I said calmly. "They are the way they are. It's just annoying, I suppose."

She exhaled softly, before grabbing the rag from my hand and attempting to finish the job of drying my shirt.

"You need to stay away from them," she spoke in a warning tone, eyes flickering between her job at hand and my face, making me forget how to breathe for a moment. "I appreciate your help, that you care, but it ain't worth it. Mayfair has powerful connections and sway with some nasty people. You don't need to be in her sights, not for anyone. Especially not for me."

"I'm sorry," I said quietly, making her smile as she met my eyes.

"You don't need to be sorry, just be cautious," she said, expression softening.

It felt strange, her looking out for me when she was the one who had to see her cheating ex again. I stopped her from cleaning me up, taking the rag from her hand, and she looked at me expectantly.

"How are you?" I asked considerately. "With him here?"

"It's hard," she admitted with a nod, "but I got the Covey by my side. I got you."

I began to smile and confirmed, "Right."

She mirrored my smile, before asking, "Are you okay?"

I glanced down at my maroon-coloured shirt, now stained brown, and scrunched up my face. "Bit damp. Bit sticky. But I'll live."

She chuckled. "I think Tam Amber has a spare shirt. He won't mind."

Relieved, I said, "That would be super helpful actually."

She showed me to the place where the Covey hung out between shows, a large wooden shed, though more of a garage for cars nobody owned anymore, opposite the back door of the Hob. The garage doors were chained shut, but a back door was wedged open with a cinder block, and that's where Lucy Gray led me.

I stood to the side as she went searching for the shirt, my eyes flickering around with intrigue. I'd never actually been inside here, only occasionally heard the Covey tuning their instruments before a set or chatting away after one. It was spacious, enough of their belongings scattered around for them to claim the place, though really nobody owned it.

"And here we are," Lucy Gray said, earning my attention. She was holding out a large dusty brown button-up shirt my way. "Might be a little big, but it'll do the job."

I accepted it gratefully, offering a nod. "Thanks, Lucy Gray."

"You can change in here, nobody comes in," she assured me, before flashing me a smile and leaving.

So, I did just that. After replacing my shirt, I looked in the slightly-cracked standing mirror in the corner and tried to make myself look a little more presentable. The shirt was big, no doubt, so I was forced to tuck it into my trousers, though it was apparent to anyone with eyes that it wasn't mine. I rolled up the sleeves and was grateful for it anyway, no longer feeling as sticky or smelly as I did before.

I was trying to fix my collars, which were crumpling under themselves, as I left the shed, only to find Lucy Gray waiting outside for me.

"You're still here," I said with confusion, pausing.

"Hey, you look great!" she said with a bright smile, approaching me.

"You should be performing–"

She waved her hand dismissively, before helping herself to my collars, already attempting to fix them. "They can survive without me for a set. But you look good. Just gonna fix this up."

"Thanks," I managed to get out, feeling a heat crawl up my neck whenever her fingers brushed my skin. I looked anywhere but at her, hating how close she was stood, and said, "You sure Tam Amber won't mind?"

"I'm sure," she promised, before flattening my shirt and stepping back, tilting her head adorably. "All done. C'mon, we should get back to work."

I nodded, and the two of us returned to the Hob. She gave me a final smile before returning to the stage, and I was about to get back to work when I caught Billy Taupe's obnoxious glare from across the room, his eyes flickering between Lucy Gray and I. Ignoring him, I picked up where I left off and began to take some more orders.

[your-turn-to-role]

a thing I'm thinking about rn: teenage bren would be unrecognisable to the people who know caleb now, but how do astrid and eodwulf see caleb compared to bren? bc i'm imagining it's the same way the nein keep seeing molly in lucien. This new guy is so different from the one they knew but he has his face, his voice, will sometimes say something in a certain way and it's like their old friend is back with them for a moment. do astrid and wulf want to get bren back the same way we want molly back?

right?? this keeps crossing my mind too

i don't think it's quite the same way as molly, but it's definitely got to be jarring

bc like... last time they properly knew bren, they were 17-18

and now they're 34

that's half of your life

i mean fuck, i'm 23, i can think back to people i last knew when i was 12. i've changed in immeasurable ways, i don't know if i'd even be recognisable as the same person

but those people i knew as a young child, they're always gonna exist in that weird kind of stasis to me, i still see them as my age because they've always been my age but i'm not actually imagining them at 23, because i don't know them at 23, it's a 23 year old 12 year old, if that makes sense

and even more so for astrid and wulf bc like... even though i don't know how those friends have grown, i can at least assume that they have, that they've changed in all the ways i have in that time

but bren? bren was catatonic for 11 years

from 17 to 28, astrid and wulf were growing and developing as people, maybe growing in the wrong direction but they were changing, as anyone does between the ages of 17 and 28 (which is, quite a lot). and all that time bren literally was stuck in that stasis. i mean that's part of what makes this situation so hard for caleb to grasp is... it's essentially been 5-6 years for him, since that night. for astrid? it's been seventeen.

relatively fresh memories for him are to her ancient history, and that's gotta be really hard to reconcile when you're so used to her being your age

and the same vice versa really, except astrid and wulf already had so much time to come to terms with the fact that bren was essentially gone, even if he recovered, and they hoped he would, that permanently pushed him out of lockstep with the other two. what they had can't ever come back. in an ideal world, he recovers and they build something new, but the way that trio originally functioned cannot function again, because two of the members have 11 more years of growth than the third

and they know that, and they've gotten used to that. but then? then bren's just gone

he must have recovered somehow, after all this time, and he didn't go to you, he just left, and no one has any idea where. he stole an anti-scrying amulet, he doesn't want to be found. and for five years, they have no idea what happened. maybe he died. maybe he got away and he's living some new life somewhere. maybe he's angry and plotting to take you all down. trent wants him found, but none of you can, he learned from the best after all. maybe you'll see him again. maybe you won't. you have a job to focus on after all. and once the war starts? you're too busy to try

and then out of nowhere you see him again. and he's doing so much more than you thought possible, but also, you know bren, you've always known bren, when was he ever the type to be content with being average. you're proud of him, and you know somewhere in there is that person you knew, but... look how much he's changed.

you know why, of course you know why, think of what he's been through, what you all have. those bright eyed cocky kids on top of the world got left behind a long time ago. it would be ridiculous to expect him to be the same as he was back then, you watched that boy break, this is a rebuilt man and you saw none of how it happened

but how do you work, now, when you still all care for each other so much? you can't trust him, you know you can't, you know he doesn't trust you. but you throw an old joke at him because it's all you know how to do, and talking to him was as easy as breathing once upon a time. you can't tell if he takes it in the same way he used to.

but i think the worst part is if astrid or wulf were the volstrucker sent to eiselcross. if they've done any kind of scrying or spying on caleb when he's just with his friends. because that's the worst part - you know when he's with you he's unrecognisable, you've come to terms with that, or you're trying to. but here, in these moments, are when you see bren's not entirely dead. he's there, he can be brought out for some people

it's just no longer for you

[svtxsoju]

02. morning glory fizz | dear miss soju

ღ Synopsis: College is hard. Love is even harder. Good thing the students of Mansae University can write in to Miss Soju, the campus’ very own romance advice columnist! The only problem is she’s never been in a relationship. Ever. There’s no telling what kind of chaos she may cause in the love lives of several of MU’s most eligible bachelors. Too bad no one knows who she really is! ღ Characters/Pairings: college AU! Seventeen & OC’s, Joshua x baking major!OC, and more TBA!  ღ Genre: Romantic Comedy, Slice of Life ღ Warning(s): Mentions of alcohol, suggestions of sex, language  ღ Word Count: 4.9k words  ღ Binu’s Note: a week late but better late than never i guess 😌 i’ve been avoiding tumblr to finish writing this, but i just kept getting distracted by choi seungcheol. hit that mf like button if you relate. i’m so excited for the special album y’all the teasers and concepts are so sadkfklsj i love seventeen

anyway, i apologize not only for the late update, BUT ALSO bc this chapter is also a lot of exposition again 😔🥺 i promise i’m done setting it all up and that some real shit will go down in the next chapter!! hopefully people will still be able to enjoy this chapter huhuhu 😭💗 if you’re reading this, i love u and i hope u have a good weekend!! 

《 ⊛ Author’s Note & Credits ⊛ Disclaimer ⊛ Masterlist ⊛ 》

《 Previous ⊛ Next 》

Having already completed the first half of her college career, Joohyun was well aware of the value of sleep. And yet, like most college students, she could never  seem to manage a decent sleeping schedule. She had only slept 2 hours when her alarm went off at 5:30AM. She groggily rolled out of bed, mentally cursing her past self for thinking that this was a good idea when clearly, the best idea at the moment was to snuggle back up under her covers and sleep in until afternoon. Only one of her eyes seemed capable of staying open as she pulled on her clothes and got ready for the day. When she suddenly heard the front door close behind her roommate, she cursed out loud, throwing her laptop into her bag before she rushed out the door. She half-wobbled, half-hopped along the second-story walkway while she tried to get her shoes all the way on.

“Bok Bongseon! Wait for me!” Joohyun called out in an aggressive whisper.

“HOLY SHIT! You scared me, Joo!” her roommate, a shorter girl with full cheeks and pouty lips, screamed at full volume. She clutched at her racing heart and leaned against the wall while she caught her breath. 

“Shut up, people are still sleeping!” Joohyun linked arms with Bongseon and dragged her down the steps leading to the street. It was still dark outside, but she could already hear the faint bustling of the mart located below their apartment. It was nice to know that they weren’t the only two people in Seoul insane enough to be awake at this hour. 

“I thought you were the ghost of my grandma, you bitch! You know she visits me in my dreams to tell me how disappointed she that I’m a baker,” Bongseon said indignantly, though she still cuddled closer to Joohyun when they were hit by the morning chill. Once they reached the street, they both headed towards the train station without having to say a word.  “What are you even doing up?” 

“I am simply accompanying my favorite roommate to work to make sure that she gets there safely,” Joohyun crooned sweetly, and made kissy faces at the girl, who in turn pinched Joohyun’s lips between her calloused fingers. She tried to protest but could only let out pained whines until she was mercifully released. “Ow!” 

“Sorry but I cannot fulfill your roommates to lovers, 12k slowburn fantasy,” Bongseon continued on nonchalantly as they climbed down the steps to the platform. “You had your chance, but I am a taken girl!”

“Oh, so you and Josh are together today?” Joohyun teased. Although it probably wasn’t the best idea, considering her lips were slightly throbbing from the girl’s attack. “I’ll just wait until tomorrow then.” 

“Wow, bold words coming from Miss Fish Lips.” Bongseon raised an eyebrow and smiled tauntingly. “Understandable, considering  that that was probably the most action your lips have gotten in your entire life. I could probably set it up on a blind date with my fist, if you’d like.” 

Joohyun’s laughter echoed off the walls of the mostly empty station, startling the only other person waiting for the morning train (an old woman, who was still half-asleep prior to being rudely awakened by two very loud girls). Bongseon often made some colorful threats, morning or not, but Joohyun was one of the very few people who could be assured that her words were empty. “Don’t you know that it’s rude to stare, lady?” she barked at the old woman, who was openly glaring at them. Everyone else, on the other hand, was subject to Bongseon’s sharp temper.

This even included her boyfriend of approximately 4 years. ‘Approximately’ being the key word, because the two often took breaks--  a natural phenomenon when one partner was easily provoked and the other loved to do the provoking. Jihoon had told Joohyun that the two had met at the cafe in their freshman year, when Bongseon came in as a part-time baker and Joshua was merely a barista trainee. They started dating within a month and moved into an apartment together in two. That went just as well as anyone would expect. By the grace of whatever entity that was chaotic enough to keep their relationship intact, they made it 7 months before nearly breaking things off for good. As luck would have it though, a new hire and his roommate were in the same exact predicament as them. Kind of. 

Joohyun shuddered to recall her freshman year when she and Jihoon somehow convinced themselves that it was a good idea to share an apartment. In principle it made sense; they had lived across the street from each other since they were in diapers. Two exhausting months into trying to irritate the other into breaking the lease first, they met Bongseon and Joshua when Jihoon started working at Smile Flower. It didn’t take long for Joohyun to suggest the switch— she would move in with Bongseon and Joshua with Woozi. Just like that, she saved both Bongseon and Joshua’s turbulent romance (temporarily) and her and Woozi’s fractured friendship (now thriving). 

She and Bongseon have been roommates ever since, and Joohyun knew her life was a little easier for it. 

“Joohyun, you better stop looking at me with those heart eyes before I really act up,” Bongseon warned. They had boarded the train, but hadn’t bothered to sit down since Mansae University station was only two stops away. 

“But I just love you so much,” Joohyun pouted, affectionately resting her head on her friend’s shoulder. “What does Joshua have that I don’t?” 

“A dick. And that’s about it.” 

“Damn you, heterosexuality!” 

Bongseon snorted out a laugh. “Seriously Joo, how are you awake right now? You’re only ever this lovey-dovey when you’re severely sleep deprived. I know you don’t have classes until 3PM today. You also don’t have your internship today,” Bongseon narrowed her eyes when Joohyun visibly tensed up at the mention of her current occupation. “Also, since when do you watch Youtube videos until 2am? And don’t think I didn’t notice that all of them were titled ‘Relationship Q&A’s’ and ‘I confessed to my crush and he said this!!!’. Got something to tell me, missy?” 

It was so quiet on the train that Joohyun worried that Bongseon could hear all the wires in her brain short-circuit. With Bongseon’s cross-examination skills, it was a wonder why she pursued baking instead of joining her family’s firm. Come on, Joohyun, just tell a white lie. Easy, simple. Don’t need to overcomplicate things. “Oh, uh I— um— well, I j-just thought they were entertaining?” She was done for. 

“Right. You thought random couples self-indulgently talking about their love lifes for 40 minutes with default iMovies effects were entertaining.”  

“Y-yes?” Joohyun threw in her most convincing smile for good measure, but it did nothing to soften Bongseon’s hard gaze. “It’s my new guilty pleasure, haha!”  

“Hm, interesting,” Bongseon was momentarily interrupted by the sound of the arrival bell. Joohyun eagerly pulled her friend towards the exit, hoping that the distance from the train could also get her further away from the topic. Unfortunately for her, Bongseon did not plan on dropping it so soon. “You sure you don’t want to tell me anything, Joo? About your internship?” 

Joohyun began to sweat. Was she really that transparent? “Okay, don’t get mad--”

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m super jazzed that you’re getting into relationships and everything, but really Joo? Youtube? You could just talk to me if you need help talking to your new crush at your job!” 

“Oh.” Joohyun would have let out a sigh of relief if she wasn’t out of breath from climbing the mountain of stairs up to the sidewalk. “Right. Confessing. To my crush. That I definitely have.”

“It’s okay to admit you have one, Joo. I’m no  stranger to workplace romance,” Bongseon said, her breathing completely even. A measly flight of stairs was nothing compared to eight hours of kneading dough. “Who’s the lucky bastard, Joo?” 

“Well, I’m not sure I would call it a workplace romance, per se…” Joohyun laughed nervously. There was no way she could stick another clean landing if she kept talking. 

“Shut up, I bet that guy is in love with you already. Who wouldn’t fall for the only editing intern at The Front?” 

“Haha, I don’t know…” Probably no one, because the only editing intern at The Front doesn’t exist? 

Joohyun could not be more relieved to see the small store front of Smile Flower Cafe. It was one amongst the many cafes located near campus, but Joohyun felt like nothing really matched its comforting home-like ambience. But that probably had less to do with the soft wooden floors and pastel ceramic mugs, and more owed to the three years Joohyun had spent hanging around there, usually bothering Jihoon and joking around with Josh. 

The two boys already stood waiting at the cafe’s entrance, too bleary-eyed to notice Joohyun and Bongseon quickly approaching. “Hey, ugly!” Joohyun called out, snickering when both of them turned to look at her. 

“What the hell, why are you awake?” 

“Good morning to you too, Jihoon,” she answered, blowing him a kiss. “I’m actually here to see you, believe it or not. Don’t you feel special?”

“Oh? That’s interesting, because you told me that you came here for me,” Bongseon broke away from exchanging actual kisses with Joshua to look between Joohyun and Jihoon in a way that Joohyun did not like too much.  “I guess it wasn’t a workplace romance after all.” 

Joshua mirrored his girlfriend’s implicating expression as he unlocked the front door, simply because he knew it made his friends squirm. “Wow Joohyun, you woke up this early just to talk to Jihoon? You really couldn’t wait to see him, huh?” 

“Uh, yes because I need his help—”

“Ah, his help, gotcha! Come on, Bongseon, I’ll go help you in the kitchen while these two help each other out here,” Joshua snickered. Before Joohyun or Jihoon could roast the couple in retaliation, they had already disappeared behind the counter. 

After years of similar taunts, all Jihoon could do was shake his head. “Okay Joo, what is so important that you need my help at 6 in the morning?”

“I wrote my first response last night!” Joohyun whispered excitedly, taking out her laptop from her bag. “Well, a few hours ago. I wanted to show you before continuing on with the rest! Here, look.” 

① Dear Miss Soju, 

I just started my first year at MU and she’s an exchange student from New York. We met at a party and talked for two hours about comics, aliens, anything we could think of. It was perfect. She even asked me to walk her home. When the time came for me to make a move though, I kind of dropped the ball. Since we had just met that night, I didn’t want to come off too strong. Now I really regret it - I don’t even have her phone number. I feel like such an idiot! I can’t stop thinking about her, but I don’t even know if I’ll ever talk to her again. Did I make myself seem disinterested? Will we meet again? Will she even remember me?

Sincerely,

Big Cringy Idiot

She let Jihoon read the asker’s message first, then scrolled down to show her answer.

Dear Big Cringy Idiot,

You and your crush seem to have a lot in common. There is nothing wrong with being nervous around someone you like. In fact, it is fairly normal and is a good sign that you like this girl very much. She also seems open to any future possiblities, since she did ask you to take her home. You need not worry about coming off too strong in this situation, although I do admire your dedication to respecting women’s boundaries. I hope you are able to find this girl again so that you can truly tell her how you feel. Best of luck to you!

Sincerely,

Miss Soju

“Joo, that was…” 

“Poetic, beautiful, life-changing?” Joohyun grinned, and nudged her best friend with each suggestion.

“Boring. It was boring.” Joohyun’s face fell, and Jihoon could only offer the girl an apologetic smile. “Dude, you’re gonna put people to sleep if you keep it up like this. I almost took out a pillow to take a nap on the floor.”

“But this is how I write my articles— Informative and concise! How else am I supposed to write it?”

“I mean, that’s great for reporting articles, but this is an advice column. It’s supposed to be fun, sarcastic maybe. Like your promo piece! That was good.” 

“I wrote that as a joke, hoping they would fire me for it,” Joohyun admitted, eyes wide in panic as she looked at her best friend. 

“Huh. Well, I think it would sound better than this Wikipedia article you got going on,” Jihoon shrugged. “Try to be fun!”

“I am fun!” Joohyun cried out defensively, her nostrils flaring with passion. When Jihoon responded with a doubtful look, she let out a dramatic gasp and snatched up her laptop, stomping over to her favorite corner in the cafe. “I can be fun! I’ll show you fun!” 

 “Atta girl,” Jihoon’s signature cackle filled the cafe, further fueling the girl’s aggressive typing. 

Just another morning in the life of So Joohyun.

To the surprise of the cafe’s current occupants, a student already tapped at the glass entrance, clearly in desperate need of his morning americano. He had walked all the way from the freshman dorms after a restless night of tossing and turning. When his phone screen told him it was already 6:05AM, he decided to just give up on sleep altogether. So there he was, trying to start off his day right, at Smile Flower Cafe, only to be stopped at the door by the grumpy barista with the red hair. He always felt like the other one was way nicer, especially since he would go out of his way to sneak him free cookie samples and made pleasant small talk while ringing him up (what was his name? Jonathan?). 

  All the red-haired barista ever did was scowl at him when he asked for a student discount. Now, he scowled at him as he gestured at the sign that indicated that the cafe would not be open until 7AM. The fatigued freshman had half a mind to make some choice gestures of his own, but he refrained and just whipped out his phone instead. He gave the mean barista one last pout before turning around and walking towards the 24-hour convenience store on campus.

➠ [ to: vernonie 😌😎  ] Good morning king. Are you still on your shift ?

➠ [ from: vernonie 😌😎  ] gm seungkwan pls k*ll me 

Seungkwan took that as a yes. It didn’t take long for him to arrive, the entrance bell ringing lightly when he stepped into the small store. At the register sat his roommate, who was clearly fighting to keep his eyes open. “Wol-cuh ‘n—” he tried to greet through a wide-mouthed yawn. “Excuse me, welcome in! Oh, hey Seungkwan.”

Seungkwan answered with a grunt and headed straight for the refrigerated coffee section, choosing the largest can.

“Uh dude, you good? You look like—”

“Like I haven’t slept all night? I am aware,” He immediately opened his coffee and took a long gulp of the beverage in hopes of feeling even a little better. When it did nothing after 30 seconds, he frowned at the concerned cashier. “Vernon, I will not be paying for this drink, because it is clearly defective. Coffee is supposed to fix everything.” 

“Is this about your audition today?” Vernon asked, eyebrows furrowed. “Your monologue sounded really solid last night though. Your audition songs were great too. You totally got this in the bag!” 

“It’s not just about the audition, sweet Vernon,” Seungkwan sighed. “It’s about who I’m going to see at the audition. I still don’t know what the fuck I’m going to do.”

“Oh yeah, you are probably going to see them later.” For the past week, all Seungkwan could talk about was the theater tech sophomore that he had met at the theater department’s welcome party. They had sat beside Seungkwan and had helped him through all the fast-paced drinking games, and even took some of his shots when he kept losing. Surely, this was what love felt like.

That was what Seungkwan hoped anyway, because whatever it was made him feel all warm and tingly inside (or it could have just been the alcohol). Nevertheless, he had made big plans to confess to his crush as soon as possible. His dilemma for the past several days was merely a matter of how it would be done. “Not probably! I know for a fact that they will be there, because they told me that they couldn’t wait to see me,” Seungkwan let out a wail and slumped over the counter. “They’re the sweetest, most beautiful person to ever walk the earth and I just want to tell them that I would actually jump off a bridge for them. Why is that so difficult?” 

Vernon nodded sympathetically as he always did. “I mean, if you’re not ready today, maybe you could wait?”

“Wait?! No offense babe, but last time I checked, waiting didn’t get you anywhere,” Seungkwan said,  patting his roommate’s arm. Vernon cringed as he was forced to remember his own romantic blunder from the past week. “Clearly, we are both in major need of help. That Woozi guy’s show didn’t do anything for us! Also, we still haven’t heard from that Miss Soju character and it’s been what? Two days? If she’s such an expert, she would know that love is time sensitive!” 

“Ugh, I know. I keep refreshing The Front’s website just to see if she’s posted it yet.” Vernon sighed forlornly, which was a common punctuation to his sentences lately. “It’s getting me really antsy. What if she doesn’t even choose to answer our emails this time?” 

Seungkwan quickly covered the other freshman’s mouth. “Don’t say that! The universe manifests what we say will happen. We should ask for divine intervention instead.” He cleared his throat in preparation and threw his hands up to the sky. “O Eros, god of love, please shine your blessings down upon my and Vernonie’s love lives for we are but two humble, clueless freshmen in need of romantic guidance. Send down two of your swiftest, sharpest arrows, so that those that we desire may hear your soft whispers—”

Ding. The sound of the entrance bell rang once more, stopping Seungkwan’s prayer short, much to his irritation. “Is this a bad time?” the new customer, an ethereally handsome blonde, asked amusedly. He strode into the store and grabbed two spicy tuna triangle kimbab’s before approaching the counter. 

“Jeonghan hyung!” 

“Ah, Vernon!” Jeonghan smiled. “I didn’t know you worked here. You should come by my and Cheol’s apartment again soon, that was fun!”

“Hyung, this is my roommate that I told you about-- Seungkwan. And Seungkwan, this is Seungcheol hyung’s roommate,” Vernon said all while ringing up Jeonghan’s food. On the side, Seungkwan bowed sheepishly after unfreezing from his previous pose. “How’s your morning going? You wake up pretty early!” 

Jeonghan laughed heartily, shaking his head. “Oh no, I just finished an all-night stream. I just came by to get a snack before heading to bed. Seems like you two have been having a fun morning, though. Do you two always start your day off by praying to the ancient Greek god of desire?” 

Seungkwan flushed a deep pink. “Uh no, it was more like a cry of desperation. Vernon and I are having a pretty tough time confessing to our crushes, so I figured we should just try out anything that might help us. Nothing else seems to be working…” 

“Wait, that’s so cute,” Jeonghan cooed. 

“Would you be able to give us some advice, hyung?” Vernon asked. He didn’t know anything about the senior’s love life, but he did give off the vibe of someone who would know… a lot. 

Jeonghan’s eyes twinkled dangerously, a lazy smirk on his lips. “I mean, I could go talk to your little crushes for you, if you’d like. I’m sure I could get some sort of response out of them.”

One look at Jeonghan had Vernon and Seungkwan shaking their heads vehemently.

“No, we’re good.”

“Yeah, no thanks.” 

“Mm, good call.” Jeonghan took his food from the counter, and winked at the two boys. “I really wish I could help you both more, but I’m sure you’ll get what you’re waiting for soon! Today, if you want it enough.” 

There was something in the way that the senior stated those words that made Seungkwan believe him without a question. It wasn’t a naive suggestion or an optimistic prediction; Jeonghan spoke like it was the truth plainly written on the walls. He finally felt a long-awaited wave exhaustion wash over his anxieties, softening them until they fizzled away alongside the ebbing foam. All that was left behind were grains of sand. Suddenly, Seungkwan yawned,  and he wanted nothing more than to curl up in his twin bed at the dorms. 

“Well, I should be heading off to bed! Looks like you should be too, Seungkwan,” Jeonghan said, suppressing his own yawn. The freshman nodded in agreement. He definitely needed to rest up— this was going to be a big day, after all. 

“Say hi to Cheol hyung for me when you get home!” Vernon said. 

Jeonghan hummed thoughtfully as he made his way back to the entrance of the store. “I will if he’s there! He didn’t come home last night.” He turned to leave the boys with one last sleepy smile, seeming to laugh at something only he knew. 

“At least one of us is doing something right.” 

“Jihoon, why can’t I get this right?” 

“I’m sorry! This just sounds nothing like you,” Jihoon shrugged. It had been a rather busy morning, but things slowed down as it approached noon, giving him the chance to look at Joohyun’s fourth draft of responses.  “I’ve never heard you say stuff like ‘rad’ or ‘hella’... Like are you aware that you sound like a skater from the late 90’s?” 

“That’s because the reference I’ve been using is from 1997!” Joohyun huffed in frustration. She was already backspacing albeit with a little more force than necessary. “I wasn’t even born in ‘97!” 

“Exactly, so stop trying to write like that. What if you tried to—” 

“Eat my ass, Hong!” The sound of the kitchen door slamming open interrupted Jihoon’s (probably unhelpful) suggestion, and the two best friends watched as Bongseon stormed out of the cafe in a familiar rage. Luckily, there were no customers to witness it this time. 

Instinctively, they looked to the kitchen door, where Joshua stood with a resigned smile on his full lips. “Oops,” he said, scratching at the back of his neck apologetically. “Guess it was too soon to joke about our last break. Sorry about that, Jihoon. I’ll try to call in the head baker early to finish up the rest of the pastries for today.” 

He walked over to where they sat and plopped himself across from Joohyun. She offered Joshua a look of sympathy, but he responded by twisting his face up in a dumb expression, reassuring her that he was just fine. Still,  she couldn’t help feeling worried for both of her friends. No matter how many times Bongseon and Joshua broke it off and no matter how much Joohyun joked about it, she knew that their strong feelings for each other meant that it hurt a little every time they got into a fight. At least, that’s what she gathered from the various nights she spent soothing Bongseon while the girl cried into a toilet bowl, soju bottle still in hand. 

“It’s okay, Josh, you probably don’t have to worry too much. Knowing her, she’ll probably be back in 30 minutes to make up with you and then Jihoon will have to find someone to take over your shift,” Joohyun piped up. “But please take it back to your apartment this time, because I don’t make enough money to have every surface of my apartment sanitized again.” 

Joshua let out an easy laugh, as though he were not a man in deep shit. “Thank you, Joo. You always know what to say to make me feel better,” he sighed. “I should probably go after her. I’ll be back soon, Jihoon!” 

She waited for him to disappear out the door before turning to her best friend. “Wow, that’s gotta be a new record for them, right? I didn’t even know they got back together until this morning.” Joohyun was surprised to find that Jihoon had been silently staring at her for a good minute now. “...Why are you looking at me?” 

“What you said to Joshua,” Jihoon simply replied. 

“Oh, I was only joking about the sanitation thing. I just walked in on them once in the kitchen—“

“No I mean, how you said it. Maybe that’s how you should be writing your responses.” Jihoon grinned, watching as Joohyun gave him that look again, the one where she looks at him like he’s speaking from a third head. But he knew that this was going to be another Jihoon Genius moment, which seemed to be happening more frequently lately, much to his satisfaction. “Like you’re talking to one of your friends. I mean, it made Josh feel better, right?”

Joohyun’s eyebrows scrunched together and she mulled the idea over. Without another word to Jihoon, she began to slowly type on her laptop, gradually tapping faster and faster as she gained momentum. Her best friend giddily returned to his place behind the counter to tend to the customers that just walked in. He knew that once she got into a groove, there was no hope of stopping her. 

An hour later, Joohyun finally pushed away her laptop and waited for Jihoon to finish wiping down a table before calling him over. For some reason, she was anxious to show him the final product and even when he already sat besie her, she hesitated for a beat. Usually, her writing was professional and objective, always ending with a declarative period. She had spent years perfecting her reporting style so that when she presented the facts, that’s all they were. This, however, felt personal, like it was a part of her. And even though Jihoon probably knew her even better than herself sometimes, there was something so vulnerable about showing someone a side of her that she had only just discovered. 

And yet, she was curious to know— desperate to know: was it any good? 

“Well?” Joohyun watched for Jihoon’s reaction closely, both impatient and terrified to hear his thoughts. 

“Joohyun, this...” Jihoon started slowly. She braced for impact. “This is it. I think you’ve found Miss Soju’s voice.”

She exhaled. “R-really?”

“Yes, really. You answered the questions so thoughtfully, so you know it’s not just some generic bullshit you found on the internet. Plus, it was fun to read, like I think I’d read this even if I didn’t send a letter in,” Jihoon gushed, all while skimming over the words again. He turned to smile brightly at her, reminding Joohyun of a much younger Jihoon back in their elementary school days. “Most importantly though, it’s so you.”

Joohyun returned the smile, just as brightly. Warmth bloomed in her chest and across her cheeks. “Thanks, Jihoon, I don’t know what I would do without you.”

“Honestly, me neither,” Jihoon laughed.

“Um, can I ask you one more thing though?” Joohyun scrolled down to the last two entries, both of which asked for advice on how to make things official with a guy they’ve been talking to. The two letters were extremely similar in detail, but had been sent from two different emails and two different signatures. At first, she thought that maybe her judgement was muddled by her lack of sleep, and as the day went on, she figured her inability to recognize any nuance between the two letters was thanks her lack of experience. 

There was just something about the way they had described the boy. She knew that  intelligent, funny, kind-hearted, and unbelievably handsome were pretty generic adjectives. But what were the odds for both letters to also mention his infectious laugh and deep, dark eyes? “Do you think these two are from the same person? I’m trying to go for a confession theme for this article, so I included them both, but I’m afraid they’re too similar.” 

Jihoon read them over a couple of times, then shrugged. “They do sound pretty similar, but a lot of people go through that sort of thing. Also, so many people describe their crushes like that, but let’s be real, most of them end up being fuckboys. So trust me, both those people probably need your help. I mean, what’s the harm in publishing both, right?” 

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Joohyun bit her lip, needing every ounce of reassurance she could get from her best friend. She read over her writing once, twice, thrice more. This was it. No more edits and no more excuses. Her finger hovered over the mousepad. “Okay, I”m going to send it in for approval now. Jihoon, you are about to witness me publish my first article for The Front.” 

Joohyun took a deep breath and clicked. Finally.

[renaerys]

PPG One-Shot: Shook (Brick/Blossom)

{{Original posting unfortunately deleted. Reposted here.}}

Summary: When Butch and Buttercup’s fighting goes a bit too far, Blossom takes it upon herself to intervene. Reds.

xxx

Brick woke up with pinprick pain in his temples this morning, a sure indicator that today was going to be a bad day.

His headache only progressed throughout the day, and by the end of sixth period AP European History, he was fantasizing about how good Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI had it with that guillotine. Quick, painless, and blissful freedom from the squabbling peasants who would never have let them off easy anyway.

“Dude, you’re doing it again.”

Brick could feel his brother’s big, blue eyes on the back of his head as he unloaded his books at his locker. “What.”

“The resting serial killer face.”

Brick glanced at his reflection in the small mirror he had affixed to his locker door. Tired, red eyes stared back at him, mouth in a harsh, thin line, and his trademark red cap backwards over his red hair. His bangs were getting a little long.

He slammed the locker door. “Maybe take the hint.”

Boomer, unlike most of the plebeians at Townsville High School, didn’t cower in fear at his brother’s bloody glare. He smiled and threw a letter-jacket-clad arm over Brick’s shoulders. “Lighten up, man. It’s Friday! Julie’s party is tonight, remember?”

Shit, Brick had forgotten. He vaguely remembered agreeing to go to that.

“Someone say party?” Wes Goingon, a guy so pale he looked like he’d been bleached at birth, approached them hand in hand with his girlfriend, Kim Chan.

Kim smiled brightly at Brick. “Oh yeah, Julie’s! You guys are going, right?”

Boomer dragged Brick into step with their friends, and he was too tired to resist. “For sure.”

Brick sighed. “I don’t know, I’ve got a migraine. I might sit this one out.”

“No way, you gotta come!” Wes said. “It’s not a party without you.”

Kim nudged Brick affectionately. “He’s right, but if you’re not feeling well, you should stay home. I noticed you were kind of quiet today.”

“Shh, Kim, don’t give him a way out. Everybody’s gonna be there,” Boomer said. “It’s the last party before Fall Break!”

Fall Break, yes, that was an appealing prospect. A whole week off from school to do what he wanted without having to deal with all the bullshit of high school daily life. Brick didn’t hate it as much as he’d thought he would. Even with his reputation as a Rowdyruff Boy following him, there had been some brave souls who’d given him and his brothers a chance to be normal seventeen-year-old boys, something he hadn’t had back in Citiesville before transferring. Even if many were wary of him, there were a few like Wes and Kim who were so used to sharing the halls with Supers that they barely noticed the difference.

The four of them were approaching the west exit when Brick came across the last person he wanted to see. His migraine flared at the mere sight of her and the suspicion in her gaze that was as ubiquitous as her red hair ribbon whenever they unfortunately crossed paths.

“Hey Blossom!” Kim said, bounding over.

“Hi Kim,” Blossom said, bypassing her to approach Brick, but it turned out it wasn’t him she was looking for. “Boomer, I’m glad I ran into you. Have you seen my sister anywhere?”

Brick watched her talking to his brother like he wasn’t standing right there and felt his blood pressure begin to rise. No matter how much time he spent breathing the same air as this girl, he couldn’t get past his dislike of her. They were no longer arch enemies looking to grind each other into the ground, their childhood enmity mostly behind them now that they were older and more interested in living their lives in peace. But even so, Brick had never had any desire to befriend Blossom or her Super sisters, Bubbles and Buttercup.

Still, she didn’t have to ignore him so obviously. She was always doing petty crap like that. So juvenile.

Boomer, of course, had no such qualms about mingling with Townsville’s resident heroes. Brick wasn’t sure how it had happened, but somehow Boomer had befriended Bubbles, played sports with Buttercup, and was even on amicable terms with Blossom.

“Which one?” Boomer asked, running a hand through his short, blond hair like he was thinking about how it looked in front of her.

The fuck, Brick thought.

“Bubbles. She was supposed to meet me after class, but she’s not answering her phone.”

“No, sorry. I haven’t seen her since lunch.”

Blossom tugged on her long, red ponytail, something she did whenever she was troubled by something. Brick hated that he knew this about her.

“Oh, all right. Well, if you hear from her, can you let me know?”

“Sure thing.”

Her rosy gaze finally flickered to Brick, and she matched his frown. He told himself to ignore her and her unwarranted suspicion of him—it wasn’t like they were twelve anymore and he was going to rob a convenience store, for fuck’s sake—but he also was not about to look away first.

“Brick,” she said curtly, but she might as well have told him to go jump in a lake.

“Blossom,” he said just as clipped. And, just because he knew how annoyingly hyper-alert she got when they were around each other, he let his eyes flicker briefly over her figure, today clad in casual capris and a sleeveless top.

Just his luck that one of the hottest girls in school had such a frustrating personality.

Of course, she noticed him briefly checking her out and crossed her arms. Her pretty eyes narrowed, and the air around them charged. Boomer noticed her subtly spiking energy levels and shrank back instinctively. Brick held his ground, wondering if she’d tell him off. He kind of hoped she would if only to distract him from his pounding headache.

Wes and Kim, oblivious to the electrifying tension, were still talking about Blossom’s missing sister.

Or rather, sisters plural.

“Yeah, I think I saw them leave together. They were in kind of a hurry,” Wes said.

“Really? Since when are Butch and Buttercup so chummy?” Kim asked.

At the mention of his trigger-happy brother, Brick tore his gaze from Blossom. “What about Butch?”

Blossom also forgot her rising annoyance and focused on Wes. “What are you talking about? They left together?”

Wes looked between Brick and Blossom, and it was his turn to shrink. Friends or not, being on the receiving end of both Reds’ glares at the same time was enough to make a guy quail. “Uh, yeah, like I saw them both dash out after sixth period…”

“Together?” Blossom demanded.

“Kind of?” Wes put his hands up like he was trying to placate a pair of wild animals. “More like he dragged her out? I mean, not violently or something!”

Blossom paled, and Brick rolled his eyes. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what had happened. Butch couldn’t seem to go a full week without fighting the only person on the planet dumb enough to rise to his challenge every time. Mostly, Brick didn’t care what his brother did as long as it didn’t blow back on Boomer and him, and for the most part Butch behaved. But lately, he’d been hitting the gym twice a day and even pestering Brick for spars more often than usual. As if fighting Buttercup wasn’t enough of a challenge for him already.

“Oh, so they probably went to fight. Hey, maybe Bubbles is with them?” Boomer said.

Blossom was still white as a sheet. “They can’t fight right now. She’s in no condition.”

Brick was about to tell her to calm down, she was overreacting about every goddamned little thing as usual, but Blossom dashed off in a flash of pink before he could get a word in. Kim was knocked over with the force of it, and Boomer was forced to catch her when she bumped into Wes and they both almost went down.

“Jeez, what was that about?!” Kim griped.

“You okay?” Boomer asked.

Brick scowled deeply. What was she thinking using her powers in school? Of all people, Blossom would never. What had crawled up her ass today? He had half a mind to find out.

“Come on, Boomer,” he said.

“Wait, where are we going?”

But Brick dashed off in a blinding blaze of red in much the same fashion as Blossom before him, knocking all three of them down in his haste to catch up to her.

xxx

Buttercup heaved and spat blood. The Chemical X in her system was sluggish as it depleted so much faster than usual, and she felt Butch’s punches like a ton of bricks. He came in fast and hard again, and this time Buttercup dodged the brunt of his punch and sent him spinning away.

“C’mon, BC! Enough of this cat and mouse crap,” Butch taunted. “Fight me! Unless you’re too much of a pussy.”

“Fuck you,” Buttercup spat.

Trash talk had always been a part of their clashes, and normally it added to the fire she felt beneath her skin at the prospect of handing him his ass. But their last fight had been particularly brutal just a few days ago, and while Buttercup would never admit weakness, she was not fully recovered from it.

Should’ve listened to Blossom and taken that X supplement…

Buttercup silenced that traitorous thought. She didn’t need help. She was the toughest fighter for a reason. A little roughhousing didn’t merit all that coddling. Then again, she hadn’t expected Butch to be raring to go again so soon.

“Guys, really! I think you should just call it quits for today!” Bubbles said, hovering close but not close enough to get in between them. She was not suicidal.

Butch glanced at her askance. “Hey, no one asked you, Blondie. I don’t mind an audience, but this is between me ’n your sister, so be a good girl and mind your own fucking business.”

Buttercup seethed. “Don’t talk to her like that!”

“Oh, yeah? What’re you gonna do about it?”

The taunt was transparent, but Buttercup fell for it all the same. She always fell for it, her body screaming to meet his blow for blow even if her mind knew better. It had always been that way with Butch, supernatural. He’d been created to destroy her, and even now that they were older and grown out of that artificial good versus evil bullshit, sometimes she felt like he really was out to obliterate her. She lived for that challenge, that push to the limits of fear and fatality, knowing in her bones that no one could get her as close to the edge as Butch could.

And so, reckless in pursuit of that special high only he could give her, Buttercup rocketed toward him, her fists crackling green with power. Butch caught her fists in his, and their power exploded between them.

Buttercup was invincible for all of a half second, and then came the pain. She was blown back with such force that she went flying and landed hard in the parking lot of the Shankaplex movie theater, totaling two cars and ripping a crater open in the asphalt. Her body ached, and when she opened her eyes, she saw double.

“Buttercup!” Bubbles screamed.

But it wasn’t Bubbles who pulled her out of that crater. Butch’s rough hands had her by the collar of her shirt, and he lifted her like a rag doll. His arms smoked where Buttercup’s power had burned him, but his X was healing him fast, and pain had never bothered him anyway.

“Tsk tsk, taking a nap? Am I boring you that much?”

Buttercup could feel that he was about to throw her, and she made a grab for his wrists, only to find that her hands were bruised and cut, and her palms were slick with her own blood. Chemical X was barely healing her at all anymore. A brief flicker of panic petrified her, and Butch smelled it like a shark scenting blood in the water.

“Guess it’s time to finish you off,” he said, grinning.

But he never got the chance, because Bubbles swooped in and tackled him into a movie poster display at full power. Buttercup fell to her knees, coughing and shaking in pain, but her thoughts were only of Bubbles. That inkling of panic she’d felt before blossomed into full-on fear for her baby sister. Bubbles was no match for Butch, not when he was raring to go like this.

As if to prove her fears true, Bubbles went crashing into the asphalt next to Buttercup seconds later, having taken one of Butch’s punishing punches to the stomach dead on. Buttercup stared at her fallen sister and shook with rage.

“What the fuck, Butch! You leave her out of this!” Buttercup screamed at him.

Butch cracked his neck. A horrible gash on his face where Bubbles had injured him sealed before Buttercup’s eyes as the X in his system came to his aid.

“I’m okay,” Bubbles said, sitting up and clutching her stomach. “Just a little winded…”

“Hey, she threw the first punch. Don’t be jealous, BC. You know you’re my main squeeze.” He grinned salaciously at her.

Excruciatingly, Buttercup forced herself to get up. Her limbs were on fire. Logically, she knew she could not take Butch in her state. She had no idea how he had recovered faster than her—fucking teenage boy hormones—but he was in top form and she couldn’t hope to face him fairly like this. Fear faded to fury at her own shortcomings. They were supposed to be equals, but nothing she threw at him could bring him down today.

Still, Buttercup had never forfeited a fight, and she wasn’t about to start now.

“Buttercup, no! You can’t fight him like this! Let me—”

“Shut up, Bubbles,” Buttercup hissed. No way was she going to let Bubbles clean up her mess. Butch was and always would be her problem. She wasn’t going to let him near her sister.

Butch laughed. “That’s more like it. Now, where were we? Oh yeah, here!”

He shot off again, and Buttercup braced herself for a world of pain. If she could just tire him out enough to call it quits, that would be enough without having to forfeit, surely.

A blinding blast of pink energy intercepted Butch before he could ram Buttercup, and she was blown back into Bubble’s arms before she could eat concrete again. When she came to, she saw Blossom’s long ponytail fluttering past her waist, her bare arms sparking with raw, pink power and a deep crag in the concrete leading from her to where Butch now kneeled, smoking and breathing heavily.

Manic jade looked up at Blossom, and despite herself, Buttercup shuddered at the sight. He was good and pissed off now. “And then there were three, huh? I’m in high demand today.”

Blossom ignored him. “Buttercup, are you okay?”

Buttercup’s ire flared again. “I’m fine. What’re you doing here?”

Blossom shot her a glare over her shoulder. “Cleaning up your mess, as usual. What were you thinking fighting him in your state? You know you’re not recovered.”

Pride told Buttercup to defy her imperious sister, but shame and guilt knowing Blossom was right held her back. But it wasn’t like she’d had a choice! When Butch got it in his head that he wanted a fight, there was no stopping him. Before Buttercup got a chance to snap back at Blossom, they were interrupted again.

“What the fuck is this?” Brick landed next to Butch.

Butch rolled his eyes and got to his feet. “Nothing. This is between me and Buttercup.”

Brick’s creepy eyes scanned the ruined parking lot and the few civilians who had poked their heads out of the movie theater to gape at the Supers like fish out of water. “You, Buttercup, and the Mayor’s office when I have to make a case to the city not to fine us for all this property damage.”

An admiring whistle drew everyone’s attention to Boomer hovering a short ways away surveying the damage. “Damn, Butch. You got something against Frozen 2?”

Sure enough, the new kids’ movie advertisement poster was totally destroyed thanks to the explosive fight.

“Huh?” Butch said.

“Enough,” Blossom said. “Brick, take your brother home. He’s done enough damage for one day.”

Brick glared at her, and Buttercup braced herself for the spat she knew was coming.

“We’re not finished here,” Butch said before Brick could get into it with Blossom. “So why don’t you march that fine ass back to chess club or whatever the hell you do after school?”

Brick turned his glare on Butch, and Buttercup felt its departure like the cruel summer sun dipping behind the clouds.

Bubbles gasped. “No! Buttercup, you can’t fight him anymore! I told you this was a bad idea!”

Blossom somehow looked even more incensed. “You came here willingly? I rushed over here thinking Butch had forced you into a fight. Buttercup, what were you thinking?”

“I was thinking this has nothing to do with you,” Buttercup said petulantly.

“You’re bleeding.”

“I’m fine.”

“You’re not fine.” Blossom growled in frustration. “Why is it always a fight with you? You know what, I don’t care. We’ll talk about this later. Bubbles, take her home.”

Bubbles moved to do that, but one look from Buttercup stayed her hand. No way, no fucking way was Buttercup going to let her big sister swoop in and embarrass her like this. Butch would never let her live it down.

“Hey! Are you deaf? I said this is between me and Buttercup. I’m not gonna tell you again, Blossom.”

Butch bared his teeth, and Buttercup felt her skin crawl. He was seriously not done yet, and a very small part of her began to feel the fear creeping back in. She was not in any condition to fight him, she knew that, but he was in no condition to stop.

“Butch,” Brick warned.

But Butch smacked his hand away. His whole body sparked with green energy, ready to snap. Despite herself, Buttercup swallowed hard.

“Fine,” Blossom said. “You want a fight? I’ll give you the fight of your life.”

Buttercup gaped open-mouthed at her sister, not sure if she’d heard right. Blossom never fought unless all other avenues were exhausted, and she certainly never fought Butch. Even Brick looked momentarily stunned at her challenge.

Butch was quicker to recover and burst out laughing. “Good one! Now seriously, get the hell outta my way.”

Blossom didn’t budge. “No.”

All traces of humor left Butch as he regarded her, and then he glanced at Brick. “Hey, I’m not gonna tell you again. I’m not here for you, so move.”

Blossom was busy removing her pearl studs and bracelet. When she held them out, Buttercup was still too stunned to do anything but accept them without protest.

“This won’t take long,” Blossom said, tightening her ponytail.

“Brick,” Boomer said warily, landing next to his brother.

Brick bristled. “Forget this. I’ll fight you, you fucking masochist.”

“No way bro,” Butch said, stepping forward. “Ladies first. She wants me, can’t you tell?”

Blossom actually laughed, stunning Buttercup for the second time in as many minutes. “Honestly, Buttercup, how do you take this boy seriously?”

Buttercup wanted to be mad, but Butch’s reaction was so sudden and so visceral that it gave her whiplash. He began to shake as his power leaked out of him and clogged the air like noxious fumes. That little, emasculating laugh got him more worked up than any number of Buttercup’s punches had today.

“Hey.” Buttercup reached for Blossom and they locked gazes. She shivered at the cold look in her sister’s eyes. It was one she had not often seen, but one she knew better than to question. The instinct to shrink back was so overwhelming that Buttercup felt her stomach turn, and it was not even directed at her.

She remembered a fight many, many years ago when Princess Morbucks had pushed Blossom too far in her pursuit of power. It was the first time Buttercup had ever seen that remorseless look in her sister’s eyes, and she would never forget it.

Butch was no longer grinning. “I’m gonna enjoy putting you in your place.”

Blossom cocked her head. She was still smiling that eerie, cold smile. “I’m waiting.”

That did it. Before anyone could blink, Butch was coming straight for her, fists blazing.

xxx

“Oh shit!” Boomer flew up to join Bubbles, Buttercup, and Brick in the air as they watched Blossom and Butch collide in a conflagration of pink and green. Butch’s punches, delivered hard and swift enough to break the sound barrier, carried like thunder. “Should we, like, do something?!”

Brick was eerily silent next to him as he followed the fight with a calculating eye. “If he hits her, she’s done for.”

“Like hell,” Buttercup spat. “She’s strong. You should know.”

“Wait, I thought you were the one who was against this?” Boomer asked.

Buttercup grimaced, but she stubbornly refused to let on how much pain she was in. Now that Boomer got a good look at her, she really looked trashed. Jesus, had Butch really done that to her?

“Doesn’t mean I don’t know my sister. She can take him.”

“Except she can’t,” Brick said, watching as Butch fired a green energy beam at Blossom that sent her careening high into the clouds. “I know her too. She’s a glass cannon.”

Blossom’s pink streak came flying in faster than Boomer had ever seen her fly, and Butch was waiting for her with a welcome punch that connected with her ribs. But Blossom swerved with his force and rammed her elbow mercilessly against the back of his neck. Her blunt force was so great that he went cashing into the woods beyond the Shankaplex, where he landed with a monstrous crack. Blossom waited for him to reemerge, a hand pressed to her side but otherwise masking her pain.

Bubbles gasped, and Buttercup shot Brick a scathing grin. “You were saying?”

Brick’s eyes were glued to Blossom. “Butch hits like a freight train. She won’t be able to absorb his punches indefinitely.”

Buttercup laughed, but in her injured state, it came out more like a wheeze. “Dude, you don’t know this Blossom.”

Brick glanced at her askance, and Boomer wondered. What did that mean?

“That tickled!” Butch shouted as he came flying back ready to go again. “Do it again!”

Blossom was silent as she waited for him to come to her. He came in hot, but this time she didn’t let his punch connect. More elegantly than Boomer thought her capable of, Blossom avoided him entirely, grabbed his hair, and kneed him in the stomach.

Boomer gasped—gasped, because holy hell—as Butch hacked up a lung and clutched his stomach. “I think she broke some ribs!” Chemical X or no, that one really had to hurt.

Blossom put some distance between Butch and herself and took a deep breath.

“Incoming!” Bubbles dashed away with Buttercup, and Boomer shoved Brick out of the path of danger just in time to avoid getting caught up in Blossom’s powerful ice breath.

Butch didn’t even try to avoid it, and soon he was covered in a layer of thick ice. Not one to be restrained, however, his eyes glowed red and his eye beams burst through the ice. Blossom avoided the laser that wasn’t really aiming at her anyway and came in from behind to catch him unawares.

Unfortunately, Butch was not bothered by the ice and burst out of it just as Blossom came in close. He managed to grab her ponytail and reel her in like a fish. The punch he landed on her jaw sent her spinning, and she hit a billboard advertising pet food right through Talking Dog’s face.

“Ha!!! Take that!” Butch dashed after her, and Boomer watched as Blossom peeled herself off the destroyed billboard and narrowly avoided a second pummeling. Butch hit the billboard and knocked the whole structure over like a falling domino. It was only Bubbles’ timely intervention that kept it from crashing on top of a Cooper’s Market.

Pink and green sped around each other as Butch chased Blossom. He fired his eye beams and his green energy beams in the hopes of hitting her at a distance, but she was quick and extremely precise in her movements in a way Boomer knew he himself was not, and Butch was even less coordinated than him. It was like watching Brick, he realized. Brick was so in control of his body, of every single minute movement he made, that it didn’t matter that he wasn’t physically as strong as Butch or as fast as Boomer. There was no surprising him or tripping him up, and Blossom was no different.

But did Butch know that?

“Stop running! I thought you were gonna give me the fight of my life, what happened? You scared?” Butch taunted as he tried to catch Blossom.

She was stony-faced as she avoided his grabs and his eye beams alike, but made no effort to return fire or respond.

“That’s risky,” Brick muttered.

“What’s risky?” Boomer asked.

“She’s trying to tire him out, hoping he’ll burn up all his X. But Butch has more reserves than you or me. His stamina’s even better than Buttercup’s.”

“That’s not what she’s doing,” Bubbles said.

Brick shot her a withering look like he couldn’t believe she dared to contradict him. “Oh, really?” he said sarcastically.

Bubbles didn’t even flinch. “Really.”

Brick scoffed and returned his attention to the fight.

“What’s the matter, Blossom! Get over here and fight me!”

Butch threw another punch that she artfully avoided. Pissed off, he shot at her with his eye beams, but Blossom swerved and struck him with the heel of her hand under the jaw. His eye beams went awry.

“Shit!” Buttercup said.

Brick was paying closer attention than Boomer, however, and intercepted the stray eye beams before they could strike anyone. His jacket sleeve smoked and sizzled where a new hole had opened up.

“Tch,” he said.

Butch shook himself out like a wet dog. He was bleeding from his mouth and his eyes were dilated, but he was still fighting fit. If he was wearing out, he was hiding it well. Boomer glanced at Bubbles.

“So what is Blossom doing?”

Bubbles looked more concerned than grim as she watched. “She’s feeling him out.”

“She’s making him mad,” Buttercup said.

Boomer winced. That didn’t sound like a good idea facing Butch. The guy was an unstoppable force when he was mad.

“But why—”

Crack!

Boomer whipped around just in time to see that Butch had finally landed another hit on Blossom and sent her flying out of control. She clutched her side as he sped after her, no longer laughing or taunting; he just wanted to finish her off now, it seemed. Beside Boomer, Brick sucked in an audible breath as he watched.

Butch wound up a punch. Blossom wasn’t moving to avoid. Boomer lost his mind.

“Watch out!” he screamed at her, unable to help himself.

Buttercup and Brick looked at Boomer like he’d grown another head. Butch caught up to Blossom, but just as his punch connected, she grabbed his wrist, spun gracefully behind him, and unleashed her eye beams at point blank range on the back of his neck.

Even Brick winced at that one.

“Fuck yeah!!” Buttercup shouted. “How’s that taste, Butch!”

Butch staggered in the air, his hands clutching his smoking neck. They came away bloody. Boomer didn’t miss the filthy look he shot Blossom.

“Forfeit,” Blossom called to him. “You can’t win.”

“Fuck you,” Butch spat. “I was going easy on you. No more.”

With a crackle of energy, Butch’s signature shield materialized around him. And then, he was after her again.

xxx

That’s it. She’s done, Brick thought to himself.

As soon as Butch brought out his shield, there was little and less to be done about it aside from waiting him out. Even Brick had trouble against him when he donned what was essentially impenetrable armor.

It was kind of a shame, really. She’d surprised him in this fight. Brick couldn’t recall her taking hits so well when they’d clashed in the past. Granted, that was years ago, but still.

He glanced at her sisters. They were still watching the fight, but they didn’t seem particularly deterred. Brick narrowed his eyes, and he considered.

Could she really…?

“Hiding behind your shield? How predictable,” Blossom taunted him, something Brick had rarely known her to do.

“I predict you’re about to eat shit!” Butch hurtled after her, but she danced ever out of reach.

His shield was truly something. It molded roughly to the shape of him, extending with his punches and folding with his blocks. It was a drain on his X reserves, but it was his best and only real defense.

Blossom couldn’t know this, though. Blossom had never fought Butch. But then, she was fast learning him with every punch, every dodge, every overreaction to her baiting.

Despite himself, Brick’s attention was fully arrested as he watched them. Even his migraine had subsided to a dull ache as he ignored it in favor of following the fight.

Blossom got in a good punch, but Butch’s shield was truly impenetrable, and all she got for her efforts was a crackle of jade sparks and a hurt fist. She immediately pulled back.

“That shield is so strong!” Bubbles said.

Buttercup grunted. Blossom didn’t try to hit Butch again, but he did his level best to strike her.

“Hey, is this what they call playing hard to get?” Butch sneered as he lobbed another punch at Blossom.

“I’m right here, Butch. Come and get me,” she taunted again.

What the hell is she playing at?

The Blossom Brick knew was not one to joke and jab, but the more she did it, the more riled up Butch got. She couldn’t possibly be trying to make him mad. That was suicidal for anyone who wasn’t Brick himself. And that shield…

“C’mon and give us a hug!” Butch sped after her, his only goal to grab her and crush her under the force of his shield. Sloppy and uncoordinated, but if he managed to grab her, that would be the end of it.

“What the—?!” Boomer sputtered.

Brick barely had time to be shocked as Blossom stopped her flight and spread her arms as if to hug Butch like he wanted. Brick was moving before he could process it, a command on the tip of his tongue, because no matter how much he despised Blossom, he couldn’t very well let his brother literally kill her.

Butch grabbed her before Brick could reach them, and Blossom flexed as she braced herself, her pink power manifesting like a second skin as Butch wrapped his meaty arms around her smaller frame with every intention of snapping her in half. Buttercup shouted something, but Brick couldn’t hear her over the racing wind in his ears as he tore after them, and then—

“F-F-Fuck!” Butch groaned.

His shield, his whole body was engulfed in preternatural ice as Blossom hugged him tight enough to break. Her arms were covered in ice that would not shatter no mater how much Butch struggled. He tried to fire off his eye beams, but she had ducked her head under his chin, safe from his fire. Impossibly, his green shield began to collapse as the ice and Blossom herself crushed him like a soda can.

They crash landed well away from the Shankaplex and any civilians just by the edge of the forest. Brick swooped down after them, the others not far behind. When he landed, he found Butch face down eating dirt and covered in chunks of ice, his shield completely dissipated, as Blossom towered over him. She had his wrists in her hands and her boot on the back of his head, grinding him further into the ground. Ice coated her arms like armor, and there was no mercy in her eyes.

“B-Blossom, babe, c’mon,” Butch said in what was meant to be a playful tone, but came out sounding like a whimper.

Blossom leaned down over him. “Call me babe again.” She drove her heel harder into the side of his head, sinking him deeper into the earth.

Butch struggled against her. He fired green energy beams from his palms, but Blossom pulled harder on his arms and sent them harmlessly awry.

“Let me be perfectly clear, Butch. You’re going to leave my sister alone for the rest of the month while you both recover.” She peered at him over her knee until his green eye swiveled to see her. “Tell me you understand.”

He grinned, and his teeth were a red ruin. “I don’t take orders from you—ah fuck!”

Blossom yanked his left arm back and dislocated it with a severe pop. She twisted the other one behind his back and hauled him up by his hair. “You do now.”

Her eyes glowed red, her hair was a windswept mess, and she had Butch—Butch, the fiercest fighter—on his fucking knees under her absolute control, and it was single-handedly the most beautiful sight Brick had ever seen in his life. It was perfect, and she was…

For a mad moment, he imagined her pinning him on his knees, her hand fisting his hair, exerting that control he had always pursued but never from her, until this moment.

“Brick, shouldn’t you…?” Boomer said.

Realizing she and Butch had an audience, Blossom looked up and locked eyes with Brick, and he shivered.

Oh hell.

“Hey, I like you on your knees,” Buttercup said, approaching Butch and Blossom. “Definitely your best angle.”

Butch spit blood and a piece of broken tooth. Nonetheless, he managed a smirk for her. “Next time, just ask.”

Blossom shoved him back into the dirt, and he promptly shut up.

Boomer sighed and floated over. “C’mon, dude. Let’s get you home.”

“I got it,” Butch complained, but he struggled to get to his feet.

“You seriously don’t. Can you even stand? Jesus.”

“Blossom!” Bubbles hugged her sister, who winced at the pressure.

“Bubbles, not so tight! I’m a little sore.” She smiled and brushed her bangs out of her eyes.

“You were amazing!”

Blossom grinned. “I know.”

“Serves you right, moron,” Buttercup said to Butch. “You’ll be pissing sitting down for a week.”

Boomer snorted as he looped Butch’s arm over his shoulder. “You got that right.”

“Ha ha, hilarious. Fuck you both,” Butch groused. His eyes flickered to Blossom, guarded.

“Brick? You coming?” Boomer asked.

Brick rubbed his mouth. He felt woozy. Bubbles shot him a curious look that he chose not to dwell on. “Take that idiot home. Make sure he doesn’t bleed all over the place.”

“Uh, right… What’re you gonna do?”

“I’m right behind you.”

His brothers flew off—or rather, Boomer flew and Butch dangled precariously from his shoulder. Finally, Brick turned his attention to Blossom.

“Blossom,” he said, his voice tight.

She looked up at him. “Brick.”

He swallowed, the image of her dominating Butch while she looked at him burned into his mind’s eye. So that was never going away… “Butch is my problem. Next time, you leave him to me.”

She regarded him, and so slowly he may have imagined it had he not been hyper-focused on her every movement, her lips curled in little smirk. “There’s not going to be a next time.”

In that moment, Brick had never felt so bewildered and so attracted to another person in his entire life. It was over all too soon as she showed him her back and spoke to her sisters. They were heading home. Like a fucking idiot, he just stood there, mind blown.

Did that really just happen?

Oh god, she was talking to him again. He blinked and tried to focus.

“What?” he said, fucking idiot that he was.

“The repairs. Look, I know you would rather chew glass than be around me, but you know the Mayor appreciates an in-person explanation and apology for this kind of damage. Are you coming, or do I have to tell him once again that you couldn’t be bothered?”

“No, I’m coming. I’ll talk to the Mayor with you.”

She peered at him like she didn’t quite recognize him. “All right… Thanks.”

xxx

That evening, after all was said and done and Boomer was showered and ready to go to Julie’s party, he gave Brick one more chance to come along instead of languor at home with a passed out Butch. The guy was out cold and would likely remain so for the next day after the beating Blossom had dealt him.

“You sure you don’t wanna come?” he asked.

Brick was lounging on the living room sofa where he had his nose in a Kurt Vonnegut novel. “No.”

“Everyone’s gonna be there, you know.”

“Great.” Ignore.

Boomer shrugged. “Wes and Kim, Mike, Robin, Bubbles, Harry, the Floyjoydson Twins.”

Brick grunted noncommittally.

Boomer adjusted his jacket and pretended not to watch Brick like a hawk. “Blossom too.”

Pause.

Brick’s gaze flickered over the top of his book to catch Boomer’s eye. “This isn’t some themed shit like that last one, is it?”

“Nope. Just friends, drinking games, the usual. But if your migraine’s still bugging you, I’d get you wanting to go to bed early—”

“I’ll go for an hour.” Brick closed his book and got up off the sofa.

“Cool. Cool cool cool…” It took every ounce of self control Boomer had in him not to smile at his brother’s expense.

Brick when to change his shirt, and Boomer pulled out his phone and texted Bubbles.

[Boomer: I think you’re right. He’s finally seen the light.]

[Bubbles: I told you! Did you see the way he was staring at her??? Shook.]

Boomer laughed.

“What’s so funny?” Brick asked as he reemerged in a button down shirt. Had he brushed his hair? Christ, he’d actually brushed his hair.

Shooketh.

Boomer grinned. “Nothing, man. Just looking forward to a fun night.”

“Whatever.”

They headed out, and Boomer trailed his brother’s red streak.

Something told him it would be a very fun night.

[onmywaytobe]

Writeblr Hunger Games Prompts 1 – 4

I decided to try something not like my usual style and go for a no-dialogue present-tense stream-of-consciousness type deal for these prompts! I’ve only done the first half so far bc I started thinking about it a little too seriously and I upset myself lol second half coming soon or maybe not at all depending on how I feel

Thanks @whgmasterofceremonies​ for putting this all together, I’m excited to see what happens in the arena! Although I’m gonna be real sad when my kiddos die lol at least they stay alive in their own canon for the most part. PLUS I’ve found some new super cool writeblr friends to follow and really, that’s all that matters!

Anyway, enjoy my take on the prompts!

The Big Day

Margot puts on her best dress and braids her hair carefully. She wishes she could wear it the way she likes, long and loose, but her parents insist that she cleans up a little. At least if her hair is out of her face, it’s easier for her to think. Having her hair up makes her feel like she’s about to go to work. She focuses on the little things to distract from the fact that it’s her last ever Reaping. So she braids her hair, polishes her glasses, smooths down the fabric of her dress. One last time, she reminds herself, and tries not to think of the odds that her name gets pulled. It had happened to her best friend; it could happen to her too.

Logan thinks he looks too pale in his father’s somber black suit. This is the first year he’s been tall enough to wear it, and he hates how much it ages him. He’s seventeen, and already bored with the whole affair. He’s the son of one of the richest families in town, and that’s saying something in District 5. He knows there’s only one slip of paper with his name on it; the odds are in his favor, like they have been every year. He’s already thinking about when he can take the itchy suit off and celebrate the start of another Hunger Games with his friends. The best part about the Games was the parties. The Games themselves were a little too real. 

The Reaping

Margot stands at the back of the crowd with the other eighteen-year-olds. She clenches her fists in her skirt, wishing she had Diana’s hand to hold. But Diana’s name was the one pulled from the bowl last year, when the colorful Capitol representative said “Ladies first.” Margot keeps her head down, as if that will keep her safe. She’s barely listening, and she thinks she misheard the first tribute’s name. But the nudges in her side are unmistakable, and her brain fogs over as she begins the slow walk up to the stage. The name called was her own.

Logan feels like he’s been punched when he hears that Margot is the first tribute. No one volunteers for her, but no one ever does. He never liked watching the Games much; his father enjoyed them too much, and Logan could never help but wonder if he would still be as excited if his son were one of the tributes. This year, he wouldn’t have to wonder. His name was the second one called. Soon, he was standing on the stage beside Margot, shaking her hand. Now he felt sick for a different reason. He would have to kill the girl he loved.

The Visit

Margot is shuffled off the stage into the town hall to wait. Her parents bid her goodbye and give her a medallion that they say will help her be safe. All three of them are numb. They hold each other as long as they can. A few of Margot’s other friends visit her as well, but it’s hard for them to say goodbye. They start to blur together; Cam, Owen, Fabian, Kendra. She notes that it’s the first time she’s seen them cry. Maybe she’s crying herself, she can’t really tell. She tries to stay strong, like Diana did. Nothing seems real.

Logan’s only visitors are his parents. They aren’t prone to shows of emotion, so they stand a small distance apart and give him advice. He’s not listening to their vague platitudes. His mind is with Margot. He’d always said that he could win the Games. What child didn’t make the same brag to their peers? But the cost of winning has never seemed as high as it does now. He remembers a neighbor of his who won the Games a few years back. Hopefully he would be a helpful mentor. He lives with another victor now, seems to have a normal life with her. Logan hopes it could be that easy for him.

The Train Ride

Margot had always wanted to go to the Capitol, but not like this. At least she was with Diana again. Diana had won her Games, and Margot could only hope to live up to the legacy. She sits with Diana on the train, smiling for the first time since she’d been reaped. Diana starts talking strategy, while the other mentors look on. Her boyfriend Simon sits next to her, a fellow mentor. Margot wishes that Logan would stop looking at her like that. She doesn’t want to get too close, now that they’re on their way to die. But they can’t help but talk. She recognizes him from school; he likes the library as much as she does. He’s an only child, just like her. Before all this, she probably would have considered him a friend. Now, she is willing to be his ally once they get into the Arena, but no more. She knows the odds aren’t in her favor, and she would need all the help she could get. But she also knows the odds of her needing to kill him eventually are too high to get emotionally invested.

Logan is worried about Margot. She’s brilliant, but from what he can tell she’s not much of a fighter. The Games can be won with brains alone, and it always helps to be underestimated, but he still wants to protect Margot however he can. Of course, he’s not much of a fighter either. He sees the way Simon looks at Diana; of course the boy he knew was in love with Margot’s best friend. Logan squashes the hope that one day he would get to look at Margot like that. That both of them could possibly get out of this alive. He’s heard rumors that there are ways to sneak out of the Games, but the Capitol is controlling, and he wouldn’t want to put his family in danger by going against them. He’s lucky that one of the mentors for District 5 is Brian Percival, the oldest surviving victor of the Games. He has coached several other tributes to success. Logan wants to continue the winning streak, but doesn’t know if he has it in him.

Prompts 5-8

[curlyshepards]

Look, Pony and Curly have a day, where they have a little mini picnic at Pony's favorite spot to watch a sunset, and then after a while Curly just leans on Pony as Pony starts reading. And at certain points of the book he'll stop Pony and just ask random little questions.

I don’t ship purly but this was super cute and inspired me except I tweaked it a lil bc im a hoe for angst!!!! still, thank you for giving me inspiration after my mental dry spell and I hope you like it regardless!! (also idk if read more will appear for mobile users who follow me so if it doesn’t, I apologize)

It was always the same, this time of year. Never any easierand yet not all the way as bad.

Three years and the brink of winter, the last of autumnshowcasing the ground around them, almost but not-quite-there-yet dead leavescrunching underneath their sprawled bodies. It was only pushing six, but thesun was already beginning to set, casting an orange glow across Ponyboy’s face.

Puberty had hit the kid hard sometime in the middle of highschool. It was almost an overnight change—to Curly, at least. One day he was theCurtis baby, all doe-eyed and lost and vulnerable and helpless after the lossof his best friend and the seemingly never-ending court case. It was unnatural to seetheir kind go before a judge and leave still a free man. Tim had sworn they’dfind something to pin on the kid, yet he walked out innocent. A fuckin’defiance of nature. But then he was Curtis, baby, and his lips were attached tothe junction of Curly’s neck outside of Jay’s diner, where damn near anyonecould see them and hand them their asses. His long fingers gripped his curls,tugged, grinned at the older boy’s startled groan and Curly thought yeah, fuckthat judge, ain’t nothing innocent about this kid.

Ponyboy lets out a content sigh as Curly rests his head onhis lap. Both boys lay on their backs, basking in the last of the sun beforethe nightly breeze set in and Curly would have to fight his boyfriend for hisleather jacket—that was currently serving as Ponyboy’s makeshift pillow—back. Fornow, he was comfortable enough to watch the steady rise and fall of his chestand pretend that things were okay.

“Thanks for coming with me,” Pony mumbles, absentmindedly twirlinghis fingers through Curly’s hair. His voice cracks, all raspy and tired fromthe near hour-long silence that had stretched between them. He never had beenmuch of a talker, that was Curly’s role, but with the changing seasons broughtan even quieter version of himself, more introspective than anything. The firsttime, Curly had tried to get in his mind, tried to get him to talk, tried tofind answers in Darry. But this was Ponyboy and what he didn’t want to give,Curly wouldn’t take. It was better that way. Still, Curly hated that annualwedge being driven between him and his boyfriend.

Curly sighs quietly and reaches up, finding the fingers inhis hair and pulling them away, tangling them together on Pony’s thigh. “Thanksfor letting me.”

Thanks for not pushing me away this time. Thanks for includingme. Thanks for letting me see this side of you. Curly sneers. For better or forworse, right? His words had enough of an edge that they forced a flinch out ofPonyboy. Curly’s eyes are closed, but he can feel his boyfriend retract intohimself and he sighs. “I know it ain’t easy, baby.” Then again, nothing isthese days.

“Just miss ‘im.” Ponyboy gets defensive, like Curly will ripinto the memory of Johnny Cade the moment he gets his hands on it. “Wouldaturned nineteen this year.”

“I know.” And God, does he know. I know you miss him. I know youwere best friends, that he understood you in a way no one else did, was therefor you in a way no one else could have been. I know his death changed you,that the one person who kept you soft was taken away. I know that you lovedhim. Just fucking admit it, it’s killing me inside.

Curly wills the confession like a prayer. But just like God,Ponyboy isn’t listening.  

“Nineteen.” He repeats. “Sometimes I forget he was just akid.”

Kid was a loose term. The guys on their side of the trackshad been forced into maturity a little too early. Legally, yeah, they were justkids back then, but Curly couldn’t remember a time he had ever felt like one.

Curly almost swears, because he’s never been one for heartto hearts and this is foreign territory. But then this was his boyfriend, the boy who’d been on his ass aboutcommunicating and trust and then turns around a few months later just to shuthim the hell out, forcing him into the endless tug-of-war between what he should do and what he wants to do.

“When—” He stops what he should be doing, because he doesn’t know if this is theroute he wants to take, if this will effectively drive his point, if it’s evenworth it anymore. Maybe they could makeout instead, he could just get Ponyboy’smind off of things. The area he’d brought Curly to was secluded enough thatthey hadn’t seen a single living thing since they’d gotten there—unless youcount the bear that Curly swears he saw through the trees, but he won’t bringthat up again unless he wants to start another fight.

Fuck it, he decides, Ponyboy needs to hear this.

“When Dallas died, Tim came to see me out in reform school.Knew it was bad the minute I saw him, he never just visits, you know? There’salways something. But, anyway, wanna know what he said?” Curly opens his eyes to lookat his boyfriend, just to find those green eyes already staring back at him. Soopen and so easy to get lost in. He loses his train of thought and decides tobacktrack, swallowing thickly.

“I was a mess, don’ know why I took it so hard, but I did.Tim did, too, I could see it, but he wouldn’t talk about it. And I said, ‘Whatthe hell do we do now?’ and he gives me that look, you know, like I was anidiot for even asking.” Curly takes another breath. “He said we keep going,because what the hell else can we do? But I don’t think that means we gottamove on, baby, we just gotta keep living for the ones that didn’t.”

He stops there, for good this time, because if he says one more word he mightthrow up, and he thinks if his brother ever heard the goddamn speech that justcame out of his mouth, he’d be sent home with a black eye.

Ponyboy isn’t Tim, though. He’s a far fucking stretch, andinstead of decking him in the face he rubs his thumb along the back of hishand, fingers tightening almost instinctively.

“Tim’s got a way with words.” Pony smirks.

Curly shrugs, “There when you need him to be.”

If Pony disagrees, he doesn’t say it. Instead he leans overto dig in his backpack, pulling out that infamous copy of Gone with the Wind,the one he always carried around with him this time of year, like a bad habithe just can’t break. Its’ pages are crumpled, corners folded and chapters marked.

The book dangles lazily from his hand, pointer finger tuckedalmost possessively between the pages and running along the note written inside.Curly had read it enough times that he could picture the nurse’s mercilessscribble. A dead kid’s soliloquy.

If it had been Curly up in that hospital bed, skin blisteredto hell, he doubts he would have wasted some of his last breaths on a note likethat. He’d focus on the important things, not making sure Dallas Winston wouldwatch a sunset in honor of his death. He didn’t understand the depths of it, probablynever would, but he racked that up to just being Ponyboy and Johnny.

“Johnny let me read this to him back in Windrixville.” There’sa small smile on Pony’s face. His eyes, though, are distant, filled withexhaustion that seems too heavy for a seventeen-year-old. “Knew it was one ofmy favorites, and it helped pass the time. Sometimes I’d try to get him toread, but he didn’t like it real much, so it was usually me.”

Pony flips through the pages and Curly watches. He noticesthat the first half of the book is worse off than the other, like he’d never quitebeen able to get that far, always stopping before it’s supposed to be over. And people might call Curly an idiot, but the irony wasn’t lost on him.

He shifts so that his head is on Ponyboy’s stomach. Thesky is a soft orange by now, and it’ll be dark real soon, but he decides hewants one more thing before they leave.

“Read it to me.”

It’s not a question or a request, but Pony knows that if hedoesn’t want to then he doesn’t have to. And Curly thinks, even just for asecond, that he’d have every right to refuse. Instead Pony just tilts his headto the side, looking at the curly haired boy close his eyes. “You said booksain’t your thing.”

“They ain’t,” Curly replies, wishing his boyfriend wasn’tsuch a know-it-all. It’s a disease, he swears, but he smirks nonetheless andpeeks an eye open at Ponyboy, “But you are.”  

Seconds pass and it’s quiet between them, long enough thatCurly starts doubting himself. Maybe he had stepped too far, maybe this was asentiment he’d do just fine staying out of, maybe he needs to learn thatwhatever it was between Ponyboy and Johnny, whether something was there or it’sall just his own jealousy, he needs to let go. Because he’s the one here, afterall. Picking up the pieces of a boy that Cade had left behind.

But then Ponyboy is smiling. It’s small and shy but it’sthere and every thought of Johnny flees his mind. Curly pushes himself up on anelbow and leans over, pressing his lips to Pony’s in a soft kiss. They part andtheir foreheads press together, the smile still on his boyfriend’s face as hegives a small nod.

“Yeah, okay.”

Curly grins in response, gives in to the urge of one morekiss before laying his head back down, settling himself in for the story.

They spend what little time of sunlight left reading, Pony’smelodic voice flowing through the air. Curly, for the most part, keeps quiet,only butting in when he doesn’t understand a word—The hell’s that mean?—or wantshim to repeat something simply because he likes the way it sounds coming out ofPonyboy’s mouth.

Neither of them speak after the reading stops, choosinginstead to lay there in silence through the better half of the night. It’s notCurly’s usual scene, but it’s something Ponyboy needs, and he reckons it reallycould be worse.

And, even if it’s for a brief second, he wonders if DallasWinston ever had someone to show him a sunset.  

[yxcnghq-blog]

good fuckin yard my guys gals and non binary pals !! i’m admin c and this is my messy disaster gay problem child jooseok. below the cut you’re gonna find out a loT about his tragic ass and if you hit the like button if i haven’t already, i’ll hit you up for plotting !! i’ll give a few ideas of connections on the end of this too since i’m gonna update and redo his plot page sfngn bUT let it be known i also mun aurora, euchan and emrys so i may have also messaged you for plotting on one of those acc’s, if so don’t worry i will ensure to give you the chance to plot with all my babies !! without further ado: 

jooseok is the son of a mob family, they’re very well established in the criminal world. his parents are yeong dami and yeong joohyuk. however it is dami who actually runs the game and is the head bitch in charge shall we say, not to bring feminist agenda joo to life but as u can imagine due to this he has hella respect for women esp his mother bc of the strength he observed in her growing up. he thinks women are stronger and better at survival bc of learning through his ma and being trained by her. 

so he was raised of course in the family gang, raised in crime and never really knew any other way to live. when he reached seventeen he was initiated officially into the gang meaning his role became more full time and his responsibility became larger. he dropped out of college after his first two years there to accomodate for this and so his education wasn’t the finest but he was homeschooled for a long time before he got too old as the gang considered it and he no longer had time for it. plus he was of the belief he knew enough about how the world worked through the observation of the good and ugly alone. 

he does have a younger sister who he considers his entire world and he also has a brother of around the same age as him. the family dynamic is a little complex, he’d kill without hesitation for both his siblings despite the fact that his brother and himself often don’t agree or see eye to eye on anything, they bicker and give each other shit but they’d never turn their backs on each other. these are wanted connections i will eventually put on the list so they can be filled out also. 

he’s considered an infiltrator and a double agent as his main job titles for the gang so right now he works undercover in the police force helping the wrongly accused escape a life of jail time and prove their innocence when the justice system fails them. occasionally he’s put in charge of strategy too and he is very very respected within the gang for being the youngest and yet the most skilled who rose to his tasks very quickly for his age and became the best at what he does at an alarmingly quick rate, he’s actually pretty well known for having the reputation of being the youngest to climb the ranks and gain status like this. 

he could actually have been the boss of the gang with the amount of tasks and dirty work he takes on

HOWEVER...

jooseok has a huge secret and this is that recently he’s started attending college again and taken on night classes to study law and learn more about the police force so he can become a genuine crime detective. he is also undertaking training for the police force. 

the lifestyle and career of the police force has always been his dream and his goal but with his limited education it was never something he could achieve alongside his gang life. this is why he jumped at the chance to at least do something undercover with the police and despite playing dirty cop, use it to do something good, vigilante like if you will. 

joo can’t keep his secret forever though, his gang are getting wind of what’s going on and soon he’s going to have to go into hiding. despite the gang being his family, hits will be issued on him until he is eliminated and killed. simply put he is considered a traitor the minute he gives up gang life, and he knows far too much to simply be allowed to walk free possibly giving away all their secrets and intel. because it is a family business there are severe consequences for him turning away from what is considered his duty and responsibility.

joo = big be gay, do crime type energy. he’s abrasive and amoral but he’s also nurturing and naturally smart and talented at everything he puts his passion into. he’s resourceful and crazy adaptable and he’s equal parts a protector as much as he is a fighter. he can be broody and blunt but he can also be witty and hilarious with his dark sense of humor and somewhat messed up mind and moral code. if you’re considered close to jooseok then he’ll kill half the population of daegu easy with his own hands with no worries so long as you’re safe. 

he worked undercover in america for a year so he can speak english and went by the shortened name of jo over there but most people call him seok or ong in korea to shorten his name to a nickname. he’s fluent in his english, jooseok is well known for being a quick learner in every area if u know what i mean *side eyes*

can be a bit of a fuckboy but has a big heart deep down despite it all, just keeps it concealed because of past toxic relationships and the belief taught into him from early on that any attachment to anything you don’t owe it to, would only result in weakness and vulnerability. and you don’t want people to know you have weaknesses when you do what jooseok does. *coughs* for this reason he has had a lot of pining and unrequited love situations *coughs* 

he’s not that close with his parents, he keeps a strictly professional relationship with them mostly but his mum is his idol for her mentality and attitude to life. though he wishes he could achieve more than what she allowed for him to be a part of. wishes he could be normal. 

OTHER LIL HEADCANONS: 

joo joined the gang officially at seventeen when the initiation process took place and this was the time he met hyunjin ( @phyunjinn​ ) also known as his best friend and right hand man. they quickly became partners in the gang for everything, if joo had business to deal with especially the dangerous kind then nate would be by his side, acting as his protection for anyone who dared cross him and likewise he would give the same back. think kinda like alec and jace i guess as a good example with the whole parabatai bond aspect. they fight the best when they’re fighting together, and if one of them died, a huge piece of the other would die with them. 

at first joo actually refused to talk to nate cause he’s a lil shit and he didn’t get why it should be important but dami urged her son, pointing out they were of similar ages and being initiated at the same time and it was important to have someone he could talk to and rely on like that. so he sidled his way over eventually and pretty easily and nonplussed like made a best friend out of the other male. they grew to have a secret code of trust between them, joo learning sign language for the male to put him at ease and also ordering the rest of the gang did the same despite complaints he quickly shut that shit down arguing they needed to be able to communicate with nate in his way to ensure his safety faster if need ever be. ( but for him personally, he learnt because he wanted to be able to talk to nate in the way that comes most naturally to the male ) 

in college he’s considered a soft jock type, heart of gold but he’s very physically attractive and a bit of a heart throb and definitely considered sporty despite also being very musically driven. 

PLOT IDEAS: 

joo needs some college friends, musically talented people he can consider study buddies, he was actually almost an idol once when he nearly signed on with a company because of how musically talented he is as a producer and songwriter - typically he only writes for close friends and always ensures the lyrics feel truthful and genuine to his friend’s stories but yeah give me people he is encouraged by with that and just able to be himself with. 

friends from america potentially as well

other criminal underground kinda connections bc u know keeps business thriving to link up with other famously dangerous people and work together. 

i would so love a good cop,bad cop type thing where someone who he’s on the police force with or is also training to be in the police force with him is genuine and legit and knows he isn’t and is kinda like shunning tf outta him for it but also trying to teach him how to be better without even realizing it and sort of having their mind changed on how simple good and bad is bc actually there is kind of a grey area which joo belonged to. 

ex’s of course 

as much as i love friends who don’t know about joo’s other life, i’d also love some friends who did and were hella concerned bc like siren noises what is this boi doing he’s gonna get himself killed and does he even cAre bc he fuckin should

roomies plssss 

enemies and rivals are always welcome too maybe ppl who dislike him for turning away from the crime life and going straight or whatever rlly i also rlly like the idea of someone who sort of admired him and has a personal grudge bc he was so good at being a criminal and he made such a legacy and then he just abandoned it and they feel he wasted it or something

[stereotypcd]

 ooc;; here’s PART ONE the second part is coming soon, I’d love to hear what u guys think of it so hmu if u wanna if not thats cool too. i put it under a read more bc holy fuck it’s long.

A FEW DAYS BEFORE MOVING INTO HER GRANDPARENTS HOUSE:

She wakes up alone. The only sound is her heartbeat, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten. Counting the beats of her heart was something, Debbie has done the moment she learned her numbers ( and how to talk ) it took 2,130 heartbeats for Mama and Daddy to get home. They said she was finally old enough to stay at camp alone, inside the comvee of course. While they went to film animals, they were trying to get Daddy’s show back ( which they had been doing and failing since Debbie turned two years old. ) Twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen- rubbing the sleep from her eyes, eighteen, swinging her body to the edge of the bed, nineteen, climbing the ladder and opening the door to the top level of the comvee. Twenty.

Hazel hues glance up at the note pinned to the fridge, not ever bothering to open it, because she knew it would empty. WENT FILMING. BE BACK BY LUNCH, STAY IN THE COMVEE AND DRINK PLENTY OF WATER, AND TAKE YOUR NAP- LOVE YOU, SWEETHEART. But they had left a few water bottles since out in the desert dehydration was no laughing matter, where the sun could drain the life from your veins in mere seconds. A bowl of leftover noodles on the table, they had been eating plain noodles for two weeks straight, it was to the point where just seeing it made her stomach turn. But she would shovel it down, hardly even tasting it. It was better than starving to death. Debbie learned to not voice her discomforts, it only caused more problems. She knew her parents were doing the best they could given the situation. Sitting around doing nothing all day made Debbie restless and put her on edge. she cleaned she decided to clean up a bit, it was fairly easy to clean up since the comvee was a compact space, so there wasn't a need for a vacuum, a broom, and dustpan could do the same amount of work. ( of course, it was a bit more time consuming. ) So she swept the floor, emptied the contents out outside, and walked back to the comvee to finish the chores ( plus the extra things she added on. ) she was finishing up the last chore, the remaining dishes, dipping her hands in again, wincing, a loud cry escapes her throat, eyes shimmering with tears, dark red staining the soapy water, a large gash down the palm of her hand. It took Debbie almost ten minutes to stop sobbing and to bandage the wound and finished washing the dishes. Being extra careful to not cut herself again. The blonde sits the dishes in a rack to dry, wiping her arms and pushing her hair out of her eyes. She was proud of herself for getting everything done in time for her nap. Things were going pretty good today, well besides the sharp pains in her stomach. It was getting harder to ignore the empty, gnawing, painful feelings in her stomach, Mama called it hunger pains. Crawling into her bed, small arms wrapped tightly around her stomach, she was supposed to be taking a nap. But it was hard when it felt like someone was twisting a knife into her stomach, squeezing her eyes shut and forcing herself to try and sleep through the pain. Counting the beating of her heart while she drifted toward sleep. She dreams of French fries. Hot, golden and greasy. Greedily stuffing them into her mouth. She wanted dozens. Boxes full, enough to never be hungry again, feeling the tastes explode against her tongue. She dreams of food as her stomach growls and her muscles clenched and a whimper escapes chapped lips.

Then, she woke up.

Debbie woke up more hungry than when she went to sleep. Debbie was so use to those dreams that the throbbing pain in her head, along with the emptiness in her stomach were almost too normal for the 4 year old. Mouth bone dry, sweaty blonde locks sticking to her forehead, vision slightly blurry, pulling her legs against her and wrapping her arms around her them. Hazel hues land upon the air conditioner, fingers hovering over the on the button, licking dry lips. Pulling her arm away, wiping the sweat ( or tears ) from her eyes. After a few more minutes of sitting curled into herself, Debbie decided it was time to get up. Swinging her legs over the edge, a shark band-aid across her knee from when she fell chasing an aardvark around camp yesterday. ( which Nigel had a spend a hour and half talking about ) Debbie smiled at the memory, there were good things among the bad if you looked hard enough.

They came home looking worn and sweaty as Mama shuffled up the comvee steps holding a strange looking box that she wouldn't let Debbie see. She was forced to sit outside with Daddy, he doesn't notice the bandage wrapped around her hand or if he had he never says anything. Debbie preferred it that way, she didn't want to add any more stress upon her daddy ( and mama’s ) shoulders. But at least he had gotten fruit for lunch... Even it was kiwi ( it had been the cheapest thing at the market ), ”Sorry, Sunflower. I know how you aren't too fond of kiwi, but next time I'll get the biggest and shiny apple I can find.” The blonde smiled, swallowing down the last bit of fruit, Daddy kissed her cheek and went to check on Mama. Debbie emptied her stomach and covered it with sand, shame burned through her and her hands shake. Hazel hues scanned the surrounding area, no animals or her parents in sight, her stomach rolled. ( Mariann checks the test again. Checks the box to make sure she's reading it correctly. No, oh God, please no! Beside her, Nigel looks it over as well, and her stomach clenches. “It’ll be already, dearest.” Nigel kisses her forehead. ) Later when Debbie was in the bathroom washing her hands she found the little stick with a + on it, when she asked her Mama what it meant she started crying and Daddy rubbed her back and muttered things she couldn't understand.

LATE AFTERNOON:

“We can’t keep living like this, Nigel.”

“I know, dearest.” Rubbing a hand over his knuckles. ”Our show is nearly back, that film of the Wildebeest seems to have caught their attention and they said they would start funding our show again... if- if we kept filming.” Nigel raked a hand through his ponytail, wrong. That was so wrong. This is about his children and their happiness, not his. Nigel knew he was fooling himself into beliving if they kept going that things would get better, that they would have the show back. Debbie wouldn’t have to go hungry again, but weeks turned to months and then to years- Debbie was 2 years old when they begin filming and she’s 4 years old now. It was time to face the facts that the show wasn’t coming back and he hated himself for how blind he had been to not only himself but his wife and most of all to Debbie. His precious little sunflower. “Debbie deserves a better childhood then this-“ A hand reaches up to muffle a sob. “And,” she paused. Resting a hand atop her stomach. “I’m pregnant.” The words came out small and hushed like she didn't even want to hear the words. “I don’t want to bring another baby into this world not knowing if we can properly care for it.” Nigel remained silence, letting his wife vent out her feelings. She clearly needed this. “Just barely scraping by, we can hardly keep ourselves fed... Let alone Debbie. This isn't how a child should grow up.” Living day to day wasn’t how they wanted to raise their children, it wasn’t right. It wasn’t fair to anyone. ”Perhaps it is time we set down roots, for the sake of children.” This was about Debbie’s and their future baby’s wellbeing. They deserved a chance at a normal and stable childhood... They had already in slow ways ruined Debbie's. They had been incredibly selfish and they can never fix it. “I’m calling my mother tomorrow.” A laugh left her throat. “She’s been nagging us for years about moving back in with her and Dad.” Nigel nodded, he remembers. She wipes her eyes. Mariann was a bit bitter her mother always nagging about her job about how she was raising her child.... it was so frustrating. This is for the children, his is for the children, this is for the children. She kept repeating that phrase over and over in her head.

Ear pressed against the thin door, she knew she was supposed to be in the shower since it was her bath time, but her parents have been acting weird since they got home. A baby? A heavyweight settles against her chest, suddenly it was growing harder to breathe, trying to catch her breath. She couldn't, though, and her hands clenched. Her heart had sped up wildly and she couldn't seem to get it to calm at all. Something was horribly, horribly wrong. Her chest hurt, and she couldn't breathe and everything - it took her a few minutes to come down from it, and then there was nothing but exhausted crying. Slowly but surely her breathing because soft and her hands weren't shaking anymore, but that heavyweight atop her chest never seemed to fade. Mama was having a baby?

———

“Sweetheart, dinner will be—“ She froze, eyes wide and still clinging to the door like it were a lifeline. “Debbie. What's wrong?” Mariann already knew what was wrong and it broke her heart. The sound of her Mama's soft voice drags her from her thoughts. “N’tin’ jus’ sleepy...” Voice horse and small. Down on her knees in seconds, grabbing her baby into a tight hug combing slender fingers through golden locks. “Shhh, it’s alright. Mama’s got you.” A feeling of dread settled in the pit of her stomach, she felt worthless as a mother, like she failed her... Which she guessed she did, in a way. The guilt only ate away at her when blue hues landed on the bandage wrapped around her small hand, a spot of dark, crusted over blood seeped through, the air had been sucked from her lungs, eyes watering. Her hand. What happened to her hand? Mariann didn’t ask questions about how she got it, because like everything else she already knew. She cleaned the cuts, dressed it with fresh bandages and kissed her hand. “I’m so sorry, baby. Mama is so sorry.” Voice soft, heavy breathing and sobs escaping her Mama, gripping her Mama’s arm, the embrace was warm and soft and Debbie never wanted to leave. An unknown feeling settled in Debbie’s heart, it was all twisted and she didn’t understand why she felt this heavyweight in her heart and atop her shoulders. Was this her fault? A few moments later the sobs turned to whimpers and soon she was calm again. Mariann held her and curled up into the bed, told her about the animals the had filmed today. They stayed like that until dinner was ready.

They had dinner around 6pm, it was white rice and molasses ( which helps to sweeten the plain rice a bit ) Debbie hated how the molasses felt going down her throat, it sticks to the roof of her mouth and teeth and feels heavy in her stomach like swallowing bricks. But she ate because it made the hunger pains go away. Plus had the benefit of filling her up faster, which is probably why it was for dinner. Daddy let mama and Debbie eat first while he put the dishes away, Mama was silent doing most of the dinner. Hazel hues glanced up from her half-empty plate, stuffing a spoon full into her mouth. “I saw a pretty horsey t’day, it had, like, black and white strips.” Muttering with a mouth full. Mama looked up, a tired smile slowly crossing her lips a laugh leaving her throat. “That’s wonderful, sweetheart. But it’s called a zebra.” Debbie’s face lit up a wide smile, one of her front teeth was missing. “Zeb-r.” The word felt funny leaving her mouth. “You should go tell Daddy, I know he’ll be happy to hear that.” The blonde nodded. “But finish your dinner first.” She didn’t need to be told twice, she devoured it into minutes. While she was getting up from the table she noticed Mama had hardly touched hers, she frowned. Crossing her arms and planting herself back into her seat. “You gotta, like, eat, Mama.” Debbie looked her straight in the eyes ( which was something Debbie never really did. ) She wanted to prove her point that she needed to eat too. She watched her eat a few spoon fulls, a twitch of a smile crossed her face. “Good.” Giving a nod, before running off to tell her Daddy about the horsey, er, zebra.

LATER THAT NIGHT ( 7pm ):

It was a warm night, Mama had gone to bed the moment dinner was finished, she had helped Daddy put the dishes away. It was nice. She told him about the zebra and he rambled off facts about the said animal, every once in a while his eyes would linger on the bandage around her hand, Debbie knew he was chomping at the bit to ask her about it. But the words never left his throat, which Debbie was thankful for, she was far too exhausted to try and explain it. Once everything was put away and Debbie was in her footy pjs, Daddy took her up to the roof of the comvee to look at the stars. Hazel hues watched stars speed past eyes her, it was like someone had poured salt against very dark cloth. Curled up against her Daddy, apple in hand, rubbing a thumb across the smooth texture of the apple, it had warmed a bit in her hands. Finally, after a few moments the blonde raised it to her lips and took a huge bite out of it, shimming a put at the sweet taste of it, Daddy smiles down at her. “I’m glad you’re enjoying it, Poppet.” They continued like that throughout the night, pointing out various constellations until Debbie couldn’t keep her eyes open. Glancing down to the sleeping 4 year old wrapped up his arms, an apple lay forgotten still clenched between small fingers. “Don’t worry, Poppet, ” he whispers, eyes glossy with unshed tears. Placing a kiss, softly atop her forehead. ”Things- Things are going to be better... I promise.” He swore on his life that he would fix this, make sure Debbie grow up never being hungry or scared again. He wouldn’t let his baby girl suffer. Never again.

———

THE NEXT MORNING:

The camp was set up near a stream where they could get water and take baths, but it had dried up. It just happened to be the dry season in the Savanna meaning most of the plants shrivel up and die and sometimes the rivers and streams dry up, leaving behind dry cracked earth baking in the sun. A lot of the animals migrate to find food. Which was also what Daddy went to do since they had no water and food ( Debbie had eaten the last of the rice for breakfast, which made her feel guilty over because Mama and Daddy hadn’t eaten ) left Daddy had to go to the market early before the sun had even rose, he always said it was best plus the drive/hike there was long. It was just Mama and Debbie left to stay at camp and wait for him to return, it was hard because Debbie was so, so thirsty. Golden locks flapping in a sudden gust of heated wind. For a moment, everything was still and peaceful. Tired hazel hues flicked up to the face of her Mama, she looked worn and stressed. She swallowed it was like eating sandpaper, licking chapped lips.

Her mouth was so dry, tongue sticking to the room of her mouth. ”thirsty.” The words were forced from an aching throat, while Mama combed slender fingers through golden locks. ”I know, baby. Your father should be home soon.” Daddy has left early in the morning before the sun was even awake, he wanted to her to the market before everything was taken. They would need to have enough food to make the trip to Mariann’s parent’s house which would take a week or more.

A pause.

”Why don’t you try and get some rest.” Giving a weak nod, shutting glossy eyes. She was fighting off the tears she knew would fall if she kept trying to force words from dry lips. Debbie was just glad they had leftover rice from last night so at least, her stomach was full. Kind of, Debbie was never really full just enough to take the edge off of her growling stomach… Just enough to keep her alive. Debbie dreamed of laying on her back, hair flowing around like a helo, in a large body of water, the sea, she could taste the salt water on her lips. ( don’t drink the water, sweetheart ) the sun beating down against her skin, eyes lazily shutting a sigh of peacefulness leaves her lips. shoulders slacking, her whole body trying to jelly- the stress seemed to melt away in seconds. A wide smile reaches chapped lips, tiny hands dip under the clear water, cupping the water and raising it to her lips only for it to slip through her fingers. She tried again, but still, it spilled from her hands.

Tears well up, eyes glossy. Her breath hitching on a sob. No. No. No! She tried again but it ended the way. Warm tears spill freely down red cheeks. Again and again and again and again and again- “Deb-“ A Voice broke through the fog of the nightmare, it was her Mama. “Wake up, sweetheart.” Hazel hues snapped open and she jolts upright, chest heaving. “You were having a bad dream.” Blinking, once, twice. Her cheeks were wet. The nightmare was quickly forgotten when she heard her Daddy walking up to camp. “Hello, poppet!” The blonde jumped up, almost tripping over her own feet. rushing into her Daddy’s full arms. “Oof- it’s nice to see you too.” A bark of a laugh reached his throat. Mariann followed after her, a smile across her lips.  

Nigel placed a kiss to the top of her head, sitting the bags down. Wiping an arm his wife. Nigel reached back and handed each of them a water bottle, Debbie’s eyes lit up like a kid in a candy store. Hungrily twisting the cap off with her teeth, guzzling it down in three breaths, the plastic cheaking. Cooling her burning throat. Still gripping the bottle, almost scared that if she let go she’d never get water again. She knew that was a lie because Mama and Daddy would never let that happen. Her body desperately craving for more, the dry air was already beginning to dry out her mouth, she snapped it shut. Hazel hues glance up to Mama, she looks tired. Debbie instantly feels a stab of guilt clenching her insides, she should have saved some for Mama. Why didn’t she save some? Why was she so greedy and stupid? The blonde bites down on her quivering lip. ( She doesn’t realize there are more bottles. )

[briteboy]

okay i’m gonna be real with you. i have...a LOT...of messages. going as far back as like...january? probably? i know...i’m so bad...don’t crucify me. i tried to get through all of them but there were a lot that i didn’t have a worthwhile reply for so i’m sorry if i didn’t answer something you sent :{

so here we have: a lot of nice things, a lot of santisms, reactions to the lou and cillian punchout, a few responses to my portfolio and other stuffs...i wanted to put astrology asks in at the end but it’s...a lot more than i thought it was and it’s 3 am so i’d rather die than answer all of those LMAO sorry. i’ll get to it next time

Anonymous said:

u can delete the snorting cum asks but it will still follow you for eternity

okay so I saw the ask about snorting cum and it reminded me of a time that cum came out of my nose. It was gross but my boyfriend and I laughed it off. idk. I thought it would be a funny thing to share!! i'd understand if you didn't want this on your blog!! (maybe it makes you laugh!!)

wELL. WE’RE OFF TO A GOOD START HERE. i’m screaming at this...i hope nothing EVER comes out of my nose ever in life...i hate this but ur right it did make me laugh

(Winry anon again) Also, did you get her name from FMA Winry Rockbell because if so I love it

hehe...yes...

hornybodies

this is what bartsim calls me and i hate her for it

whats the truth bitch

I DON’T EVEN REMEMBER WHAT THIS IS ABOUT BUT I’M LAUGHIGN

i never realised how much i actually missed santi but now im CRYING AND I WANT HIM BACK IN EVERY SINGLE POST WITH LOU BY HIS SIDE LIVING HAPPILY EVER AFTER PLEASE

I missed santirat's beautiful face there are literal tears rn

me too...i hate that i miss him so much it’s so freaking dumb...i haven’t cried to my own story in a while but i bet i’m gonna once santi’s comeback rolls around. i’m already bracing myself

nvm u can have the lovely rat back, that way my heart wouldn’t be hurting like it is now

honestly yeah that’s fair

Been silently following your blog and though I'm more of a "ghost"(? What does that even mean¿) follower, I can't help but express just how chocked I am to see Santi again OMG. Gutted Lou has had a flashback, she does not deserve this. :'(

hello casper the friendly ghost...i love having santi pop up with surprise flashbacks hehe...ur right though she DOES NOT NEED THIS in her life, but it will get better for her soon do not fret my ghoulish friend

I need more pics of Lou and Santi together I’m not satisfied, thankssss

ELI AND MIYU GETTING SO EXCIted WHEN LOU TOLD THEM SHE LIKES GIRLS MY HEART :’)

HEHEH i love it cause that’s literally how my friends and i act, it was fun to write in a scene :~} i’m glad you liked it :’}}

Yeah when I cut my hair short everyone assumed I liked girls I found it kind of odd, but I didn't care too much. It mostly just made me end up realizing all the shit lgbt people go through, one time a guy literally went up to me and my friend, my bff who no one really knew was a lesbian was terrified because he said "oh dont worry lesbians are hot, but gay guys are just disgusting" it ended up he was talking to me, i just rolled up a piece of paper as tight as I could and smacked him on the head

EWW first of all that guy can take his weird fetishization and homophobia elsewhere thanks...i’m glad you threw a paper ball at him LMAO. but yeah on one hand, coming from ignorant/straight people it’s like “uhhhh why would you assume that about me”, within the lgbt community it’s like...common ground...an inside joke...i guess? so it’s weird. the link between hair, clothes and sexuality is can definitely be harmful in certain circumstances

fiona is my spirit animal and i love her ok thanks for coming to my TED Talk

that was illuminating thank you

i re-read santis story and i s2g i've read it so many times idk, but like its so easy to read i dont mean like emotionally but it flows really well. and like its not too confusing i hate when people make overly convoluted stories in an excuse for being deep its some good shit good job my dude

AKJSDKGKSJD THAT MEANS THE WORLD TO ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i never expected anyone to read it oNCE let alone REPEATEDLY...that really makes me so happy though because it’s definitely something you have to go back and read to catch all the details. ahhhhh thank you so much, i never ever want my story to be too complicated so i’m glad you don’t think it is!!

im crying because your recent post reminds me so much of my relationship with my mom when i was younger... she was always out of a job and sometimes we had to resort to living with other family members, it was all really hard on her and especially with having a kid she had to take care of at the same time. even though these are fictional characters, it’s comforting to know that other people have gone through the same situations i have. i love fiona and lou so much, they’re my heart and soul <3

OMG ;_________; i’m crying i’m so glad it resonates with you...i had a lot of friends growing up who were in similar situations and i think i kinda based lou and fi’s relationship on that, so you’re definitely not alone <33 i’m so glad you love them i love u

basically what I’ve learned from these asks is that Gianni is a perfect god-like human and I want one

he is. one time an anon told me they were like santi but they wanted to be rooney and i was like “i’m both santi and rooney on different days and i want to be gianni.” now u know why

hi, i just wanted to pop in and say that i really, really love your blog and i admire your editing skills SO much, i think you are EXTREMELY talented and i don't think you get told that enough. i've been following you for awhile now and i am in love with ALL of your stories, characters and edits you've put out! you're really an inspiration to me and i hope someday my edits can turn out as good as yours!! i don't have reshade so it's harder for me, but i'm trying to learn!! ok have a good day :-)

OMFG ;-; I DO GET TOLD IT A LOT AND IT STILL SEEMS FAKE...you don’t have to go out of your way to compliment me ;___; but thank you so so so much i’m crying...it makes me so giddy that i might inspire someone like WHAT...i don’t even know what i’m doing half the time i edit so u will definitely be able to catch up to me one day even if you don’t have reshade, i know it. i edited without reshade for like 2 and a half years on this blog so you can do it i promise!! have a good day/night/life i love u

fuck my succ

I'm in need of some giannti in my life

we all need some gianti in our lives

Hey! I just wanted to say that ur an amazing writer. You portray everything so well, it’s insane. I want to be a writer someday and I hope my writing is at least somewhat close to yours. Have an awesome day my dude💕

WOW I’M CRYING...i still have a lot of room to grow and so do you, i hope you are able to become the writer you want to be :’} and thank you so much for the wonderful compliment i’m emo have a great day as well

aver is my queen, confirmed.

avey is everyone’s queen confirmed

oksy but listen, look up the model Charlotte Ray Spencer

i did but i couldn’t find her?? all that came up was ray spencer obituaries in charlotte, SC LMFAO...charlotte spencer is an actress tho it seems, is that...who...? omfg

MAY I JUST OFFER THIS NEW SONG OF THE NEIGHBOURHOOD CALLED VOID BC I HAVE A FEELING SANTI WOULD LOVE IT (it's also meant for my aggressive sadboi oc)

OH I LOVE THIS IT FITS PERFECTLY WITH THE PLAYLIST I’M MAKING FOR THE NEW ERA OF SANTI...THANK YOU I’M TOTALLY ADDING IT

I had a ectopic pregnancy when I was seventeen but I feel like I got off lightly compared to Molly. Your story is so beautiful in so many ways, I think it’s incredible how much character development you’ve managed to pull off honestly I’m amazed. Thank you ❤️

omg ;_______; i don’t even know what to say to this, but it means so much to me i can’t even put it into words. thank you thank you thank you so much, and i’m so sorry you had to go through that as well. molly was an extreme case and i hope no one has to go through what she went through. i’m glad you’re okay now, and thank you so much for reaching out to me and reading my story at all ;-; <3333

just a heads up: the links button on your ccfinds blog goes to the femmefinds url still

oh yeah i know i’m gonna be real with you...i’m too lazy to fix it lmAO

Luv your stick n poke tats u posted!!! Could u do more? Maybe on diff places on the bod?? Ur so talented. Xx

omg that was FOREVER ago...maaaaaybe in the future...we shall see...but thank you <33

Can u do a family portrait for all ur characters like u did w Lou!!!

oooooh hehe i probably will in the future!!

Kill v maim is one of my favorite songs of all time omg it makes me wanna wear ripped jeans and a leather jacket and cover myself in glitter and smash some windows with a baseball bat MMMMMM

HELL yeah me too...i become a cyber punk alien vampire when i hear that song

maybe do a casting call posted here ? u have many followers and im sure a good chunk live in ur area and would be willing to model ^_^

omg SCARY...i probably could tho tbh that’s a good idea, thank you!

hi sunny, what program do you use to merge your cc and what do you use to detect and remove broken cc that just doesn't work in game anymore? thanks!

i actually haven’t merged on my new laptop yet but i used s4s for merging and there’s the mod conflict detector!!

My game hasn't been working since the first Cats and Dogs patch but I uninstalled and reinstalled and it finally works again 😭

sunny!! would you recommend your computer to play ts4 on? has it good graphics, can handle the highest settings and so? i really need a new computer but i have no idea which one to go for

yes i would recommend it!! i have reshade, ultra settings and like 8 gb of cc.

thanks for answering my ask eee ur story is probably the best ive read on here and yeah. i love how everything connects and everyones just so real. you dont have to post this i just wanted to thank you for being my inspiration and making me smile, laugh, cry, and scream in the middle of the night with your characters.

I LOVE U...it still sounds so fake to me when people say i inspire them, i don’t even know how to respond to all this ;-; just thank you for sparing a glance my way and resonating with my creations. <3 we scream and cry 2gether

I listened to Separator by Radiohead on repeat whilst reading Santi’s story and now that song just reminds me of him and Lou. I’d totally suggest listening to it’s so good! As is your story :3 xxx

oh radiohead that’s good sh*t...i’m listening to it now and i feel the santou vibes...especially when santi’s feeling out of his mind and she’s the only one who can calm him...haha cool..anyways THANK YOU!!!!

how do you make poses for the roof? i'm not sure how i can know if the sims will clip into the roof or float

honestly i just...eyeball it...because all roofs are different and you can’t put them into blender so. i just winged it lmao...i just made a pose that looked like it could’ve been lou climbing out the window, only the rig was still ground level, and then i used alt + 9 to lift the teleporter onto the roof as best as i could. that’s why it probably wouldn’t be a very practical pose to release, because i have no way of making it easy to use 

Lou punched him and I knew it would happen. 😀👌 nice, nice I like Lou whopping ass.

hehe i’m glad you enjoyed it...who knew she had a freaking hook like that

ok a theory... santi went to look for molly's mother and yea

omg tell me cillian sings every other freckle at some point

OMFG well...that song came out in 2013 and the current flashback year is 2008 so. i would personally murder cillian myself if he was still in lou’s life 5 years after this honestly

hey kitty girl! i was wondering if you could answer this teensy lil question i got. im writing a "story" anddd i was trying to figure out how to make some parts not cliche. like i hate reading about whatever and being like girll ive done seen this before so i just needs to know. kisses

i absolutely love how this is worded and the fact that u called me kitty, very cute. anyway...this is pretty broad, perhaps you could clarify what kinda cliches you want to steer clear from? a lot of the time when i know something is gonna be cliche and there’s no avoiding it, i just kinda own up to it and try to subtly point out how cliche it is and somehow that makes it work out better...like being self aware somehow adds another more realistic element to the story that makes it better? idk...anyway dm me if you need help!!

so.... lou can remember more of what happened? this is good! go 2 the police bitch! tell them!!!!!!!

she should!! but the only problem is she doesn’t have proof. so... 🤔

how do you write your stories in a way that everything is organized and you're certain and not confused with everything? i mean, do you have any way for writing that let you develop your stories with not so much difficults? i'm trying to write an story for months but i only have a few of the most important events on my mind, i don't know how to develop another important details, i always feel that everything is confuse or crap

hmmmmm well my mind is very ah convoluted so it’s a wonder any of this comes out even somewhat cohesive? but basically i have a very good memory and utilize google docs a lot hahaha. i’ve gone in depth about my writing process here!

whats a good way when it comes to starting a sims story? i mean like the first post? :/

ummmmmm maybe test the waters a bit and just make a post introducing your character(s) first? or dive right in and get sh*t started. it could go either way tbh

boyish by japanese breakfast is a santixlou bop

oh sh*t!!!!!! i love japanese breakfast!! and i love this thank you!

So is lou like into cillian in a way? Making him kinda be in her type

as of right now (in the flashbacks)? HELL fucking no. but you’re right, she did say those things in the future to santi. so 🤔

Everyone guessing shit stupidly annoys me haha. I'M UNOBSERVANT AND I DON'T WANNA GO BACK AND CHECK SHIT, LET ME LIVE. *Like* if you a ~dum~ reader who doesn't want every bit of foreshadowing called out. lol

i respect this honestly whenever i drop the hottest foreshadowing of 2018 i never expect my inbox to flood like it does but here we are and i am amazed

CILLIAN NEEDS TO FUCKING FIGHT ME (TYPING THIS ON MY COMPUTER BC I SAW HIS DINOSAUR ASS AND CHUCKED MY PHONE OUT THE WINDOW)

i’m screaming...i’m so sorry it’s my fault about your phone but like also i’m poor i can’t pay for that

i'm studying your latest posts because they're beautiful and my hatred for that long necked bitch is intensifying -- what makes me burn even more is that he's still wearing her necklace, can we say let the bitch burn?

burn babey burn

Why don't you use quick tags?

i’m dumb is why

CILLIAN IS SUCH A SHITASS I HATE HIS FACE WHY R U DOING THIS TO ME

BRUHHHHH THE DINOSAUR LOOKIN ASS BOY IS B A C K run

WAIT THE NECKLACE. HE STOLE THE MCFUCKING NECKLACE BROOOOO

What if Fi's blue eyes are from... Cillian..?

wHY did you have to make him cute and fucking cool though? I still hate him but it's harder.

NVM I JUST LOOKED AT THE POST AGAIN HES WEARING HER NECKLACE INHOPE SHE CHOKES HIMS WOTH IT THIS TIME

I SCREAMED AT THIS SERIES OF QUESTIONS OISDFNGJKDSKJN yeah sorry he’s conventionally attractive but unsettlingly so and i feel uneasy when i look at him and plus the fact that he’s literally evil so .

im like, to 90% sure that cillian is in ace joker. so that song might have reminded lou of him...

this was sent right after that scene of lou hearing the song at pippin’s, so

My conspiracy theory is that cillian is Lou's father. Speakimg of which are we gonna get to that soon, I'm dying of curiosity;.;

I’M LAUGHING I THINK U MEANT FIONA’S FATHER AKSJDKJGDSJ but yeah well. You’ll See

what do u resize ur photos to?

whatever 33% of 1920x1080 is i forget. i have a resizing + sharpening action so i just run that

im about to kill those kids if they keep fucking with my baby

THESE BITCHES BULLYING MY BABY LOU? CATCH THESE HANDS

me @ these ugly kids:

Who are the best creators for mens clothing? I struggle so much to find good cc creators with men specifically!

badabing badaboom

I’m not sure if you’ve converted things before but do you know any good sims 3 cc to sims 4 tutorials? Or your followers?

errrrrr i have no idea i’m sorry :x

would you consider making like a photoshop psd file with all the layers in your editing process?

omg...heck no it would be so unhelpful OMFG mostly because my editing is just my own action + shading and highlighting unique to that pic

would you ever do an editing timlapse of your gameplay pics? 💖💖

ahhhhh maybe!! probably in the future!

OMG HEATHERS WAS FILMED AT MY HIGH SCHOOL AND IM JUST HYPED UP SEEING IT BEING MENTIONED ON THIS ACCOUNT!!

OMFG THAT’S RAD...i’ve literally only seen it once tho i’m fake

I'M SHOOK. my friend kinda asked me out and I wanna say yes but my parents won't let me date. I'm 18! I need your advice! -signed 18 and alone anon

um UR 18 BUDDY UR AN ADULT...DATE WHOEVER THE F*CK U WANT HONESTLY

Can you pretty please link some photoshop tutorials you recommend? I really want to make my photos more cinematic and like your's without totally copying you or someone else. All I do right now is sharpen, color balance, and add some noise and then resize. I really need some more ways to get better looking photos such as yours.

ahhhhh the problem is i don’t know of any i’m sorry...lmao this is totally unhelpful :\ i have my own editing tutorial which is outdated but can probably help you out with the basics of lighting effects and shading n stuff?

Heyyy, I saw that you answered a question about making a ps action like your reshade, and I just wanted to say that I would love that! Unfortunately Mac users like me, can’t use reshade unless boot camping Windows onto our computers...☹️ and your reshade is just soooo pretty...

i don’t know if i’ll be able to replicate the reshade effect totally but i could release the action i’ve made for myself? it warms up screenshots but is totally adjustable to your liking for different color tones so in that way it’s kinda similar to the reshade. i’ll seeeeee what i can do...i know the woes of mac users all too well, my friend

i just wanna give lou a big ol cozy hug :o((( pls

pls hug her she needs it.

Do you post on tumblr from your phome or from your computer? Just curious.

mostly from my computer, sometimes i answer messages on my phone while i’m out and you can tell because autocorrect actually makes me use proper capitalization for once in my life

how many hours have you played the sims? for me i have 4,070 hours. haha help

OMFG i think mine is like...900 or something...i can’t tell if that’s too much or too little, but it’s definitely inaccurate

if i could only look at one person's tumblr from now on it would be yours. ur literally the queen of tumblr #shookaf and also i really hope i die before you ever say ur leaving tumblr cause when u do, i will legit die and bury my own grave. i really appreciate u and hope one day i can be on ur level but rn im at level 1.5 while ur up in the millions :D

I’M SCREAMING PLEASE I AM A PLEB.............i cry u flatter me too much ;-; i genuinely hope i never leave this place because it’s been so fun and it’s helped me evolve so much as an artist and a writer, plus i made some of my greatest friends on here. so i hope that day never comes!! but who knows life is wild. anyway i’m sure you’re actually like at level 578 and are just being modest. it’s okay you don’t have to be humble

i think its so cool that you and wanderlust and other simmers use multiple worlds to make your own town and stuff. idk why but thats just so cool to me and i would have never thought of it. love your blog and story <3

omg!!! well i couldn’t resist, i love a bunch of them and can’t limit myself to just one ya know. plus the more i thought about it, the more my gen 2 story kinda centers around these kids from this one town and the town itself is very relevant. so i felt like i had to make my own!! and i’m very excited to get started with that hehe

I just met a guy named Rodrigo Santiago and I sCREAMED HOLY SHIT

Update (tho idk of you got the first one): I just got a text from a classmate named Rodrigo Santiago. I'm sCREECHING

no freaking way. there’s no way i don’t believe...i want proof...

YOU SO FUCKIN PRECIOUS WHEN U SMILE

dont worry about posting this or do idc but i just wanted to say you should write about whatever you want and not care about whether people think you condone it or not. if i (a gay male) were to write about lesbians its not like im saying YOU HAVE TO BE LESBIANS BLAH BLAH BLAH you know what i mean? or if im writing about a robbery doesnt mean im like condoning robbery so like idk you do you boo and keep it coming ;D ilysm btw

OMFG no yeah i get it, i mean i think now especially in this online environment, people are hyper aware of Problematique things and so they’re a little too quick to point fingers without looking deeper than the surface. and whatever it’s fine people are always gonna be like that because people are mostly inherently judgmental, especially when it comes to consuming media. artists/writers face stuff like this all the time because people refuse to look past the surface, hence why works have gotten misconstrued all the time. but yeah i really appreciate this sentiment, thank u i love u

hope this isnt a weird question but what is the image size that u used for your character page?? thnk u 💕

omg it’s 300x300

have u listened to visions of gideon by sufjan stevens i was listening to it while reading ur stories and it made me so :(

oh my boy sufjan aka gianni’s personality claim i love him...and this song is :{ but i love even if it’s from the nasty age gap peach fucking movie

If i was married to Jamie and he treatin’ our daughter like that… oh I swear HES GOT TO GO!

it’s 2 am i’m so tired answering all of these i forgot who jaime was for a sec i was like um why are we talking about GoT anyways good night

how does alpha hair work with reshade? it seems so good in your screenshots and i’ve seen that in others screenshots it looks bad? whats the secret?

well good morning haha jk i never went to sleep anyway here u go

hooow do you make adorable toddlers in ts4?? teach me, gimme some advice please :(((

chubby cheeks! big eyes! small faces! little but plump lips! a good skin! dats all

how did u get ur sim onto the fire escapes?

ze teleporter mod, that’s it

I snickered at the, THE RETURN OF SANTI. Like I imagine it written in red horror lettering and santi just busts down the door and says ho ho ho im back bench, Did U miss me?

honestly i own a calendar and if i knew a definite date u already fucking kNOW it would be up there

ahhh im sorry for asking but im wondering how you find voice claims?? i'm looking for some for my sims, but it's tough to find one that's *right*, you know?? and your voice claims are great!! thank you <3

OMG voice claims are HARD, i literally just like “collect” them over time...i have a list in my phone of voices i like/may use in the future lmao, but try to think of actors or musicians and search interviews/movie or tv scenes with them speaking!!

i don't even read your story but i still follow you because i love your personality, sim style and just your whole entire tumblr

u follow me for ME? UM...what are u doing here...i’m so sorry (i love u...)

do you have a different reshade preset for flashback screenshots and for the present ones?

i do not!! i just edit differently

what happened to the honeycomb?

OMFG it’s still there...but we legit haven’t seen it since girooni’s wedding so um...it’s gonna have to get a makeover. i’m gonna do it when girooni come back home so i can finally show rupi working there like...wow...she deserves to be seen

lou's dad is the biggest asshole and i am waiting for the day that bitch dies

us when he dies

shit theory: caroline goes to find and confront cillian about what he did in teen lou timeline. care ends up forming a crush on cillian and goes back to meet him several more times, but cillian ends up liking lou more which makes caroline jealous. and that's why they don't speak currently, 'cause cillian ruined lou's life in more ways than one.

uM holy fuck that’s all i got to say

pls tell me that Caro killed the dude that choked Lou (or beat his ass)

god i hope so !

how many people do you follow? are you “strict” with who you follow?

i follow 264 people and yeah i’ve gotten a bit stricter with it just cause like...i only want to follow people whose content i truly care about/will actually notice on my dash

would you ever do a sim dump?

probably in the future, it seems like people want more male and female sims from me SO

ramona got some moves tf

the girl is out here bobbing to the chicken dance like nobody’s business

have u seen the end of the fucking world? if u did what are your #thots

UM......................i watched the first episode ‘cause i heard so much about it and um.............................it was so bad OMFG i hated it. way too edgy for me. completely missed the mark. not into it at all. hard pass

CAN LOU PLEASE HAVE A MAN IN HER LIFE WHO IS NOT A COMPLETE TWAT PLEASE

HOPEFULLY ezra will follow through with that and i don’t necessarily mean in a romantic way but like...as her new roommate MAYBE he will be a blessing we can HOPE

I'm not sure if you've been asked this or not, but your poses are so good and I was wondering if you have ever considered making a pose pack? Sorry if this came off as rude! I love your posts!

i will probably in the future!! but first i gotta figure out which ones i’d actually include

okay so this is random but I just wanted to say that I absolutely love your sims stories. Everything is so perfect and I'm forever shook because I can't believe the "sets" you use are actually the game. Your sims are so fleshed out and you are a huge inspiration to me. Anyways sorry if this was weird but I'm like obsessed with ur blog. bYe

AJHSDHJFSD THANK YOU!!!!!!! yes somehow we work miracles into this game can u believe it...ahh but thank you so much, it means everything that i would inspire you in any way...like what...omg

Santi is actually standing outside present Lou’s apartment wondering where the fuck he went wrong

he’s been there for 6 months just on the street standing there please someone let him in .

LOUUUU OH MY GODDD SKKDSNSJDH MY BABY. SO THATS HOW SHE GOT THE SCAR. WOW

there it is fellas. this message is sooooo old i’m so bad

Have you read/heard of The Lunar Chronicles

i have not!! but i’ll jot it down!

I was wondering if you’ve ever had any problems with skins? For me some on the palm side of the hand it’s noticeably darker than what the skin is supposed to be.. like the rest comes out find but the hands are darker.

hmm...that’s weird, i haven’t seen that. i think it probably depends on the skin? or maybe your sim detail settings?

santi my daddy, honeybodies my mommy, lou looking like a cutie when she saw dat tiny puppy. my name is rappin anon, and i just wanted to say, ur are my favorite simblr basically saving my day. rappin anon OUT

o...my god

i love u

i love u...

[lolbtsaus]

Trap (Werewolf!Jungkook)

Plot: A relationship between hunter!reader and werewolf!Jungkook

Part: Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, Twenty, Epilogue

Word Count: 1484

A/N: so this is the beginning of another kookie series (I may do an epilogue for the mafia!kook series??) part two will be coming out after Jimin’s bday posts and I’m really really excited for this series bc it’s probably the closest I’ve gotten to a fanfiction on here??? so hopefully you guys are interested in it too bc I’m just really fucking pumped up for this shit, so the link for this is werewolf!Jungkook (here)

You had met him before you’d truly met him, an entire five years before you would know his name. It had been late at night, a full moon in the sky and the distant sounds of howls making your partner’s nose wrinkle in disgust. Certain boundaries were placed to prevent an outright war, having both a pack of werewolves and a group of hunters in the same city. No one knew who got there first, who had claimed the land first but after enough attacks on both sides, there had to be a change. Neither party was willing to leave, both had already begun to form families and homes. Lines were drawn, territories were decided, the town split in half. The only exception for either side to cross said lines was school, for their children. It had been the generation of your grandparents that had formed the truce but the line was still being crossed.

After the howls grew too close for comfort, a few hunters had been sent out to see what all the noise was about. You were still being trained, your partner well into his thirties but one of the best hunters in your group. You didn’t know much about werewolves yet, besides what they taught you in training, which was more focused on weak spots, how to get away from in emergencies and how to kill them in dire emergencies. You knew their blind spots sure, but you had never seen one in person until that night. You weren’t sure whether the movies were right, whether there were upright fur-covered human with elongated jaws and snouts or whether they roamed around as wolves, whether they were truly animals when they shifted or whether they still had their humanity.

But you most definitely weren’t expecting to see a teenage boy, a boy who couldn’t have been older than fifteen, desperately trying to pull his leg out of a bear trap. You hadn’t been able to see much of his face due to the hoodie he wore but it was easy to see the panic in his body, his hands attempting to pry the trap apart. He didn’t look like an animal at all, he looked like a kid who hadn’t looked where he was going and had gotten caught in a trap that wasn’t meant for him. But your partner refused to release your arm from his grip, refused to let you help him, only continuing to pull you towards him as he pulled the long silver coated sword out of its sheath, advising you to do the same.

“What are you talking about?! He’s not one of them, even if he is, he doesn’t deserve to be killed like this.” you argued, refusing to acknowledge the weapon you were still be trained on how to use, attached to your hip.

“Look at his eyes.”

You only glared at your partner before focusing your attention on the still frantic boy, noticing a flash of a bright amber when he looked around for help. You were suddenly pulled to a stop, pushed behind a tree, a hissed “hide!” being whispered in your direction before your partner did the same behind the tree next to yours. You listened, tearing up with frustration when you heard the boy call out again, crying out for help. You couldn’t help but peek around the tree, your eyes widening when you realized you saw a large figure appear behind the boy, a deep growl coming from it. The boy didn’t panic at the noise but he did flinch, slouching as his hands stopped their attempts, as if he was preparing to be scolded.

You heard the cracking of bones, joints popping back into place as the boy remained still, his head hung low and the bottom of his jeans torn and stained in red. Your partner had been right. The boy was either a werewolf or a human in the pack because a face you did recognize, the face of the pack’s leader, appeared behind the boy, behind the invisible line that kept the peace between the hunters and the werewolves. He was careful not to step over it, nearly burning a hole into the back of the boy’s head with his glare.

“What did you do?” His voice held a growl to it, not completely human.

“I-I’m sorry. I just, I dropped my phone and it was just a few steps past the line but I stepped on a-”

“What do you think would happen if one of them saw you like this? What if I hadn’t gotten to you first?”

“You didn’t.” your partner spoke, stepping out from behind the tree, motioning for you to remain still.

You may not have known much about the hierarchy yet but you knew your partner was breaking a few rules. You knew the leader of the pack was meant to be treated with respect, something he had somehow earned, according to your parents. Something about saving a few hunters from some rowdy werewolves who’d gotten too cocky and ambushed them. Ever since the hunters had been returned in one piece, though one had limped back with a broken leg, the other with permanent scratches down their cheek, they were alive and would heal. You knew most hunters didn’t speak to the leader, the same way interns rarely spoke up to the CEO of their company.

“Will you please let him out of the trap? He’s just a kid and I promise you, he’ll be punished at home.”

“He’s not in your territory though, is he? He’s in ours. That means we decide the punishment.” His sword was still held in his hand, the silver glinting in the moonlight, getting too close to the boy’s leg for your comfort.

You knew it was all bluff, that your partner wasn’t dumb enough to piss off the Alpha so strongly, to kill one of his own directly in front of him. But you also knew he wasn’t thinking rationally, his chest puffing out a bit too much. He was growing overly cocky, the same way those werewolves had. He had the technical upper hand in the situation and he wanted to rub it in their faces.

“He’s fifteen. He hasn’t even started his shifts yet, he’s hardly a monster. Let him go.”

As the leader spoke, you heard the boy whimper, drawing your attention to the sword pressing to his leg, a silent threat from your partner. It was like a game of chicken, who would break first. Would the Alpha call his bluff and risk one of his youngest pack members losing his leg or would your partner take the hidden warning in the leader’s glare seriously and back away? You didn’t truly want to find out, tossing your own sheathed sword aside in an attempt to seem as nonthreatening as possible.

“Let him go.” you agreed, running from your hiding spot to move your partner’s sword away from the boy’s leg. “The last thing you want to try to do on a full moon is cut a poor boy’s leg off in front of his Alpha. You’d be dead before you could get a swing in and you know it.”

You only received a look that told you you would be in trouble when you got back to your own leader but you shrugged it off, a victorious smile forming on your face when you heard his sword slide back into its sheath. You knelt down, using a flashlight as you attempted to help the boy get loose. You could hear the rapid breaths escaping his mouth, the slight tremble in his leg when your fingers grabbed onto it to pull it out of the trap, hearing the sharp intake of breath when you grabbed too tightly. You did your best to avoid looking at his leg, not wanting to see the damage you knew would be healed by the time he got home.

“Are you okay?” you asked, helping him hold his leg away from the dirt and letting him use your shoulders as a crutch as he limped towards his leader.

“He will be.” his leader promised, taking him from your grip and giving the boy one final glare before returning his attention to you. “Thank you.“

You watched as the Alpha picked the boy up as if he weighed nothing, a few more figures walking up from behind him, inspecting the boy’s injuries before they all walked away together. You started the walk back home, bracing yourself for the lectures you would receive for disobeying orders, for helping a werewolf, even if his Alpha was right there to protect him if you had done anything else.

“You know you’re dead when we get back, right?”

“Yep.”

“And you know the whole point of being a werewolf hunter is actually hunting the werewolf.”

“Yep.”

“Great.” 

[jinjikook]

Roadside Dreams (M)

word count: 4.8k

genre: the fluffiest fluff i could manage + smut ; tv host! hoseok + hoseok can build stuff idk what the title it would be

pairing: reader/wonho

summary: hoseok is a host for a show that renovates old school buses into dream vans/rvs. you’ve brought him a project and over time, you’ve developed a crush for the charismatic man, wanting to take him along for the long ride you’ve dreamt up; as does he, you come to learn.

dedicated to: my wife @honeyheonie bc she deserves some tooth-rotting wonho fluff. also one word to you mi amor: diddle

a/n: this is based off an actual tv show that i literally saw half of an episode of with my mom and i instantly thought of this prompt and just had to write it

music: all of seventeen’s love & letter album 

masterlist

gif credit

“So, what do you think?” You stepped up the pastel stairs, painted to tailor your style perfectly, and your jaw dropped in awe at what you were faced with.

The interior was amazing, gorgeous even. You had only disclosed a minimal amount of details and even more less when it came to specifics. You weren’t sure what you wanted when you came to Shin Hoseok with an old school bus and a good half-hundred grand of money to throw towards it. But this? This exceeded all of your expectations; dreams of living out on the open road with nothing to tie you down or hold you back finally come to life in a divine mix of lavender and grays.

“How did you—? I mean, you just— This is amazing!” You were partially speechless by just how mesmerizingly you the entire bus was, now a ghost of its former shell. The outside was a cream based white, the only thing pointing to its old form being the shape itself. But everything else screamed home, in the way the pull out couch was neatly decorated up front and the windows were now garnished with flowers and the dash was devoid of all clunky buttons and switches, now a smooth birch counter with a glossy finish.

It was something straight out of television; from the boards of Pinterest and famous Instagram user feeds. Something that couldn’t be bought or ordered from a hippie-esque catalogue, divine in every way, shape and form and yet it was completely tailored to you and everything you needed in a house on wheels.

Hoseok took you by the hand and led you further in, ignoring the camera crew behind him that was documenting the details of the bus and the shocked expressions you kept replaying on your face.

“Now, I know you said comfort is your biggest caveat, so I went ahead and gave you this gorgeous couch that doubles as an extra bed,” Hoseok reached under the cushions to release the switch that allowed the seat to slide out and flatten into a queen sized mattress, right there in the very front of your home. You clapped and praised his choice, loving the idea of having an extra bed should you have guests or if you just wanted to sleep up front for a change.

Hoseok beamed at your reaction, elated that his personal choices reflected well. He liked to think you and he were very similar, in both tastes and ideas. It made for a relatively easy job, as sometimes he has trouble getting into the mindset of a customer to truly give them what they want but also able to branch out and test his own creativity in the process. With you, he just thought about what he’d like if he were to live in one of these, travelling the country with someone wonderful by his side to share the sights with him.

Someone like you.

Call it unprofessional, but he had a slight crush on you.

(read: a big fat “I-can-see-myself-growing-old-happily-with-you” crush)

When you came to him with this clunker of a bus and told him you weren’t sure what you wanted but you loved the simple and cozy life he fell head over heels for you, the way you cutely stood with your hands fisted in your patterned dress and how your eyes gleamed with brimming potential.

“This here, is for the ultimate cooking experience.” You watched as Hoseok pointed out the finer details, from the real marble countertop to the station above the mini-fridge that was made specifically for a coffeemaker.

“Hoseok, this is incredible! I didn’t even tell you I liked a big kitchen, I just figured it was impossible in a space like this…”

“Honey, nothing is impossible if you think big enough! I figured you were one of those women that loves to cook with someone and that requires room to not only dance around each other but also to get close and snuggly as one of you works on the eggs or something.” He got a little lost in his fantasy, imagining it was him who was in front of the stove top, working on getting the bacon just right or the eggs less runny when you come up behind him to wrap your arms around his middle and kiss the top of his bare shoulder, possibly after lazily making love in the early morning sunlight that beamed past your silken curtains.

“Well I love it, this entire place feels like a dream come true,” You trailed off, gazing lovingly all over the remainder of the bus as Hoseok guided you through all the nooks and crannies he thought up.

“And now, for the coup de gras, what I think you’ll love the most,” His hand was still cradling your own, not even caring about how he doesn’t do that with any other customer and how viewers of the show would most likely notice it later on. He walks you up the small step/storage space and you’re faced with what you wished upon every shooting star you’ve ever seen—a solid 2.5; one was an airplane and another had been only slightly falling.

“The bedroom. Fit for a queen, perfect for you.” He warmly smiled as you stood at the entrance, frozen in a stupor of amazement. The shelves were lining the walls so prettily, some even had vases or statues already on them, as if Hoseok had jumped into your mind himself and snatched all of your greatest desires and threw them all into one room.

You hoped he hadn’t seen the section in your brain that you have locked away, with a sign that states for my eyes only. In there are all the details you’ve catalogued about the handsome man beside you; the times he’d brushed his hand against you or taken yours into his own, all the flirty advances you’re sure couldn’t be true but the way he’d wink or smile right after would beg to differ.

“Go on, get a feel for the room.” Hoseok’s warm palm touched the small of your back and gave you a little nudge, urging you to step further inside and do a little exploring, find the small intricacies that Hoseok painstakingly took months to put in, one by one.

With caution, you tread over to the wardrobe he’d built into the wall, a sliding mirror door away from a surprisingly deep closet. He explained how it’d been made a little taller just to make sure your dresses wouldn’t touch the floor when they dangled from the hanger and how there was a nice little set of hooks against the wall for belts, hats and anything else your heart desired.

At this point, your heart was already Grinch-style “three-sizes-too-big” and you were swollen with admiration for Hoseok and his ability to nail everything about his job.

(You also hoped he’d nail something else but that was neither here nor there.)

As he described the painstaking process he’d gone through to custom make your curtain rods and went shopping at several locations to find the perfect knick-knacks to decorate your home, you couldn’t help the heart eyes that you’re sure the camera crew was eating up at this point. This man knew you more than anyone else you’d ever met and he’d only been commissioned a short while ago, having only been told of the basics of your life.

With only the knowledge of your job, the little things you enjoyed in life and your budget, this man was able to leap into your heart and build you a dream home only to leave with a piece of it in his pocket, forever his as long as you stayed in the abode he built for you with his bare hands.

“Now, how about giving that bed a try?” He gave you his signature eyebrow wiggle and that sinful tongue of his darted out to lick his lips and you had half a mind to drag him on the bed with you and give him a taste of his own medicine—or your tongue, same difference.

You nodded and meekly placed your knee on the bed, using your palm to feel the firmness of the mattress and the stability of the wood it was mounted onto. As you awkwardly tried to “test” the bed, Hoseok huffed behind you and chuckled before placing his hands on your hips from behind.

“You really have to give this thing a test ride, love.”

“I’ve been trying to,” You muttered under your breath, hoping he wouldn’t hear the little slip of your tongue.

Another chuckle and Hoseok is leading you onto the bed, taking the time to settle next to you almost domestically.

“Nice huh? I made sure to pick out a bed that’d suit you perfectly! And look,” He reached over your laying frame to tug at the curtains that were right by your bed side. “A beautiful view of outside; ideal if you’re staying by the beach or on the mountainside. Imagine waking up to such a sight…”

You weren’t looking out the window when he said that, only able to focus on his chiseled body still hovering over yours as he gazed dreamily out the window into the open field he’d parked the bus in to do the big reveal. The view, as far as you were concerned, was him.

“Tell me, are you satisfied with everything?” His pearl white teeth basically reflected the sunlight into your eyes and you swore you were squinting at him as you spoke.

“And so much more…” You couldn’t help but look down at his peachy lips; you blame his damned bright smile, making you deflect your eyes elsewhere and giving him ideas.

Hoseok shifted on the bed, his eyes no longer as clear as the skies outside as an inky darkness swirled inside them—at first you figured it was just a trick of the light, a trick your mind was playing on you.

“Okay guys, did you get enough footage?” Hoseok questioned the camera crew, getting a resounding thumbs up and they all shared their farewells as the director clapped Hoseok on the shoulder, saying it was another heartfelt episode that he’s sure viewers will love.

“And your chemistry! Definitely something spicy to have brought to the show, you two. It’ll surely get good ratings from the female audience, especially the ones who’ve shared their thoughts on our mastermind here.” The director chuckled as he pointed at Hoseok, giving him a hearty handshake and a thoughtful one to you before saying his own goodbye, leaving the two of you in the bedroom of the bus-turned-home. Neither of you moved an inch as the sounds of rumbling engines droned off in the distance, confirming that the others had left; that you two were utterly alone in the immediate vicinity.

“So, now that the cameras are off,” Hoseok turned to face you where you lied still on the bed, the light from the window essentially casting a spotlight on you. “What do you really think of the bus?”

A playful grin toyed on your lips and you couldn’t help but tease, as a form of punishment for the tailored torture Hoseok had been performing on you all this time.

“It’s terrible, I hate it.” Even with the words rolling off your tongue, the smile you refused to hide was a dead giveaway and Hoseok returned his own 1000-watt grin. The two of you felt some bubbling spark and suddenly you’re laughing, holding your stomach as the giggles overtook you. Hoseok seemed to have the same witchy effect on him as he doubled over in a fit of laughter, the two of you under some spell that had you on your backs on the bed. As he clutched his own stomach, you wiped at a tear that squeezed its way out as your laughter came harder.

Once the two of you had sufficiently calmed down, Hoseok looked up at you from where he lied, upside down and still as stunning as ever.

“What?” You touched your face, trying to see if maybe there had been something there that had Hoseok’s complete attention. As his wispy eyelashes fanned down with every slow blink, Hoseok drank in the vision of you; bathing in the warm sunlight and surrounded in the soft shades of gray that he painted every inch of your new bedroom in.

“Nothing, you’re just really beautiful.”

“Oh shut up, the cameras are gone Hoseok, no need to pretend anymore.” You brushed his compliment off as you finally took the time to look off into the distance, really appreciating the window that Hoseok put here.

Mind wandering, you hadn’t registered the sounds of the mattress creaking or the feeling of a warm body edging closer to yours until his breath fanned over your ear, making you whip your head around to meet Hoseok’s face directly in front of you own. Instinct told you to jump back and scream at the surprise of his proximity but his hand on your thigh and his lips on yours stopped your mind completely, shutting down all motor functions and rendering you both helpless and useless.

His lips were plump, soft and warm like a muffin fresh from the oven. You swore you tasted coconut on him, something tropical enough to make you feel like kissing him was a vacation; long awaited paradise with warm sand in between your toes and the breeze licking at your cheekbones. His breath mingled with your as his lips melded in further with your own, his craftsmanship extending past renovating things as his mouth worked some sort of mastered sorcery on yours.

You couldn’t even begin to describe how his kiss matched his hands, something along the soft lines of silk but still as firm as fresh fruit, the similarities making you dizzy but there was Hoseok; always ready to catch you. His strong arms framed your face and deepened the kiss, as he hovered over you. His tongue swept over your own and you couldn’t help but succumb to Hoseok’s charms, not knowing what spurred this on but also not caring enough to put a stop to it. Not when his hands felt so right on you and his body heat radiated and made your body feel warm to the touch despite having to constantly battle chills.

It took no time for his deft fingers to unbutton the shirt he had on, whipping off the plaid to reveal a toned body glistening with the slightest sheen of sweat from the combined heat of both your interaction and the lack of air conditioning since the bus hadn’t been turned on yet. Your eyes had a mind of their own as they greedily took heady gulps of Hoseok’s body, every dip and curve now forever etched in your memories.

Hoseok grinned and let you ogle him, taking the time to covertly make work of your buttons on your bottoms. It was when the final button snapped open that you realized his sneaky hands and you scoffed, playfully batting at him to scold his naughty fingers. He only laughed at your reaction, his hands sliding past your pants to slip under your top, the heat of his palms against your hip bones. Hoseok was silently asking permission, his thumbs gripping the fabric of your shirt until you responded. Anticipation brimmed at his fingertips and he was itching to rip the shirt off; to finally reveal the skin underneath.

When you nodded, it was like Christmas morning to the man.

He scanned your body, making sure to never forget just how gorgeous you were even in the barest of materials. The wine red of your bra accentuated your skin so well, Hoseok had half a mind to keep it on as he made love to you but he needed to see all of you, he felt like he’d just die if he couldn’t have all of you tonight.

Lips were back together, now with the sharp tang of ferocity biting between the two of you; static sparks tingling the nerves in your tongues as Hoseok took the time to unhook your bra amidst the blur of it all.

Once you were bared for him, he wasted no time in laving your breasts with his tongue. His peach plump pout peppered pecks over your pectorals, right above where your heart was thudding loudly against your ribcage. He worshipped your body with his lips, making sure not to miss a single inch of what he’d been longing for.

When you whimpered his name, he knew he couldn’t wait any longer to have you.

With his deft digits, he made work of removing the remainder of your clothes, leaving you bare for him on the mattress whilst his lower body still remained clothed. You wanted to remedy that as soon as possible and as you distracted him by sitting up and latching your mouth onto his thick neck, suckling small bruises there that stained his porcelain skin so well you couldn’t wait to see them bloom in various colors as they healed, you reached to palm him though his bottoms. He groaned at the feeling, head lolling back and revealing even more milky skin to attack.

You felt him trembling beneath your ministrations, clearly craving more but holding back.

“Hoseok,” He brought his head back up to look deeply into your eyes, gaze flickering down for a second as you darted your tongue out to wet your lips before continuing. “It’s okay, please don’t be afraid with me.”

His eyes softened, the pitch black pools fizzing into soft cocoa puddles, slightly more shimmered with a dewy wetness that you found endearing. With a small smile, his hands found yours and brought them to his mouth, each knuckle being carefully kissed before he finally rested them back into his lap, permission to continue.

His pants were off as well as his briefs and whilst you appreciated how gorgeous he looked completely nude—something akin to a Greek god, no doubt the perfect rendition of the priceless marble statues save for the more… intimate regions that he certainly did not lack in—you had some more urgent matters to attend to. As did Hoseok, if the flush on his length the steady dripping from the leaking head of it was anything to go by.

One could describe the setting to be poetic; a housewarming of sorts.

No better way to break in a house like breaking in the headboard first.

Hoseok’s calloused yet tender hands gingerly touched you all over, making you itch with arousal and need for him to touch you where you needed him most. He smiled, grin as bright as ever, as he continued to tease.

You took matters into your own hands as you deftly flipped the two of you over, nearly bouncing off completely from the freshness of the mattress springs. Erupting into yet another fit of giggles, you manage to stifle yours in the crook of his neck and despite the obvious distraction, Hoseok’s hands still managed to glide over your skin almost in a calculated manner; like he knew every place to graze to have you trembling.

“Now, now, that’s enough of that,” You chastised, stealing a kiss as you tried to pretend to take the reins. You maneuvered yourself to lay on you back once more, dragging Hoseok to follow you and cage you in. He took no time to accept his role, already kissing all over your face as one of his hands slid down to your core—a stark contrast to the gentle pecks he had trailed all across your cheeks. You weren’t expecting his finger to already make way inside you, gasping at the intrusion.

He continued to press his lips against yours as he worked you open, drinking in all your needy mewls and sultry moans as he pressed further, inching in another digit and stroking your walls in ways you’re sure you’d never be able to mimic when you’re by yourself.

“Baby, tell me when,” Hoseok whispered, breathless pants puffing against your collarbones, clearly trying to make sure you’re comfortable and feeling good but at the detriment of his own pleasure. You raised your leg and it brushed against his member, making him audibly whine against you.

“Now Hoseok, please. I want you.” He looked into your eyes again, the stare almost piercing but in a way you could only describe as tender.

His lips made their way from yours all the way to your ear, leaving a searing trail of kisses in their wake before he softly spoke into the shell of your ear, his breath audible with every labored syllable.

“Protection?” You turned your head to face him head on, mouthing I trust you and Hoseok couldn’t have looked more relieved if he tried, wanting to feel every bit of you but not knowing how to ask without seeming selfish.

His hand reached down and he guided himself inside you, using the other to spread your legs and allow him to ease his way in with minimal discomfort for you. Considerate as ever, he bottomed out slowly and kissed your nose as you closed your eyes and focused on not splitting in half.

His thick girth left you with a satisfactory fullness, having never felt such a feeling with a partner before. Despite every reason Hoseok had to be cocky with his body and sex appeal, he gave you every single minute you needed to adjust, down to the millisecond. He whispered sweet praises to you until you finally gave him the signal to move, even then still treating you like fine china as he pulled out and slowly thrusted back in.

The slow burn of his length inside you coaxed an open flame inside your belly, making your kisses turn hungry once more. Gone was the gentle, playful air that had radiated off the two of you as the atmosphere shifted to something darker, spicier.

Hoseok noted the change and began to grind into you harder, his kisses now laced with his devilish tongue and the barest hint of teeth. As his cock fucked into you with more passion, your body took on a mind of its own as your back arched and toes curled from the spine-tingling sensation of Hoseok fucking you just right. Pleased with himself, Hoseok hummed with his own pleasure, never having felt such a tight, hot heat around him like this. No one compared, the tension that coiled so tightly between the two of you throughout the span of the show having been so intense that now, in the culmination of it all,  it felt like the two of you were about to burst.

You teetered on the edge of coming for too long, not wanting to end this too soon but also feeling yourself fray at the corners from the relentless pleasure that Hoseok was managing to tear from you with ease. As you came apart underneath him, Hoseok wasted no time in clutching underneath your thighs, delving deeper inside than before. The feeling had you breathless, the wind knocked out of you long ago with just the mere sight of Hoseok; clothed or not.

“Angel, baby, I need you to come for me,” Hoseok whimpered, feeling his sanity slip from him as you continued to clench around him agonizingly.

And with that command, you were wrapped around his finger—or cock, same deal—and his word was law, having your orgasm hit you by surprise. Never had you come on command like that, but it was intense and breathtaking and everything that dirty novels wax poetry about.

Hoseok bared down and bit on the junction of your neck as he rode out his own high, taking a few more harsh thrusts inside you before his rhythm began to escape him and he sloppily came inside you, the warmth both startling and oddly satisfying. You let him catch his breath whilst still inside you, needing to catch your own as well if you had to be completely honest.

As he stayed inside, you slowly regained focus of the world; realizing where you were and just how heavy Hoseok actually was.

“Um… could you like, get off me?” You strained to speak, the weight on your lungs crushing the oxygen out of your words. Hoseok shook with laughter, that and the breathless chuckles against your neck indicating that he was laughing once more, and he dragged you into joining him as he gently pulled out; as gingerly as he’d done most everything else so far.

He plopped down on his back next to you, eyes gazing lovingly at the ceiling. He slowly let gravity do its work and his head came to rest on his arm, gaze refocusing on you as you become the main attraction; the target in his sights. You return the look with as much warmth as you could muster, hoping that even post-sex, you could still try to look good enough for him.

The way Hoseok was looking at you, it sort of terrified you. How one could look at someone so… sweetly, purely, even after such a lewd act? Yet here Hoseok was, managing it all while still looking like something straight out of a magazine—his after-sex glow had you beyond jealous, why couldn’t sweat work that way for you?

“You know, you look at me as if I hung the moon for you.” You couldn’t help your smart mouth from commenting, fighting the stash of giggles you felt bubbling from the base of your tummy and settling just behind your palate.

“Maybe you did? Have you ever considered that?”

“Ugh, so cheesy. Shut up, I thought those were just tropes for the show, to get women to like you.”

“Nope, all me.” Hoseok beamed and you resisted the urge to smother him with one of the decorative pillows he’d carefully picked out, yet another fine choice by the man.

“So, I guess we should say our goodbyes, right?” You digressed, longingly removing your eyes from him to focus on something past his lying figure, not wanting to truly come to terms with the idea of having to abandon the dreamlike lifestyle you’d envisioned with Hoseok, knowing this was probably a one-time thing and—

“What are you talking about? I really like you Y/N, was that not obvious enough?” His eyebrows furrowed in concern while yours shot up towards your hairline, not believing that his advances were actually legitimate. “Guess I should’ve used more pickup lines…”

“Hoseok, are you for real right now? Because if this is some elaborate business scheme or prank for TV, I’ll never forgive you. And I’ll probably sue for emotional distress.” You couldn’t hide the hope that glimmered in your eyes like shining pebbles in a babbling brook, the waters crashing against the creek and making your eyes get a little dewy at the thought of Hoseok being yours.

“Of course Y/N, I would never even dream of such a cruel prank! You’re really beautiful and sweet and lovely and… you’re like me. You’re a dreamer with a blank canvas and you’re dying to fill it with the colors of your mind but, sometimes it’s easier to paint with someone to help. And Y/N, I really want to color my world with you, you’re the only one I want.” Despite the slight lack of eloquence in Hoseok’s words, you still found every single bit endearing, feeling the emotion behind him as he spoke. It only served to make your eyes water more.

“Please Y/N, may I be your plus one on these travels?”

“But… the show, what will happen if you’re constantly traveling with me?” You tried to fight the pout on your lips, you really did, but it still puckered out and Hoseok chuckled at just how cute it made you look.

“The show is in its final episodes for the season, we’ve already filmed the big finale and I only need to reveal one more customers bus and that’s it!”

“Hopefully you don’t… celebrate like this with everyone after the big reveal, right?”

Hoseok laughed and this time you didn’t suppress your urge to hit him with a pillow, kissing him right after as he whined about getting hurt.

“No, just you baby. Now, shall we take this baby out for a test ride?”

“Are we talking about the bus or you?”

“Either works for me.”

“Me too.”

In a dust cloud of laughter and warmth, the two of you set off to complete your new home with a few finishing touches to truly make it yours and in the meantime, you get to test out the stability and sturdiness of the furniture Hoseok built. It was very educational, for sure.

From here on out, it was a journey with your new companion, and you had hopes that one day, you could repay Hoseok for giving you what you’ve always dreamed of:

A home.

[sequoiann]

❧ c.sc | bad fame

pairing; seventeen s.coups x reader

genre; angst, fluff, a bit of swearing?

synopsis; you knew it was going to be hard, but not to this extent. you never imagined that it would be even half as bad as it was now — the idol life. seungcheol is your senior under the same agency, and with your bubbling popularity in a bad light, he recognizes you as you two cross paths in the office building.

but he knows you aren’t what the media makes you seem to be.

word count; 2.8k 

notes; i’m so sorry that seungcheol wasn’t there from the very start of the scenario, but this one is much longer so the front is more of a build-up! this scenario is much longer than my usual ones so i hope you guys enjoy it !! i haven’t been posting bc i was working on this HAHA do let me know what you thinkk ;)

As soon as you stepped out of your hotel room, you hastily slipped on your grey mask and sunglasses, pulling your hood over your head as your hand clutched onto your luggage handle. The need to hide your face has gotten more and more prominent as days passed, and it almost became a habit for you to not show any facial features of yourself when you stepped out into public. Even though you knew no one was going to be in the hallways of the hotel room you stayed in, you still did it as a precaution.

Your stylist, Rachelle, came out after you, and used her fingers to comb through the odd strands of light brown hair poking out of your hoodie, smoothing them out and letting some flow naturally down past your shoulders, so you looked less like you just got out of bed. A small exhausted breath escapes your lips.

“It doesn’t really matter anymore, doesn’t it?” you said softly, head tilted downwards.

Rachelle furrows her brows and presses her lips together in disapproval. “Of course it does, love,” she coos gently, and you manage a small smile even though it’s not seen. “Don’t think like that.”

You assume she could see your smile through your slightly risen cheekbones, because she returned the smile reassuringly.

Your manager comes out of the room next to yours, and he grabs the heavier hand-carry luggage you were holding on.

“Let’s go, the car’s at the lobby. It’ll take us straight to the airport,” he mutters, walking ahead of you.

You mumble a quiet note of acknowledgment, glancing at Rachelle for a second before following close behind your manager.

The three of you took the lift downstairs, where your two other co-managers were already waiting. The two were often not with you; they were the ones who just settled admin matters.

You knew it was going to have to take more than just three people around you as you made your way to the car at the lobby area.

Just as you predicted, the second the lift doors opened, your were greeted with five (or were there six?) bodyguards who worked at the hotel, and they immediately formed a barrier around you.

Fans, or rather, a mix of anti-fans and fans, swarmed around you, but the staff around you made sure they couldn’t come in direct contact with you.

It is the agency’s responsibility to take care of the physical and mental well-being of their artists, they say. Of course.

Random words were thrown at you, and you couldn’t decipher much except for the usual “I love you”s and “Look over here”s. You politely bowed as you were slowly led towards where you were supposed to be.

A few hands reached past the guards and started flapping around, and some had hit you lightly, brushed past you, nothing serious.

Until someone throws a relatively heavy bag of something at you. You stumbled back in surprise, and you felt someone hold you to stop you from falling. Although there wasn’t exactly any space for you to actually fall to the floor — you were legitimately surrounded.

“Oops!” you heard someone call out, before snickers erupted from a group. The insincerity, sarcasm, and deliberateness were almost deafening. You felt bright flashes hitting past your sunglasses and onto your eyes. You blinked a few times, the repeatedly blinking lights blinding.

“Please put your cameras away and make way! We have a flight to catch!” one of your managers shouted over the loud chatters, and you felt yourself being nudged forward a little. You shook your head and quickened your footsteps.

After five long minutes, you finally get to your car, and you scramble to the back seat as your managers and stylist took the front ones. You thanked the guards before your manager closed the car door, and you leaned back onto your headrest, pulling off your mask so that you could breathe easier, and let your eyelids fall close.

Rachelle glances back at you, assuming you were asleep, then sighs softly.

“Shouldn’t we do something about those kinds of threats?” she asked your manager, her voice awfully soft. You could almost visualize him shrugging it off.

“What can we do? What’s happened has happened.”

You squeezed your eyes shut, as if it would block out your hearing at the same time — and was then driven to the airport; to head back to Seoul.

The minute you arrived at the airport, you checked in quickly so that you could avoid anyone who was finding trouble. You knew they’d come chasing sooner or later.

The plane ride back to Seoul was peaceful enough, and you managed to get some well-needed rest while up in the air.

When you landed, you geared back on, your usual hood, sunglasses, and mask back on shielding your face. You knew full well of what was ahead of you the moment you step out of the arrival hall.

The same scenario happens. Guards encircled you, and screaming people flocked to you, immediately sensing your presence.

This time, it was worse than whatever that had happened previously. You heard no positive words; no words that would’ve come from a fan’s lips. Instead, all you heard was —

“Get out of Pledis!”

“Don’t blame others for your wrongdoing, you shameless person!”

“You call yourself an idol?!”

And the next thing you knew, you see an oval egg flying in your direction. You raise your hand in defense and it smashes into your arm, cracking and leaking its raw contents onto your sleeve.

“Ooh”s and “Aah”s were heard, and tears pricked the corners of your eyes. No, Y/N. No crying.

You let your hand fall to your side as if thinking nothing of it.

The guards became more aggressive after that, pushing everyone aside, and you briskly walked to the exit where the car that would take you back to the company building was.

You got into the car, your face still kept straight as you remove your sunglasses. The car drove off, back to the company building, and silence hung in the air during the drive. All that was heard was the light panting sounds from Rachelle and the managers.

The car reached the company building in approximately 30 minutes, and you grabbed your backpack, while your other luggage was handled by your managers.

“Go to the practice room and change into the spare clothing there. You have vocal training later,” your manager told you monotonously as if nothing ever happened.

“Right,” you answered, turning to Rachelle as you became aware of the worried look she was shooting you.

You shook your head as a translation of “I’m alright”. Rachelle wasn’t convinced, but you just went in first, to the lift lobby.

That’s when you felt yourself start to shake ever so slightly, and your muscles were aching as if you’d been holding yourself still the past hour.

Your unsteady hand hit the lift ‘up’ button, and you let your head hang low as you waited for it to come up from the basement. Your thoughts started to wander in flashbacks.

When you auditioned to become an artist under Pledis, you already knew being an idol wasn’t going to be easy. You knew the cons that would definitely come along with it, but you didn’t expect it to get so bad.

The debut album you released received a fair amount of positive attention. You were glad, you got off a good start. However, the second album you released was nowhere near that. The composer of the song had apparently plagiarized the introduction from another official soundtrack, but you were oblivious. No one knew, until your album was recorded, packaged, released.

Fans of the original soundtrack noticed the similarity, and it became your fault. When you tried to defend yourself by saying that you were not the one who had made the song you sang, it became a situation where you were trying to push the blame.

It resulted in horrible, unwanted fame.

You heard a soft ‘ding’, and the elevator doors opened in front of you. You sucked in a breath of air, stepped in, and noticed another person who was in there with you. You didn’t bother to check who, though.

You used your other hand to cover the stains that had been made on your sleeve by the raw egg, and teardrops started rolling down your cheeks.

“Hey.”

You flinched a little and turned to the person standing beside you, widening your eyes as your recognized him.

S.Coups. The leader of Seventeen. Your senior.

“S-sunbaenim,” you stammered.

Seungcheol — which was S.Coups’ real name — frowned, surprised at the sudden formalities you displayed.

“You alright?” he asked, cocking his head to a side as you looked ahead, naturally avoiding his eyes.

“Why wouldn’t I be?” you laughed a lightheartedly, surprised at how genuine-sounding it came out as.

You had signed in as an official Pledis trainee about six months before Seventeen had made their debut, so generally speaking, you had trained with them for that short period of time. You knew them well enough to hold casual conversations with them, but not to the point where you guys actually hung out.

It wasn’t supported by the company, after all. They didn’t like the male and females in the company to mix or to get too comfortable with each other. It sounded logical since you were aware of how fans outside easily misjudge and rumors would start floating.

Seungcheol was one of the trainees you talked to the most back then. When the two of you were still trainees. You were told that you suited debuting as a soloist, instead of being a member of a full group — which was what you aimed for at first — so you gladly accepted that position.

And you debuted a year and a half after Seventeen did.

Knowing that Seungcheol was the leader of the 13-member group, you often went to him for help and advice; since you knew you’d be all on your own.

Seventeen received a baffling amount of attention after they made their official debut, partially because of the promotions that they had been doing even before releasing their first album. Through all those, Seungcheol gained experience quick. He helped you tremendously, guiding you through what you should refrain from doing, and what you should daringly do. He mentioned the tiniest of details that you would’ve never thought about.

No matter how negative it sounded, he’d tell you. Because he knows if he doesn’t, it’ll be harder for you to handle when it happens.

He told you everything and anything — from how you should control your really hyper behavior to how you should never show your sadness to the public. He said that’s what they really wanna see. And you were aware that as an idol, you’d have to do what they want.

But Seungcheol never imagined that such a thing would happen to you at such an early stage of your debut. The online articles about what happened to you were endless, and unsightly videos of you were reposted and reposted, again and again until it went viral. Undoubtedly, Seungcheol saw them.

And seeing you in the lift, holding yourself up when he can see right through you and see your own walls breaking apart…

It hurt him.

He watched you more than you knew. He took care of you more than you knew. He peeks into your dance studio every now and then when he passes by to make sure you could cope. He even leaves random bottles of water by the door to make sure you stayed hydrated. He ordered food takeaways and anonymously delivers them to your photo shoots.

He silently took care of you like an older brother would.

Seungcheol’s eyes darted over to the discolored patch on your sleeve that you were uncomfortably trying to hide. That’s when his sense of smell kicks in and he effortlessly identified its origin.

“You need some new clothes,” he said, the elevator coming to the level that you were supposed to arrive at.

“Manager Do said there’re some in the practice room,” you told him, stepping towards the door that was going to open soon. “I’ll change into those.”

“They always say that,” Seungcheol mumbled softly, shaking his head. You didn’t hear him, though.

The elevator door finally opens, and you let out a quiet, heavy breath as you took stepped out. As soon as you did, Seungcheol grabs onto your arm from behind, pulling you back into the lift and pressing the ‘close’ button, and only letting you go after the lift doors closed shut.

You looked at him in annoyance. You weren’t in the mood to continue being polite and cheery like you usually was.

“I have practice, Seu—” you paused for a mere millisecond as you lowered your tone. “—sunbaenim.”

“That can wait,” he said easily, as if not listening to whatever you were saying.

The elevator proceeds up two more floors, before the doors open and you’re nudged out softly by Seungcheol. You unwillingly followed him to another practice room — the one you recognized as Seventeen’s. He pushes down on the door handle, opening it, and you catch a glimpse of the other members. You instinctively took a step back, your feelings mixed. You felt guilty, ashamed to see them in your state.

“Come in,” Seungcheol says, almost ordering you to.

“What for?” you questioned, your patience level running low.

Seungcheol raises an eyebrow, and, once again, pulls you in by your wrist. It wasn’t a forceful drag, but you weren’t happy with it.

You stumble in and the other twelve members turn to you. They recognized you instantly and wide, bright smiles formed on their originally worn out features.

“Y/N!” they chorused messily, Seungkwan actually running over to crush you in a hug. You smiled slightly — this time with it being a little more legitimate. Your clean arm wrapped back around him as you let your other stained arm hide behind your body. It was an awkward position, but Seungkwan doesn’t notice.

Seungcheol smiles at the sight,, but quickly tells them to get back to practice, and that he would join them in a while. They nodded and shot you a few last looks, before turning back to the mirror in front of them and returning to their practice.

Seungcheol then leads you to the vocal training studio that was connected at the back, and you lifted your wrist to check the time on your watch.

“Seungcheol, seriously, not now. I only have five minutes,” you deadpanned, getting more and more irritated as time passed.

He pays no attention to you as he grabs a beige hoodie from a chair, passing it to you.

“Change into these,” he said, and you declined.

“No, it’s okay, I don’t need it,” you said, pushing it back into his hands as you clenched your jaw. Your eye level was to the ground again.

“Y/N—”

And you just burst.

“I said I don’t need it!” you raised your voice. You knew at the back of your head that the vocal studio was soundproof.

“Stop being so nice to me! Stop asking me questions and looking at me like you actually care! I’m sorry I’m doing nothing for this company, I’m sorry I’m being a burden. I’m trying, I really am, but I don’t know what else to do. I’m guilty, I’m trying to avoid all of you, every single one of you, and you dragging me here isn’t making me feel any better! I don’t want to see any of you, don’t you get it!?”

You were screaming, your internal words just pulling themselves out of your throat without any sugar coating. Your tears burst forth like water from a dam, spilling down your face. There is static at the side of your head once more, the side effect of living with this constant stress and fear every single day. The muscles of your chin tremble like a small child’s, and you bit in your lips as you looked away from Seungcheol. Your fists balled so tight that you could feel your own nails digging into your palm, and then your fists, too, started shaking.

Seungcheol stands there, for a few seconds, just looking at you. Then he wrapped his arms around you and pulled you close, gently rubbing your arm as you just cried into his chest. You couldn’t hold it in any longer — you just couldn’t.

His embrace was warm, and his arms seemed protective around your frail self. He softly cooed you, swaying you side to side a little as an attempt to calm you down.

“It’ll be alright,” he whispered. “It will be.”

For the first time in the past five months, you felt like nothing could hurt you. Nothing at all. 

[jejublr]

Super!Mingyu

A/N: Hi guys~ This is my first AU! This was inspired by posts by other amazing writers and prompts so I decided to make a bunch of them. This one is a mash between Best Friend!AU and Super!AU and is quite long so buckle up! Be sure to be on the lookout for upcoming Super!Seventeen posts and thank you for reading! Enjoy! :D

P.S. Many fart jokes. Mentions of gummy bears. 

 lmao ok where do we even start with this guy

You've basically known Mingyu from kindergarten

He's a pretty low key kid tbh, you never would've thought he's a super

So the story starts when one day, in kindergarten, in the middle of the finger painting class, you farted ya it's gross, get over it. Kids only eat, sleep poop and cry while farting inbetween.

So you’re kind of the silent-killer type of farter ok aka no sound but deadly

There's another kid in class who's infamous for having farting episodes 

So the whole class plus the teacher was like "ugh not again Kevin wstg we have enough of ur sh**" and are accusing him of this crime poor Kevin

Nobody suspected it was you ('sorry Kevin')

B U T  T H E N

You feel a tap on your shoulder and turned around to see this one kid with a bad haircut and trail of snot on his face

And you can't help but zone in until he said

"I know it's you"

Lol you’re f***ed.

Your know you gotta do something before he reports you to the teacher and you can’t have your entire kindergarten career and reputation just crumble into dust over a fart 

So what did you do?

"I'll share my gummy bears with you but you will n e v e r tell a soul"

"Ok" 

Well that was easy

Anyways

From that day on Snotty aka Kim Mingyu follows you around like a lost puppy and sits with you during snack time for the sake of gummy bears kid knows his priorities

Everytime you won’t share your candies with him, he blackmails you by threatening to tell the teacher that it was you who farted that One Faithful Day

You kinda regretted it now that you have to sacrifice your gummy bears but h e y, better than getting your reputation ruined and get called Ms. Fartsfor the rest of kindergarten amirite?

So fast forward to elementary school

Surprise surprise you're going to the same school as Mingyu 

He still follows you around btw

Also, you outgrew him so you call him Shorty now instead of Snotty

“How’s the air down there, Shorty?”

“Walk in traffic, Y/N”

Still asks for gummy bears during lunch period

Tbh it's getting annoying at this point bc whenever you whip up your lunch bag he'd go nuts

"Is that spaghetti I smell?”

“Bring your own lunch, Mingyu.”

But then it starts to happen every time

He'll know what you bring for lunch even before you unbox it

You're getting suspicious

Is he half dog or something? How does he even know?

And then things get weirder

So basically Mingyu becomes the class guard aka that kid that stands in front of the classroom when there's no teacher to inform the class when the teacher is coming

People starts complaining because Mingyu would come in and be like "The teacher's coming ! !" but there's nobody in the hallway?? so Mingyu pls explain???

"No I swear! She's coming!!!"

Ofc nobody believed him and the class was in utter chaos when the teacher finally came in

"Mingyu, how did you know?"

"I heard her walking" 

And you're like "lol what"

Anyways

He also becomes that annoying kid in class 

He'll say that the class is too hot/too cold when it's totally fine?? 

And when a teacher raises their voice he'd cover his ears

Also there was a time during a math test you and thought that you were going to ace the test because you're top in class at least in elementary school if you’re bad at it lmao but surprise surprise Mingyu aced it too

But later during the day he comes up to you and apologized and said that he copied your paper

And you're like ???? 

"Mingyu you sit two seats behind me how is that even possible???"

 He'll be the first to know when it's pizza day ("I can smell the pizza lol")

But brings his own lunch to school

Claims that the cafeteria food smells and tastes weird

he never eats the food from school bc he claims that it smells weird and because he’s a picky eater

But basically Mingyu is physically hypersensitive to everything and people think he's just whiny and annoying so the only friend he got is you

So you kinda took pity in him and you started to enjoy his company anyways so you let him hang around

 As long as he has his hand sanitizer with him at all times

 Fast fast forward to middle school 

Yayy time for puberty and hormones! fun fun fun 

Except it isn't fun

Puberty is as fun for supers as it is for normal teenagers

It’s terrible enough to suddenly have a bazillion of zits appearing on your formerly-smooth face

But the fact that Shorty had a major growth spurt over the summer and is basically a f***ing tree now 

“Who’s short now, Y/N?”

And brags about it every time he has the chance

It’s also around this time that Mingyu has been acting even stranger

He’s easily distracted by a background noise, even if others don’t seem to hear it

He’d jump right out of his seat whenever the bell rings or any loud noises really 

At one point, a teacher got so angry and started shouting and when you looked at Mingyu he’s cowering in his seat with his hands low key on his ears, wincing every time the teacher raised their voice

He also becomes more secluded

Leaves the classes right after the bell rings, decided to take his lunch to a more quieter place under a tree at the school yard, avoids group projects..

You’re really concerned for him although you’re a bit hurt that he seemed like he’s keeping something from you

So you decided to ask him one day

"Mingyu are you ok? Is there something you're not telling me?"

"Hahaha w-what makes u say that" 

You gave him a pointed look and it's scary and he got reminded that time during elementary school you bit Sarah in the arm for cutting the queue

If that's what ppl get for cutting your queue then what would happen if you find out that he's different

He’s scared that the only person he’s been friends with for years would abandon him when they finally realize that he’s a freak

At that point of time, he just wishes that he could be like the other kids

But he also remembers that you've been there for him after all these times

You (kinda) tolerated all the times he sneezed in your hair 

“One more time, Mingyu and I will cut you.”

And the times he broke your toys after not realizing his own strength 

Also that dark time during elementary school when Danielle and her group of friends verbally bullied him for being “weird” and “different”

You stood up to them for him

You got yourself suspended and your parents called for punching the bullies in the face

That night you came to his house with a bag full of gummy bears and both of your favorite movies and you guys just hung out in his room

That when you said “Mingyu, I know you can’t even hurt a fly so if you need me to punch someone in the face I will”

Wow when did you become such a violent kid

But he knows it’s just your way of saying “I’ll always be there if you need me”

And honestly, you're already a knight in shining armor to him the second you broke Danielle Davis’s nose

So he decided to tell you

How he knows what you’ll have for lunch

Why he’s so distracted all the time

And why he’s such a sensitive kid

He has heightened senses

*silence ensues*

He can’t help but starts to sweat as you stare at him, unblinkingly 

He wanted to strangle you, to force you to talk, to just say something

And then you do

“Wait ok so in kindergarten, you knew it was me who farted because of your super senses?”

lol. ded.

He just looked at you disappointedly “Seriously, Y/N, that’s the first thing that pops into your mind?”

“Well I’m sorry I can’t help it. But really can you really tell who farts in class. Also I’m really sorry for you, dude, smelling farts in HD must’ve suck.”

Ok but you’re kinda offended and sad why he kept it away from you for such a long time but soon realizes that people are judgmental jerks who’d just label Mingyu as an outcast if they find out

But basically, Mingyu is super duper relieved that you’re totally cool with it and you guys moved on from it

Fast forward to high school

*Achievement Unlocked: You got an S/O*

It’s not Mingyu ok

You met your S/O the first day of high school

They’re really sweet and caring and overall a nice person

Mingyu was more skeptical and protective when you first started to date but took the backseat when he realized that you can take care of yourself (lol remember Sarah and Danielle?)

Cheers you on your relationship and becomes your confidante and go-to person to talk about your relationship

He doesn't mind at all.

He’s just happy that you’re happy what a cinnamon roll ;A;

Until one day he saw your s/o at the mall, hanging out with some girl he doesn’t recognize

They seemed pretty close and their arm would ever so often casually hangs on the girl’s shoulder

Mingyu’s general perception of your s/o has been good so far so although he was kinda surprised to see them hanging out with a girl that’s not you, he just thought that she might be their close friend or a family member or something so he brushed it off

He checked with his superhuman hearing and it’s not like they’re talking about anything suspicious or anything

But Mingyu being Mingyu, he was curious and wanted to look out over you

So he figured, if your s/o was up to no good, he’d have to find out himself

So he began to stalk investigate your s/o

You kinda picked up and would jokingly said “Don’t you dare steal them from me” and he’ll be like “No, no its not like that!” (lmao also he wouldn't dare ofc)

But then Mingyu found out that your s/o has in fact, been cheating behind your back with a girl from school

He’s so surprised and more importantly, enraged that they would even do that to you

What have you ever done to deserve such trash of an s/o??? You deserved to be served and taken care of like royalty

That evening he went to your house to break the news to you

“Y/N, I have something to tell you”

You don’t believe him. You don't want to believe him.

Your s/o has been such a caring and thoughtful person. They wouldn’t do that to you right?? 

So you do what you thought was right.

You got angry and told Mingyu that he was just being jealous, that he’s just mad that you now hang out with someone else. You told him to make some friends so he can get over it.

Mingyu got even angrier over the fact that you chose to defend your s/o and is hurt that you wouldn’t believe him, your best friend

But at that exact moment he also had an epiphany

He was jealous

He was sad that you now have someone else to hang out with

He was sad over the fact that you might drift away after all these years

He also realized that he cares so much about you

So so much that maybe it’s not the friendly kind of caring anymore

He realized that after all this time, he might be in love with his best friend

But he’s so angry so he decided to storm off and have you find out yourself, knowing how stubborn you can be

You don’t talk for the next few weeks 

He decided to avoid you completely and would change seats if you’re in the same class as him. He wouldn’t even spare you a glance in the hallways

You sit alone at lunch, with nobody to eat your gummy bears

This is the first time you guys had a fight this big

One day, during class, you decided you had enough and you made a mad dash out of the classroom to find Mingyu and tell him you were sorry (Teacher: kids these days smh.)

Otw there, you passed the janitor’s closet and heard some noise

You decided to be a snitch and took a peek

And there they were, your s/o and a girl, making out in the small cramped space, unaware that you're watching

At that moment, all you can feel is your heartbreaking

You feel tears well up in your eyes, your body grows rigid and cold

You felt so so betrayed and lost that you don't even have the energy to barge up to them and beat them yourselves

So you took a detour to the nurse’s office, your mission long forgotten

You laid down on a cot for a good half-an-hour before you heard the curtain being opened and at first you thought it was the nurse who decided to kick you out but then you felt a large hand brushing the top of your head ever so gently

And by God, nobody was allowed to do that to you except for

“Y//N, I came as soon as class is over, are you feeling ok?”

You looked up and there he was, looking at you with concern and yet with the softest face

And it felt so sincere that you broke down completely in front of him

He just held you as you cried into his shirt, blabbering nonsense and being a snotty mess

When you were much better, you told him what happened

And then he had a look in his eyes

He kissed your forehead and just left 

You’re confused because Mingyu?? what are you doing m8???

You didn't heard from him until later in the afternoon

He got suspended

For punching your s/o smack in the face

You didn’t know what to do. Should you thank him??? be concerned???

Since when did he become so violent?

lmao he learned from you

But later in the evening, you came to his house, a bag of gummy bears in one hand and your favorite movies in the other

Neither of you said anything at first. You didn't need to.

You both just climbed up his bed and started eating and watching the movies

Halfway through the movie, you glanced up at him

“Thank you”

He didn't take his eyes off the screen “He deserved it. Should’ve know what was coming for him.”

You’re not satisfied so you sat up and took his face in your hands and his eyes finally finally met yours

And oh how lovely you looked in you sweatpants and oversized t-shirt, and yeah looking up kinda hurts his eyes because of the light but it’s casting a soft halo around you and when he met your gaze, it’s fierce and determined

Your eyes are still a bit red and puffy from all the crying earlier but to him, at this very moment, you're perfect.

You said “I’m sorry for not listening to you. I’m sorry for being such a jerk. I’m sorry for saying those hurtful things to you-”

But he cuts you off, his lips ascending onto yours into slow searing kiss

You lost your train of thoughts and while you thought that he’s the one with the heightened senses here, at that very moment it’s as if you had it too

Everything felt so warm and you don’t even know whether it’s from the close proximity, your body heat or the room. Your heart went overdrive and you're scared that he might hear it He totally could

But most of all, it felt right

You know maybe you should’ve been aghast or the very least, disgusted, that you’re actually kissing your own best friend but it doesn’t feel like that with Mingyu

You can feel all his emotions in that one kiss and nothing ever felt so sincere and so warm

You didn't know but at that very moment, Mingyu was experiencing the exact things, although everything is thrice more intense

After what felt like an eternity, he finally pulled away and there you are, gazing into each others eyes, breathing fast, cheeks flushed

“I’m sorry I did that.. and no! before you kill me, you’re just the most beautiful person I’ve ever met and you deserve someone who can see that and appreciate you and take care of you with all his hea-” he said before you pulled him up for another kiss

“I love you, too, you giant idiot.”

And at that very moment, you realize that after all, you might been in love with him

You remembered the kid with the weird haircut and snotty nose who caught you farting back in kindergarten and thought: “Who would’ve thought?

[such-a-common-girl]

A New Beginning (Carl Grimes x Reader)

Words: 4,444

Carl Grimes x Reader

Summary: You’re a girl around Carl’s age who happens to embrace the apocalypse- in your mind, nothing can bring you down. Whenever Rick finds you in the woods and takes you back with him to Alexandria, everyone is fascinated by your vulgar, outgoing, friendly attitude including Carl. Yours and Carl’s relationship blossoms, going from just friends to possibly something more.

Warnings: Mentions of death, mentions of depression, mentions of drugs, language, violence, vulgarity, attempted humor, fluff

a/n: ok i feel like this is shit bc i am suffering writer’s block at the moment but oh well :)

“Fuck,” You hiss, seeing the three walkers approaching your small, set up camp. One of them is closer to you than you had anticipated, and it grabs your backpack in attempt to bite you. Your backpack, which happened to be full of the food you had spent all day gathering, flies to the floor as you twist your body to stab it in the head.

It’s been a long day, and the last thing you want is to fight off more walkers right now. You’re alone, exhausted, and all you want to do is sleep.

Originally, you were in a small group with a few other people, your parents included. It wasn’t much- only a small camp about a mile off the coast with easy access to catch fish for food, and a freshwater river nearby. It was an ideal place to live during a time like this. But then a fight broke out between two members, causing gunfire to be shot off, and an entire herd of walkers to come your group’s way. As far as you know, you’re the only person who got out.

You’ll admit that at first, depression hit you like a freight train. You were suddenly alone, everyone you knew (presumably) dead, and you had no idea how to survive on your own. You spent months barely surviving, only eating once every few days and running away from walkers instead of fighting back. You were almost at a point of giving up when something just snapped in your mind. You can remember it vividly- you were laying inside of an abandoned house, curled up underneath a blanket when you thought to yourself, “What the fuck am I doing?”

Slowly, you learned and you survived. You taught yourself how to throw knives at wildlife, and how to start a fire to cook them. You ate berries that you found, only eating the ones you knew weren’t poisonous. You didn’t typically stay in one place for very long since you’re on the lookout for other groups that are willing to take you in. You pulled yourself out of your sadness and focused on not focusing on that. You may be alone, but you don’t have to be a “little bitch” about it, in your terms.

That’s how you got yourself into the predicament you’re currently in- the handfuls of berries and the few apples you picked earlier scattered around the floor, one dead walker alongside the dropped food and two other very alive walkers surrounding you.

“You fuckers!” You yell out, looking angrily down at the dropped contents from your backpack. “I spent all day picking those!”

The two remaining walkers started to close in on you, one within an arms length and the other only slightly behind it.

You stab the knife into the side one of the walker’s head, pushing it to the ground. “That’s what you get, ‘ya dickwad,” The other walker approaches you, walking slower than usual as its mouth hangs wide open, ready to attack.

“Oh, come on big boy, don’t play this game with me,” You joke around, attempting to make light at the situation, holding your already bloodied knife up. “Flirtin’ around, taunting me, walking slowly. That’s so not nice!” You pretend to frown. “But, since I am just such a nice person, unlike you who could probably use some lessons in politeness, I’ll do you a favor and make this shit fast.” You run up to it, plunging the knife into its forehead.

The walker, and thankfully the last one, falls to the ground. You wipe a bead of sweat off your forehead, putting your knife back into your pocket. Despite your big girl attitude, taking on walkers alone takes the energy out of you, especially since you’re currently only living on fruit and water. You pick up the items of food that you dropped earlier, setting them back into your backpack before leaning back up against the tree stump.

You take your water bottle out of the side pocket and down about half the water- not the best idea in retrospect, as you don’t know where the nearest water source is, but the heat and the exhaustion from walking all day is getting to you.

“Goddamn, you know for some dead people, you’ve got some strength to you.” You breathe out, still trying to catch your breath as your heart pounds.

After a few minutes, your heart rate has settled and you finally feel comfortable enough to relax. You’re about to set up your camp for the night when you see a shadowy figure hiding behind a tree. You squint your eyes, attempting to see clearer, but all you can make out in the evening light is a dark shape. You know that it’s an actual human being instead of a walker, since they’re just standing there and, you know, not trying to attack you.

“I see you.” You call you, giving the person a little wave. “Come join the party, we’re talking about our favorite Disney princess’.”

You can see the person step forward a little bit, almost hesitantly. You’re well aware that they could potentially be a dangerous person, but you’re also very observant. If they were going to hurt you, they would have done something sooner. They’re probably just as cautious about you as you are about them.

A man steps out into a light, his gun at the ready, a look of confusion on his face. He looks around at your surroundings- a few dead walkers off to the side, your backpack just beside you as you’re sitting down on a blanket. A look of sympathy flashes his face as he lowers his gun and walks closer to you.

“Who are you?” You raise an eyebrow at him, keeping your right hand beside the pocket where your knife was residing.

“I’m Rick. Are you alone out here?” He asks you, the sympathetic and worried look still on his face. You hesitate to answer, the possibilities of ‘what if’s’ running through your brain.

“I’m Y/N.” You end up saying, deciding that he looked genuinely worried enough about you to be someone harmful. “And yes, I’m alone. Me and my group… Well, long story short, it’s just me now.”

“How long have you been on your own?”

“I don’t know. A year, maybe.” You shrug your shoulders, taking your hand away from your knife and reaching over to your water bottle, taking another sip. “Why?”

“Look, Y/N,” Rick puts his hands out, showing that he’s not going to hurt you. “We’ve got a camp a few miles north of here. If you’re willing to answer a few questions, you can come back with me. It’s not safe for a young girl like you to be out here on your own.”

“Oh, holy shit, I’ll answer any question you want.” Your eyes go wide with excitement. The possibility of living with other people again is a luxury you didn’t think you’d have.

“How many walkers have you killed?” Rick asks, looking at you in the eyes seriously.

“I don’t know, I don’t keep track. Usually a few per day.”

“And how many people have you killed?”

“None. Haven’t needed to. Although, I don’t think I would hesitate to if it put me in danger.” You answer honestly. Rick stares at you, as if trying to decide if you were being truthful or not. Eventually, he lets out a sigh and he nods.

“Alright, Y/N. Come on.” He motions for you to follow him as he begins to walk away. You pick up your backpack, setting your water bottle back inside as you get up to follow him. He holds out his hand to take your backpack from you, offering to carry it.

“You know, I saw you kill those walkers back there. I’m pretty impressed.” Rick comments as you hand him over you pack, thankful to not have to lug around a heavy bag.

“At what?” You question. “I stabbed them in the head. Isn’t that what you’re supposed to do?”

“No, that’s not what I’m talking about.” Rick shakes his head. “You’re just, I don’ know, you seem different. The way you went about it, what you were saying, how you were just crackin’ jokes along the way… Just don’t see that very often, that’s all.”

“Well, there must be some boring as shit people in your group, huh?” You smile at him. “But really, the way I see it, just don’t take everything so seriously and don’t be so tense all the time. Cracking jokes and poking fun is what gets me through all this shit. Also, imagining it like it’s some kick ass video game helps.”

“You’re something else.” Rick laughs. “The walk to Alexandria shouldn’t be too far, only about an hour or two. I think you’ll like it there. You can live with my kids and I until I can find you a more permanent place to stay.” Rick tells you. “I’ve got a boy around your age, sixteen or seventeen.”

“Oh, god no, I’m not wearing any makeup!” You say dramatically, earning a slight laugh from Rick as he shakes his head.

“I think you and Abraham will get along real well.”

“Who’s Abraham?” You question.

“He’s a part of our group, you’ll meet him once we get there.”

-

The walk didn’t take too long, as you tried to keep the conversation with Rick going. You’ve learned that there’s a few people around your age inside Alexandria, and you’d be lying if you said that you’re not excited to meet them. The only person you’re a little nervous about is meeting Carl, who Rick said was about your age. You’d always been awkward with guys, even back at your previous camp. You never failed to make them laugh, which was a good sign, but when it came to actual conversation that required more than just joking around you always got all shy.

“Here we are.” Rick says, and your jaw audibly drops when you realize that this ‘camp’ he was talking about was an actual walled up city.

“This… This was not what I was expecting.” You gape.

The main gate opens, revealing an entire civilization inside. Everyone stops as they see you and Rick walking inside the main gates, giving you odd looks. You smile and wave at all of them, trying as hard as you possibly can to be friendly. It normally comes to naturally, as you tend to be very extroverted, but you wanted to try extra hard. This is the first group you’ve come along since the beach camp- you want to make a good first impression.

“Hi, I’m Y/N.” You reach out your hand to the man who had opened the gate for you and Rick. He stares at you for a good few seconds before hesitantly reaching out his hand to shake it.

“Come on, Y/N, let’s get you settled in the house.” Rick says, and you follow him to a white house on the corner of the street. It’s cute, and something about it screams ‘safe’ to you. The entire place of Alexandria just makes you feel as if the apocalypse never started, like you’re right back at home. Although you have come to terms with the fact that things will never be the same as they were, and you’d even dare say that you embrace it now, it is a nice feeling to be safe.

“There’s an extra bedroom you can have for now. I’ll show it to you and then I’ve got to step out for a while. I’ll let you get acquainted with the place. There’s a working shower inside the bathroom, I’ll have Carl or Michonne bring you some new clothes. That sound good?” Rick asks you as he walks up the stairs of his house into the upstairs hallway.

“That sounds more than good, thank you.” You beam at him. He opens up a door to your right, and lets you inside. You immediately run over to the bed and jump on it, relishing the fact that you don’t have to sleep on the ground every night now.

“Hell yes. This shit is comfortable. Please excuse me while I sleep for three years.” You laugh.

“Enjoy yourself, and rest up. You’ve got a long day tomorrow, lots of people to meet.” Rick laughs before shutting the door behind him.

You lay in the bed for a while before deciding to get up and use the shower. You look through the drawers in the dresser, pulling out a towel and a flannel. You’re assuming that the flannel was put in there for this exact reason, just in case a guest was over.

You walk over to the bathroom, closing the door behind you. You turn on the water and begin to strip of your clothes. The water is warm on your back when you step in, and you relish the feeling. Once you finish up, you step out of the shower and wrap yourself in the towel, drying yourself of the excess water.

You quickly throw on the flannel and brush out your wet hair, letting it cascade down your back. You put the towel onto the hanger before you exiting the bathroom and heading back to your room.

“’Cause baby you’re a firework, c’mon let your colors burst,” You sing under your breath as you walk into your room, grabbing your underwear and sliding them back on. The song was very popular before the apocalypse started, and you’d be lying if you said it didn’t still get stuck in your head every once in a while.  

“Oh god,” You hear a voice say from behind you, along with the crash of a few things falling on to the floor. You jump, turning yourself to face the person who had caused such a ruckus. There was a guy standing there, wearing a flannel similar to the one you currently had on, a sheriff’s hat, and holding a pile of clothing in his hands. On the floor beside him was a lampshade that he had seemingly knocked over, earning a giggle from you.

“You’re Carl, right?” You ask, still laughing. His face goes red as he sets the clothes down on to your bed and proceeds to pick up the lamp.

“Yeah, uh, sorry about that.” He smiles in embarrassment, shaking his head. “Just wasn’t, uh, wasn’t expecting to you to be standing here in only my shirt.”

“This is your shirt?” You raise an eyebrow. “Good taste. It’s comfortable.”

You want to laugh and make a joke about how flustered he seems by seeing you in such little clothing, but he seems to be embarrassed enough. You take notice that he’s very attractive, probably the most handsome guy you’ve seen in a long time.

“Yeah, I like it, too.” He laughs. “Well, um, I’m gonna go. Gotta check on Judith. Nice to meet you, though.”

“You too! I’ll see you later!” You beam at him.

“Let me know if there’s anything else you need!” He tells you as he walks out the door.

Once he’s left the room, you settle yourself into your bed. You can’t help but think as your falling asleep about this new life you’re seemingly living now, and how much you can see yourself enjoying it.  

-

You don’t know how long you’ve been asleep, but by the time you wake up, it’s morning. The sunshine is beaming through the windows, your new bed feeling very comforting as your eyes flutter open.

“Y/N?” You can hear a voice say through the door, a few light knocks following.

“Hmm?” You say out groggily.

“It’s Carl. Dad wants you out here so you can meet everyone else.” Carl calls through the door.

You groan, throwing the blanket off of you as you throw one leg off the bed, forcing yourself to get up. Unfortunately for you, your eyes weren’t completely open yet as you started to walk to the door, and you trip over your own feet, landing face first into the floor.

“Motherfucker!” You yell out in pain, rolling over onto your back. You smacked your head pretty hard onto the hardwood floors, as well as a cut on your arm from the bedframe scraping you.

Carl rushes into the room, alerted by your yelling, and starts dying laughing once he sees the positon you’re in.

“How the hell did you manage that?” He asks in between laughs, and you start to laugh as well.

“Who the hell knows, I’m tired.” You shake your head, slightly embarrassed that Carl witnessed that. “Of course I had to embarrass myself in front of a cute guy on, what, the second day we’ve met?”

“I’m cute, huh?” Carl raises his eyebrows, reaching out his hand to help you up off the ground. You disregard his offer to help you up, and you get up on your own.

“Yeah, I’d say you’re pretty cute.” You wink at him, and now it’s his time to blush.

You walk over to your dresser, grabbing a pair of jeans and sliding them on. You know that Carl is watching you, but you don’t mind. You then put on your shoes and walk out of the room with Carl, heading downstairs to go meet up with Rick.

As you’re walking down the stairs, his eyes glance down to the cut on your arm. He reaches out to touch it slightly, making you wince.

“You get that from your fall upstairs?” He questions, and you nod. “It looks like it hurts.”

“Yup, it hurts. But not ‘getting fucked in the ass without any lube’ kind of pain, I’d say it’s a mere paper cut level pain. I can handle it.”

Carl begin to choke on the air he’s breathing, unable to contain his shock at what you just said. It soon turns into laughing, and you can’t help but grin. Laughter looks good on him.

“I can’t believe you just said that.” He laughs.

“If I’m gonna be living here with you guys, you’re gonna have to get used to it. Everyone here seems so tense, so serious. You guys need to learn how to let loose and enjoy yourselves every once in a while. What’s the point in living if you can’t crack jokes and have fun?”

“I guess you’re right.” He agrees with you as you two enter the living room area, heading towards the front door. “I think you and Abraham will like each other.”

“I’m intrigued. I wanna meet Abraham as soon as possible, because your dad told me the same exact thing.”

You and Carl walk down the steps of the patio, the warm sun beaming onto both of your faces. People are walking by, but this time they aren’t giving you any kind of weird looks.

Carl motions for you to follow him. You stay close behind him as he leads you some place, you’re not sure where. After a few minutes of walking, you’re in front of a decent sized building with at least a dozen people standing outside. Rick is standing in the center of them, his eyes lighting up when he sees you two.

“Hey, Y/N, come here. People wanna meet ‘ya.” Rick waves you over.

“I’ll talk to you later.” You tell Carl, nodding at him as you walk over to Rick.

Everyone is looking at you sympathetically, which you hate. You don’t like sympathy and you certainly don’t want any from these people. They all look nice enough, though.

“Well, hi everyone! I’m Y/N.” You smile at them all. “Sorry to intrude on your camp here. Didn’t even wanna come, Rick here practically had to force me.”

A look of shock crossed all of their faces before they realized you were kidding, and they all started to grin.

“You already know me, and I’m assumin’ Carl since you’re wearin’ his shirt. This is Daryl, Carol, Maggie, Glenn, Michonne, Rosita, Eugene, Abraham, Tara, and Sasha. That over there talking to Carl are Ron and Enid, and Ron’s little brother Sam.” Rick introduces you to everyone.

“We’re glad that you’re here, Y/N.” The woman Rick had introduced as Maggie tells you.

“So you were all alone?” Carol frowns, a look of concern on her face. “You can’t be older than seventeen, which must have been terrifying.”

“I mean, not really. To the being scared part. At first, yeah, it was nerve wracking going from having all these people with you to suddenly being by yourself. But it wasn’t too terrible, really. I didn’t mind. I’d even go as far as saying that there were times when I enjoyed myself.” You explain. “But yes, alone as a cat lady on Valentine’s Day.”

“You’re funny. I like you.” Abraham comments, patting you on the back. “I see why Rick here has been sayin’ you’re like a girl version of me.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.” You smile. You can see Carl staring at you while he is talking to Enid. Or, more specifically, she’s talking to him. He’s nodding at her, obviously not listening, as he focuses on what you’re doing. You give him a smile, and he grins a little bit before tearing his eyes away from you.

“Carl, huh?” Maggie raises her eyebrows.

“Hm?”

“I see you two lookin’ at each other.”

“Oh, no, we’re in this, like, contest to see who can embarrass themselves the most in front of each other. It’s sad, really. He almost broke a lamp when he first saw me, and then this morning I fell face first onto the floor, and… Yeah, I’m rambling. I’ll stop. But, I won’t deny that he’s cute.”

“You’re adorable.” Maggie laughs. “Well, if you ever need anything, let me know.” She says before walking off with Glenn.

You talk to a few more other people, all of them intrigued and genuinely shocked at how you managed to be so upbeat and friendly during a time like this. But overall, everyone here is nice and you get along with them pretty well.

“You know, if you’re talking to someone, you could try to look a little more interested in the conversation.” You whisper into Carl’s ear as you approach him.

“I was interested.” Carl lies, turning towards you. “I’m going back to the house, you can come if you want.”

“You looked bored out of your mind talking to that girl Enid. You just couldn’t tear your eyes away from me, huh?” You tease him, following him as he walks to your shared house.

He doesn’t respond to you, keeping his face straight as he focuses on getting to the house. You take this time to admire him, realizing just how attractive he truly is. You noticed it last night, but he just seems to only be growing more handsome to you by the minute.

“You know, I can’t tell why you’re being so nice.” He comments as the two of you walk up the porch steps and inside the door. “I’ve never met anyone like you before, you know.”

“To be fair, I’ve never met anyone like me, ether.”

“I like it.” He admits. “You’re so different from everyone else here. It’s a nice change of pace.”

“Thank you.” You smile.

“I’ve got some comic books upstairs, if you want to come read them with me?” He offers.

“Comic books?” You scrunch your nose. “I’ve never read them before. Although I watched Iron Man and he was a comic book character I think.”

“I’ll show you, come on. They’re pretty good.” He grabs your hand in his, leading you up the stairs to his room.

His room looks similar to yours, not very personalised or intricate. You definitely wouldn’t assume it was a teenage boys room, but you realize that this is probably not where he grew up. You know nothing about Carl.

“Carl, where are you from?” You ask him as you sit down on his bed beside him, picking up a comic book.

“Georgia. Most everyone you met here today is from there, actually. We only got to Alexandria a few months ago.” He tells you. “What about you? You’re like this big mystery girl to everyone here.”

“Besides the fact that I’m fucking awesome? There’s not much to me.” You shrug. “I grew up in Tappahannock, a small town on the beach in lower Virginia. Once this whole shit storm happened, we traveled up north a bit and had a camp on a beach. That didn’t last, obviously, and here I am now.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologise. It’s fine. I’m a big girl and I handled things.”

“We went through a lot of shit, too. If it makes you feel any better. First it was a camp outside Atlanta, then Maggie’s farm, and then for a while we were staying at a prison but some douchebag who called himself the governor blew it up. There’s more, but…”

Before you realize what you’re doing, you lean in and kiss him on the cheek. He tenses as your lips touch his cheek, color flushing to his cheeks.

“Wow, I’m sorry, I have no idea where that-” You start to say, but you’re cut off by Carl’s lips pressing up against yours.

His lips move clumsily against yours, but it’s sweet. He presses down onto the bed, climbing on top of you as you two kiss. Your hands travel up to his shoulders as you wrap your arms around his neck, pulling him in closer. The two of you pull away after a few moments, your foreheads pressing up against each other.

“I’ve been wanting to do that since the moment I saw you.” Carl whispers.

“Since the moment you first saw me in my underwear and you popped a boner? Yeah, I noticed that, by the way.” You tease.

“Yeah, that moment.” He smiles. “I never thought I’d be so happy about my dad bringing back some random girl he found in the woods.”

And in that moment, you knew that this was going to be the start of something.

[sunshine-captain]

do you have any good star trek novel recommendations? (tos please!!)

Yes! I do! I’ve been meaning to make a post about this for…so long, whoops, but I’ll answer this ask instead! (might still make the post someday, idk tbh. I probably should though because since I have so many Trek books I haven’t read yet, I might like more enough to rec them, haha.) Okay, anyway… (By TOS I assume you mean the original Enterprise crew, I hope it’s okay that not all of these actually take place during TOS, aka the five year mission.)

Sarek by A. C. Crispin You might have seen me mention this one the other day on my blog; I really love it. It takes place post TUC, Amanda is dying and Sarek is uncovering a plot that’s way bigger than anyone realizes at first… Also there’s some stuff about Jim’s nephew Peter (from the episode with the farting flying pancake aliens? lol.) and yeah, it’s a great read. All the parts with Sarek and Amanda are lovely and sad and the plot is interesting and it’s just all around enjoyable.Definitely recommend.

Collision Course by William Shatner This is the other one I mentioned on my blog already, and this one is probably my favorite Trek novel. Spock is nineteen and Jim is seventeen when they first meet, and they’re both too smart for their own good and get into trouble and…well, all the things you expect from Jim and Spock. It was originally supposed to be the first in a series, but for various reasons, there probably won’t be any more (CRIES) but this one is so good. And it doesn’t end on a cliffhanger so it’s okay. I especially enjoyed tbh how Bill appreciates what an effect Tarsus would have had on Jim (this is only three years later, after all) and it’s still very visible on lil’ Jim. Not a spoiler, bc a reference is made to Tarsus on…literally the very first page. Lol. Anyway, this one is really fun and sometimes sad (bc Tarsus) and just really great! Also, at least one of the plot twists genuinely surprised me, which is rare… I normally see them coming a mile off in Trek novels. ;) (Which doesn’t usually take away from my enjoyment, tbh!) But I really appreciate when they can surprise me.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture (novelization) by Gene Roddenberry You knew this was coming. This is an absolute must read if you’re a Spirk fan, tbh. I’m not all the way through with it so far, about halfway done, but I can tell you it’s a much better way of telling the story of TMP than TMP. Lol. The movie has this simple feeling and Jim rushing to Spock on the bridge and saying his name like a prayer and other things, but it also has all those dreadful special effect sequences. And the novel has its own gay to offer. I don’t necessarily agree with the way Gene wrote Jim (in fact, it’s been forever since I picked it up but I distinctly remember being bothered by it), but…yeah, at least borrow a copy from someone and witness the gay parts for yourself, haha.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (novelization) by Vonda McIntyre I’m going to go ahead and say right now that if you’re going to read the novelizations, go for the ones by Ms. (Mrs? idk) McIntyre. She wrote 2, 3, and 4. I haven’t read 3 yet, but I have read 2 and 4 and I like that she actually adds in scenes and stuff that weren’t in the movies. It makes me feel like I’m actually getting something additional for my time even though I’m reading a novelization of a movie I’ve already seen. I like this one, because there was quite a bit that wasn’t in the movie (I have a hunch the extra scenes, at least some of them, might be based on the script? because the scene with Sulu’s great….something or other grandfather as a child meeting Sulu is in the book, and I know they tried to put that in the movie but never managed to. anyway.) But yeah, there’s actual stuff in there that’s not in the movie! that’s the way it should be. Also…she ships Saavik/David pretty clearly. :P Like I said, haven’t read TSS novel yet, but I know she was working it into 2, and it’s mentioned in 4 as a thing. Anyway…good stuff! This is the one where the whole “Vulcans get drunk on chocolate” thing comes from btw :))) (Avoid the novelizations by JM Dillard! Avoid!!! I’ve read them and they’re not good.) (Oh and pretty much everything I’ve read by Vonda McIntyre I’ve enjoyed, she’s a good Trek writer.)

Dwellers In The Crucible by Margaret Wander Bonnano Margaret Bonnano is another writer I just generally recommend bc I like all the stuff by her that I’ve read, too. Anyway… okay so let me say that this book’s main characters are not Jim and Spock. I know, I know. But wait!! It’s so worth a read!! Jim and Spock are in it, not much, but when they are they’re literally so married and explicitly confirmed to be t’hy’la… :)) it’s great. okay anyway. The main characters are a human named Cleante and a Vulcan named T’Shael. They are ladies. THEY ARE GAY AF. OKAY. THAT ALONE MAKES IT WORTH A READ. it’s so glorious.I mean the book only says they’re friends but…in the same way Jim and Spock are friends in canon. they’re super freaking gay. and also there are like a thousand incredibly obvious parallels between our human and vulcan lady and Jim and Spock. it’s fun. also Sulu goes undercover as a Romulan. :D yeah, just…read it. it’s great. (it made me angry at one point. I’m still angry. but I recommend it.)

Ishmael by Barbara Hambly This one was, for me at least, just a genuinely good read. I really enjoyed the plot. So…Spock goes back in time to 1867, not willingly I don’t think. And he gets amnesia. So right there are two tropes I ADORE (time travel and amnesia, I don’t care, I LOVE THEM.) He lands in North America, in Seattle if I remember correctly. And that’s the plot pretty much. Haha…okay, there’s a Klingon plot, the Enterprise crew searching for Spock, Spock trying to adapt and hide he’s an alien while bonding with the members of the community he lands in. Also Jim and Spock’s reunion is a bit gay. (Warning for spoilers if you click that? it’s pictures of when they find him near the end, so. Yeah.) I just really enjoyed the book in itself, the plot and everything. Fun!

Enterprise: The First Adventure by Vonda McIntyre In light of the tv series called Enterprise, the title of this one might be a little confusing… But it’s most definitely TOS and has nothing to do with Enterprise, haha. The premise is that it’s the first voyage of the Enterprise with Jim as the captain. And the mission is…to transport a theater troupe. It’s ridiculous and so silly, I know, but it’s really fun. There’s a winged horse, a really un-Vulcan Vulcan (I think he’s Spock’s cousin? I don’t really remember tbh), Spock heckling the theater troop, Uhura being a good friend to Janice…that’s all I remember off the top of my head, but I remember really enjoying it when I read it! 

Unspoken Truth by Margaret Wander Bonanno Remember what I said about those two writers? Lol. Okay so this is a Saavik-centric book. I really love Saavik, okay? So, as you might know, Saavik is half Vulcan, half Romulan. Well in this book (actually, in a bunch of books, by at least three different writers, it seems to be her accepted backstory in the novels) she was the result of a terrible experiment by Romulans, and when it didn’t work out, she and a bunch of other children were abandoned on a planet called Hellguard, and…some really horrible things happen. Anyway, Spock saves her, mentors her, and Amanda and Sarek basically adopt her (literally, she calls them mother and father, IT’S MY FAVE), well anyway, years later, either after or during TVH, she learns things are happening to the survivors of Hellguard…and the story goes from there. This was really good! Intense tbh. I loved it, but then, I love Saavik. If you don’t like her… But if you do, you’ll enjoy this one!!!!

Doctor’s Orders by Diane Duane Diane Duane is another must read author. All her books are excellent. In all honestly, I don’t remember too much about the plot of this one, but I know I liked it! Dr. McCoy is like “you can’t make me take command on the bridge” and Jim is like “uh actually I CAN” so he does and of course on McCoy’s very first day watching over the bridge Jim goes AWOL and shit starts going down. Poor Bones. Also, there’s some crazy aliens in this one, but they’re interesting!

The Vulcan Academy Murders by Jean Lorrah This one has such misleading cover art, lmaooo. At least, the version I have. There might be others… Anyway. Patients at a hospital on Vulcan keep dying and stuff, and then Amanda is in trouble. Lots of Sarek and Spock and Jim and Bones interaction. It’s a good one. (It’s been soo long since I read this one, too, sorry. But again, I know I enjoyed it!)

Uhura’s Song by Janet Hagan I love the alien species in this one. They’re like giant cats, and I love cats. When I read it, I got really into the planet and the species and their culture. The plot is that an old friend of Uhura’s is from this planet, and they “exchanged songs”…songs are a big deal in their culture. Anyway, there’s a plague threatening everyone on the planet and humans, too, and they think a song might hold the key to curing the disease, so they all go down on the planet to try and find it.

Strangers From The Sky by Margaret Wander Bonanno The plot to this one is…kind of hard to describe. Okay. So the parts with Jim and Spock go back and forth in time, part of the time being like, post-all the movies (I think) where they’re old friends (and really married, they’re just like. Margaret Bonanno has this way of inserting this really easy, casual intimacy they have with each other, and calling it friendship when OBVIOUSLY they’re married af, but either way I love it) and part of the time being very early on when Jim hasn’t been in command for long and he and Spock didn’t care much for each other (I mean personally I think they liked each other quite well from the start, but I’ll let it go, lol)… And then there’s a book. In the book. That everyone is reading and obsessed with and Jim starts reading it… It sounds weird, I know, but the book in the book is the story of the first time Vulcans came in contact with humans, long before the OFFICIAL first contact, it was when Vulcans crash landed on Earth and were discovered by some humans… I fucking love Vulcans, so that is obviously a great point of interest for me. Lol. Anyway when Jim reads the book he has nightmares, but then he discovers Spock has those nightmares, too, and it’s more than ‘just’ a book. Probably sounds bizarre but I really enjoyed it. ….and doesn’t every Trek plot EVER sound bizarre af when you try to describe it?

That’s all I’ve got right now!! This got so long I’M SO SORRY TBH BUT I HAD TO BE THOROUGH.