#my mentality is normally prepare for the worst hope for the best lol and go in w/ zero expectations lolol

[scootarooni]

no new years celebration art but i do have a snow meeks

[alpacaparkaseok]

Book of Soulmates - OT7 Bonus

Hello everyone! Happy Valentine’s day! I know some of you are way ahead of my timezone and have already passed Valentine’s day, but I hope that you guys enjoy this regardless! 

@nochujeonjk​ requested a Yoongi hot & cold au, so I thought that I’d throw together this special little story to wrap up the soulmate aus nicely. hopefully this is alright!

Thank you all for reading, and you’re always welcome to drop in any time. I love hearing from you. Stay tuned for the epilogue to my series ‘Mine’ this week, as well as Jimin’s red string of fate series coming on February 22nd!

premise: how to boys would react with simple day-to-day tasks while managing their soulmate bonds, and how they meet their soulmates

Seokjin - barcode bond

honestly tries not to look at it too much

but there are days when it’s all he can look at

is quite curious about the technology used to scan the barcodes 

when he thinks nobody is watching, he’ll go down to the entrance of the Bighit building and scan his barcode over and over again

he’s a little jealous of the others’ bonds, which seem more personal

but he’s also terrified of the day when he’ll be notified that somebody with his same barcode entered the building

like, how is he supposed to talk to you?

these are usually what he thinks about during boring interviews

but then there’s a day when he’s biking to work

and he’s keeping his head down, just trying to keep out of sight

but he sees you

and he knows

which makes him realize that maybe his bond isn’t so impersonal after all, if he can recognize you without any help of a machine

so when you walk inside a shop and he notices that you do indeed have a barcode bond, which you scan as you walk in, he’s calling Namjoon and telling him he’s going to be a little late

and before he can even think it through, he’s throwing his bike in the bike rack and walking in after you, scanning his barcode

and watches as it declares a match

after that, he realizes he has no clue what he’s doing

but that just makes you smile

every once in a while, Jin will drag you down to the entrance of the Bighit building just to scan both of your barcodes and see them match up

it just never gets old

Yoongi - hot & cold bond

he’s grown up being fairly cold, so he’s used to it

but it’s not the most pleasant sensation

used to take really long, steaming hot showers

but now he just gets in and out as quickly as he can

because he knows that the warmth is only temporary

and he wants you

so when he wakes up one morning absolutely freezing, he can hardly get out of bed.

what he doesn’t know is that you’ve left the country for school, but find yourself in a similar cold situation

Bighit, worried for Yoongi’s health (mentally and physically), set out to find you

it’s pretty easy. a letter, phone call, and plane ticket later, you’re heading back to Seoul just to meet Yoongi and get your body temperatures normal so you can head back to school

Yoongi takes the longest, hottest shower of his life, trying to figure out what life at a warm temperature will be like

but it still does nothing to prepare him for the shock of you does to him

you’re...radiant. smiling from the second you want into the room where he’s waiting for you

and as his internal body temperature soars before settling down to an average level, he just stares at you with the widest eyes

what ensues is a long-distance relationship in which Yoongi claims that he’s cold when you’re gone

you both know that’s not true - after soulmates with this kind of bond meet they have a normal body temperature regardless of distance

but you still cave every once in a while and let him fly you back home to him

the man literally flies you thousands of miles just to cuddle with you for a few days before you have to leave

the boys tease him mercilessly for it

but he just pretends he has no idea what they’re talking about

Hoseok - timer bond

this man strives to be organized - for good reason

he feels like if he’s clean and organized, it’ll make this entire bond easier to manage

he doesn’t very often show how nervous it makes him feel, but there have been a few times that the boys have found him in the studio late at night, eyes closed with his timer covered

everyone is grateful that they don’t have that bond

but Hobi handles it like a champ

he’s smiling when there are only 60 minutes left, because finally, but then he realizes that he’s in the studio

and literally nobody that isn’t authorized is allowed inside

lol you’re totally not authorized

but you’ve also got a package to deliver, which is your part time job as a university student

so when you ask for where you can deliver a package that Hobi ordered online, an intern tells you that he’s in his studio

which leads to you wandering around the Bighit building

utterly lost

and realizing with more panic than you care to admit that you’ve literally only got thirty minutes left before you meet your soulmate

the only thought on both your and Hobi’s mind is how you have to get out

so you take the stairs, when you finally find them with just a few minutes left on your timer

still holding Hobi’s package when you stumble out the doors to find that you’re in a flipping parking garage

who on earth is going to be chilling is a parking garage when they’re about to meet their soulmate?!

Jung Hoseok, that’s who.

he’s debating between driving his car somewhere more central, or sticking around the building

but he’s a fool and dropped his keys

so naturally you pick them up right as he’s running back to grab them, heart pounding out of his chest

needless to say, you get to deliver him the package, his keys, and your heart

0:00

Namjoon - shared pain bond

he immediately apologizes to you in his mind every single time he breaks something an hurts himself

oh he totally knows that you’re gonna give him an earful when you meet

but he’s so excited

like, giddy schoolboy excited to someday meet you

there’s no rush, but he thinks about it a little too much

he’s learned that you must be a little clumsy like him, because it feels like you stub your toe all the time

but he really doesn’t mind

if the boys so much as begin to bring you up, he dies

like the awkward little bean he is

but he also stresses about how he’s supposed to find you

the boys invite him out with some other friends to get him to de-stress

you’re there

he’s there, obviously

and literally everyone else that’s there already is pretty sure that you two are soulmates

so they just watch you two as the night progresses, wondering if either of you will catch on

you literally get up to go to the bathroom and stub your toe on the way out, but Namjoon is so focused on the menu that he doesn’t make the connection. he just frowns a little before continuing asking Jimin what he’s getting to eat

Jimin can’t answer him because he’s laughing so hard

it isn’t until later that night, when you’re at your apartment that you begin to wonder

Namjoon thought you were really cool, and ends up FaceTiming you thanks to the boys dropping several hints

His hands are shaking a little when he pinches his skin, just enough for it to sting

you hiss a little, frowning at your arm before continuing with whatever you were talking about

Namjoon is pretty much out of commission from that point on

so this boy freaking courts you for a couple of weeks before you finally realize that HE’S YOUR SOULMATE AND HE’S KNOWN ALL ALONG

how do you find out?

he tries cooking for you one night and hurts himself consistently enough that you’re left reeling with both laughter and tears 

he’s embarrassed about hiding it from you, but admits that he just didn’t know how to tell you

you tell him that you don’t mind...but that you’re definitely going to use this against him in the future

Jimin - shared dreams bond

the sweetest soulmate ever

with one of the best bonds, everyone tells him

Jimin gets paranoid before he goes to sleep, and repeats “I love you, I love you, I love you” over and over again in hopes that it’ll somehow be translated into his dreams

gets super jealous and grumpy if you dream about guys, even if it’s purely platonic

but oh my lanta does he get so excited and giddy when you dream about beautiful things like soulmates

the other boys are so curious about his bond, so they ask him about it al the time

like, “what did she dream about last night, Jiminie?”

he’s positive that you know who he is, he’s sure he’s dreamt of him and the boys countless times

but he also knows that you probably won’t just show up at his dorm

so he’s dying to have something to go off of, to help him find you

that’s when you dream about your first day of university

he knows that campus

and he’s there the next day, mask on and hood up, flowers in hand

he has no clue what he’s doing

but he just hopes that somehow he’ll run into you

the first day he goes there, he comes home empty handed

instead of being all mopey and sad like the boys expected him to be, he’s even more determined than ever

he’s on campus with a new bouquet every day

on the fourth day, you come running over with your books in hand

he dreamt about this last night 

you’ve been scouring every inch of the campus for him, and heard from a friend that there was a mysterious guy chilling in front of the science building

of course the science building is clear on the other side of campus

so you’re out of breath and frazzled by the time you make it over there, but so happy

and Jimin practically throws the flowers at you, he’s suddenly so nervous

which makes you laugh

and your laugh makes him laugh

and that night you dream about each other

Taehyung - initials bond

ugh this is the worst bond

like, Tae will fight anyone on it, it’s hands down the worst

because he’s met countless people with your same initials!

but maybe fate understands that this bond sucks, because it’s also becoming more and more rare

it eventually just gets to a point where Tae decides to take matters into his own hands

he literally designs his own t-shirt with his initials on the back and yours on the front

fans think it’s adorable

you’re shocked when you see it selling out

soon almost every ARMY owns the shirt and begins the ‘initial project’

you don’t want to tell people that you’ve got KTH on your wrist, because what if it’s not him?

but where there a will ARMY, there’s a way

so tae tae finds out through the grapevine about you

and basically calls you out over vlive

it’s hilarious

staff wanna kill him but can’t do anything about it

but man he just wants to meet you

so with some assistance from ARMY, you guys meet

it’s at a flower festival in Ilsan

tae’s wearing his glasses

and all he can think about is that you look like you belong here, among all of these flowers

so he tells you that, with the shyest, sweetest smile

and you marvel that this is the same man that literally hunted you down using social media and his fan base

you’re still a little skeptical, so you ask him how he can be sure that it’s you when there are so many that share your initials

and he just smiles again

and asks if he can hold your hand while you guys walk around and enjoy the festival

so you agree, albeit a little hesitantly

and as you guys walk around, you realize that you know exactly what he’s talking about

hand in hand, smiling up at him and thinking that he belongs with the stars glittering above you, you realize that there’s no way he’s not your soulmate

he looks down at you and sees that you get it

but he wants to make sure you know it anyway

so he shuffles a little closer and squeezes your hand a little tighter

and from then on, you’re known as ARMY’s soulmate, since they helped you two find each other

Jungkook - drawing bond

obviously, Jungkook loves drawing

he’s very good at it, too

so nobody questions him when he’s off in the corner of the practice room scribbling something on his arm or leg

he jokes how about how you two complete each other because you rarely draw, you write

notes, grocery lists, titles to books, whatever

you write, and he draws.

so if you need to buy apples (they’re on sale!) Jungkook is grabbing a pen and doodling a bushel of apples on his knee

you love it

he mainly loves you

the boys tease him nonstop about it, because it’s so painfully obvious

he’s a goner, and you haven’t even met each other

but he’s so nervous to meet you

and there’s no rush, really

but when he sees Tae trying so hard to find his soulmate, he wonders if it’s time for him and you to finally meet

his bond is the easier by far

and there are so many night where he lays in bed with a pen in hand, wondering if he should just go for it. drop his number, an address, his name, anything

but he never does

he’s so afraid

and he’s so in love that he feels like you’ll freak out when you realize that he’s fallen in love with a person he’s never had any face-to-face contact with

but then there’s this night where all the boys are hanging out together and their soulmates are present (because they’ve all met by this point) and Jungkook realizes how happy he feels

like, he’s genuinely happy. for his hyungs, for himself. he’s lucky that he gets to have this strange little family.

and he realizes that you should get to have this, too. 

so that night he scrawls his phone number out on the back of his hand with a simple note

‘call if you feel comfortable with it’

you freak out

like, fist pumping while also wondering if this is gonna blow up in your face

by the time you’ve weighed all the pros and cons, it’s nearly three in the morning. but you’ve got to call him. now.

so you do, secretly praying that you get the voicemail

but kook is up. of course he is, he’s been waiting on the edge of his bed since eleven pm.

he answers and you realize as soon as he says hello that you’ve fallen in love with this man

which is terrifying, but if he was the one to give out his number, he must want to meet you, right? 

right.

when you do meet, everyone is there. all the boys, all of their soulmates. watching as Jungkook leaps off the park bench and runs to you, and he giggles.

giggles. it’s adorable.

and it’s cute and awkward and a little crowded with all 14 of you, but it’s better than you’d ever imagined.

Jungkook waits all of two hours before grabbing your hand and whispering, “I love you”

so you grab a pen from your bag and smile up at him as you write “I love you, too” into your skin

masterlist

aaaand that’s a wrap! overall, this was the 20th and final installment to the Book of Soulmates! This one was a bit different from the others, since the others are actual mini stories with one member at a time, but I hope you enjoyed!

Happy Valentine’s day!! Love you all! Stay tuned for the fun things coming up! Check my navigation tab to see what’s next!

[theamberwriter]

OKAY SO OMEGAVERSE- can I please have Todoroki, Bakugou and whatever other characters you wanna write for when their omegas nest gets destroyed by something (maybe a friend, a parent, whoever) and they’re really sad about it? I just need some protective alphas rn. (Thank youuu)

Pairings - Alpha!Todorki x Omega!Reader, Alpha!Bakugo x Omega!Reader, Alpha!Kirishima x Omega!Reader, Alpha!Yaoyorozu x Omega!Reader, Apha!Ashido x Omega! Reader

Word Count - 9722

A/N - Wow, this took waayyy longer than I thought it would to write. But it’s also kinda long, lol Anyway, I really hope you like it! I had lots of fun writing it! Also, I’m going to apologize now to Denki lovers for the last one!

~*~

SHOTO TODOROKI

Todoroki was a force to be reckoned with, especially where it came to his mate. 

Nobody got to fuck with them.Much less his own father.

Endeavor had made it painfully obvious he didn't like his son's chosen mate.

Especially since they were a seat higher in hero ranking than Shoto.

He couldn't believe his own son had been outranked by an omega.

Shoto didn't mind, in fact, he was very proud of you.

He may not have known you in school, but your mother had embarrassingly boasted a laundry list of your accomplishments when you introduced him.

She also gave him a very detailed rundown of every single step of your hero training. Starting from a young age.

You could've died of embarrassment.

Shoto listened intently, taking in every single detail.

He firmly decided that you deserved your seat, maybe even a higher seat than that, and he made sure you felt proud of your ranking too.

Since your position pissed off Endeavor, Shoto always found a way to wedge it into conversation with him.

Anything to make the old crackpot flame.

It made family gatherings rather awkward and difficult.

Usually the tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife.

As hard as Fuyumi tried to make things chill and normal, Natsuo and Shoto made sure Endeavor knew they liked you more than him.

So to say that your relationship with your future father-in-law was nonexistent was an overstatement.

Endeavor couldn’t stand being in the same room as you. Shoto refused to allow you to be in the room with him, especially alone.

The two of you were basically strangers connected through a mutual.

Honestly, it was stressful.

He was going to be at family gatherings, he would be at your wedding the following year, he'd be grandfather to any pups you raised - no matter what, he was always going to be there.

You couldn’t escape him. So you might as well make peace, right?

You had a bad feeling, but you couldn't keep walking on eggshells.

You made sure Shoto didn’t know what you were up to. And waited until you had a day off and Shoto was at work.

You already knew he’d disapprove of the olive branch you were trying to extend.

You and Shoto lived in a lovely house on the outside of the city where his agency was.

Shoto wanted it built as an early wedding present. You'd only been there for about six months.

It had large, beautiful gardens, a good amount of land, and a pond. It was your own personal wonderland.

Having this little spec of gloom in your personal paradise wasn't ideal. But you had to put a truce on this.

It was noon on the dot when a knock came to your door. 

You were still not mentally prepared to handle this on your own. 

You smiled as best you could and opened the door. “Enji.”

“[Name],” he said in disdain.

 You bit the inside of your cheek. “Thank you for coming. Come in, the tea just finished.”

He glared at you for a long moment but then walked into the grand foyer.

Enji glanced around blankly. You couldn’t tell if he liked the house, or if he hated it because it was yours.

“Shoto designed everything,” you noted. He nodded at that. “Uh, the dining room is this way.”

You led him through the library and down a hall.

You opened the door, allowing him in first. He entered without so much as a glance at you.

“Take a seat.” You gestured to the two chairs where your lunch and fresh tea was laid out. 

Endeavor sat stiffly in one, and you in other.

“The cooks Shoto found make the best food I’ve tasted,” you noted awkwardly. 

Shoto had hired some staff to help since you two were so busy.

“For you, I’m sure,” he grunted but picked up his utensils anyway. “Thanks.”

You two ate in tense silence for a minute. Your heart pounded in your chest, it nearly made you gag with nerves.

You should’ve waited for Shoto.

You cleared your throat and took a sip of tea.

“I’ll be frank, Enji…” you started. “I asked you here to extend an olive branch.”

“An olive branch. Really?” Enji seemed more annoyed than ever.

“When Shoto and I get married, we’ll be family. - I’m not saying you have to like me. Or that we have to talk to each other. All I’m saying is that I want to make a truce. So we can be...civil?”

He grunted. “Does Shoto know you’re doing this?”

You shook your head. “He’d probably disapprove. But I thought I’d try. So if it doesn’t work out, he’d still come around. You know how he can be. He’d be even more furious with you, and probably wouldn’t go any family functions for a while.”

“You seem to know my Shoto well enough,” Enji noted.

You shrugged, laughing uncomfortably. “We’ve been dating for five years, engaged for almost two. So I’m hoping I do.”

After another few moments of silence, he asked, “May I use your facilities?”

You nodded and gestured. “Through that door, make the left, follow it down the hall, and it’ll be on your right.”

You cursed under your breath when the door finally shut. It was a relief being out from under those eyes. Away from his alpha stench. It was burning your nose, and making your eyes water.

You didn’t think anything of it until fifteen minutes had passed.

Had he gotten lost? Definitely not, right?

You left the dining room, going down the hall to find the bathroom door open and the room empty.

You followed the hall down and around and finally back to the foyer.

That’s where you smelled it. The undeniable scent of smoke.

You followed it up the stairs and down one wide hall and then another. 

Your heart felt like it snapped in half as you watched smoke pour from the door with a sign (lovingly made by Momo) that read Nest Sweet Nest.

You launched yourself into the doorway. Sure enough, Endeavor was slowly lighting item after item on fire.

“What the -” you started, walking into the room with a sleeve over your face.

“I will never make peace with you,” he snapped. “Extending a branch without so much as consulting Shoto. How degrading and insulting to your alpha. And being outranked by an omega of all people. It’s disgraceful. Shoto deserves that spot you occupy. As well as an omega stronger than you.”

You felt something in you snap. And then you were consumed by overwhelming energy. 

Your quirk had activated, and you hadn’t done it consciously.

The energy surge lifted you up, engulfing you in the form of a bear that barely fit in the room. Luckily the energy could be phased through objects if you wanted. 

The translucent white-blue bear roared and growled at Endeavor.

“Get. Out!” you snapped from where you controlled the bear from within.

Endeavor shot fire at you. But the bear stopped it from entering your energy form.

You took the bear’s massive paw and swatted at Enji, pinning him under it.

Your bear leaned down, shifting into the form of a lion. It snapped and snarled at his face. 

Endeavor showed no fear. Though you could smell it through the lion’s nose.

You picked him up in the mouth of the lion. Putting just enough pressure to pin and threaten him. But not enough to crush.

The lion and you squeezed through the door, swept down the halls, and back to the front door.

Your butler stood, waiting with the entry open. “I’ve instructed the others to put the fire out.”

You nodded at him, then squeezed out to the front path. The lion grew even larger, dwarfing the house.

“Consider this war, Endeavor,” you snapped, voice echoing through the lion. “All branches have been burned. And I will be telling Shoto.”

The lion tossed him out into the middle of the front lawn.

You watched as he hit and rolled across the grass. When he stopped, he pushed himself up and glared at you. Then he lit up and readied himself.

As soon as he launched into the air, he was caught in a flow of ice. 

Only one person could do that.

Walking up the drive was no other than Shoto, home early. 

You’d semi-lost your mind to the beast. A struggle you’d been having since your quirk emerged. Only rage made you lose your mind now.

The lion roared at Shoto, stalking up to him. But he showed no fear. You couldn’t even smell it on him.

He placed a hand on the lion’s snout, staring at it as blankly as ever. The lion sank into a laying position. 

Shoto climbed up on it and forced his way into the energy field. Like you’d showed him, just in case.

He was pulled to the center, where you were. Immediately, he took you in his arms, cradling you against his chest.

You struggled at first. But calmed down at his cinnamon scent.

He rubbed your back and kissed your hair, pumping out comfort pheromones.

You felt the energy draining and you wrapped your arms around him in turn. With a sigh, the two of you settled to the ground.

“Shoto,” you yawned, your quirk completely deactivated. “You’re home early.”

“Got a call about a fire,” he grunted. “I can see why now.”

Shoto released his father, who hadn’t bothered melting the ice on his own. The two just stared at each other, then Endeavor left without a word.

“What happened? What was this all about?” Shoto asked as he hauled you off the ground. 

You were worn out. Rage energy was much harder to control. It was much more draining than how it was when you did hero work. At least you had control then.

You explained the situation to Shoto. He was not happy, to say the least.

“What were you thinking? You should’ve waited -” he started to scold.

You couldn’t help the tears that flowed. “That’s not even the worst part. - Come see.”

Tiredly, you pulled Shoto up to the charred room that once held your nest. 

Fond tokens of love and memories were burnt to ash. The blankets and clothes and pillows you’d hoarded were all gone now. Nothing was left of what was except the charred Nest Sweet Nest sign on the door.

“He...he burned everything,” you wheezed, wiping furiously at the tears on your cheeks.

“That bastard,” Shoto cursed under his breath. 

He held you closely, glaring into the blackened room. He wasn’t going to let his father get away with this. But, for now, you were his priority.

He got you changed into clean clothes, then took you down to the entertainment room. 

Shoto put on your favourite movie, had tea brought down along with snacks, and cradled you in his arms until you zonked out.

He’d never seen you like that. He had to admit, it was terrifying.

Honestly, he never thought he’d have to use the emergency maneuver you’d taught him. You were so good with your control.

Of course, Endeavor would be the one to break it. Natsuo and Fuyumi were going to hear about this. 

However, revenge was for another time. 

Right now, his omega was the most important thing.

~*~

KATSUKI BAKUGO

God, you were just too cute and you didn't even fucking know it.

Katsuki smiled to himself as he cast one last look at you in your nest before going off to work. 

He'd bought you a body pillow cover of himself as Ground Zero as a joke. But here you were, curled up with your face stuffed in it and a leg thrown over. Drooling like a kid.

He'd scented the entire thing for you. There was no getting rid of that smell for a while.

He never thought he'd find this with anyone. He was so caught up in work, romance was the last thing on his mind.

But one chance encounter changed everything. And he wouldn’t have it any other way.

With that, he left for work. Unaware of what would soon transpire.

All of Katsuki’s friends loved you. In fact, there were times they preferred you over him.

But not all of your friends loved Katsuki.

The shallower ones of the bunch were jealous you’d nabbed a hero. But they were all concerned about your safety. Not just from villains, but from Katsuki himself. 

They found him too brash, too rowdy, too aggressive. And they were worried that would turn on you. 

Not that they’d ever tell you as much. But you could tell they weren’t fond of him.

They’d never seen the side of him you had. Or even the sides of him that his friends got to see.

He was usually busy when you hung out with your friends.

Even when he was home, he didn’t like to get in the way of your friend time. Which was becoming fewer and farther between. No matter how much you wanted him to hang out with you all. 

They weren’t exactly begging for him to come along either.

Your friends had seen him in the media. Seen the way he acted in battle, the way he talked to the press and yelled at the paps. How he bullied even fellow heroes.

They didn’t trust him as far as they could throw him. 

It was the weekend and you were having them over for the day while Katsuki was out on patrol.

You had everything ready by the time they arrived for lunch.

There wasn’t really much to do. Katsuki kept the house tidy, while you did laundry and dishes. You took turns giving the dog a bath, and that was that.

Your dog, an Amstaff named Pooki - a name she came with, much to Katsuki’s chagrin (he did try to change it, but she wouldn’t respond to anything else) - barked when a knock came at the door.

Behind it, stood your main little group of six. They all seemed on edge, except your best friend of the group - Haruto.

He grinned and hugged you immediately.

“I’m so glad you all could make it! - Did you all find it okay? I know we’re a little out of the way,” you said and moved so they could enter.

“Uh, yeah. We found it fine,” Akari, Haruto’s sister, said.

Haruto was already baby-talking the dog. 

“Is he -” started Sota, a friend you’d made in middle school. Your other friend, Mei, nudged him.

You shook your head. “No - my boom boy won’t be back until this afternoon. He’s out patrolling.”

Misato, the most serious and mom like of the group, came and put a hand on your shoulder. “It’s good to see you haven’t lost your spunk.”

“What’re you -?” you started, then shook your head. “Nevermind. C’mon, I have a game loaded for us to play. I promise you’ll love it.”

You led them to the living room. It was a decent size with two chairs, a four-person couch, and a loveseat. Katsuki had a gaming station set up around the electric fireplace.

Your friend Yuto pushed his way to the front of the group. “No way is that -”

You nodded, knowing exactly what he was talking about. He wouldn’t shut up about it in the group chat.

“But that hasn’t even come out yet -”

“Katsuki got it for me,” you laughed. Tension in the room spiked. “It was a thank you from the company. He saved their building from being destroyed, you know. This game never would’ve been released, if it weren’t for him.”

“Remind me to thank fireball later,” Yuto noted half-heartedly. He perched in one of the chairs, grabbing a controller. The others followed.

You were squished in between Haruto and Akari. Pooki took up residency on your lap. You were going to have to put this dog on a diet.

“Help yourselves to the snacks. Made them fresh just before you got here,” you noted.

It didn’t take long for them to dive in.

The day was going nice for the first few hours. What you didn’t expect was another knock at the door. 

Pooki shot off your lap, racing to it. You were surprised to find Katsuki’s friends.

“Mina, Eijiro, Hanta, Denki - what’re you guys doing here?” you asked, letting them in.

“Here to see you, of course.” Eijiro hugged you tightly. The others followed.

“Besides, Katsuki said he wanted to chill today, anyway! Just so happens that we all had early patrols,” Mina explained.

“Katsuki won’t be home until later -” you started, moving with them as they made their way to the living room.

“We like hanging out with you, ya know?” Denki said, rolling his eyes.

“Who’s this?” Haruto said, looking over the back of the couch as you all entered.

You glanced between the two groups. “Uh....well, this is awkward….Guys, these are Katsuki’s friends. Eijiro Kirishma, Hanta Sero, Mina Ashido, and Denki Kaminari. - Everyone, these are my friends. Haruto and Akari Ito, Yuto Watanabe, Misato Yamamoto, Mei Nakamura, and Sota Sato.”

Katsuki’s group said their hellos. But your friends all stared in tense silence until Misato spoke up. “Hello, it’s very nice to meet you all.”

Pooki nearly knocked Denki over jumping on him.

“Sorry, she’s gotten fat since you saw her last,” you laughed.

“Still cute as ever though, aren’t you girl?” Denki replied, baby-talking to her.

Eijiro’s eyes moved to the screen. “What’re you all playing?”

“Remember that gaming company that Katsuki saved the building?” you asked.

Denki’s eyes lit up. “Really?! That one!”

You grinned. “Mhm. Someone can take my spot. - I’ll go get chairs.”

“Don’t worry,” Eijiro chuckled, patting Pooki. “We can get them ourselves. That’s the manly thing to do.”

With that, the four of them left. You laughed under your breath, rolling your eyes after them.

“How long are they staying?” Sota asked snidely.

You shrugged. “Until Katsuki gets home, I suppose. Trust me, you’ll like them -”

“I doubt that,” Haruto said, slumping back into his seat. 

You settled awkwardly back between Haruto and Akari, your legs crossed under you.

That’s when the others came back with chairs. Well, at least Hanta and Denki anyway.

“I’m just gonna sit on the floor,” Mina said with a shrug. She came and sat in front of you, leaning her back against the couch. 

Eijiro sat on the floor across from you, leaning against the coffee table to pick at the snacks.

“Here, Denki,” you called, tossing him your controller. “I know you’ve been dying to play it. Just - don’t zap another controller, please? I thought Katsuki was going to kill you last time.”

“Awesome!” he cheered. “[Name], you’re the best!”

They started the game back up. It was Denki, Yuto, Mei, Sota, and Haruto playing.

“So,” Misato started, clearing her throat. “You all have been here before?”

“Oh yeah,” Eijrio laughed. Pooki begged him for a cracker. “We helped them move in. Pook here was just a pup then.”

“And you come even when - Bakugo - isn’t here?” Haruto asked grouchily.

“We come here all the time when they’re home alone,” Mina noted, scrolling through her phone. “We love hanging out with [Name].”

“Katsuki thinks I need protecting,” you chuckled. “So he sends in the heroes.”

“You do!” Hanta interjected.

You rolled your eyes. “From what?”

“From -”

“Pooki’s too cute to be handled alone, it’s dangerous!” Eijiro interrupted. He was wrestling with her now.

“You’re going to break something.”

Eijiro grinned. “Nah, besides -”

Pooki chomped down on his arm. A few of your friends gasped.

“Pooki!” Akari scolded. “Let him go -”

“It’s fine, she does this all the time. She thinks I’m a chew toy, see -” Eijiro hardened up his arm and moved to show the one in Pooki’s mouth. “She can’t hurt me.”

“Wait - you’re Red Riot. Aren’t you?”Akari realized. 

Eijiro laughed. “You caught me! Guess my secret is out.”

“None of you are exactly hiding,” you stated, rolling your eyes. “Besides, I told you guys Katsuki was friends with heros.”

“All of you are?” Mei asked, glancing around. 

“Chargebolt,” Denki announced, throwing a thumbs up and grinning.

“Pinky!” Mina laughed and held up a picture of her in costume.

“Cellophane,” Hanta said, beaming.

“Are any of you heros?” Eijrio asked.

You shook your head and smiled. “No. - We were put in the ‘Useless Quirk’ club.”

“I dunno, your quirk’s pretty cool. I’m surprised you didn’t work for the police,” Mina said. 

You shrugged. “Wasn’t really into law enforcement. I’m happy running a shop.”

“[Name]’s right, though. None of us could ever make it as heros,” Haruto said. He seemed a little warmer to them now. “I can turn small objects into cubes, Akari can change her skin into whatever material she touches. Misato can make a flower sprout wherever she touches. But only one flower at a time. Yuto can change the color of his eyes, nails, hair, and teeth at will. While Mei can turn anything she touches red. And Sota, well -”

“Just say it,” Sota snapped. “I don’t have a quirk.”

It was tense and silent a moment. You wanted to hide. This was not going well. 

Didn’t Katsuki tell them that your friends were coming over today?

Misato interrupted the quiet. “[Name], where are the facilities?”

“Uh - oh.” You were snapped out of your stupor. “That way and down the hall on the left.”

You couldn’t wait for Katsuki to come home.

Everybody rotated controllers. Each leaving on occasion to get water or use the bathroom.

Pooki followed everybody in and out of the room.

Everything seemed fine until Pooki started barking in the living room doorway.

You got up to see what was wrong, supposing it was just a delivery man you hadn’t heard ring the doorbell.

Instead, you followed her to the upstairs hallway. She stood with her nose pushed against the door to your nesting room.

“What’s wrong with you, silly girl?” you laughed. “If I show you there’s nothing wrong will you take a nap?”

You were not expecting the sight when you walked in. Torn blankets, charged clothes, broken pictures and knickknacks. Everything was ruined. Nothing in the room had gone untouched, except one pristine Ground Zero body pillow. 

Pooki growled at your feet.

You stared. Your chest becoming a hollow cavity. So much had happened in this room. And all the fond memories held in the items were all ruined. You couldn’t stop the sob in your throat. Pooki rubbed against your leg.

You wiped at your tears. You didn’t even notice someone special had crept into the house.

“There’s my omega,” Katsuki’s voice said. 

You flinched, eyeing him at the top of the stairs.

He halted in his pace when he saw your wet face. “What’s wrong? Who’s ass am I kicking?”

He came and wrapped you in his arms. You gestured to your room. As soon as he laid eyes on it, his scent became threatening, murderous.

“Yo man, you okay?” that was Eijiro, the only one brave enough to face Katsuki in this state. He was coming up the stairs. 

Katsuki glared him down. “You and those idiots better not have done this.”

“Done wha -” Eijiro stopped short, staring in the room. “What happened? We’ve been downstairs all day.”

“You better not be lying -”

You stopped Katsuki. “It’s okay - alpha - I, I got this. Do you mind, Eijiro?”

Eijiro nodded. “Do what you got to.”

“Look me in the eyes.” 

Eijiro did as he was instructed, and you activated your quirk. Your irises swirled with the whites of your eyes. Hypnotizing him.

“Tell me, Eijiro,” you started. “What was the purpose of your visit today? Was it to do this?”

“No,” he said robotically. “We came today because Katsuki invited us. He was worried your friends were up to something, so he sent us to watch over you. I had no part in what happened to your nest.”

You nodded and blinked, releasing him. 

Eijiro blinked too, rubbing his temple. “I forgot how weird that felt. You haven’t done that since I told you Katsuki was going to ask you out. - But see. We were just here to watch out for you. Nothing more. We’re your friends [Name]. And it’s totally uncool to do this to a friend’s nest.”

Your heart sank. That meant only one thing then.

“I can go -” Katsuki started.

You shook your head. “They’re my….friends….I’ll do it.”

You took Katsuki’s hand and went to the living room. His sent still smelled like death walking.

“Everything okay?” Misato asked. “Hello, Bakugo.”

You nodded, then went to sit back between Akari and Haruto. Katsuki grunted, leaning on the doorframe with Eijiro beside him.

You waited a moment, then flinched and rubbed your eye.

“Ow - I think I have something in my eye. Can you look for me Haru?” you asked, and turned to him.

He twisted to face you. “Sure.”

You caught his eye and he realized what you were going to do. You activated your quirk before he could turn away.

“I really hate to do this. But - tell me, Haruto,” you sighed. “What was the purpose of your visit today? Was it you all who destroyed my nest?”

Mina gasped. “Wait, what?”

“Shit,” you heard Akari mutter under her breath.

Katsuki’s friends were tense, ready to tackle the first person to move and break your connection.

“We came today to see you. But also to wait for Katsuki to get home. We were going to destroy your nest, but frame him for it. That way you two would argue and break up. When his friends came, we decided to make it look like they did it. Then you’d break up with him because of his awful friends. I couldn’t bring myself to destroy anything, though. So I told Pooki to get you.”

“Wait, you ratted on us?!” Sota yelled.

“Why would you do that?” you asked, tears beginning to flood your vision.

“Because,” Haruto continued. “We wanted you back. We don’t see much of you. And Bakugo is too violent for you. He’s going to hurt you - like he does to the paparazzi and all those villains.”

You sobbed and hid your face in your hands, breaking the connection.

“We were just doing what was best for you -” Misato started.

“What would you know about what’s best for my omega?” Katsuki snapped, the thick scent of burnt caramel nearly suffocating. “Do you think hurting them like this was the best way to tell [Name] your concerns? Wouldn’t it have been better to sit them down, like normal people?! Also - you all are a bunch of fucking dunces if you think I’d ever hurt them!”

“Katsuki may have a temper, but you didn’t know him before he met [Name],” Eijiro said. 

“But -” Haruto started.

“It’s true,” Denki countered. “He was totally different.”

“We didn’t even meet y’all before today, and we’re here a lot,” Mina noted. Katsuki uttered, too much under his breath. “So you obviously haven’t even made the effort to hang out with them both. And see for yourself how he is.”

“I think it’s time for you fuckers to leave,” Bakugo growled.

“We were only trying to help!” Mei shrieked.

“You were trying to solve a problem that didn’t exist!” you cried. “Just - leave. Please.”

“[Name]....” Haruto pleaded.

“Haru just - just go,” you sighed, watching as tears dripped onto the couch.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered and then got up. 

Once they were gone, Katsuki changed into lounge clothes and sat next to you on the couch. 

Mina and Eijiro moved from the floor to a regular seat. Hanta and Denki put the kitchen chairs back and went to occupy the empty spaces.

You curled up into his protective grasped, watching as they played the new game.

Your heart, though sad with your nest being ruined, felt full knowing that you’d always have Katsuki and his friends on your side.

~*~

EIJIRO KIRISHIMA

Your mother hated the fact that you were an omega. She thought, with your parentage, you should have been an alpha.

Imagine her disgust and disappointment when you showed as an omega. The only in blood family to be. 

Her rage grew when you met a hero named Red Riot once you joined an agency. An alpha with a musk like strawberry cream. He was just as sweet as he smelled.

Your mother had hoped you'd grow to be an alpha. Your scent changing, and your behavior.

Or even that you would take on alpha characteristics, even while biologically being an omega.

But you were still the same at twenty as you were at twelve when puberty hit and you emerged as an omega.

You may have been more adult in appearance and a little more patient. But you were just the same in many other aspects.

You'd taken to Red Riot right away. Although you tried not to be the clingy omega everyone else typed you as.

You didn't think he was into you. Even as he'd pat your head, and stand just close enough to rub a little scent on you.

 He was Red Riot, after all. His face was all over the news, even as a first year in high school!

And you were...well, you.

Little did you know that he was just as taken.

But it wasn't just with your scent. You were gorgeous to him. And you were so kind with a smile that melted him. You'd made him so nervous the first time that he could only blurt out random facts. You found it endearing.

But none of this mattered to your family, especially your mother. 

Some forgave your nature due to picking up a top hero. At least you were bonded to someone with status.

Your mother, however, had been furious when she met him. Hero or not, there was simply no way your family could be the type to be owned by someone.

It didn't matter how many times you explained that Eijiro didn't own you. She pitched fits, started arguments. Banned him from the house. She even started to lock you out!

Eijiro tried to apologize, and break it off with you. For your own good. But an explanation on the matter made him understand that nothing he did was going to help.

Not to mention, you were already so in love with him and he with you that he was quick to move you in with him.

His roommate, Ground Zero aka Katsuki Bakugo, didn't mind. As long as you "cleaned your shit up and didn't fucking bother him". 

Getting your stuff was a different story.

You had to break into the house while everyone was away.

Luckily, the neighbors liked you and didn't call the cops.

Katsuki, Eijiro, and a few of your collective friends had you all moved out in a matter of hours.

The rest was history.

You knew your mother had been trying to find you for months. But you'd changed your number and gotten a new phone. Your hair was different now, and Eijiro bought you clothes you actually liked. 

You were everything you wanted to be. Everything your mother hated.

But Eijiro loved you more every day. Watching you grow and become the person you were meant to be. 

You were helping him grow too. And Katsuki, not like he'd ever admit it. But he did like you. And didn't mind having you as a roommate.

The trouble came a day in late autumn, both the alphas of the house were out. You were home alone, taking a week off for the impending nesting that was coming. 

Katsuki was at work, and Eijiro had taken the day off to be with you. He'd run to get some groceries and supplies to keep in your nest.

With you smelling like heat, he was afraid you'd get harassed if you when on your own.

You'd been meticulously fiddling with your nest all day. Trying to get it just right, and make it big enough for two.

You'd thought nothing of it when there was a knock on the door. You'd ordered food for when the guys got back.

But, instead of a delivery person, there stood your mother. Her face unreadable.

You tried to slam the door in her face but she stuck her shoe in. She shoved the door back open, and invited herself in. Pushing you back into the apartment.

"I finally found you. You gave us all quite the scare there." Her voice dripped with the same venom you'd heard villains shout at you with. "What the hell are you wearing? And look what you did to your lovely hair!"

"Get. Out." you growled. "You are not welcome in my home."

"Home?" she laughed. "Smells like a brothel in here. You little whore. I can smell more than just your…hero...here. Look what that little red rat has turned you into -"

"That's his roommate! He already lived here when I moved in! It's not like that!"

She started to open all the doors. "Right. That's what you say now, at least. You are just a needy little omega. Just a bitch in heat. And, sooner or later, you're going to want any alpha you can knot you. Maybe even a few of them at the same time - This your nest?"

Your mother shoved open the door to room that homed your nest. The scent of Eijiro flooding out. He'd gone a little overboard with the scenting.

"It looks warm...cozy... it'd be a shame if someone ruined it all."

You stood in the doorway glaring her down. "Don't you fucking -"

"Then come back home," she snapped, narrowing her eyes at you. "Drop that sickeningly sweet alpha. And move. Back. Home. We can teach you how to be an alpha. How to let people not push you around. Look - you let me walk straight into your apartment. And you haven't laid a finger on me!"

"That's because I know you. I use my quirk and you go to the press about your abusive hero child. You'll blacken my name."

"Would I ever -"

"Yes! You would! I remember when you didn't like uncle's second wife! You smudged her name, destroyed her reputation so much she went into hiding! - I'm not going to let you do that to me."

"So you're moving back, good. Pac -"

You took a step towards her. "I'm not moving back either!"

"Fine!" your mother shouted. "Be the pathetic, useless omega you are!"

Your mother had an air quirk, she could make tornados. She kicked one up in the small room, sending objects flying. You ducked as a poster Eijiro bought you flew towards you in its metal frame.

It landed and broke somewhere in the living room.

You dove, hiding behind the couch. More things came flying. You heard clanking and shattering. You covered your ears and pinched your eyes closed tightly, a sob welling up in your chest.

You didn't hear the front door open. You didn't see them come in. You didn't notice as it went quiet. 

Then a hand was on your arm. You screamed, the waves sending the person flying across the room. 

"Hey," the person coughed. "Hey, [Name], it's okay! I-I-It's me!"

You opened your eyes, spying Eijiro standing up from the kitchen floor.

"Eiji!" you yelled, launching yourself into his arms. That's when the big tears began to flow and the sobs started. "Sh-She - and I - omega - useless - nest -"

"Hey, easy, I'm here now," Eijiro cooed. He wrapped his arms around you and squeezed you tightly. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I should've been here. It wasn't supposed to take that long. Wasn't very manly to leave you alone for so long. But I got mobbed by fans at the store. Katsuki came home early and called me, he's dealing with her...I've got you."

Eijiro rubbed on you, scenting you with the comfort pheromones pumping out of him. 

"You fucking bitch!" Katsuki roared. "I'll fucking kill you. - Doesn't matter if they aren't my mate. - You trashed my fucking house!"

You chuckled into Eijiro's chest. The pheromones finally starting to work.

"Get moving!" Katsuki yelled. You watched as he shoved her out the room towards the front door. He had your mother in power dampening cuffs. "I'll take her to the police. You're going away for vandalism and destruction of property. You crazy bitch!"

"This is your fault [Name]! I'll ruin you all. You'll never be 'heroes' again -" your mother shrieked.

Katsuki shoved her. "Yeah, yeah, we've heard it all before. - Move!"

When they were out the door Eijiro chuckled, "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for you meddling kids."

You chuckled, relaxing into Eijiro's embrace. But the damp, sad scent coming from you was undeniable.

"We'll fix it -"

You pulled away. "But she ruined everything. Come look."

You took his hand, guiding him to your nesting room. The tears came again as you looked around.

The pillows had stuffing bursting from them. The blankets were nothing more than shredded fabric and batting. Trinkets he bought you were broken and embedded in the walls. Picture frames were cracked, the glass shattered. Clothes were just tatters now.

You weren't getting that security deposit back.

"Everything is gone," you wheezed. 

Eijiro wrapped his arms around you, tucking your head under his chin. He held you tightly.

"I should've been here to stop this, I'm so sorry. - We'll fix it, I promise. We'll make it better."

~*~

MOMO YAOYOROZU

Momo was the kind of alpha every omega wanted. She was kind, patient, and overly nurturing.

Momo went a little crazy when it came to your nesting. She had an entire fucking treehouse built, and had dozens of the lushest blankets and pillows imported.

She was a spoiler.

Your happiness and comfort was her number one priority. Even if you begged her to stop spending so much on you. 

But Creati's love knew no bounds. Neither did her spending habits.

So it pained her when, after a lovely day together, she had to sit you down in your nest and break a bit of bad news.

"[Name] you know I love you, right?" Momo asked. You were curled up under her chin. Nose against the rose-scented gland in her neck.

You hummed, squeezing her tightly. She gently pushed you away. "Mocchan, what's wrong?"

She smoothed a hand through your hair. "I'm having some old classmates over for some really important hero business tomorrow."

"Oh," you muttered. "You don't want me around."

"It's not that I don't want you around!" she panicked. "It's just really important and top secret, and you...can't know what's going on. Not yet. And unless it's super important, we can't have any interruptions."

You nodded, a little sad. But you understood. It was crucial hero stuff. "Okay, Momo, I won't bother you guys. I'll stay in my nesting tree."

She smiled, wrapping you back up again. Momo was going to make sure she gave you extra love tonight. To make up for the following day.

The next morning, it was starting to get cloudy when Bakugo, Kirishima, and Todoroki showed up at Momo's door. 

You two had just finished brunch, so you went to hide in your nest. You had everything you needed to keep occupied in there.

Momo took the group to the dining room and shut all the doors. Then drew the curtains. If they were so sure their agencies were bugged, she didn't understand why they were having this meeting at her house.

Then again, it didn't really matter. Todoroki was a close friend, but it was more than that. The four of them went through hell together in high school. They'd go through hell together now.

They locked down, ready to plan for whatever was coming.

Momo made sure she sent food out to you. Cause she knew you'd forget to eat. While she had the house make tea and snacks for her and the guys.

They sat for hours, mauling over all the information they had.

The sky outside got darker and darker.

Before you knew it, it was thundering and lightening. The rain was sheeting down. The winds howled frighteningly outside.

It was dark out when you fell asleep. You didn't know what time.

Your tree rumbling and groaning woke you up sometime later though. Trinkets vibrated off the walls, crashing to the ground. 

You panicked, wanting it to stop. You didn’t know what was happening.

Then there was a huge CA-RACK and you along with everything in the room flew towards one wall. 

Before you knew it, you were covered by pieces of wood, glass shards, and ripped pillows. You could see the grass under you.

You groaned crawling out from the debris into the rain. Something sharp caught your calf and cut you all the way down. You hissed.

You stumbled into the open. The treehouse was in shambles. The tree split in half. And your darling nest and building were scattered all over the yard.

Nothing was salvageable. You would've cried if you weren't pumped full of adrenaline.

"Does this qualify as important?" you wondered aloud. But the stinging in your leg gave you the answer. You didn't want to look down at the cut. Too afraid of what you'd find.

You trailed blood, rain, and mud through the marble halls as you found the dining room. 

You could hear them inside, but couldn't understand what they were saying.

Your heart was pounding. You felt bad interrupting.

"Are you alright? - The mistress will want to know about this. I do believe that needs stitches," said the butler outside the door. His eyes were wide, staring at the gash on your leg.

You nodded, swallowing thickly. Then pushed open the door to pop your head in.

"Uh, Mocchan…" you muttered weakly.

Todoroki turned to you. His mouth settled into a hard line. His forehead creased in worry.

You smiled at him weakly and waved.

Two pairs of eyes watched you from the other side of the table. You didn't really know them, but you knew who they were.

You waved at them too.

Her back was to you. "[Name], I told you -"

Momo stopped as she turned to you. Her eyes grew wide at the blood trickling down your face.

Momo pulled you into the room. You whimpered at the sick pain shooting through your leg. She moved the papers around and sat you on the table.

"Are you okay? - Well obviously not. - Why do you look like this, [Name]? What happened?! I thought you were in the treehouse -"

You were caught off guard by a sob in your throat. "It's all gone."

"Gone?! What do you mean it's gone?!" Momo began to make gauze, a towel, and wipes for your leg. You hissed as she sopped up some blood then wiped the cut down. But she kept fumbling as she tried to wrap it. 

She couldn't take her eyes off the puddle of blood that had dripped on the floor.

"I - I don't know. The tree just...broke? And everything just…" You made an explosion noise. "It's all gone…"

The adrenaline pumping through Momo made her shakey. The gauze was just not wrapping.

"Dude, I think you should go to the hospital!" Kirishima said.

"Can I?" Todoroki asked.

He gestured to your leg, then glanced between the two of you. You both nodded. He put your foot on his stomach and began to wrap the cut up tightly.

Momo held your hand, not wanting to be away from you.

"Sorry I'm muddy," you muttered.

Todoroki shook his head. "It's fine, I wash. But you really should get to the er."

"But your meeting -"

"Screw the meeting," snapped the blonde behind you. "The three of us can stay here. Ponytail, get your omega to a doctor."

You pouted. "But Momo -"

Momo wrapped you immediately in her arms as Todoroki stepped away. She squeezed you tightly, her face pressing her face into your neck. "No, you're going. They're right. That looks bad. And we need to get your head looked. You could have a concussion."

"I'm sorry I got blood on the floor."

Momo laughed sadly. "Stop that. It's fine."

You wiped at the tears on her face as she pulled away. But it didn't help when you were wet from the rain.

Momo began wiping at your face too. She tried to absorb the blood trickling down your forehead.

"Let's get you a hospital."

Momo hauled you up on her back and piggybacked you out to the waiting car, although you offered to walk. 

She was tense and silent for the whole ride. Gripping your hand as though you might slip away from her.

You arrived and were quickly put up in a room.

When the doctor came in he checked you over, confirming the need for stitches on your leg. 

They simply cleaned up the cut on your forehead and used a bit of liquid stitch to keep it from bleeding again.

After your leg was stitched up, you were taken to be scanned and examined. 

"You're lucky," the doctor said, looking over your results. "No internal bleeding or injuries. No broken bones. No concussion. Just some strained muscles. You can go home tonight. Make sure you keep your leg clean, the stitches can come out in four to six weeks. I’ll caution you against strenuous activity in the meantime, you don’t want to tear those. We’ll send you with some pain medication, you can take it as instructed."

You weren't surprised at the verdict of nothing being broken. That was your quirk after all - indestructible bones. 

They were made of light but durable material with complex structures that made them very hard to break.

That didn't do much for your skin or organs though.

You and Momo thanked the doctor. The relief was visible on your alpha’s face.

She piggybacked you to the car again.

"You can sleep with my tonight, if you want to,” Momo said once you two were settled. She put an arm around you to tug you into a side hug. “I'm sorry you went through that alone. That must've been scary."

"We couldn't know that would happen," you whispered, hugging her back.

She kissed the top of your head. “We can rebuild, make everything better -”

“I’d rather have a room in the manor to make my nest. If that’s okay?”

You couldn’t see it, but Momo was crying again. “Of course. I want to keep you close.”

When you arrived back at the manor, you waited briefly on a couch outside of the dining room. Momo was catching up with what the guys had come up with.

They wished you well before leaving.

“Let’s go get you cleaned up.” Momo guided you to her bathroom and ran a bath in the large clawfoot tub.

You undressed and climbed in, then Momo did the same. You leaned back against her, her chin on your shoulder. 

The warm water untensed all your knotted muscles.

Momo held you closely. “I promise, I’ll never leave you alone again.”

~*~

MINA ASHIDO

Mina loved Denki to death, he was one of her best friends. But he just did not treat his poor omega right.

Mina thought she could do it better.

She'd wanted to court you long before Denki did. She was just too nervous. 

What if you didn't want a female alpha?

Honestly, she seared with jealousy when you came into work freshly scented like him.

You were happy. So that made her happy.

But your rose colored glasses didn't last long. Mina saw through your facade immediately.

You didn't smile as brightly whenever Chargebolt came in.

You didn't happily call him "alpha" as you'd done before.

In fact, you nearly hid every time you saw him.

And it didn't take long before Mina saw why - Denki seemed to think omega was equal to pack mule who bends to every whim.

He made you carry his stuff, then would pat your head and baby talk you.

He was always having you get stuff. And brag about how good you were. But complain that you were whinier than he'd expected.

Mina hadn't heard you complain about his actions once!

She didn't think it was her place to tell you to break up with him. But all the hints she tried to slip Denki about how he was treating you went in one ear and out the other.

She wasn't the only one to see it either. But she was the only one who bothered to help.

It pained her to watch you. To see you struggling to keep a smile on.

"I don't think it works like that," you told her when Mina finally told you to cut it off. "I don't think omegas can break it off with alphas."

"You are a strong, independent omega, [Name]," Mina scolded. "You need to stand up for yourself. You can do whatever you want. You're still your own person."

Honestly, you hadn't really even wanted Denki as your alpha. But no one else had shown an interest in you. Especially not Mina. Not in your mind, anyway.

Mina had been the one you wanted to court you. But Denki came along first. And he was kind of pushy.

So you accepted. It didn't take you long to regret it.

Nothing about it felt right. You felt like a maid, not a mate. You were pretty sure that wasn't what an alpha was supposed to make you feel like.

Denki couldn't even relax you. He didn't seem like he wanted to help you with your issues at all. 

In fact, he made it all worse.

Denki had even invited himself and his friends to your apartment. Only giving you a day's notice.

He wasn't going to help with food or cleaning. He laughed and said that you could figure it out.

You were at your wits end.

You were Starlight, one of the top heroes in your agency. Not a doormat.

Still, you scrambled to clean. Mina came over to help. You tried to get food and snacks together. You updated your gaming system. Pulled out any movies and board games you could find.

Your house was visitor friendly by the time the weekend rolled around.

You'd never actually met three people who came. But you knew of them. Each being heroes that were in class with Mina and Denki during high school. 

You'd also run into them when you were out with Denki. But he didn't have the courtesy to introduce you.

They introduced themselves as Bakugo, Kirishima, and Sero.

"Are you sure you're cool with this?" Kirishima asked, lingering in the doorway. Denki was already being loud with the other two.

"Would you shut up? We just got here," Bakugo snapped.

You shrugged. "I guess I have to be. Right?"

Kirishima's face twisted up into something between disapproving and pitying.

He hesitated before going into the living room. You saw him speak briefly with Mina. Their eyes flicking to you every now and then.

"I didn't know you had all these, Denk," Sero noted, flipping through your game library.

Denki shrugged coolly. "Yeah, you know -"

"Don't let him fool you," Mina interrupted. "Those are [Name]'s. Denki doesn't even have the newest generation console."

"Yeah, Denki's is an old brick," you joked.

"Baabbbee," he whined.

The guys chuckled, and you caught Denki's face flush red.

"Whatever, it's not that impressive," he huffed and stalked off to the kitchen.

You watched quietly after.

"You guys can play whatever you want," you offered. "I don't get to very often. So don't worry about copying over any saves. - Denki did that on the one game I did play…"

You trailed off awkwardly, earning you weird looks. 

"I'll get snacks." 

Mina trailed after you when there was a crash. 

Denki was standing in the middle of the kitchen, staring at the plate of food he dropped.

"Uh, sorry. You mind cleaning that up? Thanks. Oh and don't forget to bring out some sodas for everyone. Love you!" Then he ran to join Sero and Bakugo in the living room.

"I'll help you," Mina said, and you pointed her to the broom closet.

"That was super unmanly," Kirishima noted, grabbing some paper towels. "Does he always do this?"

"Uh, n -" you stuttered.

"All. The. Time," Mina groaned quietly.

You sighed, taking a few paper towels. "Mina, don't -"

"But you don't deserve to be treated this way!" She aggressively swept across the kitchen.

"Mina's got a point, dude. He's my friend, but it's super uncool of him -"

"The hell happened here?" Bakugo grunted. 

"Denki." You three said in unison.

Bakugo rolled his eyes. "You got anything to drink?"

"I was going to - I can -" you started, beginning to stand. You hissed as a piece of plate cut your palm.

"I can get it myself, just tell me where it's at. I'm a grownass adult."

Mina stood carefully. "I'll get you a band-aid. Bathroom cabinet, right?"

You nodded at her, then pointed to the fridge. "Whatever I have is in there. Sorry it's not much. I wasn't sure what you all liked and Denki refused to go to the store with me -"

"He's kind of a crappy alpha, isn't he?" Sero asked joining the party in your small kitchen. "Don't worry. He's watching a tutorial on how to play the game."

"You know, if you're not happy with him, you can dump his dumb ass," Bakugo noted. He tossed Sero a soda can. "Just because he's an alpha doesn't mean that he gets to decide everything."

Kirishima stood and dumped the paper towels of food you'd both collected in the trash can, before washing his hands. "Yeah, it's your relationship too."

He then grabbed the broom and began sweeping.

"He's our friend but he's being an idiot, we're on your side." Sero gave you a grin and a thumbs up.

"Uh, thanks, guys," you muttered.

"I finally found you a bandage," Mina announced. "Let me see your hand."

You stood and put your hand in hers, palm up. The touch put you at ease.

"It doesn't look too bad. Let's clean you up."

You let her lead you to the sink and wash your hand. Then she dried it and put antiseptic ointment on it before sticking the band-aid over it.

Your whole body filled with heat as she kissed the back of your hand. Then she grinned at you.

The guys could feel and smell the shift as soon as Mina started taking care of you. 

It was unvocalized but unanimous - you needed to dump Denki for Mina.

Once the kitchen was clean again, everyone crowded the living room. 

"Hey, babe, it's kind of chilly. You got any blankets?" Denki asked.

You shook your head. "No."

"But I'm coollldd," Denki groaned.

"I haven't washed blankets in a while."

He groaned, but conceded as you sat close to him. 

After a bit, your body heat didn't seem to be effective enough for him.

Denki got up and disappeared. You didn't think anything of it.

No until he came out into the living room a few minutes later with a pile of pillows and blankets. Special ones. 

Your heart stopped. "D-Denki...where did you get those?"

"These? Oh - the second bedroom. So much for not having any clean -"

You bolted to the spare room. You couldn't believe your eyes. You sank to the ground. He'd ruined the carefully crafted nest you'd been building for years.

"Hey, [Name], are you okay?" Mina asked softly behind you.

"My nest," you uttered. Tears welled up, threatening to spill. 

Mina put a hand on your shoulder. Getting immediately what you meant.

"Hey, babe, can you -" Denki started.

You shot him a glare. He stopped in his tracks.

"What's wrong with you?" he asked incredulously.

"You ruined their nest, idiot!" Mina snapped. A glare beaming from her dark eyes. "What the fuck is your problem, Denki?! You have like...the most perfect omega, and this is how you treat them?!"

Your heart leapt, heat rushing into your face at the words.

"What're you talking about? [Name] is happy to -"

"No," you sobbed. "I'm not. I'm not your maid. I'm supposed to be your mate. But…"

"You treat [Name] like garbage!" Mina kneeled to wrap an arm around your shoulders. 

"But you're my omega -" he started, a little desperation in his voice.

"No!" you yelled. "Not...not anymore. We're done. Just - get out!"

"But -"

"Out!" Your eyes flashed a deadly shade of blue-white.

You leaned into Mina. She sighed, and held you tightly. She was pumping out comfort pheromones.

You eased right away. Nothing like this had happened with Denki.

"Fine. C'mon guys, let go -" he started.

"Not them," you sniffled. "Just you. They can stay if they want."

Denki held a smug face until he realized no one was going with him. "Oh come on guys!"

"Sorry, dude," Sero said awkwardly.

Kirishima shrugged. "But you did kind of treat them like dirt."

"You're a dumbass," Bakugo snapped, not even looking up from the game. "You fried your brain one too many times."

Denki looked like he wanted to say something snarky.

"Denki, dude. You fucked up," Mina said over her shoulder. "Just...leave. You already ruined [Name]'s nest."

"Fine!" he pouted and slammed the front door as he left.

"Can I see your phone, please?" Mina asked softly. You handed it to her, just in time to have Denki call. He was too predictable. She rejected the call and blocked his number. 

“I guess I can always rebuild it,” you muttered. “I need to wash everything. It reeks like him.”

Mina nodded. “I’ll help.”

You and Mina spent the day washing all the sheets and shirts and blankets that had been in your nest.

You were more content around her than you’d been in a while. You hadn’t realized that she didn’t mind you being glued to her side.

Even when she made sure to stay late into the night so you could finish your nest. 

You didn’t even question letting her in, it felt like the most natural decision in the world.

~*~

[an-absolute-travesty]

Secret Santa fic!

Heya @all-eternity it was me all along! I hope you enjoy this :) very much looking foward to actually being able to follow you after this without looking sketchy lmao

Also shoutout to my lovely beta reader @keepersandqueens as if I don’t talk about Salas enough here lol

Warnings: underage drinking, drinking in general, hangover, drugs/medication mention (not abused, basic over the counter stuff dw), mentions of vomit (not described)

Pairings: Kam, background marelinh, ex titz

About: Kam coffee shop college au��

Word count: 5,205

Tag list (tell me if you want to be added or removed): @cadence-talle @ruewen-and-rising @lemontarto @a-lonely-tatertot @clearlyvacksen @percabetn @sewersewersewercouch @everyonehasthoughts @imaramennoodle @enbies-and-felonies @blxckh0les42​ @rainbowtay-11 @callas-starkflower-stew @impostertamsong @appalyneinstitute1 @stars-and-splendor @anna-without-an-e @mistythegenderqueermess @we-have-no-bananas-today @we-wont-dissapear @jadenightthewriter

Tam stumbled into his first 8 am class, anxiety making his heart feel like it was pounding out of his chest and stomach doing backflips.

If he could survive bouncing between foster homes, a short stint at juvie, and worst of all high school, he could survive college.

Well he thought he could until he saw a familiar person right next to the only available chair in the room.

God fucking damn it.

"Hey Bangs Boy!" Keefe waved him down, causing a scene. Tam had no option but to sit beside him, both because of the lack of chairs and the fact that everyone was now staring at him.

Not a great start.

"What a coincidence! I notice you still haven't taken my suggestions on your hair, I'm telling ya' you'd get all the girls and or guys and nonbinary pals with a man bun." Keefe looked smug at the fact he'd be able to taunt Tam for another semester, minimum. Tam was already making a mental note to check when he could swap out of classes.

"Keefe, if I knew you were going here I would've just gotten myself back in jail, oh wait, you were the one who got me in there in the first place." Tam shot him a look, praying that he'd suddenly develop superpowers and shoot lasers from his eyes.

"Hey, just because I came up with the idea...and helped with some of the execution, doesn't mean I'm responsible for you trashing your parents house. Besides, you were only in there for like 3 days max before you got out," Keefe said, shrugging as if 3 days in jail was no biggie.

"Most peaceful 3 days of my life," Tam sneered, turning back to the front of the room as the professor walked in.

"Good morning class!" the prof turned to the white board, writing his name. "I am Dr. Harding," he tapped it for emphasis.

The class was silent.

"And you say good mor..."

"Good morning Dr. Harding," The class said in unison, they all sounded tired and bored.

This wasn't going to be fun.

~*~

"Grande ice vanilla latte for...Hen-are-y?"

The man shot Keefe a look as he grabbed his coffee.

"Henry." He dropped a tip in the jar, fifty cents. How generous.

He had come in before, and never left good tips. Keefe made it a game to pronounce the names of anyone who wasn't a college student and left bad tips wrong, no matter how much they came in. It was a wonder he hadn't been fired yet.

As he turned preparing another drink, the bell at the top of the door rang. He ignored it at first until he heard a quiet, "Fuck," come from behind.

"Bangs boy!"

"Why are you here?"

"I work here obviously," Keefe walked up to the counter. "Now, what'll it be?"

Tam sighed. "Iced caramel macchiato with two extra shots of espresso."

"Size?"

"Venti."

Keefe whistled thinking about how much caffeine that was as he wrote down "Bangs Boy" on the cup.

"Alright, that'll be 5.75, may I ask why the insane amount of coffee? I believe I remember you saying caffeine makes you anxious in high school."

"Yes, but it also helps me focus, and I have a quiz tomorrow I haven't studied for."

"Fair enough," Keefe said, going to prepare the drink. "It'll be ready in five."

Tam nodded, walking off to the side and scrolling on his phone. Keefe made the drink, occasionally sneaking looks over at Tam. He didn't seem to notice, thank God.

Soon after, they finished the transaction.

"See you at class," Keefe said, he was trying to be genuine, but it came across more taunting.

Tam grimaced, muttered "Thanks for the coffee," and walked out the door.

~*~

The class fell silent as a disheveled Dr. Harding walked in, a pack of gatorade in one hand and bottle of tylenol in the other. He popped one as he sat down.

"Hello class it seems today I have the worst headache imaginable, just give me about 5 minutes of silence and we will go over your assignments."

Keefe leaned over to Tam's desk.

"Well, we know what he got into last night," he whispered. "Heard the bar on the corner of 5th was giving out two for ones for professors."

"Isn't that place run by the alumni?"

"Exactly. Gotta thank Alvar tomorrow, Fitz said it was his idea."

"Wait Fitz goes here too? Why did I not-"

"Boys!" Dr. Harding practically yelled. "I am tired of the racket." He put his face in his hands where his elbows rested on the desk, bald spot showing to the world.

"We were whispering!" Keefe made a 'what the hell' sort of gesture. Tam glared at him, hoping he could communicate 'I will kill you myself if you say another word' with just his eyes.

"Sencen, do I look like I care?"

Keefe winced a bit at the use of his last name. That was something Tam could understand.

"Look, boys," Dr. Harding stood up and turned to the chalkboard, writing something down. "If you all like talking so much, you'll love this next project."

He walked to the side, revealing the board, that read '10 page essay, due the 25th'

"With the person next to you, you'll be writing a 10 page essay on um...the importance of keeping your oil changed in your car. You'll then present it to the class. It's worth 25 points."

A student raised their hand.

"Luka?"

"Sir, I thought this was a psychology course?"

"It is. You are all excused."

With that, he left the room with his tylenol and gatorade in his arms. The students glared at Keefe and Tam as they all got up, muttering amongst themselves about the pure bullshittery of it all.

"So..." Keefe said, slowly standing. "Does the library tomorrow at 3 work? I have work until then, so it can't be any earlier."

"Yeah, sure." Tam promptly walked out of the classroom as fast as possible, he didn't know why but his anxiety was spiking. He tried to tell himself it was just because he was a useless gay that didn't know jackshit about cars, yeah, surely that was it.

Just a useless gay.

~*~

Tam waited at a table in the library, it was 3:05, Keefe was late.

He didn't know what else he expected from him, he always seemed to do stuff like this. At the same time, Tam didn't have the energy to be particularly mad at him. This was going to be the stupidest essay ever written in the history of man, might as well put it off.

The library door slammed open, and in came Keefe. He balanced a large stack of papers and books along with four drinks. He stumbled over to Tam and practically threw them down on the table.

"Sorry I'm late, I thought it would be nice to, like, get you a coffee, but I didn't know how much caffeine you wanted, so I got one decaf caramel macchiato, one normal, and one with an extra shot, and also hot chocolate for me."

He sat down in the chair by Tam, as if getting three different coffees for someone you were forced to do a project with was totally normal.

"Um...thanks, I-I can pay you back-"

"Don't worry about it." Keefe turned to him and smiled, bright and friendly. Tam was frozen. "Okay, now it's car time." Keefe turned back to the desk.

"Yeah."

They were silent for a while as they researched, Keefe going through his piles of papers and books and Tam on his laptop like any sane person would.

Tam finally worked up the nerve to talk.

"So um...this is out of nowhere, but I think you mentioned Fitz went here?"

"Oh, yeah." Keefe put down the absurdly large textbook that was set up in front of him. "He's my roommate, he uh thought it would be best not to tell you after everything, I guess."

"That's fine," Tam shrugged like he didn't care. "I'm over it."

He was, really. They only dated like 2 weeks, sure it ended with a...pretty big fight after Fitz claimed he wouldn't be able to date someone who had gone to jail and Tam reminded him it was his best friend that got him in there in the first place, but he was still over it. There was still something bothering him, nothing to do with Fitz himself but...something. He just couldn't put his finger on what.

"Alright, I'll take your word." Keefe shrugged, setting his giant book back up in front of him.

Tam felt the need to start talking again, but didn't. They were mostly silent for the next 40 minutes or so, just researching and the occasional word exchanged between them.

Keefe checked his phone.

"Shit," He got up. "Work emergency, I gotta go. Same time tomorrow?"

"Yeah that works."

"Chill, see ya' later."

"Bye."

Keefe waved (with a wide grin Tam would've called idiotic in high school) as he went out the door.

Tam found himself with a smile on his own face, he quickly stopped, hoping no one saw.

~*~

Keefe hurried into work, pulling his apron on as he saw the absurdly long line and a panicked Marella frantically making coffees behind the counter. She sighed with relief when she saw him.

"Thank God," She said as he stepped behind the counter with her. "There was a scheduling error, Forkle's useless at that stuff."

Mr. Forkle, their well-meaning but often mistaken manager, was out of town at the moment. The fate of the Starbucks rested on two college kids, what could go wrong.

And so they went, Keefe taking orders and Marella fulfilling them until there were no more to serve.

Marella, quite literally, threw in a towel she had wiped her face with. Promptly going to the back, presumably for her break. Keefe followed her.

"Alright, I think you can probably go back to whatever you were doing before this now if you'd like," said Marella, inspecting the small braids in her hair in the nearest shiny surface.

"Nah I was just doing a project with Tam for Harding's stupid class, he's probably left by now, I might as well rack up some overtime."

Marella turned back at him, clearly caught off guard at the name.

"Tam? As in my-girlfriend's-brother Tam? As in you-had-a-massive-crush-on-in-highschool Tam? As in dated-Fitz Tam? As in you-got-him-in-jail-"

"Yes! Yes! Why does everyone remind me of that, it was one time."

"When you get someone in jail, people tend to remember," Marella went silent for a second, thinking, before looking Keefe in the eye. "Wow, that must be awkward as hell, I mean seriously, if I were you I'd straight up file a restraining order just to avoid him. Maybe move to another country. I hear Estonia is lovely this time of year."

"Eh, it's not as bad as it seems. I mean it was awful at first, mostly because I tried to resume right where we left it on the taunting front, but I think it's ok now."

"Hm. Well good luck with that," Marella turned back to go to the front, but Keefe grabbed her arm to stop her.

"Uh, actually I need your advice on something. It has to do with Tam."

"Shoot."

"Well I was thinking of maybe, I don't know, asking him out or something? Look, yeah, it's an awful idea but is it 'he never wants to talk to me again' awful or 'he attempts to strangle me' awful?"

Marella looked him up and down, eyes uncomfortably cold, as usual.

"I mean, no hetero, but despite your annoying qualities you're a decent looking guy. Plus Tam's, like, super anxious according to Linh, so maybe he'll be too awkward to say no. You can probably squeeze at least one date in there."

"Wow, thanks Mare," Keefe mumbled, voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Yes, I try. Also don't call me Mare."

"Alright Ella!" Keefe called as the front door's bell rang, signalling a new customer. Marella went off to take care of it, unable to respond she growled back at him.

~*~

Tap tap tap tap tap.

Tam glared from across the table.

Tap tap tap tap tap tap.

"Why do you keep doing that?"

Keefe looked up, muttered a simple "Fidgety" and went right back to it, tapping his pen against the table. Tam said nothing more.

Keefe had been quiet for this entire meeting, something highly unusual for him.

"Ok, seriously dude, what's up? I haven't seen you this quiet literally ever."

He only seemed to get more fidgety at this question, his bouncing leg shaking the library table.

"I...um..." he looked down, running a hand through his hair "I have a test I need to cram for and no one to study with and keep me accountable. Y'know, ADHD issues."

Tam didn't overthink for once in his life but the moment the sentence was out of his mouth he regretted it.

"I have a test too, maybe we could study together?"

Keefe smiled his annoyingly charming smile.

"Sounds good."

"Good."

Tam quickly looked back down at his computer, trying to look like he was still doing car research when in actuality he was processing he just actively offered to spend more time with Keefe Sencen.

If Linh found out about this he'd never live it down.

He didn't think he cared.

~*~

Dr. Harding walked through the classroom door, clearly much less hungover than his last appearance.

The students waited, would they get an apology? Any sort of remorse?

"Alright, who wants to read first?"

Apparently not.

Keefe raised his hand with too much confidence for what their essay looked like. Tam gave him a confused look. He had his scheming face on, never good.

"Mr. Sencen!" Keefe winced at the use of his last name by the doctor. "What an amazing start, it's only appropriate. One of you boys come up and present."

Tam gave Keefe a look of 'do you want me to do it?' Keefe just smiled and got up from his chair. This would either be really good or really, really bad. Tam was all too familiar with the scheme face.

"Doc, I did depart from the source material a bit here, hope you don't mind. And I use 'I' because Tam had no involvement in this, he deserves full points for his essay."

Keefe cleared his throat, the room was so silent you could hear a pin drop.

"Doctor Harding deserves to get fired: an essay. (And it's only been a week!) Paragraph one, his drinking problem-"

"Sencen! Back to your seat now. I will see you after class, or I will not see you in my next class, understand?"

Keefe gave a thumbs up as he sat back on his chair with a thud.

A few minutes later, in the middle of another student's essay, he passed Tam a note with his loopy handwriting.

"The amount of comebacks I had for 'see me after class' is absurd but if I get kicked out there's no way Elwin is helping me pay tuition a second time."

Tam tried not to smile, certainly failing, as he wrote his response.

"Yeah I think the time you talked back to Miss Cadence she wanted to expel you. Lucky Principal Alina had a thing for pseudo-dad Alden."

"Oh God I haven't talked to him in a whiiiiiile."

"?"

"You haven't heard? Yeah, he sorta found out like ALL his kids were ell gee bee tees and freaked out. Della found herself a new gf though!"

"Sounds like a lovely extra punch in the gut for a queerphobe."

"Yep. Honestly I recommend looking through his Facebook sometime. Just a million rants about how the gays destroy everything, great entertainment."

"Duly noted."

At that point it seemed like the doctor started to take notice of their note passing, and they stopped quickly. Tam wouldn't be surprised if he did the whole high school read in front of the class thing with the way he had been acting so far.

Tam was 100% sure tenure was the only thing keeping this guy's job intact. Apparently being a drunk asshole wasn't near enough to get a person out of their position. He tried to ignore the professor's annoyingly smug face for the rest of the class.

~*~

Keefe sat in his usual spot at the library, Tam sitting across from him, his brown eyes dancing across the textbook page and lips mumbling along the words. He didn't have much to do, often finding himself just staring at Tam, quickly looking away if he seemed to notice.

Eventually he sighed, sitting back.

"Ugh, this test is in a week and I have so much other crap to do, I'll never get this all memorized by Friday."

Keefe silently thanked his brain for managing to get around the having to study thing. Yay, photographic memory!

"Oh, uh, well I'm free to study more tomorrow if that would help? We could do, like, flashcards or something."

Tam seemed to repress a smile. He did that a lot. Keefe always noticed.

"That's okay, I'm sure you have better things to do. The Starbucks is always pretty packed."

"Eh, sometimes you have to get away from Marella. She's mean to me."

"Not just you, once she told me if I ever made fun of Linh's cat's name again she'd make me cut off my own bangs."

Keefe nodded sagely. "The shorter you are the closer to hell. That's why you're worse than her."

"Hey!"

Tam flicked a stray rubber band at Keefe.

"I'm at least 2 inches taller than Marella...we measured."

Keefe thought up about 12 inappropriate jokes he couldn't make before flicking the rubber band back.

"Two inches only counts in roller coasters, none of which you can ride."

Tam stuck his tongue out before returning to his studies. Unlike Tam, Keefe didn't hide his smile.

~*~

Tam strolled into the Starbucks that Friday morning, no longer surprised to see Keefe working the counter. He could barely hold still in line as he thought about the amount of cramming he'd have to do in the next few hours.

When he reached the counter, Keefe said nothing, just busily worked making a drink.

He stuck it right out at Tam.

"One venti iced caramel macchiato with 2 extra shots of espresso because you have a test today in political science and still haven't studied everything and also a muffin because you probably haven't eaten today. On the house. Good luck with the studying."

Tam froze.

"I- um- th-thaks. Y-you too...sport."

Oh, you fucking idiot.

He quickly scurried out of the Starbucks with drink and muffin in hand. Wow, he had screwed that up.

But...

Keefe...

He...

He remembered his order and that he had a test and that he forgot to eat when he was stressed holy shit holy shit holy shit holy shit-

Okay, deep breaths Tam, you got this. You can totally handle a frustratingly cute guy showing care for you this is fine...

Not fine, not fine, gotta tell Linh.

He called Linh with no forewarning. Despite the fact that she was currently across the country at a different university, and it was about 3 am for her, she picked up. He barely let her get out a groggy "Hello?" before explaining everything. She only seemed to think a moment before responding.

"Hm. Well it's good to know that college is going good for you. Do you need advice or comfort?"

"Yes."

"Well, first of all, everything's gonna be okay. And I know that doesn't help much but just try to remember we're eighteen, and it's not the end of the world. Second of all, try to ask him out or something. It doesn't have to be framed as a date, like Marella and I got together on a walk in the park, seriously it can be anything."

"Thanks Linh."

"No problem, also can you hug Marella for me?"

"If she doesn't try to kill me first, yes."

"Nice. Okay go do what you gotta do, also don't wake me up at 3 am again or else I'll sic Purryfins on you, I had just gone to bed."

With that she hung up and Tam continued on his way, still trying to not completely freak out.

~*~

Keefe stared blankly as Tam walked right out of the door. Marella appeared by his arm.

"So, how'd it go?"

"Well, he called me 'sport'."

Marella inhaled through her teeth.

"Yikes. Comfort, advice, or distraction?"

"Distraction, please." Keefe replied, absent-mindedly preparing a cup for the next customer.

"Uh, well I meant to ask you what ended up happening with that ass of a teacher, but I got a bit distracted at your attempt to woo Tam-"

"Hey I said distraction not reminder. But basically I just got a slap on the wrist because, and I quote, 'Your father is Cassius Sencen! He wrote half the books we use in this class, I'm sure he can straighten you out!'"

"There's absolutely nothing papa Sencen could do to make you straight, I'm pretty sure he tried that, and it obviously didn't work."

"He actually tried a few times and it most definitely did not. Lucky he doesn't have my number anymore or else I assure you he'd keep trying."

Marella laughed.

"Well, moving on from grade A assholes, I'm supposed to tell you there's a party tonight. I'll have to send you the address later, I have it on my phone though, I am told there's gonna be booze, so I'm going."

"Eh, I'll probably go. Just to get my mind off everything."

"Thata boy." She lifted her phone. "And my shifts over in three, two, one, and I am out of here! See ya' tonight Hunkyhair."

"That's Lord Hunkyhair to you."

She just rolled her eyes and clocked out, leaving Keefe to deal with both the customers and his own thoughts.

~*~

Tam sat in his dorm room alone, constantly refreshing his grades for the possibility that his 70-year-old professor would post the test results at 1:30 am.

His roommate was gone for the weekend, actually he was gone most of the time. Tam didn't think they'd even had a full conversation before.

He jumped as his phone began to ring, a call from Keefe of all people. He hesitantly picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Tam! Tam Tam Tam Tam Tam" Keefe's slurred speech was too loud for a phone call, Tam held his phone a bit away from his ear. "...fuck wait why did I call you..."

There was a long pause, neither said anything.

"Oh yeah! I needed to tell you something...but uh I uhm I forgot what it was."

"Keefe, where are you?"

"At a paaaaaarty, well, actually just outside a party because it was hot in there, but now it's cold out here so uh yeah."

Tam sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Okay, send me the address, I'm coming to pick you up. Wait right there and don't move."

"Okie dokie."

Tam heard a thud sort of sound and the rustling of grass from the other line before Keefe hung up and soon after got a message of his location.

After 20 minutes of walking in the cold, Tam came up to what seemed to be a frat house with Keefe sitting on the lawn in criss-cross, patiently waiting in short sleeves and basketball shorts, way too little clothing for the weather. His ruddy face smiled as he saw Tam approach.

"Tam! I remembered what I was going to tell you." He stood up, face falling right after. "Oh no wait I forgot again. Ooh! You need a drink."

Keefe grabbed Tam's hand, pulling him towards the house. Tam stayed in place.

"Hey, let's get you home dude."

Keefe pouted.

"I don't wannaaaa."

He slouched down, pulling on Tam's arm like a child having a tantrum.

Tam pulled him back up to his feet.

"C'mon, if you go to your dorm without fuss I'll buy you ice cream tomorrow."

Keefe seemed much more ok with going along with Tam with the ice cream deal. He pulled off his own coat and placed it around the very drunk boy, he didn't complain.

Keefe began humming some annoying song from the early 2000s that was playing from the house earlier as they walked back in the direction of the dorms.

Suddenly, Tam remembered something.

Fitz was Keefe's roommate.

Shit.

"Hey uh do you think Fitz is at your dorm?"

Keefe nodded confidently.

"Yep! Said he was gon' study. Wouldn't come to the party because of his 'reputation' or whatever."

Around reputation he did exaggerated finger quotes, nearly knocking Tam's jacket off his shoulders.

"Hm...in that case let's go to my dorm, ok?"

Keefe shrugged, apparently willing to go along with most things in his current state. Thank goodness Linh had made Tam bring extra pillows and blankets to college, he could sleep on the floor and just hope Keefe didn't get sick on him in the night.

It was ridiculously hard to lead Keefe back to his dorm. He tried to pull down his pants halfway there and Tam almost had to carry him up the stairs but soon enough they got there. He sighed with relief as he led his inebriated friend into the room.

"Okay, you can stay here for the night. I'll sleep on the floor."

Keefe plopped himself down on Tam's bed laying flat for only a moment before sitting up with a snap and a look of realization in his eyes.

"OOH! I remember what I was gonna tell you again!"

"Oh?" Tam said playing along, expecting him to forget again.

He patted the spot next to him on the bed, Tam continued to play along, sitting next to him.

"So Marella said that I should just tell you this, and it worked for her, so I'm gonna. And uh and you have to promise to listen 'cause I'm not sayin' it again."

At this point Keefe grabbed his face with both hands, staring right in Tam's eyes and squishing his cheeks.

"You're listening right?"

Tam nodded, mostly to shake Keefe's hands off his face.

"Okay."

Keefe took in an over dramatic breath as if he was preparing to preform in the Olympics before getting another grin on his face.

"I really like you."

"You really like me?"

He nodded mumbling "mhm".

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I like you. Like, like like you."

"Like...as a friend?"

"I said I wasn't gonna repeat myself. As a booooyfriend." At this point Keefe fell back on the bed, looking at the ceiling. Tam's cheeks were burning.

"How long have you liked me like that?"

"Mmmm..." Keefe seemed to ponder for a moment, "Prolly high school."

"Oh um...good to know. You should get some rest. I'll be down here if you need me."

"Alrighty."

Tam shut off the lights and Keefe started snoring quick. Tam could only stare up in the darkness, unable to sleep.

~*~

Keefe woke up that morning in a room he didn't recognize to a killer headache and dead phone.

He turned to the side, seeing a pile of blankets and pillows with a large gatorade, bottle of tylenol, and a note next to it. Suddenly last nights memories came flooding back.

Oh, shit.

He scrambled out of bed, headache and nausea hitting him harder as he stood up.

Despite the fact his head was spinning, he picked up the note from the ground and read it.

Hey, meet me at the reservoir around 6, we need to talk -Tam

F. U. C. K.

Had he really said all that stuff last night? Surely it was a dream, right?

Oh God.

He gathered his few belongings, plus the things to help the hangover, and left the dorms as fast as possible. Only having to stop once along the way to throw up in one of the campus trash cans, hopefully no one would notice.

Keefe didn't have anything to do and he really didn't want to face Fitz so he went about his day in last nights clothing. Then again, it was a college campus. Someone walking around with rumpled clothes carrying a gatorade probably wasn't that big of a deal for most people. By 5:30 he sat impatiently in the empty park where the reservoir was located, it was colder closer to the water.

Just as promised, at 6 o'clock he saw Tam approaching on the horizon.

~*~

Tam was damn near a panic attack as he walked around the park attempting to find Keefe. Eventually he found him, sitting on a bench still in his clothes from last night, face once again ruddy from the cold. He sat next to him wordlessly.

"So," Keefe started.

"So," Tam replied, looking down at his lap.

"Tam I-" Keefe turned to face him. "I'm sorry about everything last night, I probably just made everything super awkward. Not to mention it's a giant violation of the friend code to even have a crush on your best friend's ex-"

"Yeah, about that."

"What?"

"You're gonna maybe kill me for this but uh," Tam pulled on his bangs. "I sorta talked to Fitz about it, I figured you wouldn't and apparently I was right. He said he was okay with it as long as we were ok with it."

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

Tam sighed, "Perhaps."

Keefe once again wore that shit-eating grin of his.

"Can I hear you say it?"

"Why don't you have to say it?"

"Already said it last night! Your turn now. Why did you take care of me while I was drunk?"

Keefe stared at Tam excitedly waiting for the answer. Tam sighed.

"Because I love you, little shit."

"Ooh you said it-"

Tam smashed his lips against Keefe's, both quickly melting into it. After only a moment they pulled away.

"Agh, you taste like gatorade and vomit."

"Well you taste like salt so really what's worse."

"Definitely the vomit."

Despite this, Tam leaned back in. This kiss was a moment longer than the last, and when Tam pulled away Keefe chased it.

"Ok, look I'm sorry but you look like shit Keefe you have to go change." Tam removed his jacket, throwing it around Keefe once again and helping him up from the bench. Keefe laughed.

"Yeah, you're right. Ooh now that we're a thing you need a new nickname!"

"I do?"

"You do, how about 'Bangs Boyf' ooh or maybe you can be my 'provoked partner' or my 'snappy spouse' my 'agitated accomplice' perhaps."

"Do you just have these ready and prepared for any situation?"

"A magician never reveals his secrets."

"You aren't Houdini, you're an 18-year-old boy that currently reeks of frat party."

"Eh that's basically the same thing. I've seen some 18-year-olds at frat parties preform tricks Houdini could never dream of."

Tam sighed dramatically. "It's a good thing you're pretty, you know."

"Hey!" Keefe jokingly shoved him.

For the first time Tam's smile wasn't repressed.

[the-reaper-of-maidens]

Arrival

YEET, some Alcina x OC stuff, because I’m horrible with x Reader stuff. I suppose chronologically, this is the first in my Alcina x OC stories, since this is how my OC met the tall vampire lady~ It kinda ends a bit abruptly, but I wanted the smut to be its own chapter, lol. I know I have the good lady far nicer in this than she really is, but she’s kinda mentally flipped upside down with this nutty OC~ I hope I did the tall vampire lady justice with this, regardless!

TW: mentions of self harm, homophobia implied

The diminutive woman arrived at the castle grounds. Her brown eyes were weary and showed her depression. Her brunette hair was long, flowing freely in the cold breeze, and her jeans were doing a poor job keeping her legs from freezing. She had some nose and ear piercings, so they were especially cold. She shivered and pulled her bomber jacket tighter as she went in, adjusting her duffle bag. She was a bit of a horror blogger, though she ironically was scared easily. Recently, she ended her blog, figuring it was best to end while she was at her peak, so she didn’t tell anyone about her trip to this haunting castle that was reported to be sites of vicious attacks.

Really, the blogger was hoping for one more fright before moving on from her fame, or maybe she wanted to end her suffering, so she hoped to see a monster. Though she was well-liked online, her personal life was… awful, to put it lightly. The blogger certainly felt unsettled, taking a look at the foyer. She thought it was weird that the doors were totally unlocked, though she figured it was different cultural norms, since she was American.

And then… she saw one of them. The blogger started sweating as the witch stepped towards her, she didn’t think anyone still lived here. The tiny woman stepped back, trying not to wig out as the witch continued her creeping. She whipped her head around when she heard another door open, and that was when she started running, dropping her bag.

She didn’t know where she was going, she just wanted to get away from them while trying to explore what the castle had to offer, despite her better judgement. Maybe she should have just turned tail when she saw the witch…

“Well, well… what an interesting visitor we have here,” a low, but darkly alluring voice called out, its owner crouching through a doorway.

The blogger froze like a deer in headlights as she saw what seemed to be an enormous woman towering over her. This woman must have been twice her height. Great, she thought, I have that creepy woman after my tail and now there’s this… hulking piece of… hotness. The blogger blushed a bit, this woman was just stunning, and she couldn’t help but get the hots for her despite being pretty terrified right about now. “S...sorry,” she finally managed to croak out. “I just got curious is all. I’ll just grab my stuff and leave now if you want.”

“How adorable, thinking you can just break in and enter someone’s house willy-nilly,” Lady Alcina Dimitrescu giggled charmingly and sinisterly as she eyed the petite woman, baring her claws. Of course, she felt it was a bit unfair for this especially tiny woman to go down easily; she usually liked giving her prey a fighting chance, it made the hunt all the more exciting. “I’ll give you a chance to run. If you make it out the door before my daughters or I can catch you, you’re free to go~”

Instead of running, though… the blogger just screamed and went down on her knees, cowering in fear. Her stomach was in knots, and she almost felt her breakfast wanting to come back up as she prepared herself for the worst.

The mutant tilted her head in curiosity and retracted her claws. Normally, most people took the chance to run off, but this one thought giving up and staying was a good idea. Alcina was suddenly interested in this strange human. “Hmm… you know what, I’ll call off my daughters. You pique my interest, how about we chat over lunch?”

The blogger was still shaking, though she mustered up the courage to open up her eyes. Though still anxious, she did relax a bit when she realized she was still unharmed. “I… yeah, sure. Lunch sounds good,” she stood up on shaky legs, unzipping her bomber jacket a bit. The adrenaline really heated up her body. Her stomach still felt a bit nauseous, though, so the thought of food didn’t sound appealing to the blogger at the moment.

“Trust me, I’ll make sure my daughters won’t bite. How about you go make yourself… comfortable in the meantime?”

Naturally, the blogger was still on high alert for the next few hours. She looked at her phone, tempted to make a blog post about all that happened, but she decided against it. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to be back in the limelight again… if she wanted to be criticized by her family again. She didn’t have any friends, really, so it wasn’t like she had anyone that would worry about her. She sighed, and Alcina caught the pained look on the blogger’s face.

“So… what brought you to my humble abode?”

“Oh! Sorry! Sorry…” the blogger fretted a bit. “Like I said, I got curious. I also used to run a blog about all sorts of scary monsters and stuff.” Of course, this was all lost on the vampire lady, so the blogger explained more. “A blog is kinda like a digital journal entry, you see. You write it up on your computer and post it up and everyone gets to see what you wrote. Kinda like a bulletin board, but it’s on the Internet.”

“And you… used to?”

“I… yeah. I just wanted to scare people about the things I write about, I didn’t want to be famous. But it happened, and I felt like I had to go along with the ride. Eventually, my folks found out. They’re… not the most supportive,” the blogger divulged. “So ending the blog was a little bit of panic and mostly my choice, because I knew I can’t handle juggling family issues and the blog.”

The mutant woman tsked a bit, feeling an odd sense of pity for the blogger. “How shameful of your family. Do they not have their own business to tend to?”

“Like hell that I care. I cut them off after I stopped blogging. I’ve got enough money to travel around as I please, so… if I’m stuck where I’m misunderstood and demonized, I can just fly off,” and the blogger had anger flash in her eyes for a second, which surprised the mutant vampire. “Imagine being in hillbilly hell, where everyone is a churchgoing fanatic, and you don’t fit what they want you to be. I don’t have friends. My family hates me because of who I love… the guys laugh, and the women? Well, they’re grossed out because I’m a woman and I’m... I’m not supposed to love women.”

“Ah, so you escaped when you finally had the chance,” Alcina wasn’t stupid, piecing together that the smaller woman was waiting for the funds to get out. It was admittedly rather admirable to the vampire, knowing that someone freed themselves of their shackles.

“It took a few years… but you can bet I hauled ass the second I reached my goal. Still, though… I wake up every day, and I’m dragged down by my self-hate. Like my demons follow me wherever I go, and it’d be nice if I can escape for real.”

Alcina shifted a bit, and she grinned mysteriously. “I know a way, if you’re willing to stay for the night,” she offered, hoping the blogger would accept. Perhaps this woman could give her her fix, since it had been a long while since Alcina had any fun in her private quarters. Though she had her witches, she really did see the three as her daughters… she just couldn’t see herself doing such an act with any of them.

The blogger blushed a bright red, trying to decipher what this extremely tall vampire lady meant by that. “...Are you asking me to sleep with you?” she sniped in. She wouldn’t mind it, per se, but she was certainly surprised at the proposal.

“I can tell in your body language, you’re in love with me~ Luckily for you, I don’t care what’s in someone’s pants or how they identify as when I put them to bed. All they need to do… is be a good plaything for me,” Alcina giggled seductively, tossing away any subtlety she might have had.

“I… hold on, just a sec,” the blogger ran off to the nearest bathroom to compose herself. She felt herself flush with heat as she took off her jacket. “Don’t… do anything stupid,” she told herself in the mirror as she washed her face with ice cold water. She was wracked with nerves, but she just couldn’t pass this up. Well, what’s the worst that can happen? It’s not like anyone back home cared about me, she thought to herself. The blogger took a deep breath to compose herself as she zipped her jacket back up and she went back out, her emotions put into check for now. “Sure, I’d like to stay for the night,” the blogger grinned awkwardly when she returned, fidgeting a bit.

“Trust me, you have nothing to fear,” Alcina purred, putting a hand on the blogger’s cheek. Of course, decades of experience meant she knew how to not crush the poor thing during their fun. This woman must have been half her size, if the height difference was anything to go by. “When you’re as tall as I am, you simply have no choice but to... adapt.”

“Hehe, lucky me. I’ve never… did any of that, obviously,” the blogger admitted, blushing as she shifted her weight between her feet.

“Oh? So you’re saying that you’re a maiden?” Alcina was definitely hooked now, leaning forward a bit. Having a new fling was always nice, but having a potentially new source to make another batch of Sanguis Virginis was always even better.

“What? You’re not gonna like, sacrifice me to some demon or something, are you? Or gut me with those huge claws… right?”

“Oh, no, not at all. It just has a rather poetic ring to it is all,” Alcina hummed casually, debating whether to get the blogger’s blood or enjoy the night with her. Then again, there was no hiding from the tiny woman that she was a mutant vampire, so she had to come clean. “Though,” she leaned back in her chair, “I’m admittedly not sure whether to ravish you or turn you into my wine. We need maiden’s blood for the wine, you see, since it’s just so... delectable.” Normally, the countess would have no issue deciding to turn someone into wine, but given the events from earlier that day... the blogger could make for a good plaything instead.

The blogger swallowed nervously. She had a feeling that whatever she would say, Alcina would manage to have her way. “...How much blood? Are you gonna… turn me? If not, can you not… like, kill me? I need my blood to live.” So many questions raced in her head, she was almost regretting accepting the offer. Almost.

“Charming. Don’t you worry, I won’t drain you of all your blood, should you end up being my pet instead~”

The blogger spent most of the day just relaxing in her room after lunch, thinking about her future. The money won’t last forever, after all, so she needed to start planning. So far, her hostess seemed amiable enough, despite the initial scare. “Ugh, think, think, think! What can I do for Lady Dimitrescu to make her enjoy my stay if I have to come back?” Or, perhaps, she could forgo her travels, instead staying at Castle Dimitrescu for the rest of her life in service to Alcina. She felt a cold in the air, the hairs on her neck standing on ends. She slowly turned and her eyes met with Daniela’s, who she learned earlier was one of Alcina’s daughters.

“Mother says dinner is almost ready, plaything~” the witch giggled, a strident laugh that made the blogger feel a pit in her stomach.

“I… thanks,” the blogger gulped in fear, following the witch for what seemed like forever. She still wasn’t sure what to think about Daniela, truth be told. She eyed the mutant vampire, and realized the mutant was still inhumanly tall, though not as tall as Alcina. She gulped nervously, wondering if she’d be tossed to the witch if Alcina decided she wasn’t good enough.

“Ah, our little guest. Thank you for fetching her, Daniela,” Alcina nodded, a smirk revealing her fangs a bit as she waved Daniela off to take a seat. The blogger looked around, watching the maids hustle and bustle, setting food out to the table. She saw two other women similarly dressed as Daniela sitting at the table, and she assumed they were sisters. That still didn’t make her less uneasy.

The blogger’s mouth watered a bit, smelling the food. If lunch was anything to go by, dinner would be spectacular. “Thanks for letting me stay for the night, Lady Dimitrescu. Tonight’s pretty cold, or so it seems,” she took a seat.

“Oh, it’s not an issue at all, and please… you may call me Alcina,” the vampire mutant purred, trying to get a bit more emotionally close to the blogger. She rarely had any romantic emotions, she usually felt they were in the way of the real action, but… she didn’t mind it when she did have romance flare up in her heart, if someone truly was interesting to her. She frowned a bit when the blogger didn’t take her bomber jacket off, even as she started eating. “Oh, come now, how long have you worn that jacket today? Surely, you must be sweating buckets in there!”

The blogger blushed a bit, mid-bite into her chiftea. “Oh, um… you don’t need to worry… Alcina. I’m not hot at all, trust me,” she tried to dodge, knowing the lady wanted her to stop roasting.

“Well, if you get it all over your coat, you’re going to have to wash it anyways. I’m amazed you didn’t do that at lunch earlier.”

The blogger just cast her eyes downward at her food, fidgeting a bit. She knew she was locked in; one wrong choice, and she would be dead, and she’d rather be alive and uncomfortable than dead. “You’re right,” and she took off her jacket, revealing scars and tattoos on her arm peeking out from the rolled sleeves. She shivered in the brisk breeze, but kept eating.

Alcina leaned back a bit, realizing why her guest refused to shed her coat. “Who did that to you? The scars, that is.”

“...I did,” the blogger clenched a fork, her eyes still downcast. “...Most of it, anyways,” she finally looked up and made eye contact with Alcina. “Some of it was from my dad.”

“...My apologies,” Alcina truly meant it. “I had no idea.”

“It’s fine, the scars are all in the past now,” the blogger took a sip of what seemed to be wine, perhaps a merlot or a cabernet. She coughed, she hated alcohol… “Sorry… I get that wine is good for dinner, but… I prefer tea,” she admitted. “Dad was an alcoholic, so… stuff like that makes me uncomfortable. I think maybe an Earl Grey tea with some cream and sugar would be nice?”

Alcina nodded and called for a servant. “Prepare a tea kettle for our guest here. Earl Grey with cream and sugar,” the vampire lady commanded. “My dear guest… I really am sorry for making you uncomfortable. I’ll take note of that next time you come here.”

“Um… actually, about that… I’ve been thinking, Alcina. The money I’ve got won’t last forever, so I was thinking of just staying here… working for you,” the brunette woman rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly.

Each and every hour, the blogger became more and more interesting to Alcina. It was rare for girls to come and willingly work here, unless they had some sort of death wish. “I see. Well, in that case, I will spare you, my dear... if you can tell me what you can bring to the table.”

“I can make music, and I can do art. Think of all the beautiful paintings I’d make of you~” the blogger cracked a grin. “But more importantly… I can help you bring maidens into the castle for your wine.”

“Oh?” That definitely rules out making her into wine now, Alcina thought, though she decided hours ago she likely wouldn’t do such a thing to her little pet.

“If you can turn me into one like yourself and your daughters, I will. I promise. I’ve… when I was twelve, I wanted to become a vampire so badly,” she admitted, snorting a bit. “But... really, Alcina. The maidens I’d hunt for you would be my rent payment, so to speak.”

Alcina seemed to consider it, sipping her wine, and smiling in amusement at that confession. The blogger seemed multi talented, at least, so it would be nice to have some entertainment if she wanted, though it was new that someone wanted to be turned, and she was tempted, though she’d have to talk to a certain Mother Miranda. “You’ll get your chance, my dear. Patience is the key here,” she reached over and gently grasped her guest’s hand. “Perhaps not now, but you can say goodbye to your past… to the pain… soon.”

Dinner was accompanied by lots of talk, mostly of the blogger telling Alcina all about herself. Soon enough, dinner was done, and Alcina invited the blogger to her bedroom. “A deal is a deal~ I promised you that I’d help you escape your self-loathing, and I will,” she offered a gargantuan hand to the blogger.

[rae-arts777]

I want to talk about my religious trauma

I just want to tell my story, I know mine is minor, I know there’s worst out there, but I’m hoping maybe mine cause reach out to anyone experiencing the same so they feel less alone

Let’s start way back

Edit: (sorry I should have put this earlier) TW: slight sexual assault, self harm, suicide mention

Growing up a christian adventist, I knew Friday night to Saturday was worship. No electronics or TV unless it was veggie tales, or a Bible cartoon, and church Saturday.

Of course I acted out a bit, and would get scolded for not staying still. My mother however wasn’t upset at me for ruining church, just upset I wasn’t behaving and granted don’t blame her cause I was a brat lol. I would get in more trouble if I went with my grandma. I was “disrespecting the lord in his house” and well...I mean it’s hard for a child to sit still for 8 hours wearing a dress and shoes that made me itchy and gave me blisters

Now church was fun in some sense. Got to see my friends, food after services, I loved being able to help in the kitchen and help the elders as well.

Good right?

Well...as a child, we think what we know if right. I thought the way we had church was common to everyone. When I started school, it was different for me. I asked “why do my friends go to church on Sunday?” My grandma told me “they just don’t know the proper way, it’s your duty to tell them”

I remember...being really horrible towards a kid who’s family was an atheist. We were still friends, but I will tell him “you’re trusting the devil”. My words never seem to hurt him since he laughed them off, but I never stopped...I look back and have so much guilt. So much guilt towards others too since I tried to tell them church was Saturday’s, and going on Sunday was wrong. I think about how horrible I was, cause my religion never taught me to be accepting to others beliefs, it taught me that it’s my duty to turn others to the right way. And that makes me upset. If my religion was the religion of “accepting everyone no matter what” then why is every one else’s religion the work of the devil? And why are baptism, also who was Christians, deem “evil” like Catholics in our religion.

Middle school. I started attending the church school. Hell

I didn’t like our new pastor, something about the way he said things just...didn’t stick. His kids were a nightmare. They torment everyone. Got teachers fired they didn’t like. And went crying to their parents if they didn’t get their way. No they were not toddlers. They were teens. One got in between my old best friend and I, and since then her and I were never the same.

Because I liked art and anime...I was the weird kid, so they constantly picked on me. Pastor kids telling me certain kids here didn’t deserve to be made by god. That god made a mistake. I told them to stop, but they would go “you just don’t know. It’s hard for us!!! We don’t mean what we say!” And looking and writing this now, that was the first gaslighting and toxic friendships I experience.

It made me more mad the pastor told the whole church that his kids were perfect children. And they set an example of how all the kids in the church could act. That pastor family was just horrible. Lies, manipulation, just rude. He would make side remarks about my mum’s blonde dye hair. He would say something to my mum if I wore pants or a leather jacket to church. Just the way he said things, made my mum feel like she was a horrible parent. They made side comments when my dad would finally show up.

“I’m sorry my dad wasn’t constantly gone, he’s was too busy fighting for our country.” Is what they would want us to say.

Church become a chore. Not a joy. And when we got a new pastor, one I started to connect with, we moved away and in with my grandma

Now highschool. This is where I started drifting away from religion. I love my grandma..I really do ...but she’s so extreme. The Bible this. The Bible that. I can’t have a normal conversation without her being up the Bible. Can’t watch a movie, show, or listen to music that’s not Christian without her bringing up the Bible or turning it into a Bible lesson. I hated going to church. I hated hearing “repent. The world is ending soon”

Hearing constant that our young generation is filled with the devil, feeling all the eyes of the elders on me as I’m trying to comfort someone’s child so they can enjoy church peacefully

Hearing anyone experiencing love towards the same gender is the devil’s working

That everything I like is filled with the devil

My grandma start forcing religion worst and worst down my throat. Saying I have to be prepare. I need to make my choice. Don’t I want to be in heaven with everyone? I need to give myself to god

I won’t see my family members who passed away Catholic.

That I need to tell my other side of the family who’s Catholic the right way

The news comes on....hearing the Bible says this the Bible says that

Trying to defend trump with the Bible

This pandemic is the first plague, the world will end soon

The studies getting more and more. I can’t even read the Bible just to study out of joy cause I feel like someone is breathing down my neck.

I’m getting a headache just thinking about it.

And then I’m introduce the rotten apples of my religion.

We shouldn’t wear mask it’s God’s air

Only having faith is god will keep you from getting sick and heal you

Ever remember of LGBT is going to hell

Woman who abortion are going to hell

People will tattoos go to hell

People who don’t read the Bible everyday are going to hell

People who want to make this religion more open and accepting, are hearing the devil and are going to hell

People who kill themselves are going to hell

Mental illness isn’t real; it’s just the devil and you just have to be happy cause you have god.

I told my mom I can’t do it anymore, I just can’t, it’s more forced down on me too much. If the world is ending what’s the point? What’s the point of college? What’s the point of life? What’s the point of looking for love?! Cause I’ve been told so many times my own children won’t ever get to adult or teen hood cause the world will end! What’s the point. I’m so grateful to have a mother who understands..

And it pisses me out with these Christian movies. A boy is about to kill himself, and is getting told “you’ll go to hell! You really want that?! To go to hell?!” Why are you showing this?! That’s a last thing a suicidal person needs to hear. They don’t need a fucking Bible lesson, they need comfort!!! As a person who’s tried drowning, choking, and harming themselves, I fucking know I wouldn’t want someone to find me and say “you’re going to hell for that!”

And then you have those horrible people who think just cause they are religious that it gives them a right to be a shitty person. My grandma would fucking forgive a murder if they came out as Christian.

I told my grandma once “I do want to be more involved with the church, I want to give a sermon” and she told me “you can give a small one, not a full one, god did not use women to preach, he used men. I rather you do the children’s story”

.......

The Vice President...some Christians hate her cause “god didn’t intend for women to lead, if he did his apostles would have been women”

my grandma says “she slept her way to the top!” But oh! She didn’t mind if trump, a man who’s assaulted god knows how many women was in office...

Forgive everyone....you’re suppose to forgive abusers..my bullies....I was told to forgive them even if they never said sorry..cause god wants us to forgive

I allowed..a boy to convince me to do things...cause men always knew what was right...it was ok as long as we didn’t have sex...and it was ok...cause he was a Christian boy...

I just try to be a good human...I have sickenly forgave so many people who’ve hurt me....and now...I’m the pushover...

But what I did was wrong...

I’ve just....drifted away slowly...my grandma has sort of stop trying, maybe cause I’m an adult so I can make my own choices..maybe my mum told her something...

But the things she says makes me feel ashame for being Christian....

For the longest time I thought we were perfect people...now that I’m older...I see we’re just as bad..if not worst...

It makes me so sick...just thinking..how I forgave people who HURT ME cause ...if I can’t forgive, then God doesnt want me.

If god really wants all of his “children” then why if it when we says “I don’t want to forgive the person who gave me this trauma” then it’s “i forgave you why can’t you forgive them? It’s so simple, you really can’t do something that simple? Guess you don’t want to go to heaven”

I’m so done

I’m so tired..

I have a headache and started crying a bit while writing this and there’s so much more. But my wrist hurts and just...I want to scream.

But for the majority...that’s my religious trauma.

I’m not hoping to gain anything, just to reach to anyone else who’s going through the same emotions...you’re not alone ok?

[foreverthesickestkidz]

I’ll put a summary here eventually but it’s a serial killer!mark tuan au, friends.

One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten

warnings: gun, blood, mentions toxic relationship, cursing, it’s abt a serial killer so read at your own risk y’all, be careful.

authors note: i know i said this would be out Sunday & now it’s Thursday but I had some family issues come up :/ but here it is now lol!! Love you all! Also gif is not mine!!

masterlist | guidelines | lullaby m.list

Jaebum set his pen down as soon as he heard the knock on his office’s door. He wasn’t at all surprised to see Mark entering. Once Mark locked the door behind him, he sank into the chair in front of Jaebum’s desk.

“I need information on Bambam, JB.” Mark’s dark eyes seemed more aloof than normal, Jaebum noted. “You’re close with his family. I know you have records on the kid.” Mark leaned back in the chair.

Jaebum chuckled darkly. “Mark Tuan you’re a motherfucker, you know that?”

Mark raised an eyebrow and grinned.

“So our little deal is only on when it comes to people you don’t know? How ridiculous is that?” Mark stood from the chair and leaned over Jaebum’s desk. “You give me intel on scumbags who deserve worse than jail, and I take them out. That’s the deal. Whatever little stipulations you’re trying to incorporate were never in the agreement. So let me remind you who you’re talking to, Jaebum” Mark’s twisted smile gleamed in the lighting of the office. The Glock he pulled from its place in his belt sat shining on the desk, almost like some kind of trophy. “We’ve been good friends now for quite awhile, and you suffering the consequences for breaching the contract will certainly put a strain on my welfare, but if you don’t give me what I want I won’t hesitate to remind you that we’re not partners. You work for me, not the other way around.”

Jaebum knew not to display any fear despite his fight or flight instincts triggering at the sight of the Glock. He heard Mark loud and clear, but his goal wasn’t to stay on Mark’s agenda. He had his own plan, and Mark was just a pawn.

With a twitch in his eye, Jaebum never broke eye contact with the killer before him.

“What information on Bambam do you need?”

Mark smirked and holstered his gun before sitting back down. “I knew you’d come to your senses. Give me everything you have.”

Hesitantly, Jaebum pulled the file and gave it to Mark.

After Mark left the building, Jaebum picked up his phone and dialed a number he knew very well.

“Bambam, are you in town?”

Bambam was thrown off by the sudden call from his parent‘s good friend. He was off in New York handling business for his new wedding line and wasn’t expecting any calls from Eclipse in his absence, other than you, Jackson, or Yugyeom.

“Jaebum, hello! I’m not, actually. I’m away on business. Why? Is something wrong?” His first thought was of you, he prepared for the worst and was ready to book a flight home as soon as possible.

“Stay away from Eclipse, Bambam.” Jaebum hung the phone up and rubbed his temples.

What the hell am I doing?

***

Jinyoung scurried away from the door as soon as he heard Mark’s footsteps on the other side. He had heard enough to grasp what was happening, but he was unsure of what to do next. He left the Police Station during his lunch break to talk with his most trusted confidant, Lee Kwang.

He flung the door open to the conference room in a hurry to be met with your eyes and a worried look of Kwang.

“I’m sorry to interrupt, I’ve got major information for you, Kwang. It’s about investigation Phoenix.” Jinyoung rushed his words out.

“Please have a seat, Detective. This is one of my most promising interns, y/n.”

Jinyoung nodded to you and looked back to Professor Lee. “Is it alright to speak of our investigation?” He furrowed his eyebrows.

“Of course. Y/n will be working closely with us on this case, she understands the risks and confidentiality. I believe she is the most capable of my interns to handle an investigation this big. I’ve already briefed her on the issue.”

You grinned proudly at your professor as he spoke of you.

“Alright, well. I overheard a conversation happening between Jaebum and some guy. I couldn’t really make out his name through the door and he left too quickly for me to get a good look at him. But, I got confirmation on what we’ve suspected. The killer and Jaebum are working together. It seems as though Jaebum might be working against his will, but I’m not too sure.” Jinyoung spewed all the information he could remember from earlier.

“Did you get anything recorded? On your phone maybe?” You asked, in hopes he’d say yes.

“Unfortunately no, I didn’t get a good opportunity.”

“This does open a new chapter to the case, but for now there is nothing we can do. Without proof, Jinyoung it’s our word against his. We’d never win in the courtroom.” Professor Lee shook his head. “We need a plan moving forward,”

You nodded, “We need several different aspects of evidence for this kind of case to win in our favor. I mean, we’re trying to take down the entire police force. This is major.” You shuffled several papers in front of you to get to a blank page. Picking up your pen, you began a list. “Detective, we’re going to need you to do a little snooping around,”

“Alright. I’ll do whatever it takes.”

You smiled widely to the man before you. “Perfect. We can’t let them know we’re suspicious, so please act stealthily. If there’s another murder, try to get a picture of the body before the Coroner takes it away. Try to record any conversation between you and the Chief, the Coroner and the Chief, and the possible murderer. Any evidence we can gather on this will help solidify our claims. Look for missing files, things like that.”

Jinyoung nods throughout your speech.

“We suspect the coroner is in on this ‘deal’” Professor Lee adds after you finished.

Ripping out the page, you hand the list to Jinyoung.

Standing and reaching for the door, Jinyoung makes one last remark. “I’ll do my best. I knew something wasn’t right. We will find the killer. I will take down the entire Eclipse Police Force to do it.”

***

Yugyeom took a deep breath as he opened the door to your apartment. He could never really prepare himself each time he had to stay. It always seemed that the wounds of his past reopened every time he turned the key.

You sat on the balcony, reading over the files Professor Lee gave you on investigation “Phoenix.” You kept all information on the stressful case hidden from view of the three boys that frequented your apartment, but Yugyeom caught glimpses of it every now and then.

“Y/n, I’m back.” Yugyeom spoke softly in an attempt to not scare you.

You closed the file immediately, clutching onto it before getting up.

“I think we should talk, Yugyeom.” You sighed and re-entered the little apartment. You placed the file on the table and sat down on the floor of the kitchen area, a thing you and Yugyeom would do when you were together when one of you needed to rant to the other. He nodded and sat down in front of you.

“After that night, I never thought I could look at you again.” You stared intensely at the white tiles under your legs.

“Y/n, I’m sorry, I-“

“No more apologies, Yugyeom. Just listen,” you pulled your head up to meet the eyes of the man you once loved.

“I think maybe, it was my fault.” You fiddled with the sleeves of your hoodie. “Jackson said to me, ‘you made Yugyeom feel things he’d never felt before.’ Was I just too much?”

Yugyeom felt his sadness physically, the pain sprouting from his heart and through his fingertips.

“No, y/n. You were perfect. You’re still perfect. I don’t know why I couldn’t just- you were so pure, and I-“ Yugyeom had so much to say, but his words failed him and he knew it wouldn’t matter what he said anyway.

You shook your head, and smiled softly.

“Bambam hates you for what you did. He hates that you hurt me so deeply. Yet, he trusts you to keep me safe from some serial killer.” You chuckled. “No killer could hurt me worse than you, Yugyeom.”

You retreated to your room to be left alone with your memories of the night you left Yugyeom.

***

Mark walked the streets of Eclipse with a cigarette between his lips. He reached Bambam’s empty apartment before his cigarette was finished and rolled his eyes at the thought of putting it out prematurely.

Getting through the door was easier than Mark expected, and walking through the lush carpet left boot prints in the rug. He made a mental note to run his hands through it on the way out to rid any evidence of his presence. He picked up a framed picture of you and Bambam that sat on the coffee table. Mark’s eyes lit at the sight of you, and he grinned at the thought that you were so happy there. He wondered if you really knew who Bambam was, and he was almost sure you didn’t. Someone as pure and innocent as you wouldn’t dare be best friends with guilt ridden scum like Bambam, right? He wandered through the rest of the apartment until he found what he was looking for. He picked up the golden locket that was securely hidden under Bambam’s mattress.

This doesn’t belong to you, spoiled little brat.

Mark turned the locket over to reveal a little ‘4’ etched into the gold. Mark left Bambam’s apartment as the all too familiar voices began to ring out in his head.

Blood

Red

Blood

Red

Mark shook his head aggressively as he walked away from the building.

This wasn’t the time for him to need to kill. Jaebum hadn’t given him anymore names and he really needed to see you. The locket in his pocket felt heavy as the voices grew louder.

He sank to his knees in the street, waiting for his head to settle down.

The next morning he awoke in a pool of sticky blood, and the empty body of a stranger lay dismantled near him.

[outerspaceisbetterthannothing]

The Girl Who Cried Wolf [Alpha!Cal AU] Part 1

The Girl Who Cried Wolf | Royal Blood | No Love Go | Gimme

Summary: Two wolves can play this game

Warnings: this is smut, kids, nothing gross, but full ass smut, including masturbation, oral giving and receiving and good ol’ dick game, so 18+ oh, yeah, and lack of proofreading ofc

A/N: I have no idea how this came to life. We were just pissing each other off with @bringmethehorizonandpizza one night and whooops, almost 11k of god knows what popped into life. And as a matter of fact, I really love the way it turned. I guess, special thanks and credits go to @flannelpunkcalum for planting an idea of alpha!Cal into my mind. Didn’t know I needed it, Betty, thank you very much lol. Also big heart eyes to @calumspeachy for the moodboard inspiration. Note please, it was supposed to  be a one shot, but idek, i may or may not have some ideas, so you can request for the second part ig. Feedback is extremely appreciated. Enjoy!

***

You took a deep breath and smiled. The air was cooling down after a hot day, mild wind playing in your dark unruly hair. The atmosphere around was buzzing with anticipation and music. So many people, so many voices and smells. That’s why you loved to be around humans so much. It was so easy to get lost among them, so easy to forget who you really were. You felt your muscles relaxing more and more with every moment spent there. That was the reason you’ve never missed a party, especially on such nights.

You were standing at a spacious backyard of some house. You had no idea, who was the owner of that house or what was the whole party about. A colleague of yours mentioned they were going to a party earlier that day and you agreed on going way too easily. Though, you had your reasons. This night a party was more of a necessity than a pleasure. You had to be here, surrounded by humans. You had to get drunk and lost.

Your smile weakened as you looked up on the moon. It was round, yellow and bigger than back home. You felt shivers creep up your spine and took a sip of your whiskey in a rather rushed manner. The clicking of the ice in the glass almost as loud for your hearing as the voices of people around.

“So, where did you say you’re from?”

You looked at the guy asking you a question, your slightly dizzy brain couldn't remember his name. Nate? Nick?

“I’m from the north of the country,” you smiled, hoping there were enough details in your answer for him.

“So, came here to warm up a little?”

“Yeah, that’s the plan,” you smiled again and slipped with your eyes to his lips. Just for a moment, but long enough for him to notice. You saw his light-blue irises getting darker, could hear his blood rushing in his veins. He was broad shouldered, pretty tall, with messy fair hair. Cute enough to keep you busy for the night. And even though you were pretty sure sleeping with coworkers wasn’t the best of your ideas, you needed a destruction tonight. You father always blamed you for unnecessary impetuosity. But the memory of him only made you sure you were going to have this guy’s head between your thighs soon enough. You just needed to remember his name.

“Why did you decide to move here?” the girl on the right asked. Her name you remembered perfectly well. Julia worked in the same department and, as you understood from scattered phrases dropped here and there by some people, had been hoping to get your current position. You knew she was a little nasty piece of shit, her look was enough to make your hair move. These were the moments you regretted human society wasn’t actually a pack. You couldn’t turn and show the bitch her place in a decent fight like a true daughter of an alpha. Instead, you had to smile and maintain the image of normal relationship. You liked your new position and this town, you were definitely about to stay. You weren’t jeopardizing all of it because of an envious cunt.

“I mean, we don’t really have people transfer from other branches. Especially people from big cities in the north,” Julia explained after not getting an immediate answer and giggled in such a fake way, you needed all your self-control not to roll your eyes on her.

“Yeah, I just wanted to change everything at once,” you answered with the same smile. You were almost enjoying how jealous she was. Reminded you of a feeling of superiority you used to have.

“That’s cool how some people just stand up and change their life like that,” your blue-eyed cutie snapped his fingers. “Whatever they want, they just go for it.”

“It’s not that difficult,” you mused, looking back at him, your tone getting lower. “Doing what you want is much easier than doing what you have to, actually,” you continued, leaving the emphasis on want. His pulse speed up once again and you couldn’t resist the temptation, saying, “I can show you some time if you want.”

“I definitely want,” he said and unintentionally licked his lips. You could feel how hooked he was already. You did a good job here.

“Hey, Nick! Would you introduce your friend to this gorgeous lady?” Some guy leaned on your pretty boy from the back and without wasting any time started to undress you with his eyes. You swallowed you roar and smiled at him, your eyes narrowed.

“The gorgeous lady would easily introduce herself without any help,” you assured that creep. “If she’d wanted to,” you added, hearing blood in his veins freeze from both your tone and the look in your eyes. You could smell his fear and confusion and almost felt right again. That was the feeling you used to plant in your father’s betas, and you couldn’t help but enjoy it now.

“You’re at my party, honey,” he found enough courage to tell you, “why don’t you try to be polite?”

You smirked and felt your eyes spark with animalistic fury. The guy let go of Nick’s shoulders and involuntary took a step back.

“The party is sick,” you mused in half-whisper, pretty sure he could still hear you.

He dropped some asscrack excuse to the people around and headed back to the house. Your smile grew wider as you understood that Nick didn’t even register his friend’s disappearing, too busy with admiring your hips. You found no guilt of his in that, such hips deserved all the admiring in the world.

You leaned closer and opened your mouth to whisper something promising to him, when a sudden rush of blood in your ears made you exhale. You knew the feeling, could sense the intense look right between your shoulder blades. You took a sip of your drink to mask your confusion and dropped a subtle look behind. You couldn’t really say if you saw him with your eyes or just felt standing there with your whole body. You didn’t even care, all your senses going mad at once and all the instincts screaming to run. The only problem was to understand should you have run away or to him.

He was tall, easily towering over people around. Dark hair and broad shoulders. Boredom and irritation sharing his beautiful face. His hands in the pockets of his black leather jacket. His yellowish eyes on you.

You felt shivers creep up your spine again, as you drew your attention back to Nick. He leaned to you and whispered some half-drunk nonsense into your ear. You smiled, still feeling the burning of that other man’s look on your back.

Or should you have said, that wolve’s look. You could smell him now and with how thick and intense his scent was, you were startled you didn’t smell him earlier. You took another sip of your drink and tried to inhale Nick’s scent deeper to shake that wolf out of your head, but it didn’t work. You didn’t need to look back to see if he was still there, you kept feeling him. And that feeling was too scary for your liking. He was the first wolf you’ve met since you moved here. And even though you did hope for this town to be a wolf-free territory, you were mentally prepared to be proven wrong. But he was also the first wolf you’ve seen in months. And you were surprised to find how easily distracted you’ve got, how little it took to sneak up on you. And you used to be the best hunter in your pack, no one could take you by surprise.

But the worst news was he wasn’t just a wolf, but an alpha. You slightly changed your pose, your legs brought closer together, and felt the wetness between your thighs. Damn omega nature! You could say he was an alpha from the first glance at him. The look in his eyes, his mere posture, everything in him was screaming of power and status. You knew that image. You used to wear it yourself. But the way your body reacted on him left no doubts. He was a damn alpha. And his eyes were still at you.

Now, being more conscious, you felt the second wolf from afar. The guy came out of the house and headed straight to the alpha, two glasses in his hands. He passed you by without even looking at you. That gave you hope that after all these months of staying among people and not shifting into a wolf, you could actually pass off as a human. But the way that alpha looked at you left too many doubts.

Nick bent closer and you felt his lips on your neck. The kiss was soft, like he was asking for permission. But the second one, after you didn’t push him back, held more passion in it. You leaned into his soft body and let his right arm snake around your waist. You were here tonight with one aim only, and you did your best focusing on human’s lips on your neck and the rush of the blood in your ears, so you couldn’t hear anything else.

***

“What kept you so interested?” Ashton asked as he handed one of the glasses to Calum.

Cal took the glass and drank half of his gin in one go, his throat burning of that little omega’s scent. He looked at his friend and turned to the girl again, nodding in her direction. Ashton followed his look.

“Quite hot,” he stated a moment later, looking around the crowd for someone more of his type.

Calum slowly turned his head and stared at Ashton. “What do you mean, quite hot?” he asked with a low groan.

Ashton looked at the said girl, leaning into some dude, kissing her neck passionately. Ash scoffed, finding the scene rather disgusting. “I mean, it’s hard to say about her face, but she’s got a nice butt for a human. Not really your type, if we consider you having a type,” he giggled at this phrase. “Can be not easy to get her from that guy, he looks pretty serious sucking on her neck. But I believe in you, buddy.”

Calum shook his head in disbelief. “Are you pranking me or what?” But seeing Ashton looking back with a total loss written on his face, he added, “Can’t you smell?”

Ashton frowned and looked at the girl again, his nostrils widen a little as he tried to capture any scent his friend could find interesting enough. He huffed and looked back at Calum. “What exactly should I smell? Besides of that dude being horny as fuck?”

“She’s a wolf, Ash,” Calum stated after taking another drink out of his glass. “An omega one.”

“The hell she is!” mumbled Ashton, looking at her again. “Are you sure?” “Of fucking course, I’m sure,” Calum huffed. “Can’t get her smell off my mind.”

Ashton frown grew deeper. “But, Cal, I can’t smell anything. That’s...strange.”

Calum nodded, his eyes not leaving girls back, following every her movement, even the most subtle one.

“So, her smell is what makes you so interested?” Ashton asked a minute later with a smirk back on his face.

Calum shook his head again. “Not really,” he answered and huffed at how obvious his lie was. “Don’t you think it’s suspicious? A new wolf in this town,” he shrugged. “She’s not from my pack or yours. So what is she doing here?”

“Maybe she’s from one of those southern packs?” Ash suggested matter of factly.

“At a human party? In our town?” Calum quirked an eyebrow. “Highly doubtful. Guess, I’ll need to send my guys tomorrow to check who she is.”

Ashton snorted and looked at his friend with a smile. “Well, this here finally sounds like you,” he stated.

“The fuck…?” Calum looked back at him.

“And here was I standing in utter disbelief thinking that you’ve finally decided to give a chance to some pretty omega. Fortunately, the world’s order has been restored.”

“Fuck off, Ash,” mumbled Calum, finishing his drink. “I told you so many times, I’m not fucking interested. And I don’t really see you mating around,” he added in an undertone, looking suspiciously at a group of girls walking past them.

“Oh, I’ll mate the moment I find my omega. I’m just looking for her. But you aren’t even trying!”

Calum sighed to that, looking at the melting ice in his glass.

“Do we really need to have this conversation in the middle of a party?”

“Can’t see any reason why not,” Ashton shrugged. “You’ve got so many omegas at your pack ready to mate with you if only you wish. What’s the problem, Cal? Alpha needs a mate. Alpha needs an offspring. Your pack should see you care about their future.”

“First, no one can say I don’t care about my pack,” stated Calum with anger written on his face.

“ That’s not what I…”

But Calum didn’t give him a chance to finish, “Second, I just don’t like it, okay?”

“Don’t like what?” Ashton frowned, trying to understand what his friend was talking about.

Calum sighed again. “I don’t like how omegas are… obedient and always ready for my attention just because I’m an alpha,” he confessed.

Ashton tried really hard to suppress his laugh. “Aw, Cal, do you want them to love you for who you really are? How sweet!” he cooed at his friend.

“Fuck you, Ash! Seriously.”

“Come on, dude!” Ashton sighed and said, much more seriously this time. “This is how our world works. You can’t blame them for following their instincts. Especially when you’re so unsuccessful with suppressing yours.”

Calum just shook his head looking from his friend to where that unknown she-wolf was standing. She wasn’t there anymore and that somehow irritated him. Or was he angry because of Ashton not being able to drop that mating topic. He could tell so much to his friend, could spend the whole night explaining. Instead he decided to stand there, inhaling deeper that girl’s tailing away scent. It was a shame she left, thought Calum, walking inside the house to get another drink. And it was a shame she was just an omega.

***

You were spread on the cold sheets, darkness around filled with wonderful noises of two bodies caught up in lust. You were deliciously naked, one arm outstretched and holding on the sheet, another massaging your breast.

The way to Nick’s place was short and filled with heated kisses and half-swallowed moans. You felt the driver’s irritation, but with Nick’s big hand gripping on your hips and ass under your oh so short dress, you couldn’t care less. You didn’t remember how exactly you made it from the taxi to the elevator, though you remembered perfectly well ripping his shirt apart inside of it and sucking on his toned chest while his hand found its way to you panties.

“Fuck, you’re so wet,” he hissed above you, your lips moving up his throat. You knew Nick wasn’t the reason of you dripping, but you wisely kept this information to yourself. After all it was Nick’s finger stroking along your wet folds right now. The clinking of the elevator made him stop and pull you into the hall. He managed to open his apartment’s door without detaching from your lips. And as you both got inside you wasted no time and pulled off your dress, Nick only whistled to your eagerness. But his reaction was muffled with his own moan as you grabbed on his hard member and gently pulled him closer, kissing him once again.

Nick’s hands found they way on your ass and you hissed into his mouth at his squeezing. You started unbuckling his belt, your hands shaking slightly with need.

The moment your back hit the wall he lifted you up, you had to let go of his pants and grab his shoulders not to lose balance. You lifted your legs and crossed them around his waist, his hands never leaving your hips and ass.

“Shit, baby, you’re so damn hot,” Nick whispered and bent a little to kiss your neck. You moved your hips forward, pressed them into his lower abdomen as hard as you could in search for some friction, your motion making him hiss. You knew you were boosting his ego a little too much, but the heat you felt inside didn’t let you any other choice. You needed to feel him there and you didn’t want to wait any longer.

“Can’t wait, can you?” he was whispering between sucking kisses on your collar bones, you could feel his lips stretching in a smirk. “Wanna have my cock inside your little pussy? Want me to fuck you right against the wall?”

Your whole body shivered at his words, the prospect tempting for sure. He could feel your trembling too and thrusted his still clothed member into your pussy. You whined and managed to say, breathing heavily between words, “I want you tongue first.” Nick stopped assaulting your neck and looked you in the eyes, trying to get what you were talking about. “I want you to suck on my pussy and fuck me with your fingers first,” you leaned closer and whispered almost touching his lips with yours and looking him right in the eyes. “I wanna cum on your face and then I wanna be fucked by your dick.”

“You’ve a dirty mouth,” Nick whispered back with an amused expression on his face, “is it as good at work as it is at talking?” “Please me and we’ll see,” you stated and pressed your lips to his again.

Nick pushed you both from the wall and moved to where you supposed his bedroom was. Couple moments later you were proved right as he dropped you on the bed. You liked the roughness of this move, the sudden fall stole the last air from your lungs, cold sheets a pleasant sensation against your heated body. Nick bent over you, pulling your panties down in one rushed move. You arched your back and your bra followed, leaving your body to his admiring.

“Damn, girl,” he whispered, kneeling between your spread legs and kissing on your belly. His hands back again on your hips, piercing you down to the bed. You inhaled at the felling of his hot breath on your skin, ran your hand through his soft hair and pushed down your body where you needed it the most. He chuckled softly at how persistent you were and gave in. The first lick against your dripping pussy left you moaning low. He spread your legs more, one of his hands helping him to open you up. Nick wasn’t the best you’ve had, but he was definitely pretty good. He pressed his tongue to your entrance, teasing a little, and then focused on sucking your clit, your legs were trembling uncontrollably. He smiled at the reaction, your clit carefully squeezed between his teeth. You swallowed a roar, whining through sealed lips, and pulled on his hair, loving the pain mixed with pleasure. He kept sucking on the little bundle of nerves, his fingers back on your pussy, stroking between your lips. You bucked your hips up, pressing your core to his face in a silent begging. Nick chuckled again. “You taste too sweet for such a dirty girl,” he said and licked his lips looking at you panting and dying to feel his fingers again. You groaned at his teasing. “Nick, please,” you moaned, dropping your head back on the pillows. This time he listened, his lips back on your clit. You felt one finger slide into you, the sensation so long anticipated, yet still not enough with how wet you were by now. You needed more and he was so slow in giving it to you. “Ah, more, please, need more,” you whined, pulling on his hair again. He didn’t need to be told twice, as he added another finger.

And then it happened. You closed your eyes, panting feverishly, sinking in the wonderful feeling, and that moment you saw him in your mind. Much broader shoulders pressing your thighs apart, plump lips on your core. You could swear you felt his dark bristlier curls between your fingers. You’ve never had it, never thought about another man being in a bed with one. But now you would happily give everything you’ve had to open your eyes and see that alpha from a party between you legs. You felt your walls clenching around two fingers at a mere idea. Your free hand clenched on your breast, imagination helping you to fantasize of a bigger hand massaging your tits.

“You feeling good, baby?” Nick’s raspy voice brought you back to reality, he felt your pussy trembling.

“Yeah, just don’t stop,” you panted, eyes still closed. “Give me more. I’m close.”

He added the third finger, his frictions getting faster and harder, just as you wanted. You pulled gently at his hair, motioning him to get back to sucking on your pussy. You opened your eyes, your lips wide apart in a silent scream at the sensation. His eyes fixed on your face, satisfaction and lust in them. You blinked and your mind showed you a picture of much brighter eyes, glowing yellow in the dark. And that was enough to send you over the edge. You cried out his name, falling back on the pillows, feeling Nick sucking on you through your orgasm. You closed your eyes shut knowing full well they were glowing they real bright blue color.

The bliss was great, yet too fast gone. And you couldn’t help the thought of much darker tone body in front of you, when Nick, god knows when managed to lose his pants, started lining his dick up to your entrance.

***

To say you’ve had the worst beginning of the week would be definitely an overreacting. You’ve seen worse weeks. Much worse. Yet this one proved to be a hard one and that was enough for you.

You’ve been working a lot, often staying late. Being a new person in the department required to learn a lot of new stuff, even though you weren’t new to the company. Being second to the head of the department at the same time required that learning to be done in a record time. And with the ongoing work it was safe to say your ass was on fire in the most unpleasant meaning.

Nick was also giving you problems with not getting any of your hints. The sex was good and you were really thankful for the night. Though after you left his apartment before the dawn, not sparing his resting body another glance, and ditched all his texts and calls the next two days, you thought he’d get the idea. But on Monday he brought you coffee and asked where you’d disappeared for the whole weekend. He obviously got offended with your lack of response and shoving him off saying you’ve had too much work to waste time on meaningless chatting. That didn’t stop him from sitting with you and couple other people at lunch and giving you puppy eyes. You tried to ignore him, hoping maybe that would give him a clue. As cute as he was, he was just a human. And even though you abandoned pack life long ago, you could never date a human, that much you knew.

And on top of it all you felt like you were going mad. You kept seeing him every time you closed your eyes. Not Nick, of course. The alpha. His yellow eyes were looking at you like from inside your soul. You couldn’t shake his scent out of your system either, always feeling him whenever you left the office or was just walking downtown in search for a good take away. You knew it was only your imagination, you couldn’t really smell him. You haven’t seen him since that party and it was almost impossible to cross paths with him again. The town was smaller than what you were used to, but it wasn’t that small after all. Your instincts were just playing with you, as they were toying with your senses every night, making it hard to go to sleep with all the right reactions to a man who wasn’t even with you at the moment. But every night you were hot and bothered and needy, knowing well no human would be able to satisfy that thirst. Damn omega hormones! This was one of the reasons you left your pack. It wasn’t the main one, god knows your father made it almost impossible for you to stay. But it still was the reason. You hated how your body reacted to every alpha who wasn’t your father or brother. And you hated how it was always happening against your will. Although you had to admit that level of reaction you had never experienced before.

So with the enormous amount of work, pouty coworker you probably shouldn’t have slept with after all and the lack of sleep thanks to your horny omega body, it was no surprise you were ready to kill on Wednesday night. You left your company building at almost midnight after rewriting the same report twice because of the other department workers stupid mistake. The road you left your car at was empty due to the late hour, though working street lamps and tree leaves soughing of a light wind made you feel more than just safe. Until that moment.

You dropped your keys on the ground. Of course you’d do something like that, you thought, rolling your eyes and bending down to pick them up. The wind grew stronger, and the very first blow of it brought the scent. You could have thought it was your imagination again, but it was so much stronger that before, so there could be no mistake. He was near. You almost jumped up, keys in your hand, and looked on your left, where the wind came from.

He was standing there, right in the middle of the road. Broad shoulders, head tilted a little back, true alpha posture. He was wearing simple black jeans and a black tee. His left arm covered in tattoos, tugged in a jeans pocket, and his right was holding a cigarette. He was just standing there looking at you with his bright yellow eyes, not bothering with hiding his true nature. You scanned the street with your wolf senses to make sure no people were there to see him. And immediately you felt the urge to hit your own head with something heavy. That damn alpha was standing there like a damn king of his damn kingdom and you were scanning the street in case nobody sees him? Not even starting with how he had to track you down like a dear on a hunt. A low roar bursted out of you. He narrowed his eyes and took another drag of his cigarette, the moving of his hand the only reaction. He wasn’t trying to come closer or say anything. Just looked at you. Like a true hunter watching his prey. You felt your whole body shiver with anger and fear. No wolf had the right to behave like that to you. He could have been a damn alpha, but you weren’t just some omega to fall to his feet at the mere look of his.

You pressed an alarm button, the car signal sounded like thunder in the silence of a moment, walked around the car and got in. You wasted no time with starting the car and driving away in the opposite direction. You could see him standing on the same spot and looking at you car, could decipit his smirk in a rare view mirror, as he was finishing his cigarette. You turned right and soon drove up a bigger street, rushing past each traffic light to get home.

You were not just angry, you were pissed. What right did he have to behave like this? If he thought you were violating his territory borders, he could have just let you know. Any beta of his could have done it, no need to spare precious alpha time. But what if he wasn’t a local pack’s alpha? A strange thought popped up in your mind. Could he be one of your father’s pure bloods? Could he be sent to find you?

You parked next to your apartment building and looked around before getting out of car. The street was empty, no people or wolves. You covered the distance between your car and the entrance much faster than your dignity would require. You could truly exhale only as you closed your apartment door behind your back. You locked the door, thinking how silly it was. If that alpha would really want to get past this door, no locks would be able to hold him.

But could he really be sent to find you? You crossed the living room and looked out of the window at the sleeping town. No, he couldn’t, you understood. You knew all your father’s wolves, you’d never forget the face like that. And he couldn’t be just a pure blood, he was a pack’s alpha. You knew one when you saw him. And if dragging you all the way back north was his agenda, why would he wait? No, the meeting at the party was accidental and there was no hidden meaning to that.

And yet, why was he waiting for you on the street? Why just stood there and looked?

You took off your shoes and jacket and fell into an armchair. You didn’t bother to turn on the lights when you entered the apartment, feeling more than just comfortable in the darkness. And the moon behind your window was still bright enough. The image of him boldly standing in the middle of a road wasn’t leaving your mind. You were so tired and so confused, emotions overloading you with a strange mixture of anger, anxiety and something else you weren’t ready to name.

You felt your whole body shudder. Adrenaline was leaving your system, but your breathing wasn’t calming down. You felt sweat cover your neck like the temperature rose. But the temperature was the same, you were pretty sure of it. You felt familiar pulling in your lower abdomen and choke on your breath. You couldn’t fucking believe it. The fucker was almost following you and it turned you the fuck on?! You groaned loudly and put your hands on your face. But as you closed your eyes, you saw him again, standing on that street and looking at you so intently. You couldn’t help your moan. You could lie to anyone, but never yourself. You were furious with him and yourself right now. But you wanted him, and that was the simple truth.

You pressed your legs together and felt wetness between them. You huffed and slipped out of your jeans, tagging on your panties too. Your shirt followed suit leaving you just in a camisole. You huffed again and moved your right hand down your stomach. It was crazy how sensitive you already were. You slid your middle finger gently between your folds, your left hand already under your camisole working on your tensed nipple. You closed your eyes and let your imagination do all the work for you.

You moved your fingers to your clit, wondering how good at this he might be. Those plump lips looked so promising, must be a sweet torture to be kissed by him. And imagining this lips kissing on your pussy was exactly what made your clit throb. You moaned, almost feeling his stubble brush against your thighs, and pushed one finger down your dripping hole. You were moving it carefully in and out, not to scratch on the walls with your nails. He wouldn’t have this problem, you thought. The image of him, taking a drag of his cigarette popped up in your memory once again. His fingers were so long and thick, like they were made for working a girl up.

You moaned again as you added one more finger, giving yourself a minute to adjust, your left hand restless on your tits. You started to move your fingers, getting a steady rhythm, picturing that alpha again the way he stood in front of you less than an hour ago. His left arm was covered in tattoos and so deliciously well-built, must be so good to have this arm work on your pussy. But to have his torso underneath you, that would be an experience. With this pictured in your mind, you moved and stood on your knees, your chest against the backrest. You lowered yourself back on two fingers and whined a little at the scratchy feeling. Your left hand was clenching on the armchair fabric, your forehead reated on the backrest. You started to move your hips up and down, imagining how you could ride him. Would he, the big bad alpha, let you ride him? Would he submit to an omega? Just picturing this drove you almost mad. The room was full of your quiet whines and moans and whispered curse words. You kept moving your hips up and down on your fingers, imagining his broad shoulders beneath you, his big hands on your breasts, his eyes on your face. Your breath got sporadic, you were so close, yet couldn’t reach the high.

You moved on your back again and put both legs on the armrests. Your right hand got back where it was a moment ago, while you lowered the left to your clit. You gasped at the feeling. You tried to work both hands in the same rhythm, but you were too far gone for that. The fingers inside your pussy were going as fast as you only could, the left hand drawing circles over your clit. Your legs were trembling and you kept gasping for air, as you were getting higher and higher. The picture of him smirking in your rear view mirror was the last thing you saw before crying out. You could swear the darkness was full of stars as yellow as his eyes. You fucked yourself all the way through your high and when you finally got back to earth you stroke your folds gently several more times.

You swore you’d never came so intense from your own fingers before. But one question was still bothering you. How would it be to actually fuck him?

***

Friday night in a bar could have been a great idea to have fun and make friends with some of your colleagues. Could have been, if you hadn’t been so distracted.  

You haven’t seen that big bad alpha since that night. And you couldn’t stop calling him big bad alpha in your mind, which annoyed you to bits. But obviously your subconscious declared a war on you, and there was nothing you could do about that. You haven’t seen him, but you started bumping into wolves everywhere you went. Grocery shop, laundry, cinema parking lot. You’ve even seen one in your company, he was from some other department, you guessed. Most of them were betas, but at least seven were pure bloods. And that information left you uneasy. How big was the pack and how powerful was its leader to have more than three pure bloods under his command?

You frowned into your gin. You couldn’t help but question your moving here. It might be rather dangerous to live near the pack you weren’t a part of. Especially when you weren’t sure about their position on tolerating a lonely wolf around. You could have just transferred back. Of course, your hr would very much dislike it and it would probably look not very nice in your personal record, preventing you from moving up in your career for some time. But choosing between career and possibly your life? Your answer to that question was a little too fast.

You smiled to some nonsensical story about a new client Julia was telling. Didn’t even know what it was about, just everybody around laughed, so you followed their example, too deep in your thoughts to register your own actions.

Leaving was an obvious answer, you thought. But was it so necessary? You tried to remember all the encounters with wolves from the passed week. And what really surprised you, they never spared you another glance. You felt like some of them didn’t notice that you were a wolf at all. Not the purebloods, of course. They smelled you perfectly well and followed you with their eyes, but never said a word and never tried to act in any odd or dangerous way. Weren’t you a little overreacting? Maybe you should have just sat on your ass and let them get used to you? Maybe you’d never need to interact with them as they understood you weren’t dangerous to their pack or interested in becoming it’s part?

You huffed, looking at the melting ice in your empty glass. You glanced around in search for a bar counter and excused yourself. You felt him following you and your frown grew bigger. You didn’t need this talk at all, but especially right now. You had enough time to ask a bartender for a second round when he finally came up to you.

“You seem a little off tonight,” he said, stroking your forearm gently.

You moved a little to look at him while talking and also to get your arm out of his reach. “The week was difficult, Nick.”

“Yeah, i guess,” he muttered as the bartender put a glass in front of you. Nick made a move to reach for his wallet, but you already paid. You saw his frown while taking a drink and suddenly felt irritated. Who did he think he was?

“Listen, I actually wanted to talk to you,” he started and you had to suppress your groan. “I don’t know what I did wrong, I actually thought that night was great. And I’m sorry if I did something out of line, but I just…” he stumbled, and it was a perfect opportunity to stop him here and now. Yet you decided to let them speak. It was always easier that way. If they say it all at the beginning, they’ll argue less with what you could answer with. “I just really like you,” Nick found his courage to continue, “and I’d like to take you on a date. What do you say?”

You sighed, looking him right in the eye.

“I’d say, thank you, but no. I’m sorry, Nick. There’s nothing you’ve done wrong, the night was great. But it was just one night. I thought we were on the same page about this.” You saw his face sink, but didn’t feel anything. He was cute for a human. But dating him? There was no second thinking to that. “I’m not looking for anything serious right now.”

“Yeah, I get it,” Nick nodded, avoiding looking you in the eye. “Sorry to bother,” he dropped and, still not looking at you, went back to where your colleagues were seated.

You shook your head. Going back there seemed like the worst idea now. Maybe you should just stick to the bar counter for some time?

“Not looking for anything serious, huh?”

You felt your blood froze and your knees go weak at the sound of that voice. It was so low yet so powerful, and somehow you felt like you knew it. You could swear you’d never heard it before, but you knew it. His smell enveloped you, making you question how you didn’t feel him earlier. You took another sip of your gin, more to give yourself a second to calm down than because you really wanted it, and turned around.

“Well, I’d say it’s wise if we talk about humans,” he continued, looking in Nick’s direction.

He leaned on the bar counter, the same black jeans and leather jacket, some band tee underneath. A subtle smell of cigarettes, short stubble. You made yourself breath in a steady rhythm and met his eyes, dark brown now, without a trace of yellow glow. He was just looking at you, confidently and with a ghost of a smirk on his plump lips. You were looking back, giving nothing away. He was obviously waiting for some reaction and he was getting none.

He chuckled, “Too much sass for a little omega.”

You couldn’t hold back your scoff. “I am not your omega,” you stated looking him right in the eye, “so it’s not very polite of you to point out my nature.”

He shrugged to that and took a sip of his drink, his eyes not leaving your face.

“So what now,” you asked getting a little bored, “you’re gonna ask me dull questions like what’s my name or where I’m from?”

He chuckled again. “I’ve got enough betas for that. Know everything about you.”

“Everything?” you narrowed your eyes at this bold statement. And he accused you of having too much sass!

“Including how many times you screwed that human,” he nodded.

“Should I be flattered?” you mused, feeling the anger rise inside once again at how arrogant he was in getting into your business. He slightly frowned at your question, not fully understanding where it came from. “Well, a big bad alpha’s interested in who I screw,” you explained with a sigh.

He smirked again and again said nothing. Which pissed you off even more. You weren’t looking for this meeting, he came up to you. He could just say what he wanted and you’d be done with it.

“If your betas have done all the dirty work, why are you here now?” you asked, ready to finish this conversation and flattering yourself with an idea that you’d be able to do it.

He scoffed and looked again at where you colleagues were. You knew Nick probably watched the two of you. You had also no idea why it bothered the alpha.

“Come on,” he said turning back to you and moving closer. Not much, half a step, but enough for you to notice. “You know who I am. I know who you are. And we both know you aren’t looking for anything serious,” he mused, his voice somehow lower and deeper. “How about not wasting time on pointless conversations?”

You almost choked on your breath. All this following you and sending betas to track you down just to fuck you? You wanted to push him away, to tell him to go fuck himself. You wanted just to turn over and leave. Instead you kept standing where he wanted you, pinned down by the power in his eyes. You were so angry at yourself, and only more so, as you felt the knot tie inside your belly. You knew the feeling, you wanted him more than you ever wanted anything in your life.

“And what gives you an impression that I’ll agree?” you asked, still not ready to give in.

“Because I know something else, what no beta could tell me,” he said smiling at you hungrily and bending down to your ear. “That every time you’ve been cuming around your fingers this week, you were thinking about me.”

And you couldn’t hold it anymore. You gasped at how bold, yet how true his words were. You inhaled his scent, his flesh so close to you, you could feel the heat coming of him. Your mind got dizzy with his smell and your legs started to tremble. You lost your concentration for a moment, but that was enough for him, as he bent a little lower and kissed you.

You weren’t sure if you’d ever been kissed like this. He didn’t hesitate at your lips opening them and filling your mouth with his tongue. His hand grabbed your waist and pulled you closer to him. Your arms flew to his biceps, merely to prevent you from falling. He was sucking and biting on you lower lip and then pushing your tongue with his again. You felt your lungs burn, asking for air, but kept your lips on his like your life dependent on it. Because at this moment you were absolutely sure, your life did depend on him.

He stopped kissing you as unexpectedly as started, just letting go of you and smirking at your startled expression. He offered you his hand and looked at you with a question in his much brighter now eyes. You hated yourself for what you were doing. But you couldn’t help it. You took his hand and let him pull you out of that bar.

The air outside was chilly enough for your heated skin. Alpha pulled you down the road to the black Range Rover parked further. You thought he was about to open the car door for you, instead he pressed you to the car and attached his lips to yours once again. This kiss was slower and much more sensual, but his hands on your waist as firm as before. You felt his knee push between your thighs and moved them apart, feeling your skirt roll higher. He pushed his body more into your frame and you sank down a little to feel his thigh under your core. You moaned into his mouth at the feeling, grinding in pursuit of friction. You felt his smile with your lips.

“What is it, omega? Wanna ride my thigh?” he mocked you.

You opened your eyes and looked boldly at him. “Wanna ride your face.”

He only laughed to that, then opened the passenger’s door and shoved you inside. You watched him close your door and walk round the car to his side. You had no idea why you did that, a strange impulse making you act so shamelessly. You arched your back and pushed down you panties, crumpled them and pushed down his glove box. You had a mere second to close it as his door opened and he got inside the car, watching with a smirk as you were wiggling on the cold leather seat.

“Eager much?” he asked.

But you just smiled with your wicked smile as you lifted your body and kissed him with all the lust you had inside. You felt his amusement, his fleeting hesitation. A strange idea emerged in your mind. Was he enjoying your resistance and sass?

“Wanna have that thigh riding session in a backseat?” he asked.

You shook your head and licked your lips. “I’m not fucking you in your car.” With that you took his hand with a car key in it and motioned to the keyhole. You pushed his hand to insert the key and turned it to start the car. The whole movement somehow turning you both on more than it should have. “Drive,” you whispered into his lips before leaning back in your seat.

He didn’t answer. Just rushed his car out of the parking lot and down the street. His eyes were on the road, but all his senses were set on you. It felt like he was touching you without actually touching you. You felt your breath break and at the first traffic light he stopped you grabbed his neck and moved him closer, kissing him deep. His lips were exactly what you imagined them to be, soft, but still rough and greedy. You heard car horns behind, signaling you that it was green again, and laughed shamelessly as he cursed, setting the car in motion again.

But you weren’t in a mood to stop. You moved up on your knees and pressed your lips to his toned neck, your right hand sliding down on his prominent crotch. You started sucking on his skin and palming his dick through his jeans in the same rhythms. He hissed, “Stop or I’ll take you in the car no matter what you say,” he almost roared, his voice echoing in your insides. You smiled to his threat, “Come on, alpha, I’m sure you’ve got some stamina.” Your giggles died out to the sound of his low roar, your hand involuntary squeezed harder on his dick, making him hiss. You knew your eyes were turning blue and soon would glow. God, how could you forget, how much hotter was sex with an actual wolf?

At the next traffic lights he abruptly grabbed on your jaw and moved your head up so he could suck on your neck. You whole body shivered at the feeling of his teeth bite on the sensitive skin and then his tongue lick on the same spot. You started sinking in the feeling and the next moment he just stopped, practically dropping your head. You almost lost your balance, while the fucker continued driving, both his hands on the steering wheel.

You quirked your eyebrow. Was he trying to point out your place? He had no idea who was he messing with, you thought as your right hand slowly pulled down the zipper on his jeans. You shoved down his boxers (black again, did that man wore any other color?) and took his dick in your hand. You had to hold back your moan at the look of it. Long, with prominent veins and drops of precum on the head, it fit so perfectly in your hand. You turned your eyes back to his face in search for the reaction and started pumping him. You’d never been so turned on by a simple hand job on somebody’s dick before, but the next moan breaking out of you, you didn’t hold back. You wanted him to hear, wanted him to know how much you were enjoying his dick in your hand.

The next you couldn't predict, though. The car slowed down again and he looked you in the eyes, hip pupils dark yellow now and glowing. He didn’t say a word, yet you felt his command. That had never happened to you before, even your father had to use his words, so unsubmissive you were. The wolf inside of you had never obeyed to anyone. Until that moment, when under his look you lowered your head and licked on his dick. You huffed at realisation of the power he had over you, as you lowered your hand to lightly scratch his balls, while your tongue was dancing around his dick head.

“Either suck my dick or sit up and keep your hands to yourself,” he said, you heard irritation in his voice. It left you satisfied. You did submit, but at least you got him a little. You grabbed his dick at the bottom and pushed him all the way up your mouth, hollowing your cheeks. You heard him hissing and started moving you head, making sure he reaches the back of your throat every time. You guessed you reached another traffic light, as the car stopped and his hand dropped on your head to set you in a faster pace. Soon you felt him stroke your hair, the car wasn’t moving. You slowed down and felt him pulling your head up.

“I thought you said you aren’t fucking me in the car,” he reminded with the same smirk.

“Not my fault you’re taking so long,” you whispered back, your lips must have glittered with your spit.

He just smiled wider and kissed you again, rushed, but deep. “Get out,” he dropped as he finished the kiss. You fixed your skirt and climbed out from the car, glancing at his frown as he tried to put his, must be painfully hard, dick back into his jeans. You smirked and walked in front of the car to get a look of his house. It wasn’t too big, yet pretty spacious for a lonely alpha. Garage for two cars, terrace at the back. You heard a car door open and shut behind you and then a hand grabbed on your arm, pulling you to the entrance.

He didn’t waste any time pushing you to the wall and pressing his lips to yours. What was it with the men pressing you to the walls, you though. The lights were off, none of you really needing them. His hand went all the way down from your jaw, paying particular attention to your breasts, to the hem of your skirt. He didn’t bother with the zipper, just rolled it up to your waist. And hissed at the feeling of absolutely bare skin of your hips.

“Where did you lose your panties?” he hummed with amusement. He knew you had them at the bar, he felt them when you were grinding on his thigh next to his car.

“Somewhere along the way,” you smirked.

“Aren’t you a dirty little slut, my omega?” he mused and pressed his fingers to your clit. He watched closely at your reactions, your open mouth with broken breath and darkening eyes. He started rubbing circles, using one finger to slide through your folds. You couldn’t bear that slow torture and you bucked your hips up. He just chuckled and without a warning inserted a finger inside you. You whimpered and bent forward, your head rested against his shoulder. His fingers were so much better at it than yours. In no time you felt his second finger and that was it for you. You leaned all your weight at him, your legs shaking too much to hold you up. Every thrust of his fingers drawing a hiss out of you.

You found yourself so close to the edge with his two fingers inside of you and his thumb on your clit. You thrust your hips into his hand to get his fingers deeper, where the desire was burning your insides up. He only chuckled and pulled his fingers out of you. You didn’t even try to protest, knowing full well you were in his power now. He threw you over his shoulder, his right hand on your ass, fingers wet with your juices, stroking and squeezing. You didn’t try to get a glimpse of the house, focusing fully on his hand and the anticipation inside of you. You took it he went up the stairs and then inside his bedroom, apparently, as a minute later he laid you down on the bed. He was surprisingly careful, holding your neck and lowering your head not to hurt you. You frowned at this, not sure where it came from. But the next moment he shrugged out of his jacket and pulled his tee off and you forgot everything. His chest was a perfect combination of toned muscles and soft lines, with tattoos on his collarbones. You bit on your lip, wondering if you’d be able to see that chest below you.

He clasped your hips and pulled you closer to the edge, kneeled down and froze for a moment, just enjoying the view of your dripping pussy. “Do you have any idea how deliciously you smell?” he asked all of a sudden. You looked down at him, but he was still watching your pussy. “Best fucking scent in the world,” he added so quietly, you weren’t sure you heard him correctly, and bent to your core.

You thought you’d die that very moment. How one could feel such bliss and still survive? His tongue was all over you, licking your folds flat and slamming inside right after that. His lips so soft around your clit and so demanding. You lost the moment when your moans turned into cries, maybe it happened when he pushed his fingers back inside you, or maybe when he started curling them inside, making you arch your back and pull on his hair. You were right at the edge when he demanded you look at him. You had to gather all your will, to lift your head up and open your eyes. His lips were glistening and his eyes glowing bright yellow. You saw surprise in them at the color of yours. You smirked, that was the only thing you had strength for before he started sucking on your clit again.

You came like this, looking right at him. Your toes curled and thighs press to his face. You couldn’t help it, you had no control over your body anymore. It felt like it was acting on his command and pure instincts now. You felt him pulling your thighs apart to stand up and realised you eyes were closed again. You looked up to see him pushing down his jeans and boxers.

“Your eyes are blue,” he said. You heard a question in his words. You knew it was rare for your kind, more natural for a pup than a grown up wolf.

“They’ve never changed their color,” you shrugged. There wasn’t much to say about it for you. You felt odd about it when you were little, but then got used to it. It wasn’t your only peculiarity.

You rolled on your side to get an access to your skirt zipper and felt his hands on your hips again. He dragged your skirt down your legs and took your hand to help you sit up. He put his knee down between your legs and bent to kiss you, gently this time. You felt your taste on his lips, a little salty and tart. “They’re beautiful,” he whispered, looking you right in the eye. He freed you off your shirt and bra, and tried to lay you down. You knew what he was doing, but you had a better plan.

“Let me,” you asked, pushing on his chest. He stopped for a moment, not getting what you wanted. But then he saw you standing up, got the idea and fell on his back. “You don’t have to,” he muttered, and you understood that he actually didn’t get the idea. You smirked, thinking how predictable it was, and threw your leg over his waist. You saw amusement in his eyes as you straddled him and took his dick in your hand to line him up.

“So you do wanna ride me,” he chuckled.

You left it without response, too busy sinking down on him. It was too much, he was too much. Too long, too thick, filling you as nobody could feel you. You closed your eyes, your nails digging into the soft skin over his ribs. You heard him groan at the feeling, cursing at how tight you were. You knew you had to take it slow. And so you did. You moved your hips up and sank once again, feeling him going deeper. His hands grabbed on your wrists and almost crushed them. You started rocking in a steady rhythm, his hands move to your waist to help you grind on him.

You felt his gaze on your breasts, them jumping up a little with your every move. He couldn’t just lay like this for long, you knew you were lucky enough to just get on top of him. He pushed himself up and lowered his head, kissing on your neck. You leaned back to give him better access and put your hands on his thighs for the balance. He started sinking his way down your throat to your chest, until he reached your left breast. You lost your rhythm for a moment at the feeling of his lips on your nipple. Your hands flew to his shoulders, his right arm snake around you to keep you up. You started move again and he started to assault your right nipple with his fingers. Your moans got louder again, your moves got sloppy. You felt your high build up and started losing it. He felt it to, letting go of your nipples and pulling your body to his chest. He started thrusting his hips up in you as fast as it was only possible in this position until he felt your teeth sink in his shoulder and your walls clench around his dick. The very moment he pressed your hips to his not letting you move at all. You were whining into his skin, your whole body one big bundle of nerves. Your skin literally burn where he was touching it. You probably lost your senses for a moment or two, as you were positive you opened your eyes, yet you still couldn’t see anything.

“You alright?” he whispered in your ear, you felt like even his breath was burning your skin.

“Yeah, I-” you couldn’t finish. Was there even a word for this? You more felt rather than heard his laugh, his chest shaking so nicely against yours.

“Think you can take one more?” he asked. You felt him still inside of you, hard as ever. He didn’t cum yet.

“Yes, just, not like that,” you could only hope he’d get what you were saying, unable to produce a better answer. You felt his laugh again, and then his “I got you, baby,” as he lifted you up from him and laid you on the bed again, this time on your stomach.

You frowned a little. You couldn’t take another one on your hands and knees for the dear life, your limbs too shaky and weak. You had no time to protest though, as he lifted your ass, making you tuck your knees, and sank into you again. You almost cried at the stretching, different angle making it even more intense. You felt him bend over you, his left arm picking you and lifting you up. He pulled you closer to the headboard, putting his right hand on it for the balance. He leaned you both a little forward for a better position and started moving. You lost your voice in no time. He was going on you at the highest speed, thrusting his hips into you with loud thumps. His left hand was squeezing on your breast, his head rest on your shoulder. You felt his roar burst out from his chest as he was chasing his own release. He dropped his hand to your clit, you had to lean over the headrest at the loss of support.

“Baby talk to me,” he demanded, you gather all the will you had to hear him, “can I cum inside?”

“Yes, fuck, please, yes,” you moaned as his fingers got faster on your clit. You wanted it so much, you both were so fucking close.

He came first with a long low roar. The best sound you’d heard in your entire life. His roar was probably what set you off for the third time this night. He dropped his head on you shoulder again, growling at the feel of your walls clenching around his dick, milking him to the last.

You whimpered as he sank out of you, feeling like you lost much more than just the contact. He picked you up again, making you wonder how he had strength for anything after that, and lowered you both on your sides, pulling covers over you. The last things you felt before falling into darkness were his arms pressing you into his chest and his lips leaving kisses in your hair.

***

The morning was gloomy, sun not risen yet over the horizon. You were sneaking around his bedroom in the gray light picking up your clothes of the floor. You didn’t worry about waking him up. The hardest part was getting out off his clench. When you were free and he didn’t even stir, you knew he was sleeping deep enough for you to leave without trouble. You put on your clothes and grabbed your shoes and turned to look at him one more time.

You could see your bite on his shoulder and smiled. You suddenly realised you didn’t get to know his name last night. And somehow you felt it was right. You were pretty sure that was the last time you saw him so close. And it was okay if he’d stay just a big bad alpha for you. That was exactly how you wanted to remember him.

Taglist: @myloverboyash, @paqueretteash, @bringmethehorizonandpizza

Also tagging some mutuals (IF YOU DON’T WANNA BE TAGGED JUST LMK): @calpops, @i-calumhood, @rip-lukes-balsamic, @angelbabylu, @5saucewho, @singt0mecalum, @5sex-of-summa, @gorgeouslygrace, @reallycalum

[writing-yj]

Nightwing x Reader: Mockingbird’s Betrayal (Part Four)

Summary: Dick Grayson and Mockingbird’s last meeting ended in a heated argument, seemingly snapping every connection they ever had. He was Mockingbird’s last light to cling onto, but now, her sanity is left in the dark. After capturing Avia, Mockingbird exposed everything the Justice League and her former team had been hiding from the rookie. It almost instantly turned Avia against them, and the plan was set in motion. Nightwing isn’t prepared to face Mockingbird again, especially not after their last encounter. How much did she change since then? 

Word Count: 3156

Warnings: Angst (duh), swearing, fighting, i think some blood mention? But no one dies; I would have killed someone this time, but I wanted to get this out ASAP for y’all. I’ve kept y’all waiting for too long!

A/n: Oh boy. I started this really early, but we’ll have to see if it takes months again. 

UPDATE: Lol it did, my bad

Avia stared up at her bedroom ceiling, thinking about everything that went down in the past seven days. Getting captured by you, learning that everything everyone told her was a lie, planning to turn on them like you did.

“Mockingbird is a cursed name.” Avia thought. First you, now her. Your name became hers, and your name brought betrayal.

Every movement made her wince. You knew how to cover up your tracks well; they had no idea they were being tricked. However, Avia didn’t like that you had to rough her up a bit to make it look convincing, and she especially regretted letting you break a rib.

Due to your brief observation lessons, Avia slightly noticed that Batman was keeping a very close eye on her. Avia acted just like she did before, but that was a misstep. At her age, she should be at least traumatized or have nightmares. She should be wary, have some sort of fear or should be avoiding certain things. But none of that happened. It was like you never touched her.

Batman knew this and caught onto it fast. When he wasn’t protecting Gotham, he was constantly trying to figure out your course of action. It didn’t take him long to know Avia was going to join you, but he couldn’t bring her in or detain her just yet. Batman needed to find out when and how it was going to happen, first. Thinking about it so much almost got him punched in the face while fighting criminals.

He would never admit it out loud, but you specifically always had him alert and on his toes. You always left him one step behind, with one puzzle piece missing, not knowing what was going to happen next. More often than not, it infuriated him. At any point in time, you could start attacking the citizens if you couldn’t get to any of the heroes and their “sidekicks”.

On top of that, Batman had no doubts that the reason you turned so violent and angry was because of the wild animal DNA. It changed the color of your eyes for Christ’s sake, nothing else could do that unless you became a witch when no one was looking.

Previously, Justice League members made various suggestions on how to stop you. Imprisonment wasn’t a simple task and any normal prison wouldn’t keep you in for long. Arkham, maybe, but not forever. Keeping you in suspended animation would work, but it was more difficult that it sounded.

But, no matter how permanent the solution was, Batman refused to let them kill you. He immediately shut the idea down. “No. Under no circumstances are we going to kill her.”

“Look, Batman. I don’t want to kill her either, but do you really think she’s going to stop until she’s killed multiple teens? And I have no doubt that she will, at some point, go after Black Canary,” Superman argued, “Mockingbird has already confronted and attacked the team, and even took down Superboy with Kryptonite she stole from your safe. What is stopping her from hacking into it again? What if she finds another way to hack into Mount Justice and the Watchtower? The last thing I want is for her to be dead, but what if that is the only way to stop her? We need to be prepared for the worst.”

Batman refused still, “The only conclusion I can come to as to why she is still in this state is because of her wild animal DNA. The sheer rage has clearly been preventing her body’s trances that control the DNA, judging by how the last trance she had in Mount Justice lasted for two hours. I have gotten it back under control before, and I can do it again. The formula is still in my possession.”

“How the hell are we supposed to inject her with it?” Black Canary asked urgently, “It’s not like we can just knock her out! She knows how to avoid all of us and finding her is nearly impossible.”

Before Batman could respond, Green Arrow spoke up, “Nightwing was really close with her, right?” His observation was correct. The Justice League went silent and he continued, “Maybe Mockingbird will trust him enough to give him the chance to inject her with it?”

Batman agreed; Green Arrow’s idea was sound, and Batman already knew you had visited Nightwing. How else would he have known where Avia was? And he knew the bruise Nightwing got just after you disappeared wasn’t from crime fighting. He didn’t doubt that it was from you, but he had yet to confront Nightwing about it. The real question was why you hit him.

Batman took a moment to ponder, as did the other heroes in the room. It was a plausible idea, and was better than any other plan they attempted to come up with. It would end with you not getting hurt in the process, and would stop you from harming anyone else. There was an actual chance for the plan to be executed successfully.

“That seems to be our only option.” Zatanna said with a forlorn expression. “We will need that formula as soon as possible, Batman.” Her heart was heavy for the whole meeting. You didn’t hold her as close as you did with your original friends, but you still spent a few years on the team with her. Whether you would harm her was questionable.

“This is best best we can do without casualties. We will meet again once I finish the formula.” Batman said, and the meeting was done.

The heroes dispersed soundlessly, all of them with troubled looks on their faces. Dinah, however, looked broken and she moved the slowest. Oliver stayed by her side.

“Look at what I’ve done,” Dinah whimpered, “this is my fault. Everyone was right. I shouldn’t have done this.”

“It’s not entirely your fault, pretty bird,” Oliver used the endearing petname to comfort her. “We’ll get through this. We’ll stop (Y/n) and help her be okay again.”

Dinah shook her head and tears welled up in her eyes. “You know how violent the DNA can get. Avia told us how bad it is now; I’m positive that she isn’t in control anymore,” the first sob escaped. “If we can’t help her regain control of it, someone is going to die. And it might not be her.”

Everything was ripping her apart all at once, and she all but collapsed in Oliver’s arms. They sunk to the floor as she cried and cried. She took you in as her own when you were 12, traumatized and given powers you never wanted in the first place.

You learned to embrace and love your powers under her watchful eye and guidance as her first protege, the daughter she never had. It seemed like saving you and preventing casualties was merely wishful thinking.

-

You moved your hideout back into the basement of your childhood home. You found a way to make it easier to move all of your tech back and forth, and you had a few duplicates in your other hideout in Minnesota. You observed Avia in the Cave closely, and you also caught on to her behavior. You understood why she messed up--she was only 13 and had hardly any practice--but that made things a lot harder.

You spent half of your nights holding your head in yours hands, sometimes screaming and crying at the mental torture the wild mockingbird DNA was inflicting on you. You knew what was happening, but that consciousness was held back, almost permanently. Almost. The other half of your nights were for planning, preparing, and training. You thought of tons of different obstacles and events you would need to escape, avoid, or fight. You trained until you were sore, studied battle styles until your eyes burned in need of sleep, and you allowed yourself to fall into trances that were far too brief.

Your old team had little to no hope left for you. They held on for so long, but they realized that you were more than likely too far gone to help. They could barely remember the (Y/n) (L/n) they met so long ago. Happy, determined, devoted to the team, inspiring, and a dear friend. Now you were almost completely the exact opposite. They feared you--feared for their lives if they ever came to face you in combat. Many of them were terrified to confront you.

You still didn’t know Artemis wasn’t dead, but she heard about everything. After a certain amount of time, she became numb to everything related to you. Your name fell on deaf ears, both hers and Kaldur’ahm’s. Out of everyone, surprisingly, they had the least amount of hope. They didn’t believe there was anything anyone could do to help you. The only solution they believed in was to capture you and keep you contained, even if it meant suspended animation on the moon. Yes, you were a dear friend, but an even bigger threat to everyone.

Wally was just done. If anyone had anything to say about you, he wouldn’t hear it. He wanted nothing to do with you or the situation as a whole. If Dick even so much as spoke your name, Wally would tell him to stop talking or get out. He didn’t want to hear about the Mockingbird who was broken down to an evil, ruthless individual. He wanted to remember you as the old (Y/n). He wanted to remember your smile, your shenanigans, your kindness, and the hero you used to be.

-

You stared at the monitor with gritted teeth. After hardly any time, you knew Batman noticed how Avia was acting, too. You chucked a knife across the room with a shout and a curse. The blade pierced the wall, so only the handle was visible. The time window got a hell of a lot smaller, possibly forcing Avia to make her decision sooner than you told her to. It made you angry at her, but more angry at yourself. You should have told her to act the part of a traumatized 13-year-old girl, but you forgot. You originally thought it was common sense, but you knew that wasn’t fair.

“God damn it!” You snapped at no one and started to attach gadgets and weapons to your utility belt and back. You needed to go talk to her, let her know what happened, and ask her to make her choice right then and there. You watched the cameras until you saw her go home, so that became your destination.

But you didn’t see that Arsenal followed her.

You were one with the shadows of Star City, where you spent a great majority of your time being Mockingbird--back when you were good--and when you first became a hero. Dinah and Oliver hadn’t moved in more than a decade, so you knew the address by heart.

In no time at all, you were perched on the roof; a mere few feet away from Avia’s open window. Half a second before you stepped forward, you heard another voice, not Avia’s. Arsenal.

You quirked an eyebrow and got onto your stomach to blend in with the dark roof. You tuned out all other noises and instead focused on their conversation.

“Avia, I can’t take this,” Roy sounded so conflicted. “I haven’t felt this way and I hate it, but I can’t just push you away.”

Oh.

“I-I have feelings- wait, no, I-” he couldn’t find the right words, and you felt sympathetic. You were in a similar situation not too long ago: Being in love with someone you might betray.

Avia shushed him. “Roy...”

He sighed. “I know you don’t feel the same way, I don’t know why I even said it-”

“Shut your mouth and let me talk, redhead!” Avia got his attention and he did what she said. “I have feelings for you, too,”

You cringed hardcore when you heard them kiss. You were convinced that it was an awkward kiss, but that wasn’t what you focused on.

Your eventual protege pulled away from Roy with a small and bittersweet smile. There was a sad and apologetic look in her eyes; it concerned him. She had to tell him. She had to tell Roy about you and what she was going to do--what her reason was for leaving.

“Avia, what’s wrong?” Roy asked, completely out of character. “Did you change your mind? Am I not good enough?”

She looked even more sad after his questions. “No. You’re more than good enough, and I haven’t changed my mind... But you’ll change yours.”

Your eyes narrowed on something you saw in the distance. Way in the distance. You touched an almost invisible button on the side of your mask and used it to zoom in drastically. After many attempts, you focused on the approaching figure. Then you almost broke your mask.

Batman. And he was headed your way. He had a gut feeling that it was going to happen that night, and he was correct.

“Why would I change my mind?”

“Because I’m leaving!” Avia had to get it out before it was too late. “Everyone lied to me! Mockingbird didn’t leave for power!” She turned away from him and punched the drywall, her fist going straight through it. “She told me everything. She has proof, she uncovered all of their lies! I can’t be with the people I was supposed to trust!” Avia clenched her jaw as guilt started to choke her. “Mockingbird understands me and what I feel. She was treated like shit and lied to, too.”

It took a moment, but then Roy understood what she said. He took a step back in disbelief and his heart shattered. “You mean you’re betraying us?” Roy wanted to wake up from that nightmare. “You’re going with Mock-”

You chose that moment to swing into the window and you landed on your feet with a loud bang, not bothering with subtlety. “Is she going with Mockingbird? Yes, she is,” you stood to your full height with a face of stone. You looked menacing and it scared Roy, not that he would ever admit it. “because you all lied about me. Do you regret it yet?”

“I’m sorry, Roy,” Avia’s heart was hurting terribly. “I’m so sorry.”

You heard the woosh of a cape and your irritation spiked. “We need to go!”

Batman came through the same window you did, ready to fight. he wasted no time in going after you, and he was ready to take on Avia as well. He knew Roy wasn’t going to be able to do it because of how strong his feelings were for her.

You dodged one of Batman’s punches and you hissed, “Avia! Knock him out, now!” You hoped your sheer fury behind it would prompt her to get her ass moving, and it did.

Batman was barely landing any hits; the team wasn’t the only ones you studied. While he had more experience and more fighting tactics, there was hardly a move you missed. However, you weren’t perfect. The occasional punch to the jaw left you a little disoriented and getting punched in the stomach tended to knock the wind out of you.

You then elbowed Batman’s face and then kicked him square in the chest. It briefly knocked him off balance, giving you time to choose a voice--someone close to him. Alfred.

Before talking, you looked back at Avia and Roy. Sure enough, Roy was out cold, but Avia was sitting against the wall, completely distraught, but understandably so. You were definitely going to discuss that with her later on.

Batman wound up to deliver a brutal hit, but he froze when you shouted, “Bruce, no! Please don’t do this, this isn’t you!” in Alfred’s voice. Bruce knew full well that it wasn’t actually Alfred, and that it was actually you manipulating him, but you still got to him. Alfred practically raised him and had been by his side for everything. Just the thought of hurting him-

That moment of hesitation was what gave you and Avia the chance to get out of there, leaving two unconscious heroes on her old bedroom floor.

 -

Days passed after Dick got the news that Avia left with you. Of course you convinced her to betray the team, too. He honestly wasn’t surprised. He knew Avia was being lied to, and he didn’t want any part of it.

“Mockingbird is a cursed name.” Dick thought solemnly. Both Mockingbirds turned their backs on the team, but somewhat rightfully so. He wasn’t going to allow another hero have the name “Mockingbird” ever again, no matter who wanted it.

Dick simmered for hours and hours, angry that you took Avia, angry that she left, angry that everyone let it happen. He once again didn’t interfere, and look at where that got him. He was angry at you, Avia, the Justice League, himself, the team, and the world. No one deserved any of that to happen.

After a certain amount of time, he had enough. Dick knew you were occasionally in Bludhaven, so he was going to find you. He was too furious and hurt not to. That feeling didn’t fade as he put on his suit and his utility belt. He clenched his jaw so much that it hurt. His knuckles were white from how hard he was gripping his escrima sticks.

Dick traveled from roof to roof, trying to catch a glimpse of you somewhere. It wasn’t shocking that you were practically impossible to find; you were nowhere in sight. But Dick searched and prowled the city, turning over every stone and checking every shadowed corner. Nothing. No one.

He let out an anger-fueled roar, “Come out, Mockingbird! I know you’re there! Stop hiding and face me!” Dick probably looked like a crazed man on an acid trip, but he didn’t care. All he cared about was finding you and knocking you onto your ass.

You didn’t show.

[sierratheory]

“Like i don't trust sierra bc of the time she came into Luke's life...” that entire ask but vice-versa too!!! people have said sierra dated dylan from flor and now her old roommate karsen too? as with luke, where was her time being single and figuring herself out before jumping into a new relationship? the twitter likes reminded me of how luke & sierra only see “jealousy” and “misogyny” as a h8ters only reason, which isn’t true 😔

Part 2 It's like they're still letting the other person know they're wrong but the difference is that it doesn't hit them. Why does it cause an overly emotional response and a giant need to prove they are wrong? it's a truth the person has been avoiding/ignoring. Luke or any person don't see the truth, they really don't even though deep down they know it is true (this is why emotional abuse is so dangerous and the victim "can't just leave")

Part 3 and that's why getting defensive and simply defending yourself are two different things. I'd like to point what that anon said about Luke's likes missing the point of what was said and this anon called him a 'dumb asshole' (lol) because he's missing the point. Well he may not realise it but he's missing the point "on purpose" his brain is making him miss the point in order to keep the fantasy that the points that were made aren't factual and are actually offensive (sexism)

Part 4 I swear I could write a book explaining every little behaviour he's adopting but what I really want to point out is that I understand everyone's frustration and regardless of what he's going through, Luke should be held responsible for his actions but we can and should emphasize because he's not fine. I'm saying this because he is following a very worrying pattern and even though Arzaylea was a much worse person than Sierra is,

Part 5, Luke is currently in a worse situation MENTALLY and I know this may cause some confusion and I can explain with more details why I'm saying this but it doesn't necessarily have to do with Sierra. I'm not saying she's not toxic. I do believe she's toxic but she's not nearly as toxic as Arzaylea. The difference is the timing. If Luke had dated Sierra first and Arzaylea later things would be much much worse.

Part 6 Luke was in a very vulnerable place, he was really hurt and he got a taste of what a mentally stable, caring, loving partner is like in Sierra. And I'm not saying these are traits that Sierra has or not. But when you get out of a toxic relationship, when you're at your worst a little love, or sense of love can feel like the best thing in a world. Basically it's an "issue" with the rewarding system in your brain. Very typical in people who go through this kind of situations

Part 7 that's why it is recommended to see a therapist or stay away from relationship because this rewarding system can fix itself and go back to normal or you might need some help. It all depends on how you deal with the situation. Some people get over traumatic experiences quickly and some need time and help. Anyway to keep it simple and short: Luke knew for sure (based on my little knowledge and his behaviour) that Arzaylea wasn't good to him but he was in love and he was making excuses to

Part 8 believe she loved him back (maybe she did love him back but had mental issues, drug addiction, I don't know, I can't judge) but he didn't have the time to heal. He's aware of his past relationship being toxic but I don't think he's aware of the effects it had on his mental health. He shows severe signs of being someone who still carries some luggage. Let me explain, I'm sure he's aware of how awful Arzaylea was and that he did him wrong and he deserves better.

Part 9 but for example, if arzaylea told him constantly that he didn't defend her enough, if she guilt trapped him because of it, if she threatened to leave him or blamed him for her mental issues/breakdowns he's most likely still carrying it with him and that's one of the reasons why he's desperately trying to make it right with this one relationship. It's something that's internalised. So yes maybe Sierra doesn't do much wrong compared to Arzaylea and actually maybe Sierra is like

Part 10 'dang I hate this thing someone said' but that's enough for Luke's brain to make a click, bring back the memories, the trauma and go into overdrive. This is an example but can be used to explain why Luke's trying so hard with Sierra compared to Arzaylea. Another thing that makes this relationship "worse" imo is that Luke's perception of reality wasn't accurate when he started his relationship with Sierra because of Arzaylea and now that little bit of love he feels like he receives is

Part 11 just wow and to him it is what real love feels like this is why your sense of personal worth should never depend on somebody else. And now he strongly believe that despite everything that goes wrong in his relationship, that little 1 thing that's going well is more than enough. he's never had that much so his fighting to keep it because it is sad but it's the most loved he's ever felt and he doesn't see why he could deserve more or how it could get better because to him, thats everything

Wheew, this was a trip to put together. You really did write me a book here, anon. But I completely understand what you’re trying to say. I come from a really abusive family, and even now I have issues where I’ll ask my bf if he’s mad at me and he’s like “you didn’t do anything, why would I be mad at you??!” Becuase I’ve been trained to think I’ve done something wrong if someone’s behaviour changes. And while I agree with most everything you said, I don’t think Sierra is unaware of Luke vulnerability due to the Larzaylea fuck show. That being said, I’m not sure if Sierra dated anyone between Alex and Luke. I don’t believe the roommate story, and none of the other mods do either. There’s no evidence behind it. I don’t know who the other guy is so I can’t speak to that. But she did have a lot more time between her and Alex’s breakup and her and Luke’s relationship beginning. Keep in kind she was still touring with Alex after they broke up, and that could have stunted any healing, but I truly can’t say. Time doesn’t always heal everything. And again I can’t speak to that break up, but I think it says a lot that she went on to drag his name during an interview after. As we’ve seen recently with Selena Gomez, she said she always kept quiet about her personal life out of respect. She wouldn’t even air out dirty laundry in her songs, and eventually she decided that her story was worth being told and she didn’t need to stay silent to protect those who hurt her. But she didn’t give an interview painting herself as an angel and throwing exes under the bus. And I think it says a lot that Sierra immediately went to the media, and even since that Alex has stayed mum on the subject.

I agree with the psychological damage points, and that Luke is likely overcompensating, if the relationship is real. Which in all honesty I’m leaning more towards as time goes on, but I’m still convinced even if they do like/love/whatever each other, modest! has some heavy handed access/control over it. And that could be perhaps to avoid a repeat of the Larzaylea mess, maybe they made Sierra sign a NDA, but I digress. Luke may also be convinced that because he didn’t defend Arzaylea, fans thought he didn’t care about her or was a bad boyfriend. It could have very easily been Arzaylea saying “hey you don’t defend me so you don’t love me, or fans see it as you don’t think I’m important enough to defend” etc. I don’t think Sierra is necessarily a bad person, while I’m entirely convinced Arzaylea was a shit-tier human being.

That being said, I do think she’s very aware that she is manipulating Luke, and taking advantage of the psychological damage Arzaylea did. I think that damage also makes him easier to manipulate or control and let me explain why.

TW - ALCOHOLISM, SUICIDE, VERBAL & PHYSICAL ABUSE

My dad was an alcoholic, and he committed suicide when I was very young. Because my mum left him, because he was becoming more abusive. Unfortunately instead of being the wake up call she wanted it to be, he shot himself and left her a note that said “I hope you got what you wanted”. Now, needless to say, this fucked my mum up really bad. She has never recovered. She has thrown all her emotions into a box, she is very clinical and doesn’t let her emotions control her. Which can be good sometimes but she’s very distant and cold. That being said, my mum married my step dad about 6 years after my bio dad passed away. She was not healed, let me tell you. She never sought counselling and is not on any sort of medication. My step dad was like the perfect man, before they got married, he cooked, he cleaned, and he was okay with the fact she had two young kids, one in elementary school and one just starting high school. But after they got married and he had control, oh everything changed. He isolated her from all of her friends and even her family. He was and still is verbally abusive and on occasion he can be physically abusive, but it’s rare. To her and all of his kids, including my sister and I. If he doesn’t get his way he throws a tantrum, calls everyone awful names and says awful things. He needs to control everything. While I love my step dad because he helped raise me, he is a controlling abusive person. And while he has a lot of psychological damage himself I’m not going to get into that, but know that he has a kind heart, and he does love my mother and he would die for her. But when he loses his temper he says horrible things. And he knows about the abuse my mum suffered at the hands of my bio dad, and how she has never healed. My bio dad told my mum she couldn’t cook, and if she ever left him he’d get the kids even though he was a raging alcoholic, couldn’t hold down a job AND she was doing all the child care on top of a full time job. Like she had the daycare ladies prepared to call 911 if we didn’t show up at daycare when she was out of town for work, but I’m off track here. The point I’m trying to get to is my step dad would abuse my mum, and use things my bio dad did or said to her, to hurt her more. An example of this is, if my mum tried to walk away during one of my step dads yelling fits, he would say “yeah, walk away just like you did with [my bio dad’s name]”. Because he knows she blames herself for leaving him, and she thinks his death was her fault. My step dad knows my mum will never leave him, because of what my bio dad did when she left. He could burn their house down around them and she wouldn’t leave.

With that story I would like to say, please don’t judge my mum or either of my dads. You don’t know the whole story and I don’t want to share all of it. I’m using it as an example because I know it well.

The point in trying to make here, is one it’s very VERY common for people to go from one abusive relationship to another. Because abusers can recognize the signs of a victim, and those who were abused, when treated with even a small amount of love, or kindness often see it as a very big deal. They tend to think they are worthless or don’t deserve it, as they’ve been told many times over. Two, believe it or not, being abused before can make people more susceptible to being abused again. This is because of the reasons mentioned above, they think they are worthless, or are wooed by very small acts, or both. And three, that the new partner can and often will use personal things about the abuse they suffered from someone else, to control or hurt their partner more, becuase they know it’s already a deep seated pain. And while I’m not saying Sierra is for sure 100% doing this, it is very easily a possibility and she could be doing some of it without knowing. Just because a year, or 5 or 10 have gone by doesn’t mean the person has healed, and sometimes new partners open old wounds. This has been a whole TEDtalk sorry y’all. Also disclaimer if anyone comes into the ask box saying rude things about my family it will be deleted and you will be blocked.

[silverstar56]

Murphy’s Law Pilot Chapter

Summary: The bane of my life was The Plot. A constant reminder in my otherwise normal life. But I was cautious, I took precautions and plotted to slide my way through life without ever touching The Plot with a ten foot pole... but of course the one thing that could have gone wrong went wrong at the worst time possible. 

When you die, you expect that to be the end.

Realistically speaking, there is no magic or ritual or some fantastical reason to give a person out of the hundreds and thousands of people who wish for another chance that slim (or more like nonsensical) possibility.

God?

Why would any heavenly (or demonic) being bother with an average joe?

A continue button?

Life is not a game so no such thing.

Some cosmic change in the universe?

It’s possible but what are the chances. Way too astronomical to be true.

So when death came to me, I expected to fade and disappear.

But like almost every bad fanfiction that has come to be, I was shoved into a new world with no say or preparation.

Life is wonderful my butt!

I lived once already! Although I died relatively early and did not expect the abrupt end, I did not like how my whole world was torn from me and forced into a completely new one!

New parents, new language, new culture, new everything.

If I wanted a second chance I would have been happy if you rewinded my death and let me relive my old life!

My parents did not have the narrow eyes that I were used to seeing but instead have wide russet brown eyes. They did not have the black ebony hair I was used to admiring, instead they had a soft brown chocolate that were pleasing to the eye. My surroundings were not the conifer trees but instead the first time I looked out the window of my home, I was greeted by pink sakura flowers fluttering in the wind.

I was not in the United States anymore, instead I was in the country of the rising sun given the words babbled to me from my overeager father.

My whole world had completely changed and at the time I was drowning in loss on a level I never experienced before.

But the world never waits for the sake of one person, so life moved on. I dealt with the trauma and change the best that I could.

Which meant a lot of screeching to get the pain out until I calmed down.

My parents must have been so confused about me. One day I was screaming my lungs out, the next I was a little angel. I’m pretty sure they brought me to the doctor several times too.

Often times, I mentally apologized to my new parents. I’m pretty sure they wanted a normal kid, not a traumatized young adult stuck in the body of a babe.

Thankfully my parents were laidback and air-headed, my odd behavior went under their radar pretty easily and I was in the clear.

But I still felt guilty, after all it is very possible that through some accident I replaced the who should have been their actual child. So I tried my best to be a good child for them. I was an obedient child and listened to their words and never really caused them trouble as I was growing up.

Toddler me was dealt with life as well as she could.

But then life decided to kick me to the curb again.

I remember the day clearly, since it basically smashed all preconceptions of my new life in front of my eyes.

Three years old and sitting in front of the television that was playing the news with words that I still could not fully understand, I recall squishing my plush rabbit as I tried to understand what was being spoken. I had wondered how long it would take for me to assimilate Japanese until I was fluent.

Then the deafening crash from the kitchen jolted me out of my stupor.

“Mama?!”

I had scrambled to my feet and stumbled over to the kitchen only to see the floor littered with jagged porcelain and my mothers fingers cut and bleeding profusely.

“Ara? Saki if you come closer you will get hurt.” Mom had a serene smile as she clutched her fingers close to her chest. At the time, i’m pretty sure I had thought how air-headed my mother could be to wave off what obviously had to be a painful injury.

“But!”

“No buts! besides this is nothing.”

Mom had gently admonished but she saw my raised brow and giggled before she held out her hands and to my astonishment the wounds slowly but surely closed up on their own.

Excuse me?!

I think I could be excused for how long it took for me to react, long enough that my father who was on the second floor at the time came over and lifted me into his arms.

“What’s shocked you so much my little blossom?” Dad had a wry grin on his lips and he was watching my face.

“I was showing her my Quirk. I think this is the first time she has ever seen it Dear.”

Quirk?

“That’s because there hasn’t been a need for her to see your Quirk Honey.”

Like Quirk from My Hero Academia…?

“True, minor regeneration isn’t something I can show so easily. But anyway, Dear could you please?”

My Hero Academia as in the Manga from my Before?!

“Of course Honey!”

The porcelain pieces started to float and was lifted gently before displaced into the trash. I vaguely remember Mom giggling as she poked my cheek to snap me out of my shock.

Those tiny displays of the supernatural turned my world upside down for the second time.

Dad then confirmed my suspicions that the world I lived in was the world created from Horikoshi-sensei’s hands. From my Before.

A world where Heroes and Villains existed. I’m living in a Manga. Why?! Did I do something wrong in my previous life?! Is this Karma from something?!

But at the very least I thought I was a little lucky. Mom had a minor regeneration quirk and my dad had a minor telekinesis quirk. Pretty normal for the overall population. Given my parents quirks, I was expected to have a minor quirk.

Which meant that I was free from being pressured into a Heroes life.

I did not want society to tell me to go risk my life for other people when I had no guts to speak off. And I would have been happy with being absolutely normal in a world of the extraordinary.

But I said earlier right?

Life decided to kick me to the curb?

Come my fourth birthday, and I did not show any signs of a quirk. I didn’t manifest any esper like ability, and when I injured myself, my bruises healed at a normal rate.

As expected, my parent might have been air headed but even they began to worry. So they took me to the hospital to get me checked over.

I learned two things that day in the hospital.

I did not have the double joint, so the doctors assumed that I had an invisible quirk or a dormant quirk.

An invisible quirk was as its name implies, a passive quirk that is constantly active but is so minor that it basically doesn’t seem to be visible.

On the other hand a dormant quirk meant I had to have some specific activation method to get my quirk to work. So the doctors put me through the wringer with tests and physical activities, anything to get a possible quirk to start up.

The tests came out negative, and the doctors assumed that I had an invisible quirk instead. So my parents assured that nothing was wrong with me brought me back home.

The end? Of course not. Things never go that smoothly.

Returning to kindergarten with no quirk to show off quickly made me the class pariah. The kids assumed if I could not show a quirk meant I was quirkiness and suddenly I was not ‘good enough’ to the everyone. I had literally done nothing and suddenly I was isolated and bullied.

Wow kids were brutal.

The Manga did not elaborate on how bad this quirk obsessed society could be to the quirkless. I was often treated in two extremes, either bullied for being ‘useless’ or treated with the kid gloves for being too ‘fragile’.

In a sense, I admired Midoriya. To take years of hateful words and society pushing him down and still dream to become a hero. That took determination and guts.

Something I did not have in spades.

So while life wasn’t bad, it wasn’t great either. The stigma of the ‘quirklessness’ wasn’t something I  could run away from that easily.

Luckily, I didn’t respond to taunts and was thus a ‘boring’ target to bullies, soon enough I was left alone and no one really bothered me.

In the first place I was an introvert even from Before. So dealing with people tired me out and this arrangement where people left me well alone suited me well enough. Though my parents worried that I did not have any friends, since I was pretty content they left it be.

If anything, the idea of me being ‘quirkless’ gave me an out in this society.

No ‘Quirk’ meant no responsibility or pressure to be a hero. All I had to do was get away from the fights and I was good.

In a sense, I was lucky to be reborn in this world. This was the one world where I could live a semi-decent life without trouble. If I had been reborn in Naruto or One Piece…

Looking at things from that window, I could appreciate that things were not horrible or bad. As expected, I dealt with it well enough. Life moved on and I adapted to this strange new world.

Then the Life decided to throw me a wall again in my third year of middle school.

Ten months before my High School exams, the iconic event appeared on the news.

The Bakugo being taken hostage by the sludge villain event.

I had been drinking milk in the morning and I had grabbed the television remote to see if anything unusual was on. Despite my deliberate actions to avoid Heroes and Villains when I was out and about, I still enjoyed watching the fights from the safety of home on the television where nothing could touch me.

Lol and behold, the first thing I saw was a blonde kid being strangled in sludge and a green haired boy rush out from the crowd to save him.

I spat out my milk like a classic anime character.

I knew that I was in the era of All Might. I saw him on the news often enough, but I had hoped that I was a decade or so before the Plot. The further away from the plot, the safer I would be after all.

But Life like to use me as its favorite stress ball and thew me this curve ball.

WHY! ALL I ASKED WAS NOT BE INVOLVED WITH THE PLOT WHATSOEVER AND LIFE THROWS ME THIS!

So I was given the revelation that I was the same age as the Protagonist and his Rival. Wonderful. Great.

I promptly refused any hero school as part of my High School selection and choose an average High school that was nearby my home and put more effort in avoiding anything to do with Heroes and Villains.

Cowardly? Perhaps. But I was not prepared mentally or physically to face any sort of danger and deal with the consequences.

People’s lives were at stake, this was no time to play Hero and become a Mary Sue and save the day. One wrong step and the whole thing could fall flat and I would be to blame.

So I refused to be involved and destroy the carefully scripted events that is Fate and started High school in an average non-hero school that has no relation to U.A. at all.

I still kept up with events though. I watched the news obsessively and saw USJ go down and the Sports Festival as well.

When I saw Class A on the news for the sports festival all I could think was how young they were.

And it really sunk in.

These are kids. Sixteen year old kids that is about to be thrown to the gauntlet. They don’t deserve any of that.

Frankly speaking that revelation made my stomach hurt. I wanted to close the television and huddle underneath the sheets but my hands wouldn’t move.

I took in the sight, of Shinsou’s slouched posture straightening as he took his first step to his dream. Uraraka, her body littered with bruises, burning determination in her gaze as she took her stand against Bakugo. Midoriya, as he broke finger after finger to save Todoroki.

Honestly, watching the Sports festival left me shaking and my mom cooked my favorite Udon that night in consideration.

I was in the Manga, a fictional story that existed from Before. In the same timeline as the kids who would shoulder the future of Japan. Watching the Sports Festival drove that fact in and I wanted to throw up.

But Life does not wait for one person and the world moves on.

Keeping up to date with the news became an even bigger priority than ever before. I saw the headlines when the Hero Killer was arrested and the white lie where Endeavor arrested Stain. I also saw the supposed viral video shown in the anime. I saw the blurry figures of Endeavor, Gran Torino and the three U.A. kids and other heroes.

Time was ticking and I was ever so aware of All Might’s retirement was coming soon.

Soon enough, summer was upon me and along side the heat waves were the anticipation of the beginning of the end.

It was at this time, where Life decided to stop giving me the illusion that I had a choice and decided to  throw me head first into chaos.

On the night where I was doing an errand for my parents, walking down the busy street with one of my hands glued to my cell phone. I opened the news app and saw the iconic conference being aired and froze.

Murphy’s Law: When things can go wrong, it will go wrong.

There was no warning before everything exploded.

Fuck! No I don’t wANT TO DIE AGA-

…

…

…

When a pebble is dropped, it needs not to take any action. Just being dropped into the water will cause ripples to roll.

Soooooo, I have essentially been drowning in LIFE and all that it entails but I found a really old story on my computer. The pilot chapter of it anyway, I never posted it anywhere though so it has just lied there. SO! I decided to post it on Tumblr and see what people think about it. 

To tide over my never ending exhaustion in RL 

Tell me what you guys think bout this? Should I remake this? 

[alpacaparkaseok]

Lost & Found - 16

Pairing: Park Jimin x soulmate (oc)

Warnings: fluff, me feeling sad because THIS IS THE EEEEND

Word Count: 3.9k

a/n: there will be an epilogue coming out on Friday, (FROM CHRISTINA’S POV!!) however other than that, this is the end of Lost & Found everyone! I just wanted to say THANK YOU to all of you that have been so involved with this story. I feel like I’ve gotten to see so much of you guys interacting with this story and loving it just as much as I do. I’ve loved your theories and seeing your reactions (lol, some of them were hilarious). This story is...I don’t even know how to explain it. I put a little bit of myself into every story I write, but this is one of those that really made me do some digging. It still is. It was hard to write most of the time. But it was so, so worth it. 

I would LOVE (as always) to hear from you about your thoughts. Who your fav characters were, favorite parts, thoughts on the ending, thoughts on side ships (lol Christina and Tae!) and of course, I’m more than happy to answer any questions! Thank you again for reading, and enjoy!

Chapter 16. I’m Proud of You

series masterlist

The sound of rain battering on the roof of the shop creates a false sense of security. The ambience created by the repeated sound against the tin out in the alleyway lulls me into a dreamlike state.

           Jimin appears to be in a similar mindset, leaning against the worktable and watching with glazed eyes as I knead the dough to a rhythm I pick out in the rainfall.

           “What’s the next question?”

           Jimin inhales deeply, eyes drifting to the appear hanging loosely in his hands. “Um…how do you plan on coping with a life in the spotlight?”

           Jimin and I have been at the sweet-bread shop for the past couple of hours, trying to make up for all the days I missed from work. Yuri allowed for us to come in today much later than normal due to Jimin’s schedule in the morning.

           Last night I’d glanced through the lengthy list of questions with Jimin and Chung-hei. I’d nearly cried from relief when I found out that she would also be joining in on the interview. Apparently Bighit thought that selling the idea of two close friends at the soulmates for two of their idols might prove to be comforting for the fans.

           “I plan on baking a lot of bread,” I respond with a smirk, spreading the dough in a pan and heading toward the large oven on the far side of the room. On the way I prop the back door open just a crack, allowing a bit of air in now that the back will be heating up with baking bread. The sound of rain grows louder, the strong smell flooding the kitchen.

           Jimin chuckles, nodding along. “And texting your friend Jaemin?”

           “Obviously.” Once everything looks good to go, I set a timer and check the time. It’s pushing eight in the evening, and the rain has yet to let up at all. “Ok, that’ll bake for thirty minutes.” I go to join Jimin beside the worktable, beginning to wipe it down.

           “Next…something that’s surprised you so far?”

           The thread now extends nearly twenty feet, which the soulmate specialist we met with last night predicted would happen. “At this rate,” he’d said, “Everything should be back to normal within five days or so.”

           Normal.

           What does that even mean anymore?

           “You.” I keep my eyes on the table, trying to scoop up as much flour as I can. “You’ve been the biggest surprise so far.”

           Jimin lowers the paper, watching my movements as I dispose of the flour before spraying some disinfectant and continuing to clean.

           “Explain that, please.” Jimin effortlessly assumes the role of interviewer. I chew on my cheek, grinning when Jimin takes up a spot on the opposite side of the table and motions for the cloth.

           I slide it toward him, watching as he begins to clean the other side. “Well… I think we’re becoming friends. Good friends.” My absentminded smile grows as I recall the events of last night.

           By the time we’d finished the meeting with Bang PD, we’d barely had enough time to breathe before launching ourselves into another flurry of meetings. All designed to prepare me for the possible pitfalls of this sudden interview.

           When we’d finally made it back to the house, Elle was cranky at not seeing either of us all day and I was bordering on a mental breakdown.

           In the quiet of the living room, Jimin had sat on the edge of my couch-turned-bed and tucked me in.

           “Take your pick,” he’d whispered, unfolding the blanket. “Burrito or lasagna.”

           My startled laugh sounded loud in the quiet house. “What’s the difference?”

           With some sort of reverenced adoration, I listened to my soulmate explain the lasagna method (piling several layers of blankets on top of the victim/person), versus the burrito method (one blanket, snugly tucked in).

           Laid there on the couch, gazing up at Jimin, I understood why I hadn’t fought against the interview.

           I cared. It was a devastatingly simple and perhaps a little lackluster revelation, but I cared about him.

           Jimin looks up at me now from the opposite end of the worktable with a crooked smile. “Are you friend-zoning me?”

           My eyes fall to that smile, wondering what it might feel like to reach out and trace the little divots it creates in his cheeks.

           “…no.”

           After his marvelous explanation of the difference in the lasagna and burrito methods, I’d chosen burrito.

           Jimin had leapt up off the couch and draped the blanket over my body. I laughed when it covered my face, and Jimin chuckled nervously when he pulled it down.

           “Sorry,” he mumbled. “This is a hazardous line of work at times.”

           Beginning at my toes and working his way up, Jimin had meticulously tucked me in. I’d stifled a laugh when he brushed up against my sides, a knowing smile gracing his lips before he quietly instructed, “Arms up.”

           Rather than finishing the job quickly, Jimin took his time. Gently straightening the hem of the blanket and taking my hands in his before guiding them to rest atop the blanket.

           He took a moment to study me, the only source of light coming from the kitchen. A little light had been left on above the stove, but I didn’t mind; not when it illuminated the way he was looking at me.

           Resting on the edge of the couch, Jimin looked like an ordinary man.

           His black t-shirt looked a little wrinkled, and his eyes were tired. He ran a hand through his hair, looking at the other couch.

           “I’m proud of you.”

           Despite the utter silence in the room, I wondered if I heard him correctly. “Hm?”

           His lips turned down in a frown of concentration as Jimin swam in his thoughts. “I think you deserve to hear it.”

           I stared at him like he had suddenly transformed into a werewolf. “I…I don’t think…”

           At my tone of doubt, Jimin returned his focus on me, surprised to see that I didn’t believe him.

           Maybe you aren’t proud of yourself,” he whispered quietly, as though sharing a secret. “But for now, I hope that this is enough.” He reached out to wipe a stray tear from my cheek, quickly followed by another. “You’ve been so brave, and I’m so proud of you.”

           For unknown minutes after, all was silent. Jimin stayed, fingers caressing my cheeks as the tears continued to flow. I had clung to his wrist, unable to verbally convey what was caught in my throat as he continued to look at me with so much pride.

           I don’t deserve you.

           But I will do my best to love you in the way you deserve.

✂

           The rain lets up not long after the bread comes out of the oven, although Jimin is nowhere near the end of the questions. He continues asking them as he and Jolie head out to the car waiting for them, Sunmi greeting them with a cheery wave.

           He watches with a forgotten smile as his soulmate interacts with her friend. Jolie laughs at something Sunmi says, her eyes alight with some sort bittersweet emotion. Jimin is beginning to understand what that look means.

           Last night, he’d seen the way she was doubting herself. If he was honest, he’d been doubting himself, as well. This interview was going to be high pressure. He didn’t want to admit it, but this interview would largely decide how people viewed his soulmate.

           Yet, Jolie didn’t complain. She didn’t say a single thing expressing her doubt or worry. Instead, he watched on with amazement and admiration as she powered through the meetings. Steeling herself against the worst.

           There had been a moment, as Jimin tucked his soulmate in after explaining the different methods (he’d come up with the lasagna method on the spot, but she didn’t need to know that), that he realized why he’d been feeling so odd all day. Like something about Jolie was so familiar, allowing him to fall into an easy rhythm with someone who should have been one of the last he would trust so readily.

           She reminded him of, well…himself.

           Jolie was cut from the same cloth that he was. That younger Jimin of the trainee days, trying so hard to be brave but still quick to make rash decisions that he later came to regret with his whole being. Quick to doubt, quick to love.

           Somehow, that’s who Jimin saw as he sat perched on the edge of the couch. And after a moment of reflection, he felt like he knew what he had needed to hear back in those early days. What Jolie needed to hear as she embarked on this new adventure.

           “I’m proud of you.”

           It was true. It still is, less than a day later as Jolie sits beside Jimin in the backseat and chatters freely with Sunmi. Explaining some of the silly answers she came up with to the possible interview questions, making a bet on some random phrase that Chung-hei will probably say at some point.

           That pride bubbles up until it has Jimin reaching across the seat to grab Jolie’s hand in his, lovingly running his thumb over her knuckles. He grins at the way she stumbles mid-sentence, eyes flashing to him.

           He sees the way she looks doubtful for a moment, and he knows that she’s internally rejecting the notion that he cares as deeply for her as his actions say he does. He just squeezes her hand a little tighter and silently promises to prove it to her.

           Again and again, if need be.

           “You’ll do great,” Sunmi is reassuring as she pulls into a familiar neighborhood. They’ve arrived back to the apartment at last. “I’ll be watching.”

           “That sounds a little creepy,” Jolie teases, glancing over at Jimin as she opens up the door and slides out. “Thanks, Sunmi.”

           Sunmi nods, smiling in the rear view. “I’ll see you guys in the morning!”

           Once they’ve said their goodbyes, Jimin and Jolie head up to the apartment. They can already hear some of the people inside, and Jolie can’t hide her smile as she hears Christina’s voice.

           “Kim Seokjin, I already told you that I’m in charge of the zucchini, now leave it alone.”  

           Jolie wiggles her eyebrows at Jimin. “Don’t tell me she’s moved on to Jin.”

           “Oh, no. Her and Tae and are pining over each other every chance they get,” he quietly confirms. The way Jolie snorts has him smiling at her fondly. “She’s probably just trying to make him jealous by hanging out with Jin.”

           The two of them head inside, stepping into a warzone. People are scattered everywhere, jumping to and fro in an effort to prepare a suitable dinner for all those present. It’s a rare sight to see in the house, it’s not often that they cook at home. Due to their busy schedules, they either cook for themselves or eat out.

           “What’s going on?” Jolie asks with a hint of amusement as she glances at Taehyung. He’s the only stationary being in the entire house, leaning up against the doorway to the kitchen and staring at Christina with furrowed brows. Almost like he’s confused, but he doesn’t quite understand why.

           Jimin comes up behind him, clapping him on the shoulder. “How’s it going?”

           Taehyung shrugs, a little lost in thought. “Oh, fine. Fine.”

           Winking at Jolie, Jimin attempts to sidle into the kitchen. “Anybody need help in here?” There’s a round of applause from Jin, who begs Jimin to come and help him with something. Taking up a station beside his oldest hyung, Jimin gets to work to prepare family dinner.

✂

           “So,” I drawl, posting up on the opposite end of the doorframe from Taehyung. “Whatcha thinking about?”

           Taehyung’s frown deepens, his eyes flitting over to mine before sloping back to where Christina chops vegetables at the counter. “Dinner.”

           “Mhmm.”

           Again, his eyes flash over to me, an accusing look on his face. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

           I shrug, enjoying the role reversal. To think, it wasn’t that long ago before I was quaking before Taehyung at work. “You just look a little distracted, that’s all.”

           Taehyung chews on his bottom lip, and I don’t miss the way his eyes flit back and forth between Christina, her severed thread, and his own thread which leads out the door and beyond. Connecting him to his soulmate, wherever they may be.

           “I feel a little…strange.” He admits quietly enough for no one else to hear.

           “In a good way, or…?”

           He shrugs, watching as Christina picks her way across the kitchen to where Seokjin clears a space for her to slip the cut vegetables into a steaming pot. “Sometimes good, sometimes bad.”

           “And do you…plan to do anything about these strange feelings?”

           Christina steps out of the room, and the second she disappears from sight it’s like Taehyung woke up from a long dream. He blinks, looking around for a second before looking back at me. “I think it’s more of a question of if I should do something about it. If that’s even plausible.” Again, his eyes drift to his thread, and I mull over this odd situation.

           In the end, it only leads to heartbreak. It just depends on who it will be that gets their heart broken.

           Before I can respond, Yoongi is calling everyone to come to dinner. It takes a few minutes for us to all gather around, and I can’t help but notice the way that Taehyung doesn’t even think twice before settling down next to Christina. The moment he notices what he’s done, however, that same tormented expression from earlier reappears. I offer him a bolstering smile from down the table, which he hastily returns.

           We all dig into the food, everyone expressing appreciation for different dishes and sharing all around. Jimin blows on his bulgogi before extending it to me with a grin, which I quickly take.

           Toward the end of the meal, Hoseok holds up a glass and a hush falls over the table. “I’d like to propose a toast!”

           Jungkook whispers something to Jin, who tries and fails to hide his laughter. A glare from Hobi has the two shutting up in an instant.

           “To more family dinners like this,” he says with a smile. “And to all our new additions.” He pauses, thinking for a moment longer. “Some of you arrived in more…unconventional ways than others. But I will say this: you make my friends happy, and that’s all I want for them. Please continue to make them smile as often as you can.”

           I can toast to that.

✂

           These lights are making me sweat, but then again, that could also be from the way the interviewer is staring me down with a hawk-like glare.

           There’s no studio audience, no this is something to be broadcasted in about a month from now. For now, I sit beside Chung-hei and try not to fidget in my seat.

           At first, there were plenty of generic questions. A few directed toward Chung-hei or I that were easy enough to tackle; questions like: “What’s your line of work?” or “How does it feel to be in an interview?”

           Now, though, we’re reaching the end and the interviewer seems to sense this. They begin to lean into the more difficult questions. Anything to keep ratings going, I suppose.

           “Jolie, I have one final question for you,” they grab their card before crossing their legs and smiling at me. There’s no kindness in that smile, but I try to pretend like there is. “If you could go back in time to before you met Jimin, what would you tell yourself?”

           I blink. Everyone looks to me expectantly, and I find that I’m suddenly sweating much more than before.

           This wasn’t in the list of questions.

           Refraining from chewing on my lip, I glance at Chung-hei. My friend smiles encouragingly at me, and I allow myself to go back to a previous time I saw that same smile.

           I’m standing beside Chung-hei, grinning wide enough that my cheeks hurt as the intro music begins to play.

           “They’re about to come out!” Hei screams despite standing right by me. I laugh at her excitement, even though I know I look just as crazed as she does.

           The entire arena floods with music, the bass making my very bones vibrate. All around me people lift up their army bombs and cheer. Smoke floods the stage, creating a mysterious aura before the lights drop and everything is plunged into darkness.

           And then, light. Two huge spotlights illuminate seven figures who seemingly appeared from thin air in the middle of the stage. Less than a second later, the already deafening arena picks up in sound.

           In a burst of energy, the seven boys begin their routine. I find that I am absolutely mesmerized as my eyes fall on one person in particular.  

           Park Jimin glides across the stage as though he owns it; which, with some quick negotiating and a bit of cash, he probably could. His flowy white shirt makes me understand why he’s so often referred to as an angel. However, it’s when he smiles that I find myself adopting the nickname to use for future reference.

           For a moment, I am blissfully ignorant to all that awaits me. To all that awaits us, as I still have yet to notice the way my thread shifts whenever Jimin moves across the stage.

           What would I tell myself in that moment?

           The answer comes surprisingly quickly. “If I could go back…I think I’d just tell her that I’m proud of her.” I smile softly at the interviewer, who listens to my every word as though waiting for some sort of slip up to cling to. “For all that she’s gone through, I’m proud. And that there’s light up ahead.”

           Right on cue, the producer signals to wrap it up from behind the camera. I spy Jimin’s smile, making me smile in return.

           The interview is wrapped up within the next couple of minutes, and before I know it we’re being herded backstage before slipping into our different cars to head to the Bighit building.

           Jimin and I sit in the back seat as Sunmi drives, listening to her rant about how well we did. I just shrug, explaining that it’s too soon to congratulate us. The real challenge will come when the broadcast airs.

           “You did well,” Jimin quietly affirms. He takes my hand in his like he did yesterday, and it’s a feeling that I can certainly tell I’ll be more than happy with for the rest of my life. “How are you feeling?”

           I shrug. “Alright, I think. Just nervous for what comes next.”

           Once we make it to the Bighit building, Jimin pulls me aside before entering the doors. Once he’s ascertained that there isn’t anyone eavesdropping, he pulls me in close to his embrace.

           I nearly melt in his arms, instantly relaxing as I take in the citrusy scent of his shampoo. It’s the same that I’ve been using over the past couple of days.

           “Let me tell you what comes next,” he whispers before pulling back to see my face. “First off, you quit trying to friend-zone me.”

           I laugh, trying to shove him away but failing as he keeps a tight grip around me. “I’m not! You’re just being overdramatic!”

           He feigns offense, gasping loudly. “I can’t believe you’d attack me like this. It hurts, jagiya. It really does.”

           “Yah, just get on with it.”

           “Ok, ok. You’re so impatient.” His easy smile proves that he doesn’t mean me any harm. “ Secondly, I have a question for you.”

           “And what’s that?”

           Releasing his grip around my waist just long enough to push some of his hair back, he raises an eyebrow. “Do you want to date me?”

           I blink, unsure of whether to laugh or question his health. “I- yeah. Of course I do.”

           “Ah, so you want to date me.” Jimin smirks, and suddenly I realize that I may have just gotten myself into a lot of trouble. “Alright, I guess I’ll allow it. But I do have some conditions for you if you want to be my girlfriend.”

           I scoff. “Woah, technically you’re the one that asked-”

           “And you answered that yes, you want to date me. Will you hear out my conditions?” I nod impatiently. “Good. First, you must allow me to tuck you in burrito style whenever you sleep over.” I chuckle, nodding along vigorously while trying to memorize the way he’s looking at me right now. “Second, you quit texting that Jaemin guy. I’m the jealous type, and he seems sketchy.”

           Now I can’t hold back my shoulder-shaking laughter. “You realize how contradictory that is, right?”

           Completely ignoring my call on his judgement, Jimin continues. “You let me send you chocolates without complaining about getting fat. I get joint custody of Elle. You teach me how to bake bread, your mother’s recipe.”

           His soft tone makes me smile softly. “And?”

           He holds up his left hand, the red thread shining in the afternoon sun. “When this thing starts working properly again, you don’t run away from me. Let me- let me be your best friend.”

           There’s a lump in my throat now as Jimin’s eyes glisten with unshed tears. “And?” I whisper.

           “And when the rest of the world is pressing in on you, let me remind you how much you are loved.”

           His grip tightens just a cinch as I let out a shaky breath before mumbling out, “How do you plan to do that?”

           Jimin’s eyes slowly drop to my lips, head tilting to the side as he smiles softly. “I have something of an idea.”

           The sound of the gate opening to let another car in – surely one of the other boys – alerts me to our ending privacy. Before Jimin can change his mind, I throw my arms around his neck and pull him in close.

           The first clash of our lips is a bit sloppy, but soon Jimin is leaning in impossibly closer to better capture my lips. It’s unknown and hurried, and full of promise for the future. The only thing on my mind is the feeling of Jimin’s hands digging into my waist before finding themselves at the small of my back, making me stumble forward a step. He catches me, lips parting in a crooked grin a single second before a black SUV pulls up.

           Jimin’s cheeks are dusted light pink in the afternoon sun, but soon I’m going cross eyed as he leans in and delivers Eskimo kisses. “I knew it was a good idea.”

           “Oi! Don’t tell me you two were just making out in broad daylight,” Jin groans as he exits the SUV followed by a disgusted looking Namjoon.

           “I- no, we were…uh, I…” Jimin sputters, looking to me for help. I laugh, saying nothing as I head for the doors.

           “Namjoon, you can’t even act like you’re disgusted!” Jimin protests, hurrying after me to avoid a collision with the door like he has in previous experiences.  “Don’t pretend like I haven’t seen you and Chung-hei making out like teenagers on the couch-”

           All three boys trail after me as I stride down the hallway toward the elevator. They don’t stop their bickering as we enter the elevator and Jin pushes the fifth floor button, red in the face as he scolds the other two for their behavior.

           Leaning up against the wall, I close my eyes and smile, listening to the accusations flying around the small elevator.

           It’s good to be home.

Previous - Epilogue

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[shygirrrl]

I have my last dbt session tomorrow and yeah look, I’m happy it’s the last one. Like, I am feeling so much better and so much more grounded and like all the self care and actually making an effort with myself has actually started paying off. Like yeah it’s not ideal that I have literally $4 to my name but I’m also like… I’m not dead hun 🤷🏻‍♀️

I don’t know, dbt makes me feel emotionally dumb. Like I don’t know if you ask me how I normally feel I’m usually just tired or hungry and I know that’s not an emotion but it’s the truth ok sis I’m a numb gal. Yeah but then suddenly I have moments where it hits me and I want to die but yeah look I’m a mess but I’m trying my best. And like the sessions have been at 9:00 AM on a Monday so I literally have been waking up after snoozing my alarm, rushing to my computer and throwing some clothes on and doing the Telehealth session and I’m like just not able to connect like with it like she talks to me and there’s literally not one thought in my brain because I probably haven’t had coffee or food or sunlight yet and it generally takes me about an hour to wake up and be ready to hold human conversations. It’s probably something to tell my therapist but I’m just so good at not talking about it that I’ll keep doing that, who knows. But yeah look I don’t think I click with this lady because she’s like how do you feel emotionally about that and I’m like wow hun, ease up. I only talk about my emotions with my romantic partner ok jeez

And she was like just looking at you you don’t seem overly distressed are you just good at masking and I kind of was like sis I feel like that’s one of the worst thjngs you can say to a mentally ill person because FUCK I GET IT ALL THE TIME. I know I look like a placid turtle. Pls don’t remind me I don’t look like what a typical distressed person looks like.

And she was like oh how do you like deal with therapy, like do you go away and think about it after or do you come prepared and I was like I literally have no idea sis, I don’t do either like all she told me in the first session to take notice of my emotions and to validate them and I was kinda like oh like ok. Like I kinda do that already and she was like ok I’ll send you an emotion wheel x and I was like cool x

And she never sent me the damn emotion wheel so I guess I’ll never know my emotions. Nah I’m just being dramatic for real but…

OH and she said I need to journal so I don’t look like a deer in headlights when I’m asked questions but I literally just think that’s me lol (I already journal also)

So here I am considering quitting therapy completely because I’m like ok like LOOK dbt was okay, like it was a good refresher and it was kinda reassuring that like most of the things she recommended I was like already applying and doing (aka not believing every thought in my head, or reframing or whatever the heck it’s called, and like I dunno like exercising and meditating and MEDITATING 🍃

Nah but honestly I have no idea it’s kinda made me like maybe there’s not a whole lot more I can get out of therapy like… but I dunno??

Like I’m hoping I can move back with my normal therapist but I don’t know if she’s going to want for me to keep doing dbt instead and idk I’m kinda like nah I think I’ve had enough.

[rynne311]

65 Questions You Aren't Used To

Tagged by @an-all-write-life, thank you lovely!

1. Do you ever doubt the existence of others than you?

I think I may have answered this one before, but basically no.

2. On a scale of 1-5, how afraid of the dark are you?

1, maybe 1.5.  I really don’t mind the dark, but sometimes it’s the unexplained sounds that will get me.

3. The person you would never want to meet?

I don’t know if any of you watched Community, but Troy loved LeVar Burton, he was his favorite celebrity.  Even though Troy loved LeVar Burton, the most he ever wanted was a picture/autograph, he explicitly told Pierce that he never wanted to meet him.  When Pierce brought LeVar Burton in as a way to mess with Troy, he was completely starstruck and could not speak, he just sat there wide eyed and terrified of disappointing his hero, until he ran away from dinner screaming.  Long story short, any sort of media hero I have I wouldn’t want to meet because I’d probably make Troy look like a normal person with how starstruck I got.

4. What is your favorite word?

Oh boy, this is a lot of pressure! I don’t want to offend all the other words.  I’ll go with onomatopoeia because it’s kind of fun!

5. If you were a type of tree, what would you be?

An oak, I guess.  They look pretty as they change, and dropping the acorns can cause mild annoyance, which I seem to be able to do pretty easily for the friends and family around me.

6. When you looked in the mirror this morning what was the first thing you thought?

Why does it have to be Monday??(I answered this when I started working on these yesterday)

7. What shirt are you wearing?

Simple pink and gray stripes.

8. What do you label yourself as?

Nerd

9. Bright room or dark room?

Dark, it just feels kind of relaxing and like it’s time to unwind.

10. What were you doing at midnight last night?

Sleeping - I’m kind of boring and go to bed by 10:30 (usually earlier) every night, so I’m definitely dead asleep at midnight.

11. Favorite age you’ve been so far?

I actually really enjoyed ages 18-20, and 23 was pretty good too.  I’m sure I’ll hit a good stride of ages again, but until I hit that sweet spot, I’m just going to roll with it and have the most fun I can.

12. Who told you they loved you last?

Umm, probably my friend Alex telling me she loves me more after I had sent her a second reminder in a night that I love her. Or my mom.

13. Your worst enemy?

Honestly, I’m probably my own worst enemy.

14. What is your current desktop picture?

It’s the generic blue design that came with the laptop

15. Do you like someone?

In any way other than platonically, no not right now.

16. The last song you listened to?

Either “Rich” by Maren Morris or “Hotel Key” by Old Dominion on my way into work.

17. You can press a button that will make any one person explode. Who would you blow up?

If I dislike someone that much, shouldn’t they just be left to suffer...like forever.

18. Who would you really like to just punch in the face?

It would be too easy to say some of those politicians that I think are awful and spewing hate, but that’s probably who I’d want to hit the most. But then I’m putting hate and violence out there and I aspire to be better than those I wish to punch in the face.

19. If anyone could be your slave for a day, who would it be and what would they have to do?

Yeah, people shouldn’t own people. What I would be more interested

20. What is your best physical attribute? (showing said attribute is optional)

Probably my eyes or smile.

21. If you were the opposite sex for one day, what would you look like and what would you do?

Umm, I sure hope that would mean I would be tall! At least considerably taller than 5’2” and then I’d go and reach stuff on the top shelf...without a step-stool.

22. Do you have a secret talent? If yes, what is it?

If I do, it’s news to me.

23. What is one unique thing you’re afraid of?

My fears are pretty run of the mill.

24. You can only have one kind of sandwich. Every sandwich ingredient known to humankind is at your disposal.

I might just be pretty boring and say a really good grilled cheese with like a good kind of cheese like pepperjack or something.

25. You just found $100! How are you going to spend it?

If only that would cover all my loans! I’d probably treat myself to something like a new pair of heels or just save it for a bit and maybe put it towards Christmas presents.

26. You just got a free plane ticket to anywhere in the world, but you have to leave immediately. Where are you going to go?

Probably back to Spain.  I loved the four months I lived in Salamanca and want to go back! Also, my host family was amazing, and I’d love to visit them again.

27. An angel appears out of Heaven and offers you a lifetime supply of the alcoholic beverage of your choice. “Be brand-specific” it says. Man! What are you gonna say about that? Even if you don’t drink booze there’s something you can figure out… so what’s it gonna be?

I’d probably get some Barefoot Pink Bubbly, but I’d be a little suspicious of some greater ulterior motive.

28. You discover a beautiful island upon which you may build your own society. You make the rules. What is the first rule you put into place?

Everybody has to be left-handed lol, actually establishing some sort of guidance for rights and behavior, making sure that all groups are treated equally and fairly.

29. What is your favorite expletive?

Shit. As much as I curse in real life, I try to avoid it in my writing, instead opting to find other words to express the sentiment, although that isn’t always possible.

30. Your house is on fire, holy shit! You have just enough time to run in there and grab ONE inanimate object. Don’t worry, your loved ones and pets have already made it out safely. So what’s the one thing you’re going to save from that blazing inferno?

Probably one of my mom’s jewelry or memory boxes that has mementos from my late grandma in them.  It would mean the world to her and I was close with my grandma too, so I’d still be able to preserve a piece of her.

31. You can erase any horrible experience from your past. What will it be?

As much as I’d love to erase any bouts of poor mental health I’ve had in the past, I’ve learned from them and without that experience, I wouldn’t be prepared to tackle my next big challenge whatever it may be.

32. You got kicked out of the country for being a time-traveling heathen who sleeps with celebrities and has super-powers. But check out this cool shit… you can move to anywhere else in the world!

Just like in question 26, I’d probably move to Spain!

33. The Celestial Gates Of Beyond have opened, much to your surprise because you didn’t think such a thing existed. Death appears. As it turns out, Death is actually a pretty cool entity, and happens to be in a fantastic mood. Death offers to return the friend/family-member/person/etc. of your choice to the living world. Who will you bring back?

As much as I would love to bring my godfather back, it wouldn’t be fair to take him from the afterlife, or to put his wife, kids and the rest of us who love him through that pain again.  If I could open some sort of communication between this life and the next, I would absolutely offer it to him.  At least being able to communicate would probably be able to heal some wounds for a lot of us here, and I’d love for his 10 year old son to get to know him outside of the stories he hears from me and the rest of his family.

34. What was your last dream about?

Selling houses and moving...just all around kind of odd.

35. Are you a good….[insert anything you’d like here]? -  Are you a good listener?

I’d like to think I am, yes.  Recently at my weekend job, I was clocking out for the day and finished one of my purchases and the woman in front of me had a bag that was just a little too heavy for her to carry, so I brought her bag out to the car for her.  I ended up spending another 20 minutes out there with her talking, well she was doing most of the talking, and before we went separate ways she kept thanking me for listening to her.  So if that is any indication, yes I am a good listener, also it broke my heart that she felt the need to thank me for listening to her because it tells me that she really isn’t getting much of that in her life.

36. Have you ever been admitted to the hospital?

I’ve been to the emergency room twice, but never admitted to the actual hospital.  And both of those visits were within three days.

37. Have you ever built a snowman?

Grew up in New England, it’s kind of a mandatory part of childhood here.

38. What is the color of your socks?

Gray and teal

39. What type of music do you like?

Country, plus some pop and rock

40. Do you prefer sunrises or sunsets?

I’m rarely up for sunrises, but when I was in college, I was pulling an all nighter in our computer/printer room and I got the most spectacular view of the sun rising over the mountains in Vermont.  It made up for the severe lack of sleep I was experiencing.

41. What is your favorite milkshake flavor?

Chocolate

42. What football team do you support? (I will answer in terms of American football as well as soccer)

I don’t sport.  As far as American football goes, I suppose the NY Giants, but in reality it’s more of anyone who isn’t the Patriots.

43. Do you have any scars?

A few on my arms from stupid stuff while growing up, like fighting with my sister.

44. What do you want to be when you graduate?

I graduated from college 3 years ago and still don’t know.  Maybe to know and be happy and secure.

45. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

Physically - the list is kind of long and pretty personal.  Otherwise, I’d get rid of those nasty things like my anxiety and depression.

46. Are you reliable?

Almost to a fault where some people have tried to take advantage of it so they could slack off.

47. If you could ask your future self one question, what would it be?

Have you found the happy path you want to be on?

48. Do you hold grudges?

Yes, but it’s something I’ve been trying to work on.  I’ll stop and think what did this event/person impact my life and is it still important?  That’s been pretty helpful for letting things go.  I doubt I’ll ever be able to move on from things immediately, but being able to step away after I’ve had some time and choose forgiveness really does help.

49. If you could breed two animals together to defy the laws of nature, what new animal would you create?

CatDog

50. What is the most unusual conversation you’ve ever had?

Probably once when talking about childhoods and one girl brought up how she got sent to water therapy because she would insist that she was a mermaid and didn’t have legs to walk.  If I remember correctly, they thought this was her way of manifesting her fear of water, but really with her red hair, she just wanted to be Ariel from Little Mermaid.  It was definitely a wild ride of a conversation.

51. Are you a good liar?

Yes and no.  I’ve got some tells, but over the past few years, I’ve gotten much better at hiding them.

52. How long could you go without talking?

If I’m not talking because I’m mad, at least a few days.  I love talking, so if there isn’t much of a reason to be silent, I’m probably going to be talking.  There have been a few times I’ve been home alone and will just begin talking to the dogs or the cat as I’m going about my business.

53. What has been you worst haircut/style?

As much as I like them every time I get them, bangs! Within a few months I’m done with wanting to deal with the maintenance and they never looks as good as when I first get them done.  Some folks look absolutely amazing with bangs, but as a long term thing, they are just not for me.

54. Have you ever baked your own cake?

Yes! I love to bake.

55. Can you do any accents other than your own?

A little bit.  With practice I can start to imitate other regions of the US and with enough drinks, I’ve tried an Irish accent.

56. What do you like on your toast?

Butter with a bit of cinnamon sugar.

57. What is the last thing you drew a picture of?

If painting counts, and I’m going to say it does for this, then a nice riverbank landscape I did at a paint and wine studio near me.

58. What would be you dream car?

Jeep Wrangler - like Lorelai’s in Gilmore Girls

59. Do you sing in the shower? Or do anything unusual in the shower? Explain.

Not really, I’m mostly focused on getting what I need to done and getting out.  I might go through an argument in the shower while I’m washing my hair, but that’s about it.

60. Do you believe in aliens?

I guess so, but that’s more of the universe is so expansive and I think it’s a little narcissistic to think that we are the only ones occupying it.  Besides, if there are no aliens, how will Superman exist to come and save us some day??

61. Do you often read your horoscope?

I don’t, and most of the reason is I don’t believe in them. It’ll pop up in other stuff I’ll be reading, but it always frustrates me that pisces are put at the end of the list so I don’t even try.

62. What is your favorite letter of the alphabet?

R! Yes, it is my initial, but I also like doing the sign for it in my sign language class.  The sign is like you’re crossing your fingers, so it’s like R has some mystery and is keeping a secret.

63. Which is cooler: dinosaurs or dragons?

Dinosaurs

64. What do you think about babies?

They are really cute and I like getting to spend some time with them.  It can be really fun to watch someone experience so many things for the first time, especially things we take for granted.

65. Freebie! Ask anything interesting you can think of. - Worst movie you’ve ever watched?

Leprechaun in the Hood without a doubt!

I’ll tag anyone else who wants to do this! :)

[musicallisto]

Hi❤️ Can I have a ship w/TMR & HP(male), pls? I’m 5'7,have a long black hair,dark eyes,fair skin. I'm ENFJ,the eldest of 4,making me reliable & a good leader. Very caring,affectionate,kind,strong both physically & mentally,competitive & fearless. I'm a good listener so as a good adviser. I adore animals,children & LOVE cuddling,skinship,coffee,theme park & advanturous things.I hate heat & worst w/directions. I'm always there for my sis. Smile's always on my face & I hope everyone can smile,too.

(Thank you so much and take your time with my ship if you’re too busy, I understand! Hwaiting ♥ I’m supporting you~ 🌹🌷🌺💐🌼🌻 I hope you have a lovely day filled with happiness, smiles and love.❤️❤️❤️)

I Ship You With…

T H O M A S

• If Thomas had to describe in one word everything he felt when he looked at you, it would be admiration. He was completely mesmerized by the way you moved, the way you talked, how good of a leader you were, how everyone seemed to rely on you, how you were so tender and yet so brave, how you were so altruistic and generous, how you were determined to save everyone no matter the price. It was what drew him to you. Your personalities were so alike in many ways. Although you weren’t one of the official leaders in Group B, you quickly became the head of the operations because the girls soon realized how good you were at taking the lead, scheming and making plans, and leading people to victory. You were a rebel, a fighter, and Thomas loved that about you. You didn’t try to talk him down, to tell him what he was doing was worthless. You believed in him and he believed in you, and it was enough for the both of you, despite all the death and the chaos surrounding you. You showed your utmost potential in the Scorch: you were an absolute badass, saving Thomas and the others Gladers several times. Your fearless and commander nature was Thomas’s favorite thing about you.

• Besides being one of the strongest and most physically capable ones in the Group, you also valued intelligence a lot, so it was very important for you to keep doing mental puzzles and things like that after all the situation died down. You taught Thomas how to play chess and even if he didn’t understand a lot at the beginning, he was more than happy to play with you. It often ended up in Thomas being frustrated because you won extremely easily, in only a few minutes, and he didn’t understand how you did it. You laughed and told him that he was just really bad at that game, and you wondered why WICKED had even bothered studying his brain. He smiled light-heartedly; your little jokes never failed to bring a smile to his lips, no matter how pained he was by all those he had lost. Evenings in Paradise were spent playing chess on a makeshift board as the sun was dying down behind the horizon on your right, and it was peaceful and quiet: everything you wanted and deserved after the trials.

• Since you loved children a lot, you tried to convince Thomas to have some of your own, years after the dreadful events of the Maze and the Scorch. He was skeptical at the beginning, not wanting his children to live and to be raised in a world so dark, a world so cold, but you told him how amazing of a father he would be and how incredible the kid would feel having a dad like him, and eventually, after a few months of asking and persuading, he accepted. Your first born child, a boy, was named Newt. It felt like a proper tribute to your best friend, and although you wished he could be there to see his small alter ego, you were filled with happiness with your little family. Thomas turned out to be a really good father, treating his child with respect, love, and being firm when he needed to. Sometimes, you could hear Thomas’s voice crack when he called your son by his name, but you shared a comforting look and he smiled lightly. Everything was going to be alright.

M I N H O

• Minho must be your best friend, there is no discussion here and it seems OBVIOUS to me that you two fit each other perfectly. Like honestly I don’t see a romantic relationship between the two of you but sign me up for the bff stuff. You both get so competitive and teasing when you are around each other, especially because you were both the best runners in your respective Mazes, and Minho can’t have his ego beaten by *cough* “a girl” (he regrets those words as soon as he realizes that you’re indeed going to beat him God knows how and that you’re actually one helluva girl). You’re always throwing snarky comments at each other and being what others would think is nasty, but you both know it’s just for the laughs and it’s your way of being affectionate.

• HOWEVER, as soon as the other is in danger, shit gets wild. When Minho is threatened by WICKED because of his immune condition, you’re the first one to react and try your best to protect him, and Minho would be the quicket to jump in front of danger to protect you (I mean, Thomas would too, because they’re both such hotheads). Sometimes, and especially in the Scorch, when everything seems desperate and after Minho gets hit by the thunderbolt, his playful banter slowly turns to more philosophical and deeper conversations that he shares with you at night around a bonfire. At first, you’re taken aback, because it’s a side of Minho that you don’t know, or are not used to seeing. You find some stupid joke to make because seeing your lively best friend so down in the dumps is very frustrating, and he uncontrollably laughs because you know him so well. He’s uncapable of keeping a frown when you’re around.

• After the Scorch and all the Flare shit, when life goes back to normal, you suddenly realize that animals must have suffered as much as humans, if not more, and you instantly find a new goal: adopt and care for any stray animal that you find near Paradise or on the roads. And every g o d d a m n time you see a wounded racoon or a pathetic-looking dog, you must take it in, to the great displeasure of Minho who doesn’t understand that fascination at all. From his point of view, it’s already hard enough to keep humans alive, let alone furballs. However, when you pick a little blind in one eye kitten, pleading eyeing Minho with his only blue orb, and literally shove him under his nose, he can’t help sighing and agreeing with you. From that day, he helps you put up an animal shelter in Paradise and surprisingly becomes the most whipped and gaga in front of the baby animals.

J A M E S   S I R I U S   P O T T E R

(faceclaim: Blake Steven)• So you didn’t specify which era you wanted so I thought you were okay with any, and I never wrote anything about Next Gen (actually, yes, I did. I wrote a Lorcan x Rose fanfic years ago and it was actually quite decent. It was called Kiss From A Rose bc, yanno, the song and the wordplay, rose, haha, lol, so funny 10/10) so I thought why not? So you two would be King and Queen of mischief™ just like the two amazing bastards he was named after. You may not be the most malicious, and that’s exactly why you make an excellent duo: teachers never suspect you because they know how intelligent, mature and responsible you are, and therefore would never do anything as childish and frivolous as putting pranks on people, right? but they fail to remember that you are dating James Sirius Potter, grandson of James Potter and nephew of Fred and George Weasley. (actually, McGonagall knows very well what’s going on, but she doesn’t interfere a lot because she misses the lively and funny atmosphere in the castle from the Marauders time, or the twins time).

• Soooo many dares, tournaments and stupid challenges between the two of you. At first, they were light-hearted and simple, nothing too extravagant, like “I bet you can’t eat two turkeys in one dinner!”, but as days went on and neither backed down, it escalated until it reached the point of “One hundred Galleons if you dye Professor Longbottom’s hair green in his sleep”. You always come up with the w o r s t dare ideas, or at least the most maleficent, and the thing is James Sirius always executes them. He never backs down from a challenge or dare, partly because it amuses him a lot and partly because he doesn’t want to be seen as cowardly. When you fear it’s going too far (because you have the most common sense, so even if you find it funny, you know when it’s time to stop and be serious), you tell him that it’s okay if he doesn’t do it, and it will absolutely not degrade his reputation or the way you view him, but once he has an idea in mind, he doesn’t let it go. Which leads him to detention quite a handful of times per semester, and as a consequence he receives a lot of Howlers while you’re laughing on the other side of the table.

• Because you both adore animals, and because that kind of stuff seems to run in your blood, you decide during your fifth year to become Animaguses, or at least attempt to do it. It takes a lot of months of preparation, and at first, you are very intimidated by the processus, but James Sirius convinces you to try to do it with him because it will be so much fun and imagine the endless possibilities if you can transform into an animal at will! Finally, after months and months of bizarre spells and disgusting concoctions, after several times escaping from detention because you were brewing potions after hours in the bathrooms, you finally manage to make it. It’s very confusing at first to change shape and become an animal, and not knowing what animal you would change into when you first transformed was very stressful, but after a lot of practice and training, it became easier and easier to get used to changing into an animal, and you could use that new, secret ability to meet with him without anyone knowing.

T E D D Y   L U P I N

(faceclaim: Chace Crawford)• So despite being much older than you both and therefore leaving Hogwarts years before you, Teddy is your best friend because of his mischievous, happy-go-lucky nature that really mirrors James Sirius’s personality. You get to hang out with him a lot, because he is a very good friend of the Potters, and also because you get on well with Victoire too. He is your favorite partner in crime and when he gets a prank idea to pull on someone in the castle and James Sirius is there to follow him, he basically is unstoppable. Your trio is very well known in Hogwarts when Teddy is still attending because of your creative jokes and pranks, and, to tell the truth, a little feared.

• Even after Teddy leaves Hogwarts, you still are in touch with him and talk a lot via letters. You tell him everything that’s going in Hogwarts, the classes, your friends, your family, gossip about the professors and the students, every little thing that he never would have thought he would miss when he was a student himself. He’s the only person you tell about your Animagus journey, and he’s very impressed because he knows it’s a very advanced form of magic and few wizards are ever capable of doing so. He doesn’t need it, obviously, but he loves hearing stories about your adventures and animal escapades nonetheless. Your letters are always the highlight of his days because he loves hearing from you and James Sirius and you are the closest thing he’s ever had to a brother and a sister. He loves hearing from you, your friends and your handwriting always reminds him of the times when you would spend days scheming jinxes and hexes to traumatize the poor other students.

• During the holidays, instead of staying at Hogwarts that becomes completely empty and dull, you would go back to the city and spend one week with your family and the other with the Potters, who basically adopted you as their second daughter. You love spending days with them because most of the time, the Weasleys and Teddy are there too, and it’s one giant family gathering where everyone knows each other and everyone gets along. You usually take long walks in the countryside with your best friend, trying to catch up the time you’ve spent without talking to each other, laughing and running in the corn fields, laying in the grass and laughing at the clouds that ominously look like McGonagall, or that Malfoy kid, reaching a pond and pushing a fully-clothed Teddy in there, then fleeing from the crime scene under his infuriated shouts… You’re so grateful for your friends and the amazing family that took you under its wing.

Moodboard

bigger version

Playlist

Muse - Knights of Cydonia

Martin Garrix - Virus (How About Now)

Eminem - Not Afraid

The Cab - Angel With A Shotgun

(the playlist & moodboard are mostly TMR related, but I was much more inspired, hope you don’t mind!)

[avaalons]

Chris Evans Fic: The Mom Rule

An anonymous request here!

Can I request Chris is on a date and she lets him know she has a kid, expecting the worst like with some other guys and Chris is totally engaged asking questions and maybe it time skips a little and they have built their relationship and its finally time for Chris to meet the little guy or girl?. Obviously goes amazing cos he has the same mental age as them 😉 lol.

***

It had been going well. Almost too well, and that was making you nervous. Weird, right? Normally people get nervous before a date, or if the date is taking a dramatic nose dive in front of their very eyes. But not you, no. A date going well meant that when you did eventually reveal the truth, you’d just be all the more disappointed when he inevitably walked away and you never heard from him again.

So, you chatted and laughed over a delicious dinner and you sipped your wine carefully, just enough to try and quell the raging ball of nerves taking hold in the pit of your stomach. Your body was on automatic countdown to the moment of implosion and, damnit, you didn’t want to go there.

Maybe you could just… not mention it? Just this once? You felt certain another date was on the cards so what would it hurt to save the news until then?

But you instantly swallowed that thought down. You needed to follow your own set of Mom Rules. It wasn’t fair, to either of them: the gorgeous, funny, affable man sat in front of you, or the beautiful little boy probably now fast asleep at your mom’s house, your adorable son who, as far as you were concerned, the sun rose and set with.

You sighed inwardly and resolved to enjoy the next half hour before you broke the news to Chris over dessert.

***

Chris was… enamoured, he had to admit. The girl - woman - in front of him had been a treat to be with since the moment you sat down. You had been a little late, only enough to make him get slightly twitchy, but had arrived flustered, apologetic, and talking a mile a minute. Traffic had been awful, it had taken forever to get a cab, you had been so worried that he’d have gone by the time you arrived.

He couldn’t help but smile, standing up to take your hand and drop a chaste kiss on your cheek.

‘It doesn’t matter,’ he’d said, 'you’re here now.’

And so the date had begun and Chris found himself losing track of the time more than once. He was positively surprised when his main course was placed on the table in front of him - hadn’t the starter plates just been cleared?! He was enjoying himself. More than he had for a long time, and he’d felt that longed-for click, that moment where you just know you fit together in the universe with another person.

You were just… so at ease. Completely unfazed by him, treating him as if he was just any other guy on the planet, even though there had been considerable planning and preparation prior to this date to avoid being spotted. He didn’t want that to sound arrogant, but he had gotten used to certain reactions over the years. The one you gave was one he didn’t see very often: calm, collected and grounded. He relaxed instantly into your company and it had only got better from there.

Every person you met in the world was a piece of a jigsaw puzzle, and although some pieces didn’t fit together, some did very easily indeed.

***

You could see the server carrying dessert over in your peripheral vision and you willed him more than anything to drop the plates, accidentally give them to another couple, anything at all that would stop them arriving at the table. Because that was your rule: you give it until dessert and if it’s going well and a another date seems likely, you take a deep breath and spill the beans.

Usually there would be a look of surprise and a slight fall in the face, and the conversation never really picks up again after that. Occasionally, a guy has pretended, or convinced themselves maybe, that they didn’t mind, that they were totally cool with kids, but the truth always, always eventually revealed itself. Luckily, it was always long before you’d ever suggested introducing him to your son.

And now, there was your chocolate soufflé. You looked at it sadly, knowing just how delicious it was going to be but how bittersweet the taste. Picking up your dessert spoon, you slowly pierced the top, letting out the steam and gathering a small spoonful before bringing it to your lips. You idly collected another spoonful, letting your mind wander and managing to simply push your dessert around its ramekin.

'Everything okay?’ Chris’ voice brought you from your reverie, 'Do you not like your dessert?’

Your gaze snapped back to his and you tried a smile, 'It’s delicious really. I just…’

Chris raised a patient eyebrow, 'You just…?’

You sighed and set your spoon down gently, placing your hands in your lap, 'Listen, I have something I need to tell you.’

His expression was immediately serious and guarded and you could see his gaze minutely flicker to the entrance, probably planning his escape route. He gave a short, nervous bark of a laugh and gestured towards the bar with his thumb.

'Should I be ordering a scotch for this?’

You gave what you hoped was an encouraging smile, 'No, no, I just… there’s no easy way of saying this so I’m just going to come out with it. I… I’m a mom. I have a kid. A son actually. So… yeah. There’s that…’

You had shrugged and your gaze had dropped to your hands on the word 'mom’, your thumbs nervously circling each other. There is was. Out there in the open. And you couldn’t take the words back now. But it was for the best. There was no point drawing out the inevitable.

When you heard nothing for an uncomfortable length of time, you quickly glanced upwards to try and gauge his reaction. He looked amused and… relieved?

'Is that all? I mean, all you need to tell me?’

You could feel your brow knitting together in confusion.

'Yes…? You’re not… it doesn’t matter to you?’ You could barely believe it. Where was the other shoe and when would it drop?

He sat back in his chair, relaxed and open.

'Well, no. I mean, of course your child matters. But you being a mom doesn’t change… anything here,’ he gestured with his hand between the two of you, 'I was expecting you to tell me you’d set me up for the paps and had suddenly gained a conscience or… that we’d slept together in high school and I didn’t remember or something.’

You knew he was joking but you still couldn’t get past the fact that he didn’t care. Your voice was quiet but incredulous and you were sure you looked like the dumbest person alive but this… was not what you were expecting. In any way.

'It doesn’t bother you?’

'Why would it? I always thought I’d have had my own kids by now, if I’m being completely honest.’

'Huh. I’m just… not used to this reaction I guess. A lot of guys… lose interest when I tell them. So I started doing this. Following my mom rule. Gauging whether another date was on the cards by the time dessert came out and if not, I’d stay quiet. If it seemed likely, I’d break the news and prepare myself to get ghosted.’

'Ghosted?’

'Yeah, like contact just dies out gradually until they just seem like they’ve disappeared off the face of the earth.’

Chris’ brow shot up, 'People do that?!’

You reached for your wine glass, feeling lighter than ever, 'Not been on the normal people dating scene for a while, huh?’

He was bashful, 'No, uh, it doesn’t tend to work out too well. Usually.’

'Thanks for clarifying,’ you teased him and tipped your glass towards him in acknowledgement. 'So, I feel dumb now. For making that such a big deal.’

'Well, precedent didn’t make you very hopeful so don’t worry about it. So tell me: what’s his name? How old is he? You got a picture?’

You smiled. It was a revelation.

***

'You’re sure about this? Really sure?’ you asked him for the millionth time, your ear pressed to your cellphone.

'Yes, I’m really, really sure. I swear. Now will you stop freaking out? I’m not nervous at all, but you’re making me nervous,’ Chris’ deep voice filtered through your speaker. He sounded further away than usual and you knew he was using the hands free in his car.

'Okay, okay,’ you breathed, 'I’m not freaking out, I swear. This is going to be fine. He’s going to adore you, you’re going to adore him.

'Precisely. Now go, I’m nearly at your house.’

'See you in a few minutes,’ you hung up just as the subject of your phone call came barrelling around the corner, toy rocket in hand, making zoom-zoom noises as he went. He smashed straight into you, not looking where he was going and fell down on to his bottom.

'Whoops! Up we get!’ You said quickly, pulling him to his feet before he had chance to start crying from the shock, 'You’re okay, just a little fall on your bum!’

He blinked, as if deciding in his three year old brain what his reaction should. He eventually settled on not crying, and held his arms up for you to pick him up. You bounced him on your hip and he swayed his rocket around in the air now that he was up higher.

'Now Ollie, we’ve got a friend coming to visit us today, remember?’

Ollie nodded, still swooping his rocket through the air, just as the doorbell rang. You started slightly, even though you’d been expecting it and walked towards the front door. Ollie squirmed to be put down, his independent streak back with a vengeance, but as soon as you opened the door, he hid behind your legs.

And there was Chris, smiling and relaxed as ever, and your heart skipped what felt like several beats.

'Hi,’ you breathed, stepping back slightly to let him in, Ollie moving with you.

'Hi,’ he replied, stepping through the door, not taking his eyes from your face. It felt so weird not to kiss him hello, but you agreed that you wouldn’t do anything in front of Ollie until he’d gotten used to Chris’ presence. This was all about making sure Ollie was comfortable so you were holding back.

'Ollie, this is Chris, our friend who is visiting us today. Remember we just spoke about him?’

***

Chris looked down to see a small head of fine, fair hair peeking from around your legs shyly. He immediately sank to the floor, crouching so that he was on Ollie’s level.

'Hi Ollie, its nice to meet you. Your mommy has told me so many good things about you.’

Ollie darted back behind your legs, giggling nervously.

'Come on Ol,’ you encouraged, 'come out and say hi. Why don’t you show Chris your rocket?’

'Oh my goodness, have you got a rocket?’ Chris spoke animatedly, getting Ollie’s attention again. It was his favourite toy and he loved showing it off, 'Well guess what, I brought my space rocket too.’

And although you knew you shouldn’t have been too surprised, you were a little bit when Chris produced a toy space rocket from behind his back, just different enough from Ollie’s to make him want to investigate. So he took a few halting steps towards Chris, rocket in hand, as Chris held the toy out to him.

'Well I can see that your rocket is really cool. What colour is the tip of yours?’

'Blue!’ The answer burst forth from the little boy, excited to be able to talk about his favourite thing.

'And what colour’s mine?’

'Red!’ Ollie told Chris proudly, pointing at Chris’ rocket.

'Wow, aren’t you clever?!’ Chris told him and he beamed back, 'Would you like to play with my rocket for a little while?’

Ollie nodded and hesitantly took the toy from Chris’ hand as he offered it to him. As soon as he had it in his grip, he was off through the house, zooming the two toys around as he went.

Chris stood up and gave you a quick kiss against your smiling cheek now that Ollie was off running around the kitchen.

'What did I tell you? It was all going to be fine,’ Chris said triumphantly.

'All right, baby whisperer!’ you rolled your eyes, shoving him lightly against his shoulder, 'How did you even know about the rocket?’

'You told me about it one time. I do listen to you when you talk, you know?’ He threw an arm around your shoulders, tucking you in close to his body.

'You know he’ll be begging for you to play with him and those rockets in about ten minutes time?’ You warned him, a palm against his warm chest.

'That’s what I’m hoping for,’ he said quietly against your hair, 'Come on, let’s go see what he’s up to.’

And with that, Chris lead you through to the kitchen where you could hear Ollie’s toddling footsteps running around on the floorboards.

He was a natural, you thought to yourself with a smile, and, fingers crossed, this might just all work out.