#it’s not a bad reaction but I’m pretty sure the itching is a bad sign

[longlivetv]

Great news guys, I think I have another antibiotic I can add to the allergy list 🙄

[diaphragmjellyfish]

What Did I Miss?

So this blog has grown a ton in the last couple of months. Going into this year, I had maybe 15 followers. Now, I’m at 100. That might not seem like a lot to some of you, but to me, that’s 100 people who love my writing. 100 people who find comfort and joy in the things I put out there. And it means so much to me <3 I always wanted to be a writer, but always felt like I got lost in the sea of content. I couldn’t come up with anything original or anything that would get noticed. And then I started writing for Cobra Kai. It’s a pretty small fandom so anything put out there gets seen. Then, I started writing what I wanted to read. Vaginismus smut/ general feminist fics are a niche that has almost no writers, but so many of you have sent me private messages saying how much those fics mean to you. So, to honor all 100 of my new followers, I have combined my two genres. I now present to you… Eli Moskowitz x vaginismus!reader. I hope you love it! 

You have been doing your physical therapy for about a year now. It was a long process, full of ups and downs, good days and bad days, but you were proud to say you were done! The biggest dilator could be easily inserted with the right amount of lube. It made you feel more...normal. Let’s just say, you weren’t exactly the most popular girl in school. People didn’t notice you. And when they did, it was “who’s that shy girl that hangs out with those losers?” Yup. Your best friends, Demitri and Eli, were the only people you really felt comfortable around at school. You found each other back in elementary school, because everyone else was making friends and running around on the playground, while you three just wanted to stay inside and play board games. So you weren’t cool, which you were okay with. But being diagnosed with vaginismus a year ago after almost passing out trying to put in a tampon had made you feel like even more of a freak. You couldn’t do the one thing girls were wanted for. You’d be alone forever. 

But it was over. You could have sex. At least, you thought you’d be able to. You never actually tried before. What if it put you right back to square one? What if you totally embarrassed yourself in front of a guy you liked? These thoughts zipped through your mind at the speed of light, faster than you could keep up with, when something snapped you back into reality. 

“Y/N?” Eli asked timidly. You guys were hanging out in his basement waiting for Demitri to show up so you could start your Lord Of The Rings marathon. Your head snapped up, eyes locking with his. 

“Yeah? Sorry,” you laughed awkwardly. You had been thinking about sex while hanging out with Eli. That wasn’t cool. 

He studied your face for a second. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah! Yeah, everything is fine. Is everything okay… with you?” You questioned back, trying to play it cool. 

“Umm, yeah. You’ve just been spacing out a lot today.” You were about to make up a reply when his phone buzzed on the coffee table in front of you guys. He reached over to pick it up, scanning the screen before letting out a soft sigh. “Demitri’s mom is making him repaint their kitchen. He’s not gonna be here until 9.” He looked at your face at this for a reaction. 9 o’clock.  It was 7 right now. That left you with 2 hours to be alone, here, with Eli. There weren’t many times where it had been just the two of you. Demitri was always there as a talkative icebreaker, and you hadn’t truly appreciated it until now. It was getting awkward. 

You both sat there quietly, staring at the black TV. Neither of you were very talkative people. This was probably what it was going to be like the first time you tried to have sex with someone. Awkward, quiet, and the guy would probably leave when he realized he had to be beyond gentle because of your vaginismus. Yeah, you were thinking about sex a lot lately. But you’d just finished your therapy, so of course you were wondering about all the possibilities now. 

“Y/N,” Eli spoke, this time making you jump a little. You had been spacing out again. “Are you sure you’re okay? Do you want me to drive you home?” 

“No! I mean, thanks, but I’m okay. Just have a lot on my mind today,” you laughed shyly. 

“Wanna talk about it?” he asked hesitantly. 

A pause. You definitely were not about to tell Eli about all your vagina problems, but you were itching to vent your concerns. Maybe you could just phrase it in a way so that he wouldn’t know what you were talking about. 

“I- I kind of have this thing.” You looked up at him, gaging his reaction. He was listening intently, no sign that he was about to say anything, so you kept going. “Basically, I’ve been doing physical therapy to fix it for the last year, and I’m finally done. So I’ve just been thinking about… all the things I can do now. I mean now that I’m… healed.”  

Sensing that you were done, he asked, “You seem nervous about it.” 

“I mean yeah. It kind of opens me up to a whole new world of experiences. But I still need to, I guess be careful? Take it slow. And I’m worried people might not want to… be a part of it.” 

He nodded, thinking about what you had just said. He was wildly confused, you had never seemed injured before, but he didn’t want to push you to talk.

So instead, he just said “Well I’ll always be here for you. Anything you want me to be a part of, I’m down.”

You thought about this. Eli was so understanding and supportive. He always had been. If you couldn’t tell him, you couldn’t tell any guy. Maybe this would be good practice for the conversation you’d inevitably have to have with someone. 

“Thanks. You kind of can’t be a part of it, though. I mean, it’s just really… personal.” He didn’t seem hurt by this, so you decided to let him in. “It’s kind of hard to talk about. Basically, it just causes me a lot of pain whenever I try to... “ you made some unintelligible hand gestures, hoping he would get what you meant without you having to say the word. He just shook his head no, showing that he didn’t understand. “Like, whenever I put something… inside.” You blushed deeply at this, giving Eli another hint about what you might mean. You were staring at the floor. He said nothing, and when you looked back up at him, he too was bright red. “Sorry. I’m probably making you really uncomfortable. I can just go and come back later when Demi-” 

“Y/N, it’s okay. You don’t have to go.” 

A pause. “Okay,” you replied. 

“You said that you were.... Healed. So does that mean you can, like, do stuff now?” he was still staring at the floor, fiddling with his hands as he said this. 

“Technically, yeah. I just still need to like… take it slow. And I guess I’m just nervous that no guy is gonna want to have to deal with that.”

“Well then they’re stupid,” he scoffed. You looked up at him, shocked at his little show of emotion. “Sorry. I just mean that, I know what it’s like to feel like no one will ever want you like that. And it’s dumb. You’re really cool. And smart, and funny… and pretty. And if there’s a guy that doesn’t want you just because he’s gonna have to be gentle, well he’s a grade-A asshole.” 

You laughed loudly at this, which made Eli smile at you. “Thanks. That’s really sweet of you to say,” you smiled. “And if you’re talking about your scar when you say you know what it feels like, don’t worry about that. You’re totally cute and any girl would be lucky to kiss you.” His earlier words had you feeling bold, so you figured you would compliment him back. Guys almost never got compliments, especially quiet guys like Eli, so you felt like it was important to give him the same kindness he had given you. He turned so red, he looked like he wasn’t breathing. 

“That’s not true. I mean, thanks for being nice, but no girl at school has ever wanted to kiss me.” 

Well, here’s your chance. You guys were in his basement alone, the lights were turned down, and you guys just had a super personal conversation. So you went for it. “I can think of one girl who would be honored,” you whispered into the dimly-lit room. 

You could feel his head snap up at this. You were staring at the TV again, but his gaze was piercing. The air was thick, so you turned your head to look at him. He was in awe, looking at you like you were the warm sun on the first day of spring. You guys had been sitting on opposite ends of the couch, but you scooted close to the middle. Eli looked panicked, but pushed it away, swallowing hard before scooting to meet you. He was practically shaking with nerves. Were you really about to kiss him? In answer, you looked down at his lips, then back up at his eyes. You slowly leaned in, Eli frozen in place, scared to ruin the moment. Your lips barely touched his, being sure to ghost over his scar, before you pulled away a few inches and opened your eyes. You smiled at him, and once he realized that you had just kissed him on purpose and liked it… 

You gasped as he brought his hand up to cup your cheek, leaning back in to kiss you again, slightly deeper this time. His lips were soft, but firm. He tasted like cherry chapstick and the coca cola he’d been drinking. This wasn’t your first kiss, but you knew it was his. You knew you would have to lead. So, you brought your hands up around his neck and swiped your tongue lightly over his bottom lip. You heard him sigh, and then felt him open his mouth as his tongue met yours. Sure, it was his first kiss, but damn he was a natural. Shortly after this, you pulled away again. 

“Woah,” he said, looking at you with a twinkle in his eye.

“Woah,” you parroted with a giggle. 

“Thanks,” he said awkwardly. You laughed at this, throwing your head back. 

“You don’t have to thank me, Eli. I wanted to.” There was a beat of silence as he rubbed his thumb over your cheek. 

He said honestly, “Well I kind of feel bad now. You helped me with my problem but I didn’t help you with yours.” Your smile dropped, thinking about what he was implying. “Wait, I didn’t mean it like that! I swear I’m not trying to like take advantage of you or something. I just meant that-” 

“I know what you meant. It’s fine.”  You smiled again. You knew Eli would never try to convince you to have sex with him like that. Seeing him flounder reminded you of how sweet he really was. The kind of guy you hoped you would be able to have sex with one day. “Honestly, I’ll probably just do it to get it over with. And if it hurts, I’ll just go back to therapy, and if not, great. But the anticipation is kind of killing me.” 

“Oh… well you should still do it with someone who cares about you. I mean, it’s your choice, but don’t just pick some random guy who’s not gonna care if he hurts you.” Eli was so heartfelt when he said this, you could have cried. He actually understood. And cared. And the moment was pretty intimate. 

“So you’re saying I should do it with a nice guy.”

“Well, yeah,” he responded as if it was obvious. 

“Are you a nice guy, Eli?”

He was quiet, thinking about all the meaning behind that simple sentence. After a few seconds, he nodded. You leaned back in to kiss him again, this time with much more passion. He took initiative this time, being the first to swipe his tongue over your lip and into your mouth. His hands moved from your face to your waist, supporting you when you moved to straddle his lap. You guys made out like this for a while, lost in the feeling of each other’s lips. When you finally pulled away, you were both breathing hard. 

“Wait, wait,” he stopped you from moving back in. “Are we doing this right now?” 

“Do you not want to?” you felt a pang of rejection at this. Making to move off his lap. He grabbed you firmly by the hips. 

“Are you seriously asking me that question? The girl I’ve had a crush on since 3rd grade is sitting in my lap making out with me right now. Of course I’m into it.” You smiled at this. “I guess I just feel like I want to know more about your… thing first. I don’t want to hurt you.” You were definitely making the right choice here. Eli was so genuinely kind, you knew for sure in that moment you wanted to do this with him. 

“Okay. It’s a condition called vaginismus. Basically, my pelvic muscles get super tight as like a reflex whenever I try to… do anything. And that makes it super painful,” you explained. 

He nodded in understanding before asking, “And the physical therapy? How does that work?”

“Well, there are these things called dilators,” you blushed at this. “They come in a bunch of different sizes. You start with the smallest one, and just condition your body to relax while you put it in. And when you can do it with no pain, you move up to the next size. The smallest one is like the size of my pinky, and the biggest one is like… you know.” 

“A dick?” He asked as you both laughed. 

“Yeah.” 

There was a beat of silence before he looked at you in a way that said he was completely committed. “What do you need me to do?” he asked. You felt yourself tear up a little at this. Ever since you got diagnosed, you always imagined perfect scenarios in your head in which the guy you were with asked you that question. Of course, you always believed it would stay a fantasy. No guy would realistically care this much. But it turns out there was a guy, and he was right in front of you your entire life. You leaned in and gave him a sweet kiss, which caught him a little off-guard. 

You then leaned back and began to explain. “Usually when I do my therapy, I’ll start with some breathing exercises. And then get my dilator and some lube and just kind of, sink down on it? And then I just stay there for as long as I can. Obviously sex involves a lot more movement, which is kind of the part I’m nervous about.” 

“We can go super slow. And if it ever hurts, even a little bit, I want you to tell me, okay?”

You nodded. “Are you sure you want to? I know you just had your first kiss and I want to make sure you’re ready, too.” 

“I’m ready. I hope this doesn’t make you uncomfortable, but I’ve actually imagined this situation before… a lot,” he murmured the last part. 

You laughed, and awe’d at his cuteness. “As long as you’re sure.” 

“I’m sure.” 

He leaned in to kiss you again, starting slow and building in intensity. Once the kiss got heated, you grabbed his hands that were still lightly gripping your hips, and moved them down to cup your ass. He inhaled sharply and squeezed. You moved your hands from his neck down to his chest, sliding lower and lower until they were at the hem of his shirt, and then under to his bare stomach. He shivered, and then kneaded your ass harder. 

“Can I take this off?” you asked, tugging at his shirt. He nodded and leaned forward so you could pull the hem up and over his head, his hands only leaving you for a second before they resumed their previous position. 

Your own hands roamed his chest, before he slid his hands under your shirt, silently asking for you to take it off as well. Wordlessly, you reached down, gripped the bottom and pulled it off, Eli’s eyes going straight to your bra. 

“I would have worn something a little cuter if I thought we’d-”

“You’re the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen,” he cut you off. Your face turned bright red as you smiled down at your lap. “Hey,” he said as his thumb came to your chin to lift your face back up. And then he kissed you again, sucking lightly at your bottom lip, eliciting a soft sigh from you. You started to lightly grind your hips into his, and you could immediately feel that he was already hard. His hands gripped your ass firmly, helping to guide your movements. You felt a slight pleasure between your legs, so began to grind down harder, Eli moving his own hips back up into yours. His length brushed a certain spot that made you let out a small, involuntary moan. You slapped your hand over your mouth, eyes wide. He smiled, bringing his hand up to move yours off your mouth, and grinding into you even harder, with a new sense of excitement. He moved back in, but instead of bringing his lips to yours, he brought them to your neck, licking and sucking softly. You felt a rush of heat flow through you at this, never imagining that neck kisses would feel so good. 

“Oh, wow,” you whispered. You felt him smile- no, smirk, against your neck. Then, he moved one of his hands to your stomach, lightly brushing his knuckles across the skin, before untying your sweatpants. This excited you. He slowly brought his hand under the waistband, giving you plenty of time to tell him to stop. You didn’t, and he eventually felt the fabric of your underwear, opting to stay on top of them. He rubbed your center with one of his fingers clumsily. Eli obviously had never done this before, so you did your best to move your hips on his hand to try and give him the idea of what you wanted. He seemed nervous though, and didn’t really get the hint. 

“Small circles,” you instructed breathlessly. He brought his face out of your neck, furrowing his brows in concentration. He moved his fingers like you said in small circles on your left lip. You wanted to giggle, but didn’t want to hurt his feelings, opting for bringing your hand into your pants on top of his and guiding it to the right spot, moving his fingers in tight circles with slightly more pressure than he had been using right over your clit. You moaned softly at this, closing your eyes and furrowing your brows. Eli looked at you with an adorable excitement, proud that he was able to get you to make that sound, and knew that he wanted to hear it again. He got the hang of it pretty fast, and didn’t need your hand for guidance anymore, keeping the same pace and rhythm that you had shown him. 

“Oh my god, Eli,” you whispered softly in his ear, hips grinding against his hand once again. 

“Fuck,” he whispered back, more turned on than he had ever been just from watching you. At this, you brought one of your hands down to cup him through his pants. He hissed, sitting up straighter. His jeans made it hard for you to do much, though, so you said huskily, “Do you want to take them off?” He nodded, and you stood up and took your sweatpants off as he unbuttoned his jeans and slipped them off his legs. When he looked back at you, he saw that you were taking off your underwear too, so he did as well. 

Once he was naked and you were left in just a bra, he tentatively asked you, “Should I… get a condom?” 

You had completely forgotten about protection! That was pretty important, so you responded, “Yeah, do you have one?” 

“They handed them out in health class last month,” he said nervously, answering your implied question which was Why do you have one? He stood up, walking into his room through the doorway in the basement, returning shyly with a small silver packet. You were kneeling on the couch awkwardly, not really sure what to do, when he raked his eyes over your body. There was almost a predatory look in his eyes, one that you had never seen before in Eli. A sign of confidence hidden deep down. He suddenly stopped, as if realizing something, and said “I’ll be right back,” before running upstairs butt-naked. Thank God no one else was home! He returned with a jar of coconut oil in his hand. “I know you said you normally use lube, and I don’t really have any of that, so I thought we could use this? Or I can run to CVS and get some if you want, it’s up to you!” He added that last part hurriedly. 

You took the jar from him, opening it and gathering a small amount on your fingers before rubbing them together, testing the substance. “This should work just fine, thank you.” 

(Guys please don’t use oil as lube, it can break down the condom! Sorry for the 4th wall break!)

He looked at you for guidance, questioning, “So, how do you want to do this?” 

You looked around for a second, before deciding “You can sit down again. I think I want to be on top. Just so I have more control and stuff.” He nodded understandingly and went to sit back down on the couch, holding his hands out to you as you straddled his hips once more. 

“This?” he asked as he brought his hand up to your bra strap, slipping it down your shoulder in a wordless plea to take it off, which is exactly what you did. When your breasts were exposed, you thought Eli’s eyes were going to pop out of his head. He never thought he’d see actual boobs one day, and here they were, right in his face, attached to his naked crush who was sitting on his lap. What a day. He brought his hands up to gently cup them, making you smile at his softness.

“Having fun?” you joked. He just looked at you and giggled, nodding his head. You took the condom packet and opened it, sliding the slippery rubber out. “Do you have any idea how to use this?” You questioned with a laugh. 

“Yeah, here,” he took it from you, placing it on the tip of his dick and rolling it down the length, inhaling sharply at the feeling. He reached for the coconut oil once more and took a finger-full, melting it between his hands and spreading it all over the condom, before taking the remainder on his fingers and rubbing softly at your center. He watched your face intently for any signs of discomfort as he did so. When he found none, he brought his pointer and middle finger back to your clit, rubbing circles once again, making you let out a sigh and tip your head back. He did this for several more moments, until your hips began to writhe. 

“Okay,” you said to tell him you were ready to try. 

“Hey, I just wanted to say… please don’t be insecure about anything. Take all the time you need, and if it hurts, we can stop and I won’t be disappointed or anything. I promise. I want you to be comfortable.” 

You kissed him in response, smiling as you pulled away. “Thank you.”

You sat up on your knees, taking his dick in your hand and lining it up with your entrance, rubbing it back and forth to distribute the lubricant. You closed your eyes, taking some deep breaths to relax your muscles, and lightly sank down in his tip. You stopped about an inch in to adjust, before lifting off and sinking back down again, 2 inches this time, before stopping to adjust once more. You kept this up until you could take about half of him comfortably, realizing it was taking a long time. You opened your eyes to look at Eli, and noticed that he had his eyes closed, brows furrowed, jaw clenched, breathing labored. Jesus, he was probably dying right now. 

“I’m sorry,” you muttered, full of embarrassment. His eyes snapped open at this. 

“Hey, hey, hey,” he cooed as he wrapped his arms around your waist, embracing you. “Don’t you dare apologize.”

“It’s taking a long time and I can tell you’re not having fun,” you worried. 

“I’m having the time of my life right now, Y/N. Seriously. This is the most amazing feeling I’ve ever felt. Please don’t worry about me. This is about you.”

This was everything you really ever wanted. A guy who was giving you the time you needed to adjust and be comfortable. Why the heck were you questioning it??

You smiled lightly at his kind words, nodding your head in agreement, and then started your routine of up, down, pause, again. Several minutes later, you were fully seated on Eli’s cock. You didn’t move, instead saying “This is normally where I stop. I’m not really sure what to do now.” He brought his hands up to cup your face, kissing you softly. 

“I guess, you can stay like this for as long as you need? And then maybe we can try moving a little bit?” he answered. You nodded in response, and after a few moments, you lifted your hips and sank back down. The friction felt slightly uncomfortable, but you tried again nonetheless in an effort to power through it. This time, you felt a stinging sensation, wincing lightly but hoping Eli wouldn’t notice. He did. 

“Stop,” he muttered. 

“I can keep going,” you pleaded. 

“Y/N, I said stop.” You did. “You’re in pain,” he pointed out. 

“I’m fine,” you said, but avoided his gaze. 

“Why are you lying?” he questioned, sounding hurt, which made you finally look at him. 

“I- I… I don’t know. I want to be able to do this, but it stings,” you said sadly. 

“Well then we’ll stay just like this,” he said sweetly as he brought a hand up to pet your hair. You once again nodded, too mad at yourself to say anything. “You’re doing so good,” he added. 

Instead of answering, you leaned in to kiss him. Making out had been fun, but making out while Eli was inside you was a whole new level of intimacy. His hands wandered everywhere. First to cup your face, then down to squeeze your breasts, then to the small of your back and around to your ass. After a few minutes of this, he brought one of his hands back around and down to your center. And this boy was a fast learner. He had the exact right spot, rhythm, and pressure on the first try this time, making you moan softly into his mouth. He smiled into the kiss, proud that he got you feeling good again. He kept this up, careful not to change a thing. You felt a heat pool in your stomach, your center craving more, so you began to involuntarily grind your hips into his hand. 

You gasped as the tip of his dick put pressure on a certain spot inside you. He noticed your gasp, letting the hand that wasn’t on your clit go to your hip in an effort to guide you to grind against him some more. Once you realized this movement didn’t hurt, you rolled your hips over his. Not the up and down that you had tried before, but side to side, back and forth, and in circles. And it felt good. You began to let out small moans at the combination of the pressure inside you and the feeling of Eli’s fingers massaging you. His eyebrows began to furrow and his breathing labored. This was his first time, so the small movements you were making were enough to bring him to the edge. 

“Shit, Y/N,” he murmured. You moaned loudly in response, and the sound made Eli’s eyes roll back in his head. He had to think of the most un-sexy things just to keep himself from cumming. You guys kept at it for god knows how long, until you felt that heat in your stomach turn into a heavy knot about to unravel. 

“Eli, I think I’m gonna cum,” you gasped, almost surprised. You had not been expecting an orgasm during your first time. You kept grinding your hips at the same pace, hoping that he would keep doing exactly what he was doing with his fingers. And he did. Your moans got higher and higher in pitch as you got closer to the edge, your legs beginning to shake from the effort. Your stomach dropped, and you came hard, mouth open in a silent scream. 30 seconds later, you came down, finally opening your eyes to see Eli looking at you like you were an absolute goddess. You reached down to peel his fingers off you, the sensations becoming too much to handle. However, you kept grinding in an effort to get Eli to cum too. About a minute later, his eyes squeezed shut as his hips stuttered under you and he spilled into the condom.

As soon as he opened his eyes, the first thing he said was, “Are you okay? Did I hurt you?”

You huffed a laugh, “I’m more than okay. That was awesome.”

He looked relieved that you had had a good time, and nodded, “Yeah, totally awesome.” 

You gave him one last kiss before sitting up and pulling off of him. As you stood, your legs shook, knees threatening to give out. “Woah,” you murmured under your breath. 

“Here,” Eli said as he guided you by the waist to lay on the couch. He went into the bathroom and came out with a clean, damp towel and wiped you off as best he could before handing it to you to finish up. He gathered both of your clothes, handing yours back to you, when his phone once again buzzed on the coffee table. He picked it up when his face suddenly dropped. 

“Shit. Demitri’s here.” 

You both shared a shocked look before scrambling to get dressed. Eli threw the coconut oil and condom wrapper into the bathroom, and turned to notice your neck covered in hickeys. He ran into his room, grabbing a hoodie and walking over to you, motioning for you to put your arms up. He put the hoodie on you, and pulled your hair up through the hood to cover the sides of your neck. Just then, you heard the front door open and Demitri yell “Hey guys! You better not have started without me!” He rounded the corner and came down the stairs, looking at both of you sitting on opposite sides of the couch, staring at the black TV screen just as you had been exactly 2 hours ago. He plopped down on the couch in between you guys and grabbed the remote, switching it on. When he went to put it back on the coffee table, he noticed a small scrap of fabric on the floor. He bent down, grabbed, and held up your underwear. 

“Ok, what the fuck did I miss?”

[tsukiida]

pining — bakugou katsuki

— info :: bakugou x gn!reader ; sfw ; slight angst & humour ; 3.13k words.

— contents :: quirkless reader ; bakugou’s pov ; one-sided attraction ; bakugou being bakugou ; well-meaning wingmen bakusquad.

— synopsis :: katsuki hates the way you make him feel.

— note :: this is my first time writing bnha, let alone bakugou, I hope I do it justice… if you read this, thank you, I hope you like it! :)

katsuki swears he hates you.

to be honest, he’d rather hate you, than feel like… this about you.

he’s convinced you’re messing with him. your quirk must make it so, because there’s no other reason why he feels his body heat up, his heart beat quicker somewhere deep in his chest, every time he thinks of you. you’re definitely doing it on purpose.

it’s that damned shopping trip to blame.

the girls had dragged everyone out to have some bonding time, which is the shittiest excuse katsuki has ever heard for splurging and buying pretty dessert that clogs up arteries. he’d have skipped out on it, but raccoon eyes begged kirishima, who in turn begged katsuki.

that’s another thing that pisses him off; remembering exactly how the other boy had convinced him. really, he couldn’t give less of a shit about something like romance, but of course the extras are going out of their mind about how popular they are with their preferred gender, and of course they had to drag him into it.

no, he doesn’t care at all, but it hurts his ego pride to entertain the idea that he might not be #1 at something even as petty as that.

hell, he doesn’t even care about being #1, as long as he’s doing better than deku.

but he’s not blind. cheeks is obsessed with the green haired idiot, her heart probably having a taste of her own quirk and shooting off into the universe fluttering madly every time she looks at him.

it’s like the world is out to get him, because not only did he have to accompany all the losers to their stupid trip, but he also had to, under duress, with that goal in mind? really? grade schoolers, the whole lot of them.

what he hates most about the whole thing is you, though.

and you’re doing exactly the things he hates.

ever since you stumbled across deku during that trip, tapped him on the shoulder and smiled at him, it’s like you punched katsuki in the gut. he can’t forget the way you’d looked so meek, but still somehow comfortable around deku, and he’d be damned if he doesn’t hate that.

and for the life of him, he can’t recall ever seeing you during his days in middle school. you claimed that you’d been classmates with deku – and by extension, katsuki – for an entire year, and deku sure seems to recognise you. but katsuki doesn’t. deku lights up like a stupid bulb, but katsuki does not.

he hadn’t needed to know details about any of the dumb extras that had infested middle school, more so any of them who didn’t already seem to know that he is the best. that must’ve been why he didn’t know you. there weren’t too many people who didn’t believe in his worth, but the ones who didn’t… they weren’t special enough for him to remember. they could never prove him wrong, after all. they were nothing.

but you.

he hates you. he strongly dislikes you. he can’t stand you.

and you seem to love that shitty deku.

no, it’s not the same kind of emotion that uraraka holds for him.

you absolutely adore that girl too, and she treats you nicely enough despite the wary look in her eyes initially, when she thought she was being subtle while hovering around deku.

no, katsuki hasn’t been observing. especially not because he’s interested. he is literally just looking out for himself, because he doesn’t want to be blindsided just because he wasn’t careful of some scheming pest.

the pest in question being you.

you’re already wreaking havoc on his mind, full of nothing but thoughts of you, other than being #1. he would never give up on that, no matter how much you make his heart pound and palms sweat.

you’re kinda helpful for his quirk, actually, and that’s the only reason he hasn’t already blasted you off into nothingness. the accelerated heart rate does wonders for him. but he doesn’t want to credit you either for something he could achieve with his own hard work.

he can definitely credit you for being the most annoying idiot that he knows, though. your quirk is painful, because late at night when he’s alone, he’s hit by images of your face. you hang out so much with his classmates now, he can’t help it. he can’t even sleep peacefully, because when he does fall asleep, his often dreamless nights are swapped out for stupid sequences produced by his subconscious involving you, because of your silly little quirk that you think katsuki is unaware of.

it gets worse.

he finds out you’re quirkless.

he storms up to you when he’s had enough. not only do you go to a school quite near theirs, but you also always have time to meet up, and isn’t that super convenient for whatever grand scheme you’ve concocted in order to try and take down bakugou katsuki.

it’s a half-growled and half-whispered, threat-filled one-sided conversation between him and you when he asks you to stop whatever you’re trying to do. you, being the infuriating person that you are, just tilt your head and stare at him in confusion. in the name of all might, that should not make his heart skip a beat, because he doesn’t have any intention of using his quirk right now. he just wants you to stop using yours. that’s all he’s there for.

but then you just shrug slightly, that damned nervous smile plastered on your face that you’ve barely been showing anymore, now that you’re comfortable with the extras. you shake your head when he asks you, as nicely as he can, to stop whatever messed up thing you like doing to him.

“this your way of trying to win against me? you can’t,” he grits through his teeth, fingers itching to create little explosions. he’s not going to show his off when asking you to call yours off. he won’t—

you tell him you have no idea what he’s talking about, because you’re as quirkless as they come.

with all the strength that he can muster within himself to not have an outburst, he asks you to repeat yourself.

you do. “i’m quirkless.”

in the end, he can’t help himself, and sets off a series of minute explosions that have you hopping back, out of his arm’s reach. as if he’d harm you with them, he thinks while glaring at you.

katsuki would like to say that he got over it quickly, but it takes a while, truthfully. at first he can’t wrap his mind around the fact that you’re quirkless, because then every thought of you that’s haunted him the past few months is without explanation.

you being quirkless literally opens up so many other questions. if you’re quirkless, then who’s to blame for everything happening to him? is it someone else at fault? are you just stupid and oblivious and unaware of your own quirk? did it manifest late? did someone grant it to you? there are so many questions, and things are still the same, if not worse. he barely thinks of anything else.

at least he can write it off in the name of being better at defending himself from stray quirks affecting him.

he hates it, but he asks kirishima, very subtly, if he’s heard of anyone whose quirk has the effects katsuki hates suffering from. the stupid redhead simply looks him dead in the eye and says that it sounds like the case of a bad crush quirk, something out of cheap romance novels which might be quite dangerous in practice, before proceeding to ask katsuki why he’s curious about it. bless his stupid soul, sometimes, because he completely buys the lie katsuki feeds him.

he didn’t want to have to convince kirishima that he doesn’t have a crush. because he doesn’t want to even entertain the idea of having a crush on stupid little you.

especially when you barely even give him the time of day anymore.

well, you’ve never really been the closest to him, nor does he want that, thank you very much! but it seems like the only time you and him ever had a proper conversation was when he asked you about your quirk, and that too ended badly, with barely any words exchanged. but at least you used to smile at him. not that he liked it or anything, but it was better than you giving him the cold shoulder.

are the extras actually more interesting to you than katsuki is? he’s a little miffed if that’s the case. but whenever he talks, you hear him, sometimes even respond to him, so perhaps it’s not a matter of ignoring him.

it’s just one thing you do.

you avoid his eyes.

it’s subtle enough that no one else notices, and the first few times he sees you look away when your eyes meet his, his breath catches in his throat and he’s almost too shocked to breathe in.

he knows that he’s not done anything to warrant that reaction from you. perhaps you’re simply realising after a long time that he’s the one you should be paying attention to, rather than all the extras. and perhaps it’s easier for you to pay attention to him with your ears rather than your eyes. he can understand that. your eyes seem to have that effect on him too; it’s entirely possible that this way is easier for you to focus on him.

maybe he makes you nervous.

there are so many maybes, but that thought still makes a grin tug at his lips, seeing which kirishima almost gets nervous. yeah, he’s getting cocky.

but that’s fine. he doesn’t plan on approaching you yet.

after all, if you’re into him, you should be brave enough to tell him.

…

honestly, it’s completely the electric eel’s fault. really, it’s 100% his fault because he thinks it’s fun to talk about stupid shit around katsuki. stupid shit like you possibly having a crush on deku, even though all signs say otherwise.

katsuki was willing to overlook that, but then raccoon eyes decided to encourage that hypothesis, and soon the idiots around him were talking in hushed whispers about deku’s supposed fanclub. such a situation definitely warranted katsuki blowing up their asses during training.

katsuki hates training with deku with a burning passion, but such a situation also warranted going up to him and demanding that he train with katsuki. if only he’d had enough mind to notice that the class was ending. if only he’d not run his mouth—

“they’ll never even look at you.”

deku doesn’t know shit about what katsuki just said, looking at him like he grew another head – which pisses him off even more – but kirishima and the rest of them know—

they know that katsuki is still hung up over that stupid conversation from days back, and they also know something’s up, and katsuki hates himself for being an idiot.

they corner him, as impossible as that sounds. katsuki would’ve blasted them off into outer space but they literally pile up onto him, clinging and refusing to let go of him even when he threatens to beat their ass again. curse sero’s tape.

katsuki would like to say that he fends them all off and throws them off his case. unfortunately, that does not happen. they find out a few things that day. thankfully, the only things they do find out are: you really get on katsuki’s nerves, and you also have a silly little crush on him.

“for real? are you sure?” ashido asks, eyebrows knit together like it’s something particularly unbelievable, and kaminari nods along uncertainly.

katsuki scoffs. “no other reason why they can’t look me in the eye.”

“i mean, you are kinda scary…” sero starts, but one glare from the scary person in question has him trailing off.

kirishima politely provides, “he’s manly!” and the conversation ends there.

…

oh, but the scheming doesn’t end.

kaminari is a bloody idiot, and encouraged by the equally idiotic sero, both of them come up with various scenarios wherein you and katsuki could stumble into each other, completely coincidentally, as if katsuki can’t hear them gossiping right behind him.

he ends up having to intervene when they get increasingly creative, which only means disaster in katsuki’s book.

“i’ll just wait.” he simply shrugs, watching the idiots get confused.

“fun to watch them squirm when they think they’re being subtle,” he offers further, and kirishima gives him a disapproving look, mumbling something about sadists.

“bakugou,” ashido stares at him critically, opening and shutting her mouth many times before eventually asking, “do you like them?”

after several more explosions, katsuki’s heart beating too fast in his chest, the sweat beading at his temples written off as part of his quirk, he’s able to dispel the idea from her mind.

he’ll never like someone like you.

and he’s still wary of you in the secret corner of his mind, not sure why he reacts the way he does to you. he’s not stupid, he knows what a crush is and how it works, but he really can’t see himself being attracted to you at all.

it has to be something someone concocted to get him weak, but they’re not going to succeed.

even if not having your eyes on him pisses him off more, making him feel irrational and prone to dangerous stunts and outbursts. even if not seeing you around much makes him feel like there’s not much to show off to. even if he really doesn’t feel like there’s anything worth showing off when he spies poor little you hanging around his classmates, quirkless and gentle.

gross.

…

katsuki hates being wrong.

katsuki hates knowing he’s wrong.

katsuki barely ever is wrong.

but when he is, he messes up completely.

if he were to possess the ability to correct one thing, he’d just lock up the idiots who call themselves his friends, and not let them near you.

they notice your little mannerisms too, of course they do when katsuki himself told them that you like him. they notice that you don’t meet his eyes and prefer staying away from him, but still respond to him whenever he talks. they notice that you don’t seem to fear him like some people do; almost as if you’re comfortable with him.

and they also notice things he wishes they didn’t notice, like the way his skin reddens imperceptibly when he sees you, and the way he makes an effort to not blast things up too much in your vicinity.

(it’s not really much use anymore, unfortunately.)

it’s definitely kaminari who is to blame; he always is for everything. katsuki doesn’t need any more reason to want to absolutely pummel him, because with the tape idiot’s encouragement, he bounces up to you one day and asks the dreaded question.

“what do you think of bakugou?” the blond asks, grinning from ear to ear as if he’s done something wonderful, but the way your eyebrow creases in confusion makes katsuki’s heart skip a beat. erratic. he doesn’t know what to make of the expression on your face. and no, he’s not waiting for your response, dammit. he’s 100% busy ignoring everyone. he can’t let you know all of his attention is on him, especially when you’re about to turn your head to look in his direction.

“he’s okay,” the words eventually leave your mouth, and he almost snorts. just okay? are you stupid, or just pretending to be? he knows your vocabulary is bigger than that.

“don’t you…” kaminari leans in dramatically, and katsuki has to strain his ears to hear—

“don’t you like him?”

well, hell. guess someone missed the tact memo.

that’s fine, though, katsuki’s okay with that. maybe letting you shyly avoid him isn’t the best course of action when you refuse to make a move.

you let out a non-committal noise, prompting another round of questions. the way you further get confused and respond with questions of your own makes something nag at the back of katsuki’s mind.

there’s something steadily sinking, and said sinking feeling grows the longer you talk to the electric idiot. by this point, katsuki has realised he’s missing something, but he’s still confident that it’s nothing he can’t overlook at this crucial moment when you spill the beans.

“my dear, sweet y/n, don’t you like bakugou?!” kaminari finally exclaims, possibly frustrated, and katsuki internally wheezes. he’s preoccupied with what you’ll say next, so laughing at the idiot’s expense takes a back seat.

he has to hand it to you; you’re really hard to crack, and it’s almost annoying. katsuki’s tempted to just burst his way over to you and demand a clear confession.

the answer isn’t something he’s expecting.

“not that he’s not, y’know, nice and all,” you babble, clearly stalling. you exhale at the same time as katsuki inhaling, and he holds his breath, waiting for the shoe to drop. really, maybe kaminari isn’t so bad if he can actually weasel the truth out of you with his stupid self.

“it’s just… he’s kind of scary. i try not to get in his way.”

kaminari seems just as stumped as katsuki feels in that moment.

“but… the way you act around him…”

well said, pikachu.

“oh.” that single word feels a bit like a gunshot. “oh, oh, i see. oh, no.” you need to stop saying ‘oh’ so many times, as if that changes anything.

“i’m sure he’s a good guy, but nope, i’m not interested in him romantically. i only act so awkward around him because that’s exactly how he makes me feel. i don’t even know him that well.”

can you stop twisting the knife?

“bakugou noticed,” kaminari mumbles, loud enough that katsuki hears. the words sound like they’re laced with pity. katsuki hates it, but what he hates more is how the idiot’s voice lowers to a whisper to say something to you that he really can’t hear from the distance.

katsuki also hates how your lips part and understanding dawns on your face.

he hates how your eyes meet his, head-on, because he completely forgot to look busy and has been gawking at you for the past few minutes. he hates how your eyes widen before a wary expression crosses your face.

katsuki hates the way you make him feel.

“is that what he’s passing it off as?” you ask, loud enough that he can hear. you’re not making an effort to lower your voice either.

kaminari does not respond to you, and you let out a short laugh, no doubt incredulous.

katsuki feels something within himself snap.

he leaves the room.

— note :: feedback is appreciated! :) I like this open ending because there’s a lot that can happen with it, let me know if anyone wants to see more of this! thanks for reading! :) ETA: if you’re interested in a continuation, you can read “honey”! :)

[holdyourbreathuntilyouseelight]

Hothead

Summary:  Extended station scene from 1x03 between Carlos and TK, from Carlos' POV. A snapshot of how they started to mend things between them after TK had stormed out on the date that Carlos had tried to spring on him.

Rating: General Audiences

A/N: I do not pretend to know anything about the inner workings of a police station, their rules and regulations or what sort of things are contained in their reports. Tried to be as realistic as I could but apologies for any inaccuracies.I also do not claim any ownership of 9-1-1 Lone Star or the associated characters. Pretty sure they own me instead... (:

First foray into the 9-1-1 fandom but hopefully not the last!

Read on AO3 here.

* * *

Carlos was flipping through the files on his desk, making sure he had signed off on the last of them, when a familiar name being spoken caught his attention.

"TK Strand, yeah. He's a firefighter with the 126. Guess he got a little hot-headed."

"You can't keep reusing the same joke every time something involves a firefighter, Ben, seriously."

Carlos looked up from his desk to see two of his colleagues ribbing each other, all talk and no malice.

Jill was right – Ben liked to reuse the same heat-related jokes about firefighters, but his curiosity was peaked over the implication in regards to TK.

"What's that about one of the 126 firefighters? Did they get hostile at a scene we were at or something?"

The two cops looked over at him in surprise. He wasn't normally one to join in on gossip.

"Nah, he was off duty. Started a fight at a bar. Provoked two built men that were drunk off their asses. Bartender called it in after security tried breaking it up."

Carlos felt his worry double. What was TK doing? Why was he picking a fight? He knew he had freaked out on him the other day, making it clear there was a lot more going on internally than he was letting on, but volunteering to get pummeled? That had to be a cry for help.

"EMS clear him?"

"Yeah, he's fine, just some cuts and bruises. He's cooled off now; just gotta process him, give him back his shit, and do the usual stern warning that means bull."

Carlos seized the presented opportunity, hoping Ben would take the bait. "Hey, if it's that easy, why don't I take over? Your shift just ended and I owe you for staying late when I had my abuela's birthday to run to. I've finished the last of my reports from that three car pile-up earlier, so I'm free."

"Well, me and Ella were supposed to do date night tonight… yeah, all right, Reyes. He's all yours. Thanks, man."

"Of course. Have a good time." Carlos said, trying to play it off casual, like it was no big deal, even though he was itching to corner TK and ask what the hell he was thinking. He didn't need his coworkers knowing details about his private life so it was better they didn't know he knew the guy more intimately than professional overlap.

"I think you still owe Spencer, Reyes. Pretty boy is easy on the eyes, even if he is an idiot who started a bar fight." Officer Porter teased.

Carlos didn't bite; the station knew he was out, at least most of them did, so it wasn't that weird of a comment. Reacting would only make it obvious that something had gone on between them and he didn't need a lecture from the sergeant on duty about professional conduct or bias.

Ben passed over the folder on his way to his desk. Carlos immediately sifted through it, scanning the pages quickly to learn the basics of what had gone down.

Caucasian male, mid-to-late twenties, athletic build. 0.0 BAC on breathalyzer test. No abnormalities on basic toxin screen. No prior records with APD. No registered fingerprints in American database. New York driver's license – Tyler Kennedy Strand. Firefighter identification lists station 126. Charges of assault and disturbing the peace dropped by others involved. Release from policy custody with warning.

He read further through the other two men's files, piecing together that the story detailed matched what he had already been told.

Carlos looked up as another one of his colleagues led a handcuffed TK to his work desk and nodded in his direction. He accepted the plastic bag of TK's belongings from Jill and headed over to his… well, he didn't really know what they were.

He watched as TK held an ice pack to his temple, the odd cough wheezing out of him. He probably had a bruised rib or two, if not fractured, and it no doubt left his chest extra tight.

Carlos strode over and dropped the plastic bag of belongings onto the desk without a word.

TK looked up and groaned at the sight of him. "Seriously?"

Carlos grimaced as he sat down. "Austin's a small town, TK. Or should I say, Tyler Kennedy."

"Ugh." TK grumbled, eyes closed as he kept the ice pack against the side of his head.

"Bummer about getting arrested – people might find out your real name. Which marks the first actual thing I've learned about you."

Being good with his mouth, hands, and body notwithstanding…

"Isn't your processing me, like, a conflict of interest?" TK asked, a thin shred of hope clinging to the words.

It wasn't really an issue, given that Carlos hadn't been the deciding officer on charges and, technically, he wasn't even sure what their relationship could be classified as in order to consider it. If anything, it would be their definable working relationship that was the issue, but most officers in the precinct would have the same problem since they all crossed paths at one time or another on the job.

Carlos chose not to answer him, instead changing the subject. "The good news is that neither of your new friends want to talk about that little scuffle tonight…" he explained while unlocking the cuffs around TK's wrists, trying not to react when their hands brushed in the process. "…and since you blew a 0.0, we're not even giving you a drunk and disorderly."

He finally freed TK entirely of the metal, and TK rubbed his wrists, still not looking at him straight on.

Carlos pushed the bag towards him. "You're free to go."

There was a pause as TK digested that.

"And what's the bad news?" he asked as he picked up his stuff.

Carlos inhaled. "The bad news is that means you did this with a clear head." He swallowed before leaning on the desk to bring them closer together, lowering his voice so any nosy coworkers couldn't overhear. "I'm not trying to be your boyfriend, or even your friend if you're not into it, but you should probably talk to someone about why you felt compelled to do something so suicidal."

TK's eyes held so much pain as he looked back at him that Carlos had to look away. Needing something to do with his hands before he grabbed TK and refused to let go, he tossed the tissue box in front of him.

"You've got a little crud there, by the way." he added, gesturing to the side of his mouth.

TK plucked a tissue out and rubbed at the opposite side of his mouth to where the blood had piled up.

"Other side." he said, staring unblinking at the computer screen without taking any of it in. He was way too hyperaware of the man he hadn't been able to get out of his head to concentrate on the words on the screen.

TK wiped closer to the spot but still missed and didn't get the bulk of it, so Carlos sighed and grabbed a tissue of his own.

"Stop. Just… let me."

Deep green eyes bore into his brown ones as Carlos gently wiped the area, managing to get at least the worst of it. Their gaze was locked so intensely, Carlos was half-expecting sparks to explode in the air. God, he wished he could read TK's mind. There was some sort of storm brewing behind his eyes and Carlos had no idea what kind of emotion was rolling in.

He pulled the tissue away, crushing it up in his fist to stop him from saying or doing something stupid. He had already put his heart on the line enough with the man. No need to solidify his humiliation any further.

"Thanks." TK muttered, looking away finally.

Carlos didn't look at him, pretending to be wrapped up with finalizing the paperwork on the computer.

TK leaned over the desk, crossing an arm over the space between them. "Hey. I'm sorry I went crazy on you the other night." he said softly.

Carlos didn't want to reveal all of his cards, but there was no denying the thrill that rolled through him that TK was trying to apologize for what went down between them the other day. It had been eating him up inside since. And if TK was bringing it up unprompted, maybe that meant it had been bothering him too. And that he actually wanted to mend things between them.

Carlos managed to play it cool and indifferent. "I'm a cop. I'm used to crazy."

"Look, I just went through a really bad breakup. Like, nuclear bad. And then I relapsed."

Carlos had turned his body to face him but couldn't look him in the face, instead busying himself with a report on his desk. "You mean with me?"

Great, he was just a mistake. A 'relapse'. Guess that meant TK slept around, or used to, and it really had meant nothing to him.

"No. I mean with substances."

Carlos finally looked up at that. He wasn't expecting the confession, nor the way that TK was exposing himself to him right then. TK had addiction issues? Had given up substances likely due to misuse or overuse and his breakup had been bad enough to trigger using again?

Something clicked in his memory from the other night and he felt shame wash over him. "Right. Which explains your reaction to the champagne."

He had never asked if TK was even a fan of champagne or alcohol in general. He should've been more respectful and anticipated the idea that maybe TK had a poor relationship with it, or a bad experience, or just wasn't interested in it at all. No wonder he got his back up right away – Carlos had been trying to have a proper date with him but he didn't know this important thing about him. And TK was still probably pretty raw after his relapse that even the pressure to be polite would've been enough to set off some ugly emotions. That he'd have to come up with an excuse or lie, because who wanted to reveal their deepest secrets that early on?

"I'm such an idiot. I'm-I'm sorry…"

TK cut off his stammering. "No, it's fine, okay? I just… ever since I got here, it's just… it's just grey. And I just feel numb, all the time. I guess I just… I wanted to feel something."

TK's eyes were wet now, and there was nothing but heartbreaking honesty reflecting out of them.

Carlos felt his own eyes filling with moisture. He didn't know what to say. Hearing that TK had been hurting so badly, that he still was struggling so much… it broke his heart.

TK slipped his wallet and phone out of the clear bag finally and stood up to leave, heading in direction of the exit without another word. It seemed he had said all he needed to say.

Carlos couldn't let him go yet, couldn't let that be the last thing said between them tonight. "Judging by that lip, I'd say mission accomplished."

TK stared at him in irritable disbelief, the barest hint of amusement at the edges. "You really busting my balls right now?"

"Yeah. I suppose I am." Carlos replied.

He couldn't help the way the corner of his mouth lifted in a slight smirk, and he felt his heart pick up its pace when he saw TK's expression break into one of his gorgeous smiles.

TK shook his head at him in mock-disappointment. "And all this time, I thought you were too good for me."

It was clearly meant in jest, but Carlos could detect the hidden truth behind the words. He was a little too stunned to say anything to dispute it, their easy banter normally coming naturally to him but he was drawing a blank.

It wasn't until the door closed behind him that Carlos moved, and then he was crossing the station to chase him outside.

"TK! Wait."

TK turned from where he was walking down the sidewalk, his movements more ginger now than they were in the station. He likely was in a lot more physical pain than he had let on.

Carlos stood in front of him and inhaled a breath in the hopes that it would instill some courage in him.

"Thank you for telling me all of that. I know that couldn't have been easy. But I want you to know, it doesn't change anything for me. I still want to be with you. Whenever you decide you're ready. I…" He exhaled shakily, glancing down at his shoes as he tried to dig for that bravery somewhere deep inside him. "I really like you, TK. Not just because you're the best sex I've ever had. I… there's something here. I feel it when I'm around you. You're… you're special. You make me feel… so many things I don't know how to name yet."

Great, now he was rambling. Even better, making it clear how much of a lovesick fool he was over the guy. That wouldn't freak him out or anything.

He corrected his throat, trying to calm his anxiety. "Look, all I'm saying is that if you feel anything for me, I can be patient. I can wait until you're more ready. I think you're worth the wait."

TK's responding smile could outshine the sun. He wasted no time in coiling his arms around Carlos' waist and burying his face in his shoulder.

"I really like you too. And I do want to give this a shot. Just… when it has a better chance of not blowing up before it gets started."

Carlos pressed a quick kiss to his good temple before pulling back.

"For now, try to stay out of trouble, okay? You won't always be so lucky to get such an understanding cop like me processing you at the station."

TK blew out an exasperated breath that turned into a laugh. "I'll do my best."

Carlos couldn't help grinning at him, a much bigger fan of a laughing and teasing TK than a shattered and beaten one.

"I should get back. You gonna be okay to get home?"

TK nodded. "Yeah I already called a ride."

"Well, see you later then." Carlos said, not really sure how to be less awkward as he headed back up the stairs to return to the station.

"Hey, Carlos?"

He turned around. "Yeah?"

"Best sex you've ever had, huh?"

TK was sporting his cockiest grin, and Carlos wished he could kiss it off of his stupid smug face.

"You would pick that as the only takeaway from that whole speech…"

TK chuckled. "No, I remember it all. I just latched onto that because it was the same for me too."

Carlos took an extra second to process and then he felt himself flushing in pride.

TK's smile softened, no doubt reading his reaction even from several feet away. "Goodnight, Officer Reyes." he said cheekily as he moved towards the car marked with the Uber sticker that had pulled up.

Carlos could only watch as the car drove off into the night.

He felt a little bereft being apart from TK after all the honesty of the evening. Something about being so vulnerable together gave him the urge to be within close quarters, not wanting to give up the resulting rush that came with exposing your heart and having it be safe with the other person.

But Carlos knew that TK needed time. And he was willing to wait as long as it took.

For now, he returned to his desk, this time with a little more of a spring in his step.

[bots-and-cons]

If this is too dark, or if you aren't in the headspace to respond, please feel free to ignore this. I've been feeling a little sad lately, and I was wondering if I could get Bumblebee, Optimus, and Starscream's reaction to their human conjunx with recent self harm scars? If you don't want to answer, that is completely fine, you can absolutely delete this!! I hope you're doing well, sending you my thoughts and love!!

I did some scenarios, and it isn't too dark. Selfharm is something I struggle with as well, even though I haven't hurt myself in a while now, but the urges happen pretty often. I feel like Screamer is pretty OOC, but that’s just how I felt about him at the time of writing this so deal with it. I didn’t feel like writing Bee this time, but I have this post about him on the same topic. Also if you search “selfharm” on my blog you can find stuff on that subject with other characters too

~Starscream~

“What the scrap are these?” Starscream shrieked, which brought you out of your slumber.

“What the hell Star? Why are you yelling in the middle of the night?” you groaned in your half asleep state.

You looked up at him and saw him pointing at your wrist. Your sleeve had hiked up your arm and exposed the fairly recent cuts that were scattered all over it.

“Fuck” you sighed. “You know what they are”

“Yes, but why do they look so fresh? I thought you had stopped with this”

“Because I didn’t stop, okay? I couldn’t, I can’t, I don’t know how…”

“By Primus you infuriate me sometimes” Starscream muttered.

“Well screw you too” you said, turned your back to him and pulled your covers over your head.

Starscream could see you starting to tremble and he could hear you trying to keep your voice down so he couldn’t hear you cry, but he heard you anyway.

“I-I didn’t mean it like that” he sighed and grabbed your covers carefully with two digits, pulling them back down to your shoulders. He also turned you back to face him.

“We-Well how the hell did you mean it then?” you cried.

“I just meant that I don’t like seeing you hurt. That infuriates me, seeing you in so much pain that you end up hurting yourself. Why wouldn’t you just contact me?”

“Because what the hell am I supposed to say to you? “Love of my life, I feel like I can’t cope and hurt myself again, come get me, giant robot boyfriend whose existence is supposed to be a secret”? You can’t help me with this, no matter how much you want to” you said shakily.

“Maybe not, but for Primus’ sake you could at least let me try” he groaned.

“What if I don’t want you to? What if I just want you to live your life and be happy without me?” 

“There is one major flaw in that logic”

“And what’s that?” you asked, with a tad of mockery in your voice.

“I can’t be happy without you” Starscream said.

That sentence, those words, broke the dam. You threw yourself at his hand and cried until you fell back to sleep. Starscream watched you pretty much the whole night and kept rubbing your back with two of his digits. If it was up to him, he would never let you go. 

~Optimus Prime~

You were sitting on the sofa at the base and watching Optimus while he worked on the computer. Everyone else was on a mission and Ratchet was recharging for the first time in forever, so the two of you got a little bit of time to yourselves.

Your thigh was itching like crazy, but you were sure that if you gave in to the temptation of scratching it, Optimus would notice something was wrong. He was perceptive like that and he knew the signs of when you had hurt yourself. 

From the corner of his optic, Optimus could see you on the couch. You seemed to be struggling with something, since you looked quite antsy.

“Are you alright my love?” he asked and turned to you, stopping whatever it was that he was doing on the computer.

“I’m good, why are you asking?” you smiled nervously.

“You seem like something is bothering you”

“It’s just… I don’t want to disappoint you”

“Just tell me what is going on, please”

“I… I hurt myself again last evening and…” your voice faded to silence at the end.

Optimus just looked at you. You knew he wouldn’t get mad at you over this, but you still felt like you had let him down somehow.

“I am aware it is a bit late to ask, but do you require medical attention?”

“No, no, the wounds are really superficial and I cleaned them afterwards, so I should be fine… I know it’s a dumb thing to do, but sometimes I don’t know what else to do when I have a bad moment”

“I’m worried about you (Name), I know you do not mean to end your life, but I worry that one day you are going to take it too fat, even if it is by accident, and just knowing you feel the need to hurt yourself because you are in such a bad place mentally, pains me” Optimus said and offered his servo to you. You stepped onto his hand and he lifted you closer to his face. “I do not mean to guilt you about the matter, but I still hope you know that” he added.

“I know you don’t mean anything bad by it, but even so, I gotta admit, it stings a bit” you said and looked down.

Optimus had always appreciated your honesty and that was not about to change now. He just didn’t really know what to say to you after that. You finally broke the silence and said: “I would like to ask you something”

“What would you like to know?”

“Why do you even put up with me? You have your duties as a Prime and I feel like I’m just adding to your burden, by… being me. I don’t understand why you would want someone like me as your conjunx”

“My love…” Optimus sighed and the look in his optics saddened.

“I’m sorry, forget I asked” you said and shook your head.

“There is nothing to “put up with” as you put it. I love you, all of you, and there is nothing you can do to change my mind about that” he smiled gently and brushed your cheek with his thumb.

You could feel the tears starting to roll down your cheeks, but for the first time in forever, they were happy tears. You knew Optimus would always be honest with you, and even though there was that little voice in the back of your head, telling you that you weren’t worthy of him, in that moment, that voice could go to hell. He loved you and you knew he always would, no matter what, because you were worth it.

[multiplefandomsblog]

Gundham, Kazuichi, and Mikan with an Ultimate veterinarian S/O

warnings; light cussing, unedited, inaccurate depictons of what vets do, gender neutral pronouns for reader, gn!reader

Request; Hi there! Can I request gundham, kazuichi, and mikan with an Ultimate veterinarian S/O? Maybe they have wild animals by their side all the time :) thanks!

Gundham

◊ Gundham would trust you 100%

◊ He relies on you a bunch.

◊ Knowing that you are a veterinarian who loves animals, is all he needed to know to trust his life and the dark devas life with you.

◊ Gundham is pretty protective and careful with his devas, so if anytime the devas showed signs of a small sickness, he’d immediately go to you.

◊ He’d be so concerned for his devas so he would always go to you to see what’s wrong.

◊ Most of the time, the devas are fine and Gundham was just being a worried dad.

◊ But you’d be lying if you said you didn’t get a biiiiiiit happy every time he rushed into your clinic with a worried expression on his face.

◊ You assure him that his devas look fine, but he still insists you check them thoroughly.

◊ As usual, they are fine and he looks relieved.

◊ Though actually, one time he had faked his worry for the devas so he could have an excuse to see you.

◊ He was planning to ask you out while you examined his loyal companions.

◊ “So erm, how are my dark devas doing? Perfectly, I assume.” He spoke in his low tone of voice. “Well, Maga-G, Sun-D and Jum-P are doing fine. Except for Cham-P, he may be a tad dehydrated. If you monitor him carefully and make sure he drinks water, he’ll be good.” Gundham nodded with a nervous but confident grin, words not quite hitting his ears yet, “Indeed, so would you like to- Wait WHAT-?” Gundham paled, registering your words a bit too slow and freaking out.

◊ “Cham-P iS DYING?? WHAT WILL I- Oh goD-” Gundham hyperventilates, grabbing your hands unconsciously and squeezing them so tight it slightly hurt. 

◊ “Please, S/o, save his life!!”

◊ You looked at him with surprise, face heating up at the sudden touch.

◊ ”G-gundham, Cham-P isn’t dying, he just needs to drink more water.” You cut off.

◊ Gundham suddenly froze, face heating up from the realization of his hands in yours.

◊ “O-oh, I see my mistake.” You laughed at his reaction, relishing in the feeling of his hands still resting in yours.

◊ “So what did you want to ask me earlier?” Gundham’s eyes widened, “Oh uh- I was just wondering if... Yo-you’d help me nurse Cham-P back to health?” He chickened out at the last minute, mentally scolding himself for losing his confidence.

◊ Though you knew that wasn’t what he meant to say since you had told him about Cham-P after he had tried to ask you something, you still accepted happily.

◊ Your animals and his dark devas had a few debates as you and Gundham helped Cham-P drink from the water nozzle thingy.

◊ “Water is not wet.” Maga-G scoffed, examining his nails. “Okay but, water makes things wet, so how is it not wet?” Your bird argued, looking at Maga-G with disbelief. “I have to pee.” Jum-P blurted out, hopping back inside the cage to do his business. “Can I come!?” San-D followed suit, hopping into the cage as well.

◊ “What do you think they’re talking about?” You questioned, looking at the animals argue.

◊ “Obviously, they are discussing their plan to destroy the world. My dark devas have the intelligence of a god!” Gundham boasted, staring at the dark devas with pride.

◊ “-No, you’re wrong, I’m right, shut up.” Maga-G ended the argument unfairly, stomping his foot down(if you get the reference, ily).

Kazuichi

◊ Kazuichi would be scared when he first saw you walk by with your army of animals following you.

◊ “I-is that a tiger!?”

◊ He’d be kind of intimidated by you at first, not wanting to get on your bad side and have your animals maul him.

◊ Other than your army of animals catching his eye, he thought you were pretty cute.

◊ Though he was itching to ask you out, he was too scared to go within 5 meters distance near you.

◊ He’d kind of just, scream cheesy pick-up lines to you.

◊ “HEY S/O! ARE Y-” “What!?” “ARE YOU-” “Can you come closer!? I can’t hear you!” “HAHAHA, N-NEVERMIND IT’S NOTHING!”

◊ Eventually, Kazuichi warmed up to your animals(it’s kind of the opposite really-).

◊ Funny story how actually, Kazuichi was working on the underbelly of his machines, and he needed his wrench. Assuming Fuyuhiko was still there—Which he wasn’t—, he asked for a wrench.

◊ (un)Luckily for him, one of your dogs had been there, and it had picked up the wrench and brought it to Kazuichi’s outstretched hand. 

◊ “Thanks, Fuyu.” He accepted the wrench, expecting a grunt of ‘You’re welcome.’

◊ He, however, did not expect a very loud, “BORK!” in return.

◊ He screeched, wincing as he jolted up and hit his forehead on the hard metal underneath his machine.

◊ Not long after the bark echoed through the area, you had come running, your forehead creased from worry.

◊ “Oh, there you are!” You huffed out in relief as your eyes caught sight of the familiar coloured fur.

◊ You looked down at Kazuichi’s bottom half sticking out underneath from a machine, hearing a groan coming from him.

◊ “Kazuichi?” You squealed when you heard a- “S-s/o!?” come from underneath the machine, A “BANG!” following after.

◊ “Ow- U-uh hey S/o..!” He greeted waving his hand awkwardly from underneath the metal. 

◊ “Uh, A-are you going to come out?” You asked, concerned for—what sounded like—his head injury.

◊ “U-um nope. It’s uh, it’s cozy underneath here.” He refused politely, not wanting you to see his red face. 

◊ Literally red(or pink??) face; Blood had been running down his fucking forehead from the two hard bonks against the metal.

◊ The dog could smell the bullshit(and the blood) emitting from Kazuichi’s words, and bit gently onto his sneaker, urging out a scream from the pinkette.

◊ It pulled him out from underneath the machine, revealing his bloody forehead.

◊ You gasped in shock as you hurried him up to his feet, hastily bringing him to your clinic.

◊ He blushed at your close proximity, letting you drag him to a waiting seat.

◊ He watched warily as your animals ran into the backroom of your clinic, bringing you medical supplies as you carefully examined his forehead. 

◊ The animals watched you two as you disinfected his forehead, making Kazuichi nervous from the many tiny animal eyes glaring into him.

◊ He tensed as he felt a ferret climb his shoulder, clenching his eyes shut. 

◊ The ferret kissed him on his forehead, leaving you and him speechless.

◊ Well shit, the ferret had more confidence than you.

Mikan

◊ Mikan thought your ultimate was pretty cool!

◊ Since you were both in the medical field, you two had many things to talk about, therefore getting along unsurprisingly well.

◊ At first, she was a bit scared of your big animals, your small ones not so much.

◊ All your animals seemed to really really like her, and they’d be pretty protective of her.

◊ If Teruteru had said something perverted to her, one of your bears would maul him. 

◊ Everyone cheered as the bear kept on swinging TeruTeru’s arm in its jaw.

◊ That one time Hajime made Mikan cry, one of your lizards had slipped off Mikan and bit his finger.

◊ “Not cool, Hajim-“ Nagito started, before glancing down on his bloody finger, “Oh shit, are you okay??” 

◊ There’s always at least one of your animals stuck onto her just in case she gets picked on by Hiyoko or TeruTeru.

◊ They always have her back!

◊ If Hiyoko insulted Mikan for no good reason, the monkeys would pull her pigtails whilst the cats quickly ran to her dorm to shit inside it.

◊ Hiyoko stopped messing around with Mikan after that.

◊ Those times she trips and falls in very inconvenient positions, the animals cover her or scare everyone else away until you or someone trusted comes and helps.

◊ As the animals always have her back, she always has theirs.

◊ If someone tried to attack one of your animals, she’ll cover the animals and take the hit for them.

◊ Though before anyone could get hurt, your tiger had already pounced on the assaulter, tearing off their pants and watching as they ran away from the humiliation.

◊ If you’re busy healing one of the animals and can’t take care of the rest at the moment, Mikan will be your number #2 and she’ll help in any way she can!

◊ She remembers each animal’s feeding time to heart, never forgetting to feed them or give them water.

◊ She cherishes the animals almost as much as she cherishes you.

◊ She adores how kind you are to the animals and her, falling in love with your sweet personality.

◊ Mikan kind of becomes your wife and the animals being your shared children together.

◊ It’s really cute when you see the animals cuddle up to her while she pets them, it just makes you want to get on one knee.

◊ You are indefinitely thankful for her care, you’re sure you love her.

◊ Sooner or later, you two finally get together.

◊ All thanks to your animals actually, they did that classic nudge where you two kissed on accident.

◊ After you two get into a relationship, expect lots of cuddles.

◊ Correction, expect lots of cuddles with the animals.

◊ They regularly interrupt your quiet time with her by climbing in between and around the two of you, creating a safe and warm barrier. 

◊ As you’re always caring for your many animals, you sometimes forget to take care of yourself, so she’d also make sure you were okay too.

◊ Since she was the ultimate nurse, she knew humans better and so she knew when you weren’t taking care of yourself.

◊ She would get concerned for you as you overworked yourself, therefore reminding you to take care of yourself-

◊ Before immediately apologizing for her worries, afraid you thought she was clingy. 

◊ After assuring her you could never think that she was clingy, you promised her you’d take care of yourself, kissing her worried tears away.

◊ You’d do anything for Mikan, and she would do the same.

note; sorry if it’s a bit rushed!! i hope you enjoy anyways though, tysm for reading!

[cryingoverafictionalcharacter]

Red Hair Dye

Request: hello! if you’re taking prompts could you please do 1 + 10 from the angst list (with a happy ending preferably!) for fred with a slytherin!reader? thank you i love your writing even tho i just found your blog! <3  (@greyspilot​)

1. “I hate that I love you”

10.  “I can’t do this anymore”

Prompt: Fred and Y/N could not be more different. Fred loves to cause trouble, Y/N is more reserved. Fred is loud and extroverted, Y/N likes to keep to themselves. Fred is a Gryffindor, Y/N is a Slytherin.  They’re complete opposites, it would only make sense that they wouldn’t like each other, that is until a certain moment makes them question everything. 

Warnings: ANGST!!! with fluff at the end lol. Injury to reader bc we love a care taking moment, swearing, Fred being a dumbass, reader being a dumbass, Enemies to lovers type beat, gender neutral reader, Umbridge existing, I think that’s it. 

You gritted your teeth as you stared straight ahead, doing everything you could to focus on the words scribbled on the board instead of the endless chattering coming from behind you. Transfiguration was by far your least favorite class, the lessons were boring, the homework was extensive, but above all else, Fred Weasley sat directly behind you, meaning you were now on the receiving end of any jokes or pranks he may try and pull to relieve his own boredom.

You and Fred were, to put it lightly, mortal enemies. It wasn’t always like that though, from first to fourht year you were pretty close, making jokes and having fun together along with George and Ron, but then in fourth year, he had tried to pull a prank on you. He was meant to switch all your Slytherin robes for Gryffindor ones, which would have been annoying but forgivable, but he decided to take an extra step, and dye your hair a sickeningly color of red. Not maroon, not pink, no, he went with a bright, stop sign, ripe tomato red. Some of your house mates had already started making fun of you for your half blood status, but after the incident, many of them had alienated you completely, leaving you with almost no friends the entire semester. 

You decided then and there that you hated Fred Weasleys guts, even when he offered to help you in class, or notice when you were having a bad day and leave you alone, or smile in a way that gave you butterflies.

You continued to focus on the board, ignoring the red head who was currently trying to get your attention.

“Hey, Y/N.... Y/N” Fred whisper yelled, saying your name a bit louder with each attempt. You continued to ignore him, scribbling notes from time to time until you felt something hit the back of your head. 

Fred must have noticed how your body stiffened, because you heard him let out a quiet laugh along with his friends, but still, you continued to look forward. 

You felt another ball of paper hit you in the back of the head, followed by more snickering. You balled your hands into fists, hoping the professor would excuse the class before you lost your patients and gave Fred the well deserved smack you had been itching to give since third year.

“Do you have an answer for us Y/N?” The professor suddenly asked, making you snap out of your haze.

“What?” You asked, clueless of what the Professor had asked, causing a few laughs to pass through the class.

“That’s what I thought you might say, maybe if you were to pay as much attention to this class as you do your own thoughts, your grade wouldn’t be doing so poorly.” The teacher responded, making your face heat up as you slumped down in your seat.

Your mind filled with thoughts all contradicting each other. 

“Class dismissed, please read chapters-” You couldn’t hear the rest of the professors instructions, as soon as you were excused you grabbed your things and left, fumbling to put your things into your bag as you rushed out of the class.

“Y/N, wait up!” Fred called, catching up to you quite quickly. Damn those long legs.

You didn’t answer, picking up your pace to hopefully reach your last class before Fred could catch up to you, but of course, he wasn’t about to suddenly stop pestering you now.

“Y/N, I-” Fred tried to say, grabbing your arm to stop.

You ripped your arm out of his grasp, turning to face him.

“What’s your problem?” You asked bluntly, causing a few heads to turn in your direction, but next class was about to start, and the hallways were already quite empty.

“I- I don’t have a problem” Fred said, struggling to find the words as he was quite surprised by your reaction. Sure he had bugged you in the past, but you had never gotten this mad.

“Well, you obviously fucking do Fred. Ever since fourth year you’ve been doing everything you could to make my life harder. It was funny when it was a little joke here and there, but dying my hair? Making me lose friends? Embarrassing me in class? I don’t know if you know this but it’s not fucking funny Fred! What did I do to make you hate me so much? We used to be friends!” You ranted, watching as Fred’s eyes grew with both shock and fear as your voice continued to get louder.

“I don’t-” Fred tried to interject, but it only made you angrier.

“You don’t what Fred, you don’t what?!” You shouted, only coming down from your anger when you heard someone lightly clear their throat behind you.

Your eyes, which were once locked on Fred’s with anger, filled with dread as you slowly turned to see none other than the pink clad devil herself. 

“I believe you should both be in class, yes?” She asked, the fake politeness in her voice causing a sick feeling to wash over you.

“I’m sorry professor, I was just-” Fred started, but Umbridge lifted her hand to stop him.

“Weasley, please get to your next class. Y/N, follow me” She said, the smile never leaving her face as she turned to walk back to her office, you following behind, looking back to see Fred, a worried expression on his face.

By the time you had reached Umbridge's office, you were practically shaking. You had heard horror stories of people who went into her office to be punished, coming out with bloody words scribbled across their hands.

You sat in the chair across from her desk, looking around the ugly pink room for a moment before a quill and piece of paper were suddenly placed in front of you. 

“You will write, ‘I will not shout during class’ one hundred times” She said, taking a seat across from you, eyeing you like a snake about to strike at a mouse.

“Professor Umbridge, I didn’t-” You started, trying to defend yourself.

“You most certainly did, I could hear you all the way across campus, two hundred times” She said, making you clench your fists.

“What?! I just wanted to-”

“‘I will not shout during class’ two hundred times, and ‘I will not question my professors’ three hundred times” She said, her sickly sweet tone never changing. 

Your heart sank to your stomach, already feeling sick. You decided not to try and fight it anymore, knowing you would only end up more hurt, so, you picked up the quill and began writing, already beginning to feel a slight sting in your left hand.

By the time you had finished writing it was nearly dark. With any other quill the task would have taken no more than thirty minutes, but with the pain in your hand worsening as you continued to dig into your skin, it had taken hours.

You wrote the last sentence, almost throwing the pen down as you took deep breaths, trying not to let the pain get to you in front of her. You grabbed the paper with your injured hand, offering it to Umbridge who took it with a smile, looking over the small blood spot that had landed in the corner.

“You are excused” She said with a flick of her hand, allowing you to slowly stand and walk out of her office, closing the door behind you. 

You walked into the hallway in a daze, your head feeling foggy from the emotional exhaustion you were feeling. You were so distracted that you didn’t notice Fred waiting for you until he was standing directly in front of you, quickly shaking you from your sleep like state.

“What do you want?” You asked, your voice shaking a bit, trying to hide your face by staring at the floor “If you’re here to make fun of me or something...I don’t know what I did to make you hate me but I’m sorry I just can’t- I can’t do this anymore”

You felt a pair of hands gently hold the sides of your face, making you look up to meet Fred’s eyes which were now filled with sadness as he wiped a single tear rolling down your face.

“I don’t hate you. I never hated you”

He pulled you closer to him, enveloping you in a hug and the dam burst, tears freely flowing down your face as you sobbed into his chest. You were crying from the pain in your hand, but also the pain you felt in your heart. You didn’t know why he didn’t like you, why he did all those things to make your life so hard, why despite everything he did you still found yourself looking back to that boy you had been friends with for so long.

You let him lead you back to the Gryffindor common room, setting you down on one of the many couches before he ran off to grab a few things, returning with a first aid kit and some water.

He took a seat next to you, putting out his hand towards you, which you carefully put your injured hand in. He pulled back the sleeve of your robes, exposing the wound which you had yet to fully see yourself. 

“I had to use the quill too, though it wasn’t this many words” He said, breaking the long silence between you.

“Yeah, well I guess she just likes me more than you” you said with a short laugh, making Fred smile a bit as well.

“I don’t think that woman likes anything, not even Filtch” He said, the two of you laughing this time. “This might sting a little” He said, soaking a cotton ball in alcohol but not bringing it to your skin just yet, looking at you for permission.

You nodded, your breath hitching as the cotton came in contact with your hand, a stinging sensation running all the way up your arm. You screwed your eyes shut and grabbed onto the first thing your free hand found, which happened to be Fred’s knee.

“I know, I know I’m sorry” Fred apologized, quickly pulling away the alcohol.

You took a breath and opened your eyes to meet Fred’s, watching as he brought your injured hand closer to his face, lightly blowing on the skin to relive the stinging sensation, never breaking eye contact.

You felt your face heat up at you realized how close you have gotten, your hand still gripping his knee, a bit more tightly than you would have liked, and your hand gently being held by both of his, his face only inches from yours.

“Like what you see Y/N?” Fred asked with a smirk, snapping you out of your thoughts, and quickly reminding you of what got you into this situation in the first place. You pulled your hand out of his, turning away and grabbing a roll of gauze to wrap your hand yourself, not answering his question.

“I was just joking” Fred defended, trying to grab your hand back but you pulled it away.

“Yeah, sorry I didn’t realize that was all a joke to you, my bad for thinking you could actually go two seconds without making fun of me”  You tried wrapping your hand, but the movement stung and you winced, dropping the roll of gauze.

"I'm not making fun of you” Fred defended, picking the gauze off the floor and reaching to wrap it but you pulled back.

“Stop, I can do it myself” You said, grabbing for the roll but he kept it out of your grasp.

“Sure, because you did so well the first time” Fred shot back, making you narrow your eyes at him.

“Stop being a dick!” You shouted, your voices having progressively gotten louder during the argument.

“Then stop being so stubborn and listen to me!” He shouted back “God, you can be so fucking stubborn its unbearable. I hate that I love you sometimes”

His statement shocked you into stillness, trying to process his words as Fred continued his grumbling. He brought your hand closer to him and started wrapping it.

“You love me?” You asked, causing him to stop his movements entirely as he suddenly realized what he said. 

“I mean I- well yeah but I didn’t want you to - I do but” Fred rambled as he tried to find the right words to say, only stopping when you brought your uninjured hand to his face and closed the space between you, pressing your lips to his.

Fred let out a surprised sound, but was quick to respond, moving his hand to the back of your neck as he pulled you closer to him, deepening the kiss.

“Wait, what just happened?” Fred asked as he suddenly pulled away, making you laugh.

“I love you too stupid, even if you dyed my hair red” You responded, making him give you a worried grin.

“About that... I didn’t dye your hair red” He said

“What do you mean?” You asked

“Well, the switching robes part was me, but the hair dye was Lee” He said, causing your lower jaw to practically hit the floor.

“I’ve been blaming you, thinking you were out to sabotage me and ruin my social life for years, and it was Lee?”

“Yeah, he felt really bad about it, but when we went to apologize you were already pretty set on blaming me so I just never said anything”

You felt your face heat up with embarrassment as you realized how childish the situation was. You had been crushing of Fred for years, and the only thing keeping you from getting together was a prank he didn’t even do. 

“I feel so stupid” You said, covering your face with your hands, which Fred gently pulled away, making you look at him.

“Don’t, I was the one who was stupid and tried to get your attention by teasing you instead of just telling you how I felt” Fred said.

“You’re right, that was stupid” You said, laughing as an offended expression crossed Fred's face. “But that, uh... moment earlier. You weren’t making fun of me?”

“No, I wasn’t, that was real” He said sincerely, making you smile before pressing your lips back to his.

His hands moved to your waist as you climbed on top of him, straddling him as you deepened the kiss. Fred began moving his hands up your sides, and had just dipped under your shirt when you pulled away.

“Heeey” Fred complained as you broke away.

“I’ll be right back, I just need to do something before I forget” You said sweetly, pressing a quick peck to his lips before walking away.

Fred watched you, confused but content as you quietly made your way up the stairs of the boys dormitory, not knowing what you were up to until he heard the dormitory door bang open.

“LEE JORDAN, YOU FUCKER!” You yelled, causing Fred to jump up from his spot on the couch and sprint of the stairs, the sound of Lees screams echoing through the common room.

-------------------------------------------

A/N: Hey!!! I hope you liked it, I had a little trouble trying to get a good plot but I think it worked out ok. Also I was literally sweating when Fred blew on your hand SO SOFT YET ERROTIC?!?! Anyway, feel free to leave any feedback you may have, thank you for the request!

[jenonctcity]

My Beginning - Part 1

Differences – Lee Jeno

Part of the Bad Boy Series.

Badboy!Au, Streetfighter!Au

Warnings: Mentions of past abuse, talk of drugs, aggression, mention of mental health, mention of blood/violence. 

Word Count: 5.9k

(I recommend reading Haechan’s part first to understand this part more clearly.)

Jeno had a rough start to life. He was raised in a poor family with an abusive father and depressed mother. To let off some steam and make some money to support himself, he took up underground street fights at the age of 15. And he was really fucking good at it. Finally his father pushed him too far one night and at the age of 18 Jeno did what he’d wanted to do since before he could even remember, and he beat up his dad until his face was almost unrecognisable. He was sentenced to a year in prison for his crime, but he thought it was worth it and doesn’t regret it. Now fresh out of prison, he’s back in the underground fighting scene and adjusting to life on the outside without having to worry about his father for the first time in his life. He meets someone who mixes up his life once more, and she wants to change him for the better. Does he change for the women he sees in his future or is he too far gone?

 “You need some pussy.” Chenle’s words caused Jeno to choke on the beer he was in the middle of swallowing. He winced and gulped the beer down after he’d finished coughing into his hand, giving Chenle a wide-eyed look and holding his hand up in question.

“Chenle…what the fuck?” He gulped down the rest of his beer and set the bottle down on the bar. Chenle sniggered, looking oddly proud of himself for what he’d said to his older friend.

“Well you’ve been a right grumpy bastard the past few months, and it’s starting to ruin my vibe.” Chenle sounded as if he was dead serious as he flagged the bartender down to order more beers.

“Sorry that I fell in love with someone who didn’t love me back Chenle, I didn’t mean to ruin your ‘vibe’.” He deadpanned but mocked Chenle’s voice as he said the word ‘vibe’.

“You’re forgiven.” Chenle’s neck was starting to look very inviting to Jeno. Inviting to wrap his hands around and strangle the cheeky fucker. “So anyway, I did you a favour!” This made Jeno’s eyebrows raise, as he knew Chenle doing someone a favour, usually worked out to be a devastation only for Chenle’s amusement. Jeno put his head in his hands and groaned.

“I swear to god if you have hired a fucking prostitute or some shit Chenle I wi-”

“No!” Chenle furrowed his eyebrows and let out a laugh. “You really think I’d spend that much money on getting a prostitute for you? Pfft, you’re my buddy but you’re not that special Jen.” The one thing Jeno loved but hated at the same time about Chenle was that he had absolutely no filter whatsoever.

“Thanks.” Jeno rolled his eyes and sighed. “So what is this favour?”

“I’ve set you up a blind date.” Chenle grinned at Jeno, clearly proud of what he’d done. Jeno felt his stomach drop, he sighed and shook his head as he looked at Chenle.

“I’m not ready.” He mumbled, looking down at his hands.

“It’s been what? Seven months?” Chenle furrowed his eyebrows, confused at Jeno’s reaction.

“Four months…you have no sense of time at all.” Jeno frowned in shock at his friend’s awareness of time. “Do you not realise that I still have feelings for her? She pretty much lives at the apartment and her and Haechan are all over each other.” He didn’t want to sound soft, so he neglected to tell Chenle that it felt like a knife was being stabbed through his heart every time he saw them hold hands, or their lips briefly touch. He wasn’t stupid, he knew they kept their pda to a minimum around him, and he knows they look at him with pity in their eyes, which isn’t what Jeno wants.

“Get over it my guy.” Chenle shrugs and slaps Jeno on the shoulder. He’s clearly never had his heartbroken, but Jeno can’t really blame him for his ignorance to heart break, he’s still young. “Look, she’s a really nice girl, and she’s beautiful. She’s my friend’s sister and he thinks she needs some company.”

“And she hasn’t got feelings for anyone else?” Jeno couldn’t hide the sarcasm in his voice as he stared Chenle in the eye.

“Not that I’m aware of. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was secretly in love with me though, I am one hell of a catch.” He winked at Jeno and took a large mouthful of beer, taking took much in and dribbling some of the liquid down his chin.

“Yes…quite the bachelor.”

“I’ll text you the details once I’ve sorted things out with her.”

“I don’t know whether to thank you or not, so I’m going to wait and see how this turns out.” Jeno rolled his eyes and sipped on his own beer.

“So you’ll actually go on the date?!”

“Yes, if it shuts you up about my personal life.”

“Deal!”

 ---

Jeno felt like he was suffocating as he tugged at the collar of his white button up shirt. It wasn’t often he wore a shirt considered ‘formal’, as he didn’t really go anywhere fancy enough to deem wearing a shirt that fell into the category. But since it was a first date and Chenle told him not to dress like a ‘homeless rat’, he decided to buy a decent shirt to wear with his black skinny jeans. The cool night air was at least doing somewhat of a decent job in calming him down, but the longer he stood beside Chenle as he waited for you to arrive, the more anxious he got. He wasn’t nervous to meet you, he was simply feeling anxious because he did not want to be going on a date, but he knew Chenle wouldn’t shut up about it until he agreed.

“Why doesn’t Jaemin ever have to deal with this shit?” He mumbled to himself, his fingers itching to grab at the packet of cigarettes in his leather jacket. He only smoked when he was feeling stressed, and he knew he’d get stressed, so he came prepared. Even though he mumbled the words, Chenle apparently had super sonic hearing.

“Because Jaemin has severe depression and I’m not willing to fuck with that.” Chenle shrugged. “She’s here!” He smiled widely as you got out of the taxi. You nearly climbed back in though because of how nervous you felt about going on a date. This was your first ever date, and you didn’t know how to feel about Chenle being the person to set it up for you. You also didn’t know what to wear, so you hoped that your little black dress with matching heels would be an okay option. You had straightened your hair and had made a decent effort with your makeup, hoping it would help mask how worried you were feeling. You turned around, looking to see the blond annoyance you knew too well, smiling when you caught sight of him. You felt your stomach fall straight through to the core of the earth when you laid eyes on the tall man next to him. He looked like he could snap you in half if he wanted to, not to mention, he was also the best-looking man you’d seen in a long, long, long time. Your palms started to sweat but you didn’t let your smile falter as you hurried over to them both.

“(Y/N)! Hi, this is Jeno, Jeno this is (Y/N). I’m going to shoot now; the reservations are made under your name Jeno. Bye!” Before either of you could utter a word to him, he had basically sprinted off down the road.

“I hate him so much.” You heard Jeno mutter, causing a soft, nervous laugh to fall from your lips. He turned towards you and gave you a lopsided smile. “Shall we?” He motioned towards the restaurant that you were stood in front of. You nodded and followed him inside, thanking him as he held the door open for you. The host hastily showed you to your seats and you slid into the booth, still holding the soft smile on your face. Jeno shrugged off his jacket and you couldn’t help but look at his arms as the shirt he was wearing moulded to the fabric snuggly. You didn’t really know what to say to him and let out a quick sigh as your eyes scanned the restaurant. It was starting to get painfully awkward, which was a bad sign for you, because you knew how you handled awkward situations. Jeno kept letting his eyes fall on your as he glanced at his menu, his bottom lip tucked between teeth as he mulled over the silence between you. You looked at the menu for a minute before deciding to try and start a conversation with him.

“So, how do you know Chenle?” You asked, letting your eyes meet his. For someone with very strong facial features, his eyes were very soft, the deep brown pools almost sucking you in. like a riptide in the ocean.

“Satan’s child?” This caused you to laugh abruptly, not having expected him to say such a thing. “I don’t actually remember, I’m pretty sure one of my friends just found him and adopted him into our group, then we haven’t been able to get rid of him since.” You smiled and nodded along to his words. “He said you’re his friends sister?”

“Yeah, he spends a lot of time eating my brothers food and giving him tattoos of random things.” Jeno smiled in amusement and turned his attention to the waiter as he came over. You both ordered your food and drinks and then you saw as he let out a small sigh, trying to avoid making eye contact with you. It baffled you as to why he agreed to go on a date with you when he clearly didn’t want to. ‘Maybe he doesn’t think I’m attractive…’ you couldn’t help but think to yourself as you let your mind wonder. You couldn’t stand the horrid silence, so you did what you did best in awkward situations. Talk. You didn’t mean to, but it always happened subconsciously as your battle against the quiet. You found yourself talking about the most random things, asking him questions that you only got brief answers to. You told him all about your life, how you were a student at a nearby university studying something you found boring but essential to the job you wanted. You also told him that you were in the middle of learning how to drive, but it was a slow process because you were busy with university. Until your food came and you suddenly realised just how long you’d been talking for. “I’ve been talking so much, I’m sorry I haven’t given you any chance to speak!” You could feel your cheeks heat up as embarrassment set in. Jeno gave you a gentle smile and sipped at his drink.

“I’m enjoying listening to you, I haven’t got much to tell you about my own life so I’m happy to listen to you about yours.” He sounded genuine, which made you let out a short sigh of relief. He chuckled when he saw you sigh. “You’re very sweet, much different to the people I spend my time with, so I’m enjoying your company. Please don’t think that because I don’t talk much that I’m not interested.” He started to eat his food at the same time you started your own. You smiled, happy that he was interested in what you had to say, but you couldn’t help but wonder why he said he hadn’t got much to tell you about his life. The rest of the date flew by pretty much the same. You would talk about anything you could think of whilst Jeno just nodded along and interjected his thoughts when he saw fit. You had managed to find out a little about his life, that he doesn’t see his parents often, he spends most of his free time working out because he only works part time at his friends uncle’s mechanic shop, and he bleaches his hair because he hates his natural hair colour.

The two of you left the restaurant after he paid the bill, which you had tried to pay half of, but he hadn’t let you. “You can pay for ice cream on our next date.” He’s mumbled with red cheeks as he held the door open for you on your way out.

“Ooooh what’s your favourite ice cream flavour?” You smiled widely, having completely missed that he’d shown interest in a second date with you. He looked down at you and couldn’t help the way his cheeks tugged his own lips into a smile.

“Vanilla.”

“Boring!”

“It’s not! What’s your favourite flavour then?” He shoved his hands in his jacket pocket as he watched you.

“Vanilla.” You giggled as his mouth popped open. He looked scandalised at your words and his eyebrows furrowed.

“You just accused vanilla of being boring!”

“But I never said that I wasn’t boring too.” You shrugged. His face fell and he shook his head as he looked down at you.

“I don’t think that you’re boring…hey can I get your number? So we can arrange our next date.” He looked down at his feet, a slight nervous fire burning in his stomach at the thought of you turning him down. Your whole face lit up and you nodded eagerly, quickly taking his phone from him to put your number in when he held it out to you. “Can I give you a ride home?” You felt your phone buzz and looked down to see an unknown number, the message being a simple ‘Hi it’s Jeno’. You saved his number and smiled up at him.

“If it’s okay? I don’t want you to go out of your way.” You felt your stomach do a little flip when he let out a soft laugh and a shrug.

“It’s cool, come on.” He placed his hand on your lower back and guided you to the car park. He took you over to a sporty black car and opened the door for you, you slipped in the car and thanked him, looking at the sleek interior as you waited for him to get in beside you. You briefly wondered how he could afford a car this nice when he had told you that he was currently not working. “Where do you live?”

“Do you know the apartment buildings near the water tower?” He nodded in response, a gasp leaving his mouth.

“Wait you live there? I live there too, in the red bricked building!”

“No freaking way! I live in the white bricked building!” You both had surprised looks on your faces as you both found out that you live in the apartment buildings opposite each other.

“What are the chances?” He laughed, starting to drive towards the apartment buildings. You didn’t have much more to say, so you stared out of the window into the darkness of the night as the radio hummed a slow song throughout the atmosphere of the car. You mulled over the whole night in your head, unable to get rid the smile that sat contently on your face at the thought of your date. Jeno drummed his fingers gently against the steering wheel as he drove, his eyes darting over to you every now and then to check up on you. He stopped on the side of the road that his apartment building was on, hurrying to get out and rushing around the car to open the door for you. You felt butterflies in your stomach at the small gesture, thanking him as you climbed out of the car. “I’ll walk you to your building.”

“Thanks.” You walked with him across the road and suddenly feel a nervousness in your stomach. “I had fun.” You blurt out, rocking back and forth on your feet as he watched you stood by the door. He had a small smile on his face, and he nodded, mumbling a soft ‘me too’. You cleared your throat and turned to unlocked the door to your apartment building when you felt his hand gently tug on your own, the one that wasn’t busy unlocking the door. Your stomach dropped, thoughts running through your mind at what he might want from you. Did he expect you to have sex on the first date?!

“Hey,” When you turned around, he stepped closer, ducking down and planting a soft kiss to your cheek which felt like it was about to combust in flames from how hot it felt. He smiled wider when he saw your bashful smile, with your eyes darting around to look anywhere but at him. He could see that you were quite a shy person, and it made him feel something in his stomach that he couldn’t quite identify. “See ya.” He turned around and walked across the street as you opened your door and let yourself in. Once you were behind walking up the stairs to your apartment you let out a little squeal of excitement.

“Oh my gosh!” You jumped up and down like an exciting schoolgirl fawning over their crush. You couldn’t believe that your first date with a man who was as good looking as that went so well. Jeno seemed kind of rough around the edges in appearance, but his personality was the complete opposite, obviously you knew that he hadn’t shown you all of him yet, but your first impressions were very good. Still, you felt yourself getting sucked into his dark brown eyes whenever he talked, which wasn’t often, but it was enough.  Needless to say, you went to sleep that night with a huge smile on your face, anticipating what’s to come.

---

“How did the date go?” Was the first thing Jeno heard when he walked through the door of the apartment after dropping you off at your own apartment. He headed into the living room and saw that Renjun had 1 year old Jiyeon sitting on his lap with kids cartoons playing on the television, Jaemin had a family sized packet of doritos laying on his stomach as he slouched beside Renjun, passing a chip to Jiyeon before shovelling loads into his own mouth, and Haechan had his girlfriend snuggled into his chest on the other sofa. Jeno’s heart sunk through his stomach as he saw his ex-girlfriend looking at his best friend with so much love in her eyes, a look she never gave him when they were together. It felt to him as though all of the happiness he’d built up from his date was flushed down the toilet as he tore his eyes away from the couple. It was very apparent to him in that moment that he wasn’t over her, and his feelings for her hadn’t gone away at all.

“Good, really good. I got her number.” He gulped before mumbling, awkwardly scratching his head and sighing as he took off his jacket. She pulled her head away from Haechan’s chest and gave him an awkward smile.

“You went on a date?” She asked softly.

“Mhm.” He didn’t trust his voice, so he just hummed and nodded.

“I’m happy for you Jen.” The whole room felt like it was suffocating him as all eyes turned to look at him. It felt very much like pity to Jeno, causing heat to rush to his cheeks and a slight resentment and anger to boil inside of him. Ever since they’d ended things, his anger issues had spiked, and he found it hard to control his temper. The only time he’d ever been as angry was before he’d went to prison. He was like a ticking time bomb, or a bottle of soda that had been shook and ready to pop at any minute.

“Whatever.” He grunted, sinking on the sofa on the other side of Renjun and ignoring the way she cowered to his voice, settling her head back on Haechan’s chest as he scowled at Jeno. He didn’t mean to be cruel to her, he wanted nothing more than to be the one she was cuddling up to, but the resentment for her loving Haechan when she was supposed to love him still sat heavy inside of him.

“Jennie!” Jiyeon chirped, wiggling her way off of her father’s lap to sit on her uncle’s lap. She smiled at him and laid herself against his chest.

“Hi cupcake.” He ran his hand through her jet-black hair, wrapping his arms around her tiny frame and sighing as he cuddled her for comfort. “She’s starting to look more like you Renjun.” He commented, trying to change the tone in the room so it was less about him and more about the toddler cuddling him.

“She’s blessed then because I’m-”

“Ugly as fuck.” Jaemin mumbled, cutting Renjun off before he could finish and shovelling more chips into his mouth as he watched the kid cartoons. Renjun frowned, slamming his fist down on Jaemin’s packet of doritos and smirking when the sound of them crushing into small pieces sounded throughout the room. Jiyeon laughed loudly as she watched the interaction between them, the sound of her sweet laughter calming Jeno down completely.

---

The cool air in the bar kept your cheeks from blazing in heat every time Jeno looked you in the eye. The bar wasn’t very busy, making it feel more intimate as you didn’t have to compete with other voices to allow Jeno’s ears to hear your voice. It was dark in the bar, the cover of night making visibility poor despite how the artificial lights in the bar tried their hardest to lit the place up with mood lighting. His blond hair was pushed back off of his forehead, and small smudges of black eyeliner around his beautiful eyes. His black button up shirt had the first two buttons undone, and he had a pair of black skinny jeans on, his hair being the only contrast to his entirely black outfit. You wore a simple dress and flats, keeping close to him in the busy bar as to not have random people bump into you. He had his hand pressed to your lower back and he kept his eyes on the people around you both. You took a mouthful of your drink and looked up at Jeno, completely in awe of his handsome looks. He had his eyes trained on someone behind you and he didn’t seem to be tearing his eyes away from them. You didn’t want to turn around, just in case he was staring at another woman. You didn’t think you’d be able to handle that well if that was the case. It was your second date, a week from your first date, so you hoped that he at least had some affection towards you despite the fact the two of you hadn’t actually made your relationship official.

“So…” You racked your brain to quickly think of something you could say to him that would bring his attention back to you. “I…er…I had another driving lesson today, it went well!” You smiled up at him, but he still continued to stare over the top of your head, completely ignoring you. You felt dejected, letting out a soft sigh and looking down at your feet. You felt as though he wasn’t interest in you at all. You’d hardly gotten anything out of him the entire time you’d been stood beside him at the bar, and you felt as though a brick wall would be more interested in you. Out of the corner of your eye, you noticed that the hand he had set on the side of the bar curled into a fist, and his body visibly tensed up.

“Hey!” He snapped, causing you to flinch and look up at him with worry in your eyes, expecting that he was going to be looking at you, ready to have a go at you, you didn’t know why though, you didn’t think you’d done anything wrong. “Stop staring at my girlfriend.” He growled; his eyes still trained over the top of your head. Your eyes widened and you turned around, noticing a middle-aged man stood a few metres away from you with his eyes stuck on you. Your mouth dropped open as you realised Jeno had been staring out the creepy looking guy, being protective over you. Your heart flipped and you felt silly for having thought he was eyeing up another woman. A wave of heat rushed through you as you realised Jeno must have been interested in you to get so worked up over another man staring at you, also he referred to you as his girlfriend, which caught you off guard but made a flower of happiness blossom inside of you.

“What are you going to do about it?” The man smirked, clearly not caring that he was antagonising Jeno. Jeno’s face hardened more and he pulled you quickly so that you were behind him, not having any worry in approaching the man and getting close to him.

“Do you really want to find out?” He said lowly, his tone dripping in threat as both of his fists clenched up, his shoulders tensing too and becoming broader as he squared up to the man. The man smirked and stood up straighter, about the same height as Jeno and ready to fight him. You gasped, gently laying a hand on Jeno’s shoulder.

“Jeno come on, lets just go.” You spoke softly, feeling the muscle underneath your hand relax momentarily.

“She’s too good for you. She needs a man, not a boy.” The man laughed, glancing past Jeno to wink at you. Jeno shoved him so hard that he tripped over the bar stool behind him and fell on his ass. The man had a face of complete shock, clearly not having expected the ‘boy’ to be that strong and gutsy enough to actually put him on his ass.

“One more word and you won’t be feeling like a man for a long time.” Jeno snapped, standing over the man and giving him a look that could probably petrify someone. You knew Jeno was rough around the edges, but you never would have thought he could do something like that. It shocked you and you felt yourself taking a few steps back from him, not knowing him well enough to know what he was going to do next. After silence fell between them both, Jeno turned around, snatching your hand into his own and pulling you firmly out of the bar. You had to jog to keep up with his fast strides. He didn’t let go of your hand, and pulled you down the street, his shoulders still tense and his breathing heavy. The grip he had on your hand was starting to hurt more from how hard he was squeezing your hand, which was considerably smaller than his own.

“Jeno…you’re hurting me.” You said quietly, but he heard you. Stopping almost immediately he turned to look at you, letting go of your hand and gulping. He looked down once before looking back up, giving you direct eye contact that almost made you have a heart attack.

“I’m sorry…are you okay?” He looked worried, all of his pent-up anger washing away after hearing your fragile tone. You nodded, flexing your fingers out and rubbing your hand with your other hand.

“Are you okay?” You asked, concerned about him for how he acted in that situation.

“I’m fine. I’m sorry you had to see me like that…we need to talk.” His gave you a weak smile, almost like he was giving you pity, which made your stomach fall to the floor as you thought he was about to end things with you.

“O-oh…okay.” He got out his car keys and you followed him to his car. He unlocked it and motioned with his head for you to climb in. You both got in, but he made no effort in turning on the car, and instead put his keys in the cupholder before turning to him.

“I lied to you about my job. I don’t help out at the mechanic shop. I fight, illegally.” His words had your eyebrows raising in surprise, many of questions sitting on the tip of your tongue, but left unsaid as you had a feeling he was about to go into more detail anyway. “It’s called underground street fighting, and it’s not legal in the slightest. It’s dangerous, and I’ve been injured more times than I care to admit, and I’ve also inflicted life changing injuries on other men. I’ve seen people black out and never wake up again. It’s tough but…it’s really good money, and it’s a way that I can let go of all of my anger. I have a lot of anger problems, I won’t lie to you about it, it’s bad, and honestly I’m surprised that I managed to walk away from that asshole without punching him in the face.” He let out a very gently laugh that was humourless, his eyes searching your face for your reaction. You just nodded, biting you bottom lip as it occurred to you that you were dating a very dangerous man.

“Why?” You asked, causing his head to tilt in question.

“Why what?”

“Why are you so angry?” Your voice was quiet and soft but held no judgement towards him. You really liked him, and this was the furthest you’d ever gotten with a guy, so you didn’t want to throw it all away just because he was a little bit different from everyone else. He took a deep breath and looked away from you for a moment, before dragging his eyes back to look at you. It was dark in the car, the only light coming from the streetlight above his car, but you could still see the painful look in his eyes as he opened his mouth to speak to you.

“I grew up in a very poor family with a father who abused my mum and me. It caused my mum to have very bad depression, which had an effect on me. I let the abuse happen for too long, and then when I was 15 I got introduced into the street fighting. I finally felt like I had some power, and it earnt me a lot of money, which I’d never had before. Even though I was fighting out of the house, at home I was still being beaten, and one night when I as 17, my dad hit my mum so hard that the force of her hitting the wall left a dent in it.” He paused, squeezing his eyes shut as he remembered the memory. You reached out and took his hand in both of yours, showing him that you were listening and not judging him. “I saw red, I just remember pulling my dad away from her. I don’t remember much of what happened, because I was in a frenzy. But the next thing I remember is my mum trying to pull me off of my dad. He was underneath me on the floor and his face was…unrecognisable. There was so much blood…” He remembered how his hands were shaking and covered in blood, a mixture of his fathers’ blood and his own blood from how his fists had pummelled into his fathers’ face. His face was wet with tears and blood that had spurted from his life givers face, and he remembered how his own mother cowered away from him like he was the one who had been inflicting pain on her for the past 17 years of his life. “She called for an ambulance whilst I sat on the floor covered in blood. The police came as well, and I got arrested. I went to prison for a year because I was still a minor and they classed it as self-defence. My mother visited me once, and I don’t see her often because she says its hard for her to look at me after what I did. But she isn’t with my father anymore, so I can live with that.” You could tell from the tone of his voice that even though he said he could live with it, that it was hard for him to live with it. It suddenly occurred to you that he wasn’t different from other people. He was simply a broken person trying their best to live in a world where he’d been dealt shit cards from the start.

“Is your dad…?” You couldn’t bring yourself to finish your sentence, but he knew what you were asking.

“No. He’s alive. I don’t know where he is or what he’s doing. Hell I don’t even know if he looks the same as what he used to. I did a lot of damage to his face so…” He shrugged, his hand holding onto yours firmly. “After I came out of prison, I continued street fighting and moved in with my friends. They had all gotten a place together and left a room free for me when I got out. They’re my family now.”

“I’m glad you have people you can rely on; they sound like great people.” He laughed at your words.

“A teen dad, a drug dealer, and an illegal street racer. They’re great, but not morally.” He chuckled at your shocked expression, using his free hand to reach out and cup your cheek. “They’re harmless to people that don’t get on their bad side.” He stroked his thumb over your hot skin and smiled at you. He felt affection bloom in his stomach when he saw that you accepted him for who he was. It was different with his ex, she was used to the lifestyle he lived like, but he knew from your stories that you were raised in a respectable household and you’d never done anything bad in your entire life. You were complete polar opposites, and for the first time in months he could think about his ex-girlfriend and not feel a pull towards her like her had before. Instead he was being pulled towards you like a magnet. You were the positive side, and he was the negative side, and you fit together so perfectly.

“I hope they’ll like me.” You admitted, leaning your head into his touch to show you were enjoying it.

“They will.” He smiled, neglecting to tell you that one of his best friends was dating his ex-girlfriend, but he could only pile so much information on you at a time without overwhelming you.

“I actually have a small confession to make too.” You plucked up the courage despite the pang of anxiety you felt in your stomach.

“Oh god, you’re not a crazy axe murderer, are you?” He was clearly joking, his eye dropping into a wink as he pretending to be shocked.

“No!” You giggled, his hand dropping to your hands. “I’ve never dated anybody before, and I’ve never had a boyfriend…or had sex. I have been kissed though!” His smile never faltered and if anything, he felt even more drawn towards you, liking that you were pure for him. it drove him crazy to even think about another man having his hands on you. “So this is all new to me, and I’m super nervous but trying to play it cool so that you didn’t think I was strange or anything, and I really like you and I don’t care about your job and-” You were cut off by his lips pressing to your own, your eyes shutting as you melted into the kiss. It was short and sweet, but his lips did linger and place another peck to your lips.

“I guess I should do this properly then.” He smiled, kissing you once more and smiling into the kiss. “(Y/N), do you want to be my girlfriend?” He pulled away from you and stared into your eyes. You felt your cheeks almost burning up, the car feeling suddenly stuffy as you looked at him.

“Yes.” You nodded quickly, letting your eyes slowly shut as his hands cupped your face, drawing his lips to yours once more in a slower, more passionate kiss.

---

 Hey! Thank you for reading! Did you like it? What do you think so far? What do you think is going to happen? Let me know!

[kurokoros]

appetence (part 1) | bakugou katsuki

Rated: M

Words: 4.8K

Pairing: katsuki bakugou x fem!reader

Summary: Appetence: longing or desire. A mission to track down a villain leaves you and Bakugou in a rather… compromising situation. It’s going to be a long twenty-four hours.

AN: I have zero explanations for this one either. I just felt like writing a smutty fic with Bakugou and the reader locked in a building for twenty four hours. Queue the kinky smut. Let me know if you want to be added to the taglist for future chapters! I’ll try to update once a week, but it depends on how long the chapters get! I’m aiming for 4-5 chapters, but again, we’ll see!

Warnings: smut, language, aphrodisiacs, marathon!sex (future chapters)

XXX

As a Pro Hero, you’re no stranger to potentially hazardous situations. Tracking an A rank criminal isn’t exactly a new experience. In fact, most of these missions go exactly the same way. Mind-numbingly boring stakeouts that can last for hours until you can verify the presence of your target. A sixty second window between verifying the presence of said target and all hell breaking loose. And, of course, the part where all hell breaks loose because no one can understand the concept of a stealth mission. Stakeouts you can handle, for the most part. While boring, at least you aren’t actively being punched, stabbed, or shot at, so you consider it a minor win most of the time. The conversation is never great, but you can deal with that. And, really, you can’t complain about having a six feet wall of solid muscle to back you up.

But why the hell did you have to get stuck with Ground Zero?

You cast a glance at the other Pro out of the corner of your eye, your mouth twisting into a frown when you see his agitated expression. He looks halfway to blowing a gasket already, and you’ve hardly been here for an hour. At this rate, the two of you aren’t going to last until the target slips up.

It’s not that you dislike Bakugou. That’s not it at all. Frankly, you usually enjoy working with the brash, temperamental man. He’s a good Hero: smart, strong, capable. He always watches your back when you need him to—and you can’t deny that he’s some pretty great eye-candy, considering your situation. But he’s also incredibly impatient. And watching him pace around like a caged animal isn’t exactly helping your own irritation at being stuck in a cramped, ram-shackled building, in the rain, waiting to catch a glimpse of a villain that might not even be here.

It’s going to be a very long night.

“Would you sit down?” you snap at him, tearing your eyes from the compound you’re supposed to be staking out once again. He shoots you an irritated look, and you sigh, shifting in your seat. “Please? You’re making me claustrophobic.” It’s like he’s trying to make you antsy. Usually, stakeouts aren’t this bad, but something about the shitty location and the shitty weather--and the fact that he’s close enough for you to feel the heat rolling off him--have you a little on edge.

Something in Bakugou’s eyes shifts, his glare losing it’s bite, but then he snorts. Shuffling back to where you’re sitting near the small window of the hideout, he does as you ask, though he doesn’t look happy about it. Whatever. You’re just glad he doesn’t seem to be in an arguing mood right now. 

“This is fucking stupid,” he grumbles under his breath. You probably wouldn’t have heard him if there wasn’t exactly two inches of space between you. His shoulder brushes against yours as he crosses his arms, firm muscle flexing beneath his costume.

You ignore your little flicker of disappointment over the fact that he’s wearing his winter costume.

Figuring he’s complaining about the waiting, you say, “Regardless, we can’t just go charging in there, Ground Zero.” This time, you keep your gaze locked on the building Cobra is supposed to be in, watching for any signs of movement at all. Nothing. Either Cobra’s being especially careful--something he’s never been before--or you were given faulty Intel. “We don’t even know if Cobra is inside,” you remind your partner. “Dammit, if Omen sent us on a bust mission…” You trail off with a heavy sigh.

Bakugou follows your gaze to the building, regarding it carefully. It’s not particularly large or heavily fortified, but that’s the point. It’s the perfect place for a group of villains to hide and lay low for a while. His jaw clenches and he turns back to you. “What do we know about him?”

You sigh, shooting him another look. “Did you seriously not do any briefing at all?” You shake your head. “Why they put you on this mission instead of Deku is beyond me.” Before he can start bickering, you continue. “Cobra’s quirk allows him to secrete and manipulate toxic fluids created from his body. Gasses too, according to a few sources.”

It’s not too different from Bakugou’s quirk, if you think about it, but you’d take the explosive sweat over toxins rivaling that of a Box Jellyfish any day.

He scoffs. “That all?”

“Reportedly, these toxins can be corrosive enough to burn straight through human tissue and bone in a matter of minutes.” Bakugou doesn’t look the slightest bit impressed by the new information, and you fight the urge to roll your eyes. “If he manages a direct hit on either of us, we’ll have an hour tops to get help before the damage is irreversible. And we don’t have backup,” you remind him.

“Whatever,” he grumbles. Despite his blasé reaction, you’ve known him long enough to recognize the slight furrow of his brow. Clearly, he’s about as enthused as you are about dealing with Cobra. “Any idea how to take him down?”

Pursing your lips, you turn back to the building across the street, scanning the windows for any kind of movement as you contemplate your response. “We’ll have to be careful,” you tell him. He snorts at the obvious advice. “Cobra is fast, and we only have one shot at this. He tends to go underground for long periods of time after a spree like this week.” Two bank robberies and a successful museum heist. He’s getting bolder, smarter--running with a crew now. You need to take him out now or things are only going to continue to escalate. “If we time it right, we should be able to incapacitate him fairly easily if we stick together. He has a strong quirk, but he’s not much of a fighter.”

Bakugou hums in thought, his brows furrowing as he surveys the building as well. “Got a plan, babe?” he asks. There’s a fire in his eyes that wasn’t there just a moment ago, and you can tell he’s just itching for a fight. Clearly, you should have told him about the corrosive, flesh-dissolving poison earlier. 

Bakugou catches your gaze and smirks in a way that does dangerous things to your heart. And then--fuck--he actually licks his lips and a large part of your brain short-circuits for about half a second before you catch yourself. Shit, you need to confirm the target and get some sleep. Obviously, you aren’t thinking straight.

You swallow thickly, mouth a little dry. “Apparently, he’s a talker,” you say, opting not to comment on the pet-name. “If we time it right, I can keep him distracted long enough for you to blast his ass from behind.”

His expression goes from pleased to petulant in a second. “You wanna play bait?” he grinds out from between his teeth. The question comes out akin to a low growl, and you quirk a brow at his apprehension, bristling. A quip burns on your tongue, but any thought of snapping at him for doubting you disappears as soon as you glance at him. There’s a slight grimace on his face, like he’s uncomfortable with the thought of you playing distraction for an occasionally homicidal art thief with a quirk that can eat through flesh like paper. As soon as he realizes you’re watching him, Bakugou’s lips curl back in a sneering grin. “Sure you can handle that?”

“One of us has to,” you say, deciding to ignore whatever just happened. You can worry about that later. You glance at him again, grinning. “And I’m faster.” He still doesn’t look very reassured, so you try a different tactic. “Though, like I said, that’s only if he’s here.”

Of course, that’s when a small explosion goes off in the building across from you.

Bakugou swears under his breath, lunging to his feet. “That proof enough for ya, sweetheart?” he asks, straightening his gauntlets. He flexes his fingers before curling his hands into fists. His roguish grin is back.

“Dammit,” you hiss, scrambling up as well. The explosion might not be big, but it is noticeable. Criminals don’t draw attention to themselves like this unless they don’t plan on sticking around much longer. “Let’s go.”

You practically throw yourself out the window, Bakugou right on your heels as the two of you fall two stories to the ground. Hitting the ground, you roll to your feet. The impact jostles you, but it’s not the biggest fall you’ve had before, and Bakugou’s firm hand on your lower back urges you forward silently.

The two of you run silently across the street, smoke from the explosion offering you cover, so thick you almost can’t see. “Stay close and stick to the plan,” you call towards Bakugou, not waiting for a response as you dash towards the entrance on the side of the building, close to where the explosion came from. If you can cut Cobra off as he’s trying to run, you might be able to end this fight before it really starts. 

Things go wrong the moment you step into the building. 

The smoke is thick and noxious. The smell burns your nose and chokes your throat; your eyes water, stinging, your mask doing little to protect you. Something about it doesn’t feel right, and the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end, goosebumps prickling across your bare arms and legs. The smoke and the smell are disorienting, and you know immediately that you need to get rid of it, but neither of your quirks are practical for this. Bakugou’s would only spread it around. Shit, this isn’t good at all.

Movement to your left draws your attention. Your gaze snaps to the hazy outline of a person racing past you and disappearing around a corner. Bakugou. Swearing under your breath, you take off after him. Of course he would ignore the plan--as vague and half-assed as it was--and run headlong into things like this. You should have expected as much coming from Ground Zero. Hopefully you can catch him before he runs into Cobra.

Careful not to make a sound, you race after him, throwing yourself around the same corner he did. The hallway is empty already, but you can hear faint footsteps coming from the other end. The smoke isn’t as thick here either. You round the corner at the other end of the hallway in time to catch a fleeting glimpse of Bakugou turning another corner. Huffing, you give chase again, picking up the pace now that you can see again.

It’s like a game of cat and mouse. Each time you think you’ve caught up, he manages to stay just out of your reach, much to your frustration. You don’t know what the hell he’s playing at, but when you catch him you’re going to throttle him. Damn stubborn bastard.

You round another corner.

A hand lashes out, purple gas bubbling against a calloused palm.

The reflexes you’ve gained from being a Pro are the only thing that saves you from having your face melted away. “Shit,” you hiss, throwing yourself back against the nearest wall as the blast blows past you. Some of that purple gas brushes the tips of your hair, dangerously close to your nose, and you watch the strands dissolve in front of you.

“Ooh, you’re fast,” the man in front of you compliments. His grin is wide, revealing dangerously sharp canines. He stares at you from behind spiky hair, impressed. “Not many people are able to dodge a point blank hit like that.” His head cocks to one side, his expression smug. “The commission really sent in the pros this time, huh? I’m so flattered.” The toxin he secretes with his quirk liquefies and drips down his fingers. The ground smokes where the droplets land.

“Cobra,” you respond, voice even. Shit. It definitely wasn’t Bakugou earlier. Cobra must have noticed you were there, somehow, and used the smoke to get you separated. Fuck, you’re going to kill Omen later. Tensing, you keep your eyes on Cobra as the man takes a step towards you, relaxed despite his escape being compromised.

Maybe this is what he was waiting for.

You clench your jaw, back straightening as you edge away from the wall--you can’t let him pin you down.

His smile widens. “I see my reputation precedes me.” He looks particularly pleased with himself at your recognition, violet eyes darkening as he looks you over. His fingers flex, purple smoke billowing around his palms. He doesn’t strike at you though, not yet.

If you can keep him distracted for a little longer, maybe Bakugou will be able to find you. You can still make this work. You can fend him off for that long. “How did you know we were here?” you ask, wetting your lips.

If he finds the conversation suspicious, he certainly doesn’t act like it. “Just a hunch,” he tells you, shrugging. “Things were a little too quiet. I figured the commission had to be sending someone.” The corner of his mouth quirks upwards. “Didn’t think it would be you and Ground Zero though. They must be getting desperate, huh?” His drawling tone makes your jaw clench in irritation. When you take too long to respond, Cobra sighs, his mouth curving down in a disappointed sneer. “Well, as much as I’d love to stay and chat, I really don’t feel like going to jail today. So why don’t you make this easy for me and step aside?”

Your hand curls into a fist that doesn’t go unnoticed by the villain in front of you. Channeling your quirk into your feet, you prepare yourself for his next strike.

“No?” Any lingering friendliness disappears in an instant at your silent refusal. “All right, sweetheart, we’ll do things your way.” He throws his arm forward, poisonous gas hurtling towards you.

You’re already moving, springing from your spot as pale blue electricity crackles around you. The impact of your feet against the opposite wall sends a shock-wave through your legs, and you whirl around, keeping your eyes on your target. There’s a hole in the wall where you were just standing, and a jolt of fear strikes you between your ribs.

The next blast comes just as suddenly as the first, and you dive out of the way again. It sets up another game of cat and mouse, but this time you’re the one running, and there’s nowhere for you to hide. You don’t know the building like he does, and Cobra is proving to be nearly as fast as you are, throwing poison gas at you just as quickly as you can dodge it.

He doesn’t let you get close enough to strike at him, and you silently curse your quirk for being ill-suited for long range combat. You’d need to land a direct hit, and in these cramped hallways you can’t surprise him from behind.

Where the hell is Bakugou?

Poison nearly scorches your arm, and you hiss as it burns your skin despite not touching you directly. With your jaw clenched, you throw yourself against the wall to your right. In the split second before he can aim his quirk at you, you change your angle and lunge for him. Cobra’s eyes widen in surprise. Caught off guard, he doesn’t have the time to deflect the electrically charged fist aimed towards his head.

Cobra smirks.

Panic wells in your chest, and you pull your fist back just as Cobra dissolves in front of you. Your knuckles brush against the cloud of violet dust before it disappears. Fire races through your veins.

“Too slow,” a teasing voice calls from behind you. You whirl around on your heel, prepared to strike again, but Cobra is faster. As soon as you catch a glimpse of him, his hand lashes out. Coral colored dust explodes in front of your face, blinding you. The powder sticks to your skin and chokes you, rushing down your nose and throat until you feel like you can’t breathe.

It knocks the breath out of you, throwing off your balance, and suddenly you’re falling to your knees and coughing. Panic swells in your chest, but you’re quick to shove it down. It’ll only make the poison spread faster. You can already feel it burning through your veins, an uncomfortable heat tingling from your fingertips to your abdomen. 

As if he can hear your thoughts, Cobra smirks, all teeth. “Don’t worry, sweetheart, it’s not poison,” he coos, crouching down in front of you. “I couldn’t do that to a face this pretty.” He grasps your chin between his fingers, tilting your head so that you’re forced to look at him. The desire to lash out rushes through you, but your limbs are heavy and you still can’t breathe. Cobra wets his lips. “Though, you might wish I did.”

A hiss escapes through your teeth as you double over, the heat intensifying. “What the hell did you--” You cut off abruptly, crying out as a full-body shiver wracks your frame.

“Such a strong reaction already,” he muses, squeezing your chin a little tighter. “You’d be a fun one to play with. Damn shame I can’t stay to watch the results.” There must be a puzzled expression on your face, because Cobra leans in a little closer, lips hovering an inch away from yours. “I’ll let you in on a little secret, sweetheart. I like to mix a little pleasure with my pain.”

It clicks. “An aphrodisiac,” you gasp. 

He taps your cheek with one finger, and the feather-like touch makes your breath hitch. “Smart girl. Poison works fast, but sometimes it’s fun to watch people squirm a little--until they’re just begging to get fucked.” Cobra’s head cocks to the side. “Bet you can feel it now, right? Heard it’s a bit like liquid fire. And let me tell ya, that itch isn’t just gonna go away by itself.” He chuckles. “I’d give you a hand, but I don’t think your partner would like that very much.”

Cobra releases your chin and lunges to his feet, swinging his arm just in time to send a fistful of that pink powder directly into Bakugou’s face.

“Ground Zero!” you cry out, voice shrill.

A small explosion bursts in front of Bakugou, dissipating most of Cobra’s quirk before it can hit him. He winces as the dust burns his throat.

“Perfect timing,” Cobra murmurs, throwing himself backwards as Bakugou drives his fist into the ground in front of you. 

The floor explodes. You throw your arms up to cover your face, and when you lower them again, Bakugou is standing in front of you, one arm thrown out defensively as he glares at Cobra, sneering. His shoulders are tense beneath his jacket, and in your dazed state you can’t help but appreciate how broad they are.

“Stay the fuck away from her!” Bakugou growls, his fingers sparking. You can feel the tension rolling from him, the hallway sweltering with the heat from his quirk and the drug burning through your veins.

Cobra glances between the two of you, a slow smirk overtaking him. “As you wish,” he says, taking a step back. “You two have fun.” And then he turns around and runs.

Instead of giving chase, Bakugou whirls around and drops to his knees in front of you. His gloved hands cradle your jaw carefully, and you whimper as he touches you. Heat bursts across your skin. Fuck, he needs to stop touching you. “Ground Zero,” you gasp, “you have to--”

“Shut up,” he snaps at you, tilting your chin to the side. His ruby eyes look over you carefully. “That bastard hurt you?” he demands, jaw clenched. The pad of his thumb brushes against your bottom lip.

“I’m fine,” you hiss through your teeth. “He said it wasn’t poison.” Fuck, fuck, fuck. He’s so close that you can smell the caramel scent of his quirk. It curls around you, making you press your thighs together tightly. You shiver as he moves your head to the side again, and you bite the inside of your cheek to stop another soft noise from slipping from your mouth.

Bakugou’s eyes narrow. “And you think he was telling the truth?”

You swallow the lump in your throat. “Yes. Now you need to go after him, I’ll be fine.”

He continues to stare at you, then makes a displeased sound in the back of his throat. “You better be right fucking here when I get back,” he snaps, lurching to his feet and taking off after Cobra.

XXX

Outside of the building, a hooded figure glances up as Cobra comes strolling out of the building, his arms crossed behind his head lazily. “You took too long, Cobra,” he says, voice eerily blank. Blue eyes narrow behind his hood, glowing in the darkness. 

“What can I say?” Cobra grins, winking at his partner. “Good things take time, Diamondback.”

Diamondback's gaze slides to the building curiously. “Did you finish them off?”

Cobra’s smile widens. “Not quite,” he says, waving off the other man’s concern, “but they won’t be following us anytime soon.” 

“You sure about that, bastard?” someone snarls behind them. 

Both men look up, Cobra glancing over his shoulder to see Ground Zero racing towards them, small explosions lighting up the darkness. Cobra’s expression sours, his smile waning. “Seal the exits,” he demands. 

Diamondback is quick to comply. Clear fluid springs from his hands and snakes across the ground to the open doorway. The substance covers the door and hardens just before Ground Zero can reach it, and the Hero slams into the shield feet first. Bakugou grunts at the impact, the glass like structure holding firm beneath his weight. His eyes narrow on the men on the other side, a feral grin spreading across his face as his feet slide back to the floor. “Think that’ll stop me?” he taunts, pressing his palm to the clear wall between them. An explosion rips from his palm, bright light and smoke clouding the room.

When the smoke clears, Bakugou’s eyes widen. 

There isn’t a scratch on the shield.

“Nice try,” Cobra commends him. “Unfortunately, even your power won’t be enough to get you out of there. Diamondback’s shield is stronger than any other substance on this planet.” He steps towards the building and raps his knuckles against the glassy surface. “And I wouldn’t try blasting your way through the walls either. Enhanced, quirk resistant steel walls, and such. All you’re going to do is make that pretty friend of yours inhale more smoke.” When Bakugou bares his teeth, Cobra laughs. “Really, you should be thanking me,” he tells the Hero. “Enjoy the next twenty four hours!” Still laughing, he walks backward, offering Bakugou a salute as Diamondback starts to follow.

Bakugou throws his fist against the surface. “Dammit!”

XXX

Honestly, you didn’t think tonight could get much worse, but seeing Bakugou stomp back into the hallway with Cobra nowhere in sight proved you very wrong.

“Shit,” you groan, head lolling back against the wall as Bakugou inspects your injured knuckles. They don’t hurt much anymore, just sting in a slow, irritating way, but he insisted on looking them over as he explained what happened with Cobra. “Diamondback wasn’t supposed to be here. We aren’t going to be able to bust through.”

Bakugou’s eyes rise to meet yours. “So what the fuck are we supposed to do?”

“Well, the good news is that Diamondback’s shields can only maintain their solidified form for a maximum of twenty four hours. After that, they’ll return to a liquid state and disappear.” He nods in understanding, finally releasing you in favor of helping you to your feet. His hand is hot against your waist, and you swallow down a pleased sound as his touch lingers. Cobra must not have gotten a good shot on him. Or maybe the aphrodisiac isn’t as strong because he’s so much bigger than you are. You quiver at the thought. “Until then, I guess we just… make ourselves at home.” You shrug, glancing around the empty hallway. “They were camped out here for a while, so there should be some place to sleep.”

Sleep would be good. The heat that consumed you before has only spread in the short time Bakugou was gone, and with him so close the feeling has only doubled in intensity. It spreads like water beneath your suit, which suddenly feels almost too tight.

Bakugou nods, but doesn’t say anything as he helps you back to the main room where you came in. The silence would be comfortable, if you couldn’t feel the way your face flushes, your nipples stiff beneath your bra and suit. Each step makes you wince as the fabric scraps across your skin.

“You good?” he asks as you drop down on the couch situated in the main room. A quick glance around the room tells you that your suspicions were correct. There is indeed a bedroom. Singular. Fuck, Cobra was right, you definitely would have preferred flesh melting poison over the steady pulse of heat growing between your legs.

There’s no way you’re going to be able to sleep in the same bed as Bakugou tonight--not without doing something you might regret. Already, the urge to reach down and touch yourself is almost unbearable, and it’s hardly been more than twenty minutes since Cobra hit you with his quirk. You can’t imagine that having Bakugou’s tall, muscular frame pressed up against your back would do you any good. Especially when it would be so easy for him to pin you down and rip off your--

“I’m fine,” you lie, struggling to keep your breathing even. If you sound breathier than usual, he doesn’t notice. “You should get some rest. Aren’t you usually asleep by now?” you try teasing him, grinning. Your thighs rub together subtly, arousal pooling low in your belly as you reach into the secret pocket in your thigh-high boots.

He doesn’t take the bait. “What about you?” he asks, crossing his arms skeptically. His eyes rake down your body slowly, and you feel it like a physical touch.

Your mouth is painfully dry.. “I’m going to stay out here for a while,” you tell him, holding up your phone with a hand that trembles just the slightest. “Someone has to report back to Deku and Red Riot and let them know that Cobra got away. And that Diamondback is with him.” You can see the argument in his eyes before he even opens his mouth, and you hurry to continue. “I can’t sleep in strange places anyway.” You really fucking hope your smile is reassuring and not something closer to a needy wince.

Bakugou stares for a little longer before shrugging. “Your loss,” he says, tossing off his gauntlets and gloves. They land on the other end of the couch. Your fingers dig into your palms as you look at them. “See ya in the mornin’, sweetheart.” Your head snaps up just in time for you to see him strip off his shirt and toss it onto the couch as well. The dark fabric peels from his sweat-slicked skin, and your pussy clenches as you get an eyeful of lean muscle and a soft trail of blond hair that disappears beneath his low slung pants. “Fuck, it’s hot in here,” he grumbles, shaking his head as he strolls toward the bedroom.

The door shuts behind him with a loud click.

Phone forgotten on the table, you aren’t sure how long you sit there in silence before your hand moves down between your thighs without your permission, pressing against the seam of your suit. The fabric is thin, and you have to swallow down a moan as your fingers brush over your clit. The light touch has your legs quivering, and your free hand clamps over your mouth. Fuck, you shouldn’t do this.

Your eyes close, exhaling slowly, and tip your head back against the couch cushions. This is enough. You’re definitely not going to start thinking about the man in the bedroom less than a dozen feet away from you. You will not slip the crotch of your suit to the side, letting your fingers drag through the slick already dripping from your slit.

A shudder rips through you as your hips buck against your hand, two of your fingers slipping inside of you easily.

Cobra’s voice echoes in your head. That itch isn’t just gonna go away by itself.

Fuck, it’s going to be a long twenty-four hours.

[babiemingoo]

lollipop boy || jeon wonwoo

summary: greaser!wonwoo is only kind of your friend when he comes up with a stupid (but brilliant) plan to piss off your ex boyfriend and test just what person you claim to have become

genre: greaser!wonwoo, suggestive? || wc: 2.6k

a/n: this is actually a snippet of my next series I have planned, so I hope everyone enjoys reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

This was awkward.

As you sat there, thumbs twiddling mindlessly in an attempt of a distraction from the tension, you couldn’t escape how awkward of a situation you were in. When your friend Sien had texted that she was running late but someone should already be there waiting, you had hoped with every cell of your being that the someone wasn’t Wonwoo. But when you opened the front door of the diner nestled in the middle of your hometown, the only member of your newfound “friend group” that had arrived on time was, of course, Wonwoo. 

The diner was classic, with a neon sign hanging above the milkshake bar and a worn down jukebox near the corner window looking like it had survived every teenager in your town since the 1940s. The color scheme of red, white and gray made the boy wrapped in a shiny black leather jacket look even more so out of place than he already was. He never seemed to care, though, always sat in the exact same spot on a Wednesday afternoon, flipping through his auto vehicle magazine with a lollipop between his lips while his friends bustled about excitedly. Except, his friends were late, and now it was just the two of you together despite the fact that you had spoken more less 20 words to him since you met.

If silently sitting across the said boy wasn’t awkward enough, the diner was pretty dead for a Wednesday when most people your age tended to trickle in - except for, with your luck, your ex boyfriend. Him and your old friend group were huddled about in the opposite end of the diner, next to the jukebox that you knew they liked to hang around to play their favorite 70s songs while they loitered. None of them seemed to have noticed your arrival apart from the boy that you used to spend every Wednesday holding hands with. Now you two side glance at each other, looking away in the split millisecond when your eyes meet and pretend like it didn’t happen. You repeat the action probably five times before a deep voice pulls you out of the routine, “So much for hating his guts, huh?”

Wonwoo’s still skimming his eyes through the words printed next to a picture of a motorcycle in the magazine, but you know he was the one that had just spoken to you. “What are you talking about?” You question him, feigning ignorance. His deep chuckle cuts through the air as you observe the candy he has wrapped in his fingers, just an inch away from his mouth so he’s able to voice out his thoughts. One thing you had noticed about Wonwoo was that he always had a lollipop with him. Sometimes it was green, or purple, or even blue; but today it was his classic red shade. His usual soda was always red, all the candy he bought at the liquor store was red, and the chapstick that he would pull out every now and then was that of the same color and flavor; the one you have realized to be his favorite. Cherry.

“You tell everyone how much you hate him for what he did to you, but you keep making love eyes at him,” The boy across from you states in a tone that you’re sure is dripping with arrogance. “Not surprised though. I told Sien that you would run back to rich boy the first chance you got.”

You scoff at the audacity he had. The two of you may have been in the same friend group, and you’ve come to have a soft spot for a few of them - like Sien and Jun - but Wonwoo speaks as if he has a right to judge you or any of your past. Wonwoo was the only one out of the group of greasers that you felt hadn’t really taken to you and you’re certain it’s because of your old friends and boyfriend that he hated so much. Every part of you itched to prove him wrong about every assumption he had made about your life. “I’m not going to run back to him!” You say to him with determination, in a low voice. 

For the first time since you’ve met him, Wonwoo closes the magazine. He quickly folds the corner of the page he was on to not lose his spot, shuts it, and pulls the lollipop out of his mouth again before saying, “Everytime we meet up at a spot and he’s around, you both make puppy eyes at each other like you’ll run into each other’s arms in a flower field and sing love songs. Even I can’t ignore it and I make it a point to half ignore everyone. Just admit you want to make your boy toy miss you, get your job done and go back to your perfect little life. Don’t drag my friends into this.” The way his voice comes out is laced with venom and you feel it. You always had a hunch that Wonwoo held dislike for you rather than indifference, but this is the first you’re hearing of his theory that you’re just using your new friend group to prove something to your ex. 

“I’m sorry if the guy I was with for three years and had to break up with a few weeks ago still holds a little part of my heart,” You retort with sass. “But I’m not going to go back to him. What he did was so completely fucked up and even if I’ve been with him for that long I have more self worth, I know that I deserve more-”

Ding.

It was a bad habit of yours to leave your ringer on. A habit that had got you written up in class more times than you can count, one that got you caught during friend gatherings when you and Seungkwan were trying to sneakily talk behind the other boys’ backs. And now, it was a habit that had you caught up with Wonwoo. The brightness of your phone screen was almost mocking in the way that it illuminated the notification you had just gotten from your ex boyfriend standing across the room, letters sewed together in a text that said, ‘hey can we talk?’

You catch the text message in the corner of your eye and Wonwoo does, too. He laughs; a deep chuckle of satisfaction that matches his tone when he says, “Preppy boy is calling. Shouldn’t you go kiss and make up?”

It’s silent for a beat. Wonwoo is infuriating in the way that he’s never gone easy on you, even the first day you had met, Sien bringing you to their table with tears streaming down your face and his first sentence to you had been a tease. He’s infuriating in the way now that he’s fully expecting you to turn around and head in your ex’s direction to talk. He’s infuriating in the way that you consider actually doing it.

“Well?” He questions, head nodding towards the man who used to occupy all your time and all your thoughts. Instinctively you turn around and make eye contact with him for the sixth time that day and his eyes are pleading, waiting. Waiting. Just like you had been sitting, waiting for him all those days and weeks while he had been running around, betraying you, lying to you- 

“Aren’t you going to go talk to your lover boy?”

“No.”

The answer leaves your lips before he can even finish his question. Truthfully you were hoping Wonwoo would look impressed, or a little surprised in the least. He doesn’t. All he offers you is a smug grin as his tongue peaks out of lips, lapping at the red lollipop a few times before he speaks, “Bullshit.”

You want to counter his cockiness but he beats you to it, adding, “Don’t string it on, sweetheart. The others will get here and then you’ll have to explain just how weak you are for your ex in front of all of them. I won’t say anything to them; you can do that yourself later. Just go back to your preppies where you’d rather be.”

Sweetheart? Weak? Where you’d rather be? Gosh, the nerve Wonwoo always had with you. You roll your eyes before crossing your arms at him, vision narrowing, “I’m not going to talk to him. I don’t want to talk to him. He fucked me over and now we’re done.”

“Really?” He questions with his eyebrows raised, but you know he’s mocking you. The boy wants to test you because he still thinks he knows you and that all his assumptions of you are right.

You want to prove him wrong. “Yup! I hate him and I don’t want anything to do with him. If I could make him see that him and I are completely done, I would.” The tone of your voice made every word come out with conviction. You wanted to make it a point that you think - no - you knew that you were done with your ex. Whatever the two of you had was completely finished after how he had mistreated you and your heart, and you needed to show that to Wonwoo. You need to show that to yourself. You wanted to prove him and everyone else who doubted you, wrong.

Ding.

Another notification. Another text message. Another attempt of your ex trying to crawl back into your life, your heart, the letters on your phone screen now fitting together to create your name in question. From the corner of your eye you can see his gaze; no longer pleading but begging. He wants to talk. The deepest, darkest depths of your heart will you to get up and listen. Your brain says to stay put. Another chuckle from Wonwoo.

“You sure you’re done with him?”

With gritted teeth, you harshly grab your phone and flip it upside down so the screen can’t mock you anymore. “I’m sure.”

Wonwoo finally looks just the slightest impressed by your reaction. But not convinced - not at all. Strangely, he gets up, says nothing as he walks around the table and sits next to you before facing you with a glint in his eye. His lollipop is wrapped around his mouth until he pulls it out again to say, “Prove it.”

This day is a bunch of firsts. The first time you’ve had a conversation with Wonwoo (albeit a negative one, but still), the first time you’ve gotten heated since you found out what your ex had done, and the first time you’ve ever seen Wonwoo so up close. Your eyes follow the creases of his lips, across his laugh lines which are - surprisingly - fairly prominent, past his nose and cheekbones and to his eyes, small but fierce and shaped in a way that has you wondering if you would’ve enjoyed looking at them under different circumstances. You try not to get yourself too caught up in the intricacies of his features and distract yourself by countering, “Prove what?”

“Put your money where your mouth is. You said that if you were able to make him see that you two were done, you’d do it. You said you don’t want to go back to him, then prove it.” The leather of his jacket squeaks a little when he shrugs.

“Wha- How am I supposed to-”

“Kiss me,” His tone is so casual in the way he says it, like every other word that he’s ever targeted at you hasn’t been spoken with condescending undertones and haughty implications. You want to keep your sassy facade but you begin to gape at him like a fish out of water, gasping for some sort of clarity on the situation. There is no way he could be seriously asking this of you when the two of you had barely established a frenemies relationship. In fact, it was more of the enemies than it is friends.

He smirks at the way you’re caught off guard (because he’s a little shit) and repeats himself while scooting closer, “You don’t have to, but as a guy I’ll tell you - if I saw the girl who used to be my everything kissing another guy after I had texted her asking to talk to her? I think I’d get the hint.”

You can’t help the way the cogs in your head turn together to make sense of what he says, even if it’s a bit out of left field. Technically, you did say that you would show your ex he no longer had a chance with you, if you were able to do so. You wonder if doing such a thing like kissing Wonwoo would give the boy across the room a big old fuck you like he deserved. Your gaze travels to the said boy, who’s eyes have changed to hold something of confusion and wonder. Was he confused at why Wonwoo had come to sit next to you? In an attempt to support or debunk your hypothesis, you scoot closer to Wonwoo, your hand finding it’s way against his jean clad knee where the frayed rips let you two meet skin to skin. 

The emotions behind your ex’s eyes shift. They’re shocked now; angry. Hurt. Those were the same feelings you felt all those weeks ago when the world came crashing down at your shoulders and your relationship went with it.

You take your attention and put it back on Wonwoo, who’s breath you can feel against your face with how impossibly close you two have gotten. He’s smirking again. Similar to moments ago when your eyes scanned over his face, his gaze begins to do the same to you; memorizing the dip of your cupid’s bow and the tip of your nose. 

The boy lets out a breath when his eyes find their way up, meeting yours. Hand on your waist. Head tilting, “Kiss me,” He repeats.

You lean forward. Your lips touch. He might have just meant a peck, just to get your ex riled up. But the way your lips fit together implied so, so much more than a peck. They move together, slotting against each other in a way that would’ve convinced anyone in the room that you two have been captivated by each other with adoration and nothing but. The thought of how mad your ex probably is begins to get buried in the back of your mind when you start to focus on him, Wonwoo, and the way that he feels. The way his right hand pulls you just the slightest bit closer even if there’s no more room. The way his left hand reaches behind your neck to cradle you in place like he wants the two of you to keep kissing for hours.

All thoughts of everything else that had been going on in your life begins to dissipate in your head as you get caught up in him. In this moment you only think one thing: Wonwoo. Wonwoo Wonwoo Wonwoo. Wonwoo in his leather jacket, Wonwoo on his motorcycle, Wonwoo holding his magazine, Wonwoo looking at you, Wonwoo holding you- It’s funny, because earlier today you were dreading Wonwoo. Now it seems like your subconscious craves him, head leaning forward as if he was going anywhere. You want to remember this; even if the future version of yourself is going to pretend like you didn’t enjoy it. So your tunnel vision goes completely there to his lips, his kiss. You make sure to note the way he tastes just so you can brand him and this kiss with it for the rest of your life. You’ll make sure to associate this taste with him forever so that every time you have another lick of it you’re reminded of this day that Jeon Wonwoo stole your breath straight out of your mouth. You memorize what your taste buds feel when you kiss him. Cherry.

[imagine-that-haikyuu]

Reaction to Cutting Your Hair Short

These are the first Haikyuu!! fics I ever wrote (barring one Asahi fic) that I used to practice characterization and I figured it would be time to share them! They’ve been waiting almost four long years for the world to see them.

Inspired by the fact that I need a haircut.

Suga’s is inspired by something that actually happened to me when I was 17. That was embarrassing.

- Admin Rachel Lauren

Ko-fi

~*~

Kageyama

Kageyama never once considered you an impulsive person. He could tell from the first day he met you that everything in your life was pretty much planned to the minute: the fact that you were constantly scribbling reminders into your weekly planner was his first hint at this. It wasn’t until he had actually mustered up the courage to confess to you and that you insisted that he take you to the movies at exactly noon—heavy emphasis on “exactly”—the following Sunday that he realized just how meticulous you actually are.

“And I won’t forgive you if you’re even the slightest bit late!” you chimed with a sweet smile at the time. If he hadn’t been so over the moon about you accepting his confession, he would have been concerned. So your dates became a regular weekly thing—Sundays at exactly noon—that he couldn’t afford to be late to. 

Today, he’s sure to arrive early to the café, fifteen minutes ahead of time just in case. It’s bothersome, but there’s something about beating you there that felt reminiscent of his constant competition with Hinata over who could get to morning practice earlier. The fact that he won this time was enough for him to get over it.

“Ah, there you are.” 

Kageyama raises his gaze up from the menu he’d been staring at for the past few minutes. Blues eyes widening at the sight before him, he drops the plastic-covered pages onto the table.

Your once-long hair is gone. Completely chopped off into a bob stopping at your chin. He had just seen you yesterday and at that time, your hair was much longer. As you take your seat across from him, he stutters nonsense syllables. 

“Mmm, I’ll take it as a good sign,” you say while picking up the menu before you and glancing it over.

Finally, he’s able to form a coherent sentence. Leaning a little closer to you, he asks, “W-when did this happen?” 

You pick at a hair on your cardigan, a leftover clipping from the salon that the hairdresser was unable to wipe off of you. “Just before I came here.”

Normally, you would let him know of these kinds of things, but you hadn’t said a word about it. Or maybe you had and he hadn’t been paying attention. He knew that if you had, you would definitely scold him for not listening to you, but he couldn’t help but ask about it.

“W-were you always going to get it cut this short?” 

You shook your head, your hair shaking along with it, and gave a casual shrug. “I just decided to do it when I woke up this morning.” You stare off into the distance in thought. “I don’t know. Maybe I was just tired of how long it would take to style it.”

This is definitely an unusual sight for Kageyama, seeing you so unsure of yourself. Something in the pit of his stomach feels heavy. This uneasiness makes it hard to look at you, and his eyes keep glancing down at the table, then at the floor, and back.

“Kageyama-kun, do you not like it?” 

He raises his head again to finally meet you eye-to-eye. The slightly dejected look on your face only makes him feel worse about the whole thing. Now that he was finally getting a good look at you, it was easy to see that the length actually suited you and framed your face nicely. There was an air of maturity about you as well. If he hadn’t known better, he would have assumed you were one of his senpai.

“No, it looks…” He struggles to find the right word, pouting slightly at his own inhibition. “Nice” was too simple. “Fine” didn’t feel right either.  “…cute. It looks…cute.”

There’s a shaky sigh of relief from you. That dejected look on your face relaxes, and your lips curve upwards into a wide grin. Whatever uncertainty he had about you before seems to fade instantly away.

~*~

Suga

Tears brim at the corner of your eyes, as they had been on occasion for the past few days. It was so stupid and childish: getting lice of all things! When your head started itching after coming home from vacation and your mother checked through your hair and found the pests, you groaned. The thought of whatever child had been in your seat on the flight before yours could make your blood boil if you were a meaner person. What’s worse is that this wouldn’t be your first time having to take care of this matter. 

You had first dealt with lice as a child. Your hair had been long then too, so your mother did every remedy in the book for a solid three days on end until your head was free of the suckers. She spent hours with you bent over the bathtub using lice shampoo on your scalp, your knees and neck sore from the harsh tiling and awkward positioning. The memory of seeing the little, dead bugs wash out of your hair gave you nightmares for a week after that. You smelled of vinegar for longer than you would have liked in your attempts to suffocate them by soaking your locks in it while a towel held them in place. And of course, there was the dreaded nit comb. There were too many tears from you as your mother pulled that comb through your hair for an entire afternoon, your scalp raw from all the tugging and washing.

So now, at seventeen-years-old, you knew better than to go through that living hell another time. You would have to use the shampoo and the nit comb again no matter what, but at least not with hair that long. You could easily remedy the problem within a day by chopping it all off.

Except it had taken you so long to grow it out from the last time you cut it short, and it looked so pretty to boot. And perhaps, more importantly to you, your boyfriend loved your hair. He would constantly compliment it, and you would be lying if you said you weren’t nervous about how he would like the possibility of a new ‘do for you.

“Koushi, I’m so embarrassed,” you say with a sniffle over the phone. Your room reeks thanks to the vinegar-soaked towel around your head. “I could honestly drop dead.”

“These things happen. It’s okay.” Suga’s voice was as sweet as it ever was, but it was anything but reassuring at the moment. “Would you like me to come over now and help you shampoo? I know your mom’s the expert at this point, but I have a distinct feeling that you need to see another familiar face.”

You bite your lip in frustration. You’re dying to spend time with Suga after having not seen him since you’d been home, but the idea of him seeing your now-short hair was doing nothing to ease your woes. “Don’t. I’d feel awful if I gave them to you.”

He let out a quiet laugh. “You say that as if my hair isn’t short and easy to manage. You can’t hide from me forever! I’ll be over in a little while.”

Suga lives a few streets over, so it doesn’t take him long to arrive. Your mother answers the door, and you groan at the sound of his footsteps from the stairwell. You don’t move from your spot on the floor of your room when he walks in. Your eyes are downcast. Not even his presence can stir your attention away from the carpet. He’s about to say something, but the timer on your phone starts blaring: it’s time to wash out the vinegar. Without a word, you unwrap the towel and let your soaked hair flop down into place.

Lips trembling, the tears finally start coming out in giant droplets. You place your hands over your face without hesitation. “It looks so bad. I know,” you sob. “I had no choice.”

He huffs. “It’s not fair, ____. You can’t cry like that when I can’t pull you into a hug to make it better, especially when you look so pretty.”

You pull your hands away from your face, tears still falling, streaking your cheeks. Suga’s seated cross-legged in front of you, chin placed in his hands. His smile is as wide and refreshing as ever. You let out a squeaky, “Really?” in between your shallow breaths.

“You know I always think you look pretty, but shorter hair really suits you. You look like a new person.” He sits up straight, and pinches his nose with a wink, his lovely voice now nasal. “But you smell awful, and that I can’t forgive. Let’s go wash it out.”

Still sniffling but tears stopping, your lips curve into a smile. Suga holds out a hand for you, and you take it, giving it an affirmative squeeze. He raises your hand to his lips and gives it a gentle peck, eliciting a sigh of relief from you.

“Thank you, Koushi.”

~*~

Oikawa

A few days have passed since you’d last seen your boyfriend. A volleyball tournament over the long weekend for him and a visit to the grandparent’s house for you had kept the two of you apart. It’s hardly unusual that you don’t see him on the weekends anyway, given that it’s the height of volleyball season and he more than often overworks himself practicing. However, something about this weekend feels...off. 

Perhaps, it’s the shortage of texts and calls on his end that bothered you. You’d be lying if you said you weren’t worried even before this particular weekend: something in the way he talked to you at school and the general air about him when he walked you home felt distant. Hesitantly, you had asked Iwaizumi if something had happened, but he couldn’t tell you what was bothering Oikawa, just that he had noticed the tension between the two of you as well.

When you had passed the hair salon while out shopping for your grandmother when you arrived in her town on Friday evening, an idea popped into your head. It was pretty impulsive, but you had been debating about cutting your hair short for a few weeks now. If it was going to happen, now was the time. Except that it had only taken you two days to get used to it, so you forgot rather quickly that it was a thing you had done without his knowing.

So when you open the door for Oikawa on Monday morning when he comes to pick you up for your walk to school, and see his signature smile swiftly fade into a look of confusion, you panic.

“What is it?” you ask, slightly wide-eyed. You pat your face to feel for any food crumbs that you might have forgotten to wipe off after breakfast.

“Your hair.”

You blink. “Right.” You bring your hands up in a slight shrug and chime, “Surprise.”

He takes a step towards you, face a little less confused and a little more shocked now. His eyes take in your styled tresses, fingers reaching out to touch them and barely brushing your chin in the process, but pulling back before he actually does. It was almost as if he needed the reassurance that this was all very real. Your heart beat furiously in your chest as he did this; you honestly had no idea how to gauge this reaction from him and it was making you uneasy. Oikawa was generally very quick to compliment on your appearance, so this distinct lack of commentary is worrying.

Your eyes downcast as he stands before you, you exhale deeply. There’s no turning back now; it’s not like you can just glue your locks back together.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done this,” you apologize, eyes fixed firmly on the floor. “You’ve been kind of distant lately, so I thought that maybe I was boring you. I know I did it on sort of a whim, but I thought that maybe a little change in appearance would help.”

His long arms quickly wrap around you, pulling you into a tight hug. Your own arms twitch at the sudden gesture, but you relax in his embrace and place your hands on his back, nuzzling your head into his chest.

“I thought you were the one who was bored with me!” he says with a bit of a whine. You pull away from the hug, and give him a look of concern.

“What do you mean?”

He flashes you one of his celebrity-status smiles, but there’s something pained behind it. “Well, it’s no secret that I’ve been dumped before because of volleyball. In fact, I was really surprised that you hadn’t done so already...” His smile fades into pout and he looks over at the wall. “It certainly didn’t help that Iwa-chan kept saying you’d dump me for someone who’d pay more attention to you.”

You blink, mouth in the shape of a small “o.” It subsided into a grin as you giggled, “Oh, we’re both pretty silly, aren’t we?” 

He hums and let out a “Yep!” before giving you a peck on the cheek and taking your hand. “We should hurry or we’ll be late. Besides, I can’t wait to see how jealous Iwa-chan will look when he sees that my girlfriend’s gotten even cuter.”

~*~

Kenma

Game Over.

Kenma’s face contorts as he stares at the dark screen of his handheld console, white lettering taunting him. He read online that this particular level was notoriously tough, and he’d been stuck on it for the past few days. 

Unlike last time he was bested in one of his video games, and Kuroo was there to point out how to beat the enemy, there was no giveaway about how to approach this boss battle. It was just this particular video game’s unusually high enemy curve that made it difficult.

He looks up from the bench before deciding whether or not to take a break from the game. He turns around and looks inside the salon’s storefront windows. You had just been seated in one of the chairs, the stylist wrapping the cape around your neck while your lips move. You place your hands against your hair, palms down, to indicate how much you wanted her to cut. It would still be a while before you were done. Kenma returned his attention to the console and hit “Try Again”.

The only reason he’s outside is because the salon is swamped today. There was only one seat in the waiting area, and it made sense for you to take it while you waited for your appointment. Even if there had been another seat available for him, he wasn’t sure he would have felt comfortable in the midst of all those people. The brash whirring of the hairdryers and the loud chit chat between stylists and customers would have distracted him from his game anyway. 

He also still wasn’t entirely sure why you had asked him to tag along. This was the kind of thing you would do on your own, and then do something together with him after you were done. It wasn’t that much of a bother because, either way, he would have played his game the whole time while he waited for you whether he was at home or anywhere else.

Kenma’s approach to the boss battle is definitely more careful the next few times he attempts it. The enemy’s health bar comes dangerously close to total depletion; his heart races faster because, finally, he would be able to move on in the game. Just as he goes to use a finishing combo, the enemy strikes his character with its most powerful blow, wiping out the little HP he had left. 

The screen fades to the black “Game Over” screen again. Kenma throws his head back with an exasperated sigh while the bell on the salon door jingles.

“All done.”

He directs his attention towards you. If he hadn’t recognized your voice, he wouldn’t have recognized you. The sight of you with short hair, almost similar in length to his, is a vision he would have to get used to. He had only known you with long hair. He blinks once and slowly, until he notices the large plastic baggie in your hand. Sensing his uncertainty about what you were holding, you hold it out for him to see. 

It’s a braid. Your braid.

He looked around, his eyebrows furrowed in concern. He muttered a quiet, “You’re keeping it?” He knows that parents sometimes keep a lock of their children’s hair after their first haircut as a memento, but he knows nothing about someone keeping their own hair when they’re older, and all of it for that matter.

Joining him on the bench, you zip your bag open to place the baggie inside of it. “Well, this salon won’t send it to the company for me, so I have to mail it in myself.”

His concerned look doesn’t waver at your words. What do you mean by having to mail it somewhere yourself? Don’t salons usually just cut off people’s hair and then sweep it away? You giggle at his scared face.

“Kenma, I’m donating it.”

His whole body relaxes and he lets out a sigh of relief. Thank goodness it isn’t for something weird. 

You peer over at the console in his hands, lips dipping into a slight frown at the unfortunately familiar “Game Over” screen. “Still stuck on that boss battle, huh?” 

His eyes glance between you and the screen. “Yeah.”

Crossing your arms over your chest, you lean back into the bench in thought with a slight hum.

“Maybe your character needs to get a haircut so he can see better,” you tease. “Get that wild mop out of his eyes.”

Kenma shrugs and hits the “Try Again” option once more. As the battle music starts to play and he taps at the buttons, a small smile tugs at his lips. “Even so, he probably wouldn’t look as nice as you.”

[teenwolffanclub-me]

Season 1, Episode 5: The Tell (Part Two)

Hey there beautiful reader! If you’re new here, this is a series I’m writing where each chapter is an episode from the first season of Teen Wolf. If you’ve been here before, hey! I missed you! Previous and future chapters are linked at the end of each part if you want to catch up.

Pairing: Stiles x Psychic! Reader (eventually)

P.S. Scott gets lost in la la land and Beacon Hills might have a mountain lion problem??

                                                    -------------------

I sighed into my locker and let my head drop against the cool metal. I forgot to do my calculus homework. Again. 

I couldn't blame myself too much. I was still shaken up by the events of last week, although I’d done my best to forget about it. No one had seen any signs of the alpha since the video store. Jackson was acting really strange, though. Most of the time I saw him he looked sick and jumpy. Something was just off. He did get closer to the alpha than me, so maybe he was just processing in his own way. 

Lydia had been weird right after, but she seemed to push whatever remaining fear she had into the back of her mind. The strangest part, though, was that both of them had told people the animal that attacked was a mountain lion.

“Oh, God.” I heard Allison grumble from beside me.

I glanced over to see a bunch of balloons floating out of her locker. She tried her best to push them back in, and looked around nervously. She pulled out a card and read it over quickly before turning to glare at me.

“Really?”

I just grinned back. Lydia somehow knew it was her birthday today, so we filled her locker with all her favorites. Plus the balloons to embarrass her just a little. A moment later, Scott walked up.

He inspected the scene and put the pieces together quickly. “Is it your birthday?”

“No. No. Nope. I mean...yes.” She shoved the remaining loose balloons back inside the metal cage and frowned. “Please don't tell anybody. I don't even know how they found out.”

I avoided her glare and shut my locker before crossing my arms and leaning against it. 

“Why didn't you tell me?” Scott sounded a little hurt.

“Because...” She hesitated, looking between us. “I’m seventeen.”

Oh. That was news to me. Scott blinked, shocked. 

“That’s exactly the reaction I’m trying to avoid.” She muttered, pulling a textbook out before slamming her locker with a slam.

“Hey, I totally get it. You had to repeat a year because of all the moving around. Right?” That would've been my guess, too. It was pretty obvious if you knew her at all. 

But she looked surprised by his answer. So surprised that she rushed forward and gave him a kiss. I looked away quickly, clearing my throat awkwardly. 

“What was that for?” Scott asked, and I figured it was safe to look again. 

“For being the first person ever, literally, to make the right assumption.” She grinned at him, and he returned the look with a awe-struck expression of his own.

They were really good together. A little too easily distracted, maybe, but it was clear that they were in love. I just wondered if they knew it yet. 

“I’ll catch you guys later.” She walked away with one final wave. 

I moved to head toward class, but Scott caught my arm gently. I turned and looked at him expectantly. 

“You okay?” His big brown eyes looked at me with concern and I sighed. He always tried to take care of everybody. He’d checked on me a million times since the video store attack, and I’d told him I was fine, but he was relentless. 

“Yes, Scott.” I confirmed with a roll of my eyes. “I was okay yesterday, and the day before, and the day before that, too. You don't need to keep worrying about me.”

He didn't look convinced. “Just...if you need anything. I’m here. We both are. Me and Stiles, I mean. You can talk to us.”

I felt my face grow hot at the mention of his name. Things had been normal after our weird almost kiss. Utterly and completely normal. We hadn't talked about it since. We hadn't talked much at all, actually. Just typical school stuff. Not that I minded. 

“Thanks.” I gave him a genuine smile and turned to leave. 

I really needed to get to class. I was already falling behind, since my mind had been preoccupied lately. By the time I was done talking to Scott, the hallways were empty. I picked up the pace, hoping I could still make it before the late bell. I glanced down, and almost immediately slammed into someone’s back. 

I raised my head quickly, ready to apologize, but stopped when I saw who it was. I let out a huff, my shoulders tensing. Derek Hale was standing in front of me, looking threatening as ever. I hadn't seen him in nearly two weeks, and I preferred it that way. He gave me a serious case of the heebie-jeebies. 

“Why are you always here?” I found myself asking without thinking about the consequences. He was way too old to be in a high school. I was honestly surprised no one had ever called him out for hanging around here without actually being a student.

He took a step forward, and I took one back. His crystal blue eyes trailed over me from head to toe, and I shifted uncomfortably. “You don't need to be afraid.”

“Well, excuse me.” I scoffed. “The last time I saw you here, you tried kidnapping me.”

His head cocked to the side and his eyebrows rose in agreement. “True. But I’m not here for you.”

“Then why are you here?” I swallowed nervously. Trouble seemed to follow him wherever he went. Just his presence put me on edge.

He continued walking toward me, and I kept moving back until I ran into the lockers harshly. I gasped, surprised at the sudden contact, my breathing picking up with my rising anxiety.

He didn’t stop until he was only half a foot away. I watched him expectantly, waiting for him to grab me or rip my throat out or something. I hadn’t even been able to get away from him when he was almost dead, so I was very aware that my chances or survival if he wanted to hurt me were slim to none.

“If you ever want to learn some control, you know where to find me.” His eyes trailed over my face as he spoke. And then, he was gone.

I watched him walk away, more confused than ever. Control? Over what? I didn’t have much time to think about it, because Jackson came stumbling out of the boys locker room just in front of me. He looked sickly, his normally tanned skin white as paper, and he was sweating profusely.

He looked around nervously, itching at the back of his neck, before his eyes met mine.

“You okay?” I asked tentatively, not sure what was even wrong with him. Maybe he had the flu or something?

“Fine.” He muttered, his gaze flickering around the hallway almost obsessively.

He turned and stalked away from me with a shake of his head. That was odd. He’d been acting so weird ever since the video store. I watched his retreating back, then turned toward the direction Derek had gone. At once I realized that they had both come out of the locker room. So Derek was here...for Jackson?

My mind was swimming with possibilities as I finally made my way to class.

                                                   ————————

I walked through the school’s parking lot, trying to find Allison. I waited nearly ten minutes by our lockers but she never showed. I hadn’t seen her at lunch, either, come to think of it.

“Hey,” I jumped at the sudden presence beside me, but relaxed at the sight of familiar brown eyes. “I need you to do your witchy thing.”

I stopped and looked at Stiles with raised eyebrows. “My what?”

“Your thing.” He flailed his arms wildly, seemingly in a hurry.

“I don’t have a thing.” I said slowly, not sure what he was getting at.

“You have a thing.” He raised his eyebrows and huffed when I just stared at him. “Okay. Look. I haven’t been able to find Scott all day and his phone is going straight to voicemail. I just need you to tell me if he’s in trouble.”

I finally realized that he was talking about my visions and rolled my eyes before continuing on my way. “That is so not how it works.”

He let out a little ha and clapped his hands together with a jump. “So you admit you have a thing!”

“Can’t help you, Stiles.” I called over my shoulder and shook my head. I had no idea how my visions worked, but I knew I couldn’t just turn them on and off whenever I wanted. 

He let out an impatient groan and jogged up to my side again. “I’m worried, Y/N. Very worried.”

There was still no sign of Allison anywhere. I stopped again and turned all the way around, hoping to catch a glimpse of her car. It didn’t look like it was even in the parking lot.

“He’s probably with Allison.” I decided. “She’s been gone all day too.”

He hesitated for a moment, as if weighing various options in his head. Then he reached out and wrapped a hand around my wrist gently. Before I could even fully process that he was touching me, I was being dragged through the parking lot. I nearly tripped over my own feet as I tried to keep up with his quick pace. I swear, he never slows down. 

“What are you doing?” I breathed, dodging a few people as he weaved us between parked cars. 

“You're helping me find him.” He announced, not even bothering to phrase it like a question. 

We arrived at his Jeep a moment later and he pulled open the passenger door before looking at me expectantly. I stood firmly in place. 

“I have homework.” It wasn't even a lie. I was behind in almost every class due to the whole almost being attacked by a murderous werewolf thing. 

“I’ll do it for you.” He offered quickly, gesturing for me to get into the car. 

I mean, that didn't sound half bad...

“Fine.” With a resigned huff I slid inside. Stiles shut the door quickly and jogged around the front to get into the driver’s seat. 

Within minutes the school was long behind us. I didn't know where he was going, but I figured he had some kind of plan. He always did. We hadn't spoken since he turned the car on, and I was beginning to feel a little awkward. Should we talk about it? We should talk about it. Right?

I opened my mouth to do just that, but instead a totally different stream of words came out. “Do you think it has anything to do with Derek?”

Stiles’ head turned in my direction so fast I was afraid he may have given himself whiplash. “Derek?”  

“Uh.” Yeah, that was so not the right thing to say. I wasn't even planning on telling him about our weird interaction this morning. Why brain? Why?

“Why would Scott be with him?” He pressed, still looking at me. 

“Can you focus on the road?” My voice rose with worry and his eyes twitched at me before he complied with pursed lips. “I may have seen him this morning, and the last time he was at the school he was looking for Scott, so—”

He slammed on the breaks so suddenly that I launched forward, my seatbelt barely saving me from faceplanting into the dash. 

“Y/N!” He snapped incredulously. “You have to tell me these things!”

“I just did.” I looked at him with wide eyes as I readjusted myself in my seat. My gaze moved behind us to make sure no one was coming. This was not the first time he’d abruptly stopped in the middle of the road, and it really wasn't helping with my theory that every time I was in this car my life was somehow in danger. 

He scoffed and made a U turn, taking us back in the direction we’d just come from. “Did he say anything to you? What was he doing?”

“I don't know.” I decided to gloss over the fact that he had indeed said something very weird to me. “I think he was talking to Jackson.”

“Jackson? Why would he be talking to Jackson?” He, thankfully, kept his eyes on the road, but I saw them twitch again. I noticed he did that a lot. I wasn't sure if it was an anxious tick, or it meant he was thinking, or what. It was just a Stiles thing. One of his mannerisms that made him all the more endearing. 

I shrugged. “Like anyone knows what goes through that guys head. Maybe he threatened him or something. Jackson came out of the locker room looking pretty shaken up.”

“No. No, that doesn’t make any sense.” He mumbled, more to himself than me.

A few minutes later, we were sitting outside mine and Scott’s houses. We’d already driven past Allison’s, all of them proving empty. Her car was nowhere to be seen. Stiles started the Jeep again, and we were on our way to Beacon Hills Preserve. He was persistent about checking the Hale house, despite my efforts to convince him how utterly stupid that idea was.

Nothing good had ever happened there. I had no desire to go back, but I’d found out over the last few weeks that he could be even more stubborn than me—something I didn’t think was possible—so I didn’t push too hard. I knew it was a losing fight.

He slowed down at the entrance of the preserve when we stumbled upon Allison’s car parked next to a trailhead. I found myself chewing on my bottom lip, growing nervous. Stiles looked at me with raised eyebrows, and I frowned.

“That doesn’t mean anything. Maybe they went on a hike.”

He scoffed and continued driving as far as the Jeep would go. When Derek’s withered house came into view, we stopped.

“Do you always spy on your friends?” I tried to get comfortable in my seat, assuming we’d be here for awhile.

He shrugged from beside me. “Only with probable cause.”

Not more than thirty seconds later, we saw a woman who I recognized as Kate Argent approaching with two men flanked at her sides.

Stiles completely spazzed out and ducked down in his seat. “Who the hell are they?”

Each of the men were carrying large guns, and Kate had one strapped across her chest. They easily let themselves right in. I mean, there wasn’t much stopping them. There were more holes than not in that thing. You could barely even call it a house anymore.

“I know one of them is Allison’s aunt.” I breathed, not feeling any better now that they were out of sight.

“That’s bad. Very very bad.” His eyes practically bulged out of his head and his chest was rising and falling erratically as he started panicking. He moved to get out of the car and I jerked forward to grab his arm.

“What the hell are you doing? Do you have a freaking death wish?” For some reason, I was whispering. It just felt like we were going to be caught any second.

Then, the unmistakable sounds of struggling and gunshots echoed through the woods.

“Those are hunters, Y/N! Scott could be in there.” Stiles started pulling against me again, but I only tightened my grip.

“And we’re human. What are either of us going to do?”

He stopped struggling for a moment and glanced toward the back of the car. “I have a bat.”

More groans and shouts came from the house. Both of our heads whipped in that direction at the sound. I leaned forward in my seat, trying to get a better view, but it was too dark inside to see anything. Plus, the sun was going down, which didn’t help.

Suddenly, Derek came barreling out the front door at top speed. He was shirtless, for some reason, and looked really shaken up. He didn’t even glance in our direction as he sprinted through the trees. Stiles and I watched him pass by in stunned silence.

A few seconds later, Kate and the two men exited as well. Stiles ducked down beside me again, but I was too curious to move. What were they even doing? It didn’t look like any of them were hurt despite the gunshots and yelling.

My heart dropped into my stomach as they started walking our way.

“We need to go.” I breathed, tapping him on the arm quickly.

“It’s fine, you can’t see anything down here.” He shook his head, seemingly confident in the anatomy of his Jeep.

I looked at him with narrowed eyes. “They can still see the car, Stiles!”

His face dropped in realization and he sprang back upright. After fumbling with the keys for a few seconds, we were fleeing the scene quickly. I watched them the whole way and, thankfully, it didn’t look like they’d spotted us.

We’d barely gotten out of the preserve when Stiles’ phone chimed in his pocket. He rushed to pull it free, swerving into the wrong lane due to his frenzied state. I braced my hands against the dashboard and gave him an incredulous look as he checked the notification.

“God, Scott. Finally.” He breathed a sigh of relief, but his face quickly changed as he read the message.

“What is it?” My stomach tightened uncomfortably with anxiety. That look couldn’t be good.

“Allison’s dad shot an animal at the school.” He shoved the phone back into his pocket.

“Okay?” I was so beyond confused. Why was this a big deal? “What animal?”

He glanced my way briefly, his hands tightening on the steering wheel. “A mountain lion.” 

Episode 5, Part One            Episode 6

[whump-me-all-night-long]

The Scoop of a Lifetime - 2-1

Comfortember Day 1 - Rescue

Tagging @mnmlover2002, @cupcakes-and-pain, @lave-e, @appy-polly-loggies, @lovely-little-whump, @just-another-whumper, let me know if you want to be added/removed!

Y’all thought you saw the last of Devin? Nope! Now there’s going to be a whole ‘nother month of them for @comfortember 2020! I’m super excited for this month and I hope y’all will be too!

CW: rescued whumpee, medical whump (pretty vague and probably not accurate), heavy references to past trauma/injuries/violence, injuries descriptions, anxiety/panic, let me know if I missed anything!

Masterlist // Previous

---

They awoke to a flurry of activity and sharp pain. They sucked in a gasping breath, their eyes fluttering, but unable to stay open for long. They caught flashes of light and murmured words. Groaning softly, they tried to roll over there was something digging into my back it hurts but then there were hands pushing them down, holding them there.

They whimpered quietly as the voices said something about sedation and restraining. They tried to speak, to tell them i can be quiet i can be good please don’t hurt me anymore but their throat, their voice, wasn’t working.

There was a small prick on the inside of their arm and then this warm, floaty feeling spread through their veins and into their head and they knew nothing.

-

Devin was lying on something soft, and they felt all warm and tingly all over their body. The sharp smell of chemicals hit their nose, though, and their eyes flew open, unprepared for the fluorescent lighting to assault their eyes.

With a near-silent groan, they squeezed their eyes back shut. Their mind spun as they tried to piece together their broken memories of the last.. however long it had been.

They knew two things: Duncan had tried to kill them, and Duncan had saved their life. These were two conflicting ideas, yet Devin was absolutely certain of both of them.

They heard the quiet sound of footsteps and forced their eyes open again. Squinting against the bright lights, they made out a figure moving around them. Looking beyond them, they stared around at the small room they were in, a trickle of sunlight floating through a curtained off window along one wall and cold lights hanging above them.

They were in the hospital, they realized. They were laying in a hospital bed, with machines beeping on either side of them, and a nurse checking their vitals.

Devin croaked softly, trying to let the young woman - for they could see now that it was a pretty brunette woman standing above them - know they were awake.

She jumped, looking down at them. “Oh!” she exclaimed. “You’re awake!” Devin stared up at her, confused and a little more than panicked as she scurried from the room.

They weren’t left alone to dwell on their thoughts for long. Within a few moments, an older man with a white coat was walking in.

He took a seat in one of the uncomfortable looking chairs situated next to the bed. He gave them a friendly smile before flipping around a couple pages he held together on a clipboard. Finding what he wanted, he looked back up at them and cleared his throat. “So, uh, Mx. Connally. I’m Dr. Smith.” Devin, they wanted to correct him. I’m just Devin. “You were in a pretty bad accident. We found you in an abandoned field outside of Middleland, unconscious and severely injured. We’re not entirely sure what happened to you, so we’re going to need to ask you some questions. 

“First though,” he smiled at them in what they thought was supposed to be a reassuring way. It wasn’t. “Let me get you up to speed on what we know so far. Your legs show signs of some fractures all along them, and your ankles seem to have sustained similar injuries previous to this. You also have heavy bruising along much of your torso. It’s probable you also are suffering from a concussion. You also have several older injuries, along your hand and, um, arms.” The burns down their arm seemed to itch in response. “Your throat is the worst. It was also severely bruised and damaged many of your vocal cords. However, it should be healing and will most likely not leave any lasting damage. For the time being, though, try your best not to speak too much.”

Devin nodded warily. They were still feeling a bit muddled, their memories patchy at best and completely wrong or missing at worst. They still couldn’t seem to wrap their head around the fact that they were actually here, in a hospital, and that they were going to get caught he’s going to find you and take you back and hurt you you ran away safe.

They were pulled back out of their thoughts when the doctor cleared his throat. “Now, do you remember what happened? Because you were reported missing nearly four weeks ago.”

Four weeks? No, it had only been a couple of days, not nearly a month. Devin stopped hearing the doctor, their thoughts spinning within their mind. All of which immediately froze as the doctor laid a gloved hand on their arm. 

“Mx. Connally? Devin? Are you alright? You look sick.” All Devin could do was no i’m not alright i haven’t been alright in weeks apparently frantically shake their head. Dr. Smith frowned, setting his clipboard aside. “Just breathe now, Devin. Deep breaths.” 

Devin jerked away from him, their eyes growing wide and tearful, trying to tell myself it’s not him he’s not him he’s trying to help he’s not going to hurt me steady themself.

The doctor, seeing their reaction, lifted his hands midway in the air and leaned back from them. “Woah, Devin, you’re okay. You-you’re safe.” He didn’t really seem to know what to say, so he just kept repeating mindless reassurances as they slowly settled back down.

Finally, they looked back up at him, hastily scrubbing away the tears. He gave them a concerned smile before standing up. “I think that’s all I have for now, so just try to rest. A nurse should be coming in in just a bit to check on you, and don’t hesitate to call one of them in here if you need anything.” He stalled for a moment longer before quickly picking up his clipboard and walking out, shutting the door behind him with a soft click.

Devin turned away from the door and towards the window, ignoring the protests from their body at the movement. Instead, they stared out at the small sliver they could see outside their window as they repeated in their head

Next

[lilbit-of-kizzy]

Hey so Ethan/@crankgameplays posted a video about his allergy scares last week and I just had a chance to watch it and I have things to say!! This is long but I urge you to read it (and call me out if I'm wrong!! I tried to look up things I wasn't sure about!!)

So here is a long/basic allergy tutorial from someone who has allergies and a mother who worked for an allergist for many years as a nurse!

Histamines: these are what cause your basic allergic reactions, they cause the swelling and the itching. Most people for example are allergic to mosquitoes, and have a histomic reaction to the mosquito bite. Mosquitoes release a substance to technically numb the pain of the bite and most people are allergic to that substance and therefore have an allergic reaction. Your histamines cause that reaction, an itch and swelling. Some people are highly allergic to mosquito bites and will have varying degrees of an histomic reaction, I'm sure there's some people out there who have anaphylactic reactions to mosquitoes.

Antihistamines: basically tell your histamines to chill out. They come in varying strengths from your daily pill (Zyrtec, Xyzal, Allegra, Claritin) to your emergency or once in a while pill (like Benadryl). For example some people who have bad reactions to poison ivy will take a Benadryl, while people with a dust or pollen allergy might take Zyrtec everyday.

Epinephrine: epinephrine is a type of adrenaline. The reason that Ethan said it doesn't cause a real problem if you don't need it, is because he's never had it when he didn't need it. You will have the racing heart and other symptoms that come with a rise in adrenaline. While you probably won't bleed out from an epi needle, because you or whoever will be able to put pressure on it and it's not that big of a hole, you can cause hypertension and death if it happens to go into a vein (which is hard to do but can happen, use it on the outter thigh). Ethan never had any symptoms when his was used when he "didn't really need it", because his heart rate was already slowed/sped up so the rise in heart rate and other symptoms of an adrenaline boost didn't register, because he did technically need it. He's right that if you accidentally give it you'll probably be fine, but you still want to call a doctor and make them aware of the situation and let them decide what you need to do.

Other types of allergic reactions: We all know the classic signs, itchy, throat/other kinds of swelling, eyes watering/itching etc. But you can also have: coughing, sneezing, sniffly nose, itchy palms/bottoms of your feet, nausea, vomiting, severe diarrhea, heartburn/indigestion/acid reflux, itchy mouth/insides (the weirdest one honestly) and others. None of these necessarily mean you're going into anaphylactic shock, in fact there are very few allergens that cause anaphylactic shock. Things like insect stings/bites, nut allergies, and dairy/egg allergies are some of the worst for anaphylaxis. Other things can cause it but those are your worst offenders. Most other allergies are just annoying, they can be debilitating sometimes but they're not necessarily going to cause death.

What to do if you experience allergies: go see an allergist! Even if you're like "well it's only for like a month I get a little sniffly" still go! You may think you just constantly have a heartburn when you eat one food, but you could be allergic to it and there are ways to avoid the heartburn so you can still eat your favorite foods! Don't be afraid of the allergy test, there are two, one where they prick your back and one where they test your blood. The blood test doesn't test as much as the prick test though, and most normal doctor's offices will go with the blood test, so be sure to see an allergist. They'll ask a lot of questions to try and figure out what you might be allergic to, to figure out what they ought to put in the test. Then they put little drops of the allergen onto itty bitty little needles and prick your back. There are going to be one or two places where it's going to "hurt" but for the most part it's like running your fingernail over a spot of skin. Make sure you bring some hydrocortisone with you to slather all over your back when they're done, but make sure they tell you they're done before you do that!! Tell them that's what you're going to do. They'll honestly probably do it for you. They then measure the size of each reaction to determine whether or not you are allergic to a substance and whether or not that's what's bothering you. (So if you put hydrocortisone on before they're done they won't get an accurate measure) It's actually kinda of neat to see yor back all splotchy lol. Some allergies can be fixed with shots, which are not as bad as they seem, some just need daily medication.

Different allergies: if someone tells you they are allergic to a food and then proceed to eat the food you don't necessarily need to panic. I, for example, am allergic to rice. But I don't have an anaphylactic response, it just upsets my stomach if I eat too much. Before I figured out what was wrong I was throwing up almost daily. While there's no specific shot or pills for rice, getting all my other allergies in check helped the rice not be so bad. I was also allergic to dust which there are shorts for, and once I got that under control, stopped eating rice all the time, and started taking an acid reflux medication, I was able to start eating rice again without any problems (again as long as I didn't eat it all the time) When it comes to environmental allergies there often are shots for those. These can also cause some pretty serious reactions but don't usually cause anaphylaxis. I said I was allergic to dust and if I've been off of my meds and shots for a long time and I touch a surface with dust on it my hands will actually burn. It's extremely painful but nothing I need to go to the hospital for.

Allergy shots: these are really not anywhere near as bad as you might think they would be. They're once weekly shots that are teeny teeny tiny needles, it's the medication that hurts and even that isn't that bad. Especially not if it keeps my hands from burning, or someone who has anaphylactic reactions to bee stings from dying. They also tend to "cure" you of your allergies, my dust allergy has been reduced from a 9+ on the scale all the way down to 5. So while I'm still allergic to dust, it doesn't burn me if I go off my meds, it's just very itchy and gives me headaches. (They're also in the testing phases for a peanut shot!! Still have a long way to go on that one though but at least they're working on one!)

One other thing to keep in mind, an epipen is not a solution to the problem, it's a slowdown on the timer to death. You still need to go to the hospital and you still need to get there as quickly as you can. Especially for things like peanuts and bee stings, which cause severe reactions and very quick death. If there's more than one person there you need to be calling 911 as you're giving the shot. Even if they just need to be watched as they come down off of the epi just in case. Ethan's right you can re-react the stuff up to 6 or more hours later. Whatever you ate/was injected into you has to make its way out of your body before you're reaction to it stops, all the emergency crew is doing is keeping you from dying while that happens. When they gave him so much Benadryl they were basically just trying to completely kill his histamines.

This is by no means a full course on allergy knowledge but it's what I have available from years of having allergies and living with a nurse, and I hope it helps any of you out there who aren't sure what's going on with you/need more knowledge!! Sorry it was so long 😅

TL;DR all allergies are different and need different care (also please read it lol)

(I did also post this in the comment section of that video! I just made it prettier here lol. This was made using the voice to text on my phone though so I apologize for any weirdness/grammar mistakes)

[might-be-a-zygon]

Flat 40b

Chapter Five

What Road to Take?

AO3 link in the reblogs

Thea wasn’t really sure how she’d wound up spending so long chatting to that odd woman in the odder room. It was all a little concerning, honestly- just a woman sitting alone in a little room like that, with such a secure lock. She’d been half worried that someone had trapped her there, but when Thea had held the door open for her to follow, she’d just said she was waiting for a friend to visit and asked Thea to shut it for her.

She hadn’t expected the sky to have darkened when she left the room, but she wasn’t particularly worried. It wasn’t a far walk to the flat, after all, and she hadn’t had much else to do that day.

Still, her casual dismissal of how late it’d gotten did turn to some degree of guilt when she spotted Yaz, still sitting up in the kitchen, looking at her with a degree of relief.

“Where have you been?” She asked, looking Thea up and down as though expecting to see some injury. “Bill said you went for a walk after the lecture and they you never came back- I was worried.”

Thea had the good grace to look guilty, at least.

“I didn’t realise how long I was gone.” She admitted, taking a seat opposite Yaz at the kitchen table, even if all she really wanted to do now was go back to her room and try and work out who that mystery woman was.

“You didn’t even notice it getting dark?” She could tell Yaz didn’t quite believe her.

Thea considered a moment. She could tell Yaz the truth- they were friends, after all. Best friends. By all accounts, she should tell her, but- something deep inside of her was screaming that telling Yaz about the woman in her vault would be a very bad idea. It seemed to be the kind of thing which she just knew should be kept secret.

“I went to the library.” She lied, digging a notebook out of her bag as though trying to prove her point. “Keep having these weird dreams, I’ve been trying to write them down. Thought I might try and make them into a book or something.”

Yaz blinked at her a few times. She seemed to have been caught off guard by that one. “Weird dreams?” She asked, taking her hands off of the mug in front of her and reaching for the book tentatively. Thea handed it over without complaint.

She hadn’t been planning on sharing them again, but in honesty doing so made her feel an awful lot less guilty about lying to Yaz about where she’d been.

“Is that me?” Yaz asked, holding up a sketch of the pair of them in some sterile room.

Thea grinned, nodding. “Yeah! That’s the one where we’re fighting the little goblin!”

“The goblin?”

Thea flicked forwards a few pages to another sketch of a pting. It had a snarl on it’s face, just like it’s real life counterpart had when they’d faced him on the hospital ship.

“I don’t know what I’m actually gonna call them, yet.” She admitted, “But he’s kind of cute, look. They’re these little goblin things that eat everything.”

“And you’ve been dreaming about this?” Yaz asked.

“Yeah. Probably just too much dodgy sci-fi before bed, but I think there are some cool ideas there, if I could streamline them into something.”

“And you- am I there a lot?”

Thea was suddenly very glad she wasn’t much of a blusher.

“Sometimes.” She admitted, not quite looking Yaz in the eye. “A fair bit, really. You’re my best mate, I like it when you show up. Those are always the best ones- we fight aliens and stuff.”

Yaz broke into an almost proud smile, and Thea had to remind herself not to stare. Had Yaz always looked that pretty when she smiled?

“Aliens?” she laughed, as though at some joke Thea didn’t quite get. “I thought they were goblins?”

“Can’t they be both?” Thea asked, flicking through the pages. “I have one in here about vampires who were fish, too…”

“I’m just saying.” Martha raised her hands in mock surrender, “Maybe if it’s been this long and I haven’t seen anything weird, and you haven’t had any weird readings, it was just a machine error or something.”

“There’s got to be a reason that we were brought here in the first place.” The Doctor responded stubbornly, not even looking up at her. He’d been tinkering with the same bit of the console throughout their entire conversation, and it certainly wasn’t helping her feel particularly heard in the situation.

It wasn’t like she needed his undivided attention- they’d not spoken in person once since she’d moved into the flat- but it was more than a little frustrating to be ignored while she was trying to report what was going on to him. It didn’t help that most of the reason she’d agreed to this in the first place was to learn about emerging technology, and since he’d registered her as a first year, she was going through all the basics over again.

“Go through it again.” He said, more instruction than request.

“Go through what?” Martha asked, showing her frustration a little more, now.

“What’ve you found.”

“I told you already! There’s nothing suspicious. No signs of aliens or anything, just a normal Uni campus.”

The Doctor made a frustrated noise, and Martha couldn’t tell whether it was aimed at her, or whatever he was fixing. He muttered something under his breath, quiet enough that she clearly wasn’t supposed to be able to hear it, though she could just about pick out the word Rose. That one stung.

Of course Rose would have been able to track down whatever was going on immediately.

Or, at least the Doctor might have believed her when she said that nothing seemed suspicious.

“The energy readings from your flat are off.” The Doctor insisted, finally giving up on what he was messing with, though if Martha thought she was actually going to have any attention paid to her she was sorely mistaken, since he moved straight back to checking the readouts on the monitor. “Who’s living there? You’re sure they’re all human?”

“Well I haven’t exactly tested them all.” Martha replied sarcastically, “But everyone seems normal. They’re eating and sleeping like humans.”

“Nobody’s wearing a shimmer?”

“What’s a shimmer?”

“Oh it’s all-“ he made a vague gesture in mid-air which was apparently supposed to mean something. “You know. A shimmer.”

Martha gave him a blank look.

“…Right.” He nodded after a minute. “I’ll get you something to test for a shimmer.”

“Doctor-“

He cut her off before she could actually voice her question, brow furrowing, “Oh- Yeah you’re right, that won’t work if they’re Zygons.” he said, despite not having given her time to actually say anything even if she had known what a Zygon was. “Tell you what, I’ll get you a DNA scanner too.”

“Hang on.” Martha said, “You want me to scan my flatmate’s DNA? How am I meant to do that?”

The Doctor shrugged her concerns off. “I know you’ll work it out.”

Her meeting with Jack had dragged Yaz right out of the town centre, to some pop-up milkshake shop which was she’d heard a few other students chatting about. She’d been meaning to ask if Thea wanted to go (as friends, obviously), so it wasn’t as though she was actively blaming jack for dragging her away from the University for a little while. After all, they had to make sure to avoid his past self.

She’d arrived first, though she could hardly be annoyed about that- it’d been her idea. She arrived, checked that Rose and the other Jack were absent, texted the all clear, then grabbed herself a drink, and snagged a booth in the back corner where they’d be able to chat with some degree of privacy.

“Yasmin Khan.” Yaz heard a voice that was becoming increasingly familiar from behind her, turning around to smile a little at Jack as he approached her.

It was odd, really- being relieved to see him, rather than dreading it. That first time she’d been scared out of her mind (though in fairness, he had kidnapped all three of them), and the second- well. She wasn’t too proud to admit that she’d been so overwhelmed by the Doctor’s return she’d hardly noticed Jack stepping out alongside her. This time though? Well, seeing someone she could actually talk to about all of this was amazing.

“Thank you for coming.”

“I’m always here to help a friend.” Jack said seriously, despite the grin on his face. He slid into the booth opposite her, “Loving the choice of venue, by the way. Very 1950s.”

“Remind you of home?” Yaz asked, just for something to fill the small talk, though she was really itching to get straight onto the topic at hand.

“You’d think.” Jack laughed slightly, as though at some joke she wasn’t privy to. She didn’t push him.

“So.” She said, when he didn’t elaborate. He sat forwards slightly in his seat, already knowing what she was about to say, “You know about this chameleon thing the Doctor used to make herself human?”

“Not quite.” Jack admitted, glancing over behind her, in the direction of the counter. “I know what it is, but I’ve never been around when she’s had to use it.”

Yaz seemed to deflate a little at that. It was hardly his fault, but she’d really been hoping for some more concrete advice about the whole situation.

Noticing her reaction, he gave her a reassuring look, “Hey, don’t worry. I haven’t see it but I called in a friend of mine who has. Great girl, you’ll like her. She was with the Doctor the last time. Plus she’s from this Time Zone so she’ll cause a lot less chaos hanging around here than either of us will.”

“You brought backup?” The relief on her face grew. She’d been beginning to feel very out of her depth, especially with all of Thea’s talk about weird dreams and secret rooms. What was she supposed to say to discourage Thea from sneaking around when she was supposed to be keeping herself safe? She was still the Doctor under all that, after all.

Jack grinned. “The Doctor drops into a lot of people’s lives. Makes a lot of friends. I knew a woman, once, used to say that for a lonely man, the Doctor had the biggest family in the world.”

Odd as it was to hear the Doctor being referred to as a lonely man, Yaz smiled. It was nice to think how many other people out there would always be there for the Doctor when she needed them.

“And this friend of yours can help?” She asked.

“Oh yeah.” He smiled at someone behind her, and Yaz turned to get a look. “PC Yasmin Khan, meet Dr-”

“Martha!” Yaz exclaimed, shock plain on her face, because- That was Martha, right? It was so clearly her. Except Martha was younger than this woman, by a fair few years, and at least judging by the shocked expression on her face, she didn’t recognise Yaz either.

“You two have met?” Jack asked, looking between them.

Both responded at the same time.

“Yes.”

“No.”

Another bewildered look shared, though Jack barking a laugh boke the tension.

“The joys of time travel.”

Martha seemed to relax slightly at that, slipping into the booth next to Jack, and setting a drink down in front of each of them. Yaz didn’t relax. She couldn’t just yet. If the Martha she’d met was younger, why didn’t this one seem to recognise her at all?

“Jack said the Doctor used the Chameleon Arch again?” Martha asked, drawing Yaz’s attention away from that issue for a moment. It was strange, but Jack had said she could help, and Yaz needed all the help she could get working out what was tracking them.

“That’s the thing that turns her human?” Yaz checked. The Doctor had never actually given it a name during their panicked preparations.

“Hang on, her?” Martha raised an eyebrow. “Blimy. He said he could change his face but I never knew he could change it that much.”

“You knew the white haired Scotsman?” Yaz asked. It was what the Doctor had said she’d looked like before.

“He got Scottish too? This must be a few regenerations since I last saw him.” Martha laughed. “I knew spikey hair and sandshoes.”

“Can’t believe I missed them turning Scottish.”

All three of them laughed a little at Jack’s statement, seeming to break a lot of the tension.

“So, spiky hair and sandshoes is who we think is here?” Yaz asked Jack. “You said the past you came here with a previous Doctor to investigate.”

“Oh, no. That was the Doctor with the ears and the leather jacket.” He supplied.

Yaz tried to picture the Doctor running around in a leather jacket, then quickly stopped herself. Nice as that image was, she doubted she’d get much else done today if she didn’t get it out of her head.

Still, that Martha thing was still nagging at her.

“Hang on, if the younger you,” Yaz nodded at Jack, “Is here with a younger Doctor. Then-” she glanced at Martha. “There’s a younger you living in the same flat as me and Rose. Does that mean…?”

“Another Doctor.”

Martha looked between Jack and Yaz, clearly thrown off by this whole thing.

“Hang on. I don’t remember coming here.”

“I don’t either, not really.” Jack said, though he seemed very calm about this whole thing. “Crossing your own timeline can sometimes scramble your head a bit. Makes you forget stuff, so you don’t find out about your own future too early.”

Martha gave him a look. “Do I want to know what you’ve been doing hanging around in your own timestream?” He winked at her, and based on the face she pulled, the answer was no.

“So, three Doctor’s then.” Yaz said, changing the subject. “That feels like a bad thing.”

“Well it’s not a good one.” Jack conceded. “We’re gonna need a way to differentiate, for a start.”

“Ears, Sandshoes and-“ Martha looked to the two who’d met the latest Doctor for a descriptor.

“Rainbows.” Yaz supplied. “She’s going by Thea Smith, right now, though.”

“Thea?” Martha looked surprised. “I would have expected Jane Smith.”

“Might be a little close to home.” Jack suggested.

The pair of them shared a sad look, and Yaz didn’t want to ask.

“Ears, Sandshoes, and Rainbows.” Yaz repeated, trying to get them back on topic.

“They’re like codenames.” Martha said. “It’s like we’re playing spies.”

Yaz felt a shiver run down her spine at the idea of ‘playing spies’. She’d been there, and fun as it had seemed at first… Well, she didn’t want to do it again. She thought about being on the run with Ryan and Graham, knowing how scared her family had to be, the plane, and that endless realm that those creatures had taken her to. They were all still fresh, and had very much put her off the James Bond lifestyle.

“Not spies.” She responded, quickly. The other two looked at her with some surprise. “There was a thing, with the Doctor, and some old mate-but-not-mate of hers. It wasn’t-“

Both of their expressions turned to understanding.

“The Master?” Jack asked and, when Yaz nodded, he spoke with the same bitter anger he’d used when talking about the daleks. “Pity. I’d hoped he’d stay dead.”

Opening up the diner portion of the TARDIS as a student hangout had seemed like a good idea at the time. They’d get to hear more gossip from around campus, and Clara had been kind of hoping it’d get them more information, though as of now she’d mostly just heard nonsense about who was dating who, and which of the tutors had the worst reputation.

The only real consolation was that they were far enough out of the way that they weren’t too busy, despite it being a Saturday morning. She had the distinct impression that most people were probably too hungover from the last night of Fresher’s week to fancy a milkshake.

It’d been an especially easy morning, really, since she’d roped Me into helping her out behind the counter, and she was just cleaning out one of the machines when her girlfriend had nudged her in the side, nodding towards a figure who’d just stepped into the shop.

“Is that…?”

“Jack Harkness.” Me responded, with a tone that suggested she was already bored of whatever drama he was about to drag them into.

It was hard to blame her- it wasn’t as though Earth had a lot of immortals, and from what stories of Me’s Clara had heard and read, they’d run into one another a fair few times over the years, usually with dramatic or dangerous results. Thankfully, he walked straight past them, to settle in a corner booth.

“What’re the bets that he’s behind this?”

Clara shot her a look that said ‘be nice’, despite the very real possibility he did have something to do with this.

“Should I go talk to him?” Clara asked.

Me shook her head. “I’ll do it. I’ve known him longer.”

“Play nice.” Clara said, a pleading note in her voice.

“I’m always nice.” Me responded in mock-offence, though the smile she gave Clara was a little too soft to maintain that charade. She leant in to kiss her girlfriend’s cheek, before slipping off towards the corner table.

The fact that they’d settled in the corner was honestly enough of a worry. There were two empty tables in between them and the nearest other customers, and they were speaking in the kind of low voices which implied they were plotting something.

“Okay, so no spy stuff.” Jack said as she approached, “But we’re keeping the code names.”

“Jack Harkness.” She said, drawing his attention, as well as that of his friends. “I should have known you’d be the source of all this.”

“Me.” Jack looked interested at her intrusion, even if his friends looked baffled. “Or, do I still have to call you Lady Me? Because you know I’m not big on titles.”

“Titles like Captain?” She retorted.

“Touché.” He smiled, in a way which made it unclear whether they were friends or foes. “Least you haven’t threatened me with a sword this time. Loving the uniform, by the way.”

“Still the same insufferable flirt, then?”

“You know you love it.” He grinned, before turning to his friends. “Martha, Yaz, meet Me. I have a feeling she might know a little bit about our problem.”

So, on the one hand, hanging around outside his dead wife’s office was an awful idea. On the other, the Doctor really couldn’t resist. He wasn’t planning on talking to her- he just wanted to see her, for a minute.

He knew that it would only upset him, really. He was just opening up an old wound. Somehow, though, that didn’t phase him. Seeing her for a few minutes- letting himself look back just once. It had to be worth it.

The Doctor was fully planning on seeing a face from his past that would make his hearts ache with loss- though the one he got was one that made them sink with guilt, instead.

Ashildr. He’d lost track of her a very long time ago- somewhere before all that hazy business on Gallifrey. Still, in this time zone he’d have assumed that she’d be managing Trap Street, still, not hanging around a University.

Not walking out of River Song’s office with a smile on her face.

Whatever she was planning, he already didn’t like it.

“Ashildr.” He said by way of greeting, glancing towards the door, but barely catching a glimpse of River before it slammed shut.

“Who?” From the look of false-innocence on her face, he got the impression that Ashildr was being purposefully difficult.

“You.”

“Call me Me, Doctor. How many times do I have to remind you?”

“Me isn’t a name.” He replied, sounding almost like a petulant child.

“Nor is Doctor.” Ashildr replied coolly, crossing her arms.

Since he didn’t have much of a retort for that one, he found himself falling silent for a moment, though when she didn’t get a response, and began to walk away, he found himself asking a question just to stop her from leaving just yet. He really didn’t like that she was here- with everything else that was going on, it made him nervous.

“What’re you doing here?” He asked, still not sounding the most friendly. He didn’t remember much about his last few meetings with Ashildr, but he remembered coming away from them very angry with her. She had to have done something, he just didn’t remember what.

She shrugged, maddeningly casual about the odd reunion. “The same thing as you, I imagine.”

Well that one certainly couldn’t be true. Ashildr may have had some questionable practices, but as far as the Doctor was concerned his and Missy’s current predicament had to be pretty unique.

“I really don’t think you are.”

Seemingly a little thrown off, she asked. “You’re not here investigating all the odd energy readings?”

“Energy readings?”

Ashildr narrowed her eyes at that. It clearly wasn’t the answer she’d been expecting, at any rate. “Why are you here, then?”

“I’ve got a thing to do.” He replied, sounding totally confident in his own vague explanation, even if she looked unconvinced.

“I told you once I’d protect the world from you, Doctor. I meant it.”

“I know you did.”

“Well then, I’d-”

Before either of them could continue their argument, the office door opened, and an annoyed looking River Song stuck her head out, looking between the pair of them as though they were naughty schoolchildren. Seeing that one of them was a Professor did nothing to change her demeanour- not that the Doctor had expected for a minute it would. Not with River.

“Excuse me, I don’t know what the two of you are bickering about, but if you could take it somewhere that isn’t right outside my door, I think it would be better for everybody. Okay?” She said sharply.

Ashildr offered a quick apology, while the Doctor suddenly found his throat had gone dry, his eyes fixed on the woman he’d been fairly sure he’d never see again.

She waited a full minute for him to speak, before beginning to disappear back inside. “Right, then. I’ll take the gawping fish look as a yes.”

“Y-Yes.” He just about managed as the door slammed shut between them.

By the time he’d managed to process what had happened and turned back to Ashildr to continue their argument, she was already disappearing from view at the end of the corridor.

After the third time going through the information they had at this point (which was about as little as they’d had when they arrived), Amy was really beginning to regret deciding to come back to the TARDIS instead of heading to the Student Union.

“Right…” The Doctor was pacing around the console, still. By now Amy was fairly sure he was talking more to himself than to them. “Right so what have we got? We’ve got a professor who doesn’t age-“

“We’ve got a professor who doesn’t age, and some weird energy readings coming from our flat.” She sighed, looking bored with the whole thing. “It’s the same thing we’ve known all week.”

“Wasn’t River trying to meet the professor.” Rory offered before either of them could say anything more. He just wanted them to stay on track, which between the Doctor and Amy was always a tricky task.

“He won’t set up a meeting with her.” Amy responded, “She said he turned her down when she made a proper request, and he’s never in his office when she goes.”

“So he’s onto her, then?” asked Rory.

“No…” The Doctor had moved back over to the scanner, now, bringing up those readings again, as though he was on the brink of some breakthrough the others couldn’t see. “No. Doesn’t make sense. I’m missing something-“ He turned to the pair of them. “What am I missing?”

Rory gave him a blank look.

“Right. Of course. In my head. Yeah…” The TARDIS made a wheezing noise, which appeared to mean something to him based on his reaction. “Oh! Oh, yes. That’s good, okay…” He began digging through a drawer under the console.

“What’s good?” Amy asked, leaning forwards to try and get a look what he was messing about with. When he didn’t respond right away she actually stepped over to get a look at the odd little device he was holding. It looked a bit like a USB drive, just with a display screen. “Doctor? What’s that?”

“What does he teach?” He asked, instead of answering her.

Amy hesitated. She knew that Bill, Thea and Jenny had been to lectures with their mystery professor, but she’d never bothered to work out what the lectures were actually about.

“Oh, I don’t know. I could ask my flatmate, he’s her personal tutor. Not sure what she studies, though.”

“Oh, that’s great.” He tossed the not-USB-drive to her, “DNA scanner. Should be able to work out if he’s human or not. You’ve just got to get close enough to use it.”

“And how am I meant to do that?” She asked, turning it over in her hands.

“Ask your friend if you can tag along to lectures or something.”

“Oh, great.” Amy replied, sarcastically, “You’re signing me up for mystery lectures with the maybe-alien professor.”

“Try and use it on your flatmates too, if you can.” The Doctor responded, either not picking up on the sarcasm, or deliberately ignoring it. He was messing about trying to wire something into the console, now, though he seemed to be mostly doing a lot of running around and sonicing various things.

Amy looked the device in her hands over. “You should’ve given me this earlier. Would have been easy to use it if I went to that comedy night with Rose-“

There was a clatter, followed by a squealing noise from the sonic, as it protested being dropped.

“Something wrong, Doctor?” Rory peered around the central console, looking concerned.

The Doctor picked up the sonic quickly, trying to brush off his slip-up. “What? No. Fine. I’m fine. Totally fine.”

Amy raised an eyebrow. “Oh, yeah. Because when someone says ‘fine’ that many times in one sentence, that usually means it’s true. What happened?”

“I had a friend called Rose once, that’s all.” He seemed to be staying at the other side of the console just so he didn’t have to meet their eyes. “Long time ago.”

“You’ve never mentioned her.” Amy said, nothing accusatory in her tone, though she certainly sounded curious.

The Doctor smiled a little, now, in that far off and slightly sad way he did when he was remembering something long since passed. “I don’t always like talking about the people I’ve lost.”

“She sounds special.”

“Oh, she was. Great woman, that Rose Tyler.”

Now, it was Amy’s turn to drop what she was holding.

[bloody-bee-tea]

Tendril - Untamed Spring Fest 2020 Day 13

This is another Eldritch!AU installment and follows immediately after Bunnies.

As soon as they all touch down in Lotus Pier and step off their swords, Jiang Cheng turns towards Lan Xichen.

“Listen,” he starts and winces when Lan Xichen looks at him with barely concealed fear.

The emotions are still running high this evening and Jiang Cheng is pretty sure he doesn’t want to know what’s going on in Lan Xichen’s head right now, so he hurries to speak again, reaching out to take Lan Xichen’s hand in his, for good measure, too.

“It’s nothing bad,” he promises. “But I have to tell Jin Ling,” Jiang Cheng says, and he can see the moment those words register with Lan Xichen, because he relaxes again. “You are both going to stay here permanently and he has to know. I know it’s your secret to keep—and yours to tell too—but I’m not going to keep this from him and I’m not going to lie to him about it either. And we have to explain why you two are here now,” Jiang Cheng goes on and is surprised to see Lan Xichen smile at him.

“Of course,” Lan Xichen gives back and tugs Jiang Cheng close for a sweet and short kiss. “I honestly thought you already told him.”

“I wouldn’t,” Jiang Cheng gives back, slightly affronted that Lan Xichen believes he would just go around and spill Lan Xichen’s secrets. “It’s your secret.”

“It’s ours now,” Lan Xichen says and also pulls Lan Jingyi closer to them. “You told Sizhui, right?” he asks the boy, who nods. “And Jin Ling should know, too.”

“Thank you,” Jiang Cheng breathes, because this has been nagging at him, ever since it became clear that Lan Xichen and Lan Jingyi would be a permanent fixture in Lotus Pier now.

“When do you want to do it?” Lan Jingyi asks and Jiang Cheng can tell that he’s nervous.

Jiang Cheng would really rather not put more strain on Lan Jingyi today, but Jin Ling should still be in Lotus Pier, and he’s not going to lie to him for even a second.

“If he’s still here, today,” Jiang Cheng gives back and notes with concern how Lan Jingyi pales at his words.

Lan Xichen must have noticed too, because he pulls Lan Jingyi to his side.

“It will be okay,” he tells him and while Jiang Cheng can tell that Lan Jingyi has a hard time believing that, he nods.

“You’ll—you’ll be there, right?” Lan Jingyi wants to know in a whisper and Lan Xichen immediately nods.

“Of course I will be there,” he reassures him and Jiang Cheng puts his hand on his shoulder.

“And I will be there, too. You’re not getting rid of us this easily. And Jin Ling will understand, you don’t have to worry about that.”

Lan Jingyi doesn’t look like he believes Jiang Cheng, but he doesn’t say anything.

But Jiang Cheng has faith in his nephew; Jin Ling might be prickly and it might be difficult for him to express his emotions, but he will accept Lan Xichen and Lan Jingyi just like they are, there is no doubt in Jiang Cheng’s mind about that.

“Let’s do it over dinner,” Jiang Cheng decides as he brings them into the heart of Lotus Pier and flags down a servant, to order a dinner for four and to tell Jin Ling where they will be waiting for him.

Jiang Cheng brings them into his private rooms, because he does not want to do this in a public setting, and it isn’t long before Jin Ling joins them.

He levels them all with a look and then sits down without saying anything, shoulders tense and chin raised high.

“Jin Ling,” Jiang Cheng starts and Jin Ling works his jaw a few times.

It’s a sure sign that he has something to say, so Jiang Cheng waits him out, glad that Lan Xichen and Lan Jingyi follow his lead.

“Is this how you’re telling me that you got married? Without me?” Jin Ling hisses eventually, and Jiang Cheng blinks at him.

It never even occurred to him that this must be what it looks like to Jin Ling, and he’s quick to shake his head.

“Of course not,” he reassures him. “I would never get married without you present.”

Jin Ling doesn’t look like he fully believes him; he crosses his arms in front of his chest and stares Jiang Cheng down.

“It does look a lot like that to me though,” Jin Ling says, his voice quivering with anger or maybe he’s just that upset. “Because you leave in a rush following Lan Xichen, and then you stay away for two whole weeks and when you come back, you bring him along,” he says with a nod towards Lan Jingyi though it’s not unkind. “And it just looks to me like you’re going to introduce them as your husband and adopted son, and you did that all without me.”

“A-Ling, I would never do something like that without you, and especially not without even talking to you first. Lan Xichen and I did not get married.”

“Well—,” Lan Xichen says from his side and Jiang Cheng goes completely and utterly still before he slowly turns towards Lan Xichen.

“Now is not the time to say ‘well’,” Jiang Cheng hisses at him and watches in horror as Lan Xichen goes red in the face. “Xichen, what the fuck?” Jiang Cheng almost yells at him and he is very aware that Lan Jingyi and Jin Ling are watching them with interest.

“So,” Lan Xichen starts and then has to clear his throat. “You know the story about the forehead ribbons?” Lan Xichen asks and Jiang Cheng narrows his eyes at him.

“Yes, I do. Only family and spouses are allowed to touch it. And I know for a fact that I did not touch it!” Jiang Cheng almost yells, but he can’t bring himself to care.

He and Lan Xichen did not get married without his knowledge!

“I know, you didn’t,” Lan Xichen reassures him, but Jiang Cheng knows him well enough to not relax yet.

Something else is coming.

“But you see, there’s—,” Lan Xichen briefly looks over at Jin Ling and then very visibly shrugs, “there is a model for the forehead ribbon.”

“A model,” Jiang Cheng repeats flatly and catches Lan Jingyi bite down on a laugh.

Jiang Cheng is not going to like what’s coming, he already knows it.

“There is this special tentacle we have,” Lan Xichen explains and that’s as far as he gets before Jin Ling slams his hands over his ears.

“I do not want to hear this,” he shouts at them, and Lan Jingyi doubles over with laughter at his reaction.

“It’s not like that,” Lan Xichen quickly says, but he’s even redder now, and Jiang Cheng fights the urge to facepalm.

He cannot understand how this conversation got derailed like this so quickly.

“What special tentacle?” Jiang Cheng bites out when it becomes apparent that Jin Ling won’t lower his hands and that Lan Jingyi won’t stop laughing at them.

“It’s a very small, thin one?” Lan Xichen tries and Jiang Cheng knows exactly which tentacle he’s speaking about because it’s the one that’s always wrapped around his hand when he drifts off to sleep.

“The tendril?” Jiang Cheng presses out through clenched teeth and Lan Xichen nods, his face now bright red.

“It doesn’t really count for you,” Lan Xichen quickly tries to reassure him, “but that you touched it means I’m bound to you for life. Mine, not yours,” he adds. “It’s how my kind binds each other. I don’t know if it can even be replicated with humans, but. Yeah. For me, for my kind, we got married. And I apologize for not telling you sooner.”

Jiang Cheng gapes at Lan Xichen, because how dare he just marry him without even letting Jiang Cheng know about that—and how dare he do it every night without letting Jiang Cheng know about that—but before he can actually say anything like that, Jin Ling speaks up.

“For your kind?” he demands to know and all eyes turn back to him.

Lan Jingyi immediately stops laughing.

“So here’s the actual reason we wanted to talk to you,” Jiang Cheng says with a side-glare at Lan Xichen—promising him that they will talk about this later—who ducks his head. “There’s something you don’t know about the Lans yet.”

“They are not—human?” Jin Ling carefully asks and itches slightly away from Lan Jingyi, but stops when he sees how his face falls.

“Jin Ling, you can never tell anyone else about this. This is a secret and it has to stay like that, do you understand?” Jiang Cheng asks and looks very seriously at Jin Ling who straightens up under his gaze.

“Are they dangerous?” he asks, avoiding looking at Lan Xichen and Lan Jingyi in favour of keeping his eyes trained on Jiang Cheng.

“They can be,” Jiang Cheng tells him, because he still remembers how Lan Xichen went on a rampage in the clearing. “But they are not to us,” he then states firmly, because he knows they would never hurt anyone without provocation.

Besides, they are also still cultivators; that makes them dangerous on their own, just like every other cultivator out there.

“You trust them,” Jin Ling whispers and looks away. “You trust them and you didn’t tell me because you don’t trust me,” he lowly adds and Jiang Cheng stands up to walk over to Jin Ling.

“It’s not that I didn’t trust you,” Jiang Cheng immediately tells him. “But I only found out a little while ago. And it wasn’t my secret to tell. But they are going to live here now, and apparently someone married me without telling me so they are family now, too,” Jiang Cheng says very pointedly and glares at Lan Xichen.

“What are you?” Jin Ling asks, now looking directly at Lan Xichen who scoots a little bit away from the table.

“It would be better just to show you,” he says, but he’s clearly waiting for Jiang Cheng’s permission.

“Jin Ling, when he changes, I need you to remember that he’s not dangerous. He would never harm you.”

“Okay,” Jin Ling whispers, but he’s clearly nervous and so Jiang Cheng hugs him to his side.

“Don’t watch the transformation, it will hurt your head,” Jiang Cheng mumbles and gently puts his hand over Jin Ling’s eyes before he nods to Lan Xichen, who immediately lets go of his human form.

He doesn’t bring out many of his eyes, and he even keeps a few tentacles to himself, but Jiang Cheng guesses it’s good enough.

“I felt that,” Jin Ling says and Jiang Cheng nods.

“He’s a lot bigger now,” he tells Jin Ling and then simply takes his hand away.

Jin Ling jerks when his eyes fall on Lan Xichen, but he doesn’t run away screaming and he doesn’t draw Suihua so Jiang Cheng counts it as a win.

“It’s—it’s still Lan Xichen?” Jin Ling carefully asks and Jiang Cheng sighs.

He had hoped to spare Jin Ling the pain of the transformation.

“He is,” Jiang Cheng gives back and Lan Xichen changes back.

Jiang Cheng is already too used to it but Jin Ling makes a noise like he’s going to be sick and he keeps quiet for a long time afterwards.

Lan Xichen and Jiang Cheng share a worried glance, while Lan Jingyi seems to try his best to just fade into the background.

Jiang Cheng knows he’s scared Jin Ling will ask him to transform as well, but Jiang Cheng is certain that Lan Jingyi has nothing to fear from Jin Ling.

“You—you look like that, too?” Jin Ling eventually asks Lan Jingyi, voice stumbling over the words and Lan Jingyi looks down at his hands.

“Jingyi has a different form,” Lan Xichen gently tells him, and tugs Lan Jingyi closer to himself. “He’s very special.”

Lan Jingyi scoffs at that, and Jiang Cheng wants to tell him that he is but then Jin Ling speaks up again.

“Can I see?” he asks and Lan Jingyi works his jaw a few times.

Jiang Cheng is reminded that for all that Jin Ling only really has three friends—Lan Sizhui, Lan Jingyi and Ouyang Zizhen—the same goes for Lan Jingyi as well.

Thanks to his different form he was never able to make friends in the Cloud Recesses. Not even amongst the human disciples, because they picked up on the Lans behaviours towards Lan Jingyi.

“Fine,” Lan Jingyi bites out eventually and moves away from Lan Xichen. “But don’t say no one warned you.”

Jin Ling flinches at how bitter Lan Jingyi sounds but he watches as he too, changes his form quickly. Unlike Lan Xichen, Lan Jingyi does not hide even a single jaw.

Jin Ling’s jaw drops when he sees Lan Jingyi’s form and Jiang Cheng squeezes him warningly, tries to remind him to be gentle with Lan Jingyi.

“No wonder you eat like you do,” is the first thing Jin Ling blurts out and then he slaps a hand over his mouth.

“I’m so sorry,” he adds, but Lan Xichen is laughing and Lan Jingyi lost a lot of his hard edges, so Jiang Cheng knows he wants to laugh as well.

And he does, as soon as he changes back. Jiang Cheng can hear the faint edge of hysteria to his voice though, and Lan Xichen is quick to engulf him in a hug.

“Is he alright?” Jin Ling quietly asks Jiang Cheng, watching the scene in front of them.

“He will be,” Jiang Cheng determinedly says. “We’ll tell you about what happened over dinner,” he promises Jin Ling.

“But you really need to keep this secret,” Lan Xichen suddenly speaks up and Jin Ling’s head snaps around to him. “You cannot tell anyone.”

“Does no one know about you?” Jin Ling asks and Lan Xichen smiles sadly at him.

“No. There hasn’t been a human in the known for—two generations now, maybe,” Lan Xichen says. “You two, Wei Wuxian and Sizhui are the only one who know, and it must stay like that.”

“What about Zizhen?” Lan Jingyi asks, wringing his hands in front of his chest. “I get that I was only allowed to tell Sizhui because of our relationship, and that Jin Ling gets to know because he’s family, but Zizhen—he’s—,” Lan Jingyi says and then trails off.

“He’s our friend and can be trusted,” Jin Ling chimes in as well.

“I don’t know,” Lan Xichen admits. “It’s not just our secret, it concerns the whole Sect,” he tells them. “But I’ll think about it. Maybe you can invite him over? I don’t know him well enough to decide on his character,” Lan Xichen decides and Jiang Cheng nods.

“Sure. He can come visit any time.”

“Okay, now that that’s all over, can we please eat?” Lan Jingyi whines all of a sudden and Jin Ling narrows his eyes at him.

“I don’t think we have enough food for you and your numerous maws,” he tells him with a sweet smile and Lan Jingyi gasps at him.

“And don’t you think the marriage conversation is over,” Jiang Cheng says to Lan Xichen, who ducks his head, but also reaches out for Jiang Cheng with a tentacle.

It’s not the tendril, Jiang Cheng will make sure to stay away from that one until this is all cleared up, and so he welcomes the touch readily.

When the tentacle makes contact with his skin he can tell that Lan Xichen is genuinely sorry, but that he also doesn’t regret it. But most of all, Jiang Cheng can tell just how much Lan Xichen loves him.

“Is this going to be a thing now?” Jin Ling warily asks, leaning over to Lan Jingyi who heaves out a sigh.

“Regrettably, yes,” he answer and Jin Ling makes a gagging sound.

“Disgusting,” he whispers, to which Lan Jingyi furiously agrees.

Jiang Cheng laughs at that, because he couldn’t care less about it, and he even allows the tentacle to wrap further around his arm.

“I said disgusting,” Jin Ling says again, louder this time, and stands up to stalk away.

“And I don’t care, brat!” Jiang Cheng calls after him, much to Lan Xichen’s and Lan Jingyi’s apparent delight and while Jiang Cheng had worried about Jin Ling’s reaction, this went a lot better than he had hoped for.

And now he knows that there is nothing standing in the way of them becoming a family.

Next part