#look at that lil foxy hair curl.

[benbamboozled]

Guys, don’t worry, I know you were wondering and, yes, I can confidently say—

Deadman IS a hottie under his mask.

My work here is done.

Source is Blackest Night #8

[loth-wolffe]

hello there! um, so. I saw that You'd marry Fox and my first thought was that I'd ABSOLUTELY love to hear Your hc on him 🥺🥺🥺

GENERAL KENOBI sorry I had to

but hi sweets! i would absolutely lOVE to share my hcs on him with u my love<3 🥺

so this goes for u my sweet nonnie.

(also this turned out to be extremely longer than I thought it would be bc apparently I don't have any self control lmao. enjoy ✨)

first of all, fox is tired. VERY.

so this isn't any kind of news right, but I just think that because of this, he doesn't have both time or energy for so many things. He carries Coruscant on his back, literally, so there are two (2) kind of fox in this life. 1. he wants to destroy you bc he's all pent up with all this stress or 2. he's a soft baby.

speaking oF SOFT BABIES

listen. contrary popular belief, I really think fox is a lil softie who just wants to feel loved by you but he does mask it very well tho. (not me making headcanons of everyone being soft) BUT ANWAYS. I mean, there's different levels of Softness™ ofc, foxie can be softer than wolffe but less than cody, I don't know if u got me but uh huh, pretty much.

so now that we have clarified that fox is a lil babey I have these amazing soft hcs for him alright now hear this:

he absolutely loves baths

it's a plus if he's the lil spoon. he loves to just relax, his back touching yours as your fingers shampoo his locks, curling and uncurling in them and scratching his scalp. he sometimes rants about his job and other times he just listens to your soft, quiet voice as you talk him about your day and he feels this peace and so so loved.

in this same train of thought I can assure you that fox loves sleeping above you

MOSTLY if he's had a bad day. he loves cuddling with you and be the small spoon. his favorite times are at night when he comes home from a long shift and collapses onto you after he showers quickly, your fingers on his hair and his head on your chest as he listens to you read whatever book you're currently reading. whenever he thinks of home, he thinks in this exact scenario.

i feel like, during very very though days, maybe when he loses a brother (that doesn't happen thAt usual unless there's something like, a fucking gigantic animal trying to destroy both Coruscant and the chancellor or that kind of stuff) and he would feel this lump in his throat that only tightens when he feels you squeeze him in your arms, and kiss the top of his head but he also feels so relieved because you're there, with him, and when you whisper that you're not going anywhere he just, feels like he was falling only to be catched by you.

he aDORES so much when you visit him at the office

at first he was very apprehensive because he didn't really want to mix his work and his love life, and if thorn or anyone found out he would nEVER hear the end of it. (they eventually did find out and always tease them but I'll talk about this later).

so anyways, fox was kinda nervous and at first he didn't even let you take off his helmet and rushed you to leave asap. ofc you didn't take it personally, and just said a lil hello, told him you'd be staying late at work and that you loved him and that was that. maybe left a kiss just a cm or two down the modulator and said your goodbyes (since I read this post, the thought lives rent free in my mind and if I could I'd make a different scenario for every clone using that post and that post only bc I just love it SO much. thank you murdy for your service, I will always be in ur debt)

anyways, after that you stopped by a little more and he ended up yEARNING for your visits, letting you sit on his desk or lap as he worked and you talked about this new gossip or whatever and he just breathed you in or took a few glimpses of you from time to time, stealing a kiss or two and letting go a few "uh huhs" and "oh yeah?" for you to know he wAS listening.

other times you go for a quickie and yeah

NOW. the troopers that tEASE HIM.

they are aLWAYS joking about when are you coming to see fox again, and make kissing sounds and are always like "your s/o is really hot commander" and sometimes he shuts them up and other times he feels this pRIDE swelling over his chest because he loves you so and you're his.

but that doesn't mean he doesn't get jealous. foxie my mans is v insecure sometimes, lemme tell you. he doesn't know why you picked him and the first time you told him he's beautiful he gave you this deadpan expression and went "I literally look like a million others." my baby doesn't know he's one of a kind and that you love him for who he is, so when he sees, idk, thorn making you laugh, he becomes very self conscious.

but like, he sort of suffers in silence and won't EVER let you know he's afraid you might change him for another, but you know bc he always f word you very hard and deep and literally destroy you but he would also be a bit more attentive than usual.

but then again, fox is also a giver.

he always comes home with whatever is missing from your fridge or this one candy you love so much, and he always makes caf for you before heading out, he likes to pass by the medbay or wherever you're working at a minute or so before your shift ends just so you can go home together.

he doesn't like pda and is very Private but like I said before, he will always be ready to help you if you need him.

this one time you fell sick very badly and he stopped by almost every few hours and commed you every hour to make sure you were alright. you got slightly annoyed but you found very endearing how much he cares for you. besides, you were rEALLY ill, so yeah.

and let's not forget that one time he was on patrol close to your apartment and you commed him to ask him if he knew where the flour was or whatever (truth was you just wanted to hear his voice bc you were feeling down and wanted to cheer yourself up.) and he caught on your sad tone and well, the point is that he ended up going all the way to your place just to give you a soft kiss on your lips, shrugging and saying something like "I forgot my comnlink" because clones can't lie for shit but he didn't want to tell you he couldn't focus in his job if you were sad:(

SO ANYWAYS, these are my commander fox hcs, thank you for sending this lovely ask baby. (don't know if you were expecting like, general hcs on him or hcs of him with you or? heh)

lemme know if I agree or don't or if you wanna punch me bc fox is nothing like that, or if you have some amazing hcs u wanna share or wanna ask me or idk idk

u know I love hearing from you guys and talking with u as well 💖

[hxhhunterxhunter]

Onii-Chan (x child reader)

⭐️Chapter 15: Bai Bai!💧

(Also sorry for spamming chapters, I’m trying my best to catch up the book with my Wattpad and Quotev book since its on the 24th chapter and this is in the 15th lol)

Y/n was sleeping, curling up with Mr Oinks and Foxy. Her arm was bandaged up from being broken by Hanzo. She was softly snoring as she was sleeping. 

Gon had left a few moments ago after hearing that the Hunter exam ended and that Killua failed, so he went to confront Illumi about it. Satotz had left as well with Gon, leaving the female alone with her animals. 

Soon a butterfly flew into the room and landed on the head of the small child as she slept peacefully.

Soon the door opened to be Hisoka. As he entered the foxy plush emitted some bloodlust to scare off who ever had entered.

"It's just me~" Hisoka said as he headed towards the 3. He poked the child's cheek as she started to open her eyes. She moved on her side and looked at Hisoka.

"Hiso...chan..." She mumbled softly as she sat up, rubbing her eyes with her one hand, considering her other arm was broken.

"We have to get going little fox~"

"Okie...but can I say bai to everyone..." She mumbled as Hisoka had helped her off the bed.

"Alright then~" Y/n smiled happily. "Okie! I won't be long big brother! Let's go Mr Oinks!" Mr Oinks jumped off the bed and followed the female out of the room.

~~~

"Mr Satotz! Menchi-Neesan! Buhara-san! Grandpa!" The hunters looked at the small female who ran over to them, with her plush in her arms.

"You're awake now, is your arm feeling better?" Satotz asked the female who nodded her head slightly. He also handed the girl her hunter licences and all the items that the other applicants got when they were in orientation.

"Thank you!" Menchi smiled at the polite child and patted her head.

"You're a good kid, go and become a gourmet hunter will you." The child was happy with the headpats.

"Bai! I'm gonna be the best hunter! I will be every hunter in the world!" She waved bye to them as she went off.

"Stay safe."

~~~~~~~~

Y/n jumped and hugged Illumi.

"Illu-Oniisan! Bai Bai!" She squeezed him in a hug as Illumi patted her head a bit.

"Bye for now Y/n. I'll see you again." As Y/n waved bye to Illumi, soon her eyes sparkled at seeing Gon, Kurapika and Leorio.

She ran and jumped onto Gon for a hug. 

"Onii-Chan!" She hugged the male, calling him Onii-Chan like her brother. 

"Lil sis!" Gon smiled and hugged the female back, also being careful about her arm.

"I'm gonna miss youuu. I have to go with Hiso-Oniisan soon."

As Gon and Y/n slowly stopped hugging and Y/n was put down on the ground. Leorio ruffled her hair.

"Stay safe Munchkin."

"Thank you leo-Oniisan!" Kurapika bend down to the girl's height and hugged her softly and soon pulled away.

"Stay safe..sunshine." He smiled softly at the female, who smiled brightly back, like a sunshine.

"I'll miss you all! Bai Bai!" She waved to them as she skipped off with Mr Oinks and Foxy. "Tell Kil-Oniisan I say bai!" 

"Ready to go?" Hisoka hummed at the female as she went to him. She nodded her head.

"Lets go Hiso-Oniisan!"

"It's not Oniichan anymore?"

"No! You lied in the forest so you aren't my Onii-Chan! Gon is my Onii-Chan now!"

"You're so mean Y/n-Chan~ I said I was sorry~"

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

And the book is finished...

.

.

.

FINISHED SEASON 1 HA! you thought this was over. No it isn't! (unless you are from the future and saw the future chapters then obviously you knew it wasn't over or read the last note in the previous chapter) 

This is only season 1 of Onii-Chan. I decided to make each arc a different Season. So Season 2 will be coming soon~

Which is the Heaven's Arena Arc. Which will be the transitional season for Y/n to separate from Hisoka, from a poll vote, and go with Gon and Killua.

Also I'm gonna add a side chapter for just extra information about Y/n and a few cute scenes between Y/n and the characters, along with her reacting to some comments hehe (cuz some made me laugh and I wanna make Y/n react with them)

Thank you for all the support so far on this book with 400 + hearts on Quotev and 13 k + reads on wattpad, and with getting it to number 1 on the HunterxHunter tag. 

I would have never thought people would have loved this book as much as I loved writing it. This book was really fun to write and I'm excited for season 2 of Onii-Chan to come soon ^^ 

~ Skypie

[mmemiraculous]

The 5th VK

<-Chapter 1 Chapter 3->

Chapter 2: So Much Smiling

“You guys act like children.” Mal expressed in annoyance, with crossed arms. Hailey looked at Mal with too many sweets in her mouth. She tried to say something, but it came out as a jumbled mess with some slobber coming out of her mouth. “Ew.” Mal gagged.

Hailey eventually devoured the candy in her mouth. “I said, I’m fourteen. My actions are valid. They’re older than me.” She pointed at the two boys.

Mal rolled her eyes and looked out the window. Evie noticed her best friend and tried to help her out. “You're looking a little washed up. Let me help you.” Evie tried to brush some blush on her cheeks.

“Ew, stop,” Mal brushed her off. “I’m plotting.”

“It’s not very attractive.” Evie tried to bite into the crystal candy again.

“It’s supposed to look intimidating. Not attractive.”

At this point, the boys and Hailey were stuffing their faces with too much candy with Carlos getting brown stuff all around his mouth. Carlos had picked up some kind of thick brown thing and bit into it.

He bit into it once, and melted right there. He turned to Jay, “Oh! These! It's salty like nuts, but it's sweet like,” he thought for a few seconds, and gave up when nothing came up. “I don't know what.”

“Lemme see.” Jay asked. Carlos opened his mouth with all the chewed candy in his mouth. “Ew.” Jay snatched the candy in his hand. He ate it whole. “Mm…” Jay nodded and smiled as he ate it.

Mal started fiddling with some kind of remote control.

“Hey... guys,” Hailey got everyone’s attention. “The bridge was destroyed right?” Everyone nodded in agreement and Hailey continued with a little fear in her voice, “So how are we getting across?” Just then, Mal clicked a button on the remote control and a small wall in the front limo came down, exposing the wide ocean with nothing in front of them.

“Look!” Evie screamed. They all looked out of the front window.

“It’s a TRAP!” Carlos yelled.

Crap! Was this Auradons plan all along? Pick them off and kill them in small groups? Hailey’s heart pounded faster in her chest at the thought. She panicked and grabbed hold of whatever was closest to her, which happened to be Jay’s bicep, and squeezed her eyes shut. Carlos hugged her abdomen as Evie and Mal came close and hugged the other three.

They all started screaming things they regret they ever said or haven’t said.

“I’m sorry I made fun of your jeans, Dad!”

“I hate my mom!”

“I love you Mal!”

“I love you guys!”

Everyone braced for impact for a few seconds.

But nothing came.

“We’re… alive?” Hailey asked quietly, as she opened one eye and got her nails out of the thief’s bicep.

Evie looked out the window, and was amazed by the golden bridge that appeared, “it must be magic.” She smiled.

“Hey!” Mal got the driver’s attention, “did this button open the barrier?”

“No,” he answered without turning to her. “this one opens the magic barrier,” he held up a different remote. “That one opens my garage. And this button…” he slowly brought the divider up.

Mal turned around to the group again.

“Okay then…” said Hailey with an amused smile.

“Nasty.” Said Mal, as she tapped the remote on her knee. “I like him.” Mal paused for a moment, then looked at Evie. “Did you say you love me?”

Evie's face burned, “I-I meant you all.” Evie stuttered out. “I love you all.”

Everyone gave her a 'really?' look while Evie shifted nervously. “Sure…” Carlos said slowly.

Jay turned to the demigoddess “Did you say something about your dad's jeans?” The young thief asked Hailey.

“He’s a grown man in skinny jeans.” Hailey scoffed. Everyone laughed at the realization, making small conversations for the rest of the ride.

“Ooo.” Carlos admired the color of a random cloth he found.

Jay, with too many things under his arm, tried to snatch the cloth out of Carlos’ hand. But the young De Vil resisted, starting a tug of war between the two boys.

“Dear lord.” Mal said with exhaustion.

Carlos’ back was on the limo door when suddenly the limo stopped and Carlos went barreling through the door.

“Stop! You got everything else! Why do you want whatever this is?” Carlos yelled, but Hailey wasn’t listening, she walked around the arguing boys and took in her surroundings.

She walked out of the limo and was taken back by the brightness in the new place. The demigoddess could only say one word to describe Auradon: green. Everything looked so… clean. They had these pretty things blooming out of the trees, and had leaves on their trees. Hailey’s eyes grew hard. How selfish of them to keep this to themselves. Doesn’t matter, they’ll have the wand soon anyways. But maybe she’ll take the pretty things.

A short woman in a blue dress and a pink bow walked up to them. Mal kicked Carlos’ back telling him there were people watching.

“Just cleaning up.” Jay said with a sly smile. He murmured for Carlos to get up. The white haired boy scrambled to get up.

“Leave it where you found it,” the woman with the pink bow started. “And by that I just mean leave it.” She said, making Jay throw all the random items he was holding back into the limo.

When he turned around, his eyes caught the girl hanging on the boy in blue’s arm “Hello... foxy.” Said Jay to the girl, with a sly smile. She gave him a disgusted look and he backed off.

“Welcome to Auradon prep. I’m Fairy Godmother, headmistress.” The woman in the bow introduced herself with a warm smile.

“Fairy godmother?” Mal asked, “As in, "Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo”?''

“Bibbidi-bobbidi. You know it.” The headmistress.

“Yeah, I always wondered what it felt like for Cinderella when you just appeared, out of nowhere, with that sparkly wand and warm smile.”

“Oh.” Fairy Godmother smiled again.

“And that sparkling wand.” Mal mentioned the wand once more, earning a kick to the boot from Hailey. Her way of saying “stop talking. You’re going to give us away.” Making Mal stumble a bit, which in turn Mal Side kicked Hailey’s boot.

Either she didn’t notice, Or Fairy Godmother chose to ignore what was happening  between the two girls, she decided to respond back with “That was a long time ago. And as I always say, "don't focus on the past or You'll miss the future." Mal smiled back at her.

The brunette boy in blue stepped up. “It's so good to finally meet you all. I'm Ben.” He introduced himself.

“Prince. Benjamin.” The girl hanging off his arm said “Soon to be king.” She giggled.

“You had me at prince.” Evie smiled as she stepped forward, “Evie.” She introduced herself with her always majestic voice. “My mom's a queen, which makes me a princess.”

“The evil queen has no royal status here and neither do you.” Said the female brunette.

Evie gave a small frown and stepped back next to Carlos. The young De Vil gave her a small squeeze on the shoulder.

“This is Audrey.” The Prince said with a defeated tone.

“Princess Audrey. My mother’s Aurora. I’m His girlfriend!” She leaned her head on his shoulder. “Right, Bennyboo?”

Mal’s mouth curled into a small smirk and placed her hands on Hailey’s shoulders. “And this is Hailey.” The purple haired fairy introduced her.

It took Hailey a few seconds to realize what Mal was trying to do, but when she finally understood, she went with it. “Greek Demigoddess, Hailey.” The fourteen year old corrected, “my father's Hades.” She mocked the Princess and gave her a smug smile as she put her hands on her hips.

It seemed that FairyGosmother noticed the tension and decided to step in. “Ben and Audrey are going to show you all around, and I'll see you tomorrow. The doors of wisdom are never shut.” Fairy Godmother threw her hands up suddenly making Hailey jump a little. She smiled at the five of them. Why do all of these people smile so much? Hailey wondered. “But the library hours are from 8:00 to 11:00. And as you may have heard, I have a little thing about curfews.”

“So we’ve heard.” Hailey snarked under her breath.

She waved goodbye to all of them as she made her way into the giant castle behind them. Leaving the two royals with the villain kids.

Ben gained their attention once more. “It is so, so good to finally,” The prince attempted to shake Jay’s hand, but the Arabian punched his chest as a greeting instead. “Me-meet you all.” He wheezed a little. “This is a momentous occasion,” He tried To shake Hailey’s hand but they never left her hips, she instead gave him a nod in Acknowledgment. He went to shake Mals hand, and It was the most normal so far.

He moved onto Carlos and paused. He shook his hand slowly as the two gazed into each other’s eyes for awhile. Maybe her eyes were fooling her, but to Hailey, it looked like Carlos’ cheeks had gone a little pink. “That I hope will go down in history…” he  said slowly as he shook his hand. “that chocolate?” He asked as he licked a small bit of chocolate off of his finger.

"Chocolate." Both Carlos and Hailey said under their breaths, glad to put a name to the sweet.

Back to what was going on, It seemed as if ben was lost in Carlos’ eyes. “Um…” he lost track of what he was supposed to say next, “ was I saying something?”

“Something about “a momentous occasion”. Jay reminded the Prince.

"Right." Ben gave Carlos a small smile before moving onto shake Evie's hand. The blue haired girl shook his hand eagerly. He finally came to the end of his speech “As the day our two peoples began to heal.” He. Stepped back ro Audrey and smiled at all of the VKs. Honestly, what’s up with all the smiling?

"Or the day you tell five people where the bathrooms are." Mal teased Ben, as the other snickered at the comment.

"Too much?" Ben asked.

"Just a lil'." Said Carlos, with a teasing tone. Ben gave him a sheepish smile.

“Yeah. How long did it take for you to practice that in the mirror?” Said Hailey, joining in the teasing.

It seemed the teasing was personally bothering the brunette princess, and she decided to intrude, “Hey! You're Maleficent's daughter, aren't you?” Mal raised her eyebrow at the girl, but nodded nonetheless. “I totally don’t blame you for your mother trying to kill my parents and stuff.” She said with a fake smile.

“You know, and I totally do not blame your grandparents for inviting everyone in the whole world but my mother to her. stupid. christening.” Mal said the last three words separately, with a fake smile identical to Audrey’s.

“Water under the bridge.” Audrey told her.

“Totes!” Mal agreed. They shared a forced laugh together.

The awkward tense silence fell among the group once more.

This time Ben broke it. “Okay!” He clapped his hands together. “So, how about a tour? Yeah?” He started walking to the castle before, stopping himself, turning around and looking at the VKs. “Sorry. I didn’t get any names.”

Each VK gave him their names, Hailey noted when it looked like Ben’s smile grew wider when Carlos revealed his name.

After every name, they continued on.

“Auradon prep, originally built over 300 years ago and converted into a high school by my father when he became king.” They all faced a statue of, what Hailey is assuming, King Adam. Ben clapped his hands twice, and the statue morphed into a terrifying beast.

The sudden transformation of statue startled all of the VKs, but freaked Carlos and Hailey out so bad, they both jumped into the arms of who was closest to them. Hailey landing in Evie’s arms, and Carlos in Jay’s.

“Whoa, Carlos, Hailey, It's okay.” Ben tried to calm the two down. “My father wanted his statue to morph from beast to man to remind us that anything is possible.”

“Does he shed?” Carlos asked.

“Mom won’t let him on the couch.” Ben responded with a smile.

They continued on to the tour. But the Hailey and Carlos stayed in the oldest arms.

“Carry me?” Hailey swallowed her pride, and asked Evie with a small voice.

“Fine,” Said the older blue headed girl. “But only until we get there.”

Carlos tried the same thing with Jay, but the thief dropped him immediately.

When they arrived in the castle, Hailey let herself out of Evie’s arms, and Ben gave a small summary of the room they were in.

“So you guys have a lot of magic here in Auradon? Like wands, and spells like that?” Was the first thing Mal asked when Ben finished his speech. Hailey shot Mal a look that said ‘really?’. She really isn’t being subtle about this.

“Yeah, it exists of course, but It's pretty much retired. Most of us here are just ordinary mortals.” Ben answered Mal.

“How is being royalty ordinary?” Hailey asked the question all the VKs were wondering.

“Um…” Ben started to say, when one of the kids from the band that played when they arrived, showed up at the top of the stairs. “Doug!” He called him, “Doug, come down. This is Doug,” Ben introduced him. Doug gave a small wave. “He's going to help you with your class schedules and show you the rest of the dorms. I'll see you later, okay?” Then the prince made direct eye contact with Carlos. “And If there is anything you need, feel free to…”

“Ask Doug.” His girlfriend interrupted him, and pulled him along down the long hall.

“Hi, guys. I'm Dopey's son. As in Dopey, Doc, Bashful, Happy, Grumpy, Sleepy, and... Heigh-ho.” His voice slowed when his eyes caught Evies.

“Evie. Evil queen's daughter.” She introduced herself.

“Doug.” He held out his hand.

“You already introduced yourself.” Hailey reminded him.

“Right. Um… oh yeah! Okay. So about your classes, I, uh, put in the requirements already... history of woodsmen and pirates, safety rules for the Internet, and, uh, remedial goodness 101.” Doug explained as he gave them each their schedules.

“New class?”  Was Evies guess. Doug gave her a sheepish smile.

“Come on, guys, let's go. find our dorms.” Mal said as she led the group down one hallway.

“uh, yeah, your dorms are that way, guys.” Doug pointed down the other hall.

“I knew that.”

Doug dropped the girls down in one room, and led the boys further down the hall to their room.

Mal opened the door and Hailey covered her eyes. The bedroom they’ll be staying in was pretty cramped due to the 3 beds. 2 to the sides and one in the middle. The curtains wide open letting in all the sunlight. 2 desks on one side and some kind of foam chair near one of the beds. The beds themselves had white comforters with pink pillows, and a white bed frame.

“This place is so-”

“Gross”

“Bright”

“Cringey”

“Cliché”

“Stereotypical”

“Did I mention bright?”

Hailey and Mal listed the worst things about the room.

“Hailey, get the curtain.” Said Mal.

Once both curtains were closed, Hailey and Mal let out a sigh of relief.

“Finally.” Said Hailey. Everyone let themselves drop in a bed.

Frick, this bed feels nice.

“So what’s next?” Evie asked from where she was laying.

“We get the wand.” Mal told her.

“Today?” Hailey propped herself up on her shoulders as she looked at Mal.

“Yup.” Was the last thing Mal said before she put on her plotting face again.

“Yo, where’s our luggage?”

[plumblossomkun]

word count: 3472

pairing: jaemin x female reader

warnings: 18+ setting, a lil angst

summary: in which Na Jaemin is the first man you’ve let dance with you in months, and his smile is like starlight and bubbling champagne

a/n: thanks for waiting! it’s finally out! for those of you who hate on fics about the dreamies: the more intense scenes are sexy but not actual sex. also they’re legal so you can scroll right by if you’re uncomfortable w adults acting like adults. also i’m still working on the kun fic!!! take this in its place for now!!!

click here for the playlist | chapter 2 coming soon

10:00 pm move - taemin your moves captivate me under the dark lights

“Jaemin, what are you looking at?” Jeno yawns, dragging his fingers through his hair. With his chiseled jaw and bright blue lenses, he seems cold and dangerous. Then he grins, and somehow becomes more boy than man, cheeks rounding as he beams, the motion curving even his eyes into half-moons. He laughs at himself. “I look good.”

“Like always,” the other man chuckles. He grins as he fixes his long-lashed gaze on whatever has captured his attention. Compared to Jeno, he is slighter, jaw less squared, legs and arms lankier, but even slouched in his chair he shines, from the slopes of his soft cheeks to the argent rings on his slender fingers. 

Jeno follows his gaze up to the second floor, to the girl who leans against the bar and laughs with the bartender. Against the dark polish of the wood, and under the faint gold lighting reflecting off the glass tiled walls, her hair falls dark brown and straight to her waist, but she does not turn their way to reveal her face. He almost regrets not having looked earlier, because even as she laughs with the bartender, holding a glass of water to her neck, she is graceful in a way that the girls around them are not.

He leans toward his friend. “Pretty girls don’t always have substance.”

Jaemin laughs, squeezing his shoulder. Even when his expression settles, his lips retain a half-smile. “Maybe not.”

10:58pm  chantaje - shakira feat. maluma and like a madman, i follow, behind you, dying for you

Countless girls boast rose-red lips and fluttering lashes. They bare their fangs like vipers, their intentions clear in the way they gyrate, asking for dances that neither of them want. At least, not to the slow, achy tune that the DJ is playing, low beat thrumming in the dim light, bodies riding against bodies in a way that has nothing to do with the rhythm of the music.

“Come play,” the girls croon, with their clawed hands and dangerously tall heels. “Drinks are on us. Come have fun.”

But the two refuse. They sit at a table by the stage, Jaemin flipping through his phone and Jeno watching the girls go by with faint disinterest.

Suddenly, he perks. “Jae.” 

“Mm?”

“돌다리도 두들겨 보고 건너라 (look before you leap).”

Jaemin looks up then. The girl who’d leaned against the bar nearly half an hour before strides towards the stage-- and therefore them-- looking like she wants to dive into the music. A faint peach-pink glow suffuses his cheeks. “I’ll try.”

10:59 snapping - chungha baby i feel you, the perfume haze spreads

With a final sigh of disgust, the bartender dumps an entire pitcher of water on the too-drunk man in front of him as the patron tries to grab the bottle of rum in his hand. “Don’t touch my alcohol.”

You spit out the remainder of your third glass of water, cackling. “Oh my god, Haechan.”

He motions for you to give him your radio, and when you hand it over, clicks it on to say, “Yo, can I get someone up here to escort a patron out?”

Then he snatches up what is left of the man’s last shot and sweeps the counter clean with a towel. The scowl that curls his lips is entirely uncharacteristic for someone whose name means ‘full sun’. “You touch my shit, you get out. Club policy.”

A guard (one of three) appears at the top of the stairs to take the inebriate under his arm. Yukhei is too nice-looking for a bouncer, not intimidating at all, but all the regulars love him, and that goofy smile of his works wonders. “Come on, buddy. I got ya. I’ll call you a car-- oh, your girlfriend’s downstairs? Dancing? Without you? Let me get the DJ to call her out so she can get you home.”

As you cringe for the poor man, an arm slips around your shoulder, and the smell of lavender surrounds you. “Hi, sweetheart,” your boss coos. As he cozies up to you, you look him up and down, brows raised at how he’s dressed. The black suit compliments his foxy blood-red hair, but without a shirt and tie, he actually looks the part of a sleazy club owner.

He adjusts the bobby pins keeping the right side of his hair back, looking unsure. “Too much?”

“No, just different,” you say, tucking a stray hair behind his ear. He flinches at the gesture, pale cheeks tinged pink. Despite his intimidating looks, Lee Taeyong is the softest man you know, and you absolutely adore him for it. “You look good, Yongie.”

Taeyong beams at the compliment, the color on his face blooming into a full blown blush. “You think so?”

“Yeah, hyung. You look sexy,” the other server, Mark, chimes in, tossing his apron over the counter.

Haechan throws it right back at him. “You never say that to me!”

You roll your eyes as they begin to squabble, like always. “Oppa, I’m going to take my 20 now.”

Taeyong is busy engaging with one of the regulars. “Okay, sweetheart. Have fun out there.” He doesn’t look to see where you’re going; he already knows where you’ll be if he needs to find you.

You run a hand through your hair as you go down the stairs, combing the kinks out as you move past dozens and dozens of girls. In their thick makeup and skin-tight dresses, they writhe to the heavy bass like eels, and you’re glad that even when they stand from their seats their drinks stay in their hands.

The stench of hundreds of perfumes passes through the air, heavy with heat, and the flashing, shifting lights turn the faces around you into Picasso paintings in motion.

You revel in it, breathe in the stuffy air like you’re starved for it. Taeyong always says he likes it like that, maintains that a sweaty club-goer is the one that hands over the most money for drinks, only turns the AC on to air out the club at the end of the night. You only love it when you’re about to be part of it.

“Hey, baby, let me buy a drink when your shift ends,” someone hollers, a round of drunken cheers following. “You need one, don’t you?” When you glance at the group of men sitting by the bottom of the stairs, they are all red-cheeked, and their heads wobble on their necks as they wave at you. 

“No thanks,” you say dryly. They reek of alcohol and grease. Christ. “I don’t drink.”

“That’s okay, sweetie, we’ll be here when you want to,” one of the other men at the table leers, raising his beer in the air. “All~ night long.”

“I’ll let you know if I ever need a drink,” you lie, and continue on your way, shuddering at the very thought of it. If you ever drank, it wouldn’t be with them.

Regardless, you have your eyes set on what you want already.

He sits in shadow just below the stage, though the shadows are not enough to hide him, not when he looks like a sin waiting to happen. You’ve never seen him before-- you’re sure you would have noticed him if he’d been at the club before.

A strip of bare skin peeks out between the laces of his white tunic, running from his collarbones to just above his navel; the maroon blazer against his pale skin makes him look like he’s made of moonlight. When you draw closer, you can see dark red glitter sparkle on his long lashes, and a thin layer of gloss on his petal pink lips; behind the strands of almost-black hair falling across his face, his shining eyes are lined with umber.

Dangerous, you muse. You’re sure that anything would look good on him.

He sees you coming, basically jumps to his feet and meets you halfway. His lips curve into a smile, one that bares the upper row of his teeth and shows off the length of his lashes against his cheeks, a smile that is soft and bright like starlight. 

Before you can speak, he offers you his hand. “Would you like to dance?

Against your better judgement, you take it. “You’ll be the first person I say yes to tonight, then.” 

It’s not like I’ll dance with another cute boy tonight, anyway.

“I’m honored,” he chuckles. And he pulls you into the crowd, and, subsequently, into his arms.

11:02 ko ko bop - exo can’t explain this feeling, i’m drawn by your ways

Her hands are soft, and small, and almost cold when they ghost over his, but the way she smiles is everything but that. In fact, now that she’s dancing-- and it’s like it just happens to be with him, he’s almost sure she would look the same way in anyone else’s arms-- she seems to glow, with an undeniable energy that draws in all the eyes of the people around her. It is like she is the only light in the entire club, and everyone else is drowning in shadow.

He watches incredulously as her hands run chastely down from his neck to his chest, then flit down to his sides. And despite their lightness, they feel like fire to him.

His lungs have never failed him like this before.

She grins like she knows just how devastating she is, and cocks her head, inviting him to come closer. Even her perfume is intoxicating, the faint sweetness of strawberries and jasmine lingering wherever she moves.

He laughs, grinning as he leans in. “I’ll dance with you as long as you want me to.”

When she pulls back, she’s blushing— it’s lovely on her, like a dusting of roses on her cheeks—  and mouths, okay.

11:05 baby don’t like it - nct 127 when i’m with you, danger seems like a good thing

The hair’s breadth of distance between you is a sweet gesture on his part-- even when you trace the lines of his body, feel his heartbeat just beneath your fingertips, he doesn’t do the same to you-- but something in you really wants to see him let go. The razor-sharp tension in his jaw and the way the veins in his neck flex when he comes too close to you make it clear that he wants to be in that space between too close and just close enough.

“Why don’t you relax?” Your back pressed to his chest, you tip your head back so you’re leaning into him. If you weren’t paying attention, you’d only see the soft smile on his face and the conspiratorial wink. But you are so close to him that you can hear the quiet gasp that escapes him at the contact. You’re too short to really lean on his shoulder, but the feeling of him hovering over you, almost holding you, is strangely comforting. That, and he smells like clean laundry, all warmth and sweetness.

“There are a lot of people watching us,” he says, his voice caressing your ear, deep and rich like melted chocolate. It’s not quite an answer to your question, but the words are also not a boast or a lie-- you can feel the electricity of countless watching eyes, jealousy dripping from them like melting wax that you are the one who has his attention. You can’t help but feel smug, and bite your lip to keep yourself from snickering. 

Except, when his hands frame your body, from your shoulders down to your hips, finally running his fingers over your skin, a sharp inhale comes out instead. You almost swear at the way he does it, reverently, so gentle, like you’re glass.

Christ.

11:11 señorita - (g)i-dle just focus on me, do other eyes matter?

His cheek brushes against yours when you turn your head to whisper, “It’s 11:11. Make a wish?”

He snickers. “Who needs a wish when I already have you here?”

That’s a fucking terrible line. You wonder if you should laugh or hit him for it. Meanwhile, he trembles with laughter at his own words.

Somewhere between a minute and an eternity later, he’s spun you back around to face him, one hand on your hip. He doesn’t say anything, but that beautiful, shining smile lingers on his face as the two of you continue to sway to the reggae strum of bass guitar filling the air, every move languid and easy.

11:11 long flight - taeyong it’s enough, but i’m still starving baby

Jaemin is completely and utterly convinced that the girl in his arms fits there a little too well for his own good. He sighs.

A sudden coldness settles in her expression at the noise, and her voice is small and distant when she leans back and asks, “Are you here just for tonight?”

“No.” He tweaks her nose, thinking, winter does not suit her at all. When that fails to shake her out of it, he brushes his thumbs across her cheeks, humming, “Did you know that a smile suits you better?”

She rewards his efforts with a huff of laughter, and a little of the light returns to her face as she swats at him. “Hey!”  

He grins down at her. “Are you worried you won’t see me again?”

The last thing he expects in response to that is for her to blush and nod the tiniest of nods.

He sucks in a breath at the feeling that washes over him like a too-hot summer breeze, one that is completely alien to him. Flirting is as natural to him as breathing or licking his lips-- so he doesn’t quite know what to do with the crimson blooming on his cheeks. 

He covers his face with his hand. So this is what it’s like to be on the other side.

11:12 all i wanna do - jay park feat. hoody and loco whatever you want, my answer is me too

The stranger is silent for a brief spell. When he speaks again, he sounds as if he’d rather not say the words. “As much as I would love to dance with you all night, I think Taeyong-hyung wants us on soon.” 

“Us?” you echo, looking up at him.

“Yes.” He looks as if he wants to say something more, mouth gaping slightly, but shakes his head, looking over his shoulder to speak to someone you can’t see through the sea of bodies around you. “Jeno, come here.”

Another face appears beside the stranger’s. Together, they look like a pair of angels staring down at you. And they would be, if they weren’t dancing with you, in Taeyong’s club, at this dark hour.

“Hello,” the boy named Jeno says. Unlike his friend, who is like a tree swaying in the warmth of the summer breeze, he is litheness and grace, slender and lean, and looks like he feels the music in every bone in his muscled body. His hard features soften when he smiles shyly at you, and if his friend’s smile is like starlight on a warm summer’s night, his is as lovely as the sun on a spring morning.

“Are you gonna go get ready?” he asks your previous partner as they bump shoulders.

“Yeah.” The stranger catches your eye with a wink, blows you a saucy kiss that makes you laugh. He brushes a thumb over your cheek before he leaves. “See you later.” 

And then he’s gone, leaving you bright red.

“I’m sorry he’s like that,” Jeno sighs, guiding you deeper into the waxing tide of bodies. “If it’s any comfort, I am a better dancer than he is.” 

You lick your lips, already starved for the music and the movement. You don’t miss how his eyes follow the motion. “Good thing you can show me.”

He laughs. “Of course.”

Jeno wasn’t lying, at all, and for a song or two, you forget that it was his friend’s smile that had pulled you onto the dance floor in the first place instead of his.

Still, your eyes stray, and you wonder if you might dance with his friend again before the night ends.

11:20 stay up - baekhyun let me get drunk on the sweetness that is you

Jaemin adjusts the mic pack on the harness around his waist and lets out another long sigh.

“You’re being dramatic,” Haechan comments, not looking up from his phone. The dressing room is admirably large for such a small establishment, but the shorter man is still in Jaemin’s space and in his chair. “We’re only performing, like, 5 songs."

“You can’t complain,” he replies as he peeks in the vanity to check his makeup and hair. “Taeyong took over the bar so you could perform with us.”

“Only because we’re making him more money than the bar ever could.” Renjun yawns from the couch behind them, stretching. “If Chenle and Jisung weren’t busy, we’d make even more.”

Someone knocks hesitantly on the door, like they’re not sure they should even be knocking. “You guys decent?”

“Mark, just come in,” Renjun and Haechan sigh.

And it is indeed the eldest of them who slips into the room, tugging his tie out of its loop. “Jeno’s coming. [Y/N]” —he levels a knowing glance at Jaemin— “is done with her break, anyway.”

Haechan finally looks up from his phone, frowning. “You should be careful with her.”

“Is she that dangerous?” Jaemin jokes. 

He doesn’t voice the fact that, for him, she just might be.

Haechan rolls his eyes. He claps Jaemin on the shoulder as he gets up to retrieve his own headset. “Eh... Mark, you tell him.”

“Tell him what—? Oh.” Mark looks up from the clothing rack, outfit in hand. “Haechan and I have been out there with her too, dude. Don’t mess with her. She doesn’t need another thing to worry about. Plus, Taeyong-hyung will actually kill you if you get too close.”

Jaemin holds up his hands in surrender. “We were just dancing.”

It’s Mark’s turn to give him a sympathetic pat. “If you say so.”

“Just remember I was the one who warned you,” Haechan huffs.

11:25 drippin’ - nct dream it’s too late to run away, you started this game first

When you return to the bar to retrieve your apron, you are surprised to see Taeyong smiling at patrons and serving the alcohol instead of Haechan. Yukhei is there too, keeping a watchful eye over the patrons, knowing all too well that some of them like to try and take advantage of the easily distracted club owner.

“Hey,” the guard greets you, grinning. A table of girls are giggling and waving at him, but he ignores them, giving you a high-five and a quick hug that has them whispering furiously. “Have a good break?”

“Yeah,” you laugh, thinking about the stranger and his friend. “I wasn’t on my own for once.”

Taeyong somehow hears you from across the bar and zooms over, brow creased in concern. “Sweetheart, you didn’t happen to be dancing with one of the boys who are performing tonight, would you?

Startled, you have to take a second to remember. “Uh, yeah? I think he mentioned that… He didn’t give me his name, though.”

“Mark and Haechan know the drill,” he mutters, mostly to himself. He glances at you again. “It’s not Chenle or Jisung, they’re hosting a workshop somewhere… was it Renjun? Jeno? Jaemin?” 

“Um… tall? Kind of flirty?”

“It’s Jaemin,” Taeyong says immediately, with a finality that has you wondering exactly what he plans to do with the information and how’d he’d known who you’d been talking about so quickly. “That boy—”

“What about him?” You poke him square in the chest, a little miffed. He means well, you know he does, but it’s not like you can’t handle yourself. “Oppa, I’ve told you, you don’t need to coddle me.”

“Sweetheart, I’m not coddling you. They’re— you know how Mark and Haechan are! Jaemin is even worse—”

“Okay, but I’m not one of them.” You wave at the table of girls sighing over Yukhei. “Have you ever seen me swoon over Mark or Haechan?”

“No, but—”

“We were just dancing, alright?” You tug at him, too tired to really argue. “If he does something, you have my permission to sic Yukhei and Haechan on him.”

Taeyong looks down at your hand on his sleeve and scrunches his nose. Sighing, he presses a soft kiss to your forehead. “I’m just looking out for you, sweetheart.”

“I love you too, stinky,” you call after him as he goes back to the bar and you tie your apron firmly around your waist.

“Are you sure it was just dancing?” Yukhei teases, mocking Taeyong’s worried tone. He cackles when you elbow him in the gut. 

“Yes, I’m sure.”

a/n 2: what y’all think? feedback is appreciated! you can leave it here or just deposit it in my asks (; ♥

[flying-fox-of-westfall]

Gin n Mischief

“Whatcha up to, Foxy?” Jasper asks, leaning his head into the door frame, and clearly hiding something behind his back. “Anythin’ special? ‘cause ifin’ it ain’t, or it can wait, I kinda got somethin’ ta show ya. An’ it ain’t Giz in a hat again, I swear. Though, that was purdy funny." 

He then took a little tentative step into the doorway to his room a little more fully, still hiding something behind his back. "But, ya gotta be admittin’, 'e looked super cute in my hat. Like a fat lil roley poley. Could ya imagine what he’d be like, wearin’ that hat, an’ wanderin’ around mousin’? I feel like he’d be like, the cutest little mouser. So dapper." 

A few long steps took him further into the room. "So uh,” He hesitates, “You uh…busy…?" 

Normally, Jasper would come home to find Claire sitting out on their makeshift rooftop balcony, a cigarette pinched between her lips, a glass of gin in her hand, and a tumbler of whiskey ready and waiting for him. They would spend a couple hours at the end of each day this way, catching the other up on their day while sipping from their respective glasses and peppering each moment with displays of tender affection while the sun dipped slowly beyond the horizon.

On this particular day, however, she greeted him from the comfort of the bedroom's lone armchair, legs curled beneath herself, leaning against the armrest with an elbow as she peered over at the red-haired ruffian with a thoughtful, albeit cautious smile.

"Oh, he was stinkin' adorable, ain't no denyin' that. Doubt he'd let ya do that again anytime soon, though," she teased, leaning forward in her seat and narrowing her eyes up at him. 

"So, what'cha got there, Red? Hidin’ somethin’ behind yer back, or are ya just happy to see me?" 

(( @jasper-quinn​ ))

[ghost-in-the-machine]

Newfound Hero (FNAF February Day 3)

Summery:

February 3rd- Remember

Do you trust your memories? On this day, create something around remember.

More Thomas stuff! Heh, because I’ve wanted to write this for awhile, and now have the excuse.

(Content warming for bullying and vaguely referenced past child abuse.)

@fnaffandomevents /Event info here!

“L-look, j-j-just give it back!” Thomas flinched at the sound of his own voice, as well as the feeling of hot tears pricking at the corners of his eyes. God, this certainly wasn’t convincing them, huh…

As if to prove the point, the tallest of the gang of teens in front of him stepped forward, leaning in to stare Thomas down. Thomas was still a bit tall for fifteen, but this guy had to be more like seventeen or eighteen, and a few inches taller… Plus, a lot tougher-looking.

Not that looking tougher than him was much of a feat, but still.

“Or what? Gonna try fightin’ back for once?” The ringleader looked back at his friends, and Thomas spared a glance at his sister’s plush, held captive by one of the bullies. Here he was, trying to be a good older brother, and…

The teen in front of Thomas turned back, a cruel smirk spreading across his face when he saw Thomas looking, and the younger boy curled back in on himself further. “Aw, don’t worry, we’ve still got your dolly, you lil’ priss.”

“I-I’m not… I-i-it’s, uh, i-it’s not…” Thomas dropped his head as the boys started laughing, muttering, “S-s-somebody’s g-gotta notice…”

“Pff, nah.” With a yelp, Thomas felt his head yanked up by the hair, and the leader whispered, “None o’ the employees come back here, so-”

“Aye, well, I suppose ye’ be right about that, lad.”

The group of bullies dispersed, yelling and cursing in shock, while Thomas just pulled back in on himself, wanting to hide the bruise on his cheek and his teary eyes. Maybe… Father was right. I am weak…

“Now, why don’ you batch of seaslugs take off and leave this lad alone, b’fore I have t’… intervene?” Thomas faintly heard footsteps as the gang took off. He thought he heard the leader yell something, but then another person in the group interrupted, “Just leave it, man!”

“Aye…” The strange, almost-robotic voice groaned, then it softened, asking Thomas,” Ho, are ye’ alright, lad? Sounds as though they did a number on ye’.”

Shyly, Thomas looked up from his lap, and could barely believe what he was looking at. One of the animatronics from out front, the pirate one… “F-Foxy?”

Despite the metal jaw, Foxy almost seemed to smile, lowering himself to the floor to face Thomas. “Huh, so this ol’ captain’s got ‘imself a fan! Tell me, lad, what’s yer name?”

“T-Thomas…” With a start, Thomas noticed his sister’s plushy sitting on the ground next to Foxy, and ran to scoop up the stuffed chicken. “Y-you got it back!” A smile pulled at his face, and he looked away nervously, mumbling, “Uh, th-thank you. M-my sister’s gonna be, um, r-really happy to get this back…”

“Ay, t’was nothing, Thomas.” Foxy seemed to look out at the rest of the restaurant, then back at the older boy in front of him. “Say, what say ye’ take a breather in me Cove for a bit? E’eryone else’ll be busy with the band’s show, and ye look like you could use a moment…”

Thomas glanced out at the tables. His mother had been dragged off by some other parents to talk out front, and Lindsey was still watching the show, and probably hadn’t even noticed her brother or her plush going missing…

The boy looked back up at the animatronic, the smile spreading across his face. “Y-yes, please.”

Foxy seemed to beam. “Well, then, welcome aboard, lad!”

[downbythewater-beachblondee]

5| Red Sea

"I should take you out sometime."

"Indeed you should. Though this isn't a date."

"How does tomorrow sound? Tomorrow at seven."

"Count me in."

Sanaa ☾

The sun arose in a daze and the birds flew away. Kylo wasn't at home when the skies turned from purple to grey. It had rained.

I reached to the ceiling, stretching my arms high to the open sky before plopping my head right back down.

"Ouch," I winced, realizing I had rolled my hair the night before. My rollers were heavy and annoying. But beauty is pain...especially when you have a date on a Saturday night at seven.

Well, it wasn't so much as a date as it was a get to together. Elijah was currently repaying me for his intrusive attitude the other day down by the lake. It was the least he could do. News flash, his wife is cheating on him and I'm assuming he has had no problem wanting to do the same.

Some things are better left unsaid. However, I don't plan on sleeping with him anytime soon. Because good things...come to those who wait. Unless he decides otherwise this evening...of course.

I put on my favorite album from Foxy Brown after my bare brown feet hit the floor.

Her words flew off of my tongue like dying black petals reaching for the April waters. It was spring time turning into summer where I come from.

I took off my bonnet, allowing my pink and green rollers to expose themselves into the morning sunlight. I placed a kettle on..

And I walked outside the backdoor.

Kylo and I had a tiny backyard. It was just enough for a garden. And that's exactly what I planted back there. I had Brussels sprouts, lemons, banana's, okra...flowers. It was my source for my life cart, which I didn't have anymore and I didn't feel like looking for it either.

"Well hello, my little tendrils." I spoke aloud. I like to speak to my creations.

"It's time for your baths." I smiled, watering the plants with the leftover rain water from last night.

"Looks like the roses need a pickin'"

Out of my entire collection of plants, my favorite were the roses. They spoke to me like they were my own red children. Their skin so soft..and quite useful. I grew instantly excited when a new batch was ready. Because now...I got to make rose water. That right there is the best time I could give myself. Steaming a kettle and boiling some roses...listening to some Foxy? The best.

I picked my roses carefully, soon heading back inside.

Before I could pour water into the pot, the back door opened, revealing a sweaty Kylo.

"Hey baby." He cooed.

"Hello Kylo." I hated it when he called me that.

"Wassup, you cooking' for me?" He asked, placing his hands around my waist.

"No, quite the contrary." I said, forcing myself out of his embrace. "I'm bathing my roses."

"You what?"

"My roses. I'm making rose water."

"You weird."

"I'm not weird. Rose Water is food for the soul. Dimwits like you wouldn't understand."

"Damn, Sanaa! This my goddam house. You up in here boiling roses and shit for no damn reason. You done fucked up my yard with banana trees and shit. You don't cook for me or even suck my dick. You lucky I even let you fucking stay here! Don't come at me with that bullshit!"

"...are you joking?" I asked, partly confused at his sudden change in emotions. Although he usually didn't play around this harsh.

"Yes, nigga. I am."

"I'm ... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you." I murmured sincerely.

"Nah, you good."

He sat down on the bed, leaning forward with his head in his hands. I decided to push his arms back a little before sitting down into his lap.

"I'm sorry." I whispered, biting his ear.

He smiled. "...you good."

"Good!" I beamed. "Wanna help me?"

"Sure."

"You know anything about gardening? I never asked you about anything like that. Sorry for messing up your yard." I asked.

"Our yard," He corrected. "And yes, In fact. I do."

"Great." I cringed. I hated when he wanted to get closer to me. When was he going to realize I don't do commitment? Just because I let him hit it once doesn't mean we're going to keep doing it and I'm most certainly not his girlfriend. He's a place to stay..nothing more.

"Well maybe you could help pick some ripe food out there and we could make some gumbo."

"What you know bout gumbo, girl?" He asked, smacking my ass.

I cleared my throat uncomfortably. "I have some cousins from the norleans."

"Cool..hey maybe I could teach you how to grow the hard stuff. Like broccoli and beans."

"Where'd you learn all that?"

"Experience. Oh and...I might be home a lot more until I can find another job. I got laid off."

"That's too bad, Ky. That's too bad." I answered.

"I guess this means...we'll be making rose water a lot more." He said, grabbing my pussy.

"Maybe." I smiled. "Maybe."

_______________

The sky had turned grey again. It was almost 7:00 on a Saturday night. Kylo left to go hang with his boys, leaving me peacefully unbothered in the house. I was glad he was gone. This way, I wouldn't have to explain my whereabouts for the night.

I had just finished washing up. I bathed, giving myself a homemade facial. It was quite nice. Who knew a mixture of guacamole and cucumbers could work beauty wonders.

My makeup was light and airy, as I didn't feel like caking it on tonight. I undid my rollers, allowing my roller set to fall loosely enough. I combed the curls to my liking until they hung perfectly on both sides. I sprayed my rose water onto my skin as a finishing touch before smoothing out my dress and looking into the mirror.

I was beautiful.

I shook my head, my life flashing before my eyes. I remember wanting breasts and hips and now I finally had them. I remember wanting my hair to grow...and it finally has. But, I never remember yearning for life. Nowadays...that too has changed.

My eyes trailed towards the right. An old picture of me stood near the lamp on the nightstand.

"...hey Naomi." I perked slightly feeling a tear fall towards my cheek. "You're going places, dear. You sure are."

I set the picture down, hearing a car roll up down the street from the windows.

"You're here."

_______________

"Where we headed?"

I humped my shoulders, retrieving the fast food drink from the cup holder.

"That's my tea."

"That's my tea." I mocked.

"You're such a child." He gushed. "Now, where are we going?"

"How about...for old times sake...we go to the pond?"

"The pond? At this hour? It's finna get dark."

I humped my shoulders. "Quit asking me for suggestions then."

I could see him roll his eyes from my peripheral vision.

"I guess I'll surprise you then." He whispered.

If I was white, I would be blushing like a ripe beet. We weren't flirting. We were just enjoying conversation and smiling. This was my repudiation; remember he owes me.

"Turn the radio up." I urged, playfully.

"Aye, who told you to touch my radio, ma. You don't never touch a black mans radio."

"First of all...you're not black."

"...aye cuh, shut that shit up. I come from a black family."

"Oh, I'm so scared now." I joked.

My eyes trailed towards the left of me. Elijah began slowing down before attempting a left. A figure appeared from the corner of my eye. The figure was a She. She looked afraid. She began crouching, severely. I heard her holler out before stumbling onto the ground. She had fallen on the life cart I used to carry around. It was still lying in the same spot I had thrown it on.

"Elijah!" I warned. "Slow down."

"What's going on?"

"Stop the car." I demanded, opening the passenger door.

He did as told, and I rushed towards the hurt woman.

The closer I approached her the more I was able to see her flushed expression and hear her horrific moans.

"Help me! My baby!" She yelled. "I need help! Please help!"

I instantly grabbed her hand.

"I got you baby. We're going to get you to a hospital."

"No!" She interrupted. "I can't! No hospital. I have to have this baby now."

"Now? Sweetie, there's a hospital just around the corner. We can take you there."

Elijah began slowly walking towards the scene where I was.

"Please. You don't understand. Arghhh! I can't go to the hospital. Please. Don't let me have this baby by myself." She pleaded.

I pursed my lips.

"Since hospitals are out of the question," I whispered to Elijah. "Lets get her to the pond."

He stared at me as if Bambi had seen the light of God in midnight.

"Help me get her to the pond!" I restated. "Grab a flash light too."

He scrambled around, helping the girl up by her back and arms. She was a tall and slender lil thing, her pouch was the only thing big about her.

"Here, pick up the cart and place her on it. I can wheel her to the pond."

He picked her up, placing her safely onto the flat side of the cart before grabbing a hold of the handle. I had the front and he steered the back. "Make sure she doesn't fall!" I ordered.

He nodded his head as we began our nightly journey towards the waters of the abandoned park.

"What's your name sweetie?"

"...Peaches..." she responded. "My name is Peaches."

It took a good ten minutes before we got there. I was surprised no one called the L.A.P.D. on us because of Peaches' undying screams. You would think someone were getting murdered. But when we reached the dark waters of the pond, I knew what had to be done.

"Come on baby." I cooed, helping her off the cart. Elijah did the best he could at assisting. He was a wonderful help. I kicked off my shoes asking Elijah to do the same.

"Help me get her in the water."

As we got deeper into the water, I began stripping Peaches of her loose dress she had on. It would get in the way. I tied her hair the best I could.

"Eli. Flash light."

He popped the light on, pointing it directly in my face.

"Not in my face! Point towards the moon!"

"Sorry. Gotcha."

"Okay." I assured, placing my curls into a low pony tail. "Let's do this."

"Peaches, lay on your back sweetie. Imma need you to float." I instructed.

"I can't!" She whined.

Elijah held her back with his left hand, holding the flash light up with his right.

We were a great team.

I began feeling for her vagina, caressing her abdomen the best way I could.

"I can feel the head!" I announced.

"Oh, God." Elijah gagged.

"I need you to push, baby."

"Okay," peaches breathed.

"Here we go...push! Baby, push! I feel the baby!" I beamed.

"Oh my God....what the hell man." Elijah continued.

"Elijah, I need you to be strong baby and hold that light up! This is new life coming into the world."

He looked away, pointing the light at the moon.

"Yes, honey! I feel the baby! Keep pushing!"

"Ohhhhhh!!! Oh my God!!! Ahhhhhh!"

Peaches let out a final moan before I felt her push the last push. The baby had been born.

I quickly pulled the baby out from the water, raising it in the sky.

"It's a girl! A beautiful baby girl!"

That night, a child was born. It might not have been the very best  way to bring a child into the world...but if there was one thing I knew about childbirth, I knew that water was an essential product in birthing. Water; a transparent and nearly colorless chemical substance that is the main constituent of Earth's streams, lakes, and oceans, and the fluids of most living organisms. The balancing commodity that brings life into the world, extraditing all death and deadness. I did the best I could with Peaches that night. I don't know why she didn't want to go to the hospital. Maybe she had an aversion towards hospitals just like I did. We would have to keep in touch.

A few seconds and a cut to the umbilical cord with Elijah's pocket knife, and a soul was delivered into the world.

The child's name ended up being Mariposa. The Spanish translation for butterfly. The water around us was brown and red as we cleaned Peaches as much as we could.

And the bliss in my eyes when I delivered that child was bright enough to light a Red Sea .