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princesssmars · 2 days ago

Text

home sweet home

a vi x reader.

the war between the silco and the firelights has gotten tense, and all you want is a day off to rest. but when an old flame returns from the dead you find the energy to give her a welcome home present she won’t forget.

wc: 4.491

contains : fluff, adoptive brother ekko and firelight reader. mentions of vi's abuse in prison :c smut. dry humping and tribbing yippee.

a/n : idk something about being separated for years and celebrating the reunion with rough and/or desperate sex does it for me bro 💔 started this beforeeee everything and hopefully this gets posted the morning of act ones drop <3 update i love vi but i need to kick her ass yayyy enjoy.

for lack of a better word, your day was getting really fucking weird.

you woke up with a weird feeling in your stomach, an ache strong enough to rouse you from your sleep and out of your bed. you chalked it up to hunger, having skipped another meal last night to stay up looking over some of the injured firelight’s and new schematics for tools and weapons.

but once you got a good meal into your stomach, staring up at the giant tree you called your home, you realized the feeling wasn’t from neglecting your appetite. it was that feeing you got when something big was about to happen.

you felt it when the breakthroughs were made on some of the bigger inventions like the hoverboards, when the firelights found this impossible and beautiful grove and made it their home, on that day years ago where your life crumbled around you in the space of a few days.

so it was only up to fate if something bad or good would happen today. and you didn’t feel like waiting to find out.

quickly making your way up the tree, you rapidly do your special knock on ekko’s door, only to be met with silence. you try again and silence still. trying and slightly failing to keep yourself calm, you head back down and start asking others if they’ve seen him, the ache in your stomach growing at some of the awkward and shifty responses you get.

for six years you and ekko have been inseparable. both traumatized by the trials of growing up in the undercity, getting taken in by benzo, and then the sudden and bloody death of your friends, you had no one else to depend on except for each other. it was hard to put it lightly, navigating a rapidly changing undercity and taking care of your little adoptive brother while trying to deal with your own trauma. even as you met others and formed this group you now call family, you made a promise to each other to stick side by side no matter what.

and that included not running off and doing god knows what in the early morning while the other was sleeping.

you’re halfway through pulling on your coat and mask when you hear the sound of the main door opening and a small commotion, running as fast as you can to get down the tree again before a tall figure stops you.

he tries to be funny, throwing out a 'hey hey hey, slow down! your running like there’s a fire-ow!' before he holds a gloved hand to the side of his arm, cradling the spot where you punched him. you get a solid minute of berating and cussing him out before the look on his face tells you he's being serious, conflict clear in his brown eyes.

you have about a million questions running in your head as he leads you to one of the stock rooms, his breath inhaling multiple times to explain before he lets it out in frustration.

“just…promise you won’t freak out, ok?”

you nod before he pushes you inside and closes the door behind you.

you scoff, calling his name and knocking on the hard material for him to let you out. you weren’t in the mood today to entertain his hidden playful nature, most of the time you indulged him but you were too worried at the moment. you’re seconds away from cursing him out again when a soft voice calls out your name from the darkness behind you behind you.

no. it’s not possible. it’s deeper, more rugged then you remember, but you wouldn’t, couldn’t forget that voice. you heard it in your dreams for years, pushing you to keep going for yourself when you felt like giving up, reminding you she was always there by your side when you felt so alone.

you slowly turn your body, unconsciously trying to protect yourself from the possibility of this being a farce when two strong arms wrap around your waist and pull you into a sturdy torso. at the slightest glimpse of hit pink hair your eyes start to water and your chest is heaving with long building gasps, wrapping your arms around her shoulders and digging your face into her neck.

for years you’d daydream about this moment, what you’d say if you were reunited with the girl who was your best friend and likely the love of your life. you’d imagine the rushed out words and apologies, the shared wails as you assured the other you’d never leave their side again. but this silence just feels so right, makes so much sense for all the emotions you’ve been letting sit in your heart without any kind of resolution or closure.

she pulls away from you slightly and you hope she ignores the subtle whine that leaves your throat as she does. her large, and you mean really large, palms come up to cup your cheek as she stares at your face, blue eyes flitting across your features like she’s trying to commit every piece of you to memory. you don’t mind, you remember how she liked when you let her observe things so she could take in things as much as possible lest they be gone in a second. it just gives you an excuse to stare at her, too.

and gods above are you staring. obviously a large part of you is sentimental and sad as you see how much she’s changed over the years; the longer jagged shapes of her jaw, her nose. your heart pangs seeing the cuts in her brow and lip that you unconsciously bring a finger up to rub at. but it takes an embarrassing amount of strength not to pay attention just to her lips as you feel over the scar, how her bright eyes go wide and unblinking as she stands and lets you do whatever it is you’re doing.

you want to do anything to break the tension and you’re given the opportunity when your eyesight drifts slightly to the right and catches onto the tattoo on her upper cheek.

“did you…tattoo your name on your face?”

you’re still so close you can feel her laugh rather than hear it, her chest pressing into your when she huffs through her nose.

“wanted to make sure the guys in there knew who was kicking their asses without the need for introductions.”

“still punching first yelling insults later?”

“nothing anybody in there didn’t deserve.”

gods does your heart hurt for her. you knew it was likely other people like her were probably in stillwater, disposed of to cover someone’s ass or see as thrash just for where they were born. but you knew despite that she would have faced so much being thrown in there at such a young age that you not anyone else could understand, the way they must have treated her…

even after all these years it’s like she can ready your body language like a book, able to know your fingers stalling in their exploration means your mind is wandering, and given the previous subject matter she knows it can’t be good. her bandaged fingers gently wrap around yours and rub over your knuckles until your attention is back on her.

“hey, stay with me for now. we’ll have time to go over all that stuff later. right now just stay with me, alright?”

like you could ever say no to her.

you figure the best way to make progress until your much needed conversation is yo acquaint her with where your sure she’ll be staying until she gets back on her feet, however she chooses to do so. at first she seems uncomfortable with the idea of staying at the base, like she doesn’t want to intrude on the home you and others had built from the ground up.

“obviously i’ll help with anything you guys ask but are you sure everyone would be alright with me staying here? i kind of punched the shit out of that scar guy.”

“he’ll get over it just like everyone else. you’re a legend here, vi, you’re up on that mural for a reason.”

the whole time you show vi around you feel a warm mess in your chest. you forgot just how nice it was to spend time with her, thinking back on fond memories of the two of you sneaking away when the others were busy to spend time together on the safer and quieter parts of the undercity. your feelings aren’t helped with how close vi insists on being, hand never leaving your grasp as you tug her around and occasionally bumping her shoulder into yours when your mind wanders.

you’re recounting the story of how one of the hoverboards went haywire and crashed into one of the bases walls when a low rumble from the side of you cuts you off, footsteps halting you in place. when you turn to vi she has that same cute embarrassed look she used to have when you were younger, eyes wide and body still like if she didn’t move you wouldn’t acknowledge what just happened.

she knows better than to argue with you as you drag her pliant body somewhere, most likely to get her something to eat after only having some scarfed down jerichos a few hours ago. you bc lead her to some small communal dining area before not so gently guiding her to sit, eyes on her form for a few seconds to make sure she won’t be stubborn and refuse to let you grab some food for her.

and why would she even think of resisting when she can sit here and finally get a few minutes to just relax. ever since cait somehow managed to get her out of prison her body had been on, sheer stubbornness and willpower keeping her going until she found what she was looking for. a part of her knew she wouldn’t stop searching, wouldn’t stop hoping to see you and her sister again.

but as she watches you across the room pick and prod over a meal a vastayan is helping to out on your plate her shoulders unclench and the muscles in her legs ease. nothing felt better than when you’d dote over her. she remembers one time she caught a flu and had to stay inside and distant from everyone, ready to be miserable in solitude until you burst in with vander hot on your heels and insisted you wouldn’t leave her side until she was better, that she’d do the same for you.

which she did have to wind up doing as you caught the sickness from her after only three days. she never once complained.

when you finish her plate you look back to her with a sweet smile and start to walk back over to her. she writhes in her seat a bit under your gaze, suddenly feeling a little too warm when you sit the plate in from of her and tell her to eat up. she tries her best not to scarf this down as well, but when you give her a look that says you know how hungry she she is and won’t mind she can’t help herself.

she spends the rest of the day by your side, never leaving your sight as you introduce her to some of your fellow firelights and some of the younger kids who’d heard stories about her and vander. you can tell it still prods at an unhealed wound to talk about him in past tense, but that she still looks back on those fond memories with happiness. you’re more than happy to join in and help narrate the tale of one of your more adventurous and dangerous trips through the old undercity.

eventually the sun starts to set and the lights of the tree turn from a dazzling green to a soft collection of oranges and yellow, a signal to everyone that it’s time to wind down and end the day. the two of you meet back of with ekko who tells you he had already shown cait to an extra room she could use for the next few days.

“cupcake didn’t put up too much of hassle today, did she? don’t think she’s ever spent this much time past the promenade.”

“she was alright. uptight but i can tell she means well. you can talk to her in the morning, her room is right across from yours.”

you’re paying too much attention to just being in the space of two of your favorite people again that you don’t even notice how vi has turned her head to look at you, silently asking you to ask her for what she hopes you both want. by the time you realize and turn back to ekko he has that dumb little grin on his face that he used to wear all the time he’d catch the two of you getting a little too close for comfort.

“don’t even start, ekko.”

“i didn’t say anything! i’ll catch up with you two tomorrow. try not to be so loud, some of us need a good nights sleep tonight-“

you quickly reach over and swat at the young boys arm as he laughs and hurries away from the two of you, voice carrying as he leaves to head off to sleep.

it’s surreal as you take vi’s hand into yours and start the brisk walk to your personal quarters. you don’t have any expectations about tonight but you can’t lie and say a deep part of yourself isn’t hoping to get more than close with her tonight.

once you reach your bedroom you start shuffling for some clothes for the both of you to wear while she prods and examines all of your things. you watch her for a moment, nearly giving yourself away with a laugh when she nearly breaks the dusty antique snow globe you’d found abandoned on a scrap run.

“it’s crazy, right? how they’ll just abandon things without even thinking about their worth.” you speak offhandedly as you settle yourself on to your bed and start to remove your boots and holsters.

“yeah, no offense but i just. really don’t wanna talk about abandoning things right now.” her tone is malicious enough to make you sit your movements, eyes softening at the broken and tired woman in front of you.

“i’m sorry, i just-“

“no, no, it’s okay. i understand,” you gently reach out your hand to hold hers, locked in that tight fist she does when she’s bottling up her anger. “can you talk to me about it? whatever you want to say, just say it.”

she rolls her shoulder before setting down the globe and sitting on the bed, her tensed back facing you. you gently pass the spare clothes you have for her and watch as she takes them and sets them on her lap.

“every night for the first year i was in there i’d have these nightmares. about what happened. first it was just, replaying what happened on this endless loop. then it was wondering what i could’ve done different, if i could’ve been smarter-“

“vi dont do that,” you crawled over to sit right behind her body placed your hands on her shoulders, gently rubbing them across and down to her forearms. trying to look her in the eye proves useless. “what happened was…tragic, and blaming yourself is pointless. you did what you could, i know you did.”

“how? how could you possibly know?” she finally turns her head to you and the look in her eyes does nothing to help the sick feeling you have building up in your throat and stomach. “i told you to stay with ekko, you weren’t there. how could you not be even a little angry at me, for not being here for powder, for ekko and the firelights, for you?”

you can hear the lump in her throat and see the tears building in her eyes when you bring your hands up to cup her face. a stray tear runs down her face and you brush it away with your thumb.

“i could never be angry at you, vi. not for this. the girl i know always kept fighting for her family, and if she didn’t come back to us it was because she couldn’t. she’d never abandon us, you wouldn’t abandon us.”

she gently nods her head and nuzzles her face into your hands. you give her a minute to calm down, continuing to softly brush her cheeks and her crazy hair out of her eye.

“what is going on with your hair?” you whisper as you struggle to push a strand away and out of her face, giving up once it falls back into place for the tenth time.

her eyebrows scrunch. "what, you dont like it? its cool."

"its covering half of your face, its horrible."

"you'll get used to it." she shakes her head with a small smile before softly resting her hand on your lower waist.

"maybe, but im definitely not going to brush over you tattooing your name on your face. please tell me you didnt make any other rash b ody adjustments in there."

the growing smile on her simultaneously puts butterflies in your stomach and makes you very nervous. its not helped when she turns her back to you again and starts to shrug off her jacket, revealing the previous glimpse of her neck tattoo you'd seen goes further down. way further down.

"wow. that's...wow." you want to bury your head into your hands and leave the room. 'wow just wow?' really smooth. "can i touch?"

"uhhh yeah, no problem."

after she gives her consent your fingertips lightly hover and brush over the interlapping lines of curves inked into her skin. you feel a small thrill seeing the goosebumps rise on her arms when your hands glide down them, taking pride in knowing you can still bring out a physical reaction in her with your touch.

"this is really nice, vi. did you get someone in there to do it for you?"

"nope, did 'em both myself. wasn't exactly the best environment to ask people to have access to your body with a needle for hours at a time."

you hum in response while continuing to observe the tattoo. you can see it goes further down her back and decide to speak without thinking too much about what you're saying.

"can i see the rest of it?"

you're a bit scared at how still she goes, wondering if maybe you crossed a boundary before her hands slowly reach behind her and start to lift the white fabric of her shirt until its full taken off of her body.

you make sure to continue the gentle touches as your hands run down the muscles and planes of her back, continuing to admire the clouds and gears that make up the design. you feel a little pang in your heart when you see the initials of mylo and claggor at the bottom of the tattoo, along with the number of welts and scars on her skin.

"its beautiful, vi." you whisper. her body subtly scooches back on the bed to get closer to your touch. the moment is just shy of overwhelming, which is probably why you leave a small kiss on her shoulder, right where one of the scars starts before trailing down her back a few inches. she lets out a muffled noise and you start to pull away before the strong grip of her palm clasps down on your leg, holding you in place.

you leave more kisses and pecks over the length of her tattoo as your legs start to wrap around her from behind, both of her hands grasping your thighs as she relaxes into the affection. you test the waters when you come back up to her neck, lightly sinking your teeth into her skin.

"oh fuck-" her strained voice hits your ears right before she abruptly pulls out of your arms and tugs you by the arm and leg until your reversed, sitting in her lap with her hands gripping at your hips.

you continue to drag yours up and down her arms, reveling in the fact that you can now see her facial expressions, how her eyes droop and lips part as you slightly scratch at her skin.

you adjust your hips to sit closer to her at the same time she lifts hers up, the friction causing small noises to escape both of your throats. her eyes open up and she stares up at you with those big light blues.

your hand travels up to her hair, running through it as you keep looking at her. "are you sure? i dont wanna push you,"

"you wont, i do. please, just wanna be close to you."

you give in, wrapping your arms around her neck and bringing her into a sweet kiss, reveling in the feel of her arms coming up to grip on your back. its slow and languid as you get used to each other before she adds her tongue to the mix, pulling a moan from your throat as you try to bury yourself even closer into her hold.

you move your focus onto her neck, trailing kisses and bites down and across her throat, as she rocks your bodies together and claws at your back.

"used to dream about this, about you, missed you so much," her voice has a slight rasp to it already that drives you nuts, instantly darting back up to bring her into a messy kiss. she adjusts her knee to rest in between your legs and lifts it up into your core, pulling away to look at you as you moan at the friction.

"jeez, what'd they teach you in there?" you let out a breathy chuckle while you grind down into her knee. your eyes drift close before her gentle kiss to her cheek drags your gaze back to her, unblinking as she watches you come undone for her. her stare along with the hazy smile on her face yanks you to the edge, gasping and moaning as you come in her arms.

you feel almost drunk as you come down from your orgasm, nuzzling into her neck while she presses gentle kisses to your shoulder and the side of your neck. she starts to place your body on the bed before you tug her back on top of you.

"what, aren't you tired?"

"maybe, but not tired enough to stop now. take off your pants."

she grins like she'd just been offered free sweets from a piltovian candy shop for the rest of her life. you try not to giggle as she stumbles off the bed and tugs her pants off before settling her body back on top of yours. she resumes her barrage of kisses and bites into your skin, finally paying some attention to your chest while you bring your hands up to thumb at her nipples, biting your lip at how sensitive she is to the touch.

she wastes no time spreading your legs beneath you and getting your silent agreement before moving her lips to rest over yours, taking a second to drag her fingers through your cunt and stuffing them inside her mouth.

"vi!"

"sorry, was just curious." she leans down to kiss you sweetly before resting her self on you, legs draped over the curves of her arms as she oh so slowly starts to drag herself back and forth over you.

you slightly wish you had done this first as the overstimulation makes it oh so intense for you, the feeling of her hair and clit rubbing over yours nearly sending you into a frenzy. your eyes roll back into your head once she starts to speed up her movements, her soft whines and grunts into your neck only adding to the physical stimulation you're feeling.

your core feels like its on fire when you start to hear the subtle whispers she's letting out into your neck, curses of 'fuck, fuck oh-fuck,' and grunts of your name mix together to create a desperate harmony.

"vi, feels too- oh my god i-"

"i know, baby, i know," she moans, pressing a harsh bite into the underside of your neck. you can feel her smile into it when you involuntarily let out a squeal at the action. "never gonna leave you, pretty. could never leave you, leave this."

you never fancied yourself the possessive type, but the reaction you have to her words definitely proves there's something there as you wrap your hands around her shoulder and squish her down into you again, moaning just a little too loud at the lack of closeness and feeling of her chest rubbing against yours.

you can feel your next orgasm building quick and fast, thighs trembling as you desperately grind your hips into her even harder. you can tell she's close too, hips losing their rhythm as her panting gets even louder. you nudge your face to the side and rub your cheek against hers, thankful she gets the hint to smother both of your noises with an intense kiss.

"fuck, vi, missed you s'much, love this, love you-"

you're grateful that you have some semblance of brain activity left to drag her head down to your neck to bit down as she cums, her groan loud and long as she keeps moving her hips until you cum only a few seconds after she does. you can feel a tear or two escape your eyes, overstimulation so intense you think you see janna for a moment.

both of your chests are rapidly panting as you catch your breaths, dragging your hand through her sweaty hair while she presses gentle kisses over the marks she no doubt left over your chest. now you'll have to wear more layers for a while, but at the moment you cant find it in you to care.

"you have no idea how glad i am that i still have you," you almost dont pick up on the silent whisper she says, muffled by the current kisses. you lazily drag your fingers to lift her up by the chin until she's looking at you, eyes filled with nothing but love and affection.

"you're always gonna have me vi, i promise."

you can tell she has her doubts, you do as well. but she lets herself relax into your hand yet again and wears the tiniest smile while she starts to fall asleep in your embrace.

you gently pull the covers over both of your bodies and follow her into the lull of sleep, falling asleep in vi's arms again for the first time in years.

you have the nicest dreams you've had in years.

#still want her #throw me in the show id save her </3 #arcane #arcane x reader #vi #vi arcane #vi x reader #vi x reader fluff #vi x reader smut

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majinbangus · 2 days ago

Note

will johnny ever punish simon(and how) for playing too rough with you and accidentally hurt you (yk some dog just like that) or doesnt listen to reader or makes reader upset????

follow up question if simon and reader do something and it upset him how will he handle it???

im in LOVE LOVE LOVEEEEEE with ur guard dog simon and owner johnny reader

i hope you have a good day and win the lottery ❤️

》 18+ i'm glad you're liking my guard dog!ghost series! sorry my answer got a little long but a short way of explaining Ghost's dynamic with reader when it comes to punishments is that he's technically submitting, but he's also not really submissive ygm? he'll go through his punishments, but energy is very much this post. that's what im tryna go for at least -> more here

Accidentally hurting you, Soap can forgive. Ghost is always extremely careful not to seriously hurt you. Yes, he'll be rough and leave you sore or with bruises sometimes, but he still behaves much like the scrupulous guard dog he is, listening to your every command and taking care to protect you from real harm.

As Soap likes too remind you, Ghost is very well trained already, and it's up to you to show him that you can take care of him just as Ghost takes care of you. In fact, Soap is a little harder on you if he catches you slacking, reminding you that a dog like Ghost deserves a responsible owner willing to take care of such a diligent dog.

However, in the rare event that Ghost doesn't do his duty as your guard dog and leaves your side, Soap will get upset, but he would actually leave the punishment up to you (since you're technically Ghost's primary owner. Soap is there to teach you how to be a good owner) and act as the enforcer for whatever punishment you see fit.

So if you wanna make Ghost sleep in a dog crate for a week, Soap will buy the crate and Ghost isn't allowed on the bed. If you want to keep Ghost on a leash until you regain trust in him, Soap is gonna do some leash training with Ghost.

For more sexual punishments, Ghost will be kept in a cock cage for a while so the most he can do is mindlessly rut against you, and Soap will be the one to hold the key to his cage. He'll only unlock Ghost if you say so, but he'll also encourage you to keep Ghost locked because he's a shit he wants you to be a firm dog owner and not give in to Ghost's dog brown eyes that you've developed a soft spot for. When that happens, Ghost might bare his teeth at Soap because he knows what he's doing, but won't do much more because he knows Soap would suggest a cock gag next, that fucker-

(also if you wanna spank Ghost, Soap is will enforce that too)

But these punishments are rare and far in between. Ghost is very disciplined, so they don't happen often, but when they do, Ghost will go through them like a good boy, knowing that he messed up. He'll regain your trust and be an even better dog for you.

Now if you and Simon do something that upset Soap, (like for example, exploring a dangerous alley willingly, even though Ghost told you not to go in, but went with you anyway because you told him the 'quiet' and 'heel' command) you'll get the brunt of the punishment since 'dog behavior is a reflection of your guidance, sweets.'

Ghost won't get a harsh punishment, but he'll have to stay leashed to his crate, watching Soap give you your punishment which could range from all sorts of things, but mostly, it'll be Soap treating you like a dog- a puppy- to show you how to be a good owner.

He'll make you wear a tail plug and have you crawl on all fours. Tell you commands like 'sit pretty' or 'bow' or 'come'. You're not allowed to talk, only bark, and If you can't follow his commands, the longer the punishment will go and the more intense it'll become. Hell, if he's feeling generous, he'll unleash Ghost and make him show you how to be a good dog, letting Ghost correct your behavior. They may even tag team you, and you'll be aching for days, but the lesson will definitely stick.

#bangus answers #anon #soap x reader #john soap mactavish x reader #simon ghost riley x reader #141 sweet treat <3

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celestailio · 24 hours ago

Text

you are the apple of my eye ( gojo x fem!reader )

outline: gojo satoru is the star of your year while you are the exact opposite, and that is why you want absolutely nothing to do with him.

contains: gojo x fem!reader, fluff, comfort, a bit of angst, reader and gojo are in the same year, lots of pinning from gojo's side, somewhat oblivious reader. some bullying. mishaps and lots of cuteness at the end :D reader is somewhat neurodivergent and lonely :< canon divergence ( my world, my rules )

wc: 8.9k

a/n: my very first fic of gojo. i hope i did him justice. this is kinda self-indulgent... but that's okay.. :> aahhh i miss him so much... i just want to eat and cuddle with him... ahhhh ahem. i wrote this for my one and only, my bestie!!! i hope you like it, my baby <3333 anyway, feedback is always appreciated on my writings! enjoy my fellow gojo connoisseurs!!!!

it is the beginning of november, which marks the onset of an unforgiving winter. the rain pours hard, washing everything it comes in contact with. the stony pavement leading to the jujutsu high is gradually beginning to flood, the water drenching your shoes.

you find your way through the busy road bustling with chattering students and teachers. stepping on wet dead leaves with a clear umbrella clutched in your hands, which is doing a poor job in shielding you from the heavy downpour.

why did they have to make the dormitories so far away from the main buildings?

you enter the front corridor and make a straight beeline for your locker, hurrying to change your shoes before the wetness makes contact with your socks. it was relatively easy to navigate today. usually, you would have to manoeuvre through lines of stationery people blocking the way.

climbing up the stairs to the second floor, you make a turn before coming to a stand still.

not again…

it was becoming a daily occurrence as of now. the horde of girls waiting near your classroom door for a certain someone. you could make out most of them to be from your year and a few junior ones probably a year younger than you and certainly not your best friend, yumeko because you know she’s still dozing off in her bed and will probably come to class a bit later like she often does. and it sucks that she lives in a different building than you. you’d have to request yaga to change rooms before next term.

you position yourself behind them concealed from any prying eyes. it’s not like you had to wait for them to leave. you could always go and ask them to move aside and make way for you, but every time you tried to strike a conversation with them, they all looked towards one another before dismissing you. so you’d rather wait patiently for yaga to disperse them like always.

as if on cue, a certain trio pops up behind a corner, their silhouette becoming clearer as they make their way towards the classroom. the short brown haired girl and the tall black haired boy walk in front while the white-haired boy trails behind. hands tucked in his pants’ pockets, his backpack dangling off his right shoulder. his white tufts bounce with each step. as soon as the girls see them, the loud squealing and giggling start.

‘’hey gojo!’’

‘’how was the mission boys?’’

it’s too early for this.

you don’t miss the frown that crawls up on the brown haired girl’s face. shoko. she has helped you on numerous occasions with your homework and projects. you think she is a nice girl. you often run into her smoking her lungs out behind the school’s building or in a desolate hallway late at night. you are surprised she still has her voice after going through countless packs in a short span.

‘’yo.’’

shoko calls out to you and proceeds to stand beside you, arms crossed. you give her a stiff nod before both of your attention is diverted. a girl emerges from the crowd.

you think she is someone a year below you. she trudges towards the front of the boy and stands in front of the white-haired boy, satoru. you catch a glimpse of a letter tucked in her hands behind her back. satoru raises an eyebrow as the girl begins to speak. everyone falls silent as they listen carefully.

it’s kinda hard to make out what she’s saying from where you are standing, but you know it’s the typical confession the boy receives every week. yumeko once told you about how, at the start of your second year, one of them received a whopping ten love letters in their locker. you don’t know if you should find it endearing or concerning.

shoko chuckles besides you clearly amused at the scene unfolding in front of her. you might as well enjoy this to the fullest. not every day, you get to see something like this.

the girl finishes her speech, head bowed and hands extending, showcasing the letter to satoru. everyone holds their breath as they wait eagerly for his response. dozens of eyes fixated on the white head. satoru stares at the letter blankly before a chuckle leaves him. the girl whips her head up at the mellow sound before she is stopped as his large hand comes up to rest on her head, giving it a small pat.

‘’sorry mimi! you are like a younger sister to me. i am sure there’s someone else for you.’’

everyone gasps, and continuous whispers start filling the once dead air. mimi visibly deflates, her hands dropping to her sides, causing the letter to fall on the floor. little tremors of embarrassment coursing through her body.

despite her attempts to suppress the little whimpers, she fails miserably as a loud sob breaks the tension. soon, she turns around and storms off. her friends call out her name before they go chasing after her. you kinda feel bad for the poor girl.

‘’don’t they know that he’s never going to accept?’’

shoko suddenly turns towards you, a smirk on her smooth face. eyes quirked up.

‘’why?’’ you question, as you look towards where the girl stood. the air is clearing out as everyone retreats to their respective classes.

‘’why don’t you?’’ she winks at you before silently slipping behind the classroom doors.

‘’wait-’’ you try to stop her, but she’s too damn fast. your hand hovers in the air for a moment before you gain composure. suppose you should go now, too. in the distance, you make out the silhouette of your best friend, yumeko.

nevermind.

her loud yells of your name, drawing unwanted attention as she dashes through the hallway. she is quick to join you and wraps an arm around your waist.

‘’finally!’’ she sighs loudly.

you sense satoru looking at the two of you, his blue eyes briefly meeting yours from behind those black sunglasses before he breaks eye contact. he bends down to pick up the trampled letter and shoves it in his jacket. suguru shouts his name, and satoru immediately goes straight into the classroom.

‘’can you please not shout my name in the hallways?’’ you hiss as she clings onto your body, her wet clothes an unpleasant feeling against your own.

‘’oh c’mon, it’s not that bad!’’ she exclaims with loud giggling as the both of you hurry to the classroom.

‘’but seriously yu, you need to get this under control unless you don’t care about jeopardizing your credit.’’ you poke her side and shrug her off.

both of you enter the class and are surprised to see yaga’s already waiting at the front. he nods at you both and signals you to go sit at your desks. satoru still has his eyes on you. you shrug and make your way through the lines of desks.

‘’oh who cares about that.’’ yumeko sighs before breaking into a big grin and sits on her desk in front of you. you only sigh at her mischief as yaga commences the lecture.

‘’today class, we will discuss a bit about your extracurriculars.’’ yaga starts off, his voice barely audible through the loud chatter of the class.

‘’this december break, you are to be assigned to locations all over japan with curse activities and will take on the mission as a duo.’’’

‘’rest assured you will be supervised by a senior jujutsu sorcerer. i will mail the formations and other details by tomorrow morning. make sure to check your post before classes. we will have personal lessons based on your chemistry with your partner.’’

the class is dead silent as yaga finishes his little monologue before everyone erupts in loud noises. some students are thrilled, ready to delve into new adventures while others slouch in their chairs, not happy with missing holidays.

‘’now that’s an interesting way to spice up your holidays, but doesn’t that mean no break for us this winter?’’ yumeko pouts.

“i am sure it’s going to be a quick one.’’

‘’but the sorcerers tend to get outclassed ninety percent of the time, no?’’ she giggles behind her hand.

‘’hey stop trying to frighten me, or i’ll have to chicken out before we actually go!’’ you join in with her giggles before both of you tune into the lecture.

after spending the rest of the day with yumeko cramped up in the library cramming for your theoretical exams, you stayed behind while yumeko had to go early. the hallways, along with the main entrance, are empty at this time, adding to the peaceful ambience.

you begin getting ready to return only to see the rain has yet to stop. yumeko had to borrow your umbrella, and you figured if you stayed behind a bit more, the storm might calm down, but clearly, it is not happening any time soon.

guess you’ll have to sit it out later into the night, too. might as well go to the cafeteria at this point.

‘’hey got an umbrella?’’

soft footsteps echo behind you before a warm and mellow voice calls out to you. you turn around, and once again, those familiar blue hues surround you.

satoru stands idly in front of you, leaning on a locker, eyes fixated straight on yours. the eye contact is fierce, causing you to break it off right away, shuddering at the intensity of his gaze.

you shake your head, not saying anything, trying to limit the interaction with him. really you don’t have anything against him, it’s just, you’d rather stay away from him from all the attention, and you definitely don’t want his fangirls ganging up on you for trying to snatch their crush away.

‘’oh don’t you have one?’’ he speaks easily and lifts off the locker, coming towards you.

‘’here you can take mine.’’ he’s so, so close to you now. the sweet smell of his cologne and the warmth radiating off of him is making your senses fuzzy. you again shake your head before coming up with an excuse.

‘’there’s no need. uh, my friend will be here shortly. thanks for offering, though.’’

you cringe internally at the hoarseness of your voice. since when did you sound like that, and was that a stutter? oh, god. you have done embarrassing yourself in front of him.

satoru chuckles watching you go through a mental debate. the distress is visible on your face, and he reaches up a hand to your shoulders and gives it a squeeze, trying to ease the mood.

‘’hey listen i don’t mind, and it’s not like i need one.’’ his voice now much more soft. he extends the umbrella towards you, waiting patiently.

you do your best not to pay attention to the weight of his unusually large hand on your shoulder as you stare intently at the clear umbrella. he again gives you a slight squeeze before you break out in a sigh.

you nod at him, and satoru cheers, a big grin danves on his face before passing the umbrella to you. your fingers graze briefly. a shudder courses through your body.

he’s surprisingly warm.

you are sure he must have felt the cold from your fingers. you thank him and open the umbrella. satoru is still standing beside you.

‘’you are welcome!’’ he chirps.

his jacket brushes against you and steps outside in the heavy rain. you are shocked to see him perfectly dry despite the heavy droplets of water. you focus on how the water seemed to disappear just before it reaches him and falls to the ground, barely making any contact with his body.

‘’you get it now?’’ satoru quips with a subtle smirk and sends you a quick wink before parting ways. you feel your cheeks heating up at his little act.

what the..

it's the next day, and just like yaga said, you wake up to find the letter in your mailbox containing the details about your very first joint mission. today you are with yumeko in her dorm. she is jumping from side to side, her own letter clutched in her hands while you sit on her bed. you can’t help but smile at the contagious excitement summering in the room.

‘’and? what are we waiting for? let’s open it!’’ yumeko springs on the bed, jolting you in the process.

‘’who knows they coincidentally partnered you and me?’’

‘’that’s impossible but sure.’’ you can only shake your head as she keeps on muttering something under her breath.

‘’whatever, yours first!’’ both of sit up straight, a strange feeling coursing through your bodies. why were you feeling nervous all of a sudden.

the once free and joyous air was now full of stillness. your heart races with excitement and uncertainty before you finally look at the inscribed name. yumeko breaks out into a loud gasp, trying to process the information, her hands in the air making random figures as she starts blabbering.

you had certainly not expected him to be your partner. you kept rubbing your eyes. maybe your eyes were deceiving you, but no matter how many times you rubbed them, the name did not change.

‘’what?! no way you got him as your partner!’’

‘’why are you mad at me? it’s not like i wanted him as my partner!’’ you huff and fall back into the sheets, arms coming up to rest on your head. the weight of the mission presses down on you as you think about how you were going to work with him. mind racing with possibilities and concerns.

‘’everything will be credited to him, and my plans of landing an early internship? blown to pieces!’’

your frustration is palpable. no way you were securing that internship now.

‘’i mean that’s true, but it’s going to be easy now! i don’t even have any idea who my partner is.’’ yumeko crawls beside you and exhales deeply.

‘’but don’t worry it will work out.’’ sigh you can only hope for now.

it’s a few days later after you received your letter. a dim afternoon, you are waiting outside yaga’s office. you’ve been meaning to talk to him about changing partners for the upcoming missions, and you explain to him trying your best to look sincere.

but no matter how many times you try to appeal to him, he just wouldn’t falter. he keeps on talking. that the jujutsu headquarters are the ones who designed the pairings, and there was nothing he could do about it. but isn't he a teacher? surely there was something he didn't think of.

you return from his office defeated. you never considered yourself to be lucky, but it really seemed like fate had stopped favouring you. there’s no way in hell you would go with the gojo satoru on a mission, but there was nothing you could do now.

every day becomes a hassle as you try to avoid satoru, but it’s impossible with the two of you being in the same class. he shows up strutting over to where you sit in the back of the class. the same black sunglasses hiding his eyes. he whistles a low melody as he comes to stand near your desk.

yumeko, who was in a conversation with you, looks at him and then you, eyes flickering back and forth between you and satoru.

‘’you know i thought it was appropriate to reach out to your partner to talk about your missions, but i guess not.’’

you continue to stare at the book open in front of you without sparing him a glance, a stick of pocky in your hand. he chuckles, amused at the lack of the reaction from you before waving a hand in front of your face, trying to get you to look at him.

‘’hey missy!’’ you keep on staring at the jumbled words on the book. if you keep this act up, maybe he will leave you in peace.

‘’you know i am hurt when yaga told me that you wanted to switch partners.’’ satoru give you a pout, pink glossy lips jutting out cutely. you bite down onto the last bits of your pocky as you resist the urge to laugh at his ridiculous actions.

‘’and here i thought perhaps you will like me more after i gave you my umbrella.’’ he sighs and dramatically placed a hand against his forehead.

satoru continues his monologue of random ramblings. he leans against your chair, a familiar scent to infiltrates your nostrils. clearly, this boy has no sense of personal bubble. yumeko begins to stand up from her desk, wanting nothing to do with his idiotic acting.

‘’no wait please, don’t leave me alone with him.’’ you jolt up at the sound of her chair screeching as you beg her to end your misery. yumeko puts both of her hands up in a surrender and dashes through the class and out the door.

thanks for that, yumeko.

you stand there awkwardly, now fully aware of the piercing gaze.

‘’oh so now you acknowledge me.’’

you feel yourself trembling as his full attention is on you.

‘’can we please not do this here?’’

you hope he hears the pleading in your voice. yikes, everyone in the class is staring at the two of you now.

there is something flimsy about you right now that satoru can’t put a finger around. why were you getting so worked up? he was just making friendly conversation. you hastily began to put your stuff back in your backpack, eager to leave the classroom as soon as possible. all the while, satoru simply looks at you.

‘’excuse me.’’

‘’am i that bad? that you can’t bear having me near you?’’

he suddenly speaks up, breaking the silence. both of you stand still as he waits for your response. your heart is now palpitating behind your rib cage, and it’s becoming difficult to breathe properly. your palms are sweaty as tension begins taking over you.

‘’it’s not about you.’’ you try to speak clearly, but your voice is merely above a whisper.

‘’then what is it?’’

‘’it’s about me.’’

you push past him, your arm briefly touching his. satoru watches you leave with his mouth agape before you disappear behind the classroom door away from his gaze.

ever since that encounter, satoru has been awfully calm around you. the training sessions before the actual mission have been taking place after school. he did show up to a few in the beginning, lazing around not even bothering to practice with you.

the whole session, he munched on his stash of sweets he seemed to carry everywhere all the while rambling about a cartoon named digimon, which you have no idea about. you also joined in talking about your favourite sweets and chocolates. this was all you did before he left mid-session.

‘’and this is my absolute favourite card at the moment, i hope it makes it to the top ten rankings. wait, i should take you to the tournament sometime. yeah i should.’’

as always, he was murmuring things to himself, and you’re glad he was not focusing on how bright the redness on your face was starting to get.

apart from the short chit-chats, the last of the sessions are spent alone watching the other students practice jujutsu while you sit in a corner behind a tree or a rock. yaga would look at you with pity and tell you not to worry about it. but how could you not? wasn’t he the one preaching about how rude it was not to talk with your partner, but it’s not when he is not even attending the sessions properly?

and it seemed like he had no interest in the training anymore as he didn’t even bother with showing up to some near the end. these remaning training sessions were a mess, and you are glad this was over now.

the last week of november, the jujutsu high was busy with the theoretical exams. you have seen satoru in the exam hall a few times. he appeared the same as he usually is, surrounded by his fangirls or trailing behind his friends.

he never approached you or even glanced at you. it’s been radio silence ever since the practice. you can’t help but feel a bit of hurt at his sudden disinterest.

you get it that he is one of the strongest duo. heck he doesn’t even need all this training, but he could at least come out of courtesy. you are not anywhere near his level, and you could’ve appreciated his help.

if he's like this during the practices, you can only wonder how the mission was going to be with him.

it's after the last of your exams, you are relaxing in your room when yumeko comes and drops off your umbrella. she insisted that you return satoru’s too. you tried to convince yumeko to drop it off at his dorm since she lives in the same building as him, but she was having nothing of that.

so you find yourself standing in front of his door. his nameplate hanging on the wooden door with a bunch of smiley faces stickers here and there. it was kinda cute. just a little.

should you just leave it at the front? no way in hell were you going to knock?

‘’oh it’s you.’’

you whip around startled at a sudden presence behind you. oh, it was suguru with plastic bags full of groceries in his hands.

‘’you wanted to meet with satoru?’’

he comes around you while you step aside to allow him to unlock the room.

‘’unfortunately he’s not here right now. come.’’ he gestures to the unlocked room and steps inside.

‘’oh no there’s no need for that. i was just, uhh, here to return his umbrella.’’

your lips press together as you point to the clear umbrella clutched in your hands. you extend it towards him. suguru nods and takes it from you. he reaches into one of the bags and pulls out a box of pocky.

‘’here for you.’’ he says, a small smile gracing his face.

‘’satoru told me you enjoyed stuff like this.’’ your eyes widen at his statement.

what? satoru has been talking about you? and to his friends? heat glows on your face, and you drop your head trying not to scream in front of suguru. your eyes trained on the chocolate box before politely accepting it.

‘’thanks.’’ you try to muster a smile at his kind gesture. not really sure if it looked nice at all.

‘’it’s no problem at all.’’ he waves at you, shooting you a friendly smile one last time before you return to your own dorm.

one moment he’s pretending that you don’t exist, and the other, you find that he is gossiping about you to his friends. you don’t know what to make of it, but you don’t like the fact that someone might be talking behind your back.

you don’t know when the time passes and the mission day rolls around. everyone is waiting around the main entrance of jujutsu high. meanwhile, you are alone once again watching everyone else get ready with their duo. this is extremely embarrassing. you’ve been informed that satoru will be joining you at the designated place. great, just great.

the ride to aomori is arid. the majority of your time has been spent sleeping or gazing out the window of your vehicle, admiring the rolling hills. you just don’t get it. why is it so difficult sometimes?

you remember satoru asking you the question. whether you found him annoying or difficult to be with. but at present, you can’t help but think maybe he is the one who didn’t want to associate with a loner. maybe that’s why nowadays he is avoiding you like the plague everywhere he goes.

you both can’t even be considered friends, so why is his disinterest affecting you so much? or was it that perhaps you were beginning to think you finally made another friend. but guess not. soon you find yourself standing in a random lobby of a hotel. it’s nearing the end of the day. your supervisor is someone with the name of tanaba sora, a first grade jujutsu sorcerer. he helps you with checking in at the reception. now that the formalities have been completed, you’d suppose a tour wouldn’t hurt.

even though it’s midnight, the hotel is still lively buzzing with tourists and vacationers. dozens of guests are checking in, and the banquet hall is full of people socializing with jazz playing in the background. the bar is still open, and you spot a couple of high schoolers who probably sneak in enjoying themselves from outside. you’d wonder where yumeko was. maybe she was taking a tour of her own hotel just like you, or maybe she had already hit the bed.

the tour was supposed to feel nice, but all it had done was remind you again and again of your lack of company. where the heck was satoru? they told you he would be here, but it’s been several hours since you’ve arrived, and he hasn’t shown up yet.

was this a joke to him or what?

it seemed like he’s still an egotistical prick, just like you've told. you were too blinded by his bubbly appearance on that rainy day to see that.

it’s the day of the mission. last night, you barely got any sleep. the touring around late into the night was certainly a terrible idea considering you were to get up early today to meet with tanaba-san. the buffet at the hotel was already closed when you arrived in the dining hall. great. not even refreshments were available. guess you’d just pick up a sandwich from the vending machine. the hotel has tons of machines ones near the side entrance, you suppose a carton of chocolate milk along with the sandwich would be good.

the air outside is crisp and windy. the surroundings are blanketed with a thick layer of snow. it must have snowed last night. the instant you enter through the side entrance, your eyes immediately zero in on the familiar white head. great, just who you wanted to see at this moment. he’s dressed the total opposite to you. you had put on your thickest coat while he’s in a sleek black leather jacket with some washed-out grey jeans.

is he not cold with such little layering?

before you could make an attempt to run away, satoru’s already caught sight of you and was making his way to you. there was no escape for you now.

‘’yo! i see you have already arrived.’’

satoru has his head tilted down in an attempt to meet your eyes, but you are unwilling to look at him as you divert your attention to his white converses. he complains about the lack of high-quality strawberry milk at this place, but you just don’t care about that or the different brands of strawberry milk he is carrying in his hands.

‘’why didn’t you come with us yesterday?’’

‘’huh?’’

you hold onto your white scarf a bit tighter as you say nothing and continue to shoot glares at his shoes.

‘’oh i really wanted to, but you know how it is last-minute clan meetings, the higher ups just wouldn’t let me go.’’ your eyes meet, and you take in the sight of how full his already angelic eyelashes look with the snow coating them.

‘’i know you must have been confused after the long journey.’’ he apologizes between long gulps from his carton of sweet milk and satisfied hums.

‘’what you say we hit the city before the mission?’’ he gives you a sweet smile, his lips sheen with the drizzle of sweet pink liquid. however, his sweet presence does nothing to ease the discomfort in your chest.

‘’at least give me a legitimate excuse.’’

‘’what? no it’s not-’’

‘’just say it. that this whole thing is too troublesome for you, and you’d rather be spending some time with your side chicks than accompany me on a mission!’’

‘’no, no it’s not like that-’’

‘’no actually it’s my fault for confiding in a stranger so easily.’’

‘’no wait-’’

‘’goodbye.’’

what a nice way to start off your day. maybe you had lashed out on the poor boy, but he deserved it. tanaba-san comes knocking at your hotel room you’ve shut yourself in after the whole mess with satoru. he is there too when you step out into the hallway. he gives you a small smile which you don’t bother returning. you don’t see the way his shoulders droop, the way his smile becomes a little strained.

tanaba-san takes you through the main city of aomori. the streets are just waking up with vendors setting up their stalls and shops, and people waiting at the bus stop as many get ready to start their day. your designated location is the isolated ishigami shrine deep in the woods.

tanaba-san explains how some people in the vicinity have been disappearing on a regular basis. upon investigation, little traces of cursed energy had shown up in the reports pointing towards a curse spirit. the shrine at the moment was abandoned, and it was easy to see with the way the moss and tangled vines seemed to envelope every single inch of the site.

“why would anyone come to pray at an abandoned shrine? aren’t there better options in the city?” satoru asks all of a sudden while you’re in the middle of walking to the shrine.

“that’s what confuses us too. you’d think people would stop coming after the disappearances, but they haven’t.” tanaba-san replies while he looks at the reports he brought with him.

“it’s almost like they have been lured in.” you say and look at him.

“that might be it. and it matches with the amount of cursed energy residuals near the walkway to the shrine.” he shows you the report, and you ponder for a while.

“maybe the people aren’t coming on their own. the curse might be targeting the passersby.” tanaba-san praises you and gives you a gentle pat on your head while satoru huffs in the back.

now that the things are becoming clearer, tanaba-san leaves the two of you to find the curse. he assures you both that he will be on guard if anything goes out of control.

“i don’t think there will be any need for that.” you can’t help but roll your eyes at his lack of respect before ensuring tanaba-san that you will call him as soon as everything is taken care of.

“that was rude.” you point out after he has left.

from your peripheral, you noticed how satoru quirks up an eyebrow and huffs to himself like a disgruntled kid. whatever, you had no time to deal with his petty antics. you begin to make your way inside the main interior of the shrine only to find yourself interrupted as satoru abruptly stands in front of you.

“and where do you think you’re going?” he asks, eyes down cast and almost pouting.

“to search?”

“aww no, no.” laughing to himself, satoru coos loudly at you.

“you are staying right behind me. who knows what might be lurking in there.” he goes behind you and puts his hands on your shoulders, turning you around.

“in case you have forgotten, i am a jujutsu sorcerer too!” you cross your arms.

is he serious?

“but i’m the strongest here, not you.” he leans in again and grins at you. his familiar fragrant smell murking your thoughts.

“just because you are the most powerful doesn’t give you the right to order me around.” you point your finger at his chest, pushing him off from you.

“it’s not that you have any choice unless you want to die.” does he think you are some child? for god’s sake.

“i can handle myself just fine!”

can’t he just stop?

“i don’t think so.” his usual cheery stance has shifted to a serious one. he looks down at you, his stature tall and dominating with his eyes glowing a little.

“what grade are you? you’re barely a second. so how about leaving things to the professional?” he shakes his head and turns around.

“why don’t you just quit with this? time’s wasting, ya know?” he continues voice no longer holding that tangy tone. he grips tight onto your hand, dragging you behind him.

“i’ve had enough.” you snatch your hand away from his hold.

“hey! didn’t i just tell you-”

“don’t touch me and stay away from me. you scumbag.”

“yeah? i don’t think so.’’

you run away with all your might away from his demeaning gaze and spiteful words. wow, he didn’t have to say it like that. you are sure he is absolutely sick of you. tears are brimming in your eyes as you blink frantically, trying not to burst into tears. but no matter what you do, the conversation keeps on resurfacing in your mind.

you just wanted to show him that you were capable of dealing with this on your own. why was he so obnoxious? you gaze at the morning scene of the forest. the quiet view calming your senses. guess all you have to do is find that curse as fast as you can and leave this godforsaken place.

as you wander deep into the wilderness, you find yourself surrounded by tall evergreen trees that seem to close in on you. their branches like skeletal fingers reaching out. the air was beginning to get colder the further you went in. you can’t help but feel like something ominous was waiting in the area.

it was pitch quiet. eerie silence all around you. so still that you could hear the crackle of snow beneath your boots. a branch snaps in a distance before a crow cries out and glides away. quickly, you summoned your katana, the blade weighing heavy as you hold it in front of you, ready to strike anything that comes at you. something or rather someone is definitely in the vicinity.

moving closer to where the snap came from, you notice the intense stench of curse energy in the air. the spirit must’ve been here, or maybe it’s still skulking around. you take another careful step.

your eyes fall on to a knocked-down tree trunk and behind the scraped wood, you see it or rather her. sitting on top of a rock with shide ropes all around it. dozens of dead bodies, which you assumed were of the victims. all of them placed in a circle pattern around the centre.

she was dressed in a pale white kimono, her face was hidden from you, and only her red plump lips were visible to you. her skin was strangely too human like as a curse. no wait.

no, that wasn’t a cursed spirit…

it was a fallen deity.

everything was beginning to make sense. that shrine must have been dedicated to her. you couldn’t stop the gasp that left you, and the deity snaps up her head as she appears to be looking at you.

‘’...?’’

she speaks something in a language you are not able to understand. however calm she appears right now, you know better than to let your guard down. you slowly point your katana at her.

‘’what have you done to them?’’

once more, you are finding it difficult to comprehend any of what she is saying. from the looks of it, the bodies seemed to have been disintegrating, leaving behind the rotten flesh and a wretched smell. god, what has she done to them? their faces are almost unrecognizable through the bits and pieces of skin falling off, the muscle underneath as apparent as daylight.

the deity’s dreary tone changes, her voice now a chilling command. she utters some chants, and the surrounding bodies begin to stir, their decayed forms rising with jerky and unnatural movements. the horror begins to form as you realize she has cursed them with a disease, turning them into flesh-eating monsters under her control.

one by one, the undead lurch towards you, their eyes vacant, and their mouths twisted in silent screams. you know that even a single touch could doom you to the same fate. with a deep breath, you ready your katana, the blade gleaming in the dim sunlight.

the first creature lunges at you, but you sidestep and slice through its neck with precision. it tumbles to the ground, lifeless once more. another follows, and then another. each one is weak compared to you, but their sheer numbers are overwhelming.

you dodge and weave, your katana cutting through the air in swift and brutal strokes. the stench of decay fills your nostrils, but you push through, determined to stay alive. the numbers are lessening, she must have run out of corpses. just as you think you have the upper hand, the deity herself moves.

with grace, she descends upon you, her pale hands glowing with curse energy. you try to dodge her attack, but she is too fast. her move sends you sprawling to the ground, your katana slipping from your grasp. your blood is making a pool on the dirt, flowing in large globs from the open wounds. pain sears through your body, and you scream out, feeling the cold grip of death closing in.

as your vision begins to blur, you hear a familiar voice. satoru appears, his presence a beacon of light. with a swift motion, he pulls the remaining monsters into a void with the amplification of his curse technique, the blue light shining through the dense forest. his power surpassing the deity’s influence. he turns to you, kneeling beside you, his azure eyes glowing with fervour.

“hang on,” he says, his voice steady. “i’ve got this.”

he turns around to stare at the deity and stands up. he releases his energy output, and his cursed energy reaches to a maximum. with a final, powerful blast, satoru annihilates the deity, purple splotches splattering the ground as her form dissipates into nothingness. he rushes to your side once more before holding you in his arms.

“you’re going to be okay.” he assures you.

you manage a weak smile, grateful that he came looking for you even though you shouted pretty bad stuff at him.

“thanks.” you whisper, voice low.

“don’t mention it,” he replies, his usual cheerfulness returning. “just don’t run off like that again. yeah?’’

you nod as you get comfortable in his secure hold, feeling drowsy from all the fighting.

"and i am sorry too. i shouldn't have said those things."

you feel your eyes widen before you let out a giggle.

"mhm, it's okay."

satoru smiles at you and pinches your cheeks before lifting you properly.

what follows after is a hazy blur. you don’t know when you made it to the hotel room.

you are still recovering from your injuries by the time you made it back to jujutsu high. satoru decided to join you on the journey back. even though you spent the majority of the trip sleeping, you are glad you at least had some company this time.

everyone has arrived already, waiting in the courtyard for yaga to welcome the tired folks from the mission. yumeko waves at you from the crowd and immediately runs over to you, fussing over the way you are wrapped in white bandages from head to toe.

it was nice getting together with yumeko after so much time. you didn’t notice you were beginning to miss hearing the pompous gossip of the school. her trip was smooth without any hiccups. she told you it was barely a second grade curse. easy-peasy. nevertheless, you are glad she’s unscathed.

too engaged in chatting with yumeko you don’t notice when a group of girls approaches you, their eyes narrowing as they take in your bandaged state.

‘’hey girls!’’ yumeko calls out and welcomes them.

one of the girls, a tall one with long and black flowing hair, steps forward, her voice dripping with disdain.

“look at you, always needing to be saved. it’s kinda pathetic, no?” she tilts her head towards her friends, trying to get their approval.

a short girl chimes in, her lips glossed with shimmering crème, “do you think you can just hog gojo’s attention because you’re a weakling? it’s embarrassing.”

‘’we can all see what you’re trying to achieve.’’ the same black haired spits at you before all of them start howling and laughing at you.

you try to ignore them and pay attention to what yaga’s speaking about, but their words sting. yumeko steps in, her eyes bright with anger.

“leave her alone. it’s not her fault that the curse turned out to be a special grade.”

the tall girl sneers in distaste. “oh, defending your dear friend, are you? how about you tell your little one to stop making a move on gojo.”

‘’who are you to speak on his behalf, huh?!’’ yumeko responds back, snarling at the girl.

the students nearby glance over, whispering behind their hands.

you hold yumeko back as the girls continue to laugh and jeer. a lump forms in your throat, the pain from your injuries mixing with the hurt from their words.

“enough!” you yell, silencing them.

“you all think you’re special just because you fawn over him? well, you’re not!”

“so shut your mouth before i make you regret it!”

sweat drips down your face as you finish your outburst. everyone is staring at you. the realization of what you’ve done crashes over you causing you to shriek as you draw in heavy breaths.

yumeko calls out to you, but you shake your head. turning away, you sprint to your dorm, not wanting to give them the satisfaction of seeing you cry.

this was never going to change.

upon your sudden disappearance, not only your friend yumeko has become worried, but a certain someone is concerned too. satoru was delighted once he saw your name in his letter. he never really talked to you or approached you when you both joined the jujutsu high a year ago, but he’s been yearning to talk to you ever since. you were always so hasty to leave when the lectures were over, leaving him standing alone in the hallway.

to everyone else, you seemed like a chill and timid girl who preferred to stay cooped up in her dorm, but he knew there was more beneath your hard shell.

those sweet giggles of you from the class are still reverberating in his mind. satoru assumed the rest of you to be the same. he wouldn’t mind having another friend, and besides, he just seems to have a soft spot for sweet things, too.

on that fateful day, his prayers appeared to have been answered when he saw you standing near the lockers all by yourself, waiting for the storm to subside.

he was giddy when suguru told him you came to visit him. the entire day, he spent curled up in his bed looking at his umbrella. after the whole fiasco in aomori, he admits there were some ups and downs, some misunderstandings, but he thought you two were over them.

so why were you not responding to his messages and calls. your desk has always been vacant ever since you both came back. satoru even went to yaga at the end of a lecture one day. he didn’t really go into too many details. he just told him that you were sick.

but were you really? or were you faking it?

so he sets out on a mission, desperate to see you. he seeks out the one person he’s seen you with. luckily, his dorm is on the same floor as your best friend’s. yumeko is more than happy to help him since you wouldn’t meet her. maybe you’ll listen to him. she speaks in a hushed tone about the encounter with the girls, her voice trembling.

as yumeko recounts the cruel words and actions of the fangirls, satoru’s fists clench at his sides. his usually cheery appearance is replaced by a storm of emotions.

“they said what?” he growls, his eyes flashing with disgust.

“how dare they treat her like that?”

yumeko nods, her expression equally upset. “they think they can bully her just because she’s close to you. it’s not fair.”

satoru nearly whips his hair out in anger, his mind racing with thoughts of how to confront those girls.

“this is unacceptable. they have no right to make her feel this way.”

he nearly trips on his feet several times with the way he’s hurrying towards your dorm. his heart pounds in his chest, a mix of frustration and fear driving him forward. he can’t believe those girls, the ones who claim to admire him, could be so cruel. the thought of you suffering because of their jealousy makes his blood boil.

by the time he reaches your dorm, he is panting and drenched in sweat. he knocks urgently, his knuckles white from the force, and waits for you to open the door only to hear no response from the other side. his eyes glare at your nameplate before he knocks again.

‘’i can see feel your cursed energy.’’ silence.

‘’i know you’re in there,’’ he repeats, his voice softer this time. ‘’please just listen to me.’’

inside your room, you sit on your bed, hugging your knees to your chest. eyes dried up with leftover tears clinging to your eyelashes and your lips slightly chapped. you can hear the concern in his voice, but the sting of the girls’ words still lingers. you don’t want to face him, not like this.

“go away,” you finally manage to say, your voice barely above a whisper.

“i’m not leaving until you open this door,” he replies firmly. “we need to talk.”

you hesitate for a moment, the weight of his words pressing down on you. was he finally going to cut you off? is that why he was here? you stay seated in your bed, trembling before you hear him call out your name softly.

slowly, you get up and walk to the door. you stand in front of the wood. satoru encourages you behind the door to open it, and you do so. unlocking it but not opening it fully, that doesn’t stop him as he pushes it open gently, stepping inside and closing it behind him.

he looks at you, his eyes filled with worry and anger. “why have you been avoiding me?”

you turn away, not wanting to meet his gaze. “it’s better this way.”

��better for whom?” he asks, stepping closer.

“not for me. and definitely not for you.” you could feel him standing behind you, his warmth radiating towards you.

you feel tears welling up again at his words. “they said i’m weak. that i don’t deserve to be around you.”

satoru’s expression hardens, his anger flaring up again. “they don’t know what they’re talking about. you’re one of the strongest people i know.”

‘’you did so well on the mission.’’

you shake your head, the tears spilling over descending your cheeks. “you don’t understand. everyone is beginning to hate me because of you.”

satoru feels his chest tighten as he looks at your trembling form. he reaches out, gently turning you to face him.

“then let them hate. their opinions don’t matter. what is important is how you feel about yourself.”

you look up at him, his words slowly sinking in. “but, it’s hard when people are constantly trying to make you feel like you’re worthless.”

“i know, but remember, no one can make you feel inferior without your permission.” he says softly, his anger giving way to something protective.

“but you don’t have to go through it alone. i’m here for you. always.”

he pulls you into his strong arms, immediately calming you with his warm embrace. he rubs up and down your back and lets you cry out your emotions, not minding that you’re wetting his tee.

he holds you in his arms for a couple of minutes, smearing kisses against your head, and soon your sobs die down, and you take a deep breath, the tension in your chest easing slightly.

“thank you, satoru.” you look up from where you were tucked in his chest.

he smiles down at you and pinches your cheek. his usual cheerfulness returning. “anytime.’’

you nod, feeling a bit lighter. he slowly guides your head back against his chest and continues to hug you tightly.

“there’s something i want to tell you —”

satoru gently guides you to sit on the edge of your bed, his hands never leaving yours. the room is quiet, save for the soft hum of the heater and the distance howling of the snowfall against the window. he sits beside you, close enough that you can feel his knee touching yours.

he takes a deep breath, his eyes locking onto yours with an intensity that makes your heart race. “— something i’ve been meaning to tell you,” he begins, his voice soft but steady.

“i’ve been holding back for too long, and i can’t keep it inside anymore.” you feel a flutter in your chest, a mix of anticipation and nervousness.

“what is it, satoru?” you ask, your voice barely above a whisper.

he reaches up, gently brushing a strand of hair behind your ear. his touch is tender, sending shivers down your spine.

“i care about you, more than just a friend,” he confesses, his eyes searching yours for any sign of rejection.

“i’ve felt this way for a while now, but i was too afraid to say anything. i didn’t want to risk losing what we already had.”

your breath catches in your throat as his words sink in. the emotions you’ve been trying to suppress come rushing to the surface.

“satoru, i-” you start, but he places a finger tenderly on your lips, effectively silencing you.

“let me finish,” he whispers softly.

“you mean the world to me. seeing you hurt because of those girls, it broke my heart. at that time, i realized i wanted to be there for you, to protect you, and to make you happy. if you’ll let me.”

tears well up in your eyes, but this time, they are ones of relief.

“i feel the same way.” you admit, your voice trembling with elation.

“i’ve been so scared, but i can’t deny it anymore. i care about you too, satoru.”

a smile spreads across his face, and he leans in closer, his forehead resting against yours.

“thank you,” he whispers, his breath silky against your skin.

“for giving me a chance.”

you never thought you’d see those blue eyes so close. at this moment, you wanted nothing but to submerge and drown yourself in them.

slowly, satoru tilts his head, his lips brushing against yours in the softest of kisses. the world seems to fade away, leaving just the two of you in this perfect moment. his kiss is gentle at first as he slowly mouths at your lower lips, as if he was testing the waters.

but as you respond with a soft kiss against his own lips, he deepens it, the kiss now filled with all the emotions you’ve both been holding back.

you feel his hands move to cup your face, his thumbs gently cradling your cheeks. your own find their way to his shoulders, pulling him closer. the kiss is everything, sending a rush of warmth and tingles through your entire body.

his lips move against yours with a tenderness that makes your heart swell, each nip at your lips igniting a spark that spreads through your veins. the snow outside seems to intensify, mirroring the storm of emotions within you.

his hands slide down to your waist underneath your sweater, rubbing circles before pulling you even closer as your chest rubs against his. you answer by wrapping your arms around his neck, playing with the hair at his nape. the kiss becomes more passionate yet still tender, a perfect blend of love and desire.

when you finally pull away, both of you are breathless, your foreheads still touching.

“i love you.” he murmurs against your mouth, his eyes sparkling with sincerity and adoration for you.

“i love you too,” you reply, your heart swelling with gentle love.

you and satoru share a smile. he slips under the covers and tucks you in before pulling you into his comforting embrace once again. holding you as if he never wants to let go. satoru looks at you one last time and chuckles to himself with how content you seem snuggled in his arms. finally, he’s got what he’s been desiring for ages.

“you know you have always been the apple of my eye,” he mumbles, his voice filled with fondness.

you laugh softly, a fuzzy feeling spread through you. “oh, shut up!” you reply, playfully nudging him.

he grins, pressing a gentle kiss to your cheek. “i mean it. you’re everything to me.”

you look up at him, your heart swelling with love. “and you’re everything to me, too.”

as the snow continues to fall outside, you both settle into a comfortable silence, holding each other close. the world outside fades away, leaving just the two of you in your own little haven.

#ruru works #gojo x reader #gojo x you #gojo x y/n #gojo satoru x reader #gojo satoru x you #gojo satoru x y/n #jjk x reader #jjk x you #jjk x y/n #gojo fluff #gojo satoru fluff #jjk fluff #gojo satoru #jjk gojo #ruru fav fics

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bookuce · 3 days ago

Text

Change My Mind

SUMMARY: Josh and Alina are great friends most days. Other days, they want to tear each other apart. Some days, they’re in love with each other, but neither of them will admit it.

*DISCLAIMER: This is a multi-part series. I do not own any of the characters in the writing except for the OC. The book uses actual names of wrestlers. Josh is Jey, Jon is Jimmy, Trinity is Naomi, and Alina is Alina. The book is not realistic and does not take place during real events, but some actual events (matches, storylines) could pop up in the story eventually. I DO NOT GIVE ANYONE PERMISSION TO TRANSLATE OR REPOST MY WRITINGS ANYWHERE. THAAAAAANKS. *

PAIRING: Jey Uso x Black OC

TROPE: Friends to Lovers

WARNINGS: Language

WORD COUNT: 10K

PART TEN

PART ELEVEN

Meeting parents was never fun. It was nerve-wracking, stressful, anxiety-inducing––any word you can think of that falls under that category, really. The time was winding down quickly for Alina to meet Josh's family, and she was frantically moving around the bathroom. Her hair decided not to cooperate with her, forcing her to put it up in a tight ponytail. It wasn’t what she envisioned, but it will do.

Josh sat on the tub's edge, scrolling on his phone while he waited for his girlfriend to finish getting dressed. Just like Alina, he was full of anxiety about his family. Their reasons were different, though. While she was worried about his family's approval, he was concerned with how they would take the news of him relocating. It had been an active plan for several weeks, but he couldn't figure out how to bring it to their attention––until now. They'll take it fine, he thinks. He hopes.

When Jon told them he and Trinity were moving to Orlando, they didn't put up much of a fuss. Then again, the twins spent plenty of time around that area during their FCW days. There were plenty of family and friends around there that could help them in their times of need. Atlanta, on the other hand, not so much. That didn't matter, though. Josh is a grown-ass man. He can handle himself.

Alina leans over the sink, her face near the mirror. She's lining her lips with her favorite brown lip liner, making sure her lips look full and even. There was a slight tremble in her hand as she traced along the natural lining of her lips. Nerves. "Lina," Josh says, looking up from his phone. "we gotta go." He informs her. They were supposed to have left about thirty minutes ago, but she kept backpedaling on what she should wear.

"I know." She says, finishing her makeup. She glances around the mess of makeup on the counter, looking for her gloss. "I just want to make sure..."

"Lina." He calls again.

"I look good." she finishes, snatching up the lipgloss tube from the pile of lipsticks. She unscrews the cap and quickly slathers the product across her lips. Josh stands to his feet, slowly approaching the stress-filled woman before him. She stared at herself in the mirror, smoothing out her shirt and allowing her hands to travel over the front of her pants. He wraps his hands around her forearms, giving them a gentle squeeze. Her eyes would flicker to his dark ones, and they'd watch each other in the mirror.

"You look good," He assures her. "Perfect, to be real." He corrects himself. Josh steps back, allowing his hands to skim her arms to her shoulders. He gives them three gentle squeezes before turning towards the bathroom door. "Let's go before you get me in trouble with my Mama." He informs her, making her turn around to look at him.

"Josh," She groans, nerves setting in for her again.

"Come on, honey." He says louder, ignoring her pleas. "We ain't got all night." She quickly follows after him, soft huffs of frustration leaving her lips.

Was she ever this nervous about meeting Theo's parents? She tried to recall if she ever felt this amount of anxiety when she met them. Meeting them went relatively well. Then again, she knew enough information on them beforehand to prepare herself. Unfortunately, this was not the case with Josh. He didn't speak enough about them for her to learn who she was meeting, and because of that, she was terrified. Even when she would ask multiple times throughout the morning, he would answer shortly with little information. They're great people, he says. You have nothing to worry about, he tells her.

Perhaps they were just like Jon and Josh: loud, goofy, and loving. Trinity never had any complaints, either. If she did, she never brought them to her attention. Then again, why would she? Alina and Josh were not in a relationship––their family issues were none of her business until now.

The drive to his parents' home was roughly thirty minutes. They made it two minutes before six, cutting close to dinner time. Alina stares up at the large house from the passenger seat. Her legs now felt like jelly, and she knew they wouldn't hold her up if she got out of this car. Was she being dramatic? Possibly. Whatever happens, tonight would set the tone for her relationship with him and his family forever.

What if they don't like her? She's heard she can come off uppity at times, and she's been working on that. "Hey," Josh says, pulling her attention from the window. He searches her eyes for a moment before grabbing her hand. "They're going to love you; you know that, right?" He tells her. She watches him for a moment, a soft smile on her lips.

"Get out of my head." She whispers at him.

"You first." He replies. Josh presses a kiss to her hand before dropping it suddenly. "Now, come on, girl, I'm hungry. I ain’t had my Mama's cooking in months." He says, slapping the top of her left thigh. Alina would whine at the playful strike. He climbs out of the car, lightly jogging around to her side to open the door for her. She steps out of the vehicle, taking another deep breath as the realization of her meeting his parents settles in once more. She was now a couple of feet away from them, seconds away from saying, 'Hello, nice to meet you.'. There were multiple cars in the driveway, four Alina counted.

They're going to love you, she tells herself. Just be yourself, and they'll love you. The passenger door closed behind her, and a warm hand slid into her own. Together, they approach the front door. Josh's left hand grabs the doorknob, twisting and pushing the door open. Warm white light and the aroma of food poured out of the opening. With one last glance at his girlfriend, Josh steps into the house. "Yo, yo, yo," Josh calls.

"Oh, I think that's Josh." A female voice says. "Joshua!" She calls, getting closer.

"It's me," he replies. A small woman runs around the corner, her arms wide open for her son. Josh drops Alina's hand to fully embrace his mother, giving her the tightest hug possible. "Hey, Mama." He says against her shoulder. Alina takes a step back, clasping her hands tight in front of her while she waits for her turn to introduce herself.

"My baby is home!" She exclaims, patting his back as she pulls back. Talisua instantly spots the eye injury, her hand going up to examine it. She knew not to question it. She would assume that her son was recovering from someone hitting him too hard in a match or segment Friday night.

"Damn, she ain't say that to me," Jon says, walking by the hall. "She ain't even hug me."

"That's because I'm her favorite." Josh jokes, earning a lip smack from his brother and a swat to the chest from his mother. Talisua turns her attention to Alina, glancing over the gorgeous woman standing behind her son. Alina gives a faint smile, unsure whether or not she should say hi or quietly wave.

Josh notices that his mother has taken sight of Alina and looks over his right shoulder at her, a crooked smile on his lips. He reaches over to grab her hand, pulling her to his side. "Mama, this is my girlfriend, Alina," Josh says.

Talisua's hands go to her hips as she takes in the woman standing behind her son. There was a hint of a smile on her lips as she peered down at her shoes and back up to her face. "So you're why I haven't seen my son in months?" She asks. The question was a playful opening, not to be mistaken as an attack. Alina glances over at Josh briefly before returning her gaze to Talisua.

"If I knew he hadn't been home, I would have sent him on his way," Alina replies, returning the smile she received. Both women turn their attention towards Josh, whose brows furrowed at the interaction. "He's been acting like he doesn't have his own house," Alina adds.

"He's always been clingy." His mother says, earning a laugh out of Alina. Josh would smack his lips at the two of them, watching as they talked about him. "He used to throw a fit when he couldn't be in my face." She tells her.

"Glad to know some things never change," Alina replies. Talisua links her arm with Alina's, pulling her away from Josh and down the hall to the dining room.

"Bruh, what?" Josh watches after the pair in confusion as they leave him in the foyer alone. He was happy his mother and girl clicked almost instantly––but like this? Oh, the deception.

"Go help the boys in the kitchen," Talisua calls out behind her. "You too, Jon!" She shouts towards the living room. Jon, whose feet were on the coffee table, a remote in hand, turns his attention towards his mom, catching a glimpse of her passing by the room. He'd suck his teeth at her command, shaking his head slightly as he stood to his feet.

Josh steps into the living room's archway, his eyes finding those of his twin's. Jon rolls his shoulders back, tilting his head up at him. "Your drunk ass..." He says, laughing at his brother as he recalls last night's events. "Have I told you I loved you...!" He sings as he passes Josh, his cackles filling the house. "Boy, your freaky ass better not ever look at another tequila sunrise. You were trying to tear Lina up in the Uber home." He says, causing Josh to shove him forward into the dining room.

Trinity, Talisua, and Alina peer over their shoulders at the commotion from the twins as they walk through the living room to the kitchen. "Y'all, don't start," Trinity exclaims.

"If you didn't know already, it takes a village to keep these Fatu men in check," Talisua says. Trinity sighs softly at the statement, shaking her head as she does so. "God thought I was well-equipped to handle all boys and make them like their daddy." Talisua looks over at Alina. "Do you have kids?" She asks.

Alina is quick to shake her head at the question. "Two younger brothers, though, so I do understand." She explains. She is the eldest of her siblings. Dealing with the antics of her brothers well-prepared her for this. "I don't pay them no mind anymore." She says, referring to Jon and Josh.

In the kitchen, the Fatu men prepped dinner––er, somewhat. Sefa was seated at the kitchen island, quietly doom-scrolling on social media. Jeremiah was coming in from outside, a pan of meat in hand. Tonight's dinner was barbeque, something they tended to do often when their entire family was in the same house for once. It was a rare occurrence now that Sefa, Josh, and Jon were all on the road with the WWE.

At the stove stood their father, Rikishi. He was checking on the mac and cheese, stirring so it wouldn't burn to the bottom of the pot. "Hey, Pops," Josh says, moving past his dad. He pats his back in passing, prompting his dad to look over his shoulder only briefly.

"Hey, son." He replies. "How are you?"

"Never better," Josh replies, leaning up against the counter. "What do you want me to do?" He asks, waiting for orders.

"Get out nine plates, silverware, and cups. Go set the table." He answers. Josh walks around his dad to the cabinets near the sink. He opens them, grabbing out eight plates.

"Nine? Who else is coming?" Jon asks, prompting Josh to stop at the question. Who else was coming to dinner? Josh begins to count on his fingers everyone that is there right now. Yeah, he counted eight people. "Joe in town too and ain't tell no one?" Jon asks.

Rikishi is quiet for a little bit longer, turning off the stove. "I invited Málí." Josh slowly put his hands down, now watching the side of his father's head.

"Málí, who?" He asks.

"You know, Málí. Tagaloa, Lílí?"

"Lílí? She back in town?" Jon asks, glancing over at Josh.

Málí Tagaloa was a name Josh hadn't heard in years, seventeen years to be exact. Málí and the Tagaloas were old family friends of the Fatus, neighbors in the first neighborhood they grew up in when they first moved to Pensacola. Málí and Josh had instantly clicked when they met as kids, attached at the hip from first grade through high school. Wherever Josh was, Málí was not far behind, and vice versa. People around them were confident they would end up together after high school. They were too––but things happened. Málí received a full-ride scholarship to her dream college, and any chances of them exploring the what-ifs and maybes of their almost relationship went up in smoke.

They lost contact when she went to college. Everything after that was history. Hearing that name after so many years, knowing he would be seeing an old friend any minute now while his girlfriend was in the other room, had scared Josh silent.

"Yeah, she moved back home from Seattle last week. We ran into each other at the grocery store yesterday. I told her Josh was in town and asked if she wanted to come by for dinner tonight." Rikishi informs them. Josh turns to look at his twin brother. For once, Jon had nothing funny to say to his twin. They both had the same look of concern on their faces. "Perhaps the two of you can go out while you're here. You two always really liked each other––." Rikishi adds.

"That won't be happening," Josh says, shaking his head.

"Why not?" Rikishi asks, turning to his son. "Good Samoan woman like that––."

"My woman is in the other room," Josh explains. "You know that." Josh knew his mother updated his father about Alina yesterday. She was too excited about the potential of meeting someone Josh loved enough to bring home. Rikishi was doing what he knew best: how to insert himself in his sons' lives without their permission. Each time they caught on, he would pretend he had no clue what they were talking about––much like he is right now.

Rikishi furrows his brows at the assumption; the thick black frame of his glasses lifts on his nose with the scrunch of it. "When did you get a girlfriend?" He asks. A look of irritation would flash across Josh’s face as he glanced at Jon briefly.

"You so—." Josh stops himself from saying anything more, shaking his head. "Man, I can’t believe you’d try that with me." He lifts the plates he gathered from the counter. "You finna get me in trouble over some shit you said to this woman." He mutters angrily to himself as he exits the room. Rikishi turns to his other sons, his mouth agape in shock at Josh. Jon lifts his hands, shaking his head at the man.

"No comment, bruh." He says, turning to make his way out of the kitchen behind his twin. Jon knew how his father got about them dating women. He had done the same thing to him and Trinity when they first got together.

Josh's eyes focused on the dishware he held, not looking up once as he entered the dining room. "Josh, look who stopped by for dinner!" Oh, hell, he thought. He halts, his gaze lifting at the sight of the woman standing before him.

Málí turns at the sound of Josh’s name, her smile faltering slightly at the sight of her old friend. Time has done them both well, but for her, Josh aged handsomely. Though his face had changed, his eyes had not. They seemed to hold the same youthfulness and innocence they had when they were younger. The grey in his beard accented his appearance perfectly, much like a garnish on a dish. She wouldn’t get into the rest of him, though––she had focused on his face and that blank stare he was giving her. After all these years, was he not happy to see her?

Málí had not aged a bit to Josh. She was like a blast from the past, a ghost of his younger days. From what he could tell, all those years away from Pensacola did the woman well. She surprisingly looks the same as she did when she left this place––not a single gray or wrinkle in sight. On the other hand, Josh showed signs of aging well with gray hairs and soft wrinkles. She looked great. That was all he would say on the subject of her. He had to remind himself that she was not brought here as his friend––but as a potential prospect for marriage by his father.

Jon stops behind him, his eyes wide at the sight of Málí. "Shit." He mutters to himself. Alina glances between the pair before her. Strange. "Lílí, what's up, girl!" Jon exclaims, trying to break up the noticeable tension in the room now. He moves by Josh, wrapping the old friend in a tight embrace. Behind Málí, Jon looked at Trinity, who silently asked about the woman her husband was hugging. He widened his eyes at her in response, hoping she'd understand what that meant. They’ll gossip about it like two old church ladies later.

"Long time no see, Jon! How have you been?" Málí asks, pulling back to look up at the tall man. He smiles down at her, his arms still loosely wrapped around her.

"I'm blessed, Uce. I can never complain." He turns the woman to face the two women seated at the dining table. Only one of them was paying attention to Jon and the woman. The other watched her boyfriend, who was paling by the second at the sight of the woman he had yet to take his eyes off. "Lílí, this is my wife Trinity. Trin, this is Lílí, an old family friend of ours." Trinity stands up––her hand extended to shake Lílí's.

"Nice to meet you!" They exchange with each other with bright smiles.

Jon then turns to Alina, who is still watching Josh. "And this is Alina, Josh's girlfriend." Josh's gaze shifts from Málí's and to Alina at the introduction. They only watched each other briefly before Josh moved towards the table. He places the plates on the table, slowly putting them in their designated spots—Alina peers up at the woman, a forced smile on her lips.

"Pleasure," Alina says with a nod. She doesn't offer her hand to the woman or stand to introduce herself. She turns her attention back to Josh, who now has his back to everyone.

"Joshua," Talisua calls out. Josh releases a breath he didn't realize he was holding, his eyes shut as he does so. Lord, give me the strength to get through this dinner. Forty minutes in, he was already ready to grab Alina and leave. He should do that anyway. He owed no one any explanation as to why he would head out, but if Josh had to, he would point fingers at the man who was in the room over. But for his mother, he will stay––no one else. Talisua hadn't seen him in a while, and Josh had yet to tell everyone his plans to move to Georgia.

"Yes, ma'am?" Josh answers lowly.

"Are you not going to say hey to Málí?" She asks. He didn't want to. He really didn't want to. He could feel Alina staring at the back of his head, waiting for him to make the wrong move. She is still trying to figure out who this woman is to him. Jon mentioned that she was an old family friend, but what was with the stares? Josh looked like he had seen a ghost, and Jon also was behaving strangely.

He wasn't trying to be rude––he didn't want to do this. His eyes pan to the wall as he slowly pivots to face Málí. He avoids Alina's intense gaze, his eyes locking with Jon's before the woman standing by him. A lump began to form in his throat, and no matter how hard he swallowed, it wouldn't go away. "What's up, Málí?" He croaks, tilting his head up slightly. Josh would sway from left to right, his hands slowly rubbing at his hips.

The two old friends stare at each other for several moments before Lílí finally speaks up. "Hey, Josh." She says softly. "It's been a while." She adds with a slight smile.

“Yeah,” He says, lowering his head slightly. “How have you been?” He asks, clasping his hands together in front of him. Málí takes a breath, nodding her head at the question.

“I’ve been better.” She chuckles. “What about you? You look good––healthy. You look healthy.” She corrects herself. Alina turns her attention to Jon, her brows gradually furrowing as she does so. He’d catch her gaze before dropping his head in embarrassment. He lifts his right hand to rub at the back of his neck. This dinner was already gearing up to be a mess of a situation, and they had no one but Rikishi to blame.

"Food's ready!" Rikishi exclaims, walking in with a bowl of mac and cheese. Behind him are Sefa and Jeremiah, both carrying food. One by one, they line the center of the table with dishes.

Thank God, Josh thought, thankful for the interruption. Any much longer of that conversation, and he would have dug himself a hole with Alina.

Little does he know.

He looks off towards the table before grabbing his seat next to Alina. He pulls it out, dropping into the chair. Alina turns in her chair to face forward, her hands clasped tight in her lap. "Lílí, I hope you brought your appetite." He says gleefully. "Take that seat next to Joshua."

Rikishi doesn't acknowledge the woman sitting to Josh's left as he takes his seat at the head of the table. "Trin," Jon says, still standing behind Josh. He points at the chair near his brother for his wife to sit in. Rikishi looks to Jon, catching a glare from the eldest twin. Jon doesn't say anything to cause a disturbance but shakes his head in disappointment. Whatever his father had going on was not about to disrupt this dinner. With no questions asked, Trinity stands to her feet, moving to sit in the empty chair next to Josh. Jon takes his seat by Alina, separating Málí, Josh, and her.

Josh turns to his girlfriend, who is intently staring at the table. Alina was never good at hiding her emotions––giving herself away with facial expressions or tones of voice. At that moment, Alina felt conflicted. Was she angry or sad? She wasn’t sure, but she was holding in tears.

Alina wasn't trying to read into what was happening here, but with how everyone was acting suddenly and how Josh was staring at this Málí person, Alina could only assume this woman was an ex. The seating arrangement, her boyfriend avoiding eye contact with her––context clues. It is only a matter of time before she's searching for an exit from this dinner.

"Lina, can you pass me the salt?" Sefa asks, forcing Alina to look up from the table. She would give him a tight grin and nod, reaching in front of her for the salt. She lifts it into the air, allowing Sefa to take it from her. "Thanks."

"Welcome," She says quietly, her eyes scanning the table. She could feel Josh's large brown eyes on her, pleading with her to look at him, but she couldn't. The interaction between Sefa and Alina would prompt Rikishi to finally acknowledge someone other than their other guest for the evening. He looks at the woman seated near his son––his lips slightly parted as he thinks of something to say.

"So, you're Joshua's girlfriend," Rikishi says, earning the couple's attention. "What is your name, sweetheart?" He asks. Josh leans forward slightly, his head tilted down at his father. He has one time to disrespect her, he thought. One snide remark and this dinner was over.

"Alina." She answers with a grin. "It's nice to meet you, Rikishi." The slump of her shoulders would vanish as she sat up straight for the conversation.

A grin matching Alina's would curl onto his lips at her. "Likewise." He answers with a single nod. "Alright, everyone, dig in." He says, looking around the table. Alina would relax into her seat again, the light in her eyes dimming once more now that she was not being spoken to again. He had moved on from talking to her and was now conducting the food traffic. "Pass me the chicken, please." He says to Jeremiah.

"So, Alina, you work with the boys and Trin?" Talisua asks from the opposite end of the table than Rikishi. Alina looks at her with a smile, nodding her head.

"I do! Coming up on three years here soon." She informs her.

"We celebrating?" Jon asks, nudging Alina in her side. She looks back at Jon, shaking her head. He smacks his lips at her answer, muttering words of persuasion to her, hoping Alina would change her mind. She knew he didn't want to celebrate the milestone––He just wanted a reason to party.

"Do you wrestle?" Rikishi asks.

"No, sir, I'm on the broadcast team." She answers, getting only a singular hum from the man. He says nothing else, returning to the meal in front of him. Slowly, Alina's eyes began to shift back to her plate. Was she reading into this too much, or did it seem like Rikishi didn't like her? Perhaps she was reading into it too much and still reeling from the nerves of meeting Josh's family, but then again, she was always good at reading people. He was coming off cold and disinterested in her, the opposite of how you should be with your son’s new girlfriend.

Alina wasn’t the only one who noticed his behavior. Silence fell upon the dining room––glances exchanged between siblings. "So, Lílí, how's your parents?" He asks, seguing back into Málí. He seemed more interested in what Málí had going on rather than the fact his son finally brought home a woman––and Josh didn’t like that.

"Yo, are you good?" Josh asks suddenly.

"Josh," Alina says, shaking her head.

"Nah." He dismisses her. "You've said no more than ten words to her all night. You've known she was coming since yesterday." He says. Rikishi looks up at his son, his brows furrowed in faux confusion.

"Josh," Jon says now.

"You know what you're doing, bruh––." He says, ignoring his brother. He points his finger at his father.

"Joshua," Talisua calls out now. His mother's stern tone was enough to silence the angry twin. "It's enough." The room became silent again, but no one resumed eating. The tension in the room was enough to steal the appetites of everyone present. Alina clasps her hands in her lap, her eyes falling to her plate again.

What a weekend, she thought. Was there a full moon, mercury in retrograde, or something? Was she cursed? Is that what this was? A curse? She attempts to think of who she could have wronged in the past, but no one comes to mind. Well, unless karma works quickly in Tasha's favor for her,––wait, that could be it. "I apologize, son," Rikishi says, throwing his hands up.

"You apologizing to the wrong person." He says. "We can try this,” He motions a circle with his index finger. “again in a minute." He informs him, cueing his apology.

"That's not necessary––," Alina says, shaking her head.

"Like hell, it ain't," Josh almost shouts.

Alina twists her mouth to the side, becoming quiet again. For the second time in a span of three days, she was at the center of a fight. “I said it’s enough, Joshua.” His Mother says. She looks between her husband and son. “Both of you.” She points her index finger between the two men. Josh turns his glare towards the table.

“So what’s new?” Jon says, trying to break up the tension in the room. “Anyone got anything they want to share with the class?” He asks, glancing around the table with a big smile. “Sefa?” He asks. Sefa stifles a laugh at Jon, pushing his food around his plate. What was happening wasn’t funny, but it was.

Trinity reaches around Alina and Josh and strikes Jon’s shoulder, startling the twin. He leans back, making eye contact with his wife. “Not the time.” She whispers at him.

Under these circumstances, in this mood that he was in, Josh did not want to announce his departure from the state of Florida, but because Rikishi was with the shit, right now was the perfect time to do so. Josh peers up from the table, taking in the faces surrounding him. Beneath the table, Josh’s hands rubbed against each other slowly, a self-soothing mechanism of his. “I’m selling my house.” He announces, gaining everyone’s attention at the table.

“You’re moving?” Talisua asks. Josh nods slightly, licking his lips. “Where?” Alina gazed at the side of Josh’s head, waiting for his words. She wasn’t aware that his family didn’t know about the move. This conversation should’ve been a private family matter that didn’t involve her.

“Atlanta.” He answers.

“Atlanta? What’s in Atlanta?” Rikishi asks. Josh hangs his head at the question, pressing his lips together in a thin line. Here he goes, he thought. Rikishi points his hand at Alina. “Her?” He adds. A chill would rush Alina’s body at his tone. Oh, she never stood a chance with this man.

“Me for the last year,” Josh answers, looking up at his father. Rikishi wanted to hear Josh say Alina was the reason for his relocation, which she was, but Josh was not going to give him that. “I’ve been in Atlanta more than I have been here. That’s home now. All the back and forth adds up––.”

“Let me get this straight. The two of you have lived together for a year, but this is the first time we’ve heard of this girl?” Rikishi questions. “Does anyone not find that a bit strange?” He continued, lifting his hands as he spoke. Rikishi looked around the table at everyone, not receiving a response or reaction from a soul. Alina didn’t expect Josh to talk about her to anyone while they were still friends.

“Look at how you’re acting, bruh. You’re doing my girl like you did Trin when she first came around. You did this up until they got married.” He points out. Trin and Jon would smack their lips simultaneously at being brought up in the argument. “You ought to be lucky they even let bygones be bygones with your––.”

“Enough!” Talisua shouts the moment Josh starts to raise his voice again. “Solofa, I don’t know what has gotten into you, but it stops now. It’s the first time we see our son in months, and he is happy. Why are you trying to take that joy from him?” She asks. It was a question that Rikishi knew not to answer unless he wanted to sleep in one of the guest rooms tonight. “And Joshua,” She calls, requesting his attention. Slowly, he looks up at her. “I’m disappointed in you.”

Josh knew he shouldn’t have said most of what he did or behaved how he did, but Rikishi crossed boundaries. The things he said were consequences of his father’s actions, and he could not bother to be sorry about it—at least to him, he couldn’t be. Only for Talisua, Josh was apologetic. She did not deserve to see them act like this, and how he acted was not how she raised him. “Sorry, mama.” He says quietly. She doesn’t answer him, her glare shifting from her son to her food. Josh looks away from her, his eyes finding his plate as well.

The room was quiet for the third time tonight, thanks to Rikishi and Josh. This dinner wasn’t supposed to go this way, but it did because Josh came strolling in with Alina. Rikishi would have been happy if Josh wouldn’t have brought her home. His plans of having his son’s long-lost best friend and almost lover come back into the fray instantly diminished because of this random girl his son brought home, whom he had no idea existed until yesterday. If Rikishi were happy, Josh would have been happy. If the two of them had been happy, Talisua would have been happy. All of this is because he brought Alina McLemore home.

It was all her fault.

Alina was at the root of each issue, from Tasha and the wedding to this dinner. She spent the last twenty-four hours panicking about her boyfriend’s family’s approval and the prior twelve panicking about her appearance. All this meant so much to her, these last few days being the most important, only for her to be disliked and disregarded.

Slowly, Alina stands to her feet, drawing attention to herself. “I’m sorry, excuse me.” She apologizes, stepping away from the table.

“Alina,” Josh calls, turning in his seat as she moves towards the dining room entryway. He turns in his seat to watch her walk, his eyes full of silent pleas for her not to be upset. It was only a matter of time before she went running, and Josh knew it was coming. The last few days hadn’t been kind to her, and just when she thought she was escaping it in Atlanta, issues seemed to have followed them here into his parents’ home in Pensacola. His plan had failed to take her mind off what happened this past weekend.

“I’m just going to the bathroom. It’s fine.” She promises, vanishing down the hall before he can say anything else. Josh stares after her for a moment longer before turning his attention towards Jon. Their eyes locked with each other before the eldest twin started shaking his head at him.

“Just give her some space, Uce.” He tells Josh. As much as he didn’t want to, he knew Jon was right; Alina needed some space. He turns to face forward in his seat, a huff leaving his lips. This is some bullshit, he thought.

Alina enters the guest bathroom, closing and locking the door behind her. She moves over to the sink, placing her hands on the marble countertop. She leans her weight onto her arms, her eyes closing as she does so. “You’re not going to cry. You’re not going to cry.” She whispers, shaking her head at the sting that fills her eyes. “Think about your makeup.” She reminds herself, opening her eyes to look at herself in the mirror. “See, you look so pretty. You’re going to ruin that if you cry.” She says, encouraging herself with tears forming in her eyes. If only those words were helping.

A knock at the door disrupts her emotional mini-pep rally, causing her to go still at the sound. “Lina, you good, girl?” Trin says from the other side. “Josh sent me to check on you.”

“I’m fine.” She croaks, fighting against the lump forming in her throat. On the other side of the door, Trinity furrows her brows at the sound of her voice. Was she crying? It sounded like it. Trinity grabs the doorknob, attempting to twist it.

“Can I come in?” She asks.

“No,” She sniffs. “I’ll be out in a minute, I promise.” She tells her. “You can go back to dinner. Tell Josh I’m fine.” No sound would come from the other side of the door, but Alina knew Trinity was still there. “Please?” She pleads.

“Okay.” She replies after several moments of silence. “Love you, girl.” She adds.

Alina smiles at her words, a few tears escaping her eyes. “Love you too.” She replies. Yeah, she wasn’t going back out there––not like this.

Trinity stepped away from the bathroom door, a sigh coming from her lips as she did so. She’d shake her head, bringing her index finger to her left temple. “Child…” She says to herself. Tonight was enough drama for the week for her––hell, maybe even for the month. Jon comes dashing around the corner, colliding with his wife. He was on his way to check on Alina because his brother was starting to get antsy. “Hey,” she breathes.

Jon looks past her and down the hall towards the bathroom. “Y’all good?” He asks with a lifted eyebrow. “Where’s Lina?” He asks.

“She’s finishing up in the bathroom. She’s fine.” She says loud enough for Josh to hear in the other room. “Come here, though,” Trinity says, grabbing his arm and pulling him into the living room. Once in the room, she releases his arm, looking back to ensure no one is coming. “Who the fuck is that lady, and don’t lie to me.”

In all the years that she and Jon had been together, this Málí character has never been mentioned. “We grew up together,” Jon explains. “We lived next door to her family when we first moved here.”

Jon planned to leave it at that, not wanting to explain the rest of the story. He pushes his hands into his pockets, looking beyond his short wife towards the hall. “And what else?” She asks, lowering her eyes at him. Her husband had a bad habit of avoiding eye contact when he was lying about something, a reason why he just chose not to lie, but this was his brother. Jon would remain silent for a few seconds longer, hoping she would just let it go. He knew she would not. “Babe.” She says sternly.

He would sigh softly, his shoulder slumping in defeat as he met his wife’s demanding gaze. “Her and Josh liked each other back in the day.” He confesses. “It didn’t go anywhere because Málí moved off for college, but everyone knew.” He finishes. In the same fashion that Jon’s shoulders dropped, Trinity’s would too. She lifts her hand to her nose, pinching the bridge of it. Málí was the original Alina.

“Are you serious?” She asks, looking up at him. Jon confirms with a nod. “This is a hot ass mess.” She says.

Jon scoffs at her words. “Shit, you can say that again.”

In the dining room, Josh and Málí were alone. Jeremiah and Sefa clear the table of all the food while Talisua and Rikishi are outdoors, squabbling about what had transpired tonight. The family dinner was over now, thanks to their father and him. Josh’s leg bounced anxiously beneath the table as he impatiently waited for Alina to return. She had been gone for five minutes, and his brother and sister hadn’t returned yet. “She’s pretty,” Málí speaks, initiating the conversation between the two friends. Josh’s leg would stop bouncing at the sound of Màlí’s voice. He briefly glances at her from the corner of his eyes before returning his focus to the wall.

“Thank you.” He says.

“You’re welcome.” She says, turning to look at him. Lílí’s tongue danced behind her lips as she contemplated her following words. “You think she’s the one?” She asks, prompting Josh to look at her now.

“I know it.” He replies.

“Good. A big-hearted man like you deserves only the best kind of love.” She says. Josh would scoff softly at her words, shaking his head. Málí smiles softly. “What?” She asks.

“You know why you were brought here, right? Man, that man was trying to set you up with me.” He says, pointing to the outdoors with a grin. It was now Málí’s turn to laugh, her eyes following his point out the window.

“I know.” She admits, wiping the little grin off his face. Josh would turn his attention to his old friend again, now watching her with the same blank face as earlier. She would watch him back, her smile shrinking in size. “Honestly, part of me really thought that when your dad said you were coming to town and that you weren’t seeing someone, this was the Universe giving us a second chance.” She confesses. “But now that I’m here and see Joshua Fatu all grown-up and in love, I know that that is not true, and this was much-needed closure.” The more Málí spoke, the quieter Josh got. It wasn’t that he had nothing to say to her, but because he didn’t know what to say. Knowing her love for him never faltered despite spending several years apart with no contact racked his brain in a way Josh hadn’t felt in years. Suddenly, he was an eighteen-year-old boy looking at an eighteen-year-old woman again. First loves, first everything. But none of that mattered. Who he was then is not who he is now.

“I probably could’ve reached out years ago.” She says.

“I could’ve too,” He says, not allowing her to take the blame for their time apart. “I’ve been in Seattle plenty of times throughout the years, and not once did I think to look you up.” He confesses. “My bad, Uce.”

Málí giggles at his apology. “It’s all good.” She assures him. “We cool now, though, right?” She asks. With a grin, Josh leans across the chair between them, his hand extended for their old handshake. With a grin just as big as his, Málí would effortlessly perform the handshake. To know neither of them forgot the greeting made them laugh.

“Yeah, we’re cool.”

“Damn, Alina still ain’t back?” Jon says, looking around the room. The pair, still united at the hand, would look up the couple that had entered the room. Trinity’s eyes would focus on joined hands before looking between the pair they belonged to. Josh’s smile would diminish at the mention of his girlfriend. For fifteen minutes, he’s forgotten all about her. Josh’s gaze shifted from his brother to his sister, who glared at him with crossed arms.

“I thought you said she was good.” He says, dropping Málí’s hand finally.

“Boy, that didn’t mean you can carry on!” Trinity shouts at him. Josh stands to his feet, moving past the couple. Trinity turns to her man, flexing her hands at him. “Ooh, I want to ring his neck.” She says to Jon.

Josh makes his way down the hall towards the guest bathroom. “Lina.” He calls out, hoping she’ll answer him before he gets to it. No response would come from the other side of the door, but he could tell the light was on beneath it. “Baby.” He knocks at the door, his ear now pressed to it. When he hears nothing on the other side, he moves his hand down to the doorknob. He twists the handle, cracking the door just a little. “Alina, you good?” He asks. No response prompts him to open the door further, revealing an empty bathroom. He steps in, looking around the bathroom for her. “The fuck…” He whispers to himself.

Josh comes out of the bathroom, looking up and down the hall. “Ay!” He calls out to his brother and sister. He would see their shadows before they came around the corners. “I thought y’all said she was in the bathroom.” He says, pointing down the hall.

“She was,” Trinity answers.

“She ain’t in there now,” Josh says, opening the door on the wall across from him. His hand skims the wall, hitting the light switch to see if she is inside. “Help me find her.” He tells them, fishing his phone from his back pocket. In three swipes, his thumb unlocks the phone, opens his contacts, and calls Alina’s phone. His phone would hover near his ear as he exited the room and marched down the hall to the next closed door. He was listening for the ring of her phone but heard nothing.

“I’m sorry, but the person you called––.” He ends the call and redials.

“Lina.” He calls out once more. Still no answer.

“I’m sorry, but the person you––.” Josh ends the call abruptly, slipping his phone back into his pants pocket. He swears under his breath, pivoting in the room he stood in.

“Uce, she’s not outside,” Jon says, stopping at the door. Josh furrows his brows, his face contorting in anger. He’d suck his teeth in response to him.

“Man––.” Josh starts, charging forward out of the room. He was about to give his old man a piece of his mind. Jon had other plans, though. He pushes his hand into his twin’s chest, slightly shoving him back. “Bruh, watch out.” He says, pushing his brother’s hand away.

“Hollering at that man ain’t going to do shit but make Mama mad. Just go and find Lina. I’ll tell Mama you got an emergency.” He tells him. Josh stands there for a moment, grimace still prominent on his features. “Go!” He exclaims at him, stepping to the side to let him exit. Josh would squeeze past his brother in the door frame, marching angrily towards the front of the house.

—––––––––––––

Alina was curled into a ball on the couch, her arms wound tight around her frame. The light from the television bounced off the walls and danced along her face, her eyes catching the light stunningly. She returned to Josh’s house about fifteen minutes ago via an Uber she ordered and has since turned her phone off. It didn’t take long for Josh to notice her absence, maybe about fifteen minutes down the road if she had to estimate––at least that’s when his calls started coming in.

Between his father and this Málí woman, tonight was a lot. It was more than what she could handle at this time. She had spent the earlier hours of the day panicking about his family’s approval, trying to make sure she looked presentable, only for his father not to give her the time of day. At least his mother liked her, or it seemed like she did. Talisua probably thinks the poor girl is a drama queen because of the way she left the dinner.

The front door opens and closes, followed by heavy footsteps, drawing Alina’s eyes towards the living room entryway. Josh was home. He comes around the corner, stopping in the archway at the sight of her. Josh spent twenty minutes driving around his parent’s neighborhood looking for her before eventually checking her location. When he discovered she was home, he raced all the way here. The couple exchanged brief stares at each other before Alina looked away, turning her attention back to the TV. Josh walks into the room, approaching the couch she is lying on. He leans down, snatching the remote off the table and turning off the TV.

Silence replaces the ambient sounds of the television, prompting Alina to rise on the couch. Josh sits down next to her, laying his elbows against his knees. His head was low. His shoulders rise and fall with the heavy sigh he releases. “Why’d you leave?” He asks, his voice husky.

Alina watches him for a moment, pondering over her response to him. “I wasn’t wanted––.”

“I wanted you there.” He cuts her off. “I wanted you there.” Alina becomes quiet again, her eyes unblinking as she watches Josh’s back. “You’re always thinking about yourself, putting yourself first, and shit.” He says after several seconds of quietness. Alina’s eyes would venture off to the left while her brows furrowed in confusion at his words. Was he calling her selfish?

“Is that not what I’m supposed to do?” She asks, fixing her gaze on him again. He scoffs at her question, lifting his hands to push his fingers through dark coils upon his head.

“Are we not a team?” He asks, turning to look at her. “Teams communicate, right? So, if something is bothering you, we talk about it, right?” His leg angrily bounced while he watched her. “You abandon the team, and the team falls apart, right?” He says, his tone gradually growing. He was angry with her––rightfully so. She knew he would be when he found her and mentally prepared herself for all the shouting he’d do.

“Josh, I wasn’t going to stay where I wasn’t wanted––.”

“I did for you!” He exclaims, turning to look at her. “You had me off in that damn room with an ex I knew nothing about. He’s sitting here pressing me day into the night, and you couldn’t sit through a family dinner? You had me out there fighting over you, but my pops being an asshole was the line?”

Slowly, Alina began to shake her head, lifting her left hand as she did so. “I didn’t ask you to do that.” She says, earning a laugh out of him. “I told you to leave.” He shakes his head, shifting to turn his whole body towards her.

“Man, you don’t get it, do you?” He asks her. “I stayed because I love you. Despite what you wanted, I stayed for you.” He points. “That is what you do for those you love, right? That was a sacrifice I was willing to make for the sake of our relationship because I want this,” He motions between the two of them. “to work. Love requires sacrifice, Lina. It requires effort.” He explains.

“I understand that––.” She begins.

“Shit, do you? Cause it doesn’t feel like it.” He admits, cutting her off for the third time tonight. Alina would furrow her brows at his question, his doubt baffling her.

“Are you serious right now?” She asks. “Your father made it extremely clear where I stood with him!”

“Don’t nobody give a damn what he is talking about!” He says, raising his voice. Rikishi is known to be a bit controversial in his interactions with people. Josh was foolish to think he wouldn’t do that with him over Alina. He had hoped that his father would learn from his mistakes with Trinity and Jon, but that was not the case tonight. Same person, same old mistakes.

“I do!” She says back in the same loud tone. “I care about your family’s approval! If they have to see me for holidays and birthdays, I don’t want to feel like I’m not supposed to be there!” Alina elaborates. It might’ve not meant anything to Josh, but it meant everything to her to have his family’s approval. Josh had already met her family; there was no avoiding it with how often he lingered around her home. The McLemores welcomed him into their family without any issues, objections, or shade. She was not expecting what she got today.

“Then why did you leave? That only made things worse!”

“I’m not staying where I’m not wanted!” She shouts back. “What’s not fucking clicking, Joshua?” Alina snaps her fingers in his face, making him lean back slightly. “You wanted me to sit there and watch him brush me off all night? Make me feel insecure?” She asks. “You wanted me to hear you shouting at him and upsetting your mother? Give them more reason to dislike me? They haven’t seen their son in months because he’s playing house with someone he wasn’t dating six months ago! ” Josh becomes silent, turning away from the woman next to him. He lifts his left hand to the bridge of his nose, gently pinching it.

Alina would watch him for a moment longer, her eyes unblinking. “You wanted me to watch you stare at your ex the entire night?” Josh’s head snaps at that question, his brows furrowed in confusion. He sucks his teeth at the woman.

“Bruh, what?”

“The girl at dinner. She’s your ex, right? That’s why Trin and Jon had to switch up their seating arrangement. No one would say what was going on, but I was able to catch on.” Between how Josh and Jon were acting and the speed round questions Rikishi was asking her, it only made sense to Alina to assume she was an ex. You don’t move around people like that if they weren’t their ex. Alina gave Theo not even a second at the wedding despite his multiple attempts to talk to her. For the majority of the day, they were apart. The exes were two ships passing at night until he started floating too close to her.

“She ain’t nothing to me.” He dismisses the assumption after several seconds of quiet.

“I’ve heard that before––,” Alina shrugs.

Oh, how the tables have turned in two days. What Josh was saying to her about Theo, she was now saying about him. Both accusations were untrue, but only one had a higher chance of being true. Where Alina had no contact with Theo, Josh did with Lílí––but he knew who he wanted, and the fact that she said those words infuriated him. He was not him. “Ay, ay, Lina? Don’t fucking compare me to that man. I mean that shit.” He says. “I ain’t nothing like him.” His name and Theo’s should never be in the same sentence, but it was thrown in there, all because of something out of his control. He wasn’t about to plead his case with her over Málí either. He has never given Alina a reason not to trust him––why would he now?

“You know what,” She breathes, “I don’t want to argue anymore, Josh,” She states, standing to her feet. “I’m going to bed.” She wasn’t about to listen to this.

And there she goes, running away from her issues instead of facing them head-on. It was one of her greatest flaws and the thing about Alina that pissed Josh off the most. “Who said we’re done talking?” Josh asks, standing up to block her path.

“You don’t have to be done with shit, Josh, but I am.” She says, moving to the side. He would take another step to block her. Her eyes would find his chest––her lips twisted as she bit back acidic words. “Can you move?” She requests.

“Nope, we’re talking.” He says. No, you’re yelling, she thought. “I’ve spent two years chasing your selfish ass––.” Now, it was her turn to cut him off. Her hands go up in disbelief.

“Selfish!? Really? Really?” She shouts.

“Yeah, really!” He nods. “You got me embarrassing myself for you, trying to prove to you that I am worthy of your time––and you’re going to sit up here and compare me to a bitch that didn’t have the balls to tell you he wasn’t feeling you anymore? Huh?” She sidesteps him, only for him to block her way again. “All because your stupid ass Ex fucked around on your ass don’t mean I will.”

Alina takes a step back at his words, slightly tilting her head at him. “Mm,” She hums, taking a few more steps back. His last words cut through her like a blade. She didn’t like that. Well, damn. Tell me how you really feel, she thought. “Maybe we shouldn’t be doing this.” She voices. She averts her eyes from the man, looking from left to right. “Things were a helluva lot peaceful when we were just friends.” She confesses.

Those words felt weird coming from her mouth, probably because she did not believe a single word she was saying. She loves this man who stands in front of her, loves him with every fiber of her being, but these last few days were too much for her to handle. They’d only had one day of peace in the three days they’d been home together, and she was exhausted. She was tired of crying. She was tired of feeling like she did something to deserve any energy she got from people. She’s done nothing.

Josh’s shoulders would slump at her words––any anger that he had previously was now gone. He smacks his lips at her words, shaking his head. “Lina––.” He says, reaching to grab her hand. Alina slips out of his grasp, pulling her hand from his. She didn’t want him touching her.

“No,” She says, shaking her head. “I’m cool. We’re cool.” She assures him, stepping around him. He allowed her by this time. “I’m going to sleep in the guest room tonight, get my stuff from your room in the morning, and I’m going to head out after. Save you from embarrassing yourself anymore.”

Before Josh could say anything else, Alina had rushed from the living room, leaving the regret-filled man standing in the center of the room. Josh brings his hand to his mouth, clasping it tight over his mouth.

He needed to sit down.

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A/N: Yay, new chapter! Who cheered! 🤭

🏷️ list: @thesamoanqueen @whatdoeseverybodywant @headoftheetable @mzv11 @southerngirl41 @yana3sworld @wanderingreigns @wrestlingprincess80 @siriuslycee @vebner37 @astridxxxxxx @alichesmi @tshepisho @scarlettnoir01 @brokenglassslippers @reignsboy19 @sayyestoheav3nn @cyberdejos2 @empressdede @sisinever @truefant4sy @paigereeder @tbmotw @fearlesschimera @venusesworld @usoholic @sageispunk @bebesobrielo @jstarr86 @vibessonvibes @issahyland @fandomphasess @evilli0s @xoxoneah

#wwe fanfiction #wwe fic #jey uso #main event jey uso #jey uso fanfiction #jey uso x black oc #jey uso x oc #jey uso fanfic #Spotify

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ovaryacted · 2 days ago

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─ Javier Peña x fem! reader || WC: 693

CW: MDNI/18+. Slightly NSFW. Post DEA/Retired! Javier Peña. Javi & reader are married. Setting is at some family celebration idk lmao. Sexual innuendos. Sexual tension & teasing. Sex flashbacks and daydreaming. They are down bad for one another.

This has been in my drafts for a couple of days, figured I'd just share it now instead of letting it dust away in the notes lolz. Javi deserves some love from me, I miss him. This is also me writing after a couple of days of sadness so be nice pleak!

You’ve been through it all with the one and only Javier Peña. All the stressors and toxicity of his government job leaving Colombia, the nightmares, the self-loathing. Being and growing with him took time, and learning him as a human being taught you the patience you never thought you’d gain. He was an enigma you had to figure out, and miraculously, when he realized you were the puzzle piece he’d been missing all along, everything else followed through. After a few years together and an exchange of vows, things in your life have been more abundant than you thought possible, and now you’ve both reaped the benefits of going through those trials and tribulations together.

Sitting on his left side, the sounds of the banquet hall tuned out as you merely stared at your husband in awe. Dressed in a suit and his hair slicked back, you couldn’t help but let your mind wander as you admired him from afar. The invitation to a family celebration landed in your mail a few weeks ago, something a bit more formal for your taste, but neither of you could turn it down, nor did you want to.

You especially weren’t complaining when you saw how Javi dressed for the event, donning a black blazer, crisp white button-down, sleek black slacks, and dark leather shoes. He even changed his hairstyle, brushing his hair back after getting a haircut and his jaw clear of facial hair after his close shave. When he kissed you on the cheek as you did your makeup, you could still smell the aftershave he used and his musky cologne, overwhelming your senses in the best way.

Your mind drifted as you daydreamed about his hands and how he used them. His plush lips, the way they caress you, map you out without having to ask. That mouth of his that spews the most diabolical and erotic things as he pleases you with no end in sight, the thought alone heated your cheeks and sent an electric pulse through your body.

You didn’t realize you were fidgeting in your seat until a hand grasped your thigh. Blinking and looking down to spot Javi’s left hand covering the length of your upper leg, he offered an affectionate squeeze, the golden wedding band on his ring finger gleaming under the hall’s light.

“What are you thinking up there, cariño?” He asked you, brown eyes reverently taking in your face as his thumb stroked your leg.

“Nothing much. Promise.” You couldn’t even look him straight in the eye, noticing how he leaned forward to whisper in your ear.

“Mentirosa,” he muttered with a smirk, the dimples you loved making an appearance as he sunk his teeth into his bottom lip.

“If you stay on your best behavior for the rest of the night, I’ll give you something sweet when we get home. Deal?”

It was a proposition you couldn’t ignore. You knew what to expect, and the shiver rolling down your spine gave enough leeway that you understood the intent of his message.

“Deal,” you replied confidently, accepting the kiss he placed on your lips, a momentary tease of what the rest of the night would entail.

“Good. I don’t want everybody in here to know how dirty-minded my wife is.” You chuckled, glancing at him with a slightly raised eyebrow.

“That’s all you, baby. Don’t get it twisted.”

“Touché. But can you blame me? Not when you look this good in black.” He squeezed your thigh a bit harder this time, making his possession known the way you liked. “You aren’t the only one daydreaming right now, but a couple more hours, and we’ll make it a reality.”

You mimicked his grin, placing your left hand over his to clasp around his fingers. He instinctively took your hand, rubbing his thumbs over your knuckles and grazing over the diamond ring that sat prettily on your finger. As you both talked to other relatives to pass the time, you kept his offer in the back of your mind, remembering to ticket it in once you’re away from prying eyes and in the comforts of your home.

©️ ovaryacted 2024. Please don’t repost, copy, translate, or feed into any AI. Support your fellow creators by reblogging, commenting, and liking!

#javier peña smut #javier peña x reader #javier peña x you #javier peña x female reader #javier peña x f!reader #javier peña headcanons #javier peña #pedro pascal #pedro pascal characters #ovaryacted drabbles #⋆♱ nic works ♱⋆

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bunniehunn · 2 days ago

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Yuubeni Chōga

Finally, Yuubeni’s character intro! She’s my yuusona/partial self insert(ish?) Tumblr destroyed the resolution click for a clearer view 😭😭 Me yapping A LOT about her under the cut!

Appearance:

Yuubeni is a young woman with light, freckled olive toned skin and dark brown, almost black eyes. Barely below average at 5’3, with a small build and curves. Still has some baby fat around the stomach area. She has short, curly dark brown hair, usually down. Her fashion fluctuates between the extremes of pink and feminine to looking like she just hopped out of a Dick’s Sporting Goods.

Personality:

Yuubeni is an introverted girl, who always likes to help her friends. She struggles a lot in multiple aspects of her life, like taking care of herself or school work, but she always seems to have energy to assist someone in need. She has adhd and anxiety, and she’s a little sensitive to negative attitudes towards her. She’s a bit naive and gullible, which gets her and her friends into less than desirable situations constantly. She’s also a bit self-conscious socially, and she tries to avoid talking much about herself or her interests in fear of embarrassing herself. If you do get her to talk about something she’s passionate about, though, she switches up to probably one of the highest energy people you’ve ever met. Of course, she’ll probably be thinking about that moment for days, scared you found her weird. She waters down her personality, and won’t let too many people get close. It’s easier for her to befriend extroverts so she doesn’t have to speak, or those who some might say are a little out of the norm.

Backstory:

Yuubeni was born into a very normal family. Her family moved around constantly due to her father’s job, and they never stayed quite in one place for too long. The most recent place they moved was the one they’d stayed for the longest, and Yuubeni really started to feel like she fit in. Of course, she can’t have anything nice, can she? Just as she finally felt comfortable, another move was announced. Distraught, she ‘took a walk’ in the middle of the night. During her ‘walk’, was the moment the sound of horse hooves clopping against pavement were heard, and moments later she blacked out. Waking up in a floating coffin was, obviously, VERY anxiety-inducing for her.

Now at NRC, she’s having trouble juggling her school work, duties, friends, and the constant overblots.

A relationship chart + some extra blurbs.

Random Tidbits!:

Started an art club at school! (Mostly so she can have school-sanctioned art time. Doesn’t expect anybody else to join.)

Gamer! Will get Ortho to convince (force) Idia to play with her. It’s a source of comfort for her.

Sings and acts, likes to do theatre but gets really bad stage fright. Like, straight up full-body shaking.

Her favorite flower is a hydrangea! Her brooch on her striped bow is based off a hydrangea petal.

Loves to do her nails in funky designs.

REALLY easy to scare. Do not scare her, she WILL cry.

Her main symbol/motif is a butterfly!

★彡

GAAAAH I FINALLY MADE IT!!! I’m really proud of her drawing, it’s only my third time attempting to mimick twst style and I think I did good. Sorry this is so long 😭

Tagging! @gimmeurmoneyagh @babyghoul138 @jadenui @taruruchi

@amai-sakura-chan @day-dr3aming @buttholesparkles @mirioho @cheerleaderman

@theolivetree123 @h0neybane @angelwishess @fell-e @tsubomisno1fan

@screamintoad @crystallizsch @skibidibabygirl @moonyasnow @beneathsakurashade

@boopshoops @the-rini-rush

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inumbrapugnabimus-maybe · 23 hours ago

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A link design!!! For a story that’s solid enough in my head to possibly become a comic ehehe

some notes:

Link has been Heroing for some time now, with minimal success. He’s a bit grumpy.

he also has a bulky brown overcoat, but I haven’t figured out what it looks like yet so i didn’t draw it lol

the gloves are to hide his scar, but also help in the cold. Because this Hyrule is rather cold :)

The overtunics are both pretty new, which is the only reason they aren’t torn to bits. The same person who made them mended his pants and made his hat, which is why the patches match cloth in other parts of his outfit.

the scar on his face is from a lizalfos. I figured, if the Dilophosaurus in Jurassic Park gets to spit acid, then shouldn’t a lizalfos get to too? So it’s an acid burn. He’s lucky he dodged most of it!

I’m still figuring out how to accurately depict the scars, so they don’t look quite right yet! With research and practice I’ll get there!

the other scar I will not get into for plot reasons hehe

This is the same story the above Zelda design is for!! I’ve posted her design in varying stages before, here, here and here, but the story in the previous posts has changed a bit since!! There are also some really old doodles of Link if you (hehe) follow the links.

the above is Zelda’s formal dress. I designed it with a girl a little younger than her in mind, because she loses most of her wardrobe when she’s about 12! So I really ought to draw this on her younger self XD

Finally, scrapped Ganondorf and Link designs!!!

don’t look into these too much as I’m only putting them here because I’ll never post them otherwise; they do not fit the story at all lol

Ganondorf is gonna be… really hard to design… I made him a very complex character and his personality is so intertwined with the story there is a lot to be taken into account XD

ummm that’s all for now!!! I doubt many people will read all this but feel free to send asks if you have questions nevertheless :D

#dreamers au #character design #dreamers link #Dreamers zelda #Dreamers ganondorf #Loz au #tloz au #the legend of zelda #my art #art #the legend of zelda au #I love this story so much guys #For Link it’s like a post apocalyptic if-i-dont-do-this-or-the-world-will-end situation with both American Western and Irish folktale vibes #meanwhile Zelda’s living her best life in some sort of buddy-cop style adventure rom com #and ganondorf’s stuck in some kind of film noir horror story merged with high fantasy and a lot of really gloomy weather #it’s definitely a comfort story and I haven’t even written much of it

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iheartsteve0704 · 21 hours ago

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Agathario Imagine Me & You AU

(Where it’s not just the movie verbatim)

Agatha is a single mom and she has been for 6 years now

There’s no baby daddy (thank god) because she adopted Nicky all on her own and there has never been someone else in the picture

But 3 years ago she met this guy, Ralph, at work and he has to be one of the only men she’s dated that isn’t a shit head

Agatha is bi but has a favoring for women so she surprised herself when she accepted Ralph’s proposal on a windy afternoon in New York City right by the water

She thinks she accepted it because she wasn’t getting any younger and no other prospects were in her sights but also Ralph was a decent, good man which is rare. Especially in Manhattan.

He had a great job, he was kind, he wasn’t a Republican, and he was the type of guy who would never cheat on her.

Agatha didn’t want to call it settling but she could do a lot worse

In terms of Nicky, in the 3 years she’s dated Ralph, her little boy hasn’t fully warmed up to the guy. It’s not a bad concerning thing, if it were Agatha would’ve called it off asap

Sometimes Ralph will try to play with Nicky and the boy allows it but his mom can tell he’s hesitant or letting the guy be around him out of pity. She doesn’t think much of it though because Nicky is like that in general, he’s a tough cookie to crack (just like his mom)

So Agatha and Ralph make preparations for their wedding over the course of serval months and it’s a shitstorm with work, taking care of Nicky, and having some resemblance of a social life

When it comes time to try on dresses, Agatha realizes her circle is pretty small. She cut ties with her mom a long time ago (big homophobe! And just terrible risk overall!) but she did still have her two lifelong best friends: Alice and Jen, both her MOHs. The two women happily took the day off of work to come along and help their best friend find a dress and she also decides to bring Nicky too

They had 3 dress shops to check out (one being Agatha’s dream shop, Klienfield)

Agatha and Nicky are the first to show up to the first shop of the day, which is a small business Jen suggested (something about how she walks past it on her way home everyday and it looked promising)

And it was for sure small, the place wasn’t grand like the other stores Agatha has seen pictures of online but the dresses inside were absolutely stunning and Agatha was enamored by each and every one of them

She was busy admiring the dresses when she notices that Nicky had disappeared, she starts to panic until she hears his small sweet voice rapidly and excitedly asking questions from a little bit farther into the room

She walks into the back where she find Nicky (practically jumping up in down in curiosity) watching over a woman hand sewing what looked like 300 small pearl beads on to a lace vial

Agatha watches them for a second longer, how the woman’s voice was so sweet and patient with her son, but then she clears her throat and the two finally two around

Agatha’s breath hitches and she forgets how to speak when the woman turns around. Shes at least ten years younger than herself and has sharp features and these big beautiful brown eyes. She had to be the most stunningly beautiful woman Agatha has ever seen in her life

The younger woman is observant and clocks Agatha’s reaction so she slap on a cocky smirk and gets up from her chair where she offers her hand and introduces herself as Rio Vidal, the shop owner who hand crafts each of the wedding dresses

Rio asks about her fiance and assumes it’s a woman and when Agatha says it’s a man, rio’s face falls and for some reason Agatha decides to awkwardly and loudly reveal she’s actually bisexual (which earns her a laugh)

From the shock of her beauty to the shock of the woman’s incredible talent, Agatha is acting like a complete fool but is saved by the literal bell of the front door opening and Alice and Jen arriving

What Agatha failed to know about dress fittings, and to realize before gaining the knowledge that the shop owner was this beautiful and attractive young woman, is that an attendant comes into the dressing room with you to help so they pretty much see you naked and then after their hands are all over the place on your body pinning things in place and seeing what needs to be fixed

But Agatha also tried to remind herself that while Rio was captivating, she was also a professional and this was her business so Agatha tried her best to be professional too (she failed when Rio’s knuckles grazed up her bare back when she zipped up her dress)

Agatha tries on 5 dresses and falls in love with one dress instantly (and tries not to let a blush creep onto her cheeks and down her neck when Rio gives her an earth shattering compliment and her brown eyes rake over her body slowly)

And during the entire dress fitting, Agatha couldn’t help but notice her young son talking off Rio’s ear and practically being glued to the woman’s side. It even got to the point where Nicky ended up holding onto Rio’s tub of dress pins while the woman pinned the dress into place

It hit time to head to the next dress shop and Agatha tried not to reel when Rio professional hand shake goodbye as she left (Nicky did give Rio a giant hug and Agatha did melt at the sight of that)

In the taxi on the way to the next shop, Alice and Jenn strike up conversation about how hot Rio was and it makes Agatha’s blood literally boil but then it hits her… why does it matter to her? She’s getting married! To a man! She’s still bi but still she was getting married and this conversation didn’t matter to her. It didn’t matter how good Rio looked in her loose jeans and open button down top because Agatha was getting married in 5 months

The rest of the day Agatha is lost in her mind (lost in Rio) and that follows her all the way home when she’s sitting at the dinner table with Ralph and Nicky. She’s staring into space as Ralph tries to talk to Nicky who either ignores the man or gives him short, vague answers

Later that night, she’s alone and sitting up in bed cyber stalking Rio’s shop Instagram page and finds the younger woman’s personal account. Ralph steps into the room, startling her when asks her if she’s fine because she’s been acting weird all day and that causes Agatha to accidentally double tap on a photo Rio posted 5 years ago. Then she learns she can’t undo it and Agatha gets defensive and snaps at him.

Ralph sleeps on the couch that night, he offers to give her space, and Agatha feels bad until her phone buzzes and it’s a notification that Rio has followed her on Instagram and sent her a message. That night, agatha can’t go to sleep because she’s dying of embarrassment and excitement

The very next day Agatha finds herself showing up to the dress shop alone and tells Rio that she’ll take the dress

Rio teases her about the Instagram like and then forces a pout when she says Agatha didn’t follow her back, Agatha melts at the sight and pulls out her phone so fast

Rio asks about the other stores they visited and Agatha accidentally lets the words “there’s no one like you” slip from her mouth and tries to recover by adding “I mean no one makes dresses as beautiful as you. Yours! Your dresses, I mean”. A cocky smile is infuriating but Agatha can’t help but be pulled to her

Agatha finds herself lingering in the shop much longer than needed and Rio lets her, chatting her up and asking her about Nicky (which makes Agatha’s heart thud inside her chest) and they’re flirting most definitely but neither them can stop

But the shop bell rings and a pretty red headed woman struts in with a brown paper bag filled with food and drops it on the counter, not even blinking an eye at Agatha, and kissing Rio on her cheek. Agatha looks away quickly, spills out some pathetic quick goodbye and leaves before Rio could say anything else

Its three weeks later when Agatha is fuming at Ralph because they had court-side tickets to the Liberty game (thanks to his job) but he forgot he has to go to a dinner with his boss (another woman btw)

They’re fighting (as in Agatha is yelling at Ralph) when the phone rings and Ralph picks up. “It’s Rio? From Vidal Dresses?” he says and Agatha tries to grab for the phone but Ralph continues to speak. He’s humming in agreement until his eyes light up. He asks Rio if she’s busy tonight and then somehow that ends up with Rio and Agatha going to the Liberty game together

They meet up outside Barclays center by the VIP entrance and Rio both cool and adorable wearing her baggy jeans, a loose shirt with the sleeves rolled up and her liberty hat on and all go a sudden Agatha feels silly for the tight blue dress she didn’t bother changing out of from work and even voices that. That silliness melts away though when Rio’s eyes give her a once over and her brown eyes go wide when she realizes she’s been caught.

Keeping Agatha’s slight discomfort in her mind, when they are seated before the game to starts, Rio gets up to go to the “bathroom” and comes back with a matching hat similar to her own and an oversized jersey. Agatha slips on the jersey and Rio sounds breathless when she says how cute she looks. Agatha blushes and thanks her with a hand on her arm and is so busy putting it fixing the hat onto her head that she misses the longing look Rio gives her

It’s not as tense or awkward as they’d both it would be considering they both love basketball and love the liberty. They’re both passionate, yelling, waving around their white towels, and standing up from their seats to yell at the refs

Rio even challenges Agatha to chug her beer and as a prize she’ll buy another on her. Agatha initially declines with a nervous laugh but when Rio makes a teasing joke about not being a chicken, Agatha’s eyes light up. Making a show of tilting her head back and wiping at her mouth with the back of her hand. Rio has to school her reaction and how turned on it made her feel

During the start of the third quarter, they call a timeout and they start up the kiss cam. Rio and Agatha are shoulder to shoulder, laughing up at the screen at the shocked couples until it pans on them. Both their mouths fall open and it’s Rio who shakes her head, plastering on her signature cocky smile and wagging her finger no.

The camera moves to 2 more couples before going back to them and the crowd erupts in a chant. The two women look at each other and for a minute Agatha thinks Rio will kiss her on the mouth right the and there and Agatha finds she really wants her to. The younger woman does close in but a wave of disappointment hits Agatha when soft lips meet her temple instead

The crowd boos and the announcer starts up another kiss chant. The women look at each other again and it’s Agatha makes the rash decision and leans in, connecting their lips. It’s supposed to be quick but when Rio melts into it, Agatha puts her hands on soft cheeks and deepens the kiss. They pull apart after a while and even though everyone is staring and the arena is roaring just for them. Nothing mattered because it felt like they were the only two people in the word right then

After the game, Rio walks Agatha home and they stand in front of the luxury apartment building awkwardly, the air filled with tension. Rio nods her head and starts to turn around to leave when Agatha pulls at her arm and their bodies collide. They are pretty much sharing the same air, only inches a part when Agatha decides to do something stupid and ask about the red head from the shop.

Rio tells her it was a one night stand who can’t understand the words not interested (and that should set alarms in Agatha’s head. That Rio isn’t looking for serious because she’s young and that should turn Agatha away but it’s doesn’t) and then Rio asks if she’s jealous. Agatha says no.

A moment passes and the Rio looks down at Agatha’s lips for a long moment before connecting with blue eyes and saying “well I’m jealous” running her thumb over Agatha’s lower lip, caressing her cheek gently before turning and walking away and never turning back around because god she’d run away with this woman if she asked her

They don’t see each other again and maybe it’s a good thing because Agatha could just write it off as a one time blip that will never happen again but Agatha does keep seeing Rio everywhere. She sees her being featured in bridal magazines looking absolutely sexy and adorable, posting in Instagram with mystery women Agatha doesn’t know, and sometimes Agatha sees dark hair out in the wild and a pang of disappointment fills her body when it turns out to be someone else. Agatha always brushes off these instances as nothing but she knows deep down it’s something

And she can’t silence the nagging in the back of her mind when one night Alice and Jen are over for a wine night and the two single openly lesbian women pull up their hinge accounts and they all cuddle up on the couch and filter through the different women and Jen lands on Rio. Agatha wordlessly grabs the phone and starts looking through her profile and the pictures that weren’t found on her Instagram and made Agatha’s heart squeeze.

Then jealously overtook her, knowing that other women were looking at her profile. Other women were messaging her, flirting, asking her out, spending no time with her, taking her back to their place to- no! Agatha shoves the phone back into Jen’s hands and downs her wine in one gulp

Jen jokes about wanting to send Rio a like and that was Agatha’s last straw, who pours herself another glass and downs it again

She tries to forget Rio after that but when she closes her eyes at night, all she can see is that signature smirk and those big brown eyes

On the day of her wedding she almost slips her coffee all over her white satin robe when Rio walks into the bridal suite in a black floral mini dress and her bridal dress bagged and draped off her arm

Agatha had forgotten that that a part of Rio’s business is that she hand delivers the dress on the day and stays around until after the ceremony to make sure the dress is good for the whole celebration. The fact that those big brown eyes are going to be watching her all day, walk down the aisle, marry this man, made Agatha want to throw up

Rio greets her with a kiss on her cheek (which shouldn’t be weird it’s a normal greeting) but Agatha can’t help the blush that paints over her face

Agatha can’t focus on anything else but Rio’s presence in the room. Rio playing with Nicky, her cousins fawning over the younger woman, both Jen and Alice trying to endlessly flirt with her which makes the bride to be harshly bite down on her bottom lip and make it literally bleed

When he hair and makeup are down, her and Rio go to a secluded space to get her dress on and Agatha is literally shaking in anticipation

It’s quiet and the tension is killing both of them so Agatha stupidly brings up if Rio has had anymore one night stands or seen that red head again. Rio is dead serious when she tells her no, that she recently discovered she’s looking for more. That she’s looking to settle down. She jokes that it’s because of her business, that it’s influencing her and while that could be true they both know the real reasoning

Rio’s gently takes Agatha’s soft long hair and brings it over her shoulder, her knuckles grazing her skin which makes Agatha shiver. Agatha watches eyes take over her curves and their eyes meet in the mirror and their breathing both labored

A knock on the door startles them both and it’s Ralph, with his hand covered over his eyes but declares he doesn’t believe in that tradition and takes in his wife to be. He sweeps her into a kiss and when Agatha looks over his shoulder, Rio is long gone

She doesn’t see Rio again until she’s being walking down the aisle and catches Rio standing by the exit, an unreadable expression on her face, before she turns and leaves

Agatha convinces herself she can do this, that Rio was no one to her, that her feelings mean nothing and Ralph is right here ready to marry her but then she finds herself speaking up when the priest asks if anyone objects. All she says is sorry to Ralph (who looks at her in understanding) before running out of the church (Alice and Jen high five, smiling from ear to ear because maybe they knew something was going on all along and maybe tried to make Agatha jealous all day)

Rio is back in her shop, luckily no brides to be coming are scheduled to come in today, so keeps the shop sign on closed and she sits in the back, letting herself cry.

She doesn’t even know why she’s this emotional. She doesn’t even know this woman for real but there’s something so clearly there and that fact that she can’t even explore it, explore her, is killing Rio inside because she can just feel that whatever they could’ve had would’ve been once in a life time, magical.

Rio has always thought the term soulmate was idiotic and made up but when she met Agatha, all she wanted to do was please her. To make her smile. To be around her. She feels tethered to someone who just got married to a man and she was spiraling.

The bell of her store dings and through tears she yells that the shop is closed only to look up in see Agatha, hair matted from running, still in her wedding dress and clearly out of breath

Agatha doesn’t need to say anything, they both understand what’s happened. Rio gets up and runs towards her and Agatha meets her halfway. They kiss, melting into each others embrace, knowing this is the start of something incredible and forever

Two years later they are getting married at city hall with Jen and Alice as witnesses and MOHs again and Nicky as Rio’s best man. Agatha wears a chic white satin dress with a matching white neck scarf that Rio spent over a 1000 hours crafting especially for her wife to be and Nicky is wearing a matching suit as Rio (that she also made) and it’s the sweetest thing Agatha has ever seen, she loves how much her little boy adores Rio as much as she does. The wedding photo they blow up in their shared apartment is them on the steps of city hall. Both women lifting up Nicky into the air who holds up both of their bouquets in joy above them as the two women kiss

#not beta read we die like mrs hart #SOMEONE PLS WRITE THIS ON AO3 IN FULL #DONT EVEN TAG ME IDC IDC #I LOVE MODERN AU AGATHARIO BRO AGHHHHHHH #I ALWAYS WRITE TOO MUCH WHEN I DO THESE LOL #agatha all along #agatha harkness #agathario #aubrey plaza #kathryn hahn #rio x agatha #agatha x rio #rio vidal #mcu #wlw

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lets-try-some-writing · 5 hours ago

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I just read this ask about skin care and i had a bit of a similar ask

What would bot think about eyes colors ? They only know yellow, red and blue ones, so when they see brown, black, green, heterochromia or grey ones (i do have grey eyes, it is a sign of a lack of melanin in your body (im the defenition of being white asf i can't go outside without sunscreen)), how would they react to that?

They would find it facinating.

Cybertronians come into being with many various optical lens colors. The coloration has very little to do with function or frame type when a bot is born naturally. Some say it connects to the color of the spark. Others swear up and down that optic color ties each mech to a Prime. The various religious cults across Cybertron used to herald specific colors as being more pure than the others. Science, however, dictates that optical lens coloration is completely randomized for mecha born of the Well of Allsparks. There is no divine reasoning behind it. The cold forged are a different story, that with most low caste bots being given red optical lenses in order to help them work better in low light areas. The Prime is also another similar case since every single Prime to have carried the Matrix has been recorded having blue optics. Most high caste bots chalked the low caste and the Prime's optical lens colorations always coming out the same as being Primus's divine ordainment of functionalism.

Both Optimus and Megatron shut such views down after they came into power in their respective factions.

With all that stated, I believe the bots would think eye colors are interesting, and maybe even a little worrying considering their own history. Seeing as humans can't pop out of the ground randomly, the bots look at their eye colors as a denotation of birth function, at least for the most part. Those with blue, grey, or green eyes tend to come from the colder regions of Earth, generally being of paler skin. As such, the bots tend to look at them as the flight frames of Earth due to the relative rarity of the colors and their nature as recessive genes. Flight frames on Cybertron were not particularly common after all. Brown eyed humans are seen as the grounders of Earth, being most common but often quite resourceful and hardy. The bots do recognize that in light of modernization, it is now difficult to decipher the 'frame type' of most humans, but they still take note on instinct.

The eyes of humans are fascinating, especially those with unusual colors. The ones with odd eyes are the triple changers, beastformers, and predacons of humanity. Rare in the extreme, but gifted in something unique. Humanity is an interesting race, and while the bots are well aware that humans don't technically have frame types like they do, the comparisons come anyway.

#transformers #maccadam #transformers prime #team prime #cybertronian biology #cybertronian culture #cybertronian worldbuilding

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schoenpepper · 2 days ago

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Just like the last anon I kinda do think that your writing and story for Ruggie SMAU was the one I liked the most. Do you think you can turn this into a fanfic? Like a continuation of what's happening in Ruggie's life after the death of his lover if you don't mind? 👀

When the Time After You Comes

Warnings: bad grammar, awful writing, not proofread, angst, major character death (you)

A/N: PSA I opened up a kofi haha it's on my bio. You don't need to tip, but if you like my work and have a dollar or two to spare, I do need to fix my phone :D Not opening comms tho just req if you want me to write anything kkk

Sunlight peeks through cottony white clouds and bathes Ruggie in all its too-bright glory. It’s nauseating, almost. The birds are chirping too loud and every face he encounters in a crowd looks to be smiling. It could be the truth. It could be his tired brain playing tricks on him—one can’t assume that a sleep deprived hyena hybrid would be very alert or active when the bags under his eyes are almost big enough to carry the takeout in his hands and his steps stagger to the point that the single red rose almost tethers over the plastic holding it in place. He’s not a pretty sight.

Oh, but you always are.

He’d asked his grandmother to take the time out of every Sunday to help clean your resting place, so even now—when it’s the first time he’s visited you in over a month—your headstone shines pristine as the day it was mounted. There are wilting flowers that he has to clear away, likely from your old friends in NRC, but he takes a seat on the grass beside you.

He can still see your smile.

“Sorry, I’ve been away forever, I know,” he places the rose atop the headstone, “I just…”

Ruggie sighs.

He ruffles a hand through his hair, fluffing up the brown and blond mess so that the locks stick up with his twitching ears. His tail taps rhythmically against the engraving of your name, as if the fur was gently caressing each and every letter. “I took up another job,” he moves to open the takeout box, “I need to pay off that loan. I know Leona’s not going to ask me ‘bout it anytime soon, and it’s a damn good deal that he’s not even taking any interest, but I can’t just sit by knowing even at your final moments I was still leeching off someone else.” Maybe it was a sick, twisted sort of possessiveness. He chose your coffin and the plot of land, and the flowers and the people at the funeral. Yet he couldn’t bring out a single dime because you would have despised that.

“I’d be dead and gone, but you would still need to live.”

You understood him. You knew he was just about ready to ignore his own wellbeing for you, and you convinced him his money would be better off feeding his family.

He could never win against you.

Ruggie stabs the flimsy plastic fork through the sauteed beef, almost breaking off the tines. It’s too salty. Not nearly as good as when you used to go to that restaurant with him.

“Maybe they skimped on quality control.”

His words hold no merit when he has to wipe the tears running down his chin.

“It’s soupy…”

After visiting, he needs to get to his part time job. Leona pays well, but Ruggie has so many things stacking against him that the world might as well be atop that list. He needs to pay for the money that the lion beastman had shelved out for your funeral. He needs to pay his own bills. He needs to pay to send the smarter kids to school. He needs to pay to keep his grandma on maintenance. In life and in death, the bills are haunting him.

Even the roses he gives every time he visits are expensive.

Red roses.

Not white lilies or whatever flowers the shops outside the cemetery are selling. He has such a different message to convey; he misses you, but most of all, he wants to express that the love he feels for you has not dimmed since the day you left. It still burns with a raging, passionate fire that allows him to keep going, keep moving, keep living and not just slump down in the back of some alley and wait to join you on the other side.

He cleans up the boxes and plastic cutlery.

He stands up, pats the dust off his pants, and looks at your name again.

It’s already carved into his soul.

“Please don’t be mad if I don’t come for another month,” he sighs, “you know I think about you every day. Just, when the finances get a bit better, alright? I’ll buy you a dozen roses in the fancy bouquets.”

For now, he’ll just have to leave you again.

Taglist:

@yummyyummyinmytumny @fsh1 @lemon-koii

#disney twst #disney twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland #gender neutral reader #twst x reader #x reader #ruggie bucchi x reader #ruggie x reader #ruggie bucchi

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iamthepulta · 3 days ago

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Differences between pyrite and chalcopyrite? (With pictures?) 👀👀

Okay! Initial differences! Pyrite is FeS2. Chalcopyrite (creatively named) is CuFeS2. Pyrite is an almost silvery yellow on a fresh surface; chalcopyrite is more of a bronzy yellow. The difference is subtle, but once your eye is tuned, you can almost always pick out bits of chalcopyrite in a sea of pyrite.

Pyrite is a little harder when scratched and the cleavage of the minerals helps too: pyrite almost always breaks with glittering sharp edges unless it's pretty oxidized or weathered. chalcopyrite is rough, almost like a smear. I think it's much closer to looking like gold, than real fool's gold, tbh.

It's really hard for a camera to properly catch that glint, but I gave it a shot:

This sample is a good 50/50 Py-Cpy, and I think the portions that look smoother are simply weathering from the sample being passed around. But you can still see Py is almost... brighter. And on the left, there's a very clear crystal of straight yellow Cpy that stands out.

This is more typical copper ore material. I think this sample was nearly all disseminated Cpy. Not great for differentiating the Py-Cpy color, but you'll see this all the time.

I just really wanted to talk about this one, lol. LOOK IT'S SO COOL IF BLURRY. I think it's an IOCG (iron oxide copper gold deposit type) massive sulfide sample. The bronze in the far lower left is Cpy, but the red in the middle is specular hematite (hematite that formed from hydrothermal solution rather than oxidized at the surface). The majority of the rock is magnetite, and I think some of the brassy-silver color in the center is pyrrhotite.

Pyrrhotite is pyrite one step to the left: Fex-1S. Because there's less iron, the Fe2+ has a very slight positive charge, just like magnetite where the Fe2+ offsets the charge balance of the other Fe3+ and S ions.

ANYWAY, this rock is nuts and I can't wait to cut it open and stick it under the microprobe~

BEST FOR LAST~

This is massive disseminated chalcopyrite, but it's been sitting in the drawer for 20 years, I think. Pyrite and chalcopyrite really pop when weathered. So the gold-brown is Cpy, and the silver 'clast' on the edge is Py.

Additional unnecessary but fun rambling about ore mineralogy:

Like, mineralogically I think the biggest difference is that Fe2+ is cubic and Cu1+Fe3+ is tetragonal so it can fit weirder stuff in. If you start thinking about the minerals as part of the whole, 1+/3+ ionic bonded and 2+ ionic bonded Things are the most stable position for metals to be in.

I love these minerals but whenever I want to describe them, the word that pops into my mind first is Evil. Pyrite and Chalcopyrite are fucking evil. xD

They're stable under a huge range of pressures, temperatures, and oxdiation/sulfidation states. Iron is 2+ in pyrite and 3+ in chalcopyrite, so you can substitute pretty much any 2+ or 1+ metallic ion in the Fe and Cu sites, and sulfur will happily substitute for any non-metal or metalloid.

This means you can have pyrite in your deposit, but it's pyrite with an abnormal amount of... idk, tellurium. And that will change the properties of your pyrite, but not pyrite itself. This is an 'abnormal impurity' until you form frohbergite, which is FeTe2. And BOTH do this. Both cpy and py are sliding scales for almost every single ion that fits.

So if you're trying to process chalcopyrite but you have a large silver impurity in the copper site, it might react poorly with the flotation chemicals we use to separate it from pyrite. Or maybe be harder to grind to the proper size, which will take up more energy. (This is gauged experimentally before they set up the processing circuit because that's a lot of money, and to some degree I'm exaggerating the effects. But a friend is also texting me right now asking how tellurium in pyrite will change oxidation rate, so impurities are a non-negligible factor.)

ANYWAY. Pyrite and chalcopyrite are fucking myths that should be abolished except they're fucking everywhere, so they never will be. Lol.

Chalcopyrite is more yellow. xD

(as the thermodynamic pressure of oxygen in the system increases, ((not oxygen content)), you'll have greater minerals of oxidation. i.e. Magnetite Fe2+Fe3+O4 has an Fe2+ where Hematite has Fe3+O3, its 3+ is at a higher oxidation state. Pyrrhotite is low enough that it's just Fe2+.)

#BUT BACK ON TRACK. Chalcopyrite is yellower and less pointy when you look at it. xD TLDR.#Have a thermodynamic diagram too tho because right now I'm dwelling on all the forms that FeS2 takes and it's asklghafkjgh.#Don't start down the sulfide rabbit hole. I'm warning you now. There are like five different forms of pyrite that I know of.#And you know my brain damage about chalcopyrite. xDD #geology #mineralogy #asks answered #EVIL ASK BUT THANK YOU XDDDDDDDD

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lizhly-writes · 3 days ago

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@enigma-the-mysterious @theembergazer @lonesome-greenery @somefishycat @kitten-kokomo AIGHT I figure I've written at least 15 sentences here. Welcome to some fake dating shenanigans. Sort of.

There was a hairpin, intricately forged and set with amber stones, rich brown and warm gold.

If Liu Qingge was a poetic man -- which he wasn't -- he would compare them to Shang Qinghua's eyes. The way they looked when they caught the setting sun, when Shang Qinghua had triumphantly stormed Bai Zhan, the head of a legendary beast in hand, the edge of a grin on his mouth. Look, I did it just like you wanted me to. I did it just like how you never expected. Isn't it impressive? Aren't I impressive?

Liu Qingge put the hairpin down and walked away.

Five minutes later, Liu Qingge came back and bought the stupid hairpin.

What am I even doing, he thought, even as he handed the money over and carefully tucked the hairpin away in his qiankun pouch. I don't even like Shang Qinghua.

Even if he did like Shang Qinghua -- not that he liked Shang Qinghua -- it... wasn't enough.

A hairpin was traditional in a way that was significantly less impressive than three weeks of paperwork. It was proper, but it wasn't proper. It was. Sentimental. Sweet. It wasn't making an effort, and An Ding demanded effort.

It was still something. Surely a gift had to be better than no gift at all?

Liu Qingge came to An Ding at sunset.

How romantic. Shang Qinghua wondered if Liu Qingge had timed it, just like Shang Qinghua had when he visited Bai Zhan -- but nah, probably not. Liu Qingge wasn't really good at figuring out optics. If he was, he would have made this nice and public, so they could flaunt how much time they were spending together because clearly they were in love. Something like that, anyway.

Oh well, it didn't really matter. Shang Qinghua could still spin a nice little story about it. Gush a bit about how Liu-shidi had come to see him. The brave warrior returning home, eagerly rushing to see his lover's face, the first thing he did above anything else. Very nice. Now, if Liu Qingge could give him a dramatic declaration of love, it would be perfect.

"Welcome back, Liu-shidi," Shang Qinghua said. "How was your mission?"

"Fine," Liu Qingge said, and then, in a more constipated-sounding voice, he said, "Shang Qinghua."

Shang Qinghua waited with bated breath. This would be the perfect time to say something sentimental like, "I missed you! My love, my life, our parting was a deep sorrow that condemned my heart to the deepest, darkest abyss. What joy seeing your countenance does me! Let us passionately celebrate our reunion with etc etc to be continued, please check under the biggest stone under the most interestingly-shaped tree between Xian Shu and An Ding if you want to continue reading, pay a fee of one spirit stone."

"Yes?" Shang Qinghua said leadingly. He smiled his best smile.

This somehow seemed to be too much for Liu Qingge. "Here," he said brusquely, shoving a little bundle of wrapped cloth into Shang Qinghua's arms. Then he stalked off without another word.

Rude???

Rude! Rude!! Incredibly fucking rude! Okay, it wasn't like Shang Qinghua was actually expecting some kind of romantic confession, especially when there was no audience here to pretend for besides Shang Qinghua himself, but come on! What was that? Not even a hi, good to see you? What was even the point visiting An Ding, then? Seriously, just package delivery?

Shang Qinghua looked down. The little of wrapped cloth was, in fact, a neatly-wrapped package, which he wouldn't have paid much mind to if it had not been a prettily-wrapped package. Less routine delivery and more gift.

He tilted this situation around a bit in his head to see if there was literally any other way he could interpret it, but no, it seemed Liu Qingge really had just gotten him a gift and ran off, sort of like a shy maiden deeply afraid of rejection.

Shang Qinghua was torn between laughing at this picture in his head (Liu Qinge, shy maiden?) or staring confusedly at it (shy maiden? Liu Qingge???). He could have spent some time overthinking it, but instead, he decided just to open the package.

"Huh," Shang Qinghua said aloud.

There was no one around to hear him. It was just him, and a very beautiful hairpin between his fingers. That Liu Qingge had apparently gotten him.

A hairpin. From Liu Qingge.

Was it possible Liu Qingge meant to give it to someone else? Like his sister? His sister would probably like a hairpin. Maybe Liu Qingge had meant to give something else to Shang Qinghua, and had mixed up the packages.

But the gemstones on it were in An Ding colors.

There was a weird, fluttery feeling in the pit of his stomach.

...Indigestion, probably.

#asks #wip wednesday #enigma-the-mysterious #theembergazer #lonesome-greenery #somefishycat #kitten-kokomo #aiya i put a lot of you in here #svsss #shang qinghua #liu qingge #rr: the battle is the cure #remedies for ruin #my writing #i am not. totally sure where this goes in the chronology #whatever!!!! here you go!!!!

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evolutionsvoid · 2 days ago

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After a long day of preparing the fields, working the mines or fighting in a war that seemingly has no end, nothing sounds better than a good meal! All that labor really gets the appetite going, and hot food on a full table would be a blessed sight to any soul! And now with a war going on and supply lines disrupted, food has become more important than ever before! So lets see what's on the menu:

1. Hair Bulbs - Collected from hair fields or hair farms, pulled straight from the ground! These fleshy pods are at the end of harvested strands, and removal of them is necessary to use the keratin stalk. These bulbs are oily and meaty, often roasted either whole or in slices. They can also be squeezed for sebum oil, which can be used for cooking, lubrication or protective coatings.

2. Chitin Flour - A staple in baking, this substance is made from the pulverized exoskeletons of arthropods. As long as the shells contain chitin, any insect will do. Most of the time, chitin flour is made from all the leftover pieces of a hunted arthropod, as a way to use every piece of a kill. The flour you find in most villages is made up of an assortment of different species all ground up and mixed together. The finer stuff you find in high end bakeries are made from one species only and from specific parts, as food snobs claim that combining multiple sources into one muddles the flavor and makes poor quality flour. To be fair, using one species tends to preserve their exoskeleton color in the powder, while mixing usually results in the same drab brown.

3. Kumis - The star of any bar or tavern, kumis is an alcohol made from milk. A popular drink for any, its flavor is dependent on its source, as kumis can be made from any creature that lactates. While milk from beasts is often the common and cheaper option, many say that human breast milk makes the finest kumis. The demand and love for both milk and kumis is what led to the creation of milk maids, those who have trained their bodies to make copious amounts of the stuff. Popular bars typically have known milk maids under their employ, and pride themselves on having the pure stuff. In some cities with a vibrant nightlife, there are famous milk maids in some establishments whose product is widely sought after by fans and kumis connoisseurs, as they specially monitor their diet and lifestyle to produce their iconic flavor.

4. Louse Egg Kebab - A common food in villages that are near hair fields. The eggs of the Field Louse is harvested by taking the whole strand, as the secretions used to glue them to the keratin is too obnoxious to deal with. While trimming the hair can release the eggs, most folk go the simple route of stiffening the strand and then cooking it over a fire. The eggs are then eaten straight off the stalk, and the rest is discarded. A favorite for travelers passing through hair fields.

5. Eye Stalk - A fleshy growth that produces eye-like fruit. These are either eaten as is, or cooked into eye jelly. Belief is that they help improve eyesight, though some folk dismiss that due to their lack of Tears. Since Tears are an unofficial humor of the eye organa, folk would imagine that anything truly eye affecting would be tied to the chilling fluid. Regardless, the fruit is still pretty tasty, and the jelly is a popular spread for breads.

6. Clot Cakes - A baked treat that is made from copious amounts of clotted blood. Typically made by mixing clots and chitin flour, it is a dense loaf with a sharp flavor. Its heaviness and ability to survive travel well makes it a good ration for those on the move. "Clot Cake" is also a derogatory term for the Crour.

7. Bile Salt - Made from specially dried Yellow Bile, this substance of cleansing and purification can also be used for cooking. Its addition to a dish adds a pleasant pop and burn. It is a favored seasoning for travelers and nomads, as it serves as both a flavor enhancer and disinfectant for wounds. If used on an animal bite, you are sure to get the common quip of: "oh, did they complain to the chef?"

8. Black Crust Oven - A crude cooking technique that involves molding thick Black Bile clay around a piece of meat. This giant wad is then cooked directly in a fire, where the clay hardens and the flesh is roasted. When done, the solid chunk is fished out and cracked open. The meat inside is infused with Black Bile as well as a thin dark crust. Is said to give it a nice earthy flavor. A meal for the busy man, it can be chucked into the fire and left to cook as they work elsewhere. And then when you get back, a hot meal is waiting for you!

9. Termites - A food either collected from the wild or harvested from termite farms, these are the go-to whenever one needs a boost of Black Bile in their system. The majority eaten are workers and soldiers, as their dry roasted bodies are either enjoyed as is for a snack or sprinkled onto a dish for crunch. Queens are a rare treat, as harvesting them deals a hefty blow to a colony. When a Queen is served as a dish, it is a meal to be shared and for showing off. Their flesh is said to boost mental capacity, and it is an iconic dish at scholarly banquets.

10. Chewing Fat - Strips of fat taken from a beast that are often considered too poor for eating. Rather than cooking them into tallow, one may take these thin layers and chew on them. While by no means a meal or even a substantial snack, it is an enjoyed sensation of gnawing on these chewy strips. They can be dusted or infused with different flavors, and are a fun treat for kids. In war times, this enjoyable gimmick has taken a more grim purpose. Due to issues with food supply, hunger is rampant in the war torn regions, and these strips of fat taken from the rare kill are used to help curb these pains. It is believed chewing helps fool the body into thinking it is eating, and the act of doing so makes the stomach growl less.

11. Clot Shot - A drink made of fermented venom and a dose of blood that has congealed into a clot. The venom and crimson patty are downed in one go. A favored shot for warriors and hardened folk, who feel that the burning venom and meaty burst of Blood helps invigorate them and get them into the fighting spirit. Some folk cut up the inside of their mouth so that the fermented venom can seep inside, allowing the effect to be even stronger. Be warned, as getting too much of a dose can knock you out cold, which is the opposite of what you want when going into battle.

12. Finger Fungus - An edible fungus found growing in damp dark places, often crevices or buried under leaf litter. Their growths give the impressions of hands reaching up, and horror stories tell of ones that can drag you down into the earth. However, they are just a simple fungus that is used in a variety of dishes, with folk normally cutting off the fingers and leaving the rest so it can regrow.

13. Scab Crackers - A thin crisp baked food that is made from pulverized flesh and fluids that has been dried. These crackers have very low nutritional value, as they are often made from the worst quality supplies. However, they can last a very long time and they help fill the stomach, thus they have become infamous rations for many travelers and soldiers. Though they get the job done, these crackers are always met with groans whenever they are the sole star on the day's menu.

14. Oliphant Gizzard - A prized cut from hunted oliphants, these organs are how they grind up solid food that they have inhaled. This tough piece of meat requires lots of marinating and cooking to help breakdown its chewy nature. Despite the amount of work needed to prepare it, it is considered a delicacy. Eating it is said to help with memory, with some famed dishes claimed to allow one to remember snippets of a past life. As one always knows: Oliphants never forget.

15. Madman's Tongue - The fleshy appendage taken off of an Arimakki Hara, the reason why anyone would want it is a mystery. Arimakki flesh is tainted with Feverish Sweat and considered inedible. However, there is a way to "cook" it so that consuming it doesn't destroy your body. Due to the intense sickly heat their form produces, Arimakki meat must be "cooked with cold," immersing it in a pot of chilled icy water. This tongue has been freeze cooked with Tears and skewered. Eating it causes intense hallucinations that can last for hours. Some claim it is the gateway drug to joining the Arimakki, as eating too many of them can make you start thinking like them. For obvious reasons, consuming Arimakki flesh is strictly forbidden by the Church.

16. Blood Meal - A simple powder made from dried Blood, used as a spice or added into meals to help with one's Blood levels. Where this crimson dust really shines is for vampires, who find it vital for a Blood fix on the go. Pouring this into water is their version of a quick crude meal, and it is far easier to carry around than the humor. If you ever see anyone eating this powder as is by the handful, then you know they got a Blood problem.

17. Gourd Maggot - A larval bug that buries itself in the soil and absorbs nutrients from its surroundings. Targets more fleshy regions, where it can get more meatier soil. Pulling them out is incredibly difficult due to their swollen bodies and backward facing barbs. Most folk dig them out so that they can be cooked up and eaten, but some people with something to prove insist on yanking them out by hand. Typically done to show off, as there is literally nothing to gain by this outside of letting others see your strength. And often it winds up with people seeing you fail, as they are, indeed, very hard to remove by hand.

18. Clogged Popper - An appetizer made from a sheet of skin that has been stuffed with meat, veggies and fat then bundled. Cooked up til they are bloated and sizzling, then popped into the mouth for a wonderful flavor explosion. Very juicy, have a nice burst to them and the varieties are endless. Some like to categorize them by the use of white meat or dark meat.

19. Vein Eel - A boneless creature that slithers through ancient veins and underground fluids. Fished up to be cooked and enjoyed. What fluid it has been immersed in recently affects the flavor and quality, thus folk get picky on where they are harvested. Be wary of its bite though, as it has sharp teeth and an incredible grip.

20. Phallus Clam - A bivalve that is frequently harvested, deshelled and eaten. Due to bivalves being associated with Milk and their appearance similar to genitalia, species like these are said to be aphrodisiacs and help with fertility. For males, the size of the clam is said to determine its potency, with the notion of bigger is better. Thus, they have been over harvested by eager lovers and local populations are pretty much wiped out. What remains are more aggressive and dangerous species, making the collection of these popular dishes far more difficult.

21. Leaky Spleen Mushroom - A dripping fungus famed for its spleen-like appearance and secretions. This black liquid is compared to Black Bile, and is said to share similar properties. This inky goo is collected and used as a cooking ingredient or spread, while the fungus itself is a fine substitution for offal. Mushrooms like this are why Black Bile is often associated with fungi, even more so with the fact that termites enjoy fungus as well.

22. Adipose Fin - A large blobby fish known for its gelatinous meat, as it is equated to fat. With the other name of "fatfish," they are harvested for "sea tallow," or to be processed into flammable fuels. Due to the fatty nature of their flesh and the fact that they are bottom feeders, eating them as is is not typical. Children get a whole lot of fun from poking and slapping this wobbly fish before it is prepared. Best step in before they start throwing it at each other.

23. Brain Curry - A popular dish, served with any kind of brain, be it beast or even man. Claimed to be a soothing dish, particularly for those with restless or aching minds. Human brain curry is incredibly rare and often frowned upon, but the rich and superstitious believe this to be the most potent of them all. Some folk have even targeted high up Philosophers to get their incredible brains for a forbidden meal.

24. Ambrosia - Referred to as “Food of the Gods,” it is a rare holy food made with Ichor. Due to the toxic strength of the Godly Fluid, it is used in small, carefully measured amounts. Consuming it is said to cleanse the body of all sins and aid in restoring balance in the body’s humors. Those who eat it feel a rush of strength and energy, making one feel like a god. However the process to make it is incredibly complicated and the amount of Ichor used is extremely precise. Too little makes its effects nonexistent, but too much can outright kill the consumer. Saved only for high ranking members of the church or for wealthy “donors.” Rumor claims that the highest members of the church eat nothing but Ambrosia, which would explain their long lives.

25. Stuffed Snails - A dish for any fellow looking to replenish their Phlegm levels, snails are considered the food for wise men. Seasoned and stuffed, then served with a fine buttery sauce, you would have to search far and wide to find someone who doesn't enjoy this meal! Usually made with smaller species of snail, as they are easier to raise in larger numbers. Bigger specimens make for quite the feast, but this dining experience often does away with the etiquette and fine utensils that comes with regular stuffed snails. Some folk get too enamored with the delicious bounty before them and practically crawl into the shell itself to devour its contents.

26. Jellyfish Noodles - The tentacles of a jellyfish harvested and cut into fine noodles, a popular dish for users of Yellow Bile. Though they possess a slight burn, the noodles themselves lack a strong flavor, and thus make them good in a variety of dishes. Some folk skip the noodle step of jellyfish prep and stuff their bell with meats and seasonings. Fans of jellyfish dishes demand a stronger burn, as they develop a tolerance over time. One should be wary of what species is used in their meal, as some recipes make for a dish that could scar if you are not ready for its bite.

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I know this kind of stuff isn't what folk are really interested in, and it isn't that exciting of a piece, but I thought it was fun to think of food and what people would eat in this world. It's also a part of me trying to express the fact that people live in this place, and outside of the war and horrors, this is still a world that has a civilization and folk living their lives.

#art #drawing #food #fall of ichor #blood #fish #bug #insect #worm #fungus

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