#like hey i did it once what's once more gonna do

[y3sterdaysproblem]

⤷𝙛𝙬𝙗!𝙘𝙝𝙧𝙞𝙨 𝙙𝙧𝙖𝙗𝙗𝙡𝙚

 ⤷ 𝘱𝘢𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 ; 𝘵𝘰𝘹𝘪𝘤!𝘧𝘸𝘣!𝘤𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴 𝘹 𝘵𝘰𝘹𝘪𝘤!𝘧𝘸𝘣!𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳

{texts above are relevant to story}

cw: alcohol consumption

“chris!” you exclaim excitedly as you see the familiar blacked out bmw pulling up on the curb, pulling yourself up from the stairs you sat at outside the house you somehow ended up at. you were under the impression you and your friend would just be at her house, but when you ended up at a party with a bunch of unfamiliar faces, you knew you had to get somewhere you knew to ride out your drunken state.

he’s not even out of the car when you’re running up to the car and to the passenger door, trying to pull it open but failing miserably. “hey, chill,” chris says to you as he circles around the car, pulling the door open for you. “how much have you had to drink?” he questions as he watches you flop into the seat, the whole car wobbling from the force.

“umm,” you drawl out, turning your head up to look at him, eyes unfocused and darting around. “i’m not sure! maybe… nine drinks?”

chris’s eyes widen in shock as he looks down at you, noticing how hard it was for you to lock eyes with him. “nine drinks?” he asks, desperate to clarify.

“maybe more,” you mumble with a small shrug. “can we get like… taco bell or something?”

chris sighs and shuts the door on you, coming back around to the driver’s side and getting in. once he’s settled, he turns back to look at you again, seeing the messed up hair on the top of your head and the way your clothes seemed a little disheveled. he wonders for a split second if your state was fully to do with alcohol, or if somebody had put something in your drink without you noticing.

“yeah, we can get food,” he says, but doesn’t make any effort to move. “did someone slip something in your drink?”

“what?” you say, slinging your head around to look at him with furrowed eyebrows. “think my drinks were just really strong.” you finally say when you process his words.

“okay,” chris nods, eyes scanning over your face to see if you were alright. “are you gonna throw up or anything?”

you laugh and wave a hand at him dismissively, shaking your head. “no!” you say, reaching forward to place your hand on his chest. “you know i’m not a bitch.”

chris laughs and grabs your hand, bringing it back over to your own lap. “didn’t say you were a bitch, just asking if you need a bag or something. don’t want you puking in my car.”

you narrow your eyes at him and turn your body in your seat, crossing your arms. “you called me a raging bitch the other day,” you huff, raising your eyebrows sassily.

he’s not having any of it, not wanting to play into your confrontational switch, so he turns his body back to the steering wheel and puts the car in drive, pulling away from the curb. “because you were being a raging bitch,” he says calmly, eyes scanning over the road as he sets out on the route back to his place.

“what, because I wasn’t with you?” you ask defensively, feeling heat starting to rise up your neck, getting worked up over something that wasn’t even a big deal. “am I supposed to ask you for permission every time I want to fuck somebody else?”

chris’s knuckles tighten on the steering wheel, jaw tensing at your words. he had to remind himself that you were only saying all of this because of the alcohol, but part of him wanted to fight back, wanted to put you in your place. “definitely not,” he responds lowly, eyes locked in front of him. “you really need to stop and think about what you’re going to say next.”

you scoff out a laugh and roll your eyes, turning back to sit straight in your seat, arms still crossed as you stare out through the windshield now as well, eyes still trying to focus on the road as it disappeared under the car. “still want food,” you mumble, lips pursed in a childlike pout. “you’ll get your food, just sit there and be quiet,” chris responds, reaching forward to turn the volume up to drown out anything you might say. you wanted to protest, but the heavy weight on your eyelids started to take over, and within the next minute you were asleep.

it felt like seconds had passed when the passenger door was being opened and chris was reaching down to touch your shoulder, shaking you lightly. “hey,” he said softly, trying to rouse you awake. “dude, get up,” he says louder, shaking you harder. you let out a groan as you come back to your senses, forcing your eyes open once again. “come on, let’s go inside so you can go to bed.”

you take another couple of moments to ground yourself and remember where you are, but you eventually swing your legs to your side and use every surrounding method of support to help you out of the car, feeling drunker than you did when you first got into it. “I feel awful,” you mumble once you’re standing in the driveway, reaching your hands up to rub over your face. chris just laughs and shuts the door before he wraps an arm around your waist and guides you up towards his apartment, his grip on you tight to keep you standing straight.

after stumbling up a couple flights of stairs and leaning on the wall while he unlocked the door, you both finally make it into his place and you immediately try kicking your shoes off, groaning when they don’t slip off with ease. chris chuckles at you again and crouches down to grab your foot to stop you, unlacing your shoes for you. “you’re a fucking mess,” he comments, straightening back up once both of your shoes were off, taking in your appearance.

your hair looked tangled from running your hands through it, and the way that it fell in front of your face made him realize you weren’t even aware of how messy it looked, your purse hadn’t even made it inside, left to spend the night in his car, and your makeup was smudged all around your eyes, already looking days old.

“you’re a mess,” you shoot back, bringing a hand up to poke him in the chest. “I am just… fucking…” you look down at yourself and groan, hands coming up to claw at your top. “get me out of this fucking corset.”

chris grabs your hands and pulls them away from your shirt, turning your body to guide you into his room. “alright, we’ll get you out of these clothes and you can pass out, yeah? sound good?”

you nod, more to yourself than anything as you walk into his room, immediately pushing away from him and going towards his bed, falling onto it face first. chris shuts the door behind him and comes to stand next to his bed, reaching down to rest a hand on the bare part of your back. “do you want to take your clothes off or sleep like this?” he asks, leaning down a bit so he could hear your muffled voice against his comforter, but between your slurring and your mouth buried in the blankets, he couldn’t make out your response, so he carefully rolls you over as to not jostle your stomach too much. “what’d you say?”

“off,” you repeat in a moan, laying limp on the bed with your head tilted to the side, eyes still closed.

“okay,” chris responds, his hands reaching out towards the button on your jeans. your head immediately pops up and looks down at his hands, then his face.

“woah, woah, woah!” you exclaim, reaching down with one hand to push his away frantically. “i’m drunk, chris!”

chris looks up at you with one eyebrow raised, moving to rest both hands on your thighs, your skin touching through the large rips in the fabric. “uh huh,” he nods, sliding his hands back up your hips. “which is why i’m taking your clothes off so you can go to bed,” he tells you in a slow, calm voice, like he’s explaining something to a little kid.

“oh,” you say in understanding, flopping back down onto the bed. “am I sleeping here?” you ask him as you feel his hands starting to undo your pants again.

“yeah,” he answers, pulling your jeans down and off of your legs, leaving you in your panties and a corset he can’t even begin to understand how to remove. “gotta keep an eye on you, make sure you don’t puke on your back or something.”

“ew,” you answer, eyes staring up at the ceiling, providing no help for chris as he undressed you. he reaches down and scoops his arms underneath you to pull you into a sitting position, to which you groan in disapproval. “wanna lay down.”

“I know, but I need to get this… fuckass shirt off of you first.” chris is clueless as he stares down at it, although he doesn’t mind the view too much. he sees what look like latches at the front of the shirt, and he can’t help but wonder why somebody would wear this to go out drinking unless they expected to sleep in it that night. “i’m about to just cut this shit off of you.” he huffs.

“no!” you whine, reaching out to grab his shirt while you tilt your head up to look at him, eyes pleading. “don’t cut my clothes pleeease,” you drawl, tugging on his shirt. “i’ll show you how to take it off, c’mon, you’ve taken my clothes off like a hundred times.”

he couldn’t help but laugh at that, shaking his head in disbelief at your words, but then he agrees and gestures to the corset, ready to learn. “alright, show me then.” he says, taking a step back to watch. you look down at the corset and groan a bit, hands coming up to squeeze the sides together. “just… push it… together… and undo it.” chris watches for a moment, and he thinks he understands, so he steps back up to you and starts to unclasp your shirt, eventually getting it off and leaving you on his bed in just your underwear. you gasp in a deep breath at the relief and flop back down, eyes closing instantly. “so much better,” you breathe out.

chris tosses the corset on the ground and keeps his eyes locked on you, trailing over your body. he admires you in a way he doesn’t think he ever has before, taking in your vulnerable state and recognizing the level of trust you must have in him to not only ask him for a ride, but to lay here so drunk you couldn’t even undress yourself and know that he wouldn’t do anything to harm you. it sent a shiver down his spine, and he had to pull his eyes away from you before he thought too hard about it, turning towards his dresser to grab a shirt for you to sleep in.

he walks back to his bed once he finds an old shirt that he knew fell past your hips, seeing you curled up on your side and most definitely almost asleep, if you weren’t already. he reaches down and pulls the shirt over your head, maneuvering your body through the shirt until he pulls it down on your torso, covering you up. you’re pretty malleable like this, so he grabs your body and slides you up on the bed and under the blankets, finally letting out a sigh of relief when you’re tucked in.

chris runs his hands over his face for a moment before he turns and gets himself changed as well, which just consisted of taking off the clothes he had thrown on to pick you up, leaving him in just his boxers. he debated sleeping on the couch, or the floor, or anywhere that wouldn’t be in your line of fire if your body decided to throw up, but ultimately he talked himself into just sliding into bed next to you, making sure to keep his distance on his side of the mattress.

his efforts didn’t last long, though, because not even a few minutes after he laid down, you were turning your body to face him and scooting closer until you could wrap your arm around his waist and rest your head on his chest, letting out a small sigh of contentment.

chris is taken aback at your action, his arm that’s now around you extended out in discomfort, not knowing what to do in this situation. you guys weren’t cuddlers, it wasn’t a part of your routine when you would sleep together. lay in the same bed and catch your breath, sure, but cuddling was never in the cards, so he couldn’t help the way his heart picked up at your newfound closeness. it almost felt more intimate than being inside you, like you guys had crossed a line he didn’t even know was drawn.

you let out another soft breath, nuzzling your face further into him as you settled in, not noticing his disconcertment. “chris?” you mumble suddenly, pulling him out of his thoughts. he hums, letting you know he’s listening. “if you just let yourself open up, you’d be a really good boyfriend to somebody someday.”

your words are clearer than they have been all night, and it makes chris’s ears ring and his face go pale, though it’s undetectable in the dark bedroom. he doesn’t answer, unable to find a good enough response, and he deems it unnecessary when he hears small snores coming from your parted lips, like you hadn’t just said something that was going to send him into a spiral for the remainder of the night.

he finally lets his hand come down and rest on your back, staring at the ceiling as he thinks over what you said, trying not to focus on your body weight resting on his, and the way your manicured hand sat peacefully on his stomach while you slept.

you’d be a really good boyfriend to somebody someday.

he found that hard to believe.

a/n: they’re becoming REAL

{texts with fwb!chris masterlist}

taglist

@liiixsturniolos @madelinesturn @ifwdominicfike @sophand4n4 @chris-hallelujah @sophsturns @ariana2saucyy @045696 @scorpioosworld @byhrxb @vickytaa @taelovesmattsturniolo @secret-sturniolo @theboredknightcat-blog @slvtf0rchr1s @gabri3la-sturns @delilahsturniolo @starstrucktyrantinfluencer @vanillsstuff @sturnlsstuff @imjusthereforthesturniolosmut @mattsbrat @mattsfavoritestar @dominicfikeenthusiast @certified-sturniolo @mattsside @sofiaaguilaxx @idrk2292 @dylansfavwife @sturnl0ve @sturnioloangelxoxo @sofia-is-a-sturniolo-triplet-fan @milasturniolo @mattsdillion @birkinbratsworld @aria003 @poppingmypussy4chris @seluky10 @annsx03 @ouchywow @pasteldreams @sweetshuga @pip4444chris @chriss-slut @yourebeautifulqueen @watercolorskyy @courta13 @craftycrafter26 @meg4-matt44

[hhmnya]

ㅤ 𓈒 𓈒　 WITH EASE, in which hyung line helps you with your kid.

( 형 ) fem ! r ㅤ ◦ ㅤ 1632wc fluff ㅤ──ㅤ w jake's reader has twins, sunghoon is a single dad, set kid names in jay and hoon's.

from anna. for fave @junislqve my biggest fan 💌 she gave me a lot of ideas for this ty

ㅤㅤ ㅤㅤㅤ ㅤㅤ REBLOGS ´ ᯅ ` FEEDBACK.

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ LEE HEESEUNG.

you walk into your apartment, dropping your keys onto the counter as you slip off your coat. your tired expression is replaced with a bright smile when you see heeseung watching tv on your couch. you sit down next to him, gaining just enough energy to ask if your son is asleep.

“yeah, he actually went to bed pretty early today,” he stands, “do you want something to eat? i saved some food for you, i just need to heat it up.”

you nod, watching him walk away before closing your eyes. the exhaustion of your job has finally caught up to you and you might’ve fallen asleep if not for heeseung’s updates about him and your son’s day.

lee heeseung is your own personal angel, you think. your neighbor turned babysitter turned weird situationship; at least in your perspective. he takes care of you almost as much as he takes care of your three year old son. he’s at your apartment more than he is his own (that’s mainly your fault) and you’ve grown used to coming home to him almost every day.

you hear him say your name and your eyes flutter open to see the sympathetic smile he has on his face and it’s so gorgeous, he might as well break your heart now before you fall for him any deeper.

“it’s okay if you sleep for a bit, you’re tired,” he says oh-so matter-of-factly, because he knows you now, “i’ll wake you up in an hour.”

it’s more than an hour later, when you feel heeseung’s hand on your cheek, rubbing under your eye. he notices you beginning to wake up and pulls his hand away, “you should go eat now, ‘kay? the food is on the counter. i’m gonna go ahead and go home."

you sit up, frowning, “sorry, but can you stay? just until i finish eating, i’m sorry.”

he stares at you, silent for what feels like hours, and it makes you regret opening your mouth. you blame it on your drowsiness—you know that if you were in your right mind you wouldn’t have asked him even if you really did want him to stay. to your surprise, however, he grins.

“yeah, i can stay.”

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ PARK JONGSEONG.

you send jay a text, apologizing for the fifth time this month for backing out on your date. he’s probably becoming more annoyed with you each time you cancel, but it’s really not your fault.

for the past few days you haven’t been able to find a babysitter for your daughter. her usual one, jaehyun, was out of town, and your back up sitters all had plans or ended up canceling last minute due to personal problems.

you rise from your position on your couch, deciding you should get dinner started for the two of you. before you’re able to, however, you hear a set of soft knocks on your door. you go to open it without bothering to look out the peephole, figuring it was one of your neighbors coming to ask for something.

“hello—oh. jay?” your eyes widen when you process the fact that it’s your boyfriend at the door. he was probably the last person you expected.

“hey,” he gives you that smile that never ceases to make your heart almost stop.

“why’re you here? wait, nevermind. i’m really sorry about canceling last minute, the babysitter couldn’t come,” while you’re talking, you gesture for jay to come inside, shutting the door once he slips off his shoes.

“i’m not mad, these things happen,” he places a kiss on your forehead, lifting up a bag of groceries, “i figured we could still have dinner together, just with an extra person.”

“jay, you didn’t have to. i feel bad.”

and he really didn’t, but he did.

“i was going to buy dinner anyway. a home cooked meal is better, no?” he walks further into your apartment, setting down the bag on the small counter. “where’s gen at?��

“oh, she’s in—”

genevieve cuts you off, all but squealing as she runs out of her room with a toothy grin, “mommy, jj’s here?”

you don’t have time to scold her for running in the house because she immediately throws herself into jay’s arms, the man picking her up with ease, “woah. hey, sweet girl. what are up to, huh?”

you smile as they have a conversation, acting like best friends who haven’t seen each other in months. it melts your heart—genevieve liked jay from the day that she met him all those months ago and you know that jay loves genevieve like she’s his own. he’s definitely someone you want to keep around for as long as possible, if not for you but for your daughter as well.

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ SIM JAEYUN.

your two kids run up to your best friend, fighting each other for a spot in his arms. they don’t fight for long because he easily lifts the two children up. he says hi to them and asks them about their day before stepping inside your apartment and kicking the door shut. once his conversation with the kids dies out, he looks at you with a smug smile on his face.

“they like me more than you,” he says instead of a normal greeting.

“that’s because you spoil them every time they see you.”

“they like me because i’m me,” he sticks his tongue out at you, “huh, guys, you love me, don’t you? your mommy’s just jealous.”

“you’re actually annoying,” you reach up, taking advantage of his occupied hands, flicking his forehead and quickly escaping to your kitchen before he can even think to retaliate against you.

he immediately sets the twins down, telling them to go play while he goes to help you with whatever you’re doing. he waits until he hears the faint sound of them pulling out their toys to go towards your makeshift hideout.

he creeps up behind you, being as quiet as possible. you’re popping a bag of popcorn, thankfully too focused on that than him and his whereabouts. he stifles a laugh, poking your side hard enough for you to curl in on yourself.

“oh my fu—jake, what the heck?” you scold him, hitting his shoulder.

he laughs, holding his hands up in surrender, “sorry! i had to get you back. i think you gave me a concussion.”

he assumes you notice the popping slowing down and you turn away from him, taking the bag out of the microwave. he can’t see your face but he knows you’re rolling your eyes when you speak, “please, i barely touched you.”

“that’s what you think.”

you don’t give him the pleasure of the response, ignoring him to instead pour the bag of popcorn into a bowl.

“thank you,” you say suddenly, turning around once more, “i was thinking and, you know, i don’t really say it enough.”

“you don’t–” he starts to say, but you interrupt him by grabbing his hand and lacing your fingers together.

“i do. you’ve been really helpful lately. so, thank you.”

“um”, he hesitates, “i love them and i love you. ‘course i’m gonna help.”

you smile, dropping jake’s hand and going back to preparing for your weekly movie night. he misses the warmth of your hand almost instantly, and he has to resist the urge to pull you back against him in a hug.

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ PARK SUNGHOON.

he can’t help but think that this is too crazy to be a coincidence. you, the pretty mom he gained a mini-crush on at the park a couple months ago, now at his house with your son who just so happens to be his son’s new best friend. maybe whatever divine being that’s up there finally took pity on him and decided to give his bleak love life some color.

he slides over a glass of cold water to where you’re sitting and the smile of gratitude you give him could probably cause car crashes from how dazzling it is. sunghoon can see your lips moving, but can make out no sound. he’s too dazed from being in your presence to process anything other than the fact that you’re sitting in his house.

“...live with you.”

he comes back to reality, only catching the end of your sentence and blinks, “what? sorry, i spaced out."

obviously, he’s going to need more context because logically he knows you aren’t saying what he thinks you are—you’ve only known each other for a month—but he can’t think of anything else that would make sense.

“theo said he wanted to come live with you and yejun,” you say, amusement dancing across your face.

“oh,” he takes in your words, “really?”

“yeah, he was begging me earlier. so..” you pause to take a drink and he has to look away, “if you’re okay with it, can he spend the night?”

he agrees to it with a little too much enthusiasm. of course, this is mainly for yejun and theo—strengthening their friendship, helping them gain a lasting relationship or whatever—but it gives him an excuse to see you again tomorrow.

around twenty minutes later, sunghoon walks you out, his hands in his pockets. you told the boys about the sleepover, said bye to the both of them, told theo to be good and that you love him.

“i have a spare toothbrush and he can wear some of yejun’s pajamas, so don’t worry about coming back.”

“okay, perfect. um, i’ll see you tomorrow?”

“yeah, tomorrow,” he watches you walk to your car, waving as you drive off.

sunghoon knows for a fact that he’s fucked—he already wants to hear you say that all of the time; that you’ll see him tomorrow and the next day and the next. he feels like a teenager all over again, already thinking about what he’s going to wear and say tomorrow morning.

[catchastarorten]

hey lovely, i don’t know if you take requests but i absolutely love your works!! i wanted to see if you can do a jun ho fic x fem!reader where jun is in a coma after in ho shoot him on that island and reader has been visiting him every day since at the hospital. and one day he finally wakes ip and reader just takes care of him? just like a baby, food, kisses, cuddles. i feel like our man needs that :(

tyy if you would do this, have a great day or night 🩷🩷

Hello, anon! Here's your request :), I hope I did Jun-ho justice because you're absolutely right, the man needs some love and care, and he's gonna get it here. Hope you enjoy this — lots of love! <3

—Feels better with you.

Pairing: Hwang Jun-ho x lover!fem!reader

Summary: after everything Jun-ho went through, he was in a coma, you were there with him when he finally woke up. He needed you. And you took care of him while he was recovering.

Content: fluff, comfort, kisses, yearning, a little bit of angst, Jun-ho in a coma then waking up, English isn’t my first language, mistakes should be present, not proofread, sorry!

Word count: ~ 1.0k

Seeing him lying there, hooked up to machines, pale and fragile in a way you’d never seen before, broke something in you. This was the man who had once held you so tightly, who had whispered promises into your skin, who had loved you with a quiet intensity that made you feel untouchable. Now he looked so far away.

You visited him every day after hearing about how he'd been pulled from the ocean. He was in a coma.

You talked to him, your voice soft but steady, telling him about everything and nothing. You read to him, held his hand, brushed the hair from his forehead like you used to on those lazy mornings. And every day, you hoped he’d come back to you.

The day he woke up, it was like the world stopped. His eyes fluttered open, unfocused and heavy with exhaustion. Your heart leapt into your throat as you leaned closer, your hands trembling.

Waking up felt like surfacing from a dream that had gone on too long—foggy and disorienting, the kind of dream where Jun-ho wasn't sure if he was still alive or dead. His body was heavy, every muscle aching, but especially from the shot on his shoulder, the weight that it carried.

For a moment, Jun-ho couldn’t remember where he was or why his chest felt so tight, why his head throbbed with such a sharp ache.

But then he saw you.

You were leaning over him, your eyes wide, tears brimming as if you held them back for too long. And when you whispered his name, the sound cracked something deep inside him.

“Jun-ho?” your voice echoed.

He tried to speak, but his throat felt raw, his voice coming out like sandpaper as he rasped your name back. Just your name, like it was the only word he'd held onto all this time. “Y/n…”

And just like that, the weight of the world fell away. You were there, holding his face, your touch soft and grounding, your presence the only thing grounding him to reality. “I’m here,” you told him, your voice thick with relief. “I’m right here.”

The look in your eyes nearly undid him. He wanted to say so much, to explain why he left, to apologize for everything—for leaving without a word, for the pain he knew he’d caused you—but his body betrayed him, too weak to form the sentences in his head.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered instead, the words barely audible.

“Stop,” you shook your head, tears falling from your eyes. “You don’t have to explain anything right now,” you said gently, your voice a balm to his soul. “Just rest, okay? Please.”

He didn’t argue. He never could with you.

In the days that followed, Jun-ho spent more time watching you than anything else. He was too weak to do much else, and honestly, he didn’t mind. Every time he opened his eyes, you were there—staying with him, and he held your hand as if he couldn’t bear to let go.

You’d talk to him in that soft, steady voice of yours, telling him about the most ordinary things. It didn’t matter what you said. All he cared about was the sound of your voice, the way it wrapped around him like a blanket, comforting and warm. Like he was home again.

There were times, late at night, when you thought he was asleep, and he’d feel your fingers brushing against his, hear the quiet, shaky breaths you took as if trying to hold yourself together. Those moments broke him more than anything else.

He hated himself for leaving you. For disappearing the way he had, knowing how much it would hurt you. But the guilt wasn’t as strong as the relief he felt now, knowing that despite everything, you were still here. You hadn’t given up on him, and he loves you for it.

When he was finally strong enough to sit up on his own, you started bringing him food—simple things like soup or porridge. He’d watch you blow on each spoonful, your lips pursed slightly as you cooled the soup before holding it to his mouth.

He ate obediently, his eyes never leaving you, his gaze flickering to your lips like he was counting the moments until the bowl was empty and he could kiss you again. 

He wanted to kiss you so badly it hurt.

The first time he finally did, you were brushing your fingers through his hair. Without thinking, Jun-ho reached up and caught your hand, pressing a kiss to your palm, then your wrist, his eyes fluttering shut as if the touch alone was enough to heal him.

Your heart clenched as you leaned down to kiss him properly, your lips soft against his. It was slow, tentative. Your lips were warm, familiar, and he felt a shiver run through him as he let himself sink into it.

“I missed you,” he murmured against your lips, his voice low and raw with emotion.

“I missed you too,” you whispered back.

Jun-ho wanted to hold you properly, more than anything. To pull you into his arms and never let go. But the hospital bed wasn’t big enough for that, much to his silent frustration.

You let out a quiet laugh when he gave you a soft frown, but you gave him your arm instead, letting him curl up against you. He rested his head on your hand, his eyes focused on you as you gently ran your fingers through his hair.

The frown dissolved from his face, his eyes traced your features as if he was memorizing every little thing about you. His breathing slowed, and you knew he was at peace.

He needed this. All of it. And he needed you.

[simpjaes]

kinda need you to always write about jayhoon fucking and if its not on here PLEASE link where you write it I NEED THESE BISEXUAL MEN TO FUCK

warning: masturbation. jay wants to bottom for his horny friend who can't land a girl. sunghoon is kinda weird about it, like if he's gonna fuck a guy the least he can do is moan like a bitch. they don't fuck in this. not proof read. IF YOU HAVE AN ISSUE WITH SHIP FICS OR MXM THAT'S FINE. Don't hate on me because i like to have fun with fiction. none of this is real, and no, i don't ship them in real life.

-

"I'm just so frustrated, Jay, you have no idea." Sunghoon whines for the billionth time tonight, rock hard in his pants as he lounges around a bedroom that isn't his own. "Imagine if I have to graduate without fucking a single girl here?! Fucking embarrassing." Jay, well aware that Sunghoon really is just a little dumb sometimes, notes how his rock-hard friend never picked up on the fact that he's complaining about never getting his dick wet to a bisexual man, who very much has a crush on him.

"So, what're you going to do then?" Jay grumbles, kicking his socked foot into the rug on his floor, slouching against his bed and pretending like he doesn't have the hottest man on campus lounging on his bed right now. "I don't know-" Sunghoon huffs. "I think I'd do just about anything." He trails off now, lifting his arms in the air and grabbing a pair of imaginary ass cheeks. "What'd I'd do to get some ass in my face at this point. I'm going insane." "You'd do anything?" Jay turns on the floor, peeking above his bed at his friend, eyes trailing down to the tent in his pants only briefly. "Anything." Jay turns back now, staring at his closed bedroom door and feeling his face go hot. There's no way he's about to approach Sunghoon with this. No fucking way. "Sunghoon, have you ever like-" He stops himself, embarrassed, feeling like he's the desperate one at this point. "Hm?" Sunghoon half moans, throwing his hips up against the inseam of his pants, eyes closed as he still imagines that imaginary ass in his grasp. "Let me rephrase." Jay stumbles in his words, trying to think of how to ask him. "Are you looking for a pretty face, or like, just a hole?" Sunghoon pauses, opening his eyes and immediately shooting to the end of the bed, looking down at Jay. "Honestly? I'd probably fuck a bowl of macaroni at this point. My balls hurt." Jay doesn't dare look up at his friend, already feeling smaller compared to him as he sits on the floor embarrassed about his own lust. "What about a guy?" He blurts now, knowing that if he doesn't just ask, he never will. Meaning, he'll never have the chance to know himself just how deep Sunghoon's desperation goes compared to his own. "Hm." Sunghoon pauses, looking up to the ceiling in thought before throwing himself back on the bed. "You know? Yeah, maybe." He says, knowing that at the end of the day, a hole is a hole. Casual sex is casual sex. Guy, girl. Either option is better than a bowl of macaroni. "Oh?" Jay perks up, turning again to look at him. "Why maybe?" "Well, given my luck with girls, I doubt I can just walk up to some guy and be like 'hey bro, can i put my dick in you?' Plus, he's gotta be like, pretty, I guess." Jay's face heats more, knowing for a fact that if Sunghoon said those words to him, he would be on the floor spreading his cheeks in an instant. "Pretty like how?" "I don't know. I've never thought about it before. Shorter than me, nice ass, shaved face. Preferably can moan kinda girly..." Well. Jay just so happens to be shorter. He's shaved (everything), He- Jay tries to moan out quietly, just to see if his voice reaches a feminine pitch, very quietly. "Was that you?" Sunghoon suddenly asks, once again throwing himself back over to the edge of the bed, intentionally rubbing his cock against it because honestly, he needs some fucking hole. "Huh?" Jay asks dumbly. "Was what me?" "Moaning. Did you just moan?" Sunghoon narrows his eyes. "I-" "That sounded kinda hot," Sunghoon now encourages him, staring down at his friend and thinking...maybe..."Can you do it again?" And so, Jay moans awkwardly, trying to reach that same pitch, trying to impress him, really. "Holy shit, you sound so..." Sunghoon trails off, closing his eyes and rubbing his cock against the mattress again. "slutty." "Really?" Jay's eyes practically sparkle, blinking up at Sunghoon in a somewhat submissive way which kind of floors his friend. "Oh." Sunghoon sighs at the image, feeling his cock pulse, practically beg for the man on the floor. "You said they have to be pretty too though." The shorter man pushes the subject, not quite asking, but implying. It's silent now as Jay starts to spiral further and further into embarrassment. He can hear nothing but his own heartbeat threatening to kill him off and get him out of this situation and, well, the rubbing sounds of Sunghoon up there semi-masturbating on his bed.

"Who said you aren't pretty?" Sunghoon mutters, seemingly finding who it is he can release all of this sexual frustration out on. - part two

[myrruwrites]

PLEASE write more streamer jinx😩🙏🙏 I only ever see other characters. it was so funny reading it and imagining what out of pocket things jinx would say

“Long night” | Gf!Jinx doing streaming marathons.

A/N: This is just meant to be a rough draft, putting some thoughts into words. I’m aware it’s not my best work, I just really wanted to give it a shot. Reader wears glasses btw! | thank you a ton for giving me an excuse to write more of this. I love streamer!jinx. I hope this is alright!

WC: 400(?), CC: 2,155 | CW: Gunshot mentions. Jinx is a Fortnite lover. | Pairing: Streamer!Jinx x F!Reader.

You toss and turn, stirring slightly in your sleep. Your eyes flutter open slightly, your gaze meeting the numbers on the alarm clock. 4:00am. “What the fuck am I doing up at 4am?” You think to yourself. You roll onto your side to see if Jinx is asleep still, but to your surprise, you find the spot next to you empty and cold, like she hadn’t been there for hours. Where is she?

That’s when you hear it, the slight sound of gunshots. You let out a soft sigh, prying the covers off of you as you stumble to your feet. You know exactly where Jinx is, exactly what she’s doing.

As you wrap your favourite robe around you, you slide your glasses on. You make your way through the hallway, and unsurprisingly, the door at the end has a bright light peeking through. You can hear the gunshots get louder, mixed with playful rambling. “Ha! Take that! Chat, did you see that?! Headshot!”. A soft smile forms on your face at the familiar voice. You make your way up to the door, before creaking it open slightly. Surely enough, Jinx was sat playing Fortnite attentively, her webcam clearly on.

She doesn’t seem to be paying attention to chat, so you decide to use this to your advantage. You slide into the room, creeping closer. At this point you can see the chat yourself. They’re all saying hello to you, pointing you out. However, Jinx seems completely oblivious to your presence. You place your palms over her headphones, your fingers lightly tugging at them and prying them off her head. It’s at this moment she snaps back to reality and her surroundings, she tilts her head back, looking up into your eyes, “hey tuts!”, before turning back to chat. “why didn’t-ya warn me she was here?”. You laugh softly before responding on behalf of her chat, “they did, I saw them. You just weren’t paying attention, little miss blue.” She scowls as you playfully poke her nose, but you can see the undeniable smirk forming on the edge of her lips. “Yeah yeah, just get in here.” she murmurs, hauling you onto her lap before focusing on her game once more.

“Fuck! That cunt was afk killing me! Chat, I’m so gonna get her back!”

God, she’s such a doofus. Atleast she’s your doofus... this is going to be a long night.

[gingernut1314]

It's Cold

Summary: It's cold on the island your crew has sailed into and Zoro refuses to wear his jacket.

Content: Gender-natural reader, Zoro being stubborn, set on the Thousand Sunny, Brook mentioned, Drum Island and Zoro's happenings there mentioned

Word Count: 1K

A/N: It's snowing in my part of the world and after seeing one of the prompts from this prompt list, I had to write this little fic. I hope you all enjoy!

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Your crew had yet again landed on an island perpetually thrown into winter. An island with winds so frigid it cut through the skin, knee-high snow that would make any journey monstrous, and a cloudy, gray sky that never seemed to have met the sun.

And yet Zoro still refused to put a jacket on. 

“It’s cold, Zoro.” You huffed, thrusting his coat out for him to take. He crossed his arms tight over her chest in refusal. You could already see the bits of skin his short-sleeved shirt didn’t cover growing red from the biting wind.

“This is what you call cold?” He scoffed. “This is nothin’.” He brushed you off with a shrug of his shoulders.

“Not cold?” You bit just as sharp as the cold at him. “You’re one big fat liar.” Zoro narrowed his eyes at you. 

“Am not.” 

“Are too.” You childishly shot back as you all but lunged at the swordsman. Zoro gave a gruffing growl as you tried to wrangle the jacket onto one of his arms. Zoro moved and you held on tighter, the swordman all but swinging you around with him. 

“Hey!” Zoro shouted, tossing you off in a not-so-gentle way. “Knock it off.” 

“No. Not until you wear a jacket.” You huffed back, the cold air turning your words into a could of white before you. Zoro watched you, his annoyance growing with every second that ticked by. 

“Not gonna happen.” He insisted. “It’s good for endurance.” 

“Not when you're getting hypothermia on top of it.” Zoro rolled his eyes at you then. 

Rolled them. 

Like he thought you were being over dramatic.

“You remember Drum Island?” You stabbed a finger into his solid chest. “Remember how you got lost in sub-zero temperatures with no shirt on? Remember how you whined like a baby about how cold--” 

“I did not whine like a little baby.” Zoro huffed, smacking your finger away. “I don’t need a damn jacket.” 

You watched Zoro for a long moment. 

A moment you took to shoot dagger-sharp eyes his way. Eyes full of dissatisfaction of his continued stubbornness. Eyes that had slowly but surely begun to make Zoro squirm. 

“Stop that.” He gruffed at you. 

“Stop what.” You shrugged, slinging his jacket over your arm neatly. 

“That look on your face. Stop it.” You shook your head, starting for the rest of the crew waiting for you two, already having made it to land. 

“What look? I have no look.” Zoro gruffed once more before quickly making his way to your side. 

“You want me to wear that jacket.” You shrugged. 

“Yes. It would make me very very happy if you did but what can I do about it? You have said no over and over again. You win. I don’t care anymore.” Zoro all but ground his teeth as he continued to follow you off the ship, Brook’s Yohohoing laugh floating up their way. 

You looked calm. 

Too calm.

A calm you would never feel unless he put that jacket on. 

It was suspicious…but a pinched twitch of your lips told him you were far from calm.

“It’s not that cold.” He huffed, scratching the top of his green-haired head.

“It's very cold.” 

“Maybe.” You glanced up at him, brow cocked. 

“Oh?” Zoro grit his teeth, dark brown, near black, eyes glancing away from you. 

“Snow is cold. There’s snow.” He muttered. 

“Good job! You're right.” You said in mock cheery praise. Praise that was very much done condescendingly. Done to make him feel stupid.

Zoro wasn’t stupid….not all the time.

“Well, now I’m really not gonna wear the damn thing.” And you shrugged it off. Like you really didn’t care now. 

“That’s fine.” And Zoro watched as you placed the jacket on the railing of the Sunny just before you started for the gangway. It stopped Zoro right in his tracks. 

“Wait--you’re just gonna let me go off without a jacket?” You nodded, climbing up onto the gangway. 

“Yep.” You gave the word a nice pop. 

Zoro froze completely then. Like he was now refusing to even leave the ship. 

“But it's cold.” You paused in your exit. 

“What?” Zoro gave a dramatic grumble. 

“You damn well heard what I said.” You turned on your heel then, leaning forward a bit as you cupped your ear. 

“I really didn’t. You’re gonna have to speak up.” Zoro gave yet another grumble as he looked away from you. He crossed his arms, all but ground his teeth and--

“It's cold.” You couldn’t help the satisfied smile that pulled to your lips. 

“That it is. And…?” You pulled your hand from your ear only so you could egg him on. 

“I’m not gonna wear that jacket 'cause it's cold.” He huffed, looking back to find you now sporting a deep frown. 

“Then--”

“I’m gonna wear it to make you happy and to stop you from looking at me like that.” You felt your heart give a little start at his words. Words he didn’t really find to be that big a deal but meant the world to you. 

You hopped down from the gangway, grabbed the jacket, and held it open so you could help Zoro put it on. He huffed, but let you slip the furr-lined jacket onto his thick arms. 

“It does make me happy.” You sweetly said. A sweetness that seemed to melt the hardness from Zoro’s face. 

You zipped his jacket up, but instead of letting the metal zipper pull go, you yanked him down so that he was on level with you. His dark eyes widened the smallest bit at the action. Eyes that seemed to grow even wider as you nuzzled the tip of your cold nose against his, which was annoyingly warm despite the cold surrounding you both.

“Thank you.” You smiled, finding a small dusting of pink had begun to coat Zoro's cheeks just how the snow coated the Sunny’s deck.

“Whatever.” He grumbled, eyes glancing away from yours looking all too cutesily shy.

More Like This: Are You Mad? {Zoro x gn!reader}

[howi99]

A Knight second chance 12

Jaune: (Tsk, it's taking too long! At this rhythm, Pyrrha's gonna get killed!) Hey, Pyr?

Pyrrha: Hm?

Jaune: *point to Mercury* Just letting you know, that the guy over there got 2 prosthetic legs.

Pyrrha: *perplexed* How-

Jaune: *point to the disguised Neo* I spoke with her. So anyway, he plans to fight you. Now, you remember what i said about using every advantage in a fight, right?

Pyrrha: B-but that wouldn't be fairplay and-

Jaune: *sigh* Pyrrha, do you really wish to be a huntress?

Pyrrha: *shocked* Wha- Yes! Of course i want!

Jaune: *taking her hands in his, looking at her straight in the eyes* Then... Why are you still holding back? Do you think the criminals will? Or the grimms?

Pyrrha: *Blushing madly* whu-..

Jaune: *sigh* Guess i'll have to teach you more. *Getting up* Miss Goodwitch, may i take the first fight?

Glynda: *surprised* I don't mind... This is the first time you volunteered yourself. *Frown* Is everything ok?

Jaune: *chuckle* Yes professor. I just want to show my partner how a huntsman should fight.

Everyone: *whispering between themselves*

Nora: *nodding to Yang with a smirk* Hey, you shouldn't be rude!

Jaune: *blinking* ... What?

Yang: *grinning* You know, she's right! How dare you say she doesn't fight like a huntress, uh?!

Jaune: ...! *Panicking* W-wait, no! That's not what i meant! Pyrrha's amazing, b-but she still holds back and-

Ren: Jaune.

Jaune: *looking at Ren* Uh?

Ren: *smirk* They are joking.

Jaune: ... O-oh, yeah, right. *Cough with a slight blush* I-in any case, i wish to fight you *point to Glynda* Professor!

Everyone: *silence... Then everyone starts talking at the same time*

Glynda: *annoyed* Silence! *Everyone shut up* Good. *Turn to Jaune* Now, why would you want to fight me instead of anyone else?

Jaune: *smiling* In the face of a stronger opponent, one needs to create their own advantage. I'm not expecting to win against you, but i want to show everyone how even the most powerful semblances can be overcome.

Glynda: *small smirk* Oh? Am i to assume you will use any trick necessary to that goal?

Jaune: *smirking* Of course. If it's to help my partner, i don't mind getting a bit rough.

*sound of something falling to the ground*

Nora: Uh... Jaune?

Jaune: ... That was Pyrrha, wasn't it?

Nora: Yep.

Jaune: *sigh* Anyway, maybe we should spar outside? And uh... Can someone help? I think i'd make it worse if i tried helping her.

Yang: *smiling* I'll go get some water! *whispering to Nora* because that girl is thiiiirsty~.

_ Outside _

Ruby: *vibrating with excitement* Oh gosh, we are going to see Professor Glynda fight! This is so awesome!

Pyrrha: *still a blushing mess* We held hands...

Nora: *nudging Pyrrha with her elbow* Hey Pyrrha, eyes on the ring!

Yang: *squinting her eyes* Wait... Weiss, did you give Jaune some of your dust?

Weiss: Yes, why?

Yang: How come you never share with us!?

Weiss: *deadpan* I did, once. And you used it all on your stupid bike.

Yang: Hey, her name is Bumblebee and-

Blake: Shhhh!

On the ring

Glynda: *looking at her students* Tsk. Maybe i should be stricter with them.

Jaune: *wearing his armor and a bunch of vial of dust* Well, can't blame kids for being kids, right?

Glynda: *looking at him* You are one of them you know?

Jaune: *flinch for a instant then smile* I guess i am. *Stretch* Well, for today i'll be your assistant teacher.

Glynda: *keeping note of that flinch* Hm...*taking position* Ready when- *gets blinded by Jaune's using thunder dust as a flashbang* !

Jaune: *already running to her, quickly mixing dust together* A huntsman should never lower their guards in a fight! *Dodge the disciplinarian, then slash at her twice* We rely on our senses to use our semblance, so the best way to win- *gets pushed back by Glynda's semblance* -is to have the element of surprise! *Throw an ice and fire dust vial near Glynda, a thick mist instantly forming to obstruct her vision further*

Glynda: *smiling* (He's good. Using my politeness to get the advantage.) You didn't follow the rules, Jaune. *Hearing him approaching from the right* Maybe you should be punished? *Use her semblance to condense the water in the air into needles, throwing them at Jaune, which blocks part of them with his shield*

Jaune: *apologetic smile* Sorry, just wanted to show them that real fights don't have rules. *Unsheathing his sword, starting to run at her* And i'm not done yet! *Using ice dust on the ground, making it slippery* Bad day for heels, don't you think?

Glynda: *trying to maintain her balance* What the-

Jaune: *slide, making her fall on the ground* The second thing you can use is your environment! *Gets on one knee then stab the ground with an earth crystal covered in plant dust, making the ground under them burst with roots, covering Glynda* Change it, mold it, make it yours!

Glynda: *chuckle while using her power to unroot everything around her* Not bad, not bad at all. *Aim at Jaune with a smirk* My turns now.

Jaune: *using gravity dust on himself to make himself heavier* The last part is aura management. *Taking position, placing his shield to protect his vitals* Everyone has limits, a point where they can't realistically fight at 100% even if they still have Aura.

Glynda: *begin her assault, throwing stones and roots at her student*

Jaune: *gritting his teeth, slowly but surely sliding out of the ring* Semblance uses Aura, you can bring them down with time! You don't need to rush! *His foot pass the borders limit* Ring out!

Glynda: *sweating, stopping her assault* That was.... That was good, very good even!

Jaune: *not moving*

Glynda: *worried* Mr Arc? Jaune?

Jaune: ... I used too much gravity dust, I'm stuck!

Back with the spectators

Ruby: *frotting at the mouth from the awesomeness*

Weiss: *looking at their aura reserve* 87% for Jaune and 68% for Glynda.

Yang: Damn, VB is good, right Pyr?

Pyrrha: ...

Nora: Pyrrha?

Pyrrha: ... *Looking at her hands* So he was holding back during our spar too...

Nora: *worried* A-are you ok?

Pyrrha: *having a... Weird smile and eyes* Eh, eh eh eh~

Yang: ... *Slowly pulling out another bottle of water and slowly giving it to Pyrrha* P-money, your thirst is showing.

Pyrrha: *snapping back to reality* O-oh! I'm Sorry!

Blake: ... By the way, did anyone see Ren?

Ren: *coming back with his pockets full of Liens* I'm here.

Weiss: *frowning* Where did you get that?

Ren: *shrug* Everyone was betting on low aura while i took the "risk" of taking the ring out.

Yang: Wait, there were bets?!

Ren: Yeah, team CRDL was making them when you were gone getting some water for Pyrrha. *Looking at Ruby* By the way, you won too, Ruby.

Ruby: *hearing the news, getting back to reality too* Woohoo! More part for Crescent Rose!

_ meanwhile _

Cinder: That kid...

Emerald: Should we be worried? He was the one who stopped Roman from stealing the cargo at the docks.

Cinder: ... I need to ask that old fool for more information on him. He could be... Useful, since our plans have changed...

[couch-potato28]

Imagine being a Blue Lock manager! ⚽

VERSION I.

(a/n: Hey everybody, back with the continuation! 🙋‍♀️ as you can see from the title this is only the first version of my bllk manager 'story' meaning there's more to come ^^ The current plan is to write with multiple players a similar episode like the one below. So I hope you enjoy it!! ❤️)+if u see any grammatical errors let me know tyy

WARNING!-none

wc: 1.4 k words, so buckle up cause it's gonna be a looong ride again sry T_T

ALSO: requested tags ❤️-@ttheggrimrreaper @god-is-disappointed

——————

FROM THE PROLOGUE:

“Congratulations L/N Y/N! Based on your results, you've earned your place in Blue Lock as the manager of player number…

…1, Itoshi Rin.”

'Player number one, Itoshi Rin. Player number one, number one…number…'-the words rang in your head like a mantra as you tried to process the information over and over again.

“PLAYER NUMBER ONE?!”-you exclaimed once realisation hit you in the face. Perhaps, a little too loudly, earning yourself quite a few envious looks and surprised glances. Standing in the room for a few seconds, you didn’t move due to the shock of what just happened. You might have stayed like that forever, if one of the girls who were still waiting for their turn, hadn’t shouted at you.

“Yeah, we heard that the first time!”

Rude. You thought, before snapping back to reality and heading towards the door that had the ‘MANAGER’ label on in bold, black letters. Stepping into the room, to your surprise, was Anri waiting there, sitting at a desk with neatly arranged papers, folders, and all kinds of pens on it. Sensing your presence, she stood up, and when you got there, she extended her hand, saying “Congratulations” with a bright smile. You thanked her before she turned around, searching through a pile of booklets before stopping her finger on the with your name written on the cover.

“Here. It’s kind of like a little guide, it will be very helpful for adjusting to your player. This thing contains your new routine and some useful information as well.”-she said, handing it to you.-“Good luck and welcome to Blue Lock!”

She then directed you to Team A’s soccer field, where the boys were currently training. Walking your way there, you felt your hands starting to sweat, heart beating a little faster than normal, and the feeling of excitement from earlier coming back. After all…

Imagine being THE Itoshi Rin’s manager, who’s the best in Blue Lock with his jersey number confirming his position.

Itoshi Rin, with whom your first meeting couldn’t have gone worse. Who, after only 5 minutes, tells you with a straight face that:

“I don’t need a manager.”

Leaving you stunned at his plain attitude and bluntness. Seeing as you stare at him, without another word, he turns around and starts to walk away, which causes you to panic. Not knowing what to do in this case, you call out his name multiple times, hoping he stops. That doesn’t seem to work, so you decide to shout at him the first thing that comes to your mind.

“ARE YOU ITOSHI SAE’S BROTHER?”

The moment those words slipped out of your mouth an incredibly awkward silence fell over the room. Oh. My. God. This was probably the dumbest thing you could have said, but in your defense, it did make the boy stop in his tracks.

Catching up to him, you apologized, saying this was just a slip of the tongue. Rin looked unfazed, but the way his body tensed up told you that you probably touched a sensitive topic there. Before you could open your mouth again, he sighed and gave you a nasty stare, walking past your figure without sparing a second glance.

Great first impression.

——————

•Rin, who after that incident starts ignoring your presence. Whenever you hand him a water bottle or try to strike up a conversation, the only thing you get back is an uninterested look. Your apology the day before was also left on heard.

•Learning it through the hard way, but working with him meant keeping his brother’s business or any news or posts related to him out of your mouth. Even mentioning the famous footballer's name was forbidden territory, and although you never questioned his strange behaviour towards the older one, you do wonder what happened between them.

•Rin, who has a particularly strict routine that he follows without a break, doesn't expect you to be near him, but when the opposite happens with you sticking around, like an annoying fly 24/7, he wishes to find a way to somehow get rid of you.

•He doesn't know that you work your butt off, spending your free time watching every single match he has previously played in as well as analysing and taking notes of his every move. From waking up earlier than the player himself to prepare his yoga mattress and drinks for the morning to staying up until midnight to help him collect the footballs he shoots for late-night practices and cleaning up as soon as he finishes.

•However, it takes weeks until he finally talks to you, his first words being "Move over!" because you were standing in front of the weights he was gonna use. Over time though, even if it's just a short yes or no, a huff or an ugly look, but he starts to answer the many questions you ask every day out of concern or curiosity.

•Rin, who’s stoic and not a man of many words, silently starts to appreciate the way you have his daily routine and training engraved in your mind. You, who's always within arm’s length making sure he doesn’t overwork himself to death or forget his meals. You, who never knows when to shut up, sticking to his ass all day to confirm he’s alive and well, complaining or scolding him for being rude and unfriendly to his teammates, and showering him in compliments from time to time like:

•“You were amazing on the field earlier!” or “I’m jealous of your eyelashes!” and then there’s his favorite line that goes -“Isagi looked soooo shocked at your goal!” (it’s not a compliment, he thinks it is)

——————

•After weeks of working together, you’ve mastered the art of reading his microscopic facial expressions to know what he wants or thinks without him having to tell you directly. You’re busy, work schedule being fully packed, but still making time to accompany him in the evenings to rewatch and analyse his games before bed.

•However, sometimes too tired to stare at the screen, you end up falling asleep on his shoulder, making him complain to you the next day to quit drooling on his uniform and get a grip. He doesn’t want you to 'slack off' he says, but ultimately the underlying message is to take care of yourself.

•Rin, who works ten times harder during the preparation for the U20 match, training to face his brother on the field and making you constantly remind him to: “Get some rest” or “Relax, otherwise you will get injured before the real match!”-your words being ignored as usual.

———————

AFTER THE U20 MATCH…

•Rin’s popularity skyrockets following the victory of Blue Lock, yet he always manages to respond in a raw, unfiltered way at press conferences and interviews, that leave many reporters and paparazzi speechless.

•His newfound fans, on the other hand, adore his cold demeanor, and the comment sections are each time filled with either compliments about his plays or looks and never the ridiculously simple answers he gives to the media.

•Joining the team of PXG also makes the teal-eyed boy change in many ways, but surprisingly his attitude towards you somehow remains the same.

•Rin got 'new' teammates, a new coach/mentor, and new training routines. Everything is new. Better. Yet, he’s somewhat relieved that you're still his manager. The one who’s not afraid to call him out or nag at him. Knowing when to leave him alone at times. Letting him focus on his goals without getting in his way. Keeping him away from Shidou Ryusei outside the field as much as possible. Shoving down his throat the meals made according to his diet and making sure he sleeps exactly 7.5 hours.

•He hates to admit it, but you’re perfect…for being his manager of course. The only problem he finds is the way you make his heart move a little when you come to his games, supporting him with his jersey on, proudly wearing the name Itoshi Rin and number 10 across your back.

•Heck, these days he also can’t seem ignore the way you stare at him for an unnecessary amount of time during his warm ups and stretches, the slight shade of pink covering your cheeks every time he runs to you after a match, covered in sweat asking for some water and his towel.

•He notices your flustered state when he bends down a little to hear you better, or the way he sits just a tad bit closer to you during your French tutoring. It’s distracting. Not only to you, but to him as well. Yet, he doesn’t mind it nor does he do anything about it.

•Maybe in a few years, he thinks, if you'll still have some affection left for him, he could allow something other than just a strict, professional relationship between to two of you.

•However, currently, there’s no place on his priority list for you since football is his number one goal after all. He knows you understand that, that’s what he loves about you. Besides, you’re going to stay by his side for a long time, so what’s there to rush?

———————

(Gosh, my eyes gave up after rereading this for the third time 😭 hope you guys enjoyed it, let me know if u think this was a little too long and tyyy for the support ❤️ (★‿★)

[insomniadreamzz]

I am sorry

Jinx x Fem!Reader angst

Jinx accidentally shooting Reader

All you could hear was a loud bang before feeling that stinging pain in your left shoulder, yelping as your right hand immediately hold your shoulder, gritting your teeth together at the pain.

Jinx once again lost control of herself, fighting against enforcers, seeing her sister become one of them, it was all too much for her and she kept shooting around herself like crazy only stopping as she heard your yelp, eyes widen as she saw you on the floor being hurt. Everyone else died or they made their way out of here before they could get killed by her gun. She just noticed only you and her being left as she came back to reality again, rushing over to you.

„Oh no! Who shot you?“ Of course she didn’t realise it was her who shot you, her gaze wandering to the wound on your shoulder, seeing blood dripping between your fingers. „J-Jinx…it’s okay I know you didn’t do it on purpose..“ You mentioned as you laid weakly in her arms as she cradled you closer to her. „N-No…no it…can’t be. I am so sorry!“ Jinx was about to panic again but that won’t help both of you. She cupped both of your cheeks, tears running down her own cheeks. „Please don’t die! Please don’t you leave me as well…p-please I need you! I am so sorry!“ The pain in her voice was audible, your heart aching with hearing her being so heartbroken but forming words were so hard for you at this moment, feeling dizzy from the blood loss.

„I am not gonna lose you as well…“ Jinx said, picking you up into her arms as she brought you to Singed. All of this is reminding her of when Silco saved her. She knew it won’t be that bad like when she needed Silco’s help, the difference was you weren’t dead but you passed out in her arms. If she would wait more, you might die but thanks to the shimmer in her veins, Jinx was fast.

„Singed! Please! Please help me.“ Jinx begged, a totally new sight to the man, she usually wasn’t this desperate for help so he already knew something bad happened, his gaze moving to your passed out body in her arms, the blood painting your bodies which was dripping out of your wound but you were still breathing. One good sign.

„Alright I won’t ask. Put her on my table, I will see what I can do.“ He mentioned and Jinx did as he said, letting him do his job as she had to force herself to trust him.

A little time passed, Singed walked over to Jinx who was waiting for you just in another room, not wanting to see what he was doing to you so she won’t fuck up things anymore, his footsteps getting her back to reality. „She is fine. You’re lucky the bullet didn’t hit her heart. I think she will just need time to rest, the bullet is out and her wound wrapped.“ He explained, Jinx couldn’t help but cry, nails digging into her own thighs. „Fuck!…it’s all my fault she ended up hurt like this. Again I am the one who fucks up and loses important people to me!“ She yelled before rushing towards you, you were laying down, your breathing calm and you looked peaceful but Jinx’s heart was broken.

She mumbled something to the voices in her head, having an argument with them while she stayed close by your side, her hand holding yours. A little groan escaped your lips as you slowly came back to reality again, opening your eyes to see Jinx being a total mess beside you, eyes red from crying, her makeup all smudged.

„You’re alive…“ She muttered before hugging you tightly as she broke down on you. „I am so sorry!“ Jinx apologized again, you knew she truly was, gently caressing her back to try to comfort her. „Hey…it’s okay.“ You said, still a little weak, making her look up at you, seeing her cry made you feel so sad. „Jinx…it really-…“ You started but she cut you off. „No! It’s not okay. I almost killed you. Everyone near me dies! I don’t want you to die…you deserve someone better than me…I am just a ticking bomb, if you keep staying with me…I am scared you will die.“ Her whole body was shaking, you couldn’t believe what she just said. You knew a life with her is dangerous but you also didn’t want to live without her. But before you could say anything, Jinx ran away, leaving you there, making your own eyes tear up. This can’t be the end.

A few days later you recovered and Singed gave you permission to leave. Your shoulder was still stinging but that didn’t stop you from going back to Jinx’s hideout. You hoped she was there, hoping she didn’t do anything to herself, knowing her mental health was fucked.

When you arrived there, you saw a mess all around the place, she really must have freaked out the past days. You cursed under your breath, worrying even more now about her health and then you found her. She passed out on her halfway destroyed couch, her knuckles red, bleeding a little, showing you she might have punched something so hard to hurt herself. You frowned as you carefully sat down beside her, a hand slowly approaching her as you wanted to caress her and showing her you are here. „Hey…wake up I am here…“ You whisper and she woke up with a little groan, eyes widening when she saw you. „What are you doing here?? Are you real or am I seeing things again???“

You shook your head, cupping her with tears stained cheeks gently. „It is me. You think I would let you go? I must be stupid to let you go. You are everything to me. Accidents happen, I am not mad at you, nor do I want to leave you. I love you too much for that.“ You explained, making her feel all emotional again as tears ran down her cheeks, her lip quivering „H-How can you still love me…I-I did this…“ Jinx said with a shaky voice, her shaky hand moving to gently touch the bandage that covered your wound.

„Because I do. Love is stronger than anything else you know? We can get through this together. I won’t ever give up on you Jinx.“ You managed to say without breaking out into tears but Jinx did as she just got closer and kissed you, making you kiss her back.

The kiss lasted for a while before you both pulled back to breathe, you wiping her tears from her cheeks with a warm smile and finally Jinx smiled as well. „I love you so much too…you’re my dream girl and I promise you to never hurt you again…“ She said before both of you ended up kissing each other passionately.

[swappermanent]

The Freeloader

I think Brian resents me a little bit sometimes. I can see it in the way he sighs when he gets home and finds the mess I’ve made. Or how he mutters under his breath when he has to clean up after me. It’s the little things, you know? The unspoken tension of living with someone who doesn’t quite pull their weight.

After all, I am a freeloader. I stay in his apartment rent-free, eat food I didn’t buy, and, let’s face it, I don’t exactly contribute to the household chores. The dishes? Never done them. Laundry? Forget it. I’ve even been known to, uh, occasionally puke on the floor and not clean it up. Not my proudest moments.

Brian’s patience is admirable, really. He’s a good guy, but I get it—dealing with me isn’t always easy.

Maybe I should give you a bit more context. Because I’m starting to sound like the world’s worst roommate.

I’m Oscar. And I’m a border collie.

Yeah, that’s right. A dog. Brian adopted me as a puppy about five years ago. Back then, I was just a tiny ball of fur, all wobbly legs and oversized ears. I don’t remember much about that first day, but I do remember Brian’s face. He looked so happy, like he’d just won the lottery or something.

“Hey there, little guy,” he’d said, crouching down to meet me. His voice was warm, and his hand smelled like leather and soap. “You’re coming home with me.”

I’d wagged my tail so hard I nearly tipped over.

Brian named me Oscar because, according to him, I “looked like an Oscar.” I still have no idea what that means. Is it a compliment? An insult? A random name pulled out of thin air? Who knows. Humans are weird.

Speaking of weird things—Brian decided to do something truly odd last week. And when I say odd, I mean completely unhinged.

It started with him bursting through the door, practically tripping over his own feet. In his hand was a small package wrapped in plain brown paper. His face was lit up with this manic excitement, like he’d just discovered the secret to immortality or something.

“Oscar!” he said, grinning like a lunatic. “You’re not gonna believe this.”

I tilted my head, ears perked, doing my best What now, human? expression. He tore the package open with the enthusiasm of a kid on Christmas morning. Inside was… well, I didn’t know what it was. It looked like a gadget from one of those sci-fi shows he loves—small, sleek, covered in blinking lights and wires.

He knelt down to my level, holding the device out like it was a sacred relic. “Okay, bud. This is going to sound crazy, but hear me out. We’re about to do something revolutionary.”

I barked once, a sharp, skeptical sound.

He laughed. “Don’t look at me like that. You’re gonna love it.” He held the device up and fiddled with some buttons. “This little beauty here? It’s going to let us switch places. You’re going to become me, and I’m going to become you.”

I froze. Did he just say…? No. No way. He couldn’t mean—

Brian must’ve noticed my horrified expression because he quickly added, “Don’t worry, it’ll be quick. Totally painless!” He paused and then muttered, “Well, mostly painless.”

I barked again, this time louder, more insistent. Brian, what are you doing?

“Relax, Oscar.” He ruffled my fur absentmindedly and pulled a folded letter from his pocket, tossing it onto the table. “That’ll explain everything. You can read it later.”

Read it? I thought, incredulously. I’m a dog, Brian. I can’t—oh. Oh no.

Before I could react, he strapped one end of the device to my head and the other to his own. The straps were snug, and the metal pressed against my fur uncomfortably. I started barking frantically, thrashing to shake it off, but Brian was determined.

“It’s going to be fine,” he said, his voice oddly calm. “Just trust me.”

Trust him? He was about to Frankenstein us into a science experiment! I tried to pull away, but then he pressed a button, and everything went white.

An electric shock surged through my body, like a lightning bolt exploding inside me. I yelped—no, I screamed. The world around me blurred and twisted, the sounds of Brian’s voice and my barking melting into a chaotic whirlwind.

When the light finally faded, I gasped for air, my chest heaving. Something was wrong. Very, very wrong. My limbs felt strange—too long, too heavy. I looked down and nearly fainted. Hands. I had hands. Fingers. Thumbs. I touched my face and felt smooth skin where there should have been fur.

I stumbled to my feet—human feet—and looked around. My gaze fell on Brian—or rather, what used to be Brian. Now, sitting where he’d been moments ago, was a dog. Not a border collie like I’d been, but a scruffy-looking mutt with wiry fur and floppy ears.

He was barking like mad, pacing in frantic circles.

“Brian?” I croaked. My voice was strange—deep and raspy. I slapped a hand over my mouth, shocked at the sound.

Brian—Dog Brian—stopped barking and stared at me. His tail wagged hesitantly, and then he barked again, as if to say, What the hell just happened?

I turned back to the table and grabbed the letter with trembling hands. It was addressed to me—well, to “Oscar.”

With a shaky breath, I unfolded it and began to read.

I unfolded the letter and started to read, my new hands shaking slightly.

"Dear Oscar,

I know this is going to sound crazy, but if you’re reading this, then everything worked (kind of, I hope). First, I need to explain something. I’ve been burning the candle at both ends for the past year. Two jobs, skyrocketing rent, inflation—I’m barely keeping my head above water. It has been rough, man.

I haven’t had a break in so long, and I’m… I’m tired, Oscar. Really tired. I thought about taking a vacation, but that’s impossible when you’re me. Then I found this device online—don’t ask me where. It promised a way to swap places. I thought, hey, why not?

So, here’s the deal: I need you to step into my shoes for a few weeks. Go to work for me, handle the apartment, just… keep things running while I take a much-needed break as a dog. You’ll get to experience life as a human, which has to be interesting for you, right? Win-win!

If something goes wrong or you decide you really don’t want to do this, you’ll have to wait 24 hours before the device can be used again to switch us back.

Thanks for being my best friend, Oscar. I know you’ve got this.

—Brian”

I stared at the letter, my new heart pounding. Then, I caught a glimpse of my reflection in the mirror. Staring back at me was a man—a tall, broad-shouldered, salt-and-pepper-bearded man.

My mind reeled. Brian had clearly thought I’d end up in his body, but that wasn’t what had happened at all. Instead, I was in some completely different human form. And judging by the frantic barking from Dog Brian, this was as much of a shock to him as it was to me.

“Brian!” I said, my voice deep and gravelly. He stopped barking and tilted his head, his floppy ears twitching. “This isn’t what you planned, is it?”

He let out a series of short, high-pitched barks, spinning in a circle. I had no idea what he was trying to say, but his agitation was clear.

I sighed, leaning heavily against the table. “I guess we’re stuck like this for at least a little bit now.”

I turned my attention to back myself in the mirror. My new self. Slowly, I held up my hands, turning them over to examine the calloused palms and long fingers. They were strong and well-defined. My arms were muscular, the veins faintly visible under the skin. I ran a hand over my face, feeling the thick beard and the sharp line of my jaw. My hair was thick, dark with streaks of gray at the temples.

I took a step closer, staring in disbelief. “I… I’m hot?” The words slipped out before I could stop them. “Holy crap, I didn’t realize humans could look like this.”

Brian—er, Dog Brian—let out a loud, sharp bark, clearly unimpressed with my self-discovery. He pawed at the ground and then sat, glaring at me with the kind of judgment only a dog—or a former human—could muster.

“Don’t look at me like that,” I said, grinning despite myself. “This is your fault, you know. If you’d done your research, we wouldn’t be in this mess.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. Brian had always been kind of short and pudgy, with a perpetual look of exhaustion. But this body? This was something else. I was tall, lean, and athletic, with strong hands and long legs. And the beard? Come on. I looked older than Brian—probably because five in dog years is, what, thirty-five in human years? But it suited me.

I flexed my arms experimentally. “I guess being an athletic and handsome dog translates into being an athletic and handsome human,” I said with a smirk.

Brian barked again, this time a low, annoyed growl.

“Relax,” I said, ruffling his wiry fur. “It’s only 24 hours. We’ll figure this out. In the meantime…” I glanced around the apartment, taking in the cluttered mess of dishes, laundry, and takeout boxes. “Looks like I’ve got some time to kill. Maybe I’ll clean up a little. You know, since I’ve got thumbs now.”

Then, I felt a stirring in my groin and thought to myself, "or maybe there's a better use for these hands in the meantime."

[corviiids]

If i ask nicely, would you consider writing the core of Light and L character like you did for Shuake? (IT'S BRILLIANT BTW!! You're so galazy brain. I love reading any meta or just silly posts you posted here <3) because you mention Light a couple time in Akechi's part and now i need to know your thought on him and L.

(Also, about the death note wip you're cooking right now, is it a oneshot or multiple chapters fic? Im super excited for it!)

i ABSOLUTELY would thank you so much for asking and for your lovely kind words. and im sorry this took me seven years to get to i just kept psyching myself out.

here's the ren & goro post this ask refers to for anyone wondering. the 'core' refers to my answer to a writing meme:

26. What would you describe as OOC? [...] it's the same approach i take to language tbh particularly in pronunciation. once you understand how a language forms its sounds at a base level, you dont struggle with the accent on particular words, and you can encounter words you've never seen before and understand how they're likely to be said/spelled/etc. so once i learn to 'speak' a character they come more naturally. idk if that comparison makes sense to anyone else but it does to meeeee all this to say i think a character is ooc if they do or say something i cant reconcile with that core!

the death note wip is a multichap!! thank you for your interest!!! ill talk about it more once i've stopped tying myself in knots plotting it!! broadly it's a what-if type au which has led me to replot an entire series from scratch dont look at me

anyway lawlight below. i will say ive been really desperately wanting to do like a video essay or something about death note which would be a lot about L and light specifically and how i interpret their characters so ill try and not go toooooo insane in this post but maybe ill go more insane later. in a video. with my human voice.

(edit: i failed i went insane)

light - one-way road to the sky

ok let's talk about one of my favourite scenes of the entire series, which i think is widely not super well understood but honestly to me holds the key to light's entire character. it's right there in volume 1

sorry, the only digital copy ive got on hand is the scanlation. for comparison the official print copy reads:

bubble 1: hey, maki, wanna party tomorrow with some guys from s. college? ten o'clock. bubble 2: yeah, totally! bubble 3: hey, can i go too? bubble 4: my mom isn't here yet? what's that nag doing, geez! light (thinking): damn... light (thinking): start looking around you... light (thinking): and all you see are people the world would be better off without.

this happens within the first 40 pages of the first volume. and it's like. haha hey light what the fuck? this is a totally normal scene in everyday life. people are talking about living their lives. nobody's done anything remotely reprehensible in this scene. and light's just walking through the streets experiencing apparently unprompted and quite extreme misanthropy. what's wrong with him

ok let's have a quick look at the first time we meet light in the anime.

[...]

[...]

cool cool cool im gonna pivot again let's look at the first song (besides the overture) in the musical.

ok rook! we get it! light yagami is out here like damn we live in a society time to kill people about it. this is news to nobody! we all know this!! that's what the series is about! why are we rehashing all of this

great. cool. awesome. let's look at all those scenes one more time. but this time don't look at light. instead let's look at the people around him

in the opening shots of the anime (after the shinigami world, which actually is much the same theme): news of brutal murder is narrated over establishing shots of tokyo. light is shown dead-eyed, going about his ordinary life, surrounded by random other civilians doing the same thing.

in the musical, light isn't angry that murders happen. he's angry about the inaction and complicity of the ordinary people around him.

these scenes aren't highlighting that light thinks crime is bad. we all know crime is bad. the point of these scenes is to contrast light's frustration and fury against the reactions of the people around him. here's what light yagami is seeing: we're surrounded with rot. but nobody's reacting. and then life just goes on. so suddenly all those completely normal scenes of people being concerned with the superficial details of their life aren't just normality, they're complicity. day in, day out. so the world is rotting, and to light, it seems that everyone is completely ok with that. that's just the way things are. and that disgusts and depresses him. on top of than that, it isolates him: he feels like he's the only one who sees or cares about this, that everyone dismisses him as naive, that no one else can be trusted, that everyone else is able to ignore something he sees as inexcusable. this is a sentiment he repeats again and again. it reads as arrogance, and it is, but it's also isolation - after all it's lonely at the top and just as lonely to feel like you're at the top even if you arent

can i talk about the iliad again? is that ok with everyone. im gonna talk about the iliad again

in book 1 of the iliad, the commander of the greek army insults achilles by publicly and unlawfully taking a prize (the girl briseis) who rightfully belonged to achilles. achilles reacts by withdrawing his troops from the army, dooming the greeks' campaign. achilles had a lot of friends in the army, so why would he essentially sentence them all to death for something that only agamemnon did? well, (because agamemnon did something publicly that everyone knew was wrong, and yet nobody was willing (or at least able) to stand up for achilles and stop it from happening. achilles, disgusted by the inaction of the bystanders, turned his back on all of them. fun fact i nearly wrote a mini thesis (an academic one not just a long post on tumblr) about the intersection btwn this book of the iliad and legal theory but law+classics is such a niche interdisciplinary field my professor couldnt find anyone who could supervise me so i couldnt do it. anyway that's not the point

is this right or fair? who cares, not the point. what im interested in is what that kind of behaviour says about the individual. light, like achilles, is a highly idealistic person. we all know that in the abstract, but take a second to really really dig into it, because it's actually quite an interesting fact about a character who is popularly understood as being cold and unfeeling or flatly psychotic and on a power trip. idealism isn't naivety, it's not optimism, it's not even really a happy thing. idealism is simply a firm belief in the way things should be at the cost of refusing or being unable to accept what is.

this is the core of light yagami to me. light doesn't become kira because he's cold or destructive or crazy. he doesn't actually even do it because he's spiteful or misanthropic. it's very much the opposite. he's misanthropic because he believes in the world so much. isn't that a great contradiction! ok here i'll show you some proof.

in an early scene (also in volume 1), light describes himself as an optimist and ryuk finds that interesting.

so light is an optimist. he believes in a bright future for humanity. he wants to protect humanity. he likes humanity. no, he doesn't believe that people are inherently good, but he does believe in some goodness as a part of humanity and wants to protect the best of people, in an egotistical way:

how do we reconcile that with a young man who walks through the streets listening to completely ordinary conversations by ordinary people and reacts by wishing death on everyone talking?

let's split out what's going on here. remember what's happening in light's head. light yagami is 17 years old. he grew up with a police chief for a father (in a fictional world where the police are the literary stand-in for law as justice so just pretend for a second that police are good im sorry), watching his father work tirelessly to fight crime - but crime continues, making this an endless, thankless task. and while crime continues, so does the world around him. every day light sees atrocities on the news, and he sees atrocities brought home, and then he lives his ordinary life and watches the people around him apparently not give a shit, only concerned with the petty details of their own little lives. bystanders watching wrong happen, selfishly unaffected. day in, day out. that idealism is getting colder the longer this unendurable injustice goes on. so achilles condemns his friends to death.

what human trait is being exhibited? realistically it's helplessness. would being miserable about crime help to end crime? of course not. people have to go on with their lives, that's a fact, it's even a strength. even light begins the series completely unable to do a thing about the rot he sees around him, which is part of why he's so depressed. but that's not what light is seeing. light is seeing ordinary people appear to choose not to give a fuck about injustice. the thing that's sparking his disgust is apathy, real or apparent. light yagami is an idealist. he wants a better future - a utopia that only he can imagine - something that can only happen if either everyone becomes as good as he is, or he takes control.

if you leave an idealist in an unwinnable situation for too long, their pure belief will start to curdle. it will not turn to realism. they will not accept what is. they will only become more and more bitter that what should be, isn't. they will become a cynicist. this is really the heart of my argument and ive made it a million times and ill make it again. idealism and cynicism are not opposites, they're not even two sides of a coin. they are two points on the same line which moves very quickly in only one direction. this is where i start when im writing him: how do i make someone who believes so hard that it's killing him? someone who believes so hard it makes him believe in nothing?

then we find the third point on that line, which someone can reach by gaining sudden power - for example, a magic notebook that kills people: radicalisation.

how do we reconcile his desire to protect humanity with the fact that what he's trying to protect against is also humanity? how can i say light loves humanity when he has such disdain for them? easy peasy: light sees himself as the messiah. my bumper sticker that says ask me about light's martyr complex PLEASE ask me about light's martyr complex i wrote a song about it ask me about light seeing himself as the sacrificial lamb on the (and then the bumper sticker cuts off)

light loves humanity the way a twisted shepherd might love his sheep. something to be protected, but something beneath you that can't be trusted to know what's best for them. humanity is something he loves because it's endearingly pathetic, something to pity and save. repeatedly he refers to becoming kira as a personal sacrifice, something that costs him his soul but that he has to do. it's a delusion of grandeur driven by dual purposes of ego and some desperate wish to change a status quo he's been despairing about for years.

tl;dr: light believes with all his soul in something he thinks is impossible, and it's killing him slowly, and then a chance to change the world just falls out of the sky

L - isolate yourself until you can make believe it's just a game

steeples fingers. i have Things to Say about L Lawliet.

ok listen. listen. Listen. listen. are you listening? listen. in general i think people kind of misunderstand characters who are hyper-intellectual and/or behave unconventionally in social settings. you're all going to fucking kill me for this but i think there's a tendency to like... accidentally turn any character who falls vaguely in this broad category into sheldon cooper. god im sorry i feel like i just shot everyone's collective dog

specifically what i mean by that is that 'awkward' gets flanderised in a way that eventually becomes a caricature of itself, because there is so much nuance to actual social awkwardness that it's very easy to kind of pick a template and stick to it without really thinking about what makes that character 'awkward' and what the root and type of awkwardness is, unique to them. so instead we just get, like... generic big word user. generic driven by logic and logic alone guy. generic guy who doesn't Do Well with other people, for Smart Reasons.

here's a list of true things about L which i think are safe to say are uncontroversial

intuitive

logical, master of deductive reasoning

competitive

behaves in an odd way that draws attention

is aware of that fact

focuses extremely hard on his cases and only cares about being a detective not anything else

isolates himself and doesn't like talking to people partly for his own safety partly because it's boring to him

here are things i have seen in characterisation of L which i would like to dispute

makes decisions and draws conclusions based solely on logic and evidence

doesn't understand social cues

here's a list of alternate interpretations which i would like to propose and that i am willing to back up with evidence and/or by physically fighting over them

is driven primarily not by logic or evidence, but by incredible intuition which is supported by logic and evidence when it suits him

has a keen understanding of people, interpersonal relationships, and social norms

leverages that understanding frequently to his benefit

feels that he is not capable of / not a part of emotions that he sees as being typically human (see his speech about being a monster)

and yet in an abstract and self-contradictory and low-priority way still kind of desires connection, leaving him emotionally isolated

chooses to behave oddly on purpose, not because he doesn't realise he's behaving oddly, but because it is not a priority for him

those might seem like fine distinctions at some points, but stray slightly off the mark and his characterisation begins to vary wildly. for example, interpret L as being bemused or unaware of social cues, and one possible characterisation that may stem from that understanding (which i have seen) is that L doesn't understand sarcasm or jokes - which is demonstrably untrue. L demonstrates weak social skills because social skills aren't a priority for him, not because he doesn't understand social norms. after all he does a reasonably convincing 'i am a normal dudeguy' voice on at least two occasions (suzuki the information line guy and asahi the calling matsuda for drinks guy). even with the taskforce, when his behaviour is more of his usual bizarre self, he still makes the effort to treat them respectfully and meet them where they are, explaining himself when they ask, chatting with them, holding ordinary conversations. you can read this any number of ways but my point is that he can do all of this with relatively little struggle

it's also very much not the case that L doesn't have feelings or care about other people. he's ruthless and he's cool with causing people to die if he has to, but he reacts with visible distress to the deaths of the FBI agents, to ukita's death, to the prospect of other members of the taskforce dying. he does care, he's just not morally driven as a priority.

ok but if he can cosplay as Normal Dudeguy with no trouble then why doesn't he. why does he conduct all his business in dark rooms apart from the entire world forever. is it gauche to use a section of my own fic to explain my point? im going to do it anyway

It is easy to identify in Light what he has long known in himself. That little pearl of disruption, grown around an irritating grain of something just unique and tremendous enough to be uncomfortable to the more ordinary around them. L has hidden it by hiding himself. Light has hidden it by hiding within himself. L's black letter is to Light’s vapid smile is to Kira's invisible bullet.

(honestly a lot of what i have discussed here is also covered in this fic so in case this fucking three thousand word essay is not enough for you you can go read that.)

something L and light significantly have in common is that their intellect and unique way of thinking really set them apart from everyone in the world, which is incredibly isolating. but while L has the 'benefit' (arguably could be a detriment but i think he sees it as a benefit) of a unique upbringing which allows him to use his skills to their full extent without worrying about really anything else, light is very much trapped by social convention. while light's life is privileged and materially perfect, he's stuck inside what society expects of him, while L is able to exist completely outside that paradigm. the result is that light has retreated within himself and spends all day playing a part, barely tolerating the monotony and apathy of the world around him by mechanically performing as expected while smothering the part of him that never has an opportunity to truly come out until kira. L, on the other hand, has no reason to put up with a society that is, for lack of a better term, really just beneath him. so he retreats. remember that the first volume/chapter of the manga is called 'boredom'.

you can see that even in his comparatively limited interactions with the task force, he is having to exercise a level of patience to explain to them what he's thinking at every stage, to have to defend his methods, his instincts, his decisions, etc, needing to step through every stage of his reasoning so that the others can follow and won't object. this is NOT just about masking his odd behaviour, it's also very much about having to step through his morals and his process, which is second nature to him but is new to everyone else and needs explaining. it is visibly exhausting to him, and this is with people he actually seems to like well enough. eg during yotsuba arc when light and soichiro keep raising moral concerns, and he has those little "here we go again" moments (which i love SO much and are so telling of him to me) even though he doesn't let his frustration show. which is why he usually does not bother with it and prefers to work alone. he sits the way he does even though he knows it's odd, because he feels he need to sit that way. when light calls it out, he doesn't question that people will think he's strange, so he's clearly aware. he just explains himself.

but if he were out with people on the regular, he'd need to defend himself constantly. the things L does are not conventional. yes the sitting is just an oddity of his so it's a good example, but it's not just the things that are odd that cause a problem: he frequently makes decisions which seem to make massive leaps of logic nobody else (except light) can follow, and often his actions are morally questionable or even reprehensible. all that is because L is extremely pragmatic and results-focused. it kind of doesn't matter to him how he gets from A to B as long as he gets to B. but the way his mind works is that he makes big jumps that make perfect sense to him but would draw curiosity or objection from anyone who doesn't think the way he does. it would be absolutely exhausting to have to constantly defend every strange or questionable thing he did, so he just retreats.

when he works with other people, i think it's worth noting that the team dynamic never actually struggles for L's awkwardness. this is something i really like about death note honestly - L is quirky and strange, but the series doesn't do that thing where it's like He's A Genius Of Course He's Rude To Everyone. he's actually not. for the most part, L is courteous, patient, and polite. he's sometimes blunt or abrupt, but he very rarely does the thing where he's obliviously cruel or brushes people off. he's considerate of people's needs, he's visibly compassionate of other people's emotional difficulties, and he very rarely loses his patience. when matsuda tries to tell the locked-up light about kira resuming activity, L snaps "Matsuda!" to stop him, and then immediately corrects himself to go "I mean, Matsuda-san." it would have been really easy for the series to do that tropey shit where he's so smart that he doesn't bother with politeness, but he factually does. he makes the effort to treat people politely even when he's not actually being kind. when he's asked to explain himself, the reader can see he's tired and annoyed, but he doesn't take it out on people. on the odd occasion he does make fun of someone for being slow, he does so in mostly light-hearted ways. so he is very capable of dealing with other people directly. his lack of social skills aren't for lack of understanding. he just can't be bothered. it's a waste of energy to try and behave 'normally' or to do things that other people find acceptable, whether that's due to social norm or common morality. it is so, so much easier for L to do things alone. without the need to explain or defend his behaviour to anyone, his isolation turns real world problems into something almost purely theoretical. so it really is like a game for him, at least at first.

whatever

i think it's really important for a character like L to not be fooled by the surface-level categorisation of 'smart awkward character'. we really need to find what's driving his awkwardness. it's not ignorance, it's not even really disdain, it's exasperation. he's tired of being surrounded by people who just can't keep up with him, and he does not have enough energy or interest to spend his time handholding everyone through his process, so he just does whatever the hell he wants and avoids people as much as possible so he doesn't have to deal with it.

look i know this is a really long way to say stuff that people mostly already know, but i think L is one of the most finely nuanced characters in the series because he looks like such a simple expression of a known archetype and the ways in which he subverts expectations are so granular that it's easy to completely miss them even while appreciating how interesting he is. the way this translates into how i write him is that he's polite and has a lot of patience until he simply doesn't, at which point he'll inwardly or subtly express that he wishes he didn't have to bother with this shit, that he picks up on fine social and emotional details that other people will totally miss, but that he'll always put his own whims and plans before anything else.

tl;dr: L behaves like someone who is constantly moving at his own pace and for whom dealing with people is rarely worth the effort, but this does not make him inept or unkind.

[criblovr]

₊ ⊹ gross ! ₊ ⊹

pairings: cg!agatha x little!reader x cg!rio

summary: reader has a fever and needs medicine to control it.. agatha and rio have their hands tied

tags: tantrums, teamwork caregiving, crying, hurt/comfort, stubborn reader, sickfic, medicine

notes: requested by anon !

You woke up to a palm on your forehead. You shifted away, whining. You turned your head to your pillow and tried shielding your eyes from the light but your mama had other plans.

“C’mon, sweetheart, you feel warm,” she moves a few strands of hair out of your face and realizes you’re damp from sweat.

You whine again but with much more force. You hated being woken up, especially in this matter.

“Hey, I know, no need for whining,” Agatha says. Without much effort, she pulls you up and into her arms.

Without your blanket, you shiver. It was freezing! And you felt wet all over. You trembled and tried snuggling closer to Agatha.

“I’m so sorry, baby. You’re burning up..”

You feel yourself being pulled away from your mama and you immediately begin to tear up. Then, you hear a familiar voice— “Hey, hey, you’re okay, bug.” You feel relieved that it’s your mami and not some stranger but you still want your mama back.

“Wow, they’re such a mama’s baby… can’t even cuddle my baby..” you hear Rio joke with Agatha. They laugh quietly amongst themselves. You open your eyes slightly and look around, you’re in the kitchen— and mama has that icky, sweet medicine in her hands.

You know what they’re doing. Mami is gonna hold you as mama gives you a spoonful of that gross stuff! You were tricked last time, being told that it was so “yummy,” wrong! It was bitter and sweet at the same time, it immediately made you gag and cry. You were not going to do that again.

You pull yourself from Rio and whine, asking to be put down. Mami gently puts you down and pouts, “you’re sweating, baby,” she states with concern, “you’re going to feel a lot better once-“

“Uh uh! Not drinkin’ that!”

Agatha snickers and smiles at Rio, “your turn, tiger.” Rio rolls her eyes playfully at Agatha and turns back to you.

“It’s gonna make you feel a lot better, bunny. It’s so yummy-“

“Not yummy! You’re lying!” You resist the urge to stomp your feet, they need to take you seriously!

Rio shakes her head and places her hand on her forehead, “Okay… it’s not super yummy… but mama and mami just want you to feel better!”

Agatha snickers again, “not so easy, hm? While you’re out collecting bodies, mama is here dealing with this bunny.”

You stomp your feet, “ ‘m not a bunny!”

“Really? You’re stomping your feet just like Señor Scratchy…”

Rio laughs, immediately covering her face.

“Mami it’s not funny! Mama tell mami to stop laughin’!”

Agatha playfully swats Rio.

“How about I take some medicine too? We can taste the gross stuff together, yeah?”

You perk up, only slightly. “Mami take some too?” Rio cups your cheeks and leans down, “of course, bug. Will that make you feel better?”

You nod, enthusiastically. Winner, winner, chicken dinner !

Rio helps you up onto the kitchen counter and then sit besides you herself. Agatha holds two small little cups filled with a weird, red syrup.

“Okay! Who wants to go first?”

You and Rio look at each other..

Rio speaks up, “how about we go at the same time?”

Agatha nods, “works for me. Are you going to be my brave baby?” She turns her attention to you, holding your face gently and wincing when she feels your hot skin. You nod and smile.

“ ‘m gonna be brave for mama.”

Agatha hands Rio one of the small cups and holds yours in her hand. You’re trembling again from the cold and maybe, from a little fear.

You hold mama’s empty hand and nod.

Agatha guides the cup to your lips and tilts it, Rio follows suit. You gag from the disgusting flavor that hits your taste buds but then you turn to your left— mami is gagging too and making silly faces.

Agatha picks you from the counter and places you on her hip, “all done! You did so well, honey.”

Rio coughs, “what about me, Agatha?”

Agatha playfully sighs, “you did so well, rio.

[suchine-toki]

Thoughts about gintsu in the Silver Soul arc

The other day I saw someone talk about how Sorachi neglected gintsu after the Love Potion arc so here's my two cents (spoilers ahead):

Short answer: Yesn't

Long answer:

The argument was that Sorachi just dropped the ball on Gintoki and Tsukuyo's relationship that he started writing since… her introduction. And I'm not gonna pretend that LP wasn't the last arc that gave them a ton of development. But I think we've to look at it within the series' context.

Love Potion was the 62th arc of Gintama, spanning chapters 492-496. It was the second to last arc before Shogun Assassination, that began in lesson 502. This meant that it was something Sorachi felt he'd to do before he reached the point of no return. In other words, before the end, he'd to develop the relationship between Gintoki and Tsukuyo and give them some sort of resolution.

Said resolution can be interpreted in two ways. Essentially, something could happen in the future, or nothing would ever happen between them. Nada. But that's not the point of this. OR IS IT??

After that, Sorachi had to address major plot points throughout the next three arcs. Gintoki and Takasugi's fight, the Shogun's death, the Shinsengumi disbanding, Utsuro's rise as the final villain, Kagura and Kamui's showdown, the reunion of the Joui 4...

All of these things were crucial to the plot, but took a long time to unfold. Finally, when Tsukuyo reappeared in Silver Soul arc, a lot of time had passed (lesson 620, over a hundred chapters later). And the first thing Sorachi chooses to do is to have her help Gintoki and make a sex joke. Ok, nothing new in this manga, I guess.

But what was surprising was this one heavy panel that people wouldn't stop talking about at the time, because it really left no room for interpretation. Yes, it was Hinowa who said it, but, again, this was written by someone, and that someone didn't intend this to be a light tease.

Sorachi had no need to do so if he'd already closed the door on future possibilities between them and we already knew she'd feelings for him. And yet, he dedicated several pages to showing the struggle she'd with leaving Yoshiwara to go help Gintoki and the rest of her friends in Kabukicho.

In LP she realized she was in love, but she still felt embarrassed and stupid because of it, and Kyuubei had to tell her hey, it's ok. Throughout the series, although Tsukuyo loves Gintoki, she often needed reasons to be with him. Sometimes it was because of her duty as Yoshiwara's guardian, sometimes because she's with her girl friends, sometimes even Hinowa created these reasons. But this chapter addresses how dumb it is. In LP arc, Gintoki was around just because.

In other words, at this point, Sorachi continued to develop their relationship, even after that arc. But did something else happen?

Well, after a while, when Gintoki was resting peacefully on his futon, Sorachi has Tsukuyo conveniently trip over a damn bottle containing alcohol right next to the guy, all during a dialogue explaining how in times of power outages and such, the population increases. So the joke here was that they would fuck and Gintoki would get her pregnant like heyooo? (ch. 628).

But that would be it? Their last moment being a high-caliber sex joke before the end of the manga?

The thing is... the manga didn't end there lol it lasted about 70 more chapters. Here Sorachi once again needed to address some loose plot ends before finishing the series that took priority, like Gintoki and Takasugi's bond and what would happen with Shouyo/Utsuro.

We might think that there're no loose ends between Gintoki and Tsukuyo anymore. We already know she's in love with him, so why bother?

HOWEVER Sorachi once again decided to hit us with something (and quite sappy this time, in a good way)...

When they meet again, there's a flashback in which Gintoki leaves and Hinowa asks Tsukuyo why she didn't follow him (ch. 686). She replies that she decided to stay because yes, she has a duty, but the main reason was to tell him what had happened in his absence... LITERALLY THERE WAS NO NEED FOR IT TO BE SO CHEESY, but then again Sorachi wanted us to know what Tsukuyo had gone through and he wanted Gintoki to hear it too.

This is another way to show how real and deep her love is and how she understands what Gintoki is going through on a fundamental level. Sorachi wanted to show how Tsukuyo knows that Gintoki needed to embark on his journey alone, otherwise he wouldn't have disbanded the Yorozuya. She knows that it's important to him that someone be there and update him on what has happened, so that he feels connected to everyone again. And Sorachi chose that someone to be Tsukuyo, making explicit how she's an anchor for Gintoki here.

This time it wasn't because she needed a big reason or because she felt stupid, it was her own decision, which is huuuge for her and what could happen.

So now that she knows for sure he's in Edo, she's going to help him with everyone else. There's also the idea of endings and new beginnings that Tsukuyo talks about, which could also apply to her dynamic with Gintoki, but that's a talk for another day.

The last thing to mention is when they're at the terminal and Sacchan teases Tsukuyo about the man she loves... You know, the woman who's been stalking Gintoki since the beginning... And it's really dumb, because everyone is saying these heartfelt lines, talking about how they want to reach him, how they want to help him... and Sorachi, instead of having Sacchan tell a dirty joke about herself, like she always does, has her say something about how Tsukuyo should fuck Gintoki, or vice versa, does it matter at this point? (ch. 699).

And it's not just a sex joke as before. Contrary to the sentiment expressed in lesson 620, here Tsukuyo intends to go on living and see Gintoki again, which is something said by herself.

From what I can tell, Sorachi wanted to keep giving their relationship some form of development right up until the end. Even after committing to an open ending, the fact that he kept their dynamic in mind, even with limited interactions, just to push it forward in some way is honestly kinda sweet, ngl.

Tsukuyo isn't a character Sorachi uses a lot, probably because she's not as available as the rest of the cast living in or near Kabukicho. And yet, almost every time she appears, he develops the bond that Gintoki has with her. You can tell that some scenes, heck, even some lines, are quite deliberate to be read romantically.

If anything, we could say that the real problem was that we didn't get much from Gintoki in the last stretch, which I think could be attributed to both the in-universe context of the series and the time constraints and difficulties Sorachi faced in finishing Gintama.

(Sorry this ended up being so much longer that I intended lol.)

TL;DR: It's not that he forgot, Sorachi just had bigger priorities. In any case, he still threw in scenes JUST to show how he didn't forget and develop their relationship a little more.

[notnotstarving]

What the Survivors Think of Wes

I saw somebody make one of these with Maxwell, and they stopped it at that. So I've decided to continue the saga of analyzing the survivors relationships with one another, trying my best to remain objective and not let my bias seep in. And then maybe I'll make a chart once I'm done with this series, for those who don't wanna read allat. I'm starting off with Wes because it will help give context to another interpretive essay I'll be doing.

You are welcome to add more quotes/other context I missed, as well as reply with your own interpretation, in fact I encourage it!! I love nothing more than a good discussion.

Wilson

Generic- "Greetings, %s!"

Attacker- "%s is silent, but deadly..."

Murderer- "Mime this!"

Reviver- "%s thinks outside the invisible box."

Ghost- "How do you say "I'll get a revival device" in mime?"

Firestarter- "Wait, don't tell me. You lit a fire."

Wilson doesn't actually have much to say about Wes, if anything Wilson seems slightly peeved by him, but he's mostly neutral towards Wes. He actually seems more interested in his balloonomancy than Wes himself, but not by much:

Pile o' Balloons- "It looks like clown currency."

Balloon- "How are they floating?"

Speedy Balloon- "The hole in the center makes it more aerodynamic, that's just physics!"

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "Now it's just another balloon."

Party Balloon- "How did he get the smaller balloons inside?"

Inflatable Vest- "If the bright colors don't attract some horrible creature, the squeaking will."

Balloon Hat- "The static does terrible things to my hair."

As curious as Wilson is about how the balloons work, I don't think he actually likes them and views them as annoying given how they mess up his hair (what a diva) and potentially attract "horrible creatures". In this animated short he also gives Wes quite the glare when he pops one, so I don't think he's a big fan of the balloons despite his mild curiosity.

There's also this quote:

Second-hand Dentures- "They've quickly become Wes' favorite prop."

I'm not sure of the tone it's supposed to be read in, but given the lack of enthusiasm for Wes's clown acts that Wilson has shown, I'd have to guess he's making a snarky remark on how unamusing Wes' use of props are.

Wilson's opinion is mostly neutral. Although he is not entertained by Wes' clown antics, and may even view his mime act as impractical given their circumstances, he doesn't seem to harbor hostility towards Wes in spite of this.

Willow

Generic- "Hi %s!"

Attacker- "That mime punch was really convincing! Haha, ow!"

Murderer- "Your actions speak louder than words! Murderer!"

Reviver- "Who do ghosts call? %s!"

Ghost- "Just tell me whatcha need and I'll get it for you. Heheh!"

Firestarter- "Make it BURN!"

Willow has a very positive view on Wes. She gives him the benefit of the doubt when he attacks her, thinking he's just playing around and wouldn't actually hurt her, which implies she truly believes Wes doesn't have a mean bone in his body (she's right).

Pile o' Balloons- "I could fill them with flammable gas."

Balloon- "That's just asking to be popped."

Speedy Balloon- "Thanks! I'll be able to set fires twice as fast with this thing!"

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "No flying away!"

Party Balloon- "Hey, when are you gonna make a hot air balloon? I could help!"

Inflatable Vest- "Squeak-squeak-squeak! Ha ha where's Maxwell, this'll drive him crazy!"

Balloon Hat- "Hey, a rabbit! Not bad!"

In contrast to Wilson, she's actually a pretty big fan of the balloons. Also unlike others in this list, rather than simply examining the balloons, it's actually implied she's speaking directly TO Wes rather than just about him. At least the speedy, party, and hat ones imply this.

Cannon (Nothing to upload)- "Darn it, I'm out... hey Wes, you always wanted to try being a human cannonball right?"

Empty Elixir- "Hey Wes! Dare you to drink the last bit!"

Beaten Beater- "When I crank it Wes pretends to ride unicycle circles around me."

She also has a whopping THREE bonus quotes mentioning Wes, this is more than anyone else has. All three suggest they have a very playful relationship, which of course is in tune with both their natures. Although Willow may mean the cannon one literally, which suggests she wants to maim him, this is normal for her and does not imply hostility.

Overall Willow seems to get along with him great and trusts him a good deal.

Wolfgang

Generic- "Is tiny oddman, %s! Hello!"

Attacker- "Wolfgang does not trust your rosy cheeks, %s."

Murderer- "Ah! Is killer clown! %s!"

Reviver- "%s is nice, weird little man."

Ghost- "Wolfgang will go get heart for odd clownman!"

Firestarter- "You are looking very guilty, clownman."

Lmao Wolfgang thinks he's weird, straight up calls him weird and odd. Despite that he does get along with Wes.

He also thinks the balloons are fun and wants to share the experience with the others:

Pile o' Balloons- "Wolfgang will make balloon muscles."

Balloon- "Is full of clown breath!"

Speedy Balloon- "Clownman has mighty lungs to make balloon so big!"

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "Balloon has gotten scrawny and weak!"

Party Balloon- "Come, friends! Is party!"

Inflatable Vest- "Wolfgang will try not to pop little vest with his mighty muscles."

Balloon Hat- "Haha! Tiny clownman make funny rabbit hat!"

Bonus Quote:

Wire Hanger- "Is skinny and bendy, like clownman Wes."

Wolfgang probably means bendy as a compliment considering the context that Wolfgang is from a circus group.

Wolfgang has a positive opinion on Wes. Despite thinking Wes is strange, he does not let that hinder his friendship with Wes and treats him the same as the other survivors.

Wendy

Generic- "How do you do, %s?"

Attacker- "There's something you're not telling us..."

Murderer- "%s, this is the end... for you!"

Reviver- "Abigail says she understands you, %s."

Ghost- "You won't leave us if I get you a heart, right?"

Firestarter- "There are other ways to express yourself, %s."

Wendy is overall neutral, but Abigail seems to understand him somehow, which probably gets him points in Wendy's favor. She does seem sad when he's dead and doesn't want him to leave her, so she does care for him.

Pile o' Balloons- "These look as deflated as I feel..."

Balloon- "A colorful reminder that my childhood is no more."

Speedy Balloon- "Will it make me swift enough to outrun my problems?"

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "Sail far away from here, little balloon."

Party Balloon- "What is the point of celebrating in a place such as this?"

Inflatable Vest- "Why try to prolong the inevitable?"

Balloon Hat- "Can he make one for Abigail?"

She's emo as usual when inspecting the balloons, but I think she gets joy out of it and won't admit it. She wants Abigail to have a balloon hat after all so she must like them to some extent.

Wendy seems neutral towards him on the surface, but she does like him given that he makes her, or at least Abby, happy.

WX-78

Generic- "DETECTING... %s!"

Attacker- "ENOUGH CLOWNING AROUND, %s"

Murderer- "YOUR INVISIBLE MATTER SHIELD CANNOT STOP ME, %s"

Reviver- "THE QUIET FLESHLING %s MAY BE WORTH KEEPING AROUND"

Ghost- "I DON'T THINK THE FLESHLING IS SUPPOSED TO LOOK LIKE THAT"

Firestarter- "%s WILL DESTROY ALL FLESHLINGS WITH FIRE"

Yeah typical Wx. They don't like him, but not for any fault on Wes' part, it's simply because he's a fleshling.

Pile o' Balloons- "USELESS RUBBER SACKS"

Balloon- "WX-78 CANNOT BE FOOLED. THESE ANIMALS ARE NOT REAL"

Speedy Balloon- "IT DEFIES ALL LOGIC"

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "I DON'T TRUST IT"

Party Balloon- "I WILL POP IT. NO. THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT HE WANTS..."

Inflatable Vest- "THIS ONE MIGHT NOT BE ENTIRELY WORTHLESS"

Balloon Hat- "IT SERVES NO PURPOSE OTHER THAN BEING UGLY"

Not a fan of the balloons either, they think they're useless. The party balloon implies they have no problem popping Wes' balloons and probably do it regularly, but refrain from doing so with the party balloons because they know Wes purposed them to be popped and would be pleased, which Wx doesn't want.

In short, WX doesn't like him, but that's also WX's default, so maybe they're neutral?

Wickerbottom

Generic- "Ah, the mime lad. Greetings, dear %s!"

Attacker- "His body language says everything."

Murderer- "They'll tell tales of your defeat, %s!"

Reviver- "You're a fine young man, %s."

Ghost- "Poor dear. %s needs a heart to anchor him to this plane."

Firestarter- "Don't cry to me when you burn yourself, dear."

Nothing too notable, Ms Wickerbottom is a polite woman and remains so with Wes.

Pile o' Balloons- "These seem frivolous."

Balloon- "Could serve as a suitable diversion."

Speedy Balloon- "The chemical composition of the young man's breath must be fascinating."

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "Probably not enough air left to analyze its composition..."

Party Balloon- "A reasonable amount of cheer every so often would do us good."

Inflatable Vest- "I applaud your attempt at practicality, dear."

Balloon Hat- "I believe it's meant to evoke the image of a Lagomorph."

She thinks the balloons are frivolous, but she can also appreciate that Wes is spreading cheer.

Wickerbottom is neutral towards Wes, however she does value Wes and how he can boost morale even if she herself is not a big fan of his act.

Woodie

Generic- "%s! How ya doin', buddy?"

Attacker- "%s could learn some manners..."

Murderer- "You're MIME now, %s!"

Reviver- "%s, you're an alright guy."

Ghost- "First we'll get you a heart, then we'll get you some bacon, eh %s?"

Firestarter- "Keep those flames away from my trees!"

I know it looks like they're buddies, but this is just Woodie being Canadian, he calls everyone buddy and is a polite guy. He does seem to coddle him though, wanting to get him bacon after he's back from the dead.

Pile o' Balloons- "Are those balloons?"

Balloon- "It's squeaky. Just like a real woodland creature."

Speedy Balloon- "Now how do you figure that works, Luce?"

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "Just a regular balloon now, eh?"

Party Balloon- "Uh oh, I didn't forget someone's birthday did I?"

Inflatable Vest- "It beats drowning, I guess..."

Balloon Hat- "We can all appreciate nature in our own way."

Indifferent towards the balloons, which makes me think he doesn't care too much for clowns, but I also don't think he dislikes them.

Woodie is neutral towards Wes but leans more on the friendly side. No comment on Lucy's part.

Maxwell

Generic- "Greetings, Mr. %s."

Attacker- "%s is giving me the creeps..."

Murderer- "Murderous fiend! You cannot escape!"

Reviver- "%s is an effective ally."

Ghost- "I could get you a heart, %s... for a price."

Firestarter- "Stop burning things, mime."

I don't know what to make of this honestly. Maxwell finds him creepy, but he's not resistant to calling him an ally. Buuut he also doesn't revive Wes, instead opting to ask for something in return. I'm inclined to say he is most likely just teasing Wes though, cuz he does tease a lot of the others when they die.

Pile o' Balloons- "Those look much too jovial for my liking."

Balloon- "This seems out of place here. Too cheery."

Speedy Balloon- "The mime's power unsettles me."

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "Its power is spent. Now it's just garishly cheery."

Party Balloon- "Oh no... he's managed to make them even more cheerful."

Inflatable Vest- "I think I'd rather drown."

Balloon Hat- "Would I really stoop so low as to wear such a thing?"

Doesn't like his balloons. (Interesting thing to note is that Wes seems to have some sort of "power" and it unsettles Maxwell.)

Maxwell is largely indifferent towards Wes, maybe slightly leaning towards dislike because Maxy's not a fan of the mime stuff or Wes' power.

Wigfrid

Generic- "Gööd health tö yöu, %s!"

Attacker- "Dö yöu bite yöur thumb at me, mime?"

Murderer- "May we meet again in Valhalla!"

Reviver- "%s has Höenir's blessing."

Ghost- "Meditate ön Höenir's blessings, %s. I'll find a heart."

Firestarter- "Dön't ruin yöur fair makeup with ashes, %s."

Only good things to say to Wes, she also likes his makeup. (If you're wondering, Hœnir is the god of silence, spirituality, poetry, and of passion. So she respects him enough to say he has a God's blessing, but this isn't out of the ordinary for Wigrid to say about her allies.)

Pile o' Balloons- "Such cölörs! I cöuld sing!"

Balloon- "Fie! Föul beast!"

Speedy Balloon- "Grant me the speed öf Hermöd!"

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "Its strange pöwer hath faded."

Party Balloon- "It hath swallöwed the wee önes whöle!"

Inflatable Vest- "Tis önly gööd för flöating, nöt fighting."

Balloon Hat- "A rubbery möckery öf life."

She has mixed feelings about Wes' craft. She loves the colors and the speedy balloon, but otherwise finds them useless.

Wigrid gets along with Wes, they're probably friends.

Webber

Generic- "Hey! Hi %s!"

Attacker- "Maybe we can talk this out?"

Murderer- "You're supposed to play nice!"

Reviver- "%s is super nice. And his makeup's cool!"

Ghost- "We'll help you get back on your feet, %s!"

Firestarter- "You were just supposed to mime lighting it!"

This dweeb thinks the mime is cool.

Pile o' Balloons- "Is there going to be a party?!"

Balloon- "Balloon animals! Balloon animals!!"

Speedy Balloon- "Circles must be the speediest shape."

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "We have to hold on tight or it'll fly away!"

Party Balloon- "Yay! It's a party!"

Inflatable Vest- "We should take it on our boat trips."

Balloon Hat- "It looks like a bunny!"

He loves the balloons, of course, he is a kiddo living in a nightmare world, the balloons probably give him some comfort.

Webber likes Wes. he thinks Wes is super nice and kinda cool.

Winona

Generic- "Don't worry %s, I can talk enough for two. Ha!"

Attacker- "Didn't know ya had it in ya, %s!"

Murderer- "Killer mime! I'll have nightmares tonight!"

Reviver- "Thanks for the assist, %s."

Ghost- "Let's getcha back on your feet, %s."

Firestarter- "You responsible for that fire there, %s?"

She doesn't mind that he doesn't speak and may even find him endearing. Judging by how she doesn't seem at all offended by him attacking her, she actually seems more proud than hurt, which is reminiscent of her big sister personality type.

Pile o' Balloons- "No fun without Wes."

Balloon- "Oh! A balloon."

Speedy Balloon- "It's full of get up and go!"

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "Better not leave that unattended."

Party Balloon- "We can celebrate once the work is done."

Inflatable Vest- "I think he's trying to be helpful... in his own way."

Balloon Hat- "Cute, but it won't protect your noggin' from much."

She thinks Wes is fun and encourages the use of his balloons (not without getting the work done first of course). Those last two quotes are vaguely patronizing, but in an older sister kinda way and not in a "I'm better than you" kind of way.

She likes him, they're friends, she treats him like a little brother almost.

Wortox

Generic- "%s, let's practice our routine!"

Attacker- "Those punches weren't part of the bit!"

Murderer- "Don't hurt me, %s!"

Reviver- "Thank-you, thank-you, funny friend!"

Ghost- "%s, did you get more delicious?"

Firestarter- "Ooohoohoo, what have you been up to?"

Wortox seems to be friends with Wes! They practice routines together, probably very frequently too because he thinks Wes is playing into one of their bits when he gets attacked by him.

Pile o' Balloons- "Stores one's breath for later spells."

Balloon- "I often feel like I might float away. Hyuyu!"

Speedy Balloon- "With this gift, I'll be more swift!"

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "Its magic is spent."

Party Balloon- "A party! Am I invited?"

Inflatable Vest- "A bright balloon vest to wear across my chest."

Balloon Hat- "I'm likely to get lightheaded from wearing it, hyuyuyu!"

Nothing too special to say about Wes' crafts but he seems to enjoy them.

Wortox and Wes are friends that seem to bond over their mutual interest for pranks and all things alike. This makes sense given that Wortox is a little jokester and it is literally Wes' livelihood to be one as well.

Wormwood

Generic- "%s is quiet friend"

Attacker- "Bad %s! Don't hurt!"

Murderer- "%s is silent dead maker"

Reviver- "%s is a good friend"

Ghost- "%s is a quiet floaty"

Firestarter- "Aggh! %s made too much fire!"

Pile o' Balloons- "Needs air"

Balloon- "Boop"

Speedy Balloon- "Run run run!"

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "Boop"

Party Balloon- "Fun!"

Inflatable Vest- "Safe?"

Balloon Hat- "Squee Hopper? Hm. No"

Wormwood is as neutral as they come. If this whole thing was a graph then Wormwood would be right smack dab in the middle. He has no bad things, but also nothing special, to say about Wes.

Warly

Generic- "Bonjour, %s!"

Attacker- "I didn't expect him to be the violent sort."

Murderer- "What a terrible act you've committed."

Reviver- "I love your act, by the way."

Ghost- "Is there a medic on this island?"

Firestarter- "Watch where you light those fires, %s."

Nothing too out of the ordinary, Warly does go out of his way to say he likes Wes' act though.

Pile o' Balloons- "It's been left completely breathless."

Balloon- "How colorful!"

Speedy Balloon- "What a kind gift!"

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "Quite an odd design. Then again, it was made by an odd fellow."

Party Balloon- "Ah! A celebration!"

Inflatable Vest- "I'm not sure how safe that is."

Balloon Hat- "It's... not exactly my style."

Here's another person that thinks Wes is weird, but he mostly has positive things to say about his balloons.

Warly is neutral. Based on the fact that Warly thinks he's weird, and that the most substantial thing he has to say about Wes is regarding his act, I don't think they interact much. Warly just sees him as the resident mime and nothing more. (Which honestly surprises me, I would've thought they'd at least bond over their mutual understanding of the French language.)

Wurt

Generic- "Hello clown man."

Attacker- "Glorph, go away!"

Murderer- "Scale-less bad, never shoulda left swamp!"

Reviver- "Oh... thanks, flort."

Ghost- "Look paler than usual, florp."

Firestarter- "You a strange man, flort."

I know it seems like she is neutral, but if you compare these quotes with how she speaks with the others, then you would be able to see that she likes him less than the others. She says "Hello." rather than "Hello!" The only other survivor she greets this way is WX, who she believes doesn't like her. I think she also believes that Wes does not like her and in turn she does not like him. because she seems surprised/confused when he revives her. She also calls him strange, and unlike Wolfgang, she means this negatively.

Pile o' Balloons- "Look chewy, florp."

Balloon- "Want one!!"

Speedy Balloon- "That a big one, flurp!"

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "Awww, got all small."

Party Balloon- "Huh? There stuff inside!"

Inflatable Vest- "Ooooh, water floaty!"

Balloon Hat- "Squeaky hat."

She likes the balloons tho. I mean, she is a kid after all.

Wurt finds Wes weird and does not appear to like/trust him. (My hypothesis is that she may find his silence and makeup creepy, cuz I can't figure out any other reason as to why she dislikes him.)

Walter

Generic- "Uh... hi %s."

Attacker- "This is why I don't trust clowns!"

Murderer- "%s is a killer clown!"

Reviver- "I guess some clowns are okay."

Ghost- "A Pinetree Pioneer leaves no one behind! Even if they're a clown!"

Firestarter- "That's not a proper campfire, %s!"

Walter spells it out for us very clearly: he does not trust Wes. He is scared of clowns, and therefore keeps his distance. Despite this, Walter is still a good kid who does not stray from his own code of ethics. Walter will happily revive Wes and still greet him (even if he does so unenthusiastically) just like he would for anyone else.

Pile o' Balloons- "Someone left litter here!"

Balloon- "My keen tracking senses are telling me there's a clown nearby."

Speedy Balloon- "Clowns have strange and mysterious ways..."

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "It's pretty much just a regular balloon now."

Party Balloon- "Is someone having a party?"

Inflatable Vest- "I guess it's better than not having a life jacket at all..."

Balloon Hat- "I'm a bit too old for this kind of thing."

Walter doesn't like clowns so of course he isn't gonna like his props either. He thinks Wes has a "mysterious", probably sinister, use for the speedy balloon and is reluctant to use the vest.

Walter distrusts Wes and is not a fan at all of his mime antics.

Wanda

Generic- "Sorry %s, I have no time for charades!"

Attacker- "Now hold on just one minute, I don't think that's part of the act!"

Murderer- "Murderer! Do you have nothing to say for yourself?!"

Reviver- "%s's actions speak louder than his words."

Ghost- "Don't you fret, soon it'll be like this never even happened!"

Firestarter- "Ah... it looks like I'm in the bad timeline again."

Wanda is pretty neutral, but I don't think she's too fond of socializing with Wes considering he can only communicate in "charades", and maybe by writing, which she doesn't have time for.

Pile o' Balloons- "Everyone has their forte. Some bend time, others bend balloons."

Balloon- "Balloons have such a short lifespan."

Speedy Balloon- "Just the extra bit of speed I've been looking for!"

Speedy Balloon (deflated)- "Well, that was short-lived."

Party Balloon- "Balloons within balloons."

Inflatable Vest- "If it keeps me from drowning, I'll wear it."

Balloon Hat- "Ha, I'd look ridiculous in that! Let me try it on."

Saying that "Some bend time, others bend balloons." sounds pretty condescending. But again, we can't hear the tone she is saying this in so we can't tell for sure how she means it. My interpretation is that she may look down on Wes for not having much to offer in terms of survival or prowess, but she will give him credit where credit is due; he's good at balloons. After all, she does seem to like Wes' balloons, actually appreciating the usefulness of his balloons in some situations.

Overall, she is neutral towards Wes, but mostly just sees him as a clown. Wanda is actually a pretty silly woman, she is not averse to having fun, even if she is all "I don't have time for this and that". I think if she did have the spare time, she would not mind hanging around Wes, but I don't see her making the time to do so.

Conclusion

Most of the survivors like Wes. A lot of the survivors though, including the some of the ones that like him, seem to view him as just "the mime" rather than anything else. Not being able to see past his gimmick does makes sense for a lot of the survivors because they aren't able to communicate with Wes in the way they're used to: talking. The mime thing is also a hit or miss with the survivors, some are not big fans of clowns while others love it.

Wes' biggest allies: Willow, Wortox, Winona

Wes' biggest haters: Walter, Wurt, WX-78

[illubean]

One of Those Crazy Girls

"Are we really over now? Maybe I can change your mind!"

In which your, now ex, boyfriend dumps you without explanation, and you just can't accept it. (AKA you're the delusional and crazy ex gf)

Characters: Suguru Geto Type: Oneshot, Angst, Fem!Reader

Inspired by (One of Those) Crazy Girls by Paramore.

Warnings: breaking and entering lol

"I think we need to slow down," the black haired man started. The two of you were standing at a park, underneath the barren, snow covered trees in the midst of January. The cold bit at the apple of your cheeks as well as the tip of your nose, as you stood clad in a scarf and a winter coat Suguru had gifted you for your birthday about a year ago.

"What do you mean? Like you want some more time to just focus on us?" you asked, confused. You pulled one of your gloved hands from your pockets, going to reach for the man before you. He gently grasped your wrist, stopping you.

"I'm afraid you have things backwards. I'm breaking up with you, Y/n."

"Haha, funny joke Sugu. You know we're gonna be forever," you chuckled before seeing that his face was completely serious. Your smile faltered at his expression as your heart shattered at his next words.

"I'm sorry, but this is goodbye."

______________________________________________________________

It had been nearly a week since Suguru broke things off, and in that time you have sent him countless messages, calling his phone every time you got a chance. He had received nearly a hundred voicemails from you alone.

"Hey Sugu! Why did you just leave so suddenly yesterday? Call me back when you can, okay? Love you!"

"Suguru, did you get my messages? Call me back please! I love you!

"Hey, why aren't you answering me? Can we talk? Please?"

"You couldn't have been serious when you said you wanted to break up. Are we really over now?? What did I do wrong? Maybe I can change your mind! Please call me back Sugu. I can't live without you! I swear, I'll never love again! Please can we just fix this?"

You were slowly going mad as time went on. You needed something, anything to just let you know Suguru was at least okay. You decided you needed to see him at least one last time if he was actually serious about all this.

"Hi Suguru. I'm about to board a bus to Tokyo. I just really need to see you. I really do love you, okay? See you soon."

You looked around as you boarded the bus, gripping one of the handrails once you found a spot. Your eyes scanned the interior, glancing over all the other passengers. There was a couple around your age in front of you, the man holding a protective arm around his partner. Then an elderly couple sitting in the seats next to you, holding onto each other lovingly as they talked about their day. There was even two children holding hands nearby.

You couldn't take this anymore.

Everything reminded you of Suguru.

You sighed as you looked down at you feet, attempting to ignore those around you. You couldn't wait for this bus ride to be over.

As the bus pulled up to the stop, people shuffled out the doors and went their own respective ways. Your feet led you down the familiar path through the city. It didn't take long for you to reach your destination, looking up to the sign on the side of the building.

'Mitsumasu Apartments'

Suguru's apartment complex.

You pushed open the front gate, making your way up the stairs to the third floor and stopping in front of a door reading "341".

You raised your fist to knock on the door before hesitating for a moment.

What the hell were you doing here?

Your voice of reason was small in the back of your mind, but none the less, it was there. You weighed your options as you stood staring at the dark metal door before you. It was obvious Suguru never wanted to see you again, as he had basically went no contact. But you just couldn't help yourself.

Without any further hesitation, you knocked on the door three times before awaiting a response. But nothing came. So you tried again.

Knock knock knock.

A beat of silence.

Knock knock knock.

Nothing again.

Huffing in frustration you knocked one last time, much more aggressive this time before concluding that you would just let yourself in if he wouldn't.

Stepping off of the door mat, you crouched down to retrieve the spare key you knew he hid there. Unlocking and pushing the door open, you looked around to see the place was exactly the same as when you had last been there. Not a thing was out of place.

"Suguru! Quit ignoring me and face me like a man!" You yelled into the empty apartment, only to be met with silence once again. Letting out an irritated huff, you entered the apartment, closing the door behind you. Your eyes scanned the living room before you popped your head into the kitchen, checked the bathroom, and finally, Suguru's bedroom.

He really just wasn't home.

Your shoulders slumped as you felt defeated, going through all these lengths to get ahold of the man you love only to come up empty handed. Even in his own home. Your feet mindlessly took you towards his closet, which you opened and peered into to find your favorite hoodie of his front and center.

It was always so warm and smelled just like him.

Holding the hoodie to your chest, you flop down onto his bed, curling up on your side as you buried your face into the fabric.

It was just as you remembered.

The scent of Suguru filled your senses, as you curled into yourself even further. Tears slipped passed your eyes, your body trembling while soft sobs escaped your lips.

You missed him more than anyone could ever imagine.

You layed there in your own sorrow, disregarding the rest of the world around you. Memories of your time spent in this very room came flooding back to you, causing your tears to fall much quicker. Your thoughts began to spiral into what could've been. The future you always wanted; getting married to Suguru and having at least two kids. But just like that, your plans became dreams that slipped right past your fingers and out of reach.

Before your thoughts could venture any further, you were brought back to reality by the sound of that smooth voice you knew all too well.

"L/n?"

[arcadia-of-pluto]

"Ghost of You" .2. || Caleb

Paring; LADS Caleb x reader

Word count; 4,512

Themes; angst (maybe less in this one?), yippee real Caleb shows up in this one

Warnings; suggestive themes, cursing

Notes; Am I really gonna blue ball y’all…Yeah— Probably 😭 I really wanted to write foreplay-y smut, but the vibes just aren’t there — and by that, I mean, I’m not confident I can do what I want and do it with pride, you know? Caleb is already so out of character as it is, so I hope no one minds me stopping it where I did...I hope it's still good regardless!

☆ Part 1 ☆

“Y/n! Hey — “

You wince as your head throbs with the tell-tale signs of an on-coming headache and you tiredly open your eyes to meet Xavier’s worried gaze. “Oh…Hey Xavi…” You sleepily smile up at him until you feel something wet and viscous drip down your face. Your body jerks to sit up straight and you bring your hand up to your face, staring at the crimson blood staining your fingertips. Your hands tremble as you look down at them and Xavier lightly shakes you.

“Y/n, snap out of it.” He waves his hand in front of your face and after you blink a few times, you realize your hands…are clean.

“I’m not bleeding?” You mutter to yourself, but Xavier gently answers you, “No…you’re not. You’re okay, Y/n. You’re safe.” He murmurs as he sits down next to you to wrap an arm around your shoulders. His hand lightly rubbing your back. “I’m sorry…” You don’t know why you’re apologizing. You honestly feel like you might be losing your mind, but you feel Xavier shake his head, “Don’t apologize.”

The smell of something burning brings you out of your daze and instead of having a panic attack over the smell of smoke, you laugh. “Xavier, you’re burning the food!”

“Oh shi — “ The ash blonde haired man races into the kitchen and groans. “We might need to — “

“Order pizza, right? Already on it!” You call back to him. Your heartbeat slowly going back to a normal pace as Xavier’s clumsy nature, helps you gain a grasp on reality.

Everything was okay. It was all just a dream and there was absolutely nothing you could've done differently.

You just have to keep mentally repeating that to yourself like a mantra. Even if you don’t believe it, maybe you’ll eventually know it to be true.

You lean back against the couch to catch your breath as you bring your hand up to the dog-tag around your neck, lightly dragging your thumb back and forth across it. But then a loud clang coming from the kitchen sends you back into a panic. Your hands come up to your ears to cover them as your body trembles. You slightly rock yourself back and forth as you rub the dog-tag between your fingers as a way to self soothe.

“Ah, fuck…I’m sorry, Y/n.” Xavier comes back into the living room as he finishes cleaning the kitchen up. He gently takes your phone from you to continue the pizza order, then sets it to the side on the couch, and hugs you once more. His hand softly cradles the back of your head and you rest your forehead against his shoulder, breathing slowing down until you finally fall asleep once more.

A few weeks later, you’re sitting down in Meow’s Cafe with Tara. The other guys were all busy with work and you were still recovering from your last breakdown, so it was nice to have a chill non-working day for once after throwing yourself into mission after mission for two weeks since the anniversary was fast approaching. You think it’s tomorrow, but you’ve been feeling a bit off since your last dream. You haven’t had another one since, and that doesn’t feel right to you.

“Hear me out, angel, and please don’t try to leave when I say this…” Tara grabs your hand in a gentle, yet firm grip. “How do you feel when you think of your grandma?”

Huh?

You thought for sure she was going to say you liked Caleb again. You’ve been hearing that so much lately. Even Sylus won’t shut up about it. Saying he saw your “desires” with his right eyes - though he was probably just teasing you when he said that.

“Uh…I feel sad, of course. I really miss her…I think about how unfair it all is and I want to throw things..” You trail off, swallowing a lump in your throat as your eyes stung. “Not a day goes by when I don’t think about her.”

“Okay and…How do you feel when you think of Caleb?” Tara leans forward with her brows raised and you pause.

“I…” You feel panic clawing at your throat, anxiety stirring in your stomach, your face feels hot as you feel a mix of tears and nausea stirring within your body. “I feel like screaming and crying. Like I can’t breathe, but I also need to throw up…”

“Mmhm..You notice how different those feelings are?” Your friend questions, leaning back in her seat as she gives you a pained smile. “Come on, let’s go for a walk so you can think on that for a sec.” She pats your hand as she stands up and holds out her own hand for you to grab. You wordlessly take her hand and leave the cafe, lost in your own thoughts for the moment.

A sense of guilt spreads through your body as you realize you miss Caleb just a bit more than Grandma…but you should miss them both equally! You shouldn’t favour one over the other…That’s not fair to her.

You take a deep breath and shake your head. You’re hanging out with Tara, right now! You can save those thoughts for later, when you’re alone and self depreciating.

“Tara — “

Well…you were going to ask her how work was going, but the words fell flat on your tongue as you noticed someone who looked like Caleb further down the sidewalk. “Um — Something came up, I’ll text you later, Tara!” You drop her hand and race after the person, albeit a bit slower than you’d usually be because of your bad leg.

The person turns into an alleyway and you quickly follow after him, finally grabbing his wrist, but when he turns to look at you…You’re only filled with disappointment.

“Of course, you’re not him.” You click your tongue in annoyance and turn your head away from him, looking to the left to see if you could spot Caleb or Tara walking by from the alleyway. You hear muffled voices through your right ear, but you shrug it off as you begin walking out of the alleyway — exhausted and ready to go home at this point, but your arm is caught in a tight grip. You turn your head toward the man, still unable to make out what he’s saying, until you can finally hear him from your left ear.

“I can pay you.”

What?

You can make out the strong scent of alcohol and you wince back. How the hell did you not smell this earlier? This man is shitfaced at…You check your hunter’s watch and scoff under your breath. At 12 pm.

Well, it’s 5 o’clock somewhere, you suppose.

“Did you laugh at me, you bitch?” The man was clearly slurring his words and you rolled your eyes, yanking your arm back from him. The drunkard stumbles back as his face turns more and more red from anger.

Hmm…How much trouble would you get in for beating the shit out of an unruly citizen?

Maybe a ban from work for at least a week? Jail time?

Either way, you didn’t care. You crack your knuckles, getting ready to throw down whenever the man suddenly falls to his knees. His hands struggled to hold himself up against whatever was pushing his body down to the pavement.

“Uh, sir?” You question, but your gaze falters on the faint blue glow around the drunk man’s body. Your breath hitches in your chest and you feel warning sirens blaring within your head. Were you hallucinating again? You felt like throwing up and you held your head in your hands as you heard ringing in your ears.

You felt a hand on your shoulder, but you couldn’t bother to see who it was. You could hear your heartbeat roaring in your ears over the sudden ringing noise. If the person was saying anything, you wouldn’t have had a clue until you felt their hands cup your face and forced you to look at them. Your eyes widen like a deer caught in headlights and you’ve suddenly lost the ability to breathe.

How…

You could faintly hear your voice, sounding shaky and thick with tears. A soft, yet broken tone to your voice.

“...Caleb?”

Your hands tremble as you touch the gloved ones that cupped your cheeks, trying to make sure this isn’t just another one of your delusions. One hand touches the familiar man’s chest, palm going flat as you search for a heartbeat. You begin to panic as you feel nothing, but he grabs your wrist with one hand and presses it firmly against his chest.

………..Badum

Badum………..

If this was one of your illusions, then you’ve completely given up. He felt so warm, so…alive.

A pained cry slips from your lips and wrap your arms around his waist as you bury your face in his chest. You feel comforted by feeling his steady, rhythmic pulse against your cheek. It was like the gentle beat of a drum that was slowly picking up in pace.

“Please…let it really be you this time.”

After you said this, you felt his hands, which were hesitating to touch you, finally wrap around your waist and hold you close. One hand slowly makes its way up to cup the back of your head as he rests his against your hair.

“I’m…so sorry it took me so long.” He finally speaks, the baritone of his voice sends vibrations through his chest that you felt against your cheek and you can’t help, but cry more at the sound. It really was him. Sure, he sounded a little different, but this was Caleb.

After a few minutes of standing and crying, your feet start to hurt so you pull back a bit — however, he squeezes his arm around your waist, not allowing you to pull away. “Just…stay like this for a little longer. Okay, pipsqueak?”

Your throat burns and you have to hold back the urge to sob, biting your already chapped lips so hard that you taste a familiar metallic flavour. “Pip — Y/n…” He sighs, lifting your head up as he pushes his thumb against your bottom lip, pulling it free. His finger pulls your lip down to examine the damage and you feel your face warming up to the point you feel dizzy.

“C-Caleb…” You grab at his hand as you stumble for a moment and he chuckles, moving his hand so he can grab yours. “Sorry about that, force of habit.”

It had gotten considerably darker outside, but you decided to finally take in his appearance. He was wearing a black hat, similar to a police captain, and he was wearing the suit to match.

What…happened?

As you open your mouth to question him, a car passes by the alleyway. The headlights brighten up his face, but also they send you spiraling into a past memory as you meet his eyes and he averted his gaze, exactly like he did that day…

…”Why are you staring off into space? Mission’s over?” You hear Caleb’s usually cheery and kind voice, and you turned your head to look at him. You felt unsure if you should tell Caleb about the strange man who was wandering around, and how he was what caused your watch to go off (causing the Metaflux fluctuation warning)...but you ultimately decided to keep it a secret for now so you didn’t worry Grandma or Caleb.

Once you finally met Caleb’s gaze, You felt a tad guilty for withholding information. ”Did you find any big, bad wanderers?” He questioned you and you cleared your throat, “Um…The fluctuations disappeared. Probably a false alarm…” But Caleb shook his head with a slight laugh, stepping closer so he could grab your arm and lift it up. “Caleb, what’re you — !”

“If it really was, then what’s this, hmm?” His thumb dragged across the fresh stain of blood on your sleeve.

“Oh, uh…I was petting a cat and…”

“Got scratched by another stray cat, huh? I think maybe I should go find that cat so I can avenge you.” Caleb looked clearly disappointed as he dropped your hand and turned his back to you, walking away.

“Caleb, don’t! Come on, grandma’s waiting for us back at home…”

“Caleb, I was telling the truth. It was just an accident. You and Grandma have enough to deal with as is…” You sighed, slowly trailing behind Caleb as he ran a hand through his hair, “Look, I understand you wanna hide it from Gran. We’ve caused her enough trouble since she brought us up together. Now that she’s older, it wouldn’t be a good idea to make her anxious…” He walked for a few more steps before he suddenly paused and turned to face you, “But why do you have to hide it from me? Can’t you trust me now that we’re all grown-up?”

“I…don’t want you worrying about me. It’s not often you get to come home these days, so ruining the mood is the last thing I want to do. Also, I’m a grown-up now too. I need to be the one making sure I stay safe. You can’t protect me forever.” You found yourself lashing out a little bit, and if you knew this would’ve been your last conversation with Caleb, maybe you would’ve toned it down a little bit.

You sighed, turning to rest your arm on the railing next to you. Through the corner of your eyes, you noticed Caleb placing his hand next to yours and you turned to look at him. “Why is that a problem? If not me, who could you possibly turn to for…” He trailed off, getting a distant, almost hurt look in his eyes as a car turned down the street — lighting up his face with their headlights as they drove on past. Then, a soft chuckle left him, a smile tugging at his lips.

“What’s wrong?” You questioned with a raised brow, one hand perched on your hip. “You…wouldn’t understand even if I told you, pipsqueak. Forget it.” He ruffled your hair and suddenly, it seemed like he was in a rush to get home…

“Pipsqueak?”

You realize you were just blankly staring up at Caleb for who knows how long and you quickly look away with a sheepish laugh, “Sorry…I haven’t been sleeping well lately.”

“You don’t need to apologize.” Caleb shakes his head, hand petting the back of your head as he looks up at the sky. “Let’s…go home.”

Your heart squeezes at those words, remembering how many times he used to say that to you, and you smile up at him, “I’ll take you to my apartment. Our..house probably still looks how it did on that day.” “I know, I checked countless times and it’s still being used as a crime scene.” He sighs, pulling back from you to grab your hand.

Everything still feels so surreal and you’re honestly terrified that you’re going to wake up at any moment, and Caleb is still going to be gone.

“I’m not going anywhere. Don’t be afraid, no matter what happens…I’ll be here for you.” He squeezes your hand and you focus on the cool leather of his gloves, the scent of his cologne.

If this was indeed a dream, you’d probably commit yourself to a psych-ward once you woke up, because you don’t think you’d be able to handle this not being your reality.

You felt a bit nervous walking with Caleb down the sidewalk, filled with worry that people would just see you walking and talking by yourself. You were too into your thoughts that you didn’t notice Caleb tapping your head with his finger. “Hey, I’m real.” He chuckles, shaking his head a bit, “It feels weird that I have to say that, but it looks like you need some reassurance.” You let out a breath you never realized you were holding as you realized some passersbys were stopping to look at Caleb.

“Got it.” You clear your throat, walking a bit faster until you both finally enter the elevators of your apartment building.

Oh wait —

You really hope Xavier wasn’t waiting in front of your door or inside your apartment feeding Leo…

“What’re you thinking about, pipsqueak?” Caleb waves a gloved hand in front of your face. “I just got back, so I hope you’re not thinking about another guy.”

Did he read your mind?

“Huh — “ You blink stupidly up at him, then rush out the elevator as he laughs behind you. “Were you really!? Seriously, Y/n?”

Once you make it to your apartment door, you nervously look around and unlock your door with your thumbprint. You peek your head inside, searching for Xavier, but Caleb just invites himself inside.

“Wow, this is a nice looking place. Guess being a hunter pays pretty well, huh?” He turns around, walking backward as he speaks to you. “Whenever I work, yeah. Uh — “ Your body tenses up as you spot a familiar blonde in your kitchen and you rush to shove Caleb toward your room. Just as you get to your door, Leo rushes toward you and meows loudly as if announcing your presence like the cute little nuisance he is.

“Y/n?” Xavier turns around, hands clad in your pink oven mitts with the matching pink apron.

When you turn around, Caleb is gone and you feel dread boiling in the pit of your stomach, but you notice your door is cracked open and let out a sigh of relief. “Hey, Xav, I’m probably going to order some takeout tonight, so you can head home! I feel better today, I promise.” You shout from in front of your room, wanting to make sure Caleb didn’t try to fuck around and scare Xavier.

“Are you sure? I’m still worried about your panic attack last week and Zayne said you need to come in for a hearing aid fitting tomorrow, so I thought I could stay the night and wake you up.” He turns his back to you as he takes a tray out of the oven and Caleb creaks the bedroom door open to raise a brow at you.

“Stay the night?” He teases with a whisper, “And do what? Pipsqueak, you sly dog.”

“Shutthefuckup, it’s not like that!” You hiss, slapping his shoulder in a fit of embarrassment and Xavier calls out, “Did you hurt yourself?”

“No, no! I’m fine, Xav. Thanks for worrying, but I’ll set an alarm on my phone. I wanna try being on my own tonight!” You shove your door closed as your cheeks burnt red.

“Well, I’ll leave these brownies here for you. Make sure they cool down! And be sure to call me if you can’t be on your own tonight. You know I’ll come over as quickly as I can. We all know how much you miss him — Them. How much you miss them.” He clears his throat, catching his own slip up.

“Right, see you later, Xav! Thanks for the brownies.” You say as Xavier leaves the kitchen and he raises a single brow at you standing awkwardly in front of your bedroom door.

“I don’t get a hug today?” He flashes his puppy dog eyes with a pout and you groan internally. He can do that cute shit with Caleb here…You sigh, knowing he’ll pout about for at least a month if you didn’t hug him, so you reluctantly step away from the door to hug him. “I’m really trying to get better, Xavi. I promise.” You pat his back and Xavier pauses, catching a whiff of an unfamiliar cologne, but he chalks it up to it being yours.

“Regardless, I’m proud of you,” He says with a smile as he ruffles your hair. Once he’s close to the door, he turns and gives you a small wave, “Also, I’m saying this as a friend, but I don’t think that cologne suits you!”

Once he’s gone, you hide your face in your hands as you hear muffled laughter coming from your room.

“Ha ha, laugh all you want.” You mumble under your breath as Caleb walks up to you, shoulders shaking with laughter. “Hey Xav,” he mocks you in a higher pitched voice and you whip your head toward him to punch him a few times. “Stop making fun of me!”

“Alright, alright, pipsqueak.” Caleb’s chuckles finally die down, but now he’s frowning toward the door, “How dare he say my cologne doesn’t suit you, though. That was uncalled for…” He slings his arm over your shoulder and you turn your head to look up at him, “Hey…So you know how I said I wanted takeout?”

After a few moments of silence, you grin up at him. “Can you make me some braised chicken wings?”

“You don’t know how much I missed your food!” You groan as you eat another chicken wing, setting the bone down on your plate before you pat your stomach. “Should we try the brownies?” Caleb asks, reaching toward the pan with an excited gleam in his eyes and you point at him, “Don’t! Xav, probably mixed up the salt and the sugar again.”

“Xav this, Xav that,” Caleb mumbles under his breath as he cuts a piece of brownie out to try regardless of what you said. After he eats a bite, he raises a brow and scoffs, “What’re you on? This is good.”

“Huh!?” You jump from the back of the couch, wincing as you land on your bad leg and you hop on one leg until you reach the kitchen counter. Then, you sit up there and grab his hand to try to piece he has. The moment you taste it, you immediately hit Caleb’s shoulder. “How could you lie to me like that!? I knew he mixed the sugar and salt up again.”

He laughs to himself, shaking off the momentary surprise of your lips brushing his fingers, and sets the brownie back on the plate as he grabs your leg, fingers gently massaging your ankle. “Caleb, you seriously don’t need to do that!” You push against his shoulders, pulling your leg away, but suddenly you felt as if your legs were really heavy. Your brows furrow before you notice the faint blue glow around your legs. “Don’t use your evol on me! Caleb, seriously — “

After a few minutes of massaging, Caleb lifts you up in his arms as he walks toward your room. “Wait — “

“It’s getting late. Time for bed.” He drops you on your bed, but you grip his collar, tugging him down with you as a form of retaliation. A sigh slips from his lips and his eyes flutter closed. He brings his hand up to your face, his now gloveless thumb just barely brushes your bottom lip. “Pipsqueak, you should really get some rest now…”

You raise a brow, tugging him further down to brush your lips across his forehead. A small giggle leaves you as he lets out another breathy sigh, seemingly touch starved after almost a year. “Look at you, you’re like a sinner who’s confessing,” You tease him, taking note of his reddening cheeks, and he grabs hold of your hand, lightly dragging his lips across your fingertips as he speaks, “Then, can you carry a little of this sin too? Don’t leave me in this loneliness any longer.”

You feel your breath hitch in your throat, your gaze lowering to fixate on his lips and when Caleb finally meets your eyes again, a smirk tugs at his lips. “What? Never been seduced before?” He chuckles, mostly to himself, “I find that hard to believe.” His fingers wrap around your chin as he leans closer, pausing just a breath away from kissing you as if to make sure that you’re really okay with this.

A smile tugs at your lips and the slightest hint of a laugh leaves you as you reach up to link your arms behind his neck, tugging him further down. Your noses brush and you raise a brow, whispering against his lips, “What’re you waiting for?” You feel your breath intermingling as Caleb lets out a mixture of a sigh and a chuckle, and you close your eyes, waiting for him to kiss you.

After a few minutes of silence, you open your eyes with a pout on your lips, ready to tell him off, but that’s when he finally slots his lips against yours. It’s a rather sweet and simplistic kiss, at first. A gentle warmth spreads throughout your body, but you’re impatient. You want more than this, even though you’ve never gone further than a kiss before. You can tell Caleb is just as inexperienced when your kiss stays innocent. Like a kiss between curious children, but you don’t want that.

You sit up on your elbows, tilting your head to the side as you slowly slide your hand over to grab Caleb’s. The softest of gasps slips from his lips from your touch and as you focus on forming a resonance, you also take this chance to deepen your kiss. Your tongues meet in an almost clumsy clash and you can hear Caleb’s breathing speeding up.

A faint, blue glow shines between your hands, and you hook your leg around Caleb’s waist; using your evol (that you borrowed from him), you seamlessly flip your positions so he is flat on his back with his head against your pillows and you’re on top of him, legs on either side of his hips. He has a look of surprise in his eyes, but it’s quickly overshadowed with mischief as he lifts his hand up. You think quickly and use his own evol to hold his hands above his head.

“Aww, now what’re you going to do without your hands?” You click your tongue, resting your hands on his chest as you tilt your head to the side with a mocking pout on your lips. “Can’t use your evol without them, hmm?” You sit yourself down fully on his lap, not able to hide your surprise as you feel something hard underneath you. “That’s your phone…right?”

Caleb chuckles, tilting his head back as he lifts his hips up. The fabric of his sleeves pulling taut against his biceps as he tries to free his arms. “Do you want me to lie to you?” Your gaze slowly makes its way down his body; to how his uniform top was revealing the tiniest bit of skin from his stomach, to how firm his thighs look in his uniform pants, and your thoughts falter as your eyes land on his rather sizable bulge.

Could that even…?

Within your surprise, you fail to realize that your resonance has worn off and Caleb takes this opportunity to flip your positions once more, his evol effortlessly pins your wrists together above your head.

“Don’t worry, we don’t need to go all the way for you to enjoy this.” He cups your cheek with his hand, his thumb swiping back and forth across your bottom lip.