#just know that i've enjoyed all 6 years that i've spent in this corner of hell whether on discord or not <3< /div> Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[pankomako]

6 years ago today i joined the failboat discord server and effectively joined the community. contrary to what you may think i have no regrets

i think that's officially like. more than half the channel's existence. and about a third of my life. which is crazy to me. wish i could do more to celebrate but ig im just stuck here on tumblr for now

[sansaorgana]

Hi! Please take your time with everything's that's going on for you at the moment and if you don't want to write this that's absolutely fine!!

Today marks the 1 year anniversary of me getting out of an abusive relationship that lasted 6 years so it's been ups and downs today with celebrating and grief. If it's okay, can you maybe write a Buck fic where he's there for the reader (his girlfriend) whose in a similar situation? I've spent the day binge watching MOTA and I just want a cuddle from Buck aha

I completely get it if you don't want to write this because I know its pretty heavy stuff and I hope everything gets better for you soon! Enjoy that bottle of wine!!!

hi, darling! thank you for your request and I'm terribly sorry you had to wait so long because I have just checked and you sent it to me in the beginning of April 🤧 it is a quite heavy topic indeed and I hope I did it justice... Buck and Reader are married here but she had a husband before – I thought this sort of situation would suit this time period the most 💝

my requests are currently closed 🙅🏻‍♀️

Buck’s day started as usual – getting ready for work in the morning as he shaved his face, combed his hair and put the clothes on that you had ironed for him on the evening before. He walked downstairs to have breakfast and spotted a plate of scrambled eggs with bacon and a toast already waiting for him with a cup of coffee. He smiled to himself and approached you standing by the window to give you a kiss on the cheek before sitting down by the table to eat. From the corner of his eye he noticed that you were quite nostalgic and sad this morning but he didn’t want to push you into telling him what was wrong because perhaps the answer was “nothing” and you were just tired.

However, you were unusually quiet, staring out of the window with a cup of your own coffee in your hand as you watched the birds outside on the tree’s benches but the beverage was long forgotten in your hand. Buck hadn’t seen you sipping on it at all and he was sure it was cold now.

“Is everything alright, love?” He asked as he raised his eyebrows at you.

“Yeah, yeah,” you nodded your head with a shy smile but the look you gave him was brief and unusually unfocused as if you were trying to avoid his gaze.

Buck decided not to push you, especially now when he was before work. He decided to ask you more in the evening if your mood would still be so odd. However, when he was finishing his scrambled eggs, you suddenly opened your mouth again.

“You know, today’s the day… It’s the anniversary of my divorce with… With him,” you sighed and finally took a sip of your cold coffee.

Buck’s shoulders stiffened at those words. He had no idea about the anniversary taking place today out of all days and every mention of your ex-husband felt like a punch in the guts. Not because he was jealous or something – he had no reasons to be and he knew that – but because he was aware what that man had been like and how he had been treating you.

You had been already divorced when you had met Buck and some people had been warning him about getting into a relationship with a woman “with the past” but Buck had known better. He had known you and he had known “your past” from you. He couldn’t blame you for falling in love and he couldn’t blame you for leaving a man like that son of a bitch. He hadn’t known how to appreciate a woman like you, he had been taking advantage of your love and devotion.

Buck was not like that. He was patient with you, he was understanding, he was protective. He had promised to take care of you, to help you heal as you were helping him to heal after the war. It was a peaceful and cosy marriage that had lasted about a year now but he knew that the demons of your past would sometimes show up. Just like his did – they liked to come back in sudden anxiety attacks or unreasonable fear of loud things like the fireworks on the Fourth of July. They liked to come back in dreams, too – nightmares, actually.

You always knew how to comfort him, how to calm him down, to make him feel safe again. But now he felt awkward and helpless when it was his time to do the same for you. He didn’t know how to react properly. Should he congratulate you? Or tell you to forget about it? Both options seemed kind of wrong.

“I see,” he only cleared his throat awkwardly before taking the last sip of coffee and standing up to approach you. He kissed your cheek again and rubbed your shoulder in a comforting manner. “I gotta go now… Do you want to go out somewhere nice in the evening?” He furrowed his brow. “Like a restaurant? You wouldn’t have to cook today.”

“I…” You hesitated. “I don’t know. It would feel like celebrating and even though I have reasons to… I don’t want to think of him at all. I want this day to be normal,” you looked at him and he nodded before pecking your lips and wishing you a good day as he left for work.

However, he knew that it was easier said than done. You would still think of your ex-husband all day long. It was inevitable and only natural. Buck felt bad for you and on his way back from work he stopped by the store and contemplated on getting you flowers. Once again he had a dilemma because it would be a nice gesture that would make you smile but on the other hand it would feel like a symbol of congratulations and a celebration. You wanted this day to be usual but you were unusually sad and quiet so he wanted to bring a smile to your face…

Walking back to the store’s entrance door, frustrated, he walked past the alley with the toys and then he stopped at the sight of an adorable teddy bear as he suddenly got an idea. He bought it and took it home, a little nervous of how you would react.

In the meantime, you were growing impatient because he was late and the dinner was getting cold. Staring out of the window, you finally spotted your husband’s car and you went to the hall to greet him.

“You’re late!” You pointed out and Buck smiled at you.

“I’m sorry. I stopped by the store,” he leaned in to kiss your cheek and handed you a teddy bear.

“What is it?” You furrowed your brows at the soft toy in your hands. “It’s adorable but… Why?”

“I was thinking… I mean, it reminded me of you because it’s adorable, let’s start with that,” Buck chuckled. “But also, I thought… I want you to have it so he’s watching over you when I’m out at work or something, you know. And when you’re sad, you can look at him and smile, yeah?” He scratched himself behind his neck awkwardly.

Your heart swelled in your chest at his words as the corners of your eyes pricked with tears. Despite your words from the morning that you didn’t want to think of your abusive ex-husband, he had been occupying your thoughts all day long. And you wished you had asked Buck to call his work and tell them he was sick, just to stay with you. But you would feel guilty if you did that. So, you spent most of the day dwelling on the past and trying to fight back the bad memories. And now, your husband’s sweet gesture meant the world to you.

You wiped your wet cheeks and threw your arms around his neck to hold him close.

“Thank you…” You whispered. “Thank you so much, I love you.”

“I love you, too, sweetheart. The most in the whole world,” Buck rubbed your back and kissed your temple.

“Go wash your hands and eat dinner now because it’s getting cold,” you took a step back and caressed his hair to fix the reckless hair strand.

You went to the kitchen, too and you sat the teddy bear on the window sill by the kitchen sink. He would watch over you every day as you cooked, baked or washed the dishes. You couldn’t stop smiling widely at it and Buck’s heart was growing in his chest out of happiness at the sight.

Sometimes he fantasised about finding your ex-husband – wherever he was now – and teaching him a lesson or two. Not even about killing him, no; dying would be too easy for that bastard. But he knew it was not worth it. He knew you wanted to let go of the past and your ex-husband was not worth going to jail for either. But seeing you, Buck couldn’t believe that someone had wanted to hurt something so lovely and pure. He just couldn’t comprehend how anyone could want to cause pain to his wife.

When he was done with his dinner, he washed the dishes in silence, not even letting you know that he had already finished because you’d insist on cleaning since he was “tired after work”. He didn’t want to interrupt you reading a magazine in the living room, so he washed the dishes himself and only then he joined you on the sofa.

“You’re done now, baby?” You looked up at him and put the magazine away to stand up.

“Stay,” Buck put his hand on your thigh. “I’ve already washed the dishes.”

“Oh, baby, you shouldn’t have! You’re so tired after work,” you pointed out with a pout.

“I’m completely fine,” he chuckled. “Come here,” he invited you to sit on his lap, so you happily did as you crossed your hands behind his neck and he pulled you closer. “Are you happy, darling?” He asked, more seriously now.

The question left you speechless for a moment but you knew where he was coming from. The bittersweet anniversary of your divorce had been occupying his mind as well for the whole day – not only yours.

“I am,” you nodded your head and bit on your lower lip. “The happiest,” you assured him. “Being your wife makes me feel happy, safe, proud and fulfilled. And I would tell you if something was wrong. Like we have promised each other to be honest and open,” you caressed his hair and leaned in to rub your nose with his. “And one day I’m going to have more wedding anniversaries with you than I have ever had with him and I’m going to forget his face and his voice completely and I can’t wait for that day. But perhaps I had to survive him to be able to meet you,” you shrugged your arms. “And just because of that, I can’t regret anything from my past because everything has been leading me to you.”

Buck only nodded at that before joining your lips together in a sweet kiss. He knew what you were talking about because he would go to ten more wars and survive ten more captive camps if it meant that he would end up as your husband.

MASTERLIST || BUCK MASTERLIST

[askthefamous8]

Even if I haven't been very active lately, 9 years is still pretty significant- happy birthday to the blog!

So like Percy up there I'm gonna do so dome reflecting. This blog's where I've often done that for some reason, but here's the tl'dr for blog related stuff.

• I would like to keep drawing stuff but feeling generally unsure in myself, and I'm wondering if all the years of fandom harrassment have caught up with me • I have one big project in mind, I've been dipping my toe into what I'd need to do it. No spoilers but it was one of the first things I played around with this series, so do with that what you will • If I can keep myself drawing, I want to use more of the original source material since I'm struggling with original ideas. So stuff like redraws, hOpEfULlY even animatics, just like what originally got me so into trains yknow? Because that's fun and sparks joy. And that always goes down a treat with you guys so bonus • As always I appreciate you guys not coming after me for being so inconsistent

The rest of this is me doing what Percy's doing in the drawing and reflecting, as there is indeed much 2 think about. It's also a little sad and venty so, there's your warning there.

.

Ok so obviously a busy year, we moved into our new house that we actually own, I spent most of the year planning our wedding, and then got married. Big stuff. Also! I came off antidepressants in the summer. I've been on them for...basically as long as this blog, 6 months after I started it I think. Which also means I'd been on antidepressants my entire adult life. Feels like a big deal and I guess I'm still adjusting.

Another big thing, but sad, is that my dog died about two weeks ago. If you follow me on twitter you'll have seen her but she did make an appearance here a few Halloweens ago

I got her when she was 13 and had her 8 years after that. So that's been difficult. Unrelated to that (probably), but I just feel...really mediocre. And before you point out the obvious, this has been present even before I came off antidepressants. But yeah just... mediocrity. In myself as a person, how I look, what I draw, my whole life really (barring my marriage thankfully). What have I achieved? I'm 26, I'm not working, I don't feel well, my art isn't good (I don't think so anyway- like yeah it's technically fine I guess but it's not, and has never been, very stand-out or impressive). And lately art doesn't bring me the same joy it once did, and I'm wondering if all the years of harrassment from this fandom (mostly the twitter side, tumblr's been pretty good to me) has finally caught up with me and put me off the whole thing. Or worse, that I just don't have as much of an interest in it anymore. I don't think I'll ever be like "ok yep I'm officially done with this blog" because I'm so stubborn but idk. I want to make things and be creative, I want to make more train art, but it doesn't feel the same. I don't know what's wrong. What do you listen to? What you want vs what you feel? I still enjoy train stuff, I love going to Awdry Ex every year. It's been like this for awhile. It's not even like I have a strong feeling of what I'd rather be doing as far as careers go. And even if I did, oh yeah I'm sure my two degrees in animation will be very relevant in another field (sarcasm). I feel adrift. My sails are open but there is just no wind. Planning my wedding gave me something to do and work on and just, feel useful but now that that's over I feel lost again. Losing my dog, who had become the center of my life because of how vulnerable she had become, hasn't helped.

On the more creative side of things, I also don't really know what to do with this blog's story either. The show's ended as far as most people are concerned, and I kiiinda wrote myself into a corner because once Thomas turns 18 he's going to leave for university, and that sets off this whole arc with James but basically the problem is it involves characters leaving and for some reason that feels like a no-no here. Don't get me started on the timeline lol. But Thomas works on a railway on Sodor, that's how it has to be...right? I guess I'm sort of at a crossroads of, ok do I want this to be close to the source material, and thus easily digestible to newcombers? Or do I want to make it more and more my thing and distanced from the source material? I doubt there's many new people coming since the series ended. And even then, there's a lot more humanization artists around now than when I started, so it's not like I'm filling a niche anymore. Just to be clear it's fine and also good that there's more humanization artists, variety is good, I just don't feel as "needed" anymore (which is 100% in my head and not an actual role that belongs to me or something). I started this blog when I was 17, so my interests and what I relate to have changed obviously. The character designs certainly have. It's never followed a super rigid story plan, but the core of it has always been the central cast doing things on Sodor. I however have always had a scene/project/animatic/whatEver in mind for when this 'series' would '''officially''' ''''end''''. But then what comes after that? I've always tried to run this blog like they are Real People that You interact with. But in real life there is no ending to the story, there's always more stuff to come. You get married, and it's wonderful, and then life goes on. The credits never roll. So maybe that's what I'm having trouble coping with...the progression of time. Ah, my old nemesis. I've always had trouble with letting go of things. There's nothing to say that I couldn't still draw stuff after the series "ends". I guess any story after Thomas leaves could be like... a sequel series or a spin off or something. Spin-off of a spin-off. Famous 8 All Grown Up. Famous 8 Qurter Life Crisis. Who knows. I certainly don't.

I've also been really into an original project unrelated to this but those don't get as much attention and while I'd like to do something with it one day, I don't feel very confident in being able to make that happen right now. But you know... as far my as art not being super spectacular goes... I think my individual talent has always been is my ideas, like the writing side of things. And then brought to life with my art, which normally isn't anything to write home about but is good enough to convey the idea and be not-awful to look at, lifts both of them beyond what they were individually. Maybe that's what I should focus on. Maybe that's wishful thinking.

So....idk. Idk what I'm doing but I'm trying to be gentle on myself and just let myself continue to drift, to heal from this heavy loss, and then in the New Year I'll try and pick myself up. Then there will be no more big once-in-a-lifetime events coming up, no more just-moved-into-a-house-and-oh-no-there's-a-bunch-of-things-that-need-attention-NOW scenarios, and no more big holidays for awhile. I guess we'll see.

If you read all of this I am so sorry but also thank you for reading my ramblings. And thank you for being around, whether that's been for a few months or for several years, but especially if it's been several years

[thecoffeelovingfreak]

𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒂 𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒐𝒓 𝒔𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕

character: aventurine

genre: angst

word count: 1.4k

warnings: spoilers for aventurine's past and the penacony quest, released pre-2.1

notes: i was thinking about him over breakfast and spent the entire day writing this! I will say that my writing may be a little rusty since I've been on a 6-month hiatus. I wanted to create a character snapshot to speculate and give a look at what we know about him so far, so I hope you enjoy it!

Read it on ao3!

~~~

A pensive sigh filled the hotel room, blending into the wistful and heavy melody streaming soft and delicate from the phonograph horn. Unrealistically chilled bottles of SoulGlad rest in the niche beside it, an orange that contrasted well with the deep blue traversing the walls. A deck of playing cards rests on the wooden table, a tool for the idle hands of a certain guest to use as he attempts to pass the time. His focused gaze was targeted on the array of triangles built in line before him.

A house of cards required many elements that Aventurine held dear – ones that rested on the back of his gloved hand.

Patience, time, attention to detail, and confidence. All of which reinforce the plans simmering in his mind, and in turn, contribute to the air of pure self-assurance he carried. Some may call it arrogance, but to him it is a manifestation of the simple fact that everything will work out in his favor. One way or another, for better or for worse.

Deft fingers grasped two more cards, setting them meticulously over the flat backs beginning his next level. His hands would never shake as they approached the slowly growing tower, even when he first learned how to construct a steadfast house many years ago. He never hesitated – at least not since he became an asset of the IPC. There was no room for any sort of weakness in their ranks, plain and simple. If you wanted the money and power to become impenetrable, you first needed to learn strategy.

Entertain me for a moment, will you?

What do you want, Diamond?

To give you a hypothetical, and see how you respond. Think of it as an impromptu assessment of your current skills.

Alright.

Walk with me first.

Another pair of cards joined the house, gradually building up a wall between the rest of the room and where he stood.

There is a planet on the outer recesses of our galaxy. It is in proximity of several meteors. Only three are on a path towards said planet. This has occurred many times over the last 350 Amber Eras. They are nearing the end of their resources, and have a chance to be erased completely without intervention. They have had no prior dealings with the IPC and are reluctant to seek aid as they are in development of a plan to exterminate all of the surrounding meteors. However, there is no set date for when their plan will be completed, much less enacted. The meteors will be hitting them in just one and a half months. Tell me, Aventurine, what would you do?

What we always do. Offer them our aid and see if they take it. Use force if necessary, and ensure that they end up in our hands.

Spoken like a true Stoneheart. Yet I still wonder if you truly believe your own words?

He held the king of spades in between his index and middle finger, gazing at it intently. His ego likened himself to that image, but there was always doubt lingering in the corners of his mind. Beneath all of the glamour, possessions, lies, and silver-tongue tactics there was a hurting man. A scared and tired boy. One with an array of scars, apparent yet hidden. A person that existed within him, yet was increasingly out of reach. A part of him wanted to forget that side of him, cast it away and never have to face his perceived weaknesses. But another part of him wanted to keep it – cherish it. To wait until his vulnerable moments and allow himself to feel. One half was Aventurine, and the other half was…

No. Now was not the time for remembrance.

He placed the king of spades with the jack of hearts next, smoothly placing them down and moving onto the next pair.

Excuse me?

You heard me, don’t attempt games. I was there for your recruitment, and I’ve witnessed your progress. I have to ask: do you want to help them for the IPC, or for your own conscience?

Come now, you know it would be my honor to provide them with our benefits.

Hmm. I have to disagree. It would serve you better to forsake those sentiments. Our conversation is over, I have reports to catch up on. You are dismissed.

“Recruitment”. He had no choice in that. But that was their ploy, right? Prey on the vulnerable and use them for their own gain. It was a trick used against him, and it was one he had used on others. Though he always made sure never to deal them as cruel a hand as he was given, somewhere in the murky depths of his heart, regret swam. It was heavy and engulfing, threatening to burst forth when he was alone in the middle of the night. The feeling of being nothing but a tool was sickening – he understood that well. It was one of the many things he would never want other people to experience. But he would make them anyway. That was survival. An unfortunate “game” of risk and reward, the ultimate gamble. What do you wager in order to be gifted with more time? How much are you willing to bet that your strategy will work?

Aventurine had many maneuvers. Methods that he had honed with time and experience.

An intricately crafted front can get you far. Wrap your walls in affability that can draw people closer or push them further away. Use it to catch them in your tricks. Assess what both parties are willing to stake for what they can possibly gain. Befriend them, although it's often superficial. Take what they give with a smile, and do small favors where you can. They'll owe you, after all. Just enjoy the game, you'll win at the end no matter the cost.

The view from the Strategic Investment Department’s building displayed a vibrant cityscape of Pier Point. A bustling environment that completely contrasted with what he was used to beforehand. He was the last Sigonian now, and he had no room for mourning in this place. Despite that, a festering wound sat in his chest, wanting to be acknowledged and no longer denied. It ached and burned, filling him with an overwhelming sadness and frustration at his circumstances, and himself. He was all that remained – all that he could rely on. His eyes began to glaze over. He swallowed thickly, willing it all back down. You can’t be weak here. There’s no one left to comfort you.

The cards were built to the third row now, and a sense of satisfaction and content fell upon him. It was a similar feeling to seeing a mission through successfully. With a small flourish, the jack of spades and ace of hearts arrived in his hands, ready to be crowned at the top of the house. As he placed them down, a light smile appeared on his face. Stepping back, he stretched his fingers and observed his work.

Grabbing a simply mixed white grape soda, took a sip, and reached for the token in his pocket. He turned it horizontally and prepared to balance it at the very top, a quick test – a gamble in its own way – to see if it could rest at the peak. Setting his drink down to the left, he leaned down and watched the chip with intent. He perched it carefully on top of the cards, leaving it perfectly centered. It rested well for a moment, before collapsing through the cards and sending each row into disarray.

His stare turned sour. What outcome did he expect? Naturally the chip would be far too heavy for the cards to support. That didn’t matter however. He would rebuild it again and ensure that the token could rest on top, disregarding the almost inherent impossibility. If he wanted a specific outcome, he would see it through to the end, taking the required measures to get there.

The consequences of a failed mission always linger, a potentially fatal result in repose on his shoulders, creating a pernicious sting. This was just an illustrative trial of his purpose here, and on every other planet he had visited.

When it was all said and done, the absolute truth of his work would remain the same: he had everything to gain and nothing to lose.

[manabombs]

billy bones blogging

I was Flint's first mate that voyage... three days east of Tortola in the Caribie. Flint knew an island. That's where we buried the treasure. Gold and blood, they were Flint's trademarks. He'd leave both behind him that day.

Muppet Treasure Island, 1996

As I was working on the art piece I just posted the other day, it occurred to me that it might have actually been my first time drawing Billy Bones. Which seemed Wrong, considering that he is, in fact, one of the main reasons that I fell in love with this show you know other than the vanerackham brain worms.

And I've spent a long time thinking that I should make a post articulating exactly why I'm so attached to him (I usually just keep my thoughts confined to the tags over on @benjaminagunn but this is just that important) Muppet Treasure Island came out when I was like 6 years old and was one of my favorite movies growing up. I watched it enough times to have most of the songs memorized, along with large chunks of dialogue. In particular, the opening scene. The film opens with a musical number that presents the backstory of Flint's treasure-- then cuts to a scene at a busy inn, where we are introduced to the narrator of the aforementioned tale: Billy Bones.

"Oh, aye. Fifteen men went ashore that day... and only Flint, his own self, returned. Oh, aye, and then old Flinty... up and died afore they could get back to that cursed island... and dig up the treasure. No one knows to this day who has old Flint's map. Now, isn't that a story worth the hearing?" "It was the first dozen times we heard it."

A couples scenes & a musical number later, it's revealed that Billy had the map the whole time, and he passes it to our protagonist Jim Hawkins before promptly dying. His job is to set the plot in motion and then be completely absent from the rest of the story.

In high school, I decided that since I enjoyed this movie so much, I should read the full unabridged version of the book. And the first thing that really struck me about it was the description of Billy Bones. Obviously, I was expecting there to be differences between this 19th century novel and the adaptation that involves Muppets. And the I do think that the character of Billy Bones, as portrayed by Billy Connolly, is a great adaptation of the character!

But the novel paints a more complete image of him: The boisterous side of him that we see in Muppet Treasure Island is only how he behaves on the nights he gets incredibly drunk; most of the time he is quiet and brooding.

He was a very silent man by custom. All day he hung round the cove or upon the cliffs with a brass telescope; all evening he sat in a corner of the parlour next the fire and drank rum and water very strong. Mostly he would not speak when spoken to, only look up sudden and fierce and blow through his nose like a fog-horn; and we and the people who came about our house soon learned to let him be. Every day when he came back from his stroll he would ask if any seafaring men had gone by along the road. At first we thought it was the want of company of his own kind that made him ask this question, but at last we began to see he was desirous to avoid them. When a seaman did put up at the Admiral Benbow (as now and then some did, making by the coast road for Bristol) he would look in at him through the curtained door before he entered the parlour; and he was always sure to be as silent as a mouse when any such was present. For me, at least, there was no secret about the matter, for I was, in a way, a sharer in his alarms. He had taken me aside one day and promised me a silver fourpenny on the first of every month if I would only keep my “weather-eye open for a seafaring man with one leg” and let him know the moment he appeared. Often enough when the first of the month came round and I applied to him for my wage, he would only blow through his nose at me and stare me down, but before the week was out he was sure to think better of it, bring me my four-penny piece, and repeat his orders to look out for “the seafaring man with one leg.”

When I read the book, I got a greater sense that Billy Bones was a man suffering from a great deal of trauma-- which is very significant for the character, considering that he literally gets Scared To Death.

So! Years later when I heard "Starz is making a pirate drama that's a prequel to Treasure Island", I was stoked! So much so that I felt like I couldn't actually watch it until I was Emotionally Ready... which wasn't until 2019.

I watched the first episode, and I cradled Billy Bones in my hands, and I said "oh my sweet summer child.... you're going to have some serious Long John Silver related PTSD by the time this is over..... you're going to become a husk of the man you are now..... you are Unkillable because your death is already written in stone baby!"

[dwarf-vader-of-middle-earth]

My two best IRL friends, they're a couple, and today the boyfriend flew out to meet his girlfriend here in this state, and they went to prom together for her college.

And idk… I just keep thinking… I never got a college prom, and I doubt I ever will. My high school prom, I had a boyfriend who said constantly multiple times that he was going to come fly out to NJ and be my date.

I wound up, that prom night, going to the celebration with a good friend of mine who also had no date. But then… my abuser went as well. I'd been apart from her for months for the first time in my life after being stuck with her for 5 years straight. And when she found me, she literally ditched her own date to force me to dance with her the entire time. She ruined me, that woman. She made me lose my entire sense of self completely, to the point I forgot what I enjoyed, what my hobbies were, what shows and comics I loved, what music I liked listening to. And the entire celebration, I didn't have any fun. I was with her the whole way, and was scared shitless during afterprom that she'd find me and force me to do more things with her. So I just hid. I went to enclosed videogames, I hid in dark corners of the arcade, I went on rides with short lines and constantly looked over my shoulder to make sure she wasn't there.

And all that time, my boyfriend of a full year, he wasn't there like he said he was going to be.

It bothered me for all this time ever since. It was more than 6 years ago that this happened. But I'm seeing and feeling it now, and I'm actually sobbing as I write this. I'm at my computer outright sobbing. I fucking hate this. I hate myself. I hate my life.

I know. I shouldn't. But so much of my life has been spent ruined. 13 years of public school were spent hiding, remaining silent, going DAYS without speaking aloud to anyone to the point my teachers were concerned about me. But if ever I spoke up, I had at least a dozen students jumping on me and yelling at me, calling me names, screaming at me, pulling my hair and throwing food at me in the lunch room.

I'm so many years out of school now, and it still hurts. It's salt on a fresh wound. I'm a fucking mess rn. I just hate this. I hate me. I am a fucking mistake of a human being that's just a walking sack of trauma and survivor's regret.

I was never happy in school. Never. And now that I'm an adult I've spent all this time trying to make up for that loss of joy. And it just feels like it's all in vain. I am vain, and selfish, and I'm living for nothing. Fuck.

[futuresconnected]

Welcome to my Blog!

Thanks for being here! I'm going to start off this blog with a bit of info about me, my history with games, and my plans for this blog. Come in and see!

Meet The Blogger

You can call me Wham, I've been playing games since i was child with a Gameboy Advance and a well-loved copy of Pokemon crystal, but its really only in the last five years that I've come into any sort of gaming community and had the desire to explore gaming as a hobby and video games as an art form.

Let's start with the kind of games I've enjoyed (and you can check out my Backloggd link in my profile for more)

JRPGs are the big one, and a perennial favorite of mine. Heavy hitters here include the Final Fantasy franchise (X,XII, and XIV especially), the Xenoblade games (especially 3), and the Persona series. I'm currently trying to explore more series that I've missed over the years, like Star Ocean, Trails in the Sky, Tales of, etc.

Rougelikes! Not quite as much these days, but ever since The Binding of Isaac came out, I rode the wave of the indie roguelike scene for a good seven or eight years and have a deep love for where this genre has gone over the years. Notable games for me here are Isaac, FTL, Risk of Rain, Hades, Inscryption, and Darkest Dungeon.

Diablo-style loot RPGs, I've had a long history with these games starting back when I would play Diablo II LAN games with my friend and his dad back in middle school, and games like this have always had a soft spot in my heart. I spent years playing Path of Exile, and I routinely come back to games like Titan Quest and Grim Dawn as well.

Fighting games! This one is pretty new for me, back in 2020 one of my good friends decided he was gonna try to get into Street Fighter, and that caused a small revolution in my friend group that has led to me playing a whole hell of a lot of Guilty Gear Strive, Street Fighter 6, and other assorted games. I'm by no means good at them, but I've been committed to learning and improving at them bit by bit (you'll see in the weekly FGC Corner :) )

Visual Novels/Narrative Games. This one is very much a less cogent genre space, but some of my absolute favorite games can all be loosely put together around these terms. Games like 13 Sentinels, 999, Virtue's Last Reward, Umineko, Misericorde, Perfect Tides, things of that nature.

There are many others out there, so I'll end this section by listing off a bunch of other games that are classics for me: Outer Wilds, Neon White, Just Cause 2, Devil May Cry 5, Blasphemous, Dark Souls/Bloodborne/Elden Ring, Pillars of Eternity 1 and 2, Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous, Rimworld, Disco Elysium, Monster Hunter, and many many others!

The Big Idea

What I mostly want from this blog is to be a space where I can get together at the end of a week and think back about what I've been playing, what I think about it, and whatever else is connected to those feelings. Over the years I've enjoyed seeing other folks thinking and writing critically about the media that they enjoy, and while I hold no aspirations of turning this into anything quite as specific as that, I want to give myself space to spend more time thinking about this hobby which means so much to me. I have no idea how its going to go, if I'm going to like it, or how consistent I will be able to be, but for the time being this is my plan all laid out!

If you've read all this and it sounds interesting to you, or you think you might have tastes that align with mine, feel free to follow along! I'd love to have more people to talk shop with, or even just knowing that some other folks out there might think my words are interesting.

So let's get into it!

[writerartistdreamer]

@whumptober @whumptober-archive

Hello! This is my story for day 6 of Whumptober. Enjoy!

Fair disclaimer, TW, this fanfiction has a character that is locked up in a cell and there might be mentions/threats of violence (a few, but it's good to know).

Posting day: 6

Prompt day 6: Made to watch

Fandom: Once Upon a Time (TV)

Characters: Belle, the Evil Queen, Rumplestiltskin (mentioned)

Belle had been locked up in the Evil Queen's tower for the past three years. In vain, she had tried to escape multiple times, leaving guards unconscious or wounded, climbing to grated windows lr running to the back gates, as well as using the hidden tunnels throughout the palace. Each time, she was so very close, and still each time, the queen found her and threw her back in her cell, bringing more guards, as well as casting spells to make her chances of escaping close to none. Years had passed and nobody had come to look for her. Oh, she didn't doubt the queen's vicious, manipulative and traitorous nature, but she had hoped, despite it all, that she would eventually escape her clutches, or that someone would find her locked up in the tower and take her away.

Not even her- not even Rumplestiltskin had come in search of the girl, to maybe rescue her or at least make sure she was safe while away, which shredded her last glint of hope. He made it clear enough that his power was the only thing that truly mattered to him and, even if he did attempt to rescue her, he had probably been tricked by Regina herself, knowing just how capable she was of hurting those around her to further her own power. Hope had only lasted so long, before she simply gave up and spent most of her time curled up in the corner of her cell, scraping tally marks in the stone and slowly losing her sanity and her liveliness.

One day, the cell door could be heard screeching open and Belle did not even bother to turn around and look at who might be coming in. There was no way for anyone to be coming to her aid, for many were probably no longer aware of her disappearance and either supposed her to still be working as Rumplestiltskin caretaker, or supposed her to be dead. The Evil Queen's heels could be heard clanking as she advanced in the girl's cell and tugged on the chain locked around her ankle to catch the girl's attention (another precaution to ensure her escape would be impossible, although Belle was known to be able to open such locks with no effort). Belle turned around, sneering angrily, not losing her rebelious spirit just yet, yet the Queen smiled in her face, knowing that all the mere mortal of a girl could do was bark and not actually cause any harm. "Such lack of manners...perhaps I should educate you once more with a few whippings" Regina spoke, smirking victoriously.

"You won, alright? You have me here, locked up, unable to escape, away from everyone I love. What more do you want?" Belle spoke, such sadness laced in her voice, which barely carried out anymore. The only person she could speak to was herself, the sound of her voice going to waste in between the stone walls surrounding her. At most, she could try to shoo the rats away from her cell, a feat that almost never worked in her favour. "I've never done anything to you..." she whispered, defeated, barely looking i her direction, her face almost fully hidden by her mop of her, overly grown while in captivity.

"And here I was, thinking I could offer you a gift. Perhaps not" Regina sneered, pretending to walk away, before returning and bending down to Belle's level with a savage grin. "You're lucky you're still here, little girl, and not six feet deep or with your ashes in an urn" she addressed the prisoner, before standing back up and asking her men to drag in a mirror, barely any taller than her. Belle looked on with a frown, trying to stand up and move away from the large object.

"A mirror? What do you want me to look for, the state of decay I'm in? The bruises adding up on me?" Belle replied back, anger seething within her. What kind of mockery or humiliation was this? Bringing her a mirror to constantly spy on her, to feel more joy at the sight of another prisoner's suffering? Letting the girl see just how drained and pathetic she now looked, how the sight of her no longer matched the name that had been bestowed upon her at birth?

"Not quite, although you may be smarter than I've given you credit" the Evil Queen spoke maliciously and flicked her hand, letting an image slowly appear in the frame of the mirror. Another cage, presumably in another palace, dark and damp and full of dirt, holding yet another prisoner. Belle couldn't understand, was she supposed to watch another person go through what she endured, as if misery loved company? What kind of cruel joke was being played upon her. Still, the image revealed that, within the cage, a person or a creature, she couldn't be too sure because of the darkness, was being held in that cage. After a few moments, a figure was revealed: curled hair, now tangled and greasy, ripped up leather clothing, visible wounds on his hands and cheeks and an amber gaze she would recognize anywhere. She let out a pained sob, reaching for the mirror and touching it, as if trying to reach out for the man. "Rumple!" She shouted, a few tears pouring down his cheeks when she saw the state he was in. A malevolent cackle was heard from the doorway of her cell, the impeccable red lips forming a pleased smirk at the girl's reaction.

"Master AND lover indeed. And now where have you both landed? Powerless, locked up where not even the gods can look upon you, miserable and alone" Regina threw the words in her face, laughing as she watched Belle struggle to reach for Rumplestiltskin, to soothe his pain, to do something, though all she could really do was watch him through the magical mirror.

"What have you done to him?? You monster!" Belle screamed, lunging for her, but being stopped by the chain tugging at her ankle. Tears of anger and frustration pooled down her cheeks as she once again returned to the mirror, seeing him crouched in the corner of his cell, just as miserable as she felt.

"Oh, me, dearie?" The Evil Queen mocked, before continuing. "Why nothing. The heroes, as they called themselves, took your beloved beast and threw him away into a jail cell, for one of his tricky little deals. And now all you can do is sit and watch as the two of you fade into obscurity. The mirror will remain here in your cell and you'll be forced to watch as he decays and you lose your sanity. Quite a gift, I'd say, being able to see your beloved, isn't it?" The Evil Queen finally said, malice coating her voice. Before Belle could say anything else, the cell door was slammed shut, and the girl fell to her knees, tears staining her dusty cheeks as she watched Rumplestiltskin suffer with nobody coming to his rescue, just as she did.

[laurencodyblog]

Re-posted from 11/12/11

Fingerprints

I have no fingerprints left.

It all started a few weeks back on a Saturday when Alex and I went to hang out with his Papaw at an empty house he was working on by the lake. So Big Al and I went exploring in the back yard. That's where he made the discovery. Inside an old abandoned shed were lots of fishing poles and tackle, old rusted tools and empty gas cans. Over in a dark corner, Alex spotted something shiny sticking out of an old 5-gallon paint bucket.

His eyes got big as he went in for a closer look. I of course (being the watchful grandmother that I am) , gave the standard cautionary warnings of bugs, snakes and cobwebs. Alex wasn't even the slightest bit phased. The next thing I knew, he was pulling and tugging with all his might – the bucket out into the sunlight and dumped its contents on the ground for our inspection.

It was filled to overflowing of old, rusted out and tarnished pieces of brass and copper – that had no doubt spent the last many years tucked away in this dank, leaky shed. He and I took off on imaginary tales of how and who had collected these 'valuable treasures' (his words, certainly not mine). We were convinced that we had accidentally stumbled upon a pirates booty – or the remnants of a robber's art gallery heist – for sure. We had so much fun inventing possible scenarios and likely plots that the time got away from us. Before long, Papaw had finished his work and was ready to go. The truck was loaded and as Alex raced to re-pack his treasures and drag them to the truck, I knew he would have to convince Papaw that they were worth the effort to try and make room. I worried that all his begging and pleading would probably do no good because the truck was packed.

But as he presented his closing arguments to a hot and tired grandfather – we both saw the gleam in his eyes as he explained that he has always wanted to find something just like this. These were valuable and could be cleaned and polished up and be worth a lot of money. (So far, we weren't convinced). Then he explained holding up a bent copper fondue pot – “I've always wanted to give something like this to my mom. Something I got on my own – that no one else bought for me to give her. She collects copper, and I know she would just love this!”

He was right. She would love this. She would love that he would bravely search a dark spider-filled shed on the slight possibility that he could find something nice for her. And she would love that when he did find 'treasure' his very first thought was how much his mother would enjoy it. She would love and cherish that pot to her last breath...

So fast forward a few weeks to a copper / brass cleaning and polishing Saturday appointment with Alex and Nonna. Of course, I couldn't let him do it, because of the chemicals – so I agreed to do my best. About 6 hours later – a back aching, nails ruined – fingerprints missing Nonna presented a shiny, copper fondue pot. It is still bent, and of course still has some bad spots on it, but when he sees it, his eyes light up and a snaggle toothed grin explodes across his face.

“I knew it would be beautiful!” He says, looking it over.

“All my life, I've wanted to give her something like this.....”

Well, now he finally gets to.

I'm still a little nauseous and completely exhausted. I'm not sure my fingers will recover – and I'm entirely sure my fingernails won't. My whole Saturday is gone, my back hurts and I had so many other things that needed tending to today...

But nothing quite as important as looking at his beaming face and hearing the excitement in his voice when he told me he's found a treasure he's been looking for all his life.

Now that's ironic.

Because I've spent the last half hour telling you about the treasure I've been looking for all my life.

He has blue eyes and a snaggle toothed grin.

Lauren Cody

11/12/11

[00katrinka00]

Landcaster Legacy Gen 7 Update #30

Dear Diary, Lacy's play was so good last night. I'm still so confused by the ending though, Lacy went straight to bed after coming home last night, and then left super early today so I haven't had time to ask her about it.

-Violet

Saturday afternoon Violet and Janie met on the pier for a date. "Have you started packing for Mt. Komrebi yet?" Violet asked. "You leave Monday morning." "I only have a few things packed," Janie admitted. "I guess I'm hoping the slower I pack the more time I'll get here with you"

"We can't stop time, but we can take some pictures," Violet suggested and the girls got situated for a photo together. "They usually last longer anyways," Janie told her.

Violet and Janie headed over to the photo booth to take some more pictures. Violet seemed pretty pleased with how their photo turned out, and to be fair it was super cute.

"I really need to head home," Violet said. "But I'll see you at my mom's dinner party tomorrow? It starts at 6:00pm." "I wouldn't miss it," Janie assured her, and Violet pulled her in for a goodbye kiss.

Leo decided that it was time he start prioritizing his goals again. He'd had enough with all the girl drama, and it was about time he start focusing on college again, he was about to be a senior anyways. Leo got up early that morning and went for a run and researched universities

While Mads began getting everything downstairs set up for their dinner party that evening, Ethan kept Rosie preoccupied by doing some flash cards with her. Needless to say, she enjoyed spending some quality time with her father.

Sunday, when Lacy returned home from their final show, she immediately dyed her hair. It felt good to have this little piece of herself back. The remainder of shows went well, Owen avoided her, and the watcher stopped cheating Wade's energy so he was actually able to go on as Eli

Meanwhile, Mads was downstairs prepping all the food they'd need for the dinner party. She enjoyed hosting guests and was extremely excited that her friend Parker had agreed to come tonight. Mads hadn't seen them since Leo and Nat's birthday so it was going to be nice to catch up

Before anyone knew it 6:00pm was here, and guests began to arrive. Jackie immediately challenged Ethan to a game of chess. "You're going down Hope," she teased. "In your dreams, Wilkes," Ethan taunted. "Oh please, I've beaten you at every game we've played since college."

"You don't know how happy I am that you were able to make it!" Mads exclaimed. "It's been years." "Well, you know how it is," Parker responded. "Work is always calling my name." "Strangerville is so far too. Is it true there are aliens out there?" Parker let out a nervous laugh.

Parker excused themself to grab a plate of food just at Mikayla sat down next to Mads. "So how's the grandparent life treating you?" she asked. "Don't call me that, it makes me sound so old," Mikayla complained. "But Sawyer is the sweetest, just like Nat was."

Rosie managed to track down the only other toddler invited to this dinner part, and very quickly struck up an incoherent conversation with Sawyer. Whatever they were talking about both girls seemed to be enjoying themselves.

Nat spent most of the night trying to avoid Leo, so this led her into a conversation with both of her mothers, and Parker in the back hallway of the Landcaster residence.

Nat's younger sister, Jayda, took a seat next to lacy making her feel quite tense. "You haven't seen Janie wandering around have you?" Violet asked. "I've been looking all over, but there are so many sims it's hard to move." "I haven't seen her yet," Lacy responded. "Sorry."

Jayda had enough of Lacy's mood and went to search for Parker's son, who was the only other child at the party. Violet scooted over next to Lacy. "She just promised she's come," Violet complained. "And she's nowhere to be found. Maybe I should go look again."

"Can we talk?" Leo asked after he was finally able to corner Nat alone. "I guess," Nat relied. Deep down she knew a conversation with Leo was inevitable. "I'm sorry," he told her. "I was a jackass for not showing up for Sawyer's birth when I promised I would."

"Honestly, Leo," Nat began to say. "You shouldn't have promised anything to begin with. Sawyer isn't your baby, and you were with Sofia at the time. It was unfair of me to expect you to be there, I guess I was just jealous." "But we're friends," Leo said "Wait, jealous?"

"And at the end of the day I don't want him to get hurt, and he just can't seem to understand that, " Lacy was venting to Violet. "It sounds like you have some issues to resolve here, Lacy," Violet pointed out. "I have no issues," Lacy snapped clearly irritated.

"Violet has a point," Ethan interjected. "You do seem to have some issues trusting yourself in relationships, also it seems like this Owen fellow really likes you. I could set up an appointment with Violet's therapist for you." "Absolutely not," Lacy snapped. "I'm fine, I swear."

Jackie decided to do some flash cards with Sawyer in a puddle of mystery pee.

(Seriously I have no clue who pissed on the floor)

As the evening drew to a close, Mads was finally able to meet little Sawyer. "Oh, Nat, she's just adorable," Mads exclaimed and then turned to Sawyer. "You really are lucky, Nat's going to be such an amazing mother." "What can I say," Nat shrugged.

Violet ended up heading outside to get some air. After everyone had left Mads decided to have a chat with her daughter. "Everything okay?" "Janie never showed," Violet told her. "She promised."

"She even asked how important it was to me that she come tonight, and then never showed," Violet ranted. "Sweetheart, I'm so sorry" Mads tried to console her. "Like I'm starting to wonder if she even likes me at all" Violet admitted. "One second it's great and the next it's not"

Mads pulled Violet in for a hug. "I'll always be here for you," Mads assured her. "Thanks mom," Violet said. "But I actually kind of just want to be alone for now, can I take a walk. To clear my head?" "Sure," Mads told her. "Just be safe, alright." "Okay."

[anonymityisfunwriter]

Two Sides of The Same Coin - Chapter 2: "State of Grace"

"And I never saw you coming, and I'll never be the same..."

6 Months Later…

“Alright, you’re meeting a new person today. You ready?” Sam claps, rounding the corner into the kitchen where you were currently tending to your plant.

You only had this one small plant inside, but most days you spent outside in your small garden enjoying the sun for the first time in your life. 

You'd enjoyed a lot of firsts living with Sam in this small two-flat that was typically used as housing for SHIELD agents not living on the Avengers Compound. It was a small, but nice house and the two of you had found a nice routine living together. Daily walks to take in all New York had to offer, movie nights filled with every modern day classic, and catching up on everything else a twenty-something year old should know. 

The caveat was other than in passing, your interactions with other people were few and far in between. Still it was good- better than anything you could have ever hoped for. 

“New people?” you remark in awe, turning away from your houseplant. “You never let me meet new people!”

“I know,” Sam chuckles. “But today is a special occasion- your very first mission.”

“I’m so excited: my first mission!” you squeal. "Do I get to meet one of your friends?"

“Your first mission,” he confirms. “And yes, you'll meet one of my friends, Bucky, he’s going to help us with the mission.”

“Bucky? That’s a funny name,” you quip, turning back around to finish pruning one of your plants.

“Well, it’s more of a nickname, like what your friends call you instead of saying your full name. Like you call me Sam even though my name is Samuel?” Sam explains.

“Oh…” you nod in understanding. “Well, what’s his real name?”

“James. James Buchanan Barnes.”

“He has three names?” 

“Which reminds me, I need to talk to Nick about that. He swears they're working on it, but apparently I need to light a fire under their ass to get you any type of documents.”

“So when do I meet the new people?” you ask, brimming with excitement.

“The new person,” Sam corrects. “It’s one person.”

“When do I meet the new person?” you amend, sighing another of Sam's corrections to your grammar.

“He should be here soon," he says, pulling his phone out of his pocket. "I’m going to call Nick about that and you can wait here for Bucky. He’s got clearance, so he can just walk in, but I shouldn’t be too long. Okay?”

“Got it,” you chirp.

And then you’re anxiously sitting at the front window sill watching the pedestrians pass on the street wondering which of the many strangers will be the first person you actually meet. 

It's only been about 20 minutes when you hear the door knob turn. Despite your excitement at finally getting to interact with another person besides Sam, you freeze on the opposite side of the door, standing off to the side just out of sight.

You certainly don’t mean to sneak up on him- though Sam’s always told you your footsteps were eerily quiet.

"Oh," you marvel, taking in the new person in front of you. You can only see the back of his head and the glint of his metal arm, both of which completely capture your attention. "I've never seen a metal arm before- it's very cool."

"Jesus," Bucky jumps back, startled. "Who the hell are you? And how long have you been standing there?"

“Which question do you want me to answer first?” you ask with a large grin.

“Who are you?” Bucky demands.

You stick out your hand, still brimming with excitement, and simply give him your name, while you take in the sight of the stranger in front of you.

"That's great," he says sarcastically, ignoring your outstretched hand. "Now who are you? And how the hell did you sneak up on me?"

"I already told you," you insist, slightly frowning in confusion, reluctantly dropping your hand. "My name is-"

Sam cuts you off by walking in. "Oh, good. The two of you already met."

"Yeah, not really," Bucky grunts, turning to Sam and whispering, "Who the hell is this? And why is she here?"

"I can still hear you," you playfully whisper back. "And I’m here because I live here."

Bucky's eyes flicker between the two of you, trying to figure out how any of this makes any sense. The attractive stranger with absolutely zero social skills living with his friend that has hardly contacted him in 6 months, who called him completely out of the blue for help with a mission that he couldn't say anything about. There was no other word for it except confusing. "You two live together?" 

Sam sighs, turning to you first. "Do you remember what I told about little white lies? That you don't always need to tell everyone everything?" You nod definitively, remembering the exact conversation very well. "This is one of those times."

Then he turns back to Bucky. "And do you remember the assignment I was going on? Why I moved out of the compound? The secret assignment ?"

Bucky scoffs, "This is your 'super-top-secret' assignment?"

Sam gently claps a hand over your shoulder. "This is our newest member of the team."

"Team?" Bucky asks in disbelief. "Her?"

"You have pretty eyes," you comment, leaning over the kitchen island and watching Bucky intently. You hold out your closed palm to Bucky, the same way you did to Sam when you first met. When you open your palm, you hold out a blue flower- the same shade of blue as his eyes.

"See? She likes you," Sam grins.

Bucky completely turns away from your open palm and focuses on Sam. "Yeah, I don't care. So she lives here, but why is she here?" Bucky emphasizes, pointing to the surrounding area.

"She's going to help us, duh. Now don't be rude," Sam says, nudging his head to your still outstretched hand.

"You're kidding me, right?"

Sam's eyes flicker more forcefully. "No. I'm not." 

"Fine," he says, taking the flower in his hand. "There, you happy?"

Sam turns to you with a warm smile. "Can you give us a minute? I just need to talk to Bucky real quick."

"Sure," you nod, turning to walk around then almost immediately turning back. "Wait, how long do you need?"

"I'll come get you. How about you turn on a movie or something?" Sam suggests, ignoring the way Bucky rolls his eyes and crosses his arms in impatience.

"Alright," you nod again, then head out to the living room.

As soon as you're out the door, Sam's smile drops, looking particularly unimpressed by Bucky's behavior. "I need you to be nice."

"Well you could have given me a warning. She scared the hell out of me. Who just sneaks up on a trained assassin?"

"In her defense, she doesn’t know you’re a trained assassin. And I'm pretty sure she can hold her own."

"Whatever,” Bucky grouses, rolling his eyes. “Are you going to tell me what's going on? Or what kind of assignment requires you two to live together?"

"Long story short: Fury asked me to be her handler and here I am."

“And you agreed to that?”

Sam shrugs. “It was kind of hard to say no.”

"So what's her deal?"

"'Her deal' is getting acclimated- that's all you need to know. Anything else you can go ask her yourself."

"So you’ve got a mission?” Bucky impatiently prompts, hating the half truths and cryptic answers Sam keeps giving him.

“Yes, pretty cut and dry,” Sam says, sliding the file over to Bucky. 

“It’s a simple recovery. We could take care of this just the two of us,” Bucky grumbles, quickly reading over the mission.

“But we’re not going to,” Sam corrects. “She’s coming with us.”

“Why? What aren’t you telling me?”

“There’s a lot I’m not telling you,” Sam admits. “You’re just going to have to trust me on this one.”

“You’re going to have to give me more than that.”

Sam begrudgingly huffs. “It’s her first mission, but-”

“Clearly,” Bucky snarks, his arms still crossed and clearly equally unimpressed with the whole situation. “And you know I don’t work with rookies.”

“But I think she’s ready. I know for a fact that she could easily handle herself out there.”

Bucky scoffs. “By handing everyone flowers?”

“I’ll have you know that she can do that with fruits and vegetables too. Small ones, mostly. Some herbs too.”

“You’re not really instilling any confidence in me, Sam.”

“Look, she’s powerful enough to catch Nick Fury’s attention and to get him to devote a whole person into working with her 24/7. Do you honestly think I would’ve agreed to that if I didn’t think she was worth it?” Sam rhetorically asks. “Just give her a chance.”

“Fine,” Bucky reluctantly groans.

“And be nice,” Sam warns again, then turns to walk back to the living room. When they walk in, you’re watching a movie like Sam asked you to, but that's not what catches Bucky's attention, it's the small flame you're rolling in between your fingers. 

"What the hell?" 

“Cool, right?” Sam smirks to a stunned Bucky. “You ready to go?”

“Yes,” you nod eagerly. “I’m so excited!”

“Like that?” Bucky asks, gesturing to your outfit- a simple sundress and a light jacket. “Shouldn’t she be wearing more…I don’t know protection or something?”

You point to your jean jacket. “That’s what the jacket is for.”

“No, Bucky’s right. Can you put on some pants, please? Something you can move around in,” Sam asks. You wordlessly nod, walking back to your room to find something else to wear. “And no leggings!”

You sigh, calling back to him, “Fine.”

“This is a terrible idea,” Bucky sighs. "I want it on the record that this is a terrible idea- one of your worst really."

"Or possibly one of my best."

This time Bucky doesn't reply, letting the silence hang in the air as they wait for you to come back. When you return, you’re wearing your favorite yellow shirt paired with some jeans- along with the same jean jacket. “Okay! Now I’m ready.”

Bucky pinches the bridge of his nose, looking at Sam with an incredulous expression. “Anything to say about this?”

“No, not really, but I’m sure you do,” Sam retorts.

“No, it’s okay,” you quickly assure Bucky. “This is my lucky shirt, that way we’ll have good luck.”

“You’ll be lucky if you get spotted from a mile away,” Bucky snarks. “Sam, she’s wearing a bright yellow shirt.”

“So what? You need to focus on the positive: It’s a lucky shirt.”

“We’re banking on a lucky shirt, Sam? Have you lost your mind?” Bucky asks, fighting the urge to pull out his own hair at the strange- downright weird situation he's just found himself in. 

“You said it yourself, it’s an easy mission. We got this,” Sam assures. 

Bucky takes a large deep breath. “I’m going to kill you.”

On the ride there, Sam watches the way Bucky interacts with you- carefully watching you the entire time, but avoiding any actual interaction with you. From the rearview mirror, he sees Bucky staring at you. And it takes you a few seconds before you feel the glare at the side of your head. Instead of asking Bucky why he’s staring or telling him to stop staring, you immediately begin partaking in this strange staring contest. 

“Will you two cut it out?” Sam complains, momentarily turning away from the wheel.

“Shh…Sam I’m winning,” you mumble, leaning forward a little bit more.

Sam fully turns around this time, snapping his fingers in front of the two of you. “We’re here. Stop it.”

“Ha, I win!” you boast, opening the car door.

“No you didn’t.”

“I totally did.”

“Sam?” Bucky prompts.

“You’re asking me who won a staring contest between two adults?”

“Whatever,” Bucky grumbles, stepping out of the car. 

“The garage isn’t far from here,” Sam informs the two of you. “We’re going to cut through the alley.”

-

“Alright, you see the bad guys. Now what?” Sam whispers, the three of you standing behind a large truck just out of sight.

“We go get the stuff back?” you reply.

“Exactly! Now, it’s important to look around before you do anything else. How many bad guys there are. Anything that could be useful. You need to get a good look at the big picture before you swoop in there, okay?”

“Alright,” you nod. “There’s those guys right there. And the ones on the truck, but we can’t see inside the back of the truck.”

“Good! Anything else?”

“Yes, James is breathing down my neck. And you’re right next to me.”

“Funny, very funny,” Bucky hisses. “Sam, this-”

But he’s cut off by the sight of your yellow shirt in his peripheral. His head snaps in your direction, and he’s about to go and intervene when Sam sticks his arm out to stop him. “Let’s just give her a second. Maybe she’ll surprise you.”

“Doubt it,” Bucky snarks.

“Hi,” you chirp, approaching the three men, sticking your hand out to greet them.

“Is introducing herself to international arms dealers?” Bucky mutters in disbelief.

“What are you doing?” one of the men bark at you.

“Oh, this is a handshake. It’s another way of saying hello,” you explain.

“That’s great, sweetie, but what are you doing here?” another man demands, gesturing to the area around you.

“Well, I need the things in the back of your truck. According to my friend, you’re not supposed to have it,” you calmly explain, still grinning at the men. 

“Well in that case,” the man scoffs, lifting his gun to point it at you.

“Would it make a difference if I said please?” you audibly wonder and Sam has to stick his arm out in front of Bucky to stop him from intervening once more.

“Sam, she’s going to get herself killed!” Bucky insists.

“Just give her a second,” Sam repeats.

“No,” the man snarls, the gun still pointed in your direction.

“Okay,” you shrug. Then the ground underneath the large semi-trucks begins rumbling then cracking and separating, making it impossible for them to drive off.

“Why didn’t she do that earlier?” Bucky exhales, clenching his jaw in unbridled irritation.

“Well not everyone is ‘shoot first, ask questions later’, Bucky.”

“I ask questions when it’s a good time to ask questions, not when there’s guns being pointed in my face.”

“Well, it’s working out pretty well for her. Isn’t it?”

“Speaking of which, we should probably help her,” Bucky says, gesturing to you who is now being openly fired at.

“Look at you wanting to be a helpful teammate!”

“We’re not a team,” Bucky grunts, jumping into the action. And he’s got to give it to you, you’re pretty agile for someone without any training. 

He’s got one eye on you the entire time the three of you are fighting, you’re tearing the guns out of the bad guys hands making it a lot easier for Sam and Bucky to stop them. Only half paying attention to what he’s doing, another gun goes off, the bullet heading right for Bucky. There is no conscious action on your part, but the bullet stops just short of Bucky. 

“Thanks,” Bucky sighs, looking around the bullet frozen in mid-air.

“You’re welcome. Didn’t even know I could do that,” you admit, an anxious laugh leaving your mouth.

“Do you think Redwing caught that? That was like the freaking Matrix!”

And as quickly as it started, it’s over.

SHIELD came and collected the arms dealers along with the various contraband in the back of their several large trucks. Or so Sam told you, you were still being kept a well-hidden secret, so you had to wait in the car while they properly finished the mission.

“Well, I think we can call that a successful mission,” Sam says as he enters the car. “No one died, no one was hurt. Got the weapons back. And you - you were great,” Sam praises you, holding a hand up for a high five.

You eagerly slap his hand from the front passenger seat. “Since I did a good job, can we get pizza for dinner?”

“Can we get pizza?” Sam playfully scoffs. “Heck yeah, we can get pizza! You were awesome.”

“Wait, where’s James?”

“Bucky?” Sam asks. “I think he’s going to take off from here. He’s not much of a people person, don’t take it personally.”

But you don’t quite get that, being in isolation your entire life, seeing anyone, meeting anyone was cause for celebration. “James?” you call, cracking your window open as you see him start to walk away. His head snaps up, clearly not expecting to hear from you. “Aren’t you coming? We’re getting pizza!”

“Erm…” he starts, looking for an excuse not to go. But the second he looks at your pleading eyes, the excuse dies right on his lips. “Uh, yeah. I guess I can come.”

-

“Hm…just under a day with her. You didn’t last as long as Fury did,” Sam quietly remarks as you’re in your room changing out of your dirty clothes leaving the two men to wait downstairs for the food. 

“What?” 

“I lasted about an hour,” Sam explains, opening the fridge to grab himself and Bucky a beer. “It took me one hour with her before I agreed to be her handler. It took Fury about a week before he got attached. It took you almost an entire day.”

“I’m not attached,” Bucky vehemently objects, grabbing the beer from Sam's hand.

“Oh, yes you are,” Sam knowingly chuckles. “It’s impossible not to be. Maybe that’s part of her thing, but you almost can’t help but want to be near her.”

“You’re crazy.”

“Oh, trust me, I’m right about this. You’re two sides of the same coin.”

“Sam,” Bucky interjects. “I could not think of another person that’s more different than I am.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure. Besides, opposites attract,” Sam continues, nudging Bucky with his elbow. The doorbell rings and Bucky’s immediately thankful for the disruption. 

“Can you stop using generic ass phrases like we’re suddenly going to be best friends?” Bucky calls as Sam walks over to the door to get the pizza.

“Your defensiveness is only proving my point!” he laughs. 

“There’s nothing to prove. You both equally aggravate me,” Bucky counters as Sam walks back with a pizza box in hand. 

“But I’m your friend,” Sam smirks. “No reason she can’t be your friend too.”

“We’re acquaintances at best.”

“And yet, you’re still here,” Sam points out. 

“I’m here because you have pizza and beer,” Bucky says, gesturing to the food in front of him. 

“And a pretty girl?” Sam teases.

“If you think she’s pretty, why don’t you go for it?” Bucky counters, ignoring the fact that he does actually find you attractive.

“Ew,” Sam immediately cringes. Bucky raises an eyebrow at the visceral reaction. “Not, ew, like ew , but ew all the same. She’s like- I just know her too well. I don’t see her like that, but I did see the way you were watching her.”

“To make sure she didn’t get us killed!”

“Face it, Bucky." Sam smugly smiles. "You’ve met your match.”

Previous Chapter⏐Next Chapter

"Two Sides Of The Same Coin" Chapter List AnonymityIsFun Masterlist

[moririki]

⤷ AN EIGHT-LEGGED PROBLEM

OIKAWA TOORU & SAKUSA KIYOOMI & HAIBA LEV & MIYA ATSUMU X READER -> 1.8K
you save your boyfriend from a massive problem which is currently in the corner of your bathroom )

REQUEST -> n/a
CONTAINS -> spiders, bugs, you picking up said creepy crawlies, hq boys being no! help! at! all! (but that's ok bc we love them for it), fanon-ish sakusa cos i haven't read the manga and he had like 5 seconds of screen time so i'm just going off of what i've read + seen, clear favouritism despite the fact that i know basically nothing about sakusa, manga timeskip spoilers in sakusa's
MORI'S THOUGHTS -> haven't seen one where the reader is the one in the relationship who takes care of bugs so since i'm a #girlboss who throws spiders out of my room whenever i see them without breaking a sweat i'm writing that into a fun lil thing with the haikyuu boys that i strongly believe are scared of bugs. also besides the point but look at the pretty colour palette that their banners make fjfjfjdj will go back to writing the requests after this! inspiration just struck

❍ OIKAWA TOORU

-> omg this fucking guy

-> don't let his pride fool you this man HATES bugs with a burning passion

-> he'll never admit it though

-> between you and the aoba johsai team he would never hear the end of how the great king oikawa would cower at the sight of a moth doing laps around a lightbulb

-> so when you pretended not to hear the shriek that left your boyfriend when he saw something flying around the bathroom light and he declined your offer to get rid of the moth for him, this left oikawa in a pretty difficult situation

-> it was just him alone in the bathroom, trying to brush his teeth while eyeing the bug warily

-> you came in a few minutes later, getting ready to go to bed as well

-> "you know, babe, that moth's been there for quite a while," you teased him

-> oikawa hummed in response, his eyes never leaving it as it continued its circumnavigation of the light fixture

-> "oh, you know. who am i to kick someone out of their home? i'm no monster"

-> you almost snorted at how poor of an excuse that was, but ruffled your boyfriend's hair anyway

-> "i'll take care of it, ru, you just finish getting ready"

-> "but y/n-chan, that moth has feelings! don't be mean to it!"

-> you gave tooru a very blank stare at that

-> "so do you want me to leave you alone with your new friend?"

-> "......no"

-> "that's what i thought"

-> you went up to the moth, managing to trap it in your hands before releasing it from a window

-> oikawa shuddered as you came back to the sink, giving your hands a quick rinse before resuming with brushing your teeth like nothing had happened

-> "you're so brave, my love"

-> "anything for you, babe"

❍ SAKUSA KIYOOMI

-> bless this poor boy

-> so it's no secret that sakusa isn't the fondest of germs

-> and that extends to bugs and spiders too

-> besides a normal amount of disgust that he held for them, the thought of where the insects had been or placed one of their many feet on never failed to make his skin crawl

-> that's where you, his wonderful significant other, comes in

-> as much as he loves you, he just can't understand how you always stared at bugs with wonder in your eyes

-> you'd even pick them up, cooing at the way they crawled up your arm while sakusa just stared at you in disbelief with a can of bug spray in hand

-> tonight was one of those swelteringly hot summer nights

-> you know, the ones where the air seems to be still no matter how many windows you open and every insect in a mile radius is actively trying to enter your home

-> you were spending the night at your boyfriend's apartment, ready to have a relaxing night in with him since your schedules had finally synced up and allowed you both to enjoy a day off at the same time

-> it took months of trust before sakusa finally admitted to you how much he enjoyed doing skincare

-> so whenever you two spent the night together, you decided to start the evening with some face masks and idle binging of a tv show

-> against his half-hearted protests, you had insisted that sakusa wore a headband while this happened (one that had a very cute duck face printed on it)

-> just to keep the curls out of his face, of course

-> whenever he caught you sneaking a candid of him with facemask and duck headband on, he just shot you a halfhearted glare and threatened you to never send that to atsumu or the rest of the msby team

-> (you set it as your home screen instead)

-> anyways, i digress

-> so tonight you decided to cool down from the heat with a few facemasks and cuddling in your boyfriend's heavily air conditioned living room

-> but he kept all his skincare stuff in the bathroom, so you went to go get them as he set up a show to watch along with some snacks

-> you flicked on the light, going to his cabinet when something in the corner of the room caught your eye

-> there was a fairly large spider, desperately trying to crawl up the smooth tile wall

-> you decided to take pity on it and release it

-> but when you had it cupped safely in your hands, you decided to terrorise your poor boyfriend just a little

-> "hey, omi, look what i found!"

-> your boyfriend perked up at your signature nickname for him, though his eyes narrowed as he saw your clasped hands held in front of you

-> "no"

-> "but baby, you haven't even seen-"

-> "no"

-> you giggled at how defensive he had become

-> "come on, don't you want to name it? it's very cute"

-> "i want you to throw it out, y/n"

-> "alright, alright"

-> you took the spider to a window, releasing it back outside before heading back to the bathroom and grabbing a few masks for real this time

-> sakusa gave you the cold shoulder as you sat down next to him, humming as you gave him a face mask and putting it on without a word

-> "aww, baby, i'm sorry"

-> "..."

-> "i'll give you a head massage if you stop ignoring me?"

-> sakusa turned to you, his eyes narrowed in thought as he stared you down

-> the act soon broke, though, and he smiled against the sheet mask that was on his face

-> "it better be a good one," he huffed as he tugged the duck headband off, already sighing at the sensation of your fingers against his scalp

-> "omi, come on, what do you take me for?"

❍ HAIBA LEV

-> ngl lev gives off equal amounts of being terrified of like the tiniest spider or just finding bugs insanely cool vibes

-> it's funnier to imagine this 6-foot-something guy scramble away from a fucking crane fly in terror though so this is how it's going to play out

-> when you invited your giant of a boyfriend to your flat, you didn't anticipate just how small he made everything appear

-> he even towered in your doorway, having to stoop to step through into your hall

-> "woahh, i love your place!"

-> it was his first time staying over for the night, and lev was making sure to drink in every aspect of your interior design

-> you found it sweet of him, and watched as he stared in wide-eyed wonder at the little trinkets you had collected over the years to make your small apartment seem more like a home

-> you didn't expect him to scream at the top of his lungs and practically run back to you, though

-> you jumped at the sound, watching as he scrambled away from your lamp and pointed back at it with a shaking finger

-> you squinted at it, making out the very menacing form of a crane fly as it bumped into the lampshade and continued on its path

-> "lev, you big baby," you giggled, heading to the kitchen to grab a glass and trap it

-> "y/n, don't leave me alone with it!" he yelped, and you rolled your eyes at his antics

-> you came back, smoothly capturing the insect and throwing it out of a nearby window

-> lev was sat on your couch the whole time, hands covering his eyes as he curled in a ball

-> "is it gone?" he asked, and you you giggled at how childlike he was acting at the moment

-> "it's all good, baby" you smoothed his hair and lev gratefully leaned into your touch, a sigh of relief leaving him

-> "thank you, y/n"

-> "i'll get rid of all the bugs in the world for you, lev"

❍ MIYA ATSUMU

-> gives off the vibes that he used to eat bugs as a child i'm sorry but

-> have mercy on his soul lmao

-> so twins are supposed to be identical right?

-> anyone who spends more than a few minutes around the miya twins know that that's a complete fucking lie

-> and you've had the misfortune of being friends with them for a very long time

-> like your mums were friends and you were all born around the same time

-> you've been pulled into their shit before you could walk or talk

-> so you're well aware of just how different these mfs are

-> even though they were both absolute bastards, osamu always had a slightly more mellowed out approach which would always end up with atsumu getting the blame for what they got up to

-> especially as a child, osamu loved to terrorise his twin with the unwilling help of you

-> one of the ways was through osamu exploiting one of his twins' fears

-> that being bugs and spiders

-> he always cackled at the sight of atsumu screaming and trying to run away from him due to the spider he was holding

-> as they both grew up, this became less of a frequent thing for osamu to do

-> you also somehow started dating atsumu, but nobody could exactly pinpoint a moment that signified a beginning to your relationship

-> but since you're dating the world's biggest manchild in disguise, and osamu gets annoyed with atsumu quite easily, you would have to swoop in to rescue him from time to time

-> recently the twins had been getting a little snappy with each other, and it had yet to sort itself out

-> from what you had heard your boyfriend was in the wrong this time, but you still listened to him whine and rant about it

-> you were going to the inarizaki school gym to say hi to your boyfriend and best friend before practice started, only to see absolute chaos unfolding

-> with kita yet to arrive, the twins were effectively unleashed and that much was clear with the way atsumu was practically screaming his head off as he ran around the gym

-> your eyes took in the rest of the players- aran had his head in his hands, suna was snickering with his phone out to record the newest miya twin fight, and osamu's deranged laugh could be heard above everything else as he chased his brother, hand held out in front of him

-> only one thing was capable of making atsumu scream like that, so you already knew what was happening

-> atsumu quickly spotted you hovering in the doorway, and made a beeline to where you were

-> his eyes were panicked, and you were quick to wrap him in a hug as you shot osamu a nasty glare over his shoulder

-> literally this lmfao

-> "that's enough, 'samu"

-> your best friend paused, before a smile spread across his face as he dangled the centipede in front of him

-> "you know it was rubber, right?"

-> you felt your boyfriend tense in your arms and you bit your lip to stifle a small giggle

-> but at least they would be back to normal by the end of today

back to the menu - ,, 🕷 ·˚ ༘ ꒱

[celestialevie]

Flower Boy // George Weasley x GN! Reader

Summary: AU where y/n is working at the tattoo shop, while their best friend is an owner of a flower shop. What happenes when expecting to see your best friend for lunch, you end up meeting a tall ginger man. Warnings: fluff, mention of food, tattoos, flowers, George being absolute charmer Word count: 1.7k a/n: enjoy this aboslute fluff of a fic!! and again, english is not my first language so if there are any mistakes please do not hestitate to let me know about it!! ' Evangeline ' is an oc of mine, so she might appear in some of my fics as a side charachter. Also credit to @bwbatta for the dividers!!

Being a tattoo artist was one of the things you were proudest of. It wasn't easy to become one after neglecting art for so many years during High School. But after your best friend opened her own flower shop, she helped you get your inspiration for art being constantly surrounded by flowers and stories of why people were getting flowers. You were happy with everything but not knowing that wasn't the end of your happiness. It all started when you were on your lunch break and decided to swing by your best friend's flower shop to visit her. Expecting to see a small blonde girl behind the counter, you were shocked to see a tall ginger man standing there instead. '' Hello, how can I help you today? '' When ginger looked up, he felt as if someone kicked all of the air from his lungs because before him stood a beautiful person with y/h/c hair and y/e/c eyes. Smiling at them as they approached the counter, they were even more beautiful up close. '' Hi, um I'm looking for Evangeline? I didn't know she hired someone new. '' Ginger laughed, nodding his head. '' Ah yes, I'm only here temporarily. Unfortunately, you just missed her, she left to go on a lunch break with my uglier twin. '' You only laughed at that. '' Too bad, but can you please let her know that y/n looked for her? '' He nodded. '' I'll let her know. I'm George by the way. If you ever wanna ask her for me. '' George wiggled his eyebrows, making you shook your head. '' It was nice meeting you, but I have to go now. Please don't break any of her flowers she's not afraid to commit murder if you break something in her shop. '' his eyes widen, making you laugh as you were leaving but his voice stopped you. '' Hey! You come here often? '' he asks '' Considering I use to work here and my best friend owns it, yes. '' and with that, you left the shop, heading back to your workplace.

As the clock turned changed time to 8 pm, you relaxed finally going home after a stressful day. Just as you were open the door, Evangeline barged in. '' Hello, heard you've been looking for me. '' She grinned at her best friend, attacking them with a hug. '' Hello to you too,'' you said returning the hug '' I see the tall ginger you failed to mention to me kept his word. '' smirk appearing in the corner of your mouth as you recall your encounter with him from earlier today. '' It seemed to me you left a trance on Georgie boy. '' Evangeline wiggled her eyebrows, making you laugh '' You can't do that to me, I wanted to have lunch with my best friend only to find she ditched me for and I quote the ginger man '' uglier twin '', leaving me to get almost a heart attack. For a second I thought I walked into a wrong shop. '' Both of you walked out of the shop, heading towards your apartment. '' Speaking of that date, you also failed to mention you were dating someone, and here I thought we tell each other everything, tsk tsk. I'm disappointed. '' you nudged her, blush creeping on her cheeks. '' Oh my god are you blushing? He's making you blush just by thinking of him? You need to tell me about him. '' and so she did. She told you how his name is Fred and along with his twin, he has 6 siblings, making both of them the middle children. It was very interesting to know about a man who took an interest in my best friend. Deciding she'll spend the night at yours, you both got cosy into pyjamas and watched movies until you both crashed. The next morning you went together to work, letting you know she'll come to your work for the lunch break. So when your lunch break came, you didn't expect her to walk in with the same ginger man from yesterday. '' y/n/n, I brought us a bodyguard to keep us safe during our lunch break. '' grin played on her lips, making you shake your head. '' Yeah because we're so in danger that someone is gonna try and kill us while eating Taco Bell. '' George snorted, making you look at him. He looked even cuter than yesterday if that's even possible. Maybe there was something in gingers that you'd yet to discover that makes them so attractive. '' So flower boy, what do you do when you're not being a bodyguard or taking care of Evie's flower shop. '' he was grinning at the nickname. '' I own a joke shop with my brother, but we're currently redecorating inside so we had to close it for a week or two. '' An attractive businessman, that's a first one you snorted to yourself. Spending an hour with two of them, turned into a mostly back and forth conversation between George and you. Soon Evie had to leave, her lunch break coming to an end. To your surprise, George asked you if he could stay for a bit longer, which you said yes to since you had no client for another hour. He asked you about your art style, which, according to George made your eyes sparkle up with happiness, making him chuckle when you started to ramble not even noticing. '' You're rambling. '' he chuckled making you blush a little. '' Sorry, sometimes I can get carried away without even noticing. '' George smiled, taking your hand in his, making you look at him. '' Don't apologise, it's adorable. '' blushing even harder, you looked at the clock making you realise that in 15 minutes your client should be coming. '' Oh shit I didn't even realise how much time has passed already, I have to prepare for the next client. But hey if you ever want a tattoo you know where to come. '' You said and with that, you disappeared somewhere behind in the storage, kind of hiding from flower boy, because he's starting to make you feel things you haven't felt before.

Everything was happening so fast, in the next few days he kept coming either alone or in a company of Evangeline. She knew what she was doing and she was enjoying it. You even got to meet Fred, him wanting to meet the fascinating best friend of his girlfriend and the person who his brother can't seem to stop talking about. So when George asked you out, you said yes having nothing to lose. Deciding on a picnic, both of you packed some food, and he picked you up after work, leading you to a park. He prepared a blanket and put down the baskets where food and drinks were, sitting down and relaxing. '' How was your day? '' you began the conversation. '' It was good, mostly spent the entire day thinking of what to bring for our date tonight. '' a smile appeared on his face. '' How was yours? Any interesting tattoos you did? '' so you told him about this older guy who had half of his back tattooed with some weird game character, which made him laugh. Looking up at the sky, it looked amazing. '' Isn't the view beautiful? '' a grin played on your lips as you looked at the stars. George was only looking at you, and how beautiful you looked under the stars. If he wasn't already falling, he definitely would've now. '' Yeah, it couldn't be more beautiful. '' you looked at him and he was looking at you. '' Stop looking at me like that! '' He grinned at you, placing a hand on your cheek. '' Like what? '' he said softly while looking you in the eyes. '' L-like I've placed all the stars in the sky as if I'm the most unique thing on this planet. '' you were avoiding his eyes, knowing you wouldn't be able to breathe if you do. George had other plans, because he softly placed finger under your chin, making you look up at him. His eyes were filled with so much adoration, making you get lost in them. '' I've been looking at you like that ever since we first met, darling. I've grown quite fond of you from the first time our eyes met. '' a smile was spread on both of your lips '' God how much I love seeing you smile. I like you so much, love. '' placing your hands on both of his cheeks '' Can I tell you something? '' you said quietly almost a whisper. '' You can tell me anything. '' ''I like you too flower boy. '' even bigger smile was on his lips. '' Could you say it again? '' you furrowed your eyebrows. '' Were you not listening? '' he shook his head. ' No, I was, I just like the sound of your voice. '' you shook your head at his goofiness. '' Can you kiss me? '' a grin appeared on his lips '' Thought you'd never ask. '' and with that, he placed his soft lips on top of yours, lips mending with each other. It was like fireworks exploded inside you, from how much happiness you felt in this moment. Everything was perfect.

The next day you decided to visit Evangeline in the shop, expecting to see I guy you've grown s much fond of. And there he was stood with Fred and Evangeline, his beautiful smile playing on his lips. '' Hello, hope I'm not interrupting a big secret meeting. '' you joked as you approached them. George pulled you in his embrace, placing a small kiss on your temple as he sneaked an arm around your shoulder. '' Of course not love. '' you smiled at him, starting a conversation with him, not noticing how Fred and Evangeline were looking at the two of you. '' I haven't seen her smile like that in ages. '' Evie said, '' Hey flower boy, '' Fred began only to be shot by a dirty look by you. '' Hey, only I can call him that,'' you said and with that making everyone laugh including yourself. This is the happiest you've been in forever, and you could only hope it could stay like this forever.

[heyitsmerose]

Russian Roulette | Mafia!Seonghwa

Pairing: Mafia!Seonghwa x Assassin/Sniper!Reader

Genre: Angst, Mafia!

Word Count: 11.2k

Summary: A part of the infamous Park gang, your life is never short of crazy. You've never met the man himself, but tonight something is different. He accompanies the rest of the gang to one of your usual Friday night outs. It all goes south however, as you discover the night doesn't turn out as it's supposed to, a dangerous obstacle in your way. You are forced to pick between the lives of your boss, your best friends and young boy in a menacing game of Russian Roulette.

Warnings/Disclaimer: I am aware the Mafia life is nothing like I am portraying it. It is definitely not full of attractive, young, single people and many nasty/dirty things happen behind the scenes. Furthermore this is quite a serious topic as some people lose their lives over this. I will not be portraying the reality of mafia gangs, instead just an idealised version (thus remember, none of this is real). That being said, a little imagination and creativity never hurt anyone did it? Also this is my second SeonghwaxMafia fic oops.

Blood + Wounds

Mafia + Gangs

Guns + Weapons

Underage Drinking + Assault

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Youtube Playlist

1:55  ───|────── 4:45

|◁              II             ▷| *I've spent a few weeks on this, I'm sorry if there are spelling errors, I've read the entire thing maybe 5-6 times.

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Friday. 6 pm. After-work hours. What were you doing? What every other normal friend group would do; go to the nearby bar to relax. Except you weren't normal. You and 14 or so others in the bar at the moment, had a dirty secret. You were a part of a gang, a mafia gang to be exact. In all honesty, unlike the movies or stories that had portrayed them, the public rarely knew about mafia gangs, let alone knew if they existed. You could roam around freely without the need to worry about someone recognizing you. No one would know that such a pretty face hid such a dark secret.

Besides, this was your lifestyle now. You knew the gang was political and focused on some power struggle but you couldn't care less. Frankly, the only reason you joined the gang was that you were broke. You were introduced to it after you stumbled into this exact bar at the age of 16, wanting to become a bartender as you knew it paid well. You tried applying for the job but it turned out you were underage and couldn't work at the bar yet. While you were slapped by reality, however, someone was watching your every move. She was young too, maybe 15 or 16 and she had noticed you the moment you entered the bar/club. Not too many new people came along so she was intrigued. Immediately when she sensed your aura and your personality, she knew you'd fit in well with the gang.

She noticed how confidently you carried yourself and noticed your dark fashion choice. She stared as you made your way to the counter, swaying your hips as you got the attention of the bartender. The way, you leaned against the counter cooly, your lips parted slightly as you waited for a response. As she kept looking at you you looked back, feeling someone glare holes into the back of your skull. You noticed a young girl, hair a burgundy color with full black clothes. She smiled at you softly and you only raised your eyebrows before rolling your eyes and averting eye contact. What a badass personality you had. Perfect.

Despite really wanting a friend in the gang, and wanting to recommend you to the boss, she couldn't. Alas, she was only a young hacker and her position was not too significant. What she didn't expect was for you to come up to the group yourself, and introduce yourself. You got your response from the manager, and it was not one you were too happy with, you scoffed and turned on your heel, looking for a way to better your situation and rotten mood. She picked up her drink and gulped it down after you looked away. She looked back at you and you were gone. Her eyes widened as she sighed. She knew you'd get along but she was never going to see you again. The last thing she expected was to hear a voice from near the central table.

"Listen up people. Is this some sort of badass, thug gig? Are yall hiring? Can I be a part of this?" You announced. She spat out her drink and choked, hearing your words. Not only were you an outsider intruding on their business, but you had also shamed the gang in front of the underboss, one of the people present there.

Being somewhat new herself, She got nervous thinking of the consequences you'd face for messing with the mafia world. She heard a deep chuckle from behind her, somewhere and chills ran down her spine.

"Actually, we do have an opening" One of the taller males whispered in a low voice. At this point, no one could tell if he was being serious or whether he just wanted to chop your head off. She gripped her drink harder and stared at both of you. She noticed it was none other than the boss's right-hand man and most trusted member, the underboss, San. Should anything happen to the boss, the gang would be given to San.

You twirled a piece of your hair in between your fingers as you smiled back. You weren't intimidated. Besides, he looked no more than around 5 years older than you. You stepped closer, staring into his sparkling, yet cold brown eyes. You noticed how his hand gravitated dangerously close to your personal space and you were slightly more alert. Through the corner of your eye, you noticed how his hand was moving closer to your waist but none of you broke eye contact. Before his hand made contact with your waist, you grabbed his wrist. The hand that was twirling the piece of hair swiftly snapped down, grabbing his wrist tightly. His eyes widened and he tried pulling away gently while you kept the firm grip, not breaking eye contact. The others around you gasped but you kept glaring at him while he had an amused smirk on his face.

"What kind of opening?" You gritted out. Sure, you were desperate, but you weren't going to let people throw you around and use you. Your eyebrows furrowed as you tried to assert dominance but he just looked at you and tilted his head. A smile broke out on his face, a genuine one this time. You loosened your grip, letting go of him, still a little cautious as he simply massaged his wrist, still maintaining a smile on his face.

"I think you'll like it more than you think"

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Although you had originally joined because you needed money. You found that this lifestyle had fit you more than you thought. You enjoyed the thrill and you couldn't imagine yourself working anywhere else. It had been around 5 years since you joined and you were now 21. Meanwhile, the burgundy-haired girl, Ashe, became your best friend and you even lived together. The bond you shared was to die for, you loved each other to bits but also were each other's biggest supporters. You maintained your bitchy persona and starting rubbing off on Ashe too. Soon, she also developed a colder more confident aura. You were with her through thick and thin. Your position now was a spy and secondary shooter. Despite shooting not being your main pursuit, out of the gang, you were one of the most skilled in using them. Some even compared you to the boss, but you shrugged them off. San was for sure the best shooter out of the entire gang though.

Surprisingly, San, the underboss, who you found was 22 at the time was now 27. You had developed a close bond. Your relationship consisted of a lot of teasing and inside jokes as well as a lot of protectiveness from San. Although your relation started rough, it slowly transitioned from mean comments to teasing names and now playful banter. You had a sibling relationship and he was like the brother you never had. You both were the best with guns in your entire gang so you bonded quite a lot as you spent a lot of time training and practicing together. Not to mention when you'd both geek out over specific new models that were brought into the weaponry.

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Back to the present, you were at the usual bar. After joining the gang, you quickly realized that this was the go-to spot for after-work hours. It wasn't mandatory to come here, but it was kind of a tradition every Friday to come and just let loose for a bit. Most of the gang was here and it was usually the same people every time. Today though, something was different. The boss had come in. To outsiders it would seem casual, as if a normal friend group was getting wasted, to everyone in the gang though, you knew that was far from the truth.

The boss had never come with you guys, and although it was after working hours, you all couldn't help but be on your best behavior. He had often heard that his gang members would meet up after work on a friendly basis and he wanted to know what this was about. He heard San talking about it during work once and was intrigued ever since. Thus, here you were... here he was... along with the 14 or so others who usually came to the bar.

To be completely honest, coming to the bar was your favorite part of your job, scratch that, your entire week. You looked forward to it all week and when it finally came you let loose. It was a known fact that you and San were the crazy daredevils of the group. You both had absolutely no fear or shame in the things you did. Today though, you both had tried to be on your best behavior. Despite being his right-hand man, San was still a little intimidated by Seonghwa and you often used to playfully gossip about him, so you both made sure to behave today, or at least tried...

Seonghwa stuck out like a sore thumb. It was clear no one was expecting him to come, and to be honest, nobody wanted him to come either. He was leaning against a counter, eyes scanning the crowd carefully while sipping a rather small glass of whiskey. Typical Seonghwa, being cautious and defensive even off the job. You hadn't had too many personal encounters with Seonghwa, you had just seen him around a bunch.

Meanwhile, although you and San had agreed to tone it down a bit, you couldn't help it. Drunk was an understatement. You rushed over to the front as soon as the adrenaline hit you and had roughly shoved some people off the raised platform of the dance floor. You were shouting random lyrics into the crowd and hyping everyone up while pulling a few random strangers onto the stage. After swaying your hips a bunch and screaming song lyrics into strangers' faces, you realized this still wasn't enough. You staggered to the DJ and snatched one of the many mics and went back to the stage.

Acquired with a new toy to distract you, you began to get everyone's attention.

"Good evening ladies and gentlemen" You slurred into the mic. By now, most of the gang members had gotten used to your crazy shenanigans and didn't mind. Although many were initially afraid of San, you had defiantly changed him for the better. He finally found someone to match his energy and charisma and he let loose a little, finally free to show his true self. Everyone had gotten used to it at this point, but this was different, the boss was here.

Most of them immediately sobered up hearing your booming voice from the gigantic sound boxes. Ashe was hooking up with some random girl somewhere else, but as soon as she recognized it was you, she immediately began to look for you.

"How's everyone doing tonight? Are we having funn?" By now, you had gotten the attention of everyone in the bar, including Seonghwa. He looked at you with a dangerous gleam in his eyes, he recognized you. You were the little minx that caught his eye the day you joined the gang, you barely spoke to him, but he could sense the confident aura radiating from you.

The mic was roughly snatched from you, by one of the guys, you assumed was the manager, and you scoffed, rolling your eyes, walking towards the dance floor. He wasn't going to stop you, no one was. Since you had gotten everyone's attention, everyone's eyes were on you. You hopped over to the center of the dance floor, hair bouncing as you fully let go. You swayed your hips and ran your fingers through your hair.

You heard a few whistles and hollers around you and a bunch of hands touching your waist. At this point, you were too drunk to even react properly and just continued dancing, enjoying the attention. You hyped everyone up and began jumping to the beat, hair bouncing over your shoulders as you shook your head from side to side at the beat.

By now, you had caught Seonghwa's attention too, he was intrigued by your carefree persona outside work and admired your ability to separate your two lives. Meanwhile, Ashe had rushed to your side, trying to pull you away from everyone. Despite being drunk, her motherly instincts kicked in and she felt the need to protect you.

"Y/n, what are you doing? The boss is watching!" She practically yelled. You just gave her a disapproving look and pulled her into the middle of the circle.

"Asheeee, just let loose for one night, why are you always so uptight?" You slurred to her, caressing her waist. She gulped and looked back at your eyes. You raised your eyebrows and smirked, if only you knew the effect you had on her. As if on cue, the DJ played the worst song possible, a slow, sensual one.

You whispered the lyrics into her ear as you wrapped your arms around her neck. You caressed the back of her neck with your fingers and tugged on the smaller strands of hair in the back. You slowly started moving your waist to the rhythm as she tried steadying you, you were drunk, this was not okay. You pulled your hands away from her neck and caressed her cheeks in both of your hands, inching closer. You kept whispering the lyrics and she felt your warm breath on her lips. She was slowly gaining confidence and eventually grabbed your waist in her hands. You looked down at her hands and smirked. You brought one of the hands caressing her cheek to softly trace her bottom lip. You stared at her lips, inching closer and closer, warm breaths mixing.

All of a sudden you turned around, your back facing her, as she steadied you again. You began moving again, bending forwards purposely to rub against her. You swayed your waist and pushed backward. She knew what you were doing and slowly inched her hands downwards towards your ass. Although you were best friends, there was no doubt that there was some sexual tension between the two of you.

She began tracing patterns on your hips and butt as one hand remained on your waist. She felt around your waist, trailing patterns around your skimpy black dress until she felt a harder material near your chest and stomach. She blushed immediately not meaning to touch you there and placed her hand back on your waist. You chuckled as you ground against her harder, now definitely trying to start something. She lightly moaned as she gripped your hips, trying to pull you back up, she wouldn't be able to hold herself back for much longer like this.

"Goodness me, what have I walked upon here?"

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Way to ruin the moment Choi San...

Ashe froze upon hearing his voice. She immediately pulled her hands away from you and stepped back, a dark red blush now coating her features. Meanwhile, you were too drunk to think straight and simply frowned at the lack of contact, you were just about to get laid.

The second the others saw Ashe step away from you, random strangers started touching you again. One of them grabbed your waist, as another gripped your chin. You closed your eyes and continued moving to the beat and San sighed.

"I think that's enough, step aside before I make you" San huffed, a hint of frustration and anger at the end. Everyone obliged immediately upon sensing his dominating aura and you were once again alone. You sighed, eyebrows furrowing as you looked around, most of the people around you had moved away. You stumbled slightly and tried stabilizing yourself, only to fail miserably and almost fall over.

San rushed over and held you by your shoulders to steady you.

"Why hello there, handsome man" You sloppily winked at San and he rolled his eyes.

"Y/n what on earth are you doing? You made quite the scene just then..."

"I was having fun... you're such a killjoy, Saniee." You slurred, sticking your pointer finger into his chest. He simply pushed your finger away, trying to be strict with you.

"Yeah, your definition of fun being screaming lyrics into the mic nearly deafening everyone, throwing yourself at random people, grinding on Ashe and almost kissing her, and practically falling on the floor and eating shit" He was frustrated, but he couldn't help but feel protective over you. Despite scolding you, he still had an arm around your waist, looking deeply into your eyes, hand on your back, holding you up so you didn't fall. It was subtle things like this that showed that he deeply cared and under his strictness, he was just a big softie.

"I- I what?" You sighed trying to step away, now that he was recalling the events it started setting in.

"Yeah, how about we sober up, hmm?" He asked and you nodded as he dragged you back to the counter. You looked back one last time, only to see Ashe looking at you with heartbroken eyes. You looked away feeling guilty as tears glimmered in her eyes. To you it was just a bit of fun, to her it meant the world. Even just a few minutes where you seemed interested in her made her feel special. Deep down, you knew she might have liked you, so why did you lead her on and rub yourself against her?

You sighed shakily feeling immensely guilty. San looked down at you, as he noticed tears falling down your eyes.

"Aren't you a mess?" He chuckled and you breathed out shakily

"Shut up san" Your voice broke as you softly spoke. His eyes widened and he sat you down on a barstool.

"Why are you crying, what's wrong?" He asked as he rubbed under your eyes with his thumbs, gripping your jaw with one hand.

"I might have ruined my friendship with Ashe," You said softly and he sighed.

"Why would you think that?" He said, looking into your eyes as you tried averting eye contact.

"Deep down, I had a feeling she liked me, and I made things worse by leading her on. I rubbed myself on her like an idiot and I fucking led her on, gosh I'm such a bad friend!" Your voice cracked as San 'hmmed in understanding.

"Well, why did you do that?" He asked as he gripped your chin making you look back at him.

"I- I... I was drunk, I AM drunk." You clarified, stuttering a bit.

"No you're not," He said matter-of-factly. You raised your eyebrows in confusion as you urged him to continue.

"Y/n, I've known you for more than 5 years now, I've seen you drunk over a million times, I can tell when you're actually drunk... You may have fooled the others, but not me. Here's the real question, why the fuck are you pretending to be drunk?" He asked all of a sudden and you felt vulnerable.

It was crazy how he could read you like an open book. Your eyes widened as you tried looking away, there was no point in continuing the charade at this point. He looked back at you expectantly and sighed, as he saw you getting nervous.

"It's alright, I don't think anyone else noticed either, now please tell me what's wrong?" He said in a soft tone as you sighed.

"I can't tell you San," You said looking back into his eyes.

"Why? We aren't on duty, why are you being so secretive? Especially with me?" He specified the word 'me'. It was true, you usually never kept anything from each other so this was a bit weird.

"I just can't tell you I'm sorry" You sighed, tugging on the roots of your hair, as your hands gripped your scalp. He just sighed in understanding and got up. As he was about to leave, your hand snapped back and you gripped his forearm.

"I'm sorry San, but I can't help it. One more thing, don't you dare tell anyone." Your voice dropped an octave lower and he gulped, he had never seen you so serious before.

"Act as if you know nothing, I'm sorry it has to be this way, but just carry on with whatever you were doing and please stay out of my business just for today." His eyes bore into yours dangerously but you didn't back down. You had never commanded him before, so this must have been serious. He eventually realized it must have been something important and walked away, but not before scoffing at you.

You sighed and looked down, feet dangling over the barstool. That was close. With your cover now blown and known to San, you had to be a little more careful now. You were glad no one else had figured out though, not even your best friend Ashe. Your thoughts went back to Ashe and you felt incredibly guilty. How stupid you were, willing to throw away your friendship of 5 years, your only real friendship just to put on an act and sell your drunk state. Pathetic. You sighed as you looked back to where you were a couple of minutes ago. Although you felt immensely guilty, you couldn't help it, it was a part of your act.

Trying to go back to what you were doing, you eyed a few of the people at the bar. Although you had to act drunk, actually drinking was off-limits for today. You ordered a sparkling lemonade for yourself while looking around. Meanwhile, your eyes caught on Seonghwa. He was leaning against a counter, head leaning back. his eyes were closed and his soft bangs fell over his forehead. He brought his drink up to his lips and took a small sip. As he swallowed you saw how his adam's apple bopped up and you gulped feeling giddy inside. You tried shaking yourself out of it, but when he placed his drink aside and ran his hand through his soft, black hair, you almost lost it. You could barely see the sheen of sweat coating his forehead as he brushed his fingers through his hair.

Luckily for you, you were interrupted by the bartender bringing over your drink, and you looked away embarrassed. You shook your head to get rid of any weird thoughts or feelings as you were sure you were practically drooling. Without looking, you brought the glass to your lips to have a sip. Just as you were about to take a sip though, you caught a whiff of a rather familiar smell. You pulled the glass away from your lips and looked questioningly at the bartender.

He just looked the other way and raised his eyebrows, ushering you to follow his gaze. As you did, you found a well-built, tall, brown-haired man staring back at you. You looked back at your drink and swirled it around a bit. You noticed that it was an alcoholic drink and there were some undissolved white particles at the bottom of the cup. You looked back up at him and he simply winked at you, smirking. Pathetic. He just tried to fucking drug you and thought you'd fall for it.

You smirked realizing your act worked and he actually thought you were drunk. You tried to cover up your discomfort and simply flashed him a lop-sided smile. You turned around, tilting your head back and lifting your hand to your mouth, acting as if you had just downed the drink. You sneakily slid the drink over the counter into some far corner, so no one would notice. You messed up your hair slightly before turning back around to catch his attention to further solidify your act. As soon as you turned back around to look at the guy though, you noticed he was gone. You furrowed your eyebrows and looked around, trying to find him.

"Looking for me, honey?" You heard someone sensually whisper into your ear from the side. Chills ran down your spine, but you tried to cover up your discomfort and disgust. You turned to him, looking him in the eyes, making sure to look a little droopy before calling out to him.

"Hi~" You slurred, making sure to breathe out so your warm breath hit his face. His eyes immediately rolled in pleasure, jaw-dropping as he took in your sexy aura. You almost scrunched your face in disgust but clenched your jaw to stop your reflexes. He opened his eyes again and inched closer to your face as he spoke again.

"You're so gorgeous, damn, how have I never noticed you?" He said, his breath hitting your face. Your nose scrunched as you smelled the alcohol in his breath. Luckily he thought you were just reacting to his compliment. More importantly, however, you confirmed he was drunk... Perfect. He would most likely let down his guard so you had a solid chance at executing your plan. He also revealed that he was a regular at the bar, another important piece of information you needed to confirm your suspicions.

You giggled as your hand slowly trailed up his chest. You rested your hand firmly on his chest as you tried to push yourself further into him. He hummed and trailed a hand down to your waist. Although you didn't want his hands all over you, it was inevitably a part of the job, so you tried your best to just power through it and ignore it.

He leaned in closer until his bangs fell over your forehead. He secured his hands around your waist and held you tight. You flinched from the roughness and tried squirming around to loosen, his grip but he didn't budge. Soon a hand trailed to the side of your hip and you knew where this was going. You sighed and looked down at his hand. Normally, you would have instantly pushed him away, but this mission was far more important than how you were feeling at the moment.

He rested his hand near the dip of your waist, right above your hip, testing the waters. Remembering that you needed to act drowsy, you looked back up at him, your eyes fluttering as you smiled one last time, before falling limp in his arms. You heard him grunt as he easily threw you over his shoulder. Although this should have seemed like a major red flag to anyone around you, people weren't paying attention and they probably didn't care either. You internally whined at the situation you were in and slyly looked around, he was walking towards the back of the club, near the backrooms. You wiggled around a bit in his arms and he resorted to pressing a hand against your ass. You moved around slightly, still acting as if you were drugged, trying to get his hand off you, you couldn't directly push it off as he'd know something was up.

"Where are we goingg" You slurred, trying to indicate you were still conscious.

"Don't worry about that, honey" He whispered, smacking your ass. What a pathetic sick fuck he was. You groaned at the impact, bracing yourself for what was to come next.

Meanwhile, Seonghwa was simply looking around, observing his surroundings and being cautious as usual, when he noticed a man carrying one of the ladies into the backrooms. He knew she was unconscious, most likely drugged and being taken into the room against her will. It seemed as though the people around them didn't even care. He looked a little more closely and noticed what she was wearing. A bodycon black dress up till her thighs, with studded embellishments on the waistline and straps. It was you. He has seen you around the headquarters, tagging behind San all the time.

"Y/n?" He whispered, beginning to get a little angry, it was one thing to mistreat a woman and force yourself on her, but it was another to mess with a member of his gang. He saw how you were thrown over his shoulder, head hanging upside down, hair cascading down halfway to the floor. He huffed in anger, looking around for backup, ready to stop him, but when he saw the man smack your ass and feel up your dress, he lost it. He smashed his glass of whiskey onto the nearest counter, glass shattering as he did so.

He immediately pushed past the people around him, trying to get to you. His head tilted slightly down, eyes locked on his target, a few meters ahead. He looked psychopathic in all honesty. His bangs covered his forehead and eyes slightly. With his head tilted down, he was able to cover up his deadly eyes and killer expression. He couldn't care less about the people around him at that moment, his only concern was teaching that guy a lesson for messing with his gang.

He pushed past some people, shoving a couple of guys on the way until he was about halfway there. He was ready to just fully commit and barge across another load of people before he was interrupted.

"Uhh Hwa? What are you doing? Why do you look like you're about to kill someone?" He heard someone next to him say. He whipped his head to the side, ready to punch whoever it was that came in his way, before realizing it was San

"Because that's exactly what I was about to do, before you came in my way, now move." San shivered at his tone. Never had Seonghwa ever commanded San in such a way. Sure Seonghwa had been angry a lot in the past, but his frustration this time seemed more emotionally fuelled.

"No, no, no, that isn't a good idea, how about we think about this for a secon-"

"I SAID MOVE! Can't you hear me?" Seonghwa growled as San violently flinched at his loud tone.

"Why what's so urgent, is everything alright?" San inquired, straightening his clothes a bit, and regaining his composure.

"I'm not obligated to tell you that" Seonghwa finally said, before shoving San out of the way and walking towards the direction the man was walking before. What he didn't realize though, was that in the time it took him to talk to San, the man had seemingly disappeared.

"What's wrong?" A voice from beside broke him out of his thoughts.

"Look what you've done, I lost the man now" Seonghwa replied, massaging his temple, trying to calm his frustration.

"What man?"

"Someone threw the girl- Y/n over his shoulder and took her to one of the back rooms" He claimed, gripping the bridge of his nose in annoyance. San's eyes widened and he gasped. He knew you were up to something tonight but was this a part of your plan?

"What?" Was the only thing he could muster. He wanted to ask why, where, and how you even got in that situation, but he was too stunned.

"Not only that, he had the guts to slip his hand under her dress and feel her up, not to mention inappropriately grab her and spank her" He sighed, beginning to look around again. San gasped and immediately began frantically looking.

"Why didn't you tell me earlier" He panicked, looking around, running towards the backrooms trying to find you. He didn't doubt that you could defend yourself, but what if someone did drug you. He knew you knew better than to accept drinks from strangers and were always cautious, but he couldn't help but worry. His breath quickened and he began pacing around frantically.

"Calm down, we'll find her" He felt a pat on his shoulder, reassuring him. He let out a sigh, before nodding and continuing to look around.

"Why does this girl mean so much to you anyway?" Seonghwa dared to question, voice slightly laced with a negative tone. Was he shaming him, threatening him, genuinely curious, or maybe even slightly jealous of the way you were able to bond so easily?

"You don't even know the half of it."

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Meanwhile, the man had dragged you into one of the rooms in the back, locking it before, dropping you on the bed. Your legs dangled off the bed as he slowly approached you. He unfastened his belt and slowly pulled it through the belt loops. Through the corner of your vision, you were able to see exactly what he was doing and you knew where this was going.

He dropped the belt and slowly climbed on the bed, hovering over your legs. Meanwhile, your fists clenched unconsciously, head slowly turning away from him as he approached you. You really didn't want to do this, but you had no other choice. You had to keep him occupied for another hour or so and you had no clue how else to. You couldn't poison him or knock him out as you had no clue what tracking devices he could have had on him. Your jaw tightened and your hands unconsciously gripped at his shirt, subtly trying to push him away. Feeling some rustling from underneath, he looked down at your hands and noticed you pushing him away.

"Aw, honey there's no need to be scared" He whispered and you internally sighed.

"I never got your name, by the way, I bet a pretty face like this has a pretty name too..." He whispered into your ear from above.

"Y/n" You weakly grumbled.

"Yours?" You dared to question him back.

"Jungwoon, but I doubt you'll remember it tomorrow," He said, caressing your face. You sighed and realized he was right, you had to act as nothing had happened.

You shouldn't be able to even remember that his name was Jungwoo- Wait. His name is Jungwoon. Jungwoon? That wasn't the name you were told earlier when you were informed of the mission. Unless you got the wrong person... Your eyebrows furrowed unintentionally as you tried processing the information.

"Why? surprised honey? I'm second in line to the Kwon empire, brother of the infamous mafia boss, CJ Kwon" He said snickering a little. What an idiot, he just admitted his identity and now you confirmed your suspicions. You got the wrong fucking person.

You scoffed realizing your mistake, and he simply looked at you, confused. You shoved your knee in his groin, as you lifted yourself upright. He flew backward slightly at the impact, feet back on the ground as he tried regaining his composure.

"What the fuck is wrong with you? How aren't you out?" He questioned, still bent over, clutching his sensitive area. You just ignored him, standing up and tilting your head to the side, trying to figure out what you were going to do. The whole reason you couldn't knock him out was because of any tracking devices he might have had. Now knowing he was the son of a big Mafia empire, you had to be careful.

"Okay I mean no harm, I don't want to hurt. You're a trash person, but I still don't want to get into any trouble, so if you could excuse me" You raised your hands, trying to get out of the room as soon as possible. He made it quite difficult for you though, as he pulled out a gun from one of his back pockets, aiming it at you.

"Absolutely not! You're a crazy lady and you attacked me, I can't let you go" He aimed the gun right at your chest as you raised your hands above your head. You slowly started walking towards him, but he cut you off.

"Don't come any closer!" He gripped the gun harder, finger on the trigger. You examined his posture and the way he was holding a gun, for some indicator or weak spot. You looked at his fingers and then the gun. Aha!

"You leave me with no choice, I wasn't going to hurt you, but seeing as you're literally pointing a gun at me, I can't help it." You sighed, hands dropping to your waist, as you looked him dead in the eye.

"I'm gonna shoot you first, you crazy bitch." He huffed, readjusting his stance, now aiming the gun at your head.

"You see, the gun you're holding is a Kahr MK9-1, so the ejection port is visible. It isn't pushed back completely, meaning the gun is unloaded. Furthermore, the magazine release is triggered, meaning there aren't any bullets loaded either." You sighed, pressing your temples. His eyes widened as he pulled the trigger, only for a soft click to be heard. He removed the magazine, inspecting it, indeed, he forgot to load his gun.

"You're an idiot, you brought an unloaded gun, what good is that?" You scoffed, now walking towards him. You cracked your knuckles before raising an eyebrow at him. He backed up, a little scared of you now, you seemed to be well versed with guns and Mafias, you must have been a part of a gang. You were smaller than him, but we were aware that you could very well be capable of more.

"No, no, no, I'll let you go" He nervously said before gulping.

"Now what fun is that?" You said, tilting your head and snickering at him. He backed up into a corner of the room as you walked closer towards him.

"How does it feel huh?" You whispered as he looked down at you afraid for what was coming next.

"How does it feel to be backed into a corner? I bet it sucks, right? Well, that's what you've been doing to a bunch of innocent girls at the bar, so take this as a lesson before trying to pull something on anyone else next time." You sneered as he looked down at you blankly. His attitude and facial expressions were getting on your nerves so you decided to teach him a lesson.

You shoved your right arm into his jaw, with a clean uppercut. Shoving him backward as he stumbled, falling back into the wall behind him.

"Do you understand, you sick fuck?" You yelled as you grabbed the collar of his shirt. He nodded his head rapidly as he held his jaw in his hands. You just scoffed and left the room, head mildly aching from the idiot you just had to deal with.

As soon as you left the room, however, you remembered your mission. You panicked realizing you might have fucked up everything. You got the wrong person, meaning the real target was somewhere out there. You started brisk walking until you reached the main area, away from the backrooms. You fixed your hair quickly, trying to look for your target. Knowing what Jungwoon looked like, finding his brother, now shouldn't be too hard. You jogged through the crowd, looking around, scanning the place the best you could.

You looked back at the usual seating spot for your gang and realized it was practically empty. Your eyes widened as you quickly ran over to the seats there, looking for any familiar faces. You reached the area, noticing there were a few cigarette packets, vapes, and half-empty drink glasses, however no people in sight. You inspected the area, trying to look for any clues as to why and where they would have gone.

Sweat started collecting at the back of your neck, realizing this may have been your fault. It was your responsibility to occupy CJ tonight and you failed. What if he got to your gang? What if he had gotten to Seonghwa. You shakily sighed, a hand going up to your face to press your temples. You gulped dryly before thinking of a possible explanation. Your thoughts were cut short though, by a loud booming voice from behind you.

"Hands where I can see them bitch!"

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Meanwhile, Seonghwa and San were going crazy, trying to look for you. San was admittedly panicking more, while Seonghwa was mildly frustrated.

"Where is sheee?" San whined. By now he was starting to get genuinely worried. Of course, he believed you could take care of yourself, but the whole night you seemed extremely shady. You were hiding things from him and were pretending to be drunk. What if you got caught up in some dangerous schemes?

"Calm down, we'll find her, we just have to-" bang! Seonghwa started, only for him to be cut off by a loud bang. Both of them knew better, it was a gunshot. They exchanged knowing glances, before scurrying to their side of the bar. Although your safety was quite important too, it was Seonghwa's duty to make sure the rest of his gang was alright too.

With people screaming and running around, getting to where they wanted was a little harder. San roughly pushed through the crowd, while Seonghwa stayed a little more cautious, one hand clutching the gun in his back pocket.

"Move!" San roared at the passersby. His voice startled the people around, and they made way for them. San ran over to their usual corner, pulling a gun out of his pocket, firmly grasping it with both hands, holding it in front of him, remaining cautious. Meanwhile, Seonghwa, followed behind closely, running a hand through his hair, chains of his belt jingling as he paced around the area. San squinted, his gun still in front of him as he looked for the gang members. As soon as they reached their side of the club they realized what all the commotion was.

"Drop your weapon, let him go!" San yelled as he witnessed one of the members from an opposing gang hold a knife to one of the young spy's neck. He simply snickered, tightening his grip, the knife now cutting through the skin of his neck slightly as blood dripped down his neck. The young boy squirmed, only for the knife to dig deeper into his neck. He grunted, tears pooling in his eyes.

"What a fucking coward, going for the younger ones, eh?" Seonghwa growled, a dangerous yet playful tone to his voice. The growl was heard in his voice as it dropped in pitch and volume, deliberately trying to scare the man.

The man with the knife didn't budge, however, simply chuckling before, running the knife along the neck of the boy, cutting horizontally across his smooth skin. The boy cried, as his hands came up to grip the knife, only for him to feel lightheaded and nearly pass out. The rest of your gang members gasped, some even whimpering at the young boy's situation. The man with the knife looked back at your gang members as they looked helpless. They couldn't do anything, they knew if they did, he would cut the boy's neck cleanly in half. He looked back and deeply chuckled before refocussing his attention on the two men in front of him.

As he looked ahead though, he realized they were nowhere in sight. He looked around only to be greeted by a cold hard piece of metal pressing against the side of his head.

"I said let go" Seonghwa grumbled lowly, his voice deathly commanding and serious. The man gulped, looking at the gun pointed at his head, through the corner of his eyes. Before Seonghwa could fire his shot, however, a strong pungent smell spread across the room, he furrowed his eyebrows as he heard coughs and whimpers.

"Not so fast, Park" He heard someone snicker. He noticed how San, who was standing right in front of him, began to stumble, gripping onto a chair next to him. It must have been poison or some sort of toxic gas. Seonghwa felt the room spinning, his vision getting blurry as he looked around at his gang members coughing and clutching their stomachs.

"Cover your mouths and noses" He tried to warn them, only for it to come out as a bare whisper. He looked around, most of the members now passing out. He saw San, clutching his stomach, before looking up at him. His eyes fluttered as they got droopier. San simply grunted in pain before mumbling a soft 'sorry' and passing out, his head falling straight to the floor. Seonghwa felt helpless, he tried resisting it, but everything in his body burned. His throat burned and his ears rang.

He clutched his ears, a loud ringing noise making its way to his ears, overwhelming his senses. He let out a gasp, feeling breathless as his trachea burned. His eyes soon fluttered shut as he tried gripping onto the last strings of hope, before succumbing to the poison and passing out...

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"Hands where I can see them bitch!" A loud noise made its way to your ears. You slowly raised your hands as you slowly turned around. Behind you was probably your worst nightmare. Most of your gang members had passed out cold, behind the man. Some of them even tied up to chairs. San, Seonghwa, Ashe, and a young boy were tied to chairs, while the rest were still on the ground. You looked up at the man in shock, your eyebrows furrowing as your tried to process the situation. His face resembled Jungwoon's so there was only one logical explanation, this was his brother, CJ, the man you were after all along.

"Is this some sort of sick game to you?" You dared to question, walking closer to the man. He simply chuckled at you, firing the gun in your direction. It didn't seem as if he tried to kill you, although he aimed for the top of your shoulder, the bullet grazing your acromion. You screamed in pain, crouching down, your hand instantly flying to your shoulder. Albeit a mere flesh wound, it managed to dig quite deep, leaving a deep open would. Blood gushed through the wound as you pressed harder, trying to stop the blood flow.

"Well, it could be if you wanted it to be" He claimed, laughing at your situation. You looked up at him from the floor, shooting daggers with your eyes. He chuckled as one of his members passed him a water bottle. He snickered, before opening it, taking a sip, and clearing his throat. You furrowed your eyebrows, how was he so relaxed, the fate of an entire mafia gang was in his hands.

He chucked half the bottle into Seonghwa's face, and then another quarter into San's. He threw the bottle into some distant corner and yanked at Ashe's hair. Meanwhile, Seonghwa gasped, regaining consciousness, which must have only been a temporary toxin. His hair was wet, water dripping down his bangs, as they fell over his face. He glared daggers at the guy, before trying to get up, only for him to realize he was tied up. He struggled in the ropes, the rough edges, digging into his silky smooth skin.

San had also regained consciousness, gasping as coughed and choked. He blinked realizing the situation he was in. He looked around, noticing Seonghwa, and Ashe, and the other younger boy, as well as the rest of his gang members, and then finally you. His eyes widened as he struggled to try to free himself.

"Y/n?! You're okay?!" He questioned, sighing in relief as he finally found you. His relief was only short-lived, however, as he noticed you clutching your shoulder. He noticed the dark red stains on your hand and neck, a pool of blood on the floor, dripping from your shoulder down to your elbow and onto the floor.

"What did he- What did you- YOU BASTARD! WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO TO HER, LET HER GO!?" He yelled, tugging on his ropes. He didn't care about himself at the moment, only what happened to you. You noticed how he started pulling harder, the ropes now digging into his skin as he tried pulling out. His wrists were bruised as the soft skin of his arms cut due to the rough edges of the rope. Blood trickled down his arms as his arms got raw from the pulling and tugging of the rope.

"San-ah, don't resist, I'm fine" Your voice wavered, as you tried regaining composure. Seonghwa's eyes softened as he noticed the sheen of your eyes, tears collecting. He sighed, looking down, unable to look at your current state, you must have been in so much pain, both physically and emotionally.

"I-" You started, only for your voice to break, a strangled sob escaping. Seonghwa's head whipped up as he noticed how you squeezed your eyes shut, tears now falling down your cheeks. You bit down your lip, as your shoulders shook. Your head faced the ground but it was clear you were crying. Whimpers and sniffs echoed as members of the opposing gang simply laughed.

Seonghwa felt anger bubbling up, but he had to stay calm. Seeing you break down like this in front of everyone, evoked a feeling of fury and seething rage. He simply looked away, unable to take in the sight of you being so vulnerable. You had always been one of the toughest ones in the gang.

"Now, now, no need to cry honey" You heard CJ whisper. He roughly yanked Ashe's hair once more and you winced at the way her neck snapped to the side. She got up with a sharp inhale, and a loud groan as she tried to understand the situation. CJ walked closer to you, his hand gripping your chin, tilting it up towards him. Seonghwa grunted as he tried tugging harder at the ropes.

"Don't touch her, you son of a bitch" Seonghwa finally growled. His eyes glaring daggers at CJ. This was the first time you heard him speak tonight and it was a tone you weren't too pleased to hear. His voice had a slight rasp to it, voice lower than the deepest trench of the ocean. Water dripped down his face and neck, making the side of his face shine in the light. His dampened clothes clung to his body as his eyes glared through his bangs.

"Oh, don't worry, I won't have too much fun. Now, if you could please get up for me, my darling I have an important mission for you" He maniacally giggled. You mustered all the energy you had and pushed yourself onto your feet, one hand still clutching your shoulder. He handed you his gun and your eyebrows furrowed. He stepped back and you instantly took the chance to point the gun at him. Your breath quickened as you tried to calculate his next move, what on earth was he up to.

"ah-ah darling, it's not me you'' be shooting. It's one of them" He pointed behind him to your four other gang members tied up in chairs. Ashe gasped as she let out a strangled sob, San gasping as well, as Seonghwa simply sighed, taking in your expression. You looked blankly back at him as you readjusted the grip on your gun with your wounded arm.

You shifted your gaze behind him, only to notice, four other men, standing behind the chairs, a gun pointing to each of their heads. "Shoot anyone else, and a bullet goes through all their skulls... that wouldn't be a pretty sight, would it?" He claimed, laughing at his own crazy scheme. By now Ashe was crying hysterically and you couldn't help but feel emotional too. You tried looking away, knowing the second you would look into any of their eyes, you'd break down. You roughly wiped at your nose, nodding, agreeing to his terms.

"I love a game of Russian roulette." You sniffed, chuckling sarcastically.

"May I spin the barrel?" You asked innocently and CJ simply chuckled loudly.

"I knew you had it in you!" He laughed, roughly patting your back. You rolled your eyes before inspecting the gun a bit. You opened the barrel, realizing there was only one bullet, he must have known when the first bullet would go off. You internally smiled realizing you had cracked the code.

You locked the barrel in place, before spinning it, the bullet clanking across the cylinder. Your arms shivered slightly as you raised the gun. Bingo! You were never one to be afraid when it came to guns. The shivering was an act. An act to shake the gun a little to hear where the bullet was clanking. You heard the clanking on the bottom of the barrel, realizing the bullet was going to fire on the 5-6 shot. Realizing it had already gone off once when CJ shot you, it was only logical that the bullet was in the 5th chamber.

You smiled before aiming the gun at San first. His eyebrows furrowed as he realized you were proceeding with this absurd plan. The moment he saw you smile, however, he knew you had everything under control. Besides, he trusted you. You winked at him, before placing your finger over the trigger.

"Just to clarify, If I shoot all of them once, you leave us alone? Whether one of them gets shot or not?" You spoke up, glancing from the corner of your eye.

"That is correct. Now, take your shot lady." You smiled back at him, before pulling the trigger while the gun was aimed at San. He flinched slightly at the noise but quickly covered up as a laugh erupted from him.

"This one got lucky... try the next one" CJ urged you. You rolled your eyes as you walked over to the unconscious boy. He looked young, maybe 16 or 17, and his neck was slashed, blood oozing from it at a slow rate. You quickly looked away and pulled the trigger. Despite knowing it wouldn't go off, you still had to act as if you were scared. Ashe yelped from next to the boy at the loud noise and Seonghwa sighed in relief.

"Well, well, well, I guess they both got lucky... How about your best friend now, you both seemed to be getting it on the dance floor no? It would be a shame for this epic love story to end so tragically." Ashe blushed a deep red as San chuckled from the side laughing quietly. You huffed in annoyance before pointing the gun at her. Her eyes filled with tears as she tried to speak.

"Y/n, if this gun goes off right now, just know that I forgive you, it's not your fault, no matter what-"

"Shut up Ashe" You yelled. The last thing you needed was a sad emotional goodbye, as you knew the second you saw her cry, you would too.

"No! Listen to me, never for a second think that you're responsible for any of this. I love you a lot, and I'm still mad at what you did back then, but it-" bang! Ashe squealed as the next gunshot went off. CJ's jaw dropped, another one was left unscathed. You winced slightly as she flinched. You didn't mean to be rude, but she was getting a little too sappy and you already felt terrible.

"You've been lucky so far, but it's a 1 in 2 chance now. Chances are, the legendary Mafia boss, Seonghwa Park will die, right here, tonight. Not just that, but to the hands of one of his most loyal members." He chuckled maniacally and you pointed the gun at Seonghwa. He gulped as he noticed your finger on the trigger, awfully close to pulling it. You looked straight into his eyes and could sense the fear in them. He gulped, eyes shifting around the room as his foot bounced impatiently.

You sighed, mouthing a "trust me" subtly, and smiling at him. His eyes widened as he realized you had planned this all along. You knew exactly when the bullet was going to go off. He should have known, besides you were the second-best with guns in the entire gang, of course, you would know. His eyes softened, as the corners of his lips tugged upwards.

You returned the smile and readjusted your stance. Meanwhile, CJ on the side had no clue what was coming. He believed with this next shot, the mafia boss of the Park gang would be dead, already coming up with plans to take over the empire.

You pulled the trigger and Seonghwa didn't even flinch. He simply chuckled deeply, before tilting his head back... that's how much he trusted you at that moment. CJ's jaw dropped. This wasn't the way it was supposed to go.

"ONE MORE!" CJ yelled at you as you flinched at the sudden loud voice. Seonghwa's eyes furrowed as he heard him. Your eyes widened as you processed the situation.

"I said one more! Take one more shot, or I'll drive a bullet through Park's head. I don't care who you shoot, but one of you is not going to leave alive today, and I will make sure of it." CJ grumbled, another one of his members passing him a gun. He pointed the gun at Seonghwa's head shoving it into his forehead. Seonghwa inhaled sharply before looking back at you, worried. It was obvious to everyone now that whoever you shot was going to die now. The last chamber had the bullet, so it would fire.

"Why do you care so much about someone dying today!" San yelled from the side.

"You took away one of my young hackers. You shot him right in the back. He's paralyzed now! FUCKING BASTARD SAN! I don't take such matters lightly, and for ruining his life, one of you is now going to pay with yours! I don't care who it is, one of you is going to die!" CJ yelled, gripping San's collar. He gulped realizing CJ found out about one of his missing hackers. Truth was, San helped him fake his paralysis to get him out of that vicious gang. He was now working for you, but CJ could never know that, or he'd go after the young boy.

"So it doesn't matter who I shoot?" You clarified, your voice shaking slightly to sell the act. CJ grinned from ear to ear, looking back and nodding smugly. Seonghwa looked at you with concern as he knew you were up to something. His eyes furrowed as you lifted the gun.

"What about this?" You asked, now pointing the gun directly at your chest. San gasped from the side, Ashe yelling at you to stop, while Seonghwa's eyes widened.

"I supposed that is acceptable too. Now get on with it!" He yelled as both the gangs waited for your next move. You took in a deep breath of air before pulling the trigger of the gun. You gasped at the impact, and fell to the ground, clutching your chest.

The next few seconds were a bit of a blur. Not from the actual shot itself, but the commotion around you. You heard the footsteps of the opposing gang members as they scurried out the club. You heard a bunch of cries and whimpers from presumably San and Ashe.

Your back made contact with the floor with a loud thud, as you winced from the pain. Seonghwa immediately felt a surge of urgency, as he tried breaking free from the ropes. He yanked as hard as he could, cutting through his wrists slightly, as the ropes snapped. His wrists were bloody and his arms were bruised all the way p, but he couldn't care less.

He roughly yanked at San's ropes, loosening them a bit, just enough for San to free himself. His breath quickened and his eyes widened as he approached you. He rushed over, immediately crouching down to your level. He sat down on his knees, desperately trying to hold you up. He shifted next to you and brought your head to rest on his lap. Your eyes fluttered shut, as his big arms cradled your face, holding your cheeks in each hand. His cut wrists, left a trail of blood, on the exterior of your face, your hair clinging to your face from the damp blood and sweat.

"No, no, no, you're strong Y/n, you're going to survive this" He whispered to you, his breath caressing your face as his shallow breaths continued. He must have really freaked out. He began lightly, tapping your face, shaking your head in his hands slightly. He, brushed your hair away from your face as his fingers rested on your temple. You heard him let out a whimper, as you felt a warm droplet fall onto your cheek. Wait... was he crying? It couldn't have been... The legendary Park Seonghwa crying over one of his members dying. What a sight. He shifted slightly, moving one of the hands that were cradling you to press at your chest. His large palm, pressed softly at your chest, rubbing against the bottom of your left breast. That's where you drew the line.

"Uh-uh, hands off me" You claimed, pushing past Seonghwa, trying to get up. His eyebrows furrowed as his eyes widened. You promptly stood up, as he remained seated on the floor, not understanding the situation. You walked over to the younger boy, untying him too, before grabbing a tissue, pushing at the large wound in his neck. You looked around, trying to find someone to help you, and looked at San. His eyes were wide as he was frozen in place.

"Stop staring and come help me, you ass!" You yelled, ushering to come over. He quickly rushed over, before cupping your cheeks.

"I thought you were going to die..." His voice broke, as you scoffed.

"Come on now, I wouldn't leave you that easilyyy" You whined before guiding his hand to the boy's neck.

"Hold it in place, we need to get him medical attention quickly, or he might bleed out." You passed him the tissues, before walking to untie Ashe. As soon as her wrists and arms were untied she pounced on you. She engulfed you in a hug, sobbing into your shoulder.

"You dumb bitch" She cried into your shoulder, as you patted her head, cradling her face. She pulled away and you looked down feeling guilty.

"I know, I'm sorry" You whispered out, only for her to scoff, before pulling you into another bone-crushing hug. You winced in pain, as your shoulder was hurting quite a bit. You simply resorted to rubbing her back for now. Your little moment was broken by a small cough heard from the ground. You looked down, only to notice, Seonghwa was still sitting on the floor, eyes wide, as he tried processing what was happening.

"Mr. Park... You're uh, still on the floor..." He looked right into your eyes, his eyes narrowing as he pushed himself up to his feet, walking towards you. He looked down at you as you tilted your head up, making direct eye contact.

"Firstly, I am touched and flattered that you cried for me, who would have thought..." You said, more to yourself, as Seonghwa brought his hands to his face, touching under his eyes. He realized his cheeks were wet with tears, as he roughly rubbed at them, sniffing and scrunching his nose.

"Secondly, that was inappropriate, dude! You can't just go around groping women you know?" You yelled as his eyes widened. You pointed back at your chest, indicating where he had tried pressing before. You knew he was trying to prevent, possible bleeding, but you couldn't help but tease him a little. He refocussed his attention to your chest, staring at the hole in your dress.

"Eyes up here buddy" You caught his attention. He scoffed, before bringing you into a hug. Engulfing your smaller body in his larger build.

"Ow! my shoulder, be careful, Park!" You scowled as he pulled back.

"Y/n what the fuck? You're supposed to be dead" He finally said, before bringing his hands, to your shoulder, to inspect the wound.

"Actually no" You pulled back, pulling the neckline of your dress down. His eyes widened as a blush grew on Seonghwa's cheeks. You flipped the top of your black lace bra outwards showing a navy blue thicker lining underneath.

"Bulletproof lining, I managed to push it up from my stomach to my chest when I uh, broke down" Seonghwa sighed, pressing his temples.

"You weren't crying?" He asked, a hand cupping your cheek as he spoke.

"Well no, it was a distraction, to bend over and push up the lining to my chest. The tears from before as well, they were fake too, sorry San, I had to sell my act..." You mumbled but San still heard. He scoffed as he walked towards you.

"I figured as much" He smiled back at you.

Seonghwa tightened his grip on your jaw as he realized something. You gasped as you tried pulling away.

"You knew what was going to happen? Why the fuck didn't you tell me?" He said a little louder. You didn't budge, knowing what you did was right.

"Because! If I were to tell you, you would have brought around 20 other bodyguards accompanying us. Besides this wasn't even the original plan... I was supposed to sleep with CJ, distract him for the night so he couldn't carry out his plan. Turns out I got caught up with his brother and had to... deal with him first." Seonghwa loosened his grip on your jaw before sighing, tucking a piece of your hair behind your ear.

"Regardless, I'm proud of you, you know? You outsmarted them all and saved our lives. I owe you thanks." He said before stepping back. You felt dampness on the side of your head. Realizing it was blood, you grabbed his forearm, before inspecting his cuts and bruised wrists.

"Why did you do this to yourself?" You scoffed, before, walking over to get him a tissue to wipe the dried blood for now.

"For you, Y/n... I thought you were dying..." He sighed as gripped onto the base of your dress.

"So what? It's a part of the job. I knew what I was signing up for. I very well knew that death was a possible risk. Besides, why care about me so much? I'm rather expendable actually." You said matter-of-factly.

"No, you're not. Never feel like that. You mean a lot to the gang, a lot to me. Even though we don't interact often. I know how much you do for the gang, how much work you put in for everyone." He said, looking at you sincerely. You smiled back at him softly, booping his nose, turning on your heel.

"Let's get cleaned up shall we?"

[emma-nation]

The Devil In I - Bela x OC (Resident Evil Village AU)

“Step inside, see the Devil in I”

Summary: Aleena Novak is a 19 years old orphan who desired more than living in a village in the middle of nowhere. A talented artist with a big future ahead, she gets the scholarship of her dreams in United States. But everything changes when her twin brother, Auryk, steals an important artifact from Castle Dimitrescu.

In this adventure, Aleena will find way more than she expected.

“You’ll realize I’m not your Devil anymore”

Pairing: Bela Dimitrescu x OC

Genre: Between T and M (Trigger warning for violence, blood, abuse and eventual smut)

Tag List: @nydeiri

Notes: This is my first RES fic, so I'm sorry if I mess it up a bit. English is also not my main language, so a mistake or two may happen. I hope you enjoy it :)

Trigger Warning: Language, abuse, blood and violence.

Eastern Europe - July, 2009

"If he could learn to love another and earn her love in return by the time the last petal fell, then the spell would be broken. If not, he would be doomed to remain a beast for all time. As the years passed he fell into despair and lost all hope. For who could ever learn to love a beast?"

Mother closed the book, placing it on the bedside table between Auryk's bed and mine. Then, she lowered herself and kissed my forehead like she did every night. Her long, blonde hair tickled my face and left a trace of her sweet lavender fragrance in the air. I giggled.

"Good night, sweetheart," she spoke.

"Good night, momma."

"Cherish your last night as a six years old. Tomorrow you will become a..."

"Princess?!"

"A seven years old girl. The prettiest girl in the village."

"Pffft," Auryk let out a displeased grunt from his bed, covering his head with the pillow to avoid listening another word from the conversation.

"And you too," mother sat by his side on the bed and repeated her nightly ritual of kissing his forehead to wish him a good night too. "You'll become the most handsome and brave warrior in this village. Do you understand?"

"I hope so. Good night, mom."

"Good night, buddy."

Mother left the room, leaving us both in the dark. However, we couldn't sleep. Not because we were thrilled about our incoming birthday party as any regular child, but because we knew our lives were about to change. Seven years old was the age every child from our village was introduced to the truth and started being trained to fight the evil that haunted our lands. Auryk and I spent minutes, or maybe hours, in silence, staring at the ceiling.

"Leena?" He was the first one to speak. "Do you believe a spell can broken? I mean, like a curse?"

"I don't know, Ryk," I answered, feeling my thoughts starting to drift away. "Maybe we're doomed after all. Or... we could learn how to love the beasts."

The birthday parties always happened during the daytime, rules of the village. We could no longer be outside after 6 PM. Mother got help from the other women to prepare the treats and organize the decorations. Auryk was disguised as a pirate and I... I was Belle, from the Beauty and the Beast.

"So, what do you think you will be getting this year?" My best friend Elena asked while we were playing with our dolls. She was about two years older than us.

"I don't know," I shrugged. Being a merchant, my father always returned home with the most unusual gifts: a magical music box, a voodoo doll that had a life on its own or a fragrance that chased away the monsters - and everybody else too. "A new book. I'm hoping for a new book."

It was only by the end of the party Adrian Novak made his entrance. That was the mystery about him. Nobody knew when he would show up, or if he would show up at all. He still had that same annoying smirk on his face. The corner of his mouth holding a cigarette. The months away made his beard grow longer, as well as his dark hair. In the sunlight, the scar above his eye was even more visible.

"Auryk," he shouted, "come here, son. I've got something for ya."

My twin brother, who had been climbing trees with his friends stop frozen in spot for a second. I couldn't tell if he hated or feared that man. Maybe both. He slowly followed father's command, approaching him cautiously.

"Hi, dad."

"Happy birthday, son," father ruffled his dark straight hair with his strong and calloused hand. "It's about time you grow up."

He handed my brother a large package. From our experience, we knew exactly what it was, a shotgun.

"T-Thank you, dad."

"I'll be spending some time at home. Tomorrow we'll start practicing."

Auryk consented. He shot me a quick glance. From our twin bond I could tell my brother was far from happy. When he blew his candles that afternoon, he didn't wish for a weapon. We wished to be a normal child.

"What did you get, Leena?" He asked once we were locked in the safety of our bedroom.

"Pencils and a drawing book. Dad thinks I'm talented."

Not really. Adrian Novak would never allow his daughter to hold a shotgun. That was, according to him, 'a man thing'.

"Good, at least one of us got what they wanted. Happy birthday, sister."

"Happy birthday, brother."

4 Years Later - October, 2013

It wasn't easy to be the weakest of the twins. Although he was born first, Auryk was the tinniest. The one who was always getting sick or getting injured. The one who couldn't hit a single fucking target when he had the alcoholic breath of his father on his neck.

He aimed for a crow, sitting still on a fence. How hard could it be? Even the eldest man from the village could do any better than that.

BANG! He shot again. And missed.

"Again?!" Adrian angered, shoving him hard on the shoulder. "What the hell is your problem, kid?"

"I don't know, okay? This gun... it's heavy!"

"Heavy? And why do you think we've been exercising for all these years, huh?! We do not live in Disneyland, Auryk. We need to fight monsters, abominations. Someday I won't be home and you need to be prepared to protect our people. Do you understand?"

Tears started forming in the corners of the boy's blue eyes. He couldn't cry. Not in front of him. Crying was a sign of weakness and he couldn't be weak. Not right now. Auryk started to think about all the things he could be doing. He thought about the ocean, as he had seen on TV and books. He could feel the warmness of the sun on his skin. The sand between his toes. His mom and sister were also there, of course - they'd carry them with him everywhere. And he would study Math and Physics. There would be no guns, no monsters, no blood, only numbers, only formulas, only theories. He smiled. He no longer felt like crying.

"I'm sorry, dad," kindness was always the answer, his mother said. "But this isn't for me, you know? I don't like it. I... Remember that boarding school my teacher mentioned? I thought maybe I..."

His words were interrupted by a hard slap on his face. Auryk could taste a small amount of blood coming out from his lower lip.

"So that's what you want? To become one of those little fancy fags? Maybe you're not my son after all."

Adrian started walking away, leaving his son alone, sitting on the floor.

"I AM!" Auryk yelled, enraged. "I am your son."

"Then prove it."

"You shouldn't take so hard on him," Savannah poured her husband a cup of tea. "He's just a boy."

"He's eleven years old, for god's sake," the husband punched the table strong enough to make it shake. "He needs to man up a bit. You should stop spoiling him."

As I left my bedroom I found my brother sitting on the stairs. He didn't have to be so close to listen to the conversation between our parents, father's voice was loud enough to echo through every wall of our small and cozy home.

I sat down by his side, wrapping an arm around his shoulders.

"Maybe you should do it, Leena. You'd do it better, I know."

"I'm not so sure. Remember when I tried to shoot a scarecrow and almost shot that old witch?"

"Come on, you aimed on purpose! I know."

Auryk finally let out a small laugh at the memory.

"You're good at everything, Leena," he spoke fondly. "You're an extrovert, you're everybody's friend, you can cook, you can draw and paint... you're a true artist. I'm a mistake."

"You're not a mistake, Ryk," I pulled my brother closer, resting my cheek against the side of his face. "We're only at the wrong place and you know it."

Going back to our bedroom, we pulled from the drawers the postcards our grandma Louise sent us from San Diego. Mom had been born in California and lived there her entire life, until she met father during one of his trips. God knows what made her fall in love with that man. Adventure? Danger? I expected better from myself when I turned eighteen. Otherwise, I'd never want to fall in love. Love could be my ruin, just like my mom's.

"Leena..." Auryk held the postcard tightly, "do you think... if he died... do you think mom would take us to nana's home?"

"I don't know, Ryk," I didn't want to think of my father's possible death. But I also dreamed of a better life. "Maybe."

"What the hell?" Father's voice in the kitchen made me jump in fear. I knew that tone. I grew up used to that. Something was wrong in the village. We had to hide.

"To the basement, now!" He emerged at the bedroom, holding a rifle. "Lycans were seen surrounding the area."

We barely had any time to react, mom came and dragged us both to the basement. Father left, carrying his arsenal of weapons as usual. There were other hunters in the village but we always knew how badly it could end. Somebody could always get seriously hurt. Or worse.

The basement had been carefully prepared for that kind of situation years before. It had a big bed, two armchairs, a heating source, some stored food and a shelf. Mom sighed and forced a smile.

"So," she walked to the shelf, "what is it going to be today?"

"Frankenstein," Auryk suggested. My brother loved mystery and horror. As if his life hadn't enough of it.

"Romeo and Juliet," I spoke. There was something about forbidden romance that always caught my interest.

"Okay. I... I'm gonna say a prayer and you two can read the books you picked by yourselves. What do you think?"

"Great!"

Mom kneeled down by the bed's side, holding a crucifix. I could join her if I wanted to, but I'd rather watch in silence. I grabbed my book, sitting on one of the armchairs and pretending to pay attention, while I tried to distract myself from the fact my father could be the Lycans' next prey. Or all of us, if they managed to break into our house.

"Leena?" I woke up hours later with my mom shaking me. "Leena?! Where's Auryk? Where's your brother, Leena?"

I had no idea. I had fallen asleep and apparently, so did mom. She checked for the basement's door, it had been locked from outside.

"No..." she tried to force it open. "No! I can't be..."

All Auryk had to do was to successfully kill and take a Lycan's carcass as a trophy to his father, right? That was what that old douchebag wanted him to do, to prove his courage, his manhood. We had his shotgun, a binoculars and a knife, that should be enough, but first, he needed a good plan.

Looking down to his hands, he had the most perfect idea. Without thinking twice, he sliced a cut through his palm, letting some blood pour on the ground. Then, he found a tall tree. He climbed it and observed. The smell of blood his trail left behind should be enough to attract a creature.

"Come on... come on..."

From a distance, Auryk could hear the sound of destruction and death. There was a battle going on somewhere nearby. Once again Lycans should have found a family or a group of hunters.

And then, he could hear it. The heavy footsteps, the screeching sounds, the sniffing. The mutant creature was only a few meters away from the tree. He aimed, but it was still too distant. He needed to move to a closer branch.

It all happened in one second. He was almost there, reaching for the spot he had picked, but his weight was too much for the tree's branch. In a blink of an eye, he was lying on the ground. His vision was blurred. His head hurt intensely, as well as his arm. It was broken for sure. He possibly had a concussion too. He tried to stand up and run but his legs wouldn't follow his commands. The Lycan was coming straight at him.

"AURYK!" His mother screamed behind him. "NO!"

Time seemed to freeze in that fraction of second. How did she manage to escape the basement? How could she have found him?

But without hesitation, Savannah threw herself on top of her son, protecting him from the jaws and claws of the monster. Auryk couldn't see much, but he could smell it. He could feel it. Blood. There was blood everywhere. He couldn't tell who it belonged to, he or his mom's.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

A fast sequence of shots suggested the hunters had found them. The creature stopped moving, stopped howling. It was finally dead.

"M-Mom... it's dead. We... We're safe."

She didn't answer. Instead, he heard another familiar voice.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?!" It was from his father. "Savannah! Savannah!"

"D-Dad..." Auryk tried to speak, but the words got lost along the way. "I... I..."

Adrian lifted him by his jacket, holding him inches above the ground.

"YOU KILLED HER! YOU KILLED YOUR MOM, YOUR STUPID BASTARD!"

"I..." tears streamed down the boy's face, his injured brain trying to process what had just happened. "I'm sorry.'

After he was thrown back to the ground, he was hit with a hard kick on his stomach. He turned his head around to notice a small figure hiding behind a tree, watching the whole scene in pure horror.

"L-Leena..." he muttered.

"This is all your fault, Auryk. You're a disgrace to this family."

And then, he passed out. Rumors said he was unconscious for days or maybe weeks. When he woke up, he wished everything had been a nightmare.

Present Days - July, 2021

Nobody mourned Adrian Novak when he died. Not his children. Not his village mates. No human being would ever feel any sympathy for a man who abused and blamed his eleven years old son for his mother's death. It had been two years since Adrian left this world and I couldn't feel any more free.

"Hey," I left another message on my brother's voicemail, "in case you've forgotten it's our birthday today. I'd like to have my twin home, you know? Call me when you get this message."

It was useless, I knew. Auryk would only pick up his phone when he wanted to. Or when he was too drunk. God knew where that guy would be at that time, probably waking up at some girl's bed or getting some rest from... working.

After grabbing myself a cup of coffee, I checked the door's mat. Bills, bills, newspaper and... California Institute Of Arts? I remember having an argument with Auryk about this matter at some point. He wanted me to fill the application and send them my portfolio. I insisted we had no money, not even to pay for the tuition. I won - I always win every argument by the way.

"Your damn son of a..." I placed the envelope on the kitchen's table. I was a coward, I confess. However, I didn't know which pain was worse - to be sure I wasn't good enough or to be sure I was, indeed, but I'd never have money to leave that hellhole. Anyways, I decided to leave it alone. I had more important things to do.

My morning routine: to go to the middle of the woods and do some training. My father used to say fighting wasn't a girl thing, but I was no regular girl. And never in this life I'd allow someone to tell me what to do.

After running, climbing and doing a set of push-ups, it was time for combat training. Travelers from abroad taught me some different set of moves, I'd like to think I created my own fighting style. I was also very good with knifes, daggers or any kinds of short blades, they were useful during a close distance combat. My shooting was a work in progress, once or twice I'd miss the center of my handmade targets.

Then, like everyday, I'd go back home, shower and follow to my shift at the village's pub.

"Hiya, Leena," Gustav greeted me when I arrived. "I heard today is a special day... the day a little girl..."

"NO!" I stopped him. Gustav was my best friend. We had known each other since we were children and somehow, he liked to make my birthday a special - and embarrassing - event.

He placed a handmade fairytale-like book on the table. There were some edited pictures, mixed with some messed up drawings about my birth and childhood. He called it 'The Princess Who Carried The Light'.

"God, you're soooo stupid..." I rolled my eyes and moaned, before wrapping him into a very tight hug. "I love you, you know that?"

"I know. You'd probably marry me, if you weren't into girls."

We laughed together, as Olga, our boss emerged from the kitchen, bringing a cake with nineteen candles.

"Here's to another year," the older woman opened a wrinkled smile, "make a wish, my darling."

I fell pensive for a moment, besides having my twin brother back home, safe and sound, what else could I wish for? California, that scholarship, a new life... that's for sure.

"I wish for... a new life, a new adventure," I pronounced aloud while blowing the candles.

"Careful," a male voice spoke behind me, "words have power, little sister. You may get what you want."

"Ryk!"

I jumped straight to my brother's arms. I could swear that in only a few weeks he had gotten a little bit taller, and stronger too.

"I wouldn't miss my own birthday, right?" He smirked. "So, where's the cake? Please, chocolate... tell me it's chocolate."

"Your silly boy," Olga spread some icing on his nose. "Of course it's chocolate, as you love. And with cherries too."

Auryk responded with a satisfied smile. Olga and her husband, Kristoff, were those responsible for taking care of him after the Lycan attack, years ago. They sort of adopted him like one of their biological children.

"Oh!" The woman exclaimed taking a closer look at Ryk's forearm. He had gotten a tattoo. I hadn't been informed of those news either. Apparently, my brother had more secrets than I could even start to imagine. "This is... new. It seems like my kids are really growing up."

"And only now you noticed that, Olga?" Gustav joked.

Olga shook her head, grinning at herself and returned to the kitchen. The customers were starting to fill the pub. I stared at Ryk again, wondering what other secrets my brother could be keeping.

"So, what does that mean?" I pointed to his newly gotten tattoo, a strange and ancient symbol it seemed.

"Protection from the evil. This is what we need the most in our lives, especially in a place like this. What reminds me -" we turned around, taking a small box from the pocket of his jacket. "Your gift."

I took the black velvet box from his hands, it contained a golden necklace with a magenta gemstone as pendant. My blue eyes drowned themselves in the stone. It had a mysterious glow. Something hypnotizing. Something magical.

"Whoa..." was everything my mouth could pronounce. "And I bought you an Astronomy book."

Auryk stood up from his chair and went behind me, taking the necklace from my hands to wear it around my neck himself.

"This is supposed to protect you from any supernatural and inhumane beings. I won't lose you to them, Aleena. Not like I lost mom."

"Ryk, I... I can't even thank you enough."

"You don't have to. Just... stay alive."

First, I was overflowing with happiness. It either had to do with the fact my brother was home, alcohol, or both. Also, Olga should thank me. Most of the costumers of the day only stopped by the bar because of me. They absolutely loved me and knowing it was my birthday, they had to come and see me. A few of them even gave me some extra tips or a small gift, which was even greater.

"Okay, party girl..." Auryk helped me to get inside of the house as I tripped over the door mat. "Time to go to bed now. Don't you think?"

"Come on, Ryk! Have some spirit! You're home, Olga gave me the day off tomorrow, I earned some money..."

"You told Mrs. Hansen you secretly had a crush on her daughter during Middle School, you danced on top of a table, you're gonna get a hangover..."

"Party pooper!"

I threw myself at the couch. Auryk stood in front of me with arms crossed, looking like a father about to give his child a lecture.

"What?!" I yelled. "It's not like you've never been drunk before. Remember when you stole Adrian's..." I started to laugh, remembering the episode.

"When you were going to tell me about this, Leena?" He showed me the envelope. The Art Institute envelope. The one I had been struggling to open.

"Oh! I forgot. My bad, I didn't open it myself yet. I probably didn't get in anyways."

"You did."

I did?

"It's not like we have money to pay for my tuition. Also, how are we supposed to move to California, Ryk? I work at a pub and you..."

"I've gotten more than enough for that. You know that getting out of this place has always been the plan, since we were children. Leena, I've done some big jobs those last few months. I have the money to grant us a comfortable life in California."

"Smuggling, Ryk!" I raised my voice, saying aloud the information that was supposed to be a secret or not. "You've been stealing to grant us this life."

My brother stared at me in silence. I couldn't tell if he felt offended or embarrassed about my words.

"I'm getting out of here, whatever it takes," he ran a hand through his dark hair. "And you are coming with me. In two weeks, we move to United States for your enrollment."

"But..."

What I was trying to protest against? Leaving the village and starting a new life with my brother was everything I always dreamed.

"Look, I promise you," Auryk placed both of his firm hands on my shoulders, "once we settle down, no more smuggling."

"Okay," I sighed. "We leave in two weeks then."

There was a loud knock on the door. Being drunk as I was, I figured out I should have forgotten my purse at the pub. Or it could be a neighbor with some very stupid emergency.

Auryk opened the door and there was a strange looking man standing there. We wore sunglasses and a hat, behind his back he was carrying a giant hammer. According to the rumors and stories I heard from my parents, that was one of the Lords of The Four Houses, Karl Heisenberg.

"Auryk Novak?" He asked.

"Yes, sir."

"Come with me, kid. You've gotten yourself in big trouble."

[vi-writes-stuff]

Good as Gold (Ethan x f!MC)

Pairing: Dr. Ethan Ramsey x F!MC (Dr. Audrey Lee)

Word Count: 1.62 k

Rating: 18+ (NSFW content, PWP)

Summary: The events before and after their impromptu date night. Set between book 2 and 3. Sequel to All I've Ever Known

Author's Note: All I've Ever Known was originally titled Good as Gold. Title is from "Gold" by Tolan Shaw. Listen to the song and tell me this isn't lovestruck Ethan. So glad Ethan finaly said ILY to MC in the finale <3 Anyway, here's the sequel to my first fic. Y'all this is just PWP, so enjoy.

If someone had asked Ethan Ramsey what was important to him two years ago, the answer was simple: work. His work was what mattered.

It was all that mattered.

Taking in the sight of Audrey soundly asleep beside him in his bed, looking radiant in the moonlight, he knows his answer would be different now. He watched the gentle rise and fall of her breath, the slow repetitive motion easing the fear that had gripped his heart.

He had woken up from a dream that had almost become a reality. The cure hadn’t been synthesized in time. He had held her as she faded away, her normally warm and lively eyes wide with fear, whispering to him that she didn’t want to die.

Reaching over to her sleeping form, Ethan gently stroked her cheek. The skin contact and the quiet breath she exhaled soothed him instantaneously.

With Edenbrook still under construction, the two busy doctors had spent the past few weeks holed up in his apartment. They were no longer hiding their relationship and Ethan found he treasured the domesticity between them; a sentiment he thought he would never hold.

Wrapping an arm around her waist, he settled back into bed. As soon as he laid down, Audrey slid closer to him, letting out a contented sigh.

_____________________

Out of habit, he woke up at 6 AM only to find his bed empty. The feeling of panic seized his heart until he heard her quietly humming. Shuffling towards the bedroom door that had been left slightly ajar, he smiled at the sight of Audrey bathed in the soft sunlight of the kitchen. Dressed in an oversized t-shirt she had stolen from him and a pair of sleep shorts, the hair she usually wore up at work hung loose as she flipped a pancake in the air. As the other side of the pancake landed perfectly in the pan, she did a little victory dance and waved the spatula she held in her right hand.

He didn’t get a chance to watch her for much longer as Jenner, who had been sitting by the foot of the kitchen counter, noticed Ethan in the doorway and made her way to him, letting out a soft woof as he saw his owner was finally awake.

Setting the pan on the stove, she turned around and grinned. “Good morning, I woke up before you, so I thought I’d make us some breakfast,” Audrey said, flipping the newest pancake onto the stack she made.

Crossing the apartment, he wrapped himself around her. “Smells delicious,” he replied, placing a kiss against her neck. Knowing how much she loved it when he kissed her there, he was rewarded with a stifled moan.

She turned around in his arms and placed a gentle kiss against his lips before playfully swatting his shirtless chest with the spatula, “As much as I enjoy how you show your appreciation, I would actually like to enjoy breakfast before it gets cold.”

He hugged her a little tighter before letting go. “I’ll get started on the coffee then,” he sighed.

Audrey smiled cheekily at him. “Thanks, babe.”

Giggling at the face he made at the nickname, she turned her attention back to the stove as she cooked the last of the batter.

As Audrey returned to the apartment she shared with her roommates, Ethan visited Alan to drop off Jenner. Later in the day as he checked his email, he received a notification about the opening of L’Orfeo and a plan began to form in his mind.

_____________________

Audrey Lee drove him insane in the best ways possible. The ride back home that started with her hand entwined in his across the gear shift ended with wandering touches as the pair rushed towards the elevator. Ethan successfully opened the door to his apartment and the door slammed shut as he pinned Audrey against.

"You know I have worn this dress before," she murmured as he kissed a trail down her neck.

He hummed. "On the rooftop, I thought I recognized it."

"You didn't make a comment about it, so I thought I'd wear it again,” she said breathlessly as her face flushed. “Elicit a reaction this time around.”

"Mission accomplished,” he groaned. “You are beautiful in that dress, but I think it would look better off of you and on the floor."

Laughter bubbled up out of her mouth as he held her face in his hands. “Aren’t you forward? You did just take me out to dinner, I guess—” Her teasing is cut off by a loud yawn that escapes her mouth. “Sorry, I guess I actually am tired.”

Taking a look at her eyes that were still somewhat red and puffy from her tears by the river earlier, he pressed a kiss against a cheek. Bending down he swept her off her feet, eliciting a surprised squeak from Audrey. “Come on, let’s go to bed and sleep.”

Carrying her across the apartment, Ethan gently deposited her onto her side of the bed. Kneeling down, he carefully removed her heels and put them aside. Climbing on to the bed to sit behind her, he helped undo her dress, pressing a kiss to every inch of skin that revealed itself as he lowered the zipper.

The zipper was three quarters of the way down when Audrey twisted around, pressing a kiss against his lips. Her hands drifted towards the back of his neck. Humming delightedly in response, Ethan’s hands reached out to pull her face closer, causing the to grow kiss deeper and more passionate by the second.

Audrey pulled back, her lips swollen and panting for breath. Ethan attempted to pull her back in, but she stopped him with a gentle press of her thumb against his bottom lip. Her hand slowly drifted down to his shirt and she began undoing the top button. “Actually,” she murmured into his ear. “I’m not as tired anymore.”

Ethan looked into Audrey’s eyes, her pupils were blown so wide he could barely see the beautiful brown that surrounded them. “Are you sure?”

Audrey nodded. “I’m certain.”

As their lips met again, Ethan rushed to undress himself as Audrey fully unzipped and slipped out of her dress. Pushing him further up until his back met the headboard, Audrey straddled his lap. As she began rocking in his lap, he uttered a series of soft curses which delighted her. Pulling back from their kiss, Audrey leaned her forehead against his and pressed a hand against his hammering heart. She gently took one of his warm hands and pressed it against her own racing heart. They sat there for a moment, their breaths intermingling as they felt the steady thump of each other’s heartbeats.

“You’re important to me. Don’t ever forget that,” he said.

Staring into each other’s eyes, Audrey stroked his cheek. “Know that you’re important to me too.” The warmth of his gaze and his words was reflected in her own and it was filled with a feeling neither was quite brave enough to admit to themselves or each other yet.

Wrapping a gentle hand around his cock, she slowly stroked him up and down, eliciting a moan from Ethan underneath her. Smirking at his response, she whispered, “I was thinking about how I could repay you for this morning.” Audrey kept moving further down as she continued to stroke him. She stopped and bent down to kiss the tip, before she licked at the dripping precum.

“Jesus Christ, Audrey,” he groaned.

“Mmm, I like the sounds you make too.” Pressing another kiss against the tip of his cock, she opened her mouth and slowly swallowed his length. Bobbing her head up and down, her other hand wrapped around the base and stroked the parts her mouth couldn’t reach.

Ethan threaded his hands through her hair, guiding her as he slowly bucked into his mouth. As another moan escaped his mouth, Audrey looked up at him, her eyes crinkling at the corners as she continued to suck him. “Audrey, I’m close,” he murmured as he pulled himself out of her mouth, much to her protest.

Audrey sat back up and hovered over his lap. Grabbing the base of his cock, she positioned herself over him and sighed in relief as she slid down on to him. “God, the way you fill me up,” she moaned, rolling her hips forward. Massaging her breasts in his hands, he gently pinched her nipples making her gasp. Her hands rested with her palms flat against his chest as he continued his ministrations.

Slowly, he shifted his grasp to her hips so that he thrust further into her. The sensation caused Audrey’s eyes to flutter shut as another moan escaped her and she bit her swollen lower lip. That image was forever burned in his brain and he knew instantly that if she let him, he would gladly have spent the rest of his days worshipping her body, her mind, and her soul.

“Come for me, Audrey” he panted. Moments later, she clenched around him crying his name aloud. The sound of her pleasure and the delicious bite of her nails against his skin allowed him to reach his own climax. When Audrey finally rode out her orgasm, he gently slipped out of her as she slumped against his heaving chest.

He silently twined their hands together and pressed a kiss against the top of her hand, before he rested them over his heart. Audrey leaned up to kiss him once more, before she rested her head in the crook of his neck. Wrapped in each other’s embrace, the pair slowly drifted off to sleep to the steadily slowing rhythm of Ethan’s heartbeat.

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