#just cause drama while i have to act like everythings fine.

[certaimromance]

𝜗𝜚 Holding Us.

Spencer Reid x Fem!reader

Summary: You finally had a perfect date with the guy you like, you even kissed and everything seemed perfect. But suddenly he starts acting weird and you think you know this behavior.

Words: 2,5k.

TW: mentions of trauma, death, injuries (normal warnings in the series). drugs and addictions!!! especially spencer's history with them. angst and also comfort???. spoilers for season 2. english is not my first language (sorry for my mistakes, be kind please).

Note: Next time I'm probably going to write something that might be all fluff, but drama and angst are calling to me.

♡ Enjoy! ♡

The taste of green tea, accompanied by ginger, entered your throat again and you couldn't help but let out a sigh. Your reading glasses fogged up and you mentally cursed yourself for not remembering to take them off sooner. Your mind was elsewhere and the bandage on your right hand made it impossible for you to go about your business normally.

You settled into the jet seat and tried to ignore the pain you felt in your arms to continue reading normally and turn the page, but it was still impossible and not even your favorite hot drink worked as medicine. All the recent events were replaying in your mind like a movie, and being attacked by a serial killer on your first case after a long flu break was worthy of a dramatic script.

Fortunately, Spencer was your partner at the time and helped you just before the unsub could use his knife on you badly and end your life in the blink of an eye. You had cut your hand deeply in the middle of the struggle and Reid appeared to save you when you were lost, even with his few physical skills, he fought the man as best he could and shot him without even hesitating.

You didn't even get a chance to thank him because it all happened so fast and he'd been acting weird since you came back to work after your break. In the ambulance, he barely looked at you when the paramedic finished patching you up, asked if you were okay, and then went back to acting like you were a pest to be avoided at all costs. You kept wondering if you'd done something wrong, because just four weeks ago the two of you had the best date of your lives, even kissed, and now you weren't even acting like friends.

You began to wonder how much could have changed in a week. Everything was fine until you officially went back to work and tried to act normal. You got sick after the date, Spencer was a gentleman and brought you soup and flowers for days, even though he knew you wouldn't let him see you. And then, overnight, you found out that he'd been kidnapped in a case while you were away, and assumed that was why his constant messages and calls had stopped. You came back thinking that you could be a support to him after such a traumatic experience, but instead he avoided you.

“Is everything okay?” Hotch's voice startled you, almost causing you to drop your cup on the floor. He was sitting in front of you and you thought he was asleep like everyone else.

“Oh, you scared me.” You put your hand over your heart and put the teacup down on the table to look at him.

“You haven't answered my question.” He insisted, settling back in his seat and giving you a look that compelled you to tell him everything. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, I was just thinking about what happened and how I didn't get a chance to thank Reid.” You admitted somewhat awkwardly, not wanting to make it obvious that your feelings went beyond friendship, although deep down you knew it was clear. “I've seen him acting strangely, I think he's avoiding me.”

“You should try to talk to him and ask him what's wrong. He saved your life today, that's not something you do by avoiding someone.” Your boss said in a reassuring tone, noticing your great nervousness about the subject. “I don't think he'll have a problem talking to you, and now he seems as thoughtful as you are.” He finished, pointing with his head.

You took the moment to look at Spencer and noticed that Hotchner was right. He looked as pensive and confused as you had been during the minutes you had all been traveling. He was frowning slightly, fiddling with his fingers and looking out the window, even though it was night and there wasn't much to see because of the darkness. You couldn't help but wonder if he was thinking about you.

“I hope you're right.” You murmured, taking another sip of your tea and looking at the papers the man was going through. “Strauss will send me home after this, right?”

“You can't do much with your injured use hand, you need a few days.”

“I'm fine and my other hand is fine, I have not even had to take painkillers. I've got it under control.” You replied tiredly, trying to ignore the pain you felt by making a gesture. “Please don't send me home. I can't anymore, I have to work or I will go crazy.” You added, practically begging him.

“Don't get used to it.” He warned you in a serious tone before continuing. “But I'll talk to her and you stay out of it. You'll just profile and theorize until your hand is right. Nothing more than that and where my eyes see you.”

“You're the best boss in the world, really, I'll buy you a mug that says that.” You said, getting up from your seat and holding back the urge to hug him, knowing it was too much.

“Agent.” He called out to you in a serious tone before you could do anything. “Be careful and tell me if you are in pain...just don't tell anyone I intervened for you or I'll fire you.”

“Understood, sir.” You replied in the same formal tone before heading for the bathroom.

Something inside you knew it wasn't normal for the stitches in your hand to hurt so much, so you slipped into the plane's bathroom as quickly as you could, thankful that most of the team was asleep enough to notice your groans as you moved forward and closed the door behind you. You carefully removed the bandage, seeing that a few stitches had opened up, and pulled the painkillers you'd been given to ease the pain out of the bag, but before you could take any, a couple of knocks on the door made you jump and pray it wasn't your boss.

“Who is it?” You asked in confusion.

“It's me, Spencer.”

You didn't even have to think before you unlocked the door and yanked it open with your good hand.

“Do you want to come in? I was just leaving...” You started to babble as soon as your eyes met his and all the nervousness of a teenager in love appeared.

“I wanted to know if you were okay, I saw you come in complaining of pain.” He explained calmly, lowering his gaze to your hand and watching it with concern.

“Oh, don't worry. I'm fine.”

“May I check?” He asked cautiously, and you nodded a little nervously.

You went further into the bathroom so he could do the same, and he did, taking the back of your injured hand after washing his hands to make sure everything was okay. He touched you so gently that you almost forgot the pain you were in without even taking the painkillers.

“One of the stitches opened up, that's why it hurts. But it's not infected, so they should just sew it up and you'll be fine.” Spencer reassured you while you looked at him carefully.

Incredibly, this was the first time since your return that he had said more than one sentence to you, and he was less than a meter away from you. It made you feel like a fool to be mildly excited about it.

“And how are you? You were the hero who took the worst of it and saved my life.” You pointed as you watched him carefully apply a new bandage to your hand.

As soon as you asked, he pulled away and unconsciously put his hand to his stomach, where the unsub had elbowed him pretty hard in the middle of the struggle. “I'm fine. Nothing I can't handle.”

“Sure?”

He nodded and ran his fingers gently over his stomach, wincing as he tried to hide the pain. You always thought he wasn't very good at hiding things. As soon as he looked into your eyes and saw your worried face, he repeated that he was fine. You raised a skeptical eyebrow, not believing him for a second about his supposed well-being. You had spent enough time with him to know when he was hiding something, just by looking into his eyes.

“You're a terrible liar.” You said, looking at him with narrowed eyes while he repeatedly shook his head. “Then let me see.”

Spencer's eyes widened at your request, but the blush that appeared on his cheeks betrayed that there was more than embarrassment in his expression. He hesitated for a moment, but finally agreed, knowing he wasn't going to get out of this one. He slowly lifted his shirt, wincing as he did so, revealing the large red bruise on his stomach, just above his hip.

Your gaze fell on the large red bruise on his stomach and you gasped, covering your mouth in shock. It was much larger than you had expected and the color much more intense. You reached out tentatively and gently touched the bruised skin, causing him to flinch involuntarily.

“Are you in much pain?” You asked in a worried voice, trying to decipher his expression.

“It hurts a lot.” He nodded slowly, wincing as you touched the sensitive area, sending a shiver down his back. “But I'll be fine, really.”

“Okay.” You whispered, not knowing if it was time to move away from him or not. Not knowing what to do, you spoke again and didn't move. “I wanted to thank you for what you did, I haven't been able to before.”

He seemed surprised by your appreciation, and even more so when you stopped touching him and took a step back.

“I would never let anyone hurt you.” He said seriously, as if it were an oath.

You looked at him for a few seconds to make sure he meant it, and then you looked down at the ground. Something inside of you was screaming at you that this was the time to talk to him and put all your doubts on the table for him to resolve. You needed answers or you would go crazy, and maybe this was the time.

“Spencer.” You called out to him and waited for him to look at you to start talking. “I wanted to ask you what's wrong, if I did something or I don't know, apologize if it was like that, because it's terrible to see you avoiding me.” You began to speak quickly because you were nervous. “And if it's about the other night...our date and all that. I'm really sorry if I made you uncomfortable and pushed you into something.”

“No, you didn't do anything.” He stopped you immediately and tried to touch your face to make you look into his eyes, but he couldn't because of a sudden pain in his stomach and he had to lean against the sink. “The date went well, very well. It was actually wonderful.”

“What's wrong with you, why are you acting like this all of a sudden?” You asked him. You asked him, taking a few steps toward him and noticing that his eyes were on the painkillers you had left on the sink. Then you noticed how dilated his pupils were. “Are you in a lot of pain? Do you need these?”

“I'm fine, I'm not acting out in any way.” He replied, completely ignoring your last question, but still with his eyes on the meds.

“Come on, I know you. I know there's something wrong with you, and you don't have to hide it.” You persisted, trying to understand what was happening to him. You could tell by his body language that he was tense and defensive.

“I said I'm fine.” He cut you off.

“No, you're not, I realized something is wrong.” You tried to approach him because of his erratic behavior. His hands had begun to shake and his fingers were inches from the box of painkillers. “You can trust me, I know you and I'm here for you.”

“You think you know me that well already?” His tone made you feel uncomfortable and invasive. You could tell he was bothered by your implications. “One date doesn't get you that far.”

Ouch, that was a low blow.

“I didn't say that, Spencer.” You said, trying not to sound defensive. You didn't want to start a fight when you were just worried about him. “I just want to help you.”

“I don't need your help.”

You were silent for several seconds, your eyes following his to the painkillers. “But you need these, don't you?”

The trembling of his hands intensified with your question, you could see his pupils seem to dilate even more at the sight of the drugs in your hands, and his breathing became irregular. He nodded several times after your question, desperate to get his hands on them.

“Since when?”

“What?” He asked confusedly as you took the painkillers from his hands.

“You know what I'm talking about.” You looked him straight in the eye with seriousness and much more concern than before. “I know an addict when I see one.”

Your words had hit him like a big bucket of cold water, freezing him in place. He barely blinked a few times before he spoke.

“I don't know what you're talking about.”

“We both know.” You took a few steps toward him and took his hands, stopping the trembling in them. “And that means you're not alone in this anymore.”

He could hardly believe what you said. His mind had convinced him that if you found out, you would yell at him, turn your back on him, or report him, and instead...you were comforting him?

Spencer felt unable to look at you, the guilt washed over him. He tried to pull away.

“You...I'm a drug addict, and you're not even mad?”

“I'm not one to judge you, but I am one to help you.”

His eyes widened slightly at your words. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. He desperately wanted to protest, to tell you that he was hopeless and completely lost...but how could he? You seemed so determined to stand by his side and support him, even after learning such a painful and shameful truth.

“You won't...leave me?”

“I would never leave.” You gave him a small smile and felt him drop his head on your shoulder and relax. “It's going to be okay.”

Finally, he closed his eyes and let out a choked sob without pulling away. Your words had hit him at a low point, and the reality of the situation had come crashing down on him after he had tried to ignore it for so long. He slowly embraced you, feeling that he would collapse without your support.

“Everything will be fine.”

And you were so sure of it that you saw yourself in the mirror every day.

[thepixelelf]

Oh Baby, You - svt smau

The birth of your son three years ago was what caused your breakup with Wonwoo, your longtime (and at that point, long distance) partner. Now, you're getting concerned that Orion is starting to look a lot like his dad, but that's not your only problem. Wonwoo is back… and he's living across the hall.

Genres: smau, romance, drama, comedy, angst, single parent au

Pairing: jeon wonwoo x afab they/she reader x mystery member(s)

Warnings: coarse language, conversations about sex, mentions of pregnancy, mama/mom/mother is used to refer to reader's parental status sometimes, infidelity, light alcoholism, miscommunication as a plot device, some of the teenies are not so nice at times, slut shaming, angst, everything is unrealistically dramatic because this is basically a kdrama in text/twitter form. warnings may be updated as they come, but I will label chapters properly if it's anything major

Note: unfortunately, I did have to make the mc for this series have female reproductive organs because, well... that's the plot. I couldn't find a good way around it :( if anyone reading this is discouraged, please know that pretty much every other fic I've ever posted is gender neutral. So, if you think you might've liked this smau, please check out my masterlist! hopefully there will be something you like there :) ALSO! if anyone makes fun of Orion's name just know that it's the name of a precious baby cousin of mine and if you bully smau Orion you are bullying irl Orion!! do not touch him!!!

(new!) Updates will post when I have the time and motivation

The taglist is full! Leave a comment under the post linked here if you're not on the main taglist to be notified when Oh Baby, You is completed.

Profiles I: Orion's Prettyboy(gn) Posse

Profiles II: Wonwoo's Famous Friend and the Other Guys

Profiles III: Gyu and the Rise of Capitalism

1. Everybody Loves Vernon

2. Tens Among Tens

3. Grown Ass Men

4. I Hate This FUcking Family

5. The Ones Keeping Secrets

6. A LITTLE Curious

7. You Go Girl Get His Ass

8. The Calm

9. The Storm

10. It's Been a While

11. Fucked Up Coincidences

12. Not... a BAD Guy

13. Still So Affected

14. Just My Type

15. Nothing to Hide

16. Fists Up

17. Act Natural

18. Girl, They Blocked You

19. Plot Relevance

20. Actually it is a Date

21. It's All Pretty Confusing

22. Scripted

23. All it Takes is a Smile

24. Yoon Jeonghan is Watching

25. Completely Surrounded

26. No Such Thing

27. What Does That Mean

28. A Name I've Heard Recently

29. Can't Risk It

30. Errand Day

31. One Day at a Time

32. Confrontation

33. Not Looking to be a Parent Any Time Soon

34. What if I

35. For This Little Guy

36. Get Blocked

37. I'll Take Care of You

38. Messed Up, Stupid, and Jaded

39. You Fucked Up

40. That's For You to Figure Out

41. Need to Try Something

42. Recovery Mission?

43. Your Everything

44. You're Cute When You're Like This

45. Not Sponsored

46. This is Nothing

47. Promise? Promise

48. Hhrk

49. A Busy Afternoon

50. Cherry

51. Don't Freak Out

chapters loading...

52. Bad Guys

53. Everything is Fine

OBY Ask the Characters Game

[sincerelybubbles]

It's a Date part 2

warnings: fluff, descriptions of being touch starved (? idk) not really edited oopsies

synopsis: things go well after f!reader and spencer's date, spencer helps reader see that she's wanted and deserving of affection

part 1

⋆.˚ ᡣ𐭩 .𖥔˚⋆.˚ ᡣ𐭩 .𖥔˚

“Sorry, it’s messy,” you say, wringing your hands as you walk through the door. You hear Spencer laugh out through his nose, a quick burst of air that has you spinning around to watch him latch the door. 

He’s shaking his head, hair falling in front of his eyes, nose bridge crinkled. 

“What?”

“You’re acting like I’ve never been here before.” He twists the deadbolt and walks over to you, shaking his head one more time before slipping off his shoes and heading into the kitchen. 

“I don’t know, I guess it feels different, somehow, now that …” Neither of you has tried to put a label on this. It’s been weeks, coffee dates squished between hectic work schedules, yawning absences while he chases cases with the team, and one movie night at his place that had you listening to him rant about the inaccuracies of a historical drama you picked out. It’s been lovely, you adore his tendencies to go off on tangents, enjoying simply watching him light up and trip over his own words to get everything out. It feels like he’s racing to say whatever he can before you interrupt him. You never have, something he commented on during your second date. 

“You know you can just tell me to shut up when I go off about stupid stuff like that. Everyone does, I’m used to it, I don’t want to bore you.” “Why would I? It’s not boring or stupid — it’s stuff you care about and I like hearing what you care about.”

“Now that, what?” Spencer asks, settling his back against your counter and resting his hands on the edge behind him. 

He’s still in his work clothes, tie loose, gun at his hip, hair behind his ears. 

One thing you didn’t expect from him? Confidence. You knew he had to be confident in some ways — he’s never doubted his intellectual ability that you could tell — but it only took a short time for him to gain his comfort around you. No longer did he blush and bumble his way through sentences, struggling to meet your eye. Your first kiss actually seemed to clear that up quickly. 

It happened feet away from where you’re standing, outside of your door, after dinner. He reached forward to brush an eyelash on your cheek as you said goodbye, you leaned into his hand and, after a moment and with a burst of adrenaline that fueled your forwardness, you leaned up and toward him, a hand on his arm, and brought your lips to his.  He was hesitant, fingertips brushing your cheekbone, but he came to life as you pulled away to ask him if this was alright, palm meeting your cheek fully and bringing you in for a proper kiss.  Excitement was evident by the way he pressed closer to you, stepping nearer and putting another hand on your waist, locking you in place. Under the excitement was a tenderness you’ve never felt before. He kissed like he wanted to take all the air from your lungs but he held you with the sort of care that made your lungs ache for a reason entirely seperate from the kissing. 

“I don’t know,” you say, chickening out from asking for the hundredth time, going to meet him in the kitchen. 

“Hey,” Spencer says, catching you by the waist and pulling you to come stand near him with one hand on your hip. “Ask,” he says, tucking his chin to grin down at you, nudging your foot with his.

“Why don’t you?”

“I’m afraid to scare you off,” he says with a smile. Behind his eyes, though, you can see the truth in it. 

He called you the morning after your date. Young sunlight caught in your eyes and caused you to squint as you searched for your forgotten phone, spots dancing and dust creating a kaleidoscope as you pressed answer.  “Hello?” you asked, confused. It was Spencer, wishing you a good morning. He went quiet when you asked why he called, if everything was okay.  “Everything is fine, sorry, I didn’t mean to worry you.” “It’s okay, I need to be up soon anyway. Why’d you call, though?” “I just couldn’t get the thought out of my head last night that I must have done something to mess it all up. I wanted to call and make sure I hadn’t.” “You could never, Spencer.”

You know the uncertainty still rears its head, even with the confidence that’s fostered with time. 

“It feels incredibly juvenile,” you say, rolling your eyes and smoothing your hands up his chest to rest on his shoulders. 

“Ask,” he whispers, “I’ll say yes. All you have to do is ask.”

The week after your first date, Spencer showed up at your office, panting, a bag in his hand. You stood up, shocked to see him at the station, and hurried out to meet him in the lobby.  “You said you wanted lunch from the Chinese place down the road because you forgot to pack something,” Spencer said by way of explanation. You had mentioned it, briefly, in a text. “I was just complaining, you didn’t have to spend your lunch break on this,” you said, eyes welling up with tears. You reached forward, ignoring the bags, and pulled him into a hug. “You’re entirely too sweet to me. This was too much.” “Nothing is too much, all you have to do is ask.” 

“When I call back my friend later,” you start, determined to ask while looking in his eyes, drowning as you do it, face heating, “can I tell her my boyfriend came to spend some time with me?”

It’s sort of a cop-out, of course, and Spencer catches it — you’re not directly asking, but he nods anyway, then laughs, leaning forward to kiss you. 

The kiss is messy, he’s laughing and you’re smiling, but you appreciate it all the same. 

“Why are you laughing?” You ask, leaning back and catching another kiss on your nose and then your cheek. 

“There’s a few reasons. I never thought I would have this, for one, and I guess I’m just happy.”

“You guess?”

“I know.”

You wind up in bed. Nothing nefarious, not yet — both of you understand that space to breathe and grow together is much more important and that awkwardness needs to settle into comfortable familiarity before crossing that specific line. 

Spencer drags his finger across your cheek, tracing your bone structure. His other hand is tucked under your side, holding your hip and keeping you close. 

The feeling in your chest is heavy, pressing up into your throat and capturing any words you could dare to think. 

“Are you okay?” Spencer asks, voice a whisper, breath fanning across your face and causing little hairs to prick up across your arms. 

You nod, looking him in the eye and signaling the truth. His nearness wasn’t causing you distress but the unfamiliarity of it is hard to not become consumed by. 

You squeeze your eyes closed, nose scrunching and fight tears. 

“Are you sure?” Spencer asks, voice hesitant, fingers leaving your face and arms pushing to give you space. Space you don’t want. Space that makes your eyes snap open, searching for him, afraid he might waltz off any moment. 

“Yes,” you say, voice certain and hand snapping out to grab him before he can go too far. 

Tears well up in your eyes, against your internal fighting. You huff out an embarrassed laugh, leaning forward to press your forehead into his shoulder. His arms tighten around you, hesitant around your waist and cradling the back of your head. 

“Tell me what’s wrong, please,” he asks, voice soft, begging, an undertone of a demand that you adore. The sense that he would do anything to ensure that you feel better washes over you. It makes the sweetly-sick feeling well up into you further, drowning your senses. 

“Nothing is wrong,” you say, cuddling into him, slipping a foot inbetween his and tangling yourself tighter, “it’s just been a while since I’ve felt … wanted. And I do, now, with you — feel wanted. At least, I hope I am.”

“You are,” Spencer interrupts, reassuring. 

“It’s nice but I don’t really know what to do with it.”

“It?”

“The feeling, I guess.” You shrug. “I suppose touch starved is the right word, but it feels like more than that.”

His grip tightens as your tears come with a faster frequency, to your own annoyance. 

“I’m sorry, this is a really nice moment, I’m beyond happy, I don’t mean to ruin it.” You attempt to pull away to wipe your face but Spencer doesn’t let you. 

“Did you know that some studies show that a lack of connection socially is more detrimental than obesity or smoking? We literally need to feel connected to other people. And that’s just social connection — when left alone without any type of physical connection, specifically physical connection from someone you care about, depression, stress, and physical health can deteriorate. It’s natural to feel overwhelmed when you’re finally getting what you need — what everyone needs.”

“Touch starved,” you whisper, allowing him to hold you tight, relaxing further into his hold.

“Sorry?”

“Touch starved — I’ve heard people call it touch starved.”

Spencers hand moves to stroke your hair, picking up strands and twisting them before smoothing it down again. 

“That feels like an apt term for it.”You fall asleep like that, warm and pressed into his side, listening to him softly tell you about his week, feeling secure and wanted in a way you never have before.

taglist: @0108s22m @bowerfeithwk @screechingphantommaker @cultish-corner @doigettokeepyou @izukuwus

note: i really intended on this being more so please forgive me -- let me know what you think! i welcome constructive criticism as well as any and all thoughts you have!!

now that i've finished this, i might attempt another part to give u guys more but i also am taking requests/thinkin' of new things to write!! more spencer to come, as well as possibly some hotch, so keep an eye out

ily all and tysm for the support <3

[papiliotao]

꒰ 𝒌𝒊𝒔𝒔 𝒎𝒆 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒑𝒐𝒕𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 ✩࿐

pairings: kazuha, scaramouche, and xiao x gn!reader (separate)

content: fluff, actor au, mutual pining, idiots in love (affectionate), kissing

summary: in which you kiss your pretty co-star for a scene of the new drama you’re filming. the twist? he’s head over heels in love with you!

a/n: also, this is very unlikely, but if you’ve seen this before, it’s because i messed up and posted it by accident before editing it one final time.

KAZUHA is a love interest straight out of the most euphoric of dreams and the most fantastical of fairytales. He’s sweet, gentle, and considerate, and each time the cameras start rolling, it almost feels as though nothing has changed. He’s the same charming and thoughtful boy you’ve grown to know and love. The only differences in his demeanor are subtle — hidden in the smallest of actions.

“Are you sure you’re okay with this?” Kazuha asks you as he reads over his lines one last time. “If you have any objections, I can ask someone to revise the script.”

As a renowned actor, Kazuha has a considerable amount of power. If he was more selfish, he would have abused his position. However, he typically never objects to anything the directors tell him to do. He simply follows orders. Unless, of course, you’re uncomfortable with anything.

It’s funny. Whenever Kazuha’s told to do something, he has no complaints. He reminds you of liberating winds — able to blow on and persist in any situation. But when it comes to you, he doesn’t have any problems with telling the director to make subtle changes to scenes.

Somehow he’s even more charming than any love interest in a romance drama could ever be. In fact, working on set with Kazuha already makes you feel like you’re living in a fantasy formed in the mind of a hopeless romantic, so it’s no surprise that you’ve developed a bit of a crush on the sweet boy.

“No, it’s fine,” you answer your co-star. You try to act nonchalant, but in reality, your heart is fluttering like the delicate wings of the iridescent butterflies tickling the pit of your stomach. Every moment with him causes a hurricane of giddiness to well up within you. A kiss scene with Kazuha sounds like a dream come true.

“Alright then. Let’s get started,” the director interrupts your conversation — an exchange he was clearly listening in on. “Places, everyone!”

Both you and Kazuha exchange and glance and then get into position. You enter a house designated for the shooting of your drama while Kazuha stands outside in the warm streetlight. A singular call of “Lights! Camera! Action!” — followed by the beginnings of an artificial storm — are your only cues before the crew begins to film.

The scene starts with the ring of a doorbell. It’s a sound that reverberates in the face of overwhelming silence and melancholy, disturbing the peaceful waters atop an ocean of stillness. The sound summons you to the door, and as you twist and pull on the knob, a shivering figure is revealed. It’s Kazuha.

“Oh, hi,” you say, flawlessly adjusting your tone ever-so-slightly to fit the character you’re portraying. “I didn’t expect to see you today.”

The droplets of rain falling from the false sky are bothersome, but Kazuha covers everything up with a perfect performance.

“Hi,” he whispers breathlessly. His voice is as gentle as ever, and the way he looks at you with eyes overrun with wonder makes your heart flutter. Stars glowing with a light reminiscent of Polaris seem to appear in his irises, beaming at you with adoration that appears just a bit too genuine.

“Why are you here?” you ask him, trying your best to morph your expression into one that conveys disbelief and concern.

“I just… wanted to see you,” the words fall from Kazuha’s lips effortlessly. His tone is warm, a soft blanket wrapping around your heart with the comfort of a thousand spring sunbeams. He’s so incredibly perfect.

“But you didn’t have to show up in the middle of a storm!” you insist.

Kazuha laughs sheepishly.

“I guess I just couldn’t contain myself,” he admits. After a long pause, he speaks again. “To be honest, there’s something I’ve been meaning to say.”

Your breath hitches. Here it comes.

“I’m in love with you,” he finally admits. His crimson eyes burn with a passion that is unmatched, and although they are calmer than aquamarine waters on peaceful summer days, they also hold an intensity akin to the heart of winter’s glacial plagues. Even though his words are scripted, you can’t deny that the beating of your heart begins to pick up.

“You don’t have to say that you love me too,” he adds. “I just wanted you to know.” Kazuha sends a soft smile your way, his features morphing to convey nothing more than pure, everlasting endearment.

You let the silence that follows stretch on for a few seconds before speaking.

“But I do love you.”

Kazuha’s eyes widen, and somehow, his gaze softens even more. For a moment, he stands still, caught in a daze. However, it isn’t long before he recites his next line.

“Then… may I?” he glances at your lips as he speaks, and it’s clear what he means.

You nod. “I want this just as much as you,” you whisper. “I’ve been waiting for this moment for so long.” Your voice comes out choked, trembling like an autumn leaf fluttering amidst inconstant wind. You mean it, but he’ll never know.

With that, he leans towards you. For a moment, all you can think about is him. His pale skin made cold by the rain, irises that appear as beautiful as lakes filled with the most precious of glimmering rubies, hair fashioned from guiding starlight, and a voice softer than the most touching of nature’s fantasias.

And when his lips meet yours, it’s like fireworks go off in the pit of your stomach, illuminating every bit of your soul with a joy that permeates even the darkest of thoughts. He’s sweet, gentle, considerate, and he treats you like you’re the most delicate thing in the world — as if you could break at any moment. Everything feels so incredibly warm despite the fact that his lips have been cooled by the ongoing storm.

He places his hand on your cheek as the kiss deepens and smiles slightly. It almost feels as though his feelings run deeper. But that’s just a delusion you’re forging in your mind because you’ve fallen for him, right?

Perhaps, but as you pull away and the director ends the scene with a loud “Cut!” Kazuha’s face lingers near yours for a few seconds, his eyes scanning your expression for something entirely unknown to you.

“Let’s do this again sometime,” he whispers in your ear, grinning at you cheekily before he quickly leaves, presumably to check in with his management team.

It takes you a minute to break out of the hazy stupor that Kazuha’s kiss induced, but once you do, you realize the implications of his parting words.

He wants to kiss you again!

SCARAMOUCHE acts indifferent. Apathy runs rampant through every constellation within the galaxies that are his eyes, and a permanent scowl seems to be etched onto his face whenever he’s not being filmed. It’s shocking how different he is when the cameras start rolling.

“Let’s get this over with,” Scaramouche mutters under his breath as he walks by you. The two of you take your places, slipping masks of infatuation onto your faces. Except unbeknownst to you, Scaramouche isn’t quite putting up a façade. The director gives you a cue, and then you’re off.

“Please don’t leave,” Scaramouche whispers, his personality and mannerisms changing up in a complete 180. He’s nothing like himself right now, and no matter how much of a jerk he is when you’re not filming, you have to admit that he’s a skilled actor. The way his voice breaks almost makes you believe that his words are sincere. Almost.

“I don’t have a choice,” you say, delivering the lines you have rehearsed too many times to count. You channel every ounce of raw emotion within you to pull off a touching performance, and it seems to be working. The director hasn’t stopped you yet, and he’s a man with rather harsh standards.

A silence ensues. You look up as practiced, meeting Scaramouche’s gaze. In that moment, you almost break character when you see his eyes. They’re watering. Oceans of grief pool up as he stares at you, looking at you as if he’ll never see you again. Right now, the inky depths of his indigo irises appear more captivating than ever.

Something about his pain feels real, as if he’s experienced the heartbreak that comes with abandonment before. It’s almost as though he’s simply tapping into a facet of himself that he hides. And despite the fact that you don’t always get along with Scaramouche, you feel the urge to hug him and shower him in affection.

“Will you come back?” Scaramouche’s gaze turns wistful as he speaks, his entire expression glittering with hints of hope and light.

“I will,” you say under your breath. “I promise.”

You take a step toward him and caress his cheek, relishing in the softness of his skin as you brush your fingers along his jawline. A light pink dusts his cheeks. If you were less professional, you would have imploded upon seeing his blush. The fact that he can elicit such a response on command is awe-inspiring, and plus, he looks incredibly adorable — nothing like the grouchy Scaramouche you’re used to.

With gentle movements, you take his chin in your hand and glance down at his lips with what you hope is a look of unadulterated passion and admiration. “May I?” you whisper. The softness of your voice surprises even you.

Scaramouche hesitates and then nods shyly — a perfect portrayal of the timid character he’s playing. He’s incredible.

Slowly, you inch toward him, watching as he narrows his eyes and parts his lips slightly. He’s so pretty, and in that moment, you can’t help but admire him. Messy strands of hair reminiscent of nightfall adorn his forehead, and his pale skin is tinted with the subtlest hint of colour.

For a second, as his face is hidden from the camera by the back of your head, he reverts to his typical self. He opens his eyes just a little wider, and exchanges a glance with you. A brief hint of emotion flashes through his irises. You’ve been working with him long enough to know what he’s trying to say. Don’t mess this up.

Things move in slow motion. Time stretches from seconds to millennia, and his expression reverts back to the picture-perfect look of a young man who’s innocently falling into the temptation of blissful love.

And when your lips finally connect in a kiss, you are fully immersed in the delusion of the scene. You wholeheartedly believe that he loves you. From your sentiments stems a warm feeling that bubbles up in the pit of your stomach. It’s soft and ticklish, and it only gets stronger as his lips move against yours.

He sighs into the kiss, and when you open your eyes in order to observe his face, you notice that his own eyes are closed, and he seems completely lost in the moment. At this point, it doesn’t even feel like he’s playing a character anymore. It almost feels as though everything is authentic.

However, when you part, reality hits you like the first snowstorms of winter — harsh, biting, and unrelenting in its pursuit. Scaramouche was only playing his part. Although everything had felt genuine, you know that it was just a mask he put on for the screen.

But as you finish up the scene, you fail to notice the way he walks away with a sunset pink blush tinting his cheeks. He touches his fingers to his lips in a daze and smiles the slightest bit.

“What an idiot,” he scoffs under his breath, but no matter how harsh his tone is, he is unable to conceal the hints of underlying affection in his voice. “Just how long will it take them to notice that I’m not acting?”

XIAO is usually extremely professional, and that’s more or less all you can say about him.

On camera, he is able to act as a charismatic, although slightly shy, love interest, but for whatever reason, things with him just feel so much more awkward when you’re not filming. Most of the time, he tries his best to avoid you as if interacting with you is a scenario straight from his nightmares.

And maybe it is, because on the rare occasions where you manage to catch Xiao off guard and strike up a conversation with him, his responses to your questions are always blunt. But it never really feels like he hates you. It just seems that he’s not the best at socializing.

Things between you are rather awkward, despite the fact that you’re co-stars. So when you’re told that you have to kiss each other for an episode of the drama you’re filming, you feel as though your world is ending.

Sure, Xiao is incredibly attractive with his golden eyes, tinted a colour reminiscent of the sweetest honey; seafoam hair that never fails to remind you of the mystifying ocean; and a pair of pink lips that look impossibly soft. He’s tantalizing, and a kiss with him wouldn’t be so bad — if not for the concerns that flood your troubled mind.

But unfortunately for you, there’s no way to retaliate when the director tells you that the shooting of the scene is about to commence. You just have to go with the flow and hope for the best.

As you pass by Xiao on your way to your places, you whisper a soft “good luck” so that only he can hear you. He nods in acknowledgement, and if your eyes aren’t deceiving you, the slightest smile appears on his face.

You sit down at the edge of a grassy cliff and wait. Meanwhile, you hear the sound of Xiao walking to a spot a short distance away from you. You take a deep breath, getting into character and gazing at the dazzling lights and countless galaxies in the night sky above.

Soon enough, the director calls for you to begin, and the atmosphere falls silent. The only sound you can hear within the stillness is the crunching of leaves under Xiao’s feet. You can’t see him, but you know he’s coming up behind you.

And after a few seconds, the sound of footsteps diminishes into nothingness.

“Hey,” Xiao’s voice rings out from behind you.

As scripted, you ignore him and continue looking ahead as if his presence is insignificant. The grass rustles as he sits down beside you, and in the edges of your vision, you can see him directing his gaze towards you.

“Are you alright?” he asks you.

“I’m fine,” you say, trying your best to emulate a tone that conveys nothing but the utmost irritation.

To your surprise, Xiao flinches slightly. That isn’t part of the script.

“What’s wrong? Did I do something to upset you?” he sounds like he’s on the verge of tears as he questions you.

You shake your head. “I said I’m fine.”

Both you and Xiao allow silence fill the atmosphere for a few moments, adding to the dramatic effect of the scene, before speaking again.

“I don’t believe you,” Xiao says, leaning closer to you to examine your expression.

Somehow, you’re able to remain calm despite the fact that the boy who makes you feel a plethora of emotions as numerous as the stars overhead is so close to you. It’s going surprisingly well so far.

And perhaps that is where you jinx yourself because the events that unfold afterwards are disastrous.

“Why do you even care? I thought you didn’t like me!” you scream.

Xiao jolts, and in that moment, the fear, confusion, and utter dismay flashing across his face act as a testament to his acting skills. He’s extremely talented.

Yet again, the night goes silent before Xiao utters, “I do like you — love you, even.” His words are soft, but you’re sure that the production crew managed to pick them up, and that’s all that matters.

Your entire world stops for a moment.

“I do care about you,” Xiao reiterates, “Because I love you.”

Your mind goes blank. Why do his words feel so real?

It takes a few seconds for you to recover from your shock, but when you do, your voice comes out softer than ever.

“I love you too.”

For a few seconds, you look up to meet Xiao’s gaze, losing yourself in the sunkissed dandelion hues of his irises. He smiles at you, and you smile back. His gaze shifts down to your lips.

“Is it okay if I…?” he trails off, and in addition, you swear that you can feel heat radiating off his cheeks. Is he too shy to finish the sentence?

That seems to be the case because for a split second, all he can do is stare at your lips as though he’s frozen in place. You decide to take matters into your own hands and play it off as intentional.

“Yes,” you whisper quietly. “Kiss me.”

With that, Xiao snaps out of his trance and takes both your cheeks in his hands before inching his lips closer and closer towards yours. The fact that the director hasn’t stopped you yet spurs you on because it means that this take is still salvageable.

Time seems to move in slow motion as the distance between you and Xiao closes. But although it feels like it takes forever, it’s only seconds before your lips meet Xiao’s in a gentle kiss that sends butterflies racing through the pit of your stomach.

The warmth of his skin on yours accelerates the beating of your heart, making you feel almost dizzy as the world around you seems to melt into a jumble of nothingness. All that matters at the moment is the two of you.

But unfortunately, you still have a role to play, so after a few moments of absolute bliss, you pull away from Xiao in order to continue on. However, when you do, you see that under the beams of artificial light that spill from around the set, his face is dusted pink.

“How was it?” you ask, grinning at Xiao. You hope and pray to the archons that he won’t mess anything up.

“I — uhm…” Xiao tries to speak, but all that comes out is a stutter. A stunned silence is all that follows. This is bad.

“Cut!” the director yells, breaking through the tranquility of night. “Xiao, what do you have to say for yourself?”

“Sorry,” Xiao mutters, looking down to conceal the last of the blush on his face.

The director sighs. “You know what this means, right? We’ll have to reshoot that scene, and yes, that means you’ll have to kiss [name] again. Can you handle that?”

You feel Xiao tense up slightly, but to your surprise, he looks up at the director and speaks. “I have no objections. I’ll kiss them as many times as it takes to finish this.” He says the words so eagerly. If you didn’t know any better, you’d have thought that he wanted to kiss you more.

Needless to say, the night ends with countless kisses, each one sweeter than the last as exhaustion melts away the ice caging your hearts. And once and for all, your chemistry onscreen becomes undeniably perfect.

Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed this, please consider commenting or reblogging! It helps a lot.

[iateyourparents]

playin fighting with colby

accident | c.b.

pairing: colby brock x fem!reader

summary: you and colby prank your friends.

warnings: faking fights and murder, bad writing and grammar(i’m sorry but english isn’t my first language), not proofread.

an: so past few days i was rewatching old videos on youtube and i got this idea so i kinda changed your request but i hope you like it <33

pictures are from pinterest :)

“Hi guys! Today I’m here with Colby and Allie.” you pointed camera at them “Few days ago I asked y’all on instagram for video ideas that you would like to see and one of them was a prank. Payback prank for the one Jake organized. Allie, would you like to introduce yourself?” you smirked at girl who smiled widely and looked at the camera.

“I’m Allie and I’m a professional make up artist! And today I will be making y/n’s dead!”

You laughed and started talking to your viewers to explain “So yeah, one of your ideas was murdering prank and because Colby and I are hosting pizza night tonight, we thought it would be a great opportunity to do that prank.”

“Exactly! So today I will be the greatest boyfriend alive and I will kill my girlfriend!” you all laughed.

“Alright, it might be kinda confusing so let me explain to you the whole plan.” you smiled at the camera and started explaining your plan step by step.

Soon, when Colby started ordering pizza for later, Allie started working on your fake wound so later she would just glue it to you and add some fake blood. In the meantime you recorded everything so yout viewers could see the whole process of preparing this prank.

“Alright, so Sam, Tara and Jake are already in the elevator so they will be here any minute.” you said to the camera “Me and Colby will act kinda tense so it won’t be weird when we will ‘fight’ suddenly. But now I have to go and hide you but don’t worry, we already set other cameras everywhere so you will see the whole show.” you laughed and started hiding the camera.

Not long later your door was opened and your guests came in and you started the show.

You and Colby tried to act weirdly. You didn’t look at each other and didn’t talk to each other and your friends quickly picked up the unusual behavior.

“Everything good?” Sam frowned looking between you two “You’re acting weird ever since we came. If you don’t feel like pizza night we can reschedule.” he assured seemingly worried.

“Everything’s fine man.” Colby assured him but still didn’t look at you.

“Yeah, we’re okay.” you nodded with small smile and ‘accidentally’ pushed Colby with your shoulder. It was a sign to him that you have to start the actual prank.

“Be careful.” Colby said sternly and you could see weird looks coming from Tara, Jake and Sam. Colby never spoke like that to you so of course it alarmed them.

“Sorry, it was an accident.” you mumbled and Colby snorted.

“Surely.” he also mumbled.

“Are you sure you’re okay guys? Are you fighting right now? Cause I came here for pizza, not for the drama.” Tara rolled her eyes but you could see she was unsure about what’s happening and that worried her.

“Yeah, Colby’s just very moody today.” you faked a smile and Colby ‘glared’ at you.

“Excuse us guys.” Colby smiled at the trio “Continue eating and we will be back in just a minute.” he grabbed your arm gently and ‘dragged’ you to your room where Allie was already preparing everything.

She messed up few things so it looked like someone had broke them in rage and she quickly instructed you to sit still while she was applying the fake gun wound on your forehead and another one on your shoulder. Then she also faked bruises on your neck and wrists.

“They are gonna freak out.” you giggled quietly while Allie was covering Colby, walls, bed and floor in the fake blood. You have to admit, she made a good job in making it look scary. And you also were sure it would be hell to clean it up afterwards.

“That’s the plan.” Colby smiled at you widely and then looked in the direction of camera “Alright, so now Allie will hide in our bathroom and we will fake a fight. We will be shouting and then I will shoot.” he showed fake gun to the camera. It was also covered in fake blood.

“It’s not real gun, don’t worry. It’s a gun that is used in movies. It doesn’t shoot but it have a sound like a real one.” you explained laying on the floor while Allie was preparing sounds of breaking stuff so the broken things in the room would make sense.

“Alright, show must go on so I’m going to the bathroom.” Allie winked at the camera and closed herself in the bathroom with a laptop so she could see everything.

“Alright who starts yelling?” Colby asked kissing your cheek.

“Me.” you decided and started yelling “Are you fucking insane?!”

Colby also started shouting, you two were just fake insulting yourselves and then Allie turned on sounds of throwing things and that was a clue for you to lay down on the floor in a dead pose while Colby prepared himself to give shots.

You could hear your friends going into the direction of your room so Allie turned off the sounds and you started yelling as loud as possible and Colby gave a shot.

It was very loud and you actually got scared for a second. Then he gave another one and your friends quickly ran into the room while you laid still on the floor trying to breathe as quiet as possible.

“What the fuck?!” Tara sounded scared “What did you do Colby?!”

Jake and Sam stared in shock at your body while Tara started crying. Colby just dropped the gun and placed his hands on his face.

“What the fuck did I do?” he then looked at boys “It was an accident, I swear. You know I wouldn’t do that on purpose. You have to help me cover it!”

“What the fuck?!” Jake looked at him with wide eyes “Since when do you even have a gun?! Are you…What the fuck.”

“What did you do Colby?” Sam looked like he was on the verge of tears “It’s your girlfriend!”

“I know! It was an accident, I didn’t want to! I would never hurt her” he promised and well, he was a good actor. He even faked tears.

“But you just did.” Jake was panicking.

“We have to call 911!” Sam suddenly realized.

“No! I can’t go to jail!” Colby shouted.

“You killed her you idiot!” Tara shouted and then Sam quickly ran up to you and crouched next to you.

“Sam, don’t touch her!” Colby acted mad and started walking towards the blonde who was trying to feel the pulse. Jake quickly stopped Colby, holding him while Tara tried to find a phone with shaky hands.

“Shit shit shit.” Sam cursed under his breath and you opened your eyes. Sam jumped back from you with a scream. It caused Tara and Jake to scream too.

“What the hell?!” Sam looked traumatized while you and Colby just started laughing and Allie came out of the bathroom.

“It’s a prank bro!” Colby shouted “A payback for your prank.” he told to all three of them.

“You’re fucking insane.” Tara punched Colby’s arm and ran to you to hug you “I’m so glad you’re alive and Colby isn’t a murderer. I actually wanted to eat that pizza.”

You laughed reciprocating her hug.

“I actually thought we would have to start making content from behind the bars bro.” Sam clapped Colby’s arm.

“What the fuck is wrong with you guys?” Jake snorted while inspecting the fake gun “You will regret that.”

“Sure.” you rolled your eyes “Anyone wants pizza?”

Later when everyone go home, you and Colby were sitting on a couch, cuddling and watching the prank.

“I love Sam’s reaction.” you laughed snuggling into Colby’s arm “He looks like he can’t decide between helping you cover the murder and giving you away to the police.”

Colby also laughed kissing your head.

“I feel like we actually might regret it if they will team up again and prank us.” he said after a moment and you shrugged.

“Then we should look for some more prank ideas.” you kissed his shoulder.

[heartaces]

𝐁𝐀𝐋𝐃𝐔𝐑'𝐒 𝐆𝐀𝐓𝐄 𝟑 𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐒 ASTARION EDITION ⟶ part one

“there is a time and place for violence. i mean - this place is perfect. but is it the time?”

“heaven forbid. we’re all entitled to our secrets.”

“sitting by the fire while you do all the hard work sounds marvelous, actually.”

“couldn’t you wait ten minutes before being an absolute freak?”

“you’re welcome to try and kill me, of course. but i don’t die easily these days.”

“ugh, don’t be so nice to me. it makes me want to be nice back.”

“a horrible death is always just around the corner with you.”

“stabbing someone a dozen times can be many things. but ‘the right thing to do’? hm, i doubt it.”

“immortality is only as good as the life you’re living. an eternity of luxury sounds a lot better than an eternity of struggle.”

“what are you doing? this isn’t safe. you can’t trust him.”

“look, i’m a not a details person, all right. but turning up and causing chaos has worked for us so far.”

“they were clearly artists. you can tell because it’s a mess in here.”

“you know, there is a point where bravery becomes stupidity. and walking into that thing would be very, very stupid.”

“i’ve had enough of bad poets singing of my looks - urgh.”

“is the plant bothering you?”

“until then, try not to die.”

“oh yes, i’m fine. i just feel… awful.”

“shut that oversized chicken up.”

“you know, the only way to cure temptation… is to give in to it.”

“next time, just warn me before you do something stupid.”

“there certainly is a strong ambience down here. i don’t know if it’s the bats or the decaying - everything. it’s quite homey.”

“it’s nice to see heroes are as awful as the rest of us.”

“unusually polite for a god.”

“of all the places you dragged me, this might just be the most foul. and that is saying something, given some of the things you exposed me to.”

“i mean, i hate to judge the proverbial book, but that oath may be all cover and no pages.”

“a shapeshifter? it could be anyone. i mean - it’s not me. but it could be anyone else.”

“sometimes we need to think with our heads before our knifes, dear.”

“you could watch for anyone acting strangely, but - well, you know the lunatics we camp with.”

“thank you. for being that evil bastard.”

“can you feel that? the dark, it’s - hungry. best watch the shadows.”

“this place brings back the worst memories.”

“well, that’s disturbing. still, better than having an actual conversation with him though.”

“oh no. not again.”

“honestly, just once, could we end up somewhere normal?”

“i prefer to travel in smaller groups. it’s more… intimate.”

“nice as it is, she still doesn’t have the best hair in the camp.”

“thank goodness. i was worried i’d have to get involved. now, let’s keep our hands to ourselves.”

“i much prefer it when i’m the one prowling in the shadows - about to strike.”

“ah, nothing says ‘true love’ like faking your own death to avoid someone.”

“you’re not going to eviscerate him? i was hoping for a show.”

“it’s just a waste of a perfectly good cult we could be controlling.”

“can you - ugh, can you shut up and let me read?”

“i hate to be negative. but they’ll carve you up like a goose.”

“my, she sounds positively demented. i love it. let’s tell her everything.”

“you villain. i didn’t know you had it in you.”

“a well-presented face can open a lot of doors.”

“hardly a promising introduction.”

“do you mind? i’m brooding.”

“i’d rather be the only dark power inside your body, if it’s all the same to you.”

“easy now, let’s not do anything hilarious.” 

“i’m with you, my dear. wherever this leads.” 

“i appreciate anyone who opens a conversation with bodily harm.” 

“nothing like a little camp drama to spice up the evening.” 

“it’s almost a pity things ended up amicably.”

“what do you see when you look at me?”

“i would’ve liked more for my trouble than a pat on the head and vinegar for wine.”

“do you have any other chaos you need to unleash here?”

“all i want is a little fun. is that so much to ask?” 

“don’t be so sour. i like a good time as much as anyone.” 

“this seems like a lovely little spot. the sense of impending doom aside.”

[blackbat05]

Unexpected Refuge

Detective! Joaquin x Bookstore Owner! Reader

Plot: Your book store is a place of refuge for those seeking knowledge, and shelter?

Genre: PG-13

A/N: K-drama giving me ideas once again. Also SDCC 2024 announcements?!!! Just blew my mind🤯 Excuse me for the poor execution, really wrote this on a whim. Also realized that Joaquin was a character I wrote before I went into a mental health crisis😂 How time flies~ (Tag update because I am a nuisance: @tom-whore-dleston)

The man pants heavily as he darts into the nearest alley. Shouts of anger and thinly veiled threats were getting closer. He’s proud of his stamina but he can’t keep running away from them. He needs to recover his energy.

But where?

A light shines up ahead and without a second thought, the man races towards what could be his potential temporary safehouse.

Bang!

There were no customers inside. Just plenty of books, and a wide-eyed woman blinking at the hurricane of a man that just stormed her store.

He hurriedly digs into the inside of his coat, showing his credentials.

“I’m so sorry, my name is Joaquin Torres. I’m a Detective and it may sound crazy to you but I’m being chased by a group of Gangsters and I could really use some shelter.” His plea comes out in rapid fire.

The poor woman takes a quick look at his badge and for a brief moment, Joaquin believed that she was going to toss him to the dogs.

“This way.” She leads him further into the store and opens a latch on the floor that leads to storage. “In here!” She commands with urgency.

As soon as Joaquin is safely tucked away, she locks the latch and places stacks of books on top of it. The door flies open and the same Gangsters rowdily burst into the store. Joaquin feels a tinge of guilt. He can’t imagine how her store must be tossed upside down thanks to him.

What he didn’t expect was the woman holding her ground and demanding the Gangsters to leave as they apparently ruined one of her newest books that was just bought in.

“And stay out!” She screeches before flipping the sign to inform customers that they were closed for the day.

“Um…” The woman reverts back into her bashful form that Joaquin was amazed at her acting skills. “They’re gone. You can come out now.” The door opens and she helps Joaquin out.

“Thank you.” Joaquin doesn’t know what else to add. His shoes are suddenly very interesting.

“I thought you were lying about being a cop.” Her voice is soft and gentle, causing the insides of his stomach to do a couple of flips. “I guess not. Those guys were scary.” The tension breaks and Joaquin grins at her becoming flustered at the attention he was giving her.

“You can stay here for a while more. To make sure.” She offers.

Joaquin really wanted to. But if he didn’t get back to the precinct. Sam will have his ass.

“I would love to but my partner’s waiting for me. I should probably go.”

She nods in understanding, “Of course. Be careful.” The two walk to the door and she pops her head out to make sure that the coast was clear. She smelled like berries and vanilla.

“Coast clear, officer.”

He liked the way it sounded on her lips. He didn’t want it to be the last time.

“Um… would you like to have dinner sometime?”

She raises her eyebrows in question and Joaquin hurriedly explains, “It’s not what you think! I just wanted to thank you for today. Really. You saved my life. Not many people do that. I usually do most of the saving- I guess I should shut up now.” He observed her amused expression as he continued to ramble.

“Sure. I know a great steak place.”

***

“Hey Barnes! Torres here has a date! Any tips?” Captain Sam Wilson, loud as ever whenever he felt like heckling his best friends follows Joaquin around like a wart on his foot.

“Leave the man alone, Sam.” James Barnes gives him the middle finger. Cool blues turning to Joaquin, “Just be yourself. Everything will be fine.”

Yeah, not exactly reassuring either.

The old fashioned way it is.

Joaquin finds himself standing in front of your bookstore with a bouquet of roses in his hand. He catches your eye and you give him a sign to give you a couple more minutes as you cleaned and locked up the place for the night.

“Thanks for waiting!” You rushed out in sunflower colored dress, looking radiant. He swears his heart thumped loudly against his chest. “I was surprised to get your call.”

“Well, I made a promise.” Joaquin leads the way to the Steak Restaurant where you had the absolute time of your life chatting with the boyish detective in front of you.

“Oh my god! That really happened?” You laughed, tears forming in your eyes. “It seems to be like a recurring thing going on in your team.”

The two of you headed down the street after that sumptuous meal. Your hair is tousled all over the place and you feel like you’ve just ate a whole cow, but Joaquin doesn’t take his attention of you for a second.

As he recounts another mishap during a undercover mission with Sam, a wolf whistle rings through the air and a figure, no- three of them appear from the dark alley, each looking more menacing then the other.

Joaquin’s mind kicks into overdrive instantly and feels you tense up against beside him. He instinctively moves forward to shield you from them. But they’re not blind.

“Look who we found… Detective Joaquin Torres and oh! I see you got company.” The middle one leers at you and Joaquin has the urge to punch it off his face. You give his hand a squeeze, as if to reassure him to do whatever he needs to do to get these suckers.

As quickly and quietly as possible, you take out your pepper spray and ball your fist to conceal it from them.

“How is it that you three assholes show up at the most inconvenient timing?” Joaquin distracts them.

They smirk at each other and Joaquin lunges forward to take the middle and left man onto the ground, leaving the last as easy prey for you to pepper spray him to your heart’s content.

What you didn’t expect was the man to wildly brandish a pocket knife, nicking you in the process as he swings it around.

“Ah!” You hissed loudly, clutching your left hand. Joaquin immediately turns his attention to you and swiftly takes the third man down with ease.

He dials in a number and police cars arrive in no time to take the men away. Joaquin jogs over to you while a uniformed policewoman helps to bandage your hand.

“Let me.” He smiles and thanks his colleague for the efforts and works on finishing the job in silence. You can’t read minds, but you could guess.

“Hey, it’s not your fault.” You reassure him.

Joaquin doesn’t say anything. He lets out a small exhale. So you try again.

“In fact, I feel pretty badass. Don’t you think?” You gently pry your hand away and show him your now bandaged hand proudly, grinning from ear to ear.

“Torres!”

The Captain jogs over, giving a pat on his back. “Came as quickly as I could. Everything alright?”

“Yeah. Thanks Sam.” Joaquin reassures. Sam nods, his gaze falling onto you.

“This is the girl you couldn’t stop talking about?”

“Ok, Sam. Stop.” Joaquin pleads, trying to push him as far away from you without much success.

“He was asking me how to impress you! Hey? I didn’t get your name though!” Sam yells over his shoulder, making you laugh at their antics.

“Y/N! I’ll see you around Sam!”

“Oooh I like her already, don’t fuck up Torres.”

“Leave!” Joaquin has to push Sam into the car and makes his way back to you, looking sheepish.

“Sorry, about that. Sam can’t seem to keep his mouth shut.”

A pocket of silence fills the air and you have to know.

“You were trying to impress me?”

Joaquin blinks. He momentarily opens his mouth and comically looks like a fish out of water. “Did it work?”

“Well…” You pretend to tap your chin carefully and Joaquin squirms in his shoes a little. “You impressed me the moment you came bursting into my store seeking for shelter.”

You laugh at Joaquin’s groan. “Not the answer that I was expecting.”

You give him a peck on the cheek and Joaquin momentarily freezes. “Is that a better answer?”

He holds his hand to the cheek that you just left a kiss on. For a moment, you’re scared that you’ve fried Joaquin’s internal circuits to respond coherently. But he breaks into a foolishly but adorably big smile.

Joaquin holds you by the waist and brings you closer to him and gives you a kiss of his own that leaves you spinning senseless.

“One hundred percent.”

[utilitycaster]

Assuming Laudna will open up to Imogen about killing Bor’dor/Delilah possibly still lingering, I wonder if it will cause friction between them. I don’t know why it would but maybe I just want drama between them to make them interesting to me lol. Anyway, It is gonna be interesting to see how the bells interacts after this cause they all have had some growth and regression. You know what I mean? 

So I agree that the reunion is going to be really interesting. While I actually think the parties are on roughly the same page (though Imogen and Laudna might not be; Imogen is still kind of a lone holdout on "but what if I don't care about the gods") they did have wildly different experiences, and I do love drama.

Here's my opinion: I don't actually think Team Issylra regressed. I think there's a very common false equivalence of violence=regression that pops up in the fandom, and I think it's 100% wrong given the setting and genre conventions.

I'm reminded actually of a lot of discussion about the Ted Lasso finale a few weeks ago - there's a good post here, the gist of which is that sometimes a part of recovery is looking less happy. Laudna's entire deal is that she compartmentalizes and suppresses and tells herself it's all uphill from here. Orym has heard multiple people - people who like him, even, who'd consider him a friend or ally - openly say the group that murdered his husband and father-in-law who was basically a father to him and who used his leader (whom he's sworn to protect and who said husband and father-in-law died protecting) as nothing more than bait might have some good points, and he's mostly kept quiet. Even Ashton, who has been in somewhat better shape this arc, believed himself to be undeserving of anything good.

So yeah, Laudna might possibly have reawakened Delilah, but she's actually letting herself experience some emotions and talk about them. It's a pretty major step forward that she's spent so much time admitting to anger and fear, and her feelings about betrayal, and crying on Ashton's shoulder instead of constantly pretending everything is totally fine so that she can be the shoulder to Imogen. Orym's moment with the locket is not, to me, an act of cruelty. It's him saying "why do I keep trying to understand and sparing the feelings of people who never once gave me that grace, and who will use me or murder me without a second thought?" And while Ashton isn't immediately running to Hishari right now because, understandably, they are prioritizing the reunion and stopping the Vanguard, their moment about realizing this is anger and the past was self-pity feels like a breakthrough. He's confronting that past (speaking of false equivalences, there's a similarly common one of "choosing to go along with the main party-wide plot instead of one's own specific hooks=avoidance") and is letting himself whole-heartedly support the party after spending years refusing to have friends because friends leave.

Team Issylra is in the messy part of growth, but they've grown immensely, and that's actually the biggest thing I want to see Team Wildemount respond to.

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for ignoring a childhood friend?

This happened a while ago, but I still think about it pretty often.

I used to have a friend, let’s call her Ally. Ally and I shared one thing in common — we were the weird kids. We used to sit at a lunch table by ourselves and bitch about how mean the popular kids were. A little cringey, but hey, we were in middle school, what are you gonna do?

Our friendship suddenly cut off because, after she asked why she had such a hard time making friends, I suggested, “Well, you are kind of sensitive.” This caused a massive rift between us. This would be fine, since I had already made some better (though only slightly) friends. But she somehow convinced the staff that we were actively fighting, which we weren’t. I was mostly just avoiding her. This meant, a couple of times, I was called out of class just so that we could sit in the counselor’s office to “make up”. She also believed, even when we got older, that I should “protect” her from her bullies, even though 1) I never saw her get bullied, and 2) that shouldn’t necessarily be my responsibility, especially after we weren’t friends anymore.

But that was in middle school. People change. And she did, sort of. We obviously grew apart, and because of that, I thought she matured, since I wasn’t around her as much. We started becoming more friendly in high school. My friend group even included her during lunch, and she seemed to move past her petty stage.

Without going into too much detail, another classmate called someone in my friend group and said she was going to really hurt herself. When my friend called 911, this classmate was furious when she got sent to the hospital. Ally was friends with her, so this caused some high school drama. Ally took the classmate’s side, because she believed because of their mental illness and her attempt, that it didn’t matter how my other friend felt.

Ally only got more and more immature from there. Slamming her books together and stomping out the door during an argument at lunch, rolling her eyes and making a face every time she walked past me in the hallway, and generally being nasty to me and my friends. Luckily, I didn’t get the brunt of it, but my other friends sure did.

We tried going to the office about it, but they said because of her disability, they didn’t want to get involved, and suggested we just “ignore it”. So we did. And, eventually, everything blew over, as high school drama does. Even if it drains everyone of every last bit of energy we have before it does.

The next year, she starts trying to rebuild our relationship, which I don’t want to do. She starts constantly texting me (I don’t know why I didn’t just block her number), asking me why we can’t be friends again. She gets me Christmas gifts, then uses them against me during an argument. I keep telling her why over and over, how awful she acted a year before, how you can’t force people to be your friend, how her personality and constantly playing the victim made her difficult to be around. She kept making a face in the hallway, talked about me behind my back (or so I heard), and yet she wanted to kiss and make up.

Junior year, things went quiet again. We didn’t like each other, but we were civil. I had stopped responding to her texts, and she had stopped pestering me. She was gone for a while due to a surgery, and I didn’t see her again after that.

Then, suddenly, COVID happened.

Over online learning, I got a few texts from her about my desk set-up, like what kind of plant I had next to me, what was my stuffed animal’s name, stuff like that. I decided to be nice, and responded, but ignored every subsequent response, and she didn’t try again.

I didn’t hear from her again until my freshman year of college (I’m a junior now). From a new number, she asked me how I was, what I was doing, normal fare. Instead of responding normally, I sent her a response in Japanese, since I was learning it at the time. I pretended this was a new number, and that I had no idea who she was talking about. She bought it, and I blocked the number.

I know that she could have changed, and maybe she was trying to reach out. But, considering how awful she was, and the kind of people she surrounded herself with, I don’t know if she could ever change enough to make up for how she’s acted.

Should I have given her a chance? I can’t now, of course, but maybe I could make an effort to find her if you think I should?

What are these acronyms?

[skzhua]

my treat ('my eyes' series)

♡ "Just one bite."

pairing: lee felix x reader.

genre: fluff, fluff, fluff (did i mention fluff?).

word count: 7,698

warnings: swearing, might cause a heart attack of cuteness.

summary: brownie boy was a myth for you. since the first day you had stepped on the campus, everybody would be praising brownie boy. you could not believe that a grown man was kind enough to be giving out free food, good food. when brownie boy heard about your suspicions, he was more than willing to prove you wrong.

SERIES MASTERLIST

Hyunjin tugged on your shirt once more and kept on pouting like a child. For being the big brother, he surely wasn't acting like one.

"I'm not helping you bring your luggage, gosh." you said for the nth time.

"Please, I can't make a fool of myself in front of Byeol, again." he tugged one more time. "Last year was a mess when I moved in, I wanted to die."

"I know, you told me this already." you rolled your eyes. "I've heard you're popular there, why are you being such a baby?"

"People think I'm good-looking, that's all. I swear I'm a loser."

You chuckled. "I didn't need you to confirm it."

He pouted. "Mean..."

"Hyune, I'm the one starting in a new college, so I should be the one stressing out." you pointed out. "Are you going to give me a tour later, or not?"

He pondered for a moment as he stared at his luggage. He knew he shouldn't be this dramatic but, between the two, you were definitely the sibling who succeeded in everything. Yes, he did worry about your arrival in his school, but he knew you would fit in just fine. You had decided to transfer school mid year since you didn't like the all-girls kind of vibe there was in your old one. The drama was intense, and because you were among the prettiest according to the other students, you were both praised and bullied. Having your brother around would definitely be of help, plus the fact it wouldn't be only girls going there.

"Sure, I suppose I can." he said nonchalantly. "Only if you help me bring my stuff today."

Being the good sister you were, you were driving Hyunjin to his apartment as your trunk was loaded with bags. You had already moved most of your things to your own place, and it didn't surprise you that Hyunjin was doing everything last minute. He struggled to bring all of his things with him and you mocked him as he dragged a bag behind him. Exhausted, he threw himself on his couch, exhaling a loud grunt.

"So? The tour?" you poked his cheek.

"Later." he mumbled into his pillow.

"Dude, school starts tomorrow and I want to be able to find my classroom, thank you." you pleaded.

"Ugh, fine." he groaned as he lazily got up from the couch.

You happily followed him as he opened his front door. You were suddenly stopped when Hyunjin didn't move, making you bump into his back. The impact made him stumble on his feet and he fell in the hallway. You were about to nag at him for being so clumsy, until you saw Byeol, his long-time crush. She laughed at the man and gave him a hand to help him get up, making your brother as red as blood.

"Be careful." she laughed.

"Yeah.. um... Thank you." Hyunjin coughed out while the girl went back into her own apartment.

As he kept his gaze on where she was standing seconds ago, you grew impatient with him and slapped the back of his head before walking towards the elevator. When the doors slid closed, you took the opportunity to slap his arm again, repeatedly.

"Ow! Y/N, the fuck!" he grunted in pain as he rubbed the spot you had hit.

"You're the dumbest person I know, for real." you rolled your eyes. "Why can't you speak to the girl normally?"

"I get nervous." he chuckled in shame, which earned him another hit. "What the hell?"

"Idiot." you muttered under your breath.

Hyunjin was surprisingly a decent tour guide. He showed you the common areas of the campus like the cafeteria and the library. You were intimidated by the size of the school, but Hyunjin reassured you that you would most likely stay in the same wing since they were all attributed certain departments. He ended the visit by showing you the dance studios. There, you met his friend, Minho, who was already practicing. You both sat on the couch in the corner of the room to watch him dance along the music. Not going to lie, you were more than amazed by his technicality and fluidity. You had thought about joining the dance club and Hyunjin had even told you he could get you a spot in no time. However, you deeply believed you should prove yourself instead of relying on your brother.

As Minho finished, he walked towards you, greeting Hyunjin before he sent you a sly smirk. "Hey there." he winked.

Your brother stood up right away and put his hand to stop Minho from approaching you any closer. "That's my sister, Min." he said sternly.

"Ah, Y/N?" he cocked his head on the side, still looking at you, as you nodded to confirm. "I heard you wanted to join the group. Auditions are next week if you are still interested."

"That'd be wonderful, of course I'll come." you squealed.

"Good, I'll post the information on our Instagram page, so you can go ahead and follow us."

You thanked him and he was quick to drop the talk and ask Hyunjin about his holidays. In the meantime, you took a look around the studio and were impressed at how clean and organized it was. You noticed on the table a tupperware full of brownies. While you did think it was odd, you didn't question Minho about it. The boys eventually ended their conversation and Hyunjin brought you to the courtyard.

"It's not much since we're still in winter, but it's very pretty in the summer." he said as he breathed in the fresh air. "I think I covered everything. Down for a snack?"

"Why not." you shrugged and followed him as he lead the way to the convenience store.

Minho frowned as he counted the people in the studio, again. Someone was missing. He sighed loudly as he passed his hand through his hair.

"Has anyone seen Yongbok?"

You looked at the other dancers who were doing the same as you before telling Minho they haven't seen him. He sighed once more before deciding he'll start the auditions without his second dance captain, the other one being Hyunjin.

"Alright, I want to see how good you are at both dancing and freestyling. I'll put some music and we can gather into a circle." he explained. "One by one, you'll show us what you can do. You'll know by the end of the day if I selected you or not. Shall we start now?"

Just as he had previously instructed, you gathered in a circle and, one by one, you danced for a some time, enough for Minho to take some notes. His expression was blank so it was hard to determine if he was pleased with what he was seeing or disappointed. The whole thing didn't last more than 20 minutes, and you were quickly dismissed.

"We have some brownies from yesterday if you want to take one before leaving. I'll reach out to you by tonight if you are picked." Minho concluded.

You walked to Hyunjin who was happily clapping his hands as a some sort of congratulations. "You did good."

"Good? Come on, now. I was amazing." you confidently affirmed.

Just then, you felt a tap on your shoulder. When you turned around, one of the guys who were auditioning was shyly smiling at you.

"Hey, I'm Junsoo. I thought you were great just then, and I was wondering if you are free this afternoon. Sorry, I just think you're very pretty." the man said, looking at you with hope.

"Oh... I'm flattered, I really am, but I'm not looking for a relationship." you said with an apologetic smile.

"It can be casual." he prompted, and it only caused Hyunjin to let out a laugh.

You nudged him for mocking the poor guy, but it didn't stop him from interfering. "I don't think she's interested."

Junsoo stared at the both of you for a moment, and he then gasped as a realization hit him. "Oh my god! You're already with him, I'm so sorry." he bowed his head, panicked.

In a hurry, he joined back his friend to leave the room, taking one last shy glance at you before the door behind him closed.

"Uh, I never even had this option in mind to scare people off from you." your brother said as he squinted his eyes in thinking.

"Don't even... People are not dumb enough. They'll realize we are siblings within days." you grunted, and went to the table at the back where you had left your water bottle.

A few girls were already surrounding the table and they were giggling about something. One plopped a brownie in her mouth and was almost moaning at the taste. Her friends were no better as they were squealing.

"Um, sorry, I left my bottle here." you made your way through the group.

"You're Y/N, right? Hyunjin's sister." a girl asked, to which you nodded. "Can you introduce me to him?"

"No."

"Y/N, you should try these!" another said and you saw her holding a brownie to you.

"Sorry, I'm not very hungry." you waved your hand as a no.

The girls all gasped at your refusal. "Do you even know who made these?"

"No..." you trailed off, rather uncomfortable from their reaction.

"Brownie boy!" a girl said dreamily.

"Ah, well I'm sorry to this brownie boy, but I'm not in for a treat right now." you said and left to go back to the boys.

"You good?" Hyunjin questioned, noticing you were a bit off.

"Yeah, those girls are... weird. Let's just go." you pushed him out of the studio.

Unlike what you had thought, those girls were not so different from the other students. As the weeks passed, things were being said more and more, spreading throughout the campus like a virus. Seemingly, brownie boy was this psychology major who liked to bake pastries for the other students. Apparently, his desserts were far better than the ones you could get at the cafeteria. And the best out of this was that they were free. First arrived, first served.

It sounded wrong to you. First of all, what kind of student had the time to bake while studying? You were barely managing your studies and the dance club. Second of all, you did not believe one bit they were that good, mostly because the majority of his clients were girls who claimed he was the prettiest man they have ever seen. And third of all, there was no way he was doing this without making any profits out of it.

"Alright." Minho clapped his hands. "I see Yongbok still has not shown up since the beginning of the semester. Anyone knows where he's at?" he said, frustration heard in his tone. Seeing that nobody was answering, he sighed loudly. "I'll really have to talk to him... Anyway, today we won't do much since I have plans, I can't be here for the entire hour. I just want to revise some moves we learnt last week."

Practice went on as usual, with Hyunjin sweating like crazy making girls fawn at how attractive he looked (though you did not understand how they even thought he was hot while being damped) and Minho was the usual strict instructor. When you were done, he summarized what you would do for the next practice and he dismissed you all. Once again, there was a tupperware on the table, full of cookies this time. You had never seen the guy drop off his food that you were starting to think he didn't exist.

"I'm going to Chan's tonight, you two coming?" Minho asked as he came to you and Hyunjin.

"I need to finish this painting for class, sorry." Hyunjin answered.

"Yeah, and I don't know Chan so well, I'll have to pass." you replied in your turn.

As the three of you walked out of the room, you went your separate ways since you still had one evening class before you could go home. Arriving at your locker, you noticed a man there, struggling to open your lock. He cursed a few words as he was starting to get impatient.

"Excuse me?" you tapped his shoulder and he jumped a little, not having noticed you were there. "This is my locker."

He looked at the number and gasped, feeling guilty. "Gosh, I'm so sorry! Mine is actually next to yours." he explained as he moved to his own locker. Meanwhile, you were taken aback by how deep his voice was and by how it did not match his freckled face at all.

"It's okay." you smiled as you both went to open your own.

While you put your dance bag away and took your books, you glanced at the interior of his locker. He didn't have much, but one thing caught your attention. A certain recognizable tupperware filled with even more recognizable cookies.

"Are you a fan of brownie boy or something?" you joked while packing your bag.

He chuckled. "Actually, I'm the one you would call brownie boy..." he embarrassingly admitted.

You stopped your action and slowly turned to look at him. You blinked a few before you laughed. "No way."

"I swear I am!" he pouted. "Do you want one?" he offered as he went to open the tupperware.

"No thanks, I'm fine." you continued to laugh. "Sorry, I just can't wrap my head around you baking to give it all away to people."

"I just like making people smile." he shrugged.

"I see..." you mumbled. "Why brownies?"

"Why not!" he smiled widely, his eyes almost closing. "I don't know, they're tasty and soft. It's comforting food."

"I guess so..."

He opened his phone to check the time, and then closed his locker. "I have to go now. Tell me whenever you want to taste my food, I'll gladly make a batch just for you." he winked, and then left.

Watching him walk away, you huffed as you were still taken aback from your interaction. Surely, he was a pretty boy, but was he as good as he claimed? You remained unconvinced.

The sound of your phone interrupted your thoughts, and you looked at your notifications quickly.

Hyunjin: I'm stuck outside my place... again.

Y/N: Can you stop stealing my keys?!

Y/N: I'll skip class to save your ass, I'll be there in 15 minutes.

Hyunjin: You're the best!

Y/N: I know, you're lucky to have me.

The next day, you met Felix again, in the hallway this time. Although you two were locker neighbours, you had never interacted before which Felix found unfortunate. Unlike you, he had seen you around before. How could he have not noticed you when you were the talk of the school? Hyunjin's sister, even prettier than the good-looking art major. He would never tell this to his friend, but he did think you were the prettiest girl he had ever laid eyes on. He never dared to talk to you, but that didn't stop him from talking about you. Being friends with Byeol, he had repeatedly heard about you from her. She had met you a few times because of your brother, so he took the opportunity to ask what kind of person you were. She mostly told him you would constantly nag at Hyunjin which he thought was hilarious.

So when he saw you again, he didn't lose the opportunity to talk with you. He wasn't intrigued much because you were that pretty girl anymore, no. He was intrigued by how unimpressed you seemed to be about his cooking skills. While he had amazed everyone, you were the first to refuse his snack when he offered.

"Y/N!" he exclaimed the moment he spotted you.

As for you, you frowned when you saw he was the one calling you. Did you tell him your name unknowingly the previous day? You couldn't recall doing so, nor did you know his name.

"Hey, brownie boy." you nodded your head at him as he caught up to you to walk with you. "How do you know my name?"

"Ah, sorry. I'm Hyunjin's friend, actually. My name is Felix." he held out his hand and you shook it.

"I don't remember him mentioning you."

"I haven't hung out with him much these days, that must be why. Anyway, where are you going?"

His friendly attitude was quite strange to you. Never in your life had you met someone so happy and sweet. You were weirded out, but in a good way.

"I wanted to stop by at the dance studio to check the schedule. Do you want to go with me?"

He happily nodded, his hair bouncing with the movement. It was cute, if you were being honest. "I have to drop cupcakes, anyway."

You stared at him in shock. "You made cupcakes?"

"Yeah, yesterday."

"How the fuck do you make so much food?" you said, baffled.

"I like it." he simply answered before linking his arm with yours, which only made you even more shocked. "Let's go."

Felix was leading the way since you could not focus properly. Your eyes were set on your arms, entangled together as if you had known each other for years. Or worse, as if you were a couple. You didn't mind necessarily, minus the fact your heart was pounding in nervousness. Felix didn't seem bothered, and he kept rambling about some random things. He complained about his teachers and his friend who had started the whole brownie boy story which explained how he became somehow famous. He also took the time to ask you about yourself, though your answers were brief since your focus was on something else. The walk to the studio had seemed longer than it actually was, but you had finally reached it. You went in and spotted Minho immediately. You walked to him while Felix took the box full of cakes out of his bag.

"Hey, Min. Do you have the schedule for next week?" you asked the man as he was scrolling through his music on his phone.

"Next week is my week off, so no practice."

You had forgotten the school had been paying Minho to instruct the club. Not that he wouldn't do it without the money, but it did motivate him to run the entire club and do his studies simultaneously. He took his eyes off his screen and then spotted your new friend. His gaze immediately turned hard and he put his phone away to go to Felix. Confused, you called out for Minho, but he ignored you, still heading straight to the young boy.

"Yah! Lee Yongbok!" he grunted furiously.

Yongbok. So this was the dance captain who kept on skipping practice...

"Hey..." Felix waved, clearly nervous.

"It's not by leaving us food that you'll get away from this conversation so easily. Where the hell have you been? Hyunjin and I can't do everything alone, we actually need you." Minho nagged.

"I know, I know! I swear I don't mean to skip practice, but there is always something coming up. Seungmin has been asking me to replace him for his shifts at the café and you know I can't say no..."

The older man shut his eyes, and you could almost see the smoke coming out of his ears. "I really don't want to kick you out, and I should have already, but if you keep missing-"

"I won't!" he cut him off. "I promise."

Still not convinced, Minho glared at Felix one last time, and went back to the speaker to pick a song to dance to. You had watched the scene in silence and you coughed in awkwardness.

"You have two names?"

Felix grunted, discouraged. "Yeah, don't question it much."

With that, he left the room and for some reason, you followed him. "Where are you going?"

"My day is done, I'm going to bake something and watch something." It wasn't intended, but you scoffed, loudly. "What is it?"

Searching for your words, you didn't know how to tell him you found this whole baking thing ridiculous without hurting him. "I don't know why you do this." was the best you came up with.

"I told you yesterday, I like making people happy. What's wrong with that?" he started to get defensive.

"No, don't get me wrong. I'm not judging, but you realize you're like wasting time with this? And you get nothing out of this but happiness? I just don't get it." you said in all honesty.

He stopped walking and turned to you, a frown on his face. "Have you even tried my brownies?" You shook your head. "I'm 100% sure you'll change your mind and be glad I do this once you taste them."

"Felix, I'm very picky with what I eat, especially when it comes to desserts. I doubt they are that wonderful, no offense."

He grinned. "None taken because I'll make you eat some one day whether you like it or not."

"So never? Good." you snickered, but Felix answered back by grabbing your hand and dragging you somewhere. "Felix, the fuck?"

"Do you have school still?"

"No, my day's over, why?"

"You're coming to my place and you're going to eat those brownies. And you will love them." he smiled confidently.

He ignored your incoherent protests and still had a firm grip on your hand. Giving up on trying to change his mind, you looked at your hands intertwined together and noticed how small his were. What was not cute about this man? After walking for a while, you arrived at his dorm. He hurried you inside and you were welcomed by a plate full of the cupcakes, the same he had brought to school that day. You assumed it was his leftovers. They looked delicious, yes, but you were not going to assume just by the look of them.

"Serve yourself." he prompted, but you didn't budge.

He waited for you to move and yet, you were still standing at his entrance. He ended up picking up the plate and bringing it to you. He held it up to you and, with a smile, you refused to eat one. To this, he pouted. He seemed like a pouty person and it was adorable.

"Please..." he pleaded. "Just one bite."

He took one cupcake and offered it to you. At that point, you just couldn't say no. Hesitantly, you took it from him and slowly bit on the food. As you chewed, you were met with an explosion of flavours. While they were intense, they were surprisingly insanely good. Needless to say, you were beyond impressed.

"They're fine, I guess." you lied and his smile dropped.

"Fine? They're fine?"

You felt bad and wanted to tell him the truth, but thinking again, you had an idea. You could not give him the satisfaction of being right. Plus, if this means he'll try to make you like his baked goods by making more, you weren't going to complain. Food is food, after all.

"Yeah, they are fine. I still doubt you made them yourself, though."

In doubt, Felix took one himself to eat and stared at nothing as he munched, proceeding the taste. They were excellent as usual, why weren't you happy with them?

"Do you have a preference for something else? Cupcakes might not be your favourite."

"It's not that, I just don't see how they're so special."

Felix paused a moment. He wasn't sure if you were messing with him, but if you were, you were good because it worked. He wouldn't force anyone to like his food, but you were different for some reason. He just knew he had to prove himself. Why? He wasn't sure why he needed your approval, but he was determined to get it.

"I'll make another type of pastries and you'll let me know if they're good?" he suggested.

"Sure." you acquiesced.

He invited you to sit at the counter and he started to pull out the ingredients. You observed him as he laid out the bowls in front of him, and it was quite attractive how he frowned in concentration and rolled up his sleeves. His forearms were surprisingly veiny, and his muscles flexing as he moved his things around were also something you noticed. Realizing you were literally checking him out, you quickly spoke to snap yourself out of it.

"When did you start baking?"

"Hmm." he thought for a moment. "A few years ago. I don't know why, but I find it satisfying. I don't think about anything else, and the fact I get rewarded with food in the end is a plus."

"Fun." You looked around the place in the meantime. There wasn't much, but it was cozy. "Do you have this place alone?"

He shook his head. "No, there's my roommate Seungmin. He's more often at the coffee shop where we work than at home, though recently he asks me to replace him a lot. I think he's escaping a girl or something."

You laughed, imagining a grown man scared of a girl. "People tend to escape what they like. Maybe that's just the beginning of somethig nice."

He huffed as he placed the flour back in the cabinet. "I doubt it. Seungmin is not so fond of relationships."

"Are you?"

To that, he sent you a knowing smirk. "You curious?"

"I'm just making the conversation." you held your hands up in defense.

"Sure you are." he still grinned.

He focused back on his recipe after you connected your phone to his speaker to play some music. You offered yourself to help but he refused, saying it would ruin the cookies. You found it odd how easy going it was with him despite having met him the day prior. He brought such a warmth and it wasn't difficult to take a liking to him. Most importantly, you were quite mad at Hyunjin for never introducing you to the sweet man.

"How did you meet Hyunjin?" you asked while he put away the tray in the oven.

"Dance club. I thought he was mean at first, but turns out he's only a tall good-looking dumbass." he chuckled.

"That, he is." you laughed with him. "But you're the same year as him?"

"Second year." he corrected. "Same as Seungmin and our friend, Jisung."

"I know him! He lives in the same building as Hyunjin."

Your conversation was cut when the front door opened and, presumably, Seungmin walked in. He looked at you suspiciously, but then smelled the cookies.

"Again?" he said to Felix.

"It's your favourites, don't complain." he rolled his eyes at him.

"What is Hwang Y/N doing in our dorm?" Seungmin asked as if you were not in the room.

"She's here so I can prove to her how good of a baker I am." he said proudly.

"She would love to see us bake together then." he chuckled, but Felix glared at him. "Fine, I'll be in my room."

He left the two of you alone, and you continued to chat with Felix. You didn't see the time pass until the oven's timer rang, indicating that the cookies were ready. Felix got them out and displayed them beautifully on a plate. Then, he opened a drawer full of tupperware boxes and filled three of them. For the last one, he brought it in front of you.

"You can bring them home."

"That's very kind, but I don't think I'll eat the whole box." It was a lie, you knew in advance you would devour it completely by the end of the day.

"Bet."

Putting the box in your hands, he came incredibly close to you. He wasn't a tall guy, but tall enough so he was hovering you. You felt small, but it was somehow comforting. You didn't dare to move, afraid to ruin the moment. You studied his freckles, his soft eyes and the pink of his lips. There was no denying he was good-looking, a hundred times more than your brother you would say.

"Can I have your number? I'd like to do this again with you." he said softly.

He gave you his phone and you entered your phone number. "I should go home, it's late." you said sadly as you gave him back his device.

"Yeah, it might be a good idea." he rubbed the back of his neck. "Tell me about the cookies, yeah?"

"Will do, brownie boy."

The day after, Hyunjin had texted you to tell you that Felix asked him for help to get you to like his pastries. You were touched at how he had to reach out to your brother only to please you. However, he didn't have to do anything since you already thought he was talented. But you lied again, and said they weren't so good. So the week after, he invited you over again to make some cinnamon rolls. This time, though, you had finally admitted how good of a baker he was.

However, it wouldn't be the last time you went over at Felix's to watch him cook, until you actually started to bake with him. The last time you went, he had explained to you each step to make brownies. You had listened attentively and tried your best to be as precise as possible. You could say this moment had pretty much confirmed how close you had become. You had played with flour, which made a mess in the apartment, and you stayed at his place until very late that night, cuddled up to him as you took a little nap. You had learnt quickly he liked physical contact as his way to show he cares for someone, but since he was also chasing Minho around for hugs during practice, you didn't see it as more than friendship. Plus, you were as much of a hugger as he was.

One day, you were in the courtyard reading your book for your class when Byeol came up to you. Removing your earphones, you invited her to sit with you.

"I heard about my brother offering you to live with him." you said with a knowing look, and the girl blushed.

"Yeah, I'm moving in tomorrow, actually. Hyunjin told me he'll skip class to help me out." she let out a laugh.

"I have the afternoon off if you'd like me to stop by." you suggested, though you were pretty sure she would want to be alone with your brother.

"No, it's okay. I have Felix helping me too, so I think I'll be fine. Thank you, though."

One more thing you had learnt about Byeol was that Felix shared everything with her since she didn't talk to many people and he couldn't keep his mouth shut about his own secrets. It was as if she was his personal diary. Since learning this, you became a bit closer with her, in hopes she would know if the guy was as interested in you as you were in him.

"Felix? Can I come, then?"

"Y/N..."

"Please, Byeol. I only see him when baking and dancing, it'd be good to do something else with him."

She eventually agreed and that's how you found yourself in her now-old room with Felix, trying to move her bed out to Hyunjin's place. Though Felix did have a certain amount of muscles, his strength did not correspond to it. To your surprise, you were the one who was able to push the bed further. Giggling as you both mocked him for his lack of endurance, Byeol had nagged you for not actually helping her. In the end, you managed to move the bed and she told you two off, saying she had the rest under control.

"I wanted to try out this doughnut recipe if you wanted to assist me on the task." he said as you walked out of the apartment building.

While you adored cooking with him, the past three weeks had solemnly been this. You were not joking when you said to Byeol you wanted to do something else with him. For once, you felt strong enough to resist his puppy eyes.

"Not this time. Sorry, Lix."

His face dropped when the words left your mouth. While you were comfortable with how the friendship was blooming, Felix was overstressing about it. He wanted to spend as much time with you as possible because you were so easy to be with. He felt the happiest with you, and that's a lot considering he's constantly a ball of sunshine.

"Oh." he murmured, disappointed.

It broke your heart seeing him sad, so you were quick to suggest him an idea. "I do have this new Mario game I bought for my Switch, though. I know you mentioned you like gaming, so if you want to try it out with me."

Grinning from ear to ear, he cheerfully said yes and you were on your way to your dorm. At that point, your hangouts were always at his place, meaning he had never stepped foot in your dorm. You hoped internally that you had cleaned up. When you opened the door, you were happy to see that your dirty dishes and clothes were no longer laying around. Hearing a growl, you searched in the living room for the source of the noise. You soon spotted the black and white ball of floof.

"Kkami!" you ran to the dog and petted him as he tried to run away from you. You eventually managed to pick him up and cuddle him.

"I didn't know you have a dog." he said, joining you to tickle Kkami.

"He's Hyunjin's. He's at my parents' usually, but they went on a trip and Hyunjin can't keep him or he'll make a mess out of his art." you explained, letting him go since he clearly didn't want to be in your arms. "He's not very social, but I know he loves us."

"He's like you! You're mean to me, but I know in reality, you just love me."

While you blushed, you hid it by turning your face away from him and scoffing. "Keep dreaming, Yongbok."

"I told you not to call me that." he complained, but you acted as if you didn't hear.

You opened your Switch, started the game and went to sit next to your friend, giving him a remote. It started well as you were leading on the chart board, until Felix stopped going soft on you and was beating your ass. Again and again, he was winning, and you were growing frustrated. Game rage was never something you liked experiencing, even less in front of the boy you liked. Eventually, you gave up on trying to win, and grew tired as time passed.

Yawning after another round ended, you stood up to turn off the console, and then plopped right back on the couch. Felix scooted closer to hold you in his arms, and you snuggled comfortably into his warmth.

"You okay, Y/N?" he asked softly.

"Mhmm, tired." you mumbled before closing your eyes.

"Can a sweet treat comfort you?" he whispered.

You smiled weakly. "Depends which one."

"Can it be a surprise?"

"Lix…" you whined quietly. "I don't like surprises."

"Just one bite."

Too tired to bicker back, you nodded before you felt him move a bit, probably getting whatever snack he had packed with him. Seconds passed before you felt something on your lips. It was sweet, indeed, but it was definitely not something edible. It was soft and tender, and you recognized Felix's lips despite never having kissed the man. After the shock dissolve, you kissed him back slowly, scooting closer to feel his embrace as much as you could. As it got more heated, his mouth had opened slightly, allowing you to carefully bite his bottom lip. Startled, he back away from you and stared at you in shock.

"What was that?" he shyly spoke, blushing.

"You said one bite." you shrugged your shoulders, and he laughed.

"I should have asked, I'm sorry."

"Hey, I kissed you back. Don't worry about it." you smiled kindly.

"So… um… I kind of like you?" he confessed, though it came out more like a question.

"That's very convincing, yeah." you teased making him pout at you.

"You're mean."

"Sorry, sorry. I like you too." you confessed back.

Not knowing how to answer, Felix could only grin like a child as he grabbed your hand in his, rubbing it softly with thumb. He brought you closer to cuddle, and since you were still very tired, you eventually fell asleep in a matter of seconds. Felix, on the other hand, observe you as you snored quietly, not quite grasping what had just happened.

The next day, you woke up surprisingly late. You noticed the moment you opened your eyes that you were no longer on your couch, but in your bed. Suddenly, you heard a loud thud coming from your kitchen, along with a deep voice cursing. You got up in a hurry and ran to the kitchen to see what was happening. There was Felix, lost in front of your counter as he searched for ingredients. You soon noticed a mixing bowl on the ground, thus the noise from earlier.

"Are you trying to ravage my kitchen or something?" you exclaimed, not sure on how to react to the poor state of your kitchen.

"Good morning to you too." he smiled awkwardly only for you to send him a glare. "I just wanted to make you some pancakes for breakfast, but I never came here before so I have no idea where you stuff is, and I got a bit clumsy so I made a mess… I'm sorry."

You sighed loudly before you picked up the bowl from the ground and went to the counter to reorganize it better. "There you go… You could have woken me up, you know?"

"You look pretty when you sleep." he giggled, and damn, your heart melted.

"I snore."

"And it's adorable." he affirmed. "Now that you're awake, do you want to make those with me?"

"Gladly." you smiled and the two started to mix the ingredients.

Felix was being nothing but a gentleman. He didn't let you do the dishes and hurried to prepare the table. He decorated the pancakes with butter and whipped cream, as well as some fruits. You were still fighting to help him, but he didn't let you as he only allowed you to sit at the table and look beautiful (His words, not mine). After a while, he finally finished everything and brought the plates to the table.

"This looks yummy!" you complimented, clapping your hands in excitement.

"Serve yourself."

You wasted no time to dig in and eat the pancake whole under a minute. You had not even realized how hungry you were until you were already done eating. Felix still had half of his, so he cut a piece he aimed at your mouth as he brought the fork closer.

"That's cheesy."

"Shut up and eat." he rolled his eyes, and you gladly obliged.

"Thank you, Lix. This is so good." you hummed contently.

"My pleasure." he chuckled, but stopped and frowned instead.

He did the same move, only this time, he stopped moving the fork forward and brought it back to his own mouth. You pouted, disappointed, and he could only laugh at you.

"Wait, you have something on your lip."

He leaned closer and reached out to wipe off whatever you had. You thought he was done, but he kept his palm on the side of your face. You eyed him in confusion, and he answered with a smile. Without you noticing, he was getting dangerously closer, making your heart pound. It pounded so loud, you were afraid he was going to hear it. The instant he was close enough to almost be kissing you, he leaned backwards into his seat and laughed cutely.

"You are so evil." you huffed in disbelief.

"What can I say? You like bad boys." he joked.

You could only huff at him once more. "I'm this close to kicking you out of here."

"You wouldn't"

"I totally would."

"No."

"Felix!" you whined, frustrated.

The next month or so was not so different from how things were before. Well, other than some kisses here and there, but you and Felix still acted like friends at school. You had never talked about labels, nor did you speak about your feelings. In other words, the situation was confusing. While he acted like you were one of the bros in public, he was the most touchy person when you would hang out alone. Even then, his behaviour apart from physical contact wasn't that different.

The last day of the semester eventually came. As per usual, a group of guys was staring at you the moment you stepped outside of the classroom, having finished your final exam. You saw a guy, Yooheon you believed, acting more nervous than usual. You didn't think much of it, until he walked up to you.

"Hey, Y/N. I'm actually in your class and, um, I just wanted to ask you something." he spoke anxiously.

"Yeah, I know who you are." you chuckled. "What can I help you with?"

"Do you want to go on a date with me? I believe you are single, so I'm simply taking my chance."

Technically speaking, you were single. With Felix, however, things were blurry. He had never told you how he saw you. Were you his girlfriend or his friend he would occasionally kiss?

"She's with me." you heard a familiar voice coming from behind.

Yooheon bowed apologetically and you gave him a sad smile before he went back to his friends who were teasing him. You turned on your heels and walked away from the scene, a frantic Felix catching up to you.

"Hey, what is it? I saved your ass." he breathed out.

"I didn't need to be saved. I can reject someone alone, you know?"

"Right, but I know he was probably going to insist and then you would have been stuck. With me there, he knows you're taken already." he justified as it made perfect sense in his mind.

"Lix, I'm not taken." you rolled your eyes.

He stopped walking and his eyes squinted, lost. "What are you saying?"

You turned around to face him, and exhaled loudly. "You never explicitly told me we were dating. I mean, on that point, I get it. I've been busy, you've been busy. I can understand we didn't have the mindset to figure that out. However, you only ever kiss me if we are at your place or mine. At school, it's almost as if you see me the same as you see my brother or Minho, or even Seungmin. It's like you're ashamed or something..." you trailed off, uncertain if you worded correctly what had been in your mind.

Felix slowly turned red, and he coughed to buy some time to think, and he then spoke in his turn. "I thought you were not comfortable with PDA or something. I don't know, I just figured it was a "at home" thing? Plus, consider the fact dozens of men are looking at you every day because, might I remind you, you are quite literally the most beautiful girl on campus. And, like, jacked men look at you all day, which can be intimidating. Meanwhile, you chose the guy who bakes cookies and brownies, and who likes Mario Kart." he explained the best he could, without wanting to sound too weird.

You let out a small laugh as a response. "You feel intimidated by other guys?"

He looked around, and nodded slowly in shyness. "Shush, it really is intimidating." You only laughed more, but it kind of reassured Felix in a way. "As for the labels, I just assumed it was obvious you are my girlfriend."

"It wasn't."

"Okay then." he took a deep breath and stepped closer to you, taking your hands. "Hwang Y/N, will you have the pleasure of becoming my girlfriend?"

You smiled at how precious he was being. "Gladly."

With that, he brought you closer to kiss you, other students around watching you as some of them gasped in surprise.

"Ah!" he exclaimed as he pulled away from you. "For Chan's party tonight, you're already stunning but I want you to dress to feel good about yourself."

You couldn't believe how sweet he was being. You had went back to your respective dorms to get ready, and later met up in front of Chan's building to go inside together. Felix had Seungmin and his girlfriend, Dahye, tagging along with you. You were among the first people to get there and installed yourselves comfortably. Felix went to get you some drinks and it didn't get missed by his friends how he called you baby before leaving.

As the evening went on, you were starting to wonder when Hyunjin was going to show up. You had pestered him into coming to the party to socialize for once instead of staying at home. The questioning in your mind was soon answered when you finally spotted Byeol. You got up to hug her tightly, and then doing the same with your brother.

"I could've sworn you wouldn't come and stay at your place to watch cheesy ass movies together." you joked.

Byeol sent you a shy smile and then said "That was the plan."

You smiled at her. "I'm glad you came."

You went back to Felix and he grabbed you by the waist to bring you into his embrace, nuzzling his face into your hair. You chuckled at his behaviour, since he was clearly starting to feel the effects of alcohol.

"Are you okay?" you asked as you rubbed his arm in a soothing way.

"Yeah." he said, voice hoarse. "I just love to have you in my arms."

"I love it too. A lot." you murmured to him, and he pecked your cheek lovingly.

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[presidenthades]

In a semi-canon au where everything stays the same as the book/show (Aegon marries Hel, they have children, the throne is usurped and almost the whole family ends up dead) If Aegon and Jace survive (and maybe other characters like Corlys and Alicent, Baela and Rhaena) do you think the council would push for them to marry now that everything has been screwed up and they need heirs and stability?

How do you think their relationship would be now that Aegon (like in the show) lost a son he actually loved? Do you think he would deeply resent Jace for his death? Would their love survive or would Aegon prefer to send Jace away because having her around reminds him of everything he lost? Same for Jace, she could be close to Aegon again knowing that he murdered her mom and caused the death of her sisters or she would rather be married to another lord and sent away (Cregan, Benjicot maybe...) ?

I have thought about this scenario before, though I could never actually write it because too many of our beloved characters are dead. 😢

After B&C, I think Aegon would continue directing his rage toward Rhaenyra, Daemon, and other Blacks, but not Jace, who he knows would never condone such a thing. I imagine him mentally putting her on a pedestal and thinking things like “if only I’d married her, everything would be fine” and “none of this would’ve happened if Rhaenyra just let me marry Jace.”

One big canon change I would make is Baela going into the Battle of the Gullet instead of Jace. Jace in this series is definitely not a fighter, and Baela would volunteer herself so Jace doesn’t have to. So Baela and Moondancer die instead of Jace and Vermax.

When Rhaenyra takes KL, she leaves Jace on Dragonstone, both to keep Jace safe and so her heir can manage the castle/island that now belongs to Jace and has strategic importance. I don’t think Jace can go to KL or else she would change a lot of canon events, eg prevent Joff’s death.

That means when Aegon takes Dragonstone, he stealing it from Jace. Unlike Baela, Jace isn’t sneaking out of captivity or mounting her dragon to fight Aegon. So Aegon and Sunfyre don’t get injured again, and Aegon and Jace have a lot of serious discussions while she’s his prisoner. At some point they learn Aemond and Daemon are dead.

They probably hear about Helaena and Maelor’s deaths (let’s assume Maelor exists in this AU) shortly before Rhaenyra flees from KL to Dragonstone. I’m sure this sends Aegon into a rage, and even Jace can’t dissuade him from executing Rhaenyra. The only positive is that Jace can make sure Alyssa doesn’t watch.

Jace definitely has a lot of anger and complicated feelings toward Aegon, but she’s capable of compartmentalizing and focusing on her remaining family’s survival, as well as the good of the realm. The council would absolutely push for them to marry. Jace would comply because it’s the logical solution. Aegon would comply because by this point he’s lost all his siblings and most of his kids, so Jace is one of the few sources of familiarity and comfort he has remaining.

They probably get married as soon as the council finds a septon. Jace, as Rhaenyra’s heir, is able to send word to the Black forces to stand down, so the Battle of the Kingsroad never happens. Jace is also able to persuade Aegon to act more mercifully and peacefully, so he isn’t poisoned. And Aegon still has Sunfyre and isn’t as crippled as in canon, which makes him a force to be reckoned with.

It might be an interesting bit of drama if Jace betrothed herself to Cregan while she was in the North, and now she obviously can’t marry him. I doubt she ever fell in love with Cregan but they became friends, so I think she can also convince Cregan to act more peacefully. But Cregan and Aegon definitely hate each other for the rest of their lives.

Jace and Aegon’s marriage would be rocky at first because of everything that’s happened, though Aegon is a lot more open about how much he loves her despite everything. Jace takes longer to warm up to him again, probably not until after they have their first child together. But I think after they have time to heal and talk things out, they can eventually find their way to each other again. Jace especially would want to move forward in a productive manner instead of clinging to resentment, which helps nobody.

In the meantime, Jace is a good stepmom to Jaehaera, and she keeps Rhaena (who doesn’t marry Corbray) and Alyssa close. She might even convince Corlys to leave Driftmark to her second son or to Rhaena, instead of keeping Alyn (who’s trash in the book, let’s be honest) as heir.

[weirdozjunkary]

Insert me ranting about the state of IDW Sonic (spesifically just sonic himself) cause I have a few words regarding the recent issues.

(DISCLAIMER: if you like the IDW comics that’s fine, I’m not saying that it’s bad to like them. I’m just expressing my opinion about what I see regarding the series so far.)

In general I don’t mind what SOA is doing to Sonic in terms of his character, making him have morals and all that. Even if it’s OOC compared to his Japanese counterpart, I personally think it at least somewhat fits given who Sonic is as a person. I know that from region to region, characters can be characterized differently.

THAT BEING SAID, I absolutely hate the recent direction with Sonic and his morals in IDW. He forgives people way too fucking easily and that literally always fucks things over in the end. It feels like a cop-out for more drama, instead of doing something interesting with it.

While I know that forgiving people as a form of morals is alright, but when every single time Sonic does that it always creates something bad. As well, the way he tries to justify it makes him sound so fucking unlikeable and comes off as entitled. Like “I believe this so you have to agree with me.”

As well, it bugs me so much how ignorant everyone seems to be now, ESPECIALLY post Metal Virus. Characters forgiving villains who have LITERALLY nearly killed or have killed or show no want in redemption. Characters who overreact in the most in appropriate times (issue #63-#64).

Now I know SOJ has the final say in everything (post Archie) as far as I’m aware, so I don’t know what exactly goes through with them or not. But I find it so frustrating when these characters act so stupid, especially in the most high stakes of situations.

It makes me so upset, because with how these characters react, it makes most of the villains seem more in the right. Like Surge, who though her ways are admittedly very extreme (killing off the heroes and villains and anyone who stands in her way so she doesn’t have to be hurt anymore), she seems at least a bit more logical than Sonic, who seems to be just like “lmao I fight people but I want them to be good so I let them roam free and cause problems.”

While in previous issues these problems aren’t extremely obvious, in the recent issue (#67) it is so obvious it fucking hurts. The fact that literally everyone apart from Whisper is so trusting of Surge and Kit, and all because Sonic trusts them completely, even if they LITERALLY show they don’t care and want to cause problems. Not a single one of them (apart from Whisper) even remotely shows any suspicion of them, or even decides to keep a closer eye on them. Everyone is just like “okay, this is completely fine.”

[thedeathdeelers]

I finished my first rewatch of lovely runner🥲 and I'm still not over it heh (and I don't want to be 🫠😂) so I was rewatching the scene where Sunjae and Sol meet right after Sunjae remembers everything (God just the angst of that *chefs kiss) and oh my God the tremble in Sunjae's voice when he asks her if she cried like that everytime she was lonely. Byeon Woo Seok's so good! This drama just keeps on giving 😭

thank you for this because it gave me the chance to rewatch that scene specifically 😌 for science 😌

(but ayy!!! now onto the second rewatch!!) (but yeah i’m halfway through my rewatch but i’ve slowed down so i can avoid reaching the eNd again 🥲)

honestly everything about that moment was SO. WELL. DONE.

the lead up??? a masterpiece. the memories pouring in while sunjae tries to keep up, his eyes his facial expression feeling like it’s all too much but everything suddenly makes SENSE - the heartache the joy the confusion the undERSTANDING the despERATION

lying there on the street not even aware he nearly died- purely cause he’s drowning in everything sol!!! and then!! HE RUNS. HES RUNNING AND HE DOESNT EVEN KNOW WHERE TO!! he just needs to GET TO HER ASAP AND NOT LOSE HER AGAIN HE JUST HAS TO GET TO HER

i can’t even begin to imagine what he must’ve felt when he first lays eyes on her — like she’s not in his memories anymore- not the sol in all those different timelines, not the sol from this timeline when he didn’t recognise her

she’s here. she’s real. and he’s out of breath and his mind is a massive mess and his soul is exhausted but she’s here

and he’s starting to truly realise what she must’ve gone through…::repeatedly. having to see him die having to run around with all that burden on her shoulders

not telling anyone

making the decision to start all over again and keeping her distance from him- all alone. no one to confide in- not even him

his heart breaks - cause he knows what it feels like to live a life without her — both when he knows she exists and when he doesn’t

and he knows how horrible it is — but sol knew him and loved him and lived a life where he loved her too….and yet had to go through 15 years denying herself that joy and love and connection to keep him safe…such a massive selfless act..

all for him.

and now he’s staring at her out of breath with red eyes and tears rolling down her cheeks and he knows why. he finally knows the answer to the question he’s always asking her “why are you crying? did i do something wrong?”

he knows the answer…::and it’s not a happy one

AND NOW HE GETS TO SEE IT LIVE IN ACTION IN FRONT OF HIM- she’s obviously been crying and she’s trying to deny it and he realises this has been her life for the last 15 years….,.,,,…

“did you cry like that all the time? while missing that guy who forgot all about you?” screaming crying throwing up

(we have to give massive props to sol / hye yoon for the way she conveys emotion. it’s wild. insane. soljae wouldn’t exist without her and her incredible acting) (and the way she lets go of all the pain and longing and all those built up emotions that she’s been carrying with her the moment he says “sol-ah” istg)

like. i was fine before i started writing this but now im losing my mind a little sat at my desk in front of my excel sheet….

[lizzyk137]

We're Finally Having Our Baby! - An Agent Gibbs Fanfic (Gibbs X Reader)

Description: You and Gibbs are getting closer to finally meeting your bundle of joy! What will the future hold for you and Gibbs? Warning: pure fluff, enough to make me gag and cringe (my first time actually writing fluff and not adding any drama to spice it up, so hopefully it's good)

(Part One) Want to read more, visit my Masterlist!

Looking at Gibbs putting the final touches on your crib made you realize how close you both were to having your baby with you in person.

You smiled at the thought of him cradling your newborn, showing them around the house and bringing them downstairs to show them all the tools, wood, and the little things he's made down there.

Gibbs had jumped at any chance he could get to help you get his place ready for the baby, even while he was on cases. He'd always come to check in on you after you went on maternity leave and made sure you were fine and that you didn't need anything.

It was sweet the way he was showing you that he cared and how he wanted to change how he acted for six months to you and your baby. And you were grateful that he decided to be a part of this journey with you.

When it was time for you to find out the gender of your baby, you had told the doctor no because it just didn't feel right not to find out without Gibbs present even if he wasn't going to be in the child's life. But now seeing him at appointments telling the doctor that he wants it to be a surprise and how excited he was to see who the little one was when they were born brought tears to your eyes.

"Jethro," you called out from the basement stairs top platform, "it's time for work."

He continued to sand a small piece of wood when he answered, "I'll be right there. I'm just finishing up this knob for the crib."

"Okay, but hurry up or you'll be late." You knew he still had plenty of time, but when he was in the zone, you knew that time was all but forgotten for him, so you made sure to tell him he was late so he'd get to work on time.

You smiled as you watched his face scrunch up as he concentrated, and you turned away to the kitchen to pack up a to go cup with coffee for him. You always had made a mean coffee but were too afraid to have Gibbs taste yours until you moved in and he asked if you could one morning when he was running too late to grab one at his usual coffee shop. Since then, he has been hooked on how you make it and always asks you to make him some.

"I love you." You heard him say as you felt his arms come around you and hug you from behind. He stayed like that for a few minutes, face pressed against your hair as he held you tightly.

He pulled away after a few minutes and gave you a peck on the cheek as he collected his jacket and coffee from the counter. "You are so beautiful." He whispered, causing your face to flame up.

Gibbs had been trying to tell you how he felt about you, which communication was one of the things you told him needed to change those three months ago. And since then, he's been nonstop saying whatever comes to mind. At first you were flattered but then you thought he was saying it just to say it and when you brought it up during one of your mood swings he told you everything he says out loud is what he's always felt and thought. He always thinks about how beautiful you are, and he doesn't want to stop thinking that.

You pulled him in for a front ward hug, your large belly slightly pushing you away from him. "Be safe, okay?"

He nodded in reply and gave you one last peck on the lips before he headed out the door and heard the car engine start. You cleaned up the counter where you spilled some coffee, locked the front door and went to head upstairs to put on an outfit for the day. You got to your closet and pulled out a white lace sundress that had little spaghetti straps. You slipped on some sandals and brushed your hair back when you heard the front door open.

You quietly sat your hair brush down, went over to your bedroom door, and slightly closed it. Hearing footsteps go around downstairs, you opened up your nightstand and grabbed your gun. Going into the bathroom, you hid behind the door, gun cocked and ready.

You heard footsteps headed up the stairs and heading down the hall to your room. You heard the slight creak of the door opening, and the floorboards groaned with each step as they got closer to the bathroom's door. When they were right outside of the door, you swung it open, gun aimed only to find a surprised Gibbs looking at you with his hands up.

"Jethro!" You shouted, upset that you almost shot him. "Don't scare me like that!"

He chuckled and took the gun out of your hands, setting it on the bathroom vanity. "I did call you to tell you I was coming back, but you didn't respond." Gibbs took you in his arms as you hugged him tightly, still in shock that you could have easily killed him. "I'm sorry, my love. Next time, I'll call your name as I go."

"It's okay," you whispered. "All forgiven."

Gibbs pulled away slightly and frowned when he saw a few tears leaking from your eyes. He quickly wiped them away with his thumbs as he cradled your head. "I'm okay, Y/N. You're okay. Just relax, okay?" He murmurmed as he hugged you again, stroking your hair.

You nodded and let a few more tears fall. He was always like this when you cried, a wonderful part of your mood swings. The first time he saw you cry, he paused for a second in shock since he's never seen you cry before, but he went right into comfort mode for you. Even if the tears are over something silly, he will always comfort you.

He gently picked you up to sit you on top of the vanity and rubbed the sides of your belly as he stood between your legs. "I'm now just noticing the dress, and if I wasn't super late for work, I would be taking you in the bedroom. You are just breathtaking."

You chuckled through a stuffed nose at the site Gibbs must have been seeing when he looked at you. Half brushed hair, puffy eyes from crying, tears staining your cheeks, a stuffy nose from your crying, and your swollen belly protruding from your dress while the rest of your body was swollen in areas they usually weren't. "You're funny. I'm a sight for sore eyes." You laughed, as you blew your nose.

"Nah," he shook his head, "you're just plain gorgeous." He leaned in and gave you a sweet kiss on the lips before deepening it.

You kissed him back passionate as you wrapped your arms on his shoulders, tangling on hand through his short hair while his roamed your body. He moved the hem of your dress up, exposing your lower area, as he ran his hands up and down your thighs, causing you to moan. He picked you up, never breaking the kiss, and carried you out into the bedroom.

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The elevator dinged as you walked with Gibbs hand in hand into the squad room to find Abby practically bouncing up and down at the sight of you. The rest of the team stood behind her smiling when they saw you and Gibbs get closer.

"Y/N!" Abby shouted, running to you as she crushed you into a hug as best she could. " I miss you so so much!"

"I missed you too, Abby."

"Abs, let her go before you crush her." Gibbs joked.

"Oops." Abby said as she let go and then gave you one more tiny hug before stepping back.

The rest of the team came up one by one as they gave you hugs.

You were near your due date and begged Gibbs to bring you with him to work since you were slowly going insane home alone. It was nice to finally see your friends, even though they came by often, and Abby, Ziva, and yourself went out on their days off. It was just nice to see everyone back in a familiar environment.

Gibbs sat you down in his chair, gave you a peck on the forehead, which caused Abby to coo, and left to go talk to Director Vance. You sat there rubbing your belly as you chatted away when you felt something warm trinke down your leg. You stopped what you were saying and looked in shock at the team. "I think my water just broke." You whispered.

The team looked in shock for a second before springing into action. "Palmer, go find Gibbs." Ducky said, as he took your hand in his as he helped you up.

"There's a secret go bag under Gibbs' desk," Ziva called out as she helped you into your sweater.

McGee bustled under Gibbs desk and came out with a very large diaper bag. You smiled happily at the thought of him keeping an extra bag under his desk just in case. You walked over and unzipped it and looked in at all the things he packed when you felt a sharp pain in your abdomen, causing you to cry out.

"We aren't waiting, Miss. Y/N," Ducky said as he pulled you away from the diaper bag. "We need to get you to the hospital."

He sat you down in Gibbs' chair, and Tony pushed it over to the elevator as another pain hit, causing you to cry out once again.

You saw Palmer run over as the elevator doors opened and Tony rushed you inside. "He's not up in Vance's office or in MTAC, does anyone know where he is?"

The rest of the team filled in as another more painful pain shot through your body. "No," you said as you gritted through the pain. "Just find him, or he's a dead man."

Palmer nodded as the doors closed and shouted out a good luck as you saw him run off. The team ended up using Ducky's truck since it had the lights on it and a comfortable place to lay, which was disinfected Ducky had said before placing you in.

The ride was short and comfortable but painful. You were whisked quickly into a room, while the team waited outside as they prepared you into a hospital gown and checked to see how far along you were. "Still two centimeters, so you have time. We can administer medicine to help with the pain in a bit if you want." You nodded as another pain shot through you. "Try to relax as best as you can with the pain."

The doctor left and met with a group outside the door. "Is anyone here the father?"

"No, but he should be coming soon." Tony answered.

"How far along is she?" Ducky inquired.

"Two centimeters at the moment, she can get an epidural but we have some medications to help with the pain before that. I do need someone to fill out some medical questions before we can proceed."

Ducky perked up, "I know her medical history, I can fill those out for her."

"Awesome, I'll see the rest of you and her shortly. You can go check in on her."

The team filled into the room, Abby and Ziva taking your hands as you cried out through another painful contraction.

"Where's Gibbs?" You screamed out as another one hit you harder this time, causing your torso to come forward towards your legs.

"I am right here, love." Gibbs shouted as he ran into the room. He took the hand Ziva was holding, sitting on the bed as his other hand brushed away the sweat that was gathering on your forehead. "I'm so sorry that I walked away and you couldn't find me. " He kissed your knuckles as you squeezed his hand harder through a smaller contraction.

"Don't do that ever again." You whispered as you leaned back into the bed, already tiring out from the pain.

"I won't."

"Miss Y/L/N, we can administer some medication now before the epidural of you'd like."

"Yes, please."

They administered the medication, and you laid back feeling the medicine kick in.

A few hours later, they were administering the epidural, and you were lying against Gibbs between his legs, a comfort position that you've enjoyed during your pregnancy, especially when your body ached.

"This feels so much better." You whispered as the epidural started to kick in. "Remind me why I decided to have a kid? It's so painful."

Gibbs chuckled as he massaged your shoulders. "You'll know in a little bit."

He sat up a bit and massaged your arms, chest, and legs and then rubbed your belly. "I'm going to miss this."

"Miss what? I can always give you massages."

You looked up at him, with a smile. "No, you rubbing my belly. I really liked it."

He smiled down at you and gave you a small kiss. "I guess we'll just have to make more babies then." You giggled against his lips.

-------------------------- ~~ ----------------------------

You gave a slight rub to your belly and smiled. You grabbed the pitcher of lemonade and brought it outside to the small gathering that was in your backyard.

You were holding a small party for the twins' first birthday. That's right, twins. You and Gibbs were shocked when the doctor said to continue pushing as soon as your first baby came into the world, but you were blessed with two beautiful girls - Shannon Jennifer and Francine Kelly.

Gibbs was shocked when you mentioned the names, since you didn't bring them up when you both were talking about names, but you wanted to honor those who loved and cared for Gibbs. You couldn't pick one first name, so you decided each girl would have two first names, and they could decide what they wanted to use more.

You sat the pitcher down on the table and looked around to see the twins in the sandbox as they played with Tony and McGee. You smiled as the two boys helped pack the sand into a bucket for the twins and watched them clap and squeal as Tony and McGee slid the sand out of the buckets to make a small castle.

A pair of arms circled your chest, and a small kiss was placed on your shoulder. "If everyone could gather around." Gibbs called out, and the party moved closer with Tony and McGee picking up the twins to bring them up to Gibbs and you.

"Make way for the birthday girls!" Tony called out, and the crowd chuckled.

Once the girls were brought over, you crouched down and held them as they stood up leaning against you as they took in the crowd of people around them.

"I know I'm not a man of very many words, but I've been trying so bare with me." Earnign Gibbs a few laughs. "I just want to thank everyone who's helped Y/N and myself the last year and throughout her pregnancy. It's made the transition easy, especially when Y/N went back to work. Now, I was always afraid to love someone again and to start a family, but with Y/N, it was easy. I couldn't imagine anyone more perfect for our girls than you. And I couldn't imagine anyone more perfect for me than you. You've helped me learn and grow so much since I've met you, and I couldn't imagine my life without you."

The crowded cooed, and you wiped a few happy tears from your eyes as you held your girls in your arms. Gibbs knelt down in front of you and ruffled through his pocket until he brought out a tiny velvet box, causing you to gasp as he opened it, revealing a diamond ring. "Y/N Y/L/N, will you make me the happiest man by marrying me?"

You nod vigorously as you burst out into tears as Gibbs took Francine Kelly into his arms so he could slide the ring onto your finger. The crowd around you clapped as he cupped your cheek to give you a kiss.

Abby took the girls, and you stood up and gave Gibbs a big hug. "I can't wait to be your wife." You whispered.

You squealed as Gibbs dipped you and gave you a passionate kiss on the lips. "I can't wait to call you Mrs. Gibbs."

The crowd buzzed around excitedly as he set you on your feet, and you gathered the attention back. "I wanted to do a small surprise today, but after that huge surprise, I'm unsure." You laughed. You grabbed a small wrapped box from the table behind you and handed it to Gibbs who was knelt down with the twins. "This is for you."

Gibbs looked at you curiously and then had the girls help him unwrap it. He opened the box to a small pair of baby shoes with a small card reading, 'Baby Gibbs will be meeting the world in 7 months.'

"Are you serious?" He asked, in shock.

You bounced on your toes happily. "Yes!"

He stood up smiling and picked you up, spinning you around and giving you a kiss. He held you tight and showed the crowd the box. "Baby number three!"

The crowd once again cheered, and everyone came up to you congratulating you excitedly. Once everyone was done, the party went back into full swing as everyone played with the girls.

You stood under the yard's twinkle lights while Gibbs wrapped a small sweater over your shoulders and then gathered you into his arms. "Thank you." He mumbled.

"For what?"

"For giving me a happy ending after all these years."

You gave him a kiss and then leaned back into him happily as you watched your two girls laugh and squeal with those who you called your family. Your now ringed hand covered Gibbs as he rubbed your small belly that held your new bundle of joy.

"I love you, Jethro."

"I love you too, my love."

[razorblade180]

Story Quest drama

Does anyone else find it incredibly weird how many Genshin fans are upset with Paimon and Traveler after Furina’s quest? Like the way people are cherry picking certain parts of scenes and misrepresenting the situation is astounding. I’m not going to pretend Paimon and Traveler didn’t throw a couple jabs but for the majority of back of forth is just banter and the common bluntness they bring. In no way were they trying to gaslight or manipulate Furina.

Furina said she didn’t want to join on stage. Paimon asked if there were any exceptions, and Furina say she didn’t want to leave an out for herself. Hearing that, they immediately pivot the conversation to asking her if she knows anyone who could help. That is literally workshopping a problem 101 and constructive problem solving. I don’t get why people are painting that as pressuring. They heard her stance and seeked a solution that respected her decision and allowed them to continue trying to help their employer.

Furina punches down on herself by saying she didn’t know anyone because they were probably happy she was gone; to which one of the dialogue options boils down to “that’s not a good to assume” because it isn’t. Paimon’s next question was if she had any idea, which causes Furina to get agitated before immediately apologizing because once again, Paimon’s question wasn’t in any way trying to get Furina to buckle. The two of them are essentially checking of a mental list to see where they should go to try solve their commission. Paimon even clarifies this with her before they part ways and Paimon says “Oh well. We have to respect her decision”

Even when they get back to the guild, Paimon tells them for personal reasons, Furina can’t help; as well as clarifying the misconceptions the actress had about Furina being rude. In no way were the duo planning on circling back or involving Furina any further and only gets roped back in after getting caught spying. Furina herself admits she just started drawing lines in the sand without hearing the situation before trying to apologize, to which Paimon tells her everything is completely fine and nothing that just happened was taken personally. You could argue Furina didn’t have anything to apologize for and that’s fine, but even in game, nobody was expecting one and told her everything is fine.

Tiny rant but it’s a bit annoying how people are quick to clip certain dialogue to paint them negatively, while completely ignoring the parts Paimon and the Traveler actively tell Furina she shouldn’t be so hard on herself, it’s okay not to force things, and talking about how she’s finally free to live how she wants. But they want clip the part where Paimon said she first thought Furina was diva; a sane assumption to have after she tried immediately getting them arrested on a ridiculous charge for the sake of hyping the crowd. Was it a little rude? Yeah. Has Paimon never called it like she saw it? No. We’ve heard Kaveh’s backstory and both her and the traveler still went “You should really try and get your life together before something happens” because it’s the blunt yet honest truth. If isn’t Diluc, Klee, Xiao, Ayaka, Yoimiya, Dehya, or Collei, Paimon will find an issue. The others can do no wrong. 💀

Anyway, I just think it’s a bit ridiculous how some people acting. Especially when several weeks ago Furina and “girl failure” was always in the same sentence while people applauded Arlecchino for dragging someone when ultimately she also didn’t know dick about the situation and basically did a gymnastics performance the way she jumped to certain conclusions. I love that people love Furina, but let’s not get crazy now when two people choose to approach her in a casual dynamic instead of super gently and emphatically. If anything, Furina is getting the normal human experience of having people that actually hate her in Poisson, the troupe idolizing her, Neuvillette and Navia being sweet, and the Traveler and Paimon being casual friends.

You know what’s actually insane!? Shenhe talking about her dead family and backstory then the scene ends with Paimon saying “cut the chitchat. We’re trying to win a contest.” THAT was actually out of pocket. 💀

[monpalace]

Okok, so my brain is not working with writing rn BUT i will finish that “reader and time pinning” thing that i was doing I PROMISE

BUT for now imma just share some thoughts of Time because he is THE LOVE OF MY LIFE AND I NEED TO RANT ABOUT HIM

*ahem*

Ive said before (on my blog) that Time uses really old and kinda cringey petnames because 1, he genuinely loves them and 2, because he LOVES making the boys squirm in second hand embarrassment. SO, have a few more of those nicknames :D -> snookums, sugarplum, baby cakes, muffin, foxy, and toots

Young time (like teenage/young adult) was an absolute bastard BUT when he falls in love with someone, he is an absolute sweet heart! Think the ‘i hate everyone but you’ trope :3

Young! Time did not know romance AT ALL! That boy was raised by a tree and a bunch if spirit kids, he has know idea what a ‘date’ is. This leads to him just acting the same around his crush but being a little nicer to them

Is then very confused as to why they dont know that he likes them. “It was so obvious? I gave you a piece of my apple pie! I was so clear with my signs 🙄🙄”

He THEN reads all the romance novels he can get his hands on (legally and illegally) just so he can impress them! Completely misunderstood everything and now he just has to straight up tell them, cause how their hair is on fire…somehow

(Modern) Time is totally the type of guy that ‘doesn’t like drama shows’ but if his lover was watching one, he’d stand behind the couch and watch. But when his lover offers to move so he can sit hes like ‘no, im not even watching it. I was just bored’ and the proceeds to watch the next 3 episodes while standing.

(Modern) Time has a leather jacket that he LOVES!! Like he will cut someone for that thing, do not fuck with it. No one is aloud to wear it expect him….And his crush/lover but SHUSH!

Time enjoys polishing his armour/sword while you read a book out aloud. You both find it rather relaxing. Until something dramatic/a polt twists happens, all if the sudden the armour/sword is dropped to the side as Time is BAFFLED by this. “They killed Aaron?! Wh-what? Why!? He was the best choice for Max!” (Hes so invested, his duties are now discarded until you two finish this chapter)

I wanna do more but this is kinda chunky :3

I love dis man so much 🫶🫶

THE WAY I PHYSICALLY AND VERBALLY CRINGED AT FOXY??? bro's the type to say "hey foxy mama" when you walk into a room unironically, he literally has no shame whatsoever whenever someone points out how dated that sounds to

time would fit the secret admirer trope so well though? but he wouldn't even be secret about it?? the lon lon sisters def gave him the advice to "just be himself" and that gave him the idea to take stuff from his woodland-spirit background

"link, why is my house filled with flowers from floor to ceiling."

"that's not a declaration of adoration here? huh."

AND HIM TAKING THE ROMANCE BOOKS? personally, i feel like he's the type to sneak into the library when (supposedly) nobodies looking and just taking whatever he can carry before sneaking back out-- but in actuality it's just that nobody cares

someone asked zelda if he was allowed to take the books because they've been coming back in a damaged state (it's not bad, but while he's workshopping how he's gonna bring words to reality, he messes up a little) and she just says its fine so long as he isn't committing crimes with them (which he has done. several times. no one knows)

ofc there are questions as to WHY he's taking the romance books specifically, but the guards and librarians just chalk it up to him entering his weird boy phase ™️ and not because he has an interest in somebody because him?? having a love interest before half the other people in the castle??? Nah.

you catch modern! time watching a (raunchy) reality show once (like love island, or jersey shore-- maybe even teen mom) and he swears up, down, to the golden three, and to the sand goddess that he just kept it on for noise and that he's paying all his attention to his work even though you caught him ON VIDEO having the most expressive reactions to certain moments

BUT THE LEATHER JACKET ONE?? someone walks up to you while you're wearing it (your relationship with time isn't common knowledge yet) and they make a joke about him burying them alive if they mess it up-- no less just because you're wearing it.

time pops up out of literal thin air making excuses that you were cold (you were not), he was hot and didn't feel like carrying it (his goosebumps say otherwise), he thought there was a tear and he wanted to try and fix it (.. yeah, okay.), he only gave it to you because you said it would go with your outfit (that is not the only reason he'd give it to you), and everything else just to try to hide the fact that he's soft

(also, bonus points if you made it??? now not even the goddesses could touch it. he's about three seconds away from giving into the inner ferality of his childhood self and biting someone if they even look at it)

but tell me why i just imagine time getting ready to like, get in a fight or something, you read something so earth-shatteringly shocking in the book, and he's immediately like "the battle can wait. [opponent] was gonna lose anyways. we have to figure out what the devil is about to happen"

i'm literally scooping ur brain from ur skull, putting it on a table, and i'm gonna examine it for the rest of ur ideas mwah