#lmao her husband came by my table and told me ‘she’s been meaning to come say hi!’ so I ran over to chat YAY

[emmaspolaroid]

wanting to be friends with someone is literally so embarrassing like Hi I Think You’re Really Cool Do You Wanna Play Toys Together

[poppy-metal]

me being loved wanted and coveted i’m 😳

citygirl!reader cannot relate

ok but hear me out. ofc art finds himself with your grandma’s hand gripping on his elbow as he’s helping her to their seats. he’s wearing a suit too expensive and too stuffy for his taste, but it was laid out for him this morning on his bed. oh did i forget to mention granny and him are staying in the guest wing of your family’s estate?

luckily you’ve been so busy with the wedding preparation you spending almost no time during the day at home, but are night? art is forced to sit at the dinner table with granny, you, your parents, and your fiancé. he doesn’t miss the way the guy holds your hand throughout the entire meal, rubbing his thumb along the back of it, and bringing it up to press soft kisses to. or how his eyes are sole trained on you. or how every sentence that leaves his lips find their way back to you. art is almost disgusted at how enraged he feels at the amount of love your fiancé is showing you because it should be him. and you are shy under your fiancé’s gaze, quick to try to steer the conversation away from you, but you can’t help at how he adores you. and for once in your life, a man loves you (to your knowledge), and you could find yourself making room for him in your heart,,,until a cold splash of reality hits you in the face when art showed up at your front door steps carrying granny’s bag for her. because as much as he hurt you, art donaldson has etched himself a permanent spot in your heart—cowboy hat and all.

i’m also thinking, art doesn’t realize you’re pregnant yet; no one does. but the way he finds out? this is my vision

art ofc has to sit through the wedding, seeing you in a beautiful dress, teary-eyed, exchanging vows and he wants it to be him sooooo bad. so the reception comes around, you’re playing the proper bride/host. art is DOWNING drinks. somehow the two of you end up in the coatroom (empty ofc—idk how they got there yet) and ofc there’s an Emotional exchange (art reiterating that you told him you love him, reader responding that he never says it back, art bringing up the Phone Call—“remember when you asked me if i was happy?” you nod “remember what i said?”—reader saying “what good does that do now?” ofc tears in her eyes “you’re married, i’m married, i’m—“ ofc she was going to say pregnant but drunk art kisses her. they fuck in the coatroom—actually no, art makes love to her on the expensive coats of her wedding guests LMAO bc “he should’ve done it earlier” but he’s noticing these changes about her. bc as a man obsessed with citygirl!reader, art has her body memorized ok, he fantasizes about it every night. her breasts are fuller, she’s more glowing than usual, and her hips feel different to hold. only in their post-sex bliss, and his post-orgasm, it hits him. he pulls away, hissing as he’s been burned, “you’re pregnant”

and he’s seething because it means that bastard came in you and knocked you up (ofc the bastard is your husband, so god-fearing art is in the back of his head going “chill please.”) but then he does the math, and you can’t lie to him so he knows. he’s going to be a father except it’s not with his wife and the mother of his child doesn’t want him. (she does but she’s in her being good era)

they get into a blown out fight ofc and THIS is where art says i love you. and reader is honestly half elated he loves her back but mainly pissed bc his timing can’t be worse and also, “don’t say you love me just because i’m carrying your baby” and art’s trying to articulate that no, he does love her and he couldn’t say it but reader can’t hear it bc it hurts ! too ! much ! to know that she could’ve had him and still can but she can’t hurt her husband nor can she let art hurt his wife so she tells him she doesn’t love him anymore and it’s too late (i cannot make her say she never loved him bc that will bring irreparable damage that i cannot come back from emotionally) and art leaves bc there’s nothing he can do.

reader returns to her wedding party, to her husband’s side where she’s determined to stay. she’ll be the kind loving wife that this man deserves because he loves her without any expectations, conditions, etc.

art returns home with granny to his little farmhouse where his wife awaits with her chaste touches and polite small talk. finding out you’re carrying his child an animalistic urge to breed takes over him, and he’s trying to fuck a baby into his wife every night. but it doesn’t work. no matter how hard he tries, lucy can’t get pregnant, and she’s tired of trying—too heartbroken at the knowledge she can’t give him babies.

the next summer, granny’s health takes a turn for the worse, so she writes you a letter to return to the ranch to help her get everything settled. and bc you’ve become so fond of your grandma—who sends you homemade jams and knitted booties for the baby every few months—you do with your blue-eyed, strawberry blonde baby girl in tow.

- 🤠

you need your ass ate for this

[woodsfae]

Babylon 5 s02e05 The Long Dark

s02 Table of Contents • previous episode

ooo, What’s the Copernicus? Humans that left so long ago they don’t know what has been going on this whole time? Is it causing this “it’s coming through the walls -> I need some ozones -> get out out of my head” madness or is this poor fellow just kinda fucked up? 

“class c missionary license” that’s...um, a policy to have.

There’s something alive in the Copernicus! but is it human? Or is it eldritch madness??

There’s cryogenics in this universe!! (amelia earhart? hahaha. Voyager fans know what I’m talkin ‘bout)

She looks an awful lot like young Angelina Jolie. I will shit myself if Angelina Jolie guest starred on B5.

Nice to see Garibaldi having some human feelings of empathy for the indigents in the last few episodes instead of just body slamming them and knocking their heads into bartops.

“Well I find that life is, in general, much easier if I forget more of the things that happen to me.”

Been there, tried that, EMDR is easier in the long run.

“You were about to accuse the Centauri ambassador of being in league with the devil - which might not be that far from being the truth.”

LMAO Garibaldi. Slowly climbing the likeability ranks.

Lot of good lines here. I need to not stop and type out the entire conversation, but it is funny in a dark and relatable kind of way. This is probably why veterans tend to ask me where I served and I’m like “my case of c-ptsd was homegrown, organic, and free-range, actually. Now can you take a step to the left? You’re blocking my line of sight to the nearest escape route.”

The Copernicus human definitely isn’t Jolie, so I’m free to crap in the toilet.

ooOOOoooo a murder investigation on the Copernicus!

It bears repeating: I love these totally transparent masks, and once again am asking that they consider making their scrubs out of the same material.

“How long were we in stasis?” “...I think we should take this one day at a time.”

Dr Stephen Franklin I can tell you with 100% certainty that that answer is WAY MORE ANXIETY INDUCING than just being like “153 yrs,” or whatever it is. I’d have a panic attack and start assuming it had been like a thousand years or something.

It doesn’t seem like Ms Anachronism killed her crewmate (Will) from her reaction, but who knows! Maybe there’s cryogenic sleepwalking in this universe!

Mr War PTSD likes to fixate on the Copernicus. hmmmm. No hypothesis at this time. Unless he’s being possessed by Will.

“...then we still haven’t outgrown violence?”

extremely tragic, yes. 

“Take my advice and go back to the time you came from. The future isn’t what it used to be.”

G’Kar. I mean this with my whole chest: what the hell, dude?

It would be nice if they gave us a name for the Copernicus Survivor. And also very odd that G’Kar’s bizarre and unnerving greeting triggered a faint + nightmare/flashback.

Will was married to the Survivor!

Stephen leave her be. You literally just told her that her husband was murdered. I guess he and Janice must not have worked out?

Mr War PTSD should maybe hang out with Aunt Prophetess and learn to get a handle on his gift, since it doesn’t seem like humans have any sort of support structure of people who have visions.

OoooOOooo something did come off that ship! He should definitely hang out with Aunt Prophetess.

Mr War PTSD is called Amis, and he was the sole survivor of 47 soldiers stationed on a moon. Big trauma. And the Copernicus went through that moon’s gravity well! I am delighted to discover this is giving Garibaldi the totally organic opportunity to say “This Mariah Cirrus may not be what she appears.”

Nah, it’s definitely some critter that didn’t show up on the lifesign scans.

Is the Non-Aligned Worlds the same thing as the League?

“She has brought something evil from the past. A soldier of darkness. [...] They do not move openly, they work through others, use others. When the darkness was defeated long ago, they scattered. Hid themselves away in secret places and waited. [...] Evil sometimes wears a pleasant face.”

It’s fascinating seeing more species’ legends of the past darkness. Are they really non-corporeal? Immortal, if they scattered and are re-gathering? Whatever came along with the Copernicus seemed to have a.) stayed with the ship for a time and b.) certainly killed the alien physically.

The various mythos being phrased and framed very much like fairy tales but actually translating pretty accurately into real info about the Shadows is absolutely excellent. Oral histories are as accurate as written records!

Really like this Garibaldi/Amis team-up.

Awwww, Amis. guy.

This story of Garibaldi’s really really makes me think that Earth needs a Mystics, Lunatics, and Dreamers Support Hotline.

Amis: “It came in the night, during a storm. We heard nothing, saw nothing. It came right through the walls...like a hot wind. The first man died just meters from me - never even screamed. We ran... We ran. For a second I thought I’d lost it. Then I saw it. Standing in the middle of a ball of lightning. It looked like it had come straight from hell.” Garibaldi: “How did you survive?” Amis: “I didn’t! It kept me alive... as a snack. It becomes part of you, feeding on you. The ones who died were the lucky ones on that moon. What it took from me, I can never get back. When the rescue party showed up, I weighed 85 pounds. That’s how I knew it was on this station. A part of me is still inside that thing. I can feel it, but no one ever believed me. Until now.”

F U C K I N G  T E R R I F Y I N G

“After awhile all we had in common was the stars and dreams.”

Mariah honey that is not a good relationship. Even if it is pretty romantic.

The shadows are some kind of parasite. I’d say psychic, but Amis and Will both lost a lot of weight, so maybe it’s an intangible life force that takes calories to sustain.

I am vibing on this form of protectiveness from Franklin towards Mariah. “Medical supervision is necessary for psychic tracking of an untrackable, evil force.” immaculate vibes.

Also this thing is giving off Star Trek ToS Salt Vampire vibes.

Three unnamed security officers go forth...idk if any of them are going to survive, since the rest are named characters and all but Amis and Mariah are regulars.

I have many many theories as to what may give the Shadows their invisi/intangibility. And I’m extremely surprised that neither the unnamed security guards, Amis or Mariah died!

Hope some Earth agency gives Mariah 100 years of backpay and survivor benefits for Will. Living still costs a stupid amount of money in the b5 world, it seems.

The Shadow changed the Copernicus’s course to aim for the exact coordinates where G’Kar said the Enemy was gathering its forces! dun dun dun!!!! The real question is, how long would it have taken to get there? The Copernicus had no access to FTL. It took not much more than 10 yrs to get from the moon base to B5, so they were either less than 10 light years apart or something else odd was going on.

Furries beware: the Shadows are incorporeal, bipedal wolves. And they are NOT FRIENDLY.

Absolutely adding Mariah Cirrus to my list of minor characters I’d like to see again, and Amis to my list of mystics that I think should hang out together.

next episode

[lovelybarnes]

peter- p. parker

pairings: peter parker x reader, platonic!tony stark x peter parker, mom!natasha romanoff x reader, platonic!harley keener x reader

warnings: none?

about: based off of this (tiktok trend where you call your boyfriend/husband by their name)

a/n: i wanted to start a tiktok series for the longest time and this is a nice start right? i'm going to include all of the people i write for, i just need to find trends lmao. i hope y'all like this!

you pouted, glaring at tony as he ignored you, continuing to steal peter’s attention away from you. in his defense, you had done that to him before, dragging peter away by the hand the second he finishes in the lab. you could feel the smug look tony was sending your way as you gave up, and you kicked at dum-e in retaliation. “hey, bub? i’m gonna go train or something, please come get me when you’re done, i wanna spend time with you.”

peter nodded, looking over his shoulder for a second to pucker his lips at you and blow you a quick kiss, “okay, pretty girl, i promise i’ll be down in one or two hours- right?” he looked at tony, and the man responded with a distracted nod.

“promise?” you ask, too used to him saying the same thing and spending twice the amount of time. “of course, i can’t spend that much time away from you, angel.”

you blushed, muttering a “fine,” and heading down to the training room.

-

you were sprawled on the mat, chest heaving while natasha stared at you, “you good, y/n?”

“not great, mom, you really didn’t hold back today, did you?” you asked, eyes closed. you heard nat chuckle, poking you with her foot, “you did good, honey, i’m proud of you. i imagine peter is in your room sulking?”

you groaned at that, rolling over. “i doubt it. how long have we been sparring?”

“almost four hours, why?”

an hour or two, my ass, you thought, sighing. you stood, “nothing, just, he’s busy right now. is wanda around? loki? harley?”

natasha unwrapped her hands, asking for yours as she spoke, “wanda’s on a date with vision, loki is… probably being the god of mischief somewhere, and harley is in the common room doing something.”

you thanked her as she took the bands away, stretching your fingers.

“thank you, nat, i’m gonna go take a shower, thanks for letting me beat your ass,” she shoved you lightly as you walked past, and you giggled, walking to the elevator. pushing up against the glass that let you see into the lab, you spotted peter, slumped down on a bean bag chair tony had put in his lab for your boyfriend. his mouth was moving, hands in the air, and tony was in front of him, nodding along to whatever he was saying with a screwdriver uselessly in his hand. you managed to catch a sliver of their conversation,

“you know how i told you yesterday about ned? well, today, he…”

busy indeed, you thought with a scowl, watching as the elevator rose past the floor and up to yours. you grumbled as you walked to your room and resisted the desire to simply drop on your bed and call harley over, stepping into your bathroom instead.

ten minutes later, you were on the couch of the main room with harley, your head smushed against his shoulder, paying attention to the screen of your phone instead of the movie on the television. “so, you’re angry at peter?” harley asked, and you looked up at him, shaking your head.

“no, no, i’m just upset, i’ve barely seen him all week, and he promised he’d be out in an hour or two, but it’s been four-”

“maybe he’s busy?” harley offered, and you scoffed, “yes, gossipping about ned-”

harley bit his lip, “maybe it was a break?”

you shrugged at that, leaning on him again, “maybe. i still miss him, though.”

harley hummed as you scrolled past the videos on tiktok, coming across one of the couple videos that had been popping up on your for you page ever since you posted a video with peter.

harley swiped your phone in excitement, pointing at the video, “hey, you should do this! scare him a little.”

you tilted your head in confusion, taking your phone back apprehensively, “do what? you didn’t even let me watch, and what are you talking about?”

your eyes settled on your phone, mint letters reading calling my boyfriend by his name instead of his pet name. you laughed at it, realizing that harley was right.

as if reading your mind, harley smirked, “he would freak out, sometimes i think you forget each other’s real names.” you gave him a look, and he raised his arms in a sign of surrender. “i don’t know, it’s not a bad idea. people have been asking me to prank him for a while now.”

“see?” harley said, satisfied with himself. “i’ll do it, if i ever see him again, that is.”

“oh, you are so dramatic,” harley huffed. “you love me,” you scoff, and you feel him nod, “yes i do, now, go away, i haven’t been able to concentrate on my movie at all since you came here.”

you harrumph, and just as though on cue, you hear peter come through the door of the living room. you hum when you feel him press his lips on your forehead, “hi, beautiful,” he greets, shoving harley’s head away as his hello.

“hello to you too,” harley mutters, and you feel peter tug at you, “come on, let’s go to your room.” you laugh and pat harley’s thigh, “i’ll see you later, harls.” he waves you off, and you stand before letting peter drag you to your room. right when you’ve clicked the button to your floor, peter still outside of the elevator, you remember the video, stiffening up. “actually, can you get me some water, peter?” you ask, and you only catch a glimpse of peter’s face as his eyebrows furrow, voice saying a cut off “yeah,” the elevator doors closing on his face. you chuckle while the elevator lifts, scrambling to pull out your phone and setting it up to make a tiktok. you sprint to your room, closing the door quietly and sitting on your bed, pretending like you were on your phone as you waited for peter’s hurried steps to come closer.

three tentative knocks came from your door and you clicked record before telling peter to come in. “hey, princess,” he spoke softly, and you smiled, “hi peter.”

he winced, setting down the glass of water on your table. you gave an insincere frown, “what’s wrong?”

“i just- did i do something wrong?” peter asked, puppy eyes in full blow. “no?” you say, feigning confusion, “why?”

“it’s- you called me peter,” he whined, and you breathed out in a sort of laugh, “is that not your name?” you queried, and peter puffed out his cheeks, “you only call me that when you’re mad.”

you laugh fully now, “when have you ever seen me mad at you, peter?”

peter crosses his arms, huffing, “i don’t know a peter.”

your mouth falls open slightly, “peter!-” you don’t get to finish when peter turns his head away from you, bottom lip jutting out and eyes looking up at nothing, “peter isn’t here, i’m bubba, or handsome, or-”

“oh my god,” you snicker, “dude, it’s-”

peter turns to you, mouth open in indignation, “dude- y/n/n!” he cries, and you drop your phone on the bed, noticing the video is done.

you’re smiling, stretching your arms out to him as a peace offering, “it was just a tiktok, petey, and it was also all harley’s idea-”

“i thought you were mad!” he complains, accepting your arms and wrapping his own around your waist, head on your chest. you respond with a small snort, running your fingers through his curls, “i didn’t think it was this big of a deal, it’s just your name, bub.”

peter doesn’t respond, nuzzling his head further into your boobs, “mean.”

you just roll your eyes, grabbing your phone to post the tiktok (which amassed over three million likes after an hour).

(@lovelyrdjr )

[birdiefw]

LET ME SHOW YOU | SAM WINCHESTER [SMUT 18+]

Summary: Having been turned on all day, you decide you can’t wait any longer and lead somewhere more private.

Warnings: swearing, teasing, oral (female receiving), impala sex (unprotected but y’all can pretend otherwise)

A/N: It’s been a hot minute since I’ve written an imagine, and technically this one is meant for my Sam Winchester fic on Wattpad so it wasn’t intended to be an imagine, but I figured it could work as one so here it is lmao. Also, destiel is pretty much implied in this, but you’re free to see Dean and Cas however you want. I also edited this, but I apologize for any errors or if it says her/she/birdie (who is my spn oc) instead of you/your/etc!

You felt like your entire body had been set on fire without warning. Your skin was incredibly warm as you tried to remain still, feeling like your body was getting hotter and hotter despite how cold it actually was inside the bunker. Your hair was pushed back so it would stop clinging to your neck/sides of your face, your mind unable to focus on your laptop that was placed in front of you as something else was taking over all of your senses.

You were very aware of the fact that you weren’t alone in the library, twisting and pursing your lips together as you tried to ignore the rampant thoughts that kept popping into your mind every time your gaze flickered over to Sam. But, every time your eyes fell on your husband, you couldn’t help but admire his stunning features, picturing all of the sides you’d seen of him in your many years of being a couple—some of which only made the ache between your legs increase.

You bit her lip when you looked away from him again, trying to force the thoughts aside; you desperately hoped you’d be alone soon.

“Y/N?”

Your head shot up from your laptop that had started dim from your lack of actually doing anything on it in the last few minutes, eyes slightly widened as you looked across at Castiel who was sat in front of you, his bright blue eyes pinned to your features.

“What?” you asked, glancing aside at Sam and Dean who were both staring at you with confusion much like Castiel.

“We were askin’ if you found anything,” Dean said, noticing how your laptop had dimmed.

“Oh, uh, I—no. Not yet, anyways,” you answered with a heavy sigh, briefly glancing towards Sam before your eyes swiveled to Dean and then Castiel.

“Are you feeling okay?” Castiel wondered, curiously tilting his head at you. “You don’t look like you’re feeling well.”

“Thanks, Cas,” you sarcastically said, giving him a fake smile as you folded your arms over your chest and crossed your legs. “I can always count on you for a pick me up, can’t I?”

“I’m sorry, Y/N. I didn’t mean it like that,” he said, a faint frown appearing on his lips.

Sam’s lips turned into a frown, noting that you did look rather pale compared to usual. You looked slightly sweaty, eyes looking more dark than normal. You easily noticed the change in Sam’s expression, quickly shaking your head as you closed your laptop; there was no point in keeping it open, anyways. “I’m fine,” you firmly told him, giving him a look when you saw him shoot you a similar look.

“You sure?” Dean asked, curiously eyeing you from the seat next to you.

“Yes, I’m sure, Dean,” you said, flashing a perky smile on your lips as if it would assure the three men.

Dean shook his head with a small smile appearing on his lips, closing his own laptop. He could tell something was off with you, but knowing Sam wouldn’t let it go, he decided against pushing the subject. “Alright, whatever you say, Y/N,” he said. Then his eyes flickered over to Castiel, nudging his head to the side as he started to stand up from the table. “Come on, you still gotta finish watchin’ Seven.”

Castiel warmly smiled, looking at Sam and you as he stood up from the chair. “Night, guys.”

“Night, Cas,” you and Sam said in unison, smiling back at the angel.

Dean tucked his laptop under his arm, silently nodding towards his brother and you as he waited for Castiel. You and Sam quietly watched them walk away, a grin lingering on your lips until they were gone.

You let out a heavily sigh and leaned your head back, puffing out your cheeks. Sam stood up from his own chair and headed over to you, placing the back of his hand against your forehead. You jumped at the sudden touch, looking at him with wide eyes. “Fuck,” you whispered, letting out a breath of relief as you realized it was only Sam, “You almost sent me into cardiac arrest.”

Sam softly laughed, innocently raising his hands as he sat on the table, peering down at you. You shook her head as you stood up, adjusting Sam’s flannel that you wore over a pair of leggings, pushing the sleeves up to your elbows. “Are you sure you’re feeling okay, babe?” he asked, genuine concern etched on his features as you stood in front of him. “You’re pretty warm.”

You let out a sigh, glancing around to make sure Dean nor Castiel were around at the moment. “I-I’m not sick, I promise,” you said, looking at your husband. “I’m just. . .”

Sam softly gazed at you when she lowered you head, warmly smiling as he lifted his hand to you chin to make you look at him again. “Just what?”

You coyly smiled, a thought suddenly occurring to you. “Let me show you.”

The corners of Sam’s lips tweaked up into a smirk, finally noticing the look that was swirling around in your eyes. ‘I should’ve known,’ he thought to himself, already feeling himself start to grow hot with anticipation. You eagerly took his larger hand in yours, tugging him in the opposite direction of their shared bedroom.

You giddily giggled as you hurried down the narrow halls of the bunker, tugging Sam towards the garage with a devilish smirk appearing on your lips, stealing a glance behind you to make sure that Dean nor Castiel hadn’t left the room for some reason. “You don’t think they have plans to actually go anywhere tonight after their movie, do you?” You asked Sam, carefully walking with your back facing the spacious garage while your intense gaze was pinned to Sam as your warm hand still clutched his in your own.

“God I fuckin’ hope not,” Sam breathlessly replied, eyes lighting up with a rush of excitement as you guided him over to the Impala.

You tugged your bottom lip between your teeth as the two of you came up to the side of the Impala, standing beside one of the back doors as you fully faced Sam, body even warmer than before.

“Well, even if they do. . .” You softly said, trailing one of your hands up one of Sam’s buff arms, fingertips trailing up until they reached his stubbly jaw. Your eyes flickered to his, seeing his usually bright eyes had darkened a few shades as they took in your features. Your smirk instantly widened, peering up at Sam. “They’ll just have to wait.”

“Is that so?” Sam asked in a low tone, taking a few steps closer so you were pressed up against the Impala, your chests almost pressed together as he stood in front of you with his hands softly caressing your hips. “Well, how much longer are you gonna make me wait?”

“I don’t know yet,” you teased, running a few of your fingers along his bottom lip. “You were teasing me all day pretty much with your soft hair, your kissable lips. . .”

Sam darkly chuckled, a mischievous glint sparkling in his eyes as your words made his excitement increase. “Then let me make it up to you.”

You leaned forward in response, Sam quickly bending his head down to connect you lips when she moved towards him. One of your hands automatically went to his shaggy hair, gently tugging on it to elicit a low groan from Sam. You smiled with approval, feeling one of his hands go to your lower back and press your body up against his while the other went to the back of your head, fingers combing through your hair. Your soft lips parted as the kiss became more needy, giving Sam access to explore your mouth like his life depended on it.

Sam’s hand moved from your back and to the handle off to the side, quickly finding it and pulling it open with a grunt. “After you,” Sam panted.

You excitedly grinned and crawled into the backseat, seeing Sam steal a glance around the garage to make sure no one was around before climbing inside as well and closing the door behind him. You eagerly leaned forward, connecting your lips once more as your fingers started to undo the buttons of the flannel Sam wore. Sam grinned into the kiss, assisting you with removing the shirt before carelessly tossing it to the side. Then he broke apart from the kiss, discarding the plain gray shirt he’d been wearing underneath as you started to undo the buttons of the flannel you had on.

Sam reconnected your lips just as she finished unbuttoning it. You giggled, going to shrug it off until one of Sam’s hands stopped you. “Seeing you in my clothes drives me absolutely crazy. . .I wanna see you come undone with it on.”

You let out a shaky breath at his words, lowering your hands. You bit her lip and cupped his cheeks in your clammy hands, firmly kissing him. “I love you,” you told him.

Sam grinned, giving you a quick peck in return. “I love you too,” he murmured, one hand trailing down your sides, stopping along the side of your thigh as his other hand guided you to scoot back more and lay against the back of the leather seat. “And, I wanna show you. . .just how. . .much,” he gruffly said, pecking your cheek, nose, and chin as he spoke.

Your eyes fluttered closed as you sucked in a deep breath, feeling Sam kiss along your neck. “God. . .” You whispered, involuntarily bucking your hips up as one hand gripped his hair again.

“Someone’s eager,” Sam murmured against your hot skin, his hand still caressing her thigh, setting her entire body on fire even more with just a simple touch.

“Please, Sam,” you whimpered, catching his gaze.

Sam slowly moved down your body, reaching for the hem of your leggings. “Wearing a skirt today woulda made this a lot easier,” he said, causing a laugh to erupt from you as he started to tug down your skin tight leggings. You lifted your hips, helping him to discard both your leggings and panties as quick as possible. “But, they don’t show off your ass as well as these do.”

You bit her lip at his words, your heart starting to beat even faster as Sam settled himself between your legs. The corner of his lips were pulled up into a smirk, easing your legs apart with one leg settling over his shoulder and the other over the seat with your foot planted on the ground. Sam’s gaze remained locked on yours as he scooted closer, blowing on you gently. Your head instantly fell back, a gasp escaping your lips.

“I really was turnin’ you on without even touching you, huh,” Sam said, one hand caressing your inner thigh. You merely whimpered in response, lifting your head just in time to see him dive in to your center.

A loud moan escaped your lips as he expertly dragged his tongue through her heat, feeling Sam slip one arm under your leg, keeping her close. “Shit, Sam!” You gasped in pure pleasure, lips parted and brows furrowed as you sat up on her elbows, breathlessly watching him move against you core; he knew just what to do to get you even more turned on and screaming his name. He looked up at you, groaning against you when you bit her lip and leaned your head back again. “Oh, fuck!”

He swirled his tongue through your center, circling around your clit as he fastened his pace. “You’re being more quiet than usual,” Sam said in between licks, causing you to groan at the uneven pace. “Don’t want Dean or Cas to hear how gorgeous you sound?”

“I—please, Sam,” you gasped.

“What was that?” Sam asked, lightly licking at you heat.

You panted, looking at him with desperation. “Please, Sam! Fuck!”

Sam flattened his tongue against your center to give you exactly what you wanted, seeing you close your eyes in pleasure. He got a steady movement, going faster when you started to moan louder. One of your hands reached down, tightly gripping his hair as you moved against his mouth. Sam moaned against you, nearly getting off just by watching you fall apart with only the use of his skillful tongue.

“Holy fuck,” you moaned, eyes screwed shut as you felt herself getting closer and closer. Sam could tell too, fastening his pace as you tightened your grip on his hair, a loud moan erupting from your parted lips as you arched your back. “Sam! Shit, I-I—”

“I got you, baby,” Sam said, knowing you were incredibly close. “I got you.”

With those words, you came against his mouth, your loud moans filling the Impala as Sam continued to suck and lick you through your orgasm. Your grip on his hair loosened while your hips stilled against his mouth, chest rising and falling quickly as your eyes remained closed with complete bliss.

“Holy fuck,” you said after a few moments, opening your eyes when you felt Sam crawl on top of you. You wrapped your hands around his neck, bringing him in for a sloppy kiss without a second thought. He eagerly kissed you back, lowering his body so you were closer together while one of his hands traveled down between your legs.

You gasped against his mouth when his fingers slipped through you, opening your eyes to look at him. “I think it’s your turn now,” you told him, going to reach down to his pants until he shifted to sit up.

“Later,” he breathed out, starting to undo the buttons of his pants. “I just need you.”

You sat up as well, Sam’s flannel sticking to her skin even more than before, but you didn’t mind in the slightest. Your hands quickly moved to help Sam, giggling with joy as he removed his pants and boxers, kicking them off into the floor. Your eyes flickered up to his again, biting your lip. “Can I be on top?”

“Fuck yes,” Sam eagerly said, wrapping an arm around your waist to bring you to his lap without a moment to waist.

You giggled again, looking down at his hard member as you straddled his waist. “Someone sure is excited.”

“Hard not to be when I just watched you get off on my tongue,” Sam replied in a gruff voice, his eyes sparkling as he looked up at you, not just with lust, but also pure love.

You whimpered at that, reaching down and giving him a few strokes. You watched Sam’s eyes flutter close at your gentle touch, lips parting with a breathy moan; you got turned on by his reactions just as much as Sam did with you. You shifted slightly, lining yourself up with him before slowly sinking down.

Your and Sam’s moans filled the Impala at the feeling, Sam’s hands automatically going to grip your waist as he filled you up. Sam bit his lip with anticipation, waiting for you to make sure it was okay to move before he did anything. You leaned forward slightly, planting your hands on Sam’s chiseled chest, starting to move against him as you locked eyes with him.

“Fuuuuck,” Sam groaned, his nails digging into your hips as you slid up and down. “Just like that, baby.”

“I’ve wanted to do this since this morning,” you breathlessly admitted, fastening your pace. You and Sam moaned again, your nails scratching at his chest as you moved your hands up and down his body. Sam loudly groaned at the sensation, thrusting up to meet your movements, making you cry out with pleasure.

“God, I love you so fucking much,” Sam panted, his eyes rolling back as you leaned down and gave attention to his neck. “So fucking perfect.”

You moaned as well, connecting your lips in a messy kiss while Sam’s thrusts got faster. “Fuck. . .” You whispered, “I love you too. . .so so fucking much.”

“Shit, Y/N,” Sam moaned as you nipped at his dampened neck, hands running up and down his abs.

“Faster, baby,” you whispered into his ear, heart beating faster as you and Sam got closer.

Sam grunted, tightening his grip on you as he picked up the pace. You started to lose her own rhythm, your hips shaking as you rode him, your orgasm growing closer and closer. “Sam, I’m. . .”

Sam lurched forward, pulling you further into his lap with your bare chest pressed against his own, the flannel pushed back and exposing your entire chest to him. His hips moved up into you as he hungrily kissed you again, his tongue dominating yours while his hands moved to cradle the back of your head.

Sam grunted, his forehead resting against yours as the Impala rocked back and forth, no doubt making it obvious what was going on inside if anyone were to enter the garage.

You meekly whimpered, feeling the knot in your stomach getting closer to finally snapping. “Sam!” You loudly moaned, many swear words and the repeat of his name getting drowned out as Sam pressed his mouth to yours again. Your hands went to his cheeks, holding him closer while Sam’s orgasm got closer and his fingers gently tugged on your hair. His hips smacked against yours faster, the sound filling the steamy Impala alongside your loud moans. You clenched around him as you came, making Sam groan into your mouth as he came seconds after you.

You pulled apart after a few moments, resting your clammy foreheads together as you finally started to catch your breaths, you still sat in Sam’s lap and his hands in your hair.

You warmly smiled as you locked eyes with Sam, his lips curling into a grin as his dimples poked out as well. “Maybe I should tease you more often, huh?” Sam asked.

You softly laughed, playfully rolling your eyes as you moved your hands to rest them on his damp shoulders. “You could, but two can play at that game, babe.”

“Is that a challenge?” Sam taunted.

You playfully narrowed your eyes, running a hand up and down one of his arms like you were in deep thought. “No, because you and I both know you would lose the first day.”

Sam breathed out a laugh, tilting his head. “Says the one who almost couldn’t wait till we were alone.”

You simply shrugged, a small smirk starting to appear on your lips. “Today I couldn’t,” you said, gently pushing him back down on the seat. Sam’s eyes slightly widened, brows raising. “But you just looked extra sexy and handsome today. You, on the other hand, can hardly keep your hands to yourself when you’re horny.”

“That’s not true,” Sam protested, going to speak again until you moved your hips, causing his head to fall back with pleasure.

You proudly smirked at his reaction, peering down at him. “Tell you what—let’s go again, and if you manage not to touch me, we can do that challenge.”

Sam breathed out a faint laugh, smirking back at you. “As long as you’re okay with not touching me. But, you and I both know that’ll be even harder for you than me.”

“We’ll see about that,” you said, moving your hips again.

Sam let out a shaky breath, gazing up at you as his hands returned to your hips. “Yeah, we will.”

———

A/N: Feel free to leave some feedback or send me some requests!

[lilysdaydreams]

The Artist and The Musician

→  I do not claim to know corpse- therefore please don’t think that this is what he would actually act like, or that any details about his life are actually true. this is fiction.

→ Pairing: Corpse Husband X Fem!Reader

→ Genre: Fluff.

→ Words: 5.6k

→ Request:  Hey! It’s me again lmao I was curious maybe like sykunno or raes little sister (like 2 or 3 years younger) meets the group and her and corpse just click. How would either of them react to them hearing the news that their little sis is dating corpse and like they’ve moved in together and everything idk I thought it’d be cute💛

→ Warnings: Swearing.

→ Authors Note: Its been a hard couple of weeks and im really sorry that this took so long to be done but depression rlly hit me and I could barely move myself. I hope you enjoy this, and if you do, please comment some words of encouragement or feedback 💛

→  if you have some spare change , consider buying me a coffee.

You sighed as you finally dropped the last box in your new room, stretching to get rid of the pains in your back. Grabbing your phone, you moved over to Sykkunos room, knocking before sticking your head in.

"You want subway?" you asked when he looked up from the computer. He nodded with a quick smile, and as you closed the door behind you, you could hear him talking to the stream, letting them know that it was just his sister. Quickly ordering on Ubereats, you slumped on the sofa, closing your eyes and resting for a bit.

You had decided to move in with Sykkuno a month ago, the same week you'd decided to drop out of college. It wasn't something your parents were happy with, but after seeing how big your art and business had gotten, they had let you drop out. You'd dropped out and moved to LA, moving into an apartment with Sykkuno since he had to leave the OTV house. Sykkuno had moved in a week earlier which was why his room and computer was all set up. You'd only moved in today, spending a few weeks at home with your parents before leaving for LA. Stretching, you grabbed your phone, checking how long it would be until the food came, and then clicking on Instagram. Your most recent post was of this morning, a photo of you sitting on top of half the boxes in your room, throwing a peace sign at the camera. Sykkuno had taken it for you, the whole process taking 10 minutes cuz you made him take it at 45 different angles. Scrolling through the comments, you liked a few, replying to the ones by your best friends.

@selinaissss: "HOW DARE YOU LOOK THIS PERFECT AT 8 IN THE MORNING????"

→ @junefarie: i look like a racoon dont u dare

@onlyalyssa: "we need a house tour"

→ @junefarie: bitch I dont even have a bed yet

You grabbed the subway order when the bell rang, saying a quick thank you to the delivery man. You left yours on the table, and went to Sykkunos room, yelling "Sykkuno catch!" before throwing it at him, giggling as he leapt forward from his chair to catch it. Closing the door softly behind you, you jumped onto the couch, sitting cross-legged, grabbing your sketchbook and pencils from your backpack and setting them on your lap. It was time to wind down a bit.

~

It was a week later and you had unpacked fully, now focusing more on creating new pieces of art for a shop update. You were also working on some designs specifically for shirts and hoodies. Sykkuno found you in front of your computer, blanket wrapped around you and glasses perched on your nose as you emailed the manufacturer you were working with for the hoodies.

"Un, y/n?" he said hesitantly knocking on the door. You spun around in your chair, raising your eyebrows at him. "What's up?"

He walked in, sitting down gingerly on the edge of the bed and you got your water from the table, taking a sip as you wait for him to talk.

"I um- You know how I- I play Among Us right?" he asked, scratching his neck.

You hummed in response, urging him on with a nod. Sykkuno was almost never this nervous around you. Most of the time, you guys talked normally, joking and teasing each other. For him to be stuttering around you, he must have been extremely nervous.

"Well, you know Rae right? She um, she asked me to make a lobby," he said, standing up and pacing now. You furrowed your brows, confused as to where this was going.

He was explaining what a lobby was (which what the fuck, you watched his streams, of course you knew what a lobby was, why was he explaining that) when you cut him off, getting up and grabbing his shoulders to stop him.

"Hey, what's wrong?" you asked, holding his shoulders with both your hands.

He sighed and slumped into you, his head coming to a rest on your shoulder.

"Rae asked me to make a lobby and it's the first time I've ever made one and I'm really nervous about it. I've already invited people, but um I was wondering if you wanted to join as well? I- It would help me to have you there." he muttered, the words muffled as he spoke into your shoulder.

"Me?" you asked, a little shocked because you had never played among us before.

He nodded against your shoulder.

"Um sure!" you said, wrapping your arms around his middle, "It'll be fun!"

"And hey," you added on when he didn't say anything after that, "I can meet all your friends as well!"

He finally lifted his head a little, smiling as he muttered out a quick "Thanks y/n."

"However," you added, jumping back onto your seat and wiggling your eyebrows at him. "You have to buy me pizza for tonight's dinner."

He chuckled, grabbing his phone and already mutterng the order to himself as he opened up the ubereats app and walked out of the room.

You turned back to the laptop humming a tune under your breath. From interactions like this, most people would probably assume that you were older but the truth was that Sykkuno was 5 years older than you. Your roles were reversed and you were probably more protective over him than anyone else. Once in high school a girl had called him cute and asked him for his number only to write it on the bathroom walls. After the first three prank calls, you'd taken the phone from him yelling at anyone who called that if they called again, that you'd personally track them down and shove a dildo up their ass.

Both of you had always been close, but with the amount of bullying and teasing he got in high school, you'd got even closer, eventually becoming his best friend in a way. Seeing Sykkuno grow as a person, get new friends who were genuinely nice and kind made you the happiest person alive. When Sykkuno had first started streaming you'd been worried, scared that people online would say something mean. When he had first started streaming with other streamers and then met Lily and all his other friends, you had been anxious, worrying that they might only be putting up a friendly facade. You were also the happiest though when he grew even closer to them, when he smiled more, laughed more, talked more.

You had yet to meet or talk to any of his friends, mostly because you'd been in college, and the pandemic had made it harder. Maybe it was finally time.

~

The day came and you sat in your room, once again a blanket wrapped around you, glasses perched on your nose as you accepted the discord invite Sykkuno sent you.

"DO I GO IN THE CHAT THINGY?" you yelled to Sykkuno, hearing a "YES" before clicking on the voice chat.

You mumbled a "hello", wondering if your mic was on.

"Hey, yeah I can hear you y/n."

Breathing a sigh of relief, you logged into the game, smiling as you heard sykkuno introduce you to his chat. "Hi everyone," you said, feeling a bit weird only talking to a screen. You rubbed your hands, a little nervous to be doing this.

Just then someone else joined and before you could even speak another three people joined as well, all of them yelling hello as they joined.

"He- Hey guys, how's everyone doing?" started sykkuno.

"Im doing great oh my god, guess what guys, I'm-" started Rae, cutting herself off. "wait, whos um "ms snores a lot"?

You were a bit confused for a second, furrowing you eyebrows for a second before realising what had happened.

"SYKKUNO YOU ASSHOLE WHAT THE FUCK?" you yelled, staring at the name underneath the voice channel that you now realised belonged to you. You could hear Sykkunos laughter from the other room but you just spluttered indignantly. He was the one who had set up everything on your computer yesterday because technology was something that you rarely messed around with.

"Sykkunooo" you whined, when he kept laughing, "How the fuck do I change it now?"

"Um wait, sykkuno who is this?" asked Rae, the other three echoing her. You glanced at the names and from the voices figured out that it was Rae, Toast, Sean and Corpse in the lobby.

"Hey okay, so guys this is my sister, her names y/n and we recently moved in together, so I asked her to be in the lobby because... um.." he said stuttering at the end to find a reason.

"Because he wanted to embarrass me apparently!" you exclaimed, giving him a way out.

"Oh god, um - you can change it in settings, at the bottom near where your name is."

"Ahhh," you said finding it and then simply typing in your art business name.

"Its nice to meet everyone by the way," you started. "I've been watching your videos for ages so it almost fels like I already know you"

Raes voice started in your ears and you winced at the volume befoe turning it down a bit.

"I would love to say that Sykkuno has told us a lot about you, but the truth is that he keeps a lot of secrets and I didnt even know he had a sister, I AM SO SHOCKED RIGHT NOW"

You gasped. "Sykkuno what the fuck, you didn't even tell Rae?"

"You told me not to tell a lot of people!" he protested.

You heard someone saying "they're so different!' but you ignored it and kept talking.

"Yeah at the start! and on stream! I can't believe you never even said you had a sister." you spluttered out, followed by another gasp.

"Are you embarrassed of me?" you whispered dramatically.

"N-What no of course not!" he exclaimed, and you could also imagine how wide his eyes would have gotten.

You giggled before telling him that you were only joking.

"Um since sykkuno is embarrassed of me," you said jokingly, "I'll just tell you myself."

"I'm like five years younger than sykkuno, I'm a June baby, I do art, my star sign is cancer, I'm 5'4, I recently moved in with sykkuno, and my favourite colour is purple!"

"Oh is that why your username is junefarie? Because you were born in June?" asked Sean.

Before you could say yes, someone else cut in.

"Wait, junefarie?" asked corpse, "like the artist?"

Your eyes widened as you realised that he knew you. Sure you had quite a few followers, but you never expected any of Sykkunos friends to know you from there.

"Um yeah," you said letting out a shocked laugh, "I didnt expect anyone here to know about me."

"Dude, your art is fire!" he exclaimed, voice louder now. "I was honestly thinking of buying a piece soon, I've followed you for ages!"

"Wait, I wanna see as well." whined Rae, "Ima look you up, are you on Instagram?"

"Um," you said still shocked by the fact that somone this big knew you. "yeah I'm on instagram, its just junefarie." you said first replying to Rae, "Um corpse, thankyou so much! thats so nice of yo!"

"Um my art isn't that great yet," you chuckled, embarrassed by all the attention now. "I'm hoping to improve a lot more and I have a bunch of ideas for it as well. I'm hoping to work more now that I moved in with Sy."

"Oh my god, this is amazing," whispered Rae, Toast and Sean echoing her. You ducked your head even though no one could see you. Your cheeks were blazing hot and you pressed your hands to them to cool yourself down.

"Thankyou," you mumbled, not sure what to say.

Someone else entered the lobby, and said "hi" and you welcomed the source of distraction.

"Hi! I'm Sykkunos sister, y/n!" you said , wanting to move away from the topic of your art.

The reply of "sykkuno has a SISTER?" made everyone laugh, successfully moving the attention to Sykkuno and off your art. Finally Sykkuno started the game and you breathed as you lost yourself in the art of gaming.

"OH MY GOD!" yelled Rae as the game ended and everyone appeared in the lobby. "That was like amazing, Y/N I cant belive you pulled that off!"

She was talking about the last game where there was 50/50 between corpse and Sykkuno (because you refused to kill sykkuno when you were imposter) and you somehow managed to convince Sykkuno that it was Corpse.

"Honestly, neither can I!" you exclaimed back staring at your screen, eyes blurring the screen because of how tired you were.

"I can't believe Sykkuno," mumbled corpse. "I literally said I saw her vent and kill toast and Sykkuno was still like "hmmm, I don't think so."

Giggling at Sykkunos yell of "SHES MY SISTER" you yelled out a bye as everyone started leaving and then struggled to find a way to end the call.

"Wait, how do I end it," you muttered to yourself.

You jumped as Corpse talked, not expecting anyone to be there.

"You can see yoru name at the bottom left right? Its above that but a little to the right." he said chucling a little.

"Oh." you said, you cheeks heating up. You didnt know if it was because of him or because you were utterly useless with technology.

"Um thankyou," you said awkwardly.

"No problem."

You exited out of the call, a small smile at your lips.

Sykkunos friends were nice.

~

After the stream, your fanbase grew, and with it, the number of orders as well. For the next week, you were buried under orders, only leaving the house to go to the post office.

An Instagram post on @junefarie account: 

[ID: A photo of y/n and sykkuno standing in the middle of the living room, packages scattered everywhere. Y/n is hugging Sykkuno tight and Sykkuno is staring at the camera, a distressed look on his face.]

Caption: Thankyou so much for all my supporters and all the love shown to me. Sending out loads of orders and I cant wait for you gusy to get yours! Special thanks to @sykkuno for helping me send out orders. luv yu.

Comments: 

@Sykisacutie: best sibling duo!

@valkyrae: hope my order is in their as well.

→ I SCREAMED WHEN SY TOLD ME THAT WAS YOUR NAME.

@corpse_husband: sykkuno looks like he's accepted death.

→ @sykkuno: I would have welcomed death at that point

→ @corpse_husband @sykkuno: okay ill be honest, I would have welcomed death as well.

@ariesin: go best friend, go! we need to get together to paint soon !!

→ SOONNNNNN

~

You flopped onto your bed, every part of your body hurting. Carrying boxes filled with orders down the stairs had tired your whole body, which wasn't used to any exercise at all. That had taken practically the whole day and then you had to clean your room because the mess from the orders had barely left any room to move. You flung your hand to the side, grabbing your phone from the table and bringing it up to your face. The "1:02" was clearly visible on your screen and you unlocked the phone, heading to Twitter. Scrolling through your feed, you liked a few tweets from friends before gearing yourself up and moving to the messages. Ever since you'd played with Corpse, Sykkuno and everyone, you'd been getting a lot of messages. Most of them were just the streamers fans, asking you if you know them or telling you to take care of sykkuno. There were a few though that targeted you, telling you that your art sucked, that they didn't know why Corpse could like my art. You'd taken to deleting them before sleeping so that your inbox wouldn't get cluttered and you could still find any serious requests or messages from your followers. Therefore, you didn't really think anything of it when there was another message from someone with a Corpse icon and you clicked on it only to see the message and gasp, immediately sitting up in bed.

Corpse_Husband → Hey, I was wondering if I could work with you on something? I really love your art and was wanting to commission or collaborate for an album cover or some merch designs. Message me on this number cuz I barely see my dms.

Underneath was a number.

"Oh my god," you whispered, unsure as to what to do.

When you had decided to drop out of college, you had expected hard days. You had expected your normal orders and mostly just improving your art and marketing it more. You had expected long days and not much money in the bank account. You certainly had not expected the immense amount of orders you'd gotten. Along with that, the amount of love and support had taken you by surprise and you had spent the last night crying because of how much love you and your art were getting.

You had also not expected such a big opportunity just landing at your feet.

Quickly you clicked on the number, putting it in your contacts with the name Corpse and then writing a quick message.

"Hey I got your twitter dm! I've personally never done art for merch or album covers but I would love the opportunity!"

You bit your lip, confused as to whether that was enough before deciding it was fine and just sent it.

Your heart beat a little faster as you slumped back onto the bed.

~

@junefarie Instagram story:

[ID: A zoomed-in picture of a drawing, the only part that was visible was curly hair. The text read: "Working on something SO COOL"]

~

Your phone was ringing. Stuffing the rest of the pizza in your mouth, you swept your hand over the covers of your bed, trying to find it. With a muttered "aha", you grabbed it and swiped on the call before it ended. Pressing the phone to your ear, you mumbled a "hello", still chewing the pizza bite.

A low rapsy voice came out of the speaker, one that you definitely didn't expect. You choked on the pizza, coughing out pieces onto the bed.  Sure you guys had messaged each other a bit (you kinda had to because of the commission), but you hadn't expected him to call out of nowhere.

"Um I hope this isn't a bad time," he said when you didn't respond for a second. Of course, he didn't exactly know that hearing his voice so close to your ear had you frozen for a second.

"Um no," you replied, coughing slightly to clear your throat. "It's fine! What did you wanna talk about?"

"Oh, um I know you're already working on the commission and its looking great! I can't wait to work with the merch team to create something really cool with it, but um-" he broke off for a second sounding hesitant. "I really wanna get another commission done as well."

"Oh?" you said after a second when he didn't reply. "I'd be happy to do another one for you!"

"Uh yeah, but I'm afraid that I might be a bit late, You see I was wondering if it could be done before Christmas?"

You sucked in a breath as you counted the days in your mind.

"Hmm, it depends on how big it is tbh. There's still 2 weeks to go till Christmas so I could fit it in," you mumbled, biting your lip as you remembered the onslaught of orders you still had to send out.

"Well," he started and you smiled a little as the excitement crept into his voice. "You know that Sykkuno, Rae, Toast and me are called the 4 Amigops right? I kinda wanted a portrait of all 4 of us, in our um among us colors, and I basically wanted to print it out and send to each of them for Christmas."

"Aww, that sounds like such a good idea, I'm sure they'll all love it!" you smiled, thinking about how much Sykkuno would appreciate that.

"Uh thanks," he mumbled, "do you think you can get it done?"

"Sure!" you replied immediately. You did have a lot of orders, yes, but like, you could fit Corpse in. If you pulled a few all-nighters. "I'll send you the sketches soon okay?"

"Oh thank god, thankyu so much for this y/n, I really appreciate it. Youre one of my favourite artists and I'm really happy that I could finally commisison you after so long."

"So long?" you questioned. "Since when have you known about my art?"

There was a moment of silence and then "Um, around the time you still posted your sketches and stuff I guess?"

You furrowed your eyebrows thinking for a second before letting out a gasp.

"Corpse that was 4 years ago!"

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, oh my god, I cant believe you've seen those, I was so bad then!"

"No no, they were really good at that time as well! I was so shocked when Sykkuno told us you were his sister because like, I'd been following you for ages and I had absolutely no idea. You guys are like really different."

"Hah yah, Sykkunos so soft, and then there's me. An actual devil."

"Your usernames so different as well! I remember when I first saw a picture of you on your account and I was kind of shocked because based on the name junefarie, I was expecting someone very soft I guess but then you were literally the opposite and wearing actual devil horns."

"Oh god, that was one of the first few photos I posted of myself. that was on Halloween I think,", you took a deep breath still shocked that Corpse had known about you for that long,

"Yeah, I chose junefarie because...”

It was 2 hours later when Corpse said that he should probably be working on his music.

"Oh I'm so sorry," you apologized, "I didn't mean to keep you,"

"Oh no, I um, I liked talking to you."

Your breath caught for a moment and you smiled like a lunatic at your Pokémon covered bedsheets.

"I liked talking to you as well," you whispered out, heart sinking a little as you realized the call would be ending soon.

"Um, do you, maybe want to stay on call? like I'll just be writing and we can just chill?" he asked and you felt like your prayers had been answered.

"yes" you said quickly, not giving him a chance to back out.

He chuckled, and you fell in love a little.

Just a little.

~

You continued like that, calling each other every few days, talking so much and then at times, not talking at all, simply content with each others company.

He had even started facetiming you, the first time with a mask and then the second without it. You hadn't made a big deal about it, but the first time you saw him, you could barely breathe.

There were five days left until Christmas when you got the idea.

You were entirely not subtle about it, because, well to be honest, there wasn't a subtle bone in your body.

"Hey Corpse, do you like surprises?" you had asked, in the middle of colouring Raes hair (her hair was the last thing left before you could finally print the goddamn thing)

"It depends," he had murmured after a second, voice sending shivers down your spine like every time. Now whether that was because of his voice or because of him, you weren't entirely sure.

"on what?" you prodded when he refused to answer.

"On whether its a good one or a bad one" he had huffed out.

You had hummed, waited for a second and then blurted out that next question because you did not have a cent of patience.

"So what are you doing at Christmas?"

"Sleeping, if I can manage it," he replied, his voice taking on a sardonic tone, eyes flicking to you on the screen. The only thing he could see though was the top of your head because you had your iPad on the bed and were laying over it as you drew.

"Not with that attitude you aren't," you replied right back, making a small smile appear across his face.

"Hmmm, okay!" you said when he didn't reply.

He looked back over, eyebrows furrowed and mouth opening as he started to question you.

"Hey did you see the video I sent you?" you quickly asked distracting him from his question.

He would probably guess the surprise but that was okay. You only wanted to make a smile appear on his face. And honestly, for someone with anxiety, a small warning of a surprise was definitely needed.

~

It was Christmas day and you woke Sykkuno up at 6 in the morning with the promise that you'd buy him McDonald's. 30 minutes later, you were both in the car, yelling the lyrics to "All I want for Christmas" at the top of your lungs.

You had told sykkuno of your plan a few days ago and he had smiled at you with that stupid smile, agreeing with a small "alright."

You'd immediately realised that he knew. Even though you pretended otherwise, Sykkuno was the older one and the thing about older siblings was that they always knew.

They always knew.

So there you were, snacks loaded into your car, McDonald's fries practically everywhere, and a cake you had made in the backseat, on your way to Corpses house.

There was a lull in the music, and you were only 30 minutes away from his place, butterflies fluttering in your stomach when Sykkuno asked you a question.

"You like him right?" he murmured, head leaning against the window, eyes closed.

There was a moment of silence as you thought about what to say. Did you like Corpse? Of course, you liked Corpse! He was funny, he was nice, he made you feel like you were the only person that mattered and your heart beat faster than ever whenever he looked at you. Hell, that was through a screen, in real life, it would probably be even worse. So of course you liked him! The question was, did he like you back?

"Yeah," you answered Sykkuno, eyes straight on the road.

A second passed and then he smiled. "Good," he replied. and well. That was that. You sighed.

At least you had your brothers blessing.

~

Pulling into the apartment building, you breathed in, your heart beating a million times a second and the butterflies in your stomach had turned into snakes. Maybe, maybe this wasn't a good idea at all. I mean, you expected Corpse to get the hint but what if he didn't? and what if he didn't want you to come? Maybe you were being too quick. After all, It'd only been a month since you'd met.

These thoughts plagued your mind as you trudged up the stairs, turning to Sykkuno as you reached the door.

"Maybe we shouldn't have come," you whispered to him.

He looked at you, eyebrows high, "We just travelled two hours to get here. There's no way im going back without at least giving him the print."

"What if he doesn't want us to be here?" you hissed.

"Then we'll go away." he stated, "after we give him the print."

"But what if-"

Before you could even finish your sentence, the door opened and you both jumped, turning to face the person standing in the doorway.

You forced yourself to breathe as you finally saw him. It was him. Wearing a black beanie, half his hair spilling out the sides, stubble clear on his chin... it was him. At that moment, there was only one thought in your mind.

You were gonna marry this man.

"You suck at whispering," he said, and you huffed out a laugh, jumping onto him without even responding. You wrapped your arms around him, not letting go until Sykkuno cleared his throat from behind you.

You turned back immediately, grabbing the stuff in Sykkunos hands so he could greet Corpse too. As they awkwardly did their handshake/fistbump thing, you walked over to the couch behind them, putting down the print and the takeaway bags, and putting the cakebox down on the table.

You turned around to see them both standing there staring at you.

"Surprise?" you said when no one else spoke. That broke the ice a little and you grabbed the print from the couch thrusting it at Corpse.

"Open it. Open it. Open it." you mumbled, your heart beating fast as he carefully ripped the paper off. The smile that overtook his face made your heart immediately calm.

"It's beautiful," he whispered, eyes roaming everywhere, trying to take it all in. Clearing his throat, he nodded his head further into the apartment, mumbling that he was going to put it in the room, eyes still on the print as he walked there.

"You smile is gonna blind me," muttered Sykkuno.

"Oh shut up."

~

A few hours later, you stood in the kitchen, putting the leftover cake into Corpses fridge. You had all chilled, eating cake and the takeout that you and sykkuno had bought, laughing every few minutes. It felt like you were all on an adrenaline rush. You had facetimed Rae and Toast, Rae shrieking when she realised where you guys were. Sykkuno had just fallen into a nap, still tired from being wakened up so early, you assumed.

You leaned against the kitchen bench, smiling as Corpse walked in.

"Thankyou." he said as he came to a stop next to you, matching your position.

"For what?" you mused, even though you had a good enough idea.

"For the print. For coming here. For making my Christmas, a much happier affair than it has been my whole life." he stated, chuckling at the last point.

You turned your head sideways, and you didn't know what it was, but something about his face made you spurn into action. You grabbed his collar, pulled him down, and kissed him before he could even say anything. It would be too cliche to say that fireworks erupted. And if you were being honest they didn't. Instead, it felt like everything was finally right. You fit perfectly in his arms as they wrapped themselves around you, and you smiled into the kiss as he lifted you up, making you sit at the counter. You twirled the hair at the nape of his neck with your left hand, taking a deep breath in as you both slowed down and pulled away.

"Well," he whispered, "that was unexpected."

You raised a single eyebrow. Honesty you'd done a lot for this relationship. You just drove for nearly 3 hours! If he wanted it to progress, he was gonna have to say it himself.

"But not unwelcome," he continued when you didn't speak. A moment passed, where you could see that he was psyching himself up to say something. Finally, with a heaving sigh, he whispered  "Darling, would you do me the honour of being called yours?"

You melted right there.

A nod was all he needed before he grabbed your lips with his again, both of you giggling when he accidentally hit the side of your mouth instead of the lips.

The sound of a picture being taken filled the air, making you spring apart and swing your heads over to the doorway, which had sykkuno leaning against it, his phone in his hand.

"Thank god. Rae and Toast bet that you wouldn't confess until after Christmas, so now they both owe me 20 bucks." he said, now fiddling on the phone. "Dont worry Corpse, I'll add a circle over your face or something."

Your mouth dropped open as you stared at your brother.

"You bet on my love life?" you scoffed, still shocked.

At his nod though, you swung off the bench, marching until you were eye to eye to him.

"I want half the winnings."

Rolling his eyes, he turned back to the living room, jumping onto the sofa.

"C'mon, let's watch one more episode before heading back," he said and you jumped in next to him, patting the space next to you as Corpse came in behind you.

You grabbed Sykkunos hand and squeezed it, letting him know that you were grateful that he didn't make it such a big deal. Leaning your head on corpses shoulder, you smiled to yourself.

You'd have to leave in 30 minutes, to drive back to your parents and spend the rest of Christmas with them, leaving Corpse behind. And that made you a bit sad sure, but it couldn't overpower the feeling of pure happiness at being here. At giving him a happier Christmas. You smiled as he pressed a kiss to the top of your head.

Nothing could overpower this feeling of absolute happiness.

fin.

Corpse husband taglist:  @mythicalamphitrite @ramble-writes @atsumubabe @anxiouskat5646 @itssierramcquade @xaestheticalien @jotaroslightning @starstruckllamapuppy @gxldenskiez @shinyshimaagain @cavanana @fee-btheweeb (send an ask to be added!)

[doodler-jpeg]

Life [Wilbur Soot/Fundy]

BOOOM HI HELLO HOW ARE YOU UH UM SO I WAS INSPIRED WHILE I WAS BORED AND THEN THIS IS HOW THIS ONESHOT CAME TO BE. ITS NOT GOOD, BUT ITS DECENT. You’re gonna be taking Sally’s place so, uh, I’m sorry, Sally, you’re just another salmon. Still love you though  THIS TOOK SO LONG TO MAKE DEAR GOD ITS BEEN IN THE WORKS FOR LIKE A MONTH LMAO

ALSO, KEEP IN MIND THIS IS C!WILBUR/SMP!WILBUR

⚠️CUSSING, AFAB READER, PREGNANCY, THIS IS A REALLY LONG ONE SHOT OH MY GOD, PLATONIC FUNDY RELATIONSHIP SO YEAH⚠️

Pronouns: she/her or they/them [you’re referred to as wife, mom,, that stuff, but you can change those if you want]

You hummed as you strained out your clothing beside the river near your home. A smile graced your face, [Eye Colour] eyes glinting happily in the warm sunlight of that fine summer day. Autumn would soon turn the land into a seemingly barren wasteland, though, so you decided to savor every last bit of happiness the hot days brought you. 

Hanging the large amount of clothing upon thin clothing lines, you dumped out your bucket and made sure nothing got in the lake. Walking back inside of your home, you set the buckets in the corner of the cozy cottage and walked back outside. Your brown boots thudded quietly against the cobblestone path that lead into the woods around your home that would eventually be covered in snow.

A sudden childish giggle made you turn to the fields that were a ways away from your house, right in front of the sparsely scattered trees to the right of your little house. You furrowed your brows in confusion as a blur of yellow, white, and red rushed over to you.

“Hello there.” You couldn’t help but stare as the child looked up at you silently. “What are you doing here, little one?” He only blushed, his face flushing a vivid red before he ran off. You shrugged and continued your trek into the forest.

//

You watched as flakes of snow fell delicately onto the muted green coloured grass, bundled tightly in a burrito of quilts that you and your mother has made together. You shuffled slightly from your position on your warm bed, closing your eyes as you waited for sleep to consume you.

It seemed life had other plans, though, as a faint light came toward your home, edging closer and closer until you could make out a figure, their clothing a great contrast to the paw snow. They were shivering visibly, clutching their arms as their lantern shook in their hand.

You frowned as you peeled your blankets off of you, pulling your boots on quickly. Grabbing a lantern cage, you lit the candle inside of it and hurried outside, feeling nervous as the figure hurried over to you.

Soon enough, they were standing in front of you, a miserable look on their face, their eyes red and puffy as their teeth chattered together.

“Come inside,” you didn’t care for introductions or your safety. This person seemed nice. “I’ll start a fire. Uh- there should be a few blankets on the sofa. Would you like anything to drink? Warm milk, tea? I’m not gonna offer coffee because it’s late, so I’m sorry about that.”

“Just water, please,” they croaked out. “I’m sorry for the intrusion. I was headed off in search of territory to claim. Turns out I chose the wrong day. God, it’s cold.” You let out a quiet laugh as you carefully tossed some wood into your fireplace, lighting the material on fire. Almost immediately, the flames grew and you sat up, placing your flint and steel on the fireplace mantle.

“I’ll go get you your water. Go warm up.” You urged before you walked into the kitchen to get the brunet some water.

//

““And then Tommy ran off!” Wilbur howled with laughter as he told the story of how he managed to lose his father in the forest close to his family home. ““Phil was looking for us for hours!” You smiled at the story as you carefully sewed up your friend’s heavy coat, making sure the patches were relatively the same colour as the rest of the jacket.

“You never really tell me about your family, so why are you telling stories now?” You commented, threading the needle in your hand through the fabric and back out of it, pulling the thread tightly. You snipped it with your scissors, placing the needle down to look for any other holes as Wilbur flushed a bright red.

“W-well— one day, I want you to meet my family, so- this sounds so fucking stupid. Never mind, forget about it.” He covered his face in his hands as you bummed, picking up a patch and laying it out on the brown fabric.

“What you’re saying is that you would introduce me to your family because you like me that much, huh?” No answer came from Wilbur, though he did let out a flustered groan as you chortled.

//

You placed a kiss upon your new boyfriend’s cheek, causing the brunet to laugh as he shrunk away from your lips

“Stop it,” you only grinned at the man, kissing various areas of his face in retaliation. Wilbur laughed harder, pushing you away gently as his face scrunched. ““It tickles!”

You grabbed his face in your hands and he looked into your eyes for a moment before you began attacking his face with kisses. When you pulled back for a break, Wilbur copied your actions from earlier and rubbed his thumb across your cheeks with a smile. He leaned his forehead on yours and let out a breathy sigh, closing his eyes as he basked in the moment.

“I love you so fucking much, [Y/N].”

//

““Dont be scared, darling,” Wilbur mused as he gently rubbed his thumb in circles on the back of your hand, lightly squeezing every few rotations. “Techno’s made sure to keep any weapons away and Tommy might be a little less wreckless. I’ll make sure to tell them during dinner.” You nodded uncertainly, playing nervously with the bracelet Wilbur had made you way back when the two of you first started as friends.

Wilbur rapped his knuckles on the door, his other hand never once letting go of yours as the two of you waited. A bit of shouting was heard through the door, slightly muffled, though it was evident that it was coming closer.

The door was flung open by a blond boy, his blue eyes shooting us to meet Wil’s not even a second after he opened the door. A grin was on the boys face as he turned and shouted for Phil [who Wilbur had told you was his father]. Soon enough, a blond man with a bucket hat trodden over, frowning at Tommy.

“Listen, motherfucker, you may be living here, but I’m not gonna fucking let you live if you keep fuckin shoutin.” You froze nervously and glanced over at your boyfriend. He just sent a small, awkward smile onto reassure you before he turned to look down at the two.

“Are you really gonna argue in front of my wife?” Wilbur piped in, feeling himself become giddy as Tommy and Phil shot their heads over to look at you.

“You brought a girl over?!” Tommy yelled in surprise as he stumbled back, eyes wide as he observed your movements skeptically.

“Wil? Can you come over here real quick? I just need to talk to you.” Phil forced a smile as he grabbed the taller man’s ear and yoinked him over to a different room, leaving Tommy and you alone.

“Hi,” you smiled nervously, raising a hand in a half assed wave.

“Do you happen to be American?” The blond asked, leaning his face over to stare at you.

“I mean- I’m a water nymph. I don’t really know if that counts because we usually just have different accents, but we never take into account where anyone’s from.” You laughed, scratching your cheek.

“Well where are you from?” Tommy urged, crossing his arms.

“To be specific, I came from the North Sea right by the Netherlands. I don’t really think that’s important though.��� You shrugged.

“So you’re Dutch? Speak it.”

“Im not necessarily Dutch, I was just born in the North Sea, Tommy- I think you’re a Tommy. You seem like a Tommy.” You cleared up, ““The only reason I learned English was to communicate with certain humans.”

“Okay.” The boy sighed, shoulders slumping forward as you let out an amused chortle, “I’ll leave you alone. For now.” Tommy backed up, turning into a room while a big, burly pig person ducked under the doorway, a large sword in hand and an uninterested expression on his face. As he turned to the door, he spotted you and his eyes widened momentarily before going back to their half lidded position.

“Who’re you? Phil didn’t- oh. Oh, today was that day. Oh my god, how could I forget it?” The hybrid smacked his forehead harshly, ““I’m so sorry.”

You laughed, waving your hand dismissively as the pig moved to the side to let you in. You carefully stepped into the warm house and the tall hybrid closed the door behind you.

“Dinner’s nearly done, so you can go sit down in the living room. If you need anything, Phil has ears all over the place. Just look at those crows.” Techno motioned over to the few crows that perched themselves on the window, letting out quiet caws. You waved at the birds and they flapped their wings in response.

“They seem nice.”

//

You sat next to your husband, hand intertwined with his as Phil smiled over at the two of you.

“So, anything new happening with you two?” The blond man inquired, placing his hands on the table. 

““I mean,” Wilbur laughed, turning over to look at you. “Would you like to tell them, dear?” You nodded, a grin on your face as you sat as straight as you could.

“I’m pregnant,” you said, your voice surprisingly calm. Tommy let out a shocked ‘‘what the fuck??’, while Techno choked on his food, slamming a fist onto his chest.

Phil was quiet, eyes wide in shock as he took in the information.

“Pregnant? With Wilbur’s kid?” You nodded, swinging Wilbur’s hand as Tommy cheered.

“Im gonna be a fuckin uncle! Yeah! I’ll be the best damn uncle ever!” He cackled, leaning back as Techno snorted.

““Can I teach them PvP?” You and your husband glanced over at each other before shaking your head.

“Maybe when they’re old enough to know what they’re doing.”

//

““Hello, my precious baby,” you cooed gently, holding the newborn as they let out a quiet sigh. ““My baby. You look just like your father.” A warm but tired smile was on your face as your baby opened their eyes, brown meeting [Eye Colour].

“Love, is the baby okay? Is she doing alright?” Wilbur called nervously through the door, to which you laughed.

“Yes, they’re doing great,” placing a gentle kiss on the baby’s nose, they brought a hand up and lightly tapped their nose.

//

““Fundy! Come here!” You cheered, reaching your arms out to the toddler. They giggled, waddling over to you. Their scab covered knees were littered with bandages and the red overalls they wore were much unlike what Wilburs would have wanted your child to wear, but it was your kid! They deserved the best!

““My precious baby,” you placed a kiss on their cheek, causing the brown haired child to giggle and wipe the kiss from their cheek. You grinned, littering their face in kisses as they squirmed, ““My little champion!”

“Yah! Cham-champion!” They babbled, bringing up a finger to chew on as you set them down and smoothed out your dress. 

““Alright, sweetheart, papa will be here soon, so make sure to tell him what you want to tell him, alright?” Your boy nodded, a goofy grin on his face as he reached over to one of the toys you had brought.

//

You cradled your son’s head as he sobbed, shaking his head in denial as to what had just happened.

“He-he’s gone, mama!” He choked out, wrapping his arms around you tightly. His tears stained your shirt, though the feeling didn’t bother you as you rocked your son back and forth, combing your fingers through his hair.

“Fundy, it’s okay,” you cooed, ““He doesn’t have to live with all the mistakes he made in the past anymore. Who knows, maybe he’ll come back?” 

““But what if he doesn’t? That was his last life and- and it’s gone! My dad’s gone!” Letting out a pained wail, he continued to sob. And you let him.

He had gone through so much.

//

““Who the hell are you and what are you doing around my son?” You sneered, standing in front of your son as the transparent figure stared at you curiously.

“You don’t remember me?” They asked, voice echoing as they tilted your head. “I- [Y/N], it’s me! Your husband! I- I am your husband, right?”

“My husband didn’t push away his son and focus on a failed country more than his own fucking family.” You loaded your crossbow, aiming it at the ghost. ““You didn’t come to his birthday parties, didn’t get him anything, you barely paid attention to him when your country was in the spotlight! You’re no husband to me.”

“Mama-” Fundy gulped nervously, ““Mama, please.”

“You know what, whoever the fuck you are? You’re no damn husband to me and you never will be. Now leave me and my son alone, for fuck’s sake.”

The ghost was silent as you turned, leading the man beside you toward the house at the top of the hill, though a small smile made its way onto his face.

“She’s the one I married?” He murmured, moving his hand to where his heart was, “Was she really the love of my life?”

[prettyboybarzal]

lessons in romance // nate mackinnon x reader

summary: nate mackinnon is really bad at keeping a steady girlfriend. so bad that’s become somewhat of a joke between him and the boys. but you come along and try to set him straight.

word count: 14k+

author’s note: it’s finally here. i’m honestly surprised at how fast i cranked this out... which is actually a LOT longer than most people write on here so mayb i shouldn’t brag lmao! this fic was inspired by THIS gifset. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE give me feedback/reblog!!!!!!

warnings: smut (i jumped out of my comfort zone people. i finally wrote some lmfao) & mentions of a past toxic ex

Weekends were better spent in bed or visiting family, not sitting in a crowded bar with men who reminded you slightly of your ex-boyfriend. You were probably overreacting a little bit because the guys truly meant well, but their overly boy-ish energy was startlingly similar to that of your ex. Maybe a few more drinks would help the cause and you could get passed the sex jokes.

Mel Landeskog was the reason you were there. She wouldn’t take no for an answer, much like her husband, and so you were sitting across the booth from some of the largest men you’d ever seen in your life. Gabe gave you the rundown of their names as they arrived though the only one you could remember was Cale. He was a perpetually blushing 21-year-old named after a vegetable; how could you forget him?

“Do you think Nate’s upset about this one?” Cale asked. The new topic of conversation was their friends’ disastrous date since he texted to tell them he was broken up with and was on his way to them. “They were sort of serious.”

“We’re about to find out,” Gabe announced, nodding towards the entrance of the bar. Nate was on his way to the booth, tired smile on his lips. As he got closer, he started shaking his head and the table erupted in chirps at his expense.

You recognized him from earlier at the Landeskog’s pregame. He was slipping out of the front door as you stepped in. His cologne was the type the good-looking guys always wear, and you weren’t disappointed when you looked up at him. He was handsome with the sleeves of his dress shirt rolled to his elbows and the top three buttons undone, and when he smiled, you all but swallowed your tongue.

He began to greet his teammates. The chain around his neck caught the light of the DJ booth and you found yourself gazing at it. You tore your eyes away from the gold at the sound of Mel’s voice introducing you.

“This is my girlfriend, YN, from my Saturday morning Cycle class,” she said. “And, YN, this is my husband’s boyfriend, Nate MacKinnon.”

He threw his head back in a laugh at Mel’s joke as he extended a hand to you. “Nice to meet you.”

You listened to the quips from his teammates, each one with their own opinion about Nate’s relationship or lack thereof. It seemed like this wasn’t the first time in recent months that he’d been broken up and it had become somewhat of a spectacle to the boys. Mel, who’d seen this song and dance one too many times, wrapped her fingers around your elbow and tugged you with her towards the bar.

“What was that about?”

“Nate can’t hold down a girlfriend,” she explained. “It’s been a joke since he first came here because they almost all have the same issue with him.”

“And what is that?”

“He’s not romantic enough.”

You glanced back over your shoulder and watched the boys laughing amongst each other. It looked like they were celebrating as they lifted their beers in a sad looking toast, and it hit you right where it hurt.

You really saw your ex-boyfriend in the group now and, though you tried not to make assumptions, you found it hard to set the first impression aside. The liquor in your system didn’t help. With each joke about his dating misadventures, you became less of a fan of him and by the end of the night you were bubbling over in annoyance.

Gabe and Mel offered Nate a ride home towards the end of the night and you managed to keep your expression neutral when he accepted. As they headed out to grab the car, you and Nate waited at the curb several feet away from each other.

“I’m sorry about your break up,” you offered after a moment of silence. The statement came out more like a question and Nate’s lips quirked up into a smirk at the inflection of your voice. “Sorry, I just can’t tell if you’re upset or not, so I don’t know if I should even offer my condolences.”

“I’m, uh, I’m not upset,” he began. “I saw it coming.”

“How so?”

“Let’s just say this isn’t the first time a girl’s broken up with me for not being romantic enough,” he said. Thoughts were filling your head faster than you could make sense of them. There was no reason for the situation to annoy you as much as it did. You didn’t know this guy and the odds that you ever saw him again were slim.

“So, if it’s not the first time, why hasn’t anything changed?”

“Excuse me?” he asked. There was a crease between his eyebrows. He hadn’t been expecting you to respond like that. You shouldn’t have. It wasn’t your business

“I mean, you act like a martyr when you probably would be successful in love if you just put in the romantic effort these girls are craving,” you said. Your anger had begun to boil over and words were spilling from your mouth faster than you could stop them. “Guys like you are the worst. You lead girls on and make them think they’re special. Next thing they know, they’ve been wasting time on you and your lack of effort.”

The comment made Nate take a step away from you. His eyebrows drew together in shock and confusion. As you spoke, he turned his body to you and crossed his arms over his chest. The moment you closed your mouth, he interjected. “You don’t even know me.”

“I don’t have to,” you argued, turning to him. You were in a stand-off with a man several inches taller than you, and to any passerby it probably looked a little bit funny, but you weren’t backing down. “I know guys like you. I’ve dated guys like you.”

Before Nate could continue arguing, the Landeskogs pulled up to the curb. Mel hollered out for you two and the topic of conversation was dropped.

---

You regretted everything you said to Nate the moment you woke up the morning after. It wasn’t like you to be so rude, especially not to someone you didn’t know. Your heart stopped every time Mel texted you in the days following. You thought that at any moment she’d confront you about what you said to him, but it never came. As the week carried on, you found yourself forgetting the harsh words spoken outside the bar and the worry stopped.

Until Thursday night.

The knock at your apartment door was unexpected. You met your roommate, Mara’s, narrowed eyes over the dirty dishes you were working on. By the look on both your faces, neither one of you had a guest on the way over. She turned on her heel to check the peephole and the next look she gave you was equally as confusing as the previous one. She still opened the door.

“Does YN live here?”

The voice sent shockwaves through your veins and you stopped your movements, plates held just above your head as you were about to slide them into the cabinet. Nate MacKinnon was at your apartment. Mara nodded at him slowly before stepping back to let him in.

“Hi,” he greeted. His hands were tucked into his sweatshirt pocket, legs clad in compression leggings and a pair of shorts. He looked like he’d just come from a workout and his hair was still wet from the shower he’d taken before coming over. “I hope you don’t mind. Gabe gave me your address.”

“No problem,” you told him through a shaky breath. “Come in. Come sit at the island.”

He removed his shoes and approached slowly, sending Mara one last smile as she crept off down the hall. You silently cursed her for leaving you with your shaking hands as you cleared the clutter from the countertop. You watched him as he settled into the stool across from you, mirroring the kind smile he was sharing with you.

“Can I get you anything? Water? Coffee? I have food, too, if you’re hungry.”

“Don’t worry about me,” he said. His voice was softer now than it had been before. “I wanted to talk to you about the other night. It won’t take long.”

“Oh?” you asked, trying to ignore the way your stomach dropped. You wanted to start apologizing right then. You didn’t have a reason to go and butt into his personal life like you had. You should’ve kept your mouth shut. Guys like him didn’t care about your opinions. “I’m sorry for what I said. When I get drunk, I have the tendency to shoot off at the mouth.”

“Don’t apologize,” he said. Your mouth snapped shut. “No one keeps me in check. All the guys think the fact that I can’t keep a girlfriend is a big joke because I’m so bad at dating. It shouldn’t be a joke. So, I’m sorry and thank you.”

You dropped your hands to the counter and leaned against it. The last thing you expected was for Nate to thank you, so you needed a moment to gather your thoughts. His eyes glistened as he watched you and then the corner of his lip quirked up because you started giggling.

“You should not be thanking me,” you said. With that simple statement, the tension in the air lifted. You turned your back on him, indicating that if the conversation must go on, you were going to be doing the dishes as well. “I was just being bitter the other night.”

“You had every right to be,” he said. “I was gloating.”

“You were kind of gloating,” you mumbled. You hadn’t meant for Nate to hear, and he knew that, but he laughed anyway. You turned to face him with an apologetic smile. “Sorry.”

“Stop apologizing,” he said. He didn’t even know why you were apologizing at that point. It seemed like you’d apologize for taking up space and that made him feel a bit sad. He smiled politely at you anyway, to signal he wasn’t annoyed by the apologies, and it lit up his features in a way you hadn’t noticed the other night. “Anyway, I came here for a reason.”

“Okay.”

“I need you to teach me to be romantic.”

He delivered it tentatively, as though he was afraid of the way you might react. In the split second that followed, your mouth open and closed twice as every possible response came to your mind. He waited patiently.

Finally, “You don’t even know me. How can you be so sure that I’m the right person to teach you this stuff?”

“You’re a girl,” he explained, deadpan. “Girls know romance.” You snorted at how adorably dumb he was. Your hand flew up to cover your mouth in embarrassment and your cheeks burned as he grinned at you, amused by the sound of your laugh. “What do you say?”

---

Mondays were always your least favorite day of the week. Every weekend, your workload piled up and most Mondays you could hardly take a lunch break because you were so busy getting shit done. Whenever you came home from work on Mondays, you were wiped. Mara always made sure to have dinner ready for you when you got in, and the two of you often sat on the couch while eating those nights.

That Monday, you were sure that you’d be in bed before the Bachelor even started. But then Nate showed up unannounced. Mara was in the middle of washing the dishes this time, so you were the one to open the door. He greeted you with a goofy smile and a large electrical wire. Without a word, you stepped to the side and he was kicking off his shoes to enter the living room. Mara caught the roll of your eyes as you followed him.

He was standing beside the television when you entered the room. The wire he’d brought with him was connected to his cellphone while he found a port for the other end. You sat at the corner of sectional and waited, yawns escaping your mouth every minute or so. The day had been long enough already.

Suddenly, the television lit up with his cellphone background on full display. He held it up to show you, a grin present on his face.

“I need your help,” he began. He tapped one of the dating apps on his home screen and immediately you were regretting letting him in. You realized he wasn’t leaving any time soon as he unraveled the cord and plopped down beside you on the couch. Mara entered the room, eyes catching on the beautiful brunette woman on the screen, and then she gave Nate a curious look. “Come on, Mara. Join us.”

An amused smile came to her lips as she sat on the other end of the couch.

“I am not swiping for you,” you grunted, rubbing at your eyes. “I have no interest in judging girls off these apps.”

“Relax, YN,” he said. “I’m not asking you to play matchmaker. Just help me talk to this girl.”

“You need help talking to girls?” Mara asked as she gave him the once over. You laughed out loud while Nate blushed.

“I don’t need help,” he began. He turned his attention back to the television and pulled up the profile of a beautiful brunette woman. “I just don’t want to come on too strong, or douche-y. This girl is perfect and I wanna take her out.”

“Can you two make this quick?” Mara asked. “The Bachelor’s on tonight.”

“And my bed is calling my name.”

Nate peered at you over his shoulder. He smiled at your tired eyes, drooping as you leaned your head on your hand. He leaned back, stopping inches from your face and said, “I’ll make it quick.”

To your surprise, and Mara’s delight, he reached up and ran his hand over your hair before turning back to the television. He gave a rundown about the girl on the television, but his words went in one ear and out the other. Your glazed eyes watched as he typed out messages to her, and you laughed when Mara made fun of the way he was talking. (“Why the fuck are you talking like that? Are you her father?”) Finally, he turned on you.

“Are you gonna help or what, love doctor?”

“Give me the phone,” you said, extending your hand. He plopped it into your palm and watched you type out the message on the television screen. It took you less than a minute to type out a sweet message asking the girl out on a date before you were shoving the phone back into his hand. “You overthink too much.”

“That’s it?”

“Short and sweet,” you noted with a shrug. “I’d say yes.”

Nate’s eyes cut to you and you felt a chill run down your spine at the intensity behind them. Mara cleared her throat as you diverted your attention from him, shaking the feeling you got from his baby blues. She smiled sweetly at the two of you. “Can I detach your phone from our TV now? It’s almost time for Bach.”

You peeled yourself off the couch and headed to the bathroom to wash your face before changing into sweats and a t-shirt. You returned to the living room to find Nate with his feet up on the coffee table. Mara had tuned the television to ABC and the Bachelor recap was playing. He looked up as you entered and frowned.

“Stay out here a little bit longer,” he proposed, bottom lip jutting out in a pout. “We’ll watch some of this and see if she says yes to the date.”

“Nate, I’m exhausted.”

“C’mon.”

You couldn’t say no, not when he was pouting like that. So, you rolled your eyes and walked around the couch to plop down in the spot you’d been before. Before long, your eyes were closing and you couldn’t keep them open any longer.

Nate didn’t realize you fell asleep, but he didn’t mind when you leaned against his arm as a pillow. He stiffened for a moment, unsure of what to do, but a soft snore escaped your lips and he found himself smiling down at your peaceful face. He didn’t move for the rest of the episode because he was too nervous to wake you. When the credits began to roll, he dropped a hand to your knee and shook you lightly.

Your eyes opened, bleary from sleep, and you found that you’d fallen asleep on him. You jerked away, realizing that it was probably too close for comfort, and smiled apologetically. He returned the smile before standing and gathering his things from the coffee table.

“Get some sleep,” he said on his way to the front door. You hummed in response, following him to the door to say a proper goodbye and lock up. He pulled you into a hug before going, shocking you once again by with how gentle he was despite hardly knowing you.

“Did she say yes?” you asked as he pulled away from the hug. “I almost forgot to ask.”

“Yeah, she did.”

---

Lesson #1: The First Date

In the chaos of the week that followed, you’d almost forgotten that you promised Nate your assistance before the date. You weren’t used to being accountable for someone else like you were now, so it wasn’t surprising.

“There is a man at reception asking for you.”

The office receptionist, Debby, was standing in the doorway with a giddy smile on her lips. You knew immediately from the look in her eye that the man at the front desk was going to be the talk of the office for a week.

You stood, following her out the door of your office and down the hall. As you rounded the corner to reception, you saw Nate leaning against the desk. He was sucking on a mint from the bowl in front of him and smiled wide when he saw you.

“What are you doing here?”

“I have my date tonight, remember?” he asked. One glance at your watch told you that you worked a little too late. You cursed under your breath, turning quickly to head back to the office and send one last email. Nate hesitated, but ultimately decided to follow you down the hallway. He eyed the pencil skirt you were wearing, eyes lingering a little too long on your ass. He shook his head from his trance, knowing damn well that he was just asking for trouble.

Nate lingered in the doorway of your office for a moment before his eyes landed on a picture frame across the room that caught his attention. It was a marble frame without a photo like it had been removed and never replaced. He picked the frame up and turned it over in his hands, then turned to you.

“You need a picture.”

“What?” you asked, eyes still trained on the screen. They flickered up to see what he was talking about and then got right back to work. “Used to be a picture of me and my ex. Nobody’s important enough to put in.”

Nate placed the frame down. He felt a pang of sadness for you in that moment, but distracted himself by moving onto the next shelf and playing with some of the desk games on it. He was in the middle of fiddling with your Rubiks cube when you stood from the computer.

“You’re wearing that?” you asked. Nate winced at the question, glancing down at the jeans and t-shirt he was wearing. When he looked back up, you were wearing a shit eating grin. “I’m fucking with you.”

“Jesus, YN.” He clutched his heart and released a deep breath. You rounded the desk and grabbed your jacket from the hook. As you swung it over your shoulders, Nate stepped up to help. You slipped your arms through the arm holes trying to suppress the flair up of butterflies in your stomach.

When you reached the sidewalk outside the building, you led him down the block to a florist. Their window displays were your favorite in the city and you often found yourself going out of the way to peak at them on shitty days. You daydreamed about the day someone bought you a bouquet from there specifically.

The bell above the door rang as you stepped in. The smell of fresh flowers hit your nose and you sniffed it in happily. You grinned back at Nate and he felt a tug at his heart at your excitement.

“Can I help you?”

You bounded over to the woman behind the counter, Nate following behind you a little awkwardly. You gave him an expectant look and then his brain finally caught up with the question. As he leaned forward to look at the flowers in the case in front of you, his hand pressed against the small of your back.

“What would you get?” he asked curiously. You took a sharp intake of breath at the lack of space between you and pulled away to look at the flowers.

“Sunflowers and baby’s breath are my favorites.”

Nate smiled at the woman behind the counter and repeated what you’d just said, adding, “It’s for a first date, so I don’t need it too big or anything.”

You laughed at his explanation, and then the blush that come to his cheeks when he realized how silly he sounded. Neither of you noticed the confused look on the florist’s face. She was about to comment on how cute the two of you were, and in hindsight she was glad she kept her mouth shut. He reached out and squeezed your arm as a warning to stop teasing him. You stepped away completely, still smiling stupidly as he turned to pay.

“I’d’ve put roses in there too,” you told him once you were back on the sidewalk. “But this is only a first date. It might’ve been a little intense.”

“Roses?” he asked. You hummed in response, plucking the flowers out of his hand as you continued in the direction of the restaurant he was meeting his date at. “Good to know, you know, for the future.”

The walk to the date spot was only about ten minutes long and most of it was spent talking about your plans for the weekend as opposed to his date. He was going to be away with the team and you had plans to visit family. You kept thinking to yourself that you needed to stop getting distracted by him and his good looks and his sweet disposition. He was dating someone, and that person was not and would not be you, but he kept surprising you with the way he weaseled himself into your life.

“We’ll have to hang out next week sometime, then,” he said, snatching the flowers back out of your hand playfully. You nodded, but you were taken by surprise. It didn’t make sense that he’d want to hang around you without getting something out of it, whether it was dating advice or something more. Clearly, Nate didn’t care and you were beginning to wonder if maybe you’d get a beautiful friendship out of this nonsense.

“Any last-minute advice?”

“Don’t say anything dumb,” you said to him, emboldened by the realization that you might actually be friends now. Nate laughed out loud. “You think I’m just being funny, but sometimes you say stupid shit.”

“Jeeze,” he muttered. “Way to fuck up my self-esteem right before a date.”

“Oh, please.” You rolled your eyes and came to a stop just before the crosswalk he’d be using. He slowed to a stop as well, the bouquet of flowers falling to his side as he looked down at you. You reached out to right them with an amused smile. “Careful with these.”

“Got it, boss.”

You stalled a moment more, gazing at the flowers. You almost felt jealous of the girl going to dinner with Nate because those flowers would look perfect in a vase on your dining room table. “God, I really hope she appreciates those.”

The tone of your voice took Nate by surprise. It sounded a little sad, and full of yearning, and he felt kind of bad that he’d be walking away with the flowers you’d been admiring the entire walk from the florist. Even so, you said your goodbyes and he watched you turn on your heel to head home. He felt stuck in place, eyes trained on your retreating frame while his feet were cemented to the sidewalk. Before he could second guess himself, and his motives, he called out your name.

“Wait, YN!” When you turned, he was halfway down the sidewalk to you and, once he was within arm’s length, he plucked a sunflower from the bouquet and extended it. “For you.” Your cheeks felt red hot as your fingers curled around the stem. You hoped he couldn’t notice a blush. If he did, he didn’t make it known and left with a simple, “I’ll talk to you later.”

A stupid smile sat on your lips the entire way home. You felt the thumping of your heart long after you’d entered your place and placed the flower in the dining table vase. No matter what you found yourself doing that night, Nate remained at the back of your mind. You swore to yourself that it was because you wondered how his date was going, nothing more. But, when your eyes kept finding their way to the sunflower on the dining room table, you worried that maybe the reason you couldn’t stop thinking about him was something more.

---

You grabbed dinner with Mel the next Tuesday. Because of your trip to visit family, the two of you agreed to take a week off and reschedule some sort of get together for Tuesday. Gabe was home so he’d be with Linnea, and you were just happy that it wasn’t Monday. She was in the middle of a story when your phone lit up beside you; Nate’s name was on full display.

When’s our next lesson?

You snatched the phone off the table and away from Mel’s prying eyes, hoping that it wouldn’t peak her curiosity. The movement itself was enough to stir her, though, and Mel was soon leaning forward to see what was going on. She reached out and pushed the phone down, craning her neck to read the text.

“Next lesson?” she asked, eyebrow quirking. “Who is this?”

“It’s Nate MacKinnon.”

You said it so quickly and so nonchalant that Mel actually continued picking at her brunch before she reacted. Her fork clattered to the plate. “Did you just say Nate MacKinnon?”

“This,” you began gesturing at her wild eyes and wicked smile, “is exactly why I didn’t tell you.”

“Why?” she asked, feigning innocence. “Because I’m totally going to take this and run with it?” You dropped your face in your hands. “You should go for it. He’s a little dumb, but mostly cute. You definitely have the patience to deal with him though.”

“Mel, it’s not like that at all,” you told her. “I’m helping him learn how to be more romantic.” Her eyebrows shot up to her hairline in shock. “I’m serious. You know just as well as I do that he’s bad dating. He asked for my help after we met. I have enough experience with douchebags to tell him what not to do.”

“You sure do,” Mel agreed. You laughed at her response and an easy smile spread across her face. “Maybe teaching him a thing or two about how to be romantic will remind you of what you deserve.”

You sighed, picking up the coffee in front of you to take a sip. Mel knew better than anyone, besides Mara, how shitty the guys in your life had been. She met your ex last year just before your break up and she hated him from the moment you introduced the two. He never deserved you and her heart broke the longer you spent wasting your time on him. When you finally ended it, she was your biggest supporter.

You left the message unanswered, not wanting to give her anymore ammo in what was sure to be her new mission. When she got up to head to the bathroom before the check came, you opened the message from him. The last conversation was from Saturday night and he was letting you know that the girl he’d gone out with was looking forward to their next date.

What do you need help with now?

Do you know how to cook?

---

Lesson #2: A Homemade Meal

“I can’t believe you don’t know how to cook,” you grunted as soon as Nate pulled his apartment door open on Friday night. The grin on his face was anything but apologetic and you pushed past him with two large grocery bags in hand. You brought them to the kitchen and began unpacking them onto the counter.

“I do know how to cook, by the way,” he said, stepping up beside you to help you remove everything from the bags. You eyed him skeptically. “Mostly just the basic meats and vegetables.”

“You can’t cook a date your pregame meal.”

Nate knew that. He wasn’t that stupid, but he did love saying stupid shit around you. You tended to roll your eyes at him, but your lips always gave away how you really felt about his stupidity. The right side always curled up into a smirk, like you were trying to fight the laughter bubbling in your chest. He loved it when you did that.

“Is this, like, a meal your ex used to make?” he asked after grabbing some spices from the cabinet. You were grateful that his back was turned because the easy smile on your lips disappeared at the reminder of him. You busied yourself with the pot of water on the stove and set it to boil.

“No, my ex never actually made dinner for me,” you answered in a poor attempt to keep your voice steady.

Nate stopped prepping the meat and turned to face you. Questions sat on the tip of his tongue, begging for him to ask, but you wouldn’t look at him. He felt a little bit angry at your confession, though he couldn’t quite place why. Admittedly, he had been that boyfriend before – the one that didn’t cook dinner. Now, he was mad at himself for ever being that guy.

When you didn’t turn to look at him, he dropped the subject. You worked in silence, you busy with the pasta and him with the chicken. As you waited for the food to be ready, you hiked yourself up onto the counter. Nate grabbed a bottle of red wine from the end of the counter and poured glasses for the both of you.

He stood across from you with a dish towel over his shoulder and his own glass of wine in his palm. He asked about work and you filled him in on all the hot office gossip. The smile on his face didn’t fall once as he listened to your stories, and he never tried to change the subject or take over the conversation for himself. After a while, you stopped.

“I’ve been talking forever.”

“Yeah, and I’ve been enjoying it,” he told you. You laughed. “I wish I could be a fly on the wall in your office.”

Feeling a bit bolder, you kicked your foot out and nudged his side. “Maybe I can take you to bring your pet to work day.”

Nate’s jaw dropped, a reaction you weren’t expecting, and you began laughing hysterically at his surprise. He placed his wine glass down beside him and took a step closer, wrapping a hand around your ankle to tug you closer to the edge of the counter. You yelped in surprise.

“Pet?” he asked. You wiggled your foot out of his grasp, giggles falling from your lips as he dropped his hand to his side. The oven started beeping, interrupting whatever moment you were having before it could continue. “Saved by the bell.”

“Looks good, Nate,” you praised as he pulled it out of the oven. “My mouth is watering.”

“Go sit down,” he ordered. “You have to evaluate my presentation and make sure I look good.”

Nate entered shortly after you sat down and placed the plates on either side of the table with a smile. He slipped back out and returned with the wine. There was mischievous glint in his eyes as he topped your glass off and added to his.

“How is it?” he asked, leaning back. A look of cockiness flashed over his features and you felt it in your stomach when you looked at the way his arms were crossed and his biceps filled out the sleeves of his t-shirt. You picked up your utensils and cut into the meal, picking up a bit of each piece before putting it in your mouth.

Nate leaned forward eagerly. He watched your eyes light up when the flavor hit your tongue and he let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. You nodded emphatically as you swallowed your first forkful. He cut into his own meal and the moment he took a bite, he moaned. The meal was so good that conversation was sparse and, by the end, it looked like your plates had been licked clean.

You didn’t stop Nate from filling your glasses again, though you figured you should have. The third glass always lowered your inhibitions.

“How pissed off would you be if I asked you about your ex?”

“Not pissed off,” you answered. You took a sip of the wine, then leaned your cheek in your palm as you spoke. “What do you want to know?”

Nate sat up at this, suddenly realizing that he hadn’t prepared himself with a question because he didn’t think you’d give him the go ahead. He let out a tuft of breath, took a sip from his glass, and thought. Finally, he asked, “Why’d you break up?”

“How long do you have?”

“As long as you need,” he answered. His voice was soft, comforting, and you felt yourself relax into the question.

“Honestly, I didn’t want to break up with him,” you began. “And, if I didn’t have friends like Mel and Mara, I might still be with him. Things have changed now, though. I realize what a crap human being he was but, if I stayed with him, I don’t think I would’ve realized how much better I deserved.”

“Did you fight a lot?”

“Do I seem like the fighting type?” you teased. He shook his head. “He did enough fighting for the both of us. He would yell at me for no reason sometimes, just because he felt like it.”

Nate was angry. His features were contorted in distaste as you told him about your ex. Even though you tried to make light of the situation with a few light-hearted jokes, Nate couldn’t find it within in him to react with laughter. You deserved so much better than what you’d been given.

“When I broke up with him, Mara was there. We packed my things and moved it all out. I was going to leave a note, but he came home from work early and caused a scene. He went out the night after and sent me all these videos and pictures of him out with his friends. They were flipping me off, girls were draped all over him, etcetera. I blocked him the next morning and I haven’t seen him since. That was over a year ago.”

“Fuck,” he muttered, dropping his head in his hands. He felt ashamed. “That’s why you yelled at me.”

“Yep,” you answered. “Emotions got the best of me.”

“I don’t blame you.”

Silence filled the room and you felt vulnerable. You didn’t share the story about your tumultuous relationship often, but with Nate it just slipped out. You grabbed your glass from the table and finished it off.

“I’m not staying for another,” you announced. Nate sat back, his face flashing with an offended expression. As you gathered the plates from the table, you tried to ignore the knots in your stomach that were becoming more and more prevalent when he was around. “Nothing good ever happens after the third glass. But, if I was your real date, I would definitely stay for a fourth and you would probably get to kiss me at the end of the night simply for how good that meal was.”

The words fell from your lips so easily that it shocked you and you hoped that the playful tone of your voice wouldn’t scare him off. You gathered yourself before turning back to look at him. He was still sitting at the table, chair pushed back with one arm over the back of it. The way he was looking at you was lethal, eyes drinking you in as you stood in his kitchen. You couldn’t tell if you were imagining the tension or it was real.

“Thank you for dinner,” you said finally. You grabbed your bag from the counter and pulled it over your shoulder as you headed for the door. Nate stood then to walk you out, pulling the door open as you slipped into your sneakers. “It was delicious.”

“Thank you for teaching me how to cook something actually good,” he said. “Poor girl would’ve been eating chicken and vegetables or pasta if you hadn’t come by.”

“Can’t let that happen, can we?” you asked. “Let me know how dinner goes.”

Nate leaned down, wrapping an arm around your waist to tug you into a warm embrace. You melted into his arms as yours came up and around his neck. For a moment, the two of you just stood there in each other’s arms. You wondered if he could feel the beat of your chest again him. It sped up as his hands flattened against your back, crossing over each other to engulf you completely.

“I’m not that kind of guy,” he said. He leaned his cheek on the top of your head and his chest rumbled beneath your own cheek as he spoke. “You know that, right?”

Your blinked away tears before he couldn’t notice then and nodded in response to his question.

When he pulled back, he leaned in to press a kiss to your cheek and his lips caught the corner of your mouth. An electric shock coursed through your bloodstream and you pulled back quick before offering one last smile and tossing a goodbye over your shoulder.

---

Nate called you the next Friday night with plans for Saturday.

“Mel and Gabe invited a bunch of the guys over and she told me I should see what you were doing tomorrow.” he said. “I feel like I haven’t talked to you much since last week. The guys would love to meet you.”

“Meet me?” you asked. “So, it’ll be more than just the ones I know?”

“A few more,” he answered with a laugh. “They’ll love you, okay? I’ll be at your place to get you at 5:30.”

It was the first time you were going to see him since you made dinner together last Friday. You exchanged a few texts throughout the week, but nothing of substance. You knew his dinner date went well, though you didn’t know to what extent. You found yourself wondering if she stayed for that additional glass of wine after dinner, or if she stayed for the night after.

He showed up to your apartment wearing a white dress shirt, sleeves rolled to his elbows. You welcomed him in while you went back to your room to get your heels on. He gaped at the dress you were wearing as soon as you had your back to him. His eyes wandered over your curves as you bent to grab your heels from the floor in your bedroom. When your dress slid up your thighs, he had to force himself to look away.

You tried to get more details about his dinner date out of him on the way to Mel’s, but he kept quiet. She liked dinner, she stayed for an extra glass of wine, and then she went home at the end of the night. An invisible weight lifted from your shoulders upon hearing she didn’t stay the night and you settled back into his passenger seat.

Nate noticed the way you relaxed into the seat and tore his eyes from the road for just a moment to sneak a peek at you. You were watching the world go by from the window, unaware that he was even looking at you. When he turned his attention back to the road, all he could think about was his sweaty palms and accelerated heartrate. Why did he care so much about what you thought?

Everyone was already at the house when you pulled up. The two of you walked up the driveway, his hand against your lower back much like it had been in the florist. Mel opened the door, lunging to sweep you into her arms and whisk you to the kitchen, her husband and your, well, Nate left behind.

“Thanks for having me, Mel.”

She handed you a drink complete with a salted rim and said, “I’m glad Nate asked if you could come.”

“Nate asked?” you repeated. She affirmed with a nod and ushered you to join the others in the living room while she and Gabe finished dinner.

You swore half the team was there, which meant not one seat was open on their couch. As you passed Nate, he grabbed your hand and sat you on the arm of his chair. He pulled your legs over his lap and began introducing you to the boys you didn’t already know.

You caught Cale’s eyes and felt heat rise to your cheeks. Out of everyone in the room, he was the only one making note of the lack of space between you two. Though you weren’t technically sitting in his lap, it still felt a little inappropriate. Nate’s hand was like fire where it rested against your thigh and you had to remind yourself to stop peeking at the placement.

Nate lied about your invitation to dinner, and for what? He could’ve just invited you himself instead of disguising it as a joint decision between him and Mel. What was he so afraid of that he couldn’t man up and admit he wanted you there? Better yet, why didn’t he ask Gianna?

You somehow ended up seated away from Nate at the dinner table. Cale settled in on one side of you and EJ occupied the other. Across from you sat JT and Tyson, bickering as always. You don’t know how you ended up separated from Nate, but you welcomed it because you needed the breathing room.

The meal was delicious, but Nate couldn’t even enjoy it because you were so far away. He was going to get fucking whiplash because of the way he kept looking back to see who you were talking to or hear what you were laughing at. How did he even end up this far down from you?

On the other hand, he couldn’t stop the smile that kept creeping up to his lips when he saw you with his teammates. They loved you, probably almost as much as he did, and he was proud to have you by his side that night. But then came the harsh reality that you weren’t actually his to show off.

When the party relocated, he made sure to slide up next to you on the way to the couch. EJ’s laughter mocked him, but you didn’t catch on to his teammate’s playful ribbing. With Gabe and Mel’s eyes in the room, he didn’t pull you over his lap and opted to lower his arm over the back of the couch instead. There were just inches between your skin and his but, after having you on his lap earlier, it felt like miles.

Drinking games were played, stories were shared, and you all left the house with full bellies and large smiles. Nate was driving, so he eased up on the drinks after dinner. You, on the other hand, were feeling just as free as you did after three glasses of wine at his place last week, and feeling daring enough to ask him the question that’s been on your mind all night.

“Why did you tell me that Mel asked you to invite me?”

“What are you talking about?”

“When you invited me, you said that Mel told you to,” you explained in a slow voice as if you were breaking the situation down to a child. “But she said that you asked if you could invite me.”

“Why does it matter where the invite actually came from?” he asked. A slight panic was rising in his chest because he didn’t have an answer for you. This wasn’t supposed to come back around to you. “Everybody wanted you here anyway.”

“Why didn’t you ask Gianna?” you asked, stepping down to join him on the path to the driveway. He rolled his eyes at this, and you noted it because though you’d done it to him many times, he’d never done it to you. He began walking, so you followed. “Are you going to answer my question?”

“Because I didn’t want to introduce her to everyone yet,” he answered. “You just fit in with us.”

Nate saw your face fall and decided not to push the conversation any farther. He said something wrong, but he didn’t know what. As far as he thought, he was complimenting you. He was complimenting how easy going you were, how his friends got along with you so easily. You were already a part of the group. It was great.

You continued along to the car in silence, not bothering to argue with him over a dumb comment. He wanted friends, so you were giving him friends, but the touches and the invite to team dinner was something more than friends. You needed distance. And he needed to figure his shit out, fast.

---

Lesson #3: Meeting the Friends

Something changed. When Nate dropped you off that night, he left you with a half-assed hug and a quiet goodbye. You couldn’t catch a wink of sleep that night because something changed. But then, Nate texted you tomorrow and tried to carry on as normal. Things weren’t normal.

And you knew that for sure when Nate didn’t invite you to EJ’s house the next weekend. Mel invited you instead and since you could never say no to Mel, you went. The thought of texting Nate to let him know passed briefly through your head, but the sheer fact that he hadn’t even bothered to talk to you about it in the first place was enough to decide against it.

When you entered EJ’s living room, you knew exactly why he hadn’t asked. Gianna was sitting on his lap, fingers curling through his hair as they talked. Anger rose in you no matter how hard you tried to suppress it. Just last week he said he didn’t want to bring her around and now she was here? Now she was here and he couldn’t even talk to you?

There was an uproar as Nate’s teammates noticed you standing in the doorway and Nate’s eyes cut to you in surprise. You lifted your hand in a pathetic wave before Cale was wrapping his arm around your shoulders and leading you to the kitchen.

“Who’s the girl with Nate?”

“His new girlfriend,” you answered, hoping that you didn’t sound bitter. “I don’t even know if that’s the right title for her, but they’ve been on a few dates.”

Cale let out a soft hum, his tone indecipherable, just as Tyson entered the room.

“What’s the deal with Nate’s new girl?” he asked as soon as he saw it was just you and Cale in the room. When you didn’t answer, he nudged you for an answer.

“What do you mean?” you asked.

“Well, she’s no you.”

---

Nate couldn’t help but ask himself, “What the fuck are you doing?”

As you were pulled into his teammates arms, he watched and couldn’t decide whether he wanted to get up and hug you too or if he just wanted to disappear. When Gianna’s fingers gripped his bicep, he decided he wanted the latter.

That’s when you looked at him, of course, and the smile that was on yours lips faded just a bit. At least, that’s what he thought. You lifted your hand in a wave before Cale was looping his arm around your shoulders and directing you towards the kitchen.

“Who was that?” Gianna asked, fingers curling into the hair at the nape of his neck.

He looked up at her with a simple answer. “One of our friends.”

Gianna kissed him and for the first time since he met you, Nate thought about what it would be like to kiss you instead. He brought her to EJ’s in a pathetic attempt to right the way he was feeling about you, but it only made it worse.

---

“Nate was weird last night,” Mel murmured after Cycle the next morning. You were waiting for her to say something. Since all the guys made comments the night before, you knew Mel was next. “Did you guys fight?”

“Fight? Me and Nate?” you repeated, stalling for time. “We didn’t fight.”

“What did you think of his girlfriend?”

“I actually didn’t get to talk to her,” you answered. You shrugged, giving the illusion that you didn’t care all that much even though you were fuming. After all the help you’d given him, he couldn’t be bothered to introduce you to her? And that wasn’t all. He hardly spoke to you all night, only entertaining conversations with you when someone else was around. You ended up spending most of the night with EJ.

“My sitter just bailed for tomorrow.” She’d been tapping away at her phone for a few minutes, no doubt panicking to Gabe. You watched her a moment longer as you wondered what her plans were for the next day. Then, it occurred to you.

“There’s a game tomorrow, right?” you asked. She nodded, still typing out messages to whoever was on the other end of the phone. “I can watch Linnea tomorrow. Don’t worry about finding a sitter.”

“I couldn’t ask you to do that.” She waved you off absentmindedly and continued talking, “Besides, I thought Nate had a ticket for you or something. Didn’t he ask you to go?”

“Tomorrow?” you said incredulously. “No, absolutely not. Isn’t it like a WAG game? It would make no sense for me to be there.”

“Oh,” she murmured. “I just thought that he told Gabe,” she paused and noticed your set jaw. You were clearly not Nate’s biggest fan at the moment, so she decided to tread carefully. “You know what? Nevermind. I would love it if you could watch Linnea.”

---

As expected, Linnea was an angel the next day. You spent the time lounging in their living room with the game on TV while you played together. She took a bottle in the middle of the game and you brought her to her nursery once she’d been burped to rock her to sleep. But, you couldn’t quite peel yourself from the chair to put her in her crib. She was sleeping so peacefully and for the first time in a while you felt calm, so you stayed with her in your arms long after she’d fallen asleep.

You didn’t know what time it was when Gabe and Mel got home, but you heard their car doors close. You waited for them to happen upon you in the nursery, so you were surprised when it was Nate that knocked at the door.

“Hi,” he whispered, stepping into the room. He studied the decorations as he approached the rocking chair you were sitting in. When he stepped up beside you and admired Linnea, you tried not to look up at him. You knew it wouldn’t help the butterflies in your stomach, but you did it anyway. He was smiling down at the peanut in your arms. “Mel and Gabe are in the kitchen. They saw you on the baby monitor and told me to come get you.”

“Okay, I’ll put her down and meet you in there.”

“I can wait for you,” he said, stepping away. You stood, cradling Linnea to the crib and then craning to put her down in the center. Nate was watching you intently from the doorway with an unreadable expression on his face.

He stepped out into the hallway first, but he wasn’t walking towards the kitchen. He stood, waiting for you to stepped out into the hallway and look at him. You gave him a half-assed smile, still feeling a little hurt that things had been so weird between you two, and he asked, “Are we okay?”

“We’re fine,” you answered. He wasn’t convinced, but you reached up and shoved him lightly to get him to move down the hall. He didn’t budge, hand coming up to grasp yours against his chest. The beating of his heart sat right at your fingertips. “How was your game?”

“It was good,” he answered. “I wish you were there.”

“Well, then, you should’ve asked me to come,” you said, quite boldly. His lips parted, but whether it was to speak or not you wouldn’t know because you were continuing down the hallway without him.

You slipped into the kitchen to find Mel, leaving the men on the couch in the living room. The moment you stepped in, she was turning to greet you with a smile. You hissed, “Are you behind this?”

“I mentioned you were babysitting, his eyes lit up, and Gabe was the one to invite him over.”

“Team effort?”

She feigned an apologetic smile before ushering you out to rejoin the boys. Gabe got the fire going and Mel curled in his chest once he settled back on the couch. You sat on the other end, legs extended towards Nate in the corner. You felt his eyes whenever there was a suspended silence. You knew he was thinking about you, and selfishly you relished in the attention.

“YN, did you know that Nate’s parents were visiting next weekend?” Gabe asked during a lull in conversation. Nate glared at him, but the Swede happily ignored his buddy at the center of the couch. His eyes cut to you.

“I didn’t,” you answered. “But that’ll be fun. I know how much you missed them.”

All he could offer was a stupid ‘yeah’ before Mel swooped in to save the entire group from a very awkward moment.

Nate was going to kill Gabe. He was going to kill Gabe, but first he had to make a decision. He knew exactly what he had to do. It felt like you were a thousand miles away, not only physically but emotionally. Gabe should’ve kept his mouth shut. He was going to have you meet his parents, he just hadn’t gotten the chance to ask. Now, he looked like a dick. You couldn’t even look him in the eye.

“I was going to tell you about my parents,” he said, practically chasing you down the driveway after you ducked out while he was in the bathroom. To his surprise, you stopped walking and waited for him to catch up. “Seriously.”

“It’s getting hard to believe that, Nate,” you said. “I don’t know what’s going on in your head.”

Nate felt his heart sink. He began to rack his brain for a way to salvage the conversation, but it was too late by the time you reached your car. You stopped before opening the door to look up at him.

“You’re thinking too much.”

“I just—I know you’re upset with me,” he began. “I want to make it better. We haven’t really talked since EJ’s, and that’s on me.”

“Were you going to invite me today?” you asked. He gave you a curious look. “To the game. Mel mentioned something about it at Cycle. That you told Gabe you were thinking about giving your ticket to me.”

Nate ran his hand over his face. The Landeskogs had really gotten him into some trouble here, and he wasn’t sure it was accidental.

“You’re the one I wanted at the game,” he admitted. “I wanted to invite you, but I knew how bad it would look if I didn’t ask Gianna.”

“So, you invited her,” you concluded.

“No.”

You looked at him in shock, mouth agape, and asked, “You’d rather no one go than give the ticket to her?”

“Well, when you put it that way,” he grumbled. You threw your arms up in surrender, hoping the words would sink in. “I don’t know, YN.”

“Yes, you do,” you argued. He kept his mouth shut at that, knowing you had enough. You sighed heavily, allowing the conversation to roll off your back. “When are your parents going to be here?”

“Saturday morning.”

“What are you planning to do?”

“They’ll be at my game in the afternoon and then I was getting us a reservation for dinner,” he trailed off only momentarily. “I haven’t made it yet because I was going to invite you, but Gabe beat me to the punch in there.”

“What about Gianna?”

“YN, if I didn’t want her at my game, why would I want her to meet my parents?” he asked. He made it sound like you were asking the stupidest question in the world. But, he wasn’t answering the most important one. Was he breaking up with her? You wanted to ask, but part of you didn’t want the disappointment. He worried while you thought.

“I’m around on Saturday,” you answered. He smiled, and you forced one back. You hated the feeling between you two. The air between you had never been so stuffy and you wanted to clear it. “Anything else you wanna tell me before the Landeskogs do? Is Sid actually your long-distance girlfriend?”

Nate laughed loudly as he stepped away. He answered your question cryptically, “No, nothing to tell you right now. Not yet.”

---

Lesson #4: Meeting the Family

You planned to meet Nate at his apartment before dinner since his parents had gone to the hotel upon arrival. On the way, you picked up a box of pastries from your favorite bakery. You were taught to do little things for important people, and anyone who was important to Nate felt important to you. You tried not to think about the implications of having dinner with his parents, but it was hard to shake the nerves.

“What’s this?” he asked as soon as he opened the door. His finger slid over the logo on the top of the pastry box, eyes catching on the word bakery. When he looked up at you, his eyes were shining. “For me?”

“For your family,” you told him. “Don’t get any ideas.”

“I thought maybe you heard about my break up and you were trying to comfort me,” he said like it wasn’t breaking news. “I’ll put these in the kitchen.”

“You broke up?” you asked, following him to the kitchen. You stopped in the doorway as he put the pastries on the counter. He nodded simply as he cleared some clutter from the countertop. You could see his muscles moving beneath his navy polo. Guiltily, you couldn’t stop yourself from admiring the way the sleeves hugged his biceps or the wide expanse of his back and shoulders. “What happened, Nate?”

“We can talk about it later, alright?”

“Are you single or not?” you asked. Nate caught the frustration in your tone and he’d be lying if it didn’t make him want to kiss you right then. You needed to know what was going on with him, and that made him feel good about whatever was going on between you two.

Nate started to exit the kitchen, but stopped in the doorway beside you. You were crowded against his chest as he smiled down at you and answered, “Yeah, I’m single.”

You released a breath once he stepped out of the doorway. He slipped his shoes on while you stood nearly the front door. He caught the look on your face, a little scrunched up as you spaced out. You were thinking too much, worrying about what happened with him and Gianna. When he walked back over to the front door, he took you by the hips and said, “We can talk about it later, if you want. Right now, I just want to be with you and my family.”

---

“I’m nervous,” you admitted as Nate pulled up to valet outside the restaurant. He looked at you in shock. “Don’t make fun of me.”

“I’m not gonna make fun of you,” he promised. He reached over and dropped his hand to your thigh. You pouted at him, and his first instinct was to lean over the center console and kiss it off your lips. He knew better than to risk it all just before dinner, so he grabbed your hand and dropped a kiss to your palm instead. “You’ll be fine. No need to be nervous.”

A heavy sigh left your lips as he stepped out of the car. He rounded the front and opened the passenger door for you, grabbing your hand as you stepped out. After he handed his key to the valet, he laced his hands in yours and led you into the restaurant.

The MacKinnons were already at the table that had been reserved for them. There was uproar of cheers when they saw Nate walk in. You stole a peek at his face and the pure joy on it set your heart aflame. He dropped your hand as you approached the table to hug his parents and sister. They introduced themselves to you as well, sweeping you up in tight embraces like they had with Nate.

“It’s great to finally meet you,” they spoke as they hugged you.

Nate pulled your chair out from across his mother and then situated himself beside you. The menus were passed out and Nate whispered suggestions in your ear while his family members debated their own meals. She took the time to calm her nervous. Parents loved her, so there was no reason to freak out. Eventually the drinks were handed out, orders were taken, and the chaos at the table stopped.

“Now, how’d you two meet again?” his mom asked. You looked at each other, stupidly, both stammering in response until Nate got his shit together.

“We met through friends,” he answered simply. Then, his lips curled up and he said, “She yelled at me.” You dropped your face into your hands, embarrassed by the picture he was painting of you, but they took it in stride, laughing at your expression. “It wasn’t that bad.”

He continued, “As you guys know, I’ve been very unlucky in my personal life.” Sarah snorted at this. Their mother smacked her knee as a scolding. “I literally suck at being romantic and all the guys were joking around about it after I’d just been broken up with. YN called me out, so I asked her to teach me how to be romantic.”

“Well, what’d you learn?”

“How to cook a meal other than my pregame types, and I also have a new favorite florist,” he said. He reached into his back pocket for his wallet and flipped it open to slip out their business card. You didn’t realize he grabbed one. “There are some other things, like her wine rule.”

“Wine rule?”

“Nothing good ever happens after the third glass of wine,” you explained. They laughed at that, though they seemed bewildered by your reasoning.

Nate elaborated, “It just means that if your date stays for a fourth glass, you’ll probably get lucky.”

This earned him a smack on the arm from both his sister and yourself.

Nate’s family was just as kind as he was and it was clear how much they all adored each other. You fit in seamlessly, at least that’s how it felt, and when they asked the waitress to take a picture of them, Nate tugged you into his side to keep you in the frame.

“Take one without me,” you urged him. He just shook his head, gazing down at the picture on his phone. He passed it off to his parents and sister for approval. “Nate.”

“I want you in the picture,” he whispered to you. His hand came up to the back of your neck and he pulled you in to place a chaste kiss to your temple. He pulled away, like kissing you in public and on the forehead was normal now, and asked, “How was your food?”

When you got back to his place after dinner, you presented his mother with the pastries and earned a hug and kiss on the cheek as a thank you. They settled into the kitchen as he made drinks, chatting as a family about the people back home and his life in Denver. You slipped out to go to the bathroom, and give them some alone time.

“I like her,” you overheard his mother say as soon as you slipped out of the kitchen. You slowed your steps on your pursuit to the bathroom even though you knew it would be best to keep walking. You couldn’t help but be a little nosy.

“That’s good to hear,” Nate said. You smiled to yourself. “I like her, too.”

---

Nate’s family only stayed for another hour before you were bidding them farewell from his front door. They squeezed you and thanked you for the pastries, and then began inviting you to visit before Nate had to shut it down. Your heart felt full after spending the night with them, but sitting alone in Nate’s apartment in anticipation of what was to come was scaring the shit out of you.

Your hands were a little shaky and your palms were definitely sweaty. There was change coming, change that was already present, and you were both excited and terrified for it. Nate reentered the apartment not long after. When he saw you sitting on the couch, he released a breath he’d been holding.

“Are you going to stay for another glass?” he asked after locking the door behind him. “That one’s only your second.”

You eyed his smile, heart beat stuttering a bit beneath his gaze, and lifted the glass to your lips to finished what was left. You nodded and followed him into the kitchen. While he filled both your glass and his, you picked yourself up onto the counter like you’d done so many times before.

“I did a bad thing,” he murmured after handing your glass back to you. You raised a brow at him as he reached over to one of the cabinets and opened it to reveal two pastries in a Ziploc bag. “I stole two of them from my mom.”

“Nate!” you exclaimed. He chuckled at your exasperation. “I can bring you to that bakery whenever you want! Your parents don’t live here! It was a gift!”

“And they have the other eleven pastries,” he argued. “They’re not going to miss two.”

Reluctantly, but still with a smile, you took a pastry from his hand. You bit into it at the same time, eyes lighting up at the taste. At the sight of each other’s faces, you were doubled over in laughter before you had the chance to swallow what was in your mouth. You looked away from him to regain composure and only looked back when you were sure you wouldn’t choke.

“Those were fucking good.”

“Only the best for your mom.”

“Thank you,” he spoke. “For the pastries and for hanging out with my family today. I’m sure you had other things to do, but it meant a lot. They’ve been hearing a lot about you.”

“I had a lot of fun with them,” you said. His smile was soft, shy even, and he watched you carefully as you sipped from the glass in your hand. “It was nice to meet the people who made you who you are.”

“Wait until you meet Sid.”

You decided to move from the kitchen to the living room in favor of more comfortable seating. He reached his hand out behind his back, and you linked your fingers with his lazily so he could lead you to the couch. You slowed to a stop as he sat down, legs spread to pull you between them. Your hesitation caused a look of confusion to flash over his features.

“Can you tell me what’s going on inside your head now?” you asked, placing your glass down on the table beside the arm of the couch. He followed suit, then placed his hand delicately at your hip to urge you closer.

“Sure, I can,” he answered. He pulled you into his lap. You looped her arms around his shoulders as he flattened one hand against your back and curled the other around your thigh. “I don’t want to waste those romance rules on someone I don’t really like all that much.”

“You really didn’t like her?” you asked meekly. Of fucking course he didn’t like her, you were thinking. You were in his lap, not her, but you still couldn’t wrap your head around it. “Why?”

“The only reason I looked forward to going on dates with her was because I got to spend time with you before,” he confessed. You felt it all through your body. “I broke up with her the morning after we were at Gabe’s together. After you called me out on my bullshit, I knew I was being stupid.”

“Why me, though?”

“Because you deserve the world and I want to be the one to give it to you.”

It was only natural for you to lean in and capture his lips with yours. After all this time spent waiting and beating around the bush, you didn’t want to wait a second more. It was passionate, and new, and exciting. His hands held you close while your fingers curled into the back of his hair, but he wasn’t close enough.  

You swung your leg over to straddle him, not caring that you were wearing a dress with just panties underneath. His hands flew to your hips as you grinded against him. You gasped against his lips at the friction as he held you tighter, teeth nipping at your bottom lip until you covered his mouth with yours again. He guided your hips to grind against him once more, but you braced your hands against his chest to push away.

“I’m not staying for a fourth glass,” you said breathlessly. He smiled up at you, eyes falling to your lips that were red and plump from kissing him. Kissing him! He leaned in, tongue swiping along his bottom lip, and pulled you down by the back of the neck.

He murmured through his kisses, “You didn’t even finish your third.”

At the challenge in his voice, you reached over for the glass on the side table and finished what was left. He held you close, laughing against the crook of your neck. You giggled along with him until you felt his lips against your skin again and a gasp fell from your lips.

“You gotta leave before I pour number four,” he warned, breath ghosting over your neck. He kissed your neck again, this time sucking lightly enough to earn a strangled moan. You pushed back against his chest and stood, flustered as you adjusted your dress and your hair. Nate couldn’t help but smile as he watched you cross the room for your purse. He grabbed a pillow and held it over his lap to hide his hard-on.

“What are you doing tomorrow?” he asked as you put your heels on the end of the couch. He was admiring your flushed cheeks and your wild hair as you busied yourself. You fastened the strap on each heel before looking back at him. It took everything in you to not go back over there and unbutton the rest of his shirt.

“Nothing,” you answered as you stood. He followed suit, adjusting his dress pants just a bit so he was comfortable and making you giggle in the process. He stepped up beside you and pulled you against him again. He placed one, two, three kisses against your neck then your jaw then your lips.

“Let me make you dinner.”

---

Nate wasn’t going to be able to keep his hands to himself. He knew that the second you walked out of your room in that little black dress, but he was really trying to be on his best behavior. It was technically only your first date and he wanted to impress you. You just weren’t helping very much. As soon as you were in his car, you were grabbing his hand and lacing it with yours to drop them into your lap.

He was a little nervous that he wasn’t going to be able to pull this off. He was sure that he’d fuck up somewhere and you’d go running. And, truthfully, you could tell that he was overthinking every little thing he did. The tension in his shoulders as he moved about the kitchen to prepare everything for dinner was clear.

“What’s wrong with you?” you asked.

He gave you the most pathetic shrug and shake of the head as he tried to wave off your concern with a soft, “Nothing.”

“That’s a lie,” you called him out. “You look stressed.”

“I mean, I am a little stressed,” he admitted, diverting his eyes from yours as he headed over to the fridge. “I don’t want to fuck this up.”

Before he knew it, you were standing between him and the refrigerator. You flattened your hands against his chest and slid them up until your hands were linked behind his neck. A slight tug on him was enough to get him to kiss you. He finally relaxed, arms dropping from the refrigerator door to grip your hips.

“You’re not going to fuck this up.”

“I don’t have a very good track record.”

“You do with me,” you said softly. He looked skeptical, not quite understanding what you meant, so you pressed against him as his arms enveloped you. “You gave me a sunflower the third time we were ever around each other. You’ve cooked me dinner already. Sure, it was under different circumstances, but it counts. Nate, you know exactly what you’re doing. Don’t overthink it.”

“Go sit,” he said, pressing a kiss to the top of your head. You managed to calm his nerves better than anyone he’d ever known in a matter of seconds. “I’ll plate dinner and then I have to grab something for you, okay?”

Nate entered the dining room a minute later, placing both plates down across from each other before disappearing to grab wine glasses and another bottle of wine. Then, he was off down the hall to his bedroom. Your eyes followed him curiously, wondering what else he could possibly have up his sleeve. He’d already impressed you enough by cooking a meal you didn’t teach him.

“Oh, wow,” you breathed out when he appeared in the hallway with a bouquet of flowers. “Nate.”

“For you.”

You stood to take them from his hands and kiss him in thanks. When you pulled away, your fingers danced along the petals of the roses tucked between the sunflowers and baby’s breath Nate had grown to love too.

---

You filled your glass for a fourth time as inconspicuously as possible after your last bite of dinner, but Nate caught your eye over the bottle as you poured and you knew he knew what you were doing. He tried to stifle his smile unsuccessfully, picking up his own glass to cover it. One sip and his third glass was done.

“More?” you asked, extending the bottle in his direction.

“Four glasses?” he teased. “What do you take me for?”

“Okay, more for me then.”

Your voice was low, eyes dark as they settled on him, and suddenly he was lunging forward to grab the bottle and pour another glass for himself. Your giggles filled the room. He wanted them to echo off his walls forever.

“I want to take a picture with you,” he said. You gave him a curious look, though your stomach was doing cartwheels at the suggestion. “I keep thinking about your empty picture frame and I want you to have something to put in it.”

“We can take a selfie,” you suggested. He was quick to shake his head, pushing away from the table to take your hand and lead you to the patio. He pulled the phone from his back pocket and set it up against the couch. He removed the glass from your hand to place it out of view of the camera.

“Now, this is quite the set up,” you murmured as he moved furniture out of the way so there was ample space to take the photo. Denver’s city lights were sure to be the perfect backdrop and having Nate beside you wasn’t too bad either.

“Well, it has to be perfect if it’s going in your office.”

“How do you know I’ll even want to put it in the frame?” you asked. Nate pressed the timer and turned to walk back at you, smirk on his lips. You were teasing him, but you were playing innocent with those doe eyes. He curled around you, arms pulling your back against his chest to pose for the picture.

“After tonight, I’m sure you will,” he murmured in your ear. “Smile.”

The audacity of a man who tells you to smile after igniting your entire body in goosebumps.

The camera went off in a sequence, five pictures for the one timer. You smiled twice before he reached up to turn your face to his for a kiss. The sound of the shutter had you pulling away from his lips with a giggle. He smiled down at you for the next photo as laughter spilled from your lips, and then he was kissing you again.

When you finally pulled away from him, all giggly and handsy, Nate dragged you along with him to his phone. He curled around you as he flipped through the photos, each one cuter than the one before.

“Are you saying you wouldn’t put that in your office?” he asked. His breath tickled the back of your neck. You were just trying to tease him before, but with the lack of space between you and the way he was looking at you in these photos, you just couldn’t tease him anymore. His fingers trailed up your arms, goosebumps rising in their wake once again.

“How’s that fourth glass of wine treating you?” you asked. Nate tucked the phone in his back pocket as you turned to face him. His hands were on you once they were free, curling over the curve of your ass.

“I shouldn’t have let you talk me into it,” he murmured against your lips. “I’m trying to be good, but it’s impossible to keep my hands to myself.”

“What if I don’t want you to keep your hands to yourself?” you against, arching your body to press against him. You could feel him hard against your hip and knew you had him exactly where you wanted him. You pressed your lips to his and, as you pulled away, you took his bottom lip between your teeth and sucked on it.

A growl ripped through his chest as he lifted you into his arms. Your legs came to wrap around his waist as he carried you into the apartment and slammed the patio door shut behind him. He dropped you onto the bed, one hand coming to tug you towards the end by the ankle. His hands spread your legs so he could step between them and they slid up your thigh, pushing your dress up as they went.

“You don’t know how badly I’ve wanted to do this,” he murmured in your ear as his hands reached your hip, dress bunching around his wrists and revealing your lace panties to him. “Stealing touches in a crowded room just doesn’t compare.”

You lifted your arms as he guided the dress over your body and tossed it to the floor. At the sight of your match set, Nate pushed you up the bed and crawled over you. He peppered kisses along your skin from your collarbone to your chest. He worked his way down your stomach until reaching the top of your underwear. In on swift movement, your thong was on the floor and he was spreading your legs.

“So pretty,” he murmured, fingers spreading your folds. You moaned out as he slipped his finger in. “You like my fingers in your pussy, baby?” You could only manage to nod because he’d already slipped a second finger in. He curled them while he pressed a kiss against your inner thigh. “How about my tongue?”

Nate licked a stripe up your center and you gasped, hands flying down to curl into his hair as he continued to eat you out. He sucked on your pussy, continuing to thrust his fingers into and curl. He dragged moans out of you, obscene words dripped from your lips, and the filthy sound of his tongue filled the room.

“You taste so good.”

You tried to grind against face for some more friction, but he held your hips down and continued. You whined, tugging his hair and arching your back as he brought you to orgasm.

“Nate, I’m gonna cu—” you moaned, toes curling at the feet of his lips around you. Suddenly, cool air shocked your core and your orgasm retreated. You sighed as your whole body sank into the bed at the absence of stimulation. Nate crawled up your buddy, licking a stripe up your neck before attaching his lips to yours.

“Sorry, baby,” he said. He nudged your knees apart and situated himself between them, hand falling to his dick as he lined it up with your entrance. “I just need you to cum on my cock.” You moaned as he pushed his head between your folds. “YN, as long as you’re mine, I’ll never make you feel like you don’t deserve all the most romantic things.”

You answered with a moan as he bottomed out inside you. He watched your face as you adjusted to his size and smiled as you whimpered, pulling your teeth between your lips. You felt so good around him and as he began to pull out and thrust in again, your nails dug into his biceps.

You knew he was trying to take his time, but you could hardly take it. As far as you were concerned, Nate would have all the time in the world to take it slow with you. Tonight was not that night.

“Fuck me harder.”

When you sounded like that beneath him, how could he say no? His previously slow and calculated thrusts became sloppy at your request. He relished in the sound of your moaning and the way you called his name like a prayer. You were unraveling beneath him and he wanted to get you there. He adjusted your leg over his shoulder so he could hit a new angle.

“Come on, baby,” he moaned against your lips. “I wanna see you cum for me.”

He reached down and placed his thumb against your clit, rubbing in circles as he pumped into you. You screamed out and your body arched as your orgasm ripped through you. Nate pumped into you a few moments more as he chased his high while listening to your whimpers. He spilled out into his condom as a string of curses left his lips, then collapsed onto of you to catch his breath.

Your fingers immediately found his hair as your breathing evened out together. His body was hot on yours and a sheen of sweat covered both of you. Nate’s fingers curled around your waist and into your skin, squeezing you like he needed to get closer but couldn’t. Finally, he pulled out of you and sat back on his knees.

“You’re so beautiful,” he sighed, hands rubbing up your stomach to cup your breasts. You shivered at his touch. “I never want to leave this bed.”

“Not even for shower sex?”

“Okay, maybe for shower sex,” he murmured. He picked you up, tossing you over his shoulder to carry you to the bathroom.

---

A few hours (and orgasms later), you were clothed in Nate’s sweats and t-shirt and waiting for him beneath the covers in bed. He was cleaning up the glasses you left on the patio and running the dishwasher, though he was quick to finish it up and return to you. You looked so cute propped up against the headboard that he couldn’t stop smiling as he got ready for bed. He pulled on a pair of sweats, but remained topless as he slid under the covers. Instead of pulling you down to rest on his chest, he dropped his head onto your stomach and pulled you tightly to him. Your fingers carded through his hair.

“Thank you for tonight, Nate,” you spoke. “This was the best first date I’ve ever been on.”

“I’m counting this as our fourth date,” he responded. You laughed at him, slapping his bicep lightly at his teasing. “Let’s be honest, I was trying to impress you this entire time anyway.”

“Consider me impressed.”

Nate pulled you down to eye level with him, heads on your respective pillows, and then turned to shut the lamp off beside him. When he turned back, he pulled you against his chest. With your ear to his chest, you listened to his heartbeat and his breathing as it evened out. His fingers scratched your back ever-so-slightly as if soothing you to sleep.

“Are you happy?” he asked. You looked up at him with a curious gaze. Could he not tell how happy you were?

“Of course, I am,” you answered. “Are you?”

“How could I not be?” he asked. “You’re so far out of my league.”

“No, I’m not,” you groaned. You covered your blushing face with your hands at his words, hoping that he couldn’t feel the beat of your heart. Nate was quick to tug them down, holding them against his own chest. He didn’t care if you felt how hard his heart was beating. In fact, he wanted you to know. He wanted you to know the effect you had on him.

“You feel my heart, right?” he asked. You nodded. “You did that. You do that to me every single time I’m around you.” Your eyes began to water and you tried to pull your hand away from his to wipe the water pooling in the corner. Nate grabbed both your hands with one of his and wiped it with his own thumb. “I’ll never let you go to bed thinking I don’t love you. I’m going to shower you with flowers from our favorite florist and buy you pastries from that little shop you like, and I’ll never make you feel like you need to stifle yourself and who you are on account of me.”

“Nate.”

“Just listen to me, alright?” he asked, voice soft. You nodded. “Your ex stuffed you down and he didn’t appreciate you. That’ll never happen with me, and if you feel like it is, you need to tell me, just like you did when we first met.”

You tried to stammer through some type of coherent response, but words failed, so you kissed him. His arms wrapped around your waist to pull you flush against him and your legs intertwined. He was intoxicating, you couldn’t get enough, but he felt just the same. He wondered how anyone had let you go before and simultaneously thanked them for the gift that was you.

That night, Nate vowed he’d never let you go to bed unhappy and he’d never let you feel any less than perfect. He waited forever for a partner like you, honest and kind, and he finally had it in his hands, in his bed. And you promised that you’d never love anyone as much as you loved him. You just knew it.

[ppersonna]

tempestuous - kth | m

tem·pes·tu·ous - adjective - characterized by strong and turbulent or conflicting emotion

↳ summary- There’s no one who riles you up more than Kim Taehyung, your best friend’s brother.  He knows exactly how to make you fly off the handle.

↳ rating- explicit / 18+

↳ word count- 6.8k

↳ pairing- taehyung x reader

↳ genre- smut, minor angst i guess in the form of fighting, this is one big pile of smut, there’s some fluff too

↳ warnings- yikes where to begin.  angry sex, penetrative sex, unprotected sex (don’t be like dis), slapping, spanking, pain kink, dom/sub elements, facefucking, really rough sex, finger sucking, derogatory names, uhhh name calling, hate sex, tae is fuckin nasty yall im thriving

↳ a/n- I HAD TO REUPLOAD bc tumblr sucks lol well folks. here we are.  i was given a prompt by @ladyartemesia​ so i blame her.  as for tae, he really came for me this week and completely wrecked me, love that for me. i really popped off here and it’s only edited by me so i’m SORRY if there’s a lot of mistakes.  fun fact i actually wrote almost 10k of another version of this but it frustrated me so badly i scrapped it lmao  🤡 HERE WE GO! Enjoy!  feel free to send in your requests and i promise to try and get it done for you! 

Kim Taehyung could only be described in a few words.

Infuriating, bothersome, vexing.

Gorgeous, breathtaking, suave.

Absolutely, inherently maddening.

And you hate how much you absolutely melt underneath his gaze, the way your heart leaps into your throat with a single word.  Your body, the ultimate betrayer, opens up to him as your brain screams to abort, reverse, go back to start and do not pass go.

Kim Taehyung is not just the bane of your existence, no.  He’s the little brother of your best friend, Kim Namjoon.   Joonie had been in your life since you were in first grade and he in second.  Taehyung was your age, but you hit it off with the older boy and haven’t separated since.  Your mothers joked that you would get married one day and continue on the Kim line.  Until they found out that Namjoon was 1) bisexual and 2) hopelessly in love with, ironically, a man named Kim Seokjin.   He reasoned to his parents that they would at least carry on the Kim name.  

Where Namjoon was sweet, caring, and deeply compassionate towards you, Taehyung was his alter.  Taehyung was brash, cocky and relished in watching you squirm, whether it be out of fury or the god forsaken sexual tension.  All growing up, he was the one to pull your pigtails, trip you into puddles of mud, and tease you in front of your friends. Namjoon, ever the faithful companion, was always there to pick up the pieces of what Taehyung broke.

It’s been that way with Taehyung ever since. A constant tug of war with each other, both unwilling to give a single inch to the opponent.  

Your relationship with Namjoon remained steadfast as ever.  Namjoon eventually moved in with his now-husband, Seokjin, who easily settled into your life as an additional partner in crime.  You spent most of your days and nights settled into the couch, snuggled somehow in between or next to one of the two men you cherished most.  You had the two best friends you could ask for and a happy life, blissfully Taehyung-free.

Until it wasn’t.

A loud knock wakes you from an unexpected nap on Namjoon’s couch.  Your eyes crack open against the glare of the sunlight streaming through the windows.  It takes a moment to gather your surroundings.  You recognize that you’re in Namjoon and Seokjin’s apartment, and judging by the silence, you’re definitely alone there.  As you reach for your phone, the screen lights up the time.  5:34 pm.  Well, shit. You remember eating brunch and drinking mimosas at noon with your best friends and then lying on the couch to watch Netflix.  How had you fallen asleep for five hours?  How did you not wake? What the fuck did Jin put in his mimosas?

The knock is insistent again, louder this time.

“Joon! Jin! it’s me! Open up!”

The voice sounds familiar in your sleep-addled mind, but not quite enough to pinpoint it.   You push your limp body off the couch and wince at the feeling of sore muscles.  Couch sleeping isn’t all it’s cracked up to be once you’re past the age of 25.

“Sorry, Namjoon isn’t here-,” You open the door to explain to the guest and you’re cut off.

“What the fuck are you doing here?”

You rub at your sleepy eyes and allow your vision to focus, only to feel your blood stand still in your veins.

Kim Taehyung.  Of fucking course.

“What do you mean, why am I here? I’m always here,” you tut as you fold your arms to your chest.  “What are you doing here?”

He rolls his eyes and holds up his hands, two suitcases clutched in each.  Who the fuck carries 4 suitcases up three flights of stairs? Kim annoying ass Taehyung does, apparently.

“I’m moving in.”  He pushes past you and into the living room.  

Your mouth gapes open.  Namjoon certainly didn’t tell you this.  Taehyung looks back at chuckles at your reaction.

“I’m guessing your best friend didn’t tell you the happy news?”

You shut your mouth, quickly jumping back into composure.  “No, he failed to mention that,” you sniff.  “I thought you lived with your girlfriend in Gangnam?  What was her name? Rose or whatever?”

Tae stiffens, just slightly for a moment, before he plasters back on the bravado.  “Obviously not anymore.  We broke up, she kept the apartment.  Got tired of moping at my mom’s house and I told Namjoon I wanted to come back to the city.”

You feel a slight tug at your stomach, guilt, perhaps?  You clear your throat.  “Oh, I’m sorry.”

He laughs as he sits on the couch, instantly throwing his feet onto the coffee table, like a heathen.  “No, you’re not.”  

“What do you mean, no I’m not? God, sorry for being polite!”

This, you reason, is why you can’t sustain longer than 5 minutes of civilized conversation with your best friend’s younger brother.  He’s impossible.

He just smirks, and you know he loves the rise he gets out of you.

“Because I know you, and I know you don’t give a fuck about my love life.”

Au contraire. If only he knew just how much you gave a fuck.

“That doesn’t mean I can’t be nice to you!” you nearly stamp your foot in frustration but hold yourself back. That would be too good of ammo for him to use against you.

“Okay, fine,” he acquiesces. “Whatever helps you feel you’re a good person.”

You’re seeing red and you know you want to continue screaming at him but you will not stoop to his level.

“Christ, I haven’t seen you in months and you’re still an asshole,” you say as you grab your keys and shoes. “And also, Jin will kill you if he sees your feet on his coffee table.”

You whip yourself around and open the door to leave and hear him call over your shoulder.

“Good to see you too, doll! Love the hairstyle, by the way.”

You close the door with a growl leaving your throat.  The absolute audacity of that man.

You stomp towards the elevator to take yourself to the ground level, when you catch your reflection in the shiny metal. Your hair is in what you can only lovingly call a complete hornet’s nest. It’s ratted and sticking out in places and you feel your cheeks burn.  Your first reintroduction with Taehyung is with a fight AND with you looking like a fool.

This would not do. No, sir.

“Kim Namjoon!” you shriek into your cell phone.  You’re awkwardly pressing it against your ear with your shoulder as you walk out of the convenience store under your apartment building with 3 bottles of soju and a six-pack of beer. You needed to drown your shame and sorrow, and fast.

“Hello, love of my life and moon of my stars,” your best friend replies and you can hear Seokjin chuckle in the background.

“No!” You chide, already cracking a beer open as you storm into your apartment building. “Don’t you Khal Drogo me, mister! Why the fuck didn’t you tell me your fucking asshole brother was moving in with you?!”

Namjoon is silent and you can tell he’s wincing on the other end of the phone. “Oops?” He offers.

“Yeah, big oops! A heads up would have been nice! Like, ‘hey best friend, your worst enemy of all time is moving in today. Maybe you shouldn’t fall asleep on my couch and wake up looking like Frankenstein’s ugly wife. Oh, and also my handsome boyfriend and I will just happen to not be there when he arrives’.”

By this time, you can tell Namjoon has put you on speakerphone because you can hear their rich laughter loud and clear. Rude bitches.

You stab your key code into your door and lock yourself in, chugging as much of the beer as you could handle.

“At least, even in her rants she thinks I’m handsome,” Jin gloats.

“I’m sorry babe,” Namjoon sighs as he finally calms down. “I didn’t know he would be there today. I just found out about it last night.”

You nibbled at your bottom lip, the annoying pit in your stomach feeling simultaneously guilty that he went through a breakup, unbridled joy that something brought him down a peg, and just a dash of excitement that he’s single now.

You let out a breath. “It’s okay, Joon.  It just surprised me to see him.”

Jin butts in, “And because you have a big, fat, unresolved crush on him.”

“Jin!” You admonish. The couple laughs again and you roll your eyes, asking yourself why you put up with the two. “I do not!”

They both hum a non-committal answer, implying they don’t believe you in the slightest.

“Whatever.  What are you guys doing, anyway?”

“We just got home from shopping.  God, Jin looked so good in these jeans he tried on.  I was actually just about to suck his coc-,”

“Kim Namjoon, do not finish that sentence! I do not wish to hear it!” You try to remain firm, but dissolve into giggles with the pair.

You could never stay mad at Namjoon long, even if his brother was the devil incarnate.

“Darling,” Jin calls through the phone.  “I still expect to see you at our place tonight for our sleepover.”

Christ, you had forgotten all about your scheduled sleepover night.  It was tradition and one of your favorite parts of your friendship with the couple.  Jin, a literal chef, prepared a five star meal along with dessert for you while you binge watched Netflix and talked incessantly.

But you also usually slept in their spare bedroom.  The exact one that Taehyung would be occupying.

“Fuck, while he’s there?”

“Oh suck it up,” Jin chides, like he’s your mother. “He’s probably not even going to leave his room.  You’re not getting out of this.  I’m making strawberry cheesecake.”

Your mouth waters at the idea of Jin’s famous cheesecake.  

“Fine, but I get to lick the bowl and not Namjoon.  Those are my terms.”

Namjoon squawked in defiance as Jin laughed.  “I agree to your terms.  Be at our place by 8.”

As you hung up the phone, you checked the time.  6:40.  God, he hadn’t left you with much time to get ready, did he?

And you definitely needed to get ready.  There was no way you were entering a room where Kim Taehyung exists looking like booboo the fool, not again.

Your fingers press the 6 digit passcode to Namjoon and Seokjin’s apartment, arms heavy laden with your bag of toiletries and pajamas, and a bag full of wine.

“Honey, I’m home!” You announce as you toe off your shoes and slide into the combined kitchen and living room.

You receive no reply, but greeted with the amused face of none other than the object of your filthiest dreams, Taehyung.

“Pet names already?  We’re moving pretty fast, wouldn’t you say?” He asks you as he lounges at the kitchen table.  He watches you open the fridge to set the wine, as comfortable in their home as you are in yours.

“Fuck off,” you grumble. “Where’s your brother?”

Tae seemed absolutely tickled by your disgruntlement.  “I think they mentioned something about taking a shower.  That was 20 minutes ago, though.”

“Great,” you sigh. “Those fucking horn dogs act as if they’re still newlyweds.  We’ll be waiting awhile.”  

You tug off your sweater, leaving you to remain in a fitted tank top and yoga pants.  You tried to maintain a comfortable look as you dressed for the evening, while keeping in mind which leggings hugged your ass and showed off your toned thighs, and a tank top that dipped low to your cleavage.  Okay, so maybe you had ulterior motives. You wanted to make up for your dreadful appearance earlier and make him squirm, payback for the years of him doing it to you.

You watch him as he lets his eyes roam your body, eying you like he wants to ravage you completely. You feel victorious… and also turned on. Fuck, you played yourself.

You flop onto the couch in a huff and Tae snorts before joining you.

“What’s so funny?” You eye him suspiciously.

“Nothing,” his smile feigns innocence. “I’m not allowed to laugh?”

You sniff in annoyance, not eager to fall for his tricks. “You’re allowed to do whatever you want, your highness.”  Sarcasm drips from your voice and Tae finds it even more humorous.

“I see you’re still a sassy bitch.”

You gasp, audibly startled by his language and rise from the couch, fists clenched.

“I see you’re still a conceited dick!”

He rises to meet you where you stand, eyes boring into your own with his stupid sexy grin on his face.  “I see you’re still not one to back down from a fight.”

You step closer, close enough to feel his breath on your face.  Idly, you note it smells like peppermint and you move closer on reflex.

“Yeah? I see you’re still not one to avoid starting a fight in the first place!” you huff.

“Oh, I started it?”  

“Yeah, you started it! You called me a bitch!”

You can’t believe this is happening.  You feel as if you’re 6 again and fighting with him over a toy.

“A sassy bitch, actually,” he corrects, taking another step forward, bodies touching.

“Fuck you!”

“Only if you say please,” he quips before he closes the distance and presses his lips to yours in a scorching hot kiss.

There’s not even a moment of hesitation on your end, immediately pulling him even closer and wrapping your arms around his neck and allowing his tongue entrance to your mouth.  Your body reacts to his instantly, as if it’s wired to respond to him and him only. Your mind was blank of anything except Tae, only Tae please, and you acted purely on instinct alone.  And instinct was pulling him closer and begging, more, anything he could give.

The sound of laughter coming from the hallway pulls you apart, neither of you wanting to get caught by Namjoon or Jin.  You stare at him, his lips are cherry red and slightly swollen and the image burns into your retinas.  He has such pretty lips after you’ve kissed him.

“Oh hey! What’s going on here?” Namjoon asks as he notices the intense eye-battle you’re engaged in with his younger brother.

It shakes you out of the spell, eye contact broken and hypnosis halted.  

“Just, errrr,” you falter to find the right words to explain the situation.

“Just getting reacquainted.”  Tae sounds completely unaffected, as if the passionate kiss you shared with him seconds ago was but a distant memory.  Asshole.

“I’m surprised you two haven’t thrown anything at each other yet,” Jin laughs. “Or thrown yourselves at each other.”

Both you and Taehyung whip to look directly at Jin.

“Her!?” Tae is incredulous. “Gross.”

You’ll never admit out loud that his words wound you.

“You’re an asshole, Taehyung,” you punctuate your words by turning away from him and towards Namjoon, who appears amused as ever.

“Ah, I love when my best friend and my little brother are screaming at each other.  Feels like old times.  Can one of you cry now to complete the moment?”

Taehyung grumbles under his breath, something you can’t catch, and stalks off to his room.  The slam of his door reverberates in the apartment and Jin jumps and turns to yell down the hall at his brother-in-law.

“Yah! Don’t break my apartment! I still owe money on this!”

Despite Taehyung’s appearance every so often in the kitchen or living room, the rest of the night goes on with no annoying disturbances.

Jin spoils you and his husband with expensive food, and the best cheesecake you’ve ever eaten in your life.  Plus, you’re given the bowl to lick clean despite a desperately adorable pout from Namjoon you were sure would persuade Jin.

You’re settled on the couch, snuggling in the middle of the couple as an action movie flickers across the big screen tv.  Truthfully, you haven’t paid attention to a single thing happening, your thoughts entirely too absorbed in Taehyung and that deliciously infuriating kiss.  

Why did he do it?  You couldn’t comprehend his reasoning.  Perhaps he was doing it to piss you off.  He’s never angered you with that level of intimacy before, but you didn’t put it past him.

You’re surprised when the credits of the movie start rolling and Jin and Namjoon fake loud yawns.

“Oh man, I’m beat,” Namjoon lies.

Jin is quick to join. “Me too, I think I’ll pass out the moment I hit the pillow.”

You roll your eyes at the men. “Will you two please go fuck already, I know that’s what you’re going to do.”

Namjoon blanches, but Jin laughs and kisses your cheek. “Ah, my smart, beautiful and chaotic child,” he coos. He leans in to your ear, voice low to keep his husband from listening. “I don’t think I’m the only one in this house who’s going to get pounded into a mattress.”  

He pulls back and winks at you, deftly ignores Namjoon’s confusion and sadness of being left out, and drags him to their bedroom with a loud ‘goodnight’.

You’re left to stew in your own emotions, which is never a good thing.  Was the tension that obvious? You always assumed it had been one-sided, but the kiss befuddled you more than you’d like to admit.

It finally snapped in your mind, all the dots connecting. That’s why he did it.  

He kissed you so you’d stew and simmer and eventually erupt, like you’re doing now.  Taehyung knows you too well for your comfort.

You grab your bag of clothes and storm towards the bathroom to change, promising yourself to forget about the kiss and not give Taehyung what he wants.

Except you’re not very good at promises, especially to yourself.

You can’t say you’re excited to sleep on the couch again.  While it’s a nice couch, it’s definitely not a bed and your back will pay the price tomorrow.  You supposed it was better than the floor, but not by much.

After dressing in your pajamas, a purposefully picked out combination of tiny shorts and a sports bra in case Taehyung happens upon you, you return to your bed for the night in the living room.

Namjoon graciously left blankets and a pillow out for you, and you’re complaining internally about Taehyung the whole time you make yourself a spot to sleep.  If it wasn’t for stupid Taehyung and his stupid existence, you’d be sleeping like a baby on the guest bed that you loved.  But no, they relegated you to the couch like an animal.

Sleep was not in the cards tonight, it seems.  You toss and turn and try to press at the cushions to move a lump around and get comfortable, but it’s all for naught.  You’re wide awake and very, very uncomfortable.  You didn’t understand how you fell asleep on this very couch earlier in the day.  Maybe the mimosas you had at brunch with the couple had been helpful.

A thought crosses your mind. Alcohol.  Maybe a nice glass of wine would help tuck you into a peaceful, dreamless sleep.  A nightcap. Of course.  You were angry at yourself for not thinking of it hours ago.  

You slipped out of your disagreeable bed and into the kitchen, trying not to make a sound.  Jin’s beloved kitchen was also an echo chamber of noise, even the slightest sound bouncing off its walls and amplifying it through the whole house.  You still remember the way you jumped five feet in the air when Jin accidentally broke a plate.  It sounded like a bomb explosion.

You bite your lip as you carefully pry the cabinet of wine glasses open, careful to not even allow a squeak of a hinge.  You silently beg to stay silent and not wake anyone in the house.  You didn’t want to be caught drinking wine at 2 am in the dark, that’s difficult to explain without looking like an alcoholic.

With glass in hand, you tiptoe the fridge to pull out the bottle of merlot, thinking the heavy red wine would be the best to get you sleepy and quick.  

You tug the cork from the bottle and pour a healthy amount into the stemware with a smile.  Liquid sleep.  And you had done it without making a single sound. Perfection. The smell of the alcohol permeates through your nose as you lift the glass, placing it to your lips to take a sip.

“Wine at this hour?” the unexpected voice of Taehyung echos through the kitchen, making you yelp and jolting you hard enough that you drop the hard-earned glass of wine to the tile floor, red wine splashing as the sound of glass shattering is reverberating off the walls.

“Fuck!” You screech at the intruder.  Taehyung doubles over, laughing as if he’s seen nothing funnier than what just transpired.  “You asshole!”

You listen past Taehyung’s incessant laughter to ensure the owners of the apartment hadn’t awoken during the ruckus. You definitely did not want to face a tired and agitated Jin to tell him you shattered one of his Tiffany crystal goblets.

Beyond Tae, the house is silent and you’re thanking whatever god is listening for keeping your best friends asleep.

The wine is everywhere, spilling into the cracks of the tile and splattered on the walls.  The crystal stemware is too; it shattered with such force that you see flecks of the shrapnel in all four corners of the room.

Tae wipes a tear from his face and you square a tempestuous look at him.  

“Fucking help me!  You made me drop it!”

Through snorts, he replies. “I didn’t make you do anything.  You did that on your own.”  Although he is arguing with you, he’s gingerly stepping into the kitchen and kneeling to pick up shards of glass.

“I wouldn’t have dropped it if you had come into the room like a fucking normal person,” you grit.

He collects the glass, the delighted grin on his face now permanent.  He’s relishing in your annoyance, you know he is, and it burns you from the inside out.

“It’s not my fault you didn’t hear me.”

“You could have turned on the light! Why were you in the dark like a freak?”  You’re grasping at straws, anything to pin this all on him.  It would quell the fire in your belly to push it all onto him, make you feel as if you’ve won.

Taehyung levels a look at you.  “And you weren’t also in the dark? Pouring a gallon of wine for yourself?”

Your cheeks flare red. Fuck, he definitely caught you there.  You’re playing verbal poker with him and the hand you’re dealt falls flat compared to his royal flush.  He grins, knowing he has you.

“Fuck you,” you snark, you go to insult when you’re backed into a corner.

“Ah, doll,” he winks.  “We talked about that.  Be careful what you wish for.”

The fire inside you is roaring to an inferno now, flames licking to your core. It’s a complicated mixture of anger and sexual energy. It’s infuriating that he’s able to make you feel every single emotion to the extreme. You hate that arguing with him turns you on, like it’s some perverse foreplay.  

You moisten your lips with your tongue as you process his words, and Tae’s eyes hungrily track the appendage as it glides over your lips.

“Fuck. You.” You emphasize perfunctorily.

All thoughts of wiping up the mess are forgotten as Tae drags both you and himself off the floor and steers you to the living room, lips feverish against your own.  He pushes you into the couch and tugs his shirt off, before replacing his lips to yours.  

“Fuck, you’re so fucking hot when you’re a bitch,” he groans as he snaps the strap of your sports bra. “Seeing you get all worked up makes me so hard.”

He’s not wrong. You can see through his mesh basketball shorts that he’s sporting an impressive package, rock hard in its clothed prison.

“Yeah?” You bite at his lip.

“Hell yeah.”  His hands work to the elastic band under your bust and tugs the offending material off, tits springing free as he throws it to the floor.  

“Holy shit,” Taehyung breathes as he gets a good look at your chest.

You shake them gently, grinning as he watches them jiggle.  “You like what you see?”

He smirks and pinches a nipple, wiping the coy smile off your face and turning it into a moan.  “I like when you’re mouthy, but don’t push it.”  

He lowers his head to the nipple he’s still pinching in his fingers, licking at it and replacing his fingers with his mouth.  He’s moaning around the nipple, and you’re gasping for more.  His hot mouth sucks at you, teeth nibbling and pulling it until you’re whimpering in delicious pain.

“Fuck!” He cries as he pops away from your nipple.  “You’re so fucking hot.”

Your body warms at his words, arousal pooling between your legs.  You’re sure that your thighs are drenched in your essence.

He slurps your neglected breast into his mouth, ensuring your nipples are equally abused.  His tongue is skilled but his mouth is messy, saliva dripping all around your tit and it’s the hottest fucking sight you’ve ever seen.

He’s pulling away again and pinching both nipples with his hands simultaneously. “And you’re so fucking annoying.”

You’re pleading for more or to stop, you’re not sure.  He continues.

“Mm, I’m gonna fuck you until you’re a good little bitch for me. Listening to every fucking thing I say.”

He releases your nipples, and you finally find the ability to focus again, staring directly at him.

“Oh, you think you’re that good?” you sass as you attempt to catch your breath.  “Put your money where your mouth is.”

Tae grips your chin roughly, face inches away from yours with a sadistic grin. “You’re going to regret those words, baby.”

Instantly, he’s standing up and tugging his shorts down to let his cock spring free.  Your brain misfires as you visually measure his cock and your mouth goes dry. He’s thick and long. The bulbous head is dripping pre-cum, begging you to slurp it up.

“How about I put my money where your mouth is,” he suggests as he grabs a fistful of your hair.  

He teasingly rubs his cock on your lips and cheeks, makes you whimper with need. Your tongue is sticking out, desperate for him to lay it on you.

“Already so fucking greedy,” he grunts and in one motion, directs his dick into your open mouth. “I’ll fuck your throat, yeah? Greedy bitches love getting face fucked.”  He is still for a beat more, eyes searching yours for consent and you nod with his cock still in your mouth. He winks, then begins a rapid pace, his cock fucking into your mouth and throat.

You’re sure you look like a goddamn mess with saliva dripping from your mouth as Taehyung punishes your throat with his thrusts.  You gag and moan around him, and he tightens his grip in your hair as you see stars.

It’s indescribable. Never have you felt such pleasure from sucking cock, but Tae commands your entire body, willing you to drip with anticipation.

“My little fuck toy, god you feel so fucking good,” he hisses. “You’re gonna swallow my cum, baby.”  

His hips are stuttering, he’s close, and you’re sucking him harder, cheeks pulling in harder to vacuum him in. The pressure makes him groan out loud.

“So good, so fucking good. Get ready for your prize, baby,” his voice cuts off in a gasp, as his cock twitches violently. His legs shake and he doesn’t hold back the moans of his orgasm, gasping as he feels rope after rope spill down your hot throat.

Your big doll eyes are twinkling up at him, lips still wrapped around his cock. Taehyung is sure it’s the hottest thing he’ll ever see in his lifetime.  You on your knees, subservient to him and thriving for it.

“Mmm, I like it when your mouth is full like this,” he slowly pulls out of your mouth, albeit reluctantly. “Can’t talk back to me when you’re sucking my cock like a whore.”

You smile and stick out your tongue, pleased to show him you happily accepted his cum.

“Good fucking girl,” he coos as he grips your chin again. “Did you like my cum?”

You nod, brain fried from the heat of the room.

“Use your words,” he grits and grips your jaw harder. It’s enough to shock you into compliance.

“Y-yes! Fuck, I love your cum, Tae.”  Your words are breathy and raspy, throat raw from his barrage.

“I knew you would, filthy slut.  Sit on the couch.” He orders and you’re quick to scurry and sit on the makeshift bed you made.

His hands are tugging down your shorts quickly. No teasing or seduction here, not now. You lift your hips, and he throws them aside. Your legs close on reflex, making him growl.

“Do not hide yourself from me.” His tone is dark and you can’t help but shiver as you open yourself up to him. You want to talk back, want to fight and bite at him, but you’re quickly losing the ability to even speak, and you’re aching for him.

“Where’s my mouthy little bitch? You’re awfully quiet. Did I finally break you?” He teases, pressing your legs upward, knees to your ears. It’s pornographic how on display you are for him, soaking wet cunt front and center.

“The great Taehyung thinks he can break me with his cock,” you mewl, mustering all the false confidence you can. You’re lying through your fucking teeth and you both know it, but you continue. “You’ll have to do more than that.”

Your pussy is quaking with need now, desperate for a single touch. His hands maintain purchase on the backs of your thighs, holding them up.

“There she is,” he bites at the flesh of your leg closest to him which makes you jerk in his hold. “Gonna fuck the brat right out of you.”

He removes a hand from your thigh and you’re quick to pick up the slack, holding the thigh in place to maintain his open show of your pussy.

“Try me,” you murmur, and you’re instantly regretting your words as a harsh slap descends and lands square on your cunt.

You nearly scream, pain flooding your wanton pussy, before turning into delicious pleasure that stings and tingles right at your clit. It sizzles, and warmth blooms where his hand was.

“That’s for not believing me.”  His eyes are feral and you want to bottle this memory forever.  

Another slap has your legs trembling, eyes rolling back as the burn turns to a low heat.  You’re dripping your wetness down onto the couch and Jin will kill you, but you don’t care.

“That was for calling me a dick,” he smirks.

Smack.

Tears spring in your eyes as the slap brings more pleasure than pain, desperately close to your edge.

“Look at you, you could cum just from this, couldn’t you?”

“F-fuck! Yes, please, I need more, please!” Your cunt is clenching around nothing, desperate for friction and leaking out of you like a faucet. Taehyung marvels at you, legs spread so far, with a cunt weeping with arousal for more. He can’t wait to dive in there, but he’s not finished with you yet.

“More? I don’t know if you deserve more, baby, you’ve been awfully mean to me,” he tsks, breathing hot air on your clit, making you whine.

“P-please! I’m sorry!” You’re sure you will black out with how desperately you need him. You need him more than you need oxygen.

“Beg.”

You’re quick to submit. Thoughts of fighting back are long gone, you’re his wanton little slut now.

“Please, please! Pleaseeeee, make me cum! I’ll do anything.”

“Anything?” He asks with an arch of his eyebrow.

You’re nodding wildly, gazing at him with desperate, watery eyes.

“Anything, I need you so f-fucking bad it hurts!”

By the time the words leave your lips, he’s thrusting two fingers into your cunt viciously, fingering you ferociously. He arches them, rubbing against your spongy g-spot and making you scream. He knows you’re close, knows you only need one little push off the edge. He plays your body like a skilled practitioner.

“Cum on my fingers, baby. Let me see my greedy little bitch milk my fingers.”

Your body and mind react accordingly, deep down you know your body is owned completely by him, all his.  Your orgasm explodes and you think you actually scream, your vision is black and your hearing goes silent for a moment as you cum harder than you have in your life.  You’re squeezing his fingers with your pussy so tight and Taehyung is gently licking all the juices from his hand with his fingers still inside you.

It takes time to descend from the separate plane of existence Taehyung sent you too, but you come back and watch as he laps at the liquid of your cunt and on his hand like it’s a vital necessity. His fingers remain in your walls, and he refuses to break eye contact with you. You’re positive you could cum again from the sight.

“My little cockslut tastes so good, just how I like,” he tells you tenderly. “Like cherries, so sweet.  My little cherry.”

Your cunt is aching and warming back to life as he pulls his fingers out of you. The loss is immense and you’re whimpering for more.

“Ah, ah,” he hushes you. “No whining. You’ll take what I give you.  Suck my fingers clean. Taste yourself.”

He presses his fingers into your mouth, earning him a sigh, the taste of you filling your mouth. You swirl your tongue around his fingers and suckle each one to ensure your tongue laves the entire surface.

“Fuck,” he whispers and it’s his first crack in his steel reserve. “Needy.”

He pulls his fingers from your mouth and presses against you to kiss. It’s gentle, sweet, and nothing compared to the man assailing your pussy with slaps moments ago. It thrills you just the same and you return in kind, threading your hands in his wavy hair.

He pulls away and presses his forehead against yours, a moment of gentleness you actively welcome.

“This little cunt ready for me?” He whispers and you’re whimpering your reply.

“Please, fuck me. I need you to fuck me until I can’t walk.”

He grins and presses a kiss to your lips again, sweet and chaste, before he pulls away and slides down to attach those same sinful lips to your pussy.

It’s so unexpected you flinch and manage a cry as his tongue slurps up more of your delicious essence and his mouth moves to suckle on your clit. You’re not sure where the fuck he learned these tricks, but you know now you will never let him go.

“Taehyung!” You cry at the sensation. “Fuck!”

After receiving the reaction he was desperate for, he slips his tongue into your walls deep and gathers as much of you as he can, before he’s pulling back and swallowing you down.

“I couldn’t resist. Your cunt was made for me to devour.”

He doesn’t allow for a response as he throws your legs over his shoulders and lines himself up at your core.

“Condom?” He asks you, and you level a quick look at him.

“I don’t live here! I don’t have any!”  You’re savage, terrified he’ll pull his cock away when all you want and can think about is the way he’ll feel pounding into you.

“Don’t be rude, baby,” he reminds you with a swat to your ass. “I’m clean, promise. You?”

You nod quickly, reveling in the spank’s tingle. “Same. I have an IUD too,” you sigh. Thank god for medical birth control implants.

“Good. You’re the only pussy I’m gonna fuck from now on,” he promises. You know you must talk about this later, when you’re thinking rationally and not with your aching pussy.  

Your heart stutters and leaps into your throat but all is forgotten as he plunges into your tight heat.

“Ohhhhh shit, ahhh,” he gasps. “Baby, you’re so fucking tight and wet.”  He’s on the verge of whining, becoming just as needy and greedy as you.  He wastes no time in setting a pace.

His cock fills you completely, his angle allowing him to go as deep as he can, pressing the beginning of your cervix.  This is surely what heaven feels like.  It feels like the completeness you feel with Taehyung fully sheathed inside you.

It comes alive with flames and explosions as he fucks you, hips pistoning to plunge in and out of you with tenacity.  He fucks you like he laces every single thrust with more, more than just sex. He fucks you with purpose.

You’re moaning like a pornstar now, high pitch wails and gasps and breathy moans are all you can manage. “Taehyung, yes! Feel so g-g-good!”

“That’s right baby, scream my fucking name. Make sure all the neighbors know who fucking ruined you,” he nearly spits, cock thrusting into your core at an impossible speed. “I want you to tell all of Korea who owns you. Who owns this tiny little cunt?”

The wind leaves you, and you’re gasping for air, gaping mouth open as you try to reply. It takes him fucking into you harder a few times before you feel it rush back into you.

“You, Taehyung!  You!  Fuck, I love your cock!”

His thumb rubs at your engorged clit, allowing it the friction it seeks.  He bends forward and wraps his other hand around your throat, squeezing.  

Losing air combined with the friction on your clit has you keening, so close to the edge. You try to babble his name but nothing comes out.

“Look at my pretty little slut taking my cock so well,” he praises.  “You have the greediest pussy, don’t you? You need my cock daily, baby. Need to put my mouthy bitch in her place, remind her who’s in charge.”

He slows his pace but his thrusts are punishing, fucking into you as hard as he can. Your orgasm is climbing so impossibly high.

“F-fuck!” You gasp as he releases his grip on your neck. “Gonna cum! Please let me cum!”  

“Yeah baby, cum for me.  Cream your greedy pussy all over my cock.”

The world stops spinning as you hit the height of your climax and plunge down.  Your vision goes black and your body is quivering and convulsing nearly as hard as your cunt is. Taehyung hisses at your walls sucking him in, as if you’re begging for his cum, begging for more.

“Fuck, good girl, baby, holy shit,” he’s breathless and so close.

You’re overstimulated, boneless, but he wrought two of the best orgasms you’ve ever felt in your life and you’ll be damned if you leave him high and dry.  You bite your lip as you move with him, hips pounding against each other. His face is scrunched up and you know he’s close when he’s stuttering on his words.  You take over for him.

“Please cum in me baby, please.  Fill me up. I’m yours, baby, mark my little cunt as yours.”  You don’t know where it’s coming from, but you keep it going. It feels as natural as fucking him does. “Please, Taehyung!”

At the sound of his name leaving you in a whine, he spirals down his own completion. He feels his cock pulse as he empties his load into you, your walls still reverently beckoning for him. He’s calling out your name, grasping at your tits as he finishes and you’re smiling from ear to ear. Your pussy is warm with his seed and you’re positive it’s the way you want to feel every single night.

“Holy fuck,” Taehyung rasps as he pulls his cock out of you. He thrills as he watches his cum follow, slipping out your folds and down your thigh. “I definitely marked you.”

You hum in reply, finally allowing yourself to soak in the haze of orgasmic bliss. Tae presses his head to yours again, kissing you sweetly.

“Come sleep in my bed?” He asks. He means more behind it. He wants to ask you to sleep in his bed every night, stay with him every day, be the one he grows old with. He knows there’s still more to talk about, wounds of the past to heal, but now you’re with him, and he knows he’ll work through anything.

You nod, and kiss him again, understanding his hidden meaning laced in his words.

A sly smile spreads across his face. “Last one to bed has to take the blame for the wineglass,” he teases. Your head spins as if you’ve got whiplash.  He can switch from dominating to sensitive to the little shit he is so quick.

“Hey! No fucking fair! You fucked my ability to run out of me!”

“Shouldn’t have been such a sassy bitch,” he winks before he tears away towards his room.

“Taehyung, you’re an asshole!” You call as you limp your way behind him.

From behind Joon and Jin’s door, a critical voice bellows, “YAH! I’ll kill you if you got your jizz on my couch! And what is this I heard about my glass!!? HEY!  Those are TIFFANY. CRYSTAL. THE DISRESPECT!”

You slip into Taehyung’s bed and wrap yourself around him, the two of you gasping with mischievous giggles.

Kim Taehyung will always be the one who knows how to drive you wild. He’ll always aggravate and infuriate you, send you reeling.

But now you didn’t think you minded it at all.

© ppersonna - 2020 - do not repost on any site, or translate without express permission from author.

[kintatsujo]

LoZ AU- The Courage of Running Away Part ELEVEN

(oh my fuckin gawd)

Slightly lighter on the art tonight and heavier on the prose bc last post I did like six or so whole pages and needed to let my arm rest today

This is also gonna LOOK like a supplementary post until we get to the end but this is probably how I’d be presenting it in the prose version too tbh

#AU August

#LoZ AU: The Courage of Running Away

So in Courage of Running Away (and there's some evidence this might be true in canon tbh), all of the women of the Zelda line do in fact have a magical power, separate from though connected to the Triforce. They call it the Light of Hylia, and it's attributed to the Goddess's blood still running through their veins. Even the Lorulean royal line still carries it, despite having broken off countless millenia ago over theological dispute.

But the Triforce of Wisdom also surfaces from time to time, and years ago, when she was only a child herself, it awakened in Queen Zelda.

Her parents, wise rulers themselves, saw the glow of the mark on their little girl's hand, and decided..... To do nothing. To keep it secret and hidden, until one of the other Triforce bearers arose. Surely, they reasoned, one piece of the Old Goddesses' power was manageable on its own, as long as nobody else knew.

And then... Nothing happened. For sixteen years nothing happened. Maybe, Zelda thought, the other Triforce bearers had had the same idea. Maybe, she thought, this had even happened before. Maybe, she thought, nothing was going to come of this after all. She was crowned queen. She selected a husband, a fine man who would make a suitable peacetime king. She waited, but she chose to live her life in the meantime.

[Image description: A large and heavily built man in a winged crown and blue clothing.  He has long, dark blonde hair, thick eyebrows and thick mustache and a well trimmed beard.  He is labeled “King Aldway Philominas (Queen Zelda’s husbando.)” End ID.]

(Note on Aldway: Credit for the name goes to @iced-blood​ who is half my sounding board team for this AU, the other half being Invid.  Ice has probably named about half the characters at this point lmao)

And then Chief Eltani of the Gerudo, newly a mother, came to her for advice.

And Queen Zelda looked at the faded, inactive birthmark of the Triforce of Power on the hand of Eltani's infant son, and she said, "Keep this a secret. Raise him to be a good man. It's all we can do."

(and Eltani said, "well good because if you'd told me to throw him in a ditch I'd have to declare war" and Zelda laughed because how else do you respond to that, and now they were friends)

When Link is born three years after that, she doesn't hear about the faded mark of Courage on his hand, but she DOES hear two years later about when Astramorus's wife dies, because she was a well known swordswoman from a long line of Hyrulean knights, and it was apparently spectacular.

[Image Description: A round-faced woman with a mischievous grin.  She has orange-strawberry blonde hair and green eyes, as well as thick eyebrows and a solid build.  She is wearing a blue hat similar to Link’s classic hat, green earrings, armor over a blue shirt, and a red cape over the armor.  She is labeled “Catena (Link’s Mother).”  End ID.] 

(And yes while this is insight into Astramorus's motives don't worry that I'll act like it excuses him, because obviously it doesn't.  It’s also some very funny insight into Astramorus because I tend to think Catena (once again named by Ice) is basically ALttP Link as a woman, which means that young Astramorus, man of the cloth, looked at this little gremlin tank of a lady who could snap him in half, drink him under a table, and who loved helping people, fighting, money and music in THAT order, and went “that one.  That’s the one.”  Which is very relatable and humanizes him a lot more than I expected.)  

In fact, Queen Zelda doesn't hear about the mark of Courage on Link's hand until a few months before he turns seventeen, when Astramorus sends word that he's been training him, and that he wants to present him to the Royal Family when he comes of age.

Queen Zelda is, truth be told, furious at the gods. "The Goddesses are cruel!" she tells her husband. "how can I, a grown woman and mother of fourteen years, ask a seventeen year old boy to carry a weight like that? And the worst part is that if I'd been our daughter's age, or his, I'd not have thought twice! No wonder our history is so bloody and battered, no wonder we've risen and fallen so many times!"

And then Link vanishes. Astramorus seems worried, yes, but just as much about what she and her husband will SAY as about what might happen to his son. He promises to find him and he talks about setting him back on the right path.

And when she finally sees Link for the first time, it's when he's pushed Astramorus away, and Astramorus grabs him by the hair and chin mere moments later, hissing in his face. Her daughter runs faster, starts yelling at him first, and then Astramorus goes and grabs the girl by the arms.

Well, no wonder Queen Zelda blasts him through the castle wall, yes?

[Image Description: King Aldway stands on a walkway on the outside of Hyrule Castle.  Behind him is an enormous explosion, which is blowing his hair and clothing forward.  He looks rather shocked.  End ID.]

[bard-llama]

The Taint of the Common Man (Meve/Reynard/Gascon)

Okay, so I finally tried to play Thronebreaker again and it turned out that my comptuer/steam/whatever had actually kept my save!!! So I didn’t have to start over, which was good, because the beginning was kinda boring, which is why it took me so long to continue. But it’s also kinda bad, because now I do not remember anything about Gascon’s introduction beyond “they fought, Meve won and threatened to hang him next time”. Which like... I could probably make it work, but knowing the details seems important for writing Meve’s feelings and reactions to Gascon. 

Anyway, this is a continuation of the thoughts that this lovely post inspired, and because I’m me, those thoughts grew a plot. Both the link and the rest of the story involve a VERY dubcon/noncon premise, so please engage only if you can. Also, spoilers for Chapter 1 of Thronebreaker (aka major plot things that happen once you reach Lyria’s capital).

Okay, once again: HUGE WARNING for Dubcon/Noncon stuff. Like, it’s how the story starts and it’s gonna be something dealt with through the whole story. My idea is basically a story that starts with Meve losing EVERYTHING, and then, through her quest to reclaim her throne, she learns how to be a better queen to ALL of her people, not just the noblemen. End game is intended to be Meve/Reynard/Gascon, but tbh, idk how they get there. Like, at first, Meve and Reynard hate Gascon A LOT, so they have to learn to love him and that takes time.

I’m kinda still learning about these characters as I think this through, so apologies if you find them ooc or if I contradict canon (without meaning to. Sometimes i do it gladly lol)

So we start with Meve returning to the Lyrian castle, only to find that her son and the Council of Peers (read: ruling council that advises the monarch and consists entirely of peerage aka nobility) have betrayed her and surrendered to Nilfgaard. She’s thrown in a dungeon and though her son orders that she is not to be harmed, she knows enough about reality to know they’d never let her live. 

She’s on guard, waiting for the guards to come and kill her - only when footsteps approach, it’s not the guards at all, but the fucking Duke of Dogs, the leader of the Strays of Spalla, a gang of bandits that plague merchant caravans and noblemen alike. Gascon, the proclaimed Duke of Dogs, opens the cell door and steps in and tells Meve that he’s freeing her, because the Council of Peers used him and his men and he can’t abide betrayal. But there’s one condition - Meve has to ask him, all nice and polite-like.

Meve, of course, refuses, because she’s nothing if not prideful. So Gascon closes the cell door and leans back against it and says something like, “guess we won’t be leaving, then. Unless, of course, you’d prefer to do something else on your knees,” or some sort of implication like that that makes it clear he’s suggesting that she blow him in exchange for release. And Meve is furious and her pride cuts at her, but dammit, she has no hope of freeing Lyria from Nilfgaard’s grasp while stuck in here. So she goes to her knees. And Gascon is surprised - from his view, she could’ve just begged him??? - but like... the QUEEN is on her KNEES for HIM, a (decidedly un)common bandit who she’d threatened to hang not a week prior. 

Also, I think there’s also a part of Gascon that blames Meve for the massacre of his family. According to the wiki, the year before King Reginald (Meve’s husband) died, Gascon’s family revolted against the king and were soundly squashed, with Gascon at a mere 8 years old the only one to survive. From there, he fell in with the Strays of Spalla and eventually became their leader. Remember this bit, ‘cause I’m definitely gonna come back to it. But anyway, Gascon doesn’t like Meve. He’s doing this because it’s the right thing to do and a little because having the queen indebted to him feels awfully good. Also, Meve is good with her mouth.

So good, in fact, that she drives him crazy, taking him to the edge and teasing him and teasing him and teasing him until his legs are shaking and the cell door is all that’s holding him up. I don’t think he actually begs, because his men are around the cell watching this, but he has to bite his lip hard to keep from doing so.

For Meve, there are many complicated feelings happening. On the one hand, this is humiliating and degrading and it’s shameful that she’s fallen so far as to be forced to service a fucking bandit and even worse that his men are SEEING this happen.

On the other hand... look, Meve was widowed 8 years ago. Somewhere in there (or before?), she comes to love and trust Reynard - who her husband, upon his deathbed, told her that he alone could be trusted. But she hasn’t made a move, because it wouldn’t be appropriate and she doesn’t want to ruin things between them. 

Point is, it’s been 8 years since she’s had sex and she has had cause to desire some sex. Queens can probably get amazing sex toys, but like, an actual cock? it’s been AGES since she’s been able to play with one and she kind of missed it. 

Additionally, in an effort to combat her shame and humiliation, she decides to flip the script on them. Gascon wants her to blow him? Fine, she’ll blow him so well that he utterly falls apart. And maybe she’s a little of practice, but Gascon is young anyway, he probably doesn’t even know better lmao. (But later, she’s oddly grateful that she had this chance for ‘practice’ before it actually mattered)

Eventually, she lets Gascon come - or maybe he uses his grip on her hair to pull her onto him? (She may decide to make it a good blowjob, but that doesn’t mean he’s earned deepthroating) - and the Strays, who have gone from hooting and hollering over the queen’s humiliation to flushed and aroused at the skillful way she destroyed their boss, let them out of the cell. 

Next, they go to the city jail to release Reynard, who was arrested as soon as the coup happened because everyone knows that Reynard’s loyalty to the crown is absolute. Reynard is sitting against the wall and he smiles brightly at the sight of her, so Meve strides into the cell to unshackle him. So of course Gascon, who now stands in front of the door once more, suggests something like, “such faithful loyalty deserves ample reward, does it not?”

And Meve is conflicted. Because AGAIN, the Strays of Spalla are watching them and Gascon is trying elicit sexual favours from her. But also, it’s Reynard. She’s wondered for so long what Reynard’s cock would be like and how he would treat her. And, she justifies to herself, she was already forced to give a piece of filth like Gascon a blowjob. Reynard most certainly deserved better.

So she orders him to stand and goes to her knees and is almost eager to get him in her mouth. And Reynard is caught entirely off guard here, because he was ready to skewer Gascon for the mere suggestion, and then she’s ACTUALLY DOING IT!!! And it’s not like she’s alone in having thought about it, but he always assumed that he would be the one on his knees. So for her to do so... he’s awed and a little horrified that he is party to degrading his queen in this way. And also aroused. REALLY fucking aroused, because Meve is on her knees for him! And unlike Gascon, he has earned deepthroating. Fortunately, he’s already leaning against the wall, so he doesn’t collapse. 

If Gascon hadn’t had the most intense orgasm of his life like 10 minutes previously, he’d definitely try to see if he could join in, even though they really don’t have the time for that sort of thing. But suffice it to say, Gascon remembers each and every moment Meve spent on her knees vividly.

Reynard comes (and Gascon is reluctantly pleased to have a companion in the wait-you-want-me-to-fight-after-how-hard-I-came!? club) and they all leave the dungeons - and get found by a patrol of guards. They have to fight their way out and Meve thinks Gascon managed to slip away - right up until he comes to their aid with his whole crew. With Gascon’s help, their motley crew flees the capital of Lyria (largely by traveling thru the sewers).

That night, they set up camp somewhere and instead of the royal supplies she’s used to, all they have is whatever the Strays of Spalla had, which means stolen and/or threadbare, ‘cause they’re not exactly living the high life. And Meve knows she should get some rest, but she can’t stop thinking about what happened in the prison(s) and she decides that, as long as Reynard was willing, why shouldn’t she pursue the man she loved? 

So she goes to the mess tent and it’s predictably full of drunken soldiers - well, drunken warriors. This rabble didn’t deserve to be called soldiers - and clusters of people playing dice and cards. She spots Reynard at one of the card tables - but sitting across from him is none other than the motherfucking Duke of Dogs. Half-formed plans to kiss Reynard drown under the flood of fury she feels and she summons Reynard to her, ignoring Gascon, who definitely tries to flirt with her. At this moment, she has VERY conflicted feelings about Gascon and most of them are negative. But also, they need him. She is very much aware that his men are the only reason she has any chance at all of taking back her home.

Anyway, Meve confronts Reynard, who explains that he doesn’t trust Gascon as far as he can throw him and whatever mischief Gascon is up to, whatever he thinks he can gain from helping them, Reynard is ready for the doublecross. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer is very much his philosophy, compounded by the way he has learned not to reveal - well, much at all. People probably find him very... is softspoken the word? Not like he speaks soft, but like, he doesn’t say a lot. He learned to keep his mouth shut after he managed to survive insulting the king, so he plays things pretty close to his chest and people find it hard to guess what he’s thinking. 

Gascon, for his part, is helping Meve because it’s the right thing to do (and a little because again, queen indebted to you? Very handy). He’s probably aware that Reynard doesn’t like him, even if Reynard acts friendly enough? Like, literally Reynard is so loyal to Meve that he was imprisoned and she was sure of his fealty. And Gascon has found ways to rationalize what he did i.e. raping Meve - she could’ve just begged! She had a choice! - but even though Reynard got a blowjob out of it, I’m sure Gascon would assume that Reynard would want him dead for the blowjob that he got.

I don’t precisely know what Reynard and Gascon’s relationship is like during this, tbh. I think it’ll be Meve’s POV, so she may have a limited view, but I think it’s definitely complicated. Made worse, of course, by both Meve and Reynard beginning to see the redeeming qualities in Gascon. But that comes later.

For now, Meve accepts Reynard’s explanation and knowing that he would do anything to protect her soothes some of the ruffled feathers from a very trying day. So she decides to subtly ask him something like, “come to my tent?” that like, isn’t blatant ‘cause they’re surrounded by drunk men, but also is pretty clear. And Reynard’s eyes widen and it hurts so much to do, but he tells her no. She’s had an intense fucking day - betrayed by her son and court, imprisoned, forced to give multiple blowjobs and work with lowly bandits and shit. Like, she’s been through a lot and he knows that she’s not able to be in her right mind. So he says no, part of him hoping that if she actually means it, she’ll try again in the morning.

But what Meve hears is no, not interested. Which makes this the third time today that she gets to be humiliated in front of the fucking Strays of Spalla, because not only is the man she loves rejecting her, but like... is he rejecting her because she’s tainted now? How is she supposed to interpret him enjoying a blowjob from her one hour and rejecting her advances the next? 

And the taint... I think that’ll be a theme in this fic (thus the title). Like, at the height of her power before the fall, Meve was “pure” - which in this case means firmly assured that she was right in everything, as she was always destined to be. There’s no questioning of the world order or if she’s qualified to lead. She simply knows that she is.

But now she’s been betrayed, her nobility and her title ripped from her grasp. And not only that, but she’s demeaned herself with a common thug! She even says it in the game - “look how far we’ve fallen, to be surrounded by peasants and deserters and bandits”. For her, this entire situation is almost like “being common” is reaching for her, trying to pull her in, and she wants to resist, because she’s always been taught that the nobles are BETTER than the common people. But as she works with her army of thugs and commoners, she starts to learn that poor people are people too (gee, who’da thunk it?)

That journey takes time, though, and we’re barely at the start of it! 

So, Meve gets rejected. She’s hurt and humiliated and at the moment doesn’t have a kind word for ANYBODY. She maybe cries herself to sleep and hates herself for being weak.

Then morning comes and she has her regular strategy meeting with Reynard, as she did every morning. And it’s awkward and Reynard is as silent as usual, always so deliberate about every word that leaves his mouth. And she wants to ask, but yesterday’s humiliation was enough. She can’t repeat it.

So even though they SHOULD’VE gotten together, they fail to, because Meve is stubborn and prideful and Reynard is closelipped and proper. And Meve kind of hates even the sight of Gascon, but since he IS the leader of the army that is currently only at her disposal because of him, she invites him to join the strategy meetings every morning. If Gascon helps provide a buffer between her and Reynard, so much the better.

Okay, I don’t actually know how everyone ACTUALLY gets together, BUT as they travel through the countryside of Lyria towards the Aedirnian border, a couple of important things happen.

1) Meve sees the real conditions of the people living in her realm. Even in areas that the lords had reported prosperous, people were starving and dying. She starts to learn that these are her people too.

2) Meve and Reynard get to know Gascon. Not just over their strategy meetings, but as they observe him and the Strays of Spalla they (Meve especially) begin to realize that their judgements were all wrong. Because yes, the Strays of Spalla are bandits. They steal from wealthy merchants and even wealthier nobles. That had always been enough to know before.

But now they come to know that that stolen food and blankets and supplies and coin went to the starving peasants in these lands. Hell, most of the Strays are from these areas. These are their people, even if Meve hasn’t figured out that they’re hers too.

Anyway, idk how they get together or how the story ends - is it with them getting together? Getting to Vengerberg to ask for help to reclaim their home? Ousting Villem and taking Lyria back? idk, I haven’t even gotten that far in the game yet lol.

So yeah, here’s a very long synopsis of a story that manages to have almost no porn and lots of angst, despite being inspired by a purely porny post lmao.

[il0veyoujk]

Unusual roommates

Summary: Nefeli (18) is moving to a new house in the middle of the forest in Seoul. The only thing she doesn’t know is that her new home is haunted...

Warnings: Light mention of harsh language

Notes: None

Τhis is a tickle related ff, if you are not interested in it, please keep scrolling

Lots of love Nef 💕

Nefeli was currently peacefully reading a book on her apartment in Daegu. The weather outside was sunny so she was sitting on her hammock swing near her large window, a mug of fragrant hot chocolate on her other hand.

The 18-year-old girl was enjoying her favorite book, Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens to be specific when her phone started vibrating on the glass coffee table in front of her.

She looked at the ID but she didn’t recognize it and her face lit up. She only hoped it was the owner of the house she wants to move to, in Seoul.

You see Nefeli needed to move to Seoul due to her studies as a journalist and she needed a house as well.

“Hello?”

“Hey, are you Nefeli? I am Min Sangwook, we talked some days ago for the house” the voice of an old man around his late 70s echoed the other line, with softness in it.

“Yes, this is me. Anything new about the house?” the young girl asked politely, with a cheery but calm tone. She was trying her best not to give hope to herself. Mr Sangwook had told her that it would be a little difficult for her to buy this house too soon since they didn’t know how long it would take them to find a new one.

“Yes, you can come to sign contracts even today and then stay in the house. We have already found our new home” he explained politely.

Nefeli used all her might not to scream or jump and fall off of her hammock swing. Finally, she was moving to start a new life!

“Thank you thank you thank you thank you! I will be there tomorrow afternoon! Thank you so much!” she exclaimed, the chuckles of the old man as a background.

“Then I guess me and my wife will see you tomorrow then”

“Yes of course! Thank you once again mr Min! I owe you!” she hung up and rushed to her bedroom to pack her things up. She threw inside her huge, red suitcase all her clothes, which were already folded, her jewelry, some photos and room decorations from her room.

She got out of her pocket her phone and dialed the first person she wanted to let her know what was happening, back in Greece where she was raised “Hey mum! You will never guess who called me!”

 Next day, afternoon:

Nefeli was currently in her car, driving to the house she was supposed to go to.

One of her favorite songs, Believe In You by Amanda Marshall was echoing the car cabin, relaxing the young girl’s souls and helping her calm down, giving her confidence and self-esteem up.

 I believe in you And all I want to do is help you to Believe in you

 As the song was coming to an end, Nefeli’s car was entering a dark forest filled with tall, somehow scary trees. It was almost night and the sky had golden and orange near the ground and as the vision was raising the colors were become darker and more bluish.

As the car was moving more into the woods, she spotted an old house, with a nice, wooden balcony. The building was on a glade, in the very middle of the forest, circled my trees.

She wasn’t gonna lie, the house was scary. As the sun was falling onto the walls, weird and terrifying shadows were forming, like they were young lads while the sound of a light, summer breeze was brushing the leaves was mixed with the nice smells of the fresh grass.

Outside of the house, there was mr and mrs Min, holding hands and sitting on the outside couch on the balcony, drinking some really tasty tea and chitchatting. They both seemed really sweet, warm, and lovable people.

Nef parked the car near the house, next to the owners’ car, and grabbed her backpack. As she was walking near the couple, she heard small giggles coming from the walls of the house and she felt shivers running down her spine. Let’s be honest, the house was a little -a lot- creepy and those sounds weren’t the best ones she could hear. I mean, it was an old house, in the middle of nowhere, in the forest, and it was dark outside. How idyllic! Note the sarcasm.

“We are so happy you are here!” mrs Min told me, shaking her hand. She was an old woman, around her early 70s, a little younger than her husband.

“It’s my pleasure” the young girl smiled warmly. “Can we sign the contracts please?” she asked excitedly, making the owners chuckle.

“Sure, here are the papers and a pen, we hope you like the house” mr Min said, smiling nervously.

To be honest, Nefeli always wanted to live away from the town, in the middle of nowhere, not having people and car horns annoying her and unhealthy smoke hurting her lungs, considering the fact she had asthma, and the fresh air of the forest was exactly what she needed. Plus she would live peacefully. The house may be a little creepy, but she could handle that. She didn’t believe in ghosts and all anyway.

She picked up the pen and scribbled on the papers her signature with excitement. However, as soon as she scribbled on the paper, she felt something scribbling on her lower back, making her squeal and giggle.

The old couple looked at her weirdly and she cleared her throat, shaking that feeling off of her mind, thinking it may only be some soft air.

“Do you want us to give you a quick tour?” mr Sangwook asked her, but she kindly denied, wanting to explore her new place by herself. “Alright then, if you need anything you have our phone. I have seen the money you gave us in my bank account, don’t worry about it. Tomorrow morning we will have our furniture moved so as you can have your own here” the man smiled kindly as she opened the car door for his wife to enter and then proceeded to go to the driver seat

“Thank you so much! Have a nice ride!” she waved at them as she was watching them exiting the forest, leaving her alone.

When they were out of her vision, Nefeli turned around to take a glance at the house and she felt shivers running down her spine. It was like the now almost dark sky was swallowing it and it seem more intimidating than before. And that was what she loved more about it. When her furniture arrives, the place is gonna look so vintage!

She took a deep breath and entered the old building, feeling a cold breeze brushing behind her shoulders and the back of her neck, straightening every hair she had on her body. But she still wanted like hell to live there. It was the best place she had ever seen!

She took a step inside the house and looked around. The inside of the living room was all old and wooden. The kitchen was in the same room as the living room and there were three bedrooms and one bathroom. The two bedrooms were simple, with no decoration at all, and the bathroom was white with a blue bath. Nothing special.

She closed the door behind her and set the suitcase on the floor next to her. She roam around the living room, a big grin on her face. Nefeli plopped herself on the couch, lying on her back.

As she took a better glance over the place, she spotted something weird. Hairbrushes, feathers, toothbrushes, and many other things which were usually used for... tickling.

The more she was staring at them the more she was feeling more agitated. The more she was staring at them, the more she was feeling pokes on her sides. Nefeli was probably too ticklish to even look at the tools. She had never experienced them, not even a feather, but she was getting nervous just by the thought. She was super sensitive. Like it wasn’t even funny how ticklish she was, and all of her friends were taking advantage of it. Like, they would poke her sides from behind every chance and when she’d something cheeky they would tickle her. (a/n true stories lmao)

The only thing is that she has never been tickled on her feet, and those hairbrushes were making her feel the most nervous. She knew she was extremely ticklish on her feet, but she had never received tickles there, except some foot rubs which was tickling her like hell, but she was trying her best not to show it because it was caused by her own mother, and she was feeling too uncomfortable.

“Nononononononoo” she squealed and jumped on her feet, grabbing all of them and hiding them in the first cupboard she saw, sighing in relief when they were out of her vision.

Just then she felt jabs on her sides, making her jump and start giggling alone, not knowing why. “Hehehehehe” she pressed herself onto the wall and immediately all the pokes stopped. “What the fuck was that?!” she exclaimed, unable to hide her leftover giggles.

“I guess I need to go to bed, I imagine things” she sighed and walked to the bedroom to change into her pajamas. It was still the middle of August, so she decided to wear her cropped ones. She set all her clothes into her new closet and plopped on the bed, pulling the sheets up to her shoulder, drifting to sleep.

 Some hours after that:

It was the middle of the night and everything was peaceful outside. Nefeli was sleeping on her bed, dreaming about her new house and how she is gonna decorate it when something woke her up.

Something feeling like she was being... tickled... on her knees.

Nefeli shot up and started kicking on her bed, trying to get that feeling vanished but she wasn’t doing much. She was only able to laugh and laugh and laugh and nothing seem to work to make the feeling stop.

“Whahahahahat ihihihihis thahahahahat?!” she yelled in-between her laughter. The mysterious touch was now moving behind her knees, digging there, making the poor girl throw herself back on the mattress and laugh loudly. Thankfully no one could hear her.

With all her strength, in a shift move, she sat up and reached down to the spot which was being tickled, only to grab... nothing!

She started feeling worried and weird and even scared. “Nahahahaha! Stahahahap” she laughed. However, it came out more like a command than amusement.

Lemme give you a fun fact about Neffie. When she says stops, and she means it, you always can understand that. It will come out as a yell and not as laughter. And trust me, she is able to scare someone with that tone.

As soon as she said that, all the tickling stopped and she heard giggles filling her room. A knot formed in her stomach as she heard those giggles. It was like ghosts were mocking her! ‘Is the house haunted?!’

Just as she thought that a boy appeared in front of her, with small eyes and a gummy smile, winking at her, and then vanished.

Nefeli’s eyes widened and screamed loudly, hiding under the sheets fastly, having a panic attack. She curled up in a small ball of herself, trying to protect herself from possible tickles, but nothing came.

Instead, she felt sleep circling her and her nerves relaxing. It was really weird how fast she felt sleepy in the middle of a panic attack, but she couldn’t help it. She felt an arm rubbing her lower back, helping her sleep more relaxing and without any more disturbing or fear at all.

Just as she was ready to fall asleep, she heard a heave voice whispering in her ear “Goodnight Neffie” and with that she passed out, sleeping sweetly.

 Next afternoon:

Her furniture was finally here and the old one was moved to Choi’s house and Nefeli was over the moon. She had already decorated her room with her favorite posters of her favorite band like Three Days Grace, Arctic Monkeys, and Linkin Park, she had set her bookcase in her room, next to the door, and placed small, fairy lights on her books, photo frames of her and her family and her friends on the window sill, her couch and armchairs in the living room, near the fireplace, and her favorite hammock swing on the balcony.

The young girl was currently sitting on this specific swing, continuing the same book she was reading two days ago, the day mr Sangwook phoned her. She had a faded memory of what had happened last night, believing it was a weird dream and she decided to continue her life without it messing her head.

The weather had started getting a little chilly so she was wearing her fluffy, grey socks and her black sweatpants along with a light hoodie jacket, along with a cub of mint chocolate chip ice cream on her lap.

Nefeli was on the part of the book where Sikes beats Nancy to death in a fit of rage when she heard whispers coming from her behind her. She turned her head, with fear running in her veins, to see who was there. However, behind her was only the wall.

She picked up her phone and dialed mr Min’s number, waiting for him to pick it up. The whispers were keeping going and the blood in her veins was turning cold as the seconds were passing by.

“Hello?” the old man picked up the phone faster than Nef expected.

“Hello, mr Sangwook? It’s Nefeli” the young girl said and everyone could notice the nervousness in her voice.

“Nefeli? Is everything alright?” he asked worriedly, expecting her to say something like a wolf is in her house or something like that.

“Um, I wanted to ask you if everything is alright with the house. Because I can hear weird whispering of giggles coming from the walls since I moved in” Nefeli explained, looking around her to understand who was whispering.

“Oh yeah, I understand what is happening. You may see some mice in the house, don’t worry, it’s not people” mr Min explained and Nefeli sighed in relief. She is not afraid of mice and she believes they are cute. And she knows they are making weird noises, so she believed it.

“Okay, thank you! Have a nice day!”

“You too Nefeli! And if you need anything, don’t hesitate to call us!”

They hung up and Nefeli, returned to her book, humming on Still Loving You by Scorpions.

She raised her vision to take a glance around the trees and her heart melted. The peaceful silence of the forest, the birds’ singing mixed with the light breeze which was brushing against the summer leaves was sending her into what felt like heaven.

All that she ever wanted was silence. Nothing else. Of course, she likes being with people, communicate, having fun, partying, and all, but when she is home, she just wants to be alone, in silence, doing whatever she wants. And this house in the middle of the forest was like his paradise.

She was ready to turn to the next page when her phone started vibrating next to her. She picked it up and it was her best friend, Zoe who was calling her.

“Heyooo!” she cheered happily and placed the book on the glass table next to her, not forgetting to mark the page she was at.

“You are coming over for a coffee and I am not taking no as an answer” her friend playfully commanded, making Nefeli mentally giggle.

You see Zoe was a childhood friend of Nefeli, but she had moved to Seoul some years ago. They were always meeting when Nefeli was coming there or Zoe was returning to Daegu.

“Okay, I will be there in fifteen minutes” Nefeli smiled and before she could, Zoe had already hung up. She rushed to her car, pulling out and driving to her friend’s house.

The car drive was short and fast. The roads were surprisingly almost empty and the music from her radio was the only thing she could hear. Bang Bang by Monophonics was echoing the car cabin and she was murmuring the lyrics.

However, the only thing which was in her mind was the giggles. She couldn’t believe that those giggles were coming from a mouse. Something was up with that house, but she couldn’t find what.

One thought crossed her mind. That the house was haunted. But she couldn’t believe it. Nefeli doesn’t believe in ghosts, supernatural things, next lives, and all. She believes only in what scientists can explain and only in what she can see or touch. So there was no way she would believe that the house she was living in was haunted. ‘Nonononono, something else must be up here’

She was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn’t notice the tall, blond girl who was waving at her from the edge of the road.

Nefeli pulled over and rushed out of the car, into her friend’s embrace, a wave of happiness feeling her.

“I missed you so much!- I missed you too!” they said in unison and then burst into laughter. They had so much time to spend some time together. “Let’s go inside girl” Zoe threw her hand over Nef’s shoulders and they both went inside the house.

  After 30 mins:

“And I hear weird giggles and whispers from the house!” Nefeli had finally finished with the storytime and the two girls both took a ship from their hot chocolates.

“Wait, you mean you live at the house of the Hysterical Ghosts?” Zoe asked more seriously than ever, looking straight into Nef’s eyes like she was the teacher and Nefeli was a student.

Nefeli couldn’t help but start giggling hard. “The what? That’s the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard Zoe! What in the world is that now?”

The blond girl rose an eyebrow at Nefeli and stared at her in disbelief “You mean you don’t know the thrill of the town?” Nefeli shook her head, unable to contain her giggles. She believed that her childhood friends would know her better than that.

Zoe sighed and moved closer to the young journalist “It said that seven lads were living in that house some years ago. When they would come to the town, no one would talk to them and people would always be afraid of them. It was believed that they would torture innocent people just to have fun, that’s why every time someone would pass by that house, they could hear hysterical laughter coming from inside. It is said that it was their laughter of amusement. The locals still say that they were all killed by a young boy who was to be tortured by them and that the house is still haunted by their spirits”

As soon as Zoe was finished, Nefeli’s jaw was on the ground. To be fair, she absolutely and completely LOVES those types of stories. She doesn’t believe in them, but they are so interesting and they are fascinating the 18-year-old girl really much.

“Omg! Really?! Dude, this is the best myth I have ever heard!” Nefeli yelled in excitement, bouncing on the couch.

She was gonna write a story about it, for real. Nefeli has an account on Wattpad and she is posting her stories and this myth about the ‘Hysterical Ghosts’ was giving her inspiration.

However, as soon as Nef saw the clock on the wall, her eyes widened. It was near the time of the Curfew and her house was 15 mins from there.

“I have to go, I don’t wanna pay a fine because of Corona” the young girl laughed and collected her things to get out of her friend’s house, Zoe following close behind her.

“See ya later! And be careful of the ghosts!” Zoe remind Nef, not joking at all, which only made Nef giggle and shake her head. “Yeah, the ghosts are gonna eat me” she smiled and Zoe sighed. “I am being serious, be careful”

“See ya later Zoe”

“See ya later Nef”

And with that the young journalist drove away, going back to her new house.

The drive back home was silent. For the first time in her life, Nefeli didn’t need to listen to some music. However, what her friend told her about the ghosts couldn’t leave her mind. She wasn’t believing it, but something deep inside her was scared. Like, all those nonsense about ghosts was completing this weird puzzle.

‘What if I am indeed living in a haunted house?’ she asked herself, continuing driving, talking to herself driving the whole ride.

Suddenly the thought of her new house is already owned by those ghosts started scaring her. Especially the specific ghosts. Boys who were torturing innocent people for their fun. And now their spirits were haunting every new owner who was staying in this house.  She felt shivers down her spine but tried to brush them off of her mind ‘C’mon Neffie, you don’t believe in this, no one has ever proved that ghosts exist, you have never seen one, don’t let a stupid myth scare you’ she kept trying to calm herself down.

She entered the forest and immediately a weird and tingling aura surrounding her, straightening all the hairs on her body. Like the whole area was... enchanted... It was like she was being followed by something eerie. And that the forest locked when she entered

However, she shook it off and continued driving, trying to forget about what Zoe told her.

She pulled out next to her new home, having almost convinced herself that her friend was saying only nonsenses. She got out of her car, opening her phone to scroll through Instagram, her back still on her shoulder.

She got out of her black backpack her keys to open the door, still feeling that tingling on her spine, but trying to ignore it.

She opened her door and immediately she froze, letting her bag falling on the ground, her jaw along it. On the couch, there were three boys, their feet on the table in front of it, and four others were sitting crossed legs... on the air!

All the heads snapped towards her with shocked expressions on their faces. The four ones who were on the air fell on the floor brutally, and the rest of them shot up from their seats, looking at the girl with their mouths wide open.

“Um hi?” the tallest one, who was now on the floor, said, coming out more like a question than a greeting. He had dirty blonde hair and brown eyes.

Nefeli let out an incredibly loud scream and rushed out of the house, trying to make it to her car. She was ready to grab the handle of the car door when she felt two strong arms being wrapped around her waist and being carried back to her house.

The young girl started screaming loudly and thrashing around, trying to get out of the grip “No! Lemme go! Please! Don’t hurt me!”

The strong grip put her down on the couch, not even caring to take in mind her protests. The lad placed her down on the couch and sat next to her with a cold expression. He was a short guy, with small eyes and cute lips. His eyes were dark brown, his hair had a mint green color and pierced ears.

A nice, a little taller boy with light brown hair and dark brown eyes kneeled in front of her, placing his hands on the couch, smiling softly yet worryingly.

Nefeli pushed herself on the back of the couch, as another boy with black hair and dark brown eyes sat next to her, equally short as the one on her other side. He had the same smile the one in front of her had, his ears pierced as well.

She had a terrified expression on her face, bringing her legs on her chest, hugging them tightly, and looking at all the boys who were circling her, everyone with the same shocked yet anxious expression on her face. She had started believing what her friend told her some minutes before and she was really scared.

“Please don’t hurt me, I’m begging you, I’ll do everything you’ll tell me, just please don’t hurt me!” she yelled, and placed her head n between her knees.

“Hurt you? Why would we ever hurt you?” a boy with red hair and dark brown eyes, with pierced ears and tattoos on his hand asked confused, with puppy dog eyes.

Nefeli rose her vision and looked at all seven of them, ready to burst into tears “Y-you won’t?”

The boys looked at each other confusingly, like Nefeli was telling them the weirdest thing “Of course not, why would we?” another one asked, with large shoulders and weird-shaped finger, blond hair, brown eyes, and a deeper.

“Don’t tell us you believe what everyone says about us...” another one said, with black hair and brown eyes, equally tall as the tattooed one, a hurt of disappointment and hurt in his voice.

“H-How do you k-know?” she shuttered, still not uncurling herself from the small ball she had formed herself. She was feeling truly afraid. Whatever she thought wasn’t existing, was now in front of her, talking to her like they were alive.

The lads shared a look and sighed deeply. “We are not going to hurt you, don’t worry,” the short, smiley one said, sadness taking a place on his smile and voice.

“Who are you?” Nefeli asked, gaining some confidence, but still hiding behind her legs.

“What do you wanna know about us?” the tallest one asked, seriously, trying to hide his emotions behind a stern voice. Nefeli was taken aback by the sternness of his voice and pressed herself more on the cushions on her back, making everyone understand they were scaring her.

“Namjoon, don’t scare her!” the sweet one in front of her scolded the tall, whose name is apparently Namjoon, and then turned to her with a soft smile, rubbing her leg.

And Nefeli surprisingly didn’t flinch.

“We are not what people think Nefeli, we never hurt people, neither physically nor mentally. We could never” he said, his eyes sparkling and screaming honest.

How could she trust them tho? She didn’t even know if they were real or if she was dreaming again. Wait- Was that indeed a dream she had had last night? Or was it them? What the hell was going on?

“Then?”

“We just wanted to make people happy! I mean, I am sure you have already understood and you know we are ghosts, I guess” he said, while everyone else remained silent.

“Who are you? What do you want from me then?” she asked, earning glances from every boy.

“I am Hoseok,” he sweet boy in front of her said “This is Yoongi, then Jimin” he pointed to the short ones “Jungkook, Taehyung” he continued with the red-haired one and the deep-voiced one “And then Namjoon and Jin” he finished with the tallest one the boy with the large shoulders and smiling softly at her, his sweet lips and nose making her melt.

“Call me Jin” he smiled warmly at her, giving her a feeling of hospitality and love. She smiled back and nodded her head

“And we don’t want anything from you Nefeli. We just live here as well as you” Namjoon explained with cute eyes sparkling.

However, except for melting, that made her more upset. There was no way Nefeli was gonna live in a haunted house. Especially with ghosts! Like, no! She bought that house because she wanted to be alone! Not because she wanted to live with freaking ghosts!

“B-But I moved here because I wanted to live by myself, not with seven um... boys” she was feeling weird to say in their face that they were ghosts. It was not polite.

“Don’t worry about it, we are not gonna have any communication if you don’t wanna! We don’t wanna be a burden to you” Jimin assured next to her.

Nefeli immediately felt really bad. It was like she was feeling like she was stealing their home. Where they had lived their life! Where they had spent and they still spend memorable moments. And they weren’t the ones who people were said to be. She could see it in their eyes. The moment she got terrified they were gonna hurt her, the sadness that filled their eyes and faces cannot be described with words. It was sure they could not even hurt a single ant, how could they hurt the young journalist? They couldn’t.

“No! You are not a burden to me!” she semi-yelled and sat crossed legs on the couch, holding a pillow.

How could she make them feel like that? It was terrible! She shouldn’t have said that! It was so mean...

However, the next words shocked her...

“Of course not, you are a burden to us” Yoongi hissed next to her, and then he vanished, leaving an unbearable silence behind him, filling the room.

Nefeli was beyond shocked, even tho the boys didn’t seem as much as her.

“I um...” she tried to say something but nothing came out. She was unable to. No one had ever talked to her like that. What had she done now?

“Don’t worry Nefeli, you are not a burden. He is just um, emotionally attached with the house” Jungkook explained, playing with his fingers, not daring to look at her.

And she only nodded. Like she could do something else...

“Ahhh, I think I may go and calm him down a little” Hoseok said, looking at the ground, “Sorry for that sweetie” and with that he vanished as well.

“Nefeli don’t worry, we are not gonna have much communication with you, you can have your life, and we can have yours” Namjoon explained and they all vanished, except Jimin.

“If you need anything, you can always call us, we will be around” he smiled and left too, leaving her more confused. ‘I guess I just found my new roommates...’ she sighed and went straight to bed.

 Next morning:

Nefeli woke up from hysterical laughing coming from... nowhere... And then it hit her. The boys.

She looked at her clock and groan in frustration. 10:26 in the morning. Nefeli was the hugest sleepyhead on the whole wide universe and she was planning on sleeping till midday, however, the boys had other plans.

She got up from her comfy bed and got inside her bathroom to do her business. She applied lotion on her skin and brushed her teeth before she goes to the kitchen to make some vanilla caramel tea. However, the laughter didn’t die down. It was being kept going. Sometimes some giggles, sometimes hysterical laugher. Sometimes loud, sometimes quiet. Sometimes hiccupy, sometimes airy. Sometimes normal, sometimes hoarse. But it never ended.

She was putting some honey in her tea, when it died down, making her relieved. Finally, her ears could rest. Too much noise for so early in the morning. She hoped that now she lived alone she could have the quiet she wants. But no...

However, she did not want to give in and leave the house. She didn’t have the money anyway. So she was stuck with them.

She turned around, taking a ship from her hot tea, only to spill it out in shock. Jungkook was standing behind her, ready to grab a glass of the cupboard, all red, sweat dropping off of his forehead and drained tears on his cheeks, as a grin was forming on his face. “What the hell?!” she yelled, almost dropping the mug.

“Oh I am sorry Nefeli, I didn’t mean to scare you, I just wanted some water, I am a little tired,” he said casually like he didn’t just appear out of nowhere.

“I am sure you are” Nefeli mumbled jokingly and took a sip from her tea, smiling softly. She didn’t mind the tickling, the laughter, and all, at all, she just wanted her sleep back tho.

Jungkook smirked and walked past her, to the sink to pour some water. Nefeli grinned widely and drank some more, enjoying the sweet flavor. But she didn’t have too much time to swallow properly because the mug was being grabbed off of her hands, placed on the table, and she felt hands kneading fastly her sides, making her scream and then fall into hysterical laughter, trying to pry the fingers off of her, without success of course.

“NAHAHAHA!” she cried and fell on the ground, kicking the air, laughing loudly.

“Hmm, jackpot” Jungkook teased, kneading faster but softly her sides and bringing his face closer to hers, smirking from ear to ear. He was clearly enjoying that. And it would be a major lie if Nef would say she wasn’t enjoying that too.

“PLEAHAHAHAHASE!” Nefeli tried to grab his wrist, but every time he would move his hands higher or lower her sides, driving her crazy.

She was rolling on the floor, rosy cheeks and a huge grin on her face as she was kicking the air and was trying to stop the fingers. However, she was doing it in a way where she wasn’t really stopping him. It wasn’t like she really wanted him to stop.

“Looks like someone is more ticklish then” Jungkook winked at her, bending down fastly and blowing a short raspberry on her side, making her scream even louder. One more positive thing about that house; no one could listen to her shrieks.

Jungkook proceeded and pinned her arms above her head, doing the only one thing which tickles her more than anything; he nibbled on her lower ribs and all the way up.

The lad continued nibbling on her hypersensitive ribs for good 5 more minutes before he decided to show some mercy on her. Jin pulled away from Nefeli smirking, leaving her panting and curling up in a small ball of herself, panting and leftover giggles escaping her mouth.

“Now you are tired as well” he chuckled and stuck his hand out for her to help her stand up.

“Good morning to you too um...” Nefeli dragged her sentence, trying to remember his name, with no success tho.

“Jungkook, I am the youngest out of them” the boy smiled softly.

The silence which followed was uncomfortable, with a hint of comfort. They were standing awkwardly, mug and glass on hands, but the atmosphere was merely. The silence was taking away all the ghost tickles away from Nefeli and was making Jungkook calming down.

Nefeli could still not believe what was happening. She was living with seven ghosts... Some hours ago, she wasn’t even believing in them and now she lives with 7. It was like she was in another universe, with all the paranormal things she had seen in Supernatural. The next thing she was expecting to see was Dean Winchester approaching her. But she kinda loved it. It hadn’t even been 24 hours since she had met them and she was already feeling okay with that and she was enjoying it.

“And what do you think you are doing?” a heavy voice broke the silence and her thoughts, making both their head snap towards the direction where it was coming.

The figure which was standing there sent shivers down Nefeli’s spine as these cold brown eyes were piercing her warm, chocolate ones. The polar glare was hiding an icy breeze behind it and his gaze was towering her, even tho the lad was short. Yoongi was standing there, glaring at both the poor girl and his friend, arms crossed in front of his chest.

“I didn’t see you there Yoongz,” Jungkook said casually, not meeting his gaze tho.

“I think we promised not to have any communication with her!” he growled, pointing a finger at Nefeli who was already feeling too bad. What had she done? Nothing. If she knew they were living there, she wouldn’t have come. And she never pressed or even asked them to talk with her.

“Calm down dude, I just came to drink some water” Jungkook tried to defend himself, even tho he knew Yoongi’s opinion. And he knew there was no way he would change his mind.

“And you were tickling her!” the shirt boy pointed out, his eyes burning. However, they were hiding something else behind that cold mask. There was sadness and hurt behind them. Like, he was missing something.

Nefeli didn’t dare to say anything. She was simply standing in the middle of the two lads, watching them arguing, feeling worse than ever. She could understand he didn’t want her there, and she was feeling too bad that she couldn’t do anything about it. She didn’t have the money to move again, and she definitely wasn’t wheeling to chat with Yoongi. It’s not she was afraid or something, no. It’s just that she didn’t know what to say. She would probably do something wrong and she would make him more upset. And that’s something she never wanted to.

“Jesus dude! We were just messing, chill!” Jungkook complained from behind her, making Nefeli feel even more uncomfortable.

Yoongi narrowed his eyes and then turned to the young girl’s direction, not moving from his spot. His gaze tho was enough to send new shivers down Nefeli’s spine.

“You” he pointed again at her “Are not gonna destroy everything! I was tryna hard to forget! You didn’t come here to ruin it!” he raised his voice, widening his eyes, making him look like he was ready to attack Nefeli. And with that, he vanished.

If we say Nefeli wasn’t taken aback by his tone, it would be a lie. She wasn’t expecting Yoongi to talk to her like that.

“What did he mean?” Nefeli asked curiously, unable to understand the young lad.

Jungkook sighed and set his glass on the kitchen counter, running his hand on his face. He sat on the couch, patting the space next to him for Nefeli to sit.

“Yoongi had a sister around your age,” Namjoon said, as everyone appeared behind her, except Hoseok, and Yoongi, making Nefeli flinch.

“Seriously you guys need to stop popping out of nowhere” she chuckled nervously as sat crossed legs on the couch next to Jungkook, everyone else taking a seat around them “And where is that girl now?”

The lads exchanged looks and sighed deeply, with hurt in their eyes and voice. It was sure that something was up with this girl... She probably had hurt Yoongi too much or they weren’t on good terms and they were fighting a lot. Nefeli doesn’t have any siblings but she knows how it feels to fight with your siblings. All her cousins have siblings and they are always fighting.

“Yoongi and Haeun were really close. She was a really shy girl and really ticklish as well. Yoongi loved to play fight and tickle with her. When he was with Haeun, he was a completely different person. Yoongi was tickling her to tears almost every day. It was their thing. He was so protective and caring for her. We weren’t close with her, because Yoongi was afraid that any of us would fall in love with” Namjoon chuckled at the memory, whispered loud enough for us to hear. His voice was cracking and a soft smile was playing on his face.

“However, one day everything changed,” Jimin said, taking a serious look “One day their house caught fire. Everyone managed to get out, except her. Yoongi tried to get in to save her but failed. They found her inside the house charred after a few days. From that day on, Yoongi could do nothing but cry. She cried for years, blaming herself for not being able to save her. And that’s why he got mad at Jin tickling you. He remembered Haeun”

“Hey! It wasn’t me!” the oldest one complained and all the heads snapped towards him “It was Kook!” he pointed at Jungkook who just rolled his eyes and ignored him “Whatever”

“Remember the hysterical laughter you friend was talking about?” Taehyung asked, ignoring as well his older friend, and Nefeli with confused and still wide eyes nodded “It was hers”

Nefeli felt her heart breaking into tiny pieces. It was so sad that a young person had suffered so much in his life. And even sadder that an even younger person lost her life in such a torturous way. Yoongi wasn’t the kindest boy she had ever met since yesterday, but she of course never wanted him to be hurt at all.

“One day though, we had decided to go on a trip to Berlin to help Yoongi snap out of it a little” Jin looked at her ready to burst into tears “The plane crashed. We all died. Since then, we promised ourselves that we would make people happy and smiling. Like Yoongi would want Haeun to be” he let some crystal tears roil down his cheeks but whipped them fastly with the back of his wrist, sniffling a little. “This house you are living right now is his old home, where she died and their parents rebuild them someday after that. The owners you met are their parents”

“We chose to live here with them because of Yoongi” he explained, looking at Nefeli dead in the eyes.

Nefeli’s eyes widened in shock and felt something inside her falling. This was the most sorrowing thing she had ever heard, but at the same time, she was feeling like she was living in a house which somewhen was filled with love. Yoongi’s love.

“And what happened to the girl? I mean you are all ghosts, they must have been reunited!” she exclaimed, bouncing a little on the couch, ready to cry as well.

“Nefeli it’s not that simple” Namjoon place a hand on her shoulder and sat down next to her “When you become a ghost you live inside someone’s love. But when the person who loves you the most dies you are vanishing forever. So when Yoongi died... We tried hard to bring her back. We really did. But we didn’t manage anything. He lost her forever, and we couldn’t do anything about that”

Nefeli couldn’t help but let the salty tears roll down her now rosy cheeks. She was feeling really bad. Like she had stolen and burn those memories from Yoongi. How could she be so mean? Of course, it wasn’t her fault, she didn’t know that, but she was feeling like it. Like she was so cruel...

“So that’s why he acted like that...” she whispered in realization and everyone nodded “I-I am so sorry, I didn’t know that. It’s all my fault, I think I need to move with my friend until I find a new house,” she said playing with her fingers. Of course, she didn’t want to live in this place, but she couldn’t stand the idea of making Yoongi feel really bad and sorrowful.

“Nononononononoo, it’s not your fault, please don’t think like that!” Taehyung sat in front of her, taking her hands in his own “Nothing is your fault, you couldn’t know about us. And you don’t have to move with your friend. We all know you like living away from town. Please don’t blame yourself about anything!” he smiled sweetly at her, trying to convince her with his eyes to stay

Jin smiled softly and pulled her in for a hug, her back on his chest “Don’t worry, there’s nothing you can do. We will try to convince him to at least be a little nicer to you. And you are not going anywhere!” he said as Nefeli snuggled onto him, making her giggle.

She felt really good in his embrace. Like everything was better. The boys were looking at her in awe and she couldn’t help but blush but she was feeling good. The boys really wanted her to stay with them. They didn’t have someone to talk with. Someone to play with and have some fun. When they were going out of town, everyone would recognize them, so they had to steal whatever they wanted from Yoongi’s parents or from stores.

But now Nefeli wasn’t seeing them as ghosts, but as normal boys. Her friends. And she wasn’t afraid of them anymore. She was feeling nice like she could trust them.

They stayed like that for almost two minutes, in comfortable silence, before Nefeli decided to speak again “Well... I guess we can spend some time together every day if you want as well” she said shyly and blushed a little as everyone’s face lit up and they rushed on them hugging her tightly in a group hug.

At least Yoongi wasn’t there to see them... He would feel really bad and even worse, get mad. And that was something Nef didn’t want at all...

 A few days after:

Nefeli and the boys had created a nice bind. They would eat all together and have movie nights almost every night. The boys were making Nef laugh really much and they would usually tickle her, only when Yoongi wasn’t near tho. They knew it would upset him.

However, Yoongi never appeared. And that was making Nefeli really sad. How she wishes she could talk to him. Learn more things about him and have fun with him as well. But he didn’t want the same things as her. He was always cold towards her.

However, today was a different day. Today all the boys had gone out God knows where and she was alone. Nef wasn’t feeling good tho. She was feeling really down. She wanted to cry but she didn’t know why. It was one of those days where she wanted cuddles and some cheering up but nothing had happened.

She was currently sitting on her bed, crystal tears rolling out of her eyes and down her puffy, now rosy cheeks as some Three Days Grace music was playing in the background. She was curled up in a small ball of herself, burying her face in the pillow.

Suddenly she felt a hand rubbing her back affectionately, making her breathing relax.

“Tae please, leave me alone” she sobbed and snuggled more into her pillow.

However, the voice which rang in her ears wasn’t Tae’s. It was a voice she would never expect to hear again. It was the same voice she heard that night when something was tickling her knees and then whispered goodnight at her. It was the same heavy but sweet voice.

“Why are you crying?” that voice tho was familiar to her from somewhere else. And she couldn’t make the connection then, but now she could. And she was beyond shocked.

She turned around and with her watered, red eyes she saw Yoongi sitting there, trying to calm her down, the same serious expression on his face, and completely taking Nefeli by surprise. You cannot blame her for not expecting Yoongi to be there.

“Wha- Why are you here?” she sniffled, rubbing her eyes and sitting crossed legs in front of him, clutching on her pillow tighter.

“I asked something, why you are crying?” he asked, scooping closer to her. And she didn’t move...

She sighed and looked down on her lap, playing with her fingers “I-I don’t know, I felt like crying, I am sorry, I didn’t want to upset you”

Yoongi sighed as well, taking her hand in his larger one, shocking Nefeli once again. He was showing her his soft side for the first time in so many days he was being rude and arrogant towards her.

“The boys told me that you know,” he said, making her raise her vision, looking at him with her big, doe eyes. “You remind me so much of her, the same hair, the same eyes, the same height... the same spots, you are almost exactly like my Haeun” his voice broke when he mentioned his sister, making Nefeli wonder whether he could help him or not. Whether her presence there was helping him or upsetting him more. “They also told me how you are feeling. And I am so sorry about it. But it was really hard for me to control it. When I saw my parents moving away I felt like a part of me was being uprooted from within me. Then I saw you. You look so like my sister that I felt like you were replacing her here. And I got really mad. I thought that if I were discourteous with you, I would think less about her. But I was wrong. The more I was being rude to you, the more I was feeling bad. And when Namjoon and Jin told me how you felt guilty and you wanted to move again, I- Nefeli I am so sorry. Please don’t leave!” Yoongi’s tears rolled down his cheeks, as he pulled Nef in for a tight hug, rubbing the back of her head and her back soothingly.

“Yoongi please don’t cry, everything is alright, I won’t leave!” she was really taken aback by his sudden action of affection and softness. He never expected him to apologize to her like that. And in such a short time. It had passed only some days since she moved in and it was the first time Yoongi was sweet and kind towards her.

Yoongi felt like he had gone so harsh on his own sister. Looking straight into Nefeli’s chocolate brown eyes, he could see Haeun looking back at him. And he understood that the young journalist wasn’t responsible for anything. He couldn’t stop anyone from having fun and messing with each other, tickling each other and laugh together. He was just missing those moments and he was jealous he couldn’t have them anymore with his sister.

Nefeli and Yoongi stayed cuddled, him in her embrace as Yoongi was mentally accusing himself for Nefeli’s wanting to move away again cause of him.

Suddenly Yoongi felt tears in his soft hair, watering his head. He raised his head and saw Nefeli crying tiny, bitter tears, trying not to make any sound so as she wouldn’t catch Yoongi’s attention. But she failed.

“Now why are you crying?” he asked her, sitting upon his knees in front of her, piercing her with his eyes.

Nefeli sniffled and wiped her nose on her sleeve “I feel really bad. It's my fault you feel that way and I reminded you of what happened and I hurt you so much” she admitted, feeling guiltier than ever. Her mind was being tortured with that thought and her stomach was formed into the tightest knot she had ever felt.

Yoongi’s heart dropped. What had he done to her? “Don’t say that Nefeli, it’s really not your fault...” he caressed her hair soothingly, trying to convince her.

But he was doing nothing. The young girl couldn’t stop blaming herself for what was happening and what she had caused in Yoongi’s heart and the happy memories that they now were dismal she had reminded him. It was all her fault, she was sure about it.

Droplets had stopped rolling down her cheeks and her nose was now unblocked, but she couldn’t help but feel guilty “If I wasn’t there tho, nothing of that would have happened and you wouldn’t have remembered all these, I am so sorry Yoongi” she whispered, playing with her fingers out of nervousness and regret.

“No Nefeli, it’s not like that! Haeun was, is, and will ever be in my heart and I will never forget her, but that didn’t give me the right to be a jerk to you!” he frowned his eyebrows together, his eyes pleading for her to believe him, and his hands gripping hers as he was trying to persuade her it was not her fault.

They stayed like that for a while. No one was talking and no one was doing anything at all. Yoongi was staring at Nefeli and Nefeli was staring at Yoongi.

Until them both burst into loud giggles.

I guess no one is good at starting competitions.

It was the first time Nefeli could hear Yoongi laugh. And he has a really cute laugh. His white teeth were making his gummy smile shining more as his shoulders were bouncing a little from the giggles. His eyes had formed into thin lines and his nose had scrunched up.

They continued giggling like maniacs and as the seconds were passing by, they would die down, but the smiles on their faces would remain still. Yoongi was like a whole another person when he was laughing. ‘He should be like that more often’ she thought.

“Nefeli, I am really sorry for what was happening these days. I was really cruel towards you” Yoongi apologized once again, his smile not leaving his face.

But there was something in that smile.

Something Nefeli hadn’t seen before.

There was pureness. Softness. Happiness. Emotions like them.

“It’s alright Yoongi, really” she smiled fondly and rubbed his arm soothingly.

Nefeli had completely forgotten that Yoongi was so rude to her since the day she moved in. She could now see a sweet boy who had completely regretted what he had done and was tryna make it up for her really hard. She had completely forgotten that he was a ghost. She was seeing him like an ordinary boy who was really pissed off at her. It was really hard for her to get used to living with supernatural creatures when she never believed in them.

Yoongi, on the other hand, was feeling guiltier than ever. He had made her wanna leave the house she was tryna to buy for so many months and she made her be afraid of him. At first, that was what he wanted to do, but then, when his friends told him how Nefeli was feeling, Yoongi felt something breaking inside him. He knew he must apologize and convinced her not to leave like that.

“Please, don’t leeeeeave” he dragged his words in a way like he was begging her to stay. Which practically was exactly what he was doing.

Nefeli chuckled and rubbed his head affectionately “For the last time Yoongi, I am not gonna leave, don’t worry” she said sweetly as he placed his head on her chest, in between her legs.

The two young adults cuddled together and if anyone saw them, their jaws would drop on the ground. Yoongi had always been a cold boy towards everyone except his friends and the fact that now he was showing his well-hid affectionate face to someone except them was more surprising and unexpected.

However, there was only one thing that was now torturing her poor mind. Something she couldn’t forget. That voice that night. That night it was Yoongi who was... tickling her. The same cold boy who was against tickling, that night he was tickling her.

“Yoongi,” Nef asked and he just hummed in response, not meeting his gaze “Why were you tickling my knees that night?” she asked, feeling a blush rising on her face.

“I told you, you remind me of Haeun. I felt like I was tickling her” he said casually, playing with the hem of her hoodie.

Nefeli felt so weird at that moment. She felt flattered and loved by Yoongi and that means a lot to her, but at the same time, she felt like she was replacing her in his heart. And that was something she never wanted to do.

Yoongi continued looking down at his fingers which were still playing with her blouse, when a wide smirk appeared on his face “I know you liked it” he asked, not even looking at her face, taking Nefeli by surprise.

“H-How do y’know that?!” she exclaimed shocked and brutally stopped playing with his hair.

Yoongi just chuckled and shook his head “I can hear people's souls. When someone is happy, I can hear a sweet-sounded bell coming from them. When someone is feeling sorrow, I hear a weird noise, like it’s screaming for help. Every feeling has its different noise. And that’s only when I allow myself to hear it, it’s my own special power as a ghost” he explained like nothing was happening like it was the most normal thing in the world. Nef stayed like that, staring at him with wide eyes and gasped mouth.

“Oh” was the only thing she said, as she felt embarrassment rising inside her. She had never told anyone that she likes being tickled and even if someone had understood something, no one had ever pointed it out. And now it was like someone was exposing her to herself and she didn’t know what to do.

Suddenly the duo felt two more presence behind their backs watching them. Nefeli and Yoongi looked behind them and they both smiled brightly at Hoseok and Taehyung who appeared out of nowhere, smiling softly and sweetly from ear to ear. Taehyung was leaning on the door frame with arms crossed in front of his chest and Hoseok was resting his torso on the wall next to the door, hands in his pockets.  

“Ahh, I see you two are getting along after all” Hoseok exclaimed proudly, taking a seat next to Yoongi and Taehyung following close, and sitting near Nef’s feet.

Yoongi and Nefeli looked at each other smiling and nodded happily. Ahh, who could imagine that an iceberg could get along with a warm girl like her? No one.

“I told you that they would become close after all” Taehyung nudged Hoseok’s arm and they both laughed.

“Apparently Yoongi is a nice company” Nefeli admitted and smiled at Yoongi who was still playing with that hem.

“Don’t tell me you are gonna forget us and stick with him!” Hoseok poked her sides fastly making her fall back with giggles. Her sides have always been probably one of her worsts spots and pokes are somehow heaven/hell for her. They tickle her so much.

“Nohohahahaha I promise ahahaha!” she giggled loudly and she tried to grab his wrists just when he stopped. However, Nef didn’t really want him to stop. After all that crying and heavy aura, she wanted something to lighten up the mood.

The other two boys were smiling smugly at the scene in front of them. Amusement was formed in their eyes and they were grinning from ear to ear. It was the first time Nefeli could see amusement in Yoongi’s eyes and it was probably the best thing she had ever seen. His eyes were sparkling and his cute smile was making his nose scrunching up a little. He was adorable under his cold mask.

However, his next words sent a shiver down her spine and she felt her face heating up in embarrassment.

“She loves it, I can hear her soul giggling” Yoongi smirked and the rest of the boys copied him.

“Is that so Neffie? You wanna get tickled?” Hoseok smirked down at the girl who was now lying on her back on the bed and started poking all around her sides again “That’s great!”

Taehyung felt so happy to see his friend smiling so bright after so long time. It had been many dedicates since they died and he and never seen Yoongi being so happy. Maybe that girl was a blessing after all.

He laughed loudly as he saw Hoseok trying to battle the young girl’s hands which were desperately trying to grab his wrists and giggling like a maniac. So he did the only thing he could think of. He grabbed her flying hands and pinned them above her head and sat on them, making everything 10 times worse for her.

“Nahahahaha lehehemme gohohoho!” she giggled loudly, shaking her head left and right from the ticklish sensations.

Tae wiggled fingers in front of her face bringing to the surface louder giggles. That was the most torturous thing someone could ever do. It tickles her without even touching her “But I thought you liked it” he teased from above her as put his wiggling fingers on her bare armpits, running them up and down softly like a feather.

“Come on Yoongz, join the fun” Hoseok called Yoongi by his nickname to give him more motivation. Everyone knew how much it means to him and they wanted to make him snap out of his thoughts for some minutes.

“Sure” Yoongi smirked and sat on her shins, clawing behind her knees the same way he was clawing that night, getting the same giggles he got then.

Nefeli was giggling like a maniac, not knowing what to try and stop first. It was like tiny bugs were running up and down her skin. Loud giggles were echoing the whole house as she was shaking her head left and right while the boys were only smirking widely down at her.

“Nahahahaha!” she giggled ringingly as the pokes on her sides, the circles on her armpits, and the clawing on her knees became faster. She kicked her knees up and down, trying to stop the feeling but nothing seem to work.

“Aww look how much you are giggling! You must really like this, right Yoongi? What do you hear?” Hoseok teased, poking her ribs fastly.

“Ah I cannot concentrate on her inside noises Hobi, her giggles are too loud” Yoongi replied mischievously as he dug fastly behind her knee, sending her into louder fits of giggles, almost hysterical “See what I mean?”

“She is so ticklish, it’s adorable!” a cute voice sounded from behind them and they both snapped their heads towards it.

Jungkook stood there smiling softly his famous bunny grin Jimin, Namjoon, and Jin who were copying his smile. They had heard all the laughter and they had come there to check what was happening. And to say they were surprised to see Yoongi in that position was an understatement. It was like a weight left over their shoulders.

“Ahh, I still remember her first day here when I poked her sides, how much she was giggling with a simple touch” the bunny-toothed guy continued as he folded his arms and leaned back on the wall, watching Nef squirming under their devilish fingers.

“WHAT?!” she cried but fell back again to hysterical giggles as Hoseok moved his hands to her ribs “It was youhouhouhou?!” she kicked her feet and legs more as her soft skin was being tortured.

“Ah yeah, I saw it too, she is just so sensitive! I bet a single feather could tickle her!” Jin exclaimed and giggled as he heard her giggles becoming loud laughter when Hoseok shook his fingertips on the middle of her tummy.

Namjoon shook his head at her ticklishness “Let’s test it then” he said and did something Nefeli could have never imagined; he moved his hand in a circled motion and a soft, white, long feather appeared.

Nefeli’s eyes widened for a second as she saw him approaching her with the feather in his hand but Taehyung who was now digging into her armpits didn’t let her. The sudden feeling sent her in new fits of pure laughter and a nice shiver down her spine.

“Nanananahahahaha!” she cried and shook her head, thrashing around as Namjoon raised her blouse more and the fresh air hit her warm skin.

“Already giggling girl? I didn’t even touch you yet” the young lad chuckled at her panicked expression and twirled the soft item in between his fingers “Ohokay okay, stop for a sec” he ordered the three boys and they immediately stopped, letting her breathe for a brief second.

Key phrase; a brief second.

Taehyung, Hoseok, and Yoongi had her still pinned down and the other three boys circled them to see what was gonna happen “Watch this” Namjoon smirked widely and kneeled next to her side, lowering his hand towards her tummy.

“Nonononono Namjoon please nonononahahahahaha Namjoohoon nahahahahahaha!” her giggles came out screamingly and she tried desperately to shot her arms down as she shot her arms down but she couldn’t. Those giants were keeping her pinned down for good. Namjoon dipped the feather in her bellybutton and twirled it around, destroying every nerve she had in her body from how much it tickled.

It was really surprising because she knew her bellybutton was not even ticklish when someone tickles her in there with their finger. But the feather... Oh gosh, it makes her feel so sensitive and melts her like ice under the warm sun. The giggles were running out of her mouth like a waterfall and her head was shaking from side to side fastly.

“Wow, even a simple feather tickles you? You are so ticklish Neffie!” Jin giggled along with her and squeezed her side twice, earning a giggly scream from Nefeli “Oh, too ticklish sides? This will come in handy” he pointed out smirking and everyone laughed, agreeing with the oldest.

“Agh plehehehase nahahahahahaha!” she thrashed around and tried to escape the tickles but nothing could stop them from attacking her mercilessly.

All of sudden, she felt Hoseok getting up and Yoongi taking his place before she could even react. Yoongi traced softly his index nail from her elbow down to her hipbone and up to her elbow again and again and again repeatedly while the feather was still twirling around her bellybutton. Never slower, never faster. Up and down. Again and again. It was driving her crazy!

“Mm I think her feet need a massage, don’t you think Kook?” Taehyung grinned widely at the youngest one, who simply smirked and rushed to get one of her tiny feet.

“I’ll get the other one!” Jimin jumped on his feet happily and grabbed gently her other ankle, sitting it on his lap and Jungkook did that same.

“NO! Dahahahan’t you dahahahare!” she cried before they even start, knowing from experience that her feet are one of her worst spots along with her sides and her ribs.

“We haven’t even touched you yet, chill Nef!” Jimin laughed and wiggled his fingers just above her sole to tease her even more.

“NO!” she yelled in between her giggles, causing every boy to stop and look at her with wide eyes.

The ponytail she had was now half-destroyed and pieces of hair were all over her grinning face. However, a small pout appeared on her face, replacing the happing face she had some seconds ago.

Namjoon clicked his fingers and the feather disappeared, Taehyung let her arms go and Hoseok stopped smiling. Instead, a pout formed on his lips, increasing how cute he already looked but at the same time, a hint of worry could be found in his eyes.

“B-But you like it...” Yoongi mumbled under his breath and looked around his friends to understand what was happening but no one was moving. They were all waiting for Nefeli’s reaction.

‘Oh no... I didn’t mean it! What can I do now? I cannot ask them to start again! Poor Yoongi, he looks hurt, I didn’t wanna hurt him! Look at him...’ Nefeli thought to herself, the pout she had on her lips growing bigger, still laying down and arms collapsed on her torso.

However, she felt a weird tingling before a chuckle of amusement came from above her tho and everyone’s heads snapped towards Taehyung “She didn’t want us to stop, it was only a reflex, she just said it” he chuckled again, this time everyone else doing the same.

Realization hit her when she understood what Yoongi said about powers. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one who had powers. Everyone had!

“Is that true Nef?” Jungkook asked, a hint of amusement playing in his as he held her ankle higher and tighter, careful not to hurt her.

“Wha- How do you know that?!” she exclaimed with wide eyes and everyone else laughed at her.

“I can read minds, little one, this is my special power” he smirked as he saw her eyes growing even bigger. That was the tingling she felt.

“I can move things with my mind” Namjoon explained “Hoseok moves faster than light, Jin heals wounds, Jungkook transforms into various creatures and Jimin cheers people up without them knowing” her jaw dropped to the ground as soon as she heard their powers. They were all so different but at the same time so unique and amazing!

However, Nefeli was concentrated on something else. She wanted tickles. And she wanted Yoongi to be happy. She was feeling like she had hurt him. She just learned how much it means to him but yet he stopped them brutally because of a stupid fear. She had never been tickled on her feet before, but she knows this is one of her most ticklish spots. Even the thought tickles her.

Yoongi and Taehyung shared a knowing look and grinned widely, signaling at Jungkook and Jimin to get her feet while she was still didn’t expect them to move.

Electric shots hit her body as she felt five fingers with sharp blunt nails scribbling all over each one of her hypersensitive feet. Nefeli screamed loudly and fell into hysterical laughter, thrashing around and punching whichever angle on the bed she could so as to stop the torturous sensations.

“AGH NAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” she screamed loudly and everyone tried to cover their ears because of how loud it was, chuckling at her.

Jimin and Jungkook looked at each other, understanding that she was too sensitive there and they had gone too much since the beginning so they slowed down, enough for her to fell into hysterical giggles once again.

She could have never imagined her feet would be THAT ticklish and a simple finger could make her scream so loud.

However, to say she wasn’t enjoying that, would be a lie. She loves playfulness and she enjoys being tickled even tho she doesn’t really know why. She could feel butterflies in her stomach even tho she wasn’t in love with anyone and she could feel that she wanted more.

Yoongi tho sensed that and gave a nod to Taehyung to pin her arms again, sitting on them and everyone else positioned themselves around the squirming girl.

Jin sat next to her side while Namjoon clicked his fingers and appeared the feather again, taking a seat on her other side. Hoseok sat again on her shins and Yoongi on her hips while Jungkook and Jimin remained in their places.

The eldest one poked once her side softly, earning a mini scream in between her giggles which made everyone smile at her.

Hoseok tho didn’t start easy on her. He dug fastly his fingers behind her knees as she squealed and bucked her hip in the air, making Yoongi look like he was riding a wild horse.

Taehyung did the same to her armpits while her feet were being scribbled softly and her side was being kneaded by Jin.

Namjoon had dipped again the feather in her bellybutton and was drawing circles in it fastly, not missing to draw some around it before while with his other hand, he was squeezing her other side.

Yoongi on the other hand was doing everything he could to make her laugh as much as she can. With one hand he was drawing fast circles on her hipbone and was squeezing under her bellybutton, her lower tummy.

Nefeli was sent in the loudest laughter she had ever experienced. She was feeling like electricity was hitting her body. But it wasn’t simple electricity. It was an extremely ticklish one!

Everything seemed to be bearable till that moment. Till that torturous moment when all the teasing started.

“Aww look at you! You are so cute!” Namjoon teased, dipping further the feather in her bellybutton. She blushed really hard, harder than she expected.

Nefeli shook her head from side to side and laughed loudly, knowing that this wouldn’t stop the feeling. At least she tried to. She had never experienced any tool and now that a feather was tickling her, she could say that it was feeling like Heaven and Hell at the same time. Too soft yet too ticklish.

“NAHAHAHA AHAHAHAM NAHAHAHAT!” she laughed loudly, unable to open her eyes to look at any of them.

“Then why do you look like it?” Jimin teased from down there on her foot, pinching and wiggling each and every one of her toes.

Jungkook on the other hand had softly pulled back the ones on her other foot and he was scribbling fastly on her poor sole, setting on fire Nefeli’s nerves. Her feet are probably the most ticklish ones someone can meet. Even a soft massage can get her for good.

Suddenly she felt jabs and light squeezes on her other side. Nefeli would have fell off of the couch if the boys weren’t blocking her from how much it caught her off guard.

Namjoon. That evil ghost had used his powers and was moving the feather with his mind while he was squeezing with both hands her side.

“GAH NAMJAHAHAHAN NAHAHAHA!” she arched her back. Jinn saw it as an opportunity to trace her spine up and down, making her arch her back even more.

“There too? You are so sensitive Neffie!” Yoongi teased, squeezing fastly her hips. Yoongi had the widest smile the boys had ever seen. No one in all those years had made him smile so much. If his parents could see him, they would be truly proud and happy.

And this was the moment Nef got to experience Hoseok’s powers for the first time. What I mean by that? Lemme explain it then. Hoseok used his super-speed to scribble fastly her inner thighs, sending her into fits of really loud laughter.

“HOSEAHAHAHAHAHAK!” she tried to shut her thighs together so she would stop him, but she did nothing at all. She was only torturing herself even more.

“Yes baby girl?” the young girl blushed at the new nickname but she couldn’t help her body thrashing around from the new feeling.

“DAHAHAHAHAN’T TEAHAHAHAHAHASE MEAHAHAHA!” of course she didn’t mean it. Nefeli loves being teased and even tease people.

Her mouth had started aching already from how much she was laughing but she was enjoying as much as the boys.

“But whyyyy? You love it!” Jin teased, giving multiple kisses on her bare side. If Nefeli couldn’t stand at all was kisses. Even kisses on her face and cheeks tickle her.

“NAHAHAHAHA NAHAHAHAT KISSES AHAHAHAHAHA!” she wiggled like a worm, tryna escape the tiny kisses which felt like bugs were running up and down her warm skin.

“Aww someone is sensitive to kisses huh? How interesting” Yoongi smirked and bet down, kissing all over her belly as Jin kept going kissing her side.

A wave of electricity hit all over her body from her neck down to her feet and she let out a scream and started thrashing around, begging for some mercy.

“AGH PLEAHAHAHAHAHASE!” Nefeli hid her head in her shoulder as everyone cooed down at her.

“Please what? Please more? Well... We are not planning on stopping anytime soon, don’t worry” Jimin wiggled his eyebrows as he scratched the base of her toes.

Bad move.

Nefeli kicked out, almost hitting him somewhere she wasn’t supposed to, earning a squeak from Jimin. “Now who told you that you can kick me? You are in for it now!” he sat on her ankle and clicked his fingers, appearing a long, blue paintbrush.

He brushed softly yet fastly all over her hypersensitive foot. Everyone smirked widely as they heard her laughter going almost hysterical.

The six boys shared a look of happiness as they saw Yoongi trying to ride excitedly the roaring girl and he was still kissing airy her belly.

“Aw look at you! A little worm!” Taehyung whispered in her neck as he had bent down before he blew a short raspberry.

“TAEAHAHAHA!” she shrieked and bucked once again her hips in the air.

“Neffie!” he mocked her while her clawed on her hollows with his fingers.

The feather in her bellybutton was still twirling and Namjoon was still squeezing her side faster and faster as the moments were passing by. Lemme tell you that every hair on her body was straight now.

“You have such a soft skin little one,” he said as he poked her sides faster than the speed of light. He was really careful so it wouldn’t hurt her but only tickle her while Jimin moved the brush on her toes.

“AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” her laughter at this point was able to break a glass.

“Yaaaaa don’t scream so much Nefeli! We are not killing you!” Jungkook teased while he was tracings multiple patterns on her sol non-stop.

The young girl couldn’t stop smiling and laughing her heart out. If she was ticklish before, now she was feeling way more sensitive that day. Not because she was being tickled by ghosts but because for some reason their fingers were touching some of her most sensitive nerves on her already too ticklish body.

“Look at this happy, gummy smile!” Yoongi teased and brought his fingers higher, reaching her ribs.

Nefeli let out an inhuman scream and fell into louder laughter as his fingers touched the skin of her hypersensitive ribs, pinching and massaging them. She didn’t know she had THAT ticklish ribs, and it tickled her way more than she could ever expect.

“Whoa, I think you hit the jackpot dude” Jin teased, digging deeper in her side, sending her in a new round of ear-piercing loud laughter.

“NAHAHAHAHA NAHAHAT THEAHAHAHARE!” she roared, not really knowing who she was talking to. Jin on her side? Yoongi on her ribs? Taehyung on the hollows of her armpits? Jungkook and Jimin in her feet? Hoseok behind her knees? The paintbrush on her poor toes? Or the feather in her bellybutton?

Nefeli heard fingers clicking from above her, but she chose to ignore it. However, a buzzing sound made her realize what it was. A toothbrush.

“GAH TAHAHAHAHAHAE NAHAHAHAHA!” she cried laughingly when the tiny toothbrush touched the soft skin of her armpits, sending her in fits of hysterics.

The toothbrush traveled from the flesh skin of her forearm to the sensitive place of her hollows in circle moves, setting on fire her nerves and bringing to the surface mostly screams.

“Agh, my ear!” Jimin complained playfully, playing with her tiny toes like they were piano.

“Okay, let’s count your ribs, I think you miss some” Yoongi smirked widely and before Nefeli could say anything else, the boy had already started massaging her lowest ribs “Oneeeee”

The young girl threw her head back in laughter, unable to even move. The rest of the boys had slowed down a little to the point they were only teasing her body with soft tickles so they could enjoy the scene in front of them.

“Twooooo” he moved to her second-lowest ribs as her laughter turned hiccup.

“Threeeee”

“PLEAHAHAHAHAHAHASE!” she shrieked and arched her back again, shutting her eyes tightly.

“Fouuuur”

“COUNT FASTER AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” she begged as her tired body collapsed on the mattress again.

“Oh you want me to count faster?” his evil grin grew bigger and brought his fingers on her lowest one again. Then he did something truly unexpected “Onetwothreefourfivesixseveneight” he poked all over her ribs, without a specific order.

She had seen before on Tumblr people counting other’s ribs while they were tickling them, but she had never seen that anywhere before, and of course she had never experienced it.

After that tho, as soon as he finished, he bent down and nibbled on them. That was the worst thing someone could do to her. Nibbles. They were driving her crazy, out of her mind!

Jin, Taehyung, and Namjoon looked at each other and they gave a signal to each other. However, they didn’t do anything... They simply vanished... She was still unable to shot her arms down tho... Nefeli got confused but she couldn’t express it. She couldn’t even say a word, only shriek, and laugh.

However, she soon felt fast nibbles on her sides and neck. Yoongi and Hoseok almost fell off of her from how much she exploded and thrashed around. She literally shrieked louder than she ever had before and erupted into hysterical laughter.

The nibbles were mixed with raspberries and giggles from the boys could be heard as a background. Their breaths were tickling her as well and were sending shivers down her spine.

“PLEAHAHAHAHA NAHAHAHAHA MERCAHAHAHAHA!” she begged, unable to form a whole sentence.

However, she knew that she couldn’t take any longer. She desperately needed a break. She wanted to experience more, but if she didn’t take a break soon, she would fade away.

“BREAK! BREAHAHAHAHAKE!” she cried and fell into silent laughter, shaking her head from side to side.

Taehyung, who read her thoughts, gave a signal to everyone else and everyone stopped immediately, pulling away from her.

Yoongi’s eyes widened and he felt anxiety rising inside him. Had he hurt her? Had we gone too far? Had he made her feel uncomfortable?

However, as soon as he heard her giggly soul, relief filled him.

Nefeli curled up in a small ball as soon as everyone gets off of her and the items vanished. Yoongi pulled her onto his lap and rubbed her back soothingly as she rested her head onto his chest, still giggling airily.

Jungkook clicked his finger and a glass of water appeared. He pushed the flying glass towards her lightly and that stopped in front of her. She chuckled lightly, still not believing that this was actually happening, and took it gladly, drinking it all.

“Are you alright? Did we go too harsh?” Namjoon asked with concern.

“No, don’t worry, I am completely fine” she gave them a big smile and snuggled more onto Yoongi.

Yoongi on the other hand could feel happiness rushing in him and a wide smile appeared on his face. He remembered how he used to cuddle with Haeun after tickles and she used to snuggle into him like Nefeli was right now. ‘Ah, Haeunnie... I miss you so much, sissy’

Yoongi felt a tingling and immediately understood what had happened. He raised his vision and he saw Taehyung looking at him with a sympathetic smile. Yoongi nodded at him and they both sighed deeply.

“You have to admit that you loved it tho” Jimin winked at Nef. She blushed deeply and hid her face in Yoongi’s chest.

“No, I cannot deny it” she mumbled and everyone’s face lit up.

“And Yoongi seemed to enjoy it too, right?” Jin pointed out.

All the eyes snapped towards him and he looked down shyly, nodding. To be honest, he loved it. And he loved even more that he made Nefeli happy.

‘Should I ask for more? Not too intensive ones t-tickles... Wow why is it really hard to pronounce th-’ she stopped her thoughts when she felt that tingle again. Taehyung.

She looked at him and she saw a smirk formed on his face as he leaned closer to Jungkook and Jimin, whispering something.

She gulped when smirks formed on the two as well and they turned their heads towards her. Did he tell them that I want more? They were up to something.

Before they could do anything, she was snatched from Yoongi’s lap and was placed in between Jin and Yoongi who held each one of her arms collapsed on her torso.

Jungkook then sent her a flying kiss and in a flash of light, he had vanished.

Nef’s widened as she looked at the boys with question “W-Where did he go?” she asked. However, she didn’t have enough time to react when Jimin sat on her ankles, pulling back her toes, fully exposing her poor, bare soles.

“What are you dohohoing?” she giggled loudly, sensing that something was up and that something was gonna happen to her feet, but she couldn’t understand what.

Surprisingly, she heard high-pitched giggles coming from down her feet and she felt something running up and down her poor soles and toes, and in between them. Something like a... Bug.

“Ahahahahaha whahahat ihihihihis thahahahat?!” she giggled loudly and kicked her knees up and down as she was desperately trying to set herself free.

“Be careful! It’s Jungkook!” Namjoon warned as he saw her tryna clap her feet together.

“WHAT?!” she exclaimed in between her giggles.

“He transformed into a ladybug!” they all explained at her, wide smirks on their faces. And as if it wasn’t already too much, Yoongi, Hoseok, and Namjoon started poking all over her sides and belly while Jin and Taehyung were tryna keep her arms down on her torso.

“NAHAHAHA PLEAHAHAHASE NAHAHAHAOOOO!” she yelled in between her laughter and tried to squirm away, but at the same time not to move her legs and feet, afraid that she would hurt Jungkook.

Jimin on the other hand was helping Jungkook by scribbling all over her soles as the youngest member was running between, on, and under her toes, sending her into fits of hysterics.

As her most sensitive spots were being attacked, she couldn’t help but scream when Jin dug in her ribs from behind her, falling onto him.

“Coochie coochie coo Nef!” Hoseok whispered in her ear, sending shivers down her spine while Taehyung was tracing his finger on it up and down, now and then scribbling her lower back as well, and making Nefeli arch it.

“NAHAHAHAHAHA NAHAHAHAT THE WAHAHAHAHARDS!” ugh those three words are literally the worst tease she can ever receive. It drives her crazy and makes her shy at the same time!

“No? Seriously you cannot take it? Ah, I will keep that in mind” Yoongi teased while kneading fastly her side. Electric shots hit her body once again as she shook her head frantically from side to side, and trying with all her might not to move her legs.

“PLEAHAHAHAHAHASE NAHAHAHAHAHA!” she laughed loudly, dipping her nails and fingers in the soft mattress.

Jungkook had focused in between her toes, which were pulled back by Jimin with one hand, while his other hand was scribbling her feet. Jungkook’s soft giggles could be heard as a background along with the rest of the boys’ louder ones.

Yoongi and Namjoon continued kneading fastly her sides as Jin was digging in her ribs while everyone was cooing at her for how cute she was.

“Ah I think you absolutely love it, you are not even telling us to stop” Hoseok whispered once again in her ear before blowing a huge raspberry on her neck.

“NAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” Nefeli shrieked and threw her head back in laughter, as she fell onto Jin, completely exhausted as her laughter turned silent.

However, Hoseok was wrong.

Sweat was sliding down her face and tears had started rolling down her cheeks. Her hair was messy and her breath was stolen away. Her laughter had turned hoarse and her tummy and throat were burning.

‘N-no more...’ she thought, more like begging them to stop, in hope Taehyung would hear her thoughts.

And he did.

She felt the tingling and then Taehyung’s fingers stopping.

“Okay I think that was enough let her breath,” he told the others as they all stopped. They all do as Taehyung says since he can read minds.

Everyone let her go once again and Jungkook returned to his official look as a person. She curled up in a small ball as Namjoon was rubbing her back soothingly and Yoongi was putting pieces of hair behind her ears and massaging her head.

“Are you alright?” they asked her for the second time today and she nodded straight away as Jungkook gave her some water again.

“Ihihihi- I guess I reached my limits” she explained and sat up again, drinking the water. All the eyes were on her, making her shy.

She felt butterflies in her stomach as she thought of what just happened and she realized she had just been tickled by... ghosts. But she didn’t really care. She had fun. And she had made new friends.

“Yoongi, are you okay?” she asked Yoongi, catching him by surprise. How could a girl he had met some days before be so sweet and affectionate towards him when he had been an asshole to her?

He felt a smile appearing on his face as he nodded and kissed her forehead. He hadn’t done that since... Haeun’s death “Thanks for that,” he said and Nefeli copied his warm smile.

Yes, he was thankful. Nefeli had helped him realize something. He had made him realize that life goes on. Even after death. That we may lose people from our lives... but new ones are coming. Our favorite ones are staying in our hearts whether they are alive or not. And if they are dead, we must not stay stuck in their memory. We must move one. We will never forget them, but it will take us nowhere if we cry and refuse to move on from a situation we cannot change at all.

“So you are not gonna leave?” Hoseok asked with pleading eyes, fear in them. None of the boys wanted Nef to leave.

The young girl chuckled softly and rolled her eyes playfully at them “Of course I am not gonna leave!”

All the boys cheered and tackled her into a group hug as huge grins of happiness were reaching everyone’s ears.

That move then was definitely the best decision she had ever taken, and she wouldn’t change it for anything in the world...

[khaleesiofalicante]

OK I’M HERE! I READ IT! I’M LATE BUT IT DID IT! SERIOUSLY REGRETTING NOT READING IT EARLIER! FUCK SLEEP WHO NEEDS SLEEP!

I LOVE THE TWINS SO MUCH SHCDUJUHKFDUISVFDHYDEBCSJ

LEXI TELLING EVERYONE THAT SHE CAN TALK TO RAZIEL BESTIE YOU DOING GREAT!!!

“Lying is wrong!” Selena had told her sister.

“Yes, but cookies are delicious,” Lexi had pointed out, munching on them.

“Daddy!” Selena had said. “Tell her it’s wrong.”

“Lying is wrong!” Daddy had said, but she had barely heard a word since his mouth had been stuffed with cookies too.

LYING IS OKAY IF YOU GET COOKIES

She did not care much for jewellery, especially expensive ones. But Magnus had given this to her – and she didn’t want to take it off.

She combed her long hair and tied it into a high ponytail. If she was going shopping with Magnus, she had to look her best.

It was fine. There were worse ways to spend your tenth birthday. She got to spend it with Magnus. She was not going to complain about it.

AWWW SHE’S LITERALLY MAGNUS’ NO.1 FAN UHSDUCSDUYSDCFUYKSVCD

“Oh!” Selena had beamed. “Like Magnus! He always looks so magnificent!”

“Sure,” David had said, his ears pink in the cold. “That’s who I was thinking about.”

I don’t know much but I do know that his ears were not pink because of the cold and he was not thinking about Magnus.

Selena remembered wishing she caught the fever so Magnus could take care of her too.

Same- I MEAN WOULDN’T WE ALL??

ALSO, MAX STAYING WITH DAVID WHEN HE WAS SICK DWHYDYGUFEYUKGFYEUGFEWUYG

Oh, Jocelyn died.

Rip I guess?

OOOO THEY INVITED THE COHORT TO TALK ABOUT THIS STUFF BECAUSE SHADOWHUNTERS ARE DYING OF MUNDANE ILLNESSES

I say we kill them.

Selena had never felt anger like that before. She had wanted to drown that awful man in the lake she floated around in her dreams.

BESTIE SAME

“Lettuce?”

“Yes?”

“No screaming when I show you the gift,” Daddy said. “We have visitors at the institute.”

“Is it a sword?” Lexi asked.

“No,” Daddy replied.

“Then I won’t scream,” her twin shrugged at him.

AHUEDCHGUHFEWUIFUIRUI SHE’S SUCH A HERONDALE I LOVE-

PUPPY OH MY GOD IT’S A PUPPY!!!!!!!!

“IT’S A PUPPY! IT’S A PUPPY! OH MY GOD, IT’S A PUPPY! DAVID GOT US A PUPPY!”

Her twin had jumped – no, leaped – off the counter and dashed towards their father, who was holding a small grey puppy in his arms.

“I AM SO SORRY I TOLD YOU I DON’T WANT YOU, LITTLE FRIEND. I LOVE YOU SO MUCH. I WILL PROTECT YOU WITH MY TWENTY TOY SWORDS!”

“Lexi, stop screaming!” Mommy said. “You will wake everyone up.”

“EVERYONE WAKE UP AND COME MEET MY PUPPY!” Lexi screamed even louder.

I LOVE HER SO MUCH DHJBSDCHJBFSJSFEDSF

She drew the unlock rune on the door the way her daddy did on his office door and sneaked into the Consul’s office.

I’m not even surprised anymore-

AWW, SELENA GOING THERE TO LOOK AT THE MURAL OF IDRIS. YOU’LL GO THERE ONE DAY BESTIE I PROMISE

ANJALI IS HERE Y’ALL!!!!!!!

Anjali walked over to her father’s desk, sat down on the chair, and put her feet on the table.

The Inquisitor’s table.

Only she could get away with something like that.

THERE’S MY FAVORITE PERSON EVER Y’ALL

EVEN ALEC IS WARY OF HER UHJSDVCUHSVDUUHSVUHSUIVGRVSR

Selena loved Idris with all her heart. But she knew Idris was not a perfect place.

Any place that was mean to Magnus could never be perfect.

EXACTLY

“Well, it turned out well for me,” Anjali winked. “Now when he gives me shit for my ‘bad judgement’ I just throw his dating history in his face. Dated Zara Dearborn? Broke up with Cristina Rosales? Yikes. Could not be me.”

BESTIE YES! HOW CAN DIEGO JUDGE PEOPLE’S JUDGEMENT WHEN HIS DATING HISTORY LOOKS LIKE THAT???

“Just because he looks like a movie star, it doesn’t mean everything should be handed to him,” Anjali answered, rolling her eyes. “Entitled piece of shit.”

You know I kinda ship them-

“Dang, girl. No practice swords for you, huh. You just straight up went for the mortal sword. I like your style.”

“Uncle Kit!” Selena yelled and ran towards him.

KIT KIT KIT KIT KIT KIT KIT KIT HISDUIDEUYKFSFUS7IKKIYGVFSDLY7TKGVFEDYTGFECYGU

ASH OMG ASH IS HERE TOO!!!!

"some man called Anus" BYE-

PARABATAI KIT AND ASH OMG

The whole pre-meeting prep is kinda giving me pre-wedding vibes idk how to explain but the whole rush and organizing that day and making calls and stuff.

“Ash was very beautiful. After Magnus of course” “She liked Aunt Izzy best. After Magnus of course,” GIRL HAS HER PRIORITIES STRAIGHT

"How bad can the cohort be?" well you see-

“Is that the cohort?” Selena asked, her voice a whisper.

“No, that’s a bitch.”

Yup. that’s accurate

“Is he here?”

“Whom?” Daddy asked.

“Alec Lightwood,” the woman asked.

“You mean the Consul?” Daddy asked.

“I meant Alec.”

“The Consul?”

“Alec!”

“Who also happens to be the Consul?”

“Fine, yes, the Consul!” the woman sounded impatient. “Is he here yet?”

It’s Lightwood-Bane bitch

AWWW SELENA DESCRIBING ALEC AS REGAL THAT’S SO CUTE

And accurate-

IT’S THE SAME BLUE AGAIN

Selena noticed her father was looking very emotional. She couldn’t blame him.

“My liege,” Daddy bowed deeply.

“Cut it out,” the Consul smacked him. “What’s the status?”

Yup, that’s them. Also same Jace.Same.

“I always expected the offspring of these two to be like…”

“Like what?” Daddy demanded.

At that moment, Lexi ran past the hall, yelling and screaming as she carried a toy sword in one hand and Dorian Gray in another.

“MAKE WAY FOR ALEXANDRA THE GREAT AND HER LOYAL COMPANION DORIAN GRAY! CHRISTOPHER! BRING ME MY OTHER NINETEEN SWORDS! WE MUST SET FIRE TO THE EVIL EMPEROR AND SAVE THE PRINCESS!”

“Like that,” Magnus chuckled.

Will in the afterlife, wiping tears: A true Herondale.

“I hope so too, Magnus,” Selena said shyly.

The Consul frowned at that. “It’s Uncle Magnus to you.”

Selena ignored that. The Consul was not the boss of her.

Well, technically he was the boss of everyone. But still!

UHNJCSDUHUSDHSVUDVUD SELENA

Do not remind me. I would like to remain blissfully unaware that not all of them are mortal :D

The Consul grumbled and turned to Mommy. “You were right to name her Fairchild. She is going to be a pain in my ass.”

“Hey!” Daddy covered Selena's ears again. “It’s like you guys didn't get my monthly newsletter on language modification!”

“No one here reads your newsletter, Jace,” Aunt Izzy rolled her eyes.

"I do," the Consul put up his hand.

Of course, you do Alec. I can totally see the LBAF gang defying Alec left and right UHKGXUYCSUYGCSYCFSED

“Izzy, how many times!” the Consul grumbled. “No placing bets on the children. Besides, everyone knows it’s going to be Alexandra.”

“Hey!” her parents said at the same time.

“What are y’all doing here?” Lexi came running then, cause her superpower was to magically appear whenever someone was talking about her. “We have shit to do! Come on!”

“Not helping, Lettuce!” Daddy shook his head. “Clary, take the lead.”

Of course, it’s gonna be Lexi.

FHUJCSDUHSDUHJ SELENA NOT UNDERSTANDING THE INNUENDO MAGNUS MADE LMAO NOT IN FRONT OF THE KIDS

“My name is Alexander Lightwood-Bane. I’m the Consul of the Clave. You will talk to me with respect.”

Selena saw Zara flinch at that. It was satisfying to watch.

Zara, I will gladly feed you to sharks stfu

“You sound a little jealous,” Zara grinned. “If you want to come back, we can arrange that. You could leave that good for nothing husband of yours and-”

“Zara, I swear by the angel,” Aunt Izzy said through gritted teeth. “Insult my husband again and see what happens.”

ISABELLE YES! I NEED MORE SIZZY WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH OF THESE TWO

SHE DID NOT JUST INSULT MAX AND RAFE FUCK YOU BITCH

OH, NOW SHE INSULTED THE TWINS. I WILL DROWN YOU DO NOT TEST ME

“They called me a freak too,” her mother spoke. “Insult our children again and I will show you what freaks can do.”

YES CLARY

Max and David were really close. Like Daddy and Uncle Alec.

Maybe even closer. Like Uncle Alec and Magnus - cause one of them was a warlock! And they always gave each other dopey looks.

HJBASYUGJCESDYUTGVCSDUTVSDT6U7VSDC THIS! (I think they get together because of the snippet but if they don’t-)

The moment Magnus left, Max snatched the credit card and whistled. “Y’all, Christmas came early.”

“We can’t just buy anything, Max,” Rafe rolled his eyes. “Dad will be pissed when he finds out.”

“Maybe we should buy little things we can hide,” Max winked. “Little…but expensive things.”

“Oh, like diamond rings?” Lexi gleamed.

“What would you even do with diamond rings?” Selena demanded.

“Sell them in the black market in exchange for cash,” Lexi replied.

“By the angel, Lex,” Rafe chuckled. “I'm gonna keep both my eyes on you.”

LEXI YES OMG YES YES YES YES

“Your demands are unacceptable,” Rafe said, imitating his father. “How about ice-cream?”

“I accept your counter proposal,” Lexi nodded, imitating Daddy. “Let’s unleash hell in Baskin-Robbins.”

BASKIN ROBBINS BOUTA BE RAIDED BY 4 CHAOTIC CHILDREN LET’S GO

Holy fuck she has children. Who’s the poor father?

“These are my sisters Saraquel and Remiel and Michael,” the boy pointed at the girls, completely ignoring Rafe’s comment. “Our parents named us after the archangels.”

“And they called us angel freaks?” Lexi muttered incredulously.

“I know, Lexi. Fancy names indeed,” Max nodded. “But kinda hard to pronounce to be honest.”

A very genuine what the fuck

“My name is Alexandra James Herondale,” Lexi said, her voice steady. “And I am named after the greatest Consul and dopest archer of all time. He is a better man than any of your dumb archangels.”

YES LEXI YOU GO, GIRL

“Idris is lame,” Max snorted now. “You don’t even have internet.”

Lexi shuddered at that.

The reason I would never want to live in Idris

THE WAY SELENA WAS READY TO BEAT THE GUY UP WHEN HE INSULTED MAGNUS AND HOW MAX GOT ANGRY WHEN HE INSULTED DAVID

SELENA’S 10 BITCH FUCK YOU

“Holy shit!” one of the girls said. “That was kinda cool. Is that a twin thing?”

“It’s a common sense thing,” Lexi rolled her eyes. “Duck!”

People are idiots

But Selena tried not to think about the other girl. It didn’t matter whose daughter Michael was – it only mattered whose daughter Selena was.

And she was the daughter of Clary Fairchild and Jace Herondale.

She was not going to run.

GIRL YES

Y’ALL DON'T GET KILLED

AYY MAGNUS IS HERE THEY’RE ALL GONNA BE OK NOW

“It’s warlock magic,” the boy whispered – but not too quietly. “It’s demonic.”

Some of the ichor from the demons fell right on the boy’s head.

“Oops,” Magnus said. “Warlock magic is also a little clumsy.”

HVBCDSHJCSDYCDYJGCD THE BOY DESERVED IT!!!!!

“Manuel has an important meeting,” Zara rolled her eyes. “I’m stuck babysitting them.”

“It’s not babysitting when you do it!” Daddy said incredulously. “You’re their mother. It’s called parenting.”

GODDAMIT WOMAN DON'T HAVE CHILDREN IF YOU CAN’T TAKE CARE OF THEM

“He called David a bastard,” Lexi said.

“He did what?” her mother demanded.

“And he called Max a freak,” Selena said.

“He did what?” the Consul demanded.

“And he flirted with Selena,” Rafe made a face.

“HE DID WHAT?” Daddy looked murderous.

NAH BECAUSE WE’RE ALL DOWNRIGHT READY TO KILL THIS BITCH

ALSO, SELENA WAS SO RIGHT TO BREAK THE BOY’S NOSE.

“Look at them! Cahooting in demonic languages,” Zara sniffed.

“It’s Spanish,” Aunt Izzy said incredulously. “Your husband speaks it too!”

Zara you dumb shit-

That part where Magnus was checking up on all of them and seeing if they’re ok and the kids looked like they had never seen anything like that-

They deserve better. GODDAMN IT JULIAN BLACKTHORN MANAGED TO BE A BETTER PARENT 12

Her father held Selena’s hand in his. “You better raise your son to respect women, Zara – Because I’m raising my daughters to break noses.”

YES YES YES YES

He knelt down next to her and put a strand of hair behind her ear. “Can I tell you a secret, cupcake?”

Selena nodded. She loved secrets.

“People call me a freak too,” Magnus winked.

“You?” Selena gasped.

“Yes,” he nodded. “If people call you a freak, it means you are doing something different. Something bold. Something small minds will never be able to think of. So, it’s not an insult. Don’t forget that.”

YES THIS

AWWW THE LITTLE GIRL GAVE SELENA HER NECKLACE.

“Some people don’t like women in power.”

“Why not?”

“Because women get shit done.”

Selena giggled at that. “You said a bad word.”

“It’s not bad. Say it with me, Selena,” her mother said gently. “Women get shit done.”

YES WE GET SHIT DONE

“Are you saying I shouldn’t be afraid?” Selena asked. “I should be strong?”

“I'm saying you should be anything you want to be,” her mother kissed her head. “You can be brave like Izzy. You can be fearless like Emma. You can be kind like Cristina. You can be cool like Dru. You can be sensible like Maia. You can be confident like Lily. You can be smart like Tessa. You can be fierce like Diana. You can be geeky like me.”

Her mother held her face closely. “You get to decide what kind of woman you want to be. I want you to remember that - because there is no wrong way to be a woman.”

THIS! WE NEED TO HEAR THIS MORE OFTEN!

“The next time someone points fingers at you because you are a woman, go ahead and break them.”

DO IT

This was her mother.

Clary Fairchild. One of the most powerful shadowhunters.

Selena sometimes forgot that. Sometimes you forget your mom is so much more than your mom.

There is a person underneath that – someone full of dreams and hopes and talents you could never imagine.

SHE’S LITERALLY SO POWERFUL AND AMAZING IF I SEE ONE MORE PERSON HATE ON HER I'M GONNA KILL THEM

THE IDRIS VISION EDYUGYFEUGYUKGFEWUYTGFEWUTFEW7FE

Rafe was going to be their leader. He would be Selena’s Consul. She knew it.

Gigi was going to be just like Aunt Izzy. An amazing inventor. A chaos to be reckoned with.

Lexi was going to be the best fighter in the whole world. She would fly above everyone and everything.

And David and Max…Well, they seemed very happy with each other. Selena supposed that was enough. Like Uncle Alec and Magnus. To find something you can be happy with no matter what. Because sometimes there was no greater purpose than love.

And Selena….She knew exactly what she was going to do.

She was going to lead all of them back to Idris.

Explain why I'm crying reading this. I love them all so much. They mean so much to me already. SELENA ONE DAY YOU’RE GONNA LEAD THEM ALL BACK TO IDRIS I KNOW YOU WILL

This chapter was beautiful. I'm gonna be in a corner crying in case someone needs me. See ya on Friday!! (well technically it’ll be Saturday for me since for me the updates come after midnight)

THIS GAVE ME LIFE. LIFE, YA HEAR ME?

Also my favorite comment (which I might print on something) - GODDAMIT WOMAN DON'T HAVE CHILDREN IF YOU CAN’T TAKE CARE OF THEM

Also this made me laugh out loud so hard >> - GODDAMN IT JULIAN BLACKTHORN MANAGED TO BE A BETTER PARENT 12

[lahelasaveiro]

We’ll Be Fine

Pairing: Tatum Mendoza x f!MC 

Word count: 1.2k 

Summary: Basically after Tatum said goodbye to MC and debriefed Demarco. 

A/N: Okay, so bear with me. I haven’t wrote a fanfic in YEARS. But I am in my feels as I finished watching The Witcher and PB basically confirmed Foreign Affairs as a standalone and I am left with so many questions. So I opened my laptop and started writing. I’m sorry if it’s bad, but I needed to get it off my chest lmao. If there are any (grammatical) mistakes, I’m sorry! English is not my first language. :|

______________________________________________________________

‘’I don’t want you to lose her out of your sight for one second, do you understand, Demarco?’’ The bodyguard came out of trance when his boss talked to him directly. The news of Tatum getting his desired promotion was good news for him but bad news for the team. Demarco cleared his throat once and then once again. ‘’Yeah of course, boss. I will never let an attack happen again, you have my word’’ Tatum seemed a little bit more relieved at that statement and yet, Demarco couldn’t shake the feeling that his boss wasn’t as happy as he should’ve been a month ago with a promotion this big. Back then his transfer request was all he could ever talk about. He remembered him saying how much he wanted to go back to the army. How he felt that his hard work in the force seemed to be in vain. Now he had puffy eyes and a sadness that seemed to match in them. He knew the First Daughter and Tatum used to be best friends. Hell, they even grew up together. Former bodyguards told jokingly the two were inseparable and a pain to guard. It would not be impossible for the both of them to develop feelings. Demarco thought of his husband back in Rutherland and how he hated to leave him behind. What if Tatum felt exactly like that?

‘’Boss, I apologize if I am out of line saying this, but for someone who gets the promotion of a lifetime you seem to be dreading it’’

Tatum clenched his jaw tightly and awkwardly put his hands forcefully in his pocket.

‘’I will celebrate my transfer whenever the time is right. I just want you to promise me to keep her safe now, Winston told me my replacement will arrive tomorrow but I will not trust them to keep her protected. I trust you, do you copy?’’

Tatum’s voice became even more stern. Demarco nodded. ‘’You know I will, boss. I also hope you know that everything you say, I will treat with the utmost discretion.’’ His boss acknowledged that in silence. Yet the sadness didn’t seem to be fade. In fact, it became more visible.

They stood in silence for a while until to Demarco’s surprise Tatum spoke. ‘’A month ago, this promotion was all I could hoped for. But now… Now all I can think of is how I’m leaving her again for the same reason as five years ago. I don’t want us to grow apart again to only see her on the news and magazines with that fake smile on her face’’ A small tear escaped the corner of his eye but Tatum wiped it away as quick as he could ‘’So why did you accept it? You’re not at all excited to leave and you know we love our job with you as our boss’’ Demarco felt nothing but sympathy for the man in front of him. He never saw him so.. devasted. ‘’She told me to. I thought that if she would tell me to stay I would refuse the promotion because she would need me. It is foolish to think that someone like her would need someone like me, huh?’’ For the first time since the debrief, Tatum looked Demarco in the eye and all he saw was the storm raging inside Tatum. ‘’Someone like her would be happy with someone like you though, boss. You’re more than just her bodyguard’’ Tatum scoffed. ‘’No, Demarco. When she was on the fake date with Alexei and having fun, that was when it hit me. That’s how her love life should look like. With someone that Rutherland and everyone that means a damn would approve. I am a nobody while she is everything. I wouldn’t be good enough for her like Alexei would be. Or even Blaine Hayes.’’ Demarco laughed joyless. ‘’Trust me, boss. No one in Ardona can compare to you.’’ For the first time ever since Tatum came into the room he smiled, albeit a sad one. ‘’Thank you, Demarco. It has been a pleasure to work with you, I will never forget your jokes and banter’’ Demarco was surprised when Tatum gave him a hug and he didn’t know who could use the hug more, but judging by the quiet sniffles it was his now former boss. ‘’Don’t you worry, Tatum. I will give my life for her if I need to’’ Tatum nodded as he got himself out of the hug. ‘’I hope it won’t come to that. And a word of advice; as much as she insists that all the protocols are bullshit, stick with them. If her mom upsets her, and that will happen, take a walk with her. Listen to her. If she misses her dad, let her vent. And if someone hurts her mentally-‘’ ‘’They will never find the body’’ Demarco joked. ‘’Excellent’’ A real smile came across Tatums face, but it faded as soon as it appeared. He picked up his duffle bag and walked towards the door and just before he reached the door, he turned around and looked around the room as if he saw it for the first time. ‘’This must have been a blessing in disguise. The last few weeks must have been one of the best in my career’’ Demarco nodded and gave Tatum a final wave as he walked to the car that have been waiting for him. He walked to the couch and stared into nothingness until Presley gave him a heads up that his shift was about to start.

It felt weird walking to the suite knowing that he was no longer under Tatum’s orders. Murphy gave him a nod. ‘’Quiet night, Murph?’’ The silent bodyguard gave him once again a sign of confirment with his head. ‘’Alright. I’m gonna go inside to see how my favourite First Daughter is doing. After that, I will have to tell you the story about when my husband started almost started a riot during a football game’’ He walked into the suite and knocked on the door he was familiar with.

He opened the door after her soft voice invited him in. The room was only brightened by the table lamp on her desk. Her pet lynx was cuddled in her arms as she was laying in her bed, staring to nothing in particular. The expression on her face matched Tatum’s perfectly. He wanted to tell her how both of them were idiots and that they should confess their feelings to each other. He wanted to yell that she should go after Tatum but he didn’t want to make her feel even worse than she already felt. ‘’I just want you to know that Presley has finished her shift and I will be outside’’ Tears were flowing onto her pillow but she didn’t make any movement to hide them. In fact, she didn’t move at all. ‘’Okay, miss. If you need me, I am just outside’’ With a heavy heart he walked out of the door and closed it. When he got outside, he found Murphy eagerly waiting for him to start this story about his husband. ‘’Okay, Murph. It went like this-‘’

[lovespelt]

I HAVE THIS AU SOMEWHERE DEEP IN MY BLOG THAT LITERALLY NO ONE KNOWS OF BUT I WANNA SHARE THIS LITTLE THING I HAD COME TO A HEADCANON WITH.

Ok so hear me out—

Shouta and Inko as relatives AU—

OK SO YOU KNOW HOW IZUKU HAS MOSTLY BACK HAIR WITH LITTLE GREEN HIGHLIGHTS AT THE END???

What if...

It comes from Inko's side family genes instead of his DAD.

That would also explain why he WAS quirkless in the first place (bcz of shouta's quirk)

Inko and Shouta's Genes are really strong but their quirks are a bit weak in some perspective.

Ok so why I had this headcanon—

Let's have a little backstory to this—

So I'd like to imagine that both of them were really close when they were young but they got seperated and lost contact of each other throughout the years.

(Maybe they were disowned or their remaining family dies or idk)

They lost contact of each other since they got to highschool and stuff and Inko got married and is trying to get a divorce while Shouta realized he was gay and dated Hizashi.

Fast forward to when Izuku got in UA. Shouta thought he looked quite familiar but didn't realize it was his nephew bcz of the surname (coz at this time, Inko is still trying to divorce his deadbeat husband so the surname is still there—)

And Inko didn't know it was Shouta bcz he changed his surname too, for privacy reasons.

Shouta became a little bit softy for his problem child bcz of how similar he acts to Inko, like the crying waterfalls and all that.

So timeskip to the parent-teacher conference and they were shocked when they saw each other again for the first time all these years, and pulled out a 'how have you been all these years' liner and for the rest of the hour they talked about how they were.

Inko was surprised to learn Shouta had a boyfriend and a secret little student he was training from Gen ed(his son—*cough* Hitoshi *cough*)

And Shouta listens to Inko's on going divorce and how she ALSO has a boyfriend (*cough* YAGI *cough*) now.

And they both exchanged numbers (personal numbers, not the school or work ones) and Inko went out as Shouta called the next parent.

(right on cue of the realization when Shouta has the most reckless nephew in the world struck in his head and he's starting to have a migraine because of it)

Soooo Inko told Izuku and Izuku freaked out ofc and the next day he awkwardly asked "should I call you Uncle?" And Shouta, who is suddenly feels like being crushed to death by a noumu doesn't seem so bad, replied ".... Outside of school grounds only."

And Shouta feels the need to vent to someone about this so he vented this to Hitoshi while he's training him bcz he doesn't want Hizashi to scream at him for not telling him sooner and how many gifts does he need to buy and give to his relatives and all that.

Oh and Hitoshi is dating Denki.

And Izuku is also dating Katsuki.

And Inko doesn't tell any of this to Toshinori bcz it would be awkward to for him to have one of Inko's relatives where he works.

Goes the same for Izuku and Hitoshi. It would be weird to tell their boyfriends about how their teacher is related to them. (Hush let me indulge in my Hitoshi is Shouta's secret love child theory)

So when Inko wanted a Christmas get together with all of them, they know it would become a mess.

Shouta told Hizashi about going to his Relative and Hizashi snapped his head to look at him so fast, you'd think he had whiplash because he did NOT know Shouta had any relatives. And Hizashi is all like "WHAT." and Shouta is all like "Oh yeah I forgot to tell you about that I just recently got in touch with my remaining relative, also tell Hitoshi to come along to meet us in this location—" lifts paper with address"—and to bring his boyfriend with him, it's about time for him to introduce us to his 'special guy'." And Hizashi is all like "WHAT." but louder coz how did he not know his little Toshi was DATING?? SHOUTA HAD RELATIVES THAT WERE STILL ALIVE??? SHOUTA WHAT THE FUCK—HEY DON'T IGNORE ME SHOUTA—

And they bought lot's of gifts (Hizashi insisted, Shouta could not resist his boyfriend's cute puppy eyes DAMMIT)

And on Inko's End, she called Toshinori to come over this Christmas and meet the rest of her family and Izuku's boyfriend. (Izuku did not revealing about him dating Kacchan with is dad mentor yet oop—) and Toshinori, the clueless idiot that he is, happily agreed.

Izuku said that Katsuki was also visiting for a bit and he told Katsuki that he'd meet his other family too and Katsuki also wanted to come bcz he wanted to visit his boyfriend for Christmas and to eat some of Auntie Inko's most delicious spicy curry. (Oof Izuku KNOWS this is gonna be a mess.)

So when the day came.

Everyone was already going. Katsuki arrived early and went up to Izuku's room, after a little while Toshinori arrived as well and went to the kitchen to help Inko.

Then while Hizashi and Shouta were walking they saw Hitoshi and KAMINARI(?!?!?!) waiting at the door of Inko's house and Hizashi screamed, making Inko go outside to see all the ruckus, Toshinori following, Izuku and Katsuki looking out from Izuku's window above.

Their whole interaction went like this:

*Silence*

Hizashi:*whips head to the sound of the door opening * *sees Toshinori* ALL MIGHT?!?!

Toshinori:*looking at Shouta, Blood spilling* AIZAWA?!?

Shouta:*sees Inko* Hey Inko.

Inko:*smiling and nodding* Shouta.

Katsuki from the window: DUNCE FACE?!?!

Denki, looking up: B-BAKUGOU??!?

Izuku, happily waving: Shinsou!! :D

Hitoshi, smiling lightly: hey Midoriya.

And when they went inside it was hella awkward until Denki said that he didn't knew that Katsuki and Izuku were dating until now and it all went downhill from there and they all started screaming.

Inko, from the kitchen preparing food: oh my.

Shouta, helping Inko with the rice: yep.

Izuku, preparing the table, whispering to Hitoshi: our boyfriends are really loud.

Hitoshi, who just went there bcz he didn't wanna deal with the loud screaming: yep... Hey Midoriya.

Izuku: hm?

Hitoshi, looking at the screaming people: we all have the same type.

Shouta, who overhead this comment: what do you mean Hitoshi?

Hitoshi, pointing at their boyfriends: Loud Blondes.

Inko laughed and wheezed.

THAT'S BASICALLY IT. A TYPE THAT RUNS IN THE FAMILY AHAHAHAHHAHAHA

(hope you enjoy this shitty headcanon I made lmao, it's unedited and I didn't reread it but I hope you like it!!!)

dudeee this is so cute ;-; me reading this was just like

[tuanyiems]

The Spirit of Christmas

Jaebum x Reader holiday!au, roommate!au words: 2.8k

Plot: You are sugar and spice and everything nice and your roommate, Jaebum is coal—at least, that’s how it seems at first glance. With the pandemic and Christmas Eve coming to an end, maybe it’s not just Jaebum that needs a little Christmas spirit. 

a/n – guess whose household got covid in time for Christmas? 2020 hates me lol anyways, I said I was going to post a Jackson holiday au but that was taking too long, I’ll post it next Christmas lmao here is jb and his kitties in the meantime <3 happy holidays folks, stay safe and merry and I’ll meet you in the new year

“What is that?” Jaebum looks at you incredulously as you carry an armful of green into his living room. You let it fall onto the floor, much to his annoyance and his cats’ pleasure. Nora flops onto her belly, rubbing against the green sticks.

“It’s our Christmas tree!” you grin, running your fingers through the fur of her belly and earning a nip to your fingers. You giggle at the tickle of her teeth on your thumb. Despite her feisty disposition, Nora very rarely ever bites for real.

“That’s a pile of plastic,” your roommate plops himself on the couch, feet thrown over the coffee table.

Your mouth twists as you push the ottoman closer to him with a gentle push of your fuzzy sock-clad feet. Jaebum glances at the bright yellow ottoman you brought into the apartment when he told you about a million times that the thing was a waste of money (and a neon eyesore). He then looks over at your feet looking awfully like a red stocking, and he truly does mean the awful part. He keeps his feet on the coffee table and leans back into the couch, arms behind his head.

“It’s a Christmas tree,” you emphasize, lifting his legs with a huff onto the ottoman. You dust your hands before placing them onto your hips. “And you’re going to help me put it up!”

He frowns, looking into your eager eyes. “Remind me why I moved in with you again?”

“Because I had a spare room and you needed someone willing to live with five cats,” you answer easily like you always do. You throw one of the plastic limbs at him. “Now come on, let’s get festive!”

“Your festive and my festive are very different,” Jaebum sighs, but he gets up anyways.

“Noted,” you chuckle, clearing a space on the floor for him to sit beside you.

You grab your phone to turn on your playlist, lovingly titled “HO! HO! HO!iday Cheer” and immediately you can see Jaebum’s face sour at the familiar jingle as Mariah Carey’s voice echoes through the room. 

“Oh, we’re going with my festive, just so you know,” you warn him belatedly. He blows at his bangs, shoulders slumping in surrender.

“Let’s just get this over with before my ears start bleeding,” he grumbles, grabbing hold of a couple plastic limbs.

“That’s the spirit!” you cheer, slapping him on the back. You don’t miss the small twitch of his lips.

You had a lot of hopes for this year, all of which pretty much went down the drain. That was life though, you rolled with the punches. But you certainly did not expect that when you opened your home to Jaebum and his five cats, that just two weeks after, he would be your only social life for the next nine months (if you didn’t count your biweekly grocery outings). 

And while you have nothing against Jaebum—in fact, you absolutely love his five cats—it doesn’t take a genius to tell that the two of you are very different. Jaebum’s black on black fashion, motorcycle riding, sterling silver face piercing-self, next to your pastel, soft knit cardigan-wearing, always smelling like bread and daisies…the two of you are a walking metaphorical neon sign flashing “opposites!”

“Why does that matter? He’s going to be my roommate, not my husband!” you had shrugged Jinyoung’s warning without a second thought. 

That memory would come back to bite you during the first three months of shared living, for every time he woke you up from his random 3am showers or played horror movies in the living room right before your bedtime, and especially whenever he responded to your silly jokes with a deadpan face or worse, his unrelenting despondency. 

Over time though, you learned how to read him—like how he was nicer after a cup of coffee or how he has trouble sleeping but always manages to fall asleep on the living room couch when you’re baking bread in the open kitchen. You’ve learned that when Jaebum scowls, it’s mostly just a reflex and actually, if you can catch a reflection whenever he’s looking away, usually he’s smiling. And although he will grumble about it the entire way through, if you ask for help, he will always be there (even when he tells you he won’t). 

Maybe you both express yourselves differently. You say “I love you” and he will ask “Did you eat yet?” You bake cupcakes and have teatime on the porch with the older neighbors, Jaebum installs cameras and buys extra essentials whenever you go grocery shopping together. You fill the windowsills with abandoned plants and bring them back to life, Jaebum leaves cat food and old blankets in your backyard for the strays. 

No one else understands when you tell them you think you and Jaebum might be the same person, but they haven’t seen him the way you have over the last nine months. Beneath his hardboiled exterior is a sensitive soul who loves quietly and cares a lot.

“There’s no point in putting this up,” Jaebum grumbles as he fits another limb into the trunk of the tree. “No one’s even gonna see it, it’s already Christmas Eve. Anyways, the Christmas party is canceled.”

“You will see it. I will see it,” you hand him another part. “Isn’t that reason enough?”

“It’s a waste of electricity,” he adds, not even glancing at you.

“The lights I bought have a timer!”

“And then it’ll be more work taking it down again.”

With a pout, you stand up and Jaebum turns his head in surprise.

“Where are you going, it almost done?”

Your frown easily twists back into a smile, seeing the way he hurries to put the last limb into the tree. “Time for the decorations!”

Jaebum rolls his eyes and looks down again and you can just tell he’s hiding another smile. You hurry off into your bedroom to grab the supplies.

“It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!” you sing as you reenter the living room and Michael Bublé’s voice rings from your phone. Twirling in an oversized pajama pullover (which might be Jaebum’s that got lost in your laundry three months back), you settle the box of ornaments on the floor. “I’m so excited to show you!”

He looks at you blankly, waiting for you to continue.

You squeeze your shoulders together, excitement barely contained as you reach into the box and pull out an emerald velvet pouch.

“It came in the mail just in time!” you grin, clutching the bag to your chest. 

He lifts his brow at you, but the rise of his cheekbones gives him away.

“Ta da!” you squeal, pulling round orbs out of the bag. “One of my co-workers has a side business making custom ornaments and I got one for each of the cats!”

“Woah,” Jaebum takes one of the ornaments into his palms, eyeing it closely.

You bite your lip, holding in a satisfied giggle lest you ruin the moment. He sits quietly, admiring each ornament of the cats. When he gets to the last one, you pull out one more orb from the bag, holding it up by its gold, glittering string.

“And I got one of us too,” you say quietly, showing it off to him. 

He slides closer, nose practically touching the ornament. It’s a simple, clear bulb and inside are your figurine versions, dusted with glittering snow around a Christmas tree.

Finally, Jaebum breaks into a smile, eyes disappearing into crescents. You find yourself letting out a breath you had been holding.

“They even got my cheek piercings,” he chuckles, pointing to the tiny orb. “And your derpy smile too!”

“Hey, my smile isn’t derpy!” you whine, smiling.

“It’s cute,” he adds and you falter, wondering if he means the ornament or your smile. But in true Jaebum fashion, he doesn’t explain himself and turns back to the cat ornaments. “This is really well made.”

You ignore the pulsing in your chest, nodding your head. “Yeah, I told her she should raise her prices.”

He gets up from the floor and offers you his hand. “Let’s put them up.”

Cheeks flushing, you let him help you up. 

“Do you think it’s okay though? The cats might knock them down,” his brows furrow with worry.

You chuckle, grabbing the ornament from his hand and hang it off the tree. “Pretty things are meant to be shown and if it breaks…then we’ll get new ones!”

Jaebum rolls his eyes at your optimism but a small smile stretches across his face. “I think your co-worker would be offended to hear how you treat her work.”

You shrug, crouching down to Nora and Odd as both cats swat at the ornament hanging precariously off your finger. “Art should not belong behind glass walls. They’re meant to be seen and enjoyed, like your music!”

You giggle as Odd jumps into your lap, pawing at the shiny orb as you lift it out of reach each time. You miss the way Jaebum looks at you.

“Okay, less playing and more decorating,” he replies, throwing a string of gold tinsel at your head, much to the cats’ delight. You laugh at their excitement, glancing at Jaebum’s reddened ears.

Humming to the Christmas jingles, you stand alongside Jaebum, dressing the plastic tree in glittering ornaments and lights. Once in a while, you even catch Jaebum swaying to the music when he thinks you aren’t paying attention.

“Aaand,” Jaebum lifts the shining star from the box to you and you rise onto your tiptoes.

“Done!” You cheer, placing the star on the top of the tree. You clap gleefully, elbowing Jaebum to follow. He gives you three limp claps before you give up and crouch down to Odd instead, forcing the kitty to clap paws.

“Okay, can I go to my room now?”

“Not yet!”

He groans, plopping onto the couch. “What else is there left to put up?”

You pout, hands on your hip. “We can’t have a Christmas tree without the Christmas tree lighting ceremony!”

He sighs, pinching at the bridge of his nose. “There’s a ceremony?”

“Of course there is!” you laugh, rushing towards the light switch. You flick the switch without warning, covering the living room in darkness.

With only the light from the streetlamp peeking through the windows, the falling snow is even more visible. The sight fills you with childlike excitement.

“Are you ready?” you whisper, walking over to the switch for the Christmas lights.

“Yeah, go ahead.”

“We need to count down,” Your lips jut out at his indifference as you eye his dark figure. In the darkness, you can just barely see his features, but you imagine he is rolling his eyes at you.

Just as you are about to give in, you hear him sigh loudly, “Five,”

You break into a smile, “Four, three, two,”

“One…”

“Merry Christmas!” you sing, twisting the knob and flooding the room with small twinkling lights. 

But you don’t look at the tree. Instead, your gaze remains in Jaebum’s direction and you watch as the lights illuminate his face. And you are pleased to see he is smiling. You know it’s just the reflection of the lights, but he looks like he has stars in his eyes.

Sensing your gaze, Jaebum looks at you and frowns, embarrassed. “What?”

You smile, cheeks warming. “Your cheek piercing looks like it’s twinkling from here.”

“Don’t be weird,” he scowls. “Are we done now?”

“Do you want hot chocolate?” you offer, moving over to sit next to him on the couch. 

He shakes his head, getting up. “I’m going to bed.”

Chuckling, you let him leave, watching as the cats follow behind him. “Merry Christmas, Jaebum!”

“It’s not Christmas yet!” he yells back before you hear the sound of his bedroom door closing shut.

With a quiet sigh, you grab your phone from the coffee table and turn off the music. The silence feels even quieter with only the lights from the Christmas tree flickering around the room. Without anyone else in the room, your energy quickly depletes.

Outside, the snow whips by in flurries.

This is not how you imagined you’d be spending your favorite holiday, although the festive lights do make you feel a little bit better.

You wanted the Christmas gatherings though.

You were a family person through and through.

You missed it all—the packed house, cooking dinner with the aunties, playing board games with the little cousins, throwing said boardgame across the room when you rage quit, making up for it with freshly baked cookies that you’d nibble on at midnight while opening gifts by the Christmas tree. You even missed the nagging from your parents, asking when you’ll get a boyfriend and settle down.

Snuggling closer into the arm of the couch, you hug yourself. 

It’s colder this year. 

Emptier. 

“So, you turn off the Christmas music after I leave?” You jump in surprise at Jaebum’s voice entering the room again. He takes a seat next to you on the couch. “You listen to it just to annoy me, don’t you?”

You blink back, wondering why he returned. “Did you forget something?”

He shrugs, leaning back into the couch and gazes at the Christmas tree. “It’s my first Christmas tree, I thought I should look at it a little longer.”

“This is your first Christmas tree?” you look at him in surprise.

He nods nonchalantly. “Never really celebrated Christmas.”

You sink into your seat, thigh touching his. “What a year to start celebrating.”

“Only because you have me hostage.”

You chuckle softly. “Well, I’m glad you had no choice but to be stuck with me. Would’ve been a lonely year without you here.”

“Hmm,” he looks at you thoughtfully. “Never pegged you as the lonely type.”

“The holidays can do that.”

“Then just think like me, pretend it’s any other day.”

You sigh, leaning into Jaebum. He doesn’t scoot away like he normally does. Instead, you find his arm resting around your shoulder.

“I don’t want this to be any other day though. This whole year has been a blur of any other days.” Your lips jut out in a pout as you look up at your roommate. “I know I must sound like a child, but I want Christmas.”

Jaebum laughs softly. You can feel the rumble of his chest.

“Cute,” he mutters, and you flush. His arm around you pulls you tighter. “Then, do you want to open your present at midnight or in the morning?”

Your eyes widen and he laughs at your expression once more. “You got me a present?”

“Well, yeah,”

“But…you said you don’t celebrate Christmas.”

“But you do,” he answers easily, looking at the tree again. “And anyways, if you’re gonna make me do all the work, I might as well celebrate the whole thing, right?”

You grin, poking his chest. “Admit you had fun tonight, Jaebum.”

He shrugs, smiling. “The ornaments were cool. I’ll be the DJ next time though.”

“Deal,” you beam, holding out your pinky. You giggle when he looks at your outstretched pinky with an arched brow. You keep your hand raised though. “Come on!”

He lets out a loud breath but eventually curls his pinky around yours.

Your heart warms, seeing how big his pinky measures around yours. It’s why when he moves to let go, you keep your pinky curled.

Laughing at his confused frown, you show him your thumb. “You have to seal the promise, Jaebum!”

“You’re an actual five-year-old,” he groans.

“Yes, I am,” you grin, eyes curling into crescents. His tone doesn’t faze you. From up close, you can confirm that there are indeed, stars in his eyes. They twinkle in amusement at your gesture and his lips lift once more when his thumb presses against yours.

And this time, he doesn’t pull away.

Pursing your lips shyly, you let your hand fall to his lap.

Looking back up at him, his gaze is soft on you. You pretend not to notice the way his fingers thread around yours.

“To answer your question, I’d like my present at midnight.”

“As you wish. Then shall we make hot chocolate and watch a movie until then?”

“Sounds like the perfect Christmas,” you tell him softly.

“Okay, Joker or The Dark Knight? You can pick.”

You grin, squeezing his hand. “We’re gonna watch Home Alone, Jaebum.”

“You’re terrible,” he feigns.

Chuckling, you let go of his hand and rise from the couch. “I’ll go make the hot chocolate.”

Jaebum grabs your hand again and you turn back curiously.

“Hm?” 

His thumb brushes the back of your hand gently.

“Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas, Jaebum.”