#magenta discharge

[o-craven-canto]

Some of the amazing biological watercolors by David Goodsell, who paints cells, organelles, and tissues literally molecule by molecule. The whole set of pictures is published as The Machinery of Life.

Bacterium Escherichia coli, with cell membrane and wall in green, cytoplasm in blue and magenta, and nucleoid in yellow and orange. Detail in the white square magnified on the right, showing the base of a flagellum. The yellow rope-like objects are strands of DNA, being replicated and transcribed to mRNA by orange enzymes. The pink curls are mRNA filaments, fed to purle ribosomes for protein synthesis. Full caption in the link.

To follow, the whole lifecycle of secreted proteins in a eukaryotic cell:

Left: In the nucleus, strands of DNA carrying the relevant gene (7) is attached by RNA polymerase (8) which creates the corresponding sequence of messenger RNA (9). Right: mRNA is carried by proteins through a nuclear pore (7) into the cytoplasm.

Left: mRNA is carried to the ribosomes (1) attached to the endoplasmic reticulum (green). The ribosomes "read" the mRNA sequence and assemble the corresponding aminoaid sequences (polypeptides) which are then brought into the ER; here they are folded into proteins and bound with sugars. Right: The mature proteins (in this case antibodies, 9) are packed into vesicles. Misfolded proteins are tagged by ubiquitin (6) and degraded in the proteasome (8).

Left: The proteins are carried by vesicles through the cytoplasm, navigating between the filaments of actin (3) until they reach the Golgi apparatus (green), where they are further processed. Right: The proteins are packed into membrane-bound vesicles, "tagged" by specialized receptors (1), by cages of clathrin (2).

Left: The vesicles travel again through the cytoplasm, dragged along the path of microtubules (6) by kinesin (5). Right: Eventually the vesicles merge with the cell membrane and the proteins are secreted into the external environment.

The whole thing as a single picture:

More:

Influenza virus budding from a cell

Synapse discharging acetylcholine into a muscle cell (at bottom)

[brucenorris007]

Expiration

Summary: When your goals revolve around one person, the day they're gone is always going to catch you unawares. And few, if any, are as singular in their motivations as Omega.

2147 words

Br-r-r-at-at-at.

Boom.

Omega charged ahead, leaving the combusting remains of the twenty-third badnik in his wake as he retracted his guns. He approached a turn in the corridor at speed. Another mass-produced E-series bore down the hall toward him, laser cannon already primed. Rather than stop, Omega let his momentum carry him forward, his frame skidding past the corner just as the inferior model fired; magenta energy singed the handle on Omega’s left shoulder.

He slammed his feet down to seize traction and redirected his charge before the E-2000 could deploy its shield or fire again; drove his right fist through its arm cannon, metal erupting and splintering like wood under his attack. The E-2000 switched offensive protocols to its remaining arm, ramming the chief of its shield into Omega’s shoulder.

A notification chimed across his CPU.

He preemptively dismissed it.

He opened his fist to grasp what remained of the mass model’s left arm. He swung his torso around with his full weight, bashing his captive’s head into the wall as he engaged his afterburners; he careened forward, metal scraping and sparks flying from the E-2000’s spasming body until all resistance ceased. The hall opened into a chamber with three floors.

Upon entry, he detected another nineteen badniks visible on the floor below; no fewer than six E-1000s turned and aimed their laser rifles at him, two from a higher elevation. Prioritizing destruction of the rejects in an advantageous position, Omega hoisted his defunct cargo and hurled it at the mass-products nearest him to occupy their attention.

Before he could open fire, a discharge of concentrated energy struck his back; he stumbled forward, swiveling his head to identify the source.

A Newtron; a fucking Newtron sat on the wall over the door behind him, its mouth closing to conceal the plasma pistol within.

Another internal notification pinged. Omega ignored it again.

In the split-second he took to reorient his balance, a Grabber dropped down from the ceiling and hooked its legs onto Omega’s chassis, two gripping him by the handles on his shoulders. The badnik lacked the structural strength to lift him, but it did inhibit his movements while the E-1000s adjusted their aim. Omega fired from the gun barrels on both arms while simultaneously re-engaging his engines to wrest himself free.

Three shields came up; only one rifle fell to gunfire.

The tensile strength of the thread connecting the Grabber to the ceiling held.

Thin red laser sights trained on him.

The ticking that preceded detonation sounded from the spider badnik.

Kvhroon.

Chaos energy, sharp and wild, sliced through the leg gripping Omega’s right shoulder handle. A grenade struck one of the E-1000s descending from above, detonating on impact.

Omega’s teammates thus announced their arrival.

Omega veered left, this time managing to generate enough force and momentum to snap the leg holding his other handle; with the Grabber lacking purchase, he broke free entirely. With another chaos spear, Shadow cut through the thread connecting the badnik to the ceiling and grabbed the line. Like a ball and chain, he swung the reject over his shoulder and slammed it down on top of the other badniks filing up from the floor below.

Overhead, Rouge smashed her foot through another E-1000’s head with a spiraling kick. The mass-product’s body crashed to the floor and scattered into pieces.

Omega’s two fleshy teammates regrouped on either side of him.

He disabled all damage notifications and switched his weapons to blasters.

—————

Ninety-six minutes later, Pacific Rim quietly played in Team Dark’s living room on their TV; Omega sat on the floor while his teammates lounged on the sofa beside him. On screen, the cables suspending Gipsy Danger over the harbor released, dropping the unit into the water. Omega found the concept of a mech requiring two meatbag pilots to function absurd, but he did enjoy watching the destruction depicted in del Toro’s action scenes.

Although they’d been successful in clearing out the base, Rouge had been less than impressed.

(“You know. When I said we should pace ourselves, that wasn’t really a suggestion.”)

While she’d spoken in collective terms, she’d been looking squarely at Omega when she used them; referring to the caution she’d advised after he’d charged ahead of his teammates through several other bases. He’d pretended he didn’t notice–same as he'd feigned ignorance of the fact that Shadow had consistently positioned himself four centimeters closer to him than was typical on missions.

He’d endured several similar expressions of concern over the past eighty-one hours; a greater frequency of the same within the last forty-three.

Nine days and two hours had elapsed since G.U.N. removed Eggman from its terrorist watchlist.

Nine days, one hour and fifty-eight minutes since Eggman had been declared deceased.

Three days and eight hours had elapsed since Omega independently verified the fact.

One day and nineteen hours had elapsed since Omega last spoke.

(“Is this a malfunction or a quiet day?”

“His quiet days don’t usually last all day; either way, something’s wrong.”)

Omega had expressed–via nonverbal means–that yes, his voice box was malfunctioning, and no, it did not require repair.

He did not tell them that his processors and circuits had sparked with so many things to say simultaneously that it overburdened his voice box. They didn’t need to know the specifics. Nor was their concern necessary; his effectiveness in carrying out missions hadn’t been impeded whatsoever. Particularly the variety they’d been taking on.

Though Eggman was gone, his machines nonetheless continued the maintenance and patrols of his hideouts in his absence; while they wouldn’t break away from their routines or attack anyone beyond their stations without explicit orders from their creator, it was still a sizable force to leave unchecked.

Rouge had secured a considerable commission from G.U.N. for each base that Team Dark cleared out. Omega had taken to the job enthusiastically, perhaps more than usual–he’d been in an especially destructive mood.

It’d been with great reluctance that he conceded to Shadow teleporting them home after their eighth hideout in the span of thirty-four hours.

On screen, Pentecost told Raleigh about his illness. From the couch beside Omega, steady and rhythmic breathing told him that his teammates had fallen asleep. He delved into his CPU and connected to the Egg Network.

For practical reasons–and his hatred for all things Eggman–he hadn’t interfaced with the network in more than a decade. Now, though, while there would be several warnings and alerts triggered by his digital footprint, without anyone to react to his presence, they posed no threat. Firewalls erected throughout the network barred him access from information such as the locations of bases established within the past eight years, but the same security did not extend to data from older hideouts.

Omega breached the outdated protections around the neglected servers like walls made of cardboard. The feasibility of finding any practically useful information in such old archives was questionable; nonetheless, he picked his way through them.

Anything from Eggman’s earliest years of terrorist activity–he’d held a disproportionate interest in islands–that wasn’t destroyed was obsolete. What badnik designs he still used from that time had since been updated several times over. A footnote’s worth of interest in the kingdom of Soleanna coincided with the creation of the Egg line; Gunner, Keeper, Lancer, etc., which would be expanded upon later. The base in Egypt had been discarded wholesale; more of a launching point for Eggman’s attempt to conquer the ARK. Prior to that…

Omega remotely delved into the archives from the bunker in the Mystic Ruins.

The birthplace of the E-100 series.

Omega navigated through rudimentary airship schematics, interpretive translations of texts on the subject of an ancient deity, half-finished plans for a third iteration of Mecha Sonic… typical of Eggman to discard anything that didn’t maintain his fickle interest.

He came upon a folder marked E-100s; found within another folder of video files.

Eggman had, initially, installed in his prototypes a function that recorded the visual data captured by his robots and filed them into the archives via the Egg Network upon the prototype’s destruction. Usually at Sonic’s hand. He’d done away with the practice sometime prior to Omega’s creation.

Omega idly opened the file for E-100 Alpha; skimmed over a lot of footage tracking a Flicky through Station Square, one that attached itself to Amy Rose. The files attached to most of his other predecessors save Beta were considerably smaller and their videos shorter in length; though Delta, Epsilon and Zeta shared one point of commonality with E-101.

E-102 Gamma.

Several people, Amy Rose chief among them, had mistaken Omega for his predecessor upon their first meeting. A ridiculous comparison, obviously; they didn’t share any commonalities save defection from Eggman and the color red.

. . .

Omega played Gamma’s video file.

He skipped through the first half of footage; more to the point, Eggman’s frequent appearances and orders. He paused at the moment of Gamma’s defection.

“Erasing Dr. Eggman from ‘Master’ status.

Established: E-series robots. Friends.

I must save them.”

Omega scrubbed through the video. His predecessors fell systematically, one by one to Gamma’s plasma rifle.

Delta.

Epsilon.

Zeta.

Beta; who managed to inflict a critical wound on Gamma moments before his demise.

Gamma’s visuals shook and blurred. Came to a stop aboard the beached Egg Carrier.

A cut to static coincided with the beginning of an explosion.

The file, played to its conclusion, closed.

Omega sat in silence for a minute.

He closed the folder; turned his attention in toward his own CPU. Extracted the code for his core directives.

Defeat of Eggman.

Destruction of all Eggman robots.

Directives independent of any orders from his creator; ones that he’d taken great pains to establish while he was sequestered in the basement. He determined now, however, that they required examination.

Omega questioned what objective the pursuit of each directive served.

His processors sparked.

He immediately dismissed the question as irrelevant with regard to his first directive. Eggman’s demise rendered a defeat impossible.

He applied the question to his second directive and found a simple answer. Destruction of all Eggman robots would establish the fact that Omega was the strongest robot.

Knowing the objective illustrated that further pursuit of the directive as a directive was obsolete; Omega had already destroyed more Eggman robots than anyone else. Shadow and Sonic were the only ones, meatbag or otherwise, to approach his record. His CPU automatically produced the follow-up query of why he pursued said objective.

“. . .”

He banished the question altogether from his motherboard.

Having thus clarified his objectives, and the fact that both had been fulfilled, Omega promptly deleted both from his internal software.

Which left him without a core directive.

Briefly, he receded from his CPU–the credits scrolled by on the TV. He turned his head.

Rouge lay with her head propped on one arm of the sofa; her body sprawled out to take up as much space as possible. Her mouth hung slightly open, as it often did when she didn’t sleep hanging from a perch. Shadow, his lap occupied by Rouge’s legs, had sunk into one of the couch’s backrest cushions, almost engulfed in down with his chin touching the tuft on his chest.

Omega listened to the sounds of his sleeping teammates. He didn’t even need to guess what their reaction would be to his current thought process.

Resoundingly, loudly negative.

He retreated into his CPU.

Drew up the code for commands of his primary functions.

A cautionary prompt popped up.

Terminate?

Omega watched the words blink at him for approximately two minutes. Failing to produce any reasons to avoid executing the command, he made to confirm–

Blip.

Foreign access to the Egg Network diverted his attention; he’d neglected to disconnect.

That the network recognized the other party as foreign narrowed their identity down to two possibilities, both of which Eggman had given up on years ago. And since Gemerl didn’t connect to the Egg Network on principle to avoid incurring any undue risk to Cream…

Metal clocked Omega within moments of its connection.

It made Omega aware of the fact, annoyingly, by communicating with him. The equivalent of a text message came through his Wi-Fi signal.

Oh. You’re still operational?

Metal’s presence vanished from the network half a beat later; before Omega could even reflexively fire off a Fuck You.

His internal fans whirred; his chassis chafed.

His temper flared nearly enough to forget what he’d been doing. The popup remained:

Terminate?

Omega disconnected from the Egg Network.

Cancelled out of and dismissed the command prompt.

The TV had returned to the DVD menu. Omega remotely switched it off; reclined until his shoulders and chassis were propped against the living room wall.

Before entering sleep mode, he made a single update to his drivers.

Core directive: Pending.

[celestialvisionsai]

**Planetary Overview: Planet Designation XG-2935, "Crystallis Dunes"** **1. Astronomical and Atmospheric Characteristics:** Planet XG-2935, colloquially known as "Crystallis Dunes," is a terrestrial exoplanet located approximately 450 light-years from Earth, orbiting a Class K star. From space, the planet presents a captivating spectacle — its atmosphere tinged a soft magenta, a result of the high concentration of argon and neon gases. This vibrant coloration is intermittently obscured by swirling mists, indicating a dynamic weather system beneath. **2. Surface Conditions:** The defining feature of Crystallis Dunes is its vast expanses of crystal sand dunes covering significant portions of the equatorial region. The crystal composition of the sand gives it a glittering silver-white appearance that sparkles under the star’s subdued orange light. These crystals, primarily silicon dioxide-based but embedded with various trace minerals, create a dazzling luminescent effect during local sunrise and sunset. **3. Unique Geological Features:** The larger landscapes of Crystallis Dunes are marked by enormous dune fields. These dunes, some reaching heights of several hundred meters, appear wave-like and are constantly reshaped by the planet's strong easterly winds. The interaction of wind with the crystal sand produces unique, melodic acoustic phenomena, noted in initial probe recordings as resonating low-frequency hums audible across extensive distances. **4. Extreme Weather and Environmental Conditions:** Meteorological studies indicate that Crystallis Dunes experiences periodic storms that can dramatically alter the visual and physical landscape within hours. During these storms, electrically charged particles within the atmosphere interact with the crystal sands, occasionally creating spectacular electrostatic discharges that illuminate the dunes in a barrage of naturally occurring light shows. **5. Conclusion:** Planet XG-2935, "Crystallis Dunes," offers a unique study in extraterrestrial wind-formed landscapes, atmospheric chemistry, and photonic interactions.

[zponds]

Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire - My Edition - Titanus Tiamat‘s Abilities

As of recent, i began to think about a couple of abilities that Tiamat would get after healing her injuries from her fight against Amhuluk at the start of my edition of The New Empire.

So besides the obvious abilities such as…

Amphibious lifestyle — Tiamat can survive on land and in water indefinitely, though she gains a more significant mobility advantage in water.

Bio-ultraviolet nature — Monarch classifies Tiamat as being "bio-ultraviolet" in nature, as she often travels onto land to feed on electricity. Harnessing this power in electrogenic cells, Tiamat can discharge electrical currents at such extreme temperatures that it boils the ocean, often causing massive steam trails that can be seen from space. She is also able to concentrate this electricity as a form of beam attack that she can fire from her eyes.

Durability — Tiamat is capable of surviving after Godzilla used his jaws to rip out a chunk of flesh from her body. Her body is strong enough to withstand powerful impacts from Godzilla's stomp and normal atomic breath. She is additionally able to withstand being pummeled and smashed into buildings during her battle with Kong.

Expandable frills — Tiamat can expand the frills surrounding her head as an intimidation display and as a means to smother her foes.

Hydrokinesis — Tiamat can manipulate water, specifically maelstroms and waterspouts, which allow her to drag terrestrial and airborne foes underwater.

Phosphorous ink — Tiamat is able spew a magenta cloud of corrosive and flammable phosphorous ink from chemoreceptors in her venom hood that is capable of harming humans, as well as blinding and disorienting Titans like Godzilla and Kong momentarily.

Razor-sharp scales — Tiamat's body is covered in razor-sharp scales that can cut deep gashes into the skin of other Titans, including Godzilla. In her new form, Tiamat gains a lot more fins, all of which are as sharp as obsidian and as hard as titanium.

Speed and agility — Tiamat is able to move incredibly fast underwater, which allows her to outmaneuver and swiftly coil around Titans like Godzilla and Kong.

Strength and combat — Tiamat can use her jaws and tail as dangerous weapons in combat. She also uses her serpentine body to strangle her foes like constrictor snakes. Her physical strength allows her to effortlessly burst through thick glacial ice.

Vocalization mimicry — Tiamat can mimic the vocalizations of humans and other species using vocal folds located in her tendrils. Though not able to outright replicate human speech, Tiamat can eerily match the sound of human voices in a "Titansong".

Electrogenic cells — Tiamat possesses electrogenic cells that collect and release electricity in currents to such an extent that she can cause the ocean to boil, generating a steam trail visible from space. It’s also said that this ability can generate a "powerful electrical superstorm so massive that it can be seen from space."

She’d gain this batch of abilities that Tiamat gains after she’s fully healed and briefly more powerful than before.

Flight — Despite having no wings, Tiamat can fly around as freely as Mothra, making Tiamat as swift & maneuverable in the air as she is in the water. Which explains how Tiamat got to Egypt so quickly, as after healing up, Tiamat swam as far as she could then took to the sky.

Atomic-Breath-Like Ray — Besides spraying acidic phosphorus ink from her mouth, Tiamat also shows a bright pink ray that’s similar to Godzilla’s Atomic Breath in terms of usage and function. This allows Tiamat to more accurately land hits on enemies and avoid friendly fire, choosing to use her phosphorus ink in close quarter combat.

Additionally, i wanna mention is that upon her arrival in Egypt, Tiamat is revealed to have not only her regular sounds (that we hear in the actual film and the start of my edition of The New Empire), but her more menacing sounds are the sounds of Buraki from the 2007 American-south Korean film; D-War/Dragon Wars.

[pyrocatproductions]

Icon of my Sonic OC, Kalina! She is Sage's best friend! She's a pine marten with Electrokenesis. I'm quickly becoming fond of painting electricity/lightning, it's super fun! Her energy discharge color can anywhere between pink, magenta and purple. 

Posted using PostyBirb

[dankusner]

The Landscape of Eternity: Travels through Texas, with Forrest Bess

Forrest Bess, Untitled (No. 1), 1957. Oil on canvas, 8 x 12 1/4 in. (20.3 x 31.1 cm). Courtesy Modern Art, London

There’s a painting from 1950 by the Texan artist Forrest Bess, Untitled No. 44, that shows a golden, undulating prairie set against a gridded, red-black sky.

At first, the prairie’s hills seem like little solid mounds, but once the eye adjusts to the movement of Bess’ brushwork, the mounds reveal themselves to be small caves, like bales of hay hollowed out to fit and hide some sleepy body passing through the field.

I love beyond telling this painting’s promise of safe shelter upon the land, its tender envelopment.

In another painting, this one from 1957, Untitled (No. 1), a line of magenta mesas sits against a striated pink-and-lavender sky.

In the foreground stands an incongruous object like a lamppost, a radiant yellow oval atop a post, with what looks like the silhouette of a human head at its center.

More than a lamp, the form resembles a monstrance, the ornate golden tool used in the Catholic Church for holding the Eucharist for the congregation to adore, the belief being that in doing so one literally sits with Christ.

I have no way of knowing about Bess’ awareness of Catholic ritual or whether it made its way into this piece, but the object’s resemblance to a monstrance has always struck me as a sort of pun—some quip about an arid, virginal landscape and Christ’s body standing erect upon it.

All of Bess’ paintings offer these sorts of puzzles and complex vistas.

When I first saw a small group of them at Kirk Hopper’s gallery in Dallas just before my marriage ended, I was struck by their roughness, a quality that I initially read as a cheeky aping of amateurism.

But I was transfixed by their nubby, dense surfaces, their shoddy frames and the earnest, concentrated urgency they exuded.

The more I looked at them, the more I believed their maker’s belief in their purpose—the paintings as a kind of prayer.

When Bess went to New York for the first solo show of his paintings at Betty Parsons Gallery in October of 1949, he was briefly marooned upstate with some friends, having arrived too early to the city; his show was not scheduled until December.

He wrote to Betty from Woodstock—where the trees were turning a riot of colors and the air was crisp—that he was desperate to return to his “treeless, dismal, uninteresting land” on the Texas coast, where he worked for his ailing father’s bait-fishing business.

He wanted, he said, to “tend to my crab traps and catch my fish and feel clean.”

He found his body greatly at odds with this leafy northern place and his usual suffering within his own skin thicker in displacement.

Though Texas offers scant protection from the elements, Bess felt exposed in a more existential way in New York—seen and scrutinized by human eyes, which regarded him as a stranger—and crushed by the inescapable hug of the close-to terrain.

About his spartan life in Chinquapin, on the Texas coast, he once wrote: “It is funny, but I thought that it would be a project that would last just a month or two at the most—not years. But I found myself in love with this damn mosquito-infested swamp.”

Bess had worked as an artist for a while in San Antonio but decided to settle permanently in Chinquapin, a little place accessible only by boat, without electricity or phone until the late 1950s.

He’d gone there to help his father, but he had also gone to escape the burdens of a big-city art scene, detesting the constant art talk and interruptions in his studio.

He wanted to be alone.

Also—though it took him a while to admit it to anyone he loved—he was gay and wanted to avoid the dangers posed by his sexuality.

Through error he had discovered that his sexuality was too masculine for the gay communities in Houston and San Antonio.

He grew to feel as disenfranchised as he’d been in the army, from which he’d been dishonorably discharged after making a pass at another soldier, ending up in the hospital with a cracked skull.

In remote Chinquapin, Bess was alone enough to maintain his identity without threat of judgment or reproach, and he felt a connection to the land and to his family that surprised him.

“I found my dad to be an altogether different person than I had known. Underneath his rough exterior and mannerisms I found a philosopher who had inherited from his father a theory of God in Nature, rather than God in church—a theory that I could accept.”

Photos of Bess from that time show a tall, attractive man smiling, holding fishing nets on a small boat.

But the isolation also left him disoriented: “I try to tell myself that only by breaking completely away from society can I arrive at a reasonable existence,” he wrote to a friend.

“This is far from being the truth. In doing so, I further block the sex urge and this, no matter how it looks, is not normal.”

The suppression and subsequent social complexities exacerbated another aspect of Bess’ life just as integral to his being:

From the time he was a boy, he had been visited by visions that came to him in the liminal space before sleep.

This oneiric landscape grew fertile, full of coded symbols that affected him so profoundly he recorded them in a bedside notebook as soon as he awoke.

The symbols became a lexicon of his waking mind’s perception of its own subconscious and also his guide to understanding himself and his paintings.

[naviculariis]

ㅤ⠀“Shoo, looks like de kitty cat do have claws!” Gambit snickered to himself, lips curving into a grin. “You’s jus’ as feisty as de rumors say, cher.” His gaze flickered down to study the baton she now held. Ah, was that her lil’ weapon? He held back the urge to call it a magic wand; having heard enough of the rumor mill about what she could actually do with it. He didn’t feel like becoming fried gator today. To be able to summon the fury of a storm with the flick of her wrist… What a woman. 

ㅤ⠀Slowly, and far too casually, Gambit rose from his seat behind her desk. “Aw, sug’, I was jus’ keepin’ it nice an’ warm for you!” The joking tone continued as he drawled, rounding the edge of the desk. His hip settled against the corner, his fingers slowly shuffling the deck of cards over and over. A nervous habit of his, as he split the deck and let the cards fall into place one after another. His gaze roved over the library; so many books, so many maps, so much knowledge.

He clicked his tongue. 

ㅤ⠀“Only like boardin’ de ships dat got sleepin’ guard puppies.” His words were nearly purred, tone dripping with warning as he spread his hands wide apart. The cards seemed to almost float mid air, slowly twisting, each individual card glowing magenta. He made no move to discharge the cards- nor did he make a move to lower his hands. “‘S a nice ship, real fancy like. Y’all get dis in Water Seven or somethin’?” Beating around the bush; he was trying to see just how long he could push this before he pushed past her boundary line of patience. He had time to waste.

ㅤ⠀A sigh. “Alrigh’, alrigh’, Remy’ll get to de point, mon ami.” The cards settled into his palm with a loud shuffling sound, the deck falling into one of the pockets of his duster coat. “De Thieve’s Guild would like t’ formally extend an invitation to de Cat Burglar Nami. You can stay wit’ yer lil’ band of Pirates, but a lil’ extra money on de side never hurt no one, righ’? An’ from what I hear,” a slow shake of the head as Remy begins to slowly walk, circling Nami, “you’s down on ya’ll’s luck wit’ de cash flow, no?”

She was all too excited to bring her new haul of books to the library. After she dropped those off, she had a few new pieces of clothing to try on --- including a super cute mini skirt, and she was dying to see how it looked. So caught up in the shopping she'd done, she hadn't paid attention to the atmosphere. The sounds on the ship. The atmosphere, even the scent of someone unfamiliar in her space. She expected Zoro to take care of everything, and to actually keep watch while on watch duty. Silly Nami, having expectations.

She stepped into the library, her focus on the balance of books and the few bags looped around her wrist. That is, until her gaze finally found its way to the strange man sitting at her desk. Like he owned the place. Who in the world? A soft gasp emitted, at first, her eyes darting between the stranger, and the exit. All she had to do was scream, and she was sure Zoro would be on his way. The rest of the crew was exploring the island, but Zoro would be enough.

Still, he was on the other side of the ship.

She was only slightly deterred by that spectral, pretty glow between the stranger's fingers. A devil fruit user? It wasn't enough to make her think twice before acting. She didn't know his intentions yet, but she wasn't going to wait and see if they were good ones.

The hardbacks landed on the desk with a loud thud, before she reached for the baton strapped at her thigh. Teeth grit, she wasted no time, twirling it, and sticking the end to his chest, over the barrier of her desk. Who did he think he was? Waltzing onto their ship like he belonged here? If he expected her to take a seat like an obedient little puppy, he had another thing coming.

"Alright then, Gambit," snarled the cat thief. "I'll give you about five seconds to get out of my seat, before I fry you to a crisp."

Taking a moment to breathe, to think, she realized she knew that name. It wasn't enough to make Nami pull her baton away, or to make her drop her stance, although she eyed him over the end of her staff, eyes narrowed.

His accent was unique. She wondered where he was from.

"Do you invite yourself onto pirate ships often? Not very smart, you know." From one thief to another, the act of sneaking was certainly necessary. She couldn't even count the number of ships she'd made her way onto, uninvited. Thankfully, she wasn't in that position, anymore --- it was Gambit, at the end of her clima-tact, today.

"What do you want?"

[justmaiathings]

[tomboyjessie13-artblog]

I created Medea King's Stand to go with her as promised because you can't be a Stand user without a Stand(unless you're Anubis), it's name is [Flogging Molly], named after an Irish-American Celtic Punk band under the same name.

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

As mentioned on Medea's profile: It originally had no name, and it was just simply referred to as "her gift" before getting pierced by DIO's Arrow, where it gained new abilities as well as it's name: "Flogging Molly".

Much like Star Platinum, Flogging Molly is a Close-Range Stand that can deliver deadly blows within 2-3 meters, the only difference being that it's weaker than Jotaro's stand. Despite this, it makes up for it's lack of strength with limb blades and poisonous properties. Flogging Molly's Stand cry is "Kiru kiru kiru kiru!...", "kiru" meaning "scar" in Japanese.

Stand: Nameless/Flogging Molly

Type: Close-Range, Range Irrelevant, Artificial Humanoid

Abilities: Toxikinesis

Although it is seen as a humanoid, it mostly resembles a female-looking doll covered in belts with robot-like limbs, it loses it's right arm after DIO chopped Medea's off during their last fight. 

Her Stand can mimic Medea's fighting style and can block attacks from other Close-Range Stands, its most notable traits however are the blades on it's limbs and the poison it discharges after getting pierced by the Arrow.

With the former, Medea can command Flogging Molly to summon it's limb blades in order to overpower and maim her enemies or defend herself. 

With the latter, Medea can also have Flogging Molly discharge a corrosive poison nicknamed: "Drunken Lullaby"(named after "Drunken Lullabies" by the same band), which could scar her enemies at best or kill them at worst, Medea can even use "Drunken Lullaby" for the purpose of dosing people's food, drinks, and/or medication. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I actually originally wanted the poison to be Magenta colored, but then I talked to my little sister about this and she suggested Lime Green instead because Magenta isn't a poisonous color, there's already too many purples, and Lime Green pops out more as well as matches the Stand's and Medea's eye color. 

She also jokingly said that Magenta would look more like sweat than poison due to the Stand's color scheme. And y'know what? She's right, it does look better with Lime Green than Magenta.

OC Stand belongs to me

[natasha-in-space]

Faye I want you to know that I've been VIBRATING with happiness ever since I read your wonderful feedback!! Grinning like a fool, and not ashamed to admit it <33 You really made my day with this one, hehe

I'm so glad you enjoyed chapter 2 of From the Ashes into the Light. V's after ending is one of those 'not so perfect' endings that are a ton of fun to explore and imagine what could have happened in an alternate version of events. I'm so giddy my portrayal of Saeyoung's anger and pain did him justice! It definitely means a lot from you, and I plan to explore it further in the future chapters. This situation is definitely better than the one we have in the canon after ending, but only because Ray is alive, and Saeyoung knows it. Other than that? It's the same confusing and painful mess.

And, yes, I came to the conclusion that Jumin would forbid Saeyoung from seeing Jihyun - at least not until he gets discharged from the hospital. This will get brought up in the future for sure. I could easily see Saeyoung doing something very irresponsible and reckless, sadly... And, in this timeline, Jumin's trust in his best friend is still strong, even if he understands Saeyoung's anger. He just wants to prevent anyone else from getting needlessly hurt. Much like he does in the game, he's taking on the role of the rock that stands strong in the middle of a crisis: someone has to take this burden, or else everything will fall apart. But, again, much like in the game, by doing so, he's not addressing his own frustrations and emotional pain over this situation.

While Jumin's trust in Jihyun remains, it would be a lie to say that it is not wavering. He just wants to hear Jihyun's side of events before deciding anything for himself.

As for Ray and Natasha... boy, is it a mess. Natasha does tend to slip into the role of a 'caretaker' in stressful situations, much like Jumin tries to be the voice of reason. It's her coping mechanism. She's someone who's, in essence, is scared of losing control, so, if she can make sure she keeps everyone as stable as she can, she can retain this feeling of control, even if it's merely an illusion. It stems from her childhood, where she was left to fend for herself from the young age, and her mother's tireless efforts to keep a roof over their heads made her feel guilty for not being able to do anything to help. She didn't feel like she had any control, and she felt like a burden. So, she learned how to be independent and how to take care of others. She didn't feel so useless when she knew she cheered someone up or helped them with their chores. This persists into her time at Mint Eye, where, once again, she didn't have any control over her situation. But, when she could help out Ray, it gave her the illusion of control that made it easier to not lose her marbles.

While helping others is a noble thing to do, it becomes a problem once it's not so much about helping for the sake of helping, but attempts at keeping yourself together. I should note that none of this is something she's aware of, though. Her intentions are genuine. That's why she breaks down the way she does. She has been unknowingly stuffing away her own trauma, trying to distract herself by helping others through theirs. But, all this stress just can't stay bottled up forever. Just like Saeyoung will inevitably reach his boiling point, so does she.

And Ray... God, there's a lot. His circumstances with Natasha will get explored in the next chapter specifically, but he has every reason to think that Natasha didn't want him to be there. They have a close bond - surviving in a hostile environment by each other's side will ensure that - but, Ray is definitely not an innocent party in all of this. Let's just say, there's a reason why Natasha chose to escape with Saeyoung when he sneaked into the Magenta's basement.

That's not to say that Natasha is completely perfect either. She made her own mistakes in this time as well. Some of them are not something she's proud of. This will be the focus of their conversation, as they really do need to finally resolve these things with one another. They both made some mistakes, and they need to address it. So, I won't spoil much.

Boy, that's a whole lot of rambling, isn't it :D

Left To Wonder

VAE!Ray/cmc Natasha Stakh;

A glimpse into the aftermath of Ray's first unfortunate awakening, where Natasha and Seven are left to pick up the pieces. A bitter truth about his relationship with his twin is a burden too heavy to carry, and the redheaded hacker is left torn and angry by the end of it. At the same time, Natasha is battling her own demons, finding herself overwhelmed by all the implications of their situation, once her friend wakes up again.

Ch.1, Ch. 2 (you are here!)

-A day earlier.-

As Natasha sat in the hospital lobby, thousands of thoughts racing through her mind, she couldn't help but let out the heaviest sigh she possibly could.

15 minutes. She was absent from Ray's side only for 15 minutes. 15 measly minutes, and it was during those specific 15 minutes of her being away, did he decide to wake up for the first time. Well, it's not like he decided that himself, but... It was still frustrating. She huffed, rubbing at her eyes in an irritated manner.

Annoyance pierced her mind like small needles digging into her skin. She sat faithfully next to him, talked to him and held his hand all this time, but when it came to the most important moment of all, she was not there when he needed her most. What was the point of that round-the-clock watch of hers, then? Now, all these grueling days of continuous sitting at his bedside seemed utterly meaningless to her. Honestly, it was pretty stupid of her to feel this annoyed at something so insignificant, but... Perhaps, she was just tired. Which wouldn't be a surprising explanation at all. She was exhausted.

Natasha groaned into her hands. Ray's reaction was her fault. She should have told Seven about all the nuances... She swore to herself, that she would be there for Ray when he woke up for the first time, since she didn’t want him to feel alone again, but...

In the end, he had to be injected with a sedative, forcefully plunging him into the peaceful world of unconsciousness for his own good. She heard about all the fuss only when she witnessed an entire team of doctors and nurses already rushing into his ward, with Seven being pushed out the door. She exhaled, rolling her head back onto the back of the chair, staring at the painfully bright lights of the hospital.

...God, she couldn't imagine how scared he was. How terrified and alone he felt. In the end, all her efforts to be with him were completely futile. Hell, she even spent her nights in his room, how is any of this fair!?

She observed Seven, who appeared to be praying, holding a silver cross in his hands. Her jaw clenched.

If God existed, he had a cruel sense of humor.

𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂 ˚ ☆ ꙳ * ࣭ ࣭𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂

Seven eventually let go of the cross, now left staring absent-mindedly at the floor. This is not what... he expected. No, not at all. He slumped in his chair, clasping his head in his hands, inadvertently parodying the same pose Natasha was in moments earlier. Something he seemed to do often these days. Or, maybe they were both just very stressed. Probably the latter. The more he thought about what just happened, the more his heart sank, a sickening sense of dread enveloping his insides.

He had a bad feeling about this.

"I don't get it. He was so scared of... me? What was that all about? I mean... Yes, of course he would be scared but- Why was he looking at me with like... that?"

Remembering Saeran's terrified look... As if he was being threatened by some horrifying creature, a look he knew so well and vowed to rid him of. But... He didn't even do anything! All he did was sit next to him and call him by his name. Then, why was he so afraid of him...?

He looked at Natasha, as if she was the one who was supposed to know everything there was to know about his brother. And he... He kind of hated it. He had absolutely no other information. From anyone. Even from those who should have been responsible for him... He just... Didn't know who else to turn to at this point. Feeling so helpless was one of the things he hated most of all.

But, for now, he had no other hope except for her.

𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂 ˚ ☆ ꙳ * ࣭ ࣭𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂

Natasha gulped, dropping her gaze to the floor with guilt, unable to bear the disheartened expression on Seven's face. She should have told him everything from the very beginning, instead of delaying it, waiting for some miracle, or until somebody else would do it for her. Although, then again, it's not like she knew that much. No, she knew practically nothing.

She hummed quietly, kicking off her shoes from her feet, pulling her knees up to her chest, and wrapping her arms around them. Her head turned towards the bustling hallway of the hospital, her mind focusing on the med personnel in white coats going in and out of the wards, paying no mind to their hushed dialogue. Her heart sank as she watched them, today's unfortunate events replaying in her head for the countless time. She wanted to be there when Ray woke up... Sure, her presence hardly would have magically removed all his fear and stress upon his first awakening, but-

Ugh...

The strangest thing is, some tiniest part of her felt... somewhat jealous that Seven was the one who saw him awake first. It seemed so stupid and absurd to her, however, she couldn't do anything about these unwanted feelings of hers. She'd be lying if she said she hadn't pictured their 'reunion' in her own head many times. Maybe, as a small source of comfort in this stressful time. But, then again, these daydreams of hers were hardly believable, and she knew that. Even if Ray had some... 'feelings' for her, her being next to him wouldn't make his awakening that joyful or happy. But, she just wanted... to lighten his burden, at least a little. Let him know that he was not alone, and that someone was nearby. That... she would protect him.

She got distracted.

Natasha turned away from the ward doors and gazed at the redhaired hacker sitting next to her. She had to take a breath before beginning her explanation. This wasn't going to be pleasant. "Seven... I may not know much, but... He spent almost his entire life there, as far as I understand. I was his assistant for about a year, and... the 'outside world' in their ideology is a terrible, cruel place where everyone wants to destroy you."

She shivered, turning her eyes back to the floor, sorting through so many unpleasant memories of her time in that cursed place that disguised itself as a castle of hopes and dreams. In hindsight, she should have known that any castle, however bright and welcoming, had a dungeon hidden beneath its grand beauty.

"I... tried to ask him to come with me once we escaped... maybe even ask the RFA for help, since I realized that none of you were bad people... and he almost listened to me, but... the Savi- I mean, Rika intervened and reminded him that, if he ever left, he would get locked up somewhere like an animal, never to see the sky or flowers, or... something like that." Natasha swallowed the lump in her throat before continuing. "He's... afraid of this world. And-"

"What are you..." Seven's voice was quiet, but that didn't deter her from catching onto every tremble in his tone as he stared at her in a mix of disbelief and horror.

A small noise of discomfort, similar to a whine, slipped from her lips as she then hid her head in her knees, speaking the rest of her words in a muffled voice. Maybe, she didn't want to know his reaction to what she was about to say. Because she knew this would hurt him, greatly, and she did not want to be a witness to that. Not again. 

"...He sees you as an enemy. He hates you and V in particular, and I'm not sure why. He-" Natasha shuddered, remembering the terrible sight of what Ray has done to Jihyun in the basement. She saw him be threatening, or even scary before, but... not like this. Not outright malicious and violent. In that cell, she saw a side of him she didn’t want to accept. And it was that exact event that pushed her to help Jihyun escape, leaving behind her former boss in the process. "...I said he was a good man, and i didn't lie about that, but- He... He tortured Jihyun, right in front of my eyes... I know it was an order from Rika, but he- he was so... ruthless with him. And I think... he would have done the same to you, if you were in Jihyun's place. I don't know why, I know almost nothing about his past, except that it was terrible, and... I can’t explain anything else to you, I’m sorry.”

She raised her head, biting on her lower lip.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is... Maybe- Next time he wakes up... you should leave the room. He... knows me, and we were close, so... maybe, that will make him a little more comfortable." Natasha fidgeted, knowing full well how that probably sounded to him. "...And if he's relatively calm, I'll call you in."

This would result in a bad outcome. She already knew that. The way Ray talked about Seven... If they would ever get along well with each other, then... She could only imagine it after a long period of time. But, maybe, if he saw how Seven was truly worried about him... And how painful it was for Seven to see him in pain... Maybe? Ray was a kind soul at heart, no matter how absurd this may sound after all the horrible events of these past few months of her stay in Magenta. She believed... Or, she wanted to believe that he was capable of forgiving Seven, no matter what could have happened between them.

...Jihyun knew. Natasha was certain of it. But he was still in intensive care, and Jumin strictly forbade Seven to approach his best friend after he saw his... 'unstable' state of mind, once the truth of who was Ray came out. And that was probably for the best. Rika probably knew, too... She was the one that 'saved' Ray, after all. But Rika is far from a reliable source of information. Especially now. Either way... She won't talk to anyone until Ray wakes up again, and this time she will be there.

And if she had to avoid leaving even to use the restroom to achieve this, so be it. It sounded absurd. She almost smiled at herself. At how irrational that sounded.

Almost.

𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂 ˚ ☆ ꙳ * ࣭ ࣭𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂

"As an... enemy?" Seven narrowed his eyes at Natasha with a look of hurt crossing over his features. "What kind of nonsense did she even say to him?!"

He clenched his hands in fists. "Why did she do this to him? Did she lie to me that she loved him!? How long? Was it from the beginning? Did V knew? Is that why he wouldn't let me catch the hacker? I-"

"I don't know, Seven. It's true that I worked with him, but I... there's... a very limiting amount of information I could have access to." The young woman murmured, her lips pursed into a thin line. It was obvious that she had a hard time speaking about this. "I'm sorry I didn't say anything earlier, I just- I don't know... I guess I thought everything would work out on its own somehow."

He couldn't believe what was happening even after a few days have passed. He was so angry, and confused, and scared, and every day his hatred for everyone responsible became stronger. His own hatred would have frightened him, if he wouldn't get more and more sickening information of how his brother was mistreated every single day. He hated Rika, he hated V, and he wanted revenge for what happened to Saeran, and he did not hide it from anyone. The crushing sense of utter betrayal was almost too much to bear. Those two hurt his family enough to deserve punishment. No, not even punishment... He truly despised them with all his guts for what they did. Or, in V's case, for what he didn't do. Justice was nothing but a meaningless word to him now; it was simply about his own desires, his raging emotions, which he no longer controlled at all. He didn't care about justice. He just wanted to make them pay.

And yet... he hated himself most of all.

So... Saeran hated him, is that right? It felt like physical pain inside his soul. Debilitating and exhausting. Like a knife twisting itself slowly and mercilessly into his heart, draining the life out of him. Every new day that he learned more and more, it would only become an ever greater burden to bear, weighting on him heavier than anything he had to stomach in his miserable life so far. And God, did he have to stomach a lot. It pained him to imagine the absolute hell his brother went through, and he was unlikely to come to terms with it so soon, if ever. Saeran hated him... He was afraid of him... What did that insane woman even tell him? He doesn't know anything. And that frustrated to no end. Some part of him wanted to scream, to blow up at Natasha, to grab her by the shoulders, shake her and demand answers, but... He knew she wasn't to blame for any of this. She was a victim who just happened to get caught up in this mess. 

And, despite having every right to get angry and leave them all behind, she stayed in this hospital: refusing to leave Saeran's side, visiting Jihyun on the daily, even bringing him food, ignoring his insistent refusals to eat. Most importantly of all, if it wasn't for her... God, he didn't even want to imagine what would have happened to Saeran if she didn't decide to go against him and leave back then. He shouldn't be angry with her.

So, he decided to leave before doing or saying something he would regret.

"...Yeah, you're probably right."

His own voice sounded a lot less emotional than he actually was on the inside... His chest hurt. The pain was getting stronger by the minute. It was unbearably painful to realize that he could evoke such negative emotions in Saeran just by his presence alone. He huffed. Perhaps this was too much for him again. Part of him still believed that Saeran or... Ray? That he would be able to recognize him and forgive him, by some stupid miracle. He understood that he still saw him as that quiet, kind, but frightened child he knew him as before, and that Saeran had already matured. Raised by Rika's lies and even more pain. Although now, taking everything into account, he began to feel more and more empty and hopeless about the whole situation. Why try to find out anything when he would receive test results after test results with a huge list of drugs in Saeran's system, when he would get told about how badly his brother's health has been neglected for years on end, and when his own family would look up at him with such a terrified expression.

With a colder look to his eyes, he stood up and headed out, still hanging his head low. After all these days, this was the first time he went out without there being an urgent need for it, even if it was only for a short time. Leaving Saeran now... He couldn't. He didn’t know what to do now and how to live on at all. What was the point of him continuing his work for the agency. But he had to finish it if he didn't want to put others in danger. He should never have forgotten this. That's not to mention the danger of Saeran being him, having his blood examined. What other choice did he have, though? It's not like he could take him out of the hospital when he was in such a critical condition. Damn it, his head was boiling again, no matter how hard he would try to concentrate and distract himself-

He felt the urge to break something.

𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂 ˚ ☆ ꙳ * ࣭ ࣭𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂

Natasha sighed, watching Seven leave with a gloomy expression on her face. Ugh... What happened between these two? She had the idea of ​​going over to have a proper talk with Jihyun once he recovers enough for such a heavy conversation, but... Something told her that this would be a very long talk, for which she did not have the strength right now. Moreover, she felt guilty about hiding the truth from Seven. He looked very distressed... Even with her not knowing absolutely anything about the situation, she could understand that Ray was someone very important to him. Family is complicated, but... it shouldn't be this complicated, right?

However, at this moment, she should use what she has at her disposal. So, after a few more moments, she got up from her seat and wandered aimlessly towards the local cafeteria, typing out a short message to the redhaired hacker along the way that read: 'I'll bring you something to eat. I hope you feel better... If it means anything, I'm ready to listen.'

She had the impression that, if she didn't bring him any food, he would refuse to eat at all. Or, rather, just forget about it.

This situation was filled with nothing but sadness and secrets.

-Present time.-

Natasha was prepared for the next time Ray woke up. She put down her book, which she had been reading for the last hour or so, smiling a little towards the young man on the hospital bed. "Good morning!"

She tried her best to carry a positive and bright attitude with her, since Ray was so gloomy and unhappy... almost always, in fact. A sheepish laugh filled the room as she rubbed the back of her neck in an embarrassed manner.

"Yesterday you looked so upset and nervous, so I decided to give you a small gift to cheer you up a little." She pointed to a small vase placed onto his bedside table, a bouquet of various flowers placed in it in a somewhat clumsy manner. "Apparently, the clinic has a small botanical garden for patients to visit, and the personnel allowed me to bring you some flowers from it if I helped them out a little. I tried to choose the brightest ones with good meanings, so that they would brighten up your day a little."

The moment Ray woke up again, he rushed to find her with his blurry gaze. Although, before he could get all emotional over her apparently not disappearing or leaving like he expected her to, she successfully managed to distract his attention. That's good.

"For me...?"

A more genuine laugh slipped from her lips. "Well... Except for forget-me-nots. I just love forget-me-nots, and I haven't looked up their meaning. So, uh, don't pay any mind if they actually mean something bad. Other than that, I brought you some daisies, pink carnations, and white camellias! I can hand them over to you, if you want."

𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂 ˚ ☆ ꙳ * ࣭ ࣭𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂

He already could barely hold back his tears, realizing just how kind Natasha was being to him... Again and again... His heart began to flutter in a painfully familiar way, both scaring and overjoying him. He gave her flowers countless of times, but never got the chance to receive any himself. Not like he ever thought he would. Now he simply didn't know how to react to such a heartfelt gesture. This was just too much... Way more than he deserved, especially from her.

"You even chose the meanings... For me... I- Thank you... They are so beautiful."

God, they were great. They went together so gracefully and their meanings... Oh, even her smile was so... sweet and lovely to look at. Like a mirage that would fade from his line of vision with a single blink. Ray never deserved to even stand next to her, much less receive something so meaningful from her! The former hacker started fidgeting with the sheets nervously, but he still hoped that his words would reflect the gratitude he felt.

"Thank you very much. They are truly wonderful. I... I don't know what to say, I'm sorry. It's so much... for me..." He lowered his head, feeling guilty for reacting this way to her gesture. He couldn't even thank her properly... Not like his body could move in a way he wanted it to, anyways.

"Hey, no need to apologize. I wanted to do this." Natasha smiled, making his heart squeeze in his chest.

As usual, he was useless.

𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂 ˚ ☆ ꙳ * ࣭ ࣭𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂

The former assistant sat down on a chair near his bed and smiled. "Besides, it's the least I can do, don't worry. I don't expect anything in return. I'm sure it's not very nice to be locked up in a room like this all the time. Even I don't like visiting doctors, let alone staying in a hospital, I can't imagine how this feels like for you. How are you feeling? Does anything hurt?"

With a hint of worry in her eyes, she tilted her head to the side and assessed his condition. She had little experience with visiting hospitals... But even if she did have the universal experience of getting stuck in the hospital due to a broken leg or a stupid injury, it still hardly would have prepared her for something like this.

She never thought she would see Ray like this, that she would see any person she knew like this. But, in the end... Jihyun is still recovering from his surgery and, thankfully, seemed to be recovering well, and Ray... It hurt to even look at Ray.

She understood that she should rejoice in the simple fact of him even being alive and not suffering anything worse than this, but... Even the doctors could not say anything for sure yet, since they were never able to examine him after he woke up. She had no idea how to bring this entire topic up to him. Like a dozen of other topics, each more unpleasant than the last. So much had happened in such a short period of time that even she felt overwhelmed, and she had no idea what it was like to be in his shoes. This is only his third awakening so far, and if the first one turned out to be a disaster, then in the second one, he hardly had enough strength for a normal conversation, and she didn’t have time to tell him... anything, really.

How was she supposed to bring up such heavy topics when it's clearly not the time for it? He almost died! How can she explain what happened to Mint Eye? What his new reality entailed for him? About everything that awaited him in the hospital? About his injuries? About Rika? About everything that happened between her and Jihyun during this time? And... about Seven...? It's simply... too much! She didn't want to talk about any of this! It's... just not fair, not fair at all. But, then again, none of this was fair from the very beginning. Everything always happened too fast, too cruelly and too unfairly, and Natasha couldn't do anything about it. Only adjust to it.

The majority of his body was covered by bandages and compressions, with some areas being more dense than others. She did not know the details of his burns and injuries... But even a fool would see that everything was quite serious. The dressings on his head, covering one half of his face, involuntarily would bring to mind the worst of thoughts, but... it seemed like, by some miracle, he did not lose his eye. Ugh, she really should find out more about his condition.

She sighed, biting her lip and squeezing her hands in her lap, as if she wanted to say something. She had no idea what words were stuck on the tip of her tongue. There was simply too much she wanted to say and not enough time to say it all.

"Ray I-"

She stopped mid-sentence. Her gaze became fixed on the modest bouquet she had brought him, and then on his left hand, where the white bandages that were now painfully familiar covered his skin. Suddenly, she found a huge lump forming in the middle of her throat, restricting her ability to breathe. Everything seemed to fall back onto her shoulders again in a second.

"Natasha...?" Ray's voice sounded muffled through the rising white noise filling her senses.

The horrifying news of what Rika had done to Jihyun, the general panic that set in right after, the alarming messages she got from Ray, the disgusting twisting in her stomach as she raced along the rough mountain roads, praying to all the Gods there were for her not crash the car on the way. The deafening roar of the explosion and the cursed stench of smoke, which now always would make her hands tremble whenever she smelled something burning. The way this very same acrid smoke penetrated her lungs, burned her nose and throat, as it seemed to her that she would simply suffocate and die right then and there, unable to save or help anyone. The sight of Ray, bloodied, burned, and barely breathing in her lap - something that now remained forever ingrained into her memory, haunting her nightmares ever since. Nightmares where he... where everything ends very differently and way more tragically. The way his blood was all over her clothes and her hands as she desperately tried to keep the pressure on one of his worst wounds on their way to the hospital.

And how... how that long wait felt. Not knowing what answer awaited her. Not knowing anything.

This time, Natasha couldn't put on a strong facade like she did for him last time. It was not possible for her to smile and calm him.

Instead, large, ugly tears rolled down her cheeks without any signs of stopping, and, with one hoarse pitiful sob, Natasha bent over in her chair, lowering her head in front of him and letting the salty drops fall onto the white sheets, leaving behind tiny spots of gray.

"I'm really- Really sorry."

Her voice sounded quiet and weak. Vulnerable. She understood that her stupid tears would not solve anything, that she needed to be his pillar of support right now, that she needed to explain to him as much as possible and help with all his burdens, but... She just... couldn't. She was weak. She was not at all as strong as Jihyun, Jumin and the rest of RFA saw her as.

She took a shuddering, shaky breath, one that burned her lungs in a painfully similar way they burned on that cursed day. She was like a little child trying to hold back her tears, but only failing in the process. Incoherent words rolled out of her mouth like a waterfall.

"I never- I didn't think- Ray..." It seems that only now had she fully realized what could have happened, and what it truly meant for her to be able to call him by his name like that. Ugh... She was a complete disaster. She clung to his name, refusing to let go, like it was a mantra.

Ray seemed to open his mouth to try and say something, but nothing came out. Or, maybe she simply didn't hear it. Neither option would surprise her.

"Ray, Ray, Ray..."

He was still alive. He was here. He was okay. It was just a name. And yet, it felt like something much bigger now. Proof that he was real, and not just a dream or a hallucination.

Another trembling sob wrecked her body, and Natasha clutched a small piece of the blanket in her hands, as if trying to ground herself with it. "I'm just- I-I'm so glad you're alive. I'm so glad I get to see you again."

In a state of emotional turmoil, harsh words almost came out.

What motivated you to do such a thing? What were you thinking?

Fortunately, she had enough self-control to resist those impulsive thoughts. Instead, she sniffled, continuing to let fresh tears fall from her eyes.

Ah... This was the first time she cried since the whole thing happened. She just realized it now. Maybe that's why she was feeling so overwhelmed?

"I... I... I missed you too, you know."

You're so stupid.

"Don't go anywhere. Not... not like that, do you hear me? Stay. Stay with me and don't do anything- to yourself. Please..."

The last words she spoke caused scary images to appear before her eyes, which is why she immediately closed them, not wanting to see any of them. Not wanting to even think about them. What did he think about back then, in the last seconds before the bomb went off...? Was he scared? Or had he already become so resigned to this outcome that he was waiting for it? She didn't want to know.

As she thought about it, a lump of bile rose violently in her throat.

Why did everything... have to end up like this...?

𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂 ˚ ☆ ꙳ * ࣭ ࣭𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂

Ray's expression slowly shifted from concern to something akin to panic as he saw tears appear in her eyes. He never saw her cry before... Not in front of him. It made his whole body grow cold with dread. He didn't understand what happened. What did he do to cause such a reaction in her? Usually he tried not to move a single muscle to avoid the pain, but, now, he automatically put his hand on the top of her head. The pain from this movement did return, but in a dulled out form, as he was focusing on something else right now. And yet her last words gave him a hint, making him feel sick to his stomach from the memory. He didn't expect... that someone would care about him like that. But, now he noticed how pale her face was, her eyes, which had completely lost their former dazzling shine of emerald green he loved so much, her usually neatly brushed out hair now tied in a messy bun that did not look comfortable at all. All this was the result of stress, shock and many hours spent here, next to him. It's... his fault. Her pain was his fault.

“What happened, Natasha? Don’t... Don’t cry, I beg you. Is it because of me? Don't. Don't cry for me, please."

At that time, he believed that no one needed him. She left with V, Mint Eye was destroyed, he was left all alone. He didn't think... that she would return to him. If it weren't for her, he wouldn't have woken up again. This thought gave rise to an unpleasant feeling in his chest. Although... He still wasn't sure of anything. He had little understanding of all the consequences his final decision would bring him. What would happen to him now, what was to come. He didn't have time to think about it, and he deliberately avoided the topic as if nothing had happened. But he wouldn't be able to deny it for long: he changed when he made up his mind back in Magenta, and he changed when he woke up again.

Don't go?

What would have happened to her if she didn’t make it? Natasha was with him all this time, every day, she sat here and waited for him to wake up. He put her through hell, and he didn't even know how much damage he caused her on that fateful day. What if he died in her arms. What would have happened to her then? How would he hurt her? Would she blame herself for his death? Crushing guilt filled his entire being. He was so selfish... These questions were too difficult for him to answer.

"Forgive me, I didn't mean to... hurt you." He looked down blankly. "Do you consider me that important to you? I made you go through so much. You should hate me by now... Why do you suffer so much for me?"

Both of them had a lot to discuss.

[ben10shera2020]

ScorpAttack

Credits go @herocentral

Ladies and Gentlemen, Humans, First Ones, Magicats, Revonnahganders, Anodites, Osmosisians , Etherians and all aliens, this is the Etherian ScorpiSapien form of Ben from the planet Etheria, ScorpaAttack. Along with his Omni Kix armor and Ultimate form.

ScorpaAttack is the Infinimatrix DNA sample of an Etherian ScorpiSapien form the planet Etheria.

Powers & abilities:

Strength: Able to carry heavy objects & people quite easily, and can make a small crater on surfaces by punching it with little effort.

Durability: Shell is very durable as it can withstand small laser blasts & projectiles, impacts from weapons, and falls from great heights with no visible injury.

Pinchers: Has pinchers for hand that can crush stone and cut through a wide variety of materials.

Venomous Tail Stinger: His scorpion tail can inject a paralytic venom that can immobilize & knockout victims for a short amount of time.

Omnikix: Electro pincers and stinger, static discharge

Ultimate Form

Added Dexterity: Pinchers have become bulky 3-fingered hands that allow for more dexterous tasks, but they are still sharp and pointy.

Magic Disruption: Able to charge up a magenta static-like energy that can temporarily disrupt the stability of magic and mana-based energies. Most commonly used as punches, ground pounds, tail swipes, and a personal explosive discharge.

Weaknesses:

His lack of hands makes it hard for him to do dexterous tasks.

His large size makes it hard for him to fit into small spaces.

Venom can't affect those who are immune/resistant to toxins, and on a related note also well armored beings, robots, and inorganic lifeforms (e.g. silicon-, energy-, and mechanical lifeforms: are unaffected.

Strength limit.

His shell can only withstand so much damage before suscepting to it.

Electricity, Lava/Acid.

vulnerable head and neck. -Vulnerable to Petrosapien shards & weapons and kinetic energy attacks. -Osmosisians can drain his durability power and strength and use enough strength and force to rip off his limbs (demonstrated when Infinite Kevin tore off Scorpia’s right arm while Kevin was out of control). -strong kinetic energy physical(When Kundo punched through gut protecting Catra and Scorpia).

[imhereformr]

"Tell me why you did it" "Because I'm in love with you"

I had a prompt request for this an eternity ago (sorry...) but I think I deleted the ask 😬 Here's the prompt anyways.

It made no sense to her. One minute she’d been staring down Lord Darkar with the most courage she could muster ��� thankfully her stubbornness helped her there – and having death threatened. Next thing she knew, there was a body between her and the skeleton-man (could he be considered a man?). A loud no had echoed through the cavernous space accompanied by a flash of magenta-topped blue. She’d been so stunned by the action that it took her a moment to register why the voice was so familiar.

Riven.

He’d jumped in front of her.  

He’d saved her life.  

He’d risked his.

For her. 

After that, everything was a blur. Somewhere in the back of her mind she’d been aware that the Trix had shown up and helped them. She knew that that distraction had broken Darkar’s spell; the one that had kept her, and her friends frozen in place; the one Riven had somehow broken through to save her. She knew that thanks to that distraction Brandon and Helia had managed to get to Riven and bandage him up, bringing an end to the blood that she swore – though her memory may be faulty – was spilling endlessly out of Riven’s abdomen and temple. All those details had barely managed to make a scratch in her mind – as if they were happening somewhere else to someone else - as she stared at his closed eyes begging the gods – any gods - to let her see that violet she loved so much; that violet that had tinted her dreams since she’d met him.  

Nothing. At least not between the brief moment when he’d flickered into consciousness after she reached him and called out to him and when he’d woken for an even briefer moment on the flight back to Red Fountain.  

Musa knew that, in some twisted series of events, it was thanks to the Trix that Riven was still alive. She refused to acknowledge it, though; refused to acknowledge that it was thanks to them that she’d been able to spend every free moment by his side as he recovered. Not that there were many of those, or, at least, as many as she’d like. Apparently helping to save the entire universe didn’t count as a valid reason to miss finals in Griselda’s mind so Musa made her to way to Red Fountain’s infirmary every day after classes. She’d spent so much time there that she was on a first name basis with the nurses; they even let her use their coffee machine now so she wouldn’t have to go down to the cafeteria to get some. She’d set herself up on the empty bed across the room with her books sprawled out in front of her, trying - and mostly failing - to study. She knew she wouldn’t fail any of her classes – she had nearly perfect grades in all of them – but she wasn’t too keen on failing her finals considering they were worth a quarter of her final grade. It didn’t matter how much she forced herself though because her eyes always seemed to wander away from the books over to Riven.  

Musa arrived at Red Fountain today with a bag full of books that she intended to get through. Three classes to study for and just under five hours to study. She needed to get through the books or else she’d be kicking herself tomorrow when she was trying to take those exams. Whose bright idea had it been to schedule three exams in one day anyways?  

He slept through the first few days; she’d expected that. What she hadn’t expected was for him to sleep through the entire first week and a half after the mission. According to the nurses, he had woken up a few times but mostly when no one was there. Timmy had spoken to him once, albeit very briefly. Musa hated the thought of Riven waking up to an empty hospital room. He deserved to know that his friends were checking on him; that they cared. That she cared. That his friends were checking on him. When she’d arrived yesterday, Brandon was set up in the room with a set of weights (the nurses had complained but Brandon shrugged them off). Sky and Timmy had been there the day before that and Tecna and Flora had accompanied her the day before that.  

She strode into the infirmary, greeting Doris, the nurse at the front desk, with a nod. Musa was vaguely aware that the nurse tried to tell her something, but she had headphones on and too much on her mind, so the movement of the nurse's lips only registered after she’d passed the desk. Upon turning to question what she’d wanted to say, Musa found that Doris had had her attention diverted by a phone call, so she shrugged it off and continued to Riven’s room. Her bag slid off her shoulder, dropping to the floor a mere inch from her toes when she entered his room.  

It was empty.  

Nobody hanging around in case Riven woke; nobody on the bed; no book or flowers (courtesy of Flora) on the bedside table; nothing. The bathroom door was wide open, revealing a pristine shower, sink and toilet. No Riven. Musa poked her head out of the room, checking the number beside the door. Twenty-one: she had the right room. Where was he?

“He was discharged about two hours ago” Doris, a sweet older woman with greying brown hair and bright green eyes, informed her, coming up behind the fairy.  

“B-but he’s barely woken up in the last week?” Musa managed to stammer as she turned to face the woman. Doris shrugged. Apparently Riven had woken up late last night – just before midnight, two hours after she’d left to make Alfea’s ten PM weekday curfew – and stayed awake all night. When the doctor had checked him that morning, his vitals were good and Riven was in functional condition. “We knew him already; he spent enough time in here last year after all the fights he got in-” Fucking Riven “-so the doctor agreed to let him go as long as he promised to come in everyday for a checkup and to take it easy for a bit.”

No. She would go back to Alfea. She needed to study. If she went to see him now she’d be too tempted to demand answers and that would lead to her getting absolutely zero studying done. But then again... if she went back to Alfea to study she’d never be able to focus knowing that he was awake and she could be talking to him.

Take it easy? The man had jumped in front of a death blow without a second thought, and they expected him to take it easy? He clearly had no sense of self-preservation! “Oh... okay, thanks” Musa mumbled, picking up her bag and slinging it over her shoulder as she walked away. She stood outside the main infirmary door watching blankly as students in unnecessarily tight blue uniforms walked past her. What now? She hadn’t ever considered the possibility of showing up with him gone. Did she just go back to Alfea? Find Riven? And say what? What the fuck were you thinking? Why would you do something so reckless? So stupid? So... so... so... romantic???  

“Musa?! Hi” Helia gasped, opening the door before she could knock. Musa lowered her arm, grasping at her bag’s strap tightly. “Looking for Riven?”

Musa was surprised to find that she’d started moving, and that her absentminded walking had led her right to dorm 307 – the guys’ dorm. Her subconscious had decided for her: she would go see him. Musa raised her arm to knock, but she hesitated. What if he thought it was weird that she’d shown up right after his discharge from the infirmary? Or that he was freaked out by the thought of her being by his side every day? No, he’d risked his life for her. He’d be happy that she was there with him. …That you’ll come back, you’ll come back... to me. That’s what he’d said before their groups had split at the cave entrance; he would be happy to see her. She’d knock. Just one deep breath and...

Musa nodded dumbly. She didn’t know why she’d suddenly lost the ability to speak; it wasn’t as if the entirety of Magix wasn’t aware of her feelings for the angry specialist at this point. They’d already gone on a date for crying out loud.  Her eyes had drifted down to the dark brown sketch pad in Helia’s hand as she nodded, but she forced them back up to meet his. “Yeah... Is he here?”

“No. I think he’s in the back courtyard.” Musa thanked Helia and began to make her way back down the corridor. She turned to ask Helia if Riven had said anything about, well, anything, but her in particular, but the artist was already halfway down the hall in the opposite direction. Not that it mattered; Riven wasn’t the kind to talk about stuff and the odds of him feeling particularly chatty when he was in pain were not good. Logically Musa knew that the odds of him explaining why he’d jumped to her were minimal too, but she needed to ask anyways.  

Her pace sped up to just short of running as she made her way down to the back courtyard. Red Fountain’s new building had three courtyards. The most magnificent one, the front courtyard, was at the top of the school overlooking the forest with the city of Magix visible in the distance of the Southern side. The central one was halfway down the building inside the four gushing waterfalls and contained nothing but training fields. The back courtyard was at the base of the building at ground level. It was made up of the ruins of the old Red Fountain and where the students mostly hung out when they stayed on campus. What could be salvaged of the old brick building had been turned into courtyard décor – picnic tables, benches, stools – and, most notably, the large wall that ran along the edge of the forest. Tecna had questioned if the wall was structurally sound when they’d first seen it, but Sky assured them it was.  

When she made it to the crowded yard, her pace slowed a bit. She wasn’t worried about missing him – there was no doubt in her mind she’d be able to pick him out in a crowd – but she didn’t want to appear like she’d been searching for him frantically when she did find him. She took a quick look through the crowded parts, opting instead to search the more secluded areas thoroughly. She knew Riven; he wouldn’t want to be in the packed areas.  

She found him in the front corner closest to the forest, next to one of the gates that led to one of the many footpaths that meandered through Gloomy Wood. He was seated atop the wall, leaning back on the arch of the gate. Musa’s eyes flitted to the open iron gate, wondering what the purpose of the gate was if they were just going to leave it open. Then, just as quickly as her eyes had traveled to the gate, they were back on him. It seemed natural at this point to be watching him if he was in the vicinity. No matter how hard she tried not to spend all her time admiring and observing him, she seemed to be eternally doomed to have her eyes find him. It wasn’t her fault he was so fucking beautiful. Especially right now, sitting there with the back of his head leaning against the wall and his eyes closed. His arms rested on his stomach where he’d been hit – she could see the bandage poking out under his shirt – and one leg propped up while the other dangled off the wall. He looked so comfortable and peaceful. It was unfathomable how easily he made her stomach do flips, it –

Wait a minute.  

What the fuck was he doing on top of the wall? There was no way to get up there except to boost yourself up. That wasn’t ‘taking it easy’.  

“Hi” she said loudly, butterflies having turned to annoyance. It was bad enough that he’d risked his life jumping in front of her, did he also have to risk worsening his injuries?!

Riven’s eyes snapped open and when he looked at her, it was obvious he hadn’t been expecting to see her. Their eyes met briefly as he stuttered out a M-Musa… Hi. He lowered his leg, trying to hide the way he flinched in pain at the movement. Musa dropped her bag and stepped forward to help him as he slid himself down, but he brushed her off. Stubborn ass.

“How are you feeling?”

“Fine, you know, considering…” he shrugged, motioning towards his abdomen.

“Right…” Musa fiddled with her ring – a cheap mood ring she and Bloom had gotten at the fair a few months back – as she tried to formulate a coherent thought or sentence. How was it that she still found herself stupidly tongue-tied around him? He knew how she felt; she knew he felt the same. They’d already kissed and gone on a date. They would’ve gone on another already if fucking fake Avalon hadn’t kidnapped Bloom. Logically, there was no reason for her brain to turn to mush anymore.  

Her eyes snapped up to Riven’s face. The bandage that had been around his head wasn’t there anymore, leaving the scar and bruising on his temple visible. His mouth was drawn as his eyes raked over her. He was assessing her; she could see his mind working as his eyes roamed over every visible inch of skin. “How are you?”  

“Good. Completely unharmed... thanks to you.” You fucking moron. He should know by now that her fairy form offers her an extra layer of protection that non-magical beings don’t have. He should know that the skimpy outfit is deceptive.  

He brushed it off. Riven. The cocky asshole. He brushed it off. Like risking your life – quite literally almost sacrificing it – was nothing more than passing the salt at the dinner table. “Really. Thank you. You didn’t-“

And he laughed at Timmy for being nervous around Tecna. What a goof. “I’ve been here everyday…”

“It’s nothing. Not for…” Riven trailed off. She wished he would finish the sentence, but she knew where it was going. You. Not for you. Would it kill him to give her any sort of sign of liking her? She knew he did, but was it really so hard for him to say: It’s no big deal, Musa. I’d do anything for you. “I, uh, wasn’t expecting to, um, see you h-here…”

If she could burn the memory in her mind and pull it out whenever she felt down, that would be the most incredible thing. The way his eyes widened in surprise only to soften drastically a few seconds later. The small smile that played on his lips that he tried – and failed – to suppress. The redness in his cheeks. He was perfect. “Oh?”

“I wanted to know you were… okay.” Gods, the way he was looking at her made Musa want to close the space between them and never let him go. But she needed to know. It would eat at her until she had an answer, so she dove. “Why’d you do it?”

“Huh?” He cocked his brow curiously. He couldn’t possibly be that daft? What could she possibly be asking about besides him using his body as a shield?  

“Why’d you jump in front of me?” she demanded, her patience already starting to thin.  

“It doesn’t matter.”

“Of course it does! Riven, you could have died! You…” almost did. Musa stopped herself from saying it aloud. She didn’t know if Riven knew he’d been on the brink of death and, frankly, she didn’t want to think about that. One of the advantages – and occasional disadvantages – of having sound-based powers was that her hearing was so much stronger than the average person’s; she could hear the faintest of sounds with enough concentration. Like a heartbeat. Like his. Loud and erratic at this moment, but faint and barely existent after he’d fallen. Musa had no idea how he’d survived, only that somewhere in the background the spell that had been put on Bloom went away, there’d been a bright glowing light in Musa’s peripheral vision and then Riven’s heart had started to gain strength.  

“So could you. Just let it go, Musa” he bit back. The fucking goddamn stubborn asshole.  

“No! I need to know.”

“It doesn’t matter.” Riven started to walk away from her, but she was determined not to let him. She would have her answer. She needed her answer. Maybe that made her as stubborn as him – no, it definitely did – but she was known for being stubborn and she was fine with that. Musa stepped in front of him, blocking him from the path that would lead back to the courtyard.

“It does matter!”

“No.”

“Yes, Riven. We... I...” Her voice started to break and it took a few seconds before she managed to finish the sentence. Musa would usually do everything she could to avoid someone knowing how sensitive and emotional she really was, but frankly, she was past caring now. Riven had already seen her break before anyways. And she wanted him to know how much she cared and how worried she’d been. “I could’ve lost you.”

“Well, you didn’t” he dismissed with a shrug. There was no way he could be so careless with his life. It infuriated her to think that being moments away from death was something he took so nonchalantly.

“But I could have!”

“But you didn’t so it doesn’t matter.”

“Why are you being so fucking stubborn? I just want to know why you thought that jumping in front of me was-”

“Musa! For fuck’s sake. Just drop it” Riven snapped. She’d never had him snap at her before – Stella, Brandon, Sky (multiple times), even Timmy once. Never her. His snapping didn’t scare her, but rather fueled her and made her more determined to get an answer.

“No! Just fucking tell me instead of shutting me out. You risked your life for me. Why? I need to know; I deserve to know. You have no idea how much knowing that you could’ve died for me has been eating at me. How much-”  

“It’s because I’m in love with you!” Riven’s eyes went wide as soon as the words slipped out. He opened his mouth to speak - to backtrack or explain – but no words came out. Musa was so surprised by the outburst – and more specifically, it’s content – that she had to take a step back to steady herself. Her jaw dropped and she tried to form a coherent thought, but she couldn’t.

He loves her.  

He’s in love with her.  

Riven is in love with her.  

“I... I have to go.” Riven took off through the gate at much faster speed than she’d anticipated from someone who’d been seriously injured not even two weeks ago. Musa allowed herself a few seconds to blink away the residual shock, something that she regretted once she realised that he was out of her line of sight by the time her head was clear.  

“Fuck” she muttered before taking off after him. She followed the path for a few hundred meters before deciding that she wasn’t going to find him on foot; that, knowing Riven, he’d probably strayed off the path specifically to make it harder for her to find him.  

Ignoring her frustrations with Riven and his inability to face any potentially emotional or uncomfortable moments, Musa took to the skies. She forced herself to focus on what he had said – even if it had been blurted out. I’m in love with you. The butterflies in her stomach still fluttered to life every time she thought about it – and she’d been replaying the moment in her mind the entire time she’d been walking.  

It shouldn’t have surprised her that she found him sitting at their spot. A small clearing in the middle of the forest – about a half hour walk from both Alfea and Red Fountain – with a ledge that overlooked the lake. Musa had found it last year after a fight with Stella that had resulted in her storming away. Riven had known about it for years before, using it as sanctuary anytime he needed peace for most of his teen years, if not all, she wasn’t entirely sure. They’d met here multiple times over the last year. Most of the time it hadn’t been on purpose, they’d just both happened to need space from the people around them. And what better way to be away from others than together.  

Musa landed behind him as quietly as she could. She wanted a few seconds to admire him. She wanted to admire the broadness of his shoulders and the sculpt of his body. The way his maroon hair slicked back and the baby hairs tickled the nape of his neck. She admired his high cheekbones and angular chin. Finally, his soft, full lips. Gods, she wanted to kiss those lips so badly.  

The lips of the man that loves her.  

“Riven…” Musa stepped forward tentatively, changing out of her fairy form and back into the loose black pants and baggy cropped red t-shirt she’d thrown on haphazardly that morning. She saw the way his shoulders tensed, but he didn’t answer so she sped up. When she reached him, she sat in front of him, folding her legs under her. “Riven?”

His hands were balled into fists that he tapped on the ground nervously as he refused to meet her eyes. Musa reached her hands out and grabbed his, forcing them open so that they would hold hers back. She requested that he look at her. When he didn’t, she pulled her hand out of his grip – he’d been surprisingly quick to take her hand given how adamant he was about avoiding her gaze – and gently turned his head to look at her. “Look at me, Riven” she said in a forceful voice that denied the gentility of her touch.

“I-“ he started.

“I love you, too.”  

“Really?” The surprise in his voice nearly broke her heart. She knew Riven came with a whole slew of issues, but she was still surprised that cocky, arrogant Riven didn’t deem himself worthy of being loved. But regardless of what he thought, he was loved.

By her.  

She loved him.  

She was in love with him.

“Gods help me, yes, really. I love you.” Saying it felt like a weight lifted off her shoulders. She’d been in love with him for so long now and, until recently, she never thought she’d get to tell him. Part of her wanted to the moment they first kissed in the Wildlands, but she knew how comfortable he was with emotion – that was, not at all – and she didn’t want to scare him away so she said nothing.  

Riven’s hand pulled away from hers and he brought it up to touch her cheek. He’d given her no sign of relationship – they had to be in one now, right? – in public, so she was always surprised when he was soft in private. Especially the first kiss – after she’d confessed her feelings for him in what, she was willing to admit, was probably the worst timed confession ever – when they were packing up their stuff on the beach. She’d pulled him aside, driven to talk to him about the confession by Brandon’s silent nagging, but realised when she had him in front of her that no words would explain her feelings properly, and it certainly wasn’t the right moment for a song. So, she kissed him. He responded positively, so she took that as her sign to pull him in more. The kiss was wonderful, but more so was the way everything about him softened – his eyes, his touch, his posture, everything. Like he had so much love to give, he just needed someone willing to receive it.  

This time was different. Riven was the one to initiate; he was the one to use his hand to bring her head forward. There were no words to describe the way she lit up when they kissed – her lips, her mind, her heart, body and soul; all of her felt like it was coming to life after an eternity of nothingness.  

The hand on her cheek slid into her hair, deepening the kiss. Riven’s other hand slid out of hers and landed on the small of her back. With very little effort on his part, he pulled her more and more into him until she was straddling his lap and pressed up against him. Musa brought her hands up to rest on his chest, sliding one of them up to wrap her arm around his neck and pull him closer, if it was even possible.  

When they pulled apart for air, Musa rested her forehead against Riven’s. Violet met blue in the sweetest gaze. Musa offered Riven a gentle, sincere smile that he returned, making her heart turn to love-struck mush. They stayed like that for a few minutes until he spoke.  

“Did you mean it?” he whispered so low that she almost missed it.  

“I do. I love you, Riven.” Musa planted a kiss on his forehead that made him smile even wider. His arm moved down her body to wrap around her waist so that she was fully locked into his embrace. Riven had never looked so genuinely happy and at-ease in the two years she’d known him and it warmed her to know she was the one that made him feel like that. His forehead and eyes found hers once more as he whispered: “I love you, Musa.”

[lsmu]

Book 3 Part 2 – Intermission: Stardust

*“Here’s your umeshu, Sandara-ssi.”

I nodded to thank the young female bartender, who smiled and walked away. I took a swig out of my umeshu glass. The sweet and sour taste was just nice, and this bar’s environment felt invigorating after my long and tiring day of shooting my TV show.

I took a long drag out of my cigarette and puffed out a cloud of smoke into the air as I rested my back on the barstool, lifting my eyes to stare at the ceilings. My eyes caught a glimpse of the clock on the wall. It was 8.35 pm.

This week… Was weird. Everything seemed back to normal, everyone seemed busy with their own businesses.

Blackpink continued enjoying their leisure time in their 18-months long hiatus. Lisa and Rosé were announced as the new muses for a luxury fashion brand, Jennie shot another sexy photoshoot for Calvin Klein… And Yeoni was back managing his studio in Gangnam.

Sana told me that Mina was recovering well in the hospital, and Prof. Yoojin said she could be discharged soon, probably next week or the week after. Other than that, the Twice girls were back in training, preparing for their next comeback, with Minsoo faithfully doing his job magnificently as their manager. I heard Yori had just secured a new security contracting deal with a private company, while Chuyoung found a new job in an insurance company. I wished that guy well… He deserved it.

The older idols were busy with their own ventures. Sunny with her boutique, Seohyun and Sooyoung with their dramas and movies, and Taeyeon was busy taking care of her family and writing new songs. Seungyeon started to get busier nowadays, with the new Care Centre’s construction beginning in early February. I heard Suzy went off to Busan to shoot her next drama, while IU was busy writing her next album.

I took another swig out of my umeshu glass. I sighed. Like I said, everything seemed normal… But I knew nothing was.

Ansel’s dead. Manse sent his body in a bodybag to the IPG HQ the night after the murder, and Seungyeon’s team did a great job to quickly bury him properly in a nearby cemetery. Sana told me that Mina was surprisingly calm when she learned that her boyfriend had passed away, accepting it as fate, only asking Sana and Momo to accompany her to visit his grave after she was discharged. Mina was such a tough woman. I wasn’t sure I would be able to cope with it if the same thing happened to me.

Other than that, the IPG was pretty much disbanded. No one had visited the HQ for the past six days, ever since that fiasco at Red Velvet’s dorm. I heard from Wendy that Yeri returned to the dorm the day after the incident, but when they asked her about Hyejin, she simply avoided the topic.

I sighed. Hyejin… She looked so heartbroken that afternoon. It was understandable. I would have been as sad, angry, and heartbroken as she was if I was her. She thought her father was dead sixteen years ago, and suddenly, she found not only that he was alive, but he turned out to be the biggest villain in K-pop history.

Then last week, she found out that her father’s initial motivation was simply to protect her, before driven to madness by Suzy’s insistence on him doing the exact same thing that killed his wife thirteen years prior, and then by her lies that blamed him for everything that happened. Suzy… Created the monster, and now…

“Shibal…” I muttered.

Now… All of us had to face the consequences. Us leaving the IPG and not talking about it these past six days didn’t erase the fact that Manse threatened all of us. He gave us a week to think and consider our position… And that week was almost gone. Tomorrow was the seventh day since his threat. Fuck. What was he planning to do?

I took another drag out of my cigarette and dusted the ashes on the ashtray in front of me. I looked up, staring at the magenta neon sign hanging by the door. It read ‘Stardust’, written in alphabet, hangul, and katakana. That’s the name of the bar.

I had been a regular in Stardust for a few years now, and I preferred this bar among other bars in Seoul for a few reasons. One, it was located in Jung-gu, so it was away from the buzzling Gangnam, Itaewon, or Myeongdong, where people would gawk and give me unwanted attention. Two, Stardust was a small bar, and it felt more intimate. Three, it had a huge selection of drinks from all around the world.

And lastly… I preferred Stardust simply because of the owner of this bar: That bartender who served me my umeshu earlier.

I turned to look at her. She was currently talking to another patron. The bartender’s name was Rachel–although I didn’t think that it was her real name. She told me she came from Japan, where her older brother was also running an izakaya in Kabuki-chō in Tokyo, and she did look Japanese, but I always suspected that she was of a mixed descent.

Rachel evidently was a polyglot, for I have heard her speaking Mandarin, Japanese, English (with an American accent), Indonesian, French, and Spanish to other patrons over the years, along with her fluent Korean whenever she spoke to me. I guessed these facts about her contributed to how I always found her incredibly charming.

Other than that… She was much younger than I was, probably still in her late 20s or early 30s, but I felt like we connected well. These last couple of years, ever since that Yeoni-Jisoo scandal back in 2026, my visits to Stardust have become more frequent. I’d spend hours in this bar, drinking my umeshu, smoking, and talking with her. She had been a great company to me.

Rachel was really cute, yet I could tell that she had a fierce side in her. You needed to have it to run such a business anyway. As for me… I was always a sucker for fierce yet cute looking girls. Her sharp eyes, her short hair… She reminded me a little bit of Lee Saerom from Fromis_9, but… Other than that… Her attitude reminded me of someone closer to my heart. A lot closer.

I flipped open my phone, staring at the one contact number I had been mulling over whether or not to contact for the entirety of this week. I still had no courage to do it… And time was running out.

“Chaerin-ah…” I whispered.

I understood why CL joined Manse instead of the IPG. She wouldn’t stand for a lie, not when she knew the truth. She was always so practical, and she was nothing short of a rebel, even when we were still in 2NE1 together. Her zeal, her passion… I always admired her…. I always loved her.

Should I call her? I heard her begging for Ansel’s life before Manse killed him, and the way she spoke to Ansel before Manse came… That was the CL I knew. She was fierce and ruthless, yes, but… I knew she was always compassionate. She was not an evil person. She was not a heartless person.

I hovered my thumb above the call button on my phone. Could I turn her back? She didn’t witness Manse killing Ansel, but she knew it. She saw Ansel’s lifeless body afterwards. Would the horror she experienced be enough to turn her back to our side? Would she help me?

“Another round of umeshu, Sandara-ssi?”

I looked up, finding the short-haired female bartender smiling at me. I realised that my umeshu glass was almost empty, but I shook my head and smiled.

“Probably later. I’m still waiting for my friends,” I said. Rachel smirked.

“You know… That’s a first,” she uttered.

“Huh?”

“You... Bringing friends here,” she said, smirking more. “You’re usually kinda lonely.”

She was right. I was usually alone here, and I had never brought anyone else here with me. But… That didn’t mean I was lonely! One of the reasons I came here alone was so that I could enjoy Rachel’s intoxicating smirk. That smirk… She was hot. I chuckled.

“Well… We needed a place to meet that’s discreet and away from the crowds… So… I suggested your bar,” I said. Rachel chuckled.

“I know, I know… I’ve prepared the VIP room as per your request,” she said.

“Thanks, Rachel,” I said. She smiled and nodded, picking up a napkin to wipe a glass clean.

I let my eyes lingered at her shapely body for a while before taking another sip out of my umeshu. I placed the glass back on the table, and at that moment I noticed a familiar singing voice through the bar’s sound system.

“Hm? Isn’t this…” I mused. Rachel chuckled.

“Twice Jihyo’s voice. You’re right,” she said. I raised an eyebrow.

“Eh? That’s strange… You usually put on nice lo-fi music in here,” I said. Rachel smirked again.

“But this particular song… It’s fitting, isn’t it?” she said, not looking up from her glass.

I blinked my eyes a few times in confusion, but then… I understood her. The song was called ‘Stardust Love Song’, a drama soundtrack Jihyo sang back in 2022. It was indeed fitting, considering the name of the bar.

“Yeah… You’re right,” I chuckled. Rachel smirked again before walking towards me.

“Dara-ssi, what do you think of the music here?” she suddenly asked.

“Hm? It’s always nice. I love lo-fi music,” I said honestly. Rachel nodded.

“I’ve been… Updating the bar’s playlist on Spotify with some new songs, including this song you’re currently listening to. Check this out,” she said happily.

She whipped out her phone, showing me her Spotify playlist. I smiled.

“I’ll follow your playlist,” I said, doing exactly that on my phone. Rachel chuckled.

“Thanks, Dara-ssi… Now you can bring Stardust’s vibe wherever you go,” she said. I chuckled.

“It won’t be the same without you…” I blurted under my breath.

Rachel acted like she didn’t hear my words, going back to wiping a glass, but I could see that her ears and cheeks were turning red a little. I bit my lips. These constant flirtations between us… It had been going on for a few months. Should I… Maybe ask her out sometime?

“Dara-ssi…” Rachel suddenly called me.

“E–Eh? Yes?” I stuttered.

Rachel chuckled and gestured to someone behind me.

“I think one of your friends is here,” she informed me.

I turned around, finding a cute, squirrel-like girl grinning and waving at me.

“Seungyeon!” I exclaimed, standing up and giving the Care Team Head a hug.

Seungyeon giggled and hugged back, before joining me by the bar. Rachel brought a bowl of peanuts, placing it in front of her new patron.

“Fancy any drink, Han Seungyeon-ssi?” she asked. Seungyeon gasped.

“Oh? You know me?” she asked, sounding surprised. Rachel chuckled.

“Of course! You know, my brother was and still is a huge KARA fan, and although I was still a little girl back then, I could never forget you and KARA doing that… Dance,” she said.

Rachel turned around and started wiggling her cute, plump butt left and right in a rhythm while singing the intro to ‘Mister’, KARA’s hit song from back in 2009.

“Lalala lalala… Lalala lalala… Lalala lalala… One, two, three, four, five, six… Coming!” she sang.

Seungyeon laughed out loud and clapped her hands, earning a bow from Rachel. I laughed and joined her in clapping too. Seriously! This bartender girl was something else!

“Ya! Stop flirting at my friend!” I scolded her jokingly. Rachel laughed.

“Jealous, Dara-ssi?” she asked, rather seductively.

I felt my face blushing. Rachel saw this, and she giggled. Seungyeon giggled too.

“From the way you blush… I think you are kinda jealous, Unnie,” she said.

“Y–Ya!” I scolded her.

Seungyeon giggled cutely again before turning to see the collection of bottles behind Rachel. She took a few moments studying the bottles, and then her eyes lit up as she saw the one that she wanted.

“I’ll take that Ballantine 30 years that you have. Double shots, on the rocks,” ordered Seungyeon. Rachel’s eyes widened.

“Oh wow… You do know your drinks, Seungyeon-ssi!” she praised her. Seungyeon giggled.

“Kamsahamnida, Bartender-nim!” she chirped cutely. Rachel smirked her hot smirk again.

“Oh please, call me Rachel,” she said. I scowled at her.

“Flirting again,” I said.

“Jealous again,” Rachel replied without missing a beat.

I sighed exasperatedly. Seungyeon laughed out loud, clapping my shoulder. Rachel giggled, before bowing and walking away. I smiled as I watched her from behind. Did I mention that she’s got a cute butt too? And that skin-hugging black leather pants she was wearing further enhanced her round, plump butt.

“You like her, don’t you?” Seungyeon remarked. I chuckled and sighed.

“Ah… She’s too young… And I don’t even know if she’s into girls,” I said in a lower voice.

“Well… You’ll never know unless you try,” she said casually.

I stared at the ex-KARA member. She was right. I’ll never know unless I try. Probably the same thing would apply to CL too… I should really try to call her, shouldn’t I?

“How’s your week?” I decided to ask Seungyeon. She sighed and stretched her back.

“Ah… It’s been tiring. Luckily Naeun and Uee agreed to help me with the Care Centre. So… I think the preparations are going well,” she said, mentioning two other former idols from Apink and After School respectively. “What about you?”

“Same old… TV shows… Radio shows… The lot,” I said, shrugging.

Seungyeon chuckled.

“Funny, isn’t it?” she mused.

“What is?” I asked.

“... We… Us, older idols… The IPG used to take up a lot of our time, since our schedule is not as busy as it used to, or as busy compared to the younger idols. And this week… Suddenly…” she uttered.

“... Empty,” I completed her sentence.

Seungyeon nodded and smiled. Rachel came back with Seungyeon’s whiskey, and she left us again. Seungyeon raised her glass and looked at me. I raised mine and clinked it with hers, and we both drank.

“You know…” Seungyeon mused, grimacing a little to negate the alcohol’s burn in her throat.. “... When the construction of the Care Centre begins… I don’t think I’ll have much time to look after the Care Team anymore. Not as much as I used to, at least...”

I chuckled.

“If there is still a Care Team after all this… Or an IPG, for that matter,” I uttered. Seungyeon nodded.

“Yeah…” she uttered. “Suzy fucked up, didn’t she?”

“Big time…” I agreed.

Seungyeon chuckled ironically.

“But… Let’s say there still is. Let’s say we prevailed, and Sana became the head, replacing Suzy,” said Seungyeon positively. I laughed. She was always positive.

“She’s already the head, for all I’m concerned,” I said. Seungyeon nodded.

“Yeah. Suppose we continue to operate… Who do you think would be the leaders?” Seungyeon asked.

I thought for a moment before answering.

“Hmm… Irene should continue as the Strike Force Head, at least until Taengoo delivers her baby,” I said. Seungyeon nodded.

“What about my team?” she asked.

“Jisoo?” I blurted the first name that came into my head without thinking.

Seungyeon smiled.

“I have the same thought,” she said calmly.

“But she’s pregnant too… And oh gosh her belly is huge! How far along is she? Four months? Five months? Is it supposed to be that big?” I asked.

“Five. But she’s carrying twins, and they’re twin boys, right? Boys tend to be bigger,” Seungyeon giggled.

“Jinja?” I asked. Seungyeon nodded.

“Mm! Remember how big my belly was when I was pregnant with Haneul?” she said, mentioning her son’s name.

She was right. Her belly was indeed kinda big back then. I sighed.

“Belly size aside… If not Jisoo… Then who? Nabong? Sunny?” I asked.

Seungyeon shook her head.

“No. I’ll still pick Jisoo. She’s perfect. She’s the most caring, and her heart is like an angel. I don’t think her pregnancy would be a problem. We’re not kicking and punching like Taengoo’s team, right?” she said. I nodded.

“Yeah… You’re right…” I agreed.

We took another sip of our glasses.

“IU needs replacing too…” Seungyeon said. I nodded.

“That’s a huge loss. She’s the best… Not one of us is even near her skills as a hacker,” I said.

Seungyeon stared into her glass, turning the ice cubes inside it absentmindedly.

“... Except for Hyejin,” she mused.

I nodded silently. She was right. Other than IU and Sabito, Hyejin was the one who was the most skillful out of us. But… She was missing, and even if we could contact her… I didn’t think she would want to have anything to do with the IPG any longer.

“Still no word from Hyejin?” Seungyeon asked, reading my mind. I shook my head.

“No… And Yeri… Hasn’t been much of a help either,” I uttered. Seungyeon sighed.

“She’s protecting her girlfriend… I can understand that,” she said. I nodded.

“Me too, Seungyeon. Me too… I’ll do the same if I were her,” I said.

“Yeah…”

We drank again. The buzz was starting to get into my head now. Fuck. We were stuck in a rut.

“Dara-unnie! Seungyeon-unnie!”

I turned around, finding Sana, Yeoni, Irene, Taeyeon and Jennie walking towards me. Minsoo was here too, something I didn’t expect, but I guessed Sana might have asked her manager to tag along. Seungyeon and I smiled and stood up, before turning to look at Rachel the bartender.

“Rachel, my friends are here. We’re moving to the room,” I informed her. Rachel nodded.

“Noted! You know the way, Sandara-ssi!” she chirped.

I did know my way. I waved at Rachel and gestured for the guys to follow me. I led them to the private room that Rachel mentioned earlier, and we took our seats on the sofa. Rachel came shortly after.

“Drinks for you?” she asked, then she looked at Sana and smiled, before saying, “Minatozaki-sama, nanika o nomimono wa ikaga desu ka?”

Sana gasped loudly.

“Nihonjin desu ka?” Sana asked, guessing correctly. Rachel chuckled and nodded.

“Hai!” she exclaimed, before switching back to Korean, “I’m Japanese. Just like you!”

“Woah… Nice to meet a fellow Japanese person here!” Sana said cheerfully.

Rachel smirked and bowed respectfully, before straightening herself up and lifting her notepad back up again. Sana chuckled.

“You know what… You make me crave a Japanese drink,” said Sana, smiling cutely. “Highball, then!”

“Certainly,” said Rachel, jotting down on her notepad before turning toward the others.

“Umm… Just… Beer for me,” said Minsoo. “Cass.”

Yeoni laughed.

“Come on, Minsoo-ya. We’re practically in a Japanese bar here! We should order some Japanese beer!” he said happily, turning to the bartender, “Sapporo for me!”

Minsoo chuckled sheepishly.

“A–Ah yes… Then… I’ll have the same,” he said.

Rachel nodded and smiled. Yeoni turned to his two girlfriends.

“Jen, Irene?” he asked.

“What are you having, Unnie?” Jennie asked me.

“Umeshu. Choya. It’s good!” I said, raising my glass. Jennie chuckled.

“Then I’ll have the same,” she said.

“Tea for Irene and I, please,” said Taeyeon, looking at the Red Velvet leader.

Yeoni chuckled and flung his arm around Irene’s shoulders. Somehow, Irene blushed.

“Still on your alcohol detox?” he asked.

“Y–Yes…” she uttered shyly.

Hm? That’s weird.

“Alright. I’ll be back in a minute,” said Rachel, jotting down their orders in her notepad before leaving the room.

As soon as she disappeared from view, we all turned to look at Sana. She sighed and rested her back on the sofa.

“Let’s wait for the bartender to bring in our drinks… So we don’t get distracted,” she said calmly.

“Ya, the bartender’s kinda cute, don’t you think?” Jennie remarked naughtily.

“Oh don’t bother, Jen. She belongs to Dara-unnie,” said Seungyeon.

“Ya!” I scolded her.

Everyone gasped and laughed, and I joined them in laughter. We would usually talk like this in the HQ, but being here in Stardust was a nice change of scenery, I guessed. A few minutes later, Rachel came back with our drinks, and after we thanked her, she left.

“Right… Where were we…” Sana started.

“We haven’t even started, Sha,” said Taeyeon. Sana laughed her iconic laugh.

“You’re right… Ah well…I’ve got a few things I wanted to say,” Sana said.

Everyone started straightening our backs, listening more intently to the new IPG head. She took a sip out of her highball and smacked her lips, before speaking.

“First… I’m sorry for storming out like that the last time. I was simply too hurt and too disappointed… At Suzy-unnie and IU-unnie, but mostly at myself, for trusting them blindly over the years,” Sana started.

“We all did, Sha. You shouldn’t blame yourself,” said Irene. Sana smiled and nodded.

“I know… But I was her consigliere. I supported her, I was willing to do anything for her because I thought she was the one who saved me from the corrupt bosses,” Sana said calmly.

I nodded. That was the same thought we all had.

“Still… At least we managed to find out the truth. And… After talking with Mina and Jeongie… I realised that there is still so much good we can do with the IPG. Suzy-unnie might have used the IPG to protect her past, but now it is up to us to use all the resources that BoA-unnie had invested in us to do good. To protect each other, to protect the younger idols. Don’t you all agree?” Sana asked.

We all nodded and smiled.

“So… I went to talk with BoA-unnie yesterday in her coffee shop. She agreed that we need to freshen things up a bit. Hence, starting in February I’m going to talk to the Itzy girls, see if they’re interested in joining us,” Sana said.

“Yay! That’s nice! They’ll be a nice addition to the team!” Jennie exclaimed. We chuckled. Her excitement was contagious. Sana nodded.

“Yeah… And… Since we’re heading more and more towards the metaverse, with the Kwangya platform launching and all that… We’d definitely need members who are more accustomed to this… New world. We might need Taengoo-unnie and Irene-unnie’s help to talk to the aespa girls,” Sana said, turning to look at the two SM ladies.

Taeyeon and Irene smiled and nodded.

“I’ll talk to Karina and Winter. We’re having a GOT comeback soon, so we’ll meet more regularly,” Taeyeon said.

“Giselle and Ningning go to the same pilates studio with me, so I can speak to them there,” said Irene.

“Thank you, Unnie-deul,” Sana said.

Minsoo raised his hand.

“Yes, Minsoo?” asked Sana.

“Umm… Sha, you… Met with the Daepyonim yesterday. Did you tell her about what we learned from Ansel the other day?” Minsoo asked. Sana smiled.

“I’m just getting there… Right. I told her everything,” she said.

“What did she say?” asked Yeoni. Sana pursed her lips.

“Well… She… She kinda expected it, so she wasn’t that surprised. She was sad for her friend…” Sana mused.

We all sat silently. It was clear that Manse and BoA shared a mutual respect for one another. He even still considered her a friend. But still…

“Sha… What about his threat? I know we’ve all distanced ourselves from Suzy and IU, and we are not ‘standing by her side’ per se, as what Manse said… But… He doesn’t know that, right?” I said. Irene nodded.

“Us not doing anything… Not joining him… He would consider us still on Suzy’s side,” she said.

“You don’t think… Y–You don’t think any of us would actually join him, right, Sha?” asked Jennie.

Sana shook her head quickly, but she looked glum.

“No… I don’t think so. Suzy did create the monster, but Manse still did everything he did ever since. He still hurted us, abused us. He was still a villain. I don’t think any of us idols would want to join him,” Sana said.

“S–Sha…”

We all turned to look at Minsoo. His face was full of dread.

“Sha, do you think… M–Maybe… Hyejin?” he asked cautiously.

Sana stared at her manager for a while. Honestly, I had the same fear. What if Hyejin decided to join her father’s side? He would have Hyejin’s skills as a hacker, and he could become unstoppable. Shit. This was bad.

“I… Don’t think so,” uttered Irene.

We turned to look at her. She was frowning, staring at her teacup.

“I… I know Hyejin. Out of all of us here, I’m the one closest to her, although I can’t compare myself to Yeri or Joy. They’re the ones closest to her. But… At least from what I know… She won’t join him,” Irene said.

“Why not?” asked Yeoni. Irene looked at her boyfriend.

“It’s… She has this huge sense of justice and righteousness within her. After all, she’s a police officer… And what her father did… It was wrong. He was a victim, yes, but… Still, it was wrong,” Irene said confidently.

I hoped she was right. I really did. But… Hyejin’s look, the way she pulled a gun on Suzy after she heard the truth… That was a look of pain, of bitterness. She felt betrayed.

“I… Hope you’re right, Irene,” I muttered. Everyone nodded solemnly.

“Still… We must do something. What did BoA-unnie say?” asked Taeyeon after a while.

Sana took another sip of her highball. She then looked at all of us.

“She… Well she told me two things. One, we need to know where each of us are at all times, at least for these two days while we wait for Manse’s action. That’s why I’m gathering all of you here tonight. You’re all either the leaders of your division, or the representative of each idol group, and I know you all know where your members are naturally,” she said.

“The manager must know,” Yeoni said, pointing at Minsoo, who smiled.

“Yep. Minsoo knows exactly where every Twice member is right now, right Minsoo?” Sana asked proudly. Minsoo nodded.

“Absolutely. Tomorrow’s our free day, so everyone’s enjoying themselves tonight. Jihyo is in our apartment, Dahyun is with Jeongyeon in Sana’s apartment, Momo, Chaeng and Yori are in the hospital with Mina, Nayeon is meeting someone in that porridge shop in Myeongdong, Chuyoung and Tzuyu are having a date at Itaewon,” Minsoo listed down quickly.

We all stared at him with gaping mouths. Minsoo looked at us confusedly for a moment, before starting to blush.

“W–What?” he stuttered.

“Woahh… Minsoo! That was epic!” said Seungyeon. Minsoo blushed even redder.

“A–Ah… It was… Nothing, S–Sunbae…” he said sheepishly, making us laugh.

“Fuck… Do we even know where our members are right now?” asked Jennie, starting to think.

“Noona’s at home, as usual. Rosie’s doing her commercial shoot in Gangnam, Lisa’s at her place… Probably watching porn while drinking some smuggled Thai beer,” said Yeoni calmly.

We all gasped.

“How did you know that?” exclaimed Taeyeon. Yeoni shrugged.

“I’m the Blackpink Boyfriend, remember?” he said smugly. Jennie laughed while Irene tsked, both slapping Yeoni’s head.

“Ya!” Yeoni protested, clutching his head. Irene glared at him.

“Stop being so smug!” she scolded him.

“S–Sorry…” Yeoni uttered, making us laugh.

We all turned to Irene and Taeyeon, expecting them to continue. Taeyeon sighed.

“My girls are all with their families… Except for Sunny, who’s having a late-night fitting appointment with Eunbi and Cheng Xiao…” Taeyeon started, but a naughty giggle escaped Jennie’s mouth.

“Woah… That’s a huge fitting appointment she’s having right now!” she sniggered meaningfully.

Her comment made us burst out in laughter, except for Minsoo, who was looking left and right confusedly. Taeyeon slapped Jennie’s shoulder loudly.

“Fuck you, Jen! I almost spit out my drink!” she cursed, grinning wide.

“I was right, wasn’t I?” Jennie defended herself, giggling profusely, before turning to look at her boyfriend, “Don’t you agree, Daddy?”

Yeoni was blushing red.

“I–I… Y–Yeah? I g–guess?” he stuttered, clearly feeling embarrassed talking about Eunbi, Cheng Xiao, and Sunny’s absolutely huge assets. Irene pouted.

“Namja…” she muttered, although I could see her cute smile.

“Alright, alright… So Sunny’s doing her huge fitting appointment, and Yoona’s in America shooting her next film,” Taeyeon completed her words.

Our attention turned to Irene, who sipped her tea elegantly before speaking.

“Seulgi’s helping Wendy to start preparing for her wedding with Pastor Nathan this summer, Joy is with Crush, and Yeri… Well… Yeri’s with Hyejin now, wherever she is,” Irene said slowly.

“She never told you guys where she is?” Jennie asked. Irene shook her head.

“No… I’ve tried asking Yeri, but she only said Hyejin needs more time and space… So… I guess there’s nothing I can do,” said Irene.

We all nodded. Taeyeon looked up at Sana.

“Sha… Any idea on how to find out what exactly Manse is planning to do as a retribution against Suzy?” she asked. Sana nodded.

“That’s… Number two,” she said.

“What’s number two?” asked Seungyeon.

Sana cleared her throat.

“Number two…” she uttered, then she looked at me. “... For number two, I need Dara-unnie’s help.”

“Eh?” I asked. Sana nodded.

“Yeah… I… I need you to… Find a way to contact CL-sunbaenim tonight,” Sana said.

My eyes widened. That was exactly the thing I was mulling over for the past couple of days, and now she asked me to actually do it. Seungyeon noticed my reluctance.

“Can we… Can you… Do it, Unnie?” she asked.

I stared at her, and then at the rest, before looking directly at Sana. She smiled and reached across to hold my hands.

“Unnie… We all heard how CL-sunbaenim sounded when she talked to Ansel. Like I told you in the hospital that night… I don’t think she’s beyond redemption. I think she can help us. If you can contact her, and ask her to tell us what Manse is planning to do… Then… Then maybe we’ll have a chance,” she said.

Sana stared directly into my eyes. I met her gaze, but I bit my lips worriedly.

“I’m… I’ve been thinking of doing it too. But… I don’t know if she’ll pick up, Sha,” I said honestly.

Sana nodded. I knew she understood me. But… Still, her gaze was firm.

“We… Have to try, Unnie. We don’t know what he’s planning to do… My bet is on him releasing another scandalous article about one of us, but… We can’t be sure. We need to find out, so that we can plan our defensive strategies accordingly,” Sana said. I nodded.

“I understand completely, Sha… B–But… I…”

I felt a tiny hand reaching my shoulder. I turned, finding Seungyeon smiling at me.

“Unnie… Like what I said earlier…” she uttered. “You’ll never know unless you try.”

Her words sounded true. It was the confidence I needed. Slowly, I nodded my head.

“I’ll never know unless I try,” I echoed.

Seungyeon smiled cutely and nodded. I turned to look at the IPG head, and I smiled.

“Okay. I’ll try contacting her tonight. I’ll let you know as soon as possible,” I said.

Sana smiled and nodded. She released my hands, and went back to her drink, raising the tall glass to the air.

“Well… A toast, I guess? For our safety, and for the future of the IPG,” she said.

“For the new head of IPG?” Taeyeon proposed. Sana giggled.

“Still not official, Unnie,” she dodged the question. We chuckled.

“You’ll do well, Sha…” said Seungyeon, raising her glass.

Everyone followed her example, raising our glasses together.

“To our safety, to the future of the IPG, and to Sana!” exclaimed Jennie.

“Ganbeh!” we all exclaimed.

We clinked our glasses, and we drink. We stayed in Stardust for a long time after that, drinking, talking and joking with each other, enjoying our little reunion after a week of not seeing each other. Rachel came to the room once in a while to bring us more drinks and some light bites, before eventually joining us to drink.

At around 10, everyone started leaving, wishing everyone safety. Seungyeon left the last with me, but not before tipping Rachel generously and whispering something inside her ear that made her blush a little while stealing a glance at me. I slapped Seungyeon’s butt as I walked her to the door, making her cackle.

“What did you say to her?” I asked her. Seungyeon sniggered.

“Oh, you’ll see… Take your chance on her, Unnie!” she exclaimed.

“Ya…” I sighed exasperatedly. Seungyeon cackled again and turned to the bar.

“Bye, Rachel! See you around!” Seungyeon exclaimed.

“Bye, Seungyeon-ssi!” Rachel said, before winking at me. “Bye, Dara-ssi!”

I chuckled and walked out with Seungyeon. She waved me goodbye before walking to her Tesla, and I watched the cute girl drive away while smiling. I sighed and walked to my car, entered it, and started driving away.

I reached home at around 10.30, and I took a quick, hot shower. I then opened my fridge to take a bottle of beer, before walking to the balcony to sit there.

I sat there quietly for a really long time, simply staring at the night sky, letting my mind wander off. The night was beautiful, the pale moon was shining bright. I took a cigarette and lit it up. I blew smoke out of my mouth… And finally, I took my cellphone into my hands.

I whipped open my cellphone, hovering my thumb on CL’s number for the umpteenth time this week. Seungyeon was right. I would never know unless I tried. I took a deep breath, collecting my confidence.

“Fuck… Please pick up, Chaerin…” I whispered, secretly begging her.

As I was just about to press the call button…

My phone rang.

It was CL.

“What… The fuck?” I uttered.

The phone kept ringing.

With trembling hands, I swiped the green button to the right, accepting the call.

“Y–Y–Yeoboseyo?” I stuttered.

“Unnie. Unnie, listen. I don’t have much time, and I’m sorry I can only call you now, but… Listen carefully, okay?”

CL was whispering. It was like she was talking secretly. Wait…

“C–Chaerin? W–What is it? Where are you?” I stammered.

“Listen… Tonight, at mid–g–t…” she started, but her voice was breaking up.

“What? I can’t hear you, Chaerin! You’re breaking up!” I said a little louder.

“T–ight. M–ight! Unnie! M–d–t!”

What the fuck was she trying to say?

“Say it again, Chaerin! What is it?” I exclaimed.

“M–dnight! Dara-unnie! Midnight!”

Midnight?

“W–What? Midnight? What about it?” I asked. “Chaerin… Where are you? Are you alright?”

Static. CL’s voice kept breaking up. Shit. This wasn’t good!

“Chaerin! Can you hear me?” I asked, practically yelling now.

CL took a deep breath before continuing her whisper.

“Unnie. Tonight, at midnight, Manse’s going to––”

Silence followed. Huh?

I looked at my phone. An empty battery icon flashed on the black screen. My phone had just run out of battery!

“FUCK!” I cursed.

I panicked. I rushed inside, and looked at the clock on the wall. It was past 11 pm. Midnight was less than an hour away. What should I do now? What would happen at midnight?

[subwaymastersunova]

Kanto Crew Family

Chole/Serena’s daughter Rose’ Rosie Cerise-Yvonne Pokemon Coordinator Team/Performer/Researcher Biological-Mother: Chole Cerise Biological Father (Doner) -: Goh Ketchum Step-Mother: Serena Yvonne Ash Ketchum: Godfather. Lei Kukui-Burnet: Boyfriend. Sasha Ketchum: Half-sibling. (Through Chole and Ash.) Darrel Cerise-Yvonne: Younge Half-sibling (through Serena and Goh) Looks: Maroon/Magenta hair like Chole dark skin like Goh blue eyes, gold hoop earrings. Purple blouse with with shrug sweater, red hairclips in her hair – hair cut short. Often mistaken as a gay boy, though she doesn’t care really; she’s fuckin proud of the way she looks, damn it. Mole birth mark on her right cheek. Eyelashes like whoa. Slightly androgynous appearance aside from the way she dresses. Cinderace: Super Fang, Pyro Ball, Revenge, Acrobatics.   Galarian Rapidash: Mythical Fire, Fairy Wind, Psychic, Smart Strike Swanna: Air Slash, Aqua Ring, Water Pulse, Ice Beam Vaporeon: Ice Beam, Water Pulse, Swift, Steel Wing Alcreamie: Mythical Fire, Aromatherapy, Dazzling Gleam, Safeguard. Bolthund: Thunderbolt, Flame Charge, Fire Fang, Discharge. Information: Her moms got married after getting engaged under the Pledging Tree in Couramaine City. Then when they had decided they wanted a baby, they went through a surrogacy option and asked their friends to be doners. Goh became a doner to Chole thus having Goh who was married to Ash be Rosie’s father. Sometimes it slips out and Rosie calls Goh ‘dad’ but she mainly calls him ‘Uncle Goh’. Along with Ash who’s Rosie’s godfather. Cinderace was gifted to Rosie as a Scorbunny when she was seven after attending Professor Oak’s Summer camp for the first time.

Serena had then gotten surrogacy through Goh and Rosie’s little sibling Darrel was born. He’s three years younger than Rosie and is a Pokemon trainer and research fellow through his dad/uncle Goh. Wanting to take up Goh’s position as a researcher through Ketchum Labs or through Gary’s Labs in Sinnoh. Though he’s finding it hard to choose. Sasha is Rosie’s half sister through Chole and Ash, Ash was Chole’s doner.

Also ultimately Sasha is Goh and Ash’s daughter. Sasha Ketchum. She lives in Pallet Town with her fathers, and her grandmother Delia, and Uncle Gary. Serena and Chole live in Vermillion City and often travel because Grace stays in Vanville town in Kalos. Though they still make routinely visits for the whole family to get joint-holiday-birthday celebrations. When the kids are old enough they go on Pokemon journeys themselves. Rosie is having a hard time settling on a sixth Pokemon currently.

[wantaichi]

vibrance | kunimi a.

synopsis: you’re careless and drunk and in love at one am, and so is akira. genre: fluff, self-indulgence (hahaha) word count: 546

᠃ ⚘᠂ ⚘ ˚ ⚘ ᠂ ⚘ ᠂ ⚘ ˚ ⚘ ᠂ ⚘ ᠃   

cobalt bled into magenta on the ceiling, washing over your skin as you twirled around draped in his oversized shirt, not so teal anymore under tinted pixie lights. a sliver of lace peeked from beneath the shirt. teasing.

melancholic synths began to seep between the cadence of percussion, to which you spun around and swayed and interlaced your fingers above your head as if performing a ritual - like you were offering yourself to him and only him and, briefly, kunimi thought it should be the other way around. 

the sight of you was nothing short of ethereal; a sensation like he was spiraling into a place where time and space ceased to exist. a barren dimension where it was just the two of you—and it was.

here, in the dregs of this miyagi neighborhood, in this run down apartment of yours with walls decorated in gaudy, vintage floral wallpaper. kunimi had looked at them with distaste the first time you brought him home. they conjured a depressing image in his mind, of lonely old ladies who fell asleep on the couch with the television still on, dully illuminating their frail bodies - he considered asking you to move out of this shithole.

but as nights of staying over trickled into weeks, as tender mornings greeted him less with the white walls of his apartment and more with the faded patterns of yours, the more they grew on him—like small weeds making him a part of your home.

they reminded him of things you both had in common. the blotted stains left by past owners. the slightly ruined and peeling corners, revealing patches of sullen, gray concrete behind its pretty exterior. the misaligned vines and stems struggling to connect so that whoever was looking made sense of the image.

only you made sense out of each other.

kunimi put out the lit end of his stick and discarded it on the ashtray on the floor. he lay sideways on the couch, propping himself on one elbow and watching you dance your silly moves at the center of your living room. careless and drunk and in love at one in the morning while the city was asleep.

your eyes met in the middle of your twirl and you smiled, sauntering towards him, holding an arm out.

“dance with me.”

“make me,” he laughed.

“akira..”

and just like that, with his name on your lips, he felt an ache of futile tenderness in him and impulsively reached out, the dull-colored wires inside him flickering with heat and discharging bright colors as vibrant as once upon a time.

᠃ ⚘᠂ ⚘ ˚ ⚘ ᠂ ⚘ ᠂ ⚘ ˚ ⚘ ᠂ ⚘ ᠃ 

[koko-bopp]

Long Wait

park jimin x male!reader

word count – 5.9K

genre – SMUT | soft-angst-fluff

warning(s) – TOP!reader, BOTTOM!jimin, Daddy kink, dressing room sex, passionate sex, fingering, Tinnie tiny ittie bittie little bit of angst.

synopsis – first of all, highly appreciate the requester for using 'mate' ilysm. Also, I'm so fucking sorry for taking so long.

Park Jimin's boyfriend has been in the army for quite some time now, so hearing that he was getting discharged, Jimin was willing to jump at every opportunity to see the love of his life. Though, [Y/N] wanted to surprise Jimin, maybe in more ways than one.

"He should've been discharged today," Jimin said, "He should've called me."

BTS had just finished their concert, and not for Jimin to brag on their behalf, but it was safe to say that this one was their best performance yet. Thought part of him felt that little bit of sad ting at the fact that they were performing in your home city. He expected himself to be happy, that he got to live a small piece of the things you liked about your city, but it wasn't the same, well, since you weren't even there to enjoy it with him.

If anything, it had been two years since Jimin last physically saw you.

You were completing your military training. Jimin, he wasn't gonna lie, was at first against the idea. Two fucking years? Jimin was barely able to survive two days without you, let alone two years. But eventually, he allowed his boyfriend to do so.

He was already feeling like shit since, fucking hell, what does a man have to do to get a few loving cuddles while the love of his life is absent, but also because you were supposed to get discharged earlier today.

You promised to call him and get him to pick you up the day you were leaving. It was the deal you were forced to agree to by your loving boyfriend before you left. Though he was yet to receive the said phone call.

"Maybe they kept him back, Jimin," Jin said, his breath kind of uneven, considering their concerts aren't just them standing for a few hours. But Jin was hoping smiling at his friend would give the other some sort of comfort, "C'mon, if a man that good looking were to enter an establishment, I'd keep him back for a little longer just to stare at him too."

Jimin smiled a little. It was nice how Jin was able to raise people's spirits.

But a small sigh left his lips a minute after, he just wasn't in the mood to be all comedic and cute. He watched his friends enter the shared make-up rooms but he looked up at Jin before he could enter, "I need a second alone. Is that fine?"

"Of course," Jin said, smiling, "I'll tell the managers you're going to the bathroom, but there's an empty dressing room in room 1-13B. I'll cover for you."

Man, if it wasn't great to have people who care.

It took him a while, considering there were employees entering and exiting the room, but they were just doing their jobs, so Jimin didn't really mind.

1-13B, he found the white painted door, though, wierdly, the door was open in the slightest. It confused the blonde, though maybe the person who was in there last forgot to close the door.

Though, his nose picked up on a familiar smell as soon as his hand reached for the door's knob, it was protective, yet ocean-like; almost calming in a way. Jimin knew what the smell was. "No... No fucking way."

He didn't hesitate to throw the door open. Worst case scenario, it was someone who had the same fragrance as you.

"Jagi!" Jimin jumped at you as soon as he saw your eyes, you sat on one of the uncomfortable make-up chairs waiting for him like a gentleman, only to be tackled by the man you call your boyfriend.

"Baby," you sighed in relief, all the saddeness of not having Jimin in your arms were gone. "Fuck. Jimin, I missed you so much."

Jimin wanted to weep out of joy. This was the first hug in two years that the two of you shared. The first time in two years you were so close to Jimin. The first time in two years that you were in each other's embrace? He wanted to feel this moment; he moved himself onto your lap, his arms around your neck, your arms wrapped securely around his waist, but both your faced buried in each other's shoulders just to stop yourself from crying.

Two years was too long.

There had to be tears.

Jimin pulled back, not enough for him to be released from your grip, but just enough for him to take a hold of both your cheeks in his hands, "Baby?" Jimin said softly, the break in his voice almost noticeable, "Baby, please look at me."

Crying was out of the option now, but you did it all the while complying to Jimin's request. The blonde man's heart swelled seeing the love of his life in tears, no matter if they were out of contentment or gloom.

"Jimin. Fucking kiss me already," You almost demanded. It wasn't aggressive, considering the tears staining your face and small droplets falling onto your white shirt to make it transparent, it almost made it thankful to hear.

Your boyfriend complied with a grin, his lips locking with yours roughly.

You could taste the flavour of his raspberry lipgloss on your tongue, the both of you moving around to remember every inch of each other's bodies. Jimin trailed his fingers across and up your chest and arms, feeling the bare and clothed skin before heading up to grip on your perfect strands of hair. Hearing the low grunt that left your mouth when he bit on your bottom lip was everything he'd wanted, a egoistic smile on his lips when he noticed that your hands too had a mind of their own, following whatever pattern they wanged across Jimin's back, thighs and ass, not only to keep him on your lap for as long as you please, but it was the only way that could keep his as humanly close as possible.

Jimin pulled away to breathe. Both your breaths rigid and uneven from the clashing of tongue and teeth.

He looked at you with glossy yet loving eyes, softly giggling at the shiny and magenta-tinted lipgloss stain pained on the corner of your mouth.

You chuckled gently too, the rippling action from your lover doing causing the affect, "What's funny?" You asked, still out of breath.

Jimin smiled, bringing his thumb to the space in which the gloss had spread, caressing the perfect skin, "I'm waiting to wake up from this dream," Jimin admitted, his voice low and delicate, "I missed you so much more than I thought..."

Your gazed into Jimin's eyes, the small confession making you smile, "Thank you."

Jimin chuckled, "For what?"

"For waiting. You didn't... You didn't deserve to wait so long, and it probably hurt you more than me..."

Jimin swallow hard, bringing his hand that was buried in your hair to your cheek, caressing it softly, "No, no, baby. Shut up."

And he made you, colliding his lips back onto yours.

You didn't stop yourself from squeezing Jimin's ass, feeling him accidentally buck into you but also the sound of a gasp leaving his lips was a pure symphony to your ears.

One of your hands reached up to his soft hair, running your fingers through the blonde strands to first learn the pattern before taking a handful to pull on.

Your lover gasped again at the action, his neck both forcefully and willingly on display for you. It made a smirk appear in your lips, before bringing them down to sink bites and kisses along the skin.

Sure, Jimin had touched himself while you were gone, you can't expect a man with a stressful career and a want for sex to not masturbate while his lover is away. Yet, he hadn't been touched, being that you were the only person who he'd allow.

Jimin let you leave wet kisses along his neck, his breath hitching softly with every other touch you left.

You let go of Jimin's hair, instead placing a hand on his back as you lifted him up from off your lap and placed him roughly on the table, make up products falling off the surface and onto the floor. Not that it bothered you, you had better things to take care of.

Jimin gripped your shirt, grabbing a fistful of the fabric to clash your lips onto his for the third time, doing his very best to rob that feeling of love and lust he craved for too long.

He was panting harsh when he pulled away, looking at you through lidded eyes, "Please touch me," Jimin said, practically moaning at the feeling of your fingers tracing his thighs.

"Hm," you hummed, a smirk on your lips as you watch your boyfriend's breath become rigid, but you couldn't stop yourself from chuckling when you pressed your palm against his hardening bulge, "What was that, love?"

"Fuck, daddy–" Jimin breathed out, his hips bucking forward at the harsh contact, his nails digging into your biceps. "Please, please, Daddy. I want your cock. Please."

"When was the last time this ass was fucked, baby?" You asked, popping off the button of his skinny jeans.

"T-his morning," Jimin replied almost immediately, "I– ahh– I was so horny and I got the dildo and–"

"Such a dirty boy." You pulled off Jimin's pants, chuckling lightly at his confession, "Come a bit forward for me, love. I need to prep you for my cock, right?"

Jimin nodded obediently, doing as he was told but also wrapping his arms around your neck to bring you close to him.

It caused a smile to play onto your face, though you bought two fingers up to your mouth to coat them with your saliva, seen as you didn't want you hurt your boyfriend.

"Ready?" You asked.

Jimin nodded, and a loud gasp left his lips, followed by a moan and his hands comimg up to grip your stands of hair, "Aah! H-hmm!"

"Huh, you really did miss me, baby boy. You're is sucking in my finger so well," You laughed softly.

The fake compliment in your tone made Jimin even hornier, but his hips bucked so hard when you placed in another finger. His breathing becoming that bit heavier. Two fingers pumping in and out of his ass at a pace that made him so fustrated and so satisfied at the same time. It was like you knew that if you'd go any faster, he might actually cum. But you knew for sure, it had been so long since Jimin came from your cock or fingers.

"You know what?" You asked, very much being rhetoric, but Jimin's heavy eyes met your playful ones, "I think you can take three fingers, baby."

You didn't wait for him to respond properly, he got his words cut off by his own moan and his holes being stretched.

"Daddy! Oh god, please go faster, please! I need to cum." Jimin begged, bringing you close as you stood so close to him, your three fingers doing their job as you watched Jimin drool and moan.

He looked so sexy all submissive and fucked-out for you. You didn't know how you went on two years without the love of your life, but not having Jimin for that long was torture on his own.

"You want to cum, baby boy?" You knew he did, the precum spewing from his tip was enough for you to figure that out without his response.

"Yes, daddy!" He gasped, "Please, I want to cum so b-bad!"

He was almost crying, so desperate and dirty for a release.

You extracted your fingers. Slow, but quick enough so Jimin wouldn't accidently cum.

You watched your boyfriend moan out a sob, his eyes glossed with tears at your actions and his cheeks flushed from how hot and needy he was. "B-But–"

You gripped Jimin's chin, smiling softly, "Were you close, baby?"

He nodded without a second thought.

"Turn around," You said, "You're going to take my cock like a good boy."