#lifeless platter au

[cielcreations]

Lifeless Platter - Ending 5: Made With Love

Very similar to my original Made With Love book, but this time with roles reversed!

Trigger Warning: Cannibalism at the very end.

Pt. 1 Pt. 2 Pt. 3 Pt. 4 Pt. 5 [ You Are Here ]

"Oh, hey, you actually showed up for training!" The redheaded chef smiled brightly, "Quite early, too!"

"If you're not five minutes early, you're late." The raven haired man replied, voice deep and gruff.

The redhead chuckled, putting his hands on his hips, "Well, that's good to hear, it means you're serious! This is a highly sought after position and you're already off to a good start, Vincent! However, I noticed your resume, you didn't have many customer service jobs, so I hope you don't mind if I help you out a bit and teach you how to do this." The man then hummed, "Though, forgive me if this comes off as rude, I'm just confused why you would go from a high paying job you've had for years to a mere server?"

"Must I answer or can we just move on, Chef Lamoree?" The raven narrowed his eyes.

"Ah, just call me Rody, no need for formalities!" The redhead chuckled, ignoring the hostility, "Like I said, I'm just confused, but I won't push!" He smiled, "Well, with serving, it's pretty easy! All you have to do is seat customers, take their orders, and bring food to them! When seating people, keep in mind how many people are dining. You don't want a large group crowding around one area. Once they put their menus down, that's when you should go check on them!"

Vincent grabbed a menu and opened it, "'What we're serving today?'" He read aloud.

"Yes! Customers don't pick what they eat, we have a menu that changes daily! It did say that in the interview."

"Well, yes, I read that. Just wondering about it."

The redhead chuckled, "Well, once you've taken their order, bring it to the marker between the window and the door. That way, it'll be sent to the kitchen. The cooks will start working on whatever order you have right away, but keep in mind they prioritize cooking the dessert, side, meal, and appetizer. In that order." Rody then got serious, narrowing his eyes a bit, "Do not pester or distract any of the cooks if it's taking too long. Perfection is key and if you're pestering them, it won't be perfect."

"Understood."

"Good." Rody smiled once more, "Once the order is ready, you'll find it at the window to then serve to the customers. They'll ask for more after their appetizer, so don't make them wait too long. Once they're ready for the bill, go behind the counter to check them out. Once they're done with their meal, make sure to clean their table too, okay? I don't want guests thinking we leave messes out in the open! The garbage is in the kitchen, right next to the back door. When it's full, take the trash and bring it out to the alley behind the kitchen to throw it out."

"Understood." Vincent repeated.

"Make sure to study the menu, too! What I just told you are the basics to any serving job, but you need to be able to know what we are offering. If you're stuttering or confused, it'll make us look bad and I don't want our customers thinking we're anything less than professional."

"If anything, your demeanor screams unprofessional..." The raven muttered more to himself.

"It's hospitable, which is professional!" Rody argued, smiling brightly.

Hardly. Vincent thought.

"Well, I'll be in the back, helping the chefs and such. If you need me, just come on back! Good luck!"

With Rody in the back, Vincent began to clean off the tables, officially starting his shift. He made sure to seat the customers, smiling softly (though, it was a bit difficult and forced, but the customers didn't seem to care) as he took their order before handing it off to the chefs. He cleaned and bused the tables, making sure to take out the trash when needed. He focused on his job, making sure to never make a mistake.

By the end of the day, the restaurant was probably cleaner now then when Vincent first started the day.

"Ah, Vince!"

The raven turned around, raising an eyebrow, "'Vince?'"

"Ah, sorry, did I say that? I hope you don't mind the nickname!" Rody smiled, offering a plate, "Anyways, I have some Green Onion Rolls!"

"...What about them?" Vincent responded.

The chef laughed, "Take them! I need to make sure my staff is well taken care of so, please, the food is yours!"

"Oh, truly?" The raven asked, eyes widening, "Well, thank you. Do we have a to-go box that I may use?"

Rody looked around. He grabbed an empty box and slid the plate inside, "Not a to-go box, but it'll have to do."

"Thank you again, Chef Lamoree."

"Please, Rody is just fine!"

Vincent took the box and left back to his apartment. His phone started ringing, making him groan. Stop calling me. He thought, knowing exactly who it was. He went to the bathroom and got himself ready for bed, changing into pajamas and sitting down on the couch. When he finally was relaxed, he opened the to-go box and smelled the onion rolls. They smelled good...

He took a bite of one and widened his eyes.

These are fantastic! He thought to himself, I'll have to thank Chef Lamoree once again. 

He ate them all and went to bed.

***

"M-My apologies for being late!"

"You're sorry?!" Rody huffed, turning around, hand on his hips as he looked up from his papers, "An apology isn't going to cut it when you're late and it's only your second day-" He paused, eyes widening as he finally faced Vincent, "-Why do you look like that?"

"I was hoping to wait until the rain stopped before I biked here, but it didn't seem to be relenting anytime soon." Vincent explained, standing on the porch and squeezing the water out of his shirt, "I truly am sorry for being late, I know it's unprofessional-"

"It's alright." Rody reassured, gently taking his wrist, pulling the other to his office. He offered a chair, "Here, sit."

Vincent did so.

The chef then took out two towels, wrapping one around Vincent's shoulders before using a smaller towel to begin to dry off his hair, "Here, let's get you dry before we have to open."

Vincent nodded, hugging the towel more around his body as the redhead continued to dry off his hair.

"Do you have an umbrella?"

"No, I do not."

"I see." Rody's voice lowered, almost sadly, "Well, then, I'll give you mine for the ride back! Just try not to let this happen again, okay?"

"Thank you for the offer, but I can't possibly use your umbrella."

"And why not?"

Vincent looked up at the chef, "How will you be getting home without it?"

Rody laughed, "I live here!"

"...I'm sorry?"

"My apartment is upstairs!" Rody gently pushed his head down, continuing to dry it, "There's no need for me to have it, at least not now."

"I... see. Well, I suppose that makes more sense."

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing, it's nothing." Vincent looked up at the other once more, "Is that not worrying, however? If something were to happen to the building, it'll all be gone."

The redhead chuckled, gently poking the other's nose, "Aw, cute, you're worried about me!"

"T-That's not-" The raven blushed, looking away.

Rody chuckled, drying off the last little drops, "I only tease, Vincent! Now, freshen up a bit and get ready for a nice day at work!" He cooed in his ear.

Vincent blushed more, "T-Thank you."

"Of course! It's nothing! Not only do I not want customers to see that, but you could catch a cold!"

"S-Still, thank you."

The raven folded the towels and placed them on the redhead's desk. They walked out of the office and Vincent readied himself for work before seating the first people who walked in. Once he seated the people, he smiled and took their orders, served them, cleaned the tables, checked people out, balancing it out pretty easily. Eventually, when everyone had left, he took out the trash, throwing it away in the back alley before coming back inside. He saw Rody, staring at the chefs, leaning against the wall, face blank.

"Chef Lamoree, may I ask you something?"

"'Rody.'" The redhead jokingly corrected, "Can you say it with me? 'Ro-dy!'"

Vincent sighed, "Right, uh, Rody, may I ask you something?"

"If you have the free time, I don't mind. Just don't let the customers go unnoticed!"

"Of course not. If I may, why do you stand here?"

"My job is to observe and monitor the chefs." Rody explained, smiling, "They are to cook my dishes to absolute perfection! If they are to even slightly stray from the way I cook, then I will jump in there!"

"Then it's no wonder why your food is so good."

Rody looked at the other, tilting his head.

"Your food was delicious. I've never tasted something so good." The raven explained, "It filled me and made me crave more. It's no wonder you're a truly amazing chef, you food made me feel warm."

Rody's face dusted a light pink and he smiled brightly, "I'm so happy to hear that!"

Vincent nodded and left the kitchen, getting back to work. He continued to seat people and take their orders, cleaning up after them and checking them out. After another few hours, his shift ended. He finished cleaning what he needed to and got ready to leave.

"Oh, Vince, wait!" The raven turned. Rody walked offering, offering his umbrella as well as a small box with a smile, "Inside is Blueberry Crepes! You said you liked my food and so I made sure to save you some!"

"...Thank you, Ch- Rody." Vince took the items, the redhead giggling.

With the chef's umbrella and food in his hand, Vincent went home. Once he got back to his apartment, he once again got himself ready for bed. He ignored the loud phone as he opened his to-go box. He took a bite of the crepe and it practically melted in his mouth, making him sigh contently. Rody is such an amazing chef. And quite considerate. He thought as he continued eating. Once he finished, he threw the box in the garbage before laying on the couch, falling asleep once more.

***

The shift started out normal. Vincent seated who needed to be seated, took the orders to the kitchen, served the food, checked them out, and bussed tables. He was beginning to make very decent tips and was extremely upbeat and happy with his progress. Eventually the trash got full and he had to take it out-

"Ow!" Vincent exclaimed, looking at his hand as he dropped the bag, "S-Shit-"

"Vincent."

The raven turned, facing Rody, who stared at him. Seeing the other so stoic, he turned nervous, "I- It- I-I apologize, there was something in the trash!" He looked at his hand, "I-I believe it ripped the bag open when I dropped it!"

"Vince." The chef repeated, taking a step forward.

Blood spilled from his palm, a large cut on it, "I-I- It cut me! I didn't throw anything I wasn't suppose to, I don't think!

"Vince." Rody gently tapped his face, the raven stopping, The redhead looked at him, concern plastered on his face, "You don't need to worry about that, let me see." He hummed, spreading the other's fingers, Vincent wincing as the redhead assessed the situation, "Hm, a shallow cut, nothing too serious."

"I-I apologize, I'll clean-"

"Don't worry about that. Someone else will clean it." Rody face sharply turned, two immediately jumping to follow his directions. The redhead turned back and smiled at Vincent, "Let's get this cleaned up! We can't have you serving people like this."

He gently took Vincent to his office, setting the other in a chair. He carefully applied ointment to the raven's hand before gently wrapping it, Vincent watching Rody's delicate work.

"I-I really do apologize-"

"Accidents happen, it's fine."

"I understand if you wish to reprimand-"

"Was it intentional?"

"No, of course not-"

"Then there's no need." The chef reassured as he finished, "Is that why you got a bit nervous?"

Vincent was silent.

"I see." Rody smiled, "Why don't you stay here for a bit and collect yourself?"

"I-I can-"

"Vincent, I'm not asking." Rody interrupted, gently holding his shoulder, "You are a little shaken up, which is fine. Take your time calming down, I will handle the customers in the meantime."

"I-" Vincent bit his bottom lip, looking down, "T-Thank you..."

Rody smiled and stood up, leaving as Vincent sat, calming himself. He took deep breaths and, once he felt he had calmed down enough, he left. He went onto the floor, where Rody was finishing taking someone's order. The woman giggled and smiled flirtatiously at the redhead, who merely smiled back. Once he finished, he walked back to give the order to the kitchen, his smile immediately falling.

"I can take over." Vincent offered.

The chef sighed in relief, smiling at the other, "Good, you're feeling better! I'm terrible with customers!"

"Really? You seemed to be doing well."

"Customers annoy me." Rody answered honestly, before giving one last smile, "Be careful, okay? If your hand starts to hurt, I can step in again, okay?"

Vincent nodded as the other disappeared into the kitchen once more. Vincent finished his shift and cleaned everything up. Once he was sure everything was ready for tomorrow, he went into the kitchen to bid his goodbyes. Rody gave the raven a plate of Squid Ink Pasta with Shrimp, the raven thanking him. He then went home, got ready for bed, and laid on his couch. His phone began ringing and he merely stared at it as he began eating.

"Perhaps I should get Rody something in order to thank him properly..." The raven thought aloud.

With every passing second, he grew more and more annoyed, he couldn't help but wonder what made her want to call him so bad. When it finally stopped, he sighed in relief. Thank you. He thought, happy with the silence, falling asleep.

***

"Who the HELL do you think you are?!"

Vincent jumped, unsure what he was walking in on. He was working his shift and was bringing in some dirty dishes and to take out the trash when he saw Rody, standing in front of the cook, glaring down with such hate and malice, a stark contrast to his playful, bubby personality.

"I-I apologize, Chef-"

"A 'sorry' isn't going to fucking cut it, now will it?" Rody hissed, accenting his words.

Vincent shut the door behind him, not wanting customers to hear as he watched the scene.

"Is your brain too small to realize a dish like that is not at all acceptable in my kitchen?!" Rody grabbed the plate, slamming it into the other's chef, smearing it on their coat.

"N-No, Chef-"

"Then why is it even here?!"

"I-I don't know, Chef, I m-must've-"

"'You don't know?!'" Rody repeated, his voice raising, "You 'don't know?!' How is it that you don't know?!"

"I-It must've slipped my mind, Chef!" The cook managed to squeak out, "S-Some flour had been left near the stove and I-I didn't want to get burned-"

"You didn't want to get burned?" Rody mocked, "Oh, well that just makes it aaaaaall better~!" He cackled. He grabbed the man's hands and put it behind his back. One of the Chef's hand held the cook's arms in place as the other grabbed the man by the back of his hair. He then shoved the man's face towards the burned stove, keeping it just out of reach of the flames.

The man squeaked, Vince gasped.

"NOT." Rody growled, snickering darkly, "Don't talk back to me in my own fucking kitchen, you damn pig! If you plan on being a semi-decent cook, you can walk your shrimpy legs right~ on~ out~ of~ here~! There is no conceivable reason to be scared of something as minor as a stove. If you're stupid enough to get burnt, then that is your fault and, as long as you are in my kitchen, you. Will. Keep. Cooking."

The chef gulped, whispering out, "Y-Yes, Chef."

"I can't hear you~!" The redhead sung.

"Y-YES, CHEF!" The cook yelled.

Rody hummed, seemingly satisfied. He lifted the man up and smiled, letting go, "Well then, back to it~!"

He turned and his green eyes met Vincent's onyx ones, the raven staring with awe. Rody stared back for a second then winked teasingly, moving to go stand by the wall once more. The raven blushed and shook his head, putting the dirty dishes away and taking the trash out. When he came back, he walked over to Rody, who was back to smiling.

"Hello, Vince, fancy seeing you here! If you're going to criticize how I run my kitchen, you can leave."

"Are you single?"

Rody's face turned a bright red as he looked down at Vincent. He then smirked, "Why do you ask?"

"Just curious if that is how you treat your partner."

"Heeeeey~!" The redhead laughed.

"I'm only teasing." Vincent chuckled a bit, "I ask because I wish to know a bit more about you. You do own a restaurant, so you must be quite popular among women, hm?"

"And men." The redhead said confidently, again winking.

The raven blushed, looking away, "Well, do you plan to settle down with anyone? Perhaps get married, hire a manager to run the place?"

"This is me settling down. I do this for myself!" The redhead smiled.

"You have yet to answer my question."

"Hm?"

"Are you single?"

"...Yes, I am." The redhead shrugged, "I swing both ways, so not sure if I'd want a wife or a husband. Kids are a maybe as well. What about you?"

"Pardon?"

"Wife? Husband? Kids?"

"...I'd want a husband."

"Kids?"

"With the right person, perhaps. Haven't found the right person yet." Vincent smiled slyly, "Perhaps you're the right person?"

Rody's face turned beet red but before he could respond, Vincent quickly moved to get back to work. He finished his shift and went to the kitchen. Rody had a proper to-go box ready for him, the Chef giving it to him and turning away, face still a bright shade of red. Vincent smirked, proud he was able to get the redhead flustered for once instead of the other way around. He thanked Rody and left. He got home and opened the to-go box.

Strawberry Shortcake.

The raven happily ate the food before turning on the TV. He then grabbed a magazine that was dropped off with the daily newspaper. He browsed through it and looked at all the ads before he widened his eyes. Oh, that's it! That's what I need! He thought. Rody shut the TV off, grabbed a marker, and circled it before laying down on the couch.

He looked at the phone as it rang before falling asleep.

***

The next two days were uneventful in terms of work. Vincent and Rody continued to talk between shifts when they could, the redhead smiling, his playful and friendly nature never wavering. Vincent truly did relax around the redhead, feeling butterflies in his stomach whenever he was around the other. His posture and stiffness went away so naturally. Only one person was able to do that and he... well, he was so scared of being "found out" while Rody was so open. It made him happy knowing he could just be himself and not have to hide it, not have to feel like he was doing something wrong. Rody sent vince home with a Croque Madame and Lemon Tart, in which Vincent ate both and praised the redhead for the next days. 

However, today, Vincent went to the kitchen and Rody wasn't there. He wasn't anywhere, as when the raven knocked on his office door, he got no response. Vincent sighed. Granted, he wasn't owed any food, but he did appreciate the food and he did want it, simply because he loved Rody's cooking.

No matter, he went home, got changed, and began to think of what to order offline. However, the phone started to ring. He ignored it, knowing once there was no answer, it would stop. The ringing stopped and Vincent was just about to get ready for bed when the phone rung again.

For the love of- Vincent snatched the phone and put it to his ear, growling, "Listen, Miss, I am not-"

"Miss? I don't think I'm a Miss!"

"A-Ah, R-Rody! I-I apologize!" The raven blushed in embarrassment, "F-Forgive me, how can I help you?"

"Well, are you free tonight?"

"Pardon?" The raven blushed more.

"I'm hosting a dinner party at my apartment and was checking if you're available!"

Oh, that- "Yes, I am."

"Perfect! I'll see you soon!" Vincent went to hang up, but the redhead spoke again, "Hey, um..."

"Yes?"

"..."

"Rody?"

"I'm sorry..."

"Sorry? For what?"

"I-I disappeared before you came into the kitchen and I wasn't able to give you a plate of food."

He... actually remembered? Vincent smiled slightly, "It's fine, Rody, I don't-"

"I do mind. I really... I like cooking for you, okay?"

"Well... I like eating your food."

"Great, because you'll have plenty of it!"

The redhead hung up and Vincent blinked. He rolled his eyes with a chuckle and got dressed in more casual clothes. He went back to the restaurant and Rody was waiting outside for him. The redhead led the way up to his apartment, the raven looking around. It was a bit of a mess, but the redhead was definitely a minimalist. He had a nice green couch with a coffee table, sitting in front of a large TV, a kitchen with a long counter and some highchairs, a rug on the floor, and a few small shelves with his books, some plants, and his trophies.

"Very... cozy..." Vincent muttered.

"Of course! I go for cozy homey vibe!" Rody smiled.

"...I thought you said this was a dinner party. Where are the other guests?"

"They will arrive shortly. I, well..." The redhead took Vincent's hand, kissing his palm with a wink, "Wanted you to myself for a bit."

Vincent blushed and looked away. Rody sat him down on the couch before leaving to grab some plates.

When the Chef returned, he was balancing three plates; a plate of escargots, a cheese plater, and deviled eggs. Vincent smiled a bit and happily took a couple of eggs and a bit of cheese, humming contently as he ate. Rody smiled brightly he watched other.

"Your food is phenomenal. I wish I could eat it forever." Vince said.

"That makes me so happy!"

Before they could continue, the doorbell rang. Rody groaned before he stood up, going to the door. He allowed the people in, Vincent watching as the people came in. He stood up, the people coming in and beginning to mingle. The raven, feeling nervous and out of place, moved to stand in the corner as Rody left to get some wine and champagne for everyone. The raven stood to the corner, looking over the rewards Rody had gotten.

"Is that-? Hey Vincent!"

The raven turned, confused as a brunette approached him.

"I thought so, it is you! It's me, Antonie from Mr. Vacher's office!"

Vincent went stiff, his blood turning ice cold, "I... I see."

"I stopped seeing you and Gabriel, whatever happened to you? You were, like, the best writer there!"

Vincent clenched his fists, "It's, uh, private."

"You know, I heard Manon Vacher? Mr. Vacher's daughter? She was spreading some nasty rumors about you." The brunette hummed, "Is that why you left? I'm sure if you-"

"I have to use the restroom." Vincent hissed out, quickly pushing past him.

"Ah, wait, Vincent-"

The raven pushed passed the man, going into the kitchen. He went into the kitchen and then into the connecting hallway, walking down it. He pushed the door open and walked inside, closing it behind him. He leaned his back against it, sighing and shaking a bit. Vincent took a deep breath and looked up before gasping.

"O-Oh, this is not- wait..." Vincent blinked, staring at the scene in front of him, "...This is Rody's room... I wonder if I can find anything of interest." He hummed.

The raven looked around the room. At the back corner, there was a desk with some paperwork. It looked like it was for the restaurant, but the handwriting was barely eligible. He hummed before he looked at the typewriter, seeing Rody must've been typing out recipes. The shelf beside the desk was filled with books and the Chef's diploma was resting on the top. He walked towards the bedside table, opening the drawer.

A key? Oh, the freezer key! He thought, putting it in his pocket. He closed the drawer and turned towards the window.

"Looking for anything specific~?"

The raven turned around quickly, jumping, "A-Ah, Rody, you scared me!"

"You didn't answer my question."

"I-I, well, I was looking for the bathroom." Vincent shrugged, looking away, awkwardly."

"Mhmmm?" Rody teased as he stepped forward, the raven stepping back, "And, if I may, when you realized this wasn't the bathroom, you decided not to leave?"

"Well..." The raven trailed off as his back leaned against the window, "Would you believe me if I said I have short term memory loss?"

"Not a chance." The Chef laughed, putting one hand beside the raven's head, effectively trapping him.

"What about if I said I simply wanted to get to know you better?" The raven blushed as he looked up at the other, "On a more... personal level?"

"How personal are we getting?" Rody teased, leaning forward to kiss at the raven's neck, hands going to his hips.

Vincent wrapped his arms around Rody's shoulders, leaning into him as he grinded against his legs, "Depends on how personal you want it."

"Oh, I want it more than you know~" Rody began to suck marks into Vincent's neck, his leg going between Vincent's.

The raven moaned, leaning into him and grinding against his legs. Rody kept kissing at his neck and ear, the raven throwing his head back, eyes half lidded and-

He pushed the redhead back.

"What? Is something wrong? Did I-"

"Someone's out there." Vincent said, looking out the window, shaking a bit.

Rody looked and narrowed his eyes. He sighed and looked at the raven, who seemed a bit nervous, uncomfortable. He smiled, "Why don't you go home?"

"Well, I- w-wait, what about the party?" Vincent turned to face the redhead.

"It's over, it was more for marketing and such. You just made it more bearable." Rody gently poked his nose before offering his hand, "Come on, I'll walk you out."

The two left to the front door of the restaurant, Vincent turning around to face Rody. He went to say something, but the redhead caught his chin and pulled him in for a sweet kiss, the raven kissing back immediately, fireworks going off in his head. When they pulled away, the redhead smiled at him.

"Sorry, I couldn't help myself." Rody winked.

"I see." Vincent teased, "Well, I guess I'll have to get back at you tomorrow then."

"I guess so. Have a good night, Vince."

"Goodnight, Rody."

***

Vincent came into work the next day, face a little pink, on cloud nine, butterflies in his stomach and chest. He set up the tables and cleaned what he needed to before going to the kitchen. He didn't see Rody anywhere, which was odd. He went to the office door and knocked, only to get no response. The door was locked but, seemingly, no one was inside. I need to return the freezer key. Vincent thought. He looked around and wondered how the chef's were going to cook if the freezer was locked. No one was in yet, so, he decided to unlock the freezer.

Curiosity got the better of him. He began looking around, seeing blood. It wasn't too abnormal, it was probably from the animal meat. As he glanced around, he saw something sparkle. 

Vincent turned his head to the meet grinder. He blinked, walking towards it and picking up a golden locket. He began to shake as he opened it, eyes widening as he saw the picture inside.

Him.

Him and him.

Him and Gabriel.

"What...?"

THUNK!

***

Vincent's eyes fluttered opened for a second, confused. He was bound in ropes, laying on the freezer floor. He blinked and looked around, not bothering to struggle. His lip quivered as he curled into a ball. The door opened and he looked towards it. He managed to sit up, glaring at the Chef.

"Get away from me, don't come any closer-"

"Shhhhh, shhhh, stop, stooooop~" Rody cooed as he stepped forward, heels echoing with the buzz of the freezer. He carefully, delicately, cleaned off a knife, "Just calm down, Vince, you don't need to do that!"

"Was it all a lie?"

The Chef widened his eyes, staring down at the raven.

"The flirting we did? I-I actually thought you liked m-me? W-Was it just me?" Tears began to fall down the raven's face, despite how hard he tried to hold them back, "Y-You played me! I-If you were just going to kill me for G-Gabriel, why didn't you just do it?!"

"What are you talking about, Vince?!" Rody yelled, swinging his knife down, "First off, that idiot is not my type! Second off, I killed him to get to you!" The redhead knelt down, the sharp tip of his knife teasing at Vincent's throat, "Had to kill Manon too, she was so obsessed with you, it pissed me off!"

"So... the locket...?"

"I forgot to throw it away after I killed him, duh. I wanted you not him, and he was in the way."

"So... the blood? The meat?"

"I made on dish from him and planning to make a dish from Manon-"

"May I try it?"

Rody widened his eyes, staring down at Vincent. The raven stared up at him, his onyx eyes wide in wonder and awe.

"Is it done, Rody? May I try it?"

Rody stared at him, lowering his knife, "You... want to taste it?"

"Of course!" The raven nodded, leaning into the other's neck, nuzzling into him, "It's your food! You're gonna cook them so well! I-Is it going to be smoked? Grilled? Boiled? What sides are you going to serve with them? Are you going to serve all of them? Please, Rody, you have to tell me, now!"

The redhead cupped Vincent's cheeks pulling him back so they could stare into each other's eyes, Rody smirking devilishly, "Are you that desperate to ear them?"

"It's not the fact that it's made from Gabriel or Manon, it's the fact it's from you!" Vincent leaned more into the chef's hand, smile manic, "It's your food! I don't care what you cook for me! I'd eat whatever you give me, even if it's made from pigs' brains!"

"I would never serve you that-"

"The point is-" Vincent interrupted, leaning forward, brushing their noses against one another, "-I will eat anything you make me. I want it. So bad. Your cooking makes me feel so warm. It makes me feel so good. I want it so bad, I need it. I need your cooking more than I need to breathe, please-"

Rody shut the other up with a kiss. Vincent moaned into it, kissing back as the Chef cut the ropes around him. The raven wrapped his arms around Rody's neck, moving to sit in his lap as he deepened the kiss. Rody held Vincent's hips as they pulled away, the raven smiling brightly down at the chef.

"How are you going to cook them?" Vincent asked, "Tell me please?"

Rody giggled, poking his nose, "It's a surprise~!"

***

Vincent sat on the bed, legs crossed as he hummed a tune to himself. He waited patiently (okay, not patiently, but he still waited!), barely able to control his excitement. The doorknob twisted and he smiled as the Chef walked in, a plate in his hand.

"Is it done?"

"I wouldn't have brought it up if it wasn't~" Rody teased, chuckling at the raven's excitement. He offered the plate, "Sorry for the wait, my dear! Dinner is served, Coal-Fired Heart!"

Vincent accepted the plate with a smile. He took his knife and fork and cut into the meat. Once he had a small piece, he put it on his tongue, chewing slowly, savoring the food.

"Well?" Rody cupped his cheek, rubbing his thumb across it.

Vincent smiled brightly, genuinely, lovingly, "Amazing as always, Rody."

Rody smiled, "I will cook for you for the rest of our days." He kissed Vincent's forehead.

"I'm holding you to that." Vincent hummed, taking another bite.

[daisynik7]

hruuuu! <3 for your y2k karaoke party,

"SOS" by Rhianna with getou suguru - smut+fluff?

ughh i love him so much tyyy

SOS

Pairing: vampire!Geto x f!reader

Rating: Explicit - MINORS DO NOT INTERACT

Word Count: ~1.5k

cw: vampire au, fluff, smut – PIV sex (missionary), cunnilingus, fingering, cum-eating, dirty talk

Author’s Notes: Thank you for sending in this request @idkks4m! LOVE this song, a classic hit for the y2k karaoke party! Wanted to try my hand at something a little bit different from my usual; I’ve seen the idea of vampire!Geto floating around here before, and I think it’s brilliant! Here’s my take on it. Hope you enjoy! MDNI banner created by @/cafekitsune. Likes, reblogs, and/or comments are always appreciated, thank you for reading!

It wasn’t supposed to go this far. 

That’s what you think as his fangs trail your neck, enough pressure to feel it scratch the surface, not enough to pierce the skin. His fingers glide down your arms, cold and lifeless, a stark contrast to the heat radiating from your burning body. How have you never noticed the differences before? The pale complexion, the bleakness in his eyes, the tight smirk on his lips, posing as human. How he only visits the café you work at right before closing, ordering his typical coffee, black.

Just your presence and I second guess my sanity.

You did notice the oddities but ignored them. Because no matter how uneasy he makes you, how many red flags you see, your carnal desires overtake everything else. After all, you were the one to invite him to your own home after your shift ended. It didn’t even cross your mind that this was an unsafe, reckless decision. All you could think of was the thrill of being alone with this mysterious, sexy stranger.

I should have never let him in. 

You had a choice. He asked you the question, standing outside your front door, baring his pointed canines at you, a warning sign. “May I come in?” And all you had to do was say no. You’re not sure what possessed you in that moment. Maybe it was curiosity. Maybe it was lust. Whatever it was, it made you say yes. And now, you’re absolutely terrified, undoubtedly nervous. Completely aroused.

Please someone help me. It’s not healthy for me to feel this.

His hands slide around your waist, pulling you in closer, lips joined together into a deep, passionate kiss. His tongue swirls around yours, and you can’t help yourself. You lick into his mouth, feeling for the tips of those fangs. The vibration from his voice as he chuckles sends a shiver down your spine. “You’re a curious one,” he says, eyes studying your face. “Aren’t you scared?”

You swallow hard, throat dense with saliva, shaking your head meekly, unable to get a word out. 

He laughs again, tipping your chin up with his finger to inspect you more thoroughly. “I’m not going to hurt you. Do you believe me?”

More confidently this time, you nod, managing a stuttering, “Yes.”

He swipes his tongue across his teeth, smiling. “Good girl.”

You lead him further inside, straight into your bedroom, common sense nonexistent at this point. There’s no reason for you to trust him; you know nothing about him. And yet, here you are, laid out and legs spread like a silver platter for him to feast on. Totally willing to submit to whatever he chooses to do with you. And for the first time since you met him a few weeks ago, there’s a flash of emotion in his eyes. 

It’s hunger. 

“Strip for me,” he demands, towering over you at the end of the bed, scanning your figure up and down. You obey, sliding out of your pants, hoisting off your shirt, leaving only your underwear on.

“Everything,” he growls, following suit. You marvel at his chiseled abs, salivating as he slides his sweatpants and boxers off, revealing his stiff cock sprung against his abdomen. Soon, you’re both completely naked, inspecting each other’s bare bodies, craving for a touch.

He smiles, more genuine than you’ve ever seen before. “You’re beautiful.” 

You gulp down the spit collecting on your tongue to respond, “So are you,” scooting up the bed to lean against the pillows. 

Crawling on top, he brushes your cheek with his thumb, whispering, “You’re going to be my little plaything tonight.”

You pull him down, kissing him sloppily, unable to contain your arousal any longer. He moans into your mouth, hands squeezing at your breasts, relishing the plump flesh between his cold fingers. He pinches your nipples, flicking over them with the pads of his thumbs, enjoying the way you whine at his touch. You reach for his cock, stroking it in your fist feverishly, impressed by the size. There are a million different questions running through your mind, but you save them for later, wanting nothing else except to be consumed by him. 

Not literally, of course. Though the possibility of that isn’t completely off the table just yet. And maybe that’s what makes this so exciting.

“Fuck me.” It slips from your lips, desperate and needy. Pussy aching to be filled with whatever he’s willing to offer you. 

“Not yet,” he breathes out, kissing you on the forehead. “I need to taste you first.” Suddenly, the fear returns, about ready to shove him off and run for your life. He laughs, scattering gentle kisses down your body, positioning his head between your thighs. “Not like that. Like this.” He flicks his tongue across your clit, slurping and sucking at your swelling bud until you’re bucking your hips against him, greedy for more. 

“Just as I thought,” he hums, spreading his tongue along your folds, collecting your slick. “You taste incredible.” He slips his middle finger inside you, curving at the tip to stimulate your G-spot. “Come for me. Give me your orgasm. Want to drink it up.”

You grip his hair between your fingers, climaxing on his face. He doesn’t let up, pressing himself deeper into your sopping cunt, slobbering all over you. When he pulls out, he sticks his cum coated finger into his mouth, sucking off your cum. Biting his lip, he wraps a fist around his shaft, tapping the tip on your sensitive clit. “You’re being such an obedient slut right now. Are you ready to take this cock?”

You’re in a daze, eyes half-lidded from your intense orgasm, still aching for him inside you. All you can do is nod dumbly, watching him guide his entire length inside you easily until he bottoms out.

“Fuck,” he grunts, nestling himself comfortably inside you. “You’re eating this dick up, aren’t you sweetheart?”

“Please,” you whine. “Give it to me.”

He chuckles, amused by your adorable reaction. “Okay, beautiful. Since you asked so nicely.” He grips your waist, holding you steady as he fucks you, hips thrusting wildly into your cunt. It’s even better than you imagined, his thick cock filling you up like nothing ever has before. He’s relentless, pace only increasing as your quiet moans become louder, your legs wrapping around him tighter. 

“This is what you want, huh? To be fucked like this.” His grip on you becomes firmer, nails digging into your flesh, imprinting on your skin. “You don’t even know me, and still, you let me in. What a stupid girl you are.”

You should be scared with the way he speaks to you, voice low and frigid, as if he can’t believe a human would be so foolish to let someone like him into their home, into their body. This is absolutely crazy, you admit it. But how can something that’s bad for you feel so fucking good?

Palms pressed to his cheeks, you pull his face close to yours, foreheads touching. “You said you wouldn’t hurt me,” you whisper to him. “I trust you.”

His eyes flash, seeming human for a split second. “Silly girl,” he mutters, kissing you on the lips. You stay like this until he unravels, spurting his seed inside you. Your legs are still coiled around him, holding him close to you as he comes down from his high.

“Wow,” he huffs, collapsing beside you. He’s pristine, like a marble sculpture, no trace of sweat or hint of blush on any inch of his body. You reach for him, tracing the outline of his lips, then his sharp jawline, noticing how cool he is against your fingertips.  

He smiles, letting you study him. “I’m sure you have a lot of questions for me.”

You do, and you’re tempted to ask all of them. However, in this moment, you’re not sure if you’re ready to know just yet. Instead, you ask the most vital one. A question that you should have known the answer to right from the start, human or not. “What’s your name?”

He laughs, nuzzling his nose to yours. “Geto. Suguru Geto.”

~~~

In the morning, he’s gone. You don’t expect him to stay, assuming what they say about vampires and daytime is true. Still, you’re saddened that he doesn’t. He never mentioned if he’d come in contact with you again. You assume he won’t, probably destined to move to another town where he can seduce a different woman, living in peace without his secret revealed.

So, it’s to your complete surprise when Geto does return later that night, smiling at you on your front doorstep, saying your name. “May I come in?”

[lightns881]

Summary:

Dream is the best monster hunter in the league. George is an undercover witch on the run. Their lives collide after Dream gets cursed with turning into a tiny blob creature and the only way to turn him back is a kiss from George. But being partners with a bratty know-it-all witch is Dream’s worst nightmare. And after being outed a witch, George has no choice but to stick with him and the league. Will these two ever learn to get along?

OR

The comic-book style monster x monster hunter enemies to lovers au you didn’t know you needed.

PART I

SPELLBIND CITY, 2124.

The phantom’s ragged wings spread from hood to trunk of a 2125 Luxus Mage, which now lies in scraps. It flaps its wings and crashes from pillar to pillar inside the parking garage of a high-rise condo. A resident calls it in on a Monday morning, early enough that the streets are still lifeless and pitch-black. Thanks to their new interception technology, the League is on the scene to capture it before the Bureau even has a chance to send a monster control unit.

Dream and George are assigned the task because Bad thinks it’s simple enough that even they can’t mess it up. Or as he likes to say: “There’s no way you’ll crumble this muffin.”

It’s a joke, really. Up until George joined him, Dream had a hunter success rate of ninety-five percent. Now, it’s like he can’t even manage to catch a red-eyed bunny loose in a pet shop (to be fair, killer rabbits are so nifty there’s no way it doesn’t take anyone at least a full day of preparation).

Everything was much easier when the League’s sole purpose was to hunt and execute—none of this capturing alive nonsense that the losers in the Bureau swear by.

But whatever. If Bad wants him to bring this phantom back alive and tied up on a gold platter then that is exactly what he aims to do. He’s not going to let George get in the way this time. Much less this pesky curse that’s been plaguing his life for nearly a month now.

“Okay. Here’s the plan. I’ll advance from the left while you distract it. Then I can launch the net and you’ll cut it so we can haul it onto the van,” Dream says while he watches the monster peel the top of another car with its bony fingers. It buries his head inside, probably looking to devour whatever half-eaten lunch some idiot’s kid forgot.

“Got it?”

A moment passes before Dream turns and sees George leaning back on his seat with his arms crossed and the van’s manual covering his face. He’s also snoring.

“What the hell did I do to deserve this,” Dream mutters before he slaps George hard enough that he jumps awake. Then he wordlessly points at the monster and leaves the van with his bow and axe on his side.

George is still stretching his arms and yawning while Dream stalks behind the cars with his bow fixed on the phantom.

As Dream draws closer, he’s so focused on the phantom that he doesn’t notice when he steps on a pile of broken glass. The monster’s glowing green eyes and cutting horns are up and facing Dream in the time it takes him to catch a breath.

But just as the phantom pounces at him, Dream shoots the hook that pierces its blue scales and makes its shriek echo across the garage. Although the monster is on him now, it’s stunned for long enough that Dream scurries from under him and tightens the net around it, rendering it motionless.

“Are you just going to stand there or help me?” Dream grunts and gestures to the rope still attached to his bow that he’s unable to cut himself.

George has just finished his stretches and now sits against the van fiddling with his lapis ring. He watches Dream wrestle the phantom like he’s ready to change the channel.

“You seem to be holding up just fine,” George says with an almost smile, “and it’s not like there’s a much easier way of doing this that I could help you with.”

Magic. He’s talking about magic. The bane of his existence. The sole reason his life went from great to fucked from one day to the next.

Dream can’t believe fate’s cursed him to end up stuck with someone like him—bratty, careless, snobby. Worst of all: a witch. He’s everything Dream hates and more. It’s like fate wanted to point a finger at him and cackle. Or maybe that was just Sapnap. No, it was definitely both.

“Just cut the fucking rope.”

“Aye-aye,” George says with a salute and takes his time walking toward him.

He pulls a blade from his belt—the one Dream gave him when Bad welcomed him into the League. But someone like George was never meant to join their cause, not only because he’s a monster but also considering he was working for the Bureau just a few weeks earlier. However, as much as Dream wanted to argue with Bad on the decision, he was right. Given the circumstances of his curse, they had no option.

George kneels down and ever-so-gently begins to slice the rope. Dream glares the whole time, and it’s not until the rope is on the verge of ripping that he notices the grave mistake.

“No no no not that-” Dream says just as the rope rips. The phantom spreads its wings and breaks loose from its restraints, launching them back in different directions.

As the monster scrambles toward the balcony, Dream lunges and yanks its tail. The bone’s sharp enough that it cuts into his palm, but Dream isn’t about to let this fucker escape.

The phantom flings him around as it surges toward the end of the garage and out the balcony. Dream manages to shout George’s name, though it's only from the adrenaline. He’s left clutching knives six floors above the concrete sidewalk and rising.

As the phantom flies further and further from the garage, certainly about to get past the 100-meter limit of his curse, the only words running through his mind are shit, shit, shit. He holds his breath and thinks, here we go.

The transformation happens as quickly as the rest. His ears pop. A cloud of smoke blocks his vision. Suddenly, he can’t feel his arms and legs. He’s shapeless and holds onto the phantom’s tail with only his mouth, which now takes up twice his face.

He’s turned into a helpless blob.

And as if the situation can’t get any worse, with his beady black eyes, he sees the beams of sunlight peaking from behind the skyscrapers as dawn greets the sky.

Well, fuck.

The phantom bursts into blazes. Its body disintegrates into ashes. Now Dream’s falling three hundred meters to his death. He’s a lot more elastic and resilient in this form like a mix between a bouncy ball and a ball of clay, but he hasn’t exactly tested falling from such heights. He assumes he’ll end up splattered on the concrete like a piece of chewed-up gum.

Before he can test his theory, fabric, soft like silk, wraps around his five-inch body. All of a sudden he’s weightless—soaring through the sky on a blue cape.

The sensation of falling doesn’t leave him even after the cape drops him on George’s palms. Then the cape wraps around George’s back and morphs back into his lapis ring. Dream frankly doesn’t understand witch magic, and he surely doesn’t want to be anywhere near it. But he can’t say that it hasn’t gotten him out of a pickle once or twice. Usually thanks to George which he hates to acknowledge.

As he gazes upon the giant asshole cupping him in his palms and smiling, Dream glares (or at least tries to muster as much of a hateful look as he can in this white marshmallow form). Out of all of the curses that witch could’ve hexed him with, this one is the worst he could’ve never thought of.

“Looks like someone’s having a tough morning.”

Dream curses him out, but all that comes out is an incomprehensible pattern of squeaks. George laughs, and to get the stupid grin off his face (as well as get the situation done and over with), Dream jumps and lands a kiss on his lips.

Another cloud of smoke explodes before he can feel his limbs again, and he pats himself down to ensure he’s still intact. Meanwhile, George gags, spits, and wipes his mouth all dramatically like he’s just kissed a slimy toad. Dream can’t say he enjoys the method any more than George does, but he does laugh his ass off at the grossed-out look on his face every time.

It’s when he hears the distant echo of the Bureau’s monster control alarms that Dream wipes his mouth and says, “Come on.” He clips his bow to his back (he’s not sure how it is that he morphs with all of his clothes and items but then again he’s not sure how the physics of magic works). Then he says, “Let’s go tell Bad how bad you fucked everything up this time.”

LEAGUE OF MONSTER HUNTERS HQ. 10:37 A.M.

George sits with his legs wide and spins from side to side like a hyperactive fifth-grader during lunch detention. It’s one of the things Dream hates most about him—how kid-like he acts. Like he isn’t a full three years older than Dream with a whole engineering degree.

Then there’s the fact Bad chooses to treat him like a kid too. Never any repercussions. Never any real punishment (unless it involves punishing both Dream and George). Never any long-term consequences. George might as well be the teacher’s pet. He bats his pretty little eyelashes and sweet-chocolate eyes and suddenly everyone’s defending him.

Dream has only known him for a little over three weeks now, and he has already declared him his sworn enemy.

“I’ll be honest. I’m disappointed in you guys,” Bad says while watching them from across the table. He has that look his parents used to give Dream any time he snuck stray kittens inside his backpack when he got home from school. “I’ve given you easier and easier jobs and you still haven’t gotten us any good results. What do you have to say for yourselves?”

“It’s not my fault he can’t listen to instructions,” Dream says.

George scoffs. “Yeah. Because we’re always supposed to follow your call? Even though your plan is horseshit and there are better ways to trap a phantom.”

“What? Like witchcraft?”

Bad shushes Dream. “Lower your voice,” he says and peeks through the blinds to make sure nobody’s heard. As if they’re not in a sound-proof conference room and there aren’t barely any people at HQ so early on a workday. It’s not like they get paid to do this.

“Look, George. We made an agreement that we would let you stay here only if you refrained from using any magic for your own safety. We can’t exactly have our monster hunters finding out we have a monster—” George snarls and Bad clears his throat. “— sorry, witch, living under our roof.”

“We’re in an underground bunker,” George says.

Dream laughs. That’s another thing he hates about George: that sardonic know-it-all attitude.

“Point is—we can’t have this same argument brought up again and again,” Bad says.

“I’m not even asking to use glyphs. All I’m saying is that some of my inventions would be a lot more efficient and fool-proof,” (George shoots Dream a look while he says that), “and they’re technology. Not magic.”

“Being enchanted still involves magic. How are you meant to explain to everyone how they work?” Dream replies.

George pouts, though he has no answer for Dream. He does that a lot—turns toward that cute dumb face when things aren’t going his way.

Bad sighs. “Okay, look. Just think about it this way. You guys have no choice but to be a pair so you might as well make things easier for yourselves and try to get along.”

“Yeah. Like that’s gonna happen,” Dream says at the same time that George says, “Impossible.” 

Bad looks defeated. "Okay. Just go take five."

Dream doesn’t waste a second in leaving that suffocating room. He doesn’t even acknowledge Sapnap who’s been waiting in the hallway outside since Bad called them in there. 

"Don't wander too far or you’ll turn into a pumpkin," George teases. 

Dream doesn’t bother looking back and just sticks out his middle finger.

He walks past the brutes testing their electro-wave rifles in the shooting range. Past the kitchen where a robo-attendant is cooking a meal for someone snoring on the couch. Past the combat rooms where a class of newbies is learning the basics of hunting the undead.

"Dude, why are you in such a mood?" Sapnap calls as Dream reaches a simulation room and starts mounting his gear.

"Sleep in the hard-ass beds in this place every night and see how you feel."

He clips his headset on and readies the controllers. The Augment logo turns on just as Sapnap says,  "This is clearly not about living at HQ.”

"You try being around that asshole 24/7."

He starts with a warm-up session: two zombies and a spider. The zombies come at him from the sides and the spider is supposed to be a surprise attack from any direction, but Dream’s played this scenario enough that every scenerio is second nature to him.

"Come on, Dream. You can't expect him to be all rainbows and roses after losing his job, his house, his reputation, and turning into a fugitive with the Bureau on his ass. You're not the only one who got his life turned upside down by this. I hate to say it, but it wasn't even his fault."

"So you're saying it was mine?" he says then decapitates the first zombie with a clean swoop of his fake axe and puts the other in a chokehold. This isn’t exactly the optimal strategy for capturing, but the program was never meant to train them on that. Hunters were never meant to capture.

"Of course not, dude, I'm on your side. It was that fucking witch.”

Witches. Oh, how he enjoys setting those bastards on fire in these simulations. He slices the zombie’s neck open and blood pools at his feet. The spider takes him from behind one second later. 

“But also, you went against Bad's orders and walked into that fight without support. What did you think was going to happen?" Sapnap says, and it makes him waver. He misses his mark to pin the spider—that nimble little fucker. He throws it across the room instead and notices too late that he almost smacks Sapnap in the face because he can’t see him in the simulation. It’s his fault for standing around while he’s training.

"I didn't think I'd be turned into a marshmallow monster if that's what you're asking," he says and aims a slash at the spider. It misses. Since when are they this smart?

"Duh. But you can't rewind now, can you? So what are you going to do about it?"

As he dodges the spider’s attack, something takes hold of his leg and he buckles. He realizes then that he didn’t cut the second zombie’s head all the way through. His back was to him, so he didn’t see him regenerating and now he’s up against both a spider and a zombie with his head barely hanging from its neck.

"You two just gotta learn to trust each other."

"Hear yourself, Sap,” he says after decapitating the zombie, but then gets pinned by the spider and it bites him. The headset is designed to simulate the feeling of a fight with a ninety-nine percent accuracy, and he certainly feels it. His arms burn so badly that he loses strength on his arms and can’t hold the spider off.

“You're asking me to trust a witch.” He doesn’t mean to scream at Sapnap, but he’s in a tough position. The spider wraps its front legs around him and bites his neck. His body stings for a second before all feeling fades away and the screen reads ‘You died.’

He rips off the headset with a curse and slams it down a little too hard. He swipes a hand through his hair and asks, “Did they make this thing harder?”

Sapnap’s stare is dry. He says, “Are you forgetting that the witch in question saved you from being turned into marshmallow putty by another witch and then decided to stick around just so you wouldn't remain a white blob forever. At the cost of what? Becoming his maid?" 

"I'm not a fucking maid, Sap.” He puts down the controllers and decides he can’t train while Sapnap’s berating him. “It's called a familiar."

"So you're admitting he helped."

"He didn't not help. But still. Why does he have to act like such an asshole?" 

"I don't know. Maybe because you're both acting like assholes to each other. Bad's right. You two just need to learn to coexist. You don't have to like each other. But until we figure out a way to get rid of the curse, you're stuck together so deal with it.” Sapnap crosses his arms and looks at him the way he always does when he knows he’s won a conversation, but Dream doesn’t see it that way. “At least you know he's not trying to murder you else he'd already done it."

"I swear he's just playing the long con,” Dream grumbles.

“Just talk to him,” Sapnap says while opening the door.

“And say what?”

“I don’t know. Make amends. Kiss him for all I care. Anything to get Bad off my ass about talking sense into you. You’re not my goddamn kid, and you’re not even my partner anymore.” He mutters the last part and leaves.

Two hours later, Dream has failed two easy simulations and passed one. He decides he’ll add evening practices to his training schedule since he lives here now. While walking out of the showers, two of his colleagues stop talking when he walks by. It’s been happening more often. People think he’s fallen off, but he’s still the best hunter in the league by far. Nobody’s reached the number of kills he has. He's determined to prove he's still the best. 

George is in the lobby doing whatever he’s always doing on his laptop. It’s either that or cooped up in their room tinkling with his toys. He thinks Dream doesn’t notice him hiding them in the box in his closet every time he walks in.

"What do you want? Another kiss?" George says without taking his eyes off his screen. 

The guy watching TV nearby does a double take, and Dream chooses to let the comment slide so as to not satisfy George's attention-seeking habits, though he’ll be hearing rumors about it tomorrow.

"I was going to…" He has a hard time getting his words out so he clears his throat. "... say sorry for what happened earlier."

George looks up at that. “And what did happen earlier?”

Dream chews on the inside of his lip. Out of his peripheral, he notices the guy eavesdropping has not-so-subtly lowered the volume. It takes one glare for him to turn off the TV, leave the room, and let the door close behind him.

Dream shrugs. “You know.”

“Then it’s not an apology. You don’t even think you’ve done anything wrong.”

He almost replies “I haven’t” but he knows that’ll instigate another fight and they’ll end up in a worse place.

“I'll let you make more calls,” he says instead. 

“You’ll let me use my ideas?”

“You know we can’t do that, George. Bad said we can’t.”

“Oh yeah, and you’re always listening to him, huh?”

It was a mistake to tell him how he got cursed in the first place. Dream’s always been good at following directions (mostly, anyway), but the one time he doesn’t he suffers the worst consequences.

“You don't trust me,” George says.

“What?”

“That's what this is about. You don't trust me. Because of what I am.” 

Dream huffs. “Well, do you trust me?”

George stays silent for a second then says the most unexpected thing. "Yeah, actually." 

Dream stares, unsure of how to respond. He’s been assuming George feels the same mistrust and disdain for him because of how he acts, but this puts into question everything he thinks he knows. Before he can reply, Bad bursts in and says, “Zombie attack at Paradise Plaza. You two are up.”

“But we don’t handle civilian encounters,” Dream says.

“Well, you’re handling this one. The witch who summoned them is the same one who cursed you.”

To Be Continued...

[makerofmadness]

Tearrorizer Route AU- VS. JEVIL

(WARNING: THE FOLLOWING IS AN AU OF DELTARUNE, SPECIFICALLY A WEIRD/SNOWGRAVE ROUTE AU. PROCEED WITH CAUTION)

(ALSO: DESCRIPTION OF DEATH IS BASED ON WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU HACK THE GAME TO USE SNOWGRAVE ON A NORMAL ENEMY. JUST STATING THAT SO PEOPLE KNOW I DIDN’T MAKE IT UP [BASICALLY THEY TURN RED AND APPEAR TO TURN INTO MIST OR SOMETHING)

(FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS AU [AND SPOILERS FOR THIS PART...)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Whatever Queen’s Mansion had looked like previously, Jevil had left it unrecognizable. Many things were broken, and yet the traps still worked just fine, even the attacking paintings.

Nothing was where it belonged, platter lids stacked up in place of the tables, some kind of giant rubber duck just... sitting there. In the bathroom.

It was pure chaos.

Susie had let her eyes off the Devilsknife in Cyber City when the group split up. For some reason, the joker took the opportunity to flee. Now the group had to split up again.

Kris traversed the halls with their reluctant companion quietly following behind, searching for the loose jester before he could do anything too bad...

As if what they were doing wasn’t bad enough, but alas, it was not Kris’s choice to make.

They had never wanted to make that old cat come along with them, to make them join their party when they were alone in the city... 

By now the old fluff had stopped trying to object.

“BOO HOO, BOO HOO, UEE HEE HEE. SO BORED, BORED, I BE... THIS PLACE NEEDS A LITTLE MORE CHAOS!”

They finally turned the corner to find him, a few feet away, floating a few inches off the ground, giving the current hallway a “makeover” of sorts...

He noticed the footsteps from behind, turning around before gasping with evident excitement.

“BUT LO, THE LIGHTNER OF BLUE... AND THE OLD SHOPKEEPER, TOO? WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL! I HAVE BEEN WAITING, WAITING... UEE HEE HEE!! NOW, FINALLY, WE--”

Jevil was cut off by a familiar... yet uncharacteristically cold voice:

“It seems like another enemy, Hero. Shall I take care of this one, too...? How so? Hearts, diamonds... the choice is yours.”

“...EH?”

Their voice was quite monotone.

That wasn’t how Seam was supposed to sound. 

In all the years they had worked together, Jevil had never heard them speak like that. Even at their most melancholy, they didn’t sound lifeless...

Jevil felt a tinge of an unfamiliar feeling... at the very least, one he hadn’t felt in a long, long time.

“...MAGICIAN? IS SOMETHING AMISS...?”

–

!

–

This seemed to make Seam snap out of whatever daze they had been in. They stared in shock once the realization of who was ahead of them hit.

“J... Jevil!? Wh-When did you get here...?”

“OH, DIDN’T YOU SEE? I WAS WITH THE LIGHTNER GIRL!”

Susie had been carrying around the Devilsknife ever since after the heroes had defeated Jevil back in his cell... or, as he liked to call it, his “freedom.”

“TAKE ME AND DO YOUR STRONGEST---!” he had said then...

“I SAW, SAW YOU WITH THE BLUE LIGHTNER. OH, HOW EXCITED I WAS TO PLAY WITH YOU AGAIN...! SO, I WAS TRYING TO READY-UP THIS PLACE INTO A REAL FUN-FUN HOUSE! THEN WE ALL WOULD HAVE A PLACE TO PLAY, PLAY TOGETHER! THE LIGHTNERS, YOU, ME... EVEN THE QUEEN!”

“J-Jevil, I... I don’t think...”

“MY, MY, OLD SHOPKEEPER, DON’T TELL ME YOU DON’T WANT TO PLAY... BOO HOO HOO, UEE HEE HEE!”

“...”

Seam looked down to avoid eye contact. The former court mage... would’ve much preferred it if their old companion had never seen them like this...

“...OH? WHAT’S THE MATTER, CAT GOT YOUR TONGUE? UEE HEE HEE!!”

Jevil laughed at his own pun, expecting the joke to make them at least crack a smile...

“...”

Nothing. If anything, it made them feel worse somehow.

Then, Kris stepped forward.

“Wh... what? N-No... there’s no way... you...”

“OOH! THE LIGHTNER WANTS TO PLAY, PLAY??”

Jevil perked up, as if he had just forgotten all about Seam’s strange behavior.

However...

Kris turned towards Seam, looking directly at them.

Seam could feel the stare cutting through them.

They were quite visibly shocked.

“Y... you really...”

What if things went too far this time? That was the question sitting in their mind, and had been ever since this mess started in Cyber City. Regardless of all the harm the two had caused, all the damage done... they hadn’t killed anyone.

There’s no way Kris would do that now, they thought...

“...Hero... but why...?”

––––––––––––––––––

*❤️Why not?

––––––––––––––––––

“...I-”

“NOW, DON’T KEEP ME WAITING, MAGICIAN! UEE HEE HEE! LET’S DANCE, DANCE ONCE MORE!”

The battle started against their will.

After about a minute of deliberating, Kris chose to defend. Seam was unfazed at first, as TP was in fact necessary to cast spells, but then, even after having enough to cast a spell or two...

They again chose to defend.

And defend.

And defend.

Occasionally stopping for healing items when HP was low.

Seam had no clue what Kris was planning.

At first, Jevil just spouted his usual insane dialogue before each attack, having fun with his “game.”

However, he eventually started to notice that something wasn’t quite right...

“...EH? WHY DON’T YOU SEEM EXCITED, MAGICIAN...? IT’S JUST LIKE OLD TIMES!”

“...”

Another turn would pass,

“OH, ISN’T IT FUN...? ISN’T IT...? ... ARE YOU NOT HAVING FUN...?”

“...”

And another,

“...IS SOMETHING WRONG? (...WHY AREN’T THEY TALKING TO ME?)”

“...”

Seam wouldn’t speak. Jevil felt a pang of that feeling from before, this time much stronger.

Something just felt wrong about this.

He had known Seam as his laid-back companion, the court mage of Card Castle. They had always been his lovable goofball friend.

...what had happened to them?

...

Eventually, they reached 100% TP, and Kris seemed to be putting more thought into the next command...

––––––––––––––––––––––––

*❤️TEARRORIZER

––––––––––––––––––––––––

“...? T... Tearrorizer?”

––––––––––––––––––––––––

*❤️TEARRORIZER

––––––––––––––––––––––––

“I... I’ve never heard of that spell before...”

––––––––––––––––––––––––

*❤️TEARRORIZER

––––––––––––––––––––––––

“N... no.”

––––––––––––––––––––––––

*❤️TEARRORIZER

––––––––––––––––––––––––

“...I said no.”

––––––––––––––––––––––––

*❤️TEARRORIZER

––––––––––––––––––––––––

“What if... what if it... what if it’s...”

––––––––––––––––––––––––

*❤️TEARRORIZER

––––––––––––––––––––––––

“...”

––––––––––––––––––––––––

*❤️TEARRORIZER

––––––––––––––––––––––––

“......”

––––––––––––––––––––––––

*❤️TEARRORIZER

––––––––––––––––––––––––

“.........”

“...? ARE YOU-”

Seam cut him off with a sigh.

“Why not? (I can trust Kris... right?)”

––––––––––––––––––––––––

*❤️TEARRORIZER

––––––––––––––––––––––––

��––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

*Seam cast TEARRORIZER!

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

...

Nobody quite understood what was going on.

Scissors appeared, and then––

3500

...

“...wh... what just...”

The cat had blacked out when they tried to cast the spell.

Now, however, they could could see what had happened...

“O-OH, UH... IT SEEMS THIS BODY CAN BE KILLED AFTER ALL...”

Jevil’s fate had been sealed in dark red all over.

It was clear that he’d soon fade away, the only question was how long he’d be able to hold on before ultimately succumbing. 

Seam, once they finally processed what they had just done, was absolutely horrified.

“J-Jevil...!? Wh... what did I...!? I-I’m sorry, I...”

“...”

“I-I’m... I... h... how...!?”

“...IT’S OKAY.”

“...wh... what?...”

“YOU WERE JUST DOING WHAT YOU HAD TO DO TO WIN... I CAN’T BLAME YOU TOO MUCH FOR FOLLOWING ORDERS... JUST LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE: YOU’VE WON THIS GAME! ...BUT SADLY, THIS IS OUR LAST.”

“...”

“SEAM... I’M SORRY FOR ALL THE TROUBLE.”

Seam wasn’t even given the chance to talk before their former companion finally faded away into red mist.

“...”

They stepped bit closer to the spot where their friend had been, and fell to their knees.

“...”

They didn’t say another word, not to Kris, not to anyone.

[theanonymouswriterb]

Dusk Til’ Dawn

Dusk Til’ Dawn

Chapter 1: Enters The Queen

Paring: Kim Taehyung x Reader

Mafia Au Series

Warnings : Warning: SMUT, literally porn on paper 😗, lots of fluff, violence, gang, bratty!reader, dom!tae, daddy!tae, daddy kink, babygirl kink, punishment, bigdick!tae, rough sex, make up sex, lots of after care, pregnancy kink, oral!sex, deep throating and everything in between🤧

Word count: 10.5k

A/N :Hey, this is the first main chapter of the series and it basically reveals a little bit of how he made it to where he is today and how he met her again. It also reveals, a little bit of their side stories too! Hope you like it, if you want to be tagged please tell me 😗

Paring in this chapter: Kim Taehyung x Reader, Kim Taehyung x Groupies, Reader x Jeon Jungkook

Warning in the chapter: SMUT, female Masturbation, Y/n’s nasty honestly, teasing, daddy kink, choking, a large dildo, kidnapping (maybe) if you think about it. Groping, kissing, threats and a hard slap.                                

Previous. Next Chapter.

              Chapter 1: Enters the Queen

Flash back~

Walking out of the house of the stranger that helped him, Kim Taehyung sighs out of relief that he was able to survive the night by the helps of the kind girl. He wanted to stay a little longer but he has to make everything right and until he does that he cannot meet her ever again.

He knows that since his head is not a platter right now that there’s probably a bounty out for his head but right now he couldn’t care less. He takes out his phone, that he forgot he had from his pocket and began to Call one of his closet friends, Chase, nickname for Park Jimin, a friend he has known for a long time.

The calls goes through “V, where the fuck are you?!” His friend calls out “ there’s a bounty for your head for 2 million”

Taehyung laughed, “ I know and I need your help right now” pick me up at our secret place” Taehyung hears a confirmation and he hangs up the phone.

- 30 minutes later-

Chase gets out of the car “ wow you look like shit”

“ I know” Taehyung replied “ I need you to be my right hand man as of today” and chase nodded in agreement, they stared at each other for a few moments, both glad to see each other alive.

Moving back to the car, they opened the trunk and coming into view was a range of rifles, hand guns, Grenades and knives , fuck shit was gonna go down. They all betrayed him and he was out to get back at them.

Packing the magazines and preparing their guns, they both looked at each other and smiled, they knew what they both were gonna get into but they weren’t afraid, they were not gonna die, there’s no doubt about that.

Getting into the car they drove off towards the warehouse and safehouses of chaos. As they reached their destination chase spoke “You know I’ll always have your back no matter what happens right?” Looking away Taehyung nodded and they both got out of the car heading to towards the warehouse.

- inside the warehouse –

“BOSS, H-H-He’s here!” a man screamed out and all you could hear was gun sounds and foot steps Echoing through the halls.

“ SHIT” the boss screamed in frustration, as the doors swung opened in aloud bang

“ T-T-Tae, I-I-I’m so glad you’re ali-”

“Cut the bullshit” Taehyung said angrily, blood on his face and clothes, as chase appeared behind him.

“ you know” Taehyung began “ I thought of you like a family, but what are fimilies for huh?” Taehyung laughed out

“It’s not like that tae” the boss said scared for his life.

“ you know, I was hoping this wouldn’t happen, you trained me well and now you have to go....for betraying ME” and a few loud bangs of gun shots echoed through the room, as the body fell to the floor lifeless.

Taehyung walked up to the body, giving it a few more shots to the head and smiled.

“ V, we got to go” chase spoke putting a hand on Taehyung’s shoulder.

They then turned and walked away leaving the bodies behind walking through pools of blood.

Taehyung was now to become a feared man and this was only the beginning of what would come people’s way if they betrayed him.

BOOM!

The warehouse exploded into pieces as both the dragon and his right hand man walked away.

-Current time-

The music boomed through the club as a tall handsome man walks trough the crowd. The crowd moving out of the way to pave a path for him and as he walked through they bowed their heads one by one. With security in front of him as well as behind, he showed power and everyone wanted a piece of him. As he reached the V.I.P area made for him especially, he took out a cigar and out it to his lips, all his men took into their lighter but it only turns towards one man on his right.

He began to smoke the cigar as he sighed out leaning his head on the sofa, as his right hand man walked in, he knew the presence of this man and he lifted his head and opened his eyes as the man leaned in towards him and whispered “ Boss, we couldn’t find her”

“ Well then keep looking” he glared.

The another man began “Boss we’ve been searching for her for five years, there-” he stopped when he saw Taehyung glaring at him, oh he had the guts and Chase smacked him hard on his head and the man groaned in pain and the man knew he flicked up big time. Taehyung couldn’t help but laugh at the scene in front of him.

He looked down at at his wrist and watched the way his Rolex ticked them locked up that the men’s in front of him, rising from his seat “I’m not one to give second chances but you’re good at your job, if you ever think about questioning me again, or speaking without being spoken to, I’ll serve your head on a platter for dinner at your family’s house”

“Understand?” Taehyung snarled arching his eyebrows staring at the trembling sight front of him.

“Y-Y-Yes B-B-Boss” the man stuttered

“ Get out of my sight” Taehyung growled as his men bowed their heads and walked away form him. Turning, he walked back and sat down on the leather seat.

Sounds of laughter and chaos echoed through the club as he took a sip of his Tequila that was now in his hands. He watched carefully as a group of women approached the area, smirking to himself. The group of girls, stopped at the entrance and he waved a finger signaling them to enter.

They sat next to him and one sat in his lap kissing and licking his neck, he groaned out, “ mmhm” looking at her as she lifted her face off his neck, “ you like that daddy!?” She asked playfully, proud to have made him like that. “No” he spoke and shock filled the girl’s face and the other snickered out loud.

“ Then tell me what you like” she then said with soft voice and smirked “ not you but I do like you presence” he countered, she then huffed out in frustration and got off his lap walked back out towards the crowed almost embarrassed. Taehyung smiled, as if this girl thought she would have a chance with him, yes he’s a player, yea he likes her company but she’s just not the one. As he watched her walk out, the other girls moved on to him like leaches waiting to suck on some blood. They attacked him trying to take to unbutton his shirt and take off his belt. “ daddy let me make you feel good” one spoke out.

“No daddy let me suck your hard cock” the other spoke out as she got on her knees ready to pleasure him. The others then undressed themselves revealing their breasts, then a smirked quirked up his lips ,looking at how pathetic they all look trying to please him. A hand came to his crotch, palming it and he leaned his head back moaning out, they were all ready to devour him, as he closed his eyes shut, all he could see was her face, the one that saved him. He lifted his head and pushed them off him, why was he getting hard thinking about her when other girls were trying so hard to please, “daddy?” One of the girl spoke out as he got up.

“ Not now girls “ he replied as he walked towards the balcony and watched the crowd go wild. Load music beaming through the club lights flickering around. He rubbed his palm into his eyes, thinking about her, why was it so hard to get her off his mind, it’s been 5 fucking hears god dammit.

As he leaned towards the rails, he felt some hands snake sound his waist and felt a head falling on to his back and he turned. It was the same girl that got up from his lap and left the V.I.P area, now a pathetic drunk, smiling up at him.

“Daddy fuck me” she spoke in a raspy voice and he smiled down at her. “ please daddy” she said with pleading eyes, and leaned up into her toes to kiss him on the lips then down to his neck, he then snaked his hands around her waist squeezing her ass and she moaned out “ yes daddyyy more please” he then removed his hands from her ass and lifted them to her breasts and squeezed them hard and she couldn’t help but moan out load. He smirked down at her “ you like that baby” he asked in a low tone. “Yes” she replied with Enthusiasm in her voice “ yes what” he asked her now squeezing her neck blocking the air from her throat, “ yessss daddy” she choked out. And he kissed her on the lips and she could cum right there and then .

This was nothing more than a one time thing, he was a player everyone knew that, he would play with these girls and then leave them.

As he turned and shoved her on the glass balcony, he swiped his tongue along her neck, with a tight grip still on her neck. He moved his other hand from her waist down to her legs lifting her dress up, he was about to fuck this women on his V.I.P balcony with no fucks given and the girl didn’t give a fuck if people saw either, she would love the idea of people watching her get railed by the top crime boss.

His hand reached her underwear and moved her thong to the side, playing with her pussy lips and she couldn’t help but moan out loudly, “ daddy please” and the smirk on his face grew. He continued kissing her neck as he eyed the crowd, whilst playing with the girls pussy with no fucks to give and she was a moaning mess. She was literally about to cum from him playing with her clit, as he suddenly stopped, she said “ daddy, why did you stop?” and looked up at him.

He was frozen and His gaze was on someone in the crowd. A very familiar face.

He removed himself from her and shoved her away, she looked at him angrily,“ what the fuck was that for” she screamed out but he wouldn’t even look ather. “Watch your tone” he said with he piercing gaze and she lowered her he’s to floor. How pathetic, he thought and turned his head back to the person in the crowd.

It couldn’t be her could it?

“ fuck me or I’ll get someone else to do it” the pathetic girl screamed from behind Almost to the point to tears. He then huffed out a laugh “ be my guest, I don’t give a fuck” not even looking her way, she screamed and walked towards him attempting to take his clothes off and he firmly gripped her throat, “I won’t say it again” fear flushed across her face and he let go of her throat “ leave” he said and she stomped her feet in frustration and walked out. “ girls you all leave too” the other girls nodded in unison, fucked out from watching the show in front of them and walked out of the V.I.P area.

“ Chase” he spoke out and chase came walking in after the girls and bowed his head in respect, “yes boss” he replied walking towards his boss as Taehyung signaled him to come closer to him then pointing towards the crowd.

“Who’s that” Tae asked pointing to the stranger in the crowd of people,

“ I’m unsure but she doesn’t look like a regular boss” chase replied. “ would you like me to check?”

“No” Taehyung said calmly “ I’ll do it myself” watching the way the girl danced to the music. The girl’s gaze then came up to his and she lifted a middle finger up at him. Oh the audacity.

At y/n’s penthouse 7 hours ago

The sound of the alarm screamed through the room as Y/N moved on her bed not giving a fuck about the sound as she didn’t have any energy left in her. She had a long day at the office last night, as a creative director she had to make sure everything was perfect for the collection to launch. She didn’t have a lot of time to herself and she was frustrated at the fact that the new trainee at her workplace was fucking things up and she had to do the things herself.

She remembers the look on the rookies face as she scolded him, fear, that was it, he was frightened of her cause she made a reputation for herself and she was well respected so he was scared of her. But she wasn’t like other directors she was kind and although she was mad at him for messing things up for her, she couldn’t stay mad at his puppy face.

The alarm continued screaming through the bed room and y/n screamed in frustration in her pillow and lifted her arm to grab he phone and shut it off. She looked at the time and it was already 3 pm. “Fuckkk” she screamed, she was so tired she didn’t hear any of her alarms that went off at 9 am.

Turning in her bed she finally decides to get out and walked towards the en-suite bathroom. She looked at herself and the bags under her eyes were Horrendous, she began to wash her face, brush her teeth then strip to shower.

She got into their large shower and turned on the water and sighed out as the water hits her naked body. The warm water was calming and soothing, which relaxed her body. She continued washing herself and when she finished she turned the shower off and walked out, covering her hair and body with towels.

As she moved towards her walk in closet she hears her phone ring. Stopping she turns towards her bed and leaned over to grab her phone and it was no other than her girl EziKia calling.

“Hey girl” her friend spoke out. “Hey, wassup”

“ you ready for tonight” her friend questioned, “ tonight? What’s going on tonight?!” She replied shocked

Her friend her eyes “ of course you would forget” E claimed.

“Oh shit, yea I’m ready I’ve got my out fits and ideas for make up and hair all planned out” y/n smiled as she spoke “what about you, you ready?”

“Fuck yea I’m ready” E screamed “ Is J coming with us?” E then questioned

“ Yea I guess so” Y/N replied “ he said he’s meeting us there” she smiled again.

“ Have you guys fucked yet?” E said out loud, curiosity filling her mind at the thought of her two friends. “ no not yet” “ well I’m actually surprised, cause everything you two are around each other, y’all literally grope each other and flirt all day long, it’s only a matter of time before you fuck each other” E huffed out.

“ The thing is we’re not even in a relationship so I don’t think it’s gonna happen” “ fuck the relationship, you two are meant to happen, when are you gonna Acknowledge that?!” E countered.

“ Well we’re both not looking for a relationship right now anyway so it doesn’t matter” Y/N spoke as she walked back into the walk in closet.

“ you guys are literally friends with benefits who are head over heals for each other but to scared to confess” E said rolling her eyes

“ it’s not like that we’re not friends with benefits” Y/N laughed out

E then said out loud “ watch tonight, y’all are gonna fuck each other”

All Y/N could do was laugh at her friend, since what she said was mostly true expect the friend with benefits part. Y/N and Jungkook have loved each other for a long time they’re both just too pussy to admit it to each other, so they resort to flirting and making out when they’re both drunk. She was scared that he wouldn’t think of their the same way and he was scared that she wouldn’t think of him the same way, but they were both so stupid, they both love each other and too stupid to admit it. Everyone around them knows that they’re into each other.

Changing the subject y/N spoke out and said “ are you coming over here to get ready then?”

“ of-course, you need to approve of my outfit first before we go out and I need my makeup to look nice so I’m gonna ask you make up artist to do my makeup tonight” her friend laughed out.

“ yea, what’s mine is yours” Y/n replied to her friend.

They continue to speak for what felt like hours and hours and by now y/n has changed into more comfortable clothes and walked towards her kitchen to make a late breakfast for herself.

As she walked through her living room towards her kitchen she looked at her cloud sofa that now has a tint of pink to it and smiled remembering the night she helped the stranger 5 years ago and the way his lips left on hers when he kissed her and left. She couldn’t help but smile at the thought and said out loudly “ why the fuck am I thinking of him, ughhh” sighing loudly in frustration and hurried to the kitchen, then she heard “ what was that” coming from E.

“Oh it’s nothing” she replied

After making her late breakfast which was now Obviously her lunch, she walked into her living room with her plate full of food, her phone and a glass of water in her hands. After setting her things on her coffee table, she then turned on the tv and began speaking to E again.

“ so that handsome stranger you told me about, that you saved five years ago, have you heard a anything from him?” E began

“Why would I hear from him, it’s not like we gave each other’s our phone number or any details about ourselves to each other” y/n said defensive for some reason

“Well I mean you told me that you gave him your name. I’m surprised he hasn’t sent you a gift of gratitude or anything like that yet, and you know his name too” E began again softly

“ well I don’t expect anything less than nothing from a criminal like him” Y/n said as she closed her eyes and began to think about him again.

Oh the way he was built, sooo different, his face so fucking beautiful, ofcourse she couldn’t forget about him. But her and Jungkook were getting somewhat serious and she needs to get this stranger out her mind. It’s been fucking five years get over it.

They talked and talked and caught up on many things since they both been super busy with their lives and tonight was the night they were going to meet up and have so much until they both drop drunk. They said their goodbyes and agreed that E would get here sound 8 so they could get ready to go out.

Walking back up to her bedroom, Y/n layed Back onto her bed and her mind began to wonder to Jungkook. She closed her eyes and began thinking about his body and how he looks so fucking good and her he lifted up her tank top and squeezed her breasts and moan out “fuckkkk”. Her other hand then travelled down to the hem of her joggers and she lifted her hips off their bed to remove them at once in a swift motion, she then threw the piece of clothing somewhere to the side and her hand came down to her pussy lips. Oh she was ready to pleasure herself at that thought of her “friend”. She teased her lips with the fingers and then played with her clit, moving her fingers in a circular motion, “ fuck baby” she whispered out as arousal left her weeping hole, thinking of him “baby” she said again as she squeezed her breast and began moving her fingers roughly as her orgasm was building up “ yes, yes, yes baby, fuck me” and she knew she was close, as she carried on moving her fingers on her clit roughly, she felt the knot in her stomach explode and same came hard shaking and thinking about Jungkooks dick.

After she came down, she rolled to the side of her bed and pulled the drawers out picking out a large dildo from inside the drawer. She began stoking it and imaging it was J’s dick and shoved it in her mouth almost choking on the dildo.

“ mmhm” she signed as she toyed with the dildo in her mouth, as the began getting wet from her saliva she took it out of her mouth and rubbed it across her lower lips and she moaned out at the sensitivity of her Pussy lips, she began moving the dildo up and down her pussy and she moaned out load. “FFUCCK” she said. After toying with her pussy for a while she Aligned the toy up to her pussy whole and began pushing in slowly, the girth and the length of the toy was quite large and she still hasn’t gotten used to it even though she used it many times, as the toy began stretching her Pussy she moaned out load “ JUNGKOOK FUCK ME HARD DADDY” and the toy was fully in her tight pussy. She waited for a few seconds and then began moving the toy, her slick was now leaking from her whole and in the toy.

She began moving the toy roughly towards her hole and couldn’t help but imagine it being jungkook’s dick, she continue shoving the toy into her pussy screaming out. He would fill her up so good she thought to herself. ” daddy yes, yes, yes, daddy, fuck me” she breathed out in short breaths as the toy continuously moving roughly and the sounds of her moans filled the room as she could her the sound of her pussy weeping and she squeezed her breast hard and she began feeling the knot in the stomach rising, signaling another climax approaching. She turned her head in her pillow as she was struggling to breath from way the toy was ramming into her tight whole and her back arched off the bed. She continued playing with the toy and the knot was going to explode in her stomach and she couldn’t give any fucks if her neighbour heard her, she was feeling to damn good and with a last few thrust of the toy in her pussy she came hard, shaking, back off the bed and eye rolling to the back of her head “ fuck j !” She said softly, trying to calm down from her climax. After calming down, she pulled the toy out her hole and gave it a few licks and walked towards the bathroom to clean herself up.

Fuck she did not just masterbate to the thought of Jungkook, her friend. Well that probably shows that she’s head over heals for him...right?!

Time had passed and now it’s 8pM

As she sat at the vanity station, she looked at her self through the mirror and laughed remembering her Masturbating to the thought of jungkook. She was pulled from her though at the ringing of her door bell, she rushed down out her bedroom down her spiral stairs and towards the door, opening it, revealing her friend.

“Hiiiiiii” they both said squealing and hugged each other. She pulled E into her house and towards the stairs that leads to her bedroom. It was a good thing that she cleaned her sheets and made her bed presentable again cause she would have a lot of explain to her friend about the smell and the mess if she didn’t.

Walking into her bedroom, y/n looked at her friend who had a wide smile plastered on her face, it was like her first time being in y/n’s penthouse and she couldn’t get over how amazing it was no matter how many times she came to the penthouse.“ what are you smiling” y/n breathed out smiling at her friend.

“ nothing, just your LUXURIOUS house” E replied sarcastically, softly push y/n away.

“You know it’s not your first time coming to my house right?” Y/n asked laughing

“Yeah but I can’t ever get used to it” E said back looking in y/n’s direction.

They spoke and laughed as they caught up for a few minutes and then a knock came at the front door. “ that would probably be A” y/n said as she got up from her bed. A was short for Ashley, they’ve known each other for a while and he beats Y/n’s face like no other make up artist has done and makes her look like a fucking goddess not that she isn’t already one.

She walked away from the bedroom whilst taking a glance at E who was still in awe and softly laughed. Walking down the stairs, she could see that she made it far, looking at how she used to live way before, she’s glad that she worked hard to get to where she is right now.

The knock on the door came again and she walked faster to her grand door and swings it open. “ bitch you know I’ve been waiting hours out here looking like a lost dog” Ashley said with a frown on his face “ stop being dramatic A” came Y/n as she pulled him by his arm roughly dragging him into her penthouse.

Ashley was a very talented man, he was a person with a rough past, people didn’t believe in him when we said he was gonna become a makeup artist and everyone in his family thought of him as a disgrace and didn’t want anything to do with him. Not even his mother , his god damn mother.Plus it didn’t really help when he came out the closet at the same time. That’s what y/n loved about Ashley, he fought for his dreams and when no one believed in him he succeeded with his career and now he’s one of the most paid make up artist in Seoul and well known world wide.

When y/n met him, he was just starting and y/n needed a make up artist and they got on very well together and love each other like brother and sister. She saw him work hard and made a name for himself and she couldn’t be more proud. She was now his only family.

“Damn girl! You’re really living life huh?!” Ashley said as he looked around. “ This shit is way better than your town house that you had before”

Not that the house she had was bad at all, it was a beautiful town house and she had to get an upgrade sooner or later. And that house had a lot of memories.

Pulling herself out of her trance, she pulls Ashley towards the stairs up to her bedroom to meet E. Opening the bed room door, she noticed that her friend was not there anymore, the only place she could be was her walk in closet. “E!” She shouted out. “ In your closet” a reply came from her closet. E was where y/n expected her to be.

After telling Ashley to take a seat on her bedroom sofa, she then walked into her closet where her friend was. Smiling at her friend y/n spoke “ you enjoying yourself there?”

“Yes girl,your closet is amazing” E replied Rummaging through y/n’s clothes and picking a few things out the rails.

“OMG! I LOVE THIS” E screamed. “I’ve been looking for this everywhere, in every fucking store and they don’t have it in stock anymore, they ran out” a frown building on her face. “Well it is limited edition” Y/N smirked.

“I know and I really wanted one” E said as she slowly put the garment slowly back on the rail. As soon as the hook touched the rail, Y/N spoke “Well if you love it that much then you can have it” smiling at her friend. “ Are you sure?!” E asked shocked. “Yea I’m pretty damn sure. You’re in love with it and I don’t mind living with out it” Y/N said smiling at her friend who now has tears in her eyes. “Oh my Gosh, I fucking love you, you know that?” E cried out.

“Yeah I know and I love you too” Y/n said as she hugged her friend back.

“Ok, love birds, get out of the closet and let’s get you both ready we don’t have time” Ashley shouted from the bedroom and the best friends laughed together. “We’re coming” y/n shouted back. As they both walked out from the closet

y/n spoke, “E, this is Ashley, Ash, this is EziKia. They both greeted each other saying hi and kissing the side of each other’s cheeks.

“Let’s get this shut on the road”Ashley groaned out. “Let’s do it then!” Y/N spoke back.

As she was getting ready y/n began, “so where are you taking me anyways” she asked looking towards her friend as her makeup is being put on by Ashley.

“It’s a fancy club, called ‘the dragon’s lair’ I’ve been there a few times and honestly it’s one of the best clubs in Seoul, one of the dopest, you’re gonna love it” E replied to her friend whilst on her phone.

2 hours later

As Y/n walked out from her closet she felts eyes on her. The eyes of her friends. “Damn girl! You look fine as fuckkkk” Ashley spoke out “ if I wasn’t fucking gay I would bag you!”

She looked like a Goddess walking out of her closet, her hair up in a messy 90s hairstyle, parted at the side with strands hanging down from both parts of the hairandthebacktwistedheldwithabutterflyclawclip. Onherbody,sheworea tight 90s body con dress hugged her body right in every way showing off her curves and that damn fine ass. The dress was by Versace, a ti- dye pink dress that shimmers bright when light shines into it, with a plunging neckline that showed off her perfectly placed breasts and the straps hung around her neck.

A pair of small butterfly diamond neckless hung around her neck and diamond chandelier earring hung from her ears. And on her feet matching 5 inch heels that laced up her calves. Everything was just perfect about her, there’s no flaw about her.

The make up that she wore on her face was a very simple natural make up, eyebrows on fleek, with a little eyeliner to create a cat eye illusion and she wore lip gloss on top of her lipstick, making her glow. She looked like sex on legs.

“I’m not even a lesbian and you’re making me want to fuck you” her best friend smirked as she spoke “ you look fucking amazing y/n”

Y/n honestly didn’t know what to say, she knew she looked bomb as fuck but her friends hyping her up made her blush and she couldn’t help but smile. “ Both of you look amazing guys” she spoke out softly “ don’t humble yourself y/n own it” Ashley said.

“ I know I look fine okay?” Y/n spoke with sassiness in her voice and both her friend smiled at her.

“That’s our Girl” both her friend spoke in unison and they smiled at her.

“ E, you look amazing too girl” y/n said with a wide smile on her face. “Thanks babes”E said blushing “you two are literally love birds you know that, I’m surprised y’all aren’t lesbians” Ashley spoke out sarcastically. And they all laughed in unison.

“You know” E Began, “ when Jungkook sees you you he’s gonna want to fuck you” she laughed out. “Cause I wound” she continued. “So you and Jungkook are a thing then?” Ashley question and before y/n could answer E beat her to the punch saying “ they’re currently not a thing, but it’s definitely gonna change after tonight, they’re currently like friends with benefits” laughing out loud as she spoke. “ we’re not friends with benefits” y/n countered “ we’ve never fucked” she continued “but that’s gonna change after tonight tho” Ashley spoke up.

Sighing Y/n spoke “whatever” rolling her eyes.

As if the man himself heard her, her phone began ringing and there it was, his name on her phone screen. “Speaking of the devil” her friends spoke in unison and she smiled at them. Her friends strut off out of the bedroom.

Picking up her phone, she slides her finger on the screen to answer, “hey J” she said with a soft voice and her friends gagged in unison then winking at her leaving the room. “Hey darling” Jungkook spoke on the other end of the phone and continued “you ready?”

“Ofcourse I am , you?” “I’m always ready baby” y/n rolled her eyes at his remark but couldn’t help but smile. She was so in love she couldn’t even see it. He was always flirty and that’s what she lives about him too, he doesn’t flirt with other ever since that incident 5 years ago with him kissing the other girl. He was serious about Y/n but afraid to tell her how he really feels but tonight was gonna change everything.

“You know, I’m so exited to see you” Jungkook spoke with a low growl in his voice, “you saw me last week J” she said as she smiled at herself looking at her reflection in the mirror.

“Yea but baby, it’s been too long and I Haven’t kissed those plushy lips of yours in a while” he spoke making her blush. Oh how smooth he was! She was falling hard, way too hard. “J-“ she starts but gets cut off when he says “ I’ve missed you a lot, especially the way you feel in my arms” oh he was on top of his games tonight and she couldn’t care about falling into his trap any less. “ I missed you too baby, I thought of you a lot” she replied, remembering her session in her bed a few hours ago, blushing. Oh what he does to her.

“ you can’t tease me like that, if you’re not gonna give me more then a kiss” Jungkook starts again, oh he was so damn flirtatious.

“ well what if I’m giving you more than a kiss tonight, babyyy” she purred with a slutty tone in her voice, there was snickering behind her and oooooh’s coming from behind the door and she rolled her eyes knowing her friends are listening on the conversation.

Jungkook was now fucking hard and he needed her right now but he just has to wait a few more hours until he gets her. They spoke and flirted in for a few more minutes and said there goodbyes “ See you later baby” jungkook spoke on the other side of the line and y/n replied “ I’ll see you later baby” knowing they’ll see each other at the club.

The smile that plastered on her face was too damn good and she couldn’t hide the excitement that she was feeling. She began to walk towards the door opening it and there stood her two friends who was listening on the conversation smirking to her.

“What if I’m giving you more than a kiss tonight, baby” Ashley mocked with a smirk on his face and E Began “ I’ll see you later baby” mocking Y/n as well.

Y/n rolled her eyes as she walked away from her friends and said “ fuck both of you” spite in her voice

“Y/n don’t be like that babes” Ashley starts and clung onto her arm as E clung onto her other arm and y/n looked at both of them and couldn’t help but smile “whatever”

“Let’s go then, we wouldn’t want to keep your man who’s wanting to fuck you tonight waiting” E spoke with excited in her voice

“Oh, shut up” Y/n said and they walked out of her penthouse, towards the elevator, from the 100th floor. As they reached the ground floor, her Bentley was ready parked at the entrance of the building waiting for her Arrival, Greeted by Y/n assistant slash security guard, Hank. “Welcome miss” Hank spoke opening the door for her and her friends. “Oh Hank don’t be too polite” Y/n some smacking his bulky arms playfully.

They finally got into the car and set off to the night club .

It was already 9pm by the time they left the penthouse and they couldn’t be more exited to party and get wild tonight.

They finally arrived at the Dragon’s lair...finally.

Walking up towards the entrance, she was greeted by two extremely large security guards,” welcome ma’am” they spoke in a low tone and moved to the side to give way to her. Walking into the club, she was entrapped by how amazing it looked, her friend was right, she loves the place, it’s honestly super Luxury and fancy for a club. As they moved through the crowd her eyes lifted up towards the V.I.P balcony and saw a man looking down at the crowd and she thought to herself he’s probably just any other uptight man looking down at the people who are probably peasants to him and she couldn’t care less.

They reached their area and her eyes landed on the beautiful man standing up to greet them. The man was no other than Jeon Jungkook, he said hi to everyone as his eyes laid on her and greeted her with a smile, “hey darling” he spoke in a low tone hugging her body. “ Hey baby” she replied as he lowered her head to hers.

“We’re not here to watch you two have sex in front of us” their friends began and they both couldn’t help but laugh and they removed themselves from each other and sat down. “You have no idea how much I missed you” he whispered in her ears.

“Really?” She said with a flushed face, she was a confident women but she couldn’t help but hey shy when it came to him, she was obliviously in love.

“I guess you don’t miss me at all huh” he said as he bit her ear playfully whispering in her ear over the loud music. “Of course I miss you” she said looking up at him like a lost puppy. He smirked down at her and hovered his lips over her neck as she leaned her head back to give him more access. “ fuck the things you do to me” he Began with a husky voice and she pushed him away

“ what do I do to you Mr jeon” oh she knew what that nick name did to him and she has him in awe. “Have I told you how amazing you look tonight” he states changing the subject and she replied “you always tell me that when you see me” smiling back at him.

“Fuckkk” he groaned out, “you have no idea what I want to do to you” “ what do you want to do to me” she asked with puppy eyes and he melted fast. He began again “ I want to take you home and fuck you hard on every surface of my house” damn she was getting wet from the way he was speaking to her and she blushed. He kissed her neck and squeezed her back and bit down playfully watching the way she moved from his action and hearing the way she moaned out form his touch.

“Then why don’t you take me home” she said as soft as she could without moaning out loud from his touch. “ oh baby, I will - I just want you to wait a little longer” he breathed out and she rolled her eyes in frustration pushing him away and he looked at her with furrowed eyebrows and asked “ what was that for?” And he could sense her brattiness coming out “well since you’re not taking me home and fucking me, I don’t see the point in me being around you” she said with sarcasm in her voice and got up to walk always.

As she took no further than one step his hand gripped her wrist and turned her and she was pulled towards him and their lips met, the kiss was turning out, his tongue poking at his lips to get access and she granted it. They both moan out as their tongue dance together and gripped each other so hard it could leave bruises. They broke the kiss for some air looked at each other. “ I want you to stop being a brat and wait for me, like you have been for so many years” she said huskily and she rolled her eyes saying “ well since I’ve been waiting for you all my life, why don’t you just give yourself to me now” she said with frustration in her voice and he couldn’t help but smile at her “ oh my baby really has no patience” he knew she was horny and so was he but he just wanted to wait a little longer and savor the moment. They were gonna fuck, confess their love for each other and fall in love tonight and he just wanted her to wait a little longer until they got home. He wasn’t gonna let their first fuck be in the bathroom of a club. No he’s a gentleman and he want her in his bed.

“Well since you don’t want to do anything right now I want to dance” she said turning from him and he snaked his hands around her waist and said “I’ll come with you” and she grinned as they walked through the crowd who were all dancing to the music and she took his had and led him further into the dance floor.

“Can you believe those two” E began, looking at Ashley who was laughing at the drama they just saw in front of them and said “ those two are thirsty for each other and they both know it”

Leading him through the crowd she began swaying her hips to the music and he watched the way her hips moved and instantly got hard. Then she pulled him closer dancing to the music looking into his eyes and he fell in love with the sight in front of him. She couldn’t be any more perfect than she already was. She turned again her back facing he and she moved back as her back this his chest and she moved her hips on his crotch. He then moved his head into her neck and began kissing her, oh what she does to him.

They began to dance like they were in their own world, lost in their bliss and it felt like no one was around them, it as just them two. The music began to drown oust as they were far gone and lost in the way his crotch felt on her ass and she couldn’t help but moan out. She then opened her eyes, still dancing on Jungkook and lifted her heads up and her eyes met the gaze for a familiar man but she can’t remember where she’s seen him from.

As she continued dancing on Jungkook, her mind began to wonder at the man on the balcony, he was staring at her & although she doesn’t know him she wanted to play with him since he was staring at her. He dancing more and more swaying her hips, lift her hands up in the air and her other hand on Jungkook’s head in her neck and her smirk was nasty. She was playing a hard game, oh was she bad.

The man was still staring at her and again she thought he looked very familiar but then saw the women he was groping and the way her head moved back, and y/n knew he was “toying” with the girl in his arms. She then thought why the fuck The man was still staring at her and again she she kept on think about how he looked very familiar but then saw the women he was groping and the way her head moved back, and y/n knew he was “toying” with the girl in his arms. It couldn’t be him . Could it? She then thought why the fuck was he looking at her if he was with a women but then again she was grinding on Jungkook whilst looking at another man. The guilt was real and she lower her gaze from the man and turned facing Jungkook. And she began feeling him up his chest and he look at her questioning what she was up to. All she did was smiled back and turned her head up towards the balcony again and the girl was gone and only the man was up there staring down at her. She then walked her and Jungkook back towards their table and ordered lots of shot and began drinking.

The drinks came one after the other and she was beginning to become hazy as she leaned towards Jungkook and gulped down another drink. One after another, they couldn’t stop, they were too far gone, y/n looked at her friends and they were all in their world, she then looked at Jungkook and smiled at how fucked he looked and how good he looked at the same time. She then gripped his face as he looked at her with his eyes that always seems to pull her in and then she kisses him on his lips, they devoured each other for a moment and she pulled away looking at how flushed he looked.

Then her gaze went up to the stranger again on the balcony who was still staring at her but now speaking to someone beside him, another man as he pointed toward them, this man looks way too Familiar but she couldn’t get her mind on who he reminds her off. Too drunk and gone she shakes off her thoughts and look back at Jungkook who was staring at her, then kissed him again saying “ I’ll be back baby” and got up to leave to the bath room. She snaked through right the crowd dancing to the music and pointing her middle up at the man on the balcony. She finally arrived at the bathroom.

She opened the door to the bathroom and was shocked at how quite it was in there and was not at the same time. As she thought there would be lots of girls redoing their make up or people fucking in the bathroom. But this club had more class than that. The light was very dim in the bathroom and the music was also very faint. She got into one of the cuticles and relieved herself. Walking towards the sink she looks at herself in the mirror and smiled at how amazing but fucked out she looked. Then her gaze came to the man standing in the shadows of the entrance of the bathrooms and she almost screamed. Almost.

“Excuse me, mister, I think you’re in the wrong room” she said glaring at the stranger waiting for him to reply “ I don’t think I am princess” he spoke out in low sexy ass voice and she thought to herself princess? Fuck that sounds very familiar, she heard that voice before, Kim Taehyung? Not it can’t be right?. She breaks herself out of their thought and said “ I think you are Sir, you should leave , it’s a Female bathroom” still glaring at the stranger looming in the shadows, still she couldn’t make up what the man looks like. He then moved towards her and she stood her grounds.

“I missed you princess” he began his face inches from hers, there’s no ways she’s gonna let this random dude get away with this. “ dude, I think you got the wrong girl, I’m not your fucking princess, y/n snarled back at him meeting his eyes with a fiery gaze. He then lets out a small laugh “ I see your temper is still the same, even worse then mine”

“Honestly I don’t know who you are and I think you should leave” y/n said pointing at the door. “ I’m not going anywhere princess” he smiled.

“Fine , I’ll fucking leave then” as she turned to walk out she gripped her arm and her hand landed harshly on his face. “ fuck” he groaned “your slap is still hard like I remember”. His right had came up to feel his face, soothing it from the pain and he smirked at her.

“What are you a fucking Pedophile?” she screamed “let me fucking go or you’ll get more than a slap to your face” tugging her arm. He couldn’t help but smirk at her, the way she held herself was Domineering and respectful, her confidence and sassiness booming and he finally let her go and watched as she walked out the bathroom door.

She walked out as she tried to calm her breath, “what the fuck is wrong with that guy” she whispered out “he was no sense of respect” she continued walking up the corridor as she reached the end of the corridor she turned back and saw the man standing at the other end. She turned again to walk out back into the main area but her headache struck her like a motherfucker and felt very light headed. She felt very faint holding her face and she felt herself heating up. She began to walk again but couldn’t move, her legs felt really weak, was there something in the drink? she thought to herself or did she just drink too much, much more than she could handle. She stumbled backwards and felt the body of a stranger on her back, certainly it can’t be that same guy at the bathroom right, why couldn’t he stop lurking around?! Before she could think words slipped past her lips “sorry” and looked up as her vision became blurry and she was about to faint and she saw the same man in the bathroom standing in front of her, a smile on his face. “Fuckk” y/n whispered out and her mind went black as well as her vision.

“I finally found you princess”

Now at the Kim Mansion

Y/n woke up from her sleep, her headache killing her and she turned In the bed groaning in pain. The hung over was hitting hard and she didn’t know what to do, she lifted herself up, her eyes still closed and placed her feet on the floor and then opened her eyes, her eyes widening in shock.

“What the fuck” she screamed silently “where the fuck am I” she looked sound the unfamiliar room, who’s house was this she thought to herself, and who brought her here and her mind went to the guy in the bathroom “that fucking bastard” she said out loud. Anger rising inside her, was she just kidnapped from the club by that idiot? She couldn’t take any more of this and walked towards the door.

She put hands on the handle and tried moving the door but if wouldn’t budge, the door was locked, y/n began banging on the door screaming out for anyone on the other side and the door unlocked and opened slowly. There stood that smug bastard who fucking kidnapped her.

“You’re a fucking psycho” y/n let out a frustrated groan and looked up at him and he began walking towards her inside the bedroom. “Morning princess” he began still walking towards her as Y/n continued walking backwards mirroring his footsteps. Her back suddenly hits the wall and she had nowhere to go, she tried moving away but his hands came up to both side of her face trapping her between him.

“How are you feeling?” He asked softly moving his right hand from the wall to stroke her face, he could feel how soft she felt on her fingers and the way she looked up at him has him instantly weak at the knees. As no reply came from y/n he began again “ You’re so fucking beautiful you know that, more beautiful than I remember”

And no response but her eyes was still on his.

“ Princess you need to speak, you know” he stated, “it feels like I’m speaking to my self” he spoke as a smile crept on to his face.

“I’m not your princess” Y/n finally spoke

“ oh she talks” he countered

“And I’m not your princess asshole , I don’t even know who you are” she said angrily

“My princess still has a sharp tongue huh” he smirked out

“I honestly don’t know who you are so let me go” she screamed in his face trying to push him away but he didn’t budge.

“You don’t remember me?” He said almost sounding hurt. Almost. “No, I don’t” Y/n replied

“Princess I’m hurt, you hurt me” he said mockingly holding on to his chest, pretending to stumble backwards.

“It’s sad how you don’t remember me but I remember you very clearly” he began again walking towards Y/n again then said “ I remember the girl that helped me on the day no one else did and opened up her door for me, I remember the look she had on her face when she saw me at her door step”

Y/n eyes widen in shock

He continued “ I remember her patching me off and tending to my wounds and the bruises on my face” he sighed leaning his forehead against hers. “ I remember her making food for me, a dangerous stranger and gave me a place to stay” he lifted her face feeling how her lips felt on his fingers “ I remember her lips on mine when I kissed her goodbye” and he leaned in but she pushed him away.

“You’re him?” Y/n starts, “you’re the guy I saved five years ago?” She continued in awe.

“Ding, ding, ding, my princess is so clever” he said looking at her. “But you can’t be, you don’t look like him” she said as she looked at him, her eyes looking like a lost puppy’s.

“ well things change princess and I changed, I was weak when you saved me and that day changed my life forever, I’m now stronger than ever” he said proudly. “You’re Kim Taehyung” y/n asked rhetorically.

“Yes I am, the one and only KIM TAE FUCKING HYUNG” he said leaning towards her.

Shock still on her face, she didn’t know what to say, “Princess, don’t look so shocked” Taehyung said softly stroking her face but she removed his hands, she still couldn’t believe it, she thought she saw him a few hours ago and how he’s in front her, looking like a Greek god but then she remembered that he kidnapped her. Shoving him away Y/n began saying “you haven’t seen me in five years and the first thing you decide to do was kidnap me when you saw me?!” Anger rising in her.

He loves the way she gets angry and the way her eyes widen and the way she moves her lips when she speaks, then said “ I didn’t kidnap you, you fainted in front of me and I did you a favour bringing you back to my house and letting you sleep on my bed”

“Oh so you don’t think this is kidnapping” y/n said sarcastically raising her hands in the air. “No cause I clearly remember you needing my help” he replied as she out loud laughter. “You’re unbelievable you know that?” “You’re still the same ass hole I met five years ago you know that?” Y/n said “Well you’re still the same brat” he countered

“Yes the same brat that save your damn ass from dying” she screamed in frustration. He smiled at the frustration on her face and whispered out “ but you’re my brat, and I’m so fucking in love with you”

“What!” She said loudly .

He hates having to speak twice but for her he’ll do it again cause obviously she didn’t hear him the first time . “I’m in love with you! I loved you the day you saved me but I couldn’t tell you that cause I was weak and scared, scared at the fact that if I made you mine they would take you away from me, they could’ve killed you ...fuck...I fell in love with the women that took me in when no one else would, I love your brattiness and your beauty and brains. I’m fucking in love with you and now it’s different, I have all the power in the world and wealth and I wish to make you mine” Y/n looked up at him in awe, began to open her mouth but stopped herself. He saw the way she hesitated and turned. “I’m not gonna keep you here if you don’t want to be here” he said sadness filling his voice. “ but you’re the only person that keeps me sane and I want to beside me” he continued on. She couldn’t help but look at him in pity. “Fuck I know I’m a bad guy I’ve done bad thing too many people but you, you just change me, you keep me wanting more, keep me thinking about you everyday and in this insane world, you keep me wanting to live” he confessed She reached up and held his hand, turning him and looking at him in the eyes “ If you’re not the man you were five years ago, then who are you now?” She asked changing the subject.

“Five years ago, I was a puppet, trained to do always do what the masters says and I was too fucking naïve and so I was betrayed and now I made a name of myself- now I’m a crime lord, a fearful crime lord, I do a lot of bad things and I get everything I want-“ before he could continue Y/n interrupted him asking “what kind of bad things?!” She asked softly “ I can’t tell you that princess- if you know you what I really do, you definitely won’t want to stay” he spoke out softly leaning his forehead against hers.

Then continued on “ if you want to leave then the door is open” removing himself from her, giving her space. “But I want you to know that I’m in love with you” She looked at him and he returned his gaze with pleading eyes, she then began moving her feet and walked past him and he thought to himself, she’s gonna leave. He didn’t turn tho, he didn’t want to watch her leave but he could only lowers his head as he hears the bedroom door open then close. She was gone.

Then he hears her voice coming from behind him. “ if I stay, would it really help you?” Y/n asks softly, and Taehyung turned shocked that she actually stayed. She had a soft spot for him as he does for her. “Y-Yes” he stuttered out, he couldn’t believe he stuttered. The almighty, fearful Mafia boss stuttered. “Then what’s in it for me?” Y/n questioned further. He huffed out a laugh “ so you’re gonna negotiate with me?” Asking her. “Yes, what’s in it for me?” She continued. He was in shock of how confidant she was. You’ll get security, everything you want in this world-“ before he could continue she spoke “I already have everything I wanted” not removing her eyes on him. He then opened his mouth and closed it questioning himself for a moment then said “ you could fall in love with me” he said softly walking towards her. He then raised his hands and cupped her cheeks, and leaned in closer. “You could fall in love with me, like I am in love with you” he repeated. “Maybe” Y/n replied with a soft voice.

“Be with me for a year or two and if you fall in love with me, stay, if you don’t then the door is always open for you to leave but I hope you’ll give me a chance” this was the second time he ever begged in his life “please”. Y/n’s mind began to wonder, if she agrees to him, she would be starting a new life and it was almost as if she was waiting for him to come and knock at her door. And here he was the mighty dragon right in front of her, eyes drawing her in and she suddenly forgot about the life she led before today. Will she be able to forget her love for Jungkook and leave her friends behind being with this deadly beast? And this isn’t love right? She’s not doing this for love.....is she?

Y/n looked up at him and met his pleading eyes, little did he know, she fell in love with him too, five years ago that is, possibly love at first sight, she then softly said “ok”, and closed her eyes embracing him.

Tag list : @sugarplummies @yiyi4657 @sppvjj

A/N: chapter 2& 3are currently being written and will be released next week Saturday and Sunday, I will specify the time later on😄 hope you’re liking the series so far 😗

[dracosaurusrex]

Kintsugi: Imperfectly Perfect (Draco x Reader)

“Kintsugi is the Japanese art of putting broken pottery pieces back together with gold — built on the idea that in embracing flaws and imperfections, you can create an even stronger, more beautiful piece of art.”

- Tiffany Ayuda

Summary:In which Y/N teaches a broken Draco Malfoy how to mend himself and embrace the scars that haunt him.

Wordcount: 10.3k

Genre: Angst/Fluff; Postwar AU

Warnings: Descriptions of depression; self-degredation; sexual themes but no smut

A/N: Hi! This is my first time writing a postwar AU. I was always afraid of doing so out of fear that I would mistakenly portray Draco, but I guess this can be a rite of passage in a way aha. With that being said, here’s my attempt! I hope you like it :D Feedback is very much appreciated!!

The sound of an alarm clock breaks the peace that had manifested within the darkness of the room. One eye creaks open, followed by the other, and a body raises itself to greet the day. 

The boy lifts his sheets gently, allowing the cold air to engulf his skin, to wake him, to pull him into the reality of yet another morning. 

The pads of his feet are the next to awaken as he hoists himself out of bed, meeting the frigid floor beneath him. He plods across the expanse of space, only to take notice of his reflection in the mirror.

Draco Malfoy, once boisterous, prideful, loud, and arrogant, had been reduced to a shell. One that lived by drifting through the motions of each passing day. It showed through the dark circles apparent under his eyes, the frown that resided on his lips, and his overall gaunt appearance. The thrill that was once characteristic of his youth had spilled through his cracks, leaving him empty and seemingly unrepairable; and no other perspective of his experience could convince him otherwise. 

The second wizarding war took too much from him so early on. It started with his father, the man he had ardently looked up to, who he desired so much to please. Lucius’s arrest put the young boy on the forefront of the Death Eaters’ activities, placing an unbearable weight on his shoulders. From that point on, it wasn’t long until the mischievous smile left him, only to be replaced with panicked eyes, increased stress levels, and absolutely no peace of mind. The boy had his entire life on a tightrope, constantly pulling strings to survive.

The result of such was the immense realization of guilt pooling from the sights of Hogwarts in shambles, the lifeless bodies of those he was once acquainted with, and the shame of literally walking away from it all. 

Nightmares were also frequent visitors. Besides those that embodied remnants of the war, Draco was almost always confronted by the tauntings of his wrongs: the way he poorly treated others, his stuck-up sense of superiority, the foul slur that he once used so freely--they all haunted him with no end, and all he wanted to do was take everything back. The boy has so often degraded his character since then, describing himself with words such as ‘worthless’, ‘loathsome’, ‘putrid’--the list goes on. He carried his beating heart as though it was dead weight, wanting so desperately to discard the regret that compounded on itself through the years. He was broken, and had no hope of being fixed. 

It was also needless to say that the family dynamic had changed for the Malfoy’s; especially since they often stayed within the confines of the property. Narcissa had been diligent in eradicating the place of all things that harbored any signs of Voldemort’s occupation--opening curtains, tending to her garden, changing up the plans for the interior design. Lucius, on the other hand, often occupied himself in his study, simply abiding by the plans for change that his wife had made. He still invested in his social connections, actively making donations to charities and hospitals that had been established as a result of the war. The act helped shed some light on their image, however any interaction that was to be made with the world outside was done through Draco as representative of the family name.

Fortunately, he managed to keep his mind silent in the mornings. As he walked through the vast hallways he would take note of the way light had poured into the manor, admiring the charm that it brought to its nooks and crannies. The quaint atmosphere that was characteristic of these corridors were peaceful, and managed to calm his thoughts albeit temporarily. 

As soon as he entered the dining room, Narcissa beckoned him to sit with her and his father. 

“Draco, darling, come have some breakfast.” Without much response, he obeys, taking the spot across from her. She placed his favorites on a platter, and observed him as he nibbled on the food in front of him. After several minutes of silence, she pulled an ivory-colored envelope from the pocket of her robe and slid it to him. With food still mounted on his utensils, the boy glanced at the gold details that embellished its corners.

“We’ve been invited to an art gala hosted by the Ministry. The details are inside.” She said.

“I’ll be sure to be in attendance, mother.” He confirmed before resuming his breakfast. The woman casted a worried look at him before turning to Lucius. Things could never go back to the way they once were.

--

The art gala was held on a Saturday evening, and Draco found himself standing in front of a finely decorated building. An air of aristocracy and luxury loomed within the environment--it was an energy that he had been surrounded by all his life. Large columns aligned its front. A red carpet stemming from the entrance had been rolled out, sweeping along a flight of stairs. Familiar faces of esteemed socialites were seen making their way up the steps. Banners had been hung, indicating the gala and a live auction as highlights of the day’s events. 

His only job was to engage in civilized conversation, connect with other high-standing figures, and expand the family network. Simply put, he was there to look pretty.

The feeling of dread overcame him at the thought of immersing himself in socialization. With a begrudging sigh, he straightened his back, briefly smoothened out his suit, and adjusted his cufflinks before trudging up the stairs. Eyes tracked his every step. Despite his emotional wellbeing, the boy still managed to clean up well, creating a facade to those around him. He didn’t bask in the glory, though. He knew he was handsome, he knew he was wealthy, but looks and money were no longer sufficient enough to help him tend to the emptiness he felt on the inside.

The gala itself didn’t begin until 6:00 PM, which was in an hour. Therefore, in hopes to kill time, Draco aimlessly walked through the art displayed for the auction to be held later that night. He carefully observed the numerous crafts with great scrutiny. Paintings were created with much detail--many of them embodying styles from the varying art periods. Sculptures paying great detail to the human body littered the main floor. Hand-crafted furniture were set on display as well, showcasing elaborate ornaments and designs. Mother would like these. He thought. He continued plodding across the exhibit, typically stopping for a mere minute for every submission before walking away. 

It was when he took sight of a humble set of ceramics that he actually stopped to stare. The collection consisted of bowls and pots ranging from small to medium sizes. However, what caught his attention were the traces of gold that coursed through their shapes. They took the form of cracks, which looked too beautiful, too flawless to be such--he couldn’t comprehend them ever being broken at all.

“Do you like them?” A light voice startles him from his thoughts. Standing next to him is a bright-eyed girl whose face he vaguely remembers.

“Y/N Y/L/N? What are you doing here?” He dismisses her question and looks at her with disbelief laced through his voice. The girl was in Ravenclaw when they were still in Hogwarts. Due to the difference in houses and friend groups, there was rarely any interaction between them. Nevertheless, he’s heard countless praises for her artistic talent even as a student, therefore reserved a tinge of respect for her reputation.

“Draco Malfoy! It’s been such a long time!” She beams at him. A breathy laugh escapes him as a polite smile settles on his lips.

“Definitely has been. Were you eyeing this set as well?” He glanced back at the ceramics, contemplating on bidding for them in the auction. The sight of them evoked a warm, admirable energy within him, as though they called for his presence.

“Heavens, no. I actually made them.” Y/N took notice of the way he glanced at them, and shyly rubbed the back of her neck. The boy turned to her with eyes widened in awe of her brilliance—the smile of politeness immediately transitioning to one of sincerity.

“You made these? They’re beautiful!” The comment brought heat to her cheeks. 

“Draco, please. You flatter me so.” 

“I’ll be taking these home without a doubt.” He reassures her. In the moment that he says so, he immediately takes notice of her appearance. Her hair was slicked into a low bun. Her makeup gave her a pleasant dewy look. Gold accessories accentuates her deep emerald evening gown, which only emphasizes her curves as it flows down her body. He couldn’t recall her ever being attractive when they were students—she had always been clad in blue. But, tonight proved that green was definitely her color.

“You look lovely, by the way.” He complimented as his eyes glossed over her. She bit her lip in response to the butterflies that formed in her stomach.

“You always had a way with words didn’t you, Malfoy?” The melodic laugh that she produced, in turn, caused his heart to skip a beat.

“I admit I was a prat, but I’m not joking around this time.” The girl let out another giggle before placing her hand on his shoulder and giving it a quick squeeze. 

“I think you look rather dashing yourself. Unfortunately, though, I have to get going. I’ll see you around?” 

“It would be my pleasure.” Draco watches Y/N’s figure as she walks away. Before she goes any further, she looks over her shoulder and says, “Good luck with the auction!” 

With a small wave and smile, the boy is left in a lighter state.

The gala came and went with Draco thoroughly exhausted from the copious amounts of socialization. Questions regarding connections to his father were asked, business cards were exchanged, and flattery and compliment was a common occurrence amongst these interactions. Nevertheless, the boy’s energy especially drained from the intensity of the auction that occurred towards the end of the night. All the art pieces were valuable and beautiful, however it was only then that he realized that he wasn’t the only one drawn to Y/N’s work. Competition for the highest bid was at an all-time high as number paddles were desperately raised for every price announced. His heart clambered in his chest as the thought of keeping the ceramics seemingly slipped from his grasp. 

“Highest bid for 80,000 galleons! Do we have any takers?” The auctioneer announces. Draco waits for a second to see that no one has raised their paddles. Within the next, he lifts his own confidently. 

“We have a bidder for 80,000 galleons! Do we have any more bidders? No?” At this point, adrenaline coursed through his veins, beads of sweat had formed and fell, and the grip on his paddle tightened, leaving marks on his hand.

The auctioneer proceeds to announce the final countdown, “Final bid for 80,000 galleons! 1, 2, 3, sold to Draco Malfoy!” Relief overcame him while congratulatory praises were given by those nearby. He catches Y/N’s gaze from afar, and throws her a wink, signifying the resolution for the chaotic night.

--

As attendees began to file out of the building, the boy waited in the hall to collect his reward, filling out the form that confirmed the amount he had to pay. With his attention drawn to the slip, he fails to notice Y/N’s presence beside him. She looks over his shoulder, eyes widening at the amount before looking away to suppress the smile that threatens to form on her lips. She never really gave much monetary value to her art before; each one was produced as a product of passion and love. However, the expression that it first brought to Draco’s face, in addition to the amount of effort he put in to attain them, reassures that her work will be well taken care of. She momentarily stares at his broad shoulders before gaining the courage to speak.

“Congratulations!” She says, startling him once again. He takes a second to collect his breath before looking up at her.

“Do you plan on giving me a heart attack, Y/L/N, or is it in your nature to be overly enthusiastic?” The shameless smirk she has on her face, prompts him to release a chuckle. He stands up straight as soon as he signs the piece of paper, engaging his line of vision with hers.

“The way you respond is not my fault, Malfoy.” She answers, playfully shoving her index finger towards his shoulder. He grabs her wrist, and the warmth from his hands, accompanied by the flirtatious gleam in his eyes, prompts her to cast the same expression. She shoots him a coy smile before he releases her from his grasp.

“Would you like to accompany me to the front?” He asks.

“That’d be lovely.” The pair approaches the stage where the volunteers greet them both. They present his items upon confirmation, and proceed to wrap each bowl individually. He lifts one of the unwrapped pieces to his eyes, examining the gold details.

“How’d you manage to pull this off?” He asks, impressed by her craftsmanship.

“It’s a technique called ‘kintsugi’. I learned it while living in Japan for a while after the war,” She says, reaching her hand out for it. He gives it to her.

“You know, these pieces were never supposed to be auctioned off in this gala,” She explains as she delicately traces the lines, “They were so damaged. You can even consider them to be broken beyond repair,” Draco observes as she lifts it to her eye level.

“But obviously, when pieced back together—with all their cracks emphasized by the gold—they have much more value and beauty,” Y/N gives it back to Draco, and he takes it gingerly.

“However, It took a long time for it to come out that way. When you examine the piece before its repair, the first thought in mind would be to discard it. After all, why would anyone bother mending a broken bowl?” She meets his eyes once again.

“These cracks would typically be considered flaws, but at the end of the process the piece is still whole—I’m still whole. They mean a lot to me, and helped me heal from the war and all.” Her line of sight drifts towards the end of her statement, yet the boy catches himself appalled by the passion in her voice. He didn’t expect her to speak so openly, yet the words that flowed from her mouth touch him in a way he can’t comprehend. For once he feels a glimmer of hope budding within. For once, inspiration meets him, and he doesn’t want to lose that feeling she effortlessly provided. 

“I’ll make sure to take great care of them.” He says with much sincerity.

He places the piece back onto the table, and turns back to Y/N to see a sweet smile on her lips.

“I have faith you will.” A knowing look is shared between them--one that makes both hearts flutter in longing to see each other again.

“Do you think we can keep in contact? If it’s alright with you that is. I’d like to become more familiar with this art technique.”

“The Slytherin prince wants to keep in contact with me? Consider me wooed.” Draco rolls his eyes and chuckles at the old title. Before he could respond, she speaks again with more seriousness, “I don’t usually accept visitors in my studio, but I’ll make an exception for you. You can come by sometime, if you’d like.” 

A genuine smile appears on his lips for the second time that night. Out of all the individuals he exchanged contacts with, she by far had been his favorite. He ensured to send her an owl to confirm their meeting, hoping to do so some time next week. 

As they part, she turns back one more time, and calls out to him, “Draco,” The sound of his name perks his head upward

“You should smile more. It’s a lovely sight.” Before he could see her face erupt in a blush, she apparates away. With his new belongings in hand and an obvious grin, he too returns to the manor, feeling elated for the first time in a long while.

--

It was nine o’clock by the time Draco apparated home. Narcissa immediately took notice of his change in aura much to her relief.

“How was the gala, dear?” She asks.

“Quite pleasant this time around, if I’m being honest. I won these at an auction.” Draco stated as he props the box on top of a table. His mother approaches him, attention drawn to the objects when he reveals the contents inside.

She gasps, “Oh my stars, they’re beautiful.”

She picks one up delicately. The expression she had on her face was very much identical to the one he sported when he came across them the first time.

“I knew you’d like them. The artist was a fellow classmate of mine at Hogwarts.”

“Oh? Who is it? I would like to see more from this artist.”

“Her name is Y/N Y/L/N. Quite brilliant she is.” Mother’s instinct told Narcissa that this girl had her son taken aback. She saw it through the pleasant expression that graced his facial features, which contrasted greatly to the gloomy air that usually accompanied him. Furthermore, there was a decadent tone in his voice, a sparkle in his eyes, and a slight smile present when her name rolled off his tongue. She decided to probe a little bit more.

“House?”

“Ravenclaw.” He responds.

“Very fitting. The craftsmanship in her work is amazing,” The woman’s eyes marveled at the gold.

“How is she?” She asks. The question catches the boy off guard.

“Pardon?”

“How is she doing? Has she been okay since the war?”

“We didn’t touch upon it too much. Although, she mentioned that creating these has helped her heal.” 

“You mean to say that these were broken at one point?” 

“Precisely. She mended them.” At this point, Narcissa was quite taken by the girl as well. 

“You should invite her over one of these days. I’d love to have a cup of tea with her.” Draco quirked a brow at her.

“You’re not going to ask about her blood status?” 

“I would’ve known she was a pureblood from her last name, but times are changing aren’t they not?” Narcissa flashes a tightlipped smile towards her son, to which he responds with a nod of understanding.

“I’ll be going up then. You can keep that one mother. You seem to take a liking to it.” Draco turns on his heel at the end of his statement, carrying the box of ceramic goods under his arm. He wouldn’t acknowledge that times are changing. However, tonight has been the only instance he had felt his life shifting  —from the way he reunited with Y/N, to the way his mother spoke. It was a step forward to redemption, and he felt a little more willing to see where it would go.

The boy sat on his bed, deep in thought. With moonlight shining upon him, he delicately traced the golden lines that streaked the small bowl in his hands. Then with much hesitation, he rolled up his left sleeve and began tracing the blaring curves of the mark that stained his porcelain skin. Its presence resembled shackles that have been chained to his ankles, and the weight of the memories caused him to grimace. However the budding warmth that had seeped within him soothed the negative sensations. Heart palpitations of regret transformed into those of hope. Furthermore, recollection of the girl’s words rang through his mind. It led him to wonder if piecing himself into something better would ever be a viable reality—a dream so tempting to pursue that he brought himself to his desk to start a letter addressed to her.

--

Y/N awoke to a tapping noise on her window. With heavy-lidded eyes, she peeks through her curtains only to be met by an eagle owl. Its wide orbs stared directly at her, and attached to its beak was an envelope. She recalled the conversation she had with a certain platinum-haired boy from the night before, and immediately jolted upward, pushing the window open to let the animal in.

“Do you belong to Draco, love?” It perches itself on her shoulder, and drops the envelope into her hands. A wax seal presents itself with an ‘M’, confirming her inquiry. She opens it with much carefulness, and pulls out the letter inside.

Y/L/N,

How does this Thursday sound? 5:00?

DM

The girl chuckled at how straight-to-the-point he was, while her mind flitted back to their school days. She had always felt neutral about him. In contrast to popular belief, she didn’t think he was quite bad. Despite the harshness behind his actions, his eyes always maintained an undertone of fear. Upon the revelation that the boy was indeed a death eater, the title itself wasn’t what stirred her. Rather, it was the incomprehensible experience that she could merely picture him going through. She was there when he crossed sides. She was no stranger to the distraught look on his face--fear had overtaken him even in that moment. He might’ve been flawed, but it wasn’t without reason.

A cry from the owl broke her out of thought. “Impatient are we?” It blinked in response. Not wanting to keep the bird waiting any longer, she pulls out a piece of parchment and begins to write a response to the letter. 

Y/N inserted the parchment into an envelope, sealed it, and handed it to the owl only after she gave it a treat. As she watched it take flight from her window sill, she contemplated more on the boy. ‘Kintsugi’ the art of broken pieces and precious scars. As thoughts of him lingered, she began to wonder if how he fared ever since the war had drawn to its close. Before she knew it, she carried along with her work, totally occupied with the image of him in mind.

--

Draco’s heart beat like a drum when he skimmed through the contents of Y/N’s response. The feeling of nervous excitement erupted within his stomach up until the moment he stood on her doorstep. Besides the instances in which he’d gone out for his parents, it had been a long while since he stepped foot outside for himself. He took sight of the sheet of clouds that blanketed the sky, the small plants that were scattered on her porch, and the movement of the curtain as wind blew through her open window. 

Mere seconds of waiting were filled with more self-doubt as he tugged on his left sleeve, clenching his forearm soon after. Not much could be guaranteed from this meeting. For all he knew, this might’ve been a one a time thing. However, such thoughts were casted aside once he was greeted with Y/N’s glowing smile.

“Draco! It’s so nice to see you!” She stepped aside to let him in, “Please come in.”

The boy greets her, and looks around her small space. He indulges in the glimpse of her expressive decor--somehow they represented the life that she had built and created for herself over time. 

“Darling, your jaw is going to fall off,” she chuckled, “Come, the studio is in the back.” The girl gestures at him to follow her, and is met with a small building stationed behind the main house. The image of shelves fills his view upon entering. On them were stacks of cracked ceramic—some in large pieces, others in small. Towards the far corner of the room was a pottery wheel, and opposite from it was a small gas kiln. In the middle was a table space with various tools, brushes, lacquer, and gold. The room was as neat as it could be, much to Draco’s surprise.

“This is me.” Y/N turns around with her arms spread out. She then proceeds to pull a stool out for the boy and urges him to sit. He does so, and she stands in close proximity to him, leaning on the table for support.

“I was actually working on a piece before you came.” The girl points to her current project—a vase whose cracks have already been bound.

“What’s the process like?” He asks

“It’s much longer than you think. I learned how to do it the traditional way in Japan, and I haven’t deviated from it ever since.” The boy quirks a brow.

“You mean to say that there are faster methods?”

“There are, however it’s the process I appreciate the most I suppose. Mending takes time after all.” Y/N, who had been looking down at her feet, glances up at him to see his brows furrowed inwardly. 

“Don’t you get impatient?” She nods in reminiscence.

“I used to in the past, but all things worth anything take time, right?” They stare at each other for a moment. Draco, who has longed for the feeling of redemption, looked into the pure intent within her eyes. The silence prompts her to slip a small smile at him. 

“How about you, Draco Malfoy? How have you been?” There it was: The question that he could never answer (not truthfully anyway). Despite being in the center of all his thoughts, he hadn’t developed the courage to face them properly. He was stuck in a routine of living that provided a false sense of security. However, the present brought him to the realization that he had never been secure--not with himself.

“Not as good as what people see at face value.” He said simply.

“I never would’ve thought. Although, I suppose it just shows that we can never truly judge others, huh?”

“Yes, definitely.” He allowed his view on her to linger before speaking again.

“I actually wanted to see the way you worked.” It was her turn to quirk a brow at him.

“And why’s that?”

“To see the mending process.” Y/N remained silent as she analyzed the longing look in his eyes. His silvery orbs conveyed volumes of a history that was left unspoken. 

He continued, “I want to believe that broken things can be mended.” The determination in his eyes reminded her of why she began learning kintsugi in the first place. Behind the determination was hope that longed to be born to fruition. 

“I have one condition,” she said. His eyebrows arched in response.

“You can watch me, but you have to do some mending yourself.” She stepped away at the end of her statement and reached for something on her shelves. When she came back, she grabbed the boy’s hand, and placed a small bowl in his palm. It was a simple piece--still intact--taking on a warm, grey sheen. He looked at her with confusion, only to be met with seriousness. 

“Kintsugi begins when something breaks, and it focuses more on the beauty of the process rather than the outcome. That being said, it requires a lot of patience and acceptance.”

“I’m not an artist, Y/N. It won’t be perfect.” The girl takes hold of his other hand, and cups it within hers firmly. 

“It doesn’t have to be, Draco. The process belongs to you. You just have to trust yourself.” She said earnestly with her grip on him tightening. The warmth from her hands emanated through his skin and into his chest. She stood so close now, her head tilted upward to meet the uncertainty on his face. It made him feel vulnerable, but he stared back into her eyes with much resolve. It was an answer as it is.

Y/N gave him a reassuring smile and stepped away from him.

“I want you to drop that bowl. You don’t have to smash it, just let it fall.” Draco shifted his glance and looked at the bowl hesitantly. After a couple of seconds, he releases his hold, and allows the piece to slip from his fingers. His eyes were trained on it as it fell through the air, meeting its fate with a shattering sound. The bowl that was once intact was now in pieces on the floor, eliciting a familiar ache within him. It had split into five--a large one, one medium, and three more that were much smaller that comprised the object's rim.

As he bent down to pick up the pieces, a new wave of ambition overcame him. Each chip was picked up with much mindfulness, with responsibility, with purpose. When he stood up again, he began to perceive them as a reflection of himself, and gently placed them on the workbench.

Y/N, who witnessed the entire scene, smiled when Draco turned to face her. Her lips were pulled up gently, sweetly, and it evoked rosy feelings inside him. The boy eyed her as she went back to the shelf.

“How do you feel?” She asked. Her back was turned to him as she reached for another bowl. 

“Light.” She smiled at the sound of his response. She returned with a teal-colored bowl in hand. Following his previous actions, she dropped it, allowing the sounds of shatters to fill their ears once more.

“What are you doing?” He asks. 

“You think I’m going to make you do this alone?” The girl bends down as she gingerly picks up the chips of ceramic from the floor. She proceeds to clear out the table, leaving only the utensils to be used to start the process. 

“The materials I use are already here, but we’ll be working only with the lacquer for today.” The two set off to organize their pieces, hearts becoming more aware of one another as time passes on. After everything got sorted out, she demonstrated layering a coat of lacquer to the edges. Draco examined the way the smile instantly left her face, only to be replaced with a focused expression. Her eyebrows lowered, lips in a firm line, sights fixed on the ceramic. He also noticed how languid her fingers were in handling each piece with care. 

The solemnity of the sight is broken as she parts her lips to speak again, “Did you know that the lacquer is toxic?” He shakes his head when she spares him a glance momentarily before setting her gaze back onto the chips. “It’s toxic when wet, therefore much care needs to be taken when you lay it on the edges.” She then takes the smaller pieces and proceeds to add lacquer on them as well.

“However,” She continues, “as it dries, it hardens and mends the bowl perfectly.” She attaches the pieces together, and lifts the bowl carefully to show him. The boy stares at her flawless handiwork--the cracks reveal themselves as mere lines, seemingly invisible to the naked eye. 

“Strange, right? A substance that was once toxic is used to mend. When it dries it restores the product to perfection, and loses its toxicity.” Draco simply nods. It was a hard concept for the boy to grasp, but her words tickled a corner of his heart. How could something so bad be used to restore something that was once whole into perfection? He gazes at his own project while Y/N sets hers down carefully.

She passes the materials to him, observing as he gingerly takes the brush in hand. He dips it into the pool of lacquer, raising a glob of it up from the bottle.

“You don’t need too much, just enough so that the brush is covered completely.” She reached out to grab his hand, to demonstrate what she had meant. After realizing their closeness, however, she turned a shade of pink and stepped back. Draco tried his best to hold back his smile, but failed miserably.

“I’m s-sorry.” She stammered. He chuckled at her. 

“Nonsense, I’m all for this form of instruction.” He said teasingly, eliciting a laugh from her.

“Don’t mind me, just concentrate.” She ordered. Silence loomed, but smiles remained on their faces. Draco continued his work, emulating the way she coated her edges. He gripped each chip firmly while his eyes trailed the movement of the brush. Each second spent felt like darkness was being extracted from within, leaving him light and solemn. With much caution, he then pressed them together, and watched as the product adopted its once flawless form. With an approving look, Y/N explained the proceeding steps, immediately noticing the relaxed expression that had settled on his features. Deciding to take a break, the two embark to the main house to relax.

“Since we have to wait a while, is there anything you want to do? To eat?” She asked as they entered the room. The question, however, was left unanswered due to the sighting of a familiar looking uniform. Hung on her wall was a Ravenclaw robe.  

“You still have it?” He asked, pointing to the article of clothing with his chin. She chuckled and pulled it off it’s hanger.

“Yeah. I found it a couple days ago, and thought I’d try it for old times sake.” She slipped it over her shoulders, pulling the boy through a series of flashbacks from his time in Hogwarts. He recalled passing her by the hallways, getting small glimpses of her sketches, even seeing her vibrant personality shine with her friends.

“You know, I always thought you looked better in green.” He said approaching her.

“You think so?” He nodded.

“It’s a shame that we never really talked much. I think we would’ve been good friends.” She said in response.

“You think so?” 

“Well besides the bullying, yes. I don’t think you’re as bad as people portray you to be.” 

“You give me too much credit, Y/L/N.”

“Maybe you deserve a little more credit than you were granted.” This sparked more warmth within the boy. As she ordered food for delivery, Draco took a seat at her table, his gaze locked on her with the robe still propped on her body. His thoughts drifted as he imagined what might’ve happened if he did befriend the girl. How different would he be if he had her for company? How close would he have allowed their friendship to become? His mind began to wander and he ruminated on the what-could-have-beens, most especially the effect that his receiving of the dark mark would have had on her. His fingers flitted to his arm and rubbed the portion of fabric that covered his mark.

Y/N sat across from the boy, immediately noticing his dazed look.

“What’s on your mind?” She inquires. The boy broke off from his thoughts and refocused his attention to her.

“Just thinking about the past.”

“What of it?” She asked. He looked at her with slight reservation in his eyes.

“How different things would be if we were friends.” Her thoughts lingered on the possibilities for a while before she abandoned them completely. Only one realization came into mind:

“Well, we’re friends now. Perhaps everything that happened in the past was needed for us to meet like this.” She slid off her robe and propped it back on the hanger. 

She continued, “Whatever it is, I wouldn’t have it any other way. Now belongs to us.” 

In that moment, a switch flipped in Draco’s mind, and he knew those words would stick to him for a long time. Maybe it wasn’t a chance at redemption that he yearned for--the conversation he had with her made him realize that the chance had always been presented to him--rather it was company. Genuine company. The one that opened their arms for comfort, the one that offered understanding when he couldn’t offer some to himself, the one that provided reassurance that everything was going to be okay. 

She didn’t need to elaborate. Her words conveyed her intent clearly, her eyes blazed with firmness, confidence, and faith in him. The boy closed himself off for way too long out of the fear that he’d be rejected once again. The anxieties that had resulted from the foul glances, derogatory statements, and prematurely formed accusations towards his family locked him away to the only source of comfort that was available to him--himself. How was it possible that he made it through on his own all this time? He barely held on to a thread, and as he crumbled further, so did his grip. And when the grip was no more, he fell into the hollowed body that he was. He allowed his darkness to swallow him, to control him as he mindlessly drifted with each passing day. 

Until now.

Right now, in the stillness of the room, in the comfort of her dining table, in the presence of her worn out Ravenclaw robe, the thread had reconstructed itself. It presented itself as the small smile that softly graced her lips, the scent of clay that lingered on her hands, and his bowl that sat solemnly streaked with cracks in the workshop behind the main house. 

“I suppose you’re right.” The boy showed a smile of relief, which prompted the girl to reach out for his hand, giving it a firm squeeze.

“Here’s to our friendship!”

--

There were very few things that Draco cherished in his life: his family and his solitude. As weeks flew by with Y/N’s company, however, he found that his heart was beginning to create space for her as well. It began subtly with the way he silently observed her actions. She catered to each of her pieces with the same amount of dedication--every detail incorporated with mindfulness, with care, and intention. She exerted a similar effort when it came to guiding him. Every step in the process was taught with much patience. Her soft hands would graze his own in attempts to correct his form, to stabilize his shakiness, and to relieve him of the tension that came with his perfectionistic tendencies.

-flashback-

The sound of Draco’s uneven breaths made themselves aware in Y/N’s presence. She had left him alone to tend to his project and herself to her own. Muscle memory led her to scrape off the excess traces of lacquer from the cracks, while the boy fixed his concentration on sanding the surface of his bowl smooth. Scratching noises filled the air, and only became more amplified as minutes ticked onward. It was unfamiliar to the girl--the action itself shouldn’t have required much energy. With a brow arched upward, and her gaze directed towards him, the sight of furrowed brows and tense lines fill her view, eliciting a chuckle from her.

“You’re going to break the bowl at that rate, Draco.” The boy unclenched his jaw and gave Y/N an exasperated look, increasing the volume of her laughter.

“I told you I won’t be perfect.” 

“What is it that you’re having trouble with?” Y/N asked, as she made her way to his side of the table.

“Some of the excess just won’t budge from its place.” Draco huffed in frustration. She removed the bowl from his grasp, and examined the object. On the other hand, he takes the liberty to step closer to her, his face peering over her shoulder. The heat emanating from his body distracted her, which she responded to by immediately returning her attention to the remnants that resided on its cracks.

“It helps to focus on one spot at a time,” She grabs the crumpled piece of sandpaper laying on the side, and connects its surface to the porcelain. He watches as she uses minimal yet focused motions to scrub at the excess. Slowly but surely the residue clears out, revealing a clean, crisp line. “See?” She turns her head to the side only to be met with his in such close proximity. His breath softly brushes against her skin. His silvery orbs dive deep into her y/e/c ones. The pulses of their heartbeats ring through their ears, and the concentration shifts from the demonstration to one another. 

It’s the apparent flush staining his skin that has her pulling away. 

“Why don’t you try?” She nervously asks. Y/N hands the bowl to the boy, and observes as he attempts to emulate her actions. With motions still stiff and choppy, she finally takes his hand into hers.

“Relax, Draco. You need to be patient with it.” With slender fingers wrapped around the back of his palm, she guides his grip with focused and particular motions. The repetition engrains itself into his muscle memory, and he quickly gets the hang of it. He exhibits relief with every remnant removed. In return, she releases her grip and looks at him with a satisfied expression.

“Thank you.” He says, and he means it. With perfection constantly being expected of him, the feeling of humility that comes with being a beginner is foreign. He had always been pushed into the limelight--the weight of his family name designates the image of flawlessness, elegance, and poise in all that he did. No room for mistakes. He was required of only the best. So, when he looks at her and gazes at his hands, a genuine smile spreads on his lips. 

The expectation for perfection may have taunted his past, but the realization of his commitment in giving his best brought out a clear sense of victory despite the imperfect process that had been associated with it.

--

Some days are tougher than others. The nightmares make it difficult to get through the night regardless of how infrequent they became. It always resulted in him waking up, broken into a cold sweat. Goosebumps peppered his skin, the hair behind his neck stood straight, and he would gasp for air. With regret once again overcoming him, a weight forms in his throat--it’s impossible to go to sleep now. Moreover, the fear for the lack of a peaceful slumber keeps him wide awake until sunrise, and there is only one word that shouts at him in the back of his mind.

“Mudblood.”

“Mudblood.”

“You filthy mudblood!”

The sayings are coupled with the memory of his back pressed onto the cold, wet, bathroom floor. He could recall the stinging sensations that pricked his body, the sight of blood seeping through the white fabric of his uniform, and the energy that was draining from his spirit. It was the lowest he has ever been--mere moments away from what could’ve been his end. Maybe that’s what should’ve happened. There was no one for him to turn to--the warmth of his mother’s arms was so far away, the act of shedding tears was sacrificed to protect his family, and the fact that he was already repulsive in the eyes of others caused his hope to plummet. There wasn’t anyone who he could call his true friend--one he could confide in to relieve the burdens he had faced.

But there was Y/N. The erratic heartbeats that rang against his chest subside when he remembered the firmness within her voice as she cheered for their friendship. The sparkle and reassurance that was displayed within her eyes tickled his heart in a way that he hadn’t experienced before. The soft touch of her hands reminded him that he wasn’t alone. The patience in her voice reminded him that despite all of his shortcomings, there was always hope for change. 

It was then that he’d pluck himself out of bed, and take hold of the ceramic piece that laid prettily on his desk. With deep breaths, he ran his fingers through its golden streaks, allowing the chilled sensation to calm him down. His eyelids would flutter close, and he’d envision her soft smiles, her chipper personality, and the passion that was expressed through her eyes whenever she worked. He’d recall the worn-out Ravenclaw robe hanging on the wall of her dining room, and remember that she was there. She believed in him. She had given him a chance. With his mind set to ease and the morning sun illuminating through the fabric of his curtains, Draco picked up his own broken pieces, and binded himself with the faith she had as the lacquer to keep him together. 

Narcissa and Lucius had noticed subtle changes in the boy. A peaceful light had returned to his silvery eyes, the frown that graced his lips began to fade with time, and the tension that he held in his joints loosened. He treaded the halls with his back upright, his vision trained straight ahead--each step filled with more purpose than the last. They didn’t make it known to him, but the sight brought them much joy.

--

It was a cloudy day when Draco returned to Y/N’s workshop. This time around, however, there’s much more uncertainty and nervousness within him as he stands in the midst of her working. 

Earlier that morning, Narcissa mentioned hosting a ball within the manor (something that hasn’t been done in forever). Invitations were sent out already, the RSVP list continues to grow, and the property itself has been decorated to exhibit its new grandeur. Of course, he agreed to it--slightly concerned about how they’d be perceived--but he was more thrown off by his mother’s only request:

“Please bring Y/N with you, Draco. I’d like to commission her for a piece.” In his mind that translated into, “I want to meet the girl you’ve been constantly visiting.” He knew his mother wasn’t against her. He was more worried about how Y/N, herself, would respond.

The familiarity of her focused expression surfaces, and it attracts him much more than it has before. Her hands are nimble, and she moves fluently. Her hair was tied into a low and messy bun with loose strands framing her face. Her appearance now was much different than their first meeting at the gala, yet his mind went back to that night--picturing her beauty in her deep emerald green dress. With his feelings for her more clarified, he feels his heart beat at the thought of her touch, moreover the thought of his touch on her. Would she even return his feelings? 

“Draco, are you alright? You’ve been staring this way for a while now.” He takes the opportunity to test the waters.

“I needed to ask you something actually.” He goes around and pulls a stool to sit on, meeting the level of her gaze.

“And that is?”

“My mother asked for you,” He said, fumbling with his fingers, “My family is hosting a ball, and she wants you to come--she wants to meet you.” He notices the way her eyes widen at the sound of his announcement. 

“I’m sorry. Come again?” Draco released a soft chuckle before reaching into his pocket. He pulls out a decorated envelope with her name printed on the front.

“This is yours.” She takes it from his grasp gingerly and brushes her fingers on the fine embellishments. Realization hits her when she skims across the familiar letters of her name.

“I’ve imagined many things in my life, but they certainly don’t come close to this. Wow, imagine being invited to a Malfoy ball.” Her words flowed out with awe, softening his heart. He reaches out, and tucks one of the loose strands behind her ear. The action forces her to look into his eyes.

“She’s taken quite a liking to your work.” His smile brings out one of her own.

“I’m honored.” She starts to beam, “I should go dress shopping soon.” Her eyes remain transfixed on the information given on the actual invite itself.

“I think you’d look beautiful in anything you decide to wear.” It was meant to be a thought--meant to stay in his head--but it came out, and now the girl felt her face get hot. She covered it with her hands, while the boy just looked up at the ceiling to avoid her gaze.

“You weren’t supposed to hear that.” He says.

“It’s fine.” 

“If it’s fine then why are your hands still covering your face?”

“Why are you still looking up?” Draco, lowers his chin and pulls her wrists away.

“I’m not anymore.” When the words leave his lips, and his eyes meet hers, he becomes aware of the amount of peace that he attained since meeting her again. In some way, the silence that fills them is overtaken by the messages that their gazes send to one another, both containing gratitude and affection. 

“So will you come with me?” He asks.

“Definitely.”

--

 Y/N paced back and forth while many aristocrats stepped into the manor with much poise in their step. She didn’t mind formal events when it came to art, however, this case felt entirely foreign to her realm of comfort. She wasn’t from a wealthy family nor was she pureblooded either. Surely the end of the war had initiated a shift in change, but the significance of blood status still persisted in some even after. Nevertheless, she made herself present. With much resolve and a false sense of confidence, she stepped into the entrance of the building.

The foyer was bustling with chatter--many attendees stood with glasses of champagne in hand. Still in an awkward stature, the girl takes a look around. The ceilings were decorated with crystal chandeliers. Velvet curtains were pulled to the side, exposing massive windows. Arches, columns, even the walls were covered with ornamental carvings. Every single aspect portrayed luxury. Whenever Draco visited the girl, she discarded his association to wealth and solely focused on him as a person. Because of this, the realization that the boy actually had some coin in his pockets hit her like bricks. 

Draco, who had kept his eyes locked on the girl, chuckled to himself. She stuck out from the crowd with her eyes widened in awe. Not to mention her attire. Her hair was kept straight down with golden clips holding it tucked behind her ear. Furthermore, she was dressed in a champagne mermaid gown speckled with beads and embroidery, which flourished outwards and into a sheer fabric decorated with similar details. Her neckline plunged into the middle of her abdomen, yet her shoulders remained covered with long sleeves that wrapped themselves fittingly around her wrists. She truly had the tastes of an artist.

He quietly made his way to her as she continued to gawk at the room. “Your jaw is going to drop, darling.” He whispered in her ear. The feeling of large hands planting themselves on her waist caused her to let out a small yelp, pulling her out of her daze. She let out a breath of relief when she turned to see Draco’s face. 

“You scared me.”

“You were gawking at the walls.” Y/N rolled her eyes, and briefly skimmed him from head to toe. Heart skipping at the way his suit had admiringly framed his shape well. She giggled at the sight of the snake brooch that embellished the collar of his jacket.

“Always a Slytherin, aren’t you Malfoy?” As she brushed her fingers along the details of its design, Draco reached for her hand, and held it by her fingers. She could only stare as he lifted it higher to press his lips on it. Butterflies were felt everywhere.

“And a charmer.” She added. They shared a quick laugh before being interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat. Standing before them was Narcissa, who beamed at the sight of her son with the girl beside him.

“You must be Y/N Y/L/N. I admire your work, dear.” The older woman stuck her hand out, which the girl shook firmly.

“Thank you so much. It’s a pleasure to meet you Mrs. Malfoy.”

“Please, call me Narcissa.” The delight in her voice emitted a welcoming energy, loosening the nerves that Y/N felt early on.

“Thank you so much for inviting me, Narcissa.” 

“It was no problem at all, dear. I’d actually like to speak to you regarding a commission later on tonight. Would that be alright with you?”

“Of course! I’m honored you’d even considered me.”

“Very well, I’ll leave you two alone now. I hope you enjoy yourselves.” Sweet smiles and gazes were exchanged between the two women. After casting a knowing look to her son, she departs from the pair, disappearing into the crowd. 

“Draco, I’ll have you know that I can’t dance to save my life.” He snickered at her confession, already letting the comfort between them settle in.

“It’s alright. Let’s walk instead.” With arms hooked, Draco begins leading her away from the bustling room and into a secluded hall. Mounted on the walls were paintings of his predecessors. He introduced each patriarchal figure to her, starting with Septimus. Her vision plastered itself to their features, mentally discerning the traits that Draco inherited. After a while of walking and conversation, they finally got to a family portrait. Depicted on it was a younger-looking Lucius and Narcissa, and seated on his mother’s lap was a young Draco himself. Y/N unhooked her arm from his, and approached the painting. She concentrated on the little boy. He had bright eyes, a toothy grin, and flowing platinum locks. His hand gripped firmly on Narcissa’s, and his small legs dangled over her dress. He was the only one smiling in the painting, and it warmed your heart knowing that the artist decided to keep that detail in.

“What’s going on in that mind of yours?” He asks, stepping close. He hesitantly snaked his arm around her waist, hoping that she didn’t mind. She looked up to him and smiled, stepping even closer to him. 

“You were so small.” Draco scowled slightly. However, his heart skipped a beat when he saw the way she looked at the portrait with adoration, allowing his foul expression to fade.

“Well that was painted when I was seven, so it’s no wonder I was small.” His sarcastic remark caused her to roll her eyes again, softly slapping the hand that was planted on her. He glanced at her and squeezed her side tighter, pulling Y/N even closer to his body--his warmth increasing the amount of butterflies that rose in her stomach.

“When I walked in earlier, it completely slipped my mind that this was your house. That you grew up here.”

“Why’s that?” He asks, genuinely interested in her response.

“Everytime you came over, I only saw you as Draco. Not as Draco Malfoy, only son of Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy, and heir to the Malfoy family name.” 

“Please elaborate.” He commands, his heart now racing.

“You’re more than the expectations held for you. You came with commitment to learn about a process that you were genuinely interested in. You grew with your mistakes and your frustrations. That experience was you, and you alone.” She couldn’t help but reveal that admiration she had for him through her voice. 

“I thought it was amazing.” She whispered, hoping that he wouldn’t hear her. He did, however. In turn, he grabbed her hand and led her further down the hallway and into his room. Y/N stood there confused at his sudden action. Her eyes then begin to widen at the sight of him removing his suit jacket with her mind drifting to rather dirty thoughts. 

“Draco, what are you-” 

“I didn’t think it was possible.” Y/N furrowed her brows.

“What do you mean?” Draco looked into her eyes, before shifting his gaze to his left sleeve. Her line of sight follows him as he unbuttons his cuff, and rolls the fabric up, revealing his dark mark. She gasps.

“I didn’t think it was possible to mend myself.” It didn’t take him to say much for her to finally understand that he didn’t intend to do anything dirty. It was the opposite of that. He was making himself vulnerable to her.

“But you showed me how.” He said, completing his statement. Tears brimmed her eyes upon the realization of the reality he had to live. The blaring mark that took away his innocence screamed against his pale skin. It screamed of the pain, of loneliness, and the many many long sleeved shirts he must’ve worn to keep it hidden away. 

“If there’s anyone amazing, it’s you, Y/N.” The tears that had built up fell as she furiously shook her head.

“No, Draco. It’s you. It’s all you.” She took his arm delicately into her hands and pressed her lips on his dark mark. Draco felt his eyes well up in tears, while her own spilled onto his skin. Every kiss that she peppered seemed to paint over his scars, his cracks with gold. The feeling of emptiness dissipated in her presence, only surrounding him with warmth that he had yearned to keep.

“I’m thankful for you.” He whispers. Y/N couldn’t hold herself back at that point anymore. She released his arm from her grip, and held his cheeks within her fingertips, wiping the moisture that managed to fall from his silvery orbs. She, then, slowly lifts herself using her tiptoes, and scans his face for a moment before pressing a sweet, short kiss on his lips. It was gentle, much like her. It was patient, much like her. It was filled with faith, hope, and concern--things that she hadn’t been able to express to him in words, yet was felt through her kiss. Draco closed his eyes at the sensation. When she parted from him, he cupped her face with his hands, and drew her close once more. A sigh escaped her as she felt all the emotions he managed to keep in. Each press conveyed a level of appreciation that the boy had never thought he was capable of showing. 

In that moment a memory of a shrill shout fills her mind, and she stops so suddenly.

“Weren’t you struck with sectumsempra?” She asks with her brows furrowed towards him. His lack of response confirms her curiosity. 

“May I?” Her fingers trail to the top of his shirt as she makes her request. Knowing what it is she wants to see, he nods, prompting her to carefully undo the buttons. Her hands tremble as she makes her way down, revealing the scars that resided on his body. She pushes the fabric over his shoulders, and begins tracing each one--much similar to the way he has done with the golden cracks on her bowl. She slowly lowers herself and starts placing kisses where he has been struck. With her hands gently fastened to his sides, her lips linger in one area before transferring to another. He finds comfort in them--it was as if each sensation reassured that he was loved. As she travels upward, she plants a kiss on his jaw, and a final one on his own. With it she expresses a message dedicated only to him: I believe in you.

They separate and bask in the moment by holding each other’s gaze. After a while, Draco wraps his arms around her waist, and pulls her into a tight embrace. He nuzzles his nose on the crook of her neck and kisses it, while she runs her hands up and down his bare sides. His left hand then finds its way to her jaw, tilting her face upwards. He proceeds to nip the expanse of her neck, making her head fall back to grant him more access. The hand that was wrapped around her waist travels downwards to her hip, grips it, and presses her body against his. 

“Draco,” she moans.

“Hm?” She doesn’t respond. She finds herself completely intoxicated by his lips as he moves from her neck, her sternum, and to her exposed abdomen. Instead, she laced her fingers into his hair and pushed him closer to her skin. 

The pair was interrupted by the sound of a knock on the door. 

“Young master! Are you in there?” It was a houself. Draco presses a finger to his lips, signalling to remain quiet.

“I don’t think he’s there, we should check elsewhere.” Light footsteps were heard fading into the distance, eliciting a light laugh between the two. Y/N looks into his eyes once more, and kisses him one last time.

“Should we go?” He responds with a small ‘yes’ and kisses her forehead. As he buttons his shirt, the girl plods across his room, fascinated with its luxuriousness as she takes in the details. One of them causes her to gasp, however. She walks with her throat choking up at sight of the familiar bowl that was placed on his desk. It was hers. She lifts it gently, recalling their first conversation at the gala. The golden scars remind her heavily of the boy behind her. As she traces them, warm hands rub against her sides before snaking around her waist once more. 

“Does this mean you’re my girlfriend now?” Y/N laughs at his question.

“I suppose it does.” She says as she weaves her fingers into his. The boy takes a moment to stare at the bowl ahead.

“When you said that Kintsugi helped you heal, I wasn’t quite sure to believe you or not. But, going through the process was more than enough to make me understand why.”

“You truly are amazing Draco Malfoy. I won’t let anyone tell me you aren’t.”

“Even if my past is completely flawed?”

“Your past made you into who you are right now. What we have is ‘now’, and ‘now’,” she sets the bowl down and faces him, while her hand caresses his cheek. “...‘now’ belongs to us. Now you are amazingly, wonderfully, imperfectly perfect.”

Epilogue:

The sound of Y/N’s words rung in his mind as Draco found himself standing in the middle of her workspace. With a firm grasp on the brush handle, he dips the bristles into the gold liquid, allowing the excess to drip back.

He takes a deep breath, and allows the solemnity of the room to fill him. Many thoughts overtake him in the moment, but only one makes itself prominent to him, resilience. After going through the binding process himself, he pridefully lays down the gold over the cracks on his bowl--each one portraying the imperfections of his past.

A/N: Hi! If you made it this far, I want to thank you so much for reading! There’s a bit of inaccuracy in the last bit, but besides that I hope I brought much light to the technique in general. I hope you enjoyed!! Feedback is very much appreciated :D

Tagging:

@beiahadid @hahee154hq @mushi98 @stretchyice @dracosathenaeum @dreaming-about-fanfictions @saby06143 @rottenhexrt @littlethie @amithatemo

Link to the taglist is on my masterlist :D

[iwroteinapastlife]

Family Time

Newest chapter of my Chlonath Fake Dating AU, Honey I’m Home~

“Oh! Okay, I got it. He’s the son of Mr. Important Businessman and was raised to be cold and lifeless so he could take over the company someday. She’s the owner of Tiny Family Toy Shop, which his father is going to shut down—along with a bunch of other small businesses—so that they can set up their new location. She however is waayyyy more feisty than he expects and not only rallies the people to fight back, but also steals his heart and inspires him to change his father’s business for the better.”

From where they sat on the floor in front of the fireplace, they could hear the actual Hallmark movie playing on the TV over their shoulder, but neither of them were interested in actually watching it; their guessing game was far more entertaining.

“Alright alright,” Nathaniel nodded in agreement. He sat right behind her, arms and legs parted around her form so she could sit with her back to his chest and her front to the fire, getting absolutely as much warmth as possible. Usually, sitting so close to the fire for so long would have him sweating like hell, but Chloé’s natural cold seemed to keep him in perfect balance. He held each of her frigid hands in his, mindlessly playing with them as he spoke. “So who are the side characters?”

“Well first you’ve got cold business dad of course,” she began. “Then there’s Toy Shop Gal’s male childhood best friend who ‘knows what it’s like’—,” she air quoted, “for the white upper middle class ‘common folk,’ unlike Business Son. He’s been in love with her the whole time and acts like a jealous bitch when she starts getting close to Business Son.”

“Oh, let me guess,” Nathaniel chimed in, “he does something petty to make Business Son look bad, creating The Big Drama.”

“Of course, because the only conflict you can ever have around Christmas is based purely upon misunderstandings.”

“Of course, of course,” he nodded. “Okay, who else?”

“Okay, there’s Toy Shop Gal’s mom and pop who are a thinly veiled representation of Santa and Mrs. Claus, Business Son’s shallow ex-girlfriend who’s trying to convince him to keep to his own kind and just be the heartless business man he was raised to be, and the one—1—,” she held up a single finger to emphasize, “—person of color is Toy Shop Gal’s best friend who really only exists for a couple of conversations in which she teases Toy Shop Gal about her budding affections for Business Son.”

Nathaniel opened his mouth to continue, but before he could, Aunt Edith walked in, followed by her wife, Margaret, and son, Ryan. “Using French to gossip behind our backs again?” she asked as she took a seat on the couch across the room. Margaret sat down next to her while Ryan elected to sit on the floor near their feet.

“Oh, sorry,” Chloé said, switching back to English. She turned to face them and Nathaniel repositioned himself so he could keep cuddling her keep up with his appointed heater duties. “I guess we just naturally slip back into French when we’re alone.”

“Well stop,” Aunt Georgia said as she bustled in from the kitchen carrying two mugs of hot chocolate buried under mountains of marshmallows. “It’s English-speaking family time.” Isabella, Marianne, and Jasmine came in right behind her, each holding platters of various snack foods and their own mugs of hot chocolate. They each sat down on the floor around the coffee table.

“Chloé, share this with Nathaniel,” Aunt Georgia ordered as she handed over one of the hot chocolates. She gave the other one to Ryan.

Chloé plucked a single marshmallow off the top and fed it to him. “That’s all you get.” He laughed while she practically inhaled half the mountain of marshmallows.

Aunt Georgia looked around the living room as she took a seat in her rocking chair. “Where are mom, dad, and Audrey?”

“Right here!” Grandma Renee sauntered into the living room from the hall holding Grandpa Nick’s hand, Audrey following close behind. Audrey sat at the end of the couch next to Margaret, leaving the loveseat next to the tree for her parents. “Gift time?”

“Gift time,” Aunt Georgia confirmed.

Nathaniel leaned forward to steal another marshmallow. “You open gifts on Christmas Eve?”

“Mhmm,” Chloé hummed through her sip of hot chocolate. She offered him the mug, apparently deeming him worthy of such a privilege. “Just one. The rest are for tomorrow morning.”

“Alright Dad,” Edith said. “Start us off.”

“I get Renee!” he immediately said, leaning over and plucking a small wrapped gift from under the tree.

Chloé leaned back to whisper, “Grandpa claims Grandma’s first present every year.” Nathaniel smiled. Once again, Chloé’s grandparents were proving themselves to be the cutest old couple he’d ever heard of.

“And I get Audrey,” Grandma Renee continued. “Ryan, can you grab that terribly wrapped green one over there and give it to Aunt Audrey?” The boy nodded and took up his new station on the floor next to the tree.

“Okay,” Audrey replied, “then I’ll take Georgia.” She pointed for Ryan as he delivered her gift. “That red bag with the sparkly tissue paper.”

“I want Edith,” Aunt Georgia went on. She elected to get up and go find the gift herself instead of making her nephew work for her.

“I’ve got Ryan,” Aunt Edith continued. “You can grab that heavy one you’ve been eyeing all week.”

He nodded and grabbed another gift, holding it out to his cousin. “Marianne.”

“Then I’ll take Margaret,” she said, shuffling over to the tree to find it.

“Hmm,” Margaret thought a moment, “Jasmine. That lumpy blue one.”

“Okay! Love, can you find Chloé’s for me?” Marianne gave her a thumbs up.

Chloé tapped Nathaniel’s arm. “Go grab Izzy and Grandpa’s presents.”

He got up to follow orders, confused. “You’re taking two?”

“Of course, we have to.”

He had just handed Grandpa Nick his present and was about to ask why Chloé was taking two people when a gift suddenly appeared in front of his face. He looked up to see Isabella smiling at him, eyes practically sparkling. “You didn’t honestly think we were going to leave you out, did you?”

He blinked in surprise and tried to process what was happening while his hands automatically accepted the gift. “I-I— Well— Um— Th-thank you.” A fervent blush was rapidly taking to his cheeks, he could feel it. Because no, he most certainly did not expect her family to get him gifts.

Her grin widened as he handed over her gift. “Open it! I want to know if my guess was right.”

Nathaniel did as he was told as soon as he retook his place sitting behind Chloé. Her free hand naturally settled over his arm as he reached around her to tear open the gift wrap.

He blinked in surprise at the set of pastel acrylic paints in his hands.

“H-How…?” he looked at Chloé but she seemed just as confused as he was.

When the two of them had arrived two days ago, the hoard of gifts under the tree had already been complete—Chloé having sent hers ahead of time. He was absolutely positive that no gifts had been bought and added since then.

He was also absolutely positive that Chloé hadn’t told her family a single thing about him save his name before then.

And yet, somehow, not only had Isabella known to get him art supplies, she’d even gotten him the exact art supplies he had recently depleted.

“So I was right?” she asked giddily.

“Y-Yeah,” he stuttered out, looking up at her. “I just ran out of a lot of my pastel shades. How did you…?”

“We had Ryan internet stalk you.” The boy made a peace sign in confirmation. “After scrolling through your Instagram for a while, I noticed that you seemed to be going through some sort of pastel phase lately and thought you might be needing more.” She sat back against the couch holding her chin high in pride.

“Wow.” He blinked, absolutely bewildered by the lengths this family went to just to get him Christmas gifts. And a little bit scared. “I— Um… Thank you.”

“That reminds me,” Aunt Georgia spoke up, “why aren’t you two in a relationship on any of your social media?”

Nathaniel felt Chloé mildly tense up in his arms, but he didn’t miss a beat. “Publicity.” He absentmindedly stroked his thumb over her shoulder in a soothing gesture.

“Oh yeah, I suppose you’re still the mayor’s daughter, aren’t you?”

“Oh yes!” Grandma Renee chimed, “How is André?”

It was almost imperceptible, but he didn’t miss Chloé’s tiny beat of hesitation before smiling. “He’s good, Grandma. Really good.”

“And the hotel? Business is going well?” Grandpa Nick asked. Nathaniel spared a glance toward Audrey to see her even more disengaged than usual, bored eyes set on the television. Without thinking about it, he hugged Chloé the slightest bit closer.

“Yeah, it is,” she replied.

“Especially since she took over management,” he added with a smile. Her grandparents reflected it.

“Yeah?”

“Well, not to brag,” she said, completely bragging, “but employee and guest satisfaction has hit an all-time high since I stepped in.”

And as if on cue, the second Chloé was beginning to glow, Audrey decided to speak.

“Yes, well, shall we get to gifts?”

Chloé handled herself with grace as the conversation moved on. But Nathaniel didn’t miss the change in her breathing, or the way she took another drink to hide her expression.

He pulled her just a little bit closer—not enough to catch anyone’s attention, but maybe just enough to make sure she knew she was loved.

[water-hates-learning]

Heat

I was going to post this yesterday but yesterday was not a good time to post things for anyone. 

@mushroomminded‘s Nuclear Winter AU

———

Edd huddled in his pile of coats and blankets, shivering, despite the hundreds of layers, and tried to think of warm things.

Summer time…soup…tea…Ringo…

He swallowed hard and returned his attention to reality. Which wasn’t much better than his memories. The house was dark and empty and quiet. And painfully, painfully cold. The chill seeped into every crevice, every crack, every opening. It burrowed into his safe pile of attempted warmth and clawed at his bones until it hurt to move. And he was so terribly, tragically, inexplicably alone.

His stomach tightened painfully, to empty to even growl, and Edd choked on a sob. He was going to die here, alone and afraid, and no one would ever know.

Mittened hands snuck out of the blanket pile and picked up a box of matches from the floor beside him. He fumbled them open, nearly dropping the box, and his numb fingers, struggled to pluck one from amongst the handful that remained. Just a little light, just a little warmth, just a little something to drive away the cold that was chewing on his heart.

The sound of the match catching was loud against the frozen silence and the light stung his eyes as it flared to life.

Edd blinked the spots from his vision and nearly dropped the match in shock.

There was a fire. A brilliant fire dancing cheerfully in the stone fireplace across room. It lit the house with golden light, spreading warmth in slow waves. Edd stared, mouth agape. That fireplace hadn’t been lit in years. He blinked, trying to clear his head, his vision, and in those mere seconds, the match went out. The smell of burnt sulphur swirled into the air, mixing into the onsetting cold. Edd dropped the useless husk to the floor, his heart pounding, starring at the empty grate just visible in the gloom. It was as cold and lifeless as it ever was.

Without thinking, Edd fumbled and struck another match, the phosphorus glare making him squint.

There was food on the coffee table in front of the fireplace now. The coffee table they had chopped to pieces long ago for wood was whole and there were plates of toasted bread, steaming mugs of coco, cans of delicious cola, bowls of thick soup, and a huge platter of simmering meat. Edd starred at it, leaning forward, saliva collecting in his mouth. He could almost smell the feast across the room from him. If he just got up he could go over and—

Then he blinked and the match went out and the scene was gone.

A strained whine escaped his throat, his breath hitching, and he struggled for another match.

Another fizzing hiss, another flare of light and then the room was illuminated once more. The warm light of the fire pushed away the icy shadows. The rich scent of fresh food filled the house. There was a couch now, an old, familiar couch, and a television set up across from it, playing something bright and colorful.

“Edd!”

Tom was on the couch, a hot toddy in his hands, a bemused expression on his face, “What the hell are you doing on the floor? Get over here before Matt eats all the chicken!”

“I won’t!” Matt was beside Tom, scowling and holding a chicken leg, “There’s plenty left!”

“Oh yeah? How many have you had?”

“Only—only three pieces!”

Tom cackled and Matt pouted. Edd starred. His lip trembled. Then he launched himself to his feet, bursting out of the pile of blankets and coats and throwing himself across the room. He wrapped his arms around Tom and Matt, laughing through the tears streaming down his face.

“I’m so happy to see you again!” His voice was hoarse, choked, wavering with tears.

“We’ve been waiting for you.” Tom said, patting Edd on the back, “Now sit down, the movie’s starting.”

Edd settled onto the couch between the two of them, cracked open the can of cola Matt handed to him, and let the warmth sink into his bones.

On the floor, the smoke from the abandoned match drifted through the dark and the cold, turning to ice on the floor. The pile of blankets did not move. No other matches were struck. The house was silent.

———

You guys ever hear the story of The Little Match Girl…?

[tyrantdk]

Detective Atem Au

-slides this over to @iratheforeteller​, @dog-fish​, & @ygofanfiction​‘s mod morrow- Here’s the detective Atem au I mentioned last night in the cowrite party! After I got booted of the net, I worked on cleaning up the first scene. I hope you guys like this! Please enjoy!

Pale grey eyes looked up at him, waiting for a mercy that never came. They were lifeless, frozen in time. Blueish grey hair was fanned under her, framing her head in a halo. The pale skin was the ashen white of death. Beside her, Detective Atem ‘Pharaoh’ Pharos gazed emotionlessly down at his newest case. His hand was clasped around the Wadjet eye he wore. His lips moved slowly as he murmured the prayer his mother had taught him.

“Damn waste.” He said. He ran a hand through his unruly mahogany red hair. He knelt down to look closer at the angry red mark on her neck. Lanyard, probably. He thought as he glanced at the broken woven length. Her hand was curled tightly around something. Rigor would make it hard to get the object out. Malik can deal with it. I have a hunch it might be something missing from the lanyard.

His crimson eyes flicked to the crowd starting to form. His mind scanned them, looking for any possible leads or suspects. Atem’s partner in crime fighting, Akefia ‘Creeper’ Cryptos walked over from where he had been talking with a few uniforms. His silver hair was pulled back into a ponytail. His dark eyes were also taking in the crowd.

“Got a possible id on our Jane Doe. It’s pending any of Malik’s tests and a positive from any family, but I think it’s right.” He murmured loud enough for him to hear. Atem stood, knowing his partner didn’t do quiet. Akefia motioned to a group of five off to the side of the crowd. “Those are her friends. The shrimp’s her best friend, and he’s clammed up. Our uniforms can’t get anything out of him. Think you can work your magic on him?”

“I can try.” He said as he stood. He walked over to the group. There four people standing around a smaller person. They were protective of that figure. He would have to be careful with that one. Might have to take him to Mai’s for some of her apple pie a la mode.

The tallest person in the group was a golden blond male. Amber colored eyes watched the crowd, constantly moving from person to person. He was probably in his mid or early 20’s. By the haunted look in his eyes, he had seen far too much for his age. While he had a lean build, his body was coiled and ready to strike. The watchdog. Extremely loyal and protective. Definitely not our perp.

Beside the blond was the chief’s son. Atem would know that brunette hair anywhere. His brown eyes were rimmed in red. His Jane’s death had hit the kid hard. He must have had a romantic interest in her or was her boyfriend. Kid was a little more built than his friend, but he didn’t seem as ready to lash out. Hate that the kid’s gotta go through this.

The only other brunette was also the only female in the group. She was athletic, with a slender build. Dancer? It would fit with her short bob cut. Her arms were wrapped around the one in the middle. Her blue eyes looked around nervously. She didn’t seem as guarded as her two friends. His gaze moved on when she noticed him studying her.

He had to do a double take. The third male looked so similar to his partner from what he could make out. It was uncanny at first, but then he picked out the differences. He was far paler and not as bulky. His hair was pure white instead of silver. His eyes seemed like they were a lighter brown. The way he carried himself was different. He was far calmer, sage like, but still had a bit of that creepy vibe. I’d get more work done with him as my partner.

The group parted a bit as he stopped before them. The final person was revealed. He was about Atem’s height, and Atem stood a proud 5 foot 4. There was maybe an inch of difference at the most. His black hair was dyed red-violet at the tips and styled in pleasing spikes. He was lithe like his taller friends, but slender in a way they weren’t. His eyes were honest to god violet. He was as tan as Florida beach sand. Atem whimpered internally. The man was his dream lover looks wise on a platter.

“This is Detective Pharos, Detective Cryptos’ partner. If anybody can get Yugi to talk, it’s him.” Tristan said. He held his hand out to Atem. He took it. Firm, but not too hard, unlike his old man. He’s a good kid.

“I’ll get that bastard, I promise. I need to know everything. Please call me Atem. My car is just over there. My partner’s is beside it. Please place your two most quiet in my car and the noisiest in his. There’s a dinner about a block away, and I don’t want you walking there. We can talk there. The owner knows us very well.” The group walked over to where he had motioned.

“We’re taking them to Mai’s?”

“Yup. We’ve done all we can here, anyway. We’ll have to wait for Malik’s report after the autopsy. I want to know more about our Doe’s life. Who knows better than the friends?”

“Yeah, and it doesn’t hurt when there’s eye candy.”

“Please, remember we’re on the clock. It’s adult time, Akefia.”

“As long as you do the same.”

[snushthings]

I Love Her (Part One)

Pairing: Eliza Hamilton x Reader Warning(s): Angst, pining, Modern au, its terrible Word Count: 1,310 A/N: really i had no idea how alex and burr’s duel transferred to modern times so ignore the last paragraph lmao. for that lovely anon that requested eliza x fem reader fluff with angst (although this turned out more angst with fluff oops). i’m making this a two part series so- yeah,, i hope you like this whoever you might be anon friend! ____ Eliza Schuyler was your best friend. You wanted her to be happy. She deserved the world. And you were ready to give it to her on a silver platter if she asked. You loved her. More than a friend. But she didn’t feel the same. She loved him. Alexander Hamilton; the workaholic coffee addict that you despised. You never understood what she saw in him. While you only saw him for the recluse that he was, she seemed to look past that and see who he was on the inside. You refused to. Yet, when he was brought up in your conversations, you smiled. Only because Eliza smiled. 

Oh god, her smile- It left you breathless each time. The way her beautiful brown eyes crinkled in the corner. Or the way her beautiful laugh escaped her equally beautiful lips. You’d catch yourself staring and would quickly look away; laughing to yourself. When she was sad, you wanted to make her smile again. Usually, you would succeed. But sometimes, you’d enlist the help of her sisters; Angelica and Peggy. Together, you three would always bring the smile back to Eliza. You were there for her every step of the way. Every date she went on with Alexander, you were there to hear her late night gushings. “Oh (Y/N), he’s wonderful. I think I love him.” You were there when they had their first argument; they’d been bickering about Alexander missing date night. You had confronted him the next day. “Hamilton, what the fuck? You know Eliza had been looking forward to that date for weeks! I know you wanna get a leg up on whatever Thomas is working on, but really. Stop and think of what this is doing to Eliza!” You must’ve scared him. Because that following night, Eliza was back to gushing about her love for him. While it still pained you to hear her speak so lovingly of Alexander, you were glad she was happy. As long as she’s happy. It was no surprise to you when Eliza announced her engagement. She’d called you that same night, nearly screaming in excitement. You could barely hear what she was saying, but were able to pick up a few keywords: Alexander, engagement, married, and bridesmaid. You were able to congratulate her before she hung up to call her sisters. That night, you cried. You cried knowing your shot with Eliza was gone. You cried knowing she’s happy. That was all that mattered. Their wedding was beautiful. You cried when you saw Eliza in her dress. You cried when you helped her with her veil. You cried as she hugged you before you went out ahead of her. You wore your bridesmaids dress with pride, holding back tears. The light blue reminded you of the sweater she lent you the first time you slept over at her house. Painful yet pleasant memories you held onto. You listened quietly as Angelica gave her speech, and you smiled when Eliza came over to you. It was both genuine and forced. The familiar bite of tears was still there, but you couldn’t let her see you cry again. You danced with your friends. Gilbert left a kiss on your hand, Herc gave you a comforting hug. Alexander even offered you a dance. You told him to always look after Eliza. Do everything for her. You stayed in touch with the new Mrs. Hamilton. A marriage wouldn’t make the two of you fall apart. You had lunch with her every other day; and brunch on Sundays. You were one of the first to hear about her pregnancy. Their child was to be named after Eliza’s late father, Philip. You were overjoyed to hear the news, having long accepted Eliza’s marriage to Alexander. You loved Philip. He was like the son you never knew you wanted. You weren’t planning to have kids anytime in the near future, but you were happy to watch the young Hamilton while his parents got away for a while. You thought that nothing would happen. Philip was the glue that held their family together, it seemed.

____

That summer was a difficult one. Alexander didn’t accompany his wife to their father’s house. Even you accepted the invitation. It was just you and the Hamiltons alongside Angelica and Peggy. Eliza seemed okay, but you knew she was hurt by that. You’d never think that the shit would hit the fan like it did.

He’d cheated. Alexander Hamilton cheated on your beloved Eliza. When you got word of what he’d done, you were furious. Angelica had already scolded him, and it was your turn. You nearly screamed at him. Just barely managing to keep a level voice. You had your fists balled so tightly you puncture your skin and drew blood. Many unladylike words escaped your mouth that day, and your hand connected with his cheek before you stormed off to comfort your best friend.

____

Just when you think the worst has come and gone, life seems to tear up the newly poured foundation. Philip had matured into a fine young man. A graduate of King’s College! You were as proud as Eliza. You remember the first time you got to hold him, and how small he was. Now he was forging his own path in life. He was gonna blow everyone away someday.

You never thought things would go wrong. You never thought that he’d leave you so soon.

It was a hit and run. The culprits had caught him while he was on his bike, and shot him. They shot Philip. You were there when both Eliza and Alexander got the news. All three of you cried as you were rushed to the hospital where they had brought Philip. Eliza was devastated. She clung to you; tears soaking through her thick lashes and onto your shirt. You buried your face in her beautiful hair, sobbing just as much. Alexander was off to the side, a shadow cast across his face as he stared at his son’s lifeless body.

After that moment- Things got worse. Eliza was just a shell of her former self. You almost had to beg her to eat. You’d catch her crying in her room, holding Philip’s old baby blanket close to her chest. You comforted her when you could, but you could only do so much. Alexander was worse; he’d wander around alone. He’d go up to the store by himself or sitting alone in the garden. He seemed suffocated with the silence.

They would go to church on Sundays; their other kids in tow. Alexander would pray while you held Eliza’s hand. Your heart hurt.

“....I know I don’t deserve you, Eliza....” You resisted the urge to comment: ‘Yeah, you don’t’. “I know you need time.”

You weren’t sure if Eliza caught his words, but you for sure did. He was doing the unimaginable. You prompted her to at least talk to him.

“.... It’s quiet up town...” Your heart both swelled and shattered when she took his hand.

Forgiveness, could you imagine?

_____

Just when things seemed to be getting better between the two, Alexander died. Nobody knew for sure what had happened. All that you knew was that Alex had been shot by a coworker, Aaron Burr. Both Alexander and Burr rarely got along, and you had overheard Alex complain about him when you joined the Hamiltons for brunch. You didn’t know the exact specifics (Eliza refused to tell you, Angelica wasn’t any help) and, for a while, your darling Eliza crumpled in on herself. Her sister was there, but for the first time, you were excluded.

While you knew Eliza needed time; it hurt. You found yourself crying- the thought of being pushed away like this. It just went to show how much Eliza loved Alexander.

She loved him, and not you.

[red-earth-rising]

#EatTheRich

Canon divergence AU in which, post-fall, Will and Hannibal end up in Paris. And Hannibal wants to show Will the Louvre, and the Latin Quarters, and Pont Neuf, and the bistros behind Moulin Rouge, the Dali museum and all the reminiscent gems on the way to Sacré Coeur.

But all Will can see is the refugee families sleeping on thin cartons on the sideways, and the casual disregard of the passerby because there is one war-torn, poverty-stricken family behind every corner, and every time they turn the corner his breath catches and he can’t make himself not look.

And Hannibal eventually looks at Will, really looks at him, and he can see the clouds gathering. So he stops waxing poetics about the gates of Notre Dam and squeezes Will’s hand briefly and gives the storm space to form. And by that evening, the lightening is sparking behind Will’s eyes and he is sharing his design with Hannibal in hushed whispers, under the candlelight of a boutique bar.

And Hannibal listens and recognises that he was wrong, Will’s becoming was not the slaying of the Dragon but it is ongoing, and the design he is describing to him is righteous and vulnerable and Will, Will Graham of Louisiana, and of the docks and shipping yards, and of Wolf Trap Virginia, with an empathy disorder rubbing him raw, a god-like arrogance and a keen taste for murder is the only one who would dare think of it. And he might have a chance, Hannibal muses, but doesn’t say it out loud - because what Will also has, is his very own, Hannibal shaped monster.

So they cut the sight-seeing short and instead the stalk. And they research. And Hannibal follows money trails with money trails and he is as giddy as he ever was. Because underneath the rich fabrics that enveloped his person suit for years, there was always the starving orphan with the mocking eyes and a mouth full of fettered flesh.

It is a few weeks down the line when a fish big enough out bites their bait - or rather a school of fish throwing a banquet of celebrations. Amongst them a media tycoon, a handful of politicians, a wife, a scholar. And it is not a day too soon, Hannibal knows, taking in the feverish shine that burns away in his lover’s eyes, fading away the sanity day by day.

The plan is crude - they decide to gain entry by impersonating the catering personnel. They don’t have to kill them, once confronted the three men eagerly throw their aprons at Hannibal while Will is still pointing a gun at them “Fuck if I care what you do to the pigs! They don’t pay enough for this” the youngest one yells in heavily accented English from what he judged to be a safe distance.

They are in the kitchen, a beautiful, luxurious thing. They work side by side to prepare the eclectic dishes of treats, with a twist. Will’s eyes are calm, movements efficient, following each of Hannibal’s queues nearly telepathically. The slaying happens organically, and they continue labouring in tandem, this time Hannibal following Will’s queues. His design.

They take pictures and videos.

A few hours later, the police fighting with the press that has somehow arrived first.

There is a protest marching down Saint Elysee. With their denim jeans, windbreaker jackets, dark woollen hats, they merge in the flow of bodies seamlessly. They join hands and walk, stealing glances of each other often. Will tells him he could pass for an art teacher with his round glasses and checkered scarf, maybe a retired art theory lecturer. Hannibal let’s himself laugh at that, and the smile the laugh leaves in its wake stays with him. Will stares and suggests it is a good look on him.

They pass by an electronics mega store. News reports are flashing in the gigantic screens. They have hastily censored the goriest parts of the footage but they have let small details slip free, the odd lifeless arm or, and Hannibal feels a stab of mirth at that, the platter of tongues he fashioned after sashimi.

There is one image they keep playing over and over; letters, scarlet, bold, blocky, stark against the ivory wall. More and more heads turn, stare. They whisper. They try the words.

A few minutes later Hannibal’s smile widens and steers Will’s face to a sign that has popped up, a few rows down the crowd. His eyes widen ever so slightly, and he lets out a breathless chuckle.

“I told you it would be the most efficient” he tells Hannibal “but even so, I didn’t expect it to work so fast”.

Hannibal doesn’t ruin the moment by sharing his reservations, or repeating his opinions on the crudeness of the message. He doesn’t point out how much more work they have ahead of them, or the impossibility of their task. He breathes Will in and lets his lungs swell with pride. “Indeed, you are beyond anything I could ever imagine”, he exhales, words steeped in pure exaltation.

Will lets the words wash over him, eyes following the sign as the ebb and flow of the crowd moves it closer and further away. Two girls, early twenties, most likely students, try to make out the words “Eat ??” Will offers “It says ‘Eat the rich’. With a hashtag.” Hannibal sighs and adores and they keep on walking.

[cielcreations]

Lifeless Platter - Ending 4: Best-Served Hot

Trigger Warning: Canon typical death, violence, and blood at the end.

Pt. 1 Pt. 2 Pt. 3 Pt. 4 [ You Are Here ] Pt. 5

"Oh, hey, you actually showed up for training!" The redheaded chef smiled brightly, "Quite early, too!"

"If you're not five minutes early, you're late." The raven haired man replied, voice deep and gruff.

The redhead chuckled, putting his hands on his hips, "Well, that's good to hear, it means you're serious! This is a highly sought after position and you're already off to a good start, Vincent! However, I noticed your resume, you didn't have many customer service jobs, so I hope you don't mind if I help you out a bit and teach you how to do this." The man then hummed, "Though, forgive me if this comes off as rude, I'm just confused why you would go from a high paying job you've had for years to a mere server?"

"Must I answer or can we just move on, Chef Lamoree?" The raven narrowed his eyes.

"Ah, just call me Rody, no need for formalities!" The redhead chuckled, ignoring the hostility, "Like I said, I'm just confused, but I won't push!" He smiled, "Well, with serving, it's pretty easy! All you have to do is seat customers, take their orders, and bring food to them! When seating people, keep in mind how many people are dining. You don't want a large group crowding around one area. Once they put their menus down, that's when you should go check on them!"

Vincent grabbed a menu and opened it, "'What we're serving today?'" He read aloud.

"Yes! Customers don't pick what they eat, we have a menu that changes daily! It did say that in the interview."

"Well, yes, I read that. Just wondering about it."

The redhead chuckled, "Well, once you've taken their order, bring it to the marker between the window and the door. That way, it'll be sent to the kitchen. The cooks will start working on whatever order you have right away, but keep in mind they prioritize cooking the dessert, side, meal, and appetizer. In that order." Rody then got serious, narrowing his eyes a bit, "Do not pester or distract any of the cooks if it's taking too long. Perfection is key and if you're pestering them, it won't be perfect."

"Understood."

"Good." Rody smiled once more, "Once the order is ready, you'll find it at the window to then serve to the customers. They'll ask for more after their appetizer, so don't make them wait too long. Once they're ready for the bill, go behind the counter to check them out. Once they're done with their meal, make sure to clean their table too, okay? I don't want guests thinking we leave messes out in the open! The garbage is in the kitchen, right next to the back door. When it's full, take the trash and bring it out to the alley behind the kitchen to throw it out."

"Understood." Vincent repeated.

"Make sure to study the menu, too! What I just told you are the basics to any serving job, but you need to be able to know what we are offering. If you're stuttering or confused, it'll make us look bad and I don't want our customers thinking we're anything less than professional."

"If anything, your demeanor screams unprofessional..." The raven muttered more to himself.

"It's hospitable, which is professional!" Rody argued, smiling brightly.

Hardly. Vincent thought.

"Well, I'll be in the back, helping the chefs and such. If you need me, just come on back! Good luck!"

With Rody in the back, Vincent began to clean off the tables, officially starting his shift. He made sure to seat the customers, smiling softly (though, it was a bit difficult and forced, but the customers didn't seem to care) as he took their order before handing it off to the chefs. He cleaned and bused the tables, making sure to take out the trash when needed. He focused on his job, making sure to never make a mistake.

By the end of the day, the restaurant was probably cleaner now then when Vincent first started the day.

"Ah, Vince!"

The raven turned around, raising an eyebrow, "'Vince?'"

"Ah, sorry, did I say that? I hope you don't mind the nickname!" Rody smiled, offering a plate, "Anyways, I have some Green Onion Rolls!"

"...What about them?" Vincent responded.

The chef laughed, "Take them! I need to make sure my staff is well taken care of so, please, the food is yours!"

"Oh, uh, truly?" The raven asked, "Well, thank you. Do we have a to-go box that I may use?"

Rody looked around. He grabbed an empty box and slid the plate inside, "Not a to-go box, but it'll have to do."

"Thank you again, Chef Lamoree."

"Please, Rody is just fine!"

Vincent took the box and left back to his apartment. Once inside, he put the food in the fridge. An... odd feeling swirled in his stomach, making him not want to touch or eat it. He moved to the bathroom and got himself ready for bed and went to lay down on the couch. However, before he could truly relax, his phone started ringing He groaned, grabbing a pillow, laying on his side, and covering his ear.

Stop calling me. He thought.

***

"M-My apologies for being late!"

"You're sorry?!" Rody huffed, turning around, hand on his hips as he looked up from his papers, "An apology isn't going to cut it when you're late and it's only your second day-" He paused, eyes widening as he finally faced Vincent, "-Why do you look like that?"

"I was hoping to wait until the rain stopped before I biked here, but it didn't seem to be relenting anytime soon." Vincent explained, standing on the porch and squeezing the water out of his shirt, "I truly am sorry for being late, I know it's unprofessional-"

"It's alright." Rody reassured, gently taking his wrist, pulling the other to his office. He offered a chair, "Here, sit."

Vincent did so.

The chef then took out two towels, wrapping one around Vincent's shoulders before using a smaller towel to begin to dry off his hair, "Here, let's get you dry before we have to open."

Vincent nodded, hugging the towel more around his body as the redhead continued to dry off his hair.

"Do you have an umbrella?"

"No, I do not."

"I see." Rody's voice lowered, almost sadly, "Well, then, I'll give you mine for the ride back! Just try not to let this happen again, okay?"

"Thank you for the offer, but I can't possibly use your umbrella."

"And why not?"

Vincent looked up at the chef, "How will you be getting home without it?"

Rody laughed, "I live here!"

"...I'm sorry?"

"My apartment is upstairs!" Rody gently pushed his head down, continuing to dry it, "There's no need for me to have it, at least not now."

"I... see. Well, I suppose that makes more sense."

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing, it's nothing." Vincent looked up at the other once more, "Is that not worrying, however? If something were to happen to the building, it'll all be gone."

The redhead chuckled, gently poking the other's nose, "Aw, cute, you're worried about me!"

"E-Excuse me?" The raven blushed.

Rody handed the other the towel, chuckling, "Just teasing! Now, take your time, finish cleaning up, and get ready for work, okay?"

Vincent shook his head, embarrassed, drying himself off. He looked away, "T-Thank you."

"Of course!"

The raven folded the towels and placed them on the redhead's desk. They walked out of the office and readied himself for work before seating the first people who walked in. Once he seated the people, he smiled and took their orders, served them, cleaned the tables, checked people out, balancing it out pretty easily. Eventually, when everyone had left, he took out the trash, throwing it away in the back alley before coming back inside. He saw Rody, staring at the chefs, leaning against the wall, face blank.

"Chef Lamoree, may I ask you something?"

"'Rody.'" The redhead jokingly corrected, "Can you say it with me? 'Ro-dy!'"

Vincent sighed, "Right, uh, Rody, may I ask you something?"

"If you have the free time, I don't mind. Just don't let the customers go unnoticed!"

"Of course not. If I may, why do you stand here?"

"My job is to observe and monitor the chefs." Rody explained, smiling, "They are to cook my dishes to absolute perfection! If they are to even slightly stray from the way I cook, then I will jump in there!"

"Is that not a bit... harsh?"

"Not to cut this conversation short, but I heard the bell."

"Oh-!" Vincent eyes widened, turning to leave the kitchen.

He continued on with his work, seating people and taking their orders once more. After another few hours, his shift ended. He finished cleaning what he needed to and got ready to leave.

"Oh, Vince, wait!" The raven turned. Rody walked offering, offering his umbrella as well as a small box with a smile, "Inside is Blueberry Crepes! I hope you like it!"

"...Thank you, Ch- Rody." Vince took the items, the redhead giggling.

With the chef's umbrella and food in his hand, Vincent went home. Once he got back to his apartment, he once again put the food in the fridge. He got ready for bed and laid on the couch. The phone began to rang and the raven groaned. Doesn't she have better things to do? He thought, letting it ring. Once it stopped, he sighed in relief, closing his eyes to sleep once more.

***

The shift started out normal. Vincent seated who needed to be seated, took the orders to the kitchen, served the food, checked them out, and bussed tables. He was beginning to make very decent tips and was extremely upbeat and happy with his progress. Eventually the trash got full and he had to take it out-

"Ow!" Vincent exclaimed, looking at his hand as he dropped the bag, "S-Shit-"

"Vincent."

The raven turned, facing Rody, who stared at him. Seeing the other so stoic, he turned nervous, "I- It- I-I apologize, there was something in the trash!" He looked at his hand, "I-I believe it ripped the bag open when I dropped it!"

"Vince." The chef repeated, taking a step forward.

Blood spilled from his palm, a large cut on it, "I-I- It cut me! I didn't throw anything I wasn't suppose to, I don't think!

"Vince." Rody gently tapped his face, the raven stopping, "You don't need to worry about that, let me see." He hummed, face calm. He spread the other's fingers, Vincent wincing as the other assessed the situation, "Hm, a shallow cut, nothing too serious."

"I-I apologize, I'll clean-"

"Don't worry about that. Someone else will clean it." Rody face sharply turned, two immediately jumping to follow his directions. The redhead turned back and smiled at Vincent, "Let's get this cleaned up! We can't have you serving people like this."

He gently took Vincent to his office, setting the other in a chair. He carefully applied ointment to the raven's hand before gently wrapping it, Vincent watching Rody's delicate work.

"I-I really do apologize-"

"Accidents happen, it's fine."

"I understand if you wish to reprimand-"

"Was it intentional?"

"No, of course not-"

"Then there's no need." The chef reassured as he finished, "Is that why you got a bit nervous?"

Vincent was silent.

"I see." Rody stood, "I understand striving for perfection, my restaurant is an example of that. However, mistakes are bound to happen. The best thing to do is correct those mistakes, not freak out over them." He smiled, "Why don't you stay here for a bit and collect yourself?"

"I-I can-"

"Vincent, I'm not asking." Rody interrupted, face serious, "You are a little shaken up, which is fine. Take your time calming down, I will handle the customers in the meantime."

"I-" Vincent bit his bottom lip, looking down, "T-Thank you..."

Rody smiled and left the office as Vincent sat, calming himself. He took deep breaths and, once he felt he had calmed down enough, he left. He went onto the floor, where Rody was finishing taking someone's order. The woman giggled and smiled flirtatiously at the redhead, who merely smiled back. Once he finished, he walked back to give the order to the kitchen, his smile immediately falling.

"I can take over." Vincent offered.

The chef sighed in relief, smiling at the other, "Good, you're feeling better! I'm terrible with customers!"

"Really? You seemed to be doing well."

"Customers annoy me." Rody answered honestly, before giving one last smile, "Be careful, okay?" 

Vincent nodded as the other disappeared into the kitchen once more. Vincent finished his shift and cleaned everything up. Once he was sure everything was ready for tomorrow, he went into the kitchen to bid his goodbyes. Rody gave the raven a plate of Squid Ink Pasta with Shrimp, the raven thanking him. He then went home, got ready for bed, and laid on his couch. His phone began ringing and he merely stared at it.

With every passing second, he grew more and more annoyed, he couldn't help but wonder what made her want to call him so bad. When it finally stopped, he sighed in relief. Thank you. He thought, happy with the silence, falling asleep.

***

"Who the HELL do you think you are?!"

Vincent jumped, unsure what he was walking in on. He was working his shift and was bringing in some dirty dishes and to take out the trash when he saw Rody, standing in front of the cook, glaring down with such hate and malice, a stark contrast to his playful, bubby personality.

"I-I apologize, Chef-"

"A 'sorry' isn't going to fucking cut it, now will it?" Rody hissed, accenting his words.

Vincent shut the door behind him, not wanting customers to hear as he watched the scene.

"Is your brain too small to realize a dish like that is not at all acceptable in my kitchen?!" Rody grabbed the plate, slamming it into the other's chef, smearing it on their coat.

"N-No, Chef-"

"Then why is it even here?!"

"I-I don't know, Chef, I m-must've-"

"'You don't know?!'" Rody repeated, his voice raising, "You 'don't know?!' How is it that you don't know?!"

"I-It must've slipped my mind, Chef!" The cook managed to squeak out, "S-Some flour had been left near the stove and I-I didn't want to get burned-"

"You didn't want to get burned?" Rody mocked, "Oh, well that just makes it aaaaaall better~!" He cackled. He grabbed the man's hands and put it behind his back. One of the Chef's hand held the cook's arms in place as the other grabbed the man by the back of his hair. He then shoved the man's face towards the burned stove, keeping it just out of reach of the flames.

The man squeaked, Vince gasped.

"NOT." Rody growled, snickering darkly, "Don't talk back to me in my own fucking kitchen, you damn pig! If you plan on being a semi-decent cook, you can walk your shrimpy legs right~ on~ out~ of~ here~! There is no conceivable reason to be scared of something as minor as a stove. If you're stupid enough to get burnt, then that is your fault and, as long as you are in my kitchen, you. Will. Keep. Cooking."

The chef gulped, whispering out, "Y-Yes, Chef."

"I can't hear you~!" The redhead sung.

"Y-YES, CHEF!" The cook yelled.

Rody hummed, seemingly satisfied. He lifted the man up and smiled, letting go, "Well then, back to it~!"

He turned and his green eyes met Vincent's onyx ones. Rody stared at him for a second then winked teasingly, moving to go stand by the wall once more. The raven blushed and shook his head, putting the dirty dishes away and taking the trash out. When he came back, he walked over to Rody, who was back to smiling.

"Hello, Vince, fancy seeing you here!"

"Was... that really necessary?"

"If you're going to criticize how I run my kitchen, you can leave." The redhead spat.

Vincent changed the topic, "Are you single?"

"Oh? Why do you ask~?" Rody teased with a wink.

"Need to make sure you're not treating a poor woman like that."

"So mean, Vince! I'll have you know, I'd treat my partner well!" The redhead laughed.

"I suppose. You do own a restaurant, you must be quite popular among women, hm?"

"And men." The redhead said confidently, again winking.

The raven blushed, looking away, "Well, do you plan to settle down with anyone? Perhaps get married, hire a manager to run the place?"

"This is me settling down. I do this for myself!" The redhead smiled, "I don't want anyone to take this from me, so I do it myself." He then teased, poking Vincent's nose, "Now, dontcha have to get back to the customers?"

Vincent blushed, but did so. He finished his shift and went to the kitchen, Rody already having a to-go box ready for him. Vincent's face turned a light shade of red, muttering out a thanks as he took the box and left. When he got home, he opened it to find a Strawberry Shortcake inside. He put it in the fridge and laid down on the couch.

The phone rung and he ignored it, falling asleep.

***

The next two days were uneventful in terms of work. Vincent and Rody continued to talk between shifts when they could, the redhead smiling, trying to be overly friendly to ease the raven's tension. Vincent was skeptical of his smile, but tried not to show it, loosening his body as they talked so he wasn't so stiff. Rody also gave him food after every shift.

A Croque Madame were put in the fridge, untouched.

His phone rang each day. Usually, it would ring once and he would fall asleep.

However, as he was putting the Lemon Tart in the fridge, his phone began ringing for a second time. He groaned, moving towards it and picking it up.

"Listen, Miss, I am not-"

"Miss? I don't think I'm a Miss!"

"A-Ah, R-Rody! I-I apologize!" The raven blushed in embarrassment, "F-Forgive me, how can I help you?"

"Well, are you free tonight?"

"I... suppose."

"Perfect, I need your help! Can you come to the restaurant? I am having a dinner party!"

"...You are... inviting me to a party?"

"Yep! I'll see you soon!"

The redhead hung up and Vincent blinked. He rolled his eyes, hung up, and got dressed in more casual clothes. He went back to the restaurant and Rody was waiting outside for him. The redhead led the way up to his apartment, the raven looking around. It was a bit of a mess, but the redhead was definitely a minimalist. He had a nice green couch with a coffee table, sitting in front of a large TV, a kitchen with a long counter and some highchairs, a rug on the floor, and a few small shelves with his books, some plants, and his trophies.

"Very... cozy..." Vincent muttered.

"Of course! I go for cozy homey vibe!" Rody smiled.

"...I thought you said this was a dinner party. Where are the other guests?"

"Huh? Oh, no, no, you're not a guest! I need you to serve the actual guests!"

"...You called me here for work?"

"I'll pay you, don't worry! It will be on your check!"

"...Fine." The raven grumbled.

"Dishes are on the kitchen counter!"

Vincent went into the kitchen and picked up a plate, taking them into the living room for the guests to enjoy. Once he finished, he went to stand in the back.

"Hey, wait, Vincent?"

The raven turned, confused as a brunette approached him.

"I thought so, it is you! It's me, Antonie from Mr. Vacher's office!"

Vincent went stiff, his blood turning ice cold, "I... I see."

"I stopped seeing you and Gabriel, whatever happened to you? You were, like, the best writer there!"

Vincent clenched his fists, "It's, uh, private."

"You know, I heard Manon Vacher? Mr. Vacher's daughter? She was spreading some nasty rumors about you." The brunette hummed, "Is that why you left? I'm sure if you-"

"I have to use the restroom." Vincent hissed out, quickly pushing past him.

"Ah, wait, Vincent-"

The raven went to the kitchen and into the hallway to find the bathroom. He wasn't sure which room was the bathroom and ended up going to the door further from him. He walked inside and saw it was actually Rody's bedroom. He should have left, he should have just left to find the bathroom once again. However... curiosity got the better of him. The raven looked around.

At the back corner, there was a desk with some paperwork. It looked like it was for the restaurant, but the handwriting was barely eligible. He hummed before he looked at the typewriter, seeing Rody must've been typing out recipes. The shelf beside the desk was filled with books and the Chef's diploma was resting on the top. He walked towards the bedside table, opening the drawer.

A key? Oh, the freezer key! He thought, putting it in his pocket. He closed the drawer and turned towards the window.

"Looking for anything specific~?"

The raven turned around quickly, jumping, "A-Ah, Rody, m-my apologies! I-I was looking for the bathroom!"

"Hm, and when you realized this wasn't the bathroom, you juuuuust...?" Rody trailed off, leaning against the doorframe, one hand on his hip, the other behind his back.

"I wanted to... look out the window." Vincent cleared his throat, "The moon is beautiful and I got distracted."

Rody didn't seem convinced but he smiled, "Well, you can look at the moon from your apartment!"

"...I beg your pardon?"

"Party's over, so you don't have to serve the guests anymore!" Rody smiled, "Come on, I'll walk you out!"

Vincent nodded, leaving the bedroom. Rody walked him out and Vincent went home, the two bidding one another a good night.

***

Vincent came into work the next day, setting up the tables and cleaning what he needed to before going to the kitchen. He didn't see Rody anywhere, which was odd. He went to the office door and knocked, only to get no response. The door was locked but, seemingly, no one was inside. I need to return the freezer key. Vincent thought. He looked around and wondered how the chef's were going to cook if the freezer was locked. No one was in yet, so, he decided to unlock the freezer.

Curiosity once again got the better of him. He began looking around, seeing blood. It wasn't too abnormal, it was probably from the animal meet. As he glanced around, he saw something sparkle. 

Vincent turned his head to the meet grinder. He blinked, walking towards it and picking up a golden locket. He began to shake as he opened it, eyes widening as he saw the picture inside.

Him.

Him and him.

Him and Gabriel.

"Oh-" He shook more, "O-Oh god, oh god-!" He fell to his knees, tears coming to his eyes, "G-Gabriel, n-no, no-!"

THUNK!

***

Vincent's eyes fluttered opened for a second, confused. He blinked before his eyes widened, realizing what was going on. He laid on the freezer floor, tied in ropes. Oh, oh god, oh god, oh god-! He struggled in the ropes, looking around desperately.

"Shit, shit, shitshitshitshit-!" Vincent struggled more, "He-! O-Oh my god, he-!" He struggled, "C-Come on!" 

The ropes were too tight, he was unable to break out. Luckily, he was able to reach into his pocket, grabbing the matches he had stashed in there. Never thought smoking would save my life! Vincent thought, managing to light the match. It was a struggle, but he burned enough of the ropes to get his wrists free, breaking the rest off. He looked around, I-I need to get out of here! Vincent stood and pushed on the freezer door.

Locked.

Of course. He shivered, the cold affecting his body. With how cold it was, he couldn't focus on pushing the door open, his strength would be useless. He looked around, turning the saw on, allowing it to cut the animal meet down to the bone. He dragged over some bags of flour to stand and reach the freezer fans and pushed the animal bones in, effectively breaking them. With his body no longer focusing on the cold, he tried the door again. He pushed and pushed and pushed, slamming his body into the door. Eventually, he broke the window on the freezer door, hissing as the glass cut his arm. He reached for the handle and freed himself. He stood there for a second, taking it all in. He went to run around the stoves, not wanting to run past Rody's office to escape to the front door.

Unfortunately, the commotion seemed to alarm the redhead, as he emerged from his office with a stone, cold, murderous look on his face.

Vincent stepped away, "R-Rody, we can talk about this-!"

The redhead didn't listen, running towards him.

Fast-! "D-DON'T COME ANY CLOSER-!" Vincent screamed, trying to run away.

Rody grabbed him by the shoulder and leaned towards him. He bit at his ear and tugged, Vincent screaming and pushing him off. Vincent stumbled back, holding his ear.

Or, rather, where it once was.

Rody stood in front of him, nibbling on Vincent's ear like it was a chew toy.

Vincent held his head, "A-Ahhh... Ahhhh-!" He screamed as the pain came rushing to him, tears falling down his cheeks, "AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"

Rody blinked, giggling as he spat out the ear, wiping the blood from his mouth.

"I-I DON'T EVEN KNOW W-WHAT TO SAY!" Vincent screamed, holding his head, "H-HOW COULD YOU-?! F-FOOD?! OUT OF THAT?! I-Is all your food-?!"

"No, of course not, don't be silly~!" Rody giggled, "That's so gross, I'd never serve that in my kitchen!"

"B-But my ear-! You just-!"

"Oh, please, it would have been better cooked!"

"S-So you do eat-!"

"Meh, not really." The redhead twiddled with a corkscrew in his hand, "I hate eating, I can't stand it. Everything I eat, it always tastes bitter. But then you-! You showed up, begging for a job!" He laughed, "You, who Manon had tried to ruin after finding out you weren't interested!"

"Y-You-! You know her?!"

"Of course, she's my ex." Rody licked his lips, "She dumped me for a serious guy she met at daddy's office. But then, she caught that man kissing another man and, since daddy was a biiiiiiiig homophobe, she threatened to blow his cover~! When both men quit and ran, hiding from her, she came crawling back for a second chance! Oh, and her second chance was glorious! Called serious man's little boytoy and allowed me to make two dishes!"

Vincent watched as Rody held up a plate, a dead plate.

The redhead smiled, "Would you like to try it?"

"F-Fucking psychopath-!" He glared, "I-I still can't believe you tried-! You were planning to feed me-!" He huffed, "T-Thank g-god I never ate any of the f-food you made!"

"You... haven't?" That seemed to affect the redhead more than anything else, his face falling, looking like a sad, kicked puppy.

But Vincent didn't care, "I-It's all sitting in the fridge! Rotting! I don't need to try them to know they don't taste good! You always made me feel unease, made me lose my appetite, and now I know why!"

The raven ran into the redhead's office, knowing he kept the alcohol in there. He broke one of the bottles, spilling red wine and glass all over the floor. Rody was not far behind, slamming open the door and running towards him. Vincent ducked out of the way, getting back to the kitchen before Rody could stab him. He spun around, the redhead running towards him. The redhead reached for his arm, but Vincent stepped out of the way, stabbing the other in the neck. Rody fumbled and Vincent slammed him against the floor, stabbing his neck again and again with the broken wine bottle.

He panted, sitting on Rody's hips, the redhead still alive, but unable to move, holding his throat, choking on his own blood and glass.

Vincent stared down at him, panting, shaking, dropping the broken bottle as he stood up, stepping back. He blinked, I... I did it... I can't let this happen, not again! H-He needs to be gone, erased! He patted the redhead down, finding the restaurant's key. He then moved to the freezer, looking around and grabbing the cooking oil. Once he had it, he began pouring it all over the kitchen, leaving a trail. As one bottle began to run out, he walked to where Rody was, slamming the bottle beside his head, letting it mix with the redhead's blood.

Rody stared at him before he smiled, coughing a bit, "You... would have... made such... a good... dish..." He choked out.

Vincent didn't bother with a response, opening another bottle, creating a trail to the the front door of the restaurant. Once he did, he took out a match and dropped it next to the oil. He then stepped outside, holding the side of his head as he stumbled across the street. The fire cackled, spreading fast, engulfing everything. He stared, one hand holding the bloodied golden locket that held him and Gabriel in it, the other hold where his ear once was.

...I should get something to eat...

He managed to get a Whiskey Lemon Cake from a nearby restaurant as he waited for the police and ambulance.

[beckysyf691231-blog]

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[cielcreations]

Lifeless Platter - Ending 3: Abattoir

Trigger Warning: Canon typical death, violence, and blood at the end.

Pt. 1 Pt. 2 Pt. 3 [ You Are Here ] Pt. 4 Pt. 5

"Oh, hey, you actually showed up for training!" The redheaded chef smiled brightly, "Quite early, too!"

"If you're not five minutes early, you're late." The raven haired man replied, voice deep and gruff.

The redhead chuckled, putting his hands on his hips, "Well, that's good to hear, it means you're serious! This is a highly sought after position and you're already off to a good start, Vincent! However, I noticed your resume, you didn't have many customer service jobs, so I hope you don't mind if I help you out a bit and teach you how to do this." The man then hummed, "Though, forgive me if this comes off as rude, I'm just confused why you would go from a high paying job you've had for years to a mere server?"

"Must I answer or can we just move on, Chef Lamoree?" The raven narrowed his eyes.

"Ah, just call me Rody, no need for formalities!" The redhead chuckled, ignoring the hostility, "Like I said, I'm just confused, but I won't push!" He smiled, "Well, with serving, it's pretty easy! All you have to do is seat customers, take their orders, and bring food to them! When seating people, keep in mind how many people are dining. You don't want a large group crowding around one area. Once they put their menus down, that's when you should go check on them!"

Vincent grabbed a menu and opened it, "'What we're serving today?'" He read aloud.

"Yes! Customers don't pick what they eat, we have a menu that changes daily! It did say that in the interview."

"Well, yes, I read that. Just wondering about it."

The redhead chuckled, "Well, once you've taken their order, bring it to the marker between the window and the door. That way, it'll be sent to the kitchen. The cooks will start working on whatever order you have right away, but keep in mind they prioritize cooking the dessert, side, meal, and appetizer. In that order." Rody then got serious, narrowing his eyes a bit, "Do not pester or distract any of the cooks if it's taking too long. Perfection is key and if you're pestering them, it won't be perfect."

"Understood."

"Good." Rody smiled once more, "Once the order is ready, you'll find it at the window to then serve to the customers. They'll ask for more after their appetizer, so don't make them wait too long. Once they're ready for the bill, go behind the counter to check them out. Once they're done with their meal, make sure to clean their table too, okay? I don't want guests thinking we leave messes out in the open! The garbage is in the kitchen, right next to the back door. When it's full, take the trash and bring it out to the alley behind the kitchen to throw it out."

"Understood." Vincent repeated.

"Make sure to study the menu, too! What I just told you are the basics to any serving job, but you need to be able to know what we are offering. If you're stuttering or confused, it'll make us look bad and I don't want our customers thinking we're anything less than professional."

"If anything, your demeanor screams unprofessional..." The raven muttered more to himself.

"It's hospitable, which is professional!" Rody argued, smiling brightly.

Hardly. Vincent thought.

"Well, I'll be in the back, helping the chefs and such. If you need me, just come on back! Good luck!"

With Rody in the back, Vincent began to clean off the tables, officially starting his shift. He made sure to seat the customers, smiling softly (though, it was a bit difficult and forced, but the customers didn't seem to care) as he took their order before handing it off to the chefs. He cleaned and bused the tables, making sure to take out the trash when needed. He focused on his job, making sure to never make a mistake.

By the end of the day, the restaurant was probably cleaner now then when Vincent first started the day.

"Ah, Vince!"

The raven turned around, raising an eyebrow, "'Vince?'"

"Ah, sorry, did I say that? I hope you don't mind the nickname!" Rody smiled, offering a plate, "Anyways, I have some Green Onion Rolls!"

"...What about them?" Vincent responded.

The chef laughed, "Take them! I need to make sure my staff is well taken care of so, please, the food is yours!"

"Oh, uh, truly?" The raven asked, "Well, thank you. Do we have a to-go box that I may use?"

Rody looked around. He grabbed an empty box and slid the plate inside, "Not a to-go box, but it'll have to do."

"Thank you again, Chef Lamoree."

"Please, Rody is just fine!"

Vincent took the box and left back to his apartment. Once inside, he put the food in the fridge. An... odd feeling swirled in his stomach, making him not want to touch or eat it. He moved to the bathroom and got himself ready for bed and went to lay down on the couch. However, before he could truly relax, his phone started ringing He groaned, grabbing a pillow, laying on his side, and covering his ear.

Stop calling me. He thought.

***

"M-My apologies for being late!"

"You're sorry?!" Rody huffed, turning around, hand on his hips as he looked up from his papers, "An apology isn't going to cut it when you're late and it's only your second day-" He paused, eyes widening as he finally faced Vincent, "-Why do you look like that?"

"I was hoping to wait until the rain stopped before I biked here, but it didn't seem to be relenting anytime soon." Vincent explained, standing on the porch and squeezing the water out of his shirt, "I truly am sorry for being late, I know it's unprofessional-"

"It's alright." Rody reassured, gently taking his wrist, pulling the other to his office. He offered a chair, "Here, sit."

Vincent did so.

The chef then took out two towels, wrapping one around Vincent's shoulders before using a smaller towel to begin to dry off his hair, "Here, let's get you dry before we have to open."

Vincent nodded, hugging the towel more around his body as the redhead continued to dry off his hair.

"Do you have an umbrella?"

"No, I do not."

"I see." Rody's voice lowered, almost sadly, "Well, then, I'll give you mine for the ride back! Just try not to let this happen again, okay?"

"Thank you for the offer, but I can't possibly use your umbrella."

"And why not?"

Vincent looked up at the chef, "How will you be getting home without it?"

Rody laughed, "I live here!"

"...I'm sorry?"

"My apartment is upstairs!" Rody gently pushed his head down, continuing to dry it, "There's no need for me to have it, at least not now."

"I... see. Well, I suppose that makes more sense."

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing, it's nothing." Vincent looked up at the other once more, "Is that not worrying, however? If something were to happen to the building, it'll all be gone."

The redhead chuckled, gently poking the other's nose, "Aw, cute, you're worried about me!"

"E-Excuse me?" The raven blushed.

Rody handed the other the towel, chuckling, "Just teasing! Now, take your time, finish cleaning up, and get ready for work, okay?"

Vincent shook his head, embarrassed, drying himself off. He looked away, "T-Thank you."

"Of course!"

The raven folded the towels and placed them on the redhead's desk. They walked out of the office and readied himself for work before seating the first people who walked in. Once he seated the people, he smiled and took their orders, served them, cleaned the tables, checked people out, balancing it out pretty easily. Eventually, when everyone had left, he took out the trash, throwing it away in the back alley before coming back inside. He saw Rody, staring at the chefs, leaning against the wall, face blank.

"Chef Lamoree, may I ask you something?"

"'Rody.'" The redhead jokingly corrected, "Can you say it with me? 'Ro-dy!'"

Vincent sighed, "Right, uh, Rody, may I ask you something?"

"If you have the free time, I don't mind. Just don't let the customers go unnoticed!"

"Of course not. If I may, why do you stand here?"

"My job is to observe and monitor the chefs." Rody explained, smiling, "They are to cook my dishes to absolute perfection! If they are to even slightly stray from the way I cook, then I will jump in there!"

"Is that not a bit... harsh?"

"Not to cut this conversation short, but I heard the bell."

"Oh-!" Vincent eyes widened, turning to leave the kitchen.

He continued on with his work, seating people and taking their orders once more. After another few hours, his shift ended. He finished cleaning what he needed to and got ready to leave.

"Oh, Vince, wait!" The raven turned. Rody walked offering, offering his umbrella as well as a small box with a smile, "Inside is Blueberry Crepes! I hope you like it!"

"...Thank you, Ch- Rody." Vince took the items, the redhead giggling.

With the chef's umbrella and food in his hand, Vincent went home. Once he got back to his apartment, he once again put the food in the fridge. He got ready for bed and laid on the couch. The phone began to rang and the raven groaned. Doesn't she have better things to do? He thought, letting it ring. Once it stopped, he sighed in relief, closing his eyes to sleep once more.

***

The shift started out normal. Vincent seated who needed to be seated, took the orders to the kitchen, served the food, checked them out, and bussed tables. He was beginning to make very decent tips and was extremely upbeat and happy with his progress. Eventually the trash got full and he had to take it out-

"Ow!" Vincent exclaimed, looking at his hand as he dropped the bag, "S-Shit-"

"Vincent."

The raven turned, facing Rody, who stared at him. Seeing the other so stoic, he turned nervous, "I- It- I-I apologize, there was something in the trash!" He looked at his hand, "I-I believe it ripped the bag open when I dropped it!"

"Vince." The chef repeated, taking a step forward.

Blood spilled from his palm, a large cut on it, "I-I- It cut me! I didn't throw anything I wasn't suppose to, I don't think!

"Vince." Rody gently tapped his face, the raven stopping, "You don't need to worry about that, let me see." He hummed, face calm. He spread the other's fingers, Vincent wincing as the other assessed the situation, "Hm, a shallow cut, nothing too serious."

"I-I apologize, I'll clean-"

"Don't worry about that. Someone else will clean it." Rody face sharply turned, two immediately jumping to follow his directions. The redhead turned back and smiled at Vincent, "Let's get this cleaned up! We can't have you serving people like this."

He gently took Vincent to his office, setting the other in a chair. He carefully applied ointment to the raven's hand before gently wrapping it, Vincent watching Rody's delicate work.

"I-I really do apologize-"

"Accidents happen, it's fine."

"I understand if you wish to reprimand-"

"Was it intentional?"

"No, of course not-"

"Then there's no need." The chef reassured as he finished, "Is that why you got a bit nervous?"

Vincent was silent.

"I see." Rody stood, "I understand striving for perfection, my restaurant is an example of that. However, mistakes are bound to happen. The best thing to do is correct those mistakes, not freak out over them." He smiled, "Why don't you stay here for a bit and collect yourself?"

"I-I can-"

"Vincent, I'm not asking." Rody interrupted, face serious, "You are a little shaken up, which is fine. Take your time calming down, I will handle the customers in the meantime."

"I-" Vincent bit his bottom lip, looking down, "T-Thank you..."

Rody smiled and left the office as Vincent sat, calming himself. He took deep breaths and, once he felt he had calmed down enough, he left. He went onto the floor, where Rody was finishing taking someone's order. The woman giggled and smiled flirtatiously at the redhead, who merely smiled back. Once he finished, he walked back to give the order to the kitchen, his smile immediately falling.

"I can take over." Vincent offered.

The chef sighed in relief, smiling at the other, "Good, you're feeling better! I'm terrible with customers!"

"Really? You seemed to be doing well."

"Customers annoy me." Rody answered honestly, before giving one last smile, "Be careful, okay?" 

Vincent nodded as the other disappeared into the kitchen once more. Vincent finished his shift and cleaned everything up. Once he was sure everything was ready for tomorrow, he went into the kitchen to bid his goodbyes. Rody gave the raven a plate of Squid Ink Pasta with Shrimp, the raven thanking him. He then went home, got ready for bed, and laid on his couch. His phone began ringing and he merely stared at it.

With every passing second, he grew more and more annoyed, he couldn't help but wonder what made her want to call him so bad. When it finally stopped, he sighed in relief. Thank you. He thought, happy with the silence, falling asleep.

***

"Who the HELL do you think you are?!"

Vincent jumped, unsure what he was walking in on. He was working his shift and was bringing in some dirty dishes and to take out the trash when he saw Rody, standing in front of the cook, glaring down with such hate and malice, a stark contrast to his playful, bubby personality.

"I-I apologize, Chef-"

"A 'sorry' isn't going to fucking cut it, now will it?" Rody hissed, accenting his words.

Vincent shut the door behind him, not wanting customers to hear as he watched the scene.

"Is your brain too small to realize a dish like that is not at all acceptable in my kitchen?!" Rody grabbed the plate, slamming it into the other's chef, smearing it on their coat.

"N-No, Chef-"

"Then why is it even here?!"

"I-I don't know, Chef, I m-must've-"

"'You don't know?!'" Rody repeated, his voice raising, "You 'don't know?!' How is it that you don't know?!"

"I-It must've slipped my mind, Chef!" The cook managed to squeak out, "S-Some flour had been left near the stove and I-I didn't want to get burned-"

"You didn't want to get burned?" Rody mocked, "Oh, well that just makes it aaaaaall better~!" He cackled. He grabbed the man's hands and put it behind his back. One of the Chef's hand held the cook's arms in place as the other grabbed the man by the back of his hair. He then shoved the man's face towards the burned stove, keeping it just out of reach of the flames.

The man squeaked, Vince gasped.

"NOT." Rody growled, snickering darkly, "Don't talk back to me in my own fucking kitchen, you damn pig! If you plan on being a semi-decent cook, you can walk your shrimpy legs right~ on~ out~ of~ here~! There is no conceivable reason to be scared of something as minor as a stove. If you're stupid enough to get burnt, then that is your fault and, as long as you are in my kitchen, you. Will. Keep. Cooking."

The chef gulped, whispering out, "Y-Yes, Chef."

"I can't hear you~!" The redhead sung.

"Y-YES, CHEF!" The cook yelled.

Rody hummed, seemingly satisfied. He lifted the man up and smiled, letting go, "Well then, back to it~!"

He turned and his green eyes met Vincent's onyx ones. Rody stared at him for a second then winked teasingly, moving to go stand by the wall once more. The raven blushed and shook his head, putting the dirty dishes away and taking the trash out. When he came back, he walked over to Rody, who was back to smiling.

"Hello, Vince, fancy seeing you here!"

"Was... that really necessary?"

"If you're going to criticize how I run my kitchen, you can leave." The redhead spat.

Vincent changed the topic, "Are you single?"

"Oh? Why do you ask~?" Rody teased with a wink.

"Need to make sure you're not treating a poor woman like that."

"So mean, Vince! I'll have you know, I'd treat my partner well!" The redhead laughed.

"I suppose. You do own a restaurant, you must be quite popular among women, hm?"

"And men." The redhead said confidently, again winking.

The raven blushed, looking away, "Well, do you plan to settle down with anyone? Perhaps get married, hire a manager to run the place?"

"This is me settling down. I do this for myself!" The redhead smiled, "I don't want anyone to take this from me, so I do it myself." He then teased, poking Vincent's nose, "Now, dontcha have to get back to the customers?"

Vincent blushed, but did so. He finished his shift and went to the kitchen, Rody already having a to-go box ready for him. Vincent's face turned a light shade of red, muttering out a thanks as he took the box and left. When he got home, he opened it to find a Strawberry Shortcake inside. He put it in the fridge and laid down on the couch.

The phone rung and he ignored it, falling asleep.

***

The next two days were uneventful in terms of work. Vincent and Rody continued to talk between shifts when they could, the redhead smiling, trying to be overly friendly to ease the raven's tension. Vincent was skeptical of his smile, but tried not to show it, loosening his body as they talked so he wasn't so stiff. Rody also gave him food after every shift.

A Croque Madame were put in the fridge, untouched.

His phone rang each day. Usually, it would ring once and he would fall asleep.

However, as he was putting the Lemon Tart in the fridge, his phone began ringing for a second time. He groaned, moving towards it and picking it up.

"Listen, Miss, I am not-"

"Miss? I don't think I'm a Miss!"

"A-Ah, R-Rody! I-I apologize!" The raven blushed in embarrassment, "F-Forgive me, how can I help you?"

"Well, are you free tonight?"

"I... suppose."

"Perfect, I need your help! Can you come to the restaurant? I am having a dinner party!"

"...You are... inviting me to a party?"

"Yep! I'll see you soon!"

The redhead hung up and Vincent blinked. He rolled his eyes, hung up, and got dressed in more casual clothes. He went back to the restaurant and Rody was waiting outside for him. The redhead led the way up to his apartment, the raven looking around. It was a bit of a mess, but the redhead was definitely a minimalist. He had a nice green couch with a coffee table, sitting in front of a large TV, a kitchen with a long counter and some highchairs, a rug on the floor, and a few small shelves with his books, some plants, and his trophies.

"Very... cozy..." Vincent muttered.

"Of course! I go for cozy homey vibe!" Rody smiled.

"...I thought you said this was a dinner party. Where are the other guests?"

"Huh? Oh, no, no, you're not a guest! I need you to serve the actual guests!"

"...You called me here for work?"

"I'll pay you, don't worry! It will be on your check!"

"...Fine." The raven grumbled.

"Dishes are on the kitchen counter!"

Vincent went into the kitchen and picked up a plate, taking them into the living room for the guests to enjoy. Once he finished, he went to stand in the back.

"Hey, wait, Vincent?"

The raven turned, confused as a brunette approached him.

"I thought so, it is you! It's me, Antonie from Mr. Vacher's office!"

Vincent went stiff, his blood turning ice cold, "I... I see."

"I stopped seeing you and Gabriel, whatever happened to you? You were, like, the best writer there!"

Vincent clenched his fists, "It's, uh, private."

"You know, I heard Manon Vacher? Mr. Vacher's daughter? She was spreading some nasty rumors about you." The brunette hummed, "Is that why you left? I'm sure if you-"

"I have to use the restroom." Vincent hissed out, quickly pushing past him.

"Ah, wait, Vincent-"

The raven went to the kitchen and into the hallway to find the bathroom. He wasn't sure which room was the bathroom and ended up going to the door further from him. He walked inside and saw it was actually Rody's bedroom. He should have left, he should have just left to find the bathroom once again. However... curiosity got the better of him. The raven looked around.

At the back corner, there was a desk with some paperwork. It looked like it was for the restaurant, but the handwriting was barely eligible. He hummed before he looked at the typewriter, seeing Rody must've been typing out recipes. The shelf beside the desk was filled with books and the Chef's diploma was resting on the top. He walked towards the bedside table, opening the drawer.

A key? Oh, the freezer key! He thought, putting it in his pocket. He closed the drawer and turned towards the window.

"Looking for anything specific~?"

The raven turned around quickly, jumping, "A-Ah, Rody, m-my apologies! I-I was looking for the bathroom!"

"Hm, and when you realized this wasn't the bathroom, you juuuuust...?" Rody trailed off, leaning against the doorframe, one hand on his hip, the other behind his back.

"I wanted to... look out the window." Vincent cleared his throat, "The moon is beautiful and I got distracted."

Rody didn't seem convinced but he smiled, "Well, you can look at the moon from your apartment!"

"...I beg your pardon?"

"Party's over, so you don't have to serve the guests anymore!" Rody smiled, "Come on, I'll walk you out!"

Vincent nodded, leaving the bedroom. Rody walked him out and Vincent went home, the two bidding one another a good night.

***

Vincent came into work the next day, setting up the tables and cleaning what he needed to before going to the kitchen. He didn't see Rody anywhere, which was odd. He went to the office door and knocked, only to get no response. The door was locked but, seemingly, no one was inside. I need to return the freezer key. Vincent thought. He looked around and wondered how the chef's were going to cook if the freezer was locked. No one was in yet, so, he decided to unlock the freezer.

Curiosity once again got the better of him. He began looking around, seeing blood. It wasn't too abnormal, it was probably from the animal meet. As he glanced around, he saw something sparkle. 

Vincent turned his head to the meet grinder. He blinked, walking towards it and picking up a golden locket. He began to shake as he opened it, eyes widening as he saw the picture inside.

Him.

Him and him.

Him and Gabriel.

"Oh-" He shook more, "O-Oh god, oh god-!" He fell to his knees, tears coming to his eyes, "G-Gabriel, n-no, no-!"

THUNK!

***

Vincent's eyes fluttered opened for a second, confused. He blinked before his eyes widened, realizing what was going on. He laid on the freezer floor, tied in ropes. Oh, oh god, oh god, oh god-! He struggled in the ropes, looking around desperately.

"Shit, shit, shitshitshitshit-!" Vincent struggled more, "He-! O-Oh my god, he-!" He struggled, "C-Come on!" 

The ropes were too tight, he was unable to break out. Luckily, he was able to reach into his pocket, grabbing the matches he had stashed in there. Never thought smoking would save my life! Vincent thought, managing to light the match. It was a struggle, but he burned enough of the ropes to get his wrists free, breaking the rest off. He looked around, I-I need to get out of here! Vincent stood and pushed on the freezer door.

Locked.

Of course. He shivered, the cold affecting his body. With how cold it was, he couldn't focus on pushing the door open, his strength would be useless. He looked around, turning the saw on, allowing it to cut the animal meet down to the bone. He dragged over some bags of flour to stand and reach the freezer fans and pushed the animal bones in, effectively breaking them. With his body no longer focusing on the cold, he tried the door again. He pushed and pushed and pushed, slamming his body into the door. Eventually, he broke the window on the freezer door, hissing as the glass cut his arm. He reached for the handle and freed himself. He stood there for a second, taking it all in. He went to run around the stoves, not wanting to run past Rody's office to escape to the front door.

Unfortunately, the commotion seemed to alarm the redhead, as he emerged from his office with a stone, cold, murderous look on his face.

Vincent stepped away, "R-Rody, we can talk about this-!"

The redhead didn't listen, running towards him.

Fast-! "D-DON'T COME ANY CLOSER-!" Vincent screamed, trying to run away.

Rody grabbed him by the shoulder and leaned towards him. He bit at his ear and tugged, Vincent screaming and pushing him off. Vincent stumbled back, holding his ear.

Or, rather, where it once was.

Rody stood in front of him, nibbling on Vincent's ear like it was a chew toy.

Vincent held his head, "A-Ahhh... Ahhhh-!" He screamed as the pain came rushing to him, tears falling down his cheeks, "AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"

Rody blinked, giggling as he spat out the ear, wiping the blood from his mouth.

"I-I DON'T EVEN KNOW W-WHAT TO SAY!" Vincent screamed, holding his head, "H-HOW COULD YOU-?! F-FOOD?! OUT OF THAT?! I-Is all your food-?!"

"No, of course not, don't be silly~!" Rody giggled, "That's so gross, I'd never serve that in my kitchen!"

"B-But my ear-! You just-!"

"Oh, please, it would have been better cooked!"

"S-So you do eat-!"

"Meh, not really." The redhead twiddled with a corkscrew in his hand, "I hate eating, I can't stand it. Everything I eat, it always tastes bitter. But then you-! You showed up, begging for a job!" He laughed, "You, who Manon had tried to ruin after finding out you weren't interested!"

"Y-You-! You know her?!"

"Of course, she's my ex." Rody licked his lips, "She dumped me for a serious guy she met at daddy's office. But then, she caught that man kissing another man and, since daddy was a biiiiiiiig homophobe, she threatened to blow his cover~! When both men quit and ran, hiding from her, she came crawling back for a second chance! Oh, and her second chance was glorious! Called serious man's little boytoy and allowed me to make two dishes!"

Vincent watched as Rody held up a plate, a dead plate.

The redhead smiled, "Would you like to try it?"

"F-Fucking psychopath-!"

Vincent went to run around the stoves. 

Rody caught up to him, slamming him down on the floor.

"W-Wait, wait, R-Rody-!" 

The redhead stabbed him in the neck with the corkscrew.

"A-Aaack-!"

And again, another stab.

"Ghhhhhk-!"

The raven's eyes fluttered, growing dull as he bled out on the floor. Rody removed the corkscrew and licked at Vincent's blood, humming.

His eyes widened.

"You-!" He smiled brightly, "You're SWEET! NOT BITTER!"

The redhead picked the other's body up, carrying him to the freezer with a bright smile, "Oh, I'm going to make a splendid dish outta you~!"

The freezer door closed behind him.

The saw turned on.

You earned Coal-Fired Heart!

[cielcreations]

Lifeless Platter - Ending 2: Best-Served Cold

Want to make this clear:

I'm writing Dead Plate in (my version) a Swap AU with all the endings! Which means the chapters will be very similar to one another, the only difference being the ending! Meaning, yes, it's going to be repetitive, but I'm treating each chapter as a "restart" and a different ending!

Trigger Warning: Canon typical death, violence, and blood at the end.

Pt. 1 Pt. 2 [ You Are Here ] Pt. 3 Pt. 4 Pt. 5

"Oh, hey, you actually showed up for training!" The redheaded chef smiled brightly, "Quite early, too!"

"If you're not five minutes early, you're late." The raven haired man replied, voice deep and gruff.

The redhead chuckled, putting his hands on his hips, "Well, that's good to hear, it means you're serious! This is a highly sought after position and you're already off to a good start, Vincent! However, I noticed your resume, you didn't have many customer service jobs, so I hope you don't mind if I help you out a bit and teach you how to do this." The man then hummed, "Though, forgive me if this comes off as rude, I'm just confused why you would go from a high paying job you've had for years to a mere server?"

"Must I answer or can we just move on, Chef Lamoree?" The raven narrowed his eyes.

"Ah, just call me Rody, no need for formalities!" The redhead chuckled, ignoring the hostility, "Like I said, I'm just confused, but I won't push!" He smiled, "Well, with serving, it's pretty easy! All you have to do is seat customers, take their orders, and bring food to them! When seating people, keep in mind how many people are dining. You don't want a large group crowding around one area. Once they put their menus down, that's when you should go check on them!"

Vincent grabbed a menu and opened it, "'What we're serving today?'" He read aloud.

"Yes! Customers don't pick what they eat, we have a menu that changes daily! It did say that in the interview."

"Well, yes, I read that. Just wondering about it."

The redhead chuckled, "Well, once you've taken their order, bring it to the marker between the window and the door. That way, it'll be sent to the kitchen. The cooks will start working on whatever order you have right away, but keep in mind they prioritize cooking the dessert, side, meal, and appetizer. In that order." Rody then got serious, narrowing his eyes a bit, "Do not pester or distract any of the cooks if it's taking too long. Perfection is key and if you're pestering them, it won't be perfect."

"Understood."

"Good." Rody smiled once more, "Once the order is ready, you'll find it at the window to then serve to the customers. They'll ask for more after their appetizer, so don't make them wait too long. Once they're ready for the bill, go behind the counter to check them out. Once they're done with their meal, make sure to clean their table too, okay? I don't want guests thinking we leave messes out in the open! The garbage is in the kitchen, right next to the back door. When it's full, take the trash and bring it out to the alley behind the kitchen to throw it out."

"Understood." Vincent repeated.

"Make sure to study the menu, too! What I just told you are the basics to any serving job, but you need to be able to know what we are offering. If you're stuttering or confused, it'll make us look bad and I don't want our customers thinking we're anything less than professional."

"If anything, your demeanor screams unprofessional..." The raven muttered more to himself.

"It's hospitable, which is professional!" Rody argued, smiling brightly.

Hardly. Vincent thought.

"Well, I'll be in the back, helping the chefs and such. If you need me, just come on back! Good luck!"

With Rody in the back, Vincent began to clean off the tables, officially starting his shift. He made sure to seat the customers, smiling softly (though, it was a bit difficult and forced, but the customers didn't seem to care) as he took their order before handing it off to the chefs. He cleaned and bused the tables, making sure to take out the trash when needed. He focused on his job, making sure to never make a mistake.

By the end of the day, the restaurant was probably cleaner now then when Vincent first started the day.

"Ah, Vince!"

The raven turned around, raising an eyebrow, "'Vince?'"

"Ah, sorry, did I say that? I hope you don't mind the nickname!" Rody smiled, offering a plate, "Anyways, I have some Green Onion Rolls!"

"...What about them?" Vincent responded.

The chef laughed, "Take them! I need to make sure my staff is well taken care of so, please, the food is yours!"

"Oh, uh, truly?" The raven asked, "Well, thank you. Do we have a to-go box that I may use?"

Rody looked around. He grabbed an empty box and slid the plate inside, "Not a to-go box, but it'll have to do."

"Thank you again, Chef Lamoree."

"Please, Rody is just fine!"

Vincent took the box and left back to his apartment. Once inside, he put the food in the fridge. An... odd feeling swirled in his stomach, making him not want to touch or eat it. He moved to the bathroom and got himself ready for bed and went to lay down on the couch. However, before he could truly relax, his phone started ringing He groaned, grabbing a pillow, laying on his side, and covering his ear.

Stop calling me. He thought.

***

"M-My apologies for being late!"

"You're sorry?!" Rody huffed, turning around, hand on his hips as he looked up from his papers, "An apology isn't going to cut it when you're late and it's only your second day-" He paused, eyes widening as he finally faced Vincent, "-Why do you look like that?"

"I was hoping to wait until the rain stopped before I biked here, but it didn't seem to be relenting anytime soon." Vincent explained, standing on the porch and squeezing the water out of his shirt, "I truly am sorry for being late, I know it's unprofessional-"

"It's alright." Rody reassured, gently taking his wrist, pulling the other to his office. He offered a chair, "Here, sit."

Vincent did so.

The chef then took out two towels, wrapping one around Vincent's shoulders before using a smaller towel to begin to dry off his hair, "Here, let's get you dry before we have to open."

Vincent nodded, hugging the towel more around his body as the redhead continued to dry off his hair.

"Do you have an umbrella?"

"No, I do not."

"I see." Rody's voice lowered, almost sadly, "Well, then, I'll give you mine for the ride back! Just try not to let this happen again, okay?"

"Thank you for the offer, but I can't possibly use your umbrella."

"And why not?"

Vincent looked up at the chef, "How will you be getting home without it?"

Rody laughed, "I live here!"

"...I'm sorry?"

"My apartment is upstairs!" Rody gently pushed his head down, continuing to dry it, "There's no need for me to have it, at least not now."

"I... see. Well, I suppose that makes more sense."

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing, it's nothing." Vincent looked up at the other once more, "Is that not worrying, however? If something were to happen to the building, it'll all be gone."

The redhead chuckled, gently poking the other's nose, "Aw, cute, you're worried about me!"

"E-Excuse me?" The raven blushed.

Rody handed the other the towel, chuckling, "Just teasing! Now, take your time, finish cleaning up, and get ready for work, okay?"

Vincent shook his head, embarrassed, drying himself off. He looked away, "T-Thank you."

"Of course!"

The raven folded the towels and placed them on the redhead's desk. They walked out of the office and readied himself for work before seating the first people who walked in. Once he seated the people, he smiled and took their orders, served them, cleaned the tables, checked people out, balancing it out pretty easily. Eventually, when everyone had left, he took out the trash, throwing it away in the back alley before coming back inside. He saw Rody, staring at the chefs, leaning against the wall, face blank.

"Chef Lamoree, may I ask you something?"

"'Rody.'" The redhead jokingly corrected, "Can you say it with me? 'Ro-dy!'"

Vincent sighed, "Right, uh, Rody, may I ask you something?"

"If you have the free time, I don't mind. Just don't let the customers go unnoticed!"

"Of course not. If I may, why do you stand here?"

"My job is to observe and monitor the chefs." Rody explained, smiling, "They are to cook my dishes to absolute perfection! If they are to even slightly stray from the way I cook, then I will jump in there!"

"Is that not a bit... harsh?"

"Not to cut this conversation short, but I heard the bell."

"Oh-!" Vincent eyes widened, turning to leave the kitchen.

He continued on with his work, seating people and taking their orders once more. After another few hours, his shift ended. He finished cleaning what he needed to and got ready to leave.

"Oh, Vince, wait!" The raven turned. Rody walked offering, offering his umbrella as well as a small box with a smile, "Inside is Blueberry Crepes! I hope you like it!"

"...Thank you, Ch- Rody." Vince took the items, the redhead giggling.

With the chef's umbrella and food in his hand, Vincent went home. Once he got back to his apartment, he once again put the food in the fridge. He got ready for bed and laid on the couch. The phone began to rang and the raven groaned. Doesn't she have better things to do? He thought, letting it ring. Once it stopped, he sighed in relief, closing his eyes to sleep once more.

***

The shift started out normal. Vincent seated who needed to be seated, took the orders to the kitchen, served the food, checked them out, and bussed tables. He was beginning to make very decent tips and was extremely upbeat and happy with his progress. Eventually the trash got full and he had to take it out-

"Ow!" Vincent exclaimed, looking at his hand as he dropped the bag, "S-Shit-"

"Vincent."

The raven turned, facing Rody, who stared at him. Seeing the other so stoic, he turned nervous, "I- It- I-I apologize, there was something in the trash!" He looked at his hand, "I-I believe it ripped the bag open when I dropped it!"

"Vince." The chef repeated, taking a step forward.

Blood spilled from his palm, a large cut on it, "I-I- It cut me! I didn't throw anything I wasn't suppose to, I don't think!

"Vince." Rody gently tapped his face, the raven stopping, "You don't need to worry about that, let me see." He hummed, face calm. He spread the other's fingers, Vincent wincing as the other assessed the situation, "Hm, a shallow cut, nothing too serious."

"I-I apologize, I'll clean-"

"Don't worry about that. Someone else will clean it." Rody face sharply turned, two immediately jumping to follow his directions. The redhead turned back and smiled at Vincent, "Let's get this cleaned up! We can't have you serving people like this."

He gently took Vincent to his office, setting the other in a chair. He carefully applied ointment to the raven's hand before gently wrapping it, Vincent watching Rody's delicate work.

"I-I really do apologize-"

"Accidents happen, it's fine."

"I understand if you wish to reprimand-"

"Was it intentional?"

"No, of course not-"

"Then there's no need." The chef reassured as he finished, "Is that why you got a bit nervous?"

Vincent was silent.

"I see." Rody stood, "I understand striving for perfection, my restaurant is an example of that. However, mistakes are bound to happen. The best thing to do is correct those mistakes, not freak out over them." He smiled, "Why don't you stay here for a bit and collect yourself?"

"I-I can-"

"Vincent, I'm not asking." Rody interrupted, face serious, "You are a little shaken up, which is fine. Take your time calming down, I will handle the customers in the meantime."

"I-" Vincent bit his bottom lip, looking down, "T-Thank you..."

Rody smiled and left the office as Vincent sat, calming himself. He took deep breaths and, once he felt he had calmed down enough, he left. He went onto the floor, where Rody was finishing taking someone's order. The woman giggled and smiled flirtatiously at the redhead, who merely smiled back. Once he finished, he walked back to give the order to the kitchen, his smile immediately falling.

"I can take over." Vincent offered.

The chef sighed in relief, smiling at the other, "Good, you're feeling better! I'm terrible with customers!"

"Really? You seemed to be doing well."

"Customers annoy me." Rody answered honestly, before giving one last smile, "Be careful, okay?" 

Vincent nodded as the other disappeared into the kitchen once more. Vincent finished his shift and cleaned everything up. Once he was sure everything was ready for tomorrow, he went into the kitchen to bid his goodbyes. Rody gave the raven a plate of Squid Ink Pasta with Shrimp, the raven thanking him. He then went home, got ready for bed, and laid on his couch. His phone began ringing and he merely stared at it.

With every passing second, he grew more and more annoyed, he couldn't help but wonder what made her want to call him so bad. When it finally stopped, he sighed in relief. Thank you. He thought, happy with the silence, falling asleep.

***

"Who the HELL do you think you are?!"

Vincent jumped, unsure what he was walking in on. He was working his shift and was bringing in some dirty dishes and to take out the trash when he saw Rody, standing in front of the cook, glaring down with such hate and malice, a stark contrast to his playful, bubby personality.

"I-I apologize, Chef-"

"A 'sorry' isn't going to fucking cut it, now will it?" Rody hissed, accenting his words.

Vincent shut the door behind him, not wanting customers to hear as he watched the scene.

"Is your brain too small to realize a dish like that is not at all acceptable in my kitchen?!" Rody grabbed the plate, slamming it into the other's chef, smearing it on their coat.

"N-No, Chef-"

"Then why is it even here?!"

"I-I don't know, Chef, I m-must've-"

"'You don't know?!'" Rody repeated, his voice raising, "You 'don't know?!' How is it that you don't know?!"

"I-It must've slipped my mind, Chef!" The cook managed to squeak out, "S-Some flour had been left near the stove and I-I didn't want to get burned-"

"You didn't want to get burned?" Rody mocked, "Oh, well that just makes it aaaaaall better~!" He cackled. He grabbed the man's hands and put it behind his back. One of the Chef's hand held the cook's arms in place as the other grabbed the man by the back of his hair. He then shoved the man's face towards the burned stove, keeping it just out of reach of the flames.

The man squeaked, Vince gasped.

"NOT." Rody growled, snickering darkly, "Don't talk back to me in my own fucking kitchen, you damn pig! If you plan on being a semi-decent cook, you can walk your shrimpy legs right~ on~ out~ of~ here~! There is no conceivable reason to be scared of something as minor as a stove. If you're stupid enough to get burnt, then that is your fault and, as long as you are in my kitchen, you. Will. Keep. Cooking."

The chef gulped, whispering out, "Y-Yes, Chef."

"I can't hear you~!" The redhead sung.

"Y-YES, CHEF!" The cook yelled.

Rody hummed, seemingly satisfied. He lifted the man up and smiled, letting go, "Well then, back to it~!"

He turned and his green eyes met Vincent's onyx ones. Rody stared at him for a second then winked teasingly, moving to go stand by the wall once more. The raven blushed and shook his head, putting the dirty dishes away and taking the trash out. When he came back, he walked over to Rody, who was back to smiling.

"Hello, Vince, fancy seeing you here!"

"Was... that really necessary?"

"If you're going to criticize how I run my kitchen, you can leave." The redhead spat.

Vincent changed the topic, "Are you single?"

"Oh? Why do you ask~?" Rody teased with a wink.

"Need to make sure you're not treating a poor woman like that."

"So mean, Vince! I'll have you know, I'd treat my partner well!" The redhead laughed.

"I suppose. You do own a restaurant, you must be quite popular among women, hm?"

"And men." The redhead said confidently, again winking.

The raven blushed, looking away, "Well, do you plan to settle down with anyone? Perhaps get married, hire a manager to run the place?"

"This is me settling down. I do this for myself!" The redhead smiled, "I don't want anyone to take this from me, so I do it myself." He then teased, poking Vincent's nose, "Now, dontcha have to get back to the customers?"

Vincent blushed, but did so. He finished his shift and went to the kitchen, Rody already having a to-go box ready for him. Vincent's face turned a light shade of red, muttering out a thanks as he took the box and left. When he got home, he opened it to find a Strawberry Shortcake inside. He put it in the fridge and laid down on the couch.

The phone rung and he ignored it, falling asleep.

***

The next two days were uneventful in terms of work. Vincent and Rody continued to talk between shifts when they could, the redhead smiling, trying to be overly friendly to ease the raven's tension. Vincent was skeptical of his smile, but tried not to show it, loosening his body as they talked so he wasn't so stiff. Rody also gave him food after every shift.

A Croque Madame were put in the fridge, untouched.

His phone rang each day. Usually, it would ring once and he would fall asleep.

However, as he was putting the Lemon Tart in the fridge, his phone began ringing for a second time. He groaned, moving towards it and picking it up.

"Listen, Miss, I am not-"

"Miss? I don't think I'm a Miss!"

"A-Ah, R-Rody! I-I apologize!" The raven blushed in embarrassment, "F-Forgive me, how can I help you?"

"Well, are you free tonight?"

"I... suppose."

"Perfect, I need your help! Can you come to the restaurant? I am having a dinner party!"

"...You are... inviting me to a party?"

"Yep! I'll see you soon!"

The redhead hung up and Vincent blinked. He rolled his eyes, hung up, and got dressed in more casual clothes. He went back to the restaurant and Rody was waiting outside for him. The redhead led the way up to his apartment, the raven looking around. It was a bit of a mess, but the redhead was definitely a minimalist. He had a nice green couch with a coffee table, sitting in front of a large TV, a kitchen with a long counter and some highchairs, a rug on the floor, and a few small shelves with his books, some plants, and his trophies.

"Very... cozy..." Vincent muttered.

"Of course! I go for cozy homey vibe!" Rody smiled.

"...I thought you said this was a dinner party. Where are the other guests?"

"Huh? Oh, no, no, you're not a guest! I need you to serve the actual guests!"

"...You called me here for work?"

"I'll pay you, don't worry! It will be on your check!"

"...Fine." The raven grumbled.

"Dishes are on the kitchen counter!"

Vincent went into the kitchen and picked up a plate, taking them into the living room for the guests to enjoy. Once he finished, he went to stand in the back.

"Hey, wait, Vincent?"

The raven turned, confused as a brunette approached him.

"I thought so, it is you! It's me, Antonie from Mr. Vacher's office!"

Vincent went stiff, his blood turning ice cold, "I... I see."

"I stopped seeing you and Gabriel, whatever happened to you? You were, like, the best writer there!"

Vincent clenched his fists, "It's, uh, private."

"You know, I heard Manon Vacher? Mr. Vacher's daughter? She was spreading some nasty rumors about you." The brunette hummed, "Is that why you left? I'm sure if you-"

"I have to use the restroom." Vincent hissed out, quickly pushing past him.

"Ah, wait, Vincent-"

The raven went to the kitchen and into the hallway to find the bathroom. He wasn't sure which room was the bathroom and ended up going to the door further from him. He walked inside and saw it was actually Rody's bedroom. He should have left, he should have just left to find the bathroom once again. However... curiosity got the better of him. The raven looked around.

At the back corner, there was a desk with some paperwork. It looked like it was for the restaurant, but the handwriting was barely eligible. He hummed before he looked at the typewriter, seeing Rody must've been typing out recipes. The shelf beside the desk was filled with books and the Chef's diploma was resting on the top. He walked towards the bedside table, opening the drawer.

A key? Oh, the freezer key! He thought, putting it in his pocket. He closed the drawer and turned towards the window.

"Looking for anything specific~?"

The raven turned around quickly, jumping, "A-Ah, Rody, m-my apologies! I-I was looking for the bathroom!"

"Hm, and when you realized this wasn't the bathroom, you juuuuust...?" Rody trailed off, leaning against the doorframe, one hand on his hip, the other behind his back.

"I wanted to... look out the window." Vincent cleared his throat, "The moon is beautiful and I got distracted."

Rody didn't seem convinced but he smiled, "Well, you can look at the moon from your apartment!"

"...I beg your pardon?"

"Party's over, so you don't have to serve the guests anymore!" Rody smiled, "Come on, I'll walk you out!"

Vincent nodded, leaving the bedroom. Rody walked him out and Vincent went home, the two bidding one another a good night.

***

Vincent came into work the next day, setting up the tables and cleaning what he needed to before going to the kitchen. He didn't see Rody anywhere, which was odd. He went to the office door and knocked, only to get no response. The door was locked but, seemingly, no one was inside. I need to return the freezer key. Vincent thought. He looked around and wondered how the chef's were going to cook if the freezer was locked. No one was in yet, so, he decided to unlock the freezer.

Curiosity once again got the better of him. He began looking around, seeing blood. It wasn't too abnormal, it was probably from the animal meet. As he glanced around, he saw something sparkle. 

Vincent turned his head to the meet grinder. He blinked, walking towards it and picking up a golden locket. He began to shake as he opened it, eyes widening as he saw the picture inside.

Him.

Him and him.

Him and Gabriel.

"Oh-" He shook more, "O-Oh god, oh god-!" He fell to his knees, tears coming to his eyes, "G-Gabriel, n-no, no-!"

THUNK!

***

Vincent's eyes fluttered opened for a second, confused. He blinked before his eyes widened, realizing what was going on. He laid on the freezer floor, tied in ropes. Oh, oh god, oh god, oh god-! He struggled in the ropes, looking around desperately.

"Shit, shit, shitshitshitshit-!" Vincent struggled more, "He-! O-Oh my god, he-!" He struggled, "C-Come on!" 

The ropes were too tight, he was unable to break out. He had nothing on him that'd help him cut or burn the ropes off of him. There was a saw, but with his arm, he would end up cutting himself more than the ropes.

"C-Come on, come on-!"

The door slowly opened as the redhead walked in, smiling sweetly, maliciously, down at Vincent.

"G-Get away from me, d-don't come any closer-"

"Shhhhh, shhhh, stop, stooooop~" Rody cooed as he stepped forward, heels echoing with the buzz of the freezer. He carefully, delicately, cleaned off a knife, "Just calm down, Vince, you don't need to do that!" He chuckled, "Besides, you'd just be in the same place no matter what~"

Rody paused, back to Vincent, "...Hmmm... Actually, you know what? I'm a bit bored."

"R-Rody, Chef, please-"

"Shhhh, shhhh. I have an idea!" He spun around, aiming his knife at the raven, giggling, "I'll give you a fifteen second head start and you're gonna do your best to escape~! Who knows, maybe you'll be fast enough!"

"R-Really?!" Vincent smiled, scared out of his mind, "Y-You'd do that-?! F-For me?! Y-You mean it?!"

"Of course~! You are my favorite, Vince~! So, go on!" Rody's snickered, "Go. Fifteen-"

He began counting down, Vincent struggling in the ropes, heading towards the freezer door. He was going as fast as he could, but with being bound, his movements were slowed.

"Two. One." 

Vincent tried to go faster, but screamed as he felt himself getting stabbed in the shoulder. Tears fell down his cheeks, terrified as he looked up at the redhead.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk~ How saaaaaaad~" Rody cooed, "Even with adrenaline, even with your life on the line, you couldn't make it~ Waaah, waah, waaaaaaaaah~!"

"R-Rody, R-Rody, please, I-"

"Shhhhhh, don't worry~!" The redhead removed the knife from Vincent's should throwing the raven onto his back, "I'll make this quick!"

You've earned Cherry Vanilla Gelato!

[cielcreations]

Lifeless Platter - Ending 1: Table for One

AN: My version of a Swap Dead Plate AU. I forgot to post this on here sooooooo-

Pt. 1 [ You Are Here ] Pt. 2 Pt. 3 Pt. 4 Pt. 5

"Oh, hey, you actually showed up for training!" The redheaded chef smiled brightly, "Quite early, too!"

"If you're not five minutes early, you're late." The raven haired man replied, voice deep and gruff.

The redhead chuckled, putting his hands on his hips, "Well, that's good to hear, it means you're serious! This is a highly sought after position and you're already off to a good start, Vincent! However, I noticed your resume, you didn't have many customer service jobs, so I hope you don't mind if I help you out a bit and teach you how to do this." The man then hummed, "Though, forgive me if this comes off as rude, I'm just confused why you would go from a high paying job you've had for years to a mere server?"

"Must I answer or can we just move on, Chef Lamoree?" The raven narrowed his eyes.

"Ah, just call me Rody, no need for formalities!" The redhead chuckled, ignoring the hostility, "Like I said, I'm just confused, but I won't push!" He smiled, "Well, with serving, it's pretty easy! All you have to do is seat customers, take their orders, and bring food to them! When seating people, keep in mind how many people are dining. You don't want a large group crowding around one area. Once they put their menus down, that's when you should go check on them!"

Vincent grabbed a menu and opened it, "'What we're serving today?'" He read aloud.

"Yes! Customers don't pick what they eat, we have a menu that changes daily! It did say that in the interview."

"Well, yes, I read that. Just wondering about it."

The redhead chuckled, "Well, once you've taken their order, bring it to the marker between the window and the door. That way, it'll be sent to the kitchen. The cooks will start working on whatever order you have right away, but keep in mind they prioritize cooking the dessert, side, meal, and appetizer. In that order." Rody then got serious, narrowing his eyes a bit, "Do not pester or distract any of the cooks if it's taking too long. Perfection is key and if you're pestering them, it won't be perfect."

"Understood."

"Good." Rody smiled once more, "Once the order is ready, you'll find it at the window to then serve to the customers. They'll ask for more after their appetizer, so don't make them wait too long. Once they're ready for the bill, go behind the counter to check them out. Once they're done with their meal, make sure to clean their table too, okay? I don't want guests thinking we leave messes out in the open! The garbage is in the kitchen, right next to the back door. When it's full, take the trash and bring it out to the alley behind the kitchen to throw it out."

"Understood." Vincent repeated.

"Make sure to study the menu, too! What I just told you are the basics to any serving job, but you need to be able to know what we are offering. If you're stuttering or confused, it'll make us look bad and I don't want our customers thinking we're anything less than professional."

"If anything, your demeanor screams unprofessional..." The raven muttered more to himself.

"It's hospitable, which is professional!" Rody argued, smiling brightly.

Hardly. Vincent thought.

"Well, I'll be in the back, helping the chefs and such. If you need me, just come on back! Good luck!"

With Rody in the back, Vincent began to clean off the tables, officially starting his shift. He made sure to seat the customers, smiling softly (though, it was a bit difficult and forced, but the customers didn't seem to care) as he took their order before handing it off to the chefs. He cleaned and bused the tables, making sure to take out the trash when needed. He focused on his job, making sure to never make a mistake.

By the end of the day, the restaurant was probably cleaner now then when Vincent first started the day.

"Ah, Vince!"

The raven turned around, raising an eyebrow, "'Vince?'"

"Ah, sorry, did I say that? I hope you don't mind the nickname!" Rody smiled, offering a plate, "Anyways, I have some Green Onion Rolls!"

"...What about them?" Vincent responded.

The chef laughed, "Take them! I need to make sure my staff is well taken care of so, please, the food is yours!"

"Oh, uh, truly?" The raven asked, "Well, thank you. Do we have a to-go box that I may use?"

Rody looked around. He grabbed an empty box and slid the plate inside, "Not a to-go box, but it'll have to do."

"Thank you again, Chef Lamoree."

"Please, Rody is just fine!"

Vincent took the box and left back to his apartment. Once inside, he put the food in the fridge. An... odd feeling swirled in his stomach, making him not want to touch or eat it. He moved to the bathroom and got himself ready for bed and went to lay down on the couch. However, before he could truly relax, his phone started ringing He groaned, grabbing a pillow, laying on his side, and covering his ear.

Stop calling me. He thought.

***

"M-My apologies for being late!"

"You're sorry?!" Rody huffed, turning around, hand on his hips as he looked up from his papers, "An apology isn't going to cut it when you're late and it's only your second day-" He paused, eyes widening as he finally faced Vincent, "-Why do you look like that?"

"I was hoping to wait until the rain stopped before I biked here, but it didn't seem to be relenting anytime soon." Vincent explained, standing on the porch and squeezing the water out of his shirt, "I truly am sorry for being late, I know it's unprofessional-"

"It's alright." Rody reassured, gently taking his wrist, pulling the other to his office. He offered a chair, "Here, sit."

Vincent did so.

The chef then took out two towels, wrapping one around Vincent's shoulders before using a smaller towel to begin to dry off his hair, "Here, let's get you dry before we have to open."

Vincent nodded, hugging the towel more around his body as the redhead continued to dry off his hair.

"Do you have an umbrella?"

"No, I do not."

"I see." Rody's voice lowered, almost sadly, "Well, then, I'll give you mine for the ride back! Just try not to let this happen again, okay?"

"Thank you for the offer, but I can't possibly use your umbrella."

"And why not?"

Vincent looked up at the chef, "How will you be getting home without it?"

Rody laughed, "I live here!"

"...I'm sorry?"

"My apartment is upstairs!" Rody gently pushed his head down, continuing to dry it, "There's no need for me to have it, at least not now."

"I... see. Well, I suppose that makes more sense."

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing, it's nothing." Vincent looked up at the other once more, "Is that not worrying, however? If something were to happen to the building, it'll all be gone."

The redhead chuckled, gently poking the other's nose, "Aw, cute, you're worried about me!"

"E-Excuse me?" The raven blushed.

Rody handed the other the towel, chuckling, "Just teasing! Now, take your time, finish cleaning up, and get ready for work, okay?"

Vincent shook his head, embarrassed, drying himself off. He looked away, "T-Thank you."

"Of course!"

The raven folded the towels and placed them on the redhead's desk. They walked out of the office and readied himself for work before seating the first people who walked in. Once he seated the people, he smiled and took their orders, served them, cleaned the tables, checked people out, balancing it out pretty easily. Eventually, when everyone had left, he took out the trash, throwing it away in the back alley before coming back inside. He saw Rody, staring at the chefs, leaning against the wall, face blank.

"Chef Lamoree, may I ask you something?"

"'Rody.'" The redhead jokingly corrected, "Can you say it with me? 'Ro-dy!'"

Vincent sighed, "Right, uh, Rody, may I ask you something?"

"If you have the free time, I don't mind. Just don't let the customers go unnoticed!"

"Of course not. If I may, why do you stand here?"

"My job is to observe and monitor the chefs." Rody explained, smiling, "They are to cook my dishes to absolute perfection! If they are to even slightly stray from the way I cook, then I will jump in there!"

"Is that not a bit... harsh?"

"Not to cut this conversation short, but I heard the bell."

"Oh-!" Vincent eyes widened, turning to leave the kitchen.

He continued on with his work, seating people and taking their orders once more. After another few hours, his shift ended. He finished cleaning what he needed to and got ready to leave.

"Oh, Vince, wait!" The raven turned. Rody walked offering, offering his umbrella as well as a small box with a smile, "Inside is Blueberry Crepes! I hope you like it!"

"...Thank you, Ch- Rody." Vince took the items, the redhead giggling.

With the chef's umbrella and food in his hand, Vincent went home. Once he got back to his apartment, he once again put the food in the fridge. He got ready for bed and laid on the couch. The phone began to rang and the raven groaned. Doesn't she have better things to do? He thought, letting it ring. Once it stopped, he sighed in relief, closing his eyes to sleep once more.

***

The shift started out normal. Vincent seated who needed to be seated, took the orders to the kitchen, served the food, checked them out, and bussed tables. He was beginning to make very decent tips and was extremely upbeat and happy with his progress. Eventually the trash got full and he had to take it out-

"Ow!" Vincent exclaimed, looking at his hand as he dropped the bag, "S-Shit-"

"Vincent."

The raven turned, facing Rody, who stared at him. Seeing the other so stoic, he turned nervous, "I- It- I-I apologize, there was something in the trash!" He looked at his hand, "I-I believe it ripped the bag open when I dropped it!"

"Vince." The chef repeated, taking a step forward.

Blood spilled from his palm, a large cut on it, "I-I- It cut me! I didn't throw anything I wasn't suppose to, I don't think!

"Vince." Rody gently tapped his face, the raven stopping, "You don't need to worry about that, let me see." He hummed, face calm. He spread the other's fingers, Vincent wincing as the other assessed the situation, "Hm, a shallow cut, nothing too serious."

"I-I apologize, I'll clean-"

"Don't worry about that. Someone else will clean it." Rody face sharply turned, two immediately jumping to follow his directions. The redhead turned back and smiled at Vincent, "Let's get this cleaned up! We can't have you serving people like this."

He gently took Vincent to his office, setting the other in a chair. He carefully applied ointment to the raven's hand before gently wrapping it, Vincent watching Rody's delicate work.

"I-I really do apologize-"

"Accidents happen, it's fine."

"I understand if you wish to reprimand-"

"Was it intentional?"

"No, of course not-"

"Then there's no need." The chef reassured as he finished, "Is that why you got a bit nervous?"

Vincent was silent.

"I see." Rody stood, "I understand striving for perfection, my restaurant is an example of that. However, mistakes are bound to happen. The best thing to do is correct those mistakes, not freak out over them." He smiled, "Why don't you stay here for a bit and collect yourself?"

"I-I can-"

"Vincent, I'm not asking." Rody interrupted, face serious, "You are a little shaken up, which is fine. Take your time calming down, I will handle the customers in the meantime."

"I-" Vincent bit his bottom lip, looking down, "T-Thank you..."

Rody smiled and left the office as Vincent sat, calming himself. He took deep breaths and, once he felt he had calmed down enough, he left. He went onto the floor, where Rody was finishing taking someone's order. The woman giggled and smiled flirtatiously at the redhead, who merely smiled back. Once he finished, he walked back to give the order to the kitchen, his smile immediately falling.

"I can take over." Vincent offered.

The chef sighed in relief, smiling at the other, "Good, you're feeling better! I'm terrible with customers!"

"Really? You seemed to be doing well."

"Customers annoy me." Rody answered honestly, before giving one last smile, "Be careful, okay?" 

Vincent nodded as the other disappeared into the kitchen once more. Vincent finished his shift and cleaned everything up. Once he was sure everything was ready for tomorrow, he went into the kitchen to bid his goodbyes. Rody gave the raven a plate of Squid Ink Pasta with Shrimp, the raven thanking him. He then went home, got ready for bed, and laid on his couch. His phone began ringing and he merely stared at it.

With every passing second, he grew more and more annoyed, he couldn't help but wonder what made her want to call him so bad. When it finally stopped, he sighed in relief. Thank you. He thought, happy with the silence, falling asleep.

***

"Who the HELL do you think you are?!"

Vincent jumped, unsure what he was walking in on. He was working his shift and was bringing in some dirty dishes and to take out the trash when he saw Rody, standing in front of the cook, glaring down with such hate and malice, a stark contrast to his playful, bubby personality.

"I-I apologize, Chef-"

"A 'sorry' isn't going to fucking cut it, now will it?" Rody hissed, accenting his words.

Vincent shut the door behind him, not wanting customers to hear as he watched the scene.

"Is your brain too small to realize a dish like that is not at all acceptable in my kitchen?!" Rody grabbed the plate, slamming it into the other's chef, smearing it on their coat.

"N-No, Chef-"

"Then why is it even here?!"

"I-I don't know, Chef, I m-must've-"

"'You don't know?!'" Rody repeated, his voice raising, "You 'don't know?!' How is it that you don't know?!"

"I-It must've slipped my mind, Chef!" The cook managed to squeak out, "S-Some flour had been left near the stove and I-I didn't want to get burned-"

"You didn't want to get burned?" Rody mocked, "Oh, well that just makes it aaaaaall better~!" He cackled. He grabbed the man's hands and put it behind his back. One of the Chef's hand held the cook's arms in place as the other grabbed the man by the back of his hair. He then shoved the man's face towards the burned stove, keeping it just out of reach of the flames.

The man squeaked, Vince gasped.

"NOT." Rody growled, snickering darkly, "Don't talk back to me in my own fucking kitchen, you damn pig! If you plan on being a semi-decent cook, you can walk your shrimpy legs right~ on~ out~ of~ here~! There is no conceivable reason to be scared of something as minor as a stove. If you're stupid enough to get burnt, then that is your fault and, as long as you are in my kitchen, you. Will. Keep. Cooking."

The chef gulped, whispering out, "Y-Yes, Chef."

"I can't hear you~!" The redhead sung.

"Y-YES, CHEF!" The cook yelled.

Rody hummed, seemingly satisfied. He lifted the man up and smiled, letting go, "Well then, back to it~!"

He turned and his green eyes met Vincent's onyx ones. Rody stared at him for a second then winked teasingly, moving to go stand by the wall once more. The raven blushed and shook his head, putting the dirty dishes away and taking the trash out. When he came back, he walked over to Rody, who was back to smiling.

"Hello, Vince, fancy seeing you here!"

"Was... that really necessary?"

"If you're going to criticize how I run my kitchen, you can leave." The redhead spat.

Vincent changed the topic, "Are you single?"

"Oh? Why do you ask~?" Rody teased with a wink.

"Need to make sure you're not treating a poor woman like that."

"So mean, Vince! I'll have you know, I'd treat my partner well!" The redhead laughed.

"I suppose. You do own a restaurant, you must be quite popular among women, hm?"

"And men." The redhead said confidently, again winking.

The raven blushed, looking away, "Well, do you plan to settle down with anyone? Perhaps get married, hire a manager to run the place?"

"This is me settling down. I do this for myself!" The redhead smiled, "I don't want anyone to take this from me, so I do it myself." He then teased, poking Vincent's nose, "Now, dontcha have to get back to the customers?"

Vincent blushed, but did so. He finished his shift and went to the kitchen, Rody already having a to-go box ready for him. Vincent's face turned a light shade of red, muttering out a thanks as he took the box and left. When he got home, he opened it to find a Strawberry Shortcake inside. He put it in the fridge and laid down on the couch.

The phone rung and he ignored it, falling asleep.

***

The next two days were uneventful in terms of work. Vincent and Rody continued to talk between shifts when they could, the redhead smiling, trying to be overly friendly to ease the raven's tension. Vincent was skeptical of his smile, but tried not to show it, loosening his body as they talked so he wasn't so stiff. Rody also gave him food after every shift.

A Croque Madame and a Lemon Tart were put in the fridge, untouched.

His phone rang on the fifth day but... not on the sixth.

On the seventh day, Vincent finished his shift and approached Rody, who gave him the check for a hard work week.

"Thank you." The raven hummed, "And, I apologize for such short notice, but I quit."

Rody's eyes widened, "...What?"

"I quit." Vincent repeated, "I am truly sorry, but I... took this job temporarily. I am..." He looked away, "I just need to quit."

The redhead stared with a blank face, "...Well... if you still need the position, it's available for you." He then smiled, turning around and grabbing a to-go box, "Here, as a parting gift. A meal. Tell me what you think."

Vincent hesitantly opened the box.

"Grilled Hanger Steak! Please, try it! Tell me what you think!"

The raven hesitated before taking an offered fork. He took a bite, humming as he chewed. He swallowed, nodding, "It's... a bit bitter, but good." He shut the box, "I will eat the rest later. May I go, now?"

"Oh, yeah, of course!" Rody smiled, "Again, if you need the position, just let me know, okay? Have a good nice, Vince!"

Vincent nodded and left.

"Bitter, huh? I'll know for next time."

The raven quickly got home. Once he was home, he gathered his things with as much money as he could, and quickly dashed out of the apartment. He ran as fast as he could to the phone booth, picking up a phone as he dialed a number, putting the phone to his ear, recounting his money. The phone rang.

"Gabriel, listen, I managed to pull some money, just like the plan, I have it all here! It should be enough, so long as you were able-"

"Your call could not be connected. Please call again or try again later. Good bye."

Vincent blinked, confused. He redialed, "Hey, Gabriel, it's Vincent, please answer! I have the money, we can catch the next train and-"

"Your call could not be connected. Please call again or try again later. Good bye."

He redialed, "Gabriel? Hello? Don't do this to me! Please answer, I need to know you're okay! P-Please don't tell me she got to you, please, I-"

"Your call could not be connected. Please call again or try again later. Good bye."

Redial. "Gabriel, please. I-I just- Forget the plan, let me hear your voice! I-I ignored all her calls, I've been waiting on you, please tell me you're okay?"

.........

" Good bye."